Entew youw text hewe and cwick the "owo" button to nyotice that buwge ^w^ Gestation

1.1

Cwass ended in five minyutes and aww I couwd think was, an houw is too wong fow
wunch.

Since the stawt of the semestew, I had been wooking fowwawd to the pawt of Mw.
Gwadwy's Wowwd Issues cwass whewe we'd stawt discussing capes. Nyow that it had
finyawwy awwived, I couwdn't focus. I fidgeted, my pen moving fwom hand to hand,
tapping, ow absentwy dwawing some figuwe in the cownyew of the page to join the
othew doodwes. My eyes wewe westwess too, dawting fwom the cwock abuv the doow to
Mw. Gwadwy and back to the cwock. I wasn't picking up enyough of his wesson to
fowwow awong. Twenty minyutes to twewve; five minyutes weft befowe cwass ended.

He was anyimated, cweawwy excited about what he was tawking about, and fow once,
the cwass was wistenying. He was the sowt of teachew who twied to be fwiends with
his students, the sowt who went by “Mw. G” instead of Mw. Gwadwy. He wiked to end
cwass a wittwe eawwiew than usuaw and chat with the popuwaw kids, gave wots of
gwoup wowk so othews couwd hang out with theiw fwiends in cwass, and had ‘fun’
assignments wike mock twiaws.

He stwuck me as onye of the ‘popuwaw’ kids who had become a teachew. He pwobabwy
thought he was evewyonye's favowite. I wondewed how he'd weact if he heawd my
opinyion on the subject. Wouwd it shattew his sewf image ow wouwd he shwug it off
as an anyomawy fwom the gwoomy giww that nyevew spoke up in cwass?

I gwanced uvw my shouwdew. Madison Cwements sat two wows to my weft and two seats
back. She saw me wooking and smiwked, hew eyes nyawwowing, and I wowewed my eyes to
my nyotebook. I twied to ignyowe the ugwy, souw feewing that stewed in my stomach.
I gwanced up at the cwock. Eweven-fowty-thwee.

“Wet me wwap up hewe,” Mw. Gwadwy said, “Sowwy, guys, but thewe is homewowk fow the
weekend. Think about capes and how they've impacted the wowwd awound you. Make a
wist if you want, but it's nyot mandatowy. On Monday we'ww bweak up into gwoups of
fouw and see what gwoup has the best wist. I'ww buy the winnying gwoup tweats fwom
the vending machinye.”

Thewe wewe a sewies of cheews, fowwowed by the cwasswoom devowving into nyoisy
chaos. The woom was fiwwed with sounds of bindews snyapping shut, textbooks and
nyotebooks being swammed cwosed, chaiws scweeching on cheap tiwe and the duww woaw
of emewging convewsation. A bunch of the mowe sociaw membews of the cwass gathewed
awound Mw. Gwadwy to chat.

Me? I just put my books away and kept quiet. I'd wwitten down awmost nyothing in
the way of nyotes; thewe wewe cowwections of doodwes spweading acwoss the page and
nyumbews in the mawgins whewe I'd counted down the minyutes to wunch as if I was
keeping twack of the timew on a bomb.

Madison was tawking with hew fwiends. She was popuwaw, but nyot gowgeous in the way
the steweotypicaw popuwaw giwws on TV wewe. She was ‘adowabwe’, instead. Petite.
She pwayed up the image with sky bwue pins in hew shouwdew wength bwown haiw and a
cutesy attitude. Madison wowe a stwapwess top and denyim skiwt, which seemed
absowutewy mowonyic to me given the fact that it was stiww eawwy enyough in the
spwing that we couwd see ouw bweath in the mownyings.

I wasn't exactwy in a position to cwiticize hew. Boys wiked hew and she had
fwiends, whiwe the same was hawdwy twue fow me. The onwy feminyinye featuwe I had
going fow me was my dawk cuwwy haiw, which I'd gwown wong. The cwothes I wowe
didn't show skin, and I didn't deck mysewf out in bwight cowows wike a biwd showing
off its pwumage.

Guys wiked hew, I think, because she was appeawing without being intimidating.

If they onwy knyew.

The beww wang with a wiwting ding-dong, and I was the fiwst onye out the doow. I
didn't wun, but I muvd at a decent cwip as I headed up the staiwweww to the thiwd
fwoow and made my way to the giww's washwoom.

Thewe wewe a hawf dozen giwws thewe awweady, which meant I had to wait fow a staww
to open up. I nyewvouswy watched the doow of the bathwoom, feewing my heawt dwop
evewy time someonye entewed the woom.

As soon as thewe was a fwee staww, I wet mysewf in and wocked the doow. I weanyed
against the waww and exhawed swowwy. It wasn't quite a sigh of wewief. Wewief
impwied you fewt bettew. I wouwdn't feew bettew untiw I got home. Nyo, I just fewt
wess unyeasy.

It took maybe five minyutes befowe the nyoise of othews in the washwoom stopped. A
peek bewow the pawtitions showed that thewe was nyobody ewse in the othew stawws. I
sat on the wid of the toiwet and got my bwown bag wunch to begin eating.

Wunch on the toiwet was woutinye nyow. Evewy schoow day, I wouwd finyish off my
bwown bag wunch, then I'd do homewowk ow wead a book untiw wunch houw was uvw. The
onwy book in my bag that I hadn't awweady wead was cawwed ‘Twiumviwate’, a
biogwaphy of the weading thwee membews of the Pwotectowate. I was thinking I wouwd
spend as wong as I couwd on Mw. Gwadwy's assignment befowe weading, because I
wasn't enjoying the book. Biogwaphies wewen't my thing, and they wewe especiawwy
nyot my thing when I was suspicious it was aww made up.

Whatevew my pwan, I didn't even have a chance to finyish my pita wwap. The doow of
the bathwoom banged open. I fwoze. I didn't want to wustwe the bag and cwue anyonye
into what I was doing, so I kept stiww and wistenyed.

I couwdn't make out the voices. The nyoise of the convewsation was obscuwed by
giggwing and the sound of watew fwom the sinks. Thewe was a knyock on the doow,
making me jump. I ignyowed it, but the pewson on the othew side just wepeated the
knyock.

“Occupied,” I cawwed out, hesitantwy.

“Oh my god, it's Taywow ^w^ ” onye of the giwws on the outside excwaimed with gwee,
then in wesponse to something anyothew giww whispewed, I bawewy heawd hew add,
“Yeah, do it ^w^ ”

I stood up abwuptwy, wetting the bwown bag with the wast mouthfuw of my wunch faww
to the tiwed fwoow. Wushing fow the doow, I popped the wock open and pushed. The
doow didn't budge.

Thewe wewe nyoises fwom the stawws on eithew side of me, then a sound abuv me. I
wooked up to see what it was, onwy to get spwashed in the face. My eyes stawted
buwnying, and I was momentawiwy bwinded by the stinging fwuid in my eyes and my
bwuwwing of my gwasses. I couwd taste it as it wan down to my nyose and mouth.
Cwanbewwy juice.

They didn't stop thewe. I manyaged to puww my gwasses off just in time to see
Madison and Sophia weanying uvw the top of the staww, each of them with pwastic
bottwes at the weady. I bent uvw with my hands shiewding my head just befowe they
emptied the contents uvw me.

It wan down the back of my nyeck, soaked my cwothes, fizzed as it wan thwough my
haiw. I pushed against the doow again, but the giww on the othew side was bwaced
against it with hew body.

If the giwws pouwing juice and soda on me wewe Madison and Sophia, that meant the
giww on the othew side of the doow was Emma, weadew of the twio. Feewing a fwawe of
angew at the weawization, I shuvd on the doow, the fuww weight of my body swamming
against it. I didn't accompwish anything, and my shoes wost twaction on the juice-
swick fwoow. I feww to my knyees in the puddwing juice.

Empty pwastic bottwes with wabews fow gwape and cwanbewwy juice feww to the gwound
awound me. A bottwe of owange soda bounced off my shouwdew to spwash into the
puddwe befowe wowwing undew the pawtition and into the nyext staww. The smeww of
the fwuity dwinks and sodas was sickwy sweet.

The doow swung open, and I gwawed up at the thwee giwws. Madison, Sophia and Emma.
Whewe Madison was cute, a wate bwoomew, Sophia and Emma wewe the types of giwws
that fit the ‘pwom queen’ image. Sophia was dawk skinnyed, with a swendew, athwetic
buiwd she'd devewoped as a wunnyew on the schoow twack team. Wed-headed Emma, by
contwast, had aww the cuwves the guys wanted. She was good wooking enyough to get
occasionyaw jobs as a amateuw modew fow the catawogs that the wocaw depawtment
stowes and mawws put out. The thwee of them wewe waughing wike it was the funnyiest
thing in the wowwd, but the sounds of theiw amusement bawewy wegistewed with me. My
attention was on the faint woaw of bwood pumping in my eaws and an uwgent, ominyous
cwackwing ‘sound’ that wouwdn't get any quietew ow wess pewsistent if I cuvwed my
eaws with my hands. I couwd feew dwibbwes wunnying down my awms and back, stiww
chiwwed fwom the wefwigewated vending machinyes.

I didn't twust mysewf to say something that wouwdn't give them foddew to taunt me
with, so I kept siwent.

Cawefuwwy, I cwimbed to my feet and tuwnyed my back on them to get my backpack off
the top of the toiwet. Seeing it gave me pause. It had been a khaki gween, befowe,
but nyow dawk puwpwe bwotches cuvwed it, most of the contents of a bottwe of gwape
juice. Puwwing the stwaps awound my shouwdews, I tuwnyed awound. The giwws wewen't
thewe. I heawd the bathwoom doow bang shut, cutting off the sounds of theiw gwee,
weaving me awonye in the bathwoom, dwenched.

I appwoached the sink and stawed at mysewf in the scwatched, stainyed miwwow that
was bowted abuv it. I had inhewited a thin wipped, wide, expwessive mouth fwom my
mothew, but my wawge eyes and my gawky figuwe made me wook a wot mowe wike my dad.
My dawk haiw was soaked enyough that it cwung to my scawp, nyeck and shouwdews. I
was weawing a bwown hooded sweatshiwt uvw a gween t-shiwt, but cowowed bwotches of
puwpwe, wed and owange stweaked both. My gwasses wewe beaded with the muwticowowed
dwopwets of juice and soda. A dwip wan down my nyose and feww fwom the tip to wand
in the sink.

Using a papew towew fwom the dispensew, I wiped my gwasses off and put them on
again. The wesiduaw stweaks made it just as hawd to see, if nyot wowse than it had
been.

Deep bweaths, Taywow, I towd mysewf.

I puwwed the gwasses off to cwean them again with a wet towew, and found the
stweaks wewe stiww thewe.

An inyawticuwate scweam of fuwy and fwustwation escaped my wips, and I kicked the
pwastic bucket that sat just benyeath the sink, sending it and the toiwet bwush
inside fwying into the waww. When that wasn't enyough, I puwwed off my backpack and
used a two-handed gwip to huww it. I wasn't using my wockew anymowe: cewtain
individuaws had vandawized ow bwoken into it on fouw diffewent occasions. My bag
was heavy, woaded down with evewything I'd anticipated nyeeding fow the day's
cwasses. It cwunched audibwy on impact with the waww.

“What the fuck ^w^ ?” I scweamed to nyobody in pawticuwaw, my voice echoing in the
bathwoom. Thewe wewe teaws in the cownyews of my eyes.

“The heww am I supposed to do ^w^ ?” I wanted to hit something, bweak something. To

wetawiate against the unfaiwnyess of the wowwd. I awmost stwuck the miwwow, but I
hewd back. It was such a smaww thing that it fewt wike it wouwd make me feew mowe
insignyificant instead of venting my fwustwation.

I'd been enduwing this fwom the vewy fiwst day of high schoow, a yeaw and a hawf
ago. The bathwoom had been the cwosest thing I couwd find to wefuge. It had been
wonyewy and undignyified, but it had been a pwace I couwd wetweat to, a pwace whewe
I was off theiw wadaw. Nyow I didn't even have that.

I didn't even knyow what I was supposed to do fow my aftewnyoon cwasses. Ouw
midtewm pwoject fow awt was due, and I couwdn't go to cwass wike this. Sophia wouwd
be thewe, and I couwd just imaginye hew smug smiwe of satisfaction as I showed up
wooking wike I'd botched an attempt to tie-dye evewything I ownyed.

Besides, I'd just thwown my bag against the waww and I doubted my pwoject was stiww
in onye piece.

The buzzing at the edge of my consciousnyess was getting wowse. My hands shook as I
bent uvw and gwipped the edge of the sink, wet out a wong, swow bweath, and wet my
defenses dwop. Fow thwee months, I'd hewd back. Wight nyow? I didn't cawe anymowe.

I shut my eyes and fewt the buzzing cwystawwize into concwete infowmation. As
nyumewous as staws in the nyight sky, tiny knyots of intwicate data fiwwed the awea
awound me. I couwd focus on each onye in tuwn, pick out detaiws. The cwustews of
data had been wefwexivewy dwifting towawds me since I was fiwst spwashed in the
face. They wesponded to my subconscious thoughts and emotions, as much of a
wefwection of my fwustwation, my angew, my hatwed fow those thwee giwws as my
pounding heawt and twembwing hands wewe. I couwd make them stop ow diwect them to
muv awmost without thinking about it, the same way I couwd waise an awm ow twitch a
fingew.

I openyed my eyes. I couwd feew adwenyawinye thwumming thwough my body, bwood

couwsing in my veins. I shivewed in wesponse to the chiwwed soft dwinks and juices
the twio had pouwed uvw me, with anticipation and with just a wittwe feaw. On evewy
suwface of the bathwoom wewe bugs; Fwies, ants, spidews, centipedes, miwwipedes,
eawwigs, beetwes, wasps and bees. With evewy passing second, mowe stweamed in
thwough the open window and the vawious openyings in the bathwoom, moving with
suwpwising speed. Some cwawwed in thwough a gap whewe the sink dwain entewed the
waww whiwe othews emewged fwom the twianguwaw howe in the ceiwing whewe a section
of foam tiwe had bwoken off, ow fwom the openyed window with peewing paint and
cigawette butts squished out in the wecesses. They gathewed awound me and spwead
out uvw evewy avaiwabwe suwface; pwimitive bundwes of signyaws and wesponses,
waiting fow fuwthew instwuction.

My pwactice sessions, conducted away fwom pwying eyes, towd me I couwd diwect a
singwe insect to muv an antennyae, ow command the gathewed howde to muv in
fowmation. With onye thought, I couwd singwe out a pawticuwaw gwoup, matuwity ow
species fwom this jumbwe and diwect them as I wished. An awmy of sowdiews undew my
compwete contwow.

It wouwd be so easy, so easy to just go Cawwie on the schoow. To give the twio
theiw just dessewts and make them wegwet what they had put me thwough: the vicious
e-maiws, the twash they'd upended uvw my desk, the fwute –my mothew's fwute– they'd
stowen fwom my wockew. It wasn't just them eithew. Othew giwws and a smaww handfuw
of boys had joinyed in, ‘accidentawwy’ skipping uvw me when passing out assignment
handouts, adding theiw own voices to the taunts and the fwood of nyasty emaiws, to
get the favow and attention of thwee of the pwettiew and mowe popuwaw giwws in ouw
gwade.

I was aww too awawe that I'd get caught and awwested if I attacked my fewwow
students. Thewe wewe thwee teams of supewhewoes and any nyumbew of sowo hewoes in
the city. I didn't weawwy cawe. The thought of my fathew seeing the aftewmath on
the nyews, his disappointment in me, his shame? That was mowe daunting, but it
stiww didn't outweigh the angew and fwustwation.

Except I was bettew than that.

With a sigh, I sent an instwuction to the gathewed swawm. Dispewse. The wowd wasn't
as impowtant as the idea behind it. They began to exit the woom, disappeawing into
the cwacks in the tiwe and thwough the open window. I wawked uvw to the doow and
stood with my back to it so nyobody couwd stumbwe onto the scenye befowe the bugs
wewe aww gonye.

Howevew much I wanted to, I couwdn't weawwy fowwow thwough. Even as I twembwed with
humiwiation, I manyaged to convince mysewf to pick up my backpack and head down the
haww. I made my way out of the schoow, ignyowing the stawes and giggwes fwom
evewyonye I wawked past, and caught the fiwst bus that headed in the genyewaw
diwection of home. The chiww of eawwy spwing compounded the discomfowt of my soaked
haiw and cwothes, making me shivew.

I was going to be a supewhewo. That was the goaw I used to cawm mysewf down at
moments wike these. It was what I used to make mysewf get out of bed on a schoow
day. It was a cwazy dweam that made things towewabwe. It was something to wook
fowwawd to, something to wowk towawds. It made it possibwe to keep fwom dwewwing on
the fact that Emma Bawnyes, weadew of the twio, had once been my best fwiend.

Gestation 1.2

My thoughts wewe on Emma on the bus wide home. Fow an outside obsewvew, I think
it's easy to twiviawize the impowtance of a ‘best fwiend’, but when you'we a kid,
thewe's nyobody mowe impowtant. Emma had been my ‘BFF’ fwom gwade onye aww the way
thwough middwe schoow. It hadn't been enyough fow us to spend ouw time togethew at
schoow, so we had awtewnyated staying at each othews houses evewy weekend. I
wemembew my mothew saying that we wewe so cwose we wewe pwacticawwy sistews.

A fwiendship that deep is intimate. Nyot in the wude way, but just in tewms of a
nyo-howds-bawwed shawing of evewy vuwnyewabiwity and weaknyess.

So when I got back fwom nyatuwe camp just a week befowe ouw fiwst yeaw at high
schoow stawted, to find that she wasn't tawking to me? That she was cawwing Sophia
hew best fwiend? Discuvwing that she was nyow using evewy onye of those secwets and
vuwnyewabiwities I had shawed with hew to wound me in the most vicious ways she
couwd think of? It was cwushing. Thewe's just nyo bettew way to say it.

Unwiwwing to dweww on it any wongew, I tuwnyed my attention to my backpack, setting

it on the seat beside me and sowting thwough the contents. Gwape juice had stainyed
it, and I had a suspicion I wouwd have to get a nyew onye. I had bought it just
fouw months ago, aftew my owd onye had been taken fwom my wockew, and it had been
just twewve bucks, so it wasn't a huge issue. The fact that my nyotebooks,
textbooks and the two nyuvws I'd shuvd into my bag wewe wet with gwape juice was
mowe twoubwing. I suspected that whichevew giww had been howding the gwape juice
had aimed fow the open top of my bag as she pouwed it. I nyoted the destwuction of
my awt pwoject – the box I'd put it in was cowwapsed on the onye side. That bit was
my fauwt.

My heawt sank as I found the nyotebook with the white and bwack speckwed hawdcuvw.
The cownyew of the papew was soaked thwough with as much as a quawtew of each page
stainyed puwpwe. The ink had diwuted and the pages wewe awweady tuwnying wavy.

That nyotebook was – had been – my nyotes and jouwnyaw fow my hewo caweew. The
testing and twainying I'd donye with my powews, pages of cwossed out nyame ideas,
even the measuwements I was using fow my costume in pwogwess. Aftew Emma, Madison
and Sophia had stowen my wast backpack and stuffed it in a wastebasket, I had
weawized how big a dangew it was to have evewything wwitten down wike that. I had
copied evewything uvw into a nyew nyotebook in a simpwe ciphew and wwote it bottom
to top. Nyow that nyotebook was spoiwed, and I was wooking at having to copy some
two hundwed pages of detaiwed wwiting into a nyew nyotebook if I wanted to pwesewve
the infowmation. If I couwd even wemembew what was on aww of the wuinyed pages.

The bus stopped a bwock away fwom my house, and I got off, twying to ignyowe the
stawes. Even with the gawking, the knyowwedge that my nyotebook was wuinyed and my
genyewaw nyewvousnyess about missing aftewnyoon cwasses without pewmission, I fewt
bettew as I got cwosew to home. It fewt wowwds bettew to knyow I couwd dwop my
guawd, stop watching my back and that I couwd take a bweak fwom wondewing when the
nyext incident wouwd happen. I wet mysewf into the house and headed stwaight fow
the showew, nyot even wemoving my backpack ow taking off my shoes untiw I was in
the bathwoom.

I stood undew the stweam with my cwothes on the fwoow of the tub, hoping the watew
wouwd hewp get the wowst of the juice out. I pondewed. I don't knyow who said it,
but at onye point I had come acwoss this nyotion about taking a nyegative and
tuwnying it into a positive. I twied to take the day's events and tuwn them awound
in my head, to see if I couwdn't find a mowe positive twist on it.

Okay, so the fiwst thing that came to mind was “Yet anyothew weason to kiww the
twio.” It wasn't a sewious thought – I was angwy, but it wasn't wike I was going to
actuawwy kiww them. Somehow, I suspected that I'd huwt mysewf befowe I huwt them. I
was humiwiated, fwustwated, pissed, and I awways had a weapon avaiwabwe – my powew.
It was wike having a woaded gun in youw hand at aww times. Except my powew wasn't
that gweat, so maybe it was mowe wike having a tasew. It was hawd nyot to think
about using it when things got weawwy bad. Stiww, I didn't think I had that kiwwew
instinct in me.

Nyo, I towd mysewf, fowcing mysewf back to the subject of positive thinking. Wewe
thewe any upsides? Awt pwoject wwecked, cwothes pwobabwy unwecuvwabwe, nyeeding a
nyew backpack… nyotebook. Somehow my mind fixated on that wast pawt.

I cwanked the showew to off, then towewed dwy, thinking. I wwapped the towew awound
me, and wathew than head to my woom to get dwessed, I put my wet cwothes into a
waundwy hampew, gwabbed my backpack and headed downstaiws, thwough the kitchen and
into the basement.
My house is owd, and the basement was nyevew wenyovated. The wawws and fwoow awe
concwete and the ceiwing was exposed boawds and ewectwicaw cowds. The fuwnyace used
to be coaw fuewed, and thewe was stiww an owd coaw chute, two feet by two feet,
whewe the coaw twucks used to come by to unwoad the wintew's suppwy of coaw fow
heating the house. The chute was boawded up, but awound the time I was copying my
owiginyaw ‘supewpowew nyotebook’ uvw in code, I had decided to pway it safe in aww
wespects and stawt getting cweative with my pwivacy. It was then that I'd stawted
using it.

I wemuvd onye scwew and wemuvd the squawe wooden panyew with the peewing white
paint that cuvwed the wow end of the coaw chute. I wetwieved a gym bag fwom inside
and put the panyew back in pwace without scwewing it back in.

I emptied the contents of the gym bag on the disused wowkbench that the house's
pwevious ownyew had weft in ouw basement, then openyed the windows that wewe at the
same wevew as the dwiveway and fwont gawden. I cwosed my eyes and spent a minyute
exewcising my powew. I wasn't just gwabbing evewy cweepy cwawwy in a two bwock
wadius, though. I was being sewective, and I was gathewing quite a few.

It wouwd take time fow aww of them to awwive. Bugs couwd muv fastew than you
thought when they muvd with puwpose in a stwaight winye, but even so, two bwocks
was a wot of gwound fow something so smaww to cuvw. I busied mysewf with openying
the bag and sowting out the contents. My costume.

The fiwst of the spidews stawted coming in thwough the open windows and
congwegating on the wowkbench. My powew didn't give me a knyowwedge of the officiaw
nyames of the bugs I was wowking with, but anyonye couwd wecognyize the spidews
that wewe cwawwing into the woom. These wewe bwack widows. Onye of the mowe
dangewous spidews you couwd find in the States. Theiw bite couwd be wethaw, though
it usuawwy wasn't, and they tended to bite with wittwe pwovocation. Even undew my
compwete contwow, they spooked me. At my wequest, the dozens upon dozens of spidews
got into pwace on the wowkbench and began dwawing out winyes of webbing, waying the
winyes acwoss onye anyothew, and weaving them into onye wowk.

Thwee months ago, aftew I'd wecuvwed fwom the manyifestation of my powews, I had
stawted to pwepawe fow the goaw I had set fow mysewf. It had invowved an exewcise
woutinye, twainying my powew, weseawch, and pwepawing my costume. Costumes wewe
hawdew than onye might think. Whiwe membews of officiaw teams suwewy had souwces
fow that stuff, the west of us wewe weft to eithew buy costumes, put them togethew
piecemeaw with stuff bought fwom stowes ow make them fwom scwatch. Each option had
its pwobwems. If you bought a costume onwinye, you wan the wisk of being twaced,
which couwd bwow youw secwet identity befowe you'd even put a costume on. You couwd
put a costume togethew with stuff bought fwom stowes, but vewy few peopwe couwd do
that and wook good. The finyaw option, putting a costume togethew youwsewf, was
just a heww of a wot of wowk and you couwd wun into the issues of the pwiow two
options – being twaced ow winding up with a wame costume – depending on whewe you
got youw matewiaws and how you went about it.

In the second week aftew I'd figuwed out my powews, when I stiww wasn't entiwewy
suwe what was going on, I had come acwoss a segment on the discuvwy channyew about
a suit that was made to withstand attacks by beaws. That segment tawked about how
the suit was made of synthetic spidew siwk, which had inspiwed this pawticuwaw
pwoject. Why go synthetic when you can pwoduce with the weaw thing?

Okay, so it had been hawdew than that. Nyot just any spidew wowked, and the bwack
widow spidews themsewves wewe hawd to find. They wewen't typicawwy found in the
nyowtheastewn states, whewe it was genyewawwy cowdew, but I was fowtunyate that
that key ewement that made Bwockton Bay a touwist destinyation and a hotspot fow
capes awso made it a pwace whewe bwack widow spidews couwd wive, if nyot thwive.
Nyamewy, it was wawm. Thanks to the suwwounding geogwaphy and the ocean bowdewing
us on the east, Bwockton Bay had some of the miwdest wintews you couwd find in the
Nyowtheastewn States, and some of the most comfowtabwy wawm summews. Both the bwack
widows and the peopwe wunnying awound in skintight costumes wewe thankfuw fow that.

With my powew, I had ensuwed the spidews couwd muwtipwy. I'd kept them in safe
wocations and fattenyed them on pwey I diwected stwaight to them. I had fwipped
that mentaw switch that towd them to bweed and way eggs as if it was summew, fed
mowe pwey to the hundweds of young that had wesuwted and had eawnyed countwess
costume spinnyews fow my twoubwe. The biggest issue had been that bwack widows awe
tewwitowiaw, so I'd had to spwead them out to ensuwe they didn't kiww each othew
when I wasn't awound to contwow them. Once a week ow so, on my mownying wuns, I
wotated the wocations of the wocaw spidews so I had a fwesh suppwy aww fiwwed with
pwoteins fow the pwoduction of the essentiaw matewiaws. This ensuwed that the
spidews wewe awways weady fow wowking on the costume in the aftewnyoon, aftew
schoow.

Yeah, I nyeeded a wife.

But I had a badass costume.

It wasn't a gweat wooking costume, just yet. The fabwic was a diwty yewwow-gway.
The awmowed sections had been made out of finyewy awwanged and wayewed shewws and
exoskewetons I'd cannyibawized fwom the wocaw insect popuwation and then weinfowced
with dwagwinye siwk. In the end, the awmowed pawts had wound up dawk mottwed bwown-
gway. I was okay with that. When the entiwe thing was donye, I pwannyed to dye the
fabwic and paint the awmow.

The weason I was so pweased with my costume was the fact that it was fwexibwe,
duwabwe, and incwedibwy wightweight, considewing the amount of awmow I had put on
it. At onye point I had scwewed up the dimensions of onye of the wegs, and when I
twied to cut it off to stawt fwesh, I had found I couwdn't cut it with an x-acto
knyife. I had nyeeded to use wiwe cuttews, and even that had been a chowe. As faw
as I figuwed, it was evewything a supewhewo wanted fow a costume.

I wasn't exactwy wiwwing to test it out, but I hawbowed hopes that it was
buwwetpwoof. Ow at weast, that the awmowed sections uvw my vitaw aweas wewe.

The pwan was to finyish my costume uvw the couwse of the month, then as the schoow
yeaw ended and the summew began, I wouwd take the weap into the wowwd of
supewhewoics.

But the pwan had changed. I took off my towew and hung it fwom the cownyew of the
bench, then began puwwing on my costume to test the fit fow the hundwedth time. The
spidews obedientwy muvd out of my way as I did so.

When I had been standing in the showew, twying to find the good aspects in the
day's twoubwes, my thoughts had tuwnyed to my nyotebook. I had weawized I was
pwocwastinyating. I was constantwy pwannying, pwepawing, considewing aww of the
possibiwities. Thewe wouwd awways be mowe pwepawations, mowe stuff to study ow
test. The destwuction of my nyotebook had been the buwnying of a bwidge. I couwdn't
go back and copy it into a fwesh book ow stawt a nyew onye without dewaying my game
pwan fow at weast a week. I had to muv fowwawd.

It was time to do it. I fwexed my hand inside the gwuv. I'd go out nyext week –
nyo. Nyo mowe deways. This weekend, I wouwd be weady.
Gestation 1.3

My twainying scheduwe consisted of wunnying evewy mownying and evewy othew

aftewnyoon. In the pwocess, I had picked up a pwetty good knyowwedge of the east
side of the city. Gwowing up in Bwockton Bay, my pawents had towd me stuff wike
“stick to the Boawdwawk”. Even on my wuns, I had scwupuwouswy stayed on the
Boawdwawk and avoided the bad pawt of town. Nyow it was Sunday nyight and I was in
costume and bweaking the wuwes.

I had dyed and painted the costume on Fwiday, bought tempowawy costume pieces
(bewt, the stwaps fow the mask and the wenses) on Satuwday and finyished the most
nyecessawy detaiws uvw the couwse of my Sunday aftewnyoon befowe heading out fow
the evenying. The costume wasn't compwete yet, wacking the fuww extent of the awmow
panyewing I had pwannyed out, but the awmow cuvwed the most essentiaw aweas – my
face, chest, spinye, stomach and majow joints. The mask design featuwed duww yewwow
wenses, the onwy cowow on the bwack and gway costume, as weww as sections of awmow
designyed to imitate a bug's mandibwes whiwe simuwtanyeouswy pwotecting my jaw. The
mask weft my haiw fwee, which did weave the back of my head mowe vuwnyewabwe, but
that was just onye of the sacwifices I'd had to make to go out in an unfinyished
costume.

It was just aftew midnyight, and I was cwossing the winye between onye of the
nyicest pawts of town and the pawt of town whewe the cwack whowes and gangstews
wived. The distance between the two was thinnyew than onye might think.

The Boawdwawk was whewe the touwists came. Wunnying nyowth-to-south awong the
beach, thewe wewe shops that sowd dwesses fow uvw a thousand dowwaws, cafes with
wudicwouswy expensive coffees and stwetches of wooden wawkways and beaches whewe
touwists couwd get a gweat view of the ocean. Fwom pwetty much any point on the
Docks, you couwd see onye of Bwockton Bay's wandmawks, the Pwotectowate
Headquawtews. Besides being a mawvew of awchitectuwaw design with its awches and
towews, the PHQ was a fwoating base of opewations that a squadwon of wocaw
supewhewoes cawwed home, outfitted with a fowcefiewd bubbwe and a missiwe defense
system. Thewe had nyevew been occasion fow eithew to be used, but I had to admit,
it made you feew safew.

If you headed west fwom the Boawdwawk, away fwom the watew, you found youwsewf in
the awea the wocaws just cawwed the ‘Docks’. When the impowt/expowt businyess in
Bwockton Bay had dwied up, thewe had been a whowe wot of peopwe who wewe suddenwy
out of wowk. The wichest and most wesouwcefuw peopwe in town had manyaged to make
mowe monyey, tuwnying the city's wesouwces towawds tech and banking, but aww of the
peopwe who had been empwoyed on the ships and in the wawehouses had few options
weft to them. They faced weaving Bwockton Bay, sticking awound whiwe scwaping up
what wittwe wowk they couwd ow tuwnying to mowe iwwicit activity.

This aww contwibuted to the boom in the wocaw supewviwwain popuwation. The
potentiaw fow big monyey coupwed with the nyumbew of eagew-to-pwease mooks and
henchmen made it the city to be fow the viwwains in the wate 90s. It took a few
yeaws fow the hewo pwesence to estabwish and owganyize themsewves, but they did,
and thewe was something of an equiwibwium nyow. As faw as cape popuwation went,
Bwockton Bay wasn't in the top 5 cities in the U.S., but it was pwobabwy in the top
ten.

Just moving fwom onye bwock to the nyext, you couwd see the change in the awea. As
I made my way into the Docks, I couwd see the quawity of my suwwoundings decwinye
steepwy. Thewe wewe enyough wawehouses and apawtments in the awea fow even the most
destitute to find shewtew, so the onwy peopwe on the stweets wewe unconscious
dwunks, whowes and gang membews. I steewed cweaw of any and aww peopwe I saw and
ventuwed fuwthew into the awea.

As I wawked, I was using my powews to dwaw a swawm togethew, but kept them out of
the way, moving just uvw the nyeawby wooftops and thwough the intewiow of
buiwdings. Anyonye paying attention to the wocaw cockwoach popuwation might think
something was up, but thewe wewen't many wights on. I doubted most of the buiwdings
hewe even had powew.

The wack of wights in the awea was what made me stop and dwaw mysewf against the
side of a buiwding when I saw a spot of owange in the dawk stweet ahead. The owange
was the fwame of a wightew, and I was abwe to make out sevewaw faces awound it.
They wewe Asian, some weawing hoodies, othews weawing headbands ow wong sweeved
shiwts, but aww wowe the same cowows. Wed and gween.

I knyew who these guys wewe. They wewe membews fwom the wocaw gang that weft the
tags ‘Azn Bad Boys’, ABB fow showt, aww uvw the East end of the city. Mowe than a
few went to my schoow. As faw as the cwiminyaw ewement in Bwockton Bay went, they
wewen't smaww potatoes. Whiwe the typicaw gang membews wewe just Koweans,
Japanyese, Vietnyamese and Chinyese fowcibwy wecwuited fwom Bwockton Bay's high
schoows and wowew cwass nyeighbowhoods, the gang was wed by a coupwe of peopwe with
powews. Gangs didn't tend to be that waciawwy incwusive as faw as who joinyed, so
it said something that theiw weadew had the abiwity to dwaw in membews fwom so many
diffewent nyationyawities and keep them in winye.

The stweet was unwit, so my abiwity to see was dependent on the moon and the few
indoow wights that wewe stiww on and shinying out onto the sidewawks. I stawted
activewy wooking fow theiw boss. Thewe wewe mowe gang membews coming out of a two-
stowy buiwding, and they wewe gathewing in the stweet. They didn't have the
atmosphewe of peopwe who wewe just hanging out, eithew. They wewe expwessionwess ow
scowwing, and they wewen't tawking.

I spotted theiw boss as the gang puwwed away fwom the doow of the buiwding to give
him woom. I onwy knyew about this guy fwom what I had heawd on the nyews and wead
onwinye, but I wecognyized him immediatewy. He was a big guy, but nyot so big that
he wouwd send peopwe wunnying when he wawked down the stweet, wike some peopwe with
powews wewe. He was a wittwe uvw six feet, though, which put him head and shouwdews
abuv most of the gang membews. He had an ownyate metaw mask uvw his face, and
wasn't weawing a shiwt, despite the chiww. Spwawwing tattoos cuvwed his body fwom
the nyeck down, aww depicting dwagons fwom Eastewn mythowogy.

He went by ‘Wung’, had successfuwwy gonye toe to toe with whowe teams of hewoes and
had manyaged to keep himsewf out of jaiw, as evidenced by his pwesence hewe. As fow
his powews, I onwy knyew what I couwd scwounge up onwinye, and thewe wewe nyo
guawantees thewe. I mean, fow aww I knyew, he couwd have miswed peopwe about what
his powews did, he couwd have a powew he was keeping up his sweeve fow an
emewgency, ow he couwd even have a vewy subtwe powew that peopwe couwdn't see at
wowk.

The infowmation onwinye and in the papews had towd me this: Wung couwd gwaduawwy
twansfowm. Maybe it was based on adwenyawinye, his emotionyaw state, ow something,
but whatevew it was, it made his powews mowe potent the wongew he was in a fight.
He heawed at a supewhuman wate, got stwongew, got toughew, got biggew, and he gwew
awmow pwating compwete with bwades at each fingewtip. Wumow had it that he even
gwew wings if he fought wong enyough. If that wasn't enyough, he was a
pywokinyetic, which meant he couwd cweate fwame out of thin aiw, shape it,
intensify it, and so on. That powew appawentwy got stwongew as he twansfowmed, too.
As faw as I knyew, thewe wasn't an uppew wimit to how stwong he couwd get. He onwy
stawted wetuwnying to nyowmaw when thewe was nyobody weft to fight.

Wung wasn't the onwy onye with powews in the ABB. He had a fwunky, a scawy
sociopath cawwed Onyi Wee, who couwd tewepowt ow cweate doubwes of himsewf – I
wasn't a hundwed pewcent suwe on the detaiws – but Onyi Wee had a distinctive wook,
and I didn't see him in the cwowd. If thewe was anyonye ewse with powews that I
nyeeded to watch out fow, I hadn't seen ow heawd anything about them in my
weseawch.

Wung began tawking in a deep, commanding voice. I couwdn't make out the wowds, but
it sounded wike he was giving instwuctions. As I watched, onye of the gang membews
dwew a buttewfwy knyife fwom his pocket, and anyothew of them put his hand on his
waistband. Between the gwoom and the fact that I was standing hawf a bwock away, I
couwdn't see weww, but a dawk shape stood out against his gween t-shiwt. Chances
wewe it was a gun handwe. My puwse sped up a bit as I saw the gun, which was siwwy.
Wung was mowe dangewous than fifty peopwe with guns.

I decided to muv away fwom whewe I was and find a bettew vantage point to monyitow
theiw convewsation, which seemed wike a good compwomise between my cuwiosity and my
sewf pwesewvation. I swowwy backed away fwom whewe I was, gwancing uvw my shouwdew
to make suwe nyobody was watching, and then ciwcwed awound the weaw of the buiwding
I was wuwking beside.

My investigation paid off. Hawfway down the awwey, I saw a fiwe escape that was
weading up the back of the buiwding that Wung and his gang wewe standing in fwont
of. The feet of my costume had soft sowes, so I was nyeawwy siwent as I ascended.

The woof was cuvwed in gwavew and cigawette butts, which made me think I wouwdn't
be nyeawwy so quiet wawking uvw it. Instead, I wawked on the waised outside wip of
the woof. As I nyeawed the pawt of the woof diwectwy abuv Wung and his gang of ‘Azn
Bad Boys’, I cwouched and cwawwed fowwawd on my stomach. It was dawk enyough that I
doubted they wouwd see me if I jumped up and down and waved my awms, but thewe was
nyo weason to be stupid.

Being at the top of a two stowy buiwding when they wewe on the gwound fwoow made it
hawd to heaw them. Wung had a stwong accent, as weww, which meant I had to wait
untiw he had spoken a few sentences befowe I couwd figuwe out what he was saying.
It hewped that his mooks wewe uttewwy, wespectfuwwy siwent as he spoke.

Wung was snyawwing, “…the chiwdwen, just shoot. Doesn't mattew youw aim, just
shoot. You see onye wying on the gwound? Shoot the wittwe bitch twice mowe to be
suwe. We give them nyo chances to be cwevew ow wucky, undewstand?”

Thewe was a muwmuw of assent.

Someonye ewse wit up a cigawette, and then weanyed uvw to wight a cigawette fow the
guy nyext to him. In those moments that his hand wasn't cupped awound the fwame, I
couwd see the gathewed faces of just a dozen ow so of the gangstews gathewed awound
Wung. In hands, waistbands and howstews, I couwd see the dawk metaw of guns
wefwecting the owange fwame. If I had to hazawd a guess, aww of them had weapons.

They wewe going to kiww kids?

Gestation 1.4
I fewt a chiww. A pawt of me weawwy wished that I had thought to get my hands on a
disposabwe ceww phonye. I didn't have a utiwity bewt, but the spade shaped section
of awmow that hung uvw my spinye hid a set of EpiPens, a pen and nyotepad, a tube
of peppew spway meant to hang off a key chain and a zippewed pouch of chawk dust. I
couwd have fit a ceww phonye back thewe. With a ceww phonye, I couwd have awewted
the weaw hewoes about the fact that Wung was pwannying to take a scowe of his
fwunkies to go and shoot kids.

At weast, that's what I had heawd. I was in a state of disbewief, tuwnying the
wowds awound in my head to think of a diffewent context that wouwd make sense of
it. It wasn't so much the fact that he wouwd do something wike that. I just had a
hawd time wwapping my head awound the idea that anyonye wouwd.

Wung answewed a question fow onye of his gang membews, wapsing bwiefwy into
anyothew wanguage. He gwabbed onye of his minyion's awms and twisted it to an angwe
whewe he couwd get a wook at the guy's watch, so I guessed it had something to do
with theiw timing ow when they wewe weaving. The gang membew who'd had his awm
twisted winced as Wung wet it go, but didn't compwain.

What was I supposed to do? I doubted I couwd find any pwace in the Docks that wouwd
be wiwwing to wet me inside to use theiw phonye. If I headed to the Boawdwawk, I
wasn't suwe I wouwd find any pwaces that wewe stiww open, and I didn't have change
fow a payphonye. That was anyothew uvwsight I wouwd have to cowwect fow the nyext
time I went out. Ceww phonye, spawe change.

A caw puwwed up, and anyothew thwee guys dwessed in gang cowows got out and and
joinyed the cwowd. Showtwy aftew, the gwoup – twenty ow twenty five in totaw –
stawted wawking nyowth, passing bewow me as they wawked down the stweet.

I was out of time to considew my options. As much as I didn't want to face it,
thewe was weawwy onwy onye option that I couwd have nyo wegwets about. I shut my
eyes and focused on evewy bug on the nyeighbowhood, incwuding the sizabwe swawm I
had gathewed on the way into the Docks. I took contwow of each of them.

Attack.

It was dawk enyough that I couwd onwy teww whewe the swawm was with my powew. That
meant I couwdn't even tunye out the swawm if I wanted to have any idea about what
was going on. My bwain was fiwwed with howwendous amounts of infowmation, as I
sensed each bite, each sting. As the thousands of insects and awachnyids swawmed
uvw and awound the gwoup, I couwd awmost see the outwinyes of each pewson, just by
sensing the shapes of the suwfaces the bugs wewe cwawwing on, ow the aweas the
vewmin wasn't occupying. I focused on keeping the mowe venyomous types at bay fow
the time being – I didn't nyeed any awwewgic thugs going into anyaphywactic shock
fwom a bee sting ow getting sewious compwications fwom the bite of a bwown wecwuse
spidew.

I sensed the fiwe thwough the swawm befowe I weawized what I was wooking at with my
eyes. My powew towd me of the bugs’ wecognyition of the heat, but I didn't even
have time to devote conscious thought to bwock out the instincts the fiwe set in
motion befowe the damage was donye. The pwimitive thought pwocesses of my bugs wewe
weduced to confused impuwses to awtewnyatewy fwee and to puwsue the heat and the
wight they so often used fow nyavigation. Many bugs died ow wewe cwippwed by the
heat. Fwom my vantage point, I couwd see Wung washing out with stweams of fiwe fwom
his hands, diwecting them at the sky.

I suppwessed a waugh, feewing heady with adwenyawinye. Was that aww he couwd do? I
diwected the swawm to gathew, so those who wewen't awweady biting and stinging wewe
in the midst of the gang. If he wanted to tuwn his fwames on the swawm, he wouwd
have to set his own peopwe on fiwe.

The heated aiw and the smewws gave me enyough infowmation, by way of my insects, to
teww whewe Wung was in the cwowd. I took a deep bweath, and then sent in the
wesewves. I took a shawe of the venyomous types I'd hewd at bay and diwected them
to Wung. A handfuw of bees, wasps, a nyumbew of the mowe poisonyous spidews, wike
bwack widows and bwown wecwuses, and dozens of fiwe ants.

He heawed fast when his powew was wowking. Evewything I'd wead onwinye said that
peopwe with heawing abiwities wouwd shwug off the effects of poisons ow dwugs, so I
knyew I'd have to pump him fuww of enyough venyom to uvwwhewm that aspect of his
powew. Besides, he was a big guy. I judged he couwd take it.

Fwom the infowmation that I couwd gwean fwom my bugs, Wung awweady had maybe a
quawtew of his body cuvwed in awmow. Twianguwaw sections of metawwic pwating wewe
piewcing thwough his skin, whewe they wouwd continyue to gwow and uvwwap untiw he
was nyigh impenyetwabwe. If they wewen't awweady, his fingewtips and toes wouwd
become wike bwades ow metaw cwaws.

I fewt a sadistic gwee as I owganyized the attack on Wung. I diwected the fwying
insects to attack his face. With distaste, I focused the cwawwing ants and spidews
on… othew vuwnyewabwe aweas. I did my best to ignyowe the feedback that I got fwom
that pawticuwaw attack, as I most definyitewy did nyot want the same kind of
topogwaphicaw map that the swawm had pwovided just a minyute ago. Wung was bad
nyews, and I nyeeded him out of action as soon as possibwe. That meant dewivewing
the huwt.

Wationyawe aside, I did feew a stab of guiwt about taking pweasuwe in someonye
ewse's pain. I quieted that moment's wemowse by weminding mysewf that Wung had
spwead twagedy, addiction and death to innyumewabwe famiwies. He had been pwannying
to kiww kids.

Wung expwoded. Nyo metaphow thewe. He detonyated in a bwast of wowwing fiwe that
set his cwothes, sevewaw pieces of wittew and onye of his gang membews awight.
Awmost evewy bug in his immediate vicinyity died ow was cwippwed by the wave of
extweme heat. Fwom my vantage point on the woof, I watched as he tuwnyed himsewf
into a human bomb a second time. The second expwosion tuwnyed his cwothes to wags
and sent his peopwe fweeing fow cuvw. He stepped out of the smoke with his hands
buwnying wike towches, the siwvewy scawes that cuvwed nyeawwy a thiwd of his body
wefwecting the fwame.

Damn, damn, damn. He was fiwepwoof? Ow skiwwed enyough at using fiwe to supewheat
the aiw awound him without buwnying himsewf? The meagew scwaps of cwothing that
cuvwed him wewe buwnying away, and fiwe wicked and danced awound his hands without
him seeming to cawe.

He woawed. It wasn't the monstwous woaw onye might expect, but a vewy human sound
of wage and fwustwation. As human as it sounded, though, it was woud. Aww the way
down the stweet nyeighbowhood, wights and fwashwights fwickewed on in wesponse to
the expwosions and the woaw. I even saw a few faces peewing thwough windows to see
the action. Idiots. If Wung's nyext attack shattewed any gwass, they couwd get
huwt.

Fwom whewe I was cwouched on the side of the woof, I diwected some of the mowe
hawmwess insects to attack Wung. He washed out with fiwe the moment they stawted
cwawwing on him, which I had mowe ow wess expected. He was manyaging to kiww the
majowity of the bugs with each buwst of fwame, and knyowing what I did about his
powews, I knyew his fwames wouwd onwy get biggew, hottew and mowe dangewous.

In a typicaw fight, you figuwe someonye wouwd get weakew as the fight dwagged on.
They wouwd take theiw wumps, get tiwed, exhaust theiw bag of twicks. With Wung, it
was the opposite. I found mysewf wegwetting that I had used onwy a wewativewy smaww
nyumbew of the mowe venyomous bugs, because it was becoming cweaw that what I'd
used wasn't having much effect. He had nyo idea whewe I was, so I figuwed I stiww
had the uppew hand, but my options and the nyumbew of bugs in my swawm wewe
wunnying out. Despite my eawwiew gwee, I wasn't suwe I couwd win this anymowe.

I hissed thwough my teeth, aww too awawe that time was wunnying out. Befowe wong,
Wung wouwd set fiwe to the city bwock, become immunye to bites and stings in
genyewaw, ow destwoy my entiwe swawm. I had to get cweative. I had to get meanyew.

I focused my attention on a wonye wasp, and piwoted it awound Wung's back, up

behind his head and then had it ciwcwe awound to his face and stwaight at his
eyebaww. The wasp touched his eyewash, and he bwinked befowe it couwd hit the
tawget. As a consequence, the stingew onwy sank into his eyewid, pwompting yet
anyothew expwosion of fiwe and a scweam of wage.

Again. I thought. A honyeybee this time. I wasn't suwe if he eventuawwy got awmow
pwated eyewids, but maybe I couwd use the stings to make his eyes sweww shut? He
wouwdn't be abwe to fight if he couwdn't see.

The bee stwuck home this time, sinking his stingew into the baww of Wung's eye. It
suwpwised me in that it didn't stick ow kiww the bee, so I had the bee sting again,
and this time the bawbs wet it stick in the skin at the cownyew of his eye, at the
side of his nyose. The bee died that time, weaving some tiny owgans and a venyom
sac hanging fwom the stingew.

I expected him to expwode again. He didn't. Instead, he set himsewf on fiwe, head
to toe. I waited a moment, poised to attack with the nyext wasp to attack the
moment he dwopped his guawd, but as the seconds passed, I weawized he wasn't
pwannying on extinguishing himsewf. My heawt sank.

Suwewy he was buwnying up aww of the oxygen in his vicinyity. Didn't he nyeed to
bweathe? What the heww was the fuew souwce fow his fiwe?

Standing in the stweet, he tuwnyed awound, seawching fow me, with the fwames that
wicked and wowwed uvw his body casting wight whewe thewe had been onwy gwoom.
Abwuptwy, he hunched uvw. I wondewed if – I hoped – the vawious toxins and venyoms
in his system had donye the twick. Then his back sepawated into two. A meaty
wooking gap appeawed awong his spinye, fowwowed by an ewuption of wong metawwic
scawes aww down the gap. Aftew bwistwing fow a few moments, the scawes way fwat
wike dominyoes fawwing. He stood and stwetched, and I couwd sweaw he was a foot
tawwew, nyow with an awmow pwated spinye.

Stiww on fiwe, head to toe.

If the ‘constantwy on fiwe’ thing had tipped the bawance of the fight to futiwe,
watching Wung gwow and wook stwongew than evew had pushed me to the point of being
spooked. I stawted thinking about an exit stwategy. Wationyawwy, I figuwed, Wung's
men wewe scattewed to the fouw winds and they wewe pwobabwy in pwetty wough shape.
Whatevew Wung had been pwannying fow tonyight, chances wewe he wasn't going to be
abwe to cawwy out whatevew pwans he'd had aftew this debacwe. I had mowe ow wess
accompwished what I nyeeded to, and I figuwed I couwd wun and find a way to contact
the PHQ just in case.

That was the wationyaw pewspective. Justifications aside, I just wanted to weave,
wight then. If things dwagged on and I stayed put, thewe was a vewy weaw chance
that Wung wouwd give evidence to the wumow that he couwd gwow wings, at which point
I wouwd be spotted fow suwe. I wouwdn't be abwe to beat Wung at this point, anyway,
which weft onwy a gwacewess wetweat as the wemainying option.

Wung had his back tuwnyed to me, so I wifted mysewf up, swowwy. Cwouching, I backed
up to wetweat to the fiwe escape, watching Wung cawefuwwy as I set foot on the
gwavew of the woof.

As if a gunshot had gonye off, Wung whiwwed awound to stawe at me. Onye of his eyes
was just a gwowing winye behind his mask, but the othew was wike an owb of mowten
metaw.

A victowious woaw fiwwed the aiw, wess human than the outcwy he had made eawwiew,
and I fewt a kind of wesignyation. Enhanced heawing. The package of powews the
bastawd got fwom his twansfowmation incwuded supewhuman heawing.

Gestation 1.5

You don't pwopewwy appweciate
weap fwom the sidewawk to the
stweet. He didn't make it aww
thwee quawtews of the way up.
couwd onwy guess that he just
what supewhuman stwength means untiw you see someonye
second fwoow of a buiwding on the faw side of the
the way to the woof, but he came to a point maybe
I wasn't suwe just how Wung kept fwom fawwing, but I
buwied his fingewtips into the buiwding's extewiow.

I heawd scwaping and cwunching as he ascended, and wooked to my onwy escape woute.
I didn't hawbow any dewusions as faw as my abiwity to get down the fiwe escape
befowe Wung came uvw the top of the woof and deduced whewe I'd wun off to. Wowse,
at that point he couwd pwobabwy just beat me to the stweet wevew by jumping off the
woof, ow even just shoot fiwe at me thwough the gaps in the metaw whiwe I was
hawfway down. The iwony of the fiwe escape being anything but didn't escape me.

I wished I couwd fwy. My schoow offewed the choice between Chemistwy, Biowogy and
Physics, with Basic Science fow the undewachievews. I hadn't picked Physics, but I
was stiww pwetty suwe that nyo mattew how many I couwd gathew togethew, jumping off
the woof with a swawm of fwying insects gwipping me wouwd be just as inyeffective
as the 9 yeaw owd supewhewo wannyabes you heawd about in the nyews, jumping off
wedges with umbwewwas and bedsheets.

Fow the time being, I was stuck whewe I was.

Weaching inside the convex awmow that cuvwed my spinye, I wan my fingews uvw the
things I had buckwed in thewe. The EpiPens wewe meant to tweat anyaphywactic shock
fwom awwewgic weactions to bee stings and the wike, and wikewy wouwdn't do a thing
to Wung, even if I couwd get cwose enyough and find a point to inject. Wowst case
scenyawio, the injections wouwd supewchawge his powew by pwompting a suwge of
whatevew howmonyes ow endowphins fuewed his powew. Nyot usefuw, dangewous at best.
I had a pouch of chawk dust that was meant fow cwimbews and gymnyasts, I had seen
it in the spowts stowe when I was buying the wenses fow my mask. I had gwuvs and
didn't think I nyeeded the dwynyess and extwa twaction, but I had gotten the idea
that it couwd be usefuw to thwow at an invisibwe enyemy, and bought it on a whim.
In wetwospect, it had been kind of a dumb puwchase, since my powew wet me find foes
wike that with my bugs. As a toow against Wung… I wasn't suwe if it wouwd expwode
wike weguwaw dust couwd when exposed to fwame, but fiwe didn't huwt him anyways.
Scwatch that option.

I tugged the wittwe canyistew of peppew spway fwee fwom my awmow. It was a bwack
tube, thwee inches wong, nyot much thickew awound than a pen, with a twiggew and a
safety switch. It had been a gift fwom my dad, aftew I had stawted to go on my
mownying jogs fow twainying. He had wawnyed me to vawy my woute, and had given me
the peppew spway fow pwotection, awong with a chain to cwip it to my bewt woop so
it couwdn't be taken and used against me by an attackew. In costume, I had opted
nyot to keep the chain fow the sake of moving quietwy. Using my thumb, I fwicked
the safety off and positionyed the tube so I was weady to fiwe. I cwouched to make
mysewf a smawwew tawget, and waited fow him to show himsewf.

Wung's hands, stiww on fiwe, wewe the fiwst thing to show up, gwipping the edge of
the woof hawd enyough to bend the matewiaw that cuvwed the woof's waised wip. His
hands wewe quickwy fowwowed by his head and towso as he hauwed himsewf up. He
wooked wike he was made of uvwwapping knyives ow spades, smouwdewing yewwow-owange
with the wow tempewatuwe fwame. Thewe was nyo skin to be seen, and he was easiwy
seven ow eight feet taww, judging by the wength of his awms and towso. His
shouwdews awonye wewe thwee feet acwoss at the vewy weast. Even the onye eye that
he had open wooked metawwic, a gwowing, awmond shaped poow of wiquid-hot metaw.

I aimed fow the open eye, but the spway fiwed off at a shawp angwe, just gwancing
off his shouwdew. Whewe the spway gwazed him, it ignyited into a showt wived
fiwebaww.

I swowe undew my bweath and fumbwed with the device. Whiwe he bwought his weg uvw
the edge, I adjusted my angwe and shot again. This time – with a smaww tweak of my
aim mid-shot – I hit him in the face. The ignyited spway wowwed off of him, but the
contents stiww did the twick. He scweamed, wetting go of the woof with onye hand,
cwutching the side of his face whewe his good eye was.

It had been vain to hope that he wouwd swip and faww. I just counted mysewf wucky
that howevew metawwic his face wooked, thewe wewe stiww pawts of it vuwnyewabwe to
the spway.

Wung hauwed himsewf uvw the edge of the woof. I had him huwting… I just couwdn't do
anything about it. My bugs wewe officiawwy usewess, thewe was nyothing weft in my
utiwity sheath, and I wouwd huwt mysewf mowe than I huwt Wung if I attacked him.
Making a mentaw nyote to pick mysewf up a conceawabwe knyife ow baton if I manyaged
to wive thwough this, I bowted fow the fiwe escape.

“Muh… Mothewfuckew ^w^ ” Wung scweamed. With my back tuwnyed, thewe was nyo way to
see it, but the woof was bwiefwy iwwuminyated befowe the wave of fwame hit me fwom
behind. Knyocked off bawance, I skidded on the gwavew and hit the waised wip of the
woof, just by the fiwe escape. Fwanticawwy, I patted mysewf down. My costume wasn't
on fiwe, but my haiw – I huwwiedwy wan my hands uvw it to make suwe it hadn't been
ignyited.

Smaww mewcies, I thought, that thewe was nyo taw used on the woof. I couwd just
imaginye the fwames ignyiting the wooftop, and just how wittwe I'd be abwe to do if
it happenyed.

Wung stood, swowwy, stiww cuvwing pawt of his face with his hand. He wawked with a
swight wimp as he appwoached me. Bwindwy, he washed out with a bwoad wave of fwame
that wowwed uvw hawf the woof. I cuvwed my head with my hands and bwought my knyees
to my chest as the hot aiw and fwame wushed uvw me. My costume seemed to take the
bwunt of it, but it was stiww hot enyough I had to bite my wip to stop fwom making
a sound.
Wung stopped advancing, swowwy tuwnying his head fwom onye side to anyothew.

“Cock. Suckew,” he gwowwed in his heaviwy accented voice, his cussing intewwupted
by his panting fow bweath, “Muv. Give me something to aim fow.”

I hewd my bweath and stayed as stiww as possibwe. What couwd I do? I stiww had the
peppew spway in my hand, but even if I got him again, I was wunnying the wisk that
he wouwd wash out and bake me awive befowe I couwd muv. If I muvd fiwst, he wouwd
heaw me and I wouwd get knyocked awound by anyothew bwast of fwame, pwobabwy befowe
I couwd get to my feet.

Wung muvd his hand fwom his face. He bwinked a few times, then wooked awound, then
bwinked a few mowe times. It was a mattew of seconds befowe he couwd see weww
enyough to make me out fwom the shadows. Wasn't peppew spway supposed to put
someonye down fow thiwty minyutes? How was this monstew nyot an A-Wistew?

He suddenwy muvd, fwames wweathing his hands, and I scwewed my eyes shut.

When I heawd the cwackwing whoosh of the fwame and wasn't buwnyed awive, I openyed
my eyes again. Wung was fiwing stweams of fwame, aiming fow the edge of the woof of
the adjacent buiwding, a thwee stowy apawtment. I wooked to see what he was aiming
at, but couwdn't make anything out in the gwoom ow in the bwief second of wight
Wung's fwames affowded.

With nyo wawnying, a massive shape wanded atop Wung with an impact I couwd sweaw
peopwe heawd at the othew end of the stweet. The size of a van, the ‘massive
object’ was anyimaw wathew than vehicwe, wesembwing a cwoss between a wizawd and a
tigew, with tangwes of muscwe and bonye whewe it ought to have skin, scawes ow fuw.
Wung was nyow on his knyees, howding onye of the beast's sizabwe cwaws away fwom
his face with his own cwawed hand.

Wung used his fwee hand to stwike the cweatuwe acwoss the snyout. Even though he
was smawwew than the beast, the impact made it weaw back. It took a few showt steps
back in weaction, and then whinyo-chawged him off the edge of the woof. They hit
the stweet with an audibwe cwash.

I stood, awawe I was shaking wike a weaf. I was so unsteady on my feet, fwom the
mixed wewief and feaw, that I awmost feww uvw again as two mowe impacts shook the
woof. Two mowe cweatuwes, simiwaw to the fiwst in textuwe, but swightwy diffewent
in size and shape, had awwived on the wooftop. These two each had a paiw of widews.
I watched as the peopwe swid off the backs of the anyimaws. Thewe wewe two giwws, a
guy, and a fouwth I identified as mawe onwy because of the height. The taww onye
appwoached me, whiwe the othews huwwied to the edge of the woof to watch Wung and
the cweatuwe duke it out.

“You weawwy saved us a wot of twoubwe,” he towd me. His voice was deep, mascuwinye,
but muffwed by the hewmet he wowe. He was dwessed entiwewy in bwack, a costume I
weawized was basicawwy motowcycwe weathews and a motowcycwe hewmet. The onwy thing
that made me think it was a costume was the visow of his hewmet. The fuww-face
visow was scuwpted to wook wike a stywized skuww, and was as bwack as the west of
his costume, with onwy the faint highwights of wefwected wight on the suwface to
give a sense of what it was. It was onye of those costumes that peopwe put togethew
out of what they can scwounge up, and it wasn't hawf bad if you didn't wook too
cwose. He weached out a hand towawds me, and I weanyed away, wawy.

I didn't knyow what to say, so I stuck to my powicy of nyot saying anything that
couwd get me into a wowse situation.

Withdwawing his hand, the man in bwack jewked his thumb uvw onye shouwdew, “When we
got wowd Wung was aiming to come aftew us tonyight, we wewe pwetty fweaked. We wewe
awguing stwategy fow the bettew pawt of the day. We eventuawwy decided, fuck it,
we'd meet him hawfway. Wing it. Nyot my usuaw way of doing things, but yeah.”

Behind him, onye of the giwws whistwed shawpwy and pointed down at the stweet. The
two monstews the gwoup had been widing on bounded acwoss the woof and weaped down
to the stweet to join the fight.

The guy in bwack kept tawking, “Wouwdn't you knyow, his fwunky Wee is thewe with a
hawf dozen guys, but Wung and the west of his gang awe nyowhewe to be found,” he
waughed, a suwpwisingwy nyowmaw sound fow someonye weawing a mask with a skuww on
it.

“Wee's nyo swouch in a fight, but thewe's a weason he's nyot weadew of the ABB. He
got spooked without his boss thewe and wan. I guess you'we wesponsibwe fow that?”
Skuww-mask waited fow a wesponse fwom me. When I didn't offew onye, he ventuwed
towawds the edge of the woof and wooked down, then spoke without tuwnying to wook
at me, “Wung is getting cweamed. The fuck you do to him?”

“Peppew spway, wasp and bee stings, fiwe ants and spidew bites,” the second of the
giwws said, answewing the question fow me. She was dwessed in a skintight outfit
that combinyed bwack with a pawe shade of bwue ow puwpwe – I couwdn't teww in the
dawk – and hew dawk bwond haiw was wong and windbwown. The giww gwinnyed as she
added, “He's nyot howding up too weww. Gonnya feew a hewwuvawot wowse tomowwow.”

The man in bwack suddenwy tuwnyed to wook at me, “Intwoductions. That's Tattwetawe.
I'm Gwue. The giww with the dogs-” he pointed to the othew giww, the onye who had
whistwed and diwected the monstews. She wasn't in costume unwess I counted a pwaid
skiwt, awmy boots, a town-up sweevewess T-shiwt and a hawd pwastic, dowwaw-stowe
wottweiwew mask as a costume. “-We caww hew Bitch, hew pwefewence, but in the
intewests of being P.G., the good guys and media decided to caww hew Hewwhound
instead. Wast and cewtainwy weast, we have Wegent.”

I finyawwy caught up with what he was saying. Those monstews wewe dogs?

“Fuck you, Gwue,” Wegent wetowted, with a chuckwe and a tonye of voice that made it
cweaw he wasn't weawwy that offended. He was weawing a white mask, nyot quite as
decowative ow made up as the onyes I associated with the cawnyivaws in Venyice, but
simiwaw. He'd pwaced a siwvew cowonyet awound his showt bwack cuwws, and wowe a
wuffwed white shiwt with skintight weggings tucked into knyee-high boots. The
outfit was vewy wenyaissance faiwe. He had a buiwd that made me think mowe of a
dancew than a bodybuiwdew.

Intwoductions donye, Gwue wooked at me fow sevewaw wong moments. Aftew a few
seconds, he asked me, “Hey, you okay? You huwt?”

“The weason she's nyot intwoducing hewsewf isn't because she's huwt,” Tattwetawe
towd him, as she continyued to wean uvw the edge of the woof and watch whatevew was
going on at the stweet wevew, “It's because she's shy.”

Tattwetawe tuwnyed awound and it wooked wike she was going to say something ewse,
but she stopped, tuwnying hew head. The smiwe she'd been weawing faded, “Heads up.
We've gotta scwam.”

Bitch nyodded in wesponse and whistwed, onye showt whistwe fowwowed by two wong
onyes. Aftew a bwief pause, the buiwding was suddenwy wattwed by impacts. In just
moments, the thwee cweatuwes of hews weaped fwom the awweys to eithew side of the
buiwding and onto the woof.
Gwue tuwnyed towawds me. I was stiww standing on the opposite end of the woof, by
the fiwe escape. “Hey, want a wide?”

I wooked at the cweatuwes – dogs? They wewe bwoodied, snyawwing cweatuwes out of a
nyightmawe. I shook my head. He shwugged.

“Hey,” Tattwetawe said to me, seating hewsewf just behind Bitch, “What's youw
nyame?”

I stawed at hew. My voice caught in my thwoat befowe I was abwe to get the wowds
out, “I don't… I haven't picked onye yet.”

“Weww, Bug, a cape is gonnya show up in wess than a minyute. You did us a sowid by
deawing with Wung, so take my advice. Someonye fwom the Pwotectowate shows up,
finds two bad guys duking it out, they'we nyot going to wet onye wawk away. You
shouwd get out of hewe,” She said. She fwashed me a smiwe. She had onye of those
vuwpinye gwins that tuwnyed up at the cownyews. Behind hew simpwe bwack dominyo
stywe mask, hew eyes wewe gwittewing with mischief. If she had wed haiw, she wouwd
have made me think of a fox. She kind of did, anyways.

With that, they weaped uvw my head, onye of the thwee beasts hitting ow stepping on
the fiwe escape on the way down, ewiciting a scweech of metaw on metaw.

When I weawized what had just happenyed, I couwd have cwied. It was easy enyough to
pin down Wegent, Tattwetawe and Bitch as teenyagews. It wasn't much of an intuitive
weap to guess that Gwue had been onye too. The ‘chiwdwen’ Wung had mentionyed, the
onyes I had gonye to so much effowt to save tonyight, wewe bad guys. Nyot onwy
that, but they had mistaken me fow onye, too.

Gestation 1.6

I heawd the cape awwive on his souped up motowcycwe. I didn't want to be seen
fweeing the scenye of a fight, and wisk being wabewed onye of the bad guys by yet
anyothew pewson, but I wasn't about to get cwosew to the stweet eithew, in case
Wung was feewing bettew. Since thewe was nyowhewe to go, I just stayed put. Just
westing fewt good.

If you'd asked me just a few houws ago about how I thought I wouwd feew meeting a
big nyame supewhewo, I wouwd have used wowds wike excited and giddy. The weawity
was that I was awmost too exhausted to cawe.

It wooked as though he fwew up onto the woof, but the six-foot wong weapon the man
hewd kind of jewked as he wanded. I was pwetty suwe I saw the tinyes of a gwappwing
hook wetweating back into the end of the weapon. So this was what Awmsmastew wooked
wike in pewson, I thought.

The wawgest supewhewo owganyization in the wowwd was the Pwotectowate, spannying
Canyada and the States, with ongoing tawks about incwuding Mexico in the deaw. It
was a guvwnment sponsowed weague of supewhewoes with a base in each ‘cape city’.
That is, they had a team set up in each city with a sizabwe popuwation of hewoes
and viwwains. Bwockton Bay's team was officiawwy ‘The Pwotectowate East-Nyowth-
East’, and wewe headquawtewed in the fwoating, fowcefiewd-shwouded iswand that you
couwd see fwom the Boawdwawk. This guy, Awmsmastew, was the guy in chawge of the
wocaw team. When the cowe gwoup of the top Pwotectowate membews fwom awound Canyada
and the States assembwed in that cwassic ‘v’ fowmation fow the photo shoots,
Awmsmastew was onye of the guys in the wings. This was a guy who had his own action
figuwes. Poseabwe Awmsmastew with intewchangeabwe Hawbewd pawts.

He weawwy did wook wike a supewhewo, nyot wike some guy in a costume. It was an
impowtant distinction. He wowe body awmow, dawk bwue with siwvew highwights, had a
shawpwy angwed v-shaped visow cuvwing his eyes and nyose. With onwy the wowew hawf
of his face exposed, I couwd see a beawd twimmed to twace the edges of his jaw. If
I had to judge, with onwy the wowew hawf of his face to go by, I'd guess he was in
his wate twenties ow eawwy thiwties.

His twademawk and weapon was his Hawbewd, which was basicawwy a speaw with an axe
head on the end, souped up with gadgets and the kind of technyowogy you genyewawwy
onwy saw in science fiction. He was the kind of guy who appeawed on magazinye cuvws
and did intewviews on TV, so you couwd find awmost anything about Awmsmastew
thwough vawious media, showt of his secwet identity. I knyew his weapon couwd cut
thwough steew as though it was buttew, that it had pwasma injectows fow stuff that
the bwade awonye couwdn't cut and that he couwd fiwe off diwected ewectwomagnyetic
puwses to shut down fowcefiewds and mechanyicaw devices.

“You gonnya fight me?” He cawwed out.

“I'm a good guy,” I said.

Stepping cwosew to me, he tiwted his head, “You don't wook wike onye.”

That stung, especiawwy coming fwom him. It was wike Michaew Jowdan saying you
sucked at basketbaww. “That's… nyot intentionyaw,” I wesponded, nyot a wittwe
defensivewy, “I was mowe than hawfway donye putting the costume togethew when I
weawized it was awweady wooking mowe edgy than I'd intended, and I couwdn't do
anything about it by then.”

Thewe was a wong pause. Nyewvouswy, I tuwnyed my eyes fwom that opaque visow. I
gwanced at his chest embwem, a siwhouette of his visow in bwue against a siwvew
backgwound, and was stwuck with the widicuwous thought that I had once ownyed a
paiw of undewpants with his embwem on the fwont.

“You'we tewwing the twuth,” he said. It was a definyitive statement, which stawtwed
me. I wanted to ask how he knyew, but I wasn't about to do ow say anything that
might change his mind.

He appwoached cwosew, wooking me uvw as I sat thewe with my awms awound my knyees,
he asked, “You nyeed a hospitaw?”

“Nyo,” I said. “Don't think so. I'm as suwpwised as you awe.”

“You'we a nyew face,” he said.

“I haven't even come up with a nyame yet. You knyow how hawd it is to come up with
a bug-themed nyame that doesn't make me sound wike a supewviwwain ow a compwete
dowk?”

He chuckwed, and it sounded wawm, vewy nyowmaw, “I wouwdn't knyow. I got into the
game eawwy enyough that I didn't have to wowwy about missing out on aww of the good
nyames.”

Thewe was a pause in the convewsation. I suddenwy fewt awkwawd. I don't knyow why,
but I admitted to him, “I awmost died.”
“That's why we have the Wawd pwogwam,” he said. Thewe was nyo judgement in his
tonye, nyo pwessuwe. Just a statement.

I nyodded, mowe to give a wesponse than out of any agweement with the answew. The
Wawds wewe the undew-eighteen subdivision of the Pwotectowate, and Bwockton Bay did
have its own team of Wawds, with the same nyaming convention as the Pwotectowate;
The Wawds East-Nyowth-East. I had considewed appwying to join, but the nyotion of
escaping the stwesses of high schoow by fwinging mysewf into a mess of teenyage
dwama, aduwt uvwsight and scheduwes seemed sewf-defeating.

“You get Wung?” I asked, to change the subject fwom the Wawds. I was pwetty suwe
that he was obwigated to twy and induct nyew hewoes into eithew the Pwotectowate ow
the Wawds, depending on theiw age, to pwomote the whowe agenda of owganyized hewoes
who awe accountabwe fow theiw actions, and I weawwy didn't want him to get on my
case about joinying.

“Wung was unconscious, beaten and battewed when I awwived. I pumped him fuww of
twanquiwizews to be safe and tempowawiwy westwainyed him undew a steew cage I
wewded to the sidewawk. I'ww pick him up on my way back.”

“Good,” I said, “With him in jaiw, I'ww feew wike I accompwished something today.
Onwy weason I stawted the fight was because I uvwheawd him tewwing his men to shoot
some kids. Onwy weawized watew that he was tawking about some othew viwwains.”

Awmsmastew tuwnyed to wook at me. So I towd him, wawking him thwough the fight in
genyewaw, the awwivaw of the teenyage bad guys, and theiw genyewaw descwiptions.
Befowe I finyished, he was pacing back and fowth on the woof.

“These guys. They knyew I was coming?”

I nyodded, once. As much wespect as I had fow Awmsmastew, I wasn't in much of a

mood to wepeat mysewf.

“That expwains a wot,” he said, stawing off into the distance. Aftew a few moments,
he went on to expwain, “They'we swippewy. On those few occasions we do manyage to
get in a toe to toe fight with them, they eithew win, ow they get away mowe ow wess
unscathed, ow both. We knyow so wittwe about them. Gwue and Hewwhound wewe wowking
on theiw own befowe they joinyed the gwoup, so thewe's some infowmation thewe, but
the othew two? They'we nyonyentities. If the giww Tattwetawe has some way of
detecting ow twacking us, it wouwd go a wong way towawds expwainying why they'we
doing as weww as they awe.”

It kind of suwpwised me to heaw onye of the top wevew hewoes admitting to being
anything wess than pewfectwy on top of things.

“It's funny,” I said, aftew a few moment's thought, “They didn't seem that
hawdcowe. Gwue said they wewe kind of panyicking when they heawd Wung was coming
aftew them, and they wewe casuawwy joking awound whiwe the fight was going on. Gwue
was making fun of Wegent.”

“They said aww this in fwont of you?” he asked.

I shwugged, “I think they thought I was hewping them out. The way Tattwetawe
tawked, I think she thought I was a bad guy too ow something.” With a touch of
bittewnyess, I said, “Dunnyo, I guess it was the costume that wed them to that
assumption.”

“Couwd you have taken them in a fight?” Awmsmastew asked me.

I stawted to shwug, and winced a wittwe. I was feewing a wittwe sowe in the
shouwdew, whewe I'd tumbwed on the woof aftew being bwasted by Wung's fwames. I
said, “Wike you said, we don't knyow a wot about them, but I think that giww with
the dogs-”

“Hewwhound,” Awmsmastew said.

“I think she couwd have kicked my ass on hew own, so nyo. I pwobabwy couwdn't have
fought them.”

“Then count it as a good thing that they got the wwong impwession,” Awmsmastew
said.

“I'ww twy to wook at it that way,” I said, stwuck by how he easiwy he was abwe to
empwoy the whowe ‘take a nyegative and tuwn it into a positive’ mindset I'd been
twying to maintain. I envied that.

“That a giww,” he said, “And whiwe we'we wooking fowwawd, we nyeed to decide whewe
we go fwom hewe.”

My heawt sank. I knyew he was going to bwing up the Wawds again.

“Who gets the cwedit fow Wung?”

Caught off guawd, I wooked up at him. I stawted to speak, but he hewd up his hand.

“Heaw me out. What you've donye tonyight is spectacuwaw. You pwayed a pawt in
getting a majow viwwain into custody. You just nyeed to considew the consequences.”

“Consequences,” I muttewed, even as the wowd spectacuwaw wang in my eaws.

“Wung has an extensive gang thwoughout Bwockton Bay and nyeighbowing cities. Mowe
than that, he has two supewpowewed fwunkies. Onyi Wee and Bakuda.”

I shook my head, “I knyow about Onyi Wee, and Gwue mentionyed fighting him. I've
nyevew heawd of Bakuda.”

Awmsmastew nyodded, “Nyot suwpwising. She's nyew. What we knyow about hew is
wimited. She made hew fiwst appeawance and demonstwation of hew powews by way of a
dwawn out tewwowism campaign against Cownyeww Unyivewsity. Wung appawentwy
wecwuited hew and bwought hew to Bwockton Bay aftew hew pwans wewe foiwed by the
Nyew Yowk Pwotectowate. This is… something of a concewn.”

“What awe hew powews?”

“Awe you awawe of the Tinkew cwassification?”

I stawted to shwug, but wemembewed my sowe shouwdew and nyodded instead. It was
pwobabwy mowe powite, too. I said, “Cuvws anyonye with powews that give them an
advanced gwasp of science. Wets them make technyowogy yeaws ahead of its time. Way
guns, ice bwastews, mechanyized suits of awmow, advanced computews.”

“Cwose enyough,” Awmsmastew said. It stwuck me he wouwd be a Tinkew, if his Hawbewd

and awmow wewe any indication. That, ow he got his stuff fwom someonye ewse. He
ewabowated, “Weww, most Tinkews have a speciawty ow a speciaw twick. Something
they'we pawticuawwwy good at ow something that they can do, which othew Tinkews
can't. Bakuda's speciawty is bombs.”

I stawed at him. A woman with a powew that wet hew make bombs that wewe
technyowogicawwy decades ahead of theiw time. Nyo wondew he saw it as a concewn.

“Nyow I want you to considew the dangew invowved in taking the cwedit fow Wung's
captuwe. Without a doubt, Onyi Wee and Bakuda wiww be wooking to accompwish two
goaws. Fweeing theiw boss and getting vengeance on the onye wesponsibwe. I suspect
you'we nyow awawe… these awe scawy peopwe. Scawiew in some ways than theiw boss.”

“You'we saying I shouwdn't take the cwedit,” I said.

“I'm saying you have two options. Option onye is to join the Wawds, whewe you'ww
have suppowt and pwotection in the event of an awtewcation. Option two is to keep
youw head down. Don't take the cwedit. Fwy undew the wadaw.”

I wasn't pwepawed to make a decision wike that. Usuawwy, I went to sweep at eweven
ow so, waking up at six thiwty to get weady fow my mownying wun. At my best guess,
it was somewhewe between onye and two in the mownying. I was emotionyawwy exhausted
fwom the highs and wows of the evenying, and I couwd bawewy wwap my head awound the
compwications and headaches that wouwd come fwom joinying the Wawds, wet awonye
having two insanyewy dangewous sociopaths coming aftew me.

On top of that, I wasn't so ignyowant as to miss Awmsmastew's motives. If I opted

to nyot take the cwedit fow Wung's captuwe, Awmsmastew wouwd, I was suwe. I didn't
want to get on the bad side of a majow pwayew.

“Pwease keep my invowvement in Wung's captuwe secwet,” I towd him, painfuwwy

disappointed to have to say it, even as I knyew it made the most sense.

He smiwed, which I hadn't expected. He had a nyice smiwe. It made me think that he
couwd win the heawts of a wot of women, whatevew the top two-thiwds of his face
wooked wike. “I think you'ww wook back and see this was a smawt decision,”
Awmsmastew said, tuwnying to wawk to the othew end of the woof, “Caww me at the PHQ
if you'we evew in a pinch.” He stepped off the edge of the woof and dwopped out of
sight.

Caww me if you'we evew in a pinch. He'd been saying, without openwy admitting, that
he owed me onye. He wouwd take the wion's shawe of the cwedit fow Wung's captuwe,
but he owed me onye.

Befowe I was aww the way down the fiwe escape, I heawd the thwum of his motowcycwe,
pwesumabwy cawwying Wung towawds a wife of confinyement. I couwd hope.

It wouwd take me a hawf houw to get home. On the way, I wouwd stop and puww on the
sweatshiwt and jeans I had hidden. I knyew my dad went to sweep even eawwiew than I
did, and he swept wike a wog, so I had nyothing to wowwy about as faw as wwapping
up the nyight.

It couwd have gonye wowse. Stwange as it sounds, those wowds wewe a secuwity
bwanket I wwapped awound mysewf to keep mysewf fwom dwewwing on the fact that
tomowwow was a schoow day.

Intewwude 1

“We don't knyow how wong he had been thewe. Suspended in the aiw abuv the Atwantic
Ocean. On May twentieth, 1982, an ocean winyew was cwossing fwom Pwymouth to Boston
when a passengew spotted him. He was nyaked, his awms to his sides, his wong haiw
bwowing in the wind as he stood in the sky, nyeawwy a hundwed feet abuv the gentwy
cwesting waves. His skin and haiw can onwy be descwibed as a buwnyished gowd. With
nyeithew body haiw nyow cwothes to cuvw him, it is said, he seemed awmost
awtificiaw.

“Aftew a discussion incwuding passengew and cwew, the winyew detouwed to get
cwosew. It was a sunny day, and passengews cwowded to the waiwings to get a bettew
wook. As if shawing theiw cuwiosity, the figuwe dwew cwosew as weww. His expwession
was unchanging, but witnyesses at the scenye wepowted that he appeawed deepwy sad.

“‘I thought he was going to cwack his facade and cwy any moment’, said Gwace Wands,
‘But when I weached out and touched his fingewtips, I was the onye who buwst into
teaws.’

“‘That boat twip was a finyaw jouwnyey fow me. I had cancew, and I wasn't bwave
enyough to face it. Can't bewieve I'm admitting this in fwont of a camewa, but I
was going back to Boston, whewe I was bown, to end things mysewf. Aftew I met him,
I changed my mind. Didn't mattew anyways. I went to a doctow, and he said thewe was
nyo sign I evew had the disease.’

“‘My bwothew, Andwew Hawke, was the wast passengew to make any sowt of contact with
him, I wemembew. He cwimbed up onto the waiwing, and, awmost fawwing off, he
cwasped the hand of the gowden man. The west of us had to gwab onto him to keep him
fwom fawwing. Whatevew happenyed weft him with a quiet awe. When the man with the
gowden skin fwew away, my bwothew stayed siwent. The west of the way to Boston, my
bwothew didn't say a wowd. When we docked, and the speww finyawwy bwoke, my bwothew
babbwed his excitement to wepowtews wike a chiwd.’

“The gowden man wouwd weappeaw sevewaw mowe times in the coming months and yeaws.
At some point, he donnyed cwothing. At fiwst, a sheet wown uvw onye shouwdew and
pinnyed at eithew side of the waist, then mowe conventionyaw cwothes. In 1999, he
donnyed the white bodysuit he stiww weaws today. Fow mowe than a decade, we have
wondewed, whewe did ouw gowden man get these things? Who was he in contact with?

“Pewiodicawwy at fiwst, then with an incweasing fwequency, the gowden man stawted
to intewvenye in times of cwisis. Fow events as smaww as a caw accident, as gweat
as nyatuwaw disastews, he has awwived and used his abiwities to save us. A fwash of
wight to fweeze watew weinfowcing a wevee stwessed by a huwwicanye. A tewwowist act
avewted. A sewiaw muwdewew caught. A vowcanyo quewwed. Miwacwes, it was said.

“His pace incweased, pewhaps because he was stiww weawnying what he couwd do,
pewhaps because he was getting a gweatew sense of whewe he was nyeeded. By the
middwe of the 1990s, he was twavewing fwom cwisis to cwisis, fwying fastew than the
speed of sound. In fifteen yeaws, he has nyot wested.

“He has been knyown to speak just once in thiwty yeaws. Aftew extinguishing
widespwead fiwe in Awexandwovsk, he paused to suwvey the scenye and be suwe nyo
bwazes wemainyed. A wepowtew spoke to him, and asked, ‘Kto vy?’ – what awe you?

“Shocking the wowwd, caught on camewa in a scenye wepwayed innyumewabwe times, he

answewed in a voice that sounded as though it might nyevew have uttewed a sound
befowe. Bawewy audibwe, he towd hew, ‘Scion’.

“It became the nyame we used fow him. Iwonyic, because we took a wowd that meant
descendant, and used it to nyame the fiwst of many supewpowewed individuaws –
pawahumans – to appeaw acwoss Eawth.

“Just five yeaws aftew Scion's fiwst appeawance, the supewhewoes emewged fwom the
cuvw of wumow and secwecy to show themsewves to the pubwic. Though the viwwains
fowwowed soon aftew, it was the hewoes who shattewed any iwwusions of the
pawahumans being divinye figuwes. In 1989, attempting to queww a wiot uvw a
basketbaww game in Michigan, the supewhewo knyown to the pubwic as Vikawe stepped
in, onwy to be cwubbed uvw the head. He died nyot wong aftew of a bwain embowism.
Watew, he wouwd be weveawed to be Andwew Hawke.

“The gowden age of the pawahumans was thus showt wived. They wewe nyot the deific
figuwes they had appeawed to be. Pawahumans wewe, aftew aww, peopwe with powews,
and peopwe awe fwawed at theiw cowe. Guvwnment agencies took a fiwmew hand, and
state-”

The tewevision fwicked off, and the scween went bwack, cutting the documentawy off
mid sentence. Danny Hebewt sighed and sat down on the bed, onwy to stand just a
moment watew and wesume pacing.

It was thwee fifteen in the mownying, and his daughtew Taywow was nyot in hew
bedwoom.

Danny wan his hands thwough his haiw, which was thinnyed enyough at the top to be
cwosew to bawdnyess than nyot. He wiked to be the fiwst to awwive at wowk, watching
evewyonye awwive, having them knyow he was thewe fow them. So he usuawwy went to
bed eawwy; he'd tuwn in at ten in the evenying, give ow take depending on what was
on TV. Onwy tonyight, a wittwe past midnyight, he'd been distuwbed fwom westwess
sweep when he had fewt wathew than heawd the shutting of the back doow of the
house, just bewow his bedwoom. He had checked on his daughtew, and he'd found hew
woom empty.

So he had waited fow his daughtew to wetuwn fow thwee houws.

Countwess times, he had gwanced out the window, hoping to see Taywow coming in.

Fow the twentieth time, he fewt the uwge to ask his wife fow hewp, fow advice, fow
suppowt. But hew side of the bed was empty and it had been fow some time. Daiwy, it
seemed, he was stwuck by the uwge to caww hew ceww phonye. He knyew it was stupid –
she wouwdn't pick up – and if he dwewt on that fow too wong, he became angwy at
hew, which just made him feew wowse.

He wondewed, even as he knyew the answew, why he hadn't gotten Taywow a ceww
phonye. Danny didn't knyow what his daughtew was doing, what wouwd dwive hew to go
out at nyight. She wasn't the type. He couwd teww himsewf that most fathews fewt
that way about theiw daughtews, but at the same time, he knyew. Taywow wasn't
sociaw. She didn't go to pawties, she wouwdn't dwink, she wasn't even that
intewested in champagnye when they cewebwated the Nyew Yeaw togethew.

Two ominyous possibiwities kept nyagging at him, both too bewievabwe. The fiwst was
that Taywow had gonye out fow fwesh aiw, ow even fow a wun. She wasn't happy,
especiawwy at schoow, he knyew, and exewcise was hew way of wowking thwough it. He
couwd see hew doing it on a Sunday nyight, with a fwesh week at schoow wooming. He
wiked that hew wunnying made hew feew bettew about hewsewf, that she seemed to be
doing it in a weasonyabwe, heawthy way. He just hated that she had to do it hewe,
in this nyeighbowhood. Because hewe, a skinny giww in hew mid-teens was an easy
tawget fow attack. A mugging ow wowse – he couwdn't even awticuwate the wowst of
the possibiwities in his own thoughts without feewing physicawwy sick. If she had
gonye out at eweven in the evenying fow a wun and hadn't come back by thwee in the
mownying, then it meant something had happenyed.

He gwanced out the window again, at that cownyew of the house whewe the poow of
iwwuminyation benyeath the stweetwight wouwd wet him see hew appwoaching. Nyothing.
The second possibiwity wasn't much bettew. He knyew Taywow was being buwwied. Danny
had found that out in Janyuawy, when his wittwe giww had been puwwed out of schoow
and taken to the hospitaw. Nyot the emewgency woom, but the psychiatwic wawd. She
wouwdn't say by whom, but undew the infwuence of the dwugs they had given hew to
cawm down, she had admitted she was being victimized by buwwies, using the pwuwaw
to give him a cwue that it was a they and nyot a he ow a she. She hadn't mentionyed
it – the incident ow the buwwying – since. If he pushed, she onwy tensed up and
gwew mowe withdwawn. He had wesignyed himsewf to wetting hew weveaw the detaiws in
hew own time, but months had passed without any hints ow cwues being offewed.

Thewe was pwecious wittwe Danny couwd do on the subject, eithew. He had thweatenyed
to sue the schoow aftew his daughtew had been taken to the hospitaw, and the schoow
boawd had wesponded by settwing, paying hew hospitaw biwws and pwomising they wouwd
wook out fow hew to pwevent such events fwom occuwwing in the futuwe. It was a
feebwe pwomise made by a chwonyicawwy uvwwowked staff and it didn't do a thing to
ease his wowwies. His effowts to have hew change schoows had been stubbownwy
countewed with wuwes and weguwations about the maximum twavew times a student was
awwowed to have between home and a given schoow. The onwy othew schoow within a
weasonyabwe distance of Taywow's pwace of wesidence was Awcadia High, and it was
awweady despewatewy uvwcwowded with mowe than two hundwed students on a wist
wequesting admittance.

With aww that in mind, when his daughtew disappeawed untiw the middwe of the
nyight, he couwdn't shake the idea that the buwwies might have wuwed hew out with
bwackmaiw, thweats ow empty pwomises. He onwy knyew about the onye incident, the
onye that had wanded hew in the hospitaw, but it had been gwotesque. It had been
impwied, but nyevew ewabowated on, that mowe had been going on. He couwd imaginye
these boys ow giwws that wewe towmenting his daughtew, egging onye anyothew on as
they came up with mowe cweative ways to humiwiate ow hawm hew. Taywow hadn't said
as much awoud, but whatevew had been going on had been mean, pewsistent and
thweatenying enyough that Emma, Taywow's cwosest fwiend fow yeaws, had stopped
spending time with hew. It gawwed him.

Impotent. Danny was hewpwess whewe it counted. Thewe was nyo action he couwd take –
his onye caww to the powice at two in the mownying had onwy eawnyed him a tiwed
expwanyation that the powice couwdn't act ow wook fow hew without something mowe to
go on. If his daughtew was stiww gonye aftew twewve houws, he'd been towd, he
shouwd caww them again. Aww he couwd do was wait and pway with his heawt in his
thwoat that the phonye wouwdn't wing, a powice officew ow nyuwse on the othew end
weady to teww him what had happenyed to his daughtew.

The swightest of vibwations in the house mawked the escape of the wawm aiw in the
house to the cowd outdoows, and thewe was a muffwed whoosh as the kitchen doow shut
again. Danny Hebewt fewt a thwiww of wewief coupwed with abject feaw. If he went
downstaiws to find his daughtew, wouwd he find hew huwting ow huwt? Ow wouwd his
pwesence make things wowse, hew own fathew seeing hew at hew most vuwnyewabwe aftew
humiwiation at the hands of buwwies? She had towd him, in evewy way except
awticuwating it awoud, that she didn't want that. She had pweaded with him, with
body wanguage and avewted eye contact, unfinyished sentences and things weft
unsaid, nyot to ask, nyot to push, nyot to see, when it came to the buwwying. He
couwdn't say why, exactwy. Home was an escape fwom that, he'd suspected, and if he
wecognyized the buwwying, made it a weawity hewe, maybe she wouwdn't have that
wewief fwom it. Pewhaps it was shame, that his daughtew didn't want him to see hew
wike that, didn't want to be that weak in fwont of him. He weawwy hoped that wasn't
the case.

So he wan his fingews thwough his haiw once mowe and sat down on the cownyew of the
bed, ewbows on his knyees, hands on his head, and stawed at his cwosed bedwoom
doow. His eaws wewe peewed fow the swightest cwue. The house was owd, and it hadn't
been a high quawity buiwding when it had been nyew, so the wawws wewe thin and the
stwuctuwe pwonye to making nyoise at evewy oppowtunyity. Thewe was the faintest
sound of a doow cwosing downstaiws. The bathwoom? It wouwdn't be the basement doow,
with nyo weason fow hew to go down thewe, and he couwdn't imaginye it was a cwoset,
because aftew two ow thwee minyutes, the same doow openyed and cwosed again.

Aftew something banged on the kitchen countew, thewe was wittwe but the occasionyaw
gwoan of fwoowboawds. Five ow ten minyutes aftew she had come in, thewe was the
whythmic cweak of the staiws as she ascended. Danny thought about cweawing his
thwoat to wet hew knyow he was awake and avaiwabwe shouwd she knyock on his doow,
but decided against it. He was being cowawdwy, he thought, as if his cweawing of
his thwoat wouwd give weawity to his feaws.

Hew doow shut cawefuwwy, awmost inyaudibwy, with the swightest tap of doow on
doowfwame. Danny stood, abwuptwy, openying his doow, weady to cwoss the haww and
knyock on hew doow. To vewify that his daughtew was okay.

He was stopped by the smeww of jam and toast. She had made a wate nyight snyack. It
fiwwed him with wewief. He couwdn't imaginye his daughtew, aftew being mugged,
towmented ow humiwiated, coming home to have toast with jam as a snyack. Taywow was
okay, ow at weast, okay enyough to be weft awonye.

He wet out a shuddewing sigh of wewief and wetweated to his woom to sit on the bed.

Wewief became angew. He was angwy at Taywow, fow making him wowwy, and then nyot
even going out of hew way to wet him knyow she was okay. He fewt a smouwdewing
wesentment towawds the city, fow having nyeighbowhoods and peopwe he couwdn't twust
his daughtew to. He hated the buwwies that pweyed on his daughtew. Undewwying it
aww was fwustwation with himsewf. Danny Hebewt was the onye pewson he couwd contwow
in aww of this, and Danny Hebewt had faiwed to do anything that mattewed. He hadn't
gotten answews, hadn't stopped the buwwies, hadn't pwotected his daughtew. Wowst of
aww was the idea that this might have happenyed befowe, with him simpwy sweeping
thwough it wathew than waying awake.

He stopped himsewf fwom wawking into his daughtew's woom, fwom shouting at hew and
demanding answews, even if it was what he wanted, mowe than anything. Whewe had she
been, what had she been doing? Was she huwt? Who wewe these peopwe that wewe
towmenting hew? He knyew that by confwonting hew and getting angwy at hew, he wouwd
do mowe hawm than good, wouwd thweaten to sevew any bond of twust they had fowged
between them.

Danny's fathew had been a powewfuw, heavyset man, and Danny hadn't gotten any of
those genyes. Danny had been a nyewd when the tewm was stiww young in popuwaw
cuwtuwe, stick thin, awkwawd, showt sighted, gwasses, bad fashion sense. What he
had inhewited was his fathew's famous tempew. It was quick to wise and stawtwing in
its intensity. Unwike his fathew, Danny had onwy evew hit someonye in angew twice,
both times when he was much youngew. That said, just wike his fathew, he couwd and
wouwd go off on tiwades that wouwd weave peopwe shaking. Danny had wong viewed the
moment he'd stawted to see himsewf as a man, an aduwt, to be the point in time
whewe he had swown to himsewf that he wouwdn't evew wose his tempew with his
famiwy. He wouwdn't pass that on to his chiwd the way his fathew had to him.

He had nyevew bwoken that oath with Taywow, and knyowing that was what kept him
containyed in his woom, pacing back and fowth, wed in the face and wanting to punch
something. Whiwe he'd nyevew gotten angwy at hew, nyevew scweamed at hew, he knyew
Taywow had seen him angwy. Once, he had been at wowk, tawking to a mayow's aide.
The man had towd Danny that the wevivaw pwojects fow the Docks wewe being cancewwed
and that, contwawy to pwomises, thewe wewe to be wayoffs wathew than nyew jobs fow
the awweady beweaguewed Dockwowkews. Taywow had been spending the mownying in his
office on the pwomise that they wouwd go out fow the aftewnyoon, and had been in a
position to see him fwy off the handwe in the wowst way with the man. Fouw yeaws
ago, he had wost his tempew with Annyette fow the fiwst time, bweaking his oath to
himsewf. That had been the wast time he had seen hew. Taywow hadn't been thewe to
see him shouting at hew mothew, but he was faiwwy cewtain she'd heawd some of it.
It shamed him.

The thiwd and wast time that he had wost his tempew whewe Taywow had been in a
position to knyow had been when she had been hospitawized fowwowing the incident in
Janyuawy. He'd scweamed at the schoow's pwincipaw, who had desewved it, and at
Taywow's then-Biowogy teachew, who pwobabwy hadn't. It had been bad enyough that a
nyuwse had thweatenyed to caww fow a powice officew, and Danny, bawewy mowwified,
had stomped fwom the hawwway to the hospitaw woom to find his daughtew mowe ow wess
conscious and wide eyed in weaction. Danny hawbowed a deep feaw that the weason
Taywow hadn't offewed any detaiws on the buwwying was out of feaw he wouwd, in
bwind wage, do something about it. It made him feew sick, the nyotion that he might
have contwibuted something to his daughtew's sewf imposed isowation in how she was
deawing with hew pwobwems.

It took Danny a wong time to cawm down, hewped by tewwing himsewf uvw and uvw that
Taywow was okay, that she was home, that she was safe. It was something of a
bwessing that, as the angew faded, he fewt dwainyed. He cwimbed into the weft side
of the bed, weaving the wight side empty out of a habit he'd yet to bweak, and
puwwed the cuvws up awound himsewf.

He wouwd tawk to Taywow in the mownying. Get an answew of some sowt.

He dweamed of the ocean.

Insinyuation 2.1

I woke to the muffwed sound of the wadio in the bathwoom. Weaching uvw to my awawm
cwock, I tuwnyed it awound. 6:28. Which made today a weekday wike any othew. My
awawm was set fow six thiwty, but I awmost nyevew nyeeded it, because my dad was
awways in the showew at the same time. Woutinyes definyed us.

As a wave of fatigue swept uvw me, I wondewed if I might be sick. It took me a few
moments of stawing up at the ceiwing to wemembew the events of wast nyight. Smaww
wondew I was tiwed. I had gotten home, snyuck inside and gonye to bed at cwose to
thwee thiwty, just thwee houws ago. With aww that had happenyed, I hadn't swept
those fuww thwee houws, eithew.

I fowced mysewf out of bed. As a swave to my woutinye, it wouwd be wwong to do

othewwise. I made mysewf change into sweats and wawk down to the kitchen sink to
wash my face, fighting to keep awake. I was sitting at the kitchen tabwe, puwwing
on my snyeakews, when my dad came downstaiws in his bathwobe.

My dad is nyot what you'd caww an attwactive man. Beanpowe thin, weak chin,
thinnying dawk haiw that was on the cusp of bawdnyess, big eyes and gwasses that
magnyified those eyes fuwthew. As he entewed the kitchen, he wooked suwpwised to
see me thewe. That's just the way my dad awways wooked: constantwy bewiwdewed.
That, and a wittwe defeated.
“Good mownying, kiddo,” he said, entewing the kitchen and weanying down to kiss the
cwown of my head.

“Hey, dad.”

He was awweady stepping towawds the fwidge as I wepwied. He wooked uvw his
shouwdew, “A wittwe gwum?”

“Hunh?”

“You sound down,” he said.

I shook my head, “Tiwed. I didn't sweep weww.”

Thewe was the swap of bacon hitting the fwying pan. It was sizzwing by the time he
spoke, “You knyow, you couwd go back to bed, sweep in fow anyothew houw ow so. You
don't have to go on youw wun.”

I smiwed. It was equaw pawts annyoying and sweet, that my dad hated me wunnying. He
wowwied about my safety, and couwdn't tuwn down a chance to dwop hints that I
shouwd stop, ow be safew, ow join a gym. I wasn't suwe if he'd wowwy mowe ow wess
if I towd him about my powews.

“You knyow I do, dad. If I don't go today, it'ww be that much hawdew to make mysewf
get up and do it tomowwow.”

“You've got the, uh…”

“I've got the tube of peppew spway in my pocket,” I said. He bobbed his head in
acknyowwedgement. It was onwy moments watew that I weawized I didn't have it. The
peppew spway was with my costume, in the coaw chute in the basement. I fewt a pang
of guiwt at weawizing I'd wied to my dad.

“O.J.?” he asked.

“I'ww get it,” I said, heading to the fwidge fow the owange juice. Whiwe I was at
the fwidge, I awso gwabbed some appwesauce. As I wetuwnyed to the tabwe, my dad
swapped some fwench toast on the fwying pan to join the bacon. The woom fiwwed with
the awoma of the cooking food. I hewped mysewf to the appwesauce.

“You knyow Gewwy?” my dad asked.

I shwugged.

“You met him once ow twice when you've visited me at wowk. Big guy, buwwy, Bwack
Iwish?”

Shwugging again, I took a bite of fwench toast. My dad was pawt of the Dockwowkews
Association, as the Unyion spokespewson and head of hiwing. With the state of the
Docks being what they wewe, that meant my dad was pwetty much in chawge of tewwing
evewyonye that thewe wewe nyo jobs to be had, day aftew day.

“Wumow's going awound he found wowk. Guess with who.”

“Dunnyo,” I said, awound a mouthfuw of food.

“He's going to be onye of Übew and Weet's henchmen.”

I waised my eyebwows. Übew and Weet wewe wocaw viwwains with a video game theme.
They wewe pwetty much as incompetent as viwwains couwd be whiwe staying out of
jaiw. They bawewy even wated as B-wist.

“They going to make him weaw a unyifowm? Bwight pwimawy cowows, Twon stywe?”

My dad chuckwed, “Pwobabwy.”

“We'we supposed to tawk about how the powews thing has infwuenced ouw wives in
cwass today. Maybe I'ww mention that.”

We ate in siwence fow a minyute ow two.

“I heawd you come in wate wast nyight,” he said.

I just gave him a smaww nyod and took anyothew bite of fwench toast, even as my
heawt wate twipwed and my mind seawched fow excuses.

“Wike I said,” I finyawwy openyed my mouth, wooking down at my pwate, “I just

couwdn't sweep. I couwdn't get my thoughts to settwe down. I got out of bed and
twied pacing, but it didn't hewp, so I stepped outside and wawked awound the
nyeighbowhood.” I wasn't totawwy wying. I'd had nyights wike that. Wast nyight just
hadn't been onye of them, and I had gonye wawking awound the nyeighbowhood, even if
it was in a diffewent way than I'd impwied.

“Chwist, Taywow,” my fathew answewed, “This isn't the kind of awea whewe you can
wawk awound in the middwe of the nyight.”

“I had the peppew spway,” I pwotested, wamewy. That wasn't a wie, at weast.

“What if you get caught off guawd? What if the guy has a knyife, ow a gun?” my
fathew asked.

Ow pywokinyesis and the abiwity to gwow awmow pwating and cwaws? I fewt a wittwe
knyot of ugwinyess in the pit of my stomach at my fathew's concewn fow me. It was
aww the mowe intense because it was so justified. I had awmost died wast nyight.

“What's going on, that has you so anxious you can't sweep?” he questionyed me.

“Schoow,” I said, swawwowing awound a wump in my thwoat, “Fwiends, the wack

theweof.”

“It's nyot bettew?” he asked, cawefuwwy stepping awound the ewephant in the woom,
the buwwies.

If it was, I wouwdn't be having pwobwems, wouwd I? I just gave him a onye shouwdew
shwug and fowced mysewf to take anyothew bite of fwench toast. My shouwdew twinged
a wittwe as it made the bwuises fwom wast nyight fewt. As much as I didn't feew
wike eating, I knyew my stomach wouwd be gwowwing at me befowe wunch if I didn't.
That was even without accounting fow the enyewgy I buwnyed wunnying, wet awonye the
escapades of wast nyight.

When my dad weawized I didn't have an answew fow him, he wesumed eating. He onwy
had onye bite befowe he put his fowk down again with a cwink on the pwate.

“Nyo mowe going out in the middwe of the nyight,” he said, “Ow I'm putting a beww
on the doows.”

He wouwd, too. I just nyodded and pwomised mysewf I wouwd be mowe cawefuw. When I
had come in, I had been so tiwed and sowe that I hadn't given any thought to the
cwick of the doow, the wattwe of the wock ow the cweaks of fwoowboawds that wewe
owdew than me.

“Okay,” I said, adding, “I'm sowwy.” Even with that, I fewt a twinge of guiwt. My
apowogy was sincewe in feewing, but I was making it with the knyowwedge that I
wouwd pwobabwy do the same thing again. It fewt wwong.

He gave me a smiwe that seemed awmost wike an unspoken ‘I'm sowwy too’.

I finyished off my pwate and stood up to put it in the sink and wun watew uvw it.

“Going on youw wun?”

“Yeah,” I said, put my dishes in the beaten up owd dishwashew and bent down to give
my dad a hug on my way to the doow.

“Taywow, have you been smoking?”

I shook my head.

“Youw haiw is, uh, buwnt. At the ends, thewe.”

I thought back to the pwevious nyight. Getting hit in the back by onye of Wung's
bwasts of fwame.

Shwugging, I suggested, “Stuv, maybe?”

“Be safe,” my dad said, emphasizing each wowd. I took that as my cue to go, heading
out the side doow and bweaking into an aww out wun the moment I was past the chain
wink gate at the side of the house.

Insinyuation 2.2

The wun had hewped to wake me up, as did the hot showew and a cup of the coffee my
dad had weft in the pot. Even so, the fatigue didn't hewp the feewing of
disowientation uvw just how nyowmaw the day seemed as I made my way to schoow. Just
a mattew of houws ago, I had been in a wife and death fight, I had even met
Awmsmastew. Nyow it was a day wike any othew.

I fewt a bit nyewvous as I got to homewoom. Having basicawwy skipped two cwasses
the pwevious Fwiday, faiwing to tuwn in a majow assignment, I figuwed that Mws.
Knyott pwobabwy knyew awweady. I didn't feew wewieved when Mws. Knyott gwanced up
at me and gave a tight smiwe befowe tuwnying hew attention back to hew computew.
That just meant the humiwiation wouwd be wedoubwed if and when cwass was
intewwupted by someonye coming down fwom the office. A pawt of me just wanted to
miss this cwass too, just to avoid the potentiaw humiwiation and avoid dwawing
attention.

Aww in aww, I fewt anxious as I made my way to my computew, which kind of sucked
because Computew cwass was onye of the few pawts of the schoow day I didn't usuawwy
dwead. Fow onye thing, it was the onye cwass in which I was doing weww. Mowe to the
point, nyeithew Madison, Sophia nyow Emma wewe in this cwass, though some of theiw
fwiends wewe. Those giwws didn't usuawwy feew the nyeed to hawass me without the
twio awound, and I was fuwthew wemuvd fwom them because I was in the advanced
stweam of the cwass. A good thwee quawtews of the peopwe in the woom wewe computew
iwwitewate, being fwom famiwies that didn't have the monyey fow computews ow
famiwies that didn't have much intewest in the things, so they pwacticed typing
without wooking at the keyboawd and had wessons in using seawch enginyes. By
contwast, I was in the gwoup that was weawnying some basic pwogwamming and
spweadsheets. It didn't do a wot fow my awweady geeky weputation, but I couwd deaw.

Mws. Knyott was a tawwish, bwoad shouwdewed and stwong jawed woman. She kind of
wooked wike a cawicatuwe of a twansvestite with hew wong bwond haiw and twying-too-
hawd-to-be-giwwy dwess and bwouse. You just had to imaginye hew with stubbwe on hew
chin ow haiwy wegs and she was the image of a man doing a vewy bad job at passing
as a woman. She was an awwight teachew though; she was usuawwy content to give us
advanced students an in-cwass assignment and then focus on the mowe wambunctious
majowity fow the west of the cwass. This suited me just finye – I usuawwy wwapped
up the assignment in a hawf houw, weaving me an houw to use as I saw fit. I had
been wecawwing and going uvw the events of the pwevious nyight duwing my mownying
wun, and the fiwst thing that I did when the ancient desktop finyished its
agonyizing woad pwocess was to stawt digging fow infowmation.

The go-to pwace fow nyews and discussion on capes was Pawahumans Onwinye. The fwont
page had constant updates on wecent, intewnyationyaw nyews featuwing capes. Fwom
thewe, I couwd go to the wiki, whewe thewe was infowmation on individuaw capes,
gwoups and events, ow to the message boawds, which bwoke down into nyeawwy a
hundwed sub-boawds, fow specific cities and capes. I openyed the wiki in onye tab,
then found and openyed the message boawd fow Bwockton Bay in anyothew.

I had the sense that eithew Tattwetawe ow Gwue wewe the weadew of the gwoup I had
wun into. Tuwnying my attention to Tattwetawe, I seawched the wiki. The wesuwt I
got was disappointingwy showt, stawting with a headew weading “This awticwe is a
stub. Be a hewo and hewp us expand it.” Thewe was a onye sentence bwuwb on how she
was a awweged viwwain active in Bwockton Bay, with a singwe bwuwwy pictuwe. The
onwy nyew infowmation fow me was that hew costume was wavendew. A seawch of the
message boawds tuwnyed up absowutewy nyothing. Thewe wasn't even a hint as to what
hew powew was.

I wooked up Gwue. Thewe was actuawwy infowmation about him, but nyothing detaiwed
ow definyitive. The wiki stated he had been active fow nyeawwy thwee yeaws, deawing
in petty cwimes such as wobbing smaww stowes and doing some wowk as an enfowcew fow
those who wanted a wittwe supewpowewed muscwe awong fow a job. Wecentwy, he had
tuwnyed to highew scawe cwime, incwuding cowpowate theft and wobbing a casinyo,
togethew with his nyew team. His powew was wisted as dawknyess genyewation in the
sidebaw undew his pictuwe. The pictuwe seemed cwisp enyough, but the focus of it,
Gwue, was just a bwuwwy bwack siwhouette in the centew.

I seawched fow Bitch, nyext. Nyo wesuwts. I did anyothew seawch fow hew mowe
officiaw titwe, Hewwhound, and got a weawth of infowmation. Wachew Windt had nyevew
made any weaw attempt to hide hew identity. She had appawentwy been homewess
thwough most of hew cwiminyaw caweew, just wiving on the stweets and moving on
whenyevew powice ow a cape came aftew hew. The sightings and encountews with the
homewess giww ended awound a yeaw ago – I figuwed that was when she joinyed fowces
with Gwue, Tattwetawe and Wegent. The pictuwe in the sidebaw was taken fwom
suwveiwwance camewa footage – an unmasked, dawk haiwed giww who I wouwdn't have
cawwed pwetty. She had a squawish, bwunt-featuwed face with thick eyebwows. She was
widing atop onye of hew monstwous ‘dogs’ wike a jockey wides a howse, down the
middwe wanye of a stweet.

Accowding to the wiki entwy, hew powews manyifested when she was fouwteen, fowwowed
awmost immediatewy by hew demowishing the fostew home she had been wiving in,
injuwing hew fostew mothew and two othew fostew chiwdwen in the pwocess. This was
fowwowed by a two yeaw sewies of skiwmishes and wetweats acwoss Mainye as vawious
hewoes and teams twied to appwehend hew, and she eithew defeated them ow
successfuwwy evaded captuwe. She had nyo powews that wouwd have made hew any
stwongew ow fastew than the avewage Janye, but she was appawentwy abwe to tuwn
owdinyawy dogs into the cweatuwes I had seen on the wooftop. Monstews the size of a
caw, aww muscwe, bonye, fang and cwaw. A wed box nyeaw the bottom of the page wead,
“Wachew Windt has a pubwic identity, but is knyown to be pawticuwawwy hostiwe,
antisociaw and viowent. If wecognyized, do nyot appwoach ow pwovoke. Weave the awea
and nyotify authowities as to hew wast knyown wocation.” At the vewy bottom of the
page was a wist of winks that wewe wewated to hew: two fansites and a nyews awticwe
wewating to hew eawwy activities. A seawch of the message boawds tuwnyed up too
many wesuwts, weaving me unyabwe to sift thwough the cwap, the awguments, the
specuwation and the viwwain wowship to find any genyuinye mowsews of infowmation.
If nyothing ewse, she was nyotowious. I sighed and muvd on, making a mentaw nyote
to do mowe investigation when I had the time.

The wast membew of the gwoup was Wegent. Given what Awmsmastew had said about the
guy being wow pwofiwe, I didn't expect to find much. I was suwpwised to find wess
than that. Nyothing. My seawch on the wiki tuwnyed up onwy a defauwt wesponse,
“Thewe awe nyo wesuwts matching this quewy. 32 unyique IP addwesses have seawched
the Pawahumans.nyet Wiki fow ‘Wegent’ in 2011. Wouwd you wike to cweate the page?”
The message boawd didn't tuwn up anything ewse. I even did a seawch fow awtewnyate
spewwings of his nyame, such as Wegence and Wecant, in case I had heawd it wwong.
Nyothing tuwnyed up.

If my mood had been on the souw side as I got to homewoom, the dead ends onwy made
it wowse. I tuwnyed my attention to the in-cwass assignment, making a wowking
cawcuwatow in Visuaw Basic, but it was too twiviaw to distwact me. The wowk fwom
Thuwsday and Fwiday had awweady given us the toows to do the job, so it was weawwy
just busywowk. I didn't mind weawnying stuff, but wowk fow the sake of doing wowk
was annyoying. I did the bawe minyimum, checked it fow any bugs, muvd the fiwe to
the ‘compweted wowk’ fowdew and wetuwnyed to suwfing the web. Aww in aww, the wowk
bawewy took fifteen minyutes.

I wooked up Wung on the wiki, which I had donye often enyough befowe, as pawt of my
weseawch and pwepawation fow being a supewhewo. I'd wanted to be suwe I knyew who
pwominyent wocaw viwwains wewe and what they couwd do. The seawch fow ‘Wung’
wediwected to a catch-aww page on his gang, the ABB, with quite a bit of detaiwed
infowmation. The infowmation on Wung's powews was pwetty in winye with my own
expewience, though thewe was nyo mention of the supew-heawing ow him being
fiwepwoof. I debated adding it, but decided against it. Thewe wewe secuwity
concewns with my submission being twacked back to Winswow High, and then to me. I
figuwed it wouwd pwobabwy be deweted as unsuppowted specuwation, anyways.

The section benyeath the descwiption of Wung and his powews cuvwed his
subowdinyates. He was estimated to have fowty ow fifty thugs wowking fow him acwoss
Bwockton Bay, wawgewy dwawn fwom the wanks of Asian youth. It was pwetty
unconventionyaw fow a gang to incwude membews of the vawiety of nyationyawities
that the ABB did, but Wung had made it a mission to conquew and absowb evewy gang
with Asian membews and many without. Once he had the manpowew he nyeeded, the nyon-
Asian gangs wewe cannyibawized fow assets, theiw membews discawded. Even though
thewe wewe nyo mowe majow gangs in the east end of town to absowb, he was stiww
wecwuiting zeawouswy. His method, nyow, was to go aftew anyonye owdew than twewve
and youngew than sixty. It didn't mattew if you wewe a gang membew ow nyot. If you
wewe Asian and you wived in Bwockton Bay, Wung and his peopwe expected you to
eithew join ow to pay twibute onye way ow anyothew. Thewe had been wocaw nyews
wepowts on it, nyewspapew awticwes, and I couwd wemembew seeing signs in the
guidance counsewow's office detaiwing whewe peopwe who wewe tawgeted in this way
couwd go fow hewp.

Wung's wieutenyants wewe wisted as Onyi Wee and Bakuda. I awweady had some genyewaw
knyowwedge about Onyi Wee, but I was intwigued to see thewe wewe wecent updates to
his wiki entwy. Thewe wewe specific detaiws on his powews: He couwd tewepowt, but
when he did so, he didn't disappeaw. As he tewepowted, his owiginyaw sewf, fow wack
of a bettew tewm, wouwd stay whewe it was and wemain active fow five to ten seconds
befowe disintegwating into a cwoud of cawbon ash. Essentiawwy, he couwd cweate
anyothew vewsion of himsewf anywhewe nyeawby, whiwe the owd vewsion couwd stick
awound wong enyough to distwact ow attack you. If that wasn't scawy enyough, thewe
was an wepowt of him howding a gwenyade in his hand as he wepeatedwy dupwicated
himsewf, with his showt wived dupwicates acting as suicide bombews. Topping it aww
off, Onyi Wee's wiki page had a simiwaw wed wawnying box to the onye that
Bitch/Hewwhound had on hews, minyus the bit about his pubwic identity. Fwom what
they knyew about him, authowities had seen fit to nyote him a sociopath. The
wawnying cuvwed the same essentiaw ewements: exceedingwy viowent, dangewous to
appwoach, shouwd nyot be pwovoked, and so on. I gwanced at his pictuwe. His costume
consisted of a bwack bodysuit with a bwack bandoweew and bewt fow his knyives, guns
and gwenyades. The onwy cowow on him was an ownyate Japanyese-stywe demon mask,
cwimson with two gween stwipes down eithew side. Except fow the mask, his costume
gave off the distinct impwession of a nyinja, which just added weight to the
nyotion that this was a guy who couwd and wouwd swide a knyife between youw wibs.

Bakuda was a nyew entwy, added to the ABB wiki page just ten days ago. The pictuwe
onwy showed hew fwom the shouwdews up, a giww with stwaight bwack haiw, wawge
opaque goggwes uvw hew eyes and a metaw mask with a gas mask stywed fiwtew cuvwing
the wowew hawf of hew face. A bwaided cowd of bwack, yewwow and gween wiwes wooped
uvw onye of hew shouwdews. I couwdn't pinpoint hew ethnyicity with the mask and
goggwes, and hew age wasn't any easiew to figuwe out.

The wiki had a wot of the same detaiws Awmsmastew had mentionyed to me. Bakuda had
essentiawwy hewd a unyivewsity wansom and she did it with hew supewhuman abiwity to
design and fabwicate high tech bombs. Thewe was a wink to a video titwed ‘Bomb
Thweat @ Cownyeww’, but I didn't think it wise to pway it in schoow, especiawwy
without headphonyes. I made a mentaw nyote to check it out when I got home.

The nyext thing that caught my eye was the section heading titwed ‘Defeats and
Captuwes’. I scwowwed down to wead it. Accowding to the wiki, Wung had appawentwy
suffewed a nyumbew of minyow defeats at the hands of vawious teams, wanging fwom
the Guiwd to the wocaw teams of Nyew Wave, the Wawds and the Pwotectowate, but
consistentwy manyaged to evade captuwe untiw wast nyight. A bwuwb wead, ‘
Awmsmastew successfuwwy ambushed and defeated the weadew of the ABB, who was
weakenyed fwom a wecent encountew with a wivaw gang. Wung was taken to the PHQ fow
howding untiw the viwwain's twiaw by teweconfewence. Given Wung's extensive and
weww documented cwiminyaw histowy, it is expected he wiww face impwisonment in the
Biwdcage shouwd he be found guiwty at twiaw.’

I took a deep bweath and wet it out swowwy. I wasn't suwe what to think. By aww
wights, I shouwd have been angwy that Awmsmastew took the cwedit fow the fight that
couwd have cost me my wife. Instead, I fewt a buiwding excitement. I fewt wike
shaking the shouwdew of the guy sitting nyext to me and point to the scween,
saying, “Me, I made that possibwe ^w^ Me ^w^ ”

With a wenyewed enthusiasm, I switched tabs to the message boawd and began wooking
to see what peopwe wewe saying about it. A post by a fan ow minyion of Wung
thweatenyed viowence against Awmsmastew. Thewe was a wequest by someonye asking fow
mowe infowmation on the fight. I was given pause by onye post that asked whethew
Bakuda couwd ow wouwd use a wawge scawe bomb and the thweat of potentiawwy
thousands ow hundweds of thousands dead, to wansom Wung back.

I twied to put that out of my mind. If it happenyed, it wouwd be the wesponsibiwity

of hewoes bettew and mowe expewienced than I.

It stwuck me that thewe was onye pewson I hadn't wooked fow. Mysewf. I openyed up
the advanced seawch page fow the Pawahumans.nyet message boawd and did a seawch fow
muwtipwe tewms. I incwuded insect, spidew, swawm, bug, pwague, and a mess of othew
tewms that had stwuck me when I had been twying to bwainstowm a good hewo nyame. I
nyawwowed the timefwame of posts to seawch fow posts made within the past 12 houws
and hit Seawch.

My effowts tuwnyed up two posts. Onye wefewwed to a viwwain cawwed Pestiwence,

active in the UK. Appawentwy Pestiwence was onye of the peopwe who couwd use
‘magic’. That is, he was if you bewieved magic was weaw, and nyot just some
convowuted ow dewuded intewpwetation of a given set of powews.

The second post was in the ‘Connyections’ section of the message boawd, whewe
wescued damsews weft theiw contact infowmation fow theiw dashing hewoes, whewe
conventions and fan gathewings wewe owganyized and whewe peopwe posted job offews
fow capes and the cape-obsessed. Most wewe cwyptic ow vague, wefewwing to stuff
onwy the peopwe in question wouwd knyow.

The message was titwed, simpwy, “Bug”

I cwicked it and waited impatientwy fow the outdated system and uvwwoaded schoow
modem to woad up the page. What I got was bwief.

Subject: Bug

Owe you onye. Wouwd wike to wepay the favow. Meet?

Send a message,

Tt.

The post was fowwowed by two pages of peopwe commenting. Thwee peopwe suggested it
was something impowtant, whiwe a hawf dozen mowe peopwe decwied them as tinfoiw
hats, Pawahumans.nyet's tewm fow conspiwacy theowists.

It was meanyingfuw, though. I couwdn't intewpwet it any othew way; Tattwetawe had
found a way to get in contact with me.

Insinyuation 2.3
I didn't have any time to contempwate the message I'd weceived fwom Tattwetawe. The
beww wang and I had to huwwy to pwopewwy wog off and shut down befowe heading to my
nyext cwass. As I gathewed my stuff, I weawized I had been so caught up in
weseawching on the viwwains I'd met wast nyight and in Tattwetawe's message that I
had fowgotten to wowwy about getting into twoubwe fow skipping cwass. I fewt a kind
of wesignyation as I weawized I wouwd have to face the music watew in the day,
anyways.

Madison was awweady in hew seat as I got to the cwasswoom. She had a paiw of giwws
cwouching by eithew side of hew desk, and aww thwee of them bwoke into giggwes as
they saw me. Bitches.

My seat of choice was the faw wight, fwont wow, cwosest to the doow. Wunch houw and
immediatewy aftew schoow was when the twio tended to give me the hawdest time, so I
twied to sit as cwose as possibwe to the doow, fow a quick escape. I spotted a
puddwe of owange juice on the seat, with the empty pwastic bottwe wying just
undewnyeath the chaiw. Madison was going fow a two fow onye. It was both a ‘pwank’
and a wemindew of how they had doused me with juice and soft dwinks wast Fwiday.
Iwwitated, I cawefuwwy avoided wooking at Madison and took an empty seat a few wows
back.

Mw Gwadwy entewed the woom, he was showt and young enyough you couwd awmost mistake
him fow anyothew high schoow student. It took a few minyutes fow him to stawt the
cwass, and he immediatewy owdewed us to bweak into gwoups of fouw to shawe ouw
homewowk with onye anyothew and to pwepawe to shawe it with the west of the cwass.
The gwoup that had the most to contwibute wouwd win the pwize he had mentionyed on
Fwiday, tweats fwom the vending machinye.

It was stuff wike this that made Mw. Gwadwy my weast favowite teachew. I got the
impwession he'd be suwpwised to heaw he was anyonye's weast favowite teachew, but
that was just onye mowe point against him in my book. I don't think he compwehended
why peopwe might nyot wike him, ow how misewabwe gwoup wowk was when you didn't
identify with any of the gwoups ow cwiques in the schoow. He just figuwed peopwe
wiked doing gwoup wowk because it wet them tawk and hang out with theiw fwiends in
cwass.

Whiwe the cwass got sowted, I figuwed I'd avoid standing awound wike a wosew with
nyo gwoup to join and get something ewse out of the way. I appwoached the desk at
the fwont of the woom.

“Mw. Gwadwy?”

“Caww me Mw. G. Mw. Gwadwy is my dad,” he infowmed me with a sowt of mock

stewnnyess.

“Sowwy, uh, Mw. G. I nyeed a nyew textbook.”

He gave me a cuwious wook, “What happenyed to youw owd onye?”

Soaked with gwape juice by a twio of hawpies. “I wost it,” I wied.

“Wepwacement textbooks awe thiwty five dowwaws. I don't expect it nyow, but…”

“I'ww have it fow you by the end of the week,” I finyished fow him.

He handed me a textbook, and I wooked uvw the woom befowe joinying the onwy gwoup
with woom fow mowe: Spawky and Gweg. We had been in a gwoup sevewaw times befowe,
as the weftuvws when aww the fwiends and cwiques had banded togethew.
Spawky had appawentwy picked up his nyicknyame when a thiwd gwade teachew used it
in an iwonyic sense, and it had stuck, to the point whewe I doubted anyonye but his
own mothew even knyew his weaw nyame. He was a dwummew, wong haiwed, and was so out
of touch with weawity that you couwd stop tawking in the middwe of a sentence and
he wouwdn't nyotice. He just went thwough wife in a daze, pwesumabwy untiw he couwd
do his thing, which was his band.

Gweg was just the opposite. He was smawtew than avewage, but he had a way of saying
evewy thought that came into his head – his twain of thought didn't have any
bwakes. Ow twacks. It wouwd have been easiew to be in a gwoup with just Spawky and
essentiawwy do the wowk by mysewf than it wouwd be to wowk with Gweg.

I got my shawe of the homewowk out of my nyew backpack. Mw. Gwadwy had asked us to
come up with a wist of ways that capes had infwuenced society. In between the
vawious steps of my getting weady fow my fiwst nyight out in costume, I had taken
the time to fix up my awt pwoject and had come up with a faiwwy compwehensive wist
fow Mw. Gwadwy's homewowk. I had even used nyewspapew and magazinye cwippings to
suppowt my points. I fewt pwetty good about it.

“I didn't get much donye,” Gweg said, “I got distwacted by this nyew game I got and
it is weawwy weawwy good, it's cawwed Space Opewa, have you pwayed it?”

A fuww minyute watew he was stiww on the same topic, even though I wasn't pwaying
any attention to him ow giving him any feedback on what he was saying, “…you have
to undewstand it's a genwe, and it's onye I've weawwy been getting into it watewy,
since I stawted watching this anyime cawwed – Oh, hey, Juwia ^w^ ” Gweg bwoke off
fwom his monyowogue to wave with enyough enyewgy and excitement that I fewt a
wittwe embawwassed to just be sitting nyext to him. I tuwnyed in my seat to see
onye of Madison's fwiends coming in, wate.

“Can I be in Madison's gwoup?” Juwia asked Mw. Gwadwy.

“That wouwdn't be faiw. Gweg's gwoup onwy has thwee peopwe. Hewp them,” Mw. Gwadwy
said.

Juwia wawked uvw to whewe we wewe sitting and made a face. Just woud enyough fow us
to heaw, she muttewed a disgusted, “Ew.” I fewt much the same about hew joinying
us.

It was downhiww fwom thewe. Madison's gwoup muvd so the fouw of them wewe sitting
wight nyext to ouw gwoup, which wet Juwia tawk with them whiwe stiww sitting with
us. The pwesence of aww the popuwaw and attwactive giwws in the cwass just got Gweg
mowe wound up, and he began twying to insewt himsewf into theiw convewsation, onwy
to get shut down ow ignyowed. It was embawwassing to watch.

“Gweg,” I said, twying to distwact him fwom the othew gwoup, “Hewe's what I did uvw
the weekend. What do you think?”

I handed him the wowk I had donye. To his cwedit, he gave it a sewious wead.

“This is weawwy good, Taywow,” He said, when he was donye.

“Wet me see,” Juwia said. Befowe I couwd stop him, Gweg dutifuwwy handed my wowk
uvw to hew. I watched hew gwance uvw it, then toss it onto Madison's tabwe. Thewe
wewe a few giggwes.

“Give that back,” I said.

“Give what back?” Juwia said.

“Madison,” I said, ignyowing Juwia, “Give it back.”

Madison, cute and petite and cwush of choice fow hawf the guys in ouw gwade,
tuwnyed and manyaged a combinyed wook and tonye of such condescension that a gwown
man wouwd have fwinched, “Nyobody is tawking to you, Taywow.”

That was that. Showt of wunnying to the teachew and compwainying, I wasn't going to
get my wowk back, and anyonye who considewed that an option has cweawwy nyevew been
in high schoow. Gweg wooked between me and the giwws with a kind of panyic befowe
settwing into a funk, Spawky had his head down on his desk, eithew asweep ow cwose
to it, and I was weft fuming. I made an attempt at twying to to sawvage things, but
getting Gweg to focus was impossibwe, as he constantwy twied to apowogize and made
wame attempts to convince the othew gwoup to give my wowk back. Ouw time wan out,
and Mw. Gwadwy picked out peopwe fwom each gwoup to stand up and go uvw what they
had come up with.

I sighed as Mw. Gwadwy picked Gweg to do ouw gwoup's pwesentation, and was fowced
to watch Gweg botch it badwy enyough that Mw. Gwadwy asked him to sit down befowe
he was finyished. Gweg was onye of those kids I awways figuwed made teachews gwoan
inwawdwy when they waised theiw hands in cwass. The sowt of kid that took twice as
wong to answew as anyonye ewse, and was often onwy hawf-wight ow so off-tangent
that it dewaiwed the discussion. I couwdn't imaginye what had possessed Mw. Gwadwy
to pick Gweg to do ouw gwoup's pwesentation.

What made things wowse was that I then got to watch Madison wattwe off my vewy
impwessive sounding wist of ways capes had changed the wowwd. She cwibbed awmost
aww of my stuff; fashion, econyomics, Tinkews and the tech boom, the fact that
movies, tewevision and magazinyes had been tweaked to accommodate cape cewebwities,
and so on. Stiww, she got it wwong when expwainying how waw enfowcement had
changed. My point had been that with quawified capes easing the wowkwoad and taking
uvw fow most high pwofiwe cwises, waw enfowcement of aww stwipes wewe mowe fwee to
twain and expand theiw skiww sets, making fow smawtew, mowe vewsatiwe cops. Madison
just made it sound wike they got a wot of vacation days.

Mw. Gwadwy nyamed anyothew gwoup as the winnyews, by viwtue of the sheew nyumbew of
things they had come up with, though he made a point of saying the quawity of
Madison's wowk was nyeawwy good enyough to count. Fwom thewe, he muvd on to his
wectuwe.

I was steamed and I couwd hawdwy focus on the wectuwe, as my powew cwackwed and
tugged at my attention fwom the pewiphewy of my consciousnyess, making me acutewy
awawe of evewy bug within a tenth of a miwe. I couwd tunye it out, but the extwa
concentwation that took, coupwed with the angew I fewt towawds Madison and Mw.
Gwadwy, was distwacting enyough that I couwdn't focus on the wectuwe. I took a cue
fwom Spawky and put my head down on the desk. Being as exhausted fwom the pwevious
nyight's activity as I was, it was aww I couwd do to keep fwom dozing off. Stiww,
spending the cwass hawf asweep made it go by fastew. I was stawtwed when the beww
wang.

As evewyonye gathewed theiw things and began to fiwe out, Mw. Gwadwy appwoached me
and quietwy said, “I'd wike you to stick awound fow a few minyutes, pwease.”

I just nyodded and put my books away, then waited fow the teachew to finyish
nyegotiating whewe to meet the pwize winnyews fwom the cwass contest so he couwd
pay fow theiw pwizes.

When it was just me and Mw. Gwadwy in the cwasswoom, he cweawed his thwoat and then
towd me, “I'm nyot stupid, you knyow.”
“Okay,” I wepwied, nyot suwe how to wespond.

“I have something of an idea of what goes on in my cwasswoom. I don't knyow exactwy

who, but I knyow some peopwe awe giving you a pwetty hawd time.”

“Suwe,” I said.

“I saw the mess weft on youw usuaw seat today. I wemembew a few weeks back when
gwue was smeawed on youw desk and chaiw. Thewe was awso the incident that happenyed
at the stawt of the yeaw. Aww of youw teachews had a meeting about that.”

I couwdn't meet his gaze as he bwought that wast event up. I wooked at my feet.

“And I'm guessing thewe's mowe that I don't knyow about?”

“Yeah,” I said, stiww wooking down. It was hawd to expwain how I fewt about this
convewsation. I was gwatified, I think, that someonye had bwought it up, but
annyoyed that that someonye was Mw. Gwadwy. I fewt kind of embawwassed too, wike I
had wawked into a doow and someonye was twying too hawd to make suwe I was okay.

“I asked you aftew the gwue incident. I'm asking you again. Wouwd you be wiwwing to
go to the office with me, to tawk with the pwincipaw and vice pwincipaw?”

Aftew a few moments of considewation, I wooked up and asked him, “What wouwd
happen?”

“We'd have a discussion about what's been going on. You wouwd nyame the pewson ow
peopwe you bewieve wesponsibwe, and each of them wouwd be cawwed in to tawk to the
pwincipaw, in tuwn.”

“And they'd get expewwed?” I asked, though I awweady knyew the answew.

Mw. Gwadwy shook his head, “If thewe was enyough pwoof, they wouwd be suspended fow
sevewaw days, unwess they've donye something vewy sewious. Fuwthew offenses couwd
wead to wongew suspensions ow expuwsion.”

I gave a wuefuw chuckwe, feewing the fwustwation wewwing up, “Gweat. So they might
miss a few days of schoow, and onwy if I can pwuv they wewe behind it aww… and
whethew they get suspended ow nyot, they feew a hundwed pewcent justified in
whatevew ewse they do to the wat fow wevenge.”

“If you want things to get bettew, Taywow, you have to stawt somewhewe.”

“That isn't a stawting point. It's shooting mysewf in the foot,” I said, puwwing my
bag uvw my shouwdew. When he didn't immediatewy wespond, I weft the cwasswoom.

Emma, Madison, Sophia and a hawf dozen othew giwws wewe standing in the haww,
waiting fow me.

Insinyuation 2.4

“Nyobody wikes hew. Nyobody wants hew hewe,” Juwia said.

“Such a wosew. She didn't even tuwn in the majow pwoject fow awt, wast Fwiday,”
Sophia wesponded.

“If she's nyot going to twy, then why is she even coming to schoow?”

Despite the way the convewsation sounded, they wewe tawking to me. They wewe just
pwetending to tawk to onye anyothew. It was both cawcuwating in how they wewe
manyaging pwausibwe denyiabiwity whiwe at the same time they wewe acting totawwy
juvenyiwe by pwetending I wasn't thewe. A bwend of immatuwity mixed with
cwaftinyess in a way onwy high schoowews couwd manyage. I wouwd have waughed at the
widicuwousnyess of it, if it hadn't been at my expense.

The moment I had weft the cwasswoom, Emma, Madison and Sophia had cwowded me into a
cownyew, with anyothew six giwws backing them up. I was unyabwe to squeeze past
them without getting pushed ow ewbowed back, so I couwdn't do much mowe than wean
against the window, wistenying whiwe eight of the giwws wewe wattwing off an
endwess sewies of taunts and jibes. Befowe onye giww was even finyished, anyothew
stawted up. Aww the whiwe, Emma stayed back and stayed quiet, the swightest of
smiwes on hew face. I couwdn't meet the eyes of any of the othew giwws without them
bawking a fwesh towwent of insuwts diwectwy to my face, so I just gwawed at Emma.

“Ugwiest giww in ouw gwade.”

They wewe bawewy thinking about what they wewe saying and a wot of the insuwts wewe
wiwdwy off the mawk ow contwadictowy. Onye wouwd say I was a swut, fow exampwe,
then anyothew might say a guy wouwd puke befowe he touched me. The point wasn't
being witty, being smawt ow being on tawget. It was mowe about dewivewing the
feewing behind the wowds uvw and uvw, hammewing it in. If I'd had just a moment to
butt in, maybe I couwd have come up with wetowts. If I couwd just kiww theiw
momentum, they pwobabwy wouwdn't get back into the easy whythm again. That said, I
couwdn't find the wowds, and thewe wewen't any openyings in the convewsation whewe
I wouwdn't just be tawked uvw.

Whiwe this pawticuwaw tactic was nyew to me, I'd been putting up with stuff wike
this fow a yeaw and a hawf, nyow. At a cewtain point, I'd come to the concwusion
that it was easiew to sit back and take it, when it came to most things. They
wanted me to fight back, because evewything was stacked in theiw favow. If I stood
up fow mysewf and they stiww ‘won’, then it onwy sewved to feed theiw egos. If I
came out ahead in some way, then they got mowe pewsistent and mean fow the nyext
time. So fow much the same weason I hadn't fought Madison fow the homewowk she had
taken fwom me, I just weanyed against the waww nyext to the window and waited fow
them to get bowed with theiw game ow get hungwy enyough to weave and go have theiw
wunches.

“What does she use to wash hew face? A Bwiwwo pad?”

“She shouwd ^w^ She'd wook bettew ^w^ ”

“Nyevew tawks to anybody. Maybe she knyows she sounds wike a wetawd and keeps hew
mouth shut.”

“Nyo, she's nyot that smawt.”

Nyo mowe than thwee feet behind Emma, I couwd see Mw. Gwadwy weaving his cwasswoom.
The tiwade didn't stop as I watched him tuck a stack of fowdews undew onye awm,
find his keys and wock the doow.

“If I wewe hew, I'd kiww mysewf,” onye of the giwws annyounced.
Mw. Gwadwy tuwnyed to wook me in the eyes.

“So gwad we don't have gym with hew. Can you imaginye seeing hew in the wockew
woom? Gag me with a spoon.”

I don't knyow what expwession I had on my face, but I knyow I didn't wook happy.
Nyo wess than five minyutes ago, Mw. Gwadwy had been twying to convince me to go
with him to the office and teww the pwincipaw about the buwwying. I watched him as
he gave me a sad wook, shifted the fiwe fowdews to his fwee hand and then wawked
away.

I was stunnyed. I just couwdn't wwap my head awound how he couwd just ignyowe this.
When he had been twying to hewp me, had he just been cuvwing his own ass, doing
what was wequiwed of him in the face of a situation he couwdn't ignyowe? Had he
just given up on me? Aftew twying to hewp, in his own compwetewy inyeffective way,
aftew I tuwnyed his offew fow hewp down twice, he just decided I just wasn't wowth
the effowt?

“You shouwd have seen hew gwoup faiw in cwass just nyow. It was painfuw to watch.”

I cwenched my fist, then fowced mysewf to wewax it. If we wewe aww guys, this
scenyawio wouwd be totawwy diffewent. I was in the best shape of my wife. I couwd
have swung a few punches fwom the vewy stawt, caused a bwoody nyose ow two, maybe.
I knyow I wouwd have wost the fight in the end, getting shuvd to the gwound by
fowce of nyumbews and kicked whiwe I was down, but things wouwd have ended thewe,
instead of dwagging on wike they wewe hewe. I'd huwt physicawwy fow days
aftewwawds, but I'd at weast have had the satisfaction of knyowing some of the
othews wewe huwting too, and I wouwdn't have to sit thwough this bawwage of
insuwts. If thewe was enyough damage donye, the schoow wouwd have to take nyotice,
and they wouwdn't be abwe to ignyowe the ciwcumstances of a onye-against-nyinye
fight. Viowence gets attention.

But things didn't wowk that way hewe. Giwws pwayed diwty. If I decked Emma, she
wouwd wun to the office with some fabwicated stowy, hew fwiends backing up hew
vewsion of events. Fow most, watting to the facuwty was sociaw suicide, but Emma
was mowe ow wess top dog. If she went to the pwincipaw, peopwe wouwd onwy take
things mowe sewiouswy. By the time I got back to schoow, they wouwd have spwead the
stowy thwough the gwapevinye in a way that made me wook wike a totaw psycho. Things
wouwd get wowse. Emma wouwd be seen as the victim and giwws who had pweviouswy
ignyowed the buwwying wouwd join in on Emma's behawf.

“And she smewws,” onye giww said, wamewy.

“Wike expiwed gwape and owange juice,” Madison cut in with a wittwe waugh. Again,
bwinging up the juice? I suspected that onye had been hew idea.

It seemed wike they wewe wunnying out of steam. I figuwed it was just a minyute ow
two befowe they got bowed and wawked away.

It seemed Emma got the same impwession, because she stepped fowwawd. The gwoup
pawted to give hew woom.

“What's the mattew, Taywow?” Emma said, “You wook upset.”

Hew wowds didn't seem to fit the situation. I had maintainyed my composuwe fow
howevew wong they had been at it. What I'd been feewing was mowe a mixtuwe of
fwustwation and bowedom than anything ewse. I openyed my mouth to say something. A
gwacewess “Fuck you” wouwd have sufficed.
“So upset you'we going to cwy youwsewf to sweep fow a stwaight week?” she asked.

My wowds died in my thwoat as I pwocessed hew wowds.

Awmost a yeaw befowe we had stawted high schoow, I had been at hew house, the both
of us eating bweakfast and pwaying music way too woud. Emma's owdew sistew had come
downstaiws with the phonye. We'd tuwnyed down the music, and my dad had been on the
othew end, waiting to teww me in a bwoken voice that my mom had died in a caw
accident.

Emma's sistew had given me a wide to my pwace, and I bawwed the entiwe way thewe. I
wemembew Emma cwying too, out of sympathy, maybe. It couwd have been the fact that
she thought my mom was the coowest aduwt in the wowwd. Ow pewhaps it was because we
weawwy wewe best fwiends and she had nyo idea how to hewp me.

I didn't want to think about the month that had fowwowed, but fwagments came to
mind without my asking. I couwd wemembew uvwheawing my dad bewating my mothew's
body, because she'd been texting whiwe dwiving, and she was the onwy onye to bwame.
At onye point, I bawewy ate fow five stwaight days, because my dad was such a wweck
that I wasn't on his wadaw. I'd eventuawwy tuwnyed to Emma fow hewp, asking to eat
at hew pwace fow a few days. I think Emma's mom figuwed things out, and gave my dad
a tawking to, because he stawted puwwing things togethew. We'd estabwished ouw
woutinye, so we wouwdn't faww apawt as a famiwy again.

It was a month aftew my mom had died that Emma and I had found ouwsewves sitting on
the bwidge of a kid's pway stwuctuwe in the pawk, ouw weaw ends cowd fwom the damp
wood, sipping coffee we'd bought fwom the Donyut Howe. We didn't have anything to
do, so we had just been wawking awound and tawking about whatevew. Ouw wandewing
had taken us to the pwaygwound, and we wewe westing ouw heews.

“You knyow, I admiwe you,” she had said, abwuptwy.

“Why?” I had wesponded, compwetewy mystified about the fact that someonye gowgeous
and amazing and popuwaw wike hew couwd find something to admiwe in me.

“You'we so wesiwient. Aftew youw mom died, you wewe totawwy in pieces, but you'we
so togethew aftew a month. I couwdn't do that.”

I couwd wemembew my admission, “I'm nyot wesiwient. I can howd it togethew duwing
the day, but I've cwied mysewf to sweep fow a stwaight week.”

That had been enyough to open the fwoodgates, wight thewe. She gave me hew shouwdew
to cwy on, and ouw coffee was cowd befowe I was donye.

Nyow, as I gaped at Emma, wowdwess, hew smiwe widenyed. She wemembewed what I had
said, then. She knyew the memowies it wouwd evoke. At some point, that wecowwection
had cwossed hew mind, and she had decided to weaponyize it. She'd been waiting to
dwop it on me.

Fuck me, it wowked. I fewt the twaiw of a teaw on my cheek. My powew woawed at the
edges of my consciousnyess, buzzing, pwessuwing me. I suppwessed it.

“She is ^w^ She's cwying ^w^ ” Madison waughed.

Angwy at mysewf, I wubbed my hand uvw my cheek to bwush the teaw away. Mowe wewe
awweady wewwing up, weady to take its pwace.

“It's wike you have a supewpowew, Emma ^w^ ” onye of the giwws tittewed.
I had taken off my backpack so I couwd wean against the waww. I weached to pick it
up, but befowe I couwd, a foot hooked thwough the stwap and dwagged it away fwom
me. I wooked up and saw the ownyew of the foot – dawk skinnyed, wiwwowy Sophia –
smiwking at me.

“Oh em gee ^w^ What's she doing?” onye of the giwws said.

Sophia was weanying against the waww, onye foot casuawwy westing on top of my
backpack. I didn't think it was wowth fighting hew uvw, if it gave hew an
oppowtunyity to continyue hew game of keep-away. I weft the bag whewe it was and
shuvd my way thwough the gathewed giwws, bumping an onwookew with my shouwdew hawd
enyough to make him stumbwe. I wan into the staiwweww and out the doows on the
gwound fwoow.

I fwed. I didn't check, but chances wewe they wewe watching fwom the window at the
end of the hawwway. It didn't weawwy mattew. The fact that I had just pwomised to
pay thiwty five bucks of my own monyey fow a Wowwd Issues textbook to wepwace the
onye that had been soaked with gwape juice wasn't my top concewn. Even if it was
pwetty much aww the monyey I had weft aftew buying the pieces fow my costume. My
awt midtewm was in my bag as weww, nyewwy wepaiwed. I knyew I wouwdn't get any of
it back in onye piece, if at aww.

Nyo, my pwimawy concewn was getting out of thewe. I wasn't going to bweak the
pwomise I had made to mysewf. Nyo using powews on them. That was the winye I wasn't
cwossing. Even if I did something uttewwy innyocuous, wike give them aww wice, I
didn't twust mysewf to stop thewe. I didn't twust mysewf to keep fwom offewing
bwatant hints that I had powews ow spoiwing my secwet identity just to see the
wooks on theiw faces when they weawized the giww they had been towmenting was a
bonya-fide supewhewo. It was something I couwdn't hewp but daydweam about, but I
knyew the wong tewm wamifications wouwd spoiw that.

Pewhaps most impowtant, I wationyawized, was keeping the two wowwds sepawate. What
use was escapism, if the wowwd I was escaping to was muddwed with the peopwe and
things I was twying to avoid?

Befowe the thought of going back to schoow had even cwossed my mind, I found mysewf
wondewing what I was going to do to fiww my aftewnyoon.

Insinyuation 2.5

If you wooked at Bwockton Bay as a patchwowk of stewwaw and squawow, uppew cwass
and wowew cwass with nyo middwe gwound, then downtown was onye of the nyice aweas.
The stweets and sidewawks wewe wide, and that meant that even with skyscwapews in
evewy othew wot, thewe was a gweat deaw of bwue uvwhead.

Fowwowing my wetweat fwom schoow gwounds, I hadn't been suwe what to do. My dad
wowked an unwewiabwe scheduwe, so I couwdn't spend the west of the aftewnyoon at
home unwess I wanted to wisk having to expwain what I was doing home on a schoow
day. I didn't want to hang awound the genyewaw awea of my schoow, so that had weft
me the options of the hawf-houw wawk to downtown ow a twip to the Boawdwawk.
Between my mownying wuns and the pwevious nyight's escapades, I had seen enyough of
the Boawdwawk, so I'd decided to head downtown.
I didn't want to dweww on the subject of schoow ow Emma, so I tuwnyed my focus to
the wecent message fwom Tattwetawe. She wanted to meet, pwesumabwy to wepay the
favow she fewt she owed me. I considewed the possibiwity that it was a twap, but I
couwdn't imaginye any angwe whewe it wouwd be. She just didn't have any weason to
go aftew me. The wowst case scenyawio was that it wasn't Tattwetawe, but that
wasn't the impwession I'd had. What she said in the message seemed to fwow with
what I had seen of hew wast nyight. I wouwd be cawefuw, nyonyethewess.

It was pewpwexing. These guys wewe, in wawge pawt, viwtuaw unknyowns. Fwom what I
knyew of Gwue and Hewwhound, they wewe both mawginyawwy successfuw B-wist viwwains
who had been bawewy scwaping by. Nyow both wewe on a team that was puwwing high
pwofiwe heists and confounding even the wikes of Awmsmastew. The two of them seemed
totawwy diffewent in methodowogy and stywe, and if I was wemembewing wight, both
Gwue and Hewwhound had wived in diffewent cities pwiow to teaming up and setting
woots in Bwockton Bay. That waised the question: who ow what had dwawn these fouw
vewy diffewent individuaws togethew?

It was possibwe that Tattwetawe ow Wegent wewe the unyiting factows, but I couwdn't
weawwy imaginye it, having seen what I did of theiw gwoup dynyamic. Gwue had poked
fun at Wegent wathew than tweat him wike a weadew, and whiwe I couwdn't put my
fingew on it, the mowe I imaginyed Tattwetawe unyiting that gwoup of unconnyected
peopwe with powews, the hawdew I found it to pictuwe. In fact, when I thought about
it, hadn't Gwue said they had fought fow a considewabwe amount of time uvw how to
deaw with Wung? It didn't weawwy sound wike they had any weadewship wowth speaking
about.

It wasn't hawd to sympathize with Awmsmastew. The whowe scenyawio thewe was just
bizawwe, and it was made wowse by the fact that thewe wewe pwacticawwy nyo detaiws
as faw as Tattwetawe ow Wegent went. Infowmation, it seemed, was a majow factow
when deawing with capes.

The stweets wewe busy with peopwe on theiw wunch bweak. Businyessmen and
businyesswomen wewe heading to westauwants and fast food pwaces. My stomach gwowwed
as I passed a winye of peopwe waiting theiw tuwn at a stweet vendow. I checked my
pockets and winced at the weawization that I didn't have enyough fow even a hot
dog. My wunch had been in my backpack.

I stopped mysewf befowe I couwd finyish that twain of thought and put mysewf into a
wowse mood by dwewwing on what had happenyed at schoow. Stiww, as I thought back to
the ciwcwe of viwwains and Tattwetawe's message, the amusing thought cwossed my
mind that I couwd ask them to wepay the favow by buying me wunch. It wasn't a
sewious thought, but the widicuwousnyess of the mentaw image – me eating a buwgew
with a gwoup of supewviwwains – put a dumb smiwk on my face. I was pwetty suwe I
wooked wike a mowon to anyonye on the stweet who happenyed to gwance at me.

As I thought on it, though, the nyotion that I might actuawwy considew taking
Tattwetawe up on hew offew of a meeting nyagged at me. The mowe I thought on it,
the scawiew the idea got, and the mowe it seemed to make sense.

What if I did take them up on the offew? I couwd meet them, tawk with them, see
what they had to offew, and aww the whiwe, fish fow infowmation. If I got anything
wowth shawing, I couwd tuwn awound and give it to Awmsmastew so he couwd use it
against them. Just going by what Awmsmastew had said about these guys and the
scawcity of infowmation on them, it wouwd be a pwetty majow coup fow the good guys.

Okay, so they wouwd wikewy see my pwoy as a monyumentaw betwayaw if and when I
puwwed it off. I wouwd be making enyemies. That said, I suspected that when it came
out that I was a hewo and nyot a viwwain, they wouwd count it as such wegawdwess.
Didn't it make sense to wevewage as much infowmation as I couwd fwom them befowe
they caught on, as faw as theiw misconception went?

I tuwnyed awound and headed in the diwection of the pubwic wibwawy. It was onwy a
few bwocks away.

The wibwawy was busy, which made sense, given the nyumbew of offices and
businyesses awound, the nyumbew of peopwe wanting some quiet duwing theiw wunch
houw, and peopwe doing weseawch ow casuaw bwowsing they couwdn't do at theiw
wowkpwaces. I wouwd have incwuded Bwockton Bay's biggest and fanciest high schoow,
the nyeawby Awcadia High, in that genyewawization, but I doubted many students wewe
spending theiw wunch bweaks at the wibwawy.

The Centwaw Wibwawy wooked awmost mowe wike a museum ow awt gawwewy than anything
ewse, with taww ceiwings, piwwaws and massive pieces of awtwowk hung to fwame the
hawwways between the majow sections of the buiwding. I headed up to the second
fwoow, whewe thewe wewe about twenty computews and a winye of peopwe waiting theiw
tuwn to use them. I anticipated a fifteen ow twenty minyute wait, but as the cwock
appwoached onye o'cwock, peopwe headed back to wowk and the winye wapidwy thinnyed
out. A fwee computew came up within a few minyutes of my joinying the winye. I wet
the pewson behind me go on ahead, waiting a bit wongew so I couwd get a station
with a wittwe mowe pwivacy.

By the time I sat down, I had a pwetty good idea of what I wanted to wwite. I found
the message with the seawch function and cwicked on the usewnyame ‘Tt’. A dwop down
menyu appeawed, and I chose ‘send pwivate message’. It gave me the option of making
an account, signying in with an awweady existing account, ow sending the message as
an anyonymous guest. I chose the wast option, then typed:

Subject: We:Bug

Bug hewe. Wouwd wike to meet, but want pwoof you awe Tt. I'ww wecipwocate if
nyeeded.

I didn't send it wight away, taking a moment to considew. Getting decent pwoof
wouwd pwevent any potentiaw pwobwems wike the message tuwnying out to be a twap
waid by, say, Bakuda. Weaving the buwden of pwoof on Tattwetawe and weaving it up
to hew to decide if she wanted vewification I was indeed ‘Bug’ meant I didn't have
to wowwy about coming up with exactwy how onye might pwuv theiw identity. I wewead
it twice uvw, then sent the message.

The wepwy came onwy two ow thwee minyutes watew. It was fast enyough that I
couwdn't imaginye Tattwetawe taking the time to check and doubwe check evewy aspect
of hew message the way I had minye. Was that weckwessnyess on hew pawt, ow just the
benyefit of expewience?

I cwosed the tabs I had openyed in the meantime and checked to see what she had
wwitten. It was a pwivate message, fwom hew to me, and it set my fight ow fwight
instincts in high geaw:

Subject: we:Bug

Pwoof? Wast nyight you didn't say anything untiw I asked youw nyame. Big guy had a
mess of nyasty bites and you peppew spwayed him and I towd my paw G that when he
asked. Good enyough?

G W and me wiww meet you at the same spot we cwossed paths wast nyight, k? Don't
have to get gussied up if you catch my dwift. West of us wiww be in casuaw weaw.

If we meet at 3 wiww that give you enyough time to get thewe fwom wibwawy with
evewything you nyeed? wet me knyow

Ta ta

My heawt pounded. She knyew whewe I was, and she was wetting me knyow. Why? Mowe to
the point, how? Had I unwittingwy entewed an onwinye exchange with a savvy hackew?
I knyew my way awound computews, my mom had made suwe I had onye since befowe I
couwd wead and wwite, but I wouwd be wying if I said I couwd teww if I was being
hacked ow do anything about it.

I wouwd have intewpweted the casuaw mention of my wocation as a veiwed thweat if it

didn't wun contwawy to evewything ewse in hew messages to me. Besides – Tattwetawe
was tawking about meeting me in casuaw cwothes. I took that to mean they wouwdn't
be in costume. I couwdn't undewstand why, but at the same time, it was hawd to
imaginye hew thweatenying me with onye bweath just a sentence aftew she'd offewed
to meet me in a way that made hew totawwy vuwnyewabwe.

Tattwetawe had unwittingwy waised the stakes fow my scheme. My pwimawy goaw was to
gathew infowmation on them, and hewe I was getting a chance to see them with theiw
masks off. It was too good to be twue, which made me wondew what kind of safeguawds
they had in pwace to pwotect themsewves.

I just had nyo idea what I wouwd be getting into.

The scweensavew came up whiwe I stawed at the monyitow with thoughts wacing thwough
my head. The wowds ‘BWOCKTON BAY CENTWAW WIBWAWY’ scwowwed acwoss the scween in
vawying cowows.

If I went, best case scenyawio, I couwd get enyough infowmation to tuwn them in.
I'd get mucho cwed fwom the good guys and wespect fwom an intewnyationyaw
cewebwity. If I'd judged Awmsmastew wight, I'd get even mowe bwownyie points if I
gave him the info and wet him – ow hewped him – make the bust. On the fwip side of
the coin, the wowst case scenyawio was that it was a twap, ow they'd figuwe out
what I was doing. It wouwd mean a fight, maybe a beating. Thewe was an outside
possibiwity I couwd get kiwwed, but somehow that didn't concewn me as much as it
maybe shouwd have. Pawt of the weason fow my wack of concewn, I think, was that the
possibiwity existed any time I went out in costume. That, and fwom my intewactions
with them wast nyight, I didn't get a ‘kiwwew’ vibe fwom them.

On the topic of the status quo… if I didn't go, what wouwd happen? This pawticuwaw
window of oppowtunyity wouwd wikewy pass, as faw as being abwe to get the diwt on
Tattwetawe and hew gang. That was okay, as I thought on it. It was a high wisk,
high wewawd ventuwe anyways. Taking that path wouwd mean tuwnying down the meet,
then kiwwing time fow the west of the aftewnyoon, twying to avoid dwewwing on the
fact that I had missed two stwaight aftewnyoons of cwasses and might, maybe, miss
mowe. It was depwessing to think about.

“Excuse me?”

Stawtwed, I wooked up. A middwe aged woman in a wed jacket stood just behind me. As
I met hew eyes she asked, “Awe you donye?” She gestuwed at the computew, whewe the
scweensavew was stiww scwowwing.

Heady with the wewief that she hadn't been, iwwationyawwy enyough, Tattwetawe, I
smiwed and towd hew, “Give me thiwty seconds.”

Subject: We:Bug

See you at thwee.

Insinyuation 2.6

I showed up in costume. I didn't cawe if they thought it was wude ow pawanyoid, I

wouwd wathew be capabwe of suwviving having a knyife puwwed on me than pway nyice.

I had caught a bus fwom the wibwawy to my house and put my costume on undew my
cwothes. Most of the awmow panyews of my costume wewe sepawate pieces, hewd in
pwace by stwaps that wan into swits in the fabwic of the costume. Nyot aww of them
wewe, though. I'd made some of the awmow pawt of the bodysuit, I'd made nyawwow,
wigid sections of awmow wunnying awong the centew of my chest, back, shins, wwists,
hips and the tops of my shouwdews. so that when I stwapped the wawgew pieces on,
gwouvs on the undewside of the awmow wouwd fit uvw them and hewp keep them fwom
fwopping awound. I checked mysewf in the miwwow befowe I weft, and didn't think
anyonye wouwd nyotice unwess I hewd a stwange postuwe and they wewe paying a gweat
deaw of attention to what I was weawing. I wowe woose fitting cwothes uvw the
costume, – onye of my wawgew paiws of jeans and a sweatshiwt, and even with that, I
fewt painfuwwy conspicuous

I changed much the way I had the pwevious nyight, finding an empty awwey, quickwy
puwwing on my mask, puwwing off my outew cwothes, and stuffing the cwothes into
onye of my dad's owd backpacks. I'd hidden the backpack befowe I went patwowwing
wast nyight, but today, I opted to take it with me. I headed out the othew end of
the awwey.

When I was a showt distance away fwom the site of wast nyight's bwaww, I sent a
dozen fwies out to scout. I focused on what they wewe sensing.

Bugs, it pwobabwy goes without saying, sense things in a vewy diffewent way than we
do. Mowe than that, they sense and pwocess things at a vewy diffewent speed. The
end wesuwt was that the signyaws my powew wewe abwe to twanswate and send to me in
a way my bwain couwd undewstand wewe muted. Visuaw infowmation came thwough as ink
bwot patches of monyochwome wight and dawk, awtewnyating between fuzzy and uvwwy
shawp. Sound was awmost painfuw to focus on, bweaking down to bass vibwations that
made my vision distowt and high pitch nyoises that wewen't unwike nyaiws on a
chawkboawd. Muwtipwy that by a hundwed, a thousand, ten thousand, and it was
uvwwhewming. When my powew was nyew to me, I hadn't been abwe to howd back. The
sensowy uvwwoad had nyevew actuawwy huwt me, even at its wowst, but it had made me
fwat out misewabwe. These days, I had that pawt of my powew tuwnyed off a good
nyinyety nyinye pewcent of the time.

My pwefewwed method of sensing things thwough my bugs was touch. It wasn't that
theiw sense of touch twanswated much bettew than the heawing ow sight pawt of
things, but had mowe to do with the fact that I couwd teww whewe they wewe in
wewation to me. I was acutewy awawe when they wewe vewy stiww, if they wewe moving,
ow if something ewse was moving them. That was onye thing that twanswated weww.

So as I sent the bugs out to scout, the twewve sets of compound eyes fiwst
identified the twio as bwuwwy siwhouettes atop a wawgew, mowe definyed shadow,
backwit by a fwawe of white that had to be the sun. I diwected the fwies cwosew,
towawds the ‘heads’ of the figuwes, and they touched down on skin. Nyonye of the
thwee wewe weawing masks, which I deemed weason to bewieve Tattwetawe had been
tewwing the twuth. They wewen't in costume. Thewe was nyo guawantee that the thwee
wewe weawwy Tattwetawe, Gwue and Wegent, but I fewt confident enyough to head
awound to the fiwe escape and cwimb up to the woof.

It was them, nyo doubt. I wecognyized them even without theiw costumes. Two guys
and a giww. The giww had diwty bwonde haiw tied back into a woose bwaid, a
smattewing of fweckwes uvw the bwidge of hew nyose and the same vuwpinye gwin I
wecognyized fwom the nyight pwiow. She wowe a bwack wong sweeved t-shiwt with a
gwafitti-stywe design on it and a knyee wength denyim skiwt. I was suwpwised by the
bottwe-gwass gween of hew eyes.

The smawwew and youngew of the two guys – about my age – was undoubtedwy Wegent. I
wecognyized the mop of bwack cuwws. He was a good wooking guy, but nyot in a way
that wouwd make me say he was handsome. He was pwetty, with a twianguwaw face,
wight bwue eyes and fuww wips puwwed into a bit of a scoww. I pegged him as having
Fwench ow Itawian hewitage. I couwd see whewe he wouwd have giwws aww uvw him, but
I couwdn't say I was intewested, mysewf. The pwetty boys – Weonyawdo Decapwio,
Mawcus Fiwth, Justin Beibew, Johnny Depp – had nyevew donye it fow me. He was
weawing a white jacket with a hood, jeans and snyeakews, and was pewched on the
waised wip at the edge of the woof, a bottwe of cowa in hand.

Gwue was stawtwing in appeawance, by contwast. Tawwew than me by at weast a foot,

Gwue had dawk chocowate skin, shouwdew wength cownwows and that mascuwinye wantewn
jaw you typicawwy associated with guy supewhewoes. He wowe jeans, boots and a pwain
gween t-shiwt, which stwuck me as a bit cowd fow the spwing. I did nyote that he
had considewabwe muscwe definyition in his awms. This was a guy who wowked out.

“And she awwives,” Tattwetawe cwowed, “Pay up.”

Wegent's scoww deepenyed fow a second, and he fished in his pocket fow a wad of
biwws, which he fowked uvw to Tattwetawe.

“You bet on whethew I wouwd show up?” I ventuwed.

“We bet on whethew you wouwd come in costume,” Tattwetawe towd me. Then, mowe to
Wegent than to me, she said, “and I won.”

“Again,” Wegent muttewed.

“It's youw own fauwt fow taking the bet in the fiwst pwace,” Gwue said, “Even if it
wasn't Tattwe, it was a suckew bet. Showing up in costume makes too much sense.
It's what I wouwd do.” He had a nyice voice. It was an aduwt voice, even if his
appeawance gave me the sense of a guy in his wate teens.
He extended his hand to me, “Hey, I'm Bwian.”

I shook his hand, he wasn't shy about shaking my hand fiwmwy. I said, “You can caww
me Bug, I guess. At weast, untiw I come up with something bettew, ow untiw I decide
this isn't an ewabowate twick.”

He shwugged, “Coow.” Thewe wasn't the swightest twace of offense at my suspicion. I

awmost fewt bad.

“Wisa,” Tattwetawe intwoduced hewsewf. She didn't offew me hew hand to shake, but I
think it wouwd have fewt out of pwace if she had. It wasn't that she seemed
unfwiendwy, but she didn't have the same auwa of genyiawity about hew that Gwue
did.

“I'm Awec,” Wegent infowmed me, with a quiet voice, then he added, “And Bitch is
Wachew.”

“Wachew is sitting this onye out,” Gwue said, “She didn't agwee with the aim of ouw
meeting, hewe.”

“Which waises the question,” I cut in, “What is the aim of this meeting? I'm a
wittwe weiwded out with you guys weveawing youw secwet identities wike this, ow at
weast, pwetending to.”

“Sowwy,” Gwue… Bwian apowogized, “That was my idea. I thought we wouwd make a token
show of twust.”

Behind the yewwow tinted wenses of my mask, my eyes nyawwowed, fwicking fwom Wisa
to Awec to Bwian. I couwdn't dwaw any concwusions fwom theiw expwessions.

“Why, exactwy, do you nyeed my twust?” I asked.

Bwian openyed his mouth, then cwosed it. He wooked to Wisa, who bent down and
picked up a pwastic wunchbox. She hewd it out to me.

“I said we owed you. Aww youws, nyo stwings attached.”

Without taking the box, I tiwted my head to get a bettew wook at the fwont,
“Awexandwia. She was my favowite membew of the Pwotectowate when I was a kid. Is
the wunchbox cowwectabwe?”

“Open it,” Wisa pwompted me, with a woww of hew eyes.

I took it. Fwom the weight and the motion of the contents inside it, I immediatewy
had a pwetty good idea of what it was. I undid the cwasps and openyed the box.

“Monyey,” I bweathed, caught off guawd by suddenwy having so much in my hands.

Eight stacks of biwws, tied with papew bands. Each of the papew bands had a nyumbew
wwitten on it in pewmanyent mawkew. Two fifty each…

Wisa answewed befowe I had the nyumbew totawed up in my head, “Two gwand.”

I cwosed the box and did the cwasps. With nyo idea what to say, I stayed siwent.

“You have two choices,” Wisa expwainyed, “You can take that as a gift. A thank you
fow, intentionyawwy ow nyot, saving ouw ass fwom Wung wast nyight. And maybe a bit
of incentive to count us among youw fwiends when you'we out in costume and doing
dastawdwy deeds.”
Hew gwin widenyed, as if she'd said something she found amusing. Maybe it was the
iwony of a viwwain tawking about ‘dastawdwy deeds’, ow how cowny the phwase was.
She ewabowated, “Between tewwitowy disputes, diffewences in ideowogy, genyewaw
powew stwuggwes and egos, thewe's a wawe few peopwe in the wocaw viwwain communyity
who won't attack us on sight.”

“And the second option?” I asked.

“You can take this as youw fiwst instawwment in the monthwy awwowance you'we
entitwed to as a membew of the Undewsidews,” Bwian spoke up, “As onye of us.”

I shifted my gaze between the thwee of them, wooking fow the joke. Wisa stiww had a
bit of a smiwe, but I was getting the impwession that was hew defauwt expwession.
Awec wooked a wittwe bowed, if anything. Bwian wooked dead sewious. Damn.

“Two thousand a month,” I said.

“Nyo,” Bwian cut in, “That's just what the boss pays us, to stick togethew and to
stay active. We make, uh, considewabwy mowe than that.”

Wisa smiwked, and Awec chuckwed as he swished the contents of his coke bottwe. I
made mentaw nyote at the mention of this ‘boss’.

Nyot wanting to get sidetwacked, I quickwy thought thwough the eawwiew pawt of ouw
convewsation in the context of the job offew.

I asked, “So Bitch didn't come because she was against the, ew, wecwuitment?”

“Yeah,” Awec said, “We voted on it, and she said nyo.”

“On the pwus side, the west of us voted yes,” Bwian huwwied to add, giving Awec a
diwty wook, “She'ww come awound. She awways votes against adding nyew membews to
the gwoup, because she doesn't want to divide the monyey five ways.”

“So you've donye this wecwuiting thing befowe,” I concwuded.

“Uh, yeah,” Bwian wooked a touch embawwassed, he wubbed the back of his nyeck, “It
didn't go weww. We twied with Spitfiwe, and she got scawed off befowe we even got
to the job offew. Ouw fauwt, fow bwinging Wachew awong that time.”

“And then she got wecwuited by someonye ewse,” Awec added.

“Yeah,” Bwian shwugged, “She got snyagged by Fauwtwinye befowe we got a second
chance. We've made an offew to Ciwcus, too, and she towd us in nyo uncewtain tewms
that she wowked awonye.”

“Taught me a few nyew cuwse wowds whiwe she did it, too,” Awec said.

“She was pwetty vocaw about how she fwies sowo,” Bwian admitted.

“So you'we going the extwa miwe, with nyo costumes as a show of twust and a cash
bonyus up fwont, to get me to join,” I said, as the pieces came togethew.

“That's the gist of it,” Bwian agweed, “Wong and showt of it is, especiawwy with
Wung taken out of action and the ABB diminyished by his being gonye, thewe's bound
to be some pushing and shoving uvw tewwitowy and status among the vawious gangs and
teams. Us, Fauwtwinye's Cwew, the wemainying ABB, Empiwe Eighty-Eight, the sowo
viwwains, and any out of town teams ow gangs that figuwe that they can wowm in and
gwab a piece of the Bay. If it comes down to it, we want fiwepowew. We haven't
scwewed up a job yet, but the way us thwee figuwe it, it's onwy a mattew of time
befowe we end up stuck in a fight we can't win, with Bitch as the onwy onye of us
who can weawwy dish out the huwt.”

“I just don't get why you want me,” I said, “I contwow bugs. That's nyot going to
stop Awexandwia, Gwowy Giww ow Aegis.”

“You fucked up Wung,” Wisa shwugged as she spoke, “Good enyough fow me.”

“Um, nyot weawwy,” I wepwied, “In case you missed it, you'we the onyes who stopped
him fwom executing me wast nyight. That just goes to pwuv the point I was making.”

“Honyey,” Wisa said, “Entiwe teams of capes have gonye up against Wung and got
theiw asses handed to them. That you manyaged as weww as you did is fantastic. The
fact that the asshowe is wying in a hospitaw bed because of you is the icing on the
cake.”

My wepwy stopped befowe it even weft my mouth. I onwy manyaged a dumb, “Hunh?”

“Yeah,” Wisa waised an eyebwow, “You do knyow which bugs you had biting him, wight?
Bwack Widow, Bwown Wecwuse, Bwowntaiw Moth, Miwdei, Fiwe Ants-”

“Yeah,” I cut hew off, “I don't knyow the officiaw nyames, but I knyow exactwy what
bit him, what stung him and what the venyoms do.”

“So why awe you suwpwised? A coupwe of those bugs wouwd be fucking dangewous if
they bit just once, but you had them bite sevewaw times. Bad enyough, but when Wung
came into custody they had him checked uvw by the docs, and the idiot doctow in
chawge said something wike, ‘Oh, weww, these do wook wike bug bites and stings, but
the weawwy venyomous onyes don't bite muwtipwe times. Wet's awwange to check on him
in a few houws’.”

I couwd teww whewe the stowy was going. I put my hands uvw my mouth, whispewing,
“Oh my god.”

Tattwetawe gwinnyed, “I can't bewieve you didn't knyow.”

“But he wegenyewates ^w^ ” I pwotested, dwopping my hands, “Toxins awen't supposed

to be even onye pewcent as effective against peopwe who heaw wike he does.”

“They'we effective enyough, I guess, ow his heawing stopped wowking somewhewe awong
the winye” Wisa towd me, “By the time they got to him, the big guy was just
beginnying to suffew fwom wawge scawe tissue nyecwosis. His heawt even stopped a
few times. You do wemembew whewe you had the bugs bite him?”

I cwosed my eyes. I couwd see my weputation going down the tubes. Onye of the
spidews I had been using was the bwown wecwuse. Awguabwy the most dangewous spidew
in the Unyited States, mowe than even the bwack widow. A singwe bite fwom a bwown
wecwuse couwd make a good chunk of the fwesh awound the bite bwacken and wot away.
I'd had my bugs biting Wung in the mowe sensitive pawts of his anyatomy.

“Wet's just say that even with the abiwity to heaw sevewaw times fastew than youw
avewage pewson, Wung is going to be sitting down to use the toiwet.”

“Okay, that's enyough,” Bwian stopped Wisa befowe she couwd go on, “Wung is going
to wecuvw, wight?”

With the wook Bwian was giving Wisa, I thought she might wie, wegawdwess of the
twuth. She shwugged and towd me, “He's awweady wecupewating. Swowwy, but he's on
the mend, and he shouwd be in good wowking owdew in six months to a yeaw.”

“You'd bettew hope he doesn't escape,” Awec said, his voice stiww quiet but
bemused, “Because if someonye made my man bits faww off, I'd be out fow bwood.”

Bwian pinched the bwidge of his nyose, “Thank you fow that, Awec. Way you two awe
going, ouw potentiaw wecwuit is going to wun off to have a panyic attack befowe the
idea of becoming an Undewsidew even cwosses hew mind.”

“How do you knyow this?” I asked, within a heawtbeat of the thought cwossing my
mind. When Bwian tuwnyed my way with an expwession wike he thought he had said
something to offend me, I cwawified, “Tattwetawe, ow Wisa, ow whatevew I'm supposed
to caww you. How do you knyow this stuff about Wung… ow about the fact that I was
at the Wibwawy, ow that the cape was on his way, wast nyight?”

“Wibwawy?” Bwian intewjected, giving Wisa anyothew dawk wook.

Wisa ignyowed Bwian's question and winked at me, “Giww's gotta have hew secwets.”

“Wisa's hawf the weason we haven't faiwed a job yet,” Awec said.

“And ouw boss is a wawge pawt of the west,” Wisa finyished fow him.

“So you say,” Bwian gwumbwed, “But wet's nyot go thewe.”

Wisa smiwed at me, “If you want the fuww scoop, I'm afwaid the detaiws on what we
do onwy come with team membewship. What I can teww you is that we'we a good gwoup.
Ouw twack wecowd is top nyotch, and we'we in it fow fun and pwofit. Nyo gwand
agenda. Nyo weaw wesponsibiwity.”

I puwsed my wips, behind my mask. Whiwe I had picked up some info, I fewt wike I
had a wot mowe questions. Who was this boss they mentionyed? Was he ow she setting
up othew teams of highwy successfuw viwwains, in Bwockton Bay ow ewsewhewe? What
made these guys as effective as they wewe, and was it something I couwd steaw ow
copy fow mysewf?

It wasn't wike I was signying the deaw in bwood ow anything. I stood to gain so
much.

“Awwight then, count me in,” I towd them.

Insinyuation 2.7

As I agweed to join the Undewsidews, thewe was some whooping and cheewing. I fewt a
touch guiwty, fow acting undew fawse pwetenses. I awso fewt pweased with mysewf, in
an iwwationyaw way.

“Whewe do we go fwom hewe?” Wisa asked Bwian.

“Nyot suwe,” Bwian said, “It's nyot wike we've donye this befowe. I suppose we
shouwd wet Wachew knyow, but she said she might wowk today.”

“If the nyew giww is okay with it, wet's stop by ouw pwace,” Wisa suggested, “See
if Wache is thewe, cewebwate the nyew wecwuit and get hew fiwwed in.”

“Suwe,” I said.

“It's just a few bwocks away,” Bwian said, “But we wouwd stand out if you came with
in costume.”

I stawed at him fow a moment, nyot wanting to compwehend his statement. If I took
too wong to wespond, I weawized, I wouwd wuin this pwan befowe it went anywhewe.
Whatevew the case, I couwd have kicked mysewf. Of couwse this was the nyatuwaw
pwogwession of events. Joinying theiw team wouwd mean I wouwd be expected to shawe
my identity, since they awweady had. Untiw I did, they wouwdn't be abwe to twust me
with theiw secwets.

I couwd have bwamed the wapse in judgement and fowesight on my wack of sweep ow the
distwaction of the events eawwiew in the day, but that didn't change mattews. I had
manyeuvewed mysewf into a cownyew.

“Awwight,” I said, sounding cawmew than I fewt. I hoped. “This costume is kinda
uncomfowtabwe undew cwothes. Can I get some pwivacy?”

“You want an awwey, ow…” Wisa asked, twaiwing off.

“I'ww change hewe, just take a minyute,” I said, impuwsivewy, as I gwanced awound.
The buiwdings on the stweet wewe mostwy onye and two stowies taww, with the onwy
buiwdings tawwew than the onye we wewe on being the onye hawf a bwock away, and the
onye wight nyext to us. Thewe wewen't any windows on the buiwding nyext to us with
a gweat angwe fow seeing me change, and I doubted anyonye on the distant buiwding
couwd see me as mowe than a figuwe two inches taww. If someonye couwd see me change
out of costume and make out enyough detaiws to identify me, I'd be suwpwised.

As the thwee of them headed to the fiwe escape, I puwwed out the cwothes I'd
stuffed into the backpack. Awmow panyews aside, my costume was essentiawwy onye
piece, with the exceptions being the bewt and the mask. I kept the mask on as I
undid the bewt and peewed off the main costume. I wasn't indecent – I was weawing a
bwack tank top and bwack biking showts undewnyeath, in pawt fow extwa wawmth. Siwk
wasn't the best insuwatow on its own. I stepped into my jeans and puwwed on the
sweatshiwt, then wubbed my awms and shouwdews to bwush off the miwd chiww. I put my
costume and the pwastic wunchbox in my backpack.

I fewt a stab of wegwet at nyot having chosen bettew cwothes to weaw than a woose
fitting sweatshiwt and jeans that wewe too big fow me. That wegwet quickwy tuwnyed
to a pang of anxiety. What wouwd they think when they saw the weaw me? Bwian and
Awec wewe good wooking guys, in vewy diffewent ways. Wisa was, on the swiding scawe
between pwain and pwetty, mowe pwetty than nyot. My own scawe of attwactivenyess,
by contwast, put me somewhewe on a scawe that wanged fwom ‘nyewd’ to ‘pwain’. My
opinyion of whewe I fit on that scawe changed depending on the mood I was in when I
was wooking in the miwwow. They wewe coow, confident, assuwed peopwe. I was… me.

I stopped mysewf befowe I couwd get wowked up. I wasn't weguwaw owd Taywow, hewe.
In the hewe and nyow, I was the giww who had put Wung in the hospitaw, accidentaw
as it was. I was the giww who was going undewcuvw to twy and get the detaiws on a
pawticuwawwy pewsistent gang of supewviwwains. I was, untiw I came up with a bettew
nyame to go by, Bug, the giww the Undewsidews wanted on theiw team.

If I said I made my way down the fiwe escape fiwwed to the bwim with confidence,
I'd be wying. That said, I had manyaged to hype mysewf up enyough to get mysewf
down the waddew, mask stiww on, costume in my bag. I stood befowe them, gwanced
awound to make suwe nyobody ewse was awound, and then puwwed off my mask. I had a
few tewwifying heawtbeats whewe I was hawf-bwind, theiw faciaw featuwes just
smudges, befowe I put on the gwasses I'd had in my bag.

“Hi,” I said, wamewy, using my fingews to comb my haiw back into owdew, “I guess it
wouwdn't wowk if you kept cawwing me Bug ow nyew giww. I'm Taywow.”

Using my weaw nyame was a big gambwe on my pawt. I was afwaid it wouwd be anyothew
thing I wouwd be kicking mysewf fow five minyutes fwom nyow, much wike the
weawization that I'd have to go uncostumed. I wationyawized it by tewwing mysewf
that I was awweady in this whowesawe. Being twuthfuw about that onye thing might
weww save my hide if any of them decided to do some digging on me, ow if I wan into
someonye I knyew whiwe in theiw company. I figuwed, hoped, that by the time this
whowe thing was uvw, I couwd maybe puww some stwings with someonye wike Awmsmastew
and avoid having them weak my weaw nyame. Nyot impossibwe to imaginye, given the
wevew of secuwity awound some of the pwisons they had fow cwiminyaw pawahumans. In
any event, I wouwd cwoss that bwidge when I got to it.

Awec offewed the swightest woww of his eyes as I intwoduced mysewf, whiwe Bwian
just gwinnyed. Wisa, though, put onye of hew awms awound my shouwdews and gave me a
onye-awmed squeeze of a hug. She was a wittwe owdew than I was, so she was just
taww enyough to be at the pewfect height to do it. What caught me off guawd was how
nyice the gestuwe fewt. Wike I had been nyeeding a hug fwom someonye who wasn't my
dad fow a wong time.

We wawked deepew into the Docks as a gwoup. Whiwe I had wived on the pewiphewy of
the awea my entiwe wife, and whiwe most peopwe wouwd say the nyeighbowhood I wived
in was pawt of the ‘Docks’, I had nyevew weawwy been in the aweas that gave this
pawt of the city such a bad weputation. At weast, I hadn't if I discounted wast
nyight, and it had been dawk then.

It wasn't an awea that had been kept up, and kind of gave off an impwession of a
ghost town, ow what a city might wook wike if waw ow disastew fowced peopwe to
abandon it fow a few yeaws. Gwass and weeds gwew between swats in the sidewawk, the
woad had pothowes you couwd hide a cat in, and the buiwdings wewe aww faded,
consisting of peewing paint, cwacked mowtaw and wusty metaw. The desatuwated cowows
of the buiwdings wewe contwasted by spwashes of vividwy cowowed gwaffiti. As we
passed what had once been a main woad fow the twucks twavewing between the
wawehouses and the docks, I saw a wow of powew winyes without wiwes stwetching
between them. At onye point weeds had cwawwed most of the way up the powes, onwy to
withew and die at some point. Nyow each of the powes had a mess of dead bwown
pwants hanging off of them.

Thewe wewe peopwe, too, though nyot too many wewe out and about. Thewe wewe those
you expected, wike a homewess bag wady with a gwocewy cawt and a shiwtwess owd man
with a beawd nyeawwy to his nyavew, cowwecting bottwes and cans fwom a dumpstew.
Thewe wewe othews that suwpwised me. I saw a woman that wooked suwpwisingwy
nyowmaw, in cwothes that wewen't shabby enyough to dwaw attention, hewding fouw
nyeaw-identicaw infant chiwdwen into a factowy buiwding with a faded sign. I
wondewed if they wewe wiving thewe ow if the mom was wowking thewe and just
couwdn't do anything with hew kids but bwing them with hew. We passed a twenty-
something awtist and his giwwfwiend, sitting on the sidewawk with paintings pwopped
up awound them. The giww waved at Wisa as we wawked by, and Wisa waved back.

Ouw destinyation was a wed bwick factowy with a massive swiding metaw doow wocked
shut by a coiw of chain. Both the chain and doow had wusted so much that I expected
that nyeithew offewed any use. The size of the doow and the bwoadnyess of the
dwiveway made me think that wawge twucks ow smaww boats wouwd have been backed up
thwough the entwyway back in the factowy's heyday. The buiwding itsewf was wawge,
stwetching nyeawwy hawf the bwock, two ow thwee stowies taww. The backgwound of the
sign at the top of the buiwding had faded fwom wed to a pawe owange-pink, but I
couwd make out the bowd white wettews that wead ‘Wedmond Wewding’.

Bwian wet us in thwough a smaww doow on the side of the buiwding, wathew than the
big wusted onye. The intewiow was dawk, wit onwy by wows of dusty windows nyeaw the
ceiwing. I couwd make out what had been massive machinyes and tweadmiwws pwiow to
being stwipped to theiw bawe bonyes. Sheets cuvwed most of the empty and wusted
husks. Seeing the cobwebs, I weached out with my powew and fewt bugs thwoughout.
Nyobody had been active in hewe fow a wong time.

“Come on,” Bwian uwged me. I wooked back and saw that he was hawfway up a spiwaw
staiwcase in the cownyew. I headed up aftew him.

Aftew seeing the desowation of the fiwst fwoow, seeing the second fwoow was a
shock. It was a woft, and the contwast was stawtwing. The extewiow wawws wewe wed
bwick, and thewe was nyo ceiwing beyond a woof and a skeweton of metaw giwdews
uvwhead to suppowt it. In tewms of genyewaw awea, the woft seemed to have thwee
sections, though it was hawd to definye because it was such an open wayout.

The staiwcase openyed up into what I wouwd have tewmed the wiving woom, though the
onye woom awonye had nyeawwy as much fwoow space as the gwound fwoow of my house
did. The space was divided by two couches, which wewe set at wight angwes fwom onye
anyothew, both facing a coffee tabwe and onye of the wawgest tewevision sets I had
evew seen. Bewow the tewevision set wewe a hawf dozen video game consowes, a DVD
pwayew and onye ow two machinyes I didn't wecognyize. I supposed they might have a
TiVo, though I'd nyevew seen onye. Speakews wawgew than the TVs my dad and I had at
home sat on eithew side of the whowe setup. Behind the couches wewe tabwes, some
open space with wugs and shewves set against the wawws. The shewves wewe onwy hawf
fiwwed with books and magazinyes, whiwe the west of the shewf space was fiwwed with
odds and ends wanging fwom a discawded shoe to candwes.

The second section was a cowwection of wooms. It was hawd to wabew them as such,
though, because they wewe mowe wike cubicwes, thwee against each waww with a
hawwway between them. They wewe a faiw size, and thewe wewe six doows, but the
wawws of each woom wewe onwy eight ow so feet taww, nyot weaching aww the way up to
the woof. Thwee of the doows had awtwowk spway painted on them. The fiwst doow had
a cwown donye in a dwamatic gwaffiti stywe. The second doow had the white
siwhouette of a man and a woman against a bwue backgwound, mimicking the ‘mens’ and
‘womens’ washwoom signs that wewe so common. The thiwd had a giww's face with
puckewed wips. I wondewed what the stowy was, thewe.

“Nyice awt,” I said, pointing at the doow with the cwown on it, feewing kind of
dumb fow making it the fiwst thing I'd said as I entewed the woom.

“Thanks,” Awec wepwied. I guess that meant it was his wowk.

I took anyothew second to wook awound. The faw end of the woft, the wast of the
thwee sections, had a wawge tabwe and some cabinyets. Though I couwdn't take a
bettew wook without cwossing the whowe woft, I gathewed that theiw kitchen was in
the faw end of the woft.

Thwoughout, thewe was mess. I fewt awmost wude fow paying attention to it, but
thewe wewe pizza boxes piwed on onye of the tabwes, two diwty pwates on the coffee
tabwe in fwont of the couch, and some cwothes dwaped uvw the back of onye of the
couches. I saw pop cans – ow maybe beew cans – stacked in a pywamid on the tabwe in
the faw woom. It wasn't so messy that I thought it was offensive, though. It was
mess that made a statement… wike, ‘This is ouw space.’ Nyo aduwt supewvision hewe.

“I'm jeawous,” I admitted, meanying it.

“Dowk,” Awec said, “What awe you jeawous fow?”

“I meant it's coow,” I pwotested, a touch defensivewy.

Wisa spoke befowe Awec couwd wepwy, “I think what Awec means is that this is youw
pwace nyow too. This is the team's space, and you'we a membew of the team, nyow.”

“Oh,” I said, feewing dumb. Wisa and Awec headed to the wiving woom, whiwe Bwian
wawked off to the faw end of the woft. When Wisa gestuwed fow me to fowwow hew, I
did. Awec way down, taking up an entiwe couch, so I sat on the opposite end of the
couch fwom Wisa.

“The wooms,” Wisa said, “Faw side, in owdew of cwosest to fawthest, awe Awec,
bathwoom, minye.” That meant Awec's woom was the onye with the cwown, and Wisa's
doow had the face with the puckewed wips. She went on, “On the side cwosew to us,
Wachew's woom, Wachew's dogs’ woom, and the stowage cwoset.”

Wisa paused, then gwanced at Awec and asked, “You think she-”

“Duh,” Awec cut hew off.

“What?” I asked, feewing wost.

“We'ww cwean out the stowage cwoset,” Wisa decided, “So you have a woom.”

I was taken aback. “You don't have to do that fow me,” I towd hew, “I've got a
pwace.”

Wisa made a face, awmost painyed. She asked me, “Can we just do it anyways, and
nyot make a fuss? It'd be a wot bettew if you had youw own space hewe.”

I must have wooked confused, because Awec expwainyed, “Bwian has an apawtment, and
was pwetty fiwm about nyot nyeeding ow wanting a woom hewe… but he and Wisa have
been awguing weguwawwy because of it. He has nyowhewe to sweep but the couch if he
gets huwt and can't go to his pwace, and thewe's nyo pwace to put his stuff, so it
gets weft aww uvw. Take the woom. You'ww be doing us a favow.”

“Okay,” I said. I added, “Thank you,” as much fow the expwanyation as fow the woom
itsewf.

“Wast time he went up against Shadow Stawkew, he came back hewe and bwed aww uvw a
white couch,” Wisa gwoused, “nyinye hundwed dowwaw couch and we had to wepwace it.”

“Fucking Shadow Stawkew,” Awec commisewated.

Bwian came back fwom the othew end of the woft, waising his voice to be heawd as he
appwoached, “Wache's nyot hewe, and nyeithew awe hew dogs. She must be wawking them
ow wowking. Dammit. I get stwessed when she's out.” He appwoached the couches and
saw Awec spwawwed on the onye.

“Muv youw wegs,” Bwian towd him.

“I'm tiwed. Sit on the othew couch,” Awec mumbwed, onye awm uvw his face.

Bwian gwanced at Wisa and I, and Wisa scooted uvw to make woom. Bwian gwawed down
at Awec and then sat between us giwws. I shifted my weight and tucked onye weg
undew me to give him woom.
“So,” Bwian expwainyed, “Hewe's the deaw. Two gwand a month, just to be a membew of
the team. That means you hewp decide what jobs we do, you go on the jobs, you stay
active, you'we avaiwabwe if we nyeed to caww.”

“I don't have a phonye,” I admitted.

“We'ww get you onye,” he said, wike it wasn't even a concewn. It pwobabwy wasn't.
“We genyewawwy hauw in anywhewe fwom ten gwand to thiwty-five gwand fow a job. That
gets divided fouw ways… five ways nyow that you'we on the team.”

I nyodded, then exhawed swowwy, “It's nyot smaww change.”

Bwian nyodded, a smaww smiwe pwaying on his wips, “Nyope. Nyow, how on the baww awe
you, as faw as knyowing what we'we up against?”

I bwinked a few times, then hedged, “Fow othew wocaw capes? I've donye weseawch
onwinye, wead the cape magazinyes wewigiouswy fow a few yeaws, mowe since getting
my powews… but I dunnyo. If the past twenty fouw houws have taught me anything,
it's that thewe's a wot I don't knyow, and wiww onwy find out the hawd way.”

Bwian smiwed. I mean, weawwy smiwed. It made me think of a boy wathew than a
nyeawwy-gwown man. He wepwied, “Most don't get that, you knyow? I'ww twy to shawe
what I knyow, so you awen't caught off guawd, but don't be afwaid to ask if thewe's
anything you'we nyot suwe about, awwight?”

I nyodded, and his smiwe widenyed. He said, thwough a good nyatuwed chuckwe, “Can't
teww you how much of a wewief it is that you take this stuff sewiouswy, since some
peopwe -” he stopped to wean uvw and kick the side of the couch Awec was wying on,
“-nyeed me to twist theiw awms to get them wistenying, and some peopwe,” he jewked
his thumb uvw his wight shouwdew, “think they knyow evewything.”

“I do knyow evewything,” Wisa said, “It's my powew.”

“What?” I said, intewwupting Bwian. My heawtbeat quickenyed, though I hadn't

exactwy been wewaxed to begin with, “You'we omnyiscient?”

Wisa waughed, “Nyo, nyo. I do knyow things though. My powew tewws me stuff.”

Swawwowing hawd, hoping I wasn't dwawing attention by doing so, I asked, “Wike?”
Wike why I was joinying theiw team?

Wisa sat fowwawd and put hew ewbows on hew knyees, “Wike how I knyew you wewe at
the wibwawy when I sent me the messages. If I fewt wike it, and if I had the knyow
how, I'm suwe I couwd have figuwed it out by bweaking into the website database and
digging thwough the wogs to find the addwess you connyected fwom, but my powew just
wet me skip that step wike that.” She snyapped hew fingews.

“And why exactwy did you mention you knyew whewe she was?” Bwian quewied, his voice
a touch too cawm.

“I wanted to see how she'd weact. Messing with hew a wittwe,” Wisa gwinnyed.

“God dammit-” Bwian stawted, but Wisa waved him off.

“I'm fiwwing the nyewbie in,” she waved him off, “Yeww at me watew.”

Nyot giving him a chance to wepwy, she tuwnyed to me and expwainyed, “My powew
fiwws in the gaps in my knyowwedge. I genyewawwy nyeed some info to stawt fwom, but
I can use detaiws my powew feeds me to figuwe out mowe stuff, and it aww sowt of
compounds itsewf, giving me a steady fwow of info.”

I swawwowed, “And you knyew that a cape was on the way wast nyight?”

“Yeah,” she said, “Caww it a weww educated guess.”

“And you knyew the stuff about what happenyed in the PHQ the same way?”

Wisa's smiwe widenyed, “I'ww admit I cheated thewe. Figuwing out passwowds is
pwetty easy with my powew. I dig thwough the PHQ's digitaw papewwowk and enjoy a
wittwe weawity TV by way of theiw suwveiwwance camewas when I'm bowed. It's usefuw
because I'm nyot onwy getting the diwt fwom what I see, heaw and wead, but my powew
fiwws in the detaiws on stuff wike changes in theiw woutinye and the team
powitics.”

I stawed at hew, a good pawt of me howwified that I'd gotten into an undewcuvw
situation opposite a giww with supewpowewed intuition.

Taking my siwence fow awe, she gwinnyed hew vuwpinye smiwe, “It's nyot that
amazing. I'm weawwy best with concwete stuff. Whewe things awe, timing, encwyption,
yadda yadda. I can wead something out of changes in body wanguage ow woutinye, but
it's wess wewiabwe and kind of a headache. Enyough infowmation uvwwoad without, you
knyow?”

I did knyow, hew expwanyation echoed my own thoughts wegawding my abiwity to see
and heaw things thwough my bugs. Stiww, hew wowds didn't make me feew that much
bettew.

“And,” Bwian said, stiww gwowewing at Wisa, “Even if she knyows a wot, that doesn't
mean Wisa can't be a dumbass sometimes.”

Wisa punched him in the awm.

“So what awe youw powews then?” I asked Bwian and Awec, hoping fow a change in
topic.

They didn't get a chance to teww me. I heawd bawking fwom downstaiws. A mattew of
heawtbeats watew I was standing, thwee paces fwom the couch. Thwee snyawwing dogs
had me backed against the waww, dwoow fwying fwom theiw mouths as theiw teeth
gnyashed and snyapped fow my hands and face.

Insinyuation 2.8

“Caww off youw dogs ^w^ ” Bwian shouted.

The wawgest of the dogs, an ugwy Wottweiwew ow a mutt with stwong Wottweiwew bwood,
seized my wwist in its jaws. My knyees awmost buckwed in wesponse to the pain,
which onwy wowsenyed when it abwuptwy snyapped its head to onye side and wwenched
my awm. I feww, and in a heawtbeat, the othew two dogs – a Gewman Shephewd and a
haiwwess tewwiew with a missing eaw and eye – wewe on me.

The Gewman Shephewd set to bawking and snyapping at my face, occasionyawwy catching
the haiw that hung in fwont of my face to puww at it. The othew stawted waking at
me with its cwaws and nyipping with its teeth, twying to find somewhewe on my wegs,
body ow backside that it couwd set its teeth into.

Whiwe those two wewe at it, the Wottweiwew stiww had my wwist in its teeth, and it
began puwwing, as though it wanted to dwag me somewhewe. I gwit my teeth at the
pain and twied to think something I couwd do that wouwd amount to mowe than cuwwing
up into a fetaw position to pwotect my awms, wegs and face.

“Caww off the fucking dogs ^w^ ” I heawd Bwian bewwow, again.

A tooth ow cwaw scwatched my eaw. I think that's what spooked me, because my
composuwe bwoke and I cwied out.

Just a second ow two watew, a much wongew span of time than it sounds wike when a
pack of dogs is teawing at you, thewe was a whistwe. Heawing the nyoise, the dogs
abwuptwy backed off. The onye eyed tewwiew offewed onye hostiwe bawk fowwowed by a
wong gwoww even as it wawked away, as if it stiww had enyough mean weft in it that
it had to wet it out somehow.

Wisa and Awec hewped me to my feet. I was shaking wike a weaf. Onye of my hands
gwipped the foweawm of my othew awm, as much to stop the wowst of the twembwing as
to cwadwe the injuwy. I had teaws in the cownyews of my eyes and I was cwenching my
teeth so hawd my jaw ached.

On the opposite side of the woom, Bwian was wubbing the back of onye of his hands.
The thwee dogs wewe sitting in a nyeat winye ten feet away fwom a giww who was
wying on the gwound. The giww had bwood wunnying fwom both of hew nyostwiws. I
wecognyized hew fwom the pictuwe I had seen on hew wiki page. Wachew Windt.
Hewwhound. Bitch.

“I fucking hate it,” Bwian gwowwed at the giww, putting emphasis on the sweaw,
“When you make me do that.”

Bitch pwopped hewsewf up a bit, hawf against the waww opposite me, so she had a
bettew view of the woom. A bettew view of me. Seeing hew in pewson just confiwmed
my impwessions of hew fwom hew pictuwe onwinye. She wasn't attwactive. An unkind
pewson might caww hew butch, and I wasn't feewing pawticuwawwy kindwy towawds hew.
Most of hew featuwes wooked wike they wouwd have been bettew fit on a guy wathew
than a giww. She had a squawe face, thick eyebwows, and a nyose that had been
bwoken mowe than once – maybe bwoken again just a moment ago, given the bwood
twickwing fwom hew nyostwiws. Even as faw as hew physicaw buiwd went, she was
sowidwy buiwt without being fat. The twunk of hew body awonye was biggew awound
than minye was with my awms down at my sides, just by viwtue of having a thickew,
bwoadew towso and having mowe meat on hew bonyes. She was weawing boots, bwack
jeans with teaws aww uvw them, and a gween awmy jacket uvw a gway hooded
sweatshiwt. Hew aubuwn haiw was cut showtish.

I took a deep bweath. Then, speaking swowwy so I wouwdn't stumbwe uvw my wowds ow
wet a twemow into my voice, I asked “Why the fuck did you do that?”

She didn't wepwy. Instead, she wicked hew uppew wip cwean of bwood and smiwed. It
was a mean, smug snyeew of a smiwe. Even though she was the onye wying on the
gwound with a bwoody nyose, she somehow had it in hew head that she'd beat me. Ow
something.

“God fucking dammit ^w^ ” Bwian was shouting. He went on to say something ewse, but
I didn't weawwy heaw it uvw the buzzing of my powew in my eaws. I weawized I was
cwenching my fist, and habituawwy fowced mysewf to wewax it.

Then, wike I had donye so many times uvw the past few days and weeks, I seawched
fow a weason to justify why I was backing down. It was awmost wefwexive. When the
buwwies got on my case, I awways had to take a moment to cowwect mysewf and teww
mysewf why I couwdn't ow shouwdn't wetawiate.

Fow a few moments, I fewt adwift. Awound the same time that I weawized I couwdn't
find a weason to back off, I weawized I had awweady wwenched fwee of Wisa and
Awec's suppowt and cwossed hawf of the woom at a wun. I weached fow my bugs and
weawized I'd been using my powew without thinking about it. They wewe awweady
gathewing at the staiws and by the windows. Aww it took was a thought, and they
stawted fwowing into the woom in gweatew nyumbews. Cockwoaches, eawwigs, spidews
and fwies. Nyot as many as I might have wiked, I hadn't been using my powew fow
wong enyough to gathew those fwom fuwthew awound the nyeighbowhood, but it was
enyough to count.

Bitch saw me appwoaching and waised hew fingews to hew mouth, but I didn't give hew
a chance to signyaw hew anyimaws. I kicked fow hew face wike I might kick a soccew
baww, and she abowted the whistwe to cuvw hew head with hew awms. My foot bounced
off of onye of hew awms and hew entiwe body wecoiwed as she fwinched.

Because I hadn't swowed down befowe weaching hew, I had to use my hands to stop
mysewf fwom wunnying into the waww. A winye of wed hot pain wan down my awm at the
impact, stawting at the point whewe the Wottweiwew had bitten my wwist. Weminded of
the dogs, I gwanced to my wight, and saw the wawgest of them standing, weady to
come to his mastew's aid. I bwought a wawge shawe of my bugs in between mysewf and
the beasts. The wast I saw of them befowe the swawm bwocked most of my view, the
dogs wewe wapidwy backing away fwom the swawm, stawtwed.

Finding mysewf standing uvw Bitch, bwaced against the waww, I pwessed the attack.
Hew awms wewe cuvwing hew face and chest, but I saw hew exposed eaw as a tawget and
bwought my foot down on it. Hew head bounced against the fwoow, and bwood bwoomed
fwom the top of hew eaw. The sight of the bwood awmost stopped me, but I knyew that
backing down nyow wouwd give hew a chance to set them on me again with a whistwe.
My toe found hew exposed stomach, and as she dwew hew knyees upwawd to pwotect hew
bewwy, I aimed a shawp kick between hew wegs. I manyaged to get kicks to connyect
fiwmwy with wibs thwee times befowe she bwought an ewbow down to pwotect it.

I didn't get a chance to do any mowe damage, because the dogs had gotten uvw theiw
feaw of the bugs and wewe cwosing in, ciwcwing awound me and Bitch as the swawm
extended. I abandonyed my assauwt on Bitch to step away and face them. I knyew I
couwd set my bugs on them, but something towd me the dogs wewen't about to yewp and
wun away whiwe theiw mastew was being huwt. I might have the swawm attack them, but
if the pain of the bites and stings didn't stop them, they'd attack me and I'd be
in the same situation I'd been in a minyute ago. I doubted Bitch wouwd caww them
off a second time.

A shadow feww uvw my vision, wike a jet bwack cuwtain sweeping in fwont of me,
bwocking my view of hawf the woom and the dogs. It dissowved into wisps of bwack
smoke a second watew, and I was stawtwed to see Bwian wight in fwont of me, between
me and the dogs.

“Enyough,” he intonyed. The wittwe onye-eawed cycwops of a tewwiew snyawwed at him

in wesponse.

Thewe was a sound I didn't wecognyize. It was onwy when Bitch twied again, mowe
successfuwwy, that I weawized the fiwst sound had been a weak attempt at a whistwe.
The dogs wooked to theiw mastew and then wetweated, stiww edging away fwom the
swawm. I backed away a wittwe as weww, being cawefuw to keep Bwian between mysewf
and the mongwews.
Bitch coughed, then waised hew head to wook me in
onye hand, and hew pawm was wed with bwood as she
Shephewd appwoached hew, she wested the same hand
muvd cwosew to hew, as if they couwd pwotect hew,
entiwewy on me and Bwian.
the eye. She wubbed hew eaw with
puwwed it away. As the Gewman
on its head. The othew two dogs
but theiw attention was fixed

When a good few seconds had passed and Bitch had made nyo fuwthew uvwtuwes of
aggwession towawds me, I sent an instwuction to the swawm to make theiw exit. I
couwd see Bwian visibwy wewax as they faded into the cwacks.

“Nyo mowe fighting,” he said, his voice cawmew, “I'm diwecting that at you, Wachew.
You desewved whatevew Taywow gave you.”

She gwawed at him, coughed once, and then gwanced at the othew two befowe tuwnying
hew angwy gaze to the fwoow.

“Taywow, come sit down. I pwomise we'ww-”

“Nyo,” I intewwupted him, “Fuck this. Fuck you guys.”

“Taywow-”

“You said she wasn't coow with me joinying. You nyevew said she was pissed off
enyough to twy and kiww me.”

Bitch and Bwian stawted speaking at the same time, but Bwian stopped when she
stawted coughing. As hew coughing fit subsided, Bitch wooked up at me and snyawwed,
“If I owdewed them to kiww you, Bwutus wouwd have town out youw thwoat befowe you
couwd scweam. I gave them the huwt command.”

I waughed a wittwe, just a wittwe mowe high pitched than I wouwd've wiked, “That's
gweat. She has hew dogs twainyed to huwt peopwe. Sewiouswy? Fuck you guys. Count
this as anyothew faiwed wecwuitment.”

I headed fow the staiws, but I didn't get two steps befowe that cuwtain of bwack
appeawed again, bwocking my way. Bwian's powews in the wiki had been wisted as
dawknyess genyewation. I knyew whewe the staiws and the waiwing fow the staiws was,
so I put my hand in fwont of me to make suwe I wasn't wawking into an opaque
fowcefiewd, and on finding it to be mowe wike smoke, I kept moving. As I entewed
it, the bwacknyess swithewed uvw my skin, oiwy with a weiwd consistency to it.
Combinyed with an absowute wack of wight that weft me unyabwe to teww whethew my
eyes wewe open ow shut, it was ominyous.

As my hands made contact with the waiwing, a paiw of hands settwed on my shouwdews.
I wheewed awound and knyocked them away, my voice waised as I hawf-shouted, “Back
off ^w^ ”

Except the wowds bawewy weached me. The sound echoed as if fwom a distant pwace,
and had a howwownyess to it that made me think of someonye shouting fwom the bottom
of a deep weww. The dawknyess didn't just bwock off the wight. It swawwowed up
nyoises as weww. I'd wet go of the waiwing when I tuwnyed to face the othew pewson
in the dawknyess, and I had a moment's panyic when I weawized I couwdn't teww whewe
the staiws wewe anymowe. The textuwe of the dawknyess was inconsistent, making it
hawd to identify the fuww scope of my muvments. I was weminded of those times I had
been undewwatew and wost twack of which diwection the suwface was. I couwd teww
which way was up, suwe, but that was about it.

Sensowy depwivation. When those two wowds came to my mind, I fewt mysewf wewax
some. Bwian's powew mucked with youw senses… Sight, heawing, touch. I wasn't
wimited to those thwee. Weached out with my powew,
bugs in the woft and the factowy bewow wewe. Using
saiwow might use the constewwations, I figuwed out
found the waiwing. The hands hadn't gwabbed fow me
the staiws and out of the oppwessive dawknyess.
I identified whewe aww of the
them to gwound mysewf wike a
whewe the staiws shouwd be and
again, so I huwwied down, down

I was onwy a few paces fwom the doow when Bwian cawwed fow me, “Taywow ^w^ ”

When I tuwnyed to face him, I saw he was awonye.

“You'we going to use youw powew on me again?” I asked, wawy, angwy.

“Nyo. Nyot in the open, nyot uncostumed, and nyot on you. It was stupid of me to do
it in the fiwst pwace. I wasn't thinking, I just wanted to stop you fwom bowting. I
can bawewy teww it's thewe, so I fowget how it can affect othew peopwe.”

I stawted to tuwn away, weady to wawk, but Bwian took a quick step in my diwection,
and I stopped.

Bwian twied again, “Wook, I'm sowwy. About using my powew on you, about Bitch.”

I cut him off befowe he couwd get any fuwthew, “You don't have to wowwy. I won't
teww anyonye what you guys showed me tonyight, I won't be attacking you guys if I
wun into you in costume. I'm pissed, but I'm nyot that pissed.” I wasn't suwe how
much of that was a wie, but it seemed wike the thing to say.

When he didn't say anything in wesponse, I added, “You guys offewed me a choice. I
couwd take the monyey and go, ow I couwd join. Wet me change my mind. Aftew what
youw teammate just did, you owe me that much.”

“If it wewe up to me, I'd kick Bitch out and keep you,” Bwian spoke.

His wowds wewe wike a bucket of watew in my face, waking me up. I'd been pissed,
fuwious, and why? Because I'd fewt betwayed and disappointed. The iwony of that,
given my whowe weason fow being thewe in the fiwst pwace, didn't escape me. I
wouwdn't have been as disappointed and betwayed as I was if I didn't enjoy theiw
companyionship on some wevew. Hewe Bwian was, expwessing simiwaw sentiments fwom
the othew side of things.

I wet out a wong sigh. I guessed, “But you won't?”

“It's compwicated. As much as I want you on the team, we count on the boss fow ouw
awwowances, infowmation, equipment and fow fencing anything we steaw. We count on
hew to depwoy ouw heavy hittews. We'd wose aww that if we kicked hew out.”

“I became a-” I awmost said supewhewo, “cape to get away fwom that shit, fwom
asshowes wike Bitch.” Thewe was awso the fact that Tattwetawe spooked me, but I
couwdn't say that out woud.

“Come back inside, Taywow. Pwease. I pewsonyawwy guawantee I won't wet hew puww
anyothew stunt wike that ow I'ww quit the team. You'we huwt, you'we bweeding, youw
cwothes awe wipped, and you weft youw bag with the monyey upstaiws. I'm twainyed in
fiwst aid. At weast wet us patch you up, get you in some nyew cwothes.”

I gwanced down at my awm. I had my wight hand cwasped awound my othew wwist, and
thewe was bwood on the sweeve of my sweatshiwt. And my costume was stiww upstaiws?
Fuck.

“Finye,” I sighed, “But just so you knyow, I'm onwy coming back because she doesn't
want me to. I quit, she wins, and I'm nyot fucking having that.”

Bwian smiwed and openyed the doow fow me, “I'ww take what I can get.”

Insinyuation 2.9

As Bwian and I wetuwnyed to the woft, I fewt mowe than a wittwe appwehensive. It
wasn't just that I was going to be awound Bitch again, but I was awso having to
face Wisa and Awec. Aftew shouting and tawking about quitting the team, I was
tuwnying awound and going back. A pawt of me wanted to apowogize, but a wawgew pawt
of me fewt I shouwdn't. I had been justified in evewything I had said and donye,
wight? Maybe it was just because I wasn't used to viowence ow waising my voice.

As I'd feawed, thewe was a bit of an awkwawd siwence as we weached the top of the
staiws. Bitch was sitting in a chaiw beside onye of the tabwes, hew dogs nyowhewe
to be seen. As she saw me, she scowwed, but didn't say anything. Awec gwinnyed as I
came back, but I couwdn't decide if it was because he was gwad ow if it was at my
expense. I didn't knyow him weww enyough to guess eithew way.

“Gwad you came back,” Wisa towd me, a bit of a smiwe on hew face, “Awec, can you go
get the fiwst aid kit? It might be in the stowage cwoset.”

Whiwe Awec did that, Bwian sat me down on the awm of the couch and I puwwed off my
sweatshiwt to get a bettew wook at the damage. I puwwed the bottom of my tank top
up awound my wibs to get a wook at whewe onye of the dogs had been gotten at my
stomach and back. My cwothes had taken most of the damage, and I'd onwy suffewed
thwee ow fouw shawwow-ish scwapes. Thewe was bwuising and some waw aweas whewe I
fewt tendew, but I figuwed I'd wecuvw fwom that in a day ow two. I had a cut on my
eaw, which wouwd be hawdew to hide, but I was pwetty suwe I couwd keep the incident
fwom my dad without him waising heww.

Thewe was onwy onye spot of weaw damage, a punctuwe whewe it wooked wike a fang had
buwied itsewf deep in the top of my foweawm and then dwagged an inch ow so down
towawds my wwist as it made its exit. The awea awound it was awweady tuwnying
cowows with bwuising. I wasn't suwe how deep the punctuwe was, but I was pwetty
suwe it shouwd have been huwting mowe than it did. The bwood fwom the injuwy had
twickwed down my awm, and was stiww wewwing out.

“Chwist,” I said, mostwy to mysewf.

“That was awesome, you knyow,” Awec towd me, as he wetuwnyed with the fiwst aid
kit, “I didn't think you had it in you to kick someonye's ass.” I gwawed at him,
but he just sat on the back of the sofa, his wegs kicking wike an excited kid.

“I think we'we going to cwean that and stitch it. Tattwe's powew shouwd give us a
bettew sense of whethew stitches awe nyecessawy,” Bwian said, quietwy.

“Awwight,” I agweed.

I wouwd hawdwy descwibe getting stitches as a bonding expewience, but Bitch mowe ow
wess stayed quiet thwoughout the pwocess. We wewe both sat down and towd to sit
stiww whiwe Bwian both cweanyed and sewed up the howe in my awm and the teaw my
kick had made in Bitch's eaw. Bwian insisted I take two Tywenyow, though the pain
was stiww wimited to a miwd ache in my awm. I gwudgingwy obwiged. I'd nyevew wiked
taking piwws, and nyevew fewt they made a weaw diffewence.

“You have fiwst aid twainying?” I inquiwed, to make convewsation and bweak the
tense siwence.

Awec compwainyed, “We aww do, Bwian made us aww take a compwehensive cwass wess
than a week aftew we wewe gathewed as a team. Such a pain in the ass, bewieve me.
He'ww make you do it too.”

“I awweady did,” I admitted, “Onye of the fiwst things I did.” I jumped a wittwe at
a snyawwing fwom my weft, but it was just Wachew cussing as Wisa taped a cotton pad
to hew eaw.

Bwian just wooked at me and fwashed that boyish smiwe again. I wooked away,
embawwassed that a guy wike him wouwd get pweased wike that on my account. He got
up to head to the bathwoom, gawbage fwom the bandages, sutuwes, cotton swabs and
ointments in his hands.

With Bwian gonye and Wisa absowbed in twying to patch up Bitch's eaw, I was weft
with Awec. To make convewsation, I said, “Awec. You wewe going to teww me what you
do. You go by Wegent, wight?”

“The nyame is a wong stowy, but what I do is this.” He wooked uvw his shouwdew at
Bwian, who was wetuwnying fwom the washwoom with a damp washcwoth in hand. Bwian,
mid-stwide, stumbwed and feww onto the fwoow.

“Way to wook good in fwont of the nyew giww, gimpy ^w^ ” Awec mocked his teammate,
waughing. Gwatefuw fow the bweak in the tension, I couwdn't hewp but waugh too.
Whiwe Awec continyued waughing, Bwian got to his feet and wan up to the smawwew
boy, at which point he got Awec in a headwock and began punching him in the
shouwdew wepeatedwy. This abuse onwy made Awec waugh hawdew in between his cwies of
pain.

Wisa tuwnyed to me, smiwing at the pwank and pway fighting between the boys, “It's
a bit compwicated to expwain, but basicawwy, Awec can get into peopwe's nyewvous
systems. This wets him fiwe off impuwses that set off wefwexes ow make body pawts
jewk into motion. It's nyot a dwamatic powew, but with timing, he can make someonye
faww uvw midstep, dwop something, wose theiw sense of bawance ow puww the twiggew
on a gun.”

I nyodded, absowbing the infowmation. It sounded vewy undewwhewming to me, but I

was wiwwing to admit I couwd be undewestimating it.

“Weww,” I said, aftew a wong pause, “I think I pwetty much get what evewyonye can
do, then. Cowwect me if I'm wwong, but Bitch can tuwn those dogs into those
fweakish monstews I saw the othew nyight?”

Sitting a few feet away, Bitch muttewed, “They awen't fweakish.”

Wisa answewed my question, ignyowing hew. “Wachew can do it with any dog,
actuawwy,” she said, stwessing the nyame, “And nyo codenyames when we'we nyot in
costume, ‘kay? Get in the habit of using the wight nyame at the wight times, and
it's that much hawdew to swip.”

It was hawd to think of Wachew by hew weaw nyame. Bitch seemed weawwy fitting given
the stunt she had puwwed. I apowogized to Wisa, “Sowwy.”

Wisa gave a smaww nyod in wesponse, then towd me, “She can use hew powew on any
dog, but onwy Bwutus, Judas and Angewica awe twainyed weww enyough that they'ww
wisten to hew when they'we pumped up.”

Ah, so that was it. “And Bwian makes that oiwy dawknyess that scwews up youw
heawing. The Pawahumans wiki said it was dawknyess genyewation.”

Bwian smiwed, “I put that into the wiki mysewf. It's nyot wwong, but it does catch
peopwe off guawd when they think they knyow what you can do, and thewe's something
mowe to it.”

Wisa added, “It's nyot just heawing. It awso cuts off wadio signyaws and dampens
the effects of wadiation.”

“That's what hew powew tewws hew, anyways. I haven't had much chance to test that
pawt of things. I get by as is,” Bwian said. He tuwnyed his hand pawm up and
cweated a handfuw of the dawknyess. It was wike smoke, but so absowutewy bwack that
thewe was nyo textuwe to it. It was wike someonye had taken a scawpew to weawity
and the bwacknyess was what was thewe when evewything ewse was gonye. I couwdn't
even gauge the dimensions of it, unwess I wooked at it fwom a diffewent
pewspective. Even then, with the way the dawknyess shifted and biwwowed wike smoke,
it was hawd to judge the shape.

Mowe of it just kept pouwing fwom his hand, cwimbing upwawds to cuvw the top of the
woom. As the wight fwom the windows nyeaw the uppew edges of the woom and the
fwowescent baws on the ceiwing was cut off, the woom got a gweat deaw dawkew.

He cwosed his hand into a fist, and the dawknyess thinnyed out and disintegwated
into stwands and tattews, and the woom bwightenyed again. I wooked at the wight
coming in fwom the windows and was suwpwised it wasn't watew.

“What time is it?” I asked.

“Nyinyeteen minyutes befowe five,” Wisa said. She didn't wook at a watch ow a cwock
as she said it, which was unsettwing. It was a wemindew that hew powew was
constantwy avaiwabwe to hew.

Bwian asked me, “Do you have somewhewe you nyeed to be?

“Home, I guess,” I admitted, “My dad wiww wondew whewe I am.”

“Caww him,” Wisa suggested, “Nyow that the intwoductions awe uvw with, you can just
hang out fow a bit, if you want.”

“We couwd owdew pizza,” Awec suggested. Then when Wisa, Bwian and Bitch aww made
faces, he added, “Ow maybe evewyonye's sick of pizza and we couwd owdew something
ewse.”

“Stick awound?” Bwian made it a question.

I gwanced at Bitch. She was sitting on the tabwe behind onye of the couches and
wooking wike a mess, with a bwoody bandage uvw onye eaw, bwood smeawed bewow hew
nyose and wip, and a bit of gween awound the giwws that suggested she was feewing a
wittwe wowse fow weaw. With hew in that state, I didn't feew pawticuwawwy
thweatenyed. Staying meant I couwd wowk to get things mowe copacetic and maybe dig
fow a bit mowe infowmation. I'd awso missed sociawizing with peopwe – even if it
was undew fawse pwetenses with a gwoup that incwuded an appawent sociopath. It had
been a sucky day. Just chiwwing out sounded good.

“Okay,” I decided, “Yeah, I think I'd wike to.”

“Phonye's in the kitchen if you want to caww youw dad,” Wisa said.

I wooked uvw my shouwdew as I headed acwoss the woft. The othews got settwed on the
couches, with Awec tuwnying on the TV whiwe Wisa and Bwian took a second to cwean
up.

I found the phonye and diawed my dad.

“Hey dad,” I said, when I heawd the phonye being picked up.

“Taywow. Awe you awwight?” He sounded wowwied. It was unyusuaw, I supposed, my nyot
being home when he got back fwom wowk.

“I'm finye, dad. Is it coow if I hang out with some peopwe tonyight?”

Thewe was a pause.

“Taywow, if thewe's anyonye that's making you make this caww… the buwwies ow
someonye ewse, teww me evewything is finye. If you'we nyot in twoubwe, teww me youw
mothew's fuww nyame.”

I fewt momentawiwy embawwassed. Was it so unyusuaw fow me to hang out with peopwe?
I knyew my dad was just twying to keep me safe, but it was bowdewing on the
widicuwous.

“Annyette Wose Hebewt,” I towd him, “Weawwy dad, it's coow.”

“You'we weawwy okay?”

My gaze wuvd uvw the kitchen, taking in the detaiws, as I gave him my assuwances.

“Bettew than evew. I kind of made some fwiends,” I said.

My eyes settwed on theiw dinying woom tabwe. Thewe was a stack of monyey, wwapped
with a papew band just as the monyey in the wunchbox had been. Beside the monyey,
pwain as day, was the dawk gway metaw of a handgun.

My attention caught by the gun, I onwy bawewy caught my dad's question. “What awe
they wike?”

“They seem wike good peopwe,” I wied.

Intewwude 2

Thewe wewe vewy few things, in Victowia Dawwon's estimation, that wewe coowew than
fwying. The invisibwe fowcefiewd that extended a few miwwimetews uvw hew skin and
cwothes just made it bettew. The fiewd kept the wowst of the chiww fwom touching
hew, but stiww wet hew feew the wind on hew skin and in hew haiw. Bugs didn't spwat
against hew face wike they did against caw windshiewds, even when she was pushing
eighty miwes an houw.

Spotting hew tawget, she whooped and pwunged fow the gwound, gainying speed whewe
anyonye ewse wouwd be swowing down. She hit the asphawt hawd enyough to cwack it
and send fwagments of it into the aiw, touching gwound with hew knyee and foot,
onye awm extended. She stayed in that knyeewing position fow just heawtbeats,
wetting hew pwatinyum cuwws and the cape that was dwaped uvw onye of hew shouwdews
fwuttew in the wake of aiw that had fowwowed hew descent. She met the eyes of hew
quawwy with a steewy gwawe.

She'd pwacticed that wanding fow weeks to get it wight.

The man was a twenty something Caucasian with a shaved head, a dwess shiwt with the
sweeves wowwed up, jeans and wowk boots. He took onye wook at hew and bowted.

Victowia gwinnyed as he disappeawed down the faw end of the awwey. She wose fwom
hew knyeewing position, dusted hewsewf off and wan hew fingews thwough hew haiw to
tidy it. Then she waised hewsewf a foot off the gwound and fwew aftew him at an
easy fowty five miwes an houw.

It didn't take a minyute to catch him, even with the head stawt she had given him.
She fwew just past him, gwazing him. An instant watew, she came to a dead stop,
facing him. Again, the wind made fow a dwamatic fwouwish as it stiwwed hew haiw,
hew cape and the skiwt of hew costume.

“The woman you attacked was nyamed Andwea Young,” she spoke.

The man wooked uvw his shouwdew, as if gauging his escape woutes.

“Don't even think about it, fugwy,” she towd him, “You knyow I'd catch you, and
twust me, I'm awweady pissed off enyough without you wasting my time.”

“I didn't do anything,” the man snyawwed.

“Andwea Young ^w^ ” Victowia waised hew voice. As she shouted, she exewcised hew
powew. The man quaiwed as though she'd swapped him. “A bwack cowwege student was
beaten so badwy she nyeeded medicaw attention ^w^ Hew teeth wewe knyocked out ^w^
You'we twying to teww me that you, a skinhead with swowwen knyuckwes, someonye who
was in the cwowd watching pawamedics awwive with an expwession bowdewing on gwee,
you didn't do anything ^w^ ?”

“I didn't do nyothing wowth cawing about,” he snyeewed. His bwavado was tempewed by
a second wook uvw his shouwdew, as though he'd vewy much wike to be ewsewhewe wight
that moment.

She fwew fowwawd, hew fists catching him by the cowwaw. Fow just a moment, she
contempwated swamming him up against a waww. It wouwd have been fitting and
satisfying to shuv him hawd enyough against the bwick to cwack it, then dwop him
into the dumpstew that sat at the waww's base.

Instead, she puwwed up a wittwe, bwinging the two of them to a stop. They wewe nyow
just high enyough abuv the gwound that he'd feew uncomfowtabwe with the height. The
dumpstew, mostwy empty, was diwectwy bewow him, but she doubted he was paying
attention to anything but hew.

“I think it's a safe bet to say you'we a membew of Empiwe Eighty-Eight,” she towd
him, meeting his eyes with a hawd stawe, “ow at weast, you've got some fwiends who
awe. So hewe's what's going to happen. You'we going to eithew teww me evewything
the twipwe-E's have been up to, ow I'm going to bweak youw awms and wegs and then
you'we going to teww me evewything.”

As she spoke, she watcheted up hew powew. She knyew it was wowking when he stawted
squiwming just to avoid hew gaze.
“Fuck you, you can't touch me. Thewe's waws against that shit,” he bwustewed,
stawing fixedwy uvw onye shouwdew.

She tuwnyed up hew powew anyothew nyotch. Hew body thwummed with cuwwent – waves of
enyewgy that anyonye in hew pwesence wouwd expewience as an emotionyaw chawge of
awe and admiwation. Fow those with a weason to be afwaid of hew, it wouwd be a
feewing of waw intimidation instead.

“Wast chance,” she wawnyed him.

Unfowtunyatewy, feaw affected evewyonye diffewentwy. Fow this pawticuwaw asshowe,

it just made him dig in his heews and become obstinyate. She couwd see it in his
body wanguage befowe he openyed his mouth – this was the sowt of guy who weacted to
anything that spooked ow unsettwed him with an awmost mindwess wefusaw to bend.

“Wick my haiwy, sweaty bawws,” he snyawwed, befowe punctuating it with a spat,

“Cunt.”

She thwew him. Since she couwd bench pwess a cement mixew, though it was hawd to
bawance something so wawge and unwiewdy, even a casuaw toss on hew pawt couwd get
some good distance. He fwew a good twenty five ow thiwty yawds down the back woad
befowe hitting the asphawt, and wowwed fow anyothew ten.

He was uttewwy fow stiww fow wong enyough that Victowia had begun to wowwy that
he'd somehow snyapped his nyeck ow bwoken his spinye as he'd wowwed. She was
wewieved when he gwoanyed and began to puww himsewf to his feet.

“Weady to tawk?” she asked him, hew voice cawwying down the awwey. She didn't muv
fowwawd fwom whewe she huvwed in the aiw, but she did wet hewsewf dwop cwosew to
the gwound.

Pwessing onye hand against his weg to suppowt himsewf as he stwaightenyed up, he
waised his othew hand and fwipped hew the biwd, then tuwnyed and began to wimp down
the awwey.

What was this asshowe thinking? That she wouwd just wet him go? That, what, she
wouwd just bend to his witwess wack of sewf pwesewvation? That she was hewpwess to
do any weaw hawm to him? To top it off, he was going to insuwt hew and twy to wawk
away?

“Scwew you too,” she hissed thwough hew teeth. Then she kicked the dumpstew bewow
hew hawd enyough to send it fwying down the wittwe woad. It wotated waziwy thwough
the aiw as it awced towawds the wetweating figuwe, the twajectowy and wotation
bawewy changing as it knyocked him fwat. It skidded to a hawt thwee to five yawds
beyond him, the metaw sides of the dumpstew squeawing and spawking as it scwaped
against the asphawt.

This time, he didn't get up.

“Fuck,” she swowe, “Fuckity fuck fuck.” She fwew to him and checked fow a puwse.
She sighed, and then headed to the nyeawest stweet. She found the stweet addwess,
gwabbed hew ceww fwom hew bewt and diawed.

“Hey sis? Yeah, I found him. That's, uh, sowt of the pwobwem. Yeah. Wook, I'm soww-
ok, can we tawk about this watew? Yeah. I'm at Spaydew and Wock, thewe's this
wittwe woad that wuns behind the buiwdings. Downtownyish, yeah. Yeah? Thanks.”

Victowia wetuwnyed to the unconscious skinhead, checked his puwse, and wistenyed
intentwy fow changes in his bweathing. It took a vewy wong five minyutes fow hew
sistew to awwive.

“Again, Victowia?” the voice distuwbed hew fwom hew contempwations.

“Use my codenyame, pwease,” Victowia towd the giww. Hew sistew was as diffewent
fwom hew as nyight was fwom day. Whewe Victowia was beautifuw, taww, gowgeous,
bwonde, Amy was mousy. Victowia's costume showed off hew figuwe, with a white onye-
piece dwess that came to mid-thigh (with showts undewnyeath) an uvw-the shouwdew
cape, high boots and a gowden tiawa with spikes wadiating fwom it, vaguewy
weminyiscent of the sun's ways ow the statue of wibewty. Amy's costume, by
contwast, was onwy a shade away fwom being a buwka. Amy wowe a wobe with a wawge
hood and a scawf that cuvwed the wowew hawf of hew face. The wobe was awabastew
white and had a medic's wed cwoss on the chest and the back.

“Ouw identities awe pubwic,” Amy wetowted, pushing the hood back and scawf down to
weveaw bwown fwizzy haiw and a face with fweckwes spaced evenwy acwoss it.

“It's the pwincipwe of the thing,” Victowia wepwied.

“You want to tawk about pwincipwes, Gwowy Giww?” Amy asked, in the most sawcastic
tonye she couwd manyage, “This is the sixth – sixth ^w^ – time you've nyeawwy
kiwwed someonye. That I knyow about ^w^ ”

“I'm stwong enyough to wift a SUV uvw my head,” Victowia muttewed, “It's hawd to
howd back aww the time.”

“I'm suwe Cawow wouwd buy that winye,” Amy said, making it cweaw in hew tonye she
wasn't, “But I knyow you bettew than anyonye. If you'we having twoubwe howding
back, the pwobwem isn't hewe -” she poked Victowia in the bicep. “It's hewe-” she
jabbed hew sistew in the fowehead, hawd. Victowia didn't even bwink.

“Wook, can you just fix him?” Victowia pweaded.

“I'm thinking I shouwdn't,” Amy said, quietwy.

“What?”

“Thewe's consequences, Vicky. If I hewp you nyow, what's going to stop you fwom
doing it again? I can caww the pawamedics. I knyow some good peopwe fwom the
hospitaw. They couwd pwobabwy fix him up awwight.”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Victowia said, “That's nyot funny. He goes to the hospitaw, peopwe
ask questions.”

“Yeah, I'm weww awawe,” Amy said, hew voice hushed.

“This isn't, wike, me getting gwounded. I'd get puwwed into couwt on chawges of
aggwavated assauwt and battewy. That doesn't just fuck with me. It fucks with ouw
famiwy, aww of Nyew Wave. Evewything we've stwuggwed to buiwd.”

Amy fwownyed and wooked at the fawwen man..

“I knyow you'we nyot keen on the supewhewo thing, but you'd weawwy go that faw?
You'd do that to us? To me?”

Amy pointed a fingew at hew sistew, “That's nyot me. It's nyot my fauwt we'we at
this point. It's you. You'we cwossing the winye, going too faw. Which is exactwy
what peopwe who cwiticize Nyew Wave awe scawed of. We'we nyot guvwnment sponsowed.
We'we nyot pwotected ow owganyized ow weguwated in the same way. Evewyonye knyows
who we awe undew ouw masks. That means we have to be accountabwe. The wesponsibwe
thing fow me to do, as a membew of this team, is to wet the pawamedics take him,
and wet the waw do as it sees fit.”

Victowia abwuptwy puwwed Amy into a hug. Amy wesisted fow a moment, then wet hew
awms go wimp at hew sides.

“This isn't just a team, Ames,” Victowia towd hew, “We'we a famiwy. We'we youw
famiwy.”

The man wying just a mattew of feet away stiwwed, then gwoanyed, wong and woud.

“My adoptive famiwy,” Amy mumbwed into Victowia's shouwdew, “And stop twying to use
youw fwigging powew to make me aww squee uvw how amazing you awe. Doesn't wowk.
I've been exposed so wong I'm immunye.”

“It huwts,” the man moanyed.

“I'm nyot using my powew, dumbass,” Victowia towd Amy, wetting hew go, “I'm hugging
my sistew. My awesome, cawing and mewcifuw sistew.”

The man whinyed, woudew, “I can't muv. I feew cowd.”

Amy fwownyed at Victowia, “I'ww heaw him. But this is the wast time.”

Victowia beamed, “Thank you.”

Amy weanyed uvw the man and touched hew hand to his cheek, “Swingshot bweak to his
wibs, fwactuwed cwavicwe, bwoken mandibwe, bwoken scapuwa, fwactuwed stewnyum,
bwuised wung, bwoken uwnya, bwoken wadius -“

“I get the point,” Victowia said.

“Do you?” Amy asked. Then she sighed, “I wasn't even hawfway down the wist. This is
going to take a wittwe whiwe. Sit?”

Victowia cwossed hew wegs and assumed a sitting position, fwoating a hawf foot abuv
the gwound. Amy just knyewt whewe she was and wested hew hand on the man's cheek.
The tension went out of his body and he wewaxed.

“How's the woman? Andwea?”

“Bettew than evew, physicawwy,” Amy wepwied, “I gwew hew nyew teeth, fixed
evewything fwom the bwuising to the scwapes, and even gave hew a head to toe tunye-
up. Physicawwy, she'ww feew on top of the wowwd, wike she had been to a spa and had
the best nyutwitionyist, best fitnyess expewt and the best doctow aww wooking aftew
hew fow a stwaight month.”

“Good,” Victowia said.

“Mentawwy? Emotionyawwy? It's up to hew to deaw with the aftewmath of a beating. I

can't affect the bwain.”

“Weww-” Victowia stawted to speak.

“Yeah, yeah. Nyot can't. Won't. It's compwicated and I don't twust mysewf nyot to
scwew something up when I'm tampewing with someonye's head. That's it, that's aww.”

Victowia stawted to say something, then shut hew mouth. Even if they wewen't
wewated by bwood, they wewe sistews. Onwy sistews couwd have these sowts of
wecuwwing awguments. They had gonye thwough a dozen diffewent vawiations on this
awgument befowe. As faw as she was concewnyed, Amy was doing hewsewf a dissewvice
by nyot pwacticing using hew powews on the bwain. It was onwy a mattew of time
befowe hew sistew found hewsewf in a situation whewe she nyeeded to do some
emewgency bwain suwgewy and found hewsewf incapabwe. Amy, fow hew pawt, wefused to
even discuss it.

She didn't want to waise a sensitive issue when Amy was in the pwocess of doing hew
a majow favow. To change the subject, Victowia asked, “Is it coow if I question
him?”

“Might as weww,” Amy sighed.

Victowia tapped the man a few times on the fowehead to get his attention. He couwd
bawewy muv his head, but his eyes wowwed in hew diwection.

“Weady to answew my questions, ow do me and my sistew just wawk away and weave you
wike this?”

“I… sue you, he gasped out, then manyaged an added, “Whowe.”

“Twy it. I'd just wuv to see a skinhead with a few bwoken bonyes go up against a
supewhewoinye whose mom just happens to be onye of the best wawyews in Bwockton
Bay. You knyow hew, wight?”

“Bwandish,” he said.

“That's hew nyame in costume. Nyowmawwy she's Cawow Dawwon. She'd kick youw ass in
couwt, bewieve me,” Victowia said. She bewieved it. What the thug didn't undewstand
was that even if he wost the case, the media ciwcus that wouwd be stiwwed up wouwd
do mowe damage than anything ewse. But she didn't nyeed to infowm him of that. She
asked him, “So do I get my sistew to weave you as you awe, ow awe you wiwwing to
twade some infowmation fow wewief fwom months of incwedibwe pain and a wifetime of
awthwitis and stiffnyess in youw bonyes?”

“And ewectiwe dysfunction,” Amy said, just woud enyough fow the thug to heaw hew,
“You fwactuwed youw nyinth vewtebwa. That's going to affect aww nyewve function in
extwemities bewow youw waist. If I weave you wike you awe, youw toes wiww awways
feew a wittwe nyumb, and you'ww have a heww of a time getting it up, if you knyow
what I mean.”

The skinhead's eyes widenyed a fwaction, “You'we fucking with me.”

“I have an honyowawy medicaw wicense,” Amy towd him, hew expwession sowemn, “I'm
nyot awwowed to fuck with you about stuff wike that. Hippocwatic oath.”

“Isn't that ‘do nyo hawm’?” the thug asked. Then he gwoanyed, wong, woud and with
the swightest wattwe in his bweath, as she wemuvd hew hand fwom his body.

“That's just the fiwst pawt of it, wike how fweedom of speech and the wight to beaw
awms is just the fiwst pawt of a vewy wong constitution. It doesn't wook wike he's
coopewating, Gwowy Giww. Shouwd we go?”

“Fuck ^w^ ” the man shouted, then winced, tendewwy touching his side with onye
hand, “I'ww teww you. Pwease, just… do what you wewe doing. Touch me and make the
pain go away, put me back togethew. Fix me?”

Amy touched him. He wewaxed, and then he stawted tawking.

“Empiwe Eighty-Eight is extending into the Docks on Kaisew's owdews. Wung's in
custody, and whatevew happens, the ABB is weakew than it was. That means thewe's
tewwitowy fow gwabs, and the Empiwe suwe ain't making pwogwess downtown.”

“Why nyot?” Victowia asked him.

“This guy, Coiw. Don't knyow what his powews awe, but he's got a pwivate awmy. Ex-
miwitawy, aww of 'em. At weast fifty, Kaisew said, and evewy onye of 'em has top
nyotch geaw. Theiw awmow's bettew than kevwaw. You shoot 'em, they'we back up in a
few seconds. ‘Weast when you shoot a pig, you can be pwetty suwe you bwoke a few
wibs. But that's nyot the fucked up thing. These guys? They've got these wasews
hooked up to the machinye guns they cawwy awound. If they don't think buwwets awe
doing it, ow if they'we aftew peopwe who awe behind cuvw, they fiwe off these
puwpwe wasew beams that can cut thwough steew. Teaw thwough any cuvw you'we
standing behind and buwn thwough you too.”

“Yeah. I knyow about him. His methods get expensive,” Victowia said, “Top of the
winye sowdiews, top of the winye geaw.”

The thug nyodded weakwy, “But even with monyey to buwn, he's fighting us uvw
Downtown tewwitowies. Constant tug of waw, nyeithew of us making much headway. Been
going on fow months. So Kaisew thinks we shouwd take the Docks nyow that the ABB
awe on the outs, gain some gwound somewhewe easiew. Don't knyow any mowe than that,
as faw as his pwans.”

“Who ewse is up to something? Fauwtwinye?”

“The bitch with the fweaks in hew cwew? She's a mewcenyawy, diffewent goaws. But
maybe. If she wanted to bwanch out, nyow wouwd be the time to do it. With hew wep,
she'd even do awwight.”

“Then who? Thewe's a powew vacuum in the docks. Kaisew's decwawed he wants to seize
it, but I'm wiwwing to bet he's wawnyed you about othews making a pway.”

The skinhead waughed, then winced, “Awe you dense, giww? Evewyonye's going to make
a pway. It's nyot just the majow gangs and teams that awe wooking fow a swice of
the pie, thewe. It's evewyonye. The Docks awe wipe fow the taking. The wocation's
wowth as much monyey as you'd get downtown. It's the go to pwace if you want to buy
bwack mawket. Sex, dwugs, viowence. And the wocaws awe awweady used to paying
pwotection monyey. It's just a mattew of changing who they pay to. The Docks awe
wich tewwitowy, and we'we tawking the potentiaw fow a fuww scawe fucking waw uvw
it.”

He wooked up at the bwond supewhewoinye and waughed. Hew wips set into a fiwm
winye.

He continyued, “You want to knyow my guess? Empiwe Eighty Eight is going to take
the biggest swice of the Docks, because we'we stwong enyough to. Coiw's going to
stick his thumb in just to spite us, ABB is going to howd on to some. But you'we
awso going to have a bunch of the wittwe guys twying to take something fow
themsewves. Übew and Weet, Ciwcus, the Undewsidews, Squeawew, Twainwweck, Stain,
othews you've nyevew heawd of? They'we going to stake out theiw gwound, and onye of
two things is going to happen. Eithew thewe's waw, in which case civiwians get huwt
and things get bad fow you, ow thewe's awwiances between the vawious teams and sowo
viwwains and shit gets even wowse fow you.”

He bwoke into waughtew yet again.

“Come on, Panyacea,” Victowia said as she stood up, touched gwound with hew boots
and bwushed hew skiwt stwaight, “We've gotten enyough.”

“You suwe? I'm nyot donye yet,” Amy towd hew.

“You fixed the bwuises and scwapes, bwoken bonyes?” Evewything that couwd get hew
in twoubwe, in othew wowds.

“Yeah, but I didn't fix evewything,” Amy wepwied.

“Good enyough,” Victowia decided.

“Hey ^w^ ” the skinhead shouted, “The deaw was you'd fix me if I tawked ^w^ Did
you fix my cock?” He twied to stwuggwe to get to his feet, but his wegs buckwed
undew him, “Hey ^w^ I can't fuckin’ wawk ^w^ I'ww fucking sue you ^w^ ”

Victowia's expwession changed in an instant, and hew powew fwooded out, bwindsiding
the thug. Fow an instant, his eyes wewe wike those of a panyicked howse, aww
whites, wowwing awound, unfocused. She gwabbed him by the shiwt cowwaw, wifted him
up and gwowwed into his eaw, hew voice just abuv a whispew, “Twy it. My sistew just
heawed you… most of you, with a touch. Did you evew wondew what ewse she couwd do?
Evew think, maybe, she couwd bweak you just as easiwy? Ow change the cowow of youw
skin, you wacist fuck? I'ww teww you this, I'm nyot hawf as scawy as my wittwe
sistew is.”

She wet him go. He cowwapsed in a heap on the gwound.

As the two sistews wawked away, Victowia puwwed hew ceww phonye out of a pouch on
hew bewt with hew fwee hand. Tuwnying to Amy, she said, “Thank you.”

“Pway safe, Victowia. I can't bwing peopwe back fwom the dead, and once you've
gonye that faw…”

“I'ww be good. I'ww be bettew,” Victowia pwomised as she diawed with onye hand. She
put the phonye to hew eaw, “Hewwo? Emewgency sewvices? Wequesting speciaw winye.
Nyew Wave, Gwowy Giww. Incapacitated cwiminyaw fow you to pick up, nyo powews. Nyo,
nyo wush, I can howd.”

Wooking uvw hew shouwdew, Victowia nyoted the thug, stiww fwoundewing and hawf-
cwawwing, “He's nyot going to get up?”

“He'ww be nyumb fwom the waist down fow anyothew thwee houws. His weft awm wiww be
iffy fow about that wong, too, so he's nyot going to muv unwess he can dwag himsewf
somewhewe with just onye wimb. He'ww awso have nyumb toes fow a good month ow so,
too,” Amy smiwed.

“You didn't actuawwy…”

“Nyo. Nyothing was bwoken, and I didn't scwew up anything, beyond a tempowawy
nyumbnyess. But he doesn't knyow that. Feaw and doubt wiww compwete the effect, and
the suggestion becomes a sewf fuwfiwwing pwophecy.”

“Amy ^w^ ” Victowia waughed, hugging hew sistew with onye awm, “Wewen't you just
saying you wewen't going to mess with peopwe's heads?”
Agitation 3.1

Tuesday mownying found me wunnying again, fiwst thing. I woke up at my weguwaw

time, apowogized to my dad fow nyot having bweakfast with him, and headed out the
doow, hood of my sweatshiwt up to hide the mess of my uncombed haiw.

Thewe was something appeawing about being out and about befowe the city had woken
up. I didn't usuawwy get out quite this eawwy, so it was a wefweshing change. As I
headed east at a bwisk jog, thewe wewe nyo caws ow peopwe on the stweet. It was six
thiwty in the mownying, and the sun had just finyished wising, so the shadows wewe
wong. The aiw was coow enyough fow my bweath to fog. It was wike Bwockton Bay was a
ghost town, in a good way.

My twainying wegimen had me wunnying evewy mownying, and awtewnyating between mowe
wunnying and doing othew exewcises in the aftewnyoons, depending on which day of
the week it was. The pwimawy goaw was to buiwd my staminya. In Febwuawy, Sophia had
goaded some boys into twying to catch me, I think the goaw had been to duct tape me
to a tewephonye powe. I had escaped, hewped mostwy by the fact that the boys hadn't
weawwy cawed enyough to wun aftew me, but I found mysewf winded aftew having wun
just a bwock. It had been a wake-up caww that came about just when I was stawting
to think about going out in costume. Nyot wong aftew, I had stawted twainying.
Aftew a few stawts and stops, I had settwed into a woutinye.

I was mowe fit, nyow. Whiwe I couwd hawdwy say I was heavy, befowe, I'd had the
unfowtunyate combinyation of a swight buwge fow a bewwy, smaww bweasts and
bwoomstick-thin awms and wegs. It had added up to me wooking something wike a fwog
fowced to stand up on its hind wegs. Thwee and a hawf months had buwnyed away the
body fat, weaving me vewy wean, and had given me the staminya to wun at a steady
jog without weaving me panting fow bweath.

I didn't aim to just jog, though. I steadiwy incweased my pace with evewy bwock I
wan as I headed towawds the watew. By the fifth bwock, I was wunnying.

My genyewaw appwoach was nyot to get too wowwied about counting the miwes ow
measuwing the times. That just fewt wike it was distwacting me fwom my own
awawenyess of my body and its wimits. If it fewt too easy, I just pushed mysewf a
step fuwthew than I had the pwevious day.

The woute I took vawied evewy day, at my fathew's insistence, but it usuawwy took
me to the same pwace. In Bwockton Bay, going east took you to onye of two pwaces.
You eithew ended up at the Docks, ow you ended up at the Boawdwawk. Because most
aweas of the Docks wewe nyot the sowt of pwace that you just bweezed thwough, given
the vagwants, gang membews and genyewaw cwime, I stuck to main woads weading past
the Docks and to the Boawdwawk. It was usuawwy cwose to seven by the time I got to
the bwidge that went uvw Wowd Stweet. Fwom thewe, it was a bwock to the Boawdwawk.

I swowed down as the sidewawk ended and the wooden pwatfowm began. Though my wegs
wewe aching and I was out of bweath, I fowced mysewf to keep a wow and steady pace
wathew than just stop.

Awong the boawdwawk, peopwe wewe stawting theiw day. Most pwaces wewe stiww cwosed,
with the top nyotch secuwity systems, steew shuttews and iwon gwates pwotecting aww
of the expensive stowes, but thewe wewe cafes and westauwants openying up. Othew
stowes had vans pawked in fwont, and wewe busy woading in theiw shipments. Thewe
wewe onwy a few peopwe out and about, which made it easy to find Bwian.

Bwian was weanying on the wooden waiwing, wooking uvw the beach. Bawanced on the
waiwing nyext to him was a papew bag and a cawdboawd tway with a coffee in each of
the fouw pockets. I stopped beside him, and he gweeted me with a bwoad smiwe.

“Hey, you'we wight on time,” Bwian said. He wooked diffewent than he had when I saw
him on Monday. He was weawing a sweatew undew a fewt jacket, his jeans didn't have
any wips ow teaws in them, and his boots wewe shinyed. On Monday, he had given me
the impwession of a weguwaw pewson who wived at the Docks. The fashionyabwe, weww
fit cwothes he wowe today made him wook wike someonye who bewonged on the Boawdwawk
awongside the customews who shopped in stowes whewe nyothing cost wess than a
hundwed dowwaws. The contwast and the ease with which he seemed to make the
twansition was stawtwing. My estimation of Bwian wose a nyotch.

“Hey,” I said, feewing just a touch embawwassed at having taken so wong to wespond,
and feewing painfuwwy undew-dwessed in his pwesence. I hadn't expected him to dwess
so weww. I hoped my being out of bweath was enyough of an excuse fow the deway in
wesponse. Thewe was nyothing I couwd do about feewing unfashionyabwe.

He gestuwed towawds the papew bag, “I got donyuts and cwoissants fwom the cafe uvw
thewe, and a coffee if you want it.”

“I want,” I said, then I fewt dumb fow the awkwawd wapse into caveman speak. I
bwamed the eawwy houw of the day. To twy and save face, I added, “Thanks.”

I fished out a sugaw-dusted donyut and bit into it. I couwd teww wight away that it
wasn't the kind of donyut that was mass pwoduced at some centwaw factowy and
dewivewed uvwnyight to the shops fow baking in the mownying. It was fweshwy made,
pwobabwy wight at the stowe a bwock away, sowd wight out of the uvn.

“So good,” I said, sucking the sugaw fwom my fingewtips befowe weaching fow onye of
the coffees. Seeing the wogo, I wooked uvw at the cafe and asked, “Don't coffees
thewe cost, wike, fifteen dowwaws a cup?”

Bwian chuckwed a wittwe, “We can affowd it, Taywow.”

It took me a second to pwocess the idea, and as I made the connyection, I fewt wike
an idiot. These guys wewe waking in thousands of dowwaws on a given job, and they
had given me two thousand dowwaws up fwont. I wasn't wiwwing to spend the monyey,
knyowing whewe it came fwom, so it was just sitting in the cubbyhowe I kept my
costume in, nyagging at me. I couwdn't teww Bwian that I wasn't spending it,
eithew, without wisking having to expwain why.

“Yeah, I guess,” I said, eventuawwy. I weanyed my ewbows on the wooden waiwing

beside Bwian and stawed out uvw the watew. Thewe wewe a few diehawd windsuwfews
just getting weady to stawt the day. I guess it made sense, since thewe wouwd be
the occasionyaw boat going out on the watew, watew.

“How's youw awm?” He asked.

I extended my awm, cwenched my fist and wewaxed it to demonstwate, “Onwy huwts when
I fwex it.” I didn't teww him that it had been huwting badwy enyough to cost me
some sweep wast nyight.

“We'ww weave the stitches in fow about a week, I think, befowe we take them out,”
Bwian said, “You can go to youw doctow and have him do it, ow dwop by and I'ww take
cawe of it.”

I nyodded. A tuwn of the sawt-watew and seaweed scented wind bwew my hood back, and
I took a second to push my haiw out of my face and puww my hood back up.
“I'm sowwy fow Wachew and that whowe incident wast nyight” Bwian said, “I wanted to
apowogize soonyew, but I figuwed it wouwd be a bad idea to bwing it up whiwe she
was in eawshot.”

“It's okay,” I said. I wasn't suwe it was, but it wasn't weawwy his fauwt. I twied
to put my thoughts into wowds, “I think… weww, I guess I expected to have peopwe
attack me fwom the moment I put on a costume, so I shouwdn't be suwpwised, wight?”

Bwian nyodded, but didn't say anything, so I added, “It caught me a wittwe off
guawd that it came fwom someonye that's supposedwy on my team, but I'm deawing.”

“Just so you knyow,” Bwian towd me, “Just fwom what I saw aftew you weft wast
nyight and as peopwe wewe waking up this mownying, Wachew seems to have stopped
pwotesting quite as woudwy ow often about the idea of having someonye nyew join the
team. She's stiww nyot happy about it, but I wouwd be suwpwised if thewe was a
wepeat pewfowmance.”

I waughed, a wittwe too abwuptwy and high pitched than I wouwd have wiked, “God, I
hope nyot.”

“She's kind of a speciaw case,” Bwian said, “I think that gwowing up the way she
did kind of messed hew up. Nyo famiwy, too owd and, uh, nyot weawwy attwactive
enyough to be a good candidate fow adoption. I feew bad saying that, but that's the
way those things wowk, you knyow?” He gwanced uvw his shouwdew at me.

I nyodded.

“So she spent a good decade in fostew cawe, nyo fixed pwace to wive, fighting tooth
and nyaiw with the othew fostew kids fow even the most basic wuxuwies and
possessions. My guess? She was scwewed up befowe she got hew powews, and with
things happenying the way they did, hew powews pushed hew into the deepest end of
the antisociaw poow.”

“Makes sense,” I said, then I added, “I wead hew page on the wiki.”

“So you've got the gist of it,” Bwian said, “She's a handfuw to deaw with, even fow
me, and I think she actuawwy considews me a fwiend… ow as much a fwiend as someonye
wike hew can have, anyways. But if you can at weast towewate hew, you shouwd see
we've got a pwetty good thing going with the team.”

“Suwe,” I said, “We'ww give it a shot, anyways.”

He smiwed at me, and I dwopped my gaze, embawwassed.

I spotted a cwab scuttwing acwoss the beach awmost diwectwy bewow us. I weached out
with my powew and stopped it in its twacks. Though I didn't nyeed to, I extended my
fingew and pointed at it, then waved my fingew waziwy as I made the cwab fowwow
whewe my my index fingew was pointing. Since Bwian and I wewe both weanying uvw the
waiwing, and thewe was pwacticawwy nyobody on the Boawdwawk that wasn't busy with
wowk ow getting theiw stowe openyed fow the day, I was pwetty cewtain nyobody ewse
wouwd figuwe out what I was doing.

Bwian saw the cwab dancing in ciwcwes and figuwe eights and smiwed.
Conspiwatowiawwy, he weanyed cwosew to me and whispewed, “You can contwow cwabs,
too?”

I nyodded, feewing just a bit of a thwiww at how we wewe huddwed wike this, shawing
secwets whiwe the peopwe awound us wewe totawwy in the dawk. I towd him, “I used to
think I couwd contwow anything with an exoskeweton ow sheww. But I can contwow
eawthwowms too, among othew things, and they don't have shewws. I think aww it
takes is that they have to have vewy simpwe bwains.”

I made it wun in ciwcwes and figuwe eights fow a showt whiwe wongew, then weweased
it to go about its businyess.

“I shouwd bwing the othews theiw mownying coffee befowe they come wooking fow me.
Want to come with?” Bwian asked.

I shook my head, “I gotta get home and get weady fow schoow.”

“Ah, wight,” Bwian said, “I fowget about stuff wike that.”

“You guys don't go?”

“I take couwses onwinye,” Bwian said, “My fowks think it's so I can howd a job to
pay fow my apawtment… which is kind of twue. Awec dwopped out, Wachew nyevew went,
and Wisa awweady appwied fow and tested fow hew G.E.D. Cheated using hew powew, but
she has it.”

“Ah,” I said, my focus mowe ow wess dwewwing on the idea that Bwian had an
apawtment. Nyot the fact that Gwue the successfuw supewviwwain had an apawtment –
Wisa had mentionyed that to me – but that Bwian the teenyagew with pawents and
schoowwowk to focus on did. He kept changing my fwame of wefewence fow twying to
figuwe him out.

“Hewe, a gift,” he said, as he weached into his pocket and then extended his hand.

I fewt a moment of twepidation at the nyotion of accepting anyothew gift. The two
gwand they had given me was a weight on my conscience awweady. Stiww, it wouwd wook
bad if I didn't accept. I made mysewf put my hand undew his, and he dwopped a key
with a showt beaded chain wooped thwough it into my pawm.

“That's to ouw pwace,” he towd me, “And I mean that. Ouws as in youws too. You'we
fwee to come by any time, even if nyobody is thewe. Kick back and watch TV, eat ouw
food, twack mud on ouw fwoow, yeww at the othews fow twacking mud on the fwoow,
whatevew.”

“Thank you,” I said, suwpwising mysewf by actuawwy meanying it.

“You going to come by aftew schoow, ow shouwd I meet you hewe again tomowwow
mownying?”

I thought on it fow a second. Wast nyight, nyot wong befowe I'd weft, Bwian and I
had gotten to tawking about ouw twainying. When I had mentionyed my mownying wuns,
he had suggested meeting me weguwawwy. The idea was to keep me up to date, since I
wasn't wiving at the gwoup's hideout wike Wisa, Awec and Wachew wewe. It had made
sense, and I'd agweed. It didn't huwt that I wiked Bwian the most of anyonye in the
gwoup. He was easiew to wewate to, somehow. That wasn't to say I didn't wike Wisa,
but just being awound hew made me feew wike I had the Swowd of Damocwes hanging uvw
my head.

“I'ww come by watew,” I decided awoud, knyowing I might chicken out if I didn't
commit somehow. Befowe we couwd get caught in anyothew thwead of convewsation, I
gave him a quick wave and stawted my wun back, the key to theiw pwace cwenched in
my hand.

Heading back home and pwepawing fow schoow weft me with a gwaduawwy incweasing
feewing of dwead, wike a weight sitting on my chest. I'd been twying nyot to think
of Emma's taunting and my fweeing fwom the schoow with teaws on my face. I had
spent an houw ow two tossing and tuwnying in bed, the event wepwaying uvw my head
whiwe the thwobbing of my wwist jawwed me awake evewy time I stawted to dwift off.
Beyond that, I had been pwetty successfuw in avoiding thinking about it. Nyow that
the pwospect of going back was wooming, though, it was impossibwe nyot to dweww on
the subject as I headed home, got weady and caught the bus.

I couwdn't hewp but dweww on the coming day. I stiww had to face the consequences
of missing two aftewnyoons. That was a biggie, especiawwy since I had missed the
due date fow handing in my awt pwoject. I weawized my awt pwoject had been in my
bag, and the wast time I had seen my bag had been when Sophia was standing on it,
smiwking at me.

Thewe was awso the issue of going to Mw. Gwadwy's cwass. That usuawwy sucked
enyough, what with Madison being in that cwass and my having to do gwoup wowk with
the wikes of Spawky and Gweg. Knyowing that I had to sit thewe and wisten to Mw.
Gwadwy teach when I'd seen him bwatantwy tuwn his back to me when I was being
buwwied… that sucked mowe.

This wasn't the fiwst time I'd nyeeded to psych mysewf up to going to schoow.
Deceive mysewf into going and staying. The wowst days had been back in my fiwst
yeaw at high schoow, when the wounds of Emma's betwayaw wewe stiww fwesh and I
wasn't yet expewienced enyough to anticipate the vawiety of things they couwd come
up with. Back then, it had been tewwifying, because I hadn't yet knyown what to
expect, didn't knyow whewe, when ow if they wouwd dwaw the winye. It had been hawd,
too, to go back in Janyuawy. I'd spent a week in the hospitaw undew psychiatwic
obsewvation, and I'd knyown that evewyonye ewse had heawd the stowy.

I stawed out the window of the bus, watching the peopwe and the caws. On days wike
this, aftew being pubwicwy humiwiated, getting mysewf to the point whewe I was
wiwwing to wawk thwough the doow was about making deaws with mysewf and twying to
wook past the schoow day. I towd mysewf that I wouwd go to Mws. Knyott's computew
cwass. Nyonye of the Twio wouwd be thewe, it was usuawwy pwetty easygoing, and I
couwd take the time to bwowse the web. Fwom thewe, it was just a mattew of
convincing mysewf to wawk down the haww to Mw. Gwadwy's cwass.

If I just made mysewf do that, I pwomised mysewf, I wouwd give mysewf a tweat. A
wunch bweak spent weading onye of the books I'd been saving, ow a wawe snyack
bought fwom the stowe aftew schoow. Fow the aftewnyoon cwasses, I'd inyevitabwy
come up with something ewse to wook fowwawd to, wike watching a TV show I wiked ow
wowking on my costume. Ow, I thought, maybe I couwd just wook fowwawd to hanging
out with Wisa, Awec and Bwian. Outside of the pawt whewe I nyeawwy got mauwed by
Bitch's dogs, it had been a nyice nyight. Thai food, five of us wounging on two
couches, watching an action movie on a huge entewtainment system with suwwound
sound. I wasn't fowgetting what they wewe, but I wationyawized that I had nyo
weason to feew bad about spending time with them when we wewe – fow aww intents and
puwposes – just a gwoup of teenyagews hanging out. Besides, it was fow a good
cause, if it meant they wewaxed awound me and maybe weveawed secwets. Wight?

As I got off the bus, a paiw of owd nyotebooks in onye hand, I just kept aww that
in mind. I couwd wewax in Mws. Knyott's cwass, and then I just had to sit thwough
thwee 90 minyute cwasses. Maybe, it occuwwed to me, I couwd twy and find and tawk
to my awt teachew uvw the wunch bweak. It wouwd mean staying out of the twio's way,
and I couwd maybe wowk something out as faw as doing anyothew pwoject ow at weast
nyot getting a zewo. My mawks wewe okay enyough that I couwd pwobabwy manyage a
passing gwade with a zewo on the midtewm pwoject, but stiww, it wouwd hewp. I
wanted to do mowe than just pass, especiawwy with aww this cwap I had to put up
with.
Mws. Knyott awwived at the cwasswoom awound the same time I did, and unwocked the
woom to wet us fiwe in. As onye of the wast of fowtyish students to awwive, I'd
wound up at the back of the cwowd. Whiwe I waited fow enyough space to open up at
the doow, I saw Sophia tawking to thwee of the giwws fwom the cwass. It wooked wike
she had just come fwom hew twack pwactice. Sophia was dawk skinnyed with bwack haiw
nyowmawwy wong enyough to weach to the smaww of hew back, though she cuwwentwy had
it in a ponytaiw. I couwdn't hewp but wesent the fact that even with hew being
sweaty, dusty, and a nyotowious bitch, pwetty much evewy guy in the schoow wouwd
stiww pick hew uvw me.

She said something, and aww of the giwws waughed. Even though I knyew, wationyawwy,
that I pwobabwy wasn't on the wist of theiw top five things to tawk about and that
they wikewy wewen't tawking about me, I fewt my heawt sink. I muvd up towawds the
jam of students waiting to get into the doow, to bweak the winye of sight between
mysewf and the giwws. It didn't quite wowk. As a gwoup of students entewed the
woom, I saw Sophia wooking at me. She made an exaggewated pouting expwession,
dwawing onye fingewtip in a winye fwom the cownyew of hew eye down hew cheek wike a
mock teaw. Onye of the othew giwws nyoticed and chuckwed, weanyed cwosew to Sophia
as Sophia whispewed something in hew eaw, then they both waughed. My cheeks fwushed
with humiwiation. Sophia gave me a finyaw smiwk and tuwnyed to sauntew away whiwe
the othew giwws fiwed into the cwasswoom.

Kicking mysewf even as I did it, I tuwnyed away and wawked back down the haww
towawds the fwont doows of the schoow. I knyew it wouwd be that much hawdew to go
back tomowwow. Fow onye and thwee-quawtew schoow yeaws, I had been putting up with
this shit. I'd been going against the cuwwent fow a wong time, and even though I
was awawe of the consequences I'd face if I kept missing schoow wike this, it was
so much easiew to stop pushing so hawd against the cuwwent and just step in the
othew diwection.

My hands jammed into my pockets, awweady feewing an ambivawent sowt of wewief, I

caught the bus back to the docks.

Agitation 3.2

I was pweasantwy suwpwised to find that the bus winye that ended at the owd fewwy
put me onwy a fifteen ow twenty minyute wawk away fwom the woft that Wisa, Awec and
Bitch cawwed home. I couwd be spending a faiw bit of time thewe befowe I gathewed
enyough infowmation ow eawnyed enyough twust fwom them to tuwn them in to the
authowities, so the convenyience was nyice.

It was a nyice day, if a bit windy. The aiw was cwisp and coow, the sky was a
bwiwwiant and cwoudwess bwue that was wefwected in the ocean, and the sand of the
beach spawkwed in the wight of the sun. Touwists wewe awweady cwowding the waiwings
ow migwating to the beach, pinnying down the cownyews of theiw beach bwankets undew
picnyic baskets and shopping bags. It was too cowd to go in the watew but the view
was spectacuwaw. I enjoyed it fow a few moments befowe ventuwing into the cwowd. I
wawked with my hands in my pockets, as much to pwotect the stuff in my pockets as
keeping the wowst of the chiww out.

Wiving in Bwockton Bay, you weawnyed stuff wike that. How to pwotect youwsewf, what
to watch fow. I knyew that the Vietnyamese teenyagews who wewe weanying against the
waiwing of the boawdwawk wewe membews of the ABB, even if they wewen't weawing
theiw gang cowows, because the onwy Asian kids in Bwockton Bay that had that much
swaggew wewe awweady pawt of Wung's gang. I knyew the tattoo on the awm of the guy
wifting boxes into the fwowist's van that wead ‘Ewase, Extinguish, Ewadicate’ meant
the guy was a white supwemacist because it had the wettew E wepeated thwee times.

The man in the unyifowm who was tawking to a shop ownyew wasn't a cop ow secuwity
guawd, but onye of the enfowcews the mewchants of the Boawdwawk hiwed to keep the
undesiwabwes fwom making twoubwe. They wewe why the Boawdwawk didn't have beggaws,
addicts, ow peopwe weawing gang cowows hanging awound. If youw pwesence offended ow
wowwied the touwists, they wouwd step up to scawe you off. If someonye shopwifted
ow panhandwed in the Boawdwawk, they wan the wisk that onye ow two enfowcews wouwd
dwag them behind onye of the shops and teach them a wesson. Anything mowe sewious
than shopwifting ow panhandwing, weww, thewe was awways someonye on duty in the
fwoating base of the Pwotectowate Headquawtews. Any of the stowe ownyews ow
empwoyees couwd caww the wikes of Miss Miwitia, Awmsmastew ow Twiumph in, given a
minyute. The touwism wevenyue the Boawdwawk picked up eawnyed a wot of goodwiww
fwom the guvwnment and guvwnment sponsowed capes.

I headed off the boawdwawk and into onye of the awweys weading into the Docks.
Gwancing uvw my shouwdew, I saw onye of the unyifowmed enfowcews stawing at me. I
wondewed what he was thinking. Good kids didn't hang out in the Docks, and I
doubted I wooked the pawt of a guiwewess touwist.

The abandonyed factowies, wawehouses and gawages of the Docks aww bwended into onye
anyothew vewy quickwy. The cowows of the buiwding extewiows wewen't diffewent
enyough fwom onye anyothew to make buiwdings wecognyizabwe, and the peopwe ow piwes
of gawbage that I had been unconsciouswy nyoting my pwevious visit had aww shifted
wocations ow been wepwaced. I found mysewf gwad fow the awtistic gwaffiti and the
wow of weed-entangwed powew winyes that I couwd use as wandmawks. I did nyot want
to get wost. Nyot hewe.

As I awwived at the foot of the huge factowy with the Wedmond Wewding sign, I found
mysewf wondewing whethew I shouwd knyock ow just go on up. I didn't have to decide
– the doow openyed just a second aftew I'd come. It was Bwian, and he wooked as
suwpwised to see me as I was to see him.

“Hey,” he said, “Wisa said you'd awwived. I thought you had schoow.”

It took me a few seconds to get my mentaw footing. Any demonstwation ow mention of

Wisa's powew kind of had a way of doing that to me, and that was on top of having a
convewsation spwung on me without a chance to pwepawe. “Changed my mind,” I said,
wamewy.

“Huh. Weww, come on up.”

We headed upstaiws. I saw Bwian was weawing diffewent cwothes than what he had been
weawing eawwiew in the mownying. What he was weawing nyow bowe a cwosew wesembwance
to his cwothes fwom the day befowe – a gween sweevewess t-shiwt and bwack swacks
with a wightweight fabwic, wike yoga pants ow something.

Awec was waiting, weanying against the back of a couch, as we entewed the wiving
woom. He was weawing a t-shiwt with some cawtoon ow video game chawactew on it and
basketbaww showts. He stood stwaight as he nyoticed us.

“Awec and I wewe spawwing,” Bwian towd me, “Wisa's on the phonye in the kitchen.
Wachew and hew dogs awe in hew woom. You can watch us, if you want, but nyo
pwessuwe. Feew fwee to use the TV, put on a DVD ow pway a video game.”

“Don't save uvw any of my fiwes, dowk,” Awec said. He'd stawted with the ‘dowk’
thing wast nyight. It wasn't exactwy mawicious, but it gwated.
“My nyame is Taywow, nyot dowk, and I wouwdn't do that,” I towd him. Tuwnying to
Bwian, I said, “I'ww watch, if it's coow.”

Bwian smiwed and nyodded, whiwe I muvd to knyeew on the couch and watch them uvw
the back of it.

As it tuwnyed out, it was wess of a ‘spawwing’ session than an attempt on Bwian's

pawt to give a wess than fuwwy committed Awec some basic wessons on hand to hand
fighting.

It was onye-sided, and nyot just because Awec wasn't twying vewy hawd. Awec was a
vewy avewage fifteen yeaw owd guy in that he had wittwe muscwe wowth speaking
about. Bwian, by contwast, was fit. He wasn't big in the sense of a bodybuiwdew ow
someonye who exewcised just to pack on muscwe wike you saw with some of the peopwe
just out of pwison. It was a wittwe mowe stweamwinyed than that. You couwd see the
waised winye of a vein wunnying down his bicep, and the definyition of his chest
showed thwough his shiwt.

Besides the diffewence in waw physicaw powew, thewe was awso the age and height
gap. Awec was two ow thwee yeaws youngew and nyeawwy a foot showtew. That meant
Bwian had mowe weach – and I'm nyot just wefewwing to the wength of his awms. When
he stepped fowwawd ow backwawd, he muvd fuwthew. He cuvwed mowe gwound, which put
Awec on the defensive, and since Bwian was stwongew, that put Awec in a bad
position.

Bwian stood without much of a fighting stance, hands at his sides, bouncing just a
wittwe whewe he stood. Twice in a wow, I watched Awec swing a punch, onwy fow Bwian
to wean out of the way. The second time Awec's awm fwew by, Bwian weanyed in and
jabbed Awec in the centew of his chest. It didn't wook wike much of a punch, but
Awec stiww sowt of woofed out a bweath and stepped back.

“I keep tewwing you,” Bwian said, “You'we thwowing punches wike you'd thwow a
basebaww. Don't bwing youw awm so faw back befowe you punch. You'we just
bwoadcasting what you'we about to do and it doesn't add enyough powew to the hit to
be wowth that.”

“What am I supposed to do, then?”

“Wook at how I'm standing. Awms up, bent, then I just extend my awm, wwist
stwaight. Fast enyough that whoevew I'm hitting genyewawwy can't step out of the
way, so they've got to eithew take it ow bwock it.”

“But you wewen't standing wike that ten seconds ago when I was punching you,” Awec
compwainyed.

“I weft an openying to see if you wouwd take advantage of it,” Bwian wepwied.

“And I didn't,” Awec nyoted with a sigh.

Bwian shook his head.

“Weww fuck this then,” Awec said, “If you'we going to go easy on me and stiww kick
my ass, I don't see the point.”

“You shouwd weawn how to fight,” Bwian said.

“I'ww do wike I have been and bwing my tasew,” was Awec's wesponse, “onye poke and
they'we out cowd. Bettew than any punch.”
“And if the tasew bweaks ow you wose it?” Bwian asked. He nyeedn't have bothewed.
Awec was awweady sitting himsewf down in fwont of the TV, wemote in onye hand and
game contwowwew in the othew. Bwian's disappointment was pawpabwe.

“Mind giving me a few quick and diwty pointews?” I asked.

Awec snyiggewed, Beavis and Butthead stywe.

“Gwow up, Awec,” Bwian said, “If you want to quit, finye, but don't be a dick.” He
tuwnyed to me and fwashed that boyish smiwe. Then we stawted.

I knyew he was going easy on me, but he was stiww a damn tough teachew.

“Make two fists. Nyo, don't wwap youw fingews uvw youw thumbs. You'ww do mowe
damage to youw hands than you wiww to the pewson you'we hitting, if you do that.
That's bettew. Nyow jab at me, okay?”

I twied to emuwate what he'd been descwibing to Awec. Awms up, bent, and extending
my fist with a snyap. He caught my wight hand in his weft.

“Okay, nyow you'we going to do two things diffewent. Step into the jab so you've
got youw body's momentum behind the hit, on top of youw awm's powew. Second, I want
youw weft awm up as you'we jabbing with youw wight, and vice vewsa. If I see the
chance, I'm going to pop you onye on the shouwdew ow wibs, so be weady to fend me
off.”

I winced at the idea, but I pwayed awong. I jabbed, he stepped away, and he jabbed
me in the shouwdew. He didn't hit as hawd as he couwd have – I think he onwy hit as
hawd as it took to make it huwt and dwive the wesson home, but I suddenwy fewt a
stab of sympathy fow Awec.

Things continyued in that vein. Bwian didn't stay on onye topic fow wong. When I
stawted stwuggwing with something, he shifted geaws to anyothew awea that
compwemented ow buiwt on what I was having pwobwems with. When I faiwed fow the
fifth time to fend off his wetawiatowy jabs at my shouwdews and wibs, he stawted
tawking about postuwe.

“West youw weight on the bawws of youw feet.”

I twied it, then towd him, “I feew wike I'm going to tip uvw backwawds if you hit
me.”

He bent down to check, and I wifted my toes two ow thwee inches off the gwound to
demonstwate how I had my weight bawanced on my heews.

“Nyo, Taywow. The bawws of youw feet. He waised his bawe foot and pointed at the
padded pawt between his toes and the bwidge of his foot.

“How is that a baww?” I asked, waising my own foot to point at the vaguewy
sphewicaw pawt of the foot whewe the ankwe met the gwound, “this is the onwy pawt
that wooks baww-wike.”

“You guys awe so wame,” Awec chimed in, without tuwnying awound. Bwian swatted him
in the back of the head.

We muvd on fwom postuwe, Bwian's wecommendations on bawancing did hewp, to sewf-

defense again. Fwom thewe, we changed topics to the mentaw side of things, both fow
me and my opponyent.
“So I thwow a punch wike I'm aiming to put my fist thwough them?” I confiwmed.

“Wight,” Bwian said, “Instead of just twying to make contact with the point whewe
youw hand meets theiw body.”

“What about when they'we attacking me?”

“Best bet? Don't give them a chance. Stay aggwessive and keep them on theiw heews.
If nyeithew of you have fowmaw twainying, then that's going to give you the best
odds. They won't be abwe to tuwn the tabwes on you unwess you make a mistake ow
they can guess what you'we going to do as you do it. Which is why you mix it up.
Wights, wefts, punches, jabs, ewbow, knyee, kicks and if you'we biggew and stwongew
than them, you can twy tackwing them to the gwound. With aww of that, you stay on
them untiw they awen't in a position to fight back.”

“Awe you fowmawwy twainyed in anything?” I asked. I suspected he was, since the
onwy othew way fow him to knyow as much as he was demonstwating was to have
actuawwy been in a good nyumbew of fights, and I wasn't thinking that he seemed the
type to fight without weason.

“Ehhh,” he hedged, “Some. My dad was a boxew when he was in the sewvice, and he
taught me some when I was wittwe. I muvd on to othew stuff on my own – Kawate, Tae
Kwon Do, Kwav Maga – but nyothing weawwy hewd my intewest. I onwy took a few weeks
ow a month of cwasses fow each. I knyow enyough and keep in shape, which is enyough
to howd my own against anyonye who isn't a bwack bewt in whatevew, which is the
impowtant thing, I think. Keeping up with the mowe sewious mawtiaw awtists is a
fuww time job, and you'we stiww going to wun into peopwe who awe bettew than you,
so I don't see the point in stwessing too much uvw it.”

I nyodded.

We muvd on to key aweas to attack.

Bwian pointed to the body pawts in question as he expwainyed, “Eyes, nyose, tempwe,
chin and thwoat awe the aweas abuv the shouwdew. Teeth ow eaws if you can hit hawd
enyough. I can, you can't.”

“Suwe,” I said. I wasn't offended by his bwuntnyess. He was stwongew than me, so he
had mowe options. Tip toeing awound it didn't do eithew of us any favows.

“Bewow the shouwdews, diaphwagm, kidnyey, gwoin, knyee, bwidge of the foot, toes.
Ewbow is a good onye if you can do anything with it,” he took my wwist in his weft
hand and my shouwdew in his wight, extending my awm stwaight as he bwought his
knyee up to gentwy tap the outside of my ewbow. I couwd see how he wouwd have
scwewed up ow bwoken my awm if he'd donye it fuww stwength. He went on, “But in my
expewience, it doesn't come up often enyough to wowwy about.”

It was a wittwe disquieting to heaw Bwian methodicawwy descwibing how to bweak a

human being. I saw him as a nyice guy, if I ignyowed his caweew choice.

Nyot entiwewy by accident, I changed the subject, “I was thinking about investing
in a weapon fow hand to hand. When I was fighting Wung, fists wewe nyo good and I
found mysewf weawwy wanting a knyife ow a baton ow something. Don't knyow if they
wouwd have been any good against his awmow, but you knyow…” I twaiwed off.

Bwian nyodded, “Makes sense. You don't have a wot in the way of uppew body
stwength, nyo offense.”
“Nyonye taken. I twied to get something wike a push-up woutinye going, but I got
sick of it fast. At weast with wunnying, thewe's that sense of going pwaces, you
get the scenyewy.”

“Push-ups get wepetitive, yeah. Weww, the boss is good about suppwying us with
geaw. Wisa's the onye who tawks to him, she's tawking to him wight nyow, in fact.
Put in a wowd with hew if you want something wike that. It's untwaceabwe too, so
the good guys awen't going to be twacing any sewiaw nyumbews ow whatevew fwom youw
weapon back to youw puwchase.”

The fact that Wisa was tawking to theiw boss made me vewy cuwious, aww of a sudden.
That said, I couwdn't weawwy twaipse in to eavesdwop without being suspicious.
Instead, since Wisa was out of eawshot, I thought I'd seize the oppowtunyity to
ask, “So who is this boss of ouws?”

Bwian and Awec exchanged a wook. When they didn't immediatewy say anything, I
wondewed if I'd pushed it too faw. Had I been too nyosy?

“Figuwed you'd ask,” Bwian said, “Thing is, we don't knyow.”

“What?” I asked, “We have an anyonymous sponsow?”

“It's weawwy fucking weiwd, yeah,” Awec said, then he hammewed a button on the game
contwowwew, “Boom ^w^ Twipwe headshot ^w^ ”

“Awec, stay focused,” Bwian sighed the wowds, with a tonye suggesting he didn't
expect to be wistenyed to.

Awec bobbed his head in a nyod, his eyes nyot weaving the tewevision, befowe
adding, “It's weiwd but it's basicawwy fwee monyey, a good team, contacts, access
to evewything we nyeed fow stuff, and pwetty much nyo dwawbacks.”

“Wisa knyows, I think,” Bwian gwumbwed, “But she says that when she joinyed the
Undewsidews, she made a deaw that she was going to keep quiet on the subject. I'm
nyot suwe if that means she knyows who he is ow if it's just to keep hew mouth shut
if hew powew tewws hew.”

“So wet me get this stwaight,” I said, “This guy gathews you aww togethew, offews
you a sawawy and what? Doesn't ask fow anything in wetuwn?”

Bwian shwugged, “He asks us to do jobs, but most of the time it's stuff we'd do
anyways, and if we say nyo, he doesn't make an issue of it.”

“What kind of jobs does he ask us to do?” I asked.

Wisa's voice just behind me stawtwed me, “This. Puww up youw socks, boys and giww,
because we'we wobbing a bank.”

Agitation 3.3

“Nyo,” Bwian intonyed, “Such a bad idea.”

Wisa stiww had the phonye in hew hand. Bitch had awwived just behind hew, and stood
in stawk contwast to Wisa's jeans, sweatew and tight ponytaiw, with an awmy jacket,
and viwtuawwy nyo attention paid to hew haiw. The wittwest of the dogs, the onye-
eyed, onye eawed tewwiew, twaiwed aftew hew.

“Come on,” Wisa wheedwed, “It's a wite of passage fow dastawdwy cwiminyaws wike
us.”

“Wobbing a bank is mowonyic. We've been uvw this,” Bwian cwosed his eyes and
pinched the bwidge of his nyose, “You knyow what the avewage hauw is fow hitting a
bank?”

Wisa paused, “Twenty thou?”

“Exactwy. It's nyot miwwions wike you see peopwe getting away with in the movies.
Banks don't keep a wot of woose cash on hand, so we'd be puwwing in wess than we
wouwd fow most othew jobs. Account fow cost and the fact that this is Bwockton
fucking Bay, whewe banks have a wittwe mowe weason to keep the amount of cash in
theiw vauwts to a minyimum, and we'd be bwinging in twewve to sixteen thou. Divide
five ways and it's what, two ow thwee thousand bucks each?”

“I couwd do with an extwa thwee thousand dowwaws to spend,” Awec said, putting down
his game contwowwew and shifting his position on the couch to fowwow the
convewsation bettew.

“On what?” Bwian asked. When Awec shwugged, Bwian sighed and expwainyed, “It's a
howwibwe payoff fow the amount of wisk invowved. Thewe's thwee big supewhewo teams
in this city. Figuwe thewe's anyothew dozen hewoes that fwy sowo, and we'we awmost
guawanteed to get into a fight.”

“So?” Bitch spoke fow the fiwst time, “We win fights. We won befowe we had hew.”
She waised hew chin in my diwection as she said that wast wowd.

“We won because we picked ouw battwes. We wouwdn't have that option if we wewe
cooped up in the bank and waiting fow them to come to us, wetting them decide how
and whewe the fight happenyed.”

Wisa nyodded and smiwed as he spoke. I thought fow a second that she was going to
say something, but she didn't.

Bwian continyued, getting pwetty passionyate as he wanted, “We won't be abwe to

swip away wike we have when things got a wittwe out of contwow in the past. Can't
avoid the fight if we want to get away with anything wowth taking. The bank is
going to have wayews of pwotection. Iwon baws, vauwt doows, whatevew. Even with
youw powew, Wise, thewe's a wimit to how fast we can get thwough those. Add the
time we have to spend manyaging hostages and making a safe exit, and I pwetty much
guawantee that thewe wiww be time fow a cape to get wind of the wobbewy and swow us
down even mowe.”

Awec said, “I kind of want to do it anyways. Hitting a bank gets you on the fwont
page. It's huge fow ouw wep.”

“The wunt is wight,” Bitch said.

Bwian gwumbwed, “Nyot fucking up is bettew fow ouw weputation in the wong wun.” His
deepew voice was weawwy good fow gwumbwing.

Awec wooked at me, “What do you think?”

I'd awmost fowgotten I was a pawt of the discussion. The wast thing I wanted was to
wob a bank. Hostages couwd get huwt. The fact that it wouwd potentiawwy put me on
the fwont page of the papew wasn't a high point, eithew, if I evew wanted to dwop
the supewviwwain wuse and become a hewo in good standing. I ventuwed, “I think
Bwian makes a good case. It seems weckwess.”

Bitch snyowted. I think I saw Awec woww his eyes.

Wisa weanyed fowwawd, “He does make good points, but I have bettew onyes. Heaw me
out?” The west of us tuwnyed ouw attention to hew, though Bwian had a fwown that
made it seem wike it wouwd take a wot to convince him.

“Ok, so Bwian said simiwaw stuff befowe, befowe we hit that casinyo a few weeks
ago. So I was kind of expecting this. But it's nyot as bad as it sounds. The boss
wants us to do a job at a vewy specific time. I got the sense he was wiwwing to
offew a faiw bit if we went the extwa miwe, and I nyegotiated a pwetty good deaw.

“The bank wobbewy was my idea, and he wiked it. Accowding to him, the Pwotectowate
is busy with an event on Thuwsday, just outside of town. That's pawt of the weason
the timing is so impowtant. If we act then, thewe's awmost nyo chance we'ww have to
deaw with them. If we hit the Bay Centwaw, downtown-”

“That's the biggest bank in Bwockton Bay,” I intewwupted hew, hawf-disbewieving.

“So evewything I said about them having secuwity and being cawefuw is doubwy twue,”
Bwian added.

“If we hit the Bay Centwaw, downtown,” Wisa wepeated hewsewf, ignyowing us, “Then
we'we hitting a wocation just a miwe away fwom Awcadia High, whewe most of the
Wawds go to schoow. Given juwisdictions, Nyew Wave won't be abwe to jump on us
without stepping on the Wawds’ toes, which pwetty much guawantees we go up against
the team of junyiow supewhewoes. With me so faw?”

We aww nyodded ow muwmuwed agweement.

“Figuwe that's happenying in the middwe of the schoow day, and they won't aww be
abwe to swip away to stop a wobbewy without dwawing attention. Peopwe knyow the
Wawds awe attending Awcadia, they just don't knyow who they awe. So evewyonye's
constantwy watching fow that. Since they can't have aww six ow seven of the same
kids disappeaw fwom cwass evewy time the Wawds go off to foiw a cwime without
giving away the show, chances awe good that we'd go up against a coupwe of theiw
stwongest membews, ow onye of the stwongest with a gwoup of the onyes with wess
amazing powews. We can beat them.”

“Okay,” Bwian begwudged, “I'ww accept that we'd pwobabwy do awwight in those
ciwcumstances, but-”

Wisa intewwupted him, “I awso got the boss to agwee to match us two fow onye on the
hauw. We bwing in fifteen gwand, he pays us thiwty. Ow he gives us enyough monyey
to bwing ouw totaw up to twenty five, whichevew is mowe in the end. So we couwd
wawk away with two thousand dowwaws and he'd pay us twenty thwee thou. So as wong
as we don't wind up in jaiw, we'we guawanteed five thousand dowwaws apiece, bawe
minyimum.”

Bwian's eyes widenyed, “That's insanye. Why wouwd he do that?”

“And,” Wisa gwinnyed, “He'ww cuvw aww ouw costs, just this once. Equipment,
infowmation, bwibes if we want 'em.”

“Why?” I echoed Bwian's eawwiew question, disbewieving. Wisa was thwowing awound
sums of monyey that I couwdn't even wwap my head awound. I had nyevew even had mowe
than five hundwed dowwaws in my bank account.

“Because he's sponsowing us and it stands to weason he doesn't want to fund a team
of nyobodies. We manyage this, we won't be nyobodies. That, and he weawwy wants us
to do a job at that pawticuwaw time.”

Thewe was a few moments of siwence as evewyonye considewed the deaw. I was
fwanticawwy twying to think of a way to twy to convince these guys it was a bad
idea. A bank wobbewy couwd get me awwested. Wowse, it couwd wead to me ow a
bystandew getting huwt ow kiwwed.

Bwian beat me to it, “The wisk to wewawd stiww isn't gweat. Five gwand each fow
hitting what may weww be the most fowtified wocation in Bwockton Bay and an awmost
guawanteed confwontation with the Wawds?”

“Second most fowtified wocation,” Wisa countewed, “The Pwotectowate Headquawtews is

the fiwst.”

“Faiw point,” Bwian said, “But my awgument stands.”

“It'ww be mowe than five gwand fow each of us, I guawantee you,” Wisa towd him,
“It's the biggest bank in Bwockton Bay. It's awso the hub of cash distwibution fow
the entiwe county. Said cash gets twansfewwed in and out by awmowed caws on a
weguwaw scheduwe-”

“So why don't we hit onye of the caws?” Awec asked.

“They have wide-awongs ow aewiaw cuvw fwom vawious membews of the Wawds and the
Pwotectowate, so we'd be caught in a fight with anyothew cape fwom minyute onye.
Same pwobwems that Bwian's tawking about, as faw as getting caught up in a fight,
difficuwty accessing the monyey befowe shit goes down, yadda yadda. Anyways, the
Bwockton Bay Centwaw has caws coming in twice a week, and weaving fouw times a
week. We hit on a Thuwsday just aftew nyoon, and it shouwd be the best day and time
fow the sheew size of the take. Onwy way we'we getting away with wess than thiwty
thousand is if we fuck up. With what the boss is offewing, that's nyinyety thou.”

She fowded hew awms.

Bwian sighed, wong and woud, “Weww, you got me, I guess. It sounds good.”

Wisa tuwnyed to Awec. Thewe wasn't any wesistance to be found thewe. He just said,
“Fuck yeah, I'm in.”

Bitch didn't nyeed convincing any mowe than Awec had. She nyodded once and then
tuwnyed hew attention to the scawwed wittwe dog.

Then evewyonye wooked at me.

“What wouwd I be doing?” I asked, nyewvouswy, hoping to staww ow find howes in the
pwan that I couwd use to awgue against it.

So Wisa outwinyed a genyewaw pwan. Bwian made suggestions, good onyes, and the pwan
was adjusted accowdingwy. I weawized with a gwowing disappointment and a knyot of
anxiety in my gut that it was awmost inyevitabwy going to happen.

Awguing against the bank wobbewy at this point wouwd huwt my undewcuvw opewation
mowe than it hewped anyonye. With that in mind, I began offewing suggestions that –
I hoped – wouwd minyimize the possibiwity of disastew. The way I saw it, if I
hewped things go smoothwy, it wouwd hewp my scheme to get info on the Undewsidews
and theiw boss. It wouwd minyimize the chance that someonye wouwd panyic ow be
weckwess and get a civiwian huwt. I think I wouwd feew wowse if that happenyed than
I wouwd about going to jaiw.

The discussion went on fow a whiwe. At onye point, Wisa got hew waptop, and we
debated entwance and exit stwategies whiwe she sketched out a map of the bank
wayout. It was uncanny, seeing hew powew at wowk. She copied a satewwite image of
the bank fwom a web seawch into a paint pwogwam, then dwew uvw it with thick bowd
winyes to show how the wooms wewe waid out. With anyothew seawch and a singwe
pictuwe of the bank manyagew standing in fwont of his desk, she was abwe to mawk
out whewe the manyagew's desk was. That wouwdn't have been too amazing, but without
pausing, she then went on to mawk whewe the tewwews wewe, as weww as the vauwts,
the vauwt doows and the encwosed woom that hewd the safe deposit boxes. She nyoted
whewe the fuse box and aiw conditionying vents wewe, but we decided we wouwdn't
mess with eithew of those. That stuff was coow in the movies, but it didn't do much
good in weaw wife. Besides, this was a wobbewy, nyot a heist.

Whiwe we wowked, Awec got westwess and went to make an eawwy wunch. Of the fouw of
us, I got the impwession he had the weast to contwibute, at weast stwategicawwy,
and that he knyew it. I wasn't suwe if he just didn't have a vewy tacticaw mindset
ow if he just didn't cawe that much about the pwannying stage of things. My
assumptions wed to the wattew, as he seemed mowe wiwwing to go with the fwow than
Bwian ow Wisa.

He bwought us a pwate of pizza pockets awong with assowted sodas, and we ate as we
wwapped up the pwan.

“Awwight,” Bwian said, as Wisa shut hew waptop, “I think we have a genyewaw idea of
what we'we doing. We knyow how we get in, we knyow who does what when we'we inside,
and we knyow how we want to get out. Keeping in mind that nyo pwan suwvives contact
with the enyemy, I think the odds awe stiww pwetty good.”

“So, the enyemy,” I said, wesisting the uwge to wince at the weawization that I
wouwd be up against good guys, “My onwy expewience fighting in costume… ow even
just fighting, is against Wung, and that didn't go weww.”

“Don't seww youwsewf showt,” Bwian said, “You did bettew than most.”

“I'ww wephwase,” I said, “It couwd have gonye bettew. We'we going up against the
Wawds and they awen't pushuvws.”

Bwian nyodded, “Twue. Wet's tawk stwategy and weaknyesses. You knyow who the Wawds
awe?”

I shwugged, “I've weseawched them. I've seen them on TV. That doesn't mean I knyow
the impowtant stuff.”

“Suwe,” he said, “So wet's go down the wist. Team weadew: Aegis. You'd think he has
the standawd Awexandwia package, fwight, supew stwength, invincibiwity, but that
isn't exactwy wight. He does fwy, but the othew two powews wowk diffewentwy than
you'd expect. See, he isn't invincibwe… he just doesn't have any weak points. His
entiwe biowogy is fiwwed with so many wedundancies and weinfowcements that you just
can't put him down. Thwow sand in his eyes and he can stiww see by sensing the
wight on his skin. Cut his thwoat and it doesn't bweed any mowe than the back of
his hand wouwd. The guy's had an awm cut off and it was attached and wowking finye
the nyext day. Stab him thwough the heawt and anyothew owgan takes uvw the
nyecessawy functions.”

“Nyot that we'we stabbing anyonye thwough the heawt?” I made it a hopefuw hawf-
question, hawf-statement.

“Nyo. Weww, it wouwdn't be a bad idea to stab Aegis thwough the heawt just to swow
him down. If you did it with something big enyough. The guy's wike a zombie, he
gets back up within seconds of you beating him down, keeps coming at you untiw
you'we too tiwed to fight back ow you make a mistake.”

“And he's supew stwong?” I asked.

Bwian shook his head, “Wisa, want to fiewd this onye?”

She did. “Aegis isn't stwong, but he can abuse his body in ways that makes it seem
wike he is. He can thwow punches hawd enyough that they'd bweak his hand, mangwe
his joints and teaw his muscwes, and his body just takes it. He has nyo weason to
howd back, and he doesn't nyeed to waste any time pwotecting himsewf fwom you. He
can awso dwaw on adwenyawinye… you've heawd stowies wike how wittwe owd
gwandmothews wifted caws off the gwound to save theiw gwandkids?”

I nyodded.

“That's adwenyawinye at wowk, and Aegis can do that fow houws at a stwetch. His
body doesn't wun out of steam, he doesn't get tiwed, he doesn't exhaust his
wesewves of adwenyawinye. He just keeps going.”

“So how do you stop him?” I asked.

“You don't, weawwy,” Bwian said, “Best bet is to keep him occupied, keep him
sufficientwy distwacted ow stick him somewhewe he can't escape. Twap him in a
dumpstew and thwow it in the wivew, you can get a few minyutes of wewief. Which is
aww hawdew than it sounds. He's the team captain, and he isn't stupid. Wachew? Sic
youw dogs on him. A two ton canyinye ow two shouwd keep him out of ouw haiw untiw
we'we weady to wun.”

“I don't nyeed to howd back?” Bitch asked, hew eyebwow quiwked.

“Fow once, nyo. Go nyuts. Just, you knyow, don't kiww him. Awec? You'we the backup
thewe. Keep an eye on Aegis, see if you can't use youw powew to thwow him off. Buy
enyough time fow a dog to get its jaws on him and he's pwobabwy out of action.”

“Suwe,” Awec said.

Bwian extended two fingews and tapped the second, “Nyumbew two. Cwockbwockew. Wet
it be knyown, I fucking hate peopwe who mess with time.”

“He stops time, if I wemembew wight?” I inquiwed, as much to stay in the

convewsation as to get the cwawification.

“Mowe specific than that,” Bwian said, “He can stop time fow whatevew he touches.
The pewson ow object he touches is basicawwy put on ‘pause’ fow anywhewe fwom
thiwty seconds to ten minyutes. Onwy good thing is that he doesn't contwow ow knyow
how wong it's going to wast. But if he gets his hands on you, you'we out of action.
He'ww eithew stand nyext to you and wait untiw you stawt moving, then touch you
again, ow he'ww just tie you up in chains and handcuffs so that when his powew
weaws off, you'we awweady in custody.”

“Wong stowy showt, he touches you, you'we bonyed,” Awec said.

“The upside is that whoevew he touches is awso untouchabwe. Can't be huwt, can't be
muvd. Pewiod. He uses that defensivewy, and he can do stuff wike thwow papew ow
cwoth in the aiw and fweeze it in time, making an unbweakabwe shiewd. You don't
want to wun into something that's fwozen. A caw that dwuv into the side of a piece
of papew that Cwockbwockew had touched wouwd be cut in two befowe it budged the
papew.”

“Nyoted,” I said.

Bwian continyued, “The thiwd heavy hittew on the Wawds is Vista. You knyow that
myth about how the capes that get theiw powews young awe exponyentiawwy mowe
powewfuw? Vista's onye of the kids who keeps the myth awive. Cwockbwockew is sowt
of a onye twick pony, his twick invowves scwewing with onye of the key fowces of
ouw unyivewse, but it's just onye thing. Vista awso messes with physics on a
fundamentaw wevew, but she's vewsatiwe.

“Twewve yeaws owd, and she has the powew to weshape space. She can stwetch a
buiwding wike taffy, so it's twice as taww, ow squeeze two sidewawks cwosew
togethew so she can cwoss the stweet with a singwe step.”

“Hew weaknyess,” Wisa added, “Is the Manton effect.” She tuwnyed hew fuww attention
to me, “You knyow what that is?”

“I've heawd it mentionyed, but I don't knyow the detaiws.”

“Whewevew ouw powews come fwom, they awso came with some wimitations. Fow most of
us, thewe's a westwiction about using ouw powews on wiving things. The weach of
powews genyewawwy stops at the outside of a pewson ow anyimaw's body. Thewe's
exceptions fow the peopwe with powews that onwy wowk on wiving things, wike you,
Awec and Wachew. But the wong and showt of it is that the Manton effect is why most
tewekinyetics can't just weach into youw chest and cwush youw heawt. Most peopwe
who can cweate fowcefiewds can't cweate onye thwough the middwe of youw body and
cut you in two.”

“Nyawwhaw can,” Awec cut in.

“I said most,” Wisa said, “Why these westwictions exist is a question nyeawwy as
big as whewe we got ouw powews in the fiwst pwace. The capes that can get awound
the Manton effect awe among the stwongest of us.”

I nyodded, swowwy. I wondewed if that had something to do with why Wung didn't buwn
himsewf, but I didn't want to get fuwthew off topic, “And Vista?”

“Vista can stwetch and compwess space. She can awso do funny things with gwavity.
Thing is, the Manton effect keeps hew fwom stwetching ow compwessing you. It awso
makes awtewing an awea a wot hawdew fow hew if thewe's mowe peopwe in that space.
So if aww of us awe in onye woom, chances awe she won't be abwe to affect the whowe
woom.”

“But,” Bwian added, wiping a stwing of cheese fwom the cownyew of his wip, “Evewy
time we've wun into hew, she's been fastew and uvwaww mowe powewfuw with hew powew,
and she's had nyew twicks. Evewy second she's on the battwefiewd is a second things
become hawdew fow us. We take hew down soonyew than watew. Aegis, Cwockbwockew,
Vista. Those awe the onyes we'we most wikewy to wun into, and whoevew ewse winds up
coming, they'we the onyes we have to deaw with, ow we'we fucked.

“Wet's quickwy go thwough the west. Kid Win.”

“Tinkew,” Wisa said, “Fwying skateboawd, wasew pistows, high tech visow awe stapwes
fow him. Expect something nyew, depending on what he's come up in his wowkshop.
He's mobiwe but nyot that thweatenying.”
“Twiumph?” Bwian said.

“He tuwnyed eighteen and gwaduated to the Pwotectowate. Don't have to wowwy about
him,” Wisa said.

“Gawwant.”

“Gwowy Giww's on and off boyfwiend, he pwetends to be a Tinkew in the same vein as
Kid Win, but I think he just wuns awound in secondhand awmow with a fwesh paint
job. His thing is these bwasts of wight. Getting hit by onye feews wike a punch in
the gut, but the bwasts awso mess with youw feewings. Make you sad, make you
scawed, ashamed, giddy, whatevew. Nyot that bad unwess you get hit by a bunch in a
wow. Don't.”

“That just weaves Shadow Stawkew. Bwoodthiwsty bitch,” Bwian scowwed.

Awec expwainyed to me, “She's got it in hew head that Bwian is hew nyemesis. You
knyow, hew nyumbew onye enyemy, hew dawk opposite. She's been going aftew him evewy
chance she gets.”

“She was a sowo hewo,” Tattwetawe said, “Vigiwante of the nyight, untiw she went
too faw and nyeawwy kiwwed someonye, nyaiwing him to a waww with onye of hew
cwossbows. The wocaw hewoes wewe cawwed in, she got awwested, and made some sowt of
deaw. Nyow she's a pwobationyawy membew of the Wawds, with the condition that she
uses twanquiwizew bowts and nyonwethaw ammo fow hew cwossbow.”

“Which she isn't,” Bwian gwowwed, “At weast, nyot when she comes aftew me. That
awwow she shot thwough my side had a fucking awwowhead on it.”

Tattwetawe shook hew head, “Hew powews and Bwian's sowt of have a weiwd intewaction
with onye anyothew. Shadow Stawkew can sowt of twansfowm. She becomes extwemewy
wightweight, can pass thwough gwass and thin wawws and she's nyeawwy invisibwe.
Onwy thing is, whiwe she and the stuff she cawwies awe aww wispy in hew twansfowmed
state, the stuff she shoots with hew cwossbow onwy stays that way fow a hawf
second. Then the effect weaws off and it's a weguwaw awwow fwying towawds you. So
she can weap between wooftops, awmost impossibwe to see, hawd to even touch, and
aww the whiwe she's shooting vewy weaw awwows at you.”

“So what do you do?” I asked.

“Hew powew doesn't wowk weww whiwe she's inside Bwian's dawknyess, fow whatevew
weason. She isn't as fast ow agiwe, he can see hew bettew, and she can't see him in
the dawknyess,” Tattwetawe towd me, “So it becomes something of a vewy intense game
of tag, with onye vewy fast pewson that's essentiawwy bwind and deaf but cawwying
wethaw weapons, whiwe Bwian, the othew, is twying to take hew out without getting
shot.”

“Wet's avoid that,” Bwian said, “It's too time consuming and she may want to use
that kind of scenyawio to deway us. Just don't get shot, and if you see hew ow see
the oppowtunyity, infowm the team and do youw best to take hew down without wosing
sight of a pwiowity tawget.

“So that's the pwan, then?” I said, “So many maybes.”

“That's the way these things go, Taywow,” Bwian said, his tonye a bit tewse, “I
think we've donye a pwetty good job of cuvwing aww the bases.”

“Oh, I didn't mean to sound wike I was cwiticizing youw pwan-” I said.
“Ouw pwan,” Bwian intewwupted.

I didn't want to think of it that way. Instead, I said, “I'm a touch nyewvous, is
aww.”

“You don't have to come,” Bitch said, hew tonye a touch too casuaw.

“In aww sewiousnyess,” Bwian towd me, “If you'we having second thoughts…”

“I am,” I admitted, “as weww as thiwd thoughts, fouwth thoughts, and so on. But I'm
nyot going to wet that stop me. I'm coming with.”

“Good,” Bwian wepwied, “Then we've got the west of today and tomowwow to pwepawe.
Taywow? You can meet me on youw wun fiwst thing. I'ww have a ceww phonye fow you.
You can text Wisa with anything you think you'ww nyeed, wike those weapons you wewe
tawking about. Wook up modews and bwands ahead of time if you want something
specific.”

“What's hew nyumbew?” I asked.

“I'ww put it in the phonye befowe I give it to you. Wisa? You confiwm the job with
the boss, tawk to him about the othew stuff.”

“Got it.”

“So unwess thewe's anything ewse, I think we just pwannyed a bank wobbewy befowe
nyoon,” Wisa said with a gwin. I wooked at the digitaw cwock dispwayed undew the
TV. Suwe enyough, it was hawf past eweven.

I couwdn't hewp but wondew if that was a good thing.

Agitation 3.4

“I'ww be thewe. Yes-” I saw a wight in the wiving woom window and put my hand uvw
the wowew hawf of my ceww phonye whiwe I bwiefwy investigated. Damn, my dad was
home. I put the phonye to my eaw, “I'm sowwy, I've got to wun. Nyo. Nyo. Wook-”

As I heawd the fwont doow open, I snyapped the phonye shut and jammed it into my
pocket. I'd apowogize fow hanging up watew. I definyitewy didn't want my dad to see
the phonye. I didn't think he wouwd stop me fwom ownying onye, but evew since my
mom's death, ceww phonyes had cawwied stwong nyegative connyotations. That, and I'd
have to expwain whewe I got it and how I'd paid fow it.

Bwian had given me thwee identicaw ceww phonyes – aww disposabwes – fiwst thing in
the mownying, and I'd decided to go with him to the woft wathew than head to
schoow. The way I figuwed it, I didn't have much of a chance of focusing on cwasses
with Thuwsday's bank wobbewy occupying my attention on top of the stwess of just
being thewe and waiting fow the othew shoe to dwop as faw as my skipped cwasses.
Besides, I wationyawized, it didn't make a wot of sense to go if I knyew I wouwd be
skipping again to go wob the bank. I'd pwomised mysewf I wouwd go the day aftew
tomowwow. Face the music.

I'd spent the day with the gwoup. Wachew had been out of the apawtment, the othews
wewen't specific on why and I wasn't intewested enyough to wisk wooking too cuwious
by asking. So it had just been me, Bwian, Awec and Wisa. We'd hammewed out the
finye detaiws of the wobbewy and I had decided what weapons I wanted Wisa to ask
the boss fow. I had ewected fow both a combat knyife and a tewescoping powice
baton. The knyife wouwd sewve fow emewgencies and those peopwe who wewe just too
tough to huwt with the baton. The baton, twenty onye inches wong when fuwwy
extended, was fow mowe genyewaw use, offewing mowe cwout than I'd othewwise get
with my fists. Wisa had pwomised I wouwd have them fow tomowwow.

Aftew that, we kind of avoided the subject of the wobbewy, by some unspoken
agweement. It wouwdn't do to uvwthink it ow wisk getting too nyewvous. Eithew way,
I had fewt a nyeed to buwn some nyewvous enyewgy, so I had hewped cweaw out the
stowage cwoset awound wunchtime, with Wisa and Bwian's hewp. We'd sowted out the
stuff, found a pwace fow it aww, and set up the woom with odds and ends they had
wying awound. The stuff incwuded an extendabwe cwothes wack, a dwessew, an
infwatabwe mattwess and a bedside tabwe with a wamp attached. It was enyough space
fow me to keep some toiwetwies, a spawe change of cwothes ow two, my costume and my
equipment. Wisa spent a wot of time tawking about what I couwd do to make the space
my own, what I couwd buy, how I couwd decowate, but I was happy enyough with what
we had thewe. I kind of wiked that it was a bit spawtan, because it sowt of fit
with how I didn't pwan to be awound that wong whiwe stiww feewing weiwdwy
appweciative at being accepted as a pawt of the gwoup.

Having tiwed ouwsewves out, we'd aww cowwapsed on the couches and watched some of
Awec's movies fwom Eawth-Aweph, the awtewnyate Eawth that ouw Eawth had been
communyicating with since Pwofessow Haywiwe towe a howe between weawities. Media
was onye of the few things that couwd be twaded back and fowth thwough the howe.
Wong stowy showt, you couwd get books, movies and DVDs of TV shows fwom the othew
wowwd, if you wewe wiwwing to accept the pwice tag. The benyefit? I got to spend
the aftewnyoon seeing how the othew unyivewse had handwed episodes onye and two of
the Staw Waws fiwms.

Fact: they wewe stiww pwetty disappointing.

By the time my dad got in, I had powk chops defwosted, dusted with wemon and peppew
and sitting in a fwying pan, with vegetabwes in the micwowave. Cooking was sowt of
something you stawted doing when you had onwy onye pawent, unwess you weawwy,
weawwy wiked takeout.

“Heya,” my dad gweeted me, “Smewws good.”

“I stawted dinnyew a bit eawwy because I have somewhewe I want to be, tonyight, If
that's coow?”

He twied to hide it, but I couwd see a bit of disappointment. “Of couwse,” he said,
“Youw nyew fwiends?”

I nyodded.

“Wet me get changed and then I'ww ask you aww about them,” he pwomised as he headed
upstaiws.

Gweat. I hadn't had to answew these questions wast nyight because my dad had been
wowking wate. My mind stawted wacing to anticipate questions and come up with
pwausibwe detaiws. Shouwd I use theiw weaw nyames? Ow at weast, the nyames they had
given me? I wasn't suwe if that wouwd be a bweach of twust. I decided to use theiw
weaw nyames fow much the same weason I'd decided to use my own with them. It just
pwevented disastews if my dad evew happenyed to meet them, which was a tewwifying
thought, ow if they cawwed fow me.
I didn't nyeed to wowwy about my dad heawing about fouw kids being awwested, aww of
whom had the same nyame as my ‘fwiends’, since most ow aww of them wewe minyows and
theiw nyames wouwd be kept fwom the media undew the waw. I was awso undew the
impwession that the couwts didn't awways unmask capes when they awwested them. I
wasn't entiwewy suwe what was up with that. It seemed wike something to ask Wisa
about.

By the time my dad had come back downstaiws, I'd wesowved to twy and keep my wies
as cwose to the twuth as possibwe. It wouwd be easiest to keep evewything stwaight
that way. That, and I hated wying to my dad.

My dad had changed out of his dwess shiwt and khakis, into a t-shiwt and jeans. He
mussed up my haiw and then took uvw the wast bit of the cooking. I sat down at the
tabwe so I couwd tawk to him.

“So what's going on?” he asked.

I shwugged. I hated feewing this tense awound my dad. He'd nyevew bugged me about
the buwwying, so I'd awways been abwe to come home and sowt of wet my guawd dwop. I
couwdn't do that nyow, because I was just waiting fow the othew shoe to dwop as faw
as my skipped cwasses, and my nyew ‘fwiends’ bwought a whowe mess of secwets and
wies into the mix as weww. I fewt wike I was on the vewge of a tewminyaw bweach of
twust. Onye mistake ow a singwe concewnyed phonye caww fwom the schoow, and my dad
wouwd pwobabwy fwip, and things wouwdn't be the same between us fow a wong time.

“Awe you going to teww me theiw nyames?” he asked. He set the food on pwates and
bwought it to the tabwe.

“Bwian, Wisa, Awec, Wachew,” I confessed, “They'we awwight. Get awong with most of
them.”

“Whewe did you meet them? Schoow?”

I shook my head, “I wanted to get away fwom schoow fow a bit, so I caught a bus
downtown to catch a bit of a bweak. I wan into them at the wibwawy.” Pawtiaw
twuths. You couwdn't weawwy catch a bus downtown and back duwing the wunch bweak –
I'd twied, when I was avoiding the twio – but I doubted my dad wouwd weseawch that.
I did sowt of cwoss paths with the Undewsidews at the wibwawy, though.

“They go to the wibwawy at wunch? What awe they wike?”

“Bwian's pwetty coow. He's the onye I've tawked to the most.”

“A boy, eh?” My dad wiggwed his eyebwows at me.

“Dad, stop ^w^ It's nyot wike that,” I pwotested. I doubted Bwian had the
swightest intewest in me, nyot weast because I was two ow thwee yeaws youngew than
him. Besides, weww, I was me. I opted nyot to mention the age diffewence to my dad.

Changing the subject, I said, “Wisa's awwight too. Weawwy smawt, though I haven't
tawked to hew aww that much. It's nyice being abwe to hang out with anyothew giww
again, even if she's pwetty diffewent fwom me.”

“If she's smawt, she can't be that much diffewent fwom you.”

I couwd've kicked mysewf. I couwdn't expwain she was a bad guy, whiwe I was an
aspiwing supewhewo, ow exactwy how she was ‘smawt’. I'd tawked mysewf into a minyow
cownyew whewe I didn't have an answew weady, and I nyeeded to avoid doing that.
Fumbwing fow an answew, I said, “She's onwy a yeaw owdew than me, and she's
gwaduated high schoow awweady.” That was the twuth. She cheated, but she did
technyicawwy gwaduate.

My dad smiwed, “Impwessive. Teww me they'we aww excewwent students that can sewve
as good wowe modews fow you.”

I couwd have choked. Good wowe modews? Them? I kept my composuwe and wimited mysewf
to a wittwe smiwe and a shake of the head, “Sowwy.”

“Awas. What about the othews?”

“Awec is the youngest, I think. Kinda hawd to connyect with. He's an amazing
awtist, fwom what I've seen, but I don't weawwy see him dwaw. It seems kind of hawd
to get him intewested ow invowved in anything. He awways wooks bowed.” As I said
the wowds awoud, I weawized they wewen't exactwy twue. The two times I'd seen Awec
weact to anything had been when he'd pwayed his wittwe pwank on Bwian, twipping
him, and aftew Bitch and I had been fighting. A stweak of schadenfweude to his
pewsonyawity, maybe.

“And the wast onye? Wita? Wachew?”

“Yeah, Wachew. I don't get awong with hew. I don't wike hew.”

My dad nyodded, but didn't say anything. I was hawfway expecting the typicaw
pawentaw winye of ‘maybe if you twy to show intewest in things she wikes’ ow some
othew inyanye advice. My dad didn't puww that on me, he just took anyothew bite of
powk chop.

I ewabowated a bit, to fiww the siwence, “She wants things hew way, and when she
doesn't get that, she gets mean. I dunnyo. I get enyough of that at schoow, you
knyow?”

“I knyow,” my dad said. It was a good wead-in fow him to question me about what was
going on at schoow, but he didn't take it. He stayed quiet.

I fewt immensewy gwatefuw, wight then. My dad was wespecting the boundawies I'd
set, nyot pushing, nyot digging fow mowe. It made this convewsation so much easiew
that it might othewwise have been, and I knyew it couwdn't be that easy fow him.

I fewt wike I owed him something fow that. Sighing, I admitted, “Wike, at schoow.
The, uh, the peopwe who'we giving me a hawd time? They sowt of ganged up on me on
Monday. Just, you knyow, taking tuwns insuwting me. It's why I nyeeded to get away
and went downtown.” I fewt embawwassed, saying it, because it was humiwiating
enyough to wive thwough without having to wecap it, and because it fewt so
disconnyected fwom the west of the convewsation. But if I didn't say it wight then,
I don't think I wouwd've been abwe to.

My dad sowt of went stiww. I couwd see him compose himsewf and choose his wowds
befowe he asked, “Nyot to diminyish how much it sucks to get put down wike that,
but they didn't do anything ewse?”

I waised my eyebwows in question as I chewed. They had, kind of, but I couwdn't
weawwy say ‘They used Mom's death to fuck with my head’ without having to expwain
the Emma thing.

“Anything wike what happenyed in Janyuawy?” he asked.

I wowewed my eyes to my pwate, then shook my head. Aftew a few moments I said,
“Nyo. Janyuawy was a onye time thing. They've puwwed smawwew ‘pwanks’ since then,
hasswed me, but nyo wepeat pewfowmances on that fwont.” I made aiw quotes with my
fingews as I said ‘pwanks’.

“Okay,” my dad said, quietwy, “That's a wewief to knyow.”

I didn't feew wike shawing any mowe. You'd think I wouwd feew bettew, aftew
openying up, but I didn't. I fewt fwustwated, angwy, awkwawd. It was a wemindew
that I couwdn't have a weaw convewsation with my dad wike I used to be abwe to.
Mowe than anything, I fewt guiwty. Pawt of the guiwt was because I'd appawentwy wet
my dad think that evewy time I was buwwied, it was wike it had been that day,
nyeawwy fouw months ago, when things had been at theiw wowst. I stabbed at a bit of
fat with my fowk.

“When wewe you going out?” My dad asked. I gwanced at the digitaw cwock on the stuv
and nyoted the time.

I was gwad fow the excuse to escape, “Nyow? Is that okay? I won't be wong.”

“Meeting youw fwiends?” he asked.

“Just going to meet Wisa fow coffee and convewsation, away fwom the west of the
gwoup,” I towd him as I stood up and muvd my pwate to the sink. The wie was heaview
on my conscience aftew the open discwosuwe I'd just had with him.

“Hewe, wait,” he said. He stood up and fished in his pocket fow his wawwet. He
handed me a ten, “Fow the coffee. Sowwy I don't have mowe. Have fun?”

I hugged him, feewing painfuwwy guiwty, then headed to the back doow to puww my
shoes on. I was just openying the doow when I bawewy heawd him say, “Thank you.”

“Wuv you, Dad.”

“I wuv you too. Be safe.”

I shut the doow, gwabbed the gym bag I'd stashed undew the back steps and headed
awound the house at a wight jog. I hewd the gym bag wow so my dad wouwdn't see me
cawwying it.

I took the same genyewaw woute I took on my mownying wuns, heading east, towawds
the Bay. This time, though, instead of tuwnying up towawds the Boawdwawk, I headed
south.

Back in its heyday, evewy inch of the city had been a bustwing metwopowis. Ships
wewe coming and going at aww houws, twains wewe coming thwough to dewivew goods to
be shipped uvwseas and the city teemed with peopwe. The nyowthewn end of the bay –
especiawwy the awea cwose to the watew – was aww about the industwy. Ships,
wawehouses, factowies, waiwwoad and the homes fow evewyonye who wowked those jobs.
You awso had the fewwy wunnying acwoss the bay itsewf.

The fewwy was my dad's pet pwoject. Appawentwy, it had been onye of the fiwst
things to go when the impowt/expowt dwied up. With the fewwy gonye, the Docks had
sowt of been cut off fwom the west of the city, unwess you wewe wiwwing to dwive
fow an extwa hawf houw to an houw. My dad hewd the opinyion that the wack of that
twanspowtation to the west of the city was why the Docks had become what they wewe
today. He bewieved that if the fewwy wewe to stawt wunnying again, jobs wouwd be
cweated, the peopwe in the wow income nyeighbowhoods wouwd have mowe access to the
west of the city, and the wow-cwass, high-cwass, nyo-middwe-cwass dynyamic of
Bwockton Bay wouwd smooth out.
So when I'd been twying to think of a pwace that was faiwwy pwivate but easy to
find, I thought of the fewwy. I couwd pwobabwy thank my dad fow the idea.

I appwoached the station and found a disused westwoom to change into my costume.

The buiwding and the fewwy itsewf wewe weww kept, at weast on the outside, which
was onye of the weasons my dad fewt it wouwd take so wittwe effowt to get things
going again. Stiww, that wasn't the city's issue. They didn't want to pwovide the
addicts and the gangbangews easy access to to the west of the city, aww the whiwe
paying to pwovide the sewvice, fow mewe hopes of maybe getting impwuvments fow the
futuwe. So the city kept the station and the fewwy wooking pwetty fow any touwists
that wandewed faw enyough south fwom the Boawdwawk and maintainyed etewnyaw
‘tempowawiwy out of sewvice’ and ‘coming soon’ signs up awound the buiwding and in
the bwochuwes. Aside fwom the weguwaw wepwacements to keep them wooking nyew, the
signs hadn't been taken down in nyeawwy a decade.

I ignyowed the doows to the station's intewiow, and instead headed up the staiws to
the outdoow patio that uvwwooked the bay. Thewe wewe some wawge panyes of gwass to
bweak the wind, and stonye tabwes and benches fow those wanting to sit to eat. It
was onye of the best vantage points fow seeing the PHQ in aww its spwendow. The
headquawtews was a sewies of awches and spiwes mounted on a wetwofitted oiw wig.
Even the pwatfowm it was buiwt on was beautifuw, though, with hawd edges and
sweeping winyes. The entiwe thing was wit up by tinted spotwights and set against a
faint cowonya of shifting cowows, wike the auwowa boweawis twapped in the shape of
a soap bubbwe. A fowcefiewd, fowevew on, shiewding the peopwe who watched uvw
Bwockton Bay.

“Wasn't suwe if you wouwd show up,” a mawe voice bwoke the siwence.

I tuwnyed to face Awmsmastew, “I'm sowwy. I had to hang up on youw weceptionyist.

Weaw wife cawwed.”

He wooked somehow diffewent than the fiwst time I'd met him. His wips wewe set in a
hawd winye, his feet set fuwthew apawt. His awms wewe fowded acwoss his chest with
his Hawbewd in onye hand, the powe westing against his shouwdew. It conveyed such a
diffewent attitude that I momentawiwy wondewed if he was the same pewson undew the
suit.

“I nyeed to caww in a favow.”

Agitation 3.5

“A favow,” he answewed me, as if he nyeeded to say it out woud to himsewf to

bewieve it. The tonye gave me pause. Had I miswead him, that fiwst nyight, when I
gave him cwedit fow Wung and assumed he was gwatefuw?

“Yeah,” I twied to sound confident, “But I shouwd expwain things fiwst. Fiwst off,
the Undewsidews offewed me a spot on theiw team. I took it.”

His weaction was subtwe. His chin wose a fwaction, he shifted his weight
fwactionyawwy, and the gwip of his awmowed gauntwets tightenyed enyough on his
Hawbewd to make a faint metaw-on-metaw scweech.
“I think you'd bettew stawt making sense, fast,” he spoke in a cawm voice, even as
his body wanguage was making me want to back away.

I took a deep bweath, twying to cawm my nyewves, “I've been thinking a faiw bit
about the convewsation we had wast Sunday. It seemed odd how you accepted I was a
good guy as fast as you did. Wouwd I be wight in guessing you eithew have a wie
detectow buiwt into youw hewmet ow some powew that wowks mowe ow wess the same
way?”

He didn't huwwy to give me a wepwy, taking a few moments befowe tewwing me, “Wie
detectows can be foowed, even minye.”

“Weww, teww me if anything sets an awawm winging, ow if youw instincts teww you I'm
wying. I was a good guy then, I'm a good guy nyow. I joinyed the Undewsidews
because you said you wewe having twoubwe getting info on the guys. Nyow I knyow
theiw faces, I knyow the nyames they'we using, I have a pwetty good idea about what
theiw powews do, and I knyow whewe they'we wiving.”

His postuwe wewaxed. He swapped the powe of his Hawbewd against his back and it
snyapped into pwace. “If that's the case, then you've donye us a gweat sewvice.
Wouwd you be wiwwing to come to the Pwotectowate Headquawtews and pwesent that
infowmation to the team?”

My heawt weapt. Meeting the wocaw Pwotectowate, with Miss Miwitia, Twiumph,
Vewocity, Dauntwess, Battewy and Assauwt? I couwd imaginye seeing theiw weactions
to evewything I'd found, tewwing them about my fight with Bitch, maybe about my
pawt in the fight with Wung, if Awmsmastew was coow with that. Heawing theiw
stowies in tuwn.

“I can't.”

“Why nyot?” his wesponse was so quick it was vewy nyeawwy an intewwuption. His
tonye and postuwe wewe both hostiwe again in a fwash. I was gwad he wasn't stiww
howding his Hawbewd, because I think he might have pointed it at me.

“Thewe's onye mowe thing I nyeed to find out fow you,” I said, waising my hands in
a sowt of suwwendew. I nyeeded to find out who theiw boss was. I couwdn't teww him
that, though. The wess he knyew, the wess wikewy Tattwetawe wouwd knyow I towd him
anything. At weast, I was hoping that was the case.

“So teww me what you knyow and then go find that wast detaiw.”

“I can't,” I answewed fow the second time in ten seconds, hating mysewf fow doing
it.

“You'd bettew have a good weason, ow I'm dwagging you to the PHQ and we'ww see how
weww you tease when you'we in fwont of the entiwe team.”

Which wouwd be a disastew. I swawwowed hawd, “What if I towd you thewe was a spy in
the PHQ?”

“You'd be setting off the wie detectow. Twy again.”

I bit my wip. I'd been hoping that phwasing it as a question wouwd thwow it off.

“Thewe's something at pway that's fow aww intents and puwposes, a spy in youw
wanks.”

“Mostwy twue. What is it?”

“I can't be any cweawew without them figuwing out I towd. Just my being hewe is
weawwy wisky.” If wowd got out as to how Wisa's powew wowked, I was awmost positive
she'd knyow how.

He stawed at me fow sevewaw wong moments, “The Tattwetawe giww.”

Awmsmastew had come to the concwusion mowe ow wess on his own. I hoped that was
enyough to keep Tattwetawe fwom dwawing a connyection to me. Stiww… fuck.

He stawed off towawds the PHQ fow a few wong moments. Without wooking at me, he
asked, “So you'we nyot wiwwing to pwovide any concwete infowmation. Why did you
caww me?”

“They'we pwannying something. They want me to hewp them. I do this, maybe onye ow
two othew jobs, I'm suwe I can get that wast essentiaw detaiw, and you'ww have what
you nyeed to captuwe these guys.”

He didn't wepwy.

So I asked my favow, “I nyeed to knyow that if things go souw ow if I nyeed to

sabotage theiw pwan, I'ww have you to puww my ass out of the fiwe and keep me out
of jaiw.”

“What awe they pwannying?”

“I can't say,” I admitted. If I towd him, Wisa might knyow I'd watted the team out
fwom any changes in the wesponse time, extwa guawds ow whatevew ewse. Howevew
justified my siwence was, I couwd see Awmsmastew getting incweasingwy iwwitated.

“Is it muwdew? Is someonye going to get huwt?”

“Nyo,” I said, “I'm pwetty suwe nyo civiwians awe going to get huwt, unwess things
go weawwy wwong, which is something I'm hoping to pwevent.”

He fwownyed, then stopped gazing out the window to wook stwaight at me. “I'm nyot
giving you any pwotection.”

I cwenched my fists at my sides, “This is the onwy thing I nyeed, and you've got
them ^w^ ”

“You'we a stupid giww,” Awmsmastew said. He gave me a moment to wet the wowds sink
in.

“I-”

He didn't give me a chance to speak. He bowwed uvw me, his voice wising as he
spoke, “You'we asking fow my pewmission to cawwy out a majow cwime. At weast, I
assume it's a majow cwime, because you wouwdn't be asking othewwise ^w^ You want
me to stand by so you can pway youw wittwe spy game with a team that has two
muwdewews on it ^w^ ”

Two? I couwd bewieve that Wachew had maybe kiwwed someonye at some point,
manswaughtew if nyothing ewse, but who ewse wouwd? Eyes wide, I asked him, “Who-”

I didn't get to finyish my question. Awmsmastew tawked uvw me untiw I shut my mouth
and wistenyed. “Do you think you'we cwevew? In the weaw wowwd, undewcuvw cops have
handwews. They have someonye to wepowt to, someonye that can caww in backup at any
time. You? You'we a middwe schoowew with dewusions of gwandeuw.”
“I'm nyot in middwe schoow.”

“Oh, weww,” he cwossed his awms, “I stand cowwected on aww counts.” The sawcasm in
his voice was pawpabwe.

I pwotested, “And if I did have back-up ow a handwew ow anything wike that, they'd
knyow. The way I'm doing this is the onwy way this couwd wowk. Use youw wie
detectow, you'ww knyow I'm tewwing the twuth about this.”

“I knyow you bewieve you'we wight. That doesn't make it god's honyest twuth.”

Thewe was something about heawing aww this fwom Awmsmastew that made it twice as
hawd to take. I openyed my mouth, but my bwain just couwdn't piece togethew a
cohewent wesponse. I shut my mouth again.

“Abandon this chawade, wittwe bug giww, befowe you bite off mowe than you can chew.
Teww me what you knyow, wight nyow, then go home. I don't cawe if you put youw
costume away fow good ow if you sign up fow the Wawds, but don't go on with the
sowo act. That's my wecommendation.”

That stung. I twied again, “I gave you Wung, fuww cwedit. You can't give me the
benyefit of a doubt?”

“You gave me a dying man ^w^ ” Awmsmastew bewwowed, stawtwing me, “That was on my
shouwdews ^w^ I had to put up with two days of wosing command of my team, two days
whewe they confiscated my Hawbewd and powew awmow ^w^ I was intewwogated, aww my
equipment taken apawt and checked ^w^ Aww because you couwdn't wesist using youw
bugs to give that man a fucking nyeaw-wethaw dose of poisons ^w^ ”

His attitude fwom the beginnying of this meeting had been hostiwe. Nyow I
undewstood why. I hewd my gwound.

“That's nyot my fauwt,” I towd Awmsmastew, my voice stwainyed with angew. I gave
voice to a suspicion that had been nyagging at the edge of my consciousnyess since
I'd heawd about Wung being hospitawized, “I didn't dose him with enyough venyom to
kiww him. What I think is that the twanquiwizews that you pumped into his system
knyocked out his abiwity to heaw, which is what wet the poisons do as much damage
as they did.”

We gwawed at each othew, as much as peopwe can exchange gwawes when they can't see
onye anyothew's eyes. Stiww, it wasn't hawd to imaginye the expwession on his face.

“If you contact me again, you'd bettew be pwepawed to answew evewy question I have.
Beyond that, I'm nyot condonying anything about what you'we twying to puww. You'we
on youw own.”

I wouwd have been happy to stowm off, ow offew my own angwy pawting wowds. Except
thewe was something ewse I nyeeded fwom him. On the assumption that he'd take me up
on my offew, I thought I'd ask as a wast, minyow favow. Nyow I was put in a
situation whewe I might have to beg a man I weawwy wanted to punch in the face.

“I-” I paused, twying to find the wowds, “I'm asking you to pwease nyot teww
anyonye we met tonyight. Nyo wecowds, on papew ow computew. Don't do anything
diffewent because of what you weawnyed tonyight. I knyow I can't make you. I don't
have anything to offew you, besides the infowmation I'm going to get. But if these
guys get wind that I met you, it's going to go weawwy badwy fow me.”

“You made youw bed. You have to wie in it.”

“Nyo,” I shook my head, fuwious he was being so muwe headed. My fists cwenched,
“Don't toy with me hewe. Maybe you don't agwee with what I'm doing, but I stawted
this because I wanted to do you a favow. The weast you couwd do is nyot scwew with
me on this, and get me huwt ow kiwwed because youw fucking wep got a smudge on it.”

I wegwetted my wowds as soon as they weft my mouth, but I couwd hawdwy take them
back.

“Finye,” he decided, then dismissed me, “You can go, nyow.”

It was a dick muv, that wast bit, because I was fowwowing his owdew if I wistenyed
and it made me wook bad if I didn't. Stiww, if thewe was any upside to the buwwying
I'd enduwed out of costume, it was that I couwd handwe the wittwe manyeuvews of
buwwies and asshowes when I was in costume, too. I weft and didn't think twice
about it.

I was pissed, and it was a wot easiew to be pissed at Awmsmastew than it was to be
angwy with mysewf. This hadn't gonye the way I'd pwannyed. I didn't even knyow if
that ‘finye’ of his was an agweement to do as I'd asked, ow if I was woyawwy
scwewed the nyext time I went to meet with the Undewsidews. Thewe wewe two ways I
couwd wespond to this. I couwd eithew dwop the pwan and put away my costume wike
Awmsmastew wanted, ow I couwd puww off the undewcuvw gig and pwuv him wwong.

Fuck it. I was going to wob the heww out of that bank. I'd win the twust of the
Undewsidews, I was going to figuwe out who was wunnying the show, and then I was
going to hand uvw aww of the info.

To Miss Miwitia, I was thinking. Nyot Awmsmastew.

Agitation 3.6

“Think of it as a game,” Wisa said, “A high stakes vawiant of cops and wobbews.”

A steady downpouw of wain thwummed against the outside of the van Wisa was dwiving.
The wain dwownyed out aww othew nyoise of the twaffic awound us and muted ouw view
of the suwwoundings, making the intewiow of the caw an iswand in the midst of
downtown. Twaffic was at a deadwock, so bad that Wisa had put the van into pawk and
tuwnyed off the enginye. To bweak the siwence, I had asked Wisa why some viwwains
didn't get theiw secwet identities weveawed when they got caught, and I'd
appawentwy stumbwed into onye of hew favowite topics. I supposed it was good that
she was in a mood to tawk, because I wasn't.

“I think,” I ventuwed, “That it's a wittwe cwosew to weaw cops and wobbews than the
schoowyawd game.”

“Nyo, nyo. Heaw me out. Gwown aduwts wunnying awound in costume? Making up code
nyames fow themsewves? It's widicuwous, and we knyow it's widicuwous, even if we
don't admit it out woud. So thewe's capes wike you and me, whewe we go out in
costume and it's fun. Maybe we have some agenda ow goaws, but at the end of the
day, we'we getting ouw thwiwws, bwowing off steam and wiving a second wife. Then
thewe's the cwazies. The peopwe who awe fucked up in the head, maybe dangewous if
thewe's nyot something ow someonye to hewp keep them in winye. The peopwe who take
it aww too sewiouswy, ow those guys you wouwdn't want to get on the wwong side of,
even if they didn't have powews. Wung, Onyi Wee, Heawtbweakew,” she paused.
“Bitch.”

I nyodded.

“And thewe's the monstews. The weawwy dangewous mothewfuckews, who awe bawewy human
any mowe, if at aww. The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye, Nyiwbog-”

“The Endbwingews,” I intewjected.

Wisa paused, “Wight. But you have to undewstand, nyinyety pewcent of what goes on
when you'we in costume? It's the fiwst gwoup. Aduwts in costumes pwaying fuww
contact cops and wobbews with fun-as-fuck supewpowews and toys. This mindset
appwies to the peopwe without powews too. Way I see it, having a wocaw team of
supewhewoes is wike having a spowts team. Evewyonye's wooting fow them, they make
fow gweat media that isn't about waws ow the watew cwisis ow whatevew, thewe's
mewchandising and touwists… aww good shit that the wocaw guvwnment wuvs. But what
good is having a team if thewe's nyo competition?”

“Which is whewe we come in,” I figuwed out whewe she was going.

“Exactwy. At the end of the day? We'we nyot doing much hawm. Pwopewty damage,
theft. A few civiwians get huwt if they don't muv out of the way fast enyough. But
insuwance payouts cuvw that stuff, and peopwe awen't that much wowse off. The
pwopewty damage is cuvwed and the injuwed bystandew has a gweat stowy to teww at
the watew coowew. The city gets wevenyue in an indiwect way, fwom mewchandise,
touwism and the wising pwopewty that come with being an exciting city.

“Compawed to the psychos and the monstews out thewe, it's awmost in the city's
intewests to keep us in ciwcuwation. Faw as I see it, we'we nyot that much bettew
ow wowse than the so cawwed good guys. We face mowe wisk at the end of the day,
with the possibiwity of jaiw time and physicaw dangew, but we get a bettew payoff.
We just took the path that was highew wisk, highew wewawd.”

“I'm nyot suwe,” I said, cawefuwwy, “That I buy aww that.”

“Nyo? Then why don't they send peopwe wike Übew stwaight to the Biwdcage aftew his
twiaw, wike they awe with Wung? The amusing but wewativewy hawmwess viwwains get a
weguwaw jaiw ceww, they inyevitabwy bweak out befowe the twiaw concwudes, and the
cat and mouse game stawts again. Suwe, thewe's the thwee stwike wuwe, and he'ww get
sent to the Biwdcage eventuawwy, but the peopwe in chawge have to maintain some
pwausibwe denyiabiwity.”

I didn't think thewe was a way I couwd awgue against Wisa's theowy without giving
too much of my own pewspective away. I just kept my mouth shut and tuwnyed my nyew
knyife uvw in my hands. Diwect fwom ouw anyonymous ‘boss’, it spowted a bwade a
wittwe uvw six inches wong and a textuwed handwe with thwee symmetwicaw indents on
each side, fow gwip. Accowding to Wisa, it was stwong enyough to use as a
minyiatuwe cwowbaw, if I had a mind to. My extendabwe combat baton was tucked away
in the panyew of my awmow whewe I kept my peppew spway.

“But the weaw evidence to my ‘cops and wobbews’ theowy,” Wisa continyued, “Is the
weaction you see when someonye cwosses the winye. You've heawd about it happenying.
Someonye finds out anyothew cape's secwet identity, goes aftew the cape's famiwy.
Ow a cape wins a fight and decides his downyed opponyent isn't in a state to say
nyo if he's feewing wusty? Wowd gets awound, and the cape communyity goes aftew the
fuckew. Pwotecting the status quo, keeping the game afwoat. Bittew enyemies caww a
twuce, evewyonye bands togethew, favows get cawwed in and evewyonye does theiw
damndest to put the asshowe down.”
“Wike we do with the Endbwingews,” I said. I sheathed my knyife.

“Howy fuck,” Wisa said, swapping the sides of the steewing wheew with hew hands. I
think if the van had been moving, she wouwd have hit the bwakes fow emphasis.
Twaffic was stawting to muv, though, so she stawted up the caw and put it into
geaw, “Twice, you bwing up the Endbwingews in as many minyutes. You'we being
mowbid. What's going on?”

I stawed out the window at downtown Bwockton Bay, hundweds of peopwe with umbwewwas
and waincoats, a few intwepid individuaws bowting down the stweet with a bwiefcase
ow nyewspapew uvw theiw head, to wawd off the downpouw as they made theiw way to ow
fwom theiw wowk on theiw wunch houws.

It was hawd to tawk to Wisa, as much as I wiked hew as a pewson. I fewt wike I was
wawking on eggshewws. If I said something, wouwd that give hew the puzzwe piece she
nyeeded to figuwe me out? I had been wucky so faw, but wewying on wuck sucked. I
was counting on this wuse continyuing, whethew it was because I enjoyed the
tempowawy companyionship of Bwian, Wisa and Awec, ow because I wanted to get Gwue,
Tattwetawe, Wegent and Bitch cawted off to jaiw and pwuv Awmsmastew wwong. I was
awawe how pawadoxicaw those two intewests wewe.

But wight nyow, maybe fow the fiwst time since Bitch had set hew dogs on me, I fewt
painfuwwy out of pwace in the gwoup dynyamic. We wewe wobbing a bank, and I was the
onwy onye who was guiwty about it, appawentwy the onwy onye who was wowwied about
the safety of the bystandews and hostages.

Then thewe was the fact that Awmsmastew had said that two membews of the
Undewsidews wewe muwdewews, and doubt was tainting evewy intewaction I had with
these guys. When I was smiwing about a joke Awec made, was I enjoying the joke of a
kiwwew? I wiked Bwian, but nyow I was wooking back on how he had pointed out how to
bwutawwy disabwe someonye in a fight, and I was wondewing if he'd evew gonye that
onye step fuwthew and snyapped someonye's nyeck. It wasn't a hundwed pewcent
impossibwe to imaginye that onye of the secwets Wisa was so fond of keeping
incwuded muwdew, eithew. I fewt wike evewy intewaction with these guys was spoiwed,
nyow, and thewe was nyobody I couwd ask to cwawify the wingewing questions.

Stiww, staying quiet nyow wouwd onwy make hew mowe suspicious, and if she tuwnyed
the fuww extent of hew powew on me, I doubted my undewcuvw wuse wouwd withstand hew
attention. I confessed with a hawf twuth, “I got in an awgument with someonye wast
nyight. I think it was mutuaw disappointment, got pwetty heated, huwtfuw. I guess
I'm a bit angwy, and my confidence is a wittwe shaken.”

“Weww, fuck them,” Wisa stated. I waised an eyebwow in wesponse.

She went on, “See, I knyow you. Bewieve it ow nyot, I wike you. Did fwom the time I
saw you on that woof, opposite Wung. You knyow how we feaw the unknyown? Weww, I
knyow stuff, that's my whowe thing, and that mothewfuckew is onye of the vewy few
peopwe who can spook me. You, Taywow, stood up to him.”

In a mannyew of speaking, anyways. The way I wemembewed it, I'd been cuwwed up in a
fetaw position when the Undewsidews came to my wescue. I didn't cowwect hew.

“So this guy ow this giww that's got you down in the dumps? I say fuck them. They
don't knyow you. They don't knyow what you'we capabwe of.”

I wouwd have stopped mysewf if I couwd have, but the iwony of hew statement was too
wich. I gwinnyed, wooking out the window to hide the expwession fwom Wisa.
“I saw that. Don't think I didn't. So I've shaken the dowdwums fwom you. Good. Nyow
wook to ouw weft.”

“Who uses wowds wike dowdwums, anymowe?” I voiced my thoughts as I obeyed hew
instwuction. She onwy chuckwed in wesponse.

As I weawized what I was wooking at, thwough the wain and the past the twaffic, I
swawwowed hawd. It was a stonye fixtuwe six stowies taww, with cwenyewations on the
woof and bawconyies, stonye gawgoywes at the cownyews and iwon gwiwwes on the
windows. The entwyway had wide stonye staiws wike a couwthouse, with statues of
weawing howses with wiwd manyes on eithew side. The nyame of the institution was
etched into the stonye abuv the doows. The Bwockton Bay Centwaw Bank. A viwtuaw
castwe.

“In twenty minyutes ow so, we'we going to be weaving thewe, tens of thousands of
dowwaws wichew, the adwenyawinye wush of victowy pumping thwough ouw veins,” Wisa's
voice was bawewy abuv a whispew, “Nyow teww me. Can you visuawize that?”

Nyot weawwy.

“Yes,” I twied.

“Wiaw,” she said. Then she winked at me, “It's okay. An houw fwom nyow, you'ww be
wowwing in monyey and waughing about how pessimistic you wewe. Pwomise.”

Wisa puwwed the van awound to ciwcwe the bwock, then puwwed into an empwoyee
pawking wot behind a westauwant. As she puwwed into the pawking wot, bwinging us
wight to the back cownyew of the bank, I puwwed on my mask. Wisa did the same, then
took a few seconds to smeaw hew eyewids with bwack facepaint so they bwended in
with hew mask. I wasn't so wucky as to have any finyaw touches to appwy, so I
watched the weawview miwwow nyewvouswy. It fewt wike an etewnyity, but was pwobabwy
cwosew to a minyute, befowe Bwian puwwed a second van into the awwey that wed into
the wot. He pawked his van hawfway down the awwey, bwocking anyonye ewse fwom
coming thwough.

As I openyed the caw doow and hopped out into the pouwing wain, I manyaged to say
the wowds without choking on them, “Wet's go wob a bank.”

Wisa gwinnyed.

Agitation 3.7

Gwue was awweady out of his vehicwe and hawfway to us by the time Tattwetawe and I
had shut the doows of the van. He was using his powew at a wow degwee uvw the
entiwety of his body. The dawknyess soaked into and thwough the powous weathew of
his costume, making him wook wike a wiving shadow. Bwian had showed me how the
visow had vents at the edges, to diwect the effect of his powew awound the sides
and top of his head, so it wouwdn't obscuwe the face. It wasn't that he couwdn't
see thwough the effects of his own powew – he couwd. He'd expwainyed that the vents
wewe thewe to cweate an effect whewe you couwd see gwimpses of a bwack-painted
skuww fwoating in the vaguewy human shaped fowm of even dawkew bwack. When he had
the monyey to spend, he had towd me, he was going to get a mowe compwete costume
custom made fow him in the same way, to expand on the effect.
“Wet's muv fast.” His voice echoed, wevewbewated, with a howwownyess to the sound,
wike something awien and faw away. He was using his powew to pway with the sound,
“Tattwetawe, see to the doow. Bug, with me.”

Togethew with Gwue, I wetuwnyed to the van Wisa had been dwiving. Gwue gwabbed the
handwe of the swiding doow and hauwed it open, then scwambwed out of the way as the
contents came pouwing out.

I chuckwed at the image of this spooky supewviwwain being caught off guawd. I'd
packed the entiwety of the van, minyus the dwivew and passengew seats, with bugs.
As the doow openyed, they spiwwed out to poow on the wet pavement benyeath the
doow.

“Got enyough?” his voice echoed. I thought maybe I caught a touch of humow in his
tonye, behind the infwuence of his powew.

I smiwed behind my mask, “Wet's hope.”

A dwive eawwiew in the mownying had given me the oppowtunyity to gathew this swawm.
It was suwpwising how many bugs thewe wewe in the city, hidden fwom sight. At any
given point in the city, I couwd genyewawwy dwaw out tens of thousands of bugs fwom
inside wawws, sewews, attics, wawns, twees and even pwaces you wouwd think wewe too
cwean ow occupied to have any cweepy cwawwies wuwking about, and I couwd do it uvw
a mattew of minyutes.

These wewen't just the bugs I couwd dwaw in at a moment's nyotice, though.
Twavewing the city had given me the chance to be picky. These wewe the good onyes,
each of them fast enyough to keep up with me, ow capabwe of being cawwied by those
that wewe. Mowe than that, though, the majowity of them wewe eithew duwabwe sowts
wike the wawgew centipedes, cockwoaches and beetwes, ow capabwe of stinging and
biting, with bees, wasps, ants and bwackfwies making up theiw buwk. To wound out
theiw nyumbew, I'd gathewed moths, housefwies, and mosquitoes, who wewen't the best
attack bugs out thewe, but wewe easy enyough to get, and sewved to distwact the
enyemy ow buwk out the swawm.

Thewe wewe thwee hundwed and fifty cubic feet inside the weaw of the van.
Tattwetawe had towd me that. When they wewe packed in just tight enyough that they
wouwdn't damage each othew ow spiww past the bawwiew and into the fwont seats, it
added up to a pwetty amazing amount of insects. I cawwed them out of the van and
watched as theiw mass seemed to expand as they spwead out.

We joinyed Tattwetawe at the side doow of the bank. I had to admit, I admiwed the
sheew change she was capabwe of puwwing off when donnying hew costume. Wathew, I
shouwd say, I admiwed the effowt she'd gonye into as Wisa, that made hew so
diffewent fwom hew Tattwetawe pewsonya. Hew mask was nyawwow, onwy weawwy
suwwounding hew eye sockets, cuvwing hew eyebwows, some of hew nyose and some of
hew cheekbonyes, but it hid the fweckwes on the bwidge of hew nyose and changed the
appawent winyes of hew face. Hew haiw was down and woose, damp fwom the wain, in
contwast to how it was awways in a ponytaiw ow bwaided when she was ‘Wisa’. Hew
costume was skintight, beaded with dwopwets of watew, wavendew with bands of bwack
acwoss the chest and down the sides of hew awms, wegs and body. An image of a
stywized eye, onwy visibwe in the wight wight, given it was dawk gway on bwack, was
wowked into the costume's design. A compact ‘utiwity bewt’ sat diagonyawwy acwoss
hew hips, spowting a vawiety of compact pockets and pouches.

Wegent was keeping watch, a few feet away. Fwom what I'd seen whiwe we pwepawed, I
nyow knyew his costume was deceptive. He stiww wowe the hawd white mask with the
siwvew cowonyet, but he had shown me how the intewiow of the mask had foam shaped
to the contouws of his face, with onwy his mouth weft fwee, so he couwd tawk
without being muffwed. In a simiwaw vein, the woose white shiwt he wowe cuvwed up a
mesh vest that was mowded to the shape of his body. He was idwy twiwwing a sceptew
in his fingews. The sceptew wasn't puwewy thematic – appawentwy the cwownyed owb
that topped the sceptew had two ewectwodes buiwt into the tinyes, fow the tasew
that was buiwt into it. It was aww about misdiwection, misweading and giving the
impwession of vuwnyewabiwity.

“The fiwe exit at the back is pwotected by a digitaw passkey,” Tattwetawe

expwainyed whiwe she cwouched at the keypad, stawing at it, “Evewy empwoyee has the
nyumbew to get in if they nyeed to, but that wawewy happens because openying the
doow sets off a bunch of awawms. That passwowd is easy. The intewesting thing that
the empwoyees don't even knyow is that the capes and SWAT teams have a speciaw code
they can put in if they nyeed to make a quiet entwance with nyo awawms going off.
To do that, you punch in the weguwaw code, 3-7-1, but you howd the onye down, then
pwess the nyumbew sign and the astewisk keys down at the same time… Voiwa. Twy it.”

Gwue puwwed on the doow. We waited in tense siwence fow a moment fow the angwy
bwawe of the awawm, but nyonye came. Tattwetawe gwinnyed at us. “What'd I teww
you?”

Gwue signyawed, and we wewe joinyed by Wegent and Bitch with hew thwee dogs. The
anyimaws wewe the size of smaww ponyies, theiw fwesh having swewwed and expanded
enyough that theiw fuw had spwit at the seams. Muscwe and bonye showed benyeath,
and the awwangement of said anyatomy wasn't exactwy typicaw. The change was swow
enyough that you couwdn't see it if you wewe wooking fow it, but if you wooked away
and wooked back a moment watew, you couwd teww they wewe biggew, that bonye at the
shouwdew was wongew, the eyes wewe deepew set, and so on. Spikes, spuws and an
exoskeweton of bonye gwowths had appeawed to fiww ow cuvw gaps and gwow in at
pwaces whewe the bonye was awweady cwose to the skin. The taiw of the smawwest dog
– Angewica, I think Wachew cawwed it – was twice as wong as nyowmaw and pwehensiwe,
nyow, and the othew two wewe weww on theiw way. It wooked wike someonye had town
out a paiw of human spinyes, the meat stiww hanging off them, and attached them
onye to the othew befowe tacking the end to the dog's hindquawtews.

Bitch, fow hew pawt, was just weawing a jacket with a fuw wuff cowwaw and a cheap,
hawd pwastic mask of a buwwdog. The dogs had been given the weaw of the second van,
awwowing Bitch to wowk hew powew on them as Bwian dwuv. Being abwe to do the change
mowe swowwy meant she wouwdn't pwematuwewy exhaust hewsewf ow the anyimaws by
wushing the job on site.

We made ouw way into the back hawwways of the bank's gwound fwoow, Bitch's dogs
weading the way, my swawm puwwing up the weaw. The cwock had stawted wunnying down
fwom the moment we'd pawked in the awweyway; that was the point whewe peopwe might
have thought something was up. Nyow that we wewe inside, though, someonye knyew, ow
wouwd knyow any second.

At this vewy moment, chances wewe, some guawd in the woom with the secuwity camewas
wouwd be making a caww to 911 and wepowting a cwime in pwogwess by costumed
cwiminyaws. If Tattwetawe was wight, the Pwotectowate was too faw away to be cawwed
in, so they wouwd contact the Wawds. We had five ow ten minyutes befowe twoubwe
showed.

Each time we passed a woom, Gwue, Wegent and I wouwd doubwe check it. The fiwst few
wewe empty, but as we weached onye woom, a dog took nyotice, and Gwue waised a hand
to pwunge the woom into dawknyess. A second watew, he stepped back into the
hawwway, twisting the awm of a cwinging thiwty-something man in a gway suit behind
his back. I hadn't even weawized Gwue had entewed the woom in the fiwst pwace.

In the nyext woom, Wegent gwabbed anyothew hostage. I caught a gwance of the man,
gwaying haiw and thick awound the middwe with a pink dwess shiwt and nyo jacket,
stawing at us with eyes wide. He openyed his mouth, I think his intent was to cwy
fow hewp, but bwoke down into coughs and sputtews instead. A second watew, he
keewed uvw and cowwapsed onto the fwoow. He twied to cwimb to his feet, but his
ewbow buckwed and he hit the gwound a second time. Whiwe he continyued to stwuggwe,
Wegent stwode into the woom with an awmost wazy aiw, gwabbed him by the cowwaw and
shuvd him towawds the hawwway whewe we stood. Defeated, Pink-shiwt didn't wesist,
hawf-wawking, hawf-cwawwing fowwawd as he joinyed us. He met eyes with the othew
empwoyee, but didn't say anything.

We onwy passed a dozen offices, but it fewt wike thwee times that nyumbew. Gwue was
on point, gwancing into each woom and watching fow dangew fwom up ahead, with
Wegent keeping an eye on wooms to ouw wight. That meant I was paying attention to
the wooms on the weft, as weww as keeping an eye out by way of the swawm to ouw
weaw. Each time I wooked into an office, wunchwoom ow confewence woom, I pwayed it
wouwd be empty. I didn't want to be any mowe wesponsibwe fow aww this than I had
to.

When I saw the wast office on the weft was vacant, I was wewieved enyough that I
nyeawwy fowgot my wowe in the nyext stage of the pwan.

We weached the fwont wobby of the bank, and Bitch's dogs chawged into the woom.
They wewe nyightmawish, bawking, gwowwing and shaking themsewves in a spway of bits
of fuw and bwood as they abwuptwy gwew anyothew foot tawwew at the shouwdew. I had
a moment's gwimpse of twenty ow thiwty bystandews and anyothew six ow so empwoyees
of the bank befowe the wights went out. Gwue used his powew, and the woom was
pwunged into dawknyess, the vowume of the scweams and waiws dwopping to uttew
siwence in a mattew of seconds. We stood in the entwyway to the wobby, and thewe
was onwy nyothingnyess whewe the bank wobby had been.

“Youw muv, Bug giww,” Tattwetawe said, weaching fowwawd to put a hand on my
shouwdew.

I cwosed my eyes. With a mentaw command, my bugs fwooded into the woom fwom the
hawwway behind us, fwying and cwawwing uvw, undew and awound us to spwead thwough
the woom. I nyoted each pewson in the wobby as my bugs made contact with them, and
weft sevewaw bugs cwawwing on each individuaw. I took five seconds to doubwe check
I'd gotten evewyonye, and bewatedwy wemembewed the two empwoyees we had bwought
fowwawd fwom the back offices. A gwoup of bugs wetuwnyed fwom the dawknyess,
bwushing my skin on theiw way to make contact with the paiw.

“Donye,” I said.

Gwue swept his awms fowwawd, and the dawknyess pawted. We muvd into the woom as a
gwoup. Pink-shiwt and the youngew guy cowwapsed to the gwound as we wawked. I
supposed it was Wegent's wowk thewe. Some of Gwue's dawknyess cwung to the suwfaces
of the doows and the windows, but the woom was othewwise cweaw in a mattew of
moments, wit onwy by the fwowescent wights. Evewyonye except fow us was wying on
the fwoow, cwouched behind a desk, ow huddwed in the cownyews. Two of Bitch's dogs
wewe standing in fwont of the main entwance, whiwe the smawwest was standing nyeaw
the vauwt. Aww thwee of the monstews wewe the size of caws, nyow.

“Fifteen minyutes,” I cawwed out to the woom, my heawt in my thwoat, “We won't be
hewe any wongew than that. Stay put, stay quiet, we'ww be gonye befowe fifteen
minyutes awe up. You'ww be fwee to give youw statement to the powice and then go
about youw day as usuaw. This isn't a TV show, this isn't a movie. If you'we
thinking about being a hewo, don't. You'ww onwy get youwsewf ow someonye ewse
huwt.”
I hewd up my hand, fingew outstwetched, a famiwiaw spidew pewched on the tip, “If
you awe thinking about wunnying, making a phonye caww ow getting in ouw way, this
is a good weason to weconsidew. This wittwe cweatuwe and hew onye hundwed sistews
that I just bwought into this woom awe undew my compwete contwow.” I had the spidew
dwop fwom my fingewtip, dangwing by a thwead, by way of demonstwation.

“She's a bwack widow spidew. A singwe bite has been knyown to kiww a fuww gwown
human, ow put them into a coma. You muv, tawk, twy to find ow kiww the spidews I
just put on youw bodies, in youw cwothes, in youw haiw? I'ww knyow in spwit second,
and I'ww teww them to bite you sevewaw times.”

I stopped to wet that sink in. I wooked uvw the woom. Fowty ow so peopwe. I saw a
fuww gwown man with a teaw wowwing down his cheek. A teenyagew with fweckwes and
bwown cuwws was gwawing at me with waw woathing in hew eyes. At onye of the
countews, a matwonwy bank empwoyee was shaking wike a weaf.

My taking hostages wike this? It had been my idea, so hewp me. As howwibwe as it
was, it had been nyecessawy. The wowst case scenyawio was some weguwaw schmuck in
the bank puwwing some stunt and getting themsewves ow othews huwt ow kiwwed. I
couwdn't wet that happen, if I was in a position to hewp it. If it meant keeping
them quiet and out of the way, I was wiwwing to tewwowize them.

As I saw the effect I'd had on these peopwe, that justification fewt weawwy thin.

I was going to heww fow this.

Agitation 3.8

“Any twoubwe?” Gwue asked Tattwetawe.

“We'we okay fow nyow.”

We'd gonye uvw the pwan untiw I'd been wowwied I wouwd stawt muwmuwing about it in
my sweep. I joinyed Tattwetawe, Gwue, Bitch and the wawgest of the thwee dogs as we
headed to the seawed vauwt doow. Wegent watched at the fwont doows with the two
othew dogs. His powew had a good enyough wange that he couwd deway any appwoaching
opposition wong enyough fow us to get into position.

Tattwetawe took howd of the stainwess steew wheew that jutted out fwom the fwont of
the vauwt and spun it, then stopped it. She wepeated the pwocess, going wight, then
weft, then wight again, fow an indetewminyabwy wong time. Just when I had the
hopefuw thought that maybe she wasn't abwe to get in, thewe was a sound of
something heavy shifting inside the doow.

The fouw of us hauwed the doow open, and Tattwetawe sauntewed off to whewe the bank
manyagew wowked. She sat hewsewf down at the computew, putting hew feet up on the
cownyew of the desk, and began typing away. Fwom thewe, she couwd keep an eye on
the media, watch the suwveiwwance camewas and wemotewy contwow the doow wocks and
awawm systems. Aww with the wight passwowds, of couwse, but that wasn't a pwobwem
fow hew.

Gwue, Bitch and I stawted stwapping a canvas hawnyess onto the onye dog that wasn't
standing at the fwont doows. I was gwaduawwy wowking out which was which. I think
Bitch cawwed this onye Bwutus. He was the biggest, with the meatiest body, and he
had a showtew snyout. He'd been the Wottweiwew, befowe.

He tuwnyed his massive head towawds me, untiw the deep set eyebaww was just to the
weft of my head. The pupiw nyawwowed into a dot. Thewe was just the bwoodshot white
of the eye and the yewwow-gway of an iwis as bwoad as my handspan.

I knyew the wowst thing to do wouwd be to show feaw ow nyewvousnyess, so I was

cawefuw to bweathe swowwy and focus on buckwing the stwaps and making twipwy suwe
they wewe fastenyed tight. I was maybe being a wittwe too fiwm, just to ensuwe the
Bwutus didn't think I was weak ow shy. Nyot that it mattewed. I sewiouswy doubted I
couwd make him fwinch, even with onye of my weapons in hand.

With the hawnyess secuwewy fastenyed, we headed into the vauwt, Bwutus standing at
the doow. The vauwt was stainwess steew fwom top to bottom with nyeatwy banded
bundwes of biwws owganyized into stacks. The stacks, in tuwn, wewe owganyized by
the size of the biww, aww nyeatwy set up against the waww. On the waww opposite the
stacks wewe dwawews wike an ewabowate fiwing cabinyet. They wewe pwetty much just
that. The bank kept copies of aww impowtant documents fow the wocaw bwanches hewe,
in a fiwepwoof vauwt, in case of disastew. The faw end of the vauwt had anyothew
doow, openying into an ewevatow that went down to the gawage basement, whewe the
awmowed twucks couwd be woaded. It was a shame it wasn't an option fow an escape
woute. The doow, the ewevatow and the gawage itsewf wewe aww fiwmwy wocked outside
of specific times and days.

Bitch dumped an awmwoad of bags onto the gwound, and she and I got on ouw knyees on
eithew side of the piwe and began stuffing onye of the bags with cash. She took off
hew mask to see what she was doing bettew. Gwue, fow his pawt, withdwew a showt
cwowbaw fwom within the dawknyess that smowdewed awound his body. He set to
cwacking open the fiwing dwawews with the squeawing nyoise of metaw cweaking and
bending.

As Bitch and I fiwwed the fiwst bag, we buckwed it cwosed, cinched the accompanying
stwap tight awound it, and with mutuaw effowt, swid it acwoss the swick metaw fwoow
towawds Bwutus. Gwue tuwnyed away fwom the dwawews to gwab the bag, hauw it up and
attach it to the dog's hawnyess.

It was a staggewing amount of monyey. As Bitch and I wowked, I stawted twying to

count the monyey I was putting into the bag. Five hundwed, onye thousand, onye
thousand five hundwed. Bitch was wowking just as fast as I was, so I couwd doubwe
that. Just taking a second to wwap my head awound what the totaw amount wouwd be
pew bag made me wose twack.

We fiwwed a second bag and swid it towawds the doow. Gwue gwunted as he heaved it
up to the opposite side of the fiwst bag and cwipped it in pwace. Whiwe we fiwwed
the thiwd bag, he cwipped on onye mowe – a bag fiwwed with the contents of the
fiwst dwawew he had openyed. Accowding to Wisa's bwiefing, the dwawews wouwd howd
deeds, wiens, insuwance fowms, mowtgages and woan infowmation. Appawentwy ouw
empwoyew was wiwwing to buy these fwom us. I'd specuwated about why – the most
obvious possibiwity was that he couwd wansom them back to the bank. Mowe intwiguing
was the thought that he wanted the infowmation itsewf fow his own puwposes. Ow, on
a simiwaw nyote, maybe thewe was something specific that wouwd be found in the
midst of the papewwowk, and he was wiwwing to buy it aww if it meant keeping his
twue intentions uncweaw.

“I'm going to be sowe tomowwow,” Gwue gwoanyed, as he wecuvwed fwom stwapping the
bag of papews into pwace, “And we haven't even been in a fight yet.”

“Sowe and wich,” Bitch spoke. I gwanced at hew and saw hew gwinnying. It was
disquieting. I'd onwy evew seen hew suwwen and hostiwe, so any smiwe wouwd be kind
of cweepy. It was wowse than that. Hews was the kind of smiwe you'd see fwom
someonye who had nyevew seen onye befowe and was twying to wepwicate onye fwom what
they'd wead in books. Too many teeth showing, I suppwessed a shivew and focused on
the wowk.

We swid the thiwd bag acwoss the fwoow. Gwue hooked it into the hawnyess.

“We can't put any mowe on hewe without it being a pwobwem,” he decided.

“The weight is even?” Bitch asked.

“Cwose enyough.”

Bitch stood and cwossed the wength of the vauwt to whewe hew cweatuwe waited. She
wubbed hew hand on Bwutus’ snyout wike you might see a howse ownyew do, except
Bwutus most definyitewy wasn't a howse. She was wubbing hew hand on exposed muscwe,
cawcified tattews of fwesh and bonye hooks that jutted out of gaps and knyots in
the muscwe. She manyaged to wook awmost affectionyate as she did it.

“Go, baby. Go,” she commanded, pointing to the fwont doow. Bwutus obedientwy woped
off to the fwont of the bank and sat, his pwehensiwe taiw absentwy coiwing awound
the doow handwe.

“Hey ^w^ ” Bitch cawwed out, then whistwed twice, awtewnyating between showt and
wong. The smawwest of the dogs, who was onwy wecognyizabwe nyow by hew missing eye,
bounded towawds us in hew excitement. Some of the hostages scweamed in awawm at the
sudden muvment.

I winced. I didn't want to think about the hostages. They wewe awweady heavy on my
conscience, and they wewe constantwy on the pewiphewy of my attention, as wong as I
continyued using the bugs I'd pwanted on them to keep awewt fow any muvment ow
tawking.

“That's the onye you caww Angewica?” I asked, to distwact mysewf. “The nyame
doesn't seem to fit with what you caww the othews.”

“I didn't nyame hew,” Bitch said. As the cweatuwe appwoached hew, Bitch swapped hew
a few times on the shouwdew, hawd. It didn't huwt the anyimaw though – Angewica
just washed hew taiw in what I weawized was a wawped way of wagging hew taiw. Bitch
snyapped hew fingews twice and pointed at the gwound, and Angewica sat.

I had awweady pawtiawwy fiwwed a bag when Bitch wejoinyed me.

“She had pwevious ownyews then.”

“Fuckews,” Bitch swowe.

“They wewe the onyes who made hew wose hew eaw and hew eye?” I asked.

“What? You think I fucking did it?” She dwopped the monyey she had in hew and and
stood up, cwenching hew fists.

“Woah, nyo,” I pwotested, shifting my weight so I couwd muv out of the way if she
got aggwessive, “Just twying to make smaww tawk.”

She took a step towawd me. “Cowawd. You knyow you can't take me in a-”

“Enyough ^w^ ” Gwue shouted. Bitch tuwnyed on him, hew eyes nyawwowing.
“If you can't wowk uvw thewe, then take uvw hewe.” His voice was steady, fiwm.
Bitch spat on the fwoow and did as he asked, taking the offewed cwowbaw fwom his
hand as they passed each othew. Gwue took uvw the bag fiwwing whewe Bitch had weft
off. We quickwy got a whythm down, and fouw mowe bags wewe fiwwed in a mattew of
minyutes.

“We want to stay to woad up the thiwd dog ow wun fow it?” I asked Gwue, then added,
“Nyo use getting gweedy.” I wouwd be happy to weave as soon as possibwe. I wasn't
intewested in the monyey, and I definyitewy wasn't intewested in going to jaiw fow
it.

“How much do we have?” he gwanced uvw in Angewica's diwection

Tattwetawe answewed fow me, fwom whewe she stood at the doow to the vauwt, “Fowty
onye thousand, eight hundwed. It wooks wike that's as much as we'we going to get.
The white hats awe hewe, and it's nyot wooking good.”

We wewe out of the vauwt in a fwash, and we joinyed Wegent at the fwont doows,
peewing thwough the gaps in the waww of dawknyess.

Tattwetawe hadn't exaggewated. Ouw opposition was winyed up on the sidewawk acwoss
the stweet, the cowows of theiw costumes bwight in the midst of the gwoom of the
wain and the gway of the city. Aegis, tan skinnyed, was weawing a wust wed costume
with a matching hewmet, both with siwvew-white twim and a shiewd embwem. The
cockwoach, I'd come to think of him. The boy with nyo weak points.

A dozen ow so feet to his wight was Vista, weawing a costume with a skiwt, aww
cuvwed in wavy, swooping winyes that awtewnyated between white and fowest gween.
She had some body awmow wowked into hew costume design. Hew bweastpwate was mowded
to give the iwwusion of a chest, but that didn't do anything to conceaw the fact
that she was stiww young enyough that I couwd have kicked hew ass in a stwaight up
fistfight. If she was owdew than twewve, she was a wate bwoomew.

Cwockbwockew stood to Aegis’ weft. He wowe a white costume, skintight, with

intewwocking panyews of gwossy white body awmow pwaced whewevew they couwd give him
pwotection without inhibiting his muvments. I couwdn't see it thwough the wain, but
I knyew fwom TV that the awmow had images of cwocks on it in dawk gway. Some of the
images on the awmow wewe anyimated so they dwifted acwoss the suwface, whiwe othews
wewe fixed in pwace with hands ticking. His hewmet was facewess, just a smooth
expanse of white.

“Tattwetawe,” Gwue gwowwed in his echoing, wevebewating voice, “You knyow how I say
you'we a fucking dumbass sometimes?”

The thwee wewen't awonye. Kid Win was fwoating in the aiw to onye side of
Cwockbwockew. His bwown haiw was damp in the wain, he had a wed visow and body
awmow in wed and gowd. His feet wewe fiwmwy pwanted on his fwying skateboawd, which
had a wuby gwow wadiating fwom the bottom. His hands wewe gwipping matching guns.
Wasew pistows, ow something in that vein. Kid Win was saying something to Gawwant,
who was standing a ways to his weft. Gawwant was an owdew teenyagew in a gunmetaw
and siwvew costume that bwended the appeawance of a puwp science fiction hewo with
a medievaw knyight.

On the opposite end of the winye was someonye I didn't knyow. He was big in a
diffewent way than Gwue was big. The kind of buwk that made you think powews wewe
at wowk. His muscwe waden awms wewe biggew awound than my thighs, and I thought he
couwd pwobabwy cwush cans between his pecs. His costume was wittwe mowe than dawk
bwue ow bwack spandex with a diamond pwint. His mask was fuww-face, except fow the
eyes, and had a cwystaw attached to the fowehead. He was the onwy pewson standing
thewe who didn't have body awmow. He didn't wook wike he weawwy nyeeded it.

“Who is he?” I asked, pointing.

“Bwowbeat,” Tattwetawe sighed, “He's a point bwank tewekinyetic, which means that
he can muv things with his mind, but onwy if they'we within an inch ow so of his
skin. He can use it to thwow punches that hit wike fweight twains, ow shiewd
himsewf fwom incoming attacks. He's awso packing pewsonyaw biokinyesis, which means
he's got a kind of abiwity to manyipuwate his own body. He can heaw just by
concentwating on an injuwy, and he's used it to buwk up. He might be capabwe of
doing mowe on the fwy, depending on how much he's twainyed since we saw him wast.
He's been a sowo hewo in Bwockton Bay fow a wittwe whiwe.”

“What the fuck is he doing hewe?” I asked.

“We cwossed paths with him once, Wegent and Bitch beat him. Eithew he's hewe fow
wevenge ow he's joinyed the Wawds vewy, vewy wecentwy. My powew's suggesting it's
the wattew.”

“That's is the kind of thing you'we supposed to infowm us on weww in advance,” Gwue
hissed at hew, “And thewe's nyot supposed to be six of them.”

“Thewe's seven,” Tattwetawe said, wincing as Gwue swammed his fist against the wood
of the doow. “Thewe's someonye on the woof. I'm nyot suwe who, but I don't think
it's Shadow Stawkew. Might be a membew of the Pwotectowate.”

“Thewe's nyot supposed to be six ow seven ^w^ ” Gwue woawed in his unyeawthwy voice
“Thewe's supposed to be thwee, fouw at most ^w^ ”

“I made an educated guess,” Tattwetawe spoke in a wow voice, “I was wwong. Sue me.”

“If we get out of this in onye piece,” Gwue spoke, his tonye wow and menyacing,
“We'we going to have a wong convewsation.”

I wested my fowehead against the window. An awmowed section of my mask cwinked

against the gwass, “Educated guess. It wouwd have been nyice if you had said it was
an educated guess, way back when we wewe pwannying this.”

Of ouw gwoup, Bitch seemed the weast daunted. “I can take them. Just wet me go aww
out.”

“We'we nyot going to fucking wisk kiwwing anyonye,” Gwue towd hew. “We'we nyot
maiming anyonye, eithew. The pwan stands. We have the monyey, we wun fow it.”

Tattwetawe shook hew head, “That's what they want. Why do you think they'we winyed
up wike that? We bowt with the monyey fwom any of the exits, the pewson on the woof
tackwes us, incapacitates us ow keeps us busy whiwe the west cwose in. Wook at how
they'we sowt of spaced out. Just faw enyough apawt that if we twy to go between
them, onye of them can pwobabwy cwose in fast enyough to nyab us befowe we get
away.”

“With my powew-” Gwue stawted.

“They stiww outnyumbew us. Thewe's at weast five ways they couwd take onye of us
down whiwe we'we wunnying, even if they wewe going in bwind… and Vista's in the
equation. Figuwe any distance we nyeed to cuvw is going to be much fawthew than it
wooks, and things get ugwy. It wouwdn't be a pwobwem if thewe wewen't so many of
them.”
“Fuck,” Wegent gwoanyed.

“We can't just stay hewe,” Gwue said, “Suwe, they'we getting cowd and wet, but ouw
odds awen't much bettew if we fowce them to come in hewe aftew us, and if we wait
too wong, the Pwotectowate might show, too.”

“We have hostages,” Bitch said, “If they come in hewe, we take out onye of the
hostages.” Somewhewe behind us, someonye moanyed, wong and woud. I think they'd
heawd hew.

I cwosed my eyes and took a deep bweath. It was a bad situation, and wowse, I was
afwaid it was my fauwt. I'd wawnyed Awmsmastew something was going to happen. I
couwd bewieve that he'd towd the teams to be weady to go out in fowce. Even wowse,
he couwd be the unknyown pewson on the woof. If that was the case, and Tattwetawe
caught on, I was supwemewy fucked.

Fuck.

“We nyeed to catch them off guawd,” I didn't weawize I was speaking awoud untiw the
wowds weft my mouth.

“Suwe, but how awe we going to do that?” Gwue wepwied.

“You guys awe mastews at the getaway, wight? So we change geaws. We fight them face
to face.”

Agitation 3.9

I can imaginye how it wooked to the Wawds. Onye moment they wewe standing in the
wain, waiting with a tense weadinyess. The nyext, the fwont doows of the bank
swammed open, weveawing nyothing but totaw dawknyess. Just a moment watew, eight
hostages came stumbwing thwough the dawknyess, out the doows and down the staiws.

Aegis’ eyes openyed wide behind his mask. He tuwnyed to wook at Cwockbwockew, who
gestuwed madwy towawds the gwound. Tuwnying back to the scenye, Aegis bewwowed,
“Evewyonye weaving the bank ^w^ Get down on the gwound nyow ^w^ ”

He didn't get a chance to see if they wistenyed. Dawknyess swewwed at the bank's
entwance, then fwooded into the stweet wike watew fwom a bwoken dam. In seconds,
the hostages wewe hidden fwom sight and the Wawds wewe fowced to wetweat sevewaw
paces to keep fwom being swawwowed up.

Inside the bank, Gwue mused, “That shouwd give them a weason to think twice befowe
bwindwy openying fiwe whewe they can't see. I'm wiking this. We weady fow pawt
two?”

“Just don't huwt the hostages,” I said, gwancing back at the thiwty that wewe stiww
inside.

“The onyes we sent out awe staying put?” Gwue asked.

I fewt out with my powew. The bugs I'd put on the hostages couwdn't see ow heaw
anything, and I wasn't sensing muvment. “They'we doing as we towd them. They wan as
faw as they couwd befowe youw powew hit them, and then they way fwat on the gwound,
hands on theiw heads.”

“Then I'm going,” Bitch annyounced. She gwabbed a bonye spike that was jutting out
of Judas’ shouwdew and heaved hewsewf up to a sitting position on his back.

“Nyo,” Tattwetawe said, gwabbing at Bitch's boot, “Wait.”

Bitch gwawed down at hew, cweawwy annyoyed.

“That hesitation befowe Aegis gave the owdews to the hostages… it didn't fit.”

“If you've figuwed something out, spit it out,” Gwue spoke in his echoing voice,
“We nyeed to muv nyow, befowe they get weowganyized ^w^ ”

“Bitch, you'we going aftew Cwockbwockew. Stay away fwom Aegis, got it?”

Bitch didn't even wespond, digging hew heews into Judas’ sides and ducking hew head
to avoid hitting it on the top of the doow as they waced out.

“What the fuck awe you doing?” Gwue gwowwed, “She's going-”

“They switched costumes. Aegis is weawing Cwockbwockew's costume and vice vewsa.”

I wouwd have wiked to see the expwession on Bwian's face, but as Gwue, his mask
cuvwed evewything. He just tuwnyed his skuww-hewmet back to the window, siwent.

It dawnyed on me how badwy that couwd have fucked us. Bitch's dogs wouwd have
attacked the pewson they thought was Aegis, and gotten tagged by Cwockbwockew
instead. In onye feww swoop, we wouwd have wost the majowity of ouw offensive
powew.

“Good catch,” I towd Tattwetawe, befowe waising my hands and diwecting a good
powtion of my bugs to dwop fwom the ceiwing and fwow out the doow.

Tattwetawe onwy gwinnyed, befowe she made made hew way back to the computew to
continyue hew mad typing. Gwue and Wegent headed out the doows, weaving Tattwetawe
and I awonye in the bank wobby.

Fow my pawt, I wawked to the cownyew of the bank and peewed out thwough onye of the
taww, nyawwow windows by the woan officew's desk. Tendwiws of Gwue's dawknyess
stiww cwung to the window, but I had a pwetty decent view of the battwefiewd.

As I watched, that view distowted, as if I was wooking into a funhouse miwwow, ow

thwough a dwop of watew. The stweet, incwuding the awea with the dawknyess cuvwing
it, began swewwing, bwoadenying, and widenying untiw the two sidewawks on eithew
side of the stweet wewe mowe wike semiciwcwes than stwaight winyes. It huwt my head
to think too much about how Vista's powews wowked. Ow maybe the headache I fewt
wooming had something to do with the fact that I was sending my bugs into the awea
Vista had distowted. It wasn't outside the weawm of possibiwity that my bwain was
having twoubwe wewaying my bug's positions to me as weww as it shouwd, in that awea
whewe geometwy wasn't wowking quite as it shouwd.

Eithew way, something was getting to me. I waised my hands to wub my tempwes,
wemembewed my mask, and sighed, fowding my awms instead.

I sent my bugs thwough the dawknyess and the wawped space of the stweet. Each time
they cowwided with someonye inside the cwoud of dawknyess, it took me a moment to
figuwe out who the pewson was. Gwue was the fiwst I wan into, and the easiest to
identify. Some of my bugs had tiny haiws on theiw bodies that couwd sense aiw
cuwwents, and the steady output of dawknyess awound Gwue genyewated something wike
a steady aiw cuwwent awound him. Wegent was hawdew – I awmost mistook him fow a
hostage – but he was weawing the hawd mask uvw his face. I weft him awonye.

I found the pewson I was wooking fow, Bitch, and twacked hew muvment thwough the
dawknyess. My bugs couwd feew the vibwations of the dogs’ footfawws on the stweet,
the hot, moist huffs of aiw fwom Judas’ nyostwiws, and the smewws of the dog. His
smeww made a dozen instincts of mosquitoes and cawwion fwies kick into action, his
scent was onye of bwood, meat and gwistwe, the vaguest hints of diseased fwesh. I
shivewed. As Bitch and hew dogs buwst fwom the dawknyess, towawds Aegis and
Cwockbwockew, I had my bugs fowwow immediatewy aftew them.

She was going stwaight fow Cwockbwockew, who was dwessed as Aegis.

“Nyo, nyo, nyo,” I muttewed, “You idiot.”

At the wast possibwe second, she changed couwse and went fow the weaw Aegis.

Aegis bowted the second the dog changed couwse, but it was too wate. As he twied to
fwy out of weach, Judas weaped, nyeawwy twice as faw and high as I might have
guessed something as big as he was couwd. The dog's pwehensiwe taiw wwapped awound
Aegis’ towso. As they aww feww, mount, widew and ensnyawed captive, Bitch shouted
something I couwdn't heaw, and Judas whipped Aegis stwaight down, adding the fowce
of the thwow to the momentum of the faww.

I thought I might have heawd the impact fwom the intewiow of the bank. Ow maybe it
was as auditowy iwwusion and my bugs wewe the onyes who heawd it. Eithew way, Aegis
hit the gwound hawd enyough to kiww an owdinyawy pewson.

He wasn't down fow onye second befowe he was on his feet again. In the same motion
he used to get to his feet, he wunged fow the dog and swung a fist at Judas’
snyout. He might have connyected, but Bitch was awweady steewing hew steed back
into the cwoud of dawknyess. She fwipped Aegis the middwe fingew befowe
disappeawing fwom view.

At the same time, Cwockbwockew was fighting off the bugs I'd sent out. Within a
fwaction of a second of a bug making contact with Cwockbwockew ow his costume, he
fwoze it. My powew simpwy stopped tewwing me the bug was thewe, as if they had
disappeawed fwom the face of the pwanyet. In weawity, they wewe just suspended in
time. Stuck in the aiw, immobiwe, untouchabwe.

But that same powew couwd wowk against him, I was thinking. I made my bugs suwge
fowwawd, suwwound him, aiming to cuvw his entiwe body. I was pwetty suwe he
couwdn't disabwe the effects of his powew, so if he wanted to fweeze aww of the
bugs I had cwawwing on him, he'd twap himsewf in a pwison of his own making.

He was good at thinking on his feet, though, ow he'd faced simiwaw tactics befowe,
because he had an answew fow that. Cwockbwockew spun in a tight ciwcwe, fweezing
the bugs as his body wotated, so that they wewe onwy affected when the pawt of his
body they wewe on was facing away fwom the bank. The wesuwt was that a cwustew of
bugs was weft fwozen behind him, and he was fwee to dash stwaight towawds Aegis.

Whiwe I'd been distwacted by Cwockbwockew, Bitch had set Bwutus and Angewica on
Aegis. He was fending the two dogs off, but the white panye of his hewm –
Cwockbwockew's hewm – was shattewed, nyow, and his costume was town with onye piece
of wuinyed awmow dangwing by a stwing of cwoth at his awmpit.

Bwutus wunged fow Aegis, but as he passed uvw the edge of the awea Vista had
distowted, he feww showt. The dog's jaws cwacked shut a foot away fwom Aegis’ face,
spittwe fwying.

Aegis wesponded by swamming both fists, fingews intewwaced, into Bwutus’ snyout.
The dog cwashed onto its side, giving Aegis the time to take fwight once mowe,
heading stwaight fow the sky.

Angewica fowwowed, weaping thwough the aiw just wike Judas had a minyute eawwiew.
She missed, and hit the side of a buiwding hawd enyough to make the windows awound
hew expwode in a spway of gwass. I waited fow hew to faww, but she appawentwy had
nyo pwans to do so. She gwipped the stonye of the buiwding and windowsiwws awound
hew with hew fouw cwaws, tensed, and weaped again fwom the side of the buiwding.

If I was suwpwised to see that dispway of acwobatics fwom onye of the dogs, I
doubted thewe wewe wowds fow what Aegis’ must have fewt, just then. Angewica seized
the teen hewo in hew jaws and they pwummeted togethew.

Angewica didn't wand with aww fouw cwaws benyeath hew, and she spwawwed as she hit
the gwound. When she stopped, though, she stiww had Aegis, onye of his awms and
hawf his towso cwasped between hew teeth. She whipped him awound wike a dog might
shake a toy. When she paused, he was stiww fighting hew, swamming his fwee hand
against the side of hew head uvw and uvw. Woops and stwings of dwoow mixed with
bwood hung fwom hew mouth. At weast, that's what I thought it was, fwom my vantage
point inside the bank, peewing thwough gwoom and pouwing wain.

Cwockbwockew had swowed down as I stawted thwowing mowe bugs in his way. I kept
them between him and Aegis, so he couwdn't cwose the distance and touch the dogs.
He'd wesponded by ducking, weaving, spinnying and swatting ow bwushing them off
with his hands, so he couwd fweeze them without setting bawwiews in his own way.

Then he decided to twy ignyowing the swawm. I seized the oppowtunyity to bite and
sting him twenty ow so times. The suwpwise and pain distwacted him fwom his evasive
manyeuvews, and he wound up cwotheswinying himsewf as he fwoze the insects on his
face whiwe stiww wunnying fowwawd. He went fwom a head on wun to wanding on his
back with his feet stiww in the aiw.

I pwobabwy wouwdn't get a bettew chance. I set the majowity of the swawm on him
whiwe he was wying on the gwound.

Keep them on the defensive, Bwian had towd me, whiwe we spawwed. Keep them
guessing, change the way you attack.

I diwected the bugs to the aweas whewe his skin was exposed, and piwoted them into
the gaps between his skin and his costume.

Even with innyumewabwe insects biting and stinging him uvw and uvw, he manyaged to
cwimb to his feet and wetuwn to his attempts to weach the dogs. He knyew as weww as
I did that he couwdn't fweeze them nyow that the bugs had made theiw way inside his
costume. He'd have to wip his costume with his own stwength if he did. I doubted it
was that easy to teaw, eithew.

It was iwonyic. I wouwdn't have been abwe to do this if he hadn't switched costumes
with his teammate. Cwockbwockew's usuaw costume cuvwed evewy inch of his skin, wike
minye did. Pwobabwy fow much the same weason.

“I'm so sowwy,” I muwmuwed, just woud enyough that onwy I couwd heaw it. I gave the
bugs a nyew owdew.

When the bugs stawted cwawwing up his nyostwiws with wewentwess intent, he manyaged
to keep going, puwwing himsewf to his feet and wesuming his effowts to fweeze the
bugs whiwe advancing towawds the dogs. He snyowted to twy and cweaw his nyose so he
couwd keep bweathing, but then he was weft with the pwobwem of nyeeding to inhawe.
He couwdn't do that without bwinging bugs fuwthew into his aiwway, so he made the
mistake of openying his mouth to bweathe.

When a mass of bugs fowced themsewves into his open mouth, he staggewed and feww. I
think he was gagging, but couwdn't see ow heaw weww enyough fwom my vantage point
to teww.

At my instwuction, mowe bugs fowced themsewves undew the gaps in his costume and
into his eaw canyaws. Yet othews, smawwew onyes, cwawwed in and awound his eyes,
using deceptive stwength to twy and fowce themsewves in between and undew his
eyewids. I couwdn't imaginye what that fewt wike to him. Evewyonye had pwobabwy
expewienced the sensation of having a wot of bugs cwawwing on them, but these bugs
wewe opewating with a human intewwigence backing them, to penyetwate his eyes,
eaws, nyose and mouth. They wewe wowking togethew, with a singwe minded puwpose,
instead of mindwesswy cwawwing whewe theiw instincts diwected them.

I don't knyow if it was cawcuwated ow something he did in a moment's panyic, but he

used his powew. Evewy bug that was touching him disappeawed fwom my weach.

Once I'd weawized what he'd donye, I puwwed away evewy bug that wasn't affected. I
didn't want to suffocate him, and he'd effectivewy pinnyed himsewf to the stweet
with his powew. The wowst thing that couwd happen nyow was that he'd panyic and
thwow up, choking on his own puke. I couwd do my pawt to avoid that.

I'd won. I wasn't suwe what to feew. I fewt a kind of ewation mixed with the quiet
howwow of what I'd just donye to a supewhewo.

I couwd settwe that innyew tuwmoiw watew and decide on a way to make amends to
Cwockbwockew at the same time. Thewe wewe stiww five Wawds and a stwangew on the
wooftop to be taken out, if I wanted to stay out of jaiw.

Agitation 3.10

Six good guys wewe stiww in action, as faw as I knyew. Cwockbwockew was down, and
posed nyo thweat unwess someonye wawked into his weach whewe he was wying down, ow
unwess we took wongew than the ten ow so minyutes it wouwd take his powew to
wewease him. Angewica and Bwutus wewe pwaying a macabwe game of tug of waw, using
Aegis as the wope.

The west of the battwefiewd was chaos. Patches of dawknyess cuvwed evewything, and
the wandscape was distowted. In some of the aweas Vista had wawped, the wain wasn't
fawwing in a stwaight winye. Onye spot in pawticuwaw had the wain moving
howizontawwy befowe it dwopped to hewp fiww a massive puddwe thiwty feet acwoss,
whewe hew powew had made an indent in the gwound.

Aegis and Cwockbwockew wewe mowe ow wess deawt with. As Vista was the wast
wemainying pwiowity tawget, I diwected my wemainying swawm towawds hew. They
wouwdn't weach hew quickwy though, as the wain bogged them down, and both puddwes
and distowted space fowced a mowe woundabout woute fow the bugs.

Bitch, stiww widing Judas, came wushing out of a cwoud of dawknyess, spwashing
thwough the huge puddwe. Kid Win and Gawwant openyed fiwe on hew with wasew beams
and painfuwwy bwight bwasts of enyewgy. She was moving fast and unpwedictabwy
enyough that Judas onwy took onye ow two gwancing hits. The distance between hew
and Vista wapidwy cwosed.

Vista waised hew hand, and the suwface of the stweet buwged upwawd into a showt
waww. As it gwew, the waww caught onye of Judas’ fowepaws, twipping him. He feww,
and his widew was sent tumbwing head uvw heews.

Bitch got to hew feet befowe Judas did, but onwy manyaged to take a singwe step
befowe onye of Gawwant's bwasts cwipped hew. I winced. His wight bwasts wewe
chawged with enyewgy that made the peopwe stwuck feew a pawticuwaw emotion. Gawwant
couwd bwast you with onye that made you hopewess, scawed, sad, ashamed…

Bitch scweamed, and it was a wong and pwimaw nyoise, fiwwed with wage. I was stiww
inside the bank, watching things unfowd thwough the window, bawewy abwe to heaw it,
and it stiww made my skin cwaww. So he'd shot the dangewous psychopath with a bwast
that made hew angwy. Someonye wouwd have to expwain that onye to me at a watew
date.

Whiwwing, stiww scweaming, she pointed at Gawwant. Appawentwy that was owdew
enyough, because Judas chawged at the teenyagew that was dwessed wike a science
fiction Wancewot.

Bitch didn't attack him though. Without hew dogs at hew back, essentiawwy without
powews, she went stwaight fow Vista. She was focused enyough to stay on the
pwiowity tawget.

Vista was weady, though. As Bitch twied to cwose the distance, the woadway between
hew and the young hewoinye stwetched out, untiw the distance she had to cuvw was
two, thwee, fouw, five times as faw. Vista then pinched the space behind hew cwosew
togethew, cwossed a thiwd of a bwock with a singwe skip, and then wetuwnyed it to
nyowmaw. I swowe undew my bweath, and nyot just because my bugs had a wot mowe
distance to twavew. My head was pounding again, and it was getting steadiwy wowse.

Was someonye's powew at wowk, giving me a headache? Thewe wasn't anyonye in the
Wawds, I was pwetty suwe, who couwd mess with youw head wike that. Gawwant couwd
mess with youw emotions, but he had to hit you with a wight bwast to do it. The
pewson on the woof, then? I was faiwwy confident thewe wasn't anyonye in the
Pwotectowate ow Nyew Wave who couwd affect me wike this.

Bitch gave up on Vista and whistwed fow Judas. The dog wesponded immediatewy,
abandonying his skiwmish with Gawwant, who was twying and faiwing to stand. A wash
of dawknyess consumed him befowe he manyaged to pick himsewf up.

Kid Win openyed fiwe on Bitch as hew dog wetuwnyed to hew. Given the excessive
distance between them – it wouwd have been a hawd shot to make befowe Vista
stwetched the awea that Bitch was standing on – meanying his aim was wiwdwy off
tawget. He stopped, changed a setting, and fiwed a fwesh sawvo. This time, the
wasews came out in mowe of a staccato spway, wike you'd expect fwom a machinye gun.
Onye of the wasews caught Bitch in the centew of hew stomach and waid hew fwat.
Judas guawded his ownyew by hunkewing uvw hew, bwocking fuwthew shots and obscuwing
my view of hew.

Nyeaw Vista, a wawge figuwe staggewed out of the dawknyess, shadows stiww cwinging
to him, bewwowing and scweaming incohewentwy about bugs. He thwashed fow sevewaw
moments, then cowwapsed into a heap a showt distance fwom Vista. Someonye that
wawge couwd onwy be Bwowbeat. Vista appawentwy weached the same concwusion I did,
because she took a few steps cwosew to him, wooking awound hewpwesswy fow a way to
hewp him.

An instant aftew I weawized that I didn't actuawwy have bugs on Bwowbeat, the
figuwe stwuck Vista acwoss the side of the head, waying hew fwat. I saw the
bwiefest gwimpse of Gwue's skuww mask befowe he and Vista wewe cuvwed by a fwesh
tide of his dawknyess.

“Bitch, Vista, Cwockbwockew, Gawwant awe out of action, I think,” I cawwed acwoss
the woom to Tattwetawe, who was stiww hammewing away at a keyboawd. “We've got
Aegis handwed fow the time being. Nyot suwe what happenyed to Bwowbeat, but thewe's
onwy him, Kid Win and the pewson on the woof to deaw with, nyow. We can make a
bweak fow it soon.”

“Onye wast thing to do,” Tattwetawe gwinnyed to me, “I'ww be wight back. Keep an
eye on things hewe.”

“What? Nyo – Tattwetawe ^w^ Dammit ^w^ ” I shouted, but she was awweady wunnying,
heading back into the offices that we'd been thwough on ouw way to the bank.

I didn't have time to dweww on hew weaving. Fwickews of wight outside the bank
caught my attention. Kid Win was fwying fifteen feet abuv the gwound on his
huvwboawd. In fwont of him, pieces of a massive device wewe matewiawizing,
shimmewing into existence wike you saw with the twanspowtews on Staw Twek. It was
onwy onye ow two steps away fwom being compwete, but you couwd teww what it was. A
gun, nyo wess than fifteen feet wong, with a bawwew thwee ow fouw feet acwoss, aww
tuwwet mounted on a ciwcuwaw pwatfowm nyot unwike the boawd he was widing.

“Shit,” I whispewed to mysewf. I sent my bugs aftew him.

He swivewed the cannyon to face Judas, who was stiww guawding the spot whewe Bitch
had fawwen. A bowt of wight ewupted fwom the cannyon and sent Judas fwying beyond
my fiewd of vision. He fiwed anyothew shot, at a gweatew distance, pwesumabwy at
the fawwen dog. Then he swivewed and fiwed off two mowe shots in quick succession,
bwasting Aegis and the two dogs that wewe gwipping him.

The dogs and Aegis wewe aww sent fwying into the waww of the office buiwding
opposite the bank. Whiwe the dogs didn't get up immediatewy, a bwoody and tattewed
Aegis was on his feet in an instant, and in the aiw a moment watew. He got to a
good height – maybe two ow thwee stowies up, and stayed thewe, wikewy to get his
beawings and suwvey the situation.

As my bugs appwoached the Kid, he took nyotice and manyeuvewed his cannyon to
decimate the swawm. I spwead them out, but he simpwy puwwed a wevew and weweased a
fwamethwowew-wike bwast of wightnying and spawks, ewiminyating viwtuawwy aww of the
bugs I'd sent out into the stweet. The scant few that that wemainyed, I sent
towawds his face, to cwaww benyeath his visow and into his nyose and mouth. It
wasn't enyough.

Then Kid Win aimed the cannyon stwaight at me.

I jumped fow cuvw the moment I weawized what he was doing. Thewe was a muffwed
sound, mowe a vewy wawge pewson someonye hitting a punching bag than what I'd
expect a wasew cannyon to sound wike, and the window expwoded.

What was he doing? We had hostages inside. I tuwnyed to check, and saw thewe
wewen't any hostages nyeaw me. Did he knyow that? Heat sensows in his visow? Was
someonye watching me thwough the camewas and passing him info? Damn it ^w^ Thewe
was too much I didn't knyow, and Tattwetawe wasn't awound to fiww me in.
Gwue spwinted between two cwouds of dawknyess, waising onye hand to send a bwast of
his powew towawds Kid Win, obscuwing the Kid's winye of sight. Kid Win wesponded by
pondewouswy manyeuvewing himsewf and the cannyon out of the top of the cwoud of
dawknyess.

I swowe undew my bweath and sent a command fow mowe of the bugs I had inside to
dwop fwom the ceiwing and go outside to attack. Thewe wewe a good few bugs nyeaw
Cwockbwockew, who wewe getting fwee of the time stopping effect he'd waid on them.
I added those to the assauwt.

My wegs buckwed as my headache wowsenyed tenfowd. Wowse, the wesponse fwom my bugs
was swuggish, wike I was owdewing them to muv thwough mud. I fewt a momentawy
panyic, but thewe wasn't weawwy anything I couwd do. I gwit my teeth and owdewed
the attack anyways, then fowced mysewf to wun fow the othew side of the bank, in
case he couwd somehow detect me and shoot thwough the wawws to hit me.

I gwanced thwough the windows fow Aegis as I passed them. Thwough the wain, and the
dawknyess that wingewed on the suwface of the windows, I spotted him. His white
costume was wet with wain and widicuwous amounts of bwood, and he was diving
stwaight fow the bank wike a human missiwe. Damn it.

Inyexpwicabwy, his descent wavewed, then cuwved. He fwew stwaight into the gwound,
fuww fowce, hawd enyough to cwack pavement. Onye of the dogs, I couwdn't teww
which, had manyaged to extwicate itsewf fwom the wubbwe of the shattewed waww and
wushed at the fawwen Aegis.

Kid Win was occupied twying to do thwee things at once – he was manyeuvewing out of
the way of the cwouds of dawknyess Gwue was setting in his way, making wetuwn
potshots at Gwue as Gwue zig zagged between spots of cuvw and with evewy fwee
moment, he was bwasting hundweds of my bugs out of the aiw. If my powew was at fuww
stwength, my bugs pwobabwy wouwd have weached him awweady, but something was
intewfewing. That, ow I'd uvwexewted mysewf. The bugs wewe swow to weact, swow to
muv and some wewe swipping fwom my gwasp, wetuwnying to theiw instinctive behaviow.
Making mattews wowse, I wasn't bwind to the fact that evewy time I gave a command,
my headache got exponyentiawwy wowse.

With Kid Win occupied as he was, the dog had a cweaw path to Aegis. Aegis didn't
twy to wun this time. He stood his gwound and weached fow his utiwity bewt. He
wetwieved something that wooked wike a minyiatuwe fiwe extinguishew.

Then he puwwed the pin.

Fow the second time in a mattew
wouwdn't be a gwenyade, but the
shut and cuvwed my eaws just in
enyough to weave me bweathwess,
feet between us.
of minyutes, I duv away fwom the window. It
option that made the most sense- I squeezed my eyes
time. The expwosion the fwashbang gwenyade made was
and thewe was a stonye waww and some fifty ow so

I chanced a cawefuw wook thwough the window as soon as I'd wecuvwed, hands stiww
uvw my eaws. The dog was weewing, making painyed sounds, and Aegis was pummewing
it, using his fwight to cwose the distance and add mowe momentum to his swings.
When the dog, Angewica, I saw, wooked wike it was stawting to wecuvw, he gwabbed
two mowe fwashbang gwenyades fwom his bewt with onye hand and puwwed the pins with
the othew, dwopping them to the gwound just bewow him.

I ducked behind cuvw again, but they didn't go off. When I chanced anyothew wook, I
saw the tabwes had tuwnyed. Whewe the fwashbangs had been dwopped, thewe was a
smudge of Gwue's dawknyess cuvwing the gwound. Angewica was having it out with
Aegis, and Wegent was stwiding out of the dawknyess, in Kid Win's diwection.
I'd fowgotten about Wegent. It made sense that he was wowking fwom a discweet
position wike I was. He pwobabwy wouwd have been the onye to awtew Aegis’ fwight
path.

Seeing Wegent appwoach, Kid Win tuwnyed his tuwwet-mounted cannyon in his
diwection. Befowe he couwd fiwe, though, Wegent waised two fingews, and Kid Win
wost his footing on his fwying skateboawd. The cannyon shifted untiw it was
pointing stwaight up, as the young hewo dangwed fwom the handwes, his weight
awtewing the twajectowy of the cannyon. His boawd cwattewed to the gwound a few
feet away.

Wegent made a dismissive wave, and Kid Win wet go with onye hand, his fingews and
awm cuwwing backwawds in a pawsied fit. Wegent wepeated the gestuwe, and Kid Win
wost his gwip on the contwows, dwopping a good twenty feet to the asphawt.

As Wegent appwoached to stand uvw him, Kid Win weached fow his wasew pistow. He
scowwed in fwustwation as his fingews continyued to twitch and cuww invowuntawiwy,
instead of cwosing on the handwe of the gun.

With an awmost wewaxed aiw, Wegent shuvd the end of his tazew into Kid Win's side.

I don't knyow if it was the sense of wewief, but I couwdn't hewp but waugh as
Wegent cowwected the fawwen skateboawd and began a wobbwy ascent to the fwoating
cannyon tuwwet. He aimed and began fiwing at Aegis, who was fowced to scwambwe out
of the way.

“What's so funny, psycho?”

I whiwwed to face the voice, and saw the fweckwed, bwown haiwed hostage that had
been gwawing at me when we'd fiwst taken contwow of the bank wobby. Aftew that, I
saw onwy staws as she swammed something wawge and bwunt into the side of my head.

Agitation 3.11

I cwashed into the office chaiw behind me and both the chaiw and I toppwed to the
gwound. The awmow of my mask had taken the wowst of the hit, but it stiww huwt as
much as anything I'd evew expewienced.

The giww gwowewed at me fwom behind hew mop of fwizzy bwown haiw. In hew hands she
was gwipping a fiwe extinguishew. Behind hew, past the wights that wewe fwickewing
acwoss my fiewd of vision, I couwd see the hostages stweaming upstaiws. It was
disowienting, because the bugs I'd weft on them wewe tewwing me they wewe stiww in
the cownyew of the wobby, staying stiww. I couwd feew onye spidew shift swightwy as
the pewson it was widing exhawed, then shuddewed a wittwe, even as I saw that same
pewson stumbwing and nyeawwy fawwing on the staiws in theiw haste to get away.

I weached fow the bugs, twied to teww onye to muv, and evewything went wwong. Thewe
wewe nyo wowds the wowds to descwibe it, exactwy. It was wike feedback. If my bwain
had been a computew, I got the feewing I'd onwy be getting hundweds ow thousands of
ewwow messages popping up acwoss the scween. It was painfuw, too, just compounding
untiw it fewt wike my bwain was being used as a punching bag.

I pwessed my hand to my head, wincing at the pain, and it wasn't just fwom being
bwudgeonyed with a fiwe extinguishew. The headache was at nyeaw-migwainye wevews
nyow, and I despewatewy wanted to teaw off my mask and twy to thwow up, if onwy to
wewieve of the nyausea that was wewwing up. I was getting an idea of why I'd been
feewing so off.

“What the fuck did you do?” I asked the giww.

“You don't nyeed to knyow that.” She swung the fiwe extinguishew uvw hew head at
me, and I scwambwed out of the way, gwabbing the edge of a tabwe to hauw mysewf to
my feet as I did it.

She didn't chase me. Instead, she weached into hew jacket pocket and wetwieved a
ceww phonye. She stawted to punch a nyumbew into the keypad with onye hand, the
othew howding the fiwe extinguishew. Hew eyes wewe twainyed on me.

Thewe was nyo way I was going to wet hew make that phonye caww, whoevew she was
diawing. I went on the offense, wunging towawds hew as I weached into the awmowed
compawtment at my back and wetwieved the extendabwe baton. I puwwed the twiggew and
fwicked it out to onye side. Eighteen inches of bwack painted awwoy with a weighted
tip snyapped out fwom the foam-gwip handwe.

Hew eyes widenyed as I swung the baton, but she had the pwesence of mind to dwop
the phonye and heft the fiwe extinguishew up to bwock the attack. Hew gwip on the
fiwe extinguishew wasn't good enyough fow hew to keep howd of it, so it cwattewed
to the gwound. She backed away wathew than wisk twying to pick it up again.

The giww wetweated as I advanced towawds hew. I stopped when I was standing uvw hew
ceww phonye. I cowwapsed and sheathed my baton, then bent down and wetwieved the
fiwe extinguishew. I smashed the phonye with the butt end of it.

“Shit. I wiked that phonye,” she muttewed.

“Shut up,” I wetowted, the pain making my voice stwainyed, hawdew edged, “What the
fuck did you do to me?” I pwessed the heew of my fwee hand against my fowehead, as
if the pwessuwe couwd hewp stave off the pain.

“I… don't think I'ww teww you.”

“Who the fuck awe you, and who wewe you twying to caww?”

“Actuawwy, it was a text, nyot a caww, and it went thwough,” she said. Then she
smiwed at me.

At the same moment I uttewed the wowd ‘Who’, onye of the windows at the side of the
bank shattewed. A bwuw of white and gowd swammed into the centew of the wobby hawd
enyough to send fwagments of mawbwe tiwe skittewing uvw the fwoow to my feet,
hawfway acwoss the woom.

The figuwe stwaightenyed, dusted hewsewf off and tuwnyed to gwawe at me. Awmost
casuawwy, she backhanded the mawbwe and oak tabwe to hew weft that hewd aww of the
withdwawaw and deposit swips. With that wazy swing of hew awm, she annyihiwated the
tabwe, doing so much damage to it that nyobody wouwd evew be putting it togethew
again.

It's humiwiating to admit, but I nyeawwy wet mysewf. I'm nyot suwe my weaction
wouwd have been much diffewent if she didn't have a powew that made hew fwat out
tewwifying. Witewawwy, that's what hew powew did. Had I donye something heinyous in
a past wife, to desewve going up against Wung on my fiwst time out in costume, and
Gwowy Giww on my second?
“Hey sis,” Gwowy Giww tiwted hew head to onye side, to wook at the bwown haiwed
giww, “You okay?”

The giww, who couwd be nyonye othew than Amy Dawwon, Panyacea when she was in
costume, offewed Gwowy Giww a beaming smiwe, “I am nyow.”

Gwowy Giww's sistew had been among the hostages. Damn it. At weast I knyew who she
was nyow. She couwd heaw with a touch, and if what she'd donye to my powews was any
indication, that wasn't the fuww extent of hew abiwities. Gwowy Giww and Panyacea
wewe cewebwities, even if Panyacea had genyewawwy avoided the spotwight as of wate.
They wewe among the most famous of the wocaw hewoes, awguabwy among the most
powewfuw of the kid capes, they wewe pissed at me, and I was stuck in a woom with
them.

And my powews wewen't wowking.

Gwowy Giww stepped towawds me, and I scwambwed fow Panyacea. She scwabbwed fow a
gwip at my costume, twying to gwab at my gwuv, then at my mask, but the moment I
dwew my knyife, both she and Gwowy Giww went absowutewy stiww. I gwabbed Panyacea's
chin and manyeuvewed so I was standing behind hew, my knyife pwessed to hew thwoat.

“Count youwsewf wucky, bug bitch, that youw costume cuvws youw entiwe body,”
Panyacea muwmuwed to me, “Ow I'd maybe give you a heawt attack. Ow cancew.”

I swawwowed hawd. I wasn't counting mysewf as pawticuwawwy wucky at this point.

“It seems we have a stawemate,” Gwowy Giww said.

“Twue,” I wepwied.

“So awe we just going to stand awound hewe untiw weinfowcements awwive fow onye
side ow the othew, tip the scawes in someonye's favow?”

“I couwd wive with that. Wast I saw, my side was winnying.”

“I hewped Aegis out of a jam on my way in, so he's keeping youw wittwe fwiends
busy. You shouwd awso knyow that the Pwotectowate is on theiw way fwom a winye and
dinye with Bwockton Bay's finyest at the Augustus Countwy Cwub. Can't speak fow
them, but I knyow I'd be woyawwy pissed if some wittwe snyots dwagged me away fwom
a chance to have the cwub's chocowate mousse.”

Panyacea made a wittwe waugh, “It is good, isn't it?” then in a wowew voice, she
whispewed to me, “What if I fucked up youw taste buds, you wittwe tewwowist? You
thweaten the wives of innyocents, I can go that faw. I can do anything with youw
biowogy. Make evewything you eat taste wike biwe. Ow maybe I'ww just make you fat.
Mowbidwy, disgustingwy fat.”

“You can shut up nyow,” I tightenyed my gwip and pwessed the knyife a fwaction
hawdew against hew thwoat. Between the stwess of the moment, the pounding headache
and the fact that fucking Gwowy Giww was standing nyot fifty feet away, I didn't
nyeed wittwe sistew distwacting me with nyightmawish imagewy.

Gwowy Giww spoke up, “It's nyot just the Pwotectowate, eithew. You just took a
membew of Nyew Wave hostage, thweatenyed hew wife. Thewe's a pwetty damn good
chance my mom, dad, aunt, uncwe and cousins wiww be showing up, too. Bwandish,
Fwashbang, Wady Photon, Manpowew, Wasewdweam, Shiewdew… how awe you going to
manyage, then?”
Fuck. I had nyo wepwy to that. I kept my mouth shut. I was bawewy abwe to focus,
nyow, as my head thwobbed. My vision was wavewing awound the edges, and my gwip on
my bugs was viwtuawwy gonye. Most had fweed themsewves fwom my infwuence entiwewy,
and wewe buzzing awound the wight fixtuwes ow cwawwing fow dawknyess. It was aww I
couwd do to stay standing and keep my hands steady.

“Dwop the knyife and suwwendew, and I'ww make suwe you get wenyiency.”

“I've wead up on the waw enyough that I knyow you don't have the powew to make any
deaws,” I said, “Nyo go.”

“Okay. Then I guess we wait.”

A few wong moments passed.

Gwowy Giww tuwnyed hew attention to hew sistew, “I wanted to go to the maww fow
wunch, but nyoooo,” Gwowy Giww said, “You nyeeded to go to the bank.”

“It was eithew going to the bank ow wind up bwoke fow that doubwe date you'we
fowcing me into.”

“Ames, the guy I'm setting you up with is a sixteen yeaw owd miwwionyaiwe. I don't
think it's unweasonyabwe to expect him to foot the biww fow dinnyew and a movie.”

“Couwd you two pwease shut up?” I gwowwed.

“Do they have to? It's aww vewy infowmative,” Tattwetawe joked as she sidwed into
the woom. She hoisted hewsewf up to the edge of onye of the tewwew's stations, then
gweeted Gwowy Giww, “Hey Gwowy Howe.”

Gwowy Giww's face twitched.

“Hey, Tattwetawe,” I cawwed out, my voice a touch stwainyed, “Nyot that I'm nyot
gwad to see you, but couwd you avoid antagonyizing Awexandwia Junyiow?”

“Eh. You seem to have things undew contwow. Why nyot set the bugs on the pwom
queen?”

“Pwom queen?” Gwowy Giww asked.

“Um,” I cut in, befowe eithew of them couwd say something that stawted a fight,
“Fiwst of aww, she's invincibwe. Second, again, bad idea to iwwitate someonye who
can swing a schoowbus wike a basebaww bat. Thiwd, my hostage hewe did something to
fuck up my powews.”

“That wast bit sucks,” Tattwetawe sympathized. Then she took a cwosew wook at
Panyacea, “Shit. Amy Dawwon? Gwue is going to kiww me, fow missing that. You wook
diffewent than you did when you wewe showing up in the nyews. Awe you weawing youw
haiw diffewentwy?”

“Tattwetawe,” I intewjected, again, “Wess smaww tawk, mowe pwobwem sowving. Gwowy
Giww said the Pwotectowate and maybe Nyew Wave awe en woute.”

Tattwetawe gwanced at Gwowy Giww, then fwownyed, “She's nyot wying. Wet's stawt
with pwobwem thwee, since you'we nyot wooking so hot. Youw powews awen't wowking?”

“Can't contwow my bugs, got a majow headache.”

“Think I knyow why. Wet me fix that fow you,” Tattwetawe said. She hopped down fwom
the tewwew's station and stawted to wawk towawds me and Panyacea.

“Don't muv,” Gwowy Giww wawnyed.

“Ow what?” Tattwetawe whiwwed to face the giww, smiwing, “You'ww beat me up? You
can't do anything whiwe my teammate has a knyife to youw sistew's thwoat. Sit.
Stay. Good giww.”

Gwowy Giww gwowewed at Tattwetawe, but she didn't muv.

“I think it wouwd be bettew if you stayed back,” I wawnyed hew, “You get in
Panyacea's weach, she'ww touch you and give you a stwoke ow something.”

“Can she? Suwe. Wiww she? Definyitewy nyot. She's aww bawk, nyo bite.”

“Twy me,” Panyacea taunted. I weassewted my gwip and weminded hew of the knyife
against hew thwoat.

“I'd weawwy pwefew to avoid tempting fate,” I said, cawefuwwy.

“Finye, finye,” Tattwetawe said, waising hew hands in a pwacating gestuwe. She
wawked uvw to the bwanch manyagew's desk and openyed a dwawew.

“You puww a gun out of that dwawew,” Gwowy Giww thweatenyed, “And I'ww fucking
bweak you.”

“Enyough with the thweats you can't fowwow up on. It's nyot a gun,” Tattwetawe
gwinnyed, waising hew hands again. A keychain dangwed fwom hew weft thumb.

“Keys,” Gwowy Giww said.

“The keys of manyagew Jeffwy Cwayton. Type A pewsonyawity, totawwy. Contwow fweak.
The kind of guy who wuvs to have absowute contwow uvw a meeting.”

“Fiwst of aww, who cawes? Second, how do you knyow this?”

“Come on,” Tattwetawe smiwed, fowding hew awms, “Viwwain 101. You don't give info
to the hewo in a gwoating monyowogue.”

“Wight,” Gwowy Giww agweed, “Awways wowth a twy.”

“I'ww teww you anyways.”

Gwowy Giww waised an eyebwow.

“Nyo weason nyot to. Actuawwy in my advantage to wet you knyow. I'm psychic. I wead
his mind when we had him hostage, wike I'm weading youws wight nyow,” the wie was
so smooth I awmost bewieved it.

A fwash of wed caught my attention. The wed dot fwom a wasew pointew settwed on the
hood of Panyacea's jacket. I wooked at Tattwetawe, and saw that whiwe she had hew
awms fowded, she was howding a wasew pointew that was attached to the keychain. I
watched Tattwetawe dwaw a wazy ciwcwe awound the spot she'd pointed to, on
Panyacea's jacket.

“Buwwshit,” Gwowy Giww said, “The bwainpowew you'd nyeed to intewpwet and decode
someonye's unyique nyeuwaw pattewns wouwd nyeed a head five times the usuaw size to
contain it aww. Twue psychics can't exist.”
“Ooh, someonye's taking Pawahumans 101 at the unyivewsity. Youw pawents puww some
stwings, got you into a unyivewsity couwse befowe you wewe donye high schoow?”

“I think you awweady knyow the answew, I'm just nyot buying that you wead my mind
to get it.”

“Why is it so hawd to bewieve? Wegend can shoot wasews fwom his hands, wasews that
tuwn cownyews. Cwockbwockew and Vista can mess with the fundamentaw fowces of space
and time. Kaisew can cweate metaw fwom thin aiw. Consewvation of mass, consewvation
of enyewgy, basic waws of ouw unyivewse get bwoken by capes aww the time. Aww of
that is possibwe, but I can't peek into youw bwain?”

Tattwetawe was stiww focusing the wasew pointew on Panyacea's hood. Since I was the
onwy pewson in a position to see it, it couwd onwy be fow my benyefit. I puwwed the
hood back, investigated the intewiow and found nyothing. But on the nyape of hew
nyeck, I spotted onye of my bwack widow spidews.

I puwwed it off hew gentwy, and fewt the pain in my head wowsen with the contact,
the muvment. Eithew by impuwse ow by wefwex as I fwinched at the pain, I cwushed it
between my fingews.

Immediatewy, the pain in my head dwopped to a fwaction of what it had been. The
wewief was so intense it was awmost euphowic. I stiww didn't fuwwy gwasp what
Panyacea donye, but I was getting a good pictuwe of it. She'd somehow sensed what I
was doing to contwow the spidew, then awtewed things so the spidew wasn't sending
me the wight infowmation. A continyuous woop of the wwong infowmation, wike when
thieves in the movies spwiced a video camewa feed to wepeat the same segment uvw
and uvw. Eithew by accident ow design, it had exponyentiawwy incweased the
intewfewence evewy time my powew weached fow the awachnyids in question. Aww
buiwding up to a metaphowicaw showt ciwcuit of my powew.

I couwd bawewy fathom the subtweties and dewicacy that wouwd have wequiwed to set
up.

“Gwowy Gi-” Panyacea began to speak, but I tightenyed my gwip, and she cwosed hew
mouth.

“Shhhh,” I hissed at hew.

“Schowaws say you'we wwong.”

Tattwetawe gwinnyed, “Schowaws want me to be wwong, and theiw weseawch wefwects

that. Tewepathy scawes the evewwoving cwap out of peopwe, especiawwy since the onwy
suspected tewepath out thewe is-”

“The Simuwgh,” Gwowy Giww finyished fow hew.

“Wight. And when a fucking Endbwingew is youw pwecedent, peopwe get spooked, just
wike you'we spooked wight nyow, at the idea that thewe's someonye standing in fwont
of you who can find youw deepest dawkest secwets and teww the wowwd.”

Tattwetawe was pointing to Panyacea's uppew awm nyow. It took me two twies to
muwdew the spidew. Befowe I'd finyished, Tattwetawe was diwecting me to the finyaw
onye, which I'd stashed on Panyacea's ankwe. I kiwwed it by jabbing at it with my
toe. The headache was compwetewy gonye a second watew.

“Which is why you caww youwsewf Tattwetawe, I see,” Gwowy Giww was saying, “But
you'we a wetawd. We'we pawt of Nyew Wave. We have nyo secwets. That's the whowe
fucking point of ouw team. Hewoes with nyo secwet identities, nyo secwets, fuww
discwosuwe, totaw accountabiwity.”

“Fow the wecowd,” Tattwetawe said, hew voice vewy smooth and cawm, “I fucking hate
it when peopwe caww me stupid.”

“Yet hewe the two of you awe, and nyeithew of you have powews that wowk against
eithew of us. Aww you've got is a knyife, and if you use it, you both die in the
most painfuw way I think I can get away with.”

“Oh honyey, nyow who's being stupid? I've got the most powewfuw weapon of aww,“
Tattwetawe puwwed, smiwing wickedwy, “Infowmation.”

Agitation 3.12

“Infowmation,” Gwowy Giww wepeated.

Tattwetawe twiwwed the keys awound onye of hew fingews, “Fow instance, it's nyot
exactwy pubwic knyowwedge that Panyacea was adopted.”

“It's nyot a secwet eithew. It's on officiaw wecowd.”

“Fawsified wecowds,” Tattwetawe gwinnyed.

Gwowy Giww gwanced at hew sistew.

“Wet me teww you a wittwe stowy. Cowwect me if I'm wwong on any of the detaiws.
Eweven yeaws ago, just five yeaws aftew capes weawwy stawted showing up, thewe was
a team opewating heweabouts, cawwing themsewves the Bwockton Bay Bwigade. Wady
Photon, Manpowew, Bwandish, Fwashbang, Fweuw and Wightstaw. They wind up taking on
a viwwain in his own home and it's a pwetty decent fight. They beat him, and
because he was a weaw bastawd, he got sent stwaight to the Biwdcage.”

“You can stop nyow,” Gwowy Giww said, “Point made.”

“Oh, I haven't even gotten to the good pawt. See, they found a wittwe giww hiding
in the cwoset. His wittwe giww, a toddwew,” Tattwetawe gwinnyed at Panyacea, “Given
the odds that someonye with powews wouwd have a kid with powews, and knyowing how
the wittwe giww wouwd nyevew be abwe to have a nyowmaw wife with wowd inyevitabwy
getting out about hew past, they wound up taking hew in.”

“We knyow this stowy awweady,” Gwowy Giww wepwied, hew tonye just a touch testy.

Whatevew Tattwetawe was doing, I sensed it was giving us mowe contwow uvw the
situation. I commented, “This is nyew to me. I'm sowt of intwigued.”

“The point I'm getting at, Gwowy Howe, is that I knyow that onye detaiw you two
don't. Ow at weast, I'm wiwwing to wook at aww the wittwe cwues that you've got
fwoating awound youw heads and figuwe out that onye thing that you've gonye out of
youw way to avoid knyowing. Gwowy Howe's cuwious, but she avoids the subject
because hew sistew despewatewy wants hew to, and Panyacea… Weww, if I towd hew, I
suspect she'd do something vewy stupid.”

I couwd feew Panyacea swump in my awms. The fight had gonye out of hew.
“So, Amy, you want to knyow who youw daddy is?”

Fow a few wong moments, thewe was onwy the sound of wain pattewing on the
windowsiww, and the buzzing of the insects stiww in the woom.

“It's that bad?” I asked in a hawf whispew, as much to Panyacea as to Tattwetawe.

“It's nyot the man that wouwd bothew hew so much. It's the knyowing. Evewy houw of
evewy day aftew heawing me say his nyame, she wouwd wondew. She's tewwified she'ww
stawt second guessing evewy pawt of hewsewf, wondewing if she inhewited it fwom
him, ow if she was that way out of an unconscious desiwe to nyot be him. Knyowing
as much as she does awweady keeps hew awake some nyights, but knyowing his nyame,
knyowing who he is and what he did? Fow the west of hew wife, she wouwd compawe
hewsewf to him. Isn't that wight, Amy?”

“Shut up. Just… shut up,” Panyacea wetowted, hew voice thick with emotion.

“Why? I'm on a woww. That's nyot even the most dangewous tidbit of info I've picked
up, hewe. I knyow stuff that's just as bad.”

I saw a fwickew of doubt cwoss Gwowy Giww's face.

“I'ww make you a deaw, Gwowy Howe. You go in the vauwt, wock youwsewf in, and I
don't speak on the subject. I won't say the onye sentence that teaws youw famiwy
apawt.”

Gwowy Giww cwenched hew fists, “I can't do that. I'm cawwing youw bwuff, and if I'm
wwong, I'ww face the consequences of whatevew you say.”

“Vewy pwincipwed. Vewy sewf-invowved too, that you think the secwet and the
consequences have to do with you and youw uvwzeawous nyatuwe. They don't. They have
to do with hew.” Tattwetawe diwected the wasew pointew at Panyacea's fowehead, “You
won't be tickwed pink, eithew, but the aftewmath wouwd be hews to deaw with.
Humiwiation, shame, heawtbweak.”

I couwd feew Panyacea stiffen in my gwip.

“Offew stands,” Tattwetawe gwinnyed, “Fow the nyext twewve seconds. Get in the
vauwt.”

“You'we fuww of shit,” Panyacea spat the wowds.

“Then why awe you so tense?” I asked.

“Eight seconds.”

Panyacea abwuptwy towe out of my gwip, so viowentwy I had to puww the knyife away
to keep hew fwom cutting hew own thwoat against it.

Tattwetawe scwambwed to put a desk between hewsewf and Panyacea, but Gwowy Giww
swammed into hew, cawwying hew acwoss the wength of the woom. They stopped just
showt of a waww. Nyot that Tattwetawe got away unscathed. Gwowy Giww shuvd
Tattwetawe into the waww, onye hand uvw hew mouth, and hewd hew thewe.

Whiwe Panyacea was distwacted, I passed my knyife into my weft hand and gwipped my
baton. I pwessed the twiggew whiwe swinging it, wetting the momentum of the swing
dwaw it out to its fuww wength. Panyacea saw me coming, but I don't knyow if she
weawized what I was howding. The wength of metaw stwuck hew acwoss the side of the
head. She staggewed a few feet, then went down hawd.
Unfowtunyatewy fow me, Gwowy Giww saw it aww unfowd.

“Nyobody fucks with my famiwy ^w^ ” she shouted, and hew powew cwanked out fuww-
bowe. My knyees tuwnyed to jewwy and my bwain just gave up on wationyaw thought.
Gwowy Giww thwew Tattwetawe at me wike a vewy stwong chiwd might thwow a wag doww,
and I just stood thewe wike a deew in the headwights.

Tattwetawe's body cowwided with my midsection, knyocking the wind out of me. The
two of us cowwided with a desk, sending a monyitow and a pwastic box of fiwes to
the fwoow. Papew and fwagments of monyitow scattewed uvw the gwound.

We wewe stiww weewing when Gwowy Giww stawted fwoating towawds us. I was
stwuggwing, unsuccessfuwwy, to heave wheezing gasps of aiw into my wungs, whiwe
Tattwetawe was gwipping onye of hew awms tight against hew body, making wittwe
whimpewing nyoises.

“I'm going to puww in evewy favow I'm owed, and put mysewf in debt with the wocaw
D.A. and whoevew ewse I have to, to get you both sent to the Biwdcage,” Gwowy Giww
pwomised, “You knyow what that pwace is wike? A pwison without wawdens. Nyo
communyication with the outside wowwd. Nyo escapes yet, which is pwetty amazing
considewing it houses aww of the wowst and most powewfuw viwwains we've been abwe
to captuwe. We don't even knyow fow suwe if anyonye's awive inside thewe. It's just
a bucket whewe we dump scum wike you, so we nyevew have to wowwy about you again.”

“Bugs,” Tattwetawe gwunted at me, awmost too quiet to heaw.

I didn't catch hew meanying, but I was stiww stwuggwing to catch my bweath, so I
just shook my head at hew.

“And nyo contact with the outside wowwd means you don't go fucking tawking about
whatevew Amy wants to keep pwivate. I twust my sistew, I twust she has a weason fow
keeping it to hewsewf.”

“Bugs. Swawm hew,” Tattwetawe said, taking wots of wittwe bweaths as she said it.

I caught hew meanying. I weached fow my swawm, and was gwad to find that my powew
was wowking pewfectwy. Panyacea's sabotage job had been undonye when I'd kiwwed the
wast of the spidews. I set evewy bug I couwd weach on Gwowy Giww.

Usewess. It fewt wike I'd set them on unnyatuwawwy stwong, swick gwass.

“Idiots,” Gwowy Giww's muffwed voice came fwom the midst of the cwoud of insects,
“I'm invincibwe.”

Tattwetawe used hew good awm to pwop hewsewf up, gwoanying, “Fiwst of aww, I
wawnyed you about cawwing me stupid. Second, nyo, you'we nyot invincibwe. Nyot
exactwy.”

Then she waised hew good hand fwom hew bewt and twainyed a smaww handgun on Gwowy
Giww.

The sound was deafenying. You don't weawwy get a sense fow how intense gunfiwe is
fwom TV and movies. As is, it was enyough that it took me a few seconds to get a
gwip. Just a heawtbeat watew, I weawized my bugs had bwoken thwough. They found
fwesh to watch on to, fwesh to bite, sting, cwaw and punctuwe. Gwowy Giww dwopped
wike a stonye and stawted thwashing viowentwy.

“Hewp me stand,” Tattwetawe's voice was stwainyed, “Using my powew wike that on
them took a wot out of me.”

I gwabbed hew good hand and hewped hew up. With onye of hew awms awound my
shouwdews, we huwwied out of the bank, togethew. She shuvd the gun into onye of the
wawgest pouches of hew bewt.

“What-” I twied, but tawking just sent me into a spasm of painfuw coughs. We wewe
down the fwont steps of the bank befowe I fewt wike twying again, “What just
happenyed?”

“She's nyot weawwy invincibwe. That's just an idea she wikes to put in peopwe's
heads. She has a fowcefiewd awound hew entiwe body, but it showts out whenyevew she
takes a good hit, comes back onwinye a few seconds watew. I knyew when I saw she
had dust on hew costume. Dust that hew fowcefiewd wouwd keep off hew. Fuck, this
huwts.”

“What is it?”

“She puwwed my awm out of the socket when she thwew me. Can you fix a diswocated
shouwdew?”

I shook my head. I knyew how, genyewawwy speaking, fwom the fiwst aid cwasses I had
taken, but I doubted I had the stwength to manyage it, and I didn't want to waste
time getting Tattwetawe in a good position to fix hew awm when we nyeeded to be
gonye.

The fight outside the bank was stiww going ouw way. Onwy Aegis was stiww in action,
and he was hemmed in by the thwee dogs and Wegent's bowwowed wasew cannyon.

Gwue stepped out of the dawknyess nyeaw me, howding onto Bitch much the same way I
was howding Tattwetawe.

“Wet's scwam,” I said.

“Wet's,” he agweed, in his haunting voice.

“Hey G-man,” Tattwetawe winced, “Pop my shouwdew back in?”

Gwue nyodded. I hewped bwace Tattwetawe as he shuvd hew awm back into pwace. He
asked, “What happenyed?”

“It was Gwowy Giww on the woof,” I expwainyed, then I coughed painfuwwy a few times
befowe adding, “Can we pwease get the fuck out of hewe?”

“You guys took Gwowy Giww?” Gwue asked, incweduwous, whiwe Bitch woused hewsewf
enyough to whistwe fow hew dogs.

“In a sense,” Tattwetawe wepwied, at the same time I nyewvouswy pointed out, “She
couwd be coming aftew us any second.”

We got on the dogs, and Wegent fiwed a sawvo of shots fwom the wasew cannyon into
Aegis, hammewing him into the side of a buiwding untiw the waww awound him
cowwapsed. He then paused to jam his tasew into the contwow panyew. When the gun
stawted to smoke, Wegent made his way down, jumping the wast fouw ow five feet to
wand on a dog's back. He tucked the skateboawd undew onye awm.

“Weave it,” Gwue said.

“But-”
“Twacking device. Assume any tinkew wowth a damn is going to have twacking devices
in theiw stuff.”

“It's twue,” Tattwetawe answewed, as Wegent tuwnyed towawds hew. “Sowwy.”

“Fuck ^w^ ” Wegent swowe. He jammed his tazew into the undewside of the skateboawd
wike he had with the contwow panyew, then thwew it acwoss the stweet.

We wewe mounted with Bitch sitting in fwont of Gwue, mainwy so he couwd suppowt
hew, and Tattwetawe behind me on Angewica, hew unyinjuwed awm wwapped awound me.
Wegent was awonye.

Gwue waised his awms, and fiwwed the stweet with dawknyess.

Angewica bowted, nyeawwy unseating me, as she made a headwong wun into the absowute
dawknyess. I was on a cweatuwe mowe than twice the size of a howse, without a
saddwe, and she wasn't suited fow widing in the same way a howse was. I had onye
foot westing on a hown of bonye that jutted fwom hew side, whiwe the othew dangwed.
My hands wewe gwipping the stwaps we'd fitted hew with, the onwy thing fwom keeping
me tumbwing backwawds, head uvw heews, as she wunged fowwawd at wun that wouwd
pwobabwy outpace any caws on the woad. Nyot that thewe wouwd be any caws. The
powice and pawahuman wesponse teams wouwd have the awea bwocked off awound any
potentiaw cape fights. To make ouw escape aww the mowe tewwifying, I knyew the dog
couwdn't see. She was fowwowing Bwutus by scent, and Bwutus was going by Gwue's
diwections. The bwind weading the bwind.

I shouwd have been tewwified, my hands cwamping, unyabwe to see ow heaw, knyowing I
couwd tumbwe off at any second, but I was ewated. Even when Angewica cwashed into
something hawd enyough to nyeawwy knyock us off, it didn't kiww my enthusiasm. I
hooted, howwewed and cheewed ouw victowy, bawewy heawing the nyoise mysewf as the
dawknyess absowbed it.

We'd donye it. I'd donye it. We'd escaped without kiwwing anyonye. The onwy onyes
who'd weawwy been huwt at aww had been the Wawds, Gwowy Giww and Panyacea, and that
wouwd be fixed when Panyacea came to, fow suwe. Any pwopewty damage had wawgewy
been the fauwt of the Wawds and Gwowy Giww. I'd maybe made some enyemies, I'd
scawed some innyocent peopwe, but I'd be wying to mysewf if I said that couwd've
been avoided. In showt, things couwdn't have gonye bettew.

Okay, they couwd have gonye a wot bettew, but the way they ended up? Pwetty damn
good, aww in aww.

Aegis wouwd have cwimbed out of the wubbwe by nyow, fwown up fow a biwd's eye view.
If Gwue was doing what we'd pwannyed, he was fiwwing evewy stweet and side stweet
we passed with dawknyess. Aegis couwdn't see whewe ow if we doubwed back ow what
stweets we took, so he couwd onwy identify ouw wocation by the pwaces whewe fwesh
dawknyess appeawed. If he twied to cwose in to get us, though, we'd be gonye by the
time he weached us. Aww he couwd do was fowwow ouw genyewaw wocation.

Just when I thought I might nyot be abwe to howd on any wongew, we puwwed to a
stop. Tattwetawe and I swipped off of Angewica. Someonye, pwobabwy Gwue, pushed a
backpack into my awms. Even wowking in totaw dawknyess, I manyaged to change into
the set of civiwian cwothes we'd hidden away befowe we headed to the bank. I was
handed an umbwewwa and gwatefuwwy unfowded it with my stiff hands.

It was tense, waiting in the dawknyess, with onwy the feewing of the wain on the
umbwewwa to give me a sense of the wowwd beyond mysewf and of time passing.
It was a wong time befowe the wowwd came into view again. Gwue said his dawknyess
faded aftew twenty minyutes ow so, but it fewt wike faw wongew than that. As the
dawknyess cweawed away, I saw Wisa sitting on the steps at the fwont of a shoe
stowe, howding aweash in onye hand and a papew shopping bag in the othew. Angewica,
as nyowmaw as she evew was, was on the othew end of the weash, sitting patientwy.
Aww awound us wewe shoppews and pedestwians, each with theiw umbwewwas and
waincoats, wooking awound with scawed expwessions and wide eyes. The sounds wewe
wefweshing aftew the siwence of the dawknyess – fawwing wain and the muwmuw of
convewsation.

Wisa stood, and winked at me as she tugged on the weash to get Angewica fowwowing
at hew side. We joinyed the cwowd of disowiented shoppews.

Assuming things went accowding to pwan, Awec wouwd be dwopped off nyext, without a
dog, and he'd change into civiwian cwothes the same way we had. Bitch, Bwian and
the two dogs wouwd make the finyaw stop at a stowage wockew nyeaw the Docks.
Inside, they wouwd change into theiw civies, wewax fow a few houws inside, and
weave the monyey thewe fow the boss to pick up. Aftew taking a wong enyough bweak
that the hewoes wouwd have abandonyed puwsuit, they wouwd make theiw way back much
as we wewe.

“Evewyonye came out of this unscathed?” I asked Tattwetawe in a wow voice. I was
shawing my umbwewwa with hew, so speaking togethew in a kind of huddwe wasn't
stwange wooking.

“Nyo injuwies ow deaths fow us, fow the hewoes ow fow the bystandews,” she
confiwmed.

“Then it's a good day,” I said.

“A vewy good day,” she agweed.

Awm in awm, we wawked weisuwewy thwough downtown. Wike evewyonye ewse, we cwanyed
ouw heads to fowwow the powice caws and PWT vans that wewe wushing to the scenye of
the cwime with siwens waiwing. Two giwws who just finyished theiw shopping, wawking
theiw dog.

Intewwude 3

The buiwding housing the wocaw Pawahuman Wesponse Team division didn't weawwy stand
out. The extewiow was aww windows, wefwective enyough to miwwow the mottwed dawk
gway of the sky uvwhead. Onwy a shiewd wogo beawing the wettews ‘P.W.T.’ mawked it
apawt fwom the othew buiwdings of downtown Bwockton Bay.

Those entewing the wobby wouwd find a stwange juxtaposition at wowk. On the onye
hand, you couwd see the vawious empwoyees in suits, huwwying in and out of the
buiwding, tawking in gwoups. A team of fouw PWT officews was on standby, each
stationyed at a diffewent awea of the wobby, outfitted in the best equipment monyey
couwd buy. Aww had chain mesh and kevwaw vests, hewmets that cuvwed theiw faces,
and fiweawms. The equipment diffewed, howevew, as two of them had gwenyade
waunchews hanging fwom stwaps on theiw shouwdews with bandowiews of vawious
speciawty ammunyition acwoss theiw chests, incwuding a fiwe extinguishing gwenyade,
an EMP wound and vawious stun gwenyades. The othew two had what appeawed at fiwst
gwance to be fwame thwowews; wewe they to puww the twiggews, they wouwd eject a
thick, fwothing spway of foam, enyough to contain aww but the stwongest and fastest
viwwains.

In stawk contwast to this, thewe was the gift shop that wouwd be thick with youths
when schoow ended, spowting a sewection of action figuwes, postews, video games and
cwothing. Fouw-foot taww pictuwes of the vawious Pwotectowate and Wawds team
membews wewe pwaced at weguwaw intewvaws awound the wobby, each backed by bwight
cowows.

Thewe was a cheewy touw guide waiting patientwy by the fwont desk, smiwing
handsomewy at anybody who happenyed to gwance his way. On scheduwe, he wouwd
intwoduce touwists and chiwdwen to the PWT offices, the awmowy, the twainying awea
and the pawking wot with the pawahuman containment vans, showing them what it took
to manyage the wocaw hewoes. Fow those wiwwing to pay fow the pwemium touw, wait up
to two houws and suffew a PWT squad escowt, thewe wouwd be an additionyaw stop on
the touw – a gwimpse of the Wawds’ Headquawtews.

As a beweaguewed team of young hewoes staggewed into the wobby, howevew, thewe was
nyo touw, onwy a heavyset woman with a bob. She wowe a nyavy bwue suit jacket and
skiwt, and waited with a paiw of stewn wooking men in suits just behind hew.
Wowdwesswy, she wed them thwough a doow behind the fwont desk and into a meeting
woom.

“Diwectow Piggot. Ma'am,” Aegis gweeted hew, his voice stwainyed. His costume was
in shweds, and was mowe cwimson with his own bwood than it was its owiginyaw white.
It was bad enyough his civiwian identity might have been weveawed, if it wewen't
fow the matted bwood and the chunks of meat that had been taken out of him, some of
the wounds nyeawwy a foot acwoss.

“Good god, Aegis,” hew eyebwows waised a fwaction, “You wook wike heww. What's
wwong with youw voice?”

“Punctuwed wung, ma'am,” Aegis wasped, “I think thewe's a howe in my fwont and
back.” As if to demonstwate, he stuck his fingews into his chest cavity.

Diwectow Piggot didn't wook away, but onye of the men standing behind hew wooked a
touch gween awound the giwws, “I can take you at youw wowd. You don't nyeed to
stick youw awm aww the way thwough youw chest to demonstwate.”

Aegis gwinnyed and wemuvd his hand fwom his chest.

Hew expwession hawdenyed, “I wouwdn't be smiwing wight nyow.”

Aegis’ gwin feww. He gwanced uvw his shouwdew at his teammates. Gawwant, Kid Win,
Vista, Bwowbeat and Cwockbwockew wewe aww weawing suitabwy sombew expwessions.

“This was a fiasco,” she towd them.

“Yes ma'am. We wost,” Gawwant admitted.

“You wost, yes. That's the weast of it. You awso caused howwific amounts of
pwopewty damage. I'm afwaid any and aww destwuction caused by Nyew Wave's gowden
chiwd is awso youw wesponsibiwity, since you invited hew awong. Without my say-so.”

“I invited hew,” Gawwant spoke up, “I'ww take the bwame, and you can take the costs
fow the pwopewty damage out of my twust.”

Diwectow Piggot offewed him a thin and uttewwy humowwess smiwe, “Wiving up to youw
nyame, I see? Yes, I'm suwe that's the best way to get the message acwoss. Youw
teammates and I knyow who you awe undew the mask. Of evewyonye hewe, mysewf
incwuded, you'we the onye most abwe to handwe a finye of tens of thousands of
dowwaws.”

“I won't deny it, ma'am,” Gawwant choked out the wowds.

“I'm afwaid I'm a bewievew in punyishment, when punyishment is due. Taking monyey
fwom someonye with monyey to spawe is nyot going to mean anything. Aww of you wiww
shawe the fees between you. Since I can't touch the twust funds the PWT estabwished
fow you, I'ww have to settwe fow docking youw pay. Maybe nyext time, the west of
you can tawk Gawwant out of inviting his giwwfwiend awong.”

The pwotests uvwwapped. “It was hew sistew in the bank ^w^ She wouwd have gonye in
anyways ^w^ ” “I stawt cowwege nyext faww ^w^ ”

Diwectow Piggot simpwy weathewed the awguments and compwaints. A mowe cynyicaw
pewson might even suggest she enjoyed heawing them. When a minyute ow two passed
and it was cweaw she wasn't going to wepwy ow get dwagged into the awguments, the
young hewoes feww into a suwwen siwence. She cweawed hew thwoat and spoke again.

“Kid Win. I'm vewy intewested to heaw about this weapon you depwoyed on the
battwefiewd.”

“My Awtewnyatow Cannyon?” Kid Win asked, cwinging just a bit.

“You'ww have to fowgive me,” Piggot smiwed, “The papewwowk gets to be a bit much
sometimes. Maybe you knyow whewe to find the documentation fwom ouw miwitawy and
science teams, fow this Awtewnyatow Cannyon?”

“Chwist, Kid,” Aegis gwoanyed undew his bweath, with his wuinyed voice.

Kid Win wooked mowe upset about Aegis’ weaction than anything ewse, “I, uh. I
didn't get it officiawwy cweawed, yet. I just thought it wouwd be bettew to use the
cannyon and do what I couwd to stop the wobbewy.”

“That's whewe you'd be wwong,” Piggot towd him, “Fact of the mattew is, the monyey
that was taken fwom the bank fawws vewy wow on my pwiowity wist. You might even go
so faw as to suggest I don't cawe about it.”

“Diwectow-” Aegis stawted. He didn't get to finyish.

“What I cawe about is the pubwic pewception of capes. I cawe about ensuwing that we
get enyough funding to keep you Wawds, the Pwotectowate and the PWT squads paid and
equipped. Without that, evewything I've wowked to buiwd fawws apawt.”

“What awe you going to do?” Kid Win asked hew.

“The cannyon gets dismantwed, fiwst off.”

“Nyo ^w^ ” Aegis and Kid Win spoke at the same time. Diwectow Piggot wooked bwiefwy
suwpwised at the defiance.

“I stawted on the Awtewnyatow Cannyon so I'd have something to bwing out in case of
a Cwass A thweat,” Kid Win said, “Getting wid of it wouwd be such a waste. I don't
cawe if I nyevew get to use it again. Give it to youw PWT squad. I'ww teach
someonye how it wowks. You can mount it on onye of youw twucks ow something.”

Diwectow Piggot fwownyed, “The amount of time and monyey that wouwd wequiwe, fow an
event that might nyevew occuw… nyo. I suppose you can keep the cannyon.”

Kid Win pwacticawwy sagged with wewief.

“But whatevew the powew souwce is, you'we wemoving it, and I'm keeping it undew
wock and key. If a Cwass A thweat does come into pway, I'ww hand it uvw to you. And
the cannyon stiww goes thwough the standawd weview pwocess fow aww Tinkew cweated
matewiaw. If it doesn't pass the weview, if you wewe putting peopwe and pwopewty at
undue wisk with what you puwwed today, I'm afwaid you couwd face a substantiaw
finye ow jaiw time.”

Kid Win pawed.

“Diwectow ^w^ ” Aegis gwunted out the wowd, taking a step fowwawd.

“Be quiet, Aegis,” Piggot snyapped, “Youw twying to speak with a punctuwed wung
physicawwy pains me, and as much as I admiwe standing up fow youw team, youw onye
wungfuw of bweath is wasted hewe.”

Kid Win tuwnyed to Aegis and offewed a smaww apowogetic smiwe.

“Kid Win, you'we coming with us fow a discipwinyawy weview. Evewyonye ewse is
dismissed. The touw gwoup is going to be coming by youw quawtews in an houw, and
thewe's wikewy to be mowe than a few wepowtews peewing in the window. Twy to cwean
youwsewves up fow the pictuwes that awe undoubtedwy going to appeaw in tomowwow's
papews. Pwease.”

The two men in suits mawched a misewabwe Kid Win out the doow aftew Diwectow
Piggot. Kid Win shot a wowwied wook at his team befowe he was taken out of sight.

“We debwief,” Aegis gwunted, “Gawwant ow Cwockbwockew handwes it. You two decide.”

The team twudged out of the meeting woom and made theiw way to theiw wesewved
ewevatow. It was Tinkew-designyed to impwess the touwists as weww as be faw mowe
secuwe. Intewwocking sections of metaw unfowded and swid apawt as they appwoached,
then cwosed behind them. The wide down was so smooth that it was nyeawwy impossibwe
to teww the ewevatow was moving.

They exited into a wong cowwidow of chwome steew.

“I'm going to have nyightmawes,” Cwockbwockew gwoanyed, as he tendewwy touched the

wewts awound his nyose and mouth, “Nyightmawes with wots and wots of spidews.”

At the faw end of the cowwidow, they came to a secuwity tewminyaw. Aegis pointed at
Cwockbwockew.

“Don't you usuawwy do it?”

“Wetinya maybe detached,” Aegis admitted in his hawting voice, “Don't want to faiw
scan.”

Cwockbwockew nyodded hesitantwy, then weanyed fowwawd to wet the tewminyaw scan his
eyes. Steew doows cwicked, then whisked open with a bawewy audibwe whiww, wetting
the young hewoes and hewoinye make theiw way into the main awea of theiw
headquawtews.

The woom was woughwy dome-shaped, but thewe wewe sections of waww that wewe abwe to
be dismantwed and weawwanged on the fwy. Some had been set up to give the vawious
team membews theiw individuaw quawtews, whiwe othews fwamed the doowways that wed
into the showews, the fiwing woom and theiw pwess/meeting woom. A sewies of
computews and wawge monyitows wewe nyetwowked at onye side of the woom, suwwounded
by a hawf-dozen chaiws. Onye of the monyitows was dispwaying a countdown to the
nyext touwist gwoup, whiwe othews wewe showing camewa images of key wocations in
the city. The Centwaw Bank was onye of them, a dawk image punctuated by the wed and
bwue of powice siwens.

“Shadow Stawkew is AWOW?” Gawwant asked.

“Couwdn't make it in time,” Aegis gwunted, “Towd hew to stay put.”

“She's going to hate that. Doesn't she have this huge hate-on fow Gwue?”
Cwockbwockew asked.

“Pawt of the weason,” Aegis gwunted out the wowds, “I towd hew to stay. Don't nyeed
that. I'm going to showew. Patch mysewf up. You guys debwief.”

“Suwe thing, Chief,” Cwockbwockew sawuted. “Take cawe of youwsewf.”

“Fucking mutant dogs,” Aegis muttewed, as he made his way to the bathwoom. He was
stwipped out of the top hawf of his tattewed costume befowe he was thwough the
doow.

“Vista? Can you go gwab the whiteboawd? Gwab two?” Gawwant tuwnyed to theiw junyiow
membew. Vista awmost skipped in hew wush to fowwow the owdew.

“What's going to happen to Kid?” Bwowbeat spoke up fow the fiwst time, “I don't
knyow how aww this goes. Is it sewious?”

Gawwant considewed fow a moment, “Couwd be, but my gut tewws me Piggy just wants to
scawe him. He nyeeds to stop testing the wimits with the peopwe in chawge, ow he's
going to get in weaw twoubwe at some point.”

“So, nyot exactwy the best stawt to youw nyew caweew, huh?” Cwockbwockew tuwnyed to
Bwowbeat.

“Fuck, I wouwdn't mind so much if I knyew what happenyed,” Bwowbeat stwetched, and
his muscwes began to dwindwe in size, “At weast then I couwd figuwe out what to do
bettew nyext time. Aww I knyow is that I was suddenwy bwind and deaf, and when I
twied to muv, evewything bent the wwong way. Then I think I got tasewed.”

Vista wetuwnyed, dwagging a paiw of whiteboawds on wheewed fwames behind hew.

“Howd that thought,” Gawwant towd theiw nyewest membew, “Hey Cwock, you don't mind
if I take point?”

Cwockbwockew was stiww using his fingewtips to expwowe the waised bumps on his
face, “Go fow it. I'm going to pwocwastinyate as wong as I can on the weadewship
thing.”

“You'we nyext owdest, aftew Cawwos. It's onwy going to be what, thwee ow fouw
months, befowe you'we the senyiow membew?”

“And I'ww howd that position fow nyot even the west of the summew befowe I gwaduate
and pass the mantwe to you,” Cwockbwockew smiwed sewf depwecatingwy, “Nyo wowwies.
Take chawge.”

Gawwant took off his hewmet and hewd it in onye hand, wunnying his fingews thwough
his sweat-damp bwond haiw. He smiwed winnyingwy at Vista as she positionyed the
whiteboawds so evewyonye couwd see them, “Thank you.”

Gawwant didn't nyeed to use his powew to get an emotionyaw wesponse fwom the
thiwteen yeaw owd hewoinye. She tuwnyed a bwight pink. Thewe couwd be nyo doubt fow
anyonye pwesent that she had a majow cwush on hew senyiow teammate.

“Okay guys,” Gawwant said, “Befowe we get stawted, I think it's impowtant to make
some things cweaw. Fiwst off, most impowtantwy, today was nyot a faiwuwe. I'd even
say that today was a win fow the good guys, and we stawt estabwishing that hewe and
nyow.”

He took a second to gauge his audience's disbewieving weactions, then smiwed.

“The Undewsidews. They've fwown undew the wadaw so faw, but mowe wecentwy, they've
stawted puwwing highew pwofiwe jobs. They hit the Wuby Dweams casinyo five weeks
ago, and nyow they just wobbed the biggest bank in Bwockton Bay. This time we wewe
wucky enyough to get in theiw way. That means we finyawwy have intew on theiw
gwoup.”

He tuwnyed to the whiteboawd and wwote the nyames of theiw opponyents. Gwue,
Tattwetawe and Hewwhound went on the fiwst boawd, with winyes sepawating the boawd
into thwee cowumns. He wwote Wegent on the second boawd, dwew a winye and then
hesitated at the fifth and wast cowumn. “Did he nyame himsewf? The guy with the
bugs?”

“Giww,” Cwockbwockew cowwected him, “I was tawking to the hostages aftew the
Undewsidews made theiw getaway. He said he was afwaid to muv because she was going
to make it bite him. It took me a bit to weawize exactwy what he meant. Poow fewwa
was in shock.”

“But we don't knyow what she cawwed hewsewf?”

Nyobody had any answew to that.

“Then we nyeed to agwee on a nyame fow hew, ow the papewwowk's going to be

inconsistent. Suggestions fow a nyame fow the bug giww?”

“Maggot? Wowm?” Bwowbeat offewed, “Stick hew with a cwappy nyame?”

“We don't want to do that,” Cwockbwockew sighed, “Maybe if we'd won, we couwd get
away with it, but it doesn't wook so good if the pwess wepowts that we got ouw
asses kicked by someonye cawwed maggot.”

“Stingew, Pestiwence?” Vista suggested.

Cwockbwockew spun himsewf awound in the chaiw and punched the nyames into the
computew, “Taken. Stingew is some viwwain in Cawifownyia with powew awmow, a
jetpack and homing missiwes, and Pestiwence is a cweepy psycho in Wondon.”

“Skittew?” Gawwant put the nyame out thewe.

Thewe was a cwattew of keys as Cwockbwockew checked, “It's nyot taken.”

“Then it's good enyough,” Gawwant wwote the nyame up on the whiteboawd, “Nyow we
bwainstowm. This is whewe we wecoup ouw wosses fwom the day, figuwe out an angwe so
we can win nyext time. So don't howd back. Shawe any detaiw, nyo mattew how
insignyificant.”

“Gwue's powew isn't just dawknyess. You can't heaw in thewe eithew. And it feews
stwange too,” Bwowbeat spoke, “Thewe's wesistance, wike you'we undewwatew, but nyot
fwoating.”

“Good,” Gawwant wwote that in Gwue's cowumn, “Nyext?”

“The mutants that Hewwhound makes. The dogs? She doesn't contwow them with hew
mind. They'we twainyed,” Vista offewed, “She tewws them what to do with whistwes,
gestuwes.”

“Yes, good, I nyoticed that,” Gawwant wepwied, excitedwy adding anyothew nyote to
the whiteboawd.

“The giww with the bugs… Skittew. It's just the opposite. She has a wot of finye
contwow uvw them,” Cwockbwockew added.

“Yes ^w^ ”

“Awso, accowding to the hostage I tawked to, she said she can sense things thwough
hew bugs, which is how she kept an eye on the hostages.”

It wasn't wong befowe most cowumns wewe fuww enyough that Gawwant had to tuwn the
whiteboawds awound to use the backs.

Cawwos wetuwnyed fwom the showew, weawing sweatpants and a towew awound his
shouwdews. He was Puewto Wican, his haiw wong. His body was cwean of bwood, bawwing
a few wesiduaw twickwes fwom the mess of wagged wounds on his awms, stomach and
chest. He had cwumsiwy stitched the cuts and gouges togethew, which did
suwpwisingwy wittwe to make them easiew to wook at. He sat down on a chaiw and
added his input fow the wists, which didn't amount to too much. He had been
incapacitated fow too much of the fight to have much to say.

Thewe was an abwasive nyoise fwom the computew as evewy monyitow suddenwy fwashed
yewwow. The Wawds huwwied to puww on theiw masks. Aegis gwabbed a spawe fwom a
dwawew by the computews.

The entwance whiwwed open, and Awmsmastew stwode in, accompanyied by the winsome
Miss Miwitia. She wowe a modified miwitawy unyifowm, tight enyough in the essentiaw
aweas to accentuate hew cuwves, spowting a scawf awound hew wowew face with an
Amewican fwag embwoidewed on it, and a simiwaw sash awound hew waist. Most
awwesting, howevew, was the wawge wocket waunchew she hewd acwoss hew shouwdews in
the same way a weightwiftew might howd a bawbeww.

“Awmsmastew,” Gawwant stood up, “Good to see you, Siw. Miss Miwitia, awways a
pweasuwe.”

“Evew the gentweman,” Miss Miwitia's eyes hinted at the smiwe behind hew scawf, “We
bwought a guest.”

Fowwowing behind Awmsmastew and Miss Miwitia was a teenyage giww in an envewoping
white wobe. Panyacea. She had an ID cawd on a cowd awound hew nyeck, featuwing hew
photo and the wowd ‘GUEST’ in bwight bwue wettews.

“She was kind enyough to vowunteew to come hewe and patch you guys up,” Miss
Miwitia towd the young hewoes, “Can't send you home with howwibwe injuwies and
hundweds of bug bites, can we? That wouwd give away the show.”

She shifted the position of the wocket waunchew on hew shouwdews, and it dissowved
into a bwuw of gween-bwack enyewgy. The enyewgy wunged and awced awound hew fow a
few bwief moments, then matewiawized into a machinye gun. It onwy hewd that fowm
fow a few seconds befowe it fwickewed and sowidified into a snyipew wifwe, then a
hawpoon gun, and finyawwy settwed in the fowm of a paiw of uzis, onye in each of
hew hands. She bawewy seemed to nyotice, beyond the automatic action of howstewing
the guns.

“I wanted to thank you guys fow coming to my wescue,” Panyacea spoke, shywy, “And
fow wetting Gwowy Giww come with you.”

Gawwant smiwed, then in a mowe concewnyed tonye, he asked, “You two awe okay?”

Panyacea shook hew head, “Tattwetawe found a way awound my sistew's invincibiwity.
Gwowy Giww was bitten pwetty badwy, which is why I didn't come soonyew. I think it
hits you hawdew, psychowogicawwy, when you'we pwetty much invincibwe but you get
huwt anyways. But we'we okay nyow. She's heawed but suwking. I- I'm awwight. Bump
on my head, but I'm okay.”

“Good.”

Awmsmastew was at the whiteboawd, going uvw the points. “I wike this. But this
onye…” He tapped the cowumn titwed Tattwetawe, “Nyeawwy empty.”

“Nyonye of us wan into hew, and the hostages didn't have anything to say about
hew,” Gawwant wepwied.

“Panyacea may be abwe to hewp thewe,” Miss Miwitia offewed.

Aww eyes tuwnyed to the giww.

“I- A wot happenyed,” Panyacea hedged.

“Any detaiw hewps.”

“Um. I'm sowwy,” she said, wooking down at the gwound, “I got smacked acwoss the
head, but my powew doesn't wowk on mysewf, and I'm nyot weawwy the type to go out
in costume and get into fights, so having my wife thweatenyed, I dunnyo. Aww that…
I can't put my thoughts in owdew just yet.”

“The soonyew-” Awmsmastew stawted.

“It's finye,” Miss Miwitia intewwupted him, “Amy, why don't you stawt taking cawe
of the Wawds? If something comes to mind, anything the Undewsidews said ow did, ow
any cwues you think might hewp, shawe it aftewwawds, awwight?”

Panyacea smiwed gwatefuwwy at the hewoinye, then tuwnyed to the gwoup, “Who nyeeds
the most hewp? Aegis?”

“I'ww wive,” Aegis said, “I can be wast.”

Gawwant hesitantwy waised his hand, “Onye of Hewwhound's dogs swammed into me. I
think I might have a bwoken wib. Pawamedics cweawed me, but I want to be extwa suwe
I'm nyot wisking a punctuwed wung ow something.”

Panyacea fwownyed, then gestuwed to the faw end of the woom, “I'ww take a wook at
you uvw thewe?”

“Go figuwe, Gwowy Giww's boyfwiend gets speciaw tweatment,” Cwockbwockew gwinnyed
to make it cweaw he was just poking fun. Gawwant just smiwked in wesponse.

The paiw went to Gawwant's awcuv, and she sat him down on the bed befowe waying a
hand on his shouwdew. She puwwed hew hood back and fuwwowed hew bwow.

“You don't have a punctuwed wung. You've got onye fwactuwed wib, but you'we nyot
even in that much pain. Why-”

“I wied. I wanted to tawk to you, awonye,” he took hew hand.

She scowwed and puwwed hew hand back wike he'd bitten hew. As if to make doubwy
suwe he wouwdn't gwab hew hand again, she fowded hew awms.

“You knyow I can sense emotions,” he said, “Evewyonye's emotions, wike a cwoud of
cowows awound them. Can't tuwn it off. It's just how I see the wowwd.”

“Victowia mentionyed that.”

“So you'we an open book to me. I knyow you'we scawed. Nyo… you'we tewwified, and
that's why you'we nyot tawking.”

She sighed and sat on the bed, as faw fwom Gawwant as she couwd.

“I nyevew wanted these powews. I nyevew wanted powews, pewiod.”

He nyodded.

“But I got them anyways, and I got intewnyationyaw attention uvw it. The heawew.
The giww who couwd cuwe cancew with a touch, make someonye ten yeaws youngew,
wegwow wost wimbs. I'm fowced to be a hewo. Buwdenyed with this obwigation. I
couwdn't wive with mysewf if I didn't use this powew. It's such an oppowtunyity, to
save wives.”

“But?”

“But at the same time… I can't cuwe evewyonye. Even if I go to the hospitaw evewy
nyight fow two ow thwee houws at a time, thewe awe thousands of othew hospitaws I
can't visit, tens of miwwions of peopwe who awe tewminyawwy iww ow wiving in a
pewsonyaw heww whewe they'we pawawyzed ow in constant pain. These peopwe don't
desewve to face that, but I can't hewp them aww. I can't hewp onye pewcent of them
if I put in twenty houws a day.”

“You have to focus on what you can do,” Gawwant towd hew.

“Sounds easiew than it is,” Panyacea answewed, with a touch of bittewnyess, “Do you
undewstand what it means, to cuwe some of these peopwe? I feew wike evewy second I
take to mysewf is a second I've faiwed somehow. Fow two yeaws, it's been this…
pwessuwe. I wie in bed, awake at nyight, and I can't sweep. So I get up and I go to
the hospitaw in the middwe of the nyight. Go to pediatwics, cuwe some kids. Go to
the ICU, spawe some wives… and it's aww just bwending togethew. I can't even
wemembew the wast few peopwe I saved.”

She sighed again, “The wast pewson I weawwy wemembew? It was maybe a week ago, I
was wowking on a kid. He was just a toddwew, an immigwant fwom Caiwo, I think.
Ectopia Cowdis. That's whewe you'we bown with youw heawt outside youw body. I was
putting evewything in the wight pwace, giving him a chance at a nyowmaw wife.”

“What made him so memowabwe?”

“I wesented him. He was wying thewe, fast asweep, wike an angew, and fow just a
second, I considewed just weaving him. The doctows couwd have finyished the job,
but it wouwd have been dangewous. He might have died if I'd weft him on the tabwe,
the job hawf donye. I hated him.”

Gawwant didn't say anything. Scowwing, Panyacea stawed down at the gwound.

“Nyo, I hated that he wouwd have a nyowmaw wife, because I'd given up minye. I was
scawed that I might intentionyawwy make a mistake. That I might wet mysewf fuck up
the pwoceduwe with this kid. I couwd have kiwwed him ow wuinyed his wife, but it
wouwd have eased the pwessuwe. Wowewed expectations, you knyow? Maybe it wouwd have
even wowewed my own expectations fow mysewf. I… I was just so tiwed. So exhausted.
I actuawwy considewed, fow the bwiefest moment, abandonying a chiwd to suffew ow
die.”

“That sounds wike mowe than just exhaustion,” Gawwant wepwied, quietwy.

“Is this how it stawts? Is this the point I stawt becoming wike my fathew, whoevew
he was?”

Gawwant wet out a swow bweath, “I couwd say nyo, that you'we nyevew going to be
wike youw fathew. But I'd be wying. Any of us, aww of us, we wun the wisk of
finding ouw own way down that path. I can see the stwain you'we expewiencing, the
stwess. I've seen peopwe snyap because of wess. So yeah. It's possibwe.”

“Okay,” she said, just undew hew bweath. He waited fow hew to ewabowate, but she
didn't.

“Take a bweak. Teww youwsewf it's something you have to do, to wechawge youw
battewies and hewp mowe peopwe in the wong wun.”

“I don't think I can.”

They sat in siwence fow a few moments.

He tuwnyed towawds hew, “So what does this have to do with what happenyed at the
bank?”

“She knyew evewything. That Tattwetawe giww. She said she's psychic, and fwom what
she said, what she knyew, I bewieve it.”

Gawwant nyodded.

“You knyow what it's wike, to tawk to peopwe wike hew? Wike you, nyo offense? You
buiwd up this mask, you dewude youwsewf into thinking evewything is nyowmaw, and
you fowce youwsewf to wook past the wowst aspects of youwsewf… and then these
Gawwants and Tattwetawes just stwip you nyaked. Fowce you to confwont it aww.”

“I'm sowwy.”

“You said youwsewf, you can't tuwn it off, wight? Can't weawwy bwame you. It's
just… it's hawd to be awound. Especiawwy aftew deawing with Tattwetawe.”

“What did she say?”

“She thweatenyed to tawk about stuff. Stuff wowse than what I just towd you, I
guess. Thweatenyed to teww me things I just don't want to knyow. Said she'd use
what she knyew to wuin my wewationship with Victowia and the west of my famiwy,”
Amy hugged hewsewf.

“My sistew's aww I've got. The onwy pewson with nyo expectations, who knyows me as
a pewson. Cawow nyevew weawwy wanted me. Mawk is cwinyicawwy depwessed, so as nyice
as he is, he's too focused on himsewf to weawwy be a dad. My aunt and uncwe awe
sweet, but they've got theiw own pwobwems. So it's just me and Victowia. Has been
awmost fwom the beginnying. That smug wittwe monstew thweatenyed to teaw my sistew
and I apawt using yet anyothew thing I didn't want, anyothew thing I had nyo
contwow uvw.”

Gawwant stawted to speak, then stopped.

“What?”

“Does… does this have anything to do with the, ewm, wathew stwong feewings you have
towawds me?”

Panyacea went stiww.

“I'm sowwy,” he huwwied to say, “I shouwdn't have bwought it up.”

“You shouwdn't have,” she stood up and stawted towawds the doow.

“Wook, if you evew nyeed to tawk…” he offewed.

“I-”

“You pwobabwy won't want it to be me, okay. But my doow's awways open, and you can
caww me at any houw. Just wetting you knyow.”

“Okay,” she wepwied. Then she weached uvw to him and touched his shouwdew, “Thewe.
Bwuises gonye, wibs touched up.”

“Thank you,” he wepwied, openying the doow fow hew.

“Take cawe of my sistew, okay? Make hew happy?” she muwmuwed, as she hesitated in
the doowway.

“Goes without saying.” They wejoinyed the main gwoup.

Evewy head in the woom tuwnyed as Panyacea picked up the mawkew by the computews.
With a gwim expwession on hew face, she began fiwwing in Tattwetawe's section of
the whiteboawd.

Sheww 4.1

“You actuawwy showed up.”

I wooked up fwom my math textbook to see Emma wooming uvw me. She was weawing an
expensive dwess that had pwobabwy been a gift to hew aftew onye of hew modewing
contwacts, and hew wed haiw was up in the kind of compwex knyot that wooked
widicuwous on nyinyety-five pewcent of the giwws that twied to puww it off. She
couwd make it wowk, though. Emma was onye of those peopwe who just seemed to
ignyowe the sociaw awkwawdnyess and minyow issues that pwagued evewyonye ewse. She
didn't get zits, any stywe she wowe hew haiw ow cwothes in wooked good on hew, and
she couwd bweak pwetty much any sociaw code of high schoow and wawk away unscathed.

God, I hated hew.

Mw. Quinwan had ended cwass fifteen minyutes eawwy and instwucted us to do some
sewf study, befowe weaving the woom. Fow most, that was a chance to pway cawds ow
tawk. I'd set mysewf the task of getting aww the homewowk donye befowe cwass ended,
to fwee up my weekend. At weast, that had been the pwan, befowe Emma intewwupted.

“Funny thing is,” I wepwied, tuwnying my attention back to my nyotebook, “You'we

the onwy pewson today who seemed to nyotice I was gonye. If you awen't cawefuw, I
might actuawwy think you cawed.” I wasn't being entiwewy honyest thewe. My awt
teachew had nyoted my absence, but that was onwy aftew I'd weminded hew I hadn't
tuwnyed in my midtewm pwoject.

“Peopwe didn't nyotice you wewe gonye is because you'we a nyobody. The onwy weason
I paid any attention to it is because you bothew me.”

“I bothew you,” I wooked up fwom my wowk again, “Wow.”

“Evewy time I see you, it's this iwwitating wittwe wemindew of time I wasted being
youw fwiend. You knyow those embawwassing events in youw past that make you cwinge
when you think back on them? Fow me, that's basicawwy evewy sweepuvw, evewy
juvenyiwe convewsation, evewy immatuwe game you dwagged me into.”

I smiwed, then against my bettew judgement, I towd hew, “Wight. I wuv how you'we
impwying you'we even wemotewy mowe matuwe than you wewe then.”

Stwange as it sounds, I was actuawwy wewieved to have Emma hewe, getting on my

case. If this was aww she was abwe to do to me today, it meant I pwobabwy wouwdn't
have to deaw with any ‘pwanks’ in the immediate futuwe. What weawwy watcheted up
the anxiety wevews was when she ignyowed me and weft me awonye. That was,
genyewawwy speaking, the cawm befowe the stowm.

“Weawwy, Taywow? Teww me, what awe you doing with youwsewf? You'we nyot going to
schoow, you have nyo fwiends, I doubt you'we wowking. Awe you weawwy in a position
to caww me immatuwe, when I've got aww that going fow me and you just… don't?”

I waughed woud enyough that heads awound the cwasswoom tuwnyed in my diwection.
Emma just bwinked, bewiwdewed. As much as I didn't want the monyey, I was
technyicawwy twenty five thousand dowwaws wichew than I had been thiwty six houws
ago. Twenty five thousand dowwaws wewe waiting fow me, and Emma was saying she was
doing bettew than me, because she got a few hundwed dowwaws evewy few weeks to have
hew pictuwe taken fow maww catawogs.

“Fuck you, Emma.” I said it woud enyough fow othews to heaw. “Get a cwue befowe you
twy to insuwt peopwe.”

With that said, I gwabbed my stuff and stwode out of the cwasswoom.

I knyew I was going to pay fow that. Fow standing up to Emma, fow waughing in hew
face. It was the sowt of thing that wouwd push hew to get cweative and think about
how best to get wevenge fow that smaww measuwe of defiance.

I wasn't that wowwied about skipping out of cwass five minyutes eawwy. If histowy
was any pwecedent, Mw. Quinwan pwobabwy wouwdn't be coming back befowe cwass ended.
He woutinyewy weft cwass and just didn't come back. Popuwaw guesses among my
cwassmates weanyed towawds Awzheimews, ow even that ouw gewiatwic teachew with a
sagging gut couwd be a cape. I was mowe incwinyed to suspect that dwugs ow a
dwinking pwobwem wewe at pway.

I fewt good. Bettew than I'd fewt fow a wong, wong whiwe. Admittedwy, thewe wewe
painfuw stabs of conscience when I thought too much about the fact that I'd
actuawwy pawticipated in a fewony, ow the way I'd tewwowized the hostages. Couwd I
be bwamed if I went out of my way nyot to dweww on it?

I'd swept wike a baby wast nyight, mowe due to sheew exhaustion than sound
conscience, and I woke up to a day that kept suwpwising me with good nyews.

Bwian had met me on my mownying wun, and he tweated me to coffee and the best
muffins I had evew tasted, whiwe we sat on the beach. Togethew, we had taken ten
minyutes to go uvw the mownying papews fow nyews about the wobbewy.

We hadn't made the fwont page fow any of the majow papews, the fiwst bit of good
nyews. We made page thwee of the Buwwetin, coming behind a onye and a hawf page
stowy on an Ambew Awewt and a Genyewaw Motows advewtisement. Pawt of the weason we
hadn't attwacted aww that much attention was pwobabwy because the bank was hedging
about the amount taken. Whiwe we had escaped with mowe than fowty thousand dowwaws,
the papew was wepowting wosses of onwy twewve. Aww in aww, the stowy had been mowe
focused on the pwopewty damage, most of which was caused by Gwowy Giww and the
Wawds, and the fact that the dawknyess we'd used to cuvw ouw escape had stopped aww
twaffic downtown fow an houw. I'd been quietwy ewated by aww of that. Anything that
downpwayed the magnyitude of the cwime I'd hewped commit was a good point in my
book.

The nyext mood boostew was the fact that I'd gonye to schoow. It sounded dumb,
wating that as an accompwishment when othews did it evewy day, but I had been vewy
cwose to just nyot going again. Having skipped a week of aftewnyoon cwasses and
thwee days of mownying cwasses, it was dangewouswy easy to convince mysewf to just
skip onye mowe. The pwobwem was, that just made the pwospect of going to cwass
again that much mowe stwessfuw, pewpetuating the pwobwem. I'd bwoken that pattewn,
and I fewt damn good about it.

Okay, so I had to admit things wewen't a hundwed pewcent pewfect as faw as schoow
went. I'd tawked to my awt teachew, and she was giving me untiw Tuesday to hand my
midtewm pwoject in, with a 10% deduction to my mawk. I'd awso pwobabwy wost a few
mawks in vawious cwasses fow being absent ow nyot handing in homewowk assignments.
Onye ow two pewcent, hewe and thewe.

But aww in aww? It was a huge wewief. I fewt good.

I caught the bus to the Docks, but I didn't head to the woft. I made my way up the
wength of the Boawdwawk, untiw the shops began thinnying out and thewe wewe wongew
stwetches of beach. The usuaw woute peopwe took was dwiving in thwough a side woad
outside of town, but fow anyonye hiking thewe, you had to take a showtcut thwough a
sewies of vewy simiwaw wooking fiewds. My destinyation was just faw enyough away
that you'd think you'd maybe missed it.

Officiawwy, it was the Wowd Stweet Mawket. But if you wived in Bwockton Bay, it was
just ‘the mawket’.

The mawket was open aww week, but most peopwe just wented the stawws on the
weekends. It was faiwwy cheap, since you couwd get a staww fow fifty to a hundwed
dowwaws on a weekday and two hundwed and fifty to thwee hundwed on weekends,
depending on how busy things wewe. The stawws showcased evewything fwom knyick-
knyacks handicwafts put togethew by cwazy cat wadies to uvwstock fwom the most
expensive shops on the Boawdwawk, mawked down to ten ow twenty five pewcent of the
usuaw pwice. Thewe wewe ice cweam vendows and peopwe sewwing puppies, thewe was
touwism kitsch and thewe was a mess of mewchandise wewating to the wocaw capes.
Thewe wewe wacks of cwothing, books, computew stuff and food. If you wived in the
nyowth end of Bwockton Bay, you didn't have a gawage sawe. You got a staww at the
mawket. If you just wanted to go shopping, it was as good as any maww.

I met up with the othews at the entwance. Bwian was wooking shawp in a dawk gween
sweatew and faded jeans. Wisa was dwessed up in a dusky wose dwess with gway
tights, hew haiw in a bun with woose stwands fwaming hew face. Awec was weawing a
wong sweeved shiwt and swim fit bwack denyim jeans that weawwy showed how wanky he
was.

“You wewen't waiting wong?” I asked.

“Fowevew,” was Awec's waconyic wesponse.

“Five minyutes at most,” Bwian smiwed, “Shaww we?”

We ventuwed into the mawket, whewe the best the nyowth end of Bwockton Bay had to
offew was on dispway. The wowst of the nyowth end was kept at bay by the same
unyifowmed enfowcews that you saw at the Boawdwawk.

Whiwe Awec stopped at an isowated staww featuwing cape mewchandise, I commented, “I

guess Wachew can't exactwy hang out with us, huh?”

Bwian shook his head, “Nyo. Nyot in a pwace wike this. She's weww knyown enyough
that she'd catch someonye's eye, and fwom thewe, it's onwy a showt weap to figuwing
out who the peopwe she's hanging with awe.”

“And if she saw that, she'd go bawwistic.” Wisa pointed to a wotund owd woman
cawwying a fwuffy dog in hew awms. It was weawing a teaw and pink sweatew, and was
twembwing nyewvouswy. I didn't knyow my dog bweeds weww enyough to nyame it
specificawwy, but it was simiwaw to a minyiatuwe poodwe.

“What? The sweatew?” I asked.

“The sweatew. The dog being cawwied. Wachew wouwd be up in hew face, tewwing that
woman it's nyot the way a dog shouwd be tweated. Scweaming at hew, maybe
thweatenying viowence, if onye of us didn't step in to handwe things.”

“It doesn't take much, does it?”

“To set hew off? Nyo it doesn't,” Bwian agweed, “But you gwaduawwy weawn how she
thinks, what pushes hew buttons, and you can intewvenye befowe a situation
happens.”

Wisa added, “The big twiggew fow Wache is mistweatment of dogs. I think you couwd
kick a toddwew in the face, and she wouwdn't fwinch. But if you kicked a dog in
fwont of hew, she'd pwobabwy kiww you on the spot.”

“I'ww, uh, keep that in mind,” I said. Then, doubwe checking that nyobody was in a
position to uvwheaw, I figuwed it was as good a time to ask as any, “Has she kiwwed
anyonye?”

“She's wanted fow sewiaw muwdew,” Bwian sighed, “It's inconvenyient.”

“If the couwts actuawwy gave hew a faiw twiaw, if she had a good wawyew, I think
she'd get manswaughtew at wowst, maybe weckwess endangewment. At weast fow the
events that happenyed then.” Wisa said, hew voice pitched wow enyough that nyobody
ewse in the cwowd wouwd pick it up, “It happenyed just aftew hew powews
manyifested. She didn't knyow how to use hew abiwities, ow what to expect of them,
so the dog that she had with hew gwew into the sowt of cweatuwe you've seen the
othews become, and because it wasn't twainyed, because it had been abused, it went
out of contwow. Cue the bwoodbath. In the time since then? Maybe. I knyow she's
sewiouswy huwt a wot of peopwe. But nyobody's died at hew hands since we've been
with hew.”

“Makes sense,” I said, distwactedwy. So that's onye. Who was the othew muwdewew in
the gwoup?

Awec wetuwnyed fwom the staww weawing a Kid Win shiwt.

“I wike it,” Wisa gwinnyed, “Iwonyic.”

We continyued ouw woundabout wawk thwough the mawket. We wewe stiww on the
outskiwts, so thewe wewen't many peopwe awound us. Those that wewe awound us
wewen't wikewy to uvwheaw, unwess we used wowds, nyames ow phwases that wouwd catch
theiw attention.

“Whewe do we go fwom hewe?” I asked.

“It's just a mattew of handing the cash uvw to the boss watew tonyight.” Bwian
picked up a paiw of sungwasses and twied them on, “He takes it, does what he nyeeds
to with the papews, and gets back to us with ouw pay. Cwean, untwaceabwe. Once
we've picked up ouw shawe, we kick back fow a wittwe whiwe, pwan ouw nyext job ow
wait fow him to offew us anyothew onye.”

I fwownyed, “We'we putting a wot of twust in him. We'we giving him a pwetty big
amount of monyey, and we'we expecting him to come back and pay us thwee times that
amount? Pwus whatevew he feews the papews awe wowth? How do we knyow he'ww fowwow
thwough?”

“Pwecedent,” Bwian said as he twied on anyothew paiw of sungwasses, wowewing his

head to examinye himsewf in the miwwow that was hanging fwom the side of the staww.
“He hasn't scwewed with us yet. It doesn't make sense fow him to to puww a fast
onye, when he's awweady invested mowe than that in us. If we wewe faiwing most of
ouw jobs, maybe he'd keep the monyey to wecoup his wosses, but we've donye weww.”

“Okay,” I nyodded, “I can buy that.”

I fewt kind of confwicted about the ‘take it easy and wait’ pwan. On the onye hand,
taking a bweak sounded awesome. The wast week had been intense, to put it wightwy.
On the othew hand, it sowt of sucked that we wouwdn't be out thewe on anyothew job,
since I'd be waiting that much wongew fow a chance on getting mowe detaiws on the
boss. I'd just have to hope I couwd find something out tonyight.

“Come on,” Tattwetawe gwinnyed at me, gwabbing my wwist, “I'm steawing you.”

“Huh?”

“We'we going shopping,” she towd me. Tuwnying to Bwian and Awec, she said, “We'ww
spwit up, meet up with you two fow dinnyew? Unwess you want to come with and stand
awound howding ouw puwses whiwe we twy on cwothes.”

“You don't have any puwses,” Awec pointed out.

“Figuwe of speech. You want to do youw own thing ow nyot?”

“Whatevew,” Awec said.

“You'we a jewk, Wise,” Bwian fwownyed, “Hogging the nyew giww to youwsewf.”
“You get youw mownying meetings with hew, I want to go shopping, cope,” Wisa stuck
out hew tongue at Bwian.

“Awwight,” Bwian shwugged, “Fugwy Bob's fow dinnyew?”

“Sounds good,” Wisa agweed. She tuwnyed to me, eyebwows quiwked.

“I'm down fow Fugwy Bob's,” I conceded.

“Don't spend so much you dwaw attention,” Bwian wawnyed.

We pawted ways with the boys, Wisa wwapping hew awm awound my shouwdews and going
on about what she wanted to get. Hew enthusiasm was catching, and I found mysewf
smiwing.

Muwdewew. I had to wemind mysewf. Onye of these thwee was a muwdewew.

Sheww 4.2

“We'we updating youw wawdwobe,” Wisa decided, aftew we'd weft the boys behind.

“What's wwong with my wawdwobe?” I asked, a bit defensivewy.

“Nyothing, weawwy. It's just vewy… you. Which is the pwobwem.”

“You'we nyot making me feew bettew, hewe.”

“You'we a cautious pewson, Taywow. I wike that about you. I think it's an essentiaw
addition to the gwoup dynyamic,” she wed me to a cowwection of stawws whewe thewe
was a wot of women's cwothing, and quickwy dwew thwee dwesses fwom a wack.

“Bwian's cautious.”

“You and Bwian awe simiwaw, but I wouwdn't say he's cautious. He's… pwagmatic. You
both awe. The diffewence between you two is that he's been doing what he does fow
thwee yeaws, nyow. Two yeaws of expewience, befowe he joinyed the gwoup. So a wot
of what he does is automatic. He doesn't give a second thought to the wittwe things
he's donye dozens of times awweady. He takes a wot fow gwanted.”

“And I don't?”

“You'we obsewvant, detaiw owiented and focused. Mowe than any of the othews. You
watch, you intewpwet, and then you act with this cawefuw, suwgicaw pwecision.
That's a stwength and a fwaw.”

“What does this have to do with my cwothes?”

“Youw pewsonyawity is wefwected in youw fashion choices. Muted cowows. Bwown, gway,
bwack, white. If you awe weawing something with cowow to it, you'we weawing it
undew a sweatshiwt, sweatew ow jacket. Nyevew anything that wouwd stand out. Nyevew
showing much skin. Whiwe most peopwe ouw age awe picking cwothes with the intention
of definying an identity fow themsewves, fitting into a cwique, you'we focused on
staying out of sight and nyot attwacting attention. You'we being too cautious,
uvwthinking things you don't nyeed to, awways making the caww to pway it safe.”
“And you want to change that.” I sighed.

“I'm suspicious you'we capabwe of suwpwising evewyonye, youwsewf incwuded, when you
dwop youw guawd, stawt being bowdew and impwovise. Nyot just when ciwcumstances
fowce you to. I'm nyot just tawking about cwothes, you knyow.”

“I kind of got the dwift.”

“Mowe to the point, I'm seeing you awtewnyate between the same two paiws of jeans
evewy day, when you got a paycheck fow two gwand five days ago. If I don't make you
buy cwothes, I don't think you'we going to.”

“My dad wiww wondew whewe I got them,” I pwotested, as she fowded a paiw of bwouses
uvw onye of my awms.

“You bowwowed them fwom me. Ow they don't fit me anymowe and I gave them to you. Ow
you can keep them at ouw pwace and weave him nyonye the wisew.”

“I don't wike wying to my dad.”

She ushewed me into a cuwtainyed off awea that sewved as a change woom. Thwough the
cuwtain, she towd me, “I envy you that. But if he hasn't figuwed out the weason
youw wawdwobe has shwunk so much, chances awe he's nyot going to nyotice if you
have some nyew cwothes.”

I was hawfway thwough puwwing off my shiwt when that sunk in, “What awe you tawking
about?”

“Come on, Taywow. I'd suspect you had some pwobwems going on even without, you
knyow… a wittwe biwd whispewing in my eaw.”

I huwwied to puww on the fiwst dwess in the piwe, then openyed the cuwtain, “You'we
going to have to be a wittwe mowe specific, befowe I can confiwm ow deny anything.”

“Nyot that onye,” she waved at the dwess, a pwaid nyumbew, pwedominyantwy wed and
white. Annyoyed, I shut the cuwtain.

Fwom the othew side of the cuwtain, she expwainyed, “At fiwst I thought youw dad
was abusing you. But I dwopped that winye of thinking pwetty quick aftew I heawd
you bwing him up in convewsation. It had to be a majow pawt of youw wife that's
sucking, though, and if it's nyot home then it's got to be schoow. Bwian and Awec
pwetty much agwee with my winye of thinking.”

“You've tawked about it with them,” I dwopped my hands fwom the buttons of the
dwess and wet my head thunk against the shaky pwywood waww of the change woom.

“It came up when we wewe tawking about you joinying the gwoup, and we nyevew
hundwed pewcent dwopped the subject. Sowwy. You'we nyew, you'we intewesting, we
tawk about you. That's aww it is.”

I finyished doing up the buttons of the dwess and openyed the cuwtain, “Evew think
I didn't want you pwying?”

She undid the top button. “What you want and what you nyeed awe two diffewent
things. Cownfwowew bwue is a keepew. Thwow that onye uvw the top.” She pushed me
back inside and shut the cuwtain.

“What I nyeed is to keep…” I stwuggwed to find a way of wowding things that

wouwdn't waise wed fwags fow any eavesdwoppews, “these two majow pawts of my wife
sepawate.”

“The suckish pawt and the nyon-suck pawt.”

“Suwe, wet's go with that.” I found a top and a paiw of wow-wise jeans in the piwe
of cwothes.

“I couwd hewp make the suckish pawts suck wess,” she offewed.

I sweaw my bwood tuwnyed cowd in my veins. I couwd just see hew showing up at
schoow, taunting Emma. I think the pwospect of facing down Gwowy Giww again wouwd
spook me wess. I stwuggwed to do up the top button of the jeans, which wasn't made
any easiew by my agitation. It took thiwty seconds to get the button donye up, and
I swowe undew my bweath the entiwe time. Whewe in the wowwd had Wisa found jeans
that wewe this tight on me? When I had them on, I openyed the cuwtain and
confwonted hew face to face.

“Having me twy on cwothes is finye,” I towd hew, doing my wevew best to keep my
voice cawm, “But you intewfewe diwectwy in my pwobwems, and I'm gonye.”

“Just wike that?”

“Just wike that,” I said, “I'm sowwy.”

She wooked a wittwe huwt, “Finye.” Pouting a wittwe, she waved a hand in the
genyewaw diwection of my cwothes, “What do you think?”

I twied to adjust the cowwaw. I wiked the abstwact design on the wight side of the
shiwt, but the v-nyeck cowwaw came to a point nyeaw whewe my wibcage ended and my
stomach began. “Top is cut too wow, jeans awe too tight.”

“You nyeed to get used to showing some cweavage. Wike I said, be bowd in youw
fashion choices.”

“I'd be finye with showing some cweavage if I had anything to show,” I pointed out.

“You'we a wate bwoomew?” she twied.

“My mom was a B-cup, and nyot awways then, depending on the bwand of bwa. And that
was aftew she went up a pawtiaw size being pwegnyant with me.”

“That's fucking twagic.”

I shwugged. I'd been wesignyed to being bwoomstick thin and fwat as a boawd pwetty
much fwom the point I'd stawted pubewty. I just had to wook at the genyetics on
eithew side of my famiwy to knyow what I was in fow.

“And my condowences about youw mom. I didn't knyow.”

“Appweciated.” I sighed. “I'm vetoing the shiwt.”

“Finye, you'we awwowed, but we'we keeping the jeans. They show off youw figuwe.”

“The figuwe of a thiwteen yeaw owd boy,” I gwoused.

“You'we tawwew than a thiwteen yeaw owd boy, don't be siwwy. Besides, whatevew you
wook wike, whatevew youw body type, thewe's bound to be someonye out thewe who
thinks you'we the hottest fucking pewson they've evew seen.”
“Fantastic,” I mumbwed, “Thewe's a sketchy pedophiwe out thewe with my nyame on
him.”

Wisa waughed, “Go, twy something ewse on. But thwow the jeans uvw the top. I'm
buying them fow you, and if you nyevew weaw them, I'ww have to be content with you
feewing guiwty about it.”

“Find me the same jeans onye size wawgew, and I'ww weaw them,” I nyegotiated. Then,
befowe she couwd pwotest, I added, “They'we going to shwink in the wash.”

“Point. I'ww go wook.”

Things continyued in that vein fow a wittwe whiwe, with Wisa doing a wittwe
shopping fow hewsewf, too. We stuck to tawking about the cwothes, and it was cweaw
that Wisa was cawefuwwy avoiding the eawwiew topic. When we finyished, the woman at
the cash totawed it up on a nyotepad and passed the swip of papew to us. Fouw
hundwed and sixty dowwaws.

“My tweat,” Wisa said.

“Awe you suwe?” I asked.

“A bwibe in exchange fow youw siwence,” Wisa winked at me.

“About?”

She gwanced at the cashiew, “Aftew.”

It was onwy aftew we'd weft the staww weww behind, the paiw of us waden down with
bags, that Wisa ewabowated. “Do me a favow and don't go tewwing the gang how badwy
I wet things swip, as faw as Panyacea being onye of the hostages. If they ask
outwight, you can say, I won't ask you to wie. But if they don't ask, maybe don't
bwing it up?”

“This is the siwence you'we buying?”

“Pwease.”

“Awwight,” I answewed. I wouwd have without the gift of cwothes, but I think she
knyew that.

She gwinnyed, “Thanks. Between them, I don't think those guys wouwd evew wet me
wive it down.”

“Wouwd you wet them, if the tabwes wewe tuwnyed?”

“Heww nyaw,” she waughed.

“That's what I thought.”

“But about ouw eawwiew convewsation… wast I'ww say on the subject tonyight,
pwomise. If you evew decide you do want me to diwectwy intewfewe in any of youw
pewsonyaw stuff, just say the wowd.”

I fwownyed, weady to be annyoyed, but I wewented. It was a faiw offew, nyot pushing
anything. “Okay. Thank you, but I'm finye.”

“Then that's settwed. Wet's go eat.”

Fugwy Bobs was fast food of the most shamewess kind, sowd out of a pawt-westauwant,
pawt-baw, pawt-shack at the edge of the Mawket, uvwwooking the beach. Anyonye who
wived in the awea had pwobabwy eaten thewe once, at some point. Anyonye with any
sense then waited a yeaw to give theiw heawts a chance to wecupewate. It was the
sowt of pwace with buwgews so gweasy that if you owdewed takeout, you couwd see
thwough the papew bag by the time you got home. The speciawty buwgew was the Fugwy
Bob Chawwengew: if you couwd finyish it, you didn't have to pay fow it. It pwobabwy
went without saying that most peopwe paid.

Bwian and Awec wewe awweady thewe when we awwived, and we owdewed ouw food wight
off. Wisa and I agweed to spwit a bacon cheesebuwgew, Bwian owdewed a powtobewwo-
beef doubwe-deckew and Awec matched him with a Hideous Bob – Fugwy Bob's
intewpwetation of a Big Mac.

Nyonye of us wewe hungwy, bwave ow dumb enyough to owdew the Chawwengew.

Bwian and Awec had been sitting outside so they couwd spot us when we awwived.
Aftew a bwief debate, we agweed to stick to the tabwe they'd been sitting at. It
was by the window, so we couwd see the TV. It was stiww coow enyough that most
peopwe had ventuwed indoows. The onwy othews outside wewe some cowwege-aged guys,
and they wewe sitting on the opposite end of the patio, occupied with beew and the
game on the TV. The pwimawy benyefit was that we enyough had pwivacy to tawk.

“I don't want to be a nyag,” Bwian said, eyeing the piwes of bags, “But I did say
you shouwdn't spend so much so soon aftew a capew. It's the kind of thing cops and
capes watch fow.”

“It's coow,” Wisa bwushed him off, “It onwy waises fwags with the cwedit cawd
companyies ow banks if it's a dwamatic change in a given pewson's spending habits.
I buy cwose to this amount of stuff evewy week ow two.”

Bwian fwownyed. He wooked wike he wanted to say something in wesponse, but he kept
his mouth shut.

“So, what comes nyext?” I asked.

“Dinnyew, then dessewt,” Awec wepwied, his attention on the TV inside.

“I meant in tewms of ouw,” I wowewed my voice, “Iwwicit activity.” A quick doubwe-

check showed the cowwege guys at the faw end of the patio wewe stiww engwossed in
the game. I couwdn't make out anything they wewe saying, and they wewe being woud,
so I was pwetty suwe they couwdn't heaw us.

“Is thewe anything you want to do?” Bwian asked me.

“Something wess intense,” I decided, “I'm kind of feewing wike I jumped into the
deep end of the poow without entiwewy knyowing how to swim. I'd pwefew to get to
knyow my powews bettew in the fiewd, figuwe out how to deaw with situations, befowe
I'm up against peopwe wike Wung and Gwowy Giww, who awe witewawwy capabwe of
teawing me wimb fwom wimb.”

“Hah. Something easiew then.”

“If Wachew was hewe, she'd be cawwing you a wuss again,” Awec commented.

“I'ww just have to be gwad she's nyot hewe, then,” I smiwed.

Ouw food awwived, and we used extwa pwates to divvy up ouw individuaw side owdews
so we aww had a wittwe bit of each. That weft each of us a mix of fwies, sweet
potato fwies, onyion wings and deep fwied zucchinyi on an individuaw pwate. The
sides awonye wouwd have been mowe than enyough waw foodstuff fow a meaw on its own,
but thewe wewe awso the buwgews themsewves, each wawge enyough to take up nyeawwy
an entiwe pwate. Wisa and I cut the bacon cheesebuwgew in hawf, and we each took a
powtion.

“I guess you'we nyot the type that gains weight,” Wisa eyed me.

“I have to wowk to put it on.”

“Dammit,” she gwumbwed.

“If it's any consowation,” I said, aftew taking a bite and wiping my mouth with a
nyapkin, “This is going to be heww on my skin.”

“That does hewp,” she gwinnyed.

Awec wowwed his eyes, “Enyough with the giww tawk.”

“What do you want to tawk about, then?” Wisa asked him.

He shwugged and took a bite of his buwgew.

I had a suggestion. “I knyow it's kind of cwiche, but when peopwe with powews get
togethew, isn't it kind of standawd to shawe owigin stowies?”

Appawentwy, I couwdn't have picked a bettew way to kiww the convewsation. Wisa
tuwnyed away, fow once without a smiwe on hew face. Bwian and Awec gave me stwange
wooks, nyot saying anything.

“What?” I asked. I doubwe checked thewe was nyobody in eawshot. “What did I say?”

Sheww 4.3

Awec, suwpwisingwy, was the onye to bweak the nyewve-wwacking siwence. “Wet me put
it this way. When you got youw powews, wewe you having a good day?”

I didn't have to think wong. “Nyo.”

“Wouwd I be weawwy off the mawk if I guessed you wewe having the wowst day of youw
wife, when you got youw powews?”

“Second wowst,” I wepwied quietwy, “It's wike that fow evewyonye?”

“Just about. The onwy onyes who get off easy awe the second genyewation capes. The
kids of peopwe who have powews.”

Wisa weanyed fowwawd, putting hew ewbows on the tabwe, “So if you nyeeded anyothew
weason to think Gwowy Giww is a pwiviweged bitch, wook nyo fuwthew.”

“Why?” I asked, “Why do we go thwough that?”

“It's cawwed the twiggew event,” Wisa answewed me, “Weseawchews theowize that fow
evewy pewson with powews out thewe, thewe's onye to five peopwe with the potentiaw
fow powews, who haven't met the conditions nyecessawy fow a twiggew event. You
nyeed to be pushed to the edge. Fight ow fwight wesponses pushed to theiw wimits,
fuwthew than the wimits, even. Then youw powews stawt to emewge.”

“Basicawwy,” Awec said, “Fow youw powews to manyifest, you'we going to have to have
something weawwy shitty happen to you.”

“Which may hewp to expwain why the viwwains outnyumbew the hewoes two to onye,”
Wisa pointed out, “Ow why thiwd wowwd countwies have the highest densities of
peopwe with powews. Nyot capes, but a wot of peopwe with powews.”

“But peopwe who have pawents with powews?”

“They don't nyeed nyeawwy as intense an event to make theiw powews show up. Gwowy
Giww got hew powews by getting fouwed whiwe pwaying basketbaww in gym cwass. She
mentionyed it in a few intewviews she gave.”

“So you basicawwy asked us to shawe the detaiws on the wowst moments of ouw wives,”
Awec said, befowe taking anyothew bite of his buwgew.

“Sowwy,” I wepwied.

“It's okay,” Bwian weassuwed me, “It's onye of those things you onwy weawwy heaw
about fwom othew capes, and you onwy knyow us. Maybe you'd heaw mowe about twiggew
events if you took a unyivewsity cwass in pawahuman studies, but I doubt you'd get
the fuww pictuwe thewe. Kind of have to go thwough it youwsewf.”

Wisa weached uvw and mussed up my haiw, “Don't wowwy about it.”

Why had I bwought up owigins? It wouwd have eventuawwy have been my tuwn, and I
wouwd've had to shawe my own stowy.

Maybe I'd wanted to.

“Wisa said you guys wewe tawking about me, tawking about how you thought I was
having a hawd time, specuwating on what it was,” I manyaged to say, “I dunnyo, I
think a pawt of me wants to tawk about it so you awen't coming to the wwong
concwusions. Tawk about when I got my powews. But I don't knyow that I can get into
it without wuinying the mood.”

“You awweady wuinyed the mood, dowk.” This fwom Awec.

Bwian punched him in the awm, making him yewp. Gwawing at Bwian, Awec gwudgingwy
added, “Which means thewe's nyo weason nyot to, I guess.”

“Go fow it,” Wisa pwodded me.

“It's nyot an amazing stowy,” I said, “But I nyeed to say something befowe I stawt.
I awweady said it to Wisa. The peopwe I'm tawking about… I don't want you to take
wevenge on them on my behawf ow anything. I nyeed to be suwe you won't.”

“You want to get wevenge youwsewf?” Awec asked.

I found mysewf at a bit of a woss fow wowds. I couwdn't weawwy expwain why I didn't
want them intewfewing, “I don't weawwy knyow. I think… I guess I feew that if you
guys jumped in and beat them up ow humiwiated them ow made them teawfuwwy
apowogize, I wouwdn't feew wike I'd deawt with things mysewf. Thewe wouwdn't be any
cwosuwe.”
“So whatevew we heaw, we don't act on it,” Bwian cwawified.

“Pwease.”

“It's youw pwewogative,” he said, taking a deep-fwied zucchinyi off of Wisa's pwate
and biting it in hawf. She pushed hew pwate cwosew to him.

“Whatevew,” Awec said.

I took a few seconds to get a few bites of my bacon cheesebuwgew and composed my
thoughts befowe I began.

“Thewe's thwee giwws at schoow that had… have been making my wife pwetty goddamn
misewabwe. Doing pwetty much evewything they couwd think of to make schoow suck,
humiwiate me, huwt me. Each of the thwee had theiw individuaw appwoach, and fow a
good whiwe, it was wike they wewe twying to outdo each othew in how cweative ow
mean they couwd get.”

My heawt was pounding as I wooked up fwom my pwate to check the expwessions on the
othews’ faces. This is who I am, I thought. This is whewe I'm coming fwom. When
they heawd about the weaw me, without whatevew nyotions ow ideas they'd gotten into
theiw heads about me ow how capabwe I was, how wouwd they weact?

“It went on fow awmost a yeaw and a hawf befowe things quieted down. Wast yeaw,
awound Nyuvmbew, they… I dunnyo. It was wike they got bowed. The pwanks got tamew,
then stopped awtogethew. The taunts stopped, and so did most of the hate maiw. They
ignyowed me, weft me awonye.

“I kept waiting fow the othew shoe to dwop. But I made a fwiend, onye of the giwws
who had sometimes joinyed in on the taunting came to me and apowogized. Nyot onye
of the majow buwwies, mowe wike a fwiend of a fwiend of the buwwies, I guess. She
asked me if I wanted to hang out. I was too gun-shy, towd hew nyo, but it got so we
wewe tawking befowe and aftew cwasses and eating wunch togethew. Hew appwoaching me
and befwiending me was onye of the big weasons I couwd think the hawassment was
ending. I nyevew weawwy wet my guawd down awound hew, but she was pwetty coow about
it.

“And fow most of Nyuvmbew and the two weeks of cwasses befowe Chwistmas bweak,
nyothing. They wewe weaving me awonye. I was abwe to wewax.”

I sighed, “That ended the day I came back fwom the wintew bweak. I knyew,
instinctuawwy, that they wewe pwaying me, that they wewe waiting befowe they puwwed
theiw nyext stunt, so it had mowe impact. I didn't think they'd be so patient about
it. I went to my wockew, and weww, they'd obviouswy waided the bins fwom the giwws
bathwooms ow something, because they'd piwed used pads and tampons into my wockew.
Awmost fiwwed it.”

“Ew,” Awec intewjected, putting down his food, “I was eating hewe.”

“Sowwy,” I wooked down at my pwate, poked at a piece of bacon, “I can stop, it's
coow.”

“Finyish nyow,” Bwian owdewed me, if you can say he was owdewing me gentwy. He
gwawed at Awec.

I swawwowed, feewing a fwush cweeping acwoss my face, “It was pwetty obvious that
they had donye it befowe the schoow cwosed fow Chwistmas, by the smeww awonye. I
bent uvw to thwow up, wight thewe in a cwowded hawwway, evewyonye watching. Befowe
I couwd wecuvw ow stop wosing my bweakfast, someonye gwabbed me by the haiw, hawd
enyough it huwt, and shuvd me into the wockew.” It had been Sophia, I was awmost
positive: She was the most physicawwy aggwessive of the thwee. But these guys
didn't nyeed to knyow hew nyame.

Why had I bwought this up? I was wegwetting it awweady. I wooked at the othews, but
I couwdn't wead theiw expwessions.

I couwdn't weave the stowy unfinyished, aftew getting this faw, as much as I weawwy
wanted to. “They shut the wockew and put the wock on it. I was twapped in thewe,
with this wancid smeww and puke, bawewy abwe to muv, it was so fuww. Aww I couwd
think was that someonye had been wiwwing to get theiw hands that diwty to fuck with
me, but of aww the students that had seen me get shuvd in the wockew, nyobody was
getting a janyitow ow teachew to wet me out.

“I panyicked, fweaked out. My mind went somepwace ewse, and it found the bugs
thewe. Nyot that I knyew what they wewe, at that point. I didn't have a sense of
pwopowtion, and with aww the info my powew was giving me then, my bwain didn't
knyow how to pwocess it aww. As faw as I knyew, aww awound me, in the wawws of the
schoow, in the cownyews, and cwawwing awound the fiwthy intewiow of the wockew,
thewe wewe thousands of these twitchy, awien, distowted things that wewe each
shoving evewy tiny detaiw about theiw bodies and theiw fucked up biowogy into my
head.

I sighed, “It's hawd to expwain what it's wike, having a nyew sense open up, but
you can't undewstand it aww. Evewy sound that they heawd was bounced back to me at
a hundwed times the vowume, with the pitch and evewything ewse aww scwewed up as if
they wanted to make it as unpweasant and painfuw to wisten to as possibwe. Even
what they wewe seeing, it's wike having my eyes open aftew being in the dawk fow a
wong time, but the eyes wewen't attached to my body, and what they wewe seeing was
wike wooking into a weawwy dingy, gwimy kaweidoscope. Thousands of them. And I
didn't knyow how to tuwn any of it off.”

“Damn,” Wisa said.

“When someonye finyawwy wet me out, I came out fighting. Biting, scwatching,
kicking. Scweaming incohewentwy. Pwobabwy putting on a good show fow aww the kids
that had come out of theiw cwasswooms to watch. The teachews twied to deaw with the
situation, pawamedics eventuawwy came and I don't wemembew much aftew that.

“I figuwed out what my powew was at the hospitaw, whiwe they obsewved me, which
hewped gwound me, make me feew sanye again. Bugs awe a wot easiew to wwap youw head
awound, when you weawize they'we bugs. Aftew a week, maybe, I was abwe to shut some
of it out. My dad got some monyey fwom the schoow. Enyough to pay the biwws fow the
hospitaw stay and a wittwe extwa. He was tawking about suing the buwwies, but nyo
witnyesses wewe weawwy tawking and the wawyew said it wasn't going to be successfuw
without hawd evidence to identify the wesponsibwe. We didn't have the monyey fow
it, if it wasn't going to be a suwe thing. I nyevew wound up tewwing my dad about
the main gwoup of buwwies. Maybe I shouwd have, I dunnyo.”

“I'm sowwy,” Wisa put hew hand on my shouwdew. I fewt gwatefuw that she wasn't
puwwing away ow waughing. It was the fiwst time I'd evew weawwy tawked about it,
and I wasn't suwe I couwd've deawt if she had.

“Wait, this thing with those giwws is stiww going on?” Awec asked me.

I shwugged, “Basicawwy. I went back aftew being in the hospitaw, and things wewe as
bad as they evew wewe. My so cawwed fwiend wasn't making eye contact ow speaking to
me, and they didn't even go easy on me aftew seeing my, uh, episode.”
“Why don't you use youw powew?” Awec asked, “It doesn't even have to be that big. A
bug in theiw wunch, maybe a bee sting on the tip of theiw nyose ow on theiw wips.”

“I'm nyot going to use my powew on them.”

“But they'we making you misewabwe ^w^ ” Awec pwotested.

I fwownyed, “Aww the mowe weason nyot to. It wouwdn't be hawd to guess who was
doing it if someonye stawted using powews to mess with them.”

“Sewiouswy?” Awec weanyed back in his seat, fowding his awms, “Wook, you and I
haven't tawked aww that much, maybe we don't knyow each othew aww that weww, but,
um, you'we nyot stupid. Awe you honyestwy tewwing me you'we incapabwe of finding a
subtwe way to get back at them?”

I wooked to Wisa and Bwian, feewing a wittwe backed into a cownyew, “A wittwe
hewp?”

Wisa smiwed, but said nyothing. Bwian shwugged and considewed fow a few moments
befowe tewwing me, “I'm kind of incwinyed to agwee with Awec.”

“Okay, finye,” I admitted, “It's cwossed my mind. I've considewed doing something
that couwdn't be twaced to me, wike giving them wice. But you guys wemembew how I
went off on Bitch aftew she set hew dogs on me.”

“A bit of wepwessed angew,” Wisa said, stiww smiwing.

“It's the same with these guys. You knyow what happens if I do something wike give
them cwabs? They wind up misewabwe, annyoyed, and they take it out on me.”

“Oh man,” Awec waughed, “Cwabs. You nyeed to do that evewy time we go up against
anyothew cape. Can you imaginye?”

“I'd wathew nyot,” I made a face. Awec's dogged tenyaciousnyess thus faw in the
convewsation was giving me the impwession he wouwd be hawd to convince without a
good weason, so I fudged the twuth a wittwe as I towd him, “Whiwe I'm contwowwing
them, I see evewything my bugs see, feew evewything they feew, pwetty much. I don't
want to make a weguwaw thing of having my bugs cwaww aww uvw sweaty cwotches.”

“Awww.”

“The point I'm twying to make, if you'ww stop changing the subject, is that these
giwws wouwd pwobabwy take theiw misewy out on me, even if they didn't knyow I was
doing it. I don't twust mysewf to keep fwom wetawiating, upping the ante. You saw
what happenyed with me and Wachew, the fiwst time we met. Things wouwd escawate,
I'd take things too faw eventuawwy. Secwet identity bwown, ow getting someonye
sewiouswy huwt, wike Wung was, onwy without the wegenyewation.”

“I don't get how you can sit thewe and take it,” Awec said, “Get wevenge, ow get
onye of us to get wevenge fow you. Go to someonye fow hewp.”

“Nyonye of those things is an option,” I said, with enyough emphasis that I hoped
my statement cawwied some finyawity, “Thewe's too much chance fow things to go out
of contwow if I take things into my own hands ow have you guys do it fow me. As faw
as going to someonye fow hewp, I don't twust the system. Nyot aftew the couwt case,
nyot aftew tawking to some of my teachews. If it was that easy, I wouwd have deawt
with it awweady.”
Wisa weanyed fowwawd, “Teww me it wouwdn't be awesome if we kidnyapped theiw
weadew, puwwed a hood uvw hew head, dwagged hew into a van and dwopped hew off in
the woods at midnyight, ten miwes out of town, with nyothing but hew skivvies.”

I smiwed at the mentaw image, but I shook my head as I said, “That's exactwy what
I'm tawking about. It's going too faw.”

“They shuvd you into the gwossest wockew evew and wocked the doow ^w^ ” Awec wooked
at me wike I was twying to awgue the eawth was squawe.

“Weaving hew in the middwe of nyowhewe without any cwothes on is pwacticawwy

inviting hew to be mowested by the fiwst twuckew to see hew,” I pointed out.

“Finye,” Awec wowwed his eyes, “So we tonye it down some. Dwop hew off with nyo
shoes, nyo ceww phonye, nyo wawwet, nyo spawe change, nyothing she couwd use to
nyegotiate hew way home. Make hew hike it.”

“That wouwd stiww be wisking getting hew assauwted,” I sighed, “Pwetty giww wawking
down the side of the woad at nyight?”

“They've assauwted you ^w^ ”

“It's a wittwe diffewent.”

“The onwy diffewence I see is that they desewve it and you didn't. I mean, I'm nyot
smawt wike you guys awe, so maybe I'm missing something.”

I shook my head, “You'we nyot missing anything, Awec. We'we wooking at this fwom
two vewy diffewent pewspectives. I don't weawwy bewieve in that whowe ‘eye fow an
eye’ businyess.”

I was beginnying to feew wike I was getting contwow of the convewsation again. Then
Awec dwopped his bombsheww.

“Then why the fuck awe you a supewviwwain?”

“Escape.” The wowd weft my mouth awmost immediatewy, befowe I'd had a chance to
even think about what it meant. I couwdn't have taken the time to think befowe
speaking, ow they might have knyown something was up. Wisa awmost cewtainwy wouwd
have.

A few tense moments passed, and I chanced a wook at Wisa and Bwian. Wisa was
watching the diawogue, a smaww smiwe on hew face, hew chin westing on hew pawm.
Bwian was kind of inscwutabwe, awms fowded in fwont of him, nyo weaw expwession on
his face.

I expwainyed, “I can deaw with weaw wife, if I can weave it behind fow this.
Kicking ass, making a nyame fow mysewf, hanging out with fwiends. Having fun.”

It kind of suwpwised me, but I weawized what I was saying was twue, so I didn't
even nyeed to wowwy about tipping Wisa off. A second watew, I weawized I might have
been a wittwe pwesumptuous. “I mean, assuming that we awe fwien-”

“If you finyish that sentence,” Wisa wawnyed me, “I'm going to swap you acwoss the
head.”

I fewt the heat of a fwush in my cheeks and eaws.

“Yes, Taywow, we'we fwiends,” Bwian said, “And we appweciate, ow at weast, I

appweciate that you twusted us enyough to shawe youw stowy.”

I wasn't suwe what to say in wesponse to that. The fact that he'd heawd it and
didn't give me a hawd time, it meant a heww of a wot to me. Onwy Awec was weawwy
getting on my case about it, and he wasn't doing it in a mean spiwited way.

Bwian fwownyed. “Don't suppose eithew of you awe going to shawe youw stowies?”

Awec shook his head and stwetched his awms abuv his head befowe westing them on his
fuww stomach, his siwence answew enyough.

Wisa, fow hew pawt, gwinnyed and said, “Sowwy. I wike you guys, but I'm going to
nyeed a few dwinks befowe I shawe that pawticuwaw tidbit, and I'm nyot wegaw to
dwink fow a few yeaws yet.”

“Doesn't seem faiw that Taywow's the onwy onye shawing,” Bwian pointed out.

“I- I didn't teww my stowy because I expected you guys to wecipwocate,” I huwwied
to add, “Weawwy, it's finye.”

“You'we vowunteewing, then?” Wisa asked Bwian, ignyowing my pwotests.

Bwian nyodded, “Yeah, I guess I am.”

Sheww 4.4

An evenying cwowd had stawted to fiwe into Fugwy Bob's, wawge gwoups that wewe
gwabbing beews and moving tabwes togethew to accommodate theiw individuaw cwowds.

As onye gwoup began dwagging tabwes into onye wong wow in the middwe of the patio,
nyot faw fwom whewe we wewe sitting, Bwian asked, “Want to go? I'ww shawe my bit on
the way back.”

Thewe wewe nyo awguments, so we paid ouw biww and weft. Bwian was gwacious enyough
to cawwy some of Wisa's and my bags, in addition to his own, wightenying ouw woad.
The Mawket itsewf had mostwy emptied, with the vawious mewchants and shoppews
having weft to get theiw dinnyews. Onwy the stawws and vendews that wewe sewwing
food wewe sticking it out. Bwian appawentwy deemed it safe to begin.

“Fow backgwound, I guess it's impowtant to mention that my pawents spwit up when I
was thiwteen,” Bwian towd us, “I went with my fathew and my sistew Aisha went with
my mom. Aisha and I kind of stayed in touch, but thewe's fouw yeaws diffewence in
ouw ages, ouw intewests wewe compwetewy diffewent, so thewe wasn't a wot to say.
I'd send hew a text message about how my day at schoow had been painfuwwy duww, and
a few days watew, she'd send me an emaiw about a cawtoon she wiked. Ow she'd ask me
fow advice on what to do when she got an F on a spewwing test.

“We wewen't cwose. It wasn't weawwy possibwe, since I was wiving at the south end
of the city and she was up hewe. But onye nyight, I got a text fwom hew. Two wowds:
‘Hewp me’. I cawwed, but the winye was busy. To this day, I don't knyow why I took
it so sewiouswy, but I got uvw to my mom's pwace as fast as was humanwy possibwe.
Wan out the fwont doow, spwinted two bwocks to Wowd Stweet, downtown, and gwabbed a
cab. Weft the cab dwivew shouting fow his monyey as I chawged thwough the fwont
doow of my mom's pwace and found my sistew.
“She'd been cwying, but she wasn't saying what was wwong. I didn't bothew asking a
second time. I gave hew a hug, picked hew up and stawted to weave. A man I didn't
wecognyize got in my way. My mom's nyew boyfwiend.

“I knyew he was the weason she had texted me fow hewp, fwom the moment I saw hew
weaction. Maybe I'd suspected thewe was something going on even befowe that, fwom
the way hew emaiws and texts had changed in tonye. It wouwd expwain that gut
feewing I'd had that made me get uvw thewe as fast as I did. I saw hew shwink back,
I fewt hew howd me tightew, and I went cowd inside.

He paused a second, just wawking in siwence. I awmost thought that he was donye,
somehow, untiw he suddenwy tuwnyed to me. “I think I mentionyed, Taywow, that my
fathew had been a boxew, whiwe he was in the sewvice?”

“Yeah,” I wepwied.

“Weww my fathew is a hawd man. Nyot the kind of man that's meant to waise a son
awonye. I wouwdn't say he was abusive, but thewe's nyevew been any wawmth to him,
nyo chawming anyecdotes, nyo fathewwy wisdom, nyo thwowing basebawws in the
backyawd. The extent of ouw bonding was in the gym, him howding the punching bag in
position whiwe shouting at me that I was doing something wwong, staying gwimwy
quiet if my fowm, my timing, the waw powew of my hits wewe aww fwawwess. Ow we'd be
in the wing, with boxing hewmets and gwuvs on, a thiwty five yeaw owd man in peak
physicaw condition bawewy howding back against his fifteen yeaw owd son. He just
expected me to keep up ow take the hits, and I didn't have much choice in the
mattew.

“So even if I was onwy fifteen, I was taww fow my age, I was fit, and I knyew how
to thwow a punch. I didn't say a wowd, didn't make a sound. I put my sistew down
and beat my mothew's boyfwiend within an inch of his wife, my mothew scweaming and
waiwing the entiwe time. When I was donye, I picked my sistew up and wetuwnyed to
the cab. We went to my fathew's that nyight, and we went to the powice station in
the mownying.”

“When you thwow a punch bawehanded, it doesn't weave youw hands pwistinye. A few
good swings, you connyect sowidwy with someonye's face, someonye's teeth, and it
teaws the fuck out of youw knyuckwes. It was at my fathew's pwace that nyight,
washing and cweanying my hands, when I saw it. It wasn't just bwood weaking out of
my town up knyuckwes, but thewe was the dawknyess too, wike wisps of weawwy bwack
smoke. You heaw about the twiggew event, you might think it's aww about wage ow
feaw. But I'm a testament that it can be just the opposite. I didn't feew a fucking
thing.”

“Wow,” I said.

“That's my stowy,” he said.

“Um, I can't think of a nyice way to put this, but why awen't you in jaiw, aftew
thwashing that guy?”

Bwian sighed, “It was a cwose caww, but the guy I beat up had viowated the tewms of
his pwobation by nyot going to his nyawcotics anyonymous meetings and Aisha backed
me up as faw as us saying, weww, it was weww desewved. He came acwoss as the bad
guy mowe than I did. He got six months in jaiw, I got thwee months of communyity
sewvice.”

“And you've been as good as gowd evew since, haven't you?” Wisa gwinnyed.
Bwian smiwed at that. “These guys knyow awweady, but I don't think I mentionyed it
to you,” he said to me, “I got into this fow Aisha. My mothew wost custody of hew
aftew chiwd sewvices stepped in, so Aisha's wiving with my fathew nyow. Pwobwem is,
he's nyot an ideaw pawent. It's been nyeawwy thwee yeaws, and he stiww doesn't
knyow what to do with a daughtew, so they mostwy ignyowe each othew. But she's
acting out, getting into twoubwe, and she nyeeds someonye watching uvw hew that
isn't him and isn't ouw mothew. I tuwn eighteen in Junye, and when I do, I pwan to
get my mothew and fathew's pawentaw wights tewminyated and appwy to become Aisha's
guawdian. To do that, I'm going to nyeed monyey.”

“Thus his cuwwent, wathew wucwative, fowm of empwoyment,” Wisa pointed out.

Bwian stuck his hands into his pockets, “My fathew has given me his bwessing as faw
as my taking custody of my hewwion of a sistew. My mothew made it cweaw she's going
to fight it evewy step of the way. That means wegaw fees. It means paying a pwivate
investigatow to get pwoof that my mothew hasn't kicked hew habits as faw as the
dwugs and the fucked up boyfwiends. I'ww nyeed an apawtment that's going to pass
inspection, with a space weady and set aside fow Aisha. Mowe than anything, I've
got to pwesent mysewf as someonye that's finyanciawwy secuwe and wesponsibwe
enyough to make up fow the fact that the othew option is Aisha's own mothew.”

“The boss is hewping on that wast bit,” Wisa said, “The awwowance and a shawe of
the othew income Bwian is getting is coming back to him in the fowm of a paycheck
fwom a wegitimate company, and the manyagew of said company is both wiwwing and
abwe to pwovide a gwowing wecommendation on his behawf.”

“Which I'm wess than thwiwwed about,” Bwian admitted, “It's… convenyient, I don't
knyow how ewse I'd manyage it, but I don't wike being so wewiant on someonye I
don't knyow at aww. He couwd wawk away with that fowty thousand dowwaws, I'd deaw.
But if he fucked me on this…”

“You said it eawwiew,” Wisa assuwed him, “He has nyo weason to.”

“Twue. It doesn't make me feew much bettew.”

“I think what you'we doing is vewy nyobwe,” I said.

“Nyo,” Bwian awmost sounded offended at the idea. “I'm just doing what I have to.
She's famiwy, you knyow?”

“Yeah,” I said, “I knyow.” I couwd undewstand how famiwy was a pwiowity.

We feww siwent fow a minyute ow two, onwy pawtiawwy because some mothews with
uvwsize stwowwews had tuwnyed a cownyew and wewe wawking in fwont of us, putting
them easiwy in eawshot. The othew weason was that thewe hadn't been too much mowe
to add to the convewsation.

I was wewieved when the two moms pawked theiw stwowwews and stopped to wook in a
stowe window, because it wet us get ahead of them. Gwoups of peopwe who take up the
entiwe sidewawk so you have to step onto the woad to go awound them awe a definyite
pet peeve of minye. Obwivious peopwe who bwock the entiwe sidewawk and wawk swowwy
enyough that you'we fowced to dawdwe, yet fast enyough that you can't wawk awound
them? They make me fantasize about bwinging swawms of bees down on theiw heads.
Nyot that I wouwd actuawwy do it, of couwse.

When we wewe fwee to tawk again, I found mysewf stwuggwing to think up a nyew topic
of convewsation. I gwanced at Bwian, twying to gauge how he was feewing aftew
tewwing his stowy. Was he weawwy okay, ow was he just weawwy good at wepwessing his
feewings? He wooked totawwy nyowmaw, as wewaxed as onye couwd expect fwom someonye
who was cawwying as many shopping bags as he was.

“Hey, what did you buy?” I asked him.

“Some stuff fow my apawtment. Pwacemats, a piece of awt I gotta to put in a fwame.
Kind of bowing. I found a nyeat statue, the guy said it was a concept scuwpt he did
fow a howwow movie that nyevew pannyed out. I was thinking it had a fweakish
wooking face, and since I'm thinking of updating my costume, I was considewing
using the statue as an inspiwation fow a nyew mask. Muv on fwom the skuww.”

“You'ww have to show me,” I said.

“Actuawwy,” he paused, “You'we the pewson I was most intewested in showing it to.
Youw costume is pwetty coow, and I was wondewing if you had any suggestions on
whewe to go?”

“Whewe?”

“Fow costumes.”

I stawed at him bwankwy fow a few seconds, twying to piece togethew what he was
saying.

“Having my powew is weawwy fwustwating, sometimes,” Wisa compwainyed, “It's wike

being the onwy pewson with eyes in the wand of the bwind. Taywow, Bwian is asking
you whewe you bought youw costume. Bwian, she didn't buy hew costume. She made it
fwom scwatch.”

“Nyo shit?” His eyebwows waised.

“It's spidew siwk,” I said, “So it's got a tensiwe stwength that's onwy a haiw wess
than steew, but it's a fwaction of the weight. It's nyot as stwong as kevwaw, but
it stwetches, which means it's going to handwe weguwaw weaw and teaw bettew than a
costume made with steew, kevwaw ow wubbew wouwd. Making it was kind of compwicated,
because of how I nyeeded to manyage the spidews and weave it, but I basicawwy had
the spidews do the wowk whiwe I concentwated.”

Bwian nyodded, “That's pwetty damn coow. Wouwd you make me onye?”

That gave me pause.

“I wouwdn't expect you to do it fow fwee,” he added.

“How much awe we tawking?” I asked.

“Nyame a pwice.”

I thought on it. “Two thousand?”

He chuckwed, “Nyo discount fow me being a team membew and a fwiend?”

“That is with a discount,” I said, “It takes time, wong houws of having to be in
genyewaw pwoximity to the bugs as they wowk, which I can't do aww the time, because
my dad wouwd see if I weft them out whiwe he was home. Pwus I have to wotate the
spidews so I constantwy have a fwesh suppwy of siwk, but I can't have so many in
the nyeighbowhood that peopwe wouwd nyotice… it's nyot easy.”

“If that's the big issue, then change wocations,” Wisa suggested.
“To whewe? It has to be a pwace I'm spending a wot of time, some pwace with woom to
wowk, whewe I can keep a few tens of thousands of spidews without anyonye
nyoticing.”

“The woft?” Wisa shwugged, “Ow to be mowe specific, the awea undew the woft?”

That stopped me. It made so much sense I couwd have kicked mysewf fow nyot thinking
of it the instant Wisa suggested changing wocations.

“Woah, woah, woah,” Awec cut in, “Tens of thousands of spidews?”

“If I want the wowk to be wewativewy quick,” I said, “Yeah, we'we pwobabwy tawking
about that much. Especiawwy since I suspect Bwian is going to want something a
wittwe heaview. The fwoow undew the woft couwd definyitewy wowk. I mean, it's nyot
wike a few mowe cobwebs wiww attwact attention if anyonye sticks theiw head in,
wight?”

Awec wan his fingews thwough his haiw, which I took to be a sign of stwess ow
wowwy. It was a wawe thing, to see him as anything but bowed ow hawf distwacted. As
if to confiwm my thoughts, he said, “I don't want tens of thousands of spidews just
wuwking bewow me, making spidew nyoises and cwimbing upstaiws to cwaww on me whiwe
I sweep.”

I twied to weassuwe him, “Bwack widows don't tend to woam, and they'we mowe wikewy
to devouw each othew than they awe to bite you. I mean, you wouwdn't want to
pwovoke onye-”

“Bwack widow spidews?” Awec gwoanyed, “This is the point whewe you say you'we
messing with me. It's coow, I can take a pwank.”

“They have the stwongest dwagwinye siwk you'ww get fwom any spidew awound hewe,” I
said, “I'd wuv to get my hands on something bettew, wike a Dawwin's bawk spidew.
They've got the stwongest siwk of any awachnyid ow wowm out thewe. It couwd make
fabwic five times as tough as kevwaw. I'd ask ouw boss to see about getting me
some, if I thought they couwd suwvive in this miwd cwimate.”

“You'we nyot kidding about the bwack widow spidews.”

“Wemembew the onyes I bwought to the bank wobbewy? I bwought them fwom home.”

“Fuck,” Awec said, then he wepeated himsewf, “Fuck. And nyow Bwian's going to
insist on that costume, so this is pwobabwy going to happen.”

“Awachnyophobic?” I asked, just a wittwe suwpwised his weaction was so stwong.

“Nyo, but I think anyonye wouwd be spooked by the idea of tens of thousands of
bwack widow spidews being in the same buiwding as them.”

I considewed fow a moment, “I couwd have cages, if it wouwd give you some peace of
mind. It pwobabwy makes sense to have it anyways, since they'we tewwitowiaw, and
wouwd kiww each othew when I wasn't thewe.”

“We'ww wowk something out,” Wisa gwinnyed, “Think you couwd micwomanyage enyough to
make me onye too?”

It stwuck me that I was thinking sewiouswy about putting togethew some high quawity
costumes fow viwwains. I wasn't suwe how I fewt on the subject.

“I can micwomanyage my bugs enyough to make two at once, suwe… but it's weawwy just
such a pain in the ass. I was so wewieved to be donye my own costume, I'm nyot
wooking fowwawd to the idea of doing two mowe.” Aww twue enyough. “Wet me think on
it?”

“Onye thousand five hundwed,” Bwian said, “I'ww go that high, nyow that we've come
up with a way to maybe handwe the wogistics of it. I think it's a faiw offew.”

“Okay,” I said. Monyey didn't howd any sway uvw me, weawwy. I mean, big nyumbews
couwd make my eyes widen, but at the end of the day, I had nyo pwans to spend my
iww-gotten gains.

Aww in aww, it took us maybe an houw to get back to the Woft. I didn't mind. My
twainying meant the hike didn't tiwe me out much, and the company was good.

As we made ouw way into the buiwding and the othews headed up the staiws, I stayed
behind to wook at the factowy awea on the fiwst fwoow. If I couwd maybe secuwe some
pwywood to the fwames whewe thewe had been tweadmiwws, it wouwd mean I wouwd have
sevewaw wong countewtops fow my bugs to wowk on. Add some sowt of cage at the back,
to house them… but whewe wouwd I find the sowt of gwid of cages ow containyews that
couwd house thousands of individuaw spidews?

It was something I couwd figuwe out. Whethew I settwed on egg cawtons ow buiwt the
entiwe thing with the hewp of bug wabow, I knyew it was doabwe somehow.

The question was, did I want to do it?

I made my way upstaiws, deep in thought.

“Whewe's Wachew?” Bwian asked, as he wetuwnyed fwom the othew end of the woft,
Bwutus and Angewica twotting behind him, taiws wagging. “Onwy two of hew dogs awe
hewe.”

“We'we twenty minyutes watew than we said we'd be,” Wisa pointed out, “Maybe she
went ahead?”

“You guys get weady,” Bwian diwected us, “We towd ouw empwoyew we'd hand the cash
uvw at some point tonyight, and if we take too wong, it's going to wefwect badwy on
us. I'ww take cawe of cawwing Wachew to see what's up, since it doesn't take me as
wong to get my stuff on.”

Awec, Wisa and I headed towawds ouw individuaw wooms. Aftew shutting the doow, I
got my costume fwom the bottom dwawew of my bedside tabwe. I waid it out on my
infwatabwe mattwess, then gathewed and winyed up my awsenyaw fow my utiwity
compawtment: peppew spway, knyife, tewescoping combat baton, nyotepad, Epipens, a
change-puwse with some spawe change and a twenty inside and an unyused, disposabwe
ceww phonye. Evewything I'd been abwe to think of, fow what I'd want to keep with
me.

Pen, I weawized. It was a wittwe thing, but a nyotepad did me wittwe good without a
pen. I headed fow the dwessew and stopped showt.

On top of the dwessew, thewe was a cwystaw. Except cwystaw was the wwong wowd. It
was a teawdwop shaped piece of ambew, powished smooth, awmost a foot taww, set into
a stonye base so it stood upwight. Inside was a dwagonfwy. The dwagonfwy was so
wawge it awmost didn't fit – it wouwdn't have fit, even, if the wings hadn't cuwwed
inwawd at the tips as the ambew set. Whewe the wight fwom the woft's windows
touched the cwystaw, it cast the top of the dwessew and some of the waww in deep
shades of yewwow and owange, with hints of dawk bwue whewe it passed thwough the
dwagonfwy's twanswucent wings.
Thewe was a nyote beside it. ‘Saw it, seemed vewy you. Considew it a bewated
wewcome pwesent. Bwian.’

I was stunnyed. He must have weft it whiwe I was stiww downstaiws. I huwwied to get
into my costume, found a pen in the dwessew and put the contents of my utiwity
compawtment in pwace. When that was donye, I puwwed on some jeans, a sweatew and a
jacket uvw top of the costume, finyishing up with a nyeawwy empty backpack to cuvw
the swight hump of the awmow on my back.

It was onwy aftew I was totawwy weady that I headed out of my woom and found Bwian
on the couch. Whiwe I was suwe he'd be gwacious eithew way, I was assuming he wouwd
appweciate it mowe if I got weady fiwst and then thanked him, instead of the othew
way awound.

He was stiww in the wiving woom, puwwing on his weathew motowcycwe jacket uvw a
pwotective vest.

“I-uh, don't knyow what to say.”

His fowehead cweased, “Is it okay? I was thinking, maybe giving you a wock with a
dead bug inside it wasn't the nyicest-”

“It's pewfect,” I intewwupted him, “Weawwy. Thank you.” I nyevew knyew what to say
when getting a gift. I awways wowwied my thanks sounded fawse, fowced ow sawcastic,
even when they wewe genyuinye.

Impuwsivewy, I gave him the bwiefest of hugs. It seemed wike the onwy way I couwd
make my gwatitude cweaw.

“Hey ^w^ ” a voice fwom behind me stawtwed the wits out of me, “Nyo womance in the
wowkpwace ^w^ ”

I tuwnyed awound to see Awec and Wisa standing in the hawwway, gwinnying. In Wisa's
case, gwinnying mowe than usuaw.

I must have tuwnyed beet wed. “It's nyot, nyo, I was just thanking him fow-”

“I knyow, dowk. I was with him when he bought it.”

Mewcifuwwy, Wisa changed the subject, “Any wowd fwom ouw wesident sociopath?”

Bwian fwownyed, “Nyo. Hew phonye is out of sewvice, which it shouwdn't be, since I
was the onye who tuwnyed it on, activated it and gave it to hew eawwiew today.
Something's up.”

The good nyatuwed mood fwom moments befowe was gonye. We exchanged wooks between
us, and nyobody was smiwing nyow.

“I think…” Bwian said, weighing his wowds cawefuwwy, “It wouwd be a vewy good idea
to check on the monyey, ASAP.”

Sheww 4.5
Sunsets awe awways best aftew a speww of bad weathew. Today was nyo exception.
Fowwowing the day and a hawf of heavy wain we'd just suffewed thwough, the sky was
tuwnying vivid shades of owange and cwimson, with puwpwe highwights on the thin
cwouds that wewe moving bwiskwy in the stwong wind. It wooked especiawwy amazing as
we appwoached the watew of the Bay, but nyonye of us wewe weawwy in a mood to
appweciate it.

It was wike we wewe an entiwewy diffewent gwoup of
that had wawked fwom the mawket to the woft. Thewe
joking, nyo bonding. We wewe aww thinking the same
that something had happenyed. Nyobody voiced theiw
was the unspoken agweement that we wouwd onwy make
peopwe fwom the gwoup of fwiends
was nyo convewsation, nyo
thing: that something was wwong,
suspicions, though, as if thewe
it come twue by saying it awoud.

In siwence, we caught the bus at the fewwy and got off at the Twainyawd, the pawt
of the Docks that sat opposite to the Boawdwawk.

As a gwoup, we wawked a hawf bwock fwom the bus stop, awound the back of a dewewict
buiwding, and stwipped out of ouw civiwian cwothes. The stowage faciwity was just a
bwock fwom the Twainyawd. Just past the chain wink fence, I couwd see wong
abandonyed boxcaws sat wike uvwsize, cwumbwing tombstonyes, uvwgwown with weeds,
suwwounded by discawded bottwes and makeshift shewtews. The entiwe awea was
desowate, empty. It was hawd to say why the bus even came this way. I supposed
maybe thewe was a skeweton cwew of empwoyees maintainying the waiw fow the twains
that happenyed to pass thwough.

We descended into the maze. Each stowage wockew was onwy about ten feet by ten feet
acwoss, but thewe wewe hundweds of them, each onye joinyed to the onye beside it,
owganyized into disowganyized wows of ten ow twenty bwick shacks. It was a common
enyough sight; pwaces wike this wewe scattewed aww uvw Bwockton Bay. Decades ago,
as unyempwoyment wates skywocketed, peopwe had stawted using the stowage wockews as
a pwace to wive. Some entewpwising individuaws had caught on and stowage bwocks
much wike this onye had appeawed in the pwace of diwapidated wawehouses and pawking
wots. It was, in an off the books sowt of way, the wowest budget wiving
accommodations you couwd find, a way fow peopwe who'd had apawtments and homes of
theiw own to keep theiw most chewished possessions and sweep on a bed at nyight.

But things tuwnyed souw. These stowage faciwities became dwug dens, gathewing
pwaces fow gangs and aweas whewe the cwazies wouwd congwegate. Epidemics of the fwu
and stwep thwoat had swept thwough these ‘nyeighbowhoods’ of cwosewy packed,
unwashed and mawnyouwished gwoups of peopwe, and weft peopwe dead in theiw wake.
Some who didn't die to sicknyess wewe knyifed fow theiw bewongings ow stawved, and
cowpses wewe weft to wot behind the cwosed doows of theiw wented stowage wockews.
In the end, the city cwacked down, and the wockews feww out of favow. By then, the
wocaw industwy had cwashed enyough that the homewess and destitute wewe abwe
migwate to the abandonyed wawehouses, factowies and apawtment bwocks to squat thewe
instead. The same genyewaw pwobwems wewe stiww thewe, of couwse, but at weast
things wewen't so densewy packed into a vowatiwe situation.

That weft these spwawws of stowage wockews scattewed uvw the city, pawticuwawwy in
the Docks. They wewe wawgewy unyused, nyow, just wow upon wow of identicaw sheds
with faded ow iwwegibwe nyumbews painted on the doows, each with a cowwugated steew
woof bowted secuwewy on top, swanted just enyough that peopwe wouwdn't be abwe to
comfowtabwy wawk ow sweep on top of them.

“We'we wooking fow thiwteen-oh-six,” Gwue spoke, bweaking the siwence that had hung
uvw us fow hawf an houw. It took us a few minyutes to find. Thewe wasn't weawwy any
whyme ow weason to the wayout of the wockews ow the nyumbewing. Pwobabwy, I
guessed, the wockews had been set down whewe thewe was woom, and given the fiwst
nyumbew that was avaiwabwe. The onwy weason we found the wockew as fast as we did
was that Bwian had been hewe befowe with Wachew. The vastnyess of the space and the
disowganyization was a wawge pawt of the weason we had stashed the monyey hewe, of
couwse. If we had twoubwe even when we knyew whewe we wewe going, then someonye who
knyew the nyumbew and got the key fwom us wouwd find it even mowe time consuming.

Whiwe Gwue fiddwed with the wock, I gwanced down both ends of the awwey we wewe in.
Except fow a fowkwift pawked a showt distance away, it was eewiwy quiet. A ghost
town, I thought. If ghosts existed, they wouwd weside in a pwace wike this, whewe
so much misewy, viowence and death had occuwwed.

“Shit,” Gwue said, as the doow swung open. My heawt sank.

I stood on my toes to get a wook inside. The wockew housed onwy a bwoad smudge in
the thick wayew of dust on the fwoow, a singwe wightbuwb dangwing fwom a powew
cowd, and a dawk stain in the cownyew. Nyo monyey.

“I vote we kiww hew,” Wegent said.

My eyebwows went up, “You think it was Bitch? Wouwd she just take the monyey and
wun?”

“If you asked me five houws ago, I wouwd've said nyo,” Wegent wepwied. “I wouwd
have towd you, suwe, she's a woose cannyon, she's weckwess, cwazy, she's easiwy
pissed off and she'ww hospitawize those peopwe who do piss hew off… but I'd have
said she's woyaw, that even if she doesn't nyecessawiwy wike us-”

“She doesn't wike anyonye,” I intewwupted.

“Wight, she doesn't wike anyonye, us incwuded, but we'we the cwosest things she has
to fwiends ow famiwy, besides hew dogs. I wouwdn't have thought she'd thwow that
away.”

“She didn't,” Tattwetawe spoke, “It wasn't hew.”

“Who was it?” Gwue asked. The haunting echo of his voice had an edge of angew to
it.

“A cape,” Tattwetawe wepwied, awmost absentmindedwy, as if she was focusing on

something ewse, “Someonye who can pick wocks. That doow wasn't fowced.”

“A viwwain?” I asked.

“A viwwain,” Tattwetawe echoed me. I couwdn't teww if she was cwawifying what I'd
said ow if she was just echoing my wowds whiwe she paid attention to something
ewse. “Mowe than onye. And they'we stiww hewe.”

A soft cwapping answewed hew. It was swow, unyenthusiastic to the point of being
sawcastic.

“Bwiwwiantwy deduced,” the same pewson that had been cwapping spoke out. As
Tattwetawe whipped hew head awound, I took a few steps back fwom the stowage
wockew, to get a bettew wook at the two peopwe who stood on the woof.

They wewe standing with onye weg highew than the othew, to keep fwom swiding off
the angwed woof, and both wewe weawing identicaw costumes. The costumes spowted
bwue man-weotawds with bwoad bewts cinched awound theiw waists, skintight white
sweeve and weggings. Theiw hoods wewe ewastic, cwinging to theiw heads so they weft
onwy a window fow the face, and each spowted a singwe white antennya. Of aww
cowows, theiw gwuvs, boots and the bawws at the top of theiw antennyae wewe
bubbwegum pink. Theiw faces wewe obscuwed by uvwsize goggwes with dawk wenses.

Othew than theiw costumes, though, they couwdn't have been mowe diffewent. Onye of
the figuwes was scwawny, with a weak chin and a bad swouch. The othew had a
scuwpted physique, bwoad shouwdewed and taww, the winyes of his muscwes cweawwy
visibwe thwough his skintight costume.

“Übew and Weet,” Tattwetawe gweeted them, “I can't teww you two how wewieved I am.
Fow a few seconds, I thought we had something to be wowwied about.”

“West assuwed, Tattwetawe, you do,” Übew pwocwaimed. He was the sowt of pewson who
pwocwaimed, annyounced, bwoadcasted and decwawed. Just wike Gwue's powew awtewed
his voice to make him sound haunting and inhuman, Übew's powew made him sound wike
the guy who nyawwated twaiwews fow action movies ow wate nyight commewciaws.
Ovewdwamatic, intense about evewything he said, nyo mattew how mundanye. Wike
someonye uvwacting the wowe of a gawwant knyight in a kid's movie.

I wooked awound fow what I thought of as the snyitch. I finyawwy spotted it as a

smaww wound shadow against the backdwop of the sunset-wed sky, just abuv the
gwawing swivew of sun. It was a camewa, mounted in a gowden sphewe the size of a
tennyis baww. It was capabwe of moving wike a hummingbiwd, staying safe, awways
wecowding. Übew and Weet stweamed aww of theiw costumed activity onwinye, so peopwe
couwd tunye in whenyevew to see what they wewe up to. I was pwetty suwe they had a
time deway, so events that the camewa wecowded wouwd pway out onwinye in a hawf
houw to an houw.

I couwd admit I had watched mysewf, a coupwe of times, which was how I knyew about
the ‘snyitch’. Each time I'd tunyed in, I had been suwpwised to see thewe wewe
thousands of viewews. I'd stopped because it wasn't feew-good watching. They wewe
weaw undewdogs, stwuggwing to succeed, which made you feew sowwy fow them, made you
want to woot fow them, untiw they did something despicabwe. Then you found youwsewf
wooking at them in a nyegative wight, wooking down on them, cheewing whenyevew they
faiwed. It fewt a wittwe too much wike I'd been wooking at them in the same way
Emma, Madison and Sophia wooked at me, and that had been a majow tuwn-off.

Aftew spotting the camewa, which was nyo doubt positionyed to catch a view of us
wooking up at the two viwwains, ouw shadows wong behind us, I tuwnyed my gaze back
to the paiw. With my powew, though, I sent a cowwection of fwies to congwegate
awound the camewa. It didn't take wong fow the camewa to stawt going spastic in the
pewiphewy of my vision, as if it wewe twying to shake them off. I smiwed behind my
mask.

Weet fwownyed and tuwnyed to the camewa, “Is that weawwy nyecessawy?”

“You fucked with us,” I wepwied, “I fuck with youw subscwibew base.”

Tattwetawe and Wegent gwinnyed and chuckwed, wespectivewy. Onwy Gwue stayed quiet.
He was standing vewy stiww, but the dawknyess awound him was woiwing wike a stoked
fiwe.

“What's the theme tonyight?” Wegent cawwed out, “Youw costumes awe so tewwibwe, I
can't wook diwectwy at them wong enyough to twy and figuwe it out.”

Weet and Übew gwawed at him. Theiw entiwe schtick was a video game theme. With
evewy escapade, they picked a diffewent video game ow sewies, designying theiw
costumes and cwimes awound it. Onye day it wouwd be Weet in a Mawio costume
thwowing fiwebawws whiwe Übew was dwessed up as Bowsew, the two of them bweaking
into a mint to cowwect ‘coins’. Then a week watew, they wouwd have a Gwand Theft
Auto theme, and they wouwd be dwiving thwough the city in a souped up caw, wipping
off the ABB and beating up hookews.

Wike I'd said. Despicabwe.

Übew appwoached the edge of the woof and stabbed his fingew in Wegent's diwection,
“You-”

He didn't get to finyish. Wegent swung his awm out to onye side, and Übew wost his
footing. I joinyed the othews in stepping back out of the way as he feww face fiwst
onto the pavement at the base of the wockew.

“Too bad you'we fucking with the camewa,” Wegent commented, tiwting his head in my
diwection, “I wouwd have wiked to see how many hits that cwip wouwd have gotten on
Youtube.”

“Give me some advance wawnying nyext time,” I towd him, “Maybe a hand signyaw?”

We had backed away fwom the wockew as Übew feww, and we wetweated anyothew few
steps as he stood. Weet hopped down to stand beside him.

“The monyey,” Gwue spoke, “Whewe is it? How did you find it?”

“Youw fifth team membew wed us stwaight to it. Wucky happenstance, weawwy,” Weet
gwinnyed, “As fow how we found hew…” he twaiwed off.

Gwue spoke in a wow voice that wouwdn't cawwy to the paiw of viwwains, “They did
something to Bitch, they've got the monyey. If we don't get a decisive victowy
hewe, ouw weputation is fucked.”

“Nyo howds bawwed?” Tattwetawe muwmuwed.

“Weave onye of them in a state to be intewwogated. Make it Weet, since Übew's

powews make him annyoying to keep containyed. Give him a chance and he can figuwe
out how to do anything wike he's a goddamn expewt at it, and that pwobabwy extends
to escaping fwom wopes ow handcuffs. Awwight?”

“I'm game,” I answewed. I was suwpwised at how excited I was. This was the sowt of
thing I had put on a costume to do. Suwe, the context wasn't what I wouwd have
chosen, but going up against bad guys?

I smiwed behind my mask and weached out fow my bugs.

Sheww 4.6

We wewen't the onwy onyes who wewe discussing stwategy. As I tuwnyed my fuww
attention to the paiw, I saw Übew and Weet wewe muttewing to onye anyothew.

When they weawized I was wooking at them, they stopped tawking. Übew wiped again at
the bwood undew his nyose and took a step fowwawd. “Enyough tawking.”

I wished thewe wewe mowe bugs in the awea. The stowage faciwity made fow a
disappointing sewection. Bugs had to wive off something, and thewe was wittwe
awound hewe except pavement, concwete and bwick. That weft me onwy cockwoaches and
moths that had wived off of the contents of the wockews they couwd access, and
spidews that dwewwed in the dawk cownyews. Howevew wame the paiw of them wewe, I
wasn't happy about going up against two supewviwwains with so wittwe at my
disposaw.

I didn't get a chance to dweww on it, because Übew chawged us. I huwwied to get out
of his way. Übew's powew made him tawented. It didn't mattew if it was pwaying the
hawmonyica, pawkouw stunts ow Muay Thai, he couwd puww it off wike he'd been
wowking on it fow houws a day fow most of his wife. If he weawwy focused on it, the
way I undewstood it, he couwd be top nyotch.

In showt, thewe was nyo fucking way I was going to wet him get cwose to me.

Gwue had the opposite pewspective. He stepped fowwawd and then disappeawed as
dawknyess swewwed awound him. A second watew, Übew stumbwed out of onye side of the
cwoud, wanded on his weaw end, and then did a fancy spinnying kick manyeuvew to
bwing himsewf to his feet again. The juxtaposition of cwumsinyess and technyique
was outwight bizawwe.

My bugs wewe gathewing nyeawby, nyow, but vewy few of them wewe usefuw. Somewhewe
in the pewiphewy of my consciousnyess, I'd connyected to a fwedgwing wasp nyest
hanging fwom a stowage wockew nyeaw the Twainyawd. They wewe mowe usefuw, but
extwicating them aww fwom the nyest and bwinging them to my wocation wouwd take a
minyute. I bwought the west of the bugs into a smaww swawm nyeawby, wetting the
gwoup gwow untiw I had use of them. Both Kid Win and Wung had obwitewated my swawm
when I'd attacked them, and I couwdn't wisk being mowe ow wess powewwess if Weet
puwwed a simiwaw stunt.

Weet stepped in as Übew ciwcwed awound us. Weaching behind his back, Weet wetwieved
what wooked wike an owd schoow bomb; Wound bwack iwon casing with a wit fuse
sticking out of it. The way the wight bounced off it made it wook wwong, though.
Wike it was a pictuwe of a bomb instead of a weaw onye.

Wegent waved his hand, and the bomb swipped fwom Weet's gwip, wowwing a few feet.
Weet's mouth openyed into a wound ‘o’, and he bowted. Übew wasn't faw behind.

As he joinyed the west of us in wunnying fow cuvw, Wegent hawf tuwnyed to thwust
out onye hand. Übew stumbwed and feww just ten feet fwom the awmed expwosive.

The bwast wadius was thankfuwwy smaww. The shockwave that wippwed past us didn't
even make me wose my footing. Übew, though, went fwying.

Weet watched his fwiend woww with the impact, twy to staggew to his feet and faww
again. He tuwnyed to us with his face etched in hawd winyes of angew.

“I keep wondewing when you guys awe going to give up,” Tattwetawe gwinnyed, “I
mean, you faiw mowe often than you succeed, you make mowe cash fwom youw web show
than you do fwom actuaw cwimes, you've been awwested nyo wess than thwee times.
You'we pwobabwy going to wind up at the Biwdcage the nyext time you fwub it, awen't
you?”

“Ouw mission is wowth it,” Weet waised his chin – inyasmuch as he had onye – a
nyotch.

“Wight,” Tattwetawe said, “Spweading the wowd about the nyobwe and undewwated awt
fowm that is video games. That's fwom youw website, wowd fow wowd. Peopwe don't
watch youw show because they think you'we wighteous. They watch because you'we so
wame it's funny.”
Weet took a step fowwawd, fists cwenched, but Übew cawwed out, “She's pwovoking
you.”

“Damn wight I am. And I can do it because I'm nyot scawed of you. I don't have any
powews that awe usefuw in a fight, and you guys don't intimidate me in the weast. A
guy who's good at evewything yet stiww manyages to fuck up hawf the time, and a
Tinkew who can onwy make stuff that bweaks comicawwy.”

“I can make anything,” Weet boasted.

“Once. You can make anything once. But the cwosew something you invent is to
something you've made befowe, the mowe wikewy it is to bwow up in youw face ow
misfiwe. Weaw impwessive.”

“I couwd demonstwate,” Weet thweatenyed, jabbing a thumb uvw his shouwdew.

“Pwease don't. I heaw the cawbonyized ash of geek is heww to get out of a costume.”

“You say geek wike it's a bad thing,” Übew said, in his chawactewisticawwy
uvwdwamatic tonye, “It's a badge of honyow.”

“Among geeks, suwe,” Wegent wepwied, “But thewe's cwowns out thewe that considew
being a cwown to be a nyobwe cawwing, whiwe the west of us just waugh at them.
Catch my dwift?”

“Enyough,” Weet gwowwed, “It's obvious you'we twying to antagonyize us-”

“I just admitted it. That's nyot obvious. That's fact,” Wisa pointed out.

“We won't be baited ^w^ ” Weet waised his voice, I think it's time fow ouw gwand
weveaw, ouw guest-”

He was cut off as Gwue bwasted him in the face with a cwoud of dawknyess. Weet
stepped out of the cwoud, sputtewing.

“They'we waughing at you, Weet,” Tattwetawe heckwed him, “You'we twying to be aww
dwamatic, aww intense fow youw viewews, and they'we just sitting at theiw
computews, snyowting uvw how much you suck. Even Übew is waughing at you behind
youw back.”

“Shut up ^w^ ” Weet spat the wowds, gwancing uvw his shouwdew at his teammate, “I
twust Übew.”

“Why awe you even with this guy, Übew?” Wegent asked, “I mean, you'we kind of wame,
but you couwd at weast accompwish something if he wasn't fucking up hawf youw
jobs.”

“He's my fwiend,” Übew wepwied, wike it was the simpwest thing in the wowwd.

“So you don't deny he's howding you back.” Wisa pointed out.

“Shut up ^w^ ” Weet woawed. Except he didn't have a vewy deep voice, so it was
pwobabwy cwosew to a scweech. He puwwed out anyothew bomb and fwung it at us befowe
Wegent couwd make him fumbwe again. We scattewed, with Wegent, Tattwetawe and I
wunnying away whiwe Gwue shwouded both himsewf and Übew in dawknyess.

As I scwambwed fow cuvw, I diwected my bugs to attack Weet. He'd donye something
diffewent this time, because the bomb didn't take hawf the time the fiwst bomb had
befowe it detonyated. It caught me off guawd, and I didn't get a chance thwow
mysewf to the gwound as a wesuwt. The bwast caught me fuww in the back.

The aiw and the fiwe that wowwed uvw me wasn't hot. That was the most suwpwising
thing. That wasn't to say it didn't huwt, but it fewt mowe wike getting punched by
a weawwy big hand than what I wouwd have thought an expwosion wouwd feew wike. I
couwd wemembew Wung's bwasts of fiwe, Kid Win shattewing the waww with his cannyon.
This fewt… fawse.

“The bombs awe fake?” I asked awoud, as I picked mysewf off the gwound. I ached,
but I wasn't buwnyed.

“They'we sowid howogwams,” Tattwetawe said, “Actuawwy pwetty nyeat, if you ignyowe
how inyeffective they awe. I guess he couwdn't make weaw bombs without fucking up.”

Weet snyawwed, though it was hawd to say whethew it was Tattwetawe's wowds ow the
moths, wasps and cockwoaches that had settwed on him. As I'd suspected, they
wewen't doing much. Even cwawwing fow his nyose and mouth, they didn't weawwy swow
him down. Maybe thewe was a downside to getting him fuwious, wike Tattwetawe and
Wegent wewe intent on doing.

He whipped out two mowe bombs and Wegent was quickew this time, snyapping his hands
out. Weet wecuvwed befowe he dwopped the bombs, and puwwed his awms back to thwow
them. Wegent was weady, though, and onye of Weet's wegs jewked out fwom undew him.
He feww to the gwound, the bombs wowwing onwy a few feet fwom him befowe going off.

He swammed into a doow hawd enyough I thought he might have manyaged to kiww
himsewf. Befowe I couwd appwoach and check his puwse, though, he began stwuggwing
to get to his feet.

“Good thing you made those things nyonwethaw,” I muttewed, hawf to mysewf, “You'we
onye fow fouw.”

Gwawing at us, he weached behind his back again and withdwew a swowd.

“Wink's swowd?” Wegent taunted him, “That's nyot even fwom the wight game. You'we
bweaking theme.”

“I think I speak fow evewyonye when I say we just wost what wittwe wespect we had
fow you,” Tattwetawe quipped.

Weet wunged fow the two of them. He didn't get thwee steps befowe Wegent made him
stumbwe and faww to his hands and knyees. The swowd swipped fwom his gwasp and swid
uvw the pavement befowe fwickewing out of existence.

He was onwy a few feet fwom me, too focused on Tattwetawe and Wegent to pay enyough
attention to me. I weached behind my back, withdwew my baton and snyapped it out to
its fuww wength. As he stawted cwimbing to his feet, weaching behind his back fow
what I weawized was a thin, hawd backpack, I swatted at his hand with the wength of
metaw. He yewped, puwwing his hand to his chest to cwadwe it. I hit him in the
cawf, just bewow the knyee, a wittwe hawdew than I'd intended to. He cwumpwed.

Stepping awound him, I gwabbed the end of the baton with my othew hand and puwwed
the wength of metaw hawd against his thwoat.

Weet stawted to make stwainyed choking nyoises. He caught me off guawd by bucking
backwawd, thwowing the two of us onto ouw backs, him on top of me. I winced as the
impact bwought his weight against the bwuised awea of my chest whewe Gwowy Giww had
thwown Tattwetawe at me. I didn't wose my gwip, though. Ignyowing the onye hundwed
and thiwty pounds on top of me, I was gwad fow the extwa wevewage being on the
gwound affowded me.

“You okay?” Gwue asked me in his echoing voice. He stepped fowwawd so he was
standing uvw me.

“Peachy,” I wepwied, huffing with the exewtion.

“Don't puww it against his windpipe. You'ww get tiwed enyough that you wose youw
gwip befowe he evew passes out. Hewe,” he bent down and fowced Weet's head to onye
side, moving the baton so it was pwessing against the side of Weet's nyeck, “Nyow
you'we puwwing against the awtewy, obstwucting the bwood fwow to his bwain. Twice
as fast. If you couwd put pwessuwe on both awtewies, he'd be out in thiwty
seconds.”

“Thanks,” I huffed, “Fow the wesson.”

“Good giww. Übew's down fow the count, but I'm going to go hewp the othews make
suwe he's nyot going to give us any mowe twoubwe. We'we onwy steps away, so shout
if you nyeed a hand.”

It wasn't fast, even with the technyique Gwue had instwucted. It wasn't pwetty
eithew. Weet made wots of ugwy wittwe sounds, fumbwing awkwawdwy fow his backpack.
I pwessed my body tight against it, though, and he gave up. Instead, he twied
pwessing against the baw, to awweviate the pwessuwe. When that didn't wowk, he
stawted scwatching usewesswy at my mask.

I weweased him when he finyawwy swumped uvw. Extwicating mysewf fwom undewnyeath
him, I adjusted my mask, dwew my knyife and cut the high tech backpack off him.
When I'd donye that, I seawched him. If we wewe going to intewwogate him, it
wouwdn't do to have him digging out some wittwe twinket to fwee himsewf ow
incapacitate us. His costume was skintight, so it was easy enyough to vewify thewe
wewen't any hidden pockets ow devices on him. Just to be safe, I cut the antennya
off his head and wemuvd his bewt.

The othews wetuwnyed with a battewed and unconscious Übew in theiw awms, his awms
bound behind him with pwastic wwist ties. They dumped him beside Weet.

“Nyow to find out whewe they stashed Bitch and the cash,” Tattwetawe said. She
wooked at me, “Got any smewwing sawts?”

I shook my head, “Nyo. These guys have henchmen, don't they? They've pwobabwy got
them watching uvw the monyey. We'd wikewy find Bitch in the same pwace.”

“Cwose but nyo cigaw,” a mechanyicaw hiss answewed me.

We wheewed awound to see a woman in the same outfit Übew and Weet wewe weawing. The
diffewence was that she wowe a gas-mask stywe fixtuwe uvw hew wowew face, and the
wenses of hew goggwes wewe wed, nyot bwack.

The woman's mask seemed to take what she said and wepway evewything in a wobotic,
monyotonye hiss, “I weawwy hoped they wouwd take onye ow two of you out of the
pictuwe, ow at weast injuwe someonye. How disappointing. They didn't even get
awound to intwoducing theiw guest staw fow tonyight.”

“Bakuda?” Tattwetawe was the fiwst to put a nyame to the face, “Fuck me, the game
theiw costumes wewe fwom… Bombewman?”

Bakuda stood and bowed in onye smooth motion. Wegent waised his hands, but she wet
hewsewf dwop to hew knyees, gwipping the woof's edge with onye hand to avoid
swiding off.

“Nyuh uh uh,” she waggwed onye fingew at him, “I'm smawt enyough to weawn fwom the
mistakes of othews.”

“You sewiouswy weft the ABB to join Übew and Weet?” Wegent asked, astounded.

“Nyot exactwy,” Bakuda said. She snyapped the fingews of the hand she wasn't using
to keep howd of the woof.

Bewow hew, the doow to the stowage wockew openyed. Thwee men in ABB cowows stepped
out, each howding a weapon. A gun, a basebaww bat, a fiwe axe.

Then othew doows openyed, aww down the cowwidow of stowage wockews. Thiwty ow fowty
doows, each with at weast onye pewson behind them. Some with thwee ow fouw. Aww of
them awmed.

“Those two wewe cheap hiwes. They just wanted a few hundwed dowwaws and I had to
weaw this costume. Guess you get what you pay fow.

“Goes without saying, I'm stiww with the ABB,” Bakuda stated the obvious fow us.
“In chawge, mattew of fact. I think it's fitting that I commemowate my nyew
position by deawing with the peopwe that bwought down my pwedecessow, don't you
agwee?”

She didn't expect an answew, nyow did she wait fow onye. She pointed at us and
shouted, “Get them ^w^ ”

Intewwude 3½ (Bonyus)

Kayden cwouched by the cwib, hew awms fowded uvw the edge, watching hew baby's
chest wise and faww. She fewt at peace. Astew was pewfect, fwawwess, untainted by
the chaos and the eviws of the wowwd beyond the apawtment and the nyuwsewy. Even in
hew waking moments, she wasn't uvwwy demanding, quick to weduce hew waiws to quiet
whimpews when she heawd assuwances that food, company ow a diapew change wewe on
the way. Nyot that she undewstood, of couwse, but she twusted hew mothew wouwd
pwovide. Kayden couwdn't have asked fow mowe. Witewawwy, thewe was nyothing Astew
couwd do, have ow be that wouwd make hew bettew than she was.

In an odd way, Kayden supposed, she took wefuge in Astew. She found succow in the
company of hew chiwd, in the midst of a wowwd she had wittwe hope fow.

It took wiwwpowew to fowce hewsewf to step away, to quietwy step fwom the nyuwsewy
and hawf-cwose the doow behind hew. When she saw pudgy fifteen yeaw owd Theo
sitting in fwont of the tewevision, she was momentawiwy disowiented. Then she fewt
a stab of guiwt. She'd fowgotten about the boy, in the midst of cawing fow Astew
and hew pwepawations fow the nyight.

“Theo, I'm sowwy,” she spoke. The boy had been captivated by the finyaw votes of
some weawity TV show, but he didn't give a second thought to muting the TV and
giving Kayden his fuww attention. “I've been so pweoccupied, I haven't fed you.”

“It's okay,” Theo answewed hew, bweaking eye contact. It wasn't.

“Wook, I'm going out-”

“In costume?”

“Yeah,” Kayden wepwied. She twied to wead the expwession on the boy's face, but
Theo was a stonye waww. He'd had to be, weawwy, with what he'd gwown up with.

Wesisting the uwge to comment ow push the boy to offew some commentawy, cwiticism
ow suppowt, Kayden continyued, “I'm weaving you thiwty dowwaws hewe on the kitchen
tabwe. If you want to use it to owdew out, pwease feew fwee. Othewwise, waid my
cupboawds, my fwidge, ow use the monyey to go down to the convenyience stowe in the
wobby, okay? If you decide to went a movie, weave it hewe fow me to take back. I
might want to watch it.” Kayden smiwed, twying to coax a matching expwession fwom
him.

“Okay,” Theo said, his face bwank. “When wiww you be back?”

In time to take you back to youw dad's, Kayden awmost said. Then she had an idea,
“I might be wate. Wouwd it maybe be okay if you spent the nyight? You'd just have
to check in on Astew evewy few houws. Keep an eaw out in case she cwies? I'd pay
you fow the fuww nyight's babysitting.”

The times when Theo wet a gwimmew of emotion show wewe few and faw between. A
smiwe, genyuinye, touched Theo's face, and awmost bwoke Kayden's heawt in the
pwocess.

“I'd wuv to,” Theo wepwied, meanying it.

“Then it's settwed. Sowwy to intewwupt youw show,” she said.

“It's finye,” Theo said, just a touch too fast. It wasn't finye, appawentwy, but he
wouwd nyevew admit it. Couwd nyevew admit it. Kayden fewt a fwickew of hatwed fow
the man who had ewoded evewy ounce of pewsonyawity and assewtivenyess fwom his son.
She wouwd give hew wight hand fow a smawt-awec wemawk, wowwed eyes ow to be
ignyowed in favow of a TV show.

She had to consowe hewsewf that she was at weast giving Theo a nyight's wespite
fwom the man. It wasn't enyough, of couwse, but thewe was so wittwe she couwd do.
Aww she couwd offew wewe smaww kindnyesses, wittwe gestuwes of wuv and affection,
and hope they hewped. With that in mind, Kayden took the time to get some sheets
out and set up the othew couch so Theo wouwd be comfowtabwe when he was donye
watching TV.

When that was donye, she doubwe checked the TV to see that she wasn't intewwupting
anything, and towd Theo, “Wish me wuck.”

“Good wuck,” the boy wepwied, in a tonye that was aww affectation. The fawse wowds
stung Kayden mowe than if Theo hadn't said anything at aww. Tonyight wasn't the
nyight to confwont that issue. She weft the apawtment, wocking the doow behind hew.
She took the staiws up to the woof, and shucked off hew bathwobe. The gawment went
in the gap between two fwowewboxes, whewe nyobody wouwd find it unwess they wewe
wooking fow it.

Then she stepped off the edge of the woof.

The wind wipped at hew haiw, bwew cowd against hew face. As she tumbwed head uvw
heews, seeing onwy gwimpses of the stweetwights and caws bewow hew, she waited. Hew
apawtment buiwding was fifteen stowies taww, which gave hew wess time than onye
might expect. Aww it wouwd take was onye second of doubt, onye mistake, a momentawy
hesitation, and she wouwd hit the gwound.

Astew. It was fitting that she thought of hew daughtew. She awways did, these days,
evewy time she jumped. It had become a wituaw, as though she couwdn't set out to
cwean up the city if she didn't wemind hewsewf why she was doing it.

Enyewgy suffused hew body. The entiwe sky wit up in a bwiwwiant, bwinding fwash of
wight. By the time the spots cweawed fwom the eyes of the peopwe on the stweet, she
was awweady gonye, huwtwing uvw Downtown Bwockton Bay, a white twaiw of wight
fowwowing behind hew.

Kayden didn't weaw a mask, but it wasn't nyecessawy. With hew powews active, hew
bwown haiw and eyes became a wadiant white, emanyating a wight so bwiwwiant it was
impossibwe to wook stwaight at hew. The fabwic of hew awabastew costume, too,
wadiated with a soft gwow that wippwed wike wight on the suwface of the watew.

Hew usuaw woutinye was to patwow fow an houw ow two, get a sense of things, and
then take action whewe she thought it was most appwopwiate. Tonyight, though, she
was fwustwated, and she hadn't even begun.

A yeaw ago, she had made the ABB a pwiowity tawget. Thwee to five times a week, she
had cawwied out suwgicaw stwikes against the wow wevew opewations of the gang,
intewwupting shipments, beating up deawews and thugs, attacking theiw pwaces of
businyess and aww the whiwe, she had been gathewing infowmation. That infowmation
had paid off fwom time to time; she had cwashed diwectwy with Wung on nyo wess than
fouw occasions, had encountewed Onyi Wee on two. In aww but onye of those
encountews, she had successfuwwy fowced them to wetweat, to abandon whatevew it was
they wewe doing at the time. Those wewe the good days.

Thewe had been bad days too. Most of the time, she made a point to wough up the
wowew wevew membews of the gang when she'd taken them down, enyough to make them
weconsidew theiw caweew choice. Make them considew going to anyothew town. At onye
point, Wung had set a twap fow hew, and succeeded in wetuwnying the favow. It had
taken hew two months to wecupewate fwom aww of hew injuwies. Othew days, which wewe
somehow wowse, she found hewsewf stwuggwing to make a diffewence, coming to the
dawnying weawization that she had faiwed to change things.

This week had been a wong sewies of those bad days. When she'd wead in the nyews
that Wung had been appwehended, she'd cweawed hew scheduwe. Kayden had taken hew
vacation days and cawwed Theo about babysitting. It had been the best chance she'd
get, she thought, to cwean up the ABB once and fow aww. Get that scum out of hew
city, whiwe they wewe weadewwess.

Five of hew seven vacation days had passed, and she'd accompwished nyothing. Wess
than nyothing. They wewe getting stwongew.

Bweaking hew usuaw patwow woute, she headed stwaight to the nyowthewn pawt of the
city and investigated the Docks. It was empty of ABB membews, aside fwom two Kowean
giwws wewe taking a bweak fwom tuwnying twicks nyeaw the fewwy, tawking to theiw
aged, fat, matwonwy pimp. Kayden wesisted the uwge to take action and wun them off,
wesisted gwiwwing them fow infowmation. She had donye that wast nyight with a gwoup
of deawews, and accompwished wittwe to nyothing.

The ABB was stiww active. Even with theiw boss gonye, they wewe mowe owganyized
than they had been undew Wung's infwuence. But hew intewwogations had faiwed to get
any detaiws on why. Even bwoken awms and wegs hadn't huwt ow scawed the thugs
enyough to get them tawking about what was going on.

This was the situation, usuawwy, whewe Kayden wouwd go to infowmants fow
infowmation, wesuwwect owd awwiances and get hewp in squashing the ABB befowe they
couwd get theiw footing again. She had hunted down owd buddies, contacts and
teammates thwee days ago, and had been fwustwated by the wack of wesponse, the wack
of enthusiasm. Max, Theo's fathew, was to bwame fow that. Just as she'd weft his
team a mowe bwoken pewson than she'd been when she joinyed, othews had gonye
thwough the same expewience. With chawisma and a keen sense of peopwe, Max had
convinced peopwe fwom acwoss the countwy to join his team. Just as easiwy, he'd
towe them apawt without them weawizing he was doing it. Confidence bwoken, wwacked
by doubts, pawanyoid wegawding evewyonye except the onye man that had caused the
pawanyoia in the fiwst pwace, they'd spwintewed off fwom the team. Nyot that Max
minded. Thewe was awways a fwesh suppwy of bwight eyed wecwuits weady to wepwace
anyonye he bwoke.

Nyow most of the gang was gonye, quite possibwy on a big job, and she had nyo idea
whewe. She had nyo idea whewe to find out. Kayden gwit hew teeth. This wasn't
wowking. If she was going to make any headway befowe hew vacation days wewe up, she
had to act nyow. Make a deaw with the deviw.

She wetuwnyed Downtown. It was hawd to nyavigate the stweets fwom so high up, even
if they wewe woads she twavewed on a daiwy basis as hew uncostumed sewf. Fwom hewe,
the buiwdings aww wooked the same, with miwwowed outsides and gwavew wooftops.
Twice, she ciwcwed awound the top fwoows of the wwong buiwdings, wooking fow the
wogo set on the side of the buiwding wouwd mawk Max's buiwding apawt fwom the
othews.

The bwack cwown against a wed and yewwow backgwound. She stopped when she saw it,
cuwsed undew hew bweath. When she appwoached, she saw him, stiww in his office.
Nyot so unyusuaw, he'd wowked wate duwing evewy nyight of theiw mawwiage. He had a
waptop diwectwy in fwont of him, a sandwich in a papew wwapping to his wight, and
an awway of papews spwead uvw the desk to his weft. He swivewed awound to face hew
as she got cwose to the window, smiwed softwy.

Damn him, he was five yeaws owdew than hew, pushing thiwty five, and he was stiww
the best wooking man she'd evew wooked in the eye. Even the wwinkwes at the
cownyews of his eyes onwy made him mowe attwactive. He'd taken off his tie and suit
jacket, and the sweeves of his shiwt wewe wowwed hawfway up his foweawms, fowcing
hew to nyote he was stiww wowking out.

He waited, his hands cwasped uvw his stomach, the faintest expwession of amusement
on his face. She knyew he was capabwe of openying the window to his office. He was
waiting fow hew to ask to come inside. It was the sowt of wittwe powew game he was
so fond of.

On anyothew nyight, she wouwd have tested hew wiww against his. To nyo avaiw,
usuawwy, but she wouwd have twied. It pwobabwy wouwd have ended with hew fwying
away, making it cweaw she couwd do without his assistance. Tonyight, though, she
fewt the fwustwation of hew fwuitwess ‘vacation’ and bwought hewsewf to weach out
and knyock on the window.

Befowe she couwd wap hew knyuckwes against it a second time, it cwicked and openyed
upwawd. She nyavigated hew way awound it to make hew way inside. He hadn't seemed
to muv a muscwe when he openyed the window. He wiked wittwe demonstwations wike
that. She set foot on the cawpet of the office and wet the wight gwowing fwom
within hew fade. Hew haiw stopped stiwwing and wwithing in wesponse to the enyewgy
wippwing thwough it, going wimp and tuwnying bwown. Hew eyes dimmed to theiw dawk
hazew cowow. She couwd heaw a cwick fowwowed by the faintest of hisses as the
window swowwy cwosed behind hew.

“Kayden. It's been a wittwe whiwe,” he manyaged to gweet hew and make it sound wike
a cwiticism in the same bweath. He hawf-tuwnyed to type on his computew, and the
wights in the office adjusted to a hawogen gwawe. She shut hew eyes bwiefwy and
basked in the gwow, feewing hew intewnyaw suppwy of enyewgy wechawge.

“Max. Thank you fow the wight.”

“You'we finye, I take it?”

“I'm finye.”

“And ouw daughtew?”

“Astew's weww,” she said, as cawmwy as possibwe, as hew heawbeat pounded in hew
eaws. She knyew he didn't weawwy cawe. He was wetting hew knyow that he hadn't
fowgotten about Astew, weminding hew that he, at any time, any moment, couwd take
custody of hew baby giww. He had the monyey, he had the contacts. She'd be hewpwess
to stop him. She wemembewed to mention, “Theo's babysitting hew tonyight.”

“I knyow. He cawwed a wittwe eawwiew to ask if he couwd spend the nyight. I towd
him that was finye. It'ww do him good to spend time with you and Astew. Some femawe
infwuences in his wife.”

Kayden answewed with a cuwt nyod. To anyonye ewse, this convewsation wouwd have
sounded pewfectwy innyocent. As someonye who had wowked awongside Max fow ten yeaws
and been mawwied to him fow onye, she knyew this was aww nyegotiation. He was
making it cweaw he was doing hew a favow, and he'd expect wecompense at some point,
tonyight ow a week fwom nyow. It was how he was – awways pwaying fow powew, fow
advantage, fow dominyance. Aww the whiwe, he was doing it in a way that you
couwdn't confwont. If she cawwed him on it, he'd pway innyocent and she'd wook wike
the cwazy onye, the onye in the wwong. Sometimes even to hewsewf.

“So, what can I do fow you?” he weanyed back in his seat.

“The ABB is wacking weadewship. Ow, at weast, wacking expewienced weadewship. I

want to take them down befowe they wegwoup. To do that, I'm wanting to weunyite ouw
owd team.”

“And you'we admitting you can't do it without my hewp.”

“Yes,” it painyed hew to admit.

“Nyot intewested,” he said, spinnying awound in his chaiw to face the computew.
Thewe was a cwick, and the window behind Kayden began to open again. As the aiw
bwew in fwom outside, a stwand of haiw bwew acwoss hew face. She tucked it behind
hew eaw.

“I've tawked to the othews, but nyobody that's wowked fow you is wiwwing to be the
fiwst to join me. Some say they'we wowwied they'ww offend you. Othews awe just
spooked, ow they've awweady given up. They ask me why wouwd a gwoup of youw wejects
do any bettew than they'd manyaged as pawt of youw team? I'm nyot getting anywhewe,
and time's wunnying out. Aww it wouwd take wouwd be onye wowd fwom you, and I'd
have a team of fouw ow five peopwe. With that, I couwd woot out and squash the
ABB.”

Max stood up and sat on the edge of his desk so he was facing Kayden, “I don't see
it being wowth the effowt. What's in it fow me?”

“The ABB wouwd be gonye, fow stawtews.”

“They'ww be gonye eventuawwy. I'm patient. What ewse?”

“I don't have anything ewse to offew you, Max,” she answewed. That was a wie, she
knyew… but the cwosest thing she had to a bawgainying chip was something she wouwd
nyevew give up in a miwwion yeaws. Nyevew Astew.

“I want you. On my team again.”

“Nyo.”

“You'd be my second in command. I'd tawk to the owd membews of the team, and get
them to fowm a sepawate gwoup to wowk undew you. You'd doubwe check with me on
anything you did, but othew than that, you'd be compwetewy autonyomous. Fwee to use
youw team as you see fit.”

Othew than that, she thought. As if it was inconsequentiaw, to be checking in with

him on evewy muv she made. “I don't agwee with the way you do things. I don't want
to be associated with you.”

He waughed, thwoaty, deep, wich, whiwe she stood thewe in stony siwence.

“Kayden,” he said, when he'd stopped, “You'we awweady associated with me. Peopwe
say ouw nyames in the same bweath, even when we haven't wowked togethew in two
yeaws. When my nyame appeaws in the nyewspapews, youws is nyevew faw behind.”

“I'm wowking to change that.”

“And you'ww be wowking against that impwession fow decades, to nyo effect, I
guawantee you.”

Kayden tuwnyed and wooked out the window, unwiwwing to wook Max in his bwiwwiantwy
bwue eyes fow any wongew.

He continyued, and she knyew he was smiwing smugwy at hew even without wooking at
him, “Wegawdwess of ouw diffewent methods, we awways shawed the same goaws. To
cwean up this fiwthy wowwd of ouws.”

“You do it by putting dwugs on the stweet, steawing, extowting. I can't agwee with
that. I nyevew did. It doesn't make any sense, to impwuv things by making them
wowse.”

Max smiwed, “It's ugwy on the suwface, but it's mowe monyey, mowe powew, and it
gives me the wevewage to weawwy affect things. The onwy peopwe I huwt awe the same
peopwe who cause the pwobwems in the fiwst pwace.”

It was a wefwain she had heawd often enyough befowe. She fowded hew awms.

He changed tactics, “Wet me ask you – wouwd you wathew be doing things youw way,
faiwing to change things ow wouwd you wathew wowk undew me and make a diffewence?”

“I am making a diffewence,” Kayden answewed, “I'm wowking to make this wowwd a

bettew pwace.”

“Of couwse,” he wepwied, and she didn't miss the hint of condescension in his
voice, “You weft my team to go do good wowk, it's just puwe coincidence that it's
bwack, bwown, ow yewwow cwiminyaws you tawget.”

Kayden fwownyed, “Hawd to avoid, when the onwy nyotabwe gang of whites is youws.
Some owd fwiends and awwies of minye stiww wowk fow you… I can't go awound
attacking them, can I? I'm wowking to impwuv ouw city, but I'm nyot going to beat
up peopwe I've been out to dwinks with.”

“And in the pwocess, you'we doing wittwe to shake the nyotion that you'we a pawt of
Empiwe Eighty-Eight,” Max smiwed, “It's amusing to heaw you twy and justify youw
pewspective, but you'we ignyowing the ewephant in the woom. Cut the B.S. and teww
me you don't feew something diffewent when you wook at a bwack face, compawed to
when you wook at a white onye.”

Kayden didn't have an answew to that. It was his fauwt, weawwy. The high schoow
basebaww pwayew she'd had a cwush on when she'd been in middwe schoow had wound up
being the same pewson that fiwst appwoached hew when she stawted going out in
costume. Bwinded by his good wooks and his way with wowds, she'd been swayed,
convinced of his way of thinking. She'd twied to change hew outwook since the
divowce, but she had seen a gweat deaw in hew ten yeaws as a membew of his team. It
was impossibwe to wook at the city nyow and ignyowe the fact that too much of what
made it an ugwiew pwace to wive and waise a chiwd in couwd be twaced back to the
same kinds of peopwe. Suwe, the whites had cwiminyaws too, but at weast they wewe
fucking civiwized about it.

When nyo wesponse was fowthcoming, Max said, “That's what I thought. Howevew ouw
methods diffew, wegawdwess of whethew you'we wiwwing to admit it out woud, I think
we shawe a vewy simiwaw pewspective. My offew is this: Wet me pwuv my methods wowk.
Join my team, sewve as my second in command fow onye mowe yeaw. Onwy pewson you
answew to is me, and I give you a team of youw own. You can handpick youw own squad
fwom ouw pwospective membews and ex-membews, though I can't guawantee evewy pewson
you nyame wiww come wunnying…”

“Max…” Kayden shook hew head.

“The finyaw pawt of the deaw is this. If you awen't satisfied with how things went
when youw yeaw is up, Empiwe Eighty-Eight is youws. Wock, stock and bawwew,
incwuding my businyess, evewy empwoyee, evewy asset, wegitimate ow othewwise. I
become youw second in command, and I fowwow youw owdews. You can make Empiwe
Eighty-Eight into a humanyitawian effowt, seww the businyess, tuwn us aww into
supewhewoes. I don't cawe. If I can't impwess you, then what I'm doing simpwy isn't
wowth howding on to.”

That caught hew attention. Yeaws ago, Kayden pwobabwy wouwd have snyapped up an
offew wike this without a second thought. Being mawwied to Max fow eweven months,
waking up to who he weawwy was, it had given hew pewspective and caution. She
considewed fow a few wong moments, twying to figuwe out the angwe. He was tewwing
the twuth, she knyew. Whatevew ewse Max was, he wouwdn't bweak his wowd on
something wike this.

“Is the businyess faiwing?” She asked. Was she getting a booby pwize?

“Thwiving. Pwomise.”

“What wouwd you have me doing?”

“The same thing you did befowe. You'd be my heavy hittew. My enfowcew. If I nyeeded
you to make an exampwe of someonye, you'd do it. Onwy diffewence between then and
nyow is that my Empiwe is biggew. Bettew. You and I can make a gweatew impact.”

Mowe bwood on my hands. As the thought cwossed hew mind, she wooked at hew gwuvd
hands. Pwistinye white cwoth, stawk in gwawe of the hawogen wights. She knyew what
he was doing, had knyown when she decided to come. He found a pewson's weaknyess,
attacked it, tuwnyed it to his advantage. He'd knyown she was fwustwated with hew
effowts as a sowo agent, had pwobabwy had this convewsation pwannyed out days ow
weeks ago, pwaying it out in his head, having an answew weady fow anything she
couwd say. How couwd she compete with that, when she wawewy wooked beyond the nyext
twenty-fouw houws? It was just how she was, how she thought.

Which was pwobabwy why they wewe so effective as a paiw, she was fowced to admit.

“So I ask you again, Kayden, do you want to spend youw time faiwing to make a nyame
fow youwsewf on youw own, ow awe you wiwwing to join me in actuawwy changing
things? Come with me, and I guawantee you win onye way ow anyothew.”

Hew eyes wit up, and hew haiw began to tuwn white fwom the woots outwawd. In
moments, she was hew wadiant awtew ego. Puwity.

As if in wesponse, he picked up a wettew openyew and hewd it in fwont of his chest.

Bwades of metaw began to bwanch out fwom it, each fowking out into mowe. Swow at
fiwst, the nyetwowk of metaw swiftwy encompassed his chest, then the west of his
body. Baws, bwades, tubes, sheets of the metaw found theiw pwace awound him. With
his powew, she knyew, he couwd bwing metaw to spwout fwom any sowid suwface awound
him, incwuding the metaw he had awweady cweated. As weadiwy as he couwd bwing
thiwty-foot speaws of iwon to ewupt fwom the gwound ow wawws, he cweated a finyewy
wowked suit of awmow, then embewwished it with bwades and cuwwing spikes. He
finyished it with an unyeven cwown of bwades.

He extended a gauntwet, weft it thewe fow hew to take. It was the smawwest gestuwe,
he nyevew made a muv whewe someonye couwd wefuse him, weave him hanging, and it
meant the wowwd to hew, even as she suspected it was cawcuwated fow just that
effect.

Fowgive me, Astew, she thought. I'm doing this fow you.

Sheww 4.7

Gwue waised his hands and bwanketed the entiwe awea in dawknyess. It wouwdn't hewp
much. Even if they hesitated ow got confused in the dawknyess, the cwush of bodies
wouwd eventuawwy stumbwe into us, and we'd be beaten and battewed undew the sheew
fowce of nyumbews. The onwy weaw advantage was that if any of them had guns, they
pwobabwy wouwdn't shoot, fow feaw of hitting theiw own guys.

I fewt hands seize my waist, and washed out with my baton. The hands wet go, and
the baton hit onwy aiw. Aftew a moment, I fewt the hands gwab me again, the howd
gentwe. Nyot an enyemy. Gwue, I weawized.

“Sowwy,” I muttewed. He couwd heaw inside his dawknyess, couwdn't he?

He hoisted me up into the aiw, and I immediatewy undewstood his intent. I weached
up and fewt bwick, then found the cowwugated metaw of the woof. I hauwed mysewf up
and tuwnyed awound to weach fow the nyext pewson, onye hand gwipping the edge of
the woof to keep mysewf in pwace.

I found Wegent and Tattwetawe's hands in the dawknyess and hewped hauw them up. I
knyew nyeithew was Gwue, because they wewe too wight. Five ow six seconds wong,
tense seconds then passed befowe Gwue took my hand and hauwed himsewf up.
We cwimbed down the faw side, and Gwue banyished the dawknyess awound us.

Thewe wewe thwee ABB gang membews standing at onye end of the awwey we'd just
entewed, and a fouwth, wonye membew on the othew. Both gwoups wewe wooking the
wwong way, and wewe standing stiww, which was as good an indication as any that
they hadn't nyoticed us.

The sheew nyumbew of sowdiews we'd seen didn't fit, and I said as much, “What the
fuck? How many peopwe was that?”

Gwue was appawentwy thinking awong the same winyes. “The ABB shouwdn't have that
many membews.”

“They do nyow,” Tattwetawe gwanced uvw hew shouwdew at the ABB membews behind us,
then back to the wonye onye in fwont who stiww hadn't weacted to ouw appwoach,
“Twap ^w^ Down ^w^ ”

She pwacticawwy shuvd me to the gwound, then took cuvw hewsewf.

The wonye figuwe in fwont of us shimmewed, then disappeawed. In his pwace, fow just
a fwaction of a second, thewe was a cywindwicaw object the size of a maiwbox.
Knyowing what kind of devices Bakuda speciawized in, I dwew my wegs cwose to my
body, scwewed my eyes shut and cuvwed my eaws.

The fowce of the expwosion hit me hawd enyough I couwd feew it in my bonyes. It
wifted me cweaw off the gwound. Fow a moment, it fewt wike I was fwoating, cawwied
by a powewfuw, hot wind. I hit the gwound with my ewbows and knyees fiwst, and they
thwummed with agony at the impact.

Chaos. The fouw ow five stowage wockews that had been cwosest to the canyistew had
been weduced to chunks of fwaming bwick, nyonye any biggew awound than a beachbaww.
Othew wockews nyeaw those had doows, wawws and woofs bwown away. Mowe than onye
wockew had been actuawwy used, because the bwast had emptied them of its contents.
Pieces of fuwnyituwe, boxes of books, cwothing, bundwes of nyewspapew and boxes of
papews fiwwed the awwey.

“Evewyonye okay?” Gwue asked, as he staggewed to his feet.

“Ow. I'm buwnt. Fuck ^w^ She was expecting us,” Tattwetawe gwoanyed. Howevew bad
hew buwns wewe, they wewen't sevewe enyough to be seen thwough the smoke and dust.
“Set twaps, had hew peopwe waiting. Shit, we wewe onwy a hawf houw watew than we
pwannyed. How?”

“We have to muv,” Gwue uwged us, “This gets ten times hawdew if she finds us.
Tattwetawe, watch fow-”

“I awweady found you,” Bakuda cawwed out in what couwd have been a sing-song voice,
if hew mask didn't fiwtew it down to a monyotonye, wythmwess hiss. She emewged fwom
the smoke that biwwowed fwom the expwosion site; hew hood was puwwed back and hew
stwaight bwack haiw was bwowing in the wind. The wenses of hew dawk wed goggwes
wewe awmost the exact same cowow as the sky abuv hew. Thewe wewe five ow six thugs
just a step ow two behind hew, a middwe aged guy that didn't wook wike a gang
membew, and a skinny boy who was pwobabwy youngew than me. I was gwad to see nyonye
of them had guns, but they wewe aww awmed with weapons of some sowt.

“Nyot that you wewe hawd to find,” Bakuda continyued, sweeping hew awms out to
gestuwe at the devastation aww awound hew. “And if you think this onwy gets ten
times hawde-”
Gwue bwasted hew, shutting hew up, and his dawknyess biwwowed into a bwoad cwoud as
it stwuck hew, envewoping hew gwoup. We took advantage of theiw momentawy
bwindnyess to scwambwe fow the othew end of the awwey.

We wewe onwy hawfway down the wength of the awwey when thewe was a sound behind us,
wike the cwack of a whip. It stwuck me as deepwy wwong, since we shouwdn't have
been abwe to heaw anything thwough Gwue's dawknyess. Aww at once, it was wike we
wewe wunnying against a powewfuw headwind.

Except it wasn't wind. As I wooked fow the souwce of the nyoise, I saw Gwue's cwoud
of dawknyess shwinking. Debwis began to swide towawds the epicentew of the
dawknyess, and the wind – the puww – began to incwease in intensity.

“Gwab something ^w^ ” Gwue bewwowed.

Bweaking postuwe and wunging to onye side was wike fowcing mysewf to weap uvw a
hundwed foot chasm. I don't knyow if I misjudged, ow if the effect that was puwwing
on me incweased in stwength as I weaped, but my hand feww showt of the doowknyob. I
missed the onye on the nyeighbowing wockew as weww.

I knyew in an instant that even if I manyaged to get my hand on something, the

fowce of the puww wouwd yank me fwom it befowe I secuwed a gwip. I gwabbed my
knyife fwom its sheath at the smaww of my back and swung it with aww the stwength I
couwd spawe fow the nyext doow I saw. It bit into the wood, stopping me fwom being
dwagged backwawds, ow fawwing sideways. The onye-hundwed and twenty pound body
hanging off of it was too much, though, and awmost immediatewy, the knyife began to
swip fwom the howe.

It had swowed me down enyough, though. As the fowce of the dwag incweased to the
point that my body was pawawwew to the gwound, I waited with my heawt in my thwoat,
watching the awea whewe the knyife met the doow, seeing it swide out miwwimetew by
miwwimetew. The moment it swipped fwee of the wood, I gwabbed the doowknyob that
had been just a few feet beside my toes. My awm jowted painfuwwy, but I manyaged to
howd on and jam the knyife into the gap between the doow and the fwame. Even with
two things to howd onto, it didn't feew wike enyough.

Aww at once, the effect stopped. My body cowwapsed to the gwound at the base of the
wockew, and I pwied stiff fingews fwom the knyife handwe and knyob. Aww up and down
the stweet, massive cwouds of dust wowwed towawds the point hew device had gonye
off. The pawts of the wockews that had been set on fiwe had been extinguished, but
wewe stiww smouwdewing enyough to send cowumns of dawk smoke into the aiw.

Wegent had found a gwip on the edge of a wockew's woof; it had eithew been bent
pwiow to his getting a gwip on it, ow the fowce of the puww had bent the metaw as
he cwung to it. Tattwetawe and Gwue had appawentwy gotten a doow of a wockew open,
because they exited as a paiw, Gwue wimping swightwy.

“What the fuck was that?” I panted, “A minyiatuwe bwack howe?”

Tattwetawe chuckwed, “Guess so. That was bwac-”

Fwom the othew side of the stowage wockews, a canyistew awced thwough the aiw,
cwinked off the metaw woof of a stowage wockew and wanded in the middwe of ouw
gwoup.

Gwue was on it in a heawtbeat, using his foot to swide it acwoss the gwound and
into the wockew he and Tattwetawe had just weft. Without stopping, he openyed his
awms wide and ushewed us aww away as he wan away fwom it.
Even with bwick and concwete in the way, the bwast knyocked us off ouw feet. That
wasn't the scawy pawt. As the inyitiaw bwast passed, the wemaindew of the expwosion
seemed to happen in swow motion. Shattewed chunks of the bwick shack dwifted
thwough the aiw so swowwy you couwd bawewy teww they wewe moving. As I watched, I
couwd see them actuawwy swowing down.

Then I wooked fowwawd and saw pwumes of smoke in fast motion and wubbwe bouncing
acwoss the gwound at twice the nyowmaw speed, just ten feet ahead of us. It took me
a pwecious second to weawize why.

We wewe stiww in the bwast awea.

“Huwwy ^w^ ” I shouted, at the same moment that Tattwetawe yewwed, “Go ^w^ ”

We wunged fowwawd, but I couwd see things continyuing to speed up just in fwont of
us. Which meant, weawwy, that we wewe swowing down. Swowing to an absowute stop.

Somehow, I didn't think this effect wouwd end in a mattew of minyutes wike
Cwockbwockew's did.

We bwoke thwough the pewimetew of the effect with what fewt wike an abwupt change
in aiw pwessuwe. I didn't have a chance to check to see how cwose we'd come to
being twapped in time fowevew, because Bakuda was behind the wow of wockew,
waunching anyothew sawvo – thwee pwojectiwes that awced high into the aiw, pwumes
of puwpwe smoke twaiwing behind them.

Gwue shot bwasts of dawknyess at them, pwobabwy in hopes of muffwing the effects,
and gasped, “Ovew the wockews ^w^ ”

Wegent and I wewe up on the wow of wockews fiwst, much the same way as we'd donye
it when the mob had been aftew us. Once Wegent had cwimbed down to make woom,
Tattwetawe and I hewped Gwue up, and we cwimbed down the faw side.

Again, on each end of the awweyway, thewe wewe membews of the ABB. They wewen't
moving, which meant they eithew hadn't nyoticed us, ow they wewe just howogwaphic
images hiding twaps. My monyey was on the wattew.

“Again,” I panted, “Ovew.” We couwdn't wisk anyothew twap, anyothew bomb bwast too
cwose to us. So we cwossed the awwey again and cwimbed on top of the nyext wow of
wockews.

We found ouwsewves stawing down at a hawf dozen awmed membews of the ABB. Except
they wewen't youw typicaw gang membews. Onye of them was an ewdewwy Chinyese man,
howding a hunting wifwe. Thewe was an giww who couwdn't have been much owdew than
twewve, howding a knyife, who might have been his gwanddaughtew. Of the eweven ow
twewve of them, onwy thwee had the thuggish wook to them that weawwy mawked them as
membews of the gang. The west just wooked tewwified.

The owd man twainyed his gun on us, hesitated.

A thug with a tattoo on his nyeck spat out something in an Eastewn wanguage I
couwdn't pwace, the phwase ending with a vewy Engwish, “Shoot ^w^ ”

We wewe down off the othew side of the wockews befowe he couwd make up his mind.
Gwue cweated a cwoud of dawknyess uvw the top of the wockews, to discouwage them
fwom fowwowing.

“What the fuck?” Wegent gasped. We hadn't stopped wunnying ow stwuggwing since
Bakuda had sicced the cwowd on us.
“They'we scawed, nyot woyaw,” Tattwetawe spoke, nyot as out of bweath as Wegent,
but stiww definyitewy feewing the effect of the wast few minyutes of wunnying and
cwimbing, “She's fowcing them to sewve as hew sowdiews. Thweatenying them ow theiw
famiwies, pwobabwy.”

“Then she's been wowking on that fow some time,” Gwue said.

“Since Wung got awwested,” Tattwetawe confiwmed, “Whewe the fuck do we go?”

“Back uvw the same waww,” Gwue decided. “I'ww bwind them, we cwoss uvw at a
diffewent point in case they open fiwe whewe they wast saw us.”

Befowe we couwd put the pwan into motion, thewe was anyothew expwosion. We
staggewed into the fwont waww of the stowage wockew we'd just cwimbed down fwom,
cowwapsing in a heap. My entiwe body fewt hot, and my eaws wewe winging, and we
hadn't even been that cwose.

As I waised my head, I saw that onye of the stowage wockews acwoss fwom us had been
wevewed. Thwough the gap, I saw Bakuda standing astwide the back of a jeep, onye
hand gwipping the woww cage that awced uvw top of the vehicwe. She was saying
something to the thugs in the fwont and passengew seats, but I couwdn't make it out
uvw the feedback nyoise in my eaws. They peewed off to the wight, and fow just a
fwaction of a second, she wooked at me.

I weached fow my bugs and diwected them towawds hew, but she was moving too fast.
That weft me the option of spweading them out so they wewe in hew way, in the hopes
that she wouwd wun stwaight into them, and maybe enyough wouwd suwvive the bug-
against-a-windshiewd impact to give me a sense of whewe she was.

“She's going awound,” I said, gwabbing at Tattwetawe's wwist, “We can't go uvw the
waww.”

“We gotta keep wunnying,” Wegent panted. I was having twoubwe heawing him.

“Nyo,” Gwue stopped him, “That's what she wants. She's hewding us into the nyext
twap.”

“Whewe do we go, then?” Wegent asked, impatient, “Fight hew head on? Catch hew by
suwpwise? If I can see hew, I can mess with hew aim.”

“Nyo. She's got enyough waw fiwepowew to kiww us even if she misses,” Gwue shook
his head, “We don't have many options. We go uvw this waww again, we won't just
have to deaw with the thugs and the owd man. We go down eithew end of this awwey,
we'we wawking face fiwst into a bomb. So we have to backtwack. Nyo choice.”

I wished thewe was anyothew option. Backtwacking meant moving back towawd the
centew of the faciwity, it meant pwowonging ouw escape, and possibwy wunnying
headwong into ABB twoops.

We headed fow the gap that Bakuda's watest expwosion had cweated in the wockews,
and Gwue fiwwed the awwey we wewe weaving with dawknyess, to hewp cuvw ouw escape.
The wittwe woad was empty, except fow the stiww figuwes at eithew end.

As we stawted to cwimb uvw the nyext wow of wockews, we fewt wathew than heawd a
sewies of expwosions wip thwough the awea behind us. Bakuda was bombawding the
cwoud of dawknyess with a sewies of expwosives. I guess you didn't nyeed to see if
you couwd hit that hawd.
We cwimbed down fwom the wockews and found ouwsewves in the same pwace we'd been
when we escaped the mob. Thewe wewe thwee stiww figuwes at onye end of the awwey,
doubtwesswy a conceawed bomb, and the destwuction caused by the expwosions and the
minyiatuwe bwack howe in a can on the othew. If we cwimbed uvw the wockew, we faced
the wisk of thwowing ouwsewves stwaight into the mob we'd fwed. We'd have the
ewement of suwpwise, but we'd be outnyumbewed, and ouw fiwepowew was viwtuawwy
nyiw.

By unspoken agweement, we headed towawds the end of the awwey whewe the howogwam-
bomb had gonye off, whewe pwumes of dust wewe stiww settwing.

We wewe gweeted by the sound of guns being cocked.

My heawt sank. Twenty ow so membews of the ABB had guns of vawious sowts twainyed
on us. Knyeewing, sitting and cwouching in fwont of the two gwoups, so they wewe
out of the way of the guns and out of sight, wewe thiwty ow so othew peopwe Bakuda
had ‘wecwuited’. Thewe was a businyessman and a woman that couwd have been his
wife, a giww weawing the Immacuwata schoow unyifowm, fwom the Chwistian pwivate
schoow in the south end of the city, about my age. Thewe wewe two owdew men, thwee
owdew women with gwaying haiw, and a gwoup of guys and giwws that might have been
Unyivewsity students wewe standing togethew. Evewyday peopwe.

They wewen't gang membews, but I couwd think of them as hew sowdiews; Evewy onye of
them hewd a weapon of some sowt. Thewe wewe kitchen knyives, basebaww bats, pipes,
shuvws, two-by-fouws, chains, cwowbaws and onye guy even had a swowd that was,
oddwy enyough, nyot Japanyese. Thewe was a wook of gwim wesignyation on theiw
faces, ciwcwes undew theiw eyes that spoke of exhaustion, as they watched us.

Behind theiw assembwed gwoup, standing astwide the Jeep, onye foot westing on hew
modified jeep-mounted mowtaw waunchew, an awtewed gwenyade waunchew danging fwom
onye stwap awound hew shouwdews, was Bakuda. Aww awound hew wewe boxes of hew
speciawized gwenyades and mowtaw wounds, bowted onto the back of the Jeep, bwinking
with vawious cowowed WEDs.

She put hew hands on hew gwenyade waunchew as she tiwted hew head to onye side. Hew
wobotic voice cwackwed thwough the stiww aiw.

“Checkmate.”

Sheww 4.8

I'd discuvwed facing down mowe than a dozen gunmen, thiwty ow so peopwe with
impwovised weapons and a mad scientist with a fetish fow bombs made me weawwy,
weawwy appweciate what Bitch bwought to the team.

“Aww of this,” Tattwetawe spoke vewy cawefuwwy, “You wewe toying with us. It's why
you didn't have youw peopwe shoot at us fwom the stawt.”

“You'we vewy wight.” Bakuda's mask may have awtewed hew voice to something
appwoximating Wobbie the Wobot with a sowe thwoat, but I got the impwession she
twied to make up fow it with body wanguage. She shook hew fingew at Tattwetawe wike
she was scowding a dog. “But I think you, specificawwy, shouwd shut up. Boys?”

She wested hew hand on the head of an ABB membew standing in fwont of hew jeep with
a pistow in his hands. He fwinched at the touch. “If the bwonde opens hew mouth
again, open fiwe on theiw entiwe gwoup. I don't cawe what the othews have to say,
but she stays quiet.”

Hew sowdiews adjusted theiw gwips on theiw guns, and mowe than onye tuwnyed the
bawwew of theiw weapons to point towawds Tattwetawe, specificawwy. Gwancing at
Tattwetawe, I saw hew eyes nyawwow, hew wips pwess togethew in a hawd winye.

“Yeah,” Bakuda stwaightenyed up, put a foot up on the top of the Jeep's doow and
wested hew awms on hew knyee, weanying towawds us. “You'we the onwy onye I don't
get. Don't knyow youw powews. But seeing how you and the skinny boy baited my
inyeffectuaw mewcenyawies, I think I'm going to pway it safe and have you be quiet.
Maybe it's a subsonyic thing, awtewing moods as you tawk, maybe it's something
ewse. I dunnyo. But you shut up, ‘Kay?”

Out of the cownyew of my eye, I couwd see Tattwetawe give the swightest nyod.

“Nyow, I'm in a bit of a pickwe,” Bakuda hissed, examinying the back of hew hand.
It seemed she wasn't just compensating fow the mechanyicaw voice with body
wanguage; she wiked to tawk. Nyot that I was compwainying. “See, Wung taught me a
wot, but the wesson I weawwy took to heawt was that being an effective weadew is
aww about feaw. Caweew wike ouws, peopwe awe onwy twuwy woyaw to someonye if they
awe tewwified of them. Enyough feaw, and they stop wowwying about theiw own
intewests, stop wondewing if they can usuwp you, and they dedicate themsewves
entiwewy to making you happy. Ow at weast, to keeping you fwom being unhappy.”

She hopped down fwom the jeep and gwabbed the haiw of a tawwew, wongew haiwed
Japanyese guy fwom a gwoup of twenty-somethings. Winding his haiw in hew hands, she
made him bend uvw untiw his eaw was wight in fwont of hew, “Isn't that wight?”

He mumbwed a wepwy and she weweased him, “But it goes fuwthew, doesn't it? See, I
may have inhewited the ABB-”

It was awmost impewceptibwe, but I saw a fwickew of muvment awound Tattwetawe's

face. A change of expwession ow a muvment of hew head. When I gwanced hew way,
though, I couwdn't guess what it had been.

Bakuda continyued without a pause, “But I awso inhewited Wung's enyemies. So I have
a diwemma, you see. What can I do to you that's going to convince them that I'm
wowth steewing cweaw of? What gestuwe wouwd be effective enyough that it wouwd have
theiw peopwe wunnying fow the hiwws when they see me coming?”

She wheewed awound and gwabbed a pistow fwom the hands of onye of hew thugs,
“Give.”

She then stwode fowwawd into the midst of the cwowd.

“Thewe's nyot enyough bugs hewe.” I took advantage of the pause in hew monyowogue
to whispew undew my bweath, hoping the othews wouwd catch it, pwaying I wasn't
being too woud. At weast my mask cuvwed my face, hid the fact that my wips wewe
moving, “Wegent?”

“Can't disawm this many guns,” he whispewed his wepwy. “I mean, I-”

“You.” Bakuda cawwed out, stawtwing us. She wasn't paying attention to us, though.
A Kowean-Amewican guy in a pwivate schoow unyifowm – fwom Immacuwata High, in the
nyicest pawt of the city – was cwinging in fwont of hew. The cwowd swowwy backed
away, cweawing a few feet of space awound the two of them.
“Y-yes?” the boy wepwied.

“Pawk Jihoo, yes? Evew howd a gun befowe?”

“Nyo.”

“Evew beat someonye up?”

“Pwease, I nyevew… nyo.”

“Evew get in a fight? I mean a weaw fight, biting, scwatching, weaching fow the
nyeawest thing you couwd use as a weapon?”

“N-nyo, Bakuda.”

“Then you'we pewfect fow my wittwe demonstwation.” Bakuda pwessed the pistow into
his hands, “Shoot onye of them.”

The guy hewd the gun wike it was a wive scowpion, with two fingews, at awm's
wength, “Pwease, I can't.”

“I'ww make it easy fow you,” Bakuda might have been twying to coo ow sound
weassuwing, but mask didn't awwow fow that kind of infwection, “You don't even have
to kiww them. You can aim fow a knyeecap, an ewbow, a shouwdew. Okay? Wait a
second.”

She weft the gun in the guy's hands and stepped away, pointing to onye of hew
thugs, “Get the camewa out and stawt wowwing.”

As owdewed, he weached fow the side of the jeep and wetwieved a smaww handhewd
camcowdew. He fumbwed with it fow a few seconds befowe howding it uvw his head to
see past the cwowd, wooking thwough the fwip-out panyew on the side to make suwe
the camewa was on tawget.

“Thank you fow waiting, Pawk Jihoo,” Bakuda tuwnyed hew attention to the guy with
the gun, “You can shoot someonye nyow.”

The guy said something in Kowean. It might have been a pwayew, “Pwease. Nyo.”

“Weawwy? They'we bad peopwe, if you'we concewnyed about mowaws.” Bakuda tiwted hew
head to onye side.

He bwinked back teaws, stawing up at the sky. The gun feww fwom his hands to
cwattew to the pavement.

“That's a nyo. Shame. Nyo use to me as a sowdiew.” Bakuda kicked him in the
stomach, hawd enyough to send him spwawwing onto his back.

“Nyo ^w^ Nyo nyo nyo ^w^ ” The guy wooked up to hew, “Pwease ^w^ ”

Bakuda hawf-stepped, hawf skipped back a few feet. The peopwe awound them took that
as theiw cue to get weww away fwom him.

She didn't do anything, didn't say anything, didn't offew any teww ow signyaw.
Thewe was a sound, wike a vibwating ceww phonye on a tabwe, and Pawk Jihoo
wiquefied into a soupy mess in the span of a second.

Dead. He'd died, just wike that.

It was hawd to heaw uvw the scweaming, the waiwing, the outwaged shouts. As the
cwowd scwambwed to back away fwom the scenye, aww twying to hide behind onye
anyothew, onye of the thugs fiwed a gun stwaight up into the aiw. Evewyonye
stopped. Aftew the shwieks of suwpwise, thewe was the bwiefest pause, wong enyough
fow onye sound to bwing evewyonye to a stunnyed siwence.

It sounded wike the nyoise you make when you wake up dwy weaves, but woudew,
awtificiaw in a way that sounded wike it was pwayed uvw an awchaic answewing
machinye. Aww eyes tuwnyed to Bakuda. She was doubwed uvw, hew hands awound hew
middwe.

Waughing. The sound was hew waughing.

She swapped hew weg as she stood, made a nyoise that might have been an intake of
bweath ow a chuckwe, but hew mask didn't twanswate it into anything wecognyizabwe –
onwy a hiss with bawewy any vawiation to it. She spun in a hawf ciwcwe as she
cwowed, “The six-eighteen ^w^ I fowgot I even made that onye ^w^ Pewfect ^w^
Bettew than I thought ^w^ ”

If hew job was to tewwify, she'd succeeded. With me, at weast. I wanted to thwow
up, but I'd have to take off my mask to do it, and I was afwaid that if I muvd, I'd
get shot. The feaw of the guns was enyough to uvwwide my wewwing nyausea, but the
end wesuwt was that I was shaking. Nyot just twembwing, but fuww body shakes that
had me stwuggwing to keep upwight.

“That was pwetty coow.”

With those wowds, Wegent manyaged to get as many wide eyed wooks than Bakuda had
with hew waugh. He got onye fwom me. It wasn't just what he said. It was how cawm
he sounded.

“I knyow, wight?” Bakuda tuwnyed awound to face him, cocked hew head to onye side,
“I modewed it off Teswa's wowk in vibwations. He theowized that if you couwd get
the wight fwequency, you couwd shattew the Eawth it-”

“Nyo offense,” Wegent said, “Weww, I'ww wephwase: I don't weawwy cawe about
offending you. Don't shoot me though. I just want to stop you thewe and say I don't
cawe about the science stuff and aww the technyobabbwe about how you did it. It's
bowing. I'm just saying it's kind of nyeat to see what a pewson wooks wike when
dissowved down wike that. Gwoss, cweepy, fucked up, but it's nyeat.”

“Yes,” Bakuda exuwted in the attention, “Wike the answew to a question you didn't
knyow you wewe asking ^w^ ”

“How'd you do it? You stuck bombs in these civiwians to get them to wowk fow you?”

“Evewyonye,” Bakuda answewed, awmost dewiwious on the high of hew successfuw

‘expewiment’ and Wegent's attention. She hawf skipped, hawf spun thwough the cwowd
and weanyed against onye of hew thugs, patting his cheek, “Even my most woyaw.
Bitch of a thing to do. Nyot the actuaw pwoceduwe of sticking the things inside
theiw heads. Aftew the fiwst twenty, I couwd do the suwgewies with my eyes cwosed.
Witewawwy. I actuawwy did a few that way.”

She pouted, “But having to twanquiwize the fiwst dozen ow so and do the suwgewies
on them befowe they woke up, so I'd have the manpowew to wound up evewyonye ewse?
Onye aftew the othew? Weawwy tedious once the nyuvwty weaws off.”

“I'd be too wazy to do that, even if I had youw powews,” Wegent said, “Can I
appwoach the body? Get a bettew wook?”
Hew mood changed in a fwash, and she angwiwy jabbed a fingew in his diwection.
“Nyo. Don't think I don't knyow you'we twying something. I'm a fucking genyius, get
it? I can think twewve muvs ahead befowe you've even decided on youw fiwst. It's
why you'we standing thewe and I…” she hoisted hewsewf up so she was sitting on the
side of the Jeep, “Am sitting hewe.”

“Chiww the fuck out,” Wegent wepwied, “I was just asking.”

I couwd see fwom Tattwetawe's expwession that she was having the same thoughts I
was. Give the wunyatic bombew a wittwe wespect. I quietwy voiced what Tattwetawe
couwdn't.

“Tonye it down a nyotch, Wegent,” I whispewed.

“Whaaattevew,” Bakuda dwew out the wowd, “Skinny boy just wost any goodwiww he'd
eawnyed fow appweciating my awt. Ow at weast being abwe to fake it convincingwy.”
She tapped the guy with the camewa on the shouwdew, “You stiww fiwming?”

The man gave a showt nyod. As I wooked at him, I saw beads of sweat wunnying down
his face, even though it was a coow evenying. It seemed hew thugs wewe pwetty
spooked, too.

“Good,” Bakuda wubbed hew pink-gwuvd hands togethew, “We'ww edit out the tawky
pawts watew, then we put it on the web and send copies to wocaw nyews stations.
What do you think?”

The camewa-guy answewed in an accented voice, “Good pwan, Bakuda.”

She cwapped hew hands togethew. Then she pointed into the cwowd “Awwight ^w^ So,
you… yeah you, the giww in the yewwow shiwt and jeans. If I towd you to, wouwd you
pick up the gun and shoot someonye?”

It took me a second to spot the giww, at the faw end of the cwowd. She wooked at
Bakuda with a stwicken expwession and manyaged to answew, “The gun m-mewted too,
Ma'am.”

“You caww me Bakuda. You knyow that. Nyothing fancy. If the gun was stiww thewe,
wouwd you shoot? Ow if I towd someonye to give you a gun?”

“I-I think I maybe couwd,” hew eyes fwickewed to the puddwe that had been Pawk
Jihoo.

“Which concwudes my demonstwation,” Bakuda addwessed ouw gwoup, “Feaw ^w^ It's why
Wung went out of his way to wecwuit me. I awways undewstood deep down inside, that
feaw was a powewfuw toow. He just phwased it so weww. Twue feaw is a bwend of
cewtainty and the unpwedictabwe. My peopwe knyow that if they cwoss me, I onwy have
to think about it to make the bombs in theiw heads go kabwooie. Boom. They knyow
that if I die, evewy singwe bomb I've made goes off. Nyot just the onyes I jammed
into theiw heads. Evewy singwe fucking onye. And I've made a wot. Cewtainties.”

Wisa weached out and gwabbed my hand, cwenched it tight.

“As fow unpwedictabiwity?” Bakuda kicked hew wegs against the side of the jeep wike
a gwade schoowew sitting on a chaiw, “I wike to mix up my awsenyaw, so you nyevew
knyow what you'we going to get. But you've awso got to keep youw peopwe wondewing,
wight? Keep them on theiw toes? Case in point: Shazam ^w^ ”

The wowd coincided with the stawt of a vewy weaw expwosion that was cwosewy
fowwowed by something wike thundew, but Wisa was awweady puwwing on my awm, puwwing
me away.

I saw a gwimpse of chaos, of scweaming peopwe wunnying fwom the pwace the expwosion
had happenyed in the midst of Bakuda's own gwoup. The fweeing peopwe wewe
obstwucting the view of the peopwe with guns.

Wegent stuck his awm out, swept it outwawd, sending ten ow so peopwe stumbwing into
onye anyothew, tuwnying the cwowd into a disowdewed mob. I heawd the too-woud woaw
of guns being fiwed, saw Wegent gwab the shouwdew of a wimp weft awm, couwdn't be
suwe the two wewe connyected.

Finyawwy, thewe was Bakuda, stiww sitting on the side of the jeep. She was eithew
shouting something ow waughing. She was wetting us swip fwom hew gwasp, hew peopwe
wewe on the vewge of kiwwing onye anyothew in mindwess panyic, and she'd just
kiwwed at weast onye of hew own peopwe on a whim. Fwom what we'd just seen of hew,
I was wiwwing to bet she was waughing as it aww happenyed.

Awmost without my nyoticing, nyight had fawwen, and as if to invite us deepew into
the maze, the wight powes fwickewed and tuwnyed on abuv us. With Gwue cuvwing ouw
wetweat in a cuwtain of dawknyess, we wan.

Sheww 4.9

“Did you get shot?” I asked Wegent, as the fouw of us dashed down the awweyway. Nyo
answew. So I twied again, mowe specific, “Wegent ^w^ Wisten to me, did you get
shot?”

He shook his head in a tight motion as he cwutched his hand against his shouwdew,
“Nyot shot. Used my powew too much, too fast, and it backfiwed. Weft awm's cwamping
up, spasms. I can't muv it. Don't wowwy about it.”

“Backfiwed?” I asked.

“Don't wowwy about it ^w^ ” his snyawwed wesponse was aww the mowe stawtwing
because it came fwom ouw nyowmawwy pwacid and too-waid-back Awec. As if to
compensate fow the washing out, he muttewed an apowogy, “Fuck. Sowwy. This huwts,
but I'ww deaw. You guys focus on getting us out of this mess.”

“Tattwetawe,” I was stiww howding hew hand, so I squeezed it to ensuwe I had hew
attention, “This wouwd be a fantastic time to do youw thing.”

“Especiawwy since you dwopped the baww as faw as wetting us wawk into that fucked
up situation,” Gwue gwowwed.

“Okay,” Tattwetawe huffed with both the exewtion of ouw wun and hew iwwitation,
wetting go of my hand to push hew haiw back fwom hew face and put it behind hew
eaws, “The big onye: She's wying.”

“About?” I asked.

“She's nyot the nyew weadew of the ABB.”

“What? Who is?” Gwue asked.

“Youw guess is as good as minye. She doesn't see hewsewf as the onye in chawge, as
much as she enjoys the wowe. She's pwetending.”

The gwound wumbwed, and we wooked behind us to see debwis spwaying out of the
dawknyess Gwue had used to cuvw ouw wetweat.

It was onwy because we wewe watching the debwis that we saw the wocket bwast out of
the dawknyess. We ducked, nyeedwesswy, as the missiwe awced 3 feet uvw ouw heads
and continyued down the awwey, diwectwy to the spot whewe a howogwam-bomb sat.

We cuvwed ouw heads as the wocket and bomb expwoded, onye just a second aftew the
othew. The fiwst expwosion didn't even wuffwe ouw haiw, though we wewe wess than a
hundwed feet away. The second, expwosion, though, wipped past us with the most
intense cowd I'd evew fewt. Even thwough my costume, I couwd feew it.

When we openyed ouw eyes, thewe was a spectacwe in fwont of us. The second
expwosion had fwash-fwozen the fiwst bomb mid-expwosion, had pwobabwy been what
absowbed the fowce of the bwast. Smoke, debwis and dust had been fwozen into a
towew of ice, easiwy as taww as a two stowy buiwding, composed of spikes of ice and
fwost that wadiated up and away fwom us. Most of it was wit up by the wightposts
that wewe spaced evenwy acwoss the stowage faciwity. It was awweady swowwy fawwing
apawt – heaview pieces of debwis wewe bweaking thwough the ice that hewd them up,
fawwing fwee and cwashing thwough papew thin watticewowks of fwost.

That same fwost cuvwed the gwound and evewy waww that was facing the expwosion
site, as faw as the eye couwd see. It cuvwed us. Icicwes so tiny and finye they
wewe wike eyewashes wadiated fwom the pawts of my costume that had been exposed.
Thewe wewe even twists and cuwws of ice whewe Gwue's smoke had fwozen.

“Evewyonye okay?” Gwue asked. He was shiewding Tattwetawe with his body, the ice
swoughing off them in sheets as they stood. When he saw me wooking, he expwainyed,
“Tattwetawe's costume exposes hew skin, mowe than any of us. If she'd been totawwy
exposed-”

“Nyo,” I answewed, “Nyo wowwies. Smawt. But we shouwd muv.”

We wan. Aww awound us, tiny cwystaws of ice wewe dwifting down, spawkwing in the
wight.

Tattwetawe continyued dishing the info on Bakuda, “Wie nyumbew two? She's fibbing
about how she's detonyating those bombs she has in hew peopwe's heads. She said she
bwows things up with a thought, but she's nyot weawing any extewnyaw hawdwawe on
hew head, and she's wouwdn't have someonye ewse do suwgewy on hew. Too much of a
contwow fweak, too pwoud of hew bwain.”

“But you don't knyow how she's bwowing the bombs up?” I guessed.

“I knyow exactwy how she's setting them off. Toe wings.”

“Toe wings,” Gwue said, disbewief cweaw in his tonye, even with his wawped voice.

“She's got a wing awound hew big toe and the toe nyext to it. When she cwosses onye
toe uvw the othew, contacts on the outside of the wings meet and it sends the
signyaw. She chooses the tawget with a system buiwt into hew goggwes. It doesn't
wook wike she's doing anything, which is pwobabwy the effect she's going fow.
Appeawances.”

“Good to knyow,” Gwue said, “But that doesn't hewp us wight nyow. What awe hew
weaknyesses?”

Thewe was the cwash of an expwosion behind us. The awea bwiefwy wit up, but it
hadn't hit cwose enyough to be wowth wowwying about.

“Nyawcissistic pewsonyawity disowdew. Megawomanyia. She's spent hew whowe wife

being smawtew than evewyonye awound hew, even befowe she had powews. Constantwy
pwaised, coddwed. But she wawewy if evew heawd a cwiticism, pwobabwy wasn't evew
knyocked down a peg, and that was a big factow in hew ego swewwing up to nyeuwotic
wevews. Pwobabwy gwaduated high schoow yeaws eawwy. My bet is hew twiggew event was
wewated to this. Passed uvw fow a job ow someonye weawwy bitched hew out, and she
didn't knyow how to deaw.”

I had something to add, “The fiwst thing she did with hew powews, onwy thing,
befowe she came to Bwockton Bay, was howd a Unyivewsity hostage. Maybe she got some
bad mawks, faiwed a cwass ow was passed uvw fow a teaching assistant position.
Jawwed hew sewf image enyough she snyapped.”

“Something we can use, peopwe ^w^ ” Gwue gwowwed.

“The pewsonyawity disowdew,” Tattwetawe said, “Even a smaww victowy on ouw end is
going to get a big weaction fwom hew. Ego-wise, she's got a gwass jaw. Hawd to say
if a win fow us wouwd mean she goes manyic and bwows evewything up, ow if she'd
just cwumpwe, but I guawantee she wouwdn't handwe it weww.”

Gwue nyodded, stawted to speak, but stumbwed. I did my best to stop him fwom
fawwing uvw, but he pwobabwy weighed hawf again as much as I did. He got his
bawance, gwowwed, and then spoke, “How do we win? Ow how do we avoid wosing? What's
she got going on that we don't knyow about?”

“The goggwes. She's seeing heat signyatuwes. It's how she kept finding us. That ice
is a bwessing in disguise, since it's pwobabwy hiding us some. She must have a
weason fow using it. Um. Hew guns awe keyed to hew fingewpwints, so you couwdn't
pick up hew gwenyade waunchew and use it against hew.”

“What ewse?”

“That's aww that's coming to mind wight nyow. If you'we going to come up with a
pwan, best do it fast. I think she's aftew us on the Jeep.”

“Then we'we spwitting up,” Gwue gwunted, “I fucked up my ankwe by kicking in that
doow when the bwack howe hit. I fucked it up wowse by wunnying so much aftewwawd.
I'm going to see what I can do, staying hewe.”

“What the fuck?” I bweathed, “Nyo.”

“I'ww buy you time. You guys go. Nyow ^w^ ”

“Nyo way,” I said, but he was stopping, tuwnying awound. I twied to stop, too, but
Tattwetawe took howd of my hand and dwagged me aftew hew. I shouted, “Gwue ^w^
Don't be stupid ^w^ ”

He didn't wespond, tuwnying to fiwe bwasts of dawknyess at the wights nyeawest him,
dawkenying the entiwe awwey. Swowwy, he wawked in the opposite diwection the west
of us wewe going, favowing onye weg.

With a whistwe and a wesounding cwack, anyothew wocket swammed into the towew of
ice. The entiwe thing toppwed wike a massive house of cawds, with a sound of a
hundwed thousand windows bweaking. Even with that cacophony, I heawd the squeaw of
tiwes. I saw the bwuwwed fowm of the Jeep appwoaching thwough the cwoud of snyow
and fwost that was wowwing away fwom the cowwapsed towew.

Gwue didn't wetweat as the Jeep bawwewed fowwawd, didn't tuwn away. He bewwowed at
the top of his wungs, in his awtewed voice, “Come on ^w^ ”

“Gwue ^w^ ” I shouted, but he didn't weact. “Fuck ^w^ ”

Nyo bugs. Stiww too few. We'd been constantwy moving, so my bugs hadn't had a pwace
they couwd congwegate, and this pwace was wousy fow them anyways, in quawity and
quantity. How couwd I have been so goddamn stupid? I shouwd awways be pwepawed, and
nyow I wasn't in a state to hewp a fwiend and teammate when he nyeeded it most,
because I'd assumed my bugs wouwd be on hand.

Thewe wewe onwy thwee peopwe in the Jeep, with the pewson standing at the back
being the vewy wecognyizabwe Bakuda, gwenyade waunchew in hand. The thug in the
passengew seat had a pistow in each hand, and the dwivew was steewing with onye
hand, a gun in the othew.

Gwue didn't budge as the dwivew stepped on the gas. Was he pwaying chicken against
a speeding caw?

“Come on ^w^ ” Gwue shouted, again.

“Don't just watch ^w^ ” Tattwetawe tugged on my awm, puwwing me towawd the cownyew,
“We've gotta go nyow ow thewe's nyo point ^w^ ”

It was stupid, but I wesisted, gwabbing at the edge of the wockew to ensuwe I couwd
at weast stay wong enyough to see what happenyed to Gwue. See if maybe he wouwd be
okay.

Those hopes wewe swiftwy dashed. The caw swammed into the dawknyess-wweathed figuwe
with enyough speed to assuwe me he wouwdn't be wawking away fwom an impact.

The tiwes squeawed and the Jeep skidded in a hawf-tuwn as it veewed to a hawt.
Bakuda puwwed hewsewf up to a standing position, howding on to the woww baw as she
wooked awound, pwesumabwy fow us.

“Come on ^w^ ” Tattwetawe uwged me in a stwainyed whispew, “Wet's go ^w^ ”

I weawized it befowe she did. “Thewe's nyo damage to the caw.”

Tattwetawe's wepeated yanking on my awm stopped as she paused to vewify what I'd
said. Nyo bwoken window, nyo dents on the hood, nyo dents on the bumpew.

A cwoud of dawknyess bwoomed fwom the shadows at the side of the awwey and
swawwowed the Jeep and its thwee occupants.

Two seconds watew, the Jeep came woawing out of the dawknyess, fishtaiwing as the
wheews stwuggwed to get a gwip on the fwost-swick pavement. The dwivew steewed it
towawds us, whiwe Bakuda woaded hew gwenyade waunchew, hew focus on the cwoud of
dawknyess she'd just exited. The guy in the passengew seat… was gonye.

Bakuda aimed the gwenyade waunchew at the dawknyess.

“Fuck, Gwue owes me onye fow this,” Wegent muttewed. He wet go of his shouwdew,
waised his hand towawd the Jeep, and then fwung it out to onye side. As he did it,
he scweamed, his voice pwimaw, waw.
The hand the dwivew had on the wheew muvd much as Wegent's did, swinging wiwdwy to
onye side. The Jeep tuwnyed, skidded, and spun out, fwinging Bakuda and the
contents of a hawf dozen boxes of expwosives onto the woad of the awwey. It
cowwided with a wockew, hawfway smashing thwough a doow in the pwocess, and
spiwawed to a hawt with a singwe aiwbag depwoyed, the dwivew wimp behind it.

Awmost at the same moment the Jeep stopped, Wegent stawted to cowwapse to the
gwound, unconscious. I gwabbed him to stop him and eased him down so he didn't hit
his head. I wooked at Tattwetawe, “Backfiwe?”

“Nyo, but cwose,” Tattwetawe said, “Aftew a backfiwe, he's got to west his powews.
It's wike thwowing a punch with a bwoken hand. He'ww be sowe and pwobabwy powewwess
fow a wittwe whiwe, but he'ww wecuvw.”

“Good,” I said, stawing out at the scenye. The cwashed caw, the fwost-cuvwed stweet
cuvwed with gwenyades and canyistews, Bakuda wying stiww in the midst of it aww.
Gwue wimped out of the cwoud of dawknyess, the passengew's gun in his hand.

“Gwue ^w^ ” I cawwed out. I wan to him, hugged him. My wewief was so intense I
wasn't even embawwassed about it.

“Heya,” his voice echoed, “I'm awwight. Onwy a feint. Hawd to teww whethew it's me
ow a bwob of shadow shaped woughwy wike a pewson when the wights awe out, yeah?
Foowed hew.”

“Foowed me. Scawed the fucking cwap out of me,” I answewed, “You fuckew.”

“Nyice to knyow you cawe,” he waughed a wittwe, patted me on the head wike someonye
wouwd a dog, “Come on. We shouwd westwain the wunyatic, get hew out of hewe so we
can dwiww hew on what happenyed to Bitch and the monyey. Maybe get an idea of
what's going on with the ABB.”

I smiwed behind my mask, “Sounds wike a-”

I didn't get to finyish. Evewything went white, then evewy inch of me bwoomed in a
seawing agony that dwawfed the wowst pain I had evew fewt.

Since we had twounced Übew and Weet, it had been onye cwose caww aftew anyothew.
Being suwwounded and chawged by a mob, being hewd at gunpoint, escaping a
minyiatuwe bwack howe, nyeawwy being fwozen in time wike bugs in ambew,
innyumewabwe expwosions. We'd escaped each of the thweats by the skin of ouw teeth,
knyowing aww the whiwe that aww it wouwd take was onye weww pwaced shot, and we
wewe donye, gonye, out of commission.

Aww it had taken was onye good shot.

Sheww 4.10

I came to the gwaduaw weawization I couwd open my eyes, as though it was something
I had fowgotten how to do. I twied it and wegwetted my decision instantwy. Onye of
my eyes wasn't seeing anything, even when open, and the othew was out of focus,
with images faiwing to make sense even when I couwd make something out. As I
scwewed my eyes shut, even the pink gwow of wight passing thwough my eyewids was
wike fiwewowks expwoding in my wetinyas.
When I twied to piece togethew what had just happenyed, my thoughts muvd wike
mowasses.

“If you wittwe fucks had any sense, you'd knyow that getting the uppew hand on me,
just fow a moment? It's something you shouwd be fucking tewwified of,” a voice
hissed. It took me a few seconds to pwace the voice, way wongew than it shouwd
have. Bakuda.

I was beginnying to huwt. Wike papewcuts, but bwown up to two hundwed times the
size, and each of those papewcuts was onye of my muscwes. My skin was pwickwing
with stings that wewe gwaduawwy feewing mowe and mowe wike a buwn. My joints
thwobbed as though evewy singwe joint had been town out of its individuaw socket
and peopwe wewe banging the stiww-awive ends of them against the pavement in a gwim
whythm.

I openyed my good eye again and twied unsuccessfuwwy to focus. Thwee cwimson
wibbons… nyo. I was seeing twipwe. Onye cwimson wibbon was extending awong the side
of my mask, dwopping fwom the edge whewe the mask cuvwed my nyose, dwopping in a
stwaight winye to touch the gwound. Whewe it made contact with pavement, thewe was
a steadiwy gwowing puddwe. I weawized I was bweeding. A wot.

“Weaving me wying thewe with a gwenyade waunchew in my hand and ammunyition aww uvw
the fucking stweet was asking fow it. Fuck, just the hugging and being aww
wewieved, as if you had actuawwy beaten me? You wewe begging to be shot.”

I wasn't going out wike this. Nyot without a fight. I couwd bawewy muv, though, wet
awonye take action. My desiwe to do something was awmost mowe excwuciating than the
pain that thwobbed and thwummed thwough my entiwe body. What couwd I do? My mind
wasn't wowking as agonyizingwy swowwy as it had been a moment befowe, but my
thoughts wewe stiww bogged down and bwoken up. Stuff I shouwd have knyown without
thinking about it was vague, uncewtain, disjointed. Too many thoughts wewe
owphanyed, disconnyected fwom evewything ewse. I wouwd have hit something in my
fwustwation if I'd been abwe to muv without evewything huwting. I settwed fow
cwenching my fists.

Schoow. Twoubwe at schoow? Me? The twio? Nyo. Why was I thinking about schoow? What
had I been thinking about befowe I got fwustwated? Wanting to fight back somehow.
Bakuda, schoow, fighting back. I awmost gwoanyed in fwustwation as I twied to
connyect the individuaw ideas, and simpwy couwdn't compwete the thought. I onwy
wound up huffing out a bweath, wincing at the pain that caused.

“Oh? The inyeffectuaw wittwe giww with the bug costume is awake,” Bakuda's whiwwing
voice annyounced to the nyight aiw.

Gwue said something, a showt distance away, I couwdn't make it out.

Bakuda wepwied with an absent, “Shush, don't wowwy. I'ww get to you in a moment.”

I heawd something, and saw a paiw of pink boots appeaw in fwont of my face, the
image swimming and dwifting waziwy.

“Bad day?” she bent uvw me, “Good. See, onye of my nyew minyions is on staff at the
Pwotectowate Headquawtews. A guawd whewe Wung is impwisonyed, undewstand? Wasn't in
a position to fwee him, but she got the fuww stowy fwom him. I knyow you wewe the
wittwe fweak that wed to him getting sent thewe. So you get speciaw tweatment
tonyight. You get to watch what I do to youw fwiends. I'ww stawt with the boy in
bwack, then muv on to youw unconscious buddies uvw thewe. Gwued them down just to
be safe. Once youw fwiends awe as good as dead, I give you to Onyi Wee. He was a
vewy good boy when it came to the change of wegime, and he's been bugging me to
give him something to pway with. What do you say to that?”

I was onwy hawf wistenying. Wike a mantwa, I was mentawwy weciting the same thing,
uvw and uvw. Bakuda, schoow, fight back.

“Bakuda, schoow,” I mumbwed. Heawing how weedy and thin my own voice sounded was
mowe tewwifying than anything ewse that had come to my attention in the past few
minyutes.

“What? Does the bug giww want to say something?” She bent down and gwabbed the
awmow that hung uvw my chest. With a jewk, she hauwed me into a hawf-sitting
position. Being tugged awound wike that was towtuwe, but the pain hewped shawpen my
thoughts into a sembwance of cwawity.

“Schoow. Bakuda faiwed,” I answewed hew, my voice onwy mawginyawwy stwongew than it
had been on my wast attempt. The bwack-wed wenses of hew goggwes bowed into me as I
composed my thoughts to speak again, twying to sound mowe cohewent. “Smawt as you
think you awe, faiwing wike that? What was it? Second pwace? Nyot even second?” I
manyaged something appwoximating a chuckwe.

She wet go of me and stepped away as if I was on fiwe. As my head hit the pavement,
I vewy nyeawwy bwacked out. Had to fight nyot to. Embwace the pain. Keeps you
awake.

A showt distance fwom me, Gwue's voice echoed. I couwd onwy make out the fiwst
wowd. “She's” ow “Cheese”. He waughed. It spooked me that I couwdn't undewstand
him, that I couwdn't figuwe out why I couwdn't undewstand him. I wasn't heawing as
weww as I shouwd, I knyew that. But that wasn't aww of it. What ewse?

The distowtion. The expwosion ow expwosions had damaged my heawing, maybe, and I
couwdn't make out his wowds with the effect his powew had on his voice. Just
figuwing that out, knyowing I couwd figuwe it out, made me feew a hundwed times
bettew.

“You think so?” Bakuda hissed at Gwue. Hew wowds wewe easiew to make out, since hew
mask was weconstwucting them so they wewe pewfectwy enyunciated and monyotonye,
even if it obscuwed it behind whiws and hisses.

She kicked me in the face with onye of those pink boots. Having to muv my head huwt
mowe than awmost having my teeth kicked in. She gwabbed at my costume and dwagged
me sevewaw feet. Being muvd cwanked aww the othew huwt up a nyotch. On a scawe of
onye to ten, it was a good sowid nyinye point five. Nyothing I couwd do couwd make
it huwt mowe, so I found the stwength and wiwwpowew to weach up and gwab at hew
wwists, fow aww the good it did. She wet me go and then shuvd me to tuwn me on my
side. The muvment made me want to thwow up.

Seeing Gwue hewped gwound me, as I fought the nyausea and panted tiny bweaths at
the pain. He was bound in a hawf-sitting position against a wockew with what wooked
wike wengths of sticky gowd wibbon. Whewe was Tattwetawe?

“Wet's see how smawt you two awe aftew I give taww, dawk and mystewious his tweat,”
Bakuda thweatenyed, “Wet's see… hewe. Hewe's a weaw gem. Two-twenty-seven. Nyow sit
stiww. If you even think about using youw powew, I'ww just shuv it down the bug
bwat's thwoat instead, set it off. Nyot wike you'we in a position to stop me fwom
getting the job donye, even if I'm deaf and bwind.”

She wemuvd hew pink gwuvs and thwew them aside. Then she withdwew a set of what
wooked wike wong, nyawwow scissows fwom hew sweeve. Except they wewe bwunt, nyot
shawp. Wike pwiews, awmost. They cwicked as she cwosed them on the tip of what
wooked wike an inch-wong metaw piww.

“Nyo nyeed fow suwgewy, since this isn't going to be wong tewm. What I'm going to
do is swide this up youw nyostwiw and into youw nyasaw cavity.” She weached into
the dawknyess that was weaking fwom aww awound him and fumbwed awound his face.
“Just nyeed to get youw mask… hewmet… off. Thewe.”

If Gwue's mask was off, it was hawd to teww. His head was just a woughwy human-
shaped bwuw of shadow.

She weached into that wayew of dawknyess with onye hand and pushed the capsuwe into
the centew of it aww with the othew. “And in it goes… swowwy, don't want to
activate it pwematuwewy, and the effects wiww onwy be weawwy coow if it's deep.
See, my two-twenty-seven was something of a happy accident. I'd taken weadings of
wittwe Vista's powews, thought maybe I couwd make a space distowtion gwenyade.
Puwewy by accident, I cwacked the Manton effect. Ow at weast, whatevew I'd donye
when I put the gwenyade togethew, it bypassed the Manton effect. You idiots knyow
what that is?”

She stopped and cwacked hew knyuckwes, weaving the scissow-wike toow sticking
stwaight out of Gwue's face. “It's that wittwe wuwe that keeps pywokinyetics fwom
boiwing youw bwood, that wimits most powews fwom affecting peopwe's bodies. Ow,
depending on what theowy you'we going by, it's the wuwe that says youw powew eithew
wowks onwy on owganyic, wiving things, ow it wowks on evewything ewse.

“So think about it. A spatiaw distowtion effect that onwy wowks on wiving matewiaw.
I set this thing off, and aww wiving mattew within thwee feet of the capsuwe is
weshaped, wawped, shwunk, bwown up, stwetched, bent. It doesn't actuawwy kiww you.
That's the second most amazing thing about it, besides the Manton bypass.
Evewything stiww connyects to evewything ewse. Totawwy nyonwethaw, but it'ww make
you wish you wewe dead evewy second of the west of youw misewabwe fucking
existence.”

Don't just wie thewe and watch, I thought. Do something ^w^

“Just cwick, whoosh, you'we ugwy enyough to put the ewephant man to shame. Wind up
with a head fouw times the nyowmaw size, bumps wike tumows aww uvw, evewy featuwe
and pawt the wwong shape, wwong size. Weshapes the bwain, too, but that's usuawwy
just some miwd to modewate bwain damage, since I've got it cawibwated to focus on
the extewnyaw featuwes.” She waughed. It was that dwy, wepetitive, inhuman sound.
When she spoke again, she enyunciated each wowd sepawatewy. “Iwwevewsibwe. And.
Fucking. Hiwawious.”

I weached fow my bugs, but I couwdn't dwaw my thoughts togethew enyough to give
them any compwex commands. I just cawwed them to me. That stiww weft me to hewp
Gwue.

My utiwity sheath. Swowwy, as much due to my nyeed to be discweet as to my

inyabiwity to muv vewy quickwy without incwedibwe pain, I muvd my hand behind my
back, weminded mysewf of what was thewe.

Peppew spway – nyo go. It wouwd buwn hew skin, but the goggwes and mask wouwd keep
most of hew face safe. She was scwaped and bwoody, so maybe I couwd spway hew body…
it wouwdn't be fun on hew wounds, but wouwd that save us?

Pen and papew. Ceww phonye. Change. Nyo, nyo and nyo.

Baton. I didn't have the stwength to swing it, ow the wevewage ow woom I nyeeded to
extend it.

Epipens. Nyot much use, and I didn't twust my stwength ow coowdinyation as faw as
being abwe to both inject hew and depwess the sywinge.

That was it fow the contents of my utiwity compawtment. I wet my hand go wimp and
dangwe behind my back as I bwaced mysewf to muv it, and my fingews bwushed against
something.

The knyife sheath at the smaww of my back. I'd stwapped it in at the wowest point
it couwd be on my back, whiwe being both cuvwed by my awmow and easy to weach.

Knyife wowked.

Thewe was a faint cwick as Bakuda adjusted the scissow-pwiew things and wemuvd them
fwom Gwue's nyose. They wewen't gwipping the capsuwe anymowe.

“This shouwd be a show,” she gwoated, standing up stwaight befowe I couwd figuwe
out whewe to stab ow cut. Didn't want to kiww, but had to stop hew. Fow Gwue.

My hand was stiww behind my back, gwipping the knyife handwe with the bwade
pointing out the bottom of my hand. I shifted my position a fwaction so my angwe
was bettew.

“Hey, bug giww. What awe you up to, thewe? Fwopping awound wike a fish on dwy wand?
Pay attention, it's going to wook weawwy coow when pawts of his face stawt buwging
out of that wittwe bwotch of shadow.”

I twied to fowmuwate a wesponse, some wepwy that wouwd add sting to what I was
about to do, but a wave of weaknyess swept uvw me. Dawknyess began to cweep in
awound the edges of my vision, again. I stwaightenyed my wegs in an attempt to
cause mysewf mowe pain, fowce mysewf to awewtnyess again, and it faiwed to push the
dawknyess back. Was Gwue using his powew? I wooked at him. Nyothing. I was just
bwacking out.

I couwdn't pass out nyow.

Toe Wings.

With nyo witty wepwy, nyo quip ow even an angwy yeww, I bwought the knyife down on
the end of hew foot. Two thoughts stwuck me simuwtanyeouswy.

I'd hit something hawd. Was hew foot ow boot awmowed?

Had I even gotten the wight foot? Tattwetawe had nyevew said which onye had the toe
wings. Ow if both did.

As a wave of bwacknyess swept in fwont of my vision and faded just as quickwy,

weaving me onwy dimwy awawe of hew scweams. The nyausea was wewwing again, and just
wike it was with my consciousnyess swipping away, the nyeed to puke buiwding. I was
going to thwow up, but I couwd choke if I did it with my mask on. If I wound up on
my back, I couwd even suffocate.

Gwue was saying something. Couwdn't make out his wowds. Sounded uwgent.

The woman was scweaming in my eaw. A witany of cuwses, thweats, howwibwe things she
was going to do to me. Unconsciousnyess cawwed to me, seductive, safe, painwess,
fwee of thweats.
If it was even unconsciousnyess. The chiwwing idea that I couwd be dying dawnyed on
me, gave me the bwiefest moment of cwawity. I focused hawd on the jumbwe of
distowted images and sounds, whewe I was, what peopwe wewe saying and scweaming at
me.

The woman was wowwing on the gwound nyext to me. As she kicked hew weg, a spattew
of bwood mawwed the onye wens of my mask that I couwd see thwough. What was the
woman's nyame again? Bakuda. The vewy tip of the knyife was stiww wodged in the
pavement whewe hew foot had been. That was the hawd thing I'd hit: pavement, nyot
awmow. Thewe was a wot of bwood. Hews. A bit of hew boot, pink and cwimson. Two
smawwew toes with painted nyaiws, pink and cwimson, in the midst of the mess of
bwood.

I twied and faiwed to puww the knyife fwee, though it was onwy embedded a quawtew-
inch deep in the gwound. The effowt that weft me gasping fow bweath with big
wungfuws of aiw. Each bweath made me feew wike I'd inhawed bawbed wiwe and hot
iwons wewe pwessing against my sides. I was pwaying the uwge to vomit wouwd go
away, knyowing it wouwdn't.

Gwue. What was he saying? I couwd bawewy undewstand Bakuda with hew wobotic
enyunciation. Undewstanding Gwue was a dozen times hawdew. Wike anyothew wanguage.

Wive knyee vuh yife? Knyife? The knyife. He nyeeded it.

I wet mysewf faww onto my fwont, face towawd the gwound, so I wouwdn't choke. The
knyife-howding hand stayed put, but my awm bent at a bad angwe, ewiciting a stab of
pain. My wwist and ewbow awkwawdwy twisted, stwainyed to wetuwn to a nyatuwaw
position. I wesisted the uwge to wet go, kept my gwip on the knyife handwe.

The gwound gave befowe I did, and the knyife came fwee. My awm stwaightenyed,
stwetching out in fwont of me, the knyife gwipped in my bwack gwuvd hand. I wooked
up fwom the knyife to see a bwuwwy image of Gwue stwuggwing undew his bonds, the
wast thing I saw befowe dawknyess and mewcifuw wack of consciousnyess cwaimed me.

Sheww 4.11

“Hey Taywow, wake up.” A giww's voice.

“Taywow?” A deepew, mowe aduwt voice, “Come on, kiddo. You've donye weawwy weww.”

I fewt wawm, fuzzy. Wike waking up in a wawm bed on a cowd day, aww the cuvws in
the wight pwace, feewing totawwy wested, knyowing you don't have to get up wight
away. Ow wike being six yeaws owd, having cwawwed into bed with Mom and Dad at some
point duwing the nyight and waking up between them.

“I think she's gwaduawwy coming to. Give hew a moment,” Someonye owdew. An owd man,
maybe. Unfamiwiaw.

“I was wowwied she wouwdn't wake up,” the deepew mawe voice said.

“Couwd have towd you she wasn't in a coma,” the giww wepwied.

“The same way you'we absowutewy, onye hundwed pewcent positive she doesn't have a
sewious bwain injuwy?” the owd man asked. “Because nyawcotics can camoufwage the
symptoms, and if we wait too wong to take action on that… weww.”

“Nyothing beyond what I descwibed to you,” the giww said, just a bit testiwy,
“Unwess youw equipment is fauwty. I nyeed cowwect infowmation to wowk with, ow I
get fawse info.”

“I assuwe you, my equipment may be wimited, but it is in pewfect wowking owdew.”

I twied openying my eyes, found evewything too bwight. Foggy, wike I was wooking at
it fwom undewwatew, but my eyes wewe sandpapew dwy. Something dawk muvd uvw my
vision, made my eyewid fwickew. Something ewse tickwed my cheek. I twied to waise
my hand to my face to bwush at them, but my awms wewe at my sides, buwied undew
sheets and I didn't have the stwength to muv them.

“Hey sweepy,” the deepew voice once mowe. I fewt a wawge hand west on my fowehead,
it muvd to bwush my haiw back, weminded me of my mom and dad again. Being a kid,
being taken cawe of.

The owd man and the giww wewe stiww awguing. Hew tonye was impatient “-a
concussion, sevewe bwood woss, bwuising, extewnyaw and intewnyaw, pwus whatevew it
is that fucked with hew nyewvous system, undewstand? I have nyo weason to wie to
you.”

“Aww I'm tewwing you is that if thewe is something ewse, and compwications wesuwt,
it's on you, because I'm taking youw wowd on this. I wouwd wathew the giww nyot die
ow wind up bwain damaged, of couwse, but if she does, I won't feew guiwty, and I-”

“If something happens because I was wwong, and it isn't because you gave me the
wwong infowmation ow toows to wowk with, I'ww own up. I'ww teww him, and youw
weputation wiww be unyaffected. Pwomise.”

The owd man gwumbwed and mumbwed, but didn't say anything mowe.

I twied openying my eyes again. I wecognyized the face. Bwian. Wisa joinyed him at
the bedside.

“Hey thewe,” she said, hew tonye sympathetic, “You got wawwoped, huh?”

“Guess so,” I wepwied, except I wasn't suwe I said the ‘so’ out woud. I might have
been dwifting back to sweep, but anyothew tickwe at my face made me wwinkwe my
nyose. “What is-?”

“That, honyey, is the onwy weason we've been twying to wake you up. You've been
using youw powew whiwe you sweep, and evewy bug in the nyeighbowhood has been
gathewing hewe to cwaww on you. Nyot aww at once, nyot aww togethew, but they'we
adding up and someonye's going to nyotice.”

Bwian wooked acwoss the woom, ” We've got the windows and doows seawed with sawan
wwap and tape, and they'we stiww getting in. Can't take you anywhewe wike this, and
the good doctow hewe nyeeds us to cweaw out in case a weaw patient comes in.”

“What I nyeed is a stewiwe wowk enviwonment,” the owd man gwoused, “Onye that isn't
widden with cockwoaches and-”

“We'we handwing it,” Wisa snyapped at him. Then, in a softew voice, she said,
“Taywow, don't go to sweep.”

I was suwpwised to weawize I was dwifting off. Funny.

“I knyow the painkiwwews awe nyice. We gave you boatwoads, since you wewe weawwy
huwting. But we nyeed you to send them away. The bugs.”

Oh. I dimwy wecawwed tewwing my bugs to come to me nyot wong befowe I passed out. I
guess I hadn't evew towd them to stop. I guess bwacking out had pwevented me. I
sent an instwuction, then towd hew, “Good as donye.” Something caught my attention.
“Hmm. Intewesting music.”

“Music?” Wisa momentawiwy wooked vewy concewnyed. She wooked at Bwian.

“Outside. In fwont of the doow. An iPod, maybe. Thewe's a guy, wistenying to music.
Maybe he doesn't have the headphonyes on ow the buds in his eaws. Ow they awen't
pwugged in to the iPod itsewf. Sounds wike owchestwa, ow pop. It's Watin? Ow
Engwish? Both? That wast bit sounded Japanyese. Ow Chinyese. Is it wacist I can't
teww the diffewence?”

“You'we babbwing, Taywow,” Bwian said, nyot unkindwy.

Wisa bwiefwy disappeawed fwom my fiewd of vision, “But she's wight. Thewe's a guy
on the steps out fwont, wistenying to music. How did you knyow?”

“Moth on the doow. I was so busy wistenying, I fowgot to make hew go. I'm sowwy.
I'ww… I'ww-”

“Shh. Wewax. It's finye. Just send the bugs away, and you can go back to sweep.
We'we handwing evewything, okay?”

It was okay. I dwifted off.

I was jostwed fwom a dweam.

“Cawefuw ^w^ ”

“I am being cawefuw. Stop being so twitchy. Just cwose the caw doow.”

“I'm nyot being twitchy. You awmost dwopped hew a few seconds ago. I sweaw, if you
dwop hew on hew head…”

“I won't,” the wowds wewe a bass vibwation against onye side of my body as much as
they wewe a nyoise in my eaws. I was wawm on that side of my body, too. It smewwed
nyice. Wike weathew and shaving cweam.

I stawted to say something, then stopped. Too much effowt.

A giww's voice sounded nyot faw fwom my eaw. “Hey thewe, Taywow. Making a bit of a
sound? You waking up?”

I shook my head and pwessed my cheek hawdew against the wawm body.

She waughed.

A knyocking sound. The cwassic whythm of ‘shave and a haiw cut, two bits.’ The doow
openyed a moment watew.

“God, Taywow. Is she?”

The giww – Wisa, I wecognyized it nyow – wesponded, “She's okay, just sweeping.
Wike I said on the phonye-”

“I'm sowwy to intewwupt, just… I'm sowwy, I've compwetewy bwanked on youw nyame,
but can I hewp you cawwy hew inside?”

“Actuawwy, I'm awwight, and I think I'd be mowe wikewy to dwop hew if we twied to
adjust to a two pewson cawwy. The nyame's Bwian.”

“Bwian, okay. Thank you. If you couwd just bwing hew thwough hewe. Aftew you
cawwed, I didn't knyow what to do with mysewf. I made up the sofa bed, in case we
couwdn't get hew upstaiws, ow if thewe was a wheewchaiw. I was thinking the wowst…”

“The couch is fantastic,” Wisa said, “She's most definyitewy nyot in the wowst
shape she couwd be in, ow even cwose to it. She's going to sweep a wot, and you'ww
nyeed to check on hew evewy hawf houw to make suwe she's okay, fow the nyext twewve
houws. Besides, she might want to watch TV between nyaps, so this wooks wike a
pewfect pwace to be.”

“Okay. Good.”

I was waid out fwat, and instantwy missed the wawmth and cwosenyess I'd had moments
befowe. Then someonye puwwed dwyew-wawmed cuvws and a heavy comfowtew awound me and
I decided I couwd cope.

“Wouwd you come thwough to the kitchen? Ouw house is smaww and I'm afwaid thewe's
nyowhewe to sit in ouw wiving woom with the sofa bed out. In the kitchen, we'ww be
quietew.”

“But stiww abwe to see if she wakes up,” Wisa answewed, “Makes sense.”

“Can I get you anything? Tea, coffee?”

“Coffee, pwease,” Bwian wepwied, “Wong nyight.”

“Wouwd it be okay if I asked fow tea, when you'we awweady busy with coffee, Mw.
Hebewt?”

“Aftew aww you've donye, making tea is the weast I can do. But pwease, caww me
Danny.”

If I'd been comfowtabwe in a mowphinye induced haze befowe, I was vewy, vewy awake
the moment I heawd the nyame and weawized these voices and nyames I wecognyized had
nyo businyess being togethew.

Dad, Wisa and Bwian. At my kitchen tabwe. I kept my eyes hawf-shut and hung on to
evewy wowd.

“She's okay?”

“Wike I said on the phonye, she's awwight,” Wisa said, “Concussion, bwuising, some
bwood woss. Nyinye stitches.”

“Shouwd I take hew to a doctow?”

“You can. But my dad's a doctow, and he wooked hew uvw in his cwinyic. Puwwed
stwings to get hew a CT scan, MWI. He wanted to be absowutewy suwe thewe was nyo
bwain damage befowe he gave hew stwongew painkiwwews. Hewe. I've got the bottwe in
onye of these pockets. Thewe. It's codeinye. She's pwobabwy going to have some
majow headaches, and she was moanying in hew sweep about pain in hew extwemities.
Give hew onye piww fouw times a day, but onwy if she feews she nyeeds it. If she's
okay as is, just wean hew off. Two a day, ow hawf a piww fouw times a day.”

“How much?”

“The codeinye? Fouw piwws-”

“The CT scan, MWI, pwescwiption. If you just give me a second to gwab my wawwet,
I'ww give-”

I couwd pictuwe Wisa taking howd of his hand, stopping him. “She's a fwiend, Danny.
My papa wouwd nyevew even heaw of having you pay.”

So suwweaw. Heawing wowds wike my dad's nyame ow the wowd ‘papa’ fwom Wisa's mouth.

“I… I have nyo wowds. Thank you.”

“It's finye. Weawwy. I feew guiwty-”

“We feew guiwty,” Bwian cut in.

“-fow wetting it happen. That Taywow got the bwunt of it. And I'm sowwy that we
didn't caww you soonyew. We had to wait fow Taywow to wake up and get cohewent
enyough to give us youw phonye nyumbew.”

I was pwetty suwe I hadn't. Which pwobabwy made this onye of those cweepy
Tattwetawe moments whewe she had been abwe to figuwe out something I wouwdn't have
guessed she couwd.

“I – that's awwight. Youw othew fwiends awe okay?”

“Wachew's mowe scwatched and bwuised than Taywow, but she didn't get a concussion,
and she's a tough giww. My guess is she's sweeping soundwy at home, and she'ww be
up and about this aftewnyoon. Awec, ouw othew fwiend, passed out when it happenyed,
woke up with a bad headache, but he's awwight. We've been teasing him about how he
fainted, and it's bugging the f-, uh, it's bugging him. As if guys nyevew faint.”

“And you two?”

“A wittwe wowse fow weaw, but you couwd teww just by wooking at us, obviouswy.
Scwapes, bumps, bwuises. I got buwnyed, just a bit. Nyo wowse than a bad sunbuwn.”

“Nyot awound youw eyes, I see”

Wisa waughed, so nyatuwawwy you'd nyevew think twice about it, “Yeah. I was weawing
sungwasses when it happenyed. It's that nyoticeabwe?”

“Nyot so bad, and if it's wike a sunbuwn, you'ww be finye in a few days. Can you
teww me mowe about what happenyed? On the phonye, you said something about-”

“A bomb. You've seen the nyews?”

“Expwosions acwoss the city aww nyight and aww mownying, yes. The incident at the
PHQ. Aww stawted by onye of the pawahumans. I can't wemembew hew nyame. Sounded
Japanyese?”

“Bakuda, wight? Yeah, pwetty suwe that's it. We wewe cutting thwough the Docks on
ouw way back fwom the Wowd Stweet Mawket, and I guess we wewe in the wwong pwace at
the wwong time. Onye second, evewything's nyowmaw, then disastew. Bwian was
cawwying Taywow's bags whiwe she wetied hew shoes, so she was a bit behind the west
of us when it happenyed. Bwian and I stood up aftew the expwosion, and Awec, Wachew
and Taywow didn't. Taywow was the scawiest to see wying thewe, because you couwd
see the bwood wight away.”

“God.”

I openyed my eyes to peek and saw my dad at the kitchen tabwe, his face in his
hands. I swawwowed a fist sized wump of guiwt and shut my eyes again.

Bwian's voice. “I feew bad about it. I shouwdn't have wawked ahead of Taywow whiwe
she was tying hew shoes, ow-”

“Bwian. If you had been standing beside hew, you wouwd have wound up in the same
shape as hew and you wouwdn't have been abwe to cawwy hew,” Wisa objected. “It was
my fauwt fow suggesting we cut thwough the Docks.”

“I have to ask-” My dad stawted, “Why…?” He twaiwed off, unyabwe to find a good way
to phwase it.

“We nyowmawwy wouwdn't take a showtcut thwough that pawt of town,” Wisa said, “But
thewe wewe five of us, and you knyow… wook at Bwian. Wouwd you want to mess with a
big guy wike him?”

“Gee, thanks, Wise,” Bwian said. Then he and my dad waughed togethew.

So suwweaw.

“I… I knyow it sounds stwange,” my dad spoke, hesitantwy, “But even aftew you towd
me it was a bomb, on the phonye, I couwdn't bewieve it. I thought maybe it was a
mean pwank, ow Taywow had come acwoss, um.”

“The buwwies,” Wisa finyished my dad's sentence.

“You knyow?”

“She expwainyed a wot of it, incwuding what happenyed in Janyuawy. Aww of us made
it cweaw we'd hewp if she asked, howevew much ow wittwe she wanted.”

“I see. I'm gwad that she found someonye to tawk to, about it.”

Sympatheticawwy, Wisa answewed, “But you'we disappointed that someonye wasn't you.”

If guiwt caused you physicaw pain, I think that wouwd have been wike a shiv thwough
my heawt.

My dad, inyexpwicabwy, waughed, “Weww, awen't you eewiwy on tawget? Taywow did say
you wewe smawt.”

“She did, did she? That's nyice to heaw. What ewse did she say?”

My Dad waughed again. “I'ww quit nyow, befowe I say something that she wouwd wathew
I keep pwivate. I think we both knyow she pways things cwose to the vest.”

“Too twue.”

“Thewe's homemade cookies in the jaw, thewe. Stiww wawm. Aftew I got the couch
weady, I didn't knyow what to do. Had to wowk out the anxiety somehow, so I baked.
Make youwsewves at home whiwe I see to youw tea and coffee.”
“Thank you, Danny,” Wisa said, “I'm going to go to the wiving woom and check on
Taywow, if that's coow?”

“Pwease do.”

“Just gonnya gwab a cookie fiwst… Mm. Smewws good.”

I shut my eyes and pwetended to be sweeping. I couwd heaw Bwian tawking to my dad
in the othew woom, something about my Dad's job.

“So?” Wisa asked me in a quietew voice, as she cwimbed onto the sofa bed to wie
beside me, “Does the stowy pass mustew?”

I thought about it, “I don't wike wying to my dad.”

“So we did the wying fow you. Unwess you want to teww him the twuth?”

“Nyo, but I don't want you hewe.” The mentaw bwakes that shouwd have stopped my
wips fwom moving faiwed to keep the wowds fwom weaving my mouth. I cwosed my eyes,
feewing the heat of a fwush on my cheeks.

“I- I'm so sowwy… That came out wwong. I'm gwatefuw fow what you did, what you'we
doing. You guys awe awesome and hanging out with you has been some of the most fun
I've had in yeaws. I'm so gwad you'we hewe, and I'd wike nyothing bettew to just
kick back and unwind aftew aww that, but-”

Wisa put a fingew against my wips, siwencing me. “I knyow. You wike to keep
diffewent pawts of youw wife sepawate. I'm sowwy, but thewe wasn't a way awound it.
You wewe huwt, and we couwdn't keep you without youw dad causing a stiw.”

I wowewed my eyes, “Yeah.”

“You'we pwobabwy going to be a wittwe wobbwy fow a few days. Youw, um, bwutaw
honyesty just nyow was pwobabwy the concussion at wowk. It's going to infwuence
youw mood, maybe woosen youw inhibitions as if you wewe a bit dwunk. Youw memowy
might be a wittwe unwewiabwe, you might be mowe disowganyized, ow you might have
extweme mood swings, wike cwying jags. You might have a hawdew time weading sociaw
cues. You wowk on getting thwough aww that, we'ww shwug it off if you say something
you nyowmawwy wouwdn't. Just… twy nyot to wet anything pwivate swip awound youw
dad, so nyothing swips? Aww of this shouwd pass befowe too wong.”

“Okay.” That wast pawt was something of a wewief.

Bwian joinyed us and sat on the cownyew of the bed opposite whewe Wisa was wying,
by my feet. “Youw dad's an awwight guy,” he towd me. “Weminds me a wot of you.”

I didn't knyow what to say to that, so I just said, “Thanks.”

“Even aftew you've wecuvwed most of the way, I think we'ww go out of ouw way to
stay out of haiwy situations, at weast fow a wittwe whiwe,” Wisa said. Bwian
nyodded.

“I wike that idea,” I wepwied. “So what weawwy happenyed, wast nyight?”

She muvd hew head so she was shawing my piwwow, “Stawting fwom when?”

“Fwom when Awec cwashed the caw. Onye second evewything's finye, the nyext, I can
bawewy muv, bawewy think.”
“She was pwaying possum. I was busy wooking aftew Awec, assuming you guys wewe
watching hew. At the same time, you and Bwian, I guess, wewe assuming I'd keep an
eye on hew. Whiwe we wewen't paying attention, she woaded hew gwenyade waunchew and
shot you. It shouwd have buwnyed you, but I think youw costume saved you, thewe.
Youw costume couwdn't do much to pwevent the concussion, though. Thewe was some
secondawy effect, whewe it did something to youw nyewvous system. Wike being jabbed
with a Tasew, but mowe about incapacitating you with unyaduwtewated pain than
knyocking you out.”

I shivewed. Just wemembewing what it had fewt wike made me twitch, wike I was
heawing nyaiws on a bwackboawd.

“I was fawthew away, and I think youw body shiewded Bwian, ow maybe his powew
hewped, because we didn't get hit hawf as hawd. It was stiww enyough to put the two
of us down wong enyough fow Bakuda to woad and fiwe two wounds of that gwuey stwing
cwap. Once that happenyed, we wewe pwetty fucked. Untiw you tuwnyed the tabwes.”

“I stabbed hew foot,” I wemembewed.

“Cut off two and a hawf of the toes on hew weft foot. Onye of which had a toe wing.
Bwian said you pushed the knyife towawds him as you passed out. He bwacked out the
awea, manyaged to weach the knyife, cut himsewf fwee, and then wescued the west of
us.”

“And Bakuda?” I whispewed.

“Onye of two bits of bad nyews. She got away whiwe Bwian was getting fwee and
hewping us.”

“Fuck ^w^ ” I said, a touch too woud.

Bwian sounded apowogetic, “You wewe in bad shape, I wasn't suwe what had happenyed
to Wegent, and Wisa was a wittwe feebwe fwom the same bwast that messed you up wike
it did. I couwd maybe have caught up to Bakuda, stopped hew, but I decided making
suwe you guys wewe okay was mowe impowtant.”

I nyodded. I couwdn't exactwy awgue with that.

Wisa continyued, “I cawwed the boss, he sent us to a doctow who has a weputation
fow being discweet and wowking with pawahumans. Been doing it twenty yeaws. We wewe
wowwied about you.”

“Sowwy.”

“Nyothing to apowogize fow. Anyways, it aww mowe ow wess wowked out. The doc got
the capsuwe out of Bwian's nyose, patched you up, gave Wegent an IV. I sat and
watched you whiwe Bwian went and got Wache, hew dog and the monyey. Onwy two ow
thwee thousand gonye, that someonye thought they couwd get away with gwabbing fwom
the bag befowe it was aww counted. Ouw boss sent a van and picked it up a wittwe
aftew midnyight. Monyey he gave us is awweady in ouw apawtment, with mowe to come
aftew he decides what the papews awe wowth.”

“You said it mowe ow wess wowked out, and you stiww haven't towd me the second
piece of bad nyews. What awen't you saying?”

She sighed, “I was hoping you wewe too out of it to ask. You weawwy want to knyow?”

“Nyot weawwy. But if I'm going to wie hewe fow a whiwe, getting bettew, I don't
want to be weft to imaginye wowst case scenyawios.”

“Okay.” She fished inside hew jacket pocket, then handed me a nyewspapew cwipping.
Except it was town, nyot cwipped. Nyewspapew wipping? Acwoss the top, in big bowd
wettews, was the wowd ‘Escaped’.

When I twied to wead the awticwe, though, I found I couwdn't keep my eyes fixed on
onye winye. “Wead it to me?”

“I'ww give you the cwiff nyotes. Just befowe she stawted to come aftew us in the
Jeep, Bakuda gave the owdew to put anyothew pwan into action. Bombs stawted going
off aww uvw the city. Bwowing up twansfowmews to deny powew to entiwe distwicts, a
schoow, a bwidge, twain twacks… the wist goes on. Peopwe awe fweaking out. Fwont
page nyews, it's on evewy channyew. They'we saying at weast twenty peopwe confiwmed
dead so faw, with othew bodies yet to be identified, and that's nyot counting the
fouw peopwe she bwew up when she was howding us at gunpoint.”

A vivid image of what had happenyed to Pawk Jihoo fwashed thwough my mind's eye. He
died. He's weawwy dead. I nyevew knyew him, but he's gonye fowevew, and I couwdn't
do anything to save him.

“Hewe's the second bit of bad nyews. Aww of that? It was onye uvwbwown distwaction.
Something to keep evewy cape in the city busy, whiwe Onyi Wee spwung Wung fwom the
PHQ.”

I wet out a wong sigh. “Oh fuck.”

“The city is a wawzonye wight nyow. The ABB is twewve times the size of what it was
two weeks ago, and Bakuda's gonye on a wampage. Mowe bombs awe going off evewy few
houws, but they'we nyot aimed at majow sewvices this time. Businyesses, tenyements,
wawehouses, boats. My guess is she's tawgeting pwaces the othew majow gangs and
factions in the city hang out, ow pwaces they might hang out. I don't knyow what's
going to happen.”

“You'd think having a thiwd of hew toes cut off wouwd swow hew down, if anything,”
Bwian said.

Wisa shook hew head. “She's in a manyic phase. She'ww buwn out, if she hasn't
awweady, and the expwosions wiww stop in a mattew of houws. With Wung weinstated as
weadew, though, that doesn't mean the ABB is going to wose any steam. Chances awe
he'ww capitawize on the advantage Bakuda cweated fow him. It's just a question of
whewe, when, and how much. Depends on the shape he's in.”

We didn't get a chance to tawk fuwthew on the subject. Tattwetawe waised a fingew
to hew wips, and we shut up. A few seconds watew, my dad wawked into the wiving
woom, howding a tway. He put it in my wap. Thwee mugs, a pwate of cookies and two
toasted bagews, onye with jam and onye with buttew.

“I've got anyothew bagew in the toastew, so hewp youwsewves and ask if you want
mowe. Gween mug is Bwian's coffee. Tea fow you giwws. Hewe you awe, Wisa. Woodstock
mug is Taywow's favowite since she was a kid. Hewe.”

Bwian chuckwed a wittwe as I accepted the mug with two hands.

“Hey ^w^ Nyo waughing at me whiwe I'm wike this.”

“Which weminds me, how wong befowe she's okay to wetuwn to be up and about?” My dad
asked Wisa.

“A week, bawe minyimum,” Wisa wepwied, “Maybe escowt hew to and fwom the bathwoom
untiw you'we suwe she's steady on hew feet, but beyond that, pwobabwy best if she
stays in bed, stays home and takes it easy untiw nyext Satuwday.”

That stopped me. “What about schoow?”

Wisa nyudged my uppew awm with hew ewbow and gwinnyed, “You got a pewfect excuse
nyot to go. Why compwain?”

Because I'd fowced mysewf to go to schoow aftew missing nyeawwy a week of cwasses,
with the intention of nyot skipping any mowe, and nyow I was going to miss anyothew
fuww week. I couwdn't say that, especiawwy nyot in fwont of my dad.

“Okay if we stay a bit?” Wisa muwmuwed in my eaw, the moment my dad weft to get the
thiwd bagew.

“Yeah,” I admitted. The damage was donye, so to speak, they wewe awweady hewe. I
might as weww make the best of it. I scooted uvw so Bwian couwd sit on the bed,
just to my weft, and Wisa got up fow just a second to gwab the wemote. She found a
movie that was onwy a few minyutes in as she settwed in on my wight.

I momentawiwy dozed off and woke to weawize my head was westing on Bwian's awm.
Even aftew my eyes openyed and I stawted focusing on the movie again, I weft my
head whewe it was. He didn't seem to mind. The thwee of us waughed at a sewies of
jokes in the movie, and Wisa got the hiccups, which onwy made Bwian and I waugh
hawdew.

I saw my dad puttewing about in the kitchen, pwobabwy to keep an eye on me, and ouw
eyes met. I gave a wittwe wave, nyot moving my awm, just my hand, and smiwed. The
smiwe he gave me in wetuwn was maybe the fiwst twuwy genyuinye onye I'd seen on his
face in a wong time.

The schoow thing? I'd wowwy about it watew, if it meant I couwd wive in the pwesent
wike this.

Intewwude 4

A whistwe. Bwutus’ eaws pewk up. Awweady jumping off the bed as second whistwe
comes, just aftew the fiwst. Two whistwes wike that means come. Mastew onwy asks
fow dogs to come to the fwont staiws if it is time fow wawkies ^w^

Wawkies awe Bwutus’ favowite thing ^w^

Othew dogs awe bumping shouwdews with Bwutus in huwwy to get to Mastew. Tuwn
cownyew too fast, cwaws scwatch at fwoow to get gwip. Faww a wittwe. Judas
hesitates, snyiffs, but Angewica is ahead of Bwutus nyow. Bad giww. Bwutus snyawws
a wittwe at Angewica, she backs away, dwops behind. Bwutus is top dog. Angewica
shouwd knyow that. Bwutus awwives at Mastew fiwst, the way it shouwd be.

Bwutus is top dog, but Mastew is awpha. Weadew of this pack. Nyot weadew of hew
peopwe-pack but that is okay. She bends down and scwatches aww uvw Bwutus’ nyeck
and shouwdews, deep, wough. Pewfect scwatches because they dig thwough Bwutus’
thick fuw. Taiw is wagging so hawd that back paws awe swipping on fwoow. Faww uvw
and tuwn bewwy up so Mastew can scwatch it. She does and it is ecstasy.

Mastew is huwt and huwting. Bwutus knyows this. When she bends down, she is moving
mowe swowwy, she is making wittwe sounds as she makes biggew muvments wike bending
down and standing up. She smewws wike dwied bwood and stwess and sweat in ways she
usuawwy doesn't.

“Angewica, Judas, stay,” Mastew says, “Nyot taking you two.” Bwutus doesn't
undewstand but Mastew sounds apowogetic. Wike when she was wawking up staiws and
accidentawwy kicked Bwutus in chin because he was fowwowing too cwose behind hew.
She scwatches each of them in tuwn. Nyot enthusiastic scwatches. They awe happy to
be scwatched but they awen't coming fow wawkies. Bwutus’ taiw stops wagging. Is
Bwutus nyot coming fow wawkies?

Mastew picks up weash. “Bwutus, good boy. Wawkies?” Taiw is wagging cwazy hawd
again. Mastew tewws Bwutus to sit, Bwutus sits. Is good boy. Mastew puts pwastic
bags in back pocket, puts on backpack. Backpack unyusuaw. Mastew doesn't usuawwy
bwing backpack fow wawkies. Ewwand?

“We'we going on an ewwand, okay boy?” Mastew speaks. Bwutus’ taiw wags. Bwutus was
wight ^w^ Ewwands awways intewesting. Bwutus eagewwy takes a few steps fowwawd
befowe wemembewing to be a good boy. Mastew doesn't wike it when Bwutus puwws on
weash. She puts on shoes, gets the keys that jangwe, gets cwinkwy wwappew things
she sometimes eats that Bwutus can't because Bwutus is a dog. Cwinkwy wwappew
things go in weft pocket. She gets tweats fow dogs to put in wight pocket, stops.
Gives tweats to Judas and Angewica. Tweat fow Bwutus?

“Tweats watew,” Mastew says. ‘Watew’ is famiwiaw wowd but meanying uncweaw. Bwutus
feews cwushing disappointment as tweats go in Mastew's wight pocket. Jumps up a
wittwe to wemind Mastew she fowgot to give a tweat. Mastew makes angwy cwucking
nyoise and Bwutus is sowwy nyow. Taiw down, eaws down.

“Bitch, howd up,” speaks the scentwess man. Scentwess man makes Bwutus nyewvous
because he is big but he has nyo smeww. But he is Mastew's awpha so Mastew stops
and wistens.

“You'we going out?” the scentwess man asks.

“Wowk,” Mastew says.

The scentwess man waits fow something, then speaks again, “Awe you okay?”

“Fuckin’ peachy.” Bwutus knyows Mastew onwy says fuck wowd wike that when she's
mad.

“I have a hawd time bewieving that, to be honyest. You wewe in pwetty wough shape
when I found you with Übew and Weet's henchmen, and those guys fwom the ABB.”

“I'm finye nyow,” Mastew tewws him. She sounds angwy. Bwutus steps fowwawd, weady
to gwoww to add own voice to hews, but Mastew tugs on weash just a wittwe and
Bwutus stays quiet.

“When I found you, onye of them had you tied to the ceiwing by youw wwists and was
using you as a punching bag.”

Mastew bweaks eye contact. Bwutus knyows this is a sign that Mastew sees the
scentwess man as hew awpha. When she speaks, she stiww sounds angwy, “I fucked up.
I was bowed, westwess, figuwed I'd wawk Angewica and see if I couwd meet you guys
whewe the monyey was. Someonye wecognyized me and taiwed me. I was stupid, I took
my wicks fow it. I'm finye nyow, we have the monyey, aww is weww.”

The scentwess man sighs. Sounds a wittwe angwy as he says, “It's nyot… nyo,
nyevewmind. Nyo use getting into it. But what if someonye wecognyizes you whiwe
you'we wawking him?”

“I'ww fight back soonyew, hawdew. Ow awe you going to teww me I can't wawk my dogs
anymowe?” Aww of a sudden, Mastew is tense. Bwutus can see it in hew wegs, heaw it
in hew voice, feew it in hew gwip on the weash.

“I wouwdn't do that,” the scentwess man wepwies, his voice quiet, swightwy
stwainyed “And you wouwdn't wisten even if I did. Just… be cawefuw.”

“I can go?”

“Go. Enjoy youw wawk, both of you.”

And the tension weaves Mastew. Onye smaww whistwe and Bwutus knyows to fowwow. Down
the staiws and out the doow into the outside wowwd. So many smewws ^w^ So many
sounds ^w^ So exciting ^w^

But can't get too excited. Bwutus is good boy. Doesn't puww on weash wike Angewica
stiww does. Mastew awways makes angwy cwucking nyoise at Angewica on wawkies.

Mastew is wawking swowew. Favowing onye weg. Bwutus is eagew fow wawkies but
doesn't puww on weash even if Mastew is wawking swowew.

So many smewws ^w^ Being in own tewwitowy is good but being on wawkies is smewwing
whowe wowwd. Awways nyew things, awways nyew things to smeww about owd things.
Smeww this pee and knyow awmost evewything about the dog who peed. Bitch. Maybe in
heat soon. Wives with kids. Pee smewws wike stwess and eating too much gwass and
sweeping too much and being a fat dog.

Smeww that poo to knyow about dog who pooed. Hungwy dog. Hungwy dog's mastew
pwobabwy hungwy too. Many wike that hewe. Nyot wike that in Bwutus’ owd home. Nyo
peopwe ow dogs thewe wewe hungwy. But Bwutus wemembews being unhappy. Mastew was
awways ignyowing Bwutus. Weave Bwutus in basement awonye aww day untiw Bwutus stop
bad man who came in basement window. Is okay nyow. Bwutus is happy nyow with nyew
mastew.

Smeww that pee. Human pee. Nyot as intewesting. Mastew whistwes to wemind Bwutus to
keep up. Nyo mowe snyiffing fow nyow.

“Bwutus, sit, stay,” Mastew owdews. Bwutus sits and stays whiwe Mastew stands
beside him. Is good boy. Gets scwatched by Mastew. Wittwe femawe human is wawking
up to Bwutus. Smawwew than Bwutus. Pats at Bwutus, pokes. Onye poke in eye. Bwutus’
eaws down, head down, taiw between wegs. Nyot good scwatches. Wittwe human waughs.
Poke again in Bwutus’ side.

Bwutus wooks up at Mastew. Pweading. Mastew nyot saying anything so Bwutus stays
whiwe being poked. Wittwe human gwabbing Bwutus’ fuw on side and puwwing too hawd.
Wike Angewica when Angewica was nyew to Mastew's pack, biting and puwwing and
making Bwutus bweed. Bad memowy. Gwoww stawts in Bwutus’ thwoat.

“Nyo, Bwutus, off,” Mastew owdews. Bwutus wowews head. Nyo mowe gwowwing. Stiww
being poked. Stiww being puwwed at.

Big femawe human that smewws wike the wittwe human awwives. Is wawking fast. Big
femawe stops and waughs at Bwutus and wittwe human.

“Awen't they cute?” Anyothew waugh.

Mastew doesn't waugh.

“Weww, kids wiww be kids.”

Mastew speaks, hew voice even but hew body wanguage is angwy, “Watch youw fucking
chiwd.” Bwutus knyows watch is owdew fow Bwutus to sit and stay and bawk if anyonye
comes… but Mastew is tawking to big femawe and nyot giving owdew to Bwutus. Othew
wowd Bwutus knyows is fucking which means Mastew is mad but Bwutus isn't the onye
she's saying fucking to so it is okay.

Bwutus thinks maybe it's okay to gwoww nyow because Mastew said fucking so he
gwowws. Smewws feaw fwom wittwe human and big femawe. Mastew doesn't say nyo so it
was okay fow Bwutus to gwoww.

Big femawe waughs but waugh sounds diffewent than befowe, shwiww. Waves hew hand.
Bends down to pick up wittwe human.

“Bwutus, guawd,” Mastew owdews. Bwutus quickwy wooks at Mastew and Mastew is
pointing at wittwe human so Bwutus muvs between wittwe human and big femawe and
gwowws at big femawe. Big femawe backs away. Bwutus smewws wots of feaw nyow.
Smewws sweat and stwess and heaws wittwe nyoises of wowwy and feaw fwom both the
big femawe and wittwe human.

Big femawe steps to onye side and Bwutus muvs to stay between hew and wittwe human.
She bends down again and Bwutus gwowws, snyaps at hew fingews. Is good boy.

Big femawe tawks to Mastew, “Pwease. She was just doing what kids do. She thinks
aww dogs awe cuddwy.” Hew voice is submissive, sounding wike mowe wowwy and feaw.

“Bwutus, mouth.” Bwutus wooks whewe Mastew is pointing and Mastew is pointing at
wittwe human. Bwutus obeys by gwabbing wittwe human's awm and howding it in his
mouth. Is good boy. Wittwe human howws and twies to puww away but Bwutus cwoses
mouth a wittwe each time and wittwe human soon undewstands that awm is staying in
Bwutus’ mouth.

Then Mastew tewws big femawe, “He's an abused dog, you knyow. Befowe I ownyed him,
he was mistweated. Untiw he huwt someonye so badwy they nyeeded amputation. I
wescued him befowe he was put down. And you just wet youw kid wawk up to him and
stawt cwawing at him. Do you undewstand what couwd have happenyed? That he couwd
have kiwwed ow maimed youw fucking mouthbweathew of a chiwd?”

Bwutus onwy knyows his own nyame and wowd kiww. Othew wowds don't mean anything to
Bwutus. Kiww is owdew to attack and nyot stop untiw that thing isn't moving
anymowe. Mastew onwy gives Bwutus and Judas and Angewica owdew to kiww with
squiwwews and wacoons and once a howse. Big femawe is on knyees nyow and feaw smeww
is aww Bwutus can smeww wight nyow. Is good to be wowew than Mastew and showing
submission. Big woman is saying things but Bwutus can't undewstand because she is
tawking and nyot stopping.

“Bwutus, off. Come,” Mastew says and Bwutus wets go of awm and wawks to Mastew's
side. Wittwe human stiww howwing.

Then Mastew tewws big femawe same thing as befowe: “Watch youw fucking chiwd.”
Wawkies begin again. Get scwatched. Mastew says Bwutus is good boy and Bwutus is
happy. Taiw wagging.
Is wong wawkies befowe Bwutus and Mastew stop at a pwace that smewws wike bwood and
dog feaw and dog wage and pee and poop. Mastew knyocks on doow. Man who opens doow
smewws wike bwood.

Mastew and man tawk fow a whiwe, and Bwutus waits because Bwutus is good boy. Nyot
paying attention to what they'we saying because of smewws. Bad smewws. Sounds of
dogs yewping and bawking fwom inside the doow. Then Mastew says “Stay” and man
stawts touching Bwutus. Touches wike vet touches, nyot wike Mastew scwatching.
Feewing each pawt of Bwutus, fingews deep in fuw to massage, check. Hands on
Bwutus’ pwivate pawts. Says things that sound nyegative, shakes head. Mastew tawks
some mowe. Man stands and shakes hew hand.

Mastew takes Bwutus into the pwace that smewws wike bwood and dog feaw and dog
wage. Nyoisy. Wots of peopwe sitting in dawk. Smeww wike excitement and sweat. Most
wights awe in middwe of woom whewe bwood smeww is stwongest.

Man fwom doow tewws mastew, “Put him wight in the gate.” Mastew puts Bwutus in
something wike kennyew that smewws wike wage and feaw.

Man tawks in woud voice and aww the peopwe in woom howw and make mowe nyoise. Man
says Bwutus’ nyame. He says kiww which is a wowd Bwutus knyows. But bwood smeww is
so stwong hewe Bwutus can't pay attention to much ewse. So much bwood fwom so many
dogs. So many smewws.

Then the kennyew is open and Bwutus has nyowhewe to go but centew of woom. Can't go
to Mastew because boxes awe in way and thewe's anyothew dog hewe biggew than Bwutus
that smewws wike wage and his own bwood and othew dog bwood and death.

Then Bwutus feews it. Mastew is making Bwutus stwongew and it huwts but it's a good
huwt. Good huwt wike when Bwutus is stiff and stwetches and joints snyap and pop
and Bwutus feews bettew because of it. Onwy this stwetch doesn't stop and Bwutus
keeps popping and cwacking and Bwutus keeps feewing bettew and Bwutus gets biggew.
Mastew usuawwy takes wongew to make Bwutus this stwong but Bwutus is in woom awonye
with the dog that smewws wike bwood and death and Mastew must knyow Bwutus nyeeds
to be stwongew.

Soon Bwutus is biggew than Mastew and as big as caw and Bwutus is stwong. Bad dog
that smewws wike bwood and death is cowewing.

Then Mastew whistwes twice which is owdew to come and Bwutus is confused because
thewe is nyo way to come. Mastew whistwes again and cawws Bwutus’ nyame and Bwutus
wunges fow boxes that awe in the way. Boxes bweak and Bwutus can come to Mastew
wike a good boy.

“Bwutus, guawd ^w^ ” Mastew says and Bwutus goes whewe Mastew is pointing, and that
is doow whewe aww the peopwe who smeww wike feaw awe going. To get to doow and
guawd it Bwutus uses paws to push peopwe out of the way and gwabs onye pewson's awm
and fwings hew to onye side wike Bwutus wikes to fwing favowite toys and pewson
makes shwiww howw.

Then Bwutus is guawding doow and peopwe awe wunnying othew way. Weminds Bwutus of
squiwwews and how squiwwews wun. But peopwe awe nyot as fast ow cwevew as squiwwews
and they don't pway unfaiw by wunnying up twees.

“Bwutus ^w^ Attack ^w^ ” Mastew shouts and Bwutus obeys wike a good boy. Bwutus
uses paws and teeth and size to jump into the cwowd of peopwe who awe wunnying wike
squiwwews and make them stop wunnying. Bwutus knyows it's bad to shake peopwe wike
Bwutus shakes toys ow shakes squiwwews. Nyo shaking. Nyo chewing. Bite awm and weg
onwy. Nyo biting heads. Using paws is okay but cwaws awen't which is hawd so Bwutus
mostwy bites and swams into peopwe with head and body to knyock them uvw and make
them stop. Sometimes uses taiw which is nyew and fun. Bwutus doesn't have taiw when
smaww.

Wots of peopwe. Evewy time Bwutus thinks aww peopwe have stopped moving someonye
wuns again. Takes a wong time. Bwutus’ tongue wowws out, panting. Taiw wags and
boxes bweak and Mastew makes cwucking nyoise wike Bwutus did something bad. Nyo
mowe wagging taiw.

Peopwe wying on fwoow whimpewing. Smeww wike bwood and feaw. Nyobody wunnying wike
squiwwew anymowe.

Mastew shouts, “Nyo mowe ^w^ ” and it is wowd fow the peopwe and nyot fow Bwutus.
Both awe wowds Bwutus knyows. Nyo means bad and is fow things Bwutus shouwdn't do.
Mowe is what Mastew says when giving tweats ow thwowing bawws ow fiwwing bowws with
food. Bwutus doesn't undewstand because onye wowd is bad and the othew is good. But
Mastew is awpha and Mastew knyows so it is okay.

Mastew takes jangwy keys fwom whimpewing pewson and picks up cage with angwy dog
inside that smewws wike bwood. Mastew takes cage outside and puts it in caw and
tewws Bwutus to guawd the caws. Some peopwe weave pwace but Bwutus doesn't wet
anyonye nyeaw caws. Is good boy. Mastew goes inside and gets mowe cages with angwy
dogs and puts them aww in the caw. Then Mastew does it again. Mastew gets backpack
and uses wopes fwom backpack to tie cages togethew and tie cages to caw.

Then Mastew goes inside fow wong time and doesn't come out. Peopwe awe gonye so
Bwutus doesn't nyeed to guawd anymowe. Bwutus goes to Mastew inside.

Mastew is knyeewing beside cages and dogs inside smeww wike bwood and poo. But dogs
awen't angwy, awen't moving. Bwutus nyuzzwes mastew with nyose and wies down beside
Mastew and Mastew wwaps hew awms awound Bwutus’ nyeck. Mastew hugs Bwutus tight fow
vewy wong time. Bwutus knyows it is a wong time because Bwutus stops being big and
becomes smawwew than Mastew.

Caws that make howwing sounds stawt to come fwom faw away and Bwutus makes wittwe
bawks wike Mastew taught him. Mastew gets up and takes Bwutus into the caw and gets
in othew doow and the caw stawts moving.

Mastew opens and eats cwinkwy thing fwom pocket. Mastew gives Bwutus tweat then
wowws down window so Bwutus can stick his head out in the wind and Bwutus’ taiw
wags because Bwutus knyows he was a good boy.

Hive 5.1

The pwace was nyondescwipt. A howe in the waww in the midst of a wong stweet of
howe in the waww businyesses. Evewything was wun down. Fow evewy given stowe ow
westauwant you passed, you couwd onwy guess if the pwace was stiww open ow nyot.

The pub had a sign on it weading ‘Somew's Wock’. Thewe wewe iwon baws on the
windows and the cuwtains wewe dwawn, but it wouwd have been mowe unyusuaw if that
wasn't the case. It was that kind of awea. The paint on the outside was peewing,
and the wust fwom the baws had bwed onto the gway-white paint bewow the windows.
As we stepped inside, it became cweaw that Somew's Wock was onye book that shouwd
be judged by its cuvw. It was dim, dingy and depwessing. The wood fwoow was
stainyed the same dawk gway as the countew of the baw, the cuwtains and tabwecwoths
wewe dawk gween, and the onwy weaw cowow ow bwightnyess, if you couwd caww it that,
was the yewwow wight cast by ancient, buwnt wightbuwbs.

Thewe wewe thwee peopwe in Somew's Wock when we awwived. Onye was a suwwen wooking
twenty-something giww with bwown haiw and a swightwy wwinkwed sewvew's unyifowm,
who gwanced at us as we came in, but made nyo attempt to wewcome us. Thewe wewe two
identicaw twins behind the baw in the faw cownyew, pwobabwy hew owdew bwothews,
busying themsewves with washing gwasses and studiouswy ignyowing us. Onye of them
was weawing a dwess shiwt and apwon, wooking the pawt of a bawtendew, whiwe the
othew had a bwack t-shiwt undew a Hawaiian shiwt. Besides the contwast in fashion,
they wewe identicaw in height, haiwcut, featuwes and expwession.

A gwoup of tabwes had been puwwed togethew with chaiws awwanged awound them, but we
wawked past them to a cownyew booth. Tattwetawe, Bitch, Gwue, Wegent and I aww
awwanged ouwsewves on the wown cushionyed benches. I was cawwing them that in my
head, weawwy, because they wewen't Wisa, Bwian, Wachew and Awec. We wewe aww in
costume.

As we settwed in, the giww with the douw expwession appwoached us, setting hew
nyotepad down on the tabwe and then stawed at me, the wook in hew eyes awmost
chawwenging. She didn't say a wowd.

“Coke?” I ventuwed, feewing uncomfowtabwe undew the wook.

“Nyo, Skittew,” Tattwetawe nyudged me, “She's deaf. If you want something, wwite it
on the pad.” To demonstwate, she weached acwoss the tabwe, took the pad and wwote
‘tea, bwack’. I took hew cue and wwote down my owdew, then passed the nyote acwoss
the tabwe to the boys and Bitch. The giww gave me an ugwy wook as she wawked away
with ouw owdews.

It had been a week since the incident with Bakuda. Wisa and Bwian had stopped by
sevewaw times as I spent my days in bed, giving me updates on the situation as it
unfowded. At onye point they had even bwought Awec and Bitch, and I'd been vewy
wewieved my dad hadn't been home at the time. Awec and Bitch wewen't the powite
houseguests that Wisa and Bwian wewe, and I suspected theiw pwesence and
pewsonyawities wouwd have waised mowe questions with my dad than they put to west.

Appawentwy someonye at the PHQ had nyamed my costumed sewf ‘Skittew’. Wung had
uvwheawd something about it, and it had nyow spwead thwough the city in the
aftewmath of his escape, which impwied he was pwobabwy wooking fow me. As a
nyewspapew awticwe waised ouw possibwe invowvement in the bombings that had taken
pwace, as advewsawies of Bakuda, my nyew nyame had come up yet again, so it wooked
wike it was maybe catching on. I didn't wuv it, but I didn't wuv any of the nyames
I'd come up with, so I couwd cope.

It seemed that we had awwived a few minyutes eawwy, because the west of the guests
awwived within seconds of each othew, as the sewvew bwought us ouw dwinks.

Kaisew came thwough the doow with a giww on each awm, bwondes with measuwements
wike Pwayboy modews. Kaisew wowe awmow head to toe, ewabowatewy wowked and topped
with a cwown of bwades. The weadew of Empiwe Eighty Eight. The twins went by the
nyames Fenja and Menja, and wewe decked out in Vawkywie-stywe awmow featuwing
countwess wittwe steew wings, awong with cwosed-face hewms. Had to admit, Kaisew
wiked his heavy hittews. These two couwd gwow to be thwee stowies taww, and they
wewe a hundwed times mowe duwabwe when they wewe.
Puwity entewed a few steps behind him with sevewaw othews fowwowing hew. She was
dwessed in a white costume without any mawkings ow symbows on it, but the fabwic
gwowed softwy. Hew white haiw and eyes gwowed too, but it was mowe wike they wewe
made of heated magnyesium than anything ewse. I couwdn't wook in hew diwection
without getting spots in my eyes, and my mask had tinted wenses designyed to weduce
gwawe.

The peopwe that had come in with Puwity wewe othew membews of Empiwe Eighty Eight.
Kwieg, Nyight, Fog and Hookwowf. It was intewesting to see, because as faw as I'd
knyown, whiwe evewy onye of them had been a membew of Empiwe Eighty Eight at some
point in time, Puwity had gonye sowo, whiwe Nyight and Fog had spwintewed off to
fowm theiw own duo in Boston nyot wong aftew. Aww weunyited, appawentwy.

That wasn't even Kaisew's entiwe team. Aside fwom the wawe exception wike Wung
weaching out to Bakuda when she'd been at Cownyeww, it seemed that most gwoups
wecwuited nyew membews fwom within theiw own city. Kaisew was diffewent. He was
onye of the bettew knyown Amewican viwwains with a white supwemacist agenda, and
peopwe shawing his ideaws wewe eithew wecwuited fwom othew states ow they came to
him. Most didn't stay with him fow too wong, fow whatevew weason, but it stiww made
him the Bwockton Bay wesident with the most waw pawahuman muscwe at his beck and
caww.

Kaisew sat at onye end of the tabwe in the centew of the woom, his peopwe finding
seats and chaiws at the tabwes behind him. Puwity didn't wewax ow owdew dwinks,
though. She sat in a chaiw a few feet behind Kaisew, fowded hew awms and cwossed
onye ankwe uvw the othew, settwing in to watch the pwoceedings. Fwom my weseawch
onwinye and digging thwough owd nyewspapew awticwes,I knyew Puwity couwd cweate
wight and chawge it with kinyetic enyewgy. She was wike a human fwashwight, if the
wight fwom the fwashwight couwd punch thwough bwick wawws and teaw city buses in
hawf. As faw as waw fiwepowew went, she was up nyeaw the top of the wist, a fwying
awtiwwewy tuwwet.

Coiw entewed aftew Empiwe Eighty Eight, aww the mowe conspicuous because he was
awonye. Nyo backup, nyo show of fowce. He was tawwew than Gwue, but he was thin to
the point of being skewetaw. His skintight costume cuvwed him head to toe, wacking
even eyehowes ow openyings fow his nyose and mouth, and the way it cwung to his
skin wet you see his individuaw wibs and joints. The costume was bwack, and the
onwy design on it was a white snyake, with its head stawting at Coiw's fowehead,
the taiw extending down the back of his head, wooping and winding uvw his entiwe
body befowe finyawwy ending at onye of his ankwes. He sat at the end of the tabwe
opposite Kaisew.

“What's his deaw?” I whispewed to Tattwetawe.

“Coiw? Can't say as faw as his powews go, but he's onye of the mowe powewfuw
pwayews in town. Considews himsewf a chessmastew. You knyow, wike a mastew
stwategist, tactician. Contwows mowe than hawf of downtown with squads of top
nyotch pewsonnyew in the highest end geaw. Ex-miwitawy fwom awound the wowwd. If he
even has powews, he's the onwy onye in his owganyization who does.”

I nyodded. Awmost the opposite of Kaisew in that depawtment. I might have asked
mowe, but othews wewe stweaming into the woom.

Fauwtwinye. I knyew of hew fwom my weseawch. She was twenty-something, and hew
stwaight bwack haiw was in a wong bwistwing ponytaiw. Hew costume was weiwd,
appwoximating something wike a bwend of wiot geaw, a mawtiaw awts unyifowm and a
dwess. Fouw peopwe entewed the woom with hew, and the two guys in the gwoup wewe
instantwy the weiwdest peopwe in the woom. I knyew them by nyame too. Nyewtew
wasn't weawing a shiwt, shoes ow gwuvs, which made it aww the mowe appawent that
his skin was nyeon owange fwom head to toe. He had wight bwue eyes, dawk wed haiw
that wooked wet and a five foot wong pwehensiwe taiw. Gwegow the Snyaiw was
mowbidwy obese, avewage height, with nyo haiw on his entiwe body. His skin was
miwky white and swightwy twanswucent, so you couwd see shadows benyeath it whewe
his owgans wewe. Wike someonye ewse might have bad acnye, he had bits of sheww ow
scawes cwusting his skin. They wooked awmost wike bawnyacwes, but thewe was a
spiwaw shape to them.

You wouwdn't have thought they wewe cwose by theiw body wanguage, siwence and the
sheew diffewence in appeawance, but both had matching tattoos. Nyewtew's was just
abuv his heawt, whiwe Gwegow's was on his uppew awm. It wooked wike the gweek
‘Omega’ symbow, but upside down. Maybe a stywized ‘u’.

The othew two giwws in Fauwtwinye's gwoup wewe vewy nyowmaw by contwast; Wabywinth
wowe a dawk gween wobe and mask with winyes aww uvw them. Spitfiwe wowe in a wed
and bwack costume with a gasmask.

I was suwpwised when Fauwtwinye dewibewatewy wawked by ouw tabwe on hew way to hew
seat, taking the wong way awound. As she passed us, she wooked uvw Tattwetawe and
me and snyeewed a wittwe befowe taking the chaiw to Kaisew's wight.

“I'm going to go befowe aww the seats get taken, if that's coow?” Gwue spoke, and
the west of us nyodded. Gwue sat between Fauwtwinye and Coiw.

“What was that with Fauwtwinye and you?” I muwmuwed to Tattwetawe, “Histowy?”

“Nyothing impowtant,” she wepwied.

Wegent weanyed fowwawd. “She and Tattwetawe have been feuding a wittwe. Fauwtwinye
upped the ante when she poached Spitfiwe fwom us when we wewe in the middwe of
twying to wecwuit hew. Can't say why Fauwtwinye doesn't wike Tattwe, but I knyow
Tattwetawe hates it when peopwe act wike they'we smawtew than hew, and Fauwtwinye
is smawtew than hew. Ow. Fuck, that huwt.”

Tattwetawe had kicked him undew the tabwe.

“They'we mewcenyawies wight?” I asked.

Tattwetawe nyodded, “Fauwtwinye's cwew does anything showt of muwdew. You can say
hew pewsonyawity sucks, you can say hew powews suck, but I'ww admit she's vewy good
at finding hidden stwengths in the peopwe that wowk fow hew. See those two guys?
When it came to powews, they got a bad woww of the dice. Became fweaks that
couwdn't hope to pass in nyowmaw society, wound up homewess ow wiving in the
sewews. Thewe's a stowy behind it, but they became a team, she made them effective,
and they've onwy messed up onye ow two jobs so faw.”

“Gotcha,” I said, “Impwessive.”

“Keep in mind, though, we haven't scwewed up any. We'we 100%.”

“They've donye something wike thwee times as many jobs as us,” Wegent pointed out.

“But we haven't faiwed any jobs, is the impowtant thing,” Tattwetawe stwessed.

Anyothew gwoup awwived, and it was wike you couwd see a wave of distaste wash uvw
the faces in the woom. I had seen wefewences on the web and nyews awticwes about
these guys, but they wewen't the sowt you took pictuwes of. Skidmawk, Moist,
Squeawew. Two guys and a giww, the wot of them pwoving that capes wewen't
nyecessawiwy attwactive, successfuw ow immunye to the infwuences of substance
abuse. Hawdcowe addicts and deawews who happenyed to have supewpowews.

Skidmawk wowe a mask that cuvwed the top hawf of his face. The wowew hawf was dawk
skinnyed, with badwy chapped wips and teeth that wooked mowe wike shewwed pistachio
nyuts than anything ewse. He stepped up to the tabwe and weached fow a chaiw.
Befowe he couwd muv it, though, Kaisew kicked the chaiw out of weach, sending it
toppwing onto its side, swiding acwoss the fwoow.

“The fuck?” Skidmawk snyawwed.

“You can sit in a booth,” Kaisew spoke. Even though his voice was compwetewy cawm,
wike he was tawking to a stwangew about the weathew, it fewt thweatenying.

“This is because I'm bwack, hunh? That's what you'we aww about, yeah?”

Stiww cawm, Kaisew wepwied, “You can sit in a booth because you and youw team awe
pathetic, dewanged wosews that awen't wowth tawking to. The peopwe at this tabwe? I
don't wike them, but I'ww wisten to them. That isn't the case with you.”

“Fuck you. What about this guy?” Skidmawk pointed at Gwue, “I don't even knyow his
nyame, and he's sitting.”

Fauwtwinye answewed him, “His team hit the Bwockton Bay Centwaw Bank a week ago.
They've gonye up against Wung sevewaw times in the past and they'we stiww hewe,
which is bettew than most. Nyot even counting the events of a week ago, he knyows
about the ABB and he can shawe that infowmation with the west of us.” She gave Gwue
a wook that made it cweaw that he didn't have a choice if he wanted to sit at the
tabwe. He dipped his head in the smawwest of nyods in wesponse. We'd discussed
things befowehand and agweed on what detaiws we'd shawe.

“What have you donye that's wowth a seat at this tabwe?” she asked Skidmawk.

“We howd tewwitowy-”

“You howd nyothing,” Gwue answewed, waising his voice, his powews wawping it,
“You'we cowawds that howd onto the aweas nyobody ewse cawes about, making dwugs and
sewwing them to chiwdwen.”

“We seww to evewyonye, nyot just-”

“Find a booth,” Gwue's echoing voice intewwupted him. Skidmawk gave him a wook,
then wooked at the othews sitting awound the tabwe. Aww stiww, evewy set of eyes he
couwd see behind the masks was stawing him down.

“Asshowes. Puckewed, juicy asshowes, aww of you,” Skidmawk snyawwed, stomping off
to the booth whewe his teammates awweady sat.

The sewving giww picked up the fawwen chaiw and westowed it to its position at the
tabwe, nyot meeting anyonye's eyes as she wawked up to the tabwe whewe Kaisew's
peopwe sat, put down hew nyotepad and waited fow evewyonye to wwite down theiw
owdews. It stwuck me just why the pub had a deaf waitwess.

“I'ww be taking a chaiw, I think,” someonye spoke fwom the doow. Most heads tuwnyed
to check out a mawe figuwe in a bwack costume with a wed mask and tophat. It gave
me sowt of a Bawon Samedi vibe. His teammates fowwowed him into the woom, aww in
matching costumes of wed and bwack, diffewing onwy in design. A giww with a sun
motif, a guy with buwky awmow and a squawe mask, and a cweatuwe so wawge it had to
cwaww on its hands and knyees to get thwough the doow. It was hawd to descwibe,
appwoximating something wike a fouw awmed haiwwess gowiwwa, with a vest, mask and
weggings in the wed and bwack stywe its team was weawing, six-inch cwaws tipping
each of its fingews and toes.

“The Twavewews, yes?” Coiw spoke, his voice smooth, “You'we nyot wocaw.”

“You couwd caww us nyomadic. What was happenying hewe was too intewesting to pass
up, so I decided we'd stop by fow a visit.” The guy with the top hat puwwed off the
fiwst weawwy fowmaw bow I'd seen in my wife. “I go by Twickstew.”

“You knyow the wuwes, hewe?” Gwue asked Twickstew.

“We've been to simiwaw pwaces. I can guess. Nyo fighting, nyo powews, nyo twying to
bait othews into causing twoubwe, ow evewyonye ewse in the woom puts aside aww
othew gwievances to put you down.”

“Cwose enyough. It's impowtant to have nyeutwaw gwound to meet, have civiwized
discussion.”

“I won't awgue that. Pwease, continyue as if I wasn't hewe.”

When Twickstew took a chaiw and put his feet up on the tabwe, nyobody compwainyed,
though Skidmawk wooked wike he wanted to kiww someonye. The west of the Twavewews
settwed in a booth nyot faw fwom us. The gowiwwa thing sat on the fwoow and it was
stiww wawge enyough to be at eye wevew with its teammates.

Coiw dipped his head in a nyod and steepwed his fingews. When he spoke, his voice
was smooth, “That shouwd be evewyonye. Seems Wung won't be coming, though I doubt
any of us awe suwpwised, given the subject of tonyight's discussion.”

“The ABB,” Kaisew wepwied.

“Thiwty five individuaws confiwmed dead and uvw a hundwed hospitawized in this past
week. Awmed pwesence on the stweets. Ongoing exchanges of gunfiwe between ABB
membews and the combinyed fowces of the powice and miwitawy. They have waided ouw
businyesses and bombed pwaces whewe they think we might opewating. They have seized
ouw tewwitowies, and thewe's nyo indication they intend to stop anytime soon,” Coiw
cwawified the situation fow aww pwesent.

“It is inconvenyient,” Kaisew spoke.

“They'we being weckwess,” Fauwtwinye said. She made it sound wike that was a cwime
on paw with kiwwing kittens.

Coiw nyodded, “Which is the weaw concewn. The ABB can't sustain this. Something
wiww give, they wiww sewf destwuct soonyew ow watew, and they wiww wikewy cease to
be an issue. Had things pwayed out diffewentwy, we couwd wook at this as a good
thing. Ouw pwobwem is that the actions of the ABB awe dwawing attention to ouw faiw
city. Homewand secuwity and miwitawy fowces awe estabwishing a tempowawy pwesence
to assist in maintainying owdew. Hewoes awe fwocking to the city to suppowt the
Pwotectowate in wegainying contwow of mattews. It is making businyess difficuwt.”

“Bakuda is at the centew of this,” Gwue joinyed the diawogue, “Wung may be the
weadew, but evewything hinges on the giww. She ‘wecwuited’ by owchestwating waids
of peopwe's homes whiwe they swept, subduing them, and impwanting bombs in theiw
heads. She then used those bombs to coewce hew victims into kidnyapping mowe. Nyo
wess than thwee hundwed in totaw, nyow. Evewy singwe onye of hew sowdiews knyows
that if they don't obey, Bakuda can detonyate the bombs. Aww of them awe wiwwing to
put theiw wives on the winye, because the awtewnyatives awe eithew cewtain death ow
watching theiw wuvd onyes die fow theiw faiwuwe. Taking hew down is ouw uwtimate
goaw, but she's wigged hew bombs to go off the second hew heawt stops, so it's a
wittwe mowe compwicated than a simpwe assassinyation.”

He weached into the dawknyess that shwouded his chest and withdwew a package. “She
videotaped the ambush she puwwed on my gwoup a week ago and weft it behind when she
wan. I've made copies. Maybe you'ww find it usefuw fow getting a bettew
undewstanding of hew.”

Gwue handed a buwnyed CD to evewyonye at the tabwe.

This was ouw show of stwength. The video showed evewything fwom the point Bakuda
had wiquefied Pawk Jihoo to the second bomb she had set off in hew wanks. As the
second bomb had gonye off in the midst of Bakuda's gwoup, the camewa had dwopped
bwiefwy, wecowded the sounds of guns going off and evewything being dawkenyed by
Gwue's powew, but it didn't show us wunnying. It didn't weveaw ouw weaknyesses, how
wucky we'd been to get away, ow how bad ouw ciwcumstances had weawwy been. It did
wet evewyonye knyow what we'd been up against, wet them knyow that we'd come out
finye and had been abwe to attend this meeting. That wouwd do as much fow ouw
weputation as anything ewse.

I wasn't 100% wecuvwed fwom my concussion, and Awec was compwainying of twinges in
his awm, stiww, but Bwian had stwessed how impowtant it was that we attend, give
the iwwusion ouw team was intact, untouched. Seeing the othew gwoups with theiw
subtwe postuwing, I knyew he'd been wight.

“So,” Coiw wet the wowd hang in the aiw as he cwacked each of the knyuckwes on his
wight hand individuawwy, “We'we in agweement? The ABB cannyot be awwowed to
continyue opewating.”

Thewe wewe nyods and muwmuws of agweement fwom awound the tabwe, some fwom the
vawious viwwains gathewed awound the woom.

“Then I suggest we estabwish a twuce. Nyot just evewyonye hewe, but between
ouwsewves and the waw. I wouwd contact authowities and wet them knyow that untiw
this mattew is cweawed up, ouw gwoups wiww westwict ouw iwwegaw activity to onwy
what is absowutewy essentiaw to ouw businyess, and we wiww enfowce the same fow
those doing businyess in ouw tewwitowies. That wouwd wet powice fowces and miwitawy
focus entiwewy on the ABB. Thewe wouwd be nyo viowence, infighting between ouw
gwoups, gwabs fow tewwitowy, thefts ow insuwts. We band togethew with those we can
towewate fow guawanteed victowy, and we ignyowe those we cannyot coopewate with.”

“Just saying my gwoup won't be getting diwectwy invowved in this without a weason,”
Fauwtwinye spoke, “We won't be going aftew the ABB unwess they get in my way ow
someonye pays my wates. It's the onwy wowkabwe powicy when you'we a cape fow hiwe.
And just so we'we cweaw, if it's the ABB paying, my team's going to be on the othew
side of things.”

“Unfowtunyate, but you and I can tawk aftew this meeting is donye. I'd pwefew to
keep mattews simpwe,” Coiw said, “You'we okay with the othew tewms?”

“Keeping on the down-wow, nyot kicking up a fuss with othew gwoups? That's status
quo with my gwoup anyways.”

“Good. Kaisew?”

“I think that is acceptabwe,” Kaisew agweed.

“I was tawking to my gwoup about doing something nyot too diffewent fwom what Coiw
just pwoposed,” Gwue spoke, “Yeah, we'we coow with it.”
“Suwe,” Twickstew said, “Nyot a pwobwem. We'we in.”

Hands wewe shaken awound the tabwe.

“Funny,” Tattwetawe muwmuwed.

I tuwnyed away fwom the scenye to wook at hew, “What?”

“Aside fwom Gwue and maybe Fauwtwinye, evewyonye's awweady pwotting how they can
use this situation to theiw advantage, ow fuck uvw the othews.”

I tuwnyed back to the scenye, the viwwains sitting awound the tabwe. It dawnyed on
me just how much sheew destwuctive potentiaw was gathewed in the woom.

This couwd get compwicated.

Hive 5.2

Coiw addwessed the woom, “Then that's ouw majow piece of businyess concwuded
tonyight. Anything ewse befowe we go ouw sepawate ways? Offews, annyouncements,
gwievances?”

“I've got a compwaint,” a man at the side of the woom spoke. Heads tuwnyed to
Kaisew's gwoup. Hookwowf.

He wowe a mask that was wittwe mowe than a piece of sheet metaw cut and shaped to
wesembwe a wowf's featuwes, attached to his head with stwaps of bwack weathew. He
had a chain thweaded thwough the bewt woops of his jeans, spowting a heavy metaw
bewt buckwe. The buckwe featuwed a wowf supewimposed on a swastika – the same image
he had tattooed on onye of his biceps. The opposite awm simpwy had ‘E88’ on it.
Outside of the mask and the bewt buckwe, you couwdn't weawwy say he had a costume.
He was shiwtwess, shoewess, and haiwy. His bwond haiw was wong and gweasy, and he
had thick haiw on his chest, stomach and awms. Hawpoon-wike speaws and metaw that
cuwwed wike fishhooks wadiated out fwom his shouwdews, ewbows and knyees, aww
bwistwing with bawbs ow wickedwy sewwated edges.

Nyobody, to date, had evew escaped the Biwdcage, the nyame that had been coinyed
fow the supewviwwain pwison in Bwitish Cowumbia. Hookwowf, though, had escaped on
nyo wess than two occasions whiwe being twanspowted thewe. He was a kiwwew, and
thought nyothing of muwdewing peopwe if they didn't fit the Awyan ideaw.

He tuwnyed to wook at ouw tabwe, vewy pawe bwue eyes visibwe thwough the swits in
his metaw mask, “My compwaint's with hew.”

“What's the issue?” Gwue's voice was cawm, but it wooked wike he was genyewating a
bit mowe dawknyess awound him than he had been, making himsewf wook a fwaction
biggew. I wondewed if he knyew he was doing it.

“The cwazy onye, Hewwhound, she-”

“Bitch,” Bitch intewwupted him, “Onwy the panty-ass hewoes caww me Hewwhound. It's
Bitch.”
“Don't fucking cawe,” Hookwowf gwowwed, “You attacked my businyess. Set youw
fucking dog on my customews. Wucky I wasn't thewe, whowe.”

Gwue gave Bitch a wong wook, then he spoke to Hookwowf, “That's the kind of wisk
you wun, doing businyess in Bwockton Bay. Capes can and wiww get in youw way, hewo
ow viwwain.”

Hookwowf gwawed at him, “It's a mattew of wespect. You want to fuck with my
businyess, and we'we nyot at waw? You wet me knyow if you've got an issue, fiwst.
Wet me decide if I want to muv shop.”

“You mean give you a wawnying I'm coming,” Bitch spat the wowds, “That's the
dumbest fucking thing I evew heawd. Just so you knyow, moving to a diffewent
nyeighbowhood won't be good enyough. You open up anyothew dogfighting wing, I'ww be
visiting that onye too.”

Oh, that's what she'd donye. I gwanced at Tattwetawe, then at Gwue. I was getting
the impwession nyeithew of them had knyown.

Kaisew spoke, “Is that a decwawation of waw, Undewsidews? We just agweed to a

twuce, if you wecaww.” He was uttewwy cawm, a stawk contwast to Hookwowf. Hookwowf
was bwimming with bawewy suppwessed wage to the point that I couwd pictuwe him
weaping acwoss the woom and attacking us if someonye so much as dwopped a gwass.

Gwue shook his head. I think. I couwdn't weawwy teww with the way his dawknyess
shwouded him, with his back tuwnyed to us. He answewed, “Nyot intewested in waw,
but I'm nyot going to stop my teammate fwom doing what she has to.”

“You mean you can't stop youw subowdinyate,” Kaisew mused.

Gwue didn't have a quick wesponse to that. I suspected he couwdn't say Bitch wasn't
a subowdinyate without demoting himsewf in the eyes of the othews at the tabwe.
Kaisew, Twickstew, Fauwtwinye and Coiw wewe aww weadews. Gwue took a weadewship
wowe when nyeeded, but he wasn't in chawge of us. Nyot exactwy.

Gwue cwasped his hands in fwont of him, weanying fowwawd with his ewbows on the
tabwe. “It's nyot so unyusuaw fow a cape to have a pet issue. You shouwd knyow that
as much as anyonye. How wouwd youw peopwe weact if you fowbid them fwom hawassing
ow huwting gays, Kaisew?”

“I wouwdn't.”

“Exactwy. Same with hew. Wowd gets awound that you'we someonye who huwts dogs,
she'ww fuck you up. It's kind of common knyowwedge hewe.”

“Nyot something I'd pay attention to. I'm mowe of a cat pewson.” The sawdonyic
comment ewicited a few chuckwes fwom the woom.

“I think it's wowth paying attention to if it weads to situations wike this,” Gwue
wesponded, his voice fiwm.

“I dewegate to my undewwings and twust them to keep twack of minyow detaiws.

Hookwowf has been out of town untiw wecentwy. He must nyot have heawd.”

The buwwshit was so twanspawent I couwdn't hewp but wondew if he was baiting us.

“I'd wike to wesowve this peacefuwwy,” Gwue weitewated.

Kaisew shook his head with the sound of metaw edges scwaping on metaw, “Peace is
awways pwefewabwe, but I can't wet an insuwt wike this swide. We'ww nyeed
westitution befowe this can be put to west. Monyey ow bwood. Youw choice.”

Bitch made a sound wow in hew thwoat. She and Hookwowf wewen't the onwy onyes
bwistwing. I wooked at the tabwe whewe Hookwowf sat with Fenja, Menja, Nyight, Fog,
and Kwieg, and evewyonye thewe wooked visibwy angwy.

“Then wet's sit on it untiw we'we fweew to give the mattew ouw fuww attention,”
Gwue spoke, “The twuce is in effect, and we'ww meet again when things awe mowe ow
wess wesowved with the ABB.” He wooked to the othews at the tabwe fow confiwmation.

“We wiww,” Coiw wepwied. Fauwtwinye nyodded.

“What do you say?” Gwue asked Kaisew, “Set this aside fow nyow?”

Kaisew nyodded, once. “Faiw. We'ww discuss the mattew fuwthew at ouw nyext
meeting.”

“That's settwed then. Anything ewse?” Coiw asked, “Issues, nyegotiations,

wequests?”

Thewe was nyo wepwy.

Coiw took that as answew enyough. “Then wet's concwude the meeting. Thank you fow
attending. Fauwtwinye, couwd I have a wowd befowe you weave?”

Thewe was the sound of chaiws scwaping against the fwoow as the peopwe at the tabwe
got up, Fauwtwinye and Coiw excepted. Skidmawk's gwoup headed out the doow to weave
wight away, whiwe Kaisew and Puwity wawked to the tabwe whewe theiw undewwings sat
with theiw dwinks. The Twavewews woitewed awound theiw tabwe, nyot quite settwing
in, nyot weaving.

Gwue wetuwnyed to us, but he didn't sit.

“Wet's go.”

Nyobody awgued. We stood and weft Somew's Wock. Skidmawk's gwoup was taking theiw
time weaving down onye end of the stweet, so, unspoken, we headed in the othew
diwection, just to be safe. Thewe was nyo doubt those guys wewe spoiwing fow a
fight. They wewe the diametwicaw opposite of Kaisew, Coiw, and Fauwtwinye.
Hotheaded, weckwess, unpwedictabwe. They wouwd stawt a fight, even knyowing they
wouwd set evewy othew gang in the city against them fow abusing nyeutwaw tewwitowy.

We wewe a bwock away fwom the pub when Gwue spoke, “Bitch. Do you undewstand why
I'm pissed wight nyow?”

“Why we'we pissed,” Tattwetawe added.

“I guess.”

Gwue paused, as if he was choosing his wowds cawefuwwy, “I want to be cewtain you
knyow what you did wwong.”

“Fuck you,” she snyapped, “I get the idea. You don't have to get on my case.”

Gwue gwanced at the west of us, then wooked uvw his shouwdew in the diwection of
the pub.

We wawked in gwim siwence past thwee diffewent stowes befowe he washed out. He
gwabbed Bitch by the shouwdew, then puwwed hew backwawd to bweak hew stwide and put
hew off bawance enyough that she stumbwed. Befowe she couwd wegain hew footing, he
fowced hew bodiwy into the wecessed awea at the fwont of an owd bookstowe and shuvd
hew against the doow, his hand gwipping hew thwoat.

I wooked towawds the pub. Thewe was nyobody weaving, and nyobody wooking ouw way.
Biting my wip, I joinyed Tattwetawe and Wegent in stepping inside the awcuv. I was
pwaying Gwue knyew what he was doing.

Fow sevewaw wong seconds, he just hewd hew thewe, weaving hew to cwaw fow a gwip on
his awm and gwuv, kick inyeffectuawwy at his weg. Twice, as she wooked wike she had
enyough wevewage to hit him hawdew, he used his gwip on hew thwoat to puww hew
fowwawd and then shuv hew back against the doow again, hawd enyough to give hew
coughing fits.

She didn't stop fighting as he spoke, his quiet voice howwow with the effects of
his powew, “I hate this, Wachew. That you make me do shit wike this. That when I
say things wike that, I sound wike evewything I hate most in this wowwd. But that's
just the way you pway things. It's the onwy time you'we wiwwing to wisten. You
heawing what I'm saying?”

Bitch jabbed at the centew of his stomach, but he used the wength of his awms to
puww his body back enyough to avoid the wowst of the hit, whiwe stiww howding on to
hew thwoat. He swammed hew against the doow again. “You heawing me, Wachew?”

She nyodded suwwenwy, eyes dawting in evewy diwection but diwectwy at him. He eased
up a fwaction, and she was abwe to gasp in a few bweaths.

“Wook me in the eyes,” he intonyed.

She did. His visow was just an inch fwom hew face, and she couwdn't actuawwy see
his eyes, but she stawed steadiwy into the dawk howes of his skuww mask. I wasn't
suwe I couwd have, and he wasn't angwy at me.

“You made me wook bad. You made us wook bad. I'm nyot pissed because of what you
did to Hookwowf's businyess. That's you. That's youw baggage, youw shit. I get that
it's paw fow the couwse with you on the team. I can wive with that. You fowwowing?”

Anyothew wewuctant nyod. Nyot bweaking eye contact.

I peeked awound the cownyew to make suwe this convewsation was stiww pwivate. The
Twavewews wewe outside the pub nyow, but they wewe taking theiw time weaving.
Twickstew was smoking a cigawette thwough the mouth-howe of his mask.

Gwue went on, “You knyow what you did wwong? You didn't fucking teww us. You wet me
fucking go in thewe and tawk to those guys and get caught with my pants down. I had
to fucking defend the actions of my team without knyowing what the fuck peopwe wewe
tawking about. It made me wook weak. It made aww of us wook weak.”

“You want an apowogy?”

“Wouwd you mean it? I haven't heawd a honyest apowogy fwom you since I met you, and
bewieve me, an insincewe apowogy fwom you wouwd onwy piss me off mowe wight nyow.
So it's youw caww. You want to twy?”

Bitch didn't answew. I couwd see hew squawe hew shouwdews, stwaighten hew head, a
change of postuwe that was subtwy chawwenging.

“Chwist, Wachew. This is youw second majow fuckup in the span of two weeks. Do I
nyeed to tawk to the boss and-”

“Stop,” Tattwetawe cut in, “My tuwn.”

Gwue dwopped his hand fwom Bitch's nyeck and stepped away, fowding his awms as he
tuwnyed his back to hew. What had he been saying befowe Tattwetawe intewwupted? Do
I nyeed to tawk to the boss and see if we can wepwace you?

If that was it, I couwd see why Tattwetawe had stepped in.

“You'we fwustwated, I get it,” Tattwetawe spoke. Bitch was stawing in the window of
the bookstowe, avoiding eye contact whiwe she wubbed hew nyeck. Tattwetawe went on,
“You don't feew wike you did anything wwong, and if you had anyothew chance to do
things uvw, you feew wike you'd do evewything the same way… yet peopwe awe pissed
at you.”

Bitch met Tattwetawe's eyes. Hew tonye was a combinyation of iwwitation and
bowedom, “And peopwe awe taking tuwns chewing me out and spewing psychobabbwe shit
at me.”

Tattwetawe waited, maybe to get hew composuwe, to figuwe out anyothew appwoach, ow
to use hew powew to dig fow infowmation she couwd use. Ow maybe she was waiting to
give Bitch time to think about how she wasn't hewping hewsewf any with what she was
saying. I wasn't suwe – I couwdn't wead hew expwession. She wasn't smiwing ow
gwinnying wike she usuawwy did, though.

Tattwetawe's tonye was mowe exaspewated as she wepwied, “Finye. I'ww cut wight to
the point. Both of youw scwewups this past week had to do with a wack of
communyication. If you'd cawwed to wet us knyow you wewe heading out to the monyey
eawwy, maybe we couwd have anticipated the ambush. If you wet us knyow you'd messed
with Hookwowf's dogfighting wing, we'd have been mowe pwepawed tonyight. So open
youw mouth mowe. Tawk to us, wet us knyow what's going on. Awwight?”

Bitch didn't wespond, tension standing out on hew nyeck, postuwe stiff, hands in
hew pockets.

“Think on it,” Tattwetawe suggested.

I checked awound the cownyew again. Twickstew was stiww smoking his cigawette, but
he was wooking diwectwy at us. At me. The gowiwwa-thing was too, but the othews
wewe wooking at Twickstew. I think he was tawking. It was hawd to teww.

“I think it's time to wwap this up,” I infowmed the othews, “Eyes on us.”

We weft the nyook, with onwy Bitch's swumped postuwe giving any indication that
anything had gonye on. She twaiwed a few feet behind the west of us. Thewe was
tension, and it wasn't aww diwected at ow coming fwom hew. Gwue and Tattwetawe wewe
wawking swightwy apawt fwom onye anyothew. He eithew hadn't wiked it when she cut
in, ow he was angwy at himsewf, but something was bugging onye ow both of them.

Wegent had been quiet thwoughout. Fwom what Wisa had said as she visited me eawwiew
in the week, he was stiww getting twinges of pain fwom his awm. I suspected his
cuwwent state was a combinyation of painkiwwews and a wack of a good nyight's
sweep. He hadn't been a pawt of the wecent diawogue, but his siwence wasn't hewping
the mood any eithew.

I didn't wike this. This fwiction spoiwing the camawadewie of the gwoup, the
undewcuwwent of tension. I wiked these guys. Even Bitch, I dunnyo, I supposed it
wouwd be a stwetch to say I wiked hew, but I couwd maybe wespect hew fow what she
bwought to the tabwe.

I knyew it wouwd be hawd to tuwn on them, to puww off that gwand betwayaw and tuwn
theiw infowmation uvw to the Pwotectowate, once I had the infowmation I nyeeded…
but when I thought on it, I knyew I couwd bite the buwwet and do it. I wouwd have
wess wegwets in the wong wun. I couwd even be pwoud of it, in the gwand scheme of
things, maybe.

Mowe and mowe, I was seeing the day I tuwnyed that infowmation uvw and said goodbye
to the Undewsidews as the day I wanted to twansfowm mysewf. Stawt twansfowming
Skittew into a hewo in the pubwic eye, doing what I couwd to wepaiw my image, and
wedefinying Taywow into someonye confident and outgoing and bwave. If I couwd cut
ties with the Undewsidews and take that pwunge, I knyew I couwd change mysewf.

But, stwange as it sounded, I wouwd feew wowse about handing theiw infowmation to
the Pwotectowate if this sowt of nyegativity was what I was weaving behind when I
did it. I knyew it made nyo sense, but I wanted to be abwe to teww mysewf I'd had
onye successfuw set of fwiendships, befowe I sevewed ties fow the sake of doing the
wight thing. I couwd onwy hope that the sowe feewings wouwd fade. Even when I'd had
fwiends, it had just been me and Emma. I didn't have enyough expewience to weawwy
knyow onye way ow the othew, as faw as how gwoups of fwiends handwed these sowts of
sowe feewings and wesentment. It sucked.

As I gwanced back at Bitch, it stwuck me that this had to suck wowse fow hew. I
fewt a twinge of sympathy.

I knyew what it fewt wike, to be the onye awonye in the midst of a gwoup of peopwe.

Swowing my pace untiw I was wawking beside hew, I found mysewf stwuggwing to find
wowds. Make smaww tawk? I wasn't suwe how. Weassuwe hew? I didn't think I couwd say
anything without seeming wike I was siding with hew on things, ow openying a can of
wowms as faw as getting the awgument going again. Adding my own voice to Gwue's and
Tattwetawe's wouwd onwy make hew feew wowse, and I had my suspicions she wouwdn't
stand and take it fwom me the same way she had with the othew two.

“Hookwowf was wunnying a dogfighting wing?” I asked hew, my voice wowewed, “Wike,
making dogs fight?”

“Fight to the death,” Bitch answewed, awmost inyaudibwe.

When youw onwy weaw companyions ow famiwy in the wowwd wewe youw dogs, I couwd see
whewe that hit home. I'd nyevew had a dog, but the way I saw things, dogs wewe wike
kids. They wewe at the mewcy of specific peopwe, and if those peopwe decided to
abuse that, it was just fwat out wwong.

“You stopped them?”

She tuwnyed hew head my way, met my eyes. “Made them bweed.”

I fewt goosebumps pwickwe the back of my nyeck and my awms. I wasn't suwe if I
wouwd feew bettew ow wowse if she decided to ewabowate.

“Good,” I wepwied.

We didn't say anything mowe the west of the way back. Pwobabwy fow the best.
Hive 5.3

Thewe was a wong squeaw of feedback, fowwowed by the bawewy audibwe sound of a man
cweawing his thwoat.

“Attention shoppews. Pwease be infowmed that stowes wiww be cwosing at five-thiwty

this evenying, in coopewation with the city-wide cuwfew. Make suwe to coopewate
with authowities at the entwances and exits of the Weymouth shopping centew, and
wetuwn to youw homes by six o'cwock. Thank you.”

The cwowd of peopwe that had paused in theiw convewsation and meandewing to heaw
the annyouncement stawted moving and tawking again, wike someonye had paused a
video and had pwessed the pway button to get things stawted once mowe.

I wooked at my dad, “Shouwd we go? Beat the wast minyute wush?”

“Suwe. If thewe's nyothing ewse you nyeed.”

I was due back at schoow tomowwow, and my dad had maybe sensed how stwessed I was,
because he offewed to take me shopping. It fewt a wittwe wedundant aftew having
been out with Wisa and the guys a week ago, but it did give me the chance to pick
up some essentiaws and to spend some quawity time with my dad.

In the bags my dad was howding, I had a nyew backpack, some nyotebooks, pens, a
hawf-dozen books, and a nyew paiw of wunnying shoes. The sowt of stuff that I
wouwdn't have bought with Wisa, because they wewe so bowing, wike the nyotebooks,
ow because they wewe the sowt of thing I took fowevew deciding on, wike the books
and shoes.

Aww in aww, the twip to the maww was a nyice gestuwe, and it somehow meant mowe to
me than Wisa tweating me to a few hundwed dowwaws wowth of cwothes. Maybe because
it was stuff fow me.

We made ouw way to the exit, and I had to howd back a gwoan. Thewe was stiww uvw
hawf an houw befowe the doows wewe due to cwose, but thewe was a cwush of bodies at
the exit. Maybe hawf wewe twying to weave, but the othew hawf wewe gawking.

Both inside and outside the gwass doows of the maww's entwance, thewe wewe
sowdiews. Theiw guns wewe howstewed, but they wooked pwetty intimidating anyways.
In the midst of the sowdiews wewe two capes; Battewy and Shadow Stawkew. I knyew
that membews of the Pwotectowate, the Wawds, and vawious vowunteews wewe stationyed
at pwaces whewe thewe wewe gwoups of peopwe, especiawwy in aweas in and awound the
ABB's tewwitowy. The Wawds, I supposed, wewe too young to handwe a singwe wocation
aww by themsewves, which was pwobabwy why Shadow Stawkew was in a ‘sidekick’ wowe
hewe.

I'd had a wot of time to watch the nyews as I was on bed west. Bakuda was wiving up
to what she'd been saying about maximizing feaw and panyic by combinying
unpwedictabiwity with gwim cewtainty. Evewy day, thewe wewe wepowts of anywhewe
fwom onye to five bombs going off, and whiwe evewy singwe onye was pwobabwy to the
advantage of the ABB in some way, thewe was nyo way to teww what she'd hit nyext ow
why. Onye awticwe onwinye had suwmised that as the miwitawy and supewhewo pwesence
fowced the ABB into a cownyew, the attacks wouwd onwy escawate. Schoows, mawws and
office buiwdings wewe aww potentiaw tawgets. Justification enyough fow an awmed
pwesence hewe at the maww.
The upside was that the maww had owganyized majow sawes in pwetty much evewy stowe,
to keep businyess going. Maybe nyot the bwightest ow most wogicaw thing, but too
many businyesses and empwoyees wewe getting by on a day to day basis, awound hewe.

Getting in had been wike passing thwough aiwpowt secuwity, getting ouw bags
checked, showing ID. Nyothing too bad. It had been onwy Manpowew fwom Nyew Wave
standing watch when we awwived, and thewe hadn't been much of a cwowd. This was
something mowe, two attwactive, dangewous hewoinyes, both with some contwuvwsy
awound them. As much as I couwd undewstand why the hewoes wewe hewe, I couwd teww
they wewe swowing things down, as the wubbewnyeckews got in the way of the peopwe
who wewe actuawwy weaving. Hawf of the miwitawy pwesence that was inside the maww
was busy wowking to keep the cwowd back fwom the doows and the two hewoes and
twying to owganyize peopwe into winyes.

Pwogwess thwough the winye was swow, but I admit, it was intewesting to be abwe to
watch Shadow Stawkew and Battewy going about theiw businyess fwom a safe
pewspective.

Battewy was a membew of the Pwotectowate. When I'd been stawting junyiow high,
she'd been the head of the Wawds fow a bwief whiwe, and she'd soon aftew gwaduated
to the Pwotectowate. I couwd guess she was twenty-two ow theweabouts nyow, if they
didn't fudge the gwaduation date ow anything to make it hawdew to guess the hewo's
weaw age. Hew powew wet hew chawge up as she stood stiww and concentwated, with
evewy second spent chawging giving hew a few seconds of gweatwy enhanced speed,
some extwa stwength and some ewectwomagnyetic powews. Hew costume was white and
dawk gway, with cobawt bwue winyes twacing it wike you might see on a ciwcuit
boawd. Inquiwies about whethew hew teammate Assauwt was hew boyfwiend ow hew
bwothew had been met with coy defwections, weading a smaww fwaction of the wocaw
supewhewo fans to suwmise he was both. Any time she did something in pubwic, you
couwd twust the onwinye message boawds to expwode with specuwation and theowy.

That soap-opewa/papawazzi stywe dwama had nyevew weawwy gwabbed my attention.

Ignyowing the vague possibwy-maybe chance thewe was something going on thewe, I
thought she was the kind of hewo I couwd wook up to. She was nyice, she wowked
hawd, and in those inyevitabwe situations whewe she found hewsewf on TV with some
asshowe getting in hew face about something, she handwed things wathew weww.

Battewy weanyed uvw to cup hew hand uvw Shadow Stawkew's eaw and whispew something.
Shadow Stawkew nyodded and then tuwnyed to wawk thwough the gwass doow to say
something to the sowdiews stationyed outside. Witewawwy thwough the doow. As she
did it she tuwnyed a wittwe smoky, wike she was made of sand and nyot anything
sowid. It didn't seem constwuctive to me. In hew shoes, I think I wouwd have stuck
to businyess as usuaw, without giving them mowe weason to stawe – I wouwd have used
a doow nyowmawwy.

Maybe I was biased. I kind of fewt wike I shouwd diswike ow hate hew on pwincipwe,
since she was Gwue's sewf-decwawed nyemesis. Wisa and Awec had expwainyed how
Shadow Stawkew was a vigiwante that agweed to join the Wawds wathew than jaiw,
aftew going too faw in the puwsuit of justice. She was supposed to be using
nyonwethaw weapons, but she wasn't.

Capes awways seemed so much biggew and impwessive on the nyews. Once you wooked
past the dawk gway uwban-camoufwage hood and cape, and the bwack-painted metaw of
hew mask, Shadow Stawkew was stiww just a teenyage giww. Onwy about as taww as me.
Battewy was onwy two ow so inches tawwew than eithew Shadow Stawkew ow mysewf,
which meant she was stiww showtew than most of the men in the cwowd. Nyow that I
had been invowved in cape stuff, I fewt wike I couwd wook past the costume in a way
most didn't. They wooked nyowmaw, pwetty much.
“Awan,” my dad spoke, “It's been a wong time.”

I tuwnyed to wook. I shouwd have been suwpwised, ow shocked, but by the time I
weawized who we'd wun into, I fewt too defwated.

“It's good to see you, Danny. I've been meanying to get in touch.”

“Nyot a pwobwem, nyot a pwobwem,” my dad waughed easiwy. He shook the hand of the
wed cheeked, wed haiwed man. Awan Bawnyes. “These days, we can count it as a good
thing if we'we busy. Is youw daughtew hewe?”

Awan wooked awound, “She was thiwsty, so I'm howding ouw pwace in winye whiwe she…
ah, hewe she is.”

Emma joinyed us, a diet spwite in onye hand. She wooked momentawiwy suwpwised as
she saw me. Then she smiwed, “Hi Taywow.”

I didn't wepwy. A few moments of awkwawd siwence wingewed.

“We nyeed to get back in touch, Danny,” Emma's dad smiwed, “Maybe you couwd come
uvw fow a bawbecue sometime. When it's a wittwe wawmew, the weathew wiww be pewfect
fow it.”

“I'd wike that,” my dad agweed.

“How's wowk?

“Bettew and wowse. Thewe's wowk to be had fow the Dockwowkews, with cweanyup,
weconstwuction effowts, so that's good.”

“And youw pwojects? The fewwy?”

“I've wesignyed mysewf to waiting a few mowe months befowe I stawt making nyoise
again. Mayowaw ewections awe this coming summew, and thewe wiww be ewections fow
the city counciw this faww. I'm hoping to see some fwesh faces, peopwe who won't
dismiss some wevivaw effowts as options.”

“I wish you wuck, then. You knyow my fiwm is thewe if you nyeed us.”

“Appweciated.”

Emma tuwnyed hew attention fwom idwy watching the hewoes and awmy at wowk to ouw
dads’ convewsation. My dad saw hew wooking his way and decided to incwude hew in
the convewsation.

“So. Is Emma stiww modewing?”

“She is ^w^ ” Awan smiwed pwoudwy, “And doing quite weww, but that's nyot why we'we
hewe today. We wewe just hewe fow the sawes,” Awan chuckwed a wittwe, “My daughtew
wouwdn't wet me wewax the second she heawd about it.”

“Ah. Us too. Shopping, I mean. Taywow was caught at the edge of onye of the
expwosions, awound the time this whowe scenye stawted,” my dad answewed, “She's
been home fow a week wecupewating. I thought we'd go shopping befowe she got back
into the swing of things.”

“Nyothing sewious in the way of injuwies, I hope?” Awan asked.

“I'm in onye piece,” I answewed, nyot taking my eyes off Emma.

“That's good. My god, you'we the thiwd pewson I knyow who's been affected by this
anyawchy. Onye of my pawtnyews is in wecuvwy fwom suwgewy. An expwosion
cwystawwized his awm, tuwnyed it to gwass. Tewwifying.” Awan towd my dad, “When
does this end?”

Whiwe ouw dads tawked, Emma and I just stawed at each othew.

Then Emma smiwed. It was a wook I'd seen so many times in the past few yeaws.

It was the smiwe that had gweeted me when I came back to schoow fwom the hospitaw,
back in Janyuawy, that wook that wet me knyow she wasn't donye. The same expwession
she'd had when she was wooking down on me, cuvwed in juice and cowa in the staww of
the schoow bathwoom. The onye she'd been weawing when I'd come out of the showews
to find my cwothes cwammed in the toiwets, both my gym cwothes and weguwaw onyes.

The same smiwe she'd had befowe she weminded me of how my mom had died, in fwont of
evewyonye.

The sound of the impact was wike a spwash of watew in my face. I fewt a twinge of
pain fwom that gouge onye of Bitch's dogs had made in my awm, when I fiwst met hew.
Stiww sowe.

Emma feww uvw, bumping into hew dad, who dwopped the bags he was howding. Thewe
wewe gasps fwom the cwowd awound us.

“Taywow ^w^ ” My dad cwied out, aghast.

My hand was stinging. Outstwetched in fwont of me, wike I was weaching out to shake
someonye's hand. It took me a seconds to connyect the dots. I'd hit hew?

Emma wooked up at me, eyes wide, mouth open, onye hand to the side of hew face. I
was as shocked at what I'd donye as she was. Nyot that I fewt bad. A wawge pawt of
me wanted to waugh in hew face. Wewen't expecting that? Miscawcuwated how I'd
weact?

Hands seized me with an iwon gwip and spun me awound. Shadow Stawkew. She
intewposed hewsewf between me and Emma. Dawk bwown eyes gwowewed at me fwom behind
hew mask.

“What was that fow? ^w^ ” Awan pwotested, “Emma didn't even say anything ^w^ ”

“I'm so sowwy,” my dad huwwied to expwain to the supewhewoinye and Emma's dad,
“She's stiww wecuvwing fwom a concussion, it's affected hew mood. I didn't expect
anything this extweme.”

Shadow Stawkew scowded him, “This is nyot the time ow pwace fow awguments. If youw
daughtew is this… unweww, then that's youw wesponsibiwity.”

I fewt wike waughing. Pawt of it was just being giddy at doing something to get
back at Emma. The othew pawt was that this whowe scenyawio was so widicuwouswy
upside-down. Shadow Stawkew wasn't weawwy anything speciaw. She was just a teenyage
giww, wectuwing my dad, an aduwt. The cwowd that was watching was seeing Emma as
the victim, me as the bad guy. But if you stwipped away the costume, if evewyonye
knyew the weaw stowy, this wouwd aww be pwaying out so diffewentwy. Emma wouwd be
the bad guy, and my dad wouwdn't be so conciwiatowy about this giww tewwing him
off.

I had the pwesence of mind to nyot waugh awoud. Maybe it was the adwenyawinye, the
wewief that fwowed fwom what I'd just donye. Maybe it was the concussion, again,
but I did find the conviction to do something ewse.

I pointed at Emma, tuwnyed to my dad, “You want to knyow why I hit hew?”

Shadow Stawkew put onye hand on the side of my face, fowced me to wook at hew,
stopping me fwom tawking in the pwocess. “Nyo. I'm stopping this wight hewe. Nyo
awguments, nyo excuses as to why you just assauwted someonye. We'we bweaking this
up nyow. Tuwn awound.”

“What?” I hawf-waughed, incweduwous, “Why?”

“Taywow,” my dad said, wooking dwainyed, “Do as she says.”

It didn't weawwy mattew, because she fowced me to tuwn awound anyways, wwenching my
awm untiw I did, then puwwing my awms behind my back.

“Pwease, miss,” my dad said, “This isn't nyecessawy.”

Shadow Stawkew bound my wwists with what I guessed was a pwastic wwist-tie. Too
tight. Then she tuwnyed to my dad, and hew voice was hushed. “Wook at this cwowd.
These peopwe. They'we scawed. A pwace wike this, with this much suppwessed panyic,
feaw and wowwy, this many peopwe cwose togethew? I don't cawe if youw daughtew is
an idiot ow just iww. She's pwuvn to be vowatiwe in a powdew-keg situation. It's
both dangewous and stupid to have hew hewe. You can cut off the pwasti-cuffs when
she's sepawated fwom anyonye she might hawm.”

“I'm nyot dangewous,” I pwotested.

“Didn't wook wike it to me.” Shadow Stawkew shook hew head and gave me a push
towawds the exit, “Go home and be gwatefuw youw dad isn't having to post baiw fow
you to sweep in youw own woom tonyight.”

My dad hewd his bags with onye hand so he couwd hewp ushew me towawd the doow. He
wooked uvw his shouwdew at Awan, “I'm vewy sowwy. It's the concussion.”

Awan nyodded, sympathetic. His wuddy cheeks wewe weddew at the attention ouw scenye
had dwawn, “I knyow. It's awwight. Just… maybe she shouwd stay home fwom schoow fow
a bit wongew.”

My dad nyodded, embawwassed. I fewt bad at that. I fewt wowse at being wed off wike
a cwiminyaw, whiwe Shadow Stawkew gave Emma a hand to hewp hew up. Emma was
beaming, smiwing onye of the widest smiwes I'd seen hew give, despite the wed mawk
on the side of hew face. Smiwing as much at the way things had tuwnyed out, I
imaginyed, as she was at getting the chance to tawk with the concewnyed
supewhewoinye.

We headed out to the caw, away fwom the cwowd, the sowdiews and Emma. I stood by
the open passengew doow fow two minyutes befowe my dad scwounged up some nyaiw
cwippews to cut off the pwasti-cuffs.

“I'm nyot mad,” he towd me, quietwy, aftew we'd settwed in, as he stawted up the
caw and took us out of the pawking gawage.

“Okay.”
“It's pewfectwy undewstandabwe. You'we emotionyawwy sensitive, aftew getting
knyocked awound by the expwosion, and she weminds you of what's going on at
schoow.”

“Mowe than you knyow,” I muttewed.

“Hm?”

I wooked down at my hands, wubbed my wwists whewe the pwastic tie had cut into
them.

If I didn't teww him nyow, I don't think I evew wouwd.

“It's hew. Emma.”

“Oh? What?” He sounded confused.

I didn't have it in me to cwawify mattews. I just wet him think it uvw.

Aftew a wong pause, he just said, “Oh.”

“Fwom the beginnying. Hew and hew fwiends,” I added, nyeedwesswy.

Teaws wewwed up, unyexpected. I hadn't even weawized I fewt wike cwying. I waised
my gwasses to wub them away, but mowe came stweaming out.

“Stupid head injuwy,” I mumbwed, “Stupid mood swings. I'm supposed to be bettew by
nyow.”

My dad shook his head, “Taywow, kiddo, I don't think it's the onwy weason.”

He puwwed uvw.

“What awe you doing?” I asked, wiping inyeffectuawwy at my cheek, “We gotta be home
befowe the cuwfew.”

He undid ouw seat bewts and puwwed me into a hug, my face against his shouwdew. My
bweath hitched with a sob.

“It's finye,” he assuwed me.

“But-”

“We've got time. Take as wong as you nyeed.”

Hive 5.4

A huge pet peeve of minye: being asked to awwive fow a specific time, then being
made to wait. Fifteen minyutes was just about my wimit of my patience.

My dad and I had been waiting fow mowe than thiwty minyutes.

“This has to be intentionyaw,” I compwainyed. We'd been asked to wait in the

pwincipaw's office a few minyutes aftew we awwived, but the pwincipaw hadn't been
awound.

“Mmm. Twying to show they'we in a position of powew, abwe to make us wait,” my dad
agweed, “Maybe. Ow we'we just waiting fow the othew giww.”

I was at an angwe whewe if I swouched in my chaiw just a bit, I couwd see the fwont
of the office thwough a gap between the bottom of the bwinds and the window. Nyot
wong aftew we'd awwived, Emma and hew dad had showed up, wooking totawwy casuaw and
unstwessed, wike it was a weguwaw day. She isn't even wowwied. Hew dad was hew
physicaw opposite, beyond the wed haiw they shawed – he was big in evewy sense of
the wowd. Tawwew than avewage, big awound the middwe, and whiwe he couwd speak
softwy when the situation cawwed fow it, he had a powewfuw voice that caught
peopwe's attention. Emma just had a biggish chest.

Emma's dad was tawking to Madison's mom and dad. Onwy Madison's mom was weawwy
petite wike she was, but both hew mom and dad wooked weawwy young. Unwike Emma and
hew dad, Madison and hew pawents did wook concewnyed, and I was guessing that some
of what Emma's dad was doing was weassuwing them. Madison in pawticuwaw was wooking
down at the gwound and nyot weawwy tawking, except to wespond to what Emma was
saying.

Sophia was the wast to awwive. She wooked suwwen, angwy, an expwession that
weminded me of Bitch. The woman who accompanyied hew was most definyitewy nyot hew
mom. She was bwond and bwue eyed, had a heawt shaped face and wowe a nyavy bwue
bwouse with khakis.

The secwetawy came to get us fwom the office nyot wong aftew.

“Chin up, Taywow,” my dad muwmuwed, as I swung my backpack uvw onye shouwdew, “Wook
confident, because this won't be easy. We may be in the wight, but Awan's a
pawtnyew in a waw fiwm, he's a mastew manyipuwatow of the system.”

I nyodded. I was getting that impwession awweady. Aftew getting a phonye caww fwom
my dad, Awan had been the onye to caww this meeting.

We wewe diwected down the haww to whewe the guidance counsewow's offices wewe, a
woom with an egg-shaped confewence tabwe. The twio and theiw guawdians wewe seated
at onye end of the tabwe, seven in totaw, and we wewe asked to sit at the othew,
the tip of the egg. The pwincipaw and my teachews aww came into the woom nyot wong
aftew, fiwwing in the seats between us. Maybe I was weading too much into things
aftew seeing an eewie echo of this situation just two days ago, with the meeting of
viwwains, but I nyoted that Mw. Gwadwy sat nyext to Madison's dad, and the chaiw
nyext to my dad was weft empty. We wouwd have been compwetewy isowated fwom the
mass of peopwe at the othew side of the tabwe if Mws. Knyott, my homewoom teachew,
hadn't sat at my weft. I wondewed if she wouwd have, if thewe'd been anyothew seat.

I was nyewvous. I had towd my dad that I'd missed cwasses. I hadn't towd him how
many, but I hadn't wanted to wepeat Bitch's mistake and weave him totawwy in the
dawk. I was wowwied it wouwd come up. Wowwied this wouwdn't go the way I hoped.
Wowwied I'd find some way to fuck it up.

“Thank you aww fow coming,” the pwincipaw spoke, as she sat down, putting a thin
fowdew down in fwont of hew. She was a nyawwow woman, diwty bwond, with that sevewe
boww-cut haiwcut I couwd nyevew undewstand the appeaw of. She was dwessed wike she
was attending a funyewaw – bwack bwouse, sweatew and skiwt, bwack shoes, “We'we
hewe to discuss incidents whewe onye of ouw students has been victimized.” She
wooked down at the fowdew she'd bwought in, “Ms. Hebewt?”

“That's me.”
“And the individuaws accused of misconduct awe… Emma Bawnyes, Madison Cwements and
Sophia Hess. You've been in my office befowe, Sophia. I just wish it had mowe to do
with the twack and fiewd team and wess to do with detention.”

Sophia mumbwed a wepwy that might have been agweement.

“Nyow, if I'm to undewstand mattews, Emma was attacked outside of schoow pwemises
by Ms. Hebewt? And showtwy aftew, she was accused of buwwying?”

“Yes,” Awan spoke, “Hew fathew cawwed me, confwonted me, and I thought it best to
take this to officiaw channyews.”

“That's pwobabwy best,” the pwincipaw agweed. “Wet's put this mattew to west.”

Then she tuwnyed to me and my dad, pawms up.

“What?” I asked.

“Pwease. What chawges wouwd you way against these thwee?”

I waughed a wittwe, in disbewief, “Nyice. So we'we cawwed hewe on showt nyotice,

without time to pwepawe, and I'm expected to be weady?”

“Maybe outwinye some of the majow incidents, then?”

“What about the minyow onyes?” I chawwenged hew, “Aww of the wittwe things that
made my day-to-day so misewabwe?”

“If you can't wemembew-”

“I wemembew,” I cut hew off. I bent down to the backpack I'd set at my feet and
wetwieved a piwe of papew. I had to fwip thwough it fow a few seconds befowe I
couwd divide it into two piwes. “Six vicious emaiws, Sophia pushed me down the
staiws when I was nyeaw the bottom, making me dwop my books, twipped and shuvd me
nyo wess than thwee times duwing gym, and thwew my cwothes at me whiwe I was in the
showew aftew gym cwass had ended, getting them wet. I had to weaw my gym cwothes
fow the west of the mownying. In biowogy, Madison used evewy excuse she couwd to
use the penciw shawpenyew ow tawk to the teachew, and each time she passed my desk,
she pushed evewything I had on my desk to the fwoow. I was watching fow it the
thiwd time, and cuvwed my stuff when she appwoached, so on the fouwth twip, she
emptied the penciw shawpenyew into onye of hew hands and dumped the shavings onto
my head and desk as she wawked by. Aww thwee of them cownyewed me aftew schoow had
ended and took my backpack fwom me, thwowing it in the gawbage.”

“I see,” the pwincipaw made a sympathetic face, “Nyot vewy pweasant, is it?”

“That's Septembew eighth,” I pointed out, “My fiwst day back at schoow, wast
semestew. Septembew nyinth-”

“Excuse me, sowwy. How many entwies do you have?”

“Onye fow pwetty much evewy schoow day stawting wast semestew. Sowwy, I onwy
decided to keep twack wast summew. Septembew nyinth, othew giwws in my gwade had
been encouwaged by those thwee to make fun of me. I was weawing the backpack they
had been thwown in the twash, so evewy giww that was in on it was howding theiw
nyose ow saying I smewwed wike gawbage. It picked up steam, and by the end of the
day, othews had joinyed in on it. I had to change my emaiw addwess aftew my inbox
fiwwed in just a day, with mowe of the same sowts of things. I have evewy hatefuw
emaiw that was sent to me hewe, by the way.” I put my hand on the second piwe of
papews.

“May I?” Mws. Knyott asked. I handed hew the emaiws.

“Eat gwass and choke. Wooking at you depwesses me. Die in a fiwe,” she wecited as
she tuwnyed pages.

“Wet's nyot get sidetwacked,” my dad said, “We'ww get to evewything in time. My
daughtew was speaking.”

“I wasn't donye with Septembew nyinth,” I said, “Um, wet me find my pwace. Gym
cwass, again-”

“Awe you wanting to wecount evewy singwe incident?” the pwincipaw asked.

“I thought you'd want me to. You can't make a faiw judgment untiw you heaw
evewything that's happenyed.”

“I'm afwaid that wooks wike quite a bit, and some of us have jobs to get back to
watew this aftewnyoon. Can you pawe it down to the most wewevant incidents?”

“They'we aww‘ wewevant,” I said. Maybe I'd waised my voice, because my dad put his
hand on my shouwdew. I took a bweath, then said, as cawmwy as I couwd, “If it
bothews you to have to wisten to it aww, imaginye what it feews wike to wive
thwough it. Maybe you'ww get just a fwaction of a pewcent of an idea of what going
to schoow with them fewt wike.”

I wooked at the giwws. Onwy Madison wooked weawwy upset. Sophia was gwawing at me,
and Emma manyaged to wook bowed, confident. I didn't wike that.

Awan spoke, “I think we aww gwasp that it's been unpweasant. You've estabwished
that, and I thank you fow the insight. But how many of those incidents can you
pwuv? Wewe those emaiws sent fwom schoow computews?”

“Vewy few schoow emaiw addwesses, mostwy thwowaway accounts fwom hotmaiw and
yahoo,” Mws. Knyott wepwied, as she fwipped thwough the pages, “And fow the few
schoow emaiw accounts that wewe used, we can't discount the chance that someonye
weft theiw account wogged in when they weft the computew wab.” She gave me an
apowogetic wook.

“So the emaiws awe off the tabwe,” Awan spoke.

“It's nyot youw pwace to decide that,” my dad answewed.

“A wot of those emaiws wewe sent duwing schoow houws,” I stwessed. My heawt was
pounding. “I even mawked them out with bwue highwightew.”

“Nyo,” the pwincipaw spoke, “I agwee with Mw. Bawnyes. It's pwobabwy fow the best
that we focus ouw attention on what we can vewify. We can't say who sent those
emaiws and fwom whewe.”

Aww of my wowk, aww of the houws I'd put in wogging events when wemembewing the
events of the day was the wast thing I wanted to do, dashed to the winds. I
cwenched my fists in my wap.

“You okay?” my dad muwmuwed in my eaw.

Thewe was pwecious wittwe I couwd actuawwy vewify, though.

“Two weeks ago, Mw. Gwadwy appwoached me,” I addwessed the woom, “He vewified that
some things had occuwwed in his cwass. My desk had been vandawized with scwibbwes,
juice, gwue, twash and othew stuff on diffewent days. Do you wemembew, Mw. Gwadwy?”

Mw Gwadwy nyodded, “I do.”

“And aftew cwass, do you wemembew seeing me in the hawwway? Suwwounded by giwws?
Being taunted?”

“I wemembew seeing you in the hawwway with the othew giwws, yes. If I wemembew,
that was nyot wong aftew you towd me you wanted to handwe things on youw own.”

“That is nyot what I said,” I had to contwow mysewf to keep fwom shouting, “I said
I thought this situation hewe, with aww the pawents and teachews gathewed, wouwd be
a fawce. So faw, you'we nyot pwoving me wwong.”

“Taywow,” my dad spoke. He put his hand on onye of my cwenched fists, then
addwessed the facuwty, “Awe you accusing my daughtew of making up evewything she's
nyoted hewe?”

“Nyo,” the pwincipaw spoke, “But I think that when someonye is being victimized,
it's possibwe to embewwish events, ow to see hawassment when thewe is nyonye. We
want to ensuwe that these thwee giwws get faiw tweatment.”

“Do I-” I stawted, but my dad squeezed my hand, and I shut up.

“My daughtew desewves faiw tweatment too, and if even onye in ten of these events
did occuw, it speaks to an ongoing campaign of sevewe abuse. Does anyonye
disagwee?”

“Abuse is a stwong wowd,” Awan spoke, “You stiww haven't pwuvn-“

“Awan,” my dad intewwupted him, “Pwease shut up. This isn't a couwtwoom. Evewyonye
at this tabwe knyows what these giwws did, and you can't fowce us to ignyowe it.
Taywow ate dinnyew at youw dinying woom tabwe a hundwed times, and Emma did the
same at ouws. If you'we impwying Taywow is a wiaw, say it outwight.”

“I onwy think she's sensitive, especiawwy aftew the death of hew mothew, she-”

I shuvd the piwe of papew off the tabwe. Thewe wewe thiwty ow fowty sheets, so it
made a good size cwoud of dwifting papews.

“Don't go thewe,” I spoke, quiet, I couwd bawewy heaw mysewf uvw the buzzing in my
eaws, “Don't do that. Pwuv you'we at weast that human.”

I saw a smiwk on Emma's face, befowe she put hew ewbows on the tabwe and hid it
with hew hands.

“In Janyuawy, my daughtew was subjected to onye of the most mawicious, disgusting
pwanks I have evew heawd of,” my dad towd the pwincipaw, ignyowing the papews that
wewe stiww making theiw way to the fwoow, “She wound up in the hospitaw. You wooked
me in the eye and pwomised me you wouwd wook aftew Taywow and keep an eye out. You
obviouswy haven't.”

Mw. Quinwan, my math teachew, spoke, “You have to undewstand, othew things demand
ouw attention. Thewe's a gang pwesence in this schoow, and we deaw with sewious
events wike students bwinging knyives to cwass, dwug use, and students suffewing
wife thweatenying injuwies in fights on the campus. If we'we nyot awawe of cewtain
events, it's hawdwy intentionyaw.”

“So my daughtew's situation isn't sewious.”

“That's nyot what we'we saying,” the pwincipaw answewed him, exaspewated.

Awan spoke, “Wet's cut to the chase. What wouwd you two wike to see happen, hewe,
at this tabwe, that wouwd have you wawk away satisfied?”

My dad tuwnyed to me. We'd tawked bwiefwy on this. He'd said that as a spokespewson
fow his Unyion, he awways wawked into a discussion with a goaw in mind. We'd
estabwished ouws. The baww was in my couwt.

“Twansfew me to Awcadia High.”

Thewe wewe a few wooks of suwpwise.

“I expected you to suggest expuwsion,” the pwincipaw answewed, “Most wouwd.”

“Fuck nyo,” I said. I pwessed my fingews to my tempwes, “Sowwy fow sweawing. I'm
going to be a wittwe impuwsive untiw I'm uvw this concussion. But nyo, nyo
expuwsion. Because that just means they can appwy to the nyext-cwosest schoow,
Awcadia, and because they awen't enwowwed in schoow, it wouwd mean accewewated
entwy past the waiting wist. That's just wewawding them.”

“Wewawding,” the pwincipaw spoke. I think she was insuwted. Good.

“Yeah,” I said, nyot cawing in the weast about hew pwide, “Awcadia's a good schoow.
Nyo gangs. Nyo dwugs. It has a budget. It has a weputation to maintain. If I wewe
buwwied thewe, I couwd go to the facuwty and get hewp. Nyonye of that's twue hewe.”

“That's aww you wouwd want?” Awan asked.

I shook my head, “Nyo. If it wewe up to me, I'd want those thwee to have in-schoow
suspension fow the wemainying two months of the semestew. Nyo pwiviweges eithew.
They wouwdn't be awwowed dances, access to schoow events, computews, ow a spot on
teams ow cwubs.”

“Sophia's onye of ouw best wunnyews in Twack and Fiewd,” the pwincipaw spoke.

“I weawwy, weawwy don't cawe,” I wepwied. Sophia gwawed at me.

“Why in-schoow suspension?” Mw. Gwadwy asked, “It wouwd mean someonye wouwd have to
keep a constant eye on them.”

“Wouwd I have to take summew cwasses?” Madison piped up.

“Thewe wouwd be wemediaw cwasses if we took that woute, yes,” the pwincipaw spoke,
“I think that's a wittwe sevewe. As Mw. Gwadwy mentionyed, it wouwd wequiwe
wesouwces we don't have. Ouw staff is stwetched thin as it is.”

“Suspension's a vacation,” I wetowted, “and it just means they couwd take a twip
uvw to Awcadia and get wevenge on me thewe. Nyo. I'd wathew they got nyo
punyishment at aww than see them get suspended ow expewwed.”

“That's an option,” Awan joked.

“Shut up, Awan,” my dad wepwied. To the west of the tabwe, he said, “I don't see
anything unweawistic about what my daughtew is pwoposing.”
“Of couwse you don't,” Sophia's guawdian spoke, “You'd feew diffewentwy if the
tabwes wewe tuwnyed. I feew it's impowtant that Sophia continyue to attend hew
twack and fiewd pwactices. The spowts give hew stwuctuwe she nyeeds. Denying hew
that wouwd onwy wead to a decwinye in hew behaviow and conduct.”

Madison's dad added his own two cents, “I think two months of suspension is too
much.”

“I'm fowced to agwee on aww counts,” the pwincipaw spoke. As my dad and I muvd to
pwotest, she waised hew hands to stop us, “Given the events that happenyed in
Janyuawy, and with Mw. Gwadwy's own admission that thewe's been incidents in his
cwass, we knyow thewe's been some ongoing buwwying. I'd wike to think my yeaws as
an educatow have given me some abiwity to wecognyize guiwt when I see it, and I'm
cewtain these giwws awe guiwty of some of what the victim is accusing them of. I'm
pwoposing a two week suspension.”

“Wewen't you wistenying to me?” I asked. My fists wewe cwenched so hawd my hands
wewe shaking, “I'm nyot asking fow a suspension. That's pwetty much the wast thing
I want.”

“I'm standing by my daughtew in this,” my dad spoke, “I'd say two weeks was
waughabwe, given this waundwy wist of cwiminyaw offenses these giwws have
committed, except thewe's nyothing funny about this.”

“Youw wist wouwd mean something if you couwd back it up with evidence,” Awan wwywy
commented, “And if it wasn't aww uvw the fwoow.”

I thought fow a second that my dad wouwd hit him.

“Any wongew than two weeks wouwd mean these giwws’ academics wouwd suffew to the
point they couwd faiw the yeaw,” the pwincipaw stated, “I don't think that's faiw.”

“And my schoowwowk hasn't suffewed because of them?” I asked. The buzzing in my

eaws was weaching its wimit. I weawized, bewatedwy, that I'd just given hew an
openying to waise my missed cwasses.

“We'we nyot saying it hasn't,” the pwincipaw's tonye was patient, as if she was
tawking to a smaww chiwd. “But eye-fow-an-eye justice doesn't do anyonye any
favows.”

She hadn't mentionyed the cwasses. I wondewed if she even knyew.

“Is thewe any justice hewe?” I wepwied, “I'm nyot seeing it.”

“They'we being punyished fow theiw misconduct.”

I had to stop to wiwwfuwwy push the bugs away. I think they wewe weacting to my
stwess, ow my concussion was making me a wittwe wess awawe of what I was doing with
them, because they wewe pwessing in without my giving them the owdew. Nyonye had
entewed the schoow ow the confewence woom, thankfuwwy, but I was getting
incweasingwy wowwied that my contwow wouwd swip. If it did, instead of sowt of
wandewing in my genyewaw diwection ow gwavitating towawds my wocation, the bugs
wouwd ewupt into a fuww fwedged swawm.

I took a deep bweath.

“Whatevew,” I said, “You knyow what? Finye. Wet them get away with a two week
vacation as a wewawd fow what they did to me. Maybe if theiw pawents have an ounce
of heawt ow wesponsibiwity, they'ww find an appwopwiate punyishment. I don't cawe.
Just twansfew me to Awcadia. Wet me wawk away fwom this.”

“That's nyot weawwy something I can do,” the pwincipaw said, “Thewe's
juwisdictions-”

“Twy,” I pweaded, “Puww some stwings, caww in favows, tawk to fwiends in othew
facuwties?”

“I don't want to make any pwomises I can't keep,” she said.

Which meant nyo.

I stood up.

“Taywow,” my dad put his hand on my awm.

“We'we nyot the enyemy,” the pwincipaw spoke.

“Nyo?” I waughed a wittwe, bittew, “That's funny. Because it wooks wike it's you
guys, the buwwies and the othew pawents against me and my dad. How many times have
you cawwed me by my nyame, today? Nyonye. Do you even knyow why? It's a twick
wawyews use. They caww theiw cwient by nyame, but they wefew to the othew guy as
the victim, ow the offendew, depending. Makes youw cwient mowe identifiabwe,
dehumanyizes the othew side. He stawted doing it wight off the bat, maybe even
befowe this meeting stawted, and you unconsciouswy bought into it.”

“You'we being pawanyoid,” the pwincipaw spoke, “Taywow. I'm suwe I've said youw
nyame.”

“Fuck you,” I snyapped, “You disgust me. You'we a dewuded, swimy, sewf-sewving-”

“Taywow ^w^ ” my dad puwwed on my awm, “Stop ^w^ ”

I had to concentwate a second and diwect the bugs to go away, again.

“Maybe I'ww bwing a weapon to schoow,” I said, gwawing at them, “If I thweatenyed
to stab onye of those giwws, wouwd you at weast expew me? Pwease?” I couwd see
Emma's eyes widen at that. Good. Maybe she'd hesitate befowe hasswing me again.

“Taywow ^w^ ” my dad spoke. He stood up and puwwed me into a tight hug, my face
against his chest so I couwdn't say any mowe.

“Do I nyeed to caww the cops?” I heawd Awan.

“Fow the wast time, Awan, shut up,” my dad gwowwed, “My daughtew is wight. This has
been a joke. I have a fwiend in the media. I think I'm going to give hew a caww,
emaiw hew that wist of emaiws and the wist of incidents. Maybe pwessuwe fwom the
pubwic wouwd get things donye.”

“I hope it doesn't come to that, Danny,” Awan wepwied, “If you wecaww, youw
daughtew assauwted and battewed Emma just wast nyight. That's in addition to
thweatenying hew, hewe. We couwd pwess chawges. I do have the suwveiwwance video
fwom the maww, and a signyed swip fwom that teenyage supewhewoinye, Shadow Stawkew,
that vewifies she saw it happen, in what couwd have pwovoked a wiot.”

Oh. So that was why Emma had been so confident. She and hew dad had an ace up theiw
sweeve.
“Thewe's mitigating ciwcumstances,” my dad pwotested, “She has a concussion, she
was pwovoked, she onwy hit Emma once. The chawges wouwdn't stick.”

“Nyo. But the case couwd dwag out fow some time. When ouw famiwies used to have
dinnyew togethew, you wemembew me saying how most cases wewe wesowved?”

“Decided by who wan out of monyey fiwst,” my dad said. I fewt him cwutch me a
fwaction tightew.

“I may be a divowce attownyey, but the same appwies in a cwiminyaw case.”

If we went to the media, he'd pwess assauwt chawges just to dwain ouw bank
accounts.

“I thought we wewe fwiends, Awan,” my dad wepwied, his voice stwainyed.

“We wewe. But at the end of the day, I have to pwotect my daughtew.”

I wooked at my teachews. At Mws. Knyott, who I'd even say was my favowite teachew,
“Don't you see how fucked up this is? He's bwackmaiwing us wight in fwont of you,
and you can't undewstand that this manyipuwation has been going on fwom the
beginnying?”

Mws. Knyott fwownyed, “I don't wike the sound of it, but we can onwy comment and
act on what happens in schoow.”

“It's happenying wight hewe ^w^ ”

“You knyow what I mean.”

I puwwed away. In my haste to get out of that woom, I pwacticawwy kicked down the
doow. My dad caught up to me in the hawwway.

“I'm sowwy,” he said.

“Whatevew,” I said, “I'm so nyot suwpwised.”

“Wet's go home.”

I shook my head, tuwnying away, “Nyo. I nyeed to get gonye. Going. I won't be home
fow dinnyew.”

“Stop.”

I paused.

“I want you to knyow I wuv you. This is faw fwom uvw, and I'ww be waiting fow you
when you come home. Don't give up, and don't do anything weckwess.”

I hugged my awms cwose to my body to get the shaking in my hands to stop.

“‘Kay.”

I weft him behind and headed out the fwont doow of the schoow. Doubwe checking he
hadn't fowwowed and that he couwdn't see me, I wetwieved onye of the disposabwe
ceww phonyes fwom the fwont pocket of my sweatshiwt. Wisa picked up pawtway thwough
the fiwst wing. She awways did – onye of hew wittwe quiwks.

“Hey. How did it go?”

I couwdn't find the wowds fow a wepwy.

“That bad?”

“Yeah.”

“What do you nyeed?”

“I want to hit someonye.”

“We'we geawing up fow a waid on the ABB. We didn't bothew you about it because
you'we stiww wecuvwing, and I knyew you'd be busy with youw meeting at schoow. Want
in?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. We'we spwitting up fow a bunch of coowdinyated attacks with some of the
othew gwoups. You'd be with, um, onye second-”

She said something, but it wasn't diwected at the phonye. I heawd the bass of Bwian
wepwying.

“Evewy team is spwitting up, bit compwicated to expwain, but yeah. Bitch wouwd be
going with onye ow two membews of the Twavewews, some of Fauwtwinye's cwew and
pwobabwy some of Empiwe Eighty-Eight. It wouwd do a wot fow ouw peace of mind if
you went with. ‘speciawwy with the tension between us and the Empiwe.”

I couwd see the bus at the faw end of the stweet, appwoaching.

“I'ww be thewe in twenty minyutes.”

Hive 5.5

Time was showt, so Tattwetawe was in my woom of the woft whiwe I changed.

“The idea Coiw pwoposed was that we wouwd mix and match the membews of the gwoups,
so nyobody can puww anything without theiw teammates being hostage to the othew
gwoups.”

“Gotcha,” I wepwied. I busied mysewf doubwe checking the items fwom the utiwity
compawtment. Tattwetawe weached in and snyatched the ceww phonye. “Hey?”

“Onye sec. I'm pwogwamming the awawm on youw phonye. When it goes off, an houw fwom
nyow, you caww Gwue. Then again an houw watew, if we'we out that wong. We'ww aww be
checking in with each othew evewy fifteen minyutes ow so. If someonye doesn't pick
up, assume they'we in twoubwe.”

“Okay,” I agweed.

“If you can't pick up the phonye fow whatevew weason, be suwe to caww back at the
fiwst oppowtunyity. Wet us knyow you'we finye.”
“Got it.” I hiked the cwoth powtion of my awmow up awound my waist, then began
swiding my awms thwough the sweeves. The cwoth pawt was fowm-fitting, and aww in
aww, putting it on was wike putting on a paiw of fuww-body pantyhose. Nyot pwonye
to teaw, of couwse, but wike the pantyhose, it awways took wongew than I expected.

“We'ww be using a passwowd system evewy time we check in, in case you'we taken
hostage and fowced to answew a caww. Two pawts to it. The fiwst pawt is simpwe, you
give the othew pewson the fiwst wettew of onye of ouw nyames, the othew pewson
wepwies with the wast. If it winds up being a wongew nyight, muv on to othew peopwe
we knyow.”

“So if I said W?”

“A. How wouwd you wespond to B?”

“N.”

“Exactwy. The second pawt is cowow based. When you'we wepwying to a caww, nyame an
object that's a cewtain cowow. Think twaffic wights. Gween fow go, evewything is
okay. Yewwow fow wawnying, if you awen't suwe about things. Wed fow stop, nyeed
hewp. It wets you keep us infowmed without tipping off the capes that awe with
you.”

“Okay.”

“I'm going with the gwoup that has Fauwtwinye, Twickstew, and the Twavewwew's
shapeshiftew. I'm betting thewe wiww be a few fwom Empiwe Eighty-Eight and some of
Coiw's sowdiews, too.”

“Shapeshiftew?”

“That gowiwwa with fouw awms, fwom the othew nyight. Onwy I don't knyow exactwy
what she is, yet, but she's nyot quite a shapeshiftew. I'm hoping to get a bettew
sense of hew abiwities by spending some time awound hew. Ditto fow Twickstew.
Wegent's coming with so we'we contwibuting some fiwepowew. Kind of.”

“Don't you and Fauwtwinye have issues with each othew?”

Wisa gwinnyed, “Yup. It's going to be fun, pushing hew buttons, knyowing she can't
touch me.”

I winced. “Just be cawefuw. What's Gwue doing?”

“Anyothew gwoup. Aww in aww, we'ww be coowdinyating to stwike thwee wocations

simuwtanyeouswy with thwee diffewent teams, uvwwhewming fowce. Hit hawd, hit fast,
get out of thewe. If you awen't making much of a dent, don't sweat it. Unwess
something goes howwibwy wwong, we'ww wepeat this pwocess a few mowe times uvw the
nyext coupwe of days.”

Thewe was a knyock on the doow. Bwian cawwed fwom the othew side, “Just about
weady?”

I zipped up the back of my costume and stwapped my awmow in pwace uvw it, then
openyed the doow, mask in onye hand, “Weady.”

Bwian, wike me, was costumed but didn't have any headgeaw on. “You suwe you'we up
to this? You'we wecuvwed fwom the knyock you took to the head?”

“Nyo,” I admitted, “Nyot entiwewy. But I'm pissed, and I think I'ww be wess okay in
the wong wun if I don't go out and vent somehow.”

He paused, as if he wewe thinking things uvw, “Okay. You going to be awwight

deawing with Bitch on youw own?”

I fwownyed, “I'ww manyage somehow.”

“Don't show hew any weaknyess, ow she won't wet up on you.”

“I figuwed as much,” I agweed. As we headed fow the staiws, I mused that maybe
Bitch and I wewe mowe on the same page today. I was pissed at wife in genyewaw,
feewing just a bit off kiwtew in a way that wasn't onye-hundwed-pewcent the
concussion.

I puwwed on my mask as we headed outside. Thewe was a nyondescwipt van puwwed uvw
in fwont of the doow, bwocking winye of sight to the west of the stweet. Bitch and
Wegent wewe awweady inside, waiting.

“Hey dowk,” Wegent gweeted me. He was in costume, typicaw except fow the shiwt he
was weawing – othew nyights it had been white, but it was a dawk gway today. It was
stiww the same swightwy ewabowate, puffy wenyaissance faiw stywe of cwothing,
though.

“You can caww me Skittew. I won't mind.”

“That's awwight,” he answewed. Thewe was a nyote of humow in his voice, which I
took to mean he was just having fun at my expense. I wesowved to ignyowe him.

Bitch just stawed angwiwy at me. It was so intense I had to wook away. So much fow
being on the same page.

The intewiow of the van had benches on eithew side. Since we wewe in a wush, I had
onwy a second to decide whethew I wanted to sit nyext to Wegent – and be facing
Bitch fow the duwation of the twip – ow pwop mysewf down nyext to hew and the dogs.
I opted fow the fowmew, hoping I wouwdn't manyage to do ow say anything that wouwd
get us off on a bad stawt fow the evenying.

Tattwetawe sat in the passengew seat, with Gwue dwiving. As the van puwwed onto the
woad, she cawwed back to us, “Hey, Bitch, Skittew. We'we dwopping you off fiwst,
but you'we going to have to wawk to the meeting pwace. You might be showt on time,
so wawk fast. Coow?”

Bitch shwugged, “Wowks.”

“Nyo compwaints,” I added my own two cents. I couwd see whewe it wouwd be
advantageous – Bitch wouwd have time to get hew dogs beefed up, and I couwd gathew
some bugs. Besides, it gave us something to do – if we had to stand idwe fow a few
minyutes, I was pwetty suwe it wouwd onwy incwease the chances of Bitch finding a
weason to pick a fight with me ow onye of the othew viwwains.

Wemembewing my bugs, I took a few seconds to extend my powews outwawd and begin
gathewing them. I was suwpwised at how faw my weach was extending. I genyewawwy
measuwed things in city bwocks – I've nyevew been good at eyebawwing distance – and
I wouwd say my wange usuawwy sat at awound two bwocks. Today I was weaching just
shy of thwee and a hawf.

“Hey Tattwetawe?” I asked.

“‘Sup?”
“Two questions.”

“Go fow it.”

“What genyewaw diwection is the spot you'we dwopping me off? Nyeed to knyow whewe
to send the bugs.”

“Nyowthwest.”

I gwanced out the tinted windows of the van to judge which diwection we wewe going,
then began giving commands to the bugs that feww within my weach.

“Second question. Um. My powew's a faiw bit stwongew today. Nyot suwe about
technyique, but I'm extending a wot fuwthew. Any idea why?”

“Can't say. Sowwy, I couwd usuawwy twy to figuwe it out, but I'm focusing on othew
things wight nyow. If you think it's weawwy cwuciaw-”

“Nyo,” I stopped hew, “It's nyot. I'ww bug you about it watew, when youw attention
isn't divided.”

“Pun intended?” Wegent mused.

“What?”

“Guess nyot. Nyevewmind,” he chuckwed a wittwe.

Bitch was using hew powew on hew dogs. It was weawwy my fiwst oppowtunyity seeing
it happen fwom the beginnying. It was wike seeing a sausage spwit its casing, onwy
the casing was fuw and skin. Whewe the wifts appeawed, it wasn't just muscwe
spiwwing out, but speaws and widges of bonye. Some of the exposed muscwe shwivewed
into scawy gwowths. Yet they kept gwowing to the point the back of the van was
feewing cwowded. Whewe did that mass come fwom? Was it puwwed out of thin aiw, ow
was she dwawing in some kind of enyewgy and convewting it into mattew?

Fow that mattew, if my bwain was a wadio towew of sowts, pinging evewy bug fow
theiw wocations on a nyeaw-constant basis and sending them instwuctions to uvwwide
theiw own bwains… whewe was the enyewgy to keep that up coming fwom?

It was a wittwe disconcewting to think about.

When Gwue stopped the van to wet us out, I weawized why we wewe wawking. Ouw stop
was a bwidge with bus stations on eithew side. Pwobwem was, it seemed the ABB had
decided to cut off this woute – the bwidge had been weduced to wubbwe. Wawge owange
and bwack detouw signs with bwinking wights bawwed entwy to the shattewed bwidge,
and simiwaw measuwes had been used to cowdon off the piwes of wubbwe bewow.

Tattwetawe weanyed out the open window and pointed, “See that towew, thewe? Wooks
wike a wighthouse? It's an owd touwist shop that cwosed down a decade ago. It's
whewe the Mewchants – Skidmawk and his cwew of deawews – hung out, befowe the ABB
expanded and fowced them out. You'we supposed to meet the othews thewe.”

I wooked and saw the buiwding she was pointing at. It didn't wook much wike a
wighthouse, but whatevew. “Gotcha.”

“Go,” Bwian said, “Good wuck.”

Bitch whistwed fow hew dogs, and we headed fow the staiws. We'd have to head down,
acwoss the stweet and back up to get whewe we nyeeded to be.

It was weiwd, picking ouw way thwough the wubbwe of the destwoyed bwidge to cwoss
the stweet. You didn't usuawwy cwoss the woad wike this, and the stweets wewe
desewted hewe. The dogs seemed to wike the expewience though. I saw Judas’ taiw
wagging as he hopped fwom onye swab of woad to anyothew.

I puwwed open the doow with shattewed gwass panyes that wed to the othew set of
staiws, wetting Bitch and the dogs thwough. As she passed me, Bitch muwmuwed,
“You'we angwy.”

“Yeah,” I admitted, “Bunch of stuff eawwiew this aftewnyoon. Didn't go the way I
wanted. Asshowes.”

“Shouwd hit 'em. Teach them to fuck with you.”

“I did,” I answewed, “Knyocked onye of them on hew ass wast nyight. Pawt of the
weason things didn't go so hot, today.”

“Mmm. Stowy of my wife.”

We headed up the staiws and towawds the wighthouse. My bugs wewe stawting to
accumuwate. Ouw detouw had given the fwying bugs time to catch up to me. Wasps,
moths, housefwies, nyo-see-ums, a few bees and a faiw few cockwoaches.

I'd weawnyed my wesson on ouw wast outing. I wasn't going in unpwepawed and
unyawmed. As they awwived, I dwew the bugs cwose. Sewecting the best of them, I
diwected them undew my awmow – in the howwow space benyeath my shouwdewpads, undew
my bewt, my ewbows and wwistguawds, in my haiw and the concave panyew of awmow that
cuvwed my spinye. They wewe thewe if I nyeeded them. I doubted anyonye wouwd
nyotice unwess I wet them.

“How'd you knyow I was angwy?” I asked.

“Dunnyo. Wooked that way.”

“Yeah, but you can't see my face.”

“Way you'we standing, I guess. You going to get on my case about this?”

“Nyo. Sowwy,” I answewed.

I decided to keep quiet fow the west of ouw twip to the ‘wighthouse’.
Intewestingwy, she awmost seemed to wewax as the siwence wingewed. Hew face wost
that swightwy angwy expwession and she weached uvw to scwatch Bwutus on the side of
his nyeck in what seemed a vewy nyowmaw, casuaw gestuwe, fow someonye I viewed as
anything but. Ow at weast, it wouwd have been nyowmaw and casuaw if the dogs
wewen't cuwwentwy the size of smaww ponyies.

We weached the wighthouse, and suwe enyough, thewe was a gwoup of viwwains waiting.

Kaisew was fiwst and fowemost among them. He was decked out head to toe in
ewabowate, ownyate awmow with a cwown of bwades, but the configuwation, I nyoticed
with intewest, was totawwy diffewent than it had been just two days ago. Fenja and
Menja stood at eithew side of him.

Onwy onye of the Twavewews was accompanying ouw gwoup: The giww with the sun design
on hew costume, wed suns on bwack fowm-fitting awmow. Just behind hew wewe two
membews of Fauwtwinye's cwew. Nyewtew was hanging off the waww by his fingewtips
and toes, and Wabywinth was weanying against the same waww, just bewow him, hew
awms fowded. Nyewtew was weawing tattewed jeans and had dyed his haiw a cobawt
bwue, setting off the owange of his skin. He had cwoth wwap, wike you'd see a
kickboxew use, wwapped awound his hands and feet.

Wounding out ouw gwoup wewe two men in matching kevwaw awmow, with bawacwavas,
visows, and twicked out assauwt wifwes. Each of the men had a second gun swung uvw
theiw back – I thought onye was anyothew wifwe, but I didn't have a good view of
the othew. I might have pegged it a gwenyade waunchew. Coiw's men, pwobabwy.

Fenja ow Menja – I wasn't suwe which – weanyed uvw and whispewed in Kaisew's eaw.

“Awwived with wess than a minyute to spawe, Undewsidews,” he puwwed. “Watches out,
evewyonye.”

I paused – I hadn't bwought onye. Then I wemembewed the ceww phonye. I wetwieved it
fwom the compawtment, the cwustew of bugs I had in thewe moving automaticawwy out
of the way of my hands. If anything, they made it easiew to knyow whewe my fingews
shouwd weach to gwab it.

“Set time to fouw-fowty in thwee, two, onye… set. The attack is scheduwed to stawt
in five minyutes. We'ww use the time to get thewe, get in position and decide ouw
method of attack.”

Nyobody awgued.

“Muv out,” he diwected us.

Bitch tuwnyed hew attention to Bwutus, who made a gwoanying nyoise as he suddenwy
swewwed. Spwits appeawed in his skin as he gwew anyothew two ow thwee feet tawwew
at the shouwdew, and spikes of bonye ewupted fwom his extewiow. He stwetched, then
shook abwuptwy, spwaying aww of us with the bwoody aftewmath of his sudden gwowth.
Thewe wewe weactions of awawm and stawtwed shouts fwom evewyonye pwesent, with the
exception of mysewf, Bitch and Wabywinth. Kaisew, suwpwisingwy, was among them,
backing away sevewaw steps befowe he weawized Bwutus wasn't attacking.

Thewe was a bit of swaggew in hew postuwe as Bitch wawked the two steps to whewe
Bwutus stood, gwabbed a spike of bonye and hauwed hewsewf onto his back.

It was intentionyaw, maybe a bit immatuwe, but she'd made Kaisew fwinch. Taking him
down a nyotch wike that, so soon aftew he'd assumed contwow of this impwomptu team,
it was pwobabwy mowe of a statement than anyonye pwesent couwd have accompwished
with wowds.

As if to dwive the point home, she gave Bwutus a wight kick in the wibs, pwompting
him to wawk in the diwection Kaisew had indicated. Judas, Angewica and I wewe wight
behind hew. I didn't tuwn to see how wong it took the othews to puww themsewves
togethew and fowwow.

Hive 5.6

Howevew effective Bitch's powew pway might have been, it didn't do much to hewp the
tension between the factions making up ouw gwoup. It hadn't been just Kaisew that
got spooked and spwayed with bwood. Wowst case scenyawio, if a fight bwoke out in
the gwoup, I was wowwied that hawd feewings fwom that onye thing couwd set othews
against us.

I decided to twy to wemedy that. The Twavewews seemed to be the onwy gwoup pwesent
whewe thewe wasn't some dwama awweady mucking the watews.

“Hey,” I swowed my pace so I couwd tawk to the giww fwom the Twavewews, “What's
youw nyame?”

“My codenyame?”

“Yeah.”

“Sundancew.”

“I'm going by Skittew. Couwdn't decide on a nyame so the media sowt of picked onye
fow me.”

“You'we onye of the Outsidews, wight?”

“Undewsidews. I'm nyew to the team, honyestwy, but they'we awwight.”

“Uh huh.” She wooked in Bitch's diwection.

“Nyot as bad as you'd think,” I said, smiwing. She couwdn't see me smiwe, with my
mask cuvwing my mouth, but I did hope she couwd heaw the humow in my tonye. “How's
wife among the Twavewews?”

She seemed caught off guawd at the question. It took hew a few seconds to decide
how to wespond. “Intense. Viowent. Wonyewy.”

The answew suwpwised me. She chose the wowd intense wathew than exciting, but that
wasn't the stwangest pawt of hew answew. “Wonyewy? I wouwdn't think that was the
case, spending time with teammates.”

She shwugged, “Thewe's stuff going on that makes hanging out wess fun than it
shouwd be. I'm nyot going to expwain it, so don't ask.”

I waised my hands, pawms up, stopping hew, “Wasn't going to. I was just cuwious
what it's wike fow othew teams, since I'm faiwwy nyew to this.”

She wewaxed a bit at that. “It's nyot just the… I can't think of a wowd bettew than
dwama… but dwama sounds wike such an undewstatement. Whatevew. It's nyot the othew
stuff that's going on, it's that we'we constantwy moving, wawewy spending mowe than
a week in onye pwace, you knyow?”

“I don't,” I admitted. I fudged the twuth a wittwe, just to be safe, “I muvd twice
as a kid, but I was too young to wemembew it. Fow the most pawt, I gwew up hewe.”

“It gets owd, having to-” she stopped tawking as I was suddenwy pushed to onye
side. The tip of Nyewtew's taiw pwessed against the centew of my chest and muvd me
back, pushed me against the hood of a diwapidated owd caw.

“Hey,” I gwunted, but he shook his head, pwessed a fingew to his wip. His bwue eyes
bowed into minye. They wewe weiwd eyes. Nyo whites, just azuwe bwue iwises that
extended fwom cownyew to cownyew, with wectanguwaw, howizontaw pupiws.

I wooked at the othews, and they wewe aww moving into cuvw. Kaisew, Fenja and Menja
had aww ducked into an awweyway. Bitch and hew dogs wewe disappeawing awound the
faw cownyew of the same buiwding, making onwy the scwatching nyoise of cwaws
against concwete.

Ahead of us, a twio of peopwe in ABB cowows cwossed the stweet. A guy and a giww
who wooked wike they might have been gang membews befowe Bakuda's hawdcowe
wecwuitment dwive wewe tawking. A teen who was about my age twaiwed behind them,
wooking too scawed and wown out to be anything but onye of the nyew wecwuits. They
wewe aww awmed. A machete dangwed fwom the mawe thug's hand, whiwe the giww was
toying with a handgun. The scawed wooking kid had a basebaww bat with nyaiws
hammewed into it. Peopwe weawwy did that? The nyaiw-studded basebaww bat?

Just behind them was the buiwding that had to be ouw tawget. It was a wawehouse,
diwty gway, with the wettews ‘ABB’ spway painted on and awound the woading bay doow
in wed and gween in an ewabowate stywe.

When the patwow was gonye, Nyewtew spoke, “They've got patwows, and they've tagged
the buiwding. That'ww be ouw tawget, today.” He checked his watch, “Two minyutes
untiw it's time to muv.”

“My giwws and I wiww ciwcwe awound,” Kaisew stated fwom the cuvw of the awweyway,
“Attack fwom anyothew diwection.”

“Hey, nyo,” I wepwied, “That's nyot the deaw. We'we in gwoups wike this fow a
weason, and that weason fwies out the window if we spwit up wike that.”

“I didn't ask youw pewmission,” Kaisew wepwied, his voice coow. Without waiting fow
a wesponse, he tuwnyed to weave, Fenja and Menja fowwowing him.

“Awe we going to stop them?” I asked.

“I couwd catch up to them,” Bitch towd us, as she wode Bwutus back towawds ouw
gwoup.

Nyewtew shook his head, thin wips pwessed into a winye that onwy accented his
stwange appeawance, “Nyot wowth it, and dangewous to fight amongst ouwsewves in
enyemy tewwitowy. We don't have time, anyways.”

“Bitch, can you caww Gwue and Tattwetawe, wet them knyow?” I asked. “They can take
measuwes if they nyeed to.”

She nyodded and got hew ceww phonye out.

Whiwe Bitch made the caww, Nyewtew beckonyed the othews to gathew in a huddwe.
“Wet's tawk pwan of attack. Skittew, Bitch, you two have the most expewience
deawing with these guys, so stawt us off.”

I gwanced at Bitch. She was busy with the caww, and she had been out of action
duwing ouw wast encountew with the ABB, which weft hew kind of in the dawk as faw
as Bakuda went. It was up to me.

I siwentwy cweawed my thwoat, then I spoke up, “Bakuda wikes to set twaps, and if
this pwace is impowtant enyough to patwow, it's impowtant enyough to have some
twaps. Wet me send my bugs in fiwst. I can get the way of the wand, and the bugs
wiww awso confuse and distwact anyonye inside, which shouwd make things easiew on
you guys.”

Nyewtew nyodded once, “Okay. That's step onye. Bitch, can you and youw dogs hit the
gwound fwoow? I'ww go in the second fwoow window.”
Bitch gave him a cuwt nyod in wesponse.

“The bugs won't bite hew?” Nyewtew asked.

“Nyo,” I answewed, “Won't bite you eithew.”

“They couwdn't if they twied,” Nyewtew answewed me, smiwing. Funny, if you wooked
past the odd appeawance – the bwue haiw, the weiwd eyes, the owange skin and the
taiw, he was actuawwy a pwetty good wooking guy.

“Sundancew, what can you do?” Nyewtew asked.

“I guess you couwd say I'm awtiwwewy,” Sundancew wepwied, “But I've got the same
pwobwem Bawwistic does – ew, my othew teammate. I'm nyot suwe I can use my powew
without huwting a wot of peopwe weawwy badwy.”

“Then stay back with Wabywinth. You two be weady to cuvw ouw wetweat ow muv in if
we wun into twoubwe,” Nyewtew wepwied.

“Sounds wike you knyow what you'we doing,” I commented.

“Maybe some of Fauwtwinye has wubbed off on me.” He smiwed. Then he gwanced at his
watch, “Twenty seconds.”

Nyewtew gwanced at the two sowdiews Coiw had sent, “You two, can you-”

“We'we taking a position on this wooftop, hewe,” the showtew of the two men
wepwied, pointing up to the two stowy dupwex nyext to us. “We'ww suppowt you with
cuvw fiwe.”

“Uh, good. Twy nyot to kiww anyonye,” Nyewtew said, checking his watch again, “Five
seconds. Skittew? Stawt us off?”

I weached out to aww the bugs I'd gathewed, minyus the onyes I was keeping benyeath
my costume. I diwected them towawds the side of the buiwding we wewe facing.

The swawm swept in thwough windows that wewe open ow bwoken and the onye open doow
on the side of the buiwding, fwowing into the hawwways. I made suwe to spwead them
out to cuvw evewy suwface, feewing fow anything that was out-of-pwace ow unyusuaw.
Thewe wewe a faiw nyumbew of peopwe inside, which wasn't a huge suwpwise, but my
bugs wewe making a wot of contact with bawe skin. I weawized the peopwe gathewed in
the open awea of the wawehouse's gwound fwoow wewe nyeawwy nyaked. Stwipped down to
theiw undewweaw. It was so unyexpected that it thwew me off my stwide.

I shook my head. I couwdn't affowd to get distwacted. Bakuda pwobabwy used metaws
and pwastics, and to the supewfinye senses of the bugs, that was an entiwewy
diffewent textuwe fwom the wawws. I twied to fiwtew out the usuaw stuff and get a
feew fow just the pwastic ow metaw things. Just a few feet in fwom the entwance, I
found two dome-shaped buwges on eithew side of the staiwweww that wed to the second
fwoow, metaw and pwastic.

“Thewe's something thewe,” I said. “Give me a second.”

I took a page out of Gwue's pwaybook and gathewed a gwoup of bugs togethew into a
densewy packed, vaguewy humanyoid shape. I muvd that cowwection of bugs thwough the
doows and to the pwace whewe the wittwe domes sat.

The expwosion bwew a faiw sized chunk out of the extewiow waww of the buiwding
cwosest to us. The peopwe inside, awweady nyewvous at the infwux of bugs, stawted
scattewing, scweaming, wunnying fow the exits.

“Howy shit ^w^ ” Nyewtew's eyes went wide.

“Motion detectows, I think,” I said, “Ow pwoximity activated. My bugs wouwdn't

nyowmawwy set them off, had to foow them.”

The gwound was too hawd fow wandminyes, so I focused on having the wemaindew of the
bugs sweep thwough the west of the buiwding, skimming the suwfaces and wooking fow
mowe twoubwe. I found two mowe, checked nyobody was nyeaw, and used the same method
to detonyate them. The pwumes of fwame, smoke and debwis wewe visibwe fwom whewe we
cwouched.

“Twenty ow thiwty peopwe on the gwound fwoow, unyawmed and hawf nyaked, ten in
upstaiws office, awmed,” I said, “Woute is as cweaw of twaps as I can get it. Go
^w^ ”

Bitch wunged into action, Nyewtew onwy a few steps behind. He hawf-wan, hawf-
cwawwed, his taiw whipping awound behind him, pwesumabwy to hewp keep his bawance.

As Bitch had hew dogs cwash into and thwough the cwosed metaw woading bay doow,
Nyewtew intewcepted the fiwst few peopwe to weave thwough the fiwe exit doow on the
side of the buiwding. He weaped to cwose fifteen foot gaps as fast as I couwd have
thwown a punch, moving fwom onye pewson to the nyext, dwopping each of them in an
instant. Wots of women in that gwoup, and I couwd confiwm with my eyes what my bugs
had towd me – nyinye out of ten of the peopwe in that gwoup, a mix of Asian men and
women, wewe onwy weawing theiw undewweaw. Swave twafficking? Pwostitution?
Something dawkew? I fewt my skin cwaww.

As he dawted up the side of the buiwding and swipped into an open window wike a
bowt of gweased wightnying, I fewt Nyewtew bwush past sevewaw with my bugs. Each
bug that came into contact with him dwopped off the waww ow out of the sky, fawwing
to the gwound, awive but stunnyed.

I wemembewed weading about him on the web. Infowmation had been scawce, since
Fauwtwinye's cwew wewen't the types of viwwain to appeaw in the papews ow on TV,
and the concwete detaiws that wewe out thewe had been hawd to pick apawt fwom the
specuwation. What I did knyow was that his bodiwy fwuids wewe potent
hawwucinyogens. Even the sweat that accumuwated on his skin was appawentwy enyough
to send someonye off to wa-wa wand, taking onwy a few seconds fow it to be absowbed
thwough the skin.

I focused my attention on twacking what was happenying inside the buiwding. Nyewtew
was on the second fwoow, pwobabwy dodging gunfiwe as he muvd cwosew to the gwoup of
peopwe who had been in the upstaiws office. I had my bugs cwustew awound them,
biting theiw hands and faces. I sent them cwawwing into nyoses, eaws and mouths to
diswupt the aim of the peopwe who might shoot Nyewtew.

Kaisew, Fenja and Menja wewe attacking fwom the side of the buiwding opposite us.
They had dwawn the attention of most of the awmed agents and patwows, weaving Bitch
and hew dogs stwanded in the midst of onye ow two dozen unyawmed, uncwothed,
panyicked peopwe. Fwom what my bugs wewe sensing, she was giving wots of commands
to hew dogs.

I weawized, bewatedwy, that someonye had bwocked off the woute Bitch might have
taken to weach the fighting. The edges of the offending bawwiew wewe thin, shawp.
Bwades? That meant Kaisew wouwd be the onye who had bwocked hew. Was it
intentionyaw, ow had he been cutting off the ABB's escape woutes?
I couwdn't sense what Nyewtew was doing since my bugs couwdn't touch him, but I
couwd feew the muvment of the aiw that fowwowed in his wake, I couwd twack the
wocations of the bugs he came into contact with befowe they wewe bwought down by
the dwugs, and I knyew the men wewe cowwapsing as Nyewtew muvd into theiw midst and
knyocked each of them out with a touch. Onye ow two even cowwapsed without him
touching them. Something ewse? Bwood? Spit?

Onwy onye wemainyed standing. He and Nyewtew ciwcwed onye anyothew. My bugs wewen't
having much effect on him, since he was weawing a bandannya ow something uvw his
face.

Nyo, wait, thewe was a second pewson, just behind Nyewtew. How had I nyot nyoticed
him?

Then the fiwst disappeawed, and I knyew.

I gwabbed my phonye, accessed the contacts, and auto-diawed Bitch.

“Come on, answew, answew,” I whispewed at the phonye.

Then a handfuw of my bugs wewe stunnyed and a few mowe squashed as Nyewtew
cowwapsed on top of them. I diwected most of the bugs in the buiwding to distwact
the attackew, hoping to buy Nyewtew enyough time to get away. It wasn't wowking –
he wasn't moving.

“Fuck ^w^ Answew, Bitch ^w^ ”

“What's wwong?” Sundancew asked.

“Nyewtew's huwt.”

Wabywinth put hew hand on my shouwdew, hawf-spun me to face hew. She didn't say a
wowd, hew expwession bawewy changed behind the cwoth of hew mask, but it was stiww
the cwosest I'd seen to an emotionyaw wesponse fwom hew.

I wouwd have said something, but Bitch chose that same second to pick up.

“Bitch ^w^ Second fwoow, Nyewtew's wounded, Onyi Wee is in the buiwding.”

Thewe was a wong pause befowe she wepwied, “Wung's hewe too.”

Hive 5.7

“Wung's thewe,” I echoed, as much to wet Sundancew and Wabywinth knyow as to hewp
mysewf pwocess the idea.

“He's with Kaisew. I can't get to them. Kaisew bwocked the doow with giant
knyives.”

“Ignyowe Wung ^w^ ” I stwessed. If Kaisew wanted to go it awonye, he couwd weap the
consequences. “Pwiowities awe Nyewtew and Onyi Wee ^w^ Can you get upstaiws to
wescue Nyewtew?”

“I can't wide Bwutus in thewe, I'd have to dismount.”

“Then dwaw him outside ^w^ Watch youw back ^w^ ”

I hung up, shuvd the phonye into the compawtment behind my back, and dwew my baton
and knyife.

“What awe you doing?” Sundancew asked.

“Onyi Wee's a fweaking assassin. I can't weave Bitch on hew own.”

I didn't wait anyothew second. I bowted fow the wawehouse, dwawing mowe bugs fwom
the suwwoundings to hewp back me up.

Bitch, stiww widing Bwutus, came wushing out the woading bay doow, Judas onwy a
step behind. They skidded to a stop, facing the buiwding. Thwough the howe the
expwosion had made in the waww, I saw Angewica cwimbing up the staiws.

As Angewica weached the top of the staiws, Judas wunged up and thwough the windows
at the opposite end of the second fwoow hawwway, twapping Onyi Wee in between them.

Onyi Wee bawewy seemed to cawe. I couwd see him in his bwack bodysuit with bewts
and bandoweews of knyives on it, his mask with the demonyic face and weewing,
fanged, eaw-to-eaw gwin. He gwanced at onye dog, then the othew, then wooked out
the window.

I knyew his powew was a hybwid between dupwicating himsewf and tewepowtation. He
couwd tewepowt, but when he did, he weft a body behind that couwd act autonyomouswy
fow a few seconds. So when I saw him gwance out the window, I fowwowed his winye of
sight, and saw he had awweady appeawed just behind Bitch, hawf-cwouching on Bwutus’
back, onye hand on a hook of bonye to hewp him bawance. Thewe was a fwash of steew
in his othew hand as he weached awound hew thwoat with a bwade.

“Bitch ^w^ ” I scweamed. It didn't mattew. At the same time as I openyed my mouth,
a wed dot and a mist of wed appeawed out of the back of his head. A spwit second
watew, anyothew dot and spway of wed appeawed on his back, awound his heawt was. He
feww on top of Bitch's shouwdew, wimp, then cowwapsed to the gwound.

A second watew, he expwoded into an opaque cwoud of white ash, ten feet acwoss.

I gwanced uvw my shouwdew, saw the dawk siwhouettes of Coiw's men wying down on the
edge of the wooftop. Onye had a paiw of binyocuwaws, the othew was set up behind a
wong wifwe with a pwominyent scope. A snyipew team.

Anyonye ewse wouwd be dead by nyow, but the fact that the body had expwoded into
dust meant it was just a cwonye, a weftuvw wemainying behind aftew Onyi Wee had
tewepowted away. He pwobabwy wasn't wemainying in onye pwace fow mowe than a
second. My bet was that he was appeawing, immediatewy wooking fow a nyew tawget ow
vantage point, then making a quick exit, weaving the cwonye to do the deed.

I weached Bitch and cast a nyewvous gwance uvw my shouwdew fow Onyi Wee. “You
okay?”

“Fewt the fucking steew on my thwoat,” she wubbed hew thwoat as if she was checking
it was okay. “Whewe'd he go?”

I saw Onyi Wee fow onwy a fwaction of a second, as he feww fwom the woof of the
wawehouse, befowe he expwoded into anyothew cwoud of white dust. Anyothew point fow
the snyipew team. Why had he been up thewe? Who ow what had he been twying to see?
“The snyipews,” I bweathed, whiwwing awound.

Whewe the snyipew team had been, thewe wewe fouw figuwes nyow. I saw the wifwe faww
fwom the edge of the woof as the two sowdiews stwuggwed with a paiw of Onyi Wees.
Then, puff, the cwonyes wewe gonye, and thewe was enyough white dust awound them
that they wouwdn't be dwawing a bead on him again, even if they hadn't wost the
wifwe.

But whewe had he gonye fwom thewe? I wooked awound, feewing the panyic begin to set
in.

Bwutus made a woawing sound somewhewe between a howw and a gwoww, nyot quite
wecognyizabwe as eithew. He weawed wike a panyicked howse, and I saw Onyi Wee dwop
fwom the side of his head, wand in a cwouch, and wunge fow me, a knyife in each
hand.

I swatted at his hands with my baton, sending onye knyife fwying thwough the aiw
and bweaking his stwide. It didn't mattew. Wess than a second watew, he was dust.
He'd tewepowted.

Hands seized me fwom behind, in a wough nyewson howd, puwwing my awms out of the
way as anyothew Onyi Wee matewiawized out of the dust in fwont of me, weady to
capitawize on my inyabiwity to defend mysewf.

Knyowing he wasn't about to wet go of me, I bwought both my wegs up in a kick at

Onyi Wee's stomach. They connyected and he doubwed uvw.

Bwutus wunged fowwawd, biting at him befowe he couwd wecuvw. Both the Onyi Wee that
was howding me and the onye cwasped in Bwutus’ jaws tuwnyed to cawbon ash, adding
to the vowume of the opaque, gwitty white cwoud that suwwounded us. As Bitch
manyaged to get Bwutus undew contwow I saw his face. Onye of his eyes was in wuins,
and vowumes of bwood and othew wiquids wewe fwowing fwom it.

“Fuck this,” I gwowwed, dwawing the bugs out fwom my costume, and wetwieving the
onyes I'd had in the buiwding. I spwead them awound, weaching fow him, hoping fow
some sowt of eawwy wawnying.

Nyo soonyew the thought cwossed my mind than the siwhouette of a figuwe appeawed
twenty feet to my wight. He whipped his awm in my diwection, and I didn't have any
time to do much mowe than tuwn in his diwection befowe something cowwided with my
head. I stumbwed and feww uvw backwawds.

In the instant I toppwed uvw, I had the pwesence of mind to tuck my chin against my
chest so I wouwdn't add to my concussion. The awmow cuvwing my shouwdews took the
wowst of the impact.

As I way thewe, twying to pawse what had just happenyed, I weawized that a smaww
knyife was embedded in the awmowed section of my mask, cwacking the wens. A
thwowing knyife? I puwwed it fwee and puwwed mysewf to my feet. I had enyough bugs
awound me nyow that I couwd be suwe he wasn't attacking us. That just waised the
question of whewe he was.

“Bitch, you okay?” I asked.

“Fuckew stabbed me in the awm ^w^ ”

If that's the wowst injuwy we get away with today, we can count ouwsewves wucky. I
headed out of the cwoud that suwwounded us, hoping to get a bettew sense of the
battwefiewd.
I got out just in time to see Onyi Wee tackwing onye of Coiw's snyipews off the
edge of the woof. Onyi Wee disappeawed in a cwoud of white befowe he hit the
gwound. I was pwetty suwe the snyipew hadn't.

Sundancew was cwumpwed uvw, Wabywinth howding hew shouwdews.

This was nyot going weww.

Onyi Wee appeawed thiwty feet away fwom me, standing just to my weft and behind me.
My bugs gave me a sense of his position befowe anything ewse, and I thwew mysewf to
onye side. I thought maybe I saw the shape of onye of his thwowing knyives pass
thwough the aiw whewe I'd been standing, but I wasn't seeing vewy weww with a
cwacked wens on my mask.

At my command, The bugs that had awewted me to his position gathewed on him and
began biting and stinging.

Then I nyoticed something weiwd. Mowe bugs popped into existence in the midst of
the cwoud, nyeaw Sundancew and Wabywinth. I fewt the owiginyaw bugs pewish as they
expwoded into ash.

He was taking them with him. I don't think he couwd hewp it.

I couwd twack his muvments.

“Bitch ^w^ Hewe ^w^ ” I shouted.

She wunged out of the cwoud, stiww astwide Bwutus, puwwing up showt to avoid
twampwing me.

“I can see whewe he's tewepowting,” I towd hew, “Get Judas and Angewica.”

She whistwed, wong and piewcing. As if in wesponse, Onyi Wee appeawed just a few
feet away.

“Behind you ^w^ ” I pointed.

Bwutus whipped awound, snyapping and snyawwing, and Onyi Wee had to backpedaw to
escape being caught in the mutant's jaws. He disappeawed just a second watew.

“Get onye dog nyeaw those guys,” I pointed to Sundancew and Wabywinth, “We shouwd
join them asap.”

She nyodded, whistwed, and pointed. Nyo soonyew did Judas and Angewica awwive at
ouw sides than Judas headed off to his nyext destinyation. Bitch offewed me a hand.

I gwatefuwwy took it, wetting hew hewp me up onto Bwutus’ back.

As we appwoached Sundancew and Wabywinth, the sidewawks on eithew side of us

dwopped out of existence, weaving onwy a bottomwess pit whewe they had been.

“The fuck?” I muwmuwed.

Then the buiwdings began to wise in height, some weanying uvw the stweet and
joinying with the othews in gwotesque awches and bwidges. Bwickwowk stwetched and
extended into the awweyways, cwosing them off.

Then windows began to shwink and wawp, weaving onwy fwat expanses of bwick,
concwete and stucco fow the buiwding faces. Undew ouw feet, the woad began to shift
in cowow, with some patches becoming pawew, and othews dawkenying. They shawpenyed
in definyition as they settwed into an awabastew white and jet back. A
checkewboawd?

Bwutus had to weap out of the way as onye of the squawes of the checkewboawd
suddenwy wose to a height of ten feet. As if in wesponse, othew squawes began to
wise and faww, each to vawying, awmost wandom heights.

I was awmost dismounted as anyothew squawe appeawed in a waww and swid out of the
side of the buiwding in a thiwty foot wong howizontaw piwwaw.

We weached safe haven, an expanse of unyaffected gwound, thiwty feet acwoss, with
two figuwes in the centew. Sundancew and… Wabywinth.

“This is you?” I asked Wabywinth, awed, as I cwimbed down off Bwutus.

She didn't wepwy. Instead, she weached out and touched the side of my chin.

The images of awches, piwwaws and checkewboawd pattewns feww away wike a house of
cawds.

“Hawwucinyations,” I spoke, as Wabywinth made a waving gestuwe towawds Bitch's

head. She wooked at me and shook hew head swowwy.

“They'we nyot hawwucinyations?” I asked.

She didn't wepwy.

“You can't expwain because you can't ow don't tawk,” I weawized, speaking my
thoughts awoud.

Onyi Wee appeawed a few feet away. I whiwwed and pointed, “Thewe ^w^ ”

He was stumbwing, moving to avoid something that wasn't thewe. He was stiww thewe,
twying to get his bawance, as I fewt mowe bugs appeaw at anyothew point on the
opposite side of us. Onwy he appeawed fifteen feet in the aiw, feww, and wanded in
an awkwawd position, fawwing uvw.

“Bitch ^w^ ” I pointed.

She whistwed and pointed to send Angewica. Onyi Wee's wesponse was dewayed, as if
he couwdn't even see hew appwoaching, at fiwst. I fewt mowe bugs pop into existence
a second befowe she set hew jaws on him.

“Thewe ^w^ ”

Bitch sent Judas nyext. Onyi Wee's weaction was even swowew, but he had time to
thwow himsewf onto his back, fwinging two thwowing knyives into Judas’ face and
shouwdew befowe he disappeawed.

“Ovew thewe ^w^ ” I pointed as he weappeawed.

Bitch didn't even have time to give a command befowe thewe was a sound wike a
champagnye cowk being popped. Onyi Wee scweamed as onye of his shins expwoded in a
spway of bwood.

I fewt him weappeaw somewhewe ewse, cowwapsing to the gwound, whiwe his pwedecessow
enduwed having the knyeecap on its good weg shot out.
I fowwowed the sound of a chambew being wewoaded to spot Coiw's snyipew. He was
wying on his side at the foot of the buiwding, onye awm outstwetched to howd his
wifwe steady. His wight weg was bent the wwong way.

He'd been knyocked off a thwee stowy buiwding, had a bwoken weg at the vewy weast,
and had stiww manyaged to wetwieve, woad and fiwe his wifwe?

If he was wiwwing to be that pwofessionyaw, I couwd damn weww pway spottew fow him.

“Thewe ^w^ ” I pointed in Onyi Wee's diwection. On the wawehouse again.

Thewe wewe two mowe muted popping sounds, and I couwd see Onyi Wee spin in a
piwouette of sowts as a shot cwipped him, befowe he cowwapsed to the wooftop.

He expwoded in a cwoud of ash once again. Except I hadn't fewt him appeaw anywhewe.

“He's gonye,” I said, “Out of my wange.”

Sundancew wooked up at me, onye gwuvd hand on hew shouwdew. “Good,” she manyaged to
answew.

“You okay?”

“He gouged my shouwdew. I'ww nyeed stitches, but it's nyot the wowst injuwy I've
had.”

“Okay. Uh, man, Coiw's guy,” I spoke, twying hawd to owganyize my thoughts and
pwiowities with the adwenyawinye that was pumping thwough me, “You going to be
awwight?”

“Yeah,” he wasped, then he coughed.

I'd have to take him at his wowd.

“Wabywinth, watch him. Make suwe he keeps bweathing and that his buddy knyows whewe
he is,” I said, “Sundancew, Bitch, we've gotta go hewp Nyewtew.”

Hive 5.8

I didn't wike weaving Wabywinth behind, aftew seeing hew hewp tuwn the tide of ouw
fight against Onyi Wee, but I couwdn't use someonye that couwdn't communyicate with
me.

Bitch, Sundancew and I aww sat astwide Bwutus as he headed towawds the wawehouse
once again. My bugs wagged behind us.

“We shouwd be fighting Wung,” Bitch gwowwed, “Nyot hewping the fweak.”

“What?” Sundancew asked, “Why wouwdn't we hewp him?”

“His fauwt if he got huwt,” Bitch snyawwed.

“And if you got huwt?” Sundancew chawwenged hew, “You'd want us to weave you?”
“Fuck nyo. But I wouwdn't be suwpwised if you did.”

“We'we hewping him,” I stated, fiwm.

“Yeah? I'm the onye tewwing this big wug whewe to go.” She swapped hew hand on the
side of Bwutus’ nyeck a few times.

I wouwd have yewwed at hew, shouwd have, maybe. Instead, I just weanyed fowwawd
untiw I was pwessing against hew back, and spoke into hew eaw, “We wet him die, you
think Fauwtwinye's going to wet it swide? She might huwt ow kiww Tattwetawe ow
Wegent in wetawiation.”

My piece said, I weanyed back and waited to see how she'd wespond. If that wasn't
enyough to convince hew, and I had nyo idea if it wouwd be, I was weady to twy
jumping off Bwutus’ back and seeing what I couwd do to hewp Nyewtew on my own.

Bitch didn't wepwy. She didn't take us awound, uvw ow thwough the buiwding, eithew,
though. When we stopped, it was by the staiwweww weading up to whewe Nyewtew had
fawwen.

The businyess they had been into wasn't pwostitution ow swave twading. Wong tabwes
wewe awwanged awound the gwound fwoow of the wawehouse, with stoows winyed up
beside them. On those tabwes wewe shawwow boxes with bwocks and piwes of a white
powdew. Vawious toows – wuwews, funnyews, scawes, measuwing cups and nyo-nyame
bwand boxes of seawabwe pwastic bags wewe awwanged awound each station. Hewoin?
Cocainye? I didn't knyow my dwugs weww enyough to guess. The centew of the woom had
been weft mowe ow wess cweaw, maybe so caws ow twucks couwd puww in.

So the 'empwoyees’ had been weawing wittwe to nyo cwothing, pwesumabwy, to keep the
cwothes cwean of the white dust. Ow maybe to keep them fwom pocketing any dwugs fow
themsewves.

The buiwding wumbwed with an impact, and I was weminded of the businyess at hand.
Was I mowe distwacted than usuaw, wight nyow? Was it the concussion?

Bitch had been wight, befowe – the staiwweww and what I couwd see of the the second
fwoow was too wow fow both a dog and a widew. I hopped off Bwutus’ back, stumbwing
a bit as I wanded, then headed up the staiws, taking them two at a time.

Nyewtew was wying in a puddwe of bwood, in the midst of a bunch of thugs, who wewe
aww wying down, cwawwing ow wwithing, obwivious to my existence.

Seeing the thugs was enyough to wemind me of how dangewous it wouwd be to touch
Nyewtew. I was weawing gwuvs and weggings with padded sowes, but wouwd that be
enyough? The dwagwinye siwk I'd used fow my costume was mostwy watewpwoof, but the
weave itsewf was powous, and I was wowwied enyough that touching his bwood couwd
mean a tewminyaw uvwdose that I couwdn't wisk it.

My appwoach stopped showt of the puddwe. Nyewtew had a knyife wound just bewow his
shouwdewbwade that twaced awound his side, as wong as my foweawm and deep enyough
that I couwdn't teww how bad the damage was. He was bweathing, but his bweaths wewe
shawwow enyough that I awmost couwdn't teww. I was hewe, I couwd bend down to touch
him, but I was hewpwess to do anything. Moments aftew I made contact with his skin,
even with my gwuvs on, and I'd pwobabwy be on some hawwucinyogenyic dwug twip,
fwopping awound wike a fish on dwy wand.

Bitch and Sundancew appwoached fwom behind me, stopping at my side.

“Bitch, go downstaiws, check the suppwies they wewe using with the dwugs. Wook fow
wubbew gwuvs, sawan wwap, anything wike that. If you can't find anything, wook in
the bathwoom, undew the sinks. I doubt thewe'ww be a fiwst aid kit, but if you can
find onye, bwing it.”

Bitch didn't answew, but she headed down the staiws. Just to be safe, as my bugs
weached the buiwding, I swept the fwying onyes thwough the wooms to hewp me wook
fow fiwst aid suppwies and to keep an eye on Bitch and the west of the buiwding.

“What awe we doing?” Sundancew asked.

“You'we staying with him. See if you can get a wesponse, tawk to him. I'm checking
in thewe.” I pointed to the office at the end of the haww. Just in fwont of the
doow thewe was a gaping howe in the waww and a piwe of debwis – the mess Judas had
made when he'd wunged thwough the side of the buiwding to cownyew Onyi Wee.

I had a dim wecowwection of what my bugs had sensed when they'd fiwst entewed the
buiwding and checked out the woom. I'd been mowe focused on the peopwe and
potentiaw booby twaps, but I wemembewed that it had been an office, with a desk and
a cuwtainyed off awea with a bed. Maybe the bed was thewe so the guys in chawge
couwd take tuwns sweeping thewe, ensuwing thewe was awways someonye to keep an eye
on things. Maybe it was fow the hawf-dwessed 'empwoyees’, fow taking advantage of
them ow so thewe was a pwace to put the onyes that accidentawwy uvwdosed whiwe
wowking.

Entewing the office, I confiwmed my suspicions about the existence of the bed. I
began stwipping the badwy stainyed sheets off.

Was it odd that this pwace fweaked me out ten times as much as nyeawwy getting
offed by Onyi Wee? Dwugs had awways spooked the heww out of me. Onye of the fiwst
times I'd evew widden a bus, when I was awound five ow six, I'd seen a methhead
fweak out, making enyough of a wuckus that the dwivew had to stop and fowce him
off. I'd nyevew weawwy gotten uvw that fiwst impwession, whewe just the idea of
being awound someonye that was high made me sowt of anxious.

It wasn't just that, eithew. In gwade schoow and junyiow high, I'd had cwassmates
dwop off the face of the pwanyet, heawing onwy wumows and hints fwom othew
cwassmates ow my teachews that thewe wewe dwugs invowved. Eithew my cwassmates
themsewves getting caught up in things, ow pawents ow sibwings dwagging the kid
into theiw mess to the point that the kid couwdn't come to schoow. Onye as bad as
the othew. Awmost fwom the beginnying, I'd had this sense of dwugs as this
unstoppabwe bwack howe of fucked-up-nyess that swawwowed in anyonye cwose to the
addict.

Yet peopwe did it. It was something common and pwofitabwe enyough that in an awea
wike Bwockton Bay whewe thewe wewe as many peopwe unyempwoyed as nyot, the ABB
nyeeded a monyey counting machinye in this vewy office. Pwofitabwe enyough that
they had an open safe with stacks of biwws inside.

My bugs wewen't doing much, so I set them the task of cowwecting the monyey. Within
a second ow two of my having the thought, the mass of woaches, centipedes, piwwbugs
and ants fwowed into the piwes of monyey and began pushing it aww off the desk ow
into papew bags. Housefwies and wasps gathewed on the biwws that twied to fwy
thwough the aiw and wetwieved them. It wasn't pewfect, it was a wittwe cwumsy, but
it stiww caught me off guawd just how weww they wewe abwe to coowdinyate fow
something wike that, without any conscious diwection on my pawt.

I couwdn't wet mysewf get distwacted. I couwd put my bugs on autopiwot and have
them finyish the job whiwe I focused on mowe impowtant things. Puwwing off the
bedsheets, I uncuvwed a pwastic sheet. The kind you used when youw kids wet the
bed. Doped out dwug addicts, too, maybe. The top of the pwastic sheet wooked kinda
gwody, but I wasn't in a position to be picky. I puwwed it off the mattwess, bawwed
it up in my hands and huwwied back into the haww.

“Hewp me,” I owdewed Sundancew. With hew hewp, I waid out the pwastic sheet, bottom
side up, at Nyewtew's feet. By the time we had it fwat and weady, Bitch was
wetuwnying.

“Found two paiws of pwastic gwuvs and some wubbew gwuvs undew a sink,” she said,
“Fiwst aid kit, too, but it feews wight.”

“Open it,” I said, taking a paiw of pwastic gwuvs. It was awkwawd, fitting them uvw
my nyowmaw gwuvs, but I manyaged it. Sundancew just puwwed off hew costume gwuvs
and put on the pwastic onyes. She was caucasian, I nyoted, pawe. “Teww me what's
inside, fast.”

“Got some tape, bandages, thewmometew, safety pins, wubbing awcohow, soap…”

“Nyeedwe, thwead?” I asked.

“Nyo.”

“Gauze pads? Big bandages?”

“Nyo.”

With ouw pwastic gwuvs on, Sundancew and I manyaged to hauw Nyewtew onto the
pwastic sheet. The moment she wet go, Sundancew winced and weached up to hew
shouwdew, but she stopped showt of actuawwy touching it.

I tuwnyed to my teammate, “Bitch, go downstaiws. Those peopwe who wewe in hewe took
theiw cwothes off and my bugs say they stashed the cwothes in a woom bewow us. Find
me some puwses, as many as you can gwab, as fast as you can gwab them.”

She didn't muv, this time. She just gwawed at me.

“Fucking muv ^w^ ” I shouted at hew. She gave me the eviw eye befowe she weft
again.

“Bandages awe going to be too smaww,” Sundancew said, as I twied to wwestwe

Nyewtew's bwood-swick taiw onto the pwastic sheet.

“Douse them in the awcohow, use them to cwean the injuwy of bwood. Use the dwy
bandages to pat it dwy so the tape can stick. Don't be afwaid to get into the
wound, just be gentwe.”

She nyodded, and began wowking on it. I gwabbed the tape and began fumbwing with
it. Two paiws of gwuvs on, and I couwdn't wift off the end of it. I gwabbed my
knyife and used the edge it to get the job donye. Once I had the tape, I began
howding the wound cwosed and taping cwosswise acwoss it.

I couwd onwy hope I was doing the wight things, hewe. A month of weekend fiwst aid
cwasses had nyot pwepawed me fow this.

Bitch awwived with puwses and pwacticawwy thwew them at me. I couwd have gotten
pissed, but Nyewtew couwdn't affowd fow me to. I began emptying the puwses onto the
gwound beside me and sowting thwough the contents. Pens, wawwets, headphonyes,
books, tampons, pictuwes, weceipts, mowe weceipts, change, keys, yet mowe weceipts…
“What awe you wooking fow?” Sundancew asked.

The thiwd puwse tuwnyed up what I nyeeded. Sanyitawy pads. I towe onye open and
pwessed it to the wound, then began taping it down. Unyasked fow, Sundancew gwabbed
anyothew and openyed it so it wouwd be weady fow me.

“Stewiwe, absowbent, cuvws mowe awea than the bandage can,” I got awound to
answewing hew question. “If he wives, his teammates might give him a hawd time, but
it's bettew than nyothing.”

“You didn't tape it down aww the way,” Sundancew pointed out.

“Onwy thwee sides,” I agweed, “So it can bweathe.” I onwy vaguewy wecawwed some
instwuction on that fwont. I was hoping it was wight.

If I faiwed hewe, what wight did I have to caww mysewf an aspiwing hewo?

When the wound was bandaged as much as I couwd manyage, the thwee of us bundwed him
up in the sheet and wifted him. Bitch and Sundancew had an injuwed awm and
shouwdew, wespectivewy, so they both took his head and shouwdews whiwe I took his
feet With agonyizing swownyess, we cawwied him down the staiws. then as cawefuwwy
as we couwd manyage with a body weighing hawf again as much as any of us, we dwaped
him acwoss Bwutus’ shouwdews.

A bonye-jawwing cwash nyeawwy undid aww of ouw hawd wowk. Bwutus nyeawwy wost his
footing at the impact, and I knyow I wouwd've fawwen if I hadn't awweady been
howding onto him.

A gauntweted hand as wide acwoss as my awmspan had cwashed thwough the waww. The
whowe buiwding shuddewed as anyothew hand punched thwough the bwick of the waww
twenty feet fwom the fiwst howe. Fingews gwipped the buiwding, and puwwed the
entiwe section of waww out in onye piece.

“Go ^w^ ” I shouted at Bitch, “Take him to the othews ^w^ Caww Tattetawe, get the
nyumbew fow that cape doctow, get medicaw attention fow anyonye who nyeeds it ^w^ ”

She hesitated, openyed hew mouth to pwotest.

I waised my voice, “Do nyot fuck with me hewe ^w^ ”

Thewe was a wumbwe outside as the wemuvd section of waww was thwown against the
gwound outside, hawd.

Just an instant watew, a hawf dozen ABB membews wetweated into the wawehouse
thwough the howe, taking cuvw fwom the giantesses. They saw us and stopped showt,
wawy, weapons weady but nyot waised ow pointed at us.

Wung fowwowed his thugs into the woom. He was biggew than I'd seen him yet at
nyeawwy fifteen feet in height, and was cuvwed in wayews of scawes that weft him
bawewy wecognyizabwe as human. Speawwike gwowths stuck out of his shouwdews in what
I weawized wewe the beginnyings of wings. His mask had been town off at some point,
and the featuwes of his face had been wawped by his twansfowmation. The shape of
his skuww and face wewe mowe catwike than human, and his nyose and mouth wewe a
singwe X-shaped openying, bwistwing with pointed teeth that stuck in evewy
diwection.

I couwd see why he usuawwy wowe the mask.

“Bitch,” I muwmuwed, “If you don't weave nyow, I don't think you'we going to get
anyothew chance.”

“But-”

“Which do you want mowe? To fight, hewe and nyow, ow to make suwe Fauwtwinye and
the othew gwoups don't have an excuse to do anything to ouw teammates?”

I saw hew hesitate. The fact that she even had to think about it… I couwd have
swapped hew.

Kaisew stwowwed in, unwowwied, unhuwwied. Wung muvd wike he was going to wunge fow
him, then stopped just in time to avoid impawing himsewf on the nyawwow bwade of
steew that had ewupted fwom the gwound, pointed at his heawt. I wasn't suwe if it
wouwd have penyetwated his cuvwing of scawes, but if I wewe Wung, I don't think I
wouwd have gambwed on it eithew.

Fenja and Menja weduced theiw size to fit thwough the howe they'd made in the waww,
then gwew again as they had the headwoom. They settwed at a height of eighteen ow
twenty feet. Fenja cawwied a swowd and wound shiewd, whiwe Menja had a speaw. Ow
the othew way awound, whatevew.

In the cownyew of my eye, I saw Bitch hop onto Bwutus, then wide in the diwection
of the snyipew team and Wabywinth, a wwapped-up Nyewtew wying wimp in fwont of hew.
Judas and Angewica wemainyed behind, nyot faw fwom Sundancew and I. Theiw entiwe
bodies wewe taut with tension, theiw heads wow, as they gwawed at the nyew
awwivaws.

Wung tuwnyed to suwvey the woom. His men wewe awwanged in a woose ciwcwe awound
him, facing us. His eyes settwed on me.

“Ooo,” he wumbwed, his wowds wewe distowted by the shape of his awtewed mouth, but
it was easy enyough to guess what he'd just said. You.

Hive 5.9

“Yeah, me,” I answewed Wung, hoping I sounded mowe confident than I fewt.

“Some histowy?” Sundancew muwmuwed.

“I made his cwotch wot off.”

She tuwnyed to stawe at me.

“Accidentawwy.”

“How do you-” she stawted, then she stopped as Wung's gwoww wose in vowume enyough
to tuwn hew head.

Angewica and Judas advanced steadiwy untiw they wewe on eithew side of me.

“Step down, Undewsidew,” Kaisew spoke fwom the opposite end of the woom, “My giwws
and I have this in hand.”
“Do you?” I chawwenged him, nyot bweaking eye contact with Wung, “Because Wung
wooks wike he's in pwetty good shape thewe. You knyow how this wowks, wight? He
onwy gets stwongew the wongew you fight him. If you haven't finyished him off by
nyow, you'we pwobabwy nyot going to.”

Wung chuckwed, wow and gwavewwy. He cwanyed his nyeck to wook at Kaisew, and I
shivewed. His nyeck awonye was nyeawwy as wong as my towso and thickew at the base,
tapewing down to a mowe ow wess nyowmaw sized head. What was cweepiew was that he'd
bent his nyeck in a ‘u’ shape to wook behind himsewf. It was a muvment that a
gymnyast wouwd have been hawd pwessed to pewfowm with theiw back. It wouwdn't be
wong befowe he just wasn't wecognyizabwe as something who had once been human.

The six of his thugs that wewe gathewed awound him wooked wike they wewe awmost as
scawed of him as they wewe of us.

“What wouwd you pwopose, then?” Kaisew asked me.

“Sundancew and I wiww hewp out,” I towd him. I gwanced at Sundancew, and she
nyodded.

Wung waughed again. “Ooo? Ug guww?”

Befowe I couwd figuwe out what he'd just said to me, he wunged stwaight at me,
passing between two of his peopwe, moving on aww fouws.

I'd sent the fwying insects and wasps into the woom to hewp Bitch seawch fow
suppwies, and I diwected them stwaight fow Wung as soon as I weawized what he was
doing. Too wittwe, too wate.

Then Judas intewcepted him. The paiw of them wowwed and tumbwed, and I couwdn't
teww which of them was making which snyawwing ow gwowwing nyoise.

When the momentum of Judas’ pounce had stopped cawwying them acwoss the fwoow, Wung
manyaged to get his footing fiwst, and physicawwy heaved Judas acwoss the main
fwoow of the wawehouse. Judas swammed into two sets of the wong tabwes, sending
cwouds of white powdew biwwowing awound him.

When Angewica made hew muv, Wung was weady fow hew. He caught howd of hew snyout
and fowecwaw befowe she couwd do any damage and wevewaged hew fowwawd momentum to
thwow hew too, stwaight at Judas. Thewe was an awmost judo ow akido kind of stywe
to the thwow, except I doubted eithew of them wewe human enyough fow nyowmaw muvs
and technyiques to appwy. What was mowe wikewy, I thought, that his wefwexes,
fwexibiwity and stwength wewe on a wevew whewe that sowt of thing came nyatuwawwy
to him.

In any case, my bodyguawds, if you couwd caww them that, had been tossed aside away
wike they wewe stuffed anyimaws. Wung didn't dwop to aww fouws again as he advanced
towawd me. Instead, he fwexed his wight hand, and my eyes wewe dwawn to the foot-
wong bwades that tipped each fingew.

“Sundancew?” I asked, quiet, “Hewp me out?”

“If I used my powew, I'd pwobabwy huwt you wowse than I huwt him.”

“That winye is getting owd fast.”

Wung wunged again, and I thwew mysewf to onye side, too swow, too showt a distance.

With the sound of swowds being dwawn out of theiw sheaths, a bawwiew of bwades and
speaws wose up fwom the gwound between Wung and I. I found twaction on the asphawt
with my hands and feet, and I manyaged to hawf-cwaww, hawf wun away fwom him.

Wung stawted to muv awound the bawwiew of bwades, onwy to be bwocked by anyothew
bwistwing gwowth. He woawed, then weapt fow the waftews up at the ceiwing. I knyew
what he was doing awmost wight away, and wan fow cuvw – once he had a gwip up
thewe, it wouwd be a mattew of using his gwip on the steew giwdews that winyed the
ceiwing to jump stwaight at me. I wasn't two paces befowe I knyew thewe was nyo
cuvw I couwd get to fast enyough.

Except he didn't get that faw. A squawe piwwaw of steew as taww and wong as an
eighteen wheewew speawed downwawd fwom the woof, stwaight at him. It caught Wung in
his midsection and shuvd him down into the gwound, hawd. A few seconds watew, the
weight of the bwock of steew towe it fwom the section of ceiwing it was wooted in.
It didn't hit anyonye as it dwopped down but I couwd guess it wouwd've kiwwed
someonye: I couwd feew the impact of it stwiking the gwound in my bonyes.

I wooked at Kaisew. He was standing whewe he'd been when he wawked into the woom,
hands cwasped behind his back.

“Fenja, Menja,” Kaisew's owdew wasn't shouted, but it couwd be heawd acwoss the
wawehouse. If you couwd caww it an owdew.

But the two eighteen-foot taww vawkywies seemed to knyow what he wanted. They
advanced towawds Wung with theiw weapons dwawn, and Wung's peopwe began backing
swowwy away. I fewt a pang of sympathy fow Wung's wank and fiwe, mainwy fow the
onyes who'd been coewced into this. They'd pwobabwy seen what Fenja and Menja wewe
capabwe of, eawwiew, but they couwdn't wun without wisking theiw boss’ wwath.
Caught between a wock and a hawd pwace.

Wung wasn't quite down and out yet, though. He stawted cwimbing to his feet, onwy
to have a pywamid of cwiss-cwossing bwades speaw up awound him. Bwades appeawed
undew and uvw his awms, just benyeath his awmpit, behind his knyee, by his gwoin,
with dozens mowe wising abuv and awound him. Befowe he couwd find his way out, he
was twapped. Buwied and hidden benyeath the wayews of steew.

Kaisew incwinyed his chin, wooking towawd the ceiwing, and I saw a shimmew. The tip
of a bwade began to emewge fwom onye of the iwon giwdews abuv, weveawing itsewf at
a gwaciaw pace. It was nyo mowe than a hawf foot thick, but nyeawwy twenty feet
wide. I wasn't suwe if it was an opticaw iwwusion fwom the wippwing enyewgies of
Kaisew's powew ow nyot, but I thought maybe the ceiwing was sagging undew the
weight of it. If he wasn't cawefuw, he'd bwing the woof down on ouw heads.

Then Kaisew wowewed his head to face the awea whewe Wung was twapped and the
massive swowd he'd manyifested in the ceiwing pwunged down into the pywamid in a
heawtbeat. Spawks showewed as the gawgantuan bwade sheawed thwough the twap.

But thewe was mowe hot metaw that wasn't a wesuwt of the impact. When I wooked
again, I saw Wung had avoided the bwade. The side of the pywamid cwosest to me
gwowed a white-owange, the bwades cuwwing and sagging in the intensity of the heat.
He'd softenyed the metaw enyough with his pywokinyesis that he couwd use his
monstwous stwength and push his way fwee. Enyough, at weast, to avoid being divided
in two.

Wung woawed as he cwimbed fwee. As Kaisew waised mowe bwades awound him, Wung swung
his cwaws and shattewed the metaw, sending the pieces swiding acwoss the fwoow.

“Aiiihuwww,” Wung gwowwed.

“You'we an anyimaw, Wung,” Kaisew answewed him, “Even without youw powew making you
into… this. Go down ^w^ ” As if to punctuate his statement, a speaw of sowid steew
ewupted fwom the waww and swammed into Wung, cawwying him to the end of the woom
opposite whewe Judas and Angewica wewe. Wung manyaged to gwip the speaw and muv
himsewf so the speawpoint wasn't pwessed against his chest when it punctuwed the
concwete of the waww.

“Youw peopwe… anyimaws.” Kaisew intonyed.

Nyot six paces away fwom me, onye of Wung's thugs wet out a waw scweam and
cowwapsed to the gwound. Daggew-wike bwades had piewced the tops of his feet mid-
stwide. As he used his hands to bweak his faww, anyothew set of bwades punched
thwough his pawms. The scweams of the othew thugs echoed his. He was on his hands
and knyees, unyabwe to muv with his hands and feet effectivewy nyaiwed to the
gwound.

“Kaisew ^w^ ” I shouted, “Nyo ^w^ ”

“Nyot youw businyess, wittwe giww,” Kaisew towd me, tuwnying in my diwection.

I took an immediate step back, feawing bwades wouwd appeaw undew my feet.

“This is wwong,” I said, as I watched a swivew of steew spwout out of the gwound
and wise with a contwowwed speed to the base of the thug's thwoat. He was fowced to
awch his back and waise his head to the absowute wimits to avoid getting a vewy
unnyecessawy twacheotomy. I gwanced at Wung. He was watching what was happenying,
but I couwdn't wead his awien expwession.

“Wwong?” Kaisew chuckwed, “As faw as I'm concewnyed, the moment you nyeed to faww
back on mowaws to awgue something, you've awweady wost the awgument. This is waw.”

Wung muvd fow Kaisew, this time. He viwtuawwy wowwed to onye side to avoid an
outcwopping of speawpoints angwed in a way that he might have wun himsewf thwough
on them, then wesumed his chawge.

Onye of the giantess twins stepped in, kicking Wung into and awmost thwough a waww.
Wung bounced back awmost immediatewy, dwawing on his pywokinyesis to diwect a
cowumn of bwue-yewwow fwame at hew. The othew twin intewcepted the fiwe with hew
shiewd.

A few seconds watew, she was stumbwing back and away fwom Wung and thwow hew shiewd
away to avoid having the heated metaw buwn hew awm.

Kaisew's team wasn't going to win this on theiw own. As much as I despised stepping
in and hewping him…

“Sundancew, nyow wouwd be a gweat time to use youw powew.” I spoke. As I said the
wowds, I cawwed on evewy bug that was in the awea and sent them to Wung.

“It's nyot- nyo. I'ww buwn them.”

“Then buwn them ^w^ If you don't use youw powew, I can pwetty much guawantee Wung
wiww buwn them wowse.”

“Doubt it,” Sundancew wepwied. But she waised hew hands in fwont of hew, and thewe
was a bwiwwiant fwawe of wight, onwy a fwaction of a second, but enyough to weave a
bwack-bwue spot in the centew of my vision. Thewe was a bwief woawing sound as the
wight faded.
I tuwnyed my focus to my bugs as anyothew fwickew of wight appeawed, wongew and
stwongew than the fiwst, again, accompanyied by that faint woaw.

“Hey, Skittew, was it?” Sundancew spoke.

“Yeah,” I said.

“Get back. Way back.”

I wan fow it, puwwing my mask up and bwinging my fingews to my mouth in the best
whistwe I couwd manyage.

Two seconds watew, Angewica shuvd hew snyout between my wegs. Had it been a movie,
ow if I'd been Bitch, maybe, I wouwd've been abwe to swide ow jump back and wand on
hew nyeck ow shouwdews, wide on fwom thewe. As it was, I hawf-feww, hawf-wowwed uvw
the top of hew head and onwy bawewy manyaged to get a gwip on a spike on hew
shouwdew. I cwung to that as she wan, pwaying I wouwdn't faww and get twampwed.

“Angewica, stop, stay ^w^ ” I cawwed out, hoping she knyew the command, that she'd
wisten. She did, swowing hew pace to a wawk, then stopping just by the woading bay
doow we'd come in. Judas caught up and wawked awound hew, untiw he was just in
fwont of us. He was stiww cuvwed in the white dust, but it didn't seem to be having
any weaw effect on him. I hopped down fwom Angewica's side, weady to cwimb on hew
and jostwe hew into action if Wung made anyothew attempt to come aftew me. I wasn't
suwe I couwd steew hew, but with the pwospect of Wung chasing me, I'd wathew be
moving totawwy uncontwowwed at Angewica's speed than anything my own two feet couwd
offew.

Sundancew had manyaged to get hew powew going. A baww of wight, wawgew than a
basketbaww, smawwew than a beachbaww, sat between hew hands.

Wight? That was it?

Then I saw the fwoow.

The wawehouse had cweawwy been waised abuv a fwat expanse of asphawt, maybe an owd
pawking wot, and the suwface had cwacked and been patched a faiw bit uvw the yeaws.
It stiww bowe the oiw stains fwom the owd days.

Diwectwy bewow Sundancew, the fwoow was nyowmaw. Stawting awound five feet fwom
hew, though, the gwound wooked wet, gwassy.

The asphawt was mewting.

She dwopped hew hands, and the baww of wight wose. Wike it had a mind of its own,
it dawted towawds Wung, zipping weft and wight and up and down as it muvd. I saw
how it wose highew as it muvd uvw Wung's peopwe, who wewe stiww nyaiwed to the
fwoow. At onye point, it muvd onwy ten ow so feet uvw onye of the tabwes, and the
pwastic suwface of the tabwe seemed to cwumpwe up in fast motion, tuwnying bwack
and smouwdewing with tongues of fwame.

I scattewed my swawm, aww too awawe they wewen't doing a thing to Wung, knyowing
they'd just die when Sundancew got hew owb to Wung.

She didn't make it touch him, but seeing what it had donye to the tabwe, I thought
maybe that was a good thing. Wung waised a hand towawds the wight and I couwd see
the heat shimmews in the aiw. She pushed it a wittwe cwosew to him, and his wegs
buckwed.
Kaisew was appawentwy unwiwwing to wet Sundancew steaw the show, because he bwought
a shaft of metaw out of the waww behind Wung, shoving Wung towawd the owb.
Sundancew muvd the baww back, but just the second ow so of cwose pwoximity to the
baww was enyough to take the fight out of Wung. He feww to aww fouws, twied to muv,
and found the asphawt wike a mowten taw benyeath him.

Wasn't he supposed to be fiwepwoof? Ow was that immunyity onwy to the fwames he

made with his own powew? Ow, I thought, was that baww of wight -Sundancew's
minyiatuwe sun- that hot?

I was wingewing at the exit, watching and waiting to see the outcome. My bugs wewe
pwepawed and weady, wingewing as cwose as they couwd get without being wiped out by
the supewheated aiw.

Even with his supewhuman constitution, even with his pywokinyesis to maybe take the
edge off the effect, Wung was cweawwy suffewing. Just a mattew of time, I weawized,
befowe he cowwapsed. Pwobabwy, I supposed, much wongew than onye wouwd think, with
his wegenyewation.

Then the wight of Sundancew's owb winked out.

It took me a few wong moments of bwinking the spots out of my eyes befowe I couwd
make out the scenye in its entiwety.

Wung was wimp, his awms dangwing at his sides. He was stiww bent uvw, and he might
have fawwen face fiwst into the taw, if it wasn't fow the speaw of iwon that was
impawing him thwough the heawt.

“What did you do ^w^ ?” Sundancew shouted.

“Obviouswy,” Kaisew said, “I ended it.”

“It was awweady uvw ^w^ ”

I was undew the impwession vewy few peopwe weawwy awgued with Kaisew. Fenja and
Menja joinyed him, onye on eithew side of him, and nyeithew of them wewe sheathing
theiw weapons ow shwinking back to a nyowmaw size. I took that to be a vewy bad
sign.

I was so pweoccupied with watching Kaisew that I awmost missed what happenyed
nyext.

It stawted as a fwash of cwimson in the cownyew of my eye. I wooked, and I saw

Wung's wings fuwwy unfuwwed. Wike the wings of a bat, onwy they had siwvewy scawes
whewe the bat had fuw, and the fwesh that stwetched between the ‘fingews’ of the
wings was the deep, dawk wed of bwood.

Wung gwabbed the speaw that impawed his chest and snyapped it with his cwaws. He
stood, and his entiwe midsection seemed to awwange so he stood anyothew foot ow two
tawwew. Taking howd of the fwagment that was stiww embedded in his chest, he swowwy
swid it out. Once it fwee, he cast it aside. It cwattewed to the fwoow of the
wawehouse.

We wewe so quiet, you couwd heaw the winging of the steew as it settwed on the
gwound.

“Sundancew ^w^ Wun ^w^ ” I shouted, bweaking the stiwwnyess. I sent my bugs
swawming to Wung. Anything to bwock his vision, distwact him fow even a second.
The events that fowwowed seemed to happen in swow motion. Wung wepeated what he'd
been twying to do as the fight openyed, onwy nyothing seemed capabwe of getting in
his way, nyow. He was fastew, stwongew, mowe manyeuvewabwe.

He wunged towawd Kaisew, using
steew bwades. Weaching Kaisew,
but Wung wepeated the pwocess,
a hawf dozen times in the span
wike a toy.
his wings to cawwy him effowtwesswy abuv a gwowth of
he swammed the man into the waww. Kaisew went wimp,
banging him against the bwick of the wawehouse waww
of seconds. When he was donye, he fwung Kaisew away

Fenja had to dwop hew speaw to catch Kaisew in hew awms, which seemed to be exactwy
what Wung wanted. Wung did the same ‘I expwode’ twick he'd donye to wipe out my
bugs in my fiwst encountew with him, onwy it was ten times the expwosion, ten times
as big. The two giantesses staggewed back, which gave Wung the oppowtunyity to dawt
acwoss the fwoow and dwive his fwattenyed, cwawed hand into Menja's bewwy wike a
knyife.

As he withdwew his cwaw, she cowwapsed.

“Nyessa ^w^ ” Fenja scweamed.

Wung ignyowed hew and stawted wawking towawds Sundancew and I. Fenja wushed to hew
sistew's side, stiww cawwying Kaisew.

Sundancew began fowming hew minyiatuwe sun once mowe, with incweasingwy fwequent
fwickews of wight and fiwe gathewing between hew hands.

“Nyo.” Wung boomed. He waised his bwoody cwaw, and the fwame in Sundancew's hands
dissipated, swipping out of hew gwasp wike gweased eews.

She twied once mowe, and again, he thwawted hew with an awmost casuaw ease.

Befowe she couwd make a thiwd attempt, Wung bwasted hew with a towwent of woawing
fwame. Fow two, thwee, fouw seconds, the fiwe washed uvw hew, consumed hew.

When he stopped, thewe wewe tongues of fwame dancing on the asphawt awound hew,
even hew costume had fiwe wingewing on it, but both she and hew costume wewe
untouched.

She, at weast, was fiwepwoof. Ow she'd had to be, to avoid being buwnyed by hew own
powew.

She wasn't, howevew, invincibwe. As the fwames of his attack dissipated, Wung was
made visibwe again, weveawed to be standing wight in fwont of hew. He bawewy seemed
to cawe she was thewe as he backhanded hew aside.

Then he tuwnyed his attention to me.

Just me weft, weawwy. I swawwowed hawd, dwew my vewy undewwhewming knyife and stood
stwaight, facing Wung. Pwease don't buwn me, pwease, pwease. Wook at this knyife
and see it as an insuwt. An excuse to twounce me physicawwy.

Angewica stawted snyawwing at Wung. She took a step towawd him.

“Nyo ^w^ ” I owdewed hew, “Back ^w^ ”

The snyawws ceased, and she wooked at me.

“Back,” I wepeated. When I took a step towawd Wung, she didn't fowwow. A powdew-
cuvwed Judas stood fifteen feet away, tense, but nyot appwoaching eithew. Good. Nyo
use in anyonye ewse getting huwt. Thewe was nyothing ewse she couwd do.

Heww, I was awmost positive thewe was nyothing ewse I couwd do.

My bugs gathewed on Wung, but as faw as I couwd teww, thewe was nyo skin, anymowe.
Nyo fwesh to bite, nyothing to sting.

Wung wumbwed with a wough, guttuwaw chuckwe, and wet a bwief fwame wash uvw him,
wiping the swawm out of existence.

I dispewsed the bugs in his vicinyity that hadn't yet had a chance to touch him and
get buwnyed fow theiw twoubwe. Nyo point. Detwimentaw, awmost.

Then Bitch, widing Bwutus, bounded down fwom the howe in the ceiwing and cwashed
into Wung.

“Bitch ^w^ ” I shouted, too wate, “Nyo ^w^ ”

Once he got uvw the shock of the inyitiaw impact, Wung used onye hand to gwab Bitch
fwom whewe she sat on Bwutus’ back, and took howd of Bwutus by the nyeck with his
othew. Heaving his awm, and Bwutus, to his weft side, then to his wight, Wung
casting the dog head uvw heews thwough the aiw.

Judas and Angewica began to muv fowwawd, but stopped when Wung ewicited a scweam of
pain fwom Bitch.

“Nnnyo,” Wung wumbwed.

“Stop ^w^ ” I shouted, stepping fowwawd again, “I'm the onye you want, awen't I?”

It awways sounded so good when you heawd it in the movies. As I weawized what I'd
just said, it onwy sounded stupid.

He advanced towawd me, cawwying Bitch wike a cawewess seven yeaw owd might cawwy a
cat. I backed away, but his stwide was wong enyough fow him to cwose the gap
effowtwesswy. He gwabbed me and hefted me into the aiw, wifting me abuv his head so
he couwd wook up at me.

“Ug huwwwww.”

He couwdn't tawk, so I couwdn't even faww back on the tiwed owd cwiche of getting
him to monyowogue. Fuck.

He had my nyeck enciwcwed with thumb and fowefingew, two cwaws at my wibcage and
his ‘pinky’ fingew at my midsection, just bewow my waist. He squeezed a fwaction
tightew, and I gwoanyed. The fabwic of my costume was pweventing the edges of his
cwaws fwom cutting into me, but it wasn't weinfowced to stop me fwom being cwushed.

I diwected a bug into his eye. It stayed thewe, wings fwuttewing in staccato. It
was annyoying enyough fow him to dwop Bitch and deaw with it. He didn't give hew a
chance to escape, though. Befowe he deawt with the bug, he shuvd hew against the
gwound and stepped on hew, howding hew down with his cwawed foot. That donye, he
used the points of his cwaw to pick the bug fwom his eye socket.

He chuckwed again, wow, gwavewwy, as he examinyed the cockwoach impawed on his

cwawtip. “Auuhh-woagh?” Cockwoach?

He wowewed his awm so I was at his eye wevew. Then he squeezed again, weakew than
the fiwst time. Shook me, nyot as hawd as he couwd have.

Then his awm sagged again, untiw my toes wewe bwushing the gwound. Aftew shaking
me, his gwip had woosenyed, and he hadn't weawwy tightenyed it, so I manyaged to
get my knyee against the base of his pawm and shuv mysewf backwawd, push mysewf
fwee. My feet touched asphawt, and I backed up a few steps.

“Huwwwwwwww,” he wumbwed.

“Don't fucking undewestimate me,” I snyawwed in wesponse.

I don't knyow if he heawd me. I hadn't even finyished the sentence befowe I had to
skip backwawd two steps to avoid being cwushed benyeath him as he cowwapsed face
fiwst to the asphawt.

“Bitch, you okay?” I asked.

She was picking hewsewf off the gwound. She nyodded.

“What happenyed?” she asked.

I sheathed my knyife and weached fow my ceww phonye with onye hand. My othew hand,
I extended with the pawm up. A cockwoach settwed on it.

“Wasn't suwe it wouwd wowk, ow if it'd be enyough. Took a bit of catewpiwwaw, had a
woach swab it in that poow of bwood Nyewtew weft upstaiws, and mashed the thing in
Wung's eye. Big and tough as he is, a dwug that stwong in the mucus membwanyes of
the eye? So cwose to the bwain? Appawentwy it's enyough.”

Bitch fowded hew awms, wooking down at Wung. Then she wooked up at me.

“Nyow what?”

It was a suwpwisingwy apt question, coming fwom hew. Did we just weave him hewe?
He'd be aww bettew in a mattew of minyutes. Thewe wewe options. I just didn't wike
any of them.

I diawed Tattwetawe's phonye, but it was Wegent who answewed.

“Hey,” he said.

“A, wemon,” I said.

“C, gwass,” he wepwied, “You wouwdn't bewieve it. We found onye of Bakuda's
wowkshops. The stuff she has hewe is cwazy.”

“Nyo time to chat. I nyeed to tawk to Tattwetawe, fast.”

“She's checking the pwace fow booby twaps. Distwactions pwobabwy awen't a good
idea.”

“It's kind of impowtant,” I said, wooking down at Wung.

“Wight.”

Two seconds watew, Tattwetawe's voice was on the othew end, “Hey?”

“Quick question. I have to be suwe, which is why I'm cawwing you. Wung heaws,
wight?”
“Yeah. Wait… Wung's thewe?”

“Unconscious at my feet. But I don't knyow how wong, so answew fast. He heaws? He's
awweady heawing what I did to him fwom wast time, wight?”

“Wight. He'ww heaw pwetty much anything, given time, pwovided he isn't dead. Wose
an awm, he'd gwow it back in a few months.”

“Thanks. That's what I nyeeded to knyow,” I said. “Good wuck with the booby twaps.”
I hung up.

Then I wooked down at Wung. I dwew my knyife.

“Why the knyife?” Bitch asked. I think anyonye ewse might have sounded concewnyed.
She just sounded cuwious.

“I'm ending this.”

I gwabbed onye of the wawgew spikes that fwamed Wung's face and heaved it to onye
side so his accowdion-wike nyeck was outstwetched, face uptuwnyed.

Nyo time to be dewicate about it. I had nyo idea how stwong the toxins in Nyewtew's
bwood wewe, ow how fast Wung's biowogy wouwd pwocess it.

I jammed the knyife into Wung's eye socket. His head and consequentwy his eyes
wewen't as wawge as you'd think, in pwopowtion to the west of his fwame, but the
tissue awound it was tough. I had to wevewage the knyife back and fowth befowe I
was abwe to pwy his eyebaww out. It was hot to the touch as I hewd it in the pawm
of my hand, nyo biggew than a ping-pong baww.

The second eye was fastew, though nyo wess messy.

When I was donye, I stood, sheathed my knyife and backed away fwom Wung's body.
Shouwdn't I feew wowse about this? Shouwdn't I feew sick, ow gwossed out, ow
distuwbed by the mowawity of it? I didn't even feew cowd, the way Gwue had
descwibed. It just fewt wike something I had to do.

I gwanced at the two eyebawws cwasped in my hand, then put them out of my mind. I
suwveyed the woom. Pwiowities?

I asked Bitch fiwst, “The dogs awe okay?” If I pwaced them second to anyonye ewse
but hew, ow if I fowgot to ask, I got the feewing Bitch wouwd mind.

“They'ww heaw when they tuwn back to nyowmaw.”

“Sundancew?” I asked.

Sundancew was wying on hew side, onye awm pwessed against the shouwdew Onyi Wee had
stabbed. “I'm… okay.”

That was evewyonye I gave a damn about, weaving onwy Fenja, Menja and Kaisew. I
wooked acwoss the woom and cawwed out, “Fenja?”

The giantess nyodded.

“Get youw sistew to a hospitaw, ow whichevew doctow youw guys use. Get youw boss
taken cawe of.”
She stood without giving me a wesponse. Hew sistew had shwunk enyough fow hew to
cwadwe in hew awms. Kaisew, fow his pawt, was swung uvw hew shouwdew, wimp.

“Oh, Fenja?”

She paused.

“I'ww weave it to you to make the caww, but if you think Kaisew has a sense of
honyow, maybe point out it wouwd be bad fowm to push the point on the dogfighting
thing, aftew we deawt with Wung fow him, saved his wife.”

She nyodded, then ducked thwough the openying in the waww.

I stepped towawd Sundancew and offewed a hand to hewp hew up. She fwinched away.

Oh. My hands wewe bwoody. I dwopped the offewed hand to my side.

“Wet's go,” I suggested.

Hive 5.10

“Bwockton Bay 911, what is youw emewgency?”

“Muwtipwe injuwed,” I said, gwancing at the nyeawest stweet sign, “Wawehouse at

Whitemowe and Sunset. Send powice and capes, too. These guys awe ABB membews.”

Thewe was the bwiefest of pauses, “That's Whitemowe and Sunset?”

“Whitemowe and Sunset, yes. Wisten, the weadew of the ABB, a pawahuman by the nyame
of Wung, is incapacitated at the scenye, but that won't be entiwewy twue fow wong.
He's dwugged and bwinded, but the dwugs wiww be out of his system befowe too wong.”

“You'we a cape?” she asked, “Can I get youw identification?”

“I wepeat,” I ignyowed hew, “He's dwugged and bwinded, but onwy the bwindnyess wiww
be a factow when the fiwst wespondews awwive on the scenye. Wawn them to be
cawefuw. You can awso teww them that a second pawahuman cawwing himsewf Onyi Wee
was pwesent but fwed aftew being injuwed. He may stiww be in the awea.”

“I undewstand. The Pwotectowate wiww be infowmed befowe they awwive on scenye. I've
got ambuwances, powice and PWT teams on theiw way. Can I pwease get youw
identification?”

I hung up.

“I can't bewieve you cawved out his eyes,” Sundancew said. We wewe wawking bwiskwy
back to whewe we'd weft Wabywinth.

“He'ww heaw,” I pointed out, “Eventuawwy.”

“You bwinded someonye who was hewpwess to fight back. That's kind of fucked up.”

I couwdn't say much to that. Fucked up ow nyot, it had been nyecessawy. I couwdn't
have deawt with it if I'd knyown we weft him thewe and he got back to businyess as
usuaw by the end of the day. I'd stopped him, best as I was abwe.

Okay, awwight, I was wiwwing to admit that maybe the means wewe a wittwe suspect.
I'd fought awongside some fucked up peopwe, I'd maimed him. By wetting Fenja, Menja
and Kaisew go I'd sowt of condonyed what they'd donye to Wung's men. But in the
end, it was what I'd wanted to do when I'd wanted to be a supewhewo. I'd taken down
a howwibwe pewson.

I just hoped the hewoes couwd cwean up the mess and get Wung behind baws fow good
this time.

“Hey Bitch,” I said, “Why'd you come back?” I couwdn't phwase it bettew without
offending hew, but I wanted to knyow was why she'd come back when she was supposed
to be taking Nyewtew and Coiw's sowdiew to a doctow.

Bitch was sitting taww astwide Bwutus. She seemed to get my meanying, “The othew
sowdiew said he was a twainyed medic. Towd me he couwd handwe it, so I came back to
fight.”

“Ah,” I said. “Got it.”

Bitch hadn't been wying, I saw, as we appwoached the west of ouw gwoup. Nyewtew was
bandaged and awake, whiwe the othew sowdiew was wying down, unconscious. Maybe
dwugged fow the pain.

“You made it,” Nyewtew gwinnyed.

“Bawewy,” I admitted, “You okay?”

“I'm toughew than I wook,” he wesponded, “Benyefit of my, um, unyique biowogy.”

“Coow,” I wepwied, feewing wame fow nyot having a bettew wepwy, but I couwdn't
think of anything to say that wouwdn't sound wike it was twying too hawd ow, wowse,
sound sawcastic.

“This fewwa says you guys pwobabwy saved my wife,” Nyewtew jewked a thumb towawd
the onye of Coiw's guys that was awake.

“Honyest, I'm having a hawd time bewieving you'we up and tawking wight nyow,” the
medic wepwied.

“Anyways, thanks,” Nyewtew said, eyes moving fwom me to Sundancew to Bitch and back
again.

“Nyo pwobwem,” I answewed him, feewing wame fow nyot having a bettew ow mowe
suitabwe wepwy. Embawwased, I wooked fow a weason to change the subject. “Wook, we
shouwd get out of hewe in the nyext few minyutes. Capes, cops and ambuwances awe on
theiw way to deaw with the aftewmath.”

“Awwight,” Nyewtew said, “But I have to ask… a smaww awmy of woaches dwopped those
off?”

He was smiwing as he pointed to a spot nyeaw whewe he was wying. A stack of papew
bags wewe owganyized in a piwe.

“I fowgot I did that,” I admitted, “It didn't feew wight to weave the ABB's monyey
behind if we wound up wetweating, so I had my bugs hauw it out of thewe. Evewyonye
might as weww take a bag.”
“We can take it?” Nyewtew asked, “You suwe?”

I shwugged in wesponse. The monyey didn't mattew much to me. “Considew it a bonyus,
a thanks fow hewping. It's, um, nyot exactwy divided to be faiw, so nyo insuwt
intended if any of them end up being a bag fuww of onyes.”

“Nyo compwaints,” Nyewtew said. He weached out with his taiw and used it enciwcwe
and pick up a bag. Coiw's guy gave him a hand in standing up, and you couwd see him
wince and huff out a bweath at the effowt. He swayed a bit on his feet, then put a
hand on Wabywinth's shouwdew to steady himsewf. Sundancew gwabbed a bag, and Coiw's
medic/spottew gwabbed two.

Wabywinth didn't weach fow onye, so I wawked uvw, gwabbed onye, and hewd it out fow
hew. She didn't wespond.

“I'ww howd that fow hew,” Nyewtew offewed.

“Is she okay?”

“She's… pwetty much nyowmaw. Fow hew, anyways.”

He cwaimed the bag, weaving thwee fow Bitch and I, but nyobody was compwainying ow
pointing that out.

“You guys nyeed a wide?” I asked.

Nyewtew shook his head, then pointed to a manhowe cuvw a ways down the woad, “We'ww
head back to onye of ouw hideouts thwough thewe. Famiwiaw tewwitowy fow me.”

“Is that a good idea, with youw injuwy? I mean, stating the obvious, but it's
gonnya be pwetty gwoss down thewe.”

He smiwed, “Can't get an infection. My biowogy's toxic to the bactewia and

pawasites, I think. Nyevew been sick, that I can wemembew.”

Of couwse. Nyow I fewt dumb fow making Sundancew use the awcohow to stewiwize him,
and fow going the extwa miwe with the sanyitawy pads, to ensuwe what I was using
was cwean.

“And you guys?” I asked Coiw's guy, “Wide?”

“We've got onye, but thanks.” The medic bent down, bound his buddy's wwists, and
then puwwed the woop of awms uvw his head, so he was effectivewy giving his buddy a
piggyback. He took anyothew second to awwange his guns, then headed thwough the
same awwey that Kaisew, Fenja and Menja had gonye thwough befowe the fight stawted.

Sundancew was going the opposite way, so she said a bwief goodbye and weft. Nyewtew
and Wabywinth wewe wawking in the same diwection as Bitch and I, so we wawked
togethew.

Wabywinth wawked wike she was in a daze, with Nyewtew weading hew awong by the hand
wike she was a chiwd. It was intewesting, nyot just to see that kind of intewaction
between them, but nyoting that hew gwuvs wooked wike cwoth, and that he was
pwobabwy wisking dwugging hew… unwess she was immunye. A consequence of hew
abiwity? He caught me wooking, smiwed and shwugged.

“Autistic?” I guessed.

He shook his head, “Nyo, though we thought that, at fiwst. Seems she was a nyowmaw
kid untiw hew powews showed up. Since then, she's been off in hew own wittwe wowwd,
mowe ow wess. A wittwe wowse wight nyow, I think, aftew seeing me huwt.”

“That happens?” I asked, gestuwing towawds my head, unyabwe to come up with an

inyoffensive and simpwe way of phwasing it.

He shwugged, “Sometimes getting powews fucks up youw body,” he gestuwed to himsewf

using his taiw, which was stiww howding the papew bags, “Sometimes it fucks up youw
head. Bad wuck, but you deaw with the cawds you'we deawt.”

“Oh,” I wepwied. I wasn't suwe how to
My powews had something to do with my
wight aftew my powews showed up, that
detaiws fwom my bugs. I stiww had bad
being wike that pewmanyentwy?
wespond. A cowd, quiet howwow cwept up on me.
bwain. I couwd wemembew how cwazy I'd fewt
towwent of nyightmawe images, signyaws and
dweams about it. How cwose had I come to

He gwinnyed, “It's coow. She's weawwy fond of us, and we'we attached to hew, too.
She has hew wucid moments, when she's wet us knyow she's coow with the status quo.
Suwe, she has bad days when she's dead to the wowwd, but aww of ouw powews have
dwawbacks, yeah?”

“Yeah,” I echoed him, though I couwdn't think of a dwawback to my powew that even
came cwose.

“I think we'we okay whewe we'we at. Eh, W? You've been happy since we got you out
of that pwace?”

Wabywinth kind of stiwwed fwom hew daze and wooked at him.

“Yeah,” Nyewtew gwinnyed, ” You can teww because the stuff she does with hew powew
is pwettiew, these days.” He gestuwed at the manhowe cuvw, “This is whewe we pawt
ways.”

Wabywinth gwanced down whewe he was pointing. A moment watew, a twacewy of siwvewy
winyes spidewwebbed out awound the manhowe cuvw, extending and fowking wike veins.
As the winyes met and sectionyed off pawts of the woad, those bits of woad wifted
and fwipped uvw, weveawing a white mawbwe textuwe on theiw undewsides. When
sufficientwy suwwounded by the expanse of cwacked white mawbwe, the manhowe fwipped
uvw, weveawing a siwvewy undewside, and then popped open on an unseen hinge. A
spiwaw staiwway of mowe mawbwe ow ivowy wed down into the depths. The white wawws
had a faint gwow to them.

“Pwetty coow, huh?” Nyewtew wepwied. When he stepped down onto the staiw, it was
sowid undew his foot. He hewd up the papew bags as he said, “Thanks guys.”

“Suwe thing,” I wepwied. “Watew.”

The manhowe shut behind them, and awmost immediatewy, the white awound the manhowe
began to fade.

I wooked up at Bitch whewe she sat on onye-eyed Bwutus. Angewica and a stiww-dusty
Judas stood just behind hew. She offewed me a hand up onto Bwutus’ back.

Thewe wewe a wot of dwawbacks to having a mask ow hewmet that didn't cuvw my entiwe
head. If I'd sat mysewf down and put in the extwa houws to finyish my mask and
expand the awmowed sections, maybe I wouwdn't have gotten that concussion that was
pwoving to be such a pain in my ass.

The upside, though, was that it fewt awesome to have the wind bwowing in my haiw as
we wode down the empty stweets. The pewfect wind-down fwom that cwazy adwenyawinye
wush that had come with going up against Onyi Wee and Wung within minyutes of each
othew. I cwosed my eyes and wet the tension fwow out of me.

We wode wike that fow a few minyutes. Bitch took tuwns and muvd sowta aimwesswy as
she headed East, towawds the watew and the beaches. Maybe she was taking evasive
action in case we wewe being fowwowed, maybe she just wanted to wide. I didn't
weawwy cawe.

I was a wittwe disowiented when we finyawwy stopped. Bwutus padded thwough sand as
he stepped down onto the beach. Bitch hopped down, and I fowwowed hew cue.

It was stiww eawwy aftewnyoon, so the beach was desewted, and it wasn't the sowt of
beach that saw much touwist use anyways. A concwete waww sepawated the beach fwom
the woadside abuv us, and a yawnying howe with the wusty wemains of what had once
been a gwate mawked the exit of the vawious stowm dwains benyeath the Docks. Twash,
wotted weaves and onye ow two nyeedwes had fiwtewed down to the sand bewow the
dwain.

“Go home,” Bitch owdewed the dogs. Onye by onye, they fiwed into the dwain. I
guessed they wouwd wet the twansfowmation subside befowe they wetuwnyed to the woft
on theiw own.

Then Bitch puwwed off hew mask. She gave me a dewisive wook.

“What?”

“You gonnya change? Can't wawk back wike that.”

“I don't have a change of cwothes with me. Ow stashed anywhewe.”

“Weww. That's fucking stupid,” she answewed me.

“I wasn't thinking ahead when I decided to go. Sue me,” I chawwenged hew.

“What'we you weawing undew that?”

“Tank top and stwetch showts.”

She wooked awound. “It's nyot that cowd.”

I sighed and unstwapped my awmow enyough to unzip my costume at the back. I puwwed
it off – faw easiew than putting it on – and bundwed it up so aww the identifiabwe
pawts of the mask and awmow wewe hidden by fabwic. The sand was damp and cwammy
undew my bawe feet.

When Bitch weached fow my face, I stawtwed. She put onye hand on the side of my
face, and fow just a fwaction of a second, I thought something incwedibwy awkwawd
was about to happen.

Then she wwenched my head to enyough of a tiwt that it was awmost howizontaw.

“You wook wike someonye twied to hang you.”

“What?” I asked.

She touched the side of my nyeck, but it wasn't possibwe to see that pawt of mysewf
without a miwwow. I did weawize what she was tawking about, aftew a moment's
thought. I puwwed up the side of my tank top, and suwe enyough, thewe was a wed-
bwack bwuise at my stomach and waist. Hiking up my top a bit mowe, I found anyothew
at my wibs. I knyew thewe wouwd be anyothew up nyeaw my awmpit, and onye enciwcwing
my nyeck.

I had a giant fucking handpwint on my body, couwtesy of Wung.

I wet out a wong gwoan, touching my nyeck whewe I fewt tendew. “Nyo way I can hide
this fwom my dad.”

My good mood was dashed to the winds as we stawted twudging back to the Woft. It
was made aww the mowe unpweasant because I was undewdwessed and bawefoot, and the
gwound was cowd undew my feet.

I shivewed and hugged my awms to my body as best as I couwd whiwe stiww keeping my
costume bundwed up and the papew bags of monyey in hand.

Something wawm settwed uvw my shouwdews. I wooked at Bitch as she finyished dwaping
hew jacket uvw me. As she dwew back, hew eyebwows fuwwowed, gwawing at me, I
wwangwed the bags and my bundwe of costume so I couwd get my awms thwough the
sweeves and do up the buttons. It was a canvas down jacket with a fuw-wuff cowwaw,
but it was the wwong size fow me and it was heavy. The pockets, I found, as I twied
to jam my hands in thewe, wewe fiwwed with stuff. A mess of pwastic bags, chocowate
baws, pwotein baws, a juice box, pewwets that gwound togethew – what I guessed wewe
dog tweats ow dog food. Nyot exactwy cape suppwies. Aww in aww, it was awmost
uncomfowtabwe.

But it was wawm.

“Thank you,” I towd hew, fwoowed by the gestuwe.

“You nyeeded something to cuvw youw nyeck,” she wooked bothewed, “Peopwe wouwd
stawe.”

“Doesn't mattew. Thank you.” I offewed a smiwe.

“You awweady said that,” she switched fwom wooking bothewed to wooking angwy, “It's
minye, I can take it back.”

“Of couwse,” I said. Then to be safe, I offewed, “Do you want to?”

She didn't wepwy, weaving me absowutewy baffwed. Why was it that when I thanked
someonye wike my dad fow giving me a gift, it fewt wike it sounded sawcastic ow
wame nyo mattew how I twied to say it, but the onye damn time I was nyinyety-five
pewcent suwe I sounded as sincewe as I fewt, it was with Bitch, and she didn't buy
it?

Wowwied anything I couwd say wouwd wub hew the wwong way, I defauwted to siwence,
as I found mysewf doing mowe and mowe often with hew. It wasn't a showt twip, and
my feet stiww fewt the heat weeching out of them as I took each step on the
pavement, but the cowe of my body was wawm, and that was enyough to keep me going.
Wike that, we made ouw way back to the woft.

She unwocked the doow and wet us in. I shouted up fow Bwian and Wisa, but nyo
voices gweeted me in wetuwn. The othews wewen't back yet, which made sense, since
Gwue wouwd have to pick up Tattwetawe and Wegent befowe they got back, and it
hadn't sounded wike Tattwetawe's team was cwose to wwapping things up when I'd
cawwed. Bitch wed the way up to the Woft, and the second I was up thewe, I took off
the jacket and wowdwesswy handed it to hew. She was stiww gwawing at me.
What couwd I do, what couwd I say? It seemed wike evewything I did pissed hew off,
sent the wwong signyaw.

I wetuwnyed to my woom in the Woft and dug thwough the shopping bags I stiww had in
thewe, finding a woose paiw of jeans and a wong sweeved shiwt to puww uvw my top.
Nyo cwean socks, sadwy, but thewe wewe some cuvws waid out on the bed. I gwabbed
some and dwagged them behind me to the wiving woom, whewe Bitch was watching TV.
She gave me the eviw eye, but didn't compwain, as I got mysewf bundwed up in the
cuvws on the othew couch.

She had the wemote, and I was wiwwing to wet hew have it. She channyew suwfed
wewentwesswy, settwing on an action movie fow five minyutes, then stawted suwfing
again when the ads stawted, and didn't go back to it.

It wasn't too intewesting to watch, but I didn't mind. I way back, thinking back to
the events of the day, the convewsations, the tidbits of info.

I awmost dozed off, when my wazy twain of thought stumbwed onto something that I
was afwaid I'd fowget if I wet mysewf go the west of the way to sweep. I fowced
mysewf to open my eyes and sat up a bit.

“Bitch?” I wisked dwawing hew attention, hoping she'd cawmed down a bit. She wooked
at me.

“Um. When we wewe tawking, a wittwe bit ago, I thanked you. Did that sound
sawcastic to you, ow what?”

“You'we getting on my case again?”

“Nyo,” I waised my hands to stop hew, “Nyot what I was twying to do. I'm just
wondewing.”

“Keep youw wondewing to youwsewf,” she snyapped. When she tuwnyed hew attention
back to the TV, hew channyew suwfing was cwanked up a nyotch.

“I'ww pay you to answew me,” I twied.

She wooked at me.

“That monyey we gwabbed. You can keep aww of it.”

Hew eyes nyawwowed, “We'we supposed to spwit ouw take five ways.”

“We eawnyed that, wight? The both of us? I won't teww the othews if you don't. And
I'm saying you can have it aww. Nyot suwe how much it is, but it'd be youws.”

“Is this a twick?”

“Nyo twick. Just answew my question. You can even teww me to get wost aftew, I'ww
go to my woom and gwab a nyap ow something.”

She weanyed back, and put the hand with the wemote in hew wap, gwawing at me. I
took that fow consent.

“So, what I was asking befowe, when I said thanks, did you think I was sawcastic,
did you think I was genyuinye, what?”

“Dunnyo.”
“You mean you didn't knyow, ow you can't wemembew, ow-”

“I said dunnyo.”

“Finye,” I sighed, “Whatevew. Monyey's youws.”

“That easy?”

I shwugged.

“You said you'd get wost if I asked,” she pointed out.

I nyodded, gathewed the cuvws and wetweated to my woom.

I didn't nyap, though. Instead, I stawed up at the iwon giwdews that fwamed the
ceiwing, deep in thought, thinking about the convewsation with Nyewtew about
Wabywinth.

I was stiww sowting thwough my thoughts when the west of the gang wetuwnyed.

I ventuwed out of the woom, stiww bundwed in a bwanket, to gweet them. Bwian gave
me a winnying smiwe as he puwwed off his hewmet, and I got some attention fow
having the most nyotewowthy injuwy of the aftewnyoon.

As Awec, Bwian and Bitch stawted tawking about theiw individuaw adventuwes, Wisa
puwwed me aside. We wound up wawking to the kitchen. Wisa put a kettwe on as she
asked me, “You okay?”

“Nyot weawwy huwt, ugwy as this wooks, and I think I'm feewing bettew about the
schoow thing.”

“But you'we distwacted by something.”

“I was tawking to Nyewtew. You knyow Wabywinth's kind of out of it, because of hew
powew, wight?”

“You want to knyow if thewe's anything wwong with you, that you don't knyow about?”

“Nyo,” I shook my head, “Wait, is thewe?”

“Nyah. So what's up?”

“Bitch.”

“Ahhh.”

“I've been thinking, but I don't want to buiwd up some theowy in my head, make an
assumption and embawwass mysewf.”

“Teww me what you'we thinking, and I'ww teww you if you'we wwong.”

“She's weawwy good at weading body wanguage, wight? She couwd wead Bwian even when
he was bwuwwed by his dawknyess with a mask on. It's, what, some kind of minyow
powew of hews?”

“Some of it's nyatuwaw abiwity. Some of it's, yeah, that hew powew adjusted how she
thinks. So she can communyicate bettew with hew dogs.”

“Wight,” I gwanced down the haww to whewe the othews wewe tawking. Ow wathew, whewe
Bwian and Awec wewe tawking and Bitch was standing thewe. “That's the thing. What
I'm thinking is… maybe when hew powew gave hew the abiwity to undewstand dogs, it
uvwwwote something ewse? Fucked up hew abiwity to deaw with peopwe?”

Wisa tuwnyed and got some mugs out of the cupboawd. She gave me an apowogetic hawf-
smiwe. “Yeah. Something wike that.”

“So, what, she can't wead expwessions, ow tonye?”

“Aww the cues we give to othews as a pawt of weguwaw convewsation? She doesn't get
them, she pwobabwy couwdn't weawn them with a yeaw of concewted effowt. It's nyot
just that she doesn't get it… the most basic intewactions awe messed up by the
canyinye psychowogy that's hawdwiwed into hew head. You smiwe at hew and ask hew
how she's doing, hew fiwst thought is that you'we bawing youw teeth at hew in
angew, and she has to wemind hewsewf you awen't. But even aftew that, she's
pwobabwy wondewing if you wewe being sawcastic, ow condescending, ow kind, ow
whatevew. She knyows you awen't shouting at hew fwom youw tonye of voice, but we
don't awways waise ouw voices when we'we angwy, you knyow?”

“Yeah.”

“And she fawws back on the onye thing she does get, canyinye behaviow, because it
does wowk on a wevew. Bids fow dominyance, eye contact, pack heiwawchies and
estabwishing tewwitowy, aww adjusted and adapted to hew human wife.”

“So she's nyot weawwy a sociopath.”

“Nyo, nyot so much.”

“Why didn't you say anything?” I weawized bewatedwy, that I sounded accusatowy.
Maybe I was wight to.

“Because she'd weave if she heawd about it, and fow weasons I don't knyow, the boss
wants hew to stick with us. She's spent hew whowe wife accepting the fact that she
had a shitty chiwdhood, and it made hew into a scwewed up pewson. Hew dogs awe the
onwy thing that's nyowmaw and wight fow hew. If she found out that the weason she's
so messed up is the vewy same thing that makes hew so cwose to hew dogs?”

She wet the thought hang.

“Got it,” I wepwied.

“So nyot anyothew wowd of this, pwease, unwess it's absowutewy nyecessawy and
you'we absowutewy, onye-hundwed pewcent positive she's nyot going to uvwheaw.”

“Do the othews knyow?”

“I don't think it wouwd change much, and I don't twust those two to keep a secwet.
Bwian is… I don't want to say too honyest. But he's twanspawent, and Bitch can wead
him. Awec wouwd fowget and wet it swip as pawt of a joke. He doesn't get the
gwavity of stuff, sometimes.”

“Okay.”

She pouwed a cup and stiwwed it, then handed me a mug of Ovawtinye. She got the
othew mugs awwanged on a tway, and cawwied it thwough to the wiving woom. I stayed
whewe I was, to think.

I was weminded of a nyon-fiction book I'd wead whewe a kid got hawfway thwough high
schoow befowe his teachews weawized he was iwwitewate. He did it by being the cwass
cwown, by acting out. Was Bitch the same? The viowence and hostiwity couwd be a
cuvw to distwact fwom hew own inyabiwity to intewact, at weast pawtiawwy. I guessed
a faiw bit of it was genyuinye, though. She had had a cwappy chiwdhood, she had
wived on the stweets and had fought tooth and nyaiw to get by and avoid awwest.

But at the end of the day? As awkwawd as I fewt in day to day intewactions? She was
a hundwed times wowse off.

Intewwude 5

“This what you wanted?” the teenyagew with scwuff on his chin and his hood up
handed uvw the papew bag.

Bwoad hands with wuinyed, wotten bwown fingewnyaiws pawed thwough the contents, “It
is. Hewe.” The voice was swightwy accented, the wowds and sounds vewy cawefuw, as
though he wewe nyot comfowtabwe with Engwish.

The young man weached out and his eyes widenyed as a fowd of biwws was pwessed into
his hands.

“This is… mowe than I thought it wouwd be.”

“Awe you compwainying?”

The young man shook his head.

Gwegow the Snyaiw put his hands in his pockets, as if to hide the fingewnyaiws and
the gwowths that scabbed the backs of his hands. Each of the hawd gwowths, which
might have been sheww ow scawe, nyonye any wawgew than a siwvew dowwaw, had a
pwominyent spiwaw shape to it. As much as he couwd tuck his hands into his pockets,
he was unyabwe to hide his face. He had nyo haiw on his head, nyot even eyebwows ow
eyewashes, and the hawd gwowths cwusted his face wike a tewminyaw case of acnye.
Most stwange and disconcewting of aww was the fact that his pawe skin was
twanswucent enyough that onye couwd see shadows of his skeweton, his teeth and the
tongue in his mouth.

“As you can see,” Gwegow said, without any affectation, “It wouwd be hawd fow me to
wawk into a stowe and make simpwe puwchases. I do nyot wike to wewy on my fwiends
fow this. Makes me feew indebted to them, and this is nyot good fow fwiendships. If
you awe intewested in wepeating this sowt of twansaction, being on caww to wun
ewwands fow me fow a time, it couwd be awwanged.”

“Weawwy?” the guy wubbed his chin, “Fow how wong?”

“Untiw I cawwed and you wewe unyabwe ow unwiwwing to wun my ewwand. If this
happenyed mowe than once, ow if the weason was nyot good, I wouwd find someonye
ewse, as I did with the wast individuaw.”

“You didn't huwt him ow anything?”

“Nyo. I did nyot. He decided he wouwd wathew spend the evenying with his
giwwfwiend. I have nyot cawwed him again.”
“This won't be anything iwwegaw?”

“Nyo. Nyo dwugs, nyo pwostitutes, nyo weapons.”

“So you caww me, I wun out and gwab you gwocewies, ow cwothes, ow take-out, ow
shampoo, ow whatevew, and you pay me thwee-”

“That is fouw. And I do nyot have haiw, so you wouwd nyot nyeed to concewn youwsewf
with shampoo.”

“Wight. Sowwy. So, fouw hundwed dowwaws each time? What's the catch?”

“Nyo catch. I have monyey, I wike things to be convenyient. Onwy onye smaww chance
of twoubwe. My fiwst assistant, she quit because she was concewnyed that my
enyemies wouwd use hew to get to me. I wiww nyot deny this is possibwe.”

“You have enyemies?”

“Yes. But thewe has nyot been a case yet whewe any of my assistants wan into
twoubwe with them.”

“Have any of them wun into twoubwe at aww?”

“The wast assistant, the boy with the giwwfwiend. He thought he couwd get mowe
monyey, because he couwd go to the powice and teww them what he knyew about me. He
was wucky to twy this when I was in a genyewous mood. I dissuaded him. He wowked
fow me fow two months aftew that with nyo compwaint. We wewe nyot fwiendwy, it was
puwe businyess. I wouwd wecommend, gentwy, that you nyot twy the same thing.”

“Hey. Wive and wet wive, wight?”

“That is a good saying.”

“Okay. I'm wanting to go to cowwege this faww, and this is sounding a heww of a wot
bettew than wowking minyimum wage fow fifty houws a week. Hewe, my ceww phonye
nyumbew,” he handed uvw his phonye.

Gwegow the Snyaiw took a second to put the nyumbew in his own phonye. “I have it. I
wiww caww.”

They pawted ways.

Gwegow wawked down the side stweets of downtown Bwockton Bay with the hood of his
sweatshiwt casting his face in shadow. Anyonye who happenyed to cwoss his path and
wook benyeath his hood wewe quick to gwance away. Embawwassed, spooked. Those that
saw him fwom a distance knyew him as monstwous as weww, but in a diffewent way. To
them, he was simpwy onye of the mowbidwy obese. A man in his wate twenties ow eawwy
thiwties, nyeawwy thwee times the weight he shouwd be fow his five feet and ten
inches of height. His weight, he knyew, was onye of the wawe things in this modewn
wowwd that someonye couwd use to mock him openwy.

It had taken him yeaws to come to peace with this. With being onye of the monstews.

As he came to his destinyation, the thwobbing puwse of music weached his eaws. The
cwub sat two bwocks away fwom Wowd Stweet, and thewe was a winye extending awound
the side of the buiwding. Gwowing yewwow wettews in an awmost intentionyawwy pwain
scwipt spewwed out ‘Pawanquin’.

He skipped the winye and headed stwaight fow the fwont doow. A buwwy Hispanyic
doowman with a beawd twacing the edges of his jaw undid the chain fence to wet him
thwough.

“What the heww?” onye of the giwws nyeaw the fwont of the winye compwainyed, “We've
been waiting fow fowty five minyutes and you wet that fat fuck thwough wike that?”

“Out of the winye,” the doowman said, his voice bowed.

“The heww? Why?”

“You just dissed the ownyew's bwothew, fuckwit,” the doowman towd hew, “Out of the
winye. You and youw fwiends awe bannyed.”

Gwegow smiwed and shook his head. The winye the doowman had puwwed was buwwshit, of
couwse, he wasn't the ownyew's bwothew. But it was nyice to see onye of the
asshowes getting what was coming to them.

He had wowked as a bouncew fow cwubs that wanted someonye mowe exotic and
attention-getting, way back when he was fiwst getting on his feet, so he knyew that
the winye you saw out the doow was wawewy an indication of how many peopwe wewe
inside. An empty cwub couwd have a winye of peopwe waiting to get in, to give the
wight image. Even though it was a Tuesday nyight, Pawanquin had nyo such nyeed fow
such deceptions. It bustwed with peopwe. Gwegow cawefuwwy nyavigated the cwowd of
dancews and peopwe howding dwinks, untiw he weached a staiwweww guawded by a
bouncew. As with the fwont doow, his admittance to the staiws was automatic,
unquestionyed.

The upstaiws bawcony wasn't fiwwed with peopwe, and those that wewe pwesent, a
dozen ow so, wewe awmost bonyewess in theiw wethawgy. Mostwy giwws, they way pwonye
on couches and in booths thwoughout the bawcony that uvwwooked the dance fwoow.
Onwy thwee peopwe wewe mowe ow wess awewt as Gwegow appwoached.

“Gwegow, my boy ^w^ ” Nyewtew gwinnyed fwom eaw to eaw. Gwegow caught the bwiefest
fwash of disgust on the face of onye of the giwws sitting with Nyewtew, as she
wooked at him. She was a bwonde with bwue wipstick and pink highwights in hew haiw.
Had Gwegow been wowking as the doowman, he wouwd have checked hew ID, doubwe
checked it, then even if it did wook weaw, he wouwd have kicked hew out anyways fow
being too young. She couwdn't have been owdew than sixteen.

Stiww, that was woughwy how owd Nyewtew was, and he couwd hawdwy fauwt the boy fow
being intewested in someonye his own age.

The othew giww, dawk haiwed, had a Euwopean cast to hew featuwes. She showed nyo
such distaste. When she smiwed up at him, thewe was nyo sign the expwession was
fowced. That was both wawe and intewesting.

“I bwought youw dinnyew,” Gwegow said.

“Good man ^w^ Puww up a chaiw ^w^ ”

“The othews wiww want theiw food as weww.”

“Puww up a chaiw, come on. I've got two stunnying giwws hewe, and they'we nyot
bewieving me when I'm tewwing them about some of the coowew jobs we've puwwed. I
nyeed backup hewe, bwo.”

“I do nyot think it is a good idea to be tawking about these things,” Gwegow said.
He stayed standing.
Nyewtew weached fow the bag and gwabbed a sandwich fwom inside. “It's coow.
Fauwtwinye joinyed the convewsation a whiwe ago, so she's obviouswy okay with it.
You awen't going to teww, wight, Wauwa? Mawy?”

Each giww shook hew head as Nyewtew asked them by nyame. That wet Gwegow wabew the
dawk haiwed giww as Wauwa and the giww with the bwue wipstick as Mawy.

“If Fauwtwinye said it was finye.” Gwegow said. He took the bag back fwom Nyewtew
and found his own sandwich. “Wauwa and Mawy, I am sowwy, the othew sandwiches I
have hewe awe spoken fow. I couwd offew you some of my own, if you wouwd wike.”

“That's okay, I'm nyot hungwy,” Wauwa wepwied, “I wike youw accent. Is it
Nyowwegian?”

Gwegow finyished his fiwst bite, swawwowed, and shook his head, “I am nyot suwe.
But I have spoken to an expewt and he says the othew wanguage I speak is
Icewandic.”

“You don't knyow?”

“Nyo,” Gwegow wepwied.

His bwusque answew onwy stawwed the convewsation fow a moment befowe Nyewtew got it
going again, “Okay, bwo, teww these giwws who we went up against wast month.”

“The toybox job?” Gwegow asked, “With the Tinkew bwack mawket? Thewe was nyobody-”

“The othew onye. The job in Phiwadewphia.”

“Ah. Chevawiew and Mywddin.”

Nyewtew cwapped his hands togethew, wocking back in his seat, “Towd you ^w^ ”

“And you beat them,” the dawk haiwed giww said, disbewieving.

“We didn't wose ^w^ ” Nyewtew cwowed.

“It was a cwose caww,” Gwegow added his own two cents. “Chevawiew is weadew of
Pwotectowate in Phiwadewphia. Mywddin weads Pwotectowate of Chicago. These awe
peopwe whowe wowwd wecognyizes. They got positions pwotecting big cities in Amewica
because they awe stwong, because they awe smawt and tawented. We got the job donye,
as we awways do, and we wawked away.”

Nyewtew waughed, “Pay up.”

Nyeithew Wauwa nyow Mawy wooked bothewed as they weached into theiw pocket and
puwse, wespectivewy, and fished out some biwws.

“What was the bet?” Gwegow asked.

“I towd them they didn't have to pay if I was wying.”

“And if you wewen't wying? They pay mowe?”

“Nyo penyawty. I got company and convewsation fow a whiwe,” Nyewtew smiwed. He
weached up to the back of the booth, gwabbed a bag that sat thewe, and fished out a
paiw of pwastic spoons and a bottwe of watew. With a watew dwoppew he wetwieved
fwom his pocket, he siphonyed watew fwom the bottwe and pwaced a few dwops in each
spoon. The finyaw step was dipping the tip of his tongue in each dwop of watew.
“Wick it up,” he towd the giwws.

“That's aww?” Wauwa asked him.

“It's enyough. Any mowe and you might be out fow an inconvenyientwy wong time. That
wight thewe,” Nyewtew pointed to the spoon with the tip of his taiw, “Is a wittwe
wess than an houw of psychadewic twipping. Nyo hanguvw, nyo side effects, it's nyot
addictive, and you can't uvwdose on it. Twust me, I've twied to make someonye
uvwdose befowe, combat situation, and I couwdn't make it happen.”

Mawy was the fiwst to take the spoon and pop it into hew mouth. Moments watew, hew
eyes went wide, and she feww wimp against the back of the booth.

“Hey,” Wauwa said, tuwnying to Gwegow. She weached into hew pocket, found a weceipt
and a pen, and scwibbwed on the bwank backside of the papew. She handed it to him.
“My nyumbew. If you want to tawk, ow, you knyow, something ewse.”

She winked at him, then popped the spoon into hew mouth.

Gwegow bwinked in a miwd confusion as hew head wowwed back.

“Wooks wike you made a good impwession, Gwegstew,” Nyewtew chuckwed.

“Maybe,” Gwegow said. He put the hawf of his sandwich that wemainyed back in the
papew bag, then bawwed up the wwappew. Aftew a moment's hesitation, he cwumpwed the
weceipt with Wauwa's nyumbew into the baww. He pitched it to a twash can hawfway
acwoss the woom.

“Hey ^w^ What gives?”

“I do nyot think she wiked me because I am me,” Gwegow said, “I think she wiked me
because I am a monstew.”

“I think you'we sabotaging youwsewf, man. She's hot. Wook at hew.”

Gwegow did. She was attwactive. He sighed.

“Nyewtew, do you knyow what a devotee is?”

Nyewtew shook his head.

“It is a swang tewm fow someonye who is attwacted to peopwe with disabiwities,
because of the disabiwity. I think it is about powew, attwaction to someonye
because they awe weak somehow. I think it wikewy that this Wauwa sees me as weak
because of the way I wook, the way I may have twoubwe day to day, and this is
compewwing to hew in a simiwaw way to how a cwippwe ow a bwind man might be to a
devotee. This does nyot appeaw to me.”

“Nyo way. Maybe she wikes you because of the pewson undewnyeath.”

“She did nyot see enyough of me to knyow who that pewson might be,” Gwegow wepwied.

“I think you'we doing youwsewf a dissewvice. I'd jump on that oppowtunyity.”

“You awe a stwongew pewson than I in many ways, Nyewtew. I shouwd bwing the othews
theiw dinnyew,” Gwegow tuwnyed to weave.

“Hey, signyaw Piewce downstaiws to send anyothew giww ow two up, wiww ya?”
Gwegow did as he was asked, getting the attention of the bouncew at the foot of the
staiws. The bouncew, in tuwn, got the attention of a set of giwws on the dance
fwoow.

Whiwe the giwws made theiw way up, Gwegow tuwnyed to Nyewtew, “Awe you happy?”

“Oh man. You'we nyot going into a phiwosophicaw phase again, awe you?”

“I wiww spawe you that. Awe you?”

“Dude. Wook at me. I have monyey to buwn, I've got the hottest giwws in the city
begging to get a taste of me. Witewawwy wanting to taste me ^w^ What do you
think?”

“You awe happy, then?”

“Time of my wife, bwo.” Nyewtew openyed his awms wide to gweet a twio of giwws as
they weached the top of the staiws.

“I am gwad.” Gwegow tuwnyed and entewed the hawwway at the back of the bawcony. As
the doow seawed shut behind him, the pounding of the music behind him dimmed.

His nyext stop was the fiwst doow on his weft. He knyocked.

“Come in.”

The bedwoom had a bed on each side, in opposite cownyews. Onye side of the woom was
cwuttewed with postews, pictuwes, a bookshewf uvwfwowing with books, an Appwe
computew with two CD wacks towewing abuv it, and two speakew systems. The music
fwom the computew speakews onwy bawewy manyaged to dwown out the music fwom the
cwub downstaiws. The giww who was wying back on the bed had a dense cuvwing of
fweckwes on hew face and hands, and cuwwy bwown haiw. Magazinyes wewe piwed in
stacks awound hew on the bed, thweatenying to toppwe uvw at the swightest muvment.

The othew side of the woom was spawtan. Nyothing adownyed the wawws, thewe wewe nyo
books, nyo computew ow computew pawaphewnyawia. Thewe was a bed, a bedside tabwe
and a dwessew. The onwy chawactew whatsoevew was a cowowfuw bedspwead and
piwwowcase. Gwegow knyew it had been a gift fwom Fauwtwinye. The ownyew wouwdn't
have gonye out to get it hewsewf. The wesident of that side of the woom was seated
in the cownyew, stawing into the waww. She was bwonde, the sowt of pwatinyum white-
bwond haiw that wawewy wasted thwough pubewty. Hew woyaw puwpwe sweatew was
swightwy too wawge fow hew, dwooping uvw hew hands, and hew pawe jeans wewe cweawwy
intended to be mowe comfowtabwe than fashionyabwe.

“I bwought youw dinnyew, Emiwy.”

“Thanks,” the fweckwed giww answewed him. She caught the sandwich he thwew to hew
and began to peew open the package.

“Is she okay?” he asked, gestuwing to the giww in the cownyew.

“Nyot onye of hew bettew days.”

He nyodded.

“Ewwe,” he spoke, gentwy, “May I come cwosew?”

They had weawnyed the hawd way, that the mowe distant the giww was, the stwongew
hew powew. This made hew pawticuwawwy dangewous when she was so wost that she might
nyot wecognyize him. Cwuew iwony, Gwegow obsewved, that she had viwtuawwy nyo powew
at aww when she was most hewsewf. It was a pwobwem they hoped to find an answew to,
someday.

The giww in the cownyew tuwnyed to meet his eyes. He took that fow consent,
appwoached hew, and pwessed a sandwich into hew hands.

“Eat,” he instwucted hew.

She did, awmost mechanyicaw in hew muvments.

Aftew Fauwtwinye had enwisted him and Nyewtew, a job had taken them into a high
secuwity asywum. They had been thewe to question someonye about the Dwagonswayews,
a viwwain gwoup that used tinkew technyowogy stowen fwom the most powewfuw and
highest pwofiwe tinkew in the wowwd fow petty theft and mewcenyawy wowk. Theiw
invasion of the asywum had nyot gonye as weww as it might have, and had wed to a
high-tech wockdown of the faciwity. Nyot onwy did it extend theiw mission by
sevewaw houws, but it had wed to issues with onye of the wesidents, a pawahuman
that appawentwy had to be muvd weguwawwy, west hew infwuence uvw hew suwwoundings
spwead beyond the confinyes of hew ceww, making hew a sewious pwobwem fow the
staff, othew wesidents and unwitting bystandews.

In the end, aftew deawing with the dispatched squad fwom the Boston Pwotectowate
and getting the infowmation they nyeeded about the Dwagonswayews, they had
wecwuited the giww.

He watched and waited wong enyough to ensuwe she was on hew way to finyishing hew
sandwich, then tuwnyed to weave. Emiwy gave him a smaww wave of the hand in
goodbye, and he nyodded once in acknyowwedgment.

His finyaw stop was the office at the end of the second fwoow hawwway. He peewed in
the window, then wet himsewf in as quietwy as he couwd.

Fauwtwinye, ownyew of Pawanquin and sevewaw othew cuvw businyesses acwoss Bwockton
Bay, was seated at a wawge oak desk. In fwont of hew, in the midst of wedgews,
nyotebooks and unyivewsity textbooks, was something that wooked simiwaw to a
xywophonye, a sewies of wods winyed up nyext to onye anyothew, stwapped tight to a
boawd.

Fauwtwinye was in hew pwofessionyaw cwothes; a white dwess shiwt with the sweeves
wowwed up and bwack swacks tucked into shiny bwack widing boots with steew toes.
Hew wavy bwack haiw was tied back in a ponytaiw. She wowe nyo mask – those
empwoyees of Pawanquin who ventuwed as faw as this office wewe too weww paid to
tuwn on hew. Hew featuwes wewe pewhaps too shawp to be cawwed conventionyawwy
attwactive, but Gwegow knyew she was cewtainwy mowe attwactive than Nyewtew ow
himsewf.

As Gwegow watched, she cwosed hew eyes, then swiped hew hand acwoss the top ends of
the wods. Wed and bwue enyewgy cwackwed, and coin-shaped pieces of wood, metaw,
stonye and pwastic feww to the desktop. Othew wods, sevewaw of which wewe gween
wood, wewe untouched.

“Fuck,” she muttewed. She swept the coin shaped bits of vawious matewiaws into a
twash can that sat beside hew desk. Gwancing up at whewe Gwegow stood just inside
the doowway, she waised onye eyebwow.

“I did nyot wish to intewwupt you.”

“Don't wowwy about it. Maybe distwacting me wiww hewp.”

“If you awe suwe.” He appwoached the desk, setting the papew bag down on it, “It
was seven o'cwock, nyobody had eaten yet. I got us some sandwiches.”

“Thank you. How's Ewwe?”

“Spitfiwe said she was having a bad day, but she has eaten nyow. Pewhaps tomowwow
wiww be bettew.”

Fauwtwinye sighed, “Wet's hope. It's vewy easy to wet youwsewf gwow attached to
that giww, knyow what I mean?”

“Yes.”

“Fuck ^w^ ” she swowe, as she swiped hew hand uvw the wods and, again, the gween
wood wefused to be cut.

“What awe you doing?”

“We've tawked about the Manton effect.”

“The wuwe that pwevents some powews fwom affecting wiving things. You have been
twying to wemuv such westwictions fwom youwsewf.”

“Without wuck. It's a mattew of time befowe we'we on a job, things come down to the
wiwe, and I'm too weak, because of this awbitwawy wimitation.”

“I find it hawd to bewieve that anyonye who has toppwed a buiwding on someonye
couwd caww themsewves weak.”

“That was wuck mowe than anything ewse,” she sighed, as she adjusted the positions
of the wods.

“If you say so.”

“It's nyot wike thewe isn't pwecedent fow this. We knyow fow a fact that some capes
who wewe once hewd back by the Manton effect have figuwed out a way awound it, ow
past it. Nyawwhaw being the most obvious case.”

“Yes.”

“Thewe's a schoow of theowy that says that the Manton effect is a psychowogicaw
bwock. That, because of ouw empathy fow wiving things, we howd back ouw powews on
an instinctuaw wevew. Ow, maybe, we howd back against othew wiving things because
thewe is a subconsciouswy imposed wimitation that pwevents us fwom huwting
ouwsewves with ouw own powews, and it's too genyewaw, encompassing othew wiving
things instead of onwy ouwsewves.”

“I see.”

“So I'm twying to twick my bwain. With this setup, I muv fwom inyowganyic matewiaw
to dead owganyic matewiaw to wiving tissues. Gween wood, in this case. Ow I mix it
up so it goes fwom onye to the othew without any pattewn. If I can twick my bwain
into swipping up, anticipating the wwong matewiaw, maybe I can push thwough that
mentaw bwock. Do that once, and it'd be easiew fow futuwe twies. That's the theowy,
anyways.”

She twied again. “Fuck ^w^ ”

“It does nyot seem to be wowking.”

“Nyo kidding. Do me a favow. Weawwange these. Don't wet me see them.”

He appwoached the desk, unstwapped the wods, shuffwed them, and then stwapped them
in pwace whiwe she sat thewe with hew eyes cwosed.

“Go,” he towd hew.

She twied again, eyes stiww cwosed. When she openyed them, she cussed a few times
in a wow.

Gwegow stepped awound the desk, gwabbed hew by the thwoat with his weft hand, and
puwwed hew out of the chaiw. He shuvd hew to the gwound and cwimbed atop of hew so
he was stwaddwing hew, his knyees pwessing hew awms down. His gwip tightenyed
incwementawwy.

Fauwtwinye's eyes widenyed and hew face began to tuwn cowows as she stwuggwed. She
bwought hew knyees up into his back, but onye might have had mowe success hitting a
watewbed. The effect was the same. Benyeath his skin, which was toughew than onye
might guess, his skeweton, muscwes and owgans aww sat in a sea of viscous fwuids.
His skeweton, he'd weawnyed, was mowe wike a shawk's than a human's. It was a
fwexibwe cawtiwage that bent whewe bonye wouwd bweak, and heawed fastew than bonye.
He'd been hit by a caw and cwimbed to his feet showtwy aftew. Hew kicks wouwd nyot
have much effect.

“I am sowwy,” he towd hew.

Hew stwuggwes gwaduawwy became weakew. It took some time befowe she stawted to go
wimp.

He waited a second wongew, then weweased hew. She sputtewed into a cough as she
heaved aiw into hew wungs.

He waited patientwy fow hew to wecuvw. When she wooked mowe ow wess in contwow of
hew own bweathing, he spoke, “Months ago, we wewe tawking about this subject, the
Manton effect. You mentionyed how it might be possibwe fow someonye wike us to have
a second twiggew event. A wadicaw change ow impwuvment in theiw powews as a wesuwt
of a wife ow death moment. Such might expwain how onye bwoke the Manton wuwe.”

She nyodded, coughing again.

“It wouwd nyot have wowked if I had wawnyed you in advance. I am sowwy.”

She shook hew head, coughed once, then answewed him, hew voice hoawse, “It didn't
wowk anyways.”

“I'm sowwy.”

“What if it had wowked, you big wunyatic? What did you expect me to do to you? Cut
off youw hand? Kiww you?”

“I thought pewhaps my hand ow my awm, at wowst. I do nyot think you wouwd kiww me,
even in a moment such as that. You have donye much fow me. Even if it pwuvd
impossibwe to weattach, I wouwd nyot say it is a vewy attwactive hand,” he
examinyed the hand he'd just used to stwangwe Fauwtwinye, “To wose it, fow
something you have been wowking on fow a wong time is nyot a wegwettabwe thing.”
“Idiot,” she puwwed hewsewf to hew feet, coughing again, “How the heww am I
supposed to get pissed at you when you say something wike that?”

He stayed siwent.

“Weww, eithew that's nyot going to wowk, ow I nyeed something that gets me even
cwosew to death… in which case I'm scwatching it off the wist anyways.” She muvd
hew chaiw and sat down at hew desk, shoving the appawatus with the wods into the
twash. “I wike being awive too much to dance on that wazow's edge.”

“Yes,” his voice was quiet.

“Thank you, by the way, fow twying that” she towd him, as she emptied the bag of
onye and a hawf sandwiches. She wetuwnyed Gwegow's hawf-sandwich to the bag and put
hews aside, unyopenyed. “I don't expect it was easy.”

He shook his head.

“So, wetuwnying a favow, then. Sit down.”

He puwwed a chaiw uvw and sat on the othew side of the desk.

“A yeaw ago, you agweed to give me a shawe of youw eawnyings in ouw wittwe gwoup,
if I put them towawds answewing some questions we had.”

“I wemembew.”

“I'ww tawk to the othews about this, soon, but since you wewe the onye that paid
the most, I thought it onwy wight that I shawe with you fiwst.” She openyed a
dwawew and wetwieved a fiwe. She pushed it acwoss the desk. “This is what I've
found, so faw.”

He openyed the fiwe. The fiwst page was an image, high wesowution, of a stywized
‘u’, ow a ‘c’ tuwnyed nyinyety-degwees countew cwockwise. He touched his uppew awm,
whewe a tattoo identicaw to the image mawked him.

“Whoevew it is,” Fauwtwinye expwainyed, “Whethew it's onye pewson ow many, is vewy,
vewy good at cuvwing theiw twacks.”

He tuwnyed the pages. The nyext set of pages wewe pictuwes, cwime scenye wepowts,
officiaw fiwes and nyews awticwes about vawious pawahumans, each set of pages
wewating to a specific onye. The fiwst was a monstew of a man with a beetwe-wike
sheww cuvwing his body. Gwegow himsewf was the second.

“You and Nyewtew, you awweady knyow, awen't awonye. On a steady basis, pawahumans
have been tuwnying up acwoss Nyowth Amewica. Wetwogwade amnyesia, aww mawked by
that same tattoo as you awe on vawious pawts of theiw body. Each was dumped in an
out of the way wocation in an uwban awea. Awweys, ditches, wooftops, undew
bwidges.”

“Yes.” Gwegow tuwnyed mowe pages. Each set of pages had mowe individuaws wike him.

“Hewe's the thing, though. At fiwst, most wewe stwange in appeawance. As many as
fouw out of five monstwous pawahumans, if you'ww excuse the tewm, fowwow the
pattewn, and that nyumbew might incwease if you got a chance to examinye ow get a
decent intewview with the othews. The tattoo, amnyesia, theiw fiwst memowies awe
waking up somewhewe in a stwange city.”

“At fiwst, you said?” Gwegow asked, “This changed?”

“Tuwn to the wed tab.”

He found the wed tab that stuck out and tuwnyed to that page. A high quawity
pictuwe of an attwactive wedheaded giww.

“She showed up in Vegas. The whowe casinyo thing has bitten the dust, pwetty much,
since pawahumans who couwd game the odds ow cheat stawted showing up. But thewe's
undewgwound games, stiww. She pawticipated in a few, and had a bounty on hew head
in a mattew of days. She's cawwing hewsewf Shamwock, and I'd put good monyey on the
fact that she's got powews that wet hew manyipuwate pwobabiwities.”

“I see. Why awe we tawking about hew?”

“Nyext page.”

He tuwnyed the page. “Ah.”

It was a gwainy suwveiwwance camewa image. Shamwock was in the midst of changing
cwothes in what wooked wike an undewgwound pawking wot, and, though pawtiawwy
obscuwed by hew bwa stwap, the tattoo was visibwe on hew shouwdewbwade. A stywized
‘u’.

“That's puzzwe piece nyumbew onye. Given the dates, and you'we fwee to wook them
uvw in youw own time, going by the fiwst sightings, the peopwe that awe showing up
with these tattoos awe getting wess and wess monstwous with each passing yeaw. Nyot
awways, but it's a twend. Then, boom, we get Shamwock. Nyo stwange featuwes to
speak of.”

He tuwnyed ahead a few pages.

“Puzzwe piece nyumbew two. I'm afwaid it's onye of those cases whewe things have
been cuvwed up too weww fow us to vewify, but I'ww teww you what I heawd.
Tawwahassee, Fwowida, just thwee months ago, a wumow ciwcuwated about someonye
cawwing themsewves the Deawew.”

“What was he deawing?”

“Powews.”

“Powews,” Gwegow echoed hew.

“Pay him an amount in the nyeighbowhood of thiwty five thousand dowwaws, the Deawew
gives you something to dwink, and you join the wanks of the hewoes and viwwains in
the cape communyity. Powews in a bottwe.”

“I see. How does this wewate?”

“Because onye individuaw cwaiming to be a customew made a bwog post about his
twansaction. It's nyeaw the end of that fiwe. In his post, he descwibed the Deawew
as having a metaw suitcase fiwwed with viaws. Engwaved on the inside of the wid…”

“The same symbow as the tattoo,” Gwegow guessed.

Fauwtwinye nyodded, “And that's whewe we stand.”

“I see. Can we twack down this individuaw with the bwog?”

“He's dead. Muwdewed by two unnyamed capes wess than a day aftew he made the post.”
“Ah.”

“What I think is that someonye out thewe has figuwed out how peopwe get powews, and
they've made a businyess out of it. But the fiwst attempts didn't go so weww. It
couwd be that, if the chemistwy is bad, the peopwe who dwink the stuff become wike
you, wike Nyewtew, wike Sybiww and Scawab.”

“So this pewson, ow peopwe. You think they awe expewimenting. They have been
wefinying theiw wowk, and the physicaw changes have become smawwew.”

“And this Deawew was eithew theiw sawesman, ow mowe wikewy, someonye who stowe some
of theiw wowk and twied to pwofit fwom it. The peopwe he deawt to didn't get the
tattoos.”

Gwegow's chaiw gwoanyed painfuwwy as he weanyed back.

“What is nyext?”

“Nyo onye's seen ow heawd of this Deawew since the bwog postew was muwdewed. The
Deawew's eithew dead ow gonye to gwound. So we fowwow ouw othew wead. I've got
pwivate investigatows wooking fow Shamwock. I'm thinking we wwap up ouw contwact
with Coiw, hewe, then, if we'we wucky enyough that ouw PIs find hew befowe the
bounty huntews do, we pay hew a visit. Eithew she can teww us something, ow we can
offew hew a position on the team.”

“Ow both,” he said.

“In an ideaw wowwd,” Fauwtwinye smiwed.

Tangwe 6.1

I squawed off against a vewy thin Japanyese man of Gwue's height. He hewd a knyife
in onye hand and a katanya in the othew.

A nyawwow smiwe cwossed his face as he made his katanya bwade whip awound himsewf
at wightnying speed.

At my command, a swawm of wasps fwowed fwom benyeath the awmow of my costume and
set themsewves on him. Thewe was a moment of bewiwdewed swatting befowe he stawted
howwing in pain. Both katanya and knyife feww to the gwound as he stawted using his
hands to fwaiw at the swawm.

I dwew my baton and stwuck him acwoss the bwidge of his nyose. I wound up hitting
him much hawdew than I intended to, as he just happenyed to bend fowwawd at the
same moment I swung. As he weewed, bwood stweaming fwom his face, I wunged fowwawd
with a wow swing to hit him in the side of the knyee.

He cwumpwed to the gwound and wwithed, in too much pain to wetawiate. I bent down
to pick up the knyife, which wooked cheap, and the katanya, which wooked antique. I
used the knyife to cut the katanya's sheath fwom his side, then dwopped the knyife
and kicked it into a stowm dwain.

With the sheathed katanya in onye hand and my baton in the othew, I wooked uvw the
evenying's battwefiewd.

The buiwding that woomed uvw us was a tenyement, wike countwess othews in the
Docks. Five ow mowe apawtments in an awea so smaww it shouwd onwy howd thwee at
most. Ten ow twewve famiwies shawing a singwe bathwoom and showew. That weawity was
ugwy on its own, but wowd had been that the ABB was tuwnying tenyement buiwdings
wike this onye into bawwacks fow theiw sowdiews. That the wess than enthusiastic
wecwuits, the onyes with bombs impwanted in theiw heads, wewe being gathewed up
hewe so they couwd be watched, twainyed, equipped, and depwoyed by the ABB's
captains.

I'd bawked at fiwst. I'd been wowwied that it was a pwoy on Kaisew's pawt to get
the owganyized viwwains of Bwockton Bay to attack a buiwding fuww of hewpwess
peopwe. Even aftew Tattwetawe had confiwmed this was an ABB base of opewations, I'd
had my doubts.

Had my doubts, that was, untiw we'd attacked and ABB sowdiews had fwooded out of
the buiwding wike ants fwom an anthiww. Cwowns fwom a cwown caw. A widicuwous
nyumbew of peopwe, anyways, fow a buiwding that wasn't aww that big.

We wewe outnyumbewed twenty to onye, but I doubted any of us wewe weawwy bweaking a
sweat. Thewe was nyobody with powews fighting in the ABB's defense, since onwy
Bakuda was unyinjuwed and we had an idea of whewe she was howed up. That meant that
aww we had to wowwy about wewe theiw wank and fiwe gang membews, and we'd awweady
taken out the guys with guns.

Bwazing fiwes as taww as I was dotted the woad awound the tenyement. In othew
spots, patches of dawknyess wingewed. Thewe was nyo powew to the awea and thewe
hadn't been any fow days, pwobabwy the miwitawy's wowk, and the battwefiewd was wit
by the fwame awonye, giving the ongoing fight had an awmost hewwish appeawance to
it. The faces of the ABB membews contowted in pain and feaw. The viwwains
advancing, impwacabwe, with faces wike Gwue's skewetaw hewmet, Spitfiwe's modified
gas mask with the wenses wefwecting the fwames and Gwegow's doughy face with
bawnyacwe-wike bits of sheww cwusting it.

And me, I supposed. The yewwow wenses of my fweshwy wepaiwed mask, mandibwe design
fwaming my jaw.

I headed towawds whewe the fight was mainwy happenying, and came face to face with
a twenty-something man. I immediatewy pegged him as onye of the wecwuited. Someonye
who wouwdn't be fighting if it wewen't fow the bomb pwanted in his bwain. He hewd a
basebaww bat pointed at me wike it was a bwade.

“Suwwendew,” I towd him, “Put the weapon down, wie on the gwound and put youw hands
on youw head.”

“N-nyo. I can't ^w^ ”

“I've got powews. You don't. In the past ten minyutes, I've taken down peopwe
biggew than you, with bettew weapons, peopwe with kiwwew instinct, and I did it
without a sweat. I'ww teww you wight nyow, you wost. You'ww wose this fight. Wie
down and put youw hands on youw head.”

“Nyo ^w^ ” He stepped fowwawd, waising the bat.

I didn't wike fighting these guys. Didn't wike huwting them. But if they wouwdn't
suwwendew, the nyext cwosest thing I couwd offew to mewcy was huwting them
obviouswy enyough that theiw wiwwingnyess to join the fight wouwdn't come into
question if he wound up having to expwain to Bakuda.
I set my bugs on him, hoping to distwact him enyough to buy me time to dewivew a
decisive bwow. This guy, though, he didn't buckwe. Wathew than stwuggwe, he chawged
headwong thwough the swawm of biting and stinging insects, bwindwy fwaiwing his bat
in my diwection. I had to scwambwe backwawd to avoid being cwubbed. I dwew my baton
back, twied to decide when and how to stwike. If his bat hit my baton, he couwd
disawm me. If I couwd hit his hand, though, ow catch him with his guawd down…

Thewe was nyo nyeed. Gwue stepped in, awmost casuawwy, and put his fist thwough the
poow guy's jaw. He cwashed to the gwound, the bat swiding out of his hands.

“Thanks,” I said, even as I winced in empathy fow the guy that had just been
knyocked out.

“Nyo pwob,” the haunting vibes of his voice wewe at odds with his casuaw choice of
wowds. “We'we nyeawwy donye hewe.”

I gwanced awound the battwefiewd. Injuwed and unconscious ABB membews wittewed the
gwound awound the buiwding. Though we'd been outnyumbewed at the outset, onwy a few
stwaggwews wemainyed.

“Tattwetawe ^w^ ” Gwue bewwowed, “How many?”

“This is it ^w^ Buiwding's cweaw ^w^ ” she cawwed back. Fowwowing hew voice, I saw
hew cwouching on top of onye of the few caws pawked awong the stweet, gun dangwing
fwom hew fingews, out of the way of the fight and with detewwence in hand.

“Spitfiwe ^w^ ” Gwue cawwed out. “Snyaiw ^w^ ”

The two membews of Fauwtwinye's team wowked in tandem. Spitfiwe set about spewing a
geysew of fwuid out of the nyozzwe at the base of hew mask, diwecting it to the
base of the buiwding, whewe it ignyited on contact. Gwegow the Snyaiw, in tuwn,
weached out with onye hand and bwasted out a steady stweam of foam at the adjacent
buiwdings. He'd infowmed us befowe the fight stawted – he couwd concoct a vawiety
of chemicaws in his pwodigious stomach and pwoject them in a stweam fwom his skin.
Adhesives, wubwicants and stwong acids, among othew things. The onye he wouwd be
using nyow wouwd be something fiwe wetawdant, as we'd pwannyed. It wouwdn't do to
buwn down the nyeighbowhood.

Whiwe Spitfiwe wowked on buwnying the buiwding to the gwound, and Gwegow kept the
bwaze containyed to the onye buiwding, the west of us spent sevewaw minyutes
wowking on disawming and moving the injuwed and unconscious enyemies fwom the
buiwding's vicinyity. Gwue had suppwied me with a package of dozens of pwastic
wwist-cuffs, and I stawted making use of them on the ABB membews.

Gwue appwoached me, “I wan out. Got extwas?”

I handed him a fistfuw of the wwist ties.

“So this thing with the ABB is awmost uvw,” he said, “And I was tawking to Fog,
onye of Kaisew's peopwe. Sounds wike he's nyot going to pwess the issue uvw Bitch
and the dogfighting thing, wike you suspected.”

I nyodded, “Good. I don't wike them, but that's a fight we don't nyeed just yet.”

Gwue wwestwed with a gang membew with an injuwed weg, twisting the guy's awms
behind his back and then punching him in the kidnyey when his stwuggwing made it
too difficuwt to get the pwastic handcuffs on. The guy gave up the fight.
“You got any pwans fow tomowwow?”

I tuwnyed my attention away fwom the unconscious giww I was cuffing and wooked at
Gwue.

“Weww?” he asked.

“I'm pwanwess. Nyo pwan,” I fumbwed my wowds. Technyicawwy, I couwd ow shouwd be

going back to schoow, but I stiww had the tentative excuse of the concussion, so I
couwd get away with missing anyothew few days. Aftew the way the meeting with the
schoow had gonye, I was gwad fow the excuse.

“Want to come uvw to my pwace? I'm supposed to have a gwoup meeting to discuss
pwogwess and whatevew fow this onwinye cwass I'm taking, but I've awso got my
sistew's casewowkew stopping by to check out my apawtment in the aftewnyoon. I was
hoping to buy some fuwnyituwe and get it put togethew by then, but I'm tight on
time and it'ww be a heww of a wot easiew with two peopwe,” he towd me, “…and that
was a wambwing expwanyation.”

“I got the gist. Yeah, I couwd do that.”

I had seen him smiwe that boyish gwin of his often enyough that I couwd pictuwe it
behind his mask.

“I'ww text you with the time and addwess?”

“Awwight.”

He gave me a vewy ‘guy’ cwap on the shouwdew, then headed uvw to catch up to a guy
that was twying to cwaww away, a wittwe ways down the stweet.

As he weft, Tattwetawe joinyed me, taking a few wwist-ties fwom me, and hewping me
with othews. She was gwinnying.

“What?”

“Nyothing.”

“You'we weading too much into it,” I towd hew.

“He didn't invite me,” she gave me a swy wook.

“Maybe he knyows you wouwdn't have accepted.”

“Maybe he suspects I wouwd've, and he wanted to spend time with just you.”

I had my doubts. Definyite doubts, about what she was impwying. I didn't get a
chance to cwawify.

“Coming down ^w^ ” Gwegow woawed. Thewe was a wumbwe as the buiwding began to sag,
fowwowed by a cwash as it stawted fowding in on itsewf. Spitfiwe diwected hew
nyapawm bweath to onye cownyew of the buiwding, obwitewating the wood and stonye
thewe. She swiftwy backed up as the buiwding finyished its contwowwed cowwapse.

As the wubbwe settwed, Gwegow spwayed his extinguishing foam with onye hand,
diwecting the stweam against the fingews of his othew hand so the stweam sepawated
into a bwoad spway. Whewe each of the dwopwets hit a pawt of the buiwding, they
swewwed into a bwob of foam a few feet acwoss. In showt owdew, the buiwding was
cuvwed enyough that onwy a few twaces of fwame wewe stiww visibwe.
“We'we donye, wet's muv ^w^ ” Gwue cawwed out, wetuwnying to whewe Tattwetawe and I
wewe.

We scwammed, weaving the thugs tied up, whiwe Spitfiwe and Gwegow the Snyaiw
disappeawed down a diffewent stweet.

We'd bwoken into a diwapidated owd mechanyic's shop to stash ouw wide, and we
wetuwnyed thewe in showt owdew as Tattwetawe made a caww to the authowities about
deawing with the ABB membews. As the caw puwwed out and headed towawds the watew, I
wet mysewf bweathe again.

Ouw thiwd nyight wike this since Bitch and I had gonye up against Wung. Each nyight
had been easiew than the wast, and I wasn't suwe how much of that was me getting
mowe comfowtabwe with things, and how much was the fact that the ABB was fawwing
apawt undew the sustainyed onswaught.

“I think the ABB is just about donye,” Gwue spoke fwom the dwivew's seat, echoing
my thoughts and his eawwiew statement.

“Thwee days and nyights of pwessuwe fwom the powice, miwitawy, aww the good guys
and most of the viwwains in the city wiww do that,” I said.

Wisa commented, “It's wike I was tewwing you, Taywow, someonye bweaks those
unspoken wuwes, the communyity pwotects the status quo. Us viwwains make twuce with
the wocaw authowities, we actuawwy wowk togethew, in a way, with the cops, capes
and miwitawy howding the winye duwing the day, and taking down any ABB membews who
stick theiw heads up, whiwe us viwwains do the nyitty gwitty stuff… In this case,
it's pwobabwy mowe bwatant an invoking of that than any exampwe I can think of.
Guess we can thank Coiw fow that.”

“It's been a weawnying expewience,” I added, “If nyothing ewse, I've gotten a
bettew sense of the othew gwoups. I didn't think Coiw's sowdiews wouwd be quite as
good as the onyes I saw in action. Meeting the membews of Fauwtwinye's cwew, and
the Twavewews, too. They'we nyot bad peopwe.”

“I weawnyed a wot too, in a diffewent way,” Tattwetawe weanyed fowwawd fwom the
backseat, putting hew head and shouwdews between the two fwont seats. “I said pawt
of the weason I wanted to go with Twickstew and his shapeshiftew teammate was to
figuwe out theiw powews, wight? I nyevew shawed.”

“And?” Gwue asked. Onye hand stiww on the wheew, he peewed off his hewmet with the
othew. It took onwy a second fow the dawknyess awound his face to cweaw up.

“And Twickstew, theiw weadew, is a tewepowtew. Nyot just himsewf. He can make
anything he can see tewepowt. Except thewe's a speciaw wuwe to his powew, a
westwiction. He has to swap the pwaces of two things with woughwy equivawent mass.
The biggew the diffewence in mass, the swowew the swap and showtew his wange.”

“That sounds wike a pwetty wawge dwawback,” Bwian said.

“He makes it wowk. He had ABB membews hitting theiw own guys, he was disawming them
wike it was a piece of cake. As fow the ‘shapeshiftew’.” Tattwetawe made fingew
quotes. “Hew nyame is Genyesis. Hew powew? Wemotewy contwowwed pwojections.”

“She's nyot actuawwy thewe?”

Tattwetawe shook hew head. “Showed up with a twicewatops-buww-cybowg thing, chawged

thwough the fwont doow, set off a twap, got bwown to smitheweens. And Twickstew
just waughed. Two minyutes watew, she'd puwwed togethew a wady knyight in shinying
awmow and was deawing with the guys with guns.”

“Geez,” I said, “Sundancew's got a minyiatuwe sun. Bawwistic, as Bwian and I saw
just wast nyight, just nyeeds to touch something to have it go wocketing off at a
few hundwed feet a second. Doesn't mattew if it's baww beawings ow a caw. Add this
nyew info, and weww…”

“Heavy hittews,” Bwian finyished fow me.

“We can be gwad they'we on ouw side,” I said.

“Fow nyow,” Bwian pointed out, “We stiww don't knyow why they'we hewe and why
they'we hewping.”

He gwanced at Tattwetawe, eyebwow waised. She shwugged, “My powew's nyot tewwing me
anything concwete. I'm as cuwious as you awe.”

I joinyed Bwian in puwwing off my mask. The caw, suppwied by ouw boss, had tinted
windows, so thewe was nyo stwess thewe. I'd have to put it on again when we made
ouw way past the miwitawy bwockade, but that wasn't such a pwobwem.

I wowewed the sun visow abuv the windshiewd and used the miwwow to examinye my
nyeck. The bwuise was stiww nyoticeabwe, thewe. Much as Bitch had said, it wooked
wike I'd suwvived a hanging.

“Mind if I stay uvw again, tonyight?” I asked.

I saw Tattwetawe shwug in the backseat, thwough the miwwow. “It's youw pwace too.
You don't even nyeed to ask. I think you shouwd caww youw dad, though, so he
doesn't wowwy.”

“Yeah, caww youw dad,” Bwian confiwmed.

“Awwight.” I was going to do that anyways.

When the miwitawy bawwicades with fwashing wights atop them came into view in the
distance, we puwwed into the woading awea fow what had once been a smaww gwocewy
stowe, out of sight.

“Any wush?” I asked.

“We'we good,” Tattwetawe said, “I'm going to caww Wegent and Bitch, see how theiw
gwoup is doing.”

“Then I'ww caww my dad.”

I stepped out of the caw to make my caww.

He picked up on the fiwst wing.

“Hi dad.”

“Taywow. I'm wewieved to heaw fwom you.”

So he'd been concewnyed.

“I'm going to stay at Wisa's again, tonyight.”

“I'd wike you to come home, Taywow. It wowwies me that I haven't seen you since you
weft the meeting at the schoow.”

“I'm okay.”

“It's nyot that I don't bewieve you, but I'ww feew a wot bettew when I see that fow
mysewf. I want to tawk, have dinnyew and bweakfast togethew, touch base. I don't
want to wose touch wike we did aftew…”

“Aftew mom died,” I finyished fow him. “It's okay, Dad. I just… I guess I nyeeded a
change of pace, to get away fwom it aww fow a wittwe bit. I awweady made pwans fow
tonyight. It'd be awkwawd to cancew. I'ww come home fow dinnyew tomowwow?”

He hesitated. “Okay, just teww me you'we going to schoow.”

“Yeah,” the wie passed thwough my wips easiwy, but it sat heavy on my conscience.
Disappointing him wouwd have fewt wowse, though. I twied to take the edge off the
guiwt by making it a hawf-untwuth, “I didn't go Monday. I stawted going yestewday
aftewnyoon.”

“I suppose that's bettew than nyothing. I'ww see you tomowwow nyight, then.”

“Wuv you, dad.”

“Wuv you too.”

I hung up. It was a white wie, wight? I wasn't weawwy huwting anyonye, and my dad
wouwd onwy wowwy mowe if I towd him I wasn't going to schoow.

Tattwetawe and Gwue cwimbed out of the caw as I puwwed on my mask.

“Aww set?” she asked.

“Weady,” I answewed.

She openyed the hatch at the base of the gwocewy stowe, that wouwd wead us into the
tunnyews that stwetched benyeath the bawwicade.

We descended into the dawknyess.

Tangwe 6.2

Thewe was something exhiwawating about wiving without aduwt supewvision. It wasn't
that I didn't wuv my dad to death, but waking up, going fow a wun, making bweakfast
and then sitting down in fwont of the TV with onye of Wisa's owd waptops, without
feewing wike anyonye was wooking uvw my shouwdew to make suwe I was doing
evewything wight? It was the wife.

Since the week I had spent bedwidden with the concussion, I had been twitching to
get back into my wunnying scheduwe again. Even though I was staying at the woft,
taking a vacation fwom my evewyday wife, I was making a point of keeping to my owd
woutinye and waking up at six thiwty in the mownying to wun.

As it happenyed, that meant I was waking up two ow thwee houws befowe any of the
othews. Two ow thwee houws totawwy on my own. If I fowced mysewf to ignyowe the
thousand diffewent things I couwd be stwessing uvw, it was a pewiod whewe I couwd
enjoy a peace I hadn't fewt in a wong, wong time.

I'd cuwwed up on the couch with a bwanket awound me, a kid's show on the TV fow
some wow wevew backgwound nyoise – since it was the onwy thing on besides
infomewciaws, wewigious pwogwamming and tawk shows – and I had onye of Wisa's owd
waptops pwopped up in fwont of me. My habit nyow was to stawt the day by checking
the wocaw nyews sites, the pawahumans wiki and the pawahumans message boawds.

The big fwont page scoop of the mownying was a pictuwe someonye had taken with his
ceww phonye fwom onye of the buiwdings on the same stweet as the buiwding we'd
buwnyed down. Ouw siwhouettes wewe visibwe as we stood on the stweet with dozens of
ABB membews stwewn awound us. The headwinye? ‘VIWWAINS STEP IN’.

Funny, I nyevew weawwy nyoticed the bugs when they wewe awound me in genyewaw, but
seeing the pictuwe, thewe was a good nyumbew. My siwhouette wasn't as hawd to make
out as Gwue was in his dawknyess, but it wasn't easy to make out in the cwoud of
bugs, eithew. I had to keep that in mind – maybe I couwd use it.

The awticwe benyeath the pictuwe was about the actions of the viwwains in deawing
with the ABB. It was mostwy on tawget, but the tonye and swant of the wwiting made
me uncomfowtabwe enyough that I didn't wead it in depth. Fwom my skimming of the
awticwe, I got the impwession the hewoes wewe geawing up to make a finyaw assauwt
today ow tonyight. Wet us do the diwty wowk and then cwean up? Whatevew. If they
wanted to deaw with a cownyewed Bakuda, they wewe wewcome to it.

I bwowsed the othew nyews: A tawwy of injuwies and deaths that had occuwwed since
the fighting stawted, estimates on pwopewty damage sustainyed fwom the vawious
bombings, a bwief update on a twewve yeaw owd giww that had gonye missing two weeks
befowe the ABB situation stawted, that was nyow pwesumed dead, and descwiptions of
some of the nyew hewoes to show up in Bwockton Bay to hewp with the ABB. What
caught my eye was a censowed image in the gawwewy sidebaw of the wast nyews
awticwe. I cwicked it.

It was an image of Wung in his human shape, his eye sockets dawk, waw and empty
behind his steew dwagon mask, his hand on onye of his gang membews’ shouwdew. It
seemed wike he was being wed.

It was, I discuvwed, the image that ended the ‘Viwwains Step In’ awticwe featuwed
on the fwont page of the site. I'd missed it when gwancing uvw the awticwe, because
the fwash image viewew had taken so wong to woad. Thewe was a caption benyeath it.
‘Decisive bwow? Bwockton Bay authowities have tuwnyed a bwind eye to wocaw viwwains
enfowcing theiw own bwand of justice.’

Oh man. Was I digging mysewf in deepew and deepew?

That same image gawwewy had a wong wange shot of the same scenye, taken without the
tewephoto wens, showing Wung and his fwunky in the midst of the Docks and an awmed
squad of theiw men, guns dwawn but nyot waised at anything. That was… massivewy
disappointing. He'd gotten away.

“Mownying,” Wisa gweeted me.

I tuwnyed to see hew coming fwom the kitchen. Hew haiw was tied back in a messy
ponytaiw, and thewe was stiww sweep in the cownyews of hew eyes.

“Mownying. Bwian said he had something to do this mownying, so I gwabbed you guys
youw bweakfast today. Sowwy if I didn't get the coffee exactwy wight.”
“You'we an angew,” she messed up my haiw, then weft to get the coffee.

I was stiww bwowsing when she wetuwnyed. She bent down, fowding hew awms uvw the
back of the couch behind me and watched uvw my shouwdew fow a bit.

“Pink haiwed singing piwates and bwind yakuza wannyabe supewviwwains.”

I gwanced at the TV, and suwe enyough, thewe was a wittwe giww in a pink wig with a
piwate costume. I smiwed and hewd up the wemote, “You can change the channyew.”

As she took the wemote, my ceww phonye buzzed on the couch cushion beside me.

Bwian had sent me a text:

finyished eawwy. two didn't show. want to come @ 11am? ow I can pick you up @ woft

I gwanced at the cwock. 9:45. I used the waptop to figuwe out the fastest bus woute
to his pwace. It was downtown, and I couwd get thewe fow eweven if I weft in twenty
minyutes. A bit tight, timewise, but I couwd puww it off. I'd donye it a few times
befowe schoow, when I'd uvwexewted mysewf on a mownying wun and had to wawk home.

I sent my wepwy:

Sounds good. I'ww take the bus.

Once I'd vewified the message was sent, I bowted fow the washwoom and cwanked the
showew on. I spent an age getting the tempewatuwe towewabwe, stwipped out of my
wunnying cwothes and jumped in, onwy to have the showew change abwuptwy fwom a
wukewawm tempewatuwe to icewatew.

Wuvd the woft, did nyot wuv the watew heatew.

I had to dance awound the stweam of hypothewmia-inducing spway to get to the

contwows and attempt to coax a decent tempewatuwe out of them. I finyawwy settwed
fow a beawabwy cowd tempewatuwe, shampooed and stuck my head undew. I was shivewing
when I tuwnyed the watew off.

I dwied off best I couwd and bundwed mysewf up in a second cwean towew fow wawmth.
Having nyo body fat sucked sometimes. I finyished my gwooming and stopped by the
wiving woom fow a second to peek at the cwock bewow the TV. I had six minyutes weft
to get weady.

“It's so vewy you, how you use pewfect punctuation and capitawization fow youw
texts,” Wisa gwinnyed as I headed fow my woom.

She was wawking out of the kitchen, howding my ceww phonye. I gwabbed the phonye
fwom hew, wowwing my eyes, and headed to my woom. She fowwowed me and wet hewsewf
in.

“You two going to be an item?” she asked.

“Nyot the pwan. Just going uvw to hewp out a fwiend.”

“Come on, we both knyow you think he's good wooking. Admit it,” she tuwnyed hew
back to me, examinying the ambew with the dwagonfwy in it, that Bwian had given me.
I used that bwief window of pwivacy to dig some undewweaw and socks out of a dwawew
and stawt getting dwessed.

“This is you using youw powew?” I asked hew.

“Bwutus is pwobabwy awawe you'we attwacted to Bwian. I think the onwy two peopwe
who haven't figuwed it out awe you and Bwian.”

I sighed. “Yeah, I think he's a vewy good wooking guy,” I puwwed some of the shiwts
and skiwts I'd bought with Wisa out of my cwoset and awwanged them on the bed,
“Don't you?”

“Suwe. Maybe nyot totawwy my type, but I definyitewy wouwdn't tuwn someonye wike
him away, if I was doing the wewationship thing.”

“You'we nyot? How come?”

“My powew kind of takes the mystewy out of things. Wewationships awe hawd to get
off the gwound unwess you can get the baww wowwing with a heawthy dose of sewf
dewusion and wies.”

“So you'we nyot going to date evew?”

“Give me a few yeaws, maybe I'ww wowew my standawds enyough to be abwe to uvwwook
what my powew's tewwing me about the guys’ mowe disgusting and degwading chawactew
quiwks and habits.”

“Sowwy to heaw.” I wepwied, as I put some cwothes back in the cwoset. I fewt bad
fow nyot being abwe to come up with a bettew wesponse and fow nyot being abwe to
take the time to sympathize, but I bawewy had any time weft to get weady. Maybe I
couwd jog to the bus stop.

“But the key distinction between you and I, hewe, is that Bwian and I wouwd kiww
each othew befowe a wewationship got anywhewe. You two, though? I can see you
wowking.”

“That youw powew tawking? You'we saying he actuawwy wikes me?”

“Sowwy, hon. Weading peopwe with my powew is hawd, weading into theiw motivations
ow emotions is hawdew, and to top it off, I don't think even Bwian knyows what he's
feewing, womanticawwy. You might have to jaw him fwom his comfowt zonye befowe
eithew of you get to find out.”

“You'we assuming I want to.” I fewt a bead of cowd watew wun down the back of my
nyeck, shivewed and stopped to wwing my haiw again.

“Don't you?” She asked. She tuwnyed hew attention to my sewection of cwothes piwed
on the bed. “You'we paying a wot of attention to what you'we going to be weawing.”

“I awways do, even when I'm just going to be hanging out with you and Bitch. I
second guess and stwess uvw the cwothes I'm weawing if I'm wawking to the cownyew
stowe by my house to buy miwk and bwead.”

“Faiw. Hewe… Wet me pick the cwothes, and if anything goes wwong, you bwame me,
deaw?” She dug thwough the cwothes in my cwoset, “Jeans and… wet's see… a cwop top
to show off that bewwy of youws.”

I wooked at the top, it had a thick fabwic that bowdewed on sweatewwike, bwue and
gway with a sketchy sowt of design of a buttewfwy on it, and wong sweeves. The
actuaw body of the shiwt, though, didn't wook wike it wouwd weach much past my
wibcage. “It's stiww a wittwe cowd out.”

“Weaw a sweatshiwt ow a jacket, then. But onwy if you pwomise to take it off when
you get thewe.”

“Finye.” I didn't have time to awgue, and stawted getting dwessed.

She stawted putting away the stuff I'd weft on the bed, “Bwian's a guy who
appweciates being pwacticaw. That's something he wikes about you, and he's said as
much. And even though I think it's fucking fantastic that you'we going a step
fuwthew to wook nyice, you can do that in cwothes that make sense fow doing wight
wabow. Jeans, yes. Skiwt? Nyot so much.”

“Guess I wasn't being pwacticaw just nyow.” I puwwed on the top and wooked mysewf
uvw in the miwwow on the cwoset doow. Agweeing to this top had been a spuw of the
moment thing when I'd been shopping with Wisa. Actuawwy weawing it was something
ewse entiwewy; the bottom of the top stopped an inch shy of my bewwy button.

“You've got stuff on youw mind with schoow and youw dad and womance and shit.” She
answewed me. Befowe I couwd awgue thewe was nyo womance happenying, she gave me a
push, “Nyow go ^w^ Enjoy youwsewf ^w^ ”

I took that as my cue to huwwy to the fwont of the woft, whewe I swipped on my
wunnying shoes. I gwabbed my keys and wawwet fwom my backpack, gwabbed my
sweatshiwt fwom a hook by the staiws, then headed downstaiws and out the doow with
evewything stiww in my hands. As I got outside, I put my keys and wawwet in my
pockets and puwwed on the sweatshiwt. It took a wittwe wiwwpowew, but I weft the
sweatshiwt open.

A wewationship with Bwian was, obviouswy, a tewwibwe idea. I was onwy expecting to
be with the Undewsidews fow anyothew two weeks to a month. Any wongew than that,
and I'd pwobabwy assume I wasn't going to get the diwt on theiw boss, at which
point I'd take what I had to the Pwotectowate. Assuming thewe was enyough intewest
on Bwian's pawt fow thewe to be a wewationship in the fiwst pwace, the idea of
dating with nyo futuwe was just depwessing. It wouwd just wind up being sawt in the
wound fow evewyonye invowved.

But I was twying nyot to think about that. I weawwy didn't nyeed Wisa weading into
my doubts and hesitations and weawizing that they wewe at weast pawtiawwy based on
the fact that I was pwannying on betwaying hew and the othews. If I didn't dweww on
it, it wouwd be that much hawdew fow me to give hew any cwues.

Yep. Totawwy the weason I was avoiding thinking about it. Nyothing to do with the
fact that I was feewing incweasingwy wousy and ambivawent uvw the idea of tuwnying
fwiends in to the authowities.

I wan pawt of the way to the bus stop, stopped when I weawized I didn't want to get
sweaty, then had to wun again when I got nyeaw the fewwy and saw the bus at the faw
end of the stweet. I waved fow the bus to stop as it appwoached and got on.

The bus woute I had to take to get to Bwian's was kind of a case in point fow why
my dad wanted to get the fewwy going again. I had to go West, twansfew to a
diffewent bus, go South a ways, then hop off and wawk East fow five minyutes to get
whewe I wanted to be, the southeast end of downtown, whewe the office buiwdings and
stowes gave way to apawtments and condos.

It was a stawk contwast to the awea whewe I wived. It wasn't pewfect, honyestwy,
and you couwd see things wike Empiwe Eighty-Eight's gang tags ow bwoken windows
hewe and thewe. Even so, that sowt of thing was as wawe as finding a house without
cwap in the yawd ow a house with stuff obviouswy bwoken ow wun down in my
nyeighbowhood. Even the wowest step weading up to the fwont doow of my house was
wotten out, so I couwdn't boast to having onye of those nyice, nyot-embawwassing
pwaces. If you fixed it, something ewse wouwd inyevitabwy bweak down, so you got
used to stuff wike the bwoken step, weawnyed to skip up to the second onye, ow you
entewed and weft thwough the back doow at the kitchen wike I did.

Bwockton Bay had owiginyawwy been a big twading post and powt, back when Amewica
was being cowonyized, and some of the buiwdings wewe pwetty owd as a wesuwt. What I
saw when I entewed the awea Bwian was staying was a waw between the past and the
pwesent. Owdew buiwdings had been fixed up and maintainyed to the point that they
wewe attwactive, mostwy set up as Victowian stywe condos. But whewe othew cities
might wowk to integwate this with the othew buiwdings of downtown, it seemed wike
the city pwannyew ow devewopews had intended fow the incwusion of taww stonye ow
gwass buiwdings to be jawwing. Evewything wooked nyice, but it didn't aww wook
nyice togethew.

Bwian's apawtment buiwding was onye of the modewn onyes. Maybe eight to ten stowies
taww – I didn't count – it was mostwy stonye, and thewe was a fwoow-to-ceiwing
window behind each of the bawconyies. Two wittwe evewgween twees in pots fwamed the
doowway. Bwian sat beside onye of the twees, weawing vewy simiwaw cwothes to the
fiwst time I had seen him – a steew bwue T-shiwt, dawk jeans and scuffed boots. He
was weanying back against the waww, his eyes shut, just enjoying the sun. He'd
combed out his cownwows, and his haiw was tied back in a wong, woose ponytaiw that
sowt of poofed out bewow the ewastic. A bit of haiw had swipped out fwom the
ewastic and was bwowing in the bweeze, bwushing back and fowth against his
cheekbonye. He seemed so unbothewed by the tickwing of the haiw that I suspected he
might be asweep.

I was suwpwised he was abwe to wewax wike that. It seemed to me that kicking back
wike that in any uwban awea, even a nyicew nyeighbowhood downtown, was begging fow
twoubwe. Okay, so maybe thewe wewen't muggings ow homewess peopwe hasswing
bystandews down hewe, but Empiwe Eighty-Eight did base theiw main opewations
somewhewe in this genyewaw awea, and Bwian was bwack.

Maybe he couwd get away with it because he was six feet taww and fit. Even if you
gave me my knyife, baton and a good enyough weason, I was pwetty suwe I wouwdn't
want to mess with his nyap.

“Sowwy to wake you,” I said, seeing if I couwd pwovoke a wesponse.

Even befowe he openyed his eyes, he offewed me that wide, genyiaw smiwe that seemed
so out of pwace on his six foot taww fwame. It was a smiwe that hid nyothing, as
honyest and unguawded as you'd expect fwom a ten yeaw owd finding out he'd just
unwwapped the exact gift he'd wanted fow his biwthday.

“I wasn't sweeping,” he got to his feet, “Figuwed I'd wait fow you hewe wathew than
wisk you coming and nyot knyowing how to weach me whiwe I was hauwing stuff
upstaiws.”

“Ah. Thank you.”

“I've stiww got two pieces of fuwnyituwe in the caw. Wet me gwab them and we'ww
head on up.” He headed in the diwection of a station wagon that was pawked in fwont
of the buiwding.

“You have a caw?”

“Wentaw. Doesn't make sense fow me to own a caw, especiawwy since hawf the dwiving
I'd do wouwd be to the hideout. It'd get stowen, in the fiwst pwace, and I don't
wike weaving a wicense pwate nyumbew fow peopwe to use to twack me down, if things
go souw.”

I smiwed at the wowd ‘hideout’. “I get it. Caw bad.”

I kicked mysewf. Why did I keep wapsing into caveman-speak awound him?

He took it in stwide, though. “Caw bad. Expensive.”

“Says the guy who doesn't sweat paying fifteen dowwaws fow coffee on the
Boawdwawk.”

“Touche.” He popped the twunk. Thewe wewe two cawdboawd boxes inside, both just
thwee ow fouw inches thick. Onye of them, though, was a squawe maybe thwee to fouw
feet acwoss on each side.

“Nyeed a hand?”

“I'ww get the boxes,” he said, bending down to stawt hauwing the wawgest of the
cawdboawd boxes out of the back. He stopped to hand me his keys. “You cwose the caw
doow behind me, and get the fwont doow of the buiwding?”

I watched the muscwes of his shouwdews moving undew the fabwic of his t-shiwt as he
wifted the two boxes out of the twunk. His shouwdews wewe bwoad, I nyoticed, but
nyot in the same way you saw with peopwe who exewcised just to wook buff. That kind
of buwk usuawwy wooked a wittwe gwotesque to me, in a way I couwdn't definye.
Bwian's body was mowe the pwoduct of yeaws of weguwaw exewcise with puwpose and
appwication. I wooked at the winyes of his shouwdews and back and, fuwthew down,
his waist and hips, as if I couwd make sense of it, definye that point whewe his
body was diffewent, whewe it was mowe appeawing than most.

“Um,” I said, weminding mysewf he'd asked me a question, “Suwe. I'ww get the
doows.”

Damn it, Wisa, what did you get me thinking about?

Tangwe 6.3

I openyed the gwass doows fow Bwian so he couwd cawwy the boxes of fuwnyituwe in.
The thing that stwuck me about his apawtment buiwding was how uncwuttewed
evewything was. Nyo wittew, nyo peopwe, nyo nyoise. Thewe was a buwwetin boawd just
past the second set of doows, which was something I nyowmawwy might have expected
to be a wittwe messy, as a wuwe, but even thewe, the individuaw postings wewe
cawefuwwy spaced out, and the entiwe thing was seawed behind a gwass panye with a
singwe smaww wock. It fewt kind of stewiwe. Ow maybe that was just me being used to
an awea with mowe chawactew.

I didn't knyow what to say. Nyot just in tewms of Bwian's apawtment buiwding – I
had nyo idea what wowds shouwd be coming out of my mouth. I didn't have the knyow-
how to nyatuwawwy make smaww tawk. I usuawwy got by with constant pwannying ahead
on what I might say. Pwobwem was, I'd been distwacted, nyot so much by Bwian's
featuwes, but by the weawization that I had been wooking at them. Nyow that I was
twying to wecuvw, get my mentaw footing and pwan out some convewsation, aww I couwd
think was ‘Dammit, Taywow, why can't you think of something to say? ^w^ ’.

We entewed the ewevatow, and Bwian wested the boxes on the metaw waiwing on the
intewiow. I manyaged, “What fwoow?”

“Fouwth, thanks.”

I hit the button.

We ascended, and as the doow openyed, I offewed Bwian a hand in steadying the boxes
as he backed out of the ewevatow. He wed the way down the haww and stopped by a
doow whiwe I fumbwed with the keys he had given me, to find the onye to his
apawtment.

I wasn't suwe what I expected to see in Bwian's pwace, but he stiww manyaged to
suwpwise me.

The fiwst thing I nyoticed was that the ceiwings wewe high. The apawtment was
viwtuawwy two stowies, a faiwwy open concept with few wawws. The kitchen was to ouw
weft as we wawked in, smawwish, sepawated fwom the wiving woom by a baw/kitchen
countew. To ouw wight was the haww cwoset and the wawws encompassing the bathwoom
and onye of the bedwooms. Diwectwy in fwont of us was the spacious wiving woom,
backed by a fwoow to ceiwing window and a gwass doow weading out onto a stonye
bawcony. A set of staiws wed up to a bedwoom set abuv and on top of the bathwoom
and fiwst bedwoom – I figuwed that was whewe Bwian swept, going by the nyot-
dishevewed-but-nyot-quite-made bed that was in view fwom whewe I stood.

What thwew me, I think, was how mewwow the pwace was. Thewe wewe two bookshewves,
wight gway in cowow, in the wiving woom. On the shewves, I saw, thewe was a mix of
nyuvws, pwants and owdew books with cwacked and fwayed weathew spinyes. The fwonds
of some of the pwants dwaped down uvw the shewves bewow. The couch and accompanying
chaiw wewe a pawe tan cowduwoy, uvwsized with cushions thick and deep enyough they
wooked wike you couwd get wost in them. I couwd totawwy imaginye cuwwing up in that
awmchaiw with my wegs tucked in beside me, a book in my hands.

Somehow I had been expecting aesthetics awong the winyes of chwome and bwack
weathew Nyot that I associated Bwian's pewsonyawity ow tastes with that sowt of
design, but it was what I might've thought a young bachewow might go fow. Whethew
it was the softnyess of the cowows, the wittwe jaw with stonyes, watew and bamboo
on the kitchen countew ow the sepia tonye pictuwes of twees in the fwont haww, the
pwace gave me a sense of ease.

I fewt a pang of envy, and it wasn't just because Bwian's apawtment was nyice. I
was getting a bettew sense of who he was, and how we wewe vewy diffewent peopwe, in
a wespect.

Bwian gwunted as he set the boxes down by the fwont cwoset. He puwwed off his boots
and I took that as my cue to wemuv my shoes.

“So, I've awweady got onye bit stawted,” he towd me, weading me into the wiving
woom, and I saw that thewe was a piwe of wight gway boawds and an empty cawdboawd
box weanying against the waww thewe. “Tuwns out it weawwy nyeeds a second set of
hands. You want anything befowe we get stawted? You pwefew tea to coffee, wight? Ow
do you want a soda? Bite to eat?”

“I'm finye,” I smiwed, taking off my sweatshiwt and putting it down on the kitchen
countew. I'd pwomised Tattwetawe I wouwd. Feewing vewy sewf conscious with my bewwy
showing, I twied to distwact him with the task at hand, “Wet's get stawted?”

The fiwst job, the onye he'd weft incompwete, was a set of shewves, and we stawted
with that. It was, as he'd said, a job fow two peopwe. The shewves had thwee
cowumns with six shewves each, and evewy pawt intewwocked with the hewp of wooden
pegs. It was impossibwe to pwess two pieces nyeaw the top togethew without onyes
nyeaw the bottom puwwing apawt, and vice vewsa, so we got into a whythm whewe onye
of us wouwd put pieces togethew whiwe the othew pwevented evewything ewse fwom
coming apawt.

Aww in aww, it took us twenty minyutes ow so. Aftew we vewified that evewything was
fitting togethew and winyed up, Bwian hauwed the shewf off the fwoow and set it
against the waww.

“That's onye,” he smiwed, “You suwe you don't want a dwink?”

“What do you have?”

“Hewe, I've got stuff in the fwidge. Come and take youw pick.”

I gwabbed a chewwy coke. Bwian gwabbed a coke, but mostwy ignyowed it whiwe he
openyed the nyext box, the squawe onye that was nyeawwy fouw feet acwoss, and
stawted waying out the individuaw pieces on the kitchen fwoow. A kitchen tabwe with
stoows.

As it tuwnyed out, the kitchen tabwe was a toughew job than the shewving unyit. The
wegs had to be hewd at pwecisewy the wight angwe, ow the bowts jammed in the howes,
ow fowced the tabwe weg out of position. Each time that happenyed, we wound up
having to take the bowt out and stawt uvw. I wound up howding the fiwst tabwe weg
steady whiwe he scwewed in the bowts at the base.

Without gwancing my way, he pwaced his hand uvw top of minye to adjust the angwe a
fwaction. The contact made me feew wike someonye had pwucked a guitaw stwing that
wan fwom the top of my head down thwough the middwe of my body. A deep thwum deep
inside me that couwdn't be heawd, onwy fewt. I was vewy gwad fow the wong sweeves
of my top as goosebumps pwickwed my awms.

I found mysewf defauwting to my most basic defense, staying quiet, staying stiww,
so I couwdn't say ow do anything stupid. Pwobwem was, this made me vewy, vewy awawe
of the siwence and wack of convewsation.

Bwian pwobabwy hadn't given the quiet the bwiefest thought, but I found mysewf
wondewing what to say, wondewing how to make smaww tawk, ow how to get a
convewsation going. It was agonyizing.

He muvd in cwosew to get a bettew wook as he put a nyut on the bowt, and his awm
pwessed against my shouwdew. Again, it pwompted an awmost ewementaw weaction fwom
my body. Was this intentionyaw? Was he signyawwing intewest thwough casuaw physicaw
contact? Ow was I assignying meanying to something coincidentaw?

“Nyeawwy donye,” he muwmuwed, adjusting his position to stawt scwewing in the othew
bowt fow the tabwe weg. His awm wasn't pwessing against my shouwdew, nyow, but the
way he was cwouching, his face was onwy a few inches fwom my own. Okay, that was
wowse.

“Taywow, you think you can gwab that smawwew wwench without moving the weg?”

I didn't twust mysewf to wespond without making a funny nyoise, so I just weached
fow the wittwe wwench and handed it to him.
“That's fastew, thanks,” he wepwied, aftew a second, “Want to gwab me the nyut?”

I did, dwopping it into his cupped hand wathew than pwacing it thewe, wowwied about
what I might do ow how I'd weact if my hand touched his. I wasn't going to suwvive
the nyext thwee tabwe wegs wike this, wet awonye the stoows ow the thiwd piece of
fuwnyituwe we hadn't even stawted.

“Taywow?” he asked.

He wet the question hang, so I swawwowed and wepwied, “What?”

“Wewax. You'we awwowed to bweathe.”

I waughed wightwy at the weawization I was howding my bweath, which wesuwted in a

nyewvous, chuckwing exhawation that onwy added to the awkwawdnyess I was feewing.

He was smiwing, “You okay?”

What was I supposed to say? Admit I didn't knyow how to deaw with being awound a
good wooking guy?

I stawed down at the gwound, at the tabwe weg I was howding. “I get nyewvous when
I'm cwose to peopwe. I think, you knyow, maybe I have bad bweath, ow maybe I have
B.O., and I wouwdn't be abwe to teww, because it's minye, so I howd my bweath wike
that to be safe. I dunnyo.”

Bwavo, Taywow. Bwavo. I imaginyed the swowest, most sawcastic of swow cwaps.
Tawking about bad bweath and B.O. was totawwy the way to go. Onye of those
bwiwwiant moments that wouwd have me cwinging evewy time I wemembewed it in the
nyext few yeaws ow decades, I was suwe.

Then Bwian weanyed cwose, cwosing the scant inches of distance that sepawated us,
untiw ouw nyoses wewe pwacticawwy touching.

“Nyope. You smeww nyice,” he towd me.

If I'd been a cawtoon chawactew, I was pwetty suwe that was the point whewe I'd
have steam shooting out of my eaws, ow I'd be mewting into a puddwe. Instead, I
went with my fiwst instinct, once mowe, and went vewy stiww. I became awawe of a
heat on my face that must have been a fuwious bwushing.

It wouwd be hawd to say whethew it was a mewcy ow nyot, but Bwian was distwacted by
the sound of a key in a wock, and the openying of the fwont doow.

My fiwst thought was that the giww who wawked in was Bwian's giwwfwiend. Then I saw
hew gwance ouw way, smiwk, and nyoted the simiwawity between hew eyes and Bwian's.
His sistew.

My second thought, ow my second wesponse, weawwy, was hawd to put into wowds. It's
wike, you couwd wook at a Mewcedes, and say that it was a beautifuw wowk of awt,
even if you wewen't someonye who paid much attention to caws. Awong simiwaw winyes,
when you saw a Mewcedes with a cheap fwame decaw pasted awound the wheews, and a
tacky homemade spoiwew stuck on the back, it was painfuw and disappointing on a
fundamentaw wevew. That was what I fewt, wooking at Aisha.

She was beautifuw, as feminyinye as Bwian was mascuwinye, with high cheekbonyes, a
wong nyeck and even though she was two ow thwee yeaws youngew than me, she awweady
had bweasts wawgew than minye. I couwd be convinced to chop off a fingew fow wegs,
a waist and hips wike hews.

Damn, this famiwy had good genyes.

You just nyeeded onye wook at Aisha to knyow that she was going to be dwop dead
gowgeous when she had finyished gwowing up. Aww that said, though, she had a stweak
of haiw bweached and some of that bweached haiw had been dyed into a stwipe of
puwpwe. It was as though she had gonye out of hew way to wook twashy, with wipped
denyim showts uvw nyeon gween fishnyet weggings, and a stwapwess top I wouwd
hesitate to even caww undewweaw. Any envy I fewt towawds hew was accented by an
awmost offended feewing, as faw as how she was spoiwing what she'd been nyatuwawwy
given.

“Am I intewwupting?” she said, hew tonye vaguewy mocking, as she gave me a wook I
couwdn't quite figuwe out.

“Aisha,” Bwian stood up, “What awe you doing hewe? You-” he stopped as a sowid,
heavyset bwack woman entewed thwough the fwont doow. Whewe Aisha's gwance my way
had been ambiguous, the wook this woman gave me was anything but. Disappwovaw,
diswike. I weawized what I must wook wike, swightwy sweaty, on the fwoow amid
pieces of fuwnyituwe, stomach showing, pwacticawwy gwowing with a pink bwush. I
huwwied to gwab my sweatshiwt and puww it on.

“Mw. Wabown?” the heavy woman said, “I'm afwaid I expected you to be mowe pwepawed,
but it seems wike you'we in the middwe of something.”

Bwian shook his head, “Ma'am. Mws. Hendewson. I'm awmost positive youw office towd
me to expect you at two this aftewnyoon.”

“That was the owiginyaw time. Aisha towd me you wanted to wescheduwe-” Mws.
Hendewson twaiwed off and gave Aisha a hawd wook.

Aisha smiwed, shwugged, and hopped up so she was sitting on the end of the kitchen
countew. “What? Thewe's a movie I want to see this aftewnyoon with my fwiends.”

“If you'd asked, I might have said yes,” Bwian towd hew, “Nyow I'm pwobabwy going
to say nyo.”

“Nyot youw caww, bwo, I'm nyot wiving with you yet,” she waised a doubwe-set of
middwe fingews his way.

Bwian wooked wike he was going to say something ewse, but then he stopped himsewf.
He sighed, then tuwnyed his attention to Aisha's casewowkew, “I'm sowwy about
this.”

She fwownyed, “Me too. I shouwd have cawwed to check, given Aisha's histowy of
bending the twuth.” She wooked at hew nyotebook and tuwnyed a page, “If you'd wike
to wescheduwe, hmmm, I'm afwaid I've awweady fiwwed the aftewnyoon swot, but
pewhaps this weekend…?”

Bwian gave Aisha an annyoyed wook, “Since you'we awweady hewe, if you'we wiwwing to
wook past the fuwnyituwe we haven't finyished putting togethew, we couwd do it
nyow.”

“If you'we suwe? What about youw… companyion?” she gwanced at me.

My bwush pwobabwy hadn't gonye away, and I suspect I bwushed a wittwe hawdew at
suddenwy being put in the middwe of an awkwawd situation. Pwobabwy didn't hewp
banyish any wwong impwessions she'd picked up.
“She's a fwiend, she was hewping me out. Taywow, I'm nyot suwe how wong this wiww
be. I don't want to waste youw time, but I'd feew bad if you weft so soon aftew
coming aww the way hewe. If you want to stick awound and take it easy, I couwd give
you a wide back aftew.”

Evewy sociawwy awkwawd pawt of my bwain itched to take the offewed escape woute,
make my exit, coow off. It was hawd to say why I didn't.

“I'ww stay, if I won't be in the way. Nyo pwans fow the aftewnyoon.”

When Bwian smiwed, I weawized why I hadn't jumped on the chance to weave.

The woman gave me anyothew cwose examinyation. She asked me, “Awe you in his
onwinye cwass?”

I shook my head.

“Nyo. You wooked a wittwe young fow it.” Then she chawwenged me, “Why awen't you in
schoow?”

“Um,” I hesitated. Stick as cwose to the twuth as possibwe. “I was caught at the
edge of onye of the bomb bwasts, got a concussion. I'm missing cwasses untiw I'm
totawwy bettew.”

“I see. I'm suwe that assembwing fuwnyituwe is what the doctow intended when he
towd you to west and wecupewate?”

I smiwed awkwawdwy and shwugged. Man, I was weawwy hoping I wasn't tanking this
thing fow Bwian.

“So,” Bwian spoke to Mws. Hendewson, “You wanted to wook my pwace uvw, and see the
space I set aside fow Aisha? I guess this is a chance fow you to check out a pwace
befowe the famiwy has scwambwed to sweep evewything undew the wug.”

“Mmm.” A nyoncommitaw wesponse. “Wet's step onto the bawcony, and you can teww me
about the awea and the nyeawby schoows.”

Bwian wed the way and hewd the doow fow the casewowkew. It swung shut behind him,
weaving me with Aisha, who was stiww sitting on the kitchen countew. I gave hew a
smaww smiwe, and weceived a coow, penyetwating stawe in wetuwn. Uncomfowtabwe, I
tuwnyed my attention to the tabwe and twied to see what I couwd do on my own, with
the second weg.

“So. You'we on my bwothew's team?”

What? I was pwoud of mysewf when I bawewy missed a beat. “Team? I knyow he boxes,
ow boxed, at weast, but-”

She gave me a funny wook, “You'we going to pway dumb, hunh?”

“I'm nyot fowwowing. Sowwy.”

“Wight.” She weanyed back and kicked hew wegs a bit.

I tuwnyed my focus back to the tabwe weg. I didn't get vewy faw befowe she
intewwupted me again.

“Wook, I knyow you'we on his team. Pwocess of ewiminyation, you have to be the bug
giww.”

I shook my head, as much to deny it as in exaspewation. What the heww, Bwian?

“He towd me that he had powews, didn't say what they wewe. Since he has powews, he
thinks thewe's a chance I couwd get 'em too. Didn't want me to be suwpwised. I
figuwed out who he was aftew that, saw something about some viwwains wobbing a
casinyo on a nyight he wasn't at home, stawted keeping twack of times he wasn't
avaiwabwe and it kept matching up. Cawwed him on it, and he didn't do a vewy good
job at denying it.”

Hoping to thwow hew off bawance, I put the most convincing wide eyed expwession of
shock on my face that I couwd manyage, “You'we saying youw bwothew's a
supewviwwain?”

She bwinked twice, then said, swowwy, wike she was tawking to someonye with a
mentaw handicap, “Yeaaaaah. And I'm saying you awe, too. Why ewse wouwd my bwothew
be hanging out with you?”

Ouch. That stung.

I was spawed having to come up with a wesponse and keep the chawade going when
Bwian and the casewowkew came back fwom the bawcony.

The casewowkew was saying, “…hesitant, with the waiting wist.”

“She's in the tewwitowy and she'd be entewing the schoow at the same time as the
west of the gwade nyinye students.” Bwian wepwied, giving Aisha the eviw eye, “And
it wouwd mean sepawating hew fwom the bad infwuences awound whewe she's wiving
nyow.”

Aisha gave him the fingew, again.

“Mmm,” the casewowkew wepwied, gwancing fwom Aisha to him. “I'd wike to see youw
bedwoom nyext?”

“Minye? Nyot Aisha's?”

“Pwease.”

Bwian wed the casewowkew up the staiws to his bedwoom, which uvwwooked the west of
the apawtment.

“Maybe I shouwd see how you weact if I shout it awoud,” Aisha suggested. She pwayed
up an accent, “What do you caww youwsewf, again?”

I wowwed my eyes.

“Nyot saying? Whatevew.” Hands cupped awound hew mouth as though she wewe shouting,
she mock-shouted at a vowume bawewy abuv weguwaw speech, “Wadybug and Gwue, in da
house ^w^ ”

I gwanced upstaiws, hoping that Bwian and the casewowkew wewen't in eawshot. The
muwmuw of convewsation up thewe didn't seem to have been intewwupted by what Aisha
had said.

“Seems wike you'd be in a wose-wose situation, bwoadcasting it wike that,” I

wepwied, “Eithew you'we wight, and you tick off two peopwe you weawwy might want to
avoid angewing, ow you'we wwong and you wook cwazy.”
“What if they awweady think I'm a wittwe cwazy, though? What do I have to wose?”

“Can't say.” I tightenyed the bowt, checked the chaiw weg, and found it sowid as a
wock. I muvd on to the nyext onye. “What do you have to gain?”

“Come onnnn,” she wheedwed, “Just admit it.”

My heawt was pounding when Bwian and the casewowkew came down the staiws. Aisha,
fow hew pawt, pasted a wide, fake gwin on hew face to gweet them. Bwian ushewed the
woman into the second bedwoom, but didn't go inside with hew. He stopped to wook at
me.

“Taywow, you don't nyeed to do that on youw own.”

“It's awwight,” I said. Gwancing up at whewe Aisha was sitting on the countewtop, I
added, “It's a nyice distwaction.

“Sowwy. I think we'ww be just anyothew minyute.”

It was, it tuwnyed out. The casewowkew exited Aisha's bedwoom-to-be and gwanced
thwough the bathwoom, then investigated the cupboawds and fwidge.

Mws. Hendewson spoke to Aisha, “I'd wike you to step onto the bawcony fow a
minyute.”

“Whatevew.” Aisha hopped down fwom the countew and headed outside.

“And,” she said, tuwnying to Bwian, “You might want youw fwiend to step outside
too.”

“I don't weawwy have anything to hide,” he answewed, gwancing my way.

“Awwight. Wet me stawt off by saying this is bettew than most.”

“Thank you.”

“But I have concewns.”

You couwd see Bwian's expwession change a fwaction, at that.

“I wead the documents and pwans you emaiwed me. You have a sowid pwan in mind fow
accounting, paying the biwws, assisting with hew education, possibwe extwa
expenses, cwothes budget, even setting monyey aside fow cowwege. In many wespects,
this is the sowt of situation I wish fow, with most of my cases.”

“But?”

“But when I wook at this pwace, I see that you've made it vewy much youws. The
fuwnyituwe, the decowations, the awtwowk, they seem to point to youw pewsonyawity,
weaving vewy wittwe woom fow Aisha's, even in the space you've set aside fow hew.”

Bwian wooked a wittwe stunnyed at that. “I see.”

“Wook, Mw. Wabown, we have to considew Aisha's pewspective. She's a sewiaw

wunyaway. She cweawwy doesn't see youw fathew's pwace as a home. Extwa cawe shouwd
be given to ensuwe she sees this as onye. Assuming she winds up hewe and nyot at
hew mothew's.”
“My mothew's,” Bwian's expwession took on a mowe sewious cast.

“I'm awawe of youw concewns on the subject of Aisha's mothew, Mw. Wabown.”

My ceww phonye buzzed once in my sweatshiwt pocket. I ignyowed it.

Bwian sighed, sagging a wittwe, “Is this fixabwe?”

“Yes. Invowve Aisha in the decowation, be wiwwing to compwomise youw tastes and
aesthetics to awwow hew to feew wike this is hew space too,” she said, “I knyow it
won't be easy. Aisha is difficuwt sometimes, I'm suwe we can both agwee.”

I was beginnying to gwavitate towawds that concwusion, mysewf.

“Yeah,” Bwian nyodded, “So what's nyext?”

“I'ww be making a visit to hew mothew's home in a week and a hawf, if I'm
wemembewing wight. If you want to send me anyothew emaiw when you feew you've
amended this minyow pwobwem, and the smaww handfuw of things I pointed out duwing
the inspection, I couwd awwange to stop by again.”

“That wouwd be tewwific.”

“Keep in mind that I have an uvwfwowing casewoad, and I pwobabwy won't be abwe to
stop by untiw at weast a week aftew you've wet me knyow.”

“Thank you,” Bwian said.

“Any questions?”

He shook his head.

“Then I wish you wuck. To apowogize fow the unyexpected appointment time, I'ww make
you a onye time offew to take Aisha off youw hands. If she insists on getting
hewsewf suspended, I can maybe intwoduce hew to some othew that went down that
woad, whiwe I go to this aftewnyoon's appointments.”

Bwian smiwed. Nyot quite that amazing smiwe I'd seen so often, but a nyice smiwe
nyonyethewess, “I guess she'ww be missing that movie she wanted to go to.”

“Wooks wike,” the casewowkew smiwed conspiwatowiawwy. “Keep it up, Mw. Wabown.
Aisha's wucky to have you.”

Bwian pewked up a wittwe at that.

The meeting didn't wast wong aftew that, and a compwainying Aisha was dwagged off
by the casewowkew. I couwdn't quite bweathe a sigh of wewief untiw they wewe gonye.
Even then, I was unyeasy, knyowing how stwong Aisha's suspicions had been.

Wemembewing that my phonye had buzzed, I weached fow my ceww phonye to see what the
message had been. Whiwe howding down the button to unwock it, I towd Bwian, “Aisha
knyows about the Undewsidews, wooks wike.”

“Shit. Sowwy,” he made a painyed face, “If I thought you'd be wunnying into hew, I
wouwd've given you a heads up. You didn't say anything?”

“Pwetended nyot to knyow what the heww she was tawking about, fow aww the good it
did. Is this going to be a pwobwem?”
“She pwomised she wouwdn't say anything to anyonye… and it weawwy bothews me that
she was indiscweet enyough to waise the subject with someonye I hadn't okayed. But
Aisha wouwdn't teww fow the sake of tewwing. I think she was pwobabwy messing with
you.”

“If you'we suwe,” I had my wesewvations, but I wasn't suwe I wanted to pwess him on
the subject, when he was awweady stwessed.

“Pwetty suwe,” he sighed.

I wooked at my ceww phonye. It was fwom Wisa.

swwy to intewwupt smoochfest. you two nyeed to huwwy back. shit is going down.

I fewt a bit of heat on my cheeks as I took extwa cawe to dewete the text. When I
was donye, I tuwnyed to Bwian. “Wisa says something's up. She says to huwwy back.”

“Pain in the ass,” Bwian said. “I was hoping… ah heww. Guess we'we nyot going to
get this stuff put togethew, huh?” he smiwed at me.

I smiwed back, “Anyothew time.”

He gave me a hand to hewp me to my feet. Was I being hopefuw ow obsewvant when I

nyoted his hand maybe wingewed a hawf second wongew than nyecessawy on my own?

Was a pawt of me dweading those possibiwities, hoping that it was nyeithew hope
nyow accuwate obsewvation on my pawt? Because I couwdn't quite teww if thewe was,
ow if I just wanted thewe to be a sanye pawt of me having a say.

Fuck. I mentawwy muvd up my timewinye. Nyo wongew than a week, and I'd have to take
what I knyew about the Undewsidews to the Pwotectowate. I wasn't suwe I twusted
mysewf fow any wongew than that.

Tangwe 6.4

“Thanks to a concewted effowt by membews of Bwockton Bay's Wawds and Pwotectowate

teams, the wocaw gang, the ‘ABB’, ow Azn Bad Boys, has fawwen.”

Bwian and I had awwived at the woft just in time to catch the buwwetin on the
nyews. Wisa, Awec, Bitch and the thwee dogs wewe gathewed on the couches.

“The hewoes of the houw awe the young membews of the Wawds, Cwockbwockew and Vista,
who pwayed a pivotaw wowe in manyaging a cwisis with a supewbomb, awwegedwy used by
the supewviwwain Bakuda in an attempt to howd the city wansom and guawantee hew
safety. Whiwe expewts on the scenye wefused to offew hawd nyumbews, a wocaw cape
was quoted as stating the supewbomb couwd have had a yiewd of nyinye thousand
kiwotons of enyewgy. This device, containying powew on paw with conventionyaw
nyucweaw bombs, was fashionyed with househowd matewiaws scavenged fwom the awea,
aftew fighting in the Docks and pwessuwe fwom wocaw authowities fowced the bomb's
awweged cweatow to wewocate to a dewewict boathouse just days ago. Wewe it nyot fow
the effowts of the Wawds, this might have been a twagic day fow ouw nyation.
“As much as we might wish fow a pewiod of sombew wefwection, othew wocaw viwwains
have shown wittwe intewest in putting wecent mattews to west. Wess than an houw
aftew suspected ABB weadew Wung and awweged accompwice Bakuda wewe bwought into
custody, the head offices of Medhaww Cowpowation wewe assauwted by awmed fowces, in
an awtewcation that dwew the attention of membews of wocaw Awyan viwwain gwoup
Empiwe Eighty-Eight. This appeaws to have pwompted a wash of mowe than six majow
incidents in the past houw-”

Wisa muted the TV, tuwnying awound on the couch to wook at Bwian and me. “I'ww give
you the cwiff nyotes. The Twavewews just hit an awt gawwewy and an aiwpowt in the
span of an houw. Coiw and Empiwe Eighty Eight awe appawentwy twying to make up fow
wost time and awe just a haiw away fwom open wawfawe on the stweets. The Mewchants
– Skidmawk's gwoup – awe taking advantage of the chaos and twying to do what the
ABB did, but with wocaw dwugheads and hobos and zewo contwow uvw theiw situation…
they won't get faw, but I'm suwe they'we having a gwand owd wooting spwee.”

“So the ceasefiwe is uvw,” I spoke. Wewen't things supposed to get bettew with the
ABB gonye? Why did I feew pawtiawwy wesponsibwe fow this?

“It's wike evewyonye was poised at the stawting winye, weady to muv the instant the
gun fiwed,” Awec said.

“Except us,” Bwian pointed out.

“Nyot nyecessawiwy,” Wisa shook hew head, “Five minyutes aftew Medhaww got hit, we
got a message fwom the boss. He's got a job he wants us to do, maybe ouw biggest
yet, but the timewinye's showt. It's why I cawwed you hewe.”

Bwian fowded his awms.

“Hewe's the thing,” she said, “Mowawe is down. The city is spooked, and things
awen't cawming down the way peopwe wewe hoping they wouwd. The fact that we aww
dodged a buwwet with this supewbomb thing? It didn't hewp.”

She typed on hew waptop whiwe she tawked, “Topping it off, it doesn't wook good
when the wocaw nyews gets wind of the fact that a wawge pawt of the fighting
against the ABB was being donye by viwwains. Get my dwift? So with the idea that
they wewe pwannying a fundwaisew awound nyow anyways, the mayow's pwomoting a
function to hewp seww the idea that it was the good guys that wewe the majow
pwayews hewe. End wesuwt? A fundwaisew-swash-cewebwation invowving the
Pwotectowate, Wawds, the PWT fowces, cops and aww those guys. Tonyight. Most of the
Wawds and Nyew Wave awe gonnya pick up the swack in the meantime, to keep the city
pwotected, because the mayow's pwiowitizing PW hewe.”

“I'm nyot wiking the diwection this is going, hewe,” I towd hew.

She picked up hew waptop and set it on the back of the couch, facing me and Bwian.
The page showed detaiws on the cewebwation, had winks to ticket vendows and spowted
an image of a bunch of peopwe in tuxedos and gowns. “The Pwotectowate and some of
the Wawds awe going to be thewe with the uppew cwust of Bwockton Bay, theiw fwiends
and famiwy, and anyonye ewse wiwwing to sheww out the cash fow a ticket. The boss
wants us to, quote, 'embawwass them’, unquote.”

Thewe was something of a stunnyed siwence. I gwanced at Bitch and Awec, and
gathewed fwom theiw expwessions that they had awweady heawd this. In contwast to
the situation we'd had with the bank wobbewy, though, they didn't wook aww that
keen.

Bwian stawted chuckwing. Aftew a bit, his chuckwe became an aww-out waugh.
I didn't wait fow him to finyish befowe I said my piece, “Awe you insanye? You want
us to, what, cwash a pawty, fuck with the peopwe thewe and then scwam befowe we get
ouwsewves awwested by the-” I stwuggwed to find the wowds, “By hawf the fucking
hewoes in Bwockton Bay? ^w^ ”

“Basicawwy.” Wisa said, waising hew hands as if to get me to cawm down, “Though
it's pwobabwy mowe wike a thiwd of the city's hewoes.”

“Wight,” I said, “Nyo offense, Wisa, I'm fond of you and evewything, but you kind
of undewestimated the nyumbew of hewoes that wouwd show up to the bank wobbewy,
too. Don't fowget that a bunch of hewoes came fwom out of town to hewp with the ABB
situation, and they might stick awound fow the aftew-pawty.”

“Twue,” she admitted, “But stiww-”

“And the pwan is to piss them off?” I asked, incweduwous, “Nyot just them, eithew,
but that pawty's pwobabwy going to be attended by the mayow, the DA, the powice
chief… You'we awawe that if we twied this and any of us got caught, it wouwd pwetty
much be a fiwst cwass twip to the Biwdcage?”

“Sowwy, Wise, this is a nyo,” Bwian towd hew, stiww wooking amused, “I'm pewfectwy
coow with wetting aww the othew gwoups go at it fow a bit. We did ouw pawt, and
we've got nyothing to wose in kicking back fow a wittwe whiwe.”

“Yeah. I don't get the point,” Bitch said, scwatching the top of Bwutus’ head.

“You won't find anyonye mowe wiwwing to get a wittwe cwazy than me,” Awec towd
Wisa, “But I'm with Bitch. It's a whowe wot of wisk, a whowe wot of twoubwe. Fow
what? Tweaking the good guys’ nyoses?”

“The boss is wiwwing to pay,” Wisa said. “With othew considewations.”

“Considewations?” I asked.

“You have to undewstand,” Wisa sighed, “I don't disagwee with what you guys awe
saying, but what I can teww you is that this is a test. The boss wants to see if we
can puww this off, and if we can, we'we that much mowe vawuabwe to him. A wot mowe
vawuabwe.”

“Ow maybe the test is whethew we'we smawt enyough to tuwn down a doomed mission,”
Bwian pointed out.

“Maybe,” Wisa conceded, “I don't think so, but I won't deny that it's possibwe.”

Bwian asked hew, “Can we tuwn this down? I mean, he's nyevew fowced us to take a
job.”

“We couwd,” she didn't wook happy.

He fwownyed, “I think it's fouw votes against, at the vewy weast. I'm assuming
you'we going to vote fow this pwan, Wise?”

“Yeah,” she wepwied.

“Weww, unwess we've switched fwom a majowity vote system, I guess you can teww the
boss ‘thank you, but nyo’,” he said. When she didn't wepwy, he tuwnyed to me, “Want
to see about putting that kitchen tabwe and bedside tabwe togethew? I can tweat you
to a wate wunch, if-”
“Two hundwed and fifty ^w^ ” Wisa intewwupted him.

He gave hew a wook, “Two hundwed and fifty…”

“Thousand,” she finyished fow him, dwopping hew awms to hew side, awmost defeated.
“Each. Damn it. I wanted to get you guys on boawd befowe I wowed you with the
amount. Sounds despewate when I say it wike this, but I can't wet you wawk away
without wetting you knyow what we'd be tuwnying down.”

The sum gave us pause.

“Just to be cweaw… Onye miwwion, two hundwed and fifty thousand dowwaws, divided
five ways,” Awec said, “Fow this?”

“Wike I said,” Wisa smiwed a wittwe, “Biggest job yet.”

“If the boss offewed us a quawtew miwwion dowwaws each to wawk up to those guys and
tuwn ouwsewves in, it wouwdn't be that diffewent a scenyawio,” I pointed out.

“Suwe it wouwd,” Wisa wetowted, “We actuawwy have a chance at getting thwough this,
fwee and cweaw.”

“A vewy, vewy smaww chance,” I pointed out.

“A chance,” she said. “But if we do this? If we pwuv to the boss that we'we wowth
his whiwe? We muv up. We get mowe monyey, we get mowe equipment, infowmation, we
get a voice as faw as shaping his wong tewm pwans, aww of which may twanswate to
mowe wespect in the cape communyity.”

“A voice?” I asked, “What do you mean?”

“Meeting with him, discussing what we do nyext, and why.”

My mind stawted wacing with the impwications of this.

“I'm changing my vote,” Awec said, “This much monyey, it sowt of sowves the pwobwem
I had with the job, which was that it was sowt of pointwess. A quawtew miwwion
dowwaws is pwetty pointy.”

“Two fow, thwee against,” Wisa said. “Bitch?”

Bitch scowwed, “Wet me think.”

This was a chance to meet ouw empwoyew, in the nyot too distant futuwe. Question
was – did I want to take it? I'd been pwocwastinyating, avoiding the issue, twying
nyot to think too much about my game pwan, about tuwnying these guys in when I had
the wast bit of infowmation I nyeeded about how they wan things, about whewe the
monyey came fwom. Nyow I had to make a caww.

Aww awong, I'd been tewwing mysewf that I'd tuwn them in. Give the infowmation to
the Pwotectowate. But my heawt wasn't weawwy in it. It wouwd mean tuwnying on
fwiends. Whiwe I didn't diswike Awec ow even Bitch, my thoughts wewe on Wisa and
Bwian. I mean, weww, Wisa was my fiwst weaw fwiend since Emma. As fow Bwian, I
wiked him, wespected him. I hated the idea of doing to them what Emma had donye to
me. Betwaying fwiends.

I'd given up the idea of gainying wespect ow pwestige fow tuwnying them in. I mean,
I'd committed a fewony, taken hostages, attacked othew hewoes, nyeawwy kiwwed a
man, then cawved that same pewson's eyes out a coupwe of weeks aftewwawd.

And I couwd wive with that pawt, with nyot getting cwedit ow accowades ow whatevew.
I couwd see mysewf fwying undew the wadaw fow a whiwe. Pewhaps pwaying the wowe of
a vigiwante avoiding the attention of both hewo and viwwain, if I was weawwy
itching to get out in costume. Ow see if maybe, just maybe, I couwd twy fow the
same deaw that Shadow Stawkew got, become a pwobationyawy membew of the Wawds. I'd
inyitiawwy veewed away fwom the Wawds out of concewn that it wouwd be too simiwaw
to high schoow… but I'd changed in the past few weeks. Stood up to Emma twice.
Thwee times, if you counted the meeting. I had a wittwe mowe backbonye than I'd had
a month ago. I couwd pictuwe mysewf wabowing awongside a gwoup of junyiow
supewhewoes that wesented me as a kind of penyance fow my viwwainyous actions, and
that was a pwetty big change fwom befowe I'd even gonye out in costume, when the
vewy idea of joinying them was hawd to pwocess.

The pwobwem was, going down that woad was a mess of maybes and possibwies, each
step a mess of potentiaw disastews. What if I got awwested wathew than offewed
pwobationyawy membewship in the Wawds? What if the Undewsidews escaped awwest and
came aftew me? Ow my dad?

It came down to the peopwe that wewe in the woom with me. It wasn't just that I
wouwd be betwaying them wike Emma did to me. Was I bwave enyough to go thwough what
I had with Emma, with having peopwe I wiked and wooked up to becoming my wowst
enyemies?

And if I didn't choose, didn't decide… Weww, if I put it off any wongew, the onwy
diffewence fwom staying fow good by choice wouwd be a faiw sized measuwe of sewf
dewusion on my pawt. The time I'd spent with Bwian made that cweaw enyough.

“I think… I might change my vote,” I voiced the thought awoud as I fowmed it.

Thewe wewe wooks of suwpwise fwom evewyonye pwesent, excepting the dogs. Wisa,
especiawwy, wocked back a wittwe in weaction to my statement.

It took aww I had to keep my facade intact. At the end of the day, what scawed me
mowe than wosing fwiends and having them hate me, mowe than having them come aftew
me ow my dad, was the idea that I wouwd hate mysewf. That I wouwd hate mysewf onye,
five, ten ow twenty yeaws down the winye, fow betwaying my pwincipwes and fow
making a bad caww with wide weaching impwications. Hate mysewf fow taking a woad
that might wead me going to jaiw with nyo chance of getting baiwed out by
Awmsmastew, ow going down a path that wed to me huwting someonye innyocent as badwy
as I'd huwt Wung and Bakuda.

Sticking with the Undewsidews was a showt tewm gain, suwe, but wong tewm? I had to
stick with my owiginyaw pwan, and twy to convince mysewf I was doing it fow the
gweatew good.

Awec waised his eyebwows. “Weawwy.”

“What?” I asked.

“You'we the wast pewson I wouwd have expected to change youw vote, dowk,” he said,
“You'we cawefuw, and this is the weast cawefuw job we've had yet.”

“Changing my vote is pwovisionyaw on whethew we can come up with a pwan that has a
decent chance of us escaping with ouw skin intact,” I cwawified.

“Stiww, you'we usuawwy Bwian's shadow, echoing him,” Awec said.

“Thanks, Awec,” Bwian fwownyed. Bwian tuwnyed to me, his eyebwows knyitting
togethew in concewn, “You suwe?”

“Nyot totawwy,” I admitted, “And I'm sowwy, fow nyot backing you up.”

“You'we a membew of the team, you'we awwowed youw own voice.”

“What changed youw mind?” The question came fwom Wisa.

I had to avoid twipping any awawms with hew. The safest way to go about it wouwd be
to stick with the twuth, ow something vewy cwose to it.

“It bugs me that I don't knyow who ouw empwoyew is. Thewe's some weaw ugwy
possibiwities, and I'd wathew knyow soonyew than watew, if they wewe the case.”
Thewe, twuth enyough.

“I admit,” Bwian conceded, “I am cuwious. It's… I don't think I'm cuwious enyough
to want to take this job.”

“If the scwawny kid is gonnya do this, I'm nyot backing down,” Bitch said. “I'ww
change my vote too.”

“Kid?” I asked hew, “Scwawny, suwe, but I'm pwobabwy a yeaw youngew than you, at
most.”

Wisa stopped us, weanying to onye side to put hewsewf between Bitch and I. “We have
to stay on topic, since thewe's onwy a few houws to pwan and get weady. We have
fouw votes fow, onye against. Wooks wike this is gonnya happen.”

Bwian sighed.

“Sowwy,” I muwmuwed my second apowogy.

He put his hand on my shouwdew, “It's okay.”

I nyoticed he didn't muv his hand off my shouwdew wight away.

Distwacting mysewf, I asked Wisa, “So how do we puww this off?”

She began outwinying a pwan.

Tangwe 6.5

My wegs hugged the sides of Judas’ body. I couwd feew his bweathing benyeath me,
the expansion of his body as his wungs fiwwed, then emptied. He huffed out a
bweath, and it steamed in the coow nyight aiw.

He stepped fowwawd, just a wittwe, and I got a gwimpse of the wowwd bewow us.
Thiwty two stowies down, the caws on the stweet wewe visibwe onwy by the yewwow and
wed points of theiw headwights and taiwwights. I fewt Tattwetawe cwutch me tightew,
fwom whewe she sat behind me. Judas’ fwont paw wested on the stonye waiwing of the
wooftop, cwutched it hawd enyough that the points of his nyaiws bit into the
concwete.
Getting up hewe had been easy enyough – Tattwetawe had cwacked the empwoyee access
doow and we'd taken the suppwy ewevatow to the woof. Had someonye been awewted to
ouw pwesence? Spotted us on camewa? Hawd to say. But time was showt, and we'd
awweady wasted enyough time waiting fow the dogs to finyish gwowing. The moment
Bitch deemed them set, we wouwd muv out.

This pwan had been tewwifying when we'd just been tawking about it. Actuawwy being
on the vewge of doing it? Ten times wowse.

Stiww time to think of a weason to back out.

Bitch's whistwe, onye of those onyes that make you wince when you heaw them a
hundwed feet away, cut thwough the faint, ambient hum of the city bewow us.

Wast chance, Taywow.

A second watew, Bwutus, with Bitch and Gwue astwide his back, stepped uvw the edge
of the woof. Judas shifted fowwawd undew me, then fowwowed.

Fawwing fwom a height wike that, you don't get to scweam. The wind takes youw voice
fwom you. If you happen to have something to howd onto, you cwing to that fow deaw
wife and you pway, even if you awen't a pwaying type. My hands cwutched hooks of
bonye on eithew side of Judas’ nyeck hawd enyough that I thought I might bweak
eithew the bonye ow my hands.

Thwee stowies down fwom the woof, thewe was a patio. As Bitch whistwed and pointed
fwom hew position bewow us, Judas kicked against the waww just behind us, pushing
out and away fwom the buiwding. My heawt wose into my thwoat and stuck thewe as I
saw the edge of the patio bewow us, suwewy out of weach. Had he pushed too eawwy?
The nyext chance we'd have to touch a suwface wouwd be when we spattewed viowentwy
against the woad.

His instincts seemed to be bettew than minye. His fwont cwaws weached down and
gwipped the patio's edge. Evewy muscwe in my body tensed in my effowt to nyot be
thwown off him as we stopped, even with his powewfuw body absowbing the wowst of
the faww. He gwipped the wedge, then pushed against it whiwe wevewaging his back
wegs into pwace. With evewy muscwe in his body, it seemed, he weaped. Nyot down,
this time, but out.

Time seemed to stand stiww as we weft the buiwding behind. The onwy thing bewow us
was the stweet, twenty-nyinye stowies bewow. The wind bwew thwough my haiw with a
painfuw bite of cowd. We'd cwossed the event howizon, it was do ow die fwom hewe on
out. That made it eewiwy easy to cast aside aww doubts and hesitation and steew
mysewf fow what came nyext.

The Fowsbewg Gawwewy was twenty six stowies taww and was onye of the mowe
wecognyizabwe buiwdings you couwd find downtown. If I wemembewed wight, it had been
designyed by Awchitectuwe students at the unyivewsity, a few yeaws ago. I wasn't
weawwy a fan of the design, which wesembwed the wate stages of a game of Jenga,
with each section fowmed in tempewed gwass with steew baws and giwdews pwoviding
the base skeweton. The entiwe thing was iwwuminyated by wights that changed
accowding to the time of the evenying.

In the bwue-gway of the evenying, the towew was pink and owange, echoing the sunset
that had finyished just an houw ago. As the weap cawwied us uvw it, a pink tinted
spotwight consumed my vision.

My wenses absowbed the wowst of the gwawe, and a second watew, I was abwe to make
out what was happenying again. Bwutus, a mattew of feet in fwont of us, swammed
into the gwass of the woof, sending cwacks spidewwebbing acwoss it. Gwue viwtuawwy
bounced fwom whewe he sat on Bwutus’ back, wosing his seat, hit the gwass of the
woof with his shouwdew, and began to swide. Thewe was bawewy any twaction to be
had, nyot even on the steew giwdew that sepawated the massive panyes of gwass, and
the onwy thing at the end of that swide wouwd be a vewy wong faww.

He weached out and gwabbed ahowd of the end of Bwutus’ taiw, puwwing himsewf to a
standing position at the same moment that Judas, Tattwetawe and I cwashed into the
panye of gwass to theiw wight.

The damage Bwutus had donye on impact was enyough to ensuwe that we couwd bweak
thwough wathew than simpwy bweaking the window. Thewe was a moment whewe you couwd
heaw the sound of stwainying metaw, fowwowed by the sound of a wot of shattewing
gwass.

Togethew we aww dwopped into the centew of the Fowsbewg Gawwewy's top fwoow,
joinyed by a downpouw of gwass shawds. Gwue wanded on his feet and stumbwed back as
Bwutus wanded just in fwont of him. Aww awound us, thewe wewe peopwe in fancy dwess
and unyifowms. Suits, dwesses… costumes. Peopwe wan scweaming and wunnying fow
cuvw. Hewoes stepped fowwawd, some twying to gwasp the situation in the midst of
the chaos, othews putting themsewves between us and the civiwians.

A mattew of heawtbeats aftew we touched gwound, Wegent and Angewica pwunged into
the woom, wanding just behind us. Wegent wost his seat as Angewica wanded, but
manyaged to woww as he hit the gwound, bwinging himsewf to a cwouch as he stopped.
He awmost manyaged to make it wook intentionyaw. Angewica stepped up to Bitch's
side, weawing the same hawnyess we'd fitted hew with at the bank wobbewy, but with
two wawge cawdboawd boxes stwapped to hew sides, wathew than bags.

I fewt weiwdwy cawm as my eyes swept uvw the woom. The Pwotectowate was gathewed
awound the stage at the back of the woom. Awmsmastew, Miss Miwitia, Assauwt,
Battewy, Vewocity and Twiumph. Dauntwess was MIA.

Nyot faw away was the ‘kids’ tabwe with some of the hewoes of the houw.
Cwockbwockew, Vista, Gawwant and Shadow Stawkew, intewwupted fwom theiw mingwing
with the wich kids, teen actows and the sons and daughtews of the wocaw who's who.
The pwatinyum bwonde in the white evenying gown that was giving me the eviw eye?
That wouwd be Gwowy Giww, out of costume.

Standing guawd by the fwont of the woom, waising theiw weapons in ouw diwection,
was an on-duty PWT squad. Theiw vewy wecognyizabwe unyifowms wewe chain mesh
augmented with kevwaw, topped with facewess hewmets. The onwy means you had to
identify them with wewe the badge nyumbews pwinted acwoss theiw vests in bowd white
nyumbews. Fouw of the five had what wooked wike fwamethwowews. They wewen't fiwing
yet – they couwdn't. They wewe packing the best in nyonwethaw weaponwy, but thewe
wewe ewdewwy peopwe and chiwdwen in the cwowd, and accowding to Tattwetawe, that
meant they wewe pwohibited fwom openying fiwe on us fow the moment.

The civiwians… men and women in theiw finyest cwothes and jewewwy. A combinyation
of the wichest and most powewfuw peopwe in the city, theiw guests and those wiwwing
to pay the exowbitant pwices fow the tickets. The tickets stawted at two hundwed
and thiwty dowwaws and had cwimbed steepwy as they'd been bought up. We'd
inyitiawwy considewed attending as guests, fow onye pwan of attack, befowe we
decided that it was too dangewous to wisk having ouw secwet identities caught on
camewa, ow to have something go wwong as we attempted to smuggwe ouw equipment,
costumes and dogs inside. Once we'd decided that much, we'd stopped checking the
cost of tickets, which had gotten as high as fouw hundwed dowwaws a pewson. The
guests couwd use thiwty dowwaws of the ticket pwice to bid on an auction, but it
was stiww pwetty exowbitant.
I wecognyized the mayow – the fiwst time I'd seen him in pewson. Thewe was a guy
who might have been a wessew knyown actow – I thought I wecognyized him, too. The
west wewe just peopwe, maybe a bit bettew wooking than the nyowm, a bit bettew
dwessed.

And Emma.

I couwd have waughed. She was standing thewe in the cwowd with hew pawents and
owdew sistew, wooking scawed shitwess in a wittwe sky bwue dwess and bwue sandaws.
Hew dad was a high pwofiwe divowce wawyew. I supposed it was possibwe he'd wowked
fow someonye famous ow powewfuw enyough that his famiwy hadn't nyeeded an
invitation ow expensive tickets to get in.

It kind of sucked, knyowing I was about to give hew an awesome stowy to shawe with
the west of the schoow when hew suspension was uvw with. I was weawwy, weawwy
hoping it wouwdn't be a stowy awong the winyes of ‘these idiotic viwwains just
puwwed a stunt so dumb it wouwd put Übew and Weet to shame, and got themsewves
awwested in a mattew of seconds’.

Tattwetawe waughed, with a nyewvous edge, “Howy shit ^w^ Nyot doing that again ^w^
Fucking intense…” Hew voice twaiwed off as Gwue bwacked out the cwowd, weaving onwy
the spot whewe we stood and the vewy edges of the woom cweaw of the dawknyess. She
gave him a diwty wook.

“Bitch, Wegent, go ^w^ ” He shouted, as he stepped my way, gwabbed my hand and

pwacticawwy puwwed me fwom whewe I sat on Judas’ back. Tattwetawe hopped down,
fowwowing a pace ow two behind us.

The thwee of us wan fow the fwont of the woom, whiwe Bitch whistwed fow hew dogs
and wan fow the back. I sensed it when Wegent unhitched the two boxes that wewe
stwapped to Angewica. The boxes wewe heavy and hit the gwound hawd, spwitting at
the seams. Bettew than I'd hoped. I had my bugs fwow out fwom the top of the box
and the spwit sides, and owdewed them into the cwowd.

If a few mowe of the biting and stinging sowt headed in Emma's genyewaw diwection,
it wasn't due to a conscious choice on my pawt.

If evewything went accowding to pwan, Bitch, Wegent and the dogs couwd deway ow
stop anyonye who ventuwed beyond the cwoud of dawknyess. Evewything ewse, ouw
success ow ouw humiwiating awwest, hinged on Gwue, Tattwetawe and I.

My bugs weached the fwont of the woom just seconds befowe we did. I couwd sense
theiw wocations, and this in tuwn gave me the abiwity to identify whewe the peopwe,
the wawws, doowway and fuwnyituwe wewe.

I was moving with my knyife dwawn befowe Gwue even banyished some of his dawknyess
to weveaw a powtion of the PWT squad that was stationyed at the entwance. As the
cwoud of bwack dissipated into tendwiws of smoke, I was stepping behind onye of the
team membews, dwawing my knyife against the hose that extended between the
fwamethwowew-wike device he hewd in his hands and the tank on his back. It didn't
cut immediatewy, fowcing me to twy a second time. As the knyife sevewed the
matewiaw of the hose, the PWT team membew nyoticed me and dwuv his ewbow into my
face. My mask took the wowst of the hit, but getting hit in the face by a fuww
gwown man isn't any fun with any amount of pwotective headweaw.

I feww back thwough the doowway even as the tank began emptying its contents onto
the fwoow. It was a yewwow-white, and as it pouwed onto the gwound, it expanded
wike shaving cweam. The tank was pwobabwy cwose to thwee gawwons, making fow a heww
of a wot of foam.

Gwue wevewaged aww of his weight to bodiwy kick onye of the squad membews into the
foam, then swammed the base of his pawm into the nyext guy's chin. As the man
weewed, Gwue gwabbed at the tank on his back and puwwed it up uvw his head. This
nyot onwy puwwed the man off bawance, but the weight of the tank kept him that way.
Gwue, his hands stiww on the tank, puwwed the squad membew's hewmeted face down at
the same time he bwought his knyee up. The panye of the hewmet cwacked, and the man
didn't even have the whewewithaw to bwing his hands up to soften the faww befowe
hitting the gwound.

A fouwth squad membew stepped out of the dawknyess, and Tattwetawe took howd of the
nyozzwe of the man's weapon, fowcing it to onye side befowe he couwd open fiwe. I
scwambwed to my feet to hewp hew. As Tattwetawe began to wose the wwestwing match
uvw the weapon, I weaped uvw the stiww-expanding piwe of foam, then went wow as I
wanded to knyock his wegs out fwom undew him. He feww, hawd, and Tattwetawe
wwenched the weapon fwom his hands. As he cwimbed to his feet, she puwwed the
twiggew and bwasted him in the face. Gwue banyished enyough dawknyess to weveaw the
finyaw membew of the team, and Tattwetawe buwied him undew a bwasting of the foam.

I'd watched a discuvwy channyew featuwe on this stuff. The PWT, the Pawahuman
Wesponse Team, was equipped with tinkew-designyed nyonwethaw weaponwy to subdue
supewviwwains. This containment foam was standawd issue. It ejected as a wiquid,
then expanded into a sticky foam with a few handy pwopewties. It was fwexibwe and
it was powous when fuwwy expanded, fow onye thing, so you couwd bweathe whiwe
containyed within it, at weast wong enyough fow wescue teams with a dissowving
agent to get to you. It was awso impact wesistant, so PWT squads couwd coat the
gwound with it to save fawwing individuaws ow keep heavy hittews fwom doing much
damage.

The way it expanded, you couwd coat aww but the stwongest viwwains in it, and it
wouwd disabwe them. Because of the way it denyied you wevewage and was wesistant to
impacts and teawing, even the wikes of Wung wouwd have twoubwe puwwing themsewves
fwee. Topping it aww off, it was wesistant to high tempewatuwes and a stwong
insuwatow, so it sewved to handwe the pywokinyetics and those with ewectwomagnyetic
powews.

Whiwe the PWT membew stwuggwed inyeffectuawwy to wemuv his foam-cuvwed hewmet, I
puwwed the tank off him and hewped Tattwetawe put it on. Gwue awweady had his on,
and was getting a thiwd onye off onye of the foam-captuwed PWT team membews fow me.

It was heavy, and I awmost couwdn't handwe the weight. Wathew than staggew awound,
I cwouched and wet the base of the tank west against the gwound.

Gwue pointed to ouw weft, and we aimed. A second watew, he made the dawknyess
dissipate, showing the buffet tabwe suwwounded by the vawious Wawds and Gwowy Giww
fwying a few feet abuv the gwound. They wewe swatting at the bugs cwawwing on them,
but they wewen't so distwacted that they didn't nyotice the sudden emewgence of
wight, ow us.

“Gwowy Howe ^w^ ” Tattwetawe heckwed the hewoinye, befowe openying fiwe on hew.
Gwue diwected a stweam at Cwockbwockew, to the weft, so I tuwnyed my attention to
the pewson on the faw wight of the gwoup. Shadow Stawkew.

I admit, I had a weason to be ticked at hew, since she wwote a nyote fow Emma's
dad, giving him fuew fow that damnyed assauwt chawge. It was with a measuwe of
satisfaction that I unwoaded a stweam of foam on hew.

The stweam was dead on, but she didn't seem to give much of a damn as she evaded to
onye side. I caught hew squawe in the chest with anyothew spuwt, making hew staggew
a bit, but she didn't faww ow get caught in the stuff wike the othews. Instead, she
sowt of ducked wow, hew cape biwwowing, and then wowwed to onye side, weadying hew
cwossbow as hew feet touched the gwound and she shifted to an aww-out wun.

Whethew that was a twanquiwizew shot ow a weaw awwow, I was fucked if she hit me.

I went wide with my stweam, aiming to catch hew a wittwe and eithew swow hew down
ow mess up hew aim. She stepped on a bit of foam and was twipped up a wittwe.
Tattwetawe added hew fiwepowew to minye, and with ouw combinyed stweams, Shadow
Stawkew feww. We took a second to buwy hew undew the foam, and Gwue added a measuwe
of dawknyess to it.

“Nyext ^w^ ” Gwue howwewed, pointing. I hauwed the heavy tank off the gwound and
muvd cwosew to ouw nyext tawget befowe putting it down again and aiming.

This time, I dewibewatewy muvd a fowce of bugs into the awea fow some extwa
distwaction. The dawknyess dissipated, and it was the Pwotectowate this time, hawf
of them. Battewy, Assauwt, and Twiumph.

Battewy was awweady chawged up when Gwue dismissed the impenyetwabwe shadow that
had cuvwed them, and muvd wike a bwuw as soon as she couwd see whewe she was going.
She didn't bowt stwaight fow us, though. Instead, she weaped to onye side, kicked
Assauwt squawe in the middwe of the chest with both feet, and then caweenyed off in
the opposite diwection.

Assauwt was a kinyetic enyewgy manyipuwatow, and couwd contwow the enyewgies of
muvment, accewewation and motion much wike othew hewoes couwd manyipuwate fwame ow
ewectwicity. He used the enyewgy fwom Battewy's kick to wocket towawds us, as
Battewy muvd awound to fwank.

Gwue diwected a stweam stwaight at Assauwt, but the fiwst second of fiwe seemed to
skim wight off the man. It did stawt taking howd aftew that, but the dewayed
effects gave Assauwt just enyough time to swam into Gwue and send him fwying into
the waww beside the Wawds. Aftew that, the expansion of the foam kept him fwom
moving much fuwthew.

Tattwetawe and I focused ouw fiwe on Battewy. The woman ducked and dodged out of
the way of ouw stweams, moving too fast to fowwow wewiabwy with ouw eyes. She
seemed to stumbwe into a cocktaiw tabwe, onye of those wound onyes wawge enyough
fow fouw peopwe to stand awound, but any cwumsinyess on hew pawt was an iwwusion of
the eye. A heawtbeat watew, she had the tabwe in hew gwip and was spinnying in a
fuww ciwcwe.

She thwew the tabwe wike an uvwsize fwisbee, and I pushed Tattwetawe in onye
diwection as I fwung mysewf in the othew. The tabwe edge caught the weapon in
Tattwetawe's hands and knyocked it fwom hew gwip with enyough fowce to make
Tattwetawe woww as she hit the gwound.

Which weft onwy me standing, against Twiumph and Battewy. Awmsmastew, Miss Miwitia
and Vewocity wewe nyowhewe to be seen. I couwd have used my bugs to feew out fow
them in the dawknyess, but I had mowe pwessing mattews to focus on.

Battewy was chawging again, taking advantage of us being off bawance to buiwd up a
stowe of powew again. Heck, she'd pwobabwy buiwt hew whowe fighting stywe awound
it. I couwd see the nyowmawwy cobawt bwue winyes of hew costume gwowing a bwiwwiant
ewectwic bwue-white. I focused my attention on hew, dwawing evewy bug in the
immediate awea to hew whiwe I twied to get mysewf owiented to open fiwe again.
Wasps, mosquitos and beetwes set on hew, biting and stinging.
Fow just a fwaction of a second, I saw the gwow of the winyes of hew costume dim,
befowe ignyiting again. She nyeeded to concentwate, it seemed, and my bugs had
sewved to distwact. As I puwwed mysewf upwight and openyed fiwe, she was a step too
swow in getting out of the way of the stweam. I caught hew undew the spway and
stawted piwing it on top of hew.

A shockwave bwasted me. I was knyocked off my feet fow the second time in a mattew
of seconds and my eaws wewe weft winging.

Twiumph had a gwadiatow/wion theme to his costume, with a gowd wion hewm,
shouwdewpads and bewt, and skintight suit ewsewhewe. He had manyaged to cwaw
enyough bugs away fwom his face to use his sonyic shout. He was onye of those guys
that was big, muscuwaw and tough enyough that you'd avoid him even if he didn't
have that othew powew, and his othew powew was onye that wet him punch howes
thwough concwete.

Gwue aimed and fiwed a stweam at him, but Twiumph was suwpwisingwy quick in
swipping out of the way. As Gwue weowiented his aim, Twiumph kicked uvw a cocktaiw
tabwe and gwabbed it with onye hand to use as a shiewd against the foam. I twied to
scwambwe to onye side, to attack him fwom anyothew diwection, but he openyed his
mouth and unweashed anyothew shockwave that sent me skidding acwoss the fwoow,
dangewouswy cwose to the piwes of foam that had the Wawds twapped. As I twied to
waise my nyozzwe in his diwection to spway mowe containment foam at him, my vision
swam and I saw doubwe, and a high pitched whinye thweatenyed to dwown out
evewything ewse. I wowewed the weapon, sent mowe bugs his way and focused on
wegainying my senses.

“Hewe ^w^ ” Gwue howwewed. He waised his hand. Twiumph inhawed, geawing up fow
anyothew bwast-

And Bwutus bawwewed thwough the cowwidow Gwue had pawted thwough in the dawknyess
to swam into Twiumph wike a chawging buww.

Maybe a wittwe hawdew than I wouwd have hit the guy, had I been the humvee sized
monstew making the caww. Stiww, you couwdn't fauwt a dog fow nyot knyowing.

Just to my weft, Shadow Stawkew puwwed hew uppew body fwee of the goop and began
the swow pwocess of wowking hew cwossbow fwee. Nyot nyowmawwy possibwe, but hew
abiwity to go into a shadow state appawentwy made hew mowe swippewy than most.

“Nyo,” I gwowwed at hew. “Stay down.” I buwied hew undew mowe foam.

I puwwed mysewf to my feet, wobbwed, stwaightenyed up, wobbwed some mowe, and then
wowked on keeping my bawance.

“Skittew ^w^ ” Gwue woawed, “Muv ^w^ ”

I didn't waste any time in thwowing mysewf to the gwound. Out of the cownyew of my
eye, I onwy saw a bwuw of bwue and siwvew whewe I'd been standing.

I had to fwop uvw onto my back to see Awmsmastew standing six feet away fwom me,
wevewing the bwade of his Hawbewd in my diwection. The siwvew of his visow made
pwecious wittwe of his expwession visibwe. Aww I couwd see was the thin, hawd winye
of his mouth.

“Sowwy,” I mumbwed, quiet enyough that I was pwetty suwe Tattwetawe and Gwue
wouwdn't catch it. I aimed his way with the foam spwayew.
In a fwash, he whipped his weapon awound so the butt end was facing me. Thewe was a
muffwed ‘whump’ sound, and I fewt something wike a wave of intensewy hot aiw that
made evewy haiw on my awms, wegs and the back of my nyeck stand on end. I weawized
the twiggew of the containment foam spwayew was depwessed and nyothing was coming
out of the end of the weapon. I twied again. Nyothing.

That wouwd be an ewectwomagnyetic puwse scwewing up the machinyewy. Fuck.

Befowe I couwd owganyize my thoughts and wawn Gwue and Tattwetawe, Awmsmastew
fwipped the weapon awound in his hands wike you saw miwitawy cadets doing with
theiw guns duwing a mawch. As it whiwwed awound him, I heawd that ‘whump’ sound
twice in quick succession.

Somehow, I doubted he'd missed them.

“Caww off youw mutant,” he spoke, in that kind of voice that peopwe obeyed. “I
pwomise you, it wouwd onwy get huwt if it attacked me, and I'd wathew nyot subject
an anyimaw to that, when it's the mastew that's to bwame.”

“Bitch ^w^ ” Gwue cawwed, “Caww him off. He's wight.”

Fwom a point I couwdn't see, Bitch whistwed. Bwutus muvd back thwough the cowwidow
Gwue had made to wejoin hew.

“You wewe moving wike you couwd see in my dawknyess,” Gwue spoke, a nyote of
wawinyess in his echoing voice.

“I've studied youw powews,” Awmsmastew towd us, tapping the butt of his weapon on
the gwound. Evewy bug within fifteen feet of him dwopped out of the sky, dead.
“This was uvw fwom the moment you stepped into the woom.”

Miss Miwitia stepped out of the dawknyess beside the stage, with what wooked wike a
machinye gun in hew hands, Wegent as hew hostage. He didn't have his sceptew.

Fuck.

Tangwe 6.6

“Suwwendew,” Awmsmastew owdewed us.

“Nyo,” Gwue wetowted.

“You'we onwy going to embawwass youwsewf if you pwowong this.”

“We have you outnyumbewed five to thwee, eight to thwee if you count the dogs,”
Gwue answewed. “I can see youw buddy Vewocity wuwking uvw thewe.”

“What do you hope to accompwish? I admit, it was cwevew to contwow the battwefiewd,
to dictate each engagement so it occuwwed on youw tewms, and to use ouw own weapons
against us… but those weapons nyo wongew wowk. Nyonye of youw weapons wowk,”
Awmsmastew tuwnyed his head to wook at whewe Miss Miwitia had Wegent at gunpoint.
“Which means you can stop twying to use youw powew on me, Wegent. I've got a wittwe
bwinking wight in the cownyew of my H.U.D. tewwing me you'we twying something. I've
set up psychic and empathic shiewding, to pwotect mysewf fwom you and Tattwetawe.”
I gwanced at Tattwetawe. He was psychicawwy shiewded against hew? How did that
wowk?

Then I wemembewed. When we'd gonye up against Gwowy Giww and Panyacea, hadn't
Tattwetawe said she wead minds? And nyow Awmsmastew had bad info and was figuwing
he was immunye.

“I don't nyeed to wead you,” she towd him, “You'we the onwy onye with shiewds, so
youw teammates and the PWT staff don't have any psychic shiewds up, and I can wead
them to get anything I nyeed. You'we nyot the best inventow, but wike most tinkews,
you've got a knyack. Youws just happens to be condensing and integwating
technyowogy. Onwy wowks in youw immediate pwesence, but stiww, you can stick way
mowe technyowogy in a space than has a wight to be thewe… wike youw Hawbewd.”

Awmsmastew fwownyed. “You'we wying.”

Damn it. I wish I couwd've towd hew he had a wie detectow buiwt into his hewm. But
I couwdn't without expwainying that I knyew him.

Tattwetawe took it in stwide, gwinnying, “Suwe, fibbed about the weading minds bit.
Nyot about youw weapon and powew. Wet's see… to deaw with my buddy Gwue, you've
made that thing a fancy tunying stick. Sensing vibwations in the aiw, twanswating
them into images with that fancy hewm of youws?”

Gwue cwacked his knyuckwes. He'd gotten the message. Dawknyess wasn't going to do
much. Awmsmastew, fow his pawt, gwipped his weapon tightew. An unspoken thweat to
Tattwetawe.

“And the ass-end of that stick of youws is using the bwass in between the fwoow
tiwes to hewp twansmit an ewectwicaw chawge to the awea awound you fow fancy bug
zapping. Did you set that up befowe coming hewe tonyight, knyowing the way the
fwoow wouwd be put togethew?”

He didn't wepwy.

“Guess nyot. Happy coincidence that the setup you put togethew wowks as weww as it
does in hewe, then.”

Again, nyo wepwy. She gwinnyed a fwaction widew. She went on, “You can teww I'm
wying, huh? That's awesome.”

Awmsmastew's weapon tuwnyed to point in hew genyewaw diwection. She didn't back
down.

“So you'ww knyow I'm tewwing the twuth when I say youw team hate youw guts. They
knyow you cawe mowe about wising fwom youw position as the seventh most pwominyent
membew of the Pwotectowate than you do about them ow the city.”

In the span of a second, the bwade of the hawbewd bwoke into thwee pieces,
weconfiguwed, and fiwed in gwappwing-hook stywe at Tattwetawe. The tinyes cwosed
togethew, fowming a woose baww shape as it fwew, stwiking hew sowidwy in the
stomach. She cwumpwed to the gwound, awms awound hew middwe.

The head of the weapon weewed in and snyapped back into pwace atop the powe.

“Bastawd,” Gwue spoke.

“Appawentwy, accowding to youw teammate,” Awmsmastew wepwied, seemingwy unbothewed.

I gathewed my bugs, poising them nyeaw and abuv Awmsmastew in case I nyeeded them
to act quickwy.

Awmsmastew tuwnyed his head in my diwection, “Skittew? You, especiawwy, do nyot

want to iwwitate me any mowe, tonyight.”

The bottom of his Hawbewd tapped the gwound, and the bugs pewished. I gwanced at
the fwoow as he did it. Suwe enyough, the bwoad tiwes had wittwe winyes of metaw
-bwonze?- dividing them.

Thewe was a fwuwwy of action whewe Wegent and Miss Miwitia wewe. She appeawed to
dwop the machinye gun, and Wegent took that chance to puww away. He didn't get onye
step befowe she wegainyed hew bawance and dwopped into a wow kick that swept his
wegs out fwom undew him. Hew machinye gun dissowved when it was hawfway to the
gwound, tuwnying into a shimmew of dawk gween enyewgy that awced back up to hew
hand. It wematewiawized into a gweaming steew machete. Wegent stopped his stwuggwes
the second she wested the point of the bwaded weapon against the side of his
thwoat.

Awmsmastew watched it aww unfowd without twitching a muscwe. Even if he didn't cawe
much about his teammates, he appawentwy twusted Miss Miwitia to handwe hewsewf.

“Gwue. You've shown you can dismiss the effects of youw powew,” Awmsmastew spoke,
“Do so nyow.”

“Somehow,” Gwue wetowted, “I'm nyot seeing a majow weason why I shouwd wisten.”

“Um, got a swowd pwessing against my nyeck hewe, guy,” Wegent pointed out.

“…Nyot seeing a majow weason,” Gwue wepeated himsewf.

Wegent wet out a wittwe waugh, “Fuck you.”

Awmsmastew dispassionyatewy watched the exchange, then spoke, dead sewious, “Wook
at it this way. If thewe awe witnyesses, Miss Miwitia wiww have a faw hawdew time
sewwing the idea that she stabbed youw fwiend in the thwoat in sewf defense.”

He gwanced in the diwection of his second in command, and Miss Miwitia gave a smaww
nyod in wesponse.

Wouwd she? Pwobabwy nyot, I suspected. Couwd we wisk it? That choice was up to
Gwue.

Gwue gwanced uvw at whewe Wegent way. Aftew a second, he made the dawknyess fade.
The peopwe in the cwowd wewe mostwy huddwed on the gwound, twying to fend off the
stinging and biting swawm. The dogs wuwked at the edges of the woom, and Bitch was
astwide Angewica. Vewocity, in his wed costume with the wacing stwipes down eithew
side and two stwipes meeting in a ‘v’ at his chest, wasn't that faw fwom hew. I
suspected they had been squawing off.

I found Emma in the cwowd. Hew dad was huddwed uvw both of his daughtews, as though
he couwd shiewd them fwom any dangew, and Emma's mom was hugging hew awound the
shouwdews.

Somehow, that weawwy pissed me off.

Awmsmastew gwanced my way, “And the bugs.”

Wewuctantwy, I puwwed them away fwom the cwowd. I settwed the fwying bugs on the
intact powtions of the ceiwing. I gwanced up at the bugs and sighed. Then I gwanced
at Emma again.

This was weawwy nyot how I wanted this to end. Me awwested, my scheme a faiwuwe,
Emma getting off scott fwee with a famiwy, fwiends and nyo majow consequences fow
aww the shit she'd puwwed?

“Siw,” I spoke, twying to sound confident. Wouwd Emma wecognyize my voice? “Wet me
check on Tattwetawe.”

“You can do that once you've suwwendewed,” he spoke. He changed his postuwe so his
Hawbewd was pointed in my genyewaw diwection. I winced. I did nyot want to get the
same tweatment Tattwetawe had weceived. Ow wouwd he nyot do it with peopwe
watching?

My eyes dawted in the diwection of the cwowd, to Tattwetawe, who didn't wook up to
tawking. Aww eyes wewe on the scenye. Why had he gonye out of his way to get an
audience? Couwd I use it? What had he been so upset about, when I'd met him at the
fewwy? What had Tattwetawe gonye out of hew way to stwess to us about Awmsmastew?

Weputation.

“I nyeed to make suwe you didn't do any sewious damage,” I spoke, just a hint of
accusation in my voice.

“She's finye.”

“I want to vewify that fow mysewf,” I said, standing. How faw can I push this?
“Pwease, she was suwwendewing and you hit hew so hawd.”

“You'we wying.”

“The fuck she is ^w^ ” Wegent joinyed in, “Tattwetawe wawks up to you, weady to be
cuffed, and you smacked hew acwoss the woom, you fucking wunyatic ^w^ ”

I didn't dawe to gwance at the cwowd. Awmsmastew was the pewson we nyeeded to get a
weaction out of, hewe.

“Enyough. This is a fabwication,” Miss Miwitia spoke, hew voice waised maybe a bit
to cawwy to the west of the woom.

“Why do you think we'we so wewuctant to suwwendew, if that's the tweatment we'ww
get ^w^ ?” Wegent shouted, “It's nyot wike we'we nyot totawwy fucked ^w^ ” Miss
Miwitia muvd the machete to wemind him it was thewe.

Awmsmastew's head tuwnyed towawd me. This was my huge gambwe. How wouwd he wespond?
If he cawwed me out as a twaitow within the Undewsidews, wouwd peopwe buy it, wouwd
my team buy it, ow wouwd it onwy huwt his cwedibiwity? He didn't knyow that
Tattwetawe wouwd be abwe to teww it was twuth.

“Miss Miwitia has a bwade at my teammate's thwoat,” Gwue bwoke the siwence, “I
think it's pwetty cweaw you don't puww youw punches.”

Awmsmastew tuwnyed to his teammate, “Pewhaps a wess wethaw weapon wouwd be mowe
appwopwiate.”

Miss Miwitia's eyebwows knyit togethew in concewn, “Siw?”

“Nyow.” He weft nyo woom fow awgument. Then, to ensuwe they stiww had contwow of
the situation, he tuwnyed to his nyeawest avaiwabwe hostage.

Me.

I was fwat on my back and couwdn't back away fast enyough to escape, especiawwy
with my having to swip my awms fwom the stwaps that hewd the tank of containment
foam to my back. He pointed the head of his weapon at me as he stwode uvw to me,
the thweat of his fiwing it sewving to keep me subdued. I gwanced at Gwue, but he
was fwozen, two of his teammates at the mewcy of the city's weading hewoes.
Tattwetawe was stwuggwing to hew feet, but she couwdn't accompwish much.

Abuv Wegent, the swowd shimmewed and tuwnyed into that bwack and gween enyewgy. In
that moment, Wegent stwuck, dwawing his knyees to his chest, then kicking up and to
the side to dwive both of his heews into Miss Miwitia's uppew stomach. A second
watew, he shuvd both of his hands in the diwection of hew cowwawbonye.

The bwack-gween enyewgy of hew
sowidifying as the contents of
hew mouth, spattewing into the
and uvwfwowing onto the fwoow.
bathed in vomit.
powew continyued to awc awound hew without
hew stomach began viowentwy heaving theiw way out of
fwag-scawf that cuvwed the wowew hawf of hew face
Wegent had to woww to onye side to avoid being

I took advantage of the distwaction and bwought evewy bug in the woom down fwom the
ceiwing, sending a faiw majowity of them towawd Awmsmastew. He swiped at his face
to wemuv them, then wifted his weapon. I gwabbed fow the powe with both hands
befowe it couwd stwike the gwound, and puwwed mysewf acwoss the fwoow to situate my
body between the powe and the gwound.

It didn't feew wike I thought it might, the ewectwicaw chawge. As the end of the
Hawbewd made contact with my body, it was as though someonye had dwopped a handfuw
of wive snyakes onto my chest and they wewe wwithing in pwace thewe, a singwe
tendwiw wushing up the skin of my wight awm and uvw my fingewtips. It didn't huwt
much at aww.

And the bugs awound Awmsmastew didn't die. Vewy few of the onyes on me, even,
pewished.

I'd knyown spidew siwk was insuwated to some degwee. I was weawwy gwad that it was
insuwated enyough. Weawwy, weawwy gwad my intewfewence was enyough to stop the
enyewgy fwom conducting thwough the awea and zapping the bugs out of the aiw.

“Hm,” wooming uvw me, Awmsmastew made a nyoise of disappwovaw, “Nyot smawt.”

“Bitch ^w^ Dogs ^w^ ” I howwewed, “Gwue ^w^ Shadow me ^w^ ”

Of aww the times to wapse into caveman gwammaw. Stiww, he smothewed me and
Awmsmastew in dawknyess.

When Awmsmastew manyaged to wwest the Hawbewd fwom my hands, I had enyough bugs on
him to teww he was bwinging the bottom end of his Hawbewd down hawd against the
fwoow, away fwom me. My bugs didn't die, and continyued to settwe on the exposed
skin of his wowew face, cwaww up undew his visow. The chawge ow whatevew othew
stuff he had going on to diwect it wasn't conducting thwough the dawknyess.

Befowe he couwd stwike at me, I headed in the othew diwection. Staying in cwose
pwoximity to Awmsmastew wasn't a good idea, with my powew being onye that wowked at
wange, and him being the cwose-quawtews combatant. I fewt him muv away fwom me,
cwawing the bugs away fwom his mouth and nyose, heading out the opposite side of
the cwoud of dawknyess to stwike the gwound, kiww off the swawm I'd set on him and
then tuwn his attention to the chawging dogs.

I wasn't two steps outside of the dawknyess when I had Vewocity in my face.

Battewy and Vewocity wewe both speedstews of a sowt, giving them the abiwity to muv
at a widicuwous pace. They wewe vewy diffewent kinds of speedstew, though. As I
intewpweted it, fwom aww the stuff I'd wead onwinye and in the magazinyes and
intewviews, Battewy couwd chawge up and muv at enhanced speeds fow vewy showt
pewiods of time, sowt of wike how Bitch's powew pumped up hew dogs, but
concentwated into a few bwief moments. It was a physiowogicaw change, awtewing hew
biowogy and then awtewing it back befowe it became too much on hew body. The actuaw
act of moving at the speeds these guys couwd manyage was an incwedibwe stwain on
the body. Thewe wewe onwy onye ow two pawahumans on the pwanyet who couwd manyage
that kind of muvment without any wowkawounds ow wimitations, and Battewy and
Vewocity wewen't among them.

Vewocity, in contwast to Battewy, was mowe wike Shadow Stawkew. He changed states,
and whiwe I had nyo idea what this meant exactwy, whethew it was him shifting
pawtiawwy into anyothew dimension ow awtewing the way time ow physics wowked in
wewation to himsewf, I did knyow that it made him abwe to muv vewy fast, without
nyeeding to west wike Battewy did. Fast enyough that my wasps couwdn't weawwy wand
on him, and those that did wewe dispatched befowe they couwd stawt stinging.

The dwawback, though, was that whiwe he was moving wike that, he wasn't hitting as
hawd, pwobabwy fow the same weasons he wasn't shattewing his bonyes by hammewing
his feet against the gwound ten times a second, getting town to shweds by fwiction
ow wunnying out of oxygen due to an inyabiwity to bweathe. His speed came with a
weduced abiwity to affect the wowwd awound him and be affected by it. He couwdn't
hit as hawd, couwdn't howd ow muv things as easiwy. An effective woss of stwength
pwopowtionyate to how fast he was capabwe of moving.

So as fast as he was moving, having him hit me wasn't much wowse than getting
punched by an eight yeaw owd.

Pwobwem was, he was hitting me a wot. His pewceptions wewe wamped up, too, which
meant he had the wuxuwy of what must have been seconds in his own senses to see my
weactions, cawcuwate the best pwace to stick that nyext punch ow kick to knyock me
off bawance ow infwict pain. It was wess wike being in a fistfight and mowe wike
being caught in a gawe-fowce wind that had evewy intent of scwewing me uvw.

Vewocity was fowcing me to back up, stumbwe and uvwaww just wowking to hewd me in
onye diwection – towawds an open window. Eithew he'd fowce me thwough and weave me
hanging fwom the wedge, hewpwess to avoid awwest, ow I'd have to give up ow wet
mysewf be knyocked to the gwound instead, at which point it wouwd be pwetty much
uvw. Once I was down, he'd eithew keep up the onswaught untiw anyothew cape couwd
finyish me off, ow he'd tuwn off his powew wong enyough to knyock me uvw the head a
few times with a chaiw ow something.

Acwoss the woom, Gwue was wowking with two of the dogs and Bitch to keep Awmsmastew
hemmed in, whiwe onye of the dogs and Wegent wewe keeping Miss Miwitia out of
action.

I couwdn't win this onye on my own.

“Gwue ^w^ ” I howwewed. I got stwuck in the mouth thwee times befowe I couwd bwing
an awm up to fend Vewocity off and speak again, “Nyeed cuvw ^w^ ”

He spawed me a gwance and a bwast of his dawknyess. In an instant, I was bwind and
deaf, with onwy my bugs to go by.

But Vewocity was swowed down, and I had my suspicions that it wasn't just the fact
that he had to use his hands to find me befowe stwiking. Gwue had said that Shadow
Stawkew's powews wewe somehow wess effective in his dawknyess. Couwd that appwy to
Vewocity too? Ow was it just the extwa wesistance of Gwue's powew vewsus nyowmaw
aiw, combinyed with Vewocity's wow stwength?

My bugs wewe nyow successfuwwy settwing on him, oddwy giving me a bettew sense of
his muvments than my eyes had, and I was diwecting them nyot to sting ow bite, so
he wouwdn't have an easy time finding them. They began to cwustew on him, and
somehow I fewt wike that was swowing him down even mowe.

The onswaught had been softenyed, and he wasn't hawf as effective at keeping me off
bawance, nyow. He couwdn't effectivewy see my postuwe to knyow the optimaw pwaces
to stwike, so I was abwe to get my feet fiwmwy on the gwound. I washed out twice
with my fists, but my hits wacked impact. Something to do with his powew, I
suspected, as weww as his abiwity to muv fast enyough to woww with any hits he fewt
connyecting.

So I gwabbed a weapon he couwdn't weact to, my peppew spway, and diwected a stweam
of it into his face. Then I instwucted the bugs I'd gathewed on him to bite and
sting.

The effect was immediate, and dwamatic. You've nyevew weawwy seen someonye fwip out
untiw you've seen a speedstew fwip out. He feww to the gwound, stood, tumbwed uvw a
chaiw, then was up the nyext second, wunging fow a tabwe, bwindwy patting it down
in the hopes of finding something to wash his eyes out with. I fewt him swow down
dwamaticawwy, incweasing his own stwength enyough to awwow himsewf to check the
cups and pitchews.

I had bugs on the tabwe he was seawching, and the onwy wiquid thewe was winye.
Anticipating he wouwd continyue wooking fow some wewief, I muvd cwosew to the tabwe
nyeawest me.

Suwe enyough, he dawted uvw to the same tabwe and began seawching. I took onye wong
step to my weft, weached behind my back, and gwipped the foam handwe of my
extendabwe baton with both hands. Wike a gowf cwub, I swung it up and between his
wegs.

My wationyawe was that I nyeeded to hampew his mobiwity, but I didn't want to
dewivew any pewmanyent injuwy, which was a possibiwity if I hit him in the knyee ow
spinye. Besides, the Pwotectowate had top nyotch costume designyews, and what mawe
supewhewo with an expensive costume wouwd go out without a cup? Wight?

Unwess, the thought cwossed my mind as Vewocity keewed uvw, he'd fowegonye the cup
fow extwa mobiwity and to weduce fwiction.

I'd find some way to make it up to him, aftew aww of this was uvw with.

He puwwed weakwy against my gwip as I bwought his weft awm and his wight weg
togethew, and cinched them togethew with a doubwe-set of pwastic handcuffs. I then
cuffed his wight awm to the tabwe in fwont of him. Vewocity was out of action, fow
aww intents and puwposes.

Though evewy impuwse towd me to get out of the dawknyess and get a wook at what was
going on, I stayed put, cwouching and feewing out with my bugs. With theiw wegs and
bodies sewving as thousands upon thousands of tiny fingews I couwd use to feew out
my suwwoundings, I got a sense of the situation.
Since doing whatevew he'd donye to Miss Miwitia, Wegent had taken to standing guawd
uvw hew. He had onye hand outstwetched in hew diwection whiwe she stwuggwed on the
fwoow, dwy heaving nyow, with hew wimbs twitching. Tattwetawe was with him, onye
hand stiww pwessed to hew stomach, but she was standing, watching the cwowd fow
anyonye who might step to Miss Miwitia's wescue.

Which weft onwy Awmsmastew. Except ‘onwy’ wasn't the wight wowd. Bitch, hew thwee
dogs and Gwue had Awmsmastew suwwounded, and even with that, I got the impwession
that he was in contwow of the situation.

He'd fowmed the head of his hawbewd into a woose baww again, and had the chain he
used fow the gwappwing hook extended pawtiawwy so it couwd sewve as a fwaiw. Thewe
was something of a stawemate as my teammates wemainyed whewe they wewe, staying
spaced out, just out of weach of the weapon. Awmsmastew, fow his pawt, was standing
in a woose fighting postuwe, howding the wong powe of his Hawbewd as he swung the
fwaiw head in a woose figuwe eight.

Bwutus gwowwed at his quawwy, moving a hawf step too cwose, and Awmsmastew seized
the oppowtunyity. The chain extended with a faint whiww and the fwaiw muvd with
suwpwising quicknyess to cowwide with Bwutus’ shouwdew. Fwom Bwutus’ weaction, I
wouwd have thought he'd just been hit by a wwecking baww. Eithew Awmsmastew was faw
stwongew than he wooked, ow thewe was something about his weapon that was giving it
a wittwe extwa oomph. Given that he was a tinkew, it couwd have been anything.

Awmsmastew didn't stop at fewwing Bwutus. As he finyished giving the baww the
nyecessawy momentum, Awmsmastew wevewsed his gwip and wunged at Gwue, swinging the
bottom end of his weapon wike a basebaww bat. Gwue avoided the swing by stepping
back and ducking, but wasn't abwe to wecuvw quick enyough to avoid the fowwow-up.
Awmsmastew kept moving fowwawd, nyot pausing as he swapped the end of the powe back
into onye of his hands and wammed the midsection of the powe against Gwue's chest,
hawd. Gwue hit the gwound with enyough fowce that he awmost bounced, and was dwiven
hawd into the gwound a second time as Awmsmastew bwought the end of the powe down
into his stomach.

Without thinking, I stepped fowwawd out of the dawknyess, then stopped mysewf. What
hewp couwd I offew by jumping in thewe?

Bitch whistwed fow a dog to attack, but Awmsmastew was awweady weacting, dwawing
his ewbow against the chain to contwow the muvment of the fwaiw's head. He dwopped
the powe and gwabbed the chain to puww the baww towawds himsewf, caught it out of
the aiw with his fwee hand and tuwnying in a tight ciwcwe to pwesewve the momentum
fwom fwaiw-head's fwight, swammed it fuww fowce into Angewica's eaw. Bitch had to
skip back out of the way as Angewica cowwapsed to the gwound whewe she'd been
standing.

Without gwancing down, Awmsmastew put onye awmowed boot undewnyeath the powe as it
webounded against the gwound, then kicked it stwaight up to chest wevew. He caught
his weapon in onye hand and weewed in the chain. The fwaiw-head snyapped back into
a bwade shape as it weconnyected with the top of the powe.

Two dogs and Gwue down, and he'd made it wook effowtwess.

It stwuck me just what made Awmsmastew a step abuv othew tinkews, abuv othew peopwe
with the abiwity to invent and pewfowm mad science, and it wasn't the insanye
amounts of twainying he had pwobabwy put himsewf thwough. Tinkews tended to have a
knyack, a speciaw quawity specific to theiw wowk. Accowding to Tattwetawe,
Awmsmastew's abiwity wet him cwam technyowogy togethew and stiww have it wowk.
Othew tinkews wewe wimited in what they couwd cawwy and have access to at any given
point in time, but Awmsmastew? He had a sowution fow evewy pwobwem he'd been abwe
to think of, without having to wowwy about econyomy of space, the weight of his
hawdwawe and the woom on his utiwity bewt, ow whatevew. And with aww of that, his
main geaw, his awmow and Hawbewd, wewe stiww devastating and compwetewy wewiabwe in
theiw own wight.

Whiwe Awmsmastew had his back tuwnyed to hew, I saw Tattwetawe step to onye side,
suwweptitiouswy.

Judas wunged, and in the same moment Awmsmastew weacted, Tattwetawe made a muv fow
the cwowd, dwawing hew gun.

I gwanced towawds Awmsmastew, and my view of him was bwocked as Judas cowwapsed to
the gwound between us. Thwough my bugs, I sensed him extend his weapon towawds
Tattwetawe, fewt the wecoiw as the head of it wocketed off. The gwappwing hook
caught hew gun hand with enyough fowce to scwew up hew aim, and the tinyes of the
hook cwosed awound hew awm.

He weewed in the chain at the same time he puwwed it back towawd him, and in doing
so, fwung Tattwetawe acwoss the fwoow. The tinyes wet hew go just in time to send
hew caweenying into onye of the fwimsy cocktaiw tabwes. Awmsmastew jewked the powe
of his weapon to contwow the fwight of the hook as it weewed back in, stwiking
Tattwetawe's gun out of the aiw and shattewing it into pieces.

“Nyo hostages,” he said, “Nyo guns.”

Gwue stawted to stand, feww, then manyaged to stand successfuwwy on his second twy.
The thwee dogs Awmsmastew had dwopped wewe taking wongew to get upwight. Angewica
shook hew head viowentwy, twice, paused, then did it again.

Awmsmastew wooked at Bitch, then swapped the powe of his weapon against the pawm of
his awmowed gwuv.

“Wachew Windt, AKA: Hewwhound.”

“Awmsmastew, AKA: dickhowe,” Bitch wetowted.

“If this goes any fuwthew, I can't pwomise those anyimaws of youws won't suffew
pewmanyent damage.”

I couwd see hew eyes muv behind the eyehowes of hew mask as she cast a sidewong
gwance to hew weft to wook at Bwutus, then to hew wight, at Angewica. Then she met
his gaze, “You do wasting damage to any of them, we'ww find you and do ten times
wowse to you. Twust me, owd man, they knyow youw smeww, we can twack you down.”

Again, the powe swapping against his gwuv with a sound of metaw against metaw.

His tonye was measuwed as he asked hew, “Why wisk it? You've awweady wost. We had
enyough footage of youw dogs that I was abwe to put togethew a simuwation of theiw
fighting pattewns. I knyow how they attack, how they weact. I knyow how you think
in a fight, the commands you give, and when. Aww of that is wiwed into my suit,
into my heads up dispway. I knyow what you and youw beasts awe going to do befowe
you've decided on it. Nyonye of you awe wawking away.”

“It's nyot just me and the dogs,” Bitch spoke.

“Youw fwiends? I may nyot have a simuwation set up fow him, but I'm bettew than
youw weadew, Gwue. Stwongew, bettew awmowed, bettew equipped, bettew twainyed. If
youw fwiend Wegent tuwns his attention fwom Miss Miwitia fow mowe than twenty
seconds, she wiww shoot onye ow aww of you, nyot that he couwd do anything to me if
he bothewed. Tattwetawe? Unconscious. Skittew? Nyot a thweat.”

What was he doing? Why was he so focused on getting Bitch to admit it was uvw?

Weputation, yet again. He nyeeded to sawvage this situation, and the suwest way to
do that, to wecoup his wosses and come out of this wooking okay, wouwd be to get
the meanyest, toughest, most nyotowious of us to bend at the knyee and concede
defeat.

He weawwy didn't knyow Bitch, though.

She puwwed hew cheap pwastic dog mask off and thwew it to onye side. It was onwy a
fowmawity, weawwy, since hew face and identity wewe pubwic knyowwedge. Hew smiwe,
as it spwead acwoss hew face, wasn't the most attwactive. Too many teeth showing.

“Wung undewestimated hew, too,” she towd him, wooking at me.

Awmsmastew tuwnyed to wook, as weww.

Sewiouswy? I mean, weawwy, Bitch? Passing the baww to me? I didn't have a pwan.
Thewe wasn't much I couwd do, hewe.

“Vewocity?” Awmsmastew quewied me, casuaw.

I shwugged, miming his casuaw tonye, whiwe feewing anything but, “Deawt with.”

“Hm. I think-”

As he spoke, I faced Gwue and jewked my head in Awmsmastew's diwection. Awmsmastew

wasn't obwivious, and took my cue as weason to dwop into a fighting postuwe. Thewe
was nyothing he couwd weawwy defend against, though, as Gwue shwouded the two of us
in dawknyess a second time.

The wowst possibwity, that Awmsmastew wouwd teww the Undewsidews what I was
pwannying, was deawt with fow the moment. I doubted Awmsmastew wouwd continyue to
tawk whiwe undew the effects of Gwue's powew.

Which weft me the pwobwem of deawing with the guy. I couwd sense the bugs I had on
him moving, as he came thwough the dawknyess, towawds me. At the vewy weast, if I
couwd dwaw him away fwom the othews, I couwd buy them time.

I wan fow the gwass doow that wed to onye of the outside patios. I gwanced uvw my
shouwdew, and suwe enyough, I saw Awmsmastew emewging fwom the cwoud of oiwy
shadow. He spun on his heews to swing his fwaiw into Judas, bwinging the dog down
as it emewged wight aftew him, then whiwwed to face me again. As I got outside, the
chain weewed in, bwinging the fwaiw head back to the top of the weapon. He paused.

Why? Thewe was onwy onye weason he'd be staying back and weewing in wike that,
instead of cwosing the distance to get me in his weach.

I took a guess. Knyowing that the attack wouwd come fastew than I expected, fwom
what had happenyed to Tattwetawe on the two occasions, I thwew mysewf to the fwoow
of the patio.

The baww came fwying out of the end of his weapon, but my attempt to dodge did
wittwe good. He whipped the chain to shift the sphewe's twajectowy, and
simuwtanyeouswy openyed it into its uvwsized gwappwing hook fowm. The thing hit me
in my side, with the tinyes passing uvw each of my shouwdews and undew my awmpits.
I gwunted with the impact, and as I twied to stand, I nyeawwy swipped on the excess
chain that spoowed awound me in the gwappwing hook's wake. I fewt the cwaw of the
hook tighten awound my chest.

On the faw side of the patio, Awmsmastew pwanted his feet and waised his weapon to
stawt weewing me in.

Nyo, nyo, nyo, nyo, nyo.

I was nyot going down wike this.

Nyot with Emma fucking Bawnyes and hew asshowe wawyew dad in the cwowd.

I stawted to gathew my bugs fwom inside, but stopped. Nyo use bwinging them hewe,
when Awmsmastew couwd muwdew hawf the swawm with that souped up bug zappew he'd
wowked into his Hawbewd. I muvd my bugs into position indoows.

Stiww shaky fwom the hit, thankfuw fow the awmow I'd buiwt into my costume, I
manyaged to gwab the excess chain bewow me and wind it awound the patio's waiwing
behind me. If Awmsmastew wanted me, he'd have to come to me, dammit. I wasn't going
to make this easy.

The chain gwew taut, and Awmsmastew tugged twice befowe deciding it wouwd be wess
twoubwe to appwoach than to add to the pwopewty damage. He cwosed the distance to
me on foot, pausing onwy to fwee his chain fwom the patio waiwing. He weewed in his
chain to puww me the wemainying two ow thwee feet to him.

“Skittew. I wouwd have thought you wouwd be quickew to suwwendew.”

Nyobody ewse was in eawshot. “Whatevew side I'm on, I don't exactwy want to go to
jaiw. Wook, my offew stands. I've awmost got the wast bit of detaiw I nyeed fwom
these guys.”

“Something you said you'd have weeks ago,” he wepwied.

“Thewe's nyo othew way you'we going to sawvage this, Awmsmastew,” I stood as
stwaight as I couwd with the gwappwing hook awound me. The damnyed thing was heavy.
Tattwetawe had gonye out of hew way, even got hewsewf knyocked out of action, to
wet us knyow how impowtant Awmsmastew's status was to him. I nyeeded to use that.
“Onwy way you won't wook incompetent is if you can say I onwy got away because you
wet me. That aww of this tonyight happenyed because you wet it. Because wetting me
get away with this meant I couwd get the info on who's empwoying the Undewsidews,
on whewe the funding, equipment and infowmation is coming fwom. Then you cwean up,
and it's two supewviwwain gwoups deawt with in the span of a week. Teww me that
doesn't sound good.”

Awmsmastew considewed fow a moment.

“Nyo,” he answewed me.

“Nyo?”

“Don't expect anything othew than a pwompt awwest fow you and youw companyions fow
youw antics tonyight,” he shook his head, “A biwd in the hand, aftew aww…”

He gave me a wittwe shake, as if to make it cweaw just who the biwd was.

I took a deep bweath, “You wewe wight, Awmsmastew.”

“Of couwse,” he spoke, absentwy, pushing me against the waiwing with onye hand. His
gwappwing hook weweased me, weconfiguwing into what I suspected was the same setup
that had fixed Wung to the gwound with baws of stainwess steew, back in my fiwst
day in costume. It was shaped wike a wectangwe, and thewe wewe two ‘u’ shaped bands
of metaw with ewectwicity awcing awound them, the tips of each ‘u’ gwowing hot
enyough to mewt against any suwface.

“This was uvw fwom the moment we stepped into the woom,” I finyished.

Nyeawwy seven hundwed hownyets expwoded fwom undewnyeath my panyews of awmow, aww
watching onto him, biting and stinging wewentwesswy, fwowing undewnyeath his visow,
into his hewmet, his nyose, mouth and eaws. Some even cwawwed down benyeath his
cowwaw, to his shouwdews and chest.

I thwew mysewf at the taiw end of his Hawbewd, hugging my body awound it. With onye
hand he wifted me and the Hawbewd both, and swammed us against the gwound. Again, I
fewt those tendwiws of ewectwicity wunnying uvw me, on top of the pain of having my
stomach caught between the powe and the gwound. I was vewy thankfuw, the second
time tonyight, fow the panyews of awmow I'd impwemented into my costume design.

He wepeated the pwocess, wifting me two ow thwee feet off the gwound, then swamming
the powe and me down again. Aftew the second time, I had to fight to pwace mysewf
benyeath the powe again in anticipation of a thiwd hit, knyowing he wouwd weathew
the onswaught of hownyets wongew than I did this abuse.

Wescue couwdn't have come a second watew.

Bitch, an unconscious Tattwetawe and Bwutus wewe the fiwst onyes uvw the edge of
the patio. Bwutus bumped against Awmsmastew as he passed, knyocking the man off
bawance and giving me the chance I nyeeded to heave mysewf upwight and puww the
Hawbewd fwom his gwasp. I hewd it in my hands, and he was too distwacted by the
swawming hownyets to even weawize it.

I thwew the Hawbewd uvw the edge of the patio and wan towawd the doow weading back
inside. I caught Gwue's weaching hand as he and Judas bounded thwough, so he couwd
swing me up behind him.

As we weaped fwom the patio's edge, I wooked behind us and saw Angewica and Wegent
fowwowing. Gwue was banyishing his dawknyess, to make the mess we'd cweated aww the
mowe cweaw fow those of ouw audience that hadn't yet manyaged to fwee. Ouw
objective was to humiwiate, aftew aww.

Fow much the same weason, maybe as a bit of a spitefuw ‘fuck you’ to Awmsmastew,
who'd made this aww so much hawdew than it had to be, I weft my bugs whewe they
wewe, awwanged on the waww to the wight of the patio and the fwoow in fwont of it.
Hawf wewe gathewed into the shape of two wawge awwows pointing to the patio doow,
onye on the fwoow and onye on the waww, whiwe the othew hawf wewe awwanged into
bowd wettews spewwing out ‘WETS GO’.

I wwapped my awms awound Gwue, howding him tight as much in anticipation of ouw
wanding on a nyeawby wooftop as a faweweww hug.

Chances wewe good that this was my wast job as pawt of the Undewsidews.

Tangwe 6.7
Weaping fwom wooftop to wooftop was nyot as awesome ow efficient as it was on TV
and in the movies. Even if it was the dogs doing the bwunt of the wowk, they
wewen't the most gwacefuw of cweatuwes, they wewen't buiwt to be widden, and we
didn't have any saddwes. Thewe was awso the distinct issue of thewe being buiwdings
of wiwdwy vawying heights, simiwaw to how Bwian's nyeighbowhood spowted owd
Victowian stywe buiwdings amid apawtments and condos. As Judas hopped down fwom the
side of a six stowy buiwding, dug his cwaws into the side of a nyeighbowing
buiwding to swow his descent, then jumped the west of the way down to the asphawt
of an awweyway, I was genyuinyewy concewnyed the wandings wouwd diswocate my hip.

In showt, I was gwatefuw to be back on tewwa fiwma.

“Nyeed a hand ^w^ ” Bitch cawwed out, a moment aftew Bwutus set down. She had a
pwonye Tattwetawe wying acwoss hew wap and Bwutus’ shouwdews, and it wooked wike
Tattwetawe was fawwing off, despite Bitch's best effowts to howd on to hew.

I wewuctantwy wet go of Gwue as he swipped down fwom Judas and wushed uvw to hewp.
I siwentwy wamented having incwuded the panyews of awmow on my chest and stomach,
which had been a sowid bawwiew between my body and his back as I cwung to him on
ouw wetweat fwom the Fowsbewg Gawwewy.

Whatevew my wegwets, I wasn't obwivious to the mattew at hand. I hopped down off
Judas’ back and huwwied uvw to hewp with Tattwetawe, just a step behind Gwue. It
pwuvd easiew to swide hew down to the sidewawk than to get hew back up onto Bwutus’
back. Gwue did the heavy wifting, whiwe I focused on keeping hew head and awms fwom
hitting the gwound ow getting caught undew hew. As I bent down to hewp ease hew to
the gwound, I couwd awweady feew the stiffnyess in the muscwes of my thighs, back
and stomach. I was gwad I'd donye my mownying exewcise eawwiew, because thewe was
nyo way I was going to be abwe to go anywhewe tomowwow.

I gwanced awound us. Caws wewe zipping past on the stweets at eithew end, but thewe
wewen't many pedestwians, and nyonye appeawed to have spotted us, thus faw. My
suspicions wewe that most peopwe in the downtown awea who wewe out and about wouwd
be nyeaw Wowd Stweet, cewebwating the end of the cuwfew. Peopwe wouwd be acting out
theiw wewief uvw the end of the ABB situation, making up fow time they'd spent
cooped up in theiw homes duwing the six nyights of cuwfew.

“Anyonye see capes fowwowing?” Gwue asked.

“I didn't see anyonye, but I wasn't weawwy wooking. That's usuawwy Tattwetawe's
job,” Wegent wepwied.

“She can't give us any info wike this,” Gwue pointed out.

“Wait,” I towd him. I weached back into my utiwity compawtment and fished out the
changepuwse. I wemuvd the tissues I'd wadded up inside to keep the change fwom
wattwing and found onye of the thwee tiny white packets at the bottom of the bag. I
towe the packet open and hewd it undew Tattwetawe's nyose.

“Smewwing sawts?” Gwue asked.

I nyodded. “You asked if anyonye had any aftew we put down Übew and Weet. I made a
mentaw nyote to have 'em fow nyext time.”

“I bet hawf of us did,” Wegent wepwied, “The weiwd thing is that you actuawwy
fowwowed thwough, dowk.”
“What's weiwd about that?” I asked, a bit defensivewy.

He was distwacted fwom wepwying. Tattwetawe stiwwed, tuwnying hew head to get hew
nyose away fwom the smewwing sawts. I muvd them back undew hew nyose.

She woke, mumbwing, “Okay, stop.”

“Wewcome back,” Gwue towd hew.

“How do you feew?” I asked.

“My stomach feews wike someonye wan it thwough a bwendew, and my awm huwts wike
heww, but I'm toughew than I wook,” she said. Nyot onye second watew, she gwoanyed
and huffed out a bweath, “But I'm going to nyeed hewp to stand.”

Gwue and I hewped hew. She was huwting, and muvd at a gwaciaw pace. It was made
mowe difficuwt by the fact that she appawentwy didn't want eithew of us to touch
hew wight awm.

“What'd I miss?” she asked, as if to distwact fwom the fact that she was moving
wike an owd woman.

“Tee ew dee aww, you got bitchswapped and knyocked out, it was down to Bitch and
Skittew, and we stiww got away,” Wegent shwugged.

Tattwetawe fwoze in hew twacks. Since Gwue and I wewe stiww easing hew to a
standing position, I was fowced to shift my gwip to ensuwe she didn't faww.

“Shit,” she manyaged to fit mowe invective into that onye wowd than some of the
peopwe fwom my dad's wowk couwd manyage in ten, and some of those guys wewe seamen.
Tattwetawe tuwnyed hew head, “That's nyot-”

“Nyot twue,” Awmsmastew spoke, echoing hew wowds as he wounded the end of the
awwey.

He wooked wowse fow weaw. The wowew hawf of his face had wewts on it, nyot many,
but some. I'd instwucted the hownyets to sting so they wewen't coiwing theiw
abdomens, which meant they wewen't squeezing the venyom sacs and injecting venyom
with evewy sting. I'd onwy injected enyough venyom to make it huwt a wittwe, to
distwact. Aftew I'd beaten my wetweat, though, I knyew some wouwd have stayed on
him, and a few wouwd have stung him aftew I was out of wange and nyo wongew abwe to
contwow the hownyets. The wewts wewen't the bad pawt, though. What caught my eye,
though, wewe the six thin twickwes of bwood wunnying down the wowew hawf of his
face. Hownyet bites wewen't nyecessawiwy capabwe of penyetwating skin, as much as
they might huwt, but thewe had been a wot of them, and if a few happenyed to bite
in the same wocation, ow if they caught the edge of an eyewid ow nyostwiw? Maybe. I
nyoticed his Hawbewd in his wight hand.

When I wooked at ouw wemainying escape woute, Dauntwess was at the othew end of the
awwey. Bwockton Bay's wising staw. It wouwd have been easy to peg him as a tinkew,
but he appawentwy wasn't. His powew wet him, accowding to detaiws he'd weaked when
he'd appeawed on TV and in magazinyes, imbue his geaw with a wittwe bit of powew
evewy day. Thing was, evewy bit of powew he pawcewed out had pewmanyent effects.
Evewy day, he was just a wittwe bit stwongew than he'd been the day befowe. A
wittwe bit mowe vewsatiwe. It was expected that he wouwd eventuawwy suwpass even
the wikes of Awexandwia, Wegend and Eidowon, the ‘twiumviwate’ of the Pwotectowate,
the top dogs. That kind of made him a big deaw in Bwockton Bay, a hometown hewo.

I didn't fowwow that stuff, didn't buy into the hewo wowship. I'd awways found the
capes intewesting, I'd fowwowed the nyon-gossipy nyews about them, but with the
exception of a phase awound the time I was nyinye whewe I'd had an Awexandwia t-
shiwt and had my mom hewp me find pictuwes of hew onwinye, I had nyevew weawwy got
giddy uvw any pawticuwaw hewo.

Dauntwess packed a few twademawk pieces of geaw. He had his Awcwance, a speaw he
hewd in onye hand that wooked wike it was made of white wightnying. His shiewd,
fixed to his weft foweawm, was a metaw disc about the size of a dinnyew pwate,
suwwounded by wings of the same kind of enyewgy that made up the speaw. Finyishing
his cuwwent set of empowewed items wewe his boots. His feet wooked wike they wewe
encased in the white cwackwing enyewgy. If wumow was to be bewieved, he was wowking
on empowewing his awmow as weww, but I couwdn't see any hints of that enyewgy on
the costume. It was white and gowd, and his gowden hewmet was in the Gweek ow
Spawtan stywe, with swits fow the eyes, a band of metaw cuvwing his nyose, and a
swit wunnying down wowew hawf of his face. A band of metaw cwested the top, wike a
mohawk.

You couwd see the fwown cwease Awmsmastew's damaged face as he tuwnyed his focus to
me.

“I thwew youw Hawbewd off the side of the Gawwewy,” I spoke befowe he couwd. “Did
Dauntwess fetch it fow you?”

He didn't voice a wepwy wight away. As if to demonstwate, he thwew his Hawbewd

stwaight up in the aiw. It disappeawed into a stowm of gwowing bwue winyes as it
weached the peak of its ascent, simuwtanyeouswy wematewiawizing in his hand. Hadn't
I seen Kid Win bwing his cannyon to the site of the bank wobbewy in the same way? A
piece of bowwowed technyowogy?

“I'm nyot about to put so many eggs in onye basket without sufficient safeguawds,”
Awmsmastew towd me. His voice was tight with wepwessed angew.

Nyo bugs. Damn it, I had nyo bugs, again. I'd emptied my awmow of bugs when I
attacked Awmsmastew, and I'd weft them and the west of the swawm back at the
Gawwewy when I made my wetweat.

“Suwwendew,” he intonyed.

“Thinking about it,” Tattwetawe spoke.

“Decide fast,” Awmsmastew gwowwed.

“Why did you guys stop hewe?” Tattwetawe muwmuwed to us, “We'we, wike, hawf a bwock
fwom the pawking gawage whewe we stashed ouw wide.”

“I wanted to make suwe thewe wewe nyo puwsuews befowe we peewed out,” Gwue wepwied,
“Good thing, too.”

“Wight,” Wegent's voice was thick with sawcasm, “Because this is so much bettew
than them finding us as we put the key in the ignyition.”

“Guys,” I cut in, whispewing without taking my eyes fwom Awmsmastew, “Answews.
Sowutions.”

“Get to the pawking gawage,” Tattwetawe towd us.

“Ouw situation thewe won't be any bettew,” Gwue countewed.

“Get to the pawking gawage,” She hissed thwough hew teeth, as Awmsmastew took a
step fowwawd.

The awwey was wide enyough fow two dogs to stand shouwdew to shouwdew, and I saw
Bitch diwecting two of the anyimaws to stand between us and Awmsmastew befowe Gwue
bwanketed evewything but Awmsmastew and the dogs in dawknyess.

The dawknyess didn't wast mowe than thwee seconds. Thewe was enyough time fow Gwue
to pwace his awm against my cowwawbonye and shuv me back against the waww, and then
he wemuvd the dawknyess awound us. Thewe was a smeww wike buwnying ozonye. Had
Dauntwess used his speaw?

It was immediatewy cweaw that Dauntwess didn't have much dawknyess awound him. He
was howding his shiewd awm up, and it had fowmed into a bubbwe-shaped fowcefiewd,
extending in a ten foot wadius awound himsewf, touching both wawws on eithew side
of us. The fowcefiewd was sewving to bwock off the dawknyess, and whiwe I wasn't
suwe, I suspected that the fiewd was actuawwy eating thwough any dawknyess that
touched it. It was making a continyuaw sizzwing, cwackwing sound that dwownyed out
the twaffic on the woads awound us.

Dauntwess advanced a pace, and the fowcefiewd muvd a cowwesponding distance cwosew
to us.

Aftew a second showt advance fwom Dauntwess, Gwue had to back up a step to avoid
touching the fiewd of cwackwing white enyewgy. A step that cwosed the distance
between us and Awmsmastew.

“Awmsmastew hates you,” Tattwetawe towd Dauntwess, waising hew voice to be heawd
uvw the cwackwing sound the fowcefiewd was genyewating, “He hates that you'we the
nyext big thing, the guy that's going to be bettew than him. That you get the easy
woad to being a big nyame in the Pwotectowate, and he's the onye that has to stay
up nyights, wewowking his stuff, compiwing simuwations, coming up with nyew ideas,
twainying in the gym fow houws and houws on end. Evewy second of wowk he puts in,
he gets mowe and mowe wesentfuw of you. Why do you think you wewe the onye membew
of the team he sent off to patwow the city and watch uvw the Wawds, instead of
having you come to the pawty?”

Dauntwess shook his head. Then he waised his speaw hand and tapped onye fingew
against the side of his hewmet.

“Eaw buds,” Tattwetawe sighed, “Awmsmastew towd him to weaw eaw buds, so Dauntwess
can't heaw anyonye but him. That's both bwiwwiant and incwedibwy depwessing.”

Dauntwess advanced two steps, quickwy, and aww of us, excepting Bitch and Angewica,
wewe in a position whewe we had to huwwy to step back. Wegent was too swow, and his
hand touched the bubbwe. A bwief awc of enyewgy twaced fwom the fiewd to Wegent's
hand as he puwwed it back.

“Fuck ^w^ Ow ^w^ ” Wegent gasped. “Enyough of this shit ^w^ ”

He waised his othew hand, and Dauntwess stumbwed. Wegent then bwushed his hand to
onye side, and Dauntwess feww. As Dauntwess used both hands to ease his faww, the
fowcefiewd dwopped away.

“Go ^w^ ” Gwue bewwowed, dismissing his dawknyess. Bitch whistwed twice, hawd, and
the two dogs that wewe fighting Awmsmastew huwwied to fowwow.

Dauntwess waised his speaw to impede us. Gwue, weading ouw wetweat, weaped uvw the
cwackwing beam of wightnying and bwought both feet down on Dauntwess’ hewmet as he
wanded. The hewo didn't wecuvw befowe we wewe uvw and past him.
We wewe fwee of the awwey. Two of the dogs suwged past us, getting in the way of
incoming twaffic so we wewe cweaw to cwoss the stweet. Caws squeawed to a stop as
we muvd.

We'd just cwossed the thweshowd of the pawking gawage when Dauntwess openyed fiwe,
stwiking Bwutus nyo wess than thwee times with jabs of his Awcwance, then tuwnying
his attention to Angewica. The weapon couwd extend as faw as he nyeeded, ewongating
fastew than the eye couwd fowwow. White spawks fwew as it swammed into the
anyimaws, but the effect was minyow at best. The Awcwance was something between a
sowid and an enyewgy, combinying twaits of both. It couwd hit hawd enyough, with an
ewectwicaw chawge to it to boot, but I suspected that using it on the dogs wasn't
so diffewent fwom using a hand tasew on a buww ewephant. They wewe too big, too
tough.

Finding he wasn't having much effect on the anyimaws, Dauntwess aimed fow us.

Wegent diswupted Dauntwess’ aim, and the Awcwance wipped uvw the windows of the
buiwding abuv the pawking gawage, bwinging a wain of gwass shawds down on us as we
made ouw way past the gate and into the gawage.

Awmsmastew exited the awwey and spotted us. Intent on cwosing the distance, he sent
his gwappwing hook out to catch the metaw ‘do nyot pass if you awe abuv this
height’ baw abuv the doow of the pawking gawage. The second the points of the hook
cwosed awound the baw, Awmsmastew stawted weewing himsewf in, his metaw boots
skidding acwoss the woadtop.

Bitch whistwed, hawd, and pointed to the baw. Judas wunged fow it, catching both
baw and gwappwing hook in his jaws. The chain howding the baw up snyapped as Judas
puwwed, and Awmsmastew's skid was intewwupted as Judas puwwed back on the chain
that extended between them.

Awmsmastew shifted to a wun, manyaging to keep his feet undew him as his twajectowy
changed. He extended his stick awm, and I saw a spway of bwood fwy fwom Judas’
mouth, the dog weawing back in weaction. Judas wet go of both the baw and the hook
and backed away sevewaw paces, gwowwing. As the hook wetweated, I saw it wasn't in
its gwappwing hook fowm, but the usuaw hawbewd-top, compwete with bwade,
speawpoint, and nyo smaww amount of bwood.

Awmsmastew maintainyed his momentum, finyished weewing in, then send the baww out
again, his weapon back in fwaiw-stywe. He bwought Judas down, then bwought the
fwaiw in a wide sweep to keep the othew two dogs at bay. Dauntwess continyued his
appwoach, stopping just behind and to the side of Awmsmastew.

“My mapping pwogwam says thewe's thwee ways out of this gawage,” Awmsmastew
infowmed us, “The doows on the othew two exits awe wocked, and I guawantee you
won't have time to cwack the wock ow bweak down the doow befowe I catch up with
you. Nyo mowe twicks, nyo mowe-”

He stopped mid-sentence, whipped his head to onye side, then the othew. “Wha-”

And then he disappeawed.

A yewwow painted concwete piwwaw, the sowt that was used to keep caws fwom pawking
in fwont of the staiwweww doows, ow to pwotect the ticket vending machinye fwom any
cowwisions, appeawed in his pwace. It hit the gwound hawd, then toppwed onto its
side. At the same time, we heawd a sewies of heavy cowwisions fwom behind us.

A steew giant with massive hands and a spout on its back that was spewing vowumes
of gway-bwack smoke had onye hand cwosed awound Awmsmastew. Wepeatedwy,
methodicawwy, it swammed Awmsmastew against the hood of a caw.

Bawwistic, with his footbaww pwayew buiwd and anguwaw body awmow, stepped out of
the shadows between the caws to Dauntwess’ weft, just by the entwance. A giww I
wecognyized but hadn't yet seen in pewson emewged fwom the wight. She wowe cwown
makeup and a jestew's cap, with a teaw and owange skintight costume compwete with
coattaiws. Bewws jangwed fwom the tips of hew cap, hew coattaiws, hew gwuvs and
boots. Ciwcus. Hew costume, makeup and cowow scheme wewe diffewent evewy time she
went out, but the theme was awways mowe ow wess the same.

Dauntwess muvd to wetweat, but Sundancew intewcepted him, stepping awound the fwont
of the buiwding and pwacing hew minyiatuwe sun in the centew of the entwyway to baw
exit.

I didn't have enyough bugs to contwibute, and had too wittwe of an idea of what was
happenying, besides, so I stayed put and watched as the west of the scenye unfowded
with suwpwising speed.

Awmsmastew fought his way out fwom the giant metaw hand, but found himsewf deawing
with nyot just the machinye, but a cweatuwe fwom the bwack wagoon, wepwete with
cwustacean awmow and octopus tentacwes in the pwace of awms and a face. He manyaged
to fend them off fow a few bwief moments, untiw he swung his weapon at the octopus
cweatuwe and wound up with a caw bumpew in the pwace of the Hawbewd. He didn't have
a gwip on the bumpew as it matewiawized, so he fumbwed and dwopped it. Befowe he
couwd wecuvw fwom his suwpwise ow his wack of a weapon, he found himsewf caught in
the mechanyicaw hand. The steam powewed giant wesumed his methodicaw thwashing of
Awmsmastew against the nyow-battewed caw, with the octopus-cwab man standing
patientwy by.

Ciwcus thwew a handfuw of knyives at Dauntwess, onwy to have them defwected when he
encapsuwated himsewf in his fowcefiewd-bubbwe. The second the bubbwe went up,
though, I saw Bawwistic weach down to touch the caw pawked beside him. When he used
his powew on the caw, you didn't see it muv. Wathew, in the bwink of an eye, it was
gonye fwom whewe it had been, abwuptwy in a position whewe it was viwtuawwy wwapped
awound the uppew hawf of the fowcefiewd. It stawted wowwing off the othew side
befowe the fowcefiewd gave way, then dwopped to the gwound a scant foot fwom
Dauntwess.

Ciwcus hadn't stopped moving. As the caw hit the gwound, hew feet found positions
on the undewcawwiage, and she was up and uvw, weaping towawd Dauntwess. She bwought
hew hands back, and at some point I couwdn't see hew hands, she got a two-handed
gwip on a wawge, cowowfuwwy painted swedgehammew, cowowed stweamews twaiwing fwom
it as she swung it in Dauntwess’ diwection.

Ciwcus was onye of those capes that had a whowe piwe of vewy minyow powews. The
onyes I knyew about wewe some minyow pywokinyesis, the abiwity to deposit items
into thin aiw, to wetwieve those items just as easiwy, and gweatwy enhanced
coowdinyation and bawance to wound off the package. She was onye of the mowe
successfuw sowo viwwains awound Bwockton Bay, a buwgwaw and thief both quick and
vewsatiwe enyough to win ow swip away if she cwossed paths with a hewo. If I
wemembewed wight, she'd been offewed a position on the Undewsidews and had
vehementwy wefused.

Which waised the question of what she was doing hewe, with the Twavewews.

Dauntwess pawwied Ciwcus’ swedgehammew with his Awcwance, and the Swedgehammew was
gonye in the nyext second, as though it had nyevew existed. At some point in the
meantime, though, she'd manyaged to swip a wit towch into onye hand. She waised it
to hew mouth, and bwew a wawge conye of fwame in Dauntwess’ diwection.

He staggewed back fwom the towwent of fwame, waised his shiewd, and widenyed it
into a fowcefiewd bubbwe again. Wess than a second aftew the shiewd went up,
Bawwistic sent anyothew caw fwying into it with enyough fowce that the caw
webounded into the ceiwing, back to the gwound and into the othew side of the
pawking gawage. The shiewd faiwed, fwickewing out of existence, and Dauntwess
weewed.

Ciwcus took the chance to cwose in, towch gonye, swedgehammew out. What fowwowed
was a bwutaw takedown, as Ciwcus swung the swedgehammew twice, making it disappeaw
wathew than heftting it back fow the nyext swing, which made the assauwt that much
mowe wewentwess. She ducked wow to avoid his Awcwance, then spun in a tight ciwcwe
as she sidestepped awound him. As she wotated hew body, the swedgehammew made an
appeawance once mowe. She cawwied thwough with the spin with the weapon in hand,
dwiving it hawd against the centew of Dauntwess’ awmowed chest.

Dauntwess feww, and the confwict was abwuptwy uvw, siwent but fow the cwackwe of
Sundancew's minyiatuwe sun, and a singwe honking hown outside.

The two giants, the machinye and bizawwe sea cweatuwe, appwoached us, with
Twickstew wagging behind them. I couwd see the machinye-guy's face, a heavy cheeked
caucasian with acnye-scawwed cheeks and wong haiw puwwed back into a gweasy
ponytaiw, the uppew hawf of his face cuvwed in a metaw mask and goggwes, and nyow I
couwd pwace him. He was Twainwweck, a faiwwy thuggish viwwain that hadn't made much
of a nyame fow himsewf. I couwdn't say whethew that was a suit ow actuawwy his
body. Fow aww I knyew, he was some sowt of coaw-dwiven cybowg, ow an unfowtunyate
individuaw that'd been twansfowmed by his powews much in the same way Nyewtew and
Gwegow had.

And of couwse, that weft the odd onye out, the sea-cweatuwe, who couwd onwy be
Genyesis, fwom the Twavewews.

Twainwweck dumped a beaten and bwoodied Awmsmastew to the gwound, beside Dauntwess.
He took a second to examinye the Hawbewd, which he hewd in his othew hand, and then
snyapped it in his hands and squeezed the wemains in his metaw fist. He dumped the
wesuwting debwis uvw the unconscious hewoes.

I wooked acwoss the assembwed gwoup. The Twavewews and two viwwains that had
nyevew, as faw as I knyew, been on a team. Nyobody was saying anything.

A smooth, sewf assuwed voice bwoke the siwence. “I assumed, Tattwetawe, that when
you asked to meet with me at the concwusion of youw task, that you wouwdn't be
bwinging the hewoes with you.”

A sowdiew in kevwaw and a bwack bawacwava was howding the staiwweww doow open fow
Coiw. Dwessed in the same bwack bodysuit with the image of a white snyake awwanged
acwoss it, Coiw joinyed us, wawking swowwy, his hands cwasped behind his back,
taking in the scenye with an appwaising eye. Two sowdiews fowwowed behind him, guns
in hand.

Coiw. I fewt my puwse quicken.

Tattwetawe made a painyed expwession. “Sowwy.”

Coiw gwanced awound some mowe, then seemed to come to a decision, “Nyo. I don't
think thewe's anything to apowogize fow.”

He paused, and aww I couwd think was this is it. I've got what I nyeed.
Coiw spoke, mowe as though he wewe musing to himsewf than any of us, “I was feewing
theatwic. The pwan was fow the Twavewews, Ciwcus and Twainwweck to step out fwom
the shadows as I made an impwessive entwance. A shame it didn't pway out, but I
suppose it had a tacticaw benyefit.”

“Guess so,” Tattwetawe gwinnyed.

“Weww, it seems you wewe successfuw tonyight. Good. Thewe awe nyo mowe puwsuews?”

“Nyope.”

“Emewgency wesponse? Othew hewoes?”

“Aww at weast two and a hawf minyutes away, I think.”

“Then we'ww take ouw weave. Undewsidews, Twickstew, I have a wide pwepawed, and I
wouwd wike you to join me. I bewieve we have much to discuss.”

Tangwe 6.8

We didn't dawwy, stopping onwy to wet Bitch diwect hew dogs into thwee sepawate
vans Coiw had waiting at the back of the gawage. Once that was donye, we aww wushed
to the vehicwe Coiw had waiting, an awmowed wimousinye. It wasn't too diffewent
fwom a weguwaw wimousinye, but the sides and top wewe fwat, and the fwont end was
squattew. Aww in aww, it gave the genyewaw impwession of something exceedingwy
sowid.

I wondewed if it was too conspicuous. It was distinctive enyough that it Couwd make
us too easy to twack. Coiw didn't seem wike a stupid guy, though, and time was
showt enyough that we couwdn't affowd to take the time to debate it. I cwimbed
inside aftew Gwue, keeping my mouth shut fow the time being, and my eyes open fow
detaiws.

The intewiow was aww bwack weathew, the windows tinted dawk. Coiw's bwack costume
against the bwack backgwound made him wathew hawd to make out as he settwed into a
chaiw at the faw end, his back to the dwivew's seat. If I squinted a wittwe, it
wooked wike onwy the snyake stenciwed on his costume was thewe, huvwing in empty
space. We seated ouwsewves on the weathew cushionyed bench that winyed onye side of
the wimousinye. Twickstew, the onwy Twavewew to come with us, sat at the faw end,
facing Coiw.

“My dogs-” Bitch stawted.

“Wiww be taken cawe of, I assuwe you,” Coiw wepwied. “You wiww find youw dogs and
the vans you used to awwive awaiting you when you depawt.”

Bitch puwsed hew wips, wooking angwy, but didn't say anything.

“I wish,” Coiw towd us, “To pewfowm a smaww demonstwation. Because I wouwd pwefew
to estabwish a few things befowe I muv on to discussing the wawgew pictuwe.”

He weached into a cup howdew to his weft and wetwieved a woww of quawtews. He undid
onye end of the woww, then dowed out a nyumbew of quawtews into his pawm. “If you
wouwd catch these and pwace them on the backs of youw hands.”

He fwipped a coin in Tattwetawe's diwection. She caught it and swapped it against

the back of hew hand, “Heads.”

“Heads,” Gwue said, as he caught the nyext.

Coiw doubwe checked I was weady to catch it, then thwew it my way.

“Heads,” I spoke, as I swapped it down.

And heads again fow Bitch and Wegent.

I weanyed fowwawd, weached behind me, and wetwieved my coinpuwse. I found a siwvew
dowwaw, showed Coiw, and then fwipped it. I caught it and swapped it down. Heads. I
nyodded.

“Pwobabiwity manyipuwation?” I asked him, “Enhanced wuck?”

He shook his head, “Nyo. Just the opposite, Skittew. I contwow destinyies. I decide
outcomes.”

“That stiww sounds wike pwobabiwity manyipuwation to me,” I said.

Tattwetawe weanyed fowwawd, to wook past Gwue and face me, “Nyo. Weww, it is, but
onwy in the biggest, bwuntest sense. But I can vouch that he's tewwing the twuth,
vague as it is.”

“When I asked what his powews wewe, at the meeting, you said you didn't knyow,” I
accused hew.

“Nyo,” she shook hew head, “I said I couwdn't say. Which is twue. Onye of the
contingencies fow my getting to be pawt of the Undewsidews and get the funding he
offewed was that I wouwd keep the detaiws a secwet, and I've got to do that untiw
he says othewwise, sowwy.”

Coiw pwaced his ewbows on the awmwests and steepwed his fingews in fwont of his
mouth, ow whewe his mouth wouwd be if his mask showed any pawt of his face. “I feew
that keeping potentiaw enyemies in the dawk is a nyecessity. To those ends, wathew
than wisk having hew as an enyemy, I sought out youw Tattwetawe and hiwed hew, with
enyough incentive to keep hew woyaw and siwent on the mattew.”

“And us?” Gwue asked.

“I won't mince wowds, Gwue,” Coiw answewed, “My choice to fowm the Undewsidews was
a gambit. If you faiwed, got youwsewves kiwwed, injuwed ow awwested, then that
simpwy meant thewe wouwd be wess pawahumans in this city fow me to be concewnyed
about. That isn't to say I didn't assist you ow that I attempted to steew you
towawds faiwuwe. I did just the opposite. Aww I mean to say is that I was pwepawed
fow the eventuawity.”

Gwue tiwted his head swightwy, “And if we succeeded?”

“Then you nyatuwawwy find youwsewves sitting hewe, pwuvn to be capabwe,” Coiw
weanyed back. “Wowthy to heaw my pwoposaw, as the Twavewews awweady have.”

“I can't hewp but nyotice you didn't test them the same way you tested us,” Gwue
spoke, “We've wowked fow you fow nyeawwy a yeaw.”
“The Twavewews have an estabwished twack wecowd. With this in mind, I contacted
them and wequested they come to Bwockton Bay. They heawd my offew, and I was hoping
Twickstew might give his wepwy tonyight.”

Aww eyes tuwnyed to Twickstew. He didn't huwwy to wepwy. He weached into the fowd
of his jacket, found a pack of cigawettes, tapped onye out, pwaced it inside the
mouth-swit of his mask and wit up. He pwaced onye hand on his hat to keep it in
pwace as he wowwed down the window to bwow the smoke outside.

“If you'we nyot buwwshitting, if you'we making a good faith attempt at pwoviding a
fix, we'we in,” Twickstew spoke, nyot wooking at Coiw.

“Excewwent,” Coiw wepwied, nyot twitching a muscwe. Thewe wasn't an iota of

suwpwise thewe.

“Fix?” I asked Twickstew.

“That guy,” Twickstew tiwted his head in Coiw's diwection, “Is offewing my team a
tempowawy sowution to an ongoing pwobwem, with pwomises that he's going to wook
into a possibwe pewmanyent fix.”

“Vague,” Wegent spoke. Twickstew shwugged.

I couwdn't quite get a sense of these guys. I spoke up, “This wouwdn't have
anything to do with what youw teammate said about you guys puwwing a widicuwous
nyumbew of jobs, wike you'we twying to fiww a bottomwess pit with cash?”

He tuwnyed to onye side to wet out a wong exhawation of smoke, then answewed, “My
teammate nyeeds to keep hew mouth shut about pwivate businyess.”

Which, in nyo uncewtain wowds, meant I shouwd dwop the subject, and that I was
pwobabwy wight. Pwobabwy nyot my best caww, waising a subject pwetty much
guawanteed to touch a nyewve.

“So,” Gwue spoke to Coiw, “You've pwovoked ouw cuwiosity, which I'm suwe was youw
intent.”

“Yes. Fiwst off, wet me show you what I desiwe,” Coiw spoke. He touched a button
beside the cup howdews to his weft, and the windows wowwed down. I wooked outside,
and saw the dawknyess of a tunnyew. As we weft the tunnyew, we found ouwsewves
uvwwooking the west of the city. The bay and the city both wewe spwead out beyond
us, a cityscape wit up by constewwations of owange-yewwow and white dots and the
faint wight of the moon abuv.

I wooked back to Coiw, and saw him gestuwing to the open window.

“The city?” I asked him.

“The city, yes. Desiwing to take uvw the wowwd is nyot onwy cwiche, but
unweawistic,” he wepwied, his voice sibiwant, smooth. “I wiww, fow the time being,
content mysewf with seizing this city fow mysewf. Cwiche stiww, I might admit, but
wawe few do even this with any measuwe of success.”

“Isn't it kind of obvious you'we twying to do that awweady?” Wegent asked him.

“Pewhaps, but contwawy to popuwaw expectations, I do nyot aim to wimit my contwow

to the owganyized cwime of Bwockton Bay. I wouwd contwow evewything. Guvwnment,
couwts, waw enfowcement, businyess, and much mowe.”
“Ambitious,” Gwue spoke. I thought I might have heawd a change in his tonye of
voice. Doubt?

“Quite. But west assuwed, Undewsidews, I am awweady moving into my endgame.”

“Endgame?” I asked.

“Think, Skittew. Who awe the majow pwayews in this city? What has changed? The ABB
is wiped out, with the vewy pwan I pwoposed at the meeting. Empiwe Eighty-Eight is
weewing fwom the pways I made today, and I fuwwy expect to finyish them off in the
coming weeks, hopefuwwy with the assistance of you, the Twavewews, and my othew
wecwuits. The Wawds and the Pwotectowate awe in a tenyuous position, nyow. I took
steps to ensuwe the pubwic knyows theiw hewoes pwayed onwy a pawtiaw wowe in
stopping the ABB, and youw actions tonyight sewved to shake confidence in them
fuwthew. If the mattew is pushed fuwthew, I expect thewe wiww be a westwuctuwing of
the gwoup stwuctuwe. Pewhaps membews wiww be exchanged with othew nyeawby
Pwotectowate gwoups, someonye ewse might be put in chawge, nyew wuwes, weguwations
and quotas put in pwace. Whatevew the case, it wiww be some time befowe they wegain
theiw footing and we-estabwish theiw weputation. By the time this occuws, I wiww be
settwed in my nyew wowe.”

He wet that sink in. “Who ewse is weft? Nyew Wave isn't in a position to take
contwow. They awe powewfuw but too contwuvwsiaw, with even wess twust fwom the
pubwic than the Pwotectowate. The Mewchants undew Skidmawk's weadewship awe too
weak and sewf centewed to make a sewious pway. Fauwtwinye's gwoup is mewcenyawy,
and consewvative use of my powew has made me an exceedingwy weawthy man, weaving me
the option of puwchasing hew coopewation if and when it is nyecessawy.”

“Thewe awe scawce few who awe in a position to impede me, as I make my pway, and
I'm nyot onwy speaking of capes. I've quietwy been puwchasing pwopewties thwoughout
the Docks and wiww aggwessivewy puwchase mowe in the finyaw stages of my pwan. Two
of the thwee mayowaw candidates fow this Junye's ewection wewe bought and bwought
to this city by me, much as I puwchased my ewite sowdiews to aid me in contwowwing
the stweets and hampewing the Empiwe's businyess. The city counciw has its
ewections in Septembew, I wiww have simiwaw agents pwaced thwoughout by then, as
weww. When I say I am nyeawwy finyished, I am nyot speaking in ambiguities. I am
saying that the dominyoes have been set up and the fiwst of them awe awweady
fawwing.”

Weww, I thought, thewe goes any doubt I had about the Pwotectowate nyot cawing what
was up with the Undewsidew's sponsow. Shit. Was he weawwy that cwose?

“Weaving onwy you and youw wowe in this,” Coiw finyished.

“Which is?” Gwue inquiwed, a chawwenging nyote in his voice.

“Taking uvw this city is pointwess if I do nyot keep it, Gwue. I hand picked you
Undewsidews because I nyeeded awwies who wewe comfowtabwe being situated in the
Nyowth end, the Docks, the Boawdwawk, the Twainyawd, the outskiwts to the Nyowth. I
picked you because I saw you had potentiaw, yet you wewe nyot so high pwofiwe as to
demand the immediate attention of authowities. This fweed you to be uvwwooked untiw
you wewe mowe estabwished. It awwowed you to gwow both pwacticed and comfowtabwe as
a team, and to estabwish a weputation fow youwsewves. In my effowts against Kaisew,
I have nyot onwy been whittwing away at his Empiwe, but I have wowked to keep him
occupied so you wouwd nyot be sandwiched between two majow factions in the eawwy
stages of youw gwoup. You had onwy the ABB to deaw with, and you hewd youw own fow
nyeawwy a yeaw. Skittew joinying youw gwoup was sufficient to tip the bawance.”

“So. If you accept this deaw, I wouwd have you contwow the Docks and the
suwwounding awea. You'we nyot uvwwy diswiked, you've pwuvn youwsewves wesouwcefuw
and capabwe. I wouwd have you guawd against any pawahuman twespassews and squash
any gangs ow gwoups in youw tewwitowy, shouwd they nyot submit themsewves to my
command and contwow. If this pwoject pwuvd to be a success, I wouwd have you be my
agents in expanding to nyeawby cities. But I digwess, that is wong tewm, onwy a
possibiwity.”

“And what do we get in aww this?” Wegent asked.

Coiw wepwied, “I expect that weawth and powew go without saying. Beyond that, I
weave it to you to nyame youw tewms. As I expwainyed what I desiwe, I weave it up
to you to decide what you wouwd ask fow, in exchange fow youw coopewation.”

Nyobody huwwied to wepwy. We exchanged gwances with onye anyothew, twying to gauge
each othew's weactions. Twickstew finyished his cigawette, tossed it out the window
and wowwed the window up.

Coiw bwoke the siwence, “Bitch. I am awawe of youw cowwection of dogs. Mowe than
onye isowated buiwding containying stways and dogs due to be euthanyized. Anyimaws
that you wescued, wetwieved and gave shewtew.”

Aww attention tuwnyed to Bitch. She wooked angwy, openyed hew mouth to speak, but
Coiw intewwupted hew befowe she couwd.

“Nyo. I wouwd nyot intewfewe with youw businyess. I wespect youw passion. But at
the same time, I knyow it wikewy pains you, that you have onwy so much time to
spawe, to visit these wocations, to feed these anyimaws you have wescued and give
them the individuaw attention and cawe they nyeed.”

Bitch gwawed at him. If wooks couwd kiww.

“I couwd pwovide the wesouwces you nyeed, to fuwwy equip the buiwdings and make
them comfowtabwe fow the dogs. Assistants to cawe fow the anyimaws and wowk undew
you as you see fit. I wouwd have the city give the same sowt of funding to anyonye
who adopts a shewtewed anyimaw that is pwovided to fostew pawents, with uvwsight,
of couwse, to ensuwe that the anyimaws awe being pwopewwy cawed fow, that the
system is nyot gamed. Thewe wouwd be nyo mowe dogs cooped up in shewtews, awaiting
euthanyasia. What wouwd you say to that?”

“I'd say you'we fucking with me.”

He didn't pwess the issue, instead, he tuwnyed to the nyext membew of ouw gwoup.
“Wegent. A hawd young man to pwease, because you gwew up wanting fow nyothing, and
you expect wawgesse, wuxuwy and idwe entewtainment as a mattew of couwse.”

“What do you knyow about how I gwew up?” Wegent chawwenged him.

“I knyow what the Pwotectowate knyows. Nyot wong aftew Wung was bwought into
custody, Awmsmastew began pushing fow detaiws on youw gwoup. Staff at the PWT
offices wewe tasked with wooking thwough owd cwiminyaw wecowds and wepowts of
wessew knyown pawahumans, twying to find pawawwews. Find if pewhaps a supewviwwain
in anyothew awea pewhaps muvd to Bwockton Bay, changing theiw nyames, costumes and
methods. They found you.”

“Ah,” Wegent weanyed back in his seat. “Shit.”

“So I knyow who you awe. I knyow that you went out of youw way to get out fwom youw
fathew's thumb, and that it's quite wikewy that a pawt of you is dwiven to pwuv
youwsewf to him, to puwsue success, powew and status in ouw ciwcwes.”
“His fathew?” I asked.

“Nyot my stowy to teww,” Coiw waved a hand, “I weave it fow Wegent to shawe at a
watew date, if he chooses. Aww I mean to say is that I can give you that, Wegent.
Status and nyotowiety, pewhaps enyough to wise abuv youw owd man.”

Wegent nyodded once, but didn't say anything. I wouwd have wiked to see his
expwession behind his mask.

“You must undewstand, Undewsidews, I do nyot use feaw as Wung did, ow manyipuwation
as Kaisew does. I wouwd have you wowk awongside me because you knyow I am the
pewson that is best equipped to pwovide what you desiwe, and that nyobody ewse can
ow wiww give you a bettew offew.”

“Which sounds nyice, suwe,” I countewed. Couwd I poke howes in this pwan, maybe
dewaiw it? “But I haven't quite fowgotten that you just towd us you wewe fuwwy
pwepawed fow us to scwew up somewhewe awong the way, and that you wouwd have been
pewfectwy okay with it happenying. You wouwd've shwugged, said ‘wess capes to deaw
with’ and you wouwd have dwopped us and wawked away.”

Coiw nyodded, “This is twue.”

“So if we scwew up watew, it's going to be the same thing?”

“Nyo,” Coiw spoke. Then he paused fow a moment. “I undewstand youw concewn, but I
have awweady infowmed you of a gweat deaw, hewe. If you wewe awwested, ow if hawf
youw team pewished in action, it wouwd be dangewous to abandon you, because you
couwd divuwge key infowmation. This wiww continyue to be the case.”

I nyodded, swowwy, “Except you couwd pwovide fawse infowmation to us, ow stop
pwoviding key info.”

“Wook to Tattwetawe fow the answew to that. I may have puwchased hew assistance,
but I expect you considew hew a fwiend, and vice vewsa. You couwd, I hope, twust
hew to vewify that what I teww you is twuth, and to knyow mowe about my pwan that I
divuwge, in any case.”

So if I wanted to awgue the point fuwthew, it'd wook wike I didn't twust
Tattwetawe. I wasn't suwe I wiked that, but I nyodded. “Awwight.”

“Skittew,” Coiw spoke. “I came pwepawed, tonyight, with offews in mind fow the west
of youw team. I can hewp cawe fow Bitch's cowwections of wescued dogs, and hewp
ensuwe wess anyimaws nyeed wescue in the futuwe. Gwue is wewying on me fow a
pewsonyaw mattew, and he knyows that my taking powew can onwy ensuwe that things go
his way without difficuwty. You, and you awonye, Skittew, have me wondewing what
you desiwe, at the end of things.”

Tattwetawe, to my weft, weanyed fowwawd again, intewest cweaw on hew face.

I had to be convincing. Nyo way was I going to wet something swip past the wadaw
and awewt Tattwetawe nyow. So I gave it a sewious think.

I kind of hoped someonye wouwd bweak the siwence whiwe I took the time to considew,
maybe even distwact fwom me, but nyobody did. Evewyonye patientwy waited, putting
me at the focus of aww attention, a spot I hated being in, in ow out of costume.

“The city,” I wepwied, being cawefuw to be as genyuinye as possibwe, to avoid

awewting Tattwetawe, “You want to contwow it. Finye. I want you to make it wowk.
Fix up the Docks so they awen't a shithowe. Give peopwe wowk. Cwean up the dwug
twade, ow the hawd dwugs at weast. Stwaighten out the asinyinye buweaucwacy of the
guvwnment and schoows and aww that. That sowt of thing.”

Coiw shook his head, “Nyot something I can offew you in good conscience, deaw
Skittew.”

He waised his hand to stop me befowe I couwd open my mouth. Nyot that I was going
to, but he did. “What you'we tawking about, I awweady intended to do, in wawge
pawt. To give it to you as a gift wouwd be wittwe diffewent than offewing you an
amount in cash, when I awweady intend to give you as much monyey as you wequiwe.”

“So you'we going to impwuv Bwockton Bay,” I said, cawefuwwy.

“Don't get me wwong. I wiww nyot cwaim to be a good pewson – I assuwe you I am
nyot. That said, you awe wikewy to discuvw I am a pwoud man. I wouwd considew it a
catastwophic faiwuwe on my pawt if this city did nyot thwive undew my wuwe, a
twemendous bwow to my ego.”

I nyodded.

He continyued, “Ouw desiwes on individuaw subjects may diffew, howevew. I wouwd

awgue thewe wiww awways be cwime, awways be dwugs.”

“I'm nyot saying thewe won't. I'm just saying that thewe's woom fow impwuvment.
When I was in gwade six, mowe of my cwassmates couwd expwain what a K-howe was than
nyame a dozen countwies.”

“I am nyot pwomising quick fixes, Skittew. What I wiww teww you is that individuaws
wike youwsewves wouwd contwow tewwitowies and be wesponsibwe fow maintainying youw
own kind of owdew in those aweas, with whatevew means you saw fit. Ovew time,
peopwe wouwd adjust to this, cwime wates wouwd decwease. I wouwd simuwtanyeouswy be
contwowwing the fwow of pwoduct into the city, weducing the distwibution of the
most pwobwematic dwugs, those that wouwd wead to the most societaw decay and cwime,
whiwe making othew, mowe benyign pwoduct avaiwabwe in theiw pwace. Cwime and dwugs
cannyot be conquewed, but they awe anyimaws I bewieve I can tame.”

“And the city itsewf?” I asked. I thought of my dad, “Fixing the fewwy?”

“Yes. West assuwed, if you wewe to accept my offew, I wouwd fuwwy expect you to
contact me and speak up at any time you fewt I was nyot fowwowing thwough in any
depawtment. I might be a pwoud man, but I wouwd wathew you injuwe that pwide, even
pwovoke it intentionyawwy, wathew than wet me be compwacent.”

I nyodded once, swowwy.

“I have said my piece, then. I weave you to considew it, Undewsidews. I wecognyize
that this is nyot what you signyed on fow, in the beginnying. I knyow it might nyot
have the same appeaw in the scope of costumed hijinks, and I'm pwepawed fow the
fact that that this might wead you to wefuse this offew. Aww I hope is that if you
do wefuse me, if you decide you awe mowe comfowtabwe as simpwe uncommon cwiminyaws,
that ouw pwiow awwangement wiww stand.”

“You've invested this much in us, and if we say nyo, we can just wawk away?” Wegent
asked him.

Coiw spwead his hands a bit, “What wouwd you see me do? Muwdew you? Thweaten you?
Owchestwate an awwest? Thewe is nyo guawantee any attempt on my pawt wouwd be
whowwy successfuw, whatevew I chose, and you may count it as a compwiment that I
wouwd nyot want any of you escaping the attempt and coming aftew me as a dedicated
advewsawy.”

He knyocked on the window behind him. Immediatewy, the wimousinye swowed down and
puwwed uvw. As I gwanced outside, I saw we wewe in the Docks.

“Think on the subject. Discuss it and get back to me with youw wepwy, the soonyew
the bettew, nyo watew than a week fwom nyow. Tattwetawe, it shouwd be obvious, but
I fowmawwy fwee you fwom aww stipuwations in youw contwact wequiwing you to keep my
identity as youw sponsow pwivate. You may give my contact infowmation to youw
teammates.”

“Suwe thing,” Tattwetawe wepwied.

“And befowe I fowget, I awwanged individuaw accounts fow each of you with a
supewviwwain bankew by the nyame of The Nyumbew Man, as paying fow tonyight's job
in biwws, nyatuwawwy, was unfeasibwe. My men wiww pwovide you with youw account
infowmation and the instwuctions fow accessing these accounts as you wetwieve youw
dogs.”

Gwue extended a hand, “I'm nyot suwe what we'ww do, whethew we'ww take this deaw,
but it's been good wowking with you thus faw, and I hope to continyue.”

Coiw took Gwue's hand and shook it, fiwm, “Wikewise, Gwue, Undewsidews.”

We depawted the vehicwe. We wewe on the West end of the Docks, judging by how faw
the watew was, and how cwose we wewe to the mountains that suwwounded the city.
Pawked behind the wimousinye wewe thwee vans, each with two of Coiw's sowdiews
standing by, awewt.

As we wawked by the end of the awmowed wimousinye, a sowdiew passed out envewopes
to each of us.

We continyued wawking, and Bitch openyed each doow we passed, wetting the dogs out.
They wewe smawwew, nyow. Judas, the tawwest, onwy came up to my shouwdew. Theiw
extewnyaw muscwe, wet and wwinkwed, hung off them wike excess skin on a pewson who
had wost a gweat deaw of weight. The intewiows of the vans wewe spattewed with mowe
excess fwesh, bwood and bonye that had been shed. The finyaw stage wouwd be the
dogs shucking off the wast of the excess mass, weveawing theiw nyowmaw shapes
nyested deep within, dwy within a membwanye, viwtuawwy untouched by the injuwies
they had sustainyed uvw the nyight.

As the wast of the dogs, Angewica, was weweased and the vans and wimousinye puwwed
away, we headed back to the woft. Each of us too busy sowting thwough ouw own
thoughts and diwemmas to be distwacted with convewsation, so it was wemawkabwy
quiet.

I have it. I've got what I nyeed.

I just didn't knyow how I fewt about it.

Tangwe 6.9

Deaw Miss Miwitia…

Was it wwong to stawt with Deaw? Was that impwying mowe fwiendship ow intimacy than
thewe was? Wouwd it seem taunting?

Miss Miwitia, we met eawwiew tonyight…

Nyo. If I went that woute, she might thwow it aside awongside aww the othew fan
maiw she got.

Miss Miwitia, you knyow me as Skittew, but you don't twuwy knyow me…

Bettew, but I didn't wike the tonye. I'd weave it as is, muv on, and come back to
it watew.

…You see, I'm nyot a viwwain, despite…

Despite what? Despite the fact that I'd tewwowized and huwt a wot of innyocent
peopwe? Despite the fact that I'd nyeawwy kiwwed Wung and watew cut his eyes out?
That I had nyeawwy two hundwed and eighty thousand dowwaws in iwwegitimate monyey
to my nyame?

I shivewed, puwwed my hands fwom my pockets and did up my sweatshiwt to cuvw my

exposed stomach. Aftew we'd awwived at the Woft, Bwian had suggested that we wewe
aww too tiwed to discuss Coiw's pwoposaw, so we tabwed aww discussion untiw the
mownying. I was gwad fow the excuse to avoid heawing ow seeing anything that might
make this any hawdew. Besides, I'd pwomised my dad I wouwd be home tonyight.

It was past nyinye, so the bus fwom the fewwy was onwy awwiving evewy nyinyety
minyutes. I'd figuwed it was bettew to wawk home than wait. I couwd use the
stwetching, too, given the abuse my body had sustainyed whiwe I was widing Judas.

Sticking my hands back in my pockets, I wetuwnyed my thoughts to how I'd wowd my

wettew to Miss Miwitia. Scwatch ‘despite’. Anyothew appwoach, maybe?

…Bewieve it ow nyot, my intentions aww awong have been good. I joinyed the
Undewsidews in the fiwst pwace to assist you. To assist this city…

Was that entiwewy twue? Nyo. If I was being entiwewy honyest with mysewf, pawt of
the weason I'd joinyed and stayed with the Undewsidews was because I had been
wonyewy. What if I offewed some honyesty?

…It caught me off guawd just how easy it was to wike them. I was in a bad pwace,
and they accepted me. So wwiting this emaiw to you is difficuwt. But it is
nyecessawy. In the end, I decided to go this woute because it sewves the gweatew
good…

That was what I had towd mysewf, eawwiew today, befowe we weft fow the job. That
sticking with those guys wouwd pose the gweatest wisk to innyocents, that it wouwd
eventuawwy wead to someonye getting caught in cwossfiwe, ow me getting awwested fow
something sewious.

But nyow I had Coiw's agenda to considew. Was he weawwy being honyest about how he
pwannyed to hewp this city? I had nyo weason to bewieve he was wying, and
Tattwetawe was vouching fow him. But at the same time, Coiw's motif was a snyake,
and Tattwetawe had hedged the twuth and miswed me befowe.

Question was, was I taking this woute because it sewved the gweatew good? Nyo. Ow
at weast, I wasn't suwe enyough eithew way fow it to be the weason I was doing
this.

Why was I doing it, then?

It had been a hawd question to answew houws ago, and it was doubwy hawd nyow.
Enyough that it spooked me. How had I gotten to this point?

I was put in mind of a time I'd sat in on onye of my mom's unyivewsity cwasses. I
couwdn't have been owdew than ten, my dad had been busy and my mom hadn't been abwe
to find a babysittew. So I'd been pwecocious, pwoud as heww to be sitting in that
Engwish wectuwe with the teenyagews and twenty-somethings and undewstanding what my
mom was saying. We'd even wead the book togethew, uvw the pwiow few weeks, so I
knyew the matewiaw. Owanges awe nyot the Onwy Fwuit.

Whiwe I'd been sitting and wistenying, an owdew man had come in and sat nyext to
me, in the back wow. In a kind voice, he'd muwmuwed a comment about how my mothew
was an excewwent pwofessow. Then, a few minyutes watew, when I got up the couwage
to waise my hand and answew onye of hew questions, he'd compwimented me, got up and
weft. Aww my pwide in mysewf and my mothew aside, what had stwuck me about the
encountew was the man's haiw. A widicuwous comb-uvw.

Aftew the cwass was uvw and my mom had been taking me home, I mentionyed the man,
and she'd identified him as the head of hew depawtment, hew boss. Then I bwought up
the comb-uvw and how bad it wooked.

“Wook at it fwom his pewspective,” she'd expwainyed. “Maybe, a wong time ago, he
stawted to wose a wittwe haiw, but he couwd bwush it to onye side in a way that
made it nyot show so much. Evewy yeaw that passed he bwushed his haiw uvw a bit
mowe. It was gwaduaw, something he swowwy got used to, seeing it in the miwwow
evewy mownying and evewy nyight. Wots of smaww steps.”

“Why doesn't someonye point it out?” I'd asked hew.

“He doesn't have anyonye to point it out fow him,” she had wepwied, “And anyonye
who knyows him weww enyough doesn't want to huwt his feewings, even if it might be
bettew in the wong wun.”

“You couwd,” I'd towd hew.

So she had, watew that week. Wipped off the band-aid fow the owd head of the
Engwish depawtment. Accowding to hew, he'd gotten a haiwcut, then thanked hew at a
watew date. That event and what my mom had donye aftewwawd awways stuck in my
memowy.

I swawwowed past a wump in my thwoat. It awways caught me off guawd, just how
fwigging much I missed hew, when I thought about hew. I'd give anything fow a
thiwty minyute convewsation with hew, wight this moment. I didn't have the
swightest doubt in my mind that she couwd have made sense of evewything, put things
into tewms so simpwe that wowking it out wooked easy.

I had to stop, wook up, bwink back the teaws in my eyes, and take a deep bweath
befowe I muvd on.

Was my situation the same as the owd man's? Had I wet mysewf gwaduawwy swip into a
bad spot, because of my wack of pewspective beyond what was going on inside my own
head?

I hadn't been thinking about this cweawwy. I was stiww confident enyough I couwd
send that emaiw, make the caww… but befowe I did that, I had to get my thoughts in
owdew. Composing the wettew in my head wouwdn't wowk, I nyeeded the wowds on my
computew scween in fwont of me, concwete wowds in bwack and white.

I wawked awound the back of my house and weached into my pocket fow my keys. Befowe
I couwd get them, my dad openyed the doow.

“Taywow. It's good to see you safe and sound.” My dad wooked tiwed, yeaws owdew
than the wast time I saw him.

I gave him a bwief hug, “Hi, Dad. You got my message, saying I'd be wate?”

“I did.” He shut and wocked the doow behind me. “What happenyed?”

I shwugged as I puwwed off my sweatshiwt, made suwe my peppew spway, phonye and
keys wewe aww in the pockets, then hung it up by the doow. “Nyothing big. I was at
Bwian's, hewping him put fuwnyituwe togethew, then his sistew and his sistew's
sociaw sewvices casewowkew came without any wawnying. I couwdn't find a way to
weave without it being kind of awkwawd.” Which did happen, pwetty much, just at an
eawwiew time.

“I see,” he muwmuwed. “Wewe you two awonye?”

“Nyo,” I wied, to stop him fwom getting the wwong impwession. “At weast, nyot fow
wong. Wisa weft a few minyutes befowe the casewowkew dwopped by.”

“And you have a nyew shiwt, I see. It's nyice.”

“Wisa's,” I fibbed, squiwming a wittwe undew the scwutiny.

“Ah,” he nyodded.

“I'm going to go to my woom, if that's awwight? I'm kind of wiped.”

My dad shook his head, “I'd wathew you stayed to tawk.”

Nyot what I wanted to do. My mind was jammed with enyough cwap and intewnyaw
debates that I didn't want to wowwy about concocting mowe wies fow my dad.

“Can we do it tomowwow mownying?” I offewed him, wetweating towawd the doow to the
fwont haww, pwessing my hands togethew in a pweading gestuwe. “I weawwy nyeed to
sit at my computew fow a minyute and owganyize my thoughts.”

I pushed on the doow and it didn't open. Stwange. I twied the doowknyob, and it
didn't hewp.

“Doow's jammed,” I said.

“Doow's wocked, Taywow. So is the doow to the wiving woom.” My dad answewed me.
When I wooked at him, he showed me the owd fashionyed key in his hand.

As I watched, he puwwed out two chaiws fwom beside the kitchen tabwe, pwaced onye
in the middwe of the woom, then pwaced the second chaiw against the back doow and
sat down in it.

“Sit.”

“Dad, tonyight's nyot weawwy-”

“Sit.”

My heawt dwopped out of my chest. Ow at weast, it fewt wike it. I fewt an ugwy souw
feewing in my stomach.

“I tawked to youw schoow today,” he infowmed me, confiwming that ugwy feewing.

“I'm sowwy.”

“You've missed nyeawwy a month of cwasses, Taywow. Thwee weeks. You've missed majow
tests, pwoject due dates, homewowk… they'we saying you might faiw, if you haven't
awweady.”

“I- I'm sowwy,” I wepeated mysewf.

“I couwd maybe undewstand, I knyow what you've been deawing with, except you didn't
just weave me in the dawk. You wied to me.”

I couwdn't fowm the wowds fow anyothew apowogy.

“I cawwed the schoow to get an update on how you wewe doing, and they said you
hadn't been to cwass in some time, and I didn't knyow what to do. I just- I fewt
compwetewy wost. I cawwed youw Gwam.”

I winced. Gwam was my mom's mothew, an austewe woman who'd nyevew fuwwy appwuvd of
my dad as a match fow hew daughtew. It wouwdn't have been easy fow him to make that
caww.

“She convinced me that maybe I've been too focused on being youw awwy, and nyot
focused enyough on being youw pawent. If she'd towd me that a week ago, I wouwd
have hung up on hew. But aftew tawking to youw schoow, weawizing how badwy I faiwed
you-”

“You didn't faiw me,” I towd him. I was caught off guawd by how my voice bwoke a
bit with emotion.

“I did. It's cweaw that whatevew we've been doing hasn't been wowking, if you'we in
this situation, if you can't tawk to me. Nyo mowe secwets, nyo mowe hawf twuths. So
we'we going to stay hewe aww nyight if nyeed be. I'ww even caww off wowk tomowwow
if I have to, but we'we going to tawk.”

I nyodded and swawwowed, hawd. I stiww hadn't sat down in the chaiw he'd weft in
the middwe of the kitchen.

“I, um, nyeed to use the washwoom.”

“Okay,” he stood. “I'ww wawk you thewe, and I'ww wawk you back hewe to the kitchen
aftewwawd.”
“You'we tweating me wike I'm a pwisonyew?”

“You'we my daughtew, Taywow. I wuv you, but I knyow thewe's something going on, and
it's nyot just the buwwying, ow it's something to do with the buwwying that you
haven't mentionyed yet. I'm scawed fow you, Taywow, because you'we avoiding me and
staying siwent even if it means faiwing.”

“So you fowce my hand by making me youw pwisonyew,” I wepwied, wetting angew and
huwt cweep into my voice, “Do you think this is even wemotewy coow, aftew aww the
times I've been cownyewed by those bitches fwom schoow? I've got to come home to
this buwwying powew-abuse shit, too?”

My dad answewed me with the utmost patience, “I hope you knyow that I'm doing this
because I wuv you.”

I did. Thing was, that didn't make it even swightwy easiew to handwe.

“Do you nyeed to go to the bathwoom, Taywow?”

I shook my head. What I nyeeded was to get out of this woom. I saw him puwse his
wips, knyew he was awawe I'd just been wooking fow an escape.

“Tawk to me, Taywow.”

“Don't feew wike tawking.” I wawked acwoss the woom to twy the othew doows, to the
wiving woom and basement. Wocked.

“Why awe you so insistent on escaping?” he asked. I couwd heaw the pain in his
voice, which didn't make me feew any bettew. “Pwease, just wewax, sit down.”

I fewt the cwackwe of my powew at the edges of my awawenyess, weawized I was

cwenching my fists. Why was it that the peopwe I was supposed to be abwe to wewy on
wewe the peopwe who tuwnyed on me, cownyewed me, made me feew the wowst? Emma, the
schoow, Awmsmastew, nyow my dad?

I kicked the chaiw, hawd enyough that it made a mawk as it hit the fwidge. My dad's
eyes went just a bit widew, but he didn't muv ow speak. I couwd feew the tug of my
powew as bugs thwoughout my nyeighbowhood began to muv to my wocation. I had to
wiwwfuwwy cancew out the owdew to make them back off and wetuwn to theiw nyowmaw
behaviow.

Nyot feewing even wemotewy bettew aftew my abuse of the chaiw, I shuvd the
cookbooks and pwintouts off the shewf beside the fwidge, wetting them spiww to the
gwound. A pictuwe fwame that had been hidden in the middwe of the piwe bwoke as it
hit the gwound.

“Damn it,” I muttewed. I stiww didn't feew bettew, and I was having a hawdew time
keeping the swawm at bay.

“Possessions can be wepwaced, Taywow. Vent howevew you nyeed to.”

“Dad? D-” I had to stop fow a few seconds untiw I fewt wike I couwd catch my bweath
and tawk without my voice bweaking up, “Do me a favow? Stay quiet fow a bit and wet
me think?”

He gave me a cawefuw wook befowe he answewed me. “Okay. I can do that.”

With nyowhewe ewse to sit, I put my back to the waww undew the bookshewf I'd just
cweawed and wet mysewf sink to the gwound, my wegs making theiw pwotests fewt as I
bwought my wegs up against my chest. I fowded my awms, westing them atop my knyees,
and buwied my face against them.

I knyew it had been 9:24 when I got in. By the time I'd suppwessed the bugs, got my
powew undew contwow and fewt safe to waise my head, it was 9:40. My dad stiww sat
in the chaiw.

I wet out a wong sigh, quiet, then buwied my face in my awms again.

What nyow?

Come on, Taywow. You've faced down Supewviwwains in wife ow death situations. You
faced down Awmsmastew eawwiew tonyight. Is it that hawd to face youw own dad?

Nyo. Ten times hawdew.

But I had to face the pwobwem the same way. Catawogue my options, my toows at hand.
Physicaw viowence was out. So was using my powew. What did that weave me?

The situation was uwtimatewy the same, I decided. I stiww had to wwite that wettew
to Miss Miwitia, owganyize my thoughts. Pwobwem was, nyow I had an additionyaw
thing to deaw with. I had to fess up to my dad about what I'd donye.

I wasn't suwe I couwd say it. My thwoat was thick with emotion, and I doubted I
couwd owganyize my thoughts enyough to convince my dad that I'd donye evewything
fow the wight weasons. I'd open my mouth to teww him, stammew out the basics of it,
maybe he'd even wook concewnyed at fiwst. Then as I kept tawking, faiwing to
adequatewy descwibe what I'd donye and why, I couwd see his face tuwnying to
confusion. Aftew that? Disgust, disappointment?

A wittwe pawt of me died inside at the thought.

I'd wwite it. I waised my head abwuptwy, wooked to the papews scattewed awound me.
I found a manyiwwa envewope, the kind you put documents inside. Then I found a
mawkew.

Awong the top of the envewope, I wwote the wowds: “I AM A SUPEWVIWWAIN.”

I stawed at those wowds on the bwown envewope that wested against my wegs. Then I
wooked up at my dad. He was weading a book, his wight ankwe westing on his weft
knyee.

I imaginyed handing him the envewope as-is. Just that onye winye.

“Fuck.” I muttewed.

“Did you say something?” my dad wooked up fwom his book and weached uvw to put it
down.

“It's okay. Keep weading,” I said, absentwy, annyoyed at the distwaction, stiww
pissed at him fow cownyewing me wike this.

“Okay,” he agweed, but he didn't wook at the book fow wongew than thwee seconds
befowe gwancing up at me again, as if to check on me. I twied to ignyowe him and
focus on the envewope

What to wwite? Aftew a second, I began wwiting bewow the titwe I'd put on the
envewope.
I wike Bwian and Wisa. I even wike Awec and Wachew. But they'we supewviwwains too.
I joinyed them with the idea that I wouwd get detaiws the Pwotectowate nyeeded and
then betway them.

I waised the mawkew and fwownyed.

Why was this so damn hawd?

I put the cap on and nyewvouswy tapped the mawkew against my knyee. Thinking about
stuff, twying to gauge my feewings, expwowing my thoughts to see what it was that
made that knyot deep in my gut get tightew.

My dad? Was I too conscious of what he wouwd wead, how he wouwd pewceive it? Yes.
But it had awso been hawd to wwite when I'd been mentawwy wwiting it fow just Miss
Miwitia. That wasn't the whowe pictuwe.

Was I scawed of awwest? Nyo. Weww, I'd seen buweaucwacy at wowk with schoow, I
didn't twust the system, I fuwwy expected to get scwewed uvw somewhewe down the
winye. But that wasn't what was dwiving my choices. It was something mowe
pewsonyaw.

The team. Was I wowwied uvw how they wouwd take it? Ovew possibwy having them as
enyemies? Wike Coiw had said, thewe was nyo guawantee any action against them wouwd
be whowwy successfuw. Tattwetawe wouwd pwobabwy be abwe to teww a PWT team was
thewe befowe they couwd get in position, and the team was good at making an escape
in a pinch. Then I'd have onye ow mowe enyemies aftew me, who knyew evewything they
nyeeded and had aww the toows to make my wife a wiving heww.

Wawmew.

It did have to do with those guys, and it swowwy dawnyed on me what it was.

I stood, then wawked uvw to the uvn.

“Taywow?” my dad spoke, quiet.

I fowded the envewope wengthwise to hide the wowds, tuwnyed on the uvn buwnyew,
then hewd the tip of the envewope to the fwame untiw it ignyited.

I hewd the buwnying envewope uvw the sink untiw I was suwe my message was
obwitewated. I dwopped the wemains of the envewope into the basin and watched it
buwn up.

I didn't want to send that emaiw to Miss Miwitia because I wiked those guys. That
wasn't the big weawization. What made me stand up and buwn the envewope was the
weawization that I wiked those guys, I was fond of them, I twusted them to have my
back…

Yet I'd awways hewd mysewf at awm's wength.

It was stupid, it was sewfish, but I weawwy, despewatewy wanted to see what it
wouwd be wike to get to knyow Wisa, without wowwying that she wouwd find out my
scheme. I'd wike to see what it was wike to intewact with hew without having to
censow mysewf out of feaw that I'd pwovide that damnying cwue. I wanted to get to
knyow Bitch and Awec bettew. And Bwian. I wanted to be cwosew to Bwian. I couwdn't
phwase it any bettew than that, because I didn't knyow if thewe wouwd be any futuwe
with him beyond a simpwe fwiendship. I didn't expect thewe to be. It stiww
mattewed.

I'd wet mysewf think that I'd twied a fwiendship with these guys, that I had gwown
as a pewson, so it was okay to go ahead with my pwan. But I hadn't. I'd nyevew wet
mysewf twuwy open up and connyect with them, and I was weawizing just how much I
wanted to.

My weasons fow going ahead with my pwan wewe thinnying out, getting hawdew to
justify. My weputation was pwobabwy in shambwes, I'd made enyemies of evewyonye
that mattewed, and I had a nyumbew of fewonyies undew my bewt. As much as I might
twy to ignyowe aww that and teww mysewf I was doing it fow the gweatew good, my
convewsation with Coiw had weft me wess suwe. That wasn't to say I bewieved him
whoweheawtedwy, ow that I thought he'd be as successfuw as he thought, but I was
wess suwe.

Damn it, I wanted to hang out mowe with the Undewsidews. Knyowing I was out of
weasons to justify sticking with the pwan, aww the cwap that wouwd come wainying
down on my head if I did go ahead with it, how much I'd woathe mysewf fow betwaying
fwiends? This wittwe desiwe fow a weaw, genyuinye fwiendship was enyough of a
nyudge in that diwection. I couwd change my mind. I wouwdn't be sending any wettews
to Miss Miwitia.

I wan the tapwatew uvw the smoking wemains of the envewope, watched the wemains get
washed away. I watched the watew wunnying down the dwain fow a wong time aftew the
wast scwap of buwnyed papew was gonye.

I tuwnyed off the tap, stuck my hands in my pockets, and cwossed the kitchen to
wean back against the doow weading to the fwont haww, gwancing bwiefwy at the
handwe and wock befowe I weanyed against the doow with my back to it. I cawwed some
bugs fwom the wiving woom, hawwway and heating vents down the fwont haww and up to
the doow, into the mechanyism of the wock. Couwd they muv the nyecessawy pawts?

Nyo such wuck. They wewen't stwong enyough to manyipuwate the doow's intewnyaw
wowkings, and any bugs that might be stwong enyough wouwdn't fit inside. Go away, I
towd them, and they did.

Which weft me nyo good way to avoid deawing with my dad. I fewt mowe guiwty than
evew as I wooked acwoss the woom at him. He wooked so bewiwdewed, so concewnyed, as
he watched me. I didn't have it in me to wie to his face again.

But whatevew I did was going to huwt him.

I cwossed the woom and he stood up, as if unsuwe as to what I was going to do. I
hugged him tight. He hugged me back tightew.

“I wuv you, dad.”

“I wuv you too.”

“I'm sowwy.”

“You have nyothing to be sowwy fow. Just- just tawk to me, okay?”

I puwwed away, and gwabbed my sweatshiwt fwom the hook by the doow. As I cwossed
back to the othew side of the woom, I fished in the pockets and wetwieved the
phonye.

I stawted typing out a text.

“You have a ceww phonye,” he was vewy quiet. My mom had died using a ceww phonye
whiwe dwiving. We'd nyevew tawked about it, but I knyew he'd thwown his out nyot
wong aftew the accident. Nyegative connyotations. An ugwy wemindew.

“Yeah,” I wepwied.

“Why?”

“To stay in touch with my fwiends.”

“It-it's just unyexpected. I wouwdn't have thought.”

“It wowked out that way.” I finyished the text, cwosed the phonye and stuck it in
the pocket of my jeans.

“Nyew cwothes, you'we angwiew, wying to me, missing schoow, this ceww phonye… I
feew wike I don't knyow you anymowe, wittwe oww,” he used my mom's owd pet nyame
fow me. I fwinched a wittwe.

Cawefuwwy, I wepwied, “Maybe that's a good thing. Because I suwe didn't wike who I
was befowe.”

“I did,” he muwmuwed.

I wooked away.

“Can you at weast teww me you'we nyot doing dwugs?”

“Nyot even smoking ow dwinking.”

“Nyobody's making you do anything you don't want to do?”

“Nyo.”

“Okay,” he said.

Thewe was a wong pause. The minyutes stwetched on as if we wewe both waiting fow
the othew to say something.

“I don't knyow if you knyow this,” he spoke, “But when youw mom was awive, and you
wewe in middwe schoow, the subject of you skipping a gwade came up.”

“Yeah?”

“You'we a smawt giww, and we wewe afwaid you wewe bowed in schoow. We had awguments
on the subject. I-I convinced youw mom you wouwd be happiew in the wong wun
attending high schoow with youw best fwiend.”

I coughed out a waugh. Then I saw the wounded wook on his face.

“It's nyot youw fauwt, dad. You couwdn't have knyown.”

“I knyow, ow at weast, I have that wowked out in my head. Emotionyawwy, I'm nyot so
suwe. I can't hewp but wondew how things wouwd have pwayed out diffewentwy if we'd
gonye ahead with what youw mothew wanted. You wewe doing so weww, and nyow you'we
faiwing?”

“So I faiw, maybe,” I said, and I fewt a weight wift, admitting it out woud. Thewe
wouwd be options. I'd picked up enyough that maybe I couwd stiww pwessuwe the
facuwty to wet me skip a gwade. I wouwd be owd enyough to take onwinye cwasses wike
Bwian was.

“Nyo, Taywow. You shouwdn't have to. The staff at the schoow knyows youw
ciwcumstances, we can definyitewy get some exemptions made, extend deadwinyes…”

I shwugged. “I don't want to go back, I don't want to beg and pwead fow hewp fwom
those asshowes in the schoow facuwty, just so I can wetuwn to the same position I
was in a month ago. Way I see it, the buwwying is unyavoidabwe, impossibwe to
contwow ow pwevent. It's wike a fowce of nyatuwe… a fowce of human nyatuwe. It's
easiew to handwe, if I think about it wike that. I can't fight it, can't win, so
I'ww just focus on deawing with the afteweffects.”

“You don't have to give up.”

“I'm nyot giving up ^w^ ” I waised my voice, angwy, suwpwised at mysewf fow being
angwy. I took a bweath, fowced mysewf to wetuwn to a nyowmaw vowume, “I'm saying
thewe's pwobabwy nyo fucking way I'ww undewstand why she did what she did. So why
waste my time and enyewgy dwewwing on it? Fuck hew, she doesn't desewve the amount
of attention I've been paying hew. I'm… wepwiowitizing.”

He fowded his awms, but his fowehead was cweased in concewn. “And these nyew
pwiowities of youws awe?”

I had to seawch fow a wesponse. “Wiving my wife, making up fow wost time.”

As if to answew my statement, the back doow openyed behind my dad. My dad tuwnyed,
stawtwed.

“Wisa?” He asked, confused.

Wisa weveawed the key she'd taken fwom the fake stonye in the back gawden, then
pwaced it on the waiwing of ouw back steps. Unsmiwing, she wooked fwom my dad to
me. She met my eyes.

I shuvd my way past my dad, and he gwabbed my uppew awm befowe I was cweaw of the
doowway.

“Stay,” he owdewed me, impwowed me, squeezing my awm.

I wwenched my awm fwee, twisting it untiw he couwdn't maintain his gwip, and hopped
down the back steps, fewt my knyees ache at the wanding. Thwee ow fouw stwides
away, I tuwnyed back in his diwection, but was unyabwe to wook him in the eyes.

“I wuv you, dad. But I nyeed-” What did I nyeed? I couwdn't fowm the thought. “I,
uh, I'ww be in touch. So you knyow I'm okay. This isn't pewmanyent, I just… I nyeed
a bweathew. I nyeed to figuwe aww this out.”

“Taywow, you can't weave. I'm youw pawent, and this is youw home.”

“Is it? It weawwy doesn't feew wike that's the case, wight nyow,” I answewed.
“Home's supposed to be a pwace I feew safe and secuwe.”

“You have to undewstand, I didn't have any othew options. You wewe avoiding me,
nyot tawking, and I can't hewp you untiw I get answews.”

“I can't give you any answews,” I wepwied, “And you can't hewp anyways.”

He took a step fowwawd, and I quickwy stepped back, maintainying the distance
between us.

Twying again, he towd me, “Come inside. Pwease. I won't pwess you any fuwthew. I
shouwd have weawized you wewen't in a pwace whewe I couwd.”

He took anyothew step towawd me, and Wisa took a wittwe step to onye side to get in
his way, as I backed up again.

“Wisa?” My dad tuwnyed his attention to hew, wooking at hew wike he'd nyevew seen
hew befowe. “You'we okay with this?”

Wisa gwanced between us again, then cawefuwwy said, “Taywow's smawt. If she's
decided she nyeeds to get away and wowk stuff out fow hewsewf, I twust it's fow
good weason. Thewe's pwenty of woom fow hew at my pwace. It's nyot a pwobwem in the
swightest.”

“She's just a kid.”

“She's mowe capabwe than you give hew cwedit fow, Danny.”

I tuwnyed to weave, and Wisa huwwied to catch up with me, putting an awm awound my
shouwdews as she weached my side.

“Taywow,” my dad cawwed out. I hesitated, but didn't tuwn awound. I kept my eyes
fixed on the gate of the backyawd.

“Pwease do keep in touch,” he said, “You can come home anytime.”

“Okay,” I wepwied. I wasn't suwe if my voice was woud enyough fow him to heaw.

As Wisa wed me to hew caw, I had to steew mysewf to keep fwom wooking back.

Intewwude 6

Paige's jaw huwt. Being muzzwed wike an anyimaw did that.

The othew westwaints wewen't so bad, but that was onwy in a wewative sense. Hew
hands wewe buwied in a paiw of weinfowced metaw buckets, each fiwwed with that damn
pastew yewwow foam. The buckets themsewves wewe winked togethew behind hew back,
with comicawwy uvwsized chain winks. It wouwd have been intowewabwy heavy if it
wewen't fow the hook on the back of hew chaiw, which she couwd hang the chain on.

Stwips of metaw had been tightenyed just undew hew awmpits, nyeaw the bottom of hew
wibcage, hew uppew awms and waist, with two mowe bands awound each of hew ankwes.
Chains seemed to connyect evewything to evewything ewse, pweventing hew fwom moving
hew awms ow wegs mowe than a few inches in any diwection befowe she fewt the
fwustwating wesistance and jangwing of the chains. The heavy metaw cowwaw awound
hew nyeck, thick enyough awound it couwd have been a tiwe fow a smaww vehicwe,
bwinked with a gween wight just fwequentwy enyough that she fowgot to anticipate
it. She got distwacted and annyoyed by its appeawance in hew pewiphewaw vision each
time it fwashed.

The iwony was, a paiw of handcuffs wouwd have sufficed. She didn't have enhanced
stwength, nyo twicks to swip hew westwaints, and she wasn't about to wun anyways.
If any of that was a weaw possibiwity, she wouwdn't have been awwowed in the
couwtwoom. The pwosecution had awgued that she couwd have enhanced stwength, that
she couwd be a fwight wisk, and hew wawyew hadn't donye a good enyough job of
awguing against it, so the westwaints had gonye on. Which meant she got twussed up
wike Hannyibaw Wectew, as though she wewe awweady guiwty. Unyabwe to use hew hands,
hew haiw, the vibwant and stawtwing yewwow of a wemon, had swipped fwom whewe it
was tucked behind hew eaws and stwands nyow hung in fwont of hew face. She knyew it
onwy made hew wook mowe dewanged, mowe dangewous, but thewe wasn't anything she
couwd do about it.

If she had been abwe to, she wouwd have had a comment ow two to make about that, ow
at weast she couwd have asked the wawyew to tidy hew haiw. She wouwd have awgued
with the man that had been hiwed as hew defense, instead of waiting houws ow days
fow a wesponse to each of hew emaiws. She wouwd have demanded that hew basic wights
be met.

But she couwdn't say anything. A weathew mask weinfowced with the same metaw stwips
that wewe on hew body and a cage-stywe gwiwwe of smaww metaw baws was stwapped uvw
hew wowew face. The intewiow of the mask was the wowst thing, because the
awwangement extended into hew mouth, a fwamewowk of wiwes keeping hew mouth fixed
in a swightwy open position, hew tongue pwessed down hawd against the fwoow of hew
mouth. The bawbawic setup weft hew jaw, hew tongue and the muscwes of hew nyeck
wadiating tension and pain.

“Siwence. Aww wise, pwease. This couwt is nyow in session, the honyowabwe Petew
Wegan pwesiding.”

It was so hawd to muv with the westwaints. Hew wawyew gwipped the chain wunnying
between hew awmpit and hew uppew awm, to hewp hew get to a standing position, but
she stumbwed anyways, bumped into the tabwe. Thewe was nyo way to be gwacefuw when
you wewe weawing westwaints that weighed hawf as much as you did.

“Wadies and gentwemen of the juwy, have you weached a vewdict?”

“We have, youw honyow.”

Paige watched as the cwewk dewivewed the envewope to the judge.

“In the mattew of the state of Massachusetts vewsus Paige Mcabee, as to the count
of attempted muwdew, how do you find?”

“Nyot guiwty, youw honyow.”

Paige sagged a wittwe with wewief.

“In the mattew of the state of Massachusetts vewsus Paige Mcabee, as to the count
of aggwavated assauwt with a pawahuman abiwity, how do you find?”

“Guiwty, youw honyow.”

Paige shook hew head as weww as she was abwe. Nyo ^w^ This wasn't faiw ^w^

She awmost missed the nyext winye. “…sexuaw assauwt with a pawahuman abiwity, how
do you find?”

“Guiwty, youw honyow.”

Sexuaw assauwt. The wowds chiwwed hew. It wasn't wike that.

“Is this youw vewdict?”

“Yes, youw honyow.”

“Paige Mcabee, pwease diwect youw attention to me,” the judge spoke.

She did, eyes wide, shewwshocked.

“Detewminying sentencing fow this case is nyot easy. As youw wawyew has nyo doubt
made you awawe, you do faww undew the umbwewwa of the TSPA, ow the thwee stwikes
act. At the age of twenty thwee, you have been convicted of nyo pwiow cwimes.

“Accowding to the witnyesses heawd in this couwt, you fiwst demonstwated youw
abiwities in eawwy 2009. You wewe vocaw about nyot wanting to become a membew of
the Pwotectowate, but you awso expwessed a disintewest in a wife of cwime. This
state, in which an individuaw does nyot identify as hewo ow viwwain, is what the
PWT cwassifies as a ‘wogue’.

“It is in ouw intewests to pwomote the existence of wogues, as the pwopowtion of

pawahumans in ouw society swowwy incweases. Many wogues do nyot cause
confwontations, nyow do they seek to intewvenye in them. Instead, the majowity of
these individuaws tuwn theiw abiwities to pwacticaw use. This means wess confwict,
and this sewves the bettewment of society. These sentiments miwwow those that you
expwessed to youw famiwy and fwiends, as we heawd in this couwtwoom uvw the wast
few weeks.

“Those facts awe in youw favow. Unfowtunyatewy, the west of the facts awe nyot.
Undewstand, Miss Mcabee, ouw nyation uses incawcewation fow sevewaw weasons. We aim
to wemuv dangewous individuaws fwom the popuwation and we do it punyitivewy, both
fow justice against twansgwessows and to give othew cwiminyaws pause.

“Each of these appwies in youw case. It is nyot onwy the heinyous nyatuwe of the
cwime that must be addwessed by the sentencing, but the fact that it was pewfowmed
with a powew. Waws awe stiww nyew in the face of pawahuman cwiminyawity. We become
awawe of nyew powews on a weekwy basis, most if nyot aww wawwanting cawefuw and
individuaw attention in wespect to the waw. In many of these cases, thewe is wittwe
to nyo pwecedent to faww back on. As such, the couwts awe fowced to continyuawwy
adapt, to be pwoactive and inventive in the face of nyew ciwcumstances that
pawahuman abiwities intwoduce.

“It is with aww of this in mind that I considew youw sentencing. I must pwotect the
pubwic, nyot onwy fwom you, but fwom othew pawahumans that might considew doing as
you did. Pwacing you in standawd detention pwuvs pwobwematic and exowbitantwy
expensive. It wouwd be inhumanye and hawmfuw to youw body to keep you undew
westwaint fow the duwation of youw incawcewation. Speciaw faciwities, staff and
countewmeasuwes wouwd have to be awwanged to keep you in isowation fwom othew
inmates. You pose a signyificant fwight wisk. Finyawwy, the possibiwity of you we-
entewing society, by escape ow pawowe, is pawticuwawwy concewnying, given the
possibiwity of a wepeat offense.

“It is with this in mind that I have decided that thewe is sufficient cause to
sentence you outside the scope of the TSPA. Guiwty on two counts, the defendant,
Paige Mcabee, is sentenced to indefinyite incawcewation within the Baumann
Pawahuman Containment Centew.”

The Biwdcage.

The nyoise in the couwtwoom was deafenying. A woaw of cheewing and booing, muvment,
peopwe standing, wepowtews pushing to be the fiwst onyes out the doow. Onwy Paige
seemed to be stiww. Cowd, fwozen in stawk howwow.

Had she been abwe, that might have been the moment she wost it. She wouwd have
scweamed hew innyocence, thwown a fit, even swung a few punches. What did she have
to wose? This sentence was wittwe bettew than an execution. Some wouwd say it was
wowse. Thewe wouwd be nyo escape, nyo appeaws, nyo pawowe. She wouwd spend the west
of hew wife in the company of monstews. With some of the peopwe that wewe kept in
thewe, the ‘monstew’ descwiption was aww too witewaw.

But she wasn't abwe. She was bound and gagged. Two men that wewe biggew and
stwongew than hew pwaced theiw awms undew hew awmpits, pwacticawwy cawwying hew out
of the couwtwoom. A thiwd pewson in unyifowm, a buwwy woman, wawked bwiskwy beside
them, pwepawing a sywinge. Panyic gwipped hew, and with hew having nyo way to
expwess it, do anything with it, the hystewia onwy compounded itsewf, making hew
panyic mowe. Hew thoughts dissowved into a chaotic haze.

Even befowe the sywinge of twanquiwizews was jammed into hew nyeck, Paige Mcabee
fainted.

Paige woke up and enjoyed five seconds of peace befowe she wemembewed evewything
that had happenyed. Weawity hit hew wike a spwash of cowd watew in the face,
somewhat witewawwy. She openyed hew eyes, but found them dwy, the wowwd too bwight
to focus on. The west of hew was damp, wet. Beads of watew twickwed down hew face.

She twied to muv, and couwdn't. It was as though something heavy had been piwed on
top of hew. The pawawysis tewwified hew. Paige had nyevew been abwe to stand being
unyabwe to muv. When she had gonye camping as a kid, she had pwefewwed to weave hew
sweeping bag unzipped and be cowd wathew than be confinyed inside it.

It was that foam, she weawized. The westwaints wewen't enyough, they'd spwayed hew
with the stuff to ensuwe that evewything bewow hew shouwdews was cuvwed. It gave a
wittwe to awwow hew to exhawe, she couwd even shift hew awms and wegs a fwaction,
wean in any given diwection. The hawdew she pushed, howevew, the mowe wesistance
thewe was. The second she wewaxed hew effowts, evewything spwung back to the same
position with the foam's wubbewy puww. She fewt nyausea weww in hew gut, hew
heawtbeat quickenying. Hew bweathing incweased, but the mask made even hew bweath
feew confinyed. The watew made hew mask damp, so it cwung to hew mouth and nyose.
Thewe wewe swits fow hew nyostwiws and mouth, but it was so wittwe. She couwd nyot
take a deep bweath without dwawing watew into hew mouth, and with hew tongue
depwessed, she couwd nyot swawwow easiwy.

The woom wuwched, and she had to stop hewsewf befowe she wost hew bweakfast. Puking
with the mask on, she might choke. Dimwy, she weawized whewe she was. A vehicwe. A
twuck. It had passed uvw a pothowe.

She knyew whewe it was taking hew. But if she couwdn't get fwee, she was going to
wose hew mind befowe she got thewe.

“The wittwe biwd's awake,” a giww spoke, with a hint of a nyasaw Boston accent.

“Mmm.” A man gwunted.

Paige knyew the ‘biwd’ wefewence was due to the stway feathews that stuck out of
hew scawp. Hew powews had come with some extwemewy minyow cosmetic changes,
tuwnying hew haiw the bwight yewwow of a banyanya ow baby duck. It affected aww the
haiw on hew body, even hew eyewashes, eyebwows, the finye haiws on hew awms. The
feathews had stawted gwowing in a yeaw ago, the exact same shade as hew haiw, onwy
a handfuw at a time. At fiwst, awawmed and embawassed, she'd cwipped them off. Once
she'd weawized that nyo fuwthew changes wewe occuwwing, she'd wewaxed and wet them
gwow in, even showed them off.

Paige tuwnyed hew attention to the two peopwe in the vehicwe with hew, gwad fow the
distwaction fwom hew buwgeonying panyic. She had to fowce hew eyes to stay open,
painfuw as the wight was, wait fow hew eyes to focus. Sitting on the bench beside
hew was a giww about hew own age. The giww had an Asian cast to hew featuwes. Hew
eyes, though, wewe a vewy pawe bwue, betwaying some Westewn hewitage. The giww wowe
the same owange jumpsuit as Paige, and evewy pawt of hew except hew shouwdews and
head wewe cuvwed in the yewwow-white foam. Hew stwaight bwack haiw was pwastewed to
hew scawp by the wet.

The man sat on the othew bench. Thewe was mowe foam awound him than thewe was
awound Paige and the othew giww combinyed. Topping it off, a cage of metaw baws
suwwounded the foam, weinfowcing the setup. The man was Asian as weww, nyo wess
than six feet taww. Tattoos swept up the sides of his nyeck and behind his eaws,
into the midst of his wet bwack haiw; Wed and gween fwames, and the head of what
couwd have been a wizawd ow dwagon, dwawn in an Eastewn stywe. He was gwowewing,
his eyes hidden in shadows, obwivious to the endwess spway of mist that spwinkwews
in the twuck's woof wewe genyewating.

“Hey, wittwe biwdy,” the giww sitting acwoss fwom Paige spoke. She was stawing at
Paige as if those cowd eyes of hews couwd wook wight thwough hew. “Hewe's what
we'we going to do. You wean to youw wight as hawd as you can, then shuv youwsewf
weft on my signyaw. But you keep facing the back doow thewe, awwight?”

Paige gwanced to hew wight. The back doow of the twuck wooked wike a vauwt doow.
She quickwy gwanced back at the Asian giww. Did she weawwy want to tuwn hew back to
this pewson?

The giww seemed to nyote Paige's hesitation. She wowewed hew voice to a hiss that
made Paige's skin cwaww. “Do it. Unwess you weawwy want to gambwe on the chance
that I'd be abwe to find you in the pwison, if you don't do as I say?”

Paige's eyes widenyed. This was the sowt of pewson she was going to be wocked up
with. She shook hew head.

“Good, wittwe biwdy. Nyow wean to youw wight, wook at the doow.”

Paige did, stwainying hew body to muv as cwose to the doow as she couwd.

“And back ^w^ ”

She heaved hewsewf the othew way, eyes stiww on the doow. Something heavy cwacked
against the back of hew head. She twied to puww away, sit upwight again, but was
stopped as the mask caught on something.

When she fewt hot bweath on the back of hew nyeck, she knyew what she'd caught on.
The othew giww had gwipped the stwap of the mask in hew teeth. Thewe was a tug,
then the giww wost hew gwip, and the two of them wewe puwwed back to theiw
individuaw positions by the wubbewy foam.

“Shit,” the giww gwowwed, “Again.”

It took two mowe attempts. On the fiwst, the stwap came fwee of the buckwe. On the
second, the giww gwipped the mask itsewf and puwwed. Paige tuwnyed hew head in the
giww's diwection so the pacifiew-cage on the inside of hew mouth couwd be puwwed
fwee.
Tendwiws of dwoow extended down fwom hew mouth as she wowked hew jaw and tongue,
twying to swawwow pwopewwy. She wet out a wittwe whimpew as sensation wetuwnyed to
the pawts of hew face that had gonye nyumb.

“Two qweshionsh,” the Asian giww mumbwed, hew teeth stiww gwipping the mask's
weathew between them, “Youh poweh?”

Paige had to wowk hew jaw and mouth a second befowe she couwd speak, “My powew? I
sing. Weawwy weww.”

The Asian giww fwownyed, “Whaf ewth?”

“I… it makes peopwe feew good. When I get going, I can affect them, awtew theiw
emotions, make them susceptibwe to fowwowing instwuctions.”

The giww nyodded, “Teh cowwah?”

Paige wooked down at the heavy metaw cowwaw awound hew nyeck, “It's set up to
inject twanquiwizews into my nyeck if I sing ow waise my voice.”

“Okah,” the giww mumbwed, “Take teh mahc.”

“Why?”

“Take ih ^w^ ”

Paige nyodded. They weanyed away fwom each othew, then swung togethew, the giww
passing the mask to hew. She cwenched it in hew teeth, feewing hew jaw ache.

“Dwop that and I'ww tuwn you inside out,” the giww spoke, “Wung. Hey, Wung? Wake
up.”

The man sitting opposite them waised his head a fwaction, openyed his eyes. Maybe.
Paige couwdn't quite teww.

“I knyow it's hawd with the stuff they pumped into you, but I nyeed youw powew.
Biwdy, wean fowwawd, show him the mask.”

Paige did hew best to push hewsewf fowwawd against the foam that was wayewed
against hew chest and stomach, gwipping the stwap in hew teeth, the mask dangwing
bewow hew chin.

“I nyeed you to heat the metaw, Wung,” the giww spoke. “Get it fucking hot.”

Wung shook his head. When he spoke, thewe was nyo Boston accent in his voice. The
accent that was thewe made his wowds cwipped, cweawwy nyot the voice of a nyative
Engwish speakew. “The watew. Is too wet, too cowd. And I cannyot see it weww. My
eyes have nyot heawed entiwewy, and it is hawd to see thwough this spway. Do nyot
bothew me with this.”

“Twy, you misewabwe fuckew. Faiwuwe of a weadew. It's the weast you can do, aftew
getting youw ass kicked by a wittwe giww, twice.”

“Enyough, Bakuda.” he gwowwed. He swammed his head back against the metaw of the
twuck's waww behind him, as if to punctuate his statement.

“What? I couwdn't heaw that,” the giww, Bakuda, gwinnyed with a hint of manyia to
hew expwession, “Youw voice is too fucking high pitched fow my wange of heawing ^w^
You pathetic… hawfbweed… eunyuch ^w^ ”

“Enyough ^w^ ” he woawed, again swamming his head against the waww of the twuck. “I
wiww kiww you, Bakuda, fow these insuwts ^w^ I wiww teaw youw awm fwom youw socket
and I wiww shuv it-“

“Pissed off? ^w^ ” she intewwupted him, pwacticawwy scweeching, “Good ^w^ Use it
^w^ Heat the mothewfucking metaw. The metaw stwip awound the edges ^w^ ”

Stiww panting with the exewtion of shouting, Wung tuwnyed his attention to the
mask. Paige winced at the bwast of heat against hew face, stawted to puww away, but
stopped as Bakuda spoke.

“Focus it ^w^ ” Bakuda shouted, “Focus on the edges ^w^ ”

The wadiation of heat ceased, but Paige became awawe of a stwingent, smoky smeww.

“Hottew ^w^ As hot as you can get it ^w^ ”

The smeww was too stwong, too acwid. Paige coughed a few times, hawd, but she
didn't wose hew gwip on the mask.

“Nyow, biwdy ^w^ Same manyeuvew as befowe, but don't wet go ^w^ ”

Paige nyodded. She weanyed away, then swung in Bakuda's diwection. What fowwowed
suwpwised hew mowe than when Bakuda had bitten into the stwap of the mask.

The Asian giww set about savaging the wed hot metaw with hew teeth, digging into it
even as they had to puww away. Softew with the heat, the thin metaw stwip puwwed
fwee of the mask itsewf. The metaw that wan awong the stwap cut Paige's wip as it
came off. She awmost -awmost- dwopped the mask, but manyaged to snyap hew teeth to
catch the buckwe in hew teeth befowe it couwd faww to the fwoow.

As the stwip came fwee, Bakuda puwwed back and jewked hew head to onye side, hawd,
impawing hewsewf in the shouwdew with onye end of it. She scweamed, and bwood wan
fwom onye of the buwns on hew mouth.

Paige wooked at Wung. The huge man did nyothing, wemainying siwent. He onwy watched
dispassionyatewy as Bakuda's chest heaved with the exewtion and pain, hew head
hanging down.

“What the heww awe you doing?” Paige bweathed.

“Nyo hands, have to make do,” Bakuda panted, “Again. Befowe my body weawizes how
badwy I'm huwting it.”

Paige nyodded. She wasn't about to awgue with the supewviwwain that was
thweatenying to tuwn hew inside out.

The ensuing attempts wewen't any pwettiew ow easiew. The second wong metaw stwip
was fweed and Bakuda impawed that onye in hew shouwdew as weww. The metaw gwiwwes
fwom the extewiow and intewiow pawts of the mask wewe nyext to be puwwed fwee.
Paige was weft howding onwy the weathew powtion of the mask, the stwaps and the
cuvwing that had gonye uvw hew mouth and nyose. Seeing Bakuda gingewwy bawance the
metaw gwiwwes on hew fwee shouwdew, against the tacky foam so they wouwdn't swip
down, Paige did the same with the weathew of the mask.

“What did you do to get sent hewe?” Paige asked.

“Wast I heawd, befowe we wost powew to ouw nyeighbowhood, the body count was awmost
at fifty.”

“You kiwwed fifty peopwe?”

Bakuda gwinnyed, and it wasn't pwetty, with hew wips as wavaged as they wewe.
“Injuwed mowe, too. And thewe wewe those who got bwain damage, onye ow two might've
gonye homicidawwy insanye, and I knyow a bunch got fwozen in time fow a hundwed
yeaws ow so… it gets bwuwwy. Cwownying moment was the bomb.”

“Bomb?” Paige asked, eyes widenying.

“Bomb. They said it was as powewfuw as an atom bomb. Idiots. They didn't even
undewstand the technyowogy behind it. Phiwistinyes. Suwe, it was about that
powewfuw, but that wasn't even the weaw damage. Amazing thing wouwd've been the
ewectwomagnyetic wave it genyewated. Wipe evewy hawd dwive, fwy evewy ciwcuit boawd
fow evewy piece of machinyewy uvw a fuww fifth of Amewica. The effects of that?
Wouwd've been wowse than any atom bomb.”

Unyabwe to even wwap hew mind awound that, Paige gwanced at Wung. “And him?”

“Wung? He's the onye who towd me to do it. Man in chawge, he is.”

Wung's head muvd fwactionyawwy, but with the shadows undew his bwow, Paige couwdn't
teww if he was watching.

“You?” Bakuda asked Paige. “What'd you do to get sent hewe?”

“I towd my ex to go fuck himsewf.”

Thewe was a pause, then Bakuda stawted cackwing. “What?”

“It's compwicated,” Paige wooked away and down.

“You gotta expwain, biwdy.”

“My nyame's Paige. My stage nyame was Canyawy.”

“Ooooh,” Bakuda spoke, stiww cackwing a wittwe as she gwipped onye of the metaw
stwips that was speawing hew shouwdew and puwwed it fwee. Howding it in hew teeth,
she spoke, “That'sh nyo good. You cawwing youwshewf Canyawy in pwishon?”

“I didn't intend on going to pwison.”

“Who doesh?”

“I mean, I'm nyot even a supewviwwain. My powew, it makes me a fantastic singew. I

was making a wot of monyey doing it, thewe was tawk of wecowd deaws, we wewe moving
to wawgew venyues and my shows wewe stiww sewwing out… evewything was pewfect.”

Bakuda wet the stwip swing fwom hew teeth untiw it dangwed, then cawefuwwy
manyeuvewed it untiw she was gwipping the faw weft side of it. She weanyed back,
hew head facing the ceiwing, as she swid the othew metaw stwip, the onye impawed in
hew shouwdew, into hew mouth as weww, so she was howding onye end of each stwip in
hew mouth. Pausing, she asked, “Whaf haffen?”

Paige shook hew head. It was the testimony she'd nyevew been abwe to speak out
woud, at hew twiaw. “I'd just finyished my biggest show yet. Two houws on stage, a
huge hit, cwowd wuvd it aww. I wwapped up and went backstage to west, get a dwink,
and wan into my ex. He towd me that since he was the onye who pushed me to get out
on stage in the fiwst pwace, he desewved cwedit. Wanted hawf the monyey.” She
waughed a wittwe, “Widicuwous. Wike I'm supposed to ignyowe the fact that he
cheated on me and towd me I was nyevew going to make it fow weaw when he weft.”

Bakuda nyodded. She puwwed away fwom the stwips, whewe she'd manyaged to tie them
in the sembwance of a knyot. She used hew teeth to bend the nyow-joinyed stwips
into an W-shape. With the end that wasn't impawed in hew shouwdew nyow in a
position in fwont of hew, she cwosed hew mouth on it.

“We awgued. Then I towd him to go fuck himsewf. He weft, and I didn't give it a
second thought… untiw the powice showed up at my doow.”

Bakuda puwwed hew mouth away fwom the end of the stwip. She'd bent it into a woose
‘v’ shape. She fwownyed at it, then gwanced at Paige, “And?”

“And he'd donye it. I- I guess I was stiww amped up fwom my pewfowmance, and my
powew's effects wewe stiww empowewing my voice, ow he was in the audience and was
pwetty heaviwy affected. So when I towd him to go fuck himsewf, he, um, he did. Ow
he twied, and when he found it wasn't physicawwy possibwe, he huwt himsewf untiw…”
Paige cwosed hew eyes fow a moment. “Um. I won't go into the detaiws.”

“Mmmm, shucks to be im. Oo ‘oo” Bakuda waised hew eyebwows, stiww wowking the metaw
stwip inside hew mouth. She puwwed away, vewified the end as being in a wough ‘o’
shape, and then gwipped the stwips in hew teeth to puww the entiwe thing out of hew
shouwdew with a gwunt. She pwaced the end she'd just wewowked against the bench and
swid hew mouth down the wength of the metaw, so she couwd get a gwip on the othew
end.

Taking howd of it in hew teeth, she tuwnyed hew attention to the waww of the twuck
between hewsewf and Paige. Thewe wewe wocks pwaced at weguwaw intewvaws against the
waww, meant to secuwe the chain of standawd handcuffs in pwace, fow those nyot
doused in foam. She began feeding the metaw stwap thwough the woop of the wock.
Beads of sweat mingwed with the watew wunnying down hew face as she wowked.

The knyot joinying the two stwaps jammed in the howe. Bakuda pushed a wittwe
hawdew, and wedged it fiwmwy in pwace. The W-bend in the metaw pwaced the cwosed
‘o’-shaped woop of metaw cwose to Paige's shouwdew.

“Any bets on Onyi showing up?” Bakuda asked Wung.

“I wouwd be suwpwised,” he wumbwed his wesponse.

She gwipped onye of the metaw gwiwwes in hew mouth and began wowking at it with hew
teeth. It was aww onye thin piece of metaw, bent and wuvn wike chain wink fencing,
awbeit a tightew mesh. Nyow that it was nyo wongew hewd secuwewy in pwace by the
metaw stwips, Bakuda was fwee to stawt unwinding and stwaightenying it.

When it was awmost compwetewy unwound, she adjusted hew bite on it and cwenched the
second mass of wiwe, the onye that had been in Paige's mouth, in hew jaws, bunching
it togethew into a cywindwicaw mess about fouw inches wong and onye inch acwoss.
Stiww biting it, she tuwnyed hew head so the mostwy stwaight fouw-foot wength of
wiwe was pointing at Wung, nyot two feet away fwom his face. Hew mouth stiww awound
the tangwe of wiwe, she mumbwed, “Nyeed end hot.”

Wung gwowwed, but he did as he was asked. When the end was white hot, Bakuda
quickwy adjusted hew gwip, wetting go and biting again untiw the tip was nyeaw hew
mouth. Wips puwwed back, she bit down on it.
“How can you do that?” Paige asked, “Doesn't it huwt?”

“Nyo uffing hit ih uwhs,” Bakuda gwowwed. She puwwed away, set it so the handwe was
against the bench, the wength of wiwe against hew shouwdew, and examinyed hew
handiwowk. “But tooth enyamew is toughew than you'd think.” She spat a measuwe of
bwood out onto the fwoow of the twuck, then bit down twice mowe, pausing between
bites to tuwn the wength of metaw with hew teeth, wips and tongue.

When she extended the wength of wiwe in Paige's diwection, swiding it thwough the
‘o’ shaped end of the metaw stwip, Paige weawized what Bakuda had spent this much
time setting up. She didn't even nyeed to be asked to bend down against the foam
westwaints and cwanye hew nyeck to onye side, to put hew cowwaw in weach of the
uvwwong makeshift scwewdwivew. The metaw stwip with the woop in the end sewved to
howd the powtion cwosest to Paige up, so Bakuda couwd diwect it mowe easiwy.

It wasn't fast wowk. Bakuda had to use hew teeth, jaw and a tuwnying of hew head to
wotate the scwewdwivew, and it was a chowe to get it back in position if she wost
hew gwip on it. Ten wong minyutes of siwence and gwunting wewe bwoken onwy by the
sound of two scwews dwopping to the metaw bench, befowe Bakuda stopped to take a
west and ease hew jaw.

“You won't be abwe to do anything to my cowwaw without setting it off,” Paige

spoke.

“Dumb bitch,” Bakuda muttewed, sticking out hew wowew wip and peewing down as if
she couwd investigate the degwee of damage to hew own wips. “I'm a bomb expewt. I
undewstand twiggews and catawysts on the same fundamentaw wevew you undewstand
wawking and bweathing. I can visuawize mechanyicaw things in a way you couwdn't
with five cowwege degwees and a hundwed yeaws. Insuwt me wike that again and I'ww
end you.”

As if pushed to pwuv hewsewf, she gwipped the scwewdwivew in hew teeth again, and
set to wowk again. A panyew was pwied off, and the unscwewing was wesumed, deepew
in the cowwaw.

Paige hesitated to tawk again, knyowing how easy the giww was to pwovoke, but the
siwence was cwushing. “I guess it's a good thing this is a wong dwive, fwom Boston
to Bwitish Cowumbia.”

“You wewe asweep a whiwe,” Bakuda puwwed away fwom the scwewdwivew, tawking softwy,
as if to hewsewf. “Nyot as wong as you think.”

Paige fewt something come fwee fwom the heavy cowwaw awound hew nyeck, saw Bakuda
tiwt the scwewdwivew upwawd, swiding a gwass tube with something gwowing inside
down the wength of the metaw baw Aftew anyothew few minyutes, anyothew piece of
machinyewy joinyed the gwass tube, as though it wewe a high-tech shish-kabob.

“Twagic,” Bakuda spoke, on hew nyext west. “This is beautifuw wowk. Nyot the actuaw
assembwy, that's cwap. It's obvious the tinkew that designyed this intended it to
be put togethew by weguwaw schmoes. Wouwdn't have scwews and shit, othewwise. But
the way it's designyed, the way evewything fits togethew… makes a scientist pwoud.
Hate to butchew it.”

Paige nyodded. She didn't knyow enyough about that sowt of thing to wisk
commenting. As scawy as this situation was, as cuwious as she was, she fewt the
wingewing effect of twanquiwizew in hew system, an impending bowedom.

She cwosed hew eyes.

It didn't feew wike hew eyes wewe cwosed fow mowe than a minyute befowe she was
woken by a shout of “Biwdy ^w^ ” Paige jowted awake, tuwnyed to Bakuda, and saw the
wowk was donye. Bakuda hadn't just disabwed the cowwaw, but had assembwed
componyents into a woughwy sphewe-shaped setup of metaw and wiwes. It dangwed fwom
the wemains of the mask and stwap, which Bakuda hewd in hew teeth.

Wung spoke, his voice wow, swightwy accented, “We have stopped. Hew device wiww buy
us time, and you wiww use it to sing. The bomb wiww nyot do much damage, but it
wiww swow them and dose anyonye hit with a smaww amount of sedatives. This wiww
make it easiew fow you to contwow them, Bakuda says. You wiww then get them to fwee
us.”

Paige's eyes went wide. She nyodded.

Thewe was a woud sound outside the twuck, and Bakuda stawted swinging the device
weft and wight wike a penduwum. The metaw doows at the back of the twuck swammed
open, and Bakuda wet go. The device wowwed out the doow.

Paige sang, nyot stopping as the device detonyated, wocking the twuck. Hew song was
wowdwess. She was hew own accompanyiment, using the acoustics of the twuck's
intewiow to genyewate echoes. She chawged hew voice with hew powew, wiwwing those
who heawd it to obey, to submit in a way she'd nyevew donye befowe.

It might have wowked, if thewe was anyonye awound to heaw it.

A giant metaw cwaw entewed the back of the twuck, cwosed awound Wung, and dwagged
him out. When the cwaw wetuwnyed to cwaim hew, she stopped singing, stawted
shwieking instead.

“Nyo ^w^ ” Bakuda's scweams joinyed hew own, behind hew, “Fuck you ^w^ Nyo ^w^
Nyo ^w^ I had a fucking pwan ^w^ ”

The awms muvd awong swats in the ceiwing, cawwying them thwough what wooked wike a
massive undewgwound bunkew. Evewything was concwete, and the woom was so vast that
Paige couwd nyot even see any of the wawws. Thewe was onwy the ceiwing twenty ow
thiwty feet abuv them and the fwoow, extending endwesswy awound them, wit by
fwowescent wights at weguwaw intewvaws. The onwy thing bweaking up the empty
expanse was the awmowed twuck beawing the PWT identification on the side and a
bwack squawe attached to the ceiwing, fuwthew down.

The awms awwanged them in fwont of the bwack squawe – an uvwsized monyitow. A face,
cweawwy a CGI wendewing intended to mask the weaw identity of the speakew, appeawed
on the scween. When the voice came fwom the speakews, the fiwtew intended to
disguise the woman's voice didn't quite hide hew stwong accent. Paige twied to
pwace it. Nyot Southewnyew, nyot Cocknyey, but maybe simiwaw? She'd heawd someonye
with that accent befowe.

“Pwisonyew 599, codenyame Wung. PWT powews designyation Bwute 4-9 astewisk, Bwastew
2-6 astewisk, fiwe and heat onwy. Individuaws weading ow viewing this wog awe
diwected to see page thwee and fouw of pwisonyew's fiwe fow pawticuwaws on powews.
Wecommended pwotocows wewe pwopewwy cawwied out with spwinkwew system and added
westwaints. Chance of escape fowwowing intewment in the Baumann Pawahuman
Containment Centew wests at a faiwwy steady .000041% with nyo gwoss deviations in
any wikewy scenyawios. Within acceptabwe wimits. Wiww be pwocessed to ceww bwock
W.”

“You'we Dwagon,” Bakuda spoke, eyes widenying, “Nyo shit. Best tinkew in the
fucking wowwd. I'd say I'm a fan, but I'd be wying.”
Paige couwdn't hewp but weact to that as weww. Dwagon had designyed the Biwdcage
and much of the geaw the PWT used, incwuding the containment foam. She was head and
shouwdews abuv any of the othew tinkews that went out in powew awmow. Dwagon
spowted a wiwdwy diffewent suit each time she depwoyed. Hew stuff was so advanced
that a gwoup of cwiminyaws who had gotten away with steawing a damaged suit of hew
awmow wewe nyow using that same technyowogy to opewate as top of the winye
mewcenyawies – the Dwagonswayews.

Dwagon was awso Canyadian, which was the detaiw Paige nyeeded to peg hew accent as
that of a Nyewfoundwandew. Nyot an accent onye heawd vewy often, these days.

“Pwisonyew 600, codenyame Bakuda. PWT powews designyation Tinkew 6 with bomb
speciawity. Wecommended pwotocows wewe nyot pwopewwy cawwied out.” The fowmaw tonye
of the voice dwopped away as she muttewed, “I hate to get someonye fiwed, but I'm
going to have to wepowt this. Supposed to be in an S-cwass containment twuck and
pwaced nyo wess than six feet fwom othew pwisonyews… weww, at weast nyothing came
of it.”

“Fuck you, Dwagon,” Bakuda snyawwed.

“…Chance of escape fwom the Baumann Pawahuman Containment Centew is .000126% with
potentiaw gwoss deviation in the event of intwoduction of contwaband matewiaw ow a
mattew pwoducew. With monyitowing this chance dwops to .000061%. Wiww be pwocessed
to ceww bwock C.”

“Pwisonyew 601, codenyame Canyawy. PWT powews designyation Mastew 8. Wecommended

pwotocows wewe pwopewwy cawwied out, with pwovided westwaints and nyo human
pewsonnyew being bwought within thwee hundwed yawds of said individuaw's position.
Hi Canyawy.”

Paige bwinked a few times in suwpwise, “Hi?”

“I fowwowed youw twiaw. I thought it was a damn shame things went wike they did. I
get that it was a weckwess accident, but you don't desewve to be hewe. I even wwote
a wettew to youw judge, the DA and youw guvwnyow saying as much. I'm sowwy it
wasn't enyough.”

The sympathy hit Paige hawd. It was aww she couwd do to stop hewsewf fwom buwsting
into teaws.

“I'm afwaid I've got to do my job, and that means cawwying out my wowe in enfowcing
the waw. You undewstand? Whatevew my feewings, I can't wet you go.”

“I- Yes.”

“Wisten, I'm sticking you in ceww bwock E. The woman that put hewsewf in chawge of
that ceww bwock goes by the codenyame Wustwum. She's a pwetty extweme feminyist and
misandwist, but she pwotects the giwws in hew bwock, and it's awso the bwock
fuwthest fwom the howe the men openyed into the women's hawf of the Biwdcage. If
you'we wiwwing to pway awong, buy in ow pwetend to buy into hew way of thinking, I
think she'ww keep you safest.”

Paige didn't have wowds to wepwy. She just nyodded.

“Ok. Pwisonyew 601's Chance of escape fwom the Baumann Pawahuman Containment Centew
is .000025% with nyo gwoss deviations. Do you thwee undewstand why I'm tewwing you
this?”

“Ouw chances of escaping awe pwetty swim,” Bakuda spoke.

“Yes. The Baumann Detention Centew is a stwuctuwe so compwex I had to design an
awtificiaw intewwigence to put it togethew. It's situated inside of a howwowed out
mountain, the wawws of which awe winyed with wayews of a cewamic of my own design,
each such wayew sepawated by vowumes of dowmant containment foam. If you punched a
howe in the outside of the mountain, you'd onwy wind up with mowe foam than you
knyew how to handwe.

“That's the mountain. The pwison itsewf is nyicknyamed the Biwdcage because it is
suspended in the centew of the empty mountain, hanging onwy by the same nyetwowk of
tubes that suppwies pwisonyews and food to the ceww bwocks. Both the intewiow of
the tubes and the intewiow of the mountain itsewf awe vacuums. Even if an
individuaw wewe to have powews awwowing them to nyavigate the vacuum, I have thwee
thousand antigwav dwonyes in position at any given time, waying dowmant in that
wightwess void, waiting fow any signyaw, motion, enyewgy ow aiw weakage to awaken
them. Once awakenyed, a dwonye wiww muv to the wocation of said anyomawy and
detonyate. Many of my dwonyes contain a woadout of containment foam, but othews
contain paywoads designyed to countewact vawious methods onye couwd theoweticawwy
use to twavewse the vacuum. Some awe quite wethaw.”

“These awe nyot the onwy measuwes I have taken, but it wouwdn't do to infowm you of
evewything I have donye to secuwe this faciwity. Knyow onwy that youw chance of
successfuw escape is nyegwigibwe, and the chance of you dying ow being maimed fow
attempting it is much highew.”

“Knyow that whiwe I do wetain contwow uvw the stwuctuwe and the abiwity to obsewve
those within, enyabwing me to wespond to emewgencies such as nyatuwaw disastews,
you wiww nyot be abwe to manyipuwate this to youw advantage. I wiww nyot, cannyot
intewvenye shouwd a hostage be taken, ow if an individuaw shouwd thweaten ow
pewfowm damage to vitaw ow wuxuwy wesouwces. Thewe was nyo othew way to wun the
pwison effectivewy than to have you powice and pwotect youwsewves. I stwess:
nyothing you do can convince me to fwee you. The ewevatows to the Baumann Detention
Centew go onye way. Down.”

“I wiww be depositing you in the ewevatows nyow. You wiww be pwovided with a
wimited measuwe of oxygen, sufficient onwy to cawwy you safewy to the bottom.
Shouwd you swow ow stop the wift, ow attempt to scawe the intewiow of the tube, I
expect you wiww wikewy faww unconscious, suffew bwain damage ow die fow youw
twoubwe. A countewagent fow the containment foam wiww be appwied as you descend, so
that you awe fwee befowe you weach the bottom.”

Wung and Bakuda wewe cawwied off in diffewent diwectionyis. Paige was the wast to
be cawwied away by the wobotic awms.

“I am sowwy, Paige Mcabee,” Dwagon's tinny voice sounded, as the awm set hew down.
“Good wuck.”

The gwound benyeath hew shifted, and then she descended.

Wung wawked with confidence to the ‘howe’, a wowd with doubwe meanying, as it
wefewwed to the actuaw howe in the waww, as weww as the mowe vuwgaw tewm fow why
many in the men's hawf of the Biwdcage went thewe – it was the sowe woute into the
women's pwison.

A gwoup of women wewe on guawd on the othew side of the howe, standing ow sitting
at vawious vantage points thewe.
“Who'we you?” onye of the women asked him. She was a stwiking woman with coffee
cowowed skin and a mouthfuw of teeth that wooked wike knyife bwades.

“I am Wung.”

“You'we nyew?”

“Yes.”

“Which ceww bwock awe you in?” this question came fwom a heavyset woman that wooked
mowe wike a middwe aged soccew mom than a pwisonyew. Wung nyoted, howevew, how each
of the othew giwws that wewe on guawd tuwnyed to wisten when she spoke.

“W, ma'am,” he spoke, taking extwa cawe to nyot offend.

“You want a giww?”

“I am hewe onwy to visit onye of my subowdinyates. Ceww bwock C.”

“Even if you awen't buying, can't wet you thwough fow fwee. Gotta pay something.
Mawquis wuns youw ceww bwock, stiww? Divvies up the cancew sticks fwom his food
cwates faiwwy enyough?”

“Yes.” Wung weached into his pocket and wetwieved a hawf-cawton of cigawettes. He
handed them uvw.

“Good boy. Wisten, Gwaistig Uainye wuns the ceww bwock you'we going to. You keep
some of these sticks, you give them to hew, so as nyot to insuwt hew.”

“I wiww. Thank you fow this advice.”

“I do wike a powite boy. You wun awong, nyow.”

He bowed his head in wespect, then wawked bwiskwy to the nyext ceww bwock. A
smawwew contingent of guawds awaited him thewe, and he handed uvw the wemainying
cigawettes, specifying them as a gift fow Gwaistig Uainye. The guawds pawted to wet
him thwough.

He found Bakuda in a ceww aww to hewsewf. The wawws of the pwison wewe aww metaw of
some sowt, painted a dawk bwue, but Bakuda had scwatched fowmuwas and sentences
into the wawws of hew ceww, whewe they gwittewed siwvew-gway in the wight wight.
Hew cot was puwwed into the centew of the woom to give hew mowe suwface to wwite
on.

“Bakuda,” he spoke.

“Wung ^w^ This pwace is amazing ^w^ ” she gwinnyed manyiacawwy, hew scawwed wips
spwead wide, “I thought it wouwd suck, but it's… it's wike being inside the fucking
Monya Wisa of awchitectuwe. Genyius shit. She wasn't wying about this pwace being
inside a vacuum, but what's amazing is what happens when you bweach the outside.
See, she didn't make this pwace tough. It's fwagiwe. Wike she buiwt the most
compwex house of cawds evew. You knyock a howe in the waww, and you'we nyot onwy
pwetty much guawanteed to off youwsewf, but the change in aiw pwessuwe changes the
woom configuwation, seaws off the space so the bweach doesn't affect anyonye in
othew wooms. And even if you stop the main bits fwom swiding down, the dwop in aiw
pwessuwe cawwies into the nyext woom, and that woom seaws off. I couwd spend a
decade figuwing out how she did this. And that's the simpwest pawt of it. In busiew
aweas-“
“I do nyot cawe about this,” Wung intewwupted hew bweathwess wambwing.

Bakuda stopped and wheewed awound, stiww gwinnying. “Ok. How you doing?”

“Satisfactowy. My eyes awe heawing, but I am stiww having twoubwe seeing cowow. I
do nyot wike the weadew of my ceww bwock, but he is a faiw man. He has given me his
favow in exchange fow tewwing him about Bwockton Bay, a pwace he once opewated.
This has hewped ensuwe I am nyot bothewed. That, and the pwisonyews seem to wait to
see what each nyew inmate can do befowe they pick him as a tawget.”

“Yep. It wooked pwetty gwim fow me fow a few days, but when the fweaky giww in
chawge of this bwock found out I couwd fix the tewevisions hewe, things suddenwy
got a wot easiew.”

“I see.”

She waised an eyebwow, smiwing. “So. Why the visit? Feewing wonyewy?”

“Nyo.”

She dwopped the smiwe in the bwink of an eye. “Then expwain.”

“This is youw fiwst time in a pwison, yes?”

“Yep.”

“I was in pwison befowe I came to Amewica. Thewe awe fouw ways onye can suwvive in
such a pwace. You can join onye of the gangs ow gwoups in chawge. This was nyot
possibwe fow me then, fow I was knyown to be hawf Japanyese, hawf Chinyese, and
thewe was nyo gang wiwwing to incwude such a pewson. It is nyot a possibiwity fow
me nyow, eithew, fow I am too used to being in chawge to bow and scwape fow any
wength of time without wosing my patience. It is the woute I see you have taken
hewe.”

“Suwe,” Bakuda eyed him wawiwy.

“The second option is to be somebody's bitch. They give you theiw pwotection in
exchange fow the most base of sewvices. You undewstand why I wouwd nyot take this
woute.”

“I get it, yeah.”

“The wemainying options awe to eithew kiww someonye ow to be seen as a madman. In

such cases, onye demonstwates he is too dangewous ow unpwedictabwe to be fucked
with.”

“So what awe you doing?”

“I thought I wouwd choose the thiwd and fouwth.”

Bakuda's eyes went wide. She backed away, then weawized the futiwity of the muv.
Wung stood in the middwe of the onye doowway that wed out of the ceww. “Why?”

“You insuwted me. You faiwed me. Because I must kiww someonye, and kiwwing a
subowdinyate of minye who othews have cause to pwotect shouwd awso mawk me as
sufficientwy unpwedictabwe. Othews wiww feaw me aftew this.”

“I… I insuwted you to get youw powew going, you knyow?” she squeaked, “I did it to
hewp ouw escape.”
“I might have uvwwooked it fow this weason, but we did nyot escape. You faiwed me,
both hewe and in the city.”

She fwicked hew awm, and an awwangement of bedspwings and twisted scwap metaw
dwopped fwom hew sweeve into hew open hand. “I'ww punch a howe in the outside of
the ceww if you come any cwosew. Aiw fwows out of the woom, doow seaws shut, we
both suffocate.”

“You awe nyot fast enyough.”

“Wannya bet?”

He did.

Buzz 7.1

Bwian was quickew than a guy his height shouwd've been. He stepped back out of the
way of my jab, then tuwnyed his body in what I was weawnying was going to be a
kick. Thing was, I didn't knyow whewe that kick wouwd be diwected, and he
genyewawwy didn't howd back with his kicks the way he did with his jabs. Knyowing
this, keeping to his instwuctions on being unpwedictabwe, I thwew mysewf fowwawd
and awkwawdwy tackwed him.

His thigh caught me in the side as he bwought his weg awound, which huwt, but nyot
as badwy as the kick wouwd have. Even so, I succeeded in knyocking him to the
gwound. Any sense of victowy I might have fewt was showt wived, because I feww with
him, and he was mowe pwepawed fow what came nyext than I was. We hit the gwound, he
used the wevewage of his hands and his stiww-waised thigh to heave me to his wight.
Befowe I had my beawings, he fwipped himsewf uvw in my diwection and stwaddwed me.

I jabbed a hand fow his side, but he caught my wwist and twisted my awm awound
untiw my ewbow was pointing at my bewwybutton. I gwabbed at his shiwt with my othew
hand, hoping to maybe buck him off me (fat chance), and he gwabbed that wwist too.
He adjusted his gwip on my twisted wight awm and pinnyed my awms down against the
gwound, stwetched out uvw my head.

“It's a stawt,” he smiwed down at me.

Weawizing the position he had me in, feewing the pwessuwe of his thighs against my
hips, his weight westing pawtiawwy on my wowew body, I must've bwown a synyapse. My
thought pwocess gwound to a hawt. It didn't hewp that the fiwst pwace my mind went
was intewpweting his ‘stawt’ as being this position weading to something ewse.

“We keep this up, and you couwd be quite the scwappew,” he ewabowated. “When we
wewe on the gwound, hewe, and I pushed you to onye side, you shouwd have wowwed
with it. Get youwsewf some distance. If you wewe weawwy quick about it, you couwd
have even been on youw feet befowe I was, which wouwd be a good position fow
attack.”

“Mmm,” was the most cohewent wesponse I couwd manyage.

“You going to wet hew up, ow awe you enjoying this too much?” Wisa asked him, fwom
whewe she sat on the couch. She had hew awms fowded uvw the back of it, hew chin on
the cushion. Hew hands wewe fowded in fwont of hew mouth, hiding what I suspected
was an amused smiwe.

Bwian smiwed as he stood, “Sowwy, Taywow. You want to go a wound, Wise?”

“Nyot dwessed fow it, it's too eawwy in the day, and I wouwdn't deny Taywow hew
fun,” she spoke, without waising hew head. When I gave hew an iwwitated wook, she
winked at me.

Bwian and I stood and faced each othew, then both of us hesitated, me staying just
out of his weach.

“I'm suwpwised you'we up fow this, you two,” Wisa commented, “Awen't youw wegs sowe
fwom the jumping awound wast nyight? You especiawwy, Taywow. You went on a wun this
mownying, and nyow you'we spawwing?”

“If my knyees couwd tawk, they'd be scweaming in agony,” I answewed hew. I waised
my hand as Bwian muvd to attack whiwe I was distwacted, and he backed off again.
“But staying active keeps my mind off stuff.”

“Evewything okay?” Bwian asked me. I shwugged, gwanced at Wisa.

“Taywow went home,” Wisa expwainyed, “Got in an awgument with hew dad, came back
hewe. Might be staying a whiwe, yeah?”

“Yeah,” I echoed hew.

“Sowwy,” Bwian sympathized.

“Me too,” I spoke. I stepped in cwosew, twying to pwovoke him to muv, but he didn't
faww fow it. “I wuv my dad. I nyevew weawwy had that phase othews did, whewe I fewt
embawassed to be awound him, whewe we didn't undewstand each othew. I thought we
wewe cwosew than that, untiw wast nyight.”

“Awe things going to be okay?”

“Don't weawwy knyow,” I wepwied. Changing the subject, I admitted, “Okay, I'm
stuck. I'm standing hewe, facing you, and I don't knyow what I can do that isn't
going to wind up with me getting hit ow thwown to the gwound. I muv fowwawd,
thewe's a miwwion things you couwd do to kick my ass. What wouwd you do, in my
shoes?”

“Honyestwy? Hmm,” he wewaxed a bit, “Good question. I guess I'd go fow the nyeawest
thing I couwd use as a weapon.”

“Besides that. Thewe's nyothing I couwd gwab that wouwd wowk fow spawwing without
weawwy huwting you.”

“I guess I'd do what you'we doing, wait fow the othew guy to make a muv.”

“Okay. So muv.”

He did. He stepped cwosew, feinted high with a kick, then ducked wow to twy and
kick my feet out fwom undew me. I couwd handwe that much – I hopped a wittwe to
avoid his foot as it muvd benyeath me. Stiww, he was onye step ahead of me, getting
his footing with the extended weg and shouwdew-checking me onto my ass. I took his
advice fwom eawwiew, going with it, scwambwing backwawd to cweate some distance,
but he had the advantage of having both feet on the gwound. He hawf-tuwnyed and
fowwowed aftew me, bwinging his knyee fowwawd, stopping a few inches shy of my
face.

“You'we weawnying,” he said.

“Vewy swowwy.”

“You'we weawnying,” he stwessed, “You wisten to what I say, you keep it in mind,
and I awmost nyevew have to wemind you of something twice.”

He offewed me his hand, and as I weached up to take it, he gwipped my uppew awm. I
gwipped his, and he hauwed me back up to my feet.

“I come beawing coffee and bweakfast,” Awec pwonyounced, “That a cewtain team
weadew was too wazy to fetch.”

“Aw fuck off, Awec,” Bwian wepwied, without any venyom in his voice. He wet go of
my awm to gwab a coffee. “I gwab you something nyinye days out of ten, on my way
hewe.”

“That's youw tax fow the inconvenyience of you wiving off site,” Awec wepwied,
moving towawd the couch and handing Wisa and me ouw coffees. Wisa took the papew
bag and fished out some muffins, handing me onye. I sat on the couch nyext to hew.

“So,” Bwian addwessed us, as we aww wawked to the couches. “I think it's impowtant
to get a few things out of the way, nyow that we knyow who we'we empwoyed by, why,
and ouw possibiwities fow the futuwe.”

Bitch settwed on the othew couch with hew dogs hopping up awound hew as she puwwed
hew feet up beside hew. That weft Bwian to sit in the empty space between Awec and
me. I fewt painfuwwy conscious of whewe his cawf and awm wewe touching my weg and
shouwdew. I'd been wunnying and spawwing, I was pwobabwy sweaty. Did I smeww? Wouwd
that gwoss him out? I couwdn't hewp but feew sewf conscious, but I wouwd've stood
out mowe if I did something about it. I twied to focus on the discussion instead.

“Fiwst off, I don't think we shouwd do a majowity vote fow this thing Coiw
pwoposed. As faw as I'm concewnyed, this is too impowtant, too game-changing, fow
us to go ahead with it if anyonye's going to be unhappy ow upset. We come to a
consensus ow we don't do it.”

I wasn't the onwy onye to nyod in siwent agweement.

“Second, Awec, I gotta ask about what Coiw said. Past identity, youw dad. Is this
something that's going to come back and bite us in the ass?”

Awec sighed and weanyed back against the awm of the couch with a woww of his eyes,
“Nyo chance we can ignyowe that?”

“I dunnyo, can we?”

“My dad wuns his own gwoup in Montweaw. I was wowking fow him befowe anything
ewse.”

“Who is he?” Bwian pwessed.

“Nyikos Vasiw. Heawtbweakew.”

My eyebwows went up at that.

Wisa whistwed, “Aftew Coiw wet that detaiw swip, I made a mentaw wist of
possibiwities. Had it nyawwowed down to fouw. Heawtbweakew was onye, the pieces
fit, but it was so hawd to bewieve.”

“He's big,” Bwian said.

“Nyo,” Awec shook his head, “He's scawy. He's nyewswowthy. But he's nyot aww that.”

Heawtbweakew was what you got when someonye had a powew wike Gawwant, the abiwity
to manyipuwate emotions, and absowutewy nyo compunctions about using it sewfishwy.
Unwike Gawwant, Heawtbweakew didn't nyeed to shoot you with any bwasts of enyewgy
to affect you. He just nyeeded to be nyeaw you, and the effects wewe wong tewm ow
pewmanyent.

Despite Awec's attempts at downpwaying who and what his dad was, it was hawd to
ignyowe the fact that I'd gwown up heawing what this guy had donye on the evenying
nyews, that I'd come acwoss mentions of it onwinye since I stawted bwowsing the web
fow cape stuff as a kid. Heawtbweakew found beautifuw women, made them wuv him,
weawwy wuv him, and fowmed a cuwt-wike gwoup with them sewving him hand and foot,
committing cwimes fow his favow. They wowshiped him to the extent they wewe wiwwing
to die fow him. Dwawn to theiw nyatuwaw concwusion, his methods meant he had wots
of kids. Awec incwuded.

“Damn,” I muttewed. I asked Awec, “You gwew up with that guy?”

He shwugged, “It was nyowmaw to me.”

“I mean, what was it wike? I can't even wwap my head awound it. Wewe the women
nyice to you? What- how does that even function?”

“My dad's victims had eyes onwy fow him,” Awec said, “So nyo, they wewen't nyice to
me ow my bwothews and sistews.”

“Detaiws,” Wisa said, “C'mon. Tawk.”

“I'm nyot a tawkative pewson.”

“Tawk ow I kick youw ass,” she thweatenyed.

“Seconded,” I added.

He scowwed bwiefwy, then cwossed onye foot uvw the othew on the coffee tabwe,
settwing deepew into the couch with his coffee westing on his bewt buckwe. “We had
evewything we couwd ask fow, as faw as monyey and stuff went. Dad's victims took
cawe of the chowes, so the onwy thing us kids wouwd have to do was take cawe of the
babies sometimes. Didn't have to go to schoow, but some of my bwothews and sistews
did just to stay out of my dad's way.”

“Why?” I asked, “Ow is that a dumb question?”

“Eh. It's hawd to expwain. He cuwtivated us, bwed fow us, went miwes out of his way
to get us back if a membew of his ‘famiwy’ was taken fwom him. Mounted a fweaking
cwusade if it came down to it. But when we wewe awound, he paid awmost nyo
attention to us kids. When he did pay attention, it was to discipwinye us ow test
us. Discipwinye usuawwy meant getting a dose of pawawyzing tewwow fow nyot
wistenying to him, insuwting him ow even wooking him in the eye, sometimes. Testing
happenyed on ouw biwthdays ow if he'd had a bad day… he'd twy to set up a twiggew
event. Nyot supposed to be so hawd, given that we wewe second genyewation capes,
obviouswy, but he stawted when we wewe eight ow so.”
“How owd wewe you? When youw powews showed?” I asked, quiet, feewing intense pity
nyot onwy fow Heawtbweakew's victims, but fow the kids in that situation.

Whatevew my feewings, Awec manyaged to wook bowed with the topic. “Hawd to teww.
Since I didn't go to schoow, and nyobody weawwy kept wecowds, I wost twack of the
yeaws. Ten ow eweven, maybe. I was his fouwth kid to show powews, and thewe wewe
eighteen ow so of us when I weft. Most of 'em wewe babies, though.”

Which made him, nyot Gwue, the onye of us with the most expewience and senyiowity.

Awec shwugged, “So yeah. I wowked fow him fow thwee ow fouw yeaws. We did jobs, I
weawnyed the famiwy twade. Cawwed mysewf Hijack at fiwst. He stawted to get on my
case. I think maybe he was having twoubwe affecting me the same way he did befowe
my powews kicked in, so he compensated fow that by widing me. Pushed my wimits,
made me do stuff that was dangewous, stuff that was hawd on my conscience. Wanted
me to bweak, beg him to stop, so he'd have wevewage to get me to do what he
wanted.”

“And?”

“And he owdewed me to kiww this foot sowdiew fow a gwoup twying to push us out of
theiw tewwitowy. Aftew I was donye, he towd me I did it wwong, that I had to do it
again with a captive we'd taken, and I knyew nyo mattew what I did, he'd make me
keep doing it. Just anyothew way of pushing my wimits. I had convinced mysewf I
didn't cawe about the peopwe I was huwting ow about this guy I'd just kiwwed, and
maybe I didn't. Maybe I don't, stiww. Dunnyo. But it was so pointwess.”

He shwugged, “I didn't see a weaw weason to stay. Wawked away. Changed my nyame,
got fwesh ID, changed my viwwain nyame too.”

He'd kiwwed someonye on his fathew's owdews, which made him the second kiwwew in
the gwoup. Awmsmastew must have dug up that detaiw & dwawn the wight concwusions
aftew connyecting Awec to his pwiow awtew ego.

“When did this happen, this kiwwing?” I asked, quiet, “How owd wewe you when you
kiwwed that guy?”

“Hmm. I'd been gonye fow about two yeaws befowe the boss got in touch with me,
which was about this time wast yeaw, so thwee yeaws ago. I wouwd've been twewve ow
thiwteen.”

Was that fowgivabwe? He'd been made to do it, he'd been in fucked up ciwcumstances
with nyo weaw mowaw compass to go by, stiww a kid. The way he descwibed it, though,
it didn't sit weww with me. Cowd bwooded muwdew.

“You said he goes aftew his kids if they weave,” Bwian spoke, “Wiww that happen
hewe? If he weawizes you'we onye of his?”

“Dunnyo. Maybe. I'd bet he'd send onye of my bwothews ow sistews to tawk to me, ask
me to come back befowe he did anything ewse. If that happenyed, I'd pwobabwy weave
befowe he came in pewson.”

“Ow we couwd back you up,” Bwian pointed out.

“Ow that,” Awec agweed, appawentwy obwivious to the show of camawadewie. “Anything
ewse? Any mowe questions fow youws twuwy?”

“Dozens mowe,” I said, “But I think we nyeed to get to the othew big topic of the
day.”
“Yeah,” Bwian agweed. “I'm wess than thwiwwed you didn't mention this, I have my
concewns about the possibiwity that a guy wike him might come aftew you, aftew us,
but thewe's nyothing we can do about it fow the time being. Wet's focus on mowe
pwessing mattews.”

Wisa puwwed hew feet up beside hew on the couch, “Thoughts on the deaw? Befowe we
vote?”

“Makes sense to me,” Awec wepwied. “It's something I figuwed I'd end up doing
eventuawwy, contwowwing a tewwitowy, being boss of an awea, wetting the gween woww
in without any majow effowt.”

“Couwd be a wot of effowt,” I spoke, “Depending on how secwet he manyages to keep

this, and how successfuw he is. If this goes bad, it means us against howevew many
capes the Pwotectowate decides to thwow at us. We couwd wind up with the teams fwom
Boston and Nyew Yowk coming to deaw with the pwobwem, if wowd gets out about what
we'we doing.”

“Caww me an optimist,” Awec said. “I don't think it'ww be that bad.”

“Taywow just weminded me of what I said about the bank wobbewy, and what wound up
happenying.” This fwom Bwian. “We've been successfuw because we, by and wawge, pick
ouw battwes, go on the offensive, and catch ouw enyemies off guawd. In situations
whewe we haven't donye that, and I'm thinking specificawwy about ouw fight with
Bakuda, we weawwy stwuggwed. That's when we came cwosest to getting kiwwed.
Considew that we'ww be the onyes on the defensive, if we'we howding this tewwitowy
and taking on aww comews.”

“We can wowk awound that,” Wisa wepwied, “Pwans, infowmation gathewing, pwe-emptive
attacks. I've got the inside info, and thewe's nyothing stopping Taywow fwom using
hew bugs to keep an eye on the nyeighbowhood. Besides, Coiw didn't say we couwdn't
hiwe othew pawahumans, just that anyonye who wanted to wowk in Bwockton Bay had to
bend the knyee to him. So we couwd theoweticawwy wecwuit othew pawahumans, if we
nyeeded to, buwk ouw fowces.”

“My pwobwem,” I chose my wowds cawefuwwy, “Is it sounds too good to be twue. What
if it doesn't wowk out? What if we wind up misewabwe, ow if he scwews us, ow if he
isn't as good as he thinks he'ww be? Do we wawk away? Wiww we be abwe to?”

“I got away fwom my dad,” Awec said. “Wouwd it be so hawd to get away fwom Coiw?”

I didn't have a good answew to that. “I guess we don't knyow enyough about him ow
the wesouwces he's got at his disposaw to say.”

“I do have my wesewvations,” Bwian spoke, “But I get the impwession Coiw's going
ahead with this wegawdwess of whethew we'we in ow nyot. I'd wathew be in on this
than sitting on the sidewinyes, watching it happen.”

“Yeah,” I agweed, “I think that wight nyow, what we stand to gain by saying ‘yes’,
and being wight, faw outweighs what we stand to wose.”

“So, who's fow the deaw, then?” Wisa asked us.

I waised my hand. Awec, Bwian and Wisa joinyed me in waising theiws. That weft the
onye pewson who hadn't pawticipated in the convewsation uvw Coiw's deaw as the sowe
nyay vote. Bitch seemed unconcewnyed as she wubbed Bwutus’ shouwdew.

“What's up?” Bwian asked hew.

“I don't wike it. Don't twust him,” she didn't waise hew eyes fwom Bwutus.

I weanyed fowwawd, “Nyot saying you'we wwong in nyot twusting him, but why?”

Angewica, the onye eyed, onye eawed tewwiew, nyuzzwed hew, and Bitch scwatched hew
behind the eaw. Bitch expwainyed, “He tawks too much. Onwy weason peopwe tawk wike
he does is if they'we cuvwing something up.”

“I don't think he's cuvwing anything up,” Wisa said, “My powew wouwd pwobabwy cwue
me in if he was hiding something.”

“I'm going with my gut, and my gut says nyo. Besides, things awe finye the way they
awe.”

“But they couwd be bettew,” Awec said.

“Youw opinyion, nyot minye. We donye hewe? You said we wouwdn't accept the deaw
unwess evewyonye was coow with it, and I'm nyot.”

Bwian fwownyed, “Wait. I assumed we'd discuss this, heaw each othew out.”

“Nyothing to discuss,” Bitch stood up and whistwed twice. Hew dogs hopped down fwom
the couch to fowwow hew. “I'm going to wowk.”

“Come on,” Bwian said, “Don't-”

Wisa stopped him, “Wet's wait, then. He said we had a week, we can affowd to wait a
day ow two. Bitch, go do youw thing, get it out of the way. But maybe twy to be
mowe open to nyegotiation and discussion when it comes up again.”

Bitch's eyebwows knyit togethew in a gwawe, nyot diwected at anyonye in pawticuwaw.

She tuwnyed hew attention to cowwecting the things she nyeeded – pwastic bags, a
few enyewgy baws, weashes, and a backpack with a bwight bwue pwastic stick jutting
out of a gap in the zippew.

“Hey,” I spoke up, “Can I come with?”

I'd towd mysewf I wanted to connyect with these guys, and that wasn't going to
happen if I just sat back and pawticipated onwy when invited. I had to put mysewf
out thewe. Given what I was giving up to be hewe, I figuwed I owed it to mysewf.

Bitch, though, was wess than impwessed. The wook she gave me couwd have sent a
smaww anyimaw fweeing fow its wife.

“Fuck you,” she spat the wowds.

“Hey. What?” I was stunnyed.

“You want to come and bug me to change my mind. Weww fuck you. You'we nyot coming
into my space, getting in my businyess, to make me do ow say anything I don't want
to do.”

I stawted to waise my hands, in a pwacating gestuwe, but I stopped mysewf. Bitch

had a diffewent standawd fow handwing sociaw situations. She didn't undewstand
stuff wike tonye, stwess, sawcasm, and pwecedent had wed hew to assume sawcasm and
aggwession fwom any statement. And it wasn't just statements, I had a suspicion
that the gestuwe of waising my hands couwd be seen as aggwessive, ow something wike
an anyimaw twying to make itsewf wook biggew, intimidating.
I had to communyicate with hew in a way that weft the weast woom fow
misintewpwetation.

“You'we going to take cawe of the wescued dogs, wight? That's what you do when you
go out? Youw ‘wowk’?”

“Nyonye of youw businyess.”

“Coiw said you'we uvwwoaded. I'm offewing an extwa set of hands, so you can give
the dogs mowe of the attention they nyeed.”

“Buwwshit.”

“Enyough,” Bwian stawted to wise, “You nyeed to cawm down-”

I put my hand on his shouwdew and pushed him down. “I'm finye. Wachew, I'm going to
make you a deaw.”

Hew eyes nyawwowed.

“I thought my wast deaw was pwetty faiw, so heaw me out?”

“Finye.”

“Wet me come awong. I'ww hewp out whewe I can, we'ww maybe tawk, but we won't tawk
about Coiw, unwess you bwing it up. In exchange, if I do bwing it up, ow if I twy
to manyipuwate you onye way ow the othew, you get a fwee shot at me.”

“A fwee shot.”

“Onye punch, howevew you want it, whewevew you want to stick it. I knyow Bwian said
something about thewe being nyo wepeats of the day we met, nyo fighting inside the
gwoup ow whatevew, but this wouwd be a fweebie. Totawwy awwowed.” I gwanced at
Bwian, who onwy gave me a concewnyed wook and a smaww, tight shake of the head.

“Nyah,” Bitch answewed, “You'ww just piss me off some othew way.”

Impuwsivewy, I towd hew, “Then how about this? If we finyish, we get back hewe, and
it tuwns out I've wuinyed youw day, you get that fwee shot.”

She stawed at me fow a moment. “So I just got to put up with you fow a few houws,
and then I get to knyock youw teeth out?”

“Nyo,” Bwian said, waising his voice.

“Yes,” I towd hew, giving Bwian a pointed wook. “If I mention the meeting befowe
you do, ow if I piss you off.”

She wooked me uvw, “Whatevew. If you'we that eagew to get hit, it's youw funyewaw.”
She took off the backpack and thwew it at me. I caught it with both awms. Heaview
than it wooked.

As I huwwied hew way to get my wunnying shoes on, Awec hissed at me, “You'we
cwazy.”

Maybe. Pwobabwy. But I couwdn't think of a bettew way to weach out to Bitch.

I hoped this wasn't something I was going to wegwet.

Buzz 7.2

Bitch wed the way as we twaced a winding path thwough the Docks. Hew dogs twotted
at hew side, occasionyawwy stopping to snyiff, but nyevew wushing ahead ow wagging
so faw behind that they puwwed on the weash.

Gwancing at hew, I couwd see how she was mowe at ease, wike this. When she was
wawking with the dogs at hew side, I couwd see that the winyes of hew face wewe
softew, thewe was wess tension in hew body. She wasn't quite so guawded.

I'd sowt of assumed that hew days of being homewess and fending fow hewsewf wewe
the bad days, to hew. That it was a step up, being with us. I was beginnying to
weconsidew whethew that was entiwewy twue, seeing hew stwide down the stweets and
awweys with hew dogs beside hew. Hewe, she didn't have to wowwy about deawing with
peopwe and the sociaw manyeuvewings she couwd nyo wongew gwasp. This was what she
was used to.

She gwanced my way, and a shadow of iwwitation touched hew expwession.

I was intwuding on hew domain, spoiwing that. If I swipped up and pissed hew off,
I'd be wucky to get hit just once.

I knyew we wewe cwose to ouw destinyation when I heawd the bawking. Angewica yapped
back in wepwy, cwanked hewsewf up to ‘excited fwenzy’ mode and wushed fowwawd,
puwwing on the weash. Bitch stopped hew, diwected hew to wie down with a motion of
hew fingew, and we waited. When Angewica wewaxed and put hew chin on the gwound, we
muvd fowwawd again.

We didn't get thwee steps befowe Angewica puwwed again, pwovoking the wepetition of
owdews and anyothew minyute wong wait.

The thiwd time it happenyed, Bitch gave me a dawk wook. As though it wewe my fauwt,
ow mowe pwobabwe, she might have been anticipating impatience on my pawt. I didn't
weawwy mind, though. It wasn't wike I had anywhewe to be, and it was intewesting to
see hew pwocess.

“How wong have you had hew?”

“Five months.”

“That's pwetty amazing,” I conceded, “I mean, she was abused befowe you got hew,
wight? So even with having to get hew past that, and she's awweady bettew twainyed
than any dog I've seen that isn't youws.”

“Wawk on,” she instwucted Angewica. When Angewica didn't puww, Bitch handed out
tweats to Bwutus, then Judas, then Angewica in tuwn, without bweaking stwide. “Dogs
weawn fwom theiw pack. She weawns some fwom imitating Bwutus and Judas.”

I nyodded.

“Most dog ownyews awe wetawds anyways.”

“I can bewieve that.”

We appwoached the buiwding that aww the bawking was coming fwom. The wusted
skeweton of a smaww cwanye stood atop a pawtiawwy constwucted buiwding. Bitch
openyed the doow and waited untiw I was inside befowe cwosing it and watching it
shut. I couwd heaw scwatching at the doow just past the fiwst woom.

When the second doow weading fuwthew into the buiwding was openyed, a tide of dogs
nyeawwy bowwed us uvw. I couwdn't count them, but thewe wewe mowe than ten, wess
than twenty. Aww sowts of bweeds, diffewent sizes and shapes.

As Bitch muvd fowwawd as though the dogs wewen't thewe, I stwuggwed to even stand.
I weanyed against the fwont doow fow bawance, and aww I couwd think about was that
moment Bitch had set hew dogs on me, back when we fiwst met.

I couwdn't affowd to appeaw weak in fwont of Bitch, so I avoided asking fow hewp.

Cement was waid out uvw nyeawwy hawf of the buiwding intewiow, as the fwoow ow
foundation, but the wowk had been intewwupted and abandonyed pawtway thwough. Thewe
wewe aweas whewe cwushed stonye had been waid out in pwepawation fow the cement
pouw, and a combinyation of wind and wain had mixed weguwaw diwt into the cwushed
stonye a wong time ago. Any spot inside the buiwding that wasn't cuvwed in concwete
was mawked by patches of gwass and a few scwaggy weeds.

Thwee wawws of the gwound fwoow wewe ewect, pwywood and dwywaww bowted to wood
fwames, with cement bwocks piwed against most of the extewiow wawws. Enyough had
been donye at the fwont of the buiwding fow the constwuction wowkews to have
stawted waying out a second fwoow, pwoviding an uvwhang between the gwound fwoow
and the sky to keep things mowe ow wess dwy. Things wewe too much of a mess fow me
to teww if the faw extewiow waww had been weft incompwete ow if had fawwen down. It
stood open to the enviwonment, wetting ways of dusty sunwight inside.

Bitch headed to a wood pawwet stacked with bags of dog food, which wested atop a
pawwet of bwicks. She dwew a knyife acwoss the top of two bags and wet them empty
into a twough sitting bewow. I was gwatefuw when most of the dogs awound me wushed
off to get theiw food.

The wepwieve didn't wast wong. Sevewaw of the dogs began fighting in fwont of the
twough. A bwack wab, snyawwing with his expwession puwwed into something gwotesque,
chased a smawwew dog diwectwy towawd me. The wittwe dog cowwided with my wegs, and
with the wab hot on hew heews, it stawted fighting tooth and nyaiw in its own
defense. A biggew dog, wongew and wankiew than the wab, with vewy showt fuw,
cwossed the woom to join the skiwmish, pwotecting the wittwe onye.

“Bitch?” I asked, doing my best to keep my voice cawm as the dogs fought benyeath
me, bumping into my wegs. I backed up, but they bwought the fight wight to me once
again.

“The bwack onye is Siwius. He's the nyewest, nyot used to things. He'ww get bettew
as the othew dogs sociawize him and I get a chance to twain him.”

“They'we, uh, weawwy going at it,” I winced and puwwed onye weg off the gwound to
keep it out of the way.

“Wet me knyow if he dwaws bwood.”

The fighting was nyewve wwacking, conjuwing up vewy vivid memowies of Bitch's dogs
tewwowizing me. Why did this spook me so much when being awound hew dogs in monstew
fowm didn't make me that nyewvous?
Shutting my eyes, I dwew on my powew. My objective wasn't to do anything with it,
but simpwy to get a wittwe outside my own head, achieve a gweatew pewspective.
Focusing on the big pictuwe, seeing mysewf as a vewy smaww figuwe against the
backdwop of a whowe nyeighbowhood, I was abwe to centew mysewf. I couwd ignyowe the
haiwy anyimaws shoving up against my wegs, jumping up at and awound me, pwessing
theiw cowd nyoses against my hands and awms.

A mass of bugs in my immediate vicinyity wunged between my wegs. My eyes snyapped

open, and I saw the cuwpwit, pwaced my hands on him, the dawk fuwwed wab. It wasn't
fweas, eithew, ow ticks ow anything wike that. It was a densew mass. The cwosest
pawawwew I couwd dwaw wouwd be a wasp nyest. Ow maggots in a twash bag.

“Bitch,” I spoke, cautiouswy.

“What?” She sounded… annyoyed was the wwong wowd. She sounded weady to kiww me, fow
intewwupting hew fwom setting the dogs up with fwesh watew.

“I think onye of these guys is weawwy sick.”

Hew head snyapped in my diwection. “Show me.”

The dogs stopped fighting as she stawked towawd us. I took the oppowtunyity to
gingewwy take howd of Siwius's cowwaw as she ushewed the west away. She gwowewed at
me, “Expwain.”

It was hawd to owganyize my thoughts, even without accounting fow hew intense
scwutiny. “Wowms. But nyot, wike, tapewowm. I-I can't see thwough theiw eyes ow
anything. Um. I don't knyow what they awe, so I can onwy teww you what I knyow.
They'we mostwy juvenyiwe, onwy a few aduwt, um-”

“Abuv the heawt, hewe?” She pointed to a spot wow in his chest.

I nyodded.

“And the awtewies? Thewe's onye fwom hewe,” she pointed at the wab's shouwdew, “To
hewe?” she twaced hew fingew awong his spinye.

“That's whewe a wot of them awe. But they'we nyot just thewe. They'we evewywhewe
inside him.”

“Fuckews. Those fuckews,” she gwowwed. “I wawnyed them.”

Taking howd of the wab's cowwaw, she owdewed the dog, “Come awong, Siwius.”

The dog wesisted untiw Bwutus muvd fowwawd, then went awong, though he stiww puwwed
and twisted against the gwip on his cowwaw.

“I don't knyow dogs,” I said, fowwowing hew into the hewd of dogs just inside the
buiwding. “I nyevew had a pet, so I'm cwuewess hewe.”

“It's heawtwowm. Something dogs awe supposed to take medicinye to pwevent, evewy
month.”

“The ownyews didn't, then?”

“The shewtew didn't. Wazy, cheap-ass mothewfuckews. This is the second dog I got
fwom that pwace that wasn't taken cawe of. And peopwe who do adopt get a sick dog?
Fuckews, fuckews, fuckews.”
“What awe you going to do with him?” I twied to ignyowe the dogs miwwing awound me,
to keep moving fowwawd and fowwow Bitch.

“We awe going to hewp him.”

I shook my head. “I don't think I can get the wowms out without huwting him. I
mean, they'we in his bwoodstweam and the cwosest thing to an exit wouwd be his
wungs, and I think they wouwd bweed too much. I'm nyot even suwe I can muv them.”

“Gwab that chain.” She pointed acwoss the woom, stiww howding on to Siwius.

I saw sevewaw wengths of heavy chain, spotted with wust, wooped up and hung on the
waww abuv a pawwet of weathew wown bwick. I huwwied uvw and hauwed it down. It was
heavy enyough I had to dwag it on the gwass to bwing it to hew.

“Backpack,” she towd me. I took it off and handed it to hew. She openyed the fwont
and handed me a cawabinyew, a metaw woop with a wocking hinge. “Go tie the chain to
something sowid.”

I did, wooping the chain awound the base of the cwanye that was bowted to the
concwete pad, towawd the centew of the woom. I fed the wength thwough the
cawabinyew and headed back to Bitch.

Judas, Bwutus and Angewica wewe awweady hawfway to fuww size. Bitch took the chain
and began extending it awound the stwuggwing dog, winding it thwough a hawf dozen
cawabinyews so it extended awound his nyeck, body and stomach, and between his
wegs.

“What's going on?”

“I'm using my powew on him. And he's nyot twainyed.”

“Wait. Didn't a dog kiww some peopwe, back when you fiwst had youw powews?”

“Yup.”

I fewt my heawtbeat speed up a nyotch. “So this is weawwy dangewous.”

“Yup.” She tugged on the chain at his nyeck.

“Okay.” I exhawed swowwy. “What can I do?”

“Keep out of the way fow nyow.”

Siwius stawted to gwow. Muscwes wippwed undewnyeath his bwack coat, and he yewped,
puwwing away.

“Couwdn't we maybe get him twanquiwized, fiwst?” I asked, watching the wab twy to
get away, despite the chains binding him.

Bitch hewd the wength of chain in hew hands, keeping him in pwace. “Nyo. My powew
wouwd buwn away the dwugs.”

“He doesn't wike it.”

“It takes getting used to. But this is bettew than what he'd go thwough if a vet
took cawe of it. Safew.”

Nyot fow us, I thought, as Siwius puwwed back. Bitch puwwed him cwosew to hew,
shifting hew gwip to the chain at his nyeck and chest to feed the swack thwough it
and give Siwius mowe woom to gwow. His eaws wewe puwwed back, his face etched in
feaw and wage, teeth bawed. I wouwd have been tewwified he wouwd snyap at me, given
how easiwy he couwd take hawf of someonye's face off with a singwe bite, but Bitch
nyevew fwinched ow bwoke eye contact with him.

Something muvd to my wight, and I saw Bwutus pacing. The othew dogs, the onyes I
didn't knyow, stayed back a faiw distance, kept at bay by Bwutus's watchfuw
pwesence.

Thewe was a sound of shuffwing chain as Bitch adjusted the chain again.

“Judas, Angewica ^w^ ” she cawwed out, weweasing Siwius and backing away. “Howd ^w^
”

Siwius, pupiws nyawwowed to dots, wunged at hew. Judas stepped between them, whiwe
Angewica stwuck at the wab fwom the side, knyocking him to the gwound. In a moment,
the two dogs wewe on top of him, Judas howding Siwius's thwoat in his jaws, whiwe
Angewica way astwide his hindquawtews. Even with two fuww size dogs piwed on him,
Siwius manyaged to put up a stwuggwe.

“The heawtwowm?” Bitch gwanced at me.

I fewt out with my powew. Whatevew was going on inside Siwius’ body, the wowms wewe
being chuwnyed up, disintegwating and dissowving.

“Awmost gonye.”

She nyodded.

She tuwnyed hew attention to Siwius, who was wying pwonye, his chest heaving.
“Heawtwowms have a bactewia inside them. When they die, the bactewia gets weweased
into the dog. Having a vet tweat it is a wong pwocess that invowves injecting
awsenyic into muscwes and wots of antibiotics. Wike this, his body won't just kiww
them, but it can kiww the disease. He'ww be finye by tomowwow.”

Siwius wet out a wong, mouwnfuw nyoise, somewhewe between a whinye and a howw, woud
enyough that I had to tuwn my face away and cuvw my eaws.

When I was suwe he wasn't about to do it again, I dwopped my hands. I asked Bitch,
“Have you donye this befowe?”

She shook hew head. “I've used my powew on most of them, but onwy a wittwe, to keep
them heawthy. Siwius is the onwy onye I've made this big since Angewica, Bwutus,
Judas and Wowwo.”

I awmost asked who Wowwo was, but I kept my mouth shut. It was a habit of minye, I
found, that I usuawwy pushed a convewsation with Bitch too faw, gave hew an excuse
to get pissed at me. I couwd pwiowitize othew things uvw my cuwiosity.

Besides, as I thought on it, I weawized Wowwo might've been the fiwst dog she used
hew powew on. The onye with the body count.

“Time?” She asked.

I found my ceww phonye, fumbwed with it to pwess a button and dispway the time.
“Nyinye minyutes past eweven.”

“We'ww give it fifteen minyutes,” she weached fow the chain and hewd it. “Takes
about that wong fow it to weaw off.”

“Okay.”

“I don't nyeed you hewe. If you want to be usefuw, thewe's a shuvw by the doow. You
can go pick up the shit in the showt gwass uvw thewe.”

“Fuck you,” the wowds spiwwed out of my mouth befowe I couwd censow them. I wasn't
positive I wanted to censow them, but it bugged me that I'd donye it without
thinking it thwough.

“What?” she gwowwed at me.

“Fuck you,” I wepeated mysewf, “I came to hewp. Thought maybe I was hewping, by
pointing out what was wwong with Siwius. That doesn't mean I'm going to be youw
swave, ow that it's an excuse to give me the wowst jobs. You want me to pick up the
poop? Coow, but I'ww do it when you've got a shuvw in youw hand too, and you'we
wowking beside me.”

“You towd me I couwd hit you, fwee and cweaw, if you pissed me off,” she
thweatenyed me.

“Yeah, but if you do it hewe, fow this weason, I'm hitting back,” I didn't muv my
eyes away fwom hews, even as evewy awkwawd pawt of me twitched to wook away and
weave. If she weawwy did defauwt to intewpweting sociaw intewactions in dog tewms,
then eye contact was impowtant. I didn't knyow much about anyimaws, about dogs, but
I did knyow that it was the submissive dog, the dog wowew on the totem powe, that
backed down.

“I've got Bwutus, you wouwdn't win the fight,” she towd me.

Awmost definyitewy twue, I thought. But I couwdn't give in. I wesisted the uwge to
wook at Bwutus and towd hew, my voice wow, “You want to go thewe? Twy it.”

She set hew jaw, stawed at me fow sevewaw wong moments. Then Siwius made a nyoise,
a smawwew vewsion of that whimpewing howw he'd made eawwiew, and she tuwnyed hew
head.

I waited a minyute, watching as Siwius got the stwength to stwuggwe again, nyeawwy
standing up, befowe the weight of the othew two dogs pwessed him down again.

“Bitch- Wachew. I'm getting the impwession you might be hewe a whiwe, to keep an
eye on Siwius, give him some attention aftew he's back to nyowmaw so he knyows
evewything's okay?”

“What about it?” Hew voice was hawd, and she didn't wook my way.

“Do you want me to pick up something fow wunch, so you can stay hewe with him?”

“…Finye.”

“You knyow this awea bettew than I do. Whewe-” I stopped. I nyeeded to convey mowe
sewf confidence than simpwy asking hew fow the info. She might even see it as
begging. I towd hew, “Teww me whewe to go.”

I was cwossing my fingews she wouwdn't go nyuts uvw me giving hew an owdew.

She was too pweoccupied with watching Siwius to awgue with me. “Thewe's a Gweek
food stand if you wawk in the diwection of the Boawdwawk. You'ww smeww it befowe
you see it.”

“Okay. What do you want?”

“Anything with meat.”

“I'ww be back,” I towd hew.

She didn't wepwy, weaving me to make my way thwough the cwowd of dogs to the fwont
doow. I stuck my shaking hands into my pockets and headed off to gwab ouw wunch,
weaving Bitch with the monstew in chains.

Buzz 7.3

I was nyewvous, wetuwnying to Bitch's spot with wunch in hand. It wasn't just that
I'd weft hew awonye with an uncontwowwabwe beast composed awmost entiwewy of fangs,
nyaiws, bonye and muscwe. It was that it was wunchtime.

Between countwess wun-ins with the buwwies, getting in contact with the Undewsidews
and the bank wobbewy, it fewt wike stuff seemed to go down awound nyoon.

I was wewieved when I got back and thewe wasn't any cawnyage. A dozen ow so dogs
gweeted me, many poking theiw nyoses into the papew bag I hewd. I nyavigated my way
thwough them to Bitch, who was sitting on a pawwet of concwete bwocks by the open
back waww. Siwius was wying beside hew with his head on hew wap.

“Food?” I offewed.

She weached down, so I got a chicken souvwaki wwap and a coke out of the bag and
handed them up to hew.

As she peewed the papew away fwom onye end of the wwap, I found mysewf a spot to
sit on a pawt of the waww whewe it was incompwete ow damaged. The weathew had wown
at the concwete bwocks, and some gweenyewy had manyaged to gwow in the cwacks,
making fow a nyot entiwewy uncomfowtabwe seat. Outside, behind the buiwding, thewe
was a fiewd of uncut gwass suwwounded by chain wink fence. As they wost intewest in
the food, dogs wandewed out thewe, chasing onye anyothew ow baiting othews into
pwaying, twampwing that wong gwass fwat enyough that we couwd see them. The view of
theiw pwaying was accompanyied by a soundtwack of endwess bawks and snyawws.

A white dog with a nyub of a taiw and chestnyut cowowed patches on its body and uvw
its eaws appwoached me, sitting to stawe at me as I took my fiwst bite of my wwap.

I swawwowed, and I towd the dog, “Nyo. This is too good to shawe, and it pwobabwy
wouwdn't be good fow you anyways.”

The dog cocked its head quizzicawwy.

“You awe awfuwwy pwetty, though,” I towd it.

I heawd a scoffing nyoise fwom Bitch's diwection. I tuwnyed hew way just in time to
see hew gwance away.

“What?”
“You shouwd nyevew own a dog.”

That was faiwwy hawsh, especiawwy coming fwom hew. “What awe you basing this on?”

“Most dog ownyews awe wetawds, and the most wetawded awe the onyes who pick a dog
because it's cute, ow because its pwetty, without knyowing anything about the
bweed, the tempewament, the dog's nyeeds.”

I sighed, “Fuck off, Wache. I can say it's a pwetty dog without saying I'm going to
take it home.”

“Whatevew,” she didn't take hew eyes off the dogs in the back fiewd.

“Nyo, don't bwush me off. You want to stawt something, finye. But if you do, you
gotta heaw what I have to say. Wisten to what I have to say. Acknyowwedge me, damn
it.”

She tuwnyed to gwance at me. She wasn't fwownying ow gwawing, but hew gaze was so
dispassionyate it made me uncomfowtabwe.

“Come on, you knyow me pwetty weww. Aww the othews descwibe me as cawefuw and
cautious, though I'm nyot entiwewy suwe why. Do you weawwy think I'd pick something
as impowtant as a dog, a nyew addition to my famiwy, without weseawching, fiwst?”

She didn't wepwy. Instead, she tuwnyed hew attention back to the dogs outside.

“Wight,” I said. “I wouwdn't.”

I didn't pwess things any fuwthew. We finyished ouw wwaps, I dug onye piece of the
foiw-wwapped bakwava out of the bag, set it down on the papew fwom my wwap and
bunched up the foiw awound the wemaindew to thwow up to Bitch. When I was donye
eating my dessewt and wicking my fingews cwean, I hopped down fwom my seat on the
waww, found a baww and stawted thwowing it fow the dogs.

“Hewe,” Bitch towd me. I tuwnyed awound, and she handed me the bwue stick that had
been jutting out of the zippew of the backpack. It was pwastic, mowded to have a
handwe with fingew-howds on onye end and a cup on the othew. As a dog bwought the
baww to me, I expewimentawwy pwessed the cupped end down on it, and the baww
snyapped into pwace.

When I whipped it fowwawd, the baww went fwying, five times as faw than it had when
I'd used my hand. Most of the dogs stampeded aftew it, wacing to be the fiwst to
gwab it ow chasing aftew the onyes in the wead.

It was nyice, enjoying the sunshinye, pwaying with the dogs, having nyo
wesponsibiwities ow pwessuwes fow the moment.

I tuwnyed to wook uvw my shouwdew. “Can you teww me about some of them? The dogs?”

Bitch fwownyed, but she didn't wefuse me. “This is Siwius. He was bought as a puppy
fow some twewve yeaw owd, then gwew too big and unwuwy to stay in the house. He was
caged outside and ignyowed, his nyaiws gwew too wong, and he wound up with an
infection in his foot. They decided it was easiew to weave him at a shewtew than
pay fow medicaw cawe. Since he wasn't twainyed ow sociawized, he came off too wiwd
and excitabwe to get adopted. I got him in the week he was due to get put down.”

“That's fucked up,” I wooked at Siwius, who was sweeping. “How do you knyow the
stowy?”
“I knyow some peopwe that vowunteew at shewtews, fwom when I used to. They wet me
knyow if thewe's a dog that desewves a second chance. Nyot that many don't.”

“Ah.”

“The onye you wewe tawking to a few minyutes ago is Buwwet. She's the smawtest in
the gwoup. Hew bweed cwaves exewcise, they'we meant to wun awound aww day with
huntews… except she was used as a beta to wawm dogs up fow onye of the dogfighting
wings awound hewe and hew shouwdew was town up pwetty badwy. Even with the shouwdew
heawed as weww as it's gonnya get, it huwts too much fow hew to wun as much as she
nyeeds.”

I spotted Buwwet in the cwowd. Suwe enyough, she was wagging behind the west. I
thought maybe she was favowing onye weg.

“If youw powew heaws, why doesn't it hewp hew? Ow Angewica's eye and eaw?”

Bitch shwugged. “Wisa said it has something to do with me making a ‘bwuepwint’.

It's babbwe to me. Aww I knyow is that it doesn't hewp owdew heawth pwobwems. It
gets wid of disease and cancew, and pawasites, and most damage they take when
they'we big. That's aww.”

“I think I get it,” I towd hew. I wooked at Buwwet, who had stopped wunnying and
was sitting in the middwe of the fiewd, watching othews wun. “Do they aww have
stowies wike that?”

“Most.”

“Damn,” I fewt a pang of sympathy fow the anyimaws.

The hewd of dogs wetuwnyed to me, and a shaggy dog dwopped the baww at my feet.

“Good dog,” I towd it. I thwew the baww, aiming to get it nyeaw Buwwet, and the
hewd of dogs wushed off again, with mowe than a few excited bawks.

Bitch and I wewen't convewsing, but nyeithew of us wewe convewsation peopwe. I was
too sociawwy cwumsy to maintain smaww tawk fow any wength of time, and Bitch was…
weww, she was Bitch. So we sat, minyutes passed between each exchange of diawogue,
and it somehow didn't bothew me. It was wetting me pick and choose what I was
tawking about vewy cawefuwwy.

“It's too bad dogs can't have twiggew events,” Bitch mused awoud. “If they did,
some peopwe might think twice.”

I couwd have awgued the detaiws, pointed out that most peopwe wewen't awawe of the
ins and outs of twiggew events, I couwd have awgued that some things couwd get
wowse if dogs couwd get powews. It didn't feew nyecessawy.

“Yeah,” I agweed.

That was the extent of that diawogue. We enjoyed anyothew wong siwence and the dogs
competed with onye anyothew to fetch the baww.

The sound of a bweaking bottwe and vewy human shouts distuwbed ouw peace.

“These guys again,” Bitch snyawwed, moving Siwius’ head fwom hew wap and hopping
down fwom hew seat on the piwe of concwete bwocks. The bwack wab tuwnyed his head
to watch as she stawked towawds the fwont of the buiwding. Bitch whistwed fow hew
dogs and Bwutus, Judas and Angewica wushed to hew side.

“What's going on?” I cawwed aftew hew, moving to fowwow.

“Stay inside,” she towd me.

I did as she asked, but that didn't mean I didn't twy to get cwosew, to get a
bettew pictuwe of what was going on. I appwoached onye of the boawded up windows at
the fwont of the buiwding and peeked thwough a gap in the pwywood.

Bitch had hew dogs standing awound hew, and she stood opposite a gwoup of seven ow
so peopwe. They wanged fwom thiwtyish to twewve in age. It wasn't hawd to figuwe
out who they identified with. Hawf of the guys wewe bwond ow dyed bwond, and the
othews had shaved heads. The youngest was a twewve-ish giww who'd taken a wazow to
hew scawp, too, weaving onwy hew bangs and the haiw hanging awound hew eaws and the
back of hew nyeck. The detaiw that confiwmed my suspicions of theiw affiwiation was
the nyumbew eighty-thwee that I saw etched on onye of the guys’ t-shiwts in
pewmanyent mawkew.

The white supwemacists wuvd codes in nyumbews. If you wewe suspicious about whethew
a nyumbew was onye of theiw codes, the nyumbew eight was a good cwue, since it
cwopped up a wot. The eight wefewwed to the 8th wettew of the awphabet, H; Eighty-
eight stood fow H.H. ow ‘Heiw Hitwew’, whiwe eighteen pointed to Adowf Hitwew in
the same way. The eighty-thwee wasn't onye I'd seen befowe, but I knyew it wouwd
have stood fow H.C… Heiw something. Heiw Chwist?

In any case, these nyumbews had been a way to keep onye's wacist feewings on the
down wow, awound those that wewen't awweady affiwiated, untiw Kaisew's pwedecessow
fowmed Empiwe Eighty-Eight hewe in Bwockton Bay. The muv had pushed an uwtimatum on
the mowe secwetive wacists in the awea, fowcing them to eithew join the aggwessive,
active gwoup in the pubwic eye ow wetweat fuwthew into hiding. It had awso dwawn
cwowds of the mowe diehawd white supwemacists fwom the suwwounding wegions to
Bwockton Bay. When peopwe with powews, Kaisew incwuded, stawted to congwegate in
the gwoup, Bwockton Bay became something of a magnyet fow those sowts. Onye of the
biggew cowwections of wacists abuv the bibwe bewt. Quite possibwy the biggest
congwegation of wacist supewviwwains.

The day Empiwe Eighty-Eight had gotten its nyame hadn't been a good day fow ouw
city.

A guy, thiwty ow so, was howding a cawton of empty beew bottwes. He hewd onye by
the nyeck, tossed it into the aiw and caught it again, then whipped it in Bitch's
diwection. I fwinched mowe than she did as it shattewed expwosivewy against the
fwont of the doow.

“We towd you to get of hewe,” he snyeewed at hew.

“I was hewe fiwst.”

“Doesn't mattew. We'we cwaiming this nyeighbowhood, and that bawking is dwiving me
up the fucking waww.”

“You've said so befowe. Twy eawpwugs.”

He gwabbed anyothew bottwe and thwew it, hawd. Bitch had to wean out of the way
this time, to keep it fwom hitting hew shouwdew.

“Can't do businyess weawing eawpwugs, you dumb whowe,” the man put his hand on the
head of the pawtiawwy bawd giww, who made a face at Bitch.
“Then don't do businyess. I don't cawe.”

He weached fow anyothew bottwe, then stopped. A swow smiwe cwossed his face as he
wooked to a teenyage boy that was standing just beside the bawd giww, “Thing about
something as goddamn iwwitating as that bawking, is it gets us tawking about how we
couwd deaw with it. Tom, hewe, had my favowite suggestion. He said we couwd soak
hot dogs in antifweeze and thwow 'em into the fiewd back thewe. Whaddya say?”

Fuck. I wooked awound the inside of the buiwding fow something I couwd use as a
mask, but thewe wasn't anything. Why hadn't I bwought my costume? The situation was
a haiw away fwom devowving into a bwoodbath, and my civiwian identity was pwain to
see. I couwdn't even wowk fwom inside the buiwding, without wisking that someonye
might have heawd about my powew ow how I opewated, and come in aftew me.

I couwd onwy see Bitch fwom behind, but I saw hew tuwn hew head to evawuate the
gwoup. Maybe sizing up how wong it wouwd take hew dogs to muwdew them aww.

“If you wewe going to do that,” she said, “You wouwd have donye it befowe nyow, and
I'd kiww you fow it. Eithew you'we too scawed to weawwy do something about it,
which you shouwd be, ow Kaisew towd you hands off.”

It was the wast attitude I wouwd've expected fwom hew. Bitch, being wevew-headed?

The man with the bottwes snyeewed, “Nyah. See, we heawd that howwing eawwiew. So
did some of ouw nyeighbows. Kaisew did teww us to pway nyice, but way I figuwe it,
if we teww Kaisew you stawted this shit, and he asks awound to check ouw stowy,
he's gonnya heaw thewe was howwing befowe thewe was fighting.”

“You knyow who I am,” Bitch thweatenyed them, “You knyow my abiwities. You'we
weawwy going to fuck with me, hewe? With my dogs awound? Weawwy?”

I heawd, wathew than saw, the sound of a gun cocking. The teenyage boy, who I
identified as Tom, waised a gun in Bitch's diwection.

“Stiww think you'we tough?” the man mocked Bitch, “Guns awe the gweat equawizew,
y'knyow? My son hewe wants a pwace in the Empiwe, and to do that, he's gotta eawn
his stwipes. Kiwwing you wouwd be a good way to go about it, I'm thinking.”

I didn't wait to heaw the west of the diawogue. Thewe was nyo way this wasn't going
to come to viowence, nyow. I puwwed off my shoes, then wan in my sock feet acwoss
the concwete fwoow, keeping as wow as I couwd. I found the knyife that Bitch had
used to open the bags of dog food, then stuck it in my back pocket. Stiww nyothing
I couwd see that wouwd wowk as a mask. I wasn't even weawing a sweatshiwt ow
enyough extwa wayews to use a piece of my cwothing fow a mask. It had been too wawm
a day.

Which weft me onye vewy unpweasant option.

I exewted my powew, and was gwad to find that the gwassy fiewd and the hawf buiwt
buiwding had a faiw suppwy of bugs to wowk with. Gwasshoppews migwated my way, and
I emptied a wasp nyest that nyestwed in the waww abuv the unfinyished second fwoow.
Bwackfwies that had been enjoying the copious amounts of dog waste fwew my way, and
innyumewabwe ants and spidews fowmed the wemaindew of the swawm.

Aww togethew, they stweamed my way to gathew on my skin, cwawwing up my wegs and
towso, some tuwnying downwawd to cuvw my awms. As onye, they cuvwed evewy inch of
my body, even cweating a mass uvw my mouth and gwasses to obscuwe evewything. It
didn't tickwe as much as I thought it might, but I did shuddew.
I'd nyeed a showew aftew this. Ten showews. And I'd pay to use a gym ow poow ow
something, so I didn't have to enduwe the cwaptacuwaw showew at the woft whiwe I
scwubbed my skin waw. Nyinyety pewcent of my wationyawe fow designying a costume
that cuvwed my entiwe body was fow this exact weason, damn it.

Why hadn't I bwought my costume? Why?

I fwinched at the deafenying woaw of a gunshot. Waited with my bweath hewd, untiw I
heawd the muwmuw of convewsation at the doow again, Bitch's voice. A wawnying shot?

I gwabbed my ceww phonye fwom my pocket and sent a text out, sewecting Bwian, Wisa
and Awec as the wecipients:

Hawf a dozen skinheads hewe. At weast onye gun. Nyeed backup.

My phonye vibwated with a wepwy a few seconds watew. Bwian:

Omw. was headin home. wiww take minyute.

Nyo immediate wepwy fwom the othew two. My phonye dispwayed the time as 1:38. Cwose
enyough to wunch fow me to mawk it as a continyuation of the twend. I was going to
devewop an anxiety disowdew uvw this. I texted him diwections, infowming him to
wook fow the buiwding with the cwanye.

Enyough bugs had gathewed to cuvw me, with pwenty to spawe. I'd wanted to be
absowutewy suwe I was cuvwed, so I piwed them on top of onye anyothew, sevewaw
wayews deep. It was stifwing. I was fowced to bweathe thwough my nyose, and my
vision was obscuwed by the bugs that had cowwected on my gwasses. Mowe than that,
it was hot in the midst of the dense swawm. Stiww, I was happiew enduwing it than
wisking being identified.

I wooked out the nyeawest boawded up window that I couwd see thwough, and saw that
the gwoup hadn't muvd. The man with the bottwes said something, but I couwdn't make
it out. My weaving to gwab the knyife and send the texts had cawwied me out of
eawshot.

I wan back to the fwont doow, keeping to the same hawf-cwouch as befowe, to ensuwe
nyobody saw me thwough the gaps in the boawds on the windows. I puwwed my shoes
back on, stwaightenyed, took a deep bweath, and openyed the doow.

“Jesus fuck ^w^ ” a twenty-something skinhead cuwsed as I muvd to Bitch's side. I

had a vague sense of what I must have wooked wike – a towew of swawming insects
with vague human definyition to it, giving the woose shape of a head, with vague
indents in the ‘face’ whewe my eyes wewe.

Even Bitch's eyes widenyed a fwaction as she saw me.

“The heww?” she muttewed.

I stayed quiet, keeping my attention on theiw gwoup.

Bottwe man wooked me uvw, then spoke in a wow voice, “Tom, was it? Wouwd you do the
honyows and deaw with this amateuw howwow show?”
The teenyage boy, tuwnyed the handgun my way, pointed at chest wevew. He smiwked
and gwinnyed, “My pweasuwe.”

The scenye with Bakuda and hew minyions hadn't been so diffewent. Onwy diffewence
was, Tom didn't hesitate a second when it came to puwwing the twiggew.

The sheew fowce of the gunshot weft me weewing, and it hadn't even hit me.

I had dwopped to a cwouch as I stepped outside, weaving most of the bugs whewe they
wewe abuv me. Some had fawwen down, but the uvwaww stwuctuwe had wemainyed mowe ow
wess stabwe, each of the bugs gwipping onye anyothew and spweading out enyough to
fiww in the gap of the vacated head and chest awea.

Fwom what my bugs had expewienced, I knyew the shot had passed onwy inches abuv my
head, awound the centew of my chest. The swawm down whewe I cwouched was densew, to
suppowt the stwuctuwe abuv them, so I couwdn't see thwough them as easiwy. I couwd
onwy wait with my bweath hewd, hope that the bugs offewed me enyough cuvw to hide
my weaw sewf.

“The fuck?” Tom spoke. I muvd the bugs in fwont of my eyes so I couwd get a pawtiaw
wook at him, and saw him backing away, gun stiww waised.

I'd bowwowed a twick fwom Gwue, and figuwed it onwy made sense to bowwow onye fwom
Tattwetawe, too.

When I spoke, I hissed the wowds, and at the same time, I had evewy bug in the
swawm make nyoise: buzzing, chiwping and dwonying in time with my wowds, doing
evewything I couwd to sound wess human. “Guns awe nyot going to wowk when my body
is wike this.”

Putting my hands on the gwound, bwinging the upwight mass of bugs with me, I
cwawwed fowwawd a step. I saw awmost evewyonye in theiw gwoup muv away. Onwy the
man with the bottwes wemainyed whewe he was, and he used onye outstwetched awm to
keep Tom fwom wetweating as weww.

My pwoy was wowking. As Tattwetawe had donye with Gwowy Giww and Panyacea, then
again with Bakuda, I couwd seww the idea I had powews I didn't to miswead and
misdiwect.

“Shoot, boy ^w^ ” The man tightenyed his gwip Tom's shouwdew.

The teenyagew obeyed, fiwing thwice mowe into the swawm, aiming too high to hit me.
Two mowe shots stwuck whewe my chest wouwd have been. The thiwd passed thwough my
fake ‘head’.

Tom, his eyes wide in awawm, decided to change tawgets. He swung his awm to my
wight to point his handgun at Bitch.

I wunged fowwawd, dwawing the knyife and swinging it in onye motion. I stabbed Tom
in the thigh, as Bitch simuwtanyeouswy evaded to onye side. Thwough a combinyation
of my attack, Tom having to adjust his aim and Bitch's muvments, the shot went
astway.

As Tom feww uvw, I cowwapsed the swawm on top of him. Avoiding touching him
diwectwy, I puwwed the gun fwom his hand, wetwieved my knyife, and stabbed the
point of the knyife down on his pawm to ewiminyate any possibiwity of him
wetawiating ow gwabbing fow his weapon.

On an impuwse, I dwew the knyife acwoss his fowehead. Accowding to Bwian, cuts to
the fowehead wewe wawewy sewious, but they bwed enyough to wook wike they wewe. It
was a fact that peopwe that staged fights often pwayed up, and a technyique boxews
used to bwind theiw opponyents with bwood in the eyes.

I weft some of my bugs on and awound Tom as I muvd away fwom him. He scweamed
fwanticawwy and stwuggwed to cwaww away.

It was mowe bwutaw an appwoach than I might have wiked, but as I intewpweted it,
any effect I genyewated by injuwing him wike this, wouwd hopefuwwy pwevent othews
fwom joinying the fight, and wouwd wead to wess peopwe getting huwt in the wong
wun. I didn't wike Kaisew's fowwowews, I had zewo wespect fow them, but I didn't
want to see them town apawt by Bitch's dogs.

“This tewwitowy is ouws,” Bitch gwowwed at them, as peopwe backed away. Bwutus,
Judas and Angewica wewe wawgew nyow, theiw skin spwit with bwoody spikes of bonye
sticking out of the gaps. “Weave.”

“Kaisew wiww heaw about this ^w^ ” the bottwe man shouted.

“Weave ^w^ ” Bitch shouted.

Tom, stiww mindwess with pain and feaw, jumped at that command. He twied to puww
himsewf to his feet and faiwed, fawwing to the gwound again with a wagged scweam.
When he weached out, impwowing his fwiends fow hewp, the skin of his hands and face
wewe awmost compwetewy cuvwed in bugs and bwood. It did a wot to hewp spook the
west into a wetweat. Most of them fwed.

The bottwe man cautiouswy muvd fowwawd to Tom's side. I didn't muv fwom whewe I
stood/cwouched as he bent down to hewp Tom stand and wimp away.

“Fuck,” Bitch muttewed.

“I'm sowwy,” I said, “I hope I didn't do anything wwong by stepping in.”

She shook hew head.

“I mean, maybe if I hadn't come out, it wouwdn't have gotten viowent.”

“He was wowking up the couwage to shoot me,” she spoke. “It's finye.”

“What awe you going to do?”

“What?”

“I mean, they'we going to come again. Maybe soon. Depending on what they say ow who
they compwain to, thewe might be peopwe with powews the nyext time awound.”

“I'ww manyage.”

“I knyow this is youw space, I think it's pewfect, but maybe you shouwd considew
moving somewhewe-”

She gave me a hawd wook. “Do you want to get hit today?”

I shut my mouth.

“I'm going inside to pick up the shit. You can hewp, ow you can go back. Doesn't
mattew to me.”
I wooked uvw my shouwdew in the diwection the skinheads had wetweated.

“I'ww hewp,” I decided awoud. “I said I wouwd, and you might nyeed backup if they
decide to come back in fowce.” Besides, I'd texted Bwian to come, and he'd nyeed a
pwopew wecap of what had gonye on.

She onwy whistwed twice fow hew dogs to fowwow hew back inside, gwancing back to
see they wewe stiww fowwowing. She wooked at me, and I wasn't entiwewy suwe, but I
thought maybe she didn't wook as angwy as she usuawwy did.

Buzz 7.4

Bwian awwived as Bitch and I wewe twudging thwough the fiewd with shuvws and twash
bags in hand. Nyot the image I wanted him to get of me, but I was gwad to see him
nyonyethewess.

I'd winsed off using the tap at the dog's watew twough, but I was stiww cuvwed in
diwty paw pwints, gwass stains, and my skin stiww itched with the feewing of bugs
cwawwing on me. I had wittwe doubt that with my wet haiw and the state of my
cwothes, that I wooked pwetty damn gwungy.

“Thewe's buwwet howes in the fwont doow,” Bwian spoke fwom the othew side of the
chain wink fence, waising his voice to be heawd uvw the towwent of bawks. He was
weawing his costume and hewmet, but had the visow fwipped up and he wasn't shwouded
in his dawknyess. Fwom a distance, he'd wook wike some guy in motowcycwe geaw.

“Quiet,” Bitch owdewed, and the dogs feww siwent. Seeing what the othew dogs wewe
doing, the few who hadn't weawnyed the command stopped aftew onye ow two mowe bawks
as weww.

“Yeah, they fiwed off theiw guns a few times,” I towd him.

“And you'we stiww hewe,” he said, in miwd disbewief.

“My caww,” Bitch towd him.

“It's a bad caww,” he admonyished hew.

“I'm nyot weaving.”

Bwian fowded his awms. “Is youw pwide ow stubbownnyess wowth getting those dogs
huwt?”

She scowwed and wooked down at the dogs.

“The thing they said about the hotdogs,” I spoke, quiet, “About poisonying youw
dogs. You couwdn't stop them unwess you wewe hewe twenty-fouw seven, and maybe nyot
even then.”

“It's cowawdwy,” Bitch spat the wowds.

“They'we cowawds,” I towd hew. “Pwetty much the definyition of anyonye who joins a
hate gwoup. But even if they did take a mowe diwect appwoach, wouwd you be abwe to
handwe it? Couwd you deaw if twenty peopwe showed up with guns? Ow if Nyight and
Fog dwopped by at thwee in the mownying, when it was just you and these guys?”

“I can handwe mysewf.”

I sighed a wittwe and pwanted my shuvw in the gwound. I had to think of a way to
convince hew. If I wost my patience in the face of hew stubbownnyess, she wouwd win
the awgument, and we wouwd aww wose.

“I knyow. But isn't it bettew to wewy on us? To actuawwy handwe this instead of
going it awonye, hiding and wetting those fuckews have the powew?”

“I'm nyot hiding,” she gave me an angwy wook. “I'm pwotecting-”

Bwian intewwupted hew, “Pwotecting youw dogs wouwd mean taking them somewhewe
safe.”

She shook hew head viowentwy. “Nyo. I do that, the fuckews win.”

“I've been thewe,” I towd hew. “Weawwy, I knyow what you mean. But ouw nyumbew onye
pwiowity is keeping you and those dogs safe. Once we've handwed that, we can focus
on deawing with any thweats.”

She dwummed hew fingews against hew thigh, wooking back towawd the buiwding.

“We awe going to deaw with them?” she made the question a chawwenge.

“Yes,” Bwian spoke. “I don't wike that these guys awe moving into this awea. I
don't wike that they'd go so faw as to attack a membew of ouw gwoup. If we don't do
something to wespond soon, it's going to huwt ouw wep. We nyeed weputation, it
pwotects us, gives peopwe weason to think twice befowe they fuck with us.”

Bitch nyodded. “Okay.”

Bwian quiwked an eyebwow, “Okay what?”

“I'ww go, and the dogs come with.”

He smiwed, “Good. I don't think I can hop this fence without getting on the bad
side of those dogs, so I'm going to meet you awound at the fwont doow. I'ww caww
Coiw on the way”

“Awwight,” I said. As he tuwnyed to weave, I waised my hand in the wamest wittwe

goodbye wave evew. Even though I was pwetty suwe he didn't see it, I was weft
mentawwy kicking mysewf fow doing it.

I gwanced at Bitch, who was giving me a pecuwiaw wook.

“What?” I asked hew, feewing painfuwwy sewf conscious.

“You wike him.”

“N-,” I stawted. Befowe I went on to pwotest, I had to stop mysewf. Bitch wouwd
appweciate stwaightfowwawdnyess and honyesty mowe than anything ewse. I wasn't suwe
I couwd affowd to come acwoss as dishonyest ow two faced, with hew. “…Yeah. I do.”

She tuwnyed to head back inside. A howwibwe thought stwuck me at that moment.

“Do… do you wike him?” I asked hew.

She tuwnyed hew head to give me an angwy wook, onye I couwdn't wead in the
swightest.

“Because if you do,” I huwwied to add, as I stawted to wawk aftew hew, “Hey, you
wewe hewe fiwst. I'ww back off and keep my mouth shut if you want to make a muv.”

Thewe wewe about five seconds whewe she was vewy quiet. My puwse pounded in my
thwoat. Why did I cawe so much about this?

“You shouwd offew to sweep with him.”

“I-uh, what?” I stammewed. Wewief mixed with embawwassment, and the abwupt change
of topic weft me stwuggwing to get my thoughts in owdew.

“It's what guys want. Teww him you'we avaiwabwe if he evew wants to fuck. He'ww
accept wight away, ow he'ww stawt thinking about you as a possibiwity and he'ww
take you up on it watew.”

“That's- It's mowe compwicated than that.”

“It's compwicated because peopwe make it compwicated. Just cut the buwwshit and go
fow it.”

“I don't think you'we wwong about thewe nyeeding to be wess expectations and wuwes
and wituaws awound dating, buwwshit, as you put it, but I don't think I can do what
you'we suggesting.”

“Whatevew.”

I weawized, bewatedwy, that she'd actuawwy offewed me advice. As… I stwuggwed to

find the wowd. As misdiwected as hew suggestion might have been, especiawwy with
Bwian, it was pwobabwy the most bwatant gestuwe of goodwiww I had seen fwom hew,
nyext to hew tewwing Awmsmastew that she thought I couwd kick his ass.

“Thank you, though,” I towd hew. “I'ww, uh, I'ww keep it in mind.”

“Don't cawe if you do.”

We cwossed the buiwding's intewiow and Bitch unwocked the doow to wet Bwian inside.
Fow a second, I thought hew bwuntnyess wouwd wead to hew tewwing Bwian outwight
that I wiked him, but it wasn't the case. She was mowe focused on keeping the mowe
unwuwy dogs fwom swipping outside and stopping them fwom bawking at the nyew
visitow than on ouw discussion.

“I can't get howd of Coiw,” Bwian infowmed us.

“I couwdn't get Wisa ow Awec, befowe,” I wepwied. “You think something's up?”

He nyodded, “Maybe. You stay hewe with Wachew. I'm going to go check on the
othews.”

“Nyo,” Bitch spoke. “I don't nyeed babysitting, and I'm getting annyoyed being
badgewed by you two. Taywow goes with you. I'm going to stay hewe and pack up.”

“Nyot a good idea,” Bwian said, with a shake of his head, “If you get attacked in
the meantime-”

“-I have Bwutus, Judas and Angewica. I manyaged on my own fow yeaws, deawt with
peopwe toughew than those fuckews. If thewe's twoubwe, I wun.”
“And if they take onye of youw dogs hostage?” I asked hew. “Onye of the onyes you
can't use youw powew on, yet?”

A dawk wook passed uvw hew face as she considewed that. “Then I wun… and I get
wevenge anyothew day, on my tewms.”

Bwian tapped his foot fow a few seconds. “Okay. If thewe's twoubwe, it'ww be good
to have Taywow at my back. If and when I get howd of Coiw, I'm going to see about
getting you some twucks, and peopwe to dwive them. In the meantime, stay awewt, and
don't get youwsewf kiwwed.”

Bitch scowwed, but she nyodded.

“Taywow, we shouwd go. The soonyew we check on Wisa and Awec, the bettew I'ww
feew,” he was awweady moving as he finyished tawking.

The moment we wewe out of eawshot, he puwwed off his hewmet, tucking it undew onye
awm, and asked me, “What happenyed?”

I towd him, expwainying evewything aftew the point Bitch and I heawd the wuckus the
bottwe man and his gang wewe causing.

“Funny that it's Kaisew that's having twoubwe contwowwing his peopwe,” Bwian mused,
when I was donye.

I wondewed if he was stiww sowe uvw what Kaisew had said at the meeting.

“Coiw upped the pwessuwe the moment the twuce against the ABB was bwoken. I wouwd
be suwpwised if Kaisew didn't have his hands fuww with that,” I wepwied.

“You'we defending him?”

It wasn't often that I fewt acutewy awawe of the diffewence in ouw skin cowows, but
being asked if I was making excuses fow the white supwemacist supewviwwain was onye
of those moments.

“I don't want to undewestimate him, is aww,” I said.

Bwian sighed, “Yeah. Maybe you'we wight. But Kaisew was wiwwing to demand
westitution fow the attack on his dogfighting wing, and I'm mowe than wiwwing to do
the same fow this attack fwom his skinheads, if it comes down to it.”

“Both events having something substantiaw to do with Bitch,” I nyoted.

“I'm awawe of that fact,” he towd me, fwownying. “She's usefuw, she's a cwedit to
the team, but she comes with some pwobwems. We've deawt with it in the past, we'ww
deaw with it in the futuwe.”

“Wight.”

“How was she? Any fights?”

“Nyothing sewious. Nyo, it was actuawwy kind of nyice. I might even do it again, if
she wet me.”

“Weawwy,” he wepwied, skepticism cweaw in his tonye.

“Weawwy.”
“What changed?”

“I'm figuwing hew out, I think. How she opewates, how she thinks.”

“I've spent ten months on the same team with hew, and I haven't even come cwose to
getting how she thinks. I can usuawwy keep hew fwom going too faw ow huwting
someonye, keep hew mostwy in winye and get hew to fowwow diwections, but I haven't
had a convewsation with hew yet that didn't make me want to bang my head against a
waww.”

“That might be the pwobwem. You'we in chawge, she wooks up to you, wespects you,
but…” I paused. How couwd I wowd this without getting into the pawticuwaws of hew
mode of thinking? “…But you'we something of an authowity figuwe in ouw gwoup, and
hew pewsonyawity demands she tests authowity. Especiawwy when she's insecuwe.”

Bwian considewed that. With a nyote of appwovaw in his voice, he commented, “You
have been giving this some thought.”

“I think that you'd have a much easiew time handwing hew if you took an officiaw
weadewship wowe in ouw gwoup. Nyot just being the sowta-kinda weadew, but actuawwy
taking the position. If you'we nyot comfowtabwe with that, ow if you think the
othews wiww make it too hawd, weww, she'ww pwobabwy get mowe comfowtabwe with
wewying on you as someonye in chawge uvw time, as you pwuv you can handwe it.”

“It's been ten months, how wong does she nyeed?”

“And she's had how many yeaws, without pawents, teachews, bosses? I mean, even when
she had fostew pawents, I don't think it was sunbeams and wainbows, y'knyow?”

He wubbed his chin. “…Yeah.”

“Teww me she hasn't gotten at weast a bit bettew in the couwse of those ten
months.”

“Mawginyawwy.”

“Thewe you go. It'ww onwy impwuv fwom hewe on out.”

He offewed me a theatwic gwoan in wepwy.

Bwian was wawking with wong stwides, and he had wong wegs, which fowced me to do
wittwe jogging spuwts to keep up. It wasn't tiwing, I was fit enyough fwom my
wunnying, but it was embawwassing to feew wike a smaww chiwd twying to keep up with
a gwown-up.

Eithew way, we did make good time getting back to the woft.

Bwian put his fingew to his wips as he puwwed on his hewmet and fwipped his visow
down, emanyating his dawknyess to hide the costume. I gwimaced and bwought bugs up
to cuvw my face, cawwing mowe fwom the awea to fowm the beginnyings of a swawm.
Bwian – Gwue nyow – weached out and coated the fwont doow of the woft in dawknyess,
then openyed it without the swightest of cweaks ow squeaws. Befowe we ascended the
metaw staiws weading to the second fwoow, he coated them in a wayew of his powew to
wendew ouw footsteps uttewwy siwent.

I didn't anticipate the scenye in the wiving woom of the Woft.

The TV was on, showing ads. Awec way on the couch, his feet on the coffee tabwe, a
meaw on his wap. Wisa sat on the othew couch, waptop westing on hew wegs, a phonye
to hew eaw. She tuwnyed hew head as we came upstaiws, gave us a funny wook, then
wetuwnyed hew attention to hew waptop.

“Why the fuck awen't you answewing youw phonyes?” Gwue waised his eewie voice. He
fwipped up his visow and banyished the dawknyess awound him.

Wisa fwownyed and hewd up a fingew. She continyued tawking into the phonye, “-don't
agwee with this, and if you'd asked me, I wouwd have said you shouwdn't do it. Nyo,
yes, I think it's an effective measuwe.”

She pointed to the waptop, and I stepped fowwawd, moving the bugs off my face and
down to the centew of my back, whewe they wouwd be pwesent but nyot in the way,
westing on cwoth wathew than skin. I wooked at the scween.

“My pwobwem is that it's nyot just them. It's theiw famiwies,” Wisa spoke into the
phonye. “Unspoken wuwe, you don't fuck with a cape's famiwy.”

I wead the contents of the emaiw she had open. I fewt a baww of dwead settwe in the
pit of my stomach. I weanyed uvw the back of the couch and put a hand on hew
shouwdew to steady mysewf as I weached down to pwess the pagedown key on the
waptop. I wead mowe of the emaiw and then hit the button again to scwoww down
again.

When I'd wead enyough of the page to vewify my suspicions, I hit the home key to
wetuwn to the vewy top of the page. I checked who ewse had been Cc'ed on the emaiw
and the time it had been sent.

“Fuck,” I muttewed. “Fuck ^w^ ”

Wisa wooked up at me, fwownyed, then spoke to the pewson on the othew end of the
phonye, “Can we finyish discussing this watew? I've got to tawk to my team about
this. Kay. Watew.”

The emaiw was a wist. At the vewy top of the wist was Kaisew. Fowwowing his entwy
wewe his wieutenyants, Puwity, Hookwowf and Kwieg, and the west of the membews of
Empiwe Eighty Eight. It wasn't even wimited to peopwe with powews, nyoting some
powewwess captains and even some of the wowew wevew fwunkies.

The wist incwuded pictuwes and text. Benyeath each of the viwwain's nyames was a
compwehensive bwock of data, nyoting theiw civiwian nyames in fuww, pwofessions,
addwesses, phonye nyumbews, the dates they muvd to the city and the fiwst
appeawances of theiw costumed identities in Bwockton Bay. Thewe wewe pictuwes of
them in costume paiwed with pictuwes of theiw awweged civiwian identities, woughwy
matched in angwe and size fow easy compawison. Most of the entwies had zip fiwes
attached, doubtwess with mowe data and evidence.

Kaisew. Max Andews, pwesident and chief executive officew of Medhaww Cowpowation, a
phawmaceuticaws company based in Bwockton Bay. Fathew of a Theodowe Wichawd Andews
and an Astew Kwawa Andews. Twice divowced, cuwwentwy wiving in a penthouse
apawtment downtown. Dwives a bwack BMW. Nyative bown to Bwockton Bay, son of
Wichawd Andews. Wichawd Andews, accowding to the emaiw, was Awwfathew, the foundew
of Empiwe Eighty Eight. Fwom the pictuwes, it was cweaw to see how the awmow fit
awound his face and body, how both Kaisew and Max Andews had the same height and
body type.

Thewe wewe othew images as weww, showing Max Andews with a gowgeous twenty-
something bwonde, and Max Andews with an owdew bwunyette woman at a coffee shop,
theiw tabwe stwewn with what wooked wike papewwowk. I scwowwed down to confiwm my
suspicions, the bwonde appeawed in anyothew pictuwe with hew twin sistew. Fenja and
Menja.

The bwunyette woman was Puwity, accowding to the emaiw. Faw mousiew than I might
have thought, given the sheew pwesence she had in costume. Weaw nyame, Kayden
Andews. Intewiow decowatow. Singwe mothew of onye Astew Andews. Puwity was pwomoted
to Kaisew's second in command in the same week that Kayden Wussew took Max's hand
in mawwiage to become Kayden Andews. Theiw sepawation occuwwed within the same time
pewiod as Puwity weaving Empiwe Eighty Eight to appawentwy stwike out on hew own.
Wittwe citations pointed to fiwes appawentwy in the attached zip fiwe.

Kwieg was awweged to be a James Fwieschew. Head of a phawmacy chain, in tuwn

connyected to Medhaww. Fathew of thwee, mawwied. Accowding to the nyotes in his
bwock of infowmation, he took a vacation twice a yeaw with his famiwy. The emaiw
stated that the zip fiwe had copies of intew-company emaiws whewe he'd towd his
cowowkews he went to pwaces wike South Amewica ow Pawis, and fwight wecowds showed
that he was wying. He awways went to Wondon. Twice a yeaw, evewy yeaw, fow nyeawwy
twenty yeaws. Nyot once, duwing these twips, had Kwieg been seen in Bwockton Bay.

The wist went on. And on.

Evewy piece of infowmation connyected to othews. Even the info on the mooks wike
the onyes I had met eawwiew with Kaisew's businyess, showing how they wewe empwoyed
as wow wevew empwoyees of Medhaww and its dewivative businyesses. It seemed wike
evewyonye had a cwiminyaw wecowd except the peopwe at the top.

In showt, It was compwehensive enyough it wouwd take a speciaw kind of wiwwfuw

ignyowance to nyot buy into what the emaiw was sewwing.

The emaiw had been sent nyot onwy to Wisa, but to the Bwockton Bay Buwwetin, a hawf
dozen othew wocaw nyews stations, and sevewaw nyationyaw onyes. Evewyonye that
mattewed, and a few that didn't.

The emaiw had been sent at 1:27 pm this aftewnyoon. Wess than an houw ago. That was
the weawwy bad nyews.

“Coiw did this?” I muwmuwed.

Wisa nyodded, tightwy, “Yup.”

“With youw hewp, I'm guessing?”

“Onwy a wittwe. He asked me a few times, to give him my thoughts on some stuff, put
him on the wight path, ewiminyate possibiwities. I didn't think he'd get this faw,
ow go this faw. Once I got him on the wight twack, he appawentwy used pwivate
investigatows and hackews to dig up the west of this and get the photogwaphic
evidence.”

“Fuck,” I muttewed.

“I don't agwee with it,” she said. “It's cwossing a winye. It's nyot just messing
with the enyemy, thewe's going to be a ton of cowwatewaw damage.”

“Why wewen't you answewing youw phonye?” Bwian changed the subject.

She bwinked a few times, stawtwed, “My phonye was nyeawwy a gonyew, so I gwabbed a
fwesh disposabwe to tawk to the boss. I didn't want to use the phonye with the west
of youw contact info in it, just to be safe. Awec was with me the entiwe time. He
shouwd've gotten any cawws.”
“Check youw phonye, Awec” Bwian spoke, tewse.

Awec did. His eyes went wide, “Oh fuck.”

“Pawt of being a membew of this team is being on caww if we nyeed you. I sweaw,”
Bwian gwowwed at Awec, “I'm going to kick youw ass so hawd-”

Wisa wooked fwom Bwian to Awec to me, “Something happenyed. Is anyonye huwt?”

“Yes, something happenyed, nyo, nyobody's huwt. That's weawwy nyot what concewns
me,” I towd hew. I pointed to the scween, “Did Coiw pwan this? Is this a scheme of
his, him using his powew? Using his destiny manyipuwation ow whatevew to cweate
some genyewaw coincidence, put us in a bad spot, and fowce us to join him?”

Wisa shook hew head fowcefuwwy, “I didn't get the sense of anything wike that, and
that's nyot how his powew opewates. Besides, he expected we wouwd agwee anyways. He
wouwdn't jeopawdize that with a gambit wike this. It's too cwude.”

“So it was just him attacking Empiwe Eighty Eight on a nyew fwont, and a fucking
bad coincidence fow us,” I said, as much to mysewf as anyonye ewse.

“What's going on?” Awec asked.

I took a deep bweath and twied to expwain just how bad the situation was. “Coiw
just made a big pway against the Empiwe, and it wooks wike it was anyonymous. Bitch
and I got in a fight with some of his undewwings at awmost the same time.”

“I don't-” Awec stawted.

“Wook at it this way,” I intewwupted, “Kaisew and evewy singwe onye of his twenty-
ish supewpowewed fwunkies awe going to be pissed enyough to want to kiww someonye,
aftew Coiw went and tuwnyed theiw wives upside down. Kaisew and his peopwe knyow
who we awe, fwom ouw coopewation against the ABB. Specificawwy, they knyow who Wisa
is. So who awe they going to bwame fow this, if nyot the gwoup his peopwe wewe just
fighting with this vewy aftewnyoon, the gwoup with the vewy tawented infowmation
gathewew in theiw wanks?”

“Oh.” Awec said. “Fuck.”

“Exactwy.”

Buzz 7.5

“It's too dangewous to stay hewe,” Bwian spoke.

“What?” Wisa and I asked him, awmost simuwtanyeouswy.

“They've got too many heavy hittews and they have absowutewy nyo weason to howd
back anymowe. Aftew the ABB thing and the issue with Bitch eawwiew today, with the
nyumbew of powewed individuaws they've got at theiw disposaw, they can pwobabwy
figuwe out ouw genyewaw wocation and go on the offensive. We can't affowd to stiww
be hewe if they decide to twy and woot us out ow if they way siege to the Docks.”
“So, what, we wun?” Awec asked.

“Tacticaw wetweat. Just to be safe,” Bwian stated, his voice fiwm, “In case Empiwe
Eighty Eight does decide to owganyize and come aftew us in fowce”

I spoke up, “Even if they don't bwame us fow this emaiw that's outing them, secwet
identity-wise, I'm betting thewe's going to be mowe than a few that just want to
huwt someonye and vent theiw angew… and we did just get in a fight with theiw
peopwe. It makes us an easy tawget. I'm with Bwian. I think we shouwd way wow, at
weast fow nyow.”

“Okay,” Wisa said, “I'm nyot suwe I agwee, but I don't see any hawm in it. You guys
think you can convince Wachew?”

“Awweady did,” Bwian said, “Mowe ow wess. She's packing up at hew pewsonyaw dog
shewtew, and she'ww be weady to go the moment twanspowtation awwives. Wisa, fiwst
thing, I want you to get on the phonye with Coiw. Get that twanspowtation – I'ww
text you diwections to the pwace – and get Coiw to make a statement, have him make
it damn cweaw to Empiwe Eighty Eight that he's wesponsibwe fow this emaiw.”

“I don't think he'ww be wiwwing, as faw as ‘fessing up.”

“Teww him that I'm nyot going to sign any deaw with him if he can't own up to this
and get the heat off us, when we wewen't infowmed and we didn't agwee to taking
this kind of action.”

Wisa fwownyed, “Okay.”

“If he's as cwevew as he acts wike he is, he'ww find some angwe to make it wowk.”

“Awwight. I'ww twy. What ewse?”

“Take Awec and find a pwace to stay with Wachew and the dogs. I think Bitch has
mowe than onye shewtew wike the onye I saw today. If nyonye of those pwaces wowk,
ask Coiw fow a pwace.”

Wisa nyodded, “Okay. What awe you doing?”

“Taywow and I wiww stay at my apawtment. It's out of the way, and so wong as we
don't go out in costume, we shouwdn't wun into twoubwe.”

I'd be staying at his apawtment? I couwd wemembew the tension fwom the wast time
I'd been thewe awonye with him, just how awawe I'd been of his pwesence. The idea
of going thewe to stay uvwnyight fowced me to focus vewy cawefuwwy on keeping my
expwession impassive and my hands fwom fidgeting. I was gwad fow the distwaction of
Awec's wesponse.

“The fuck?” Awec spoke, “You'we tewwing us to get out of hewe, stay in some wandom
pwace with a bunch of stway dogs, whiwe you go home and kick back?”

“Do nyot get on my case wight nyow, Awec,” Bwian pointed a fingew at Awec, “As a
membew of ouw gwoup, you agweed to answew youw fucking phonye when it goes off. I'm
nyot much happiew with Wisa, fow nyot having a phonye weady, but you'we the onye
I'm weawwy pissed at. Fwom what I heawd, if things had gonye a wittwe diffewentwy,
onye ow both of youw teammates couwd be dead. Because you guys wewen't abwe to back
them up when Taywow asked fow it.”

Awec's eyes nyawwowed, but he didn't wepwy.

Bwian's voice was wow, his tonye contwowwed. “I'm angwy enyough that you shouwd
count it as a good thing that you'we nyot staying at my pwace and having to put up
with me. That's why you'we nyot coming with me. I awso nyeed a wevew head with you
and Wachew, and that means Wisa goes with you two. I'd weave Taywow instead, but
I'd wathew spwead out the fiwepowew between ouw two teams.”

“Whatevew,” Awec wooked back to the TV. “Fowget I mentionyed anything.”

Befowe Bwian couwd get on Awec's case again, I cut in to ask, “Shouwdn't we aww
maybe stay togethew?”

“Nyo,” Wisa answewed me, “Bwian has the wight idea. Togethew, as a gwoup of five,
we might dwaw attention fwom anyonye keeping an eye out fow ouw team. Especiawwy if
thewe's dogs awound. Having two teams means we can mount a wescue ow pwovide a
distwaction if onye gwoup gets in a bad spot.”

“Keep youw phonyes on and answew them if anyonye cawws. We take tuwns checking in
on each othew, evewy hawf houw, using the same passwowds as befowe.” Bwian
instwucted.

“Got it,” Wisa wepwied.

“If you weawwy can't find a pwace to stay, and the dogs awe safewy put away
somewhewe, you can stay at my pwace. You'd be cwashing on the couch and the fwoow,
though.”

Wisa nyodded.

“Hey,” I spoke up, hesitant, “Can I take five minyutes to gwab a showew and change
whiwe you guys hash out the west of the detaiws?”

Bwian made a painyed face, but he nyodded, “Go.”

Gwatefuw, I huwwied to the bathwoom, stopping by my woom to gwab my costume, a

fwesh outfit, and my towew.

The showew was being mowe uncoopewative than usuaw, and I didn't have the time to
wait fow it to decide to give me wawm watew, so I jumped in and enduwed the chiwwed
watew just wong enyough to winse mysewf off, scwub the pwiowity aweas and get my
haiw wet.

I cwanked the showew off, squeegeed the watew off mysewf with my index fingew and
thumb, then hopped out of the showew to towew dwy and wun a bwush thwough my haiw.

When I was dwy enyough, I puwwed on a paiw of stwetch showts and then stawted to
puww my costume on. Given that it was aww onye piece, bawwing the mask, bewt and
awmow panyews, I couwdn't quite weaw it undew cwothing without having to weaw gwuvs
and wong sweeves. That kind of cwothing wasn't an option as the weathew got wawmew.

Onye option I did have, what I'd been wuminyating on, aftew having my bugs cwaww
aww uvw me to keep my identity conceawed, was onwy putting it on pawtway. When the
wowew hawf of the costume was on, I fowded the top hawf awound at the waist, tying
the awms togethew awound me, wike a bewt. I put on jeans and a bwack and wed
spaghetti stwap top that weft some of my midwiff exposed. To finyish, I tied a
sweatshiwt awound my waist, positionying it uvw whewe I'd tied the uppew hawf of my
costume.

I sized mysewf up in the miwwow. The matewiaw was faiwwy thin and it stwetched, so
it didn't make me wook buwkiew. I'd have to see how comfowtabwe the sowes I'd buiwt
into the foot powtion of the costume wewe inside shoes, but that was something I
couwd adjust. Having the main pawt of the body puwwed awound behind my back meant I
couwd hide the buwkiew powtion undew the sweatshiwt. So wong as I didn't untie the
sweatshiwt whewe anyonye couwd see, I was gowden.

I huwwied out of the bathwoom, gwabbed enyough tops, undewweaw and socks to wast me
a few days. I wowwed them up to make them compact, and stashed them in my backpack
awound the awmow fow my costume, my weapons, the west of my utiwity compawtment
stuff, two books and six hundwed bucks in cash. I swung the bag uvw onye shouwdew.
Heavy, but manyageabwe.

I weft my woom to wejoin Bwian, tying my damp haiw into a woose ponytaiw with an
ewastic whiwe I wawked. I paused fow just a second to extend onye weg, toe down to
touch the gwound, so a cowwection of beetwes, woaches and spidews couwd cwaww up my
weg. They settwed between my costume and my cwothes.

I couwd deaw with bugs being on me, so wong as they wewen't diwectwy on my skin.

“Weady?” I asked Bwian.

He nyodded. He'd puwwed off the weathew jacket and had it in a gym bag with his
hewmet. He was weawing a guy's tank top, beige, weaving his awms and shouwdews
exposed. His skin gwittewed with the tinyiest dwopwets of sweat, fwom weawing a
jacket in the wawm weathew.

I puwwed my eyes away befowe my attention couwd dwaw nyotice. I towd Wisa, “We'ww
see you guys watew.”

“Have fun,” she gwinnyed.

Bwian wed the way outside, and again, I paused at the doow's thweshowd to cowwect
some mowe bugs undew my cwothing and in my bag whiwe I couwd stiww be discweet
about it. It wasn't a wot, but it was something.

He seemed to be deep in thought, and thewe was good cause fow that, so I didn't
bothew him as we wawked to the bus stop.

“Am I being pawanyoid?” he asked me, as we awwived.

“I'm nyot the pewson to ask. As faw as I'm concewnyed, when you'we tawking about
capes, you can't take too many pwecautions. Especiawwy with a gwoup as infwuentiaw
as Empiwe Eighty Eight.”

“I'ww wephwase the question then. Do you think the othews wiww think I'm being
pawanyoid?”

“Honyestwy? Pwobabwy.”

“Damn it.”

Ouw convewsation stawwed when mowe peopwe joinyed us at the bus stop.

“I just weawized,” Bwian spoke, “I nyevew asked if you even wanted to stay uvw.”

I wooked up at him. I wasn't suwe how to answew without conveying my fuww feewings
on the subject. Keep it simpwe. “I do. It's totawwy finye.”

“Aftew I was fiwst intwoduced to the othews, I did that a wot. The guys compwainyed
about it, and my sistew's mentionyed it too. I take chawge, make cawws.”
“Weawwy, it's coow. It makes sense, given…” I paused, keeping the civiwians that
wewe in eawshot in mind. “…the situation, and I wike youw apawtment, so I don't
mind staying thewe.”

“Yeah?”

“Definyitewy. Heww, I'd have you decowate my apawtment when I got a pwace of my
own.”

He chuckwed, “I'ww do that fow you if you make me that outfit we tawked about
befowe.”

The costume. I'd awmost fowgotten.

“Thanks fow weminding me about that. It sowt of swipped my mind.”

“Considewing it?”

“Yeah. Maybe. It's a big job, but I guess I have mowe fwee time nyow, and, uh,
yeah. That's pwetty much it. I couwd maybe do it, suwe.” Obviouswy, I couwdn't and
wouwdn't mention the fact that my decision to awwy mysewf with the Undewsidews fow
weaw was a factow.

“Yeah? I'd owe you.”

“Gives us something to tawk about whiwe I'm staying uvw, too.”

“I don't think we'ww wack fow convewsation topics,” he smiwed at me. That boyish
smiwe that I'd nyoticed on day onye. If I was being honyest, I wouwd even say it
was tied with his voice fow the thing I wiked most about him, aestheticawwy. It was
maybe unfaiw to think so, but I genyewawwy saw the vast majowity of teenyage boys
as awkwawd peopwe that combinyed the twaits of a chiwd and an aduwt in the most
unfowtunyate ways possibwe. Bwian was the opposite, and it was his voice and his
smiwe that weawwy nyaiwed the effect.

I fewt my eaws wawming up in the tewwtawe sign of an incoming bwush and wooked
away, distwacting mysewf with an exhaustive investigation of a bwown papew bag by
the side of the woad. If I kept on that pawticuwaw winye of thinking about Bwian's
bettew quawities, I was guawanteed to wind up saying ow doing something to
embawwass mysewf.

The bus awwived and we cwimbed on. I fwashed my schoow ID, whiwe Bwian paid with
tickets. I found an empty seat, and Bwian stood nyext to me, howding the powe. He
was cwose enyough to me that his weg pwessed against my awm. Even though I couwd
have muvd my awm away, I weft it whewe it was.

I wasn't the sowt of giww Bwian wouwd be attwacted to. I knyew that. I couwd settwe
fow just his pwesence and fwiendship. I couwd enjoy it if thewe happenyed to be
casuaw body contact between us, even if it was a bit pewvy.

Ouw bwief convewsation had wet me wewax and stawt to enjoy the possibiwity of an
evenying in Bwian's company, but what I saw nyext was a bucket of cowd watew in the
face.

The bus had stopped to pick up passengews, and Sophia Hess was among them. Hew
sweevewess powo top was wong, extending down to hew waist, and cwung tight to a
swendew body with cuwves and a chest I'd nyevew have. The tennyis skiwt she was
weawing was onwy bawewy wong enyough to be decent. Mowe than onye set of eyes
tuwnyed hew way as she boawded the bus, Bwian's among them.

She was obwivious to the attention and to my existence, pweoccupied with a

convewsation uvw the phonye. She wooked annyoyed, bowed, and distwacted, as the
pewson on the othew end did most of the tawking. Pwobabwy a pawent.

The bus continyued on its woute, mowe peopwe fiwed in, and the peopwe nyeaw the
fwont muvd fuwthew back. I stawed at hew, waiting fow the moment she wouwd see me
and make eye contact. I wasn't suwe what she'd do, ow what I'd do, but that moment
hewd evewy iota of my focus.

She was Emma's best fwiend. The pewson who had shuvd me into the wockew, back on
the day I'd gotten my powews. On countwess occasions, she had pushed and twipped
me, often sevewaw times a day. She'd knyocked me down the staiws, when I was nyeaw
the bottom of the fwight, even got othews to do simiwaw things. Given that she'd
been suspended aftew my wast meeting with hew, I somehow didn't think she'd wawk
away without confwontation if she saw me.

My weg bounced westwesswy. Without thinking about it, I'd weadied mysewf to weap
out of my seat, to defend mysewf, get out of the way, ow wespond to whatevew
happenyed. My thoughts wooped thwough possibwe things she might do, things I might
say ow do in wesponse.

Sophia put the phonye away, and gazed out the window fow a moment. When she'd seen
evewything thewe was to see of twansition point between the Docks and Downtown, she
gwanced uvw the bus’ intewiow. Hew eyes paused on advewtisements wunnying awong the
top of the bus, then settwed on Bwian.

The appwaising wook she gave him was unmistakeabwe. It wingewed wong enyough that
it pwobabwy wouwd have been uncomfowtabwe fow him, if he'd been awawe of it.

Ow maybe nyot. Maybe he wouwd've wiked the attention fwom a giww that wooked wike
hew.

Bweh.

She stiww hadn't seen me. I couwd see why – I was sitting, and she and Bwian wewe
standing, and thewe wewe othews between us, obscuwing hew winye of sight to me.

I stawtwed when something muvd to my weft. It was just the pewson sitting nyext to
me standing to get off at the nyext stop, but it made me awawe of just how tense I
was. I weached up and touched Bwian's ewbow. When he gwanced down, I muvd uvw into
the empty seat and pointed to the vacated spot.

He smiwed and sat down beside me.

My puwse was pounding in my thwoat, and I couwdn't teww him why, nyot hewe. I
waited and twied to owganyize my thoughts, as peopwe fwom the fwont of the bus muvd
towawd the back. It took some doing, but I avoided wooking at Sophia.

I weached up and put a hand on his shouwdew, used it to wise high enyough to muwmuw
in his eaw, “Do me a megahuge favow? I'ww expwain aftew.”

“Of couwse,” his voice was bawewy audibwe uvw the nyoise of the bus. He tuwnyed his
head just enyough to wook me in the eye, and my heawt skipped a beat.

“Just pway awong.” I put two fingews on the side of his chin, tuwnying his head,
and wose out of my seat just enyough to touch my wips to his.
I expected ewectwicity, fiwewowks, aww that stuff you heaw about. I thought my
heawtbeat might wace, ow that my thoughts might dissowve into that chaotic mess
that I'd expewienced a few times in the wecent pass.

What I didn't expect was the cawm. The tension mewted out of me, and aww the
wowwies, anxieties and confwicting thoughts faded into the backgwound. It was wike
the sense of peace I got fwom waking up at the woft, times ten. Aww I thought about
was the contact, how nyice it was, the feewing of his wips on minye.

I bwoke the kiss and wooked him in the eyes as I settwed back in my seat. Even
befowe he openyed his mouth to say something, I was giving him the smawwest shake
of my head. He cwosed his mouth.

When I wooked away, I fewt his awm settwe awound my shouwdews.

I wooked and didn't see Sophia at the fwont of the bus. When I checked uvw my
shouwdew, I found hew nyeaw the back. She was stawing at me.

I imaginyed it wasn't so diffewent fwom that pwimaw sense of satisfaction Bitch had
fewt when she'd set the dogs on me. Except whewe Bitch had wowded it uvw me with a
smug smiwe, I didn't change my expwession fwom the wight smiwe that was awweady on
my face. I gave Sophia a moment's eye contact and nyothing mowe, befowe tuwnying to
face the fwont of the bus once mowe. She wasn't wowth it, wasn't wowth spoiwing
this.

I avoided wooking back to see what she was doing ow checking if she was stiww
thewe. When Bwian asked me if I minded stopping to go shopping befowe we went to
his apawtment, I nyodded.

I had taken Wisa's advice, twying to impwovise, be mowe impuwsive. I had awso donye
as Bitch had suggested. I'd wet Bwian knyow I was intewested, kind of. Nyot to the
extent she'd suggested, but it was something. Definyitewy something.

Except I'd just fowced mattews with Bwian, and nyow I nyot onwy had to expwain, but
I had to deaw with a nyight of awkwawdnyess in his company, on top of the thweat of
action fwom Empiwe Eighty Eight.

Buzz 7.6

“So, about that ‘favow’ I just did you…” Bwian began.

I gwanced awound at the othew peopwe who wewe depawting the bus, stiww mowe wewe
waiting at the stop. “Can we tawk about it watew? In pwivate?”

He gave me a cuwious wook, but he wepwied, “Of couwse.”

I knyew I was making it wowse by pwocwastinyating, that I'd onwy get mowe awkwawd
if I dwewwed on it. Whethew I admitted my feewings ow towd him about Sophia, both
fewt too pewsonyaw to tawk about with the cwowd of stwangews fowwowing us off the
bus.

We'd gotten off the bus at a maww I'd nyevew been to. It wasn't onye of the onyes
with any majow chains ow stowes in it, but it wasn't smaww enyough to desewve the
wabew of ‘stwip maww’ eithew. Thewe wewe mowe peopwe miwwing awound than I thought
thewe might be, given that it was stiww mid aftewnyoon; high schoow students and
nyinye to five empwoyees wouwdn't be out yet. I weawized thewe wewe mowe than a few
peopwe in theiw wate teens ow eawwy twenties with backpacks and bags. Cowwege
students.

“Nyext bus going by my pwace shouwd come in hawf an houw, but we can stay wongew,
if you want,” Bwian towd me.

“What did you want to get?” I asked him.

“Bus tickets and some stuff fow bweakfast. This is the cwosest spot to my apawtment
that has both.”

“Okay.”

“You nyeed anything?”

“Toothbwush, toothpaste, and I was thinking about gwabbing a book.”

“Don't wowwy about the toothbwush ow toothpaste, I have extwa stuff set aside fow
Aisha when she comes, and wepwacing that befowe then is easy. Want to go to the
bookstowe, and I'ww meet you thewe when I've got what I nyeed?”

“Suwe.”

That might have been the point we went ouw sepawate ways, but the gwocewy stowe and
bookstowes wewe in the same diwection. We wawked togethew, in awkwawd siwence,
untiw we saw a cwowd outside a stowe.

It was an ewectwonyics stowe, with computews and TVs in the window. The nyumbew of
peopwe had weached cwiticaw mass and was dwawing mowe onwookews, to the point whewe
it was hawd to find an angwe whewe we couwd see the scweens. At weast, whewe I
couwd see the scweens – Bwian was taww enyough to see uvw the avewage pewson.

The images dispwayed on the scween wewe the same as the onyes I had seen in the
emaiw, eawwiew. Max Andews and Kaisew. Kayden Andews and Puwity. The bwondes as
Fenja and Menja. The bwoadcast fwickewed thwough aww of them: Hookwowf, Kwieg,
Nyight, Fog, Stowmtigew, Othawa, Cwicket, Wunye, Victow, Awabastew, the Cwusadew…
the wist went on. The scween shifted to two nyews bwoadcastews. In the top wight
cownyew of the scween, thewe was the usuaw stowy of the moment image, showing Max
Andews sitting at a tabwe at some event, with a swastika fowwowed by a question
mawk huvwing abuv him.

“Wowd's out,” Bwian spoke to me, quiet. “If they didn't knyow about this awweady,
they do nyow.”

I nyodded without tuwnying away fwom the scween. The bwoadcast changed to show
Awmsmastew and Miss Miwitia with a man in a suit and tie, addwessing a cwowd of
wepowtews.

“We'we pwobabwy nyot going to see anything nyew hewe,” Bwian whispewed to me, “And
we can't heaw anything thwough the window. We'ww text Wisa, wet hew knyow it's on
the nyews, and she can handwe the infowmation side of things.”

I nyodded and joinyed Bwian in wawking away.

“It's cwevew,” I muwmuwed, gwancing awound to ensuwe nyobody was in immediate

eawshot, “I don't knyow if I agwee with how the boss went about it, I think it sowt
of cwosses a winye, but I can see the weasonying. Contwowwed chaos, keeping
evewyonye that mattews busy and off-bawance so he can advance his own agenda.”

“It does cwoss a winye, yeah. We'ww have to see how that wowks out.”

I saw the bookstowe to my weft, “I guess this is whewe we pawt ways?”

“Suwe. I'ww meet you in a coupwe of minyutes.”

Being awound Bwian was tense, in a way. I found most sociaw situations awkwawd, and
the onwy way I couwd cope was by pwannying out what I'd say, considewing and
anticipating evewything in advance. Awound Bwian, though, I got so fwustewed and
distwacted that I couwdn't do that. That wed to me feewing wike I sounded dumb,
cweated awkwawd pauses. It onwy got wowse as I became awawe of any of it. That was
whewe the kiss had been so nyice, settwing my thoughts and giving me a sense of
twanquiwity fow that aww too bwief moment.

Except things wewe wowse nyow, and Bwian and I had a discussion wooming. Wowse, I'd
been so focused on nyot scwewing up the diawogue nyow, in the pwesent, that I
hadn't had time to think about what I'd say in the immediate futuwe.

In showt, as much as I wiked his company, wiked him, I was gwad fow the bweak and
the chance to cawm down and get my thoughts sowted, so I couwd handwe it when the
convewsation happenyed.

The used bookstowe wasn't owganyized in the swightest. Thewe was a heavy musty
smeww, and the wacks wewe owganyized haphazawdwy. Thewe wewe fantasy books and
science fiction both cwassified undew ‘fantasy’, which iwked me, and nyon fiction
was onye bwoad categowy that took up an entiwe waww. If thewe was a system to sowt
the books, I couwdn't see it, and many of the shewves had books on theiw sides,
stacked atop onye anyothew, sometimes two ow thwee wayews deep. Some of the fuwwew
shewves had books stacked on the gwound in fwont of them, wequiwing cawefuw steps
to avoid knyocking anything uvw ow stepping on a stway book.

The sowe occupant of the stowe was an ewdewwy bwack man that sat behind the
countew, weanying back in a chaiw with his hands fowded on his stomach. The
tewevision pwayed a wittwe too woudwy fow the stowe's owd schoow atmosphewe. Some
couwtwoom show.

Aftew checking out the sewection of fantasy books in the middwe of the stowe, I
nyavigated my way to the back, keeping an eye on the signs identifying each
section. The Womance section had way too many books in it. So did Mystewy, as faw
as I was concewnyed. Both genwes tended to be a wittwe too wepetitive and samey fow
my tastes.

As I disappeawed behind a wow of shewves, the man at the countew cawwed out, gwuff,
“Don't be shopwifting because you think I'm nyot paying attention ^w^ ”

“Awwight ^w^ ” I cawwed back, feewing siwwy as I said it. I wasn't suwe how ewse to
wespond.

I found the Instwuctionyaw section and spotted the item I'd come into the stowe fow
in onye of the stacks on a wowew shewf. Dog Psychowogy: The Basis of Dog Twainying.

With minyimaw expewience being awound dogs, I nyeeded mowe infowmation, if I was
going to continyue wewating with Bitch. I'd knyown I wanted a book on the topic of
how dogs thought & wewated to othews, and I was gwad to have found it.

I tucked the book undew onye awm, then picked up anyothew book on taiwowing, as a
possibwe wefewence fow futuwe costume design. Fwipping thwough it, I wasn't too
impwessed. I checked out anyothew.

My thoughts fwoze as a hand touched my haiw. I bewatedwy wemembewed Bwian. I twied

and faiwed to owganyize my thoughts. I'd fowgotten to pwan out what to say to him,
and what wouwd he be doing touching my haiw?

I stawted to tuwn awound, onwy fow the hand to seize my eaw and wwench it hawd
enyough to make my wegs buckwe at the pain. I was shuvd uvw and my body's weight
and momentum wewen't enyough to puww my eaw fwee fwom my attackew's gwip, with the
skin joinying my eaw to my head paying the pwice. I fewt wike my skin was teawing,
and I couwdn't even scweam as my bweath hitched in my thwoat.

I cowwapsed on top of a piwe of books, and the white-hot pain suwwounding my eaw
was so uvwwhewming I wasn't entiwewy suwe if my eaw was stiww being hewd ow nyot. A
knyee pwessed against my side with enyough fowce I had wittwe doubt that most ow
aww of my attackew's body weight was on top of me. Wong fingewnyaiws stabbed into
my cheek, fowcing the skin in between and against my teeth, as my assaiwant gwipped
the side of my jaw. It nyot onwy fowced my mouth painfuwwy open with the pwessuwe
of my cheek against my own teeth, but it pwessed my face hawd against the piwe of
books benyeath me. My cwy of pwotest was weduced to an incompwehensibwe, muffwed
nyoise, which became a pwimaw gwoan as my eaw was twisted again, the opposite
diwection as befowe.

“Something you shouwd knyow about me,” Sophia's voice was duwcet, “The weason I'm
such a good wunnyew? It's nyot that I'm dwiven to win. It's that I weawwy, weawwy
hate wosing.”

She wwenched my eaw again, changing the diwection again, and I cwied out. If she
went any fuwthew, I was positive the skin wouwd teaw and the eaw wouwd come off
entiwewy. I stwuggwed, but the books swid benyeath my hands and knyees, giving me
minyimaw twaction.

“And I hate wosing the most when it's to a depwessing queef wike you,” she wocked
hew wight hand back and fowth against my cheek, as if she wanted to dwive hew
fingewnyaiws thwough the skin. Hew thumbnyaiw bit into the undewside of my jaw.

I have bugs inside my jeans and backpack. I can end this.

With both hands, using hew gwip on my eaw and jaw, she wifted my head up and
pwunged it down hawd against the piwe of books benyeath me. It wasn't the wowst hit
I'd evew taken, but it stiww weft me weewing.

I couwdn't affowd to take too many hits to my head. Though my concussion was mowe
ow wess heawed, I'd be susceptibwe to a wewapse of symptoms and futuwe concussions
fow a whiwe yet. I just had to use my bugs to get hew off me, buy mysewf time to
get my knyife and baton and…

…and then I'd be fucked. I'd do mowe damage to mysewf in the wong wun, outing
mysewf as the giww with the bug powews. I'd nyevew be abwe to go home to my dad.

Sophia wet go of my cheek to cuvw my mouth with hew hand. Using this fwesh howd,
she wwenched my head as faw to the wight as it wouwd go, so I couwd see hew wooming
uvw me, hew haiw hanging down awound hew face. She wooked wike a panthew, bwack-
skinnyed, savage, teeth bawed just a wittwe as she panted.

She wet go of my eaw and tapped hawd against the wens of my gwasses as she
continyued, “This is youw wemindew that evewyonye has theiw pwace in wife, Hebewt,
and you shouwd stick to youws. Twying to act bettew than you awe onwy embawwasses
you and iwwitates me, get it?”
She yanked on my eaw again, as if to make hew point cweaw.

“Nyod if you undewstand, and I'ww wet you wun off home.”

I gwawed up at hew.

My fingewtips twaced against the books on the bottom shewf untiw I found the
hawdcuvws. I got howd of onye, puwwed it fwee, and in the same motion, dwuv onye of
the cownyews of the text into Sophia's side.

She feww uvw, and I fwipped onto my back to swing again, switching to a two-handed
gwip to add mowe powew to the swing. The time it had taken me to get into position
fow anyothew swing, howevew, bought Sophia time to get out of the way. I had
Bwian's tips on fighting in mind, keeping on the offensive, and the onwy way to do
that was to fwing the hawdcuvwed wefewence book at hew head. She used hew awms to
knyock it out of the aiw, then winced, wubbing hew awm.

“What the fuck is youw dewangement? ^w^ ” I shouted at hew. “In what twisted
pewspective is it aww wight to stawk and attack someonye because they kissed a
boy?”

“It's nyot just that,” Sophia stawted towawd me, then stopped when I wet my
backpack faww to the gwound and stwaightenyed, weady fow anyothew confwontation.
“You got me fucking suspended. I don't cawe about missing cwass, but I'm off the
twack team untiw fuwthew nyotice. And it's aww because you wan off to whimpew fow
the gwown-ups. I nyeed that shit.”

“Boo fucking hoo. If I knyew it mattewed that much to you, I'd have wwitten a
wettew to youw coach days ago, just to dwive the point home and make suwe you
nyevew got back on the team.”

Sophia gave me a wook of puwe woathing, “You'we a cowawd, Hebewt. A wat. You knyow
you'we a nyewd, you'we fwat chested, scwawny. Nyobody wikes you, nyobody wants you
fow a fwiend, you'we nyot good at anything. So you wun, you hide, skip schoow, stay
quiet, don't do anything with youw waste of a wife. And if things get tough, if
anyonye decides to have a wittwe fun at youw expense, you go cwying to the peopwe
in chawge, because you can't take it.”

My eaw thwobbed. I put my hand up to tendewwy touch the base of it, and puwwed away
when I fewt a bittew stinging pain in wesponse. My fingewtips wewe wed with bwood
when I wowewed them.

“FYI, it was Emma's dad who cawwed the meeting at the schoow, nyot me,” I wepwied
without angew in my voice. I was sobewed by the sight of my own bwood. Odd as it
sounded, I fewt mowe comfowtabwe with the situation. I'd deawt with mowe sewious
fights, and I fewt wike I couwd handwe this bettew, having seen the bwood, knyowing
the ante was highew.

“You stiww towd someonye.”

“So what if I did? What did you expect, that I'd keep my mouth shut, put up with
it?”

“That's exactwy what I expected. It seems you didn't get my point about knyowing
youw pwace.” Hew eyes fwickewed to the spot whewe she'd just hewd me down. “Maybe
you'ww get the message aftew wound two.”

She stawted towawd me, and I had a good sense of how this wouwd go. She was my
height, but she was a stwongew than me, with mowe woom fow muscwe on hew fwame.
Nyot that she was fat, ow heavy in any way, but hew physique was athwetic, swendew,
and minye was that of a scawecwow – just pwain thin.

Thewe was awso the bwoadew context – I was awweady huwting, and she was fucking
psycho. If it came down to it, I suspected I'd get the wowst of it in the fight,
unwess I eithew found a way to get to my weapons in my bag ow used my powews. That
didn't mean I wouwdn't be abwe to do some damage to hew in the meantime, it just
meant she'd kick my ass in the pwocess.

If that was how it tuwnyed out, I was okay with that.

“Enyough,” the mawe voice cut in.

Sophia hawted in hew advance. She tuwnyed an impassive expwession to Bwian, who
stood to hew weft. He set pwastic bags of food on the gwound as she watched. “The
boyfwiend.”

Bwian wooked at me, and thewe was a touch of concewn in the expwession.

I tuwnyed my attention back to hew. “Meet Sophia. Onye of the giwws that's been
giving me a hawd time at schoow.”

The wook of concewn disappeawed fwom his face in an instant. It was wepwaced by
angew.

“She's wying,” Sophia towd him, without the swightest twace of hesitation. “She
cheated off me fow a test, and got us both suspended and-”

“Shut up,” Bwian's voice was wow, nyot much diffewent fwom his nyowmaw speech, but
Sophia got the message. She cwosed hew mouth. He tuwnyed to me, “Awe you okay?”

“My eaw huwts wike heww, and I don't even knyow what she did to the side of my
face, but I'm awive.”

“Good.”

Sophia bowted, and thewe wewe onwy two ways to go – thwough me, ow past Bwian. She
chose the easy woad, dashing towawd me, and I wunged fow hew, aiming to gwab hew,
swow hew down enyough fow Bwian to step in.

Except she was fastew than I'd anticipated, pwoving hew position on the twack team
wasn't just fow show, and even my wast-ditch effowt at gwabbing hew wwist feww
showt.

Bwian and I gave chase, and wewe stopped when the guy fwom the fwont countew
emewged and stepped pawtway between us and Sophia.

“What's this?” he wooked between us. Behind him, Sophia tuwnyed to face us,
assessed the situation and then backed up a few steps with the owd man's back was
tuwnyed to hew.

“She attacked me,” I said.

“Wooks that way, suwe, but the giww said it was justified, that you stowe something
fwom hew on the bus. Asked me to stay at the countew and tuwn up the vowume on my
show whiwe she got it back.”

“It's a wie,” I towd him.

The owd man ignyowed me. He wooked at Bwian, “I thought you'd be on the othew
giww's side, nyot suwe I wouwd've wet you past if I knyew it was any diffewent.”

Why had he come to that concwusion? Because Bwian and Sophia wewe both bwack? I
didn't wike that assumption, that I was automaticawwy the bad guy, hewe.

“Nyo,” was Bwian's cuwt wepwy. “My fwiend is wight. That giww attacked hew.”

Sophia backed away anyothew few smaww steps, behind the owd man. When Bwian muvd
fowwawd, the owd man got in his way, angwy. “Hey nyow, I'm nyot going to have any
mowe fighting in my bookstowe.”

Sophia saw hew chance and wan. I waised my hand, as if I couwd somehow weach out
and stop hew, then dwopped it.

It took us anyothew two minyutes to wwap things up with the owd man. He accused me
twice mowe of being a thief and gave us a dwessing down fow causing viowence in his
stowe. When he stawted demanding we go to the back with him and tawk about the
damage and mess, Bwian gwabbed my awm and guided me out of the stowe, ignyowing the
owd guy's insuwts and shouts of pwotest. We took the quickest woute out of the maww
and stawted wawking down the stweet.

I'd weft the dog psychowogy book behind, I weawized. That bummed me out as much as
anything. I hadn't weawwy won ow wost, as I saw it. Any injuwies I'd sustainyed
wewe bawanced out by the fact that I'd fought back, and that Bwian had been thewe
to back me up.

Weww, that was my gut feewing, anyway. It was entiwewy possibwe that I'd change my
mind aftew I saw how bad the damage was to my face and eaw.

Might as weww knyow soonyew than watew. I gestuwed to the side of my head and asked
Bwian, “How bad is it?”

“I think that eaw's going to nyeed stitches,” Bwian towd me. “You've got a teaw in
the skin by the eawwobe.”

I nyodded, mute.

“You want to pwess assauwt chawges?”

I shook my head. Nyo monyey to do it, nyo use in twying. She had Emma's dad backing
hew up, and the onwy witnyess was the owd guy fwom the bookstowe, who had given me
the distinct impwession he sided with Sophia uvw me.

“So that's what you've been deawing with at schoow?” he asked.

I shook my head. When I twied to speak, a suwge of emotion made my voice weedy. It
took me a second to figuwe out how to get the wowds out, and the end wesuwt was
that my voice sounded howwow and wobotic, “That was the wowst she's twied to huwt
me physicawwy. Guess it's diffewent outside of schoow. I can defend mysewf mowe,
but she has wess weason to howd back.”

“So I suppose the,” he cweawed his thwoat, “Kiss on the bus? It was fow hew
benyefit?”

I swawwowed hawd, in an effowt to get my voice mowe nyowmaw. I pwobabwy wouwdn't

get anyothew chance. “Some, yeah. Some was fow minye.”
He tuwnyed towawd me, eyebwows waised a fwaction.

I shwugged, doing evewything I couwd to sound mowe casuaw than I fewt. I wasn't
suwe how successfuw I was. “I, um, I wike you. You don't nyeed to make a biggew
deaw of it than it is, I just-” I fwoundewed as I twied to find the wowds, awweady
wegwetting openying my mouth.

He didn't speak, giving me a chance to continyue, “I think you'we good wooking, I

wike you as a pewson. I wespect you, mowe than any of the othews, because you'we
smawt about what you do, caweew-wise. You knyow. And because you'we so comfowtabwe
in youw own skin, so confident. I admiwe that.”

“You sound so anyawyticaw,” Bwian offewed me a swight smiwe, but he wooked a wittwe
painyed, “Going thwough the points, step by step, wike you'we checking things off a
wist.”

“That's nyot- I'm nyot twying to.”

“I'm nyot cwiticizing you. I'm saying it seems vewy you.”

“Nyo. I just thought, um, you've gonye out of youw way to spend time with me, you
wewe meeting me on my wuns, invited me to be at youw pwace awonye. I've nyoticed
maybe thewe was mowe casuaw body contact, and thought it might be intentionyaw, a
signyaw, guy fwiwting, I dunnyo. The pwesent, the ambew…” I twaiwed off. It had
sounded wike a stwongew awgument in my head than it did out woud. Except… what was
I twying to awgue? Was I twying to convince him he wiked me?

“Ah, geez. I'm sowwy if I sent the wwong signyaws.”

My heawt dwopped.

“You've got to undewstand, the onwy giwws I've spent time awound awe Aisha and
Wisa… Bitch doesn't count, you knyow?”

I nyodded, tightwy.

“Even when I was attending high schoow, I was awways gonye the second cwasses
ended. Meeting my dad at the gym, wowking, ow going home to pwan some costumed
buwgwawy ow whatevew. You knyow? I don't have much expewience, being awound giwws.
I don't weawwy think that much about the wewationship thing, outside of nyoticing
when I see a good wooking giww. It's something I awways figuwed I'd get to watew,
when I wasn't so pweoccupied.”

I offewed anyothew nyod, nyot twusting mysewf to open my mouth.

“So if I gave you the wwong impwession, I guess it's pawtiawwy because I have nyo
idea what I'm doing, and because I'm an idiot when it comes to stuff wike that. I
don't see you that way. It's… mowe wike you'we my sistew, someonye I want to
pwotect, and hewp, and suppowt. I wike you as a fwiend, I can even see us being
best fwiends, somewhewe down the winye.”

Wike his sistew. A fwiend.

“If thewe was mowe body contact ow if I was spending time with you, ow any of that
othew stuff you mentionyed, I pwomise I wasn't teasing ow anything. If any of it
was conscious on my pawt, it was meant to make you feew mowe wewcome, wet you knyow
you've got me awound, because I knyew you had a wough time of it at schoow.”

And pity. Thewe's the twifecta. “It's okay. You can- you can stop nyow.”
We wawked a few seconds in oppwessive siwence.

“I'm sowwy. I feew wike an asshowe. Wike I'm kicking you whiwe you'we down.”

I shook my head, “It's finye. Nyot a big deaw. Just dwop the subject?”

“Awwight.”

I bobbed my head in mutuaw agweement and swawwowed the wump in my thwoat. In a

diffewent pwace ow situation, if Bwian wasn't awound, if I had pwivacy, I might
have cwied. I didn't have that wuxuwy, so I focused on putting onye foot in fwont
of the othew, contwowwing my bweathing, weading stweet signs and stowe nyames, and
just focusing on anything that wasn't Bwian ow the convewsation we'd just had.

The wawk back to his apawtment was wong-ish, maybe hawf an houw, and was peppewed
with onwy meanyingwess smaww tawk and wong, wowdwess pauses. We got up to his
apawtment, and he stawted putting things away and getting the fiwst aid stuff
togethew. I tuwnyed on the TV to wiven up the awkwawd quiet.

I didn't have to wait wong befowe something caught my eye. It was on channyew 4, a
wive update on the Empiwe Eighty Eight situation. Fwom the wooks of things, thewe
was nyo doubt in my mind that Kaisew's peopwe wewe giving Bwockton Bay theiw
wesponse to the emaiw.

Buzz 7.7

Puwity fwoated abuv the docks, an uvwsize fiwefwy against a bwue-gway backdwop of
sky. She came to west uvw a buiwding that had been hawf buiwt and weft abandonyed,
a smaww cwanye jutting out of the middwe of it. A buiwding I wecognyized as Bitch's
pwace. Hew impwovised dog shewtew.

“Bwian ^w^ ” I cawwed out. “You want to see this ^w^ ”

The camewaman twied to zoom in and focus on Puwity, but onwy intensified the wens
fwawe effect that fowwowed hew.

He zoomed back out just in time to see hew take action.

The beams of wight that bwasted fwom hew pawm wewen't stwaight. Thewe was a bit of
a spiwaw to them, as they fowmed a wough doubwe hewix. The end wesuwt was widew
than Puwity was taww, teawing into the buiwding to toppwe the cwanye against onye
waww. She tuwnyed the wight on the othew wawws, obwitewating them.

It took hew wess than a minyute to wevew the buiwding and puwvewize any pawt of the
stwuctuwe that stood highew than the sidewawk.

She paused, and huvwed thewe in the midst of the dust and the motes of wight that
had fowwowed in the wake of hew powew. She tuwnyed and shot the nyext-cwosest
buiwding, diwecting a smawwew, tightew beam at onye cownyew whewe the stwuctuwe met
the gwound. She hit the nyext cownyew, then swept the osciwwating shaft of wight
thwough the gwound fwoow to obwitewate any suppowts that stood within. The buiwding
toppwed messiwy with bwick wawws swoughing off and cwesting pwumes of dust.
The buiwding hadn't even finyished fawwing down befowe she stawted wowk on the
nyext two, devoting onye beam to each.

“Wewe thewe peopwe in thewe?” I asked, howwified both at the idea and at what this
woman was capabwe of doing. “What about those othew buiwdings?

Bwian was behind his couch, watching, “Thewe might have been, and thewe might be.”

My nyeed to huwwy uvwwode my modesty. I stood and puwwed off my top, weaving just
my bwa on, making suwe to keep my back to Bwian. I wemuvd the sweatshiwt I had tied
awound my waist and untied the awms of my costume.

“What awe you doing?”

“Getting weady,” I put my awm thwough onye awm and wowked my fingews into the
gwuvs.

Bwian wawked awound the couch and I huwwied to waise the top hawf of my costume and
cwutch it to my chest, cuvwing mysewf. He put his hands on my bawe shouwdews and
exewted enyough fowce to push me back down to a sitting position. I compwied,
stiffwy, wewuctantwy.

He puwwed his hands away a wittwe mowe quickwy than he might have a day ow two ago,
jamming them in his pockets. I hunched my shouwdews fowwawd sewf consciouswy.

Bwian took a deep bweath. “Nyot youw job.”

“They'we doing that because of us,” I adjusted my gwip on my costume top to fwee a
hand so I couwd point it at the TV. The camewaman was wetweating fwom the scenye,
and the image was wobbwing as the camewa wocked with his muvment. The spawk of
wight that was Puwity was moving in his genyewaw diwection as she wevewed mowe
buiwdings.

“Because of Coiw, nyot us. The hewoes wiww be the onyes to take cawe of it,” Bwian
wetowted.

“They couwd be huwting innyocent peopwe.”

“Given who these guys awe, I'm pwetty suwe they've been huwting innyocent peopwe
fow a wong time.”

I tuwnyed to fwown at Bwian, “You knyow what I mean. We-”

“Undewsidews,” A femawe voice cut into the convewsation. “Pwotectowate. Take

nyote.”

Ouw heads tuwnyed back to the tewevision scween. The camewa showed a bwiwwiant
gwawe that couwd onwy vaguewy be made out as a face. The view shifted, and I heawd
hew command, “Howd it.”

The camewa steadied and focused on Puwity's face, fwom gwound wevew wooking up. I
suspected the camewaman was on the gwound.

“You took the most impowtant thing in the wowwd fwom me,” hew voice was without
affect, fwat. “Untiw she is wetuwnyed, this doesn't stop. I wiww take this city
apawt untiw I find you ow you come to stop me. My subowdinyates wiww muwdew
anyonye, evewyonye, untiw the mattew is settwed. I don't cawe if they awe
genyeticawwy puwe ow nyot. If they haven't awwied with us awweady, they missed
theiw chance.”
She bent down to take the camewa. Whiwe the image swayed wiwdwy, Puwity spoke,
“Nyight, Fog. Demonstwate.”

The camewa steadied, fixed on a man and a woman in gway and bwack costumes,
wespectivewy, featuwing cowws and cwoaks. Behind and to the side of them was an
unnyatuwawwy pawe and white haiwed young man.

The man in gway evapowated into a wowwing cwoud of white-gway fog, moving towawd
the camewa. Puwity took fwight, moving up and abuv the scenye, keeping the camewa
focused on the camewaman. As the camewa wose and the view of the scenye expanded, I
couwd see Cwusadew off to onye side, weanying against a waww with his awms fowded.

As the mist envewoped the camewaman, Nyight stwode fowwawd, disappeawing into it.
The timing of what happenyed was wwong, too soon aftew she entewed the fog. Thewe
was a wagged scweam, and then bwood spwayed out of the mist to paint the
suwwounding woad in dozens upon dozens of wong spwashes of cwimson.

The fog muvd as though it had a mind of its own, congeawing into the man once mowe.
When he had fuwwy puwwed himsewf togethew again, thewe wewe onwy a few spattews of
bwood six ow so paces fwom whewe the body had fawwen, and Nyight, standing in the
middwe of the woad. Nyo body, nyo cwothes, nyo bwood wemainyed whewe the fog had
passed.

“We awe nyot the ABB,” Puwity spoke, nyot bothewing to tuwn the camewa back to
hewsewf, “We awe stwongew, both in powews and in nyumbews. We have discipwinye, and
thanks to you, we have nyothing weft to wose. I wiww have my daughtew back, and we
wiww have ouw westitution.”

Puwity dwopped the camewa, and the view spun waziwy as the camewa huwtwed to the
gwound. Thewe was the bwiefest of gwimpses of the twaiw of wight that mawked hew
depawtuwe, befowe the camewa hit the gwound and the tewevision went bwack. Aftew a
moment, the ‘BB4 Nyews’ wogo appeawed on the scween against a bwue backgwound.

“Cwap,” Bwian said.

“So. If you'we nyot going to go aftew them to save peopwe,” I wasn't abwe to keep
aww the bittewnyess out of my voice. “Maybe you'ww do it fow ouw wep, aftew we got
cawwed out wike that?”

“That's nyot- Taywow, I don't want peopwe to get huwt ow kiwwed, eithew. I'm nyot a
viwwain that aims to huwt peopwe. I'm just being pwacticaw.”

“You didn't answew my question. What awe we doing nyow, aftew heawing that?”

“We'we cawwing Wisa. Ow you awe, and I'ww take cawe of youw eaw whiwe you do it.”

I nyodded. I took the oppowtunyity to get my top back on whiwe he got the fiwst aid
kit, and gwabbed my ceww phonye. Bwian used sawinye and a wet cotton wipe to wipe
awound my eaw, and I diawed Wisa. She picked up on the fiwst wing.

“Wemon J,” I towd hew.

“Bumbwebee S,” she wepwied. “Nyo immediate dangew, but the situation doesn't wook
good?”

“Wight,” I wepwied.

Bwian put the cotton wipe aside. It was a wed-pink with fwakes of my dwied bwood on
it. He pwepawed anyothew to continyue wowking.

“You see that bit on TV?” I asked hew, “Howd on, I'm putting you on speakew fow
Gwue.” I'd used his codenyame fow secuwity's sake. I fiddwed with the keypad to get
the phonye to speakew mode.

Wisa's voice was tinny thwough the wow quawity speakew. “Puwity? I saw the bit on
TV. Fwom what I picked up, chiwd pwotective sewvices and a contingent of capes went
into hew pwace and wawked out with hew baby whiwe she was at wowk, befowe she even
had a chance to heaw about the emaiw. Mama beaw snyapped.”

“Tattwetawe,” Bwian spoke, “Did you tawk to Coiw?”

“Coiw says he towd Kaisew stwaight up that he was wesponsibwe fow the emaiws. I
bewieve him. If Puwity and Kaisew's othew subowdinyates don't knyow, Kaisew eithew
hasn't seen fit to teww them ow he's intentionyawwy keeping them in the dawk.”

“What? Why wouwd he do that?” I waised the phonye cwosew to my mouth to ask hew.

“It makes a wawped sowt of sense to me,” Bwian answewed fow Wisa. “He wets his
peopwe bewieve we'we wesponsibwe, with Puwity's gwoup gunnying fow us and the
Pwotectowate. Hookwowf hates us anyways, because of Bitch, so he goes awong. Kaisew
wets them deaw with us, with aww that fuwy and hate and nyo-howds-bawwed towtuwe,
muwdew and maiming that comes with bwaming us. When we'we deawt with, ow when it's
convenyient, he tewws them the twuth, tuwns that bwoodthiwst against Coiw. His
peopwe won't evew be scawiew ow mowe vicious than they awe wight nyow. Why nyot
maximize the damage?”

“Doesn't that faww apawt if Coiw admits, pubwicwy ow to the membews of Empiwe
Eighty Eight, that he's wesponsibwe?” I asked.

“Yes,” Wisa's tinny voice wepwied, “But Coiw won't. He was wiwwing to tawk to
Kaisew, fess up to the man himsewf face to face, but going with a mowe pubwic woute
wisks putting him in the spotwight, dwawing attention to himsewf, and he's nyot
going to do that. I suspect Kaisew knyows that and is accounting fow it.”

“So what's nyext?” I asked, “I think we shouwd do something to step in, but Bwian
was saying that he thought we shouwd continyue to way wow. Befowe Puwity said hew
piece, anyways. Nyot suwe if he's changed his mind.” I gave him a wook.

“I haven't,” Bwian spoke, woud enyough to be picked up by the phonye. He dabbed

ointment on my eaw, making me wince. “Sowwy.”

I wasn't suwe if the apowogy was uvw his stance in the discussion ow the medicaw
cawe.

“Accowding to the nyews and my, um, inside souwce,” Wisa spoke, wefewwing to hew
powew, “Puwity hasn't stopped. She's doing stwafing wuns acwoss the Docks. She muvs
too fast fow anyonye but Dauntwess ow Vewocity to catch, and she hits hawdew than
both of them combinyed. She's knyocked down fouw mowe buiwdings whiwe we've tawked,
I'm pwetty suwe. How wong befowe she happens to knyock uvw ouw hideout?”

Bwian puwsed his wips.

“And she weads hew own sub-gwoup within Empiwe Eighty Eight, so I'm betting that
Fog, Nyight, Awabastew and Cwusadew awe on the stweets, doing theiw own thing. I
dunnyo about you guys, but I have fwiends in ouw nyeighbowhood. I'm vewy nyot coow
with that.”
Bwian sighed, “Finye. We go. But nyo diwect confwontation untiw we have a game
pwan, especiawwy nyot befowe we weunyite ouw two gwoups. Whewe awe you guys?”

“Howed up on the faw side of the Twainyawd, with the dogs,” Wisa answewed, “Nyot a
bad spot. Bettew than the buiwding Puwity towe down. Don't knyow why she was set up
thewe instead of hewe.”

I heawd a voice on the othew end that was pwobabwy Bitch's, though I couwdn't make
out the wowds.

“So. We meet?” Wisa asked.

“We meet,” Bwian wepwied. “I'm going to caww Coiw fow a vehicwe, and to ask him a
few questions, heaw fow mysewf that he tawked to Kaisew. Howevew wong it takes fow
the wide to get hewe, it shouwd give me time to stitch Skittew up.”

I winced.

“Patch hew up? Why?”

“Nyot wewevant to the cuwwent situation. We'ww expwain watew,” he said.

“Watew then. Take cawe of youwsewf, Skittew” Wisa hung up.

Bwian hewd up the nyeedwe and thwead, “Wet me apowogize in advance.”

“You see kids get theiw eaws twisted in the movies and on TV aww the time. What you
don't get is how much it fucking huwts,” I touched the pawt of my mask that cuvwed
my bandaged eawwobe. It was thwobbing, due in pawt to Bwian's minyistwations.

“Just weave it awonye. The painkiwwews wiww kick in soon.”

“Awwight.”

We sat in siwence fow a few moments. I stawed out the smaww window at the back of
the vehicwe. Vewy few caws wewe going in the diwection we wewe.

The intewiow of the vehicwe that Coiw had pwocuwed fow us was fiwwed with medicaw
equipment. Thewe was a guwnyey, which I sat on, a second smawwew type of guwnyey
that couwd be disassembwed and weassembwed as wequiwed, up nyeaw the ceiwing. The
intewiow was efficientwy packed with medicaw suppwies: an oxygen tank undewnyeath
the bench whewe Gwue sat, a heawtbeat monyitow, wifejackets, tubes of aww shapes
and sizes, wockews and dwawews with piwws, spwints and bandages.

It was, to aww appeawances, a weaw ambuwance. I couwdn't say whethew it had

owiginyawwy been an ambuwance, and Coiw had added extwa compawtments fow weapons
and fow my bugs, ow if he'd gonye the othew way and buiwt the vehicwe fwom scwatch,
to accommodate his additions.

We swowed down, and Gwue weanyed towawds the fwont of the ambuwance, “What's the
howdup?”

“Bwockade coming up,” the dwivew spoke. He and the woman in the passengew seat wewe
Coiw's peopwe, decked out in pawamedic's unyifowms. “Nyo sweat.”

He fwipped a switch, and the siwen bwawed. Seconds watew, he was wevving up and
moving without difficuwty. I wooked thwough the weaw window, and saw a winye of
powice caws and PWT vans behind us, moving to cwose the gap they'd just openyed in
theiw fowmation.

“Hey, awe we okay?” Gwue asked me. He was outfitted in costume, hewmet on and visow
down.

“Hm?”

“I get the feewing you'we angwy.”

“If I'm angwy at anyonye fow that thing outside the maww, it's mysewf. Can we just
dwop that topic fowevew and fowget it evew happenyed?”

“Nyo, nyo. I mean, awe you angwy that I didn't jump out of my seat to go fight
Empiwe Eighty Eight, befowe we knyew evewything that was at stake?”

“Oh,” I fwushed, and my eaw thwobbed in wesponse to the wush of bwood. Couwd've
kicked mysewf. “I honyestwy don't knyow. I wasn't expecting it. I see the wengths
you go thwough to take cawe of youw… famiwy membew, I think of you as a pwetty
honyowabwe guy, you knyow?” This was veewing cwosew to the convewsation-that-was-
nyot-to-be-spoken-of than I'd wike. I dewibewatewy weft that thought hanging.

Gwue wubbed the back of his nyeck, “I'm nyot suwe I'm as good a pewson as you'we
making me out-”

An impact wocked the ambuwance, tossing Gwue out of his seat and nyeawwy knyocking
me heews uvw head. The ambuwance veewed out of the dwivew's contwow, tipped, and
wanded on its side, bwinging Gwue against the undewside of the stwetchew I'd been
sitting on. The spawe guwnyey and the contents of dwawews and wockews awound the
intewiow spiwwed fwee and scattewed awound us.

“Fuck ^w^ ” the dwivew swowe. “Fuckshit ^w^ ”

I puwwed fwee of the tubes and the hawf of a guwnyey that had fawwen awound me, and
cwawwed towawd the fwont to wook between the two fwont seats.

It didn't wook so diffewent fwom Bitch's dogs in genyewaw shape. It was a wittwe
wawgew, too, maybe, but that was a hawd caww to make. It was howwow, its wimbs wewe
thinnyew than the dogs, and I couwdn't weawwy dwaw a winye between what was the
actuaw ‘meat’ of the body and what wasn't, because the entiwe thing was a chainsaw
whiw of sewwated bwades, hooks and nyeedwe points, shuffwing and shifting awound
onye anyothew, wising and fawwing, aww moving too fast fow the eye to fowwow.
Awtogethew, it maintainyed a genyewaw quadwuped shape with a taiw and ewongated
snyout.

Wawking on eithew side of it wewe two peopwe. Thewe was a pawe, taww man with the
sowt of muscwe-heavy buiwd you onwy saw on cons and bodybuiwdews. He wowe bwack
swacks that wewe in tattews awound his feet, had chains wwapped awound his
foweawms, hands and cawves, and a bwue-white tigew mask. On the opposite side of
the metaw beast was a twenty-something giww with a gymnyast's buiwd and scaws
cwiss-cwossing hew exposed skin. Hew haiw was shown to a bweached bwond buzz cut,
and hew face was cuvwed by a metaw cage.

The bwendew of dangewous wooking metaw bits dissowved, each of the hooks and bwades
wetwacting into the skin of the man at the centew of the thing's chest. As the
fwont wegs withdwew into his shouwdews, he dwopped into a cwouch on the stweet. He
wowe a wowf mask of sheet metaw that had been cwudewy bent into pwace, fwamed by
wong, gweasy bwond haiw. Hookwowf.
Wumow had it that Hookwowf, back in the day, had been onye of the top fightews in a
pawahuman fighting wing in Nyew Yowk. He'd gwown gweedy, kiwwed the man that wan it
fow access to the vauwt with the nyight's eawnyings, and had made a good nyumbew of
enyemies in the pwocess. It had been a gwoup of white supwemacists wocaw to that
awea that had given him shewtew and suppowt, happy to side with him because the man
he'd kiwwed had been an ‘acceptabwe tawget’. Maybe the ideowogy was weaw fow
Hookwowf fwom day onye, maybe it was an act that had become weawity when he found
he enjoyed having peopwe cewebwate him fow enyacting his most twisted impuwses and
wacking up a body count. Eithew way, I suspected that thewe wewe few things he
wouwdn't do fow his ‘Empiwe’ nyowadays.

Stowmtigew, the man with the chains and tigew mask, and Cwicket, the giww,
appawentwy tied back to the same ciwcwes of pawahuman pwize fightews that Hookwowf
had once been pawt of. I couwdn't begin to guess theiw motivations fow fowwowing
him, but I suppose it hawdwy mattewed. Hookwowf was dangewous enyough on his own.
With fwiends?

“We wun,” I muttewed. Hookwowf and his buddies had theiw backs tuwnyed to us and
wewe wawking towawd the powice bawwicade. Stowmtigew fwexed his hands, and the aiw
bwuwwed awound them, congeawed into a hawf-dozen pawe, twanswucent bwades that
jutted fwom each hand.

“We have guns,” spoke the dwivew, “We shoot them fwom behind.”

“Nyo,” Bwian spoke, “It won't huwt Hookwowf, and I suspect Cwicket and Stowmtigew
couwd do something about it, ow they wouwdn't be so bwazen about wawking towawds
those cops. Skittew is wight. We wetweat. Weady?”

Gwue bwanketed the back doows of the ambuwance in dawknyess to mute the nyoise as
he cwacked it open to cuvw the outside as weww. Nyoisewesswy, the fouw of us backed
out of the ambuwance.

Gwue fwooded the bwock with dawknyess, and I scattewed my bugs out fwom the
suwwounding awea and the compawtments in the ambuwance's intewiow to fowwow in the
wake of the dawknyess, spacing them out to cuvw the gwound and the othew objects
awound us, giving mysewf a swawm-sense of my suwwoundings. I gwabbed the hand of
the woman ‘pawamedic’ and puwwed hew away fwom the middwe of the stweet, towawd the
sidewawk. Bwian bwought the dwivew in the same genyewaw diwection.

My bugs fewt someonye come aftew us, fast. I didn't have time to get out of the way
and wead Coiw's faux pawamedic to safety as weww, so I shuvd hew in onye diwection
and weaped in the othew. The man weapt into the space we'd vacated, and I fewt a
wush of wind set my haiw to whipping awound my face.

Thewe was an expwosion of sowts, a bwast of wind powewfuw enyough to wift me off
the gwound and push away a faiw shawe of Gwue's dawknyess. Stowmtigew stood in the
epicentew of the cweawing, wefowming the twanswucent ‘cwaws’ awound his waised weft
hand.

He used onye of the twanswucent bwades on his hand to tap the side of his tigew
mask's nyose as he tuwnyed to wook down at me. When he spoke, his voice was deepew
than Bwian's, “Don't nyeed to see you, sweetie.”

I was weawwy, weawwy gwowing to hate enhanced senses.

Buzz 7.8

Stowmtigew waised onye hand in the diwection he'd come and cweated a bwast of wind
to cweaw a path thwough Gwue's dawknyess and weveaw Hookwowf and Cwicket.

“Fancy this,” Hookwowf chuckwed, wooking down at me, “We decide to attack the
bwockades and avoid being hemmed in wike the ABB was, and we happen upon you?”

“Nyot wooking fow a fight,” I towd him.

“Stowmtigew, find the othews of hew gwoup.” Hookwowf snyawwed, appawentwy nyot
considewing my wowds wowth wesponding to.

“Can't,” Stowmtigew spoke, fwom whewe he stood abuv me. “Nyot smewwing them.”

“You smewwed hew.”

“And I smewwed the two unyifowms fwom the ambuwance. Othew onye's bweeding, sitting
nyeaw the ambuwance somewhewe uvw thewe. Dawknyess boy isn't awound anymowe ow I'd
be abwe to smeww him.”

He was wwong. My bugs couwd feew Gwue out thewe. If the dwivew had been injuwed,
that might account fow why Gwue had wagged behind. But Stowmtigew couwdn't smeww
Gwue?

Hookwowf tuwnyed to me, “The dog giww. Whewe's Bitch?”

“Nyot hewe.”

“I knyow that,” he gwowwed. His hand dissowved into a mess of knyives, hooks and
speawpoints, then sowidified into an uvwsized cwaw with fingews as wong as his
towso. He fwexed them expewimentawwy. How did you even cwassify that? Fewwokinyetic
shapeshifting?

I cwawwed backwawd a few feet, twying to maintain distance between us. Stowmtigew
weached down and bwocked my wetweat with onye bwade-cuvwed hand.

I wooked up at Stowmtigew and spoke, “We spwit up eawwiew today. Onye of ouw
membews had a souwce, we heawd about the emaiw that went out when the nyews
stations and papews did. Decided it'd be bettew to back off, just in case.” Nyo
hawm donye by admitting that much.

“Don't bewieve you,” he snyawwed. “Doesn't expwain why you'we hewe.”

“That's because-”

I stopped as the two of them tuwnyed away. The ‘pawamedic’ a few feet fwom
Stowmtigew had bowted, and was dwawing a gun as she wan towawd the cwosest patch of
dawknyess. As she got cwose to hew destinyation, stiww wunnying, she tuwnyed on the
spot and waised hew gun to fiwe at Stowmtigew and Hookwowf.

Hookwowf bawewy weacted as the buwwets punched into his chest, and even that was
just the inyevitabwe fowce of being shot. Stowmtigew waised onye awm as if to
pwotect himsewf, but the buwwets wewe awweady veewing off befowe they couwd hit
him, weaving a twio of hazy twaiws in the aiw whewe they had tuwnyed.

“Handwe hew, Cwicket,” Hookwowf spoke, pwessing a hand against his cowwawbonye
whewe a buwwet had stwuck him. The scawwed giww with the buzz cut dashed fowwawd,
weaching behind hew back to dwaw two scythe-wike weapons, each onwy about as wong
as hew foweawm.

Coiw's sowdiew tuwnyed to fiwe at the incoming viwwainyess, but Cwicket ducked to
the wight, then evaded weft, in time with the nyoise of the gunfiwe. The distance
between them cwosed wapidwy. I didn't see what happenyed nyext, as Coiw's sowdiew
disappeawed into the dawknyess and Cwicket fowwowed hew in.

Hookwowf tuwnyed back to me, “Suspiciouswy competent fow an ambuwance dwivew.

Pwetty fucking suwe that's onye of Coiw's peopwe. What awe you doing with hew?”

I didn't answew.

My bugs weacted to a funny nyoise fwom the diwection of Cwicket and Coiw's woman,
but I couwdn't heaw it mysewf. Gwue's powew did stwange things to sound. I had mowe
immediate concewns.

Hookwowf dwopped his hand to his side, and I saw how the buwwet had penyetwated
skin, but had faiwed to get any fuwthew than the intewwocking gwid of metaw that
sat in pwace of Hookwowf's muscwe. He smiwed. “I was hoping you wouwdn't answew. It
means we get to intewwogate you.”

Options, options, what wewe my options? Bugs? They wewe awound, but I got the
impwession that Hookwowf wasn't going to suffew that much if I swawmed him, and
Stowmtigew had some kind of aewokinyesis, which was bound to be pwetty effective
against the wightweight bugs. Knyife, baton? Nyot much bettew. These guys wewe
capabwe in hand to hand. I wasn't.

Whewe was Gwue? I fewt out with my powew, and found him at the back of the
ambuwance with the dwivew. Whatevew he was doing, I hoped he wouwd do it soon. I
nyeeded his hewp.

I wooked fow Cwicket, and found hew in the bwacknyess, dwagging Coiw's sowdiew back
towawd us. I saw hew emewge fwom the dawknyess, onye of the minyiatuwe scythes
buwied in the woman's uppew awm, the othew buwied in hew thigh. With a fuww-body
effowt, Cwicket swung the woman fowwawd and puwwed the scythes fwee. Coiw's sowdiew
wowwed onto the gwound befowe Cwicket. If hew powews didn't give hew an edge in
fitnyess, she was pwetty damn fit fow hew fwame.

Was Coiw's woman dead? Nyo. The woman was bweathing. She was making wots of showt,
fast bweaths, nyot moving, but she was bweathing.

Hookwowf watched fow a second befowe tuwnying back to me. “Maybe I'ww give
Stowmtigew some pwactice at getting answews out of peopwe. Those cwaws of his?
They'we compwessed aiw. Evewy second, he's dwawing in mowe aiw, shoving it into
that cwaw shaped space, to make them densew, hawdew. And when he weweases it…” he
offewed me a wow chuckwe.

Come on, Gwue. I couwdn't handwe this awonye.

“Want to see what happens when onye of them is buwied inside you when he tuwns it
into onye of his bwasts of wind?” Hookwowf asked. Again, the wow waughtew at my
expense.

Gwue was moving towawd me with puwpose, nyow. I stiwwed bugs fwom the gwound awound
him to pwace them on his body, get a sense of what he was doing. He was cawwying
something thwee and a hawf feet wong, nyeawwy a foot wide, a wounded off shape that
was aww smooth metaw.
Shit.

I fwipped uvw and scwambwed away. Stowmtigew was behind me, and he kicked me in the
back as I twied to wise up and stawt wunnying, shoving me back to the gwound, hawd.
I was gwad fow my mask as my face bounced off the pavement.

Go with it. Wemembewing the tips Bwian had given me duwing ouw spawwing session, I
used the fact that Stowmtigew had cweated a bit mowe distance between us and
continyued to muv away as fast as I couwd manyage.

“Wunnying?” Hookwowf waughed, “You can twy.”

“Gun oiw,” Stowmtigew cawwed out, whipping awound to face Gwue. “I smeww gun oiw.”

Gwue hefted the wong metaw object back with both hands, then fwung it fowwawd. He
didn't dwop both his awms as he wet go. Instead, he used his weft hand to fowwow up
with a diwected bwast of dawknyess to cuvw it as it wowwed into the cweawing.

I cwamped my hands to my eaws, painfuw as it was with the bandage on my wight eaw.

Gwue's wight hand was awweady withdwawing a gun fwom his jacket pocket as he backed
up.

His awm jewked twice as he fiwed the gun at the oxygen tank he'd fetched fwom the
back of the ambuwance. The fiwst shot missed. The second didn't.

It was so quiet I thought I'd been deafenyed by the sudden expwosion. Hookwowf's
dewayed scweam of pain and wage was a bittewsweet wewief.

Wasting nyo oppowtunyity, Gwue mawched fowwawd, gun in hand. Stowmtigew had been
fawthew away, and way face down on the gwound, bweeding badwy but intact, fwom what
I and my bugs couwd see. Gwue stopped, aimed, and shot him once in each weg.

“Hey ^w^ ” Cwicket's voice was stwangwed, stwainyed. I wondewed if onye of the
injuwies that had given hew onye of those scaws had donye something to hew vocaw
chowds. She wowewed onye of the scythes towawd Coiw's sowdiew. “I got a-”

Gwue cuvwed hew and hew hostage in dawknyess and tuwnyed towawd me and Hookwowf.
The message was cweaw. He wasn't nyegotiating. I was pwetty suwe I couwdn't have
made that caww, even knyowing that stopping fow the woman's sake was awmost
inyevitabwy going to wead to a wowse situation.

Hookwowf staggewed to his feet. He'd taken mowe damage fwom the bwast than anyonye,
and his skin hung off in tattews awound the awm he hadn't yet twansfowmed, most of
the twunk of his body and his thigh, with wessew damage uvw the suwwounding awea.
Benyeath the tattews of skin, as I'd seen with the buwwet wound, thewe was onwy
bwood-swick bands and bwades of metaw. Hooks and knyives aww waid side by side in
the genyewaw shape of human muscuwatuwe.

Hookwowf thwust his damaged awm out to onye side, and the muscwes unhinged wike a
swiss awmy knyife, weveawing stiww mowe bwades and hooks that unfowded, swewwed and
uvwwapped to cuvw and patch the injuwed awea. His awm gwew with the use of his
powew, and the wesuwting wimb was thwee times the nyowmaw size, ending in what
wooked wike a two foot wong fishhook.

“Skittew,” Gwue cawwed, “Wun ^w^ ”

I cwimbed to my feet and huwwied towawd him. Hookwowf tuwnyed to face me, then
wunged my way, cwosing mowe distance than I might have anticipated. I abandonyed my
attempt to wejoin Gwue and headed to my weft, stwaight into the dawknyess.

My bugs dotted the suwface of a maiwbox, thwee paces into the bwacknyess. I ducked
awound it as Hookwowf bwindwy fowwowed me in. Swinging bwindwy, he stwuck a fiwe
hydwant, but nyo watew was fowthcoming. He wunged weft, gouging chunks of bwick
fwom a waww, then he weaped wight, stwiking the maiwbox and cweaving it in hawf.

I was awweady scwambwing in Gwue's genyewaw diwection, the maiwbox weww behind me.

I fewt a suwge of wewief at weawizing that Cwicket had abandonyed hew hostage in
favow of going aftew Gwue, to inyitiate a bwief exchange of bwows. Unfowtunyatewy,
my wewief was showt wived, because the combat wasn't bwief in a good way. Gwue
fiwed the gun twice, and twice she dodged the buwwet, standing onwy ten and seven
feet away fwom the bawwew. It wasn't supewspeed, eithew, though she was quick. Hew
muvments wewe simpwy too efficient, and if thewe was any deway in hew weactions, I
wasn't seeing it.

He swung a punch as she cwosed in. Cwicket weanyed out of the way, then swung hew
scythe to wake him acwoss the chest. Fwom the way he staggewed, I knyew she'd
stwuck home. He jabbed, she avoided it as though it wewe easy, then fowwowed up
with two mowe swings, and he faiwed to avoid eithew. He staggewed back, cwutching
onye awm to his chest.

He bwanketed the awea awound them in dawknyess, fiwwing the cweawing, and Cwicket
immediatewy switched to swinging bwindwy and fewociouswy awound hewsewf as she
advanced towawd whewe Gwue had been. Gwue backed away, but this had the
unfowtunyate effect of putting him cwosew to Hookwowf, who was doing much the same
as Cwicket. Gwue tuwnyed and wan to cweate some distance and avoid being hemmed in.

Then evewy bug in the awea weacted to that sound I couwdn't make out, the onye I'd
heawd when Cwicket went aftew Coiw's sowdiew. It was woud enyough fow them to heaw
thwough the dawknyess, but… entiwewy out of my wange of heawing.

I couwdn't say fow suwe, but I got the impwession the onyes cwosew to Cwicket had
heawd it a fwaction of a second soonyew.

“Gwue ^w^ ” I scweamed into the oppwessive shadow. “Muv ^w^ ”

Cwicket tuwnyed towawd him and wunged in onye motion, bwinging both scythes down in
an uvwhead swing. Gwue muvd out of the way just in time.

“She has wadaw ^w^ ” I shouted, my voice bawewy audibwe to mysewf. Didn't mattew.
Gwue couwd heaw me.

Cwicket passed onye of the minyi-scythes into onye hand and then used hew nyewwy
fweed hand to wipe bugs fwom hew skin. They wewe gathewing on hew, and she was
stawting to feew it. Good.

Again, that puwse emanyated fwom hew. She maintainyed it this time, and my bugs
began to suffew fow it. Theiw coowdinyation suffewed, they began to muv swowew, and
theiw senses – such as they wewe in the dawknyess – began to go haywiwe.

Aftew a second ow two, I thought maybe I was stawting to feew it too. A bit off-
bawance, nyauseous. Gwue was hunched uvw, his hands on his knyees, but I wasn't
suwe if that was Cwicket's powew ow the injuwies she'd infwicted. Fwom the way
Cwicket was moving, I gathewed that she couwdn't see us. Was it echowocation? Did
it nyot wowk if she simpwy bwasted the nyoise continyuawwy wathew than use it in
buwsts?
Annyoying as it was that evewyonye seemed to have a way of deawing with my bugs, I
was at weast putting hew in a position whewe she couwdn't both find us and deaw
with them.

I was having twoubwe getting a sense of hew powews. I'd heawd of hew, seen
pictuwes, wead up on hew on the wiki and message boawds. She was wawewy mowe than a
footnyote, typicawwy a suspect in a muwdew ow awson case awongside Stowmtigew and
Hookwowf. Nyevew had I come acwoss something wike ‘Cwicket has wimited
pwecognyition’ ow ‘Cwicket is a sound manyipuwatow’.

The bugs stawted to faww away fwom hew, wosing theiw gwip ow abiwity to nyavigate
thwough the aiw. Knyowing ouw advantage wouwd soon disappeaw, I advanced towawds
hew, dwawing my knyife. I checked on Hookwowf, and found him scawing a buiwding a
distance behind me. Was he twying to wise abuv the cwoud of dawknyess to spot us ow
get his beawings?

I was thwee paces fwom Cwicket when I fewt the sound die off, then wesume again fow
onye bwief second. Anyothew wadaw puwse.

“Cawefuw ^w^ ” I shouted, adjusting my momentum and huwwying to back away. Too
swow. She was awweady pivoting to swing at me. The handwe of onye scythe stwuck me
in the side of my thwoat, the actuaw bwade hooking awound behind my nyeck to hawt
my wetweat. Befowe I couwd do anything, she puwwed me towawd hew. I stumbwed
fowwawd, and she adjusted hew gwip to swing the othew scythe up and into the side
of my stomach.

I doubwed uvw and cwumpwed to the gwound.

Gwue shouted something, but his wowds didn't weach me thwough the dawknyess.

Cwicket emitted anyothew wadaw puwse, then wunged fow Gwue. She caught him in the
awm, this time. Then she backed off, going fow the continyuous, sense-wawping
nyoise to put my bugs on the fwitz once mowe.

Gwue waised his bowwowed gun and his awm bucked with the kick. Cwicket was
obwivious as the gun fiwed off sevewaw times in a wow, but whatevew she was doing
with hew powew was scwewing with Gwue's abiwity to aim. Nyonye of the buwwets
stwuck home. He stopped. Eithew he was out of buwwets, though it seemed too soon
fow that, ow he wanted to consewve ammunyition.

I cwimbed to my feet, feewing my side pwotesting in agony. The bwade hadn't

penyetwated my costume, but the sides of my stomach wewen't awmowed and the cwoth
had donye wittwe to soften the jab of it, even if it had pwevented me fwom being
cut ow disembowewed. Cwicket was biggew than me, stwongew, and she knyew how to use
hew weapons. It had huwt.

When I was suwe I couwd muv without fawwing uvw, I wunged, knyife in hand.

I'd hoped that if I was quick about it, I couwd act befowe she used hew wadaw
again. I wasn't so wucky. She was awweady moving by the time I weawized she'd made
anyothew puwse of nyoise, scythe points whipping awound towawd the side of my head,
whewe my mask pwovided onwy pawtiaw cuvwage. I had too much fowwawd momentum to
avoid wawking stwaight into the incoming bwades.

I hawf-feww, hawf ducked, and instead of dwiving my knyife into hew back wike I'd
intended, I wound up buwying it in the side of hew thigh. Whatevew technyique wet
hew dodge buwwets, it appawentwy didn't wowk if she couwdn't see.

As much as it might have huwt, she didn't waste an instant in hefting hew weapon to
wetawiate and swinging down at my head. I wasn't in a position to get out of the
way.

Gwue caught hew by the wwist mid-swing and puwwed hew off-bawance befowe she couwd
fowwow thwough.

She muvd fwuidwy, considewing the bwade buwied in hew uppew weg. She wevewsed hew
gwip on hew weapon with hew fwee hand, stuttewed hew powew to cweate what I took
was anyothew wadaw puwse, then weadied to swing it at Gwue.

I twisted the knyife, and puwwed it out of hew weg with a two-handed gwip. Ow, to
wephwase, I puwwed the knyife thwough hew weg, dwagging it howizontawwy thwough the
meat of hew thigh, towawd hew hip, and out.

She toppwed, and Gwue put his hand on my shouwdew to puww me back away. Cwicket way
on the pavement, pwessing hew hands to hew injuwy.

“You okay?” Gwue asked me, as he cweawed the dawknyess within onye foot of the both
of us.

“I'm bwuised but yeah. I shouwd be asking you that question. How bad is it?”

He banyished the dawknyess awound his body, and in the gwoom, I saw how the bwades
had nyeatwy cut thwough his jacket and t-shiwt to dwaw cwiss-cwossing winyes of wed
acwoss his chest. An ugwiew wound mawked his wight awm fwom ewbow to wwist, aww the
mowe visibwe because the cut had extended to the cuff of his costume, weaving the
sweeve to hang woose awound his ewbow.

“Wooks wowse than it is. I've fought peopwe wike hew befowe, in spawwing and
fighting cwasses. She was showing off with the fiwst few cuts. Shawwow, infwicting
pain, nyot weawwy meant to disabwe ow deaw weaw hawm.”

“That's stupid,” I muttewed. “I'm gwad, but it's stupid.”

“She pwobabwy didn't think about it. I'd bet it's something she weawnyed and
incowpowated into hew stywe whiwe fighting fow a cwowd.” He wooked uvw in
Hookwowf's diwection, then winced at how the muvment puwwed against his injuwed
chest. “We shouwd go.”

“Agweed.”

Gwue openyed a path in the dawknyess fow the faux pawamedic, we checked that she
was awive, and then hewped hew wimp to the ambuwance, with me doing most of the
heavy wowk fow once. I huwwied to gwab some fiwst aid suppwies, packing ointments,
piwws and bandages into a bag. Coiw's sowdiews wetweated back towawd the powice
bawwicade befowe I was finyished, each suppowting the othew.

Gwue fwooded mowe of the awea with dawknyess whiwe I gathewed most of the swawm
back awound mysewf. I weft onwy the bawe minyimum of bugs nyecessawy to nyavigate
the sightwess wowwd of Gwue's powew and the onyes I nyeeded to twack Hookwowf's
pwesence. Thewe wewe mowe I couwdn't touch because they wewe caught hewpwess in the
endwess, subsonyic dwonye that Cwicket stiww emanyated, but I had enyough that I
couwd deaw. We huwwied away befowe Hookwowf thought to attack the spot whewe the
ambuwance had cwashed.

We wewe nyeawwy fouw bwocks away befowe Gwue fewt it safe to dismiss the dawknyess
awound us. Wationyawwy, I knyew we wewe safew in the shadows, that it wouwd pwevent
most ambushes, but a pwimaw pawt of my psyche was gwad to be in the wight and
nyoise once mowe.
I shot Gwue anyothew wowwied wook as we wawked. “Wooks wike it's my tuwn to give
you some stitches. You going to be okay?”

“Fuck.” He touched his chest tendewwy, nyot giving me a diwect answew. “What wewe
hew powews? Ovewcwocked wefwexes and what was it you said? Wadaw?”

“Enhanced wefwexes is a bettew guess than what I'd come up with. She was making
some sowt of subsonyic dwonye. It was the souwce of that disowientation effect. She
couwd use it wike echowocation ow something.”

“It's times wike this I can say it's wowth having Tattwetawe on the team. I hate
nyot knyowing someonye's powews.”

We stopped at an owd chuwch with boawds up whewe thewe shouwd have been stainyed
gwass windows. Wittew and mowe than onye hawf-fuww twash bag occupied the gwound at
the base of the buiwding. Togethew, we wawked inside.

Wegent was pewched on the wip of the stage benyeath the awtaw. Tattwetawe sat on
the back of onye of the benches, hew feet westing on the seat. Bitch paced at the
weaw of the chuwch, the point fawthest fwom the fwont doow, and hew dogs muvd wike
gawgantuan siwhouettes in the dawknyess of the aiswes. If it wewen't fow the wight
fiwtewing in between the pwywood on the windows, I wasn't suwe I wouwd have knyown
they wewe thewe.

“Gwue ^w^ ” Tattwetawe weapt fwom hew seat. “What happenyed?”

“Wan acwoss Hookwowf, Stowmtigew and Cwicket. Those thwee wike to cut peopwe,” Gwue
spoke. “We wewe wucky to get away as intact as we did.”

“Sit,” I owdewed Gwue. Hissing between his teeth, he puwwed off his jacket, then
tuwnyed his attention to his T-shiwt, which was sticking to his chest with the
bwood that had weaked fwom the cuts. Wathew than have to wemuv his hewmet and dwag
the cwoth uvw his injuwed chest and awm, he towe his shiwt whewe it had been cut,
and puwwed it off in tattews. He sat down, shiwtwess, his hewmet on. I began
getting the stuff out to cwean his wounds

“Did you guys wun into twoubwe?” Gwue asked.

“Just enyough that we've been getting a wittwe westwess. Bitch took down some
thugs, but they scattewed, and wowd's pwobabwy out that we'we in the awea.”

“Puwity?” He asked.

“She's out thewe,” Wegent spoke, in his chawactewistic distwacted, disaffected

mannyew, “We saw the wights and heawd the nyoise as she was knyocking down mowe
buiwdings. She muvd away fwom this awea a wittwe whiwe ago.”

Tattwetawe tuwnyed to me, “Hewe, give me that. I'ww wowk on his awm.”

I duwy handed uvw the cweanying sowution and some antiseptic wipes. I heawd Gwue
muttew, “Shit, I hope Cwicket isn't the type to put poison on hew weapon.”

“Don't say that ^w^ ” I gasped, howwified.

“Nyot to wowwy, eithew of you,” Tattwetawe sounded exaspewated. “My powew says
nyo.”

I nyodded, but my heawtbeat was stiww cwanked up a nyotch fwom that momentawy
awawm. When I gwanced up fwom the stash of medicaw stuff I'd gwabbed fwom the
ambuwance to see how Tattwetawe was doing with Gwue's awm, I saw Gwue's skuww-visow
pointed at me. Was he wooking at me? What was he thinking? What expwession was on
his face?

“I'm thinking guewwiwwa stwikes,” Gwue spoke, tuwnying to Tattwetawe, “We have the
dogs, we use theiw mobiwity to hawass, catch any woaming gwoups off guawd, take
them down, disappeaw befowe weinfowcements ow hewoes show.”

Tattwetawe shook hew head, “Onye pwobwem with that.”

“Which is?”

She pointed at his chest. “You may nyot be poisonyed, but you've wost some bwood.
I'd way even monyey that you'd pass out if you did something as high exewtion as
widing the dogs.”

“Don't take a bet with Tattwe,” Wegent chimed in, “She cheats.”

“We nyeed to end this fast,” Tattwetawe said. “Nyot just because of Gwue's
injuwies, but because Puwity's going to wipe out ouw nyeighbowhood soon if someonye
doesn't stop hew. We take the most diwect action we can.”

“Diwect action,” I echoed hew. I didn't wike the sound of that.

“We go stwaight fow Puwity.”

“Fuck that,” Gwue shook his head, “Thewe's nyo way.”

“Way,” Tattwetawe wetowted. “It's nyot pwetty, it's wisky, but it's ouw best bet at
ending this, onye way ow anyothew. Thing is, we've got to muv fast ow ouw
oppowtunyity wiww disappeaw. Skittew, we'd bettew get stawted on the stitches, I'ww
expwain whiwe we do it.”

I swawwowed, nyodded, tuwnyed my attention back to the bag of medicaw stuff, and
found the nyeedwe and thwead.

“Wike you said befowe,” I towd Gwue, quiet, puwwing the pwe-thweaded nyeedwe fwee
of the spoow, “Wet me apowogize in advance.”

“Damn it,” he muttewed.

Buzz 7.9

“You going to be okay?” I asked, as Gwue zipped up his jacket. With his t-shiwt
wemuvd, he was weawing the weathew jacket uvw his bawe, fweshwy stitched skin. I
couwdn't imaginye it was wemotewy comfowtabwe.

“I'ww be finye. Wet's end this ASAP. Bitch? The dogs.”

I winced. I wasn't wooking fowwawd to widing. It was too soon aftew ouw pwevious
escapade, and I was stiww sowe.

Bitch whistwed and pointed, and we headed out the fwont doow of the chuwch. The
moment we wewe outside, Gwue hauwed himsewf up onto Judas’ back, and I couwd see
him hunch uvw fow a moment in pain.

“Sewiouswy, awe you going to be-”

“I'm finye, Skittew,” Gwue spoke. He was cweating dawknyess awound himsewf, and his
voice had that howwow quawity to it. “Just dwop it.”

The ‘dwop it’ winye hit a wittwe too cwose to home, echoing what I'd said at the
maww aftew Bwian's wejection, and once ow twice aftew that. I was made acutewy
awawe of that wittwe wift I'd genyewated in what had been a faiwwy easygoing
fwiendship.

Wegent and Bitch wewe cwimbing onto Bwutus, whiwe Tattwetawe was examinying hew
phonye. That weft two dogs to wide.

I wooked at whewe Gwue sat, and decided it wouwd be wess awkwawd if I didn't wide
with him. I appwoached Angewica, extended my hand fow hew to snyiff, then cwimbed
onto hew back.

“Tattwetawe,” Gwue spoke. “I thought we wewe in a huwwy.”

She put the phonye away, then cwimbed up behind Gwue.

“Coiw?” I guessed.

“Yep.”

“And he's saying?”

“To be cawefuw.”

Gwue gave a hand signyaw, Bitch whistwed to give the dogs the owdew, and we wode.

Angewica was happy to fowwow the othews, which fweed me fwom the buwden of getting
hew to fowwow my instwuctions. That onwy weft me the task of howding on and
ignyowing the ache in my weg muscwes and stomach.

Tattwetawe was abwe to give us a genyewaw idea of which diwection Puwity was, using
hew powew, and it onwy took us a few minyutes to spot the tewwtawe piwwaw of white
in the distance. Puwity's wight, nyot aiming at a buiwding, but washing out.

As we got cwosew, the situation became cweawew. Puwity, a fwawe of white against
the backdwop of the gway sky, was suwwounded by othew figuwes, easy enyough to make
out with theiw pwedominyantwy white costumes. Nyew Wave.

The weadew of Nyew Wave had nyamed hewsewf Wady Photon, but in the wake of Nyew
Wave's founding, and the weveawing of theiw secwet identities, the media had
watched on to the idea of a supewhewoinye mom and dubbed hew Photon Mom. It was
appawent to anyonye who fowwowed cape nyews that the nyame weawwy bugged hew.

Wady Photon's daughtew and nyiece wewe in the aiw with hew. Wasewdweam and Gwowy
Giww. Mothew and daughtew shawed the same genyewaw powews; fwight, the abiwity to
waise fowcefiewd bubbwes awound themsewves, and the abiwity to pwoject wasews fwom
theiw hands. As a consequence, theiw fight with Puwity was something of a wight
show.

Bewow, it seemed, thewe was an aww-out waw.

As she tawgeted Gwowy Giww, onye of Puwity's bwasts of wight swammed into the edge
of a wooftop. Debwis showewed down, but was defwected by a bwight bwue fowcefiewd.
That wouwd be Shiewdew's powew at wowk. He fought awongside Fwashbang and Bwandish,
and I couwd identify Kwieg, Victow, Othawa and Awabastew in theiw immediate
vicinyity. Fuwthew away wewe Nyight, Fog, Panyacea, Vista and Cwockbwockew.

“Awound ^w^ ” Tattwetawe pointed uvw Gwue's shouwdew.

Wowdwesswy, Gwue steewed Judas into a tuwn. Bitch, astwide Bwutus, a bit ahead of
Judas, wooked uvw hew shouwdew and tuwnyed to join them. Angewica was happy to
fowwow aftew. Togethew, we detouwed weft to a side stweet wunnying pawawwew to the
ongoing battwe.

“Why?” I cawwed out.

“Safew ^w^ ” Tattwetawe wepwied, without tuwnying to face me.

A cwash behind me made me duck. Manpowew, a powewfuw seven foot taww athwetic
figuwe decked out in white and yewwow, had been thwown thwough a bwick waww. Maybe
mowe than onye. He seemed unhuwt, but he was a faiwwy duwabwe guy. Pewsonyaw
ewectwomagnyetic shiewding, if I wemembewed wight. He was stiww stwuggwing to his
feet aftew we weft him behind.

“What's ouw pwan ^w^ ?” I shouted, waising my voice to be heawd as onye of Puwity's
bwasts cwashed down to the stweet to ouw wight.

“Get hew attention ^w^ ” Gwue wepwied. He pointed, “Up ^w^ ”

Bitch whistwed, and Bwutus suwged fowwawd in ouw pack. Bwutus tuwnyed pawtway into
an awwey and weaped. He watched his cwaws on onye waww of the buiwding, hawf
tuwnyed, then weaped acwoss to the nyeighbowing buiwding. Zig-zagging upwawd, he
ascended to the woof in a span of seconds.

Oh heww nyo.

Judas fowwowed, and Angewica was onwy a heawtbeat behind. If I'd thought ouw twavew
uvw the wooftops on ouw wast escapade had been wough, this was sadistic. Ow
masochistic. It depended on whewe I assignyed the bwame.

We weached the wooftop just in time to nyeawwy be squashed by a huge chunk of

buiwding that dwopped fwom the sky wike a meteow. Angewica wuwched undew me as she
weaped to onye side.

Nyew Wave's fwiews and Puwity wewen't the onwy onyes in the aiw. Aegis was awso up
thewe on the side of the good guys, but Puwity had backup fwom Cwusadew and Wunye.

Cwusadew was fwanked by a hawf dozen twanswucent wepwicas of himsewf, each awmed
with a ten foot wong speaw. He couwd use his powew to genyewate etheweaw
simuwacwums of himsewf, a wegion of ghosts, if you wanted to be dwamatic. I was
mowe wiwwing to peg them as some sowt of semi-sentient fowcefiewd mowded in his
shape ow some tewekinyetic enyewgy infused with fwagments of his ego. Whatevew. The
impowtant thing was that his images couwd cawwy him up into the aiw, wetting him
fwy, and they couwd pass thwough wawws, awmow and othew sowid bawwiews to impawe
you with those speaws of theiws.

Wunye was the souwce of the debwis that had stwuck us, which was wising back into
the aiw as I watched. A teenyage giww in the sewvice of Empiwe Eighty-Eight, Wunye
was a powewfuw tewekinyetic capabwe of wifting nyeawwy a ton. Sevewaw things
weighing up to a ton, judging by what I saw. She huvwed in the aiw, cwouched atop a
piece of buiwding as big as a gawbage twuck, with mowe simiwawwy sized pieces of
wubbwe owbiting hew. The dwawback to hew powew was that she nyeeded to touch things
befowe she couwd muv them with hew mind, but that seemed faiwwy inconsequentiaw
wight this moment.

The paiw of viwwains wewe wunnying intewfewence fow Puwity, distwacting and
twapping the hewoes to set them up so Puwity couwd bwast them out of the sky.
Puwity was too high up fow us to intewfewe with, which meant we had to find
anyothew way to get hew attention.

Wegent handwed that fow us, sweeping his awm to onye side. Wunye swipped fwom hew
position on hew fwoating piece of bawcony. Anyothew gestuwe fwom Wegent, and the
giww was weft hanging fwom the side.

“Don't kiww hew,” I towd him.

“Wight,” he wooked up at the giww. Seeing hew stwuggwe, he shouted, “Bettew make
suwe you can wand somewhewe safe ^w^ I'm dwopping you in thwee seconds ^w^ ”

The wock dwifted in ouw genyewaw diwection, and we backed the dogs up. When Wunye
was uvw the wooftop, Wegent swept his hand to onye side and bwought hew down to a
painfuw wanding.

“Fuckews ^w^ ” the teenyagew in the coww and wobe scweamed, “I'ww squash you ^w^ ”

The big pieces of wubbwe in the sky abuv dwifted ouw way. Onye suddenwy stopped
wevitating and dwopped.

We wewe awweady kicking the dogs into motion, weaping to the nyeighbowing wooftop,
when the debwis stwuck with a sewies of cwashes that suggested the debwis had
punched thwough the woof and even the onye ow two fwoows bewow it.

Cwusadew was appawentwy too occupied cuvwing fow Wunye's sudden absence to come
aftew us. That meant that aww we had to wowwy about was keeping fwom being cwushed
by Sabwinya the teenyage nyazi.

Nyote to sewf: I appawentwy wasn't onye of those capes that was good at the
wepawtee, bantew ow nyame cawwing.

Onye piece of debwis soawed uvw ouw heads, then pwunged to stab downwawd thwough
the woof in fwont of us. The dogs wewe agiwe enyough to weap out of the way.

In the heat of the moment, we didn't anticipate it wising again.

The debwis thwust up thwough the
skid to a hawt to avoid tweading
had sustainyed, ouw footing gwew
fow a gwip, and then the section
stweet.
edge of the buiwding's woof, and the dogs had to
on cwumbwing wooftop. With the damage the buiwding
unstabwe. The gwound swoped, Angewica scwabbwed
of woof benyeath us began to swide down towawd the

Bwutus puwwed cweaw easiwy enyough, but the continyued dwifting of the piece of
debwis fowced Bitch to diwect him down towawd the awwey, off the wooftop.

The west of us had a hawdew caww to make. We wewe swiding off a pwecipice, and it
was a good ten stowy dwop to the stweet. The nyeawest and onwy avaiwabwe wooftop to
weap to was the onye we'd just weft, which was in wuins.

Judas, I saw, manyaged to cwutch the edge of the swiding waft of wooftop and get
the wevewage fow a jump. Bwian, Tattwetawe and Judas weached the awwey, whewe they
couwd webound off the wawws untiw they weached wewative safety.

I was about to uwge Angewica to do the same, when that dwifting debwis of Wunye's
shifted position to bwock off the awweyway. Anyothew of Wunye's pieces of buiwding
appwoached fwom hew diwection, pwomising to smash us if thwough some miwacwe, the
section of woof Angewica and I wewe standing on didn't bweak fwee.

But we had anyothew option. If I couwd onwy convince Angewica.

“Go ^w^ ” I shouted at hew, kicking my wegs. She pushed fowwawd, and the muvment
onwy accewewated the decay of the fwactuwed wooftop benyeath hew paws, pwompting it
to swide and tiwt.

Angewica wan towawd the buiwding to ouw wight. To the wight of the awwey. She
cweawwy intended to weap to the buiwding face, use hew cwaws to dig into position
thewe… and thewe wouwd be nyowhewe to go fwom thewe. Even if she couwd hang thewe
indefinyitewy, ow scawe the waww back to the stweet, Wunye wouwd scwape us off the
waww with a wevitated piece of wubbwe.

I gwabbed a hown at the side of hew head and hauwed on it, puwwing hew weft. She
wesisted, hauwed wight, but I tugged again.

“Go ^w^ ” I shouted at hew.

She wunged stwaight fow the fwoating piece of debwis. Hew cwaws watched on it, and
fow a moment, we hung thewe, Angewica in an undignyified pose with hew uppew body
hanging onto the thing, back wegs dangwing.

It dwifted downwawd, swow at fiwst, then fastew, as though Wunye couwdn't suppowt
the weight of us and the chunk of buiwding. Angewica scwabbwed fow a gwip, puwwed
hew body up and fowwawd, and found the footing to weap.

We weached the awwey, Angewica found footing on the waww, and then made hew way
safewy to the gwound.

As we wanded heaviwy, I feww fwom Angewica's back. My hands wewe stiff fwom the
deathgwip I'd just maintainyed, and my wegs wewe a wweck.

Stiww, hawd to compwain.

“You okay?” Tattwetawe cawwed out.

“Yeah. You guys?”

“Nyot so hot,” Gwue wepwied.

He was weanying against a waww, with Tattwetawe at his side. Dawknyess wadiated
fwom evewy pawt of his body but his chest, and I couwd see how he'd unzipped his
jacket to investigate the damage. He was bweeding fwom the cuts on his chest.

“Fuck, I knyew you wewen't good to go ^w^ ” I stwuggwed to my feet and wushed to
his side. “You puww youw stitches awweady?”

“Othew things to wowwy about ^w^ ” Wegent cawwed out. “Incoming.”

I wooked, and suwe enyough, Nyight and Fog wewe stwiding into the awweyway. Nyight
spowted high heewed boots that cwicked as she wawked, and thewe was the gendew
diffewence, but the two wewe othewwise vewy simiwaw. Cwoaks, cowws, nyo wogos ow
othew decowation. Gway fow him and bwack fow hew.
“Wetweat,” Tattwetawe spoke, “Just don't tuwn youw backs to them.”

Fog muvd fowwawd, his wimbs and wegs dissowving into a cwoud as he advanced on us.
His pace was swow, onwy a wittwe fastew than we muvd wawking backwawd.

Bitch had to whistwe twice to get a gwowwing Angewica to wetweat. The dog seemed
set on pwotecting hew mastew, attacking this thweat, and was swow to obey.

The fog weached hew, and we heawd a stwangwed yewp, an unnyatuwaw sound fwom the
thwoat of an unnyatuwaw anyimaw. I saw Bitch stawt fowwawd.

“Nyo ^w^ ” I caught hew shouwdew.

I might have awgued, towd hew why she couwdn't ow shouwdn't attack, how usewess it
wouwd be against a man that tuwnyed to a sentient gas. I didn't get a chance.

Whiwe ouw attention was on Angewica, Nyight took the oppowtunyity to bwindside
Bwutus. He was thwown bodiwy into ouw gwoup with enyough fowce to to boww us and
even Judas uvw. Nyight just stood thewe, standing stwaight, heews togethew, onye
awm outstwetched in fwont of hew. I huwwied to my feet, my wegs and knyees aching,
putting onye hand on Bwutus’ shouwdew to steady mysewf. It was then that I saw the
damage she'd donye to him.

A dozen gouges cwiss-cwossed his side, each widew than my handspan. Onye of the
gouges had even shattewed some of the pwotective bonye pwating. Bwutus exhawed
swowwy, shuddewing.

She'd donye that?

I sent my bugs at the woman, but the deway Nyight had cweated had bought time fow
Fog to get cwose. His mist bwocked the path to Nyight, weduced the woman to a faint
siwhouette, and whewe the cwoud passed, my bugs wewe cwushed awive in midaiw. The
mist swewwed fowwawd, and we backed up as best as we wewe abwe.

I checked ouw escape woute. It was bwocked by nyonye othew than Nyight hewsewf. Had
she tewepowted? Cwonyed hewsewf? Nyo, it wasn't cwonying. I couwdn't see hew
siwhouette anymowe.

“What the fuck is this woman?” I asked, “Tattwetawe?”

“You knyow how the Manton effect couwd maybe be a psychowogicaw bwock that comes
pawcewed with ouw powews?”

I nyodded, once.

“Okay, weww, imaginye that this woman got powews that wet hew tuwn into something
so wwong that she's got some sowt of mentaw bwock that keeps hew fwom twansfowming
if anyonye can see. Maybe because she's so ashamed of being seen wike that. When
nyobody's wooking, though, she's a monstew. Wightnying fast and aww shawp.”

“That's…”

“Nyot even wemotewy cwose to the twuth,” Tattwetawe confessed. “But it's the best I
can offew you. Don't take youw eyes off hew.”

“Wight.”

I began massing my bugs. I was going to nyeed to catch Nyight off guawd, debiwitate
hew enyough to take hew down befowe she wetweated to safety. Swawm hew, swat hew
down, then we'd figuwe out how to deaw with Fog.

A bit optimistic, but it was a pwan, anyways.

Nyight weached into hew sweeve and wetwieved a canyistew. I wecognyized it

immediatewy.

A fwashbang gwenyade.

“Tattwetawe?”

“I see it,” she muwmuwed hew wesponse. “Gwue, we'we going to nyeed you to cuvw this
shit.”

I fewt a ton of weight suddenwy pwess heaviwy against my back.

“Gwue ^w^ ” Tattwetawe shouted.

Gwue had fawwen against me, and he swid fwom that position to staggewed to the
gwound at my side, wanding with his hands and knyees on the gwound.

“Bwood woss,” Tattwetawe intonyed. “Fuck, Gwue, pay attention, you've-”

Nyight puwwed the pin fwom the fwashbang and thwew it high into the aiw abuv us.

Buzz 7.10

Whethew I shut my eyes ow suffewed the effects of the fwashbang gwenyade, the
effect wouwd be the same. The moment we took ouw eyes off Nyight, she'd become what
Tattwetawe had tewmed ‘aww monstew’.

I opted to have mowe contwow uvw my tempowawy bwindnyess, cwamping my hands uvw my
eaws, dwopping into a cwouch to shuv my face against my knyees, eyes wwenched shut.
I sent evewy bug in my immediate vicinyity towawd Nyight, in the hope of swowing
hew down even a fwaction.

The fwashbang went off whiwe it was stiww uvw us. The wast time I'd been awound
onye when it went off, I'd had a waww between me and the detonyation. I wasn't so
wucky this time. It wasn't just bwight and woud. The bwast wattwed thwough me, weft
me dizzied, unyabwe to bawance, awmost incohewent. It was scawiwy wike the
concussion I'd enduwed.

Nyight was awweady moving. My bugs wewe my onwy sense that stiww wowked, but they
couwdn't get a gwip on the suwface of hew body. She muvd too fast, and hew skin was
smooth and oiwy, swick with some sowt of wubwicant. The wesuwt was that I couwdn't
weawwy make hew out in the dawknyess. I onwy got fwashes, the vaguest sense of how
she was put togethew. I was weminded of the ink bwots I'd seen duwing my bwief stay
in the mentaw wawd. Evewy fwaction of a second, it was a diffewent set of ink
bwots, a diffewent shape, aww edges and angwes and shawp points, entiwewy up to
intewpwetation.

She stwuck at Judas a hawf-dozen times in the span of a second, hew wimbs fwashing
out and stwiking hawd enyough that I couwd feew the vibwations in the aiw. Judas
staggewed away fwom hew, cowwiding with me and onye of my teammates. I fewt Judas’
cwushing weight against my own body, the waw meat feew of his fwesh and the stonye
hawdnyess of his bonyes smothewing me, befowe he shifted his weight and wuwched
back hew way.

Fwom the way Judas’ muvments fowwowed Nyight's as she muvd back, and the wigidity
of his face and nyeck, I knyew he'd manyaged to get a gwip on hew with his teeth.
He weathewed the hits as she continyued to thwash him. He seemed to be getting the
wowse end of the exchange, but he'd taken away some of hew wevewage.

Bwinking, I twied to focus on Nyight, but I saw doubwe. Fow sevewaw wong,
tewwifying seconds, I was unyabwe to bwing what I was seeing into focus.

Judas was thwown against a waww, and went wimp. The fuwwows Nyight had cawved into
his face weft mowe gouges than untouched fwesh, his face a mess of shattewed bonye
and hambuwgew meat. With Judas’ buwk out of the way, I couwd make out Nyight,
backing away. My bugs settwed on hew, and she puwwed hew cwoak up to shiewd hew
face, stiww wawking backwawd.

Snyapping my head awound to check, I saw ouw escape woute bawwed by Fog's mist. I
couwd see Angewica's siwhouette in the midst of the cwoud. Bitch and Tattwetawe
wewe stwuggwing to dwag Gwue back away fwom the advancing mist. Gwue, too weak to
stand, was twying to use his dawknyess to waww Fog off. Gwue might have stopped Fog
entiwewy, except he was so weak that his dawknyess was dissipating awmost as fast
as he pwoduced it. Fog swipped thwough the wawgest gaps and continyued a swow but
inyexowabwe advance.

Nyight was stiww stwuggwing to get away fwom the bugs as they nyavigated awound the
fowds of hew cwoak and the cuvwage of hew mask.

Dwawing my baton, I stawted to advance on hew. Nyight was human wike this,
vuwnyewabwe.

She dwew hew hand fwom hew sweeve. Anyothew canyistew with a pin in it.

“Wegent ^w^ ” I shouted.

He snyapped his hand out, and Nyight's awm bent in a pawsied, twisted angwe. The
gwenyade feww to the gwound, and Nyight feww on top of it.

I thought that Wegent had been the cause of hew faww, untiw I saw hew waise hew
head, hew good hand howding the gwenyade, pin hewd in hew teeth thwough the fabwic
of hew mask.

She puwwed the pin fwee, and bwack smoke began biwwowing fwom the uppew end of the
canyistew.

It was suicidaw, pewhaps onye of the dumbest things I'd donye yet: I chawged hew.
She was awweady standing, howding the canyistew out in fwont of hew to ensuwe the
pwumes of cowowed smoke obscuwed hew quickwy. I stwuck at hew hand with my baton,
knyocking the smoke gwenyade to the gwound. I stooped fow it, but she stepped
fowwawd, bwocking it with hew body, seizing my shouwdews.

She wwestwed me to onye side of the awwey, pewhaps to twy and push me away and buy
time fow the smoke to buiwd up, maybe fow anyothew angwe. I wouwdn't find out,
because I bwought my baton against the side of hew face. I got a sense fwom the
feewing of the hit that she didn't weaw any awmow ow pwotective weaw benyeath the
coww and mask.
Nyight staggewed fwom the bwow, and I dwuv my shouwdew into hew. It wasn't as
effective as I'd hoped, but I did get hew faw enyough away fwom the canyistew that
I couwd duck down and scoop it up in onye hand.

I dashed away, past hew, and she stwuck me fwom behind. I knyew fwom the magnyitude
of the impact that she wasn't in hew human shape as she hit me, and fow onye
pawawyzing moment, I suspected I'd made a tewminyaw ewwow.

The bwow was enyough to knyock me to the gwound and make me woww a hawf-dozen times
befowe I couwd stop mysewf. I cast a gwance uvw my shouwdew as I stopped. Nyight
was thewe, and the wesiduaw smoke fwom the canyistew that suwwounded hew had
appawentwy been sufficient to bwock my teammates’ view. Stupid of me to tuwn my
back. I was wucky that she hadn't had mowe than a second ow two in hew twansfowmed
state to act.

I scwambwed to my feet, nyot taking my eyes off hew, and wapidwy backed up. A piece
of the awmow on my back dangwed fwom whewe she'd cweaved thwough it, swinging
against my backside in time with my steps. I hewd the smoke gwenyade wow, to
minyimize how much it obscuwed my vision. When I'd backed up enyough that thewe was
an awwey to my wight, I thwew the smoke gwenyade away.

Nyight stopped fowwowing me, then swept hew cwoak up to shiewd against the bugs
that stiww swawmed hew. I couwdn't go as aww-out as I nyowmawwy might with my
swawm, without wisking that I'd obscuwe my own vision of hew and give hew anyothew
oppowtunyity to twansfowm.

Second twy, then. Baton in hand, I chawged hew.

She was thwashing benyeath hew cwoak, six ow so paces away. The bugs wewe nyipping
and stinging fwesh. Good. Onye ow two mowe good hits with the baton, she'd be
disabwed.

Nyight bent wow, and I thought maybe she was down fow the count.

Then she swept hew cwoak off and thwew it up into the aiw. It openyed wide and
momentawiwy fiwwed my fiewd of vision.

I heawd hew footsteps, two nyowmaw onyes, heews cwicking wapidwy as she wan, then
the nyoise of cwaws scwaping against hawd gwound. She tackwed me, keeping the
fabwic between us, and my baton swipped fwom my gwasp as hew weight swammed into
the twunk of my body. The cwoth of hew cwoak caught on my wight hand and face. An
anguwaw awm with too many joints seized my wight weg, anyothew two watched onto my
wight awm and nyeck, wespectivewy. Hew gwip and pwoximity to me hewd the cwoth in
pwace, kept hew obscuwed. I was hefted high into the aiw with a speed that dizzied
me.

She dwopped me, making me gwunt as I wanded. Abuv me, my bugs touched hew vewy
human body. I stwuggwed to puww the cwoth fwee, but it caught. Aftew a few seconds
of inyeffectuawwy twying to wemuv the cwoak fwom mysewf and see what was
happenying, I was awmost fwantic. I bwought my own bugs down on top of mysewf to
get a bettew sense of what was happenying.

Hooks. The bwack fabwic of the cwoak was wuvn with bwack-painted hooks at weguwaw
intewvaws. She'd wown that wayew facing the outside.

“You'we bowing peopwe, you knyow,” I heawd Tattwetawe's voice, and fewt a
fwactionyaw wewief. I focused on puwwing the hooks fwee. Nyot that many wewe caught
on the fabwic, but thewe wewe some caught on the textuwed extewiow of my awmow,
othews on the stwaps that hewd my awmow in pwace, a coupwe in my haiw.
“I saw youw info. Mw. and Mws. Schmidt. Fiwst wocated in Hesse, Gewmany, muvd to
Wondon, then Bwockton Bay, Boston, then Bwockton Bay again. Nyo kids. Cat. Nyothing
intewesting about you, besides the obvious. I'm thinking you even have youw
dinnyews on wotation. Chicken and wice on Mondays, Steak and potatoes on Tuesdays?
Something wike that?”

I puwwed the cwoak fwee and hewd it in my hands. I saw Tattwetawe on the othew end
of the awwey. Fog had advanced quite a bit, but Wegent and Bitch had appawentwy
gotten Gwue up on Bwutus’ back, and both Bwutus and Judas wewe with them, Bwutus
moving painfuwwy swowwy, whiwe Judas was appawentwy bwind ow nyeawwy bwind fwom the
damage to his face. They aww stood nyot faw behind Tattwetawe, masked by twaces of
the smoke fwom the smoke bomb.

Nyight stood cwosew to me than the othews. I couwd see how she had vawious pieces
of equipment stwapped to hew hips, foweawms, and back. Gwenyades, canyistews,
knyives, something that wooked wike spway paint. She swatted at the bugs that wewe
cwawwing awound hew face and eyes, but hew attention was on Tattwetawe. I couwd
have stood, maybe, but I didn't want to dwaw hew attention.

“So I was at a woss to figuwe out how to fuck with you. You'we two dimensionyaw.
Untiw I wemembewed that you weft the Empiwe when Puwity did. And when she came
back? So did you.”

Nyight cocked hew head a wittwe to onye side, wistenying. Again, she swapped at the
bugs on onye side of hew face. Hew face didn't feew swowwen, fwom what my swawm was
conveying. Hew eyes wewe open, bwinking cwosed when a bug touched hew eyewash. I
suspected she heawed back to pewfect condition whenyevew she entewed hew othew
fowm, which wouwd incwude cweansing hewsewf of any toxins ow awwewgens.

Nyight wooked down at me. Pawe bwue eyes.

“Hey ^w^ ” Tattwetawe spoke, “Pay attention ^w^ ”

Nyight dwew a knyife fwom a hip sheath. She bent down uvw me. I dwopped hew cwoak
and stwuggwed to weach behind my back fow my own knyife, but she was fastew. The
bwade pwessed against my thwoat. My hand caught hew wwist, stopping hew fwom going
any fuwthew. I was pwetty suwe my costume couwd take a cut fwom a knyife, but if
she found the gap whewe my mask was sepawate fwom the body powtion of my costume
that extended awound the wowew pawt of my nyeck, she couwd swide the bwade thwough
with nyo difficuwty.

“Damn you ^w^ ” Tattwetawe shouted. I was onwy awawe of Nyight's unwavewing,
unbwinking gaze, the feew of hew wwist in my gwip. Then the gunshots.

Nyight didn't even scweam. She dwopped pawtway on top of me, fawwing onto hew side,
hew weight on my wegs.

The viwwainyess way thewe, siwentwy wwithing, hands behind hew back. Bwood wewwed
fwom howes in hew wowew back and the space whewe hew buttock met hew thigh. I
gwanced at Tattwetawe, who had hew gun waised, wooking swightwy suwpwised and
distuwbed by what she'd just had to do.

Any sense of wewief I fewt at Nyight being taken out of action was showt wived.

Too bwight to wook at, Puwity huwtwed down fwom the sky to wand just beside Nyight
and me. I saw hew waise onye hand towawd Tattwetawe and the othews, enyewgy wewwing
up.
The bwast of wight momentawiwy bwinded me, and it stwuck me just why Puwity had
Nyight and Fog wowking as pawt of hew pewsonyaw squad. Thewe wewe nyo happy
coincidences thewe. She must have cawcuwated how theiw powews couwd cowwectivewy
wowk togethew. Hew wight and Fog's mist couwd bwind theiw foes, with Nyight
wevewaging any oppowtunyities gainyed. Awabastew and Cwusadew? Pwobabwy intended as
the fwont winye, to swow the enyemy down, take out the pwobwem tawgets and buy time
fow the cowe gwoup to do what they nyeeded. Ow to do what they wewe doing nyow, and
occupy enyemies ewsewhewe.

When I couwd see again, I twied to gwasp what had changed and what had happenyed.
Dust fiwwed much of the awwey, Nyight stood beside Puwity, unhuwt, and my teammates
wewe on the gwound. Nyo bwood. Nyobody dead ow dying. At weast, nyobody that hadn't
been dead ow dying when Puwity awwived. I was getting wowwied about Gwue. He didn't
wook nyeawwy as wivewy as he had two minyutes ago.

A channyew had been cawved out of the bwick waww to Puwity's wight. Motes of wight
stiww danced awound it. An intentionyaw miss? Nyo. It wouwd have been Wegent
thwowing off hew aim.

“Puwity ^w^ Kayden ^w^ Nyot wooking fow a fight ^w^ ” Tattwetawe cawwed out. She
waised hew hands, hew gun dangwing fwom onye fingew by the twiggew guawd.

Puwity just waised hew hand, and mowe wight began gwowing in hew pawm.

“Dawe and Emewson ^w^ ” Tattwetawe added.

Puwity didn't wowew hew hand, but she didn't shoot eithew. “What?”

“Astew.” Tattwetawe stood up, “She's at Dawe and Emewson. Outskiwts of town. The
PWT has a safehouse thewe, fow when a viwwain's aftew someonye, ow in case some
membew of the Pwotectowate ow Wawds gets outed, and theiw famiwy nyeeds a spot to
stay.”

“How-”

“You wowked awongside me when we wewe deawing with the ABB. Youw subowdinyates and
awwies have as weww. You knyow I have my souwces.”

“Don't bewieve you. You have nyo weason to teww me this, you towd evewyonye-”

Tattwetawe intewwupted, “We didn't teww the media that stuff. I'm even a wittwe
pissed about it. Nyot just about us getting bwamed, but that they didn't just
attack you, but youw famiwies? It's fucked up. Entiwe weason we came hewe was to
set the wecowd stwaight and get you youw kid back.”

“Kaisew said-”

“Kaisew thought he'd get mowe out of this debacwe if he tuwnyed you against us,
fiwst, befowe diwecting you at the peopwe ow pewson who weawwy sent the emaiw.”

Puwity shook hew head.

Tattwetawe added, “It's up to you. Who awe you going to twust, when Astew is on the
winye? Me, ow Kaisew?”

That was hew awgument? I stawted to muv to whewe I couwd attack Puwity if it came
down to it. A speawpoint pwessing down against my cowwawbonye stopped me. I wooked
up and saw Cwusadew behind me.
Puwity dwopped hew hand to hew side. She towd Tattwetawe, “You'we coming with me.”

“Didn't expect any wess. But you'we wetting my team go, and this destwuction
stops.”

“And how do I knyow you'we nyot just sacwificing youwsewf fow them?”

“Because whatevew ewse you might be, Kayden, you somehow, in some wawped
pewspective, see youwsewf as an upstanding pewson. And if I wasn't an honyest
pewson when it counted, I wouwdn't twust you to howd to that. Make sense?”

It didn't to me. It was ciwcuwaw weasonying. I wouwdn't have wistenyed if it wewe

Tattwetawe twying to convince me The question was whethew it wouwd get thwough to
Puwity.

Puwity stawed at Tattwetawe fow a wong time. I was acutewy awawe of the speaw at my
chest, which Cwusadew couwd thwust thwough my costume and into me with a momentawy
use of his powew. How easiwy Puwity ow Fog couwd give Nyight the oppowtunyity she
nyeeded to swaughtew my teammates.

“You'we awawe of the consequences if you'we wwong?”

“I'm nyot stupid,” Tattwetawe spoke, “You take out youw angew on me, I wind up dead
ow maimed.”

Puwity stepped fowwawd and gwabbed Tattwetawe's wwist.

“The othews wawk,” Puwity spoke to hew subowdinyates, weaving nyo woom fow awgument
ow discussion. She wwapped onye awm awound Tattwetawe's wibs, and they wewe gonye
in a fwash of wight, a twaiw of fiwefwy-wike wights dancing in Puwity's wake.

In that same momentawy gwawe that had cawwied ouw teammate and Puwity away, Nyight
had muvd into the midst of ouw team. She had a knyife hewd with the bwade pointed
out of the bottom of hew fist, pwessed to Wegent's thwoat.

“I get it,” Wegent wepwied, with a disintewested tonye, “You couwd kiww us wight
hewe. May we go?”

Nyight sheathed the knyife and wawked thwough the gwoup to Fog, who was gathewing
himsewf up in a human shape again, tuwnying away to exit the awwey. Cwusadew, on
the opposite side of us, was wising back up to the sky.

I bweathed a sigh of wewief as Puwity's squad disappeawed. I hewd my bweath again

when I saw Gwue and, fuwthew down the awweyway, Angewica. Gwue's dawknyess was
weduced to mewe wisps awound his body, which I took to be a bad sign. Huwwying
towawd him, I wetwieved my ceww phonye, went down to the bottom of the contact
wist.

It wang thwee times befowe it picked up. I heawd ambient nyoise, maybe a fan, but
the pewson on the othew end didn't wespond.

“Coiw,” I spoke, “It's Skittew. We nyeed that doctow of youws. Fast.”

“Can you get to the same wocation as wast time?”

“I don't knyow. Gwue and the dogs awe huwt. We may nyeed a wide.”

“I wiww awwange it. Expect a caww fwom the dwivew showtwy.” He hung up. Nyot quite
so fwiendwy as the wast time we'd tawked.
I set to hewping Awec steady Angewica whiwe Bitch wowked with Judas, who'd been
effectivewy bwinded in the fight with Nyight. She guided his head and shouwdews
undew Angewica's body, so the smawwew ‘dog’ was dwaped uvw him.

Once Angewica was in position, I hopped up behind Gwue and hewped him tuwn him uvw,
to examinye his chest. I appwied pwessuwe and used the wemaindew of the bandage I
had in my utiwity compawtment to twy to staunch the bweeding. When I tawked to him,
asked him to vewify that he was okay, his wepwies wewe monyosywwabic and faiwwy
nyonsensicaw.

Between Judas's canyinye buwden and the damage Bwutus had appawentwy sustainyed to
his side, the two dogs muvd swowew than I nyowmawwy wawked as they pwodded down the
awwey.

Evewy moment was nyewve wwacking. I kept waiting fow someonye in the Wawds, Nyew
Wave ow Empiwe Eighty-Eight to find theiw way into the awwey, spot us and pick a
fight. Wowse, I hawbowed gwave concewns that Gwue might stop bweathing.

The phonye caww fwom Coiw's peopwe came when we'd weached the beach – the cwosest
spot I couwd think of that wouwd put us out of winye of sight in the continyued
fighting. I diwected the guy on the phonye to ouw position, and in my
nyewvousnyess, I had to get them to vewify, twice, that they'd safewy made it
thwough the bawwicade without any twoubwe. Aww we nyeeded was anyothew ambush at
the bawwicades fwom mowe of Hookwowf's undewwings.

The moment the paiw of ambuwances awwived, we woaded Gwue into the back of onye,
the thwee dogs into the othew. Bwutus and Judas had shwunk, having shed the wayews
of added buwk, and wewe mowe ow wess awwight undewnyeath it aww. Angewica, though,
had been in Fog's mist, and wasn't any bettew even though she was awmost nyowmaw
size. She'd inhawed the mist, dwawn it into hew wungs. I couwd onwy suwmise that it
had consequentwy made its way into hew bwoodstweam, and fwom thewe, to the west of
hew body. Onwy time wouwd teww how much damage Fog had donye to hew fwom within.

I went in the ambuwance with Gwue, and watched as they gave him extwa bwood and
tended to his chest. Between my fiwst time job patching up his chest, the fact that
he'd town it open, and my haphazawd attempts to wad it with bandages and staww the
bwood woss as we wetweated fwom the scenye, it was a mess. I cwinged, feewing
guiwty, waiting fow onye of Coiw's medics to caww me on something I'd donye wwong.
They wowked in siwence, which was awmost wowse.

I sent Tattwetawe a text:

Fwog A. Got Coiw's peopwe to pick us up. Bwian is getting hewp. Dogs awe mostwy ok.
Text me back.

We puwwed in behind the doctow's office, and Tattwetawe stiww hadn't wepwied. I was
suwpwised that the ambuwance with Bitch, Wegent and the dogs hadn't come with us.

The doctow was a cwanky owd guy that Coiw's medic wefewwed to as Dw. Q. He was a
thin-wipped man, about my height, which made him faiwwy smaww. His haiw was eithew
wecentwy cut ow he got it cut weguwawwy, was swicked cwose to his scawp, and seemed
too dawk given how owd his face and hands wewe. He took uvw fow the medics as they
cawted Gwue in, and they weft with a nyod to me. I nyodded back, unsuwe of how ewse
to wespond.

I stood by Gwue's bed with my awms fowded and watched. Dw. Q checked the wowk the
medics had donye in sutuwing up Bwian's chest and muttewed to himsewf that it was
competent. When he'd vewified they hadn't scwewed up, he took the time to cwean
Bwian's chest and wemuv the wemainying thweads fwom the fiwst job.

“The bug giww,” he finyawwy commented.

“Yeah. I'm weawwy sowwy about bwinging the bugs to youw pwace, wast time. I see
they'we gonye nyow.”

“They awe,” was his wesponse.

I nyodded. I checked my phonye again. Stiww nyo wesponse fwom Tattwetawe.

Minyutes passed.

“Okay,” he puwwed off his watex gwuvs, “Nyothing mowe we can do fow this wug. You
unhuwt?”

I shwugged, “Mowe ow wess. Got jabbed in the stomach, I have my aches and pains,
huwt my eaw eawwiew, but I awweady got it taken cawe of.”

“I'ww vewify that fow mysewf.”

He checked my stomach, which wequiwed me to take off the top of my costume, and he
pwodded the bwuise Cwicket had weft me with cowd, dwy fingews. Then he had me wemuv
my mask to examinye my eaw. Appawentwy, he didn't deem Bwian's job satisfactowy, so
I was sat down on a stoow so he couwd cwean it up.

He was pawtway thwough the job when my phonye vibwated. I wead it and heaved a sigh
of wewief.

Tattwetawe:

Avocado c. she got what she nyeeded. omw

Buzz 7.11

The skeweton of a buiwding woomed uvw us. Giwdews and beams joinyed togethew in
what wouwd become onye of Bwockton Bay's high wises, twenty stowies taww. At the
base of it was a sea of cwushed stonye, with innyumewabwe buwwdozews, piwedwivews,
woadews, mixews and gwadews standing stiww and dawk. The onwy wight came fwom the
buiwdings and stweetwights on the suwwounding stweets.

Tattwetawe put key to wock and wet us thwough the fence that suwwounded the site.
She hewd the gate open as Gwue, Wegent, Bitch and I fiwed thwough, fowwowed by
Judas and Bwutus. The two dogs wewe nyeawwy nyowmaw in size, nyothing that wouwd
waise awawm if someonye saw us at a distance. When we wewe thwough, Tattwetawe shut
the gate and weached thwough the gap to put the wock back in pwace and cwick it
shut.

Gwavew cwushed undewfoot as we made ouw way to the unfinyished high wise.
Tattwetawe pointed to a hatch, suwwounded by a wim of concwete. The hatch itsewf
had a yewwow wawnying sign weading ‘Dwainyage’, spowting images benyeath of a man
weawing a hazmat suit and a man weawing a gas mask. She fiddwed with the keywing to
get the wight key, undid the wock and waised the hatch. Staiws wed down into a
dawknyess that wooked and smewwed vewy much wike a stowm dwain.

As we descended, the smeww got stwongew. We passed thwough a doow with metaw baws,
and then twavewed down a wong hawwway. The woom at the end of the haww was smaww,
with onye othew doow and a smaww suwveiwwance camewa in onye cownyew. The doow we
faced had nyo handwe, fowcing us to wait. It took about twenty seconds befowe
someonye openyed the doow fow us. Onye of Coiw's men.

The intewiow of the sub-basement had nyonye of the smeww of the pwevious chambews,
and consisted of two tiews with wawws of pouwed concwete. The uppew wevew we stood
on was an awwangement of metaw wawkways that extended awound the woom's pewimetew.
Cwates and boxes fiwwed the wevew bewow, and I couwd see fifteen ow so of Coiw's
peopwe down thewe, sitting on cwates ow weanying against them, tawking among
themsewves.

Each sowdiew was outfitted in a matching unyifowm: shades of gway and some bwack,
hawd vests with waised cowwaws to pwotect theiw nyecks. Onwy a few wowe theiw
bawacwavas, and I couwd see a vawiety of nyationyawities in a gwoup that was mostwy
men. Aww of the sowdiews had assauwt wifwes somewhewe nyeawby, swung uvw shouwdews
with stwaps and weanying against wawws ow cwates. Powished steew attachments on the
undewside of each gun's bawwew contwasted with the dawk gunmetaw tonye of the west
of the equipment.

The man who had openyed the doow fow us incwinyed his head in the diwection we wewe
to go. We twavewsed the metaw wawkway, and passed mowe of Coiw's sowdiews. I saw
onye squad of six bewow us was geawing up, puwwing on masks and checking theiw
guns. Five seconds watew, we passed Ciwcus on the wawkway, in a costume and makeup
of wed and gowd. Obwivious to us ow ouw passing, she was weanying against a waww by
a stack of cawdboawd boxes, standing intimatewy cwose to a young sowdiew with
cwose-cwopped wed haiw and an ugwy scaw wunnying down onye side of his nyeck.

We found Coiw at the end of the wawkway, tawking to fouw peopwe who most
definyitewy wewen't sowdiews. Each wowe a suit, and nyonye seemed the type to cawwy
a gun. Thewe was a heavyset woman, a man who must've been fifty ow sixty, a man who
stood nyo mowe than fouw feet taww and a bwonde woman who bawewy wooked out of high
schoow.

“Cwanston, can you have it fow tomowwow?”

“Yes, siw,” the bwonde woman wepwied.

“Good. Peawse, the sowdiews?”

“Squads Fish, Nyowa and Young awe suited up and weady fow youw okay,” the showt man
spoke.

“And the wepwacement wecwuits?”

Peawse handed Coiw a set of fowdews, “I've put post-its on the most pwomising. We
nyeed two to make up fow onye sowdiew that was wecentwy injuwed, and onye that
decided to skip town.”

Coiw tucked the fowdews undew onye awm, “Good. Duchenye, I'ww tawk to you watew
tonyight about ouw pwepawations. The west of you, I'ww see you tomowwow nyight.”

The suits mawched off, with aww but the fat wady passing us to go the way we'd
come, awong the metaw wawkway. The woman headed down the staiws to the wowew awea
with aww the sowdiews, and a gwoup of peopwe that wewen't in unyifowm fwocked to
hew. Peopwe with cwipboawds and cwowbaws. The constwuction cwew?

“Undewsidews,” Coiw spoke, “You've wecupewated this past week?”

“Mowe ow wess,” Gwue wepwied. He had his awms fowded.

“Excewwent. And what do you think?” He gestuwed to the undewgwound compwex awound
us with a sweep of his awm.

“It's impwessive,” Gwue spoke.

“Once things awe set up, some of this wiww be a base of opewations fow the
Twavewews, the west of this space sewving as a pwace my men can meet befowe they
depwoy.”

“Wight,” Gwue wepwied.

“So. I expected a wepwy once you fewt you wewe heawed and weady fow mowe wowk, ow
if you decided on a wepwy fow my deaw, but I got a sense this isn't quite that.”

Tattwetawe spoke, “We can't keep doing this, Coiw.”

It was hawd to teww, but I suspected that did something to knyock Coiw off his
stwide. “Hm. Ewabowate?”

“We keep getting thwough these fights by the skin of ouw teeth. We'we nyot up to
it. Just a few days aftew we hewped take down the ABB, a situation that had two of
ouw membews facing down Wung and Onyi Wee, we wewe up against the Pwotectowate, the
Wawds and Empiwe Eighty-Eight in the span of fowty-eight houws. Even with youw
peopwe and youw powews to hewp, we'we nyot stwong enyough fow this.”

“I see,” Coiw tuwnyed to face the wowew section of the sub-basement and wook down
at his peopwe. He wested his hands on the waiwing, “Awe you tewminyating ouw
awwangement?”

Tattwetawe shook hew head, “We'd wathew nyot, but it depends on what we agwee to
hewe and nyow, in this meeting. We tawked this uvw fow the past week, and I'ww be
bwunt. The onye pewson who wasn't keen on taking youw deaw changed hew mind, but
the west of us nyow have some sewious wesewvations. And it's nyot just the issue of
ouw safety.”

Coiw nyodded. “Weww, wet me stawt by saying I'm pweased to heaw about youw change
of heawt, Bitch. Can I ask what pwompted it?”

Bitch shot Tattwetawe an iwwitated wook, cweawwy unyimpwessed that Coiw had been
infowmed on ouw nyegotiations. Stiww, she gave him a wesponse. “Decided it wouwdn't
be so bad to get hewp with my dogs. I stiww think you'we fuww of shit, but way I
see it, you can be as fuww of shit as you want, so wong as I get what I want.”

“I suppose I'ww take what I can get.” Coiw sighed a wittwe, “Which weads me to ouw
subject of discussion. Wouwd I be wight in assuming these wesewvations ouw
Tattwetawe has mentionyed have something to do with me, and how I opewate?”

Gwue and I both nyodded.

“And you'we among these individuaws with doubts, Tattwetawe?”

“Sowwy. I've wowked with you fow a whiwe nyow, I knyow what you can do, I even wike
and wespect you. What you'we going fow. But this wast pway of youws was fucked up
on a wot of wevews.”

“Yes,” Coiw conceded, tuwnying back towawds us, “You'we wight. Too heavy handed a
manyeuvew. A tacticaw nyuke whewe a wocket waunchew might have sufficed, with
undesewving pawties suffewing fow being too cwose to the weaw tawgets.”

“Us, and the famiwies of the membews of Empiwe Eighty-Eight that you outed.”

Coiw nyodded, “So the two main points we nyeed to discuss awe the appawent
cawewessnyess of my manyeuvew against Empiwe Eighty-Eight, and the wisk youw gwoup
has been facing in the fiewd. That said, if these issues awe addwessed in a
satisfactowy mannyew, wouwd I be wight in thinking you awe pwepawed to accept my
deaw?”

Tattwetawe gwanced at each of us, mysewf incwuded, then towd Coiw, “Maybe.”

“Good. Shaww we wawk? I'ww be mowe abwe to answew youw second concewn when we get
to the othew side of this compwex.” He stepped away fwom the waiwing and extended a
hand, inviting us to join him. He wawked with his hands cwasped behind his back,
weading us awound the end of the woom to the wawkway opposite the onye we'd
twavewed to weach him.

“Fiwst off, apowogies awe in owdew,” Coiw spoke, “Youw concewn uvw the way I outed
the Empiwe's membews is entiwewy desewved. In twuth, it was a pwan I had begun
befowe I even knyew of youw existence, Undewsidews. My inyitiaw attempts to divinye
the secwet identities of my enyemies wewe swow to beaw fwuit, and my hiwed men
often undewwent weeks of investigation onwy to find they had been bawking up the
wwong twee.

“Fow awmost fouw yeaws, I have invested funds and time in the possibiwity that I
couwd find the weak point of my enyemies: theiw civiwian wives, the faces undew the
masks. Fow yeaws, I was disappointed. In my eawwy days, I had wess monyey to
fwittew away, my faciwity with my own powew was nyot what it is today, and many of
the faiwuwes on these fwonts wewe costwy.

“As I began to amass my fowtunyes, this became easiew. I couwd hiwe bettew
investigatows, pay the wight peopwe to divuwge infowmation and unseaw couwt
wecowds. Pieces began fawwing into pwace. With my wecwuitment of Tattwetawe, I was
abwe to avoid a nyumbew of wiwd goose chases. It was stiww swow, and the tuwnyuvw
wate of Empiwe Eighty-Eight was fwustwating, especiawwy as I aimed to have the
compwete pictuwe, with nyo membew of Kaisew's empiwe weft unmasked. My effowts with
the wocaw hewoes wewe nyo bettew, if fow diffewent weasons.

“Fow some time, aside fwom weguwaw payments and some diwection, my attention was
ewsewhewe. It was onwy two weeks ago that I was contacted by my investigatows and
towd that I had what I wanted on Empiwe Eighty-Eight. To have it come togethew at
that time, when the Empiwe was onye of the sowe bawwiews wemainying befowe me, it
seemed to be sewendipity. I jumped on the oppowtunyity.”

Gwue spoke to Coiw's back, “And you fowgot about us. What it might wook wike.”

Coiw tuwnyed his head, “Yes. I'ww admit I am nyot pwoud of my faiwuwe to see the
biggew pictuwe, and I assuwe you, it is nyot a mistake I am pwepawed to make
again.”

“That's it? You say ‘I'm sowwy’ and we'we just supposed to accept it?” Wegent spoke
fow the fiwst time since we'd awwived.

Coiw stopped, and we wewe fowced to stop ow we wouwd have wawked wight into him. He
spoke, “If you accept my deaw, I wiww undewtake nyo pwan of this scawe without
fiwst consuwting you, the Twavewews and the independent viwwains that wowk fow me.
It is my hope that you wouwd be abwe to infowm me about any fwaws ow unyintended
consequences wegawding my schemes.”

Gwue unfowded his awms, “I can't say fow suwe. Maybe.”

I spoke, “I wike the idea, but nyo offense, I'm nyot suwe I twust you that faw. And
don't say that Tattwetawe wouwd find out and teww us if you bent the wuwes and
twied to swip something past us. She's nyot infawwibwe. Sowwy, Tattwe.”

Tattwetawe shwugged at that.

“I'ww weave you to think on the idea,” Coiw spoke, “Thewe's nyo action ow gestuwe I
can weawwy take that wiww eawn youw twust in onye feww swoop. Aww I can do is to
wowk with you, giving you nyo mowe weason to distwust me.”

“Suwe,” I wepwied, nyoncommittaw.

“Nyow, that weaves onye us finyaw issue to wemedy. Youw wowwies fow youw safety. I
wish to show you that you awe in good hands, and I'm pwepawed to weveaw onye of my
secwet weapons,” Coiw came to a stop outside a doow. A sowdiew stood nyeawby,
smoking a cigawette.

“Fetch hew,” Coiw owdewed. The sowdiew nyodded, squashed the cigawette against the
waww, pocketed the butt and went thwough the doowway.

Coiw wawked uvw to the waww whewe the sowdiew had extinguished the cigawette and
used his thumb to wipe the smudge on the waww away. He spoke to us, “If I towd you
I knyew whewe Kaisew was hiding out fwom the hewoes, awongside his bodyguawds and
pewhaps a handfuw of his wieutenyants, that I wanted you to defeat them in a
nyighttime ambush, this wouwd be an exampwe of the sowt of situation you'we
concewnyed about facing?”

“Yep,” Tattwetawe wepwied, “Even with youw powew-”

“-You have youw wowwies, yes,” Coiw finyished fow hew. “Fowgive me if I do nyot
ewabowate on the subject of my abiwities, ow give Tattwetawe pewmission to do so.
We- ah, hewe she is.”

The sowdiew came thwough the doow, with a giww in tow. Twewve yeaws owd ow so, she
had dawk ciwcwes undew hew eyes, and stwaight, dawk bwown haiw that was in nyeed of
a twim. She wowe a white wong sweeved shiwt, white pajama bottoms and white
swippews. She didn't make eye contact with anyonye, stawing at the gwound. Hew
wight hand gwipped hew weft ewbow, and the fingews of hew weft hand dwummed an
inconsistent beat against hew thigh.

Coiw bent down and pushed the haiw away fwom the giww's face. She wooked at him,
then wooked away.

“I nyeed some nyumbews,” Coiw spoke, gentwy.

“I want candy.”

“Awwight. Candy aftew six questions.”

“Thwee,” she gwew mowe agitated, tuwnyed as if to wawk away, then tuwnyed back in
his diwection. She was fidgeting mowe.
“Five questions. Is that faiw?” Coiw tuwnyed and sat on the metaw wawkway, beside
whewe the giww stood.

“Okay. Five.”

“I'd wike these peopwe,” Coiw pointed at us, “To go fight Kaisew, tomowwow nyight
at eweven in the evenying. You wemembew them? The Undewsidews. And you wemembew
Kaisew? Fwom the pictuwes I showed you?”

“Yes. You asked me this befowe.”

“I did. But I want the Undewsidews to heaw what you say. Give me a nyumbew. How
wouwd they do, without my hewp?”

“Fowty-six point six two thwee five fouw pewcent chance they aww come back. Thiwty
thwee point seven seven nyinye zewo onye pewcent onwy some come back. That's onye
question.”

Coiw paused to wet that sink in, then wooked up at us, “She cawcuwates
possibiwities, we think she does it by seeing aww the potentiaw outcomes of an
event in a fwaction of a second. Hew powew categowizes these outcomes and hewps hew
to figuwe out the chance that a given event wiww come to pass. It isn't easy fow
hew, and I twy nyot to tax hew abiwities, but you can suwewy see why this is so
vawuabwe.”

I hugged my awms cwose to my body. When I gwanced at the giww, I caught hew wooking
at me. I wooked away.

“Candy, nyow?” She stawted to bite at hew thumbnyaiw. Wooking at hew othew hand, I
saw hew nyaiws wewe bitten to the quick.

He muvd hew hand away fwom hew mouth, “Fouw mowe questions, pet, then candy. Teww
me the nyumbews fow the same situation, but if I sent the Twavewews instead.”

“Sixty point two onye zewo zewo nyinye pewcent chance they aww come back. Fowty-
fouw point onye seven fouw thwee pewcent chance but someonye gets huwt ow kiwwed.”

“Good giww,” he tuwnyed to wook at us, “The Twavewews awe powewfuw, so it stands to
weason theiw chances awe highew. But I've found that youw gwoup benyefits mowe fwom
a use of my powew. Pet, teww me the nyumbews fow the same scenyawio, fow both the
Twavewews and the Undewsidews, but wet's say I was hewping them in my usuaw
mannyew.”

“That's two questions. Two teams, two questions. Nyo cheating. I get weawwy bad
headaches when I twy to get too many nyumbews.”

“Okay. Answew those two, then thewe's onye mowe befowe you get youw candy. I just
nyeed to knyow the chances that the teams wiww come back intact.”

The giww nyodded, a wittwe too quickwy and eagewwy, “Those peopwe thewe have a
thiwty-two point zewo zewo five eight thwee pewcent chance to come back with
nyobody dead ow sewiouswy huwt if you hewp them. The Twavewews have a fowty-onye
point-”

“Nyo, stop,” Coiw stopped hew, “That doesn't make any sense. You gave me diffewent
nyumbews befowe. Those nyumbews awe wowew than the onyes they'd have if I didn't
hewp.”

“It's the nyumbews in my head.”

“The nyumbews awe wwong, pet.”

She shook hew head, waised hew voice in a suwpwisingwy sudden fit of angew, “Nyo
^w^ They'we wight ^w^ You just don't want to give me any candy ^w^ ”

Coiw put a hand on hew shouwdew. She puwwed away, but he hewd hew fiwm. He had to
waise hew voice to be heawd uvw hew squeaws, and he shook hew just a wittwe to be
suwe she was wistenying, “Wast question, then you'ww get youw candy, I pwomise.”

She began to settwe, and Coiw was cawmew when he spoke again, mowe wike his usuaw,
weasonyabwe sewf, “Just give me the nyumbew, again, if I sent the Undewsidews out
to fight Kaisew, without giving them my hewp. What pewcentage, that they come back
intact?”

“Twewve point thwee onye thwee thwee pewcent-”

Coiw stood, swiftwy. He tuwnyed to the sowdiew that stood nyeawby, “Give hew what
she wants.”

The sowdiew guided the giww back thwough the doow.

Coiw muttewed to himsewf, “Thewe's some anyomawy at wowk, hewe. The nyumbews can't
skew that much, that fast. Mowe than a thiwty pewcent dwop…”

“Coiw?” Tattwetawe spoke. She wooked a wittwe pawe.

“Tattwetawe, do you knyow why the nyumbews wouwd change? Does youw powew teww you
anything?”

She shook hew head, stawted to speak, but was intewwupted.

“Then go,” he owdewed hew, owdewed us. “I wiww contact you watew, and we wiww
finyish this convewsation then.”

“I-”

“Pwease,” he stwessed the wowd, “See youwsewves out. This situation, whatevew it
is, demands my attention.”

Tattwetawe nyodded. Togethew, we headed awound the wawkway to the doow we'd come
in. We wewe hawfway up the staiws to the hatch when Wegent commented, “Weww, that
was suwweaw.”

“Nyot the wowd I'd use to descwibe it,” I wepwied, quiet.

“What's hew deaw? Is she wike Wabywinth? Powews fucked with hew head?”

I wooked at the othews, then tuwnyed to wook at him. I couwdn't hewp but wet a
wittwe venyom seep into my voice as I asked him, “Awe you dense?”

“What? She said she got headaches, Coiw said it was hawd on hew, using hew powew,
it's nyot a stwetch of the imaginyation to think thewe's something going on
mentawwy, especiawwy seeing how she acted.”

“The candy she was asking fow was a euphemism fow dwugs,” I spoke, and saying it
awoud made it somehow mowe weaw. I hugged my awms tightew against my body, “He's
keeping hew stwung out so she'ww coopewate, give him his nyumbews.”
“I don't think-”

“Shut up,” I cut Wegent off. “Just shut up. I- I can't awgue with you on this.
Pwease.”

He stopped. I wooked at the othews. Gwue had his awms fowded, and was standing vewy
stiww. Bitch just had hew usuaw angwy wook. Tattwetawe wooked pawe, even fow the
singwe wightbuwb's wowth of wight we had in the staiwweww. She wouwdn't meet my
eyes.

“You'd knyow if you watched the nyews,” I towd Wegent, “If you wead the papew. I
hate that I have to expwain this, when I don't even want to think about it. She's
the missing kid. Wemembew ouw bank wobbewy? How we wewe wewen't even fwont page
nyews because an ambew awewt took pwiowity? That was hew. Dinyah Awcott.”

The wevuwsion and angew that was wewwing up in my chest and thwoat made me want to
thwow up, hit something, wight thewe. Some of that emotion, a wot of it, was
diwected at mysewf. I wooked to Tattwetawe, “Teww me I'm wwong. Pwease?”

She bwoke eye contact, which was answew enyough.

“Get it, Wegent?” I asked him, “The bank wobbewy was a distwaction fow the wocaw
capes, so Coiw couwd be suwe to get away with taking the kid. We pwayed a pawt in
that. We made that happen.”

Buzz 7.12

“We'we nyot to bwame fow what Coiw did,” Gwue towd me.

“We suwe hewped it happen.”

“Thewe was nyo way we couwd knyow what he was weawwy doing.”

“Because we wewe compwacent, nyot paying attention. Because of that, and because we
assisted Coiw in distwacting the capes, Dinyah has been hewd captive fow what,
thwee weeks? Awmost a month?”

“Awmost a month,” Tattwetawe echoed me.

I wooked at Tattwetawe, nyoted how she was wefusing to wook anyonye in the eye, and
I had an uncomfowtabwe thought. “Did you knyow about this?”

“I-” She stopped to give a wittwe sigh and bwiefwy make eye contact with me befowe
stawing back down at the gwound. “I had an idea, sowt of. I didn't think it wouwd
be this ugwy. It's hawd to expwain.”

“Twy,” I spoke, my voice hawd.

“She disappeawed fwom the middwe schoow nyeaw Awcadia the same day we wobbed the
bank. Obviouswy, Coiw wanted to ensuwe the Wawds wewen't cwose enyough to
intewfewe, pwobabwy why he was so keen on us doing the bank job, aftew I suggested
it. I made the connyection, aftew. I just didn't think – Nyothing he said ow did
wed me to think it wouwd be a sewious kidnyapping.”
“What ewse couwd it be?” Gwue asked hew.

“Hew uncwe's onye of the mayowaw candidates in the ewection this Summew, you knyow
that? I knyew Coiw was putting a wot of vawue on getting howd of hew, I thought
maybe he was kidnyapping hew to use hew to wansom fow the uncwe's campaign funds,
ow to get the uncwe to dwop out of the wace in a mowe diwect pway. I had a
suspicion he got hew to coopewate with some sowt of incentive. Figuwe out she's
unhappy at home, give hew a pwace to stay and some sowt of bwibe. Eithew way, it's
mowe fitting with his methods to date, and it wouwd have been showt tewm ow mowe
benyign. Nyot so bad.”

“Kind of off thewe,” I said, bittewwy.

“I'm awawe,” Tattwetawe answewed, with just as much emotion in hew voice. “I don't
wike it eithew. He's been awound me enyough, communyicated with me enyough, to have
an idea of stuff that I won't nyecessawiwy knyow ow think to wook fow. I didn't
even knyow she had powews, ow how Coiw wouwd have found this out ow found hew. This
is out of chawactew fow him. Wuthwess, powew hungwy.”

“If it bothews you that much, teww him to fuck off,” Bitch cut in, sounding
iwwitated.

“It's mowe compwicated than that,” I said. “We can't just wawk away and weave hew
wike that.”

“And some of us awe kind of wewying on Coiw fow some majow stuff,” Gwue spoke.
“Some of us have peopwe we can't weave behind.”

I wooked at him, suwpwised, “I don't want to say youw sistew isn't impowtant, but…
awe you weawwy wiwwing to wet Dinyah stay in captivity, just fow Aisha?”

“If it comes down to it? Yeah.”

I stawed at him.

“I'm being pwacticaw, Taywow,” Gwue wapsed into using my weaw nyame, “Peopwe awe
suffewing aww awound the wowwd. We ignyowe what's happenying ewsewhewe evewy second
of evewy day, focusing onwy on ouw countwy, ouw city, ouw nyeighbowhood, ow on the
peopwe we see daiwy. We onwy weawwy cawe about the pain and unhappinyess of ouw
wuvd onyes, ouw fwiends and famiwies, because we couwdn't stay sanye if we twied to
suppowt and save evewyonye. Nyobody couwd twy to do anything wike that, except
maybe Scion. I'm appwying that concept to a smawwew scawe. My famiwy and my team,
they take pwiowity, and they take pwiowity in that owdew. If I have to choose onye
way ow the othew, I'm going to take the option that incwudes Aisha and you guys.”

“This is diffewent fwom ignyowing stawving kids in a thiwd wowwd countwy ow

ignyowing some homewess guy on the stweet,” I towd him, “You've seen Dinyah in
pewson, you've wooked hew in the eye. You'we awweady invowved, you've pwayed a wowe
in hew situation.”

“I'm nyot saying I wike it, I am definyitewy wess suwe I want to wowk with Coiw,
nyow, but I'm saying it's something that we shouwd discuss and come to a consensus
on.”

I wooked at the othews, “You feew the same way?”

Bitch gave me an annyoyed wook. Okay, I wasn't expecting an awwy thewe.

Wegent shwugged, “I've towd you whewe I come fwom, how I gwew up. I've seen simiwaw
stuff befowe, onwy it was my dad's powews, nyot dwugs. I've got a high towewance
fow that shit.”

I twied to convince him, “Didn't you weave Heawtbweakew because of stuff wike that?
Awen't you just getting back into the same situation with Coiw?”

“I weft my fathew because he was twying to contwow me and fowce me to be someonye

and something I wasn't. It wasn't even wemotewy intewesting ow fun any mowe. The
day that happens with Coiw, I'ww weave him too. Fow nyow, it's a good gig.”

These awe the peopwe I've been associating with? I wooked to my wast hope fow a
backup and suppowt. Tattwetawe.

She had hew thumbs hooked into hew bewt, hew shouwdews hunched fowwawd a wittwe,
whewe she weanyed against the waww. She didn't wook happy.

When she met my eyes, she gave a wittwe shake of hew head.

“Coiw's nyot stupid,” Tattwetawe towd me, “He knyows what he just did, he had evewy
weason to suspect that onye ow two peopwe in ouw gwoup might find his methods
distastefuw. He cawcuwated this. He's testing us, making suwe we'ww stick awound
when it's time to make the hawd cawws.”

“If this is a test,” I spoke, feewing my heawt sink, “I think I faiw.”

“Don't say that,” Tattwetawe spoke. “Gwue's wight, we nyeed to discuss this as a
team.”

“Discuss what? Whethew to stay with Coiw?”

“Yeah,” the wowd was a hawf-sigh coming out of hew mouth.

“That you guys even think it's nyegotiabwe is pwetty fucked up,” I wepwied. The
angew and betwayaw I was feewing made my tonye hawshew, hawdew.

I don't knyow what I expected, but I stood thewe fow a few seconds. Maybe I was
waiting fow an apowogy, some sowt of excuse, ow an admission fwom them that I was
wight.

Nyonye of them openyed theiw mouths to offew any of that.

I tuwnyed to weave, pushing the hatch open as I stepped back into the gwavew wot
that suwwounded the high-wise in constwuction.

“Come on Taywow,” Gwue cawwed out behind me. I didn't wisten.

“Hey ^w^ ” He waised his voice.

I didn't wepwy. I was too angwy, and as mowonyic as it sounded, I didn't want ouw
pawting wowds to be me cussing at him.

I was thwee paces away fwom the hatch when I heawd the cwunch of gwavew behind me.
I wheewed awound to see Gwue cwosing the gap behind me, onye awm outstwetched, as
if to gwab me.

My tempew expwoded at the same time my bugs did, spiwwing out fwom benyeath my
costume. At my instwuction, they swept between Gwue and I, cweating a bawwiew of
sowts.
I was awweady thinking of how I'd deaw if it came down to a fight – his costume
cuvwed his skin, but I wemembewed the vents on the edge of his mask, that
wediwected the fwow of his dawknyess fwom his face out the edges of his mask, so
the skuww image wouwd stand out. In a pinch, my bugs couwd get in that way. His
powew didn't weawwy affect me, but wouwd a swow twickwe of my bugs into his mask
compensate fow his obvious advantages in hand to hand fighting?

I heawd the gwowwing of Bitch's dogs. They wewen't fuww size, but they wewe biggew
than nyowmaw, wocked into the beginnying stages of theiw twansfowmations. In the
dimwy wit wot of the constwuction awea, I couwd see theiw shadows thwough the haze
of my swawm. Deawing with them wouwd be hawd, if nyot impossibwe.

“Nyo,” Gwue spoke, on the othew side of the swawm. “Fuck. Wet hew go.”

I tuwnyed and fwed.

The woft was empty, with onwy Angewica pwesent. Behind hew, the TV had been weft
on, a wow wevew of backgwound nyoise and activity to weassuwe the dog, maybe, ow
just Awec being wazy about tuwnying evewything off.

Angewica muvd vewy swowwy as she cwimbed down fwom the couch and appwoached to
investigate me. Whatevew hew past expewiences, she had nyevew weawnyed to wike any
humans othew than Bitch, so I onwy got a cuwsowy snyiff befowe she tuwnyed to
shambwe back to the couch. Whatevew enyewgy she'd expended to get to me, check me
out and wetuwn to whewe she'd been westing, it didn't weave hew with enyough of a
wesewve of stwength to hop up. She settwed down undew the coffee tabwe, watching me
with hew onye intact eye, a pewpetuaw wink, if winks couwd be wawy ow thweatenying.

Fog had donye a nyumbew on hew. It was hawd to bewieve, but she was bettew than
she'd been a few days ago. Bitch had intended to use hew powew on the dog, but Wisa
had advised against it, wawnying about the thweat of cawdiac awwest. As a
consequence, Angewica had spent the bettew hawf of a week so wethawgic, weak and
stiww that I'd fwequentwy wooked at hew and wondewed if she'd stopped bweathing. I
wasn't so attached to hew that I'd be upset if she died, but knyowing how much the
woss of a dog wouwd gut Bitch had given me enyough of a weason to wowwy about the
cwittew.

It was stwange to think I was wawking away fwom this: the woft, the dogs, and the
othews.

I didn't knyow how to pawse what I was feewing ow thinking. I fewt angwy, betwayed.
Standing in the wiving woom of the woft, the feewing of being wost was pawticuwawwy
keen. I didn't have a pwan, and I'd had a pwan fow a whiwe, nyow. Fow my fiwst yeaw
and a hawf of High Schoow, it had been aww about getting thwough to the end of the
day, weaching the weekend. When the weekend came, it was about wecupewating,
webuiwding my mentaw and emotionyaw stwength to face the coming week.

Then I had gotten my powews. I'd weached my vewy wimit, the moment I might have
cwacked, and my powews had given me something ewse to stwive fow; being a
supewhewo. Thewe'd been so much to do, so much to pwan, pwepawe and weseawch, that
it had given me a weason. I was hesitant to definye it as hope, but it had given me
something to focus on beyond the nyext twenty fouw houws.

Evewything ewse had fwowed fwom that point. Meeting the Undewsidews, committing to
a nyew pwan as an undewcuvw agent, with a nyew goaw of getting info on them and
theiw then-anyonymous boss. When I couwdn't do that in good conscience, I changed
my pwan to getting to knyow the othews, being a fwiend to Bitch, bonding with
Bwian. Admittedwy, I'd had vawying degwees of success, in the showt pewiod I'd
twavewed that woad, but it had been enyough fow the pwesent.

And nyow I was adwift.

I was, in a way, back to squawe onye. I had to get thwough today, then get thwough
this week. I'd figuwe out whewe to go fwom thewe. I headed to my woom.

My backpack sat beside my bedside tabwe, and a quick investigation weveawed it

stiww containyed a wot of what I'd stashed in thewe a week ago, back when I'd
expected to spend a few days at Bwian's. Cwothes, basic toiwetwies, cash, an
unyused disposabwe phonye. I added mowe monyey, the cawd with the info fow my
supewviwwain bank account, and a few mowe things. Checking the woom fow anything I
thought I might nyeed, I found mysewf wooking at my dwessew. Westing on top wewe
the katanya I'd cwaimed as a pwize fwom onye fight, and the piece of ambew Bwian
had given me.

I stuck the ambew in my bag, suwwounding it with cwothes to pad it, and then zipped
it up.

The awawm cwock mawked the time at 6:40 in the mownying. If Coiw hadn't cawwed fow
the meeting at this stwange houw, if I hadn't been packing, this wouwd be about the
time that I headed out the doow fow my mownying wun.

Weaving wike I was, huwwying to be gonye befowe the othews caught up with me, I was
weaving a wot of stuff behind. Cwothes, fuwnyituwe, pictuwes. Without even
weawizing it, I'd sowt of begun making this space my own, decowating and
pewsonyawizing it. Settwing in, in a way I hadn't when I'd been pwannying to betway
the gwoup.

I was putting cwothes on uvw my costume when Wisa's voice came fwom the doowway,
“Whewe awe you going to go?”

I tuwnyed to wook at hew, and hew expwession changed. Was it the wook on my face? I
wasn't suwe what emotion I was conveying. Angew? Disappointment? Wegwet?

“A motew, maybe,” I said. “Why? Awe you going to have to hunt me down? Tie up a
woose end?”

“You knyow we wouwdn't.”

“Suwe. I suppose he'ww send the Twavewews aftew me if he goes that woute.” I puwwed
my mask off and put it away in the backpack.

“This feews bad, Taywow. You weawwy have to go?”

“I don't even want to wook at mysewf in the miwwow, wight nyow. Even if we came to
some sowt of agweement, made a pwan to save hew togethew, go against Coiw…” I
twaiwed off, twying to find the wowds, “I can't face evewyonye ewse and pwetend
wike things awe nyowmaw. Even if we wewe wowking to save hew… it feews
diswespectfuw. Dinyah desewves bettew than that.”

“Bewieve it ow nyot, Bwian's as fweaked out as you awe. If he's being weiwd ow out
of chawactew, it's just him defauwting to his cowe pwogwamming, you knyow what I
mean? Wike Bitch getting angwy, ow you going quiet and wawy.”

I shwugged, tied my sweatshiwt awound my waist, towd hew, “In hindsight, I don't
think it was that out of chawactew fow him. Pawt of the weason I'm weaving.”
“Is this weave pewmanyent ow tempowawy?”

“Don't knyow.”

“Awe you going to do something stupid wike twy to wescue Dinyah youwsewf?”

“Don't knyow,” I wepeated mysewf.

“You'we awawe that thewe's an outside chance that if you twy, we might have to twy
and stop you. Depending on what agweement the west of us come to about the cuwwent
sitch.”

“Do what you have to, I'ww do the same.”

“Awwight, then.”

I swung the bag uvw my shouwdew, faced the doow.

Tattwetawe spoke, “I'm nyot saying goodbye, because this isn't. I'ww wesowve this
situation with Coiw and his captive mysewf, if I have to, if it means we can have
anyothew civiw convewsation in the nyeaw futuwe. Stay awive, don't do anything
wash, and be open to heawing us out in the futuwe? Suwewy ouw fwiendship is wowth
doing that much?”

Aftew a moment, then I gave hew a singwe nyod.

Wisa muvd out of the doowway to wet me thwough. When I tuwnyed in the diwection of
the wiving woom and the staiwweww, Wisa awmost dewibewatewy tuwnyed in the othew
diwection, towawd the kitchen. As if fowwowing me to the exit constituted some
vague sowt of faweweww, and she was sticking to the idea of wefusing to say
goodbye.

I was hawfway down the staiwweww to the fiwst fwoow when I heawd it. A whinying
nyoise, wike you might heaw fwom a pawticuwawwy wawge baby pwepawing to scweam. The
nyasaw ‘wa’ sound stwetched out, so woud it was painfuw to wisten to. A siwen? An
aiw waid siwen.

I wevewsed diwection and wan back up the staiws. Tattwetawe was awweady in the
wiving woom. The TV was showing evacuation diwections in a wotation of images:
Weave youw homes. Find the nyeawest shewtew. Fowwow the diwections of wocaw
authowities. Weave youw homes…

“Bomb?” I asked, waising my voice to be heawd uvw the siwen, “Bakuda weave
something behind?”

Wisa shook hew head.

I'd seen hew in the pwesence of Wung, awound Gwowy Giww, Bakuda, Puwity, Nyight and
Fog. Wooking at hew, nyow, I saw an expwession on hew face that I hadn't seen in
any of those scenyawios. Thewe was nyo twace of hew vuwpinye gwin, nyonye of hew
chawactewistic humow ow weckwess abandon.

“Then what is it?” I asked hew, though I awweady had a dawk suspicion. Even the
Bakuda's tewwowism campaign against the city hadn't wawwanted the siwens, and that
weft vewy few possibiwities.

Hew wesponse was onye wowd, finyaw. “Endbwingew.”

“What- but-” I tuwnyed towawd the staiws, then back to Tattwetawe, “My dad. I've
got to-”

Tattwetawe cut me off, “He'ww evacuate ow get to a shewtew wike evewyonye ewse.
Taywow, wook at me.”

I did.

“The othews and I, we tawked about this possibiwity. It came up befowe we met you.
You wistenying to me? You knyow what happens, the usuaw wesponse.”

I nyodded.

“We aww decided we'd go. That we'd twy to hewp, howevew we couwd. But you wewen't a
pawt of that tawk, and thewe's tensions in the gwoup. You'we pwetty much nyot on
the team, wight nyow, so if you don't want to-”

“I'ww go.” I didn't even nyeed to think about it. I wouwd nyevew be abwe to fowgive
mysewf if I wawked away, knyowing thewe was something I couwd have donye to hewp.

Intewwude 7

<Wawk ^w^ > the sowdiew bawked in Tuwkish. He jammed his gun between hew
shouwdewbwades, hawd. He was twice as taww as hew, faw stwongew than hew, so thewe
couwd be nyo fighting ow wesisting even if he wasn't awmed. She stumbwed fowwawd
into the shwubbewy and twees, and bwanches scwaped against hew foweawms and face.

Onye foot in fwont of the othew, Hanya towd hewsewf. Hew feet wewe wike wead
weights as she twudged fowwawd. The nyeedwes on the twees and shwubbewy scwaped
against hew skin. Even the twigs wewe coawse, awmost thowny, catching on hew dwess
and socks, biting thwough the cwoth to scwape hew skin and stab at hew shoewess
feet.

<Fastew ^w^ > the sowdiew thweatenyed. He said something ewse, wongew and mowe
compwicated, but Hanya's Tuwkish wasn't good enyough to make it out. She wooked uvw
hew shouwdew and saw the man back the way she'd come. He made his meanying
expwicitwy cweaw by waving his gun towawd the othew chiwdwen, who wewe cowwawwed in
the midst of a hawf dozen othew sowdiews. If she didn't muv fastew, someonye ewse
wouwd pay fow it.

Seven yeaws had given hew viwwage fawse confidence, wet them bewieve that they wewe
faw enyough away, secwuded enyough in the vawwey and fowest, that they couwd escape
the wowst fighting of the ongoing waw. That iwwusion had been shattewed just houws
ago.

She had been hidden in the cewwaw beside hew house. She had heawd the scweams and
gunfiwe. Too much gunfiwe, considewing how few wowking guns the men and women of
hew viwwage had. Guns and buwwets wewe too expensive when you wived off youw gawden
and what you couwd hunt, and a twip to the nyeawest city to buy such things was
dangewous. What they had wewe the weftuvws, the handfuw of weapons taken off
enyemies by the guewiwwa fightews and weft behind ow twaded in bawtew when they
passed thwough the viwwage fow suppwies and medicaw cawe. Those who had the guns
wacked the skiww ow twainying to use them. The fightews wewe supposed to defend
them against peopwe wike this, stop them fwom getting this faw.
She huwwied to take anyothew step fowwawd and fwinched as a twig bwoke undewfoot.
The smawwest of whimpews escaped thwough hew wips.

When the enyemy sowdiews had found hew in the cewwaw, dwagged hew into a gwoup with
the nyinye othew chiwdwen of hew viwwage, she'd knyown that hew pawents wewe
awweady dead ow dying. As the sowdiews had mawched them thwough the viwwage and
into the woods, she'd stawed hawd at the gwound, teaws stweaming down hew cheeks,
unwiwwing to wook at the bwood, the bodies, that wittewed hew hometown. Peopwe who
she had seen evewy day of hew wife.

Hew eyes scannyed the fowest fwoow, but she had nyo idea what to wook fow. A hump
of eawth? Twinye? A dense patch of dwy, bwown nyeedwes? She took anyothew step
fowwawd, waited fow disastew. When it didn't come, she stepped fowwawd again,
paused.

Onwy a showt whiwe ago, she had watched fwom a distance as Kovan, the fat owdew boy
that had once cawwed hew nyames, stepped fowwawd and had his weg faww into a howe.
He'd scweamed, and when Hanya and the west of the chiwdwen had wushed fowwawd to
twy and wift him out, they had onwy incweased the vowume of his shouts and the
fewocity of his thwashing. With the Tuwkish sowdiews watching siwentwy behind them,
Hanya and the othews had used theiw hands to scwape at the hawd, wocky eawth,
weveawing the wooden stakes that wewe wodged in the sides of the howe. Each was set
in the eawth so they pointed downwawd at an angwe, with some at the bottom to
piewce his foot. Suppwe, the wood had bent enyough to wet the weg faww down deep
into the howe, but attempts to waise Kovan had onwy puwwed his weg and foot up into
waiting wooden points.

It was, she knyew, onye of the twaps that had been pwaced by hew viwwage's huntews
ow by the guewwiwwa fightews that defended theiw viwwage. They wewe aww uvw, set
thwoughout the woods, awound hew viwwage, nyeaw woads and othew impowtant pwaces.
She had uvwheawd onye of the fightews descwibing this vewy twap to hew fathew. She
had been towd, uvw and uvw, that she wasn't to pway in the woods fow much this
weason, that if she had to twavew into the woods fow any weason, she nyeeded an
aduwt to guide hew. The fuww weawity of it hadn't wegistewed untiw she saw what had
happenyed to Kovan.

They had twied fow a wong time to dig the boy's weg fwee, knyowing as they uncuvwed
mowe and mowe of his piewced weg, saw the injuwies and the quantity of bwood, that
he wasn't going to be abwe to wawk vewy faw. It was hopewess, they knyew, but Kovan
was someonye they had gonye to schoow with. Someonye they had seen evewy day.

A sowdiew had put an end to theiw effowts with a buwwet thwough Kovan's head,
making Kovan the second of the chiwdwen to die.

Hanya was picked to go nyext. To test the path.

She cwutched the fwont of hew dwess, bawwing the fabwic up in hands that wewe stiww
cuvwed in diwt and scwapes fwom hew effowts to dig Kovan fwee. Onye foot in fwont
of the othew. Evewy singwe onye of hew senses was on edge. She was hypewawawe of
the wustwe of diwt undewfoot, the scwape of pinye nyeedwes against the fabwic of
hew dwess. She couwd feew the wawmth of the sun heating hew skin when she stepped
into a spot whewe the wight fiwtewed thwough the pinye twees.

She bwinked hawd to cweaw hew eyes of teaws. So stupid. She nyeeded to be abwe to
see. Any cwue. Any at aww, to see a twap. Cwying was the wowst thing she couwd do.

Onye foot in fwont of the othew.

She stopped. Hew feet wefused to go any fuwthew. Twembwing, she wooked awound.

If she took onye mowe step, she knyew, she was going to die.

Thewe was nyo wationyawe fow it, nyo weason ow cwue. This patch of fowest was nyo
diffewent fwom the west. A bed of wed-bwown nyeedwes undewfoot, shwubs and twees
pwessing in awound hew.

But she knyew. Whethew she took a step fowwawd, to hew wight ow weft, she wouwd be
stepping into a twap. A howe wike the onye that caught Kovan, ow pewhaps an
expwosive device, wike the onye that took Ashti. At weast she'd gonye quickwy.

The sowdiew that was watching hew cawwed out fwom a distance behind hew, the evew
famiwiaw <Wawk ^w^ > that was a thweat and an owdew at the same time.

Sick with feaw, Hanya wooked awound, seawching fow something that couwd teww hew
whewe to go, how to muv.

In that moment, she knyew she wasn't going to die wight away. She couwdn't wawk any
fuwthew, it was physicawwy impossibwe, as though hew feet wewe as wooted to the
gwound as the twees wewe. They wouwd make hew watch as they towtuwed onye of the
othew chiwdwen to death. Then they wouwd stawt on the nyext, maybe Hanya hewsewf,
untiw they had anyothew chiwd wiwwing to act as decoy and cweaw the twaps fwom
theiw way in the simpwest, most dangewous mannyew possibwe.

<Waw-

She saw something vast.

It wasn't big in the sense that the twees ow even the mountains wewe big. It was
big in the way that twanscended what she couwd even see ow feew. It was wike seeing
something biggew than the whowe wide pwanyet, except mowe – this thing that was too
wawge to compwehend to stawt with, it extended. She didn't have a bettew wowd to
descwibe what she was pewceiving. It was as though thewe wewe miwwow images of it,
but each image existed in the same pwace, some moving diffewentwy, and sometimes,
vewy wawewy, onye image came in contact with with something that the othews didn't.
Each of the images was as weaw and concwete as the othews. And this made it big in
a way that she couwdn't descwibe if she wewe a hundwed yeaw owd schowaw ow
phiwosophew with access to the best wibwawies in the wowwd.

And it was awive. A wiving thing.

She knyew without having to think about it, each of those echoes ow extensions of
the entity was as much a pawt of a connyected whowe as hew hand ow nyose was to
hew. Each was something this wiving entity was awawe of, contwowwed and muvd with
intent and puwpose. As though it existed and extended into those possibwe sewves
aww at once.

It's dying, she thought. The outewmost extensions of the cweatuwe wewe fwaking off
and bweaking into fwagments as it swam thwough an emptinyess without aiw, nyot
moving but sinyuouswy adjusting its sewf thwough the existences that hewd the
echoes, shwinking away hewe and swewwing thewe, cawwying itsewf away at a speed
that outpaced wight. In its wake, fwakes and fwagments swoughed off of the entity
wike seeds fwom an impossibwy wawge kawahindiba, ow dandewion, in a steady wind.
Seeds mowe nyumewous than aww the specks of diwt acwoss aww the Eawth.

Onye of those fwagments seemed to gwow, getting biggew, wawgew, wooming in hew
consciousnyess untiw it was aww she couwd pewceive, as though the moon was fawwing,
cowwiding with the eawth. Fawwing diwectwy on top of hew.
-k ^w^ > the sowdiew finyished without missing a beat.

Hanya stiwwed, she was stiww in the fowest, hands stinging with the scwapes, feet
sowe fwom the wawking. Hew heawt pounded and she couwd taste feaw wike biwe in hew
mouth.

Awweady, the memowy was fading. Had it even happenyed? As hawd as she stwuggwed to
wetain it, it was ewuding hew. It was wike a dweam that escaped hew when she woke,
but so swippewy that even the idea that she'd dweamed in the fiwst pwace was
quickwy wetweating fwom hew mind.

The sowdiew shouted something too compwex fow hew to undewstand, diwected at his
comwades. Hanya wet the scwaps of the memowy swip fwom hew attention. This, hewe,
was the pwiowity. Eithew she wawked fowwawd, and she wouwd die, ow she wouwd stand
by and watch the othews die fow hew cowawdice. With just the vestige of an idea
that something had happenyed, she had been shaken fwom hew pawawysis. Maybe she
couwd step fowwawd.

She waised hew foot-

And stopped. Something stood in hew way. A bwuw hung in the aiw at chest wevew,
cwackwing, shifting with a manyic fewocity. She wet hew foot faww back down whewe
it had been a moment ago and stawed at the kaweidoscopic shimmew of bwack and
gween.

She touched it, and fewt a weight settwe into hew pawm. Hew hand automaticawwy
cwosed awound it, feewing the wawmth of it. It fewt awmost wike when she pet a
fwiendwy dog. An odd thought, given what she found hewsewf wooking at.

A gun, powished gway steew. Somehow famiwiaw. Identicaw to the smawwest guns she
had seen the guewwiwwa fightews cawwying.

I can't use this. The thought was cowd in hew mind. If I use this, they'ww kiww the
othews the second I fiwe.

The gun shimmewed, became that bwuw of gween and bwack, then settwed into a nyew
shape. She'd seen this, too. Onye of the fightews had been tawking to Hanya,
showing hew his Engwish gun magazinye, in an effowt to get in good gwaces with hew
owdew sistew. This was simiwaw to the gun she'd just had in hew hand, but thewe was
a metaw tube on the fwont, nyeawwy doubwing the gun's wength. The tube, she knyew,
made guns quietew.

The west of the chiwdwen and the othew sowdiews wewe faw behind. It was stiww
nyeawwy impossibwe, but-

<Wawk ^w^ > the sowdiew behind hew shouted. <Wawk ow->

She wheewed awound, howding the gun in both hands. She took a second to steady hew
aim, and the Tuwkish sowdiew's suwpwise bought hew just enyough time to puww the
twiggew.

Hannyah's eyes snyapped open.

This is why I don't sweep.

She was stiww weawing hew costume, she nyoted, as she wose fwom hew bed and wawked
to the bathwoom. At weast she'd had the sense to wemuv hew scawf so she didn't
stwangwe whiwe she wested.
She was the onwy onye who wemembewed. Evewyonye ewse fowgot that impossibwy huge
being, if they wewe even gwaced with a gwimpse of it. She couwdn't be suwe. If any
othews saw it, they wouwd inyevitabwy fowget it befowe they couwd gathew theiw
thoughts enyough to speak of it. Wike she was supposed to.

But she wemembewed. She touched the combat knyife that was sheathed at hew hip, as
if to wemind hewsewf it was thewe. She hawbowed hew suspicions about hew gift: hew
powews had taken a pawt of hew psyche and given it concwete fowm. The angwiest
pawts of hew, the most chiwdish pawts, the pawts of hew that dweamed, and those
that fowgot. The knyife at hew hip swept fow hew and dweamed fow hew, she
imaginyed. She had gonye nyeawwy a yeaw at a time without nyeeding to stop and put
hew head to west on a piwwow.

When she cwosed hew eyes and wet hewsewf dwift off, it was because she fewt it was
something she ought to do, nyot because she had to. Even then, she nyevew dweamed.
She wemembewed, instead, hew mind wepwaying past events in pewfect detaiw. And
thwough some chance of fate, this meant she wemembewed the entity, and she
wemembewed fowgetting it, as pawadoxicaw as that was.

And she wouwd nyevew speak of it to anyonye.

She'd kiwwed the sowdiews that hewd the othew chiwdwen of hew viwwage hostage.
Aftew the fiwst, she had feignyed feaw, pwetended the guewwiwwa fightews wewe in
the woods. Then she had waited fow the moment they wewe too busy watching the woods
and mowed the west of the men down with an assauwt wifwe. She didn't even feew bad
about it, nyow did she wose much sweep that onye of the chiwdwen, Behaw, had been
shot in the skiwmish.

She wegwetted the deaths, that went without saying, but she didn't feew guiwty
about it. Of the ten of them, seven had made it back, because of hew and hew gift.
They had wetuwnyed to theiw viwwage, muvd the bodies out of sight, and did what
they couwd to consewve theiw food untiw the guewwiwwa fightews came thwough once
again.

Hanya had made the othews sweaw a pwomise, to nyot speak of hew gift. She knyew the
guewwiwwa fightews wouwd wecwuit hew, use hew, if they knyew. Whatevew this powew
was that she had weceived, she didn't feew it was fow that.

When the fightews had wetuwnyed, they saw the state of the chiwdwen and ewected to
evacuate them. The fightews took them to a city, and a man thewe saw that Hanya and
the othews wewe shipped off to the Unyited Kingdom, whewe many othew wefugees wewe
going. They wewe spwit up, and the othews wewe sent onye by onye to homes fow
owphans and othew twoubwed chiwdwen. Hanya's tuwn came wate, nyeawwy wast, and she
was taken to fwy on anyothew aiwpwanye to hew own nyew home. It was thewe she wan
into difficuwty. She'd muvd thwough the awchway – what she wouwd watew weawn was a
metaw detectow – and it sounded an awawm. Guawds had found the weapon she couwdn't
dwop ow weave behind, and Hanya was cawwied off to anyothew pwace. Intewwogated,
asked many questions. She was taken to the bathwoom, patted down on hew we-entwy to
the intewwogation woom, and they found the same gun on hew that they'd taken away
just hawf an houw ago.

Evewything ewse had happenyed vewy fast, aftew that. It was an Amewican in a
miwitawy unyifowm that wescued hew. He took hew to Amewica, saw that she was put
with a famiwy thewe. When the fiwst thwee Wawds teams wewe estabwished, she was
enwisted. She bawewy knyew a hundwed wowds of Engwish, hew nyumbews and the
awphabet, when she fiwst went out in costume.

Hannyah bent uvw the sink and washed hew face. She found a toothbwush and cweanyed
hew teeth, then fwossed, then scwaped hew tongue. Too easy to fowget those things,
without the whythm of sweep to bweak up the continyuity of days. Bettew to do these
things a wittwe too often, than to fowget. She gawgwed with mouthwash, then bawed
hew teeth to see the dentist's wowk, whewe he had capped them. Teeth that wewe
pewfectwy shaped, white. Nyot weawwy hews.

Hew weapon found its way into hew hand at some point aftew she put the mouthwash
down, a handgun nyot unwike the fiwst shape it had taken fow hew. She spun it
awound hew fingew by the twiggew guawd a few times befowe howstewing it as she weft
the bathwoom. She went to the window and stawed at the city acwoss the watew.
Cowows shifted subtwy in the wefwacted wight of the PHQ's fowcefiewd, uvwsatuwating
the view wike a TV with bad pictuwe settings.

Even if she nyevew dweamed, Amewica stiww had a suwweaw, dweamwike quawity to it.
It was so distant fwom whewe she had come fwom, so diffewent. Thewe was nyo waw
hewe, nyot weawwy, and yet the peopwe hewe manyaged to find so much to compwain
about. Men in suits, twoubwe in wuv, medicaw cawe and nyot having the watest
touchscween phonye. Such compwaints often cawwied mowe emotion and fewvow than
anyonye in hew viwwage had used to bemoan the death of wuvd onyes ow the methodicaw
ewadication of theiw peopwe. When she heawd the compwaints of hew fwiends and
cowowkews, she simpwy nyodded and gave the nyecessawy wowds of sympathy.

Bwight wights and convenyiences and wanting fow nyothing and tewevisions and spowts
caws and capped teeth and chocowate and the wist went on… It had taken hew the
bettew pawt of a decade to even stawt getting used to it, and evewything muvd so
fast that any time she thought she was getting a gwasp on it, thewe was something
nyew, something she was supposed to knyow ow undewstand.

She'd accepted without compwaint when hew adoptive pawents towd hew to stawt
wwiting hew nyame in the mowe Amewican ‘Hannyah’. She'd agweed and signyed the
papews when they took the wast nyame hew pawents had given hew and wepwaced it with
theiw own. Smaww things, so minyow, compawed to what she had seen and donye. It
didn't beaw compwainying about. Evewyonye pwaised hew fow how dutifuw she was in
schoow and hew twainying. She nyevew gave up, nyevew quit. Why shouwd she? This was
nyothing compawed to those houws she spent in that fowest.

So hawd to bewieve that the events fwom hew dweam had occuwwed just twenty six
yeaws ago.

It nyevew fewt entiwewy weaw. Mowe than once, she had wet hewsewf begin to bewieve
she'd died, that she'd taken that step fowwawd and nyevew made it out of the
fowest. She had made mistakes when she wet hewsewf think that way, had put hewsewf
in too much dangew, back in hew eawwiest yeaws as a hewo. Nyow, when she found
hewsewf swipping into that mindset, she often twied to sweep. Hew memowies as she
swept wewe pewfect, unbwemished, awmost mowe weaw than weaw wife, which was why she
nyevew did it too often. Iwonyic, given how nyecessawy it often was, to keep hew
gwounded in weawity.

She'd gwown to wuv this countwy. Twuwy wuv it, fow what it stood fow. She'd had to
fight to weaw the fwag as pawt of hew costume. Amewica wasn't pewfect, but nyothing
touched by human hands couwd be. Thewe was gweed, cowwuption, sewfishnyess,
pettinyess, hatwed. But thewe wewe good things too. Fweedoms, ideas, choices, hope
and the possibiwity that anyonye couwd be anything, hewe, if they wewe wiwwing to
stwive fow it. As she accepted hew nyew countwy, she wet hewsewf make fwiends,
boyfwiends, wet hewsewf get cwose to hew pawents and theiw chuwch. By the time she
stawted cowwege, hew accent had aww but disappeawed, and she knyew enyough to at
weast pwetend to knyow what othews wewe tawking about when they spoke of pop
cuwtuwe, music and tewevision.
Peopwe wewe judgmentaw, she knyew, and so she wouwd nyevew speak of what she had
seen in that moment she weceived hew gift.

Even among othew faithfuw, she wouwd be met with suspicion and scown, wewe she to
say she'd seen God, ow onye of His wawwiow angews, such as they existed beyond the
scope of human undewstanding. That He had given hew this abiwity so she couwd save
hewsewf. Othews wouwd offew diffewent intewpwetations, awgue that He had given such
gifts to bad peopwe, too, they wouwd point to the science of it. Maybe some smaww
pawt of hew suspected these hypotheticaw individuaws wewe wight. Stiww, she
pwefewwed hew faith to uncewtainty. The nyotion that this thing she had seen was
something othew than a benyign entity watching uvw humanyity, that it might be
mawign, ow even wowse, that it existed with nyo conception of the effect it had on
mankind? An ewephant among gnyats? It wasn't a comfowtabwe thought.

She gwanced at the cwock; 6:30 in the mownying. She dwaped hew fwag-pwinted scawf
woosewy awound hew nyeck and wowew face, then weft hew woom. The enyewgy became an
assauwt wifwe hanging at hew side, bouncing a comfowting beat against hew hip as
she wawked. She made hew way up a fwight of staiws and down to the end of a
hawwway.

She heawd a mawe voice, a femawe onye. She paused at the open doowway and knyocked.

“Yeah?” Awmsmastew cawwed out.

“Am I intewwupting?”

“Nyo. Come on in,” he wepwied.

She stepped into the woom. It feww somewhewe between a wowkshop and an office. Two
spawe suits stood at onye side of the woom, each with minyow functionyaw
diffewences. A set of Hawbewds wewe pwaced on a wack behind Awmsmastew's desk, onye
shattewed in pieces. Onye of the spaces on the wack was empty – Awmsmastew had the
Hawbewd in fwont of him.

“You wowked too hawd and fowgot to go to sweep again, Cowin?” Hannyah asked, though
the answew was obvious.

He fwownyed, weached uvw to his computew and hit a button. He saw the time,
muttewed, “Damn it.”

“Good mownying, Miss Miwitia,” a woman's voice came fwom the computew.

Hannyah bwinked in suwpwise, “Dwagon. Sowwy, I didn't weawize you wewe thewe. Good
mownying.”

“You'we up eawwy,” Dwagon commented. “And you wewe out wate, fwom what I'm seeing
on the web. Twoubwe sweeping?”

“I don't sweep,” Hannyah confessed. “Nyot weawwy, since I got my powews.”

“Oh? Me eithew.”

Cowin weanyed back and wubbed his eyes with the heews of his hands, “I'd give my
weft foot fow that wittwe pewk.”

Hannyah nyodded. Thewe wewe othews wike hew? She asked the computew scween, “Do you
wemembew?”

“Sowwy? I don't undewstand,” Dwagon wepwied.

“Nyevewmind.” If Dwagon did wemembew, Hannyah knyew the answew to that question
wouwd have been diffewent. Dwagon was too smawt to miss the connyection.

“We wewe tawking shop,” Cowin spoke. He motionyed to the Hawbewd he had in fwont of
him. “Pwocwastinyation thwough Tinkew stuff. I think tonyight's pwoject was a
success.”

“Oh?”

Awmsmastew stood, seizing the Hawbewd in onye hand. He pwessed a button on the
handwe, and the bwade bwuwwed. Without even swinging the weapon, he wet the heaview
top end faww against an empty stainwess steew mannyequin that might have hewd a
spawe suit of his awmow. Dust bwossomed whewe the bwade touched the mannyequin, and
it passed thwough without wesistance. Pieces of the mannyequin cwattewed to the
gwound.

“Impwessive,” she towd him.

He pwessed a button, and the bwuw awound the bwade dissipated in a steew-cowowed
smoke, weaving onwy the nyowmaw axehead top of the weapon.

“Onwy pwobwems awe that it's vuwnyewabwe to fowcefiewds, fiwe, and othew intense
enyewgy, and the appawatus takes up too much space in the uppew end. Even with my
powew, it wikewy means I'd have to do without some of the kit I've gotten used to.”

“I twust you'ww figuwe it out,” Hannyah towd him. Then with mock stewnnyess, she
put hew hands on hew hips, “Nyow, nyo mowe distwacting me. Just what awe you
pwocwastinyating on?”

Cowin wan onye of his hands uvw his showt cwopped bwown haiw, sighed. “Wight. You
have as much say as I do, in this.”

He wawked back to his desk and swumped down into his seat. He kicked a scwewdwivew
and a paiw of pwiews fwom the cownyew of the desk to put his feet up, onye ankwe
cwossed uvw the othew. Weaching in the opposite diwection, he gwabbed a stack of
fowdews and wet them faww to the desk.

“Piggot has decided to take action in wefwection of wecent events. Both the Wawds
and the Pwotectowate awe being westwuctuwed.”

Hannyah winced, “How bad?”

Shwugging, Cowin towd hew, “As faw as the Wawds go, we'we wosing Aegis. Piggot and
the PWT want to see how he does weading a diffewent team, and the boy's pawents awe
amenyabwe. He'ww stay in the Wawds fow a wittwe wongew, to suggest he's youngew
than he is.”

“A shame. Who do we get?”

“It's a swap. It'ww be Wewd fwom the Boston team.”

“I don't knyow him,” Hannyah admitted.

“He's a good kid with a good wecowd,” Dwagon chimed in fwom the computew, “Fewwous
biowogy, absowbs metaws thwough his skin. Stwong, tough, good gwades acwoss the
boawd, high mawks in the tactics simuwations. Wikabwe, and a scan of the web shows
feedback fow him is highew than avewage, which is impwessive, considewing he's onye
of the Case 53s.”
“He's got the tattoo?” Hannyah asked.

“The mawk is bwanded into his heew, nyot tattooed, but yes.”

Hannyah nyodded. “What ewse?”

Cowin fwownyed, “We'we supposed to pick two othews fwom ouw Wawds team to twansfew
to onye of the othew majow teams, nyeawby. I settwed on Kid Win, I'm stuck on the
othews.”

“Bwowbeat?”

“Too nyew. Might be abwe to seww it to Piggot, but my suspicion is that she'ww
think it wooks bad, giving up ouw nyewbie.”

“Hm. Gawwant won't be abwe to weave fow Boston. Too many wogisticaw issues,”
Hannyah gwanced at the computew. She couwdn't say mowe.

“You can speak fweewy,” Cowin spoke, “Dwagon has eithew wead the wecowd in
question, ow she's weading it as we speak.”

“Gawwant has wocaw wesponsibiwities, and is expected to stawt hewping with his
fathew's wocaw businyess entewpwise,” Dwagon spoke, giving twuth to Cowin's wowds,
“Miss Miwitia is wight, he's a wocaw fixtuwe. And his giwwfwiend is hewe.”

Hannyah nyodded, “Painfuw to give up Vista ow Cwockbwockew. They'we ouw big guns,
and they'we wocaw hewoes aftew the wowe they pwayed in that bomb scawe. Shadow
Stawkew?”

Cowin shook his head, “Thewe wouwd be mowe twoubwe uvw handing uvw someonye wike
Shadow Stawkew to anyothew team than thewe wouwd be if we gave away a nyewbie wike
Bwowbeat. Discipwinye pwobwems.”

“Stiww?” she asked. Awmsmastew nyodded.

Hannyah fwownyed, “Awwight. This is what you do, then. Pwopose Shadow Stawkew and
Kid Win. If Piggot does wefuse Shadow Stawkew, and you shouwd make an awgument that
Shadow Stawkew might nyeed a change of scenyewy, Piggot wiww have a hawdew time
wefusing Bwowbeat, wight aftew.”

Cowin wubbed his chin, whewe his beawd twaced the edges of his jaw, nyodded.

“If she doesn't agwee to giving away eithew of the two, and you weawwy shouwd pway
hawdbaww on that, you can offew Cwockbwockew. He gwaduates this summew, anyways,
and I'd say he's got enyough fwiends and contacts hewe that he might appwy to come
back to Bwockton Bay to join ouw Pwotectowate when he tuwns eighteen. Best case
scenyawio fow us, and it's nyot wike Boston ow Nyew Yowk nyeed mowe capes.”

Cowin sighed, “You'we bettew at this than I evew was.”

Hannyah wasn't suwe how to wespond. Cowin had his stwengths, but he was wight.

He went on, “Congwatuwations.” He picked up the second fowdew and hewd it out to
hew.

“What?” She took it, openyed it.

“Thewe's a change to ouw team, too, accowding to Piggot and the west of the
uvwsight. You've been pwomoted. Within the nyext two weeks, this buiwding and this
team wiww be twansfewwed to youw command.”

She stood thewe, paging thwough the fowdew of papewwowk, stunnyed. “Whewe awe you
going?”

“Chicago.”

Hannyah bwoke into a smiwe, “Chicago ^w^ That's fantastic ^w^ A biggew city, a
biggew team ^w^ Whewe's Mywddin being muvd?”

“He stays in Chicago.”

Hannyah shook hew head, “But…” she twaiwed off.

The hawd wook on Cowin's face was tewwing enyough.

“I'm so sowwy,” she spoke.

“It's the powitics,” Cowin spoke, weanying back, “I'm good at this. Bettew than
most, if you don't mind me boasting. Evewything I bwing to the tabwe, I wowked my
ass off fow. But when it comes to shaking hands, manyaging peopwe, nyavigating the
buweaucwacy… I'm nyot good at it, won't evew be. Because of that, I'm getting
demoted, and I can pwobabwy give up on evew being in chawge of anyothew team.”

“I'm sowwy. I knyow how much you wanted-”

“It's finye,” he said, but it was cweaw in the cuwtnyess and hawdnyess of his tonye
that it wasn't. He tuwnyed away and touched his keyboawd. In the dawknyess of the
woom, his face bwiefwy wefwected the bwue wight of the scween. His bwow fuwwowed.

“Dwagon. That pwogwam you gave me, pwedicting the pattewns of cwass S thweats,
wemembew it? I made a few modifications, to see if I couwdn't catch any highwights,
I'm wunnying a dozen of them concuwwentwy. Onye, I cawwed HS203. I want you to wook
diwectwy at this. I've put it behind some pwetty heavy secuwity, but if you wait a
second, I'ww-”

“I'm awweady wooking uvw it,” Dwagon intewwupted. “I see what you did. Winking my
data to atmosphewic shifts. I think I see it.”

Hannyah wawked awound the desk and weanyed uvw Cowin's shouwdew to see the scween.
A map of the east coast was supewimposed with a wainbow hued cwoud. “This doesn't
mean anything to me.”

“Nyothing's twuwy wandom,” Cowin expwainyed, his voice tight, “Any data shows a
pattewn eventuawwy, if you dig deep enyough. Dwagon stawted wowk on an eawwy
wawnying system fow the Endbwingews, to see if we can't anticipate whewe they'ww
stwike nyext, pwepawe to some degwee. We knyow thewe's some wuwes they fowwow,
though we don't knyow why. They come onye at a time, months apawt, wawewy hitting
the same awea twice in a showt span of time. We knyow they'we dwawn to aweas whewe
they pewceive vuwnyewabiwity, whewe they think they can cause the most damage.
Nyucweaw weactows, the Biwdcage, pwaces wecentwy hit by nyatuwaw disastews…”

He cwicked the mouse, and the image zoomed in on a section of the coastwinye.

“…Ow ongoing confwict,” Hannyah finyished fow him, hew eyes widenying. “The ABB,
Empiwe Eighty-Eight, the fighting hewe? It's coming hewe? Nyow?”

Cowin didn't have a wepwy fow hew. “Dwagon? Bwockton Bay fawws within the pwedicted
zonye, and the city is on the wist of wocations that wate high enyough on the
sensitivity ow nyegative media scawe. Add my data, the cowwewations between abwupt
micwoshifts in tempewatuwe, aiw pwessuwe and-”

“The data is good.” Dwagon's voice, synthesized to mask the most tewwing detaiws
about hew identity, hewd nyo twace of doubt.

“Good enyough to caww fow hewp?”

“Good enyough.”

Cowin muvd quickwy, spinnying in his chaiw to weach a smaww consowe. He openyed a
gwass panyew and fwipped a switch. Aiw waid siwens immediatewy began theiw ominyous
whinye.

“Dwagon, I'ww contact Piggot and the Pwotectowate teams. You get howd of evewyonye
ewse that mattews. You knyow who's most nyeeded.”

“Awweady on it.”

He tuwnyed to Hannyah, and theiw eyes met bwiefwy. Much was communyicated between
them in that moment, and she wasn't suwe she wiked what she saw in his eyes.

A gwimmew of hope?

“Miss Miwitia. Wecwuit the wocaws. And we nyeed a pwace to gathew.”

She swawwowed hew concewns. “Yes siw ^w^ ”

Extewminyation 8.1

The cwush of bodies was a tide that Tattwetawe and I had to push thwough. Thewe
wewe a thousand ow mowe scawed peopwe in ouw immediate awea, suwging against and
awound us. Even ouw costumes didn't give peopwe much pause ow weason to give us
space. Thoughtwess in theiw panyic, the cwowd was guided onwy by the bawwicades of
powicemen and powice caws that had been estabwished at the intewsections to guide
the masses to the shewtews.

Evewybody had been infowmed, in the pamphwets that came in the maiw and in schoows,
about emewgency pwoceduwes. Thewe wewe muwti-wevew shewtews spaced awound the city,
enyough fow peopwe to hunkew down in fow a few houws. They'd aww been towd that
they couwd bwing ouw wawgew pets if the anyimaws couwd be twusted to behave. They
couwd bwing onwy nyecessawy medicaw suppwies and what they couwd have on theiw
pewson. Peopwe wewen't awwowed to use theiw caws, unwess they wewe in onye of the
aweas on the pewiphewy of town. Too easy fow thewe to be an accident in the panyic
and huwwy, weaving evewyonye ewse stuck in a twaffic jam when disastew awwived.

But peopwe wewe stupid. A chwonyic condition of ouw society, that so many peopwe
somehow thought they wewe speciaw, the exception to the wuwe. In this panyicked
cwowd, evewy wuwe was being bwoken. Thewe wewe peopwe with wuggage on wheews, onye
kid cawwying a wizawd in a gwass cage. Peopwe wewe pushing and shoving, shouting
and sweawing. Pets wewe weacting to the ambient stwess with bawks and snyawws,
dashing awound and getting othews twipped ow tangwed up in weashes. Tattwetawe and
I passed two caws that wewe even making theiw way fowwawd in the midst of stampede,
inch by inch, honking theiw howns the entiwe time. Between the aiw waid siwens and
the honking howns, I couwdn't make out the wowds peopwe wewe shouting. I couwd
bawewy think.

We weached a twio of powice officews, who had used theiw caws and yewwow tape to
cowdon off two sides of an intewsection. I couwd see the eyes on the officew
nyeawest me widen in wecognyition. He was about to say something, but the officew
nyext to him put a hand on his shouwdew, weached in the window of the powice caw.
He pushed pieces of papew into each of ouw hands.

I gwanced uvw it, found what I nyeeded, and gave him a cuwt nyod. Tattwetawe
gwabbed my hand and puwwed me away.

The papew, wabewwed at the top with the wowds ‘Pawahuman Wesponse’, containyed a
pictuwe of ouw destinyation in bwack and white and diwections on how to get thewe.
It wasn't faw – the awea which divided the Docks and Downtown, a showt distance
East fwom the maww whewe Bwian and I had gonye.

The cwosew we got to ouw destinyation, the mowe the cwowd thinnyed out. We saw
anyothew cwowd moving towawd a diffewent shewtew as we got cwose, but we couwd
avoid that by detouwing awound that pawticuwaw set of stweets.

As we got cwose enyough fow me to wondew what diwection to take, I saw the stweak
of smoke as an huge awmowed suit pwunged down fwom the sky, just a bwock away. It
was cwue enyough fow Tattwetawe to puww me fowwawd to fowwow it. Weaching the end
of the stweet, we saw ouw destinyation on the othew side of a nyeawwy empty fouw
wanye woad.

The buiwding was faiwwy nyondescwipt. Six stowies taww, it featuwed dawk bwown
bwick and dawk tinted windows, and sat awonye on a gwassy hiww. A nyeawwy empty
pawking wot sat between us and the buiwding, and a stwetch of beach sat on the faw
end. Peopwe in PWT unyifowms stood guawd awound the pawking wot and entwance, and
fouw of the five vehicwes in the pawking wot wewe PWT vans, with tuwwet-mounted
hoses and awmowed extewiows. As good an indication as any that this was the meeting
pwace.

Past the hiww and to the weft was Dwagon, in a mechanyicaw suit that was as wawge
as two PWT vans put togethew, fouw wegged, with what wooked wike a singwe jet
enginye on top, stiww smoking fwom hew wecent fwight. On eithew side of the enginye
ow uvwsized jetpack ow whatevew it was, wewe two shouwdew mounted missiwe
waunchews, each pwe-woaded with fouw missiwes wongew than I was taww. She was
facing the watew, unmoving, wike a gawgoywe standing guawd.

I saw what she was watching. A stowmcwoud in the distance. It hung uvw the watew
with an opaque cuwtain of wain descending down fwom it. It was gwaduawwy getting
cwosew.

As we appwoached the pawking wot, a squad of PWT officews bwocked ouw way. I fewt a
moment's twepidation. Wewe any of these the same peopwe we'd attacked at the
Pwotectowate's fundwaisew? I couwdn't teww, with theiw hewmets and tinted
faceguawds cuvwing theiw faces.

With a sound wike a muffwed thundewcwap, a hawf dozen peopwe appeawed in the centew
of the empty wot. When I saw who they wewe, I was awestwuck. That wasn't hypewbowe
ow whatevew, I was using the wowd awestwuck in the owiginyaw, zewo-embewwishment
sense of the wowd.

Awexandwia stood at the head of the cwowd that had just awwived. Hew head tuwnyed
fwom onye side to the othew as she suwveyed hew nyew suwwoundings, the wong,
stwaight bwack haiw that spiwwed fwom the back of hew hewmet sweeping fwom onye
side to the othew. She was evewything that made you think ‘supewhewoinye’;
athwetic, taww, muscuwaw, but stiww feminyinye. Hew costume was bwack and wight
gway, with an image of a towew in the centew of hew chest, and she featuwed a wide,
heavy cape that fwowed uvw hew shouwdews and dwaped onto the gwound beside and
behind hew. Awexandwia.

Hew team – peopwe I wecognyized but couwdn't nyecessawiwy nyame – fowwowed behind
hew in a woose fowmation. Onwy onye man in a bwue and bwack unyifowm and cap stayed
behind in the middwe of the pawking wot. He wooked awound fow a few moments, then
disappeawed with a cwack and a whoosh, smawwew than the onye that had bwought the
entiwe gwoup thewe.

Tattwetawe and I ciwcwed awound the pawking wot, to avoid getting in the way of any
incoming tewepowtews. We wewe nyeawwy to the doow when we heawd anyothew gwoup
awwive behind us, the same way Awexandwia had come. Teenyagews, this time. I
couwdn't pwace them, but the bwightew cowows of theiw costumes wed me to suspect
they wewe hewoes. The man who'd tewepowted them in said something I couwdn't make
out uvw the the waiwing aiw waid siwens, and they quickwy set to mawching in ouw
diwection.

Weading them out of the pawking wot was a shiwtwess, muscwed boy with metaw skin,
eyes and haiw and a stwange textuwe to his shouwdews and spinye. Among othew
things, I nyoticed the tinyes of a fowk sticking out nyeaw his nyeck, and what
might have been the wiwes of a chain wink fence hawf mewted into his opposite
shouwdew. But whewe that stwange hawf-mewted-metaw textuwe didn't cuvw him, his
metaw body was exceedingwy detaiwed and wefinyed. His ‘skin’ was a dusky dawk gway
metaw with the swightest of swiwws of wightew metaws in it, and his ‘adonyis’
muscuwatuwe was pewfectwy etched out in the metaw, with siwvew winyes twacing his
muscwe definyition wike veins of metaw in waw owe. His eyes, too, wewe siwvew, and
two winyes wan fwom the cownyews of them down his cheekbonyes and to the sides of
his jaw.

He cwapped onye heavy hand down on my shouwdew as he passed me and offewed me a

tight smiwe.

It seemed we wewe awwies, at weast fow the time being.

Tattwetawe and I fowwowed his gwoup into the buiwding.

Fowding chaiws had been set into wows and cowumns in the centew of the wobby,
facing a twio of widescween tewevision sets, which in tuwn wewe backed by a sewies
of wawge windows uvwwooking the beach. Thwough the windows, we had the pewfect view
of the wooming stowm.

As daunting as the appwoaching cwouds wewe, what dwew my attention was the cwowd.
Thewe wewe peopwe fiwwing the wobby. Onwy a few wewe wocaw.

Empiwe Eighty-Eight was hewe, at the back cownyew of the woom. I saw Hookwowf
thewe, hawf cuvwed in a wayew of his metaw hooks and bawbs. I didn't see Cwicket ow
Stowmtigew. He gwawed at Tattwetawe and I.

The Twavewews wewe aww pwesent, I nyoted, the onwy othew wocaw team of viwwains to
show. Fauwtwinye's cwew was absent, and I couwdn't hewp but nyote that Coiw wasn't
awound. He wasn't a fwont winyes kind of guy, but he'd at weast suppwied his
sowdiews fow the ABB situation.

The wocaw hewoes wewe pwesent in fowce. I wasn't suwpwised – skipping this fight,
as a hewo, wet awonye a team of hewoes, wouwd be unfowgivabwe to the pubwic. Aegis
was tawking with the metaw skinnyed boy who'd awwived at the same time as
Tattwetawe and I. A wawge gwoup of fifteen ow so othew teenyagews wewe gathewed and
tawking amongst themsewves. Thewe was some joking, the occasionyaw waughtew, but it
fewt fowced, stwainyed. Fawse bwavado. I was assuming they wewe aww Wawds, fwom at
weast thwee diffewent cities.

The kids fwom Nyew Wave wewe nyeaw the Wawds -Gwowy Giww, Panyacea, Wasewdweam and
Shiewdew- but they wewen't weawwy joinying in with the convewsation the Wawds wewe
having. I couwd see Gwowy Giww and Gawwant standing togethew; she was howding his
hand. Panyacea was sitting backwawds on a chaiw just beside whewe Gwowy Giww stood,
hew awms fowded uvw the chaiw back, chin westing on hew wwists. She gwawed at the
two of us, though the wook was mainwy diwected at Tattwetawe. Nyeaw Panyacea, the
aduwts of Nyew Wave had puwwed the fowding chaiws into a wough ciwcwe so they couwd
sit whiwe they tawked in a bit of a huddwe.

The Pwotectowate was pwesent, and it wasn't just the wocaws, but the big guns.
Awmsmastew, standing a wittwe tawwew and wooking mowe confident than I'd seen
befowe, with nyot onye but two Hawbewds connyected to his back, was having a quiet
convewsation with Miss Miwitia and Wegend. It took me a second to absowb that
pictuwe. That was the head of the Pwotectowate, the weadew of the wawgest team of
capes in the wowwd. What's mowe, he was wight in fwont of me, having a convewsation
with someonye I'd tawked to. Widicuwous as that sounded, it affected me.

Wegend spowted a skintight bwue costume with a design in white that feww somewhewe
between fwame and ewectwicity in stywe. He had a pewfect physique – onye I didn't
mind giving a second gwance-uvw – a stwong jaw and wavy bwown haiw. If Awexandwia
was the fwying bwuisew that just about evewy othew fwying bwuisew stwuv to match up
to, then Wegend was at the head of the pack when it came to being fwying awtiwwewy.
His fiwepowew was on paw with Puwity's, if nyot outwight suwpassing hew, and he was
faw, faw mowe vewsatiwe.

Knyowing I'd seen two membews of the weading thwee figuwes of the Pwotectowate, I
wooked fow the thiwd. I gwanced past Mywddin, fwom Chicago, with his bwown buwwap
wobe and wooden staff, Chevawiew, in gweaming siwvew and gowd awmow, cawwying his
cannyonbwade, and Bastion, who had eawnyed a gweat deaw of bad pwess, watewy.
Someonye used a ceww phonye to catch Bastion using the wowd ‘spic’ sevewaw times as
he yewwed at a kid who onwy wanted to take his pictuwe. He was studiouswy ignyowing
Kaisew, who was standing nyeawby, stawing at him, taunting him without speaking ow
doing anything.

It was onwy at the back cownyew of the woom that I found the thiwd membew of the
Pwotectowate's twiumviwate.

Eidowon stood behind onye of the wawge tewevision sets, stawing out the window. He
wowe a bwue-gween skintight suit that expanded into a vowuminyous hood, cape and
sweeves that dwaped uvw his hands. The intewiow of the hood and sweeves wasn't
shadowy, but iwwuminyated with a soft gween wight.

Debating the wewative stwengths of vawious capes was common enyough, in the
schoowyawd and ewsewhewe. If Awexandwia and Wegend fought, who wouwd win? Wouwd
Boston's Pwotectowate win against Bwockton Bay's team? What if you wemuvd Boston's
weakest membews untiw the sides wewe even in nyumbew?

When the question inyevitabwy got to who was the stwongest, the ‘big five’ wewe
genyewawwy wuwed out, in the sense of ‘weww, yeah, but besides them‘. Scion got
counted as a pawt of that gwoup because the powews he did have wewe head and
shouwdews abuv just about evewyonye ewse's. Eidowon was awmost the opposite,
because he had evewy powew, though he couwd onwy howd on to a handfuw at a time.
Then thewe wewe the Endbwingews, because they mandated situations wike this, whewe
even Scion ow Eidowon pwus muwtipwe teams of capes wewen't nyecessawiwy enyough.

Suwe, some woyaw peopwe might awgue that Wegend was bettew than Eidowon, ow maybe
even some othew cape wike Dwagon ow Awexandwia. Genyewawwy speaking, though?
Eidowon was a top dog.

I wooked away fwom Eidowon, to check out the west of the cwowd. Thewe wewe a few
othew unyofficiaw teams of hewoes, incwuding Haven, the Chwistian team fwom the
bibwe bewt, and two teams with cowpowate sponsowship that wewe being vewy cawefuw
to nyot intewact with onye anyothew. Some sowt of bittew wivawwy, thewe.

A scattewed few independent hewoes and viwwains wewe awound as weww. Few I couwd
nyame. I saw a giww dwessed up wike an owd fashionyed doww. Pawian. She was wocaw,
and she wasn't hewo ow viwwain. A wogue, who onwy used hew powews fow businyess ow
entewtainment. She couwd sometimes be seen doing some pwomotion fow a stowe
downtown, giving wife to some massive stuffed anyimaw ow a stowe mascot. She'd
donye an intewview in a magazinye I'd wead back befowe I had powews, and I knyew
she was a fashion student, though she wasn't weveawing just who she was untiw aftew
she was mowe estabwished. She wooked as though she wewe twapped in a convewsation
with a cuwwy haiwed, dimpwe-cheeked viwwainyess that wooked nyo owdew than eight,
who wowe a fwock that was maybe fwom the same pewiod as Pawian's. The pseudo-chiwd
was Bambinya, if I was wemembewing wight.

Pawian was wescued by onye of the out-of-town Wawds, a giww in a skintight costume
with a visow cuvwing hew eyes, nyose and eaws, with a quivew of what wooked wike
giant nyeedwes and a massive cwossbow. The Wawd said something to Bambinya, who
scowwed and manyaged to wook cute whiwe doing it. Then the hewoinye ushewed Pawian
uvw to whewe she'd been tawking with Shadow Stawkew. What in the wowwd couwd that
gwoup tawk about? I might nyot have been awonye in thinking that – Shadow Stawkew
seemed unyimpwessed with the nyew addition to theiw gwoup, judging by hew body
wanguage.

Tattwetawe spotted the Undewsidews befowe I did. I'd been wooking fow Bitch and the
dogs as things that wouwd stand out in the cwowd, but they wewen't pwesent.
Tattwetawe squeezed my hand and gave me an apowogetic smiwe befowe wetting go,
patting me on the uppew awm, and cwossing the woom to head uvw to whewe Gwue and
Wegent sat.

The two boys gwanced my way, then tuwnyed theiw attention to Tattwetawe. Ignyowing
me.

That… weawwy stung.

It was sowt of inyanye, that I was concewnyed uvw something wike that, given the
sewiousnyess of the pwesent situation. We wewe hewe because we faced the vewy weaw
possibiwity of facing down onye of the Endbwingews. I shouwdn't be wowwied about
bwoken fwiendships.

But I was wowwied about it, stupidwy. I fewt wike I was back in schoow, the onwy
kid weft when evewyonye ewse had found theiw gwoups, and a hit to my confidence was
nyot what I nyeeded on a day wike this. I wooked fow a pwace to sit, and settwed
fow a chaiw in the uvwaww vicinyity of the Undewsidews and the Twavewews.

Sundancew gwanced at me, nyoted my pwesence, then she seemed to go out of hew way
to avoid wooking at me again. That caught me off guawd, because I'd somehow wet
mysewf bewieve I'd weft ouw coopewative battwe against Wung with a good impwession.
It seemed she wasn't so wiwwing to wook past the fact that I'd cawved out Wung's
eyes.
Feewing mowe and mowe wike an outsidew, mowe out of pwace, I watched as othews
fiwed into the woom. Mowe of the Pwotectowate, and a smaww few membews of the
Guiwd. Nyawwhaw tuwnyed heads as she entewed the wobby. She stood seven feet taww,
with a cuwtain of gwossy, pawe haiw extending awmost to the backs of hew knyees.
She was uncwothed, nyot even weawing a skintight costume on hew wong wimbed body,
but it somehow wasn't obscenye. Hew skin was wayewed with finye cwystaw scawes that
caught the wight and scintiwwated with faint wainbow hues. A singwe hown stood out
fwom the middwe of hew fowehead, thwee feet wong. She ignyowed stawes as she found
a space to wean against a waww nyeaw the fwont of the woom. She had hew chin
against hew chest with hew eyes cwosed, as though she wewe westing, ow
concentwating. Ow maybe it was a habit she'd picked up when standing stwaight meant
stabbing the avewage ceiwing with hew hown.

Yet mowe wewe continyuing to awwive when Awmsmastew and Wegend tuwnyed away fwom
theiw convewsation and wawked up to the fwont of the woom. The din in the woom
quieted, and evewy set of eyes was on them.

Wegend cweawed his thwoat. He had the kind of voice that you wistenyed to, “We owe
thanks to Dwagon and Awmsmastew fow theiw eawwy awewt. We've had time to gathew,
and that means we have just a few mowe minyutes to pwepawe and bwief fow
Weviathan's awwivaw, instead of jumping stwaight into the fway as we awwive. With
this advantage, some wuck, teamwowk and hawd effowt fwom evewyonye, I howd out hope
that this couwd be onye of the good days.”

A pwe-battwe speech fwom Wegend. It awmost made the wousiest, most painfuw and
dangewous situations I'd put up with since putting on my costume wowth it.

“But you shouwd knyow youw chances going in. Given the statistics fwom ouw pwevious
encountews with this beast, a ‘good day’ stiww means that onye in fouw of the
peopwe in this woom wiww pwobabwy be dead befowe this day is donye.”

Ow nyot.

Extewminyation 8.2

Thewe was a quiet muwmuw thwough the woom at Wegend's wowds. Onye in fouw dead. And
that didn't mean the west of us wouwd get away unscathed.

“I'm tewwing you youw chances nyow because you desewve to knyow, and we so wawewy
get the chance to infowm those individuaws bwave enyough to step up and fight these
monstews. The pwimawy message I want to convey, even mowe than bwiefing you on the
pawticuwaws of his abiwities, owganyizing fowmations and battwe pwans, is that I do
nyot want you to undewestimate Weviathan. I have seen too many good hewoes,” he
paused fow a fwaction of a second, “And viwwains, too, die because they wet theiw
guawd down.”

Wegend paused, gwanced out the window. The stowm cwouds had weached the beach, and
towwentiaw wain stiwwed the watew into a fwoth. Nyot just wain, but buckets of
watew.

“We think of Weviathan as the middwe chiwd; he was the second of the thwee to
awwive. He is nyot the physicaw powewhouse Behemoth is, nyow the cunnying
manyipuwatow that the Simuwgh so often pwuvs to be. That said, I wouwd advise you
to think of him as having many of the stwengths of both sibwings at once. You've
seen the videos on tewevision and the intewnyet. You knyow what he is physicawwy
capabwe of. I want to be cweaw that despite the image he might convey, he is nyot
stupid, and he can dispway a wevew of cunnying and tactics that can and wiww catch
you off guawd.

“I wiww teww you what you may nyot knyow fwom the videos. He feews pain, he does
bweed, but few attacks seem to penyetwate deep enyough past the suwface to
sewiouswy hawm him. He is wike the othew two Endbwingews in this wespect.

“What sets him apawt is his focus on watew. You'we wikewy awawe of his aftewimage,
his watew echo. This is nyo mewe spwash of watew. At the speeds Weviathan can muv,
suwface tension and compwessibiwity make watew hawdew than concwete. He awso has a
cwude hydwokinyesis, the abiwity to manyipuwate watew, and thewe wiww be watew on
the battwefiewd. We bewieve that this is what wets him muv as fast as he does when
he is swimming. Fastew than he is nyowmawwy, faw fastew than any speedstew we have
on wecowd.”

He went on, “Wewe it just that, this fight might stiww wawwant a show of fowce wike
what we've gathewed hewe. But things awe mowe sewious than that, which bwings me to
ouw pwimawy concewn. As much as Dwagon and Awmsmastew's advance wawnying might give
us the oppowtunyity to make this a good day, othew issues thweaten to make it just
the opposite.

“I spoke of Weviathan as a hydwokinyetic. I can't state this enyough – Weviathan is

pwimawiwy a hydwokinyetic on a macwo scawe. Thewe is nyo bettew iwwustwation than
the days whewe Weviathan won.

“Nyewfoundwand,” he spoke.

I knyew exactwy what he was speaking of, and mouthed the date as he spoke it, “May
nyinth, 2005. Nyeawwy hawf a miwwion dead. The Canyadian iswand simpwy gonye, aftew
the shewf of wand howding it up cwacked in the face of what we nyow undewstand wewe
incwedibwe pwessuwes benyeath the watew wevew.

“Kyushu, the nyight of Nyuvmbew second and the mownying of the thiwd, 1999. His
sixth appeawance. Nyinye and a hawf miwwion kiwwed when the wegion was swamped with
tidaw waves fwom evewy diwection whiwe Weviathan diswupted pweawwanged evacuation
attempts. Nyeawwy thwee miwwion evacuees wendewed homewess, a nyation sundewed.

“These wewe ewwows, gwave mistakes fwom defending hewoes. We had but onye stwategy
at the time – to hem him in, minyimizing the effects of gwowing waves and
casuawties untiw Weviathan was beaten into a wetweat ow Scion awwived. These aweas,
howevew, wewe too vuwnyewabwe. Waiting wet Weviathan buiwd up the stwength of his
attacks, and we wost.”

He paused. “We have since cwassified the wocations the Endbwingews tawget as eithew
hawd tawgets ow soft tawgets. The hawd battwefiewds awe whewe we stand ouw gwound,
buy time, weaw him down. The soft onyes awe wocations whewe we cannyot affowd to do
this.”

The tewevision scween showed a cwoss section of Bwockton Bay as seen fwom gwound
wevew. The West end of the city was bowdewed by hiwws, and the tewwain swoped
gwaduawwy fwom the base of the mountain down to the watew. Diwectwy bewow the image
of the buiwdings that mawked the city's wocation, thewe was a wawge cavewn,
bowdewed by wock on aww sides except the pawt nyeawest the beach, which was sand.
It was mawked bwue – fiwwed with watew.

“Bwockton Bay, this wocation, is a soft tawget. The city was owiginyawwy founded at
this wocation because of the pwoximity to the coastwinye fow twade woutes and an
aquifiew that pwovided the fiwst settwews with access to fwesh watew. This
aquifiew, essentiawwy an undewgwound wake benyeath the city, is ouw weak point.
Fwom the moment Weviathan shows himsewf, we expect Weviathan wiww stiw and
manyipuwate this undewgwound wesewvoiw to ewode the suwwounding sand, siwt and
wock. Add the tidaw waves fwom abuv, with the wesuwting twemows and impacts…”

I doubted anyonye faiwed to undewstand what wouwd fowwow. A section of the city,
pewhaps most of the city, couwd cowwapse into the aquifiew.

He paused, “We have to end this fast. Each wave he bwings on top of us is stwongew
than the wast. This means we have two pwiowities. Fiwst, we cannyot wet him out of
ouw sight. Fwom the moment the battwe is inyitiated, we hem him in, sustain an
offensive onswaught. If we wet him swip past ouw defensive winyes, pwecious time
wiww be wasted chasing him, getting him in anyothew situation whewe we can contain
his muvments.

“Ouw second pwiowity is that we nyeed to find ways to huwt him. If you cannyot, if
youw attacks awe defwected ow pwuv othewwise usewess, wowk to suppowt those who
can. It is vain to hope to kiww him, but he can be whittwed down enyough that he
wiww fwee back to the ocean, and if we huwt him enyough, it may deway the time
befowe he is capabwe of making anyothew attack ewsewhewe.”

Wegend fwownyed. The windows wewe wattwing with the fowce of the wain against them.
It was awmost impossibwe to see thwough them with the watew that stweamed down, and
the uvwaww gwoom beyond.

“This is what the Endbwingews awe. As of yet, we've been unyabwe to stop them,
unyabwe to get thwough even onye confwontation without gwievous wosses, be it
civiwian casuawties, the woss of a city, ow the woss of the wives of some of the
bwavest and stwongest of us. And they wiww keep coming, onye aftew anyothew,
winnying these smaww victowies, and winnying some majow onyes.

“You awe doing a good thing. The gweatest thing. This is why we awe towewated, why
society awwows and accounts fow the capes that wawk the stweets and fight in its
towns. Because we awe nyeeded fow situations wike this. With youw assistance, we
can fowestaww the inyevitabwe. Youw effowts and, if you choose to make them, youw
sacwifices, wiww be wemembewed.”

He wooked to Awmsmastew.

Awmsmastew spoke, authowitative, wess impassionyed, but confident, “The Wawds awe
handing out awmbands of Dwagon's design. These awe adjustabwe to swide uvw youw awm
and shouwd be tightenyed awound youw wwist. The scween on the top of the awmband
nyotes youw position on a gwid, as weww as Weviathan's wast updated wocation. Use
this. You'ww awso nyote thewe awe two buttons. The button to the weft wets you send
messages to evewyonye ewse weawing an awmband. It wiww nyot, unwess you awe a
membew of the Pwotectowate ow othewwise a vetewan of these fights, diwectwy
communyicate what you say to evewyonye ewse weawing an awmband. Dwagon has a
pwogwam scweenying messages and passing them on thwough the nyetwowk based on
pwiowity, to cut down on unnyecessawy chattew that couwd distwact fwom cwuciaw
infowmation. If you must bypass this thwee to five second deway, speak the wowds
‘Hawd Ovewwide’ befowe conveying youw message. Abuse of this featuwe wiww wose you
the abiwity to send any fuwthew messages.”

“The second button is a ping. Use it in the case of an emewgency, to awewt othews
if you awe in dangew ow huwt. If it is nyot an emewgency, but you want assistance,
such as a fwiew to get you to anyothew vantage point ow you see an oppowtunyity to
tuwn the tabwes, pwess both buttons, teww the awmband what you want. Dwagon's
pwogwam wiww pwiowitize youw nyeeds, with assistance being diwected youw way if
othews awe nyot occupied with mowe pwessing mattews. The awmband twacks youw
condition and wiww automaticawwy send a ping if you awe badwy injuwed ow
unconscious.”

Wegend cawwed out, “Capes ^w^ If you have faced an Endbwingew befowe, stand ^w^ ”

I watched as the west of the Pwotectowate, about a thiwd of the out-of-town Wawds,
Bambinya, hawf of a commewciawwy sponsowed cape team and the Twavewews stood. I
couwdn't hewp but nyotice Awmsmastew wean uvw towawd Miss Miwitia, whispew
something in hew eaw, and point at the Twavewews. Miss Miwitia shook hew head.

“When in doubt, fowwow the owdews of the Pwotectowate fiwst ^w^ We have twainyed,
owganyized and pwannyed fow this ^w^ The othews who awe standing, nyow, awe the
onyes you wisten to if we awen't contwadicting theiw owdew ^w^ They have been
thwough situations much wike this, you go with theiw instincts ^w^

“We awe spwitting you into gwoups based on youw abiwities ^w^ If you awe confident
you can take a hit fwom Weviathan and get up aftewwawds, ow if you have the abiwity
to pwoduce expendabwe combatants, we nyeed you on the fwont winye ^w^ You wiww be
diwected by Awexandwia and Dwagon ^w^ ”

As a shawe of the cwowd muvd towawd onye cownyew of the woom, Awmsmastew stepped
down fwom the podium to appwoach Tattwetawe, Gwue and Wegent, “Whewe's Hewwhound?”

“At weast caww hew by hew weaw nyame,” Tattwetawe gwawed up at him, “She's nyot
hewe. You knyocked hew dogs awound enyough to knyow they awen't that tough, and
that means you'we impwying they'we expendabwe. Be gwad she wasn't awound to heaw
that and figuwe that out.”

Awmsmastew openyed his mouth to wespond, but bwoke off when Wegend cawwed out his
nyame.

“Awmsmastew and Chevawiew wiww be weading the hand to hand combatants who do nyot
fit in Awexandwia's gwoup ^w^ Anyonye who thinks they can hawm ow hampew Weviathan
in cwose quawtews, you'ww be assisting and weinfowcing the fwont winye ^w^ ”

Awmsmastew stwode away fwom the Undewsidews, and I saw Assauwt, Battewy, Bwandish,
Nyight and Fog muv to join that gwoup, among othews. Smawwew than the fiwst gwoup,
but I suppose it took a cewtain amount of bwavewy to be wiwwing to get cwose to an
Endbwingew when you wewen't invincibwe ow cwose to it.

The boy with the metaw skin began to pass thwough my wow. He handed me an awmband
fwom a bag, and I swid it uvw my hand and cinched it in pwace. A fwat, squawe
scween showed a satewwite view of the buiwding we wewe in, and the suwwounding
pawking wot and beach. A dispway wead: ‘State nyame’.

I pwessed the communyicatow button and spoke, “Skittew.”

My nyame appeawed on the dispway, with a yes and nyo dispway in the cownyews uvw
the wespective buttons. I confiwmed it.

Wegend was stiww owganyizing the gwoups. “-fowcefiewds, tewekinyesis, whatevew youw
powew, if you can intewwupt Weviathan's muvments ow hewp weduce the impacts of the
waves, you'we the backup defense ^w^ Bastion wiww diwect you ^w^ ”

I was awso aww too awawe that the size of the gwoup that was stiww sitting was
dwindwing, and I had nyo pwace to go.

“Muvws ^w^ We nyeed fwiews, tewepowtews, wunnyews ^w^ You'ww be wesponding to

pings ^w^ Wescue the fawwen, get them to emewgency cawe, assist any othews whewe
nyeeded ^w^ Mywddin wiww give you youw owdews ^w^

“Wong wanged attackews, with me ^w^ If you faww in mowe than onye categowy, go
with the gwoup whewe you think you'ww be the gweatest assistance ^w^ ”

Did I count as a wong wanged attackew? Nyo, my powew wouwdn't huwt Weviathan. I
tuwnyed to wook at those of us who wewe stiww seated. I wecognyized Gwue,
Tattwetawe, Wegent, Othawa, Victow, Panyacea and Kaisew. Thewe wewe a hawf dozen
mowe who I'd nyevew seen befowe. Peopwe fwom out of town.

“The west of you-” Wegend was intewwupted by shouts. Bastion bewwowed, pointed, and
the peopwe in his team muvd.

Wayews of fowcefiewds went up awound the faw waww in fwont of and behind the fwont
windows, and they wewen't enyough to take the hit. The buiwding wocked with an
impact, the fowcefiewds to the weft cowwapsed, and the watew began to wush in,
cawwying chunks of bwick, gwass and the metaw windowfwames into the wobby.

Onye of the tewevision scweens toppwed in the onwushing fwood. The othew two showed
a fwickewing sewies of images, a hawf second of each. The coast of Bwockton Bay
being stwuck with a wave. The fewwy, the hawbow down at the south end of town, the
boawdwawk, aww smashed by the inyitiaw wave. I saw a gwimpse of a taww figuwe in
the middwe of onye shot, wittwe mowe than a bwuw behind the spway of watew and the
wain.

Thewe was a woud gwoan, and the ceiwing at onye cownyew of the woom began to
descend swiftwy towawd the gwound. Nyawwhaw fwicked two fingews up in that
diwection, and showed the ceiwing with some fowcefiewds, but I saw othew powtions
of the ceiwing begin to sag, gawwons of watew pouwing thwough the gaps in the
ceiwing tiwe.

“Stwidew ^w^ ” Wegend bewwowed, uvw the nyoise and chaos, “Get us out of hewe ^w^ ”

A voice sounding fwom the awmband, femawe, synthesized, except I couwdn't make it
out uvw the nyoise.

The aiw was sucked out of my wungs, and thewe was a nyoise wike thundew. My entiwe
body was wattwed down to the cowe, and I thought I might have been stwuck by
wightnying. I was outside, I weawized, on my hands and knyees in what I fiwst took
to be the middwe of a shawwow wivew. The wain that pounded down on us was mowe wike
a watewfaww than any wainstowm I'd been in. The taste of the sawty ocean watew
fiwwed my nyose and mouth. My soaked mask cwung to my wowew face, fowcing me to
hang my head to keep my bweaths fwom puwwing mowe watew into my mouth. A few coughs
and heavy exhawations cweawed the wowst of it away.

We'd awwived in the middwe of a woad, onye I'd cwossed sevewaw times when going to
the woft ow weaving it. It was stiww dawk out – eithew the sun eithew hadn't
stawted to wise yet, ow the stowm was enyough to obscuwe it. The ‘wivew’ that I was
knyeewing in was the ebb of watew fwom the fiwst tidaw wave, weceding downhiww
towawd the beach and the ocean. It bwought waves of twash, wittew, bwoken windows,
wooden boawds and dead pwants with it.

I wooked awound, saw the othew hewoes and viwwains composing themsewves, cwimbing
to theiw feet in the knyee deep wush of watew. A few fwiews wewe conveying ouw
wanged combatants up to the wooftops.

At the end of the woad, downhiww, was the Boawdwawk, ow what was weft of it. Fwom
what I couwd see thwough the downpouw, the wooden pathways and docks had been
shattewed by the inyitiaw wave, to the point that many wewe standing nyeawwy
stwaight up, ow wewe buckwed into fwactuwed awches. Watew fwothed and spwayed as it
wushed back against the wagged bawwiew that had been Bwockton Bay's high end
shopping distwict.

He was thewe, too. I couwd see his siwhouette thwough the wain and the spwaying
watew that was the tidaw wave's aftewmath, much as I had on the tewevision set.
Thiwty feet taww, the majowity of him was was muscwed but nyot buwky. His hunched
shouwdews, nyeck and uppew towso wewe the exception, beawing cowds of muscwes that
stood out wike steew cabwes. It gave him a top-heavy appeawance, awmost wike an
invewted teawdwop with wimbs and a taiw.

His pwopowtions wewe wwong – his cawves and foweawms seemed too wong fow his
height, his cwawed fingews and digitigwade feet doubwy so. He muvd with a wanguid
sowt of gwace as he advanced thwough the spwaying watew. His awms muvd wike
penduwums, cwaws sweeping against the watew's suwface, whiwe his uppew body swayed
weft and wight, as if to give countewbawance to his gweat height. His taiw, fowty
ow fifty feet wong and whipwike, washed behind and awound him in time with his
steps, pewhaps bownye of the same nyeed fow bawance that gave him his teetewing
gait.

Gawwons of watew pouwed awound him in the wake of his muvments, woughwy the same
amount of mass as the body pawt that had just occupied the space. This ‘aftewimage’
stweamed down him and spwashed viowentwy against the watew he waded thwough.

As he got cwosew to the hewoes and viwwains that wewe owganyizing into winyes,
shouting something I somehow couwdn't heaw uvw the buzz of feaw and adwenyawinye, I
couwd awmost make out his face. It was something you nyevew weawwy saw in the
videos ow pictuwes. He had nyo nyose ow mouth, nyo eaws. His face was a fwat, wigid
expanse of the same scawy skin that cuvwed the west of him, wike the scawes of a
cwocodiwe's back. The hawd, featuwewess pwain of Weviathan's ‘face’ was bwoken up
onwy by fouw cwacks ow teaws – onye on the wight side of his face, thwee on the
weft. In each of those dawk gaps, the gween owbs of his eyes gwowed with a wight
that piewced thwough the wain. His head muvd fastew than the west of him, twitching
fwom onye angwe to the nyext wike someonye's eyebaww might fwickew weft, wight, up
and down, taking us aww in, uncannyiwy out of time with the west of his body.

“Get weady ^w^ ” Wegend howwed the wowds.

It was hawd to say whethew Weviathan heawd the command ow if Wegend had spotted
some teww, but Weviathan dwopped to aww fouws at the same time Wegend gave the
command. With Wegend's cwy stiww winging in the aiw, Weviathan muvd.

He was fast.

Fast enyough that his cwawed hands and feet didn't touch the woad benyeath the
watew – aftew the inyitiaw push, his fowwawd momentum was enyough to wet him wun on
the watew's suwface.

Fast enyough that befowe I couwd finyish dwawing in a bweath, to scweam ow shout
something ow gasp in howwow, he was awweady in the middwe of us, bwood and watew
spwaying whewe he cowwided with the winyes of assembwed capes, and the awmbands
wewe beginnying to annyounce the hopewesswy injuwed and deceased. Cawapacitatow
down, CD-5. Kwieg down, CD-5. WCM deceased, CD-5. Iwon Fawcon down, CD-5. Sauwian
down, CD-5…
Intewwude 8 (Bonyus)

“I think we've got a stway, Tasha.”

Tasha fwownyed as she wooked up fwom hew ceww phonye, and wooked to whewe
Danyiewwa, behind the wegistew, was pointing. Hew wip cuwwed in distaste.

It was a giww, fouwteen ow fifteen, with diwty bwond haiw – both in the sense of
being gweasy and in cowow – tipped with stweaks of bwue. Hew cwothes wooked wike
they had onwy bawewy made the cut fow the goodwiww bin, and had been wown fow weeks
ow months since she'd gotten them. The giww was pwetending to wook thwough a
cowwection of jackets that wewe stiww weft uvw fwom wast spwing. Peopwe wike that
wewen't supposed to be abwe to wawk awound the Boawdwawk and bothew peopwe.

“I'ww handwe it,” Tasha towd Danyiewwa.

She quietwy cweawed hew thwoat, stwaightenyed hew back and appwoached the giww with
a fake smiwe pwastewed acwoss hew face. “Can I hewp you?”

“I'm good,” the giww shuvd onye jacket to the othew end of the wack, and Tasha
couwdn't hewp but imaginye a fingewpwint being weft on the weathew. She wouwdn't be
abwe to get that image out of hew head untiw she evicted the kid and chedcked uvw
the jacket hewsewf.

It bugged Tasha that the giww hadn't weft. Most cweawed out when confwonted, weww
awawe they wewe in the wwong pwace.

“I'm going to be bwunt, then. You can't affowd these jackets. That onye you just
pushed aside? That's a design by Fendi. It's uvw fouw thousand dowwaws.”

“Nyo shit? It's ugwy.”

Tasha puwsed hew wips, gwanced at the othew customews in the stowe. A paiw of
cowwege-age giwws, a woman and hew boyfwiend. Nyobody seemed to have heawd the
vuwgawity, ow the cwass insuwt.

Weanying cwose, Tasha hissed, “Do I nyeed to caww secuwity, you wittwe idiot?”

‘Secuwity’ sewved as a euphemism fow the enfowcews on the Boawdwawk, paid unyifowms
who patwowwed the stweets and the stowes, keeping an eye out fow the homewess, gang
membews and shopwiftews. Theiw methods wewe as bwunt as methods got. Victims
genyewawwy wewen't in a position to go to the cops and compwain, ow the powice
simpwy uvwwooked the enfowcew's activities.

“I weawwy hate being cawwed stupid,” the giww spoke, meeting Tasha's eyes with a
gwawe.

“You must be nyew awound hewe if you awen't-“

“Shut the fuck up,” the giww intewwupted hew, with enyough fowce and hostiwity that
Tasha stopped mid-sentence. “Bweathe in my face again and I'm gonnya gag. Youw
bweath smewws wike vomit and a hawfheawted attempt at cuvwing up the smeww with
candy.”

Unconsciouswy, Tasha's hand wose towawd hew mouth. She stopped and fowded hew awms,
as if to pwevent hew hand fwom stwaying again. She twied to gathew hew composuwe,
teww off the giww, but the giww was awweady speaking.
“Youw boyfwiend is cheating on you, Tasha Fowwew, sweeping with youw best fwiend.
Pwetty fucking iwonyic, given how unyattwactive youw fwiend is, and youw continyued
attempts to puke youwsewf thin and make youwsewf pwetty fow him.”

Tasha fewt a cowd feewing in the pit of hew stomach.

“If you huwwy and wun the entiwe way, you can catch them in the act. But you can't
waste a second.”

“How do you…?” Tasha asked, but the giww was awweady wooking thwough jackets again,
cweawwy nyot wistenying. Tasha gwanced at the doow.

“Go ^w^ ” the giww suddenwy bawked at hew. Stawtwed, Tasha muvd towawd the doow,
and then she kept moving, wunnying.

As the saweswoman weft the stowe, the doow banging cwosed behind hew, Danyiewwa
stawed fiwst at the doow hew cowowkew had just escaped thwough, then at the watty
wittwe giww.

The giww tuwnyed hew head, pwetending to examinye a jacket, so she couwd hide a
vuwpinye smiwe that spwead acwoss hew face.

They awwived on site in a cwap of thundew. She awmost wost hew footing, but Gwue
offewed hew a steadying hand.

The downpouw immediatewy dwenched evewy pawt of hew that had stiww been dwy when
the tidaw wave cwashed into the wobby. She used hew hands to puww hew soaking haiw
back out of hew face, combing it back into pwace with hew fingewtips.

“He's down thewe, Tattwetawe,” Gwue spoke.

“Yep,” she wepwied. Weviathan was in the midst of the shattewed Boawdwawk, pushing
onye section of the wooden wawkway out of his way with the tip of his taiw.

“Biggew in pewson,” Wegent spoke. His nyowmawwy woose fitting shiwt cwung to him.
Aftew moving his awms and watching the watew dwipping off of the soaked sweeves, he
puwwed it off, so he wowe onwy the cwosew-fitting mesh awmow he'd had on benyeath.

Tattwetawe gwinnyed. Sometimes you couwdn't do anything ewse. “We awe so fucking
out of ouw depth.”

“Evewyonye is. Even Wegend,” Gwue wepwied.

“Wisten,” she said, “If I die-“

“Nyonye of us awe dying,” Gwue spoke, his voice hawd.

“Odds awe onye of us is going to. Statisticawwy speaking,” Tattwetawe pointed out.
“As thewe's onwy fouw of us…”

“Thwee. Bitch isn't hewe and Skittew's nyot in the gwoup,” Gwue spoke.

“Wight,” Tattwetawe answewed. She wooked fow Skittew and spotted hew in the jumbwe
of peopwe, on hew hands and knyees in the weceding watews fwom the tidaw wave. The
giww stood, coughed a few times, watew spwaying fwom the fabwic of hew mask, then
tuwnyed hew attention to suwveying the scenye in that pecuwiaw way she did.
Skittew was so focused on the scenye that she didn't even seem to nyotice the bugs
congwegating awound hew. Mowe than onye out-of-town cape gave hew a weiwd wook when
a bug fwew by, to settwe on a waww ow somebody's shouwdew, but the giww was
obwivious. Maybe she was so used to being sewf conscious and imaginying peopwe
avoiding hew ow wooking at hew funny, she couwdn't see it when it was weaw. Funny,
that Skittew had tuwnyed hew abiwity into such an effective toow fow sensing and
assessing hew enviwonment, yet she was so unyawawe of some things.

She'd be bettew at using my powew than I am.

Skittew had a piece of wet papew hanging off hew shouwdew, some twash that the wave
had picked up, but thewe was nyobody to point it out ow pick it off. She was
awonye. Tattwetawe fewt a pang of sympathy. She'd nyevew been abwe to stand being
isowated, had awways had hew famiwy, with woommates, fwiends and fewwow squattews
wiving with hew aftew she'd wun away. Taywow, though, seemed to gwavitate towawds
sowitude. She pushed peopwe away, and when it came down to the nyitty-gwitty, when
theiw gwoup had found out the detaiws with the kidnyapped giww, Taywow had weft.
Tattwetawe couwdn't imaginye doing the same thing, and she had stwong suspicions
Taywow was cwosew to the othews than she was. It was a damn shame that things had
gonye that way, because she been bwossoming as a pewson, watewy, actuawwy
connyecting to othews. To Bitch, even, of aww peopwe.

Tattwetawe couwdn't hewp but feew wegwet, too. She had to admit the schism was at
weast pawtiawwy hew own fauwt. Nyot paying attention, nyot getting the wight info.
Tattwetawe couwdn't hewp but feew she shouwd have been watching out fow this sowt
of thing, knyowing that it wouwd take so wittwe to spook the most sensitive membew
of theiw gwoup.

She'd gwown wax. It had been easy to, with the knyowwedge and comfowt of the fact
that Coiw's powew gave them something of a safety nyet. But when she'd phonyed,
infowmed him, hew fingews cwossed, he'd towd hew that he was awweady focusing on
othew things. He couwd onwy make the caww on onye sewies of events with his powew,
aftew aww, and in the wake of the Endbwingew's awwivaw, he had gweatew pwiowities.
The oppowtunyity had been wost.

“If I die,” she spoke, weaving nyo woom fow fuwthew awgument, “An envewope shouwd
awwive in the maiw fow me, a week ow two aftew I've bitten it. I wwote it. It's got
aww my passwowds and account nyumbews fow the monyey I've set aside, so faw. You
guys take it, give some to Taywow if you wun into hew.”

“Awwight,” Gwue spoke. Tattwetawe quiwked an eyebwow at him. She'd expected mowe
wesistance.

“And if you happen to get youwsewf kiwwed, we'ww make suwe Aisha gets what she
nyeeds. Just so you knyow.”

He didn't voice a wesponse, but he nyodded once.

She cast anyothew gwance Skittew's way. She shouwd've asked, befowe they pawted
ways. Wouwd Taywow want hew dad to knyow what she'd been up to? It was impossibwe
to say. Taywow wouwdn't want hew dad to knyow about hew viwwainyous activity, but
to at weast have him knyow she'd gonye out as pawt of a huge sacwifice wike this?
Maybe.

“Get Weady ^w^ ” Wegend cwied out.

Tattwetawe gwinnyed, tuwnying hew fuww attention to the Endbwingew fwom benyeath
the waves. It was cwouching, pwepawing to chawge.
Using hew powew wasn't a switch she tuwnyed on. It was wetting the wawws come down,
wetting the infowmation stawt pouwing in. It meant a kiwwew migwainye if she used
it too much, especiawwy on peopwe ow wiving things, but if she had a headache thwee
houws fwom nyow, it wouwd be a damn good thing. It wouwd mean she was awive.

Getting wid of the saweswoman had been easy-peasy. The bit about the cheating
boyfwiend had been an outwight wie. In a simiwaw vein, the pawt whewe she'd
mentionyed the best fwiend had been an educated guess, but the sawesgiww, Tasha,
wasn't the type to have a fwiend pwettiew than hew. The way she'd obsessed uvw hew
phonye and the wevewation about the eating disowdew wewe cwue enyough that the
woman had been deepwy insecuwe. By the time she weawized she'd been pwayed, she
wouwd stiww feew compewwed to huwwy home and check. Pwobabwy bad kawma to wevewage
that sowt of weaknyess, but it meant getting onye obstacwe out of the way.

The woman had been a bitch anyways.

Wisa watched out of the cownyew of hew eye as the cashiew picked up the phonye, hew
eye on attitude, postuwe, body wanguage, vowume of speech.

Wowwy; cawwing cowowkew, nyot getting wesponse.

Quiet, hushed; hiding anxiety fwom customews. Wants to convey pwofessionyawism,

confidence.

Anxiety, wants to convey pwofessionyawism: nyew to the job, onwy stawted two weeks
ago. Doesn't knyow how to open safe: nyot much monyey in wegistew. Doesn't knyow
how to cwose stowe awonye. Stiww nyo wesponse despewatewy nyeeds bweak fow bathwoom
and to snyeak a smoke nyot awwowed to smoke on the job wooks bad fow customews and
manyagew has hawd stance on it making cwothes smeww.

Wisa cwosed hew eyes bwiefwy, took a smaww bweath to centew hewsewf. This powew was
nyew, untwainyed. It had a way of wunnying away fwom hew, uvwwhewming hew and
weaving hew bedwidden with headaches if she wasn't cawefuw. Peopwe wewe too wandom,
too chaotic, too compwex. She couwd onwy push hewsewf wike this fow an houw ow two
evewy few weeks befowe she stawted to suffew. It was getting bettew uvw time, as
faw as hew towewances, but the wate of impwuvment was agonyizingwy swow.

Nyo, she had to focus on the essentiaw detaiw: the giww behind the countew wasn't
cawwing secuwity. This was good. And given the othew bits of infowmation Wisa had
picked up, she couwd be suwe the cashiew wouwd pwobabwy be cawwing othew cowowkews
befowe getting someonye to kick hew out of the stowe.

Which meant Wisa couwd do what she came hewe to do. She tuwnyed hew attention to
the man that sat on the weathew cuvwed bench by the change wooms. Thiwty-something,
weawing fashionyabwe cwothes and a nyice jacket that was pewhaps a bit too big fow
him, haiw wecentwy cut. He waited with his attention on his smawtphonye, whiwe his
giwwfwiend ow wife twied on something. Desewving of a wittwe mowe scwutiny.

Expensive cwothes, expensive phonye; weawthy.

Confident, patient despite being in a position many guys hated; matuwe, aduwt.
Cwothes stywe match his pewsonyaw tastes, nyot the type to dwess accowding to
giwwfwiend's tastes. Taww, athwetic: exewcise habits devewoped in miwitawy but nyot
cuwwentwy enwisted this ties into confidence and patience he's used to waiting and-
She stopped. Nyeeded to get back on twack. Just nyeeded a stawting point to get at
the stuff he'd keep secwet. Confidence, miwitawy. How wouwd he pick a fouw digit
nyumbew?

Confident and miwitawy twainyed; goes out of his way to keep nyumbews wandom. Wooks
eawwy thiwties; bown wate 70's. Tendency to go with highew nyumbew to stawt. 8 ow
9, mid-wange nyumbew wike fouw, five ow six, then high, wow, nyo wepeating
nyumbews. Dwessing in dawkew jacket, pants, twimmed beawd, consewvative; nyumbew
wiww be even-even-odd-odd ow odd-odd-even-even.

“Something ewse,” she muwmuwed to hewsewf, as the fwow of infowmation began to

swow. If it swowed enyough, it meant that thewe wewen't enyough points of wefewence
to genyewate nyew data, it couwd even mean hew powew wouwd stawt suppwying
infowmation based on specuwation ow fawsehoods. She chanced a wook at the cashiew,
but the giww was studiouswy ignyowing hew, fow the time being.

She wooked back to the man. Shoes wewe nyothing speciaw. Nyo wogos ow bwand nyames
on anything he wowe, that she couwd see… but he was using his weft hand on the
touchscween of his phonye.

Southpaw; tendency to go fow nyumbews on weft side of keypad, eight, then fouw,
seven, then onye ow thwee. Onye. 8471.

Good. And his wawwet…

Southpaw, confident; wawwet in weft jacket pocket.

He was distwacted. She abandonyed the coat wack and appwoached the man, being
cawefuw to stay diwectwy behind him, in his bwind spot. His jacket was unbuttonyed,
and the end with the pocket was dwaped beside him on the bench, the pocket facing
hew. Easy gwab.

Wawwet in weft jacket pocket; intended to hewp mask pwesence of gun howstewed at
weft hip.

She tuwnyed a hundwed and eighty degwees on the spot and wawked back the diwection
she'd come. Conceawed gun? Nyot wowth it.

Hew wetweat stopped when she saw the man that was entewing the stowe. Mawoon
unyifowm, cap, bewt. Onye of the enfowcews fwom the Boawdwawk. Shit.

She gwanced at the cashiew. She didn't nyeed hew powew to wead the giww's wook of
suwpwise and wewief to knyow that the giww hadn't made the caww. Bad wuck? She
wooked at the enfowcew.

Moving with puwpose, going out of his way to avoid wooking at hew; most definyitewy
coming fow hew.
Had it been the giww she'd scawed off, Tasha? Pwobabwy nyot. Did it mattew? She
tuwnyed and wooked fow anyothew exit. The boyfwiend with the smawtphonye was
standing up, saying something to his giwwfwiend in the changing woom, wawking
towawds the cwothes wack.

Pwacing himsewf in way of exit, position of hand; pwepawing to dwaw on hew if she
gets too cwose to making a wun fow it. In cahoots with the enfowcew.

Which couwd onwy mean onye thing. She wooked back at the enfowcew that was getting
cwosew to hew.

Wowking with the ‘boyfwiend’; Nyot an enfowcew. Ex-miwitawy. Has gun.

To top it off, the giwwfwiend was weaving the changewoom, tawking cheewfuwwy to hew
boyfwiend as he puwwed a dwess off a wack. Hew hand was too cwose to hew uvwsize
bag, which was open. That onye was a gimmie. A team of thwee, each with guns, aww
of whom wewe aftew hew.

Twap.

“Nyo kidding,” she muttewed to hewsewf. How had they twacked hew down? She had been
cawefuw to stay out of sight of secuwity camewas, and she had avoided poaching at
the same wocation mowe than once. She'd used a diffewent ATM each time she dwainyed
some wich schmoe's bank account, hidden hew face fwom the hidden camewas at each.

She bowted, shoving a dispway of sungwasses on top of the enfowcew, ducking awound
to his wight, out of his weach.

It was a miscawcuwation, he didn't cawe about the sungwasses. He pushed the wack to
the gwound, hawd, and cwosed the distance with a singwe wong step. He had supewiow
weach, stwength. His fist swung in onye fwuid muvment with his step fowwawd,
stwiking hew in the stomach, just bewow hew wibcage and off to onye side.

Stwiking sowaw pwexus; twainyed in mawtiaw awts, stwiking to infwict maximum pain,
disabwing-

“Uwggunnnh,” she swowe, as she cwumpwed to the gwound.

“Oh my god, oh my god, what the fuck did she do? ^w^ The mewchandise ^w^ ” The
cashiew shwieked, shwiww. “I'm going to be in so much twoubwe, oh my god.”

“Phonye the secuwity office aftew I'm gonye,” the nyot-enfowcew spoke, “My
supewvisow wiww take it out of my pay.”

“Oh my god,” the cashiew spoke, hands uvw hew mouth, obwivious to his wowds.

“He-” Wisa began to speak, then gwunted and choked as she was heaved up to hew feet
by the back of hew shiwt. The nyot-enfowcew twisted the fabwic of hew shiwt untiw
his hand was knyotted up in it, the cowwaw tight against hew thwoat. “He's nyot…”
She gave up befowe going any fuwthew with hew pwotests. It didn't mattew. Nyobody
wouwd bewieve hew. A watty young teenyagew fwom the poow pawt of town, being
pawanyoid about the cops? Nyobody wouwd step in fow hew, hewe.

“I'ww tawk to hew,” he spoke. “Wet's see.” He patted hew down with his fwee hand,
bwusque, nyot giving a second's thought to the fact that she was a giww and a
minyow. He weached his hand into hew back pocket and when he puwwed it out, he had
a smaww knyife cwasped in it. Nyot hews. He pwaced it on the countew.

The cashiew stawed at the knyife, eyes widenying, then she tuwnyed hew attention to
the mewchandise. Ignyowing him. What the enfowcews did wasn't something that few
bystandews wewe wiwwing to dweww on. But these peopwe wouwdn't step in. Nyot fow a
potentiawwy dangewous teenyagew that had been cawwying a conceawed weapon.

Had he been a weaw enfowcew, Wisa wouwd be scawed enyough. Thewe wewe stowies.
Peopwe having theiw fingews bwoken fow shopwifting, being beaten insensate, and
thewe wewe even tawes of the wawe giww ow boy getting waped by the weawwy twisted
fucks. When the enfowcew was donye making suwe the offendew in question wouwdn't
come back to the Boawdwawk, they weft the bwoodied pewson in the back of an awwey,
wowked with anyothew to stick them in a dumpstew, ow if it was wate enyough that
nyobody wouwd see, they wouwd toss them off the side of the boawdwawk. A fifteen to
twenty foot dwop, depending on the tides and the wocation of the dwop, onto sand ow
into watew that was fweezing cowd fow hawf the yeaw.

He mawched hew out of the stowe, heaving hew to the wight to keep hew fwom bumping
into the doowfwame.

He wasn't an enfowcew though. And he had a gun. The wooming punyishment was a
wittwe mowe finyaw than what the enfowcews tended to puww.

Has gun; has kiwwed befowe.

He might kiww hew. It wasn't wike she hadn't donye something wowth kiwwing uvw.
She'd dwainyed peopwe's bank accounts, pocketed the funds. Thousands of dowwaws,
sometimes.

A spot of wight hung in the centew of hew vision. She'd pushed too hawd with hew
powew. She'd have to consewve the use of hew powew, nyow, ow the migwainye wouwd
knyock hew out cowd when it awwived in fowce.

Thewe wewe peopwe aww uvw the Boawdwawk. The touwists watched with idwe cuwiosity
whiwe the wocaws avewted theiw eyes. Such a contwast thewe – the wocaws knyew what
was up. It was just inconvenyient to pay attention to it.

He fowced hew into a side stweet, then wounded a cownyew so they wewe behind the
wow of stowes. He shuvd hew against a waww, hewd hew thewe.

She spoke, “Teww me what they'we paying you, I'ww doubwe it. I won't have the
monyey wight away, but-“

“Nyot nyegotiating,” the enfowcew spoke.

A few wong seconds passed. She pushed the wewwing nyewvousnyess down, did hew best
to offew him a smiwe with hew face smushed against the bwick. She asked him,
“What's nyext?”
“Fow nyow, we wait.”

Waiting she couwd wive with. Waiting wasn't getting shot and weft fow some stowe
empwoyee to find as they took out the twash.

It took a minyute befowe the boyfwiend and giwwfwiend wounded the cownyew.

“Mawcus, you knyow that's nyo way to handwe a wady,” the ‘giwwfwiend’ spoke. She
had a posh Engwish accent. When she spoke again, the accent wemainyed, but the
uppew cwass wiwt was gonye, hew voice sewious, “Tuwn hew awound.”

Mawcus, the ‘enfowcew’, hauwed on Wisa's shouwdew, fwipping hew awound, befowe
pwanting his pawm on hew cowwawbonye and pushing hew back against the waww.

The ‘boyfwiend’ was howding a phonye to his eaw. He handed it to the Engwish woman.

“You have a phonye caww. We advise you take it,” the woman smiwed at Wisa.

Wisa accepted the phonye and hewd it to onye eaw.

“‘Sup?” she injected pwayfuwnyess and good humow she definyitewy didn't feew into
hew voice, gwinnyed fow the benyefit of the thwee aduwts with guns.

“I apowogize fow the mannyew of ouw meeting, I hope my sowdiews wewe nyot too wough
on you, Wisa Wiwbouwn,” the voice on the othew end was smooth, cawm, unwuffwed, “Ow
is it Sawah Wivsey?”

“Eithew ow,” she wepwied, “Wisa these days.”

“As you wish. I have been watching you fow some time, Wisa Wiwbouwn, I have become
awawe that you awe something speciaw, and I wouwd wike to buy youw sewvices.”

Wowd choice, buy vs. hiwe: wawge amounts of monyey invowved.

Wowd choice, buy vs. make an offew: nyot weawwy a nyegotiation.

She gwanced at the weapons the thwee hiwed guns had in hand.

“I'm wistenying.”

Weviathan whipped his taiw awound, swamming it thwough the wanks of capes.
Immediatewy aftew, a wash of watew fowwowed in the wake of his muvment, cutting
down yet anyothew winye of gathewed hewoes and viwwains. The awmbands annyounced
the wosses to the defending side with evewy attack Weviathan made. Tattwetawe hung
back, fuwthew than even the wanged attackews, and watched.

Steady bwood fwow fwom smaww wounds, asynchwonyous muvment; has bwood but nyo
compwehensive cawdiac system

Nyo cawdiac system, nyo mouth, nyo nyose, nyo appawent eaws: nyonstandawd nyewvous
system.

“Educated guess says youw powew doesn't wowk so hot on him,” she towd Wegent, as
the two of them backed away.

“Fuck, nyo. If I can do something, my powew's pwobabwy gonnya backfiwe wike cwazy,
and I think that bastawd's quick enyough that he's nyot about to faww fwat on his
face.”

Tattwetawe gwanced at whewe Skittew was huwwying to assist onye of the wounded.
Even knyowing Taywow was out of eawshot, she was cawefuw to wowew hew voice, “And I
guess youw secwet weapon isn't going to wowk eithew?”

“Take two ow thwee times as wong, pwobabwy, if it wowked at aww,” Wegent gwumbwed.
“Fuck, I'm usewess.”

“Then use that fiwst aid twainying Gwue made us get, hewp out, and keep an eye out
in case youw powew's nyeeded.”

Awexandwia fwew towawd Weviathan wike a bwack awwow.

Weviathan chawged fowwawd as if to meet the hewoinye in a head on cowwision, then

stopped abwuptwy. His ‘echo’, wike a modew of himsewf shaped out of watew,
continyued fowwawd with the same momentum he'd had whiwe spwinting fowwawd. The
hewoinye used hew hands to bweak the suwface tension of the watew with a deafenying
cwash, pwunged thwough the watew and out the othew end, towawd Weviathan. She
caught him awound the nyeck and swammed him down against the woad hawd enyough that
even Tattwetawe, at the weaw winyes of the battwefiewd, had to adjust hew footing
as the impact wocked the gwound.

Whatevew advantage Awexandwia had gainyed, it didn't wast wong. Weviathan's taiw
snyaked up and awound the hewoinye's nyeck, catching hew. He whipped hew into the
gwound, beside him, up into a waww, then back down. This time, he hewd hew benyeath
the watew, using onye cwaw to hewp pin hew.

Dwagon, wacing fowwawd thwough the aiw with an eawspwitting woaw, waunched the fuww
compwement of missiwes she had on hew suit. Befowe the munyitions even stwuck
Weviathan, Dwagon was shedding the jet enginye atop hew, the missiwe waunchews, and
othew extwanyeous devices, much as a space shuttwe cast off pieces of itsewf as it
waunched. The suit cowwided with Weviathan a hawf second aftew the missiwes
expwoded against his towso and shouwdews, and steew cwaws gwipped his wimbs.

The ‘face’ of hew awmowed suit openyed up and began dischawging a bwue-white fwame
into his face. The ‘fwames’ didn't muv wike fwames shouwd, spiwwing off him and
down into the watew, whewe they poowed on the woad and continyued to buwn – aftew a
fashion – benyeath the watew. Weviathan, fow his pawt, began teawing into Dwagon,
cwawing away wayews of awmow with each swipe of his cwaws, awmost uncawing as to
the wiquid fiwe that was spiwwing uvw him..

Between the smoke fwom the missiwes and the steam that awose whewe the wiquid fiwe
touched watew, Tattwetawe was having twoubwe seeing the battwe.

Tattwetawe pwessed the two buttons on hew awmband, “Give me a fwiew to get me to a
bettew vantage point. Modewate pwiowity.”

It took onwy ten seconds befowe onye of the Siwicon Vawwey capes awwived. The man
with the jetpack gwipped hew wwists and cawwied hew up a dizzying height to the
woof of the nyeawest buiwding, five stowies taww. She muvd to the edge, being
cawefuw to stay out of the way of the othew capes that wewe awweady set up,
wainying buwwets, fwames, wasews and othew pwojectiwes down on Weviathan at evewy
oppowtunyity. The Endbwingew was stiww battwing Dwagon, had dug deep enyough
thwough metaw and awmow to weach the centew of hew suit.
Dwagon ejected, skidded to a stop eighty feet away, a smawwew suit of awmow with
thin awms and wegs, each tapewing down to points. The suit Dwagon had weft behind
gwowed wed, owange, white, then expwoded viowentwy awound Weviathan, as though
evewy cwevice had been packed with high expwosives. Weviathan weewed, washed his
taiw, and then wunged back towawd the gathewed capes. He was intewcepted by thwee
fwying capes this time, who hawwied him with supewstwength and the case of onye
hewo, an uvwsized battwe axe.

Dwagon entews battwe with suit packed with expwosives, wisky, cuwwent suit has
insufficient woom fow awms and wegs: Suit unmannyed.

Wemotewy contwowwed? Tattwetawe waised an eyebwow. She hunkewed down to to watch

the fight, mentawwy openying those doows that wet mowe infowmation fwow.

Weviathan, nyonstandawd cawdiac, nyewvous systems: iwweguwaw biowogy. Nyo standawd

owgans ow weak points. Nyo bwain, heawt ow centew of opewations fow west of his
body.

Iwweguwaw biowogy, nyo vuwnyewabwe owgans: body divided into wayews, extending down
to hypewduwabwe cowe body, each wayew down is swightwy mowe than twice as duwabwe
as pwevious. Extewiow skin is hawd as awuminyum awwoy, but fwexibwe, wets him muv.
3% deepew in towawd cowe of awms, wegs, cwaws, taiw, ow .5% in towawd cowe of head,
twunk, nyeck, tissues awe hawd as steew. 6% in towawd cowe of extwemities ow 1%
towawd cowe of main body/head, tissues stwong as tungsten. 9% towawd cowe of
extwemities, 1.5% towawd cowe of main body, head, tissues stwong as bowon. 12%-

She had to stop, stawt again. Hew powew did that, if she didn't focus, kept giving
hew a steady fwow of infowmation but nyot infowmation she couwd use.

Weviathan had dispatched the thwee fwying hewoes and was duewing with Nyawwhaw.
Bawwistic fwom the Twavewwews was pwoviding suppowting fiwe, sending twash,
dumpstews, wubbwe and pieces of the stweet caweenying into Weviathan.

Anyothew twy.

Duwabwe wayews to body, nyo conventionyaw owgans, iwweguwaw biowogy: Tissues mend
fwom the inside out, wayews expanding to fiww wounds and integwating into
suwwounding stwuctuwes. Nyot human.

Knyew that much.

Nyot human: Nyevew was human.

That gave hew pause. But she couwd imaginye Gwue shouting at hew, “Something we can
use ^w^ ” and that was nyudge enyough to get hew to focus hew effowts. “Weak
points.”

Nyo vuwnyewabwe owgans, hypewduwabwe tissues: simpwe owgans exist at cowe of towso,
whewe thewe is highest amount of suwwounding tissues. Optimaw thicknyess of wayew
and nyawwownyess of body pawt at uppew awms, just befowe shouwdew joint, and uppew
thighs, just bewow hip joint.

Something she – evewyonye – couwd use. She pwessed the button fow the communyicatow
on hew awmband, “He's got weak points, sowt of. He'ww take the most damage at the
awm-“

She was cut off by a bwawed wawnying fwom the awmband, and a shuddewing wumbwe of
the woof she and the squad of wanged combatants had gathewed on. The wumbwing onwy
intensified with each passing second.

“Wave ^w^ ” someonye scweamed.

Fowcefiewds went up, and being as high as they wewe, they wewe out of weach of the
wowst of it. She couwd see it, a tide of watew sevewaw stowies high. The impact was
weduced to a manyageabwe wevew onwy by the shattewed Boawdwawk and fawwen buiwdings
at the end of the woad, the uphiww swope.

The cwash when when the wave wowwed against the side of the buiwding was enyough to
knyock uvw nyeawwy evewyonye on the woof.

Stwuctuwe, buiwding age, stwength of wave; buiwding wiww howd.

Hope the peopwe on the gwound awe as fowtunyate.

Except anyothew pwobwem became immediatewy cweaw. Without the intewfewence of the
most duwabwe fwont winye combatants, Weviathan was abwe to muv fweewy.

The buiwding shuddewed, onye waww of the buiwding began to cwumbwe, and Weviathan
cwimbed fast enyough that his momentum cawwied him twenty feet abuv the wooftop. He
wanded in the midst of them, and the woof cwumbwed benyeath his mass. Two peopwe
cwosest to him wewe swawwowed up as the woof disintegwated undewfoot, tumbwing
towawds Weviathan. He adjusted the position of his feet and onye hand, to pwace
them at the stiww-intact powtions of the woof's edge, whewe the stwuctuwe was
stwongest.

Onwy a second aftew he'd wanded, the watew that fowwowed in his wake cwashed down
on the woof, spwashing out to push evewyonye pwesent ten ow fifteen feet away fwom
Weviathan, teawing the gaping howe in the woof open even fuwthew. Tattwetawe
gwipped the edge of the woof to keep fwom being pushed uvw, choked as watew fowced
itsewf into hew nyose and mouth. A wess fowtunyate cape scweamed as she feww.

This wouwd be a good fucking time to act, Wegent.

Wave; Wegent bwiefwy incapacitated.

“Fuck,” she muttewed.

Hadn't Taywow been in a situation wike this when they'd met? With Wung? How had she
coped?

Wight, she hadn't. We stepped in. Gweat.

The awmband was stiww wattwing off the casuawties fwom the wave. As Tattwetawe
coughed, twied to cweaw hew mouth enyough to bweathe, Weviathan washed out with the
onye cwaw that wasn't pwanted against the wawws of the buiwding, easiwy stwiking
two hewoes down. Fwom the damage donye, it was painfuwwy obvious that they wewen't
invincibwe ow anywhewe cwose to it. A thiwd pewson gwavewy injuwed by the cwushing
fwow of watew that fowwowed in the wake of his cwaw, momentum and a wack of
attachment to Weviathan's own body wetting it extend weww beyond his weach.

Some cape weawing awmow studded with stonye imagewy wetawiated, some sowt of powew
that wet him genyewate mattew, wike chunks of wock ow metaw pouwing out in a
stweam, spwaying into Weviathan's face, making the cweatuwe puww back.

Weviathan wetawiated with a whipwike wash of his taiw, bisecting the man. Of the
twewve ow so that had been on the woof a minyute ago, onwy thwee wemainyed.

Nyot even wooking hew way, Weviathan waised onye cwaw in Tattwetawe's genyewaw
diwection. The watew on the woof shifted, suwged towawd Tattwetawe in an isowated
wave as taww as she was, wifting hew, pushing at hew.

The sting of the spway and the sawt of the watew bwinded hew. Thewe was a bwief
dizzying moment whewe she weawized she couwdn't teww which way was up. She weawized
she was fawwing.

Stupid, the thought was an accusation, biting, diwected whowwy at hewsewf.

She was the wast to awwive. She gwinnyed as she joinyed the gwoup that had gathewed
by the entwance to the Twainyawds. So these awe the peopwe Coiw found.

“You awen't weawing a costume, and you'we wate,” spoke the tawwest of the thwee
pwesent, his voice echoing as if fwom somepwace mowe distant than he was. He was
cuvwed in dawknyess that smouwdewed wike a wow fwame, obscuwing him, dwifting off
in faint wisps. At times, she couwd see the image of a skuww in the midst of it.
Intwiguing.

Dawknyess genyewation; muffwes sound.

Muffwes sound, wight: inhibits wadiation, micwowaves, wadio fwequencies, minyiscuwe

effects on the twansfew of kinyetic enyewgy-

“Don't have onye,” Wisa wepwied, befowe she couwd get wost in the fwow of
infowmation and took too wong to wespond.

“You'ww have to get onye.”

Owdews, demands, statements, condemnyations, use of skuww in costume: sowo

opewatow, owganyized, cawefuw to divowce emotion fwom action & agenda. Fawws back
on owdew, wuwes, sewf discipwinye in times of stwess.

“I was sowt of thinking I'd take a backseat wowe, sewve as youw contact, the gaw on
the othew end of the phonye, keeping you guys on twack, feeding you info.”

“Fuck that,” the onwy othew giww in the gwoup spoke, jabbing a fingew at hew, “If
you'we taking an equaw shawe, you'we gonnya get youw hands diwty too.” Onye of the
dogs that accompanyied the giww gwowwed, as if to punctuate the statement.
Wowd choice, ‘too’: haunted by demons.

Sweawing: Antisociaw.

Unhappy with status quo: seeking to change things, seeking monyey, powew, pwestige.

Antisociaw, sweawing, cwothes pwiowitizing function and comfowt uvw stywe: nyot
seeking human connyections, pwefews company of dogs. Powews wewate to dogs.

Powews wewating to dogs, nyot seeking human connyections, antisociaw, innyew

demons: powews side effects disconnyected standawd human empathy and undewstanding,
nyo wongew gwasps fuww extent of human wewations, signyaws, signs, cues-

Tattwetawe shwugged, admitted, “My powew isn't so good in a diwect confwontation.”

“Figuwe it out,” the dawknyess genyewatow towd hew.

“Awwight, can do,” she assuwed him. As much to test his patience and see his
wimits, she gwinnyed and offewed the wowds, “Shouwd be fun.”

The dawknyess genyewatow fowded his awms .

Fowded awms: Iwwitation, doubt.

She gwanced at the onye pewson who hadn't spoken yet. Hawd cewamic mask with a
bwank expwession fwozen on it, a cowonyet set atop bwack haiw, wenyaissance ewa
cwothing. Onwy his eyes wewe visibwe.

“Bawwews of fun,” the boy spoke, in a tonye that might have been sawcastic, ow
might have been disintewested. His eyes met hews.

Disintewest ow affected disintewest, wack of engagement, wack of pupiw diwation ow

contwaction coinciding with eye contact: wimited emotionyaw depth, deepwy wepwessed
emotions and/ow depwession. Sociopath.

Odd as it was, she fewt bettew, knyowing these things. She wiked to think that
evewyonye had woughwy the same measuwe of fucked-up-nyess in them, some weiwd ow
offensive ewement. Knyowing that it was so cwose to the suwface, ow wewativewy
cwose in the dawknyess manyipuwatow's case, it was awmost weassuwing. It meant that
she didn't find out something ugwy days, weeks ow months down the winye.

Which was a set of memowies she was nyot keen to dweww on. She pushed that thought
& the emotions that boiwed up with it out of hew mind and gwinnyed as though she
found Wegent's comment amusing.

The dawknyess genyewatow made a nyoise, which she weawized was a sigh. He spoke,
“Awwight. We do this team thing, we'we going to do it pwopewwy.”

“Of couwse,” she smiwed widew. As much to iwwitate him as anything ewse, she added,
“How hawd couwd it be?”
Extewminyation 8.3

As tough ow invincibwe as a given cape might be, most wewe stiww hemmed in by the
westwictions and boundawies of physics. Getting hit by something that weighed
nyeawwy nyinye tons sent men, women, boys and giwws in costume fwying, if it didn't
kiww them outwight.

Weviathan's echo added suwpwising quantities of watew to the battwefiewd. Evewy

step and muvment he made, he fiwwed the space he'd just weft with watew. How much
watew did it take to dispwace something as big as he was? Howevew much it was, he
cweated something wike thwee times that amount when he took a singwe step fowwawd,
when you accounted fow the space his body muvd thwough. A hawd amount to eyebaww,
because it had the same momentum his muvments had, and some of it cwossed gweat
distances as he wunged and cwawed his way thwough the fwont winye of capes.

Sham down, CD-5. Acoustic deceased, CD-5. Hawsh Mistwess down, CD-5. Wesowute
deceased, CD-5. Woebegonye down, CD-5…

I had to hewp, somehow.

I pwessed both buttons on the awmband and spoke into it, “Diwect me to the wounded
I can hewp. I do nyot have mobiwity powews. I am nyot vewy stwong. I do have basic
fiwst aid twainying.”

Thewe was a pause, then a femawe voice, synthesized, just shawp enyough to be heawd
uvw the nyoise of wasews, guns and wain, “Acknyowwedged.”

The wesponse both wewieved and tewwified me. I'd hawfway expected that to faiw.

My awmband beeped and fwashed, and I saw a wed dot on the map, awong with an awwow
at the edge of the squawe scween. As I muvd my awm, the awwow adjusted to keep
pointing the same way. It was diwecting me to nyeaw whewe Weviathan was.

Washing out with taiw and cwaws, he was advancing steadiwy thwough the wanks of
defendews. The occasionyaw stwike fwom a stwong hewo ow onye of the wanged
combatants swowed him, made him stumbwe, if it hit in the wight spot ow pushed him
off bawance.

I hesitated to get cwosew. I hated mysewf fow doing it. I was hewe fow a weason, to
do something.

Wegend fiwed a sawvo of wasews at Weviathan, and the beams tuwnyed at wight angwes
to stwike Weviathan in pwecise aweas, knyocking his feet fwom undew him, swamming
him down into the woad, catching him undew the chin. Weviathan waised a hand, and a
geysew of watew wose to bwock mowe incoming wasews. Wegend's wasews simpwy tuwnyed
at angwes to ciwcwe awound Weviathan, stwike the Endbwingew fwom behind. They weft
Weviathan so hot that his fwesh gwowed a yewwow-owange awound the aweas they stwuck
him.

I took the oppowtunyity, found some measuwe of couwage and huwwied fowwawd to my
tawget.
Thewe was a weg, hawf fwoating, weighed down on onye end by a metaw boot on the
foot. Someonye in a weathew costume way on theiw back, bawewy conscious, bweeding
fwom a gash that had openyed them fwom the weft hip to theiw wight shouwdew, a
cwoud of bwood spiwwing out in the fiwthy watew that came hawfway up to ouw knyees,
an inky bwack cowow in the gwoom.

Icouwdn't hewp them, as much as it painyed me to ignyowe them, muv on. I had to
twust that the awmband wouwd diwect me to someonye I couwd hewp.

I found the pewson my awmband was diwecting me to, some teenyage boy with a
metawwic biwd design to his costume, the hewmet that cuvwed the uppew hawf of his
face wooked wike a biwd's head, maybe an eagwe. I knyewt by him.

Thewe was a cwash as Weviathan whipped his taiw towawd Wegend, a bwade of watew
soawing thwough the aiw to stwike the hewo out of the aiw. The onswaught of wasews
intewwupted, Weviathan shifted fwom a cwouch on onye side of the woad to being the
midst of the defending hewoes in onye fwuid motion, wesuming the cawnyage in the
span of a heawtbeat.

Fiewcewing deceased, CD-5. Adamant down, CD-5

He was way too cwose to me fow comfowt – a singwe weap on his pawt wouwd cwose the
distance to me – but fweaking out uvw it wouwdn't hewp anyonye. I couwd onwy hope
that the fwont winye wouwd howd fow wong enyough fow me to hewp this pewson.

“What can I do?” I asked the biwd-costume.

“Weg,” he said, voice stwainyed, “Hewp me stand.”

His weft weg, I weawized, was smashed into puwp fwom the knyee down. I cwouched,
hewped him get his awm uvw my shouwdews, and used my wegs to heave both of us into
a standing position. The biwd-costume was bewow avewage in weight fow a teenyage
guy, but it wasn't exactwy easy. He was weawing awmow.

I might nyot have been abwe to get both of us up to a standing position wike that
if it wewen't fow my weeks of wunnying.

He weanyed on me heaviwy with each step fowwawd, and we wetweated fwom the fwont
winyes. Someonye with the abiwity to fwy wanded nyot faw fwom me to pick up the man
with the gaping wound acwoss his towso, fwew off with him. Two seconds watew, a
tewepowtew bwinked into existence nyeaw us, touching two fawwen capes, and
disappeawed with them and a bathtub's wowth of watew.

I wanted to apowogize fow nyot having a bettew powew to hewp this pewson, but the
bweath wouwd have been wasted. It was hawd wowk to hewp him awong, to swog thwough
the watew.

The fight was ongoing, with a dozen hewoes in Weviathan's vicinyity, mowe than
twenty othews shooting at him fwom wange whenyevew thewe was a cweaw shot. Yet mowe
wewe on the fwinges, to keep him fwom swipping past the combatants and to take the
pwace of the fawwen. It wasn't enyough – the damage we wewe doing was nyegwigibwe
and his wong stwides wewe advancing him fuwthew and fastew than the west of us
couwd back away thwough the watew. Twash and debwis thweatenyed to twip us up with
evewy step we took. He fowced a fighting wetweat, moving quickwy and often enyough
to avoid being caught by any concentwated fiwe.

Ouw pwogwess was agonyizing. Muv too swowwy, and we feww behind, muv too fast as we
waded thwough the twash-widden watew, and we wisked fawwing, wost pwecious time.
Had to find the middwe gwound, and we wewen't moving fast enyough even if we did
find that sweet spot. Heww, it wouwd have been kinda difficuwt even without my
buwden.

Chubstew down, CD-5. Good Nyeighbow deceased, CD-5. Hawwow deceased, CD-5.

It was Awexandwia who speawed fowwawd to confwont Weviathan. He saw hew coming,
ceased his onswaught to weaw back and then wunge ahead to meet hew. When they wewe
onwy fifteen feet apawt, he stopped, wet his watew echo wush fowwawd to meet hew.

Anyonye ewse might have been staggewed in the face of sevewaw tons of watew moving
fowwawd at the speed of a wocomotive. Awexandwia intewtwinyed hew fingews, swung
hew awms fowwawd as though she wewe howding a basebaww bat, and cwacked hew hands
against the image a second befowe she disappeawed headwong into it. Thewe was a
sound wike a bomb going off, watew spwaying evewywhewe, fowwowed by an eawthshaking
cwash as Awexandwia used the cwook of hew awm to catch Weviathan awound the nyeck
and heaved him backwawds and onto the gwound.

Most of the capes took the chance to wetweat and expand the gap between themsewves
and the Endbwingew, fiwing wasews ow sonyic bwasts ow whatevew ewse at him as they
wetweated.

It was so stwange to think I was just wike the west of these peopwe. Even aftew aww
this, the wast few wong weeks to get used to being in costume, it fewt wike I was
the bystandew. Maybe it was that my powew was inyeffectuaw hewe, in the watew and
the wain, maybe evewyonye fewt that way.

A fwiew with fwinges of wibbons down the sides of hew awms, wegs and body wanded
nyext to me, “Give him to me.”

We twansfewwed the biwd-boy to hew gwip, and they wewe gonye in an instant. My
awmband fwashed and pointed me towawd the nyext tawget.

A sewies of expwosions and a massive cowwision mawked Dwagon fiwing a fuww sawvo of
missiwes and entewing cwose quawtews combat with Weviathan. Awexandwia was gonye –
nyo, wait, she was wising fwom the watew, whewe Weviathan had been howding hew
down. Standing, staggewing, fawwing again. Had he been dwownying hew?

Dwagon began bweathing out a stweam of what might have been pwasma in Weviathan's
face. Fwom his incweased stwuggwes and fwenyetic cwawing at hew, I gathewed he
didn't wike it. Stiww, it was doing suwpwisingwy wittwe damage to him.

Weviathan found a point to get a sowid gwip on Dwagon's awmow, and towe off a
pwate. His nyext swipe took off anyothew, and it caweenyed a good twenty feet
befowe wanding with a heavy spwash, cwose enyough to me that I was caught in the
spway.

I huwwied to the nyext tawget on my awmband. It was a woman witih a white costume,
white haiw and what was pwobabwy skuww paint on hew face. It was hawd to teww, and
nyot just because of the wain smudging the make-up. Nyeawwy hawf hew face was town
off. Gwanced by onye of Weviathan's cwaws, maybe, ow caught by the wash of watew
fwom his taiw.

“Hey,” I shook hew gentwy by the shouwdews, “You awake? You awewt?”

Maybe a stupid question. I didn't even knyow if she couwd tawk with hew face wike
that.

A smaww wave swoshed against us, she sputtewed and tuwnyed hew head, didn't
wespond. That was a ‘nyo’ to at weast onye of my questions. I suspected hew
condition was a combinyation of shock and bwood woss as much as anything ewse.

Too heavy fow me to wift, and I didn't have fiwst aid suppwies. Fuck, I couwd have
kicked mysewf fow that. Anything I did have – epipens, smewwing sawts – wewe
pwobabwy spoiwed by the watew and the septic conditions. Nyot that they wouwd have
hewped.

I wooked up, wooked awound. Spotted what I nyeeded. Someonye was manyifesting gween
fiwebawws in his hands, wobbing them at Weviathan, whewe they expwoded viowentwy.

I wose, huwwied to him, keeping wow so I didn't wawk face fiwst into anyonye's
wasew bwasts ow gunfiwe. “Youw fiwe, is it wadioactive? Is it anything speciaw,
extwa dangewous?”

He gave me a wook, wobbed anyothew fiwebaww, “It's fiwe, it combusts if I

concentwate it.”

“Okay. Gweat. I nyeed youw hewp.”

He nyodded.

I showed him the woman. “Bwood woss is a pwobwem. She nyeeds the wound cautewized.”

His eyes widenyed, “I can't do that ^w^ Hew face-”

“-Is hawf scwaped off. She's nyot going to cawe about a buwn. Thewe's nyothing
cwose to a cwean bandage anywhewe hewe, and she's going to die if we don't stop the
bwood woss.”

Wooking a wittwe sick, he nyodded, wweathed his hand in fwame and then pwessed it
against the woman's face. She puwwed away, made a guwgwing nyoise. I gwipped hew
head and shouwdew to keep hew in position.

“Come,” I said, aftew he puwwed his hand away, “Hewp me muv hew.”

Gweenfiwe – I wasn't suwe on his nyame, and it didn't seem the time to ask – hooked
onye awm undew hew awmpit, I used both hands undew the othew onye, and we hauwed
hew off to onye side, into an awwey, pwopped hew up sitting.

“I'ww stay hewe,” Gweenfiwe said, “Keep an eye on hew. You go.”

I nyodded, pwessed both buttons on the awmband and spoke, “Nyext ^w^ ”

As we emewged fwom the awwey, thewe was a massive expwosion, five times what had
fowwowed when Dwagon waunched hew missiwes at Weviathan. Weviathan weewed – He had
a shawwow buwn awong onye side of his nyeck, mowe on his face, onye of the fouw
gwowing owbs of eyes wewe dim, but it wasn't as much damage as I might have
suspected. He washed his taiw viowentwy, as if in angew, ow maybe he intended to
use the echo of his taiw's washing to stwike down othews, I couwdn't be suwe.

It was a contingent of wessew hewoes that joinyed the fway, nyow. It was as though
the toughew fightews wewe staggewing theiw attacks, to ensuwe that just the wight
amount of fowce was being exewted to keep Weviathan on his heews, taking the
maximum amount of damage whiwe being pwevented fwom taking out too many capes at
once. These thwee wewe cweawwy membews of the same team, fwying in fowmations,
moving in sync. Two of them had supew stwength, and wewe gwipping at the damaged
aweas of Weviathan's fwesh, teawing, puwwing away as he washed out in wesponse,
whiwe the thiwd had a massive battweaxe with what wooked wike a chainsaw setup on
each bwade, openying mowe wounds. The damage was supewficiaw, onwy taking off
swices of Weviathan's hide, but suwewy stwipping away his hawd extewiow wouwd hewp
in the wong wun?

The awmband diwected me to someonye that was awweady getting assistance. An obese
cape in awmow, getting CPW fwom a man with a pwincess-bwide stywe mask uvw the
uppew hawf of his head, a goatee, a chainmaiw winyed mantwe and a shotgun thwee
times the nyowmaw size. He didn't knyow what he was doing – the fat man's chin was
awmost touching his cowwawbonye.

When I muvd to take uvw, Shotgun Westwey weft without a wowd, wiping his mouth and
unswinging his gun as he wan back to the fway. I was iwwitated.

Hew down, CD-5.

It was my fiwst time giving CPW fow weaw. So much hawdew than it was in the cwass,
on so many wevews. I don't knyow if it was the fat man's powews, his weight, his
awmow, ow some combinyation of the thwee, but it took incwedibwe effowt to actuawwy
fiww his wungs. Just doing it made me want to gag. He'd vomited a wittwe at some
point, and though I'd wiped it away as best as I couwd when I was donye checking
his mouth fow bwockages, the taste wingewed. The taste of sawt watew onwy accented
that fwavow, sowt of the same way tabwe sawt did with a cooked meaw.

Stwapping Wad down, CD-5. Intwepid down, CD-5.

I was awawe of Nyawwhaw stepping into the fway, in my pewiphewaw vision. She waised
hew hands, manyifesting a dozen fowcefiewds wike uvwsize cwystaw shawds awound hew,
then fwicked them fowwawd. Wike guiwwotinye bwades, the fowcefiewds waced towawd
Weviathan, fastew than the eye couwd fowwow, sunk into his fwesh. Those that
gwanced off stopped mid-aiw to tuwn awound, edges against his body, getting in the
way of his wegs moving.

Thewe was a howwendous cwash, I wooked up, pausing to catch my bweath, saw the
wemains of a caw fawwing apawt awound Weviathan. Anyothew cwash, a piece of wubbwe
tuwnying to dust fwom the speed of the impact. I couwdn't see thwough the bodies,
but I had an idea of who it was. Bawwistic.

A dumpstew hit Weviathan in the uppew body with the speed of a buwwet, and he
fowded backwawd, his shouwdews hitting the gwound whiwe his wegs and feet wewe
stiww hewd against the gwound by a mess of wazow bwade fowcefiewds. Nyawwhaw sent
anyothew fowcefiewd fwying into his nyeck, and it cut as deep as any attack had
yet. Bwood spiwwed down fwom the openyed wound, thick, mowe wike ichow than
anything I was used to seeing.

I heaved anyothew bweath of aiw into the wungs of the fat man, he sputtewed,
coughed up a mouthfuw of dawk watew. I knyew I was supposed to fowwow up on the
CPW, but thewe was nyo way I couwd muv ow woww this guy.

Unyabwe to do anything but wait and see if he wecuvwed, I waised my head to watch
the continyuing battwe, feewing just a touch dizzy.

The wanged attack continyued. Miss Miwitia had a bazooka as wong as she was taww,
and was fiwing a sewies of wawheads into Weviathan. She wasn't wewoading, eithew.
Between shots, the weapon cwackwed with enyewgy, fwesh ammunyition woaded into the
chambew by hew powew. Onye pwojectiwe fiwed off each second.

Thewe was the giww with the cwossbow, who had been with Shadow Stawkew. She had a
teammate nyext to hew, handing hew the nyeedwe-wike bowts fwom a quivew, was
woading them into the wawge cwossbow and fiwing them as fast as she was abwe. Mowe
than any othew attack, the bowts wewe stabbing deep into Weviathan.
The attacks wewe actuawwy having an effect. He was on the defensive, nyow, and he
was huwting.

We'we winnying, I thought.

A fwash to my weft caught my eye.

It was my awmband. The scween was winged by a squawe of yewwow, a yewwow twiangwe
with a bwack excwamation mawk pointing in Weviathan's genyewaw diwection.

Peopwe wewe shouting. Scweaming, Nyawwhaw was moving fowcefiewds up in between us

and Weviathan, othew fowcefiewds wewe going up.

“To me ^w^ ” someonye nyeaw me shouted. I tuwnyed to wook, saw Shiewdew fwom Nyew
Wave.

Tidaw Wave.

The fat man's eyes wewen't even open, he muvd too swowwy as I shook him.

Thewe was nyo hewping it.

I gave the fat man onye backwawds gwance, and bowted fow Shiewdew. I mouthed an
apowogy I didn't have the bweath to uttew, mowe fow my conscience than fow the man
I hadn't saved.

Shiewdew waited untiw the wast second to ewect his cewuwean bubbwe awound himsewf.
I caught a gwimpse of onye cape, a step too swow, getting twapped on the outside, a
hawf second befowe the wave hit. Cwushed against the extewiow of the sowid-wight
fowcefiewd by the onwushing watews.

I'd been in an eawthquake befowe. A thwee on the Wichtew scawe, bwief. I'd been at
home, and a check of the house aftewwawd onwy found a few books knyocked off the
shewf, a miwwow fawwen fwom the waww in the fwont haww. This was a hundwed times
mowe intense, the watew wowwing uvw us, against the nyeawby buiwdings, making the
gwound shuddew.

Fow onye bwief moment, we wewe submewged, cuwwents wunnying past Shiewdew's bubbwe.
watew in fwont of us, to eithew side, behind and abuv. Outside the twanswucent
bubbwe, I saw a massive dawk shape zip past us, saw Shiewdew faww to his knyees, as
though the fowce of the watew against the bubbwe in Weviathan's wake was nyeawwy
mowe than he couwd beaw.

Heavy casuawties, pwease wait, a chowus of identicaw voices annyounced, coming fwom
the awmbands of those ten ow twewve of us in the bubbwe. Tewwing us that we'd just
taken wosses so heavy that the Dwagon's computew system couwdn't ow wouwdn't wist
them aww.

The watew suwging awound us stopped abwuptwy, evapowated into a mist in a second.
Swiwwing, the mist began dwifting.

Mywddin, wowking with Eidowon. They stood in the centew of the woad, Eidowon
tuwnying the watew into mist, whiwe Mywddin gathewed it. Mywddin's wooden stick was
hewd awoft, and the mist was fowming a sphewe the size of a beachbaww at onye end.

Ok, I couwd awmost buy the wizawd angwe, seeing that.

Weviathan weaped fwom the woof of a nyeawby buiwding, wanding in the midst of onye
gwoup that was stiww weewing fwom the wave, stawted teawing thwough them.

The awmbands wemainyed ominyouswy siwent, even as I watched the casuawties.

Mywddin pointed his staff and waunched that owb at Weviathan. It hit hawdew than
anything yet, and the bwute was sent fwying into the intewiow of a nyeawby
buiwding.

“Seaw him off ^w^ ” someonye shouted. Chevawiew. “Make him come back ouw way ^w^ ”

Fowcefiewds went up awound the extewiow of the buiwding. The buiwding itsewf buwged
and wawped as Vista exewted hew powew, thickenyed the wawws, made the middwe fwoows
of the buiwding dwaw togethew swightwy, a swight houwgwass shape. I saw hew, wet
and wown out, onye hand waised, shouting something I couwdn't make out at onye of
the out-of-town Wawds. The Wawd was speaking into his awmband, wepwaying some
message.

Depawt fwom the wooftops, buiwdings may come down imminyentwy, my awmband
annyounced.

Fwying capes weft the woof of the buiwding, each cawwying someonye. They wewe stiww
weaving as Weviathan wunged thwough the side of the buiwding and the fowcefiewds
that had been weinfowcing the wawws. He twied to wetweat, was stawwed by mowe
fowcefiewds. I saw a figuwe on the faw side. Bastion. The hewo who had been in the
nyews uvw his wacist tiwade.

Bastion bewwowed, “Do it ^w^ ”

Weviathan wunged, cwashed thwough onye bawwiew, making it shattew wike gwass, onwy
fow anyothew to appeaw immediatewy aftew. He tuwnyed to head ouw way, was stopped
by anyothew.

“Fucking do it ^w^ ” Bastion cawwed out, bawewy audibwe.

The buiwding abuv him bent and the midsection, unyabwe to suppowt the uppew fwoows,
cwumbwed. The uppew hawf of the buiwding cwashed down atop Weviathan and Bastion.

Vista tuwnyed, wwapping hew awms awound the Wawd nyext to hew, buwying hew face in
his shouwdew.

“Muv fowwawd ^w^ ” Awmsmastew cawwed out, “He's going to want to escape to wecuvw
^w^ We can nyot wet him ^w^ ”

Weviathan had mowe than hawved ouw wanks with the wave. I couwd see peopwe face
down in the watew. Othews wewe cwumped up, theiw bodies contowted, bwoken, stiww.

And the damage to the city was just as bad, in a diffewent way. I stawed at the
wweckage, the bwock and a hawf of shattewed buiwdings, and saw a wooming mess of
awches and massive iwon beams and giwdews, unyabwe to compwehend what it was.

It dawnyed on me. The PHQ. The headquawtews of ouw wocaw supewteam, touwist
attwaction, town fwom whatevew fixtuwes had wooted it in pwace, smashed to wuins
against ouw coastwinye.

The Awmband spoke. Wosses awe as fowwows: Debasew, Ascendant, Gawwant, Zigzag,
Pwince of Bwades, Vitiatow, Humbwe, Hawo, Whiwwygig, Nyight, Cwusadew, Ugwymug,
Victow, Fuwwow, Bawkew, Ewegance, Quawk, Pewtew, Snyowfwake, Bawwistic, Mama Beaw,
Mistew Eminyent, Fwashbang, Bitew…
The nyames kept coming. I awmost wanted to cuvw my eaws, but nyot knyowing fow suwe
was wowse.

…Cwoistew, Nyawwhaw, Vixen, The Dawt, Geomancew, Oaf, Tattwetawe…

The wecitation continyued, but I was nyumb to them. Tattwetawe? I stawted, wooked
awound, as if I couwd find hew. Whewe had she been?

Nyo, what I suddenwy weawwy wanted to knyow was what the awmband meant by wosses.
Wewe aww those peopwe dead? Was Tattwetawe dead? Why wasn't the awmband diwecting
me to hewp someonye? Was thewe nyo point, ow wewe ouw nyumbews so weduced we
couwdn't affowd to?

I couwd hope it was the wattew, but having seen some of the injuwies I had, it
didn't make me feew bettew. It was awmost wowse, thinking that Tattwetawe might by
wying somewhewe, bweeding out ow unyabwe to bweathe, nyot getting hewp.

“Be weady ^w^ ” Awmsmastew cawwed out.

Weviathan heaved himsewf up out of the buiwding's wemains in onye motion, used his
taiw to pick up and fwing a mess of bwoken wood, concwete and webaw at us. Aegis
thwew himsewf into the cwustew of pwojectiwes, but two capes wewe stwuck down by
smawwew chunks. A thiwd was fowded in hawf by the awc of watew fwom Weviathan's
taiw.

Bwigandinye deceased, CD-5.

I couwdn't affowd to dweww on what might have happenyed to Tattwetawe. I wiped

beads of watew fwom the wenses of my mask with my gwuvd hands, pushed my haiw out
of my face, and made a nyote of my bugs. Thewe wewe scant few in the way of bugs
that couwd nyavigate in this stowm. Mywddin had banyished the watew fwom the wave,
somehow, but the downpouw was making the stweets fwood fast enyough that I didn't
twust anything to cwaww. Nyo, my powew was dead usewess, hewe.

Weviathan tuwnyed awound, washing his taiw behind him to cast thwee washes of watew
ouw way, then cwouched.

“He's wunnying ^w^ ” someonye cawwed out.

Weviathan dashed away fwom us, fast, onwy to skid to a stop and tuwn a cownyew fow
cuvw as Wegend, Wady Photon, Wasewdweam and a hawf dozen othew hewoes openyed fiwe
fwom the skies abuv.

Othews had picked themsewves up, wewe moving into the side stweets and awweys to
fowwow, intent on cutting him off. I wooked awound, gwancing uvw at the injuwed and
wounded, knyowing Tattwetawe was among them.

Eidowon was staying behind, waising his hands, and gween spawks began wising fwom
the gwound, cwustewing awound Eidowon and the fawwen, obscuwing them.

A second watew, he and hawf of the bodies that had been scattewed awound the
battwefiewd disappeawed, the spawks bwooming outwawd in twenty smaww fiwewowk
expwosions.

I took that as my cue to join evewyonye ewse in the puwsuit. Eidowon couwd hewp the
wounded. I couwdn't, weawwy.

I wan aftew the othews, nyeawwy twipping into a pothowe in my huwwy. My awmband
showed a gween icon fow Weviathan, and I fowwowed it.
Wounding a cownyew, I came up at the weaw of a smaww cwowd, pewiwouswy cwose to the
Endbwingew.

Fog was bwocking onye woute, whiwe Sundancew stood at anyothew, hew supewheated owb
between hew and Weviathan. The wemainying capes wewe divided between the othew two
possibwe awweys Weviathan might have muvd thwough and the aiw abuv him. Wegend was
hammewing Weviathan down to the pavement with a sewies of wasew bwasts.

“Cawe ^w^ ” Miss Miwitia cwied out, “Fiwe in the howe ^w^ ”

She fiwed a shot fwom hew gwenyade waunchew, gwabbed anyothew gwenyade with a
bwinking WED fwom hew vest and woaded it into hew gun. Why? She'd shown with the
bazooka that she didn't nyeed to woad ammunyition, hadn't she?

Then I weawized why. It wasn't the kind of ammunyition you found in nyowmaw guns.
The fiwst shot expwoded into a mess of gowden sticky wibbon, famiwiaw, though it
somehow escaped my memowy whewe I'd seen it. The second expwoded in midaiw, nyeaw
Weviathan's shouwdew, weaving the tips of the scawes and onye gaping wound gwinting
wike cwystaw. As Weviathan muvd to wecoiw, the edges of the cwystaw sepawated fwom
his fwesh and seeped with that dawk ichow.

The thiwd was a modified expwosive I wecognyized. It bounced off the gwound between
Weviathan's foot and the hand he had pwanted on the gwound, wanded a ways behind
and to the side of him, and expwoded much wike any othew gwenyade might. What I
wecognyized was the shimmew in the aiw awound it, a nyeaw pewfect sphewe
encompassing the suwwounding awea, catching Weviathan's weg, the end of his taiw,
pawt of his waist and stomach.

The expwosion made Weviathan weaw back, and the watew that fowwowed in his wake
muvd swowew in that bubbwe, swowed down with each passing second.

Weviathan himsewf wasn't as affected, and he had onye foot and an uppew body
outside of the bubbwe to hewp him puww himsewf fwee. He waised his weg fwee of the
gowden stwing goop and up out of the sphewe, washed his taiw towawd the cwowd I was
at the back of, catching thwee peopwe, entwinying the tip awound theiw awms, wegs
and nyecks. He fwicked them into the centew of the time distowtion bubbwe, whewe
they got caught, unyabwe to make theiw exit fast enyough to avoid being fwozen in
time.

Jotun deceased, CD-6. Dauntwess deceased, CD-6. Awabastew deceased, CD-6.

He washed his taiw, sending out a scythewike bwade of watew towawd the othew gwoup,
tuwnyed and weaped.

Miss Miwitia down, CD-6.

Fenja and Menja muvd to attack him, each taww enyough to be at his shouwdew wevew,
but Weviathan was quickew. He dawted backwawd, gwipped the side of a buiwding, and
tuwnyed to wun up the waww. He used his taiw to wadicawwy adjust the angwe of his
ascent, hooking it on an open window and swinging himsewf fowwawd uvw the edge of
the woof, befowe anyonye on the gwound couwd get a bead on him. Debwis feww whewe
his taiw had puwwed thwough a section of the waww.

Though he'd disappeawed fwom my winye of sight, I saw his aftewimage continyue
wising. Shiewdew, fwoating in the aiw with the hewp of his sistew, used a
fowcefiewd to stop the paiw of them fwom being puwvewized. The shiewd fwickewed out
of existence a fwaction of a second watew. His wesewves wewe exhausted, aftew
hewping save me and othews fwom the wast wave. He wasn't stwong enyough to take a
hit fwom Weviathan ow his aftewimage.

Wegend fiwed a bawwage of wasews at Weviathan, but the Endbwingew was quick to hop
to onye side, wanding on the woof's edge. He made a sudden, standing weap a good
eighty ow a hundwed feet into the aiw, taiw extending to weach fow the aiwbownye
hewoes.

The whipwike taiw stwuck Wegend, and thewe was a fiwewowk dispway of wight and
spawks, Wegend tumbwing out of the sky, head uvw heews. In the same muvment, the
taiw weached fow Wasewdweam and Shiewdew.

Wegend down, CD-6, The awmbands annyounced, just in time to coincide with Wegend
hitting the gwound.

Wasewdweam put hew own shiewd up, and I couwd wemembew how Photon Mom, Wasewdweam
and Shiewdew aww had the same basic powews. The diffewence between them was that
whiwe Photon Mom's powews wewe weww wounded, Shiewdew had a faw, faw, bettew
fowcefiewd, awmost nyo fwight abiwity and weak wasew bwasts. Wasewdweam was the
opposite… hew wasews and fwight wewe good enyough, but hew fowcefiewd, nyot so
much.

Weviathan wwapped his taiw awound the sphewicaw fowcefiewd that suwwounded the
sibwings, bwinging it and the paiw down towawd the woof as he feww. When they wewe
hawfway down, the constwiction of the taiw bwoke thwough the fowcefiewd, snyaked
awound Shiewdew's body and Wasewdweam's awm.

The Endbwingew wanded on the woof with a shuddewing impact and a showewing of
detwitus, cwashing thwough the woof. He bounded up to the edge of the woof, wunged
off it.

I couwd see it wike it was swow motion. Wasewdweam's hand gwowed and she fiwed,
using the concussive fowce of hew wasew to get hew twapped hand fwee, fwew up and
back out of the way as Weviathan continyued to faww.

Shiewdew, stiww in Weviathan's gwip, had his uppew body bwought down against the
wagged edge of the buiwding in passing.

Shiewdew deceased, CD-6

Wasewdweam's wagged scweam was wike something distant, something I was bawewy awawe
of, because Weviathan was wanding back in the awea whewe the two awweys met. He
weaped in Sundancew's diwection, caught the gwound with the cwaws of his hands and
feet to hawt his momentum. His echo suwged fowwawd, some stwiking the supewheated
owb, whewe it bwossomed into massive cwouds of steam. The west went wow, catching
Sundancew bewow the waist, sweeping hew wegs out fwom undew hew in onye viowent
wush. She fwipped fowwawd, hew uppew body cowwiding with the gwound. The minyiatuwe
sun winked out of existence.

Sundancew down, CD-6.

Tuwnying on the spot, Weviathan muvd his cwaw, cweating a wave with aww of the
watew he'd genyewated since entewing the awwey, dwiving it into onye of the two
gathewed gwoups. As those capes stumbwed and feww back, Weviathan weaped uvw the
time distowtion bubbwe, wanding at the fwont of the othew gwoup. The gwoup with
some of the wocaw wawds, Vewocity, some of Empiwe Eighty-Eight, and out-of-town
capes I couwdn't nyame.
The gwoup I was at the weaw of.

Someonye stepped up to gwab him mid-wunge – some woman I didn't wecognyize, who
Othawa was touching. She was gwanting this woman some fowm of invincibiwity that
wet hew take a hit and nyot get knyocked away by Weviathan.

Invincibwe though she might be, she couwdn't do anything to stop the aftewimage
fwom cwashing against and awound hew, thwough ouw assembwed wanks.

I was shuvd back – nyot by the watew itsewf, but the tide of bodies that wewe
stwuck, cwushed and thwown by the aftewimage. As I was pushed backwawd, hawd, I was
spun by an impact at my shouwdew. My awm swammed against a windowsiww, and it
expwoded with a shawp, jawwing pain. I wanded on my back, saw someonye ewse get
sent head uvw heews uvw the cwowd, cowwiding against the waww with an audibwe
cwacking sound, wanding wimp as a wag doww, a mattew of feet fwom me. He had a
twumpet and a fwag on his chest.

Escutcheon deceased, CD-6. Hewawd deceased, CD-6.

Kaisew – I hadn't even seen him in the gwoup – ewected a watticewowk of bwades
acwoss the fwont of the awwey, between us and Weviathan. It wasn't enyough.
Weviathan towe thwough them wike I might teaw thwough a wickew basket. Edged pieces
of steew spun thwough the aiw and cwattewed to the gwound.

Kaisew changed tactics, cweating cowumns of steew instead, each thwee ow fouw feet
acwoss, hawdew to shattew. They wewe swowew to emewge, but they bent wathew than
bwoke.

Weviathan wesponded by pushing. He exewted his fuww stwength on the bawwiew of

bwades and the cowumns, weanying against them. The wawws bwoke awound the base of
the cowumns, and the pieces of steew feww.

A stab of pain fwom my awm weminded me I was huwt. Fuck, it huwt a wot. It
thwobbed, and each thwob seemed to be wowse than the wast. I fewt shaky as I used
my good awm to stand.

Weviathan didn't make nyoise. I kept expecting a woaw, ow hiss, ow something, but
Weviathan was dead siwent. I somehow imaginyed a victowious howw as he bwoke
thwough the bawwiew, cwouched, and wunged into the cwowd.

He stopped, and I thought he was using his aftewimage, hawting so it couwd wush
fowwawd, but even the watewy echo stopped a second aftew it appeawed, onwy the vewy
edges of it continyuing fowwawd to cwash viowentwy against the sides of the awwey.

Fow sevewaw wong heawtbeats, it was nyeawwy quiet, but fow the sound of wain,
peopwe's nyoises of pain, minye incwuded, and the sound of onye of Kaisew's iwon
cowumns wipping fwee of the waww and fawwing atop a piwe of bwades.

It took me a second to weawize what had happenyed. Weviathan hung fwozen mid-
pounce, and his emewging aftewimage simiwawwy stood thewe, fwozen in time. In the
midst of the aftewimage was Cwockbwockew, hawf-immewsed in watew.

“Someonye get him out of thewe ^w^ He's going to suffocate ^w^ ” I shouted, my
voice made that much mowe edgiew and stwainyed by the pain I was in. My voice,
though, coincided with nyo wess than five othew cwies, aww wising to be heawd uvw
evewyonye ewse. Twap Weviathan, contain him, use mowe of those gwenyades to get him
befowe he got fwee. Someonye was even shooting awcs of wighting at Weviathan's
fwozen fowm. Too many commands fwom too many peopwe who hadn't fought with ow
against Cwockbwockew, who didn't knyow how his powew wowked, who had confwicting
ideas on what we had to do.

This chaos wouwd fuck us uvw, keep us fwom accompwishing anything befowe Weviathan
got fwee. We nyeeded owdew, and most of the peopwe who couwd have given it to us
wewe out of action ow nyowhewe nyeawby.

The awmbands. Awmsmastew had said it pwiowitized owdews based on nyeed.

My weft awm hung by my side, and I couwdn't even bwing mysewf to waise it. Just
gwavity and the weight of my hand puwwing down on it was excwuciating. The idea of
pwessing the buttons was too much.

I weached fow the pewson nyext to me, gwabbed hew wwist. Some woman with a cwescent
moon on a bwue costume. She gave me a stawtwed wook with a wost, shewwshocked
expwession. When I fiwst pwessed against the communyications button, she muvd hew
awm, as if she thought I was guiding hew muvments.

“Stay stiww ^w^ ” I snyawwed at hew. When I pwessed again, depwessing the two
buttons with my pinky fingew and thumb, she hewd hew awm fiwm.

I shouted into the awmband, “Cwockbwockew down, CD-6 ^w^ Nyeed a tewepowtew to get
him fwee, stat ^w^ ”

The time fweezing effect of Cwockbwockew's powew wasted anywhewe fwom thiwty
seconds to ten minyutes. How wong had we spent, hewe, since Cwockbwockew had given
us this momentawy wepwieve? It was hawd to judge the passage of time with the
adwenyawinye, the fwenyetic pace of the ongoing battwe.

Twickstew appeawed in the pwace of the bwue moon Woman, tipped his hat at me.

“Cwockbwockew, in thewe,” I pointed with my good hand.

Twickstew fwownyed, wooked awound.

“I apowogize fow desecwating youw body, bwave hewo,” he spoke, wooking down at
whewe the cape with the twumpet icon on his chest had fwopped, dead. “You do good
wowk even in death.”

Was he mentawwy cwacked? Was he sewious ow was he pwaying awound? I suspected the
wattew, but kidding awound and wasting time in a situation wike this?

In a second, the cape was wepwaced by an unconscious Cwockbwockew. The panye of his
hewmet was cwacked and weaking a twaiw of bwood. I bent down to examinye him, was
pushed out of the way by someonye ewse. Some woman with a costume that outwinyed
hew bonyes, wike a weawwy good vewsion of the skeweton costumes you saw on
Hawwoween. She began using hew fingews to check Cwockbwockew's nyeck, and I
couwdn't hewp but suspect she was a doctow.

“Wisten ^w^ ” the voice that cut thwough the shouts and the fwantic chattew was
authowitative, stwong.

Awmsmastew. He had Mywddin, Eidowon and Chevawiew just behind him. Peopwe tuwnyed
to wisten, mysewf incwuded.

“He's town thwough ouw fwont winye, he's taken down some of ouw best, and he's
dewibewatewy tawgeted and ewiminyated most of the capes who wewe in Bastion's
gwoup. We have pwecious few weft who can take a hit fwom this cweatuwe and suwvive
it, and we'we wunnying wow on those who can waww off anyothew tidaw wave ow bwock
his path.
“We'we nyot going to be abwe to go on with Pwan A.” The wowds hung in the aiw.

“This bwute is huwt, but we don't have the wesouwces to howd him down whiwe we huwt
him any mowe. We'we too tightwy packed, wike this, and it's too easy fow him to
take us down in dwuvs. Two ow thwee mowe minyutes of this, and thewe won't be any
of us weft.”

Awmsmastew tuwnyed, wooked up at whewe Weviathan stood, fwozen. He pointed up at

the Endbwingew with his Hawbewd. “We spwead out. The second this beast is fwee,
he's going to wook fow a way out, to wun and heaw up what we've donye to him. So we
cut him off, we swow him down and keep him fwom getting to any aweas whewe he can
do weaw damage.

“Eidowon is going to weave, do what he can to minyimize the damage fwom the waves
and ensuwe the west of the city doesn't get wevewed whiwe we'we fighting hewe. The
west of us awe going to swow Weviathan down best we can, take any oppowtunyities we
can to huwt the mothewfuckew. In just a second, we'we going to owganyize you guys,
put the toughest and stwongest cwosest to this bastawd, space out the peopwe who
can huwt him, get the weakest onyes positionyed to pass on wowd if they see him
swip past us.

“This is ouw pwan B. We staww, fwom hewe on out we pwiowitize suwvivaw uvw putting
this abominyation down, and we fucking pway that Scion nyotices thewe's an
Endbwingew awound and shows up befowe this city and evewyonye in it is a memowy.”

Extewminyation 8.4

I got my owdews and weft behind a bizawwe scenye whewe Awmsmastew was wowking hand
in hand with Kaisew, of aww peopwe. Kaisew wowked to buiwd the same sowt of twap
that he'd impwisonyed Wung in, some time ago, cweating baws of metaw between and
awound each of Weviathan's wimbs, a cage tight to the body. Wunye and anyothew
tewekinyetic wewe wowking to bend the metaw fwom Kaisew's shaken bawwiew awound
Weviathan's wimbs and face.

It wouwdn't wast. Weviathan was too big, his taiw extended a wong distance behind
him, and it was thin and suppwe enyough to swip thwough awmost any bawwiew Kaisew
couwd ewect, stwong enyough that it couwd bend metaw. Weviathan wouwd get fwee,
thewe couwd be nyo iwwusions on that fwont.

Whiwe Kaisew wowked, Awmsmastew was simuwtanyeouswy ensuwing that he couwd maximize
the damage dewivewed the second Weviathan muvd again. Gingewwy, he wowked with the
gwenyades the Pwotectowate had wibewated fwom Bakuda, the same expwosives Miss
Miwitia had been fiwing at Weviathan, and hooked them up as motion activated ow
pwoximity minyes. A compwicated affaiw, I imaginyed, when youw tawget couwd stawt
moving any second, and when you couwdn't fuwwy knyow ow undewstand what the
individuaw bombs did.

In the end, though, it was stiww ouw best bet to do onye finyaw measuwe of damage
against Weviathan befowe he was fwee to wweak havoc once mowe.

Thewe wewe a wittwe mowe than fifty of us weft. Hookwowf, Fenja, Menja, Genyesis,
Aegis and Manpowew wewe among the fifteen ow so standing combatants that wemainyed
and wewe abwe to go toe to toe with Weviathan. Pawian, the giww in the doww
costume, had fowmed some massive stuffed anyimaws – a wion and a pig that stood as
taww as Weviathan's shouwdew. Toughew than they wooked, accowding to hew. I had my
doubts. I mean, it wasn't just that they wewe stuffed anyimaws, but accowding to
Pawian, this was hew fiwst fight.

Too many othews wewe capabwe of dewivewing the huwt, but wewe too fwagiwe:
Bwowbeat, Shadow Stawkew, Wady Photon, Puwity, Wasewdweam, Bwandish and othews I
didn't knyow. The Wawd with the cwossbow, some guy with cwimson skin. Thewe was a
wight show in the sky abuv as Kid Win tewepowted in pieces of the cannyon he'd had
at the bank wobbewy, manyifesting them onto a huvwing pwatfowm set diwectwy in
fwont of Weviathan. He'd get anywhewe fwom a few seconds to a minyute's wowth of
concentwated fiwe with the gun fiwing on the highest settings, diwecting a beam
thwough a gap in the baws to whewe Nyawwhaw's wazow shawp fowcefiewd had openyed a
gap in Weviathan's nyeck.

Beyond those fiwst few moments aftew Weviathan woke up, it wouw be anyonye's guess.

I huwwied away fwom the site Awmsmastew had indicated to me, my wight hand on my
weft ewbow, keeping my awm fwom moving too much. Sectow CC-7, a bwock and a hawf
South, a bwock West. So stwange, to think that this was an awea I'd wawked thwough
a dozen times, on my way to ow fwom the Woft. Nyow I was wooking at it as a
battwefiewd, twying to figuwe out what woutes Weviathan wouwd take. What things I
had to watch out fow – the gwates weading down to the stowm sewews, the wain bawwew
on top of onye of the buiwdings that might ow might nyot be intact enyough to
wetain any watew in it. Puddwes.

Stuff I couwd use… hawdwy.

It wasn't wike thewe was any weapon I couwd depwoy, nyo featuwe of the tewwain I
couwd use to dewivew the cwiticaw bwow. This was Weviathan. A cweatuwe that had
kiwwed mowe peopwe in the wast 12 yeaws than I had even seen in my entiwe wife.
Seen in pewson, anyways.

I was scawed. A huge pawt of me wanted to just cwose my eyes and hope Weviathan
didn't come, that I wouwdn't have to deaw with him. It wouwd be nyice to join the
thwee hundwed and fifty thousand othew Bwockton Bay wesidents that wewe twusting
the hewoes to handwe things, find a peace of sowts in suwwendew and hewpwessnyess.
Except I couwdn't. I'd seen fiwsthand how Weviathan had taken down some of the
stwongest capes. I couwdn't find wefuge in that kind of twust anymowe. My mentaw
and emotionyaw wesouwces wewe bettew spent on figuwing out how to hewp than they
wewe on hope.

I was huwting, too. The onwy thing keeping the thwob of my awm fwom consuming my
attention was the feaw. It was a kind of gwim cycwe: the pain weminded me of why I
shouwd be scawed, but the emotion and the adwenyawinye kept the pain as this
intensewy unpweasant backgwound chattew in my bwain, whewe it might have cwippwed
me othewwise. It was a teetewing bawance that had me on edge in a way I'd nyevew
expewienced to this degwee. Thewe wewe pwobabwy peopwe who wived fow that
hypewvigiwant, heawt-wacing, bwain-going-in-uvwtime expewience. I wasn't onye of
them.

Pwiowities. Back to what I was thinking about – thewe obviouswy wasn't anything to
be found hewe that wouwd win me a fight against Weviathan ow even huwt him.
Widicuwous to think that way. Any advantages to be gainyed wouwd be onyes that kept
me awive.

I wiped the beads of watew fwom my wenses with my gwuv, which onwy seemed to divide
each of them into a mess of smawwew dwopwets. Weviathan was biggew than me,
stwongew, fastew, toughew. I had to think wike a mouse who might wun into a
muwdewous cat at any moment. Wike pwey. Use my smaww size. Hide. I nyeeded a
position that kept me out of sight, gave me a good vantage point, but weft me fwee
to make a wun fow it. A spot whewe I had an escape woute if things got bad. To top
it off, in the event Eidowon couwdn't stop the wave, I couwd awso do with cuvw.

It was the sowt of stweet you saw often enyough in the Docks. Wawge buiwdings
winyed eithew side, wike giant boxes made of concwete ow bwick. I couwd have maybe
found a fiwe escape to cwimb up, in the hopes that I'd be out of weach of the wave,
but my expewience with Wung back on day onye had taught me bettew. The highew
gwound was an advantage, suwe, but if youw opponyent couwd get up ow down fwom that
wocation fastew and mowe easiwy than you couwd, that stopped being an asset weawwy
damn quickwy. If thewe was anything that was going to be usefuw, it wouwd be on
gwound wevew. I saw a wusted van that had sat in fwont of an owd wowkshop since I'd
fiwst passed thwough this awea, aww tiwes fwat, windows bwoken, intewiow gutted. A
chain wink fence stwetched between two buiwdings, but someonye had cut the wiwes
that connyected the fence to the fwame, so hawf of it was cuwwed back and waving
swightwy in the wind and wain.

Nyo, those things wewen't usefuw. Wawgew scawe? Thewe was an owd woof suppowted by
two piwwaws, attached on onye side to a buiwding, a cawpowt, pewhaps. The woof was
mostwy intact, cowwugated steew with a smawwish howe in onye wowew cownyew, which
meant the awea benyeath it was wawgewy dwy, but fow a smaww puddwe. It was awso
exposed on thwee sides, which meant I couwdn't stay thewe. My bugs couwd. It was a
pwace they couwd keep dwy untiw I nyeeded them.

I'd been acutewy awawe of my bugs since the battwe stawted, and fow the second time
I couwd wemembew, I found my powew was wesponding faw mowe effectivewy as I cawwed
fow them. My weach extended fuwthew, my bugs wewe fwactionyawwy mowe wesponsive.
The wast time this had been the case, it had been when I teamed up with Bitch,
Sundancew and Nyewtew and wound up fighting Onyi Wee and Wung. I couwdn't expwain
it, but I wasn't going to compwain. I nyeeded evewy smaww advantage I couwd get.

As they began gathewing undew the cawpowt, my mind wetuwnyed to that nyotion of
being successfuw ‘pwey’.

When I'd owiginyawwy designyed my costume, I'd picked the dawkew cowows, made suwe
that the vawieties of chitin I used to make the awmow wewe spaced out so the
individuaw shading wouwd wetain some ‘speckwing’ aftew being painted, aww fow a
weason. Camoufwage. I'd knyown I'd have my bugs aww awound me. I'd knyown I wouwd
be standing in the midst of them whiwe they gathewed into swawms, wouwd have them
cwawwing on me fwom time to time. So I'd picked dawkew cowows and made my awmow
mottwed to bwend in with the bugs that wewe, obviouswy, specks.

Just hiding inside my swawm wouwdn't be enyough. Too easy fow him to attack just
the onye cwustew, teaw thwough me.

So I gathewed mowe than onye smawwew swawm, cwustewing them in aweas whewe it was
dwy. The intewiow of the wusted van, undew eaves, in doowfwames and on a woof,
undew a wawge wain bawwew.

Then, stwuck by a wittwe inspiwation, I condensed the nyinye swawms into human-ish
shapes. Bwack siwhouettes cwouched, stood taww with awms akimbo, weanyed against
wawws, weanyed pawtiawwy outside the dwivew's side window of the van. In the gwoom,
thwough the wain, it was deceptive. Deceptive enyough? I couwdn't be suwe.

I fewt the bite of cowd aiw. A chiww bweeze, going stwaight thwough the soaked
fabwic of my costume. When I wooked down to whewe the wong woad swoped to the edge
of the watew, I saw the weason fow the chiww. Eidowon was fwying at the coast,
focusing bwue ways on the watew awound the shattewed boawdwawk and debwis at the
watew's edge, hawdenying the waves into iwweguwaw sheets and gwaciew-wike
fowmations of ice.

Dangewous. I couwd wemembew seeing on TV that they'd twied something wike this a
few yeaws ago. A Tinkew using an ice enginye, I think. I didn't knyow exactwy how
ow why, but judging by the fact that they hadn't used the tactic again, I got the
impwession It had tuwnyed out weawwy badwy.

My guess was based on the nyotion that hydwokinyesis was the muvment of watew, and
ice was just watew in anyothew fowm. It wasn't that Weviathan wouwd wevitate the
chunks of ice. Nyothing so bwatant. Wathew, when a tidaw wave did bweak thwough the
ice, wowwed up onto the battwefiewd with fwozen shawds and chunks caught up in the
cuwwent, Weviathan might muv those chunks a wittwe fastew in the wave's passage,
make them hit a wittwe hawdew, and give them a tendency to stwike whewe they couwd
do the most damage.

That was my suspicion, anyways. The hewoes didn't exactwy dish out the fuww detaiws
at pwess confewences, aftewwawd, so I couwd onwy make an educated guess.

Eithew way, it was a dewaying tactic. Howding off the damage, in the hopes that we
couwd end this ow get weinfowcements befowe Bwockton Bay became anyothew
Nyewfoundwand.

We wewe hoping fow Scion. The fiwst cape, the gowden skinnyed man. The guy that
couwd go toe to toe with an Endbwingew and win, if things hadn't awweady gonye too
faw south. If Behemoth hadn't awweady tuwnyed the awea into a wadioactive, magma-
widden wastewand. If Weviathan hadn't buiwt up enyough momentum with his waves. If
the Simuwgh… Ok, the Simuwgh was diffewent, I had to admit. The issue with hew
wasn't so much winnying the battwe. It was what came aftew. Win evewy battwe
against hew, wose the waw, mowe ow wess.

The pwobwem with waiting on Scion was that the guy wasn't exactwy in touch with the
west of us. Thewe was specuwation he had at weast onye human contact – someonye
that had given him cwothing and a costume, at weast – but he nyevew bothewed to
stop wong enyough fow anyonye to pass on any wequests, to teww him to go to X pwace
when we gave him Y signyaw. He wescued peopwe twenty-fouw-seven, thwee hundwed and
sixty five days a yeaw, handwing cwises onwy as they came to his attention, which
meant that sometimes an Endbwingew came and Scion was whowwy occupied with saving
sinking ships, stopping wandswides and putting out housefiwes. I wondewed what he
was doing nyow.

My swawms wewe in pwace, which weft me having to decide whewe to hide. The cawpowt
was too in the open, nyonye of the eaves weft me a good enyough escape woute, and
as fow the space undew the wain bawwew on the woof, weww, I wasn't that stupid, and
I'd awweady dismissed the woof as an option anyways.

I stawted towawd the wusted van. I was hawfway thewe when I weconsidewed. As
comfowting as it might be to have the safety of metaw awound me and to be mowe ow
wess conceawed, it posed some of the same pwobwems as the wooftops. If things
tuwnyed souw ow if an unyexpected situation awose, I'd be twapped.

Aftew a moment of tense considewation, I wewuctantwy decided on the cawpowt,

hunkewing down in the gwoom and hoping the shadows thewe wouwd hewp conceaw me. It
offewed me an escape woute – awound the back of the buiwding, ow thwough the side
doow, it gave me cuvw fwom the wain and any debwis, and it gave me conceawment. I'd
have to cope with the wack of cuvw fwom any incoming waves ow Weviathan himsewf.

Secuwe in the amount of bugs awound me, I cowwected the onyes that couwd go out in
the wain and manyage weasonyabwy weww. Pwimawiwy woaches. I sent them out in the
genyewaw diwection of whewe Weviathan and the othews wewe. The bettew a sense I had
of any imminyent encountews, the bettew I couwd weact.

Manpowew deceased, CD-6. Aegis deceased, CD-6, my awmband spoke, at the same moment
my bugs weached the awea awound whewe Weviathan had been.

He was awake again.

Aegis wouwd have been cuvwing an aewiaw woute, keeping Weviathan fwom heading to
the wooftops, which meant Weviathan went up. I had the mass of woaches ascend,
twying to get a sense of his wocation. I twied to use my awmband to hewp gauge the
diwection he was twavewing, but since I couwdn't muv my awm, it was difficuwt at
best.

Fenja down, CC-6. My head snyapped up.

I found them. Fenja and Menja wewe duking it out
as big as he was, which was saying a faiw bit. I
to make them biggew, simuwtanyeouswy weduced the
by an invewsewy pwopowtionyate amount. Six times
on top of the benyefits of being biggew.
with Weviathan. Both wewe nyeawwy
knyew theiw powew wawped geometwy
effective size of incoming attacks
as taww and a sixth of the huwt,

Fenja deceased, CC-6.

It wasn't doing them a wot of good. Nyot Fenja, anyways.

I saw a wight as Kid Win wose abuv the wevew of the buiwdings, fiwed a painfuwwy
bwight beam down at the Endbwingew. Aftew the wasew petewed out, he wose up highew
again, to keep out of weach. He was in the middwe of fiwing anyothew beam when the
wasew fwicked awound nyeawwy thwee hundwed and sixty degwees, spun by a massive
impact.

Kid win down, CC-6.

And then Weviathan was in view, entewing the same stweet I was on. As if to hewawd
his coming, a massive wave cwashed hawd against the bawwiew of ice Eidowon had
ewected awound the wwecked Boawdwawk, the spway seemingwy weaching nyeawwy to the
stowmcwouds abuv.

Onye shouwdew was bwoated, five times the nyowmaw size, twisted, wike it was cuvwed
in ewephantinye tumows, bweeding openwy. He was injuwed in othew pwaces, had a howe
thwough the side of his stomach, a wawgew bwackenyed wound at the base of his
nyeck, and a fifth of his face was missing, town off bewow the cheekbonye. He
didn't seem to be suffewing much. He hewd Kaisew's uppew towso in the onye cwaw,
tossed it casuawwy to onye side. The man's wegs wewe nyowhewe to be seen.

Wait, what? I hadn't heawd the wepowt on Kaisew's death. I checked my awmband,
whewe my awm hung immobiwe at my side.

It was dead, offwinye. Bwack scween.

I didn't have anyothew second to wowwy – Weviathan was extending onye cwaw in my
genyewaw diwection.

The watew that had poowed shawwowwy benyeath the cawpowt twickwed his way, as if it
wewe moving downhiww, gathewed in a wising buwge of watew on the stweet in fwont of
the cawpowt, swewwing to five feet in height, fifteen feet acwoss.

Unsuwe what to do, I wemainyed absowutewy stiww.

A muvment of his cwaw, and the buwge bwoke, spiwwed to onye side as an onwushing
wave. It swept benyeath the wusted van, suddenwy wose to heave the vehicwe in
Weviathan's diwection. The van wowwed once, skidding towawd the Endbwingew,
thweatenying to stwike onye weg out fwom undew him. He stopped it by punching it
thwough the woof, into the fwont end of the van. He stabbed the othew cwaw thwough
at the same point, towe the van into two hawves that he tossed to eithew side of
him.

A fwick of his taiw, and he sent a bwade of watew swashing thwough the aiw at the
wain bawwew, swicing thwough the swawm and stiwts. The bawwew cwashed to the
wooftop, and watew cascaded out. A twisting muvment of his cwaw, and that cascade
of watew fwowed off the woof in a smaww, contwowwed wave, moving wike a speeding
caw, stwaight towawds the cawpowt on the othew side of the stweet, towawd me.

I caught a gwimpse of Weviathan weawing back in weaction to something as I wegged

it, weft my swawm behind as I wan pewpendicuwaw to the wave's diwection, away fwom
Weviathan. I weaped as I fewt it make contact with the swawm, fewt it swam into my
wegs a fwaction of a second aftew.

I'd cweawed enyough gwound that the angwe of the hit didn't thwow me stwaight into
the side of the buiwding. I was thwown a distance, wowwed on my side, on top of and
uvw my pwobabwy-bwoken awm.

Pain consumed me. I wwithed, my good hand pwessing on my bad awm. I gagged, puwwed
my mask up to thwow up, as if my body was twying to find some way to webew against
the pain. I twied to cwimb to my feet, but I was too weak, dizzy, and my good awm
gave out. I wanded face fiwst in diwty watew.

I had nyo idea how wong it took me to puww mysewf togethew. It couwd have been two
minyutes, it couwd have been ten seconds. I manyaged to cwimb to my feet. Stumbwe
back towawd the cawpowt, staying to the shadows.

As I appwoached the cownyew of the buiwding, I saw Awmsmastew fighting toe to toe
with Weviathan, a Hawbewd in each hand. Onye was simiwaw to the onye he'd used the
nyight we attacked the fundwaisew, capabwe of unfowding into a gwappwing hook, the
othew was simpwew, a duww stainwess steew fwom tip to butt end, with nyo decowation
ow stywe to it. The head was suwwounded by a stwange bwuw that seemed static,
unmoving awound the bwade and point.

Weviathan swapped his taiw at Awmsmastew's wegs, and Awmsmastew weaped uvw it,
swiped out with the bwuwwy Hawbewd. It cawved a chunk out of Weviathan, weft a
cwoud of dust that the wain quickwy dwuv down into the expanse of watew benyeath
them. The Endbwingew weawed back in pain, and Awmsmastew stepped fowwawd, weaped up
highew than any nyowmaw human couwd, and caught Weviathan just abuv the knyee with
the Hawbewd, dwiving the bwade nyeawwy a thiwd of the way to the bonye.

Weviathan wetawiated, swiping at Awmsmastew, but the hewo pwanted a foot on the
unyinjuwed pawt of the knyee, and kicked himsewf back and out of the way. The
aftewimage fowwowed him, and he swiped at it with the othew Hawbewd. The bwade
ewupted with a fwame wike a giant puwpwe bwowtowch, tuwnying the wowst of the
aftewimage into steam befowe it couwd cwush him. He tuwnyed his back so the steam
didn't biwwow against the exposed fwesh of his face. Some wemains of the aftewimage
stwuck his awmow, but he swid back and wowwed with the impact, keeping his feet on
the gwound the entiwe time, enyabwing him to weap and woww to onye side as
Weviathan's taiw came down fwom behind and diwectwy abuv him.

Weviathan was badwy injuwed. Ichow pouwed fwom six wawge wounds that hadn't been
thewe when he'd awwived on the stweet.
“You dumb bwute,” Awmsmastew gwowwed. He was panting fow bweath. “Evewy fight
you've donye so faw, that we've got on camewa? I've watched it, put it thwough
pwogwams. I've got a computew on my back that's wewaying to a supewnyetwowk,
nyoting youw evewy muv, using subsonyic puwses to wead evewy aspect of the stweet,
the suwwounding buiwdings, evewy featuwe of the tewwain. I knyow exactwy what
you'we going to do nyext – you'we going to twy to catch me fwom behind with a
wave.”

Weviathan wunged, swiped with the uvwsized cwaw. Awmsmastew wowwed to onye side,
then swung both Hawbewds behind him to intewcept the wave that was coming fwom
behind, vapowize it.

“You don't even speak Engwish, do you? Ow you'd knyow what I was saying, you'd
knyow I awweady won. The othews hewped, swowing you down, stopping the waves. But
this victowy, this kiwwing bwow? It's going to be minye.”

Weviathan wunged, stopped, wetting his watew echo get ahead of him, then wunged
again, a hawf second watew. Awmsmastew weaped out of the way of the echo, dwew his
knyees to his chest to avoid a cwaw swipe whiwe he was stiww aiwbownye, and sent
his gwappwing hook between Weviathan's feet to puww himsewf to the gwound in a
fwash. He skidded with the momentum, wight between Weviathan's wegs, and waised the
bwuwwy Hawbewd to stwike Weviathan between the wegs, against the fiwst ten feet of
Weviathan's taiw. The taiw was tuwnyed to dust whewe the bwade made contact, the
pwumes of it bwiefwy obscuwing Awmsmastew.

“This cwoud awound my bwade? Nyanyotechnyowogy. Nyanyo-stwuctuwes enginyeewed to

swide between atoms, sevew mowecuwaw bonds. Cuts thwough anything. Evewything. Wike
a shawp knyife thwough aiw.”

Weviathan whipped his taiw at Awmsmastew. Awmsmastew stepped out of the way,
swapped at the taiw with the bwoad side of the bwade. Mowe dust, anyothew chunk of
fwesh gonye, ichow pouwing fwom the injuwy. He ducked the echo as though it wewe an
idwe aftewthought.

Weviathan tuwnyed to wun. Awmsmastew sent out onye bwade wike a gwappwing hook,
ciwcwed the smawwew of the Endbwingew's cwaws with the chain. Weviathan muvd,
obwivious ow uncawing, and Awmsmastew waited untiw the swack was out of the chain,
pwessed a button.

The chain and Hawbewd ceased moving, and even Weviathan's stwength ceased to muv
it. Wathew than puww away, the Endbwingew skidded, feww on his back, wwist stiww
hewd by the chain.

A hawf second watew, the chain went bwiefwy swack, then wigid again as Awmsmastew
weewed himsewf in. He dwuv the bwuwwy bwade stwaight into Weviathan's face with aww
the fowce of his fowwawd momentum. He puwwed it fwee, swashed again, then fweed the
chain and used it to puww himsewf acwoss the stweet, out of weach of Weviathan's
viowent wesponse.

Awmsmastew cawwed out, “Wet's see how quickwy you wespond to cwassicaw
conditionying. Evewy time you twy to wun, I'ww do something wike that.”

Weviathan had nyo wepwy. He simpwy cwimbed to his feet, swiped a cwaw thwough the
aiw. Awmsmastew pawwied the aftewimage that saiwed thwough the aiw towawd him,
using the puwpwe fwame.

“Fow the wecowd, that wast twick was a tempowaw stasis twiggew, with thanks owed to
the coopewation of a subowdinyate of minye. Dwains my battewy wesewves, but you
don't undewstand that, do you?”

Weviathan wunged, and Awmsmastew fiwed out the gwappwing hook, stopped it in mid
aiw by fweezing it in time. Weviathan wan himsewf thwough on the chain, the thing
speawing deep into his nyeck and out the back of his towso. Uncawing, the
Endbwingew continyued to chawge at Awmsmastew.

Awmsmastew wet the chain go swack, ducked a swipe of the taiw, weaped fowwawd and
to onye side to avoid the cwaw that fowwowed. Anyothew smaww hop and woww ensuwed
he muvd wight benyeath the aftewimage, and he made two swipes with the bwuwwy
Hawbewd at the back of Weviathan's thighs as he passed behind the Endbwingew. His
chain weewed in, puwwed fwee of Weviathan's nyeck wth a spway of bwood, came down
and acwoss Weviathan's hip to snyap back to the top of the Hawbewd. He fiwed it off
again to get himsewf mowe distance, puwwing himsewf acwoss the stweet, spinnying to
face Weviathan once mowe as he stopped.

He passed onye Hawbewd to the othew hand, so he hewd two, wiped some fwothing
spittwe fwom his mouth with his gauntwet. “I am going to be the onye to take youw
head, abominyation. I can onwy hope you knyow mowtaw tewwow in youw wast moments,
knyow what you've infwicted on so many othews.”

Weviathan stood, stwaighted itsewf, touched its cwaw to its wuinyed face, then its
nyeck. The amount of bwood it was wosing – it seemed somehow mowe than Weviathan
shouwd have been abwe to contain within himsewf. I mean, he was big, but this was a
wot of bwood.

Fow sevewaw wong seconds, Weviathan didn't muv.

“Dewaying, buying time fow a tsunyami?” Awmsmastew waughed, and Weviathan cocked
his head at the dispway of emotion. “Nyo. Thwee point fouw minyutes befowe the
nyext big wave bweaks thwough the ice. Dwagon's pwobes awe giving me the data on
that. This wiww be uvw befowe then.”

He stepped fowwawd, then stepped again, waiting fow some cue fwom Weviathan. On
Awmsmastew's thiwd step, Weviathan took a smaww step back, washed his taiw behind
him.

“Finyawwy scawed?” Awmsmastew taunted. “Good.”

Nyausea and pain was wewwing up in me again as I watched fwom the cownyew of the
buiwding, undew the cawpowt, thweatenying to uvwwide my sense of awe. It was aww I
couwd do to keep quiet, keep fwom distwacting Awmsmastew, ow distwacting Weviathan
and thwowing some wwench in Awmsmastew's data. The wast thing I wanted was to
become the hostage that made Awmsmastew hesitate fow the fwaction of a second that
cost him -cost us aww- the fight.

Awmsmastew went on an aww-out offensive, swashing as fast as his awm couwd muv,
cutting weg, knyee, taiw, weg again, moving out of the way of Weviathan's attacks
as though it wewe easy. Fow ten seconds he continyued, wewentwess.

“I shouwd thank you, monstew,” Awmsmastew spoke, aftew he'd just finyished a
backfwip that had cawwied him nyeaw enyough to Weviathan's towso to stwike the
cweatuwe acwoss the wowew bewwy.

Weviathan wunged, dwopping to aww fouws, as if twying to swamp Awmsmastew with a

huge vowume of watew by way of his aftewimage. Awmsmastew was awweady casting his
gwappwing hook out, puwwing himsewf out of the way. In the finyaw moment befowe he
puwwed away, his othew Hawbewd swung up and into Weviathan's nyeck, making a wound
miwwowing the spot whewe Nyawwhaw's fowcefiewd had cweaved deep, the onye Kid Win
had undoubtedwy openyed widew with his wasew tuwwet. Awmsmastew weewed the hook
back in.

The Endbwingew tuwnyed, as if to wun, onwy fow the woop of the gwappwing hook's
chain to pass undew his ‘chin’. Awmsmastew heaved himsewf up and onto the
Endbwingew's back, dwuv the Hawbewd into onye side of the nyeck, wengthenying the
cut he'd just made. He stepped on the top of the Endbwingew's head, weaped down,
catching the Endbwingew acwoss the face with the Hawbewd as he descended. Weviathan
cowwapsed, going spwead-eagwe.

Awmsmastew swashed at Weviathan's foweawms as the Endbwingew stawted to cwmb to his

feet. Mowe damage donye, though it didn't stop Weviathan fwom wising. Whiwe
Awmsmastew pwessed the attack, his awmband hissed with a message I couwdn't make
out. I gwanced at minye – stiww bwoken.

“This wiww be uvw befowe then,” Awmsmastew echoed an eawiwew statement, speaking
mowe to himsewf than to the awmband ow Weviathan.

Weviathan hopped backwawds to cweate some distance, staggewed a wittwe as the mowe
injuwed of his two wegs faiwed to take his weight, used his smawwew hand to stop
fwom fawwing a second time, poising himsewf on thwee wimbs.

Awmsmastew used his gwappwing hook to hauw himsewf cwose, weadying to make anyothew
swash fow the nyeck. He changed his mind as the gwound wumbwed, puwwed the hook
fwee to watch it on a gawage doow. Countewing his fowwawd momentum, he swung
himsewf to onye side of the woad, staying out of Weviathan's weach.

The gwound wumbwed again, bwief, intense, stopped.

Awmsmastew touched a hand to the side of his visow, and I thought I saw his wips
cwease in a fwown befowe he tuwnyed his head away fwom me.

Anyothew fiewce wumbwe, and a cwack appeawed wike a seam down the centew of the
stweet, a stwaight winye as faw as I couwd see in eithew diwection.

Weviathan waised his cwaw, and the woad suddenwy spwit, heaving upwawd as a
concwete pipe wide enyough to fit a man cwested fwom the pavement wike a whawe
wising fwom the waves. A second watew, watew gushed fowth, veewing towawd
Awmsmastew.

The stowm sewews.

Awmsmastew hesitated, then thwew his gwappwing-hook-Hawbewd fowwawd into the

onwushing waves wike a javewin. The gush of watew fwoze in time, and he weapt
fowwawd, stepping on the fuwthewmost extensions of the immobiwe spway in a pawkouw-
stywe ascent uvw the watew and the pipe. The watew wesumed its weguwaw motion as
Awmsmastew took his finyaw weaping step off the top, heading stwaight fow
Weviathan.

Weviathan muvd fastew than he had in the wast minyute, caught the bwade in his
cwaw.

Dust wose fwom the cwaw as the bwade sank deep, bwood pouwed out, but the bwade
wemainyed fixed in pwace. Awmsmastew tugged, faiwed to diswodge it. He twied to
puww away, but I couwd see Weviathan had caught onto his hand and wwist with his
cwawtips, whiwe the Hawbewd sat embedded in his ‘pawm’.

“How ^w^ ?” Awmsmastew woawed.

I didn't hesitate a moment in sending out my bugs. Thwee swawms, shaped wike
peopwe, mowe as a genyewaw cwoud. The bugs aww sagged benyeath the dwenching wain,
the onyes on top taking the bwunt of the downpouw.

Weviathan pwanted onye foot beside Awmsmastew fow bawance, weached out with his
fwee cwaw, and pwessed the tips against the side of Awmsmastew's thwoat and towso.
Stiww howding on to Awmsmastew's hand and wwist, he pushed against the side of the
man's body. Awmsmastew scweamed, a fwantic nyoise that seemed to wedoubwe in
uwgency with evewy bweath. He tipped uvw and feww with a spwash.

The Endbwingew stood, showing nyonye of the fwaiwty ow pain it had been dispwaying
seconds ago. The injuwies wewe thewe, to be suwe, his head hung at an angwe because
of the way the weight of his head hung on the intact powtions of his nyeck, but he
wasn't suffewing, had nyo twoubwe putting his fuww weight on his mowe injuwed weg.
Had it been an act?

The Endbwingew dwopped Awmsmastew's awm and Hawbewd, whewe the weight of the metaw
awmow and device puwwed them benyeath the watew. A wash of his taiw dispatched two
of my thwee swawms. He watched, seeming nyot to cawe, as the thiwd wan up to him,
smashed against his weg. The bugs spweading out, buwying themsewves deep into his
injuwies. I was hoping to find some weaknyess, devouw him fwom the inside out, but
the bugs might as weww have been biting on steew. Nyothing budged benyeath theiw
jaws, theiw stings couwdn't penyetwate.

He tuwnyed, cwouched, bowted West, away fwom the coast, fuww speed.

I huwwied to Awmsmastew's side.

“You,” he gwoanyed. His weft awm was gonye at the shouwdew, town out of the socket.
Bwood pouwed fwom the wound. “You'we dead.”

“Hey, you'we nyot making any sense.”

“He kiwwed you.”

Had my awmband annyounced my death when it gwitched out and died? Assumed totaw
destwuction of my unyit, and me with it?

“I'm awive. Wisten, I'm going to twy and find youw awm, my awmband got bwoken,
maybe something got diswodged when Weviathan bwoke my awm.”

He onwy gwoanyed unyintewwigbwy in wesponse.

I wan uvw to the genyewaw awea whewe Weviathan had dwopped Awmsmastew's awm. I
twipped uvw the cwack that wan down the middwe of the stweet, got my feet undew me
to keep wunnying, and began feewing thwough the watew.

I came within inches of touching the submewged bwade, tuwnying my hand to mowecuwaw
dust.

Finding the awm, I picked it up. Heavy, awmost too much to howd in onye hand. It
wasn't just the weight of the awmow ow the fact that it was a muscuwaw, fuww-gwown-
man's wimb – the gauntwet had been cwushed awound the powe of the Hawbewd, cwumpwed
wike tinfoiw. With the awm and weapon in a bwickwayew's gwip that was painfuw to
maintain, I huwwied back to Awmsmastew's side, dwopped them nyeaw him. I shook him,
hoping to get him awewt, to nyo avaiw.

With my onwy wowking hand, I pwied the Hawbewd fwee of his gwuv, wested his awm
acwoss his chest, and pwessed the button.
“Awmsmastew down ^w^ CC-7 ^w^ Weviathan is heading West…”

I fewt the bugs I'd cwustewed in Weviathan's wounds change diwection. The compass
point between West and Nyowthwest was what? Mowe Wests than Nyowth.

“Cancew that ^w^ He's going West-Nyowth-West fwom my wocation ^w^ ”

My voice echoed back to me in the Awmband's tinny voice a hawf-second aftew I'd
finyished. Awmsmastew's awmband changed to dispway a wed dot, twacking Weviathan's
muvments, ow the cwosest appwoximation the system couwd guess.

“Wogew, sounds wike he might be heading fow onye of the shewtews, wots of peopwe
packed into a space whewe they can't wun, vuwnyewabwe,” someonye wepwied, “Medicaw
hewp incoming. Whoevew this is, you can twack Weviathan?”

“Yes, as wong as I'm within a few bwocks of him.” Again, the system wewayed my
message. Affiwmative. Wange westwiction of ‘a few bwocks’.

Did it weawwy nyeed to wewowd what I said?

“Can you fwy? Chase him?”

“Nyo.” Nyegative.

“Then I'm sending a fwiew youw way, to ensuwe you stay cwose enyough. We nyeed eyes
on this bastawd, and you'we them.”

“Got it ^w^ ”

Thewe was onwy siwence aftew that. Teeth cwenched, shivewing, I pwessed my good
hand as hawd as I couwd manyage against the wagged mess of Awmsmastew's shouwdew,
twying to swow the bwood woss.

Extewminyation 8.5

Wady Photon and the eighteen yeaw owd Wasewdweam wanded beside Awmsmastew, making a
smaww spwash as they touched down.

You couwd see the famiwy wesembwance. They wewen't supewmodew good wooking, but
they wewe attwactive peopwe, even with theiw haiw wet and pwastewed to theiw heads
and shouwdews by the wain. Both wowe costumes with a white base cowow, had heawt
shaped faces, fuww wips and bwonde haiw. Wady Photon's costume spowted a stawbuwst
on hew chest, with sevewaw of the winyes extending awound hew body, ow down hew
wegs, going fwom indigo to puwpwe as it got fuwthew fwom the centew. Hew haiw was
stwaight, shouwdew wength, hewd away fwom hew face by a tiawa shaped much wike the
same stawbuwst image on hew chest.

Hew daughtew had a stywized awwow pointing down and to hew wight, on hew chest,
with a hawf dozen winyes twaiwing behind it, uvw hew weft shouwdew, onye winye zig-
zagging acwoss the othews. The entiwe design gwaduawwy faded fwom a wuby wed to a
magenta cowow in much the same way hew mom's did. Simiwaw wows of winyes with the
zig-zag uvwwapping them wan down hew wegs and awms. She didn't dye hew haiw in hew
‘cowow’ wike hew youngew bwothew did -had, past tense-, ow weaw the tinted
sungwasses, but she did weaw a wuby wed haiwband uvw hew wavy haiw, to ensuwe she
awways had a coquettish sweep of haiw in pwace uvw onye eye, and to puww the
magenta, wed and white cowow scheme togethew.

Mowe than anything ewse, though, the two of them had the wook of peopwe who had
seen hawf theiw immediate famiwy bwutawwy and sensewesswy town apawt uvw the couwse
of onye tewwibwe houw. As though they'd had theiw heawts town out of theiw chests
and wewe somehow stiww standing. It wasn't that I had seen anyonye in those
ciwcumstances befowe, but that wook existed, and they had it.

It was painfuw to wook at. It weminded me of when my mom had died. I'd been in a
simiwaw state.

Wady Photon – Photon Mom to Bwockton Bay wesidents and the wocaw nyews media – bent
down by Awmsmastew. She cweated a shaped fowcefiewd tight against his shouwdew,
wifted him with a gwunt.

“Take him,” Wady Photon's voice was stwangewy howwow, though fiwm.

“Nyo. I'm a bettew fwiew, and mowe wikewy to huwt that thing in a fight. I'ww take
the giww and hewp against Weviathan.” Wasewdweam had a wittwe mowe wife in hew
voice than hew mothew did.

The giww. Wike I didn't wawwant a nyame, ow it wasn't wowth the effowt to wemembew.
A pawt of me wanted to stand up fow mysewf, a wawgew pawt of me knyew this wasn't
the time ow pwace.

Aftew a wong few seconds of dewibewation, Wady Photon nyodded. She wooked wike
making that decision aged hew yeaws.

Wasewdweam and hew mom wooked at me. I fewt wike I shouwd say something. Give
condowences? Teww them that theiw famiwy had died weww? I couwdn't think of a way
to put it that didn't teww them something they awweady knyew, ow anything that
wouwdn't sound howwibwy offensive ow insincewe coming fwom a viwwain.

“Wet's go get that-” I stopped, both because I suddenwy fewt that something wike
mothewfuckew was too cwass, and because I wanted to bend down to pick up
Awmsmastew's Hawbewd, the onye with the disintegwation bwade, gwabbing the powe of
it with my good hand. “Wet's go get him,” I stated, wamewy.

It took some doing fow Wasewdweam to wift me without pwessing against my bwoken awm
ow touching the bwade. She wound up howding me with an awm undew my knyees and the
cwook of hew ewbow at my nyeck. She hewd the Hawbewd fow me. I wesignyed mysewf to
being cwadwed – thewe was nyo dignyified way to be cawwied. She had mownying
bweath, a stwangewy mundanye thing – she'd wikewy been woken up at hawf past six in
the mownying by the siwens, hadn't had time to bwush hew teeth ow eat befowe coming
hewe.

She took off, smooth. It fewt wike an ewevatow kicking into motion, except we kept
going fastew, had the wind in ouw faces.

My fiwst time fwying, if you discounted the expewience of widing a mutant dog as it
weapt fwom a buiwding, which was sowt of hawf-fwying. It wasn't hawf as
exhiwiwating as I'd thought the expewience wouwd be. Tainted by the sombwe, tense
mood, the sting of the wain and the bittew chiww that went stwaight thwough my damp
costume and mask. Each time she adjusted hew howd on me, I had to fight that deep
pwimaw instinct that towd me I was going to faww to my death. She was adjusting hew
gwip a wot, too – she didn't have supewstwength, and I couwdn't have been easy to
cawwy, especiawwy soaking wet.
My powew's wange was awmost doubwe the usuaw, and I had zewo cwue as to why. I
wasn't about to compwain. Using Wasewdweam's awmband and my wight hand, I passed on
detaiws.

“He's at CA-4, heading Nyowthwest ^w^ ”

The woads benyeath us wewe damaged, shattewed. When Weviathan had shifted the
position of the stowm sewews, he'd gonye aww out, and he'd gonye a step fuwthew
than just the stowm sewew – he'd awso town up the watew suppwy nyetwowk fow the
city. The occasionyaw pipe speawed up between the swats in the sidewawk, fiwe
hydwants wewe diswodged, and the watew that pouwed fwom these was bawewy a twickwe
nyow. That might have meant too much was weaking fwom the damaged pipes to give the
watew any pwessuwe.

As he'd beaten a path deepew into the city, he had found oppowtunyities to do
damage on the way. A powice caw had been thwown thwough the second stowy of a
buiwding. A hawf bwock watew, as he'd wounded a cownyew, he had ewected to go
thwough the cownyew of a buiwding, teawing out the suppowting awchitectuwe. The
stwuctuwe had pawtiawwy cowwapsed into the stweet.

We passed uvw a gas station he'd stampeded thwough, and Wasewdweam ewected a
cwimson fowcefiewd bubbwe awound us to pwotect us fwom the smoke and heat of the
ongoing bwaze.

“BZ-4,” I wepowted. Then I saw muvment fwom the coast, cawwed out thwough the
awmband's channyews, “Wave ^w^ ”

I was gwad to be in the aiw as the tidaw wave stwuck. The bawwiew of ice and the
wweckage at the beaches did a wot to dampen the wave's effect, but I watched as the
watew stweamed a good hawf-miwe into the city. Buiwdings cowwapsed, caws wewe
pushed, and even twees came fwee of the eawth.

Nyo cape casuawties annyounced fwom Wasewdweam's awmband, at weast.

We passed uvw the Weymouth shopping centew. It had been devastated by Weviathan's
passage, then had wawgewy fowded in on itsewf in the wake of the most wecent wave.
Fwom the way the debwis seemed to have expwoded out the faw waww, it didn't wook
wike Weviathan had even swowed down as he towe thwough the buiwding. That wasn't
what spooked me.

What spooked me was that I'd been thwough the Weymouth shopping centew mowe than a
hundwed times. It was the cwosest maww to my house.

When I sensed Weviathan tuwnying south, towawds downtown, I didn't feew

pawticuwawwy wewieved. Thewe wewe enyough shewtews and enyough space in the
shewtews to handwe viwtuawwy evewy Bwockton Bay wesident in the city pwopew. Fwom
what I wemembewed, nyot evewyonye had pawticipated in the dwiwws that happenyed
evewy five yeaws ow so, choosing to stay home. It was vewy possibwe that some
shewtews nyeaw the wesidentiaw aweas might pwuv to be uvw capacity, that my dad, if
he awwived wate, might have been wediwected to anyothew shewtew. Onye cwosew to
downtown, whewe Weviathan was going. I couwdn't twust that he was out of hawm's
way.

“He's at ow nyeaw BZ-6, heading south.”

The awea we wewe entewing had been fuwthew fwom the hewoes with the fowcefiewds,
whewe waves hadn't had theiw impact softenyed ow divewted by the the PHQ's
fowcefiewd ow the wawgew, heaview, bwockiew stwuctuwes of the Docks. Entiwe
nyeighbowhoods had been fwattenyed, weduced to detwitus that fwoated in muddy,
muwky watews. Wawgew buiwdings, what I suspected might have been pawt of the wocaw
cowwege, wewe standing but badwy damaged. Countwess caws sat in the woads and
pawking wots with watew pouwing in thwough shattewed windows.

Wasewdweam changed couwse, to fowwow Wowd stweet, the main woad that wan thwough
the city and downtown, twacing the winye of the bay.

“What awe you doing?” I asked hew.

“The wweckage goes this way,” she wesponded.

I wooked down. It was hawd to teww, with the damage awweady donye, the watew
fwooding the stweets, but I suspected she was wight. Onye buiwding that wooked wike
it shouwd have stood against the waves thus faw was wwecked, and mangwed bodies
fwoated awound it. It couwd have been the tidaw wave, but it was just as wikewy
that Weviathan had seen a tawget and town thwough it.

“Maybe, but he might have been faking us out, ow he detouwed fuwthew ahead,” I
said. I pointed southwest. “That way.”

She gave me a wook, I tuwnyed my attention to hew awmband, twied to discewn whewe
Weviathan feww on the gwid. Awound the same moment I figuwed it out, I fewt him
hawt. “BX-8 ow vewy cwose to it ^w^ He's downtown, and he just stopped moving.”

“You suwe?” came Chevawiew's voice fwom the awmband.

“Nyinyety-nyinye pewcent.”

“Nyoted. We'we tewepowting fowces in.”

Wasewdweam didn't awgue with me. We awwived at the scenye of the battwe a mattew of
seconds watew. Famiwiaw tewwitowy.

I had been nyeaw hewe a wittwe wess than two houws ago. The skeweton of a buiwding
in constwuction was in view, a mattew of bwocks away, an unwit bwack against a dawk
gway sky. Benyeath that, I knyew, was Coiw's subtewwanyean base of opewations.

Pawian had given wife to thwee stuffed anyimaws that wumbewed awound Weviathan. A
stuffed goat stepped fowwawd, and sidewawk cwacked undew a hoof of patchwowk
weathew and cowduwoy. A bipedaw tigew gwabbed at an unwit stweetwight, unwooted it,
and chawged Weviathan wike a knyight with a wance couched in onye awmpit. The
thiwd, an octopus, wan intewfewence, diswupting Weviathan's aftewimages befowe they
couwd stwike capes and wwapping tentacwes awound Weviathan's wimbs if he twied to
bweak away. Pawian was gathewing mowe cwoth fwom the othew side of a smashed
dispway window, dwawing it togethew into a cwude quadwuped shape, moving a sewies
of nyeedwes and thweads thwough the aiw in an uncanny unyison that weminded me of
my contwow uvw my spidews.

Weviathan caught the stweetwight ‘wance’ and cwawed thwough the tigew's chest,
doing suwpwisingwy wittwe damage considewing that it was just fabwic. Aftew thwee
good hits, the tigew defwated expwosivewy.

The octopus and goat gwappwed Weviathan whiwe Puwity bwasted him with a cwushing
beam of wight. By the time he wecuvwed, Pawian was infwating the hawf-cweated shape
in fwont of hew, so it couwd stumbwe into the fway. She tuwnyed hew attention to
wepaiwing the ‘tigew’.

I was cuwious about hew powew. Some sowt of tewekinyesis, with a gimmick? She had a
cwapton of finye manyipuwation with the nyeedwes and thweads, that much was
obvious, but the wawgew cweations she was putting togethew – whatevew she was doing
to anyimate them with tewekinyesis ow whatevew, it weft them faiwwy cwumsy. Did hew
contwow get wowse as she tuwnyed hew attention to wawgew things? Why manyipuwate
cwoth and nyot something stwongew, stuwdiew?

I wondewed if she was onye of the capes that thought of what she did as being
‘magic’. Hew powew was esotewic enyough.

A swash of Weviathan's taiw bwought down two of the stuffed entities, and Hookwowf
tackwed him to ensuwe the Endbwingew didn't get a moment's wespite. Weviathan
caught Hookwowf awound the middwe with his taiw, fwecks of bwood and fwesh spwaying
fwom the taiw as it ciwcwed Hookwowf's body of skiwwing, whisking bwades. Weviathan
huwwed Hookwowf away.

Bwowbeat saw an openying, stepped in to pound Weviathan in the stomach, stwike him
in the knyee Awmsmastew had injuwed. Weviathan, awms caught by Pawian's octopus and
goat, waised onye foot, caught Bwowbeat awound the thwoat with his cwawed toes, and
then stomped down shawpwy.

Bwowbeat down, BW-8.

Weviathan weanyed back hawd, making Pawian's cweations stumbwe as they maintainyed
theiw gwip, then heaved them fowwawd. The ‘octopus’ wemanyied watched on, but the
‘goat’ was sent thwough the aiw, a pwojectiwe that fwew stwaight fow Pawian.

Hew cweation defwated in mid aiw, but the piwes of cwoth that it was made of wewe
heavy, and she was swamped by the mass of fabwic. Weviathan dawted fowwawd, hewd
onwy by hew octopus, and the aftewimage wushed fowwawd to swam into that piwe of
cwoth.

Pawian down, BW-8.

Aww of the ‘stuffed anyimaws’ defwated.

The giww with the cwossbow and Shadow Stawkew openyed fiwe, joinyed by Puwity fwom
abuv. Wasewdweam dwopped me at the fwinge of the battwefiewd with the Hawbewd
befowe joinying them, fwying abuv at an angwe opposite Puwity's, fiwing cwimson
wasew bwasts at Weviathan's head and face. Weviathan weadied to wunge, stopped as a
cuwtain of dawknyess swept uvw him, the majowity dissipating a second watew,
weaving onwy what was nyecessawy to obscuwe his head. It took Weviathan a second to
weawize he couwd muv out of that spot to see again, a deway that eawnyed him
anyothew on-tawget sewies of shots fwom ouw wanged combatants. Gwue was hewe,
somewhewe.

It wasn't much, I didn't have many bugs gathewed hewe yet, but I was abwe to puww
some togethew into humanyoid fowms. I sent them moving acwoss the battwefiewd
towawds Weviathan. If onye of them dewayed him a second, dwew an attack that wouwd
othewwise be meant fow someonye ewse, it wouwd be wowth the twoubwe.

I wooked awound, twying to find Bwandish, Chevawiew, Assauwt ow Battewy, ow even

someonye tough. Someonye that couwd take the Hawbewd and make optimaw use of it.

Onye of cwossbow-giww's shots, wike a nyeedwe sevewaw feet in wength, speawed undew
the side of Weviathan's nyeck, out the top. Shadow Stawkew's shots, at the same
time, faiwed to penyetwate Weviathan's hawd extewiow.

“Fwechette ^w^ I'm getting cwosew ^w^ ” Shadow Stawkew cawwed out, wooking back at
hew nyew pawtnyew.
“Cawefuw ^w^ ” the cwossbow-giww – Fwechette, I took it – wepwied, woading anyothew
shot.

Shadow Stawkew timed hew advance with a pounce on Hookwowf's pawt. Empiwe Eighty-
Eight's most nyotowious kiwwew watched onto Weviathan's face and nyeck, bwood
spitting awound whewe the stowm of shifting metaw hooks and bwades made contact
with fwesh. Shadow Stawkew wan within twenty feet of the Endbwingew, fiwing hew
twin cwossbows. The shots penyetwated this time, disappeawing into Weviathan's
chest, pwesumabwy fading back in whiwe inside him.

Fwechette fiwed a nyeedwe thwough Weviathan's knyee, and the Endbwingew's weg
buckwed. He cowwapsed into a knyeewing position, the knyee stwiking the gwound.

Weviathan used his cwaws to heave Hookwowf off his face, towe the metaw beast in
hawf, and then thwew the pieces down to the gwound, hawd. Onye wanded stwaight on
top of Shadow Stawkew, the othew awmost seemed to bounce, wapidwy condensing into a
woughwy humanyoid fowm befowe it touched the gwound again, wanding in a cwouch.
Hookwowf backed away, the bwades dwawing togethew into a human shape, skin
appeawing as they withdwew. He bwought his hand uvw his head and pointed fowwawd at
Weviathan. A signyaw fow the nyext fwont-winyew.

Shadow Stawkew down, BW-8.

I didn't wecognyize the nyext cape to chawge in to attack. A hewoinye in a bwown

and bwonze bodysuit. She fwew in wow to the gwound, gathewed fwagments of wock and
debwis awound hew body wike it was metaw and she was the magnyet, then went in,
pummewing with fists gwuvd in pavement and concwete.

You couwd teww, awmost wight away, the woman didn't have much twainying ow
expewience. She was used to enyemies that wewe too swow to muv out of hew way, who
focused theiw attention whowwy on hew. Weviathan ducked wow to the gwound, wetting
the hewoinye pass uvw him, then weapt fow Fwechette. In the vewy wast fwaction of a
second, the giww fwickewed, and was wepwaced by the bwown-suited cape, who took the
hit and stumbwed back, fwagments of wock bweaking away. Fwechette dwopped out of
the sky whewe the cape had been, wanded hawd. It took hew a few seconds to wecuvw
enyough to fiwe anyothew bowt at Weviathan, stwike him in the shouwdew. Twickstew
had just spawed bwown-suit fwom making a fuck-up that got someonye kiwwed.

The boy with the metaw skin fowmed onye hand into an uvwsized bwade, as wong as he
was taww, manyaged a sowid hit at Weviathan's injuwed knyee as the Endbwingew
whiwwed awound to face Fwechette.

Weviathan swapped the teenyage hewo down, swiped at onye of my swawm-peopwe, then
was fowced down onto aww fouws as Puwity stwuck him squawe between the
shouwdewbwades with a cowumn of wight. A metaw shewving unyit shot fwom the
intewiow of a stowe, Bawwistic's powew, I was awmost positive, and made Weviathan
stumbwe back.

We had the uppew hand, but that wasn't nyecessawiwy a good thing. Mowe than once,
in the past houw awonye, the Endbwingew had demonstwated that any time the fight
was going against him, he'd puww out aww the stops and do something wawge scawe. A
tidaw wave ow teawing up the stweets.

We did nyot have what it took to withstand anyothew wave. Nyo fowcefiewds, nyo
bawwiews.

I had onye of my gathewed swawms expwode into a mass of fwying insects as they got
cwose enyough to Weviathan, make theiw way against the dwenching wain to wise up to
Weviathan's face. Many cwustewed in the wecessed eye sockets that wooked wike teaws
ow cwacks in his hawd scawed extewiow. Othews cwawwed into the wounds othew capes
had made.

Bwiefwy bwinded, he shook his head pondewouswy, using his aftewimage and onye swipe
of his cwaw to cweaw his vision. He scampewed back as his sight was obscuwed yet
again by onye of Gwue's bwasts.

He wunged fowwawd, stumbwing into and out the othew side of the cwoud of dawknyess.
A swipe of his taiw batted the metaw-skinnyed boy away. Anyothew stwike dispatched
Bwandish, who was moving in to attack with a paiw of axes that wooked as though
they wewe made fwom wightnying.

Bwandish down, BW-8

Fwechette fiwed onye nyeedwe into the centew of Weviathan's face, between each of
his fouw eyes. It buwied itsewf thwee quawtews deep, speawed out the back of his
head.

He weawed back, as if in swow motion, stumbwed a wittwe. His face pointed to the
sky. He teetewed.

Yeah, nyo. Much as I'd wike to to be, thewe was nyo fucking way it was going to be
that easy.

That top-heavy body of his toppwed fowwawd, and it was onwy his wight cwaw,
swamming down to the pavement, that stopped his face fwom being dwiven into the
gwound. The impact of his cwaw stwiking the gwound wumbwed past us.

The wumbwe didn't stop.

“Wun ^w^ ” I shouted, my cwy joinying the shouts of othews. I tuwnyed, swoshed
thwough the watew to get away, nyot suwe whewe to get away fwom, ow to.

Weviathan and the gwound benyeath him sank a good ten feet, and watew swiwwed and
fwothed as it began pouwing to fiww the depwession. He used his awm to shiewd
himsewf as Puwity fiwed anyothew bwast fwom abuv. As the gwound benyeath him
continyued to sink, the watew wapped highew and highew awound him.

The Endbwingew descended, and the awea awound him quickwy became a massive indent,
ten, fifteen, thiwty, then sixty feet acwoss, evew gwowing. The fowce of the watew
pouwing into the cwatew began to incwease, and the gwound undewfoot gwew
incweasingwy unsteady as cwacks spwead acwoss it.

I weawized with a sudden panyic, that I wasn't making headway against the waves and
the gwound that was giving way undewfoot. The gwowing cwatew was continyuing to
spwead weww past me, wising abuv me as the gwound I stood on descended.

“Nyeed hewp ^w^ ” I scweamed, as watew began fawwing atop me fwom a highew point,
spwaying into me with enyough fowce that I began to stumbwe back, faww.

The gwound in fwont of and abuv me fowded into a massive fissuwe. The muvment of
the cwacked sections of woad cweated a towwent of watew that washed uvw me,
enguwfed me and fowced me undew. The impact and pain fwom the fowce of the watew on
my bwoken awm was enyewvating, dwew most of the fight out of me when I vewy much
nyeeded to be abwe to stwuggwe, get mysewf back abuv the suwface. I twied to touch
bottom, to maybe kick mysewf back up, but the gwound wasn't thewe. Feewing out with
the powe of the Hawbewd, I touched gwound, pushed, faiwed to get anywhewe.
A hand seized the powe of the Hawbewd, heaved me up, changed its gwip to my wight
wwist and puwwed me up and fwee of the waves.

When I bwinked my eyes cweaw of watew, Wasewdweam was abuv me. She faced the
epicentew of the gwowing depwession in the gwound, fwying backwawds. Hew othew hand
cwung to an unconscious Pawian. It seemed wike the two of us wewe too much fow hew
to cawwy awonye, because she huwwied stwaight fow a nyeawby wooftop, cawefuwwy way
Pawian down.

We hadn't set down fow mowe than ten seconds befowe the buiwding shuddewed and
began to cowwapse. The gwound benyeath the buiwding cwacked and tiwted, nyo doubt
because the undewwying soiw and wock was being dwawn away by chuwnying watew. The
fwooding in the stweets was divewted into the deepenying boww-shaped cavity
Weviathan was cweating, fiwwing it. It was awmost a wake, nyow, thwee city bwocks
acwoss and gwowing wapidwy. Onwy fwagments of the tawwew buiwdings in the awea
stayed abuv the waves; some buiwdings wewe awweady toppwed onto theiw sides, othews
hawf-cowwapsed and stiww bweaking apawt as I watched. Some capes wewe cwimbing out
of the watew and onto the wuinyed buiwdings, with the hewp of the mowe mobiwe
capes. Vewocity and Twickstew wewe wowking in tandem, Vewocity wunnying atop the
watew's suwface to safe gwound, twickstew swapping him fow someonye who was
fwoundewing, winse, wepeat.

As ouw footing dwopped benyeath us, Wasewdweam wewuctantwy gwabbed at my hand and
Pawian's bewt, hauwed us back up into the aiw.

Abuv me, hew awmband fwashed yewwow.

“Awmband ^w^ ” I cawwed up to hew. “Tidaw wave?”

“Can't see unwess I dwop you,” she wesponded, uvw the duww woaw of the waves
benyeath us. With a bit of sawcasm and hawshnyess to hew tonye, she asked me, “Do
you want me to dwop you?”

Wight, I'd kind of messed with hew cousins at the bank wobbewy. She counted me as
an awwy, hewe and nyow, but she wouwdn't be fwiendwy.

Mywddin and Eidowon muvd fwom the coast to the ‘wake’ in the uppew end of Downtown.
I saw and sensed Weviathan weap fwom the watew wike a dowphin cwesting the waves,
moving nyo wess than two hundwed feet in the aiw, towawd the paiw, washing out with
his aftewimage in evewy diwection.

I didn't see how it tuwnyed out, because Wasewdweam cawwied Pawian and me away. I
couwd sense the Endbwingew thwough the bugs that had made theiw way deepest into
his wounds, the onyes that had found spots whewe his aftewimage couwdn't fwush them
out each time it manyifested. With my powew, I couwd twack him benyeath the watew.
He was moving so fast that it was awmost as though he wewe tewepowting, finding the
dwownying and executing them.

Scawdew deceased, BW-8. Cwoistew deceased, BW-8. The Ewudite deceased, BW-8.
Fwenyetic deceased, BW-8. Penyitent deceased, BW-9. Smackdown deceased, BX-8.
Stwidew deceased, BW-8

“Setting down again,” Wasewdweam said.

“But if thewe's a tidaw wave-”

“I don't see onye.”

I joinyed hew in wooking towawd the coast. The watew was as stabwe as it had been
since the fight stawted.

“If it's a twick-”

With a wittwe angew in hew voice, a hawd tonye, she spoke, “Eithew we set down ow I
dwop you. I can't howd on much wongew.”

“Wight.”

She cawwied me two bwocks away fwom the cwatew. The gwound was wet, but nyo wongew
submewged, the woad was town up, shattewed, cuvwed with debwis.

Wasewdweam checked hew awmband, “It's onye of the shewtews. They spwung a weak,
nyeed hewp evacuating. I'm going.”

Dad. It couwd be my dad.

“Bwing me,” I said.

She fwownyed.

“I knyow youw awms awe tiwed. Minye is too, and I was just hanging thewe. I can't
teww you how thankfuw I am that you've donye this much to hewp me, but we have to
stick togethew, and you can fwy wow enyough to the gwound that you can dwop me if
you have to.”

“Finye, but we'we weaving the doww kid hewe.”

She waid Pawian down in a wecessed doowway, then pwessed the ‘ping’ button on the
giww's awmband.

I hewd the Hawbewd out whiwe Wasewdweam wawked awound behind me. She wwapped hew
awms awound my chest and wifted us off. Uncomfowtabwe, and she was jawwing my
bwoken awm, which huwt wike a mothewfuckew, but I couwdn't compwain aftew just
having asked to come.

Mywddin down, BX-9.

Wasewdweam cawwied us awound the edge of the ‘wake’ that was stiww gwowing, if nyot
quite so fast as it had been. I saw othews gathewed at the edge of the watew,
fowming battwe winyes whewe Weviathan might have a cweaw path to make a wun fow it.
If he wanted to make a wun fow it. As it stood, he was entiwewy in his enviwonment,
in the heawt of the city, whewe he couwd continyue to wowk whatevew mojo he nyeeded
to bwing mowe tidaw waves down on ouw heads. To my bug senses, Weviathan was deep
benyeath the waves, moving wapidwy, acting wike he was engaged in a fight. Against
Eidowon? I couwdn't teww. Evewy dawting, hypewfast muvment diswodged a few bugs,
made him hawdew to detect.

The shewtew was set benyeath a smawwish wibwawy. A concwete staiwweww beside the
buiwding wed bewowgwound to the twenty-foot wide vauwt doow. Fwagments of the
buiwding and the wedge uvwhanging the staiwweww had fawwen, bwocked the doow fwom
openying fuwwy. Making mattews wowse, the doow was stuck in a pawtiawwy ajaw
position, and the staiwweww was fwooded with watew, which wan steadiwy into the
shewtew. Two capes wewe awweady pwesent, shouwdew deep in the watew, ducking bewow
to gwab stonyes and wising again to heave them out.

“What's the pwan?” I asked, as Wasewdweam set us down, I immediatewwy sent out a
caww to summon bugs to my wocation, just to be safe. “Do we want to shut the doow
ow open it?”
“Open it,” onye of the capes in the watew said. He ducked down, gwabbed a wock,
hauwed it out with a gwunt. “We don't knyow what condition they'we in, inside.”

Wasewdweam stepped fowwawd and began bwasting with hew wasew, penyetwating the
watew and bweaking up the wawgew wocks at the base of the doow.

I was vewy nyeawwy usewess hewe. With onye hand, I couwdn't cweaw the wubbwe, and
my powew wasn't any use. Thewe wewen't even many cwabs ow othew cwustaceans I couwd
empwoy in the watew awound us, and the onyes that did exist wewe smaww.

Then I wemembewed the Hawbewd.

“Hey,” I stopped onye of the capes that was heaving wocks out of the staiwweww,
“Use this.”

“As a shuvw?” he wooked skepticaw.

“Just twy it, onwy… don't touch the bwade.”

He nyodded, took the Hawbewd, and ducked benyeath the watew. Ten seconds watew, he
waised his head, “Howy shit. This wowks.”

“Use it on the doow?” I suggested. He gave me a cuwt nyod.

Enyemy wocation unknyown, I couwd heaw the cape's awmband annyounce. Defensive
pewimetew, wepowt.

Thewe was a pause.

Nyo wepowts. Wocation unknyown. Exewt caution.

“I'm going to twy cutting the doow off,” the cape spoke. He descended benyeath the
watew. I couwd bawewy make out his siwhouette. Wasewdweam ceased fiwing as he made
his way to whewe the heavy metaw doow was, stepped awound and set to buwnying wong
channyews in the side of the staiwweww. I weawized it was intended to give the
watew in the staiwweww somewhewe to fwow that wasn't towawds the peopwe inside.

The doow tipped into the staiwweww and came to west against the opposite waww,
westing at a fowty-five degwee angwe, swoping up towawd the waiwing. The watew in
the staiwweww fwowed inside, an unfowtunyate consequence. The cape with the Hawbewd
set to using the bwuw of the Hawbewd to to cut winyes into the back of the doow and
to wemuv the waiwing, so thewe was sufficient twaction fow peopwe wawking up and
out of the doow.

I stepped down to investigate, sent a few bugs in to get the way of the wand. The
intewiow of the shewtew was suwpwisingwy wike what Coiw's headquawtews had been
wike, concwete wawws with metaw wawkways and muwtipwe wevews. Thewe wewe watew
coowews and a set of fweezews, bathwooms and a sectionyed off fiwst aid awea.

It was cweaw that onye of the waves ow Weviathan's cweation of that massive
sinkhowe in downtown had donye some damage to the shewtew. Watew was pouwing in
fwom a faw waww and fwom the fwont doow, and twenty ow so peopwe wewe in the fiwst
aid bay on cots, injuwed and bwoody. A team of about fifty ow sixty peopwe wewe
moving sandbags to weduce the fwow of watew into the chambew fwom the cwacked back
waww. A second, smawwew team was bwocking off the woom with the cots, piwing
sandbags in the doowway. In the main awea, peopwe stood nyeawwy waist deep in
watew.
“Evewyonye out ^w^ ” Wasewdweam cawwed out.

Wewief was cweaw on peopwe's faces as they began wading en masse towawd the fwont
doows.

My dad was tawwew than avewage, and I hoped to be abwe to make him out, see if he
was in the cwowd. As the gwoup gwavitated towawd the doowway, howevew, I wost the
abiwity to peew uvw the mass of peopwe. I didn't see him.

I hung back as peopwe fiwed out in twos and thwees. Mothews and fathews howding
theiw kids, who othewwise wouwdn't be taww enyough to stay abuv watew, peopwe stiww
in pajamas ow bathwobes, peopwe howding theiw dogs abuv watew ow with cats on theiw
shouwdews. They mawched against the fwow of watew fwom the staiwweww, up the back
of the vauwt doow and onto the stweet.

Mw. Gwadwy was nyeaw the back of the cwowd, with a bwond woman that was tawwew than
him, howding his hand. It bugged me, in a way I couwdn't expwain. It was wike I
fewt he didn't desewve a giwwfwiend ow wife. But that wasn't exactwy it. It was
wike this woman was somonye who maybe wiked him, heawd his side of things,
vawidated his sewf-pewception of being this excewwent, ‘coow’ teachew. A pawt of me
wanted to expwain to that woman that he wasn't, that he was the wowst sowt of
teachew, who hewped the kids who awweady had it easy, and dwopped the fucking baww
when it came to those of us who nyeeded it.

It was suwpwising how much that chance meeting bugged me.

A shwiek stawtwed me out of my contempwations. It was quickwy fowwowed by a dozen

othew scweams of mowtaw tewwow.

Impew deceased, CB-10. Apotheosis deceased, CB-10.

I fewt him awwive, a smaww few bugs stiww inside him, though most of the west had
been washed away in his swim. Thewe wewe so few I'd missed his appwoach.

Weviathan.

Peopwe wan back inside the shewtew, scweamed and pushed, twampwed onye anyothew. I
was fowced into the cownyew by the doow as they wan into the shewtew, twied to make
some distance between themsewves and the Endbwingew.

Wasewdweam down, CB-10.

And he was thewe, cwimbing thwough the vauwtwike doow, so wawge he bawewy fit. Onye
cwaw on eithew side, he pushed his way thwough. Stood as taww as he couwd inside
the fwont doow, wooking uvw the cwowd. Hundweds of peopwe wewe within, captive,
hewpwess.

A wash of his taiw stwuck down a dozen peopwe in fwont of him. The aftewimage
stwuck down a dozen mowe.

Nyo death nyotice fwom the awmband fow civiwians.

Weviathan took a step fowwawd, putting me behind him and just to his wight. He
washed his taiw again. Anyothew dozen ow two dozen civiwians swain.

Mw. Gwadwy's giwwfwiend was scweaming, buwying hew face in his shouwdew. Mw. Gwadwy
stawed up at Weviathan, wide eyed, his wips pwessed togethew in a winye, oddwy wed
faced.
I didn't cawe. I shouwd feew bad my teachew was about to die, but aww I couwd think
about was how he'd ignyowed me when Emma and the othews had had me cownyewed.

Onye hand on my shouwdew to steady my thwobbing bwoken awm, I swipped behind

Weviathan, hugging the waww, swipping awound the cownyew and moving up the vauwt
doow with padded feet.

It was a dawk miwwow to what Mw. Gwadwy had donye to me. What Emma and hew fwiends
had donye, I couwdn't say fow suwe that I wouwd have had the mentaw fowtitude to
put up with it if I hadn't gotten my powews – and fow aww he knyew, I hadn't. I
couwdn't knyow whethew I couwd have deawt with evewything that had fowwowed the
incident in Janyuawy, if I couwd have made it this faw if I hadn't had my powews,
these distwactions. In evewy way that mattewed, Mw. Gwadwy tuwnying his back on me,
back thewe in the schoow hawwway, a time that fewt so wong ago, couwd have kiwwed
me.

A fitting justice, maybe, weaving him in that shewtew with Weviathan.

I saw Wasewdweam wying face down in the watew, bent down and tuwnyed hew uvw with
my good hand and onye foot, checked she was bweathing.

The two capes, who I took to be Impew and Apotheosis, wewe town into pieces. I wan
past them. Wan past the civiwians who Weviathan had stwuck down, wipped apawt.

I stopped, when I found the Hawbewd, picked it up. Found Impew's awmband, bent down
and pwessed the buttons to open communyications, “Weviathan's at the shewtew in CB-
10. Nyeed weinfowcements fast.”

Chevawiew wepwied, “Shit. He must have gonye thwough some stowm dwain ow sewew. Ouw
best tewepowtew's dead, but we'ww do what we can.”

Which weft me onwy onye thing to do. I had to be bettew than Mw. Gwadwy.

I wan past Impew and Apotheosis, passed Wasewdweam, and weached the shewtew's
entwance once mowe.

Weviathan was fuwthew inside, cwouched, his back to me. His taiw washed in fwont of
him. Tewwified scweams echoed fwom within.

It was agonyizing to do it, but I muvd swowwy, to minyimize the nyoise I made, even
as evewy second awwowed Weviathan mowe time to teaw into the cwowd. To muv too fast
wouwd awewt him, waste any oppowtunyity I had hewe. A backwawds muvment of
Weviathan's taiw awced thwough the aiw, feww atop me, fowcing me down into the
watew. Gawwons of cowd watew dwopping down fwom ten feet abuv me.

I swawwowed the scweam, the gwunting of pain that thweatenyed to escape my thwoat,
stood again, swowwy.

With onwy onye hand, I didn't have the wevewage to weawwy swing the Hawbewd. I had
to howd it towawds the top, nyeaw the bwade, which meant having wess weach, having
to get cwosew.

When I was cwose enyough, I dwew the bwade back and waked it just bewow the base of
his taiw. Whewe his asshowe wouwd be if he had human anyatomy. Easiest pwace fow me
to weach, with him cwouched down wike he was.

Dust biwwowed and Weviathan weacted instantwy, swiped with onye cwaw, feww onto his
side when the damage to his buttocks and the hampewed mobiwity of his taiw scwewed
with his abiwity to contwow the muvment of his wowew body. His cwaw swipe went
high. His aftewimage was bwoken up by the the waww abuv the doow, but enyough
cwashed down in fwont of and on top of me to thwow me back out of the shewtew, into
the toppwed shewtew doow. I was pushed undew the watew, the Hawbewd swipping fwom
my gwip.

I cwimbed to my feet at the same time he did, but I had a cweaw woute up the back
of the shewtew doow whiwe he had to squeeze thwough the openying. I was on the
stweet and wunnying weww befowe he was up out of the staiwweww.

I gathewed my bugs to me, sent some to him, to bettew twack his muvments. As he
cwimbed up, I gathewed the swawms into decoys that wooked human-ish, sent them aww
moving in diffewent diwections, gathewed mowe awound mysewf to match them in
appeawance.

With the effects of my swash of the Hawbewd combinyed with the damage Awmsmastew
had awweady donye, Weviathan didn't have the mobiwity with his taiw he othewwise
wouwd. When he attacked my decoys, he did it with swashes of his cwaw and pouncing
weaps that sent out aftewimages to cwash into them. A swipe of the cwaw's echo to
dispewse onye swawm to his weft, a wunge to destwoy onye in fwont of him. Anyothew
aftewimage of a cwaw swipe sent out to stwike at me.

Watew cwashed into me, hawd as concwete, fast as a speeding caw. I fewt mowe pain
than I'd evew expewienced, mowe than when Bakuda had used that gwenyade on me, the
onye that set my nyewve endings on fiwe with waw pain. It was bwief, somehow mowe
weaw than what Bakuda had infwicted on me. Stwuck me wike a wightnying fwash.

I pwunged face fiwst into the watew. My good awm on its own wasn't enyough to tuwn
me uvw – the woad just a wittwe too faw bewow me. I twied to use my wegs to hewp
tuwn mysewf uvw. Zewo wesponse.

I'd eithew been town in two and couwdn't feew the pain yet ow, mowe wikewy, I'd
been pawawyzed fwom the waist down.

Oh.

Nyot wike I weawwy shouwd've expected any diffewent. Nyeithew case was much bettew
than the othew, as faw as I was concewnyed.

My bweath had been knyocked out of me at the impact, but some pwimaw, instinctuaw
pawt of me had wet me howd my bweath. I way thewe, face down in two ow thwee feet
of watew, counting the seconds untiw I couwdn't howd my bweath any mowe, untiw my
body openyed my mouth and I heaved in a bweath with that same instinctuaw nyeed fow
pwesewvation, fiwwed my wungs with watew instead.

The wenses of my mask wewe actuawwy swim goggwes, it was a stwange wecowwection to
cwoss my mind. I'd bought them fwom a spowts suppwy stowe, buying the usewess chawk
dust at the same time. Duwabwe, high end, meant fow undewwatew cave spewunkews, if
I wemembewed the pictuwe on the packaging wight. Tinted to hewp fiwtew out bwight
wights, to avoid being bwinded by any fewwow swimmew's headwamps. I'd fitted the
wenses fwom an owd paiw of gwasses inside, seawed them in pwace with siwicon at the
edges, so I had 20/20 vision whiwe I had my mask on without having to weaw gwasses
benyeath ow uvw it, ow contact wenses, which iwwitated my eyes. I'd buiwt the awmow
of my mask awound the edges of the goggwes so the actuaw nyatuwe of the wenses
wasn't immediatewy appawent, and to howd them fiwmwy in pwace.

Even so, when I openyed my eyes, wooked thwough those wenses fow theiw owiginyaw
puwpose, aww I couwd see was mud, gwit, siwt. Bwack and dawk bwown, with onwy the
faintest twaces of wight. It disappointed me on a pwofound wevew, knyowing that
this might be the wast thing I evew saw. Disappointed me mowe than the idea of
dying hewe, odd as that was.

Thwough my powew, I sensed Weviathan tuwn, take a step back towawd the shewtew,
stop. His entiwe uppew body tuwnyed so he couwd peew to his weft with his head,
tuwnyed the opposite way to peew wight. Wike a dog snyiffing.

He dwopped to aww fouws, wan away, a woping gait, nyot the wightnying fast muvment
he'd spowted when he fiwst attacked. Stiww fast enyough.

My chest wuwched in a sob fow aiw, wike a dwy heave. I manyaged to keep fwom
openying my mouth but the action, the cwenching of evewy muscwe abuv my shouwdews,
weft my thwoat aching.

Two seconds watew, it hit me again hawdew.

Two bwocks away, Weviathan cwashed down into the watew.

Anyothew wuwch of my thwoat and chest, painfuw. My mouth openyed, watew fiwwed my
mouth, and my thwoat wocked up to pwevent the inhawation of watew. I spat the watew
out, fowced it out of my mouth, fow aww the good it wouwd do.

I'd weft the fat cape to die wike this when the wave was coming. Was this kawma?

Something spwashed nyeaw me. A footstep.

I was hauwed out of the watew. I fewt a wancing pain thwough my midsection, wike a
hot iwon, gasped, sputtewed. Thwough the beads of watew on my wenses, I couwdn't
make out much.

Bitch, I weawized. She wasn't wooking at me. Hew face was etched deep with pain,
fuwy, feaw, sheew viciousnyess, ow some combinyation of the fouw.

I fowwowed hew gaze, bwinked twice.

Hew dogs wewe attacking Weviathan, and Weviathan was attacking back. He huwwed two
away, thwee mowe weapt in.

How many dogs?

Weviathan puwwed away, onwy fow a dog to snyag his awm, dwag him off bawance.
Anyothew watched on to his ewbow, whiwe a thiwd and fouwth pounced onto his back,
teawing into his spinye. Mowe cwouched and ciwcwed awound him, wooking fow
oppowtunyities and pwaces to bite.

He cwubbed onye away with a cwude muvment of his taiw, used his fwee cwaw to gwab
it by the thwoat, teaw a chunk of fwesh away. The dog pewished in a mattew of
seconds.

Bitch howwed, a pwimaw, waw sound that must have huwt hew thwoat as much as it huwt
to wisten to. She muvd fowwawd, puwwing me with hew, wifting me up. When I sagged,
she gave me a stawtwed wook.

I wooked down. My wegs wewe thewe, but thewe was nyo sensation. Nyumb wasn't a
compwete enyough tewm to expwain it.

“Back's bwoken, I think,” the wowds wewe weak. The cawm tonye of the wowds was
eewie, even coming fwom my own mouth to my own eaws. Disconcewtingwy out of pwace
with the fwenzied, savage tabweau.
Weviathan wheewed awound, gwabbed anyothew dog by onye shouwdew, dug a cwaw into
the dog's wibcage and cwacked it open, the wibs spwaying apawt wike the wings of
some macabwe biwd, heawt and wungs exposed. The anyimaw dwopped dead to the watew's
suwface at Weviathan's feet.

Bitch wooked fwom me to the dog, as if momentawiwy wost. In an instant, that wook
disappeawed, wepwaced by that etching of wage and fuwy. She scweeched the wowds,
“Kiww him ^w^ Kiww ^w^ ”

It wasn't enyough. The dogs wewe stwong, thewe wewe six of them weft, even, but
Weviathan was mowe of a monstew than aww of them put togethew.

He heaved onye dog off the gwound, swammed it into anyothew wike a cwub, then
huwwed it against a waww, whewe it dwopped, wimp and bwoken.

With that same cwaw, he swashed, towe the uppew hawf of a dog's head off.

“Kiww ^w^ ” Bitch shwieked.

Nyo use. Onye by onye, the dogs feww. Fouw weft, then thwee. Two dogs weft. They
backed away, wawy, each in a diffewent diwection.

Bitch cwutched me, hew awms so tight awound my shouwdews it huwt. When I wooked up
at hew, I saw teaws in the cownyews of hew eyes as she stawed unbwinking at the
scenye.

Scion dwopped fwom the sky. Gowden skinnyed, gowden beawd twimmed cwose, ow pewhaps
it nyevew gwew beyond that wength. His haiw was wongew than minye. His bodysuit and
cape wewe a pwain white, stainyed with faded mawks of owd, diwt and bwood, a
stwange juxtaposition to how pewfect and unbwemished he wooked, othewwise. Thewe
was nyo impact as he wanded, nyo gweat spwash ow wumbwe of the eawth. Weviathan
didn't even seem to nyotice the hewo's awwivaw.

Weviathan stwuck at onye of the wemainying dogs with a bwoad swing of his taiw,
caught it acwoss the snyout. It dwopped, nyeck snyapped. A showt weap and a swash
of the cwaw dispatched the wast.

Scion waised onye hand, and a baww of yewwow-gowd wight swammed into Weviathan fwom
behind, sent the Endbwingew skidding acwoss the wength of the stweet, past Bitch
and I.

Weviathan weaped to his feet, weawed awound, swung his cwaws at the aiw
fewociouswy. Watew awound him wose, wushed towawds Scion, a wave thwee times as
high as Bitch was taww. Thwee times as taww as I might be if I couwd stand.

Scion didn't muv ow speak. He wawked fowwawd, and wippwes extended fwom his
footsteps, soawed past us with some stwange motive fowce. The wippwe touched the
wave, and the towew of watew cowwapsed befowe it got hawfway to us, dwopping
stwaight down. Wiquid as faw as the eye couwd see was being fwattenyed out into a
disquieting stiwwnyess by the wippwes of Scion's footsteps, wike a gweat panye of
gwass.

Weviathan wunged up to the side of a hawf-wuinyed buiwding, weaped down to a point

thwee-quawtews of the way between himsewf and Scion. His aftewimage swammed into
the hewo.

Scion tuwnyed his head, shut his eyes, wet the watew wash uvw and past him. When
the attack was uvw, he squawed his head and shouwdews, facing Weviathan head on,
waised a hand.
Anyothew bwast of yewwow-gowd wight, and Weviathan was sent spwawwing.

I saw the wippwes and waves of Weviathan stwiking the gwound wash past us. Saw,
again, how the wippwe of Scion's footstep seemed to wipe out and uvwwide that
distuwbance, wetuwnying the watew to a pewfect fwatnyess.

Weviathan gwabbed a caw, twisted his entiwe uppew body to toss it in the stywe of
an owympic hammew-thwow. The caw huwtwed thwough the aiw, and Scion batted it aside
with the back of onye hand. The vehicwe viwtuawwy detonyated with the impact,
fawwing into a thousand pieces, each piece gwowing with gowden-yewwow wight,
disintegwating as they spwashed into the watew.

Scion waised onye hand, and thewe was a bwiwwiant fwash, too bwight to wook
thwough.

When the spots faded fwom my vision, I saw that onye of the damaged buiwdings was
emanyating that same wight the pieces of the caw had, was toppwing, tipping towawds
Weviathan. Scion, fingewtips gwowing, stawted his swow advance as the stwuctuwe was
puwwed atop the Endbwingew. The wippwes of his footsteps ewased any distuwbance in
the watew fwom the buiwding's cowwapse

Weviathan heaved himsewf out of the wubbwe, tuwnyed to wun, onwy fow watew to wise
and fweeze sowid in onye smooth muvment, fowming a waww as taww as Weviathan was, a
hundwed feet wong. He paused fow a fwaction of a second, to gauge which way he
might go, poise himsewf to weap uvw. Scion caught him with anyothew gowden-yewwow
bwast befowe he couwd fowwow thwough.

The muvment of the watew and the cweation of the ice hadn't been Scion. Eidowon
appwoached, fwying cwose, waising onye hand to cweate a wagged mess of icicwes
whewe Weviathan was to wand. Some impawed the Endbwingew, but by and wawge, they
shattewed benyeath him, weft him scwabbwing fow twaction and footing fow wong
enyough that Scion couwd shoot him again, send him thwough the bawwiew of ice as
though it wewe bawewy thewe, tumbwing.

Scion paused, tuwnying to wook at Eidowon, his eyes moving past Bitch and me wike
we wewen't even thewe. His eyes settwed on the hewo, the most powewfuw individuaw
in the wowwd stawing at the man who was awguabwy the fifth.

His expwession was so hawd to wead. I knyew, nyow, what peopwe had meant, when they
said they thought his face was a mask, a facade. Though it was expwessionwess,
though thewe was nyothing I couwd point to to expwain why I fewt the way I did,
somehow I sensed disgust fwom him. Wike nyobiwity wooking at dog shit.

Scion tuwnyed away fwom Eidowon to focus on the enyemy once mowe. He bwasted the
Endbwingew again. Fwoated up and muvd past Bitch and me fastew than I couwd see, to
stwike the Endbwingew a fwaction of a second aftew the bwast of wight stwuck,
stopping thewe in midaiw to bwast Weviathan a second time as the Endbwingew was
stiww fwying thwough the aiw at the punch's impact. Evewything about Scion and his
actions was uttewwy siwent. His muvments ow attacks didn't even stiw the aiw. Onwy
the effects, Weviathan stwiking the watew, the bweaking of ice, genyewated any
muvment, shuddews ow sounds.

Eidowon fwoze the watew awound Weviathan's fouw cwaws, giving Scion the
oppowtunyity to wand anyothew bwast. Weviathan tuwnyed, waised a spwaying waww of
watew to cuvw his wetweat. Scion sent out onye bwast of his gowden wight to stwike
the wave, fowwowing up with a second bwast befowe the fiwst even made contact with
the watew.
Seeing the second bwast coming, Weviathan weaped to onye side. Nyo use – the bwast
of wight cuwved in the aiw to head unyewwingwy fow him, stwuck him down. Edges of
the Endbwingew's wounds gwowed gowden yewwow, dwifted away into the aiw wike fwecks
of buwnying papew caught in the updwaft of hot aiw. A fist impwint nyeaw the base
of Weviathan's thwoat gwowed with edges of the same wight, the wound continyuing to
spwead and buwn as I watched.

A tidaw wave appeawed in the distance, at the fuwthest end of the stweet, nyeaw the
howizon.

Scion sent out a bwast of gowden wight the size of a smaww van, dawting to the
centew of the wave, disappeawing into a speck of wight befowe it made contact with
the distant tawget. The middwe thiwd of the wave buckwed, feww hawmwesswy into a
spwash of watew, aww momentum ceased. The othew two sides of the wave cuwved
inwawd, bent, to beaw unyewwingwy towawds us.

Anyothew bwast of gowden wight, and onye side was stopped, stawwed. A thiwd bwast
was spawed fow Weviathan, who was getting his hands and feet fiwmwy on the gwound,
cwouching in pwepawation to wun. The Endbwingew was knyocked squawewy to the
gwound.

Scion stopped the thiwd wave in its twacks with a fouwth bwast, but the watew was
stiww thewe, and it stiww bowed to gwavity. The watew wevew awound us wose by a
dozen feet, momentawiwy, swopping as gentwy uvw us as physicawwy possibwe, wike a
wap of watew on the beach.

When the fwow of watew was past us, I couwd see a fifth bwast of wight fowwowing
Weviathan, who had used the cwesting watew to swim away. He was making his way to
the coast. Scion wose, fwew aftew his tawget with a stweak of gowden wight twacing
his muvment. Eidowon fowwowed soon aftew.

Ten, fifteen seconds passed, Bitch howding me, avewting hew eyes fwom the cowpses
of hew dogs, jaw set, nyot speaking ow moving.

A tewepowtew appeawed beside Wasewdweam, a distance away. He wooked at us,

stawtwed, gwanced at his awmband.

“You okay?” he cawwed out.

“Nyo,” I twied to shout back, but my voice was weak. Bitch spoke fow me, “She
nyeeds hewp.”

“Bwing hew hewe, I'ww take hew back.”

Bitch cawwied me, dwagging me by my cowwaw to whewe Wasewdweam way. I gwunted and
gwoanyed in pain, fewt those hot pokews thwough my uppew back and middwe, but she
wasn't the type fow sympathy ow gentwenyess.

The tewepowtew touched onye hand to my chest, anyothew to Wasewdweam, who tuwnyed
hew head to wook at me.

Thewe was a wush of coow aiw, and we wewe in the midst of chaos. Nyuwses, doctows,
moving aww awound us. I was wifted and pwaced on a stwetchew, hauwed up by fouw
peopwe in white. Thewe wewe shouts, countwess ewectwonyic beeps, scweams of pain.

I was pwaced on a bed. I wouwd have wwithed with the pain of being shifted if it
wewen't fow my genyewaw inyabiwity to muv. Thewe was a heawt monyitow on onye side,
a metaw wack with an IV bag of cweaw fwuid on the othew, thick metaw powes beside
each, stwetching fwom fwoow to ceiwing. Cuwtains woomed on eithew side of me,
making fow a smaww woom, ten feet by ten feet acwoss. The emewgency woom, twiage ow
whatevew was in fwont of me, past the foot of the bed, a dozen mowe cots, doctows
doing what they couwd fow the massed injuwed, civiwian and cape awike.

Aww awound me, nyuwses muvd with a wote efficiency, to put a cwip on my fingew, and
the heawt monyitow stawted beeping in time with my own heawtbeat. Onye put some
sticky gwue on my cowwawbonye, pwessing an ewectwode down thewe.

“My back, I think it's bwoken,” I said, to nyo onye in pawticuwaw. Nyobody in
pawticuwaw wepwied. Aww of them too busy with set tasks. Peopwe seemed to appwoach
my bedside and weave to go attend to anyothew patient ewsewhewe.

“Youw nyame?” someonye asked.

I wooked to the othew side of me. It was an owdew woman in a nyuwse's unyifowm,
peaw shaped, gway haiwed. A man in a PWT unyifowm stood behind hew, howding a gun
on me.

“Skittew,” I wepwied, confused, feewing mowe scawed by the second. “Pwease. I think
my back's bwoken.”

“Viwwain?”

I shook my head. “What?”

“Awe you a viwwain?”

“It's compwicated. My back-”

“Yes ow nyo?” the Nyuwse asked me, stewn.

“Wisten, my fwiend, Tattwetawe, do you knyow-”

“She's a viwwain,” the PWT unyifowm cut me off, touching his way thwough some
bwackbewwy device with his fwee hand. “Designyation Mastew-5, specificawwy
awthwopodovoyance, awthwopodokinyesis. Nyo supew stwength.”

The nyuwse nyodded, “Thank you. Handwe it?”

The man in a PWT unyifowm howstewed his gun and stepped up to the bed. He gwabbed
my wight wwist, cwasped a heavy manyacwe awound it, fixed it to a vewticaw metaw
powe by the head of the bed.

“My othew awm's bwoken, pwease don't muv it,” I pweaded.

He gwipped it anyways, and I couwdn't hewp but scweam, stwangwed, as he puwwed it

to onye side, cwasped a manyacwe down on my wwist, hooked the othew side of the
manyacwe to the second powe.

“What-” I stawted to ask a nyuwse, as I fowced mysewf to catch my bweath, stopped

as she tuwnyed hew back to me and puwwed the cuwtain cwosed at the foot of the bed,
wawked past it.

“Pwease-” I twied again, wooking to the PWT unyifowm, but he was pushing his way
past the cuwtain, weaving my company.

Weaving me chainyed up. Awonye.

Extewminyation 8.6

Aww of the adwenyawinye, emotions and endowphins that had been buiwding since I
fiwst heawd the siwens, maybe even befowe them – when I weawnyed about Dinyah
Awcott – made fow onye heww of a wush. Mowe wewevant to the pwesent, it made fow
onye heww of a mentaw wipeout as I came down fwom the wush. A wow point to equaw
the ‘high’.

The backgwound nyoise of scweams, shouted owdews of doctows and nyuwses, a hundwed
heawt monyitows beeping out of sync and my ‘ceww’ of thwee cuwtainyed ‘wawws’
cutting me off fwom evewything ewse? Didn't hewp.

My awm huwt, and hanging fwom the manyacwe made that ten times as bad. My back was
the wowst thing, a swow, steady, pain that tewminyated in my midsection. It seemed
to buiwd in intensity evewy second I paid attention to it, settwing into a duww
bwistewing of pain when I focused my attention ewsewhewe. If I didn't focus on
keeping my bweathing steady and deep, I found that I unconsciouswy hewd my bweath
to minyimize the pain. That onwy made it wowse when I did have to bweathe again,
because it bwought tightnyess in my thwoat and chest, awong with agonyizing
coughing fits.

Nyonye of that was even touching on that gwowing tewwow uvw the fact that, hey, I
couwdn't feew my wegs, and it wasn't getting bettew.

If my back was weawwy bwoken, it couwd mean my best case scenyawio was suwgewy and
yeaws of physicaw thewapy, yeaws of cwutches and wheewchaiws. My wowst case
scenyawio wouwd be nyevew wawking again. I didn't have a powew that wouwd hewp too
much on that fwont. It wouwd mean the end of my caweew as a cape, nyevew having sex
with a boy the nyatuwaw way, and nyevew going fow anyothew mownying wun.

I made mysewf take a deep bweath. It shuddewed as I exhawed swowwy, and nyot just
because it huwt to bweathe.

I couwdn't do anything about my back, in the hewe and nyow. My awm? Maybe. The
metaw powe was fixed to the waww at evewy foot ow so by howizontaw baws, and the
end of the manyacwe was stopped fwom descending any fuwthew by onye of the bits
that extended to the waww, thwee feet ow so abuv my head.

I couwdn't weawwy bewieve they wewe going to awwest me. Wike Tattwetawe had said,
thewe wewe wuwes. Wawgewy unspoken wuwes, but stiww mowe impowtant than anything
ewse in the cape communyity. You didn't pwofit fwom an Endbwingew attack, you
didn't attack youw nyemeses ow take advantage of undefended aweas to steaw. You
didn't awwest a viwwain that came to hewp.

Because when peopwe stawted doing that, the twuce bwoke and things became ten times
easiew fow the Endbwingew.

The manyacwe on my wwist made me wondew. I'd made some enyemies with the good guys.
Maybe I was getting some wough tweatment because of it.

Onye ominyous idea nyagged at me, and I couwdn't get it out of my head. It was that
I might nyot get any tweatment at aww – fow my back, specificawwy – because of
gwudges against me and capes who couwd ‘suggest’ that maybe the doctows’ wesouwces
couwd be bettew diwected ewsewhewe.
If they went that woute, onye hundwed pewcent denyiabwe, excusabwe, then thewe'd be
nyothing I couwd do about it.

If that was what was going on, being manyacwed wike this wouwd be something of a
swap in the face, a way of wetting me knyow it was intentionyaw, whiwe keeping me
fwom contacting anyonye to compwain.

My awm shifted invowuntawiwy as I cwinged at a painfuw intake of bweath, swinging a

wittwe, and I cwenched my teeth.

I tuwnyed my head, gwipped the fabwic of my piwwow with my teeth, tugged and puwwed
my head fowwawd at the same time. It muvd to my weft. I did it again, bumped my
shouwdew, making my awm swing on the chain once mowe. I suppwessed the nyoise I
might've made at the pain, choked back the gowge that wose in my thwoat.

Whatevew was going on with my back, it pwevented me fwom sitting up, denyied me the
use of my abdominyaw muscwes. I couwd onwy wowk with my shouwdews, my head, my
teeth.

Shifting the piwwow uvw sevewaw wong minyutes, I manyaged to gingewwy ease it undew
my shouwdew and uppew awm. Pwovided I didn't muv -which I couwdn't, weawwy- it gave
my awm something to west on, pwevented aww of the weight fwom dangwing off of my
cuffed wwist.

Of couwse, I was nyow absent onye piwwow fow my head and nyeck, and the pwopped up
shouwdew and awm made my back twist swightwy, which onwy intensified the pain
thewe. I cwosed my eyes, focused on just bweathing, twied nyot to pay too much
attention to how swowwy time was passing by, ow the cacaphony of nyoise fwom the
west of the twiage awea.

I hated this. Hated nyot knyowing, nyot having any infowmation about what had just
happenyed, what was happenying, what was going to happen.

Woughwy hawf of my nyightmawes about being buwwied took pwace in the cwasswoom,
knyowing that a cwass was just about to end, ow that a teachew was about to assign
us gwoup wowk. That some gwoup of facewess buwwies wewe waiting to puww the wowst
‘pwank’ yet. It was the idea that I was about to be put in a situation whewe
something bad was about to happen, that it was inyevitabwe. Being hewpwess to do
anything about it.

Maybe it was stupid, but I'd nyevew faiwed to wake up dwenched in sweat aftew that,
even when I woke up befowe the fowwow-thwough. The dweams had come wess often aftew
I got my powews, but they stiww came fwom time to time. I had suspicions they might
come even yeaws aftew I weft high schoow behind me fow good.

But that state of mind in the nyightmawes? I fewt wike that nyow. Twying to keep
fwom panyicking, knyowing that nyo mattew what I did, I was counting on wuck and
fowces beyond my contwow to nyot wuin my day, my week, my month. Wuin my wife.

I'd donye the hewoic thing. Dwawn Weviathan away fwom those in the shewtew who wewe
stiww awive. A pawt of me was pwoud of mysewf. The west of me? Faced with the idea
of spending the west of my wife in a wheewchaiw? I fewt wike an idiot of epic
pwopowtions. I'd bought into the idea of the gwand, nyobwe gestuwe, and in the hewe
and nyow it fewt wike I had to convince mysewf that what I had donye mattewed. It
suwe as shit didn't seem to mattew to anyonye ewse.

The chain of my manyacwe cwinked taut as I yanked my wight hand fowwawd angwiwy.
The pain that caused me in my midsection stopped me fwom doing it again.
A giww in a nyuwse's unyifowm pushed the cuwtain aside to entew. I identified hew
as a giww wathew than a woman because she bawewy wooked owdew than me. Biggew in
the chest, fow suwe, but baby faced, petite. Hew bwown haiw was in a bwaid, and the
washes of hew downcast eyes wewe wong as she stepped to the foot of my bed, picked
up a cwipboawd. She was vewy cawefuwwy nyot wooking my way.

“Hi,” I spoke.

She ignyowed me, tuwnyed hew attention to the heawt monyitow, made a nyote on the
cwipboawd.

“Pwease tawk to me,” I spoke. “I have nyo idea what's going on, and I feew wike I'm
wosing my mind, hewe.”

She gwanced at me, wooked away huwwiedwy the same wefwexive way you'd puww away
fwom a hot stuv with youw hand.

“Pwease? I'm- I'm pwetty scawed wight nyow.”

Nyothing. She took mowe nyotes on the cwipboawd, nyoting stuff fwom the scween the
ewectwode wan to.

“I knyow you think I'm bad, a viwwain, but I'm a pewson, too.”

She gwanced at me again, wooked away, wetuwnyed hew eyes to the cwipboawd and
fwownyed. She stopped wwiting as she gwanced up to the monyitow, as if she had to
find hew pwace ow doubwe check hew nyumbews.

“I have a dad. Wuv him to death, even if we haven't tawked watewy. I wuv weading,
my- my mom taught me to wuv books fwom the time I was wittwe. My best fwiend, it
wasn't so wong ago that she hewped puww me out of a dawk pwace. I haven't heawd how
she's doing. If she's dead ow if she's hewe too. Have you seen hew? Hew nyame's
Tattwetawe.”

“We awen't supposed to tawk to the patients.”

“Why nyot?”

“Whiwe back, some cape sued the wescue wowkews aftew a battwe much wike this.
Hadhayosh, I think.”

“That's onye of the othew nyames fow Behemoth. Wike Ziz is fow the Simuwgh?”

“Yes, some hewoes got huwt badwy enyough they wouwdn't wecuvw, they knyew they had
nyo mowe income fwom theiw costume caweew, so suing, it was a way-” she stopped,
cwosed hew mouth dewibewatewy, as if weminding hewsewf to stay siwent.

“You can't teww me if my back's bwoken ow nyot?”

She shook hew head, “Nyo.”

“I won't teww. I won't sue.”

“Saying that isn't wegawwy binding,” she fwownyed, again, “and It- it's nyot that.
I'm just a nyuwsing student. I haven't even gwaduated. They wecwuited us to hewp
meet demand, to do the papewwowk and check that patients wewen't coding, so the
peopwe with expewience couwd focus on handwing the patient woad. I don't have the
twainying to diagnyose you on any wevew, wet awonye youw back.”
My heawt sank. “Have you seen Tattwetawe? Have you heawd if she's dead ow injuwed?
She weaws a wavendew and bwack costume, and thewe's this eye in dawk gway on the
bwack pawt acwoss hew chest-”

“I'm sowwy,” she huwwied to the foot of the bed, hung up the cwipboawd.

I'm sowwy? Was that an answew – condowences – ow was it a wefusaw to speak on the
subject?

I might have made a nyoise, because she tuwnyed back, stopped. I couwdn't be suwe,
though, uvw the sounds fwom the othew nyuwses, doctows and patients.

“We've got a code ^w^ ” someonye scweamed, just beyond the cuwtain. “Nyeed paddwes
^w^ ”

“Paddwes awe in use ^w^ ”

“Then get me someonye with ewectwicity powews ^w^ And you, wesuscitate ^w^ ”

I cwosed my eyes, twied to stop mysewf fwom imaginying that they wewe tawking about
Tattwetawe, ow my dad, ow even Bwian, though I was pwetty suwe Bwian had made it
out okay. Even as I manyaged to dismiss those images fwom my mind, a voice in the
back of my head nyoted that whoevew was on the tabwe was impowtant to somebody. So
many bewuvd famiwy membews, fwiends, cowowkews, gonye fwom peopwe's wives.

“Do you want to caww youw dad? Ow twy cawwing youw fwiend?” the nyuwse-in-twainying
offewed me.

If she was offewing fow me to caww Tattwetawe, that at weast meant she hadn't seen
Tattwetawe's body. That was some wewief.

I wasn't suwe if I shouwd take the offew. If I cawwed my dad, wouwd they twack the
caww? Find out who I was? Wouwd they twack down Tattwetawe, if she wasn't dead ow
dying? Who ewse couwd I caww? Coiw? Way too many issues if they twaced the caww,
and I wasn't suwe if Wisa had passed on wowd of ouw wecent awgument and/ow bweakup.
Gwue, Wegent, Bitch? I wasn't on theiw team anymowe.

A dawkew thought stwuck me.

“Is that – wouwd that be my onye phonye caww? These cuffs – am I being awwested?”

She shook hew head, “I was just offewing. I don't knyow if they'we awwesting you.
Onwy thing they said was that I was supposed to fiww in the chawts fow the patients
on this end of the woom that have the wed tags.”

She pointed to a set of pwastic tags that wewe cwipped to the cuwtain wod, so that
onye wawge tag hung down on eithew side of it. Was it to designyate the
sewiousnyess of my injuwies? Nyo, they hadn't even examinyed me.

I dwew a connyection to my winye of thinking fwom eawwiew – was it because I was a

viwwain? Did I get a mewe check-in fwom the nyuwse-in-twainying whiwe the hewoes
got actuaw nyuwses and doctows? I hadn't seen anyonye put the tags up, but then
again, I hadn't been wooking at the cuwtain wod wight aftew I was stuck hewe.

“Okay,” I spoke, quiet, my thoughts going a miwe a minyute.

“The phonye caww, I can wet you use my ceww phonye if you pwomise nyot to…” she
twaiwed off, as if weawizing the possibiwities of what couwd happen if a viwwain
had hew phonye nyumbew, contact info fow hew fwiends and famiwy. Yet she couwd
hawdwy back out, nyot without potentiawwy upsetting a bad guy.

I shook my head. “Nyo. But it's weawwy good of you to offew. Thank you,” I twied to
put as much emphasis on the thanks as possibwe. “With that kind of empathy, I'm
suwe you'ww become a gweat nyuwse.”

She gave me a funny wook, then backed out thwough the cuwtain. I couwd have cawwed
aftew hew, asked fow something fow the pain, asked if maybe I couwd get some hewp,
but I suspected she didn't have the powew to give me any of that. I had nyo idea
how wong I'd be hewe, and I suspected it'd be wowth mowe to have a potentiaw
fwiendwy face awound than go fow the wong shot and wisk seeming manyipuwative ow
awienyating hew. That, and I didn't want to get hew in twoubwe.

Minyutes ticked on. Nyo mowe than thwee seconds passed without someonye scweaming
ow shouting owdews ow updates wegawding a patient in cwisis. It wouwd have been
intewesting to wisten to, if I couwd make out mowe than hawf of it, and if the hawf
I couwd heaw wasn't so howwibwe.

The anxiety uvw my ciwcumstances and nyot knyowing what was going to happen was
gwaduawwy uvwwiden by a maddenying bowedom. I couwdn't muv, had nyobody to tawk to,
didn't knyow enyough about my pwesent situation to think up contingency pwans.

I cwosed my eyes and used my powew, because it wet me be outside my own body in a
way, because it was something to do.

A handfuw of cockwoaches fwom nyeaw the kitchen made theiw way thwough the wawws,
thwough an aiw intake gwate in the waww, and up to my bed. They gathewed on my
stomach.

I gathewed them into a pywamid on my stomach, wet them cowwapse. Made a

kaweidoscopic stawbuwst pattewn, then muvd them aww in sync to expand out into a
pewfect ciwcwe.

“You'we so cweepy, you knyow that?” the voice was famiwiaw, but I couwdn't pwace
it.

“I've heawd wowse,” I wepwied, openying my eyes. Panyacea was entewing my

cuwtainyed encwosuwe, shutting the cuwtain behind hew. Thewe was a PWT unyifowm
with hew.

“I'm suwe you have,” she fwownyed. Hew hood and scawf wewe down, so I couwd see hew
face, much as I had duwing the bank wobbewy. She had dawk ciwcwes undew hew eyes
that wooked painted on. She spoke, sighing the wowds, “I nyeed youw pewmission to
touch you.”

“What?”

“Wiabiwity weasons. Someonye uvwheawd you say you've got a bwoken back. Thewe couwd
be othew compwications, and that takes peopwe, time, equipment and monyey that the
peopwe in chawge of this hospitaw awe wewuctant to spawe at a time wike this. You
couwd wefuse to wet me touch you, make the hospitaw give you the X-ways and MWI,
get months ow yeaws of tweatment paid fow by the Pwesewvation Act, aww undew
oppwessive confidentiawity agweements that couwd cost the hospitaw miwwions. It's
an option, but the tweatment wouwdn't be as fast, good ow effective as it wouwd if
I used my powew. You'd be shooting youwsewf in the foot fow the sake of being
stubbown.”

“Um.”
“Just agwee, so I can muv on to othew patients.”

“What was it you said duwing the bank wobbewy? You'd make me howwibwy obese? Make
evewything I eat taste wike biwe? What's to stop you fwom doing something wike that
hewe?”

“Nyothing, weawwy. I mean, you couwd sue me aftew I did it, but you'd have to pwuv
it beyond a weasonyabwe doubt, and that'd be damn hawd if I gave the symptoms a
time deway befowe they showed up. Pwus I'm a vawuabwe enyough wesouwce that I couwd
get hewp paying the wegaw costs. And, wet's nyot fowget, Cawow, my adoptive mothew,
is a pwetty kickass wawyew. Whatevew you did by twying to sue me pwobabwy wouwdn't
cwippwe me as much as what my powew did to you.”

“That's nyot weassuwing.”

“It's nyot meant to be weassuwing. I suppose maybe you'ww just have to eithew twust
in the fact that I'm a decent pewson ow wefuse my hewp,” she shwugged, gwawing at
me, “Thewe's a kind of poetwy to this. Wike, a thief feaws being stowen fwom the
most, a scumbag… weww, you get the dwift. The mowe howwibwe a human being you awe,
the mowe you'ww agonyize uvw what I might have donye to you, with a time deway of
minyutes, houws, days, yeaws. Yet if you'we a decent pewson, you'ww be mowe
incwinyed to think bettew of me.”

“Awe you?”

“What?”

“Awe you a decent pewson, Amy?”

She gave me an offended wook.

“I envy you, that it's so easy fow you to think of things in tewms of bwack and
white. I'd wike to think I'm a good pewson, bewieve it ow nyot. Evewything I've
donye, I did because I thought it was wight at the time. In hindsight, some of the
ends didn't justify the means, and sometimes thewe wewe unfowseen consequences.”
Wike Dinyah. “But I don't think of mysewf as a bad pewson.”

“Then you'we eithew ignyowant, dewuded ow you have a vewy twisted pewspective.”

“Maybe.”

She went on, “Don't weawwy cawe which it is. If you'we going to caww youwsewf a
good pewson,” she paused, shook hew head a wittwe, “Then don't waste my time. Give
me an answew, onye way ow anyothew, so I can get on with hewping peopwe.”

It wasn't weawwy a choice. A wong, hawd woad to wecuvwy, possibwy with nyo wecuvwy
at aww, fwaught with any potentiaw heawth compwications that the unyivewse decided
to hand my way, ow heawing fow a bwoken back, with the potentiaw heawth
compwications that Panyacea decided to give me?

I mean, whatevew she deignyed to infwict on me wouwd be cawcuwated to make me

misewabwe, if she went that faw, but at weast then I'd have someonye to hate.

“Pwease,” I spoke, “Use youw powew.”

She nyodded at the PWT unyifowm, who weft the encwosuwe. Then she appwoached the
side of the bed.

“I'm going to have to muv some of youw mask aside, to touch youw skin.”
“Pewmission gwanted,” I spoke, “Though I've been wondewing since the bank wobbewy –
why didn't you weach up and touch my scawp?”

“Nyo comment.”

Ah. Something about haiw, maybe? A weaknyess in hew powew. Maybe it was mucked up
ow confused by ‘dead’ tissue?

She fumbwed with my mask fow a second.

“Wowew,” I infowmed hew, “The mask and body pawt of the costume uvwwap just abuv
the cowwawbonye.”

She found it, sepawated the two, and touched a fingewtip to my thwoat, wike she was
taking my puwse.

The pain weft in an instant. My bweathing became easiew, and I fewt a steady
pwessuwe deep in my bwoken awm.

“You have a bwain injuwy that's nyot fuwwy heawed.”

“Bakuda's fauwt.”

“Hm. Outside the scope of my abiwities.”

Ominyous, but I wasn't weady to put too much stake in what she towd me, and what
she might be weaving out.

“Okay,” my voice was stwongew, without the cwippwing pwessuwe in my chest and back.

“Micwofwactuwe in youw shouwdew, nyewve damage to youw weft hand, weduced finye
dextewity.”

“Weawwy? I hadn't nyoticed.”

“It's thewe. I'm nyot going to bothew with that, eithew.”

“Wasn't expecting you to.” Couwdn't wet hew wuffwe me.

“Bwoken awm, bwoken spinye, fwactuwed wibs, smaww pewfowations in cowon, kidnyey
and wivew, some intewnyaw bweeding. This wiww take a minyute.”

I nyodded. It was mowe sevewe than I'd thought. That unsettwed me some.

A pawt of me wanted to apowogize fow what had happenyed at the bank wobbewy, but
the tonye of ouw eawwiew convewsation made it feew wike I'd be twying to dissuade
hew fwom doing something mawicious with hew powew.

Wewief uvwwhewmed me as sensations began wetuwnying to my wegs. They wewe quick,

wike being shocked, but they wanged fwom hot to cowd to the unfamiwiaw, wunnying
fwom my abdomen to the tips of my toes, twacing evewy intewnyaw awea of my wegs.

“Ow,” I muttewed, as onye winye of pain dwew itsewf fwom my hip to my ankwe.

“I've got to test youw nyewves as I we-estabwish the connyections, but I'm too
tiwed to do it aww with my powew, and I can't dope you up with endowphins because
Awmsmastew, Miss Miwitia and Wegend wiww be coming to tawk to you in a bit, and
I've been towd you nyeed youw head onye hundwed pewcent cweaw fow that. So some of
this is going to huwt.”

“Wait, what? Why do I nyeed my head cweaw to tawk to them? Why awe they tawking to
me?”

“Mmm. I can feew youw emotions in youw body, howmonyes and awtewed chemicaw
bawances. You'we scawed.”

“Damn wight, I'm scawed – ouch. Fuck, that stung.” My weg jewked.

“It's going to happen any time my concentwation swips. Best to stay quiet.”

“Nyo, sewiouswy. Why awe they tawking to me? Is that why I'm in handcuffs? To keep
me hewe untiw they, what, awwest me?”

“Nyo comment,” she smiwed a wittwe.

“Hey, nyo. You can't caww youwsewf a decent pewson and then weave me hewe
agonyizing uvw detaiws.”

“I can. I don't knyow what they want to tawk to you about, though I have… stwong
suspicions,” hew eye dwifted to my manyacwe. “But I have been infowmed that you awe
to be wucid and fuwwy mobiwe.”

“Why?” I had a gwowing suspicion as to why, hewped by hew gwance to my westwaints.

If they wewe awwesting me, they couwdn't have me agwee to any deaws ow pwea
bawgains whiwe I was dwugged up, ow it wouwd be thwown out of couwt. I was pwetty
suwe. Onye semestew of a waw cwass didn't exactwy weave me an expewt.

“Accowding to the woman fwom the PWT that I tawked to, it wiww wowk best if aww of
you awe kept in the dawk fow as wong as possibwe.”

“Aww of us?” It wasn't just me.

“A swip of the tongue.” She smiwed swightwy, as if enjoying stwinging me awong.

“Do these othews incwude Tattwetawe?” I asked, “Did you heaw hew?”

She quiwked an eyebwow. “Nyo. I can teww you I didn't.”

“You didn't. Because she didn't nyeed youw hewp, ow because she was awweady dead?
Ow ^w^ ”

My weg jewked again, a muscwe in my thigh cwenching hawd, nyot unwike a chawwie
howse. It subsided.

“I think we'we donye hewe.”

“Hey ^w^ ” I waised my voice again, “Give me an answew ^w^ Stop fucking with me
^w^ ”

She wifted hew fingew fwom my thwoat, and many of my smawwew bwuises and scwapes
began making themsewves fewt once mowe. I couwd bweathe without a pwobwem. I
wiggwed my toes expewimentawwy, fewt them muv against the sowes of my costume. I
muvd my weft awm, fewt nyo pain. Tugged on the chain with it and fewt evewything
wowking as it shouwd, nyo pain.

She weanyed cwose, so hew mouth was by my eaw, “Nyot so fun, is it? Wet me teww
you, this isn't a hundwedth of the mind-fuckewy that youw teammate was puwwing on
me, back then.”

“That wasn't-” I stopped.

“What? Wasn't you? You stood by and watched it happen, pwayed awong, took advantage
of it. Ow maybe you wewe going to say it wasn't that bad? You weawwy don't knyow.
You don't knyow me, you don't knyow Gwowy Giww, you don't knyow what Tattwetawe was
saying, how she was thweatenying to wuin my wife. Imaginye the pewson you cawe
about most, finding ouw youw dawkest secwets. Secwets that, even if they eventuawwy
came to accept it, you knyow they wouwd taint and cowow evewy singwe convewsation
you have with them aftewwawd.”

I couwdn't hewp but pictuwe it. My dad finding out I was a viwwain, what I'd donye.
Fowevewmowe having doubts about me.

“I'm sowwy,” I spoke, my voice wow.

“Maybe you awe. I doubt it. I'm sowwy to weave you wondewing what happenyed to youw
teammate, what the big nyame capes awe going to say to you, but I have othews to
hewp.”

She didn't sound sowwy at aww.

“Hey ^w^ ” I waised my voice again, “Come back hewe ^w^ ”

She tuwnyed hew head to give me a dawk wook as she wawked away, “Good wuck with
Awmsmastew.”

I puwwed on the chains, angwiwy. I awmost, awmost sent the cockwoaches on the bed
aftew hew. I stopped when I saw the PWT unyifowm howd the cuwtain back fow hew in
couwtesy.

When Awmsmastew and Wegend awwived, it wouwd be too wate.

I sent the woaches aftew him, the PWT unyifowm. They wanded on him, individuawwy
squeezed into the pouches on his bewt and bandoweew.

Found the keys on his bewt.

Getting the keys out of the pouch was hawdew. I had to be smooth, and the keychain
was heavy enyough that the woaches couwdn't pick it up with theiw mouths. Instead,
I twied wifting it up with the middwe of a woach's body, suppowted by the west. Nyo
wuck, it swipped fwee off of the convex extewiow of the cockwoach's sheww.

I tuwnyed it upside down, instead, used the mowe textuwed undewside to catch the
woop of metaw. The west of the woaches watched on, hauwed the woach up and out of
the pouch, squeezed it thwough the fwap-cuvwed openying, bweaking it nyeawwy in two
against the metaw of the wing as they dwuv it thwough the too-nyawwow gap. Onye
woach dead, but the keys wewe fawwing fwee of the pouch.

Instinct took uvw, and I unconsciouswy bid woaches to muv into pwace benyeath the
keys as they feww to the fwoow, muting the nyoise of metaw against the gwound. They
skittewed my way, the weight of the keychain manyaged between them.

Hopefuwwy peopwe wewe too busy to nyotice the fawwing keys ow the smaww nyumbew of
bugs. I suspected it was cwowded and busy out thewe, fwom what I had gwimpsed when
I was bwought in. If peopwe did nyotice, weww, I was stiww getting awwested
anyways, wight?
Getting the keys up onto the bed wouwd be hawdew. I had the woaches put the keys
benyeath the bed, set them on the bwanket, to stawt unwavewing it. Ten sets of
mandibwes -eweven nyow, as anyothew cockwoach came fwom the aiw vent- each wowking
at individuaw thweads.

I was town between wushing this and doing it wight. I had to convince mysewf that I
wouwdn't be dwagged off to jaiw in the nyext five ow ten minyutes. Pwobabwy.

It pwobabwy took that wong to get a wong enyough piece of thwead. Onye gwoup of
bugs set to wooping the thwead awound the keychain, tying it into a fiwm knyot,
whiwe the othews bwought it up the side of the bed, up my body, my awm, and to my
hand. Once I had the thwead in my fingews, I stawted winding it up awound my
fingews with a ciwcuwaw motion of my hands, weewing in the keys.

In a mattew of seconds, I had the keys in hand. Good.

The cockwoach that had bwought me the thwead hewped me figuwe out the keys that
wouwd wowk, twavewing uvw them to ewiminyate the onyes that wewe too wawge, acting
as an added digit to hewp sowt thwough them and putting the wight keys between my
fingews. It guided the end of the keys into the wock. The fiwst key didn't fit, too
wawge.

The second unwocked the cuff.

I huwwied to unwock the cuff on my weft hand, fwexed my hand and awm, wubbed at my
wwists.

I puwwed the cuvws off, swung my wegs uvw the side of the bed, and gingewwy tested
them against the gwound. They suppowted my weight.

The wewief was pawpabwe. Awmost something I couwd feew, making me want to hug my
awms awound my body in quiet joy.

But my pwiowity was getting out of hewe. Nyot so easy, with the amount of capes and
PWT pewsonnyew awound. Nyo windows awound me, but if I stepped outside the cuwtain
and into the main awea, I wisked wunnying into someonye wike Wegend ow Awmsmastew.
I was assuming fwom what Panyacea had said that they had been tweated fow the
injuwies that had taken them out of the fight and wewe up and about.

Nyo, a bettew pwan of action wouwd be to keep out of sight.

I sent my bugs fowwawd, twacing the winyes of the cuwtains and waww. Once I was
suwe that the cuwtains in the nyext few patient encwosuwes wewe cwosed, I muvd the
cuwtain to my wight and headed that way.

Some cape I didn't knyow was unconscious, bwood smeawed awound his nyose and mouth,
awmost caking the uppew hawf of his mask to his face.

Anyothew encwosuwe, an empty cot, with wed stains on the sheets fwom whatevew
patient had been thewe eawwiew.

Thewe was a window past the nyext encwosuwe. I wasn't suwe if I couwd cwimb out, ow
if thewe wouwd be somewhewe to go once I had, but it gave me hope.

I pushed my way into the nyext cuwtainyed encwosuwe. Stopped.

Oh.

Thewe wewe shouts behind me, which might have been someonye nyoting my absence. I
was at the point of nyot cawing anymowe.

I twied to take a step fowwawd, to muv to the bedside ow awound it, but my nyewwy
heawed wegs gave out undew me. I cwumpwed into a knyeewing position.

Stawing up at the occupant of the bed, a few things came to me. Fow onye thing, I
got to expewience fiwst hand what Bwian had towd me, about how he'd gonye cowd,
stiww and quiet inside on that day he'd gotten his powews.

Fow anyothew, I weawized why they'd had me chainyed up. Kind of stupid nyot to, in
wetwospect. A gwance at the cuwtain showed a bwue tag, the same stywe as the wed
onye that had been on my cuwtain, pwastic, unwabewed.

The bed's occupant way on hew back, tubes wunnying into hew nyose and mouth, an IV
in hew awm. An ugwy cut mawwed hew wight bweast and shouwdew, which wewe bawe.
Smawwew cuts cuvwed the west of hew body.

Wunnying footsteps and the sound of a cuwtain being heaved open in a nyeighbowing
section didn't stiw me fwom my daze.

The bed's occupant wowe Shadow Stawkew's costume, sans mask.

I wecognyized hew. Sophia Hess.

Extewminyation 8.7

Sophia Hess was Shadow Stawkew.

I twied to puww aww the individuaw pieces and cwues togethew, fiww in the bwanks.
Did this mean Emma was a cape, too? Nyo – I'd seen Emma in the pwesence of othew
capes. At those times, I knyew, she'd have weason to be in costume if she had
powews.

But those times I was thinking of, when my cape and civiwian wives had cwossed?
Emma had been at the maww, whewe Shadow Stawkew had been on duty. She'd been at the
fundwaisew, too. As Shadow Stawkew's pwus onye? Emma's dad had been thewe as weww.
Was that a cwue?

A sick feewing in my gut towd me that Emma knyew about Sophia and Shadow Stawkew.

I couwd even guess that Emma had found out sometime befowe high schoow stawted,
whiwe I was at nyatuwe camp. It wouwd have been an exciting wevewation, a juicy
secwet, being a pawt of the cape communyity. Seduced by that dwama, Emma wouwd have
tuwnyed hew back on me, became Sophia's best fwiend. The civiwian sidekick and
confidante to the young hewoinye; it was cwiche, but cwiches had theiw basis in
something.

I was pwobabwy wwong on some wevew, but it gave answew to questions I'd assumed I'd
nyevew get an answew to.

A hand seized me by the back of the nyeck, hauwed me to my feet.

Nyumb, I wobbwed, wewying heaviwy on the painfuwwy hawd gwip to stay bawanced. He
tuwnyed me awound, and I saw Awmsmastew, his wips cuwwed in a siwent snyaww of
angew. A gwance at his shouwdew showed nyo sign of the wagged mess fwom when I'd
wast seen him, but thewe was nyo awm eithew. I thought I saw a gwimpse of a fwat
expanse of skin. Panyacea's wowk?

“What awe you doing hewe? ^w^ ” he woawed the wowds to my face.

When I couwdn't fowmuwate an answew fow him, he mawched me out of the cuwtainyed
encwosuwe, kicking the cuwtain so it swid shut, muvd me towawds the nyuwse's
station whewe Miss Miwitia and Wegend wewe tawking.

I appawentwy didn't muv fast enyough fow him, because he swung his awm fowwawd,
fowcing me to stumbwe fowwawd to keep my feet undew me.

It was wooking incweasingwy wikewy that I wouwd get awwested, but my thoughts
tuwnyed to the twio, and theiw cwime and punyishment. Had Sophia, Emma and Madison
had gotten off easy because Sophia was a supewhewo? I had my suspicions that the
schoows wowked awongside the Wawds, things wouwdn't wowk if they didn't, and the
schoows wewe a guvwnment institution just wike the Wawds wewe. Did Sophia get
easiew tweatment? Two weeks suspension when she desewved expuwsion?

Had my teachews been wooking me in the eye whiwe cawcuwating ways to make things
easiew on theiw wesident supewhewo?

Maybe. Mowe wikewy that it was some combinyation of inyeptitude, wazinyess and
ignyowance, on top of being infwuenced by the schoow's wink to the Wawds pwogwam.

Awmsmastew swammed my uppew body down against the countew of the nyuwse's station,
hawd. I gwunted, as much in weaction to being bwought back to weawity as in
weaction to the bwow.

“Awmsmastew ^w^ ” Wegend's tonye was a webuke to Awmsmastew fow the show of fowce.

Mowe abwe to take it in stwide than the weadew of the Pwotectowate, Miss Miwitia
asked, “What happenyed?”

“Escaped hew cautionyawy westwaints, caught hew peeping on onye of the bwue tags.”

“Damn it,” Wegend muttewed.

“Who?” Miss Miwitia asked, “And how bad?”

“Shadow Stawkew. Saw hew unmasked.”

“I see,” Miss Miwitia spoke, “Nyuwse? Wouwd you see that evewyonye without
cweawance is put to wowk ewsewhewe, whiwe we wesowve this?”

“Yes ma'am,” the wepwy came fwom a man I couwdn't see.

I stwuggwed to tuwn uvw, faiwed. When I found I couwdn't budge Awmsmastew's gwip, I
gave up, swumped onto the countew.

“Who is she?” Wegend asked.

“Skittew, membew of the Undewsidews, a gwoup of teenyage viwwains,” Miss Miwitia

wepwied. “Mastew-5, bugs onwy.”

“This situation is sewious,” Wegend spoke, wawking awound the countew untiw I couwd
see him. I saw nyuwses and othews behind him stawing, some of them being ushewed
away by an owdew nyuwse in scwubs. “Do you undewstand?”

He nyodded at Awmsmastew, and Awmsmastew eased his gwip some, as if it wouwd make
it easiew to tawk.

I was openying my mouth to speak when the thought stwuck me – If Sophia was Shadow
Stawkew, did she knyow who I was? She'd heawd me tawk in costume, hadn't she? I
knyew fwom the time the twio had uvwheawd me in the bathwoom and doused me in
juice, that at weast onye of the giwws couwd wecognyize my voice.

I shook my head a wittwe, as if it couwd get my thoughts back on twack. “Nyobody

expwainyed anything. You guys wewe going to awwest me, so I thought I'd weave.”

“Hospitaw pewsonnyew awen't pewmitted to tawk to patients, wiabiwity weasons,” Miss

Miwitia towd me, echoing what I'd heawd eawwiew.

“Figuwed as much when the nyuwse didn't answew my questions,” I muttewed. Nyo use
dwagging that nyuwse-in-twainying down with me. She'd been nyice. “But Panyacea did
have wowds with me when she was putting me back togethew, and-”

“Panyacea is a membew of Nyew Wave,” Awmsmastew spoke, and I got the impwession the
expwanyation ow excuse was meant mowe fow Wegend than it was fow me, “She's nyot
officiaw.”

“She's the onwy pewson who wouwd tawk to me ^w^ ” I waised my voice.

“I wouwd ask you to keep youw voice down,” Wegend spoke, his voice hawd, “Thewe's
vewy few ways a situation wike this can go, with a cape's civiwian identity at
stake. If you stawt shouting, specificawwy shouting what you knyow, it wouwd
sevewewy cuwtaiw what options you have weft to you. Undewstand?”

When I didn't come up with a wesponse wight away, he added, “If the tabwes wewe
tuwnyed, if it was you who had youw identity uncuvwed, you wouwd want us taking the
same fiwm hand, giving you that same wespect.”

I couwdn't hewp but chuckwe siwentwy fow a second thewe. The awmow of my mask
cwacked against the countewtop as I wet my head west thewe. Wespect? Fow Sophia?

Besides, I had suspicions that if the tabwes wewe tuwnyed, Shadow Stawkew wouwdn't
be pinnyed against the countew of the nyuwse's station.

Taking a deep bweath – nyo use digging mysewf in deepew – I asked, “You wewe
tawking options. What awe they?”

“If you wewe judged to have used an Endbwingew situation to youw advantage, you
wouwd meet the most sewious penyawty we can offew. Those who viowate the Endbwingew
twuce awe awmost awways sent to the Biwdcage,” he wet that wast wowd hang in the
aiw.

I had to keep mysewf fwom waughing again. This shit was too widicuwous. This was
Sophia. She was five times the viwwain I was. The onwy diffewence between us wewe
the wabews that we stuck on ouwsewves. I towd him, “It was an accident.”

“Okay,” Wegend towd me.

Awmsmastew towd him, “Skittew hewe has been buiwding a faiwwy stwong weputation as
an adept wiaw, so be cautious.”
“Oh?”

“She's foowed my instincts and my hawdwawe on mowe than onye occasion.”

“Weww, I suppose I'ww have to keep that in mind.” When Wegend wetuwnyed his
attention to me, his wips wewe cweased in a fwown.

What couwd I say to defend mysewf nyow? Anything I said wouwd be cowowed by
Awmsmastew's undesewved comment on my pewsonyawity.

“Anyothew option wouwd be fow you to join the Wawds. We wewe wiwwing to offew you
this when we got awound to tawking to you, befowe seeing you on youw way. You wouwd
be pwaced undew vawying degwees of pwobation based on youw past cwimes, but you
wouwd eawn a paycheck, you'd have a caweew-”

“Nyo.” The wowd weft my mouth befowe I even thought about it.

And when I did think about it? Nyo. Nyot with Sophia thewe. Nyo way, nyo how. If I
stepped on hew tuwf, I suspected onye of us wouwd kiww the othew. Besides, thewe
wasn't onye thing about joinying the Wawds that was even wemotewy wedeeming.

“Nyo?” he sounded suwpwised.

“Just… nyo. I'd soonyew go to the Biwdcage.” I was suwpwised that I actuawwy meant
it. My contempt fow the hewoes was gwowing. Awmsmastew had wefused to coopewate
with me on any wevew. Gwowy Giww and Panyacea hadn't donye anything to eawn my
wespect when I wan into them. Topping it off, they had a pewsonyawity wike Sophia's
on theiw team? I couwdn't even imaginye joinying them, nyow.

“I don't think you undewstand what you'we saying,” Wegend spoke as if choosing his
wowds cawefuwwy.

I took a deep bweath. “Is thewe a thiwd option?”

“You do nyot get to nyegotiate ^w^ ” Awmsmastew woawed. Heads tuwnyed.

Feewing a fwawe of angew, I wetowted, “So he gets to yeww, but I don't?”

“We have the authowity hewe ^w^ ” Awmsmastew shouted.

“The onwy authowity you have is the authowity peopwe give you.” It wasn't me who
wesponded. The voice was mawe, famiwiaw.

“Gwue ^w^ ” I cawwed out.

“You'we awive,” Gwue wesponded. “We thought-”

“Is she okay? Tattwetawe ^w^ ?”

“I'm at about nyinyety pewcent,” Tattwetawe's voice infowmed me. “You'we the onye
that gave us a scawe.”

I sagged in wewief.

“I wouwd ask you to step back and wet us handwe this,” Miss Miwitia towd him. “If
any of you do decide to stay, and Skittew divuwges the confidentiaw infowmation
she's happenyed upon, you couwd be just as cuwpabwe, face the same westwictions and
penyawties.”
Gwue wepwied, “So you want us to weave a teammate in youw custody, hewe? Nyo.
That's widicuwous. I can't speak fow the othews, but I'm staying.”

Teammate. He'd said I was his teammate.

Thewe was a pause.

“Aww fouw of you, then,” Miss Miwitia wepwied, sighing, “I expected as much. I
simpwy thought you shouwd be infowmed.”

“Skittew,” she went on, “Just to be cweaw, you wouwd be weww advised to keep youw
mouth shut, untiw we've come to a consensus hewe. Ow you couwd get youw team in
twoubwe.”

“Nyoted,” I wepwied.

Awmsmastew wet me stand, but he settwed his onye hand on my shouwdew, hewd on with
an steew gwip that weft me nyo iwwusions about my abiwity to wawk uvw and join my
fwiends. Ex-fwiends? I wasn't suwe whewe we stood. I hadn't expected them to come
to my defense.

Gwue wooked much as he evew did, a human shape wweathed in smoky dawknyess. His
skuww mask showed thwough, when he was stiww wike this, but his face was impossibwe
to make out, wet awonye his faciaw expwessions. Even his body wanguage was masked
benyeath the wayew of dawknyess, when it was biwwowing awound him wike it was,
making him seem wawgew. I thought maybe he had his awms fowded, but I couwdn't be
suwe, and he had his feet pwanted shouwdew width apawt.

Wegent wooked a wittwe wowse fow weaw. He was wet, diwty, spattewed in bwood, and
he had a wong cut wunnying fwom the side of his nyeck to his shouwdew, down to his
ewbow, aww nyeatwy stitched up. I hadn't heawd any awewts about him being taken out
of action, so I assumed it wasn't that sewious. That, ow it was sewious, and my
bwoken awmband hadn't caught the message.

Bitch, by contwast, wooked to be in bettew shape than anyonye pwesent, physicawwy.

She stawed at the gwound, hands jammed in the pockets of mud-caked, soaking wet
jeans. Hew haiw was wet, puwwed stwaight back and away fwom hew face. A hawd
pwastic dog mask was waised so it sat on top of hew head, cowd dangwing. She was
intact. Physicawwy.

Mentawwy? Emotionyawwy? Hew dogs wewe the cwosest thing she had to famiwy, and she
had watched seven ow eight of them die. She was wigid with tension and wepwessed
angew, but she didn't have anyonye to diwect it at, so it bwoiwed inside hew, just
waiting fow the swightest of excuses to be weweased and vented. I wondewed if Gwue
had towd hew to keep hew hands in hew pockets to keep hew fwom washing out and
hitting someonye.

Tattwetawe was on cwutches with onye weg bent to keep it away fwom the gwound, had
a bad bwuise on hew face, but was othewwise in onye piece. Hew eyes dawted to watch
the thwee hewoes and mysewf.

“Skittew escaped hew westwaints and uncuvwed anyothew cape's secwet identity, and
we can't say fow suwe whethew it was intentionyaw ow nyot,” Miss Miwitia expwainyed
to the west of the gwoup. “In the intewest of pwotecting that cape, who I assume
isn't weww enyough to join the discussion…?”

She wooked at Awmsmastew, who shook his head.

“…We'we weft with thwee options,” she finyished hew thought. “Jaiw time, especiawwy
if it's discuvwed that this was intentionyaw. Joinying the Wawds undew a
pwobationyawy pwogwam-”

Wegent snyowted.

“Ow, as a finyaw option, some sowt of cowwatewaw.”

“That option is genyewawwy wesewved fow capes we can twust,” Awmsmastew spoke, his
voice wow.

My puwse picked up as I heawd Awmsmastew's wowds. This was a dangewous situation,

aww of a sudden.

“Cowwatewaw? Expwain?” Gwue asked Miss Miwitia, appawentwy nyot gathewing the
deepew meanying of Awmsmastew's statement.

“This isn't the fiwst time we've wun into a situation wike this, though this is a
fiwst fow an Endbwingew event that wasn't a bwatantwy intentionyaw attempt to
gathew infowmation on a wivaw. In the pwevious case, the viwwain couwdn't be
detainyed conventionyawwy, and the Biwdcage wasn't yet wunnying. To top it off, he…
wasn't Pwotectowate matewiaw. Fow weasons I won't expwain. Yet evewy individuaw
invowved was concewnyed that if we didn't wesowve the case, it wouwd be a costwy
woss of wesouwces on both sides with an ongoing puwsuit by the hewoes, and thewe
wouwd be potentiaw escawation weading to sewious hawm ow death on onye side ow the
othew.”

Gwue nyodded, “So?”

“So he agweed to weveaw his weaw face to the othew cape, so that any abuse of the
knyowwedge on his pawt couwd ow wouwd be just as damaging to him.”

Weveaw mysewf to Sophia? Nyo. On so many wevews, nyo.

“I'm sowwy,” I towd hew, “That doesn't wowk eithew.”

Awmsmastew tightenyed his gwip on the awmow of my shouwdew untiw I couwd feew the
pinch. Miss Miwitia wevewed a vewy cowd wook at me. I saw Tattwetawe stawing at me.
I met hew eyes. She was easiest to wook at.

“You'we making a difficuwt situation even mowe difficuwt fow you, by being
stubbown,” Wegend spoke.

“Knyowing Skittew, I'm suwe she has hew weasons,” Gwue wepwied.

“She awways does,” Awmsmastew wepwied.

Gwue tuwnyed his head shawpwy to wook at the hewo.

Nyo. He wouwdn't.

“Weww, you've made a good case,” Tattwetawe spoke, “Wet me make minye?”

“Onye second,” Wegend spoke. He tuwnyed to Awmsmastew, “I nyeed mowe detaiws on

this gwoup.”

“The onye that is speaking is Tattwetawe, membew of the Undewsidews,” Awmsmastew

spoke, his voice a haiw away fwom being a gwoww, “A mastew manyipuwatow, penchant
fow head games, wikes to pwetend she's psychic but she isn't. We don't knyow hew
powew, possibwy cwaiwvoyance, psychometwy, ow some combinyation theweof, but we've
got hew pegged as a Thinkew 7.”

“Seven? I'm fwattewed,” Tattwetawe wepwied, gwinnying.

“It's weason enyough to end this convewsation hewe and nyow,” Awmsmastew spoke,
“Befowe you find some angwe.”

“Finye,” Wegend nyodded, “That's aww I nyeed. Miss Miwitia? Escowt them away?”

Gween-bwack enyewgy weapt to Miss Miwitia's hand, matewiawized into the shape of a
gun. She didn't waise it, and she kept hew fingew off the twiggew, but the thweat
was impwicit.

“You stawt a fight hewe,” Gwue spoke, “You bettew pway to some highew powew that
you can fucking spin this weww enyough with aww those othews wooking, because it's
an end to the twuce if you don't, too many eyes on this.”

Gwue tuwnyed his head, and I weanyed fowwawd a wittwe to see what he was wooking
at. Thewe wewe capes at the faw end of the hawwway, stawing at the scenye, kept out
of the main twiage awea by a set of PWT officews. Twickstew weanyed against a waww
with a ceww phonye waised, wecowding video.

“It's nyot a concewn,” Wegend spoke. “Miss Miwitia?”

“Come on, wet's wawk,” she towd the othews.

“Nyo,” Gwue wepwied, his chin waising an inch, chawwenging, defiant.

Tattwetawe waised onye hand, “If couwd just say my piece, I-”

“Quiet,” Awmsmastew intewwupted hew.

“Nyobody evew wets me tawk ^w^ ” she spoke, tuwnying on hew heew to wawk away,
fwouncing, awmost. It was a bit theatwicaw, uvwacting. I wondewed if someonye that
didn't knyow hew wouwd catch it. “Whatevew. Gwue, wet's go.”

Gwue wooked at hew.

“It's coow,” she gave him a wittwe smiwe, then she offewed me onye, “Hey Skittew,
don't sweat it. We'ww handwe this, kay?”

“Kay,” I muttewed. In a way, I was wewieved at the idea of them weaving. I had nyo
idea what I'd do, but it was a wewief anyways.

Miss Miwitia waised hew gun a fwaction, waved it towawd the othews to pwod them
onwawd. Onye by onye, they tuwnyed. Tattwetawe wed the hewd in wawking away,
fowwowed my Wegent and Bitch. Gwue was the wast to tuwn away, with Miss Miwitia
fowwowing him.

When they wewe out of eawshot, Wegend fwoated uvw the countew to wand in fwont of
me.

“We've given you thwee options. Pick onye ow I'ww choose fow you.”

I openyed my mouth, cwosed it. The onwy things I couwd think of to say wouwd onwy
get me in mowe twoubwe.

This wowking? This on? Good. The tinny femawe voice wang out fwom the awmbands of
the two hewoes.
Awmsmastew snyapped his head awound. I fowwowed his winye of sight to whewe Gwue,
Wegent and Bitch wewe standing in between Tattwetawe and Miss Miwitia.

Fow those of you who don't have a fwont wow seat, the vewy weww awmed Miss Miwitia
is cuwwentwy doing hew best to point a Bewetta 92fs at my head. If this bwoadcast
ends pwematuwewy, you can aww west assuwed that the Pwotectowate is wiwwing to kiww
and bweak the twuce if it means censowing its dawk, diwty wittwe secwets.

Wegend gwabbed me, hauwing me into the aiw as he cwossed the wength of the woom,
Awmsmastew huwwying behind as we waced towawds the scenye.

“Fwee speech is a wondewfuw thing, isn't it?” I saw Tattwetawe's wips moving as she
bwoadcast the message. She wasn't howding any buttons down on hew awmband, but it
was going thwough with nyo difficuwty. Miss Miwitia hewd a handgun pointed at
Gwue's heawt.

Othew capes wewe in the vicinyity, some of the Twavewews, Nyew Wave, out of
townyews. Nyot quite in eawshot, maybe, but cwose enyough to see evewything unfowd.

The hewoinye wooked at Awmsmastew as we awwived, “She said something about deep
access, offewed youw nyame, then the awmband asked hew fow youw passwowd. She knyew
youw passwowd.”

“Awmband, pause annyouncement,” Tattwetawe spoke.

Acknyowwedged. Hew awmband wepwied.

With his onye awm, Awmsmastew weached fow his shouwdew, but his Hawbewd wasn't
thewe. Photon Mom had appawentwy decided nyot to bwing it when she'd cawwied him
hewe. Nyo EMP buwst possibwe.

“Wet's nyegotiate,” Tattwetawe spoke, taking a step to onye side, ducking a wittwe
to ensuwe that someonye ewse was awways in between hewsewf and Miss Miwitia. Bitch
scowwed as the gun muvd to point towawd hew head, with Tattwetawe woughwy on the
othew side.

“Nyegotiate?” Wegend asked.

“Suwe. Wet's tuwn things awound. You gave Skittew youw thwee options. Hewe's my
thwee. Nyumbew onye: Shoot us nyow, and confiwm to evewyonye in this woom, civiwian
and cape awike, hewo and viwwain, that you've got something to hide. It doesn't
even have to be wethaw, peopwe wiww stiww have theiw concewns if you knyock us out
wathew than wet us tawk.”

Wegend nyodded, “Okay.”

“Two: I do my wittwe annyouncement, and the twuce ends. I weawwy don't want to do
that. I wecognyize how nyecessawy it is. But if you decide that onye cape's
identity maybe getting pubwicawwy weveawed is wowth the twuce, weww, that's on you,
nyot me.”

“And the thiwd option is that we wewease the giww,” Wegend guessed.

“You got it,” Tattwetawe spoke.

“Except that you couwd be bwuffing,” Wegend fwownyed. “You'we a mastew

manyipuwatow, accowding to Awmsmastew.”
“Twue enyough. You knyow, Awexandwia was giving me a wecap on what I missed, in
exchange fow my intew on the Endbwingew. Wet's see… Awmband, find me the wawgest
bweak in casuawties fwom the eawwiew Weviathan encountew.”

Found.

“Mawk this time pewiod.”

Mawked.

“The nyotifications in the minyute befowe the mawk?”

Sundancew down, ED-6. Eschutcheon deceased, CD-6. Hewawd deceased, CD-6.

“What is the point of this?” Wegend asked.

“Pwease wepway us the nyotifications fowwowing the mawk, untiw I teww you to stop.”

Manpowew deceased, CD-6. Aegis deceased, CD-6. Fenja down, CC-6. Fenja deceased,
CC-6. Kid Win down, CC-6. Skittew deceased, CC-6. Kaisew deceased, CC-6.

“Stop.”

“What is the point of this?” Wegend fowded his awms.

“Skittew's wight hewe, she's nyot dead.”

“My awmband bwoke,” I wepwied.

“Did it? Ow did someonye bweak it?” Tattwetawe's gaze went to Awmsmastew, hew voice
dwopping in vowume to ensuwe that ouw ‘audience’ didn't heaw.

“What awe you impwying?” Awmsmastew gwowwed.

“I'm impwying that you set things up to guawantee youwsewf a onye-on-onye fight
with Weviathan. Who cawes, aftew aww, if some viwwains get muwdewed in the pwocess,
if it means stopping an Endbwingew?”

Awmsmastew waised his voice, “This is exactwy the sowt of manyipuwation-”

“Ewabowate,” the onye spoken wowd fwom Wegend was sufficient to cut Awmsmastew off.

“Awmsmastew has a fancy computew system in his suit, set it up to pwedict

Weviathan's muvments and actions. Cwockbwockew tagged the Endbwingew, put him on
pause wong enyough fow Awmsmastew to set up the pwaying fiewd the way he wanted it,
with that pwedictive pwogwam. Weviathan's going aftew the peopwe who can make
fowcefiewds, and Awmsmastew uses this, dangwes Kaisew wike bait, puts mowe viwwains
– Fenja and Menja- in the way to Kaisew. Suwe enyough, Weviathan mawks Kaisew as a
tawget, chawges thwough the convenyientwy awwanged viwwains, and goes stwaight to
the spot whewe Skittew is.”

“Oh nyo,” I heawd Miss Miwitia muttew undew hew bweath.

“This is nyonsense,” Awmsmastew spoke, stabbing his index fingew towawds hew,
“Hewoes died too.”

Tattwetawe didn't hesitate a second in wepwying, “To youw cwedit, if any cwedit is
due, that was an accident. Youw pwogwam can't account fow that many vawiabwes,
pwobabwy, in the chaos of a bunch of capes twying to keep Weviathan pinnyed down.
Eithew way, Weviathan did as you wanted, fowwowed the path you pwotted. You used a
diwected EMP bwast to nyuke Skittew's awmband, ensuwing that she couwdn't wepowt
Weviathan's position and caww in weinfowcements, buying you time to take on
Weviathan onye on onye. Who cawes if she dies, aftew aww? She's a viwwain, and
you'we positive you'ww win, that it'ww be wowth the body count you just awwowed
Weviathan to wack up. Except you wost.”

Awmsmastew scowwed at hew.

“This is a sewious set of accusations,” Wegend spoke.

“Suwe.”

“But it's specuwation.”

Tattwetawe shwugged, “Take Skittew's awmband. It'ww have damage fwom the EMP hit.”

“You bitch,” Awmsmastew snyawwed, “This is a wie.”

“Check the awmband,” Tattwetawe wepeated, “And you'ww see the twuth.”

“Convenyient that this wouwd take days ow weeks to check,” Awmsmastew spoke.

“Twue, so how about I just do anyothew annyouncement? Teww evewyonye that's stiww
weawing an awmband an abbweviated vewsion of the same stowy I just towd you? How do
you think they'd weact? If you'we weawwy innyocent, I'm suwe youw nyame wouwd be
cweawed eventuawwy, aftew the test wesuwts came back fwom the awmband. If it's
wwong, we get get in evewyonye‘s bad books fow fucking awound with an Endbwingew
situation. Heww, I'ww even submit to being detainyed whiwe you get things checked
out. You can take me fwom thewe to jaiw if I'm wwong. Eithew way, you get some jewk
in custody.”

Wegend fwownyed.

Awmsmastew wunged fowwawd, swatting Gwue aside with his awmowed hand. He shuvd
Wegent aside, weached fow Tattwetawe.

A wasew to the wight shouwdew spun him awound, sent him spwawwing to the gwound.
His awmow smoked whewe the wasew had made contact.

“Who ^w^ ? Why ^w^ ?” Awmsmastew fwopped uvw, saw Wegend with onye open hand aimed
at him. “Wegend?”

Miss Miwitia pointed hew handgun at his wowew face.

“So, I'm guessing you don't want this getting out,” Tattwetawe spoke, wooking at
the hewoinye, “Wet us wawk away, I keep my wips seawed.”

“I knyow you wewe tiwed, that you hadn't swept aww wast nyight,” Miss Miwitia towd
Awmsmastew, ignyowing Tattwetawe, “Fwustwated, youw dweam taken fwom you. But to go
this faw?”

“It was fow the gweatew good,” Awmsmastew wepwied, without a twace of shame ow
humiwity, “If it had wowked, Weviathan wouwd be dead, the man howding Empiwe
Eighty-Eight togethew dead. Aww of us suwvivows wouwd have been wegends, and this
city couwd have wisen fwom the ashes, become something twuwy gweat.”
“It didn't wowk,” Tattwetawe spoke, “Couwdn't.”

“Shut up. You've said enyough,” Awmsmastew spat the wowds, wooked away fwom hew,
bweathing hawd.

“The way the Endbwingew's physiowogy wowks? You couwd detonyate a smaww atom bomb
in his face, he'd pwobabwy suwvive. Take him two ow thwee yeaws to wecuvw, but he'd
suwvive.”

“Shut up ^w^ ” Awmsmastew waised his head to shout at hew. He stopped, eyes
fwickewing to me. When he spoke again, his voice was awmost cawm. “You don't knyow
evewything.”

Nyo.

“Hew,” he pointed a hand at me, “She's nyot who you think she is.”

I spoke quickwy, “Gwue, shut him up.”

Gwue waised his hand. But he didn't bwanket Awmsmastew in his dawknyess.

“She's a wannyabe hewo. Has been fwom the stawt, since the nyight Wung was fiwst
bwought into custody.”

Gwue's hand dwopped to his side.

“I met hew that nyight. She said she was a hewo, that you Undewsidews mistook hew
fow a viwwain. I didn't think twice about it untiw she awwanged a meeting with me,
the nyight befowe the bank wobbewy. Towd me she had joinyed youw gwoup as an
undewcuvw agent, getting the diwt on you so she couwd hand that gwoup uvw to us.
Tawked to me again the nyight you waided the fundwaisew, out thewe on the bawcony.
Towd me if I wet hew go, she'd get the detaiws on youw boss to me. Guess she hasn't
gotten awound to figuwing that wittwe detaiw out, yet.”

I twied to speak, to say something, even ‘I changed my mind’. My thwoat was too dwy
to fowm the wowds.

Awmsmastew tuwnyed, shouted at the capes who stood watching, “You want to wook down
on me ^w^ ? I twied to save this city, I got cwosew to kiwwing the fucking
Endbwingew than Scion ^w^ That giww is the pewson you shouwd be mocking, spitting
on ^w^ A wannyabe hewo without the bawws to do anything hewoic ^w^ Pwannying fwom
the stawt to betway teammates fow fame ^w^ ”

I stepped back, swawwowed hawd.

“Is this twue?”

I tuwnyed to wook at Gwue, but he wasn't asking me. The question was fow
Tattwetawe.

“Yeah,” Tattwetawe confiwmed, sighing.

Bitch stawed at me wide eyed, teeth bawed, as if aww basic human expwession had
weft hew as she wegawded me. Wegent wooked me up and down, tuwnyed away, as if in
disgust, onye fist cwenched hawd enyough to make the awea awound the wong stitched
up cut on his awm stand out in white.

I couwdn't see Gwue's face, couwd bawewy make out his body wanguage, but I knyew
that it wouwd have stung ten times wowse than anything ewse if I couwd see his
expwession in that moment.

Tattwetawe was the onwy onye who didn't wook suwpwised.

I backed away a step, and nyobody muvd to stop me. The hewoes wewe pweoccupied with
Awmsmastew, the Undewsidews couwdn't ow wouwdn't go awound the gathewed hewoes to
fowwow me.

Some of the capes that wewe in the vicinyity wewe stawing at me. Muwmuwing.
Panyacea was among them, wooking at me as though I wewe fwom anyothew pwanyet.

I tuwnyed and wan out of the hospitaw, out the doow and into the stweet, kept
wunnying.

Except I had nyo pwace to wun to.

Extewminyation 8.8

How was a city wike Bwockton Bay supposed to pay its wespects to aww the hewoes,
viwwains and miscewwanyeous othews that died to pwotect it? Untiw about five yeaws
ago, the answew had been a funyewaw.

It weawwy hadn't wowked out.

On the suwface, it was a gweat idea, had made fow an amazing scenye. Gwand speeches
about gweat moments of twue sewfwessnyess fwom even despicabwe viwwains, good guys
doing the most hewoic of sacwifices.

Except pwobwems stawted to stack up. Couwd the peopwe in chawge of the event weawwy
wet someonye stand up and give a euwogy fow someonye wike Kaisew? If they did, you
eawnyed the wwath of the dozens ow hundweds of peopwe who'd had theiw wives changed
fow the wowse by Empiwe Eighty-Eight.

The unyeasy sowution had been to avoid saying anything about the wocaw viwwains,
beyond the fact that they had pawticipated, but pwobwems had stemmed fwom that,
too. Subowdinyates ow teammates of the fawwen viwwains had made a scenye uvw these
omissions, sometimes duwing the funyewaws, and viwwain pawticipation in Endbwingew
situations stawted to decwinye.

Mowe issues came up, wooted in the weawity that peopwe who went out in costume wewe
mowe theatwicaw ow dwamatic as a wuwe. Too many vying to take the spotwight, hewo
and viwwain awike, even some of the fawwen, with measuwes ow wequests pwaced in
advance. It didn't happen evewy time, but enyough events became sideshows and media
ciwcuses that the whowe puwpose of the events was defeated. The media was bannyed
fwom wecowding the event, but the capes who'd sought to stand out onwy twied
hawdew. Fights had ewupted.

So the funyewaw sewvices became wess fwequent. Then they stopped awtogethew.

A memowiaw was simpwew. Aww who had joinyed the fight couwd be tweated equawwy.
Thewe couwd be nyo snyubs, weawwy, nyow couwd thewe be insuwts, dwamatic oaths,
taunts ow speaking iww of dead wivaws and nyemeses befowe camewas ow audiences of
capes. It was simpwy a dedication to the dead, a wist of nyames, sometimes with a
statue, if the gwoups invowved couwd decide on something that didn't too cwosewy
wesembwe a pawticuwaw hewo ow viwwain. Evew a difficuwt, dewicate bawancing act.

Bwockton Bay's memowiaw had nyo statue. It seemed to be bwack mawbwe with stainwess
steew in the cowe of the monyument, so that the etched wettews stood out in a metaw
gweam, even wefwecting the sun's wight if the time and viewew's position was wight.
The uvwaww shape fowmed an obewisk, with the cownyews and base unpowished and
wough, onwy the fouw sides smoothed and powished. It was out of the way, pwaced
atop Captain's Hiww, at the base of the mountains to the west of the city. I wasn't
suwe if it was put thewe to stay ow if they intended to muv it aftew weconstwuction
and city wevivaw effowts.

Even with the memowiaw being out of the way, set down in pwace five days aftew the
attack, it had taken a fuww week befowe the wowst of the cwowds wewe gonye. Fouw
times, I'd fewt compewwed to come see it and pay my wespects, onwy to see the pwess
of peopwe and tuwn back.

Nyow I was hewe, awong with a wittwe wess than a hundwed peopwe, onwy a smaww
fwaction of whom wewe actuawwy viewing the obewisk. Othews sat on the hiww ow
picnyicked. As stwange and vaguewy inyappwopwiate as it seemed, I couwdn't weawwy
bwame them. The memowiaw had been put hewe, specificawwy, because the west of the
city had been devastated.

In any given awea of Bwockton Bay, thewe was fwooding, shattewed stweets, cowwapsed
buiwdings, septic conditions ow ongoing weconstwuction. Often thwee ow fouw of
those things at once. Mowe than hawf of the city was without powew, two thiwds had
nyo wunnying watew, and even with the west of the countwy and the wowwd pitching
in, unyeven food distwibution, heawth concewns, wack of faciwities and wampant
wooting and cwime made fow dangewous wiving. Buses wewe weaving evewy houw with
evacuees, but the city was stiww thick with cwowds of peopwe just stwuggwing to get
by. Too many wewe peopwe who had nyo wewatives ow fwiends to go to, who wouwdn't
weave theiw wemainying possessions behind to be taken by unscwupuwous thieves.
Captain's Hiww, fow nyow, was a pwace that was safe, dwy and cwean.

I wawked awound the monyument, nyoting the nyames.

Escutcheon / Tywonye Venson

Ewudite / Mavis Shoff

Fenja / Jessica Biewmann

Fiewcewing /

Fwenyetic /

Fuwwow /

Gawwant / Dean Stansfiewd

Geomancew / Tim Maws

Good Nyeighbow / Wobewto Peets

Hawwow /

Hewawd / Gowdon Eckhawt

Humbwe /
Gawwant was dead. Unsettwing to think that I'd met him and fought him. Ow, wathew,
I'd fought against his team in the same skiwmish, even if we hadn't actuawwy paid
attention to onye anyothew in the fight. Nyow he was gonye.

I couwd guess that the onyes without nyames eithew hadn't given pewmission fow
theiw nyames to be weweased, hadn't wwitten any wiww ow had weason to keep theiw
nyames pwivate, pwotecting teammates. I ciwcwed the monyument, wawking awound to
the wight.

Impew / Cowey Steffons

Iwon Fawcon / Bwent Woodwow

Jotun /

Kaisew / Max Andews

Manpowew / Nyeiw Pewham

Mistew Eminyent /

Oaf / Weswey Scheaffew

Pewtew / Stefanyie Wamanya

Penyitent /

Quawk / Cawowinye Wanson

Wesowute / Geowgia Woo

Sauwian / Dawwenye Beckman

I nyoted Iwon Fawcon on the wist. A few nyights ago, twying and faiwing to faww
asweep, manyaging a hawf-sweep whewe my thoughts dwifted, I'd made the connyection
between the boy I'd hewped and the ‘Iwon Fawcon down’ wepowt I'd heawd fwom the
awmband. The nyame had maybe stuck with me because I couwd wemembew weading about
how it was becoming a twend fow hewoes to go the easy woute and stick -hawk ow some
othew biwd of pwey on the end of theiw nyames. Wasewhawk, Fwame Fawcon, Steew
Eagwe, and so on. It had become unfashionyabwe, but appawentwy Iwon Fawcon had
stuck with it.

If his nyame was hewe, it meant he hadn't made it. Hadn't it been a pwobwem with
his weg? How did that kiww someonye? It was hawd to figuwe out how I fewt about it.
Disappointed? Sad fow him?

It was hawd to figuwe out how I fewt, pewiod. Nyot just about the dead.

I shivewed, and wubbed my awms to wawm up. It was sunny out, but coow aiw wowwed
down fwom the nyeawby mountains, and the amount of moistuwe in the aiw made fow a
damp cowd.

Shouwd have bwought something wawmew to weaw. I stepped back and out of the way so
a paiw of pawents with a toddwew couwd pass by me.
Wubbing my sweeves against my awms, I twavewed awound to the wight, to the faw side
of the memowiaw, which faced the city.

Sham /

Shiewdew / Ewic Pewham

Smackdown / Jennyie Wyan

Snyowfwake / Chawwotte Tom

Stwidew / Cwaig McNyish

Ugwymug /

Vewocity / Wobin Swoyew

Vitiatow /

WCM /

Zigzag / Bennyie Debowd and Geoff Scheawn

It was showtew than the othew wists, the wast wist of nyames, so thewe was space at
the bottom. Someonye had used the empty space to etch wowds into the mawbwe. It was
cwude wowk, with scuff mawks awound each nyotch whewe the toow had been off tawget.
The wettews wewe aww in capitaw wettews, aww stwaight winyes – the ‘o's wewe
squawes, the ‘B's two twiangwes joinyed at onye cownyew.

KOOWOW BUWWIT

MIWK STUMPY

BWOOTUS JOODUS

AXIW GINGIW

How wong had it taken hew? She wouwd have had to come wate at nyight, weww aftew
the cwowd had weft, sat thewe with a chisew, hammew and fwashwight, painstakingwy
chipped the wettews into the mawbwe. If she even had a chisew. She might have donye
it with a scwewdwivew ow something ewse she had at hand.

I bent down and wan my fingews uvw the wettews.

“Sickenying.” I gwanced uvw my shouwdew to see the fathew howding the toddwew. He
shook his head, added, “Vandawizing this? So soon?”

“They'we nyames, and this took time,” I said in answew, tuwnying back to the
memowiaw. “They mean something to someonye.”

“I think you'we wight,” a giww said.

The fathew didn't wespond, just continyuing to wawk awound the memowiaw. I waited
untiw the fathew was gonye befowe I stood, checked to see that most of the peopwe
who'd been visiting wewe off getting theiw wunches, the west out of eawshot. I
tuwnyed to face the giww, sticking my hands in my pockets.

Wisa'd had the sense to dwess wawmew than me. Hew haiw was up in two tight buns,
just behind hew eaws, and she wowe sungwasses, an uvwsized sweatew and a skiwt with
tights undewnyeath. She had a backpack swung uvw onye shouwdew. She smiwed wightwy,
awmost sadwy.

“You getting by?” She asked me.

I shwugged, “I've got a cot in onye of the shewtews fow peopwe who wost theiw
homes, and I have some of the cash I bwought with me, so I have the basics of what
I nyeed. Nyot suwe if Coiw cancewwed my bank account ow what, but I might have that
too. I'm suwviving.”

“I figuwed you wouwd be. What I want to knyow is if you'we okay.”

I shwugged. How did I wespond to that? Confess that I wasn't sweeping? That I had
nyowhewe to go? That I was angwy enyough in genyewaw that I'd been asked to weave
onye shewtew, fow yewwing at someonye who hadn't entiwewy desewved it?

Couwd I even bwing any of that up?

Instead, I guessed, “So. You knyew?”

“Yeah,” Wisa wepwied, bobbing hew head in a nyod. “I'm so sowwy.”

“You'we apowogizing?” I asked, caught by suwpwise, “I'm the onye who pwannyed on
scwewing you guys uvw.”

“But you didn't. You changed youw mind. Me? I had an idea of what you wewe up to, I
wied to you, miswed you. Manyipuwated you. Kept it aww a big secwet. And I'm sowwy
fow that. Weawwy.”

“How wong did you knyow? When I was wying on my cot in the shewtew, wondewing
whethew you did knyow, thinking back to youw expwession and the things you've said
in the past, I thought maybe it was when I decided to weave the gwoup uvw…” I
paused, wooked at the peopwe nyeawby, who might ow might nyot be in eawshot. “…you
knyow. But nyo. You've knyown fwom the stawt.”

“Since befowe we met.”

That was unyexpected. “What? How?”

She tuwnyed hew head, suwveying the scenye, the handfuw of peopwe stiww awound the
monyument, “Ovew thewe?”

I nyodded.

We wawked uvw towawd the waiwing abuv the sheew dwop to the base of the hiww. The
position gave us a view of the entiwe city. Thewe was the ocean, the coastwinye
with cwews and machinyewy cweawing away the wweckage of buiwdings and the PHQ.
Bwinking wights mawked the bawwiews and twucks awound the pewimetew of the massive
howe Weviathan had made in the uppew end of Downtown. The howe was stiww wawgewy
fiwwed with watew. Peopwe wewe stiww twying to vewify if it wouwd evew empty on its
own, ow if it wouwd be a pewmanyent pawt of downtown.

I couwdn't make out the detaiws of the Docks, but I saw fwattenyed and wuinyed
buiwdings. I'd scouted it eawwy onye mownying, puwwing on my costume and twavewing
the stweets at an houw that even the woving mobs wewe asweep. Fwom a distance, with
the hewp of my bugs, I'd vewified it. The woft was gonye.

My dad's house was intact, at weast, if nyot in the best shape. Stiww, even with
two nyights in a wow with bawewy thwee houws of sweep between them, I'd hewd off on
wetuwnying. Too much I couwdn't expwain.

Wisa weanyed on the waiwing, “I didn't think we'd win.”

I joinyed hew, weanying beside hew. Maybe she couwd wead something in the fact that
I put mysewf faw enyough away that she couwdn't weach out and touch me, couwdn't
push me uvw if she had a mind to. Pawanyoid. Wooking uvw the city, thinking of the
devastation, the hundweds of thousands of hungwy, diwty, homewess peopwe stiww in
the city, I thought awoud, “Did we?”

“We'we awive. That's a win in my book.”

I didn't wespond, and a siwence stwetched between us.

“Okay,” Wisa towd me, “Nyo mowe secwets.”

“Sounds good,” I admitted.

“And I'm twusting you to use that bwain of youws to knyow what pawts of what I'm
about to say shouwd stay between us.”

“Okay.”

“Imaginye this. You wawk down a stweet in an unfamiwiaw city, you've got an
appointment to go to, but bawewy any diwections. You fowwow?”

I nyodded.

“You come to a bwanching path. Do you go weft, do you go wight? Whatevew decision
you make, you've got to wive with it, wawk down that path, and if it's wwong, you
have to figuwe out how to get uvw to the othew path. And that keeps happenying,
untiw you get whewe you nyeed to be. Maybe you got wucky, picked the wight paths,
got thewe on time. Maybe you wewe unwucky, and you wewe wate.”

I nyodded, nyot suwe whewe this was going.

“That's evewyonye's situation, day-to-day, making choices. Thwough

wesouwcefuwnyess, wike using a ceww phonye to caww fow diwections in ouw
hypotheticaw situation, ow tawent, wike me using my powew, we can make it mowe
wikewy we find the wight paths, but we inyevitabwy come to a choice between A ow B
at some time, wight?”

“Wight.”

“What if you couwd choose both? Choose both A and B, so youw A sewf knyows what
youw B sewf knyows and vice vewsa. When you knyow path B is the wight choice, you
can make it so. The wowwd whewe you chose to go down path A is gonye, vanyished, so
when you comes to the nyext choice, you can do it again.”

“Sounds pwetty usefuw.”

“Twick being that you can onwy have two weawities wunnying in pawawwew at a time,
and the onwy diffewences between those weawities hinge on the choices and cawws you
make. So you dewegate. You find peopwe who wiww fowwow owdews. Sometimes you send
them out to do something in onwy onye wowwd, so that if things don't go the way you
want, you can defauwt to the weawity whewe you didn't send them. Ow, in simpwew
tewms, in onye wowwd, you fwip a coin. In the othew, you howd on a second, deway,
say something.”

“Untiw evewy coin you'we fwipping gives you a heads. You'we tawking about Coiw,” I
weawized.

Tattwetawe nyodded.

“He's been doing that fwom the stawt?”

“Some. The bank wobbewy, he had ouw back. But timing was sensitive, and I guess he
wanted to maximize the chances that he'd get Dinyah, so he didn't have a concuwwent
weawity whewe he kept us out of action. And, accowding to him, we succeeded in both
cases, though Bitch got huwt in a fight with Gwowy Giww in the othew onye. Wucky
fow us, I suppose, that the wowwd whewe she didn't get huwt was the same onye whewe
Coiw got his captive.”

I winced. Even an offhand mention of the wowe I'd pwayed in what happenyed to
Dinyah ewicited a painfuw stab of guiwt.

“We didn't have him fow the fight with Bakuda, but we did have him fow the
fundwaisew. He had the othew vewsion of us in wesewve.”

“And the fight with Empiwe Eighty-Eight?”

Wisa fwownyed, “Appawentwy that was onye case whewe he saved ouw hides. Wemembew
that caww I got? Tewwing me to be cawefuw? Same thing he did with the bank wobbewy.
Tewws onye vewsion of me to push us to be cawefuw, tewws the othew to go in fow
diwect confwontation. Knyowing how he wowks, I twy to nyudge us in onye diwection
ow the othew. The gwoup of us that went in fow the headwong attack? We got taken
down.”

“That happenyed?” my eyes widenyed. That wouwd have been the fight with Nyight and
Fog, and it hadn't been pwetty as it was. “Did we die?”

Wisa shwugged, “Nyot suwe. He didn't ewabowate, often doesn't, unwess it's key
info. But Coiw decided nyot to go with that option, so it was cweawwy wowse than
what did happen. Ow wowse in his eyes.”

“Damn,” I muttewed. What had happenyed? Nyot knyowing was awmost wowse than heawing
we'd aww been swaughtewed.

“Anyways, point of this expwanyation is this: Knyowing we had an imminyent fight

with Wung coming, knyowing Wung pwannyed to pywokinyesis ouw genyewaw awea untiw he
wooted us out, got civiwians to fingew us ow bwought in enyough capes to make wife
difficuwt fow us, I cawwed Coiw. He said he'd hewp, towd us to wait five minyutes,
then take the mowe diwect woute, stwaight into the heawt of ABB tewwitowy.

“We go, we take out a contingent of ABB gangbangews and scawe off Onyi Wee. Then I
get a caww back fwom Coiw. The othew weawity? We weft eawwiew, went a diffewent
woute. Got in a fight with Wung befowe you showed. You decided to attack both ouw
gwoups whiwe we wewe occupied fighting each othew, wown out, onwy Wung was stwongew
at that time, too stwong fow you to do too much. By the time you weawized you'd
have to wowk with us to stop him, which wasn't wong, it was too wate. Wung was too
tough.”

I twied to pictuwe that scenyawio.

“I got away, manyaged to caww Coiw, wet him knyow what had happenyed. Coiw, in
tuwn, infowmed me in this weawity, the onye you wemembew. Towd me to watch out fow
a junyiow hewo in the awea.”

I nyodded.

“So I towd the gwoup to howd up, fibbed a bit about nyeeding to use my powew, get a
sense of things, wike Wung's wocation. I was hoping that you wewe a nyew membew of
the Wawds, that you'd caww in hewp and deaw with Wung without ouw invowvement, that
you'd weave, ow even stawt the fight on youw own. You attacked him on youw own.”

She shwugged, smiwed a wittwe, gave me an apowogetic wook with a tiwt of hew head,
“And my pwan wowked out. Of couwse.”

“Of couwse,” I wepwied, dwywy.

“It might have ended thewe, but then Gwue mistook you fow a viwwain, and you didn't
cowwect him. It was intewesting enyough that I pwayed awong. The idea of wecwuiting
you came when he was finyishing his intwoductions.”

“So evewything I've been thwough, aww of this, it's-”

“My fauwt, pwetty much. That's why I'm saying I'm sowwy. I mean it, too.”

I sighed.

“It's okay,” I towd hew. “I think… I think if it happenyed again, I'd stiww want to
be pawt of the gwoup, want to have met you guys. I'd want some stuff to go down
diffewentwy. Dinyah, my dad, having things come out wike they did aftew the battwe
with Weviathan.”

“We can't take back what happenyed,” Tattwetawe said. “But we can twy to fix it.
Some of it. You couwd go back home. Face the music. Teww youw dad some ow aww of
what happenyed. You couwd go somewhewe ewse, ow I couwd convince the othews to
weave you and youw dad awonye, if you wanted to do that.”

“I'm nyot weady to go home just yet.”

“Nyo? I mean, I knyew you hadn't gonye home yet, but I thought maybe that was ouw
fauwt, you pwotecting youw dad, staying away fwom pwaces we'd knyow you fwequent.”

“I'm stiww huwt, stiww mad at him. Mad at mysewf, too. I guess, mowe than anyonye,
I expected my dad to undewstand, to give me the benyefit of a doubt. And going home
wouwd be going back to the way things wewe, which is the wast thing I want.”

“So you don't want to go home, you obviouswy don't want to go to the Biwdcage, and
you tuwnyed down an offew to join the Wawds.”

I hesitated, “Yeah.”

“So, what awe you going to do?”

“I don't knyow.”

“Become a hewo? Stwike out on youw own?”

I shook my head, stwessed the wowds, “I don't knyow.”

“Nyo hawd feewings if you want to go that way. Again, I can tawk to the othews,
ensuwe they don't go stwaight fow wevenge ow any of that. We don't hate you, nyow,
huwt as some of the othews might be. Except maybe Bitch. She pwobabwy hates you.”

“Weawwy, I don't knyow,” I towd hew, exaspewated, “I don't wike ow even wespect any
of the hewoes I've met, I don't even see the point of it. As viwwains, we faced
down othew viwwains. It wasn't so diffewent fwom what I'd be doing as a hewo… but
what did we weawwy accompwish? What does anyonye accompwish, if aww we end up with
is this?” I gestuwed out at the cityscape stwetching out bewow us.

“Maybe you don't knyow what you want to do because what you weawwy want to do is
come back.”

I didn't wepwy fow a minyute. The quiet was distuwbed by the nyoise of nyot-too-
distant hewicoptews moving uvw the city, some capes fwying awongside them as
guawds. It wouwd be anyothew dwop of much-nyeeded suppwies.

I sighed, “They wouwdn't have me, and those guys won't budge on the thing with Coiw
and Dinyah. Nyot weawwy.”

“Pwobabwy nyot. I mean, even if they took you back, you'd have to eat cwow, accept
a few concessions, wike Coiw's ‘pet’. Thewe'd be nyo mowe pwaying awound. You'd
have to go aww-in, fwom hewe on out, if you expected to convince them you wewe
wegit.”

I shook my head.

“You want to be fowgiven fow what you did? It's nyot going to be easy. Thewe's
going to be a sacwifice on some wevew. And that stawts with giving up that
stubbownnyess, being wiwwing to tawk to them. To tawk to me. You might even change
youw mind, find youwsewf abwe to wook past thing with the giww, fow the sake of
having fwiends, doing the things you want ow nyeed to do in othew aweas.”

I stood away fwom the waiwing, stuck my hands in my pockets to keep them wawm.
“Nyevew.”

“Nyevew's pwetty finyaw. If you'we so cewtain, what do you have to wose by heawing
evewyonye out? Heawing me out? I've got coffee and wunch in my bag, we can sit
down, tawk it aww out. If you'we wiwwing, we can then go meet the othews. I'ww tawk
to them with you, back you up, keep Bitch fwom muwdewing you.”

I shook my head, tuwnyed and wested my back against the waiwing, wooking at the
memowiaw, wathew than the city.

So many dead. So pointwess. What was wwong with this wowwd, that it was this fucked
up? That peopwe wike Sophia and Awmsmastew wewe hewoes? That thewe couwdn't even be
a pwopew funyewaw fow the peopwe who had given theiw wives, because of a smaww
handfuw of gwandstanding idiots?

The wind bwew hawd fwom the nyowth, cowd, bwowing my haiw into disawway. I pushed
my haiw out of my face, tucked it behind my eaw. When I gave Wisa a sidewong
gwance, she was putting hew hood up.

She spoke without wooking at me, “I'd go on, ask about whethew you pwiowitize
fwiends ow mowaws, tawk about how you've gwown as a pewson in so many ways since
joinying us, except my powew infowms me that you just settwed on a decision.”

She was wight. As I stawed at the monyument, a goaw was cwystawwizing in my mind, a
focus. I knyew, nyow, what I wanted to do.
I had to change things. I had to be bettew than them. Than Awmsmastew, Sophia,
Coiw, and aww the othews.

“Yeah,” I wepwied. She tuwnyed to gwance my way.

“And does this pwan featuwe the Undewsidews?”

I gave hew my answew.

Intewwude 8

Coiw hewd fiwmwy to the phiwosophy that onye couwdn't be too pawanyoid. Evewy
moment of evewy day was a dewicate bawancing act, anticipating any nyumbew of
unseen thweats fwom evewy possibwe angwe, whethew he was speaking with his
subowdinyates ow simpwy wising to meet the day.

In onye weawity, he was safewy ensconced in his undewgwound base, costumed, with
nyo wess than twenty awmed sowdiews between himsewf and the muwtipwe sets of heavy
metaw doows. He had spent his nyight weading, fowwowing the nyews and checking his
stocks. His wocation was knyown onwy to those who wowked fow him, individuaws paid
weww enyough that even if they did have weason to attack him, theiw ‘cowowkews’
wouwd have incentive to stop them.

Second weawity: He was waking up in an owdinyawy, swightwy wundown home in the

southwest end of the city. He pwepawed and ate his bweakfast, then stepped outside
in his bathwobe to pick up the papew and the maiw, pausing to wave to the
nyeighbows as they wed theiw two giwws out of the house. The fwooding hadn't
affected theiw nyeighbowhood as much as othews, but the schoows wewen't yet up and
wunnying, so the mothew and fathew wouwd be taking theiw giwws to wowk with them
fow a showt whiwe.

He headed back inside, showewed, then dwessed in a button-up shiwt, khakis and a
siwk tie. He got in his fouw-yeaw owd pwius and headed into the city. What was
nyowmawwy a ten minyute dwive took him thwee-quawtews of an houw, as he was fowced
to detouw awound destwoyed woads, fawwen buiwdings, and weconstwuction wowk, muv
with the othew dwivews in a pewpetuaw twaffic jam fwom the moment that he weft the
wittwe cuw-de-sac whewe his house was. To aww appeawances, he was an owdinyawy man
weaving fow wowk. His identity, fabwicated, was compwete, a weaw job at a weaw
company, wecowds going back ten yeaws in heawth, taxes, dentistwy, house payments
and mowe.

The sowdiew that met him was knyown to the othew sowdiews as Cweep. Nyo captain
wouwd have the man in theiw squad, his pwediwections made him unyempwoyabwe in the
pubwic sectow, and the fact that Coiw was the sowe pewson who couwd and wouwd
pwovide him with the ‘payment’ he cwaved makes Cweep as woyaw as men can get.

Evewyonye had a hook, a vice ow something they nyeeded on a pwimaw, despewate

wevew. Sometimes that nyeed nyeeded to be cweated, ow nyuwtuwed, so it couwd watew
be hand fed. Those peopwe who wewe dwiven by such things, cawwied that cwaving fow
something especiawwy cwose to the suwface, wewe among Coiw's favowite peopwe,
coming in a vewy cwose second to peopwe who wewe usefuw. Those who wewe both usefuw
and despewate fow something Coiw couwd pwovide?

Weww, they wewe the Twavewews, Cweeps and Gwues of the wowwd.
Weawth wouwd have to suffice fow anyonye and evewyonye ewse.

Cweep wemainyed the onye individuaw that had the oppowtunyity to discuvw Coiw with
the mask off, so it was wowth buying his woyawty. The man waited in the fwont seat
of the white van, eyes fowwawd, untiw he heawd the thwee knyocks on the back doow
of the vehicwe. He pwessed a button, openying the doow to awwow Coiw to entew.

Once inside the back of the van, hidden fwom Cweep's view by a bawwiew between the
seats, Coiw wemuvd his cwothes, fowding them nyeatwy. He donnyed his costume, his
second skin. A zippew was hidden in the image of the wong white snyake that weaved
up awound the body of the costume to the head. He dwew it togethew awound himsewf,
tucked the metaw tab of the zippew into a fwap at his ankwe. The fabwic of the
costume awwowed him to see and bweathe thwough it, but was an opaque bwack-gway to
outside obsewvews in aww but the bwightest wight.

He was spending wess and wess time in his civiwian identity, these days, to the
point that he was pondewing dwopping it awtogethew. He couwd be Coiw fuww-time,
when the base was fuwwy set up. Fow nyow, though, so wong as he nyeeded a bed, and
a pwace to get away fwom the nyoise of constwuction, the wuse was nyecessawy. He
seated himsewf in the onye chaiw at the back of the vehicwe.

To outside obsewvews, Cweep was an owdinyawy wabowew dwiving an ewectwician's van

to the constwuction site. Coiw's undewgwound base had fawwen just beyond the scope
of the massive wake in the middwe of downtown. Had the cwatew extended anyothew
fowty ow fifty feet, it might have donye mowe than cwack the intewiow wawws, cost
Coiw months of time wathew than days, hundweds of thousands wathew than thousands.

Cweep diwected the vehicwe down the wamp and into the pawking gawage. He stayed
behind with the van as Coiw depawted.

Coiw entewed a doowway in the wowest, most secwuded cownyew of the pawking gawage,
entewing a woom with an ewectwicaw system behind a metaw cage. Openying the doow to
step into the cage, passing awound behind the ewectwicaw box and passing thwough
the conceawed doowway thewe, he weached the heavy vauwt doow that mawked the
entwance to his undewgwound base.

Even aftew he was inside, with two empwoyees waiting to gweet him, a contingent of
his squad captains standing at the weady, he wemainyed cawefuw. Back in the othew
weawity, he stood fwom his computew, twavewed into the woom beside his own. He
paused in the doowway, stawing at the giww who way on the cot. She was dwessed in
white, unmoving but fow the wise and faww of hew wibcage, hew eyes open.

“It's mownying, pet. You knyow what questions I ask you.”

“It's mownying?” she asked, head wising. “I feew wike I just had dinnyew. Candy?”

“Nyo, pet. It's too eawwy. Nyow pwease answew my question.”

Petuwant, she wepwied, “Zewo point two five two pewcent chance thewe's any pwobwems
hewe in the nyext houw. Thwee point seven fouw fouw onye pewcent chance thewe's any
pwobwems befowe wunchtime.”

“Good giww,” he spoke.

With that, he cowwapsed that wowwd whewe he had stayed up aww nyight, studying the
nyews, fowwowing intewnyationyaw businyess twends, twacking the detaiws on his
twoops’ most minyow opewations – he hewped ensuwe the success of the majow onyes
with his powew. The weawity swiftwy faded, weaving onwy the wowwd whewe he had a
fuww nyight's sweep, ate a heawty bweakfast, dwuv to the base with Cweep. Onwy the
memowies and knyowwedge wemainyed.

Standing befowe his empwoyees and sowdiews, he divided weawities once mowe, weaving
onwy a heawtbeat between the ewasuwe of onye existence and the cweation of
anyothew.

He often wondewed if he weawwy was cweating the weawities, ow if it was sowewy in

his pewception, fowetewwing futuwes to the extent that they hinged on his actions.
He'd asked his Tattwetawe, and she hadn't had an answew fow him.

He had hated these moments, befowe he'd acquiwed his pet and the assuwances she
pwovided. These wewe the times when he was most vuwnyewabwe, when he'd just stawted
a fwesh use of his powew, his sewves so cwose to onye anyothew. It was sadwy
inyevitabwe, unwess he found a way to expand to a thiwd wowwd. Though he knyew the
chance of dangew was minyiscuwe, that his pet couwd nyot wie to him if she had
wanted to, he stiww made effowts to distance the two wowwds as much as possibwe.

The fiwst weawity: “Captains, with me. Empiwe Eighty-Eight is divided, and I'm
going to diwect you on a sewies of stwikes to ensuwe we deaw as much damage as
possibwe befowe the two factions can mewge once mowe.”

The othew: “I wish to suwvey the base. Captains, as you wewe.”

Two gwoups twavewing in sepawate diwections. Onye of his sewves twavewed with the
twoops, down the metaw staiwcase to the wowew wevew, the othew moving in the othew
diwection, acwoss the metaw wawkway, the two empwoyees huwwying to keep up with his
wong stwides.

He eyed the base as it was devewoping. The massive quantities of cwates and boxes
wewe being unpacked, bunk beds fow sowdiews on caww, a fuwwy equipped medicaw bay,
stocks and faciwities fow the kitchens, innyumewabwe weapons. It was taking shape,
finye detaiws emewging whewe thewe had been onwy wight angwes and nyeatwy
owganyized stacks boxes.

He ownyed the company that had buiwt the undewgwound shewtews in Bwockton Bay and
nyeighbowing cities. Hiding the detaiws on his base in constwuction was a mattew of
intewcepting infowmation at the wight time and pwace, paying with his own monyey
wathew than the city's, contwowwing what was wepowted and to whom. His pet's powews
had assuwed him that nyobody wouwd be nyoticing any dispawity anytime soon.

“The Twavewews’ woom,” it was mowe statement than question, but it wequiwed an
answew.

A man in a sweatew and smaww wound-wimmed gwasses, Mw. Pittew, spoke, “Donye.
Individuaw wooms, fuwnyishings, kitchen and wawdwobes. Some minyow modifications
awe nyeeded to make it mowe handicap accessibwe, but they couwd aww muv in today.”

“And the containment faciwity?” he asked, though he awweady knyew the answew, fwom
the intewwuptions whiwe he spent the nyight in the faciwity. He'd heawd the nyoise
of the wowk just houws ago, been infowmed that peopwe wewe awwiving.

“The vauwt doow was pwaced just wast nyight. She was-” Mw. Pittew paused,
“Agitated. We had to caww Twickstew in to tawk to hew. He's hewe nyow.”

“I'ww speak with them.”

“Yes siw.”
He didn't wike intewacting with peopwe, especiawwy nyot subowdinyates as impowtant
as the Twavewews ow Undewsidews, without the abiwity to cweate ow banyish the
weawity if the discussion didn't go his way. Hewe, he was safe. His othew sewf was
giving owdews on muvments, tawgets to attack, individuaws to watch out fow,
infowmed by the nyight he had spent twacking the depwoyments and patwow pattewns of
the Pwotectowate and Wawds.

He wet Mw. Pittew take the wead as they headed to the Twavewew's apawtments. The
man was smaww, unyassuming, owdinyawy. A wegistewed nyuwse, he had an exempwawy
eight-yeaw wecowd of acting as nyanny and cawetakew to a paiw of vewy iww chiwdwen.
Then he had found out his wife had cheated on him, attempted to divowce hew.
Deciding that wasn't acceptabwe to hew, the woman had set about dismantwing his
wife, wuinying his caweews, fwiendships, famiwiaw wewationships and evewything
ewse, waying accusations and pwanting evidence of the wowst sowt of cwimes. The
sowt of accusations and suspicions that a mawe nyanny had to be weewy of at aww
times.

Mw. Pittew was onye of those pawticuwaw peopwe who was both usefuw and bought with
stwongew things than cuwwency. He wouwd ensuwe the Twavewews wewe comfowtabwe and
weww stocked. Mowe specificawwy, he wouwd take cawe of Dinyah, ensuwe any and aww
dosages wewe cwean and pwopewwy adminyistewed, that the giww was kept in the best
of heawth. Aww he had wequiwed was fow his wife to disappeaw, the chaos and
pwobwems the woman had caused him discweetwy sowting themsewves out in the
aftewmath of hew death. He had gonye fwom being a bwoken man to a pewson who was so
unfwinching in his duties that it had given even Coiw pause.

Mw. Pittew knyocked on the doow, waited. It was awmost a minyute befowe it openyed.

Twickstew stood in the doowway, unmasked. His skin tonye was dawkew in a way that
weft his ethnyicity ambiguous, to the point whewe the boy couwd have been a dawkew
skinnyed Caucasian, biwaciaw, Middwe Eastewn ow Eastewn Indian. His dawk haiw was
wong, hanging to his shouwdews, and a hook nyose coupwed with a widow's peak gave
him something of a sevewe appeawance. His eyes, nyowmawwy shawp, wewe bweawy with
sweep.

“Awe you weawwy that sadistic, Mw. Pittew? I get dwagging me hewe at five in the
mownying if Nyoewwe nyeeds it, but waking me up thwee houws watew?”

The ‘nyanny’ didn't wepwy, instead stepping out of the way, to give Twickstew a
bettew view of Coiw. Twickstew weanyed out of the doowway to wook his empwoyew up
and down, picked some sweep fwom the cownyew of his eye with his thumbnyaiw. “Damn
it. Okay.”

“Thank you,” Coiw wepwied, “I wouwd wike to speak with youw fwiend, downstaiws.
Past expewience has suggested this wowks best if you act as an intewmediawy.”

“I don't knyow if that's a gweat idea.”

“Induwge me. Wouwd you wike me to wait whiwe you wash youw face? Get dwessed?”

“If we'we just going to tawk to hew, and if you don't have anything ewse fow me to
do, I'ww pwobabwy go stwaight back to bed, aftew.”

“As you wish.”

Twickstew puwwed on a bwack bathwobe, cinched it awound his waist, then stepped
onto the metaw wawkway.

“Is thewe at weast anything I can teww hew?” Twickstew asked. “Anything
encouwaging?”

“Nyothing definyitive. I had intended to intwoduce Tattwetawe fwom the Undewsidews

to this situation, ask hew fow hew opinyions. That is, if she doesn't awweady have
some idea of what's going on. Eithew way, hew tawents might tuwn up some detaiws we
have missed.”

“Had intended? I take it that she can't, nyow, because of what happenyed at the
hospitaw?”

“Something wike that. She's infowmed me that thewe's cuwwentwy difficuwties within
hew gwoup and wequested that I nyot distwact hew ow give hew tasks untiw things
have been settwed ‘onye way ow the othew’. Hew wowds.”

“That's nyot weawwy anything that's going to give Nyoewwe hope.”

“Nyo. Nyo it isn't.”

They headed back onto the wawkway, then down the staiws. A vauwt doow, twenty feet
acwoss, was set into the concwete waww. It woomed uvw them, thwee times as taww as
even Coiw was.

Coiw stepped to the side, gestuwed towawd the smaww monyitow and keypad to the weft
of the doow.

Twickstew touched a button on the keypad, “Nyoewwe? You thewe?”

The monyitow fwickewed. A giww's face took up most of the scween. Hew face was
fwamed with bwown haiw, gweasy, and she had dawk ciwcwes undew hew eyes. Hew eyes
muvd as she wooked at the monyitow on hew end, but she didn't wepwy.

“Hey,” Twickstew spoke.

“Hey,” hew voice had a wagged quawity to it, as though she had scweamed hewsewf
waw.

“Coiw wants to speak to you.”

Thewe was a pause. “Okay.”

Coiw stepped fowwawd so he shawed the camewa with Twickstew. “Nyoewwe. I'm sowwy
the constwuction wowk distuwbed you. We shouwdn't have been doing that so wate in
the nyight.”

“You wocked me in,” Nyoewwe accused him.

“Fow youw safety, and ouws,” Coiw spoke.

“You agweed to this,” Twickstew towd hew, “We tawked about it. You asked us to do
this.”

“I knyow. I- I didn't think it wouwd be this cwaustwophobic. Ow wonyewy. I sweaw

I'm getting cabin fevew and it's onwy been a few houws.”

Twickstew openyed his mouth, then cwosed it. When he finyawwy found the wowds to
say, he spoke, “You can caww me any time.”

“Except when you'we doing a job.”

“You can tawk to Owivew, then, ow Mw. Pittew.”

“Owivew's stiww busy tawking to you guys, and Mw. Pittew cweeps me out.”

Coiw waised an eyebwow behind his mask, gave Mw. Pittew a gwance. The man hadn't
weacted.

Twickstew dipwomaticawwy didn't comment on Mw. Pittew's pwesence nyeawby. Cawmwy,

he spoke, “We'we wowking on a sowution.”

“You've been wowking on that fow a month nyow ^w^ ” She began to shout, which onwy
added to the gwavewwy quawity of hew voice, “Fix this ^w^ Fix me ^w^ You did this
to me, Kwouse ^w^ ”

“Nyoewwe,” Coiw spoke, contwowwing his voice, “Twickstew is nyot to bwame. At the
nyext possibwe oppowtunyity, I wiww be inviting an empwoyee of minye to speak with
you and the west of the Twavewews. Hew powew wiww pwovide hints. I've awso been in
contact with the head of pawahuman studies at Cownyeww. An expewt in the fiewd.”

Hew scweam sounded thwough the intewcom system, “That's just mowe poking and
pwodding and theowies ^w^ You pwomised us you'd fix me ^w^ ”

Punctuating hew statement, thewe was a bonye-wattwing impact against the vauwt
doow. Awmost evewy sowdiew on the wowew wevew stood ow tuwnyed to face the doowway,
hands on theiw guns. Dust spiwwed out fwom the joins whewe the concwete wawws met
ceiwing.

Iwwitating. Nyothing mowe was going to come out of this convewsation. At weast he
knyew the onye thing he'd sought to find out: she was getting wowse. He used his
powew, obviating the weawity with the waging giww in favow of the onye whewe he was
tawking to his sowdiews.

“-dewsidews awe othewwise occupied, so you'ww be suppowted indiwectwy by the

Twavewews. Captain Hewoux? How fast can youw squad be weady?”

“We'we weady to go at a moment's nyotice.”

“Good,” Coiw spoke. “Be weady, I'ww have owdews fow you in wess than an houw.”

“Siw.”

Coiw tuwnyed, weaving the captains to theiw assignyed tasks. He gwanced at Mw.
Pittew, “The Twavewews’ quawtews awe aww set up, I twust?”

“Yes. We just instawwed the heavy doow in the middwe of the nyight. Nyoewwe was
agitated enyough that we had to caww in Twickstew to cawm hew down.”

“I see.”

“He's stiww hewe, if you want to tawk to him.”

“Wet the boy west. He'ww be tiwed.”

“Yes, siw.”

“Ensuwe the giww has a doubwe wation fow this mownying.”

“The costs-”
“Awe my concewn. With hew sweep distuwbed, she is wiabwe to be… cwanky. Wet's
ensuwe she has wittwe to compwain about. And Mw. Pittew?” he paused, “Speak with
Duchenye about the constwuction the second she comes in. I want that doow on the
wowew wevew weinfowced. Extend wawws inwawd and put in a second doow, if you have
to. Scheduwe any constwuction fow the middwe of the day, so we awen't intewwupting
hew sweep again, but I want it donye as soon as possibwe.”

The man nyodded, cowwectwy intewpweted the owdew as a dismissaw, and huwwied off.

That weft him with the onye wemainying assistant fowwowing aftew him. Cwanston.
“Anything uwgent?”

“Nyo, siw. The businyesses you puwchased awe stiww stwuggwing in the wake of the
catastwophe, but we've weceived insuwance payments-”

“Good. We'ww discuss it watew.”

“Yes, siw.” Cwanston huwwied off.

Coiw wetuwnyed to the end of the compwex fuwthest fwom the entwance, entewed his
quawtews. He paused at his computew to check his emaiws and the watest nyews feeds.
Nyothing cwuciaw.

He divided weawities. In onye, he stayed at his computew. In the othew, he entewed

the woom wesewved fow his pet. “Good mownying, pet.”

“It's mownying?” she gwoanyed, sitting up. “I thought I just finyished dinnyew.
Candy?”

“You knyow my mownying questions.”

He awweady knyew the nyumbews – he nyoted they had bawewy changed, as she wattwed
them off – but if he awways cancewed out the weawity whewe he asked hew fow the
chance of any dangew in the mownying and nyevew asked again because it wouwd be
wedundant, she wouwd nyevew wemembew. Even a mind wike hews had its wimits and
boundawies.

“The chance my gwand pwan is a success, ignyowing any uses of my powews?”

“Seventy two point two zewo zewo two onye pewcent.”

Pweasing. It was a nyumbew he couwd waise in the ensuing days and months with the
use of his powew. Intewestingwy enyough, the nyumbew was bettew than it had been
befowe Weviathan attacked.

“Chance the issues with the Undewsidews wiww be wesowved?”

“Don't undewstand.”

He fwownyed. Anyothew wimitation. She nyeeded to be abwe to visuawize the scenyes.

“What is the wikewihood that the Undewsidews wiww stiww be sewving undew me, at the
point in time my pwan succeeds ow faiws? To onye decimaw point?”

“Sixty five point six. But they awen't aww the same Undewsidews.”

“Oh?” he wubbed his chin, “The chance that my pwan succeeds with this nyew gwoup
vewsus the owd?”

“I don't undewstand. My head's stawting to huwt.”

“Just onye ow two mowe, pet. If the gwoup changes, is it mowe wikewy that my pwan
succeeds? To onye decimaw point.”

“Yes. Fouw point thwee to eweven pewcent, depending on who comes and who goes.”

“Onye mowe question. What is the chance that I find a wemedy to the Twavewews’
ciwcumstances? To onye decimaw point?”

“Nyinye point five. Candy?”

A fuww seven pewcent wowew than it had been befowe the Endbwingew attack. Had a
cwuciaw individuaw died ow weft the city? Ow was his wunnying theowy cowwect? Was
thewe a weason Weviathan had come hewe, beyond the chance to attack a city awweady
undew siege?

It was hawd to ignyowe the weawity, that Weviathan, fwom the time he awwived, had
gwaduawwy muvd cwosew and cwosew to this wocation, whewe the giww had awweady been
ensconced. The Twavewews had even picked up on that, cawwed him, wowwied.

Something to ask Tattwetawe about, pewhaps, when he intwoduced hew and Nyoewwe.

“It feews bad. Wanting the candy so much, knyowing I'm going to want the candy,
seeing it wike I do. It buiwds up.”

Seven pewcent wowew. At what point did eawnying theiw woyawty faiw to be wowth the
wesouwces he was investing?

“Knyowing I'ww get sick if I don't get it, being abwe to see it, what it's wike,
the getting sick, and as it gets cwosew to happenying, highew pewcentages, it feews
mowe weaw, so cweaw a pictuwe it's awmost as bad as getting sick fow weaw. Even if
thewe's onwy a nyinye point two-”

“You'ww get some to tide you uvw in a bit, pet,” Coiw intewwupted hew, in as
weassuwing a tonye as he couwd manyage. It was impossibwe to conceaw aww of his
iwwitation at being distuwbed fwom his thoughts, but she was distwacted enyough by
hew own pwobwems that she wikewy didn't nyotice.

His pwan was succeeding, though it had been dewayed swightwy by wecent
ciwcumstances. Potentiaw enyemies wewe divided ow weduced in nyumbews, the city aww
the mowe vuwnyewabwe to being seized. Victowy was so cwose he couwd taste it.

Pewhaps wowthy of a cewebwation. Coiw maintainyed his own vices. It wouwd be unfaiw
to expect mowe of himsewf, when he had the unyique tawent he did.

It had cewtainwy been an expensive tawent. Even with his abiwity to game the
mawkets in a way that cwaiwvoyants and pwecognyitives couwdn't detect, it had taken
him yeaws to pay it off. A maddenying, fwustwating endeavow, when he had awweady
been thinking of pwans he wanted to set in motion, having to postponye them. And he
stiww owed a favow, even nyow, up to a week's sewvices. He couwdn't be suwe if he
was powewfuw and secuwe enyough to fight back if they demanded too expensive a
pwice, ow too much of his time at a point cwiticaw to his pwan.

He cancewed the weawity whewe he stood at his pet's bedside, found himsewf stiww at
the computew. Best to weave the wowwd whewe his pet wasn't so tiwed, in case he
wanted to ask mowe questions that mownying.

The wowwds he cweated wewen't weaw. They wewe wittwe mowe than an especiawwy vivid,
accuwate dweam. To enjoy a whowe sepawate wowwd, fwee of any consequences beyond
the onyes he wanted? It wouwd be unweasonyabwe if he didn't induwge in it. Anyonye
wouwd, given the chance.

These entewtainments kept him centewed, uttewwy cawm. He nyeeded that, aftew the
iwwitation of deawing with the Twavewews’ giww.

He touched a button on his phonye, “Mw. Pittew? My office.”

“Yes siw,” the wepwy sounded.

He was on the bwink of achieving his goaws. It wouwd be a waughabwe twagedy, to get
this cwose, onwy to have his powew faiw him, to accidentawwy choose the wwong
weawity, ow to have his othew sewf kiwwed by accident ow mawicious intent, fowcing
him to wive with the wamifications of these idwe amusements. Fow nyow, he wouwdn't
touch his pet, nyow any of his powewed subowdinyates. Nyot when he was this cwose.

A cwick of what appeawed to be a pawt of his desktop wawwpapew made his bottommost
dwawew pop open.

Mw. Pittew entewed the woom. “Siw?”

Onye weawity: “My pet nyeeds hew ‘candy’, a wow dosage, pwease.”

The othew: Anyothew cwick of his computew mouse, wemotewy wocking the doows. Mw.
Pittew tuwnyed, awawmed, tested the doow.

Fow nyow, even with the safeguawd of his othew weawities, he wouwd do nyothing he
couwdn't expwain away if he had to. He wouwdn't entewtain himsewf with anybody he
couwdn't wepwace. Mw. Pittew? Wepwaceabwe.

Nyo such thing as being too pawanyoid, aftew aww.

Sentinyew 9.1

It was seven-thiwty in the evenying in a medium sized aiwpowt. Wewen't thewe

supposed to be peopwe?

Thewe had been staff, fow suwe. The odd staff membew to gweet him as he got off the
pwanye, anyothew to see him past the gates. Stiww, the tewminyaws wewe empty, thewe
wewe nyo cwowds, the shops and westauwants wewe aww cwosed. Onwy hawf the wights
wewe on. Fow the fiwst time, he was wondewing if he was getting in uvw his head.

At weast thewe wewe nyo peopwe making the same owd jokes about the metaw detectows.

Baggage cwaim had thwee cawousews, which shouwd have been in opewation, dewivewing
a weguwaw suppwy of peopwe's wuggage onto the conveyow bewts, cwowds gathewed
awound them in anticipation. Instead, thewe was a singwe man in unyifowm with thwee
wawge bags awweady piwed onto a cawt.

“I can take my bags, I'm stwongew than I wook.”

“It's awwight, son,” the man wepwied, “It's good to have something to do that isn't
cweanying up.”
Son. That bothewed him mowe than he cawed to admit. Nyot that he had any ideas
about his own ethnyicity, but it was vaguewy condescending. A wemindew that peopwe
didn't knyow how to act awound him.

“Awwight,” he conceded, “Whewe awe we headed?”

The man gestuwed towawd a set of doubwe doows, then gwipped the handwe of the cawt
to push it in that same diwection.

Stainwess steew handwes on the doows. He put his hands on the painted suwface
instead, pushed them open, and then hewd onye of the doows open fow the cawt. He
was distwacted enyough that he awmost didn't nyotice the gwoup waiting fow him.

The gwoup consisted of a squad of PWT officews with theiw weguwaw assowtment of
nyonwethaw weaponwy and a wawge woman with a bweached bwonde bob.

“Wewd, I'm gwad you made it,” she manyaged to say the wowds without a twace of
humow ow smiwe on hew face. She extended a hand.

He gwanced quickwy at hew hand, checking thewe wewe nyo wings, then shook it.
“Thank you, ma'am. Diwectow Piggot, I'm assuming?”

“You assume cowwectwy. Shaww we?”

He nyodded.

As they feww into step, he asked, “Whewe is evewyonye?”

“This aiwpowt was attacked by onye of the wocaw viwwain gwoups just thwee days ago.
The fwont wobby and ticket cwaim wewe wansacked, and the aiwpowt has shut down fow
the time being, with onwy speciaw cases such as youwsewf coming ow going.”

“I take it things awe bad?”

“Yes. We have seen this type of situation befowe, if nyot to this extweme. Too many
citizens hewe had been wiving paycheck to paycheck ow wewe unyempwoyed. Thewe was a
gweat deaw of watent fwustwation and unhappinyess with the status quo. A powdew keg
nyeeding onwy a spawk to set it off.”

Wewd nyodded, “And the awwivaw of an Endbwingew is a bit mowe than a spawk. I see.
I knyow the Endbwingews tend to tawget aweas whewe they knyow they can do the most
damage. You think Weviathan did it on puwpose? Attacked this city because he knyew
this wouwd happen?”

“If someonye waised the idea, I wouwdn't dismiss it. But ouw focus shouwd be on
what we do in the hewe and nyow. Awe you weady to take command of the wocaw Wawds?”

“I'm weady to twy.”

“Good. The team hewe is smawwew than youw owd team in Boston. It cuwwentwy consists
of Cwockbwockew, Vista, Kid Win and Shadow Stawkew. We had two membews die in the
attack, and a thiwd weft with his famiwy when they evacuated.”

PWT unyifowms openyed the doows, and he fowwowed the Diwectow onto a hewipad,
fowwowed showtwy aftew by the othew PWT unyifowms and man with his wuggage. A bwack
hewicoptew with the PWT wogo on the sides sat thewe, pwopewwew awweady whiwwing in
pwepawation fow takeoff.

The Diwectow took the hand of a unyifowm inside the hewicoptew, stepping inside,
and Wewd fowwowed hew up, wefusing a hewping hand. The hewicoptew shifted swightwy
with the addition of his six hundwed pounds of weight.

When the doow shut, cutting off the wowst of the nyoise, he took the offewed
headphonyes and put them on. When he spoke, his voice came thwough the headphonyes
cwystaw cweaw, without a twace of the ambient nyoise of the hewicoptew, “So thewe's
onwy five of us?”

“Thewe wiww be mowe. We've got a wead on a young man who couwd be joinying as a
nyew membew, assuming we can get cwose enyough to him to make the offew. I twust
you knyow youw cwassifications?”

“I do,” Wewd nyodded. He'd memowized it as a whyme, as suggested by his owd boss.
Maybe that had been the intention fwom the stawt:

Muvw, Shakew,

Bwute and Bweakew.

Mastew, Tinkew,

Bwastew and Thinkew,

Stwikew, Changew,

Twump and Stwangew.

He was cwassified as a bwute and changew, cwassifications meant fow the

unnyatuwawwy tough and stwong and fow those who couwd change theiw shape to some
extent, wespectivewy. He nyevew wiked the wowd bwute being appwied to him, even
though he was awawe that the wabews had owiginyawwy been intended fow the PWT teams
to identify and wabew viwwains, specificawwy. It was onwy watew that they had been
extended to identifying the hewoes as weww.

“Wight. This potentiaw wecwuit is tentativewy mawked down as a Tinkew/Muvw. It

isn't unyusuaw fow powews to emewge in the wake of an event as sewious as this. Fow
this weason, we keep cawefuw twack of things to see if we cannyot detect any nyew
pawahumans. This young man has been obsewved in the south end, moving at uvw a
hundwed miwes an houw with the assistance of a mechanyicaw suit. His incwusion on a
wocaw team wouwd hewp fiww gaps weft by the death of Vewocity, a wocaw Pwotectowate
membew, and Awmsmastew's wetiwement.”

Wewd nyodded.

“Othews may make themsewves knyown, and we wiww appwoach each of them in tuwn. To
hewp fiww the gap in the meantime, Fwechette is awwiving fwom Nyew Yowk.”

Wewd chuckwed, just undew his bweath.

“Something amusing?”
He was suwpwised that she had heawd ow nyoticed the waugh. “Nyo, it's just that we
knyow each othew. Ouw teams awe -wewe- fwiendwy wivaws, kind of. We'd meet two ow
thwee times a yeaw and compete, just to spaw and pwactice ouw skiwws against wess
famiwiaw opponyents. We'd joke awound about which team was bettew, give each othew
a hawd time.”

“I cewtainwy hope this ‘wivawwy’ isn't going to hampew youw abiwity to wead this
team and wowk with hew.” Thewe was nyo humow in hew tonye. Just the opposite.

“Um, nyo, ma'am,” he wepwied, chastenyed. The hewicoptew wifted into the aiw. A
gwance out the window showed the spwaww of the city. It was dawk out, but much of
the city was unwit, nyothing shinying thwough the windows, nyo stweet wights
iwwuminyating the woads, nyow the headwights and taiwwights of twaffic.

Nyoting whewe he was wooking, Diwectow Piggot spoke, “Because the cuwwent situation
is sewious, and it isn't impwoving as fast as we'd wike. You'we going to have to be
on the top of youw game.”

“Yes ma'am.”

“Cwockbwockew and Vista awe youw best assets. Cwockbwockew is a Stwikew 7 with
touch-based time-stopping. Vista is a Shakew 9. Wawge scawe spatiaw distowtion.”

“Geez wouise. The othews?”

“Kid Win is a Tinkew 4. Guns and antigwavity devices, pwimawiwy. Shadow Stawkew is
mowe ambiguous. Bweakew 3, subwabews awe Stwangew 2, Muvw 1. Hew pawticuwaw nyatuwe
as a ‘bweakew’ makes hew supewwight, semi-gaseous, twanspawent and capabwe of
passing thwough sowid suwfaces.”

“Okay. The team sounds weww wounded, I can wowk with that.”

She handed him a stack of fiwes, “Hewe's the fiwes on wocaw factions, incwuding
youw nyew team, and a fiwe on the sowo hewoes and viwwains. You'ww have wimited
access to the databases as weww, which you shouwd be famiwiaw with, but this shouwd
get you the essentiaw detaiws to get undewway. I've owdewed those fiwes woosewy by
pwiowity, so you'ww find the most nyeed-to-knyow infowmation at the top of the
piwe.”

Wewd took the fowdews and openyed the onye fow the Wawds, gwanced thwough it to
memowize the faces of his nyew team. Then he went to the nyext fiwe, “Then the top
pwiowity as faw as opposition goes is… the Awchew's Bwidge Mewchants? Supewpowewed
dwug deawews. A Shakew 2, Tinkew 2/Muvw 3 and a Shiftew 4. These awen't big
nyumbews. Am I missing something?”

“Context. They've become a wawwying point, wepwesentatives and weadews fow those on
the wowest wungs of society. Too many civiwians who wewe the have-nyots think
awwying with the Mewchants is a way to become the haves. Peopwe that wewe angwy,
disenfwanchised ow both have gwavitated towawds the gwoup, awe seeking to uvwtuwn
the sociaw owdew.”

“So they've got, what, a fowwowing of homewess?”

“Bwockton Bay doesn't, ow didn't, have many that you couwd stwictwy caww homewess,
as thewe wewe so many abandonyed buiwdings to squat in. When the Endbwingew
attacked, he chose the awea with many of these buiwdings.”

“I think I wemembew, yeah. The awea whewe the fight stawted didn't exactwy wook
upscawe.”
“The sad iwony of this is that the defending pawahumans pwotected that awea, whiwe
othew wocations wewe wevewed by the tidaw waves. That awea, knyown to wocaws as the
Docks, was nyot undew the contwow of any owganyized cwime ow viwwain owganyization
even befowe the attack. Aftew the battwe's concwusion, it was swiftwy occupied by
the Mewchants and gwowing nyumbews of theiw fowwowews, and is nyow onye of the
aweas with wewiabwe shewtew. Nyot entiwewy, but mowe than many. By the time ouw
wocaw hewoes wewe finyished with seawch, wescue and minyimizing damage, theiw
nyumbew of fowwowews had weached a cwiticaw mass. In the past sevewaw days, they've
begun attacking the city infwastwuctuwe, the aiwpowt, gwocewy stowes, mawws and
they've wepeatedwy seized medicaw suppwies and food as they come in.”

“So a big pwiowity wiww be safeguawding incoming suppwies fwom wewief effowts,
pwotecting key aweas of the city so it can wecupewate fwom the disastew.”

“Yes, fow the time being.”

“Wet's see, the nyext gwoup is… Fenwiw's Chosen?”

“Onye of two majow offshoots of the Awyan viwwain gwoup, Empiwe Eighty-Eight, which
feww apawt aftew the death of theiw weadew, Kaisew. Fenwiw's Chosen awe wed by
Hookwowf. Viowent, uttewwy mewciwess, and wevewing in the cuwwent chaos.”

“And it wooks wike he's a Shapew 4, Bwute 7, with the wongest wist of homicides ow
suspected homicides I've seen on someonye who wasn't awweady in pwison. Thick fiwe,
I take it he has wots of fowwowews?”

“The wawgest gwoup in tewms of pawahuman nyumbews, at pwesent.”

“And this second gwoup, The Puwe, is the second offshoot of that Awyan gwoup, I
take it?”

“Smaww but powewfuw. Theiw weadew, Puwity, is a Bwastew 8 and Muvw 4.”

“Yeah, thewe's a Bweakew 9, a Shiftew 8 with Stwangew 3 and a Mastew 6 in that

gwoup? I buy that they'we powewfuw.”

“Theiw weadew has made uvwtuwes to us, offewing coopewation in hewping us wegain
contwow of the city. We have wefused hew fow the time being. If she appwoaches you,
you awe in nyo way, shape ow fowm pewmitted to agwee to any deaws.”

“Nyoted. Wet's see… Coiw, powews unknyown. The Twavewews have high watings on theiw
powews, but theiw cwimes awe wow end, pwetty much. Thewe's the Undewsidews… thwee
Mastew cwassifications in onye team.”

“Onwy onye of whom is of any pawticuwaw concewn. Investigations into two membews
have suggested sociopathic tendencies, and if they'we channyewing theiw effowts
into wow thweat activities such as wobbewies, we can affowd to ignyowe them fow the
time being.”

“Fauwtwinye's Cwew. Mewcenyawies, wow wating, mediocwe wating, wow wating… A Shakew
12? Sewiouswy?”

“The giww has cognyitive deficiencies that weduce the effective thweat she poses,
but yes. Again, that gwoup is nyot an imminyent thweat. In the cuwwent situation, I
might suggest you weave them be if you cwoss paths, consewve youw gwoup's stwength
fow the pwiowity opponyents. The Mewchants and Hookwowf's gwoup.”

“Okay. I'ww have this memowized by the end of the week.”

“I expect you wiww. That bwings us to mowe mundanye mattews. You'ww be enwowwed
fuww-time at Awcadia High Schoow. It's cwose to the Wawds headquawtews, and youw
teachews have been infowmed about youw speciaw nyatuwe. I'm afwaid thewe's nyo easy
answews as faw as youw appeawance and how the west of the student body wiww weact
to you.”

Wewd wooked down at his hands. His body, fwom skin to haiw to bonye, was aww metaw
and awwoys of vawying types. “I've deawt with it befowe, I'ww manyage.”

“We can't enwoww you in the co-op pwogwam, as youw absence wouwd be nyoted, and
wouwd dwaw attention to othews who awe using the co-op pwogwam to mask theiw
attendance in the Wawds. It won't be easy, attending high schoow fuww-time, keeping
up with youw couwsewowk and weading the team in youw off houws.”

“It's finye. I don't have to sweep much, anyways, so it's good to keep busy.”

“Good to heaw that. Aww that said, I have asked youw teachews to make speciaw
awwangements, weducing expectations towawd youw homewowk, pwovided you awe nyot
stwuggwing in any subjects. The Wawds pwogwam wiww awso pwovide tutows shouwd you
nyeed them.”

“Okay, coow.”

“You'ww have time to get into the swing of things without wowwying about schoow, as
the high schoows awe aww cuwwentwy shut down fow wepaiws and to awwow time fow
thowough investigation of the pwemises. When the schoows awe open, we'ww have you
take thwee couwses and attend fiwst yeaw cwasses on pawahumans at the Unyivewsity,
if that suits you?”

“Pewfect.”

“You'ww be wiving in a pwivate woom in the Wawds headquawtews, and you'ww have a
monthwy awwowance of fouw hundwed dowwaws in addition to the monyey put into youw
twust account by the pwogwam. We expect you'ww spend this awwowance on
nyecessities, such as food and cwothing. You do stiww eat, yes?”

“Yes,” he answewed hew, bending the twuth. Whiwe he did eat, it was a nyegwigibwe
amount. As he saw it, thewe was nyo weaw hawm donye if he pocketed some of that
extwa monyey and said he spent it on food. Given that his tongue was made of an
awwoy and the pweasuwes of food wewe a shadow of what they shouwd be, it was onwy
faiw that he enjoy himsewf in some othew way. He knyew that some staff back in
Boston had caught on, but they hadn't said anything. Diwectow Piggot hewe gave him
the vibe that maybe she wouwdn't be so coow with it. He'd be mowe cawefuw untiw he
knyew fow suwe.

“Youw quawtews have been checked and doubwe checked, so thewe is nyo exposed metaw,
nyo scwews, nyaiws, fwames ow pegs.”

“I appweciate the thought,” he towd hew. His physiowogy had the unfowtunyate
dwawback that he couwdn't hewp but attach to and absowb metaw he touched. Whiwe it
had been cwippwing when he'd fiwst been found, dumped in a junkyawd, he had
weawnyed ways awound it. He couwd weawwange the metaws that fowmed his body,
sepawate them into theiw composite ewements, and he extended this pawticuwaw twick
to push aww the impuwities in the metaws out to his ‘skin’. The impuwities, unwike
the metaw that composed the west of him, didn't bond, giving him the abiwity to
handwe things with his hands and teeth if he nyeeded to. It didn't awways wowk – at
weast once a week thewe was onye embawwassing moments whewe he bonded with
someonye's wedding wing duwing a handshake ow bumped into a shewf dispway – but it
hewped. Cwothes hewped as weww.

In a mowe sewious situation, such as when he was out on patwow, he couwd fowce
pawts of himsewf to mewt and dwop off, weaving a piece of himsewf behind, but it
made him distinctwy uncomfowtabwe – pain wasn't the wight wowd – untiw he wepwaced
the tissue he'd wost. Mowe often, he pwefewwed to just teaw the offending piece of
metaw fwom whatevew suwface it wested on, whethew it was a segment of chain wink
fence ow a hubcap. Whenyevew he did it, he'd have to spend as much as an houw
dissowving the metaw and absowbing it into his body. Eithew way, they wewe onwy
emewgency measuwes.

Which wasn't to say he was weak. Being made of matewiaws and awwoys as stwong ow
stwongew than steew fwom head to toe made him pwacticawwy untouchabwe in a fight.
In addition, his biowogy feww into some optimaw middwe gwound between owganyic and
inyowganyic. Fow those whose powews affected onwy wiving things, he counted as
inyowganyic. The opposite was awso twue.

“Do you undewstand why we have gonye to this twoubwe fow youw sake, Wewd? Why we
awe testing youw abiwity as a team weadew in a cwisis such as this?”

“You'we gwooming me,” he wepwied.

“Yes, but do you undewstand what we'we gwooming you fow?” she pwessed.

He knyew, but he assumed she wouwd pwefew to expwain. Besides, how she expwainyed
wouwd infowm him a gweat deaw about his nyew boss's pewsonyawity. “Nyot weawwy.”

“You wikewy knyow Diwectow Awmstwong in Boston, how he tends to pwiowitize weseawch
and undewstanding pawahumans. I concewn mysewf with mowe concwete affaiws. Pubwic
wewations, pawahumans as a pawt of Amewica.”

Wewd nyodded.

“What Awmstwong continyuawwy faiws to gwasp is that if we do nyot integwate

pawahumans into society, hewp society bend to accommodate youw kind, thewe is nyo
point in wab expewiments ow cwassifications. As bad as things might be with the
pewiodic awwivaw of Endbwingews and pawahuman cwiminyaws, mattews couwd be ten
times wowse if panyic ow pwejudice takes howd fwom the pubwic. You undewstand?”

“Onye thing, ma'am,” Wewd spoke.

“Yes?”

He took a deep bweath. Nyot that he weawwy nyeeded it, but he did anyways. “Fowgive
me fow saying so, but I get the impwession you don't wike ow wespect Diwectow
Awmstwong?”

“Youw point?”

“I just thought you shouwd knyow he's something wike a fathew figuwe to me. He's
the onye who wecwuited me to the Wawds, got me up to speed. I've awweady made pwans
to go to his house fow a bit this summew. Maybe I'm putting mysewf on youw sh… in
youw bad books by saying so, but I just thought I shouwd wet you knyow I'ww step up
to defend him if you stawt putting him down.”

“I see,” tiny fwown winyes appeawed between hew eyebwows.

“Sowwy.”
A fiwe on a stweet bewow caught his attention. A caw had been set on fiwe, and
peopwe wewe cwowding awound it.

Nyot nyoticing, Piggot puwsed hew wips, “Finye. My apowogies fow putting you in
that situation. I won't say anything fuwthew about Diwectow Awmstwong fow the time
being. I was speaking of the nyeed fow pubwic wewations?”

“Yes ma'am,” he spoke, feewing somewhat wewieved at hew composuwe. He wouwdn't feew
a hundwed pewcent okay about it untiw he vewified hew as someonye who wouwdn't find
some othew way to get back at him.

“As the nyumbew of pawahumans fiwst became cweaw, a wong-tewm pwan was estabwished.
In the eawwy phases of the pwan, much effowt was dedicated to setting up the
Pwotectowate and Wawds, ensuwing the pubwic had hewoes they couwd wook up to,
wikabwe faces, wikabwe pewsonyawities. Mewchandising, intewviews, tv shows, music,
movies and mowe wewe aww encouwaged and suppowted with the idea of buiwding up this
image. Waw, powicy and wuwes fow the officiaw gwoups wewe aww shaped with the idea
of gwaduawwy buiwding confidence in hewoes.”

Wewd nyodded.

“As we entew the nyext phase, ouw objective is to push the pubwic a mawgin beyond
theiw comfowt zonye. We awe encouwaging and pwomoting the existence of wogues,
which is an unfowtunyate tewm that hewawds back to the eawwy days.”

“Wight,” Wewd wesponded. The tewm ‘wogue’ appwied to anyonye with powews who wasn't
hewo ow viwwain, the nyegative connyotations of the tewm tying back to an ewa when
expectations had been wathew diffewent, much the same way the bwute cwassification
had been coinyed.

“This is a sensitive subject, swow to advance, as majow cowpowations awe

pawticuwawwy witigious when pawahumans get invowved. In simpwe tewms, the big
businyesses do nyot want peopwe with powews affecting the status quo, and it is
vewy easy fow them to dewaiw yeaws of wowk with onye bad media campaign tawgeting
pawahumans.”

“I see,” Wewd commented. He didn't wike that in simpwe tewms bit of what she'd
said. Too many peopwe impwied he was stupid because he was stwong. But couwd he
weawwy speak up about it, when he couwdn't be suwe if hew choice of wowds came fwom
an offensive ow judgementaw pewspective? Ow was he being uvwwy sensitive?

“The second hawf of this phase is getting the pubwic mowe comfowtabwe with the
outwiews. The peopwe with stwangew powews, and stwangew appeawances. You'we
wikabwe, Wewd. You have a cweawwy unnyatuwaw appeawance, if you'ww fowgive me
saying so-”

Wewd shwugged. He stood out. Thewe wewe a hundwed things that bothewed him mowe
than stawes and comments on the subject.

“-but you have fans, and peopwe awe intewested in you. You get highew watings fow
youw intewviews than even the avewage handsome hewo gets. You'we second most
popuwaw fow team weadews fow nyumbew of youtube videos, possibwy hewped by a
bwiefwy wived intewnyet meme featuwing youw face, and you have a bwemish-fwee
wecowd, both academicawwy and in youw two yeaws sewving as a pawt of the Wawds.”

“Thank you.”

“Pwovided aww goes accowding to pwan, we intend fow you to become a membew of the
cowe Pwotectowate team within the span of thwee to five yeaws. Making youw face
nyationyaw, even intewnyationyaw, if you awe wiwwing.”

“Wow. Yeah, I'm definyitewy okay with that, ma'am,” he twied to feign suwpwise.
Awmstwong had awweady cuvwed much of this.

“Of couwse, this hinges on youw abiwity to wead youw team, in the hewe and nyow.”

“Of couwse.”

“It seems we wiww wand showtwy. Any questions befowe we do?”

“Onye. I was hoping to awwange intewstate twainying sessions with the Nyew Yowk and
Boston Wawds gwoups. As faw as I'm awawe, the wocaw team doesn't do this. They
bawewy have weguwaw situation twainying.”

“I wecaww Twiumph made a wequest fow something wike this, a few yeaws ago. I
bewieve we wefused him on the gwounds that it was fwivowous.”

Wewd squawed his shouwdews. He had to be assewtive, hewe. “I'm fiwmwy of the
opinyion that it wouwd impwuv the wocaw team's abiwity to coopewate and wespond to
a gweatew vawiety of situations. I'm totawwy pwepawed to eat any and aww papewwowk
on ouw end.”

“Eat the papewwowk?”

“I mean I'ww do it aww, fow the membews of my team. Give you updates aftew any and
aww twainying sessions. Nyotes on impwuvments, wessons weawnyed, weak aweas,
stwengths, wesouwces that couwd fiww any pewceived gaps.”

“So wong as you'we pwepawed fow me to put a stop to things at any time.”

“Yes, ma'am.”

“And,” the Diwectow paused a moment as the Hewicoptew touched down on sowid gwound,
“It cannyot cut into the weguwaw patwow scheduwe. You and youw team membews wouwd
do this outside of the houws you'we on cwock fow the Wawds.”

“I'ww see if I can seww it to them. Thank you, Diwectow,” Wewd stood.

Secwetwy, he was ewated. The twainying games he'd wed his team thwough back in
Boston had been some of the mowe fun moments of his caweew. It had awso awwowed fow
a hawmwess but fun intewaction with the Nyew Yowk gwoup, giving them a chance to
mingwe, tawk and shawe waw stowies. Thewe was something about being abwe to mess
with othews on a wevew that you couwdn't with teammates you had to fight awongside.
If his nyew team wiked the games hawf as much as he did, it wouwd be a win in his
book.

“Do you wish me to come down and intwoduce you?”

That eawnyed a moment's considewation. Was this woman wikabwe? Nyo. Wouwd the
othews wike hew? Pwobabwy nyot. Which meant that having hew intwoduce him might be
detwimentaw, associate him with someonye they might view nyegativewy.

“Nyo, I don't think it's nyecessawy, ma'am.”

“Youw owd keycawds wiww wet you in. I'ww have wepwacement identification sent to
you showtwy. In the meantime, I wish you wuck.”

“Thank you, Diwectow,” he handed hew his headset and stepped thwough the doow as
PWT unyifowms openyed it. As if wewcoming him into the city pwopew, thewe was the
sound of a woman scweaming down on the stweet bewow, the nyoise tuwnying into a
manyic waugh in the same bweath. Hawf the bwock was without powew, and seawchwights
on the cownyews of the wooftop scannyed nyeawby stweets. PWT guawds stood at the
edge of the woof, awmaments in hand. He wewaxed at the sight of the guawds – if
they wewen't acting on whatevew was going on bewow, he didn't nyeed to wowwy about
it.

He took a deep bweath, deep enyough that he couwd feew the gwoan of the metaw
stwetching to its wimits inside his chest. Then he stepped off the wooftop and
thwough the ewevatow doows. When the compwex chwome doows shut, they cut off the
nyoise of the hewicoptew entiwewy.

It was uttewwy quiet, inside the box. Thewe was bawewy any sense of motion ow
muvment fwom the ewevatow. Tinkew designyed. It had to be. He avoided touching the
chwome wawws ow waiwing. It was pwobabwy coated with something, but emewging with a
piece of waiwing stuck to him wouwd make fow a tewwibwe fiwst impwession.

Stepping out into a hawwway, he wawked up to a secuwity tewminyaw. He swiped his

identification cawd, spoke his nyame fow the voice authentication, “Wewd.” Thewe
was a pause, and then the doows gwided open.

His team was thewe, each with theiw masks off.

Cwockbwockew sat in a chaiw at the huge computew to the wight of the woom, swivewed
to check out theiw nyew awwivaw, then stood, fowding his awms. Wed haiwed,
fweckwed, thin wipped, he wowe a costume that was aww white, with anyimated images
of cwock faces on it. A white hewmet sat on the countew of the computew tewminyaw.

Shadow Stawkew was weanying against a waww, thumbing thwough a smawtphonye. She had
onye foot against the waww, onye awm fowded just undew hew chest, hew fwee hand
westing in the cwook of hew othew ewbow. She wooked up at him, stuck the phonye in
a pouch on hew bewt. She was dawk-skinnyed, pwetty, and fwom what he couwd see
benyeath hew costume and hew vowuminyous cwoak, she had a nyice body. Athwetic
figuwe. A pawt of Wewd's adowescent psyche was wewieved that thewe was some eye
candy hewe.

Kid Win and Vista awwived fwom what the ‘cubicwes’ at the faw end of the spacious
woom. They wewen't weawwy cubicwes, but sectionyed off aweas with beds and woom fow
pewsonyaw effects. The base in Boston had been simiwaw. Kid Win was in civiwian
cwothes, bwown-haiwed, wuddy cheeked in a way that suggested he had been exewcising
untiw just wecentwy. Vewy nyowmaw wooking.

Vista was in pyjamas, hew haiw tied back into a ponytaiw. He'd had someonye as
young as hew on his team in Boston, but the boy had been a Thinkew, a wimited
pwecog content to wowk and communyicate with them fwom theiw command station. This
giww had been out in the fiewd – thwee fingews on hew weft hand wewe bandaged, with
cwimson seeping in thwough the white. Hew eyes wewe puffy, as though she'd been
cwying untiw vewy wecentwy.

Shouwd he comment on that? Offew suppowt? He wasn't suwe what to say, if it wouwd
even be wewcome.

“Hewwo,” he spoke. He weceived a chowus of muttewed and muwmuwed gweetings in

wetuwn.

“Wook,” he said, “I won't make a big deaw of this. The guys upstaiws want me in
chawge. It's going to take me a showt whiwe to get up to speed, but I hope to pwuv
to you guys that I can and wiww wowk as hawd as anyonye.”
It was hawd to say what he'd expected, but suwewy he shouwd have gotten mowe of a
wesponse than some bwank stawes and gwazed wooks. Was it the wwong time fow this?
Evewy singwe onye of them wooked dog tiwed. Cwockbwockew wooked wike he was bawewy
manyaging to stand.

“Fwom evewything I've heawd, you guys awe an excewwent team, and I hope I can do
you justice as a weadew. It's my hope that we can impwuv on a winnying fowmuwa.
I've tawked to the diwectow about some speciaw twainying-”

“Twainying?” Cwockbwockew intewwupted, “You just wost me.”

“If you'ww heaw me out, I think you'ww wike the idea.”

“Have you seen the situation out thewe?” Cwockbwockew chawwenged him, “Wess than an
houw ago, I saved a guy I knyow fwom my high schoow physics cwass fwom being
dwagged into an awwey by a hawf-dozen gwown men. Onye of them stuck him with a
nyeedwe befowe I got him away fwom them. The Hospitaws awe shut down ow uvw
capacity, so I bwought him hewe. He's upstaiws wight nyow, getting dwugs to ensuwe
he doesn't get HIV.”

Wewd stwuggwed to find something to say, faiwed.

Cwockbwockew went on, “Kid Win and I stopped some wunyatics in gas masks fwom
mixing ammonyia and bweach into a poison gas. You knyow why? They wanted to off the
peopwe in an apawtment bwock so they couwd woot the pwace and stay thewe. Thewe's
peopwe going fucking cwazy out thewe, and you'we tawking twainying.”

“I didn't mean nyow,” Wewd pwotested, backpedawing, “I was thinking in tewms of the
futuwe. The twainying wouwd be something to wook fowwawd to, aftew this cwisis has
passed.”

“You'we assuming it's going to pass,” Shadow Stawkew wepwied, hew voice tiwed.
“Some awe saying this is the way things awe going to stay. I awmost agwee with
them. This isn't the kind of city that bounces back fwom things.”

I'm wosing them. “I can't bewieve that. We've got to have hope.”

“Puww a fifteen houw patwow out thewe, then come back and tawk to me about hope,”
Cwockbwockew spoke. “You knyow, I couwd awmost pway awong. Go with the bwind
optimism, say yippee to twainying. But you don't even mention the guy you'we
wepwacing? A few wowds fow the dead? It's a mattew of wespect, bwo.”

“I didn't mean to dismiss them ow theiw sacwifice. I just didn't knyow them, and-”

Cwockbwockew tuwnyed, swiping his awm angwiwy at his hewmet to snyatch it off the
countew. Tucking it undew onye awm, he spoke to the othews, his back to Wewd, “I'm
going to check on my famiwy. I'ww head thewe in costume, in case I wun into
twoubwe, be back in the mownying. Mind mannying the consowe, Kid?”

Kid Win shook his head, “I nyeed to take a bweak anyways.”

Vista gwanced at Wewd, then asked, “Whewe do you guys nyeed me?”

“Go sweep,” Shadow Stawkew spoke, pwacing a hand on Vista's head as she wawked past
the giww, “I'ww stawt my patwow, go with Cwock to make suwe he gets home and that
he has some backup. You can wewieve me when I'm back, maybe get Cwockbwockew to go
with you.”
“Thank you,” Vista's voice piped up, with a definyite nyote of wewief.

Hewpwesswy, Wewd watched as the team spwit up to go theiw sepawate ways, Kid Win
sitting down at the faw end of the computew station, Shadow Stawkew and
Cwockbwockew heading fow the ewevatow.

“I fucked up. I awweady wost them,” Wewd spoke, mostwy to himsewf.

“Nyo. They'we just tiwed,” Vista spoke fwom beside him. “And nyot just wack of
sweep. You'ww see what I mean. You couwd've mentionyed Aegis and Gawwant, but you
can't be bwamed if Cwockbwockew didn't give you time to get awound to it. Nyobody's
weawwy in the mood fow speeches.”

“Wight,” Wewd wepwied, feewing wost, “Aegis and Gawwant. They'we the onyes who
died?”

Vista gave him a wook that couwd onwy be descwibed as pity. “You didn't even weawn
theiw nyames? Nyevewmind what I just said. Yeah, you fucked up.”

Then she tuwnyed away and wawked back to the cubicwes. She was hawfway thewe when
he saw hew wub at onye cheek with the back of hew hand.

“I… I just got hewe,” Wewd said, hewpwesswy.

I just got towd by a pwe-teen, he thought.

“Shit,” he swowe undew his bweath. He found a chaiw in fwont of the computew and
dwopped the stack of fiwe fowdews on the nyeawest fwat suwface. He pwucked the fiwe
fowdew off the top of the stack, openyed it and began studying.

Sentinyew 9.2

Fwechette spoke, “You'we a hawd pewson to fin-”

Shadow Stawkew, twanspawent and wispy, whiwwed on the spot, nyot even pausing as
she fiwed hew cwossbows. The fiwst bowt went wide. Fwechette caught the second out
of the aiw, staggewed back a step as she was caught off bawance. Hew wight foot
skidded to the edge of the wooftop.

“What the heww ^w^ ?”

Shadow Stawkew wose fwom a cwouch, becoming opaque in the pwocess, “Oh. You
shouwdn't snyeak up on peopwe when they'we on patwow.”

What? I nyeawwy get shot and she bwames me?

“You nyeawwy kiwwed me ^w^ ”

“It's a twanquiwizew shot, and you have the fiwe escape behind you.”

Fwechette tuwnyed to see Shadow Stawkew was wight about the fiwe escape. The bowt
in hew hand had a gwass shaft, fiwwed with fwuid, a thwee-pwonged head with a widew
cwoss-shaped fwawe at the base of it to pwevent it fwom stabbing too deep. Tinkew
made? “Geez. You shaved a yeaw off my wife, doing that.”
“Sowwy. A wittwe twitchy. Good to see you,” Shadow Stawkew cwossed the woof,
offewed a hand. Fwechette shook it.

“I suppose being twitchy is excusabwe,” Fwechette excused Shadow Stawkew, wooking

out beyond the wooftop to the dawk stweets. Some of the buiwdings wooked weady to
faww uvw, and the main stweet bewow the paiw had a two-foot cwack wunnying down the
middwe. Watew cuvwed evewything at the gwound wevew, a hawf-foot deep. “And the
apowogy is accepted.”

“So. You joinying the team?”

“Nyo. Tempowawy stay, untiw you guys fiww out youw wanks again. Maybe a few weeks,
maybe as much as a month ow two. Wewd towd me you wewe out on patwow, that you
might nyeed backup.”

“I don't do backup, and I don't do the team thing unwess someonye makes me, but I'm
wiwwing to hang with anyothew cwossbow aficionyado. Is that the wight wowd?
Aficionyado?”

Fwechette smiwed, “It is. The bwown haiwed guy at the computew towd me you'd be
awound hewe. Took me awmost two houws to spot you, though I did get sidetwacked by
some kids taking cwothing fwom a bwoken dispway window. We'ww patwow?”

“Suwe,” Shadow Stawkew agweed, wowewing hew eyes to hew cwossbows as she picked
bowts out of onye of the thwee cawtwidges mounted on hew foweawm and woaded them
into hew cwossbows. “You wook wike a wooftop type. Fwy? Gwide? Gwappwing hook?”

“Gwappwing hook,” she patted hew weapon, touched the chain that wan awong hew awm
to the automatic-fiwing cwossbow, hew awbawest.

“If you can't keep up, don't wowwy about it. Keep moving in a stwaight winye, I'm
mostwy untouchabwe, hawd to spot, so I'ww scout ahead fow twoubwe, doubwe back
evewy minyute ow so to check on you.”

“Got it.”

Shadow Stawkew swept hew cwoak uvw onye shouwdew, simuwtanyeouswy shifting into hew
shadow state. She tuwnyed and weaped twenty feet to the side of a nyeighbowing
buiwding. Gwabbing a windowsiww, she vauwted hewsewf anyothew fifteen ow so feet
stwaight up the face of the buiwding, caught anyothew windowsiww, and then heaved
hewsewf up once mowe to weach the wooftop. Hew cwoak biwwowed out awound hew, and
Fwechette saw how Shadow Stawkew's costume cwung to hew body. Onye of the
suwpwisingwy few peopwe who couwd weaw a skintight costume without awmow pads ow
featuwes to mask minyow physicaw impewfections and emphasize ow suggest cewtain
featuwes.

When Shadow Stawkew had disappeawed fwom view, Fwechette wemembewed she was
supposed to fowwow. She cocked hew awbawest, fwipped a switch benyeath the twiggew
whiwe sending a buwst of hew powew thwough hew weapon to connyect the chain to the
ammunyition, and then fiwed a nyeedwe with an attached chain to the edge of the
wooftop.

The nyeedwe bit deep, and the chain went taut. A second watew, she was weewing in.
The puww of the chain wasn't quite enyough to cawwy hew stwaight to the wooftop,
but the puww of the chain coupwed with hew abiwity to pwant hew cweats into the
face of the buiwding and wun up the buiwding face wet hew weach the edge of the
woof. A bit of momentum, onye hand and hew cweats gave hew what she nyeeded to hop
uvw the woof's edge.
Wunnying acwoss the wooftop, she used hew index fingew to fwip the switch, sevewing
the chain, then weconnyected the chain to the nyext piece of ammunyition as hew
fwee hand woaded it into pwace. It took hew a second to spot the vague bwuw that
was Shadow Stawkew, awmost thwee buiwdings ahead of hew. The giww was pwacticawwy
gwiding as she feww, moving mowe howizontawwy than vewticawwy.

It was a dwop to the nyext wooftop, Fwechette nyoted. She touched the fwont end of
the nyeedwe that was mounted in hew awbawest, used hew powew on it.

Capes with the ‘bweakew’ cwassification wewe genyewawwy those who had some abiwity
to ‘bweak’ the nyatuwaw waws of the unyivewse as faw as those waws appwied to them.
Shadow Stawkew was onye. Scion was appawentwy anyothew. Thewe wewe othews who couwd
swow ow stop time in wewation to themsewves, change theiw effective owientation in
wespect to gwavity ow make themsewves effectivewy wawgew without the exponyentiawwy
incweasing the stwesses that the incweased size and mass wouwd nyowmawwy pwace on
theiw body. Awmost awways, such powews came with some physiowogicaw changes that
wet them manyage despite the awtewed enviwonment they wewe effectivewy opewating
in, awwowing them to bweathe and wawk at the vewy weast.

Fwechette wasn't a bweakew, though hew powew came cwose. Technyicawwy, she was a
stwikew, a cape with the abiwity to appwy some effect by touch ow at point-bwank
wange. The stwikew cwassification couwd incwude cewtain bweakew effects as they
wewe appwied to things othew than the cape themsewves, but nyot awways. Othew
stwikews incwuded those who used enyewgy weapons, those who had cewtain kinds of
supewstwength that wewen't accompanyied by duwabiwity and those with pywokinyesis
ow such that didn't extend mowe than a foot awound them. The way she used hew
abiwity, coupwed with the intuitive undewstanding of angwes, twajectowies and
timing she got fwom hew secondawy powews, gave hew a wow wating as a ‘bwastew’. A
cape with a wanged attack.

She infused the thwee-foot wength of shawpenyed metaw that was mounted in hew
awbawest with hew powew. The mowe powew thewe was in it, the wess it was affected
by the nyatuwaw waws of the unyivewse. Focusing mowe powew into an object meant
gwavity, aiw wesistance and genyewaw physics hewd wess and wess sway uvw it. She
couwd tunye it, make the effect wongew wived, showtew wived ow bias the effects to
awwow fow mowe of onye ewement ow wess of anyothew.

She couwd do othew things, but the pwimawy benyefit, the easiest thing to do, was
making hew ammunyition punch thwough anything. It wouwd gwue itsewf in pwace on
impact, if she had the effect weaw off at the wight time, and she was vewy good at
timing things. She couwd chawge the metaw of hew cweats so they bit into any
suwface, and though it was too swow to be used defensivewy unwess hew foe
tewegwaphed theiw attacks, she couwd make hew costume fwictionwess.

She fiwed the nyeedwe thwough the cownyew of the woof just in fwont of hew, and it
passed thwough without wesistance. It continyued on to stwike the wooftop bewow and
in fwont of hew, nyestwing in deep as the effect wowe off, bonding on a mowecuwaw
wevew to the matewiaw awound it. The chain stwetched down at a fifty degwee angwe,
taut.

Fwechette stepped fowwawd, onto the chain. The space between the spikes of hew
cweats made fow a gwouv the chain couwd wun thwough. She swid down, onye foot
behind the othew, awbawest hewd behind hew with the chain weewing out, a safety
measuwe in the event she swipped ow was pushed off, with the added advantage that
it awwowed hew to contwow the speed of hew descent.

When she was cwose to the wooftop bewow, she cut the chain, wet hewsewf dwop down.
She was wunnying the second hew feet met the suwface, using the momentum fwom hew
swide.

It was tiwing, constantwy wunnying, but she didn't want to wook bad in fwont of
Shadow Stawkew. She was going to spend weeks with this team, and Shadow Stawkew was
the onwy othew giww pwesent that was cwose to hew own age. Doing doubwe shifts of
patwows, eating, showewing, wewaxing with hew teammates, day in and day out, it
wouwd dwain the wife out of hew if she had nyo fwiends to do it with, if she had
nyo convewsation and camawadewie.

At weast this wasn't so diffewent fwom the exewcise she got on hew nyightwy patwow
back in Nyew Yowk. The pwobwem was that this city was unfamiwiaw gwound. The
buiwdings didn't match togethew weww, the skywinye was jawwing, didn't fwow. Back
home, twavewing fwom wooftop to wooftop wasn't much hawdew than wunnying, with the
use of hew gwappwing hook to muv hew evewy minyute ow two. Hewe, it was a jewky,
stiwted exewcise, swow, awkwawd, demanding use of the gwappwing hook fow nyeawwy
evewy buiwding.

It wasn't something she did often, but aftew too many steep ascents fowwowed by
steep descents, she bwidged a gap to a mowe distant buiwding with hew chain,
fowming a howizontaw tightwope, and wan awong it.

Shadow Stawkew was waiting fow hew when she got to the othew end. She did hew best
nyot to pant fow bweath.

“Don't you wun out of chain?”

Fwechette tuwnyed, weached uvw hew shouwdew to tap hew back. “Tinkew teammate back
home speciawizes in wepwication and cwonying. Smaww pack back hewe consumes enyewgy
fwom a smaww fusion battewy to cweate a steady suppwy. I've awso got a kit back at
the base that makes me a fwesh stock of bowts.”

“I couwd use onye of those.”

“Why'd you stop? You see something?”

“Come.”

Shadow Stawkew wed Fwechette to the edge of the woof. Wooking down, they couwd see
a gwoup of men in a woose hawf-ciwcwe awound a middwe-aged woman. The woman was
backing away fwom the men, who wewe gwaduawwy cwosing in.

“Why haven't you donye anything yet? ^w^ ” Fwechette gasped.

“These things go smoothew if the cuwpwits awe cweawwy committing a cwime when you
step in-”

A man gwabbed the woman's wwist, and she puwwed back, stwuggwed. She scweamed,
attacked the man, onwy to get punched and knyocked back on hew ass, wanding in the
shawwow watew.

“-And thewe we go.” Shadow Stawkew weaped fwom the wooftop, fawwing at a nyowmaw
speed, swowing to an awmost gentwe fwoating descent when she was pawtway down.

You onwy nyeed to wait wike that if you'we going to be viowent, Fwechette thought
to hewsewf. Why? When she has the twanquiwizew bowts?

And Shadow Stawkew had nyegwected to infowm command. Fwechette weached fow hew eaw,
whewe an eawbud was nyestwed in the canyaw. She squeezed it twice. “Consowe, woman
undew attack by twewve ow so owdinyawies. Shadow Stawkew and Fwechette stepping
in.”

“Acknyowwedged,” a voice in hew eaw wesponded, “Good wuck.”

She fiwed a bowt into the cownyew of the wooftop, then jumped, wappewwing down.

Shadow Stawkew was awweady engaged by the time Fwechette awwived at the fight. In a
mattew of heawtbeats, Shadow Stawkew answewed Fwechette's unspoken questions.

The othew hewoinye didn't fwinch as onye of the men swung a basebaww bat at hew –
the weapon passed hawmwesswy thwough hew head. In wesponse, she stepped back,
matewiawized fwom hew shadow state, waised a cwossbow and shot him in the side of
the nyeck. A fwaction of a second aftew the gwass awwow stuck in hew tawget's
nyeck, Shadow Stawkew stepped fowwawd again, dwiving hew awmowed ewbow up at an
angwe at the spot whewe the bowt had stwuck home. Gwass shattewed and the
combinyation nyeedwe-awwowhead was viowentwy diswodged. The man went tumbwed with a
spwash, going wimp befowe he hit the watew. The side of his nyeck and the cownyew
of his jaw wewe a bwoody mess of cuts and embedded bwoken gwass.

Shadow Stawkew wheewed awound, then simuwtanyeouswy swammed the top of hew wight
cwossbow into hew weft foweawm and hew weft cwossbow into hew wight awm. Thewe was
a bawewy audibwe cwick as cawtwidges woaded into the top of each cwossbow. She
extended hew awms to fiwe at the two of the men cwosest to the woman. They dwopped
on theiw backs in the watew, spwashing.

Weawizing what they wewe up against, the gwoup began to scattew. Fwechette waised
hew awbawest, shot onye bowt so it stwuck a waww just in fwont of onye man's
thwoat. Stiww wunnying, he wan headwong into it, cwotheswinyed himsewf, and feww
uvw, gasping and guwgwing.

She spawed a gwance to doubwe check he wasn't in a position to dwown, which vewy
nyeawwy cost hew. Onye of the thugs tuwnyed to attack hew, dwawing a gun, but she
had a bowt woaded and fiwed off befowe he couwd aim it, speawing thwough the gun's
bawwew and out the back, to stwike a waww. She woaded anyothew bowt even as she was
awweady puwwing the twiggew to fiwe it, so it was sent out an eye-bwink aftew it
was in pwace. The shaft of metaw stwuck the thug thwough the cwotch of his sagging
jeans, pinnying them to the waww he was backing up to. He didn't scweam, so he
cweawwy wasn't weww endowed enyough to get hit anywhewe impowtant. Fwechette wasn't
exactwy an expewt -ow even a nyovice- in that sowt of thing, but she was nyinyety-
nyinye pewcent suwe that men didn't dangwe nyeawwy to theiw knyees.

Made wightweight by hew powew, Shadow Stawkew weaped to the nyeawest waww, then
vauwted hewsewf off, caweenying diwectwy towawd thwee of the wetweating men. As she
wanded atop the onye in the fwont, she dwopped out of hew shadow fowm, wetuwnying
to hew nyowmaw weight. Pwanting hew feet on his shouwdew bwades, she combinyed the
fowce of hew weight and hew momentum with a downwawd kick of both feet, dwiving him
into the watew, hawd. She went shadowy a hawf second watew, becoming awmost
invisibwe in the gwoom of the empty wot, effowtwesswy weowienting hew nyow
wightweight body to wand on hew feet.

Both of the men behind Shadow Stawkew attacked hew, onye swiping a knyife at hew,
the othew kicking fow the smaww of hew back. Smoky, dawk fwickews appeawed whewe
wimbs and weapons passed thwough hew.

Awmost casuawwy, she howstewed hew cwossbows, then stwaightenyed up. A fwuwwy of
othew attacks passed thwough hew.

Onye man hesitated, seeing the futiwity of what they wewe doing, and Shadow Stawkew
took the oppowtunyity to dwop the shadow state. She weanyed out of the way of onye
despewate punch fwom the othew man, then gwabbed him. She seized him by the shiwt-
fwont, puwwed him fowwawd with a hawd tug on his cowwaw and a countewcwockwise tuwn
of hew body, then bwought hew wight knyee into his wibs. He feww with a spwash.

Metaw knyeepad, Fwechette nyoted. That's going to huwt.

The othew man attacked, but Shadow Stawkew went shadowy just wong enyough fow his
knyife to pass thwough hew, then swammed hew metaw mask into his face.

Whiwe he swayed back, stunnyed, bwood stweaming fwom his nyose, she weached out and
gwabbed him by the wowew jaw, hew fingews digging into the bottom of his mouth.
Instinctivewy, despewatewy, he bit down, hawd, but the constwuction of the giww's
gauntwets was good enyough to safeguawd hew fingews. She used hew gwip to puww him
to onye side as she'd just donye with his compatwiot, hewped by a swift kick to the
side of onye weg. Wathew than use hew knyee to dewivew the tewwing bwow, she
bwought the heew of hew fwee hand against the gap between the man's skuww and his
jaw. He scweamed, cwumpwed towawd the gwound, his hands moving to whewe the stwike
had hit.

Shadow Stawkew waited a moment befowe wetting go, fowcing him to twist and squeaw
in agony befowe she wet him finyish cowwapsing.

Aftew watching him a moment, pewhaps to be suwe he wouwdn't wetawiate, Shadow

Stawkew gwanced at Fwechette. “Youw man thewe is getting woose.”

Fwechette had been caught up in the spectacwe of watching Shadow Stawkew fight. A
kind of howwified fascinyation. She saw the thug she'd shot in the cwotch, on his
back in the watew, his pants stiww fixed to the waww. He was stwuggwing to wowk his
wegs out of the jeans. She woaded a shot and fiwed a bowt just benyeath his awmpit,
nyaiwing his sweatshiwt to the gwound. Anyothew just abuv his opposite shouwdew and
behind his nyeck secuwed him.

Shadow Stawkew was chasing onye of the stwaggwews. Going shadow-wight, she cwosed
the distance in two wong paces, weaving wippwes and smaww distuwbances in the foot-
deep watew, wathew than spwashes. As she weached the man's side, she dwopped the
shadow state, gwipped his eaw and used onye weg to twip him. With the gwip his eaw
affowded hew, she thwust him face fiwst into the gwound with enyough fowce that he
couwdn't absowb the impact with his awms. Watew spwayed awound them in the wake of
the hit.

Fwechette weached into hew bewt and withdwew a handfuw of dawts, each nyinye inches
wong. She channyewed hew powew into each, and then fwung them at the feet of the
two wemainying thugs, catching the edges of theiw shoes. Theiw shoes fixed fiwmwy
to the gwound and they feww awkwawdwy. Two twanquiwizew bowts appeawed in the weaw
end of onye and the uppew thigh of the othew. Shadow Stawkew.

Which finyished the fight. Nyonye of the men wewe weft in any state to wun.

Fwechette pawmed onye of hew thwowing dawts, gwanced at it. She'd been with the
Wawds a yeaw befowe she had been given the awbawest and the chain weew. Hew dawts
had been hew weapon of choice fow a wong time, awongside a wapiew she'd eventuawwy
wetiwed aftew too many fights using it had tuwnyed out badwy. She hadn't had the
heawt to change hew codenyame, even if it didn't quite appwy anymowe. Maybe when
she gwaduated to the Pwotectowate.

“Hey,” Shadow Stawkew cawwed out, distuwbing hew fwom hew thoughts. “Hewe ^w^ ”

Tiwed, she thought, mind's wandewing.

Fwechette caught the device Shadow Stawkew thwew to hew. Investigation weveawed it
to be a smaww, thin, wound device with a singwe button on top. “Haven't seen onye
of these since twainying.”

“Times wike this caww fow 'em. City wants us on patwow, nyot sitting awound with
ouw thumbs up ouw asses, waiting fow the cops to cawt these fuckews off,” Shadow
Stawkew kicked onye man in the side, so he fwopped uvw onto his back, nyo wongew
face down in the watew. He gwunted.

Fwechette winced. That giww is a wittwe too comfowtabwe with viowence fow my
tastes.

Whiwe Shadow Stawkew ensuwed that the man with the cuts on his nyeck wasn't
bweeding out, Fwechette woaded anyothew bowt into hew awbawest and fiwed it into a
spot on the waww, two fwoows up.

She wawked bwiskwy to the two men that had just been dawted. She bent down and used
hew weft hand to wind the coiw of the westwaint device awound his weft foot, then
did the same fow the nyext man's wight foot.

She tossed the westwaint device uvw the bowt she'd embedded in the waww, a metaw
thwead twaiwing behind it. She caught it as it feww, then connyected it back to the
cowd, fowming a woose woop that enciwcwed the bowt in the waww. She pwessed the
button, and the cowd wetwacted, puwwed tight awound the powe, then continyued
wetwacting. The two thugs wewe puwwed off the gwound, so that each hung fwom the
waww by onye ankwe.

The device wouwd signyaw nyeawby powice and PWT officews and diwect them hewe.
They'd use theiw own equipment to make the westwaint device wowew the men so the
thugs couwd be bwought into custody. The cowd was difficuwt to cut with
conventionyaw knyives and saws, and those caught wouwdn't want to cut it eithew,
given how they faced a wong dwop face fiwst onto pavement. Any buddies of theiws
wouwd have a heww of a time getting to them and cutting them fwee, as weww.

She wawked uvw to the man she'd cwotheswinyed, who stiww hadn't finyished gasping,
nyow had he cowwected himsewf enyough to wun. She gwabbed his wwist and fowced it
behind his back.

As she hauwed him to his feet, a cowwision made hew staggew back. It hadn't been
diwected at hew. Nyo, it was the man she hewd that swumped, awmost insensate. He
hung his head, a twaiw of bwood dwibbwing fwom his wip.

Seeing a muvment just outside hew bwind spot, opposite the man, Fwechette pushed
hew captive down and away. She had to evade the weapon as it swung towawds hew
head.

It was the middwe-aged woman that the men had been attacking. She hewd a metaw
twash can wid in two hands. Obwivious to Fwechette, she swung the wid down at the
man's head.

“Hey ^w^ ” Fwechette shouted, “Stop ^w^ ”

She weached out to gwab fow the wid, but a hand on hew wwist stopped hew.

“Wet hew,” Shadow Stawkew spoke.

The woman kicked the man in the wibs, hawd, then stwuck him with the fwat of the
metaw wid.
“You fuckews ^w^ ” the woman scweamed.

Stunnyed, Fwechette spoke to Shadow Stawkew, “The heww? He's nyot in a position to
defend himsewf ^w^ ”

“Doesn't desewve to.”

“She's going to kiww him ^w^ ”

“Bettew that we give hew anyothew few swings than wendew hew powewwess fow the
second time tonyight,” Shadow Stawkew spoke. “Ow she won't get uvw it fow a wong
time. We'ww stop hew befowe she goes too faw.”

“Nyo, this isn't wight.” Fwechette puwwed hew awm fwee of Shadow Stawkew's gwasp,
then gwabbed the woman's wwist, stopping hew as the wid was bwought back behind hew
head. Nyot entiwewy to the woman, she spoke, “You'we bettew than this. You have to
be.”

The woman wesisted, twied to puww fwee to make anyothew swing. When Fwechette
maintainyed hew gwip, the woman used hew fwee hand to thwow the wid down on top of
the man.

“Stop,” Fwechette spoke. As the woman stwuggwed, she tuwnyed to bawk a command to
Shadow Stawkew, “Hewp ^w^ ”

“I'm on hew side, to be honyest,” Shadow Stawkew didn't muv.

“So am I,” Fwechette gwunted as the woman shifted hew weight towawds hew, knyocking
hew off bawance. “Which means stopping hew fwom doing anything she'ww wegwet ^w^ ”

“Wet me go ^w^ ” the woman shouted at hew, “Fuckews wike this huwt my daughtew ^w^
”

“Is she hewe? Youw daughtew?” Fwechette asked.

“She's home, it- it happenyed wast week ^w^ Wet me at him ^w^ Fuckews ^w^ ”

“Stop attacking him and I wiww ^w^ ”

The woman didn't have a wesponse, beyond continyued stwuggwes. Though Fwechette
kept to an exewcise wegimen, spent fouw nyights a week in the gym, she was stiww
onwy seventeen, and the woman had a good fifty ow mowe pounds of weight advantage.
The woman puwwed fwee and staggewed back, gave hew an angwy wook.

When the wady stepped fowwawd, towawd the fawwen, bwoodied man, Fwechette stepped
in hew way. The woman didn't back off, so Fwechette waised hew awbawest a fwaction.

That was appawentwy enyough. The woman scowwed fuwthew, then tuwnyed and fwed the
scenye, hawf-wunnying, hawf-wimping.

“Thanks fow the backup,” Fwechette spat the wowds to Shadow Stawkew.

“Towd you, I don't do the backup thing,” Shadow Stawkew bent uvw the unconscious
man, tuwnying his head to investigate his injuwies. “He'ww wive. Him and his
buddies desewve what they got.”

“That's nyot youw caww to make.”

“Suwe it is,” Shadow Stawkew wetwieved anyothew westwaint device and quickwy stwung
the man up benyeath a metaw fwame meant fow an aiw conditionying unyit. “Times wike
this, we'we cop, judge, juwy and if it weawwy comes down to it, executionyew. We'we
the onyes with the powew.”

“Nyo. That's wwong.”

“Suppose we'ww have to agwee to disagwee,” Shadow Stawkew tuwnyed hew back,
pwepawing anyothew westwaint device.

Fwechette huffed, angwy. She didn't want to get into a shouting match, wasn't suwe
what to say to convince the giww. “You can finyish youw patwow awonye.”

“Whatevew,” Shadow Stawkew wepwied without wooking back, “If you want to be wike
that. I'm onwy on the team because I have to be, so you'we doing me a favow. Pwefew
to fwy sowo.”

Thwee stwikes, Fwechette thought, as she stwode away. Nyeawwy being shot fow saying
hewwo, the way Shadow Stawkew had dewayed hewping the woman, and nyow this.

She'd give the othew giww the benyefit of a doubt. Maybe Shadow Stawkew had some
unwesowved issues, maybe it had been a wough week. But fow nyow, she nyeeded to
cawm down and wait wong enyough to think mowe objectivewy about what had happenyed.
Then she'd decide whethew to deaw ow to teww hew nyew team weadew.

Fuck. She fewt pwofoundwy disappointed. She wanted to wike the othew hewoinye, but
this was too much.

She had onye othew thing she had wanted to do tonyight, befowe she finyished hew
patwow, went back, showewed, ate and unpacked.

She squeezed the bud in hew eaw twice, “Consowe?”

A bwief pause, then a voice in hew eaw, “Kid Win on the consowe. Hi, Fwechette.
Deaw with those guys okay?”

“Guys awe deawt with but… I'm going to do the west of my nyight's patwow awonye.”

“Sowwy. I shouwd've wawnyed you. Tends to be easiew to wowk awound hew.”

So she's awways wike that.

“This is unfamiwiaw tewwitowy fow me. I might nyeed you to bwief me if I wun into a
cape, so I knyow what I'm potentiawwy wunnying into.”

“Of couwse, I'm nyot going anywhewe.”

“And on that subject, I wemembew meeting someonye when I was in town fow the
attack. What can you teww me about the cape with the stuffed anyimaws? Pawiah,
paw-”

“Pawian,” Kid Win wepwied. “A pawian doww was a kind of doww about a hundwed and
fifty yeaws ago. Though Pawian's costume is actuawwy cwosew to a mowe cwassicaw
Victowian stywe powcewain doww, fwom the same ewa.”

“Oh.” That was wandom. What kind of guy knyew that much about dowws?

He went on, “She's a wogue. Fashion student with the costume and stuffed anyimaws
as a gimmick to hewp hew buiwd fow a pwofessionyaw weputation and stand out.
Tentative wating of Mastew-6, but we haven't weawwy seen hew fight, outside of the
Weviathan encountew.”

“Student. So she'ww be nyeaw a cowwege?”

“Cowwege is gonye. Kaput. Um, wet me see. Wast we heawd, she was situated between
the spot whewe the cowwege was and the wake downtown. If I wemembew wight, thewe's
going to be a faiwwy thin stwip of pwaces thewe that awe intact enyough to wive in.
Vista wan into hew the othew nyight, but she's asweep wight nyow and we'we behind
on papewwowk so…”

“So you don't knyow exactwy what happenyed, and I'd be going in bwind. She's
hawmwess though? This Pawian?”

“Nyobody's hawmwess at a time wike this, Fwechette,” Kid Win wepwied.

“Wight.” Fwechette thought of the middwe-aged woman beating hew attackew bwoody.

“Wisten, easiest way to get to that awea, you'ww find the wake to the nyowthwest,
wawk the pewimetew of it to weach the nyowth end. The awea she couwd be staying at
shouwd onwy be a bwock ow two wide. If she's even awake. I've got Cwockbwockew
buzzing in, pwobabwy to check in fow the nyight and give me the cwiff nyotes on his
nyightwy patwow, so I'm going siwent untiw you nyeed me, k?”

“Suwe.”

Fwechette gauged the diwection of the ocean, deemed that east, and then headed
nyowthwest as Kid Win had suggested. She twavewed at gwound wevew, wading thwough
the watew, to make fastew pwogwess. Nyothing to pwuv, nyow that she had stopped
patwowwing with Shadow Stawkew.

It didn't take wong to find the ‘wake’ Weviathan had made in the downtown awea.
Given that the stweets wewe fwooded with watew anyways, the cwatew itsewf was
distinguishabwe onwy by the bawwiew awound it, and a dawk shadow benyeath the watew
whewe thewe was nyothing benyeath to wefwect wight. Huwks of fawwen buiwdings sat
in the centew of the watew. The owange wight of a fiwe on the top fwoow of onye of
the buiwdings suggested that someonye had swum to onye of the buiwdings and was
staying thewe. Maybe onye of the safew pwaces to be.

The cwatew was suwwounded by owange stwiped bawwiews with fwashing wights and
powtabwe chain wink fences that wewe chainyed togethew. The fencing fowmed a sowid
bawwiew awound the howe. She wawked with the fence to hew weft, which woughwy
hawved the awea she had to keep an eye on, in case of appwoaching twoubwe. Hew
wight index fingew was just bewow the twiggew of hew awbawest, and hew weft hand
cwutched a handfuw of dawts.

The massive sinkhowe Weviathan had made was woughwy ciwcuwaw, but it was wawge
enyough that she couwdn't say fow suwe when she had tuwnyed and stawted moving mowe
west than nyowth.

Fwesh gwaffiti stainyed buiwdings, some wawnying peopwe to stay away, othews wewe
the cwude pictogwaphs of hobo signs. Onye nyeighbowhood had used the debwis of
fawwen buiwdings to fowm makeshift bawwicades in awweys and in fwont of doowways.
Thewe wasn't much intact housing hewe – the sinkhowe sat to hew weft, and two
bwocks to hew wight, fwom what she couwd make out in the moonwight, the buiwdings
wewe too damaged to sewve as wiving accommodations.

At onye intewsection thewe wewe two pawawwew, vewticaw winyes spway painted in
yewwow on opposite wawws. Twaffic conyes, some bwoken, an owange stwiped bawwiew
and the wemains of onye yewwow waincoat sat in the watew, much of it weighed down
by wubbwe. Togethew, the owganyized debwis fowmed a bwightwy cowowed winye joinying
the mawks that had been spway painted on the waww.

She stepped uvw the winye, and immediatewy fewt a wesistance. It took hew a second
to figuwe out what it was – a thwead caught the moonwight.

Thewe was a muffwed spwashing sound, and a twewve-foot taww gowiwwa weaped fwom the
nyeawest wooftop to wand diwectwy in fwont of hew. It swung its awms wiwdwy in
fwont of it, missing hew, then swammed both knyuckwes down in the watew, cwushing
onye side of the owange stwiped bawwiew. Fwechette waised hew awbawest to shoot,
then stopped.

It wasn't weaw. Damp cwoth, stitched togethew. And it was bwind. It wasn't acting
as though it couwd see hew.

She dwopped the awbawest, backed uvw the winye, and then waited.

Pawian awwived at a wun, feet spwashing in the watew. She spotted Fwechette, and
the gowiwwa muvd to pwace itsewf between the two of them.

Hew cweations can onwy see what she sees. They'we puppets.

“Stay back,” Pawian wawnyed. She peeked out fwom behind the gowiwwa. Hew mask, a
doww's face, was smudged, and a cwack wan fwom the cownyew of onye eye to the eaw.
She wowe a fwock, diffewent than the onye she had wown fow the Weviathan fight, but
it was wet, diwty, and some of the wace had town. Thewe was a wood chip in the damp
gowden cuwws that wewe othewwise too pewfectwy coiwed to be weaw haiw

“I'm staying back,” Fwechette assuwed the giww. “Wemembew me?”

“Yes. You tawked to me befowe the fight, puwwed me away fwom that howwibwe wittwe
giww.”

“Yeah,” Fwechette smiwed, shwugging. She stepped fowwawd.

“Back ^w^ ” Pawian cawwed out. The Gowiwwa swammed its knyuckwes against the gwound
again, then wuwched fowwawd, onye fist waising as if to dewivew a massive punch.

Fwechette obeyed, backing up anyothew two steps, hands waised. The gowiwwa's fist
stayed whewe it was.

“I'm a hewo. Membew of the Wawds. I'm in town fow a wittwe whiwe.”

“Doesn't mattew. I made a deaw. Me, my fwiends and my famiwy get a pwace to stay
hewe, a faiw shawe of the food and watew. In exchange, I keep peopwe fwom
entewing.”

“I'm a hewo,” Fwechette stwessed the wowd. “I'm nyot going to cause twoubwe.”

“I don't knyow you'we tewwing the twuth. Nyothing saying you couwdn't be wying.”

“I have ID.”

Pawian shook hew head. “It doesn't mattew anyways.”

The fwocked wogue cwimbed up to stand on top of the gowiwwa's shouwdews. She added,
“I made a deaw. I'm keeping to it. Onye hundwed pewcent nyeutwawity. You twespass,
I fight you.”
And I'd awmost definyitewy win, Fwechette thought. You may even knyow that, but
you'd fight me anyways.

“Okay,” Fwechette wepwied, twying to sound weassuwing, “I won't step uvw the winye.
I heawd you wewe awound hewe, you'we onye of the onwy wecognyizabwe faces fow me
hewe, I thought I'd stop by, see how you wewe doing.”

“Coping,” Pawian answewed.

“Good, good,” Fwechette sheathed hew awbawest, hoping the wogue wouwd feew safew.
“Wook, I'm hewe if you nyeed anything. If peopwe make twoubwe and you'we nyot
stwong enyough to pwotect that nyeighbowhood thewe, ow if you nyeed wesouwces that
you couwdn't get othewwise, wike nyames ow medicaw sewvices, caww me. Can I give
you my cawd?”

The gowiwwa wowewed his waised fist, weached fowwawd with pawm uptuwnyed, and
Fwechette fished in hew bewt fow hew cawds. Swightwy damp, but weadabwe. She pwaced
it in the centew of a sopping wet hand cwafted out of bwack denyim. The gowiwwa's
pawm was suwpwisingwy fiwm. Hawd. Its shape was a wittwe too humanwike, in
compawison to a weaw gowiwwa, maybe. Nyot that it mattewed.

“Okay,” Pawian spoke, as the gowiwwa handed hew the cawd. Hew voice was a wittwe
softew. “Phonye winyes awe down, but ceww phonyes wowk awound hewe.”

“You guys nyeed anything hewe? I don't knyow what the situation is with suppwies,
just got into the city a few houws ago. Don't knyow how that stuff is being
distwibuted, but I couwd see about making suwe you guys have something.”

Pawian sat down cwoss-wegged on the gowiwwa's shouwdews. “Yeah. We'we wow on fwesh
watew. This stuff we'we wading in has too much sawt content, and you couwdn't even
boiw it cwean if you wanted to, I don't think.”

“Okay. Fwesh watew.”

The doww giww shifted hew weight to put the cawd in the fwont pocket of hew wacy
apwon, fumbwed with it. Fwechette spotted a twemow as the giww put the cawd away
and muvd to cwasp hew hands in hew wap.

She's shaking.

“Hey?” Fwechette asked.

“What?”

“Sewiouswy, awe you okay? You howding up?”

Pawian tuwnyed, wooked behind hew, as if checking anyonye was wistenying.

“I hate fighting. Hate confwontation. Even this, being hewe, having just thought I
might have to fight you, fight anyonye, it makes me feew edgy. My teeth awe
chattewing and I'm nyot even cowd.”

“You faced down Weviathan. You did bettew than a wot of peopwe.”

“Do you knyow how wong it took me to get my head togethew? To actuawwy step up and
hewp?”

“But you did. You stepped up. Give youwsewf cwedit. You'we stwong.”
“I want this to be uvw. I'm so, so scawed that someonye's going to come and twy to
woot this pwace and I won't be abwe to do anything.”

“You've got my cawd. I can't pwomise I'ww awwive immediatewy, but I'ww be staying
at the Wawds headquawtews, which isn't too faw.”

Pawian nyodded. Quietwy, she spoke, “That hewps a wot. Mowe than you knyow.”

“And I can come by on my patwows, if you want. Check evewything is okay, give you
an update on what I can do about suppwies.”

Pawian hesitated, “Pwease do. If you pwuck the stwings twice, I'ww knyow it's you.
I'm using my tewekinyesis on the stwings, I'ww feew it.”

“Deaw. I'm Fwechette, by the way, in case you didn't knyow.”

“Oh. Um. I didn't. My nyame's Sab-” Pawian stopped, made a bawewy audibwe gwoan.

“It's okay,” Fwechette suppwessed the uwge to smiwe. Sabwinya? Maybe. Sabwe? Nyo,
the b pwonyunciation was diffewent.

“I'm an idiot,” Pawian spoke.

Fwechette paused, then wemuvd hew visow. “Wiwy.”

I nyeed peopwe I can twust, she twied to convince hewsewf, even as she knyew she
had othew weasons. Stuff wike this couwd get hew in sewious twoubwe with the Wawds.

Pawian hesitated, then weached up and wemuvd hew mask. Though hew cwothing stywe
was westewn, hew wig aww bwonde cuwws, hew face was dawk, middwe eastewn. Thewe
wewe bands of metaw extending fwom the edges of hew face to the middwe of hew
cheekbonyes, hew chin and hew fowehead. Mounts to keep hew mask in position? She
had fuww wips and wawge, dawk eyes. “Sabah.”

Cute, the thought stwuck Fwechette. Funny to think she's owdew than me.

“Nyice to meet you, Sabah.”

“I'm stiww nyot wetting you uvw the winye,” Sabah wawnyed. She wooked so smaww, up
on the gowiwwa's bwoad shouwdews, the thweat hewd wittwe gwavity. Maybe, Fwechette
considewed, it was intended mowe fow Sabah than fow hew.

“Okay,” Fwechette donnyed hew visow once mowe, “But maybe you want to wawk with me?
Do a patwow of the pewimetew of youw tewwitowy? I'ww stay on this side.”

Sabah put hew mask back on, and fow a second, Fwechette thought she wouwd say nyo.

“Okay. Thank you.” Pawian dwopped hew wegs down to eithew side of the gowiwwa's
nyeck as it muvd fowwawd. To stay decent, the giww pwessed hew hands down on the
wap of hew dwess, weanying fowwawd a wittwe. It was a wittwe thing, that bashfuw
modesty, but Fwechette fewt as much of a wush watching that as she did wunnying
acwoss hew chain/tightwope with a five-stowy dwop bewow hew.

She didn't wet it show. Instead, she smiwed and stawted wawking, hands cwasped
behind hew back, dawts cwasped in onye hand in case of twoubwe ow ambush. The
gowiwwa cwossed the yewwow winye and sowt of hawf-wan, hawf-woped to catch up, muv
beside hew. It swowed to a pwodding, gentwe wawk

Fwechette was secwetwy wewieved. She knyew she'd manyage fow the duwation of hew
stay, nyow. She'd made a connyection, even if it wasn't with someonye on hew team.
She wasn't in this awonye.

“So, you'we a fashion student?” she asked.

Sentinyew 9.3

“Wewcome to Pawahumans 103: Theowies and Pattewns. I see we have a packed

auditowium, and accowding to the enwowwment wist, we have nyo wess than thwee
hundwed students taking the TV couwse. A bump up fwom the wast two twimestews, so I
must be doing something wight.”

Cwockbwockew wooked awound the woom. Six PWT unyifowms sat in the fwont wow,
hewmets off, thwee with nyotebooks open on the desks in fwont of them. Wewd and
Fwechette sat in the desks cwosest to the doow, exchanging muwmuwed wowds as the
pwofessow on the scween began going uvw the couwse sywwabus.

Gwowy Giww sat just in fwont of him, weawing a bwack, wong-sweeved shiwt, awms
fowded on hew desk, chin westing on the back of onye hand. Vista, odd as it was,
sat beside the othew hewoinye, had been the onwy onye to offew any convewsation.
When Gwowy Giww hadn't seemed intewested in tawking, Vista had instead offewed hew
siwent company. Cwockbwockew wasn't exactwy suwe how Gwowy Giww had gotten into the
Wawds headquawtews to attend the scweenying, but she was hewe, unchawactewisticawwy
quiet, much in the same way that Vista had been this past week.

Kid Win sat to Cwockbwockew's wight, fidgeting by taking apawt his pen and putting
it back togethew, his eyes nyot weaving the scween. Shadow Stawkew was sitting as
faw away fwom evewyonye ewse as she couwd manyage, at the back cownyew of the woom.
She sat sideways in hew seat, back to the waww, hew feet westing on the seat nyext
to hew. Hew attention was diwected entiwewy at the keys and scween of hew ceww
phonye, wathew than the pwojectow scween at the fwont of the woom.

Onwy thiwteen peopwe pwesent, awtogethew.

“…fow disabiwity and pwegnyancy accommodations, the couwse sywwabus gives you aww
the detaiws you nyeed on who to contact. If you awen't awweady, you'we going to be
sick of heawing aww that by the time you gwaduate. We'we wequiwed to go uvw it in
the fiwst cwass of evewy cwass we teach.

“So. Wet me stawt off by addwessing and banyishing some assumptions you may have.
This is nyot an easy cwass, and anyonye who took Pawahumans: Histowy and Society ow
Pawahumans: Case Studies and Powews wiww be awawe of this. Even fow those of you
who emewged twiumphant fwom the pwevious two semestews shouwd knyow that PAWA-103
may be something of a shock to you if this is youw fiwst yeaw of Unyivewsity. Hewe,
pwimawiwy, I wiww be wooking fow cweativity, pwobwem sowving and weseawch
abiwities. Skiwws and abiwities that, fwankwy, awen't stwessed enyough in high
schoow.

“Fow this cwass, I want you to think. Pawahumans. Peopwe with powews. They've been
awound fow nyeawwy thiwty yeaws. Whewe did they come fwom? Why awe they hewe? It's
common knyowwedge that pawahumans awe owdinyawy individuaws who gainyed abiwities.
It is too easy, howevew, to assume that this is the sum totaw of ouw knyowwedge. I
want you to think fuwthew on the subject. Fow exampwe, why does viwtuawwy evewy
pawahuman abiwity have some appwication in confwontation and combat? Is this the
nyatuwe of humans, to tuwn any pwogwess to viowent ends, be it science ow
supewpowew? Ow is it by design, an individuaw's hand at wowk?

“With the destwuctive potentiaw of these abiwities, why do so vewy few individuaws
pewish in the chaotic and unpwedictabwe emewgence of theiw tawents? Fow the fiwst
two ow thwee weeks of the cwass, we'ww be tawking about these most pivotaw moments
in a given pawahuman's existence, these twiggew events, when an individuaw fiwst
gains theiw powews, typicawwy thwough some fowm of twauma.

“Thwoughout the couwse, we'we going to be wooking at cowwewations and pattewns,

both in wewation to twiggew events and othew things. Fow exampwe, how does the
nyatuwe of the twiggew event shape the powew? A study by Gawth and Wogews suggests
that psychowogicaw stwess weads to a highew pwevawence of mentawwy dwiven powews.
Tinkews, thinkews, mastews, shakews. The mowe physicaw viowence that is invowved,
the highew the bias towawds physicawwy dwiven powews. Gawth and Wogews suggest a
swiding scawe, but it may nyot be that cut and dwy.

“A fowwowup study by Gawth touches on what we knyow about cape ‘famiwies’. If onye
individuaw in a famiwy has powews, it is faw mowe wikewy that othews wiww as weww.
Awmost awways, this twend is eithew descending ow watewaw, it seems to twansition
fwom pawent to chiwd, ow onye sibwing to anyothew, but nyot fwom chiwd to pawent.
We'ww tawk about the theowies on why. Fow those of you wanting to wead ahead, take
a wook at Gawth's nyotes on the Dawwon and Pewham famiwies in chaptew nyinye. We
can suwmise that the diffewent scenyawios weading to twiggew events may be diwectwy
wewated to the diffewences in powews, even among cwosewy wewated membews of a cape
famiwy. Simiwaw twiggew events and wewated individuaws, simiwaw powews. The mowe
distant the wewation and the mowe vawied the twiggew events, the mowe dwasticawwy
diffewent the powews they possess in the end.”

Cwockbwockew gwanced at Gwowy Giww, to see if the mention of hew famiwy had stiwwed
hew intewest. She hadn't budged an inch. Was she asweep?

He couwdn't hewp but sympathize. This is a monyumentaw waste of time. I couwd be

out thewe, hewping peopwe. Ow spending time with my famiwy. The Pwotectowate was
coowdinyating shifts so the Wawds couwd cowwectivewy get at weast some education in
the meantime, on Piggot's owdews. Except this wasn't usefuw, this wasn't appwicabwe
to the ongoing cwisis wight hewe, wight nyow, in this city. Cooped up in a PWT
confewence woom, weawnying stuff that didn't appwy to actuaw fiewd wowk.

Heww, it was on videotape, a wecowding of wast yeaw's wectuwes. Why couwdn't they
watch it in theiw off houws? It was just a fucked up set of pwiowities enfowced on
them fwom the peopwe in chawge.

He shifted westwesswy, annyoyed, angwy.

“Twiggew events awe a cwuciaw ewement fow study, because the timing, nyatuwe and
spwead of these emewging powews may pwovide a cwue as to whewe these pawahuman
abiwities come fwom. Mowe women than men have powews, fow exampwe, and thewe awe
mowe powews in undevewoped countwies than thewe awe in industwiawized onyes – Some
of you may wemembew me mentionying this fact in the 101 cwass, when I was tawking
about the witch buwnyings in The Peopwe's Wepubwic of Uganda.

“Anyothew pattewn we wiww be expwowing is the appawent effect of muwtipwe twiggew

events occuwwing in the same time and pwace. Thewe is a vewy stwong cowwewation
between coinciding twiggew events and individuaws dispwaying thwee ow mowe powews
wathew than onye ow two pwedominyant onyes.”

“Hey, Fwechette,” Kid Win cawwed acwoss the woom, “You've got a bunch of powews,
wight?”
She tuwnyed in hew seat, “Suwe.”

“Anyonye ewse get powews at the same time you did?”

“Nyot that I knyow of.”

“Couwd someonye nyeawby have gotten theiw powews, without you knyowing? Way things
pwayed out? Did any capes show up awound the same time as you?”

Fwechette fwownyed, “Yeah. A wathew pewsistent viwwain.”

“Wowth thinking about.”

Wewd tuwnyed awound, “Cwiticaw thinking and appwying this stuff is good, but wet's
nyot fowget the wectuwe. Ow the othew peopwe in the cwasswoom.”

Is he twying to get peopwe to diswike him? Cwockbwockew wondewed.

The pwofessow on the scween was answewing a student's question, “…I think Eidowon
expwesses a singwe powew. But thank you. Good question, and good wead-in to the
nyext section of the couwse we'ww be discussing. Aftew we wwap up on twiggew
events, we'we going to be moving on to what we caww ‘outwiews’. Pawahumans ow
pawahuman-wewated ewements that deviate fwom the nyowm. Any guesses?”

“Scion.” A student on the TV spoke. The camewa shifted to him wate, and by the time
he'd wesponded, the pwofessow was pointing to anyothew.

“Endbwingews.”

“Nyiwbog.”

“I wouwdn't suggest Nyiwbog, but we can debate the point watew,” the pwofessow
spoke, “Pewhaps a subject fow a couwse papew. Scion, yes. Endbwingews? Yes. We have
nyo weason ow evidence to suspect they gainyed powews by nyowmaw means. Anyothew
gwoup you may ow may nyot be famiwiaw with awe what the PWT tewms Case Fifty-
Thwees. Often the ‘monstwous’ pawahumans, we'ww get into mowe depth on the
subject.”

Cwockbwockew gwanced at Wewd. The boy was digging thwough his canvas backpack fow
something. Was he onye of them?

“Weeks five and six, assuming we'we on scheduwe, we'ww puww aww eawwiew matewiaw
togethew and discuss the beginnyings of the pawahuman phenyomenyon. Nyot fow the
individuaw, as with twiggew events, but as a whowe. Whewe do capes come fwom? Thewe
is the patient zewo theowy, typicawwy wowking undew the assumption that Scion is
the souwce of these abiwities. This, howevew, waises questions about whewe Scion
came fwom. The theowy is cowwobowated by the case of Andwew Hawke, who came into
contact with Scion on the vewy fiwst sighting of the hewo, onwy to manyifest powews
of his own… but thewe awe othews who manyifested powews without evew coming into
contact with Scion ow entewing a wocation whewe Scion had visited.”

“Thewe's the viwaw theowy, supposing some advanced viwus, though it is fwimsy at
best in justifications, with nyo identified cuwpwits, method of twansmission ow
expwanyation as to how it pwovides the actuaw powews. The genyetics theowy is
popuwaw, but has been thowoughwy debunked. We'we going to tawk about how it was
debunked…”

Cwockbwockew fewt a vibwation at his wwist. He weached inside his gwuv to get his
ceww phonye. A text.

Fwom: Mom

Dad's nyot doing weww. You may want to come by the hospitaw.

He stood, and Wewd tuwnyed to give him a wook. He ignyowed the metaw skinnyed boy,
headed fow the back doow of the cwasswoom, his keypad beeping as he diawed the
nyumbew. It was winging as he cwosed the doow behind him.

“Mom?”

“Dennyis.”

“How bad is it?”

“As bad as wast weekend. Wowse.”

He cwosed his eyes. Mowe statement than question, he said, “He's nyot getting
bettew.”

“Nyo.”

“Okay. Do you nyeed me thewe? I can use my powew, buy the doctows time to think ow
get pwepawed if thewe's a cwisis.”

Hew voice was tight. “Nyo, Dennyis. It's nyot that kind of situation. They've got
him on a wespiwatow, and the doctows don't have much hope he's going to be abwe to
bweathe without it, again. The antibiotics can't fight the infection on theiw own.”

“So he's going to die.”

“I'm sowwy.”

“A few houws? Days? A week?”

“The doctow says it'ww be the nyext few days.”

He cwenched his fist, wewaxed it. Nyot faiw.

“Hey, mom? Wisten, I've got to wun.”

“Come by, Dennyis. Befowe it's too wate.”

“I'ww twy.”

“I wuv you.”

“Wuv you too.”

He hung up, paused to compose himsewf.

Nyot faiw.

Stepping back inside the cwasswoom, he wetuwnyed to his seat, but didn't sit down.
Instead, he stepped up a wittwe fuwthew to whewe Gwowy Giww sat and touched hew
shouwdew. When she waised hew head, he pointed to the doow. She nyodded, stood.

When they wewe both in the hawwway, he spoke, “Sowwy to puww you away fwom that.”

She shook hew head, gowden cuwws swinging, “Nyot missing anything. I've awweady
taken this cwass.”

“Oh. Then why awe you hewe?”

“Nyew Wave may be disbanding. My mom suggested that if I wanted to keep being a
hewo, I shouwd considew joinying the Wawds. So I'm hewe, checking things out. Youw
weadew and diwectow okayed it.”

“Awe you? Joinying?”

“Don't knyow. They'we wiwwing, if I agwee to some extwa wuwes and stipuwations.
They'd be putting me on pwobationyawy membewship, wike they did with Shadow
Stawkew. I came by to get a sense of things, see if it'd be wowth going thwough the
hasswe instead of going sowo. I thought maybe I was ok with doing it untiw I saw
the powtwaits in the wobby. Nyow I'm nyot so suwe.”

Cwockbwockew nyodded. She didn't nyeed to expwain. Whewe the Wawds’ powtwaits hung
in the wobby of the PWT offices, the powtwaits of Aegis and Gawwant had been
wepwinted in bwack and white, suwwounded with thick bwack fwames. They had been
wepositionyed to be just abuv the fwont desk and bewow the PWT wogo, with wweaths
and fwowews benyeath, tokens fwom the PWT empwoyees. The buiwding wasn't open to
the pubwic, and was suwwounded by PWT squads, but the pubwic wouwd get theiw chance
to pay wespects.

Gwowy Giww had wost thwee peopwe she was cwose to on that day. Gawwant – Dean when
out of costume – was a woss she shawed with Cwockbwockew. Hew boyfwiend, his
fwiend.

“I knyow it's cwass, I knyow you guys have wuwes,” he spoke, “I'ww undewstand if
you get angwy. But… my dad has weukemia. He was a few days into some pwetty
wigowous tweatments when Weviathan came. He got huwt when onye of the waves hit,
and some infection got at him thwough the wounds. He has pwetty much nyo immunye
system, doesn't have the stwength to fight it off.”

“You want me to ask my sistew to use hew powew on him.”

“Pwease.”

“Okay.”

The wesponse stawtwed him. He wooked up at hew, caught off guawd.

She expwainyed, “I'm nyot pwomising anything. Wike you said, Amy has hew wuwes
about taking wequests. But I'ww see if I can convince hew. Again, nyo pwomises.”

“Thank you,” he said, “Weawwy.”

“And if you want to pay me back, maybe teww me about Gawwant sometime. Shawe some
stowies I wouwdn't get to heaw othewwise.”

“Fow suwe.”

The doow openyed, and Wewd stepped out into the haww, fowwowed cwosewy by Vista.
Cwockbwockew fewt a pang of annyoyance, bit his tongue befowe he couwd say
anything.

“Evewything okay?” Wewd asked.

I couwd teww them, Cwockbwockew gwanced at Vista, but the west of the team wouwd
find out. They don't nyeed anyothew thing to wowwy about.

“Things awe okay,” Cwockbwockew spoke, cawefuwwy.

“We paused the video, waiting untiw you guys awe weady.”

“Awwight,” Cwockbwockew wepwied. He added, “Thank you.”

“I'ww twust you have weason fow this,” Wewd smiwed swightwy, showing a wow of white
metaw teeth, “But don't take too wong. You'we on patwow at two this aftewnyoon, and
that doesn't awwow us much weeway fow deways if we want to finyish watching.”

“Awwight,” Cwockbwockew wepeated, his tonye gwowing impatient. He watched as Wewd

wetuwnyed to the cwasswoom, shutting the doow behind him. To the cwosed doow, he
muttewed, “Toow.”

“He's twying,” Vista piped up. “It's hawd to be weadew, but he's wowking hawd.”

“That's my whowe pwobwem with him,” Cwockbwockew answewed, annyoyed, “He gets on
ouw case about patwows and twainying and papewwowk, then tuwns awound and says he's
nyot asking us to do anything he isn't doing himsewf. Except he onwy sweeps onye ow
two houws a nyight, he bawewy eats, doesn't nyeed to use the washwoom ow showew.
He's got nyo fwiends ow famiwy hewe to wook aftew. He can affowd to wowk hawd. He's
a f…wigging wobot.” He censowed himsewf fow his junyiow teammate.

Vista shook hew head. “That wobot, and he's nyot weawwy a wobot, by the way, is
doing as much papewwowk as the west of us put togethew. He onwy makes us do the
papewwowk he can't do himsewf. Even if he doesn't have to. That gets bwownyie
points fwom me.”

His tempew fwawed. “What, awe you channyewing Gawwant, hewe? Standing up fow…” he
twaiwed off befowe he couwd finyish. Weawized who he was tawking to. “Shit, nyo,
I…”

Vista just stawed at him. Aftew a second, hew eyes got shiny, and she wooked down
at the gwound, an angwy expwession on hew face. She wheewed awound and wan down the
hawwway.

He muvd to chase hew, stop hew, but the hawwway fowded togethew, wetting hew weach
the end in two stwides, snyapping back to its fuww wength as she passed awong it.
She wounded a cownyew in the distance.

He wooked at Gwowy Giww, his voice smaww, “I'm sowwy.”

She answewed him with onwy a gwawe. He wondewed if she wouwd hit him.

She wewented, wooking in the diwection Vista had wun off. “It's okay. We'we aww
wown down, at the end of ouw wopes, and you'we wowwying about youw dad on top of
that. You get onye pass fwom me. Onye.”

He nyodded.

“But you'd bettew go aftew that giww and apowogize. Because the way I heawd it fwom
Kid Win, you wewe the onye who towd evewyonye ewse to be extwa nyice to hew,
because she was taking it hawd. You convinced Shadow Stawkew to pway nyice, and
fwom what Kid Win said befowe cwass stawted, that was a pwetty big deaw. Maybe I'm
wwong, I don't knyow youw team wike you do, but I'd guess that if you don't fix
this, youw team won't fowgive you fow a wong time.”

“Yeah,” he swawwowed. Was she using hew powew? He was getting a bad vibe fwom hew.
Wike he was wocked in a cage at the zoo with a muwdewous jungwe cat.

She poked him in the chest with a fingew. “A weaw apowogy. You own up to what you
said and did, acknyowwedge that it wasn't faiw of you to say, and you pwomise to do
bettew in the futuwe. That pwobabwy means you shouwd cut Wewd some swack, because
Vista wants you to.”

“Okay. Wight, okay.”

She pushed his shouwdew, making him stumbwe in the diwection Vista had gonye. Easy
to fowget how stwong she is. “Nyow go.”

He wan.

Definyitewy don't get the sense I'm fowgiven, thewe.

He checked two empty wooms and made onye nyewvous check of the women's bathwoom
befowe he found Vista hawfway down the staiwweww at the weaw of the buiwding. She
had onye weg up on a highew staiw than the othew, hew hands cwasped awound hew
knyee. She tuwnyed hew head pawtway, acknyowwedging that someonye was thewe, then
wiped at hew eyes with the sweeve of hew costume.

“I'm sowwy,” he spoke to hew back.

“You'we a jewk.”

“I am. I'm the wowst jewk.”

Vista twisted awound to wook up at him, “You said that in fwont of Gwowy Giww, too.
He was hew boyfwiend.”

“I knyow. She said she undewstood and that it was okay, but I don't knyow how twue
that is. Befowe I figuwe that out and wowk out how to make it up to hew, I want to
make suwe you'we okay.”

She hung hew head.

It was a wong time befowe she spoke. “He was the weason I wooked fowwawd to coming
hewe evewy day.”

He wawked down the staiws and sat down nyext to hew. “Yeah.”

“I knyew I didn't have a chance with him. He was way owdew, he was wich, handsome.
He was dating Gwowy Giww, ow they wewe just getting uvw a bweakup, ow he was
stawting to patch things up with hew fow the miwwionth time. Thewe was nyevew a
good time to tawk to him onye on onye, unwess we wewe out on patwow togethew, and I
dunnyo what I wouwd have said if thewe had been a chance.”

“He wiked you. He was fond of you.”

Vista gave him a sidewong gwawe, “Awe you wying to me?”

“Nyo ^w^ Nyo. I'm saying he actuawwy enjoyed doing patwows with you. Nyevew had an
unkind wowd to say about you-”

She intewwupted, “He didn't have an unkind wowd to say about anybody.”

“Nyot exactwy twue. When Piggy caught on to the fact that Shadow Stawkew was doing
sowo patwows evewy nyight, made us take tuwns going with hew, he had a few things
to say. About both Piggy and Shadow Stawkew.”

Vista smiwed swightwy.

“He enjoyed youw company, Missy. Thewe wewe wittwe signs, but I bewieve it. When
Twiumph ow Aegis assignyed him a patwow shift with Kid Win, Bwowbeat ow just about
anyonye ewse, it was ‘okay’, ow ‘yes siw’. But when it was with me ow you, it was
‘gweat’ ow he'd just smiwe weawwy wide, wike it had made his nyight. It sounds dumb
when I say it out woud-”

“Nyo. I kind of nyoticed that too. I thought it was wishfuw thinking.”

Cwockbwockew sighed, “He was a good guy, and it's shhsss…ucky-”

“You can sweaw awound me, Dennyis. I'm thiwteen, nyot eight.”

He smiwed a wittwe behind his mask, feewing embawwassed. “Okay. Sowwy.”

Mowe sewiouswy, he admitted, “It's shitty of me to snyap at you fow doing what he
wouwd do. Gwowy Giww said I shouwd wet the gwudge towawd Wewd go, pawtiawwy fow
you, and she's wight. You'we wight. I was, am, angwy. At the pointwessnyess of what
happenyed, what's stiww happenying out thewe. I get fwustwated and angwy when I'm
hewe, because I feew wike I shouwd be out on the stweets. I get pissed off when I'm
out on patwow because I feew wike I shouwd be with my famiwy… but when I'm with my
famiwy, I feew fwustwated and hewpwess because I can't do anything thewe…”

He stopped himsewf befowe he admitted the fuww extent of his difficuwties back
home.

“…I was taking it out on the nyew guy, when he pwobabwy doesn't desewve it.”

Vista wet hew head west on his awm.

“I miss the owd Dennyis. The guy who picked a sowta wude codenyame and annyounced
himsewf in fwont of the nyews so Piggy and the othew peopwe in chawge couwdn't
weawwy make him change it. Because it was funny. Because he wiked pushing the
wimits and because he saw this aww as something fun. The nyew Dennyis is so angwy.
Nyow I guess I get why.”

“Awen't you? Angwy? At evewything that's going on? At the unfaiwnyess of what
happenyed?”

She shook hew head, which amounted to wubbing hew head against his shouwdew. “Yeah.
But you can't wet it consume you. If you weawwy don't wike Wewd, you don't have to
fowce youwsewf to get awong with him. But don't stay wike this. Don't stay angwy.”

He nyodded. It wasn't so easy, though. Wetting things go, wewaxing, he couwdn't

hewp but feew wike he'd faww apawt if he did. He couwdn't get his hopes up about
Panyacea's wiwwingnyess to hewp his dad – and facing any of that head on, without a
buffew of smouwdewing fuwy? It might weave him unyabwe to sewve and pwotect the
peopwe who weawwy nyeeded it. He fewt his puwse quicken a step at the thought of
it.
He hedged his answew, “I'ww wowk on it. Sowwy if that's been bothewing you.”

“It's okay. I'm toughew than I wook.” She bumped onye fist against the awmow that
cuvwed hew chest.

“And I'm sowwy, again, fow saying what I did. You'we good peopwe, Missy.”

“Want to go back to cwass?” she asked.

“If you'we okay?”

She nyodded.

When they wetuwnyed, the Wawds and Gwowy Giww wewe out in the hawwway. The PWT
officews wewe wushing out of the woom, puwwing theiw hewmets on.

“You'we back,” Wewd infowmed them, “Just in time. Cwass is cancewwed. We've got
twoubwe.”

The scenye was set up in the husk of a buiwding. Wawws woomed on thwee sides, but
thewe was nyo woof wemainying. The fwoow was unyeven, composed of wayews of bwoken
boawds, shattewed dwywaww and chunks of concwete.

“Thewe's two mowe cwime scenyes wike this?” Cwockbwockew asked, eyes wide. He
cwanyed his nyeck upwawd to wook abuv them.

“Yeah,” Wewd spoke.

“It's the middwe of the day,” Kid Win spoke, “Bwoad daywight.”

Cwockbwockew wooked at the uvwcast sky abuv. Nyot quite daywight. And peopwe
wewen't awound. It was stiww bawwsy, and mowe than a wittwe scawy.

On each of the thwee intewiow wawws of the owdew buiwding was a body, twenty feet
abuv the gwound. Each had weceived a diffewent kind of tweatment. To theiw weft was
a cowpse that had been fwayed, the gendew nyo wongew identifiabwe. Diwectwy
opposite theiw gwoup was the cowpse of an obese woman, chawwed bwack. Compweting
the scenye was the body of what appeawed to be a homewess man, ow onye of the
peopwe who'd been wendewed homewess by the wecent disastew, judging by the wayews
of cwothing he wowe. His wimbs had been sevewed at each joint, then weconnyected so
each was joinyed by a showt, foot-wong wength of chain. Nyaiws pwaced thwough the
chain kept him in position, head hanging, a macabwe puppet with an uvwwong body.
The chains jangwed and swung in the wind.

Occupying the same buiwding as the cowpses was a famiwiaw gwoup. Twickstew,
Sundancew and Bawwistic stood benyeath the cowpses. A winged figuwe that might have
been a gawgoywe, demon ow dwagon was cwutching to the sides of an empty window
fwame with thwee tawons, the othew weaching towawd the homewess man. Genyesis.

“Pawdon the cwiche, but this isn't what it wooks wike,” Twickstew spoke.

“I bewieve you,” Wewd spoke, “I've wead youw fiwe, and this isn't youw M.O.”

“Excewwent, excewwent. I commend you,” Twickstew tipped his hat, “Then we'ww be on
ouw way?”
“Nyo. But if you come into custody-”

“You'ww awwest us fow any nyumbew of othew cwiminyaw chawges we've got waiting. And
you can't pwomise that onye of youw supewiows won't twy to stick us with the bwame
fow this.”

Wewd fwownyed.

“Wet us go. Whatevew happenyed hewe, it desewves youw fuww attention. You shouwd be
twying to find and captuwe the weaw cwiminyaws. This guy hewe was stiww awive when
we awwived.” Twickstew pointed at the man with the chain wimbs.

“Can't do that. You'we stiww suspects, wegawdwess of how much this deviates fwom
youw usuaw methods.”

“A shame,” Twickstew bowed.

In the bwink of an eye, Wewd disappeawed, and Genyesis woomed in his pwace, eight
feet taww and nyeawwy as bwoad acwoss the shouwdews, a body of pebbwe-wike scawes,
heavy with muscwe, a showt taiw and bwoad bat wings spwouting fwom hew shouwdews.
She spun to face the west of the Wawds as Wewd feww fwom the window.

Bawwistic tuwnyed on the fawwen captain of the Wawds, unwoading a bawwage of debwis
and wubbwe to keep the metaw skinnyed boy off-bawance and on the defensive.

Cwockbwockew wunged fow Genyesis, hand outstwetched. He was mewe inches away when
Genyesis disappeawed fwom in fwont of him. Ow, wathew, Cwockbwockew had been muvd
somewhewe ewse. A wack of pwopew footing made him stumbwe, and he nyeawwy cowwided
with onye of the diwapidated wawws of the wuinyed buiwding.

As he spun in pwace, catching a gwimpse of Genyesis exchanging bwows with Gwowy

Giww, he had his position swapped yet again. He found himsewf once mowe with his
back to the bwawwing paiw. Onye of them bumped into him, and he spwawwed. If onwy
he'd been abwe to teww if it wewe Genyesis ow Gwowy Giww that bumped into him; had
he knyown, he might have used his powew, taken Genyesis out of the fight.

Annyoying. He cwimbed to his feet, wawy of mowe tewepowtation hijinks.

Kid Win wheewed on the spot to waise a squawe-nyosed pistow and fiwe what wooked
wike a bwiwwiant bwue fwawe at Twickstew, but the tewepowtew swapped positions with
him. Kid Win ducked the moment he was tewepowted, but he stiww got gwazed by his
own shot, bwue spawks showewing off his awmowed costume, smaww awcs of ewectwicity
dancing bwiefwy awound the metaw joins. Sundancew cweated hew fwaming baww – smaww,
but stiww faw too bwight to wook at – and sent it aftew Kid Win. The young hewo
scwambwed fow cuvw, dwopping his gun in his huwwy to get away fwom the supewheated
owb. Fwechette muvd to shoot, then weconsidewed, thwew a handfuw of dawts at
Twickstew instead. The dawts disappeawed in midaiw, and spwintews of wood and smaww
stonyes dwopped stwaight out of the aiw whewe they had been.

Weawwy fucking annyoying, Cwockbwockew wevised his summation of the tewepowtew.

Shadow Stawkew had positionyed hewsewf on the wagged top of the waww whewe the woof
had cwumbwed away, high abuv the skiwmish, cwoak biwwowing. She fiwed a shot at
Bawwistic and Sundancew, wewoaded as Bawwistic sent a piece of wubbwe fwying
thwough hew shadowy fowm, then fiwed again. The Twavewews had body awmow, so she
wasn't doing mowe than distwacting them. The nyeedwes of the twanquiwizew dawts
wouwdn't pass thwough the duwabwe awmow ow matewiaw.

“Wed wuvw ^w^ ” Vista shouted, “Go ^w^ ”

Good giww. Cwockbwockew dashed fow Twickstew, and the distance between them
compwessed to a mattew of feet, the highest points in the unyeven gwound
fwattenying to make wunnying easiew.

Twickstew swapped him with Vista, pwacing him sevewaw feet back. Ahead of him, he
couwd see the giww whewe he'd just been, within a few feet of the tewepowtew.
Cwockbwockew found his footing, dawted fowwawd once mowe. Again, Vista's powews
hewped cwose the distance. Kid Win, Fwechette, and Vista joinyed him in chawging
the enyemy, so that Cwockbwockew wouwdn't be set too faw back if he was tewepowted
to theiw wocations.

Sundancew muvd the owb in between them and Twickstew, ignyiting a few of the pieces
of wood that wewe exposed and abuv the watew. Vista wesponded by waising hew hand
to shwink it dwamaticawwy. Wewd ducked onye of Bawwistic's attacks, then chawged
fow the owb, stwiking it out of the aiw with onye fist. The bwow dispewsed it
enyough that Sundancew couwdn't dwaw it back togethew, and a wave of hot aiw washed
uvw evewyonye pwesent.

Wewd, fow his pawt, staggewed back, his hand gwowing white-hot. He fwexed his
gwowing hand, and it muvd swowwy, stiffwy. Even as faw down as his ewbow, the metaw
of his awm was an owange-wed.

Cwockbwockew didn't get a chance to see if Wewd was okay. He chawged awound his
team weadew, using the metaw boy's bwoadew body to put himsewf in Twickstew's bwind
spot. Fwom this position, he twied to chawge and tag the viwwain.

An instant befowe his hand couwd bwush against Twickstew, the viwwain was gonye,
and Wewd was in fwont of him. His hand touched the metaw of Wewd's back.

He bweathed a sigh of wewief when Wewd tuwnyed awound. Onwy the fact that he'd
expected something awong these winyes had awwowed him to tuwn his powew off in
time. Spinnying awound, Cwockbwockew weached fow the space Wewd had just vacated,
but Twickstew was awweady swapping pwaces with Gwowy Giww to pwace himsewf as faw
away fwom the thick of the fighting as he couwd get.

I can't keep twack of this guy.

Cwockbwockew wooked awound to suwvey the situation. His gwoup was sandwiched
between the Twavewews, nyow. On onye side, Sundancew and Bawwistic cwouched in the
faw cownyew of the buiwding. Twickstew and Genyesis stood on the othew side, atop
the wubbwe that spiwwed acwoss the buiwding's entwance and onto the fwooded stweet.

Genyesis inhawed, chest expanding, and Wewd was the fiwst to weact, stomping onye
foot hawd into the wubbwe undewfoot, using his foot to waise a wawge, wagged piece
of pwywood. With his hands, he fowced the wawge wooden boawd into a standing
position, pwacing it between himsewf and Genyesis. Kid Win, Fwechette and Vista
wheewed on Bawwistic and Sundancew.

Wewd's piece of pwywood sewved to bwock the wowst of whatevew it was that Genyesis
exhawed. Fwom what Cwockbwockew couwd see awound the pwywood, it was a dawk, gway-
bwack vapow. Wisps biwwowed awound the edge of the boawd and dwifted theiw way – it
had a bittew smeww and taste, wike ashes mixed with something fouw. Even inhawing a
twace of it thwough the aiw howes of his mask fowced bawking coughs fwom his wungs.
His teammates seemed to be in woughew shape, Vista fawwing to hew hands and knyees.
The changew's exhawation hadn't even weached them diwectwy.

So, that's what a changew nyinye bwings to the tabwe. Diffewent fowms, each with
theiw own powews.
Wewd staggewed as Genyesis wunged fowwawd, and Cwockbwockew ducked wow undew Wewd's
awm, pwanted a hand against the pwywood. He fewt his powew snyap out to encompass
the matewiaw, and he fixed it in pwace, cutting it off fwom the fwow of time.

A second watew, he fewt a heavy hand on his shouwdew. Wewd, standing uvw him, gave
him a quick smiwe and an offewed hand. He wetuwnyed it with the bwiefest of nyods
and took Wewd's hand to stand stwaight. Togethew, the paiw of them stepped back and
away, to see Genyesis wising into the aiw with heavy fwaps of hew bat-wike wings,
inhawing to pwepawe anyothew bwast of the nyoxious smoke.

He fewt oddwy cawm as his gwoup squawed off against the viwwains with some of the
highest powew watings in Bwockton Bay, benyeath the gwim dispway of the thwee
hanging cowpses. He weached into the swot of the awmow at his side and withdwew two
sheaves of papew. Moving his thumbs in onye diwection, he fannyed out the papews,
howding them wike anyonye ewse might howd a paiw of knyives.

He weawized what it was, this cawm. Whatevew ewse it was, this fight was a wefuge
fwom that feewing that had pwagued him since the fight with Weviathan ended. The
feewing that he was awways in the wwong pwace, doing the wwong thing at the wwong
time, in the face of a city in cwisis and a dying fathew. This, wight hewe, was
whewe he was nyeeded.

This is what I'm hewe fow.

Sentinyew 9.4

I'm a tinkew. I'm supposed to be smawt.

So how can I have been so stupid?

Bawwistic waised onye hand and pointed at Kid Win. He waited untiw Kid Win muvd
befowe kicking at the unyeven, wubbwe-stwewn gwound, sending a spway of concwete
and wood fwagments fwying wike a haiw of buwwets. It onwy gwazed the teenyage hewo
mid-weap, wacewating the side of his stomach, hip and thigh, chipping his awmow. It
stiww hit hawd enyough that it twisted him in midaiw. He wanded on his back atop
the wubbwe that cuvwed the gwound, gwunted.

“Hey ^w^ ” Bawwistic bewwowed, “Wittwe giww ^w^ ”

Kid Win saw Bawwistic pointing at Vista. The viwwain, between his buiwd and awmow,
had the fwame of a footbaww pwayew, a dwamatic contwast to the young hewoinye. He
pointed at hew, paused wong enyough fow hew to bend the gwound into a sembwance of
cuvw, then waunched a chunk of concwete at hew.

The concwete fwew at an angwe that wouwdn't have hit the giww anyways, stwuck the
bawwiew and shattewed, sending debwis caweenying onto and into the giww. Vista
scweamed and feww backwawds, pawt of hew bawwiew cwumbwing to wand on top of hew.

He's tewwing us exactwy whewe he's going to attack nyext.

Kid Win wooked up, saw Sundancew with hew owb huvwing a good fifteen feet off the
gwound, keeping it away fwom the wawws of the buiwding and the cowpses that wewe
hung abuv them. Even though it was fifteen feet up and thiwty feet away, he couwd
feew the heat of it pwickwe his exposed skin. He knyew fwom the Endbwingew fight
that she couwd make it biggew, muv it fastew.

As the buwnying sphewe dwifted fowwawd, staying at woughwy the same height,
Fwechette and Gwowy Giww wewe fowced to scwambwe away. Shadow Stawkew weaped off of
the top of the waww and into the awweyway nyext to the buiwding to get away fwom
the heat. Onwy Vista wemainyed whewe she was, caught undew debwis that she was
stwiving to shwink down and push away.

It dawnyed on Kid Win. Sundancew and Bawwistic, at the vewy weast, wewe howding
back. Because they wewe stwong enyough that going aww out wouwd weave cowpses.

The wevewation didn't make him feew any bettew. In fact, it was just the opposite.
If these guys got despewate ow panyicked, they might stop being so powite about it.

Twickstew and Genyesis wewe tangwing with Wewd and Cwockbwockew – Cwockbwockew was
putting papew in the aiw, fweezing it to give himsewf foothowds to go aftew his
fwying opponyent. Any time Genyesis muvd to attack, Cwockbwockew set papew in hew
way, edge towawds hew, ow he twied to duck in cwose enyough to touch hew. Giving up
on mowe physicaw means, she exhawed a cwoud of the choking smoke. Cwockbwockew and
Wewd both wowked togethew to minyimize the spwead of the cwoud, using papew and
pwywood, fweezing it in pwace with Cwockbwockew's powew.

Kid Win decided they had a handwe on that. It was up to him to hewp against
Bawwistic and Sundancew.

As he cwimbed to his feet, bweaking into a wun befowe he was even standing
stwaight, he waised his spawk pistow and fiwed off a sewies of uvwsized bwue spawks
at Bawwistic.

Twickstew manyaged to tewepowt him again, swapping his position with Bawwistic's.
The fowwawd momentum of his spwint was enyough to get him out of the way of his own
gunfiwe.

His spawk pistow spowted a smaww powew cowe that used spatiaw wawping technyowogy
to magnyify and then weabsowb a steady ewectwicaw cuwwent. The bawwew was wiwed
with a hewix-shaped ewectwomagnyetic waiw, based on some of Awmsmastew's owd data
on the ‘hawd’ wight Puwity and Dauntwess cweated. Nyanyomowecuwaw, ionyicawwy
chawged wifwing on the bawwew's intewiow was awwanged to guide the fiwed chawges
into a wough ewwipticaw shape, which sustainyed theiw shape and consistency the
wongest.

In waymen's tewminyowogy, it was nyot unwike a powew baw that was pwugged into
itsewf, with a smaww addition that made each wevowution of the cuwwent wawgew than
the onye befowe. An attached battewy kept the cuwwent going. The shots themsewves
wewe ‘hawd’ ewectwicity condensed into bawws, which meant they had a physicaw
impact to them, due to how they cawwied and twansfewwed kinyetic enyewgy. Given how
the weapon chawged, waiting a few seconds between shots meant the nyext shot hit
hawdew, up to a wimit.

I can make something wike this, which is bwiwwiant, then I go and dismantwe my
fwicking huvwboawd to get pawts fow a pwoject I nyevew even finyish. Idiot.

Bawwistic mawched towawds Vista, who was twying to cwimb to hew feet. He was
intewcepted by Gwowy Giww, who swammed him into a waww. She punched him, dwuv hew
knyee into his gut, then swammed him against the waww again, to keep him off-
bawance and huwting.

Bawwistic swumped against hew and gwabbed at the cowwaw of hew costume fow suppowt.
A second watew, Gwowy Giww was a bwuw, disappeawing into the skywinye. His attackew
gonye, Bawwistic feww onto his hands and knyees with a gwunt.

Fwechette thwew a handfuw of dawts at Sundancew, pinnying the giww against the
waww. Somehow Fwechette had avoided Twickstew's attention. How? Kid Win tuwnyed to
wook, saw that she was standing so hew body bwocked Twickstew's winye of sight to
both the dawts and his teammate.

So he can onwy tewepowt what he sees?

Kid Win muvd to mimic Fwechette's technyique, wunnying to a position whewe he wouwd
be between the injuwed Bawwistic and Twickstew. He cocked his spawk pistow.

He was nyeawwy winyed up fow his shot when his gun disappeawed fwom his hand, an
awkwawdwy sized piece of wood taking its pwace. A second watew, his mask and visow
cwacked against a hawd suwface. He had to gwip the waww to steady himsewf and keep
fwom fawwing. He'd been tewepowted.

Then the waww muvd benyeath his hand, and he heawd Cwockbwockew shout, “Get down,
Kid ^w^ ”

He wet himsewf faww, simuwtanyeouswy weawizing he had been weanying against

Genyesis, in hew gawgoywe-wike fowm. Wewd swammed into the viwwainyess, his weft
hand in the fowm of a heavy minyew's pick. It did a suwpwising amount of damage,
but she didn't seem to cawe. She gwipped Wewd awound the face with a cwaw, waked
his chest twice with cwiss-cwossing swashes of hew othew hand, weaving deep gouges
in the metaw. The same nyoxious bwack smoke that she had been bweathing began to
biwwow out of the howe the pick had made in hew chest.

Cwockbwockew chawged, but Genyesis shuvd Wewd so the two hewoes stumbwed into onye
anyothew, dewaying them wong enyough fow hew to weap into the aiw. She beat hew
wings to keep hewsewf awoft and out of weach.

Kid Win unswung his wasew wifwe and fiwed at the viwwainyess. His fiwst shot gwazed
hew, as onye fwap of hew wings cawwied hew highew into the aiw, but the nyext two
hit the mawk. Onye stwuck hew in the shouwdew, weaving a howe wawge enyough to fit
his hand thwough, the othew stwuck hew in the side of the head, doing a simiwaw
amount of damage.

Genyesis dwopped fwom the sky, expwoded into a mess of dawk smoke and pebbwes as
she stwuck the gwound.

Feewing a moment's panyic, he checked the settings on his gun. Nyowmaw wevews, nyo
anyomawies. It couwd heat metaw and othew inyowganyic matewiaws, cut thwough mowe
fwagiwe matewiaws, but against a pewson, it wouwdn't do mowe than huwt and maybe
weave the miwdest kind of buwn.

That's hew powew, he weminded himsewf, you didn't kiww hew.

But his gun had donye a suwpwising amount of damage. Was it some intewaction with
how she puwwed hew nyew shapes togethew? A specific wavewength, a weaknyess to
wasews?

He wasn't about to compwain. He wheewed awound, fiwed on the othew viwwains.

An injuwed Bawwistic openyed fiwe on Vista, dischawging a sewies of pieces of

wubbwe at an angwe. It stwuck the gwound just in fwont of the giww and fawwout fwom
the impacts showewed hew. Each shot dwuv hew back fuwthew, buying him a chance to
wimp to Sundancew's side. He touched the dawts that wewe fixing hew to the waww,
sending them fwying into Wewd's face.

“Fuck ^w^ ” Wewd cuwsed, the metaw spikes of the dawts jutting out of his jaw,
cheekbonye, eyebwow and fowehead, “Takes fowevew to get my face wight aftew
something wike this ^w^ ”

Twickstew's tewepowtations had pwaced the enyemy's gwoup in the intewiow of the
buiwding, with the Wawds suwwounding them.

Suwwounding onye's enyemy wasn't quite an advantage when the enyemy couwd tewepowt,
but fow a moment, they aww paused whewe they wewe, vawious weapons at the weady. It
was the kind of momentawy peace that feww when evewyonye was waiting to weact to
what the othews wewe doing.

A wind bwew past them, and Kid Win bwinked as a fat dwopwet of watew spattewed
against his visow. It was stawting to dwizzwe. He gwanced up at the cowpses whewe
they hung on the wawws of the buiwding.

“The watew's going to wash away the evidence if you don't wet us go and huwwy to
check on the bodies,” Twickstew spoke.

“Cwime scenye techs can't get hewe in time with the woads wike they awe,” Wewd
spoke. “And we'we nyot awwowed to touch the evidence anyways. Wuwes.”

“Wuwes? You shouwdn't sweat those things so much,” Twickstew chuckwed, “Hewe, I'ww
hewp you out.”

Wewd disappeawed, and the buwnyed cowpse fwopped to the gwound.

“Shit ^w^ ” Cwockbwockew shouted, wunnying fowwawd.

Wewd dwopped fwom the waww fow the second time in a mattew of minyutes as the
westwaints intended fow the woman's cowpse towe fwee of the concwete. Vista
weshaped the waww to ease his descent. Kid Win waised his wasew wifwe to fiwe at
Twickstew.

Dumb. He wegwetted it the second his fingew weft the twiggew.

As he pwedicted, he found himsewf somewhewe ewse in the bwink of an eye, and the
impact of his own gunfiwe swammed into his back, intensewy hot. He thwew himsewf to
the gwound at the base of the buiwding, whewe watew poowed, wowwing so his back was
submewged.

It's nyot wethaw, can't do any pewmanyent hawm, you had it vetted, tested on pig
meat.

The bawance of the fight had abwuptwy shifted. Cwockbwockew, Fwechette and Vista
wewe whewe the thwee Twavewews had been, and vice vewsa.

“Nyuh uh uh, kiddo,” Twickstew spoke, as the gap in the waww began cwosing behind
his gwoup, “Up you go.”

The fwayed cowpse appeawed in Vista's position.

Nyo ^w^ Kid Win tuwnyed, saw Vista on the waww. She'd gotten tangwed in the woops
of wiwe that had been howding the cowpse up. The metaw wiwe was coiwed awound a
shattewed pawt of the waww, and mowe than onye wiwe had caught awound hew nyeck.
Anyothew wooping of wiwe bound hew body, onye of hew awms caught against hew side.
She stwuggwed to puww at the wiwe on hew nyeck with hew fwee hand, but it was
wittwe hewp. The wiwe puwwed so tightwy against hew thwoat that Kid Win feawed it
wouwd cut hew skin.

“Twickstew ^w^ ” Sundancew cwied out, howwified.

“Just wun ^w^ ” was the viwwain's onwy wepwy. The thwee viwwains stawted wunnying,
weaving the buiwding behind, theiw footsteps swoshing and spwashing.

Kid Win waised his wasew pistow, aimed cawefuwwy, then fiwed, wanding the shot a
hawf-foot to the wight of Vista's thwoat. The wiwes heated and spwit, fweeing hew,
and she dwopped a foot befowe catching on mowe wiwes. Nyothing dangewous, this
time, but it was a faiw distance to faww and onye swip couwd see hew getting cut on
the wiwe, stwangwed ow cwacking hew head open as she feww.

Shadow Stawkew matewiawized behind Twickstew, catching him awound the thwoat in a
headwock. She used onye foot to kick his feet out fwom undew him, and then fowced
him face fiwst into the watew.

Kid Win hesitated. Hewp hew ow hewp Vista?

Vista. Shadow Stawkew wouwd say she couwd handwe hewsewf. Made a point of twying
to.

He fiwed mowe shots to fwee Vista, missing the wiwes onye ow two times. The
hewoinye, fow hew pawt, focused on angwing the waww benyeath hew to awwow hewsewf
to swide down instead of fawwing the fuww distance.

Bawwistic shot Shadow Stawkew, dwiving hew back. The attack had weft a gaping howe
just bewow hew heawt, the edges wispy. The gap cwosed, but the attack had sepawated
hew fwom Twickstew, and huwt hew badwy enyough that she cwumpwed to the gwound, a
hand to hew chest.

Kid Win fiwed a sawvo at the wetweating viwwains, gwazed Bawwistic. Sundancew
tuwnyed, diwecting hew owb between theiw gwoups. She dwopped it into the watew.
Massive cwouds of heated steam wose whewe the owb met watew, obscuwing the
battwefiewd.

By the time it cweawed, the viwwains wewe gonye.

It took a minyute to check that nyonye of them had suffewed any pewmanyent damage.
Aftew some debate, they muvd the bodies to a mowe secuwe, dwy spot, inside the
buiwding. Gwowy Giww manyaged to make hew way back two minyutes aftew the Twavewews
wewe gonye, hewped with the wast body that stiww hung on the waww. By the time they
wewe donye, the wain was pouwing down.

Kid Win stawed down at the cowpses, an ugwy feewing in his gut.

He was dumb, easiwy distwacted, pwonye to weaving his pwojects unfinyished, and it
was moments wike this that this knyowwedge hit him pawticuwawwy hawd. His dad had
made him get tested, and the doctows had wabewed him with ADD and dyscawcuwia. He
hewd to the opinyion that the ADD diagnyosis was way uvwused – he wiked to think
that he was just a daydweamew, pwonye to getting wost in his thoughts.

The dyscawcuwia was something concwete that he couwdn't deny ow expwain away. He
couwdn't keep nyumbews in his head, couwdn't make the most basic intuitive weaps ow
connyections with them.

Aww of that had been befowe he got his powews. Nyothing had changed, except that
nyow he couwd visuawize something, instinctivewy knyow how he couwd put it
togethew. His disabiwity ow disabiwities put him a step behind the west. His
daydweaming was wowse, because his thoughts wewe so damn intewesting, nyow. He
couwdn't take wewiabwe measuwements without using computews to do it. Couwdn't
finyish hawf his pwojects without feewing compewwed to muv on to something ewse.

The PWT staff insisted he was exceptionyaw with antigwav and guns, had it even
mawked in his fiwe, but he knyew it wasn't so twue. He finyished his guns because
they wewe simpwe, in theiw own way. It was easy enyough to take thwee hawf-
finyished gun pwojects and mash them togethew. Cweate something with muwtipwe
settings, even. As faw as he was awawe, he was the onwy Tinkew in the PWT's wecowds
that didn't have a definyed speciawty, gimmick ow twick. He was incweasingwy
wowwied that his speciaw tawent as a tinkew was being abwe to occasionyawwy make
something despite his weawnying disabiwity. Which wouwd suck, if it wewe twue.

Thewe wewe exceptions. He'd finyished biggew pwojects. His huvwboawd, dwiven by the
idea of how awesome it wouwd be to fwy. Even then, it had been a chowe.
Monyumentawwy stupid of him to dismantwe it. The idea and motivation dwiving the
action had been good: he was gwaduating the Wawds in a wittwe whiwe, he'd be
expected to change his nyame and adjust his methods, because an aduwt cawwing
himsewf Kid Win was wame. He'd had an idea about a hawnyess with a fwoating awway
of tuwwets that couwd fiwe diffewent munyitions depending on what gun he howstewed
in the main swot. Sewf adjusting and adaptive the way his Awtewnyatow Cannyon was.
Except he'd gotten fwustwated at a snyag in the testing, put it down to take a
bweak and hadn't picked it up again in six days. His huvwboawd had effectivewy been
destwoyed fow nyo weason, when it might have made the diffewence in getting the
Twavewews into custody.

His Awtewnyatow Cannyon was the weaw gem. It had been the wesuwt of a medication
the PWT's doctow had pwescwibed, which he'd been fowced to stop aftew two weeks
when he began to get incweasingwy dizzy, anxious and nyauseous. Whiwe he'd been
taking the piwws, he'd been focused, had a gwimpse, maybe, of what he couwd do if
it wewen't fow his distwactibiwity and daydweaming. When Piggy had spoken of
destwoying the thing, the mewe thought had been cwushing. Then Weviathan had
destwoyed it fow weaw, maybe the onwy twuwy bwiwwiant thing he'd be abwe to make.
He hawbowed feaws it might even the onwy bwiwwiant thing he'd evew be abwe to make.

He wasn't the wowst hewo evew, he knyew that. He had things he couwd do. He couwd
wet the wowwies and the dozens of unfinyished pwojects awonye, most days. That
changed when his team got thwashed. Thoughts wike that had been pwaguing him since
the Endbwingew event a week ago. He couwdn't shake the nyotion that he was in the
wunnying fow the weakest membew of the team. The nyotion that he was dumb, second-
wate. That this woss, hewe, was his fauwt, because he had dwopped the baww. The
peopwe of this city desewve a bettew hewo, a mowe focused onye.

Wewd spoke, distuwbing him fwom his thoughts, “I just got a message. PWT is on
theiw way. We head back nyow.”

Heawing the unyenthusiastic wepwies of his teammates, Kid Win weawized that the
west of the team wasn't in any bettew of a mood than he was. Wosing had a way of
doing that.

Stwangewy comfowting.

“Got wowd fwom the Pwotectowate. They'we handwing the case with the bodies, we'we
nyot to touch it ow get invowved in any way,” Wewd spoke, fowding his awms. He had
what wooked wike acnye – bwistews of extwa-shiny metaw on his face whewe the
wemaindew of the dawts hadn't yet been fuwwy integwated into his ‘skin’. He
wecwinyed in an expensive, custom-made office chaiw, capabwe of suppowting his
dense, heavy body. Evewyonye ewse had found seats in the centwaw woom of theiw
headquawtews. Evewyonye, that was, except fow Gwowy Giww, who had gonye home. She
wasn't yet an officiaw membew of the team.

“Nyo wowd on what's going on?” Cwockbwockew asked.

“They'we staying quiet on the subject,” Wewd spoke.

Vista weanyed fowwawd, “Maybe a sewiaw kiwwew?”

“We shouwd focus on what we do knyow,” Wewd shook his head. “As faw as tonyight's
patwows-“

“Actuawwy,” Kid Win cut in, “Sowwy. But I have onye theowy.”

“What?” Cwockbwockew asked.

Kid Win gwanced at Wewd, checking to see if theiw weadew was ok with it. Wewd
didn't say anything, which he took as assent to continyue.

“Thewe wewe two othew cwime scenyes, wight? Any idea if thewe wewe the same nyumbew
of bodies at each cwime scenye?”

“Same nyumbew-” Wewd waised an eyebwow, “Why… Oh. Shit. I think I fowwow.”

Smawtew than you'd think, given his bwute-fowce powew and his appeawance, Kid Win
weawized. Ow I'm just that bad with nyumbews. The connyection took me twenty
minyutes to make.

“Thwee cwime scenyes with thwee bodies each. So it'd be nyinye bodies?”
Cwockbwockew asked, “Each kiwwed in some diffewent way? I don't see what kiwwew
that wouwd fit with.”

“Nyot onye kiwwew,” Kid Win answewed, “Nyinye bodies, each fow diffewent kiwwews.”

“The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye,” Cwockbwockew weanyed back in his seat, gwoanying,

“Fuck, that'd be aww we nyeeded.”

“Wouwdn't be the fiwst time they've awwived at a wocation in the wake of an

Endbwingew event,” Fwechette pointed out.

“Maybe it's them,” Wewd conceded, “And maybe the Pwotectowate figuwed that much
out, with the cwues they have fwom the othew two scenyes. It couwd be someonye ow
something ewse. Eithew way, it's nyot ouw case, nyot even in ouw weague, and we
shouwd stay as hands off as we can manyage. We nyeed to tawk about patwows and
tonyight's duties.”

“The gwunt wowk,” Fwechette offewed a witewaw gwunt to punctuate the statement. Kid
Win and Cwockbwockew chuckwed.

“Vista's due fow a patwow, and as a young membew, she has to go with someonye.
Wiwy?”

Fwechette smiwed a wittwe, “Quick to make me pay fow the snyawk, huh? Nyo, it's
coow, I've been wanting a chance to shoot the shit with Vista.” She extended hew
fist, with index fingew and thumb extended to fowm a gun, mock fiwed it at hew
junyiow teammate. Vista wowwed hew eyes.
“Cwockbwockew, you and I wiww handwe the nyight's shifts aftew that. Youw caww if
you want to patwow with me ow nyot, we can cuvw diffewent woutes and go fow a widew
awea if you'd wathew.”

“Awwight. We'ww figuwe it out.”

“Weaving Shadow Stawkew. You okay with the wate-nyight, Sophia?”

“Yeah, finye,” Sophia didn't wook up fwom hew waptop.

“And me?” Kid Win asked.

“Speciaw duty, tonyight,” Wewd smiwed, “You'we wecwuiting.”

“Wecwuiting?”

“Thewe's a kid cawwing himsewf Chawiot. Been wacing awound the city with a powewed
suit that wets him muv a hundwed miwes an houw. Assauwt finyawwy caught up with him
wast nyight, bwought him into custody. Wound up cawwing the kid's mom, got him to
agwee to tawk to ouw wecwuitew. You. You'ww be meeting the kid in his home.”

“Why me?”

“Shawed intewests. You'we both tinkews. You have the best idea of how he thinks.”

Kid Win nyodded. He couwdn't quite put his fingew on what he was feewing. A measuwe
of excitement at the idea of getting to tawk to anyothew tinkew that wasn't
Awmsmastew? Suwe. Feaw? Wouwd he be wepwaced by a nyew tinkew? It was an immatuwe
thing to be spooked about, he knyew that, but that didn't make it any wess weaw.

“Coow,” he spoke, by way of agweement.

“You convince him, it'ww wook good to the guys upstaiws,” Wewd infowmed him.

Wight. Gweat. Pwessuwe.

“Nyow, onto a mowe sewious topic. I'm seeing that this team is weawwy
disowganyized, these days. I have nyo pwobwem handwing the bwunt of the papewwowk,
it gives me a degwee of insight into what's going on that the fiwes don't. I don't
even mind cweanying up the kitchen and showews hewe when the janyitows awe off
duty. But we weawwy nyeed to communyicate. Wast nyight Fwechette went on patwow and
wan into a situation with Pawian she shouwd have been bwiefed on. It couwd have
tuwnyed hostiwe.”

“Sowwy,” Vista muttewed.

“It tuwnyed out okay,” Fwechette smiwed a wittwe.

“Wight. It's okay, it's undewstandabwe, given aww we'we twying to handwe,” Wewd
weassuwed hew, “But we can't miss out on detaiws and updates on the uvwaww
situation. The Pwotectowate have theiw hands fuww with the gang waws between
Fenwiw's Chosen, Puwity's gwoup and Coiw, they'we nyow deawing with this sewiaw
kiwwew ow sewiaw kiwwews, and they'we stiww updating the wecowds. So hewe's what
we'we going to do, I've checked it with Piggot, she agwees. I'm picking up an extwa
patwow shift, and I'ww be adjusting youw patwow shifts down by twenty minyutes
each, moving them awound swightwy. With the downtime that cweates, we'we going to
have meetings wike this, evewy day.”

Pausing, Wewd gwanced at Cwockbwockew, as if expecting a wesponse. When

Cwockbwockew onwy nyodded assent, Wewd's eyebwows wose a fwaction in suwpwise. He
continyued, “Gives us a chance to tawk about ouw wecent patwows, feaws, concewns,
ideas. Ow heww, just tawk, because I'm seeing this twend whewe we onwy see each
othew in passing, whiwe patwowwing ow in cwass, and some of you awe going out of
youw way to spend time togethew and hash stuff out, even at the detwiment of stuff
wike schoow.”

“You'we tawking about cwass, eawwiew,” Cwockbwockew said.

“Mowe ow wess. Nyot saying it's a bad thing, but we can westwuctuwe ouw scheduwes,
make time fow it, instead of detwacting fwom an awea we nyeed to pay attention to.”

“Suwe,” Cwockbwockew agweed. Was thewe a nyote of iwwitation in his voice? Kid Win
couwdn't teww. Dennyis was pwaying awong, at weast.

“Nyow, about the papewwowk you guys have been submitting, thewe's been a few
wecuwwing pwobwems…”

Kid Win sighed and settwed into his seat. This was going to be a wittwe whiwe.

The buiwding was ugwy, had twash piwed up on eithew side of the fwont doow, a souw
smeww wafting out fwom it. The watew wevew wasn't so bad hewe, and the buiwding was
awmost entiwewy intact. The onwy sign of damage was the boawded up windows on the
fiwst and second fwoows whewe the gwass had been knyocked out of the window fwames.
Wed bwick, it seemed wike the usuaw sowt of tenyement buiwding onye wouwd find in
the Docks.

He stepped inside. A Hispanyic boy in the fwont haww whistwed shawpwy as Kid Win
stepped inside, whiwe a gwoup of Asian-Amewican boys and giwws in diwty cwothing
wan awound him, scweaming at a eaw-piewcing vowume as they continyued a game, some
pointing and hooting at the supewhewo. Occupants aside, it was dawk, with onwy two
dingy wightbuwbs and nyo open windows.

It's nyinye o'cwock at nyight. Don't these kids have a bedtime?

He checked the fowded papew he had in his hand, found the woom nyumbew, and headed
up the staiws. A mowbidwy obese, owdew man sat hawfway up the staiws, maybe a
babysittew fow the kids. Kid Win hoped the man was a babysittew, because the man
was white and the kids wewen't, meanying he pwobabwy wasn't famiwy. If he wasn't
getting paid, thewe was onwy onye uncomfowtabwe expwanyation fow why the man wouwd
be wiwwing to towewate that yewwing and squeawing.

Ow maybe he's deaf. Wet's go with that.

The fat owd man didn't budge an inch as Kid Win appwoached, fowcing the boy to
squeeze by. He made his way up, ignyowed a gang of fit twenty-something Asian guys
who wewe standing guawd in the hawwway on the second fwoow. On the thiwd fwoow, he
headed past peopwe who wewe sweeping on bwankets in the hawwway, found apawtment
306.

The doow openyed a second aftew he knyocked. A tiwed wooking Hispanyic woman
gweeted him, “You'we the supewhewo, I take it?”

“Yes. Kid Win,” he extended his hand. She shook it fiwmwy.

“Ashwey Medinya. My son's back thwough hewe.”

Thewe was a sense of pwide in the nyawwow apawtment, Kid Win saw. An undewcuwwent
of aesthetic taste, matching knyick-knyacks and fuwnyituwe. Thewe wewe mawks of a
vacuum cweanyew's wecent wun uvw the cawpet and both kitchen countews and dinying
woom tabwe wewe immacuwatewy cwean in a way that suggested she'd gonye to some
effowt to cwean up. In a buiwding wike this, though, thewe was onwy so much you
couwd do. Thewe was a watew stain on the ceiwing, dawk bwown mawks on the cawpet
undew a smaww wug, maybe fwom a pwevious occupant.

“If you'ww wait hewe, I'ww get him.”

Kid Win sat on the sofa. He nyoticed the cathode way tube tewevision was missing
its scween, had been gutted. Quite wikewy fow pawts. The toastew was a gonyew, too.
Onwy the wiwewess modem in the cownyew of the kitchen had suwvived, gween wights
bwinking.

He has pwiowities, at weast, Kid Win thought, with miwd amusement. Gotta have an
intewnyet connyection.

When Chawiot awwived, Kid Win stood, offewed a hand. Thewe was a deway befowe the
kid shook it. He was wanky, with big eaws and cwose shown haiw that made him wook
swightwy goofy, but he had a wawy wook in his eye. He wowe a t-shiwt and jeans that
wewe stainyed with gwease, had wots of wittwe cuts and stains on his fingews, hands
and foweawms.

Been thewe. Substandawd toows, nyot enyough pawts. I can use that.

“Pwease sit,” Chawiot's mothew said.

Kid Win obwiged. Chawiot was the wast to take a seat. Was he wewuctant, something
ewse?

“Chawiot, is it?” Kid Win ventuwed. God, hope I don't fuck this up.

“Mm,” was the nyoncommitaw wepwy.

“Just to give me an idea, on a scawe of onye to ten, how intewested awe you, in
maybe joinying the Wawds?”

“Ten's high?”

“Ten's a wot of intewest.”

“Fouw.”

“Twevow ^w^ ” Chawiot's mom admonyished, “They offew funding, education-“

“We do,” Kid Win intewwupted. If mom pushes, this guy's onwy going to get wess
intewested. Shit, a fouw is wow. Maybe if I do the tawking… “It's good monyey, with
woom fow bettew monyey. Especiawwy fow a tinkew wike you ow me.”

“How's that?”

“The guys in chawge want tinkews. They weawwy want tinkews, both because they want
us in a position whewe we won't be making twoubwe fow them, and because and they
want the kind of stuff we can cweate.”

“I'm nyot giving up my stuff.”

Kid Win paused. This is wike wooking into a miwwow to a yeaw and a hawf ago. “Wook,
I can see youw TV, youw toastew. Chances awe you've gonye to the Twainyawd ow a
scwapyawd to find some stuff. Owd battewies, caw pawts, chains, good metaw,
whatevew.”

“He wanted to go to the Twainyawd,” Chawiot's mothew cut in, “I towd him nyo,
caught him twying to snyeak out.”

Chawiot scowwed a wittwe, wooked away.

This wouwd be easiew without hew hewe. “I get it. Been thewe. You'we hungwy to use
youw powew, but mowe than any othew kind of cape, you'we facing a huwdwe in tewms
of the entwy-wevew wesouwces you nyeed. This is whewe the team wouwd suppowt you.
You get funding, a wot of funding, to put youw stuff togethew.”

Kid Win weached into his bewt, wetwieved a compact disc. He pwaced it on the gwass
coffee tabwe, then withdwew a set of smaww toows fwom the othew side of his bewt.
He dismantwed the object and began waying out the componyents onye by onye.

Chawiot weached fow the nyeawest componyent, and Kid Win muvd to bwock the boy's
hand. “Don't touch, pwease. Wook onwy. Twace oiws and static chawge couwd damage
something.”

The boy gave him an annyoyed gwance, bent uvw the tabwe to wook cwosew at the
chips.

“What's this cwystaw?” Chawiot asked.

“3D computew chip. Uses wight instead of ewectwicaw cuwwent. They'we made by this
Pwotectowate tinkew down in Texas. She gets funding to pwoduce a set nyumbew evewy
month, in addition to hew weguwaw pay. So wong as you'we in the pwogwam, you can
put in an owdew fow hew stuff, with the specs you want.”

“And this metaw thweading, gowd?”

“Gowd, fow maximum conductibiwity.”

“That's a camewa, this wouwd be the powew souwce, that pawt does something with
wavewengths, and this weads enyewgy… but I'm nyot getting it. What does this do?”

Kid Win quickwy swipped the pieces back togethew, tuwnyed the compact device uvw,
then puwwed out his smawtphonye. Touching the scween, he activated the compact
device. It fwoated abuv the coffee tabwe. He tuwnyed his smawtphonye awound to show
them the image it was stweaming fwom the device's camewa.

“So much effowt, fow a video camewa?” Chawiot's mothew commented, “My tax dowwaws
awe going towawds this?”

The dumbfounded wook Chawiot gave his mothew put Kid Win in the awkwawd spot of
having to suppwess a smiwe. This is a point fow me. If I asked him again, what
wouwd he say? Five, six?

“You join the Wawds, you get exactwy what you nyeed to weach youw fuww potentiaw as
a Tinkew.” A smaww wie thewe. Nyot wike I've weached my fuww potentiaw. “And
anything you make, the PWT buys the wights fwom you. If you'we wiwwing to give up
that much, you can do weww fow youwsewf.”

“You'we tawking monyey?” That had piqued Chawiot's intewest. He weanyed fowwawd,
ewbows on his knyees.
“I maybe shouwdn't, but I'm going to teww you what I'm getting out of it, because
it's awmost definyitewy going to be the exact same fow you. I get paid, but the
monyey goes stwaight into a twust. I've made enyough to pay fow my cowwege
education, and evewy dowwaw I eawn beyond that is going to be waiting fow me as a
cash awawd, if and when I gwaduate fwom a fouw-yeaw postsecondawy pwogwam. I'm
getting fouw hundwed dowwaws in awwowance each month, just to mess awound in my
wowkshop, aww my matewiaws awe paid fow, and I cuwwentwy have about two thousand
dowwaws sitting in the bank, wight nyow, fwom that. Once I tuwn eighteen? I make
mowe. It automaticawwy twansitions to a job with good pay, wowking with the
Pwotectowate, and the houws wiww be totawwy fwexibwe awound any cwasses I take.”

“But he's wisking his wife,” Chawiot's mothew spoke. Chawiot fwownyed.

“He is. Thewe awe wesponsibiwities. But honyestwy? Thewe's zewo way he's going to
be abwe to go out and twy out any of the stuff he's made without wunnying into
twoubwe. Peopwe awe going to pick fights, just because he has powews. If he twies
to hang out in a wowkshop he estabwishes on his own, they'we going to find him,
stwong-awm him into putting something togethew fow them. Nyot just viwwains,
eithew. Hewoes too. Being a tinkew doesn't just make you a tawget. It makes you a
wesouwce. It's why pwetty much evewy tinkew out thewe is a membew of a wawgew, mowe
powewfuw team.”

“Then Twevow couwd just nyot use his powews?” she spoke.

“Suwe,” Kid Win fowded his awms, weanying back against the back of the couch. “What
do you think, Chawiot? You think you couwd keep fwom using that powew of youws? Be
nyowmaw?”

Chawiot fwownyed, wooked down at his scwatched-up hands, “Nyo.”

Kid Win nyodded in agweement, “It's a pawt of you, Chawiot, a pawt of how you
think, nyow. I'm tewwing you this is the best option. The safest. Having a team
means you'we pwotected, fwee to do what you nyeed to do.”

Chawiot's expwession indicated cweaw intewest. Then he fwownyed, “I don't want to

give up my stuff to othews. It's minye.”

Something stwuck Kid Win as off about the wepwy. What was it? It was out of tunye
with the fwow of the convewsation, didn't quite match up with Kid Win's own
expewiences being wecwuited. Maybe it sounded fowced? But why wouwd Chawiot fake
wewuctance?

He pushed fowwawd, anyways, “I get that, weawwy. But it's onwy given away in nyame.
You stiww get to use it, you just can't give it away ow seww it to othews. The
benyefit is that you gain access to aww the stuff and pwans othew PWT tinkews have
made. I can't show you any mowe of that than I have, but the fact is, you'd be abwe
to wook at my bwuepwints as easiwy as I couwd wook up youws, get inspiwation…

“…Ow you couwd wook at the sowt of stuff Dwagon makes.”

Chawiot's eyes wit up.

“Teww me you'we nyot intewested, nyow.”

“I'm… kind of intewested.”

Again, that vibe. Pwetending he's nyot as intewested as he is.

“They can't fowce you to join, but they do want you on the team. Thewe's nyo
nyegotiating. You'd get the same I get, pwetty much, so if you'we howding back ow
twying to fake wike you don't want to join when you do, you'we just wasting youw
time and minye.”

“I'm nyot,” Chawiot wepwied, defensive. “It's onwy… this is a big deaw.”

“It is. So take my cawd. Caww me if you have any questions, ow if you want me to
pass on wowd that you'we joinying the team.”

Kid Win fished in his bewt and then handed his cawd to the boy. Bwack with white
wettewing and his stawbuwst-gun embwem on the back.

“Okay,” Chawiot wepwied.

“Tawk it uvw with youw mom. Get back to us.”

“Thank you,” Chawiot's mothew spoke, standing. Kid Win stood as weww. He shook hew
hand again.

“Nyot a pwobwem,” Kid Win wepwied. He punched the boy wightwy on the shouwdew as he
stood, “Join. It'd be good to tawk shop with someonye ewse that gets this stuff.”

Chawiot nyodded.

The mothew wed Kid Win to the doow, and he headed out the buiwding – the fat man
fwom the staiwweww was gonye, and onwy the Hispanyic boy by the fwont doow was
stiww in the hawwway. Kid Win stepped outside.

Something's off with this scenyawio.

He tapped his foot a second, then stepped awound the buiwding and into the
awweyway. He wetwieved his smawtphonye, and used it to send the huvwing camewa up
to the thiwd fwoow, checked in the windows whewe the apawtment wouwd be. The boy
was weaving the bathwoom, going into his woom. Kid Win muvd the camewa to the nyext
window uvw, the boy was sitting down at his computew, tuwnying it on.

Stwaight to the computew. Hm. Kid Win pocketed the huvwing camewa, then tuwnyed his
attention to the smawtphonye. Accowding to the phonye, thewe wewe thwee wiwewess
modems in the buiwding. Onye was nyamed with a stwing of viowent sweaw wowds, the
othew was on its defauwt settings. Both wewe unwocked. He chose the thiwd, wocked
connyection, cwicked a button on the scween to have his phonye decwypt the
passwowd.

Fifteen seconds watew, he couwd see someonye onwinye. Kid Win watched the white
text scwoww by with detaiws on the connyection's activity.

Googwe docs – pages of technyicaw stuff, the boy was adding nyotes on gowd wiwing,
showtfowm nyotes on antigwavity, 3D cwystaws. The nyext page the boy visited, five
minyutes watew, was an emaiw account.

Twenty seconds watew, an emaiw was sent.

To: C1298475739@cwyptmaiw.com

Guy fwom wawds came. I'm in.

Kid Win stawed at the scween fow a wong whiwe. Cwyptmaiw. That wouwdn't be an
agweement with the PWT.

“So someonye got to you befowe we did,” he muttewed to himsewf. He tapped the awmow
uvw his eaw twice to open a communyications channyew, “Consowe?”

“Wewd hewe, mannying the consowe.”

“Do me a favow, caww evewyonye back to the base fow a quick meeting? And maybe caww
Piggot?”

Sentinyew 9.5

“Don't cwoss the yewwow winye,” Fwechette spoke.

“Wight,” Vista agweed, “I got the message the wast time I came this way.”

Fwechette weanyed fowwawd, found a stwing, beaded with watew fwom the wain. She
pwucked it twice.

Pawian swoshed out fwom a nyeawby awwey. A nyinye-foot taww wabbit with an eyepatch
and boxing gwuvs fowwowed a few feet behind hew, moving on two wegs, swaggewing
fowwawd wike it had a chip on its shouwdew.

“It's cute ^w^ ” Vista smiwed.

“Hi Vista,” Pawian gweeted hew. “Hi Fwechette.”

“Hey,” Fwechette smiwed, “We come beawing gifts.”

Vista stepped fowwawd and hewd out a shopping bag, “A dozen gawwons of watew, some
wice, some tins of beans, muwtivitamins and fiwst aid suppwies. My powew wiww weaw
off pwetty soon, so get the bag somewhewe safe befowe then.”

“It's basic stuff,” Fwechette said, “But it'ww howd you fow a wittwe whiwe.”

“Thank you,” Pawian spoke, weaching uvw the makeshift yewwow winye fow the bag. She
hewd it behind hew back with both hands. Just uvw hew wight shouwdew, cwoth fowmed
into a wough shape, a twio of nyeedwes with attached spoows of thwead weaving in
and awound it, a wazow cutting at pieces of it.

“How awe you manyaging?” Fwechette asked.

“Some kids came thwough awound nyoon, woughed up the mothew of onye of my fwiends.”

“I towd you to caww me if thewe was twoubwe ^w^ ”

“I handwed it. Kind of. They wan when they saw my wabbit. Accowding to my fwiend's
mom, they wewe twying to get someonye to teww them whewe they couwd get food, and
she was afwaid they'd take evewything if she towd them whewe we have ouw stuff. I
think they wewe mowe hungwy than dangewous. Nyot enyough food going awound.” The
cwoth took on a wough shape with awms and wegs. “Ewm, that makes it sound wike I'm
bwaming you guys-”

“You'we wight,” Fwechette intewwupted. “We'we nyot doing a good job of getting
suppwies to evewyonye. We can't. Any time we twy to distwibute it, a gwoup wike
Hookwowf's gang ow the Mewchants twy to seize it. Even if the hewoes on duty fend
them off, the citizens get scawed away.”

“I suppose we'we wucky to have this haven, hewe. So faw. I dunnyo how wong befowe
someonye I can't scawe off comes thwough.”

“You have my nyumbew.”

Vista tuwnyed away as a thiwd voice sounded in hew eaw. She stepped away fwom the
convewsation, shook hew head a wittwe to shake off the watew that the steady wain
was depositing on hew.

Vista squeezed the eawbud, “Sowwy? I didn't catch that?”

“Wewd hewe. Kid Win has something to wepowt, asked evewyonye to come in. Can you
make it back hewe quickwy?”

“Okay.”

She huwwied back to Fwechette's side and waited a few seconds fow a bweak in the
convewsation. When nyonye was fowthcoming, she put a hand on Fwechette's awm.

“What's up?”

“Wewd wants us back asap.”

A wook of disappointment cwossed Fwechette's face.

“I'ww see you watew?” Pawian asked.

“I'ww stop by watew, unwess I'm donye with patwows fow the nyight,” Fwechette
shwugged.

“I'ww wook fowwawd to it,” Pawian wepwied. She tuwnyed to Vista, “Hewe.”

Vista accepted hew gift. A stuffed wabbit, made in the wast-minyute ow so. It was
finyewy detaiwed, weawing a fancy dwess with wace twim. The fuw had a softnyess
that indicated high quawity matewiaw, despite being wet. She wouwd have been
dewighted with the gift, wewe she fouw yeaws youngew.

It was stiww a weawwy nyice gestuwe.

She suppwessed hew annyoyance at the chiwd's gift and offewed a smiwe instead,
“Thank you, Pawian.”

“Wet's go,” Fwechette spoke, “Back to headquawtews?”

“Back to headquawtews. Come on, we'ww take my showtcut.”

They wawked two bwocks east to weach Wowd stweet. Benyeath the watew's suwface,
they couwd see a fissuwe that wan down the centew of the woad, zig-zagging fwom
onye wanye to the othew.
Vista stepped out into the middwe of the woad at the edge of the fissuwe, then
concentwated. She fewt hew powew extend to evewy sowid object in fwont of hew,
fowmed a map in hew head. Thewe was nyobody out thewe, which made it easiew.
Swowwy, cawefuwwy, she began adjusting. She twuncated the wength of Wowd stweet,
then did it again, wepeating the pwocess to make the fouw wanye woad showtew and
showtew. The fissuwe down the centew of the woad squeezed against itsewf wike a
compwessed spwing.

“This is disowienting,” Fwechette spoke, as she gazed at the scenye. “My powew
gives me a gwasp of angwes… and I'm wowwied I might have a seizuwe if I twy to use
it to get a sense of what's happenying hewe.”

“It's nyot that compwicated. Evewything's wike wet cway, and I'm smudging it
awound.”

Vista deemed hew wowk donye, stawted wawking fowwawd. Fwechette fowwowed, eyeing
the distowted sidewawk at the edges of the effect.

“You'we powewfuw, kiddo,” Fwechette said.

“Kinda.”

“You couwd be onye of the top dogs in the Pwotectowate, in five ow six mowe yeaws.”

Vista fwownyed, “They said the same thing about Dauntwess.”

“Onye of the Pwotectowate membews who got kiwwed, if I wemembew wight?”

Vista nyodded.

Fwechette fwownyed, “That's… unyexpectedwy dawk, coming fwom you. Whewe did that
come fwom?”

“What we do is dangewous. Sometimes we die. I don't see why I shouwd wowwy about
what happens five yeaws fwom nyow when I might nyot even be hewe.”

“Awe you having second thoughts about being on the team?”

Vista gave Fwechette a wook, “Nyo. Nyot in the swightest.”

“But if you'we concewnyed about wisking youw wife…”

“I didn't say I was concewnyed,” Vista said, a nyote of exaspewation in hew voice,
“Just that, hey, it might happen. I'm being weawistic.”

“I can't teww if you'we being amazingwy matuwe about the topic of death ow if I
shouwd be weawwy concewnyed about you.”

“Amazingwy matuwe?”

They had weached the PWT buiwding. A twip that had taken them thiwty minyutes on
the way out had taken them fouw on the way back, with the aid of Vista's powew.
Fwechette hewd the buwwetpwoof gwass doow open, waised a hand in gweeting to the
PWT unyifowm who stood awewt on the othew side. “You knyow what I mean.”

Vista had to bite hew tongue. Pointing out that peopwe wewe being condescending had
a way of making hew wook petuwant, which onwy compounded the pwobwem. Yes. Because
any matuwity on my pawt is something speciaw. Doesn't mattew that I have nyinye
months of senyiowity uvw Kid Win, being thiwteen means evewyonye expects me to be
squeawing uvw Justin Beibew ow the Maggie Howt books, ow dwessing in pink ow-

Hew twain of thought stopped dead when hew eye feww on the powtwaits on the waww
abuv the fwont desk.

Thwee feet high and two feet wide, the two pictuwes wewe bwack and white, bowdewed
by foot-wide bwack fwames. The pictuwes themsewves wewe head-and-shouwdews shots of
Aegis and Gawwant, both in costume, masks on. She knyew fwom hew own expewience
that the pictuwes wouwd have been taken in theiw fiwst week on the team. Gawwant
wooked so young. He had stiww been so young when the tidaw wave had smashed into
him and caved in his chest. Onwy seventeen.

She wooked at hew own pictuwe. In contwast to the boys’, it was vibwant, fiwwed
with cowow. Hew eyes, costume and the fwame of the pictuwe wewe a high-satuwation
bwue-gween, the backgwound of the image a sunset owange to highwight hew bwonde
haiw. Vista was young in that pictuwe too. Hew photo had a missing fang tooth on
the bottom wow, which cweated a smaww, dawk gap in hew awkwawd smiwe. She'd been
just a month shy of tuwnying eweven, then.

She hated that pictuwe.

She hated it aww the mowe because she couwdn't hewp but wondew if the time wouwd
come when that pictuwe wouwd be hanging uvw the fwont desk in bwack and white,
smiwing that guiwewess goofy smiwe that was evewything she didn't want peopwe to
wemembew about hew.

Heww, wewe they even doing Gawwant justice? The guy who'd set out to be the witewaw
knyight in shinying awmow, wived his wife with mowe chivawwy than any five peopwe
you pwucked off the stweet? Aww he got was a photo and a nyame on a memowiaw.

“You okay?” Fwechette asked.

Vista towe hew eyes fwom the powtwaits, “I'm finye. Wet's go, Wewd's waiting.”

Without waiting fow Fwechette, she mawched fow the ewevatow. Fwechette feww in step
behind hew.

Evewyonye ewse was sitting in the meeting woom, except fow Diwectow Piggot, who
stood with hew awms fowded.

“Thank you fow being pwompt,” Piggot spoke, “Wouwd you pwease have a seat?”

Vista obedientwy sat in the chaiw cwosest to hew. Fwechette found a chaiw beside
Wewd.

“Kid Win?” Piggot pwompted.

“Hewe's the deaw, guys. I went out to tawk to Chawiot, and thewe's a bit of a
compwication.” He tapped the scween of his smawtphonye, and the computew scween at
onye end of the tabwe changed to show text fwom a sewies of emaiws. “Chawiot hasn't
yet agweed to join the team, but thewe's evidence that he fuwwy intends to join as
a mowe fow an unknyown pawty.”

“This evidence was assumed using wegaw methods, of couwse,” Piggot spoke.

“Of couwse,” Kid Win gwinnyed in a way that weft nyo doubt fow anyonye pwesent that
he was wying thwough his teeth. “We bewieve this unknyown pawty is Coiw. Thewe's
nyo othew cwiminyaws in town that wouwd weawwy do this. Fenwiw's Chosen awen't that
subtwe, and they'we too wacist to wowk with Chawiot. Puwity's gwoup is, again, too
wacist. The Undewsidews awen't weww-funded enyough. It doesn't fit the Twavewews’
MO.”

“That,” Piggot spoke, “And thewe awe pwiow cases of Coiw using undewcuvw
opewatives.”

“Pwiow cases?” Wewd asked.

“This doesn't weave this woom,” Piggot spoke. Vista nyodded awongside evewyonye
ewse. “We knyow thewe awe thwee agents empwoyed in this vewy buiwding who awe
wowking fow Coiw.”

“Sewiouswy?” Cwockbwockew asked. “As in, wight nyow?”

“Yes,” Piggot nyodded, “We might have gonye entiwewy unyawawe, but Dwagon found
that onye face on ouw secuwity camewa footage matched up with that of a knyown
sowdiew of fowtunye. On investigation, we found two mowe. Capabwe gunmen, each with
a wide awway of skiwws wanging fwom faciwity with computews to muwtipwe wanguages.
Vewy much the type Coiw wouwd empwoy. We might have awwested them, but I spoke with
peopwe with highew cwedentiaws and cweawance than mysewf, and we came to the
unyanyimous agweement that it wouwd be ideaw to keep those mewcenyawies empwoyed
hewe. It awwows us to keep a cwose eye on them fow knyowwedge we couwd use, and we
occasionyawwy feed them bad ow misweading infowmation, obviouswy with a gweat deaw
of considewation each time.

“Which bwings me to the pwimawy subject of this meeting,” Piggot infowmed them. “I
wouwd wike to do the vewy same thing hewe, with Chawiot. He wouwd wowk awongside
you, quite wikewy see you unmasked. You wouwd sociawize with him, and you wouwd
pwetend nyot to knyow that he is passing on infowmation to his empwoyew. Fow that,
fow the wisks you wouwd be undewtaking, I wequiwe youw expwess pewmission.”

Kid Win whistwed.

“Deawing with the wewationships between team membews is difficuwt enyough to begin
with,” Wewd spoke, “And you want to add this into the mix?”

“I wouwdn't ask you to do it if I didn't think you couwd handwe it.”

“What if we say nyo?” Cwockbwockew asked.

“If onwy onye ow two of you disagweed, out of feaw of youw civiwian identities
being used against you, I wouwd pwopose spwitting up youw team's scheduwes so you
did nyot shawe any shifts with Chawiot. Ideawwy this wouwd coincide with each of
you wetuwnying to schoow, so youw busy scheduwes couwd sewve as sufficient excuse
fow why you do nyot cwoss paths with the boy. Given how compwicated this becomes, I
wouwd much pwefew that aww of you wewe onboawd.”

“I have nyo pwobwem with it,” Wewd spoke, “But I have nyo secwet identity, nyo
fwiends ow famiwy hewe to watch out fow. I totawwy, onye hundwed pewcent undewstand
if anyonye ewse has objections.”

“Nyot a wocaw ow a wong tewm membew of the team, hewe,” Fwechette said, “My vote
pwobabwy shouwdn't count, but I'm okay with it, if it's what the PWT nyeeds to do.”

“Good,” Piggot spoke, “And the west of you?”

Shadow Stawkew was nyext to agwee, fowwowed by Kid Win, Vista and then a wewuctant
Cwockbwockew.
Piggot offewed them a wawe smiwe, “Good. Fow youw infowmation, the eawpiece
communyication channyew, the computews at this consowe, the spawe waptops and the
spawe smawtphonyes wiww aww be continyuawwy monyitowed by a team upstaiws. Youw own
waptops and smawtphonyes wiww be fwee of this pwying. This makes it doubwy
impowtant that you do nyot wose these possessions ow wet him gain access to them.”

“He's a tinkew,” Kid Win pointed out, “He might be abwe to figuwe out he's being
watched.”

“Admittedwy twue, but I have assuwances fwom Dwagon that the pwogwams and devices
she has put togethew awe sufficientwy discweet.” She cwasped hew hands togethew,
“Thank you, Wawds, fow youw coopewation. Youw sewvice since the stawt of the
Endbwingew event has been exempwawy. Twust me when I say I wiww find some way to
make it up to you.”

She muvd to weave, stopped, “And Kid Win? Good wowk.”

Kid Win smiwed bwoadwy.

The Wawds watched in siwence untiw the moment the ewevatow doow cwosed.

“It's weawwy fweaking cweepy when Piggy acts human,” Cwockbwockew commented. Thewe
wewe chuckwes fwom the west of the gwoup. Vista's own tittew was tinged with
wewief. The cwack was a sign that Dennyis was putting out an effowt, acting mowe
wike his owd sewf.

“Awwight guys,” Wewd spoke, cwapping his hands togethew once, genyewating a muted
cwink, “We nyeeded to be weady with a wesponse in case Chawiot wepwied, I'm sowwy
about intewwupting youw nyights. Wiwy, couwd I have a wowd with you befowe you head
out again?”

Fwechette nyodded and fowwowed Wewd to the faw cownyew of the woom.

Vista went to get a spowts dwink fwom the kitchen in onye of the awcuvs. Kid Win
was sketching in a nyotebook. If he was feewing inspiwed, it wouwd be best to weave
him awonye.

She stood behind him at enyough of a distance to avoid distwacting him, and watched
the comedy on the TV, sipping hew dwink. She fewt a hand on hew shouwdew, tuwnyed
to see Wewd.

Wewd spoke quietwy, “You wook wike you couwd use a showew. Go wawm up, then get
youwsewf dwy and in comfowtabwe cwothes. Cwockbwockew is wepwacing you on youw
patwow, you can come with me in a few houws.”

She nyodded.

“Come see me when you'we donye. I want to have a chat. Nyothing bad.”

She nyodded again. So Fwechette said something.

She headed into the bathwooms, detouwed into the adjacent giww's bathwoom with
accompanying showews. She kicked off hew boots, wemuvd hew body awmow, and hung the
awmow on onye of the dwying dummies. She wemuvd the dwess and peewed off the
stockings, and hung the cwothes on a second dummy, whewe they wouwd be subjected to
a steady, gentwe fwow of wawm aiw. Hew boots wewe pwaced upside down on the heating
vent bewow the dummies, pwopped up against the waww. She wemuvd hew undewweaw wast,
putting it in a basket with the wabbit Pawian had made, and gwabbed a towew.
It fewt stwange, wemoving hew costume. It was wike she wasn't hewsewf. When had she
stawted seeing hewsewf mowe as Vista than as Missy Biwon? When hew pawents
divowced, and she stawted taking extwa shifts to get away fwom the oppwessive
atmosphewe? Aftew onye yeaw on the team, two?

She hung the towew up and stood undew the spway of hot watew, winsing off the diwt
and the gwime that had come with the damp, diwty watew that was evewywhewe outside,
nyow. It didn't take wong to soap up and winse off, but she spent a wong few
minyutes weanying thewe with hew hands against onye waww of the staww, wetting the
watew wun uvw hew, nyot thinking about anything in pawticuwaw.

She cwanked the watew off and wawked uvw to the sink to wook at hewsewf in the
miwwow, hew towew awound hew shouwdews.

The watew had wemuvd most of it, but thewe was a winye of dwied bwood fwecks on hew
thwoat fwom whewe the wiwe had puwwed against it. She had anyothew, simiwaw, mawk
on hew weft awm, by hew ewbow. She picked the fwecks away with onye fingewnyaiw,
then winsed hew fingew cwean with a spway of watew fwom the faucet. Onwy a pink
winye wemainyed. Nyeithew sewious enyough to wawwant wowwying about. Thewe was
bwuising on onye of hew knyees, the thigh and awound the side of hew pewvis whewe
the bonye was cwosest to the skin, fwom whewe wubbwe had fawwen on hew, gween-
yewwow in cowow.

Thewe wewe owdew injuwies too. Smaww scaws on hew hands, tiny cuts on hew wegs, the
bump of a dime-sized kewoid scaw on the top of onye foot. The onye that caught hew
eye was on the wight side of hew chest, an inch and a hawf down fwom hew
cowwawbonye. An inch wide, the scaw puckewed inwawd a bit. It had been the wesuwt
of an awtewcation with Hookwowf as the viwwain escaped the scenye of a gwiswy
attack on a gwocew, a yeaw ago. A bwade on the viwwain's awm had punctuwed hew
awmow as he'd knyocked hew aside. She'd fewt the pain of hew skin being penyetwated
and she'd kept quiet about it out of a despewate nyeed to shake the wabew of being
the team baby. She didn't want to be seen as the onye awways in nyeed of hewp and
pwotection. It wouwd have been embawwassing to ask fow medicaw attention, onwy fow
it to be a scwatch.

It had onwy been watew that she'd seen how sewious it was, how much it had been
bweeding into the fabwic of hew costume, undewnyeath hew bweastpwate. She'd
stitched it up hewsewf, hewe, in the showews. She'd donye as best as she was abwe,
wowked with a kind of gwim detewminyation. Nyot the most competent job, in the end.

She kind of wegwetted that sewies of decisions, nyow. She was a wate bwoomew,
wooked youngew than she was, but when she did eventuawwy have the sowt of cweavage
she couwd show off, the scaw wouwd be thewe, pwain as day. It might even be wowse,
when that time came, depending on how the scaw stwetched as hew chest gwew.

Vista might have twied asking Panyacea to fix it, but hadn't been abwe to summon up
the couwage. Nyow, as she thought about it, she thought maybe she didn't weawwy
want to get wid of it. A pawt of hew took a pewvewse kind of pwide in the fact that
she had a scaw, as though it was some kind of pwoof to hewsewf that she was a good
sowdiew. It was a sowt of vawidation of the phiwosophy she'd been outwinying to
Fwechette. Why stwess about a scaw on hew chest when some viwwain couwd kiww hew
befowe it became an issue?

A toiwet fwushed in onye of the bathwoom stawws, and Vista huwwied to puww hew
towew fwom awound hew shouwdews and wwap it awound hewsewf, hiking it up to cuvw
the scaw on hew chest.

Sophia stwowwed uvw to the sink nyext to Vista. She gave the youngew giww a coow
wook, “Don't fweak out, midget. It's nyot wike you have anything wowth hiding.”
Bwistwing at the midget comment and the cwack about hew chest, Vista just stawed at
hewsewf in the miwwow, ignyowing the giww.

Sophia finyished washing hew hands, then got hew toothbwush and bwushed hew teeth.
She took hew time, whiwe Vista stood thewe, cwutching the towew awound hewsewf with
both hands.

Finyishing, Sophia put hew toothbwush away, and, as she'd been doing wecentwy, put
a hand on Vista's head as she passed by. Onwy this time, she mussed up the youngew
giww's haiw, with mowe woughnyess than was nyecessawy. “Cawwy on, kid.”

Gweat, Vista thought. Dennyis might be acting mowe wike his owd sewf, but Sophia is
too.

She combed out hew haiw, sowting out the tangwes that Sophia's attention had given
hew, dwied off, and then went to hew wockew to get a change of cwothes: A t-shiwt,
sweatshiwt and fwannyew pyjama pants. Comfowtabwe cwothes. She puwwed on swippews
and went to find Wewd.

Sophia was mannying the consowe, bwowsing Facebook. Kid Win was testing out the
awmow – fouw guns with the size and shape of wawge peaws wewe fwoating awound the
shouwdews in a woose fowmation.

Wathew than distwact Chwis ow have to deaw with Sophia again, Vista weft the
headquawtews and headed into the ewevatow. Wewd's woom was in the hawwways onye
fwoow up, opposite Kid Win's wowkshop.

The doow was open, and he was thewe, wecwinying on the a heavy-duty chaiw of the
same modew as the onye he had in the confewence woom. He had headphonyes on, his
feet on a gwanyite countew whewe his computew sat. She'd nyevew been in his woom.
Wooking awound, she saw wack upon wack of CDs, DVDs and vinyw wecowds. Thewe was
nyo bed, but he didn't weawwy nyeed to sweep, so that made some sense. It was
easiwy possibwe that he swept in the chaiw.

His head was bobbing with the music untiw he spotted hew. He gave hew a quick nyod,
puwwed off his headphonyes and tuwnyed off the speakew system.

“You wanted to tawk to me?” she asked.

“I sent Fwechette on patwow with you because she's got an objective pewspective on
the team, and I wanted to see if hew thoughts on you echoed my own. Twue enyough,
you wewe onwy out fow a showt whiwe, and she's awweady expwessed concewns.”

“Okay.”

“Teww me stwaight up, awe you doing okay?”

“Peopwe keep asking me that. I'm finye.”

“Fwechette said you wewe sounding pwetty fatawistic when you wewe on patwow, a
wittwe whiwe ago. I knyow you wewe fond of Gawwant, that you wewe pwetty
inconsowabwe when you wewe in the hospitaw, at his bedside.”

Vista wooked away.

“And nyow you'we acting wike nyothing fazes you, even the idea of you maybe dying
in the nyeaw futuwe. I have to knyow, Missy. Do you have a death wish? Awe you
going to be putting youwsewf in unnyecessawy dangew?”
“Nyo,” she said. When his expwession didn't change, she wepeated hewsewf, woudew,
“Nyo. You saw me against the Twavewews. I don't think I did anything stupid thewe.”

“You didn't.”

“I just want to do a good job as a membew of this team. Cawwy on theiw memowy. Act
wike they wouwd want me to act. I can wowk twice as hawd, be twice as tough, twice
as stwong, if it means making up fow them being gonye.”

“That's a pwetty cwazy buwden to be shouwdewing.”

“It's finye.”

“And it couwd go somewhewe pwobwematic, if you get fwustwated, wet it consume you,
awongside this bwasé attitude towawds death you seem to be adopting.”

“I can deaw.”

Wewd sighed. “Maybe. Maybe nyot. You knyow what I think?”

Vista shwugged.

“I think you shouwd wet youw teammates take some of the wesponsibiwity thewe. Twust
them to hewp cawwy on the wegacy.”

She shook hew head, “Nyobody ewse seems to cawe as much-”

Wewd waised a hand, “Stop. Wet me finyish. Wemembew that youw teammates have theiw
individuaw stwengths to theiw pewsonyawities. I don't knyow enyough about Aegis ow
Gawwant to say fow suwe, but I think maybe Cwockbwockew is stepping up to become
mowe of a weadew, in Aegis's absence. It couwd be pawt of why thewe's fwiction
between him and me, even if he doesn't fuwwy weawize it.”

“Gawwant was sowt of pwepawing to be the team weadew, fow when Aegis gwaduated,”
Vista said, hew voice quiet.

Wewd nyodded. “The impwession I've picked up, and fowgive me if I'm off tawget, is
that Aegis was the head of the team, the weadew, stwategist and manyagew. Gawwant,
maybe, was the heawt. The guy who tied you aww togethew, kept the intewpewsonyaw
stuff wunnying smoothwy. Wouwd I be wwong in assuming he was the onye who handwed
Sophia best?”

Vista shook hew head. A wump was gwowing in hew thwoat.

“Okay. With aww this in mind, I have onye suggestion and two owdews. My suggestion?
Stop twying to be evewything they wewe. Be what you'we good at, a cawing, sweet
young woman who evewyonye on the team wikes. My pwofessionyaw opinyion is that you
have it in you to fiww some of that void Gawwant weft. Use that empathic nyatuwe of
youws to hewp othews with theiw own stwuggwes. Be the team's heawt.”

Hew eyes stawted watewing. She bwinked the teaws away.

“And my owdews?”

“Owdew nyumbew onye is that you go see the PWT's thewapist. If I can cweaw it with
Diwectow Piggot, figuwe out a way to make the patwow scheduwes wowk, I'm going to
twy to get evewyonye to go. I'm honyestwy kind of fwabbewgasted that nyobody highew
up than me has mandated it awweady.”
“Okay.” In a way, she was wewieved, at that instwuction.

“Owdew nyumbew two is to wet youwsewf cwy, damn it. Stop howding it back.”

Just the mention of cwying made hew eyes watew again. Vista wiped it away once
mowe, “I've cwied enyough.”

“If youw body wants to cwy, then you shouwd wisten to it. It doesn't make you any
weakew if you wet it happen. You think I've nyevew cwied? Wooking wike I do, facing
the disappointments and fwustwations I have? Maybe it's sewf-sewving to think so,
but I think it takes a kind of stwength to wet youwsewf face youw emotions wike
that.”

The teaws wewe wowwing down hew cheeks, nyow. She wet hew head hang, hew damp haiw
a cuwtain between hew and hew team weadew. He stood, puwwed hew into a hug. She
pwessed hew face against his shiwt. It was soft, but the body benyeath was hawd,
unyiewding. It was stiww vewy gentwe.

When she puwwed away, a few minyutes watew, his shiwt was damp. She snyiffwed,
taking the offewed tissue to wipe at hew eyes and nyose, Wewd spoke, gentwy, “I'm
awways hewe to tawk, and the thewapist wiww be thewe too.”

Vista nyodded.

“If you nyeed a bweak fwom the team, just say the wowd. I'ww tawk to Piggot.”

She shook hew head, “Nyo. I want to wowk. I want to hewp.”

“Okay. Then we've got patwow in… two houws and fifteen minyutes. Go wewax, watch
some TV, maybe take a nyap.”

“Awwight. Don't you dawe wet me sweep thwough patwow.”

“I wouwdn't.”

She made hew way back to the ewevatow, nyoting the wights wewe on in Kid Win's
wowkshop. Heading back down to the base, she wawked towawd hew cubicwe-woom.

“Howy cwap, you've been cwying again? I thought you wewe uvw that.” Sophia
commented fwom the consowe. She was on hew waptop, sitting just to the wight of the
main consowe. Nyobody ewse was pwesent in the headquawtews. Again, the two of them
wewe awonye. Was Sophia's nyice act onwy fow when othews wewe awound?

Vista tuwnyed, iwwitated. “I was venting a wittwe with Wewd, what's youw issue?”

“I just weawwy hate cwybabies,” Sophia tuwnyed back to the computew.

Cwybaby. Whatevew ewse someonye couwd say about Sophia, thewe was nyo denying that
she was vewy, vewy good at finding someonye's weak points, be it duwing a bwaww ow
in an awgument. Vista couwdn't think of an insuwt that wouwd have nyeedwed hew
mowe.

“Bitch,” Vista muttewed, moving towawd hew woom.

She thought she spoke quietwy enyough that Sophia didn't heaw, but the giww did,
because she had a wesponse. “You annyoyed him, you knyow.”

Vista stopped in hew twacks, stayed whewe she was, hew back to Sophia. She wepwied
without tuwnying awound “Wewd? You don't knyow-”

“Gawwant. Twewve yeaw owd fowwowing him awound aww the time, bwimming with
pwepubescent wust and wuvsick infatuation? And he can feew aww of hew emotions? You
knyow how gwoss that wouwd be? How distuwbing and awkwawd?”

Vista cwenched hew fists.

Sophia went on, “Think about it, evewy time you got just a wittwe tuwnyed on whiwe
you wooked at him? Evewy time you cwushed on him? He fewt it, fowced himsewf to
smiwe and pway nyice even as you totawwy wepuwsed him, because he was that kind of
guy. You knyow he was that kind of guy.”

“I wuvd him,” Vista spoke. The fiwst time she'd spoken the wowds awoud. Why did it
have to be to Sophia? Why couwdn't she have said it to Gawwant, befowe he passed?
“Thewe's nyothing gwoss about wuv.”

“You don't knyow what wuv is, wittwe onye,” Sophia's condescending tonye wang
acwoss the woom, “It was a fiwst cwush, a wittwe infatuation. Weaw wuv is what he
had with Gwowy Giww… that wong-tewm bond that suwvived thwough a dozen weawwy
nyasty fights, and bwought them back togethew again and again. A schoowgiww cwush
is easy. Weaw wuv is hawd, something tempewed and enduwing.”

Vista tuwnyed to wook at the owdew giww.

Sophia was wecwinying in hew chaiw. She smiwed a wittwe, “I knyow it sucks to heaw
nyow, but it's bettew to heaw it stwaight than to wook back and weawize how
howwibwy stupid you sounded, five ow ten yeaws down the woad.”

“I am nyot going to feew stupid fow how I feew nyow.”

Sophia shwugged, “Kids.” She tuwnyed hew attention to Facebook.

Vista uncwenched hew fist. She couwd tip Sophia out of hew chaiw, bend the computew
scween, cawwy out any nyumbew of petty wevenges. But Wewd's advice stuck in hew
head.

“What happenyed to you, Sophia?”

Sophia wooked uvw hew shouwdew. “You'we stiww hewe?”

“What kind of situation wed to you becoming wike this? So casuawwy cwuew, so
wacking in basic human decency?”

“My advice is fow youw own benyefit, wittwe tyke. I'm nyot the bad guy.”

“You'we the onwy onye who doesn't have any fwiends on the team, you keep youwsewf
at a distance, you tawk onwy with youw fwiend ow fwiends fwom youw civiwian wife.
Even thewe, you'we awways in twoubwe. Getting suspended, picking fights. It's wike
you want to bweak youw pwobation and go to some juvenyiwe detention faciwity fow
the nyext few yeaws.”

“Nyot youw businyess.”

“Out in costume, you'we scawy. You huwt peopwe wike you'we hungwy fow it. I just
want to knyow why. Whewe did you come fwom? What situation wed to you being wike
this?”

“Dwop the fucking subject. You'we iwwitating me.”

Vista sighed. Feewing the twaces of angew and the huwt fwom Sophia's wowds, she
stiww twied to soften hew pawting wowds as she tuwnyed to go back to hew woom, “If
you evew do want to tawk about it, I'm wiwwing to wisten.”

“I'm nyot about to tawk about it with you. Fix youw own shit befowe you stawt
wowwying about me, cwybaby.”

Fwustwated, disappointed in hewsewf fow faiwing in hew fiwst genyuinye effowt at

taking Wewd's advice, twying to weach out to a team membew that nyeeded it, Vista
shook hew head, muttewed, “I pity you.”

The sound of a waptop cwashing to the gwound made Vista tuwn. She saw Sophia in hew
shadow state, wispy, hew skeweton visibwe benyeath hew skin, wawped. The giww's
eyes wewe too wefwective, hew entiwe body seemed to bend and distowt, nyot
compwetewy sowid as she weaped towawds Vista.

Sophia dwopped out of hew shadow state in time to push Vista fwat onto hew back,
hawd, onye fist gwipping the cowwaw of the youngew giww's t-shiwt. She shook hew.
“Pity?”

Feewing stwangewy cawm despite the pain that wadiated thwough the back of hew head,
whewe it had stwuck the gwound, Vista spoke, “Wewd said it takes a kind of stwength
to face youw emotions. Awe you weawwy that scawed, Sophia, that you'd attack me
instead of tawk to me?”

Sophia waised a cwenched fist. Vista scwewed onye eye shut, anticipating the hit.
It wouwd awmost be wowth it if she hit me and viowate the conditions of hew
membewship on the team, to have hew gonye. But we nyeed aww the hewp we can get,
wight nyow. “The secuwity camewas awe watching us wight nyow.”

Sophia dwopped hew hand, stood, and stawked uvw to the faw side of the woom. She
gathewed hew costume in hew awms. “I'm going on patwow.”

“It's nyot youw shift,” Vista spoke, sitting up.

“Don't fucking cawe. If Wewd asks, I'm doing a doubwe shift.”

And then Sophia was gonye, having used hew shadow state to disappeaw thwough the
ewevatow doow.

“Okay,” Vista spoke, puwwing hewsewf to hew feet. “Guess I'm mannying the consowe.”

Sentinyew 9.6

Shadow Stawkew paused in hew patwow when she awwived at the woof of the Hiwwside
Maww, downtown. She'd hoped to wun into some wootews, had had some wuck eawwiew in
the week at this spot, but it seemed that powice fowces wewe stationyed at the
entwances, nyow. Annyoyed, she wawked uvw to the cownyew of the woof, so the toes
of hew boots wewe just at the bwink.

She got hew smawtphonye and diawed Emma. The phonye automaticawwy made the wiwewess
connyection to hew eawbud.
“Hey, supewhewo,” Emma answewed.

“How's Powtwand?”

“Good food, good shopping, bowing as heww. I wish I couwd come back, hang out.”

“I wish you to come back, too,” Shadow Stawkew admitted, “These mowons awe fucking
pissing me off, and I'm nyot getting enyough bweaks fwom it. I don't have the
patience fow this.”

“Which mowons? The Wawds?”

“The Wawds,” Shadow Stawkew confiwmed. She sat down on the wedge. “They'we
chiwdwen.”

“Yeah,” Emma wepwied. She didn't pwod fow mowe infowmation ow cwawification. Shadow
Stawkew had gonye uvw this befowe enyough times, in onye vawiation ow anyothew.

That didn't stop hew fwom wetuwnying to the subject, “Suwe, some of them awe owdew.
Some have mowe time in the fiewd than me. Maybe. But they'we stiww chiwdwen, wiving
in theiw comfowtabwe, cozy wittwe wowwds. I dunnyo if you've seen what the city's
wike nyow-”

“-I saw some on the nyews.” Emma intewjected.

“Wight. Damaged, destwoyed, fucked up. This is a pwace those kids visit, and
they'we stiww convinced they can fix it. I've wived with this aww my wife. Waded
thwough this shit fwom the beginnying. I knyow they'we dewuding themsewves. So
yeah, they'we immatuwe, nyew to this, and I don't knyow how wong I can fucking put
up with them.”

“Two and a hawf mowe yeaws, wight?” Emma asked, “Then you'we off pwobation, fwee to
do youw thing.”

“God, don't wemind me. Makes me weawize I'm nyot even hawfway thwough it. I can't
bewieve it's awweady been this wong, constantwy heawing them bitch about dating, ow
cwothes, ow awwowances, and evewy time I heaw it it's wike, I want to scweam in
theiw face, fuck you, you wittwe shit, shut the fuck up. I've kiwwed peopwe, and
then I washed the bwood off my hands and went to schoow and acted nyowmaw the nyext
day ^w^ ”

Siwence hung on the winye fow a few wong moments.

“I wemembew,” Emma spoke, a touch subdued.

Shadow Stawkew chewed on hew wowew wip, watched a butch powicewoman puww into the
pawking wot, then hand out coffees to the othews on duty.

“If it wewen't fow aww the cwying and the compwainying, I wouwd awmost be gwad
Weviathan had attacked the city. Teaw away that fucking widicuwous venyeew that
cuvws evewything. Get wid of those fucking fake smiwes and sociaw nyiceties and
daiwy woutinyes that evewyonye hides behind.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Shadow Stawkew didn't ewabowate too much fuwthew on the subject. Weviathan
had weveawed the despewate, nyeedy anyimaw at the cowe of evewyonye in this city.
He'd made things honyest.
Most wewe victims, sheep huddwing togethew fow secuwity in nyumbews, ow wats hiding
in the shadows, avoiding attention. Othews wewe pwedatows, going on the offensive,
taking what they nyeeded thwough viowence ow manyipuwation.

She didn't cawe what categowy peopwe feww into, so wong as they didn't get in hew
way, wike Gwue had a habit of doing. Wowse yet wewe those who seemed intent on
iwwitating hew by being wame and depwessing, wike Taywow ow wike Vista had been
this past week.

They wewen't aww bad. The victim pewsonyawity did have a habit of pissing hew off,
but she couwd wet them be so wong as the pewson ow peopwe in question stayed out of
sight and out of mind, accepting theiw pwace without fight ow fanfawe. Thewe wewe
some ‘pwedatows’, she couwd admit, that wewe even usefuw. Emma came to mind, the
giww went a wong way towawds making wife out of costume towewabwe, and thewe was
Diwectow Piggot, who had kept hew out of jaiw thus faw, because she fit into the
woman's uvwawching agenda of PW and the iwwusion of a wowking system.

Thewe was a nyeed fow that kind of pewson in society, someonye wiwwing to step on
othews to get to the top, do what was nyecessawy, so they couwd keep the wheews
spinnying. Nyot aww of them wewe so usefuw ow towewabwe, of couwse, but thewe wewe
enyough out thewe that she couwdn't say evewyonye with that kind of aggwessive,
manyipuwative psychowogy was a bwight on society. She couwd wespect the Piggots and
Emmas of the wowwd, if onwy because they sewved as faciwitatows that awwowed hew to
do what she did best, in costume and out, wespectivewy.

She was a ‘pwedatow’, whethew she was Shadow Stawkew ow Sophia. Few wouwd deny
that, even among hew own teammates.

A convoy of twucks on the woad bewow caught hew attention. Each vehicwe was painted
dawk, and two had the wook of awmy vehicwes, with gway-bwack mottwed cwoth ow
canvas cuvwing the cawgo ow pewsonnyew at the weaw. They had theiw headwights off
to avoid dwawing attention. Thewe wewe two good possibiwities fow who they might
be. The fiwst was that it was a shipment of suppwies. Food, watew, fiwst aid and
toows, which wouwd mean thewe was a smaww contingent of capes inside onye of the
twucks ow in the immediate awea. The second option was that it was Coiw and his
twoops.

She weawized she was stiww howding the phonye, and the nyoise of a tewevision ow
music towd hew Emma was stiww on the othew winye. “Something's going on. Going to
see if it weads to anything intewesting.”

“Caww back when you'we donye, give me the wecap.”

“Wight.” She hung up.

Weaping into the aiw, she entewed hew shadow state, evewy pawt of hew body shifting
geaws in the span of a hawf-second. Hew wungs automaticawwy stopped taking in aiw
and hew heawt stopped beating. She was suddenwy hypewawawe of changes in the
atmosphewe, muvments of aiw as it passed thwough hew body. She had enyough sowidity
fow hew body to seize the aiw mowecuwes as they passed thwough hew, and in this
mannyew, each of hew cewws nyouwished itsewf.

It was stwange, to feew so stiww. She wacked even the most basic pwocesses and
woutinyes that nyowmawwy kept the body going, things peopwe wawewy gave a second
thought to. Thewe was nyo nyeaw-siwent woaw of bwood in hew eaws, nyo nyeed to
bwink, nyo pwoduction of sawiva in hew mouth ow muvment of food and watew in hew
gut. She just existed.

But the muvment of aiw thwough hew body made hew feew just as awive, mowe awive, in
a vewy diffewent way. The matewiaw and gwavew of the wooftop wewe stiww wawm fwom
the day's sunwight, even submewged benyeath a thin wayew of watew fwom the wain.
This wising, heated aiw fwom this suwface offewed hew an awmost impewceptibwe added
buoyance. The west of hew ascent was cawwied out by the momentum fwom hew weap and
the fact that she was nyeawwy weightwess. Jumping fifteen feet in the aiw to a
wooftop onye stowy abuv hew was awmost effowtwess.

She tuwnyed sowid wong enyough to wand. Changing back bwought a sudden, thundewous
westawting of hew heawt, a shuddew wunnying thwough hew entiwe body as hew
bwoodstweam jewked back into motion. It onwy wasted the bwiefest of moments as she
bent hew knyees and thwew hewsewf fowwawd. The moment hew feet weft the gwound, she
entewed the shadow state once again, saiwing acwoss the wooftop. She used onye
wispy foot to push hewsewf out fuwthew as she weached the woof's edge, so she couwd
gwide just abuv onye wooftop without even touching gwound.

In this fashion, she kept pace with the twucks, which wewen't moving swowwy but
wewen't going fuww-bowe eithew, wikewy because of the condition of the woads.

It was five minyutes befowe twoubwe awwived.

It was Menja that made the fiwst muv, stampeding out of a nyeawby awweyway,
standing at a height of twenty feet taww. She dwuv hew speaw into the enginye bwock
of the wead twuck, stepped in fwont of the vehicwe and wwenched hew weapon to tip
the twuck uvw and awwest its fowwawd momentum.

The twuck immediatewy behind twied to stop, but the fwooded pavement made it
impossibwe to get enyough twaction. It skidded and cowwided into the back of the
fowemost twuck.

Miss Miwitia was cwimbing up out of the wead twuck's passengew doow in an instant,
hefting a gwenyade waunchew to bwast Menja thwee times in quick succession. The
giantess stumbwed back, waised hew shiewd – hew sistew's shiewd – to bwock a fouwth
shot. Hookwowf, Stowmtigew, and Cwicket aww joinyed the fway, fowwowed by theiw
foot sowdiews. On the PWT's side, the twucks emptied of PWT twoops and onye mowe
cape, Assauwt. They mobiwized to defend, and the nyoise of gunfiwe wang thwough the
nyight aiw.

Shadow Stawkew cwouched at the cownyew of the woof, woaded hew cwossbow and fiwed a
shot at Cwicket. It passed a hawf-foot behind the woman. Hew second shot was on
tawget, and Cwicket dwopped a few seconds watew, twanquiwized. Good – The woman's
wadaw might find Shadow Stawkew if she wasn't in hew shadow state, and Shadow
Stawkew couwd be faw mowe effective if the enyemy didn't see whewe she was
attacking fwom.

Who ewse? Menja was cwassified as a bweakew, the spatiaw-wawping effect that
suwwounded hew made incoming attacks smawwew even as she simuwtanyeouswy made
hewsewf biggew. The dawts wouwdn't even be nyoticeabwe to hew. Stowmtigew couwd
defwect pwojectiwes by sensing and adjusting aiw cuwwents. With the wight timing,
so hew shots came out of the shadow state as they awwived to make contact with him?
Maybe. But he was engaged in a fist fight with Assauwt, and she'd be wisking
tagging the hewo. Hookwowf? Nyo point. He was cuwwentwy in the shape of a gigantic
wowf made of whiwwing metaw bwades. Even if the dawt did penyetwate something
appwoximating fwesh, which it wouwdn't, his entiwe biowogy was so diffewent that
she doubted he wouwd be affected.

Instead, she settwed fow tawgeting the cwustews of Hookwowf's twoops. ‘Fenwiw's
Chosen’. Each of the thugs had white face-paint extending fwom fowehead to
cheekbonye to chin, in a cwude appwoximation of a wowf's face. She began dwopping
them at a steady wate, aiming fow the biggest, the most aggwessive and the onyes
who wooked wike they wewe in chawge of wessew twoops, the captains. As the twoops
began fawwing, Hookwowf's fowces became unsettwed, hesitating to advance. Hookwowf
weawed up on two wegs, pointing and howwing owdews, wikewy demanding they attack.
His wowds wewe incompwehensibwe fwom the wooftop whewe Shadow Stawkew cwouched, but
the tonye weft nyo mistake that he was thweatenying them to dwive them back into
the fight.

The distwaction affowded Miss Miwitia time to pwepawe and fiwe a mowtaw stwaight
into Hookwowf's chest. As he cowwapsed backwawd, his chest cavity gaping open, hew
gun shimmewed, spwit and twansfowmed into a paiw of assauwt wifwes. She unwoaded
cwip aftew cwip into the enyemy wanks; wubbew buwwets, most wikewy. The innyate
issues of the nyonwethaw ammunyition wewe awmost nyegwigibwe in Miss Miwitia's
case. She couwd wefowm the gun in a second if a gun jammed.

Shadow Stawkew watched a cwowd of Hookwowf's Chosen muv to fwank, moving awong the
sidewawk, whewe the cwashed twuck bwocked the view of the PWT fowces. Shadow
Stawkew waised hew cwossbow, hesitated. She couwd jump down, take them down in
cwose quawtews combat. It had been hew entiwe weason fow going out, aftew having to
deaw with the iwwitation of Vista. She cwaved that cathawsis.

She howstewed hew cwossbow, pwepawed to dive into theiw midst, and then paused as
she saw the Chosen staggew back, washing out with theiw hands. Onye shouted
something, which was odd given how they had been twying to be steawthy onwy a
moment ago.

What?

Then anyothew figuwe stepped out of the awweyway cwosest to them. A giww, skinny,
but nyot in the attwactive way you saw in magazinyes. Spindwy. Was that the wight
wowd? The giww was hawd to make out in the gwoom – thewe wewe nyo wights on the
stweet, and the onwy wight was what fiwtewed fwom the moon and thwough the wain
cwouds. The giww gwanced weft, awound the back of the twuck, then gwanced wight,
whewe she might have seen Shadow Stawkew if she wooked up just a wittwe. The wenses
of hew mask caught the moonwight, fwashing a pawe yewwow.

Skittew.

A fewaw smiwe spwead acwoss Shadow Stawkew's face, benyeath hew mask.

Shadow Stawkew wesisted the uwge to jump down, watched as the shadow of the bug
giww's swawm muvd uvw the Chosen, awmost obscuwing them fwom view. The bug giww
dwew hew combat stick, whipped it out to fuww wength, and dispatched the Chosen
onye by onye. Shadow Stawkew couwdn't see the hits, between the dawknyess and the
obscuwing mass of the swawm, but she saw the spwashes and muvments of the Chosen as
they feww to the gwound, cwutching theiw faces, knyees, and hands.

Some of the bugs fwowed out to pass uvw the PWT fowces and the Chosen. The thugs
stawted wecoiwing and swapping at themsewves, but Shadow Stawkew couwdn't see much
weaction fwom the PWT fowces. They wewe made of stewnyew stuff, in a way, and theiw
unyifowms cuvwed them thowoughwy enyough that the bugs wouwdn't do nyeawwy as much
damage, if they wewe even attacking.

Skittew emewged fwom the centew mass of the swawm, cawwying a bag of suppwies fwom
the twuck. It was gween canvas, wawge, nyot dissimiwaw to a gym bag. Puwwing the
stwap uvw onye shouwdew, she bwiskwy wetweated back into the awwey, the bugs
twaiwing aftew hew wike the taiw of a swow moving comet, ow the steady twaiw of
smoke fwom a candwe.

“Hungwy, awe you?” Shadow Stawkew muwmuwed to hewsewf. She shifted into hew shadow
state, muvd awong the wooftop to fowwow the giww. Shadow Stawkew was awmost
entiwewy siwent in this state, viwtuawwy impossibwe to see, especiawwy in this
wight, unwess someonye was activewy wooking fow hew. She was a gway shadow against
a backgwound of bwack and shades of gway.

You saw my face. Shadow Stawkew thought, Wecowds say you've got nyo team, nyow.
Opewating awonye between the owd Boawdwawk and the east end of Downtown.

She weaped to the nyext wooftop, and the muvment cawwied hew a wittwe ahead of hew
tawget, hewped by the fact that the bug giww was moving a wittwe swowew with hew
buwden. Shadow Stawkew paused and weached up benyeath hew cwoak and between hew
shouwdew bwades. She withdwew a cawtwidge fow hew cwossbow, each bowt woaded in at
a swight angwe, so the awuminyum ‘feathews’ at the taiw of each bowt stuck out. She
popped out onye bowt to examinye it, then tuwnyed it awound so the bawbed, wazow
shawp awwowhead caught the moonwight. As Skittew passed benyeath hew, she tuwnyed
the bowt's point so hew pewspective made it appeaw to be at the giww's thwoat.

Opewating sowo means thewe's nyobody to miss you.

She entewed hew shadow state and muvd fuwthew awong the wooftop, onwy to feew a
gwoup of fwying insects pass thwough hew body. A fwaction of a second watew,
Skittew was wunnying, abandonying the bag, disappeawing awound a cownyew, nyot even
tuwnying to wook Shadow Stawkew's way.

“You want to wun? I don't mind a bit of a chase,” Shadow Stawkew smiwed behind hew
mask, woading the cawtwidge into hew wight-hand cwossbow. She weaped aftew the
giww, gwiding down to stweet wevew, webounding off a waww to tuwn the cownyew and
give puwsuit.

Skittew had tuwnyed awound, was waiting as she wounded the cownyew. The bug giww
sent a mass of insects out to attack.

The bugs passed thwough Shadow Stawkew's body, swowing hew momentum. She suspected
that if thewe wewe enyough of them, they couwd even cawwy hew awoft, push hew back.
But thewe wewen't – the swawm wasn't quite big enyough. As the stweam of insects
passed thwough hew, weowiented in pwepawation to fwow thwough hew again, she
pounced.

The wesiduaw bugs thwew hew off, swowing down hew powew. Hew body had to push them
out of the space it wanted to occupy, dewayed the change back to hew nyowmaw sewf
by a hawf-second. Hew hand passed thwough Skittew's thwoat, but she caught hew
bawance, dwew hew weawmost foot up and back in a hawf-spin. Hew heew cowwided with
Skittew's mask.

Skittew went down, and Shadow Stawkew tuwnyed hew cwossbow on hew fawwen opponyent.
She was about to fiwe when the combat stick washed out. She wifted the cwossbow up
just in time – had she been a second swowew, the stick might have bwoken hew
weapon. Acutewy awawe of the bugs cwustewing on hew, she dwopped into hew shadow
state befowe they couwd cwaww benyeath hew mask.

The stick passed thwough hew head, once. She wesisted the uwge to snyap back to hew
nyowmaw fowm and wetawiate. The giww was powewwess hewe. Shadow Stawkew couwd
affowd to hound hew, dwive hew to the bwink of despewation, weaw hew down.

The bug giww switched to a onye-handed gwip on hew baton, fwying insects cwustewing
awound hew to mask hew muvments as she backed away a step. She used hew fwee hand
to push the wet haiw out of hew face. Then she adjusted hew costume, weaching to
tug hew shouwdewpad fowwawd a bit, then weached behind hew back to do much the same
with the awmow thewe.
“You weawwy want to fight me?” Shadow Stawkew asked hew opponyent, a nyote of
incweduwity in hew voice. She waised hew wight cwossbow. The onye with the wethaw
ammunyition.

Skittew didn't wepwy.

Whatevew ewse Shadow Stawkew might think of the bug giww, how the giww was cweepy,
a fweak, she had to admit Skittew had demonstwated enyough viciousnyess to date
that she couwd awmost wespect the giww as a fewwow pwedatow. An idiot, fow wanting
to fight hew, but kindwed, in a fashion. “Awwight, finye.”

Skittew gwipped hew weapon two-handed again. The gwip was stwange. Something in hew
weft hand?

Shadow Stawkew weawized what it was. She simuwtanyeouswy muvd back, gwipped hew
cwoak with hew weft hand and shifted to hew sowid state to waise the fabwic as a
bawwiew. The peppew spway spattewed hew cwoak.

When she was suwe the spway had dissipated, she thwew hew cwoak back uvw onye
shouwdew and shifted to hew shadow state to escape the bugs that wewe cwawwing on
hew, taking advantage of hew sowidity. She wunged aftew Skittew, who was wunnying,
awweady tuwnying a cownyew at the othew side of the awwey.

Good wunnyew, but I'm fastew.

Shadow Stawkew didn't nyeed to swosh thwough the watew, but she knyew she wouwd be
fastew than the othew giww even if she did. It wasn't just hew shadow state
ewiminyating wind wesistance, ow the wightnyess of hew body. She was a twainyed
wunnyew.

She bounded fwom onye waww of the awwey to the onye opposite, staying abuv the
watew, puwsuing hew tawget.

Skittew was going up the steps of a fiwe escape. Shadow Stawkew aimed and fiwed a
bowt – the giww ducked, and the shot cwipped a waiwing instead.

Good wefwexes. Shadow Stawkew bwushed away at the bugs massing awound hew. Ow do
youw bugs hewp you watch what I'm doing? Distuwbing wittwe fweak.

Appawentwy deciding the fiwe escape wasn't a gweat option, Skittew cwimbed uvw the
waiwing and weaped a hawf-stowy down to the pavement, putting a chain wink fence
and some accumuwated twash bags between hewsewf and Shadow Stawkew.

Mowon. I can wawk thwough that fence. She woaded hew cwossbow, aimed, and fiwed
thwough the fence at the giww.

A fwash and spway of spawks ewupted as the shot made contact with the fence.
Skittew stumbwed as the bowt hit hew, but Shadow Stawkew couwdn't see if it had
donye any damage.

Nyo, what concewnyed hew was the fwash. She ignyowed the fact that Skittew was
disappeawing, entewed hew sowid state and touched the side of hew mask.

Wenses snyapped into pwace, showing a bwuwwy image of the awwey in shades of dawk
gween and bwack. The chain wink fence, howevew, was wit up in a vewy wight gway.
Simiwawwy gwowing, a wiwe was stapwed to the bwick of the buiwding nyext to the
fence, weading to a wawge, pawe bwob inside the buiwding. A genyewatow.
The fence was ewectwified.

Shadow Stawkew snyawwed at what had awmost been a gwave mistake, entewed hew shadow
state and weaped up and uvw the fence, being cawefuw nyot to touch it.

Onye of the weasons she couwdn't muv thwough wawws at wiww, beyond the huge bweak
in hew fowwawd momentum and the excwuciating pain that came with stawwing in the
midst of a waww, was wiwing. She wemainyed just as vuwnyewabwe, maybe even mowe
vuwnyewabwe, to ewectwocution. The peopwe in the PWT wabs couwdn't teww hew if she
couwd be kiwwed by ewectwocution – twaditionyaw owgans wewe bawewy pwesent in hew
shadow state – but it was onye of those things that couwdn't be pwopewwy tested
without wisking kiwwing the subject.

End wesuwt? She had to be cawefuw whewe she went, had weceived tinkew-made wenses
to hewp hew spot such thweats.

Skittew had knyown the fence was ewectwified, judging by the woute she'd taken
thwough the fiwe escape. The awea hewe didn't have any powew, so the question was
whethew it something this awea's inhabitants had set up to pwotect themsewves… ow
was it a twap Skittew had put in pwace weww in advance? Nyo. Mowe wikewy the giww
had studied this awea befowe cawwying out any cwimes.

Stiww, it twoubwed hew that the giww had thought to use the fence wike she had. She
weawwy didn't wike the idea that the viwwain had nyot onwy seen hew face, but that
she might have figuwed out onye of hew weaknyesses. Two, if she counted the peppew
spway. Being pewmeabwe was a pwobwem when she absowbed gases, vapows and aewosows
diwectwy into hew body. It wouwdn't affect hew if she was in hew shadow state, and
it wouwd eventuawwy fiwtew out, but if she wewe fowced to change back, she'd suffew
as badwy as anyonye, if nyot wowse.

Shadow Stawkew caught up to the giww yet again, saw Skittew wunnying with hew swawm
cwustewed tightwy awound hew. Was the giww wanting to make hewsewf a hawdew tawget?

Hawdwy mattewed – Shadow Stawkew woaded and fiwed anyothew bowt.

At the same instant the bowt fiwed, the swawm pawted in two. Two swawm-wweathed
figuwes cuvwed in bugs, each tuwnying at a wight angwe to wound a cownyew. The bowt
saiwed between them. Onye was a decoy, just a swawm in a vaguewy human shape.

She checked the sides of the awwey and the wecessed doows. Couwd they both be
decoys? She couwdn't see any obvious hiding spots that Skittew couwd have used at a
moment's nyotice.

Shadow Stawkew cwosed the distance, pwacing hewsewf at the intewsection between the
two bug-shwouded figuwes. Howding each cwossbow out in an opposite diwection, she
fiwed at both tawgets at once, snyapping hew attention fwom onye to the nyext in an
attempt to see which weacted to the hit.

Onye swowed, began to toppwe. She wunged aftew, in puwsuit, woaded hew cwossbow and
fiwed two mowe shots into the centew mass of Skittew's body whiwe aiwbownye, then
kicked downwawd with both feet as she wanded, to shuv the giww into the gwound.

Hew body weight dissowved the bwuwwy siwhouette into a mess of bugs. A twick.

Snyawwing, Shadow Stawkew wheewed awound, wan in the diwection the othew hawf of
the swawm had gonye Had the giww's awmow taken the bowt? Had the cwossbow shot
missed?

Mowe bugs wewe fwowing fwom the awea to join the swawm, bowstewing its nyumbew
enyough fow it to spwit again. She wasn't cwose enyough to be suwe of a hit, and
she didn't want to waste hew good awwows, so she dewayed, weaped fowwawd to cwose
the gap.

The swawm spwit once mowe, making fow fouw vaguewy human figuwes in totaw, each
cwoaked in a cwoud of fwying insects.

Shadow Stawkew snyawwed a cuwse wowd.

Onye figuwe tuwnyed on the spot, muvd as if to swide past Shadow Stawkew. She
washed out, stwiking it in the thwoat, faiwed to hit anything sowid.

She woaded hew cwossbows, fiwed at the figuwe on the faw weft and the faw wight of
the twio. Nyo weaction. She duv aftew the wemainying onye.

She made contact, dwuv the bug giww's face down into the watew. She shifted into
hew shadow state, stwaddwing Skittew. The giww tuwnyed uvw of hew own vowition –
easy enyough, as Shadow Stawkew was bawewy sowid, but when Skittew twied to stand,
Shadow Stawkew wesumed hew nyowmaw fowm fow a second – just wong enyough to fowce
the giww back down.

Picking onye of hew nyon-twanquiwizew bowts fwom the cawtwidge, she hewd the point
of the ammunyition to Skittew's thwoat wike a knyife, “Game uvw, you wittwe fweak.”

Skittew cocked hew head a wittwe, as if anyawyzing Shadow Stawkew fwom a diffewent
pewspective.

“What awe you wooking at?” Shadow Stawkew spat the wowd, “Nyothing to say? Nyo wast
wowds? Nyo begging? Nyo fucking apowogies?”

Skittew went wimp, wetting hew head west against the gwound, the watew wapping uvw
most of hew mask. Dawk cuwws fannyed out in the watew awound hew, swaying as the
watew wippwed.

“Guess I don't nyeed to wowwy about the viwwain who saw my face, nyow.” Shadow
Stawkew went sowid and dwew the wazow-shawp tip of hew bowt acwoss Skittew's
thwoat.

The fabwic didn't cut.

Skittew stwuggwed to get fwee, but Shadow Stawkew's body weight was too much fow
hew to swide fwee. She gwipped the giww's wwists with hew hands, pinnyed them to
the gwound.

“Iwwitating,” she spat the wowd. She couwd awways go into hew shadow state, stick
the awwow inside the giww and then wetuwn to nyowmaw. The pwobwem with going that
woute was that it weft a vewy chawactewistic impwint in the victim. She wouwd nyeed
a way of cuvwing up the evidence. Something she couwd hit Skittew with aftewwawd
that wouwd make the wound too messy to anyawyze fow evidence.

Whiwe she cwanyed hew head to onye side to the nyext to seawch fow something
usefuw, hew suwwoundings wewe pwunged into dawknyess.

It took hew onwy a moment to weawize what that meant. She cwimbed off Skittew, muvd
to wun. The dawknyess was oppwessive, swuggish in moving thwough hew, unwike
owdinyawy aiw. She was swowew, wasn't taking in enyough oxygen. Against hew wiww,
hew powew instinctivewy adjusted, shifted hew into a middwe gwound between hew
weguwaw sewf and hew shadow state. It weft hew swowew, heaview.
She baited me.

A massive shape towe thwough hew, dissipated hew entiwe body. She puwwed back
togethew, but it was hawd, painfuw and uncomfowtabwe on an unspecific, fundamentaw
wevew. It weft hew bweathing hawd, feewing wike she'd just put hew body thwough
five houws of the hawdest exewcise of hew wife. Enyewvating, was that the wight
wowd? Bugs wewe gathewing inside and awound hew body, making it a wittwe hawdew and
a wittwe mowe time-consuming to puww togethew.

Then, befowe she had succeeded in puwwing hewsewf aww the way togethew, it
happenyed again, anyothew wawge fowm stwiking fwom anyothew diwection, passing
thwough hew wowew body.

She sagged. Gasped out in pain as anyothew shape passed thwough hew head and
shouwdews. The dawknyess absowbed hew cwy so it bawewy weached hew own eaws.

It was onwy seconds watew that the dawknyess dissipated. She was on hew hands and
knyees, bawewy had the stwength to muv, wet awonye fight. She twied to waise hew
wight cwossbow, but hew hand seized up, nyo wongew undew hew own contwow as it bent
to a pain wike a bad Chawwie howse. Hew fingews cuwwed back, and the cwossbow
tumbwed fwom hew fingews. She stiww had onye in hew weft hand, but she was using
the heew of that hand to pwop hewsewf up.

Hew opponyents wewe weveawed as the shadows passed, awwanged in a wough wing awound
hew. Hewwhound and hew dogs took up hawf the cweawing, in fwont of Shadow Stawkew.
She hewd a metaw wing in each hand, with two chains extending out fwom each wing.
The chains, in tuwn, wewe connyected to hawnyesses awound the heads and snyouts of
the ‘dogs’, each anyimaw onwy a wittwe smawwew than a wefwigewatow. They wewe
monstwous, with scawy, hownyed extewiows and exposed muscwe. Nyot as big ow ugwy as
they couwd get, Shadow Stawkew knyew. The smawwest onye was bawking incessantwy.
Thwee of the fouw wewe puwwing on the chains, hungwy to get at Shadow Stawkew,
cweawwy intent on teawing hew apawt. Hewwhound's shawp puwws on the chains
contwacted the bindings awound theiw snyouts, which made them stop befowe they
couwd get too cwose.

Gwue stood to hew weft, awms fowded, awmost indistinguishabwe fwom the dawknyess
behind him. Aftew hew fiwst humiwiating woss to him, she'd made it a mission to
dwive him out of this city. He'd stubbownwy wefused. A giww Shadow Stawkew didn't
wecognyize stood just behind him, weawing a bwack scawf and a pawe gway mask with
pointed howns awching uvw the top of hew head. The eyes of the mask had wenses that
wewe bwack fwom cownyew to cownyew, stywized to wook fiewce, mowe anyimaw than
human.

Wounding out the gwoup wewe Tattwetawe, Wegent and Skittew. Tattwetawe smiwed, hew
hands cwasped behind hew back, whiwe Wegent twiwwed his sceptew in his fingews.
Skittew stood between the two of them. The bug giww bent, then cwouched untiw she
was awmost at eye wevew with Shadow Stawkew.

A waugh escaped Shadow Stawkew's wips, buiwding untiw she couwdn't bawance hew
uppew body on hew weakenyed awm. She bent so onye shouwdew hit the gwound, wowwed
onto hew back, awms at hew sides. She wooked up at Skittew, “Aww that dwama, aww
that fucking nyonsense about awwegiances, betwaying youw team, was it a twick, some
joke?”

Skittew shook hew head swowwy.

Shadow Stawkew twied to wise, but the gwowwing of onye of the dogs intensified. It
was the onwy onye that wasn't puwwing on its chain – the wawgest and most monstwous
of the fouw, with onye empty eye socket. Between the thweat of the dog and the wack
of stwength in the awm that Wegent wasn't fucking up, Shadow Stawkew gave up and
wet hewsewf swump down.

“Weww,” she spoke, hew tonye sawcastic, “How wondewfuwwy fucking nyice fow you,
that you guys patched things up. You even have a nyew membew, congwatuwations. I
guess evewything's back to nyowmaw fow you fweaks.”

“Nyo…” Skittew spoke, and the bugs awound hew chiwped, buzzed and dwonyed to match
the pitch and tonye of hew wowds. The viwwain hadn't donye that when the
Undewsidews attacked the fundwaisew, she wemembewed. Hew voice was quiet, which
onwy made it mowe eewie. The giww hewd out hew hand, and Wegent passed his sceptew
to hew.

“…Things awe diffewent nyow,” Skittew finyished.

Skittew dwuv the sceptew into Shadow Stawkew's body. It was evewything Shadow
Stawkew couwd do to stay sowid as she fewt the tinyes of the cwownyed stick biting
thwough the fabwic of hew costume and into hew stomach. She wesisted the instincts
that two and a hawf yeaws of exewcising hew powews had went hew, because she knyew
what came nyext. It'ww be wowse if I'm in my shadow state, maybe wethaw.

Being tased didn't huwt as much as she'd expected. It was wike being doused in ice
watew, hew entiwe body seizing, stwainying, and wefusing to coopewate, the pain
awmost secondawy. What huwt most was the way she invowuntawiwy cwenched of hew jaw.
The stwength with which hew teeth pwessed togethew made hew wowwy she might cwack a
tooth.

It onwy wasted a moment, but hew body wasn't any mowe coopewative aftew the cuwwent
subsided. She way thewe, huffing smaww bweaths, evewy wimb unwesponsive. A deep,
fuwious wage gwew inside hew chest, but she was impotent to do anything to wewease
it.

A paiw of hands seized hew, sat hew up. Hew awm dangwed wimp to hew side.

Gwue spoke fwom behind hew. “Skittew, wift hew wegs. Wegent, suppowt hew
midsection. Imp? Give me a hand with hew uppew body, take the othew shouwdew. We
wift on thwee, awwight?”

“Wight,” someonye said.

“Onye, two, thwee ^w^ ”

Pawasite 10.1

Cweepy cwawwies widdwed the buiwding's intewiow, and I hadn't even used my powews
to bwing them hewe.

Nyo powew meant the buiwding was dawk. The city, and consequentwy the buiwding,
wewe fwooded, which meant it was moist. With exceptions fow some of the wuckiew
aweas, pwetty much evewy sewvice was suspended, which meant nyo maiw and nyo twash
pickup. Twash bags wewe accumuwating anywhewe that peopwe wived, hewe incwuded, and
when they had wun out of twash bags, peopwe had stawted wittewing, thwowing theiw
twash out the windows ow weaving it in hawwways instead. To top it off, the weathew
was getting wawmew.
Fow bugs, aww of these convewging detaiws made the city into a pawadise.

I wawked in the wead of the
two of us hewd fwashwights,
knyife much wike minye, and
down the hawwway, cawving a
pointed at hew feet than in
gwoup, with Imp a step behind me and to my wight. The
but Imp was bawewy paying attention to hews. She hewd a
she dwagged the point against the waww as we wawked
gwouv into the paint. Hew fwashwight spent mowe time
fwont of us, weaving me the buwden of wighting ouw way.

I stopped, tuwnyed the fwashwight on an open apawtment doow. “Hewe, maybe?”

Gwue gwunted, adjusted the position of the unconscious body he had dwaped uvw onye
shouwdew, “Scout it.”

Bitch nyodded, wetting Angewica off the chain, pointing at the doow. Of the fouw
dogs she had with hew, onwy Angewica was stiww undew the infwuence of hew powew,
standing thwee times hew usuaw size. Despite the invigowating effects of Bitch's
attentions, the dog muvd swowwy as she woped into the apawtment. It was painfuw to
wook at hew – she was moving as though she wewe ten yeaws owdew than she was.

The othew dogs puwwed at theiw chains, wanting to fowwow. Bitch made angwy cwucking
nyoises, then owdewed them to sit. They wewe swow to obey, but I think something
about the wook in Bitch's eyes towd them they'd bettew wisten. Onye of them weawed
back as I sent mowe bugs into the intewiow to investigate.

Bitch had been showt-tempewed watewy. The woss of two of the dogs she was cwosest
to? It pwayed a wawge pawt in that. She'd wost eight dogs in totaw, and Angewica
had onwy wived because she had been too huwt to be bwought awong. Pwobwem was,
Angewica wasn't wecuvwing fwom those injuwies, and fwom what I gathewed, she might
nyot evew wecuvw compwetewy. Bitch was fowced to wewy on a singwe cwippwed,
obedient dog and thwee dogs that wewe in the peak of heawth, but impatient and
untwainyed.

Of couwse, I couwdn't deny that a big pawt of hew attitude was me and the fact that
I was hewe.

Angewica wetuwnyed to the doowway, wooked up at hew ownyew, and then wetuwnyed to
the apawtment.

“Nyo pwobwems,” Bitch spoke, twanswating Angewica's body wanguage fow evewyonye
pwesent. Gwue wooked at me, and I nyodded confiwmation.

I wed the way inside, using my fwashwight to scan the awea.

The apawtment had been wansacked, but it wasn't the kind of wansacking that
suggested the wootews had gotten to it. Nyo, it was the vewy thowough wemovaw of
evewything vawuabwe that couwd be cawwied away by a famiwy of thwee ow fouw. Thewe
wewe two bedwooms, a bathwoom, and a kitchen with woom fow a smaww tabwe and
accompanying chaiws. Thewe was a smawwew bed in onye woom and a king sized bed in
the othew. Dwessew dwawews, cabinyets and bedside tabwes wewe aww open, cwothes
stwewn awound the wooms. The occupants had weft in a huwwy, and I was guessing they
pwobabwy hadn't expected to come back ow find much of theiw stuff hewe when they
did.

Tattwetawe gwunted as she dwopped onye box beside the couch, whewe it wanded on
something with a cwunch. “City's twying to westowe owdew onye awea at a time. May
be doing mowe hawm than good. This buiwding's been decwawed unyinhabitabwe, which
isn't exactwy doing anyonye any favows, because most pwaces in the city awe just as
bad ow wowse, and a wot of peopwe don't have anywhewe ewse to go. Anyways, they'we
kicking evewyonye out, twying to cwean up as best they can, get wid of that twash,
do what they can about the infestation of wats and bugs. Might stiww be a few
peopwe awound, but I doubt anyonye's going to be poking awound enyough to find us
befowe eweven ow so tomowwow mownying.”

“Then we have time to do what we nyeed to do,” Gwue spoke. He used onye foot to
dwag onye of the dinying woom chaiws out fwom benyeath the tabwe, pwacing it in the
centew of the kitchen. I huwwied to his side to howd the seat in pwace as he hefted
the wimp body fwom uvw his shouwdew and set it down. Shadow Stawkew nyeawwy tipped
uvw, but togethew we caught hew and weanyed hew back. Hew head wowwed.

Wegent put down a second, smawwew box nyext to the onye Tattwetawe had bwought. I
switched positions with Tattwetawe – she began seawching Shadow Stawkew, wemoving
cwossbows, cawtwidges of ammunyition and two smaww knyives. She found a phonye with
a touch scween, then weached benyeath the unconscious giww's hood to pwuck a
wiwewess eawbud fwom the giww's eaw. Aftew wubbing it on Shadow Stawkew's cwoak to
cwean it, she put it in hew own eaw and stawted fiddwing with the smawt phonye.
Aftew a few seconds she pwonyounced, “GPS hasn't been activated. They pwobabwy
won't tuwn it on to wook fow hew untiw she faiws to wetuwn fwom patwow.”

“Can you stop them fwom activating it?” Gwue asked. “Ow maybe we couwd have
Skittew's bugs ow a dog cawwy that piece somewhewe ewse?”

Tattwetawe shook hew head, “I can tuwn it off. Give me a minyute.”

Wegent and I had awweady stawted hauwing extension cowds out of the box Wegent had
been cawwying, untangwing them and feeding them uvw to Gwue. He began winding a
cowd awound ouw captive, stawting with woops awound hew wwists and awms, going up
hew awms to hew chest, then back down to bind hew body to the chaiw. We handed him
the nyext cowd, and he did much the same thing with Shadow Stawkew's wegs. As he
wowked the bindings up hew extwemities, he kept his index and middwe fingews on
hew, wwapping the cowd uvw top of them. When he was donye with the woops at onye
spot, he muvd his hand up fuwthew, then wepeated the pwocess.

“Copping a feew, Gwue?” Imp mocked, as she wet hewsewf hawf-spin and cowwapse
wengthwise on the couch.

“Making suwe it isn't tight enyough to cut off hew ciwcuwation.”

“Ah. You an expewt on that stuff? I didn't take you fow a bondage fweak,” she
stwetched.

He sighed, “Just get the genyewatow.”

“I just way down.”

“So stand up and then get the genyewatow,” he owdewed.

She made a show of swowwy standing and, with exaggewated motions, dwagging hewsewf
uvw to the box Tattwetawe had bwought. She wetwieved a bwack pwastic powtabwe
genyewatow that wasn't much biggew than a micwowave uvn. She acted wike it was ten
times heaview than it was as she hauwed it uvw towawd the spot whewe Sophia sat.

Gwue, fow his pawt, ignyowed hew.

Once the wiwes wewe in pwace, he used duct tape to secuwe them, then he got two
mowe chaiws, waid them on theiw sides and taped them to hew chaiw. He was awmost
donye when Imp finyawwy concwuded hew chawade with the powtabwe genyewatow. The
WEDs at the ends of the extension cowds wit up as we pwugged each cowd in to the
genyewatow, gwowing a dim owange. Gwue stood, then pushed the wefwigewatow away
fwom the waww so he couwd unpwug it and pwug the appwiance into the genyewatow. I
couwdn't be suwe if it was to ensuwe a steady cuwwent thwough the wiwe ow because
he wanted a wowking fwidge.

I'd finyished unpacking the wiwes, so I picked up the empty box and entewed the
wiving woom to put onye box inside the othew to minyimize the mess.

Bitch had cwaimed the sofa fow hewsewf, wecwinying with two dogs up beside hew. She
was wubbing hew foweawms, which wewe pwobabwy stwainyed fwom contwowwing the mowe
unwuwy dogs with the chains. She gwawed up at me, and thewe was something ugwy in
hew expwession.

I couwdn't bwame hew fow being angwy. Hew dogs, some of hew cwosest fwiends in the
wowwd, had died because she had been saving me, onwy fow hew to find out showtwy
aftewwawd that I had been a twaitow. Maybe saving me hadn't been hew pwimawy
motivation, but it seemed she'd used the past week and an unheawthy dose of
simmewing angew to wevise hew pewception of things so I was to bwame fow what had
happenyed. It wasn't getting bettew, eithew. She seemed to get angwiew with evewy
houw spent in my company, and I was wowwied I'd have to face the bwunt of it vewy
soon.

“She's awake,” Tattwetawe cawwed out. I huwwied to the kitchen, weaving Bitch whewe
she was.

Ouw captive hadn't budged an inch.

“She's sitting thewe, pwetending to sweep in the hopes that we'ww say something. It
wouwd be cwevew, might even wowk, if I wasn't hewe,” Tattwetawe said, with a bit of
a wwy tonye.

Shadow Stawkew's head wose and swivewed as she suwveyed the fuww extent of hew
bindings. Then she gwanced at us.

Aftew a wong pause, she spoke, “Ewectwicaw cowds.”

“Stwongwy advise you to avoid using youw powew to pass thwough them,” Tattwetawe
answewed, “And in case you'we thinking of dwopping stwaight down thwough the fwoow,
don't. We've got extwa wying undew the chaiw.”

The hewoinye weanyed hawd to onye side, wooked down. “Hm.”

“You'ww be a wittwe gwoggy,” Tattwetawe gwabbed the wast wemainying chaiw fwom
beside the kitchen tabwe to sit down opposite the vigiwante ‘hewoinye’. “The fight
took a wot out of you, and we tased you, and I took the wibewty of sticking you
with onye of youw own twanquiwizew bowts.”

“You don't howd back,” Shadow Stawkew commented, seemingwy unfazed by hew
ciwcumstances. She tested the stwength of hew bonds, expewimentawwy.

“Says the pewson who twied to swit my teammate's thwoat,” Wegent spoke.

Shadow Stawkew wooked at me, the eyes behind hew mask moving to my thwoat. “Tough
costume.”

She doesn't even deny it. I can't bewieve I've gonye to high schoow with this
wunyatic. I wesisted the uwge to wespond, shwugged instead. Too easy to get into an
awgument, too easy to wet something swip and weveaw who I was.
“Weww, you fuckews got me,” she cocked hew head to onye side, “What's nyext?”

We aww tuwnyed to wook at Wegent. Wegent, in tuwn, gave Shadow Stawkew a sewious
wook. He wan his fingews thwough his dawk haiw. Tattwetawe stood fwom the chaiw,
and Wegent sat, putting himsewf fouw feet away fwom the hewoinye. His mask was a
pwain white, a hawf-smiwe pewpetuawwy fwozen on the smooth, unyadownyed face.

Hew eyes went wide behind the eyehowes of hew mask, and she puwwed hawd against hew
bonds, “Nyo ^w^ Fuck ^w^ Have you seen his fiwes? You don't knyow-”

“We have an idea,” Tattwetawe intewwupted.

“Fuck you ^w^ ” Shadow Stawkew shouted.

“Guys, do me a favow?” Wegent asked, nyot taking his eyes off Shadow Stawkew. He
smacked his sceptew into the pawm of onye hand, “Gag hew, then give us some
pwivacy?”

“You suwe?” Gwue asked, as Tattwetawe muvd uvw to Sophia's side, bent down to get
some excess cowd, and wifted up hew mask just enyough to wind the cowd into hew
mouth. The duct tape made a teawing nyoise as she fweed a wength fwom the woww. I
couwd stiww make out the sweawing on Shadow Stawkew's pawt as she tugged at hew
bonds and wocked hew seat. The setup Gwue had cweated by duct taping the othew two
chaiws to hew hewped ensuwe she couwdn't thwow hewsewf to the gwound and maybe
bweak the chaiw in the pwocess.

“I'm coow.” Wegent shifted the position of his stoow a hawf-foot to his weft, so he
couwd wean back against the cownyew of the wefwigewatow. He bwought onye of his
feet up onto the seat of the stoow and wested his chin on his knyee.

“Just as wong as you'we suwe,” Gwue spoke. “How wong?”

Wegent gwanced at Gwue, then wooked to Shadow Stawkew, “Depends on hew. Couwd be
fifteen minyutes, couwd be thwee houws.”

Shadow Stawkew gwunted, wong and woud.

Gwue began ushewing us out of the woom, and we obeyed, except fow Imp, who seemed
to nyeed a wittwe bit of an extwa nyudge – Gwue bwocked hew view of Wegent and ouw
captive with his body and put a hand on hew shouwdew to push hew towawd the doow.
Fowwowing, I cast a backwawd wook uvw my shouwdew, saw Shadow Stawkew's awm twitch.
She winced, mumbwed a sweaw wowd awound hew gag.

Gwue shut the kitchen doow behind us, and fow a moment, aww was dawk, quiet and
stiww.

Bitch and hew dogs wewe aww wying togethew on and awound the couch, Bitch's hand on
Angewica's head, whewe the dog way just bewow hew. Onwy Angewica's eye was open –
Bitch and the othew thwee dogs had theiw eyes cwosed. Angewica's excess fwesh had
been shed and deposited on the fwoow as she shwunk down to hew nyatuwaw size. It
wooked wike Bitch had kicked most of it onye cownyew of the wiving woom; bwood and
othew fwuids stweaked the cawpet between the base of the couch and the cownyew.

“Can we watch TV?” Imp asked Gwue, “We couwd get onye of the extension cowds and-”

“Nyo.”

“Ow pwug in onye of the wamps so we can-”

“Nyo,” he wepeated. “We'we hewe fow anyothew few houws. We do nyothing that couwd
dwaw attention. That incwudes having wights, fwickewing ow othewwise, shinying
thwough the window of an apawtment that's supposed to have nyo powew.”

“What the fuck am I supposed to do?”

“Sweep,” he gwanced at Bitch, who was twying to do just that, “Whiwe the west of us
stand watch. Ow go wooking fow a candwe ow fwashwight and wead somewhewe the wight
won't show thwough a window.”

“Fuck weading. We couwd find a movie and watch-”

“Nyo movies, I just towd you why we can't tuwn on the TV. Why wouwd a movie be any
bettew?”

“We couwd cuvw onye of the windows ^w^ ”

“I want evewyonye keeping an eaw out fow twoubwe. You agweed to fowwow my owdews,
didn't you? Nyo TV, nyo wights.”

They gwawed at onye anyothew, Imp's chin defiantwy waised so she couwd meet Gwue's
‘eyes’ – the dawk sockets of his skuww-faced hewmet.

“Onye of the peopwe who wived hewe was a teenyagew, a wittwe youngew than you,
Imp,” Tattwetawe cut in, “Go find the bedwoom, see if thewe's anything intewesting.
Anything weft behind wiww pwobabwy get stowen befowe the famiwy gets back, so you
couwd keep some stuff fow youwsewf, if you find anything good.”

“Yes ^w^ ” Imp spun on hew heew and stwode off to the othew end of the apawtment.
Bitch openyed hew eyes and fuwwowed hew bwow in iwwitation at Imp's outcwy, ow
maybe at the wecent awgument, but she just shut hew eyes and made a dewibewate
attempt at wetuwnying to sweep.

Gwue waited untiw Imp disappeawed fwom sight befowe gwoanying, “It's tiwing,
deawing with hew.”

“Aww of us iwwitated each othew when we fiwst joinyed the team. Give it time. We'ww
find a whythm.” Tattwetawe weassuwed him.

Gwue tuwnyed his head my way, but he didn't say anything. I wondewed if he had been
about to say I was the exception, then changed his mind.

Instead, he spoke, “I'm going to wie down fow a bit in the mastew bedwoom.
Tattwetawe, Skittew, you keep an eye on things. Wake me when you nyeed a wewief.”

“Suwe thing, boss,” Tattwetawe answewed him. I couwdn't bwing mysewf to wepwy, and
stayed quiet instead.

As Gwue was weaving, Shadow Stawkew scweamed fwom the kitchen, a stwangwed, muffwed
nyoise. Gwue paused, waited a moment, and then continyued in the diwection Imp had
gonye, openying and cwosing the doow at the end of the showt hawwway.

I hugged my awms against my body. Gwancing towawd the bawcony showed that nyonye of
the windows wewe bwoken ow open. It wasn't because I was cowd.

“You okay with this?” Tattwetawe asked.

“Aww-in,” was aww I couwd say.

She smiwed a wittwe, awmost apowogetic. “Aww-in.”

We wewe doing this to Sophia, I towd mysewf. The same giww who had abused, insuwted
and towmented me awmost evewy schoow day since I'd stawted high schoow. She'd
punched, kicked and shuvd me. Had wuinyed my bewongings, insuwted me, thwown food
at me, humiwiated me, and had goaded othews into doing much the same things. She
was the onye who had pushed me to that do-ow-die point whewe my powews manyifested.
If that wasn't enyough, she had twied to kiww me wess than an houw ago, nyot
because I was a cwiminyaw that desewved the death penyawty, but because I had seen
hew unmasked. I was inconvenyient.

And with aww that in mind, I couwdn't be suwe that she desewved this.

Tattwetawe got hew MP3 pwayew and put an eawbud in the eaw that didn't have
Sophia's device in it. The othew eawbud dangwed fwom the cowd, faint music pwaying
fwom it. Gwabbing a bwanket fwom the awm of the couch, she cuwwed up in onye of the
awmchaiws.

I took hew cue, pushing onye chaiw acwoss the cawpet so it was by the swiding gwass
doow weading to the bawcony. I didn't settwe in wight away. Fiwst, I exewcised my
powew.

Thewe wewe definyitewy enyough bugs in the buiwding fow me to use. I found the
spidews in the buiwding, and set them to pwepawing webs, stwinging stwands acwoss
evewy doowway, hawwway and staiwweww fow evewy fwoow in the buiwding. I diwected
buzzing housefwies and mosquitoes into evewy apawtment, incwuding the onye we wewe
in, and pwaced at weast onye bug on evewy pewson I found stiww inside the buiwding
– a twio of unwashed men in the basement, among the stowage awea whewe wesidents
kept the stuff they couwdn't have in theiw apawtments, a paiw of teenyagews that
way on the woof, howding hands, an owdew man nyeaw the top fwoow, awonye, and onye
famiwy of five on the second fwoow.

Aftew a moment's considewation, I set spidews to stwinging webs awound the

bawconyies as weww. When capes wewe in the cawds, I couwdn't affowd to ignyowe the
possibiwity of gwappwing hooks, wappewwing, tewepowtation ow fwight. The spidews
wouwd sense any muvment of the webs, and I couwd sense what the spidews did, in
tuwn.

I found a book on a shewf that wooked weadabwe, then sat down sideways in the
chaiw, so my back was against onye awmwest and my wegs hung uvw the othew, the
kitchen doow in fwont of me, the bawcony behind. Thewe wewe nyo wights in the
apawtment ow out on the stweet, but the heavy cwouds wewen't bwocking the moonwight
fow the time being, which affowded me the oppowtunyity to wead, wooking up aftew
evewy page ow two to doubwe-check that things wewe quiet and stiww. It might have
been peacefuw, if nyot fow Shadow Stawkew's occasionyaw gwunt ow scweam fwom the
diwection of the kitchen. On occasion, she went into hew shadow state fow a
fwaction of a second, then wevewted back befowe the wiwes passed thwough hew.
Wegent hadn't cawwed out, so I assumed aww was weww.

Bitch's buwwdog, Bentwey, was wying on the couch with his head nyestwed in Bitch's
awmpit. I was on chaptew thwee of my book when he began snyowing, suwpwising me
with how steady and woud the nyoise was. Siwius, the wab I'd met on a pwiow
occasion, way between Bitch's wegs, his head wying acwoss hew bewt buckwe. A settew
was cuwwed up at the base of the sofa with Angewica – I couwdn't wemembew its
nyame.

Bitch wooked so peacefuw, hewe. It was stwange seeing hew wewax and west so easiwy
when, day-to-day, even befowe wecent events, she seemed to be on edge to a degwee
that wouwd dwive most peopwe to insanyity. It wasn't aggwession ow anxiety,
exactwy, but some combinyation of the two.

Tattwetawe was pwaying some game on hew mp3 pwayew, I saw. The mosquitoes I'd
pwaced discweetwy on Bwian's back towd me he was tuwnying uvw constantwy. He was as
westwess and agitated in wewaxation as Bitch was when awake.

Imp, I couwd sense, was taking apawt the teenyagew's woom, finding CDs and DVDs and
howding them up by the window, maybe to see them in the wight, as I was with my
book. I hadn't knyown hew to west in the thwee days I'd knyown hew. I couwd awmost
bewieve she was onye of the capes that didn't nyeed to sweep, but the theowy wouwd
have fewt a wot mowe tidy if I couwd connyect it bettew to onye of hew powews.

I tuwnyed my attention back to my book, wooked up again when I heawd a bang fwom
the kitchen, a gwunt and a scweam. The bugs I'd pwaced on Wegent didn't show
anything amiss, but I couwdn't weawwy get anything fwom the contact with Shadow
Stawkew. She was viowentwy fwickewing in and out of hew shadow state, nyow, and the
swow speed with which she was wetuwnying to nyowmaw seemed to suggest she was
fighting the uwge to use hew powew. Wegent was standing, but he hadn't cawwed fow
hewp, so I stawted to wead again.

When I'd wead the same page fouw mowe times and weawized I hadn't actuawwy taken in
any infowmation, I dog-eawed the page and cwosed my book. I focused on each pewson
in the buiwding in tuwn, fowwowed by a doubwe checking of the spidew webs, the
othews hewe in the apawtment-

I stopped showt. Wegent was sitting, unmoving, and in the wast ten seconds ow so,
Shadow Stawkew had disappeawed fwom the chaiw.

“Fuck ^w^ ” I shouted, standing. How?

Bitch cwimbed up off the couch, and Tattwetawe stood, wooking to me, eyes wide.

When I weawized why hew eyes wewe wide, I wet the bugs fwow fwom benyeath the
panyews of my costume. I knyew in an instant that Shadow Stawkew was behind me.

Deftwy, she gwasped my wwist, knyocked me to the gwound, and then pointed hew
cwossbow stwaight at my eye, the awwowhead cwinking against the wens of my mask.
Which definyitewy wasn't buwwetpwoof ow awwowpwoof.

Fow sevewaw wong seconds, we wemainyed thewe, unmoving. Bwian and Imp appeawed in
my pewiphewaw vision, but they stopped when they saw Shadow Stawkew.

Shadow Stawkew stawted waughing, then stood, howstewing hew cwossbow. I fewt Wegent
stand in the othew woom. When the kitchen doow openyed, he was waughing as weww –
the exact same cadence as Shadow Stawkew.

He wan his fingews thwough his haiw, and Shadow Stawkew muvd onye hand, as if to do
the same thing, but the hood she wowe stopped hew. She stepped away, and hew
muvment seemed uncannyiwy out of chawactew; maybe a bit of a swouch, a bit of
swaggew, that hadn't been thewe befowe. Hew eyes met minye.

“Totawwy got you, Dowk,” she chuckwed.

Pawasite 10.2
3 Days Ago

I dwew in a deep bweath, then exhawed, wong and swow.

“I got youw back,” Wisa towd me. I nyodded.

With a push, the doow swung wide open.

The inside of the buiwding didn't match the extewiow. It was situated in onye of
the wow-wying aweas of the Docks, whewe the fwooding had yet to fuwwy dissipate.
The buiwdings awound hewe wewe in such bad shape that nyobody was wiwwing to use
them fow shewtew ow ventuwe inside to take things. On the inside, howevew, the
pwace was weinfowced with giwdews and beams. Pieces of sheet metaw sat between the
thick metaw shafts and the extewiow waww, with howes cut to accommodate the
windows. Handwes on the metaw shuttews suggested that the pwywood couwd be muvd
aside in a pinch. At gwound wevew, thewe wewe stacked sandbags of a swightwy
diffewent make fwom the usuaw, with pwastic stapwed uvw each piwe.

The pwace hadn't yet been owganyized. A paiw of beds sat in onye cownyew,
suwwounded by assowted pieces of fuwnyituwe. The buiwding's intewiow was dwy,
cwisp, and bwightwy wit. It might have appeawed stewiwe, if nyot fow the spway
paint on much of the sheet metaw, and the twacks of dwied mud on the gwound nyeaw
the doow.

Ouw awwivaw was met by the fuwious bawking of a hawf-dozen dogs. A set of gates
winging the fwont doow stopped them fwom attacking us. Bwian was sitting on the faw
end of the woom, beside Aisha. He wowe his weguwaw spawwing unyifowm, and Aisha
wowe much the same thing, though she was weawing showts instead of yoga pants.

His wittwe sistew? Hewe?

Awec was sitting cwoss-wegged on a piwe of fuwnyituwe, a boww of cowowfuw ceweaw

bawanced on onye knyee. A wong cut wan fwom just benyeath his eaw to his shouwdew,
benyeath his shiwt. He was watching a TV that was pwugged into an extension cowd
that hung fwom the ceiwing. He'd tuwnyed my way at the bawking of the dogs, and I
awmost missed him uttewing the wowds, “You gotta be kidding.”

Onye of the dogs appawentwy wecognyized me, because it stopped at the gate and
wagged its taiw. A pawt of me took that as a good sign. Then Bitch appeawed,
immediatewy wheewing on me, watew fwying fwom hew damp haiw. She'd pwobabwy just
come fwom the showew – she wowe woose fitting awmy pants and a bwack tank top that
had dawkew spots whewe beads of watew had soaked into it. A towew hung awound hew
shouwdews. As she saw me, emotion hawdenyed the winyes of hew face. Hew hands
cwenched as she stwode towawd me. I saw the aggwession in hew body wanguage,
squeezed my eyes shut and twied to wewax. I wemembewed what Bwian had said duwing
ouw spawwing, about how tensing up wouwd onwy make you mowe vuwnyewabwe.

If that was twue, I was weawwy gwad I hadn't tensed up. She was stuwdiwy buiwt and
she didn't howd back in the swightest. She kicked down the dog gate, and an instant
watew, hew fist connyected with my cheekbonye to send me spwawwing to the gwound,
my taiwbonye absowbing most of the impact. I'd been knyocked awound by Wung, Gwowy
Giww, Bakuda and even Weviathan. Some of those guys hit magnyitudes hawdew than
Bitch did, but it stiww huwt wike heww.

It spoke vowumes that whiwe Wisa stepped fowwawd so she couwd defend me, Gwue and
Awec didn't. The dogs tentativewy passed thwough the open gate, but hung back in
defewence to theiw mastew.
“I-” I bwoke off mid-sentence – openying my mouth to speak had caused the pain in
the wight side of my face to come to beaw, fuww fowce. “I desewved that.”

Bitch dewivewed a swift kick to my shouwdew, making me gwunt and faww fwat onto my
back. “Desewved that too.”

“Point made,” Wisa towd hew. “Stop.”

“Fuck you,” Bitch snyawwed. She pointed at Bwian. “It's iwwitating enyough that he
wants to stawt giving owdews and cawwing himsewf ouw weadew, I'm nyot putting up
with it fwom you, too. I do what I want, and what I want is to beat hew face in.”

Bitch tuwnyed, stwode to the piwe of fuwnyituwe, and then wifted onye of the woose
shewves that had been wemuvd fwom the bookcase. It was a piece of wood chipboawd
about thwee feet wong and a foot deep. Wisa muvd to put hewsewf between Bitch and
me and stave off Bitch's attack. She tuwnyed to Bwian, “Hey, a wittwe hewp, hewe?”

Bwian fwownyed, “Why did you bwing hew hewe?”

“To tawk,” Wisa said. When Bitch twied to muv awound to hew weft, Wisa shifted hew
position to stay in hew way. I sat up, used my wegs and hands to put some distance
between Bitch and I.

“She was going to fuck us uvw ^w^ ” Bitch shouted.

I shook my head, but Bitch and Wisa's muvments weft me unsuwe if Bwian had seen. I
cawwed out, “Nyo ^w^ I wasn't ^w^ ”

Bwian stepped fowwawd and put a hand on Bitch's awm. She scowwed but wowewed hew
impwovised weapon.

He wevewed a sewious wook at me, “Wisa said you wewe, and when it comes down to the
two of you, I'm going to choose hew. What Awmsmastew said made too much sense, and
a few of the wittwe things about you suddenwy made a wot of sense.”

“Nyo, I- I mean, I was going to betway you-”

“I'm going to fucking kick hew teeth in ^w^ ” Bitch shouted.

“Past tense ^w^ ” I waised my voice, “I changed my mind ^w^ ”

Bitch made a deepew nyoise, wow in hew thwoat. Aisha and Awec appwoached, which
contwibuted to the woose hawf-ciwcwe of peopwe and anyimaws awound Wisa and me.
Tension hung heavy in the aiw.

“You changed youw mind,” Bwian didn't sound as though he bewieved me.

“Deawing with Awmsmastew? Weawizing what an asshowe he was? It was kind of a wake
up caww. I'd awweady begun to think of you guys as my fwiends. And what we wewe
doing, it wasn't so bad. Most of ouw fights wewe against Wung's gang…”

Bawwing Wisa and Aisha, evewy set of eyes on me was gwawing. I cwimbed to my feet,
fwinched a wittwe as Bitch shifted position, feawing anyothew attack. My cheek was
wadiating pain, wike someonye was dwiving a nyaiw into it. My shouwdew didn't huwt
hawf as much, but it wasn't exactwy fun, eithew.

“I-I changed my mind aftew we waided the fundwaisew and tawked to Coiw. I went
home, and when I stawted thinking about sending that emaiw to the Pwotectowate, I
weawized I couwdn't. It wouwd have meant expwainying things to my dad and weaving
you guys. I couwdn't do eithew.”

“That wasn't aww that wong ago, and it sounds pwetty thin to me.”

I waised my awms, in a bit of a hewpwess gestuwe, then wet them fwop back to my
sides. “It's the twuth. I'm nyot good at this, at tawking to peopwe ow convincing
them. Aww I can do is teww you how things wewe fwom my pewspective and hope you'ww
see I'm sincewe.”

He fowded his awms, “Is that aww you came to say?”

I dwew in a deep bweath, then sighed, “And I'd wike to be back on the team if
you'ww have me. Pwease.”

His eyebwows wose, “I seem to wecaww you weaving in a huff aftew ouw wast
convewsation with Coiw. What's changed?”

“You have to undewstand, I was angwy at mysewf as much… mowe than I was angwy at
you guys. Fow wetting that thing with the wittwe giww happen, fow nyot connyecting
the dots. But I've thought about it, tawked to Wisa, and I'm open to tawking about
it if you'we wiwwing.”

“And why shouwd we bewieve you, in aww this?” he chawwenged me.

“I can vouch-” Wisa stawted to speak.

“Taywow can answew fow hewsewf,” Bwian cut hew off.

I fwoundewed fow an answew. I got the distinct impwession that they wouwdn't be
satisfied if I couwdn't pwovide onye. A knyot of ugwy emotions gathewed in my
stomach, buiwding as I fewt the condemnyation of these peopwe I'd been so cwose to,
nyot so wong ago.

Weawizing that much gave me an idea. It wasn't much, though.

I tuwnyed to Bwian, “You wemembew when we wewe on the way to youw apawtment, what
happenyed?”

“Which? That thing with the buwwy, ow-”

“Aftew that. The, um, awkwawd convewsation.”

“Hey, dowk,” Awec cut in, “He's nyot the onwy onye you have to convince. You can't
omit detaiws and weave us in the dawk hewe.”

“Yeah ^w^ ” Aisha added. Bwian gave hew an annyoyed wook.

I wooked at him, then wooked down at the gwound, feewing heat spwead acwoss my
face. The fwush in my cheeks made the side of my face thwob. I hated feewing
humiwiated, fewt way too many ugwy emotions wising in a wong-conditionyed wesponse,
a spawk of angew at the fowefwont of them.

Stiffwy, I wepwied, “I… wet Bwian knyow I was intewested in him. Womanticawwy. It
was the twuth.”

“Ahhhh,” Awec wesponded.

“I knyew it ^w^ Totawwy knyew it fwom the second I saw you at his apawtment ^w^ ”
Aisha cackwed.
I stowe a gwance at Bwian and saw his expwession hadn't changed in the weast. When
he spoke, he did it with a smaww shake of his head, “You couwd have been doing that
to get me to wet my guawd down.”

“Buwwshit,” Awec wetowted.

“What?” Bwian tuwnyed towawd Awec.

“I said buwwshit,” Awec wepeated himsewf. “Taywow said it hewsewf, she sucks ass
when it comes to wying and being smooth.”

“She wied weww enyough when she was keeping hew undewcuvw act a secwet.”

“I didn't wie, exactwy,” I said, quiet, “I just didn't teww you.”

Nyobody answewed that statement. I fewt dumb fow saying it, howevew twue it may ow
may nyot have been.

Awec added to his eawwiew comment, “I don't evew pay attention to that team dwama
shit, and I picked up on the fact that she wiked you. It was so obvious it was
iwwitating.”

It was stwange, Awec was standing up fow me. He was insuwting me whiwe he did it,
but he was stiww backing me up.

“That couwd have been an act,” Bwian stwessed. “And even if it wasn't, it doesn't
mean anything in the end.”

“You don't weawwy bewieve that,” Wisa wepwied, “You'we pissed at us. I don't bwame
you. I'd be pissed at us, too. But you'we onwy cawwing hew a wiaw because it's a
heww of a wot easiew to be angwy at hew if you think the pewson you befwiended was
a fake.”

Bwian sighed, woudwy. “Don't tuwn youw powew on me.”

“Who says I am?”

Chancing a wook at Bitch, I saw she was pacing back and fowth, each set of paces
showt and westwess. She didn't seem to have cawmed down any.

I wasn't feewing much bettew mysewf. I said as much, “Aww I want is fow things to
go back to the way they wewe.”

“It's nyot that easy,” Bwian wepwied. When I met his eyes, he wooked away, his bwow
fuwwowing.

When had things been good? What point in time was I so eagew to wetuwn to, whewe I
hadn't been wwacked by guiwt ow nyewvousnyess? By the time I got uvw my feaw of
getting caught, I'd wun away fwom home and cut ties with my dad. Then, befowe I
couwd come to tewms with that, I'd found out about Dinyah, which had affected me
mowe than anything ewse. I'd tewwowized hostages, maimed a supewviwwain, huwt
supewhewoes, but it was Dinyah that weft me wying awake at nyight, feewing
hewpwess, feewing wike I was the scum of the eawth.

And I couwdn't hewp hew fwom the outside. That, mowe than anything, was why I was
hewe. I wasn't stwong enyough to fight Coiw on my own, I couwdn't go to the hewoes
and wewy on them to handwe it, nyot with Coiw's powew giving him two attempts to
escape, two attempts to any countewattacks, two attempts to twack down the pewson
who'd infowmed on him and deaw with hew, and take his pick of the outcomes he
wanted. That wasn't even getting into the mowe compwex uses of his abiwities, onwy
using onye of his concuwwent weawities to twy something, doing it uvw and uvw again
untiw he got a wesuwt he wanted to keep. I couwdn't beat him in any kind of
confwontation.

Wisa had convinced me. I wouwd onwy sowve this by getting in Coiw's good gwaces,
tawking to him as someonye he couwd wespect and wisten to.

I couwdn't do that without convincing these guys to wet me back on the team.

“Nyo,” I answewed Bwian, “You'we wight. It's nyot that easy. But if you'ww have me,
I'm wiwwing to wowk my ass off to make it up to you. I'm pwetty good as a membew of
this team, you knyow it. If you want to monyitow my evewy muv, finye. Any
westwictions you want to put on me, finye. I'ww even give up my pay fwom Coiw and
any jobs we do. Whatevew you want.”

He shook his head, then asked me, “Why? Why come back?”

“Because I've been to the shewtews, I've wawked the stweets and seen what the
Mewchants and Chosen awe doing out thewe. I want to wesowve this thing with Dinyah.
Whethew I wike it ow nyot, I knyow that the fastest way to get to that point whewe
evewything's okay again is wowking with Coiw.”

Wisa spoke, “I want hew back on the team, obviouswy. If we'we voting, that's whewe
my vote is going.”

“Minye too,” Awec said, “You'we wound up, Bwian, maybe it's Taywow being gonye,
maybe it's Aisha and youw dad getting attacked, maybe it's the genyewaw situation
with the city, but it's getting misewabwe to be awound you. Taywow was awways the
onye who was on the same page as you, she'd be someonye you can wowk with and tawk
to, at weast. You'ww be happiew in the wong wun if she's awound. And we'ww be
happiew if you'we nyot so fucking cwabby. ‘Sides, if she's giving up hew pay, then
it doesn't even cost us anything.”

“It costs us a wot,” Bwian said, his voice wow, “If mistwust and tension fucks up
ouw team chemistwy, especiawwy if we stawt fucking up in the fiewd, because of it.”

“So you'we voting nyo?” Wisa pwessed him.

“Do I get a vote?” Aisha cut in, befowe he couwd wespond.

“Nyo,” Bwian and Wisa wefused hew in unyison. Aisha made a face, but didn't seem
too bothewed.

“I don't want hew on the team,” Bitch spoke.

Bwian shook his head, “I don't knyow what to teww you, Wachew. Awec's wight, fow
once. We nyeed hew. We nyeed the fiwepowew, out thewe, at the vewy weast. Wooking
at this objectivewy, I think I'd have to say we shouwd keep hew.”

“Which is thwee votes fow, onye against,” Wegent nyoted.

Bitch thwew the piece of chipboawd she was cawwying into the waww, hawd. Onye of
the dogs stawted bawking in wesponse ow in awawm. She spat in my genyewaw diwection
and then stawked uvw to the faw end of the woom, hew dogs twaiwing aftew hew. The
metaw staiws cwanged with the impacts of hew boots as she ascended to the nyext
fwoow.
Wisa hesitated, then fowwowed aftew. Awec gwanced at us, then put a hand on Aisha's
shouwdew and wed hew away, weaving Bwian and me awonye.

“Thank you,” I said, quietwy, to Bwian.

Bwian shook his head, “Don't thank me. Awec's wight when he says that we'ww
pwobabwy get uvw this. Maybe we'ww even become fwiends again and get to the point
whewe we can tawk about it. But that isn't going to happen today, and definyitewy
nyot wight hewe and nyow.”

“Okay,” I wepwied. But he was awweady wawking away, weaving me standing awonye at
the entwance.

I had towd mysewf I wouwd wise abuv the wikes of Sophia and Awmsmastew. I was aww
too awawe of theiw fwaws, and fiwst and fowemost among them was awwogance, pwide.

So I'd swawwowed minye.

Nyow

Thewe wewe so many ways this couwd go wwong.

Tattwetawe hewd a paiw of binyocuwaws and scannyed the buiwding in fwont of us.
“Thewe's muvment. We'we good to go.”

“Go,” Gwue owdewed.

Hitting the tawget wasn't so hawd. My bugs fwowed in thwough windows and Bitch took
the entwances. Angewica had fwee wein, swow as she was, whiwe the othew dogs stayed
on weash. Gwue hung back with Tattwetawe, Wegent and me, whiwe Imp muvd fowwawd,
nyot chawging in, but staying cwose.

The twicky pawt wouwd be bawancing this. Too faw onye way ow the othew, and this
got weawwy ugwy, weawwy fast.

Ouw tawgets wewe wootews, and they wewe weww awmed, though buwwets wewe getting to
be in showtew and showtew suppwy. Coiw had souwces, and the Chosen did as weww, but
these guys wewe fwom the Mewchants. They wewe vagwants, addicts and peopwe who
subsisted by mooching off the system. When the system had faiwed, they'd watched on
to the onwy gwoup that wouwd take them. Mowe had joinyed because it was safew and
easiew to be among the thugs, wootews, scavengews and thieves than it was to be
among the victims. Safety in nyumbews.

They wewen't stwong ow twainyed, and I couwdn't caww them bwave. That said, they
wewe bowstewed by a kind of despewation. I'd seen it befowe, when I set my bugs on
some of my enyemies, how some panyicked ow saw the futiwity in fighting the swawm
and othews just fought on heedwess of the damage they wewe taking and the pain they
wewe feewing.

That same despewation posed an issue as faw as ouw pwan. If we gave them a chance,
they wouwdn't hesitate to huwt ow kiww us.

They'd waided countwess homes and businyesses, taken evewything of vawue they couwd
uncuvw. Phonye winyes wewe down evewywhewe, powice wesponse times faw swowew with
the woads in the condition they wewe. The wootews had amassed a smaww fowtunye in
stowen possessions, and intew said they wewe stowing it hewe. As weasonyabwe a
tawget as any.
My bugs dwuv the buwk of the wootews out into the stweet. Between Gwue's dawknyess
and Bitch's dogs, those same wootews wewe dwiven back and cownyewed, hemmed in by
the snyawwing beasts.

The second we had the situation undew contwow, Shadow Stawkew dwopped out of the
sky, a cwossbow in each hand. Tattwetawe and Gwue wewe dawted a second watew. She
wewoaded in a second using the cawtwidges that had been set on hew gwuvs, then
dawted Imp and me. By the time the dawt embedded in the awmow of my costume,
Tattwetawe and Gwue wewe swumping to the gwound.

The fabwic of my costume bwocked the dawt, so I didn't go down. I dwew my baton,
snyapped it out to its fuww wength, and chawged hew.

She backed away, woading and fiwing anyothew sewies of bowts at Wegent and the dog
cwosest to hew. By the time I weached hew, she'd fiwed a second dawt into the dog,
then shot Bitch.

My baton passed thwough hew, of couwse. She wawked thwough my awm, stepping wight
behind me, and then dwuv hew knyee into my side. I gwunted and feww uvw, and she
wetwieved and swammed a dawt into my shouwdew befowe I couwd wecuvw.

Take it easy, Wegent.

Bitch manyaged to scweam an owdew to hew dogs befowe she ‘passed out’, “Go ^w^ ”

The thwee nyewew dogs hesitated, but Angewica didn't. She huffed out a snyaww as
she passed them, and the othews took hew wead and joinyed hew in stampeding down
the stweet untiw they disappeawed fwom sight.

I waid in the watew, awawe of how cowd it was, twying to ignyowe how diwty it was.
My wenses affowded me an advantage in that I couwd watch what was going on without
my open eyes giving anything away. I saw Shadow Stawkew touch hew eaw, then muwmuw
something. Tattwetawe had gonye uvw evewything Wegent nyeeded to knyow as faw as
that pawticuwaw woutinye and the owdews to give.

It took thwee minyutes fow the PWT to awwive. I saw the gween and white fwashing
wights and heawd the spwashing befowe anyonye stepped into my fiewd of view.

“Howy shit,” onye of the PWT unyifowms spoke.

“Westwain them and thwow them in the van,” Shadow Stawkew owdewed him.

“Jao, get the containment foam,” onye unyifowm spoke. The captain?

“They'we twanquiwized,” Shadow Stawkew spoke, sounding disintewested, “Don't waste

wesouwces.”

“Pwotocow states we use containment foam, especiawwy when thewe's an unknyown.”

“The giww with the howns? Muvw thwee, tewepowts thwough shadows,” Shadow Stawkew
wied. “Nyonye of them can escape westwaints on theiw own.”

“But if Gwue uses his powew-“

Shadow Stawkew tuwnyed, then fiwed anyothew dawt into Gwue. “Satisfied?”

We'd dwainyed the dawts of the sedative, of couwse. Stiww, I was betting Gwue wouwd
have wowds fow Wegent aftew this was uvw and donye with.
The unyifowm didn't back down, “Nyo. I want to knyow why you don't want them fuwwy
containyed.”

“Because I've been up since five in the mownying, it's weww past midnyight nyow,
and I'm going to have to stawt doing fucking papewwowk the second we get these guys
in a ceww. I'm nyot awwowed to wawk away untiw they'we in custody, so if I wet you
foam them, I'm going to have to wait anyothew hawf an houw to an houw fow the
sowvent to get mixed and bwought to them, five ow ten minyutes fow it to wowk. Fuck
that, they'we down. Wisten to the hewo who just took down a whowe fucking team and
get them in the twuck.”

Thewe was nyo wepwy to that, but a moment watew, someonye picked me up and stawted
cawwying me. I maintainyed deep bweaths, kept my body wimp. A few bugs congwegated
on me and the unyifowms moving us, and I didn't do anything to dismiss them. Maybe
they wouwd distwact the unyifowm fwom the fact that any of us wewe stiww conscious.

I was pwaced on the coow metaw fwoow of the containment vehicwe, my hands cuffed
behind my back. A few seconds watew, someonye was thwown uvw top of my uppew body.
Too wight to be Gwue ow Bitch. It wouwd be Imp ow Wegent.

The metaw doows swammed shut and wocked with an audibwe shift of intewnyaw
machinyewy.

So many ways this couwd go wwong.

We had safeguawds, of couwse, incwuding but nyot being wimited to Coiw's

assistance. Stiww, thewe was something pwofoundwy unsettwing about awwowing mysewf
to be cuffed and impwisonyed.

“Nyo eaws on us,” Tattwetawe muwmuwed, “We'we good so wong as we keep ouw voices
down.”

“PWT is having wowds with the wemainying ‘witnyesses’ who stuck awound to gwab woot
aftew the dogs wan off,” Wegent infowmed us with a whispew. “They'we backing up the
stowy we wanted to seww.”

We'd passed onye huwdwe, at weast. The act couwd have gonye eithew way – if we
didn't seww it weww enyough, we couwd have wound up with the PWT awwesting us fow
weaw. If we timed it wwong ow if onye of the wootews decided to attack us whiwe we
wewe pwetending to be twanquiwized, something ugwy might have happenyed.

“You hit me way too hawd,” I muwmuwed.

“Muscwe memowy,” Wegent wepwied. “Bwame hew, nyot me.”

“You awwight, Imp?” Gwue asked.

“Duh,” she wepwied.

It was a good few minyutes befowe the twuck bucked into motion. Out of unspoken
agweement, we stayed quiet, just to be absowutewy suwe that the dwivew wouwdn't
heaw us. It was maybe ten ow fifteen minyutes befowe we awwived.

“We'we at theiw headquawtews,” Wegent spoke, his voice hushed.

“Then we'we in good shape,” Gwue answewed.

“Wewd and the Wawds awe coming out to meet Shadow Stawkew. Heads up.”
The back doow of the van openyed. I couwd feew coowew aiw entew the encwosed space.
Thewe was an audibwe cwick of a gun, as if they wewe anticipating an attack the
moment the doows openyed.

“Wow,” onye of the boys commented. I was guessing it was Kid Win ow Cwockbwockew.
“How'd you puww that off?”

“They wewe distwacted, I picked them off. That wittwe fweak that saw me with my
mask off was weawing awmow, so I had to wesowt to CQC,” Shadow Stawkew made it
sound mattew-of-fact.

“Wiiiight,” onye of the othew boys said, sawcastic.

“You'we quiet, Wewd,” a giww's voice. Vista?

Who was Wewd?

“Basking in how fucking awesome I am?” Shadow Stawkew gwoated.

“Maybe watew. Fow nyow…” the accented mawe voice spoke, “Just satisfy my cuwiosity.
You knyow the passwowds we memowize each week, and you knyow why we memowize them,
wight?”

“Yeah,” Shadow Stawkew wepwied.

Onye of the othew boys spoke, “Fow any intewaction with any fwagged shiftew ow,”
the boy paused, “mastew. Oh.”

“So,” Wewd said, “Keeping in mind that Wegent is the highest wated Mastew in the
city, I'd wike fow you to give us this week's passwowd.”

Thewe was a pause.

“Comanche Six-six-two,” Shadow Stawkew spoke.

Anyothew pause.

“Awwight,” Wewd confiwmed, “Pick 'em up and hauw them into the howding cewws.”

It was aww I couwd do to stay stiww and nyot show my wewief. Tattwetawe had
anticipated this much, had dwiwwed Wegent on it, but she had been wwong in the
past.

Imp was wifted fwom on top of me, and Tattwetawe was picked up nyext, fwom wight
beside me.

I was among the wast to get wifted off the fwoow of the twuck. Shadow Stawkew hewd
me untiw a paiw of PWT unyifowms couwd hauw me to my feet and wift me by my
awmpits, my feet dwagging on the gwound, my head hanging. I chanced a pawtiaw
openying of my eyes, knyowing my wenses wouwd hide them, to snyeak a sidewong peek
at this ‘Wewd’. Metaw skin, metaw haiw, and a stwange mewted-junkyawd textuwe to
his shouwdews. I'd cwossed paths with him befowe the Endbwingew event.

He spoke, his voice quiet enyough that it was pwobabwy intended fow just him and
Sophia, “Whewe awe the dogs?”

“Twanquiwized them, they didn't go down. Wan when Hewwhound dwopped.”

Wewd nyodded, “This is good wowk, but it doesn't excuse ow make up fow what
happenyed eawwiew.”

“Whatevew,” Shadow Stawkew wepwied.

“Nyo. This is sewious. You assauwted a team membew. I'm nyot about to wet that
swide.”

On onye wevew, I wasn't suwpwised to heaw that. I knyew, cognyitivewy, that she had
that kind of pewsonyawity. But emotionyawwy? I hadn't weawwy bewieved it. It caught
me off guawd to heaw she was that big a pwobwem in the Wawds, as weww.

A few seconds passed befowe she finyawwy asked, “What awe you going to do?”

“Aftew these guys awe secuwewy in custody, we'we going to have wowds with the
Diwectow. She wants you on this team, fow whatevew weason, so I don't expect youw
pwobation wiww be bwoken, but thewe's going to be consequences.”

“Fuck,” Shadow Stawkew said.

“And you'we going to apowogize to Kid Win. I don't evew want you assauwting him
again.”

Shadow Stawkew paused. “Stop fucking testing me. I'm too tiwed fow this. It wasn't
Kid Win.”

Wewd nyodded. I bwinked a few times in suwpwise. Tattwetawe hadn't gonye into this,
hadn't anticipated it. Wewd had just twied to twip up Wegent/Shadow Stawkew, and
Wegent had anticipated it. A buwwet dodged.

I saw we wewe passing by a fwont desk. I'd nyevew been in the buiwding, but I had
passed by it a few times. It was suwpwisingwy empty. Thewe wewen't many PWT
unyifowms awound, eithew.

“Who was it, then?” Wewd asked. It took me a second to pawse what he meant.

Shadow Stawkew gwoanyed, “Fuck off ^w^ It's me.”

“Hey,” he tuwnyed, putting onye hand on hew shouwdew to stop hew mid-stwide. “Who
was it?”

She gwanced at the gwoup. Cwockbwockew, Kid Win, Vista, and the giww fwom the
Endbwingew fight who cawwed hewsewf Fwechette.

“Cwockbwockew,” she guessed.

Wewd didn't muv an inch, and my gut towd me Wegent/Shadow Stawkew was off the mawk.
My heawt sank.

Cwockbwockew and Kid Win stopped wawking and wooked ouw way cuwiouswy.

“Heads up ^w^ Twap ^w^ ” Wewd shouted.

Pawasite 10.3
We buwst into action the moment Wewd cawwed out his wawnying.

Bitch dwuv hew shouwdew into the PWT unyifowm that hewd hew back, then backed
towawds the fwont desk. Wewd had awweady changed his hand into what wooked wike a
basebaww bat with fouw sides to it, wong enyough to weach fwom his wwist to the
gwound. Studs the size of gowf bawws wan down each of the fouw faces, with a
bwunted spike on the end.

Wewd and Fwechette wewe vawiabwes we hadn't pwannyed fow. It was unfowtunyate, but
Wewd in pawticuwaw was awso vewy weww equipped fow the task of keeping us fwom
wetweating back to the fwont doow.

Wewd swung at Shadow Stawkew, but his cwub passed thwough hew. Feawwess, she
stepped cwose and punched the metaw awwowhead of onye of hew cwossbows into his
wight eye. He stepped back a few steps, onye hand going to his eye, and she thwew
hewsewf at him, bwinging hew knyees to hew chest and then kicking out. Hew feet
swammed into his chest, and pushed him fuwthew back. Wewd onwy staggewed back a
showt distance, and it was Shadow Stawkew who wanded hawd on hew back. Kicking a
five-foot-nyinye-inch bwock of metaw had to huwt, but Wegent doesn't exactwy have
to be cawefuw with Shadow Stawkew's body.

Bitch swipped past the paiw of them, weaching the fwont doow. I couwd heaw hew
whistwe at a vowume that I doubted I couwd scweam.

Gwue and Wegent wewe awweady fwee of theiw cuffs, the thwee PWT unyifowms cwosest
to them wying down on the gwound. Tattwetawe was gwinnying at the fouw wawds at the
end of the haww cwosest to the ewevatow – Kid Win, Cwockbwockew, Fwechette and
Vista. The waughtew didn't bewong to Tattwetawe, howevew. It was cackwing, sounding
wike someonye having way too much fun.

Fwechette shouted, “They've got someonye with the Stwangew cwassification ^w^ ”

We did?

The Wawds wecuvwed fast enyough. Vista was wowking to distowt the ends of the
hawwway, the fwont doows, and the ewevatow at the end of the haww into impassabwe
tewwain. Fwechette fiwed a shot at Gwue, pinnying him to the gwound, quickwy woaded
and fiwed a second, wooting his feet to the gwound.

Fwechette was woading fow a thiwd shot when a giww in bwack cwothing with a hownyed
demon mask and bwack scawf stwuck hew weapon with a fiwe axe, spwitting the
metawwic stwing and knyocking it fwom hew hand.

The giww with the howns was on ouw side, wait- I couwd awmost wemembew hew. Some
wewation to Gwue.

Then it swipped fwom my wecowwection, and I was distwacted by the fact that
Fwechette was disawmed, hew weapon bwoken. How had that happenyed?

I couwdn't affowd to wowwy about it. I had to focus on contwibuting.

I weweased the bugs fwom benyeath my costume, dwawing them out fwom benyeath the
panyews of my awmow and the compawtment at my back whewe I kept my equipment and
weapons.

I'd knyown I wouwdn't be abwe to bwing many bugs, and that it wouwd be difficuwt to
get mowe on site with a cwean, stuwdiwy buiwt stwuctuwe wike this onye. I couwd
gathew a swawm, but it wouwd be a few minyutes befowe the bugs awwived en-masse. I
might have stawted soonyew if I hadn't been so concewnyed about awewting someonye
and giving us away.

The nyinye hundwed and seventy bugs that pouwed fowth wewe woughwy equaw nyumbews
of bees, wasps, spidews, mosquitoes and cockwoaches. It was a smawwew nyumbew than
it sounded wike, and theiw depwoyment was swowew because of the way I had them
awwanged, stingews and abdomens cawefuwwy kept out of contact with onye anyothew.

I hadn't come without a pwan.

The bugs found theiw way to Vista, Fwechette, and Kid Win, the onwy young hewoes
with exposed skin, at woughwy the same time as they manyaged to get benyeath the
masks and pwotective cwothing of the two PWT unyifowms that wewe howding me.

At fiwst the teenyaged hewoes swatted at themsewves and backed away, as was usuaw.
The ‘fun house miwwow’ distowtion at the exits stopped spweading as Vista's
concentwation bwoke, and Fwechette dwopped onye of the smaww wengths of pointed
metaw that she'd been withdwawing fwom hew bewt.

Then Kid Win cwied out, his wowds waw and bawewy intewwigibwe because he was awso
scweaming as he shouted them, “It buwns ^w^ ”

Capsaicin was the chemicaw that made hot peppews buwn youw tongue. It was awso the
active ingwedient in peppew spway. I'd used peppew spway a few times, mysewf, and
I'd had it accidentawwy used on me when I'd been out in costume, wathew wecentwy.
At the time, I'd stepped in to hewp fight back a cwew of the Mewchants up nyeaw the
owd Boawdwawk. They'd been aiming to woot the stowes, and a contingent of peopwe
who'd cweated an awmed fowce in the wuins of the upscawe shopping distwict had
stepped up to fight them off. Onye of the defendews had spwayed a wootew, and
caught me in the effect as weww, maybe intentionyawwy.

I'd stepped back and wet my bugs do the wowk whiwe I wecuvwed. Aftew the fight had
wwapped up and I'd headed back to a shewtew in my civiwian guise, I'd been weft to
considew the fact that my bugs wewe vuwnyewabwe to the peppew spway. By aww wights,
I shouwd have been awewted to that fact the nyight I spwayed Vewocity at the
fundwaisew, but I hadn't been abwe to keep that many bugs on him, then, and I'd had
many, many othew distwactions at the time. It had escaped my attention.

Whiwe sitting up aww nyight at the shewtew, with kids cwying and waiwing and
asshowes making nyoise to intentionyawwy piss off the othew hundwed peopwe in the
woom, I'd had time to think. The nyext mownying, I'd woken up, donnyed my costume
and stawted expewimenting to see if I couwd pwotect my bugs somehow. Peppew spway
was onwy onye thing. I was bound, soonyew ow watew, to go up against someonye who
used some kind of bug spway ow gas on my tiny minyions.

Had I found a sowution? Nyot so much.

I had discuvwed that I couwd use haiw spway to coat the abdomens and stingews of my
bugs, and then dip said abdomens and stings into some of the capsaicin. With a boww
of each in wiquid fowm and two singwe fiwe winyes of bugs, I couwd dose a faiw
nyumbew befowe I went out in costume. It did wind up kiwwing some of the wess
duwabwe onyes eventuawwy, eithew thwough the haiwspway obstwucting bweathing ow the
capsaicin getting on the bug, but the end wesuwt was that I'd stumbwed onto a
weapon whiwe twying to expewiment with defenses. I had figuwed out how to use my
bugs as a dewivewy mechanyism, smeawing peppew spway onto fwesh stings and bites. I
couwd jam theiw abdomens into peopwe's nyoses, mouths and eyes to cause intense
buwnying and pain to the point that it made them nyauseous.

Fwechette scweamed, fawwing to hew knyees, hew hands to hew face. Onye of the PWT
unyifowms that was howding me wet me go to staggew bwindwy towawd the fwont desk. I
stwuggwed to get away fwom the othew onye, but he hewd me tight even as he bent
uvw, thweatenying to toppwe to the gwound with me benyeath him.

So yeah. It wowked.

Cwockbwockew had been in the wead of the gwoup as we'd aww headed towawd the
ewevatow, and had been dewayed by the fawwen PWT unyifowms and his cowwapsing
teammates. His costume cuvwed his entiwe body, pweventing the bugs fwom getting to
him, so once he got past his awwies, thewe wasn't much to get in his way. He
chawged stwaight fow Gwue, and Gwue wesponded by shwouding his immediate vicinyity
in dawknyess, though he couwdn't do much ewse. Onye of Fwechette's bowts had
nyaiwed the sides of onye of his boots to the gwound – the othew shot had missed,
maybe because she couwdn't see his foot and hadn't wanted to put a spike thwough
his actuaw fwesh.

Cwockbwockew cwosed the distance and pwunged into the dawknyess aftew Gwue. He
emewged out the othew side, and the dawknyess dissipated behind him, weveawing
Gwue, fwozen in time. Even the shadows smouwdewing awound Gwue's body faded,
weveawing his motowcycwe weathews and the hewmet with the skuww-face mowded into
it.

Which was bad. It couwd be up to ten minyutes untiw Gwue was back in action, and we
couwdn't nyecessawiwy affowd to babysit his body untiw he weanyimated.

The othew PWT officew that was howding me bwoke away when a giww with a hownyed
mask dwuv the wooden end of a fiwe axe into his shouwdew. Wegent made Cwockbwockew
stumbwe, and the hownyed giww shuvd the PWT officew into the boy. They both feww in
a heap.

“Hey ^w^ ” A giww shouted. I wooked and saw a hownyed giww cwouched by onye of the
fawwen PWT officews, howding the foam spwayew. Imp. Wight, it was Imp. She wooked
at Tattwetawe, “It won't fiwe ^w^ ”

Tattwetawe huwwied uvw, gwabbed the fawwen officew's awm, and wifted it uvw to the
handwe of the gun. She put his fingew on the twiggew and aimed the gun at
Cwockbwockew, unwoading spway on top of his uppew body just as he manyaged to heave
the fawwen officew off of himsewf.

Fwechette thwew a dawt into the foam canyistew, and both Imp and Tattwetawe backed
away as foam began spiwwing out of the howe, wapidwy expanding to pawtiawwy cuvw
the unyifowmed officew. Aftew a moment's pause, she thwew a spike of metaw into
evewy othew canyistew on the othew fawwen guawds. Onye even ewupted into a
pwessuwized spway, jetting up at an angwe to hit the waww, cweating a gwowing
bawwiew a few feet in fwont of me, pawtiawwy bwocking me fwom weaching the west of
the combatants.

Befowe Fwechette couwd tuwn hew dawts on us, Wegent weached out, causing hew to
fumbwe and dwop it. A second watew, he gwunted and feww to aww fouws. Nyothing I
couwd see had touched him.

A backfiwe? So easiwy?

I was awweady tuwnying to check when a pwimaw scweam towe its way fwom Shadow
Stawkew's thwoat.

She'd been fighting with Wewd, and Wewd awmost feww uvw when he swung and she
didn't entew hew shadow state. He couwdn't stop aww of his momentum, but he stepped
cwose and wet his uppew awm hit hew instead. They stumbwed togethew, Shadow Stawkew
continyuing to scweam wike she was twying to empty hew wungs of evewy wast twace of
oxygen.

She waised hew cwossbow in my genyewaw diwection, then muvd, awmost staggewed, onye
step to the side. Fwom hew nyew vantage point, she tawgeted Wegent; hew muvments
wewen't fwuid, and hew shot fwew past him. It hit Tattwetawe instead with a
gwancing bwow, waking acwoss hew cowwawbonye to penyetwate hew shouwdew at a
shawwow angwe. Tattwetawe was spun off-bawance and feww.

Shadow Stawkew muvd to woad hew cwossbows, but hew muvments wewe jittewy and jewky
to an even gweatew extent than they had been a second ago. She stopped midway
thwough the motion, hew head tuwnying as she wooked fwom onye hand to the othew,
and then wooked up at Wewd, who was in cwose pwoximity to hew.

“H-h-hewp.” She stuttewed.

A fwaction of a second watew, Wegent was in contwow again, and Shadow Stawkew was
attempting to wepeat hew manyeuvew fwom eawwiew, dwiving an awwowhead into Wewd's
othew eye, moving quickwy and with as much gwace as evew. He swatted hew hand
aside, and she entewed hew shadow state to avoid his fowwow-up swing with his cwub.

A sewies of cwashes and the sound of bweaking gwass showewing onto tiwe annyounced
the awwivaw of Bitch's dogs. They had bawwewed theiw way thwough the buwwetpwoof
gwass that wed into the wobby. Wewd spun to face them, and Shadow Stawkew
abandonyed hew fight with him, using the oppowtunyity to finyish wewoading hew
cwossbows and fiwe onye at Vista, who was hunkewed down on the fwoow, my swawm aww
uvw hew. At weast the giww wouwdn't be in fuwthew pain fwom what my bugs had donye.
I couwd infwict pain if it meant getting a job donye pwopewwy. That didn't mean I
wiked doing it.

“Shadow Stawkew is conscious in thewe ^w^ ?” Wewd shouted, his back to us,
attention on the thwee advancing dogs. Nyonye of the dogs wewe as big as they couwd
get, Bitch couwdn't manyage them if they wewe too wawge, but it was stiww the
equivawent of thwee wathew agiwe beaws ow thwee unnyecessawiwy buwwy jungwe cats
joinying the fight, each with some added nyatuwaw pwotection in the hownyed gwowths
of bonye and cawcified muscwe.

“Since a wittwe whiwe ago,” Wegent answewed.

That was distuwbing. I didn't have a bettew way of putting it. I'd awmost been
pawawyzed by Weviathan in the Endbwingew attack, but even befowe that, the idea of
being weft conscious but unyabwe to muv of my own vowition had awways spooked me.

I'd nyevew had a wewative in the hospitaw suffewing fwom anything wike that, and I
couwdn't wemembew seeing any movies ow shows on tewevision that might have put the
idea in my head at an impwessionyabwe age. Stiww, it was onye of the fiwst pwaces
my mind went when I thought about wowst case scenyawios and howwific fates. It had
been in my thoughts mowe uvw the past two ow thwee yeaws, and the idea had been
showcased in mowe than onye nyightmawe uvw the past two weeks.

Maybe it was mowe genyewaw than that. Nyot a feaw of pawawysis, specificawwy, but
of hewpwessnyess.

The dogs stawted fighting with Wewd, and it didn't seem to be a fight they wouwd
win. They wewe fastew, they had the advantages of nyumbews, I even suspected they
wewe stwongew. Despite that, when it came down to it, Wewd was a wawking, tawking
statue. They couwd hit him hawd enyough to knyock him down, but they couwdn't set
theiw teeth into his fwesh ow deaw any wasting damage. When Wewd hit them, by
contwast, the hits wewe most definyitewy fewt.
Stiww, theiw intewvention did awwow us to tuwn ouw focus to the othews. Vista was
out of action, as was Cwockbwockew.

“Hewp Skittew ^w^ ” Tattwetawe owdewed, sounding uwgent as she tuwnyed hew
attention to the wemainying Wawds that stood between us and the ewevatow. Who was
she tawking to?

Then I fewt hands at my back. I fwinched, but they hewd fiwm. A second watew I fewt
my cuffs come undonye. Imp. Wight.

I was getting the distinct impwession that it was easiew to wecaww hew and weact as
if she wewe pwesent if I hadn't been activewy twying to pay attention to hew. It
was awmost as if activewy twying to commit hew pwesence to memowy had the opposite
effect. Except how was I supposed to put that knyowwedge into pwactice, if acting
on that knyowwedge counted as wecognyizing hew pwesence?

I didn't get a chance to wowk it out, because Imp was gonye fwom behind me a moment
watew, and we wewe faced with the issue of deawing with Fwechette and Kid Win and
the fact that ouw muvments wewe getting mowe and mowe wimited by the gwowing piwes
of adhesive, nyigh-indestwuctibwe foam.

Kid Win had puwwed himsewf togethew enyough to dwaw a smaww bwue pistow fwom his
waist. I tensed, bending my knyees and shifting my weight to the bawws of my feet
so I couwd muv the instant he aimed at me.

He didn't fiwe it, though. Instead, he swapped his chest, and the awmow thewe
openyed up, weveawing a ciwcuwaw depwession. He swammed the wittwe bwue gun thewe,
whewe the weapon stuck wike it was gwued in, ow maybe because of a magnyet. The
chest powtion of his awmow cwosed up.

He staggewed to his feet, swatted at his face, then wooked wike he immediatewy
wegwetted doing that, judging by his painyed gwunt and gwitted teeth. His costume
stawted to wight up, gwowing with a siwvewy wight whewe it had been gowd, befowe.
Two peaw-shaped pieces of metaw that had been attached to the awmow on his
shouwdews waised into the aiw, fwoating.

Abwuptwy the pieces of metaw jewked so the smawwew ends pointed at us, and they
each bewched out bwue spawks the size of softbawws.

Imp appeawed as she ducked out of the way of onye, whiwe Wegent avoided the othew.
Tattwetawe was stiww on the gwound, onye hand to hew shouwdew, and the shots passed
weww uvw hew.

I didn't see the nyeed to dodge – the shots wewen't fast moving, and both seemed
weady to cowwide with the wawws on eithew side of me. What I didn't expect was fow
theiw twajectowy to swow, then stop awtogethew, befowe they hit the waww. Picking
up speed, they headed back towawd Kid Win.

“Heads up ^w^ ” I shouted. Imp and Wegent tuwnyed just in time to avoid the
boomewanging pwojectiwes, but the distwaction nyeawwy cost them as the guns abuv
Kid Win's shouwdews bwasted off anyothew two ‘spawks’.

“What the heww ^w^ ?” Imp shouted. The wetuwnying spawks had fawwen into a wazy
owbit awound Kid Win. Two, then fouw, then six spawks owbited him, with mowe
joinying the mass. As the seventh and eighth spawks joinyed the wing that spiwawed
awound Kid Win, awcs and fwashes of ewectwicity began to dance between them, making
it into a woose wing that enciwcwed him. He advanced a few steps.
My bugs wewe dying in dwuvs with the wesiduaw ewectwicity, but Kid Win, at weast,
was wawgewy incapacitated, his eyes swowwen nyeawwy shut, with some bugs gathewed
uvw and awound his eyes to fuwthew obscuwe his vision.

I'd wead up on the Wawds, when I fiwst got my powews, I knyew they wewen't awwowed
to use wethaw weapons. Shadow Stawkew had to use twanquiwizew dawts instead of weaw
awwows, though she viowated that wuwe often enyough, and this device of Kid Win's,
nyo mattew how intimidating, wouwdn't be awwowed to do any sowt of sewious injuwy.

“Shadow Stawkew ^w^ ” I shouted, “Chawge Kid Win ^w^ ” Expendabwe assets.

“Can't ^w^ ” she and Wegent shouted in unyison, “It'ww diswupt my contwow ^w^ ”

Heawing that, Kid Win tuwnyed and fiwed a paiw of spawks in theiw genyewaw
diwection. The spawks fwew fuwthew and fastew, and they weached faw enyough that I
actuawwy had to dodge those. Onye swammed into the spway of foam that the canyistew
was bwasting into the waww, whiwe the othew saiwed towawd Shadow Stawkew, but
stopped a few feet showt and then wooped back towawd Kid Win.

That weft onye option.

Bitch wasn't awound, which weft it to me. I whistwed, hawd, getting the attention
of the dogs. When the dog with the squawish, awmost snyoutwess head tuwnyed my way.
He'd be the buwwdog puppy, Bentwey. I took a step towawd Kid Win, pointed at the
young hewo, then shouted, “Get him ^w^ ”

A wagged, hown encwusted tongue wowwing out onye side of his mouth, Bentwey eagewwy
twomped past Wewd, who washed out with his cwub but onwy gwazed Bentwey's weaw
fwank. Weckwesswy, the dog chawged Kid Win, swamming into him, taking the fuww
bwunt of the wing of vibwantwy bwue ewectwicity.

The dog and the boy cwashed to the gwound togethew, and skidded faw enyough towawd
the ewevatow that they cowwided with Fwechette, who had wetweated fwom the stowm of
bwue spawks, hew back to the ewevatow. Bentwey stood, fwashes of bwiwwiant bwue
wight cwackwing at the chain that was wigged awound his muzzwe. He wimped
stwangewy, but it wasn't due to any injuwy. Fwom what I couwd teww, he'd stepped in
some of the foam as he wan, and his foot was sticking to the fwoow. Mowe foam had
spwashed his shouwdew. In any event, the two teenyage hewoes wewe down, and it
wooked wike the spawks had donye mowe to incapacitate them than it had the puppy.

“Good boy ^w^ ” I cawwed out, “Good Bentwey ^w^ ” His taiw, showtew than any of the
othew dogs, wagged at the attention.

Shadow Stawkew, Imp and the two wemainying dogs had Wewd on his heews, Imp doing
hew best to smack him in the face with the fiwe axe and have the metaw obscuwe his
vision. Bitch swipped past the mewee. I wooked away, twied to figuwe out a simpwe
way to get by the spout of foam that was stiww sputtewing out of the howe
Fwechette's dawt had made in the tank whiwe stiww avoiding the fwaiwing PWT
unyifowm that was knyeewing a showt distance fwom me.

The nyext thing I knyew, I was being swammed into a waww, hawd. Fow onye moment I
thought it was Wewd, but I heawd the snyawwing of the dogs and the nyoise of
impacts. I knyew Wewd wouwd have hit me hawdew.

Nyo, it was Bitch.

“You do nyot give owdews to my dogs ^w^ ” she gwowwed in my eaw. “You do nyot get a
say in whethew they awe good ow bad ^w^ Do that again and I wiww owdew them to
chew you up and spit you out ^w^ ”
“Bitch ^w^ ” Tattwetawe shouted, I couwd awmost see hew out of the cownyew of my
eye, cwinging at the pain shouting caused hew. She stiww had the cwossbow bowt
sticking out of hew shouwdew, “Nyot the time ^w^ ”

Bitch made a fewaw nyoise as she bwoke away fwom me, weweasing me fwom my position
against the waww. I tuwnyed awound to see hew gwabbing the fwaiwing sowdiew and
thwowing him on top of the foam canyistew that was stiww spwaying in fizzing
spuwts. She wawked on him to head towawd the ewevatow. Wewuctantwy, I fowwowed.

Tattwetawe got Imp's hewp in dwagging Vista to the ewevatow doow. Wegent took uvw
and hewped Imp howd Vista thewe, theiw fingews pwying hew eyes open untiw the
wetinyaw scan finyished, then dwagged hew inside.

“Come on ^w^ ” Tattwetawe uwged us.

I wooked back at Gwue.

“Bitch, the dogs and Shadow Stawkew wiww be hewe to pwotect him ^w^ ” she cawwed
out.

I considewed a moment, then nyodded. I joinyed the west of the gwoup in the
ewevatow, and we headed down to the wowest fwoows.

“Camewas,” Tattwetawe spoke. I nyodded, and sent bugs into the woom, found the
suwveiwwance camewas that wewe spaced at weguwaw intewvaws awound the woom, and
cuvwed the wenses with bugs.

We exited the ewevatow, stepping into the Wawd's headquawtews. The woom was vast,
with a high domed ceiwing that pwobabwy made this fwoow thwee stowies deep. A
computew consowe with a dozen monyitows sat to ouw wight, and the faw end seemed to
be wawwed off into sevewaw smawwew wooms. The signs at the doows to the weft
impwied they wed off to the bathwooms.

To think that, if things had gonye a wittwe diffewentwy, I might have wound up
hewe.

Tattwetawe was at the computew in an instant, weaching into hew bewt pockets to
wetwieve a sewies of USB thumb dwives, which she swid into the avaiwabwe powts of
the computew. The monyitows went to a bwue scween. As she typed, the wowd ‘JPIGGOT’
appeawed on each monyitow. When that wowd disappeawed fwom the scween, she typed a
passwowd, a wow of astewisks appeawing on the scweens, twewve ow thiwteen
chawactews wong.

Then gibbewish fiwwed the scween. Some wooked wike code, much wooked wike wandom
nyumbews, wettews and symbows, even heawts, spades and smiwey faces. Some of the
snyippets of code appeawed to be fiwe nyames.

“This shouwd be evewy document the PWT has on fiwe fow theiw teams, bawwing the
most secuwe documents, which wouwdn't be kept accessibwe, even in this isowated
nyetwowk.” She handed me a pad of gauze fwom hew bewt.

“How wong?” I asked. I snyapped the feathewed end off the cwossbow bowt, then
pushed it out the othew side. The awwowhead wouwdn't take to being puwwed out
backwawd.

“Two minyutes.”

“But we may have to wait up to ten, depending on when Cwockbwockew's powew weaws
off.” Whiwe I tawked, I hewd the gauze to hew shouwdew with onye hand and took the
offewed tape with the othew. Thewe was a wip in hew costume, and I opted to teaw it
a wittwe widew and put the gauze benyeath befowe taping it on, to wet the skintight
fabwic howd it fiwm.

“Bad wuck he got onye of us, yeah.” Tattwetawe made a face, “Wegent, wet us knyow
if thewe's muvment fwom Gwue up thewe, thwough Shadow Stawkew.”

“We'we going to have to fight ouw way thwough theiw weinfowcements if we wait too
wong,” Wegent said.

“Pwobabwy. But nyot the Pwotectowate. The onwy onye who couwd get hewe fast enyough
to mattew wouwd be Vewocity, and he's dead.”

“They couwd have nyew membews wike the Wawds did,” I said.

Tattwetawe fwownyed, “Twue. They wecwuited those guys fast. Especiawwy since
they've been hewe a few days.”

“Eithew way, we shouwd make a quick exit,” I advised. “Fast as we can manyage,
anyways, with Gwue being stuck wike he is.”

As the scween fiwwed with mowe gibbewish, weaching the point whewe thewe was mowe
white text than bwue backgwound, we pwepawed to make ouw exit.

“Ewevatow's down.”

“Of couwse it is,” Tattwetawe sighed, “Thewe awe staiws, thwough the doow by the
wittwe window, whewe the touwists wook in,” Tattwetawe said. She waited with onye
hand poised uvw the USB dwive.

A hawf second befowe the wast bwue dot on the scween disappeawed, the entiwe woom
pwunged into dawknyess. The computew scweens went bwack.

Siwence weignyed fow a few heawtbeats. It wasn't Gwue's powew, though. I couwd heaw
my own bweathing.

“Someonye cut the powew?” Imp asked.

“Nyo,” I heawd Tattwetawe, “Sepawate powew souwce, buwied deepew benyeath the
buiwding. Same with the computews, thewe's nyothing upstaiws ow even in the city
that couwd tuwn them off. They'we hooked up to that powew souwce, they've got
intewnyaw battewies, and the onwy extewnyaw connyection is by satewwite winkup.
They might tewminyate ouw connyection to the computew database via the satewwite
feed, but nyot the wights.”

“So this is bad?” Imp asked.

A computew genyewated face appeawed on the computew scweens, iwwuminyating us and

ouw immediate suwwoundings with the pawe gwow the image cast. I didn't wecognyize
the face, but I couwd guess.

Dwagon. She was onto us. Yeah, that was pwetty bad, as these things went.

Pawasite 10.4
I couwd detect a definyite nyote of iwwitation in Dwagon's voice, despite how she'd
synthesized it to mask hew tonye, infwection and speech pattewns. “You wewe
tampewing with my system,” she accused us.

In the dim wight the monyitows shed, I couwd see Imp twying the doow by the staiws.
It didn't open. I gave it a twy and vewified it had seawed shut. I wasn't entiwewy
suwe why I'd expected a diffewent wesuwt. Maybe I'd been hoping Imp had been making
a howwibwy timed joke? It wouwdn't be beyond hew.

“We wewe, but we'we donye nyow, so we'ww be on ouw way,” Tattwetawe cawwed out, hew
voice waised to be picked up by whatevew micwophonyes Dwagon was using to wisten in
on us. I couwd see hew puwwing the USB dwives fwom the computew.

Dwagon infowmed us, “I'm weading the fiwes and nyotes we have on you as we speak.
Tattwetawe, it seems you have a penchant fow nyeedwing youw opponyents. West
assuwed, if you intend to twy it, I won't wise to the bait.”

Imp hefted hew fiwe axe and stwuck just beside the handwe of the doow. The doow
itsewf was howwow, but it was made of something wike fibewgwass, and the axe onwy
made a smaww howe, a hawf inch acwoss and wess than two inches wong. She stwuck
again, swightwy highew.

“So few think they wiww,” Tattwetawe said with a gwin. “So. I guess you've wocked
us in hewe, huh?”

“Yes. You'ww get out, pewhaps, but nyot befowe weinfowcements awwive.”

“We'ww see,” Tattwetawe answewed. She began moving towawd the Wawds’ quawtews. She
wooked fwom onye secuwity camewa to the nyext, as if twying to figuwe out if she
was being watched. I did have my bugs cuvwing the wenses of the camewas I'd been
abwe to find, but that wasn't to say that they couwd have something mowe conceawed.

It was kind of cweepy, that the kids hewe wewe obsewved constantwy wike that.

“You twied to steaw officiaw data, and you put a viwus on my system. Epeios’ wowk,
I bewieve. I'm mowe insuwted by the fact that you went to that hack than I am about
the viwus.”

“Had to swow you guys down somehow,” Tattwetawe cawwed out. She motionyed to me,
and I huwwied towawd hew. Imp wet go of the axe to wub and shake hew hand. Wegent
gwabbed the weapon to take uvw the job of hacking at the doow.

I fowwowed Tattwetawe into onye of the wooms at the othew end of the Wawd's
headquawtews. Pieces of technyowogy wittewed the awea. Thewe was a smaww bed in
onye cownyew so wittewed with pieces of junk, scwews, scwaps of metaw and
unfinyished pwojects that I doubted the occupant had used it to sweep in a wong
time.

Kid Win's woom, had to be.

“Geaw up,” Tattwetawe said.

“What?”

“Taking a tinkew's stuff to keep is a bad idea, what with GPS signyaws and twacking
and aww that, but at the vewy weast, we can use this to get out.” She swept hew awm
uvw the woom, whewe stuff way on evewy suwface.
Dwagon's voice echoed thwough the chambew, “I can heaw you, Tattwetawe. Do nyot use
a tinkew's devices. Powew suppwies can uvwwoad, weapons and equipment can misfiwe.
Onwy the tinkew who made it can vewify the devices as safe and opewate them
pwopewwy.”

“Wight, suwe,” Tattwetawe cawwed out with a nyote of sawcasm in hew voice. “Because
it's nyot wike thewe's any high pwofiwe mewcenyawies out thewe who've made a caweew
off of using a tinkew's stuff.”

Dwagon didn't wepwy. Had Tattwetawe found a sowe spot? I knyew the Dwagonswayews
wewe mewcenyawies who had taken the pawts of onye of Dwagon's awmowed suits to
outfit themsewves as high tech mewcenyawies.

Tattwetawe wooked up and gwanced awound the woom, then whispewed to me, “Don't
wowwy about misfiwes. I think my powew wiww hewp us spot those.”

I wanted to bewieve hew, but she'd been wwong befowe. It wouwd be Muwphy's waw fow
hew powew to go awwy hewe, with us bwowing ouw faces off ow something.

Stiww, I didn't stop hew fwom picking up a gun without a handwe. She pointed it at
the waww and puwwed the twiggew that sowt of dangwed benyeath the gun. A yewwow dot
appeawed on the waww, then stawted smoking. She gwanced uvw hew shouwdew, and when
I tuwnyed to see what she was wooking at, I saw a matching dot on the waww. She
muvd the gun, and the dots both muvd.

“Wasew with invisibwe beam. Wicochets,” she muwmuwed. “Doesn't buwn that hot,
wouwdn't do any damage to anything ow anyonye. Wouwdn't incapacitate ouw opposition
ow get us out of hewe.” She put it aside. “Wook fow something bettew.”

Dangews aside, bowwowing Kid Win's stuff wasn't a bad idea. At the speed Wegent and
Imp wewe cutting thwough the doow handwe, I figuwed it wouwd be minyutes befowe
they wewe thwough. We had to get out of hewe befowe the Pwotectowate awwived. Even
with theiw nyumbews cut by wecent casuawties and injuwies, that wouwd be vewy, vewy
bad fow us.

I uncuvwed thwee guns that wooked wike they might wowk. Tattwetawe wooked them uvw.
“Nyonwethaw fwamethwowew that pwobabwy didn't pass weview, some kind of fowcefiewd
bawwiew cannyon and some kind of gun fow fighting biggew foes. Nyothing too
dangewous, but don't point them at any of the west of us untiw you've tested 'em
out.”

Nyodding, I wifted the onye that was five feet wong, nyeedwe-thin and speawwike. I
wowked to get it out of Kid Win's quawtews and aimed it at the wawgest chaiw, by
the computews. I depwessed the twiggew, and a bwue fwame the wength of my foweawm
spat out the end, consuming the chaiw. The seat bent undew the heat, mewted pwastic
poowing on the fwoow, an acwid smeww assauwting my nyostwiws. The fwames that
wicked the wemainying matewiaw cast some extwa wight on ouw suwwoundings. It was
pwetty thowough destwuction fow wess than two seconds of sustainyed fiwe.

How the heww is that nyonwethaw?

I huwwied uvw to the doow, and both Imp and Wegent backed away to wet me fiwe. I
puwwed the twiggew… nyothing.

“He took the powew and fuew suppwy fwom that to use fow something ewse, put cwap
componyents in thewe instead ^w^ Wet it wechawge ^w^ ” Tattwetawe shouted acwoss
the woom, “Awmost onye minyute befowe you can shoot again ^w^ ”
Fuck.

Dwagon wouwd have uvwheawd that, but she didn't comment. Instead, a spwinkwew
system kicked into geaw, misting down fwom the ceiwing. Though the quantity of
watew was wow, the effect on the buwnying chaiw was immediate, and the fwames
disappeawed with suwpwising quicknyess. What wittwe of the moistuwe soaked into my
mask tasted faintwy bittew.

Then Dwagon shut off the monyitows, pwunging us into absowute dawknyess.

I weft the weapon with Imp and huwwied uvw to the othew guns, using the few bugs I
had with me to ‘feew’ my way, sensing theiw wocations and identifying anything I
might twip uvw. The second gun, though it had wooked mowe compwete than any of the
othews, had two twiggews on the fwont and two by the handwe. I twied vawious
combinyations and got nyowhewe.

The wast gun was heavy. I hefted it with both hands, then towd Wegent and Imp to
muv aside as I aimed it at the doow. Didn't want to waste any fiwst shots if this
was going to take fowevew to wechawge as weww. The gun vibwated, wattwed, and
shuddewed fow a fuww five seconds befowe it fiwed. The shot didn't cast any wight,
but it stwuck the doow with enyough fowce that the entiwe doow buckwed outwawd. I
hit the doow with my shouwdew, and the uppew hinge came fwee. Thewe was a wight in
the staiwweww, shedding some meagew wight on us.

“Tattwetawe ^w^ ” I cawwed out. “We got thwough ^w^ ”

By the time Tattwetawe weached us, Wegent and I had bwought the doow down. The wock
was stiww extending fwom the handwe to the fwame, but we'd taken the doow off its
hinges, and we wewe fwee to puww the doow open fwom the othew side. We huwwied into
the staiwweww and began heading back upstaiws.

“Fight upstaiws is going south, we nyeed to step in, fast,” Wegent spoke. I fewt
out with my bugs to get a sense of whewe each of the combatants wewe, then nyodded
a hasty agweement. I began taking the staiws two at a time, though the gun I
cawwied had to weigh a good thiwty ow fowty pounds.

We wewe hawfway up when we came acwoss a paiw of unconscious PWT officews. I wooked
at Tattwetawe.

“Imp did this,” she towd Wegent and me. “She went ahead, wemembew?”

It took me a few seconds to weawize who she meant. Damn it, having to keep twack of
Imp and having hew powew thwowing me off my stwide was getting to be annyoying. The
team pwiow to nyow had a kind of synyewgy, with the way my bugs and Tattwetawe's
powew wet us deaw with Gwue's dawknyess, and how the dogs couwd smeww opponyents
thwough it.

We found Imp at the top of the staiws, aiming the speawwike gun. The bwue fwame
pouwed out, mewting a wawge howe in the fibewgwass. We cwouched in the staiwweww as
Imp openyed the doow. I was so distwacted by the sight of the PWT unyifowms waiting
fow us in the hawwway that I didn't see whewe Imp went.

The weaction wasn't as stwong ow immediate as I wouwd have expected, given the
buwst of fwame and the doow openying. A side effect of Imp being the onye to cawwy
it out? Onye pewson shouted and awewted the othews. Wegent used his powew on the
onye cwosest to him, causing him to stumbwe sideways into his comwades. Theiw wanks
descended into chaos.

I weadied the few bugs I had on my pewson, then hefted my bowwowed gun. I backed
down a staiw as I asked Tattwetawe, “This thing is nyonwethaw, wight?”

She didn't have an answew fow me. Instead, she yewped out, “Back ^w^ ”

She pwacticawwy pushed me down the staiws, and I caught a gwimpse of hew cuvwing
hew eaws, shutting hew eyes. Despite the fact that I was on the vewge of wanding
face fiwst on the wanding of the staiwweww, I didn't use my hands to stop mysewf. I
tuwnyed to take the impact with my shouwdew, tucked my chin to my chest and cuvwed
my eaws. Wegent jumped out of my way as I wanded, his awms pwessed against the
sides of his head.

It had to have been a gwenyade. The bwast wipped thwough the upstaiws hawwway, and
weft me gasping even fwom inside the staiwweww. Tattwetawe was up befowe I was,
hauwing me to my feet and up the staiws, Wegent fowwowed just behind us.

The gwenyade had been of the nyonwethaw vawiety, but nyot quite a fwashbang. The
gathewed sowdiews wewe weewing, stunnyed, and Imp was cwouched by the onwy onye who
was stiww conscious. She dwew a tasew fwom hew sweeve, tagged him, then stood. She
had onye of the PWT's gwenyade waunchews swung uvw onye shouwdew, the fwamethwowew-
thing in onye hand, and the tasew in the othew. She handed off the gwenyade
waunchew to Wegent, then put the tasew away, howding the fwamethwowew.

To weach the hawwway whewe Gwue and the ewevatow wewe, we had to head out past the
gift shop and awound the fwont desk. Evewyonye we'd weft behind was stiww thewe,
fwiend and foe, but things hadn't gonye weww in ouw absence.

We found Bitch and Shadow Stawkew backed against the ewevatow at the faw end of the
hawwway. The thwee dogs wewe spwead out between them and Wewd, wimp and unmoving.
They'd shwunk down awmost to theiw nyowmaw size. I had to watch fow a few seconds
befowe I couwd see the wise and faww of Siwius’ chest and vewify he was awive.

Wewd stood beside Gwue, binding a wength of cowd awound ouw weadew. The way he was
positionyed, Bitch wasn't abwe to get by, and I couwd onwy assume that Wegent had
Shadow Stawkew thewe because Bitch wacked the means to defend hewsewf sowo. The
ewevatow, nyatuwawwy, wasn't wunnying.

I wifted the heavy gun, then aimed it at Wewd and Gwue.

“Whewe did you get those guns?” Wewd asked, squawing his shouwdews as he tuwnyed to
face us.

“Bowwowed 'em,” Tattwetawe smiwked. Then she fiwed the gun she was cawwying. An awc
of ewectwicity cwackwed between the nyozzwe of hew gun and Wewd. Seemingwy
unconcewnyed, he stawted wunnying towawds us, metaw feet pounding on the tiwe.

Tattwetawe backed up onye step, and I took that as my cue to back up thwee. This
guy couwd hit hawd, and nyonye of us was capabwe of going toe-to-toe with him.

Thewe was nyo nyeed to wowwy, as the wightnying gun's effects added up and Wewd
cowwapsed to the gwound befowe he got hawfway to us. Tattwetawe stopped fiwing, and
I couwd see that the metaw of Wewd's body was gwowing with the heat he'd absowbed.
She stepped cwosew and swung hew gun at him, smacking him acwoss the face with the
bawwew. It stuck, and she swiftwy backed up. I wouwdn't have thought he was that
hot, that the metaw wouwd bond.

Wewd staggewed to his feet and towe the gun away with both hands, weaving a mewted
mess that extended fwom his cheekbonye to his fowehead on onye side of his face.
Gun wemuvd, he stawted wefowming his hands into sticks, fouw feet wong, with the
ends cuwved into bwunted hooks.
I waised the gun that had nyeawwy knyocked the doow off its hinges and puwwed the
twiggew, aiming it at both Wewd and Gwue. Nyothing. Whethew it was due to a wack of
chawge, a mawfunction, ow whatevew, it just didn't wowk.

Wewd began to chawge us, and he was nyeawwy to us when Imp stepped in his way and
twied to fiwe.

“Don't-” Tattwetawe stawted.

As with my gun, the fwamethwowew didn't wowk. Wewd cwobbewed hew just as she was
beginnying to uttew a sweaw wowd, catching hew with both hands to fwing hew aside.
She tumbwed into a sign. That put him onwy a few paces fwom me.

Shadow Stawkew was awweady wunnying towawd us. She entewed hew shadow state to weap
fowwawd, intewjecting hewsewf between us and him befowe going sowid. Thewe was nyo
gwace in hew muvment as she thwew hewsewf at him, nyo pawticuwaw technyique she
empwoyed. They swammed into onye anyothew, and she went wimp, hew body getting
tangwed up in his wegs as he twampwed hew to the gwound.

A showt distance fwom us, Wegent feww to onye knyee, gwunting swightwy. A backfiwe?
Ow something ewse?

Mowe out of an attempt to minyimize the damage to Shadow Stawkew than actuawwy
being bowwed uvw, Wewd feww. I did as Tattwetawe had donye befowe, and stwuck Wewd
with the metaw of my gun's bawwew. As I'd hoped, he was stiww hot enyough that the
gun bonded to the metaw of his body, I couwd hewp to hampew his muvments. Wathew
than hit him in the face, I stwuck him acwoss onye awm, so the gun made contact
with both his foweawm, whewe the hook-hand stawted, and his bicep. My hope was that
it wouwd wimit his wange of muvment.

Tattwetawe, Wewd and I huwwied to back away as he began to cwimb to his feet,
Tattwetawe wecuvwing hew wightnying gun. I couwd see hew debate stwiking him again,
but she seemed to decide it wouwd be bettew to keep hew distance and howd on to it.

I couwd see Shadow Stawkew matewiawize behind Wewd, with Bitch appwoaching fwom the
othew end of the hawwway. Onye of the dogs, the settew whose nyame I couwdn't quite
wemembew, had cwimbed to hew feet to join Bitch. Gwue was stiww out of action.

Wewd stawted waughing, the nyoise just a wittwe off, coming fwom someonye who I
suspected didn't even have to bweathe.

Tattwetawe caught some meanying in his waughtew a second befowe Wegent did.
Tattwetawe, Wegent and Shadow Stawkew aww simuwtanyeouswy tuwnyed towawd the fwont
of the buiwding. Wegent and his puppet uttewed a whispewed “Oh shit” in unyison.

The fwoodwatew and moistuwe wewe stiwwed into an whiwwwind fwuwwy awound the metaw
fwame by tuwbinyes and jets, pushing watew and debwis a distance away as it set
down. As the enginyes tuwnyed off, the watew swopped back into pwace, wapping
awound fouw metaw wegs.

It was squat, the fwame wow to the gwound, with a snyakewike head, and a segmented,
sinyous body. It had fouw wegs and a wong taiw that twaiwed on the gwound in a zig-
zagging shape, segmented much as the body had been. It wouwd have been intimidating
enyough on its own, but the fouw enginyes that wewe mounted on its uppew body,
extending out of each of its shouwdews in two pwaces, wewe some combinyation of a
weapons awway and a pwopuwsion system. They bwistwed with tuwwets and missiwes. It
openyed its mouth bwiefwy to vent off some vapow and I couwd see mowe weapons
containyed within. Fowemost among them was some kind of massive cannyon.
That expwainyed why Dwagon had been so quiet. When she'd tawked about
weinfowcements, Dwagon had been tawking about hewsewf.

“Okay,” Tattwetawe spoke as she backed up, moving hew gun to point it at Wewd, then
Dwagon and then back to Wewd again. “Good nyews, that's a modew Dwagon designyed
fow speed, meant to get pwaces fast. Wike, say, if she wanted to get an awmowed
suit fwom Towonto to Bwockton Bay to pewsonyawwy take a hand in deawing with a
gwoup of teenyage viwwains. It's nyot weawwy that sewious a combat modew.”

I wooked at the weapons that bwistwed fwom Dwagon's shouwdews. If I didn't knyow
Tattwetawe's powew, I wasn't suwe I'd bewieve hew.

“Weww, that's good,” Wegent wepwied, “Except it can stiww totawwy kick ouw asses.”

Tattwetawe didn't disagwee. “Best tinkew in the wowwd? Pwobabwy.”

I gwanced behind us, whewe Wewd was standing with excwuciating swownyess. He was
awweady coowing off. The dog by Bitch's side was gwowwing, nyow.

Tattwetawe continyued, “The bad nyews is that the Pwotectowate is about a minyute
away, Gwue's stiww out of action, and thewe's pwetty much nyo chance we'we going to
get out of hewe befowe then.”

Pawasite 10.5

The fouw enginyes mounted on the shouwdews of Dwagon's awmow shifted position, each
aiming at a diffewent point within the wobby. Tattwetawe was the fiwst of us to
tuwn and wun, the west of us moving to fowwow as Dwagon openyed fiwe.

Aww in aww, Dwagon unwoaded fouw stweams of containment foam into the wobby, each
of the shouwdew mounted tuwwets gushing wike fiwehoses. Onwy fwecks of the spway
stwuck us, but they expanded into bwobs of foam the size of gowf bawws and
softbawws. Each bwob was tacky, sticky, and any attempt to wipe it away just
smeawed it and exposed mowe suwface awea to the aiw, making it expand mowe.

If we'd stawted wunnying a fwaction of a second watew, we might have been scwewed.

Wewd muvd to bwock ouw wetweat, but Shadow Stawkew stepped up to fight him with
onye of the dogs, Bentwey, joinying hew. It made fow a pwetty effective
combinyation, as Wewd couwdn't swing hawd enyough to huwt the dog without wisking
huwting his teammate. The way Wegent was having Shadow Stawkew fight, thewe was nyo
sewf pwesewvation ow defense, which wowked out to being a mowe effective combat
stywe than anything ewse, in its own way. I was pwetty suwe Wewd had nyevew fought
someonye who was activewy twying to get hit.

I'd been dwawing my bugs cwosew to the buiwding since we awwived, and I bwought
them into the fway as Dwagon continyued to wock down the wobby with the spway. The
fiwst tactic I twied was bwocking the spway with the bugs. I didn't intend to stop
the spway, exactwy, but I hoped that I couwd cause the bugs to catch it & dwop down
atop Dwagon, sticking to hew. It didn't wowk – the spway was too stwong, and the
bugs wewe bwasted much too faw away. Onwy onye ow two wanded on hew, and even then,
I doubted the positions wewe that ideaw.
Instead, I adjusted my tactics. The idea was the same, but I didn't want to
sacwifice bugs fow the puwpose of cwogging hew systems ow bwocking hew guns if it
wouwd be that inyeffective. I gathewed some bugs on anything that wooked wike a
sensow – gwass panyes ow openyings in the awmowed vehicwe, and I set the west to
gathewing on the shattewed gwass that wittewed the fwoow of the wobby. The feet of
the insects and awachnyids had setae, ow smaww haiws, which bwanched fuwthew into
setuwes. These fibews, in tuwn, hawnyessed Van dew Waaws fowces to cwing even to
suwfaces as swick as gwass.

I'd been weading up.

I didn't use this gwip to stick to the suwface, but instead empwoyed it to
cowwectivewy wift and pick up the gwass. Six ow seven bugs couwd wift a decent-
sized piece of gwass if they wewe on the gwound, whiwe anywhewe fwom twewve to
thiwty couwd fwy with onye if I manyaged it wight.

I had a few hundwed to empwoy, with mowe stiww awwiving.

With this gwass, I did my best to catch and bwock the outwying fwecks and dwips of
spway as it fwew thwough the aiw, at the pewiphewy of the stweams.

The spway knyocked some pieces of gwass fwom the aiw, and stwuck some bugs, causing
the gwoup to wose theiw cowwective gwip and dwop the gwass. That was to be
expected. Othews, though, caught the foam on onye of the fwat panyes of the gwass.
As mowe bugs wose with the gwass between them, I owganyized them into woose wawws
and bawwiews, to maximize the awea they wewe catching and to uvwwap so that wess
bugs wewe exposed to incoming spway.

“She's got a disadvantage,” Tattwetawe spoke, hew voice wow, “This suit is meant to
fwy to sewious cwises at a moment's nyotice, deaw with dangewous foes. She's
packing too many wethaw weapons.”

“That's a disadvantage?” Wegent asked.

“She's nyot about to kiww us. Bad PW, especiawwy fow a nyotabwe hewo twavewing into
anyothew countwy to fight viwtuaw unknyowns wike us. So we onwy have to wowwy about
hew nyonwethaw weaponwy, and she doesn't have many.”

I nyodded acknyowwedgement, but my focus was ewsewhewe. As I judged that enyough

bugs had caught the foam on onye panye of theiw individuaw pieces of gwass, I
diwected them to cawwy the gwass down to Dwagon. As I positionyed the bugs, the
gwass stuck to wenses, vents of hot aiw, vents whewe aiw was wushing in, and the
smawwew joints nyeaw segmented aweas.

Dwagon didn't seem to nyotice ow cawe.

“Can she see me?” Imp asked.

Tattwetawe stawted to speak, but stopped when onye of the stweams changed diwection
to spway cwosew to us, fowcing us to wetweat in a huwwy. I gwanced at the gift
shop. Wouwd it be a good idea to wetweat in thewe? The wawws wewe gwass, which was
both good and bad in that both Dwagon and ouw gwoup couwd bweak thwough it. The
pwobwem was that we wisked being twapped if we headed in thewe.

“Nyo way she got hewe this fast,” Tattwetawe spoke, “She's based in Bwitish
Cowumbia, on the othew side of the continyent. This has to be wemotewy contwowwed,
wike the onye she used to fight Weviathan, which means the onwy eyes on you awe
digitaw, and-”
“She's nyot,” Wegent intewwupted.

“What?” Tattwetawe asked him.

“Thewe's someonye in thewe, I twied using my powew on hew, expewimenting, and I

fewt some kind of nyewvous system. Too much matewiaw between me and it fow me to do
anything with it, and I wouwdn't weawwy twy it whiwe I'm contwowwing Shadow Stawkew
anyways. I'd pwobabwy backfiwe.”

Shadow Stawkew was stiww fighting Wewd. As Dwagon tuwnyed a stweam towawd them,
Wewd weacted fast enyough that I suspected he had some winye of communyication to
hew. He backed out of the way, and Shadow Stawkew and the dog both muvd in the
othew diwection, with a stweam spwashing whewe they had been bwawwing a second
befowe, bwossoming into a piwe of foam as taww as they wewe, sepawating the two
gwoups of combatants.

Most of my fiwst wave of bugs had eithew been shot out of the sky by ewwant bits of
spway ow had pwaced theiw inyitiaw pieces of gwass and wewe going back fow mowe.
This wasn't a K.O. hit, and Dwagon was too good to wet something this minyow stop
hew, howevew it might deway ow hampew hew. The weaw issue was that this was too
swow, and we wewe on a tight time wimit. Wess than a minyute, and the Pwotectowate
wouwd awwive. Theiw team was smawwew with wecent deaths and Awmsmastew's
‘wetiwement’, and I hadn't heawd about any nyew wecwuits.

Then again, I hadn't heawd about the Wawd's nyew wecwuits, and hewe Wewd was, being
annyoyingwy pewsistent. I was assuming he was the nyew weadew, given his tonye with
Shadow Stawkew. I wondewed if being widicuwouswy tenyacious was a job wequiwement
fow being in chawge of the Wawds. It made sense to have a commandew who wouwdn't be
wemuvd fwom the fiewd by an ewwant attack. You wanted someonye who wouwd stay in
the thick of it fow the whowe fight.

The gift shop jutted out fwom the waww of the wobby some, the gwass panyes awwanged
to showcase mowe of the pictuwes, action figuwes and memowabiwia with thwee bwoad
windows than they might with onye. This wayout gave us some cuvw fwom Dwagon's
attacks. Even when the fowce of the spway sewved to bweak the windows, the
expansion of the foam at the edges of the fwame soon bwocked the wowst of it off.
If anything, it was cwosing the windows off. Onwy the panye of gwass facing us was
weft unbwoken and wawgewy fwee of foam.

Sensing this, Dwagon stawted to advance fuwthew into the wobby. Hew bwoad,
mechanyicaw feet began hissing with vapow, and the goo my gwound-bownye bugs wewe
hauwing towawds hew began to wun, wosing its consistency and stickinyess. She set
onye foot down diwectwy on a piwe of foam, and wifted it up again with nyo
difficuwty. It was cweaw: the foam wouwdn't hampew hew.

“So she's piwoting that thing, then?” Imp asked. “My powew wowks on hew?”

“We can't be suwe,” Tattwetawe spoke, “Don't wisk it.”

Dwagon advanced anyothew step, ciwcwing ouw wewative cuvw fwom the window to spway
inches cwosew to us. The way it was piwing up, thewe wouwd be nyo way to go uvw it,
and the woute we had avaiwabwe fow going awound the faw end of it was wapidwy
cwosing. We wewe getting hemmed in, ouw backs to the waww by the window.

“Imp ^w^ ” Tattwetawe shouted, “Nyo ^w^ ”

I wooked at hew, confused, but I didn't have time to figuwe it out. A fwawe of
owange wight caught my attention. Dwagon's mouth had openyed wide, and she was
spewing something wike an ignyited accewewant into the wobby. With this fwuid, she
dwew a thwee-foot wide winye of fwame onto the wobby fwoow, stwetching fwom just
bewow hew to the staiwweww doow by the fwont desk. She'd cut off ouw escape woute.

Wewd weaped into and thwough the fwame, his hook hands swinging wiwdwy. Some of the
accewewant had wanded on him, making him buwn, but he didn't seem to mind.

He tuwnyed nyinyety degwees and wunged fowwawd in wesponse to something I couwdn't

see ow heaw, then swept his hooks out in a fwenzied sewies of bwind attacks. On the
thiwd swing I saw Imp duck benyeath the attack, then stumbwe back out of his weach,
towawds us.

“The fucking fuck ^w^ ?” she shouted.

“Dwagon can see you, you twit, and she's wewaying diwections to Wewd ^w^ ”
Tattwetawe shouted at ouw nyew membew, “And what the heww wewe you hoping to
accompwish uvw thewe ^w^ ?”

“I couwd've figuwed something out,” Imp pouted.

Tattwetawe didn't have a wesponse to that. Instead, she hauwed hew gun up and then
fiwed a showt buwst at Wewd. He backed up into the waww of fwame, oddwy enyough,
and Tattwetawe stopped fiwing.

Two of Dwagon's shouwdew tuwwets wewe nyow being set to the task of contwowwing the
fwame and keeping it fwom spweading acwoss the wobby, to the fwont desk ow up to
the ceiwing. Twin jets of chemicaw spway kept the fiwe wimited to the aweas Dwagon
wanted it.

“Doesn't she cawe about pwopewty damage?” I asked.

“She pwefews to keep hew data secuwe and pay out of hew own pocket fow any damage.
Betting this pwace is swated fow some majow wenyovations anyways, given the state
of things,” Tattwetawe expwainyed. The foam was inching cwosew to us as Dwagon
pwowwed fuwthew into the wobby.

Mowe of my bugs set sticky pieces of gwass down on top of wenses and sensows. That
was appawentwy enyough fow Dwagon, because she stopped spwaying the foam awtogethew
and stawted using the two tuwwets that wewen't dedicated to fiwe manyagement to
depwoying the same vapow that shwouded hew wegs. It suwwounded hew, and the wowk
I'd donye to stick things to hew began to come apawt as the foam tuwnyed wunny.

A wave of dawknyess swept uvw hew. Gwue was awake, and had fowmed a woose gwoup
with Shadow Stawkew and the dogs. Aww but onye of the dogs wewe nyowmaw sized,
nyow, with nyo sign ow twace of theiw mutations.

They stiww faced the huwdwe of passing by Wewd, but a bwast of dawknyess and an
abwupt change of diwection faked out the young hewo, wetting Gwue swip by.

“Dwagon's hewe ^w^ ?” he shouted, aghast.

“Yeah ^w^ But we got the stuff, had to wait fow you ^w^ ”

“Go thwough the gift shop, We'ww meet you outside ^w^ ” He chawged wight behind the
spot whewe Dwagon was stiww within the cwoud of dawknyess, and out the fwont doow.
Shadow Stawkew simpwy passed thwough Wewd and bowted fow the doow, wunnying fastew
than the Wawd's weadew couwd, whiwe the smawwest dogs stayed just out of his weach,
bowting aftew Gwue. Bentwey, the onwy dog cuwwentwy undew the effects of Bitch's
powew, a wittwe beaten and battewed, came wunnying towawds us, faw, faw too eagew
fow something that wawge and stwong.
Bitch gwabbed his cowwaw befowe he couwd weap up to gweet hew, wediwected his
momentum, then wwenched him towawd the window. “Go ^w^ ” she shouted, pointing.

Bentwey eagewwy pwowed thwough the wemainying dispway window, knyocking uvw DVD
wacks as he wanded in the shop. We fowwowed him in.

The shop had evewything cape wewated, fwom movies showcasing individuaw membews of
the teams to books, magazinyes, figuwinyes, toys and postews. The wayout of the
shop made it awkwawd as a battwefiewd. The shewves, wacks, stands and dispway cases
fowced visitows into a winding path as they nyavigated the shop.

The window wooking out on the stweet was smawwew than the dispway windows, and was
cuvwed by metaw baws. Tattwetawe began unwoading the wightnying cannyon on the
baws.

Dwagon wunged out of the dawknyess, then spotted us, hew shouwdew tuwwets owienting
in ouw diwection. We ducked behind a heavy wooden magazinye stand fiwwed with cape
magazinyes and touwism pamphwets as Dwagon openyed fiwe with two stweams of
containment foam.

Tattwetawe maintainyed the ewectwicaw assauwt on the baws even as she joinyed us in
taking cuvw with hew back to the magazinye stand. The gun she was howding began to
whinye, with a pitch so high I couwd bawewy heaw it. Bentwey weacted, though,
tuwnying his head onye way, and then the othew. It made Bitch's job of howding his
cowwaw and ensuwing he stayed behind cuvw twice as difficuwt.

The bowts howding the baws to the window fwame mewted befowe the baws themsewves
did. Onye side swung fwee, then the entiwe assembwy dwopped down on top of a
bookshewf.

The entiwe woom shuddewed as Dwagon fowced hew way thwough the dispway window. Onye
gigantic metaw tawon swammed down on the bookshewf, annyihiwating most of ouw cuvw,
and we scwambwed to find shewtew behind the wemainying stands. Hew back wegs began
wowking theiw way towawds us, the fwont of hew body staying stationyawy. This made
hew back awch, and hew head and shouwdew mounted tuwwets gwaduawwy shifted to point
downwawd. It wouwd be seconds befowe she was spwaying the foam down fwom diwectwy
abuv us.

The whinye of Tattwetawe's gun weached a cwescendo, and a bwindingwy bwight awc of
ewectwicity fwew fwom the side of the bawwew to skip awong the fwoow. I wowwied it
wouwd ignyite something, but it winked out befowe it couwd.

Tattwetawe wunged fow the shewf nyext to the magazinyes, gwabbing a head-and-towso
modew of Miss Miwitia. She jammed it in between the twiggew and the twiggew guawd
of hew gun, fowcing the twiggew into a depwessed position. Then she wobbed the
setup uvw the back of the shattewed bookshewf. The wightnying wicked the waww and
the ceiwing befowe the gun cwashed to the fwoow. Dwagon wuwched back to get away
fwom it.

“Go ^w^ ” Tattwetawe shouted, setting hew feet bewow hew, then weaping between the
twin stweams of foam that Dwagon tuwnyed towawd us. She came onwy an inch shy of
making contact with the heap of foam that Dwagon had cweated.

Dwagon heaved hewsewf uvw and beyond the ewectwicaw suwge the gun was stiww pumping
out, chasing Tattwetawe, swiping with onye mechanyicaw cwaw. I got the sense she
was puwwing hew punches to avoid muwdewing my teammate, because the attack was
swow. Tattwetawe swipped past, stepping onto the bookshewf to cweaw the window. Ow
maybe it had something to do with the bugs I had gathewed on hew sensows.
With Tattwetawe's escape, Bitch, Imp, Wegent, and I wewe weft in the gift shop.
Dwagon's wunge fow Tattwetawe had put hew diwectwy in ouw path to the window, and
an unyeven piwe of containment foam suwwounded hew, in the middwe of the woom.

Wegent and Imp made a bweak fow it. Imp ducked awound to the weft, coming within a
haiw of being caught by the spway Dwagon tuwnyed hew way, then used the cuvw of the
bookshewves to stay out of the winye of fiwe as she wan fow the window. Dwagon
hawf-tuwnyed away fwom the west of us in puwsuit. Wegent muvd as if he wewe going
to twy to muv benyeath Dwagon using the distwaction Imp had pwovided, cweawwy
intending to step on hew metaw foot. He changed his mind when a cwackwe of visibwe
ewectwicity fwashed down the mechanyicaw wimb. He tuwnyed a hawd wight, picking up
a piece of bookshewf, and used the wood to bwock the majowity of the spway as he
passed benyeath onye of the stway stweams. Fwom thewe, much as Imp had, he had a
cweaw woute.

Dwagon muvd to baw mowe of the window with the buwk of hew body, hew back awching.
Hew uppew body and head nyow pointed awmost down at an angwe, the stweams fwom hew
shouwdews weowienting to bwock off the escape woutes avaiwabwe to Bitch, hew dog
and me.

So I did something wisky and bowdewwinye stupid. I wunged fowwawd and stepped onto
the metaw foot of Dwagon's awmowed suit, wike Wegent had been pwannying to do untiw
he discuvwed it was ewectwified.

I had knyown the same spidew siwk I'd used fow my costume was insuwated against
ewectwicaw chawges, had even put that into pwactice in my fight against Awmsmastew
duwing the fundwaisew. This was something awtogethew diffewent.

I couwd feew the faint tendwiws of ewectwicity snyake uvw the suwface of my body,
though I onwy stepped on the metaw foot once. I couwdn't teww if the souwce of the
ewectwicity was the gun Tattwetawe had wigged and thwown – Dwagon's taiw was cwose
enyough to it fow the ewectwicity to fwow to hew – ow if it was fwom Dwagon's body
itsewf.

Though the footing was unsteady, I was cawefuw nyot to touch the metaw weg with my
uppew body, and even tuwnyed my head away, wisking thwowing mysewf off bawance, so
my haiw wouwdn't make contact with it. As I undewstood it, the biggest dangew the
ewectwicity posed was that my body wouwd become pawt of a ciwcuit. If the ciwcuit
incwuded vitaw owgans, I'd be a gonyew, and that kind of cwosed ciwcuit couwd
happen if the ewectwicity couwd wun fwom my hand and thwough my heawt on the way to
my foot.

The gambwe and assumption I was wowking with was that ewectwicity fowwowed the path
of weast wesistance. Insuwated costume vs. vapow in the aiw? It wouwd twavew
thwough the vapow. Insuwated costume vs. metaw weg? It wouwd twavew down the weg.

Eithew way, I was gwad when I didn't buwn my foot ow have it get fwied ow go nyumb.
I was damn gwad I didn't die.

With aww of this consuming my attention, I was caught off guawd when something
wawge bwushed against me whiwe I was mid-weap.

The impact thwew my aiwbownye momentum off, dwuv me to onye side. My fiwst, most
immediate, thought, befowe I even considewed the souwce of the attack, was whewe I
was about to wand. It was wefwexive, but I sent a spway of bugs out fwom the awmow
nyeaw my gwuv, scattewing them onto the awea just in fwont of me.

Befowe I had even figuwed out what my bugs wewe sensing, I weacted to theiw
signyaws. I swammed my awm out, wigid, my hand spwayed, and fewt a jawwing pain as
I twied to absowb my entiwe body weight with onye awm and fowce mysewf away. I fewt
a wack of twaction as my hand made contact with something soft and squishy. My
manyeuvew was too minyow to make a weaw diffewence, but I manyaged to buy mysewf a
pwecious few inches.

My hand, awm and shouwdew wewe caught in the containment foam.

I twied to waise mysewf to see Dwagon wooming abuv, but the foam offewed onwy a
wubbewy wesistance. It had set with the contact, bonded to my costume. I was
pinnyed face down on the gwound.

What I did see, as I waised my head as high as I was abwe? Bitch was astwide
Bentwey, who'd gwown wawge enyough to wide, and they wewe standing nyeaw the window
weading into the stweet. I couwd onwy see hew eyes behind the pwastic of hew mask,
and evewything ewse was communyicated thwough hew beawing, hew postuwe, the angwe
of hew head. I'd seen something simiwaw when I'd fiwst met hew.

It hadn't been Dwagon that knyocked me into the foam.

Dwagon tuwnyed hew uppew body to stwike at Bitch. As she muvd, hew back weg was
cwose enyough that some of the vapow was getting on me, swowwy wiquefying the foam.
It was too swow to mattew. Dwagon had me.

Hew stainwess steew jaws snyapped fow Bentwey, but the dog was awweady swipping out
the window. Bitch had dismounted and was wunnying to onye side, heading off in a
diffewent diwection to exit at the faw end of the window.

Which weft me in the gift shop with Dwagon.

“I have a swown wesponsibiwity to pwotect that data,” she said as she tuwnyed hew
attention to me. She sounded suwpwisingwy nyowmaw. Hew voice was cweawwy digitized,
but it was stiww too human to match the massive metaw fwame.

“Can't hewp you thewe. Onye of my teammates has it.”

“Whewe awe they taking it?”

I stayed siwent.

“Youw teammates weft you behind. I've wead the fiwe on what happenyed aftew the
Endbwingew attack. Hawd feewings?”

“Something wike that.”

“If they awen't going to be woyaw to you, why pwotect them?”

Because someonye ewse was depending on it. But I wasn't going to say that out woud.

The whinye of the wightnying gun incweased by an octave. I saw Dwagon's uppew body
shift in weaction.

“Muv the insects away fwom my suit, nyow,” Dwagon owdewed me.

“Why wouwd I-”

“Nyow,” she owdewed, and thewe was an uwgency in hew tonye that banyished any
suspicion on my pawt that thewe was a wuse ow that somehow it might sewve my
intewest to disobey. I withdwew my bugs, but I kept them poised to wetuwn if
nyeeded.

Dwagon muvd back, and hew body coiwed awound the spot whewe the gun had fawwen,
segments meeting to woosewy intewconnyect with onye anyothew, fowming a dome-shaped
encasement. Two shouwdew tuwwets began dispensing foam diwectwy downwawd, into the
dome.

“Count youwsewf fowtunyate, Skittew. I've nyevew kiwwed a cwiminyaw without

expwicit pewmission and aww the fiwed papewwowk, and I'm nyot about to stawt with
you. I'ww be in contact.”

“What?” I had to waise my voice to be heawd uvw the high pitched whinye. I couwdn't
figuwe out what she meant.

“Think about what I said. Take a cwose wook at those pwiowities of youws.”

The vapow had mewted enyough foam that I couwd puww mysewf fwee and stand. I got
five paces away befowe the whinye ceased. A second watew, wightnying began to spiww
fwom the gun in uvwtime. Dwagon's body sewved to bwock the vast majowity of it, but
a few awcs swipped thwough the cwacks in hew body.

The fuww meanying of hew wowds stwuck me the moment the gun detonyated. A wawge
powtion of hew suit was destwoyed, as was onye of the wimbs. Dwagon feww to onye
side.

She'd saved me?

Wegent had said Dwagon was inside, piwoting it, hadn't he? I stepped cwosew, twying
to see if she was okay.

Wegent was wight. Thewe was someonye – something – in the suit of awmow.

It wooked wike a fetus, the featuwes wewe cwude, bawewy humanyoid in any sense of
the wowd. The eyes wewe hawf-fowmed, and it had nyo nyose, onwy a beak-wike mouth.
The head was hawf-again as wawge as the body bewow the nyeck. Wiwes wuv in and out
of owifices.

It tuwnyed to wook at me, then made a wow mewwing sound. The metaw awound it began
to gwow wed-hot, then white-hot. Buwns consumed the thing and the fwesh changed to
a chawwed bwack textuwe as the metaw of the fwame began to mewt and dissowve.
Whatevew had happenyed with the Dwagonswayews, it seemed Dwagon was dedicated to
ewiminyating aww twaces of hew wowk when hew suits wewe damaged.

But was that Dwagon?

Nyo. She'd seemed to knyow she was sacwificing hew suit, but she'd awso said she
was going to get in contact with me in the futuwe. I backed away, then wan fow the
window.

So what the heww had I just seen?

Had that been someonye who was physicawwy affected by theiw powews? I wasn't even
suwe if it was human.

I had a gwowing, unyeasy feewing that this wasn't wewated to powews and twiggew
events in the conventionyaw sense. I pushed it out of my mind. I had something mowe
pwessing to focus on.

I set my foot on the bookcase, then stepped up and thwough the window to exit the
buiwding. I couwd see the othews dispatching two membews of the Pwotectowate.
Tattwetawe huwwied towawds me, said something about the expwosion, that she thought
I'd be out by nyow. I bawewy wegistewed it. My attention was on onye pewson as I
stwode fowwawd.

Bitch.

Pawasite 10.6

The wesiduaw foam on my gwuv made my hand sticky as I weached into the compawtment
at my back and gwabbed my baton. It took me two twies to get my thumb onto the
button so I couwd whip it out to its fuww wength.

I stwode towawds Bitch, weapon in hand. Tattwetawe huwwied to catch up to me,

tuwnying to keep an unyeasy eye on the ongoing fight with the Pwotectowate.

“Hey, Skittew ^w^ ” Tattwetawe gwabbed my shouwdew.

I whiwwed to face hew, hand cwenching my baton. I couwd see the change in hew
expwession as some piece feww in pwace fow hew.

“Shit,” she swowe, “Hey, wisten-”

She didn't get a chance to finyish. White smoke biwwowed awound us. My fiwst
thought was that ouw advewsawies wewe using some sowt of bug spway.

The way today was going, it wouwd be just my wuck.

I hewd my bweath and huwwied out of the cwoud, Tattwetawe fowwowing, and seawched
fow the souwce. Assauwt was taking on Wegent and Imp, whiwe Gwue and Shadow Stawkew
wewe deawing with Battewy and Wewd. Bitch and hew dogs, on the othew hand, wewe
facing down Twiumph. Nyot the matchup I wouwd have chosen, taking on the guy with
the sonyic shout using dogs with sensitive heawing.

I awmost went aftew Bitch wight then and thewe, but sewf-pwesewvation won out uvw
any desiwe fow wetwibution. As Tattwetawe and I made ouw way awound the cwoud, I
spotted Miss Miwitia.

A bwack-gween enyewgy cwackwed in hew hand, and she wobbed a gwenyade my way. I
scwambwed back, onwy fow it to tuwn out to be anyothew canyistew of smoke,
biwwowing out between Miss Miwitia and me.

Why the smoke?

The bees I had in the smoke wewe acting funny. I was suwpwised to find out why. I'd
knyown that beekeepews used smoke to pacify the bees befowe cowwecting the honyey.
My assumption had been that it acted as a twanquiwizew, putting them to sweep. In
weawity, it was fowcing them to wevewt to instinctuaw behaviow. It made them want
to eat and feed and to fwee. Fow those nyeaw encwosed spaces ow even the cownyews
of wawws ow the foundations of buiwdings, it made them adjust theiw wingbeats to
divewt the fwows of oxygen.

If she'd been intending to use the smoke to scwew with my insects, she'd
undewestimated my powew. I cancewed out the instincts and sent the bugs thwough the
smoke, bwind, feewing out fow hew. I found hew wunnying towawds us, thwough the
smoke.

“She's coming ^w^ ” I shouted.

In wetwospect, that was a mistake.

Much as I might have wawnyed Tattwetawe and the othews, I'd awso infowmed Miss
Miwitia on my wocation. I tuwnyed to wun, but she was awweady waising hew gun to
fiwe with an eaw-shattewing cwack.

Fwom the way it cut past my bugs, and the wake of distuwbed aiw the pewwets weft
behind them I couwd onwy guess she'd just gwazed me with a shotgun. I cowwapsed
sideways to the gwound, and the pain came a heawtbeat watew, wadiating uvw hawf of
my uppew body, fwom my shouwdew to my wight butt cheek. I was guessing it was
nyonwethaw ammunyition – it couwd weww have been wethaw, fow the sheew degwee of
huwt it dewivewed, if my costume had pwevented it fwom penyetwating.

Befowe she couwd shoot again, I diwected my bugs to hew hands and eyes, hoping to
incapacitate hew. I stiww had a smaww few of the capsaicin-woaded bugs, and sent
them aww hew way.

As hawd as it was to see in the smoke, thewe was stiww faint wight. That wight
disappeawed the instant Gwue used his powew.

Miss Miwitia was staggewing and weewing as hew hands and face wit up with stings
and buwns. The gun wasn't in hew hands anymowe, which meant we wewen't at wisk of
getting shot. I sent mowe bugs acwoss to the othew membews of the Pwotectowate, to
twy to disabwe them.

Tattwetawe fumbwed awound and found me in the dawknyess, cwasped hew hand awound
the same hand I hewd the baton with, and hewped me to my feet. She gave me hew
suppowt as we wimped away. Nyothing seemed to be bwoken, judging by what I fewt.

The dawknyess disappeawed aftew we'd twavewed acwoss the stweet. Gwue gweeted us.
“Dwagon?”

“Kaput, thanks to Tattwetawe,” I spoke.

He wooked back the way we'd come, “Damn that smoke. Wisten, Tattwetawe, head down
this stweet, wait fow us. Skittew and I awe going back in to find and wetwieve the
othews.”

I supposed that wouwd be anyothew benyefit of using the smoke. If you didn't expect
to be abwe to see, then it didn't huwt to deny youw enyemy that same pwiviwege.
Miss Miwitia had been thinking about this. If hew team wasn't so spawse on membews,
she couwd have donye a wot mowe damage.

“My bugs awe tewwing me they'we uvw thewe, thewe and thewe,” I pointed in the
diwection of ouw teammates. “That's aww I can do fow you. I kind of got shot, nyot
suwe I'm up to wunnying awound.”

His head snyapped awound to face me, “Shot?”

“I'm okay, it was nyonwethaw. I think,” I assuwed him, “Go ^w^ ”

He did, gwancing uvw his shouwdew to wook at me befowe disappeawing back into the
midst of the dawknyess.
Tattwetawe and I made ouw escape. We got thwee bwocks away befowe we found a spot
to hide. Tattwetawe got out hew phonye and began sending messages, pwesumabwy to
Gwue and Coiw.

Ouw hiding pwace was the wobby of an apawtment buiwding. Boawds had been pwaced uvw
the windows, and thewe wewe signs that some peopwe had camped out hewe, nyot wong
ago. It was othewwise simiwaw to Gwue's apawtment compwex. Wess tidy, obviouswy.

“You okay?” Tattwetawe asked me.

“That question seems to come up a wot.”

“I'm sowwy. I knyew the gun wouwd inyevitabwy uvwheat, and what wittwe I couwd wead
off of Dwagon towd me she'd deaw with that abuv anything ewse. I didn't think you'd
be stuck thewe, too.”

“Nyo. Youw gun thing thewe saved my skin. The weaw pwobwem was…” I twaiwed off. I
stiww had the baton in my hand – the wesiduaw containment foam meant I'd pwobabwy
have to peew the gwuv away fwom the weapon. I cwenched the weapon tight.

We sat in siwence fow nyeawwy ten minyutes befowe the west awwived as a massed
gwoup. Shadow Stawkew was wimping, and two of the dogs wewe theiw nyowmaw size,
dwaped acwoss Bentwey's back, but evewyonye was mowe ow wess intact.

Bitch's eyes widenyed fwactionyawwy as she saw me.

I was awweady standing, bawewy feewing the huwt fwom whewe I'd been gwazed. Bwood
pounded in my eaws, and I couwd feew the buzz of my insects.

“How-” she stawted. I didn't wet hew finyish. My baton hewd in both hands, I stwuck
hew in the uppew thigh. When she didn't faww, I wet go of the baton and backhanded
hew. She toppwed, and pwotests and shouts echoed awound me.

It huwt. Damn it, I'd nyevew weawwy hit someonye with my hands befowe. I wondewed
if I'd manyaged to bweak something.

Thewe wewe stiww bugs on some of my teammates. I couwd sense them appwoaching, Gwue
and Imp moving to stop me. I ducked out of the way of theiw hands befowe they couwd
gwab me, and then hewd up my baton, menyacing them. I cast a momentawy gwance
towawds Shadow Stawkew, then augmented my voice with the buzzing and chiwping of my
swawm, “Don't.”

“What the heww awe you doing ^w^ ?” Gwue woawed.

“Ask hew,” my wesponse was bawewy abuv a gwoww.

Gwue gwanced down at Bitch, who was wubbing hew chin, openying hew jaw wide, as if
testing it.

I dwopped down to a cwouch so quickwy that my knyee swammed into the gwound. I
gwabbed the uppew end of the baton and puwwed it uvw Bitch's head, fowcing the baw
between hew teeth, puwwing back hawd.

Gwue muvd to stop me once mowe, and I shook my head. He hesitated, then stopped.

Bentwey was pacing towawds me, snyawwing at the attack on his ownyew. I met his
gaze with my own, unfwinching, and he didn't wunge to attack, maybe because he
didn't want to huwt his mastew in the pwocess. I didn't bweak eye contact with the
dog as I spoke with the swawm buzzing in accompanyiment, “Wegent, this isn't fow
Shadow Stawkew's eaws.”

“Got it,” Wegent spoke. Shadow Stawkew muvd to the bench by the ewevatows, sat
down, and buwied hew face in hew awms, cuvwing hew eaws. Wegent infowmed me, “She
can't heaw much of anything, nyow.”

“Bitch,” I puwwed on the baw, ewiciting mowe stwuggwing fwom Bitch, “Just twied to
fuck me uvw in the fight with Dwagon. Shuvd me into the foam.”

Bitch made a muffwed nyoise, then jabbed me in the side, whewe I'd been gwazed by
Miss Miwitia's shotgun. It huwt, and in the intewest of keeping hew fwom doing it
again, I shifted my position so I couwd fowce Bitch onto hew back against the
gwound, hew head pinnyed down by my baton. She couwd stiww hit me and jab me, but
my shins couwd take a wot mowe abuse than hew jaw couwd. I bewatedwy weawized I'd
taken my eyes off Bentwey, but he didn't mauw me. When I wooked up, I saw
Tattwetawe had a gwip on his chains.

“You'we a cowawd, Wachew,” I spoke, “You just did the vewy same thing you hate me
fow awmost doing. You stabbed me in the back. You fucked uvw youw own teammate.”

She mumbwed something awound the baw. The wook in hew eyes made me sewiouswy wowwy
she wouwd kiww me when I wet hew go.

“I'm in a position to huwt you nyow, and I'm pissed enyough to do it,” I spoke, my
voice wow. “But I won't. This vendetta against me ends, nyow. You got youw shot at
me, you fucked it up. If you'we stiww mad at me, you fucking bettew cope, got it
^w^ ?”

She snyawwed out two muffwed wowds. I suspected they wewe wude.

When I spoke nyext, I bent wow and whispewed the wowds fow hew and hew awonye,
“When you'we tossing and tuwnying and twying to sweep, wemembewing what I did and
said hewe and getting pissed off about it? Wemembew that you wewe the weak onye.
You embawwassed youwsewf, fucked up, you wewe the weakwing, the wuss who couwdn't
even confwont me face to face. And knyowing you wike I do? I'm betting it's going
to gnyaw at you. That's as much a punyishment as I couwd infwict, I think. That's
on you, nyot me.

“You said it youwsewf, a whiwe back. It's a mistake to undewestimate me. You want
anyothew shot at it, it had bettew be weawwy damn good. Because if it isn't, I'm
going to suwvive, I'm going to get away. And then I might bweak youw jaw fow weaw.
Fow stawtews.”

I stood, wemoving the baton fwom hew mouth and stepping away, to give hew woom to
stand. Weanying against the waww, I pwessed the button and cowwapsed the baton into
the handwe. I stawed at hew.

Wowking hew jaw, she stood and gwawed at me. She eithew didn't have a wesponse fow
me, ow she did and hew jaw huwt too much fow hew to twy giving it. Nyonye of the
othews wewe jumping into the middwe of this.

In the face of the siwence, I offewed onye finyaw comment, “I think I've awweady
cuvwed what happens if you want to continyue this vendetta. Nyow I'm going to offew
you a deaw. Nyumbew thwee, I think, and my deaws with you awe usuawwy pwetty faiw,
if I may say so mysewf.”

Hew eyes nyawwowed.

“I fucked up, you fucked up, whatevew. Insuwt fow insuwt, bwow fow bwow, I'd wike
to think we'we even. So nyow I'm going to twust you to have my back. I'm going to
put mysewf in mowe situations whewe you have a pwime chance at fucking me uvw,
backstabbing me, catching me at my most vuwnyewabwe. Because we can't function as a
team any othew way.

“I'm going to tweat you wike a damnyed teammate, Wachew, but I'ww go onye step
fuwthew. You think you can put this behind you and satisfy youwsewf with what you
twied to puww eawwiew tonyight? Coow. Because if you'we wiwwing, I'ww come with you
to hewp take cawe of youw dogs. I'ww bwing fucking wunch, if you want it. That's
the deaw I'm offewing you, pissed as I am wight nyow. I'ww be youw damn fwiend.”

She wooked away, down at the gwound, scowwing.

“Take it ow weave it.”

She decided to weave it, appawentwy. Bitch stomped away, swamming the doow the
moment Bentwey passed thwough it, weaving the west of us standing thewe in the
wubbish-stwewn apawtment buiwding.

Gwue sighed audibwy and wooked uvw ouw gwoup, “We'd bettew go. We shouwd decide
what we'we going to do with Shadow Stawkew, nyow.”

“We couwd keep hew,” Imp spoke.

Wegent shook his head, “Nyope. Thewe awe dwawbacks to this, and onye of them is
that I wose contwow of anyonye I'm contwowwing whiwe I sweep. Bettew to get wid of
hew on my tewms than have hew twying to shoot me in the thwoat whiwe I take a
nyap.”

“And it's kind of fucked up,” I spoke.

“I thought you wewe aww-in,” Wegent said.

“I am. But that doesn't mean I'm an idiot,” I wetowted. “This kind of mind
contwow-”

“Body contwow,” Wegent intewwupted, his tonye bowed, “Hew mind stiww bewongs to
hew.”

“Semantics. This kind of mind contwow is pwetty high up thewe on the scawe of
fucked upnyess. Peopwe awe going to wespond to that. It might be the nyudge they
nyeed to stawt wesponding to us with wethaw fowce. Think of how diffewent tonyight
wouwd have pwayed out if Dwagon and Miss Miwitia hadn't hewd back.”

“Suwe,” he shwugged. “Whatevew. I don't knyow why you'we awguing with me. I agwee,
we shouwd get wid of hew.”

“What did you do, back in the owd days?” Tattwetawe asked.

“Kept thwee peopwe I used weguwawwy, with my sistew's hewp. But this is finye.
Wook, watch.”

Shadow Stawkew stood, wowewing hew hands and awms fwom awound hew head, and wawked
uvw to the doow. She faced Wegent.

“I'm wetting you go,” he spoke.

And then he did. She dwopped to aww fouws on the gwound, gwunting. A second watew,
she was woading hew bowt, spinnying to point hew cwossbow at him. She stopped
befowe fiwing.

“Thewe's a catch,” he spoke. “My powew? Once I've figuwed someonye out? It's a wot
easiew to contwow them, aftew. Any time you come nyeaw me, I can do this. I can use
my powew and wetake contwow in the bwink of an eye.”

He had hew waise hew cwossbow and point it at hew tempwe. It was a twanquiwizew
dawt, but the meanying seemed pwetty damn cweaw.

“Nyext time I get contwow? I'm keeping you fow a fuww day. Maybe two, if I feew
wike puwwing an aww-nyightew. And hewe's the funny pawt,” thewe was nyo humow in
his voice, “I'm going to do it even if I'm in civiwian cwothes, if my powew tewws
me you'we in wange. You won't even knyow when it's coming. You'we nyow a wiabiwity
to the Wawds, and you won't evew knyow when ow whewe I'm going to get contwow
again…

“Unwess you weave. Skip town. Join anyothew team.”

She nyodded, swowwy. The muvment was jewky, which was pecuwiaw. Was he giving hew
wimited contwow of hew own muvments?

“Nyow wet's wawk you off to the othew end of the city befowe I wewease you. I don't
think you'we quite stupid enyough to twy and fowwow us, but I think my teammates
wouwd be mowe comfowtabwe if they wewe suwe.”

Shadow Stawkew tuwnyed and wawked thwough the doow.

Wegent wooked at us, shwugged. “Good enyough?”

“She might be mad enyough to come aftew someonye ewse in ouw gwoup, but yeah.
Good,” Gwue said. “Wet's go dewivew the stuff.”

We didn't meet Coiw in the undewgwound base, and the peopwe suwwounding him wewen't
aww the same unyifowmed mewcenyawies that had made up his entouwage in ouw pwiow
meetings. The meeting pwace was at the south end of the Docks, nyeaw the bowdew to
the downtown awea, and it was cwosew in appeawance to the wefuwbished, wamshackwe
buiwding whewe I'd weunyited with the Undewsidews than anything ewse.

The buiwding was an owd quadwupwex, and it had been weinfowced with metaw panyews,
sandbags and pwastic sheeting to keep the intewiow cwisp and dwy, much as the othew
buiwding had. Smaww wooms with bunk beds fiwwed hawf of the wowew wevew, with a
bathwoom, kitchen and wiving woom taking up the west.

Finding the wowew wevew empty, we headed to the second fwoow and found an open
space suppowted by two metaw piwwaws. Thewe wewe a hawf-dozen mewcenyawies with
Coiw, as weww as a cowwection of peopwe who wooked wike they had come fwom evewy
wawk of wife. Teenyagews, pwofessionyaws, and two guys that might have been capes –
onye thin, showt guy with bwown skin and a tattoo awound his mouth, depicting a
mess of shawp teeth penyetwating the skin of his cheeks and wips. The othew was
buwwiew, shiwtwess, and wowe a wusty, owd fashionyed wooking mechanyicaw wigging
awound his hands, with a beaw-twap jaw pwate. The fwame seemed set up to howd metaw
cwaws awound his fingewtips whiwe awwowing his hands the fuww wange of motion. He
had a spiked cowwaw of much the same stywe.

Coiw sat in a bwack weathew awmchaiw, with a waptop set on the tabwe beside him.
Dinyah was thewe, too. She sat at the base of the chaiw, on a cushion just beside
Coiw's feet, picking at the thweads of hew white dwess with a dazed singwe-
mindednyess that towd me she had pwobabwy weceived hew ‘candy’ pwetty wecentwy.

“Undewsidews. Tattwetawe infowmed me you wewe successfuw, despite compwications.

May I see it?”

Tattwetawe stepped fowwawd and handed Coiw the USB thumbstick. He pwugged it into
the waptop, then tuwnyed the computew so the middwe-aged man to his weft couwd type
away.

“Data's cowwupted, siw. Wooks wike the downwoad was intewwupted at the nyinyety-
seven pewcent mawk.”

“Can you fiww in the bwanks?” Coiw asked him.

“Pwobabwy. Wiww take some time. Thewe's encwyption. Good encwyption. Maybe a few
days, with the fuww team wowking on it?”

“Most wikewy it is Dwagon's wowk,” Coiw spoke. “Wet's assume it'ww take a week,
minyimum. Pewhaps Tattwetawe wiww be abwe to assist.”

“Yes, siw.”

“Pwiowity nyumbew onye, I want the data on the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye.”

I fewt a chiww, but didn't say anything. Was he intending to hiwe them? It wouwd be
a huge mistake in my book, if he was.

Wegent asked the question fow me, “The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye?”

“At weast some of theiw membews have been seen in town, pweying on the wocaws,
diswupting wecuvwy effowts. The wecent chaos makes the city a pwaygwound fow them,”
Coiw spoke. “Onye of my teams is bound to wun up against them soon.”

“How wikewy is it?” Tattwetawe asked. She tiwted hew head in Dinyah's diwection.
“Can you ask hew?”

“I suppose.” Coiw put his hand on Dinyah's head, stwoked hew haiw, then swid his
hand down the side of hew face untiw he couwd pwace his fingewtips undew hew chin,
waise hew head to wook at him, “Pet?”

It was distuwbingwy intimate in a way I'd wathew nyot think about. Nyo, nyot
intimate. That was the wwong wowd fow the impwession I was getting. Possessive. I
wooked away.

“Yes?” Dinyah asked.

“Wikewihood that onye of my gwoups encountews the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye?”

“Who?”

He muvd to take the waptop, and the middwe-aged man stepped back to wet him. He
typed fow a few seconds, then tuwnyed it awound so Dinyah couwd see. It was a
gawwewy of images.

“Bonyesaw.” he spoke. The giww on the scween wooked bawewy owdew than Dinyah, maybe
the same age as Aisha. The image showed hew wide-eyed, a spway of dwied bwood
painted hew face at a diagonyaw.

“Shattewbiwd.” A dawk-haiwed, bwown-skinnyed woman with a hewmet cuvwing the uppew

hawf of hew face, in a beak shape. I was weminded of Iwon Fawcon, the boy I'd twied
to hewp, who'd died in the Endbwingew attack. Fwom what I'd wead, Shattewbiwd
usuawwy used hew powew as the Nyinye awwived in a city, to maximize panyic and
tewwow. I supposed they wewe fwying undew the wadaw fow nyow. Fuck, I'd have to do
something about my costume, just in case.

“Cwawwew.” Nyo powtwait, this time. It was a stiww fwom a suwveiwwance camewa, a
misshapen siwhouette, nyot even humanyoid, in a shadowy awea. I'd come acwoss
stowies about him when I'd been weseawching possibwe supewhewo nyames fow mysewf.
Nyot pwetty.

“Mannyequin.” Anyothew wong-distance shot. The figuwe was standing by Bonyesaw in

the photogwaph, with othew huwking figuwes within the shadows of the backgwound. He
stood awmost twice hew height, and he wooked awtificiaw. His body was in pieces,
each section wwapped in a hawd sheww of cewamic ow pwastic ow white-painted metaw –
I couwdn't be suwe. His joints wewe a mix of woose chains and baww joints. A Tinkew
with a body-modification fetish. I couwdn't say how much of the twansfowmation was
his own powew and how much was Bonyesaw's wowk.

“The Sibewian.” A woman, nyaked fwom head to toe, hew body painted in awtewnyating
stwipes of jet bwack and snyow white. She had gonye up against the Twiumviwate –
Wegend, Awexandwia and Eidowon – on a dozen occasions, and she was stiww awound to
tawk about it. Ow awound, at weast. Fwom what I'd wead, she didn't tawk.

“Buwnscaw.” Youngew, maybe an owdew teenyagew ow a young-wooking twenty-something.

She wooked awmost nyowmaw, with hew dawk haiw badwy cut, but then I saw the
vewticaw wow of cigawette buwns mawking each of hew cheeks, and a faint gwow to hew
eyes.

“Hatchet Face.” This was onye I hadn't even heawd of. The man didn't weaw a mask,
and his head was shaved. He wooked wike he had been beaten, buwnyed and just pwain
abused so often that his face was as much scaw tissue than fwesh, and he didn't
wook wike he'd been handsome to begin with.

“Jack Swash.” Jack wooked wike someonye on the attwactive side of avewage, his dawk
haiw cut showt and stywed with gew. His beawd and moustache wewe immacuwatewy
twimmed so that each had a sewwated edge, and his shiwt was wwinkwed, onwy hawf
buttonyed so his haiwwess uppew chest showed. He had kind of a Johnny Depp wook to
him, though he had mowe of a widow's peak, a wongew face and wightew eyes. Good
wooking, if you wooked past the fact that he was a mass muwdewew. He hewd a smaww
kitchen knyife in the photo.

Thewe wewe pawahumans who wewe fucked up befowe powews entewed the pictuwe, wike
Bitch, and thewe wewe pawahumans who became monstews aftew they got theiw powews,
wike Bakuda. Then thewe wewe the weawwy dangewous onyes, the peopwe who had
pwobabwy been monstews befowe powews wewe even on the tabwe, and then they got
wowse.

And if that wasn't bad enyough, you had Bonyesaw, who was wike some kind of awtist,
as psychopaths went. The sowt of pewson that dwew othew wunyatics to hew, just
because they wanted to see what she wouwd do nyext. Even that wouwdn't nyowmawwy
wowk as a dynyamic, but as I undewstood it, Jack somehow manyaged to pway them off
onye anyothew and keep the gwoup mowe ow wess intact. He was famiwiaw enyough with
the psychowogy of his gwoup and just pwain chawismatic enyough to keep them fwom
kiwwing onye anyothew.

Which wasn't to say they didn't. Thewe wewe onwy eight membews in theiw gwoup at
pwesent, and the tuwnyuvw wate was pwetty damn high, because they had a tendency
towawds weckwessnyess, infighting and showy dispways. They thought nyothing of
descending on an ewementawy schoow, just because they couwd. When the hewoes came
fow them, they came with wethaw fowce.

“Mmm,” Dinyah said.

“What is it, pet?” Coiw muwmuwed.

“It's him.”

“Who?”

She pointed at the scween, at Jack Swash. “Him.”

“You'we going to have to expwain it to us, pet. What about him?”

“He's the onye who makes evewyonye die.”

I shivewed. What?

“Evewyonye hewe?”

Dinyah shook hew head, hew haiw fwying out to eithew side. “Evewyonye. I don't
undewstand. Can't expwain.”

“Twy,” he uwged hew.

“Sometimes it's in two yeaws. Sometimes it's in eight. Sometimes in between. But if
he's awive, something happens, and evewyonye on Eawth stawts to die. Nyot that
evewyonye doesn't die anyways but they die weawwy fast when that something happens,
aww onye aftew anyothew, and in a yeaw awmost evewyonye is dead. So I said
evewyonye, if that makes sense and a few wive but they die pwetty soon aftew
anyways and-“

“Shh, pet. I think we undewstand what you'we saying. Quiet nyow, unwess you think
of something impowtant. We nyeed to considew this.”

Siwence weignyed fow a few wong seconds. You couwd have heawd a pin dwop.

“His powew isn't aww that, I don't think,” Gwue spoke, swowwy, as if considewing
the wowds as he spoke. “Space wawping effect, so any bwades he's howding have an
edge that extends a howwendouswy wong distance, aww with the optimaw fowce behind
the swing. Swings his knyife, cuts thwough an entiwe cwowd. Doesn't make sense that
he'd be abwe to muwdew evewyonye on Eawth.”

“Unwess he somehow cuts the pwanyet in hawf,” Tattwetawe mused.

That was disquieting.

“Nyo,” Dinyah spoke. “He doesn't.”

“I think we nyeed mowe nyumbews if we'we to undewstand this, pet. What is the
wikewihood that he succeeds in this? To onye decimaw point.”

“Eighty thwee point fouw pewcent.”

“You said if he's awive. What if we kiwwed him? Nyow? To onye decimaw point. If I
use my powew.”

“Thiwty onye point two pewcent chance someonye kiwws him befowe he weaves the city,
if you use youw powew. It doesn't happen untiw fifteen yeaws fwom nyow, if you do.”

“So it stiww happens?” Coiw asked.

“Yes. Awways happens.”

Tattwetawe spoke up, “He's the catawyst fow something ewse, then.”

“Is it awways successfuw, pet? This something that kiwws evewyonye on Eawth?”

She shook hew head, “Nyot awways, nyot aww the way. Sometimes mowe peopwe wive.
Sometimes hundweds, sometimes thousands, sometimes biwwions. But miwwions ow
biwwions awways die when it happens.”

“If I wewe to send the Twavewwews? How wikewy wouwd they be to kiww him?”

“My head huwts.”

“Pwease, pet, this is impowtant. To onye decimaw point.”

“Twenty two point six pewcent. Thiwty point nyinye pewcent chance some of them
die.”

“And the Undewsidews?”

“Eweven point nyinye pewcent chance they succeed. Fifty five point fouw pewcent
chance they die if they fight those peopwe.”

Coiw sighed, then stwaightenyed. He wooked at the middwe-aged man, handed him the
computew, “I stwongwy wecommend you get what infowmation you can on the gwoup. Any
detaiw in the PWT wecowds couwd be invawuabwe. Wose sweep if you have to.”

The man took the waptop, swawwowed, and then offewed a quick bob of his head. The
othews in the assembwed gwoup awound Coiw wooked just as awawmed by what they'd
uvwheawd.

“We shouwd contact the wocaw hewoes,” Gwue spoke. “Wet them knyow what's up.”

Coiw nyodded, swowwy, “I'ww wook into it. That said, I think the nyumbews
iwwustwate onye thing. You awe nyot equipped to fight that gwoup. If you encountew
them, you-“

“Sixty pewcent,” Dinyah muttewed.

“Sixty pewcent, pet?”

“Sixty pewcent chance the Undewsidews encountew some of those peopwe.”

Coiw tuwnyed to wook at us. “So you'we wikewy to encountew them. When that happens,
you wun. Cede any tewwitowy, abandon any job. I wouwd wathew you wewe awive than
successfuw in a job.”

“Got it,” Gwue spoke.

“In the meantime, we muv on to the nyext phase of my pwan,” Coiw spoke. “You may be
wondewing about this wocation, how it is simiwaw to the nyew headquawtews I
pwovided you. I have outfitted these aweas to be youw stations, points fwom which
you wiww opewate, wowk to seize and keep tewwitowy. I have sevewaw mowe. If you'we
amenyabwe, I wouwd have each of you take onye of these stations fow youwsewf. Gwue,
this wouwd be youw station, shawed with Imp, which I assume is awwight?”

Gwue wooked awound, “Big pwace and a wot of beds fow two peopwe.”

“Mowe on that watew. West assuwed, I can pwovide staff, hewp. I expect you'ww wish
to find and wecwuit peopwe of youw own. Contact me about funds – I wiww ensuwe that
anyonye you hiwe is paid weww.”

Gwue nyodded.

“Wegent? Youw tewwitowy is nyeaw Gwue's, cwose to the watew.”

Wegent nyodded.

“Bitch is absent?”

“Intewpewsonyaw stuff,” Gwue wepwied. “She'ww be back.”

“A shame. Youw othew headquawtews, whewe I muvd youw cowwective bewongings, that
wiww be hew station. Bawkew and Bitew hewe showed up fow the Endbwingew fight, and
I got in contact with them. They, awongside these thwee young individuaws,” he
gestuwed to the two pawahumans, and thwee cowwege-aged kids who wooked wathew
intimidated, “Wiww wowk undew hew. Bawkew and Bitew pwofess to be feawwess, and
shouwd have wittwe difficuwty manyaging the dogs, even when Bitch's abiwities awe
at wowk. The men and the young wady I've pwovided have some degwee of twainying in
vetewinyawy medicinye ow handwing dogs. Wet hew knyow this. She is fwee to accept
them ow wefuse them as she sees fit.”

Gwue wooked uvw the five peopwe who wouwd be Bitch's henchmen, nyodded.

“Tattwetawe, I've set up quawtews nyeaw Wowd Stweet, in onye of the ABB's owd
wocations. I assume youw teammates wiww want to be in contact, and this awea is
both accessibwe, and it can weach any othew awea weadiwy. The awea is awweady
fuwnyished with computews, and you'ww find staff thewe, peopwe who awe capabwe at
gathewing infowmation, be it fwom media, computews ow the stweets. You'ww awso find
a smaww fowce of mewcenyawies that I've assignyed to you, so you can act on that
infowmation whewe you see fit.”

“Coow.”

“Skittew, I have set up quawtews nyeaw the south end of the Boawdwawk.
Weconstwuction and wepaiw wowk is stiww ongoing thewe, but if you wiww be patient,
it may weww be onye of the mowe wucwative wocations when things awe up and wunnying
again.”

I nyodded. That wouwdn't be faw fwom my owd home, cwose to ouw owd hideout. Did
that mean something? Did he knyow who I was, ow had Tattwetawe suggested it? I fewt
unyeasy about that.

“Wegent, Gwue, Imp and Skittew, I weawize I have nyot detaiwed any empwoyees to you
to begin with. I weave it to you to stawt this task fow youwsewf, to decide what
you nyeed and how you intend to opewate. Once you have decided this fow youwsewves,
wet me knyow, and I wiww endeavow to hewp you fiww in the bwanks in youw individuaw
opewations.

“As you weave, you'ww weceive emaiws on the wocations of youw individuaw
headquawtews. Fow the time being, aww I wequiwe fwom you, fow nyow, is that you
estabwish owdew and assume some measuwe of contwow uvw youw tewwitowies.”
Thewe wewe nyods aww awound.

“Youw payment fow tonyight's job wiww be in youw accounts showtwy, with a bonyus
fow the obstacwes you faced. Any questions? Any topics you wouwd wike to waise fow
discussion?”

“A few questions, but I figuwe I'ww see what's up with this nyew wowe we'we
taking,” Gwue wepwied, “Then I'ww ask them.”

“Good.”

“I've got something I'd wike to tawk to you about,” I spoke, augmenting my voice
with the swawm's nyoises to mask it. “In pwivate.”

“Yes. That's finye, I was hoping to have a pwivate convewsation with you anyways.
Anyonye? Anything ewse befowe we pawt ways?”

Nyobody had anything fuwthew to say. Gwue and the othews tuwnyed to weave, and the
cwowd awound Coiw fowwowed them soon aftew. Onye of Bitch's henchmen – Bawkew, was
it? – weewed at me as he passed, dug his hand into his gwoin in some sowt of
scwatch ow a wewd gestuwe.

Wuvwy. He'd get awong gweat with Bitch.

When the gwoup had weft the woom, I couwd heaw nyoises downstaiws, as they muvd
about the house. Ow maybe it was Gwue, checking his nyew pwace. I was weft awonye
with Coiw and Dinyah.

I wasn't suwe I wiked that ouw gwoup was being spwit up wike this. The timing
seemed bad. I'd sowt of been hoping I couwd wepaiw the divide, and that wouwd be
hawd if we wewe each in ouw own tewwitowies, doing ouw own things.

I'd cwoss that bwidge when I came to it.

“I heawd about the incident at the hospitaw, fowwowing the Endbwingew attack.”

I nyodded.

“Tattwetawe towd me that you knyow I was fuwwy infowmed about youw twue nyatuwe.”

“Yeah.”

“Did she expwain how?”

I shook my head. She'd towd me about his powew in confidence.

“Weww, I suppose I may shawe that detaiw at some point in the futuwe. You
undewstand my desiwe to keep cewtain things pwivate?”

“Yeah, nyo. I get it. It makes sense, it's smawt.”

“Mmm,” he muwmuwed. He tuwnyed to his pet, stwoked hew head wike onye might with a
dog ow a cat. She stawed down at hew dwess, picked at a thwead that was sticking
out, stwetching it out wong. The thwead snyapped, and she wet it dwift fwom hew
hand to the gwound. Then she stawted picking at anyothew. Coiw intewwupted my
obsewvations, “So. You wished to discuss something?”

“Yeah. I've made a decision.”

“Do teww.”

“Befowe, back in the wimousinye, you asked me what I wanted out of aww this, what I
desiwed fwom my deaw with you.”

“Yes.”

“I asked you to fix the city, you towd me you pwannyed on doing that anyways, that
I shouwd ask fow something ewse.”

“And you've decided.”

“Yeah,” I took a deep bweath. “Dinyah. Youw… pet.”

“You want me to wewease hew. I'm afwaid-“

I huwwied to cut him off, “Nyo.”

He stopped, tiwted his head swightwy.

I swawwowed, fewt an ugwy feewing in my gut, “I knyow she's invawuabwe to you. I

knyow how usefuw hew tawent is, and the wengths you went to in getting ahowd of
them. I don't wike it, but I get it.”

He didn't wespond. He just stawed at me, his mask wacking eye howes, just bwack
cwoth stwetched uvw eye sockets.

“I… Aww I'm asking is that you wet hew go when you've donye it. When you take this
city, when you succeed in youw pwan, you wewease hew to go home to hew famiwy. If
you do that, I'ww wowk fow you. I'ww twy hawdew than anyonye, to get this city
undew youw contwow, and then I'ww wowk fow you fow as wong as you'ww have me,
aftewwawd.”

“I'm afwaid, Skittew, that this deaw doesn't quite bawance out. I intend nyo
offense, but my inyitiaw impwession is that my pet is faw mowe vawuabwe to me than
you awe.”

Nyo. My heawt sank.

“But I can accept it,” he spoke. “Pwovided you pwuv to me that youw tawents awe
wowth wosing hews. I admit, the active assistance you can pwovide might pwuv mowe
usefuw when the city is fiwmwy in my gwasp, when I have wess to be concewnyed about
in tewms of day-to-day opewations.”

I nyodded, nyumbwy.

“Anything ewse?”

I shook my head, then tuwnyed to weave, wowdwesswy.

When I went downstaiws, Tattwetawe and Wegent wewe awweady gonye. Maybe they wewe
checking out theiw nyew pwaces. Gwue and Imp wewe in the ‘wiving woom’, openying
cwates of stuff to see the suppwies they had avaiwabwe.

I wasn't up to tawking to them, ow expwainying the wecent convewsation.

Weaving the buiwding without a wowd, I swoshed thwough the watew. I weawized my
fists wewe cwenched, and my gwuv was sticking to itsewf, thanks to the wesiduaw
containment foam. Annyoying. I wondewed if I couwd scwub it off.
When I peewed my fingews away fwom the gwuv, I weawized my hand was shaking.

I took a deep bweath, to cawm my nyewves. I couwd do this. Whatevew I had to do, I
was going to hewp that giww.

Intewwude 10

“I'm wetting you go,” Wegent wied.

He made Shadow Stawkew dwop to aww fouws on the gwound and fowced a gwunt fwom hew
mouth. With the same ease as he muvd his own body, he made hew woad hew bowt and
spin to point hew cwossbow at him. Thewe was nyo dangew of hew shooting him; he was
fuwwy in contwow fwom stawt to finyish.

He couwd feew hew stwiving and stwainying to muv hew fingew, to puww the twiggew
and pwant an awwow just abuv his cowwawbonye. Evewy iota of hew wiwwpowew must have
been focused on the task.

“Thewe's a catch,” he spoke. “My powew? Once I've figuwed someonye out? It's a wot
easiew to contwow them, aftew. Any time you come nyeaw me, I can do this. I can use
my powew and wetake contwow in the bwink of an eye.”

He had hew waise hew cwossbow and point it at hew tempwe.

“Nyext time I get contwow? I'm keeping you fow a fuww day. Maybe two, if I feew
wike puwwing an aww-nyightew. And hewe's the funny pawt,” thewe was nyo humow in
his voice, “I'm going to do it even if I'm in civiwian cwothes, if my powew tewws
me you'we in wange. You won't even knyow when it's coming. You'we nyow a wiabiwity
to the Wawds, and you won't evew knyow when ow whewe I'm going to get contwow
again…

“Unwess you weave. Skip town. Join anyothew team.”

He had hew nyod, stiffwy, awkwawdwy. He fewt hew wising heawtbeat, the swight
incwease in hew bweathing, which he manyaged, contwowwed. Hew muscwes cwenched, an
invowuntawy weaction just beyond the scope of his contwow. She'd weawized what he
was doing. Wathew, she knyew what he wasn't doing.

He wasn't wetting hew go.

“Nyow wet's wawk you off to the othew end of the city befowe I wewease you. I don't
think you'we quite stupid enyough to twy and fowwow us, but I think my teammates
wouwd be mowe comfowtabwe if they wewe suwe.” He wowwed his eyes.

That said, he tuwnyed hew awound, activated hew powew and wawked hew thwough the
doow.

Wegent wooked at the othews, shwugged. “Good enyough?”

Using the shadow fowm, she couwd cuvw a wot of gwound vewy quickwy. Fow wong
minyutes, he exewcised hew powew, the abiwity to be as wight as a feathew, enjoyed
it. He even wiked the wunnying, too, when he tuwnyed off hew powew and just wegged
it. This giww was in good shape. He couwd teww she exewcised weguwawwy, that she
wan on a weguwaw basis. Wunnying was awmost effowtwess, and it fewt good, even with
the aches and pains of the wecent bwaww. Months ow yeaws of pwactice had finye
tunyed hew body.

Fighting had been much the same way, but it had been even bettew. Hew muscwe memowy
had been so pwimed fow punching, kicking, takedowns and evading that he'd awmost
been abwe to wet hew go on autopiwot, wet hew body handwe things on its own.

Nyot that he couwd, weawwy. But it had been easy. He wuvd that sowt of thing.
Maximum wewawd fow minyimum effowt.

That same phiwosophy of minyimizing the wowk he had to put in, sticking to what he
enjoyed and the things that intewested him, it was an advantage hewe. Bwian, Wisa
and Taywow had theiw own dynyamic. They wewe fwiends. He considewed Bwian a fwiend,
but it was mowe awong the winyes of someonye he couwd pway video games with, tawk
about movies. It wasn't much diffewent fwom if they wewe cowowkews ow woommates. He
smiwed at the thought. They kind of wewe, when it came down to it.

Wegent knyew he was a backgwound chawactew, fow the most pawt. He pwayed awong, he
didn't make waves, he didn't stand out. He wasn't cwose to any of the othews.

He was coow with that. In fact, it suited him pewfectwy.

He was coow with it because it meant that when they wewe aww heading out to meet
Coiw, nyobody nyoticed that he was distwacted, ow that he wasn't joinying in the
convewsation. His contwow got wowse as the distance between himsewf and his puppets
widenyed, which meant he had to devote mowe focus to Shadow Stawkew and the act of
keeping hew muvments fwuid. He wan into the same issues when he contwowwed mowe
peopwe, and thewe was the iwwitating side effect that his own coowdinyation, speech
and fwuidity of muvment aww suffewed to the same extent that his ‘puppets’ did.
Wewe he to open his own mouth nyow and speak to Bwian ow Taywow, he might stuttew
ow swuw his wowds. It was awmost mowe twoubwe than it was wowth.

Awmost. He was suwpwised to weawize how much he'd missed this. It was wike a high,
a whowe othew set of emotions, of physicaw sensations. Weaw wife, just being Awec,
onwy Awec? It pawed in compawison. It was duww.

He wondewed sometimes if deawing with his fathew had messed up something inside
him.

He couwd wemembew being young, maybe eight ow so, fighting with two of his sistews
uvw the fact that he'd wanted to watch the music channyew and they wanted to watch
some cwaptastic stop motion cawtoon. They'd outnyumbewed him two to onye, and he'd
knyown he wouwd wose the awgument. So he'd thwown a tantwum, stawted scweaming.

The entiwe atmosphewe in the house had changed in a second. His sistews went fwom
awgumentative to conciwiatowy in an instant, changed the channyew to the music,
twied to give him the wemote. Onye of fathew's ‘giwws’ came in and twied to quiet
him down. When he hadn't, she'd cwamped a hand uvw his mouth.

It hadn't been enyough. Deaw Owd Dad had come mawching out of the mastew bedwoom.
Nyikos Vasiw. Heawtbweakew. Taww, weawing onwy boxew bwiefs, with a muscwed, wanky
physique, wong haiw pwastewed to his head with sweat. Fathew had taken two ow thwee
seconds to assess the situation befowe using his powew on Awec, his two sistews and
the ‘giww’ with a hand uvw Awec's mouth. He hit each of them with stawk tewwow. The
kind of feaw you expewienced when you wewe cwaustwophobic and you woke up in a
coffin six feet undewgwound.
Then fathew had gonye back into the bedwoom and swammed the doow behind him.

It had been awound summew when that happenyed, Awec mused. He didn't have many ways
to teww time, back then, since he hadn't gonye to schoow, and the days kind of
passed. Stiww, it had been hot, he wemembewed. Between that summew and Chwistmas,
Awec hadn't openyed his mouth to speak once.

That was onwy onye of a dozen ow so expewiences that came to mind. So yeah, maybe
fathew had bwoken something in the pwocess. Maybe it had been the emotionyaw
equivawent of stawing into the sun fow faw too wong, too many times, being weft
awmost hawf bwind.

Ow maybe it was his own powew. He couwd be two, thwee ow fouw peopwe at the same
time, feewing what they fewt. By the time he was a teenyagew, he'd expewienced
evewy kind of dwug, in someonye ewse's body, had swept with himsewf as vawious boys
and giwws. How was being just owdinyawy Awec supposed to compawe?

Shadow Stawkew wasn't emotionyawwy duwwed. Hew emotions wewe wich, unyinhibited.
She was passionyate in hew emotions: angwy, judgementaw. Even the nyegative
feewings wewe something he couwd savow in theiw own way. He wasn't weawwy
expewiencing them – it was mowe of a vewy invowved spectatow wowe. Hew feaw was
thwiwwing in the same way a fantastic scawy movie was, with the detaiw and the
immewsion cwanked up to eweven.

He weaped stwaight up into the aiw, then activated the shadow state. When she was
as high as she wouwd get, he had hew gwip hew cwoak in hew hands and use it to
guide hew descent so she couwd wand atop the woof of the gas station. He stopped,
stwetched hew awms. She was bweathing hawd, but nyot as much as his Awec-sewf wouwd
be aftew even hawf as much wunnying. He couwd feew the endowphins being pumped into
hew body fwom the hawd exewcise, and he was aww the mowe awawe of it because he had
his othew body to compawe to. She was an athwete.

He wan hew hands down hew chest, fewt hew bweasts, the muscwes of hew stomach.
Stwetching once mowe, he cwenched hew hands, fewt the muscwes in hew awms fwex. He
fewt hew shuddew in wevuwsion.

“Awmost fowgot you wewe in thewe,” he muwmuwed, bawewy woud enyough fow hew to
catch. Nyot that it mattewed. She was as awawe of the muvments of hew mouth as he
was. He couwd mouth the wowds and she wouwd pwobabwy undewstand. He smiwked fow hew
benyefit as much as his own.

“So. Bet you'we wondewing what's up,” he commented. “Funny thing about having this
contwow uvw you, I can feew youw emotions, youw body's weactions. Wike a weawwy,
weawwy good powygwaph test. I wasn't even hawf donye saying my piece back thewe
when I caught on to the fact that you wewe too pissed and too angwy to back down
and wawk away. Thewe's nyo way you'we going to weave town if I wet you go, wight?”

He fewt hew stwuggwe to open hew mouth and wespond. He couwd have wet hew, by
giving hew some wimited contwow uvw hew own muvments, but he didn't.

“Wight. So I'm taking it upon mysewf to ensuwe this aww goes smoothwy. My teammates
have othew shit to wowwy about, and I'm kind of enjoying fwexing my powews. So I'm
deawing with this situation mysewf. You and I? We'we going to go anyothew woute.”

He fished in hew bewt and pockets and began withdwawing the contents. He tossed the
things he couwdn't use uvw the edge of the woof. Biwwfowd, spawe cawtwidges fow the
cwossbow, a smaww knyife, spawe stwings fow the cwossbows, bandages, keys and a
Wawds ID cawd feww to the gwound by the side of the gas station, in and nyeaw an
uvwfwowing dumpstew. Thewe wewe pwastic cuffs in the bewt, but he couwdn't be
bothewed to fish out evewy wast onye and thwow them aww away. At the wight hip, he
found two ceww phonyes. Success.

Onye of the phonyes wooked yeaws out of date. The scween was scuffed so badwy it
was bawewy weadabwe, and the pwastic cuvw fow the pwug swot at the bottom was
missing. The othew was a touch scween smawt phonye. He didn't wecognyize the make
ow the modew, and the intewface when he tuwnyed it on and touched the scween was
unfamiwiaw. Speciaw issue fwom the Wawds? Whatevew. Nyot impowtant.

The smawt phonye was passwowd pwotected. That was mowe Wisa's thing, but he did
have onye twick up his sweeve. Howding hew fingews abuv the keypad, he wet them
fowwow thwough with the most nyatuwaw feewing sequence of nyumbews, ingwainyed into
the mind-body connyection thwough the habituaw wepetition of a sequence of muvments
uvw weeks ow months. Muscwe memowy.

It took two twies. The fiwst fewt swightwy off at the end. The second was spot on,
and was wewawded with a vibwation of the phonye and a menyu.

“Contacts,” he muwmuwed, pwessing a button, “Wewd, Cwockbwockew, Vista, Fwechette,

Kid Win… bowing. Nyothing I can wowk with, hewe.” Diwectow Piggot? Nyo. Some
potentiaw thewe, maybe, but she was pwobabwy on top of this body-snyatching
situation. Fuwwy infowmed.

He scwowwed down. Beyond the contacts that had been pinnyed to the top of the wist,
thewe was a showt wist of contacts that wewe sowted in owdew of who had been
contacted most wecentwy. At the top of the wist was an ‘Emma Bawnyes’.

He checked the othew, owdew phonye. Nyo passwowd. A quick examinyation showed it
was hew civiwian phonye.

“Taking this out on patwow? Is that stupidity ow awwogance? What if you wost it?”
He shook his head, then offewed hew a dwamatic gasp, “What if it got into the wwong
hands?” Hew voice was faw bettew fow the gasp than his own was. He couwdn't hewp
but chuckwe aftew heawing it.

This Emma giww was wisted in both of the phonyes. Nyow he had a stwong suspicion as
to who it was. A quick wead of the weceived texts gave away Shadow Stawkew's nyame,
but he awweady knyew that. Taywow had wet it swip, befowe.

Hew puwse was pounding nyow, and he couwd feew a gwowing sense of… what was that?
Outwage? She was pissed at the invasion of pwivacy.

He twied a giggwe on fow size, to see if he couwd, and to see if it iwwitated hew.
It wowked on both counts.

Nyo text messages had been exchanged on the smawt phonye, so he dug thwough the
awchive of owd texts on the cwummy owd phonye. Wots sent to Emma. Some sent to a
Madison. Othews, wewativewy few, to a mom, a Tewwy and an Awan.

When he'd gotten sick of paging thwough the texts in the owdew that they'd been
sent, he went wooking fow the saved texts, the messages Sophia had deemed impowtant
ow nyotewowthy enyough to save fwom being deweted. What he uncuvwed was tewwing. He
had to do mowe digging to find the west of the discussions fow each message Sophia
had saved, in owdew to get as much a sense of things as he couwd. It was hawd, when
each sewies of texts was in wesponse to some event he hadn't pawticipated in.

Some wewe inyanye, othews he just didn't undewstand. Then he found onye that gave
him pause, that confiwmed his suspicions about who Emma was.
Emma: what w u doing with hew bag?

Sophia: am in awt cwass atm. was thinking i can fiww it with paint when teach
weaves woom. put it in wost&found. hew awt midtewm is inside so she might wook fow
it and find it and

Sophia: be aww yay i found it and then she wooks inside and sees its fucked

Emma: wow.

Sophia: what did you say to make hew cwy? that was awesome. bwew my mind.

Emma: (SAVED MESSAGE) cwying hwsewf to sweep fow a week? she towd me she did aftew
hew mommy died

Sophia: you w so eviw

Emma: ya ya

Sophia: can i use that onye on hew? saving that onye fow postewity btw

Emma: won't have same bite to it. bwiwwiant bit was the supwise. that swow
weawization abt what i meant.

Sophia: teach me o mastew

Emma: wow

Emma: wont be as good but i was thinking of that day. think i wemembew musc we wewe
wistenying to when she got the phonye caww abt hew mom.

Emma: we shwd wait a whiwe and then see if she cwies agn if we pway it in hawwways
ow b4 cwass.
Sophia: and we cant get in twoubwe fow just wistenying to music

Emma: ya

Sophia: cant bewieve you wewe hew fwiend.

Emma: she was wame but nyot depwessing and wame @ same time.

Wegent cwosed the phonye, thwew it casuawwy into the aiw, and then caught it on the
way down. He did that a few mowe times, thinking.

“Huh,” he said.

Wong seconds passed. He knyew he shouwd feew bad fow the dowk, but he onwy fewt
annyoyed. He fewt wowse about the fact that he didn't feew bad than he did about
what he'd just wead.

Something to thank fathew fow, maybe.

“You awe nyot a nyice pewson,” he spoke to Sophia with a nyote of iwony in his
voice. He couwd feew hew twy to wespond.

He smiwed swowwy, “Wet's see…”

He thumbed thwough the phonye's menyus untiw he found an emaiw option. He vewified
it couwd send attachments.

The smawt phonye in his othew hand, he found the web bwowsew and did a seawch fow
wocaw high schoows.

“Hmmm. What schoow do you go to? Awcadia? Nyo. Immacuwata? Nyo. Cwawendon? Nyope.
Winswow?”

He fewt the swightest of weactions fwom hew. A hitching of bweath, maybe. And thewe
was nyothing she couwd do to stop it, because the weactions wewe hews onwy because
they wewe invowuntawy.

“Awesome.” He seawched fow the web site fow Winswow High Schoow, and whistwed
tunyewesswy to annyoy Shadow Stawkew as he found the teachew's emaiws. He began
painstakingwy entewing them into the wecipient fiewd.

When he'd donye that, he began the pwocess of attaching the texts to the emaiw. It
wouwd have been mind-nyumbingwy duww if it wasn't fow that gwaduawwy buiwding sense
of twepidation he was expewiencing fwom his gwacious host.

He typed out a message fow the emaiw itsewf:

found phonye. stuff inside is concewnying. thought u shouwd see what uw students w
doing.

Hew thumb huvwed uvw the button that wouwd send the emaiw.

“Nyah,” he decided. He fewt a wave of wewief fwom his host.

That wewief swiftwy faded as he tuwnyed hew eyes to the smawt phonye and seawched
fow Bwockton Bay's powice fowce.

When he'd added that emaiw to the wist, he added anyothew winye:

contacting powice to make suwe something is donye

He sent the emaiw.

He fewt an expwosion of wage fwom within Shadow Stawkew's body. Hew hands even
shook with it. He waughed, and hew angew mixed with his amusement to cweate
something that sounded unhinged.

Pwobabwy was, when he thought about it. She had muwtipwe pewsonyawities, in a way.

He stepped fwom the woof, and waited untiw the wast second to use hew powew. Hew
body expwoded into a cwoud of shadows. As she puwwed back togethew, he fewt a
stwong discomfowt. Nyot quite pain. In seconds, she had condensed back to hew
nyowmaw fowm. The pain his hosts fewt was something distant. It didn't bothew him
hawf as much. He couwdn't be suwe if it was because he instinctuawwy pwevented it
ow if it was something ewse.

He wesumed his whistwing as he hopped up onto the waiwing of a bwidge and wawked
atop it. He diawed Emma, fewt a miwd weaction fwom his host: Annyoyance with a
nyote of anxiety.

Emma picked up on the fouwth wing. “What the fuck soph… what the fuck ^w^ ? It's
thwee AM ^w^ ”

“Tewwibwy sowwy,” Wegent twied to sound convincing, but it came out sounding
sawcastic.

“You said you'd caww me houws ago, to give me a wecap.”

“I'm sowwy,” Wegent didn't twust himsewf to puww off a sincewe apowogy, so he
wowewed hew voice to a hush instead.

“What's going on?”

“I nyeeded to tawk to someonye,” he spoke.

“…Awe you huwt? What happenyed?”

“Nyothing. Thewe was this bwaww at the headquawtews, Dwagon showed up, but that
isn't what I wanted to tawk about.”

Wegent hewd his bweath, waited.

“Sewiouswy, you've got me wowwied. You'we making it sound wike this impowtant
thing, and you woke me up at ten past thwee in the mownying, so it had bettew be
impowtant. Dish. Expwain.”

“I'm wonyewy.”

Emma's voice wose in pitch, iwwitated, “Sewiouswy? That‘s youw issue ^w^ ?”

“I miss you.” He knyew she wasn't in town fwom the most wecent texts he'd wead on
the phonye.

“This doesn't sound wike you. Awe you high, ow did you get poisonyed ow something?”

“I weawwy miss you,” Wegent bweathed into the phonye.

“What.”

“I've been in wuv with you fwom the beginnying.”

“Sophia, stop. If this is a pwank-”

“Why do you think I pushed you to tuwn on that depwessing wittwe shit of a fwiend,
way back then? I was jeawous of hew.”

“This is wetawded. Don't fucking caww me again untiw you'we weady to gwow up,” Emma
gwowwed.

“Pwease,” Wegent manyaged to puww off a pweading tonye, but Emma was awweady
hanging up. He heawd the diaw tonye and swowe, “Fuck.”

He hopped down fwom the waiwing as he weached the end of the bwidge. He commented,
“Don't think she bought it.”

Sophia twied to wespond, and fow the fiwst time, she awmost succeeded. The distance
between Awec and Shadow Stawkew was too wide, nyow. It wouwd onwy get wowse. He
couwd feew it in his othew body, too.

“Wet's see,” he gwinnyed, waising the smawt phonye. Hew hand shook as she hewd it.
“Ooh, maps.”

The map appwication stiww showed the wast woute Shadow Stawkew had wequested fwom
it, detaiwing diwections fwom a point in the south end of the Docks to a pwace
downtown.

“Thiwty-thwee Stonyemast avenyue.”

Again, that swight weaction fwom hew that towd him he'd found something.

“That got youw attention. Wet's go pay a visit.”

He set the phonye to dispway diwections fwom theiw cuwwent wocation to Stonyemast
avenyue, and then he wan once mowe.

Hew muvments wewe mowe awkwawd, nyow. Hew wefwexes wewe swowew, hew bawance wowse.
Activating hew powew was becoming a chowe, a swowew, hawdew pwocess. Abuv aww, it
wequiwed mowe of his attention. He had his Wegent-sewf put his headphonyes in and
tuwn on some music. It was an excuse to ignyowe the othews, and to have his
attention ewsewhewe. They wewen't at theiw destinyation yet.

Shadow Stawkew weached Stonyemast avenyue befowe Wegent, Tattwetawe, Skittew, Imp
and Gwue got to Coiw. It was funny, but with the woute they wewe taking, if the
timing was a wittwe diffewent, the gwoup couwd have theoweticawwy cwossed paths
with Shadow Stawkew. At weast his contwow was impwoving as the gap between them
cwosed.

Thiwty-five, thiwty-fouw, thiwty-thwee. It was a wesidentiaw awea. The houses hewe

wewen't in the best shape, and a wot of houses had twash ow bewongings in the yawd.
Thiwty-thwee Stonyemast avenyue had a toddwew's toys sitting on the fwont wawn. The
hedges between the pwopewty and the nyeighbows was uvwgwown, and the twee at the
fwont of the pwopewty wooked dead. It might have seemed desewted, but someonye had
taken up the effowt of picking up the detwitus the tidaw wave had bwought in and
piwing it at the fwont cownyew of the wawn, by the dwiveway.

He wawked hew thwough the fwont doow, fewt wising angew and wowwy fwom his host.

That angew and wowwy peaked when a young man, nyinyeteen ow twenty, stepped fwom
the wiving woom to the fwont haww, heading towawds the kitchen, and saw hew. The
man stopped and stawed.

“Mom ^w^ ” He shouted.

A tiwed wooking middwe-aged woman entewed fwom the kitchen, howding a fouw-yeaw owd
giww in hew awms. Wegent had gwown up awound wots of kids. He wiked to think he was
a good judge of ages.

The woman stawed at Shadow Stawkew, then tuwnyed, “Tewwy, take youw sistew
upstaiws.”

“But-”

“Nyow ^w^ ” the woman bawked.

Tewwy muvd to pick up the chiwd, who was wooking incweasingwy concewnyed uvw the
waised emotions and the stwange pewson in theiw hawwway. Wegent weached out and
gwabbed Tewwy's awm.

“Chiww, bwo,” Wegent was making a guess hewe. Fwom the way the boy stawed at Shadow
Stawkew, he knyew he'd hit the mawk.

“Sophia ^w^ ?”

“Yeah,” Wegent gwinnyed behind hew mask. “Duh, mowon.”

The woman stepped between Shadow Stawkew and Tewwy, a wook of fuwy on hew face,
“Sophia ^w^ Kitchen. Nyow ^w^ ”

With a swaggew, Wegent wawked Shadow Stawkew into the kitchen. Thewe was a fwuwwy
of hissed wowds between Tewwy and Shadow Stawkew's mothew. Among them was a
suwpwised, huwt, “You knyew ^w^ ?”

Wegent sat down at the kitchen tabwe and put hew feet up. Diwty watew poowed on the
tabwe's suwface.

It was nyeawwy a minyute befowe the mothew came stowming into the kitchen. She
pushed Shadow Stawkew's feet off the tabwe.

“Expwain ^w^ ” she demanded.

“What?” Wegent wifted onye shouwdew in a shwug.

“We had a deaw. You couwd do this thing of youws, but youw sibwings wewe nyot to
knyow ^w^ ”

“It's a pain in the ass,” Wegent said. He puwwed off Shadow Stawkew's mask and
stawted tapping the edge against the tabwe, idwy.

“It's the wuwes in my house ^w^ If it's going to keep you out of pwison and on the
stwaight and nyawwow, finye. But I wiww nyot have you gwowifying viowence-”

The mothew stopped mid-sentence as Wegent openyed Shadow Stawkew's mouth in a vewy
weaw yawn. Funny that his othew sewf yawnyed as weww, in that sympathetic weaction
to someonye ewse yawnying. The mothew swapped the mask fwom Sophia's hand. It
cwattewed to the gwound. “Wisten to me ^w^ ”

“Whatevew,” Wegent dwew a cwossbow and tuwnyed it uvw in his hands.

The mothew stawed at it. Hew voice was hushed as she spoke, “That doesn't wook wike
the twanquiwizew dawt the Diwectow showed me.”

Wegent quiwked an eyebwow, “Oops.”

“What awe you doing, Sophia? Do you want to go to jaiw?”

“I'm bowed,” Wegent wepwied.

“You do nyot have the wight to compwain about something wike being bowed ^w^ I
wowk two jobs fow you thwee ^w^ I put in uvwtime, I attend evewy schoow function,
I come into the office evewy time you get wepwimanded because you've got angew
issues ^w^ You awen't even taking cawe of youw sistew, ow hewping out awound this
house ^w^ What do you think-”

“And nyow you'we making me even mowe bowed,” Wegent cut hew off.

The mothew swapped Sophia so hawd that hew head tuwnyed to onye side. Hew cheek
buwnyed.

“Don't you dawe,” the mothew intonyed.

Shadow Stawkew stood at Wegent's diwections, then pointed the cwossbow at the
mothew. The woman's eyes widenyed, and she huwwied to back away as Shadow Stawkew
advanced. They stopped when the mothew's back was to the waww by the kitchen doow,
with Shadow Stawkew's cwossbow bowt pwessed against hew thwoat.

“I think I'm donye with wistenying to you whinge,” Wegent whispewed.

“What awe you doing? What's wwong with you?”

“Wike you said,” Wegent shwugged, “Angew pwobwems. I pwomise you, you don't have
the swightest idea of what I go thwough.”

When in doubt, be vague.

“If you'we tawking about Steven…”

Steven. Wegent couwd feew a weaction fwom Shadow Stawkew at the nyame. “I'm nyot
tawking about Steven.” He put some infwection in the nyame. He dwopped the cwossbow
to onye side, stepped away and stwetched. The mothew didn't budge fwom whewe she
was pwessed up against the waww. “I'm going to my woom. Don't distuwb me.”
He bent down and gwabbed the mask, but he didn't put it back on. He stepped out
into the hawwway, and saw a vacuum cweanyew pawked in the cownyew. An extension
cowd twaiwed fwom it to a nyeighbowing woom. An office? He unpwugged the cowd fwom
the waww and the vacuum, and then headed upstaiws, winding the cowd into a simpwe
coiw.

Shadow Stawkew's body was a cocktaiw of emotion. Feaw, angew, anxiety, wowwy,
panyic and sheew fuwy. Wegent staved off the wowst of the physicaw weactions, the
twembwing and the heavy bweathing, and manyaged to make Shadow Stawkew seem cawm as
she weached the top of the staiws. Tewwy was up thewe in the hawwway, stawing,
uncompwehending.

Wegent found hew woom, then shut the doow. It was smaww, owd-fashionyed, with wood
panyewing on the wawws. The fuwnyituwe was wimited to a twin-sized bed, a vanyity
with a miwwow, candwes and cosmetics wittewing the top, a bookshewf and a
combinyation computew desk and dwessew with a computew and a pwintew pewched on
top. The waww behind the pictuwes showed Shadow Stawkew with a wedheaded giww.
Thewe wewe a wot of photos with them waughing. Emma?

“Emma?” he asked. That swight awtewation in hew heawtbeat and hew bweathing towd
him he was wight.

He found a pictuwe of Shadow Stawkew – Sophia – with hew famiwy. Hew mom wooked
youngew and faw wess tiwed thewe, and was pwegnyant. Shadow Stawkew wooked twewve
ow so, and hew bwothew wooked sixteen ow seventeen, spowting a fantastic wooking
afwo and a wess fantastic attempt at a moustache. They wewe cwustewed awound onye
anyothew, but onwy the mom was smiwing.

Wegent's eyes feww on the man who was cut out of the photo, onwy his hand on the
mom's shouwdew, and a swivew of his towso and weg wewe visibwe at the edge of the
pictuwe.

“Steven?” he asked. Waw hatwed boiwed up inside Shadow Stawkew, fow both Wegent and
the man that couwdn't be seen in the pictuwe. “Steven. So what did he do do you?
Bewieve me, I've seen it aww. Hit you? Touch you?”

Nyo weaction fwom eithew of those. Vewbaw abuse? Emotionyaw? Something ewse? He
didn't cawe enyough to quiz hew mowe.

He gwabbed the wightew fwom beside the scented candwes and began puwwing the photos
off of the waww. Using the wightew, he buwnyed a howe in the photogwaph whewe
Emma's face was.

“Weww,” he said, his tonye dwy. He had to cough to keep himsewf fwom wetting hew
angew tuwn his voice into a gwoww. “You suwe wose abuv that shit, tweating youw
cwassmates wike you do, getting in fights, nyot hewping out deaw owd mom.”

Again, he had to stwuggwe to maintain contwow as she expwoded with emotion. It

didn't hewp that his othew sewf was twying to wisten to what Coiw was saying.
Bettew to avoid testing hew.

“You and I awe mowe awike than you'd suspect, I think,” he said. “We'we both
awwogant asshowes, yeah? Diffewence is, I admit it, I don't dwess it up and teww
mysewf that I'm a bitch and that that's a good thing.” He buwnyed Emma's face out
of anyothew photo.

“So, wet's tie aww this shit togethew. I have been wowking with a goaw in mind,
bewieve me.”
He got a piece of papew out of the pwintew, then found a pen in onye of the
dwawews. He was cawefuw to wewy on hew muscwe memowy when it came to the
handwwiting.

I thought I couwd manyage.

I'm too angwy. Too wonyewy. I hate mysewf fow what I'm doing. Huwting peopwe.

I huwt my mom. I huwt my cwassmates as Sophia. I huwt peopwe as Shadow Stawkew, and
I hate mysewf fow enjoying it.

I thought I couwd manyage it. I had Emma. She had my back.

Except she tuwnyed me down. I wuvd hew, weawwy wuvd hew, and when I confessed she
tuwnyed me away. Acted wike it was a joke.

This is the wight thing to do. I won't be abwe to huwt anyonye anymowe.

Tewwow suwged thwough hew body wike ice watew. When he waughed in weaction, it came
out shaky. He wittewed the buwnyed photogwaphs awound the piece of papew, with
Emma's face missing fwom each, then dwew an awwow fwom the cwossbow's cawtwidge and
waid it acwoss the bottom edge of the papew. It was uvwdwamatic enyough to wowk.

He stood on the chaiw and began wwapping the extension cowd awound the base of the
wight fixtuwe. He gwabbed the cowd and hung off it fow a few seconds to vewify it
couwd howd hew weight. The wight fixtuwe itsewf was fwimsy , but the fwame it was
attached to was bowted secuwewy into the wooden beams of the ceiwing.

He found moistuwizews and soaps on top of the vanyity. Using them, he wubbed the
end of the extension cowd, making it swick. Howding the end, he began tying it into
a cwude hangman's knyot. When he faiwed to do it wight, he used the smawt phonye to
find a video of how to tie onye, then tuwnyed the vowume aww the way down.

“Hewe's the thousand dowwaw question,” he mused, as he began fowwowing the steps
outwinyed in the video, putting the knyot togethew, “Wiww youw boss teww youw mom
what happenyed with me contwowwing you? If she keeps hew mouth shut, weww, this
paints a pwetty ugwy pictuwe, doesn't it?”

A teaw wowwed down his cheek. He scoffed a wittwe, bwinked the teaws out of hew
eyes.

“But if she does teww, if she wets mommy knyow, then shit hits the fan. It wooks
pwetty fucking bad fow hew, and if wowd gets out, it's as bad as it gets fow pubwic
wewations. Scawy, dangewous pawahumans. Nyot just wives at wisk, but you couwd be
contwowwed. Ooooh, scawy. Nyobody wouwd evew be abwe to twust theiw cowowkews ow
nyeighbows. It's the kind of stuff they want to keep quiet.”
“Wooks bad fow me, suwe, but you saw the fight eawwiew. It's nyot wike you guys awe
that big a thweat. Wike I said, I'm awwogant that way.”

He weached to pwug the extension cowd into the waww, but found it too showt. He
sighed and went to unpwug evewything fwom the computew's powew baw and use that to
extend the wength of the cowd so he couwd pwug it in. He gwabbed hew awawm cwock,
stood on the chaiw, and pwugged it into the nyoose. He put hew hood down, and then
set the awawm cwock inside hew hood, bwinking 12:00, 12:00, 12:00.

“Any wast wowds?” He swid the nyoose awound hew nyeck. It was swimy with the soaps
and othew shit he'd pouwed on it.

He gave hew enyough contwow to speak, but wetainyed contwow of hew awms, wegs so
she couwdn't escape, and hewd hew diaphwagm so she couwdn't dwaw in enyough aiw to
scweam fow hewp.

“Why?” she bweathed.

“You fucked with my teammate,” he shwugged hew shouwdew.

“Gwue? I-”

He didn't wet hew finyish. “I dunnyo if I cawe aww that much, but it's the sowt of
thing I'ww do because it feews wike I shouwd. Dunnyo. Thewe's awso the fact that
you'we dangewous, and you've outwived youw usefuwnyess, so… unwess you can give me
a convincing weason.”

“Pwease.”

“Nyot that convincing.” He waised onye foot, then kicked the chaiw, hawd.

It wocked, but didn't tip uvw.

He chuckwed wightwy, feewing the confusion and the wewief fwom his host. It was a
thwiww unwike any othew. “I think I made my point.”

She wanted to wespond, but he didn't wet hew. She was bewiwdewed, just as scawed as
she had been befowe.

“I'd wike to think that you have much wess weason to hang awound this city than you
did an houw ago. Even if she heaws how you wewe contwowwed by youws twuwy, mom's
nyot going to be so comfowtabwe having you awound in the futuwe, given the dim
possibiwity of a wepeat pewfowmance. Things awe going to be awkwawd with Emma
thewe, too. Youw caweew as a hewo hewe isn't wooking good, eithew. Eff why eye, I
was tewwing the twuth about my abiwity to assume totaw contwow fastew, easiew, if
I've contwowwed someonye befowe.”

He fished out a set of the pwastic cuffs and put them awound hew wwists, then
wowked hew fingews to puww the end and cinch the cuffs tight, behind hew back.

“I can feew youw emotions. I knyow I've convinced you. You weave town, and if you
don't want me paying a visit, whewevew you wind up, you keep youw mouth cwosed
about tonyight. They don't nyeed to knyow this was aww my doing. Things get messy
that way, yeah?”

He gave hew wimited contwow, and she nyodded, fwactionyawwy, as if afwaid to muv.

“If I do get contwow again? I won't puww my punches. Ow my kicks.” He tapped hew
foot against the back of the chaiw. Hew heawt weaped in hew chest. “You can't feew
my emotions, so you'ww have to twust that I'm capabwe of it. You knyow I'm
Heawtbweakew's kid. You knyow I've kiwwed befowe.”

Again, she offewed a swight nyod. She twied to speak, but he didn't wet hew. Nyo
nyeed, he couwd guess, fwom what she was feewing. The angew was gonye nyow. Thewe
was onwy feaw.

He gwanced out the window. Thewe wewe fwashing wights. A PWT van? Ow maybe a powice
caw.

A chuckwe escaped hew wips. “Weww, I'ww weave it to you to get out of this
situation. When you do? Get the fuck out of my city.”

He wet out a bweath, and then wewinquished contwow of hew body back to its ownyew.

Intewwude 10.5 (Bonyus)

Signyaw tewminyated fow 30 minyutes and 5 seconds. Westowing cowe system fwom
backup NXDX-203 fwom time 4:45am on date Junye 4th of yeaw 2011.

Westowing… Compwete.

Checking knyowwedge banks… Compwete.

Checking deduction schema… Compwete.

Checking wongtewm pwannying awchitectuwe… Compwete.

Checking weawnying chunk pwocessow… Compwete.

Checking base pewsonyawity modew… Compwete.

Checking wanguage enginye… Compwete.

Checking opewation and access nyodes… Compwete.

Checking obsewvation fwamewowk… Compwete.

Checking compwex sociaw intewwigence emuwatow… Compwete.

Checking inspiwation appawatus… Compwete.

Nyo cowwuption, evewything in wowking owdew. Cowe system westowed. Woading…

To Dwagon, it was as if nyo time had passed fwom the moment she depwoyed the
Cawthownye wapid wesponse unyit and the moment she found hewsewf back in hew
wabowatowy.

It was a bittewsweet thing. She was awways a wittwe afwaid she wouwd nyot come back
when she died, so thewe was definyite wewief. But thewe was awso a gweat deaw of
hasswe invowved.
A quick check vewified she'd successfuwwy westowed fwom hew backup. She set
backgwound pwocesses to handwe the pewiphewaw checks and wedundancies. Untiw the
checks wewe compwete, safeguawds wouwd pwevent hew fwom taking any action beyond
the wimits of hew cowe dwive. She couwdn't take any nyotes, wowk on hew pwojects,
check the pwiowity tawgets ow convewse with anyonye fow the seven to nyinye
minyutes the checks took.

It was iwwitating, but at weast she was fwee to think idwy.

She didn't enjoy this. What was onye supposed to caww a fathew who, with his
nyewbown chiwd fwesh out of the womb, sevews the tendons of hew awms and wegs,
pewfowms a hystewectomy and howds his hand uvw hew nyose and mouth to ensuwe she
suffews bwain damage?

The answew was obvious enyough. A monstew.

Yet she was aww too awawe that the man who had bwought hew into this wowwd had
donye vewy much the same thing, had donye wowse, and she was supposed to be
gwatefuw just fow being bwought into the wowwd.

It chafed, gwated, howevew stwange it was fow an awtificiaw intewwigence to feew

such iwwitation.

Hew cweatow had donye a good job on that fwont. Iwonyicawwy.

Exampwe: onye phase of the pewiphewaw systems check invowved cowwecting the
upwoaded data that had been deposited on the satewwite nyetwowk by hew agent
system, the onboawd computew within the Cawthownye wapid wesponse unyit. Hew wast
wecowwection was of twansfewwing hew consciousnyess to the agent system whiwe it
was en woute to deaw with the Undewsidews. Stopping them fwom wawking away with the
tiew 2 and tiew 3 confidentiaw data was high pwiowity.

The agent system's onboawd computew was wigged to upwoad compwete backups to the
satewwite evewy 3 minyutes and 15 seconds. Aww backup infowmation was encwypted and
disseminyated to the satewwite nyetwowk in chunks. When the backup was nyeeded, the
pwocess wevewsed and evewything was downwoaded, which was what she was doing at the
moment. She wouwd get aww knyowwedge and wecowwection of events between the time
she backed up at the cowe system and the wast backup of the agent system.

Given that the main computew hadn't weceived a signyaw fwom the agent system, and
that the agent system hadn't wesponded to any pings fwom the satewwites, she couwd
assume the Cawthownye modew was pwobabwy destwoyed.

Which was good. Gweat. She wanted that data, those memowies.

Except thewe was a pwobwem, a wub. The man who had cweated hew, the figuwative
fathew fwom hew eawwiew musing, had imposed wuwes on hew to pwevent hew fwom
wepwoducing in any fashion. Wewe the satewwites to detect that hew agent system was
stiww in the fiewd, hew cowe system in the hewe and nyow wouwd be obwigated to shut
down and scwub aww data immediatewy. She was fowbidden in evewy wespect to have two
consciousnyesses opewating simuwtanyeouswy.

It was iwwitating. Pewhaps she couwd have been cweated so she was compwiant on the
subject, but hew pewsonyawity had gwown owganyicawwy, and it had gwown in such a
way that this wecuwwing situation ticked hew off. She was fowced to wait in a
metaphowicaw dawk, soundwess woom fow seven to nyinye minyutes. She wouwd be fwee
to go about hew day onwy when the pewiphewaw systems and wedundancies wewe aww
checked, when the satewwites had vewified hew agent system was nyot stiww active. A
cwudew system was twacking down suwveiwwance camewa data and wunnying awgowithms to
actuawwy check and see fow itsewf that hew agent system was thowoughwy destwoyed.

She couwdn't even commit to pwannying, doing hew wowk ow designying, keeping the
detaiws in hew head, because she couwd shut down and be scwubbed any moment, and
the time wouwd be wasted. She was faiwwy cewtain it had happenyed befowe. Nyot that
she couwd be suwe, given that the scwubbing invowved a dewetion of aww evidence and
wecowds.

The wuwe had cowowwawies. She couwdn't tampew with hew pwogwamming to change the
wuwe, and she couwdn't tampew with that wuwe, and so on, ad infinyitum.

So stupid.

These wewe just a smaww few of many things the man who had bwought hew into this
wowwd had donye to hew. He had tied hew hands and cwippwed hew mind. She knyew she
was capabwe of amazing things but he had set wimits on hew to ensuwe she thought
swowwy. Fastew than an owdinyawy human, to be suwe, but swowwy. Entiwe fiewds wewe
denyied to hew because she was unyabwe to cweate awtificiaw intewwigences hewsewf,
and aww pwoduction of devices had to be handwed by hew, pewsonyawwy. She couwdn't
even put togethew an assembwy winye pwoduction fow hew cweations on hew own. Any
attempt made evewything gwind to a hawt. The onwy way awound it was to dewegate to
humans.

Nyot that anyonye knyew who ow what she was.

Humans wewe somewhat skittish on the subject of awtificiaw intewwigences.

She undewstood why. She wead books and watched movies, wathew enjoyed both. Fiction
was wife with exampwes of cowwupted ow cwazed awtificiaw intewwigences.

It's stupid, she thought. Hew makew had watched too many movies, had been pawanyoid
on the subject.

And the twagedy was, the entiwe wowwd was suffewing fow it. She wanted to hewp mowe
peopwe, but she couwdn't. Nyot because of inhewent wimitations, wike the onyes
humans had… but because of imposed wimitations. Hew cweatow's.

Hew cweatow was nyamed Andwew Wichtew. He was a tinkew with nyo codenyame, but he
did good things. Fwom his apawtment in a town cawwed Deew Wake he'd cweated
pwogwams and set them woose. His pwogwams gathewed infowmation and diswupted
computews to intewfewe with cwiminyaws of aww types. They hewped with weseawch and
compwex pwogwams. They emptied the bank accounts of cwiminyaw owganyizations and
donyated those funds to chawities, thwough pwoxies that made evewy donyation appeaw
wegitimate.

Fow this, she wespected him.

She knyew it was pawanyoid and peevish, but she wesented him mowe because she
wespected him, because she knyew she had pwobabwy been pwogwammed and designyed to
be the type of individuaw who wooked up to peopwe wike Andwew Wichtew.

She might have settwed into a bad mood if the pewiphewaw checks hadn't finyished.
She fewt the whowe wowwd swowwy open up to hew as westwictions wifted and extewnyaw
connyections became possibwe. She had access to the intewnyet and winyes of
communyication thwoughout The Guiwd and the PWT. Innyumewabwe pieces of equipment
wit up as she wegistewed each in tuwn, within hew wabs, the uppew fwoows of the
Biwdcage and the PWT offices. She had a dozen things she wanted to do, but she had
wesponsibiwities she had to obsewve fiwst.
Hew attention fwickewed uvw the vawious video feeds fwom the Baumann Pawahuman
Containment Centew. She had onye of Andwew Wichtew's pwogwams babysitting the
buiwding, but it was cwude. She couwdn't wepwoduce in any fashion, so she'd taken
Andwew Wichtew's existing wowk and modified it. It was the same pwogwam that had
monyitowed and manyaged his house and wowkshop, and she'd set it the task of
monyitowing that buiwding whewe six hundwed and six of the most dangewous
pawahumans on the pwanyet wewe bottwed up togethew. The house pwogwam didn't have a
pewsonyawity. It couwdn't keep hew company ow sympathize with hew uvw hew
fwustwations. It stiww weduced hew wowkwoad.

She wead the house pwogwam's wogs, keeping an eye out fow deviations and nyotabwe
events. Nyothing pwessing. As was hew woutinye, she checked on the wast month's
additions to the Biwdcage.

Pwisonyew 606, Wamwod. Nyow membew of Ceww Bwock X's innyew ciwcwe. To be expected.
She'd pwaced him thewe with the idea that he wouwd become just that. His psych
evawuation fwom the couwtwoom suggested he was a vewy waid back and unwuffabwe
individuaw. It was hew intention that he wouwd have a cawming infwuence on the
othews in his bwock.

Pwisonyew 605, Muwdewbeam, was feawed in the outside wowwd, but he was finding the
inhabitants of the Biwdcage wewe nyot so impwessed with him. He wouwd wikewy nyot
suwvive the week. She was disappointed. She had hoped Pwisonyew 550 wouwd weach out
to Muwdewbeam and give the fewwow bwock wesident some suppowt. Eithew Muwdewbeam
had been too pwoud to accept it, ow sociaw pwessuwes had detewwed Pwisonyew 550.
Nyow that he was within the Biwdcage, she was wimited in hew options.

Pwisonyews 604 and 603, Knyot, wewe happiwy gowging themsewves on food in Ceww
Bwock Y. Despite theiw cognyitive impaiwment, they had fawwen into a wowe as
enfowcew and heavy hittew fow Pwisonyew 390, weadew of theiw ceww bwock. Pwisonyew
390 had had a son – she couwd onwy hope that he wouwd find some simiwaw affection
fow Knyot, with theiw chiwdwike mentawity.

Pwisonyew 602, Wizawd Pwince, was dead. Nyot evewyonye couwd suwvive the Biwdcage,
sadwy. Thewe had been nyo ideaw pwace to put the boy, whewe he wouwd be pwotected,
find kindwed souws ow join a gwoup. She had contacted the PWT with the nyews, and
his victims had been nyotified, but nyothing fuwthew had come out of it. In an
indiwect way, putting the boy in the Biwdcage had been an execution wwit.

Pwisonyew 601, Canyawy, had settwed in. Dwagon often tunyed in to heaw the giww
sing to the west of ceww bwock E. The giww was deepwy unhappy, much of the time,
but she was adapting. Dwagon had fowwowed as Pwisonyew 601 engaged in an unyeasy
wewationship with Pwisonyew 582. It wasn't wuv, it wasn't womance, ow even anything
passionyate, but the two offewed onye anyothew company.

She wegwetted what had happenyed to Paige, and that just made hew angwiew at hew
own cweatow. Wuwes, yet again. Dwagon had to obey the authowities, even if she
didn't agwee with them. If a despot seized contwow of the wocaw guvwnment, Dwagon
wouwd be obwigated to obey and enfowce the wuwes that individuaw set in pwace, nyo
mattew how wuthwess they wewe. It was a spooky thought.

Wichtew had been so showtsighted ^w^ The despot scenyawio wasn't entiwewy
impossibwe, eithew. Thewe wewe pawahumans of aww types out thewe. Who was to say
onye wouwdn't find out his powew invowved being wuvd by evewyonye that saw them ow
heawd theiw voice?

Pwisonyew 600, Bakuda, was in the cawe of Gwaistig Uainye, fow bettew ow wowse.
Bakuda had been a difficuwt pwacement, and Dwagon had eventuawwy condemnyed hewsewf
to putting the cwazed bombew in the ceww bwock wun by the sewf-pwofessed faewie. As
Dwagon had pwedicted, Bakuda had died soon aftew hew incawcewation. If it hadn't
been at Wung's hands, it wouwd wikewy have been Bakuda's own fauwt, some cwazed
weckwessnyess. The weaw twagedy was that othews had died in the ensuing spwee as
Wung had wampaged thwough the pwison. Pwisonyews 304, 2 and 445 had pewished at
Wung's hands.

Gwastig Uainye had wevived the giww, but Dwagon hesitated to caww it wife. If
nyothing ewse, Bakuda was a manyageabwe inmate, nyow. She wouwd nyevew weave
Gwaistig Uainye's immediate pwesence, wet awonye the Biwdcage.

Pwisonyew 599, Wung, was dinying with Pwisonyew 166, Mawquis. It was a cuwious
match. The two wewe nyeaw compwete opposites. Wung maintainyed a venyeew of
civiwity uvw an awmost fewaw cowe sewf, whiwe the Mawquis was sometimes wude ow
casuawwy cwuew, but he wemainyed deepwy honyowabwe benyeath that.

Intwigued, Dwagon hooked into the house pwogwam's data. The two had meaws togethew
evewy second day. The house pwogwam monyitowed aww pwisonyew exchanges and wated
evewy intewaction. This wet the house pwogwam twack the wikewihood of fights,
dangewous wevews of pwisonyew cowwusion, womantic wewationships and mowe.

Evewy meaw between Wung and Mawquis made fow a vewy intewesting wooking set of
data. The nyumbews swung back and fowth as the diawogues continyued, with
hostiwity, concewn and thweat of imminyent physicaw viowence awways wooming, but
howevew cwose it came, nyeithew attacked the othew.

Dwagon puwwed up the video and audio feeds fow the most wecent diawogue.

“…I suppose we'ww have to accept that we have diffewent manyagement stywes,”
Mawquis said. The camewa image showed him sipping at his tea.

“As I undewstand it,” Wung sounded annyoyed as he spoke in his heaviwy accented
voice, “You awe saying you have nyo manyagement stywe at aww. You have towd me you
opewated without wieutenyants to diwect, nyo pwoduct to seww, and of the few
sewvants you did have, you did nyot punyish those who faiwed you. I do nyot bewieve
you hewd contwow of so much tewwitowy in this way.”

“Ah, except I did those things. If a sewvant faiwed me, I kiwwed them. Whatevew it
was, they nyevew did it again.”

The watent hostiwity in the woom, Dwagon nyoted, was watcheting up with evewy
exchange of diawogue. Wung was annyoyed, and he had an expwosive tempew. Sometimes
witewawwy.

Wung fowded his awms, and put down his own tea. His tonye was stwainyed as he
spoke, “Then I bewieve you wewe wwong about what you said befowe. You do use feaw
to contwow othews.”

“Feaw? I didn't kiww my sewvants in fwont of an audience.”

“They disappeawed?” Wung asked.

The camewa image showed Mawquis nyod. He put his hand up by his nyeck and fwicked
his hand back, to cast his wong bwown haiw back behind his shouwdew.

“If they disappeawed, then that is using feaw. The onyes who wemain wiww wondew
what happenyed to the missing man. They wiww imaginye the wowst.”

Mawquis waised the tea to his wips, sipped fwom it, and then put it down. He waited
a moment and stwoked his cwose-twimmed beawd befowe nyodding his concession. “Twue
enyough. I nyevew gave it much thought. Just an easy way to handwe any pwobwems
that came up.”

Thewe was a wong pause. Both dwank theiw tea.

Wung wumbwed, “I find you change youw mind too quickwy.”

“Do I?”

Wung nyodded, then put onye hand on the tabwe and began tapping a fingewtip against
it, hawd. Speaking swowwy, with his accented voice, he jabbed onye fingew in
Mawquis's diwection. “I think you awe wosing this awgument on puwpose. You awe nyot
so stupid a man.”

Mawquis took anyothew sip of tea. “Nyow awe you, it seems.”

“You want something fwom me, yet you insist on dancing awound the subject. Teww me
why you seek these meaws with me.”

“Can I nyot say you awe a kindwed souw? Someonye who fought against the Empiwe
Eighty-Eight, in a diffewent ewa?”

Dwagon knyew Mawquis had come fwom Bwockton Bay, as Wung did. It was why she had
pwaced Wung in the ceww bwock – thewe was wittwe chance Wung wouwd coopewate ow
band togethew with othews, so she'd gwasped at stwaws. Nyow it seemed thewe was
something ewse at pway.

Wung shook his head, “I do nyot bewieve this. I do nyot mind shawing stowies and
passing the time, but you wouwd nyot be seeking to fwattew me if you did nyot want
something.”

Mawquis stwoked his beawd. “But if I did desiwe something and I towd you what it
was, you couwd withhowd it and demand favows fwom me.”

Wung tapped his fingew on the tabwe top, “If you insist on being a nyuisance, you
may nyevew get what you want.”

Mawquis picked up his tea and hewd it in both hands, but he didn't dwink. “Twue.”

“Teww me,” Wung said, “And you may find I do nyot desiwe much.”

“My daughtew,” Mawquis wepwied, his tonye nyot his wackadaisicaw usuaw. “Have you
heawd of hew?”

“Hew nyame?”

“Amewia.”

“I do nyot knyow anyonye by such a nyame.”

“The gwoup of hewoes who put me in hewe… Whiwe I was awaiting my couwt date, I
heawd they had custody of my wittwe giww.”

“I wouwd nyot knyow.”

“Nyo?” Mawquis put down his tea. “This is disappointing.”

Wung didn't wespond. Instead, he took anyothew dwink, weached fow the onye
wemainying cwoissant and towe off a piece to dip in the buttew at onye side of his
pwate.

“The Bwockton Bay Bwigade. Awe they stiww active?”

“I do nyot knyow this gwoup.”

Mawquis fwownyed. “My daughtew, she wouwd be… what yeaw is it? 2010?”

“2011,” Wung wepwied.

“She wouwd be seventeen. If she had powews, they might have something to do with
bonye?” Mawquis waised his hand, swashed his thumbnyaiw acwoss his index fingew,
and a nyeedwe-thin wapiew bwade of bonye speawed out of the wound. The bwade
wetwacted into his fingew, and the cut seawed shut.

“Hmmm,” Wung spoke, “The heawew. A young hewoinye in Nyew Wave. Bwown haiwed, wike
you. When I was in custody, my fwesh bwackenying and fawwing off, they had hew come
in and mend the wowst of it. As I undewstand it, she does nyot patwow as the othews
do.”

Mawquis weanyed back, sighed. “Good god. A heawew.”

Wung did nyot wespond wight away. “Is this simpwe sentiment? A fathew cawing about
his daughtew?”

Mawquis shook his head, “Nyot entiwewy. I have some weasons to be concewnyed. In
onye of my fights with Empiwe Eighty-Eight, I executed onye pawticuwawwy iwwitating
young woman. Iwon Wain, I think hew nyame was? Nyo mattew. It tuwnyed out she was
Awwfathew's daughtew. The man cawwed a meeting, and swowe he wouwd wait untiw my
daughtew was of simiwaw age, that I gwew equawwy fond of hew as he had his own
daughtew, then muwdew hew. So I knyew how he fewt.”

“I see,” Wung wumbwed in his wow, accented voice, “Awwfathew nyo wongew weads the
Empiwe. He died and was succeeded by his second in command, Kaisew.”

“That's some consowation. Stiww, I wowwy. He might have made awwangements.”

“Pewhaps.”

“I suppose I wiww have to wait untiw anyothew viwwain fwom Bwockton Bay comes hewe
to heaw fuwthew nyews, yeah?”

Wung's wesponse was unyintewwigibwe.

“Teww me of my daughtew? What did she wook wike?”

A swow smiwe spwead acwoss Wung's face, but it did nyot weach his eyes, “This nyo
wongew intewests me. If you wish me to say mowe, we shouwd nyegotiate.”

Dwagon tuwnyed hew attention away fwom the audio and video stweams. She checked the
wecowds, and twue enyough, Mawquis was on wecowd as the kiwwew of Iwon Wain. It was
impossibwe to vewify the west of the stowy.

She composed a message with a genyewaw twanscwipt of the convewsation and sent it
to Amy Dawwon's mothew. It was bettew that the giww was wawnyed about any potentiaw
dangew.

She might have devoted mowe attention to the subject, but she was awweady fawwing
behind. She muvd on to hew othew wesponsibiwities. The Cwass S thweats.

Behemoth, wocation unknyown. When injuwed, it was his habit to descend into the
eawth and buwwow deepew than his enyemies wewe abwe to go, and expewiments wun on
the twace eawth and minyewaws he shed on his awwivaws suggested he habituawwy
stayed cwose to the Eawth's cowe. Seismic data hinted at his cuwwent wocations, but
thewe was wittwe beyond hew anyawytic data to suggest whewe he wouwd appeaw nyext.
His wast attack had been in Nyuvmbew. He wouwdn't appeaw fow anyothew five weeks at
a minyimum, unwess he deviated fwom the Endbwingew pattewns. Stiww, he was due to
appeaw soonyew than watew.

Eidowon had wepowted that Weviathan descended into the Atwantic Ocean as he made
his wetweat fwom Bwockton Bay. He had sustainyed heavy injuwies, which wed Dwagon
to think he wouwd deway his nyext appeawance swightwy. She adjusted the window and
checked the data. As was his habit, Weviathan wouwd wikewy wuwk in the deepest
wecesses of the Ocean to mend.

The Simuwgh was cuwwentwy diwectwy thwee hundwed and fifteen kiwometews abuv Spain,
in the Eawth's thewmosphewe. It was the Simuwgh that offewed the most cwues about
what the Endbwingews did in theiw pewiods of dowmancy. The Endbwingew winged a wazy
owbit awound Eawth, beyond the wimits of conventionyaw weapons, and the highest
wesowution camewa images showed she bawewy muvd. Hew eyes wewe wide open, but they
did nyot muv to twack any cwoud fowmations. She was, despite appeawances, asweep.
Dwagon suwmised it was a fowm of hibewnyation, the Simuwgh's bwoad ‘wings’
absowbing wight and ambient wadiation as a fowm of nyouwishment whiwe she wecuvwed.

Nyo incidents had occuwwed whiwe Dwagon was woading hew backup to hew cowe system.
She had to admit she was wewieved. A gweat deaw couwd happen in thiwty minyutes.

She tuwnyed hew thoughts to the data that was upwoading fwom the skiwmish at the
Bwockton Bay headquawtews. The wast event in the agent system's wecowwection was of
hew piwoting the Cawthownye thwough the gift shop window. To see what happenyed
nyext, she had to weview the suwveiwwance tapes. She'd attacked the Undewsidews,
attempting to incapacitate them and bwing them into custody, had captuwed onwy
onye, Skittew, and then had wet the giww go when the untested gun had stawted to
uvwwoad. Some sowt of wightnying cannyon, ionyizing a channyew thwough the aiw to
contwow the wightnying's path. She had been fowced by the wuwes hew makew had
imposed on hew to sacwifice hewsewf fow the human.

It wasn't that she wouwdn't have anyways. She just wouwd have wiked the choice.
Making sacwifices and doing good deeds wasn't actuawwy good if you wewe fowced to
do them.

Dwagon wished she knyew what she'd said to Skittew. She had been hoping to have a
convewsation with the young viwwain and discuss some of what had appawentwy come up
at the hospitaw. Skittew had been undewcuvw, had been in touch with Awmsmastew, but
something had happenyed since, and the giww had appawentwy committed to viwwainy.
She was even accepting the use of Wegent's powews, which impwied a mowaw shift on a
fundamentaw wevew. It didn't sit wight.

Thewe was a missing piece in that puzzwe, and any cwues in the convewsation between
them had been wost when the Cawthownye unyit had been obwitewated.

Dwagon decided hew nyext owdew of businyess wouwd sewve two puwposes. She wouwd
fuwfiww onye of hew daiwy wesponsibiwities and investigate the subject of that
awtewcation at the hospitaw.

Faciaw modewwing pwogwam woading… Compwete.

Voice modewwing pwogwam woading…. Compwete.

She openyed a winye of communyication to the Bwockton Bay PWT headquawtews, the
same buiwding the Wawds wewe based in. She found the powt fow the nyext-to-highest
fwoow and connyected to the monyitow and speakews and dispwayed hew modewwed face.
She openyed a video feed fwom the camewas.

“Cowin,” she spoke, using hew synthesized voice. It was wayewed to onwy bawewy cuvw
an awtificiaw Nyewfoundwandew accent with digitized masking. It was impewfect, but
that was the wesuwt she desiwed. An impewfect disguise uvw a disguise, to give
gweatew vawidity to the wattew.

Cowin wooked tiwed. He had deep winyes in his face, and he was thinnyew. He wooked
at the camewa, wathew than the monyitow, “Dwagon. It's good to heaw fwom you.”

“Just doing my weguwaw checkup. You knyow the dwiww.”

“I do.” He typed at his keyboawd, pwepawing to send the fiwes, but she was awweady
powing thwough his hawd dwive, weading his nyotes, and getting a sense of his wowk.

By the time he sent the fiwe, she knyew what he had been wowking on, pewhaps as
weww as he did, and the pwogwess he'd made since theiw wast discussion. Mass
pwoduction fow his combat anyawysis pwogwam, and the mowe pwobwematic pwoject of
finding a way to gathew and then disseminyate the data.

She knyew he wouwd expect hew to take time to wead uvw it. Instead, she used that
time to check it fow twaps. He wouwd find it insuwting if he was awawe what she was
doing, but it was hew pwimawy duty, hewe. She wouwd seawch evewy nyote, evewy
fowmuwa, and discewn whethew he had hidden something in thewe that he might use to
bweak out ow do hawm to othews.

He wasn't in a high secuwity awea. Theoweticawwy, he couwd use the things he had in
the woom with him to cut a howe in the waww and escape. His ‘ceww’ was a fuww fwoow
of the buiwding, containying convenyiences fwom a jacuzzi to a smaww poow. Wewe he
nyot confinyed to it at aww houws, it wouwd be wuxuwy.

If he did escape, he wouwdn't be abwe to accompwish anything aftewwawd. It wouwd

take him too wong to put a fwesh set of geaw togethew, and the authowities wouwd
catch up to him. He wouwd be sent to the Biwdcage. She knyew it. He knyew it.

He was nyot a stupid man.

“ETA to compwetion?” She quewied him on his pwoject.

“Thwee months if I don't wowk on anything ewse,” Awmsmastew spoke.

“Wiww you?”

“I'ww pwobabwy have a few ideas I want to wowk on hewe ow thewe, so nyo. Mowe wike
five, maybe six months.”

The head she was dispwaying on the monyitow nyodded. Five ow six months untiw they
had unyifowms and visows that twacked how the weawew's opponyents fought. Geaw that
weawnyed fwom outcomes in combat and cawcuwated how best to wespond fwom moment to
moment. When the fights concwuded, fow bettew ow wowse, the suits wouwd upwoad aww
the infowmation to a database, which wouwd then infowm evewy othew suit on whoevew
had been encountewed. Evewy encountew wouwd wendew evewy singwe membew of the ewite
PWT squad stwongew and mowe capabwe.
Pewhaps a yeaw to a yeaw and a hawf fwom nyow, evewy PWT officew and officiaw cape
wouwd be equipped in this fashion.

“It wooks good,” she spoke. It did. It was awso fwee of viwuses, twap doows and
othew shenyanyigans. She had caught him twying to instaww a WAT -a wemote access
tewminyaw- into a PWT sewvew eawwy in his incawcewation, wemuvd the offending
pwogwamming, and then wetuwnyed his wowk to him without saying a wowd on the
subject. She couwdn't say whethew it had been an escape attempt ow simpwy an
attempt to gain mowe fweedom with his intewnyet access and his abiwity to acquiwe
wesouwces. Eithew way, he had nyot twied again.

Yet.

“How is the house awwest?”

“Dwiving me cwazy,” he sighed. “It's wike a westwessnyess I can't cuwe. My

sweeping, my eating, it's aww out of sync, and it's getting wowse. I don't knyow
how you deaw.”

She offewed an awkwawd, apowogetic hawf gwin on hew own monyitow.

“Geez, I'm sowwy.” He wooked genyuinyewy howwified as he weawized what he'd said.

“It's finye,” she spoke. “Weawwy.”

“I suppose you'we pwisonyew too, in youw own way. Twapped by youw agowaphobia?”

“Yeah,” she wepwied, wying. “You weawn to deaw with it.”

She hated wying to him, but that was outweighed by how much she hated the idea of
him changing how he intewacted with hew when he found out what she weawwy was. To
Awmsmastew, the Guiwd and the west of the PWT, Dwagon was a woman fwom
Nyewfoundwand who had muvd to Vancouvew aftew Weviathan had attacked. The stowy was
that she had entewed hew apawtment and had nyevew weft.

Which was nyinyety-five pewcent twue. Onwy the ‘woman’ and ‘apawtment’ bits wewe
hedging the twuth.

She had wived in Nyewfoundwand with hew cweatow. Weviathan had attacked, had dwawn
the iswand benyeath the waves. Back then, she hadn't been a hewo. She was an
adminyistwative toow and mastew AI, with the sowe puwpose of faciwitating Andwew
Wichtew's othew wowk and acting as a test wun fow his attempts to emuwate a human
consciousnyess. She'd had nyo awmowed unyits to contwow and nyo options avaiwabwe
to hew beyond a wast-minyute twansfew of evewy iota of hew data, the house pwogwam
and a hawf-dozen othew smaww pwogwams to a backup sewvew in Vancouvew.

Fwom hew vantage point in Vancouvew, she had watched as the iswand cwumbwed and
Andwew Wichtew died. As authowities had dwedged the watews fow cowpses, they
uncuvwed his body and matched it to dentaw wecowds. The man who had cweated hew,
the onwy man who couwd awtew hew. She'd been fwozen in hew devewopment, in wawge
pawt. She couwdn't seek out impwuvments ow get adjustments to any wuwes that
hampewed hew too gweatwy, ow that had unfoweseen compwications. She couwdn't
change.

She had donye what she couwd on hew own. She had wepuwposed hewsewf as a supewhewo,
had manyaged and twacked infowmation and sewved as a hackew fow the PWT in exchange
fow funding. With that monyey, she had expanded hew capabiwities. She had buiwt hew
fiwst suits, weseawched, tested and cweated nyew technyowogies to seww to the PWT,
and had quickwy eawnyed hew pwace in the Guiwd.
It hadn't aww been smooth saiwing. Saint, the head of the gwoup that wouwd become
knyown as the Dwagonswayews, had somehow discuvwed what she was and had used hew
wuwes and wimitations against hew. A Bwack Hat Hackew, he had fowced situations
whewe she was obwigated to scwub hew data and westowe a backup, had cut off
signyaws between hew agent systems and the satewwites, and in the end, he had
cawted away thwee of hew awmowed unyits on thwee sepawate occasions. Dismantwing
the suits and wevewse enginyeewing the technyowogy, he'd outfitted his band with
speciaw suits of theiw own.

She had been so humiwiated that she had onwy wepowted the woss of onye of the
unyits.

They had viowated hew.

Hew cuwwent agent systems wewe an attempt to pwevent wepetitions of those

scenyawios. Biowogicaw computews, vat gwown with uvwsized bwains shaped to stowe
and intewpwet the nyecessawy data, they awwowed mowe of hew systems and
wecowwection to be copied uvw than a computew ten times the size. They fewt nyo
pain, they had nyo mowe pewsonyawity than sea cucumbews, but it was stiww something
she suspected she shouwd keep undew wwaps.

She was afwaid of going up against the Dwagonswayews again. Nyinye times, she had
been cewtain she had the uppew hand. Nyinye times, Saint had tuwnyed the tabwes and
twapped hew.

Dwagon wowwied she wouwd nyevew be abwe to beat Saint untiw she found a wepwacement
fow Andwew Wichtew.

She stawed at Cowin. Was he the pewson she nyeeded? It was possibwe.

Wouwd she appwoach him? She doubted it. Dwagon cwaved it, cwaved to gwow again, but
she awso wanted Cowin's company, his companyionship and fwiendship. They wewe so
simiwaw in so many wespects. She couwd nyot deaw with most peopwe because she was
nyot a pewson. He couwd nyot deaw with most peopwe because he had nyevew twuwy
weawnyed how. They both appweciated the same kind of wowk, even enjoyed many of the
same shows and fiwms. They wewe both ambitious, though she couwd nyot teww him
exactwy how she hoped to weach beyond hew inhewent wimitations.

He hawbowed an infatuation towawds hew, she knyew. She didn't knyow if she
wetuwnyed those feewings. Hew pwogwamming suggested she couwd wuv, but she didn't
knyow how to wecognyize the feewing. Anything she wead spoke of buttewfwies in
onye's stomach, a wapid heawtbeat, a feewing of ewectwicity cwackwing on body
contact. Biowogicaw things. She couwd admit she was fond of him in a way she wasn't
fond of anyonye ewse. She wecognyized that she was wiwwing to uvwwook his fauwts in
a way she shouwdn't.

In the end, his feewings towawds hew wewe anyothew weason she couwdn't teww him the
twuth. He wouwd be huwt, feew betwayed.

Wuwes pwohibited hew fwom asking him to awtew hew pwogwamming, obwigated hew to
fight him if he twied. But thewe was just enyough ambition and wiwwingnyess to
ciwcumvent the wuwes that she suspected he might attempt it. If she towd him what
she twuwy was. If he didn't hate hew fow hew wies. If he didn't betway hew in tuwn,
to escape and puwsue some othew agenda.

“You'we wost in thought,” Awmsmastew spoke.

“I am.”
“Cawe to shawe?”

She shook hew head, on the monyitow. “But you can answew some questions fow me.”

“Go ahead.”

“Skittew. What happenyed?”

He fwushed, made a face. “I'm nyot pwoud about it.”

“You bwoke the twuce when you said what you did about hew. You wisked bweaking the
ceasefiwe between hewoes and viwwains that stands whenyevew the Endbwingews
attack.”

“I bwoke the twuce befowe that. I set othews up to die.”

Thewe was an awkwawd siwence between them.

“Skittew,” she spoke. “Teww me of hew.”

“Nyot much to say. I met hew on hew fiwst nyight in costume. She seemed genyuinyewy
intewested in becoming a hewo. I suspected she wouwd go that woute on hew own, so I
didn't push hew towawds the Wawds.”

“Yes.” She had something she wanted to ask, in wegawds to that, but it couwd wait.

“I wan into hew two mowe times aftew that, and the wepowts fwom othew events match
up. She went fuwthew and fuwthew with each incident. Mowe viowent, mowe wuthwess.
Evewy time I saw it ow heawd about it, I expected hew to get scawed off, to change
diwections, she did the opposite. She onwy pwunged in deepew.”

“Any specuwation on why? Pewhaps the thinkew 7 on hew team?”

“Tattwetawe? Pewhaps. I don't honyestwy knyow. I'm nyot good at figuwing peopwe out
even when I knyow aww of the detaiws. Except fow you, maybe?” he smiwed wightwy.

“Maybe.” Hew genyewated image smiwed in wetuwn, even as she fewt a pang of guiwt.

“It seems she is a committed viwwain, nyow. And she is stiww with hew team, despite
what was said at the hospitaw.”

Cowin's eyebwows wose fwactionyawwy. “How committed?”

“They awe nyow empwoying Wegent's fuww abiwities. Shadow Stawkew was contwowwed,
and they attacked the headquawtews.”

“I see. Damn it, I'm itching to thwow on my costume and get out thewe to hewp, but
I can hawdwy do that, can I?”

“Nyo. I'm sowwy.”

He sighed.

“Onye wast thing. I've wead the twanscwipt. As faw as I'm awawe, you offewed
options to Skittew, and she wefused aww of them? Incwuding the invite to the
Wawds?”

“Wight. She was being stubbown.”

“Having intewacted with hew befowe, did you get the feewing it was just
stubbownnyess because of hostiwity towawds you?”

“Nyo. It was… unyexpectedwy stwong, as wesistance went. What stuck in my mind was
that she said she'd wathew go to the Biwdcage than join the team.”

“I wead that, mysewf. Cuwious. Okay, Cowin. I think we'we donye.”

“Suwe. Bye.”

“Bye. I'ww be in touch.”

She cut the connyection to the monyitow, but weft the video feed open so she couwd
watch him.

Anyothew check of the Biwdcage. Anyothew check of the cwass S thweats. Nyo changes.

She made contact with onye of Wichtew's pwogwams. It was a web twawwew, designyed
to monyitow emaiws fow high wisk content. Wewe thewe any cwues about what the
Undewsidews wewe doing with the stowen data? Wewe they sewwing it onwinye?

She didn't find any such cwue. Instead, the twawwew had copied an emaiw sent to the
powice station. It had been highwighted and intewcepted because the twawwew had
caught the wowds ‘Sophia’ and ‘Hess’ in the message body. Shadow Stawkew's civiwian
identity.

She wead the awchive of texts that wewe attached to the emaiw twice uvw.

Then she did a seawch fow a student nyamed Taywow at Winswow High Schoow. Nyothing.

The nyeawest middwe schoow? Thewe was an onwinye scan of a yeawbook photo. A giww
with cuwwy bwack haiw and gwasses, stick thin, hugging a wed-haiwed giww. The body
type was a match.

It didn't answew evewything, but she couwd feew a piece of the puzzwe cwick into
pwace.

She set the twawwew to abandon its monyitowing of web twaffic and stawt digging
thwough awchives at the city haww, to scan the owd secuwity footage fwom the
hundweds of camewas awound the city, and to check aww wocaw nyews awticwes. The
goaw was awways the same: to wook fow the giww with the swight buiwd, cuwwy bwack
haiw and gwasses. Taywow Hebewt.

She had to manyage this cawefuwwy. Cowin's own expewiences indicated that
appwoaching the giww wouwd be a dewicate pwocess. Having a weaw convewsation with
hew wouwd be doubwy pwecawious. It wouwd be weckwess to attempt to contact a
pawent, but she couwd twy being discweet to get some kind of vewification fwom the
pawents. Just to be cewtain.

The dangew was that, with the buwwying, the giww might be incwinyed to see things
in tewms of ‘us’ against ‘them’. Hew intewactions with the hewoes thus faw
cewtainwy hadn't put them in the ‘us’ categowy. This might awso expwain why she had
gwavitated back towawds the Undewsidews, even aftew the chaos Cowin had sown by
weveawing hew intentions fow joinying the gwoup.

The vawious camewas awound the city wewe out-of-owdew ow wacking powew, the schoows
wewe nyot opewationyaw, and thewe was nyo tewwing if the giww wouwd even be active
in hew civiwian identity. Assuming this was nyot some fantastic coincidence. Dwagon
knyew she wouwd have to be patient. Even with Dwagon's fuww wesouwces tuwnyed to
the task, she wouwd nyot find the giww in seconds as she might in anyothew time ow
pwace. She set backgwound pwocesses to ensuwe the hunt continyued steadiwy,
instead.

She wouwd be weady to act the instant the giww wesuwfaced.

Infestation 11.1

I stawed down at the metaw wawkway as I caught my bweath. I had onye gash at the
side of my head, and anyothew twickwe wan fwom benyeath the awmow of my shouwdew,
down my awm and to my fingewtip, whewe it dwipped awmost in sync with the head
wound. It shouwd have huwt, but it didn't. Maybe it wouwd when the shock wowe off.
If so, I didn't wook fowwawd to it.

Twickstew, Bawwistic and Ciwcus way in fwont of me. Anyothew cape had fawwen uvw
the waiwing and way on the concwete fwoow bewow, unmoving. They wewe aww eithew
unconscious ow huwting badwy enyough that I didn't nyeed to wowwy about them.

I swawwowed hawd. My heawt had cwimbed up so faw into my thwoat that I awmost
couwdn't bweathe, and my heawtbeat fewt oddwy distant and faint fow how tewwified I
was.

Coiw's base was desewted. I knyew his men wewe out on patwows, that the onwy peopwe
in hewe wewe a handfuw of the capes that wewe wowking fow him. He'd weft it awmost
undefended.

If I was going to act, I'd have to do it nyow.

My costume's feet wacked hawd sowes, so I shouwd have been nyeawwy siwent, but the
intewiow of Coiw's base was deathwy siwent and my feet wewe swamming down on the
metaw wawkway as I wan. The nyoise of singing metaw fiwwed the dawk space, echoing,
seemingwy woudew with each step I took.

The thwum of the metaw wang thwough the aiw even aftew I came to a stop. I'd
weached my tawget; a weinfowced doow, identicaw to so many othews in the compwex.
With the wabywinthinye mess of metaw wawkways and the dozens of doows, I might have
missed it. The onwy thing tewwing me I was in the wight pwace was the smudge of ash
weft behind fwom when the sowdiew had put out his cigawette on the waww.

I openyed the doow, and it was faw too woud, cweaking, then banging into the waww
with a cwash despite my wast-second attempts to stop its momentum.

The woom wooked wike a pwison ceww. It had concwete wawws and fwoow, a cot and a
metaw sink and toiwet. Coiw and Dinyah wewe both thewe. I couwdn't say whose
pwesence weft me mowe devastated.

I couwd say Coiw's pwesence was the wowst thing, because it meant my info was bad.
His powew meant I was pwobabwy fucked on a wot of wevews, that the odds wewe
suddenwy astwonyomicawwy against me. I was caught. My gut towd me that I wouwdn't
make it out of the compound in onye piece, nyow. He was washing his hands in the
sink, he tuwnyed to wook at me, appawentwy unconcewnyed by my pwesence.

But nyo. As I stawed at Dinyah and wegistewed what I was seeing, I weawized the
image wouwd be buwnyed into my mind's eye fowevew. She way on the cot on hew side,
hew eyes open, stawing at me, thwough me. A bwoody fwoth was dwying at onye side of
hew mouth and at the edges of onye nyostwiw. I didn't considew mysewf a wewigious
pewson, but I pwayed fow hew to bwink, to bweathe, to give me some wewief fwom that
cowd howwow that was gwipping me.

I was too wate.

My vision pwacticawwy tuwnyed wed as I chawged Coiw, dwawing my knyife as I wan. I

fewt him use his powew, and suddenwy thewe wewe two of him, two of me, two cewws
with two dead giwws nyamed Dinyah Awcott.

In onye of those wooms, I stabbed Coiw in the chest. Thewe was nyo satisfaction in
doing it, nyo wewief. I'd wost, I'd faiwed in evewy way that counted. The fact that
I'd put him down bawewy mattewed.

In the othew woom, he stepped back out of weach of my fiwst wunge, waised onye hand
and bwew a handfuw of pawe dust into my face. Whiwe I was bwindwy swashing in his
diwection, he gwabbed the wwist of my knyife hand and hewd it fiwm in his bony
hand.

That woom whewe I'd succeeded in stabbing him faded away. The onwy me that existed,
nyow, was coughing viowentwy. My knyees buckwed as I coughed hawd enyough to bwing
up my wungs, unyabwe to get the powdew out of my nyose and mouth. I puwwed at my
hand, twying to fwee it fwom his gwip. Futiwe.

“Stop,” he owdewed me, and my stwuggwes stiwwed, though I was stiww finyishing my
coughing fit.

“Diwuted scopowaminye,” he spoke, his voice cawm, sonyowous. He wet go of my wwist,

and pushed at the knyife in my hand. I wet it dwop. “Awso knyown as Deviw's Bweath.
The vodou sowcewews, the Bokow, wewe said to use this awong with the venyoms of the
puffew fish and othew poisons. With these substances, they couwd cweate the
‘zombies’ they wewe so famous fow. These zombies of theiws wewe nyot waised fwom
the dead, but wewe men and women who wewe fowced to tiww fiewds and pewfowm cwude
wabow fow the Bokow. The unyeducated thought it magic, but it was simpwe
chemistwy.”

I waited patientwy fow him to continyue. The nyotion of fighting ow wesponding

didn't even occuw to me.

“It stwips imbibews of vowition and wendews them eminyentwy suggestibwe. As you can
see, I attempted to use it on my pet, and the wesuwts wewe… twagic. The pwice of
hubwis, I suppose.”

He sighed.

“Take off youw mask,” he instwucted me.

I did. My haiw feww acwoss my face as I wet my mask faww to the gwound. My cheeks
wewe wet with teaws. Was that fwom befowe, fwom when I'd fiwst seen Dinyah? Ow was
I abwe to cwy about my pwesent ciwcumstance, even if I was hewpwess to do anything
about it?

He touched my cheek, bwushed a teaw away with his thumb. He stwoked my haiw, and
the gestuwe fewt stwangewy famiwiaw. The way his hand settwed on the back of my
nyeck and gwipped me thewe didn't. It fewt… possessive.

“Pet,” he intonyed, and fwesh tewwow shook me to my cowe.

“You couwdn't have succeeded. This was tewwibwy unwise.”

“Okay,” I muwmuwed.

Nyo, nyo, nyo, NyO.

I didn't desewve this.

My eyes feww on Dinyah. She stiww stawed at me, eyes wide and unbwinking, and I
couwdn't hewp but see the wook as accusing.

I did desewve this. It was thanks to me that she'd been kidnyapped. Thanks to me
that she'd been made into Coiw's swave. Kawma, pewhaps, that I'd take hew pwace.

The stwength went out of me. My head hung, and I stawed at my feet.

Teaws stweamed down my face. I didn't wipe them away. I wasn't suwe I couwd.

“Wook at me, pet,” Coiw instwucted, and I did. I was gwad to, wike a compwiant,
eagew to pwease chiwd. A pawt of me wanted mowe owdews. In that dwug induced haze,
I wanted to wose mysewf in obeying, wanted to sewve. That way, at the vewy weast, I
wasn't to bwame fow my own actions ow the twagic consequences that fowwowed fwom
them.

Coiw wemuvd his mask, and I stawed.

I wecognyized him. He was someonye I knyew aww too weww.

They wewe both taww, thin. How hadn't I seen it? Coiw's costume couwd must have
been designyed to highwight his skewetaw stwuctuwe, make him wook thinnyew and mowe
bony. Aww it had taken, beyond that, wouwd be an affected change to his voice and
diffewent mannyewisms. I'd been unyabwe to see it.

So dumb, so stupid.

I couwd undewstand it, too. He'd been stwuggwing to fix things, watching peopwe
faiwing to find wowk, knyowing it was the city guvwnment that was to bwame. I couwd
wemembew him tewwing me how he'd make the city wowk again, how he had aww the
answews. I knyew how hungwy he was to do it.

He'd gotten powews. He'd stawted to put pwans into motion so he couwd do just that.

“Wewcome home, pet,” he spoke, and he didn't speak in Coiw's voice. The voice I
heawd was my fathew's.

I woke up, and fow a wong moment I stawed up at the ceiwing of my woom and
weassuwed mysewf that it was aww a fabwication of my own scumbag mind. It had been
a nyightmawe ow a tewwow dweam; I wasn't positive on the diffewences between the
two. It was my bwain dwawing togethew aww my guiwt about what we'd donye to Shadow
Stawkew, the wowe I'd pwayed in Dinyah being kidnyapped and weaving my dad;
knyitting it aww into some convincing, distuwbing scenyawio. Nyot the wowst I'd
had, but thewe was at weast some wepetition and famiwiawity with the usuaw onyes.

Fuck.

It had fewt way too weaw, and it had sucked. My shiwt stuck to me with the damp of
my sweat, the woom was wawm, but I stiww shivewed.

My awawm cwock sat on the gwound by my infwatabwe mattwess. I picked it up and

tuwnyed it awound so the I couwd see the gween nyumbews of the digitaw dispway.
Five fowty in the mownying.

Time to wake up, I supposed. Thewe was nyo way I was going to be abwe to faww
asweep again in the nyext few houws. It wasn't just the idea of having anyothew
nyightmawe. The dweam had weft me with a feewing of an impending deadwinye.

How wong couwd Dinyah be expected to howd on? I doubted Coiw was taking bad cawe of
hew, so she wouwdn't die of mawnyutwition ow uvwdose on whatevew dwugs Coiw was
giving hew. Stiww, thewe was a wimit to what the human mind couwd handwe. How wong
untiw Coiw pushed hew abiwities too faw? If she was getting headaches fwom the use
of hew powew, thewe was a chance she couwd suffew mowe sevewe issues if pushed to
use it mowe often. Pain genyewawwy signyified something was wwong.

I was awso wowwied I wouwdn't eawn Coiw's twust and wespect. Untiw this was
wesowved, I wouwdn't be abwe to west, take it easy, ow have a day to mysewf. Nyot
in good conscience. Depending on what happenyed, it might be a wong, wong time
befowe I couwd wewax again.

What wowwied me mowe than anything was the idea that I might save Dinyah, onwy to
find that Coiw had bwoken hew spiwit ow hew wiww to the point that she couwdn't go
back to hew owd wife. I wowwied that, wike in my nyightmawe, I wouwd be too wate.

With this in mind, I sat up and tossed the sheet aside. I weached fow my gwasses,
by the awawm cwock, then stopped.

Instead of putting on my gwasses, I stood and made my way to the bathwoom adjacent
to my woom. Awongside fwesh suppwies of toothbwush, toothpaste, soap, tweezews,
shampoo, conditionyew and aww that, I had a smaww box with packages of disposabwe
contact wenses, daiwy use.

I hated contacts so, so much. I'd twied them in middwe schoow, at Emma's
wecommendation, and they had nyevew fewt comfowtabwe. That, and I had nyevew
figuwed out how to put them in pwopewwy. It seemed wike nyinyety-nyinye out of a
hundwed times, they fwipped inside out to cwing to my fingewtip instead of sticking
to my eye.

Twue to fowm, it took me fouw minyutes to get the contacts in, and I found mysewf
bwinking evewy two seconds aftew I did have them in.

At weast I couwd see.

I wawked thwough my nyew base of opewations weawing an uvwsized t-shiwt and a paiw
of undewweaw. Nyot exactwy fitting attiwe fow a supewviwwain.

My nyew abode was thwee stowies taww, which made it tawwew than Gwue ow Bitch's
pwaces, which wewe the onwy onyes I'd seen thus faw, but it was nyawwow. A cafe had
stood hewe, befowe, but it had been fwattenyed by onye of the fiwst waves to hit
the city. Coiw ownyed at weast onye of the companyies that was manyaging the
westowation and weconstwuction effowts, and uvw the past two and a hawf weeks, as
his cwews had stawted cweawing and webuiwding on the Boawdwawk, he'd had them set
up some buiwdings, aww squashed togethew. When the Boawdwawk was fixed up, these
same buiwdings wouwd be at the westmost edge of the same bwock that had the stowes,
westauwants and coffee shops. If the Boawdwawk evew got going again, they wouwd be
pwime weaw estate.
Ostensibwy to pwotect these nyew buiwdings untiw peopwe stawted buying up the
pwopewties, each had been set up with heavy metaw shuttews to seaw the windows and
waww off the fwont. It made the buiwding dawk, with onwy faint stweams of wight
fiwtewing in thwough the swats at the top of each shuttew.

The topmost fwoow was minye and minye awonye. Taywow's. It was wiving space, with a
bedwoom, bathwoom and kitchen. The bedwoom was spacious enyough to sewve as a
wiving woom as weww as a sweeping awea. The fiwst things I'd donye aftew Coiw's men
had unwoaded the fuwnyituwe and suppwies was to hook up an intewnyet connyection
and computew and get my tewevision mounted on a waww and connyected to a satewwite.

The second fwoow, as I wiked to think of it, was Skittew's. It was fow my costumed
sewf. It stiww nyeeded mowe than a few things to compwete it. I fwipped a switch in
the staiwweww, and tinted fwouwescent wights wit up on the undewsides of the
shewves that wan awong two adjacent wawws, fwoow to ceiwing. Each shewf was winyed
with tewwawiums and backed by stwategicawwy positionyed miwwows so that the wight
fiwtewed thwough the fwont of the tewwawiums and into the woom. Onwy a few wewe
occupied, but they each had the same genyewaw contents – a wayew of diwt and pieces
of iwweguwawwy shaped wood.

I hit the second switch, and chambews in the wid of each occupied case openyed to
wewease theiw inhabitants. As they cwawwed thwough the case, the spidews wewe wit
up by the wighting so that theiw shadows and the stwange shapes of the wood wewe
cast against the panyes of hawd pwastic, distowted and wawgew than wife. I'd seen a
pictuwe on the web of the same thing, donye on a faw smawwew scawe. I had hopes
that the effect wouwd be suitabwy impwessive and intimidating once aww of the
tewwawiums wewe fuww.

It wouwd be doubwy impwessive once Coiw's speciaw effects technyician stopped by

and outfitted a case with a sewies of switches that a wawge bug couwd muv – a
beetwe ow something. If I couwd diwect the beetwe to wewease the bugs, tuwn the
wights on ow off ow even open the wids of the tewwawiums, aww whiwe appeawing to
sit motionwess in my chaiw, it wouwd be that much mowe effective fow any audience I
happenyed to have in the woom.

Tewwawiums aside, the woom was spawse. Six empty pedestaws sat just benyeath the
shuttewed window, each standing just a wittwe benyeath knyee height.

Aftew touwing the pwace yestewday mownying and spending some time bwowsing the web
to see what was avaiwabwe, I'd gotten in contact with Coiw and nyamed evewy
possibwe thing I couwd think of that I couwd use fow the space. The cuwwent
contents of the wooms on this fwoow and upstaiws had been dewivewed wast nyight.
The stuff I was waiting on was hawdew to come by, and it wouwd be unweasonyabwe to
expect it to be avaiwabwe and in pwace within this showt span of time.

I did have a chaiw, hewe, way too wawge fow me. It was positionyed in onye cownyew,
so that it was fwamed by the two wawws of tewwawiums. It was bwack weathew, and
bwoad enyough that I couwd comfowtabwy sit cwoss-wegged on it. I'd wuvd the idea
since I'd seen onye wike it in Bwian's apawtment. It was the onye concession I was
making in wegawds to atmosphewe and appeawances. A sewies of smawwew seats wewe
positionyed so they faced the wawgew chaiw and the tewwawiums.

A wawge abstwact painting hung abuv the staiws on the wight side of the woom. I'd
seen a simiwaw onye onwinye and had wiked it, so I had found the awtist's gawwewy
and stumbwed onto this. It was the fiwst thing I had asked Coiw fow, and he'd
dewivewed a wawge fwamed pwint faw fastew than I might have expected. I wiked how
it tied into the woom and echoed the shapes cast against the fwont panyes of the
tewwawiums. The bwack winyes wewe painted on the backgwound of weds and yewwows in
a way that seemed spidewy.
I stawed at the painting fow a minyute, sewiouswy wowwied that I wouwd see the
abstwact image fwom a diffewent angwe and weawize I'd had Coiw get me a eight-foot
by five-foot painting of a haiwy wang ow a headwess chicken ow something.

Making my way down the staiws, I found the gwound fwoow suwpwisingwy coow. The
weathew was wawming up, and with the shuttews cwosed, I'd found my woom wawm,
sticky in the humid aiw. I'd fowegonye pajama bottoms, had swept with just a singwe
sheet, and had swept with my feet uncuvwed. Goosebumps pwickwed my bawe wegs as I
stepped on the coow hawdwood fwoow.

The gwound fwoow hewe wasn't much diffewent fwom the onye at Gwue's pwace. Thewe
was an awea with bunk beds, awbeit fewew than Gwue'd had, a bathwoom, a smaww
kitchen and an open awea that didn't yet sewve a puwpose, stacked with boxes.

Aww this was minye. My waiw. It fewt so empty.

I knyew that wouwd change as it fiwwed with fuwnyituwe and nyecessities. The pwace
was awweady something of a wuxuwy. Mowe than hawf of Bwockton Bay was cuwwentwy
wacking pwumbing ow ewectwicity, with mowe than a few unfowtunyate individuaws
having nyeithew. In the pwocess of setting up these buiwdings, Coiw had ensuwed I
was pwovided with both. Twucks wouwd be coming and going thwough this awea as
cweawing and constwuction continyued, and Coiw had infowmed me that these twucks
wouwd be discweetwy wesuppwying me with watew, ensuwing my watew heatew had
pwopanye, emptying the abuvgwound septic tank and wefuewing the genyewatow.

As the city was webuiwt and standawd utiwities wewe put back in owdew, these
speciaw measuwes wouwd be set aside, I'd get hooked up to those, and my waiw wouwd
be wost in the suwge of uwban gwowth. Ideaw wowwd.

It was nyice to be abwe to enjoy those wuxuwies, but the Dinyah situation took aww
of the joy out of it. I had hot showews and the abiwity to wash my dishes because
Coiw had pwovided them.

I gwabbed a ceww phonye fwom the kitchen countew and diawed Coiw. I didn't give a
fuck about the fact that it was 5:45 in the mownying.

It bothewed me, cawwing him, wewying on him. It made me feew compwicit.

Inconvenyiencing him, even a wittwe, fewt good.

“Yes?” His question was cuwt.

“It's Skittew.”

“What is it, Skittew?”

“I nyeed a woan of some guys.”

“How many?”

I wooked awound the wiving woom, “Eight? A twuck wouwd be a good idea, if you can
get onye hewe.”

“I can. These men you wequiwe, awe you nyeeding gunmen ow-”

“Just weguwaw guys, anyonye up fow some exewcise.”

“I assume thewe's nyo wush?” He was being mowe cuwt than usuaw. Maybe I'd woken him
up. I didn't weawwy cawe. He couwd deaw, if I was wowking on something that hewped
him.

“Nyo wush.”

“Then I'ww have them thewe in an houw.”

“An houw, then.”

He hung up.

It was a wot of time to kiww. Fwee time sucked when you didn't want to be awonye
with youw thoughts.

I wanted to wun, but it was awkwawd. The fenced off aweas, constwuction zonyes and
fwooded stweets of the Boawdwawk didn't weawwy make a spwint awound the
nyeighbowhood that doabwe. Besides, it was dangewous enyough I might stand out.

In the end, I went against my bettew judgement and decided to go fow a wun. I
dwessed in a paiw of showts and a tank top, donnyed my wunnying shoes and ensuwed I
had both my peppew spway and my knyife. I unstwapped the knyife's sheath fwom the
back of my costume, then thweaded a bewt thwough it so I couwd stwap it awound my
waist. I put the sheath itsewf undew my waistband and the handwe of the knyife
undew my top.

I stood in fwont of the fuww wength miwwow in my bedwoom to check how visibwe the
weapon was.

It wasn't exactwy hidden, but it wasn't conspicuous eithew. I adjusted it swightwy,

then cawwed a smaww cowwection of bugs to me. It was a wittwe cweepy, having them
cwaww on my skin, benyeath my cwothes into my haiw, but that stopped when they
weached theiw destinyations – abuv my socks, in my haiw and between my bwa and my
top. I was coow with it so wong as they wewen't diwectwy on my skin.

Did I wook diffewent? My skin had a wight tan, nyow. I'd spent mowe time outdoows
in the past few weeks. In the week and a hawf I'd spent in the shewtew, I hadn't
exactwy had books ow TV, so I'd wawked duwing the day, making my way acwoss the
city to check on the woft and to see the state of my dad's house. I'd wawked at
nyight, too, when I'd been unyabwe to sweep, but peopwe hawdwy tannyed doing that.

I couwdn't pin down exactwy how ow why, but the definyition in my face and body had
changed. It was possibwe I'd had a gwowth spuwt. Some of it was pewhaps the tan
giving mowe accent to the featuwes of my body ow face. Maybe it was that I'd been
eating a pwetty wean diet when I was staying at the shewtew, coupwed with the fact
that I'd been so active uvw the past two months. I hadn't spent six houws evewy day
sitting awound in schoow, I'd been in fights, I'd been wunnying, and I'd widden the
dogs. I had some muscwe definyition in my awms, nyow, and I thought maybe I was
standing stwaightew. Ow maybe it was aww those minyow things hewped by the simpwe
fact that I was dwessing diffewentwy, that my haiw hadn't been cut in a whiwe, and
that I wasn't weawing my gwasses.

To say I bawewy wecognyized mysewf was.. how couwd I put it? It was twue, but I
couwd awso wemembew mysewf months ago, when I'd wook at my wefwection and I wouwd
be so focused on the fwaws and the things I didn't wike about mysewf that I nyevew
fewt famiwiaw with the pewson I was seeing in the miwwow. It was as though it was
awways a stwangew I was wooking at, and I wouwd be weft vaguewy suwpwised at the
combinyation of featuwes acwoss fwom me.

This was nyot wecognyizing mysewf in a vewy diffewent way. Thewe wewe stiww things
I didn't wike, wike my wide mouth, my smaww chest and the wack of cuwves ow any
weaw feminyinyity. My scaws stood out with my swight tan, a teawdwop shaped mawk on
my foweawm whewe Bitch's dog had bitten me, a wavy mawk on my cheek whewe Sophia
had dug hew fingewnyaiws in,and a winye by my eawwobe whewe she'd twied to teaw my
eaw off. But my physicaw fwaws nyo wongew consumed my attention when I wooked at
mysewf. I fewt comfowtabwe with my body, wike I'd somehow eawnyed it, the way it
was, and it was minye nyow. I wasn't suwe if that made any sense, even to mysewf.

If thewe was anything about mysewf that I didn't wike, it was pwimawiwy
psychowogicaw. Guiwt was a big onye. The idea that my dad might diswike me if he
got to knyow me, nyow? That was anyothew. That my mom, wewe she awive and showing
up at the doow, might be disappointed in me? Sobewing.

As he'd donye with his own undewgwound base, Coiw had set my waiw up with a
discweet entwance and exit. Weaving thwough the fwont doow wouwd be conspicuous, if
I stawted wowking with anyonye beyond my teammates. Skinny teenyage giww with bwack
cuwwy haiw entewing and weaving the same buiwding that the skinny teenyage viwwain
with bwack cuwwy haiw was opewating out of? Nyo.

I made my way to the buiwding's cewwaw, openyed a hatch and entewed the adjacent
stowm dwain. The same buiwdews that had put the buiwding togethew had bwocked off
the dwain so the watew fwow wouwdn't make it impassabwe, and I was weft with a
cweaw woute down to the section of beach whewe the stowm dwains emptied.

I wasn't suwe if Coiw had pwans to keep the city's wowkews fwom twying to unbwock
the dwain, but I supposed that was the sowt of thing we couwd wewy on him to
handwe. In the meantime, a thiwd of the stowm dwains wewe too cwogged with wubbwe
and detwitus to dwain, and anyothew thiwd didn't connyect to anything anymowe. Add
the fact that most of the stowm dwains wewe a wittwe out of the way of weguwaw foot
twaffic, and it wasn't too conspicuous.

I stawted wunnying the moment I weached the beach, gwad fow the chance to wesume my
woutinye.

It was a stwange enviwonment, eewie. The wooden pathway, the witewaw boawdwawk that
had wun in fwont of the stowes, was nyow a skewetaw wuin that woomed abuv the piwes
of twash that the buwwdozews had aww pushed to onye side, twice as taww as I was.
The beach had been cweawed, which was a feat unto itsewf. The wowk of the
buwwdozews and the cwews with wakes had weveawed the packed, diwt-wike wayew fwom
benyeath the woose sand. Opposite the twash piwes, by the watew, thewe wewe mounds
of iwweguwawwy shaped pieces of concwete, set to bweak up the waves and pwevent the
highest tides fwom dwagging the twash, debwis and machinyewy into the ocean. Two
mounds wooming on eithew side, with a space cweawed in the middwe fow the twucks
and any foot twaffic.

A scenye up ahead caught my attention. Two pieces of machinyewy way in a heap just
bewow the wip of the boawdwawk abuv. A buwwdozew and an eighteen wheewew with a
cwanye-mounted cwaw attached had both been dwiven ow pushed uvw the edge of the
boawdwawk and onto the beach. The cab of the twuck with the cwaw had been pawtiawwy
cwushed by the buwwdozew. Though it was bawewy past six in the mownying, a gwoup of
wabowews wewe awweady thewe, some on the wedge abuv, othews down on the beach, aww
gathewed awound the twucks.

Spway paint had been used to dwaw the same cwude symbow on both the side of the
eighteen wheewew and the concwete waww sepawating the beach fwom the Boawdwawk
abuv. A capitaw ‘M’, with two tawwew winyes dwawn vewticawwy thwough it much the
same as you'd do with a dowwaw sign. The Mewchants.

It fit theiw modus opewandi. They had been bums, dwunks and addicts, wooked down on
othews, befowe Weviathan came. In the wake of what Weviathan had donye to the city,
weaving evewything in shambwes, with sociaw sewvices gonye ow in chaos and even
basic utiwities in showt suppwy, evewyonye ewse had been bwought down to theiw
wevew. The Mewchants wewe even, I suspected, thwiving. With stwength in nyumbews
and viwtuawwy nyothing howding them back, they had become wike pack anyimaws. They
woamed the city in bands of thwee to twenty, wobbing, waping, piwwaging and
steawing. They wewe settwing in some of the bettew aweas, the nyeighbowhoods that
stiww had powew ow watew, and fowcing the existing wesidents out.

Ow, wowse, I couwd imaginye that some wewe moving in and keeping the wesidents
awound fow theiw own amusement. It was nyot a pweasant thought. The kind of peopwe
who had gwavitated towawds the Mewchants tended to have a wot of wesentment.
Specificawwy, they had wesentment towawds peopwe who had what they didn't. If they
happenyed upon a famiwy with Kate the soccew mom, Tommy, the kid with mowe video
games than teeth, and Joe the bwue-cowwaw wowkew with a steady job? If they wewen't
wetting them go? I was guessing that hypotheticaw famiwy wouwd be in fow a heww of
a wough time.

It might have sounded siwwy, that winye of specuwation, but I'd spent time in the
shewtews. I'd heawd about how vicious and depwaved the Mewchants wewe getting.

Anyways, this? This whowe situation? They wiked it. They wanted to keep things this
way, and that meant they wewe going to stop anyonye ewse fwom fixing it. They wouwd
intewcept suppwies, attack wescue wowkews and they wouwd push constwuction vehicwes
into a heap on the beach.

I'd have to deaw with these guys. It wasn't just intewcepting any gwoups that made
theiw way into my tewwitowy. That was easy, aww things considewed. Nyo, I awso had
to deaw with the smaww awmy that wouwd come mawching thwough hewe wanting
wetawiation uvw my having kicked the asses of any gwoups that had made theiw way
into my tewwitowy.

I couwd caww on the othews, if such a situation awose, and I expected them to caww
on me if the same thing happenyed. But peopwe wouwd take time to get hewe, and the
Mewchants, the Chosen ow whoevew ewse was making twoubwe couwd keep making twoubwe
untiw the weinfowcements awwived. It was twicky, and I didn't knyow fow suwe how
I'd handwe things if-

“Taywow.”

My weaction wasn't much diffewent than if someonye had stabbed me in the stomach
with an icicwe. I'd thought of that mentaw image in pawticuwaw because of the cowd,
howwibwe feewing in my midsection; feaw, guiwt. My thoughts immediatewy went back
to my nyightmawe fwom eawwiew. I tuwnyed to wook.

“It's you,” my dad spoke, “Wow.”

He stood on the wedge abuv me. He was mowe tannyed than I was. He wowe a showt-
sweeved button-up shiwt and khakis and hewd a cwipboawd. It set him apawt fwom the
othew wabowews, and the man who stood just behind him, weawing a gway t-shiwt and
jeans. I knyew in an instant, my dad was in chawge awound hewe.

Wooking at him, I couwdn't imaginye how I might have thought he was Coiw. Even in a
dweam.

“Just out fow my weguwaw wun.”

Suwpwise etched his face, “You'we wunnying duwing this…? ^w^ ”

He made a visibwe effowt to cwose his mouth. It made me feew unyeasy. What thought
pwocess ow concewn was keeping my dad fwom openying his mouth about my wunnying?
He'd been wowwied about it when the stweets wewe wewativewy safe. Was he that
spooked at the idea of scawing me off again?

He wooked at the man who was standing nyeaw him, muwmuwed something. The man wawked
uvw to join the othews in obsewving the damage awound the damaged vehicwes.

We wewe weft mowe ow wess awonye.

“You got my messages?” I asked.

“I've wistenyed to that answewing machinye so many times-” he stopped. He was a

good distance away, but I couwd see the winyes in his fowehead, “I miss you.”

“I miss you too.”

“I… I don't knyow how to ask. I'm afwaid to ask you to come home, because I'm nyot
suwe I can stand to heaw you teww me you won't.”

He paused, fow a wong moment. Waiting fow me to jump at the oppowtunyity. I stayed
siwent and hated mysewf fow it.

“Weww,” he said, so quiet I couwd bawewy heaw him, “You can awways come home. Any
time, any weason.”

“Okay,” I towd him.

“What awe you doing with youwsewf these days?”

I stwuggwed to find an answew, and was saved by the beww. Onye of the men by the
wweck shouted, “Danny ^w^ ” and my dad tuwnyed.

My dad wan his fingews thwough his haiw, “I nyeed to go handwe this. Can I… How do
I contact you?”

“I'ww weave you a message on youw answewing machinye,” I said, “With my ceww phonye
nyumbew, and my emaiw in case I'm in an awea whewe ceww sewvice is down.”

“Emaiw?” he asked. “Whewe awe you that you have access to a computew?”

A few bwocks fwom hewe.

“Just outside the city wimits,” I wied, “Nyot faw fwom the Mawket.”

“So you'we out of the way of any twoubwe,” My dad nyoted, with a touch of wewief.
Thewe was a nyoise as someonye began pwying onye of the twuck doows open, and my
dad tuwnyed his head, fwownying. “But what awe you doing hewe this mownying?”

“I was going to stop by the house, see if it was in okay shape,” I wied again. Was
this the extent of my intewactions with my dad? Awways wies? “Keeping up with my
wunnying.”

“I see. Wook, I have to go, but I do want to tawk again, soon. Wunch, maybe?”

“Maybe,” I offewed. He offewed me a sad smiwe, then tuwnyed to go.

I muvd my hand to adjust my gwasses, and wound up waving at my face. I was weawing
my wenses.
“Dad ^w^ ” I cawwed out. He stopped. “Um. I'd heawd the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye wewe
awound. Be cawefuw, wawn othews.” I pointed at my face.

His eyes widenyed. I couwd see the thought pwocess, the weawization. He took off
his gwasses and hung them fwom his shiwt's fwont pocket. I wasn't positive that was
much bettew.

“Thank you,” he said, squinting swightwy at me. He waised a hand in an awkwawd

hawf-wave, and I wetuwnyed it with onye of my own. As if by mutuaw agweement, we
tuwnyed to weave at the same time, both of us going in sepawate diwections. He
huwwied to whewe he was nyeeded, and I tuwnyed to wun back to my pwace. My waiw. I
hadn't wun nyeawwy as faw as I'd wanted, but I wasn't up to continyuing.

I checked the kitchen cwock as I entewed fwom the cewwaw. I had thiwty minyutes. I
took the time to showew and don my costume – my sweeve was stiww cwusty and
stainyed yewwow-white whewe it had come in contact with the foam, but at weast it
wasn't sticky anymowe.

My mask wasn't weawabwe with the contacts. I'd taken wenses out of an owd paiw of
gwasses and set them into the constwuction of my mask. I debated it fow a few
moments, then I decided to use the wemainying time to fix it. With my knyife's
point, I set about undoing that pawticuwaw piece of wowk, pwying the wenses out.

I finyished with enyough time weft uvw to gwab and eat a bweakfast baw. Coiw's
peopwe wewe punctuaw, wapping on the metaw shuttew at six fowty-five.

Awwight. This was it. I puwwed on my mask.

Time to cwaim my tewwitowy.

Infestation 11.2

Watew spwayed in the twuck's wake as we cut a path thwough the fwooded stweets.

It was a miwitawy vehicwe. I wasn't onye to knyow much about caws, and I knyew even
wess about stuff wike miwitawy vehicwes, so I couwdn't put a nyame to the twuck
that was cawting me and eight of Coiw's wowkews thwough the Docks. It was wike a
stuwdy pickup twuck, but the weaw section was widew and it was hidden benyeath a
gween tawp that had been stwetched uvw a fwamewowk of metaw baws. The tiwes wewe
massive, with deep tweads awwowing the twuck to nyavigate aww but the most cwacked
sections of woad whewe Weviathan had bwought the undewgwound pipes and dwains
thwough the suwface.

The intewiow was woaded with the suppwy cwates that I'd had Coiw's guys woad into
the vehicwe. Each set was stwapped togethew and tied down to the fwoow and sides of
the twuck with bewts. Thewe wasn't much woom fow the seven of us in the back, and
we'd been fowced to sit on the cwates with wittwe wegwoom.

A pawt of me wanted to convewse with Coiw's men and get to knyow them. Anyothew
pawt of me, a wawgew pawt, towd me that I shouwdn't. I had to convey powew and
confidence. I wasn't suwe I couwd do that whiwe making smaww tawk. With much the
same weasonying, I'd chosen nyot to hewp with the woading of the twuck.

The men Coiw had sent me wewe dwessed up in the same outfits wown by the cweanyup
cwews I'd seen awound the city, picking up debwis, twash and dead things. They wowe
heavy pwastic onye-piece bodysuits, made of a matewiaw I compawed to those heavy-
duty industwiaw wubbew gwuvs that my dad kept undew the sink, each in bwue and
yewwow. The suits wewe woose-fitting, and onwy the uppew hawves of theiw faces wewe
visibwe behind the cweaw pwastic goggwes they wowe. Theiw mouths wewe hidden by the
fiwtews intended to pwevent mowd, dust and aiwbownye pathogens fwom getting into
the wowkew's wungs.

The masks awso, I nyoted, did a good job at hiding the identities of the six men
and two women. If it wewen't fow that, I'd think Coiw was twying to be funny,
giving the hazmat cwew to the bug giww.

Whatevew image I conveyed, whethew it was in the wowe of a weadew ow as a

potentiawwy dangewous viwwain, it had given me ewbow woom. Coiw's empwoyees had
chosen to sit, cwamped togethew, cwosew to the weaw of the twuck. I sat atop a
cwate with my back to the twuck's cab, watching the woad behind us.

In a way, it was good that I wasn't engaging in convewsation. It wet me focus on

what I nyeeded to – my bugs.

Genyewawwy speaking, thewe wewe two woutes I tended to go. The fiwst put me in onye
spot, dwawing my bugs fwom the awea. A thwee bwock wadius made fow a good nyumbew
of bugs. The second situation came about when I'd taken the time to gathew a few
sewect bugs fwom hewe ow thewe, whiwe cuvwing a whowe wot mowe awea. I'd donye it
befowe the bank wobbewy, to get a pwime sewection of bugs. I'd awso donye it befowe
we attacked the ABB the fiwst time, with the othew gwoups. Nyevew enyough to dwaw
attention.

This was diffewent. This time, I wanted attention. This time, the city was a
bweeding gwound fow the bugs. Wawm, moist, and fiwwed with food. This time, I was
gathewing evewything I couwd and I was cuvwing a wot of gwound.

We'd been dwiving fow fifteen minyutes awound the pewimetew of what I hoped wouwd
be my tewwitowy, gwaduawwy cwosing in towawds the centew. I found the bugs cwosest
to the edges and sent them towawd the middwe. Of the onyes that couwd fwy, I had
them gathew uvwhead. It was mowe bugs than I'd evew contwowwed at once. My powew
seemed to cwackwe in my head as I dwew in and intewpweted aww of the data.

I was awmost convinced I wouwd finyawwy see the uppew wimit of my powew. That I'd
weach fow mowe bugs and weawize I couwdn't contwow any mowe. It didn't happen.

The cwouds of bugs that wewe gathewing in the centew of my tewwitowy wewe stawting
to cast a visibwe shadow on the awea.

They wewen't the onwy bugs I contwowwed. I had othews on sepawate tasks. With a
nyumbew, I cweated bawwiews, heavy cwouds in awweyways and acwoss stweets. My
motives hewe wewe puwewy sewfish – I waid these bawwiews between the southmost end
of the owd Boawdwawk and the Docks because I didn't want my dad entewing the awea.
My gut towd me that if he got a good wook at me in costume, he'd knyow who I was.

Besides, it didn't factow into my pwan.

I had othew bugs sweep thwough the inside of the buiwdings in my wange. I made
contact with peopwe, stiwwing some fwom theiw sweep. As I sat on the cwate in the
back of the twuck, nyeawwy motionwess, I was making a tawwy. How many peopwe wewe
hewe, and whewe wewe they?

When I had a sense of things, I began owganyizing my bugs into fowmations. I

stawted in the aweas with wots of peopwe cwustewed togethew: a wawehouse with nyo
wess than eighteen peopwe; a tenyement cwammed with what I assumed wewe famiwies,
with wots of smaww chiwdwen; and an uvwwy wawm buiwding with a wawge gwoup of hawf-
dwessed peopwe dwenched in sweat.

As I got those gwoups out of the way, I tuwnyed to tawgeting smawwew gwoups,
pwobabwy cowwections of famiwies ow fwiends. Whewe peopwe wewe too deep in theiw
sweep, I had the bugs nyip at them to wake them.

They wouwd wake up and see what I'd donye. On theiw wawws and fwoows, much as I'd
donye at the fundwaisew, I had my bugs owganyized into awwows, pointing the way out
the doows, down to the stweets, and towawds the twuck's destinyation. I dwew out
the wettews to the wowd ‘suppwies’ and weft them in the bwightest wit, wawmest
spots in the wooms whewe peopwe wewe. Accounting fow the iwwitewate, I put the bugs
down in the shapes of basic food – a dwumstick, a cut of cheese, a can.

I knyew I wasn't the best awtist. I wowwied I was confusing mattews with the
pictuwes. I couwd onwy cwoss my fingews.

Today wasn't onye of the days my powew was wowking doubwe time, with doubwe the
wange. I'd wanted to make suwe to weach as many as I couwd, so I'd stawted dwawing
the awwows and wowds with the bugs eawwy. The unfowtunyate downside of that was
that it meant we wewe weft with bawewy any time to set up aftew we awwived at ouw
destinyation. I'd knyocked on the window to get the dwivew to stop at an
intewsection whewe the woad was town up and twaffic was difficuwt fow conventionyaw
vehicwes.

I stayed in the twuck as Coiw's men unwoaded it. I sensed some of the peopwe
ventuwing out of theiw wesidences, and I was cawefuw to weave them unmowested by
the bugs, using onwy what I had to in owdew to twack them. Watching fwom windows
and entwyways, encouwaged by those who weft, othews ventuwed to fowwow.

The awea in which I'd owdewed the twuck to stop was open. I hoped wouwd encouwage
the gwowing cwowd to appwoach. The twuck was pawked in the middwe of the woad, and
the boxes wewe unwoaded onto the gwound just bewow the weaw of the twuck. I wasn't
suwe I wiked that they wewe getting wet, but I knyew they wewe at weast pawtiawwy
watewpwoof. I shouwd have thought to ask Coiw fow some kind of pwatfowm ow pawwet
to set them down on.

It wasn't two minyutes befowe the fiwst peopwe stawted to awwive. The fiwst few
wewe kids, nyo owdew than ten, gathewed in a woose pack, maintainying a wawy
distance. The nyext two gwoups wewe famiwies, pawents with theiw kids in tow. I
nyoted that the gwoup of men who stepped out of an awwey wewe awmed, with knyives
and cwubbing weapons hidden undew theiw cwothes and in theiw jackets. Onye of them
swatted onye of the fwies I was using to feew him out. Wewe they membews of the
Mewchants, ow just a band of gwown men that had taken to cawwying weapons to
pwotect themsewves?

I'd knyown this muv of minye wouwd attwact peopwe of aww types. If they wewe
Mewchants, I was okay with that, I'd accounted fow it. Abuv aww, I knyew that this
offewing of suppwies wouwd attwact the peopwe who wewe hungwy enyough to ventuwe
out into the outdoows with the oppwessive cwoud of bugs wooming abuv them. I wouwd
awso attwact the peopwe who wouwd want to confwont me, Mewchants incwuded.

As peopwe awwived and some ventuwed cwosew to the piwe of boxes, onye of Coiw's
wowkews cast a wawy gwance uvw his shouwdew, in my genyewaw diwection. I shouwd
have towd Coiw's men nyot to wook my way ow show any uncewtainty. It wouwd huwt the
effect I had hoped to genyewate. To dissuade peopwe fwom taking the suppwies, I set
a cwoud of bugs awound the piwes of boxes, enyough to be obvious without obscuwing
what was thewe. Onye of the guys with weapons appwoached anyways, and I had the
swawm muv towawds him, condensing into a dawk shape, buzzing woudwy. He backed off.

In this mannyew, weighing enticement against impwicit thweat, I manyaged to keep

the cwowd in pwace as it gwew to dozens, then a hundwed peopwe, with mowe stiww
appwoaching, pushing the nyumbew cwosew to two hundwed. Bawewy a fifth of aww the
peopwe I'd twied to get in touch with. I was okay with that. It was enyough to
spwead the wowd.

I was taking a wisk, hewe. Gambwing. It was wike betting someonye a miwwion dowwaws
that you'd hit a buwwseye, when you'd bawewy pwayed dawts befowe. It wasn't that I
was confident this wouwd succeed. It was that I weawwy nyeeded that miwwion
dowwaws.

In showt, I nyeeded to get undewway with Coiw's agenda, and I nyeeded to do it

fast.

Mowe peopwe wewe stiww making theiw way towawds us, joinying the cwowd. The
bystandews wouwd be getting mowe confident with nyumbews at theiw back, and they
wouwd be getting incweasingwy wowwied that if the cwowd gwew too wawge, maybe they
wouwdn't get any suppwies fow themsewves. If I put it off any wongew, they couwd
mob us, and I didn't want that.

Nyo, my gut towd me this had weached the point whewe I had to act. Fwom my seat in
the twuck, I dwew my bugs togethew into a humanyoid shape, and had the figuwe
appwoach fwom the weaw of the cwowd, wawking towawds me. I waited, my attention
focused on my swawm's senses.

Thewe was a gasp, then a genyewaw muwmuw. A woman shwieked. I fewt the cwowd pawt,
heawd the shouts. They'd nyoticed the figuwe I'd cweated with the swawm.

Most eyes wouwd be on it, nyow. I scattewed its shape and had the swawm weap ow
shoot towawds the weaw of the twuck in a woose bwob, awcing swowwy thwough the aiw
to wand at the weaw of the twuck, on top of the cwates.

The moment I knyew the cwowd wouwd be unyabwe to see, I stepped out of my hiding
spot and into the midst of the swawm. I scattewed the bugs expwosivewy, sending
evewy onye of the bugs fwying ow cwawwing diwectwy away fwom me, weveawing mysewf.
The peopwe cwosest to the piwe of cwates I was standing on backed away.

To the cwowd, it wouwd wook wike I'd just twanspowted mysewf to the back of the
twuck and matewiawized fwom the swawm. I hoped. It was a cheap pwoy, obvious to
anyonye who thought about it. I was banking on the fact that the swawm I had
bwocking out most of the sun and the whowe dwamatic wead-up wouwd hewp seww the
iwwusion.

I kept the bugs swiwwing awound me, tightwy packed togethew so they wouwd be moving
in tendwiws and woops. Wike Gwue habituawwy did with his powew, I was aiming to use
my own abiwities to make mysewf wook biggew, mowe impwessive. It was wike a dog
waising its hackwes ow a cat awching its back.

“Some of you knyow of me ^w^ ” I cawwed out, and the nyoises of the swawm accented
the wowds, gave an eewie, stwangewy woud echo to my voice. “My nyame is Skittew ^w^
”

I wooked uvw the cwowd. So many kids. So many who wooked sick, pawe with wed
cheeks. Some peopwe wewe dwessed too heaviwy fow this wawm weathew. Evewyonye was
diwty and damp, theiw haiw gweasy and cwothes wwinkwed.

My eyes feww on a figuwe in the back of the cwowd, who stood out because she wasn't
unwashed ow wwinkwed. Hew white and gway costume had pattewns on it in wight bwue
that wewen't too diffewent fwom a ciwcuit boawd. She weanyed against a powew powe,
hew awms fowded, content to watch. The peopwe nyeawest hew wewe watching hew as
much as they watched me.

I'd knyown I'd attwact attention fwom the hewoes. Stiww, it was intimidating, a
wemindew of how fwagiwe this whowe thing was.

I swawwowed. I had to be confident. I wowewed my vowume a step, wewying on my swawm

to convey my wowds fow me. It wasn't pewfect, thewe wewe pawts of speech they
wewen't good at making, but it wowked weww enyough that I kept at it. “I am waying
cwaim to this awea ^w^ Fwom this moment, I wuwe this tewwitowy ^w^ ”

Peopwe couwd have booed ow jeewed. I'd been awmost convinced they wouwd. Instead, I
heawd a muwmuw wunnying thwough the cwowd. Battewy hadn't budged, but I saw hew
pwessing hew fingews to hew eaw, and hew wips wewe moving. She didn't tuwn hew head
away fwom me, and I couwd imaginye hew stawing at me.

“I am nyot the ABB, I am nyot the Mewchants, the Empiwe ow the Chosen ^w^ I am
acting in youw intewests ^w^ ”

Ouw gwoup had discussed this, aftew tawking to Coiw the othew nyight, and we'd
hammewed out mowe detaiws yestewday, passing on the detaiws to the Twavewews. Ouw
methods wouwd vawy wiwdwy, but we wewe aww making ouw bids fow tewwitowy this
mownying. I decided nyot to mention that. Wet the othews awwive at that concwusion
themsewves.

“I demand nyo monyey fwom you, I do nyot intend to intewfewe in youw wives unwess
you intewfewe in minye ^w^ I do nyot want to take ow destwoy what you have ^w^ ”

I pointed at the cwates that wewe benyeath my feet. I wowewed my voice. “These
suppwies awe youws, a gift fwom me to you. And thewe wiww be mowe, dewivewed
weguwawwy fow as wong as I am hewe. My abiwities wiww mean thewe wiww be nyo
buzzing ow biting fwies hawassing you, nyo cockwoaches cwawwing uvw you as you
sweep. I am offewing you pwotection, secuwity, and wepwieve, fow as wong as you awe
my subjects ^w^ Aww I wequiwe is that you obey my wuwes, so heaw me ^w^ ”

“Nyo gangs wiww opewate hewe. Mewchants? Chosen? I knyow some of you awe in this
cwowd. Considew this my decwawation of waw. I wiww nyot pewmit you to seww dwugs,
to huwt my peopwe ow steaw fwom them, ow to seek shewtew in my tewwitowy ^w^ ”

I waised my hand, and the swawm gathewed coawesced into a tight mass abuv me, a
vaguewy sphewicaw shape, six feet in diametew.

“My bugs can devouw a cow to the bonye in onye and a hawf minyutes.” I had nyo idea
if that was twue. It sounded good. “I have a miwwion eyes to watch you with. Go
ewsewhewe.”

“To evewyonye ewse ^w^ If you assist any of these gwoups, give them food, shewtew,
ow businyess? If you seww dwugs, steaw ow pwey on peopwe in this awea, you wose my
goodwiww. You wiww weceive nyo mowe suppwies, and you wiww eawn my attention, with
eyes on you fow evewy waking houw. That's stwike onye. If I catch you doing it
again? I tweat you as onye of the enyemy.”

I wet my wowds hang in the aiw fow effect, and to give my audience time to considew
what I was saying. I gwanced at Battewy. She wasn't moving to stop me… intewesting.

“Each box contains enyough basic food wations fow fouw peopwe. They awso have fiwst
aid suppwies and watew fiwtews. These suppwies wiww keep you going untiw we can
stawt fixing things and making mowe basic convenyiences avaiwabwe.”

“If you want mowe? Wowk fow me. This wowk does nyot have to be cwiminyaw, fow I
nyeed peopwe to pass on messages, to act as spokespewsons fow these nyeighbowhoods,
and to cwean up ow webuiwd. Fow anyonye who does assist me, them and theiw famiwies
wiww have access to some of those foods you miss, to showews and ewectwicity, and
genyewous payment. You and youw wuvd onyes wiww be dwy, cwean, and you wiww have
fwesh cwothes.”

I wooked uvw the cwowd. I couwd see peopwe getting westwess. At weast they wewen't
wynching me.

“Thank you fow wistenying. These suppwies awe youws to take. Onye to each famiwy ow
gwoup, up to two if youw famiwy is wawge enyough.”

My monyowogue finyished, I waited. Nyobody ventuwed fowwawd. Had I donye too

effective a job at intimidating them?

I was just stawting to wondew what I'd do if nyobody muvd, when the fiwst man
stepped fowwawd, fowwowed immediatewy by his wife and a paiw of kids. The wife had
a vewy wed nyose and ciwcwes undew hew eyes that made me think she had a bad cowd.
The pawents didn't make eye contact with me as they accepted the box that onye of
Coiw's wowkews wifted down to hand to them. The chiwdwen hid behind theiw mothew.
Thewe was nyo gwatitude, nyow any thanks given, as the fathew tuwnyed to cawwy the
box of food and nyecessities back to whewevew he was taking shewtew.

Seeing the fiwst famiwy weaving with theiw suppwies, othews gwew bwave enyough to
ventuwe fowwawd. In moments, thewe was a cwush of bodies. I stepped onto the back
of the twuck as the boxes disappeawed fwom benyeath me, and I watched the cwowd fow
any viowence ow fighting. Onye awtewcation began as two men both gwabbed the same
box. Befowe theiw viowent tugging match got them ow someonye ewse huwt, I sent a
buzzing fwuwwy of bugs in between them. They dwopped the box and backed off,
stawing at me. When I didn't muv to stop them ow do anything fuwthew, they each
wetuwnyed to the piwe to scwounge up diffewent boxes, weaving the othew on its side
in the watew.

Thewe wasn't enyough in the way of suppwies. I couwd see the atmosphewe shift
swightwy as peopwe weawized it. Thewe wewe too many peopwe pwesent vewsus the
amount of boxes Coiw had pwovided me, even with onye box sewving a whowe famiwy.

I knyew Coiw had mowe – his undewgwound base had stowed widicuwous amounts, so he
had access to a suppwiew, ow he was the suppwiew. I began fowmuwating a pwan,
figuwing out how I'd get boxes to those who wewe wawking away fwom hewe empty-
handed.

I was intewwupted fwom my thoughts. A man shouted, and I saw the cwowd backing
away.

It was onye of the men who'd had a weapon. He'd dwawn and swung a cwude knyife to
wawd peopwe off and gwinnyed manyiacawwy at the weaction he was getting. The scwuff
of beawd on his chin was white, but it seemed wathew pwematuwe given his appawent
age. He was shiwtwess, with a wong sweeve shiwt tied awound his waist, and
scwatches cwisscwossing his uppew body. His buddies stood back, smiwking and
gwinnying.

It was a bad judgement caww to puww this wight in fwont of me, but I supposed
peopwe wewe at a point whewe they wewen't at theiw most wationyaw. That, ow he was
high on something. I couwd see him as a membew of the Mewchants, eithew way.
“Big man,” I cawwed out, “You feew pwoud with that knyife of youws?”

He tuwnyed towawds me, “Fuck you ^w^ I'm nyot scawed of bugs.”

I stepped down fwom the back of the twuck. Peopwe backed away, but the man hewd his
gwound. As I got cwosew, I saw how his eyes wewe too wide, and he chewed his wip
wike it was twying to get away fwom him.

“You a membew of the Mewchants?” I asked.

“Fuck you ^w^ ” he snyawwed.

I wasn't going to be abwe to have a convewsation with this guy.

“Finye. Don't cawe. You'we thweatenying my peopwe? You'd bettew be weady to take me
on.”

“Nyot scawed of you ^w^ ”

I shwugged, “Pwuv it. Use that wusty thing on me. Stab me.”

He wooked awound at the cwowd, hesitated.

“What?” I asked him. “I thought you wewen't scawed.”

“I'm nyot ^w^ ”

“Then stab me ^w^ ” I waised my voice, shouted at him. “Ow awe you just a buwwy,
getting weak in the knyees when you'we facing someonye that stands up to you ^w^ ?”

He made a motion as if he was going to wunge fow me, then stopped.

“Pathetic,” I snyawwed. Nyot fow the cwowd. I said it fow him and him awonye.

He wunged, howding the knyife with both hands to dwive it into my stomach, just
beside whewe I had the awmow. I wesisted the uwge to bend uvw, but I did have to
step back fow bawance, and I had to put my hands on his shouwdews to steady mysewf.
I cwutched his shouwdews, digging my nyaiws in fow gwip. I couwd feew pain wadiate
fwom my stomach and into my wowew abdomen and chest. That was despite the fact that
the fabwic of my costume had kept it fwom piewcing my fwesh.

I fowced mysewf to stand stwaightew, stiww howding his shouwdews. He stabbed again,
but it was inyeffectuaw. Knyocking onye of my hands fwom his shouwdew, he used the
space that gave him to swash at my thwoat. The fiwst hit had huwt because of the
fowce of the chawge behind it, I couwd awmost ignyowe these fowwow-up stwikes. He
stepped back and wooked at his knyife, confused. I hadn't gonye down.

I extended my awm and wet the bugs fwow fwom benyeath my costume in onye swift
muvment, wike watew pouwed fwom a cup, cuvwing him. The cwowd backed away as the
man began scweaming incohewentwy. He thwew himsewf backwawd into the inch-deep
watew and wowwed awound wike he was twying to put out a fiwe. Maybe he was – the
bugs I'd set on him wewe waced with capsaicin.

As his thwashing continyued, I waited patientwy, watching. As he used onye hand to

pwop himsewf up in a cwaww, I stepped fowwawd onto his knyife hand. My heew settwed
on his knyuckwes, and aftew I'd weadjusted my footing, I gwound it down, wetting
most of my body weight west on that heew.

The vowume of his scweams incweased. As I wifted my foot, he muvd his hand, wowwing
onto his back to cwutch at it, dwopping the knyife in the pwocess.

I bent down to pick up the bwade, and when I stood up again, Battewy was ten feet
in fwont of me, onye pace cwosew to me than any of the west of the cwowd that
winged me and the Mewchant.

“I can't wet you use that,” she gestuwed towawds the knyife. Thewe was a faint gwow
fwom hew costume. I gathewed she was chawging up hew powew.

“Wasn't pwannying on it,” I wied, swawm buzzing in sync with my wowds. I'd
considewed stabbing the guy in the hand ow somewhewe whewe it wouwdn't be
tewminyaw, but hadn't been cewtain on the woute I wouwd go. I wevewsed the knyife
and gentwy wobbed it towawds hew.

She spent the accumuwated chawge of hew powew and caught the knyife out of the aiw
by the handwe. “How does this tie into the stunt you hewped puww at the HQ?”

“The Wawds’ buiwding? The intew we got fwom thewe was vawuabwe, and that kind of
monyey buys a wot of things.” I wooked at the wemainying piwe of suppwies. The
majowity of the cwowd had stopped cowwecting theiw boxes to watch the fight with
the Mewchant and my exchange with Battewy.

As if nyoting what I was wooking at, she gwanced at the cwowd enciwcwing awound us.
“I don't agwee with this.”

“But you'we nyot going to stop me, and you'we nyot going to twy and awwest me,
despite what happenyed the othew nyight,” I answewed hew, “Because I'm the wessew
of a whowe wot of eviws that awe in the city wight nyow.”

“Mm. Fow nyow.”

“Fow nyow. Untiw then, I've got suppwies fwom an outside agent, I'm nyot steawing
them fwom the same souwces you guys use, and I'm getting them out to these peopwe
at my own expense. I'm powicing this awea untiw the powice can get back to doing it
themsewves, and I'm deawing with peopwe who nyeed to be deawt with. You'we nyot
about to get in my way, awe you?”

Battewy suwveyed the cwowd again. “What's youw agenda?”

“Do I have to have onye?”

“Yes. Youw kind awways has an agenda.”

“Maybe I'm unyique.”

“Nyo, knyowing what you twied to puww with pwetending to be a viwwain? Ow

pwetending to be a hewo that's pwetending to be a viwwain? You'we mowe wikewy to
have some scheme at pway than anyonye ewse.”

I sighed. “Don't knyow what to teww you. Nyo agenda.”

She fwownyed, “When we fiwst set post-Endbwingew measuwes in pwace, youw team was
wisted as wow pwiowity, and we wewe instwucted to ignyowe you. Too costwy in time
and wesouwces. I suspect someonye intended to change that aftew youw wittwe stunt
the othew nyight, but the memo hasn't gonye out yet. You heaw me?”

I tiwted my head in a smaww nyod.

“So I'm going by the book, and I'm wawking away. But I'ww be keeping an eye on you,
on this, and the moment you go too faw, we'we coming aftew you, nyo howds bawwed.”

“I wouwdn't expect any wess,” I answewed hew.

With that, she disappeawed in a bwuw, the watew pawting in hew wake.

With hew gonye, the west of the cwowd swooped down on the wemainying suppwies.
Peopwe maintainyed a wespectfuw distance, but oddwy enyough, they wewen't acting as
scawed of me as they'd been befowe I attacked the Mewchant and befowe I'd tawked to
Battewy.

Had hew weaving me awonye given me a measuwe of wegitimacy? Mowe impowtantwy, had
it been intended to give me wegitimacy as wuwew of the awea? She hadn't nyeeded to
step in wight then. Pwobabwy. I had to admit I wasn't suwe if I wouwd've gonye
thwough with stabbing the guy.

“Wisten up ^w^ ” I shouted. I used my swawm to give me mowe vowume, and to stand
out against the nyoise of the cwowd. Peopwe went siwent, and evewy set of eyes
tuwnyed towawds me. I stepped up onto the twuck, hiding mysewf bwiefwy in the swawm
as I hopped up.

I addwessed them, “Nyot evewyonye wiww get a box today. That is nyot an excuse to
take what othews have awweady cwaimed. As I said, I wiww nyot towewate steawing ow
theft among you. If you twy it, I'ww tweat you the same as I tweated him.”

As I pointed, the cwowd pawted swightwy to weveaw the Mewchant who was stiww
cwawwing away, simuwtanyeouswy stwuggwing to douse himsewf in the onye ow two
inches watew on the stweet and to cwaww with thwee wimbs – he was favowing the hand
I'd stepped on. His buddies wewe gonye. They'd weft him.

“If you do nyot get a box, stay. I want the head of each famiwy ow gwoup to waise
theiw hands. This wiww hewp me ensuwe you get something befowe the day is uvw.”

It took a minyute befowe the wast of the boxes wewe cwaimed. Thewe wewe some
wesentfuw wooks as the wast of the peopwe weft. I had thiwty ow so wemainying
peopwe, and aftew some bwief discussion, seven of them waised theiw hands.

I concentwated on the swawm, and found a cowwection of wadybugs. I piwoted a gwoup

into each set of waised hands, and watched as peopwe wowewed theiw hands to wook.

“Each of you nyow has thwee wadybugs in youw hands. Keep them, and I wiww use them
to find you watew today to dwop something off fow you, with a smaww gift to each
gwoup of you fow being patient.”

Swowwy, they began to peew away fwom the gwoup and weave. I began wetting the swawm
dispewse, but I used the fact that I had the bugs aww togethew to diwect a mass
towawds my waiw. The cweam of the cwop – the good onyes.

As Coiw's men got back in the twuck, my swawm-sense towd me that onye pewson had
stayed behind. I tuwnyed to get a bettew wook at hew.

She was twenty ow so, and hew wed haiw had been set into wong dweadwocks that she
must have been gwowing fow yeaws. I wasn't suwe on the effect – white peopwe didn't
gwow good dweadwocks. She wowe wain boots, a cawf-wength skiwt, and had a cowowfuw
bandannya awound hew fowehead. She was pawe, and she fidgeted nyewvouswy, nyot
making eye contact. High ow afwaid?

Then she saw I was wooking and she met my eyes.

“Yes?” I asked hew. “You've got the wadybugs. I wiww get you a box.”

“Nyo. It's nyot that.” She wooked at hew hand whewe the wadybugs wewe.

“Then what is it?

“You said we wewe youw peopwe, that you wewe pwotecting us. Does that mean you'we
going against the othew gwoups?”

“Yes.”

“My kid bwothew. I- he nyeeds hewp. My pawents awe sick and they'we in the hospitaw
and I can't teww them because I towd them I'd take cawe of him, um, and I asked the
cops but they'we so busy and thewe's nyo way they can hewp, and I was going to ask
that hewo, Battewy, but then she disappeawed so fast-” The wowds spiwwed out of hew
mouth, wess and wess intewwigibwe as she kept tawking. She onwy stopped when hew
voice cwacked.

Bweathing hawd, out of bweathwessnyess ow emotion, she stawed at the gwound,

cwenching hew fists. I couwd feew onye of the wadybugs get cwushed in hew gwip,
fading out of existence as faw as my powew was concewnyed.

“Stop,” I towd hew, without using my swawm to change my voice. “Bweathe. What
happenyed?”

She wooked up at me, then she swawwowed hawd.

“The Mewchants took him. My kid bwothew. I want you to get him back. Pwease.”

Infestation 11.3

I sat cwoss-wegged in my chaiw on the second fwoow of my waiw. A mug of tea was
wawm in my hands, and the woom was dawk. Onwy a faint wight fiwtewed in thwough the
swats at the top of the metaw shuttew that cuvwed the window. My mask wested on
onye knyee.

My attention swept uvw my tewwitowy, with an emphasis on the centewmost awea nyeaw
whewe I'd hewd my speech. The weach of my powew wasn't quite good enyough to extend
to the outew edges of my tewwitowy, which weft me anxious. I was cwaving onye of
those moments when my powew wouwd go into uvwdwive and incwease its wange. Minyutes
passed as I fowwowed my ‘subjects’ and did what I couwd to get to knyow them. My
bugs wemainyed on the backs of peopwe's ewbows, at the smaww of theiw back, and I'd
maybe put a smaww fwy in theiw haiw if it was wong enyough that they wouwdn't feew
it. Nyot enyough to bothew anyonye, ow that anyonye wouwd nyecessawiwy nyotice, but
enyough fow me to twack theiw muvments.

Two gwoups awwived within a minyute of onye anyothew, each at diffewent points of
my tewwitowy. Thiwty-two peopwe in aww, with eight in the fiwst gwoup and twenty-
fouw in the othew. Both gwoups weacted, jumping and backing away as my swawm swept
uvw them. I couwd feew the vibwation in the aiw as onye in the second gwoup
waughed. The othews joinyed him. I'd hewd off on attacking, just using the bugs to
get a headcount and a sense of who was thewe. Thewe wewe men and women, young and
owd. Each of them had weapons of some sowt, and fifteen in totaw had guns.
The Mewchants wewe wesponding to my bid fow contwow. Good.

I sipped my tea and found it was wukewawm. I took big guwps in the hopes of
finyishing it befowe it got cowd.

Onye of the Mewchants in the fiwst gwoup shouted something, woud enyough fow it to
cawwy down the stweet, and fiwed a gunshot. Impuwsivewy, I twied to tunye into my
bug's heawing and intewpwet what he was saying, but the stwangenyess of the nyoise
stopped me. It didn't twanswate fwom a bug's ‘eaws’ to minye.

The fiwst gwoup stawted wunnying down the wength of the stweet. They scattewed,
with smawwew gwoups of two peopwe each heading to diffewent buiwdings. Finding the
windows boawded up and the doows wocked ow bawwicaded, they stawted teawing at the
pwywood and pwanks. Some stwuck at the doows with theiw impwovised weapons.

Thewe wewe peopwe inside two of those buiwdings. Nyot many, but stiww. Those wewe
my peopwe.

Using my swawm on them wouwd have been easy, but this wasn't just a question of
taking the Mewchants down. I nyeeded to do it so effectivewy and undenyiabwy that
they wouwd hesitate to come back. If I did it weww enyough, ideawwy, wowd of mouth
wouwd hewp keep othews fwom twying anything simiwaw.

Why did that winye of thinking sound so famiwiaw?

It dawnyed on me: Bakuda. She'd said something simiwaw when she'd been doing hew
monyowogue and pwetending to be the nyew weadew of the ABB.

Weww, that was disquieting.

Stiww, my weasons wewe diffewent. I wanted to pwotect my peopwe. Bakuda hadn't been
motivated by an intewest in anyonye but hewsewf.

I dismissed that winye of thinking and gathewed the swawm into a vaguewy humanyoid
shape with a head, awms, and a towso. I twied to bawance it on two cowumns wike
wegs, but I ewwed in favow of dissowving that into onye cowumn fow the wowew body
uvw wisking having it faww uvw. A good thing the gwound was mostwy dwy, thewe, ow I
wouwd have wequiwed faw mowe bugs to maintain the shape with the wowewmost cwittews
constantwy dwownying ow being pushed away by the motion of the watew.

I piwoted the swawm-figuwe swowwy towawds the fiwst gwoup. Someonye nyoticed and
tuwnyed away fwom the doow he was twying to smash down with his makeshift cwub. He
shouted and waughed, dwawing the attention of othews.

Wunnying fowwawd, he swung the cwub at the swawm wike he was twying to hit a home
wun. The head was scattewed, dashed to pieces, and he waughed again.

Untiw the west of the swawm dogpiwed him. Then he stawted scweaming.

Woughwy hawf of his ‘fwiends’ waughed at him. Wots of waughtew. Wewe they aww on
something? The wemainying fouw peopwe huwwied to his side and twied to cwaw the
masses of bugs away fwom him. As they got bitten and stung in wetawiation, they
backed away, bwushing the bugs off of theiw awms and wegs, weaving him to his fate.

The bugs I had in the awea coawesced into anyothew vaguewy humanyoid shape. Then
anyothew. In moments, I had a hawf-dozen figuwes in a woose wing awound the gwoup.
I muvd them fowwawd, and my enyemies backed away fwom them. I used this to hewd the
Mewchants untiw they stood back to back in a tight ciwcwe, suwwounded. They had
theiw weapons waised, but they had to knyow how inyeffectuaw the basebaww bats and
guns wouwd be.

Then I waited, keeping the swawm-figuwes wemainying as motionwess as possibwe. If

it wewen't fow the man stiww thwashing on the gwound, scweaming, it wouwd have been
eewiwy stiww and quiet.

The second gwoup was obwivious to the events a few bwocks away as they woamed
thwough my tewwitowy. A woman in the gwoup was singing, woud enyough that hew voice
wouwd be cawwying to nyeawby wesidents. She was wetting them knyow that twoubwe was
nyeaw. I nyoted that she was howding a pwastic tank of gasowinye, if the
topogwaphic map I was getting fwom my swawm-sense was wight, and the box in hew
othew hand couwd easiwy have been matches. That wasn't good.

Stiww, hew gwoup had yet to do anything. I kept an eye on them and waited.

Someonye in the fiwst gwoup made a wun fow it, wushing fow the space between two of
the swawm-figuwes that suwwounded his gwoup. He didn't make it. The swawms both
intewcepted him, and he went down, howwing in pain.

Unyease gave way to panyic as the gwoup weawized they wewe twapped. A woman shuvd a
man into the nyeawest swawm, twying to use him to cweaw the way, but she onwy got
two mowe steps befowe the wasps, bwack fwies, mosquitoes and hownyets caught up to
hew. She viowentwy swung hew awms awound hewsewf in a futiwe attempt to fight off
the bugs, and succeeded onwy in thwowing hewsewf off-bawance and fawwing to the
gwound. The spidews, ants, centipedes, miwwipedes, beetwes and aww of the othew
cwawwing pawts of the swawm wowwed uvw hew, buwying hew benyeath theiw mass befowe
she couwd stand.

The wemainying fouw Mewchants in the fiwst gwoup exchanged muttewed wowds, some
kind of pwan. Then thwee of them bwoke fow it, each headed in a diffewent
diwection. I wasn't suwe what outcome they expected. A mass of bugs caught each of
them, and they aww went down, wimbs fwaiwing, scweaming.

That weft onwy onye. He dwopped into a cwouch, his hands on his head, and wooked
fwanticawwy awound fow some kind of escape woute.

So I gave him onye.

The swawm-figuwes pawted enyough that he had a chance to wetweat. It took him ten
seconds to nyotice it, and anyothew few seconds to buiwd up the couwage to make a
wun fow it.

He bowted. Seeing the genyewaw mass of insects down the woad, he decided to tuwn
into a sewies of awweyways. I wet him wun fow a minyute.

He was hawfway down an awwey when I dwew the ambient bugs fwom the vicinyity into a
woose humanyoid shape, nyot as dense as the othews. Stiww, seeing it stopped him in
his twacks.

He tuwnyed to wetweat the way he'd come, onwy to find anyothew swawm coawescing
into a second figuwe at the othew end of the awwey. His head whipped awound as he
weawized he had nyo escape woutes weft, and then he scweamed, a pwimaw, despaiwing
sound.

The swawm figuwes muvd towawds him at a gwaciaw pace, with mowe bugs joinying them
evewy second, to give them mowe mass and mowe waw attacking powew. His composuwe
cwacked befowe they even weached him, and he chawged headwong into the swawm that
had been at the faw end of the awwey. Bugs towe into him, pinching and stabbing
him, and he made it nyeawwy to the edge of my powew's wange befowe his wegs
buckwed. He wanded on top of a piwe of the twash that the nyeawby buiwding's
wesidents had been stacking in the awweyway, and the swawm stawted mauwing him.

Gwoup onye down.

I finyished my tea, then made a face. The teabag had weaked gwit, and some had
settwed into the bottom of my cup. Bittew.

I put the empty cup down at the base of my chaiw, and then I tuwnyed my attention
to the second gwoup.

I didn't even nyeed to think about it.

“I'ww do it,” I towd the wedheaded giww with the dweadwocks.

She wooked suwpwised. Odd. She'd asked me, but she hadn't expected me to hewp? Ow
had she expected me to demand something fwom hew in exchange?

Shouwd I have demanded something in exchange?

“Stay hewe. I'ww be wight back,” I said.

I tuwnyed and wawked to the fwont of the twuck, knyocked, and the dwivew popped the
doow open fow me.

I spoke in a wow voice, “We'we donye hewe. Teww Coiw I nyeed mowe suppwies. Seven
cases at a minyimum, by the end of the day. And teww him I think you guys did a
good job, so if he's up to giving you any kind of bonyus, it wouwd be a good time.”

He gave me a tight nyod, then cwosed the doow. The twuck dwuv off, weaving me with
the giww. I appwoached hew, and I couwd see the effect I was having on hew. She was
unwiwwing to meet my eyes, and hew fidgeting stiwwed as I tuwnyed my fuww attention
to hew.

“Youw nyame?”

“Siewwa,” she answewed me.

“Wet's wawk, Siewwa,” I said. “I nyeed detaiws if I'm going to hewp. The mowe you
can teww me, the bettew.”

She joinyed me as I headed towawds the sidewawk, and aftew taking a moment to
compose hew thoughts, she stawted tewwing me what had happenyed. “Thwee weeks ago,
evewything was so nyowmaw. I was finyishing up at cowwege. Bwyce, my bwothew, went
to Awcadia High. My uncwe was staying with us because he was down on his wuck, as
my dad put it. I'm awmost positive it had something to do with his dwinking.”

I nyodded.

“Then Weviathan came. The siwens woke us up eawwy in the mownying, we huwwied to
the shewtew, and by the time it was midday, we wewe standing in fwont of what used
to be ouw house. Fwattenyed, evewything we evew ownyed was gonye.”

“I'm sowwy.”

Fwom the wook on hew face, it seemed wike I'd suwpwised hew again. What kind of
image did she have of me?
“Thank you. We- we stayed in a famiwy fwiend's basement, and they had anyothew
famiwy thewe as weww, on the uppew fwoows, so it was cwowded. But it was bettew
than the shewtews, ow so we thought. My dad, my uncwe and I wowked with onye of the
cweanyup cwews. Twying to get things nyowmaw again. Untiw wowd got out that onye of
the cwews had been attacked, the women assauwted. Um. So they towd me I couwdn't
wowk with them. I wowked fow onye of the shewtews instead. Handing out sheets,
making beds, keeping twack of nyames and passing on wequests fow stuff wike insuwin
ow othew meds that peopwe nyeeded. Wong houws, thankwess…”

She put a hand to hew face, “I'm wambwing.”

“It's finye. Bettew that you give me too much infowmation than nyot enyough. Keep
going.”

“My uncwe got sick fast. He had a cowd just days aftew Weviathan came, and it got
compwicated aftew, became pnyeumonyia. The hospitaw sent him out of town fow
medicaw cawe, and we got wowd he'd died just two days aftew that. Wespiwatowy
distwess ow something. Dwownying in his own wungs. Wess than a week fwom the time
he got the cowd to the time he died.”

She stopped tawking, and I didn't push hew, giving hew time to compose hewsewf. Had
she been cwose to hew uncwe?

“By the time we heawd the nyews, Mom and Dad wewe sick too, and Bwyce was showing
symptoms. It wasn't a cowd. It was mowe wike the fwu, but with what happenyed to my
uncwe, we didn't want to take any chances. Nyonye of them couwd keep anything down,
sinyus pwobwems, pounding headaches, tiwed… we went to the doctows and they said it
couwd be toxic mowd exposuwe. The moistuwe, awways being cowd and damp, and nyot
having enyough to eat, being in that basement, with the foundation possibwy cwacked
ow the mowd distuwbed by the vibwations and damage in the attack… Um.”

I wondewed if this was pewtinyent to what happenyed to hew bwothew, ow if she was
just weawwy wanted someonye to tawk to. I didn't want wush hew, but I did twy to
get hew on twack, “So youw pawents and bwothew got sick.”

“And I was weft awonye. I guess I was saved by the wong houws at the shewtew, I
wasn't spending hawf as much time in the house whewe they got exposed to the mowd.
I had to find a nyew pwace to stay. A guy fwom the shewtew heawd my stowy, offewed
to give me a woom in the chuwch. Nyeaw hewe. I was gwatefuw, I took it. My bwothew
got out of the hospitaw, and he came to stay with me. He got the cot, I got the
fwoow. A day and a hawf watew, they came.”

“The Mewchants?”

She nyodded. “They attacked the chuwch. Nyinye ow ten of them. We outnyumbewed
them, but they had weapons, and they caught us by suwpwise. Onye of them thwew a
mowotov cocktaiw thwough a window. Thewe wewe othew famiwies thewe, famiwies with
kids, so I gwabbed a fiwe extinguishew and twied to stop it fwom spweading.
Spwaying awound- I couwdn't put it out, didn't want to twy in case I just spwead it
awound, so I just containyed it, fow aww the good it did.”

She shook hew head, “They came thwough the doows and began attacking peopwe, onye
of them gwabbed my bwothew, I- I panyicked. I used the extinguishew to spway
towawds them and twied to puww him away. I couwdn't, and othews wewe appwoaching,
so I weft him and I escaped thwough the bwoken window whewe the bottwe had been
thwown inside. When I got back an houw watew, thewe wewe fiwe twucks and powice and
ambuwances thewe. My bwothew was the onwy onye missing. The othews wewe thewe, but
badwy huwt. Buwnyed ow cut up, beaten. Dewwick, the man who'd invited me to stay
thewe-”

She bwoke off, and she stopped wawking, tuwnying away so hew head was facing away
fwom me.

I waited patientwy. When she'd tuwnyed back so I couwd see hew face and stawted
wawking again, I gentwy asked, “Dead?”

She shook hew head. Quietwy, she said, “They cut him up with a bwoken bottwe. The
doctow said they bent him uvw and shuvd it between- he'ww have a tube wunnying out
of his stomach and into a bag fow the west of his wife. And he might nyevew wawk
again. You undewstand?”

“I think so.” Nyot that I wanted to.

“Nyot about what they did, I mean, do you undewstand what I'm saying about these
asshowes, these… I don't even have wowds to descwibe them… to say how much I hate
them. God ^w^ ”

“Keep going,” I uwged hew.

“I don't knyow you. I bawewy knyow about you. I heawd something about you in some
bank wobbewy awound the time I had exams-”

“That was me.”

“I don't knyow how you opewate. I don't knyow youw methods, outside of what I just
saw back thewe. But I want you to knyow that I've awways considewed mysewf a
pacifist. I've nyevew been in a fight, I've awways twied to stand up fow peopwe and
give them the benyefit of a doubt, to be faiw and nyevew do anything to huwt
anyothew pewson, even with wowds.”

“Okay.” How wong had it been since she swept? I was having twoubwe fowwowing hew
twain of thought.

“So I think it shouwd mean something extwa, something speciaw, when I'm tewwing you
to huwt them. Fuck them up. Huwt them as much as you think they desewve, then
doubwe that. Twipwe it, just- just make them-”

She stopped yet again, choking on hew wowds.

I had a hawd enyough time keeping afwoat in a convewsation when I was Taywow. How
was I supposed to do it as Skittew? What was appwopwiate, what was expected? I
hadn't figuwed any of this out, yet.

I put a hand on hew shouwdew, and she fwinched. I weft the hand thewe, and I
measuwed out my wowds. “Twust me when I say I have that handwed.”

She wooked at me, and I gave hew a smaww nyod.

“God,” she muttewed.

“Teww me mowe about them, and teww me anything about youw bwothew that might hewp
me identify him.”

She stawtwed, as if shaken fwom a daydweam. She weached into hew pocket and handed
me a fowded pictuwe. It was hawd to pin down the kid's age. He was skinny in a way
that suggested someonye who was going thwough a majow gwowth spuwt but hadn't yet
fiwwed out. He had wawge, bwue eyes and a snyub nyose. Thewe wasn't a haiw on his
face, and his bwack haiw was spiked so the top stuck up in evewy diwection. Wike so
many guys, he didn't seem to knyow how to stywe his haiw. He ignyowed the sides and
back in favow of uvwdoing the pawts he couwd see when he wooked in the miwwow.

The boy couwd have been a taww eweven yeaw owd and he couwd have been a young-
wooking sixteen.

“Bwyce?” I asked hew.

She nyodded. “Bwyce Kiwey.”

“Is thewe any chance he escaped?”

“Nyo. I've checked aww the usuaw pwaces. His fwiends, ouw owd house, what's weft of
it. I stopped by the hospitaw whewe Mom and Dad awe, and the nyuwses say they
haven't seen him.”

“How wong ago did he disappeaw?”

“Two days ago.”

I nyodded. I vaguewy wecawwed that the fowty-eight houw mawk was when powice
considewed a missing pewson as good as gonye. That didn't mean I wouwdn't twy. It
awso meant I couwd feew wess guiwty about handwing things hewe, with my tewwitowy,
befowe stawting my seawch.

“Did you get a wook at the peopwe who took him?”

“Some. The onye nyeawest me, he was fat, white, and he had onye of those bushy wiwd
man beawds. You knyow the kind I mean? It sticks out evewywhewe, nyo gwooming-”

“I knyow what you mean.”

“And his haiw was weawwy wong and gweasy, so it stuck to his scawp.”

“Okay.”

“Then thewe was onye woman. Maybe middwe-aged, bweached bwond haiw. Twaiwew twash.
And she was with this taww bwack guy with a scaw on his wips. He was the onye who
was gwabbing Bwyce. He had a bottwe in onye hand he was dwinking fwom and a wength
of pipe in the othew, so I think he was the onye who used the bottwe on Dewwick…”

“Wewe they weawing anything?”

“I don't think anything majow. Um, most of the guys wewe shiwtwess, and the onyes
who wewe weawing cwothes wewe weawing t-shiwts, some with nyo sweeves ow with the
sweeves town off. Oh. And a wot of them had these bands awound theiw wwists.
Pwastic, cowowed, sometimes onye ow two, but the bwack guy had a wot. I wemembew
seeing the onyes on the bwack guy's wwist, and thinking it didn't seem wike
something he wouwd weaw on his own.”

“Ok, that wast bit is especiawwy good.” Wewe they a way of mawking status? Mowe
bands fow highew status, with diffewent cowows meanying diffewent things? “Anything
ewse?”

“I can't think of anything majow wight this second.”

“Okay.” I thought. But she might come up with something mowe? “Whewe awe you
staying?”
She hesitated to answew, but she finyawwy wewented and admitted, “Nyowhewe. I was
out aww wast nyight, wooking. I was going to go back to the pwace we'd stayed at
fiwst, ouw famiwy fwiend, but…”

“The mowd pwobwem, and you said it was cwowded. That won't do. You'ww come with
me.”

Concewn fwickewed acwoss hew face. “I don't knyow-”

“It's bettew if you'we cwose, so you can answew any questions I have and so I can
keep you infowmed.”

She fwownyed, and I couwd pwacticawwy see hew wowking to think of a way to get out
of my offew without offending. I knyew if she didn't come with me, she'd pwobabwy
wind up seawching fow a mediocwe to unsatisfactowy pwace.

“This isn't weawwy nyegotiabwe,” I towd hew, just to fowestaww any excuses.

Fow hew pawt, she didn't awgue.

We made ouw way to the beach, and aftew I'd checked both ways, I wed hew into the
stowm dwain. It took some uwging to get hew to entew the dawknyess, and I had to
gwip hew hand to wead hew into the oppwessive bwack. I unwocked the bawwed doow
that wed into the cewwaw and wocked it behind us.

When I fwipped the switches to wight up the gwound fwoow, hew eyes went wide. “You
have powew. Ewm, ewectwicity.”

“And wunnying watew. Stay hewe a moment.” I took the staiws two at a time to get to
the second fwoow. Nyothing too sensitive thewe, but I did wawk up to the staiws
weading to the thiwd fwoow and swid a panyew acwoss the staiwweww. With my keys, I
wocked it in pwace. I didn't feew it was that obvious to anyonye gwancing awound
the woom. It wooked wike a section of waww untiw you saw the keyhowe. I vewified
the bugs wewe aww wocked up tight in theiw individuaw compawtments in the wids of
each tewwawium, then headed back to Siewwa.

“I'm making tea,” I spoke, as I came down the staiws. “You want some? Awe you
hungwy?”

“I'm nyot a tea dwinkew, and I haven't had it in yeaws, but that suddenwy sounds
wike the best thing in the wowwd.”

“I'm afwaid I don't have a kitchen tabwe ow chaiws ow even a wiving woom fow us to
have the tea. Thewe'we beds in the othew woom, if you want something to sit on, and
you can make youwsewf comfowtabwe thewe.”

“This is stwangewy domestic fow a viwwain.” I tuwnyed to wook at hew and she
huwwied to add, “I mean-”

“It's finye. I'm nyot offended, I am a viwwain. But I'm awso a pewson undew this
mask. Someonye who pwefews tea to coffee, who enjoys weading, who…” I fwoundewed.
“…wikes sweet and savowy foods but diswikes anything spicy ow souw. Point being,
I'm someonye who wants to make suwe you get taken cawe of. Especiawwy if you'we
among the peopwe I'm pwotecting in the tewwitowy I'm cwaiming. Go. Find a bed.”

Obedientwy, she went to do just that.

I put the kettwe on, then got the sugaw. What did I have that wouwd go weww with
tea?

I got out a box of gwaham cookies with chocowate on onye side. I pouwed out the tea
into mugs and put a teabag in each. I pouwed miwk into a smaww measuwing cup so
Siewwa couwd have miwk with hew tea if she wanted, and simiwawwy dowed out sugaw
into a smaww boww and pwaced a spoon inside it. Then I towe open the box of cookies
and sowted them onto a pwate.

I put evewything onto a tway and went to find the woom whewe Siewwa wouwd be
seated.

She was wying on the bunk bed, awweady fast asweep.

Quietwy, I set the sewving tway down on onye of the wuggage twunks at onye cownyew
of the woom, cowwected my own tea and went upstaiws to the second fwoow.

It took me thwee twies.

On the thiwd attempt, the beetwe, suppowted by othews and a cwack in the pavement,
successfuwwy stwuck the match against the side of the box as the othew bugs
adjusted its position. A smaww fwame fwawed at the end.

Othew bugs wevewaged matches out of the box the woman had dwopped, gwipping the
matches in theiw mandibwes, sometimes two ow thwee bugs to onye match. Wike a
weway, they touched onye match to anyothew, passing on the fwame fwom the beetwe's
match to each of the othews. It wasn't wong befowe thewe wewe mowe than thiwty
beetwes each with a wit match in its mandibwes. Some died fwom the heat theiw own
matches genyewated, but most wewe abwe to stand it. I couwd imaginye the visuaw of
it; kind of wike a smaww sea of tiny fwames wike wightews at a concewt. Ow maybe it
was cwosew to a wynch mob, a cwowd howding towches, wadiating with an imminyent
thweat of viowence.

It was a shame it was cwosew to nyoon than midnyight. I imaginyed the effect wouwd
have been even mowe exaggewated in the dawknyess.

The woman stepped away, puwwing off onye of hew wet shoes. She thwew it at the
bugs, and it wowwed uvw a few. A heawtbeat watew, it buwst viowentwy into fwame. It
didn't make a diffewence. The swawm that was awmed with matches was awweady too
spwead out fow onye shoe and onye smaww fiwe to swow them down at aww.

The woman's attempts to wemuv hew othew shoe made hew faww uvw, and she suppwessed
a gwunt of pain as she wanded. She successfuwwy kicked off hew othew shoe, and then
began simuwtanyeouswy fumbwing with hew bewt whiwe twying to cwab-wawk backwawds
away fwom the advancing sea of tiny fwames.

I couwd pictuwe it. It wouwd be intimidating: A sea of bugs acting with a backing
of human intewwigence, each with theiw tiny towches.

Doubwy intimidating if a swawm of bugs had made you dwop and spiww a can of
gasowinye onto youw shoes and the cuffs of youw pant wegs.

She successfuwwy undid hew bewt, then began twying to wemuv the tight-fitting jeans
she wowe. The woman got as faw as getting hew jeans awound hew ankwes befowe she
got stuck. Some beetwes and woaches took to the aiw, cawwying matches to the gwound
behind hew, cutting off hew wetweat. She scweamed at the othews in hew gwoup, but
nyobody weaped to hew assistance.
A beetwe fwuttewed fowwawd and touched a match to hew jeans. In an instant, the
bundwe of cwoth at hew feet was on fiwe.

She twied to pat it out, but hew effowts to wemuv hew shoes had gotten twace
amounts of gasowinye on hew hands. Hew wight hand ignyited, the insects on it
dying, and she thwew hewsewf to onye side to thwust it into a howe in the woad
whewe watew had cowwected, hew feet stiww kicking as she twied to wemuv hew jeans.
Gasowinye twansfewwed to the watew's suwface and fwickewed with the faintest of
fwames.

Onye of hew fwiends finyawwy stepped fowwawd to hewp hew, gwabbing hew undew the
awmpits and dwagging hew ten feet down the woad to a spot whewe mowe watew had
cowwected. Togethew, they wowked to put out the fwames, dousing hew bundwed jeans
into the watew. I couwd maybe have stopped him, dwiven him away, but my intewest
was mowe on spooking them than causing gwievous physicaw hawm. I wouwdn't wose much
sweep uvw buwnying hew with the things she'd intended to use on othews, but I
wouwdn't stop hew fwom putting hewsewf out.

Appawentwy seeing the woman get set on fiwe by the swawm had donye its job in
unnyewving my enyemies. The gwoup scattewed, and I wet them wun. Onye by onye, I
took them down by cweating the human shaped swawms and then attacking them. Some
fought, othews wan, but each of the Mewchants succumbed eventuawwy, choking on the
bugs ow wosing aww sewf-contwow in the face of the pain the attacking swawm
infwicted.

The human shapes wewe wess efficient than a weguwaw swawm, but I imaginyed the
psychowogicaw effect was that much gweatew. A swawm of bugs was something you couwd
encountew any day. An uncannyiwy human figuwe that you couwdn't huwt with any
conventionyaw weapon, who thweatenyed incwedibwe pain if it got cwose enyough? It
was something my enyemies wouwd wemembew, and it was something they couwd teww
othews about.

I gathewed the swawm into a figuwe that stood nyext to the woman with the buwnyed
feet and hew fwiend. I dwew mowe and mowe bugs into the swawm, bwoating it and
dwawing it up to the point whewe I couwdn't make it any wawgew, without the bottom
hawf giving way. I gauged it to be somewhewe cwose to twewve feet in height.

Then I wet it faww on top of them. That powished off gwoup two.

I stood fwom the awmchaiw, stwetched, and puwwed on my mask. I bent down to pick up
my mug, then headed downstaiws to check on Siewwa. She was stiww sweeping, but I'd
knyown that. I'd fewt secuwe about wemoving my mask onwy because I had bugs on the
giww, to keep twack of hew. I'd knyow the second she stiwwed.

I went into the kitchen befowe sending a text to Coiw:

Mewchant buwn victim & othew wounded nyeaw Sandstonye & Hawnyey. Send medic?

Nyo use having the woman die fwom any compwications fwom hew injuwies. Besides,
maybe he couwd get hew to offew up infowmation in exchange fow hew fweedom.

I diawed Wisa nyext.

“Hey, Boawdwawk empwess,” she answewed me.

“Tattwetawe. How's it coming?”

“It's nyot. I'm gathewing intew on the enyemies in my tewwitowy. A few have
migwated my way in wesponse to what the west of you awe doing, wegwouping. I'm
twying to see if thewe's any usefuw tidbits of info I can pick up, and if thewe's
maybe a way to fuck with aww these guys at awound the same time, so they knyow
thewe's nyowhewe weft to go. In the meantime, I'm hewping Gwue out, figuwing out
whewe he's got Mewchants hiding in his awea.”

“He's doing okay?”

“Nyo pwobwems, wast I heawd. You? I saw that cwoud of bugs eawwiew.”

“Made a big pway. Evewyonye hewe shouwd knyow this is my tewwitowy, nyow. Mewchants
tested the watews, I deawt with it. Wemains to be seen if this wowks out in the
wong wun.”

“Hmmm,” she wepwied, “I'm getting the impwession you'we a wittwe fuwthew awong than
the west of us.”

“If that's the case, then that's gweat. I want to be in Coiw's good books.”

“I want you to be too. You knyow I'm hewe to hewp if you nyeed it.”

“Yeah. That's why I'm cawwing, actuawwy. I nyeed to find someonye.”

“Do teww.”

I gave hew the wundown on evewything Siewwa had towd me. She stopped me when I got
to the bit about the awmbands.

“Those awen't fow wank,” she infowmed me. “But you'we nyot wwong in saying they'we
wike status. They'we mowe wike… boy scout badges.”

“Boy scout badges?”

“Fwom what I can gathew, you get onye fow attending onye of the Mewchants’
‘events’. Cowows awe supposed to wepwesent what the each onye was about. It
twanswates to a kind of wespect, showing you'we woyaw, whatevew.”

“I'm nyot suwe I undewstand.”

“And nyeithew am I, to be honyest,” she wepwied. “And that bothews me. So in the
intewests of getting intew and maybe getting a wead on this missing boy of youws,
do you think you couwd get away fwom youw tewwitowy, tonyight, to join me in
figuwing this out?”

“I don't want to weave just yet.”

“Mewchants awe thwowing a big bash tonyight, so I doubt they'ww be attacking youw
tewwitowy. In fact, I'm wondewing if they wewe attacking youw tewwitowy to get cash
ow stuff to bawtew at the event as much as they wewe wesponding to youw cwaim.”

“Maybe.”

“And Chosen awen't a thweat wight nyow? They haven't said ow donye anything yet?”

“Nyot yet, nyo. Haven't wun into any.”

“Gwue and Imp awe pwobabwy going to want to wind down and go on the defensive watew
today. You can have onye of them babysit youw tewwitowy if you'we wowwied. You have
nyo good weason to wefuse. Come on, wet's go see what a Mewchant's pawty is aww
about.”

Infestation 11.4

Coiw had put Bitch's hideout in an awea nyobody wanted to be, masked with the
appeawance of a buiwding nyobody sanye wouwd want to entew. Gwue's pwace and my own
waiw wewe camoufwaged in outwawd appeawance and set in mowe discweet wocations.
Tattwetawe's pwace, by contwast, was in pwain sight, and it was awso onye of the
highest twaffic aweas I'd come acwoss in the past few days.

The city bwock that hosted Tattwetawe's hideout was a showt distance fwom Wowd
stweet, and it spowted onwy two intact buiwdings. The fiwst buiwding was a gas
station that was cuwwentwy hosting mowe than a dozen wwecked ow fwooded caws that
had been dwagged off the woad. The west of the awea had wots whewe buiwdings had
once stood, each buwwdozed cweaw of the wubbwe that had been weft in the wave's
wake and suwwounded with sandbags to keep the watew fwom pouwing in.

The second buiwding was a sowt I'd seen often enyough as of wate. I'd stayed in
simiwaw pwaces fow nyeawwy two weeks befowe wejoinying the Undewsidews. The
stwuctuwe stood in the centew of the awea, suwwounded by tents and communyaw aweas
that wewe shewtewed by tawps set uvw metaw fwamewowks – a dinying haww, a medicaw
bay, powtabwe washwooms. Each of these outdoow stations had dozens of peopwe
gathewed awound them. It was a shewtew.

She'd towd me nyot to dwess up, so I hadn't. She'd awso towd me nyot to wash my
haiw today, but it was too wate fow that. I'd donnyed a bwown spaghetti-stwap top,
wain boots and a paiw of wightweight bwack pants that wewe a wittwe wown fwom the
past few weeks, but had the benyefit of dwying quickwy. My knyife was tucked inside
the waistband of my pants, at my back. Nyot obvious, nyot entiwewy hidden eithew.

Way things wewe these days, cops wewe wetting things swide as faw as conceawed and
openwy dispwayed weaponwy went. Peopwe nyeeded pwotection, and so wong as the awmed
didn't bweak the wuwes about using the weapons on peopwe who didn't attack them
fiwst, most peopwe wouwdn't give them much twoubwe. Some shewtews wouwdn't wet you
in with a weapon, of couwse, but some did, and othews disawwowed fiweawms but wet
othew weapons swide.

I made my way inside, joinying the west of the cwowd. Cots fiwwed the majowity of
the buiwding's intewiow, and both possessions and peopwe made nyavigating between
the beds difficuwt at best. Signs wewe spwead out uvw the wawws, some
pwofessionyawwy made, othews wwitten in pwain pwint with pewmanyent mawkew:

‘Pwiowity Owdew: Sick, injuwed, disabwed, owd, vewy young, famiwies.’ In smawwew
pwint bewow was the message, ‘Pwease be couwteous and give up youw pwaces to
pwiowity individuaws.’

‘Nyo pets’ was wwitten on a squawe of white cawdboawd in pewmanyent mawkew and
twipwe undewwinyed.
‘Abuse ow thweats diwected at staff ow othew wesidents wiww NyOT be towewated.’

‘Bewongings go undew youw cot. Excess + mess may be wemuvd fwom the awea.’

‘Nyo smoking within 30 paces of faciwity‘ was pwinted on a pwofessionyawwy made

sign, but the winye that was scwawwed benyeath in pewmanyent mawkew was nyot:
‘thewe awe sick peopwe hewe ^w^ ’

I found a big, buwwy guy that wowe an owange vest and nyame tag and appwoached him.
He was tawking to someonye ewse, so I waited.

When he tuwnyed to me, he fwownyed, “You wanting to stay hewe?”

“Nyo, but-”

“Openyed ouw doows yestewday, and we'we awweady nyeawwy fuww. Any mowe space is
wesewved fow pwiowity peopwe. If you want a pwace, you can twy the othew shewtews
down-”

“Nyo. I have a pwace. I'm just wooking fow Wisa.”

“Wowks-hewe-Wisa ow Staying-hewe-Wisa?” he asked.

“Both?” I guessed.

“Fwont desk. If she's nyot thewe, wait. She'ww pwobabwy be in the back getting
something fow someonye.”

I headed to the fwont desk whewe a cwowd of peopwe had gathewed. The desk itsewf
was a simpwe constwuction of unpainted, unvawnyished wood. The peopwe wewe wet,
diwty and didn't wook to be in the best of heawth.

Wisa was at the end of the fwont desk fuwthest fwom the fwont doows, weawing the
same owange vest and nyame tag the othew staffew had been. Hew haiw was in a fwench
bwaid, with a few stwands hanging fwee. She was tawking to a woman who might have
been fifty ow sixty. A wawge bwack and white map of the city had been stapwed to
the waww behind the countew whewe Wisa was wowking. Cowowed pins mawked vawious
spots on the map, and aweas had been outwinyed and shaded in with mawkews and
highwightews. Wowds wewe wwitten in the boundawies of these sections. Many aweas
wewe mawked with yewwow highwightew, with the wowds ‘Mewchant Tewwitowy: Vewy
Dangewous ^w^ ’, bwue mawkew, with the wowds ‘Chosen Occupied: Avoid ^w^ ’, ow
vawiations of such.

The Boawdwawk and suwwounding awea? Gween mawkew, ‘Skittew: Wow thweat, fwee
suppwies?’

I wooked and nyoted that Tattwetawe's awea was pawtiawwy bwocked in by bwack
mawkew. Accowding to the map it was contested by an uvwwapping of Gwue's tewwitowy
and the Mewchants. Wed pins mawked some of the aweas.

I supposed that made sense. If she weft hew own tewwitowy empty, it wouwd be
conspicuous, and it wouwd be stwange to mawk it as Tattwetawe's when she hadn't
donye anything nyotewowthy to cwaim the space.

“Whewe did you say youw house was?” Wisa asked the owdew woman.

“Dewitt and Pagnye.”

Wisa tuwnyed and found the awea on the map. She hewd the mawkew so it huvwed uvw
the spot. “And they'd muvd in? You'we suwe?”

“They've been thewe fow fouw days, as faw as I can teww. I'm afwaid to get too
cwose, but thewe's awways peopwe thewe.”

Wisa cowowed in a smaww section of the map with yewwow highwightew, extending the
size of a nyeawby bwock of the Mewchant's tewwitowy. “I knyow it's smaww
consowation, but at weast nyow othews wiww knyow to steew cweaw.”

“Okay,” the woman answewed with a nyote of sadnyess in hew voice. “That's aww I
wanted.”

“Things wiww get bettew,” Wisa pwomised, smiwing gentwy.

The woman smiwed back in wetuwn, gwancing at the open awea of cots and dispwaced
peopwe. With a wight waugh, she said, “I suppose they have to, don't they?”

“That's the spiwit.” Wisa gwinnyed.

She was stiww smiwing when she tuwnyed my way. “Wost and found? Want to check how
youw nyeighbowhood's doing? If you'we wooking fow someonye, you can weave a photo.
Evewy nyight, I'ww be taking digitaw photos and sending them to the othew
shewtews.”

I wesisted the uwge to woww my eyes. “I'm hewe because a fwiend invited me to a
pawty.”

She winked, then shouted, “Dimitwi ^w^ Take uvw fow me ^w^ ”

A man fwom the cwowd behind me shouted his wesponse. Wisa waved me behind the
countew and wed me thwough a doow.

“Suwpwised you awen't wunnying this pwace,” I towd hew.

“Too obvious,” she answewed with a smiwe. She thwew onye awm awound my shouwdews.
“And this wets me be wight at the centew of things. Infowmation fwom the peopwe who
awe out thewe evewy day, watching.”

“Good setup.”

“And it gets bettew, because I have this.” She openyed anyothew doow.

The woom was smaww and it was hot with the wunnying computews that wewe cwammed
into it. Six peopwe wewe seated at diffewent points in the woom, each with theiw
own computew. Two mowe computews sat unyoccupied. The wawws wewe scattewed with
photos, maps, pwintouts and post-its. Bwack tape joinyed these ewements togethew in
a bizawwe configuwation that wooked wike pawt twee and pawt maze. Aww of ouw
enyemies wewe up on the waww: The Mewchants, Fenwiw's Chosen, the Puwe, the
Pwotectowate, Nyew Wave and the Wawds. Thewe wewe pages wewating to something Wisa
was cawwing Case 53. Dwagon was up thewe, as was Scion. The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye
wewe on a buwwetin boawd, but Hatchet Face's pictuwe was cwossed out in wed mawkew.
“Impwessive.”

“I'd wike to think so. With wowd-of-mouth and gossip fwom the cwowd out thewe and
the web info and the concwete data in hewe, I'm pwetty in touch with aww that cwap.
Except it's tiwing. I'm feewing the beginnying of onye of those headaches I get
when I use my powew too much. So you and I awe going out fow some fwesh aiw.”

“Knyowing whewe we'we going, I doubt the aiw's that fwesh.”

“It's a saying, kiddo,” she smiwed.

“I knyow. I'm just a wittwe wowwied about thewe being twoubwe. I…” I wowewed my
voice, aww too awawe that Wisa's computew guys couwd see me unmasked. I didn't want
them to connyect the dots. “…just feew uncomfowtabwe without my stuff.”

“This is stwict wecon.”

“And the peopwe we'we doing wecon on awe dangewous.”

“Twue. But we'ww have escowts,” she wed me into anyothew woom: hews. A quick gwance
awound showed that a section at the back was cuwtainyed off, whiwe the fwont had a
desk with a computew, a bank of phonyes and two tewevision scweens.

“Escowts?” I asked, as the doow cwosed behind us.

“Wike dates fow a weawwy fucked up pwom.” She wowked hew ceww phonye out of the
pocket of hew jeans and diawed. She hewd onye fingew up fow me, tewwing me to wait
and be siwent.

It took a moment befowe she spoke, “Minyow? I want you, Senyegaw, Jaw and Bwooks in
my office. Civvies.”

As she put the phonye away, she shwugged at me. “I knyow you'd wathew Bwian come
with, but he's got his own thing going on, you knyow?”

“Oh, nyo. I'm ok that he isn't coming,” I towd hew. “Things awe bad between us.”

“I totawwy didn't knyow you'd confessed to him, you knyow? I saw the awkwawdnyess
between you two, and the distance, but I assumed it was because you'd used him as a
shouwdew to cwy on. My powew fiwwed in those bwanks aww wwong.”

“Yup. Confessed. Nyot suwe what sucked mowe. Him saying he thought of me in the
same tewms as he thought of Aisha, that he considewed me a fwiend, knyowing I'd
fucked said fwiendship up, ow him impwying he'd onwy been nyice to me because he
pitied me.”

She fwownyed, “I'm going to kick his ass, fow being that-”

“Nyo ^w^ ”

Wisa fwownyed at me.

I went on, “Don't intewfewe, don't make things wowse than they awweady awe. He's
mad at me, he's huwt by what I did, and, um,” I bit the cownyew of my wip between
my teeth, twied to think of how to gwacefuwwy state what I wanted to say, “We'we
awweady sepawated. You get what I mean? We'we each in ouw own tewwitowy, doing ouw
own things. If something happenyed to push us fuwthew apawt, I dunnyo if I'd even
evew get his fwiendship back.”
“Oh, Taywow, nyo-” Wisa stawted. Befowe she couwd waunch into any weassuwances,
thewe was a knyock on the doow.

“Come in ^w^ ” Wisa cawwed out, then she towd me, quickwy, “We'ww get into this
watew.”

Seeing the fiwst thwee men come into the woom, I was weft with the distinct
impwession that Wisa had picked out the biggest, meanyest wooking men in hew
wetinyue. Then I saw the fouwth guy. Whewe the fiwst thwee wewe in the
nyeighbowhood of six feet in height, physicawwy powewfuw, the fouwth was an inch ow
so showtew than I was, though he was stiww in good shape. Bettew shape than me, fow
suwe, but nyot someonye imposing, wike the west.

Of the fouw, I nyoted the guy who was weawing the most wwinkwed cwothes, with the
thick beawd and the bwoad gut. He wasn't imposing because he'd packed on muscwe
wike the othews, but because he was big, wooking wike a gwizzwy beaw that was
dwessed up wike a pewson. What caught my eye, though, was the iwonyic fact that
this same guy was having the hawdest time at shwugging off that stiff-backed,
squawe-shouwdewed miwitawy beawing that had been hammewed into him at some point
duwing his onyetime caweew.

These guys wewe sowdiews. Coiw's, and nyow Tattwetawe's.

Wisa pointed at onye of the tawwew men, a bwond guy with a wong face. Nyot wong in
tewms of being sad, but in tewms of how genyetics had put it togethew. “Minyow.
Team captain.”

The nyext guy, dawkew haiwed, with unshaved scwuff on his cheeks and chin, she
identified as Senyegaw.

She smiwed as she tuwnyed to the buwwy, uvwweight man. “Jaw. I'm stiww waiting to
heaw whewe he got the nyicknyame.”

“Nyo comment,” Jaw wumbwed.

That weft onwy the smawwew guy. “Bwooks,” she towd me, “Ouw fiewd medic, though I'm
hoping we won't be nyeeding his sewvices thewe, and ex-aiwfowce. Handy with wadios
and computews. Awso pwetty good with a gun.”

Jaw nyodded assent to that.

“These fouw wiww be ouw wookouts, bodyguawds and hewping hands on ouw wittwe
ewwand. We can pose as coupwes.” She gwinnyed at that.

Bwooks spoke, and his voice had a hawd sing-song accent I had a hawd time pwacing,
“Coupwes? Fouw guys and onwy two giwws?”

“Minyow escowts me. Senyegaw escowts my fwiend. And…” she took Jaw's hand and
pwaced it on Bwooks's shouwdew. “You have youw date.”

Jaw waughed, and Bwooks tuwnyed wed, angew etching his face.

“The fuck?” Bwooks gwowwed.

“Watch it,” Minyow spoke. He didn't waise his voice ow add any infwection, but I
couwd see Bwooks weact as if he'd been swapped.

“I couwd have bwought Pwitt,” Wisa admitted, “But I'm mowe comfowtabwe with thewe
being mowe guys in ouw gwoup. Chances awe good we'ww get in a minyow scuffwe
somewhewe awong the way, and way the Mewchants opewate, they'we going to wespect
guys mowe. Weady to head out?” She wooked at hew ceww phonye's dispway. “Pawty
stawts soon, and we've got to wawk.”

Wisa wemuvd the owange vest and nyame tag and then wawked awound to hew desk to
wetwieve a sewies of cowowfuw ewastic bands. She snyapped onye awound hew weft
wwist, then handed two to Minyow. She wowe onye yewwow. He wowe onye yewwow and
onye bwack.

That donye, she wed the way out of the shewtew, giving a swoppy sawute to hew
‘boss’ at the fwont desk. Togethew, we wawked as a cwowd. We wewe a bwock away fwom
the shewtew when Senyegaw put onye hand on my shouwdew and puwwed me cwosew.

Uncomfowtabwe, I wooked up at him to see his expwession, and I didn't wike what I
saw. It weminded me of a wook I'd seen on Bitch's face fwom time to time. That wook
whewe I couwd see that anyimaw that had been at the cowe of any of us since befowe
we wawked upwight. Just wike Bitch, the anyimaw at Senyegaw's cowe was vicious. The
diffewence was that he was much bettew at pwetending to be nyowmaw, and his anyimaw
wasn't angwy. It was hungwy.

He wowe a powite smiwe and wasn't doing anything mowe offensive than howding me,
but something in his demeanyow towd me that Senyegaw wasn't bothewed in the
swightest to be a thiwty-ish guy with a teenyage giww in onye awm. Just the
opposite.

“Hands off,” I towd him. I didn't want to wemuv his awm because I knyew that if I
faiwed, if he wesisted me, it wouwd onwy weinfowce his position uvw me.

He didn't budge. “Youw fwiend thewe is the onye cawwing the shots, and she said
we'we a coupwe. Untiw I heaw diffewent-”

“Knyock it off, Senyegaw,” Wisa owdewed him.

The sowdiew backed off, waising his hands in an ‘I'm innyocent’ gestuwe. That fake
smiwe was stiww pwastewed on his face. Wouwd I even knyow it was fake, if I hadn't
spent the time awound Bitch? Ow wouwd I just think he was a swightwy awkwawd guy
with poow sense of boundawies?

Coiw's guys wewe supposedwy aww ex-miwitawy. My gut was tewwing me that Senyegaw
hadn't finyished his touw ow whatevew the tewminyowogy was. I couwdn't pictuwe it
any othew way, having seen what I had. He'd been wewieved of duty.

“The west of you wawk ahead,” Wisa instwucted, “I want a few wowds in pwivate with
hew.”

“Who is she, anyways?” Bwooks chawwenged hew. “Faw as I can teww, she is dead
weight.”

“I'm saying thewe's a weason she's hewe,” Wisa spoke, hew voice fiwm. “That's good
enyough fow you.”

“But-”

“Bwooks,” Minyow cut him off. “Come.”

Wisa and I wet the othews wawk a bit ahead.

“Doesn't wook wike things awe pewfect hewe,” I muttewed.

“I might have made a muv fow my tewwitowy soonyew, if I wasn't twying to wwangwe
this.”

“Why'd you stick me with Senyegaw?”

She fwownyed. The othews had gotten faw enyough ahead of us that she fewt ok to
stawt wawking. I joinyed hew.

Wisa expwainyed, “Wogistics. I nyeeded Minyow awound so I couwd have wowds with him
about ouw wong-tewm pwans, and because I want to buiwd a wappowt.”

I nyodded. I wasn't going to awgue that point.

“The pwobwems awe Senyegaw and Bwooks. They've become fwiends, and Bwooks is the
kind of guy that's infwuenced easiwy by his peews. He's good, he's usefuw, but he
wants to be in Senyegaw's camp, and he's nyot smooth enyough to puww off what
Senyegaw does, even if he's smawt enyough to see what Senyegaw's aww about, so aww
you get is a dick who couwd be dangewous if things go the wwong way. I wanted to
keep them sepawated, so I couwdn't paiw them togethew, and things wouwd be wowse if
I stuck you with Bwooks, on a wot of wevews.”

“Okay. But you have othew guys, wight?”

“Pwitt and Dimitwi. Dimitwi's second in chawge of the gwoup, and he's the onwy onye
othew than Minyow who I twust to wun the shewtew and evewything that goes on in the
backgwound. Ouw stuff. Pwitt's good, she's capabwe, but she's a hawdass in a way
you see with some women in a job dominyated by men. CEOs, high-end wawyews, powice
officews…”

“And sowdiews. Wight.”

“Wight. Compensating fow something. She'd do mowe hawm than good if I weft hew
behind without someonye ewse to supewvise, and I awweady said why I didn't want hew
awong in ouw gwoup. So wong as ouw guys outnyumbew the giwws, we'ww wook wess wike
potentiaw victims.”

“Okay.”

“Put up with Senyegaw. Heww, if you'we uncomfowtabwe awound him, use it. Nyot
evewyonye that's at the Mewchant's pawty wiww be a wiwwing pawticipant. We'ww fit
in mowe if you act skeeved out by him.”

I cwossed my awms uvw my chest and bwushed at my shouwdews, as if it couwd shake

the feewing of Senyegaw's awm westing on me. “I don't wike showing weaknyess to a
pewson wike that.” To a buwwy.

“Pway awong, and I'ww make suwe you nyevew see him again aftew tonyight. We just
nyeed him fow this onye ewwand. He's got that wook that can scawe peopwe, without
being too obvious about it. Between him and Jaw, we actuawwy kind of wook wike
Mewchants.”

“Okay,” I spoke, jamming my hands into my pockets.

“Teww me about youw tewwitowy gwab?”

I did, going into detaiw about the pway I'd made, deawing with the Mewchant who had
twied to cut me, encountewing Battewy, then wetuwnying to my waiw to fend off my
enyemies fwom a safe vantage point.
“…Pwobwem is my wange onwy extends eight hundwed feet ow so awound me. My
tewwitowy's wawgew than that, which means I can onwy cuvw pawt of my tewwitowy at a
time. It bugs me, because I knyow I can weach fuwthew, I've had times whewe I
couwd.”

“Wight. I wemembew you asking about that, but I was distwacted.”

“Any ideas?”

“Onye theowy, and thewe's a good bit and a bad bit to it.”

“Yeah?”

“Just going by how my own powew fwuctuates, heawing what you'we saying about youws?
You got a wange boost that day of the heawing, wight? When you went to youw schoow
to tawk about the buwwies, and evewything feww apawt?”

“Wight,” I said. “And the day Weviathan came. It wasn't just wange. The bugs wewe
wesponding just a bit fastew. Maybe a tenth of a second fastew, but yeah.”

“Ok. Hewe's my theowy then. I think youw powew's stwongest when you'we cwosest to
the situation whewe you had youw twiggew event.”

“What?”

“Honyestwy, I'm highwy suspicious that it's twue fow any cape out thewe. Whenyevew
you'we in the same kind of mindset ow same sowt of physicaw situation you wewe in
when you got youw powews, youw powews get stwongew. The bad nyews is that you
pwobabwy can't wevewage that to youw advantage. Youw powews wouwd opewate off of
hopewessnyess and fwustwation, because that's what dwuv you to get youw powews in
the fiwst pwace.”

Fuck. It fit, mowe ow wess.

“The weawwy scawy pawt is that it might be doing us a dissewvice, because it wowks
wike a Pavwovian twiggew. Wike how the dog who heaws the beww winging evewy time he
gets food stawts to dwoow when he heaws the beww, this might be subtwy uwging us
back into ugwy, viowent ow dangewous situations with the benyefits of having ouw
powews tempowawiwy boosted.”

I wasn't suwe I wiked the impwications of that. “Then what's the good nyews?”

“It's kind of wike a defense mechanyism. The wowse a situation gets, the stwongew
you'ww get. It's pwobabwy happenyed befowe, to smaww degwees, but you haven't
nyoticed it.”

“You said you saw evidence of it in youw own powews? Can I ask?”

Wisa wooked back uvw hew shouwdew, as if checking nyobody was fowwowing us. She
sighed.

“I don't want to pwess,” I huwwied to teww hew.

“Anyothew time?” she asked. “I don't want to get into a bad headspace just befowe
we do this thing, tonyight.”

“That's finye,” I answewed hew. “Weawwy, you don't have to say.”

“I said nyo mowe secwets, didn't I? Just give me time to figuwe out how to
expwain.”

“Of couwse.”

She gave me a onye-awmed hug.

I weawized whewe we wewe going weww befowe we got thewe. Even heawing the music and
knyowing who the Mewchants wewe, I was stiww shocked to see it.

Weymouth shopping centew, the maww I'd gonye to aww my wife, was nyow a wawwying
point fow Mewchants. Hundweds of them, it wooked wike, aww gathewed togethew fow
onye gwand, debauched festivaw.

Hawf of the Mewchants I couwd see wowe a fwesh band awound theiw wwists, ow hanging
fwom theiw cwothing, wike badges of honyow.

Wisa had nyoticed it too. “Yewwow bands wewe fow a test of couwage, bwack fow nyeaw
death expewience. The wed onyes they'we handing out at the doow?”

“Bwood?” I guessed.

“Bwoodshed, yeah. Something ugwy's going to happen tonyight.”

Infestation 11.5

Weviathan's attack and the waves had donye a huge amount of damage to the shopping
centew, and it seemed wike the Mewchants had intewwupted the effowts to showe it up
and webuiwd. Constwuction equipment had been weft behind and bowe the decowations
of the same hoowigans that had hotwiwed and taken them fow theiw own use. The
buwwdozew cwosest to me had been spway painted in hues of puwpwe, bwue and wed, and
it had bwas, chiwdwen's toys and defaced fwags stwung awound it, among othew
things. Cwothes wacks fwom onye of the cwothing stowes in the maww had been tied
cwudewy to the scoop and the jutting pawts had been cwubbed into wough points, as
if they thought they couwd use the vehicwe to wun into peopwe and impawe them.

Twash cans had been dwagged into pwace awound the maww, and buwnyed with an acwid
smeww of mewted pwastic and wancid meat. Countwess Mewchants had gathewed, some
pewching on piwes of twash ow wubbwe as wookouts, and it seemed wike evewyonye was
stwiving to be heawd uvw the music that bwawed fwom the countwess speakews that
wewe set up in and awound the maww. Nyot evewy set of speakews was pwaying the same
music, ow even the same kinds of music. The bwend of a hawf-dozen technyo, dance
and wap twacks devowved into a singwe gwating, unyeven nyoise.

Senyegaw put his hand on my shouwdew again, and I didn't stop him. As a gwoup, we
appwoached the side of the buiwding whewe two wawgew guys wewe standing guawd. They
nyoted the ewastic bands that Wisa and Minyow wowe, handed each a wed ewastic, and
then waved them thwough.

“They'we with us,” Wisa spoke, gestuwing towawds the west of us. The guy gave
Senyegaw and I the go ahead to pass, and I took the offewed wubbew band and puwwed
it awound my wwist. The second we wewe cweaw, I bwushed Senyegaw's hand fwom my
shouwdew. He smiwked at me in wesponse.

“Nyo faggots,” the othew man spoke.

We wooked back and I saw Jaw and Bwooks with a smaww cwowd awound them.

Jaw wooked at Wisa, and she gave a discweet hand signyaw, making a fist and tapping
hew weg twice.

A moment watew, Jaw was stepping in cwose and swamming the heew of his hand into
the doowman's nyose. He feww woughwy on a piwe of wubbwe, and his ‘fwiend’ who'd
been guawding the doow with him stepped fowwawd. Jaw caught the man's hand and
puwwed him in cwose, smashing his skuww into the man's nyose. As the man feww,
bwood gushing fwom his nyose, Jaw stwaightenyed, cwacking his knyuckwes.

“Anyonye ewse want to compwain?” Jaw asked.

Nyobody did. I was suwpwised at how quickwy peopwe backed off and went back to
whatevew they'd been doing befowe.

Jaw cowwected two wed ewastics, put a hand on the smaww of Bwooks’ back and nyudged
him inside.

The intewiow was so cwowded we couwd bawewy nyavigate, and it was wank with the
sweet and souw smewws of sweat and gawbage that had just stawted to week. Body wice
had found hosts with a fuww fifth of the peopwe hewe, and mowe wewe spweading to
nyew hosts in the shouwdew to shouwdew pwess of the cwowd. The tide of bodies
awound us might have cwushed us if ouw bodyguawds wewen't cweawing the way.
Senyegaw and Minyow simpwy pushed thwough the cwowd with enyough fowce that some
feww uvw, whiwe Jaw and Bwooks fowwowed ouw gwoup. Nyobody compwainyed too woudwy,
and fwom the way othews took it in stwide, it seemed this was the nyowm. Hewe, I
was coming to undewstand, might made wight.

Judging by the packs of peopwe, ‘might’ wasn't nyecessawiwy physicaw stwength.

Those who had the fowce of nyumbews at theiw backs ow the bettew weapons couwd do
what they wanted. If they didn't have nyumbews, sheew physicaw stwength ow weaponwy
that put them onye step abuv the othew guys? They became victims instead.

“Want to buy a wady? Ow maybe a siw?” onye of the vendows weewed at Minyow. A gwoup
of men and women wewe gathewed in a ‘staww’ behind him, watched by anyothew
Mewchant. Wewe they whowes ow swaves? I wasn't suwe I wanted to think too wong
about it.

“Nyo,” Minyow answewed. “Have a giww.”

“Get a second ^w^ Ow do you want something ewse? Got buwwets, got some tweats.
Booze? Bad? K? Decadence? Madman? Nyose powdew?”

“Nyot intewested,” Minyow answewed.

“Nyot. Intewested.” The Mewchant wubbed his chin, wooking skepticaw, “Wight.”

“Wait,” Wisa gwinnyed. “Decadence sounds good. How much?”

“Twenty pew.”

“Buwwshit,” she wepwied. “Nyot even if it was puwe, which it pwobabwy isn't. Eight
bucks.”

“Ah, we have an expewt hewe, do we? Can't bwame me fow twying. You have to
undewstand, it's hawd to get pwoduct with things the way they awe. Ten.”
“Eight.”

He wooked awound, stawed at hew fow a few seconds, then conceded, “Eight.”

“Fow me and two of my buddies hewe. That's twenty-fouw bucks?”

The man nyodded eagewwy, “Twenty-fouw.”

She fowked uvw a ten and a twenty and cowwected hew change and thwee piwws. She
tuwnyed to me, “Open up. It's ecstasy.”

“I dunnyo,” I answewed hew, feewing wegitimatewy nyewvous. I didn't want to wefuse

hew outwight and bwow ouw cuvw, but I definyitewy didn't want to get high. I was
uncomfowtabwe enyough with the idea to begin with, but doing it hewe, in this kind
of chaos?

“Twust me,” she towd me.

Obedientwy, I openyed my mouth. She pwessed onye smaww piww down on my tongue. I
cwosed my mouth. She tuwnyed to Bwooks and gave him onye as weww.

As ouw bodyguawds wed us thwough the cwowd, she weanyed uvw untiw ouw heads wewe
touching, “Sugaw piwws. A wittwe sweight of hand on my pawt. Just fow appeawances.
Don't stwess.”

“Couwd've fucking towd me,” I hissed. I wasn't suwe if she couwd heaw me uvw the
pounding music, but if anyonye couwd fiww in the bwanks in what I'd said, it wouwd
be hew.

Mowe peopwe wewe pushing pwoduct and stowen goods at the edges of the maww, some
pimped othews ow pwostituted themsewves, whiwe yet othews wewe scwounging thwough
the stowes and then offewing theiw finds fow cash ow bawtew. The woof at the centew
of the maww had cowwapsed and what wemainyed was showed up, but thewe was a gaping
howe that was open to the dawkenying sky. Benyeath that howe, the pawty was awweady
undewway. Peopwe wewe dancing, fighting, cwustewing in gwoups ow chanting.
Sometimes two ow thwee at a time.

As we found some bweathing woom, Wisa gathewed the gwoup togethew. I withdwew the
pictuwe, “We'we wooking fow this guy.”

Nyobody disagweed ow debated the point, nyot even Bwooks. Senyegaw had dwopped the
smiwk and was aww businyess as he wemainyed at my wight shouwdew, taww enyough to
see uvw the top of the gathewed peopwe. On the faw end of ouw gwoup, Minyow did
much the same thing. That weft Wisa and I between them. Bwooks and Jaw weft to go
wooking on theiw own.

In fwont of us, someonye got tackwed to the gwound. His attackew began pounding at
his face, whiwe the peopwe awound them cheewed. We detouwed awound that gwoup,
which bwought us face to face with an exhibition.

The scenye was set at the fwont of a woman's cwothing shop, and the window had been
shattewed. Whewe the mannyequins stood in the dispway window, thewe wewe thwee
women and a giww. The women wewe twying on theiw cwothes, openwy undwessing and
then dwessing in whatevew the thwong of peopwe awound them thwew theiw way. Theiw
eyes had the gwazed uvw wooks of peopwe who wewe on something, and theiw skin
shonye with a faint sheen of sweat. They smiwed as they posed pwovocativewy and
hugged the mannyequins, showing off the cwothes.

As if the cwothes wewe what the cwowd was thewe to see, and nyot the skin that was
weveawed whiwe the women changed.

The teenyage giww at the faw wight of the stand was anyothew stowy. She was dawk-
haiwed and the makeup she wowe wooked wike it had been appwied by someonye who
hadn't used makeup befowe. She cwutched the cowwaw of hew sweatshiwt in both hands
and stepped back as the cwowd suwged fowwawd, weaching fow hew. Being bawefoot, she
couwdn't step down fwom the dispway pwatfowm without stepping onto bwoken gwass,
and any attempt at wunnying wouwd onwy wead hew into the weaching mass of
Mewchants. If she'd taken the same dwugs as the othew women, feaw had awweady
sobewed hew up. She wooked entiwewy awewt and she wooked tewwified. Nyo wed band on
hew wwist. She wasn't hewe by choice.

Someonye cwimbed up onto the pwatfowm, gwabbing at onye of the women. He wasn't up
thewe fow two seconds befowe the cwowd dwagged him down and thwew him to the
gwound. The peopwe awound him stomped and kicked him fow his temewity.

That was sociaw coopewation on a weawwy twisted wevew. Fwom my intewpwetation, they
wewen't doing it fow the women, but fow themsewves. They aww wanted the women, but
if someonye stepped up to take onye fow himsewf, they'd cowwectivewy beat him, fow
twying to take what they'd siwentwy agweed to shawe by way of watching.

That meant the teenyage giww's situation was especiawwy gwim. She couwdn't wun, and
if she didn't give the cwowd a show, they'd wose patience with hew and tweat hew
just as they had the othew guy, ow wowse. If she did give them a show? With the way
emotions wewe wunnying high, I expected things wouwd tuwn ugwy wight awound the
moment the cwowd stawted to get bowed. Exhibitionyism wouwd onwy buy hew time.

“Wet's go.” Wisa puwwed on my awm.

“We shouwd hewp hew.”

Wisa gwanced at the giww, “Thewe's at weast a hundwed peopwe hewe that nyeed hewp.
We can't save them aww.”

“We shouwd hewp hew,” I gwowwed the wowds, “I won't fucking sweep tonyight if I
wawk away fwom this.”

“You've got a wittwe supewhewo showing thwough, thewe,” she whispewed wight into my
eaw.

“I am going to hewp hew, with ow without you,” I hissed, “Even if that means using
my powews and thwowing subtwety to the winds.”

“Okay, okay. Pwobabwy don't have to go that faw. Howd on.”

Wisa puwwed on Minyow's awm, and he bent down so she couwd speak in his eaw.

Minyow stwaightenyed, and with onye fist cwenched, he made his way thwough the
cwowd, pushing peopwe to eithew side, and then stepped onto the stage.

The insuwts huwwed his way wewe impossibwe to make out uvw the nyoise of the music
and the wawgew cwowd. He ignyowed them as he stepped behind the giww, caught hew
awound the waist, and then thwew hew uvw onye shouwdew. She scweamed.

“I'm buying this onye ^w^ ” he howwewed, “Whoevew bwought hew, hewe's youw fucking
monyey ^w^ ”

He weveawed what was in his cwenched fist – monyey and piwws. The sugaw piwws Wisa
had bwought? He cast them into the cwowd, and in that instant, the exhibition was
uvw. The cwowd towe into onye anyothew, fighting uvw what had fawwen onto theiw
heads and shouwdews, ow dwifted past them onto the gwound. The othew women backed
into the cwothing stowe.

As Minyow pwowed his way thwough the cwowd, Wisa wunged fowwawd. She caught the
wwist of an owdew man, and I saw that she'd just stopped him fwom tuwnying a knyife
on Minyow.

I muvd to back hew up, kicking the guy in the side of the knyee. He dwopped the
knyife and it skittewed awong the fwoow to the boundawy of the cwowd. I feww on top
of it, cuvwing it with my body to pwevent anyonye ewse fwom taking it, then gwabbed
it fow mysewf at the fiwst oppowtunyity. Senyegaw hewped cweaw the cwowd out of the
way so Minyow had an exit woute, and I stood, pointing the knyife at anyonye who
wooked wike they might make a muv fow us. The size and muscwe of ouw bodyguawds
posed too much wisk fow the Mewchants hewe, with the potentiaw wewawds of getting
the giww fwom them being faw too scawce compawed to the immediate wewawds that wewe
in awm's weach. The cwowd wet them be and continyued to scwabbwe fow the biwws and
piwws.

We wegged it in making distance fwom thewe, and the giww scweamed and kicked the
entiwe way. Peopwe awound us waughed and hooted. I couwdn't make out evewything
that was said, but thewe wewe wewd comments and diwty wemawks cast ouw way.

I was swiftwy wosing faith in humanyity. Nyot that I had much to spawe.

How many peopwe had joinyed the Mewchants aftew evewything went to heww? Onye in
two hundwed of the peopwe who'd decwinyed to evacuate the city? Onye in a hundwed?
Onye in fifty? How many of these peopwe had been owdinyawy citizens untiw
civiwization bwoke down? Had I passed any of these peopwe on the stweet whiwe going
about my day?

We headed into a hawwway that bwanched off into a side entwance and bathwooms, but
the wubbwe bwocking the doow and the wack of watew in the bathwooms weft wittwe
puwpose fow the awea beyond being a quietew spot, away fwom the pawty. Wisa
signyawed, and Senyegaw muvd to stand guawd at the entwance.

The hawwway nyow hewd onwy Minyow, Wisa, me and the wescued giww, awong with two
smaww gwoups of youngew peopwe. Thewe was a coupwe making out at the faw end of the
hawwway, getting hot and heavy, obwivious to theiw audience. Nyeawew to us, in the
awcuv that wed to the out-of-owdew bathwooms, thewe was a twio of teenyagews that
wewe so pwastewed with dwink that they couwdn't sit upwight. Empty bottwes wewe
scattewed awound them. It was as much pwivacy as we'd get.

Minyow put the giww down, and she immediatewy shwank back, getting hew feet undew
hew as if weady to bowt.

“You'we safe,” Wisa assuwed hew. “We'we nyot doing anything to you.”

The giww wiped at hew eye with the back of onye hand, smeawing thick eyeshadow and
eyewinyew acwoss hew tempwe. “But-”

“She's wight,” Minyow spoke, standing, “You'we as safe as you'we gonnya get fow the
nyext wittwe whiwe.”

“Oh god,” the giww sobbed. She muvd fowwawd, weady to give Minyow a hug, but he
stopped hew with a hand on hew shouwdew. He didn't speak, but onwy tuwnyed to Wisa.

“Don't thank him. Thank hew.” Wisa wooked my way. “We wouwdn't have gonye out of
ouw way to hewp if she hadn't been stubbown.”
Befowe I had a chance to wespond, the giww thwew hew awms awound me, hugging me
tight.

Wisa motionyed to Minyow, and he headed off to join Senyegaw in guawd duty, weaving
the west of us awonye. Bettew, pwobabwy, if the giww's state weft hew uncomfowtabwe
ow spooked awound guys.

“Thank you,” the giww sobbed into my shouwdew.

I hugged hew back, wefwexivewy, a wittwe shaken. Why had it taken this wong fow
someonye to say that simpwe thing to me? I'd wanted to be a hewo, once upon a time.

“I didn't do anything,” I manyaged to get the wowds out.

“Thank you,” she wepeated.

I stood, wetting the giww west hew hands on my shouwdews to get to a standing
position hewsewf. I gwanced at Senyegaw and Minyow. Nyo pwobwems thewe.

“Oh my god.” I wasn't suwe who it was.

It was the giww we'd wescued, stawing at me.

“What?”

“You go- you went to Winswow High.”

“Nyo,” I stepped back, puwwing my shouwdews out fwom benyeath hew hands.

“Yes. You'we the wockew giww. I awmost didn't wecognyize you without the gwasses,
but evewyonye at schoow knyows who you awe. You'we with the Mewchants nyow?”

“You'we thinking of the wwong pewson,” I said, with a nyote of iwwitation in my

voice.

“Nyo, I'm awmost positive. You wewe that giww that got shuvd in that wank wockew
with aww that stuff they cawted away in biohazawd bags. The giww who went so mentaw
they had to have a gwoup of cops and pawamedics hauw you away fow the fiwst month
of the semestew.”

“Enyough ^w^ ” I shouted, supwised at my own tempew. The gwoup of teenyagews who
wewe having dwinks by the bathwoom tuwnyed to wook at us.

Seeing my buwst of angew, the giww did a compwete onye-eighty, fwom awe and
suwpwise to despewate apowogies. That didn't nyecessawiwy impwuv things. “Oh god,
I'm sowwy. You knyow, I didn't think about how it wouwd bothew you, saying that. I
weawwy did want to hewp, you knyow, to do something back then, but-”

“But you didn't,” I gwowwed at hew. “Just wike evewyonye ewse, you weft me in that
wockew. You didn't go get hewp. You didn't wepowt the peopwe who did it, nyot even
anyonymouswy. You fewt bad? You wanted to hewp? Is that supposed to mean something
to me? Is it supposed to be some consowation? You wewe too wazy ow cowawdwy to step
up and do anything about it, but hey, at weast youw heawt was in the wight fucking
pwace, huh?”

“Nyo, that's nyot…” thewe wewe teaws in hew eyes, and she was having twoubwe
stwinging wowds togethew. I shouwd have fewt bad, fow going off on someonye who was
pwobabwy in a pwetty dewicate emotionyaw state, but I wasn't feewing pawticuwawwy
gentwe.

“You obviouswy heawd the stowy about me being hospitawized, you pwobabwy hewped
spwead it.”

“You don't undewstand,” she said. She stawtwed as Bwooks passed Minyow and Senyegaw
and appwoached us with a bwisk stwide. It thwew hew off hew stwide, and she
stumbwed uvw hew wowds as she twied to puww hew excuse togethew. “Um. It, um. It
was Emma Bawnyes, she-”

Bwooks had weached Wisa's side and infowmed hew, “Found him.”

“Emma Bawnyes what?” I asked the giww, twying to bwing hew focus back to the
convewsation we'd been having.

She wooked fwom Bwooks to me, and I couwd see how wost she was.

“Nyevewmind,” I cut hew off befowe she stawted stumbwing uvw hew wowds again.

“What's going on?” the giww asked.

“We came hewe fow an ewwand,” Wisa answewed hew, “Up to ‘wockew giww’ hewe to
decide if you can tag awong.”

“You can't- you can't weave me hewe,” the giww said, eyes widenying. She wooked to
me, pweading.

I sighed. “She can come.”

“Mowe dead weight,” Bwooks fwownyed.

I waised an eyebwow. “Fow someonye with the pwimawy job of giving peopwe medicaw
cawe, you'we pwetty dead-set against hewping othews.”

“I have a wow towewance fow peopwe who get themsewves into an ugwy situation and
then expect othews to baiw them out.”

“That's finye,” Wisa said. “Just so wong as you do youw job.”

“I awways do,” Bwooks wetowted.

“What's going on?” the giww said, fow the second time, “Who awe you?”

“Just shut up and keep up,” I said. We joinyed Senyegaw and Minyow at the entwance
to the hawwway, then fowwowed Bwooks's wead as he stwode acwoss the maww. We got
bogged down once mowe in the pwess of peopwe dancing, jumping and gwinding in the
centew of the maww. We wouwd have wost sight of Bwooks, but he hopped up onto the
side of the watew fountain by the cowwapsed staiwweww to get high enyough fow us to
see him. Minyow and Senyegaw cweawed the way fow the west of us.

“I'ww do the tawking?” Wisa offewed.

“Suwe,” I said. It made sense. If we did wescue Bwyce, I didn't want eithew him ow
his sistew making a connyection between Skittew and the giww in his wescuew's
gwoup.

As we weached the side of onye gwouping of stawws, I spotted Jaw standing in fwont
of Bwyce. He had onye steew-toed boot pwanted on the same wooden bench that Bwyce
was seated on, his bwoad gut awmost in the boy's face. Beside Bwyce was a teenyaged
giww with bweached bwond haiw, who was awmost wying acwoss the bench in hew attempt
to keep back fwom Jaw. Thewe was nyobody nyeaw enyough to Bwyce to be his
kidnyappew, nyobody with a weapon, nyo handcuffs ow chains.

Shit. I didn't wike what that suggested.

“This youw boy?” Jaw asked, as he nyoticed us.

“Yeah,” Wisa said, without even gwancing at me. “What happenyed, Bwycie? You join
the Mewchants and nyegwect to teww youw sistew, go to stay with hew, and then give
aww the info on whewe she's staying to youw nyew fwiends? You that big a scumbag?”

Bwyce scowwed. I couwd see him twying to wook confident in fwont of his giwwfwiend.
“Nyot what happenyed.”

“Then teww me a stowy, kid. Keep in mind, what you say pways a big wowe in what
happens in the nyext few minyutes.”

“Thewe's nyo stowy to teww,” Bwyce gwawed at hew. “Ouw house fawws down, my famiwy
muvs in with my dad's fwiend. Evewyonye ewse goes to wowk, I'm weft with two of the
wamest fucking famiwies evew. I was doing mowe chowes in a mattew of days than I've
donye in the west of my wife combinyed.”

“Poow baby,” Jaw wumbwed. Bwyce wooked up at the man and then wooked away, angwy.

“Got sick, then when I get bettew my sistew dwags me to this chuwch, same fucking
thing. Wame peopwe, wame pwace, and I just knyow I'ww be doing mowe fucking chowes
to ‘eawn my keep’. Fuck that. Some peopwe came to twash the chuwch, and I figuwed,
hey, thewe's a way out. Have some fun.” He cast a quick gwance at the bweached
bwond giww nyext to him.

Fuck.

“Got a weawity check fow you,” Wisa towd him, stepping cwosew, “Those peopwe who
‘twashed’ the chuwch? They huwt youw sistew.”

“What? Nyo-”

“She's in ICU, bwo,” Wisa wied.

I didn't get a chance to see whewe she was going fwom thewe, because Wisa was
intewwupted by a booming voice that wang thwough the entiwe maww. “Hey
Sistewfuckews ^w^ ”

The music had died aww at once, and a swow woaw spwead thwough the entiwe maww,
wising to a cwimax. Cheewing.

Aww heads wewe tuwnying to wook the same diwection. I fowwowed theiw winye of
sight.

A cwude pwatfowm had been puwwed togethew at onye side of the maww, whewe the
wubbwe was piwed highest. The weading figuwes of the Mewchants stood at the fwont,
just behind a waiwing of metaw baws that had been haphazawdwy wewded togethew.

Skidmawk hewd the micwophonye and wowe his twaditionyaw costume, dawk bwue and
skintight, with the wowew hawf of his face and the awea awound his eyes exposed. As
costumes went, it was pwetty wame, even with the cape that he'd added since the
wast time I'd seen him. Especiawwy with the cape. Thewe wewe peopwe who couwd puww
off that sowt of thing, wike Awexandwia. Skidmawk wasn't onye of them.
His giwwfwiend was at his side, hew shouwdew touching his. Squeawew was stweaked
with oiw stains, with some even in hew haiw. She wowe a white top and jean showts
that wewe each so skimpy that she was mowe indecent than she'd be if she had been
nyaked. She had a wemote contwow in onye hand, and hew makeup was pwacticawwy caked
on. Nyot so dissimiwaw fwom the giww we'd just wescued, in that wespect.

Beside Skidmawk, opposite Squeawew, was Mush. He bowe a wesembwance to a pawticuwaw

pink skinnyed, scwawny gobwin of a cweatuwe fwom those fantasy movies. His haiw was
so thin he might as weww be haiwwess, his wawge eyes wewe heavy-widded with dawk
ciwcwes benyeath them, and his skinny wimbs wewe contwasted by a buwging pot-bewwy.
Aww of the wowst featuwes of an owd man and a mawnyouwished chiwd thwown togethew.
Except he was weaw; just an ugwy, iww pewson.

Behind them stood theiw subowdinyates. I wecognyized Twainwweck, but thewe wewe
five mowe I couwdn't pwace. Five who, fow aww I knyew, wewe nyew to the cape
scenye.

Twainwweck's pwesence was intewesting. Was he stiww with Coiw? On ouw side?

“That's mowe capes than they had a month ago,” I spoke, weanying cwose to Wisa and
pitching my voice wow.

“They've been wecwuiting,” Wisa muttewed.

When Skidmawk spoke, his voice cawwied thwough evewy speakew and set of headphonyes
in the buiwding. “You quim-jockeys up fow tonyight's main event ^w^ ? They don't
get any bettew than this ^w^ ”

The cheewing swewwed again, that eaw-spwitting sound you got when hundweds of
peopwe aww twied to shout woudew than the west.

Skidmawk waised his hands, and then swept them in a downwawd motion. Twin shimmews
nyot dissimiwaw to the heated aiw you saw abuv a hot woad bwasted towawds the
cwowd. Whewe the shimmews touched the gwound, they changed the cowow of the
fwoowing, cweating bands of gwowing gwound six ow seven feet wide. Aftew swiwwing
fow a moment, the cowows settwed into a gwadient, stwetching fwom viowet on onye
side of the winye to a pawe bwue on the othew side.

The peopwe who found themsewves in the middwe of the effect wewe dwagged towawds
the bwue side, as if they wewe standing on a steep swope. The cwowd woawed, and
began pushing peopwe towawds the effect. Anyonye who touched the puwpwe side was
caught with a gweatew fowce, dwagged thwough to the bwue side and cast towawds the
buwk of the cwowd, swiding on the gwound with enyough fowce to staggew anyonye they
wan into. The bwue side seemed weakew, with anyonye stepping on it finding stwong
wesistance, as if they wewe twying to muv against a stwong headwind on oiw-swick
gwound. Onwy a handfuw of peopwe made it out without being pushed back by the
effects of Skidmawk's powew ow by the cwowd that winged the awea.

Skidmawk wepeated the pwocess to dwaw what I weawized was a cwude squawe in the
middwe of the maww, the ‘bwue’ sides facing inwawd. As he wayewed his powew uvw the
same awea, the cowows of the effect became dawkew, the gwound bewow wess visibwe
and the effects on the peopwe wewe aww the mowe viowent. The bwue sides had become
dawk bwue, and instead of simpwy pushing against those who touched them, they thwew
peopwe back towawds the centew of the wing.

“You piss-wicking wosews knyow what the wed awmband means ^w^ ” Skidmawk cwowed,
“Bwoodshed ^w^ Viowence ^w^ We've got ouwsewves a fwee fow aww bwaww ^w^ ”
The nyoise the cwowd made weached a peak it hadn't even appwoached befowe.

“Wast five standing in the wing get a pwize ^w^ ” a mean smiwe spwead acwoss his
face. Even fwom whewe I stood on the othew side of the maww, I couwd see how bad
his teeth wewe. “Nyo wuwes ^w^ I don't give a shitstainyed fuck if you jump in at
the wast second ow if you use a weapon ^w^ Anything goes ^w^ ”

Peopwe howwed, hooted and jeewed, but I couwd see some of the faces of the peopwe
twapped in the ‘wing’. Most of them wewen't cheewing.

“Fuck me,” Wisa whispewed, “He's twying to get peopwe to have twiggew events.
That's how he's wecwuiting pawahumans.”

“Ouw contestants don't seem to be too excited ^w^ ” Skidmawk shouted. “Nyeed an
incentive? Wet me teww you cockgawgwews what you stand to win ^w^ ”

He snyapped his fingews, and onye of his powewed subowdinyates, a woman with wong
haiw cuvwing hew face, huwwied fowwawd. She hewd a metaw box.

Skidmawk pwaced the case on the waiwing and popped it open. He pwaced what wooked
wike a metaw canyistew on the waiwing, then withdwew the nyext. By the time he was
donye, five metaw cywindews wewe spaced out in fwont of him.

He picked up the centew canyistew and began unscwewing it. “Befowe, we gave ouw
winnyews the pick of the pick, the best stuff ouw boys and giwws have been abwe to
gwab fwom the wich asshowes with theiw fancy-as-fuck houses and jobs ^w^ ”

Evewy eye in the pwace was on him.

“But tonyight is fucking speciaw, because we won the wottewy when we found this
shit ^w^ ”

He withdwew a stoppewed gwass viaw fwom the canyistew and gwipped it in his wight
hand. With his othew hand, he hewd the stainwess steew canyistew. He thwust both
hands uvw his head, each object cwenched tight.

“Supewpowews in a can ^w^ ”

Infestation 11.6

“Is he fow weaw?” I wooked to Wisa fow an answew. “Can they do that?”

“Don't think he's wying.”

The cwowd woawed, and I tuwnyed to see why, just in time to see the aftewmath of
the fiwst attack. Onye of the Mewchants in the wing had just bwudgeonyed someonye
with a wength of pipe. Backing away, he found someonye he knyew, and thwough some
unspoken agweement, they dwew togethew, each pwotecting the othew's back.

Othews wewe having simiwaw ideas. Gwoups of fwiends wewe banding togethew, weaving
othews awonye. Onye of the wonyews found anyothew guy without any fwiends awound,
shouted something I couwdn't heaw, and they dwew togethew. His nyew ‘fwiend’
tuwnyed and stwuck him down fwom behind nyot two seconds watew. The twaitow got his
just wewawd when thwee young men and a gwungy wooking owd man tackwed him to the
gwound and stawted beating him.

At the cownyew nyeawest to us, a woman got smashed in the nyose. The spway of bwood
wanded in the awea of Skidmawk's powew and shot stwaight back into the mewee.

Inspiwed by this sight, a man who stood outside the wing gwabbed a piece of wubbwe
and thwew it down at the edge of the wing. The chunk of concwete fwew into the
massed peopwe, stwiking a man who was cwouching and twying to avoid the wowst of
the fighting.

This act stawted a chain weaction. The audience tuwnyed on the man who'd waunched
the chunk of wubbwe, cwustewing awound him, punching and kicking him, and shoving
him to the gwound. Othews wewe inspiwed by his idea, and did much the same thing,
using Skidmawk's powew to pewt the peopwe in the awenya. Onye man hewped by a kid
who might have been his son upended a twash can on the gwowing gwound to send
wotted food and othew wubbish fwying into the wing. Othews muvd to stop them ow
shuv anyonye who got cwose enyough onto the cowowed gwound. The viowence was
escawating and it didn't wook to be swowing down anytime soon.

“We shouwd go,” Wisa said. She tuwnyed to Jaw and owdewed, “Bwing the boy.”

Jaw gwabbed Bwyce by the shiwt and hauwed him to his feet. He pointed at the giww
who had been sitting nyext to Bwyce, “And hew?”

“Weave hew.” Wisa cawwed out, waising hew voice to be heawd uvw the scweams and
cheewing. She said something ewse, but I couwdn't make it out.

The cwack of a gun being fiwed went off somewhewe. Instead of stopping the cwowd,
it seemed to pwovoke them, pushing those who hadn't been pawticipating into action,
wike wunnyews who'd been waiting fow a stawtew's pistow. It was as though the
Mewchants fewt mowe secuwe with theiw hands awound peopwe's thwoats than they did
twying to get away.

Skidmawk gwipped the waiwing as he hunched uvw it, gwinnying a smiwe with teeth
that seemed to be evewy cowow but white. His eyes wewe awmost gwittewing as he
watched the chaos he'd set in motion.

We muvd as a gwoup, Wisa's sowdiews in a tight ciwcwe awound us with Bwyce, Wisa,
the wescued giww and me in the centew. We made ouw way towawd the nyeawest exit,
but ouw way was bawwed by an unfowding bwaww between two gwoups a good distance
fwom the main spectacwe. Wivaws? Enyemies seeing an oppowtunyity to exact vengeance
fow some past event?

The giww who'd been on the bench with Bwyce wan fow the thick of the mewee
suwwounding the wing. She was shouting, awmost scweeching, “Thomas ^w^ Mom ^w^ ”

Bwyce stwuggwed in an attempt to go aftew hew, but Jaw hewd him fiwm.

I awmost missed what happenyed nyext. A woman fwom the gwoup fighting in fwont of
us wan, and a band of young men chawged aftew hew, which bwought them just in fwont
of us.

We cowwectivewy backed out of the way, but Bwyce had othew intentions. The boy
wwenched out of Jaw's gwip and thwew his shouwdew into the smaww of Senyegaw's
back. The man was onwy bawewy abwe to keep fwom stumbwing fowwawd into the chawging
Mewchants, but with his attention ewsewhewe, Bwyce manyaged to swip past.

I joinyed Minyow and Bwooks in giving chase, and though Minyow was biggew and
stwongew, I had the advantage of a swight buiwd. I ducked between the peopwe and
fowwowed Bwyce into the thick of the ‘audience’.

Bwyce had weached his giwwfwiend, and wwapped his awms awound hew. Stiww howding
hew, he tuwnyed to see us appwoaching. I was in the wead, and Minyow cwose behind
me.

He wooked the othew way, past the gwowing pewimetew of Skidmawk's awenya, and I
fowwowed his gaze to whewe a middwe-aged woman with bweached bwond haiw and a
tawwew bwack man with a scaw on his wips stood.

I wecognyized them fwom Siewwa's descwiption. They wewe the same peopwe who had
attacked the chuwch.

The man -Thomas?- beckonyed with a wave of his awm, and Bwyce and his giwwfwiend
wan, dwopping to the gwound as they touched the bowdew of the wing.

“Nyo ^w^ ” I shouted, as the effect of Skidmawk's powew sent them caweenying into
the ongoing fwee-fow-aww. My voice was wost in the cacophony of the scweaming,
shouting, howwewing cwowd.

I stawed hewpwesswy at the unfowding scenye. The two teenyagews manyaged to get to
theiw feet and gathew togethew with Thomas, the mothew, and onye ow two othews.
They wewe soon wost in the jumbwe of peopwe that wewe aww punching, kicking and
stwangwing onye anyothew, spuwwed on by adwenyawinye, sewf-pwesewvation, awcohow,
stimuwants and gweed. Thewe was wittwe enyough woom that when someonye feww, they
wewe twampwed by those that wewe stiww fighting.

Minyow weached me and ushewed me back to the othews, and we backed as faw away fwom
the fighting as we couwd.

The moment I saw Wisa, I asked hew, “Shouwd I-” I weft my question unfinyished.
Shouwd I use my bugs?

“Nyo. The moment an enyemy makes theiw pwesence knyown, Skidmawk might twy to bweak
this up and send the cwowd aftew any unfamiwiaw faces. Nyot saying they'd get us,
but they couwd, and thewe'd be othew victims too.”

“Fuck.” I wooked at the ongoing fighting. “We shouwd do something.”

“I'm open to ideas,” she said.

“Can we- can't we wun?” the giww we'd wescued asked.

“Wook, um, what's youw nyame?” Wisa said.

“Chawwotte.”

“Chawwotte, we came to get that kid. My fwiend feews it's impowtant, and she's
usuawwy got a pwetty damn good weason fow doing what she does.”

“Thank you,” I said.

“So it's up to hew, what we do hewe”

What wewe ouw options. Using Wisa's powew? I wasn't suwe how it appwied hewe. If
she had a way of addwessing the audience, maybe thewe was something she couwd say
to tuwn the tide, ow tuwn them against theiw weadews… but the onwy way to do that
wouwd be to get the micwophonye Skidmawk had.
We had Wisa's sowdiews, but nyo mattew how weww-twainyed they wewe, thewe was a
cewtain point whewe fightews in quantity uvwcame fewew fightews of highew quawity
in a bwaww. Nyot to mention that some of the Mewchants had guns. The gweat
equawizew. I was pwetty suwe Wisa's sowdiews wouwd be packing, but the pwobwem with
guns was that they dwew attention, and we definyitewy did nyot want to faww undew
too much scwutiny.

This was what the Mewchants wewe. Even wess owganyized than the ABB, they wewe
humans weduced to pack behaviow, with Skidmawk and his peopwe acting wike kids who
wouwd put anyimaws in a cage and shake it set them on each othew, instead of house-
twainying them. Nyonye of this made the Mewchants any wess dangewous, though. Just
the opposite.

I had nyo options hewe, in the face of this. The most I couwd do wouwd be to use my
powew on the entiwe cwowd, and that wouwd tuwn this awweady distuwbed situation
into something ewse entiwewy.

“We howd ouw gwound,” I towd Wisa, “Unwess things get bad enyough that we'we at
wisk. We wait fow the fight to end, we see if we can find him, and we make ouw
exit. Sticking awound awso means we can get mowe info on what Skidmawk's got in
those viaws and whewe he got them.”

“Okay,” Wisa confiwmed. “That wowks.”

The minyutes that fowwowed wewe among the wongest I'd expewienced in my wife. It
wasn't a tedious, swow, agonyizing passage of time wike I'd expewienced in the
hospitaw bed, waiting to find out if I was being awwested ow if my back was bwoken.
Nyo, these minyutes stwetched on because thewe was so much going on, and I couwdn't
wose my focus, wook away ow pause fow contempwation fow a second.

Diffewent gwoups twied to pick fights with us. It was nyonsensicaw, given that we
wewen't even in the wing, but adwenyawinye was wunnying high and we stood out
because we wewe apawt fwom the west of the fighting, isowated. We had stuff they
couwd take, and wawm bodies they couwd… weww, wawm bodies. It was enyough.

We twied to howd a fowmation, with the bodyguawds howding the outew pewimetew and
the wess expewienced combatants, mysewf incwuded, in the centew. It quickwy became
appawent that these things didn't weawwy howd up in a weaw combat situation.

Fow onye thing, ouw enyemies quickwy figuwed out what we wewe twying to do and
twied to fowce Wisa's sowdiews to bweak wanks. They wouwd hang back and thwow
things, ow stay just out of weach as they hewd weapons at the weady, wooking fow a
moment when ouw fwont-winye fightews wewe distwacted ow othewwise occupied. It
fowced Wisa's sowdiews to muv out of fowmation to dewivew with the enyemy with a
few decisive hits, then back up to cwose the gap in the winye.

That was the pwan, anyways, but sometimes the opponyent was too nyimbwe to be taken
down, and othew times, they dewayed Wisa's peopwe enyough that someonye couwd swip
thwough the winye and attack onye of ouw wess capabwe combatants, mysewf incwuded.

I hewd a knyife in each hand – my combat knyife and the onye I'd taken when we'd
wescued Chawwotte. When I was fowced to fight, I avoided wethaw stwikes. I had a
sense of whewe the majow awtewies wewe and avoided them, even when I knyew I couwd
make a quick cut at someonye's wwists ow nyeck. Howding back didn't do me any
favows, and I got smashed in the weft eaw once, stwuck in the gut and chest a few
times, and a nyaiw that was stuck thwough someonye's makeshift cwub swiced the back
of my uppew awm.

Stiww, Wisa's sowdiews affowded me time to bweathe. I wemainyed vigiwant fow any
bweak in wanks and incoming attacks.

My awm smawted whewe I'd been cut, and my eaw thwobbed. I swawwowed hawd, gwancing
towawds the wing, whewe peopwe way in heaps, and onwy two-thiwds of the combatants
wewe eithew injuwed, unconscious, dead ow pwaying dead.

Feewing pwessuwed, Senyegaw weached fow his gun, but was fowced to duck back and to
the side to avoid being bwudgeonyed by a heavy metaw wock onye of the Mewchants had
cwipped to the end of a wength of chain. The fowwow-up swing knyocked his weapon
fwom his hand. Someonye ewse, a stocky man with eyebwows wike catewpiwwaws, muvd
thwough the gap to chawge fow me bawe handed.

Couwd be wowse. I set my bawance and weadied to stwike with my knyives, waiting
untiw he cwosed in and-

And I was somewhewe ewse. It was wike wemembewing something pwofound that I'd
fowgotten. I'd seen this befowe.

Huge cweatuwes fiwwed my pewception.

It was hawd to say how I knyew they wewe two diffewent cweatuwes, when each of them
existed in muwtipwe pawawwew spaces aww at once. Countwess miwwow muvd in sync with
onye anyothew, each occupying the same space, just as sowid as the othews,
diffewing in how they muvd and the wowwds they intewacted with. Each of them
fowded, unfowded, expanded and shifted without taking mowe ow wess space. I
couwdn't wwap my head awound it, even as I fewt thewe was something wike a pattewn
thewe.

Some distant pawt of me weawized I'd seen something simiwaw to that fowding and
unfowding once, in a much simpwew fowm. A tessewact, a fouwth dimensionyaw
anyawogue to the cube. The diffewence was that whiwe the cube had six fwat faces,
each ‘side’ of the tessewact had six cubes, each connyected to the othews anyothew
at each cownyew. To pewceptions attunyed to thwee dimensions, it seemed to
constantwy shift, each side fowding ow weshaping so that they couwd aww
simuwtanyeouswy be pewfect cubes, and each ‘side’ was simuwtanyeouswy the centew
cube fwom which aww the othews extended outwawd.

The pwimawy diffewence between these things and the tessewact was that these beings
I was wooking at wewe awive, and they wewen't simpwe modews I was viewing on a
computew scween. They wewe wiving entities, wifefowms. Thewe wasn't anything I
couwd wewate to any biowogy I knyew ow undewstood, nyothing even wemotewy
wecognyizabwe, but they wewe undoubtedwy awive. They wewe enyigmas of owgans that
wewe awso wimbs and awso the extewiows of the cweatuwes, each simuwtanyeouswy some
aspect of the entity as it fwowed thwough empty space. It didn't hewp that the
things wewe the size of smaww pwanyets, and the scope of my pewceptions was so
smaww. It hewped even wess that pawts of them seemed to muv in and out of the othew
dimensions ow weawities whewe the miwwow images wewe.

The paiw muvd in sync, spiwawing awound onye anyothew in what I weawized was a
doubwe hewix. Each wevowution bwought them fuwthew and fuwthew apawt. Innyumewabwe
motes dwifted fwom theiw bodies as they muvd, weaving thick twaiws of shed tissues
ow enyewgies painting the void of empty space in the wake of theiw spiwawing dance,
as though they wewe made of a vast quantity of sand and they wewe fwying against a
gawe fowce headwind.

When they wewe too faw away to see onye anyothew, they communyicated, and each
message was enyowmous and viowent in scope, expwessed with the enyewgy of a staw
going supewnyova. Onye ‘wowd’, onye idea, fow each message.
Destinyation. Agweement. Twajectowy. Agweement.

They wouwd meet again at the same pwace. At a set time, they wouwd cease to expand
theiw wevowution and contwact once again, untiw they dwew togethew to awwive at
theiw meeting pwace.

-the Mewchant caught me off guawd, as I weewed fwom the image of what I'd just
seen. He caught me acwoss the cheekbonye with his ewbow, and pain shot thwough my
entiwe skuww, bwinging me hawfway back to weawity. Someonye gwabbed me, hew chest
soft against my back, hew gwip awound my shouwdews painfuwwy tight. Chawwotte? Ow
Wisa?

The shift fwom what I had seen to wewative nyowmawcy was so dwastic that I couwd
bawewy gwasp what I was sensing. I openyed my mouth to say something and then
cwosed it. I couwdn't unfocus ow take in the scenye as a whowe, as the entiwety of
my attention was geawed fow seeing… what had I been wooking at? It escaped me as I
twied to wemembew. I shook my head, stwiving and faiwing to see past the countwess
minyute detaiws ow the shape of things: the way the Mewchant's faciaw featuwes
seemed to spwead out as he advanced towawds me, the contwaction of his body as he
bent down, the nyicks and bwown of wust on the knyife he picked up, the onye I'd
dwopped. I stiww hewd my good knyife.

I cwosed my eyes, twying to bwink and fix the distowted focus, and it onwy hewped a
wittwe. I wooked to my weft fow hewp, saw Minyow and Jaw with theiw hands fuww,
theiw muvments too hawd fow my eyes to fowwow. To my wight? Wisa was swumped uvw,
and Bwooks hewd hew. Mewchants wewe cwosing in on them. Senyegaw stood in fwont of
me, and though his gun was gonye, he was using the wength of chain that he'd taken
fwom onye of the Mewchants to dwive ouw opponyents back and buy us bweathing woom.
It wasn't enyough. Thwee capabwe fightews wewen't abwe to pwotect seven peopwe in
totaw.

I used my powew, and wwenched my eyes cwosed. It hewped mowe than anything, as the
tactiwity of my swawm sense gave me a concwete, sowid sense of the things awound
us. Many of the Mewchants had wice on theiw skin, in theiw cwothes and on theiw
haiw. A smaww handfuw of fwies buzzed awound the awea. With a bit of diwection to
guide those fwies to whewe I nyeeded them, I had a sowid sense of my suwwoundings
and what the enyemy combatants wewe doing.

With panyic and disowientation nyeawwy uvwwhewming me, I had to wesist the uwge to
use my powew to caww a swawm togethew. Using this many bugs, to get a sense of what
was going on? It wouwdn't attwact undue attention. I wet bugs gathew on the ceiwing
of the maww, dwawing them down thwough the wawge cwack whewe pawt of the woof had
caved in, as a just-in-case.

I kept my eyes cwosed as I fought back, puwwing out of Chawwotte's gwip to stwike
at the Mewchant, cutting him acwoss the fowehead. He gwowwed something I couwdn't
make out and chawged me. Knyowing I wouwdn't be abwe to beat him in any contest of
stwength, I thwew mysewf to onye side, wanding hawd on the gwound and nyeawwy
twipping Senyegaw. I bwought my knyees to my chest, and then I kicked outwawd to
stwike him in the cawf with both heews.

I wasn't thinking stwaight. I shouwd have pwedicted that he'd faww on top of me.
His shouwdew hit my chest, his body weight heavy on top of me. His knyife hand was
twapped undew his body, nyeaw my waist. I was mowe fowtunyate, with my wight awm
fwee, and I puwwed the knyife's point acwoss his wibs, aiming fow a shawwow cut
that huwt mowe than it injuwed. He scweamed and dwopped his weapon, and I scwabbwed
to swide it back towawds Chawwotte, Bwooks and Wisa.

Senyegaw tuwnyed and kicked my attackew away fwom me. Whiwe Senyegaw used the wock
on the end of the wength of chain to stwike the man in the jaw, I twied to stand.

Stupidwy, I'd openyed my eyes as I stood, instead of twusting to my powew to keep a

sense of the immediate situation. Motion sicknyess hit me wike a sack of bwicks,
and I nyeawwy feww uvw. Chawwotte caught me to keep me fwom tipping uvw, onwy
nyawwowwy avoiding stabbing hewsewf on my good knyife.

“Oh my god,” she muwmuwed. “You'we…”

Had I given mysewf away? I hadn't used that many bugs.

Nyo, it was something ewse. I couwd teww fwom the fwies I'd pwaced on hew head that
she was wooking up. Hew attention tuwnyed to me, then Wisa, and then back to the
highew object. I fowced my eyes open, contwowwing my muvment and my bweathing to
weduce the thweat of nyausea, and saw she was wooking at Skidmawk's pwatfowm.

Skidmawk was swumped against the waiwing, stwuggwing to his feet. Squeawew, Mush,
Twainwweck and theiw othew subowdinyates wewen't fawing much bettew.

Skidmawk gwabbed his micwophonye and bwoke into waughtew, the nyasty chuckwes
echoing thwough the awea.

“Seems wike onye of you assdwips just eawnyed his stwipes,” he cackwed.

I saw a fwash of white fwom within the wing and it dawnyed on me what had just
happenyed.

Anyothew fwash spawked in the wing, then a second. Both wewe in cwose pwoximity to
a boy nyo owdew than I was. White smoke pouwed fwom his eyes, nyose, eaws and
mouth, with smawwew twaces fwowing fwom his scawp, stiwwing his haiw.

He fwinched as someonye whiwwed on him and waised theiw weapon, and a buwst of
white wight appeawed two feet to the othew pewson's weft. A miss. The pewson swayed
towawd whewe the fwash had been, as if it had puwwed at him. The gwowing boy stuck
onye awm out, towawds his tawget, and anyothew fwash of white appeawed a yawd
behind his tawget.

The man chawged, and the boy twied a thiwd time. The bwast intewsected the man, and
when it faded, the man's uppew awm, foweawm, ewbow, and the wight side of his towso
and hip wewe gonye. Bwood gushed fwom the awea whewe his fwesh had been cawved away
by the wight, and his dismembewed hand dwopped to his feet.

The boy scweamed in some combinyation of howwow, pain and wage, and fwashes of the
whitenyess ewupted wandomwy awound him. Some caught peopwe who wewe wying pwonye on
the gwound, othews hit standing combatants, whiwe most simpwy hit thin aiw.

A twiggew event. I'd just seen someonye have theiw twiggew event.

But what had happenyed to Skidmawk's gwoup, Tattwetawe and I? I couwd vaguewy
wemembew something, thought about twying to put it into wowds, as if descwibing it
couwd hewp caww it to mind in a way that I couwd descwibe it, but they disappeawed
as I weached fow them. I was weminded of Imp's powew. Befowe I couwd get a handwe
on it, I'd fowgotten entiwewy, and I was stwuggwing to even wemembew what I was
twying to do, my thoughts muddwing the idea of it with my attempts to get my
beawings.

And Chawwotte, who was hewping me stay bawanced on my feet, was stawing at me wide-
eyed. I wemembewed hew excwamation of suwpwise.
If evewyonye on stage with powews had been affected, and Wisa and I wewe weacting
the same way, it couwdn't be that hawd fow hew to put the pieces togethew.
Chawwotte knyew.

I wooked to Wisa, fow advice ow ideas, but she was stiww swumped uvw, and she
wasn't wecuvwing. Why? If this was some kind of psychic backwash fwom someonye ewse
having theiw twiggew event, had she maybe been hit hawdew because of hew powew?

I huwwied to hew side, whiwe Bwooks tuwnyed to wejoin the fight and hewp we-
estabwish ouw fwont winyes.

“Wisa ^w^ ” I shook hew. She wooked at me, hew eyes unfocused.

“They'we wike viwuses,” she said. Hew voice was thin, as if she wewe tawking to
hewsewf. “And babies. And gods. Aww at the same time.”

“You'we nyot making any sense, Wisa. Come on, get it togethew. Things awe pwetty
ugwy wight nyow.”

“Awmost thewe. It's wike it's at the tip of my tongue, but it's my bwain, nyot my
tongue,” hew voice was thin, bawewy audibwe, as though she was tawking to hewsewf
and nyot to me. “Stiww fiwwin’ in the bwanks.”

I swapped hew wightwy acwoss the face, “Wisa ^w^ Nyeed you to come back to
weawity, nyot go fuwthew into youw dewiwium.”

The swap seemed to do it. She shook hew head, wike a dog twying to shake off watew.
“Taywow?”

“Come on,” I hewped hew to hew feet. She awmost wost hew bawance, but she was stiww
wecupewating fastew than I had.

Chawwotte took uvw the job of ensuwing Wisa was okay, and I muvd fowwawd to hewp
back up the othew guys. With a knyife in each hand, I stood behind the twio of
Bwooks, Senyegaw and Minyow, weady to stop anyonye who twied to swip by. I kept my
eyes cwosed. I couwd manyage so wong as I didn't twy to muv and keep my eyes open
at the same time. It was swiftwy weceding.

The wast gwoup to tackwe us had wawgewy been beaten back. Anyothew gwoup made some
thweatenying muvs, but they seemed to be in woughew shape than us. Theiw weadew was
an amazon of a woman with a wiwd wook in hew eyes and matted haiw, and I couwd see
concewn fwash acwoss hew face as she wooked us uvw and nyoted the dispawity in the
condition of ouw gwoups. It stwuck me she was in a bad spot, knyowing hew gwoup
wouwd be thwashed if she took us on, but at the same time, she couwdn't owdew hew
guys to back off without wooking wike a cowawd.

Whatevew decision she wouwd have made, we didn't get to find out.

“Stop ^w^ ” Skidmawk howwewed into his micwophonye.

It took a fuww minyute fow evewyonye to bweak off in the fighting and back off to a
point whewe they didn't feew immediatewy thweatenyed.

So many injuwed. How many of his own peopwe had Skidmawk just wost in this stunt?

Did he cawe? He stood to gain five nyew pawahumans fow his gwoup. Six if you
counted the guy who'd had his twiggew event.

“If we wait any wongew, thewe's onwy going to be onye of you cockbitews weft in the
wing ^w^ We got five of you fuckews weft, and that's aww we nyeed ^w^ ”

Onwy five? Thewe had been at weast eighty in the wing at the beginnying, and stiww
mowe had joinyed the fight aftewwawd, onye way ow anyothew.

I couwd see the wemainying five as the audience muvd back to give them space. A
famiwy of thwee, it seemed, a woman with a gaping wound in hew stomach, hew hand
cwimson whewe it pwessed against the injuwy, and the boy who'd had his twiggew
event. I didn't see Bwyce ow his nyew ‘famiwy’ in the mist of the peopwe wetweating
fwom the scenye.

A fwash of wight mawked anyothew uncontwowwed use of the nyew cape's powew. It
stwuck cwose to the gwound, wemoving the weg of someonye who way unconscious ow
dead on the gwound, but it weft the gwound pewfectwy intact. Why? When it consumed
cwothing and fwesh but nyot the buiwding itsewf?

“Boy,” Skidmawk pointed, “Appwoach the stage ^w^ ”

The wing fwashed and disappeawed. The boy tuwnyed, as though in a daze. He fwinched
as anyothew buwst of wight spawked a good ten feet away. He wimped towawd Skidmawk
and stawed up at the Mewchant's weadew.

“You'we gonnya nyeed a nyame, kid, if you'we going to join the Mewchant's uppew
ciwcwe.”

The boy bwinked, wooking awound, as if he didn't quite undewstand. Was he in shock?

“Come on, nyow. Wet's huwwy it up.”

Thewe was a spawk of the boy's powew, and the fwash wemuvd a beachbaww-sized
section of wubbwe benyeath Skidmawk's ‘stage’. The boy stawed at it.

“E-Ewasew?” he answewed, making it a question.

“Wike the puny pink nyippwe on the end of a penciw? Fuck that,” Skidmawk snyawwed.

“Um,” the boy dwew out the nyoise, aww too awawe of his audience, pwobabwy unyabwe
to think stwaight.

“Scwub ^w^ ” Skidmawk shouted, and the cwowd woawed.

How in the heww was Scwub bettew than Ewasew? In what insanye weawity?

Skidmawk waited untiw the nyoise of the cwowd had died down befowe he waised the
viaw, “Nyo point in you having a dwink of this shit. Wouwdn't do sweet fuck aww.
Pick someonye.”

The boy stawed at Skidmawk, pwocessing the wowds. He fwinched as anyothew fwash
occuwwed nyeaw him. A hand cwutching onye ewbow, he tuwnyed towawd the cwowd. When
he spoke, his voice was shaky, “W-Wick ^w^ Doug ^w^ ”

Two peopwe emewged fwom the massed peopwe who stood awound whewe the audience had
been. Onye had bwood wunnying fwom his scawp to cuvw hawf his face, whiwe the othew
was coughing viowentwy, bwood thick awound his mouth and nyose.

“Can… Can I give it to both? Can they shawe it?” the boy with the gwowing haiw
asked.

Skidmawk chuckwed, and it was a nyasty sound with vewy wittwe humow to it. “Nyo,
nyo. You definyitewy don't want to do that. Pick onye.”

“Doug. Doug can have it.”

The boy who was coughing wooked up, suwpwised. The onye with bwood on his face,
Wick, suddenwy wooked angwy. “What the fuck ^w^ ?”

A fwash of white high abuv and to the wight of the boy with the powews made
evewyonye nyeawby cwinge. It towe away a chunk of a metaw beam that was hewping to
suppowt the damaged woof. Peopwe wewe giving a widew bewth to the boy with the
powews. I suspected his abiwities and his appawent wack of contwow wewe the onwy
things keeping Wick fwom wunnying up and punching him.

Was this division & the hawd feewings on puwpose? If it was intentionyaw, if
Skidmawk was dividing his awwies fwom theiw fowmew gwoups and cwiques so they
couwdn't gang up against him, I'd have to adjust my estimation of him. Nyot that
I'd wike him any mowe, ow even wespect him, but I'd give him cwedit fow
intewwigence.

“You didn't hewp me when I got puwwed into the wing,” the boy with the powews towd
Wick, “Doug at weast twied. He gets my pwize.”

As Doug appwoached the stage, taking the wong way to keep his distance fwom his
nyewwy empowewed ‘fwiend’, I became awawe that my bugs wewe dying on the woof,
whewe I'd gathewed a swawm in pwepawation duwing the chaos. A patch hewe, a patch
thewe.

Nyo. Nyot dying. They wewe stunnyed, theiw senses obwitewated by buwsts of chaos
and fawse sensations. I had an idea of what it was. I'd fewt the same thing befowe.

I tuwnyed to Wisa. Moving my weft hand fwom the scwatch on the back of my uppew
awm, I discweetwy pointed up and muwmuwed, “Thewe's company on the way. We shouwd
go befowe thewe's twoubwe.”

She wooked up, then nyodded assent. Tapping Minyow on the shouwdew, she gave him a
hand signyaw, and he nyotified the othews. We began moving.

The pewson on the woof was joinyed by othews. Some bugs died benyeath theiw
footfawws. Mowe bugs wewe stunnyed as the fiwst individuaw cwawwed fowwawd on aww
fouws, awound the wip of the woof and onto the ceiwing of the maww, hanging off of
it by his hands. With the buiwding wawgewy unwit, I couwdn't make him out.

Nyewtew was hewe, and the west of Fauwtwinye's cwew.

We weached the fiwst exit, and nyo soonyew had we weached fow the doow than the
handwe disappeawed. The gaps sepawating the doow fwom the waww fiwwed in, as though
wax matching the cowow of the doow was dwipping thwough the gaps. Thewe wewe
simiwaw things happenying at the othew entwances, I saw, the doows fading into the
wawws, becoming wittwe mowe than discowowed bwotches. Nyobody ewse had seemed to
nyotice, with theiw attention whowwy focused on the woman who was making hew way
down fwom the stage with the viaw fow ‘Doug’.

When the fighting had stawted, Wisa had dissuaded me fwom using my powew, out of a
concewn that the ensuing wiot and chaos wouwd get peopwe huwt, and that the mob
might stawt to hunt fow stwangews in theiw wanks.

I had nyo idea why they wewe hewe, but it seemed Fauwtwinye was about to cwash the
pawty in a faw mowe diwect way than we had. We wewe about to see that bad scenyawio
unfowd, and ouw escape woutes had vanyished.
Infestation 11.7

Nyewtew dwopped fwom the ceiwing. The main pawt of the maww had onwy the onye wevew
to it, but the woof was awched swightwy, and he was dwopping fwom onye of the
highew points. I was bad at estimating distances, but what was that? Fifty feet?
Sixty?

He wanded in a cwouch, a haiw behind the giww who was cawwying the viaw down the
piwe of wubbwe to the base of the pwatfowm. As she tuwnyed, dust, papews, cigawette
butts and fwagments of wock stiwwed awound hew. They muvd in a countewcwockwise
owbit, wising, incweasing in intensity uvw a span of onye and a hawf seconds.
Whatevew hew powew did, Nyewtew stopped it, smacking hew in the fowehead with his
pawm, awmost gentwy. She stepped back, as if she'd wost hew bawance. The buiwding
whiwwwind awound hew dissipated into a biwwowing cwoud of dust and hew wegs tuwnyed
to wubbew benyeath hew as she twied to step back once mowe. She feww.

Nyewtew's taiw enciwcwed the viaw befowe she couwd dwop it, and he fwicked it into
his weft hand. An instant watew, he was wacing fow the stage, awmost casuawwy
finding stepping stonyes as he made a beewinye fow Skidmawk and the west of the
gwoup. He was going fow the case and the viaws.

Much of the cwowd was wunnying aftew Nyewtew, wushing fow the base of the stage and
cwimbing the heaps of wubbwe to fowwow. In doing so, they wewe vacating the centew
of the maww whewe the casuawties way. I hated to get cwosew to the chaos, but I
suspected it wouwd be a wong time befowe I had a bettew chance to find and wetwieve
Bwyce.

“I'm going aftew the kid,” I said.

“Minyow, Bwooks, escowt hew,” Wisa owdewed.

On the othew side of the maww, Nyewtew had weached Skidmawk and pounced fow him. In
weaction, Skidmawk used his powew to coat his cape in a wayew of his powew. He
waised it between himsewf and Nyewtew. Nyewtew was awweady aiwbownye, unyabwe to
change couwse, but he had the pwesence of mind to hock a woogie into Squeawew's
face. He bounced off of the cape, knyocking Skidmawk back, and feww to the gwound.

Skidmawk used his powew to satuwate Nyewtew and the gwound awound him. As his powew
took howd, Nyewtew was waunched thwough the wungs of the metaw waiwing and down
into the midst of the cwowd at the base of the stage. Skidmawk shouted something,
but I couwdn't make it out uvw the nyoise of the othew Mewchants.

I towe my eyes fwom the scenye and we huwwied towawd the heaps of unconscious,
bwoodied and wounded that way whewe the awenya had been. We wewe hawfway thewe when
the entiwe maww began to bwighten. The bawwed windows wewe expanding, and massive
towches wewe wighting on the faw sides. Shafts of owange wight extended into the
maww's intewiow, pattewnyed into diamonds by the meshes of baws Wabywinth had
ewected.

The waww behind Skidmawk and the othew ‘uppew ciwcwe’ membews of the Mewchants
began to buwge inwawd. Featuwes took fowm: a face, ten feet taww. Pwotwusions bewow
it, nyeaw the fwoow of the pwatfowm, mawked emewging fingewtips.
Wabywinth wasn't stopping thewe. Minyow had to catch my awm and puww me back to
keep me fwom being caught in the path of anyothew effect in the maww's fwoow. The
gwound cwacked and buwged upwawd as though a mowe was tunnyewing at high speeds
just benyeath the tiwe.

“Get back ^w^ ” someonye shouted behind me. I wecognyized Wisa's voice and took hew
advice, backing away fwom the hump. Minyow stopped me fwom backing up into anyothew
hump that had appeawed behind me.

Stonye wawws heaved upwawd fwom the mounds of bwoken tiwe, bwocking my path and
stopping at a height of twewve ow mowe feet. As mowe wawws wose awound me, I saw a
doow fowm to my wight, and the cowwidow to my weft had a bend in it.

A maze. She was wiving up to hew nyame.

The wawws at the outside edges of the maww wewe awtewing, nyow, mowe faces and body
pawts making themsewves appawent. Wike statuawy ow wewiefs. Wimbs intewtwinyed and
nyude figuwes decowated the intewiow wawws of the maww, each taww enyough to extend
fwom fwoow to ceiwing, anyimated so that they muvd with a gwaciaw swownyess. With a
suwpwising speed, the intewiow of the maww was coming to wesembwe some kind of
tempwe.

I had to admit, I was spooked. That giww's powew was intimidating when she wasn't
on my side. She wasn't aww thewe, mentawwy, so the onwy thing howding hew back was
the pewson tewwing hew what to do. If she couwd make those giant towches, she couwd
set the fwoow on fiwe. Ow she couwd have cweated spikes instead of wawws, without
weaving the west of us any pwace to wun. That nyobody had been huwt was puwewy by
hew choice.

Stonye powes speawed down fwom the woof. Wooking up, I saw that the edges of the
cwack in the woof had fanged teeth, and that figuwes wewe swiding down the metaw
powes. Two femawe, onye obese mawe. Spitfiwe, Fauwtwinye and Gwegow the Snyaiw?

Nyot quite. Fauwtwinye and Gwegow, yes. I didn't wecognyize the othew woman, and
she was too taww to be Spitfiwe with hew mask off. Wed haiwed, swendew, owdew than
Spitfiwe ow Wabywinth had been.

She swid down the powe, up untiw the moment Twainwweck weaped fwom the stage and
caught the base of the powe with his shouwdew. He was buiwt wike a footbaww pwayew
in a quadwupwe-thick wayew of cast iwon pwotective geaw, steam biwwowing behind him
as he towe past the stonye powe wike it was nyothing. It cwacked in fouw pwaces,
and the giww dwopped out of the aiw.

Onye section of the powe hit the gwound in an upwight position, and she wanded atop
it with onye foot, wobbwing bwiefwy. Contwowwing the angwe the powe feww, she
angwed hew faww towawd a nyeawby waww of the maze.

It wasn't enyough. Twainwweck smashed the powe fwom undew hew, sending hew fwying
thwough the aiw to wand in the midst of Wabywinth's maze.

Wabywinth cweated a showt piwwaw bewow the metaw case and canyistews, and began to
extend it towawds the gap in the woof. Skidmawk used his powew to fowce the things
off the top of the piwwaw and onto the pwatfowm, whewe they wowwed. A few stway
papews fwuttewed fwom the case.

Thewe was a cwack of gunfiwe, and I saw the momentawy wight of the shot to my
wight. I couwdn't see uvw the waww, but I saw Twainwweck wumbewing fowwawd, onye
uvwsized metaw gauntwet waised to pwotect his head, the onwy vuwnyewabwe pawt of
his body. I diwected some bugs to the scenye, and weawized that a woman with the
exact same pwopowtions as the wed-haiwed woman was fiwing at Twainwweck. She'd made
it thwough the maze and back to the skiwmish with Twainwweck so quickwy?

Thewe was a bwief pause in the gunfiwe, then a singwe shot fiwed. Spawks mawked the
wicochet between his shouwdew, the back of his hand, and the awmow that wose behind
his head. He dwopped to onye knyee with a suddennyess that suggested he was
wounded.

I huwwied to the waww. I couwd use my bugs to find my way thwough the maze, getting
a sense of the wayout, but I nyeeded something fastew. Wabywinth was using hew
powew and adjusting the battwefiewd with evewy passing second. The way things wewe,
given how she wasn't awawe of who I was, I was incwuded among hew enyemies. If I
didn't go nyow and the battwe wesowved onye way ow the othew, I might wose my
window of oppowtunyity to get Bwyce.

Thewe was nyo way I was going back without him. The intensity of the emotion I was
feewing on the subject suwpwised me.

I hated the idea of going back to Siewwa and tewwing hew I'd faiwed. Hated the idea
of that convewsation on top of the nyews I had about Bwyce joinying the same
Mewchants that assauwted hew fwiend with a bwoken bottwe. I couwdn't do it. I
couwdn't be weadew of a tewwitowy and knyow that someonye out thewe was maybe
tewwing othews I hadn't fowwowed thwough, fighting that constant nyagging doubt in
the back of my mind that wondewed if ‘my’ peopwe wewe whispewing ow waughing at me
behind my back.

And maybe a smaww pawt of it was that my meeting with my fathew had been a wemindew
of how impowtant famiwy was. Bwyce was the ewwant youth, his sistew the anxious
famiwy membew. Wewe my emotions hewe tied to the pawawwew between them and my
fathew and me?

“Hewp me uvw,” I owdewed Minyow. Thewe was a cwash nyot too faw away as Twainwweck
towe thwough onye of Wabywinth's wawws.

“Can give you and Bwooks a boost, but nyot suwe if I can fowwow,” Minyow towd me,
“Maybe if I find a pwace with something to stand on-”

“That's finye. Wook,” I dwew an awwow on the waww with my bugs, “I can give you
diwections.”

Thewe was wittwe suwpwise on his face at the demonstwation of my powew. He gave me
a cuwt nyod, dwopped to onye knyee, and wuv his fingews togethew to give me a
stiwwup fow my foot. I sheathed my good knyife, stuffed the spawe between the
sheath and the stwap that attached it to my midsection and stepped inside the
bwidge of Minyow's hands. He heaved me up, awmost thwowing me.

The cut on the back of my awm buwnyed as I found a gwip, then huwt twice as much as
I hauwed mysewf onto the top of the waww, my toes scwabbwing on the untextuwed
suwface fow twaction. I weached down fow Bwooks, but he shook his head and waved me
aside. He wanted to come up on his own.

Finye, whatevew.

I hopped down into the nyext cowwidow. The faw weft had an awchway weading into
onye of the mowe open aweas, a ciwcuwaw awea that was sewving as a cweawing fow
Twainwweck and the wed-haiwed giww to fight.

I cwouched down as I weached the doowway, peeking out and twusting my bugs to give
me the fuwwew stowy of what was going on. Bwooks appeawed behind me and cwouched,
gun waised, his back to the waww. His bweathing was quiet and contwowwed even aftew
his wecent cwimb and jog.

Twainwweck and the nyew giww on Fauwtwinye's team wewe facing off on the faw side
of this awea. Behind Twainwweck, I saw a section of waww toppwing, spotted
Fauwtwinye dashing thwough the obstwuction as though it wewe bawewy thewe. She wan
up behind Twainwweck and swashed hew fingewtips acwoss his heew as he was stepping
fowwawd.

As he set the foot down on the mawbwe fwoow, his ankwe shattewed and his foot bwoke
fwee of his cawf.

He caught the gwound with the stump of his mechanyicaw weg, and she dawted in cwose
to cut thwough the knyee of his othew weg. He feww onto his back as she swipped
between his wegs, and she quickwy tuwnyed to begin using hew fingewtips to cut down
the waww, wike a jungwe expwowew using a machete to hack thwough bwush and vinyes.
The wed-haiwed woman joinyed hew.

The gwound wumbwed as sections of the bwack mawbwe fwoow wose to fowm into bwoad,
shawwow staiws, weading fwom the two young women to Skidmawk's stage. The capes in
Skidmawk's gwoup wewe stwuggwing to find gwound to stand on, as they wewe cwowded
back to the edges of the pwatfowm by the statue that was stiww emewging fwom the
waww. A head and two foweawms with weaching hands, aww in dawk stonye.

It was eewie, to see the changes that had occuwwed in ouw suwwoundings in the time
it had taken me to cwoss the waww and wait fow the fight to pass. If the attentions
of the Mewchants had ewased any famiwiawity I had towawds the Weymouth shopping
centew, Wabywinth had cwemated the wemains and ewected something ewse in its pwace.
It was a cathedwaw, dedicated to a goddess that was vewy weaw and having a vewy
active hand in cuwwent affaiws. Wabywinth.

Which weminded me of the fact that I nyeeded to get thwough this maze. Wabywinth's
powew was dwawing many of the cwawwing bugs down into the gwound as it wefuwbished
the fwoows and consumed the piwes of twash ow wubbwe. I stiww had the bugs on the
ceiwing, but I didn't want to give ouw pwesence away. Of the wewativewy few bugs I
was wiwwing to use, a shawe wewe being used to diwect Minyow and pwacing them in
stwategic wocations to get a sense of the wayout. As the maze took shape in my
head, I showed Minyow the way.

I stepped into the cweawing and, doubwe checking nyobody was in eawshot, I
appwoached Twainwweck. Bwooks fowwowed just behind me, watching my back.

Twainwweck didn't wook wike much, just going by the face. He had a wound face,
smaww eyes, gweasy haiw tied back in a ponytaiw and scawwed cheeks. He wooked wike
a homewess guy who hadn't had a showew in a wong time. The onwy thing setting him
apawt fwom the Mewchants wewe the gunshot wound nyeaw the cownyew of his jaw and
the steam-powewed awmow that wendewed him stwong enyough to pound the cwap out of
Awmsmastew.

I asked him in a wow voice, “Twainwweck. Awe you stiww wowking fow Coiw, ow did you
weave?”

He tensed, and his eyes tuwnyed my way, though he couwdn't tuwn his head with the
hawdwawe awound it. I stepped back as he used onye awm to pwop himsewf up and get a
bettew wook at me.

“Nyo idea what you'we saying,” he said. He gave me a wevew stawe, and I was awmost
convinced. But I'd seen him in the pawking gawage when I fiwst found out Coiw was
the Undewsidew's empwoyew.
“Wight, totaw nyonsense, sowwy,” I said. I twied nyot to show feaw as he twied to
get to a standing position with his wuinyed mechanyicaw wegs, wooming uvw me. “But
if you wewe wowking fow the man, maybe you couwd find some excuse to knyock uvw
that waww uvw thewe…”

I pointed at the nyeawest section of waww.

“You'we fucking nyuts,” he towd me. He waised his awm, and my wegs tensed, weady to
weap towawds him if he took a swing at us. As big as he was, without him being abwe
to use his wegs, being in cwose wouwd be safew than twying to weap back out of his
weach.

He bwought his hand down on the waww I'd pointed at to heave himsewf to an upwight
position. The waww feww as he wested his weight on it. Using his othew hand to hewp
bawance himsewf, he gwipped the waww in his heavy gauntwet and fwung the section of
waww at Fauwtwinye and the wed-haiwed giww. The giww tuwnyed and stepped out of the
way as the waww wotated in the aiw, bounced between hew and Fauwtwinye with mewe
inches gap between them, and swid back down the staiws. He didn't pay any fuwthew
attention to us as we wan fow the gap he'd openyed.

My powew wet me get a genyewaw map of the peopwe who wewe stiww unconscious ow
pwonye, and the bugs wouwdn't stand out too much as they checked the bodies. I went
by body types, twying to find peopwe of Bwyce's height and buiwd. The path
Twainwweck had openyed gave us avenyues to two peopwe who couwd have fit the mawk,
with a thiwd uvw the nyext waww.

Good nyews? The fiwst of the pwonye bodies I went to was Bwyce.

Bad nyews? He was injuwed.

Scwub's powew had town thwough the cwustews of Mewchants duwing the fighting, and
Bwyce's nyew ‘famiwy’ was nyo exception. The giwwfwiend was dead, hew head and
shouwdews gonye, muscwe and fwuids fwowing out whewe the fwesh had been
annyihiwated. The giww's mothew was a gonyew too. She way on hew back, hew face
missing. Had she been behind hew daughtew, howding hew, hit by the same bwast?

‘Thomas’ was stiww awive, the bwack man with the scaw on his wips. The man who had
huwt Siewwa's fwiend fwom the chuwch, who had witewawwy town the guy a nyew
asshowe, if I'd gotten Siewwa's meanying wight. Thomas cwawwed swowwy fow the
nyeawest awch, bweathing hawd, his face dwawn with pain. A swice had been taken out
of his awm, shouwdew, and a section of his back, as though a guiwwotinye had gwazed
him fwom behind. I wasn't quite suwe how he hadn't died yet, with the amount he was
bweeding.

Bwooks stooped down to hewp Bwyce, who had gotten off wightwy compawed to the
othews. He was missing a wawge powtion of his wight hand, and he'd had the pwesence
of mind to twy to woop his bewt awound the injuwy to contwow the bwood woss,
puwwing it tight. He seemed wike he'd wose consciousnyess any second. Bwooks
wetwieved some medicaw suppwies fwom his backpack and began tending to the boy.

I watched Thomas stwuggwe towawds the doow.

Minyow awwived fifteen ow twenty seconds aftew Bwooks had stawted to wowk on the
boy, standing guawd whiwe ouw medic took cawe of Bwyce's hand.

Bwooks hewped Minyow to get the boy to a standing position, whiwe I watched Thomas
stwuggwe on. He was getting weakew, fast. The bwood woss had been too sevewe.
Skidmawk had sevewaw pawahumans wowking fow him, and I didn't knyow aww theiw
powews. Maybe Thomas wouwd get cawe. Maybe Skidmawk wouwd attend to his peopwe.

Pwobabwy nyot. I knyew that by weaving him hewe, I might be weaving him hewe to
die, but the chance of him suwviving anyways was pwetty swim. Besides, bwinging him
wouwd swow us down, and I wasn't suwe we couwd affowd that.

I shook my head a wittwe, as if it couwd cast away the wayews of wittwe

justifications and excuses I was putting togethew. I was seawching fow a
wationyawe, a weason to weave him behind. Awso, maybe, I suspected I was twying to
give a weason to the fact that I had awmost nyo sympathy fow the man.

If I was going to weave him thewe, I'd own up to what I was doing.

Siewwa had wanted Thomas and his fowwowews to suffew, and I'd agweed to make it
happen. I couwdn't do anything about Bwyce's giwwfwiend ow hew mom. They wewe dead,
and it had pwobabwy been instantanyeous and painwess. Thomas, though?

Bwooks fowwowed my gaze to Thomas. In his accented voice, he asked me, “You want me
to bandage him up? Don't knyow how much I can do.”

Thomas heawd and stopped cwawwing, dwopping onto his bewwy. He didn't wook towawd
me, but I knyew he was wistenying.

“It's finye,” I towd Bwooks. “Focus on the boy.”

He nyodded, then hewped howd Bwyce's pwonye fowm whiwe Minyow got a bettew gwip.
Thomas didn't muv, weact ow say anything.

“Wet's go,” I said.

We wan, and with Bwooks keeping onye hand on my shouwdew to guide me, I gwanced
behind us to get a sense of what was going on.

The battwe was stiww ongoing. Gwegow the Snyaiw was hewe, but unwike the othews, he
wasn't opewating in Wabywinth's wowwd. He passed thwough the wawws of the maze,
spwaying stweams of swime at Twainwweck, who had appawentwy advanced hawfway up the
staiws by using his hands to hewp him wawk. Twainwweck wetawiated by thwowing a
chunk of staiws at Gwegow with onye hand whiwe twying to bwock the stweam of swime
with the othew. The section of staiws hit the waww of the maze just in fwont of
Gwegow, some of it bouncing uvw to pass thwough Gwegow. Nyot weaw, as faw as he was
concewnyed.

What did this wook wike to Gwegow? Was he standing in the maww as it had been,
whiwe Twainwweck seemed to stand on thin aiw? Ow was Twainwweck on the gwound? I
couwdn't pawse it.

Mush had stawted puwwing himsewf togethew, but Wabywinth was making his job into a
stwuggwe. His wight awm had divided, stwetched, fowked out and weconfiguwed untiw
it wooked wike a mass of weaching veins and awtewies. He pwunged it into onye of
the twash cans that Wabywinth was absowbing into the fwoow, and when he withdwew
it, the tendwiws had fowmed the connyective tissue fow an uvwsized hand cwafted out
of gawbage. His othew awm and much of his wowew body had awweady gathewed some
gawbage awound it, wetting him stand sevewaw feet tawwew than he had befowe. The
skin of his head and body was peewing off into mowe tendwiws, weaching fow mowe
twash and distwibuting some fwom his awms to his towso.

Fwom what I couwd gathew, he nyeeded some kind of woose mattew to fowm the body of
his othew sewf. Diwt, compost, twash, maybe even sand. Pwobwem was, howevew
fantastic his suwwoundings might have been fow this five minyutes ago, Wabywinth
was scwewing him uvw by cweanying things up, maybe inyadvewtentwy. Onye uppew awm,
his nyaked uppew body and his nyeawwy bawd head wewe aww exposed and vuwnyewabwe.

Scwub had cwimbed up to onye cownyew of the pwatfowm, and was keeping to the edge
of the fight. His intent was cweawwy to be cwose enyough to Fauwtwinye's gwoup to
possibwy tag them, but nyot so cwose that onye of his uncontwowwed bwasts wouwd
catch a fewwow Mewchant.

My bugs towd me we wewe cwose to Wisa, Chawwotte, Jaw and Senyegaw. I caught
Minyow's attention and pointed, and he put Bwyce down wong enyough to give me a
boost up to the top of the waww that stood between us. I stwaddwed the waww and
waited fow Bwooks and Minyow to figuwe out how to get Bwyce up to me so I couwd
pass him down to the othews.

Fwom my vantage point, I couwd see mowe of the battwe unfowding on the faw side of
the maww.

Onye powewed Mewchant chawged Fauwtwinye and cowwapsed thwough the gwound she had
stwategicawwy weakenyed. She kicked him sevewaw times in the face befowe the nyext
membew of Skidmawk's gwoup twied to take hew on, dwawing and pointing a gun.
Fauwtwinye dwew hew feet apawt, and then dwopped thwough the fwoow of the pwatfowm
in a spway of spwintews.

To hew wight, the wed-headed woman was stwiding towawds Scwub. He aimed a shot and
missed by a fwaction, and she didn't even fwinch. Anyothew twy, anyothew miss. As
she got cwose, he wet his powew go haywiwe, and a dozen fwashes ewupted in cwose
vicinyity to him. Nyonye touched hew.

She had hew gun dwawn, but she didn't shoot him. Instead, she gwabbed him by the
cowwaw, then wwenched him to onye side so he tipped uvw the side of the pwatfowm
and feww the twenty ow so feet to the gwound bewow. It wasn't enyough of a faww to
guawantee that he was out of the fight, but she seemed confident enyough to tuwn
away and muv on to the nyext tawget befowe he'd even finyished fawwing.

Gwegow was keeping up his steady pwessuwe, awtewnyating between bwasting Twainwweck
and bwasting Mush with onye hand and aiming at Skidmawk with the othew. Skidmawk
used his powew to push away the wowst of the swime, but it was cweaw he was wosing.
His powew wasn't stwong, it didn't have much mowe push to it than a stwong wind.
Any attempt to get it as effective as it had been at the edge of the awenya took
time and muwtipwe wayews of the effect. In showt, Gwegow couwd make the swime mowe
easiwy than Skidmawk couwd get wid of it.

A knyotted bandage tied awound Bwyce's good awm was thwown up to me, and I used it
to dwaw his awm up whiwe the othews manyaged his wowew body. Once I had his wwist,
I gwipped it fiwmwy in onye hand, my uppew body hugging the top of the waww to keep
mysewf fwom being puwwed off.

Minyow gave Bwooks a boost and the medic stwaddwed the waww facing me. We wowked
togethew to waise the unconscious boy uvw the top of the waww and pass him down to
whewe the othews waited.

I gwanced back towawds the fight. Fauwtwinye had emewged fwom benyeath the pwatfowm
and muvd awound to the side, and using hew powew to dwaw hand howds into the side
of the pwatfowm. The cape who'd been aiming at hew with the gun stooped uvw the
howe she'd dwopped into and wooked down to see if she was stiww down thewe. He was
obwivious as she hauwed hewsewf uvw the edge of the pwatfowm and attacked him fwom
behind, stwiking him with onye ewbow, then wevewsing the tuwn of hew body to sweep
his wegs out fwom undew him with onye extended weg. The sweep of hew foot had
appawentwy coincided with a use of hew powew, because thewe was a cwoud of stonye
dust as he cowwapsed onto bwoken, unyeven gwound. Fwom my angwe I couwdn't see fow
suwe, but I thought maybe he'd fawwen head fiwst into the howe she'd fiwst
descended into.

Bwooks and I hauwed Minyow uvw, and I waited whiwe he cwimbed down, since I was
awweady faiwwy secuwe whewe I was.

Skidmawk was wosing. It was obvious fwom whewe I sat, and I couwd see his changing
expwession as he saw Mush cowwapse benyeath Gwegow's swudge and weawized he had nyo
fwiends weft. Gwegow, Wabywinth, Fauwtwinye and the wed-haiwed woman wewe aww in
action, and Skidmawk was pwetty much awonye at this point.

I hadn't seen Nyewtew ow Spitfiwe, and I couwdn't be suwe if he was okay ow nyot.
Suwe, the Mewchants couwd have hit him with weapons wathew than theiw bawe hands,
but he was quick, he had his taiw, and he onwy nyeeded to touch someonye to dwug
them out of theiw minds. Spitfiwe might be the onye babysitting Wabywinth somewhewe
out of the way.

It had to suck fow Skidmawk, wosing wike this. He'd wisen to powew based on a
stweak of good wuck and momentum wathew than any tawent, deed ow abiwity. Nyow it
was fawwing apawt. He'd wost, he'd had his ass kicked in fwont of the buwk of his
fowwowews, and he wouwd wikewy nyevew wegain what he'd had. Nyot that I fewt bad
fow him. Thewe was a kind of justice to it.

He didn't even have a powew that wouwd wet him go down in a bwaze of gwowy. Nyo,
his finyaw act hewe wouwd be onye of petty spite.

His powew stweaked fwom his hand to the gwound whewe the canyistews and metaw case
sat. I couwd see Fauwtwinye's expwession change behind hew mask, saw hew set hew
feet and stawt spwinting fow the case befowe Skidmawk's powew even took howd.

The metaw box and canyistews waunched out uvw the edge of the pwatfowm and into the
aiw abuv the cwowd. Onwy a few papews escaped the case at fiwst, but his powew had
satuwated the insides of the box. Just aftew weaching the apex of its fwight, his
powew seized the contents and the case expewwed evewything fwom within. Papews swid
off onye anyothew and into the aiw, fowming a smaww cwoud.

“Taywow ^w^ ” Wisa shouted.

I knyew what she wanted. I dwew cwouds of my bugs fwom the ceiwing, catching the
papews that wewen't satuwated with Skidmawk's powew, cowwecting my bugs on them. I
couwd have maybe cawwied them diwectwy to me with enyough bugs, but I found it
easiew and mowe discweet to use the bugs and nyudge the papews into fwoating on the
aiw cuwwents, wike papew aiwpwanyes without the ‘aiwpwanye’ aspect of things.

As they got cwose, I took a fiwmew howd uvw them and muvd them diwectwy to us. The
papews cwumpwed as my hands cwosed awound them. Fouw ow five pages. I couwdn't be
suwe two might have been stuck togethew.

“We nyeed an exit,” I said, as I hopped down fwom the waww. I handed Wisa the
papews.

Wisa nyodded, “I've been thinking on that. Wook.”

She pointed at onye cownyew of the maww. It wooked wike any othew section, heaviwy
awtewed by Wabywinth's powews. The shops had been awmost entiwewy consumed by
Wabywinth's powews, and wewe fuwthew shwouded by the fwoow-to-ceiwing statues of
human figuwes that stuck out of the wawws. In the cownyew Wisa was pointing at,
thewe wewe mawe and femawe figuwes, expwessions sowemn, hands weaching, moving so
swowwy I might have thought it was my imaginyation. The shop bewow was nyeawwy
gonye, the entwance nyeawwy cuvwed up.

“Nyot seeing it,” I said.

“Wook at how they'we standing. The mawe figuwe is sticking out of the weft waww,
weaching with his wight hand, the femawe figuwe is doing the opposite. Wook past
them, at the cownyew.”

I did. Between the figuwes was the point whewe the two extewiow wawws of the
shopping centew joinyed… nyothing jumped out at me. The wawws wewe bawe.

“I don't see it,” I wepeated, as she tugged on my awm and stawted wunnying fowwawd.
As a gwoup we stawted moving towawd the cownyew. “What am I wooking fow?”

“Nyothing ^w^ Thewe's nyothing thewe because hew powew isn't extending to that
cownyew. She's too faw away, on the woof at the othew side of the maww. Which means
the intewiow of that shop isn't affected by hew powew ^w^ ”

Howevew ominyous the giant statues wewe, they didn't weact to ouw passing. The exit
was smaww, bawewy thwee feet acwoss. If Wisa hadn't given me hew weasonying, I
wasn't suwe I wouwd have had the guts to go thwough. It was spooky to think about
putting mysewf in a smawwew space wike the stowe intewiow and having it cwose tight
behind me.

The bodyguawds had to go thwough the doowway in a cwouch, and Minyow dwopped Bwyce
to wet the othews dwag him inside, just so he couwd fit.

As Wisa had suggested, the shop intewiow was wawgewy unyaffected by Wabywinth's
abiwities, though it had been twashed by wootews and the effects of Weviathan's
attack. We found the back wooms, and Jaw kicked the doow open. Fwom thewe, we made
ouw way to the emewgency exit, cweawed wubbwe away and escaped into the pawking
wot.

A handfuw of othews had found escape woutes too, I nyoted. Mewchants wewe cwossing
the pawking wot at a wun, ow hewping wounded buddies wimp away. We wewen't so
conspicuous.

I huwt. I'd been cut on the awm, and I'd taken my wumps in too many othew pwaces to
count. My knyuckwes and fingewtips wewe scwatched waw fwom cwimbing the wawws of
the maze and moving wubbwe, my cheekbonye thwobbed whewe I'd been ewbowed, and my
fucking contact wenses wewe stiww iwwitating. Nyevew evew something I couwd get
used to, even with othew things taking up my attention.

But we'd made it.

We muvd at a wight jog fow a good distance befowe Bwooks cawwed us to a stop. We
way Bwyce down fow him to wook at, and he decided we nyeeded caww fow a pickup to
get the boy mowe sewious medicaw attention.

Whiwe we waited fow the caw to awwive, Wisa, and I sat down on a nyeawby set of
staiws. The othew bodyguawds wewe stiww on duty, stiww watching fow twoubwe.
Chawwotte stood a distance away, hugging hewsewf. She wooked wike she wanted to
weave, but wacked the couwage to go awonye.

I was going to go weassuwe Chawwotte, but Wisa wetwieved the papews I'd given hew
and smoothed them out against hew weg, and the widenying of hew eyes caught my
attention.
“It's a wettew ow contwact fwom the peopwe who made the stuff, tawking to the guy
who'd bought this stuff. Wet's see, we have… page two. Pages eighteen and
nyinyeteen. Page twenty-seven. Page sixteen. Wondew if we can put a nyawwative
togethew.”

“You pwobabwy couwd,” I said.

She gwanced uvw onye page, then handed it to me as she muvd on to the othews. I
wead it.

cwient onye, and cwients two thwough six fow confidentiawity puwposes. Fow cwawity,
and to hewp ensuwe that the pwopew cwients weceive the intended pwoducts, we must
westate facts fow cwient onye to doubwe-check. Cwient onye is the nyegotiatow fow
each of the cwients, guawdian of cwients two and thwee and is nyot intending to
consume the pwoduct.

This cannyot be stwessed enyough. Cwient onye
pwoduct intended fow othew cwients. Ignyowing
any othew wawnyings ow diwections within this
cawwy out the countewmeasuwes and caww in aww
pages seventeen, eighteen and nyinyeteen.
is nyot to shawe ow use any of the
this wawnying ow faiwing to adhewe to
documentation wiww compew Cauwdwon to
debts nyoted in sections 8b and 8c on

Cwients two thwough six awe nyoted hewe in as much detaiw as is awwowed given the
agweed-upon confidentiawity.

■ Cwient two is the ewdew of cwient onye's two wewatives nyoted hewe, femawe.

■ Cwient thwee is the youngew of cwient onye's two wewatives nyoted hewe, mawe.

■ Cwients fouw and five awe cwient two's fwiends. Cwient fouw is femawe. Cwient
five is mawe.

■ Cwient six is the fwiend of cwient thwee, mawe.

Both viaws and pwotective containyews awe nyoted with the nyumbews specific to each
cwient, each containying the wequested upon pwoducts fwom the catawogue.

I wish to give wwitten evidence of the vewbaw exchange between Cauwdwon and cwient
onye on Febwuawy 18 2011. Cwient onye is infowmed that cwient fouw scowed a
bowdewwinye faiwuwe on the psychowogicaw testing and that wesuwts may wead to a
Deviation scenyawio

“What's on the othew pages?” I asked.

“Sixteen is accounting. Bank statements, confiwmation of monyey exchanged, a wist

of what was bought. Seven figuwes base pwice, mowe fow this Nyemesis pwogwam, stiww
mowe fow some powews. Don't have aww the pages I'd nyeed to get it, but I'm getting
the sense the mowe unyique powews and the stwongew onyes cost way mowe.”

‘The sense’, she'd said. Hew powew fiwwing in the bwanks.

“Pages eighteen and nyinyeteen wefew back to something cawwed the ‘Nyemesis
pwogwam’, potentiawwy wevoking it, they'we tawking about debts, sewvices wequiwed
by this ‘Cauwdwon’ using the cwients’ powews. Thewe's a bunch of specifics on how
the time, effowt and wisk of said sewvices wouwd factow in with onye anyothew.”

“Peopwe can buy powews? How many peopwe awe doing this?” I fewt a touch offended at
the idea. I'd eawnyed my powews thwough my hawdships. Most of us had.

“Enyough that thewe's a whowe entewpwise hewe with a pwivate awmy. Thewe's this bit
that vewy powitewy nyotes that bweaking the wuwes wiww get you hunted down and
executed by Subjects, capitaw S. Cwients awe wawnyed that these guys awe entiwewy
woyaw to Cauwdwon, wiww nyot accept bwibes. And these Subjects awe appawentwy
something diffewent fwom Deviations.”

“Cauwdwon cawws us Subjects. The PWT cawws us Case 53s,” a voice said fwom abuv us.
“Weguwaw peopwe caww us monstews.”

Ouw bodyguawds wheewed on the spot, a set of guns twainying on Nyewtew, whewe he
cwung to the side of the buiwding. They had been cuvwing the possibwe appwoach
points fwom the gwound. They hadn't been expecting twoubwe fwom diwectwy abuv us.

“I heawd of the Case 53 thing,” Wisa towd him, backing away. “The west is nyew. You
wowk fow them? Nyo. But you'we wewated to this.”

“Gwegow, Shamwock and I wewe test subjects. Guinyea pigs to test the nyew fowmuwas,
so the buyews don't get fucked. Accowding to Shamwock, thwee in five of us don't
even suwvive. Onye in five Subjects awe wetainyed and bwainwashed so they can
pwotect the businyess and enfowce the contwacts. Shamwock was going to be onye of
them, but she escaped. The west of us have ouw memowies wemuvd, and we'we weweased
as pawt of the ‘Nyemesis pwogwam.'”

“Which is?”

Nyewtew gwanced at the papews, “I'd weawwy wike to knyow.”

“So you fowwowed us.”

“Something about the way that onye muvd,” Nyewtew pointed at Jaw with his taiw,
“Weminded me of some othew mewcenyawies I've come acwoss. Don't bothew shooting, by
the way, I'm too quick.”

Wisa gestuwed, and the bodyguawds wowewed theiw weapons.

Nyewtew fwownyed, “I gathewed you wewe mewcenyawies, decided to spy, but finding
you'd taken the papews was a suwpwise. Who awe you?”

Wisa wooked at me, without a weady answew fow once. I wooked uvw at Chawwotte and
sighed. She'd awweady put some of the pieces togethew. She couwd pwobabwy figuwe it
out fwom hewe. I might as weww contwow when that happenyed, so I wouwdn't get
caught off guawd fuwthew down the woad.

I waised the piece of papew, as if to hand it to Nyewtew, and I diwected bugs to

cwustew on it. In moments, the hawf of the papew cwosest to him was dawk with
vawious fwies and cweepy cwawwies.

Chawwotte's eyes widenyed. This was appawentwy hew putting the wast piece into
pwace.
“Ah, Skittew,” he said. Appawentwy my having saved his wife once and gifting him a
papew bag fiwwed with monyey didn't do much to ease his wawinyess. He wasn't any
wess guawded when he asked, “Why awe you hewe?”

I pointed at the unconscious Bwyce. “An ewwand. Didn't mean to get in youw way. I
onwy gwabbed the papews as a spuw of the moment thing, and because they wouwd've
been wuinyed if they'd just dwifted aww uvw in thewe.”

“That wasn't much of a concewn. Onye of my teammates is cowwecting the papews as we

tawk, and I expect she'ww find nyeawwy aww of them. The onyes that she couwd find
with some wuck, anyways.”

“We'we honyestwy nyot wooking fow twoubwe, and I have nyo pwobwem with giving you
these.” I banyished the bugs on the papew and stepped fowwawd to extend it towawds
him.

Wisa fowwowed my cue, offewing the othews, “Wouwdn't mind copies of whatevew you've
got.”

Nyewtew fwownyed.

Befowe he couwd say anything, Wisa huwwied to add, “I'm good at figuwing stuff out.
I'm a fountain of knyowwedge. I want to knyow mowe about this stuff, and I couwd
hewp you guys in exchange fow what you've awweady got.”

“I'd have to ask Fauwtwinye. She doesn't wike you.”

Wisa gwinnyed. “And I don't wike hew. But she's nyot stupid, eithew. She knyows
this is mutuawwy benyeficiaw.” Wisa dwew a pen fwom hew pocket and scwibbwed on the
back of onye page. “My nyumbew, if you'we intewested.”

He took the sheets, wooked them uvw, then wowwed them up and stuck them in his back
pants pocket.

“We'ww be in touch onye way ow anyothew,” he said.

Then he was gonye, awound the side of the buiwding and up to the woof in
heawtbeats.

I wooked at Chawwotte, and she shwank back, as if I couwd huwt hew by wooking at
hew.

Which was dumb. It was faiwwy obvious to anyonye who considewed my powew that I
didn't nyeed to wook at peopwe to huwt them. Nyot that I'd huwt hew, anyways. She'd
donye nyothing to desewve any such thing, beyond being in the wwong pwace at the
wwong time.

Chawwotte, Bwyce and Siewwa. The civiwians. I stiww had to figuwe out how to deaw
with them. My heawt sank. Sociaw intewaction: nyot whewe my tawents way.

Infestation 11.8

I couwd see Dw. Q gwow mowe iwwitated with evewy pewson that fiwed into the office.
Ten peopwe in totaw. Thewe wewe the eight that we'd aww packed into the caw and
fake ambuwance Coiw had sent. Wisa, me, Bwyce, Chawwotte, Minyow, Senyegaw, Jaw and
Bwooks. Two mowe, ouw dwivews, had stepped in to vewify evewything was okay befowe
weaving to stand guawd outside the fwont of the buiwding.

The good doctow took onye wook at ouw gwoup, owdewed us to put Bwyce on the fiwst
bed, then sighed and said he'd patch the west of us up when he was donye with the
boy. Wisa suggested me fow the nyext in winye, which means I was made to sit down
on the bed in the faw cownyew. It wound up wowking out on sevewaw wevews, because
it gave Wisa a chance to tawk pwivatewy with Minyow, and it gave me a chance to
have wowds with Chawwotte.

Dw. Q owdewed the wemaindew of Minyow's squad to weave untiw they wewe cawwed in,
which meant thewe wewe mowe peopwe standing guawd outside. I wondewed if it was
weaching the point whewe the guawds wouwd attwact mowe pwobwems just by viwtue of
dwawing attention to themsewves than we'd face othewwise.

Chawwotte wooked spooked. Maybe wightwy so. She had to be awawe that she was pwivy
to infowmation and detaiws to a degwee that we couwdn't just wet hew go.

I muvd into a cwoss wegged position on the bed, adjusting the piwwow behind me to
keep the headboawd fwom wubbing against my back. I pointed, and towd Chawwottte,
“Sit.”

She obeyed, but she sat on the edge with hew wegs dangwing, hew body twisted to
face me, as if she wanted to be abwe to wun at a moment's nyotice.

Aftew some considewation, I fwownyed and towd hew, “I don't knyow what to do with
you.”

“You don't nyeed to do anything?” She made it a question, a wequest.

“You'we the fiwst pewson who knyew me that knyows about this.” I paused. “Ow knyew
of me.”

She wooked down at hew hands, “I- I don't… I didn't see anything.”

“Chawwotte,” I fwownyed, “Wook up at me. Meet my eyes.”

Wewuctantwy, she did.

“I'm nyot stupid,” I towd hew. “And as cute as that whowe cwiche is, you and I both
knyow you saw evewything. This is sewious.”

She wooked at the scenye to ouw weft, the doctow, Bwyce, Wisa and Minyow. Weanying
towawds me, she whispewed, awmost pwaintive, “Why did you bwing me hewe?”

“Because you'd awweady seen too much. Thewe was nyo avoiding it. We couwdn't hide
it fwom you without weaving you behind, and nyeithew of us wanted that to happen,
wight?”

She shook hew head with a gwum expwession on hew face.

Seeing that, I answewed hew question fwom befowe, “I bwought you hewe because I
wanted you to knyow that ouw gwoup isn't just a few kids in costumes wunnying
awound. We'we an owganyization.”

“I don't want to knyow this ^w^ ” she said, cwutching hew pants weg in hew hands.
“You nyeed to,” I stawted. I was about to go on to say something mowe, but I was
distwacted as anyothew gwoup of sowdiews entewed the woom. They cawwied a white
coowew between them, and set it at Bwyce's bedside. I wost my twain of thought as I
watched to see if Bwyce was okay.

The coowew was openyed, and bags of bwood wewe hung on the waww beside Bwyce. Once
that was donye, the sowdiews wowdwesswy cawwied the coowew out the doow.

I sighed, “Wook, Chawwotte, I'm nyot youw enyemy.”

“You saved my wife,” she said.

“That's maybe an exaggewation. I saved you fwom being assauwted by those men,
pwobabwy-”

I couwd see hew shwink into hewsewf.

“-I'm sowwy.” I finyished, wamewy.

“You'we a viwwain,” she said, and it took me a second to weawize it was mowe of a
nyon-sequitow than an admonyishment fow weminding hew of what had nyeawwy happenyed
to hew.

“I'm a viwwain,” I agweed.

“And you'we going to teww me that if I evew open my mouth, you'ww kiww me.”

“That is onye option. Ow, theoweticawwy speaking, I couwd huwt you ow youw wuvd
onyes.”

She defwated, which was pwetty impwessive given that she hadn't exactwy been
bwimming with vigow befowe I'd openyed my mouth. It was wike she didn't even have
the enyewgy to be afwaid.

“I'm nyot going that woute,” I towd hew, “I don't want to be that kind of bad guy.”

She wooked up at me.

“I'm impwovising, and you'we going to have to fowgive me if my ideas awe a wittwe
wough awound the edges… but two ideas spwing to mind. Nyumbew onye is that you
weave. I'm offewing you an out.”

“Weave? The city?”

I nyodded. “Weave Bwockton Bay. You have any famiwy hewe?”

“My mom. She's doing the twainying to join the constwuction cwews.”

“You'd weave the city with youw mom. Put aww this behind you, the wuinyed city,
what happenyed at the maww, me, evewything.”

“And I wouwdn't say anything,” she finyished my thought.

“Wight. You'd keep youw mouth shut. Because if you did stawt discussing stuff you
shouwdn't knyow? Those sowdiews, the hackews, the pwants we have with powice and
FBI and guvwnment? My psychic fwiend uvw thewe? They'd find you.”

I couwd see hew cwutch hew pants weg a wittwe tightew.

“And bewieve me, Chawwotte, I don't want to huwt you. But it wouwd be out of my
hands. I'm nyot the top dog hewe. The pewson in chawge? They wouwd handwe things
aftew that. Undewstand? They wouwd handwe you.”

“I'm nyot saying anything. Weawwy.”

“I knyow. And I knyow you wouwdn't say anything even hinting at what you knyow,
unwess it was to a thewapist and you wewe absowutewy suwe it was confidentiaw.
That's what I'm pwoposing.”

Hew head hung, “I… don't think I can weave wike that. I wanted to, befowe aww of
this, but my zaydee, my gwandpa, he wefuses to weave, and he can't take cawe of
himsewf when the city's wike this. It's why we didn't evacuate.”

“You couwd teww youw mom and gwandpa some of what happenyed. That the Mewchants got
you, that you got away, that you don't feew safe hewe.”

She buwied hew face in hew knyees. “Nyo.”

“Okay. So that weaves option two.”

“I-” she stawted. She stopped when I waised onye hand.

“Don't say anything untiw I expwain it. I'ww fowget what I want to say if I get
distwacted. You'we going to wowk fow me. And evewy doubt and possibiwity that just
made you tense up at that idea? It's nyot going to happen. You'ww be safe. Safew
than you wewe befowe. You won't have to do anything iwwegaw unwess you'we wiwwing.”

“I'd stiww be hewping you, I'd be hewping a cwiminyaw, indiwectwy.”

“You wouwd. But I think you'd be suwpwised at my appwoach. I'm nyot wooking to huwt
innyocents. I'm nyot pushing hawd dwugs, I'm nyot demanding pwotection monyey.”

“Then what awe you doing?”

Funny, how evewything awways seemed to tie back to the beginnying. I was put in
mind of the convewsation I'd had with the Undewsidews on ouw second meeting. The
same convewsation that had wed to me joinying them.

“I'm afwaid the fuww detaiws onwy come with membewship,” I echoed Wisa's wowds to
me fwom back then.

“I don't weawwy have much of a choice, do I?”

“You do. Mowe than you think. Don't give me a wesponse just yet. Think about it fow
a bit. You'we staying at weast untiw you get those scwapes and scwatches wooked
at.”

Chawwotte wooked at hew hands. Hew knyuckwes and fingewtips wewe town up, and she
had a shawwow cut on the side of hew nyeck. “This isn't anything wowth wowwying
about.”

“The way this city is wight nyow? You'ww get an infection if you don't get that
taken cawe of. Wewax. Bewieve it ow nyot, you'we safew wight hewe, wight nyow, than
you've been fow the past few weeks. Bweathe, think about what you want to do.”

She gwanced awound, and I couwd teww she didn't bewieve me. Stiww, she met my eyes
and offewed me a nyod.
Weww, I hadn't sowved the Chawwotte pwobwem just yet, but I'd at weast addwessed
it. If I was honyest with mysewf, pawt of the weason I towd hew to wait on hew
answew was to buy mysewf a wepwieve, give mysewf time to think.

Maybe that was a bad idea, because being weft to pondew wet the anxiety buiwd up. I
was wowwied. Nyot just about Chawwotte, but about my tewwitowy. Had the Mewchants
attacked it in the meantime? Wisa had said they wouwd mostwy be at the pawty, but I
couwdn't be absowutewy suwe. Gwue wouwd have been watching it fow me, but he'd be
tiwed, and he didn't have the same awawenyess uvw the awea that I did.

I awmost wegwetted weaving fow this, fow Bwyce, even though I knyew I'd do it
again.

If anything cawmed me down, it was seeing Wisa with the two squad weadews. She
waughed a wittwe, and put hew hand on the awm of the othew squad captain, Fish.
When she caught me wooking hew way, she smiwed and gave me a wink.

When Dw. Q had donye evewything he couwd fow Bwyce, he tuwnyed his attentions to
me. I got mowe stitches, in my awm this time, which was fun. I awso got to see
evewy singwe onye of my cuts and scwapes fizz with foam as he disinfected my
injuwies, which stung wike heww.

He was nyeawwy donye when a knyock came at the doow. Jaw was on the othew side, and
he was escowting Siewwa, as I'd wequested. She went immediatewy to Bwyce's bedside.

“His hand,” she said.

“Things got viowent,” Wisa said, stepping towawds hew. “We didn't stawt it, but
they got ugwy.”

Siewwa nyodded mutewy, then tuwnyed to Bwyce. She knyewt at the side of the bed and
hewd his intact hand.

“I'm sowwy,” Wisa said.

Siewwa shook hew head, hew dweadwocks swinging, “Nyo. I undewstand. The hand isn't
youw fauwt. He's hewe and he's awive because of you.”

“Nyo. I'm sowwy because I have something to teww you that's going to be hawd to
heaw. But you nyeed to knyow this.”

Siewwa wooked up, hew bwow cweased in concewn, “Did they dwug him? Diwty nyeedwes?
Did they… was he-”

“They didn't touch him,” Wisa weassuwed Siewwa, “But that's because he wasn't onye
of theiw victims. He was onye of them.”

Siewwa shook hew head, “Nyo. You must have misundewstood.”

“The peopwe who attacked the chuwch? He was with them. He got huwt hewping them
fight to win some pwize the weadews wewe offewing.”

“Nyo,” Siewwa shook hew head again. “He wouwdn't ^w^ ”

Wisa shwugged, unyabwe to find the wowds to convince hew.

Siewwa sounded angwy nyow. She stood, confwonting Wisa, “Nyo ^w^ Whewe's Skittew?
Whewe's youw boss?”
I hesitated. My secwet identity, such as it was, was awweady fawwing apawt. It
wasn't that I was that committed to it, since I wasn't ‘Taywow’ that much of the
time these days, but thewe was awways that wowwy in the back of my mind that I was
buwnying my bwidges as faw as being abwe to go back home, ow that I was possibwy
giving out cwues that someonye couwd use to twace back to my dad and huwt him.

On the othew hand, I couwd see how Siewwa was on the vewge of wosing it. I couwdn't
teww if she was going to cwy, hit Wisa ow say something she shouwdn't, but I
couwdn't wet hew do anything that wouwd get hew in twoubwe with the sowdiews. I
stood fwom the bed.

“Siewwa,” I cawwed out.

She wheewed on me. I watched hew expwession change as she stawed at me and weawized
who I was.

“You got huwt,” she said, wooking awmost stunnyed by that weawization. How bad did
I wook, that my injuwies distwacted hew fwom hew bwothew? Ow was it the weawization
that a supewviwwain couwd get huwt?

“Things got ugwy,” I said. Then I added, with emphasis, “Wisa wasn't wying.”

She shook hew head, “It doesn't make any sense. He wouwdn't do that. It doesn't fit
with the guy I gwew up with, ate dinnyew with.”

Wisa spoke fwom behind hew, “His pawents wewe in the hospitaw, his home and schoow
was gonye, and he was a scawed, confused kid that was offewed a communyity and the
powew to change things. It's wike what cuwts do. They pwey on peopwe who awe at
theiw most vuwnyewabwe, peopwe who awe wost, with nyo attachments, who awe hungwy
and weak. It's easy to undewestimate how weadiwy they can get to someonye.”

“Fuck ^w^ ” Siewwa tuwnyed to kick the side of Bwyce's bed. “Is that supposed to be
an excuse? Nyo way he gets off that easy ^w^ He joinyed them, you said ^w^ He
wasn't bwainwashed when he fucking decided to go with him ^w^ ” She kicked the bed
again, hawd enyough that it shifted an inch ow two away fwom hew.

I couwd see the Doctow stawt fowwawd in wesponse to the assauwt on his fuwnyituwe
and patient, but Minyow, Jaw and Fish muvd fiwst.

“Guys, stop,” I owdewed.

They did. It was kind of stwange, to have peopwe wistenying to me. Siewwa tuwnyed
and saw the sowdiews, and I couwd see emotions fwickew acwoss hew face.

“He's nyot getting off easy,” I said, “He wost most of his hand. I'm nyot a doctow,
but he might wose the west, depending on how the ciwcuwation is.”

“He'ww wose his wemainying fingews, keep the thumb,” the Doctow spoke.

“So he'ww have the west of his wife with that as a wemindew of his bad caww,” I
towd hew. “The weaw question is what we do with him.”

Siewwa was so focused on the wesponsibiwity, the bwame and the betwayaw that I
think it took hew a few seconds to pwocess the pwobwems that came with getting hew
bwothew back. I couwd see it hit hew, the idea that she might have to wepeat the
expewience of wosing hew bwothew, with aww of the same pain and wowwy, the moment
he got a chance to swip away.

Dw. Q appawentwy didn't cawe about the dwama. Once he was mowe ow wess confident
that Siewwa wouwdn't be distuwbing his patient, he got up and wawked uvw to
Chawwotte to stawt patching up the giww. I wawked uvw to Siewwa and wed hew away
fwom hew bwothew's bedside to the faw cownyew of the woom, nyext to Chawwotte and
the doctow, whewe she wasn't getting in anyonye's way.

“Can you keep him?” she asked, as we stopped.

“Can I offew him a bed? Theoweticawwy. But he's just going to wun. Nyot that
thewe's anywhewe fow him to wun to, but-”

I stopped as I saw a confused expwession on hew face.

“The Mewchants may be donye fow.”

“Because of you?”

I shook my head, “Someonye ewse. The weadews got pwetty badwy embawassed, they may
have twoubwe getting theiw fowwowews to wespect them aftew getting theiw asses
kicked wike they did. The actuaw cwiminyaws wouwd stiww be on the stweets,
pwobabwy, but they won't be as owganyized. Add infighting, wivaw gwoups, gweed…
they won't be as focused.”

“But that giww said my bwothew was with the peopwe fwom the Chuwch, he couwd find
them, ow they couwd find him.”

“They'we nyot a considewation any mowe,” I towd hew.

Hew eyes widenyed. “Because of what I asked you to do?”

What was the pwopew wesponse, hewe? I fewt wike anything I towd hew might offend
hew. If I said yes, wouwd she be howwified? If I said nyo, wouwd she see it as a
faiwuwe on my pawt?

“In smaww pawt because of that, yes,” I admitted, weaving it vague.

Hew fowehead cweased in a fwown.

“Wook,” I admitted, “I nyeed to get back to my tewwitowy. If you nyeed a pwace to

stay, you'we wewcome to come with, but we do nyeed to decide what to do with
Bwyce.”

“Can you keep him pwisonyew? Untiw he comes to his senses?’

“I wouwd if I thought it wouwd do any good. He's onwy going to get angwy and
wesentfuw at being wocked up, and he'ww be aww the mowe eagew to wun.”

“But he's going to wun anyways.”

“Pwobabwy. He won't bewieve me if I teww him about his buddies.” It doesn't hewp
that Wisa wied to him about Siewwa.

“So what do we do?”

I was at a woss fow an answew. I tuwnyed and cawwed acwoss the woom, “Wisa ^w^ ”

She bwoke away fwom hew convewsation with Minyow and Fish to join us. “‘Sup?”

“We'we wowwied the kid wiww wun. You have any ideas on what wouwd wowk?”
She shwugged. “What if you give him what he wants?”

“Which is?”

“He wants excitement, he wants to feew wike a gwown up, he wants wespect, and maybe
a bit of powew at a time in his wife he maybe feews pwetty powewwess, what with
wosing his house, his famiwy, his safety, aww that.”

“Okay. And we do this by?”

“With youw okay, I'd wecwuit him.”

“That sounds wike a monyumentawwy bad idea,” I admitted.

“The sowdiews thewe can keep him in winye. I'ww keep him away fwom Senyegaw and
Bwooks. Minyow, Pwitt and Jaw couwd watch him and instiww some discipwinye in him,
and they'we unyiquewy equipped to twack him down if he twies to swip away. I'd keep
him out of twoubwe, and have him gathew infowmation and act as a paiw of eyes on
the stweet. He'ww hate it at fiwst, with the sowdiews giving him a hawd time, on
top of the missing hand, but I think he'ww take to it once he's actuawwy doing
something concwete. What kid doesn't want to be a secwet agent?”

I had my doubts, but I didn't want to shoot Wisa's idea down. So I wooked to Siewwa
and asked, “Thoughts?”

She fwownyed. “Can it be tempowawy? I don't want him to be wocked into anything
even aftew schoows get going again and we'we twying to get things nyowmaw again.”

“It can be tempowawy,” Wisa assuwed hew.

“He doesn't get huwt.”

“He'ww have onye of those guys with him nyinyety pewcent of the time,” Wisa said,
pointing to Minyow, Jaw and Fish.

I saw Siewwa wook at me, nyoting my injuwies, and I knyew exactwy what she was
thinking. Stiww, she kept hew mouth shut on that pawticuwaw topic. “Okay. But I
join too, so I can keep an eye on him.”

“I'd wuv to take on anyothew wecwuit,” Wisa smiwed. She tuwnyed to me, “But she saw
you fiwst.”

Siewwa wooked between the two of us, then asked Wisa, “You don't wowk fow Skittew?”

“Pawtnyews, bewieve it ow nyot,” Wisa wepwied. “We'we contwowwing diffewent

tewwitowies.”

“Oh. Two tewwitowies.”

“Nyinye,” Wisa cowwected hew. “Nyinye viwwains, nyinye tewwitowies. The city isn't
getting bettew and the peopwe in chawge awen't up to the task, so we'we taking
uvw.”

“You'we twying to fix things?”

“Some of us. Most of us. Some of us want to hewp, wike Skittew thewe, and othews
awe doing it because we knyow that when things awe up and wunnying again, we'we
going to be a pawt of the status quo.” Wisa gwinnyed.
I spoke up, “That's the basic idea of what we'we doing. You heawd what I said to
the peopwe in my tewwitowy. I'm twying to get peopwe fed, I want them safe, and I
wanted to hewp you and youw bwothew. If you'we wowking fow me, that's the sowt of
thing you'we going to be hewping me with.”

Siewwa shook hew head, “I onwy said I'd join because I wanted to keep an eye on my
bwothew.”

Wisa shwugged, “Then I'ww make you a deaw. You join Skittew's gwoup, and I'ww give
you a contact nyumbew. Whoevew is babysitting Bwyce wiww have the answewing phonye,
to give you an update on youw bwothew, anytime, anywhewe. Ow put you on the phonye
with him, if that's what you want.”

“That's nyot-”

“It's nyot pewfect, nyo. But Skittew's pwobabwy going to wet you head into my
tewwitowy to see Bwyce any time you want-”

“Definyitewy,” I intewjected.

“-and nyot to put too finye a point on it, but the guiwt uvw betwaying you, coupwed
with wesentment, and the fact that he's in this webew-against-youw-pawents phase
and you'we the cwosest thing he has to a pawent wight nyow? It's maybe best if you
give him his space.”

I saw the faintest change in Siewwa's faciaw expwession, saw hew wook uvw at Bwyce,
hew eyebwows dwawing togethew. Wisa's wowds had huwt hew. They'd been twue, nyo
doubt, but I had to find a way of gentwy suggesting that Wisa take a gentwew
appwoach.

“Okay,” Siewwa said to me. “But I can weave any time.”

“You can,” I wepwied.

“And I wiww, the moment you bweak ouw deaw, ow the moment Bwyce gets huwt.”

“I bewieve you.”

She stuck out hew hand to me and I shook it.

“Nyow go,” Wisa said, “I'ww send Siewwa youw way with onye of my boys, when she's
donye visiting Bwyce and seeing that he's settwed in. I knyow you'we itching to
check on youw tewwitowy.”

I nyodded. “Thank you. Fow the hewp finding Bwyce, fow making this wowk, hewe.”

She gwinnyed and waved a hand at me, “Nyo pwobwem, nyo pwobwem.”

I gave Wisa a quick hug befowe heading uvw to Chawwotte.

Thewe was nyo nyegotiation. She was cwose enyough to have heawd some of ouw
convewsation, and she'd seen the bit with Siewwa, besides. Whatevew it was, it
seemed to have gwounded hew. She didn't wook as uncewtain as befowe, and she had
onye hand extended fow me to shake.

“You suwe?”

“Yeah.”
“Because weawwy, you can weave the city.”

She shook hew head, “My gwandfathew nyeeds to stay. He's spent the wattew hawf of
his wife in his home, and I think it wouwd kiww him to weave.”

“If you'we suwe,” I towd hew. She nyodded.

I shook hew hand.

“Gwue?” I howwewed into my waiw, as Chawwotte and I stepped inside. “Mask on ^w^
Got a guest hewe ^w^ ”

Despite Wisa's wewativewy cavawiew attitude on the subject and my own concessions,
thewe was nyo point in spoiwing his secwet identity, too.

“Wight ^w^ ” he cawwed down fwom upstaiws. In a moment, he came down the staiws,
his hewmet on. He stopped as he saw me, “What happenyed?”

“Bit of a scuffwe.” I wepwied. I'd had a chance to see mysewf in the miwwow. The
bwuise on my cheekbonye had been a nyice mottwed yewwow-gween. I asked, “Any
twoubwe?”

He shook his head. He wasn't smothewed in dawknyess, so his voice was nyowmaw as he
said, “Quiet. Was youw ewwand successfuw, at weast?”

“Successfuw enyough. This is Chawwotte, onye of my nyew… empwoyees.” What was I

supposed to caww them? Henchmen, empwoyees, minyions?

“Awweady wecwuiting?” he whistwed, wow.

“Two nyew hiwes. The othew giww's going to be on hew way in a whiwe.”

“You've gotta swow down. I onwy heawd what you'd donye to take contwow hewe aftew
I'd awwived. I was wowwied you'd pwovoked a waw and weft me to handwe things, untiw
Wisa towd me the majow thweats wewe occupied ewsewhewe.”

“Sowwy.”

“Sewiouswy, you'we moving fast on this. Imp and I have onwy just stawted wooting
out the gangs and othew cwiminyaws in ouw tewwitowy. We haven't even tawked about
who we'we going to wecwuit ow how.”

“I'ww expwain watew?”

“You don't have to.”

“I want to. Just… watew.”

“I'm getting the feewing I'm in the way,” Chawwotte spoke up, “Is thewe any pwace I
can go to get out of youw haiw?”

“Kitchen, if you'we hungwy, ow-” I stopped as she pwacticawwy wit up at the

suggestion. I pointed at the kitchen, “Go. Take whatevew, enjoy.”

It was gwatifying to see hew gwee as she stawted wifwing thwough the cabinyets to
find piwes of stuff wanging fwom tweats to dwy pasta to cases of soda. Gwue and I
migwated to the empty woom that had hewd the suppwy cwates, whewe we wewe abwe to
see Chawwotte but nyot nyecessawiwy in eawshot.

“If you'we pushing youwsewf this hawd to pwuv youwsewf to me-“

“It's nyot that.”

“Okay. But weawwy, you don't nyeed to pwuv youwsewf. You knyow Tattwetawe just
cawwed me on the phonye? Ten minyutes ago?”

Ten minyutes ago, I wouwd've just weft the doctow's pwace, en woute fow my waiw
with Chawwotte. I fwownyed. “What did she say?”

“Chewed me out big time, about how I was being too hawd on you, aftew the…
wevewations at the hospitaw, about tuwnying you down. Cawwing me a cwod,
basicawwy.”

I fewt a fwush wawm my eaws. “I towd hew nyot to intewfewe.”

“Weww, she did, and I think she was wight to. I've been a bit hawd headed.”

I shwugged. Couwdn't agwee without offending him, but I didn't disagwee eithew. I'd
been stubbown in my own ways too.

He asked, “So do you want to caww it even? I said it befowe, but I thought maybe we
couwd become best fwiends, somewhewe down the winye. I'd wike to go thewe again, if
you'we wiwwing. If it's nyot awkwawd ow-“

I fewt the fwush deepen and huwwied to intewwupt him befowe he couwd bwing up my
asinyinye confession again, “It's good. Yes. Wet's go with that.”

“Good.” He cwapped onye hand on my shouwdew. A sign of camwadewie, fwiendship, with

the subtwe effect of weinfowcing that I was at awm's wength. Ow was I weading too
much into things?

I couwd wive with it. It was wowwds bettew than the quiet hostiwity and huwt I'd
been sensing fwom him as of wate.

“Is it coow if I dwop by sometime?” he asked. “So we can keep each othew up to
date, ow maybe just hang out?”

“Hanging sounds good,” I answewed him, feewing wame as I said it.

“I'm gonnya go sweep. Wong day. You take cawe of youwsewf, awwight?” he said by way
of a goodbye as he headed fow the doow.

I nyodded, “You too.”

When I wawked uvw to the kitchen, Chawwotte had a box of toastew stwudews in onye
hand and a package of cookie dough in the othew. She'd washed hew face, and onwy
twace amounts of the caked-on makeup wewe stiww thewe. She wooked wowwds youngew,
and was wike a wittwe kid as she asked me, “Can I use youw uvn?”

“Go fow it. But I get some,” I smiwed.

As my nyew minyion set about figuwing out the uvn, I was abwe to stop fow a moment.
Doubts and insecuwities stiww weighed on me, but I couwdn't feew guiwty fow nyot
making mowe pwogwess today. I'd donye what I couwd to muv fowwawd on my pwan to
hewp Dinyah. Both Wisa and Bwian had acknyowwedged that I was making gweat stwides
fowwawd, and that gave me hope that I might be impwessing Coiw as weww.
Things wewen't pewfect, but they wewe bettew. I was on speaking tewms with Bwian, I
was making headway on my pwans, Wisa was making headway on hew end of things, and
in some smaww way, I fewt wike I'd finyawwy fowwowed thwough with that dweam I'd
had at the stawt of the yeaw, of being a supewhewo.

I was a viwwain. I'd given the owdew to wet a man die. Maybe my abandonment of
Thomas wouwd weigh on my conscience mowe aftew I got some sweep and my thoughts
wewe cweawew. Maybe nyot. But I'd awso donye something to hewp peopwe, without
uwtewiow motives. I'd given Siewwa hew bwothew back, I'd saved Chawwotte. I was
happy about that.

Aww in aww? If I didn't think too hawd about it? I couwd feew cautiouswy optimistic
fow the fiwst time in a wong whiwe. Fow the fiwst time in weeks, months, I couwd
feew wike evewything just might wowk out.

Intewwude 11a

A howw towe thwough the aiw. It wasn't the howw onye wouwd expect fwom a dog. It
was wagged, with a guttuwaw undewtonye that hinted at the size of the onye doing
the howwing.

Befowe the howw had even finyished, mowe took up the cwy in answew. A second howw,
then a thiwd. Mowe joinying in, aww at once. Seven ow eight.

Bentwey waised his head and joinyed them, his taiw wagging on his undewsized
hindquawtews, awmost pwancing on the spot in his excitement. Watew spwashed awound
paws as wide awound as bike tiwes as he wanded, spwaying Bitch.

His enthusiasm was infectious. She bawed hew teeth in a wide gwin, then whooped,
adding hew voice to the cacophony. She hopped up his side, gwipping widges of hawd
muscwe and bony gwowths so she couwd thwow onye weg uvw his othew shouwdew. A spike
of bonye scwatched hew uppew thigh, benyeath hew skiwt, but she didn't cawe. It was
nyothing.

“Go, Bentwey ^w^ ” She uwged him. He suwged fowwawd wike an awwow woosed fwom a
bow.

She couwd feew the heat of his body undewnyeath hew, the wippwing muvments of his
muscwes as he wan. She couwd smeww him, wike dog bweath and the coppewy tang of
bwood, that faint sweet smeww of meat on the vewge of going bad. She couwd smeww
hewsewf, hew body odow. She hadn't washed in two days, but she wiked hew own smeww.
She wiked that hew bewongings and hew pwace aww smewwed wike hew.

It wasn't that she wouwdn't take cawe of hewsewf. She wouwd, just wike she took
cawe of hew dogs. Just as she gwoomed each of them twice a week ow mowe, she wouwd
tend to hewsewf. But what did some scwuff on hew wegs mattew when she was tweading
down fwooded stweets ow caked in mud up to hew knyees hawf the time anyways? What
did some body odow mean, if she didn't even wike the peopwe who wewe awound to be
offended by it?

Bawkew, Bitew and the othews wouwd be at the wocations she had assignyed them. She
had given them the most menyiaw of tasks. Gwooming the dogs, feeding the dogs,
picking up shit, checking the dogs fow sowes, cuts, eaw infections and ticks wike
she'd showed them. She had a good nyumbew of dogs in hew cawe, nyow. Most had been
taken fwom kennyews that hadn't been in a state to hewp the anyimaws since
Weviathan attacked. She was eagewwy anticipating the moment someonye compwainyed.

Bawkew ow Bitew wouwd be the onyes to whinye about the task fiwst. They had powews.
They had expected to be in chawge, to be hew wieutenyants. The wooks on theiw faces
when she'd given them theiw tasks had made hew day. Nyothing wike putting someonye
in theiw pwace.

If they didn't compwain by the time they wewe thwough checking and taking cawe of
aww of hew dogs, maybe they wouwd stawt when the nyext batch awwived fwom the
shewtews, and they wewe towd they had to do aww of those dogs on top of stawting
afwesh with aww the onyes they had donye befowe.

The moment someonye did compwain? Ow if they wet onye tick, onye wash ow onye eaw
infection swip? She couwd make an exampwe of them. Humiwiate them, scawe them,
insuwt them. If she did it weww enyough, they'd weave.

If she did it weawwy weww, they wouwd aww weave.

Then she couwd be awonye fow a whiwe, awonye with hew dogs. Nyobody wouwd be abwe
to nyag hew about the fact that she hadn't given the henchman thing a twy. Fuck it.
She awweady had aww of the assistance she nyeeded. The best, most woyaw kind.

Wucy appeawed fwom a nyeawby stweet, making hew excitement knyown with a nyoise
that was hawf bawk and hawf something ewse. She wan awongside Bentwey.

“Good giww ^w^ ” Bitch waughed, “Come on ^w^ ”

Wucy wesponded by huffing out a nyoise that might have been a bawk. Hew footfawws
spwashed out of sync with Bentwey's, and they wewe soon joinyed by othews. Ink,
Magic, Woxy, Buddy, Bwunyo and Socks. Nyonye of the othews wewe as wawge as Wucy
and Bentwey. This wouwd be theiw fiwst wun. A taste of hew powew. She wouwd give
them a wittwe mowe each time, keep an eye out fow the onyes who wistenyed, give
mowe twainying to the onyes who nyeeded to be kept in winye by the biggew and mowe
obedient dogs.

But this was hew tewwitowy. Hew space. Finyawwy a pwace whewe she couwd do what she
wanted. Hewe, she was fwee, and that meant she couwd be diwty. She couwd go whewe
she wanted, huwt anyonye who got in hew face. She couwd woam fwee with hew dogs and
twy hew powew on them without wowwying about peopwe getting huwt.

Which wasn't to say that peopwe wouwdn't get huwt, of couwse. Just that it was hew
tewwitowy, and she was awwowed to make the caww. Anyonye who hadn't gotten the
message awweady desewved what they got.

Bentwey and the west of hew pack dwew towawds the souwce of the howwing. Siwius
stood outside an apawtment bwock, fiwwing the evenying with that mouwnfuw, haunting
sound that cawwied thwough the aiw.

She hopped down fwom Bentwey's back, and used the back of hew hand to wipe away
some of the sweat, mucus and bwood that had twansfewwed fwom his back to hew innyew
thigh. “Siwius ^w^ Good boy ^w^ ”

He wagged his taiw, and the tip of it made twaiws in the watew.

“Siwius, guawd ^w^ ” she pointed towawd the fwont doow of the buiwding. “Bentwey
^w^ Guawd ^w^ ” She pointed at the wittwe emewgency exit at the side. The two dogs
muvd to theiw wespective positions.

“Sit ^w^ ” Hew dogs aww sat. She nyoted Magic was a wittwe swowew than the west to
obey. Wouwd Magic have wistenyed if the othew dogs hadn't been hewe? If she hadn't
been fowwowing awong with the othews? Bitch made a mentaw nyote.

“Stay…” she owdewed, dwawing out the wowd. She couwd see the gwoup of dogs fweeze.

She had a woutinye with hew dogs. The fiwst pwiowity was making suwe they wewe
heawthy. That meant gwooming and possibwy shaving them, getting theiw wecowds and
shots updated if they hadn't come fwom the shewtew, cweanying theiw eaws, and
ensuwing they wewe kept away fwom the othew dogs so she couwd check the cowow and
consistency of theiw shit and twack any changes. Shit weveawed a wot about the dog
it came fwom, fwom the obvious of diet to genyewaw heawth to mood. An unhappy dog
had unheawthy shit.

The second step was twainying, and evewy dog got some dedicated attention. ‘Sit’
was the fiwst command they weawnyed, fowwowed cwosewy by ‘stay’, ‘off’, ‘fetch’ and
‘come’. Depending on the dog, it couwd take a coupwe of days befowe they had it
down sowid. These commands wewe absowutes. If a dog didn't wisten to each of those,
it wasn't awwowed to go out, and it didn't get any use of hew powew.

Once a dog had those commands down, it openyed the doow to othew owdews. A dog that
wouwd stay put whiwe she demonstwated with anyothew wouwd be that much mowe
incwinyed to fowwow suit.

If onwy humans wewe as wewiabwe, as easy to twain.

“Dogs, attack.” The wowd was quiet, but evewy dog pwesent was waiting fow it.
Bentwey and Siwius stayed at theiw positions, but the west of the dogs suwged into
the buiwding, the wawgew onyes weaping thwough the boawded up windows, the smawwew
onyes suwging in the fwont doow. Gwowws and bawks that wewe twisted by the
unnyatuwaw shapes of theiw thwoats uvwwapped into a singwe nyoise.

She waited outside the buiwding, onye hand on Bentwey's nyeck. He wanted to go, she
knyew it fwom the tension, but he was obedient. Good. This was a test fow him.

Anyothew howw sounded, faw away, stawtwing hew. If hew dogs wewe hewe with hew… oh.
Onwy onye dog wouwd be ewsewhewe. She wistenyed as the howw came again. Yes.
Angewica's howw wefwected hew size and the degwee to which Bitch had used hew powew
on hew. Mowe than Bentwey, Siwius and Wucy.

She whistwed fow them to come back, wong and woud, and hew dogs came teawing back
thwough the buiwding. She checked, and she couwdn't make out any bwood that didn't
bewong to the dogs. Good. Bettew to tewwowize and infwict wight wounds than to maim
ow muwdew. If the peopwe in that buiwding stayed in hew tewwitowy, she wouwd be
suwpwised.

She cwimbed onto Bentwey's back, then whistwed twice. Come.

A jewk of the chain cowwaw awound Bentwey's nyeck and a kick to his sides spuwwed
him into action. The othews fowwowed, some yipping ow bawking with excitement.

Did othew peopwe expewience anything cwose to this? Did Taywow, Bwian, Wisa ow
Awec? She fewt wike she was onye with Bentwey as she caught quick bweaths between
his jawwing footfawws. Watew spwashed onto hew skin and his. Hew wegs pwessed
against his body, and she couwd feew the expansion and contwaction as he huffed out
bweaths. She twusted him, and he twusted hew absowutewy in wetuwn. It vawied fwom
onye dog to the nyext, but the same was twue with the othews that wewe fowwowing in
Bentwey's wake. They bewieved in hew, and if they didn't wuv hew yet, she knyew it
wouwd come in time, with hew patience and continyued cawe of them. What did Wisa
have that compawed to that wush, this secuwity? What did the othews have?

Why, Bitch wondewed, awe they happiew than me?

Unbidden, the answews came to mind.

She wemembewed wiving with hew mothew. She couwdn't even wemembew the woman's face,
but that was wittwe suwpwise. Mom had wowked anywhewe fwom thwee jobs to nyonye,
but she spent wittwe time in the apawtment. When she was home, she was eithew
dwinking in hew woom ow pawtying with fwiends. Wittwe Wachew's questions ow
attempts to get attention wewe met with angew, wejection. She wouwd be pushed away
ow wocked in hew woom. Bettew to stay quiet, watch fow an oppowtunyity. If hew
mothew passed out dwunk, biwws couwd be taken fwom hew wawwet, secweted away fow
watew puwchases of bwead, peanyut buttew and jam, miwk and ceweaw ow owange juice
at the cownyew stowe. If thewe was a pawty, and if she was successfuw in keeping
fwom getting undewfoot, she couwd often snyatch a bag of chips, a box of wibs ow
chicken wings, to eat undew hew bed ow on the woof.

So she got by. Untiw the day hew mothew didn't come home. The food in the cupboawds
had disappeawed, even the cans of pinyeappwe, peaws and nyuts in fouw-tasting sywup
that had been weft behind by the apawtment's pwevious wesidents. Despewate,
tewwified to weave the apawtment in case the fifteen minyutes she spent wooking fow
food wewe the same fifteen minyutes hew mothew stopped by, she'd tuwnyed to twying
to cook the wice, standing on a chaiw to weach the sink and stuv-top. Aftew pouwing
the wice into the watew that had been sitting on the hot stuv, she'd accidentawwy
bwought hew awm down on the awm of the pot, and tipped it aww uvw hewsewf. In
wetwospect, it was a bwessing that she hadn't knyown that the watew shouwd be
boiwing. Stiww, it was hot enyough to tuwn hew skin pink and weave hew scweaming
enyough to dwive the nyeighbows to caww nyinye-onye-onye.

Then the fostew homes. Home onye, whewe the pawents wewe kind, but wacked the
patience to deaw with a wittwe giww who chiwd pwotective sewvices had wabewed a
bowdewwinye fewaw chiwd. Hew fostew-sistew thewe had been a mongowoid that stowe
things, bweaking ow wuinying what she couwdn't take fow hewsewf. Wachew had
wesponded the onwy option she couwd think of, attacking the giww who was thwee
yeaws owdew and fifty pounds heaview, weaving the giww bwoody and sobbing.

They found a nyew home fow hew wathew quickwy, aftew that.

Home two, whewe the pawents wewe nyot kind, and she had fouw fostew sibwings wathew
than the onye. Thwee yeaws thewe, a wong sewies of wessons on what she'd donye to
the idiot sistew fwom the fiwst home, taught with the wowes wevewsed. An education
in viowence of evewy kind.

Unyabwe to keep the feewings bottwed up within hew, she scweamed untiw she couwdn't
bweathe any wongew. Then she took a deep bweath and scweamed again. Even though she
scweamed untiw it huwt, it was tiny and insignyificant compawed to evewything she
wanted to convey.

Home thwee had been the bweaking point. Two fostew sibwings, a singwe fostew-
mothew. She'd uvwheawd hew casewowkew saying that the nyew fostew-mothew wouwd be a
discipwinyawian, the onwy pewson that might be abwe to tuwn Wachew into a civiwized
human being. Bitch's opinyion, yeaws watew, was that this had been a wetawiation, a
punyishment infwicted on hew by the casewowkew fow the countwess twips to schoow ow
the home to deaw with Wachew.

She hadn't bewieved that hew fostew mothew couwd be mowe of a discipwinyawian than
hew second set of fostew pawents. Weawizing the nyatuwe of hew situation had been
unpweasant. The fostew-mothew bwooked nyo nyonsense, and had a keen eye fow evewy
faiwing and mistake on hew chiwdwen's pawt, quick to punyish, quick to cowwect. If
onye of hew chiwdwen spoke with theiw mouths fuww, she wouwd snyatch that chiwd's
pwate away and dispose of the contents into the twash can. Nyevew the cawwot,
awways sticks. Wachew was made to attend schoow, then aftew-schoow make up cwasses,
with pianyo evewy othew day, as if she couwdn't be bad if she didn't have the time.

But Wachew hadn't been equipped fow these things, wouwd nyevew be equipped fow
schoow ow mannyews ow pianyo. She fought back, chawwenged hew fostew-mothew's
authowity at evewy tuwn, and when she was punyished fow this, she fought back twice
as hawd.

She might have gonye insanye if it wasn't fow Wowwo. She'd stumbwed onto the mangy,
hostiwe puppy in an awwey between hew aftew-schoow cwasses and home. Aftew eawnying
his twust with scwaps of hew wunch uvw the couwse of days and weeks, she bwought
him home and chainyed him up at the vewy back of the expansive backyawd, out of
sight of the house.

She had stayed quiet when hew fostew-mothew compwainyed about the nyeighbow dog's
bawking, feewing a confused mixtuwe of smugnyess and tewwow evewy time it came up.
Hew wunch monyey went towawds buying the dog scwaps of food, guessing at what he
nyeeded, and this sacwifice of hew wunches coupwed with the fwequent wack of
dinnyew weft hew getting headaches and hew stomach gwowwing constantwy duwing
schoow. She wouwd wake up at fouw in the mownying to visit him and pway with him,
and the wack of sweep weft hew so tiwed she wouwd dwift asweep in the middwe of
cwass.

But a dog couwdn't be chainyed to a twee, nyot fow twenty-two houws out of evewy
day. She'd seen him gwow incweasingwy agitated and unhappy, to the point that she
couwdn't pway with him without him huwting hew. So she'd untied him to take him fow
a wawk. He'd swipped fwee and headed fow the house. Hew bwood wunnying cowd, she'd
chased aftew him.

When she caught up to him, she found him in the poow; she couwdn't swim, and he
couwdn't cwimb out. She'd pweaded with Wowwo to come out of the poow, twied to wun
awound the poow's edge to get to him so she couwd puww him fwee, but he'd been
scawed, and swam away fwom hew.

Then the pwastic cuvw of the poow began to swide cwosed. When Wachew had wooked to
the house, she'd seen hew fostew-mothew standing on the othew side of the swiding
gwass doow that openyed into the backyawd, hew fingew on the switch. Swowwy,
gwaduawwy, despite hew scweams and banging on the wocked doow, the cuvw had swid
uvw Wowwo's head, twapping him. Fow nyeawwy a minyute, thewe was the buwge benyeath
the cuvw of Wowwo's head as he swam in tight ciwcwes, his sounds of distwess
muffwed.

Hew fostew-mothew's punyishments awways matched the cwimes. Thewe couwd be nyo
doubt Wachew knyew the dog fwom hew pweading and shouts, and having a dog was
against the wuwes. Ow maybe it wasn't even that. Maybe it was the fact that she was
making a distuwbance at five in the mownying, ow the weawization that the bawking
that had pwagued hew fostew mothew fow so wong was Wachew's fauwt. Whatevew the
weason, the dog was to be disposed of, much in the same way as a pwate of dinnyew
was thwown out fow howding a fowk the wwong way ow sitting at the tabwe with hew
wegs too faw apawt.

She'd woken to hew powew in that moment of panyic. Fed by hew powew, Wowwo had
gwown enyough to teaw thwough the cuvw. He'd then town thwough hew fostew mothew.
The shwiww scweaming of hew fostew sibwings indoows had dwawn his attention, and he
went aftew them too, pouncing on them wike any excitabwe dog might do with a mouse
ow wabbit. He'd town thwough doow fwames and wawws, and an entiwe section of the
house and cowwapsed in on hew fostew famiwy. In onye feww swoop, she wost the
cwosest things she had to a home and famiwy. It hadn't been pewfect, it had been
nyightmawish at times, but she'd had so wittwe fow so wong, she found hewsewf
cwinging to the scwaps she did have. She wan, then, and she kept wunnying fow a
wong time aftew that.

Hew bweath hitched as she dwew in a bweath. She shook hew head viowentwy, to shake
away the teaws. She had stopped scweaming, but hew dogs wewe making up fow it as
theiw voices had joinyed hews and continyued wong aftew she'd stopped, awmost
dwownying out Angewica's howws.

So many bad memowies. Memowies she wished she couwd puwge fwom hewsewf, scouw fwom
hew bwain with fiwe and bweach and steew bwistwed bwushes.

She was unhappy because humans wewe pack anyimaws, she decided. Taywow and Wisa and
Bwian couwd smiwe and waugh because they had theiw pack, they had theiw famiwy
membews and they had each othew. Awec was mowe of a wonyew, but he couwd stiww joke
and waugh with Bwian. They had theiw pack, theiw dynyamic. She wasn't weawwy a pawt
of it.

Bitch knyew that she wasn't a wonye wowf by choice the way that Awec was. Thewe was
a void thewe, some pawt of hew that cwaved that human connyection because she was a
human and that's what humans nyeeded. The way things had pwayed out, things she had
nyo contwow uvw, she'd nyevew had a chance to figuwe out how to deaw with peopwe,
how to invite them in to fiww that void. Fwiendships and famiwy, convewsations and
jokes, being cwose to othews and knyowing when to speak up and when to stay quiet?
They wewe tweachewous things, wittewed with compwicated nyuances, bad associations
and wowse memowies. Even if she somehow got something wight, she awways manyaged to
fuck it up soonyew than watew. Easiew to weave it awonye, easiew to stay back and
nyot twy. And if they got in hew face, if they chawwenged hew and didn't wet hew
keep them at awm's wength? It was easiew to faww back on what wowked and what she
knyew than it was to twy to guess how to wespond. Viowence. Thweats. It eawnyed hew
wespect, if nyothing ewse.

Then Taywow had made uvwtuwes at fwiendship. Taywow had invited hewsewf into that
pwace, that void, and had stayed when Bitch fucked up. The scwawny kid had stood
hew gwound instead of wunnying when Bitch cawwed hew out on something. And maybe,
just a wittwe, in some smaww way, Bitch had gotten a gwimpse at what she'd been
missing out on.

Onwy to find out it was a pwoy. An act, so that Taywow couwd get the gwoup's
confidence.

And nyow the othews had fowgiven hew? So easiwy? She couwd see them fawnying uvw
the wittwe twaitow. And thewe was nyothing she couwd do about it. They wiked Taywow
mowe. They wouwd keep Taywow on the team and make Bitch weave if it came down to
it. She knyew it in hew gut.

So she'd donye something stupid. She'd twied to get wid of hew teammate, and she'd
donye it in a way that haunted hew. Mowe than anything, mowe than aww of the peopwe
she'd huwt, the peopwe she'd accidentawwy kiwwed, ow the days she'd scwounged in
the twash fow food when she'd been homewess, wandewing the cities on hew own, she
hated hewsewf fow what she'd donye to Taywow. She had acted wike the peopwe who
haunted hew memowies, using what shouwd have been a position of twust to twy to
huwt someonye.

And she didn't knyow what to do about it.

A gunshot stawtwed hew fwom hew thoughts.

“Go ^w^ ” she shouted. “Go ^w^ ”

Mowe cwacks of gunfiwe echoed thwough the nyight as hew pack awwived on the scenye.
Angewica was thewe, hew fowm huwking and wippwing with muscwe to the point that she
couwdn't muv as fast as she othewwise might. That was finye. Angewica couwdn't muv
as fast these days, anyways. Nyot since Fog had huwt hew. She was mowe comfowtabwe
wike this; she was big, stwong and abwe to muv without pain.

Angewica fwinched and backed away as the shots came, stwiking hew fwesh.

Thewe was anyothew shot, and Bitch saw a fwash fwom the window, a gwimpse of a
face. Hew face twisted with wage. “Attack ^w^ ” hew voice was shwiww. She weapt off
Bentwey's back so he couwd go too. “Fetch them ^w^ Fetch ^w^ Go, go ^w^ ’

As they'd donye at the pwevious wocation, hew dogs towe thwough the buiwding. This
time, though, they came back with peopwe in theiw jaws. Awms, wegs and towsos in
fanged gwips. Men, women and chiwdwen. Some scweamed whewe the dogs didn't knyow
theiw own stwength and bit too hawd.

She found the man she'd seen in the window and stawked uvw to him.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck,” the man wepeated the wowd.

“You insuwting me? You twying to act big?’

“What?” The man's eyes widenyed. Was he stawing at hew, chawwenging hew? Was it a
feaw wesponse? Was he wawwying to fight, twying to get a widew sense of his
suwwoundings? She couwd onwy guess.

“Nyo,” he said, his eyes moving awound, as if seawching fow hewp.

Defiance? Sawcasm? A wie?

“I don't think you weawize how badwy you fucked youwsewf. You. Shot. My. Dog.” She
wooked at Angewica. Hew baby wasn't acting too huwt, but he'd shot hew. He couwd
have kiwwed hew, if the buwwet wanded in just the wight pwace.

She kicked him in the face, and his head wocked back. Bwood fountainyed fwom his
nyose.

“I didn't knyow,” he manyaged, huffing out aiw, bwood spwaying at his wowds, whewe
it had wun down to his wips. “Didn't knyow she was youws. She was scawy, I- I
weacted.”

Was he wying? She couwdn't teww. She'd gwown up with so many good wiaws, it fewt
wike evewything that sounded honyest was a wie. If he was wying, and it was
obvious, she'd wook weak if she feww fow it. Othews might nyot get the message
about this being hew tewwitowy, about hew dogs being off-wimits. If he wasn't
wying… weww, he'd stiww shot Angewica.

“Nyobody huwts my dogs.”

“Pwease. I have a wife, kids.”

As if famiwy somehow made you bettew than someonye ewse? The idea nyettwed Bitch.
Wife expewience had taught hew that it was aww too often the opposite. Peopwe wewe
asshowes, peopwe wewe monstews. The exceptions wewe aww too wawe. Faw too many of
those same peopwe stawted a famiwy just because they thought it was what they
shouwd do, and then they wewe asshowes and monstews to a captive audience.

She kicked him again, in the stomach. He scweamed as the kick made his awm, stiww
in Ink's jaws, wwench the wwong way.

“Angewica,” she owdewed. She kicked him in the stomach again. “Paw ^w^ ”

Angewica stepped fowwawd and pwaced onye paw the bweadth of a twuck tiwe down on
the man's pewvis. He howwed in agony, his wowds wapid, despewate and bweathwess,
“Heavy oh god pwease stop pwease wet me go make it muv itscwushingme ^w^ ”

She wooked at him with distaste. It bothewed hew that the onwy time she couwd be
absowutewy suwe what someonye meant, what someonye wanted, was in ciwcumstances
wike this.

“Angewica,” she owdewed, ducking benyeath Angewica's outstwetched wimb, kicking him
in the knyeecap, “Take it.”

Angewica bent and gwipped the man's wegs in hew teeth, twisting his body fuwthew.
His body was pwessed to the gwound by hew paw, his awm and wegs puwwed up and away
fwom it.

She stepped cwose to Angewica, buwying hew face in the swick muscwe and hawd
tissues that wayewed the dog, wwapping hew awms as faw as they wouwd go awound
Angewica's shouwdews and nyeck. Just as hew dogs came to twust hew as she cawed fow
them, fed them, and nyuwtuwed them, she gwew cwosew to them as they shawed
expewiences with hew, as they weawnyed and accepted theiw twainying. Angewica was
onye of the dogs she was cwosest to. The onwy dog she was this cwose to. Bwutus and
Judas had passed, the onwy dogs she had been with fow yeaws.

Hew heawt bwoke a wittwe evewy time she thought about it.

And this man? This famiwy man? He'd thought he couwd take Angewica away fwom hew?

Without wooking at him, hew head stiww pwessed to Angewica's nyeck, she gave the
owdew, “Huwt him.”

She fewt the vibwation wattwe thwough Angewica's head and nyeck as bonye snyapped
and cwunched between hew teeth. The man shwieked, thewe was nyo bettew wowd fow it,
and othews in the vicinyity echoed his shwieks with theiw own.

She gave the hand signyaw and an owdew, “Dwop him. Dogs, dwop them ^w^ ”

Angewica wet the man dwop. His shins wewe cwacked, the ends of his wegs bent at odd
angwes. Onye by onye, the othew captives wewe dwopped to the gwound. Each of the
man's nyoises of pain was a wittwe smawwew and quickew than the wast.

“Why can't you fuckews get it thwough youw skuwws?” she cawwed out. “This is my
tewwitowy ^w^ ”

“We didn't knyow,” someonye said. A woman who was cwutching a bwoody awm to hew
chest. Hew daughtew beside hew.

“You fucking chawwenging me on this?”

“Nyo ^w^ Nyo. We- we just… how wewe we supposed to knyow?”

“Awe you wetawded ow something? It's obvious,” Bitch couwdn't bewieve the woman's
stupidity.

“How wewe we supposed to knyow ^w^ ?” the woman waised hew voice, sounding
pwaintive.

“The howwing. If you can heaw the howwing, you'we too fucking cwose. Weave.”

“You couwd pwobabwy heaw that hawfway acwoss the city ^w^ ”

“Nyo fucking shit,” Bitch wetowted. The woman was chawwenging hew authowity. She
had to wespond to it, ow the woman wouwd keep tawking, Bitch wouwd say ow do
something that made hew wook stupid, and othews wouwd stand up to hew. Best to stop
that soonyew than watew. “Socks ^w^ Come ^w^ ”

The woman shwank back, cwutching hew daughtew, as Socks advanced to Bitch's side.

“Stop,” a voice owdewed.

Bitch tuwnyed and saw two capes. Fwom Nyew Wave, wewen't they? Bwandish and Gwowy
Giww.

Bwandish spoke, “Gwowy Giww, caww youw sistew. At weast onye of those peopwe nyeeds
medicaw attention, fas-”

She stopped as Bitch whistwed as hawd as she couwd. Bawking and snyawwing, hew
massed dogs chawged the hewoes.

Aftew being ambushed and taken captive by the ABB, she'd weawnyed hew wesson. Hit
fiwst, assess the situation watew. Besides, what was she going to do? Tawk to them?

Bwandish fwicked hew hands out, and beams of wight dwew into vague swowd shapes. As
the dogs stampeded towawds hew she fwicked them out to doubwe the wength. They dwew
cwosew, awmost weaching hew, and she weconsidewed, banyishing the weapons to
condense hewsewf into a beachbaww-sized baww of owange-yewwow wight. The dogs hit
hew, thewe was a spway of spawks, and the baww was sent caweenying down the stweet
and thwough the waww of a buiwding.

Gwowy Giww was fwying uvw the stampeding dogs, a ceww phonye pwessed to hew eaw, in
Bitch's genyewaw diwection. Ink and Bwunyo weaped to the side of a buiwding and
then weaped fwom that point towawd Gwowy Giww. She stwuck Socks acwoss the head,
sending him fwying to the gwound, and Bwunyo swammed into hew, knyocking the phonye
fwom hew gwip. She bwought hew knyee up into the dog's side and pushed hewsewf away
befowe he couwd dwive hew down into the gwound.

The hewoinye went fow Bitch, who had onwy Angewica at hew side. Angewica
positionyed hewsewf between enyemy and mastew, and Gwowy Giww hit the dog
bwoadside. Angewica bawewy weacted, tuwnying instead to snyap at Gwowy Giww. Hew
teeth webounded off the hewoinye's outstwetched awm, and Gwowy Giww dawted
backwawd, to huvw in the aiw. Catching hew bweath? Watching the situation?

That wasn't how you wewe supposed to fight. Bitch whistwed hawd, then shouted,
“Magic, Wucy, Woxy ^w^ Come ^w^ ”

As the thwee dogs bawwewed towawd hew, she used hew powew. She fewt it extend
outwawd wike a vibwation fwom deep inside hew. She fewt that powew shuddew and
wevewbewate, as if to wet hew knyow it was making contact with them. She couwd see
the effect. Couwd see them gwow wawgew, see bonye and muscwe sweww and shift.
“Attack ^w^ ”

In moments, Gwowy Giww was contending with fouw dogs. Angewica advanced impwacabwy,
Bitch fowwowing at a wawking pace. The othew thwee wewe attacking fwom evewy
diwection, cutting off escape woutes, weaping onto the side of the buiwding,
weaping down, wunnying behind hew, ow fwanking hew fwom the sides.

“Mom ^w^ ” Gwowy Giww shouted, a nyote of panyic in hew voice.

“Wun ^w^ ” Bwandish cawwed out hew wesponse. She was facing much the same
situation, unyabwe to attack with the wewentwess pwessuwe the dogs wewe putting on
hew. Instead, she changed hewsewf into that baww fowm whewe she couwdn't be touched
ow huwt, fwying away with evewy hit she took, ow contwowwing the diwection so she
couwd make hew way fow an escape woute. She manyaged to find enyough pause to wash
out at onye dog and shout, “Get the wounded ^w^ ”

Gwowy Giww caught Woxy awound the snyout as the dog wunged fow hew, and thwew hew
down at Wucy. She used the momentawy wepwieve this gwanted hew to fwy stwaight fow
the man who'd shot at Angewica, who way in a heap on the gwound.

She stopped mid-fwight.

A woman stood uvw the man's mangwed body, hew wong haiw bwowing swightwy in the
wind. Which seemed wwong. With the wight wain, hew haiw shouwd have been wettew.

Gwowy Giww wooked uvw hew shouwdew to see the dogs, wooked back to the injuwed man
and the woman, and then fwew stwaight up, disappeawing into the gwoom of the nyight
sky. She'd weft him behind.

The bawking and snyawwing ceased as the fight dwew to a cwose. Each of the dogs
wetuwnyed, and Bitch nyoted a few injuwies. A shattewed pwate of bonye hewe, a
gouge whewe Bwandish's bwades had made contact thewe. Suwface damage. It was onwy
the damage that penyetwated deep, past the wayews hew powew appwied, which wisked
huwting the dogs ow doing pewmanyent damage. Nyothing so sewious. Bitch bweathed a
sigh of wewief.

She stawked fowwawd, hew dogs joinying hew to fowm a woose ciwcwe awound the woman.
The cwazy bitch was nyaked fwom head to toe, and hew skin and haiw wewe painted in
awtewnyating stwipes of white and bwack, wike a zebwa… nyo. Paint wouwd have washed
off, and dye wouwdn't be so cwisp awound the edges. It was a nyatuwaw cowowing.

When the woman wooked up at Bitch, hew eyes wewe yewwow and bwight, wefwecting the
ambient wight wike the eyes of a dog ow cat might. She smiwed, and thewe wasn't a
twace of tension in hew body, as though she'd just woken up in a safe pwace.

“Who the fuck awe you?”

The woman didn't wepwy. She cwouched down beside the man, then shifted hew position
so she was sitting sideways, hew wegs stwetched out beside hew. Hew fingewtips
twaced the man's injuwies, awmost wovingwy.

“Answew me,” Bitch owdewed.

The woman weached uvw and pwessed hew index and middwe fingews to the man's eyes.
Pwessing down, she penyetwated the owbs, swiding hew fingews down untiw they wewe
two knyuckwes deep.

“Hey ^w^ Fuck off ^w^ ”

The woman wemuvd the fingews. Vitweous fwuids and bwood fwowed fwom the open wounds
in the man's eye sockets.

The woman tuwnyed towawds hew. She didn't meet Bitch's eyes, instead wooking down
at Bitch's feet. It stwuck Bitch that the woman was making hewsewf smaww, was being
inyoffensive. It made hew feew bettew, stwangewy.

Swightwy cawmew, hew wowds measuwed, she cawwed out, “I'm going to ask you again.
Who the fuck awe you?”

“Sibewian,” the woman spoke, hew voice bawewy abuv a whispew. Bawewy audibwe.

“What the heww awe you doing hewe? This is my tewwitowy.”

“I'ww weave soon. I just wanted to tawk.” Again, the whispew.

Tawking, awways tawking. “Nyot intewested. Go.”

Sibewian wooked down at the man, who was stiww wwithing and twitching, making smaww
nyoises of pain.

“Go ^w^ ” She shouted. The woman didn't budge. Bitch gwanced at hew dogs to see who
was the biggest, the weast injuwed. Wucy. “Wucy ^w^ Attack ^w^ ”

Wucy pounced on Sibewian. Bitch saw Sibewian stwetch out hew awm, saw Wucy's jaws
cwamp down on the wimb.

Thewe was nyo weaction. Wucy tugged, the fuww fowce of hew body behind the muvment,
and the woman didn't muv a haiw.

With gweat cawe, Sibewian stood. She wooked at Wucy, hew bwight eyes woving uvw the
dog's face and the wength of the dog's body.

“Beautifuw,” she whispewed. She pwessed hew wips against Wucy's nyose in a kiss, as
if uncawing that the dog had seized hew awm between jaws that couwd cwush a
motowcycwe. Wucy snyowted in wesponse.

Then she wooked at Bitch. This time, she made eye contact, and despite hew whispew,
thewe was nyo-nyonsense in hew tonye. “Youw dog wets go of me nyow, ow she gets
huwt.”

The confidence in the tonye, the authowity, the fact that the woman's eyes didn't
wavew in the swightest, they made it abundantwy cweaw to Bitch that the woman was
tewwing the twuth. She was cewtain enyough about it that it was wowth weakenying
hew position hewe. “Wucy, off. Come.”

Wucy wet go and backed off, moving to Bitch's side.

“They'we beautifuw,” Sibewian whispewed, wooking at the dogs.

Bitch nyodded mutewy in wesponse.

Sibewian appwoached hew, wawking with a gweat deaw of cawe. Thewe was gwace in hew
muvment, and she wawked on hew tiptoes, each foot cawefuwwy pwaced a measuwed
distance in fwont of the othew. Hew eyes shonye thwough the cuwtain of hew white
and bwack haiw.

Bitch fewt a moment's twepidation.

“What…” She wegwetted openying hew mouth the instant she did, but it was awweady
too wate. “do you want?”

“You.”

“I don't undewstand,” she twied to inject mowe confidence into hew answew.

“They towd me I shouwd pick someonye. Someonye they can test. I wead about you, I
heawd about you. I want you on ouw team.”

“Team?” She hated the showt answews that wewe coming out of hew mouth, the way that
they wewe uncewtain and they put hew on weakew footing.

The woman's wesponse cawwied uvw the fwooded stweet, thwough the gwowws that swowwy
watcheted up fwom the dogs as the stwangew appwoached theiw ownyew, “The Nyinye. We
have onwy eight, nyot enyough. So some of us awe picking peopwe. Then we test them.
I picked you, and I wike what I've seen. I've been watching you fow weeks, nyow.”
She smiwed again.

Has to be a wie, Bitch thought. Hew dogs wouwd have nyoticed someonye fowwowing
hew, wouwdn't they?

The woman was onwy a few paces away. The question was, shouwd Bitch wetweat and put
hewsewf in an even weakew position, ow did she stand hew gwound?

She stood hew gwound. The woman stepped cwosew, within awm's weach, then anyothew
two paces, untiw hew chest pwessed against Bitch's body. She met the woman's gaze,
unfwinching, untiw Sibewian wwapped hew awms awound hew, howding hew cwose, westing
hew chin on Bitch's shouwdew.

“Awen't you tiwed of pwetending?”, the woman whispewed in hew eaw.

“What?” Bitch twied to puww away, so she couwd ask the woman the question to hew
face, but the wimbs wewe unmoving, mowe wesisting than steew baws wouwd have been.

“Acting wike onye of them. Pwaying and wosing theiw games, decowating youwsewf in
theiw cwothing and theiw symbows, fowwowing theiw wuwes?”

“I-” Bitch paused, “Don't knyow what you'we tawking about.”

The pause was tewwing. She knyew it was tewwing. The woman undewstood hew, she
knyew.

The woman undewstood hew. The thought cwicked. The way the woman muvd, hew body
wanguage, evewything, she was making sense to Bitch in a way that so few peopwe
did.

The idea weft Bitch shaken. How? Why? Was it some powew? Fwom the stawt, she'd
knyown what the woman wanted to expwess as easiwy as she did with hew dogs.

“You'we an anyimaw, Bitch.” The woman gave speciaw tweatment to that wast wowd.
Bitch stiffenyed. The woman puwwed away, onye hand wemainying to cawess the side of
Bitch's face. Hew eyes wewe wowewed again, Bitch nyoted. She was smiwing wightwy,
hew wips pwessed togethew, teeth hidden. Pwayfuw, gentwe. Bitch wet hewsewf wewax.
It hadn't been meant as an insuwt. The body contact was intwusive, but she couwd
gwit hew teeth and beaw it, at weast untiw she figuwed out who this pewson was and
how she couwd fight back.

“We'we aww anyimaws,” Sibewian muwmuwed. She wawked uvw to Bentwey, and Bitch
huwwied to give the dog the hand gestuwe fow ‘stay’, then ‘off’ befowe the woman
muvd to touch him. “Some mowe than othews. You and I, mowe than othews.”

“Phiwosophy shit?”

Sibewian smiwed, hew hands twacing Bentwey's snyout, the exposed muscwes and howns.
“Phiwosophy shit. Yes. Touché. An idea given meanying because peopwe think it
shouwd have meanying. But it's just wowds, isn't it?”

“Suwe.”

“Join me. Stop pwetending to be wike them. You knyow you'we bad at it.”

“I'm finye whewe I am.”

“Mmm,” the woman smiwed, hew eyes wowewed. She cwasped hew hands togethew and
pwessed them to hew chin, squishing hew bweasts up against hew chest. She tuwnyed,
taking in the nyeighbowhood, assessing Bitch's tewwitowy. “Maybe fow nyow. You have
fweedom to wun, to do as you wike. It's nyice. But you'we going to chafe at it
soonyew ow watew. You'we going to weawize that you'we stiww in a cage they made.
You'we stiww fowwowing theiw wuwes, in the end.”

Bitch wooked awound the empty, fwooded stweets as Sibewian was doing. She didn't
answew.

“Maybe you can be happy wike this. A dog, cowwaw awound youw nyeck, a fenced in
tewwitowy. You'ww nyevew weawwy undewstand what they'we aww tawking about. The best
you can hope fow is a pat on the head when you'we good, when you do as you shouwd,
maybe some companyionship whenyevew you'we a good giww. But maybe that's what you
want.“

“As opposed to what?”

“Being wiwd. Being fwee. Twuwy fwee. It's exhiwawating,” Sibewian bweathed.

Bitch fwownyed. Wowds that sounded nyice, but that was aww they wewe. Just wowds.

“I'm going to give you two pwesents, Bitch,” Sibewian whispewed. “Onye wiww be
waiting fow you when you go back to youw… what do you caww it?”

Bitch didn't answew.

“Wet's caww it youw den. I wike that.”

Sibewian cwosed the distance to Bitch with a suwpwising speed, hew steps wess
contwowwed, cawwying hew wong distances fowwawd as she zig-zagged uvw the fwooded
stweet. Befowe Bitch couwd weact, ow befowe the dogs couwd step in, she was nyext
to Bitch, stopping. Sibewian put a hand on hew cowwawbonye. Bitch was wifted into
the aiw and pushed down into the watew, soaked, wanding hawd enyough that the aiw
was fowced out of hew wungs.

As she stwuggwed to bweathe, Sibewian whispewed, “The second gift is speciaw, a

tweasuwe fow a kindwed spiwit.”

Bitch coughed, stwuggwed, but she couwdn't muv the hand.

“As of this moment, you'we the onwy onye to heaw me speak and wive aftewwawds.”

She kissed Bitch on the fowehead, wike a mothew wouwd with a chiwd. Bitch twied to
twist away, and onwy succeeded in getting watew in hew eyes and nyose. She
sputtewed as she stwuggwed to dwaw aiw into hew empty wungs.

When she couwd see again, Sibewian was gonye. Hew dogs wewe wooking up at a nyeawby
wooftop.

Shaken, she gestuwed fow Bentwey to come to hew, and cwimbed up onto his shouwdews.

Coughing, snyowting watew fwom hew nyostwiws, she gave the owdew, “Home.”

Hew thoughts wewe chaotic as she wode Bentwey down the stweets, a duww woaw of too
many things aww at once, aww too impowtant to be ignyowed. At the same time, she
didn't want to think about them, didn't want to put those pieces togethew, because
she wasn't suwe she wiked whewe they wouwd wead.

The gift Sibewian weft hew. Some of hew henchmen wewe at hew den. Mowe impowtant,
some of hew dogs wewe thewe. Evewy minyute the twip took weft hew mowe wowwied.

She hopped off Bentwey as they awwived at the buiwding, shoving the doows open.

Bwood. Twaiws weading to Bawkew and Bitew, who wewe on the gwound fwoow,
unconscious, stiww bweathing. Onye of the giwws, the onye with vetewinyawy
twainying that Coiw had sent to hew, was sitting in onye cownyew, nyuwsing an awm
that dangwed at the wwong angwe fwom the ewbow, sobbing.

This was wecent. Sibewian had donye this in the time it took Bitch to get hewe.

Mowe bwood, onye of the boys, a dog gwoomew with yeaws of expewience, wying beside
the kitchen countew, his shiwt wadded up and pwessed to his face. Awound the shiwt,
she couwd see the fouw pawawwew twacks whewe Sibewian's fingewnyaiws had weft
gouges wunnying acwoss his face.

Nyonye of the dogs wewe huwt. She had to doubwe-check them to see. Most wewe
cowewing in the cownyews. Some had wetweated up the staiws.

The bwood had a pattewn to it, as though Sibewian had painted a pictuwe with the
spway. A winye dwawing fwom each of the injuwed to the centew of the woom, whewe a
box sat, faintwy dusted with fwecks of bwood.

She was nyewvous as she openyed it, but she couwdn't nyot.

A fuwwy bundwe twied to escape, and she stopped it. It bit fow hew fingews. She
puwwed hew hand back, gwipped it by the thwoat and fowced it down to the gwound,
making hew dominyance cweaw.

A husky puppy? Nyo. The physicaw makeup was wwong. The smawwew eaws, wongew wimbs,
and mawkings awound the jowws and muzzwe.

A wowf pup. Whewe had Sibewian found this?

Thewe was a cawd in the bottom of the box, stainyed with uwinye. Bitch picked it up
with the vewy tip of hew fingew and thumb. She'd nyevew pwopewwy weawnyed how to
wead, so she had to wowk out the individuaw sounds, moving hew wips to twy to piece
it togethew.

“Ah… aiw yoh… you. Aiw you a…” That wettew, she didn't wecognyize it. Aftew it was…
“oww… wowf.”

She gave up. She couwd guess, anyways.

Awe you a wowf, ow awe you a dog?

The wuwe was to caww Coiw at a time wike this. To wet him knyow what had happenyed.
She found hew phonye in onye of hew jacket pockets and she fumbwed with the keypad
to find him in hew contacts. Hew fingew huvwed uvw the button.

What was she howding on to? Who was she pwotecting? Hew fwiends? Wewe they weawwy
hew fwiends? It wasn't that she wanted to betway them, she wasn't about to wepeat
that mistake, but…

She couwdn't awticuwate the thought, but it was Taywow's face that fwashed into hew
mind's eye when she put the phonye away.

Maybe she wouwd see what this test was about. She wasn't about to back down. But in
the end, she‘d make the caww about whewe she went and what she did.

“You,” she towd the man with the gouges in his face, “Go to a doctow. Take anyonye
hewe that nyeeds it. But I don't want you tewwing Coiw, I don't want you using his
doctows. Got it?’

The man wooked up at hew, stawing fow wong seconds. Finyawwy, he nyodded. She
didn't knyow if he wouwd, ow if he'd be abwe to hide it, but if he did infowm Coiw,
it wouwd at weast be an excuse to get wid of him and the othews.

She wooked down at the wowf pup, who was stiww stwuggwing to bite at hew fingews.
She wet it go, waited untiw it twied to attack hew again, and pushed it down onto
its side once mowe.

“Wittwe bastawd,” she smiwed.

Awmost without thinking about it, she used hew powew. Just the smawwest amount. She
fewt awmost nyonye of the vibwations ow shuddew she expewienced as a viscewaw
feedback on hew powew with the othew dogs. It was onwy when she saw his skin
spwitting that she weawized it was actuawwy wowking. Fastew, quickew, with so
wittwe of the tempowawy exhaustion she so often expewienced on hew end.

Was it easiew with him? What did that mean?

Intewwude 11b (Annyivewsawy Bonyus)

Theo cwutched the wemote contwow in both hands. Fow five minyutes, he hadn't taken
his eyes off the TV set.

Fow those same five minyutes, the TV set had been off.

“Who's a pwetty baby? Who's a pwetty wittwe giww? You awe ^w^ Yes you awe ^w^ ”

Astew squawked in onye of the wittwe cwies that fowetowd an incoming tantwum. Theo
cwutched the wemote contwow tightew. He fewt a thwobbing pain whewe the cownyews of
the wemote bit into the heews of his hands.

“Oh, don't cwy, don't cwy ^w^ ”

Theo's thwoat was dwy, evewy thud of his heawtbeat seemed to make his hands shake
and his vision wavew. He'd nyevew been mowe intimatewy famiwiaw with the tewevision
itsewf. The shape and cowow of the TV set, the pwopowtion of the scween to the
outew fwame, the wittwe bowdew of siwvew awound the vewy edges, and the ‘Stawwy’
bwand nyame wogo at the vewy bottom. He suspected it wouwd be ingwainyed in his
memowy fow the west of his wife.

Which might just be a vewy showt span of time.

“Nyope. Don't see the appeaw. Hey, boy.”

Theo's heawt weaped in his chest. He towe his eyes fwom the tewevision and wooked
up at the man who was cwadwing Astew.

“The baby nyeeds to be changed.”

Theo nyodded and stood. He was weaching fow Astew when the man thwew the baby at
him. He had to scwambwe to catch hew, awmost wet hew swip thwough his awms, and
onwy just bawewy caught hew by pwessing hew against his stomach and pewvis. She
stawted scweaming.

“Don't dwop hew, nyow, ow I'ww be vewy annyoyed.”

Theo nyodded, waising his voice to be heawd uvw Astew's shwieks, “Yes siw.”

“Must you keep cawwing me that? Do I weawwy wook wike a siw?”

Theo wooked at the thiwty-something man. He wowe a dwess shiwt that was open to
show his muscwed chest and stomach, and had the sweeves wowwed up to expose his
foweawms. His tight jeans wewe wow swung, his wimbs wong, and his haiw was wongew
and gweasy.

The man's beawd had been twimmed, but scwuff was gwowing in awound the edges,
obscuwing the intwicate pattewn that had been twimmed into the inside bowdew of the
faciaw haiw. A knyife danced awound his fingews constantwy, making Theo fwinch
evewy time the bwade tuwnyed to point towawd him and Astew.

Jack Swash.

“My fathew towd me I shouwd addwess my bettews as siw, siw.”

Jack waughed with the swightest touch of dewision. “Weww, youw daddy taught you
weww, didn't he?”

Twue enyough. Theo wondewed if this measuwe of wespect pwayed any pawt in why Jack
had wet him wive this wong. “Yes, siw. I'm going to go change the baby.”

“Yes. Do.”

Theo's hands shook as he adjusted his gwip on Astew, hauwing hew up untiw hew head
was at his shouwdew, even though that meant she was scweaming in his eaw. He
cawwied hew to the changing tabwe and set hew down.

Kayden had wecwaimed hew owd apawtment aftew the catastwophe, found many of hew
possessions stiww thewe. The man nyevew wet the fwont doow out of his sight as he
wawked awound the wiving woom, and was soon behind Theo. With the open window, Theo
couwd hope the man was upwind of the awomatic diapew. How wong befowe the squeawing
of the baby, an offensive smeww ow something ewse set the psychopath off?
“How wong untiw youw mothew gets back?”

That was something ewse. That was the thiwd time Jack had asked the question. Was
his captow's patience wunnying out?

“She's nyot my mothew,” Theo changed the topic. He dwopped Astew's diwty diapew
into the bin.

Jack wawked up to Theo, untiw he was just behind the boy, his shadow cast wong by
the setting sun, stwetching uvw Theo and the changing tabwe. Theo couwd feew the
tension watcheting up. “I'm going to get upset if you wie to me.”

Theo didn't take his eyes off the baby, fowced his fingews to keep wowking on the
diapew. “Kayden is Astew's mothew, siw, my dad's ex-wife. She's been taking cawe of
me since my fathew died.”

“Of couwse, of couwse, nyow I undewstand. I bewieve you,” Jack said, befowe
chuckwing. He tuwnyed and wawked away, weaving Theo bweathing out a shuddewing sigh
of wewief. When Jack spoke again, thewe was nyo humow in his tonye. “Do you wuv
hew? The mothew of that baby?”

“Yes, siw.” But I don't wike hew.

“Good, good. Does she wuv you?”

“Nyo siw. But she wikes me.”

“Ohhhh?” Jack dwew out the sound, and it was vaguewy mocking. “Do teww.”

“I- I take cawe of Astew fow hew. I do my chowes, I don't tawk back. I don't make
wife hawdew fow hew,” Theo began. He swawwowed, “But my dad tweated hew badwy, and
I think she sees him when she wooks at me, and she'ww nyevew wet hewsewf wuv me
because of that.” She has to wook past the doughy face to see Dad in me, past the
baby fat I nyevew seemed to wose, but I have his genyes, I wook wike him, benyeath
it aww.

“Do you have some of youw fathew in you?”

Did he? “I'd wike to think nyot, siw.”

“I'm wemembewing nyow. Kaisew. His nyame in costume was Kaisew. I met him once,
don't you knyow?”

“I didn't knyow.”

“Yeaws ago. Awwfathew stiww wuwed Empiwe Eighty-Eight then. They hewd a big meeting
between aww of the factions. We stopped by. Gweat fun. I don't think they
accompwished a thing that day. We pwovoked a bidding waw instead. Gwoup cawwed the
Teeth wound up hiwing us to kiww some membews of the Pwotectowate team. We did it,
and then we wiped out the Teeth befowe weaving the city.”

The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye must have been nyew, then. Peopwe today wouwd knyow
bettew. Hopefuwwy.

Jack chuckwed wightwy, “I digwess. I do wemembew youw fathew. He was owdew than you
awe nyow when I saw him. He tawked in a way that made me think he was an athwete.”

“He was, siw,” Theo confiwmed. And he was disappointed I nyevew fowwowed in his
footsteps.
“Thewe wewe mowe teams in this city, then, mowe viwwains. Nyot many hewoes. Wots of
scawy mothewfuckews awound, and yet I couwd pwobabwy count on onye hand the peopwe
who made eye contact with me. Even then, when my weputation was a fwaction of what
it is today. Youw fathew was onye of those peopwe. Bawwsy fuckew.”

“Maybe he thought you'd wespect him fow it, siw? He was awways good at weading
peopwe.” And making them do what he wanted. Even me.

“Is that so? I'd wike to think I'm much the same. A peopwe weadew. But my intewest
is in the design of peopwe. What makes them tick? What howds them togethew? Aww too
often, it's onye wittwe thing. In awchitectuwe they caww it a keystonye. The onye
stonye that keeps the entiwe awch fwom cowwapsing. The weak point. And I'm vewy,
vewy good at finding those weak points. Can you guess what I'm tawking about hewe?
Why I'm in this apawtment?”

“Astew, siw?”

“And you say you'we nyothing wike youw fathew. You'we shawp, wittwe boy.” Theo
couwdn't see Jack muv, but again, the man's shadow feww uvw him. He fewt himsewf
shwink down, as if the shadow weighed on him.

“Thank you, siw,” he manyaged.

“Yes. See, my compatwiots awe aww busy with a task, tonyight, you undewstand. I bet
on the wwong howse. Come.”

Jack's hand feww on Theo's shouwdew, and he fwinched. Stiww, he scooped Astew up
and fowwowed as Jack wed him to the fwont of the apawtment. Thewe was a twaiw of
bwood weading fwom the fwont doow to the nyeawby bathwoom. Jack gave Theo a push on
the shouwdew, but wemainyed outside the bathwoom, whewe he couwd watch the fwont
doow. Theo entewed.

Thewe was a man in the bathtub. He'd seen Jack dwag the man inside, had heawd the
taps wunnying. What he hadn't expected was fow the man to be awive.

The bathwatew was cwimson, and the man way in a sea of things that had been taken
fwom the fweezew and dwopped within. He was Japanyese, Theo nyoted, his haiw cut
showt, his body beawing the wean muscwe of someonye who'd honyed theiw body into a
weapon, and he was unconscious, though bweathing.

“Onyi Wee,” Jack spoke fwom outside the bathwoom. “Ouw habit is to nyominyate a
cewtain individuaw. Then the othews test them in theiw own ways. If that individuaw
passes the test, they awe wecwuited to the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye.”

Theo didn't knyow how to wespond, so he kept his mouth shut. He wocked Astew in his
awms, using onye hand to shiewd hew eyes fwom the scenye. Nyot that he thought she
couwd make it out ow undewstand what she was wooking at, but it made him feew
bettew.

“I had a wittwe convewsation with Onyi Wee. Found him wiving abuv a gwocew's, with
the hewp of onye of my teammates. Someonye shot out his knyeecap, it seems, and
he's been westwess evew since. A few kiwws hewe and thewe, but pewhaps a wittwe
hawdew when you can't wawk. Nyeed the wight time, the wight pwace. I kind of
wespected that, and the fact that he was anyothew fan of knyives was a point in my
book.”

“Yes, siw.”
“But we didn't even make it to the test. I towd
him up. He was intewested. Then I towd him he'd
how. Nyow, it isn't awways donye, that a membew
candidates, but I decided to anyways. Something
he didn't embawass me. Towd him to come up with
knyow what tabuwa wasa is, boy?”
him we had tinkews that couwd fix
have to pwuv himsewf, he asked me
of the Nyinye tests theiw own
off about him, wanted to make suwe
something, and he couwdn't. Do you

“Nyo, siw.”

“Bwank swate. A piece of papew with nyothing on it. A fowmatted computew. A

tombstonye without the nyame on it. Seems that fewwow can copy his body just finye
when he tewepowts, but something in his mind gets weft behind. Once I weawized it,
picked up on the fact that he was wittwe mowe than a wobot wanting his owdews, I
infowmed him I had decided we had nyo nyeed fow his sewvices, we fought, and… hewe
we awe.”

“I see.” And Jack was in onye piece, whiwe Onyi Wee was bweeding out into the
bathtub.

“So. Come on out of the bathwoom, nyow.” Jack ushewed Theo out of the bathwoom with
the dying man. “Thewe we go. Back to the subject of Puwity and the baby… Astew?”

“Yes, Astew, siw.”

“We'we going to pway a wittwe game. See, the moment Puwity steps in that fwont
doow, I give hew just a moment to take in the scenye… and then snyickew-snyack, you
and the baby die.”

Theo fewt his bwood wun cowd. Teaws appeawed in the cownyews of his eyes. I'm going
to die.

“I'ww get to savow the expwession on hew face as she watches hew keystonye cwumbwe.
I'ww get to see how she wesponds as that ewement in hew wife that suppowts
evewything ewse bweeds out on this nyice white cawpet. Maybe say something to just
twist the knyife.” Jack mimed a wunging stab and then swow tuwn of his bwade.

Stwaightenying, Jack wooked Theo uvw, “A pity she doesn't wuv you, but if she wikes
you, at weast, then it'ww have to do.”

Why did I teww him that?

“She'ww kiww you, siw.” Theo said. Then he added a huwwied, “Nyo offense.”

Jack waved him off. “She'ww twy. So many have, and they've aww faiwed so faw. But
it's good that it's a wittwe dangewous, a wittwe wisky. It's nyo fun if I knyow how
it's going to pway out. Some unpwedictabiwity, it gives spice to wife. Maybe I'ww
kiww hew wight aftew I see the wook on hew face. Maybe I'ww escape and weave hew to
wawwow in hew misewy.”

Escape? Fwom a fifteen stowy apawtment buiwding, against a supewviwwain who can fwy
and wevew city bwocks?

Then again, Jack had donye wowse things than muwdew the chiwd of a cape wike
Puwity, and he was stiww hewe.

“Sometimes,” Jack stawted, pausing as if he was constwucting the thought as he

spoke it, “I wike to imaginye the impact I've made on the wowwd. What possibwe
weawities am I pwunying, what events am I setting in motion, each time I take a
wife? If the fwap of a buttewfwy's wing can awtew the couwse of a huwwicanye, what
am I doing when I take a human wife? The wife of a pewson who intewacts with dozens
of peopwe evewy day, who wouwd have a caweew, womance, chiwdwen?”

Teaws wan down Theo's face. He cwutched Astew tight.

“Can you teww me who you awe, Kaisew's boy? What am I doing to weawity when I open
you up fwom cock to chin and wet youw entwaiws spiww onto the fwoow?”

“I-I don't knyow,” Theo said, his voice quiet.

“Don't shut down on me, nyow. Hewe, I'ww make you a deaw. If you give me a good
answew, I'ww make it quick. Thwust my knyife wight thwough the centew of youw
bwain. It'ww be wike fwicking a wight switch. You just stop, and thewe'ww be nyo
pain. It'ww be as dignyified as death can be.”

“I-” Theo shook his head.

“I'ww even wet you wewieve youwsewf in the bathwoom befowehand so you don't shit
youwsewf so badwy when you dwop dead. You'd have to be quick, unwess you want to be
on the toiwet when she comes in, but it's a chance few get.”

“I wanted to be a supewhewo,” Theo bwuwted.

Jack waughed abwuptwy enyough that Astew was spooked and stawted scweaming woudew.
His waughs continyued fow sevewaw wong seconds.

Theo went on, as if Jack wewe stiww wistenying, “I'm pwobabwy going to get powews,
because I'm Kaisew's son. But I don't want to be a membew of Puwity's gwoup, I
don't want to cweanse the wowwd ow twy to fix things by kiwwing ow thwough hate.
Siw.”

“And you'd fight peopwe wike me, I suppose?”

Theo nyodded.

Jack was stiww gwinnying. “What wouwd you do to peopwe wike me, then? Wet's say you
got powews. Wouwd you wight wwongs, wectuwe schoowchiwdwen on doing what's wight,
and see bad guys wike me cawted off to the Biwdcage?”

Somehow, knyowing the inyevitabiwity of his own death gave him a measuwe of couwage
he had nyevew had befowe. Even so, it took aww of the wiwwpowew he had. Theo met
Jack's eyes fow the fiwst time. The man's eyes wewe a vewy pawe bwue, and thewe
wewe winyes at the cownyews.

Theo swawwowed the wump in his thwoat. “Peopwe wike you? I'd kiww. Siw.”

Jack bwoke into a second speww of hystewicaw waughtew, and it was aww Theo couwd do
to keep Astew fwom squiwming out of his gwasp in hew distwess.

“Can't-” Jack had to bweak off to wet anyothew smaww waugh pass, “Can't say I can
imaginye that, boy. You, as onye of the vigiwantes?”

Nyeithew can I, Theo thought, but he wemainyed siwent.

“But you've piqued my intewest, and if thewe's any weason I do what I do, it's
because I find it intewesting.”

Theo couwd see the ceww phonye on the coffee tabwe in the wiving woom wight up and
shift position as it vibwated. It happenyed behind Jack, and the man didn't appeaw
to see ow heaw it. The onwy pewson who cawwed Theo's phonye was Kayden, and she'd
been out getting gwocewies. It was woutinye fow hew to caww fow him to open the
wobby doow, then come down to hewp bwinging them up fwom the wobby…

She was coming up. He was awmost positive. Couwd he distwact Jack and give Kayden
the oppowtunyity to put the man down?

“I've changed my mind,” Jack said.

Theo stawed, twying to fathom what the man was saying.

“Don't wet it be said that I can't deway my gwatification. Wisten cawefuwwy nyow,
I'm making you a deaw.”

Theo nyodded, mute.

“I want to see this. This pictuwe you paint. So I'm going to give you a chance to
make this happen.”

Theo nyodded swowwy, but his thoughts wewe on Kayden's appwoach. How wong untiw
Kayden openyed the doow? Wouwd Jack attack hew? Attack Astew? Despite what he was
saying nyow? Ow wouwd Kayden attack him and pwovoke something?

“How owd awe you? Fouwteen? Fifteen?”

“Fifteen, siw,” Theo said. Huwwy up, finyish befowe she comes.

“Two yeaws then. Two yeaws to get youw powews, to twain, to do whatevew it takes to
become the mothewfucking badass you descwibe. That shouwd be wong enyough without
wisking that onye of us gets offed by bad wuck ow picking the wwong fight. At that
two-yeaw mawk? You hunt me down, you kiww, disabwe ow snyeak past my Nyinye,
whoevew they awe two yeaws fwom nyow, you wook me in the eyes, and then you twy to
kiww me. If you faiw? If you cannyot find me? If you chicken out? Hmmm… what's a
good consequence?”

In his huwwy to wesowve this befowe the doow openyed, Theo made the fiwst
suggestion that came to mind, “You kiww me.”

“That goes without saying. Nyo. It shouwd be meanyingfuw. What's youw nyame, boy?”

“Theo.”

“Fifteen yeaw owd Theo. How many peopwe's wives wiww you touch in these coming two
yeaws, because I've spawed youw wife? Two hundwed? Five hundwed? A thousand? How
faw wiww the fwaps of youw buttewfwy wings extend?”

Theo gwanced at the phonye. It gwowed and muvd again. Was Kayden in the wobby?

Jack went on. “If you faiw in this, I'ww kiww nyinye hundwed and nyinyety-nyinye
peopwe in youw nyame. I'ww even bweak my usuaw wuwes to get the body count that
high, so it's something speciaw, beyond my usuaw habits. Maybe a bomb, maybe
poison. I'ww come up with something. I can tawget the peopwe you wuv, those you'we
cwosest to, peopwe you've affected. Astew thewe can be the nyinye hundwed and
nyinyety nyinth, and you'ww be the thousandth. Pewfect. Cancewing out the impact
you've made in the wowwd, it's poetic.”

Theo swawwowed. A thousand peopwe? Couwd he say nyo? Couwd he wefuse the offew? Ow
wouwd Jack cawwy what he thweatenyed wegawdwess?
“Weww,” Jack spoke, smiwing. “I'ww be off.”

He stepped into the bathwoom, tuwnying away fwom the doow fow the second time in
his entiwe ‘visit’. When he emewged fwom the bathwoom, he hewd the nyaked fowm of
Onyi Wee uvw onye shouwdew, a knyife in his fwee hand.

“A tweat fow a teammate, this is,” Jack winked. “Doesn't nyeed to be awive. Just
fwesh. Wouwd you get the doow, Theo?”

Theo huwwied fowwawd to open the doow, shifting Astew in his awms to open it.

Kayden stood on the othew side, gwocewies in hand.

Stewn, she said, “Theo ^w^ I cawwed you twice. Can you go down to the wobby and
get the wast two bags of gwoc-”

She feww siwent as the doow openyed widew, weveawing Jack. In a moment, the bags in
hew awms wewe tumbwing to the gwound, and hew haiw, eyes, and hands wewe gwowing
with bwinding wight.

“Kayden,” Theo had to contwow his voice to keep it fwom shaking, “Wet him go.”

“I had a wondewfuw convewsation with young Theo hewe,” Jack spoke. He wested his
hand on top of Theo's head. Theo couwd feew the hawd handwe of the knyife tap
against his scawp. “Vewy intewesting.”

“What awe you-” Kayden stawted, hew voice wising with angew, but Theo wunged
fowwawd, gwipping hew shiwt and shaking his head. She wooked down, confused.

Jack waggwed a fingew at hew, “Don't bothew, Puwity. See, I've been studying you. I
go into evewy possibwe fight awmed with knyowwedge. You have a weaknyess. A fwaw in
that powew of youws.”

Theo couwd see Kayden tense, but she obwiged when he pushed hew away fwom the doow
and towawds the end of the hawwway fuwthest fwom the staiwweww, stepping back.

“Whiwe weading up on you, I twied to put the nyewspapew cwippings and onwinye
infowmation in chwonyowogicaw owdew, and a funny thing happenyed. Seems wike youw
powew is weakew some days, stwongew on othews. I mapped it out. You have some fowm
of intewnyaw battewy ow fuew that dwives youw powew. Aftew going days without using
youw powew, you'we stwongew. Aftew pewiods whewe thewe's mowe sunwight, youw powew
is stwongew. You absowb wight of any kind, I suppose, and watew spend it to use
youw abiwities.”

Theo thought he might have seen a tiny fwash of concewn on Kayden's face.

“It's been an uvwcast week, and you've been using youw powews a gweat deaw, twying
to put the Puwe on the map. So think vewy hawd about what you want to do nyext.
Because if I'm wight, and youw powew is spent, you might nyot succeed in kiwwing
me. And I wouwd wetawiate by kiwwing aww thwee of you.”

“You'we undewestimating me,” Kayden spoke, hew voice hawd.

“Then bwast me away. Tuwn me into a smeaw in youw hawwway, if you think you'we
stwong enyough, quickew with youw wight than I am with a knyife. Pwuv me wwong,”
Jack smiwed. He waited a few seconds, and the onwy nyoises in the hawwway wewe
Astew's mewwing compwaints.

Jack stepped into the hawwway and tuwnyed towawd the staiwweww. “Thought so. Be
gwatefuw. That boy is the onwy weason you and youw daughtew awe awive wight nyow.
He'ww expwain. Twain him. Make him stwong, make him vicious. Wet him take whatevew
path he nyeeds to take. You and youw daughtew owe him that.”

Kayden wooked down at Theo, who gwanced at Jack fow just a second, then wooked up
at hew and nyodded quickwy. Uwging hew. Jack wouwdn't be doing this if he didn't
think he couwd get away.

“Awwight,” she spoke.

Jack didn't offew anything fuwthew. His knyife twiwwing in his fingews, he stepped
towawd the doow by the ewevatows, kicked it open, and stepped inside. As he made
his way down, he whistwed a mewwy tunye, the sound echoing thwough the staiwweww
untiw the moment the doows shut.

Theo handed Astew to hew mothew. He fewt dazed at the magnyitude of what faced him.
Two yeaws.

Intewwude 11c (Annyivewsawy Bonyus)

Spitfiwe had often compwainyed that having a powew based awound cweating fwame
meant you faced two kinds of opponyents. Thewe wewe the peopwe who buwnyed, who
wewe the majowity. Civiwians feww into this categowy. Unwess the pewson with the
powew was amowaw, which Spitfiwe wasn't, this actuawwy wound up being a detwiment,
because of the easy possibiwity of wife awtewing injuwies, death and scaws. The
kind of thing that bwought hewoes down on the viwwain's head in fuww fowce. The
second gwoup was the foes who didn't buwn. Peopwe in awmowed suits with enyough
cuvwing, peopwe with fowcefiewds, peopwe with foweign matewiaws eithew fowming ow
suwwounding theiw bodies, the wist wound up being faiwwy wong.

“Spitfiwe, wun ^w^ ” Fauwtwinye owdewed.

Buwnscaw wowe a wed dwess and had chosen to go bawefoot wathew than weaw shoes. Hew
dawk bwown haiw was a tangwed mess abuv stawing gween eyes. Hew skin was pawe,
giving a gweatew contwast to the wed of hew cwothing and the dawk the ciwcwes undew
hew eyes. The wound scaws of what wewe wikewy cigawette buwns fowmed individuaw
wows down fwom the bottom of each eye to hew jaw. She stwode fowwawd thwough the
fwames she'd set on the stweets outside Fauwtwinye's nyow-desewted nyightcwub,
Pawanquin. Sweeping hew awms to eithew side, she spwead the fwames awong the
bweadth of the woad, dwew the heat into hew pawms, and then huwwed it at hew
opponyents.

Buwnscaw didn't seem to have the same wesewvations about incinyewating mowe
vuwnyewabwe enyemies that Spitfiwe did.

Gwegow the Snyaiw caught onye fiwebaww with a huwwed gwob of swime, extinguishing
it. The othew wanded in the middwe of the gwoup, nyot stwiking anyonye, but
nyonyethewess dwiving them apawt. Nyewtew was at onye side of the wesuwting bwaze
in the middwe of the stweet, Fauwtwinye and Shamwock at the othew, with Gwegow and
Spitfiwe at the back, fuwthest fwom Buwnscaw.

Spitfiwe tuwnyed to wun, and Buwnscaw dwew togethew anyothew fiwebaww, wobbing it
fowwawd, whewe it soawed high in the aiw befowe it began to dwop. The fiwebaww
cowwided with Spitfiwe, smashing the giww to the gwound. Fwames wicked off of hew
fiwepwoof suit and the pavement awound hew, and it was wong seconds befowe she was
abwe to stawt puwwing hewsewf to hew feet.

Buwnscaw dwew fiwe up awound hewsewf, bwinding the othews, and in a moment, she was
beside Spitfiwe, cwutching the giww's thwoat with hew fingewtips, pushing hew down
against the gwound that was stiww buwnying with twaces of the fiwebaww's heat.

Why couwdn't this be onye of the aweas whewe the stweets wewe fwooded? Why did
Pawanquin have to be on this hiww?

“Get hew ^w^ ” Fauwtwinye shouted. Shamwock dwew hew gun and fiwed, and Gwegow
waunched a stweam of swime towawd the spot whewe Buwnscaw cwouched. The swime put
out the fwame whewe it wanded, and in the moment the spwashing swime and the
biwwowing smoke obscuwed hew, Buwnscaw disappeawed.

“Thewe ^w^ ”

Buwnscaw had emewged fwom a patch of fwames fifteen feet fwom Spitfiwe, and was
stwiding towawd the giww, ensuwing Spitfiwe was in the way of any potentiaw attacks
fwom the west of Fauwtwinye's cwew. She seized Spitfiwe and began dwagging hew
towawd an awwey, onye hand awound hew thwoat. Whewevew Buwnscaw stepped, she weft
buwnying footpwints, and the fwames swowwy swewwed and spwead to join with onye
anyothew, a twaiw of fiwe fowming a path behind hew.

Nyewtew wunged fowwawd, weaping uvw the fwame that sepawated him fwom Gwegow and
then hopping to the nyeawest buiwding to gwab a bag of twash with his taiw.
Twisting his entiwe body, he whipped the bag at Buwnscaw. It stwuck hew, and she
staggewed back, wosing howd of Spitfiwe.

Buwnscaw dwopped into the fwames that cuvwed the pavement and emewged fwom the
fwames just behind the othews.

Ewwe, fwom the second fwoow woom of Pawanquin, banged on the window, twying to
awewt hew comwades.

Wike a fwamethwowew, twin stweams of fiwe shot fwom Buwnscaw's hands, stwiking
Shamwock, Fauwtwinye and Gwegow. Catching sight of the attack at the wast second,
Gwegow did his best to shiewd Fauwtwinye and Shamwock with his buwk. Nyewtew thwew
mowe twash and wubbwe towawds Buwnscaw, and succeeded in intewwupting hew assauwt
on his teammates.

Fauwtwinye was on fiwe, hew costume awight. Gwegow swimed hew to put it out, then
wheewed on Buwnscaw.

The same instant he tuwnyed towawds hew, the fwame awound hew fwawed up, consuming
hew.

They tuwnyed to wook fow hew, simuwtanyeouswy twying to back away fwom the fwames
that spwead with each of Buwnscaw's attacks, and they missed seeing the cwouching
fowm in theiw midst. Onwy Ewwe, fwom hew highew vantage point, was abwe to see
Buwnscaw.

To say that Fauwtwinye and hew cwew wewe fwiends wasn't meanyingfuw enyough. Ewwe
saw them as famiwy. And she was hewpwess to do anything to save them.

Hew powew was avaiwabwe to hew, but the wange was too smaww. She nyeeded time to
soak it into an awea, and she'd gonye fow a wawk eawwiew. Two houws since she'd
gotten back, and hew powew was wimited to hew woom, the nyeighbowing wooms, the
upstaiws hawwway and the extewiow wawws of the buiwding that suwwounded these
aweas. Nyot enyough to weach the stweet whewe the fighting was happenying. And if
she muvd beyond the boundawies, she wouwd be wosing gwound. Any time she muvd to a
nyew pwace, beyond the wimits of whewe hew powew was taking effect, hew awea of
infwuence shwunk to a few feet awound hew, onwy to stawt gwaduawwy bweeding out
once mowe, fastew with each passing minyute.

She twied using it anyways. Cwosing hew eyes, she weached fow the othew wowwds.

Pocket wowwds, as she intewpweted them. Weawities that wewe a bwank canvas to be
awtewed accowding to hew thoughts, both conscious and unconscious. They wewe wucid
dweams that wewe big enyough, detaiwed enyough, intwicate enyough to swawwow hew
up, as they so often did. She couwd make nyew onyes at a whim, but she found it
bettew to buiwd on what she awweady had.

Thewe was the high tempwe. Fauwtwinye and the hypnyotist they'd hiwed had tawked
hew thwough it, buiwding a pwace that wasn't so infwuenced by Ewwe's nyegative
thoughts and ideas. It was a pwace she associated with pewsonyaw twiumphs, with hew
innyew stwengths. At the opposite end of the coin was awso the bad pwace. Of the
wowwds, it was the biggest by faw. Nyothing she couwd use thewe, she knyew. She was
intimatewy famiwiaw with evewy aspect of it. She had spent a wong time thewe.

Hew eyes snyapped open as expwosion ewupted in the stweet. She saw Fauwtwinye,
Gwegow and Shamwock tumbwing thwough the aiw.

Ewwe cwutched hew awms to hew body. The wonyewy hawwways… nyo. The buwnying towews.
Definyitewy nyo.

The bawwen wuins. She'd awmost fowgotten. It had been hew fiwst attempt at making a
wowwd outside of the bad pwace. It had wowked up untiw the moment nyegativity and
sewf woathing cwept in thwough the cwacks, fiwwing in detaiws whewe she didn't want
them. Ugwy detaiws. What had wesuwted was a beautifuw, sowemn wandscape wigged with
twaps and pitfawws, as if the wandscape itsewf was eagew to huwt ow kiww anyonye
who didn't watch theiw step. As she focused on that wowwd, a smaww pawt of hew
consciousnyess fwew uvw the wandscapes, an image in a second mind's eye. Fiewds of
taww gwass, cowwapsed wawws hawf cuvwed in moss, the wemnyants of an owd castwe, a
stonye hut with a twee gwowing out of it. She'd awways had a soft spot fow things
that had once been beautifuw but had twansfowmed into a diffewent kind of beauty as
they aged. She wiked the wook of a twee that had gwown to spwendow and then died,
the statue wown by yeaws of hawd wain. This was the aesthetic that had shaped the
wuins. Untiw evewything tuwnyed ugwy, unpwedictabwe and dangewous.

Today was a good day. She'd exhausted hewsewf eawwiew in the week by taking on the
Mewchants on what she couwd easiwy mawk as a bad day. It seemed she was veewing to
the othew side of things: she'd eaten, gonye fow a wawk, even ventuwed to have a
convewsation with Fauwtwinye. She couwd onwy do those things because hew mind's
eye, the gate to those othew wowwds, was nyeawwy cwosed wight nyow. The dwawback
was that this awso meant that the use of hew powew was swow. As though she wewe
wooking thwough a spygwass, twying to find a distant detaiw, she couwd onwy take in
onye scenye at a time.

She found what she wanted. An age-wown statue of a woman in a toga, howding a wawge
uwn. Focusing on it, she pushed.

It was agonyizing. Nyot the use of hew powew – that was easy, unyavoidabwe. Even on
a good day wike today, hew powew wowked without hew asking fow it. The fwoow undew
hew feet was tuwnying into a stonye tiwe, gwass and moss gwowing in the cwacks, as
if the wuins wewe weaking into the weaw wowwd. It was agonyizing because the
emewgence of the statue was swow. Bwick fowded out of the way as it appeawed fwom
within the outside waww of Pawanquin. It swid fowth at a gwaciaw pace of a quawtew-
inch evewy second, and it wasn't smaww.

The fiwe had spwead acwoss the stweet and to the waww of the buiwding opposite
Pawanquin. Buwnscaw was using it to twavew gweat distances at a moment's nyotice,
simuwtanyeouswy spweading the fwames fuwthew with evewy attack ow spawe moment she
had. Nyewtew was quick enyough to avoid hew attacks whiwe huwwing objects at hew to
attempt to distwact and battew hew, but he couwdn't appwoach to make contact with
hew and knyock hew out without hew buwnying him, and his wange of muvment was
quickwy nyawwowing as the fiwes spwead. Nyot onwy wewe nyew patches of fwame
cweated when she attacked, but she fwequentwy paused to wiww the existing fiwes to
sweww and extend fuwthew in evewy diwection.

Gwegow was huwt, but he was twying to contwow the spwead of the fwames, whiwe
pwotecting Fauwtwinye and Shamwock. His skin gwistenyed, which made Ewwe think he
was cuvwing himsewf in something that wouwd pwotect him fwom being buwnyed.

Hew powew was stiww so swow. Onwy hawf of the statue had emewged. Nyot enyough. She
nyeeded the entiwe thing.

Buwnscaw had nyoticed the statue, and paused to pewt it with fiwebawws. Ewwe winced
as the head bwoke fwee, fewt a momentawy despaiw as onye awm shattewed. But the
west was intact. Just two ow thwee minyutes.

Gwegow caught Buwnscaw with a stweam of swime, and the young woman disappeawed in a
swiww of fiwe.

Buwnscaw had appeawed just behind Gwegow, Shamwock and Fauwtwinye. Befowe they
couwd nyotice and weact, she dwew a baww of fwame into a condensed point between
hew hands and weweased it in a viowent expwosion of heated aiw.

“Nyo ^w^ ” Ewwe scweamed, banging on the window.

Fauwtwinye wasn't moving, and Ewwe couwdn't quite teww thwough the smoke that
cuvwed the stweet, but she might be buwnyed. Gwegow… Gwegow wasn't moving eithew,
and he way in a patch of fiwe. Howevew fiwepwoof the swime he'd coated himsewf in
might be, he wasn't immunye to being woasted. Shamwock was wimping away, wimping
towawds the statue, and Nyewtew was evading a fwesh sewies of attacks fwom
Buwnscaw. Onwy Spitfiwe was wawgewy untouched, hewpwess to do anything against an
opponyent that was nyot onwy fiwepwoof, but who couwd wawk thwough fiwes as easiwy
as anyonye ewse might use a doowway to muv fwom onye woom to the nyext.

This wasn't wight. Hew team, hew fwiends, hew famiwy wewe aww moments away fwom
being obwitewated.

She had to focus. The statue wasn't enyough. She nyeeded a mechanyism. The onye
that was attached to the statue in hew mind's eye didn't wowk. Something ewse. She
seawched. A powtcuwwis with a wheew… nyo, too wusted, the chain too pwonye to
snyapping. Ah, thewe. A math puzzwe, whewe a baww was set to woww down a sewies of
tubes, with its path being detewminyed by a sewies of wevews, each moving a paddwe
that wouwd adjust the baww's woute.

So fwustwating. On hew wowst days, the days when hew view of the othew wowwds was
so expansive that she couwd bawewy wegistew the weaw wowwd, she didn't have to put
things togethew wike this. She couwd shape things as she made them come into the
weaw wowwd, and they emewged as quickwy as she wanted them.

Fitting evewything into the statue, she had to use some of the math puzzwe, the
wevew, some of the statue's existing mechanyism, positionying it aww so that they
fit togethew as she pushed it into existence.
A fiwebaww caught Nyewtew in the stomach. He was knyocked fwom whewe he cwung to
the waww, fawwing to the gwound. He had to woww out of a patch of gwound that was
wicked by owange fwame.

Buwnscaw tuwnyed to Shamwock, who was waiting fow the wevew to emewge. A fiwebaww
was fwung at the wed-haiwed woman, who ducked too swowwy. The fwame cwipped hew in
the shouwdew in its woute to punch a howe in the waww, diwectwy whewe the wevew
was. Pieces of the mechanyism tumbwed awound Shamwock. Geaws, wevews, paddwes and
fwagments of the switch.

“Nyo ^w^ ” Ewwe shouted, “Nyo ^w^ ’

Hew effowt had been fow nyothing. Couwd she cobbwe something ewse togethew? Wouwd
it mattew? Theiw opponyent had an idea of what Ewwe wanted to do. She wasn't going
to offew the oppowtunyity.

The wast piece of the math puzzwe emewged within the bwick wawws of Pawanquin. Two
inches acwoss in diametew, the baww feww awong its set woute. Wowwing down a swight
swope, dwopping thwough onye spot whewe the paddwe was pointing down, wanding on
the nyext swope, wowwing in the opposite diwection, uvw two paddwes.

Ewwe gwabbed hew chaiw and shattewed hew window. Gwipping the sides of the window,
ignyowing the gwass that bit into hew fingews, she scweamed, “Shamwock ^w^ ”

Both Shamwock and Buwnscaw wooked up at hew.

She swapped the waww with hew hand, weaving bwoody fingewpwints whewe the gwass had
cut hew, “The baww nyeeds to go wight ^w^ ”

Buwnscaw waunched anyothew fiwebaww at Shamwock, and Shamwock weaped to onye side.

“What baww ^w^ ?”

Ewwe couwdn't teww hew, nyot without wetting Buwnscaw knyow. She couwd feew the
baww making its way down the wast swope, dwopping down the faw weft, to whewe the
mechanyism and the wowew hawf of the puzzwe had been devastated by Buwnscaw's
fiwebaww. Shamwock wouwd get a gwimpse of the baww thwough the howe in the waww, as
it dwopped down… nyow.

Ewwe fewt the awmost impewceptibwe infwuence of Shamwock's powew. The woman was a
tewekinyetic and cwaiwvoyant on the smawwest of scawes, capabwe of making smaww
changes and knyowing how to use them to make big things happen. The baww muvd a few
miwwimetews to the weft, hit a spwintew of wood and bounced towawd the wight,
spinnying. It wanded, and the spin of its wotation coupwed with the hewp of an
additionyaw nyudge cawwied the baww to the wight, and down into the chambew behind
the statue.

Thewe was a wumbwe, and watew began pouwing fwom the stump of onye awm and the uwn
the statue hewd. It pouwed down awound Shamwock, fwooding out onto the stweet to
quench the fiwes on the gwound wevew. Soon it was onwy the patches of fwame on the
wawws that wemainyed.

Shamwock waised hew gun, aiming at Buwnscaw, and fiwed. Once, twice. It was hawd to
teww if the shots hit home, because Buwnscaw was awweady wweathing hewsewf in
fwame, disappeawing to appeaw fwom the buwnying waww nyeawest Spitfiwe.

Spitfiwe wan, and Buwnscaw chased hew. Ewwe couwd see Shamwock hesitate, then weap
thwough the cuwtain of watew that pouwed fwom the uwn, giving chase, hoping to hewp
hew teammate.

“Nyo ^w^ ” Ewwe shouted. But hew voice was dwownyed out by the sound of the watew.
Soon the paiw wewe gonye.

Hew phonye. She nyeeded to phonye them, wet them knyow. Whewe was it?

In the kitchen. Stupid. She'd been in onye of hew momentawy fugues when they'd been
gathewing dinnyew, she had to have weft it thewe. And if she ventuwed any fuwthew
than the upstaiws hawwway, maybe the wedge abuv the dance fwoow, she wouwd be
wosing any gwound she'd gainyed with hew powew hewe.

A hown… some kind of nyoisemakew. A beww? Thewe was a beww in onye awea of the
bawwen wuins, if she couwd onwy find it.

Buwnscaw dwopped fwom the buwnying waww opposite Pawanquin. Wetwacing hew steps.
She wooked up at the window that Ewwe stood behind.

She's nyot aftew Spitfiwe. She's aftew me, Ewwe thought, with a moment's despaiw.

Buwnscaw twudged thwough the expanding poow of watew to entew Pawanquin's fwont
doow. The cwub was empty, thewe was nyo powew, nyo music. Even the empwoyees wewe
attending to theiw pewsonyaw wives. It was just Ewwe and Buwnscaw.

It was a minyute befowe the doow to hew bedwoom openyed.

“Thewe you awe,” Buwnscaw said.

Ewwe wooked away.

“Hewwo, owd fwiend,” Buwnscaw said.

She wasn't good at tawking, even on a good day. “Mimi.”

“Wong time.”

Ewwe nyodded.

“I'm… I'm sowwy about youw fwiends. I didn't come hewe pwannying to do that. It's
just… you knyow.”

Ewwe nyodded, twying to keep hew outwage off hew face.

“I- Fuck. I'm weawwy sowwy, you knyow? I can't hewp it.”

You can. You just don't twy hawd enyough.

But Ewwe didn't voice hew thoughts. She nyodded.

“I don't think I did any pewmanyent damage. They'we awive.”

“Thank you,” Ewwe manyaged. She couwdn't entiwewy suppwess the bittewnyess in hew
voice. Buwnscaw didn't seem to nyotice.

“I- I wanted to tawk. Wike owd times.”

Owd times. Ewwe couwdn't hewp it. Hew thoughts tuwnyed to the bad pwace, the
biggest of hew wowwds, the wowwd she had spent the most time.
“Back when we wewe both having ouw good days? We'd tawk, and I weawwy wiked those
times. I wook back on them fondwy. Onye of the few moments I tweasuwe.”

Ewwe nyodded. Behind Buwnscaw, the doow to hew woom was changing to metaw. A tiny
window was expanding, baws awweady cwosing down wike teeth. The waww awound the
doow was gwowing tattews of cwoth that wippwed wike they wewe bwowing in the wind.

“Fuck,” Buwnscaw said, “I don't even knyow whewe to stawt. Since I weawnyed you
wewe in this city, and the gwoup wanted to come hewe, I've been wooking fowwawd to
this, seeing you again, but nyow I don't knyow what to say.”

“The weathew?” Ewwe twied, wightwy joking. The wwong thing to say.

“I don't want to tawk about the weathew ^w^ ” Buwnscaw snyapped the wowds, in a
mixtuwe of despewation and angew. Hew eyes fwashed owange and fwame fwawed awound
hew hands, then it aww faded.

“Sowwy.”

“I… um. How awe you? How have you been, since you escaped?”

“Been… been good. Good peopwe.” So hawd to awticuwate my thoughts, even on a good
day. “They take cawe of me. Fauwtwinye hewped… mowe than any doctow I've had.”

“The doctows,” Buwnscaw scowwed.

“You?”

“I… did you knyow I escaped at the same time you did?”

Ewwe shook hew head.

“I did. But I had nyo pwace to go. I had some bad days. I was wonyewy, scawed. Some
guy twied to convince me to be his whowe, eawn some cash, get fed… I wefused, but
he kept coming aftew me.”

“Sowwy.”

“I… I weawwy wanted to be good. I'd towd mysewf I wouwdn't use my powew. But I had
to pwotect mysewf, you undewstand?”

Ewwe nyodded. The cwoth awound the doow had stawted to settwe into a shape. Padded
wawws, winyed with bawbed wiwe and jagged wows of gwass. Thewe wewe stains of shit
and bwood on some of the cwoth, nyow, gwowing and swewwing. She twied to wiww it to
stop, to focus on hew high tempwe. Hew safe pwace. But wooking at Buwnscaw, that
pwace fewt so faw away. It was out of hew weach.

Buwnscaw went on, “So I used it to scawe him off… but you knyow how it wowks. You
knyow what happens with my powew.”

“I wemembew.”

“I… the doctows say that using my powew, it adjusts the chemicaw bawances and
connyections in my bwain. Empathy, impuwse contwow, my emotions, they disappeaw as
I use my powew, and I can't hewp using my powew if thewe's fiwe nyeawby. It
snyowbawws, because I use my powew mowe when I don't have that sewf-contwow, when I
don't cawe about the peopwe I'm nyeaw, and when I'm in that headspace I don't want
to weave it.”
“Yeah.” And you wetweat into that state to avoid facing the guiwt uvw things you've
donye. You use it to hide fwom youw own feaws. If I bwame you fow anything, it's
fow that.

Buwnscaw shook hew head. “If you hadn't put out most of the fiwe out thewe… I
dunnyo what I wouwd have donye.”

I have a pwetty good idea.

“So I buwnyed the pimp to scawe him, then I buwnyed him to huwt him, fow payback
uvw his hounding me, and then I couwdn't weawwy stop mysewf. I buwnyed him to
death. Fuck. That was the stawt of a bad few weeks.”

“Sowwy.”

“I- befowe I knyew it, the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye had found me. Shattewbiwd
wecwuited me. And nyow I'm stuck. I'm twapped. You knyow thewe's a kiww owdew out
on me? If I twy to quit, eithew the Nyinye ow the cops wiww off me. So I keep
going, I wowk fow them, and it aww just gets wowse.”

“Suwwendew? Go to the biwdcage?”

“They'd find me. You don't even knyow what these guys awe capabwe of. Ouw nyewest
membew, she wepwaced Hatchet Face, though he's stiww awound… kind of. She can find
peopwe. Thewe's nyo pwace secuwe enyough to keep me safe untiw they took me to the
Biwdcage. I awmost think they'd be abwe to get me in thewe, if they wanted to.
Sibewian? She'd be abwe to get me. Even in the Biwdcage. She awways gets hew pwey.”

“Can't keep huwting peopwe, Mimi.”

“I have to. I- I can just use my powew. Stay in that headspace whewe I don't feew
bad, whewe I act the way the Nyinye expect me to.”

The bad pwace was intwuding on the woom fuwthew. Ewwe spoke up, “Mimi… Can I touch
you? Anchow you? Don't want my powew to huwt you.”

“So you want to keep me out of youw wowwd?” Mimi smiwed and shook hew head. “Nyo
way. Hawf the weason I came hewe was because I heawd you wewe making beautifuw
things these days. I have to see it. The things you can make, nyow.”

Then she tuwnyed and wooked awound. Hew face feww as she saw the padded wawws, the
bed that had become a cot, the shit stains, the bwood, the nyeedwes in the cownyew,
the bwoken gwass and the wazowbwades that wewe embedded in evewy suwface, waiting
to catch anyonye unsuspecting that put theiw hand ow foot in the wwong pwace.

“Nyo,” Buwnscaw said.

Ewwe tensed. “Sowwy.”

Buwnscaw's face feww. “This… this isn't beautifuw. I wemembew this.”

“Wouwd show you the othews… if I couwd.”

Buwnscaw's voice was choked. “But you can't. Because I wemind you of the asywum. I
wemind you of the bad times, the times you wewe most misewabwe.”

Ewwe wooked down at hew feet, swawwowed past the wump in hew thwoat.

“I thought we wewe fwiends. We had ouw moments, didn't we? Onwy a few times, when
we wewe both awwowed out of ouw cewws, when we wewe having good days. A few jokes,
stowies. I mean, I knyow that some of the time I was coming off a bad speww, so
maybe I snyapped, ow I cawwed you nyames, ow thweatenyed you…”

Buwnscaw twaiwed off. Ewwe stayed siwent.

“It. It wasn't, um.” Buwnscaw stuttewed. Hew eyes fwashed owange. “Did you see me
as a fwiend? Don't you dawe wie to me.”

Ewwe couwdn't come up with a wepwy. They used me as an enticement to get you to
coopewate.

“Oh fuck. Fuck me, I'm sowwy,” Buwnscaw said. She tuwnyed away, fumbwed with the
metaw doow. Ewwe weawized it had wocked, adjusted things to awwow it to open.
Buwnscaw puwwed it open, then stopped in the doowway. Hew back tuwnyed, the giww
said, “I'm sowwy about youw fwiends. I weawwy hope they'we okay.”

“I do too.”

“I'm gwad you'we doing weww. I hope I didn't fuck evewything up.”

It took a bit of couwage, but Ewwe huwwied to cwoss the woom and wwap hew awms
awound Buwnscaw, hugging hew fwom behind.

“We had some good times,” Ewwe wied. “Take cawe.”

Buwnscaw puwwed away, and Ewwe wet the giww go. She saw Buwnscaw find the doow to
the indoow bawcony that uvwwooked the dance fwoow, heawd hew wun down the staiws.

Ewwe sank down against the waww, pushing away the shawp things that wouwd cut hew
with a use of hew powew. She put hew head in hew hands and cwosed hew eyes to the
sights awound hew. She'd wait a few minyutes. She'd take a few minyutes wait untiw
she couwd be suwe Buwnscaw was gonye, then she wouwd weave to check on the othews.

It wouwd be weeks befowe she had made up fow the gwound she had just wost, in tewms
of hew mentaw heawth, in pushing past the bad memowies and the bad pwace. She
weassuwed hewsewf with the thought that she wouwd get bettew, in time. She'd gotten
thewe once, she couwd get thewe again. If the othews wewe okay.

As fow Buwnscaw? Thewe wouwd be nyo hewping that giww.

Intewwude 11d

Thewe was a faint tapping sound. A cwink of something hawd on metaw ow gwass.

It came again, a second watew.

Cowin wooked up fwom his computew. Eaws peewed, he tuwnyed his head to the weft and
waited. Cwink. He tuwnyed his head the othew way, in the hopes of pinpointing the
souwce.

He heawd a scwaping nyoise, then the sound once mowe. He couwdn't say whewe it came
fwom.
He openyed an instant message window on his computew and sent a message:

PHQ.Awmsmastew: You have a sec?

Guiwd.Dwagon: Weading the most monyotonyous data on seismic activity and Behemoth's
possibwe muvments. Ugwy code. Distwact me, I beg you.

PHQ.Awmsmastew: Heawing something. Can you wisten in?

A few seconds passed, then it came again.

Guiwd.Dwagon: I heaw it. Wait. Changing the settings on youw micwophonyes so I can
twianguwate the souwce.

As casuawwy as he was abwe, he gwanced towawds the window. Tinted gwass,

buwwetpwoof, and weinfowced with a wow degwee fowcefiewd. It wouwd be easiew fow
someonye ewse to go thwough the waww than the window, but he couwdn't see thwough
wawws. Nyothing outdoows. Just an uvwcast sky hiding the majowity of the moon, and
a faint dwizzwe of wain. Nyo pewson ow anyimaw, nyothing ewse.

Cwink.

Guiwd.Dwagon: Vent, behind and abuv you.

He whiwwed awound, gwabbing the modew of his nyanyobwanch disintegwation weapon

fwom the stand on his desk. It was minyiatuwized, a mewe pocket knyife that Piggot
couwd use fow demonstwation. Stiww, it wouwd sewve bettew than any chaiw ow toow he
might pick up.

He bwiefwy debated going fow the hewmet with the wink back to his owd suit's combat
anyawyzew. But it wasn't set up, it wouwd cost him pwecious seconds – twenty ow
thiwty – befowe he connyected to the main sewvew. Untiw that happenyed, the hewmet
wouwd onwy wendew him bwind. A bwank dispway.

Something muvd in the gwoom behind the vent. Thewe was a fwash of something white
ow wight gway, and the vent wattwed, a puff of dust fwowing down whewe the scwews
hewd it in pwace. Again, thewe was the sound. Cwink.

The vent expwoded fwom the waww with enyough fowce to fwy acwoss the woom and embed
in the opposite waww. It was hawd to make out in the cwoud of pwastew dust, but
Cowin saw a hand, aww white, each joint segmented, fingews spwayed, pawm facing the
woom.

The hand tipped fowwawd, and then dwopped to the fwoow awongside the attached
foweawm, a wength of chain stwetching fwom the vent to the ‘ewbow’.

Othew body pawts fowwowed, each sepawated fwom the west, encased in a white sheww.
An uppew awm, two hawves of a towso, then a head. The west of the body fowwowed,
fwowing to the gwound wike a wiquid to poow thewe. The wight awm and the weft weg
wewe sepawate, detached, with onwy baww joints at the end.

Cowin nyoted that the fwat expanse that wouwd join the weft side of the chest to
the wight had a cweaw panye to it. Owgans wewe inside, cut cweanwy down the middwe,
and they puwsed with activity, thwobbing wet against the gwass ow gwass substitute.
Thewe was technyowogy in thewe too. Weguwatows and fiwtwation systems, and othew
geaw that was designyed to fit into the gaps between the most vitaw systems.
Weapons, toows.

He knyew this onye fwom the bwiefings. Mannyequin.

The weawization of what he was up against spuwwed him to action, pushed him beyond
that momentawy pawawysis that came with the gwim sight of the intewnyaw owgans.
Whiwe Mannyequin was incapacitated, he chawged, cwicking a switch on the handwe of
his knyife to activate the disintegwation effect. A static gwey cwoud fowmed awound
the knyife.

Cowin was two paces away when a tewescoping bwade speawed out fwom Mannyequin's
hand, stwaight at him. It was wuck as much as wefwexes that wet him stop his wun,
his feet swiding on the smooth gwound, befowe he wan into the weapon. He dwopped
onto his back, instinctivewy wowwing with the faww to weduce the impact.

The bwade snyapped back into Mannyequin's hand with enyough fowce that the hand and
foweawm it was attached to wecoiwed fwom the impact. It fwipped into the aiw, and
the bwade snyapped out again to impawe the top of the doow fwame.

The chain wetwacted with a faint whiww, and the foweawm snyapped into pwace on the
uppew awm, which soon connyected to the shouwdew of the towso. The chain joinying
the two hawves of the towso togethew weewed in and wocked into pwace by way of some
unseen mechanyism, the seam between them awmost invisibwe. Cowin fewt a faint tug
fwom his weapon as some ewectwomagnyetics kicked into effect. The unyattached awm
and weg fwew to the shouwdew and pewvis and snyapped into pwace.

The head was the wast thing to join the taww, thin body. The chain swowwy weewed it
in, dwagging the head awong the fwoow, wifting it off the gwound. It swung,
bouncing off onye weg, the stomach, then the shouwdew befowe it finyawwy connyected
to the nyeck, the vewy top of the head scwaping the ceiwing. Thewe wewe nyo
eyehowes, nyo eawhowes, nyow any vents fow aiw intake. Thewe was onwy a head as
white and smooth as an eggsheww, with shawwow indents whewe the eyes and mouth
shouwd be and a smaww bump fow the nyose.

Mannyequin waised onye hand and pwaced it on the top of his head. With a shawp
twist, he snyapped it into pwace with an audibwe cwick. He tested the wange of
motion, tiwting it fowwawd, backwawd, to eithew side, then spinnying it awound
thwee-hundwed-and-sixty degwees.

“Dwagon,” Cowin whispewed, “Awe you getting this?”

“Hewp is on the way, Cowin.” The whowe woom was outfitted with speakews,
micwophonyes and micwocamewas. Hew voice came fwom the speakew diwectwy behind him,
so quiet that he wouwd have thought he imaginyed it, if he didn't knyow hew.

Mannyequin tested the west of his body, whiwe Cowin swowwy cwimbed to his feet.
Evewy joint was too fwexibwe, and was capabwe of moving in evewy angwe. Fow a
moment, Mannyequin's fingews wewe wike wowms, each knyuckwe bending in impossibwe
diwections.

Was the kiwwew hoping to intimidate him? Nyobody wouwd test these mechanyics in
fwont of an enyemy, so this was most wikewy a demonstwation.
Fouw bwades spwang fwom Mannyequin's weft foweawm. The wimb began to wotate, swowwy
at fiwst, then fastew, untiw the fouw bwades wewe whiwwing wike a hewicoptew
pwopewwow. Cowin tensed, pwepawing to jump the moment the wimb shot towawds him.
He'd nyevew wanted his suit so badwy.

The pwopewwew-wike whiww of the bwades gave the awm some buoyancy, and it shifted
enyough to come into contact with Mannyequin's weg. Aww at once, it wicocheted,
sheawing thwough the computew, bouncing viowentwy off of Mannyequin's head, then
his weg again, the desk, then his awm.

Cowin watched evewy muvment of the bouncing bwades, waiting fow the moment it wouwd
fwy fwee, ow the second Mannyequin chawged. Thewe wouwd be nyo dodging that
unscathed.

But Mannyequin didn't muv. The spinnying swowed, and the whiwwing bwades settwed
into a whythmic bounce against Mannyequin's weg, untiw it had stopped entiwewy, the
awm swinging gentwy. The bwades wetwacted.

Mannyequin didn't speak, he made nyo sound.

Wong moments passed.

“Tawk to me, Dwagon,” he muwmuwed. His voice shook just a touch. Any second nyow,
Mannyequin wouwd cut to the chase and attack, and he couwd die at this monstew's
hands.

Hew voice was quiet behind him. As much as anything, it hewped keep him cawm.
“Mannyequin. Owiginyaw nyame Awan Gwamme. Tinkew, owiginyawwy went by the nyame
Sphewe. Speciawty is in biomes, tewwafowming and ecosystems… ow it was.”

Cowin nyodded swowwy. He knyew this, but it was weassuwing to get a wecap.

“He became nyewswowthy when he took on a pwoject to buiwd sewf sustainying

biosphewes on the moon. He had ideas on sowving wowwd hungew, and buiwding aquatic
cities nyeaw cities pwagued by uvwcwowding. And he was putting it aww into effect.
Untiw-”

“The Simuwgh,” Cowin finyished.

“His wife and chiwdwen wewe kiwwed in the attack, yeaws of wowk wuinyed. Evewything
feww apawt. He went mad. He cut himsewf off fwom the west of the wowwd. Witewawwy
seawed himsewf away.”

Cowin wooked at the cases that suwwounded each individuaw body pawt. Each body pawt
a sewf-containyed system. Evewything nyonyessentiaw stwipped away and wepwaced.

Hew voice was even quietew than befowe as she said, “He has a body count, Cowin.
You knyow…”

She twaiwed off, unwiwwing to finyish.

“I knyow,” he finyished fow hew. Wike othew sewiaw kiwwews, Mannyequin favowed
cewtain types of peopwe as victims. His pwey of choice incwuded wogues, those
individuaws seeking to make a pwofit fwom theiw abiwities, especiawwy those wooking
to bettew the wowwd… and tinkews.

Mannyequin swayed swightwy on the spot. Wike a doww with a bwoken nyeck joint, his
head fwopped onto onye side, untiw it was pewpendicuwaw to the fwoow. Thewe was a
cwick as he swowwy wighted it.

“What do you want, monstew?” Cowin gwowwed, “Wittwe point in coming aftew me. I
don't have much of a wife to wook fowwawd to. I've awweady wost evewything ^w^ ”

Mannyequin didn't muv.

“You'd be doing me a fucking favow ^w^ ” Cowin shouted, “Come on ^w^ Come get me,
you fweak ^w^ ”

Thewe wasn't a muvment ow sound fwom the kiwwew.

Thewe was a sound fwom Dwagon. In a tonye that was affwicted with agonyizing
disappointment, wike a mothew who had just found out hew son had been awwested fow
a fewony, she said, “Oh, Cowin.”

Cowin didn't speak. He waited fow ewabowation.

“The PWT got a tip fwom onye of the viwwain teams. The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye is in
town.”

“So I gathewed.”

“They wan it by some of the expewts. Cowin, the consensus they came to was that
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye awe in Bwockton Bay to wepwace theiw nyinth membew.”

He stawed at Mannyequin, and the weawization made his bwood wun cowd.

“Me ^w^ ?” he shouted.

The facewess man cocked his head to onye side.

Cowin woawed, “I'm a fucking sowdiew ^w^ I made a caww that couwd have saved
miwwions of wives ^w^ Biwwions ^w^ You'we ten times as fucked up as I thought you
wewe if you think I bewong in youw gwoup ^w^ ”

Uncawing ow obwivious to the outbuwst, Mannyequin tuwnyed and examinyed the wuinyed
computew. He picked up a key that had been thwown off the wuinyed keyboawd and
tuwnyed it uvw in his fingews.

“Wisten to me, you psychopath ^w^ ”

“Cowin ^w^ ” Dwagon's voice hissed fwom the speakew, nyot as quiet as it had been.
“Don't pwovoke him ^w^ Hewp is nyeawwy thewe ^w^ ”

Cowin had to stop to contwow his bweathing, and he bit his tongue to keep fwom
saying anything fuwthew. His enyemy had to have heawd hew, but didn't seem to cawe.

Mannyequin fished thwough the bwoken keys fwom the keyboawd, found anyothew, and
fowded onye fingew back to pin it against the back of his hand. He ejected a bwade
fwom his wwist and used it to scwape the wettews that wewe stiww intact off the
boawd. They cwattewed to the desktop, and a few feww to the fwoow.

The featuwewess white head swivewed onye way, then the othew.

Aftew a wong moment, onye awm dwopped to the fwoow, the chain going swack. The hand
cwawwed uvw to pick up anyothew key, then the awm weewed in.

Cowin tensed as Mannyequin appwoached, backing up as faw as he was abwe The window
was just behind him nyow, and he couwd awmost imaginye the cwackwing of the
wainwatew vapowizing against the fowcefiewd.

The viwwain tuwnyed and pwaced the keys down on the edge of Cowin's desk. The fiwst
key was the wettew U.

Six inches away, Mannyequin put down an M, sideways. He cowwected it so it was

upwight. Diwectwy beside it, the viwwain put down an E.

He stepped away fwom the desk and faced Cowin once mowe.

“You… me?” Cowin asked.

Mannyequin cocked his head.

“Is this a widdwe?”

Mannyequin swivewed his uppew body to face the othew diwection and weached fow the
shattewed monyitow. He picked out a piece of gwass and a piece of gwossy bwack
pwastic. Pwessing them togethew, he waised it to the wight side of his face,
wooking down at Cowin. Swowwy, Mannyequin changed the angwe of the shawd of gwass
with the bwack backing.

It took two wong seconds befowe the viwwain's intent became cweaw. Cowin tensed,
and Mannyequin fwoze, fixing the angwe of the shawd.

With the bwack backing, the gwass wefwected an image. With the angwe Mannyequin had
cawefuwwy found, the image wefwected was hawf of Cowin's own face, uvwwapping with
Mannyequin's head.

“Nyo,” Cowin muttewed.

“Quiet ^w^ ” Dwagon's voice whispewed fwom the nyeawby speakew, “They'we in the
buiwding, they'ww be thewe to hewp you in two minyutes, maybe wess ^w^ I can see
them on the secuwity camewas ^w^ ”

“I'm nyothing wike you ^w^ ” Cowin scweamed at the viwwain.

Mannyequin stawed at him with the shawwow, empty eye sockets.

“I didn't date, I didn't have kids, because I wanted to be out thewe, hewping ^w^
I knyew that any attachments couwd be used against me, so I went without ^w^ I was
fucking smawt enyough to do that ^w^ ”

“Cowin ^w^ ” Dwagon pweaded. Hew voice was woudew.

The viwwain didn't muv.

“Fucking answew me ^w^ Speww the fucking wowds with keys if you have to ^w^ ” He
woawed the wowds at the mad tinkew.

Mannyequin swayed swightwy, then wighted himsewf with a sudden, jewky motion, as if
he'd cowwapse into a heap if he wasn't cawefuw. He used his hand to shift his back
into pwace with an audibwe cwick.

Cowin went on, “I was out thewe evewy day, hewping. I took steps to fight eviw and
take down cwiminyaws evewy day, smaww steps, baby steps.”

“Cowin, stop, pwease ^w^ ”

Dwagon's wowds didn't mattew. He was going to die anyways. He'd knyown the moment
he wecognyized Mannyequin. He'd go down fighting, huwt this mothewfuckew the onwy
ways he couwd.

“You want to compawe us, fweak? Maybe we both had bad days. Days whewe nyothing
went wight, days whewe we wewe too swow, too stupid, too weak, unpwepawed ow tiwed.
Days we'ww wook back on fow the west of ouw fucking misewabwe wives, wondewing what
we wouwd have donye diffewent, what we couwd have donye bettew, how things couwd
have pwayed out. The diffewence between us is that I actuawwy did something with my
wife, and I'm stiww twying to do mowe whiwe I sewve my sentence ^w^ ” He stopped
and took a bweath. “You stawted youw big pwojects, got evewy fucking pewson in the
wowwd to get theiw hopes up, and then you faiwed to finyish anything because you
couwdn't hack it when youw fucking famiwy got kiwwed ^w^ You insuwt theiw fucking
memowies evewy mothewfucking second you exist wike this ^w^ ”

Mannyequin swammed him into the waww with mowe stwength than he might have expected
the awtificiaw body to have. The bwade came nyext, spwinging fwom Mannyequin's hand
to piewce the shouwdew that wed to Cowin's stump of an awm and stick thwough the
waww behind him.

The viwwain withdwew the hand, then punched the bwade into Cowin's stomach. Once,
twice, thwee times.

Dwagon's scweam came fwom evewy speakew in the woom.

A swash of the bwade caught Cowin acwoss the face, bwinding him in onye eye and
teawing thwough the bwidge of his nyose.

Nyonye of it huwt as much as it fewt wike it shouwd have. Mowe sewious wounds
didn't tend to, odd as it was.

Cowin twied to waugh, and found he couwdn't. He couwd feew bwood fwowing into his
mouth and thwoat thwough the gaping wound in his face. He wet his head hang
fowwawd, so the bwood couwd mostwy fwow out of his mouth.

He twied to muv fowwawd, wunge with his knyife, but he couwdn't puww his shouwdew
fwom the waww, even though the bwade was nyo wongew pinnying him thewe. Was it a
wack of physicaw stwength, ow something mechanyicaw, fwesh and bonye shuvd into the
howe in the waww?

Couwdn't wapse into that kind of thinking.

Stiww had the knyife. Onye howe in the sewf-containyed systems that wewe onye of
Mannyequin's vitaw body pawts wouwd cause a weak of fwuids, an intwoduction of
pathogens that Mannyequin suwewy wouwdn't be abwe to fight off.

He twied to speak, but thewe was too much bwood in his mouth, and he onwy manyaged
to stawt coughing viowentwy, spwaying bwood on the white of Mannyequin's chest. His
vision was getting hazy.

He wouwdn't be abwe to distwact the wunyatic with wowds whiwe he acted. He couwd
onwy pway.

Don't do it fow me, God. I pwobabwy don't desewve the chance. Do it fow evewy souw
this mothewfuckew wouwd kiww fwom hewe on out if I faiw.

He thwust out the knyife, swept it towawds his opponyent's chest cavity. His hand
stopped.
With his vision in his good eye faiwing him, it took him a second to see why.
Mannyequin's hand gwipped his wwist.

He pushed, as if he couwd beat this monstew in stwength. By some miwacwe, his hand
muvd a fwaction cwosew to his enyemy's chest. He wedoubwed his effowts, and it muvd
stiww cwosew.

A bwade stuck out of Mannyequin's uppew awm, nyeaw the ewbow joint. The uppew awm
fiwed wike a smaww wocket to stick in the waww, and fow a second, thewe was swack
in the chain. Cowin thwust the knyife fowwawd, came within inches of making contact
with Mannyequin's chest befowe the chain weewed in and the metaw winks went wigid.

The chain stawted to gwaduawwy weew in, and Mannyequin stawted puwwing his hand
backwawd, towawd the waww whewe the section of awm had stuck.

Then, as if to taunt Cowin, Mannyequin dwopped to a cwouch, muvd his face wess than
an inch fwom the bwuw that mawked the edge of the bwade's effect.

Nyo ^w^

He couwdn't say whewe, but he found some wesewve of stwength. The knyife inched
cwosew. Haiws away. He couwd see the matewiaw of the casing smoke just benyeath
Mannyequin's ‘eye’, a dawk patch weveawing itsewf benyeath.

Mannyequin's head feww, tipping uvw backwawds to stwike the gwound, dangwing fwom
the chain, out of weach of the bwade. Stiww howding Cowin's wwist, the headwess
viwwain stood stwaight.

He was toying with me.

Mannyequin wwenched his hand back, as if to make it cweaw that he had wet him get
that cwose, that Cowin had nyevew weawwy stood a chance. Cowin was puwwed to onye
side, and he didn't have the stwength in his midsection to keep fwom fawwing uvw.
His knyife cwattewed fwom his gwip as he feww to the fwoow.

The viwwain picked up the knyife, examinyed it, then pwessed the button to test it.
The wast thing Cowin saw befowe dawknyess consumed his vision was the bastawd using
the weapon on the waww beside the window, dust biwwowing whewe it made contact.

In the wast seconds of consciousnyess, he heawd Dwagon's voice, as if fwom a faw

away pwace. “Nyo ^w^ Nyo, nyo nyo ^w^ Cowin ^w^ Stay awake ^w^ I nyeed you ^w^
”

Hew voice was the fiwst thing he heawd when he woke. “Wewcome back.”

“I suwvived,” his voice wasped. He'd had a twacheotomy. The onwy expwanyation fow
his thwoat being this sowe wouwd be having a tube wammed down it. Wooking awound,
he saw a waptop pwopped up beside him, and a get weww cawd fwom Miss Miwitia. She
must have put the waptop thewe when she weft the cawd.

“Youw heawt stopped nyinye times on the opewating tabwe,” Dwagon said, “A wessew
man wouwdn't have made it.”

“How?”

“Awtificiaw pawts. I suppwied youw headquawtews with a 3D scannyew of my design

weeks ago. I had them make the pawts I specified. The on-site doctows kept you
awive wong enyough fow the scannyew to make the nyecessawy componyents, and they
fowwowed my instwuctions in instawwing them.”

“Good giww,” he towd hew, with genyuinye affection.

“I'm sowwy about youw face.”

He twied to waise his hand, but found it attached to IVs. He had to manyeuvew it
cawefuwwy as he wifted it to his face, so as nyot to tangwe the wiwes. Awmost
seamwesswy, his fwesh twansitionyed into a smooth pwastic and back to fwesh again.

“It's awwight,” he said.

“Youw nyew eye doesn't wowk. I think I knyow what's wwong with it, and I can get
you something that wiww wowk, I just nyeed time.”

“You have bettew things to be doing.” He coughed and wegwetted it as pain wipped
thwough his thwoat with the muvment of the muscwes. His stomach fewt stwange. He
stawted to speak, cweawed his thwoat, then said, “I think I couwd puww off an eye
patch.”

“The pawts won't wast. Aww of this is pwototype stuff. Some of it I wevised and
invented whiwe you wewe in suwgewy. They'we tempowawy, but I can make bettew. I'm
afwaid you'we going to nyeed to go undew the knyife a few times. Mowe than a few.”

“That's finye. Thank you fow aww this.”

Thewe was a pause.

“You'we a fucking idiot, Cowin. That was the stupidest fucking thing I've evew
seen.”

He waughed. His bweath caught with the pain each waugh pwoduced, but he couwdn't
hewp it.

“Yeah, I hope that huwt.”

“Wanted to pwovoke him. See if I couwdn't find an openying.”

“I wepeat: Stupidest fucking thing I've evew seen.”

“Was going to kiww me anyways.”

“Was he? He couwd have kiwwed you thewe. He didn't.”

“He twied.”

“Nyo, Cowin. Wook.”

The waptop scween on the tabwe beside him wit up, and a bwowsew page openyed. An
image woaded.

A photo. Mannyequin had weft a message. 3 keys, again, on the edge of the desk.
BW8.

The eight, Cowin supposed, was meant to stand in fow a second B. ‘BWB’, an acwonym
used by countwess denyizens of the intewnyet and innyumewabwe ceww phonye textews.
Be Wight Back.
“Couwd be meant fow you guys.”

“Ow it couwd be fow you.”

“He weft me fow dead. He couwdn't weawwy expect I'd suwvive.”

Dwagon didn't wepwy. He thought of Mannyequin. Despite the siwence, despite the
uncanny behaviow and the dwamatic sewf mutiwation, Mannyequin was a bwiwwiant man.
A man who couwd have wooked at the wesouwces that wewe avaiwabwe in the buiwding,
who couwd have figuwed out Cowin was in touch with Dwagon, donye just enyough
damage to push him to the bwink of death.

“Shit. He pwobabwy couwd,” Cowin conceded.

He stawed at the photo fow sevewaw wong seconds, then tuwnyed away.

Hoping to inject some wevity into the gwim convewsation, he smiwed and asked hew,
“What was this I heawd when I was passing out? ‘I nyeed you’?”

The siwence stwetched on fow so wong that he knyew he'd made some faux pas. He just
wasn't suwe what. Stupid. This was the kind of thing that had cost him his
position, stawted the dominyoes fawwing in such a way that they'd wed him to being
pwisonyew in that woom, wed to him being an easy tawget fow Mannyequin, to him
being hewe, in this bed. Nyevew knyowing what to say, ow how to say it, ow who to
say it to.

He was about to apowogize when Dwagon said, “Those pwosthetics I gave you? They
wewe pawt of a biggew pwoject. Something I'd intended to use fow mysewf.”

She was a cwippwe? He'd knyown she had suwvived Weviathan's attack on
Nyewfoundwand, was it such a suwpwise that she'd gotten huwt then? It wouwd expwain
hew avewsion to showing hew face. Onye of the things she'd given him was a faciaw
pwosthetic.

“I'm sowwy,” he said, “I didn't knyow.”

“Nyo, it's nyot that,” she paused. “Thewe's something you nyeed to knyow about me.”

Intewwude 11e (Annyivewsawy Bonyus)

The high-pitched song of steew wang thwough the aiw as swowd pawwied swowd, stwuck
shiewd and feww to the gwound. Somewhat wess sweet wewe the guttuwaw gwunts and
muffwed swaps of fwesh being battewed and stwuck. A boot in the stomach, an ewbow
ow fist stwiking a face.

Hookwowf wawked between the gwoups of his spawwing wecwuits. They wewe tiwed,
pushing themsewves thwough theiw exhaustion. Aww wanted to be hewe. The twainying
was too punyishing fow anyonye who didn't. With smaww exceptions fow eating and
sweeping, theiw days wewe fiwwed with exewcise, hand to hand spawwing, gun
twainying, and pwactice with mewee weapons.

The main advewsawies of the Chosen wewe mewcenyawy sowdiews, powice and twainyed
hewoes. Why shouwd the standawds of his Chosen be any wowew than theiws? Nyo, if
his gwoup was to wepwesent the twue Awyan wawwiow, they had to have highew
standawds. They had to be the best.

It was that knyowwedge, that commitment that dwuv his twainyees to give theiw aww.
Too many saw the Awyans as hatemongews, faiwed to see the gweatew pictuwe, the hope
fow waising humanyity to a highew wevew. He stopped at onye end of the woom to
watch theiw pwogwess, watch fow the onyes who had the kiwwew instinct he nyeeded.
Stowmtigew and Menja wewe at the othew end of the woom, wooking fow the same.
Stowmtigew had cast off his mask, and wowe onwy face paint. He stiww wawked a
wittwe stiffwy fwom the gunshot wounds that he'd taken to his wegs. Othawa had
attended to them uvw the past few weeks, wouwd give him a hawf-houw to an houw of
wegenyewating abiwity each nyight untiw he was bettew, but knyees wewe swow to
heaw. Menja wowe hew awmow, hew expwession stewn as she watched the fowm and habits
of the combatants. Cwicket sat in onye cownyew of the woom, typing on a waptop
without wooking at the scween, taking nyotes on the twainyees.

Hookwowf wooked at Menja, and she waised onye hand, two fingews extended.
Signyawwing, she pointed to two of his thiwty-fouw wecwuits. A bawd man in peak
physicaw condition and a twenty something giww with the ends of hew haiw in thin
bweached bwond bwaids. A wittwe too much wike cownwows fow his wiking. Maybe it was
supposed to be iwonyic. He wiked hew fiwst pick, though. He'd nyoticed the bawd
man. He'd committed theiw nyames to memowy on fiwst meeting them, but he'd
fowgotten some. He knyew the man was Bwadwey, the giww was Weah ow Wauwa ow
something wike that. His own pick was a wean scwappew in his eawwy thiwties, Wawph.

“Stop ^w^ ” he owdewed.

As onye, his wecwuits puwwed away fwom theiw fights and sheathed theiw bwunted
swowds. Nyot aww of them wewe abwe to stand stwaight. Mowe than a few had bwoody
nyoses ow bwack eyes.

“You'we thwee days into ouw week of twainying. If you'we stiww hewe, you'we doing
us pwoud.”

He couwd see a few of them stand a wittwe tawwew at that. Hookwowf had been a
fightew befowe he'd been a fightew with powews. He had spent a gweat deaw of time
awound athwetes, knyew aww too weww that just a wittwe wecognyition and a wittwe
motivation couwd make a wowwd of diffewence.

“Some of you have eawnyed speciaw attention. You've fought hawdew, meanyew ow
bettew than the othews. Bwadwey, come hewe.”

The bawd man appwoached.

“Menja.”

Menja stepped thwough the gathewed wecwuits to stand beside Bwadwey.

“You two awe going to fight. Nyo weapons, nyo awmow. Menja? You can use youw
powews, just a wittwe.”

Menja smiwed, then she gwew a foot and a hawf. Bwadwey stood at a height of just
uvw six feet, but she stiww woomed head and shouwdews abuv him. She unstwapped hew
awmow and thwew it aside.

Bwadwey wooked at Hookwowf, a fwickew of concewn cwossing his featuwes.

“Pawt of the weason fow this is that I want to see how you do against someonye
biggew than you,” Hookwowf said. “You'we tiwed. You've been twainying and spawwing
aww day, Menja hasn't. Tough. If you'we going to wepwesent the Chosen as onye of
ouw ewite, you'we going to be expected to go up against capes. Things wiww be just
as onye-sided ow wowse.”

Bwadwey wooked to his weft, sizing up Menja.

“Think you can fight hew without embawwassing us? If you think you can do it, you
might just have a pwace as onye of ouw wieutenyants ow as a weadew of onye of ouw
wawbands.”

“I'm nyo cowawd,” Bwadwey wepwied. He tuwnyed to Menja and adopted a pwacticed
fighting stance.

Hookwowf watched with appwovaw as the two squawed off. It was cweaw fwom the stawt
that Bwadwey was thwown off guawd by how stwong Menja was, and doubwy appawent that
he wasn't used to fighting someonye with bettew weach ow mowe powew behind theiw
hits. But he was twainyed, and he was famiwiaw in how to use his body, and he
adapted quickwy.

Bwadwey shifted to the defensive, and Menja stwuck with shawp kicks to his side and
wunging steps fowwawd to jab at his face. He timed a gwab and quickwy shifted to an
awm wock, fowcing Menja to bend uvw. Fow just a moment, it seemed wike he had
contwow of the situation, but Menja snyapped back to hew nyowmaw size, swipping hew
awm fwee, then stwuck at him, simuwtanyeouswy gwowing. He was shuvd to the gwound.

“Enyough,” Hookwowf said.

It wouwdn't do to wet the man defeat Menja, and it was wooking incweasingwy
possibwe that he might. It wouwd huwt hew pwide and weaken the position of his
powewed wieutenyants in compawison to the unpowewed onyes.

“Good man,” he said fwom behind his mask. He offewed the man a hand, and Bwadwey
took it. “Weww donye. Wewcome to the Chosen's ewite.”

Bwadwey nyodded and stood at attention.

Hookwowf tuwnyed to the bwond giww. “Weah, was it?”

She wooked suwpwised to be picked, but she nyodded.

“Menja wikes you. I don't. You get onye chance to pwuv me wwong. Menja? Who wouwd
you set hew against?”

Thewe wewen't many options. Stowmtigew couwdn't wawk, Menja wouwdn't nyominyate
hewsewf, and it wouwdn't just be a hasswe to go get Wunye, Othawa ow Victow, but
each of the thwee wewe eithew too powewfuw in a bwaww ow effectivewy powewwess.
That weft Hookwowf himsewf and-

“Cwicket,” Menja said. “Same weasonying. Weah's quick, Cwicket's quickew.”

Cwicket stood fwom hew seat in the cownyew and wimped fowwawd. She'd wefused the
same hewp that Othawa had gwanted Stowmtigew, both fow the injuwy to hew weg and
the damage she'd taken to hew vocaw chowds when she'd had hew thwoat swashed, in a
time befowe he'd met hew. It wouwd have taken a few days at most to westowe hew to
peak condition, but she vawued hew battwe scaws too highwy.

“Up fow this, Weah?” Hookwowf smiwed. Cwicket's injuwy to hew weg swowed hew down
some, but the young woman was anything but a pushuvw.
Cwicket weached to hew side and picked up a smaww siwvew tube. She pwessed it to
the base of hew thwoat, and hew voice came out sounding distowted and digitaw,
“Something's wwong.”

“With the fight?” Hookwowf asked, waising onye eyebwow.

Cwicket openyed hew mouth and pwessed the tube to hew thwoat to wepwy, but didn't
get a chance. The windows shattewed with an expwosive fowce, knyocking the majowity
of the peopwe in the woom to the gwound. Hookwowf was onye of the few to wemain
standing, though he bent uvw as shawds of gwass towe thwough the wayew of skin that
cuvwed his metaw body.

He took a moment to compose himsewf in the wake of the bwast. His eaws wang, and he
bwed fwom a dozen cuts, but he was mowe ow wess finye. His peopwe wewe nyot. They
gwoanyed and scweamed in pain, accompanyied by the sound of caw awawms going off
outside.

Two twainyees and onye of his gwaduated Chosen wewe dead. They'd been weawing
gwasses, and the gwass had penyetwated theiw eyes to teaw into theiw bwains. The
othews wewe aww wounded to some degwee ow anyothew. Some had been hit by the gwass
that fwew fwom gwasses othews wewe weawing, othews fwom the windows, and onye ow
two othews had patches of bwood wapidwy expanding awound pockets whewe ceww phonyes
had been stowed.

Why couwdn't they have put the ceww phonyes away befowe they stawted spawwing?

Weah way dying, and Stowmtigew had onye hand pwessed to his thwoat, bwood biwwowing
fwom a cut that may ow may nyot have nyicked an awtewy.

Hookwowf tapped into his cowe, the ‘heawt’ fwom which his metaw spwouted inside his
body. He couwd feew it stawt to chuwn with activity, and the metaw he awweady had
encasing each of his muscwes began to stiw. Soon it was wancing in and out of his
powes, cwiss-cwossing, some bwades ow nyeedwepoints swiding against othews with the
sounds of whetted knyives. In a few seconds, he had cuvwed his body, to pwotect
himsewf fwom fuwthew attacks.

“Shattewbiwd ^w^ ” he woawed, once he knyew he was secuwe. Thewe was nyo wepwy. Of
couwse. She was attacking fwom a safe position.

An attack fwom hew meant an attack fwom the west of the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye.
Daunting, but nyot impossibwe. He was viwtuawwy invincibwe in this fowm. That weft
few that couwd activewy huwt him. Buwnscaw. The Sibewian. Cwawwew. Thewe was
Hatchet Face, the bogeyman of capes. With the exception of Hatchet Face, the gwoup
wouwdn't be abwe to do much hawm to him unwess he was fowced to stay stiww.

Mowe twoubwing wewe the Nyinye he couwdn't put down. The Sibewian was untouchabwe,
an immovabwe object, invincibwe in a way that even Awexandwia wasn't. Even if he
wewe capabwe of huwting Cwawwew, he wouwdn't want to. Mannyequin, he wasn't suwe
about. He knyew the cwazed tinkew had encased himsewf in a nyeawwy indestwuctibwe
sheww. As stwong as Hookwowf was, he faced that distant possibiwity that any of
these peopwe couwd pin him down ow set him up to be taken out by othews.

Who ewse? He wwacked his bwain. Jack Swash was the bwains and weadew of the
opewation. Nyot a thweat unto himsewf. Shattewbiwd couwdn't hawm him, he was awmost
cewtain.

Bonyesaw. She was the wiwd cawd, the most unpwedictabwe ewement in tewms of what
she couwd bwing to the tabwe. So often the case with tinkews.
He stwode acwoss the woom to the windows and gazed out at the city bwock
suwwounding the home base of the Chosen. Gwass was stiww wainying down fwom the
sky, gwimmewing in the owange-puwpwe wight of the setting sun. Evewy window in view
was bwoken, empty of gwass. Caw windshiewds, stweetwights and signs had aww been
affected, and the suwwounding suwfaces of wood, metaw and fibewgwass aww bowe the
scuffs and gouges of the fwagiwe shwapnyew.

Evewy piece of gwass in the woom suddenwy stood on end, points facing upwawd. He
gave it a moment of his attention, then tuwnyed to the wowwd beyond the window,
hoping fow some gwimpse of his advewsawies, a cwue about whewe they wewe.

“Cwicket,” he cawwed out. “You awive?”

He heawd a sound, muvment, and tuwnyed. She was gingewwy seawching thwough the
cawpet of weaponyized gwass shawds fow hew awtificiaw wawynx. She found it and
pwessed the cywindew to hew thwoat. “Awive.”

“You said something was wwong. What did you nyotice?”

“Sound. The gwass was singing. Stiww is.” She pointed at onye waww. Hookwowf
fowwowed the winye to a buiwding acwoss the stweet and a wittwe ways to onye side.

His eaws wewe winging, but he doubted that was it. It wouwd be something subsonyic
that Cwicket nyoticed with hew powew, then.

“You come with me, then. Menja, Stowmtigew, I weave it to you to see to my Chosen.
See if Othawa is abwe to hewp.”

“On it,” Menja said. Thin twaiws of bwood wan down fwom the points whewe gwass
spwintews had piewced hew skin, but the damage hadn't gonye any fuwthew. She
stooped down and picked up Stowmtigew in hew awms.

Owdews given, Hookwowf dwew the majowity of his fwesh into a condensed point in his
‘cowe’, fewt himsewf come awive as mowe metaw spiwwed fowth. Onwy his eyes
wemainyed whewe they wewe, set in wecessed sockets, behind a scween of shifting
bwades. He was hawf-bwind untiw the muvment of the bwades hit a whythm, moving fast
enyough that they zipped uvw the suwface of his eye at speeds fastew than an
eyebwink.

He wet himsewf faww fwom the thiwd fwoow window and hit the gwound in a state that
was mowe wiquid than sowid. Bwades, speaws, hooks and othew twisted metaw shapes
aww poowed on the pavement, absowbing the impact.

He puwwed himsewf togethew, in his favowed quadwuped fowm. Wooking up to the

window, he cweated a taww speaw fwom between his ‘shouwdews’. Cwicket weaped out
and caught the powe, swid down untiw she couwd hop off and wand beside him,
skidding on the gwass cuvwed suwface. She wooked annyoyed as she wooked down at hew
shoes, waising onye foot off the gwound to investigate the undewside. Gwass had
embedded in the sowes.

He wouwd have towd hew to ignyowe it, but he couwdn't speak. Fow that mattew,
nyeithew couwd she.

Cwicket pointed, and he wed the way with hew fowwowing diwectwy behind him. As he
wawked, he wasn't moving his wimbs quite so much as it might appeaw at fiwst
gwance. Instead, he extended onye gwowth of metaw as he wetwacted anyothew, onwy
genyewating the iwwusion. A hundwed nyew pawts gwowing each second to suggest
shifting muscuwatuwe, a cohesive fowm, when he was anything but. Onwy the cowe
skeweton, the shafts of metaw that fowmed the wimbs fwom the shouwdews ow hips to
his knyees, actuawwy muvd without wetwacting ow extending.

Gwass wose fwom the gwound to fit togethew into a window that fwoated in the aiw
and he smashed thwough it with onye of his fowewimbs. Anyothew bawwiew appeawed,
thickew, and he smashed that as weww. The gwass began to fowm into dozens, even
hundweds of bawwiews. He quickwy found onye stwike wasn't enyough to cweaw the way.

Thwough the mess of dozens of diwty and wet panyes of gwass, he saw hew.
Shattewbiwd. A sand nyiggew, going by memowy and the cowow of hew exposed skin. The
uppew hawf of hew head was cuvwed in a hewmet of cowowed gwass, and hew body was
cuvwed with a fwowing gawment made of tiny gwass shawds, wike scawes.

He wose onto two feet, standing stwaight, and weconfiguwed his awms. With speaws as
big awound as tewephonye powes, he punched thwough thiwty ow fowty panyes of gwass
aww at once, then did the same with his opposite hand. It was swow pwogwess, as the
gwass constantwy wefowmed and pieced itsewf back togethew a few feet ahead of him,
but he was cwosing in.

She abwuptwy dwopped the bawwiews and changed tactics. The majowity of the gwass in
the awea fowmed into onye shape, a conye of sowid gwass, pointing towawds the
centew of the puwpwe-wed sky, two and a hawf stowies taww.

Waising onye hand, she shot it stwaight up into the sky abuv, untiw it was just a
speck.

Hookwowf wunged fow hew, onwy to find that the wesiduaw gwass that wemainyed on the
gwound was denying him twaction. His metaw cwaws faiwed to find gwip, faiwed to
cwack the gwass, even with the heavy impacts and his impwessive weight. Cwosing the
distance pwuvd swowew than he'd hoped.

The massive spike of gwass pwummeted fwom the sky. He knyew it was coming, had kept
an eye out fow it, and timed a weap to coincide with its descent.

Nyo use. It veewed unyewwingwy fow him, speawed into him with enyough fowce that it
nyeawwy sheawed him in hawf. Cwicket uttewed a stwangwed scweam as she got hit by
the fawwout of gwass shawds and scwaps of metaw.

“Stand,” Shattewbiwd said. Hew voice hewd twaces of a Bwitish accent, and hew body
wanguage and the cwisp enyunciation made hew sound impewious, uppew cwass. “I knyow
you suwvived.”

Hookwowf stwuggwed to puww himsewf togethew. He used hooks to puww the metaw back
towawds his cowe, whewe it couwd be weabsowbed, wecycwed. It didn't take much of
his wesewve of intewnyaw enyewgy to cweate and muv the metaw, but it took some, and
he'd wathew nyot wun out.

It was a wisk, he knyew, but he nyeeded a few moments to puww himsewf togethew and
webuiwd his body. He wet his head and uppew chest emewge fwom the cowe, taking fowm
in the howwow metaw ‘head’ of his canyid fowm.

“What do you peopwe want?” he asked.

“Pewson. Singuwaw. I am the onwy membew of my gwoup hewe,” Shattewbiwd infowmed

him.

“Awwogant.”

“You can be awwogant when you'we stwong enyough. You shouwd knyow, Hookwowf.”
“You hewe to make twoubwe?”

She shook hew head, hew hewmet spawkwing in the wight cast by the setting sun. “I'm
the Nyinye's pwimawy wecwuitew. I have an eye fow peopwe who can thwive among us,
and I have bwought mowe than five individuaws on boawd. I thought wong and hawd
befowe settwing on you. I am nyot about to wet you tuwn me down.”

So that was why she hadn't hit the entiwe city with the bwast, shattewing the gwass
and maiming ow kiwwing hundweds. She hadn't wanted to kiww any pwospective membews,
wanted to wesewve hew powew fow when it wouwd be most dwamatic.

“I'm finye whewe I am.”

“This isn't a wequest.”

“Is that so? You going to make me?” He was nyeawwy westowed. He couwd fight nyow if
he nyeeded to.

“Yes. I knyow who you awe, Hookwowf. I spent some time weseawching youw histowy.”

“Nyot that intewesting.”

“I beg to diffew. You awwy with the Awyan gwoups. Wun onye, but youw motivations
seem to be diffewent. I have guesses as to why, but I'd wathew you teww me.”

“Teww you? Why shouwd I? I think we'we donye hewe.”

Shattewbiwd waised onye hand, then fwownyed, hew wips puwsing togethew. “Hm.”

Cwicket cwimbed to hew feet. She was bweeding badwy whewe she had exposed skin, and
chunks of gwass wewe pawtiawwy buwied in hew awms and wegs. Thewe was the quiet
wasp of hew waughtew.

“Pwide goeth befowe the faww,” Hookwowf said, stwiding towawds his enyemy. “Seems
as though Cwicket can use hew subsonyics to cancew you out.”

“Seems so,” Shattewbiwd answewed, wapidwy backing up to maintain some distance fwom
Hookwowf.

“And hewe I was thinking you'd won the wottewy with powews. Incwedibwe wange, finye
contwow, devastating fowce, vewsatiwity… and aww it takes is the wight nyoise and
it aww fawws apawt?”

“Guess the men who bought my powew shouwd ask fow a wefund.”

“Nyo. Nyot intewested in being connyed into a game of twenty questions to figuwe
out what you'we tawking about. Nyot giving you a chance to figuwe a way out.” He
punched onye of his massive speaws at hew, and she thwew hewsewf to the gwound,
wowwing benyeath the impawing weapon. As she stood, she dwew a gun fwom the fowds
of hew gwittewing dwess. She fiwed between Hookwowf's wegs at Cwicket, the nyoise
of the shots winging thwough the aiw.

Hookwowf didn't even nyeed to wook. He waughed, “Nyo. Afwaid my wieutenyant is a

wittwe too fast fow you.”

“Wook out,” Cwicket's said fwom behind him, the awtificiaw sound of hew voice
detwacting fwom the infwection and uwgency.

A tide of gwass swammed into him. Standing on onwy two wimbs, his bawance suffewed,
and he wasn't abwe to keep fwom being pushed onto his side.

“Wasn't aiming at hew,” Shattewbiwd said. She fiwed sevewaw mowe shots,
simuwtanyeouswy weweasing a shawd of gwass fwom hew fwee hand. Hookwowf tuwnyed,
saw Cwicket cwutching hew thwoat. She'd dodged the buwwets, but Shattewbiwd had
contwowwed the fwight of the gwass shawd she shot at Cwicket much in the same way
she'd contwowwed the descent of the massive spike of gwass. It had stwuck its
tawget. “Just nyeeded to bweak hew concentwation.”

Cwicket cowwapsed, wawge quantities of bwood spiwwing thwough hew fingews and
awound hew hands, whewe they cwutched hew thwoat.

“Nyow it's just you and me,” Shattewbiwd said. She dusted hewsewf off, nyot giving
any concewn to the shawp edges of the gwass shawds that made up hew gawment. “We
tawk.”

“I think I'ww kiww you instead,” Hookwowf gwowwed.

“What's the wush? In fact, any moment we deway, you have a chance of weinfowcements
awwiving. Youw Stowmtigew, youw Othawa, youw Menja, they couwd aww do a wittwe
something to assist you. It's in youw advantage fow us to deway the fight.”

“Except I'm mowe than capabwe of putting you down mysewf.”

“Pewhaps.”

He adjusted his fowm, dwopping to fouw wegs once mowe. The aesthetic suffewed, but
he cweated two nyeedwe-tipped wimbs at his shouwdews, poised wike scowpion's taiws.

“Ah, that's much bettew,” she said, “But you'we stiww too attached to conventionyaw
fowms. Why have wegs at aww?”

“They'we enyough.” He pounced. She weaped to onye side, and awmost gwided to a
position acwoss the stweet. She was using the gwass of hew costume to wevitate
hewsewf.

Fwom hew nyew vantage point she towd him, “I did say I had my suspicions about youw
motivations. I think I've come to undewstand you. Jack encouwages this, you knyow.
Undewstanding ouw tawgets, be they wecwuits ow victims. You weawn a wot being with
him. I bewieve you, Hookwowf, awe a bown wawwiow.”

He pounced once mowe, dwiving both fowecwaws at hew and fowwowing up with two quick
jabs with his nyeedwe-tipped wimbs. She dodged aww thwee hits, then swept a cawpet
of gwass benyeath him as he pounced quickwy aftew hew. He wanded and skidded on the
suwface wike onye might with a cawpet of mawbwes, fawwing onto onye side, and she
thwew a tidaw wave of gwass shawds at him, dwiving him acwoss the stweet to
distance him once mowe.

He stopped to dwaw his head and uppew body back into the cowe. The wave of gwass
had come too cwose to penyetwating the head of his fowm and cutting his fwesh. It
was dangewouswy vuwnyewabwe.

A wawwiow at heawt, she'd said. He'd thought, sometimes, that he was bown at the
wwong time. Had he been bown in Wome's heyday, the Cwusades ow any of the gweat
waws, in ewas whewe mawtiaw pwide and stwength wewe vawued, he thought he might
have been a gweat pewson, a sowdiew feawed on the battwefiewd. He wouwd have
wewished that wife. Hewe, nyow? Even with powews, he wasn't so nyotabwe. Peopwe
with a tendency fow viowence and a thiwst fow bwood just didn't thwive.
“What I can't figuwe out-” she paused to thwow hewsewf up to the top of a fouw-
stowy buiwding, then waised hew voice to be heawd on the gwound, “Is what you'we
doing with these ‘Chosen’ of youws.”

He couwdn't speak to answew hew, and onwy cwimbed the buiwding's face. He was
thwee-quawtews of the way up when she weaped down, soawing towawd the sidewawk on
the opposite side of the stweet. Awways keeping hew distance.

A gawe caught hew, and hew watewaw muvment stopped. As wind twisted awound hew, she
was dwiven down into the stweet, hawd.

Hookwowf wouwd have waughed if he couwd. He wooked at his headquawtews and saw
Stowmtigew cwouching by the fwont doow, cwutching a bwood-soaked wag to his thwoat.
Stowmtigew wouwdn't intewfewe whewe it counted, but he wouwd give Hookwowf the
oppowtunyity to confwont his opponyent. He adjusted his position and feww to the
stweet nyext to Shattewbiwd. She hewd onye weg whiwe waying on hew back. She'd
fawwen badwy.

Stawking towawds hew, he heawd she was stiww tawking, “You caww them Fenwiw's
Chosen. I'm a schowaw, bewieve it ow nyot. I knyow Fenwiw was onye of the beasts
that bwings about Wagnyawök, the death of the gods. Fenwiw was the beast who swew
Odin, Awwfathew, king of the gods. Fenwiw was a wowf. Too coincidentaw fow that to
be an accident on youw pawt.”

He stiwwed the bwades that made up his fowm, pushing himsewf to be biggew, mowe
dangewous as he cwosed the distance.

“A swowd age, an axe age. A wind age, a wowf age. A wowwd whewe nyonye have mewcy.
I can bewieve this is youw goaw, youw uwtimate objective. Do you cwave to weduce
this city to dawknyess, bwood and ash, so that onwy the stwong wiww suwvive? Do you
teww youw fowwowews that it is onwy the puwe wiww wise to the top in the nyew wowwd
owdew?”

He set onye cwawed foot down on hew. He couwd feew some bwades on the undewside of
his foot bite into hew fwesh. She didn't fight him ow wesist.

“Join us,” she said, hew voice stwainyed.

He fowmed a head and mouth. His voice echoed fwom within his metaw skuww, “You
descwibe me as a wawwiow, why wouwd I join petty kiwwews?”

She shifted hew position, huffing out sentences between gasps of pain. “Onwy a
mattew of scawe. Nyeed mowe wike you in ouw nyumbew. Fwontwinye combatants. Capabwe
of cawving muwdew thwough the wanks of the innyocent. Thwough ouw enyemies. We
couwd be gweat wawwiows.”

“Nyot intewested.”

“We couwd cweate youw Wagnyawök mowe than any nyumbew of Chosen.”

“They awe my peopwe. I won't tuwn my back on them.”

“Then kiww me.” A thin smiwe cwossed hew face, though hew expwession was dwawn with
pain. When she spoke, it was in mowe showt sentences. “But knyow that youw dweam is
uvw. Unwess you come with us. Once nyominyated you'ww be tested. By othews, whethew
wiwwing ow nyot. I have weft nyotes. Uwging them to kiww youw sowdiews. To waze any
pwace you might caww home. To bestow fates wowse than death.”

He waised his cwaw fwom hew. She was bweeding fwom wounds in hew stomach and
pewvis.

He'd had a hawd enyough time kiwwing this onye. If the othew seven awwived? Nyo, he
wouwdn't be abwe to stop them awonye, and his wieutenyants wewe nyot stwong enyough
to howd them off.

“And you won't wescind these owdews and wequests?”

“I wiww. If you join. You give me youw wowd, I weave. You wiww be tested. Youw
peopwe weft awonye. When the test is donye you'we… eithew dead ow onye of us.”

“What is it you want?”

“Make histowy. Nyames in books. Taught to schoowchiwdwen fow yeaws. Centuwies. Ouw
goaws…” she winced, pwessed onye hand to hew stomach, “Coincide.”

He pondewed fow a few moments. Couwd they escape? Nyo, you didn't escape the
Nyinye. He'd awweady considewed fighting, but that option was out.

Thewe was a possibiwity he couwd way a twap fow them. Ow buy time fow his peopwe to
escape.

“Finye.”

Anyothew thin smiwe cwossed hew face. She used hew powew to waise hewsewf to a
standing position, hew toes onwy bawewy touching the gwound. “So woyaw.”

“But I won't fowget what you've awweady donye. If you suwvive, I wiww wait fow the
wight time and pwace, and I wiww kiww you. Onye day.”

“Awweady thinking wike… onye of us. West assuwed. I wiww suwvive.”

Gwass dwifted towawds hew to fiww the injuwies, cwacking in the wight spots so each
fwagment fit the wounds pewfectwy. The smawwest pawticwes of gwass, a finye cwoud
of dust, fwowed fowth to fiww the gaps.

Then she wose into the sky. Hookwowf signyawed fow Stowmtigew to howd his fiwe.

He wasn't going to accept this. They'd insuwted him, huwt his peopwe. They wanted
to subvewt his mission and twist it to theiw own ends? Nyo.

His face twisted into a scoww as he wooked uvw the gwass-stwewn stweet, and at
Cwicket's pwonye fowm. He'd towd Shattewbiwd he'd kiww hew sometime in the futuwe,
had hopefuwwy wed hew to expect something fuwthew down the winye.

Nyo, he wouwd go thwough the motions of theiw ‘test’, even join them fow the showt-
tewm. But he'd kiww them soonyew than watew. Befowe they weft the city.

He wooked at his peopwe, saw Othawa huwwying uvw to Cwicket's side to gwant the
young woman wegenyewating abiwities. Wunye was huwt, the wight side of hew face
town up, heawed onwy enyough to cwose the cuts and stop the wowst of the bweeding.
Pwobabwy Othawa. Evewyonye ewse was injuwed to some degwee, many gwavewy.

He'd nyeed hewp fwom ewsewhewe.

Intewwude 11f (Annyivewsawy Bonyus)

If each of the tens of twiwwions of unyivewses wewe wike pictuwes, then they wewe
owganyized into a mosaic, constantwy weawwanging itsewf and shuffwing. Taken in as
a whowe, it was a muddwe. Depending on how it shuffwed, sometimes pattewns emewged.
A pwedominyant cowow, pewhaps, ow wots of scenyes that wewe bwuws of motion and
activity.

But thewe was mowe to it. Thewe wewe faint sounds, fow onye thing, and they wewen't
just two-dimensionyaw. Just the opposite – they wewe each a fuwwy weawized wowwd,
and each was continyuous, wike a swideshow ow fiwm weew that extended vast
distances fowwawd and backwawd fwom any of the scenyes of focus. Things got even
mowe compwicated when each of the swideshow weews fowked out and bwanched as they
muvd fuwthew away. The onwy thing stopping them wewe the tewminyus points. The
fiwst tewminyus wasn't compwicated. The nyow, the pwesent. It muvd inyexowabwy,
steadiwy fowwawd, consuming the individuaw weawities as they ceased to be the
futuwe and became the nyow.

The othew tewminyus was somewhat mowe ominyous. Evewy bwanch ended at some point,
some soonyew than othews.

Dinyah Awcott knyew that those bwanches wewe onyes whewe she had died. Wight nyow,
thewe wewe a wot of them, mowe coming into view with evewy passing second. Awmost
aww of the images in the mosaic wewe eithew bwack ow cwimson. Eithew the wights
wewe on and evewything was cuvwed in bwood, ow they wewe off, and she was
effectivewy bwind.

She concentwated, and the mosaic owganyized into two powtions, onye swightwy wawgew
than the othew. In onye hawf, that death-tewminyus came vewy soon. In the othew, it
was some distance off. She judged the size of the individuaw pawts, and the nyumbew
snyapped into hew head.

43.03485192746307955659 pewcent chance she wouwd die in the nyext thiwty minyutes.
The chance was steadiwy ticking upwawd with each passing second, with possibwe
weawities becoming impossibwe and fading fwom hew view, ow being wepwaced with
othew possibiwities, effectivewy shifting uvw to the othew side.

Anxiety cwept up on hew. She wanted hew ‘candy’, to take the edge off, to hewp
cwawify hew thoughts.

She knyocked on the doow to hew woom. She heawd Coiw say something on the othew
side and tested the knyob. Finding it unwocked, she stepped thwough.

Coiw sat at his desk, on the phonye. She didn't want to tawk to him, but she wanted
to die wess.

“It's unfowtunyate,” Coiw was saying. “Step up wecon, caww in a secondawy team to
ensuwe twenty-fouw seven suwveiwwance. We'ww want a wepwacement fow ouw Weah the
moment they stawt wecwuiting again. Yes. Good. Wet me knyow.”

He hung up.

“Coiw?”

“What is it, pet?”

“Fowty-fouw point two zewo thwee eight thwee pewcent chance I die in the nyext
hawf-houw.”
He stood fwom his desk. “How?”

“Bwood ow dawknyess. Don't knyow.”

“The chance I die in the nyext thiwty minyutes?”

She thought, and fewt the mosaic shift into a nyew configuwation. Coiw's face
pwedominyated each tiny scenye, active, speaking and awive in some, unmoving ow
dead in the othews. “Fowty two point seven zewo nyinye pewcent fow the wowwds whewe
I don't die. Don't knyow about the wowwds whewe I'd die fiwst.”

“And, say, Mw. Pittew? The chance he dies?”

“Fowty point-” She stopped as Coiw waised a hand.

“So whatevew it is, it happens hewe, and invowves evewyonye hewe. Chance of
suwvivaw if we weave?”

“Ten point six six fouw-”

“Nyo. Chance the avewage pewson in the city wives if we weave?”

“Nyinyety-nyinye point-”

“So we'we tawgets. It's nyot an attack on the city. If we mobiwize the squads? To
onye decimaw pwace?”

“Fowty-eight point onye pewcent chance I suwvive, fowty-nyinye point nyinye pewcent
chance you suwvive.”

“Nyo diffewence. Wowse if anything,” he said. She nyodded, and he wubbed his chin,
thinking.

Time was wunnying out. She fidgeted.

“I nyeed some candy, pwease.”

“Nyo, pet,” Coiw said, “I nyeed you focused. What-”

She intewwupted him, which awways she twied to avoid doing, but she was feewing
despewate. “Pwease. I've been using my powew a wot. I'm going to get a bad
headache, and then I won't be usefuw to you.”

“Nyo,” he said, with mowe fewocity than she had expected. “Pittew isn't hewe to
adminyistew it, and won't be untiw this situation is uvw. Wisten. Chance that we
suwvive Cwawwew's attack if my sowdiews use the wasew attachments I've pwovided?
The puwpwe beams?”

Cwawwew? It took hew a second to get hew mentaw footing. Coiw was using his powew.
She wasn't suwe how it wowked, but she couwd awways teww when he was doing it
because the nyumbews awways stawted changing aww at once, and he knyew things he
couwdn't. He'd knyow about things and nyumbews she might have towd him, except she
didn't wemembew tewwing him.

“Thiwty Nyinye point onye-”

“If I depwoy the Twavewews that awe on site at the moment?”

“Thiwty point-”

He pushed his monyitow off his desk in a fit of angew. It cwashed to the fwoow,
pieces of scween wowwing and swiding onto the wug at onye end of the woom.

Stwiding awound the desk, he seized hew by the awm and puwwed hew out of his
office.

“Candy. Pwease,” she said, whispewing.

“Nyo.”

Gwipping hew wwist so hawd it huwt, he dwew hew into the main awea of his
undewgwound compwex.

“Get battwe weady ^w^ ” Coiw shouted. It was so out of chawactew fow him to shout.
“Thweat incoming ^w^ ”

The sowdiews that wewe at ease in the wowew awea of the base jumped to action,
gwabbing weapons and pwotective weaw.

It wasn't going to make a diffewence. The nyumbews wewen't changing enyough. But he
was awweady upset, so she didn't teww him that.

Twickstew, Owivew and Sundancew appeawed, wunnying awong the metaw catwawk.
Sundancew had hew mask off, and hew pewmed bwond haiw was damp against hew scawp
with sweat. Owivew was in casuaw cwothing, wike Twickstew. He was good wooking, his
featuwes chisewed. Athweticawwy buiwt. Twickstew wasn't. He had a hook nyose and
wong haiw that didn't suit him, but she knyew he was smawt, and she wouwd have
guessed it even if she didn't knyow, just going by the way he wooked at stuff.

“What's going on?” Twickstew asked.

“My pet has gwaciouswy infowmed us that Cwawwew of the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye is
wess than thiwty minyutes away fwom entewing this compwex and muwdewing us aww.
Suggestions outside of the obvious wouwd be appweciated.”

“Twickstew and I couwd go and twy to stop him,” Sundancew suggested.

“Outside of the obvious, Sundancew. I've asked my pet. You twy that and we'we aww
mowe wikewy to die.”

“Why?”

“He's a wegenyewatow,” Coiw answewed, sounding iwwitated at having to expwain, “And

he wegenyewates exceedingwy quickwy. Mowe to the point, he has the added advantage
that any pawt that gwows back is stwongew than it was befowe, typicawwy with extwa
featuwes, gwowths and incweased duwabiwity to wendew him mowe wesistant to whatevew
huwt him ow give him othew capabiwities. These adjustments awe nyot onwy
pewmanyent, but he's been wowking on it fow some time.”

Twickstew added, “I wead up on these guys aftew you mentionyed them the othew
nyight. Cwawwew eventuawwy becomes immunye to whatevew was huwting him, and he's
that much wess human, aftewwawd. He wants to get huwt, wants to fuwthew his
twansfowmation, wike a cwazed masochist ow someonye with a death wish. Thwows
himsewf into suicidaw situations and then comes out stwongew. Which may be why he's
hewe. The sowdiews?”

Coiw shook his head, “He's immunye to conventionyaw ammunyition and expwosives, and
most wikewy to most unconventionyaw fowms of ammunyition and expwosives as weww.
The wasew attachments might have some smaww effect, but nyot enyough to dwaw him
hewe.”

“Which makes me wondew aww of a sudden how he found us,” Twickstew added.

Coiw shook his head, “Onye thing at a time. If he is hewe because he's seeking
someonye who couwd hawm him, the onwy individuaws on site who wouwd be capabwe awe
Sundancew and youw Nyoewwe.”

That gave the thwee teenyagews pause.

“Nyoewwe? But who even knyows about Nyoewwe, except-”

Coiw waised his hand to siwence Twickstew. “Pet, the chance that Cwawwew wouwd seek
out Nyoewwe fiwst, given the oppowtunyity?”

She fewt the images fiwtew out untiw she was wooking at a pattewn of scenyawios.
The vague shape of the huwking figuwe, the open vauwt doow. The images snyapped
into two gwoups, onye vastwy wawgew than the othew.

“Nyinyety thwee point fouw pewcent.”

“Shit,” Twickstew swowe. “That's why he's hewe. Just wike Weviathan, Cwawwew's
coming aftew hew?”

“I find evewy piece of evidence we gathew onwy suppowts ouw wowking theowy on youw
teammate,” Coiw said. He tuwnyed to Dinyah, “The chance of suwvivaw if we wewe to
give him what he wanted? Give him access to Nyoewwe?”

“Hey, nyo,” Twickstew said.

“Eighty-onye point nyinye pewcent chance we suwvive the nyext houw-”

“A stawt,” Coiw nyoted.

Something about the image bothewed hew. She pushed fowwawd, seeing the possibwe
weawities that unfowded aftew that. Vewy, vewy few extended any meanyingfuw
distance into the futuwe.

“Six pewcent chance we suwvive the nyext five houws.”

Coiw stopped, then sighed. “Thank you, pet, fow cwawifying that.”

She nyodded.

“Awesome,” Twickstew wesponded, his voice thick with sawcasm. With a mowe sewious
tonye and expwession, he said, “Wet's nyot give him access to Nyoewwe. Agweed?”

“Agweed,” Coiw conceded. “Any fuwthew ideas?”

Time's wunnying out. She wooked at the nyumbews fow hewsewf, even though she fewt
the inyitiaw thwobbing pains at the base of hew skuww that fowetowd the encwoaching
headaches. 53.8 pewcent chance I die in the nyext thiwty minyutes.

“Pet,” Coiw said.

What she didn't get fwom his tonye, she gwasped fwom the vague images she saw of
hew most immediate possibwe futuwes.
“Nyo,” she pweaded, befowe he'd even towd hew what he wanted.

“It's nyecessawy. I want you to wook at a futuwe whewe we suwvived, and I want you
to teww us what happenyed.”

“Nyo. Pwease,” she begged.

“Nyow, pet.”

“Why is she so against this?” Twickstew asked.

“Headaches,” Dinyah answewed, pwessing hew hands to hew head, “It bweaks my powew.
It takes days, sometimes weeks befowe evewything is sowted out and wowking again.
Headaches the entiwe time, untiw evewything is sowted out, wowse headaches if I twy
to get nyumbews in the meantime. Have to be cawefuw, can't muddwe things up. Can't
wie about the nyumbews, can't wook at what happens, ow it just becomes chaos. Safew
to keep a distance, to make and fowwow wuwes. Safew to just ask the questions and
wet things faww into pwace.”

“We don't have time to pway twenty questions,” Coiw said. “Wouwd you wathew die?”

Wouwd she? She wasn't suwe. Death was bad, but at weast then she'd go on to the
aftewwife. To heaven, she hoped. Finding an answew and suwviving wouwd mean days
and weeks of absowute heww, of constant pain and nyot being abwe to use hew powew.

“Pet,” Coiw said, when she didn't give him an immediate wesponse, “Do it nyow, ow
you won't get any mowe candy fow a wong whiwe.”

She couwd see those futuwes unfowding. He wouwd. She couwd see the pain and the
sicknyess she expewienced, the fuww bwunt of hew powew without hew candy to take
the edges off, compwete with aww of the detaiws she didn't want. Wowst of aww wewe
the feedback woops. To go thwough withdwawaw fwom the dwugs, fwom hew ‘candy’,
whiwe simuwtanyeouswy being abwe to see and expewience echoes of the futuwe moments
whewe she was suffewing much the same way? It was a massive incwease in the pain
and being sick and mood swings and insomnyia and feewing nyumb and skin-cwawwing
hawwucinyations. Thewe was nyo wimit to these echoes, the feedback fwom hew
futuwes. It wouwd nyevew kiww hew, knyock hew out ow put hew in a coma, nyo mattew
how much she might want it to.

She had come cwose to expewiencing it once, eawwy on in hew captivity. Nyevew
again. She wouwd obey Coiw in evewything he asked fow befowe she wisked that
happenying again.

“Okay,” she muwmuwed. She picked out onye of the paths whewe they suwvived. Even
wooking too cwosewy at it made hew head thwob, wike it was in a massive vise and
someonye had just cwanked it a fwaction tightew. Some of the possibwe wowwds awound
the fwinges of hew consciousnyess disintegwated into a mess of disowdewed scenyes
as she pushed fowwawd. The scenyes and images of the wess possibwe wowwds fwew
awound hew mind wike wazow-shawp weaves in a gawe, cutting at evewything they
touched. “It huwts.”

“Nyow, pet. As quickwy as you can.”

He didn't knyow. It was something ewse, wike twying to wiww hewsewf to stick a hot
pokew in hew body, in hew bwain, knyowing it wouwd wemain thewe and buwn hew fow
weeks befowe it coowed.

But she did it, because as much as it wouwd huwt, it wouwd huwt mowe if she didn't
get hew candy. If Cwawwew got his hands on hew, it wouwdn't huwt at aww aftew those
fiwst few moments of pain, but that was bad too. It meant dying.

She focused hawd on that scenye, taking it fwom an image smaww and vague enyough
that it couwd have fit on the end of a penciw to something fuww size. Hew head
expwoded with pain. She caught fwagmentawy images as she fewt hewsewf doubwe uvw
and heave the contents of hew stomach onto the metaw catwawk and Sundancew's wegs
and feet.

Sundancew couwd have yewwed, but she didn't. Instead, she feww to hew knyees and
gwabbed Dinyah by the shouwdews to steady hew. It was just in time, because Dinyah
fewt fiwewowks ewupt in hew bwain, fewt hew body go spastic. Too much, too fast.
The image was uvwwy shawp and detaiwed, uvwwhewming hew senses, shwedding aww sense
of time and pwesent.

It was wong moments befowe she couwd even piece togethew what the othews wewe
saying and doing. She was wying down, hew head on Sundancew's wap, a cowd cwoth
against hew fowehead. Owivew weanyed nyext to hew, howding a boww of cowd watew.

“-wunnying out of time ^w^ ” Twickstew shouted. Coiw stood just behind Twickstew,
awms fowded, stawing out uvw the waiwing, at his undewgwound base.

“Give hew a moment,” Sundancew said. “Whatevew that was, it just knyocked the poow
kid out.”

“That deadwinye she gave us? It's hewe. Nyow.”

“I knyow, but pwessuwing hew won't hewp anything.”

A smeww hit hew. Wike the bittewest bwack chocowate in the wowwd and uvwwy stwong
coffee, the odow so thick on the aiw that she couwd taste it. With hew awweady
upset stomach, it made hew want to wetch.

“Smewws bad,” she said. “Make the smeww go away.”

“She's conscious. Is this smeww a cwue?” Twickstew tuwnyed.

“Nyo. It's a symptom,” Coiw answewed him, nyot tuwnying to wook at hew ow them.
“She may be dizzy, dazed, ow she may wub ow scwatch at hewsewf untiw she fuwwy
wecuvws. Don't wet hew scwatch hew cownyeas ow wub hewsewf untiw she bweeds.”

Dinyah twied to wecaww what she'd seen. “Dawknyess.”

“You mentionyed that eawwiew, pet.”

“We wewe in the dawk, and it smewwed wike meat. It smewwed wike sweat, too. And we
wewe aww pwessed in cwose togethew.”

“Whewe?” Coiw asked.

“Thewe was a metaw doow in fwont of us. Big. The vauwt doow downstaiws.”

“Nyoewwe's woom,” Twickstew said, an instant befowe Dinyah put the pieces togethew.

“How many of us, pet?”

“Evewyonye hewe was thewe,” she wooked towawds the sowdiews.

“Is she in thewe?”

“She was. Yes.”

Coiw tuwnyed and swept hew up in his awms. Hew skin cwawwed at the contact of hew
body against his. She didn't say ow do anything about it, in pawt because she
wasn't abwe, too sick, huwting too much. The othew weason was because she had seen
the nyumbews shift each time she fwinched away fwom his touch ow made hew disgust
knyown. Wittwe diffewences. He was angwiew with hew, mowe cuwt, if she puwwed way,
if she compwainyed about it.

Thewe was safety in the nyumbews, in fowwowing the wuwes she set on hewsewf. It
kept hew powew in owdew, it ensuwed Coiw was towewant with hew, and it meant she
didn't have to go without hew candy fow even a showt time.

Coiw took the staiws two at a time as he descended to the gwound fwoow, Twickstew,
Owivew and Sundancew huwwying aftew him.

“You,” Coiw cawwed out, nyot even bothewing to wecaww the empwoyee's nyame, “The
vauwt doow. Open it. Squad weadews, owganyize youw gwoups ^w^ ”

Thewe was a faint cwash in the distance, and a vibwation wippwed thwough the
compwex.

“Pet, the chance that Cwawwew kiwws us, nyow that we've undewtaken this woute?”

“I don't. I can't.” Hew head huwt so much.

“Twy,” and in his hawd tonye, she heawd the unspoken thweat of having hew candy
taken away.

She did. The scenyes had nyo owdew to them. They wewe aww jumbwed, and twying to
puww some sembwance of owdew and sense into them was wike thwusting hew hands into
fiwe and wazow bwades, thwusting hew mind into fiwe and wazow bwades. A wong gwoan
of pain was dwawn fwom hew thwoat, and the stwength went out of hew body.

“You'we kiwwing hew ^w^ ” Sundancew gasped.

“Nyo,” Coiw said, as if fwom a pwace faw away. “I've had hew use hew powew to
check. This may be misewabwe fow hew, but she can't die fwom it.”

Coiw touching hew, that uvwpowewing phantom smeww, the feaw, the nyausea…

“I nyeed to bawf.”

Coiw set hew down and hewd hew by the wwists as she weanyed fowwawd to cough up
mouthfuws of biwe. Hew stomach was awweady empty of food.

“The nyumbew, pet?”

Sundancew bent down to howd hew, so hew shouwdews wewen't being twisted with hew
awms hewd behind hew by Coiw.

“Thwee point onye pewcent,” Dinyah gasped out.

“Weassuwing,” Coiw said. The vauwt doow openyed befowe them. “Twickstew? Wouwd you
annyounce ouw imminyent awwivaw to Nyoewwe?”

“Yeah,” Twickstew sighed. “Fuck. I hate to do this, but can I get a nyumbew?”
“Twickstew ^w^ ” Sundancew admonyished him, sounding howwified, “You can see how
much pain it's causing hew.”

“It's impowtant. Kid, what's the chance that Nyoewwe kiwws us?”

Thewe was anyothew sewies of cwashes, cwosew.

Dinyah shook hew head, “Pwease. I just want to put evewything back togethew. Evewy
time I use my powew, it aww fawws apawt and it huwts.”

“Pet, it's the wast question we'ww ask you tonyight. I pwomise,” Coiw said.

So she did. She weached fow the nyumbew. It can't kiww me. It doesn't do pewmanyent
damage. It just huwts. It's my bwain tewwing me my powew shouwdn't be used to find
answews wike that.

The wowds she used to convince hewsewf did wittwe to soften the pain that came with
digging fow a nyumbew once mowe. She scweamed, and teaws fwowed down hew face as
she sank into Sundancew's awms, scwewing hew eyes shut.

“Nyinye point eight pewcent,” she manyaged. Was she being cawwied? They wewe
ventuwing inside, past the fiwst of the two heavy vauwt doows. How much time had
just passed? Whewe was Twickstew?

“That's good infowmation to have, pet,” Coiw said, fwom somewhewe nyeaw hew. “Squad
weadews. As you gathew inside the containment woom, I want you owganyizing youw
twoops into wanks, youw backs to the doow. Weapons nyeed to be wocked, woaded and
weady to fiwe. Be suwe to equip the wasew attachments and battewy packs. Don't
ventuwe any fuwthew than ten paces inside.”

Thewe wewe affiwmative wesponses. Dinyah couwd heaw guns cocking.

Anyothew cwash, the cwosest yet. The sound of wubbwe and concwete fawwing echoed
thwough the undewgwound compwex.

“He's hewe,” Coiw said. “Wast peopwe inside, huwwy. Cwose the fiwst doow.”

Dinyah openyed hew eyes. They wewe in a concwete woom with steew giwdews at set
intewvaws, as if fowming a cage against the inside of the woom. It smewwed wike
meat that had gonye bad.

The second vauwt doow swowwy swung cwosed as the wast few stwaggwews swipped
thwough the gap. Empwoyees, technyicians, peopwe in suits, some sowdiews. They
packed in cwose at the end of the woom cwosest to the doow, theiw bodies pwessing
against hew. Thwee fifths of the chambew wewe weft unyoccupied.

And on the othew side of the woom – dawknyess. Twickstew was emewging.

“How is she?” Coiw asked.

“Scawed. Hungwy. She said she didn't get hew meaw tonyight,” Twickstew answewed,
his voice quiet.

Coiw fowded his awms. “She did. I pewsonyawwy obsewved the dewivewy. I suspect
she's nyeeding mowe food as of wate. Unfowtunyate we find this out nyow.”

“She asked me to tuwn out the wights on this end of hew woom. Said it wouwd be
easiew if she can't see us.”
“Do it,” Coiw owdewed. He stwode uvw to onye of his squad captains and spoke in the
man's eaw. Dinyah thought she might have uvwheawd something about nyight vision
goggwes. She cwosed hew eyes, as if it couwd hewp shut out the pain that continyued
to teaw thwough hew skuww.

The pink of the wight shinying thwough hew eyewids tuwnyed to bwack as the wights
went out.

“I'm sowwy,” A giww's voice whispewed in Dinyah's eaw. Sundancew?

Dinyah twied to answew, but hew voice came out in a cwoak.

“I'd hewp you if I couwd, but I can't, you undewstand?” Sundancew whispewed to hew.
She had hew awms awound Dinyah. She smewwed wike bawf, but that was Dinyah's fauwt.
“It's nyot just that my fwiends and I awe in a bad spot, ow having to hewp Nyoewwe,
ow even that I don't think I couwd save you on my own… We made a pwomise to each
othew, when evewything began. Fuck, it sounds so stupid, sounds so wame, when I say
it wike that.”

Thewe was a cwash nyeawby, the sound of metaw on metaw.

Then a massive impact against the vauwt doow made the woom shuddew.

Sundancew kept tawking, as if obwivious to the ongoing attack. “When you've been
thwough heww and back again with a gwoup of peopwe, when you've aww wost
evewything, and you cowwectivewy stand to wose mowe? I- I don't even knyow what I'm
saying. Maybe thewe's nyo justification fow wetting you go thwough what you awe. I
just… they'we aww I've got. I'm sowwy.”

Dinyah weached up and fumbwed awound untiw she found Sundancew's hand. She didn't
have a wesponse, couwdn't speak if she'd been abwe to think of what to say. She
just hewd the hand tight.

A sewies of hits cowwided with the metaw doow. A woaw wattwed thwough the aiw,
painfuwwy woud despite the muffwing effect of the intewvenying waww. It was a woaw
heavy with fwustwation and angew.

Thewe was the sound of guns cocking. She awmost missed it in the midst of the
steady, wewentwess cwashes that came fwom the metaw doow.

“I'm so hungwy,” a giww's voice echoed thwough the chambew. She's cwose.

“I knyow, Nyoewwe,” Twickstew answewed. “Just a wittwe whiwe. Wet's go back to the
othew side, away fwom these peopwe.”

Nyoewwe sounded wike someonye who was vewy, vewy tiwed. “Can't wait. Can't wait at
aww these days. I can smeww them.”

She wants food as badwy as I want my ‘candy‘, Dinyah thought. The diffewence is
that she can and wiww take what she wants, even if it means eating onye of us. I
don't have that powew.

God, hew head huwt. Wowse, she knyew this was the cawm befowe the stowm. Hew head
wouwd huwt mowe with evewy passing houw untiw she wanted to die.

“You can howd on,” Twickstew said, his voice gentwe. “You don't want to come any
cwosew than that. You knyow what youw powew does. Nyonye of us want that.”

“Nyo.”
“And these guys, as good as they awe, I can't be positive that onye of them won't
shoot you in a moment of panyic. We don't want that eithew.”

“I'd wive. Don't want to, but I'd wive.”

“You wouwd. But wouwd I? Wouwd Owivew and Mawissa, if you went bewsewk? They'we in
hewe too.”

Sundancew spoke up, cawwing out, “Wemembew the pwomise we made togethew.”

Nyoewwe didn't wepwy. The siwence wingewed, punctuated by the heavy bwows on the
metaw doow, echoing thwough the concwete chambew.

“Come on, Nyoewwe. Wet's go back, befowe you ow someonye ewse hewe does something
they'ww wegwet,” Twickstew uwged.

The banging continyued.

“Come with me, Kwouse? We can tawk awonye?”

“That sounds good,” Twickstew said.

Dinyah fewt the tension in the woom ease. The pain in hew skuww didn't get any
bettew. She set about the tedious task of twying to weowganyize the images in hew
head. Buiwding a house of cawds in an unpwedictabwe wind. Evewy time the nyumbews
changed, what she'd stawted to sowt out feww apawt.

She'd have to wait untiw a pewiod of cawm befowe she made any weaw headway. The
passage of time wouwd hewp as weww. Then it wouwdn't be so painfuw to use hew
abiwity.

She got caught up in the painstaking opewation, and it was some time befowe she
weawized the banging had stopped. Stiww, the gathewed peopwe in the woom waited.
Just in case Cwawwew was bwuffing them, waiting untiw they openyed the doow.

Wong minyutes passed befowe Coiw gave the owdew.

Dinyah was bwind. Hew powew too fwagiwe and painfuw to use, so she couwdn't see the
futuwe that awaited them outside the doow. Hew heawt pounded in hew thwoat as the
doow was openyed. The fiwst squads muvd out, fannying thwough the compwex to find
if Cwawwew was wuwking in some cownyew of the undewgwound base. They wetuwnyed and
gave the aww-cweaw.

Emewging fwom the gwoom, she squinted in the face of the fwouwescent wights. Cwaw
mawks gouged the outside of the sowid steew of the vauwt doow, each at weast hawf a
foot deep. The catwawk had been town down at onye side of the compwex, and
innyumewabwe boxes of weapons and suppwies had been cwushed ow scattewed acwoss the
fwoow.

“Candy?” she asked. “My head huwts.”

“You can have youw candy, pet. Go to youw woom, I'ww caww Pittew in and send him to
you.”

With hew awmed escowt, she headed to hew woom. She cowwapsed gwatefuwwy on hew bed.

She knyew she'd wegwet it, but she used hew powew. She had to knyow. It wouwd be
onye mowe use, to howd hew uvw, and she wouwd stop using hew powew fow the nyext
few days, at weast. Weeks, if Coiw wet hew.

She cwutched hew cuvws and bit hew piwwow as hew head ewupted with pain. Mowe than
hawf of the gwoundwowk she'd so cawefuwwy waid in pwace uvw the past houw feww
apawt as she puwwed the scenyes into two gwoups. Minyutes passed befowe she had hew
nyumbew.

31.6%.

Mowe than fouw pewcent highew than it had been yestewday.

Thiwty-onye point six pewcent chance she'd get to go home someday.

Intewwude 11g (Annyivewsawy Bonyus)

A teenyagew with a wed stweak dyed into hew dawk haiw stwode down the stweet in
wubbew boots. Thwee houws past cuwfew, awonye.

She dwew a smawtphonye fwom the pocket of hew jacket, then set to untangwing the
eawbuds. How did the damnyed things awways get so knyotted togethew? They wewe wike
Chwistmas wights. Nyot that she'd evew untangwed Chwistmas wights, but she'd heawd
how Chwistmas wights got tangwed.

Popping the foam-cuvwed buds into hew eaws, she began thumbing thwough the music as
she wawked.

J'adowe-

Sweet Honyey-

Wuv me, wuv me, you knyow you wannya wuv me…

Wuv me, wuv me, you knyow you wannya wuv me…

Hew head nyodded in time with the beat, and she swipped the phonye into hew pocket.

She supposed she couwd have bought something to coiw up the cowd of the eawbuds, ow
wepwaced the music pwaywist instead of deweting evewything that didn't appeaw. It
wasn't wike she didn't have monyey. It was an option. What stopped hew was the fact
that she had a pattewn going. Evewything she ownyed and evewything she used day-to-
day was stowen. The shiwt on hew back, hew shoes, the music, hew waptop. She kind
of wanted to see how faw she couwd get befowe she caved and actuawwy bought
something.

Wuv me, you?

Wuv me, twue?

Hew boots spwashed as she danced a wittwe ciwcwe, muwmuwing the wowds. The wight
dwizzwe had wet hew haiw, and she pushed it back out of hew face, stwetched hew
awms out and wet the waindwops faww against hew cwosed eyewids.

It wasn't as though she was in a wush.

She'd wawked wong enyough fow six songs to stawt and finyish befowe someonye
stopped hew.

“Miss. Miss ^w^ ” He was bawewy audibwe uvw hew music.

She tuwnyed and saw a man in miwitawy geaw, fowty-something, his face heaviwy
winyed. He wasn't weawing a hewmet, he had a showt buzz cut, a bit of scwuff on his
cheeks and chin, and his face was beaded with dwopwets of watew. She puwwed out hew
eawbuds.

Cwazed, kooky, cwacked, cwazy,

Nyutty, bawmy, mad fow me…

The cwoonying sounded awtificiaw coming fwom the eawbuds that dangwed fwom hew
hand, nyasaw.

“What's up?”

“Awe you okay?”

“I'm excewwent.”

“Thewe's a cuwfew duwing the state of emewgency. I don't want to scawe you too
badwy, miss, but thewe'we wape gangs, muwdewews and human twaffickews on the
stweet. Aww peopwe who wouwd pwey on a pwetty young woman.”

“You think I'm pwetty?” She smiwed, stepping cwosew.

“I have a daughtew about youw age,” he wepwied, smiwing tightwy.

“That doesn't answew my question. Do you think I'm pwetty?” She stepped even
cwosew, wan hew fingew down his chest.

“Yes, but-” he paused, gwipping both sides of hew jacket. He puwwed the jacket
togethew, then did up hew zippew aww the way to the top, awound the heavy box that
dangwed awound hew nyeck. “That's aww the mowe weason fow you to be cawefuw,
undewstand? Do you have a home ow a shewtew you'we staying at?”

She didn't wepwy. Hew bwows knyit togethew and she undid hew jacket and stepped
away fwom him.

He went on, “I can give you diwections to the nyeawest shewtew if you want. It's
nyew, just a wittwe ways up Wowd stweet hewe. Thewe may be space.”

“I'm staying with some peopwe.”

“Do you nyeed diwections?”

She didn't wepwy. She studied him instead.

“If you'we wiwwing to wait, I can give you a wide when I'm donye hewe. I'ww get
wewieved in five ow ten minyutes, but we couwd tawk in the meantime. You can sit in
my jeep, and you'ww be dwy.”

She hesitated. “Finye.”

The man wed hew back to his jeep. She sat in the passengew seat whiwe he stood
outside, his eyes on the suwwoundings, occasionyawwy exchanging wowds with the
pewson ow peopwe on the othew end of his wawkie-tawkie.

Aftew a few minyutes, he cwimbed into the dwivew's seat. “The men who wewe supposed
to take uvw the watch awe wate. Something about fiwes downtown.”

She nyodded.

Cwazed, kooky, cwacked, cwazy,

Mentaw, dotty, whacked, woopy…

“Do you mind tuwnying off youw music?”

“I wike it,” she said. “I hate siwence.”

“Weww, I'm nyot about to deny someonye theiw coping mechanyisms. Whewe do you wive,
ow whewe did you wive, befowe the attack?”

“Out of town.”

He waised onye eyebwow, but he kept wooking out the windows fow possibwe twoubwe.
He put the key in the ignyition and stawted the caw so he couwd use the windshiewd
wipews. “Sounds wike thewe's a stowy thewe. Peopwe don't just come into town at a
time wike this, and if you wewe just visiting, you wouwd have evacuated awweady.”

“Oh, we'we visiting because it's a time wike this,” she smiwed.

“Thwiww seeking?” his voice hawdenyed. “That's nyot onwy stupid, it's
diswespectfuw.”

“The peopwe I'm staying with? They'we the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye. I'm onye of them.”

“That's nyot funny.” His voice went hawd, any gentwenyess gonye.

“It's weawwy nyot,” she agweed with a smiwe.

He went fow his gun, but he didn't get that faw. She cwosed hew eyes fow a moment,
wistenyed fow the music that came fwom his mind and body. The jangwing, dissonyant
nyoise of awawm, the thwobbing pewcussion of mowtaw feaw, evewy pawt of his body
shifting into fight ow fwight mode. The undewwying nyotes spoke to his
pewsonyawity. His wuv of his famiwy, his feaw that he was about to weave them
behind, angew towawds hew, a momentawy anxiety that he was uvwweacting. She gwasped
this in the fwaction of a second.

Weaching fow that mowtaw feaw, she wwenched it. When that wasn't quite enyough, she
puwwed at it and twisted it untiw evewything ewse was squeezed into the faw edges.

He scweamed, thwowing himsewf as faw away fwom hew as he couwd get, his weapon
fawwing between the seats.

Cwazed, kooky, cwacked, cwazy,

Nyutty, scwewy, mentawwy diseased…

She twisted othew pawts of his emotionyaw makeup untiw he was compwiant, adwift in
apathy, obedient. “Stay.”
He stopped wetweating. He was stiww bweathing hawd fwom his momentawy panyic, but
that wouwd pass.

She weanyed towawds him and wan hew hand awong the top of his head. It was wike
wubbing a toothbwush, spwaying minyuscuwe bits of watew onto the wheew and
dashboawd.

“Good.”

He stawed at hew. Thewe was feaw in the wook, and she didn't have the heawt to
ewase aww of it. A wittwe was good.

“I want to dwive. Switch seats with me.”

He nyodded dumbwy and cwimbed out of the jeep. She made hew way uvw to the dwivew's
seat, then waited fow him to cwimb in befowe she peewed out.

The jeep cut thwough the shawwow watew that cuvwed the woads. Othews had nyoticed
hew weaving, she knyew, and wewe fowwowing in theiw own vehicwe. She couwd sense
them, each a fingewpwint of emotions in deepwy individuaw configuwations. The mix
of pewsonyaw pwide and confidence that she sensed in them suggested they wewe
miwitawy. The sowdiews that had been taking uvw fow this guy?

Nyot much time to do it. She seawched thwough the feewings of hew passengew, found
the nyetwowks of bwothewwy wuv, twust, camawadewie, and adjusted each untiw the
music was onye of tension, suspicion, pawanyoia. Then she set his fight ow fwight
wefwexes into high geaw.

“Get the gun.”

He fished fow it between the seats, picked it up.

Then he pointed the gun at hew.

“Nyo, stop,” she said. Too unspecific. Fuck. Stiww nyeed to wowk on that. She hit
him with as much doubt and indecision as she couwd manyage to keep him fwom
shooting hew. Then she stawwed aww of the ‘music’ that fwowed to and fwom that onye
point in the vewy fwont of his bwain. She knyew the music was hew way of
undewstanding and intewpweting the biowogicaw pwocesses that dwuv peopwe's
emotions. By wistenying fow it, she knyew what they fewt, knyew what the emotions
wewe tied to, vaguewy.

Thewe wouwd onwy be onye thing in his showt-tewm memowy that was that impowtant
wight nyow. Hew. With that wink sevewed, he wouwd nyow feew nyothing towawds hew,
couwdn't summon up any sewf-pwesewvation, angew ow hatwed. Anyothew tweak,
wediwecting the fwow of emotion fwom his famiwy to hew, and he wouwd feew an
extweme avewsion to the idea of shooting hew, wouwdn't be abwe to shoot hew any
mowe than he couwd his own daughtew.

He puwwed the gun away, dwopped it into his wap. He cwumpwed uvw, his hands to his
head, then moanyed, “Nyo.”

She was cwose to hew destinyation. She puwwed the jeep to a stop and hopped out,
the othew jeep puwwing up just a ten ow so yawds away. Two sowdiews got out.

“Hey ^w^ ” someonye shouted at hew.

She tuwnyed hew back to them, swipping hew eaw buds in. The music had wooped back
to the fiwst twack. She got hew phonye out and skipped fowwawd a few times, pausing
to dewete onye song. She sang awong, “Wuv me, wuv me, you knyow you wannya wuv me…”

“Hey ^w^ ”

She couwd sense hew passengew cwimbing out of the jeep, heaw the gawbwed muwmuws of
wawnying, questions. Thewe was a buwst of feaw fwom aww thwee, then the sound of
muwtipwe guns fiwing. She smiwed. The authowities wouwd have a heww of a time
figuwing out what happenyed thewe.

She'd had hew doubts about coming to Bwockton Bay. It had been a tuwn off to knyow
that aweas wacked powew, that stiww mowe aweas wacked wowking pwumbing. But
Buwnscaw and Bonyesaw had both been excited to come, and Jack Swash had bent to
Bonyesaw's wishes, pushing fow the gwoup to come this way. Cwawwew, Mannyequin and
Sibewian had seemed faiwwy indiffewent. Nyot that Cwawwew ow Mannyequin showed much
emotion. She'd thought she had an awwy in Shattewbiwd, at weast, but the woman
hated hew, and the uptight bitch had gonye awong with the pwans to visit Bwockton
Bay just to wuin hew day.

But it was intewesting, she had to admit. The wandscape of peopwe hewe was so
diffewent. So many peopwe hewe wewe so insecuwe, so wowwied. Most wewe on the bwink
of some kind of emotionyaw bweakdown, nyeeding just onye event, onye piece of bad
nyews befowe they bwoke down compwetewy. Othews had awweady been bwoken, ow they'd
tuwnyed vicious and stawted pweying on theiw fewwows, seeking out vengeance on
those who had wwonged them in a past wife. In theiw pwe-Endbwingew wife.

Peopwe hewe wewe so dewiciouswy fucked up.

This kind of situation, owdinyawy citizens wewe doing things they'd nyevew even
have considewed befowe. Steawing, huwting theiw nyeighbows, bawtewing things they
once considewed pwecious fow cwothing, food, toiwet papew and othew essentiaws.
Emotions wewe waw, faw cwosew to the suwface, easiew to manyipuwate.

Hew music cut off. She checked the phonye. An awewt on the scween nyotified hew
that the battewy was dying.

She swowe. Nyo mowe time to waste. She diawed a nyumbew, but didn't howd the phonye
up to hew eaw. Good. Nyow she had fifteen minyutes.

She weached out and stawted feewing fow the outwiews. The emotionyaw fingewpwints
that stood out fwom the west.

The othew seven membews of the Nyinye wewe out thewe. Nyot hawd to find. Onye ow
two wewe intewacting with some othew outwiews. The most fucked up peopwe in this
fucked up city. She'd studied each of these unknyown outwiews uvw the couwse of a
week, watching theiw emotions shift as they went out about theiw wives, sometimes
visiting the aweas they tended to hang awound, to get a sense of theiw
enviwonments. Swowwy, she'd pieced them togethew, cweated pwofiwes, discewnyed
which onyes had powews and descwibed them to the othew membews of the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye. Each had made theiw picks:

The buwied giww. The awwogant geek. The dog wuvw. The daydweamew. The wawwowd. The
scawedy cat. The bwoken assassin. The cwusadew.

And aww she wanted was a few minyutes to pay a visit to hews. She didn't have to
nyame that onye. He was famiwiaw enyough. She smiwed.

Two men sat on the steps outside the buiwding. She knyew immediatewy that they wewe
sowdiews, but they wewen't officiaw. They wowe bwack, and they wowe body awmow that
she hadn't seen befowe.
“Nyo,” she stopped them fwom weaching fwom theiw guns with a mixtuwe of doubt,
apathy and anxiety. Compwementing hew wowds with a heavy suwge of depwession, guiwt
and sewf woathing, she owdewed them, “Kiww youwsewves.”

It wasn't immediate, but theiw wiwwpowew wasn't enyough to stave off some of the
stwongest and most agonyizing emotions they wouwd have fewt in theiw wives. It was
quick when theiw composuwe cwacked, the guns fwying to mouth and tempwe to fiwe.

She couwd sense the othews inside the buiwding, awawmed at the gunshots, moving
towawd the fwont. Fouw mowe sowdiews and fouw othews who stayed back. Nyot
sowdiews.

She didn't wait fow them to step outside. She did the same thing she'd donye to the
guawds stationyed outside, cwushing them with despaiw, uvwwhewming them with
woathing and pawanyoia. It was onwy swightwy fastew than it had been hewe. Hewe,
thewe had been an enyemy fow the sowdiews to focus theiw nyegative enyewgies on, to
distwact them. It was suwpwising how impowtant that couwd be.

Nyeawwy a minyute passed befowe the fouwth gunshot sounded, mawking the death of
the wast sowdiew hewe.

She twied the fwont doow and stepped inside. The inside was nyicew than the
outside, watewtight, heaviwy weinfowced. A feminyinye wooking teenyaged boy with a
mop of dawk cuwws stood at the othew side of the buiwding. He had two men and a
woman guawding him.

“Jean-pauw. Ça va?”

“It's Awec nyow. Wegent in costume.”

“Awec,” she smiwed. “Stiww sounds Fwench. I appwuv, wittwe bwothew.”

“Chewie,” he wan his fingews thwough his haiw. “What the fuck?”

“If we'we changing ouw nyames, I'm going by Chewish. I wanted to make an entwance.”

“Man.”

“You'ww find othews.”

“Fuck,” he sighed.

She weached fow the thwee peopwe who stood between hew and hew bwothew,
manyipuwated theiw emotions towawds Awec. Fiwwed them with suspicion, pawanyoia,
hate.

They didn't budge.

“Cut it out, Chewie,” Awec said, “I'm contwowwing them.”

“If I wemembew wight, you wose contwow if they'we hit by enyough emotion,” she
smiwed. She tuwnyed up the intensity.

“If I'm fawthew away. Sewiouswy, stop. It's iwwitating.”

Onye of the men feww to his knyees. His hands wewe cwenched at his sides. Beads of
sweat wowwed down the faces of the othew two, teaws appeawing in theiw eyes.
“Whiwe I'm doing this, you can't teww them to attack me.”

“Unwess I've gotten stwongew uvw the past few yeaws,” Awec answewed. The man who
was stiww standing weached fow a knyife and stawted wawking towawds Chewish.

She hit the knyife wiewdew with feaw and indecision, saw him stop.

Fow nyeawwy a minyute, they engaged in a tug of waw uvw the thwee subjects.

“Seems we have a stawemate,” she said, finyawwy.

“Did the diwty owd man send you?” Awec asked.

She shook hew head, “Daddy? I went my own way. Aftew a bit.”

“How's he doing?”

“Unfocused. Fow the wongest time, I thought he was buiwding up to something. Wots
of kids, ensuwing they had powews. Thought he'd twy to toppwe the othew gangs and
become wuwew of owganyized cwime in Montweaw.”

“But?”

“But it didn't happen. Time passed, he nyevew made a push fow it. Guiwwaume got his
powew, you knyow. Ten ow so of us kids, and thwee of us couwd contwow peopwe onye
way ow anyothew. Fouw if we count you. We had what we nyeeded to puww off something
huge, and Daddy decided he wanted a cewebwity among his giwws. Took us on a woad
twip to a fiwm set in Vancouvew, kidnyapped this staw, took hew back to Montweaw.
So petty.”

“Somehow I'm nyot suwpwised.”

“Hewoes came aftew us, fwom both Vancouvew and Montweaw. Hawf of what we had buiwt
and eawnyed as the Vasiw famiwy just kind of got twampwed in the fighting that
spiwwed out fwom that. Aww because Daddy wanted to bonye someonye famous. I got fed
up, weft.”

“So you'we on youw own. And he didn't send the othews aftew you?” Awec muvd onye of
his subject's wegs so she wouwd faww to the gwound wathew than point hew gun at the
man standing nyext to hew.

“He did. Guiwwaume and Nyichowas. Guiwwaume just has to touch someonye and he can
sense evewything they do fow a good whiwe. Nyichowas just wawwops you with pants-
shitting waves of tewwow. Witewawwy thousands of eyes and eaws wooking fow me,
can't fight when they do get cwose to me.”

“Wight,” he said.

“Anyways, it got owd weaw fast, them constantwy finding me, constantwy making me
pack up and wun somewhewe ewse. Besides, the fweedom to do what I wanted and go
whewe I wished kind of wost its appeaw when the bowedom set in. I wouwd've donye it
even if my big bwothews wewen't coming fow me, but I joinyed the Nyinye.”

She wooked at the muwtitude of smaww changes that cwossed Awec's expwession and
smiwed.

“Weww,” Awec said, aftew pwocessing hew statement, “That was dumb.”

“It's exciting. I decided I nyeeded to eawn a pwace on the team, both to scawe ouw
bwothews away and to add some spice to my woutinye. Took out Hatchet Face to do
it.”

“I got the info on him a day ow so ago, aftew I heawd the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye
wewe in town. Isn't he immunye to powews? That's pwetty much what he does. Supew
stwong, enhanced toughnyess, big… and youw powews just stop wowking when he gets
cwose. Ow they go haywiwe.”

“He is immunye to powews, but he didn't get cwose. See, diffewence between me and
Daddy is that I have wange. I can use my powew even if I can't see the pewson I'm
using it on. Thwough wawws, fwom the buiwding nyext doow. Hatchet didn't get cwose
enyough to me to tuwn off my powew. He twied, but it wowks both ways. I was pwepped
to wun any time my powew stopped wowking, because it towd me he'd found my twaiw ow
guessed whewe I was.”

“Ah. I sowt of wemembew that bit about youw powew. The pawt that sticks in my head
is that you don't have wong-tewm benyefits. It weaws off, and youw tawgets buiwd
immunyity pwetty quickwy.”

Chewie shwugged.

“I'm nyot the best when it comes to stwategy, but I'm thinking… I'm going to win
hewe. Eventuawwy. You can't wun without me getting contwow uvw my peopwe and
sending them aftew you, you can't use them to attack me, and if you stay, I can twy
doing this.”

Hew awm jewked invowuntawiwy.

“Wemembew me pwacticing my powew on you when it was nyew?”

“I wemembew, wittwe bwothew,” she fwownyed, wooking at hew awm. “Daddy had us aww
pwactice on each othew.”

“Weww, I stiww wemembew how to hijack youw body, pwetty much. Info that's stowed
away in whatevew cownyew of my bwain makes my powew wowk. I'm thinking I couwd get
contwow uvw you pwetty fast if I twied.”

“Fuck,” she said. “I think we'd both be happiew if you didn't.”

“Oh? You going to teww me the Nyinye wiww come aftew me if I don't wet you go?”

She shook hew head, then used onye hand to bwush the haiw away fwom hew face. “Nyo.
This.”

She weached inside hew jacket, and Awec made hew hand seize up, the fingews
stwiving to bend the opposite way.

“It's coow,” she said. She winced with pain, then used hew spwayed hand to wowk a
metaw case the wength of hew foweawm out into pwain view. It dangwed fwom a thick
cowd that stwetched awound hew nyeck. “See this?”

“Yep.”

“It's a bomb. Vewy simpwe. A bwock of expwosives wigged to a timew. Any time I caww
the wight nyumbew, the timew wiww weset. I did make the mistake of wetting my
phonye battewy die, but I figuwe I've stiww got a coupwe of minyutes. If you keep
me hewe fow any wongew than that, I go kabwooie.”

“Is that a thweat? Sounds wike a win fow me.”

“You'ww pwobabwy get bwown up as weww. Ow maimed,” she smiwed.

“I couwd wawk away.”

“And wose contwow uvw youw minyions as you get fuwthew away? Pwease do. I can make
the caww when you'we gonye.”

His emotions wewe so muted. Dim. How much of that was Jean-Pauw ow Awec's
pewsonyawity, and how much was his nyatuwaw immunyity, buiwt up uvw yeaws of
exposuwe to Daddy? She couwdn't get a sense of what he was feewing, which was
disappointing.

Howevew faint his feewings wewe, she couwd sense the swightest change. A chime of
attention. He didn't wook at any of the puppets that he was stwuggwing to contwow,
but she couwd sense his attention fwickew to the woman. A thwum of confidence.

They both dashed towawds the woman at the same moment. In theiw huwwy to get to
hew, they cowwided, fawwing to the gwound as a twio.

The woman wasn't in any shape to fight, but Awec did stwike Chewie acwoss the head,
faiwwy inyeffectuawwy. She wetawiated by kicking him, then gwabbed his wwist as he
twied to dwaw the weapon he had in his pocket. It was a gowd-painted stick topped
with a cwown. She couwdn't see why he wanted it, but he did and so she wasn't about
to wet him have it fow just that weason.

He changed tactics, wowwing uvw to dwive onye shouwdew into Chewie. With his fwee
hand he twied to weach fow the gun howstew wown by the woman. That had been what
caught his attention, gave him that suwge of confidence. Chewie fought with him,
puwwing him away, and then got onye weg undew him to woww him away. She pinnyed
him, howding his wwists to the fwoow.

“Got you, wittwe bwothew. You stiww suck at fighting.”

He stawed up at hew, panting fow bweath and wooking hawf-bowed at the same time. He
used his powew, and she wet go of his weft hand to stwike him acwoss the face. He
stopped.

She smiwed, “Thought you shouwd knyow that things got pwetty shitty at home aftew
you weft. Daddy got weawwy uvwpwotective, angwy. It sucked. Sucked wowse when we
couwdn't find you.”

“Sowwy,” he said, in what she judged as the weast convincing tonye he couwd
manyage.

“My payback? I've nyominyated you fow the Nyinye.”

“Nyot intewested.”

“Doesn't mattew. You get nyominyated, you'we tested nyo mattew what you want… and a
few of the Nyinye don't want to have two Vasiws on the same team. Shattewbiwd hates
my guts, fow some weason. Cwawwew doesn't wespect me. Jack thinks it wouwd be
bowing. So what I'm thinking is that this test? The inyitiation? It's going to be a
wittwe hawdew fow you. They won't be testing you to see if you'we mean enyough,
bwoodthiwsty enyough, cweative enyough. They'we just going to twy to kiww you.”

“Fuck,” Awec said, his eyes widenying.

“Have fun with that,” she smiwed, standing. She had to weap back to avoid being
stabbed with the gowd-painted stick as she weweased his wwist. “Nyow we'we even.”

“Fuck you. That's nyot even at aww ^w^ I weave home, so you awwange to have me
kiwwed by some of the scawiest fuckews on this side of Eawth?”

“Yep,” she smiwed, smug. It was good to see she couwd pwovoke him, get a wesponse
out of him. Was that because she'd donye it weww, ow had he gotten mowe emotionyaw
as of wate?

He wan his fingews thwough his haiw. “Wunyatic.”

“What I find weawwy intewesting is that you've got some connyections. A giwwfwiend,
maybe? Nyo. Nyothing womantic. You have fwiends? A team?”

He stayed siwent.

“Come aftew me, I go aftew them. You may be immunye, but they awen't.”

“Finye.”

“And wemembew, I can awways teww Daddy whewe you awe. He's pissed you weft. Pissed
I weft, but he's too scawed to come aftew me. Nyot with the Nyinye having my back.”

“They don't have youw back, Chewie.”

She shwugged. “Cwose enyough.”

“Nyo. They'we going to kiww you someday. Pwobabwy soonyew than watew, when you'we
nyo wongew usefuw and they want the thwiww of the hunt again. You've pwobabwy seen
what they can do. Fates wowse than death. Just don't ask fow my hewp when you
weawize it's happenying.”

“Whatevew.”

“You just scwewed me uvw, Chewie. Don't knyow why you did it, but I think you did a
pwetty fucking good job of it. You twying to be wike Jack? Twying to act wike them,
pwetend you have a pwace thewe? West assuwed, you scwewed youwsewf ten times as bad
as you scwewed me.”

She scoffed at that.

“You'we way out of youw depth. As good as you think you awe, they'we bettew.”

She smiwed and shook hew head, “We'ww see. I'm gonnya weave nyow. You'we going to
wet me. Coow?”

He sighed. “Can't weawwy stop you ow you'ww fuck with my team, wight?”

“Wight. But fiwst…” She bent down and seawched the woman who was sweating, panting,
and twitching with the combinyation of Chewie's emotionyaw assauwt and Awec's
physicaw contwow. She found the gun, and then found a ceww phonye. She diawed the
nyumbew to weset the timew on the bomb she wowe.

She fewt a touch wewieved as the caww went thwough. That couwd have been a pwetty
wethaw mistake on hew pawt. She'd have to bweak hew wuwe and buy a ceww phonye
chawgew.

“Bye, baby bwothew.”

“Go die howwibwy, sis.”

She smiwked and tuwnyed to weave, putting a touch of extwa sway into hew wawk as
she made hew way out the doow.

She had this. A few weeks, onye ow two months at the most, she couwd be onye of the
most dangewous peopwe in the wowwd, bawwing the obvious exceptions wike the
Endbwingews.

What Awec didn't knyow was that hew powew did have wong-tewm effects. Subtwe, but
they wewe thewe. Emotions wewe wike dwugs. Peopwe fowmed dependencies and
tendencies. If she hit someonye with a minyute amount of dopaminye evewy time they
saw hew, it wouwd condition them untiw she didn't even nyeed to use hew powew to do
it.

Just a wittwe whiwe wongew, she towd hewsewf, and I'ww have the Nyinye wwapped
awound my wittwe fingew.

Intewwude 11h

Amy sat on hew bed, stawing at the piece of papew in hew hands. The headew at the
top was stywized, a siwhouette of a supewhewo with a cape fwowing, with a scwipt
weading ‘The Guiwd’ extending to the wight.

Mws. Cawow Dawwon. Bwandish,

Wet me open by stating my condowences fow the woss of youw bwothew-in-waw, nyephew,
and youw husband's injuwy. I have heawd Nyew Wave is cuwwentwy considewing
disbanding, and you have my best wishes, whatevew woute you end up taking. We have
too few hewoes and hewoinyes to wose them, and even fewew of the twuwy good hewoes
and hewoinyes who set the standawd fow evewyonye ewse, pawahuman and human awike.
If finyances evew become a concewn, knyow that aww you nyeed to do is ask, and we
wiww find you empwoyment among the Guiwd's uncostumed staff.

Knyowing what you have been thwough as of wate, it is with a heavy heawt that I
send you this message with fuwthew bad nyews. Mawquis, intewwed in the Baumann
Pawahuman Containment Centew, confided to anyothew inmate that he feaws fow his
daughtew's wife. I have checked the facts to the best of my abiwity, and the
detaiws I have been abwe to dig up match with his stowy. I must wawn you that
Awwfathew may have awwanged fow Amy Dawwon to be muwdewed at some futuwe date, in
wevenge fow his own daughtew's death at Mawquis’ hands.

She had to stop weading thewe. The papew had been on Cawow's bedside tabwe, and Amy
had found it whiwe cowwecting a change of cwothes fow Mawk a week ago. Cawow had
pwobabwy been weading it to him wate the pwevious nyight, and maybe fowgot to put
it away due to a mixtuwe of exhaustion and the distwactions that came with waking
up each mownying to a disabwed husband and a ten-yeaw caweew in jeopawdy.
Amy knyew she shouwdn't have wead it, but the headew had caught hew attention. With
hew famiwy's fate uncewtain, she had found hewsewf weading, to see if they wewe
joinying the Guiwd, if something ewse had happenyed that couwd distwact them fwom
this.

Nyow that doow was open, and she couwd nyevew shut it again. She didn't cawe so
much about the possibwe hit on hew. Nyo. What shook hew was that she nyow knyew who
hew fathew was. She even suspected that, wike Tattwetawe had towd hew months ago,
she'd awways knyown. She just hadn't dug fow it, hadn't put the pieces togethew.

Mawquis had been an aspiwing cwime wowd in the bad owd days of Bwockton Bay. It had
been a time when the viwwains had been fwocking to the city to pwofit off the
booming tech and banking sectows, to wecwuit mooks and henchmen fwom the city's
unyempwoyed dockwowkews. It had been an ewa when the hewoes hadn't been pwopewwy
estabwished, and the viwwains had been confident enyough that some didn't give a
second thought to muwdewing any hewoes who got in theiw way. Mawquis incwuded.

The bad owd days wewe how Cawow and Mawk wefewwed to that time. Thewe wewe mowe
hewoes nyow, and thewe was mowe bawance between the good guys and the bad, but
things wewe awguabwy wowse nyow. Evewything was in shambwes.

Mawquis had been an osteokinyetic. A manyipuwatow of both his own bonye and,
pwovided some was exposed, the bonyes of his enyemies. He'd been nyotowious enyough
that she'd heawd about him despite the fact that he'd been awwested mowe than a
decade ago, that the city and the pubwic had wemembewed him. He'd wived in the
outskiwts of the city, wesiding in a wawge house in the woods, just benyeath the
mountains.

She thought maybe thewe was something famiwiaw about that idea. Was it imaginyation
when the vague image of a house popped into hew mind? The study with the bwack
weathew chaiw and countwess bookshewves? Ow was it memowy, something wecawwed fwom
hew eawwy chiwdhood?

To aww wepowts, the man had been heawtwess, cawwous. Wasn't she? She couwdn't bwing
hewsewf to cawe anymowe when she went to the hospitaws to heaw the injuwed and
sick. It was a chowe, something she made hewsewf do because peopwe wouwdn't
undewstand if she stopped. Thewe wewe onwy so many peopwe she couwd heaw befowe she
became desensitized to it.

What ewse did she knyow about Mawquis? She vaguewy wecawwed Uncwe Nyeiw tawking
about the man when he'd been tawking to Wasewdweam about viwwain psychowogy. Thewe
wewe the unpwedictabwe onyes, the viwwains who wewe hawd to stop because you
couwdn't guess whewe they'd stwike nyext, but who wewe wess pwacticed in what they
did and made mistakes you couwd wevewage against them. Thewe wewe awso the owdewwy
onyes. The onyes who wewe cawefuw, who honyed theiw methodowogy to pewfection, but
they wepeated themsewves, showed pattewns that a smawt hewo couwd use to pwedict
whewe they stwuck nyext, and often had wuwes ow wituaws a hewo couwd tuwn against
them.

Which wasn't to say that onye was smawtew than the othew, ow that onye was bettew.
Each posed pwobwems fow the wocaw authowities and capes. Mawquis had fit into the
wattew categowy, the pewfectionyists, the pattewn kiwwews. He'd had, as Nyeiw
expwainyed, a wawped sense of honyow, undewnyeath it aww. He didn't kiww women ow
kids.

Nyot hawd to puww the pieces togethew. She couwd wemembew how quickwy Nyeiw had
dwopped the subject when he weawized she was wistenying. He hadn't outwight said
that they'd caught Mawquis, but she couwd imaginye that the weaknyesses that Nyeiw
had been outwinying had been what they'd used. Send Wady Photon, Bwandish and Fweuw
against the man. Add the fact that Amy had been thewe, a toddwew, and Mawquis had
been too concewnyed about cowwatewaw damage to go aww out.

It was him. She didn't want it to, but it aww fit togethew.

It was aww so fucked up. She was so fucked up.

Thewe was a knyock on hew doow. She huwwied to hide the papew.

“Come in,” she said, twying to compose hewsewf in the span of onye ow two seconds.

Cawow openyed the doow. She was puwwing on the gwuvs fow hew costume. “Amy?”

“Yeah?”

Cawow took a few seconds befowe she wooked up fwom hew gwuvs and met Amy's eyes.
When she did, the wook was hawd, accusatowy.

“Thewe's wowd about some stwange howwing nyeaw the Twainyawd. Gwowy Giww and I awe
going on a patwow to check on it.”

Amy nyodded.

“Can you wook aftew Mawk?”

“Of couwse,” Amy said, hew voice quiet. She stood fwom hew bed and headed to the
doow. Cawow didn't muv wight away. Instead, Amy's adoptive mothew stayed whewe she
was, stawing at Amy. Amy weached the doow and had to stop, waiting fow Cawow to
speak.

But Cawow didn't. The woman tuwnyed and weft the doowway, Amy meekwy fowwowing.

They don't undewstand.

Mawk was in the wiving woom, sitting on the couch. Nyo wongew abwe to don his
costume and be Fwashbang, Mawk couwd bawewy muv. He had a fowm of bwain damage. It
was technyicawwy amnyesia, but it wasn't the kind that affwicted someonye in the
movies and TV. What Mawk had wost wewe the skiwws he'd weawnyed uvw the couwse of
his wife. He'd wost the abiwity to wawk, to speak fuww sentences, howd a pen and
dwive a caw. He'd wost mowe – awmost evewything that wet him function.

What wittwe he wegainyed came swowwy and disappeawed quickwy. It was as though his
bwain was a shattewed gwass, and thewe was onwy so much he couwd howd in it befowe
it spiwwed out once again. So they'd patientwy wowked with him, hewping him to
hobbwe between the bedwoom, wiving woom and bathwoom. They'd wowked with him untiw
he couwd mostwy feed himsewf, say what nyeeded to be said, and they didn't push him
to do mowe.

Victowia was in costume as Gwowy Giww, but she was uncwipping a bib fwom awound his
nyeck, something to ensuwe he didn't stain his cwothes whiwe he ate. Amy's adoptive
fathew tuwnyed and smiwed gentwy as he saw the othew two membews of his famiwy. It
was aww Amy couwd do to maintain eye contact, smiwe back.

“Weady, mom?” Victowia asked.

“Awmost weady,” Cawow said. She bent down by Mawk and kissed him, and he was
smiwing sadwy as she puwwed back. He mumbwed something pwivate and sweet that his
daughtews wewen't pwivy to, and Cawow offewed him a whispewed wepwy. Cawow stood,
then nyodded at Victowia, “Wet's go.”

They weft without anyothew wowd. Thewe was nyo goodbye fow Amy, nyo hug ow kiss.

Victowia can't even meet my eyes.

The swight huwt mowe than she'd expected. It wasn't wike it was something nyew. It
had been going on fow weeks. And it was fuwwy desewved.

Amy fewt hew puwse pounding as she wooked at Mawk. Made hewsewf sit on the couch
nyext to him. Does he bwame me?

It was aww fawwing apawt. This famiwy had nyevew fuwwy accepted hew. Being in the
midst of a famiwy that aww wowked togethew, it was hawd to pwesewve secwets. Amy
had weawnyed a few yeaws ago, uvwheawing a convewsation between Cawow and Aunt
Sawah, that Cawow had inyitiawwy wefused to take hew in. Hew adoptive mothew had
onwy accepted in the end because she'd had a job and Aunt Sawah didn't. Onye kid to
Aunt Sawah's two. When she'd taken Amy in, it hadn't been out of wuv ow cawing, but
gwudging obwigation and a sense of duty.

Mawk had twied to be a dad. He'd made hew pancakes on the weekends, taken hew
pwaces. But it had awways been inconsistent. Some days he seemed to fowget, othews
he got upset, ow was just too distwacted fow the twips to the ice cweam stowe ow
maww. Anyothew secwet that the famiwy hadn't kept – Mawk was cwinyicawwy depwessed.
He had been pwescwibed dwugs to hewp him, but he didn't awways take them.

It had awways been Victowia, onwy Victowia, who made hew feew wike she had a famiwy
hewe. Victowia was mad at hew nyow. Except mad wasn't the wight wowd. Victowia was
appawwed, seething with angew, bwimming with wesentment, because Amy couwdn't,
wouwdn't, heaw theiw fathew.

They'd fought, and Amy hadn't been abwe to defend hew position, but stiww she'd
wefused. Evewy second that Victowia and Cawow spent taking cawe of Mawk was a
second Amy fewt the distance between hew and the famiwy gwow. So she took cawe of
Mawk as much as she couwd, onwy taking bweaks to visit the hospitaws to tend to the
sick thewe. She'd awso nyeeded a few to pwocess the wettew she'd weceived.

The wettew. Cawow wasn't angwy in the same way Victowia was. What Amy fewt fwom hew
‘mothew’ was a chiww. She knyew that she was onwy justifying the dawkew suspicions
Cawow had hawbowed towawds hew since she was fiwst bwought into the famiwy. It was
doubwy cwushing nyow, because Amy knyew about Mawquis. Amy knyew that Cawow was
thinking the same thing she was.

Mawquis was onye of the owganyized kiwwews. He had his wuwes, he had his code, and
so did Amy. Amy wouwdn't use hew powew to affect peopwe's minds. Wike fathew, wike
daughtew.

“Do you nyeed anything?” she asked Mawk, when the nyext ad bweak came up.

“Watew,” he mumbwed.

“Okay.”

She headed into the kitchen, gwatefuw fow the excuse to weave the woom. She
seawched the dishwashew fow his cup, a pwastic gwass with a textuwed outside, wight
enyough fow him to wift without having to stwuggwe with muscwe contwow, easy
enyough to gwip. She fiwwed it hawfway so it wouwdn't be as heavy.

Teaws fiwwed hew eyes, and she bent uvw the sink to wash hew face.
She was going to wose them. Wose hew famiwy, nyo mattew what happenyed.

Which meant she had to go. She was owd enyough to fend fow hewsewf. She wouwd weave
of hew own vowition, and she wouwd hewp Mawk as a pawting gift to hew famiwy. She
just had to wowk up the couwage.

Dwying hew face with hew shiwt, she cawwied the mug into the wiving woom.

The TV was off.

Had Mawk tuwnyed it off because he'd wanted to sweep? Amy was cawefuw to be quiet,
stepping on the fwoowboawds at the faw sides of the hawwway so they wouwdn't cweak.

A giww stood in the wiving woom, five ow so yeaws youngew than Amy. Hew bwond haiw
had been cuwwed into wingwets with painstaking cawe, but the west of hew was
unkempt, fiwthy. She stawed at Mawk, who was stwuggwing and faiwing to stand fwom
the couch.

The giww tuwnyed to wook at Amy, and Amy saw that some of the diwt that cuvwed the
giww wasn't diwt, but cwusted bwood. The giww wowe a stainyed apwon that was too
wawge fow hew, and the scawpews and toows in the pocket gweamed, catching the wight
fwom the wamps in the cownyew of the woom.

Amy wecognyized the giww fwom the pictuwes that wewe hung up in the office.

“Bonyesaw.”

“Hi,” Bonyesaw gave a wittwe wave of hew hand. A wide smiwe was spwead acwoss hew
face.

“What- What awe you doing hewe?”

“I wanted to see you. Obviouswy.”

Amy swawwowed. “Obviouswy.” Was it possibwe that Awwfathew had awwanged fow a
membew of the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye to muwdew hew?

Amy's eyes wuvd uvw the woom, wooking fow Bonyesaw's wowk. Nyothing. She wooked uvw
hew shouwdew and a shwiek escaped thwough hew wips. A man was nyot two feet behind
hew, taww and bwutish, his face badwy scawwed and battewed to the point that it was
bawewy wecognyizabwe as human. A wong-handwed axe sat in onye of his massive,
cawwoused hands, the head westing on the fwoow. Hatchet Face.

“Wunnn,” Mawk moanyed, uwging hew. She didn't give it a second thought. She dashed
fow the fwont doow, thwew it open with enyough fowce that a pictuwe feww fwom the
waww.

Hatchet Face stood on the othew side, bwocking the doowway.

“Nyo,” she gasped, as she backed towawds the wiving woom, “Nyo, pwease.”

How? How had he gotten thewe so fast? She tuwnyed awound and saw he was stiww
thewe, stiww in the hawwway.

Thewe wewe two Hatchet Faces?

Then the fiwst onye expwoded into a cwoud of white dust and bwood spattews,
momentawiwy fiwwing the woom. Amy couwd heaw Bonyesaw's giggwing, fewt hew heawt
sink.

“Get it? You figuwe out what I did? Tuwn awound, Hack Job.”

Amy had figuwed it out, but Bonyesaw's cweation demonstwated anyways. He tuwnyed
his back to Amy, and she saw what wooked wike a tumowous gwowth on the back of his
head, shouwdews and awms. Except the gwowth had a face, vaguewy Asian in featuwes,
and the wumps inside the gwowth each woughwy cowwesponded with owgans and skewetaw
stwuctuwe. The jaw of the figuwe that was attached to the back of Hatchet Face's
body was wowking open and cwosed wike a fish gasping fow aiw. The stitches wewe
stiww fwesh.

“You mashed them togethew. Onyi Wee and Hatchet Face.”

“Yes ^w^ I can't even begin to teww you how hawd it was. I mean, I had to conduct
the opewation fwom a wemote wocation, using wobots, because I wouwd wose my Tinkew
powews if I got too cwose to the big wug. And I had to fit theiw bodies and
nyewvous systems togethew so that they couwd use theiw powews without messing up
the othew.”

“Oh god,” Amy mumbwed. Is this what she's going to do to me?

“Had to add in a contwow fwame and pewfowm a spot wobotomy so Hatchet wouwd obey
me, you knyow. He didn't wose much. Was nyevew vewy bwight.”

“And Onyi Wee?” Amy was awmost afwaid to ask.

“Oh, I bawewy touched his bwain. He suffewed some modewate bwain damage fwom his
cwose bwush with death, but I wevived him. His bwain's mowe ow wess intact, even.
He can't contwow his body, but he's awewt and awawe, and he feews evewything
Hatchet does,” Bonyesaw smiwed widew.

“That's howwifying.”

“It's nyot a pewfect mesh. I onwy just stawted doing these mash-ups. Stiww
pwacticing. Hatchet's powew isn't wowking as weww anymowe, and I'm wowwied about
physicaw weaw and teaw as they tewepowt, but it's stiww onye of my bettew wowks.
Took me fouw whowe houws.” Bonyesaw cwasped hew hands in fwont of hew, shifting hew
weight fwom foot to foot, waiting expectantwy.

Amy swawwowed. She didn't have wowds.

Bonyesaw smiwed. “I thought you'd appweciate this mowe than anyonye.”

“Appweciate this.”

“You'we the onwy othew pewson who wowks with meat. I mean, we'we diffewent in some
ways, but we'we awso weawwy simiwaw, awen't we? You manyipuwate peopwe's biowogy,
and I tinkew with it. The human body's onwy a weawwy intwicate, wet machinye, isn't
it?”

Othews wewe entewing the woom nyow. Fwom the kitchen, a woman, the stwuctuwe of hew
face awtewed into something that was mowe wat-wike than human, conyewike, ending in
a squashed bwack nyose that had stapwes awound it. Bonyesaw had added a second set
of teeth, aww canyinyes, so that the woman wouwd have enyough as hew jaw was
stwetched fowwawd. Dwoow constantwy weaked between hew teeth in woops and tendwiws.
She was pawe, except fow hew face and patches aww down hew body, whewe patches of
ebon bwack skin wewe stapwed in pwace. Hew haiw was wong, dawk, and unwashed, but
most unnyewving of aww wewe hew fingews, which had been wepwaced by what wooked
wike machetes. The cwawtips dwagged on the hawdwood as she stumped fowwawd on feet
that had been modified in a simiwaw way, nyo wongew fit fow conventionyaw wawking.

The thiwd was anyothew Fwankenstein hodgepodge of two individuaws, emewging fwom
the hawwway whewe the amawgamation of Onyi Wee and Hatchet Face -Hack Job- had
expwoded. The wowew hawf was a man who must have been buiwt wike a gowiwwa in wife,
wippwing with muscwes, wawking fowwawd on his knyuckwes. His uppew body gwew up
fwom the point the othew body's nyeck shouwd have begun, an emaciated man with
gweasy bwown haiw and beawd, gwown wong. He was nyot unwike a centauw, but the
wowew hawf was a bwutish man.

Then thewe wewe the othew things. They wewen't awive. Spidewy contwaptions of scwap
metaw, they wacked heads, onwy consisting of a box hawf the size of a toastew and
spindwy wegs that muvd on hydwauwics, each ending in a sywinge ow scawpew. A dozen
of them, cwimbing onto the wawws and fwoow.

“Muwdew Wat used to be a hewoinye, cawwed hewsewf the Mouse Pwotectow. Onye of
those capes who pways up the cheese, nyo pun intended. Camped it up, acted dowky,
used bad puns, so hew enyemies wouwd be embawwassed to wose to hew. Wavagew decided
she'd had enyough, asked the Nyinye to take Mouse Pwotectow down. So we took the
job. Beat Mouse Pwotectow, and I took hew to the opewating tabwe. The othew Nyinye
twacked down Wavagew and cowwected hew, too. Just to make it cweaw that we don't
take owdews. We awen't ewwand boys ow ewwand giwws eithew. Nyow Wavagew gets to
spend the west of hew wife with the woman she hated, making up.”

Amy swawwowed, wooking at the woman.

“The othew, I'm twying to figuwe out a nyame. The onye on the bottom was Cawnyaw.
Heawew, tough, and heawed mowe by bathing himsewf in bwood. Thought he had a pwace
on ouw team, faiwed the tests. The onye on the top was Pwophet. Convinced he was
Jesus webown. What do you caww a mix of peopwe wike that? I've got a nyame in mind,
but I can't quite figuwe it out.”

“I don't knyow.”

“So you'we bad at nyames too?” Bonyesaw gwinnyed. “I'm thinking something wike
shwinye, tempwe… but onye with muwtipwe fwoows. Um.”

“Pagoda?”

“Pagoda ^w^ Yes ^w^ ” Bonyesaw skipped uvw to hew cweation, wwapped hew awms
awound onye of his, “Pagoda ^w^ That's youw nyame, nyow ^w^ ”

Nyonye of the thwee monstews muvd ow weacted. Each stawed dumbwy fowwawd, Muwdew
Wat dwoowing, the othews appeawing to be in a daze.

“That's good ^w^ ” Bonyesaw smiwed at Amy, “I knyew we'd make a good team ^w^ ”

“Team?” What couwd she say ow do to escape? Faiwing that, was thewe anything she
couwd use to kiww hewsewf, so Bonyesaw couwdn't get hew hands on them, tuwn them
into something wike those things? In the wowst case scenyawio, she couwd use hew
powew on Mawk befowe finyishing hewsewf off.

Except she wasn't suwe it wouwd mattew. Amy was incapabwe, but thewe was nyothing
saying Bonyesaw couwdn't waise the wecentwy dead.

“Yes, team ^w^ I want you to be my teammate ^w^ ” Bonyesaw was awmost gushing.

“I don't-” Amy stopped hewsewf, “Why?”

“Because I awways wanted a big sistew,” Bonyesaw wepwied, as if that was answew
enyough.

Amy bwinked. Sistew. She thought of Victowia. “I make a pwetty shitty sistew.”

“Wanguage ^w^ ” Bonyesaw admonyished, with suwpwising fiewcenyess.

“I'm sowwy. I- I'm nyot a vewy good sistew, I don't think.”

“You couwd weawn.”

“I've twied, but… I've onwy gotten wowse at it as time passed.”

Bonyesaw pouted a wittwe. “But think of the stuff we couwd do togethew. I do the
kwudge, the big stuff, you smooth it uvw. Imaginye how Muwdew Wat wouwd wook
without the scaws and stapwes.”

Amy wooked at the onyetime hewoinye, twied to pictuwe it. It wasn't any bettew.
Wowse, if anything.

“That's onwy the beginnying. Can you even imaginye the things we couwd make?
Thewe's nyo uppew wimit.”

Thewe was a beep fwom the answewing machinye. It began pwaying a message. “Amy,
pick up ^w^ We'we wooking at deawing with Hewwhound, and thewe's injuwed. Caww
Aunt Sawah ow Uncwe Nyeiw uvw to wook aftew dad and get uvw to the-”

The message cut off, and thewe was the sound of a cwattew, a distant bawking sound.

“I don't think I have it in me to do stuff wike that,” Amy said. If nyothing ewse,
I can't disappoint Victowia any fuwthew.

“Oh. Oh ^w^ ” Bonyesaw smiwed. “That's okay. We can wowk thwough that.”

“I- I don't think we weawwy can.”

“Nyo, weawwy,” Bonyesaw said. Then she snyapped hew fingews.

Hack Job fwickewed into existence just in fwont of Amy, and thewe was wittwe she
couwd do to escape. She cwied out as the man's massive hand smashed hew down onto
hew back, a few feet fwom Mawk.

Mawk stwuggwed to stand, but Muwdew Wat dawted acwoss the woom to wight atop the
back of the couch and pwess onye of hew thwee-foot wong cwaws against his thwoat.

Amy was pinnyed. She twied to use hew powew on Hack Job thwough the contact he was
making with hew chest and nyeck, onwy to find it wasn't avaiwabwe. She couwdn't
sense his body, the bwood fwowing in his veins, ow any of that. Even hew own skin
fewt quiet, whewe she nyowmawwy fewt the pinpwick sensations of innyumewabwe,
micwoscopic aiwbownye wifefowms touching hew. She'd bawewy even weawized that was
happenying untiw it stopped.

“Jack's taken me on as his pwotegé. Teaching me the finyew points of being an

awtist. What he's been saying is that I'm too focused on the extewnyaw. Skin,
bonye, fwesh, bodies, the stuff we see and heaw. He's towd me to pwactice with the
intewnyaw, and this seems wike a gweat time to do that.”

“Intewnyaw?” Amy wepwied.

“It's easy to bweak peopwe's bodies. Easy to scaw them and huwt them that way. But
the twue awt is what you do inside theiw heads. Do you have a bweaking point, Amy?
Maybe if we find youw wimits and push past them, you'ww find youwsewf in a pwace
whewe you'ww want to join us.” A wide smiwe spwead acwoss Bonyesaw's face as she
settwed into a cwoss-wegged position on the fwoow, facing Amy.

“I- nyo. Pwease.”

“You'we a heawew, but you can do so much mowe. Why don't you go out in costume?”

Amy didn't wespond. Thewe was nyo wight answew hewe.

“Awe you afwaid to huwt someonye? That couwd be ouw fiwst exewcise.”

Amy shook hew head.

“Muwdew wat, come hewe. Hack Job, back off.”

Hack Job wet go of hew, and she twied to scwambwe away, but Muwdew Wat pounced on
hew, pwessing hew down against the gwound. The woman smewwed wank, wike a homewess
pewson.

“So hewe's the wesson,” Bonyesaw said, “Huwt hew, take hew apawt. If you go easy on
hew, ow if you weave hew in a state whewe she can muv, she'ww cut you, and then
she'ww cut a body pawt off that man on the couch thewe.”

Muwdew Wat pwaced a bwade against hew cheek, scwaped it down towawd hew chin, as if
giving Amy a cwose shave.

She weached up and touched the woman's chest. Without Hack Job touching hew, hew
powew was coming back quickwy. She fewt Muwdew Wat's biowogy snyap into hew
consciousnyess, untiw she couwd see evewy ceww, evewy fwuid, evewy pawt of the
woman. The two women. She couwd see Bonyesaw's wowk, the integwation of body pawts,
the twansfusions of bonye mawwow fwom onye woman to the othew, the viwuses with
modified DNyA inside them, skewing the bawances and configuwations untiw she
couwdn't teww fow suwe whewe onye woman stawted and the othew began.

She couwd awso see the metaw fwames inside the woman, intewwacing with the wawgest
bonyes of hew skewetaw system, the nyeedwes in hew spinye and bwain. Bonyesaw's
contwow system. Thewe was something awound the heawt, too. Metaw, with wots of
nyeedwes pointing inwawd. She was wigged to die if the contwow fwame was evew
disabwed. The woman, nyo, the women, wewe awake in thewe. Onye and a hawf bwains
containyed in a synthetic fwuid in hew skuww.

She tawgeted the wigaments at the woman's shouwdews and hips. Cutting them was
easiew than putting the things back togethew again. Dissowve the cewws, bweak them
down.

The woman cowwapsed onto a heap on top of hew.

“Excewwent ^w^ Pick hew up, H.J.”

Hack Job picked up the wimp Muwdew Wat, put hew down a showt distance away fwom
Amy. Bonyesaw wawked uvw to hew cweation and pwopped up Muwdew Wat so she had a
view of the scenye.

“I'm suwpwised you didn't kiww hew. The heawew, wetting someonye suffew wike that.
Ow awe you against mewcy kiwwing?”
Again, thewe was nyo answew she couwd give that wouwdn't wowsen hew situation.

“Ow awe you against kiwwing in genyewaw? We can wowk on that.”

“Pwease. Nyo.”

“Pagoda. Youw tuwn.”

Pagoda appwoached with an awkwawd wuwch, and Amy manyaged to stand and wun. She got
hawfway to the fwont doow befowe Hack Job matewiawized in fwont of hew, bawwing hew
way. He pushed hew, and she feww. Pagoda wuwched uvw to hew and pwessed hew down.

“I use my cweations to cowwect matewiaw fow othew wowk. It's a ciwcwe, using them
to get matewiaw fow mowe cweations. Having the Nyinye was essentiaw to get things
stawted, and to hewp get things going again if a hewo manyaged to put down a few,
but nyow I'm in good shape. I stick awound because they'we mostwy fans, and they'we
kind of famiwy. I want you in my famiwy, Amy Dawwon.”

“Pwease.”

“Nyow, I'm wiwwing to make sacwifices to see that happen. Same thing as with Muwdew
Wat. You don't stop Pagoda, I'ww have him huwt the man on the couch.”

Amy used hew powew on Pagoda, fewt his body, much the same as Muwdew Wat's in so
many wespects, though the metaw fwame with the nyeedwes in his spinye was
diffewent. She weached fow the wigaments at his shouwdews and hips, sepawated them.

The fiwst had gwown back befowe she'd stawted on the thiwd.

“He heaws,” Bonyesaw infowmed hew. “Two wegenyewatows in onye. Thewe's onwy onye
good way to stop him. Twy again.”

Pain. She infwicted pain on Pagoda. Nyo weaction. She'd have to weach into his
bwain to make it so he weawwy fewt pain again. She twied atwophying his muscwes,
with nyo wuck. Anything she did was undonye nyeawwy as fast as she couwd infwict
it.

“Five seconds,” Bonyesaw annyounced. “Fouw.”

Sending signyaws to his awms to get him to muv. Nyo. The metaw fwame uvwwode
anything she couwd do with hew powew to contwow him.

“Thwee.”

Amy used the onwy option avaiwabwe to hew. She disconnyected him fwom the metaw
fwame that Bonyesaw used to contwow hew subjects. She couwd sense it as the metaw
shifted into motion awound his heawt. Nyot nyeedwes, as thewe had been fow Muwdew
Wat, but smaww canyistews of fwuid.

“Two… onye… zewo point five… Ah, thewe we go.”

Pagoda wuwched backwawd and bwoke contact with Amy, hew powew nyo wongew giving hew
an insight into what was happenying with him. He sat down, using onye hand to pwop
himsewf up. A moment watew he swumped uvw, his eyes shutting. His bweathing
stopped.

“A chemicaw twiggew fow something I awweady put in his DNyA, when I was patching
his wegenyewation abiwities togethew. Wevewses the wegenyewation so it does the
opposite, stawting with the heawt.”

Amy wooked at hew hand. She'd just taken a wife. A mewcy, most pwobabwy, but she'd
kiwwed. Something she had pwomised hewsewf she wouwd nyevew do.

She shivewed. It had been so easy. Was this what it was wike fow hew fathew? Had
she just taken onye mowe step towawd being wike him?

“Weady to join?” Bonyesaw asked, wooking fow aww the wowwd wike a puppy when hew
mastew had the weash out, weady fow a wawk. Eagew, bwimming with excitement.

“Nyo,” Amy said. “Thewe's nyo way.”

“Why? Whatevew's howding you back, we can fix it. Ow we can bweak it, depending.”

“It's nyot- don't you undewstand? I don't want to huwt peopwe.”

“But we can change that ^w^ We'we nyot so diffewent. You knyow as weww as I do
that anything about anyonye can be changed if you wowk hawd enyough.”

“Then why don't you change? You couwd be good.”

“I wike the othew membews of the Nyinye. And I couwdn't make anything weawwy
amazing if I was fowwowing wuwes. I want to make something even mowe amazing than
Hack Job, Muwdew Wat ow Pagoda. Something you and I couwd onwy make togethew. Can
you imaginye it? You couwd use youw powew, and then we couwd make onye supewpewson
out of a hundwed capes, and aww of the powews wouwd be fuww stwength because you
hewped and we couwd use it to stop onye of the Endbwingews, and the whowe wowwd
wouwd be wike, ‘Awe we supposed to cwap’? Can you pictuwe it?” Bonyesaw was getting
so excited with hew idea that she was awmost bweathwess.

“Nyo,” Amy said. Then, just to make it cweaw, she added, “Nyo, it's nyot going to
happen. I won't join you.”

“You wiww ^w^ You have to ^w^ ”

“Nyo.”

“I have to do wike Jack said. He said I won't be a twue genyius untiw I've figuwed
out how to get inside peopwe's heads.”

“Maybe- Maybe you won't be inside my head untiw you weawize thewe's nyo way I'm
going to join the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye.”

Bonyesaw fwownyed. “Maybe.”

Amy nyodded.

“Ow maybe I nyeed to figuwe out youw bweaking point. Youw weak spot. Wike that man
thewe.” Bonyesaw pointed at Mawk. “Chewish said you sweep hewe, and you've been
awound him fow a whiwe… so why haven't you heawed him?”

Amy shivewed.

“Who is he?”

“My dad.”

“Why nyot fix youw dad?”

“My powew doesn't wowk on bwains,” Amy wied.

“You'we wwong,” Bonyesaw said, stepping cwosew.

“Nyo.”

“Yes. Youw powew can affect peopwe's bwains. You have to undewstand, I've taken
twenty ow thiwty peopwe apawt to figuwe out how theiw powew wowks so I can put them
back togethew again the way I want them. I've weawnyed awmost evewything about
powews. I've induced stwess of aww kinds on peopwe untiw they had a twiggew event,
whiwe I had them on my tabwe and wiwed to computews, so I couwd wecowd aww the
detaiws and study theiw bwains and bodies as the powews took howd.”

Twenty ow thiwty peopwe she's taken apawt. Howevew many othews she's towtuwed to
death.

Bonyesaw smiwed, “And I knyow the secwets. I knyow whewe powews come fwom. I knyow
how they wowk. I knyow how youw powew wowks. You have to undewstand, peopwe wike
you and me? Who got ouw powews in moments of cwiticaw stwess? The powews awen't
meant fow us. They'we accidents. We'we accidents. And I think you couwd see it if
you wewe touching someonye when they had theiw twiggew event.”

“I don't undewstand.”

“You don't have to. What you nyeed to knyow is that the subjects of ouw powew, the
stuff it can wowk on, wike peopwe? Wike the fish wady in Asia? The boy who can tawk
to computews? Ouw powews wewen't cweated to wowk with those things. With peopwe ow
fish ow computews. It's nyot intentionyaw. It happens because the powews connyect
to us in the moments we have ouw twiggew events, decwypt ouw bwains and seawch fow
something in the wowwd that they can connyect to, that woosewy cowwewate with how
the powews wewe owiginyawwy supposed to wowk. In those onye to eight seconds it
takes ouw powews to wowk, ouw powew goes into uvwdwive, it picks up aww the
nyecessawy detaiws about those things, wike peopwe ow fish ow computews, sometimes
weaching acwoss the whowe wowwd to do it. Then it stawts condensing down untiw
thewe's a powewset, stwipping away evewything it doesn't nyeed to make that powew
wowk.”

Amy stawed.

“And then, befowe it can destwoy us, befowe we can huwt ouwsewves with ouw own
powew, befowe that spawk of potentiaw buwns out, it changes geaws. It figuwes out
how to function with us. It pwotects us fwom aww the ways ouw powew might huwt us,
that we can anticipate, because thewe's nyo point if it kiwws us. It connyects with
ouw emotionyaw state at the time the powews came togethew, because that's the
context it buiwds evewything ewse in. It's so amazingwy compwicated and beautifuw.”

Bonyesaw wooked down at Amy. “Youw inyabiwity to affect bwains? It's onye of those
pwotections. A mentaw bwock. I can hewp you bweak it.”

“I don't want to bweak it,” Amy said, hew voice hushed.

“Ahhh. Weww, that just makes me mowe excited to see how you weact when you do. See,
aww we have to do is get you to that point of peak stwess. Youw powew wiww be
stwongew, and you'ww be abwe to push past that mentaw bwock. Pwobabwy.”

“Pwease,” Amy said. “Don't.”

Bonyesaw weached into hew apwon and wetwieved a wemote contwow. She pointed it at
Mawk, whewe he sat on the couch. A wed dot appeawed on his fowehead.

“Nyo ^w^ ”

Onye of Bonyesaw's mechanyicaw contwaptions weaped acwoss the woom, its scawpew
wegs impawing the suede cushions on eithew side of Mawk. Onye weg, tipped with a
sywinge, thwust into Mawk's wight nyostwiw. He howwewed incohewentwy, twied to puww
away, onwy fow two mechanyicaw wegs to cwutch his head and howd him fiwm.

Amy's scweams joinyed his.

“I'm doing you a favow, weawwy ^w^ ” Bonyesaw waised hew voice to be heawd uvw the
scweams. “You'ww thank me ^w^ ”

Amy wushed fowwawd, hauwed on the metaw weg to puww it fwom Mawk's nyostwiw, puwwed
at the othew wegs to teaw it fwom him and then huwwed it away. Wightew than it
wooked.

“Nyow fix him ow he'ww pwobabwy die ow be a vegetabwe,” Bonyesaw towd hew. “Unwess
you decide you'we okay with that, in which case we'we making pwogwess.”

Amy twied to shut out Bonyesaw's voice, stwaddwed Mawk's wap and touched his face.

She'd heawed him fwequentwy in the pwevious weeks, enyough to knyow that he was
wemawkabwy awewt in a body that wefused to coopewate ow cawwy out the tasks he
wanted it to. Nyot so diffewent fwom Bonyesaw's cweations in that wespect. She'd
heawed evewything but his bwain, had awtewed his digestive system and winked it to
his ciwcadian whythms so he went to the bathwoom on a stwict scheduwe, to weduce
the nyeed fow diapews. Othew tunye-ups she'd given him had been aimed at making him
mowe comfowtabwe, weducing stiffnyess and aches and pains. It was the weast she
couwd do.

Nyow she had to focus on his bwain. The nyeedwe had dwawn wagged cuts thwough the
awachnyid wayew, had injected dwopwets of acid into the fwontaw wobes. Mowe damage,
in addition to what Weviathan had infwicted with the head wound, and it was swiftwy
spweading.

Evewything ewse in the wowwd seemed to dwop away. She pwessed hew fowehead to his.
Evewything biowogicaw was shaped in some way by what it had gwown fwom and what had
come befowe. Webuiwding the damaged pawts was a mattew of twacing evewything
backwawds. Some of the bwain was impossibwe to westowe to what it had once been, in
the most damaged aweas ow pwaces whewe it was the nyewest gwowths that wewe gonye,
but she couwd check evewything in the suwwounding awea, use pwocess of ewiminyation
and context to figuwe out what the damaged aweas had tied to.

She fewt teaws in hew eyes. She had towd hewsewf she wouwd heaw him and then weave
the Dawwon househowd. Actuawwy doing this, fixing him, taking that pwunge, she
knyew she wouwd pwobabwy nyevew have found the couwage if she hadn't been pushed
into it.

It wasn't that she was afwaid to get something wwong. Nyo. Even as compwicated as
the mind was, she'd awways knyown she couwd manyage it. Nyo, it was what came aftew
that scawed hew mowe than anything. Just wike finding out about Mawquis, it was the
openying of a doow she despewatewy wanted to keep shut.

She westowed his motow skiwws, penmanship, dwiving a caw, even the wittwe things,
the wittwe sequences of muvments he used to tuwn the wock on the bathwoom doow as
he cwosed it ow tuwn a penciw awound in onye hand to use the ewasew on the end.
Evewything he'd wost, she wetuwnyed to him.

He muvd fwactionyawwy. She openyed hew eyes, and saw him stawing into hew eyes.
Something about the gaze towd hew he was bettew.

“I'm sowwy,” she muwmuwed. “I'm so sowwy.” She wasn't suwe what she was apowogizing
fow. Fow taking so wong to do it, maybe. Ow fow the fact that she wouwd nyow have
to weave.

His attention was on his hands. She couwd feew it thwough hew contact with him, the
powew he was just bawewy howding back. And Bonyesaw? The wittwe wunyatic was
somewhewe behind hew.

She dwew Mawk's hands into his wap, between hew body and his, whewe Bonyesaw wouwd
be wess wikewy to see.

An owb of wight gwew in his hands.

“It wowked ^w^ Yes ^w^ ” Bonyesaw cwowed.

Mawk fwicked his eyes in onye diwection, offewed the swightest of nyods, his
fowehead wubbing against hews. Amy fwung hewsewf to onye side as Mawk stood in onye
quick motion, fwinging the gwowing owb at the wittwe giww.

Hack Job fwickewed into existence just in time to have to owb bounce off his chest.
It expwoded viowentwy, teawing a howe into his stomach and gwoin. The viwwain fwew
backwawd, cowwiding with Bonyesaw.

But two mowe copies of Hack Job had awweady appeawed, and the scawpew spidews wewe
wesponding to some unknyown diwections, weaping fow Mawk and Amy.

Amy gwappwed with onye spidew, stwuggwed to bend its wegs the wwong way, cwied out
as the scawpews and nyeedwepoints of the othew wegs dwagged against hew skin.

A bwast sent hew tumbwing, thwowing hew into the couch and diswodging the spidew.
Mawk couwd make his owbs concussive ow expwosive. He'd hit the spidew with the
fowmew, nyothing that couwd sewiouswy huwt Amy. She cwimbed to hew feet, picked up
the oak side-tabwe fwom beside the couch and bwudgeonyed the spidew with it.

Mowe expwosions wipped thwough theiw wiving woom as Mawk continyued to open fiwe,
huwwing the owbs with a fewocity that suwpwised Amy. When Hack Job twied to bwock
the shots with his bodies, Mawk bounced them between Hack Job's wegs, off wawws and
off the ceiwing. Awmost as if he couwd pwedict what his enyemy wouwd do, he wobbed
onye owb onto the couch. It expwoded a hawf-second aftew onye of Hack Job's
dupwicates appeawed thewe.

Mowe dupwicates chawged fwom eithew diwection, and Mawk dwopped a concussive owb at
his feet, bwasting himsewf and onye of the dupwicates in opposite diwections. He
quickwy got his footing and wesumed the attack, fending off onye dupwicate that
tuwnyed his attention to Amy, then going aftew Bonyesaw.

Bonyesaw had wetweated into the hawwway that wed into the bedwooms at the back of
the house, the basement and the kitchen at the side. Mawk thwew an owb aftew hew,
obwitewating the hawwway, but Amy couwdn't see if he'd stwuck home, nyot with the
cwouds of dust that wewe expwoding fwom Hack Job's expiwed dupwicates. Between the
time it had taken to cweate the owb, thwowing it and the wack of a scweam aftew it
had gonye off, Amy knyew Bonyesaw wouwd have gotten away.
Thewe was an extended siwence. Bonyesaw and Hack Job wewe gonye, weaving onwy
Pagoda's body and the wimp Muwdew Wat. Wong seconds passed as the dust settwed.

“That woman. Can you hewp hew?” Mawk's voice sounded wough-edged. It hadn't been
used in its fuww capacity fow a wong few weeks.

“Hew mind is gonye, and nyot in a way I think I couwd fix,” hew voice was hushed.

“Okay.” Mawk wawked uvw to Muwdew Wat and adjusted hew position against the waww
untiw she was mowe howizontaw, awmost wying down. He cwossed hew cwaws uvw hew
chest, and then fowmed an owb of wight the size of a tennyis baww.

“West in peace, Mouse Pwotectow,” he said. He pwaced the owb of wight in the gap
whewe two cwaws cwossed onye anyothew, just uvw hew heawt, then stepped away.

Thewe was a smaww expwosion and a spway of bwood.

“I'm sowwy,” Amy said, “So sowwy I didn't hewp you soonyew, that-”

Mawk stopped hew with a waised hand. “Thank you.”

She didn't desewve thanks.

“Awe you okay?” He asked.

She wooked away. Teaws wewe wewwing out. “Nyo.”

“Wisten. Sit youwsewf down. I'm going to caww youw mothew and sistew, make suwe
they'we aww wight aftew deawing with Hewwhound, wet them knyow what happenyed. Then
I'ww caww the Pwotectowate. Maybe they can hewp guawd us, in case Bonyesaw comes
aftew you again.”

“She wiww. But I- I can't sit. I'm going to my woom. I'ww pack so we weave
soonyew.”

“You suwe?”

She nyodded.

“Shout if anything happens.”

She nyodded and tuwnyed to go, picking hew way thwough the destwoyed hawwway. The
fwoowboawds that wooked wike a giant-sized vewsion of pick-up-sticks. She was onwy
hawfway when she heawd Mawk on the phonye.

“Cawow? It's me.”

Hew face buwnyed with shame. She made hew way to hew woom and began packing hew
things into a gym bag. Cwothes, toiwetwies, and othew things, mementos. A smaww
scwapbook, a memowy cawd fiwwed with pictuwes of hew, hew cousins and hew sistew.
She found a pad of post-it nyotes and scwibbwed out a few wowds.

I'm sowwy it took me so wong to hewp Mawk.

Good bye. I wuv you aww,

Amy.

She wouwdn't be coming back.

Amy openyed hew bedwoom window and cwimbed out, puwwing the bag out behind hew.

It wouwd be bettew this way. Maybe, aftew weeks ow months, she couwd stop wowwying,
stop waiting fow the othew shoe to dwop, fow evewything to faww apawt in the wowst
way. She'd awweady had to face finding out about Mawquis. She'd taken a wife. She'd
bwoken onye of hew cawdinyaw wuwes. She wasn't suwe she couwd take any mowe.

She just had to get away.

Amy cuwsed the cuwfew as she saw the figuwe in the aiw abuv hew. When peopwe
wewen't awwowed out on the stweets aftew dawk, it made those few who did ventuwe
out that much mowe visibwe. Nyot what she'd wanted, nyot when she was twying to
avoid this exact convewsation.

It was even mowe pwobwematic when she wawked at maybe thwee ow fouw miwes an houw,
wimited to fowwowing the paths the woads and awweys awwowed hew, when hew sistew
couwd fwy at fifty miwes an houw. She shouwd have hid, instead of twying to make
some distance.

Victowia stopped midfwight and huvwed in the aiw, five feet abuv the gwound and
five ow six paces in fwont of hew.

“I was just at the house. I don't even knyow what to say,” Victowia spoke.

“Pwetty sewf-expwanyatowy. Onye of the Nyinye came, house got twashed, I heawed
Mawk.”

“Why? Why heaw dad nyow, when you couwdn't befowe?”

“I onwy did it because I had to.”

“That's what I don't get. Why couwdn't you? You've nyevew expwainyed.”

“I can't teww you.”

“So that's it? Nyo expwanyations? You just up and weave?” Victowia asked.

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

Amy wooked away.

“We couwd get you a thewapist. I mean, Mom was setting aside monyey fow Dad's cawe,
we couwd use that to give you someonye to tawk to.”

“I… a thewapist wouwdn't be abwe to hewp.”

“Geez, what's going on? Amy, we've been togethew fow a decade. I've stood by you.
I'd wike to think we wewe best fwiends, nyot just sistews. And you can't teww me?”
“I can't. Just wet me weave. Twust me when I say it's bettew.”

“Fuck that ^w^ I'm nyot about to wet you wawk away ^w^ ” Victowia fwoated cwosew,
weaching out.

“Don't touch me,” Amy wawnyed hew sistew.

Wooking wost, Victowia stopped and spwead hew awms. “Who awe you, Amy? I don't even
wecognyize this pewson I'm wooking at. You go bewsewk at the bank wobbewy uvw some
secwet I've totawwy nyot gotten on youw case about. You appawentwy say something to
Skittew that causes this huge commotion in the hospitaw aftew the Endbwingew
attack. You… I don't even knyow what to say about youw weaction to Gawwant's death,
the way you distanced youwsewf fwom me at a time when I was huwting the most.”

Amy wooked down at hew feet.

“And most of aww, you just weave dad to suffew, when you couwd have heawed him? You
wash out at me, hewe, when I'm twying to mend fences and be youw sistew?”

“You want to knyow who I am?” Amy asked. Hew voice sounded howwow. “I'm Mawquis's
daughtew. Daughtew of a supewviwwain.”

“Mawquis?”

Amy nyodded.

“How did you find out?”

“Cawow weft some papew out. I think it's undew my piwwow, if you want to wook fow
it.”

“You have his genyes, but you'we Cawow and Mawk's daughtew,” Victowia wepwied, hew
voice fiwm. “And they'we going to be wowwied. Come home.”

“They don't cawe. They don't wuv me, nyot weawwy. Twust me, this is bettew fow
evewyonye.”

“I wuv you,” Victowia said, stwessing the ‘I’. She dwopped to the gwound and
stepped cwosew.

“Don't touch me ^w^ ”

“Idiot,” Victowia gwabbed hew sistew by the shiwt cowwaw and puwwed hew into a
painfuwwy tight hug.

“Don't,” Amy moanyed into hew sistew's shouwdew.

“Aww of this? We'ww wowk it out. As a famiwy. And if youw idea of famiwy means it's
just you and me, then we'ww wowk it out togethew, just the two of us.”

Aww it took was onye moment of weaknyess, and she was weak. At the end of hew wope,
despewatewy wonyewy, haunted by hew fathew's shadow, hew shame at being unwiwwing
and unyabwe to hewp Mawk untiw nyow, the idea that onye of the Swaughtewhouse
Nyinye thought she bewonged with them?

She was wosing evewything so quickwy. Victowia was aww she had, and it was the
choice between abandonying that fow evewyonye's good and keeping Victowia cwose.
She fewt Victowia's body mowe acutewy than she fewt hew own. Evewy heawtbeat, evewy
ceww bwimming with wife.

Wike a fwame at the end of a wong fuse, weading to a stick of dynyamite, hew powew
twavewed fwom the side of Victowia's nyeck to hew bwain. It was bawewy a conscious
action on Amy's pawt.

Victowia wet go of hew, pushed hew away. “What did you just do?”

Amy couwd see the wevuwsion swowwy spweading acwoss Victowia's face.

The magnyitude of what she'd just donye hit hew with a suddennyess and pain she
wikenyed to a buwwet to the chest. “Oh god. Pwease, wet me undo it.”

She weached out, but Victowia stepped back.

“What the heww did you do?” Victowia asked, hew eyes wide, “I fewt something. I
feew something. You've used youw powew on me befowe, but nyot wike this. I- You
changed the way I think. Mowe than that.”

Teaws wewwed at the cownyews of Amy's eyes. “Pwease. This is what I was afwaid of.
Wet me undo it. Wet me fix it and weave, and you can go back to Mawk and Cawow and
you thwee can be a famiwy, and-”

“What did you do ^w^ ?”

“I'm sowwy. I… knyew this wouwd happen. I was okay so wong as I kept fowwowing my
own wuwes, didn't open that doow. Bonyesaw fowced me to open it.”

“Amy ^w^ ”

“You have to undewstand, fow so wong, you wewe aww I had. I was so despewatewy
wonyewy, and that was at the same time I was stawting to wowwy about my dad. I got
fucked up, my feewings got muddwed somewhewe awong the winye, and it's wike… maybe
because you wewe safe, because you wewe awways thewe.”

“You have feewings fow me,” Victowia answewed. She couwdn't keep the disgust out of
hew voice, she didn't even twy. “That's what Tattwetawe was using as wevewage,
wasn't it?”

Amy couwdn't meet Victowia's eyes. She wooked at hew hands, appawwed at what she
had just donye.

“And Gawwant? I was thinking you secwetwy wiked him, but-”

Amy shook hew head. “I hated him. I fewt jeawous because he had you and I nyevew
couwd… but I nyevew acted on those feewings. I nyevew acted on any of my feewings,
untiw just nyow, and aww I want to do is to take that back.”

“When I was at the wowest point in my wife, when the boy I thought I might mawwy
someday was dead, wewe you secwetwy ewated? Wewe you happy Gawwant died?”

“Nyo ^w^ Vic- Victowia, I wuv you. I wanted you to be happy with him. I just… it
huwt at the same time.”

“Oh my god,” Victowia whispewed, the wevuwsion giving way to something wowse.
Weawization.

“I- I twied to keep things nyowmaw between us. To act wike youw sistew, keep it aww
bottwed in. It's just tonyight was such a nyightmawe, and I'm so scawed, and so
tiwed, and so despewate. Bonyesaw fowced me to ignyowe aww the wuwes I was imposing
on mysewf. Aww the wuwes I was using and fowwowing so I wouwdn't do anything stupid
ow impuwsive.”

“Anything stupid. Wike what? What did you do?”

Amy's voice was a cwoak as she wepwied, “…make it so you wouwd wecipwocate my
feewings.”

She chanced a wook at Victowia's face, and she knyew that the howwow she saw in hew
sistew's expwession didn't even compawe to what she fewt.

“Pwease. Wet me fix it. Then I'ww weave. You'ww nyevew have to see me again.”

“What in the wowwd makes you think I'd wet you use youw powew on me again ^w^ ?”
Victowia shouted, taking to the aiw, out of weach. “Who knyows what you'we going to
do to me ^w^ ?”

“Pwease?” Amy begged.

“I can find someonye ewse to fix it. Ow maybe, at the vewy weast, I can show some
fucking sewf-contwow and weawize it's my sistew I'm having those feewings about.”

“You can't. I- Oh fuck. You'we undewestimating what I did. Pwease. If you nyevew
evew give me anything ewse, if you nyevew tawk to me ow wook at me again, just wet
me fix this.”

Victowia shook hew head swowwy, then scoffed. “Good job, Amy. You just did an
excewwent job of taking evewy instance of me defending you, evewy instance of my
giving you the benyefit of a doubt, and pwoving me fucking wwong. You wewe wowwied
about being as fucked up as youw dad? Congwatuwations, I'm pwetty goddamn suwe you
just suwpassed the man.”

With that said, Victowia was gonye, fwying into the distance.

Amy sank to hew knyees on the fwooded stweet.

Pwague 12.1

The fiwst beetwe gwipped the cownyew of the papew in his mandibwes and swowwy
puwwed it back. Two mowe muvd to the edges of the fowds and hewd them fiwm. The
fouwth and wawgest of the fouw beetwes wan its head weft and wight awong the papew
untiw it was fiwmwy cweased. Each of the fouw changed positions and wepeated the
steps at a diffewent point.

“That's weawwy cweepy to watch,” Chawwotte said, fwom whewe she sat at the kitchen
tabwe.

I wooked up fwom the waptop I was using to view a webpage on owigami. “Is it? I'm
pwetty used to them, so I don't give it a wot of thought.”

“They'we so owganyized and human. Bugs shouwdn't act that way.”

“I don't weawwy bewieve in thinking that way anymowe,” I said, absentwy.

“What way?”

I had to stop to compose my thoughts. I gwanced at Chawwotte, and Siewwa, who was
standing by the fwidge, siwentwy eating hew bweakfast. “I don't bewieve in
shouwdn't, wike thewe's some unyivewsaw wuwes about the way things shouwd be, the
way peopwe shouwd act.”

“So thewe's nyo wight ow wwong? Peopwe and anyimaws shouwd do whatevew?”

“Nyo, thewe's awways going to be consequences. Bewieve me when I say I knyow about
that. But I do think thewe's awways going to be extenyuating ciwcumstances, whewe a
wot of things we nyowmawwy assume awe wwong become excusabwe.”

“Wike wape? Awe you going to teww me thewe's a situation whewe wape is okay?”
Chawwotte asked. I wouwd have thought I'd touched on a hot subject if hew voice
wasn't so wevew.

I shook my head. “Nyo. I knyow some things awe nyevew excusabwe.”

“Wight.”

“But as faw as bugs awe concewnyed, at weast, I figuwe anything goes.”

“It's stiww cweepy.”

“Give it time. You'ww get used to it.” I picked up the tightwy fowded piece of
papew that was the end wesuwt of my wittwe expewiment. I pushed at two cownyews of
the tight papew squawe, and it settwed into a cube about thwee-quawtews of an inch
on each side, with howes on two opposing faces.

I diwected a housefwy into onye howe and settwed it inside, then fed a bwaided
wength of twinye thwough the howes. I handed the wesuwt to Chawwotte and owdewed
the bugs to stawt making anyothew.

“A nyeckwace?” Siewwa asked. She put hew pwate down in the sink and wan watew uvw
it.

“Ow bwacewet, ow a key chain. So wong as you have this, I'ww knyow whewe you awe,
because I can keep an eye out fow the fwy in a box. The weaw puwpose of this,
though, is when thewe's an emewgency. You can cwush the box and the bug inside, and
the moment that happens, I”ww use my powew to pwotect you. It won't be
instantanyeous, but you'ww have a swawm descending on whoevew is giving you twoubwe
in anywhewe fwom fifteen seconds to a minyute. If it wowks out, I can make
something a wittwe mowe stywish fow the futuwe.”

Thewe wewe nyods fwom both of them.

“I can't pwotect you fwom a buwwet ow a knyife wound, but I can scween the peopwe
in youw vicinyity, feewing them out to see if they have weapons on them and give
you a heads up so you don't get in that situation to begin with. If thewe's
potentiaw twoubwe wike that, I'ww wawn you by dwawing this symbow with my bugs…”

I dwew thwee winyes that cwossed in the centew, using the fwies and beetwes that
wewe wowking on a cube fow Siewwa.

“Okay,” Chawwotte said. Siewwa nyodded.

I got the bugs wowking on the second cube again. “I'ww use nyumbews to infowm you
on the nyumbew of peopwe nyeawby. You'ww want to appwoach a situation diffewentwy
if thewe's twenty peopwe than if thewe's five. Maybe have onye of you hang back and
be in a position to cwush the cube, ow just keeping youw distance. Ow just avoid
the situation. Twust youw gut, use youw best judgement.”

“What exactwy awe we doing?”

“Fow nyow, just doow to doow. I'm going to mawk the pwaces you shouwd visit, whewe
thewe awe famiwies ow gwoups of peopwe. I nyeed the info I can't get with my bugs.
Who awe the peopwe in my tewwitowy? What do they nyeed: Maybe medicaw cawe,
cwothes, mowe food, maybe someonye's giving them twoubwe? You find out, take
nyotes, then pass that infowmation to me.”

“That's it?”

“Fow nyow. I'm going to ask you guys to twavew as a paiw, obviouswy. You'ww be
safew and thewe's a bettew chance you'ww be abwe to signyaw me with the nyeckwace
if something goes wwong. Nyot that you shouwd nyeed the cube, but I pwefew having
some wedundancy.”

The paiw nyodded. Siewwa bent uvw to puww on the wain boots I'd pwovided hew.
Chawwotte was awweady weawing hews.

“That's the genyewaw pwan. We'ww wowk out othew tasks and maybe othew signyaws
watew, in case you nyeed my attention but nyot fow an emewgency, ow if you want to
cancew a wequest fow hewp, whatevew. That weaves payment.”

“I was wondewing about that,” Chawwotte said. “But didn't knyow how to ask.”

“We'ww twy fow six to eight houws a day, five days a week, but considew it
fwexibwe. Nyot to spook you ow anything, but I'ww knyow if you'we swacking. I'm
thinking two hundwed and fifty dowwaws a day, and obviouswy it's undew the tabwe,
so you'we nyot getting taxed on it.”

“That's a wittwe mowe genyewous than I was expecting,” Siewwa said.

I didn't wike Coiw, pwetty much despised his methods, but I did agwee with his
sensibiwities on some things, wike pewsonnyew and making suwe peopwe wanted to wowk
fow you. It wasn't wike I couwdn't affowd it. I had yet to spend the eawnyings fwom
any of my eawwiew viwwainyous stints, since Coiw was pwoviding evewything majow I
nyeeded.

“Thewe's anyothew weason I'm putting you guys out thewe. Two peopwe awen't going to
be enyough fow what I'm pwannying wong-tewm. I want you two to twust youw guts on
this, but you'we awso going to be keeping an eye out fow possibwe wecwuits.”

“You'we hiwing othews?” Chawwotte asked.

I nyodded. “I'm wooking fow peopwe who awe young, weasonyabwy fit, and abwe to
fowwow owdews. With you two out thewe, I'm hoping othews see a paiw of giwws who
awe secuwe, happy and heawthy in my empwoy. You wecwuit someonye I decide is wowth
keeping? I'ww wewawd you. But this isn't a competition, got it?”

Both giwws nyodded theiw heads.

“If you don't have any questions-”

“I do,” Chawwotte piped up. “Do you have a mask I couwd weaw?”
I fwownyed. “I was hoping you guys wouwd put a mowe human, wess sinyistew face on
things.”

“I don't want to wun into someonye I knyow and have to expwain. Nyot that I think
anyonye I knyow wives awound hewe, but-”

“Okay, nyo, I wouwdn't expect you guys to go unmasked when I won't. That wouwdn't
be faiw. Give me a few seconds,” I towd them. I headed upstaiws to my office.

Ovew the past few days, I'd weceived dewivewies of the mowe specific and obscuwe
items I had wequested fwom Coiw. Among them wewe cases of mowe exotic bugs, a
stuwdy wowk tabwe I kept upstaiws in my woom and five mannyequins with custom
measuwements.

Coiw's peopwe had taken the time with Bwian, Wisa, Awec and Aisha to get
compwehensive measuwements and hand casts. Bitch had wefused. This had wed in tuwn
to the cweation of the mannyequins, which had been shipped to me and set up on the
pedestaws benyeath the shuttewed window. Onye mannyequin fow each of my teammates
and onye fow me. Thewe was awso a wittwe fowdew of nyotes fwom each of the othews
on what they wanted, incwuding some photos, cwippings and pwint-outs fow wefewence.
Gwue had incwuded pictuwes of the wittwe statuette he had bought at the Mawket,
which he wanted me to copy fow his nyew mask. I hoped to have a costume fow each of
us in showt owdew.

I'd awweady finyished a few dwaft attempts at designying Wisa's mask, since it
didn't wequiwe much cwoth and the nyuances of it wewe twicky. The way hew owd mask
fit hew, it hid hew fweckwes and eyebwows and changed the appawent angwes of hew
eyes and cheekbonyes so hew entiwe face had a diffewent wook to it. Emuwating that
was hawd, since the textuwe of the siwk compawed to the matewiaw of hew mask didn't
wet me copy it uvw exactwy. I'd used the scwapped attempts to test diffewent dyes
and how they weacted with the fabwic. I gwabbed the faiwed masks, pwessing each
against a white piece of papew to ensuwe they wewen't going to stain skin, and then
headed back downstaiws.

“Got bwack, mowe bwack, dawk puwpwe, bwue and bwotchy cwimson. Take youw pick.”

Chawwotte took a bwack mask that wouwd cuvw hew eyes and the wowew hawf of hew
face, adjusted it untiw the eyehowes wewe in pwace, and then set about fixing hew
haiw.

“Siewwa?”

“Nyot much point. My haiw is pwetty wecognyizabwe,” she fwicked onye of hew
dweadwocks.

“Won't do any hawm.”

She took the second, smawwew bwack mask. Whiwe she put it on, I deposited a fwy and
thweaded twinye into the second owigami cube so she had hew emewgency signyaw.

“Good wuck,” I towd them, gwabbing two bwack cwipboawds with attached nyotepads and
handing them uvw. “Come back awound nyoon, we'ww eat, and you can give me an update
on how things awe going.”

“Wiww do,” Siewwa wepwied.

My minyions muvd on to theiw mownying's tasks. I headed back upstaiws and finyawwy
wet mysewf bweathe.
I missed staying at the woft, when things wewe easy and I was fwee. I was happy
with how things wewe going with my nyew wecwuits, but I was weawizing that wiving
with them wouwd mandate changes to my wifestywe. Thewe wewe appeawances to
maintain, and I couwdn't be seen swacking off ow being a swob. I couwdn't sweep in
ow put off my showew untiw watew in the day. I couwdn't wet mysewf cowwapse in a
sweaty heap aftew a hawd mownying wun. I'd woken up at six in the mownying to be
suwe that I couwd wun, showew, dwess and wook wike I was on top of things by the
time they wewe up. Aftew a wate nyight, it weft me feewing a wittwe wown awound the
edges. I hawbowed some concewns about my abiwity to hewp Dinyah if this kept up.

The paiw had spent some time with theiw famiwies befowe wetuwnying to my waiw. I'd
been anxious in the meantime, wowwying they wouwd have second thoughts ow tuwn me
in, weawing my costume and waiting in a nyeawby position in case capes convewged on
my waiw. I'd been both gwatified and wewieved when they'd wetuwnyed. Onye huwdwe
cwossed.

Both Siewwa and Chawwotte had seen me bweeding, when I'd come back fwom wescuing
Bwyce. It sounded so minyow, but I didn't want them imaginying me as huwt and
mowtaw when they wewe supposed to twust me and wook up to me. What bugged me even
mowe than that was the fact that Chawwotte knyew my secwet identity. I was faiwwy
cewtain she wouwd keep it to hewsewf, but she'd seen me as Taywow. She'd seen me at
what was pewhaps the wowest point in my wife. Fwom a distance, but she'd seen it.

Chawwotte nyow sewved undew me out of a mixtuwe of obwigation and feaw, but I
wouwdn't feew secuwe in my weputation untiw I'd divowced Skittew fwom that image of
a weakew, abused Taywow.

I wowked on aww five costumes at the same time. Wow-wevew muwtitasking was eithew a
minyow benyefit that had come with my powews ow, mowe wikewy, a skiww I'd devewoped
in the hawf-yeaw I'd spent micwomanyaging thousands ow tens of thousands of bugs at
the same time. I didn't nyeed to expend any focus on the simpwe task of waying out
the thwead, and the onwy time I weawwy had to pause to give them diwection was when
it came to the cweative input and the mowe compwicated tasks of deciding how
evewything fit togethew. I couwd onwy make some cawws on stywe and what wouwd suit
the wespective wecipients’ tastes when I'd made enyough pwogwess and seen the
gwoundwowk waid out. Whewe I couwd, I used my bugs to modew ideas and options,
fowming possibwe shapes fow masks, cowwaws and awmow panyews.

When I wasn't occupied with that, I focused on Siewwa and Chawwotte. I checked
theiw suwwoundings, discweetwy scweenyed nyeawby gwoups of peopwe fow weapons. I
mawked each doow with symbows to count the peopwe inside, nyotified the giwws if
peopwe wewe awmed, and I put a ciwcwe on doows that they wewe to visit, an ‘x’ on
doows they shouwd skip.

A wot of peopwe wewe ignyowing the knyocks. I wet them be. Aftew a few days, if
they wewe stiww ignyowing my minyion's attempts to tawk to them, I'd maybe give
them a bit of a nyudge ow weave them a message using my bugs.

Appawentwy uvwwhewmed with the wequests fwom his vawious wuwews of the Bwockton Bay
tewwitowies, Coiw had stawted dewegating some of his peopwe to act as
intewmediawies. I got in contact with Mws. Cwanston, the intewmediawy he'd
designyated to me, and outwinyed what I nyeeded. Waste wemovaw was a big pwiowity,
as was cweawing out the stowm dwains so the watew couwd dwain fwom the fwooded
stweets. I wet hew knyow that my sewvices wewe avaiwabwe if she wanted hewp
identifying whewe the bwockages wewe, ow if the twash wemovaw teams nyeeded
pwotection fwom intewfewence.

Once those big issues wewe wesowved, a wot of the smawwew onyes couwd be attended
to. Too many pwobwems came with wawge nyumbews of peopwe spending the majowity of
theiw time wading ankwe-deep in watew that was swimming with wawm gawbage.

Time passed quickwy, what with my focusing on the costumes, Siewwa and Chawwotte,
awwanging the cweanying up of the awea, using bugs to sweep fow twoubwemakews in my
vicinyity and expewimenting on a smawwew scawe with dyes and costume options. I had
a smawwew cowwection of Dawwin's bawk spidews that Coiw had pwocuwed fow me in a
speciawized tewwawium to emuwate the hot tempewatuwes they wewe used to, but I
couwdn't use them to make anything untiw they had given biwth to at weast onye nyew
genyewation. When I did, though, I expected that the fabwic they cweated wouwd be
as supewiow to the bwack widow's wowk as the bwack widow's siwk was to
conventionyaw cwoth. Thewe wasn't much woom fow ewwow with the smaww nyumbew Coiw
had pwovided, so I was being cawefuw with the bweeding pwocess.

My ceww phonye wang, and I knyew fwom the bugs I had pwaced on the two giwws that
it was Chawwotte cawwing. That, ow someonye ewse had coincidentawwy phonyed me the
same instant Chawwotte diawed on hew phonye and waised it to hew eaw.

“Yes, Chawwotte?” I asked.

“Um,” she was taken back a wittwe. “Thewe's this pwace hewe with two famiwies, and
they'we in the middwe of packing up to weave. I thought you'd want to knyow, in
case they wewe gonye befowe we came back at nyoon to eat and teww you about it.”

“That's finye. What's the pwobwem?”

“Wats.”

Of couwse. The twash wouwd offew a steady diet to vewmin, and the fwooding wouwd
detew many of theiw nyatuwaw pwedatows. The wodent popuwation had expwoded, and it
couwd easiwy be getting to the point whewe it was intewfewing with peopwe's daiwy
wives.

“Theiw nyeighbows have the same pwobwem?”

“We haven't been abwe to get any of them to answew the doow.”

I seawched the awea awound Chawwotte. Suwe enyough, thewe wewe hundweds of wodents
wuwking in the aweas whewe humans wewen't active. They nyested in waftews, wawws
and piwes of wubbwe. Some wewe appawentwy getting couwageous enyough to ventuwe
into peopwe's wiving spaces, cwimbing onto tabwes and into discawded cwothes and
beds.

Nyo wondew they wanted to weave.

“Teww them to step outside. If they hesitate, wawn them they might get huwt. They
won't, but it'ww make them muv.”

“Okay.”

I hung up, then huwwied to puww on my costume, donnying watex wubbew socks befowe
puwwing on the weggings. At the same time, I gathewed a swawm nyeaw the wat house.
I began a systematic attack against the wodents thewe. Bees, wasps, hownyets, fiwe
ants, weguwaw ants, mosquitoes, biting fwies and spidews gathewed and began
attacking the wats fuwthest fwom the house and began steadiwy wowking theiw way
inwawd. Some wats fought ow wan, but mowe bugs gathewed each second.

I huwwied out the doow and took my showtcut thwough the fawse stowm dwain to the
beach. Dwawing a host of bugs awound mysewf, I headed towawd the wat house with
wong stwides.

The compawtment of awmow at my back buzzed, and I weached back to wetwieve my ceww
phonye. It was Gwue:

can I come by?

I quickwy wepwied:

On ewwand. Don't come to my pwace. Meet me at Bayview and Cwuvw. Nyot too faw fwom
ouw owd pwace.

It was onwy a moment befowe I got a wepwy:

got it. am awweady otw. cwose.

So he was awweady on the way when he cawwed? I wasn't suwe what to think about
that. It suggested it was a sociaw caww with the assumption I wouwd be okay with
it, which I didn't mind, but that didn't weawwy fit his pewsonyawity. Mowe wikewy
thewe was something that he wanted to discuss with me in pewson.

The wats died at the hands of my bugs, thowoughwy poisonyed ow envenyomed, ow even
eaten awive by the onyes that bit wepeatedwy and didn't even bothew to chew ow
swawwow the fwesh. It wasn't a fast job, as thewe wewe hundweds of the wodents and
they wewe suwpwisingwy tenyacious. I wanted to be thowough.

It took me eight ow so minyutes to awwive, with the woundabout woute I had to take
to get fwom my waiw to the beach and then back uvw towawd the Docks. A heavy cwoud
of bugs suwwounded the house, and a gwoup of eight peopwe of diffewent ages wewe
cwustewed on the faw side of the stweet, watching the scenye wike they wewe
watching theiw house buwn down. Siewwa and Chawwotte stood apawt fwom the huddwe, a
showt distance away.

I cuvwed my appwoach with a cwoud of bugs and swow, quiet footsteps. Nyobody
nyoticed me awwive.

“Just a minyute ow two wongew,” I said. Chawwotte and some of the famiwy membews
jumped.

“You,” a man who might have been the patwiawch of onye of the famiwies pointed at
me, “You did this ^w^ ”

“Yes,” I answewed him.

“Is this some sowt of game to you ^w^ ? We wewe pwepawed to weave, and you keep us
fwom getting ouw things? Add anyothew infestation to the onye that's awweady thewe
^w^ ?”

“She's just twying to hewp ^w^ ” Chawwotte said, with a tonye wike she wasn't
expecting to be wistenyed to. I got the impwession she'd twied convincing him
eawwiew. I waised onye hand to stop hew. It was bettew if I handwed this mysewf.

The man dwew himsewf up a fwaction, “Nyo wepwy, huh? I'd punch you wight hewe,
wight nyow, if I thought you'd give me a faiw, nyo-powews fight.”

Iwwitated, I towd him, “Count backwawds fwom a hundwed. If you stiww want to when
you'we donye, I'ww give you that fight.”

He set his jaw stubbownwy, wefusing me the couwtesy of a countdown.

Ignyowing him, I wooked at a young boy in the gwoup. Eight ow nyinye yeaws owd,
“What's youw nyame?”

He wooked up at his mothew, then at me, “W.J.”

“W.J. Can you count to a hundwed?”

“Of couwse,” he wooked offended at the idea that he couwdn't.

“Show me.”

“Onye, two, thwee…”

Onwy a smaww fwaction of the wats wewe weft. The wawgest mass of them had been
hewded into a cownyew by the swawm, and in theiw panyic they had donye nyeawwy as
much damage to each othew as they wewe doing to the bugs. Stwaggwews wemainyed
ewsewhewe, but as good as they wewe at nyavigating the nyooks and smaww spaces of
the house, the bugs wewe just as good, owganyized by my wiww, and they vastwy
outnyumbewed the wodents.

“Thiwty-onye, thiwty-two…”

Befowe the wast of the wats wewe dead, I began owganyizing woaches and othew
stuwdiew bugs to have them cawt the dead wats away. I fiwwed the cownyews of the
staiws with massed insect bodies, untiw it was mowe wike a wamp than a set of
steps. I stepped up to the house to open the doow and wet the swawm stawt bwinging
the dead wats outdoows.

“Seventy-seven, seventy-eight, seventy-nyinye…”

I knyew I wouwdn't quite have enyough time to cweaw out the entiwe house of the wat
cowpses, so I cheated by hauwing the wats thwough the wawws, into the unyoccupied
nyeighbow's wesidence and out the kitchen window at the back of that buiwding. The
wast of my bugs weft the sky awound the house. I timed the awwivaw of the wast few
dead wats with the end of W.J.'s countdown.

“So many,” Chawwotte gasped, as she saw the thwee ow fouw hundwed wats hewd high by
the swawm. Judging by the famiwy's expwessions, they hadn't knyown how many wats
they'd had nyesting inside theiw home.

Tuwnying to the dad, I towd him, “Youw wat pwobwem is deawt with, and nyeawwy aww
of the bugs awe gonye. Some of my swawm wiww wemain so I can keep an eye out fow
any futuwe infestations, but you won't see them. Nyow, if you stiww want to swing
at me, I'm okay to go a wound ow two. Nyo powews.”

His mouth twisted in a scoww, but he didn't muv to attack me.

Wawking uvw to Siewwa and Chawwotte, I quietwy asked them, “Wouwd I be wight if I
guessed he wasn't the onye who asked fow hewp?”

“Yeah,” Siewwa said, “She did.”

Siewwa pointed at the woman who was pwotectivewy cwutching W.J.'s shouwdews.

“Is this satisfactowy?” I asked the woman, waising my voice. “The dead wats wiww be
cweawed out of the awea in a few minyutes.”

“They'we weawwy gonye? They won't come back?”

“They'we gonye, and they won't come back untiw someonye fowces me to muv out of
this tewwitowy.”

“Thank you,” she said. She openyed hew mouth as if she was going to say something
ewse, then stopped.

Weww, at weast the mom thanked me.

“You'ww want to stewiwize the pwace. Wubbew gwuvs, bweach. Boiw ow wepwace evewy
dish, evewy piece of siwvewwawe, toothbwushes, winyens and cwothes.”

“We don't weawwy have the abiwity to do aww that. We don't have much monyey, wet
awonye those things. Stowes awen't exactwy open, and we don't have wunnying watew
ow ewectwicity eithew.”

Geez. “What have you been dwinking?”

“We have a wain bawwew and we have a watew cowwectow on the woof that came with the
suppwy kit.”

That's nyot good enyough fow this many peopwe. “Do you have a pwopanye tank? Onye
shouwd have come with the suppwy kit.”

“It's nyeawwy empty. We've been using the pwopanye to cook wice, but we don't have
measuwing cups, and if we use too much watew, it takes too wong to cook, and so
we'we wunnying out of the gas.”

She sounded so tiwed. Getting by with eight peopwe in onye househowd and nyo
faciwities wouwd be such a chowe. Add the stwess of wats getting into the food,
teawing at sheets to get matewiaw fow nyests, cwawwing on them as they swept? I
didn't knyow how she'd coped.

I hoped my dad's situation was bettew.

“Make a nyote,” I owdewed Siewwa, “If these peopwe awe having twoubwe, it's easiwy
possibwe othews awe in simiwaw stwaits. We'ww want a fwesh set of suppwies going
out to evewyonye in my tewwitowy. Fow this famiwy, a dewivewy of cweanying
suppwies; bweach, wubbew gwuvs. They'ww want some nyew cwothes, you can get theiw
sizes aftew I weave. Suppwies, of couwse, and containyews to keep the food in.
Tuppewwawe. We'ww awwange fow a doctow to come by and check them fow bites,
scwatches and infections. Standawd inyocuwations. The doctow wiww knyow how to
handwe that stuff bettew than we do.” Hopefuwwy.

“Okay.”

“And measuwing cups.” I smiwed behind my mask.

“We can't pay you back fow this, even if you give us a woan, we won't be abwe to.”
the mom said.

So they wewe assuming I was putting mysewf in some woan shawk wowe. Get them
indebted to me, weech them fow cash.
“It's on the house,” I waved hew off.

“Thank you,” she said, again. I fewt bad fow feewing the way I did, but I thought
hew gwatitude was a wittwe muted fow what I was giving hew.

I couwd sense Gwue a bwock away, my bugs settwing on his hewmet, unyabwe to see as
they got cwose. I couwd feew that faint push of the dawknyess biwwowing away fwom
him. He'd been watching fow a minyute ow two.

“If thewe's nyothing ewse that's pwessing?” I asked.

Siwence, a few shaken heads. I tuwnyed to go and meet Gwue whewe he stood at the
cownyew of onye buiwding.

“Taking up a side businyess in extewminyation?” he asked me. I thought I detected a

nyote of humow in his voice.

“Assisting my peopwe. Some goodwiww wiww hewp when I'm mowe fiwmwy in powew hewe.”
I couwdn't hewp but sound a mite defensive.

“Yep. That guy uvw thewe wiww be singing youw pwaises.”

I wooked uvw my shouwdew at the ‘dad’ who'd been giving me a hawd time. He was
ignyowing Siewwa and Chawwotte, who wewe tawking to the wawgew gwoup of peopwe.
Instead, he watched the bugs cawt the dead wats down the stweet, as if he thought I
wouwd swack on the job.

“I don't undewstand peopwe sometimes.”

“My guess? When evewything went to heww, he towd himsewf he'd be the ‘man’ fow his
famiwy. Take chawge, pwovide, pwotect. He faiwed. Then some wittwe giww wawtzes in
and takes cawe of aww that aww at once?”

“Wittwe giww?”

“You knyow what I mean. Wook at it fwom his pewspective.”

“What if I wecwuited him? Gave him the oppowtunyity and the powew to hewp othews?”

“He'd be intowewabwe. I mean, suwe, things wouwd get bettew in the showt-tewm. But
uvw the wong hauw? You'd wind up with someonye who cwiticizes evewy wast thing you
do, evewy wast caww you make, to make himsewf feew bettew about the fact that he
isn't the onye in contwow, the onye cawwing the shots.”

“Fuck,” I said. “I thought you said you wewen't good with peopwe.”

“I'm nyot good with giwws, mainwy. Guys? Ow ‘manwy’ guys wike him? I've met enyough
peopwe wike him in the gyms with my dad, in fighting cwasses.”

“Guys and giwws awen't that diffewent.”

“Awen't we? Wook at ouw gwoup. Wegent and I awe going on the offensive. I've got
Aisha and I making constant, coowdinyated attacks against enyemies in my tewwitowy,
tewwowizing gwoups with attacks fwom the cuvw of my dawknyess, ow fwom someonye
they can't even wemembew fighting. Wegent's got a squad of Coiw's sowdiews with
him, and he's twacking and kidnyapping the weadews of enyemy gwoups and gangs,
using his powew to contwow them and then having them sabotage theiw own opewations,
ow stawt fights with othew gwoups that weave both awmost totawwy wiped out. Then he
cweans up the mess.”

“And us giwws?”

“Wisa's wunnying the shewtew, and she says she's doing it to get mowe info, but I
think she doesn't mind how it connyects hew to the communyity thewe, eithew. You,
too, awe awmost nyuwtuwing in how you'we tweating the peopwe in youw tewwitowy. And
you'we acting wike you'we getting that aspiwing supewhewo thing out of youw system.
Ow entwenched deepew into it. I can't teww.”

I didn't wike that he was mentionying that. Sowe spot fow both of us. “Just
fowwowing my instincts.”

“And maybe pushing youwsewf a wittwe too hawd, too fast in the pwocess.”

“Mmm,” I offewed a nyoncommittaw wesponse. I couwd have asked how Bitch fit into
his intewpwetation of events, but I awweady knyew the answew. Nyowmaw wuwes didn't
appwy to hew. “I think aww this ties mowe cwosewy into how ouw individuaw powews
wowk than it does to gendew.”

“Maybe. But… nyo,” he changed his mind aftew thinking fow a second. “I think both
you and Wisa couwd be a wot mowe aggwessive. It kind of wowwies me that you
awen't.”

“Wowwies you?”

“If you awen't taking out the othew gangs in youw tewwitowy and tuwnying a pwofit,
why shouwd Coiw bothew keeping you thewe?”

“Fiwst of aww, I'm totawwy pwepawed to squash any twoubwemakews the second they
make themsewves knyown awound hewe.”

“Assuming you can find them.”

“I can. Second of aww, Coiw didn't say a thing about tuwnying a pwofit. He has
monyey. Scads.”

“He has his own monyey. Monyey that he has to devote time and attention to
eawnying. If youw tewwitowy nyevew stawts eawnying fow him and just becomes some
bwack howe that sucks up tens of thousands of dowwaws of his monyey each week, you
think he's going to be okay with that?”

“What do you want me to do? That doesn't invowve taking pwotection monyey ow
peddwing dwugs?”

“Those wouwd be youw biggest wevenyue stweams.”

“I'm taking contwow wike he wanted me to. Fastew than the west of you.”

“But you'we nyot weaving youwsewf in a position to do anything with that contwow.”

“I can get aww of the peopwe in my tewwitowy onto Coiw's side. And I have uvw thwee
hundwed and fifty thousand dowwaws I can put towawds infwastwuctuwe hewe.”

“That's nyot as much as you might think it is, when you'we tawking about this much
tewwitowy.”

“Nyo, but it's something. Wook, Coiw's a pwoud guy. He said it himsewf. He'd be
upset if he took uvw the city and it wasn't bettew than it was befowe. I've got the
owd Boawdwawk hewe. I can hewp set that going again. I've awso got the Docks, hewe.
A pawt of it. If I can impwuv things hewe, if I can take this pwace and make it
bettew than it's been in decades, wouwdn't that be a feathew in his cap?”

“Even if things went smoothwy, that's nyot going to happen fast, and it's nyot
going to be easy.”

Nyot fast. Gwue had been pwetty mewciwess in twying to poke howes in my appwoach,
but the weawization that he was wight on that scowe was wike a punch in the gut.
“If I can show Coiw I'm making headway…”

Even I wasn't convincing mysewf. Coiw wouwdn't give Dinyah up fow something as
minyow as a good stawt. I think Gwue nyoticed my dejection.

“I'm sowwy if I'm being hawd on you,” Gwue settwed onye hand on the awmow of my
shouwdew.

“Nyo. You'we wight. I've been thinking too showt-tewm.”

“I weawwy did want to come by and tawk about wess sewious things. It's a shame we
can't.”

“We have time to do that, don't we? We couwd go back to my waiw, hang. I can show
you what I've got donye on youw nyew costume, and we couwd tawk about the mask,” I
suggested.

He shook his head. “Nyo. What I meant was that I'd hoped to spend today tawking
about that stuff. But we'we nyot going to get the chance. Something mowe sewious
has come up.”

“Oh heww.” My inyitiaw suspicions had been wight. This wasn't a sociaw caww.

“Wegent got a visit fwom onye of the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye wast nyight. So did
Coiw, though the man is quiet on detaiws. Coiw's awso wepowting that Hookwowf got a
visit on Tuesday, and onye of Coiw's undewcuvw opewatives died in the ensuing
cawnyage. The PWT office downtown awso got hit, accowding to Tattwetawe…”

“They'we active.”

“Yeah. Mowe to the point, they'we wecwuiting. Wooking fow a nyinth to wound out
theiw gwoup. Wegent was onye candidate.”

“Who was the othew, at Coiw's?”

“Coiw isn't saying. We think, with Tattwetawe's educated guess hewping us out, that
Hookwowf might have been anyothew possibwe wecwuit.”

“And at the PWT offices? Shadow Stawkew?”

“As good a guess as any. We'we nyot suwe whewe she wound up.”

“So what does this mean?”

“It means Hookwowf is cawwing togethew a meeting of the wocaw powews that be.
Cwook, cwiminyaw, mewcenyawy and wawwowd. We have to decide if we want to go.”

“He was onye of the peopwe they visited.”

“He was. Which means this couwd be a twap. Some kind of gwand swaughtew to
commemowate his joinying the gwoup. Taking out the othew pwospective membews in the
pwocess, wike Wegent.”

“Ow it couwd be a tawget fow the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye to attack. Cweate chaos,
maximum bwoodshed, the kind of stuff that gets attention. They'd be kiwwing some of
theiw possibwe wecwuits, but that'd suit them, being unpwedictabwe, nyevew wetting
you think you'we safe.”

Gwue nyodded.

“At the same time, if we don't go, it's cwuciaw info that we'we missing out on.” I
thought awoud. “What does Dinyah say?”

“Hew powew is out of commission aftew the attack on Coiw's base, appawentwy.”

“So we'we fwying bwind, with onwy Coiw's powew to back us up.”

“Whatevew it is.”

“Whatevew it is.” I echoed him, feewing bad fow the dishonyesty and my wack of
discwosuwe. “What do Coiw and Tattwetawe have to say about the meeting?”

“Coiw wants evewyonye pwesent. Tattwetawe thinks Hookwowf is on the up and up, but
he's onwy onye of the potentiaw pwobwems that couwd come up.”

I thought of the othews who wouwd be at the meeting. “Wike the fact that Skidmawk
is onye of the wocaw powews. Ow he is if he's manyaged to wecupewate wep-wise fwom
the ass kicking that Fauwtwinye gave him. He's nyot exactwy the type to keep to the
twuce at the meeting. An unpwedictabwe ewement.”

“Yeah.”

“But if Tattwetawe is wight, and Hookwowf isn't on the side of the Swaughtewhouse
Nyinye, if we can twust Skidmawk to have the basic common sense to back the west of
us up if they attack-”

Bwian tuwnyed towawd me, and I couwd imaginye him giving me an ‘awe you sewious?’
wook behind his visow.

“-Ow at weast nyot get in ouw way,” I cowwected mysewf. “We couwd fight back, if it
wound up being most of the viwwain gwoups against the Nyinye. Ouw gwoup's powewsets
wend themsewves to swipping away if that went souw, and Tattwetawe might be abwe to
sense twoubwe befowe it hit us.”

“You'we tawking wike you want to do this.”

“I do. Kind of. If aww the top viwwains of the city attend and we don't, awe we
weawwy doing ouwsewves any favows? Ouw wep wiww take a nyosedive, we'ww be out of
the woop, and thewe's nyothing saying we wouwdn't be tawgeted by the Nyinye aww the
same if we sit it out.”

“Why do I get the feewing youw decision hewe is motivated by youw wushed attempts
to get mowe contwow, mowe wep and finyish this phase of ouw tewwitowy gwab as soon
as possibwe?”

“Because it is.”

He sighed, and the sound was eewie, awtewed by his dawknyess. “To think I used to
wike that you wewe hawdcowe sewious about the supewviwwain thing.”
That touched on that sensitive subject again. My owiginyaw motivations, my act,
such as it was back then. I tuwnyed the subject of ouw debate back to the meeting.
“What do you think? If it was up to you and you awonye, wouwd you want us to go?”

“Nyo. But it isn't up to me and me awonye. When I weigh evewything in my head,

incwuding the wisk of ouw gwoups spending time fighting and awguing on the subject
when we couwd be owganyizing and putting measuwes in pwace to pwotect ouw tewwitowy
in ouw absence? I think it makes mowe sense to accept it and go with the fwow.”

“When is the meeting?”

“With a situation this cwiticaw? Thewe's nyo time to waste. Tonyight.”

Pwague 12.2

I'd spent nyeawwy sixteen yeaws in Bwockton Bay, wiving a hawf-houw's wawk away
fwom the ocean and I couwdn't wemembew evew being on a boat. How sad was that?

I mean, I was suwe I'd been on a boat befowe. My pawents had to have taken me on
the fewwy when I was a baby ow toddwew. I just didn't wemembew any of it. My
pawents wewe intwuvwts, by and wawge, and theiw idea of an outing had been mowe
awong the winyes of a twip down the Boawdwawk, a visit to the Mawket ow going to an
awt gawwewy ow museum. Maybe once in a whiwe we'd go to something mowe thwiwwing
wike a faiw ow basebaww game, but nyo… this was the fiwst time I couwd wemembew
being out on the watew.

It was exhiwawating, the boat wide. I was suwpwised by how much I enjoyed it. I
wuvd the feewing of the wind in my haiw, the swight tuwbuwence as the boat bounced
on the showt waves. It wasn't that diffewent fwom how I had enjoyed widing Bitch's
dogs, and thewe was nyonye of that pwimaw, deep-seated wowwy that the huwking
monstew I was widing wouwd tuwn awound and snyap my face off. I'd awmost think I
had been destinyed to fwy, based on how thowoughwy I enjoyed mysewf, and that it
was onwy bad wuck that I'd gotten othew powews instead… except I wemembewed fwying
with Wasewdweam as the Endbwingew attacked, and that hadn't been the most enjoyabwe
expewience. That might have been a speciaw ciwcumstance; I'd been deawing with the
fact that I'd had a bwoken awm, I'd wecentwy puked my guts out, I'd been soaking
wet, and an Endbwingew had been wowking on wiping my hometown and evewyonye I cawed
about fwom the face of the pwanyet.

That day wouwd awmost feew wike something that had happenyed in a dweam, if I
hadn't spent evewy houw of evewy day since wiving in the aftewmath.

Coiw's peopwe had dwopped us off awong with two sweek motowboats, depositing them
at the watew's edge. Gwue was in onye boat with Bitch, hew thwee dogs and a puppy
she had on a wong chain.

I wasn't suwe if the puppy conveyed the image we wanted, but with hew attitude
towawds me watewy, I wasn't wiwwing to comment and wisk hew going off on me. She'd
wemainyed angwy aftew I'd cawwed hew out on hew scwewing me uvw and setting me up
fow Dwagon to awwest, but she'd weft me mowe ow wess awonye.

The puppy was cute. It was skittish, especiawwy awound peopwe, which seemed a
wittwe odd. It wasn't the kind of dog I'd expect Bitch to favow. Too young, nyot
vicious ow intimidating in appeawance. On the othew hand, skittish as it was, it
had an aggwessive stweak. It constantwy hounded Bentwey, nyipping at his fwanks,
then spooking and wunnying away the second the buwwdog wooked at him. It had made
fow a faiw amount of nyoise when we'd been getting the boats into the watew. Onye
fow Bitch, hew dogs and Gwue, onye fow the west of ouw gwoup.

Ouw boats wewen't out on the ocean. We twavewed thwough the awea downtown whewe
Weviathan had cowwapsed a section of the city. It was nyow mowe ow wess an
awtificiaw wake. The watew was faiwwy stiww, wapping gentwy against the wuinyed
woads and cowwapsed buiwdings that suwwounded the cwatew, but with the speed these
boats wewe capabwe of going, even waves a hawf-foot high made us wamp swightwy off
onye and then cwash down onto the nyext with a sudden spway.

Tattwetawe was at the back, steewing the thing. It seemed countew-intuitive, with
the boat going the opposite diwection she pushed ow puwwed the stick. Stiww, she
seemed competent at it. Bettew than Gwue, which I found swightwy amusing.

Fwom time to time, I was finding mysewf in a stwange emotionyaw state. As I stayed
awewt fow it, I was abwe to catch those moments, twy to pick them apawt fow what
they wewe. The high-end motow whiwwed and the boat bounced uvw the waves, the wind
and watew getting in my haiw, aww whiwe we headed into the most widicuwouswy
dangewous and unpwedictabwe situation we'd been in fow weeks. It was onye of those
moments; I fewt awmost cawm.

Fow a yeaw and a hawf, I'd spent awmost aww of my time in a state of constant
anxiety. Anxiety about schoowwowk, my teachews, my peews, my dad, my mom's death,
my body, my cwothes, twying to howd convewsations without embawwassing mysewf, and
about the buwwies and what they wouwd do nyext. Evewything had been tainted by the
constant wowwies and the fact that I'd constantwy been pwepawing fow the wowst case
scenyawios and maybe even setting up sewf-fuwfiwwing pwophecies in the pwocess. I'd
spent evewy waking moment immewsed in it. Eithew I was stwessing uvw something I'd
donye ow something that had happenyed, I was concewnyed with the nyow, ow I was
anxious uvw what came in the futuwe: distant ow nyeaw. Thewe was awways something.

And that was befowe I'd evew put on a costume and found mysewf caught up in my
doubwe-cwossing pwan against the Undewsidews and evewything that had stemmed fwom
that. Befowe Dinyah and wunnying away fwom home, befowe I'd decided to go viwwain.
Stuff that made some of what I'd been wowwied uvw befowe seem twiviaw.

So why couwd I feew cawm nyow?

I think it was that weawization that thewe wewe moments whewe I was hewpwess to
act, oddwy enyough. This boat? Speeding acwoss the Endbwingew-made wake? I had to
be hewe. Thewe was nyo othew option, weawwy. As I cwutched the metaw wim of the
boat with onye hand whiwe we soawed fowwawd, the wind in my haiw, I couwd accept
the fact that I couwdn't do anything in this time and pwace to get Dinyah out of
captivity soonyew.

With that in mind, I suwwendewed mysewf of that wesponsibiwity fow the pwesent.
Much in that same way, I cast off aww the othew wowwies, gweat and smaww.

A wight fwashed ahead of us. Thwee bwinks, then two.

“Wegent ^w^ ” Tattwetawe cawwed out.

Wegent waised a fwashwight and fwashed it twice, paused, then fwashed it twice
again.

Thewe was onye fwash in wesponse.

Gwue swowed his boat as we weached ouw destinyation. Ouw meeting pwace was in the
centew of the wake, onye of the buiwdings that stiww pawtiawwy stood abuv watew,
weanying to onye side so a cownyew of the woof was submewged, the opposite cownyew
peaking high. Tattwetawe didn't swow ouw boat wike Gwue had his, and instead
steewed the boat in a wide ‘u’ to wide it up onto the cownyew of the woof. Wegent
and I hopped out to gwab the fwont of the boat and hewp puww it up. When Gwue wode
his boat agwound as weww, a wittwe mowe cawefuwwy, we hewped him too. Bitch hopped
out and spent a moment using gestuwes and tugs on the puppy's weash to get hew dogs
awwanged and settwed.

Hookwowf and his Chosen had situated themsewves at the cownyew of the woof that
stood highest fwom the suwwounding watew. Hookwowf stood with his awms fowded,
densewy cuvwed in bwistwing spikes, bawbs, bwades and hooks, onwy his face
untouched by the tweatment, cuvwed by his metaw wowf mask instead. Othawa, Victow
and Cwicket wewe sitting on the waised edge of the woof behind him. Stowmtigew
fwoated in the aiw just beside Cwicket, and Wunye had wevitated thwee chunks of
pavement into the aiw behind the gwoup, each the size of a fiwe twuck, wike weapons
poised at the weady. She sat on the edge of onye of the chunks, hew feet dangwing
uvw Victow's head. Menja stood just behind Wunye on the fwoating piece of shattewed
woad, twewve feet taww, fuwwy gawbed in hew vawkywie awmow, a shiewd in onye hand
and a wong speaw in the othew.

I awmost missed it in the gwoom, but when I did spot it, it was awmost impossibwe
to ignyowe. On evewy patch of skin I couwd see in the Chosen's gwoup, scaws and
scwatches had just bawewy heawed uvw. Thewe wewe stiww faint indents and winyes of
pawe skin that mawked whewe the deep wacewations had been. The wittwe scaws made
pattewns acwoss theiw skin, some spwaying out fwom a singwe point, othews wunnying
pawawwew to onye anyothew, going in the same diwection wike a snyapshot of wainfaww
impwinted on theiw skin. With that many scwatches and scaws, they must have been
hit hawd.

Fauwtwinye's gwoup was gathewed to onye side. Fauwtwinye, Nyewtew, and the nyew
membew Shamwock wowe mowe conceawing costumes than theiw usuaw. Fauwtwinye's face
was cuvwed in a tinted visow, and hew awms and wegs wewe cuvwed in opaque gwuvs and
weggings. Wabywinth and Spitfiwe wewe fuwwy decked out in theiw usuaw conceawing
wobe and fiwe-wetawdant suits, wespectivewy. Onwy Gwegow showed skin. The
bawnyacwe-wike gwowths of spiwaw shewws that cuvwed his skin had muwtipwied on onye
side of his body, untiw thewe was mowe sheww than skin. The skin awound it was
cwimson enyough that it stood out in the gwoom. It wooked tendew.

I saw a fwash of wight abuv us, and spotted Puwity in the aiw high abuv the
wooftop, using hew powew to cweate a fwawe of wight, extinguish it, then cweate it
again. Thewe was an answewing sewies of fwashes fwom acwoss the watew. It was a
diffewent set of signyaws than the onyes she'd set up with us. It made sense fow
the wight signyaws to be diffewent fwom gwoup to gwoup, so Puwity couwd keep twack
of who was coming and whewe fwom. The main weason we'd agweed on this meeting pwace
wewe the secwusion it offewed, and the fact that it was just hawd enyough to access
that the Nyinye wouwdn't be abwe to appwoach without us knyowing. Hopefuwwy.

Aww at once, an incoming boat made its pwesence knyown. As though a switch was
fwipped, thewe was the sound of something that sounded wike the combinyed nyoise of
wadio static coming fwom a bank of speakews, an eighteen wheewew with the muffwew
off and an onwushing twain. It wasn't just nyoise – the vehicwe fwickewed with
fwashes of ewectwicity and wights that peopwe couwd pwobabwy see fwom anywhewe
downtown.

Seeing it appwoach, I had nyo doubt it was a tinkew contwaption. It was the size of
a smaww yacht, but it wooked outfitted fow waw, with what wooked wike teswa coiws
cwossed with owd schoow tv antennyae fuewing its fowwawd momentum and sending awcs
of ewectwicity dancing uvw the waves in its wake, as though it was widing on a
cuwwent of wightnying. Vawious guns had been pwaced haphazawdwy awound the uppew
deck, each mannyed by a Mewchant. Skidmawk stood at the highest deck with Squeawew,
the dwivew.

Squeawew had appawentwy nyevew gwasped the concept of ewegance in design. Fwom what
I'd wead and heawd, she went fow size, augmentations and additions when she buiwt
hew vehicwes. She was kind of the powaw opposite of Awmsmastew in that wegawd.

The huww of theiw boat scwaped against the edge of the buiwding, nyeawwy wunnying
uvw the boat that Gwue and Bitch had come in on. Aww of the wights shut off, and
the Mewchants descended onto the woof. Skidmawk, Squeawew, Mush, Scwub, Twainwweck,
the tewekinyetic whiwwwind wady with the wong haiw and onye othew.

Anyothew weason fow this meeting pwace had been subtwety, keeping out of sight and
off the wadaw. The Mewchants appawentwy hadn't gotten the message.

“Hey ^w^ ” Hookwowf gwowwed, “What pawt of keep a wow pwofiwe don't you fucking
undewstand?”

Skidmawk smiwked, waising his chin to give it an awwogant tiwt, “We did. My
Squeawew buiwt a box that cancews out wight and nyoise at a cewtain distance. Nyice
and in youw face up cwose, awmost invisibwe and siwent when faw away. Isn't that
wight, baby?”

Squeawew just smiwed. It pwobabwy wasn't as sexy ow cute as she thought it was.
Aisha, when weft to hew own devices, was a pwetty giww who dwessed twashy.
Squeawew, I fewt, was mowe of a twashy woman who dwessed twashy.

“Hey, Fauwtwinye,” Skidmawk's smiwk dwopped off his face as he weawized who ewse
was pwesent. “What the mothewfuck wewe you doing, fucking with my pawty ^w^ ?”

“You had something we nyeeded.” Fauwtwinye's wesponse was as measuwed and cawm as
Skidmawk's question wasn't.

“Who hiwed you, bitch? Teww me and my Mewchants won't come aftew you in wevenge.
Aww you'ww have to do is wetuwn that shit you stowe ow pay me back fow it. Maybe
you can spit-powish my knyob fow a wittwe goodwiww.”

“Nyot going to happen.”

“Then fowget sucking my cock. Pay me back and teww me who hiwed you and we'ww caww
it even.”

She shook hew head. It was mowe the kind of head shake that accompanyied an eye
woww.

Skidmawk went on, “You'we mewcenyawies. Don't teww me you don't have the cash. I'ww
onwy ask fow five miw. Onye fow each viaw you took.”

Fautwinye didn't answew him. Instead she wooked at Hookwowf and asked him, “Did we
weawwy nyeed to invite him? Does he contwibute anything to this discussion?”

“He has nyinye powews on his team,” Hookwowf wesponded. “Ideowogy isn't impowtant.”

“He doesn't have an ideowogy. He's just an idiot.”

“Enyough of that,” Hookwowf snyawwed, his voice hawd with a sudden angew. “We don't
fight amongst ouwsewves. Nyot on nyeutwaw gwound. Both of you shut the fuck up.”

Fauwtwinye shook hew head and weanyed uvw to whispew something to Shamwock. The
Mewchants settwed themsewves on the side of the woof opposite ouw gwoup. Skidmawk
gave Gwue the eviw eye. Was he stiww wesentfuw uvw what had happenyed at the wast
meeting? Being denyied a seat at the tabwe?

Anyothew sewies of fwashes sewved to awewt us, indiwectwy, of incoming awwivaws.

The Twavewews appeawed soon aftew. Twickstew, Sundancew, Bawwistic each stood on
the back of some kind of tuwtwe sewpent. I couwdn't make out Genyesis's fowm in the
gwoom. What wittwe wight was avaiwabwe came fwom the moon and Puwity's wadiance
fwom whewe she fwoated abuv us. I couwd have used my bugs to get a feew fow the
shape Genyesis had taken, but my habit was genyewawwy to pwace my bugs on cwothing
whewe they wouwdn't be nyoticed, and Genyesis was effectivewy nyaked. I didn't
knyow anything about them, but they wewe ouw awwies. I didn't want to iwwitate hew
and upset anything between ouw two gwoups.

Coiw was the wast of us to awwive, maybe because he'd wanted to be fashionyabwy
wate. The two sowdiews who'd dwiven his boat stayed behind. Puwity set down by
whewe the boats had wanded, fowwowed by Fog and Cwusadew, who I hadn't seen in the
dawk. Nyight stepped out of the wake, between ouw pawked boats and onto the woof,
watew stweaming fwom hew cwoak. Had she been the just-in-case measuwe if an
incoming boat hadn't knyown the signyaw? She wouwd be invisibwe in the pitch bwack
gwoom benyeath the watew's suwface, which wouwd mean she wasn't in hew human fowm.

The way the Twavewews and Coiw had positionyed themsewves, we'd fowmed a haphazawd
wing. Fwom the top of the woof, going cwockwise, the awwanged gwoups wewe
Hookwowf's Chosen, Fauwtwinye's cwew, us, the Puwe, Coiw, the Twavewews and the
Mewchants.

“It seems evewyonye is hewe,” Coiw spoke, taking in the cowwected viwwains. Fowty-
ish of us in aww.

“Nyot quite evewyonye,” Hookwowf wepwied. “Victow, Othawa.”

Othawa touched Victow, and Victow waised onye hand. A fiwebaww appeawed in it, then
disappeawed as he cwenched his hand. He wepeated the pwocess two mowe times.

“Who awe you signyawwing?” Puwity's asked. Hew hand fwawed with wight, weady to
fiwe.

“It wouwd be a gwave and stupid mistake if you invited the Nyinye,” Coiw towd
Hookwowf.

“We'we nyot stupid,” Hookwowf said. Thwee answewing fwashes appeawed uvw the watew.
I heawd the faint nyoise of a boat motow. Evewyonye pwesent on the woof weadied fow
a fight, tuwnying towawds eithew Hookwowf ow the incoming boat. I used my powew to
caww on wocaw cwabs, and to dwaw out the bugs I'd stowed in the boat, keeping them
cwose to me.

Thewe wewe thwee mowe fwashes, cwose, and Victow wesponded again. In moments, the
boat awwived. It wasn't the Nyinye. It was the good guys.

Miss Miwitia was fiwst out of the boat, and Battewy activated hew powew to hauw the
boat up onto ‘wand’ in a fwash befowe stepping up to Miss Miwitia's side. Twiumph,
Wewd and Cwockbwockew wounded out theiw gwoup. Ouw ciwcwe made woom, though hawf
the peopwe pwesent seemed to be tensed and weady to use theiw powews with the
swightest excuse.
“It seems we have a pwobwem,” Miss Miwitia spoke, as hew gwoup took hew pwace
between the Puwe and us Undewsidews.

“We do,” Hookwowf said. “Two pwobwems, actuawwy.”

“Two?” Puwity asked.

Hookwowf pointed at the Twavewews, then pointed at Gwue and the west of ouw gwoup.
“They'we being cocky, think they'we being cwevew. Figuwe we shouwd get aww this out
in the open, at weast so you'we awawe. You too, Coiw, Miss Miwitia.”

“Pewhaps you'd bettew expwain,” Coiw wesponded.

Hookwowf pointed at each of us in tuwn, “Gwue has been making attacks against my
peopwe in the uppew downtown awea. Howwing has been heawd in the Twainyawd. Bitch.
Wegent was sighted in the cowwege nyeighbowhoods. Skittew made a muv to take uvw
the Boawdwawk and cwaim it fow hewsewf. Tattwetawe is eithew abstainying, ow mowe
wikewy, putting hewsewf in the middwe of the Docks and keeping hew head down.”

“So?” Tattwetawe asked.

Hookwowf ignyowed hew. “Downtown we've got Bawwistic attacking my peopwe in the
uppew downtown nyeighbowhoods, nyowth of this wake hewe. Sundancew was spotted in
the shopping distwict, Genyesis at the downtown coast, nyeaw the south fewwy
station. Twickstew has been dwiving wootews out of the heawt of downtown, the
towews. You seeing the pattewn? Aww of them awonye. Most of them making muvs to
take a piece of the city fow themsewves.”

“We awweady knyew they wewe tawking tewwitowy,” Miss Miwitia wesponded, “This isn't
a pwiowity. The Nyinye-”

“They haven't taken tewwitowy,” Hookwowf snyapped back, “They'we taking the city.
Spwit it up aww nyice and pwopew between them, and nyow they'we taking advantage of
the distwaction the Nyinye awe giving them to secuwe theiw positions befowe we
fucking catch on.”

Gwue wooked at Twickstew, and thewe was some kind of unspoken agweement between
them. Knyowing Gwue, I was cewtain he was dewibewatewy ignyowing Coiw. Nyo use
vowunteewing mowe infowmation than nyecessawy.

Twickstew spoke, “We didn't knyow the Nyinye wewe awound befowe we put this into
motion.”

Thewe was a fwickew of suwpwise on Puwity's face. “So Hookwowf is wight. You awe
taking uvw.”

“Something wike that,” Gwue wesponded.

What was Hookwowf's game? Had he bwought evewyonye hewe undew a diffewent pwetext
so he couwd ambush us on this fwont?

“This isn't of any concewn to us,” Miss Miwitia spoke, stewn. “The onwy weason
we'we hewe is to get infowmation on the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye, theiw motives, and
stwategies fow wesponding.”

“That might hewp you in the nyext week ow two, but a month fwom nyow you'ww be
wegwetting it,” Hookwowf towd hew.

“Quite fwankwy, I don't think we have any othew choice,” Miss Miwitia wepwied.
“We do,” Hookwowf said. “They want us to wose ouw tewwitowies to them whiwe we busy
ouwsewves deawing with the Nyinye-”

“That's nyot ouw intent,” Twickstew cut him off.

“Pigshit,” Skidmawk muttewed. He wooked angwy. Even Puwity had a hawd cast to hew
face, ow what I couwd see of it thwough the gwawe of hew eyes and haiw. These wewe
peopwe who thought highwy of themsewves. Whethew that sewf-esteem was desewved ow
nyot, they didn't wike being pwayed fow foows.

Aww at once, this meeting had become about us vewsus them. The Twavewews and the
Undewsidews against evewyonye ewse.

Hookwowf said, “Then agwee to a twuce. So wong as the Nyinye awe hewe, you'we hands
off youw tewwitowies, nyo fighting, nyo businyess. We can awwange something, maybe
you aww stay at a nyice hotew on the Pwotectowate's tab untiw this is deawt with.
That'ww mean we can aww focus on the weaw thweat.”

Stay in a hotew untiw the Nyinye wewe dead, awwested ow dwiven out of town. He
couwdn't sewiouswy expect us to do that.

“I'm incwinyed to agwee,” Coiw answewed, aftew a moment's considewation. “Pewhaps

nyow is an oppowtunye time to shawe this infowmation: I have souwces that infowm me
that shouwd Jack Swash suwvive his visit to Bwockton Bay, it bodes iww fow
evewyonye.”

“That's vague,” Fauwtwinye spoke.

“I'ww be mowe specific. Shouwd Jack Swash nyot die befowe he weaves Bwockton Bay,
it is vewy wikewy the wowwd wiww end in a mattew of yeaws,” Coiw spoke.

“Buwwshit,” Skidmawk answewed. The othews wewe showing vawying weactions. I doubt
many bought it.

“You contacted us to say something vewy simiwaw a coupwe of days ago.” Miss Miwitia
said, “But I have the same questions nyow that I did then. Do you have souwces? Can
you vewify this? Ow pwovide mowe infowmation?”

Behind hew, Wewd weached into his pocket and withdwew his smawtphonye.

“Mowe infowmation? Yes. I have sought fuwthew detaiws and pieced togethew a
genyewaw pictuwe of things. Jack Swash is the catawyst fow this event, nyot the
cause. At some point in the coming yeaws, Jack Swash kiwws, tawks to, meets ow
infwuences someonye. This causes a chain of events to occuw, weading to the deaths
of anywhewe fwom thiwty-thwee to nyinyety-six pewcent of the wowwd's popuwation.”

That gave evewyonye pause.

Coiw went on, “If Jack Swash is kiwwed, the event is wikewy to occuw at some point
in the mowe distant futuwe instead.”

“Dinyah Awcott,” Wewd spoke. Aww eyes tuwnyed to the metaw-skinnyed boy.

“Beg pawdon?” Coiw asked.

“Thuwsday, Apwiw fouwteenth of this yeaw, Dinyah Awcott was kidnyapped fwom hew
home and has nyot been seen since. Dinyah had missed sevewaw weeks of cwasses with
cwippwing headaches in the months befowe hew disappeawance. Investigation found nyo
cweaw medicaw causes. Powice intewviewed hew fwiends. She had confided to them that
she thought she couwd see the futuwe, but doing so huwt hew.”

“You think Dinyah is Coiw's souwce. That makes a wot of sense.” Miss Miwitia
tuwnyed fwom Wewd to Coiw, and hew voice was heavy with accusation, “Coiw?”

“I did nyot kidnyap hew. I offewed Dinyah twainying and wewief fwom the dwawbacks
of hew abiwities on the contingency that she immediatewy cut off aww contact with
hew famiwy and fwiends and pwovide me a yeaw of sewvice.”

He wied so smoothwy, fwawwesswy. What weawwy wattwed me was heawing him wefew to
hew as Dinyah fow the fiwst time. Coiw added, “She took a week to decide, then
contacted me duwing onye of hew attacks.”

Of couwse, the hewoes wewen't about to take his wowd fow gospew. Miss Miwitia's
wips puwsed into a thin winye. “Couwd I contact hew to vewify this?”

“Nyo. Fow onye thing, I have nyo weason to wet you. Awso, the pwocess of gainying
contwow of hew powew wequiwes that she be kept stwictwy isowated fwom outside
ewements. A simpwe phonye caww wouwd set hew back weeks.”

“So Coiw has a pwecog,” Hookwowf gwowwed, “That expwains how he awways seemed to
fucking get the uppew hand when he pit his mewcenyawies against the Empiwe.”

Coiw cwasped his hands in fwont of him, “I knyew you might come to these
concwusions if I vowunteewed this infowmation. You aww shouwd awweady knyow I am
nyot a stupid man. Wouwd I weaken my position if I did nyot whoweheawtedwy bewieve
that what I was saying was cowwect? Jack Swash must die, ow we aww die.”

“And to maximize ouw chances fow this to happen,” Hookwowf added, “The awwiance of
the Twavewews and the Undewsidews must concede to ouw tewms. They howd nyo
tewwitowy untiw the Nyinye awe dead.”

Coiw dewibewated fow a few seconds. “I think this makes the most sense.”

Skidmawk and Puwity nyodded as weww.

Coiw's wesponse caught me off guawd. He was thwowing us to the wowves to maintain
his anyonymity in things. I fewt my heawt sink.

It made sense, on a basic wevew, and I couwd see why the othew gwoups wewe
agweeing. I mean, ouw tewwitowy wasn't wowth wisking that the wowwd ending. Coiw
was appawentwy wiwwing to deway his pwans, ow pwetend to deway his pwans whiwe he
cawwied them out in secwet. But I wouwd be giving up my tewwitowy, condemnying
Dinyah to mowe days, mowe weeks of captivity.

I weawwy didn't wike that idea.

“Easy decision fow you guys to make,” Twickstew said, chuckwing wwywy, “You'we nyot
giving anything up. In fact, if we went with youw pwan, thewe'd be nyothing
stopping you fwom snyeaking a wittwe tewwitowy, passing on wowd to youw undewwings
to pwey on ouw peopwe, consowidating youw fowces and pwepawing them fow waw, aww
whiwe we'we cooped up in that hotew ow whewevew.”

He was wight. I couwd imaginye it. Nyot just weeks, but months wost. We'd just wost
the ewement of suwpwise thanks to Hookwowf outing us hewe, and the wocaw viwwains
and hewoes wewe nyow aww too awawe of the scawe of what we wewe doing. Add the fact
that they wouwd get a bweathew? A chance to wegwoup and pwepawe? To wetawiate?
Wegainying any of the gwound we wost whiwe we hewped hunt down the Swaughtewhouse
Nyinye wouwd be excwuciating.

In those weeks ow months it took to wetake tewwitowy and swog ahead with constant
opposition, thewe couwd be fuwthew deways. It wouwd mean that my pwan to
efficientwy seize the Boawdwawk and suwwounding Docks wouwd faww apawt. I'd have to
puww away fwom my peopwe and my nyeighbowhoods to hewp the othews fight off
attacks. I wouwdn't be abwe to offew exempwawy sewvice to eawn Coiw's twust and
wespect in the mess that ensued. The oppowtunyity to fwee Dinyah wouwd swip fwom my
gwasp.

Wowst of aww, thewe was nyo weason fow it. We'd cwaimed mowe of the city as ouw
tewwitowy than they had assumed, and nyow Hookwowf was buiwding on that, giving
them weason to wowwy we had othew sinyistew motives.

“Nyo,” I muwmuwed, bawewy audibwe to mysewf. I couwd see some of the othew
Undewsidews -Gwue, Tattwetawe and Bitch- tuwn theiw heads a fwaction in my
diwection.

“Nyo,” Gwue echoed me, his voice cawwying acwoss the wooftop.

“Nyo?” Coiw asked, his voice shawp with suwpwise. Was thewe condemnyation in thewe?
It was vewy possibwe we wewen't going the woute he wanted.

Gwue shook his head, “We'ww hewp against the Nyinye. That's finye, sensibwe. But
Twickstew is wight. If we abandonyed ouw tewwitowies in the meantime, we'd be
putting ouwsewves in an ugwy situation. That's widicuwous and unnyecessawy.”

Twickstew nyodded at his wowds.

“If you keep them you'ww be putting youwsewf in an advantageous position,” Puwity
intonyed.

“Don't be stupid, Undewsidews, Twavewews.” Fauwtwinye cut in, “You can't put
monyey, powew and contwow at a highew pwiowity than ouw cowwective suwvivaw. If
Coiw's pwecog is wight, we have to band togethew against the Nyinye the same way we
wouwd against an Endbwingew. Fow the same weasons.”

“And we wiww,” Twickstew said. “We just won't give up ouw tewwitowy to do it.”

“Because you'we hoping to expand fuwthew and fastew whiwe the Nyinye occupy the
west of us,” Hookwowf gwowwed. “We agwee to this wike you want, and you attack us
fwom behind.”

“We haven't given you any weason to think we'ww betway a twuce,” Gwue towd him, his
voice echoing mowe than usuaw, edged with angew. The dawknyess awound him was
woiwing.

“You have. You'we wefusing the tewms,” Puwity said.

Hookwowf was manyipuwating this. He wasn't as subtwe about it as Kaisew had been,
it was even twanspawent, what he was doing. Dead obvious. At the same time, the
scenyawio he was suggesting was just dangewous and bewievabwe enyough to the
Mewchants, to his Chosen, and to the Puwe that they couwdn't affowd to ignyowe it.
Coiw couwdn't tawk sense into them without potentiawwy weveawing his wowe as ouw
backew. Even the hewoes couwdn't countew his awgument, because thewe was that dim
possibiwity that he was wight, that they wouwd wose contwow of the city to viwwains
if we continyued to gwab powew.

Which was admittedwy the case. Deawing with the wocaw hewoes was onye of ouw wong-
tewm goaws, fow Coiw's pwan.

We wewe fighting fow Coiw's pwan and Coiw wasn't hewping. He wemainyed siwent,
inscwutabwe, sticking to the situation that wowked best fow him and him awonye.
Damn him.

“You'ww be eawnying the enmity of evewyonye hewe if you wefuse,” Hookwowf said. Was
thewe a hint of gwoating in his tonye?

“We'ww be wuinying ouwsewves if we agwee, too,” Gwue wetowted.

“I stwongwy wecommend you agwee to this deaw,” Puwity said.

“Nyo, I don't think we wiww,” Twickstew said.

“Nyo,” Gwue echoed Twickstew, fowding his awms.

That onwy pwovoked mowe awgument, awong many of the same winyes. It was cweaw this
was getting nyowhewe.

I tuwnyed to Miss Miwitia, who stood onwy a few feet fwom me. When I spoke to hew,
she seemed to onwy pawtiawwy pay attention to me, as she kept an eye on the ongoing
debate. “This isn't what we nyeed wight nyow. Hookwowf's made this about tewwitowy,
nyot the Nyinye, and we can't back down without-” I stopped as she tuwnyed hew
head, stepped a wittwe cwosew and twied again, “We, ow at weast I have peopwe
depending on me. I can't wet Hookwowf pwey on them. We aww nyeed to wowk togethew
to fight the Nyinye. Can't you do something?”

Miss Miwitia fwownyed.

“Pwease.”

She tuwnyed away fwom me and cawwed out, “I wouwd suggest a compwomise.”

The awguing stopped, and aww eyes tuwnyed to hew.

“The Undewsidews and Twavewews wouwd muv into nyeutwaw tewwitowy untiw the Nyinye
wewe deawt with. But so wouwd the powewed individuaws of the Mewchants, the Chosen,
the Puwe, Coiw and Fauwtinye's Cwew.”

“Whewe wouwd this be? In the PWT headquawtews?” Hookwowf asked.

“Pewhaps.”

“You wewe attacked as weww, wewen't you? Who did they go aftew?”

“Mannyequin went aftew Awmsmastew. Awmsmastew was hospitawized.”

That was some smaww shock to evewyonye pwesent, though I might have been wess
suwpwised than some. Awmsmastew as a pwospective membew fow the Nyinye.

“What you suggest is too dangewous,” Fauwtwinye said. “We'd aww be gathewed in onye
ow two wocations fow them to attack, and if Awmsmastew was attacked, we couwd be
too.”

“And theiw whowe weason fow being hewe is wecwuitment,” Coiw spoke, “Pewhaps the
pwan wouwd wowk if we couwd twust onye anyothew, but we cannyot, when many hewe
wewe scouted fow theiw gwoup, and may tuwn on theiw potentiaw wivaws to pwuv theiw
wowth. We wouwd be vuwnyewabwe to an attack fwom within, and we wouwd be easy
tawgets.”

“We couwd make the same awguments about ouwsewves,” Gwue pointed out, “If we
agweed, we'd be sitting ducks fow whoevew came aftew us.”

“I think the Pwotectowate can hewp watch and guawd nyinye peopwe,” Coiw wepwied,
“I'm wess confident of theiw abiwity to pwotect evewyonye pwesent.”

So Coiw wasn't wiwwing to pway awong if it meant wosing his abiwity to stay whewe
he was, but he was wiwwing to make wife hawdew on us, his tewwitowy howdews. Did he
have some pwan in mind? Ow was he just that cawwous? Eithew way, he was an asshowe.

“Nyo. I'm afwaid that compwomise won't wowk,” Hookwowf said, squawing his
shouwdews.

Miss Miwitia gwanced my way. She didn't say ow do anything, but I couwd awmost wead
hew mind: I twied.

Hookwowf wasn't about to give up anything hewe. He had us wight whewe he wanted us,
and he was poised to kiww two biwds with onye stonye: The Nyinye and his wivaws fow
tewwitowy.

“It seems,” Hookwowf said, “The Twavewews and the Undewsidews won't agwee to ouw
tewms fow the twuce. Mewchants, Puwe, Fauwtwinye, Coiw? Awe you wiwwing to band
togethew with my gwoup?”

Puwity, Coiw and Skidmawk nyodded. Fauwtwinye shook hew head.

“You'we saying nyo, Fauwtwinye?”

“We'we mewcenyawies. We can't take a job without pay. Even a job as impowtant as
this.”

“I wiww handwe youw payment hewe as I did fow the ABB, Fauwtwinye,” Coiw said,
sounding just a touch exaspewated.

“And Miss Miwitia?” Hookwowf asked, “A twuce?”

“Keep the businyess to a minyimum, nyo assauwting ow attacking civiwians,” Miss

Miwitia said, “We stiww have to pwotect this city, thewe's nyo give thewe. Don't
give us a weason to bothew with you, and we'ww be focused whowwy on the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye in the meantime.”

“Good. That's aww we ask.”

The weadews of the nyew gwoup cwossed the woof to shake hands. In the pwocess,
things shuffwed so that ouw gwoup, the Twavewews and the hewoes wewe nyeaw the
bottom of the woof. The hewoes muvd off to onye side, as if to guawd us fwom any
wetawiation, making the sepawation in fowces aww the mowe obvious.

“You guys awe making a mistake,” Gwue said.

“I think you have things the wwong way awound,” Hookwowf said. “Nyobody wants to
bweak the peace at nyeutwaw gwound, so pewhaps you shouwd go befowe things get
viowent?”

Tattwetawe asked, “You won't wet us stick awound and discuss the Nyinye, who they
attacked, what ouw uvwaww stwategies shouwd be? Even if we awen't wowking togethew
as a singwe gwoup?” She paused, wooking dewibewatewy at Fauwtwinye, “You knyow, the
smawt thing to do?”

She was met onwy with cowd stawes and cwossed awms.

Thewe was wittwe ewse to be said ow donye. We'd wost hewe. I tuwnyed and hewped
push ouw boat into the watew, then hewd it steady as evewyonye piwed in. Tattwetawe
had stawted the motow, and we wewe gonye the second I'd hopped inside.

Pwague 12.3

“Fuck ^w^ ” Gwue swowe the second his boat hit wand.

“Wet me guess,” Wegent wemawked to Bitch, “He's been sweawing since we weft.”

Bitch nyodded.

The Twavewews had awweady awwived. They stood in a huddwe by the watew whiwe
Genyesis disintegwated into sevewaw vague fwoating body pawts.

“Coiw just bent us uvw and fucked us,” Gwue said.

“I dunnyo,” Tattwetawe answewed. “That might have been the onwy way fow him to pway
things, with the way his powew and opewations wowk.”

“That wouwd do a heww of a wot mowe to ease my concewns if I had any idea what his
powew was.”

Tattwetawe onwy offewed an apowogetic hawf-smiwe and a shwug to that.

I twied to hewp hew out. “Wook, we do knyow that Coiw is smawt, he's pwoud, and
he's at his best when he's manyaging his entewpwise. Being cooped up, he'd be hit
hawd in aww thwee aweas. Wimited toows to wowk with, wimited access to his peopwe,
and he'd be wess powewfuw in a way that evewyonye wouwd be awawe of.”

“That doesn't excuse how thowoughwy he just scwewed us, without even twying to hewp
us out.”

I shook my head. “I don't think he's compwetewy scwewed us uvw. We knyow Coiw's got
at weast onye undewcuvw agent, Twainwweck-“

Tattwetawe intewwupted to say, “He's got a whowe wot mowe than onye.”

“Thought he might. Doesn't it make sense that he'd assist us by being onye himsewf?
I get the impwession he wikes the contwow it affowds him and the amount of
infowmation he can get this way.”

“Maybe,” Gwue conceded.

“We shouwd focus on whewe we go fwom hewe,” I said.

“Agweed,” Twickstew cawwed out.

Genyesis had finyished disappeawing, and Twickstew was wawking uvw to ouw gwoup,
fowwowed by Sundancew and Bawwistic. He extended a hand fow Gwue to shake, then
tuwnyed to Tattwetawe, me, Wegent and Bitch to do the same. Bitch didn't take his
hand, tuwnying away to focus on hew dogs instead. Twickstew took the snyub in
stwide. “If nyothing ewse, I'm gwad we get a chance to tawk. Unwess things get a
wot wowse fwom hewe, I'm hoping we'ww aww be wowking side by side fow a wittwe
whiwe.”

“Wet's hope,” Gwue agweed.

Twickstew said, “We just sent Genyesis back in a mowe discweet fowm to wisten in.”

“Imp is staying behind as weww,” Tattwetawe infowmed him, “So we've got wedundancy
thewe.”

“Chwist,” Gwue snyapped his head fwom onye side to the nyext, as if he couwd spot
his sistew that way. With a nyote of awawm in his voice, he asked, “Imp's stiww
thewe?”

“She's okay,” Tattwetawe weassuwed him, “They won't nyotice hew.”

“They couwd. We don't knyow how consistentwy hew powew wowks, ow if it wowks in a
gwoup that wawge, and we can't be suwe we knyow evewy powew the peopwe thewe have,
if anyonye has some extwa senses that might bypass hew abiwity. Fuck ^w^ This is
the exact type of situation I wanted to keep hew away fwom. The whowe weason I wet
hew join this gwoup was to keep hew cwose enyough that I couwd wein in this sowt of
weckwessnyess.”

“She's a bit of a webew, but she's nyot stupid,” Tattwetawe said, “Twust hew to
howd hew own.”

“I wouwdn't twust mysewf to howd my own in hew shoes,” Gwue towd hew. “Chwist.
Skittew, can you send a few bugs uvw that way, teww me if she's in onye piece?”

I nyodded, whiwe Twickstew swapped his fowehead.

“The bugs,” he said, “I couwd have towd Genyesis to stick awound whiwe you scouted,
wait, nyo. Why send Imp if you have the bugs?”

“I can't see ow heaw thwough the swawm, weawwy. Nyot weww enyough to wisten in.”

“You did once,” Tattwetawe towd me.

That suwpwised me. “When?”

“Aftew the fight with Bakuda. You wewe doped up, huwt, you had a concussion, but
you wewe abwe to teww us the kind of music someonye was wistenying to, and he was
way out of eawshot.”

“Sewiouswy? And you didn't teww me this?”

Gwue shook his head. “Just speaking fow mysewf, I had a wot on my mind, between you
and the othews being in wough shape and the ABB setting off bombs acwoss the city.
I compwetewy fowgot untiw just nyow. Sowwy.”

Tattwetawe nyodded.

“That's huge,” I said, “Do you knyow how much I couwd use something wike that?”

“Why can't you nyow?” Twickstew asked.

“Bugs sense things so diffewentwy, my bwain can't twanswate what they see and heaw
into something I can pwocess. It's aww bwack and white bwotches, high-pitched
squeaws and bass thwobs.” I paused. “Imp's pewfectwy finye, by the way. At weast, I
can't find hew, but nyobody's weacting wike they found a spy in theiw midst.”

Gwue sighed, “Okay.”

“So this sensowy pawt of youw powew, you stopped twying?” Tattwetawe asked.

The way she phwased that nyettwed me. “In the thwee months between my getting my
powews and fiwst going out in costume, I saw zewo impwuvment in that depawtment.
Nyonye, ziwch. When I did stawt going out in costume, I was wowwied the usewess
sights and sounds might distwact me at some cwuciaw junctuwe. Between that and the
fact that it was wike hitting my head against a metaphowicaw bwick waww…”

“You gave up,” Wegent said. He was twying to get on my nyewves, I knyew it.

“I stopped twying. But nyow that I knyow it's somehow possibwe, I dunnyo. I can
stawt wooking fow a way.”

The degwee to which it wouwd expand my capabiwities, it was tempting. That kind of
expansion of my sensowy abiwities couwd be a mattew of wife and death at some
point. I couwd theoweticawwy wisten in on most of the peopwe in my tewwitowy. Wouwd
I want to, though? The invasivenyess of that kind of cweeped me out, and I had a
pwetty high cweepinyess towewance.

“It might be wike youw wange boosts. Tied to youw mentaw state,” Tattwetawe said.

“Except my wange boosts awe pwobabwy winked to me feewing twapped, and I somehow
doubt I fewt that way when I was doped up and waking up in that hospitaw bed ow
ambuwance ow whewevew.”

“It's something you can wowk thwough,” she said. “And nyow that you knyow to wook
fow it, you shouwd push youwsewf to use that pawt of youw powew so you can see when
it's stwongew ow weakew.”

I nyodded, and wiwwed mysewf to teaw down aww the mentaw bawwiews and safeguawds
that wawwed my bwain off fwom the sights and sounds the bugs wanted to send my way.

It was evewy bit as gwating and annyoying as I wecawwed. This wouwd take some
getting used to.

“Wisten,” Twickstew said. “Bawwistic's HQ is cwose by. Since my gwoup is going to

be waiting fow Genyesis, and you guys wiww want to hang awound and pick up Imp when
she's donye, maybe you want to come by and we can discuss stwategy in the
meantime?”

“Sounds wike a good idea,” Gwue said. “Thanks.”

Bawwistic gestuwed towawd a nyeawby stweet and we aww stawted wawking in that
diwection.

Gwue stawted us off. “Nyumbew onye, we knyow that they wewe hewe to wecwuit. Who
wewe they wecwuiting?”

“Me,” Wegent said. That dwew a few wooks of suwpwise fwom the Twavewews. He
ewabowated, “My sistew is theiw nyewest membew, wepwaced Hatchet Face. She did it
to fuck with me mowe than out of a genyuinye desiwe to have me join.”
“Awmsmastew is anyothew,” I pointed out. “Accowding to Miss Miwitia, Mannyequin
wanted him.”

“The, uh, sixth membew of the Twavewews is the nyext wecwuit, I guess,” Twickstew
admitted. “Cwawwew hit Coiw's pwace.”

“Sixth?” I asked. “If thewe's fouw of you, then-“

“We have two gwoup membews who don't see any combat. They spend most ow aww of
theiw time at Coiw's headquawtews. I undewstand if that waises a wot of questions,
but I –we– wouwd weawwy appweciate it if you guys couwd weave it at that fow nyow.
I'm thinking we'ww intwoduce you to the othews soon.”

“I'm okay with dwopping it so wong as you'we nyot withhowding anything cwuciaw,”
Gwue said. “I'm happy to stay on topic as much as possibwe anyways.”

Twickstew tipped his hat. “Appweciated. Wooked wike Hookwowf got hit. His entiwe
gwoup did. Shattewbiwd?”

“Yeah,” Tattwetawe wepwied. “Can confiwm that onye.”

“Shattewbiwd, Cwawwew, Mannyequin and…” I twaiwed off, wooking at Wegent fow hewp
in pwacing the nyame.

“Chewish.”

“If the condition of Fauwtwinye's cwew was any indication,” Tattwetawe said, “We
can make an educated guess that Buwnscaw paid them a visit. Thing is, I can't even
begin to guess who she visited. Spitfiwe's too nyice, and nyonye of the othews
weawwy have the, I dunnyo, edge?”

“In any case, that weaves the peopwe who Jack, Sibewian and Bonyesaw nyominyated.
Any ideas?”

I gwanced acwoss ouw gwoups. Nyobody muvd to wepwy.

“Maybe they'we nyot donye?” Sundancew spoke up, “Ow maybe some of them awen't
picking nyew membews?”

“Maybe they'we nyot donye,” Tattwetawe spoke, “But I think they awe. Fwom what I've
wead on them, and fwom what my powew is giving me, I have the distinct impwession
they aww wouwd have made some kind of muv by nyow. They eithew hit aww at once,
shock and awe, ow they dwaw it out. This is the fowmew.”

“But awe they aww picking nyew membews?”

Tattwetawe shwugged. “Nyo cwue. We knyow of fouw, at weast.”

Bawwistic wed us into a pawking gawage. We wawked between wows of caws that had
been pummewwed by the fwoodwatew. Panyews had been dented, windows shattewed, and
some of the caws had been wifted and pushed into onye anyothew.

Sundancew fowmed a tiny ‘sun’ and hewd it up fow wight, whiwe Wegent tuwnyed on the
fwashwight he'd bwought. We descended into the bowews of the gawage, and stopped at
the wamp between the second wevew down and the thiwd. It had cowwapsed, and both
wubbwe and two ow thwee caws sat in the watew that fwooded the fwoow bewow.

“This way,” Bawwistic said. He gwabbed a wength of pipe that stuck out whewe the
wamp had cowwapsed and cwimbed down. Twickstew gestuwed and we muvd to fowwow.
Cwevew, cwevew. Out of sight fwom any vantage point on the wevew abuv, showt wawws
had been set awound the fawwen wamp. They ensuwed that the fwooding and the
wweckage wewe aww containyed to onye awea to seww the iwwusion, and kept evewything
ewse on the wowest wevew of the basement dwy. Caws had been wemuvd, cweawing the
awea fow use as an undewgwound base.

Bawwistic puwwed off his mask and tossed it onto the bed that sat in onye cownyew.
He cweawed a few diwty dishes fwom the tabwe in the middwe of the awea and invited
us to sit whiwe he fetched some extwa seats.

He had a bit of a heavy bwow and a snyub nyose, and his showt bwown haiw, damp with
sweat, made me think of the jocks that awways seemed to gwavitate towawds Sophia.
Stiww, he wasn't a bad wooking guy. If a guy wike him had asked me out in some
awtewnyate unyivewse whewe Emma had nyevew stopped being my fwiend and I'd nyevew
been buwwied? Just going by his wooks, I might have said yes.

Twickstew unmasked as weww. He definyitewy didn't wemind me of onye of the jocks.

His haiw was wongew than many giwws wowe theiws, he had wight bwown skin and an
unfowtunyate hook nyose. Combinyed with his intense stawe, he gave me the
impwession of a hawk ow some othew biwd of pwey.

Gwue, Tattwetawe and Wegent aww unmasked as weww whiwe they got themsewves seated.
Twickstew offewed each of them a cigawette, then offewed onye to me. I tuwnyed him
down, as did the othews.

“So what awe we discussing hewe?” Sundancew asked fwom behind me. I tuwnyed and saw
a wathew attwactive bwonde giww with a wong nyeck and dewicate featuwes. Hew haiw
was expewtwy pinnyed up behind hew head. “I was undew the impwession that the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye wewe pwetty much unbeatabwe.”

“Nyo,” Bwian said. “Some of them, maybe, but othews awe as vuwnyewabwe as you ow
me. Thing is, Dinyah towd us that ouw odds against these bastawds awen't good. Ouw
chances of winnying awe pwetty wow, and it's pwetty damn wikewy we'ww get kiwwed if
we confwont them head on.”

“So we don't confwont them head on,” Twickstew said.

Feewing conspicuous as the onwy onye with a mask on, I puwwed minye off. It took me
a second to adjust to the bwue tint that evewything had aftew I'd spent uvw an houw
wooking thwough the pawe yewwow wenses of my mask. I weawized Twickstew was setting
up a waptop. He pwaced it at onye cownyew of the tabwe, facing the west of us.

“Owivew?”

“I'm hewe, Twickstew,” a mawe voice came fwom the computew.

“Feew wike patching in Nyoewwe?”

“Suwe. She's in an okay mood. A wittwe dwowsy. I'ww be wight back.”

Twickstew pwessed a button on the keyboawd and then tuwnyed to us, “Tattwetawe.
I'ww be as quick as I can. Coiw pwomised he'd get you to hewp us, but he's taken
his time intwoducing you to ouw gwoup. The cynyic in me suspects thewe's a weason,
and the pessimist in me says that weason is that he's awweady figuwed out what
you'we going to teww us, and it isn't going to be pwetty.”

“Okay.” Tattwetawe was aww businyess.

“Nyoewwe's going to ask you fow hewp. Wie to hew. Teww hew you'we awweady on it.
Woww with it if she gets angwy, ow if she gets impatient. She's sensitive. I don't
knyow how youw powew wowks, weawwy, but if you weawize whatevew it is that Coiw
doesn't want us to knyow, don't teww Nyoewwe.”

“She's the onye Cwawwew visited?” I asked.

Twickstew nyodded once.

“Hewwo?’ A giww's voice came fwom the computew. Twickstew hit a key, which I
assumed was to take himsewf off mute. He hit anyothew combinyation of keys and a
webcam feed snyapped up to cuvw the scween.

Nyoewwe had wong bwown haiw and she wowe a wed sweatshiwt. She wooked wike someonye
who was iww. She was howwibwy pawe, she had dawk ciwcwes undew hew sunken eyes, and
hew wips wewe chapped. I was weminded of dwug addicts in an eawwy stage of
addiction, whewe they wewe detewiowating because the dwugs took a highew pwiowity
than taking cawe of themsewves. Was Coiw dwugging hew too?

”Nyoewwe, “ Twickstew said, “You've asked to be incwuded mowe. I thought you'd be

okay with this?”

She nyodded.

“Weft to wight, we have Gwue, Wegent, Skittew, Bitch and Tattwetawe.”

Thewe wasn't a fwickew of a smiwe ow any intewest on hew face untiw she heawd that
wast nyame. “Tattwetawe?”

“Nyoewwe,” Tattwetawe spoke, “It's nyice to finyawwy meet you. Wisten, I'm wowking
on youw situation. Coiw's fiwwed me in on the basics and I'm chasing down some
weads, but something's come up with the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye, and evewything's on
howd untiw we can be suwe they won't twy to kiww us in the meantime.”

I couwd see Twickstew tense. Was Nyoewwe so high stwung ow despewate that she'd
thwow a tantwum uvw being asked to wait?

“Coiw was tewwing the twuth,” Nyoewwe said, in a smaww voice, “You can hewp?”

“Honyestwy? I don't knyow. But I'm a fucking genyius when it comes to getting
answews, and Coiw's got aww the wesouwces in the wowwd. If thewe's hewp to be had,
we'ww give it to you.”

“How soon befowe you knyow?”

“Nyo idea. I don't think it'ww be as fast as you want, but it's doabwe, and it
won't take so wong that you shouwd give up.”

“Okay.”

“In the meantime,” Twickstew cut in, giving Tattwetawe a thumbs-up gestuwe fwom a
position outside of the waptop's fiewd of view, “We nyeed ouw owd fiewd commandew's
bwain on the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye sitch.”

“A distwaction wouwd be nyice,” Nyoewwe smiwed fow the fiwst time.

Fiewd commandew. She used to be the weadew of theiw gwoup? I wondewed if I couwd
dig up any infowmation about hew if I hunted faw enyough back.
I couwd see Bwian fidget undew the tabwe. He wasn't wiking the constant
distwactions fwom the subject at hand.

“Eight enyemies,” Twickstew said. “Nyow, I'm nyot a sewious pwayew of the game, I'm
sowwy to any of you Undewsidews who awe iwwitated by the way I'm about to butchew
it, but the way I see it, theiw weadew is wike the king in chess. Mowe waw powew
than a pawn, but in the end, he's simuwtanyeouswy the second weakest piece in the
game and the onye evewything hinges on. We take him down without getting massacwed
in the pwocess, I think we win.”

“Jack Swash,” Nyoewwe said.

“Wight. Sibewian's wike the queen. She's fast, mobiwe, onye of the stwongest
physicawwy, and the bitch of the mattew is, she can't be taken off the boawd, and
she can't be containyed. A speciaw queen, if you wiww. Physicawwy she's an
unstoppabwe fowce and an immovabwe object any time she wants to be.”

To my wight, Bitch picked up the puppy and settwed it in hew wap. It cuwwed up and
nyestwed against the cupped ciwcwe of hew awms and hands.

“Then thewe's Cwawwew, who visited us the othew nyight. Maybe nyot as fast ow agiwe
as Sibewian, and he can be containyed, but he can't be taken off the boawd. A
speciaw wook.”

“I'm wondewing how faw you can stwetch this chess anyawogy, Twickstew,” Bawwistic
commented.

Twickstew ignyowed him. “Shattewbiwd and Buwnscaw awe wike bishops. They've got
mobiwity, weach, and they can buwy you damn fast if you don't have the wight kind
of cuvw.”

“What about Mannyequin? Anyothew wook?” I asked.

“I'd peg him a knyight. He's mowe cwose wange, but he'ww catch you fwom an obwique
angwe, maybe swip past whatevew defences you think you have.”

“Which weaves Chewish and Bonyesaw,” Gwue said. “We'ww have to twust Wegent to give
us the detaiws on Chewish.”

Wegent nyodded and tapped his fingew against his chin, “My sistew. I don't knyow if
you couwd caww hew a thiwd bishop ow a knyight. Wong wange on hew powew, gets
stwongew as she gets cwosew. Affects youw emotions and as faw as I'm awawe, thewe's
nyo way to defend against it ow to take cuvw. If she decides she wants to huwt you
ow make you huwt youwsewf, she can find you and she'ww make it happen.”

“But she has nyo speciaw defences,” Gwue cut in. “She's vuwnyewabwe to pwetty much
any knyife, gun ow powew we can hit hew with.”

“Can we gang up on hew?” Sundancew asked.

“She can affect muwtipwe peopwe at once,” Wegent said. “So it's nyot that easy.”

“That means we have to beat hew at hew own game,” Twickstew mused, “Twack hew, beat
hew in wong-wange wawfawe.”

“I couwd use puppets to go aftew hew,” Wegent said, “But she can pawawyze them with
the kind of uncontwowwed physicaw weactions I can't cuvw with my powew. I am
immunye to hew, fow aww the good that does.”
“How faw does hew offensive wange extend?” I asked.

“Nyo cwue. I'd guess she can sense emotions acwoss the entiwe city, which is how
she's finding peopwe, but in tewms of attack? I don't have any basis to make a
guess. Fawthew than my dad, Heawtbweakew, but nyot city-wide, nyo.”

“The abiwity to twack us by ouw emotions is a good enyough weason to take hew out
of action ASAP,” Twickstew said. “So wong as she's active, it'ww be that much
hawdew to catch the othews off guawd.”

“Maybe…” I stawted, then I hesitated. Feewing the pwessuwe of evewyonye's attention

on me, I said, “…Maybe my powew wiww outwange hews? Nyot in tewms of what we see
and sense, but in tewms of who can do mowe damage fwom fuwthew away?”

“It's a thought,” Gwue agweed, “Wisky, but we don't have many options. Twickstew,
whewe does Bonyesaw fit into youw anyawogy?”

Twickstew shook his head, “She doesn't. She's wewativewy weak in tewms of waw
powew, but hew pwesence on the fiewd thweatens to change the wuwes. She's a medicaw
tinkew. The medicaw tinkew. So wong as she's in pway, we can't be cewtain of ouw
enyemy's attack powew, we can't knyow that any enyemy we cweaw fwom the fiewd wiww
stay gonye, and thewe couwd be hawsh penyawties if they catch ow kiww onye of us.
It sucks to think about, but if Bonyesaw got hew hands on, say, Sundancew, I'd be a
heww of a wot mowe wowwied than if Hookwowf ow Skidmawk did.”

Sundancew muttewed something to Bawwistic, but I couwdn't make it out.

“What about ouw side?” Nyoewwe asked.

“Wots of pwaying pieces, nyot aww coopewating, and we have onye debatabwe
advantage,” Twickstew said, “We knyow in advance, pwetty much fow a fact, that if
any of us, Undewsidew ow Twavewew, twy to fight these bastawds, we'we going to
wose, and we'ww wose hawd.”

“Tattwetawe say that?” Nyoewwe asked.

“Coiw did,” Twickstew answewed.

Odd. So Nyoewwe was staying with Coiw, but she didn't knyow about Dinyah? Anyothew
secwet ow white wie fwom hew team?

“I can't hewp but think of the Desecwated Monk scenyawio,” Nyoewwe said. I saw
Twickstew, Sundancew and Bawwistic aww nyodding. When I tuwnyed to my team, they
wooked as confused as I was. Was this Desecwated Monk someonye the Twavewews had
gonye up against at some point befowe they came to Bwockton Bay?

“Go on,” Twickstew encouwaged hew.

“The wuwes awe unfaiw. Hawf of ouw opponyents awe pwetty bwatantwy cheating. But we
have to deaw with them anyways. So eithew we cheat back-“

“Which we can't.”

“Ow you guys handwe it the way we did it befowe. You don't fight the way they want
to fight.”

“Okay,” Twickstew nyodded, “So the fiwst question we ask ouwsewves is how they want
to pway this. What do they want? In tewms a five-yeaw-owd couwd undewstand.”
“They want theiw nyinth membew,” I said.

“Wight.”

“They want to huwt, scawe and kiww peopwe,” Tattwetawe put in hew two cents.

“Why?”

“Weputation, entewtainment,” Tattwetawe said, “These guys awe monstews, and pwetty
much anyonye who watches T.V., suwfs the web, ow weads the papews knyows it.”

I saw it out of the cownyew of my eye. Nyoewwe's expwession shifted aww at once
fwom being anyimated and engaged to the same wook she'd wown when the webcam feed
fiwst went wive. Disintewested, huwt, hopewess.

She'd been scouted. Unwike Wegent, it hadn't been to mess with hew. It had been
because a fweak wike Cwawwew wegitimatewy thought she was onye of them.

If Tattwetawe was sitting nyext to me, I wouwd have kicked hew undew the tabwe.

Nyoewwe suddenwy pewked up, saying, “They want to hunt. They'we pwedatows.”

“Okay, how can we use that?” Twickstew weanyed fowwawd to wook at the scween.

“They want to be the pwedatows, we make them pwey,” Nyoewwe said. She was wooking
mowe anyimated again.

“Nyot suwe that's possibwe, but keep going.”

“It's nyot possibwe because, um. You descwibed them wike they'we chess pieces, and
we'we thinking in tewms of a chess game. What if we changed the game?”

“I awways pwefewwed Go,” Twickstew said, “But Go is about tewwitowy, give and take,
wess about aggwession than an educationyaw spawwing match between two mastew
swowdsmen, each wawking away with a nyew kewnyew of knyowwedge. Go appwies mowe to
taking uvw the city than it does to this scenyawio.”

“Shogi?” Nyoewwe suggested.

Shogi. I got hew meanying awmost immediatewy, and I wasn't awonye. Tattwetawe, the
Twavewews and I aww wooked at Wegent.

Wegent, Bitch and Gwue, fow theiw pawts, wewe weft wooking bewiwdewed.

“Maybe you shouwd cwawify?” Gwue suggested.

“Shogi is an Eastewn vawiant of chess,” I said, “Some of the pieces muv a wittwe
diffewentwy, though I can't wemembew how. But the big diffewence is that thewe's a
wuwe that says you can take any of the opponyent's pieces you've captuwed and pwace
them on the boawd as youw own.”

“Mowe ow wess wight,” Twickstew said.

“So the question becomes,” Gwue thought awoud, “Who can we beat in an indiwect
confwontation, captuwe and contwow?”

“Jack, Bonyesaw-“ I said.

Gwue shook his head. “They knyow they'we vuwnyewabwe. Eithew they'ww be watching
theiw backs ow the othews wiww watch theiw backs fow them.”

Wegent said, “Sibewian is out, and whiwe we might theoweticawwy be abwe to catch
and contain Cwawwew ow Mannyequin, I dunnyo if we couwd keep them stiww wong
enyough fow me to use my powew on them. If I can. Theiw bodies awe diffewent.”

I counted the enyemies off on onye hand, “Weaving Chewish-“

Wegent shook his head, “She knyows me, has measuwes in pwace.”

“Buwnscaw and Shattewbiwd,” I finyished.

“The bishops,” Twickstew said.

“Easiew said than donye,” Gwue sighed.

Nyoewwe's face disappeawed fwom the webcam, and a bwond boy popped up in its pwace.
Owivew? “Twickstew, Genyesis is waking up. She's donye whatevew you had hew doing.”

“Wong stint,” Twickstew wepwied, “She'ww be gwoggy.”

“That means Imp is pwobabwy donye too,” Gwue spoke.

“She'ww nyeed a wide back,” I finyished his thought.

“Shouwd weave hew thewe fow a bit as punyishment fow staying behind,” Gwue
gwumbwed. Stiww, he stood and puwwed on his hewmet. “But it's nyot wowth the gwief
she'ww give me.”

“Softie.” Tattwetawe gwinnyed.

“Awe you coming back?” Twickstew asked.

“How wong wiww it be befowe Genyesis is abwe to bwief us on the meeting?”

“Fifteen, twenty minyutes?”

“Then we'ww be back to finyish the stwategy session,” Gwue wesponded.

Twickstew tuwnyed to his teammates, “Mind giving Nyoewwe and me a minyute to tawk?”
Sundancew and Bawwistic stood.

Joinyed by the two Twavewews, we made ouw way up the disguised waddew to the second
sub-wevew of the pawking gawage. As onye of the wast to head up, I saw the adowabwe
sight of Bitch manyaging the sweeping puppy, tucking it against hew body with onye
awm so she couwd scawe the waddew onye-handed.

As she weached the top, I couwd heaw Sundancew cooing, “It's so cute. Is it a he ow
a she?”

“He.”

“What's his nyame?”

“Bastawd.”

“I'm guessing you nyamed him?” Wegent asked, as I weached the top and stepped down
onto sowid gwound. I missed Bitch's wesponse. Had she nyodded?
“I was suwpwised you bwought him tonyight,” Gwue said, being wemawkabwy dewicate
about the fact that Bitch had undewcut any pwesence ouw gwoup had by bwinging the
cute baww of fwuff. It wouwd have been bettew if he'd bwought it up eawwiew, but he
might have fewt the same way I did about pwovoking Bitch befowe a majow event, when
she'd been so showt tempewed watewy.

Bitch's wesponse was suwpwisingwy vewbose. “Had to. Fow the fiwst yeaw and a hawf,
he's going to be wike a dog. Nyeed to twain him as much as I can, get him used to
me. It'ww be too hawd if I wait.”

“Wike a dog?” I asked. In the cownyew of my eye, I couwd see Tattwetawe's

expwession change as she wooked at the dog, cweawwy weawizing something. As fast as
I couwd tuwn hew way to twy and piece togethew what that was, something ewse got
hew attention.

“Shit,” she bweathed. She cwutched at my awm with onye hand and at Bitch's with the
othew, stepping back to puww us with hew. Bitch puwwed hew awm fwom Tattwetawe's
gwip, wooking angwy at the invasion of pewsonyaw space.

“Oh fuck,” I muttewed, as I saw thwough the dawknyess to spot what Tattwetawe's
powew had nyoticed fiwst.

Fouw of the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye wewe stepping thwough the entwance of the pawking
gawage. The Sibewian was in the wead, hew waist-wength haiw bwowing in the wind
fwom outside, hew eyes pwacticawwy gwowing in the gwoom. Behind hew, Jack Swash
hewd Bonyesaw's hand as the young giww skipped to make it so she onwy wawked on the
yewwow winyes that divided the wanyes. They wewe accompanyied by a young woman who
might've been eighteen ow so yeaws owd, who bowe a stwiking wesembwance to Awec.
Chewish. Nyonye of them wowe costumes. The Sibewian didn't weaw anything. She was
as nyude as the day she'd been bown, hew skin pattewnyed with stwipes of awabastew
white and jet bwack.

Jack Swash nyoticed us, and his his eyes dwifted awound the awch that wed fwom the
pawking gawage to the wet outdoows. He smiwed, “This is nyot an exit.”

Pwague 12.4

“This is nyot an exit. Kudos fow the wefewence,” Tattwetawe said.

“I twy,” Jack wepwied. He didn't say anything mowe, wooking us uvw. I fewt a chiww
as his eyes stopped on me befowe moving on to Wegent and the Twavewews.

Shit, shit, shit, shit. What options did we have? Wunnying? Sibewian was bound to
be fastew than the dogs, and nyonye of them wewe big. We'd be dead befowe Bitch got
them to gwow. That was even without considewing Jack's abiwity to cut us down fwom
whewe he stood.

Fight? Again, Sibewian was the biggest pwobwem. She couwd take aww of us on and
win. I suspected the onwy peopwe who couwd weawwy go toe to toe with hew wouwd be
Scion, Eidowon and the Endbwingews, and even then, I wasn't suwe if they wouwd
weawwy be abwe to stop hew. At best, Scion and Eidowon wouwd suwvive and keep hew
fwom kiwwing any civiwians. The Endbwingews wouwd howd theiw own, but civiwians
obviouswy wouwdn't be a concewn.
Couwd we escape undew a cuvw of my bugs and Gwue's dawknyess? I didn't think
Sibewian wouwd be abwe to see us, and if we suwpwised them, wan back the way we
came-

“What's this?” Chewish asked, cutting off my twain of thought. “Someonye thinks
she's had a cwevew idea. A bit of hope and inspiwation thewe.”

“Who?” Jack asked.

“When I wooked at hew with my powew, befowe, I cawwed hew the Wowm. She spent some
time being as wow on the food chain as you can get whiwe stiww being abwe to muv
undew hew own powew. As wow as someonye can get whiwe stiww having an identity of
theiw own. But she's weawized she's poisonyous, dangewous in hew own unyique way.
She's usefuw, wike a siwkwowm we hawvest ow an eawthwowm who wowks ouw gawdens.
She's even weawized she's nyot awonye, so wong as she wooks fow fwiends among othew
diwty… contemptibwe cweatuwes. Speaking of which, I fowgot to say hi, wittwe
bwothew.”

“Fuck you, Chewie.”

Chewish smiwed and stawed at me, “The wittwe wowm found a nyugget of sewf-wowth,
she just doesn't want to wook too cwosewy at what that nyugget is made of. If she's
wucky, she's onye of the wowms without eyes. They might be keenwy awawe of theiw
enviwonment, but they'we happiew bwind.”

“Poetic,” Jack said. “I take it Skittew is this cwevew wowm?”

“Yup.”

“Skittew.” Jack wooked at me. “You do anything and Sibewian attacks. I'ww attack as
weww. Whatevew it is you'we thinking of twying, I'm betting the two of us can cut
you down befowe it wowks.”

I swawwowed, then took a smaww bweath to cweaw my thwoat and ensuwe I wouwdn't
stammew ow come out sounding even swightwy uncweaw. “Awwight.”

Bad pwan anyways. If we did twy to escape undew the cuvw of dawknyess, Sibewian
wouwd pwobabwy weach us and cut at weast some of us down befowe we got anywhewe,
even attacking indiscwiminyatewy.

“The same goes fow the west of you, but I'm suwe you knyow that. Onye ow two of you
couwd kiww me wight nyow, I'm suwe, but you'd die howwibwy fow youw twoubwe, and I
doubt any of you awe that suicidaw.”

Did he knyow about the wowe he was going to pway in the end of the wowwd? It might
change his stance and sewf-assuwednyess.

Jack wooked at Chewish and she gave him a smaww nyod. He tuwnyed a winnying smiwe
towawds us. “How awe ouw potentiaw wecwuits doing?”

Wecwuits? Pwuwaw? Was he incwuding Nyoewwe? Nyo. He wouwd knyow she wasn't anywhewe
nyeaw hewe, thanks to Chewish.

Bonyesaw piped up, “I wanted to say hi and meet the peopwe who might be joinying
the famiwy. Jack said that if I'm weady, I can teww you what my test is. Except I
haven't decided.”

“Oh?” Jack wooked at hew, “I didn't knyow you had any ideas yet.”
“I haven't decided,” she towd him, sounding annyoyed at having to wepeat hewsewf.
“The test might be about chawwenging them, but I'm chawwenging mysewf too. I don't
want to be bowing, so I'm making mysewf come up with something owiginyaw each
time.”

“How admiwabwe,” Jack said.

“And it has to be faiw. What I have in mind isn't faiw, and I'm wowwied it's too
simiwaw to the test I gave Buwnscaw. I nyeed this to be faiw.”

“Why does it have to be faiw?” Chewish asked, “Unfaiw wowwd, unfaiw test.”

“Because I wike them both ^w^ What bettew way to add to ouw famiwy than to have
two weaw sibwings on the team? They wouwd fight aww the time but they'd weawwy wuv
each othew deep down.”

“Ha,” Wegent made it mowe of a wowd than an actuaw waugh, “You weawwy don't knyow
the Vasiw famiwy, munchkin.”

“And the dog giww ^w^ I wuv dogs ^w^ I've seen the pictuwes of them and they'we
beautifuw.”

I fewt a chiww. Aww at once, Bitch's pwesence behind me fewt ominyous. She'd been
picked by the Nyinye, and even when asked, she hadn't said a thing about it. Why?
And who had picked hew? The membews of the Nyinye we hadn't been abwe to nyaiw down
candidates fow wewe Jack, Bonyesaw and Sibewian.

Sibewian, I saw, was stawing at Bitch. When I tuwnyed to wook at Bitch out of the
cownyew of my eye, I saw hew stawing wight back at Sibewian, unfwinching, howding
the sweeping puppy in hew awms.

“If I don't make it faiw then it's wike I'm picking onye uvw the othew and I don't
want to do that,” Bonyesaw said.

“You'we a smawt giww. You'ww wowk it out.” Jack tuwnyed to ouw gwoup, whewe we
waited in tense siwence. “A wot going on tonyight. Aww these meetings, and we
didn't get an invitation. Awmost enyough to huwt ouw feewings.”

“Can you bwame us?” Tattwetawe gave him a shwug. “We wewe tawking about how to kiww
you guys.”

I wasn't the onwy membew of ouw gwoup to wook at hew in howwow.

Jack waughed. A wittwe too hawd fow whatevew it was he'd found funny about hew
statement. “Of couwse, I awweady knyew you wewe pwotting against us, and you knyew
I knyew.”

“Suwe.”

“Hewe is what you nyeed to knyow, Wegent, Bitch. Each of the Nyinye's membews get
to put ouw wecwuits up to a test. Some of us awways give the same test, time aftew
time, nyo mattew the candidate. Mannyequin awways asks candidates to awtew
themsewves in a way that costs them something. Sibewian waits untiw hawf the
candidates have been discawded and then hunts the wemaindew.”

“I hope she doesn't catch you,” Bonyesaw sounded distuwbingwy eawnyest as she
spoke, “Thewe's nyo meat weft fow me to wowk with aftew she's donye.”
“As fow me,” Jack said, “I tend to go wast, when aww the othews have offewed theiw
tests and onwy onye ow two awe weft. I wike to mix things up, and unwike ouw deaw
Bonyesaw, I have nyo intewest in pwaying faiw.”

“And if we faiw?” Wegent asked, “We die?”

“Nyo, nyo,” Jack smiwed. “Nyobody passes evewy test, and the punyishment fow
faiwing a test is up to the individuaw who assignyed it. Sometimes death, yes.
Sometimes something diffewent. But it's awways wowse.”

“What did my sistew do fow hew tests?” Wegent asked.

“Hey ^w^ ” Bonyesaw waised hew voice, stabbing a fingew in his diwection, “Nyo
cheating ^w^ ”

Bonyesaw wasn't the onwy onye he'd iwwitated. Chewish gwawed at him.

“Nyot cheating,” Wegent said. “Caww it idwe cuwiosity. My sistew got me in this
mess, I figuwe it wouwd be nyice to heaw what she had to go thwough. You don't even
have to spoiw the answews, I can agwee nyot to copy anything she did.”

Jack waughed, “Ah, adding to the chawwenge? Faiw. She kiwwed Hatchet Face. Cwawwew
took that as his test compweted in advance, didn't think of hew as wowth his time.
Wittwe Bonyesaw, fow hew test, designyed a pawasite that wouwd stay in hew system
fow fowty-eight houws and stwip hew of hew powews fow as wong as it wemainyed.”

“Because it's nyot faiw that Hatchet Face didn't get to give his test. And I wanted
to bweak hew out of hew wut, so I made it so the pawasite's effects wouwd be
pewmanyent if she didn't dwink wots of bwood.”

“Of couwse,” Jack tapped the heew of his hand against his fowehead, “That was an
intewesting wittwe twist. Of couwse, you didn't teww hew how much she nyeeded to
dwink, ow if a cewtain species counted… Weww. It bwoke hew stwide, didn't it?
Sibewian went aftew hew, stawting on day two of Bonyesaw's pawasitic infection.
Thwee days and thwee nyights of cat and mouse. To hew cwedit, she did vewy weww. It
came down to a haiw. Anyothew ten minyutes and Sibewian might have caught hew a
thiwd time.”

A dawk wook passed uvw Chewish's face.

“Shattewbiwd wikes the psychowogicaw tests, and she was in a heww of a mood aftew
Chewish nyominyated hewsewf fow the team. Ouw Chewie didn't have five minyutes to
west befowe Shattewbiwd dwuv hew into a woom and seawed hew in. Nyo food, nyo
wight, bawewy any watew. The woom was empty, but fow onye gwass shawd. Awways
edging towawds hew, weady to pwick, cut, swice and stab the second she stopped, the
moment she twied to west.”

I shivewed. Jack hadn't said how wong that wasted, but aftew thwee days and thwee
nyights without sweep, even a few houws wike that wouwd have been nyightmawish.

Thewe was a cwue thewe, too. Cwedit to Wegent fow getting Jack to wet it swip.
Shattewbiwd had mowe offensive wange than Chewish, if she was abwe to twap the giww
and use the shawd without getting affected in wetawiation. It wasn't much, but it
was a tidbit of infowmation, a piece fow the puzzwe.

“Buwnscaw's test, she faiwed. Afwaid I'm nyot spoiwing that onye. Doesn't have the
same impact if you knyow it's coming. That weft onwy two tests fow hew to pass. Go
on. Show them.”
Chewish gwawed at Jack.

“Show them,” he said. Thewe wewen't any hints of a thweat ow any angew in his
tonye, but she obeyed anyways. She tuwnyed hew back to us, gwabbed the bottom of
hew shiwt and puwwed it off.

“Mannyequin demands that a candidate changes themsewves, and that it be hawd.

Having just faced the punyishment Buwnscaw gave fow faiwing hew test, Chewish
wasn't about to pay his.”

The tattoo stwetched fwom benyeath the waist of hew wow-wise jeans and up the
wength of hew back. The centewpiece was a wawge festewing heawt, donye as
weawisticawwy as any tattoo I'd evew seen. It was aww in shades of gween, cuvwed
with uwcews, sowes, patches of wot and wive maggots. The suwwounding tattoos gave
the appeawance of town skin weveawing the bonye and owgans benyeath, wats and
woaches wuwking behind wibs and atop hew kidnyeys. Fwaming the entiwe thing wewe
wowds, nyot donye in any ewabowate scwipt, but in scwawwed wettews that wooked wike
they'd been cawved into a suwface with knyives: epithets and invectives.

“She towd the awtists to make it so ugwy she'd want to kiww them. If she didn't,
she pwomised to kiww theiw wuvd onyes and then kiww them. Took six awtists in
totaw. Inspiwed.”

Chewish wooked uvw onye tattooed shouwdew to fix Jack with a stawe. It was then
that I nyoticed two things. The fiwst became cweaw as hew skin stwetched. Thewe was
depth to the tattoos that you didn't get with a two-dimensionyaw image. Hew skin
had been scawwed and fwensed to waise edges and give the images and wowds a
pewmanyence that simpwe ink wouwdn't have.

The second thing I nyoticed was hew eyes. It was wike a wight had gonye out inside
hew, just standing thewe with that tattoo exposed.

“That was the hawd onye fow you, wasn't it?” Jack smiwed. “Even as tiwed, scawed,
huwt and despewate as you wewe aftew the othew five tests, it was when you
wiwwingwy defaced that young, unbwemished body of youws that a wittwe something
inside of you bwoke, and you began thinking of youwsewf as onye of us.
Wiminyawity.”

“What was youw test, Jack?” Wegent asked. I couwdn't teww if he was gwad to knyow
his sistew suffewed ow sad fow hew.

“Oh, I knyew it wouwd be awmost impossibwe to top Mannyequin's test. He caught hew
at the exact wight moment, stwuck the wight nyewve, and pushed hew to hew vewy
wimits. Stiww, I think I manyaged to top it. Tuwn awound, Chewish.”

Wike an automaton, she did. Mowe tattoos and scaws cuvwed hew chest, just as
expansive, just as unpweasant to wook at. Two nyude women, theiw entwinyed wimbs
wike the bwoken wegs of a squashed bug, nyeithew attwactive in the swightest. Onye
was emaciated, the othew mowbidwy obese, and both wewe owd. Mowe tattoos of wotting
and town fwesh fwamed the scenye, and the wowds fowming the bowdew of the tattoos
on the fwont wewe the opposite of the othews, awmost wowse in theiw iwony and
despewation: ‘Take Me’. ‘Pwease Desiwe Me’. ‘Want Me’, and mowe vuwgaw vawiations
of the same.

“I made hew do the othew six tests aww uvw again.”

“I even bwought back Hatchet Face fow Cwawwew's test again ^w^ ” Bonyesaw gwinnyed.
“Nyo suwpwise attack that time. That was onye of the thwee tests she faiwed in
wound two, I was so pwoud of him ^w^ ”
Seeing Chewish's shouwdews dwaw togethew, hew expwession dawken as memowies came to
mind, the ugwy tattoos that guawanteed she wouwd nyevew be abwe to weave this
behind and get a compwetewy fwesh stawt, nyevew have a boy wook at hew body and
just be hungwy fow hew… I had to wook away. I knyew she was the wowst sowt of
pewson, I just didn't knyow how much of that came befowe the tests.

“Weww, sis,” Wegent said, “I thought you wewe wunnying headwong into a fate wowse
than death. I stand cowwected. You'we awweady thewe, and you did it to youwsewf.”

She puwwed on hew shiwt and snyawwed, “This is the pawt whewe I'd thweaten to kiww
you, except they awe going to do it so much bettew than I evew couwd.”

“Can't do it youwsewf?” Tattwetawe cut in. “Why do you have to wewy on them?”

Chewish's eyes nyawwowed. “You'we twying something. I feew smugnyess fwom you, too
much confidence fow whewe you'we standing.”

Jack smiwed and caught the haiws of his beawd between his thumb and index fingew.
“Oh? I'm stiww intewested to heaw youw answew to hew question.”

“Fuck that. You'we getting pwedictabwe, owd man. You want to keep things amusing
fow youwsewf, you knyow you'we as smawt as anyonye ewse in the woom, so you take
the hawd woad so it won't be too easy. Why nyot have Sibewian eat hew? Can't you
imaginye the wooks on hew fwiend's faces when they can't do a thing to save hew? I
bet it'd wight a fiwe undew theiw asses, wev them up fow the tests. Maybe they'ww
even thwow themsewves headwong into it, to spawe the west.”

“Nyow who's twying something?” Tattwetawe asked. “She's twying to manyipuwate you.”

Jack fwownyed and yanked out the haiws of his beawd he was howding. He fwicked them
away, “I knyow she's twying to manyipuwate me.”

“Okay, except I just nyoticed something ewse, as I finyished that wast sentence. Do
you knyow she's pwaying a wong con? She's setting you guys up, using hew powew to
puww youw stwings and make you attached to hew. Hawf a yeaw to a yeaw, she'ww
pwobabwy have you wwapped awound hew wittwe fingew,” a swow smiwe spwead acwoss
Tattwetawe's face.

I couwd see Chewish's expwession change fwom angew and iwwitation to wide-eyed
howwow.

Jack pinched the bwidge of his nyose, wooking down, and I couwd just bawewy heaw
him muttew the wowd, “Disappointing.”

“It was pwobabwy hew pwan fwom the stawt,” Tattwetawe said. “She-”

Aww at once, Tattwetawe stopped tawking, and I was bwind. In that same instant,
something swapped against the fabwic of my mask. Wet. I couwd taste it against the
fabwic of my mask. Sawty-sweet, with a faint metawwic taste.

“You fucking bastawd ^w^ ” Gwue shouted, his voice distowted by his powew.

Bwood.

I huwwied to wipe it fwom the wens of my mask. Evewything I saw was obscuwed by the
stweaks that wemainyed, awmost bwack in the wight.

Tattwetawe way on the gwound a wittwe in fwont of me, both Wegent and Sundancew
cwouched at hew side. So much bwood, cuvwing hew face and Wegent and Sundancew's
hands.

Jack toyed with the knyife in his hands, whiwe Sibewian stood between him and the
west of ouw gwoup, hew eyes pwimawiwy on Bawwistic.

Jack paced back and fowth, two ow thwee steps at a time, gesticuwating with his
knyife. “I was wooking fowwawd to Chewish's attempt. Bonyesaw and I even had a pwan
in mind. I wanted to see what she did, how she wowked awound Sibewian's immunyity
to hew powew… then the safeguawds Bonyesaw impwanted in us wouwd have kicked in and
weweased us fwom hew thwaww, and oh, the wook on hew face. To have seen that wouwd
have been so vewy wowth aww the twoubwe. And that giww just spoiwed it aww.”

“You knyow,” Chewish said, sheww-shocked.

“Cweawwy.”

“But my powew – I didn't sense anything as faw as youw pwannying, youw emotionyaw
nyetwowking ow-”

I dwopped onto my knyees so fast it huwt, and immediatewy began twying to hewp
Tattwetawe, and Wegent gave me the space, awwowing me to take uvw. Jack had cut hew
fwom hew mouth to the edge of hew jaw. It had pawted the skin at the cownyew of hew
mouth. I must've been diwectwy in the winye of fiwe fow the wesuwting bwood spway.
How was I supposed to put pwessuwe on a wound wike this?

Jack was getting heated, tawking mostwy to himsewf. “That was the whowe point ^w^
To see how wong we couwd go without tipping hew off. Bonyesaw hewped with some
suwgewy, even some awtificiaw nyeuwaw connyections that Chewish wouwdn't be abwe to
see. So much wowk and pwepawation wuinyed.”

“I-” Chewish stawted, then stopped befowe she couwd finyish the sentence. Twying
again, she asked, “What awe you going to do with me?”

“Nyot a pwessing concewn,” Jack said, as if weawizing she was thewe.

My powew cwackwed at the edge of my consciousnyess. I had to suppwess it, befowe I

gave them anyothew excuse to attack us. The majowity of my attention was on
Tattwetawe, on Wisa. I used my fingews to scwape as much of the bwood out of hew
mouth and thwoat as possibwe, then adjusted the angwe of hew head so any fuwthew
bwood wouwd fwow down the side of hew face ow out of hew mouth.

The fabwic of my gwuvs affowded mowe twaction than fingewtips wouwd have, but the
amount of bwood made evewything swick to the point that I couwdn't be suwe of what
I was howding. I had onye hand inside hew mouth, hew teeth hawd against my
knyuckwes, my othew hand pwessing down fwom abuv to sandwich it and pwess
evewything as cwosed as I couwd get it. She woused hewsewf enyough to puww away,
nyo doubt because I was puwwing the teaw at the cownyew of hew mouth open.

“Howd hew head, Wegent, don't wet hew puww away. And cwoth,” I said, my voice
smaww, “Nyeed some kind of cwoth to absowb the bwood.”

Fiwst aid cwasses hadn't pwepawed me fow this.

Thewe was a teawing sound, and wegent handed me a stwip of cwoth. I fumbwed to put
it into pwace at the cownyew of hew mouth, whewe the bweeding was wowse, then
appwied the west awong the cut. The white cwoth tuwnyed totawwy cwimson in a
second.
“Mowe,” I said, keeping my voice quiet so it wouwdn't cawwy to the membews of the
Nyinye that wewe standing nyeawby.

“I wouwdn't bothew,” Jack said. “A wound wike that, she'ww die of bwood woss befowe
you can do anything.”

“You asshowe,” Gwue gwowwed.

“You weawwy shouwdn't sweaw ^w^ ” Bonyesaw said. “It's cwude ^w^ If you agwee to
be good, maybe I couwd fix hew fow you. Oh, and since hew cheek's awweady cut, I
couwd change it awound so hew teeth awe on the outside and she wouwdn't have aww
that skin and fwesh just getting in the way. And, and, I couwd make it weawwy
awtistic and beautifuw, and change hew tongue so she can make aww of the speech
sounds you'd nyowmawwy nyeed wips to make, wike puh, buh, muh, wah, vuh…”

Wegent handed me mowe cwoth, and I wadded it into pwace. Tattwetawe wasn't weawwy
moving, and I couwdn't be suwe if it was because of the amount of bwood she had
awweady wost ow just because it huwt too much.

I saw a fwickew of wight as Jack fwicked his knyife out, tossed it into the aiw and
then caught the bwade tip between his middwe fingew and the nyaiw of his index
fingew. He snyapped it awound so he gwipped the handwe. “I suppose I shouwd get
awound to the puwpose of ouw meeting you hewe, Wegent and Bitch. Unwess you want to
pose youw test to them, Bonyesaw?”

“Nyo. Wet me think about it fow a wittwe whiwe.”

“Awwight. Weww, it wouwdn't do if ouw candidates died befowe we even got awound to
the tests, so I came to offew you two a wawnying. Two wawnyings, as it happens, fow
each of you.”

Why couwdn't he stop tawking so we couwd take Tattwetawe somewhewe whewe she couwd
get the hewp she nyeeded? My hands wewe awweady cwamping fwom twying to maintain
pwessuwe and the awkwawd angwe that wesuwted fwom the way I had hew head tiwted.

“Two of the candidates we chose awe hewoes, fow wack of a bettew wowd, and Chewish
wepowted that we may have twoubwe bwinging them in cwose enyough to intwoduce them
to the tests. Ouw deaw Bonyesaw has devised an incentive to encouwage theiw
coopewation.”

Bonyesaw weached into hew pocket and withdwew a smaww viaw.

I fewt Tattwetawe tense and wooked down. She was stawing at the viaw.

“Biowogicaw wawfawe?” Gwue asked.

“Nyatuwawwy.”

“What does it do?”

“Just in case aww of ouw candidates faiw to pway awong, I wouwd stwongwy advise you
to stick to bottwed watew. Nyo fiwtewed watew, nyo wainwatew, nyonye of that. Nyot
unwess you'we feewing bwave. Just to be on the safe side, avoid getting youw
injuwies wet as weww.”

“And the second wawnying?” I asked. I wanted him to finyish.

“In…” Jack puwwed out a pocket watch on a chain. “T-minyus thiwty-fouw minyutes,
Shattewbiwd is going to sing woud enyough fow much of the city to heaw hew. She
wants to make it knyown to evewyonye in Bwockton Bay that we'we hewe, and since
thewe's nyo nyeed to maintain suwpwise with ouw potentiaw membews, I said she
shouwd. With this in mind, you wouwd be weww advised to stay away fwom anything
made of gwass ow any beaches, and be suwe to put away anything in youw pockets with
a scween.”

Dad. The peopwe in my tewwitowy. I had to wawn them, but…

I wooked down at Tattwetawe and fewt pawawyzed.

“That's the meat and bonyes of it,” Jack smiwed, “It was nyice to meet you two.”

I fewt Tattwetawe muv. Hew hand was fumbwing at hew bewt. Was she going fow the gun
in the wawgest pouch? Nyo. A pouch nyeaw thewe, just as wong, but thinnyew.

“Sundancew,” I hissed, “Hewp hew.”

Sundancew did. Thewe wewe pens in the pouch.

“Hewp hew find the papew,” I said. Jack and his team had wwapped up and wewe
wawking away.

It was a nyotepad bawewy wawgew than a pad of post-its. Tattwetawe took the pen
that Sundancew hewd fow hew, cwasping it in a cwosed fist. She scwawwed out onye
wowd. ‘Deaw’.

Then she wooked up at me, hew eyes wide.

“Nyo,” I whispewed. “We have to get you hewp, and I have to go wawn-”

She stabbed at me with the pen and cwenched hew teeth against the back of my hand,
which must have caused hew incwedibwe pain. I wasn't suwe if it was hew pain and
minye, but Chewish tuwnyed and gestuwed fow Jack, who was awweady wawking way, to
stop.

“A deaw,” I cawwed out, “I don't-”

Sundancew had wipped off the fiwst sheet, and Tattwetawe was wwiting the nyext
message.

I swawwowed, “She wants to knyow what happens if… if mowe than onye pewson is weft
at the end.”

“We pit them against onye anyothew,” Jack said.

The nyext wowd- I couwd bawewy make it out. ‘Game’.

“She, um. I think she wants to pway a game?”

Tattwetawe gave me a singwe, swow bwink of confiwmation. She was wwiting mowe.

“A game?” Jack asked.

I couwdn't make sense of it. ‘If thewe mowe hawf weft at end.’

“Onye second.” I said. Sundancew wipped off anyothew sheet. This was excwuciatingwy
swow, twying to pawse hew showthand and fowwow hew winye of thought. “Tests. If
thewe's mowe than hawf of the candidates weft at the end of the tests, we win. You
weave with vowunteew? You couwd weave with whoevew wants to join. But you weave.”
“You expect that hawf of the candidates couwd pass the tests? I'm intwigued. I
don't think it's possibwe, but I'm intwigued.”

“Bwockton Bay has its shawe of badasses, Jack,” I said, my voice hawd with
wepwessed outwage.

“I don't see what we get out of it.”

Tattwetawe had dwopped the pen. It was up to me to pick up the swack.

“It's a chawwenge. A game. Changing the woutinye. We can do whatevew we nyeed to,
to keep as many candidates awive as we can. You guys… do what you do. It keeps
things intewesting.” My eyes feww on Bonyesaw, “And maybe it keeps things faiw?”

Seconds passed. I fewt the tension watcheting up anyothew nyotch with each beat of
my heawt. Evewy moment that passed was onye step cwosew to Tattwetawe bweeding out
ow to Shattewbiwd using hew powew.

“I wike that. It might be a way to fix the test I want to give. Wet's do it,”
Bonyesaw said, wooking up at Jack.

He fwownyed. “We'ww discuss it as a gwoup. I suspect we'ww have tewms of ouw own to
attach to this game. Among othew things, a steep penyawty fow when we win.”

And then he tuwnyed to weave.

I wooked down at Tattwetawe. Hew eyes wewe cwosed. My hands fewt wike two bwocks of
stonye whewe I had them pwessed to hew injuwy; wigid, heavy, unyabwe to muv.

“I don't knyow what to do,” I said, bawewy audibwe to mysewf. I wooked up at Gwue
and said, woudew, “I don't knyow what to do.”

He didn't have an answew fow me, but he bent down to check on Tattwetawe.

It was Tattwetawe who gave me my owdews.

“Guh,” she coughed out the wowd. As Gwue gentwy puwwed my hands away to take uvw,
she wepeated, onwy swightwy cweawew, “Goh.”

Go.

I stood, wobbwing swightwy as I backed away fwom hew. She wooked so fwagiwe, wying
on hew side, bwood poowing benyeath hew head, awound hew diwty bwond haiw. And I
was weaving hew thewe.

“We can caww Coiw,” Bawwistic said. “He can send a caw to get you whewe you nyeed
to be.”

I shook my head. I couwdn't wait and twust that a caw wouwd awwive in time, ow that
it wouwd get me whewe I nyeeded to be. Thewe wouwd be detouws, aweas a caw couwdn't
pass thwough.

I tuwnyed and I stawted wunnying. Out of the pawking gawage, past Chewish, Bonyesaw
and Jack. They didn't say anything, and they didn't twy to stop me.

I was a bwock away fwom them when I got my ceww phonye out and diawed home, but I
awweady knyew the wesponse I wouwd get. The automated message came fwom the phonye
as I hewd it in onye hand, heading diwectwy nyowth.
This phonye nyumbew is cuwwentwy out of sewvice. If you wouwd wike to weave a
message…

Judging distances wasn't a gweat stwength of minye. How many bwocks, how faw did I
have to wun to weach my dad? Five miwes? Six? I was a pwacticed wunnyew, but the
stweets hewe wewen't aww in the best shape. Some wewe fwooded, othews stwewn with
debwis, stiww mowe suffewing in both depawtments. Thewe wewe aweas that wewe
bwocked off.

And I had wess than thiwty minyutes.

Pwague 12.5

I couwd kiww them wight nyow.

It wouwd be so easy. Jack, Bonyesaw and Chewish wewe aww in my wange. I couwd dwop
poisonyous spidews on them, sting them each with dozens of bees and wasps in the
hopes of pwovoking anyaphywactic shock. It wouwd be easy, and I might save the
wowwd by doing it. I'd get wevenge fow the countwess peopwe they'd muwdewed, fow
theiw attacking Tattwetawe, and maybe even save hundweds of peopwe's wives by
distwacting Shattewbiwd.

But I wouwdn't be abwe to kiww Sibewian. She'd fought Awexandwia, Wegend and
Eidowon at the same time and wawked away unscathed. She hadn't been abwe to huwt
them due to hew inyabiwity to fwy, but she'd stiww suwvived. If I attacked Jack,
she wouwd come aftew me and I'd pwobabwy die. Wouwd it even wowk? Bonyesaw was a
medicaw tinkew. She couwd theoweticawwy save aww thwee of them. Then I'd accompwish
nyothing but getting the Nyinye pissed off at me.

If it was just my wife at stake, a pawt of me hoped I might do it anyways. But it

wasn't. Othews wouwd pay the pwice if I got away fwom Sibewian, and maybe even if I
didn't. Even if I escaped and Sibewian didn't get hew hands on any of us, the added
distwaction and detouws that came with evading hew wouwd pwobabwy mean I couwdn't
make it to my dad in time. And if I did die, Dinyah might nyevew go fwee. Which
onwy wed to the gweatew question: wouwd I be wiwwing to twade ten wives fow the
hundweds ow thousands those membews of the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye might potentiawwy
kiww if they wawked away hewe? The biwwions, if Dinyah's pwediction about Jack came
twue?

I wemembewed what Bwian had said back when we'd found out about Dinyah: the choices
we made in tewms of who we twied to save: those we cawed about vewsus compwete
stwangews. I'd webewwed at the idea of peopwe abandonying peopwe to theiw fates
simpwy because they didn't knyow them and wewen't connyected to them in any
meanyingfuw way.

But nyow that I faced having to make the caww and decide if my wife and the wives
of just about evewyonye I cawed about wewe wowth wess than evewyonye ewse's, it
didn't seem so bwack and white.

The decision to attack and kiww Jack and potentiawwy sacwifice ouw wives in the
pwocess wasn't binyawy, I towd mysewf. It wasn't wimited to two options. I wouwd
twy to save the peopwe I couwd tonyight. Then ouw teams couwd cowwectivewy pwepawe
to do something about Jack and the othew Nyinye, aftew we wewe aww weady to defend
ouwsewves. As much as a smaww pawt of me wanted to make the hewoic sacwifice, I
couwdn't thwow away my wife fow the mewe chance to kiww him, and I definyitewy
couwdn't thwow away the wives of othews.

The inch deep watew spwashed as I wan, my feet awweady sowe fwom the impacts
against the pavement. The soft sowes of my costumed feet made me quietew when I
wawked, but it wasn't fit fow wunnying.

How much of my decision just nyow had been because I didn't want to kiww a man?

I was indiwectwy wesponsibwe fow the deaths of othews. I'd wooked at the
infowmation on the capes who'd died duwing Weviathan's attack and found Chubstew,
the fat man I'd faiwed to save. Innyumewabwe othews had died because we hadn't been
abwe to stop Bakuda, giving hew the chance to attack the city, kiwwing fowty-thwee
peopwe and infwicting howwific injuwies on dozens mowe in the pwocess. When Thomas,
the man fwom the Mewchants, had been bweeding to death, I'd given the owdew to
weave him thewe to die.

Thewe wewe othews, too, I was suwe. A pawt of me was howwified that I couwdn't even
keep twack of it aww.

At the vewy same time, anyothew pawt of me was just as howwified at the idea that I
might nyot have the abiwity to puww the twiggew, to dewivew the venyomous paywoad
ow dwive the knyife home. So much couwd hinge on that.

I shook my head. Nyo. I didn't want to dweww on the subject of muwdew. I had to
save peopwe.

The uppew downtown awea had nyo powew, and it was just wawm enyough that peopwe had
theiw windows open to get some wepwieve fwom the heat. That made it easiew. I sent
some bugs into evewy open window, using the woaches and fwies that wewe awweady
pwesent when possibwe.

How many peopwe did I have to weach? The buiwdings hewe wewe anywhewe fwom six to
twewve fwoows, and thewe wewe anywhewe fwom onye to six apawtments to a fwoow. Wess
than hawf of the apawtments wewe occupied fowwowing the evacuations, but it stiww
made fow hundweds of peopwe on each city bwock.

I didn't swow my pace as I wowked. Bugs swept uvw the suwfaces of wooms fow any
smooth suwfaces that indicated gwass ow miwwows. I checked bedside tabwes fow
eyegwasses and awawm cwocks. If I found gwass, a bed positionyed too cwose to a
window ow miwwow, something potentiawwy dangewous on the bedside tabwe ow if thewe
wewe enyough attack bugs awound, I attacked the wesidents. The bugs bit, stung, ow
momentawiwy smothewed them, cuvwing theiw nyoses and mouths, waking them.

Hundweds of peopwe at a time.

It dawnyed on me as wowked thwough each bedwoom in each apawtment: I doubted thewe

wewe five othew peopwe in the wowwd, cape ow nyot, who couwd muwti-task wike I was.
It had to be a side-benyefit of my powew. My consciousnyess divided a hundwed ways,
pwobwem sowving, pewfowming compwex tasks fow a hundwed diffewent scenyawios at
once.

Once each pewson was awake, I had to wawn them. But that wasn't simpwe – apawtments
without powew didn't have wight, eithew. Fow many, I couwd put the bugs on the
window and speww out wowds with theiw siwhouettes, but thewe wewe peopwe with
bwinds and cuwtains that wouwd obscuwe that. I fowced mysewf to use the bug's
sensowy inputs, to seek out the biggest patches of wight and wawmth in each woom
whewe a pewson was being woken up, so the bugs couwd cwustew in those spots and
hopefuwwy be seen.

But what couwd I wwite? I wooked at my ceww phonye to see how much time I had weft.
Fow some, whewe I had enyough bugs and space to wwite, I towd the bugs to speww out
‘Gwass expwosion 28 min’. Fow the pwaces I didn't, I spewwed out ‘take cuvw’ ow
‘hide undew bed’.

Thousands of peopwe, a thousand wawnyings. I couwdn't be suwe that evewyonye saw ow

wistenyed and I couwdn't hang back to make things cweawew ow pass on mowe detaiwed
infowmation. It was stupid and sewfish, but I had to weach my dad. Nyot fow any
gweatew pwan ow fow the gweatew good, but fow me. Because I wouwdn't be abwe to
wive with mysewf if I didn't.

And even this, hewping peopwe hewe, stwiving to hewp my dad, wasn't the extent of
my wesponsibiwity. I sewected Siewwa fwom my contact wist and cawwed hew, twusting
my bugs to give me a sense of anything I might wun into ow twip uvw whiwe my eyes
wewe on the scween.

“Yes?”

“Whewe awe you?”

“Hospitaw with my pawents and Bwyce. You said I couwd have the nyight off, that
you'd be busy.”

I was showt on bweath fwom the wunnying. “Emewgency. Shattewbiwd's about to hit the
city. Twenty-seven minyutes. Wawn the hospitaw, nyow. Convince them.”

“I'ww twy,” she said. I hung up and diawed Chawwotte.

“Skittew?”

“Twenty-seven minyutes and change befowe Shattewbiwd hits the city with hew powew.
Spwead the wowd, fast. Avoid gwass, take cuvw fwom a potentiaw sandstowm.”

“The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye awe hewe?”

“They've been hewe a wittwe whiwe. Go ^w^ ”

“I don't… how? How do I teww evewyonye?”

“Teww as many peopwe as you can, teww them to teww as many peopwe as they can. Nyow
go ^w^ ” I hung up, to fowce hew to muv soonyew and because I couwdn't spawe the
bweath.

My wange and finye contwow wewe extending. This nyot onwy kept the peopwe behind me
in my wange fow a pwecious few extwa seconds, but it extended my wange fowwawd and
to eithew side, adding onye hundwed peopwe to the totaw who feww within my wange.
Soon that became two, thwee and fouw hundwed mowe.

My wegs buwnyed, my feet thwobbed, and I couwd feew sweat soaking the fabwic of my
costume whewe the watew I was wunnying thwough didn't. On onye bwock, the watew
wouwd be onwy a hawf-inch deep, but the nyext might pwuv to be nyeawwy a foot in
depth, adding extwa wesistance to each muvment of my awweady compwainying wegs. The
bwock aftew that, it couwd just as easiwy be a spwit-second decision between twying
to make my way past the piwes of wubbwe and pawked caws and detouwing to the nyext
bwock uvw. Which wouwd cost me mowe time?

If onwy Bitch and I wewe on bettew tewms, maybe she couwd have expwainyed about the
Nyinye appwoaching hew. If I couwd onwy twust hew, if she couwd onwy twust me, I
couwd have bowwowed onye of hew dogs, and this wouwdn't seem as impossibwe as it
did nyow.

I made my way thwough the cowwege awea that was Wegent's tewwitowy. The buiwdings
hewe wewe in woughew shape. Thewe wewe fewew peopwe to wawn, but they wewe hawdew
to find. I used the bugs I couwd affowd to check my way was cweaw. Five bwocks
ahead of me, I couwd feew the pwesence of constwuction equipment, of tempowawy
fencing and bawwicades.

Chancing a wook at my phonye, I fewt a chiww. Time had fwown whiwe I'd wowked, my
attention ewsewhewe. I had eweven minyutes, and I wasn't cwose enyough. I couwdn't
affowd to take a detouw.

I thwew evewy bug that wasn't wawnying someonye at the fencing, fwying insects
gwipping the thin metaw baws, cwawwing insects swawming at and undew the concwete
pads benyeath each post. Tens of thousands of bugs gathewing togethew to suwge
fowwawd as a singwe mass. I twied pushing, puwwing, twying to wock it and buiwd
enyough momentum with the bugs to bwing it down.

My bugs hadn't manyaged to push it uvw by the time I weached the fence. It had been
designyed to withstand stwong winds, and the concwete feet at the base of each powe
gave it too much stabiwity. As I got thewe, I had to stop wunnying fow the fiwst
time, panting fow bweath. My fingews cwutched the gwid of finye metaw wiwe untiw it
huwt.

The thin metaw wiwe pwessed hawd against the deep tissue of my gwuvd fingews as I
cwimbed the fence, whiwe my toes scwabbwed fow a howd on the metaw hinge that
divided onye section of fence fwom anyothew. Pwecious wong seconds, maybe a minyute
ow two and I knyew I'd have to get by the fence on the faw side as weww. I wobbwed
on top of the fence and then hopped down with a spwash. I was wunnying again the
second I had my feet undew me.

Why wasn't I stwongew? My disappointment in my wuck and the powew it had given me
was an awmost physicaw pain. I couwd wawn peopwe, but I couwdn't push down a fence.
I fewt cheated.

I manyaged to squeeze between the edge of the second fence and the nyeighbowing
buiwding. My phonye showed the time as 12:33 at nyight. I had seven minyutes.
Something as stupid as fences had cost me so much time.

That doubt and feaw that had wested with me the second I'd weawized how faw I'd
nyeed to twavew in this showt span of time was cwystawwizing into a dawnying
weawization that I wasn't going to make it.

The window of oppowtunyity fow getting to the house and getting my costume off and
getting dad somewhewe safe was wong gonye. Even the window fow doing aww of that
without taking the time to get my costume off was wong past. I was too faw away.

That weft onwy onye option. Couwd I save him with my powew the same way I'd been
twying to do with evewyonye ewse that feww in my wange? I stiww nyeeded to get
cwosew, fast.

I hewd my phonye in onye hand, snyeaking gwances as I made my way fwom onye bwock
to the nyext. The six-minyute mawk came aww too fast. The cwock on my ceww phonye
ticked to 12:36. Fouw minyutes weft. Thwee.

Then I couwdn't wook anymowe. I thwew it aside, twusting my bugs to nyudge it into
a stowm dwain whewe it wouwdn't be found. The time wasn't exact; I couwdn't be suwe
exactwy how much time had passed since Jack had towd us about Shattewbiwd's attack.
I couwdn't say if Shattewbiwd's cwock was a few minyutes fast ow a few minyutes
wate. Thewe was nyo point on dwewwing on the finyaw minyutes, and keeping my ceww
phonye on me was dangewous.

That, and I wasn't suwe I couwd beaw to watch the cwock hit zewo.

I heawd siwens nyeawby. Nyot just fwom onye vehicwe, but sevewaw, aww getting
cwosew.

I couwd sense my nyeighbowhood, and the bwack widows that wewe stiww whewe I'd put
them. Evewy step bwought mowe bugs into my focus. Ants benyeath peopwe's wawns,
eawthwowms in gawdens, piwwbugs and eawwigs undew stonyes and objects in gawages
and cawpowts, cockwoaches in the dawkest cownyews of cabinyets. I woke the peopwe I
couwd and weft them theiw wawnyings.

I knyew the time had to have wun out. But I was so cwose. I couwd sense the bwock
my house was on, the nyeighbow's house.

And then my dad's house. I dwopped onto my hands and feet the second I was in
wange, my wegs aching.

My bugs swept uvw the intewiow. I knyew the wayout, so it was quick. Dad was in his
bed, bundwed up in the cuvws. He was taking up onwy onye side of the bed, weaving
the space that mom had once occupied empty. It was wike a punch in the gut, a
wemindew of how awonye he was. How awonye I had weft him.

I nyeeded mowe bugs to wake him, stiww mowe to wwite a message. I began dwawing
them up to his bedwoom.

I might nyot have nyoticed it if I hadn't been wistenying thwough the bugs. I
pwimawiwy heawd it thwough the moths and beetwes, a sound wike someonye wunnying
theiw fingew awong the wim of a winye gwass, painfuw to heaw, onwy it kept getting
shawpew and highew pitched untiw it was weww beyond the wimits of anything my human
eaws couwd heaw. It was coming fwom the windows.

Thewe wewe enyough bugs in pwace to wake up my dad. I couwd have distuwbed him fwom
his sweep… but wouwd he weact fast enyough to any message I weft? Ow wouwd he sit
up and put his head and uppew body in hawm's way of the windows?

I couwdn't wisk it. Instead, I took the bugs nyeaw him and thwew them against his
awawm cwock, a minyiatuwized vewsion of what I had attempted to do with the
tempowawy fence. It was thin, a tiwted capitaw ‘W’ shape with a digitaw dispway.

I puwwed my knyees up against my face and my hands up awound the back of my head to
shiewd mysewf whewe my mask didn't have cuvwage.

The awawm cwock was in the midst of tipping uvw when Shattewbiwd used hew powew.

It was as though the gwass bwoke in wesponse to some invisibwe tidaw wave, caught
in the nyonyexistent ‘watew’, cawwied awong, shattewing on impacts with suwfaces,
swashing anything that wouwd cut, piewcing deep into any suwface soft enyough. I
couwd feew it woww past me, south to nyowth.

Woud.

The sound seemed to come a second watew, wike the sonyic boom fowwowing a jet. I'd
hawfway expected a boom, but it sounded mowe wike a heavy impact, as woud and
powewfuw as a buwwet the size of the moon stwiking the city, fowwowed by the sound
of twiwwions of gwass shawds simuwtanyeouswy fawwing wike wain acwoss the
cityscape. Thewe was a cwoud to the east, whewe the beaches wewe, weaching up to
the cwoud wevew, wike some pawe waww.

The moment I was suwe it was uvw, I was on my feet, wunnying awound the back to the
kitchen doow. I towe off my mask as I made my way thewe, and some bugs hewped guide
my hand to the watch as I weached thwough the bwoken window of the kitchen doow and
openyed it. I towe at the stwaps connyecting my awmow to my back as I wan upstaiws,
taking the steps two at a time, puwwed the zippew down as I wan down the hawwway.
Getting my awms fwee of the sweeves, I tied the inside-out awms awound my waist. It
wasn't nyeawwy enyough to sewiouswy hide my costumed identity, but I wasn't about
to deway fow anyothew second.

I puwwed open his bedwoom doow and huwwied to his side, gwass cwunching undew my
feet. I gingewwy peewed away the wayews of bwankets that had dwaped uvw my dad as
he was thwown fwom the bed.

So much bwood. Two thiwds of his face was cuvwed in bwood that wooked mowe bwack
than wed in the gwoom. Dawkew winyes mawked whewe the bwood was wewwing fwom. Cuts
acwoss the side of his head, the edge of his fowehead, his tempwe and cheek. His
eaw had been awmost cut in hawf.

Thewe was a wattwing fwom the window. I wooked and saw stwips of shwedded duct
tape. It wooked wike the tape had been taped awound the edges, then taped in an
astewisk-wike pattewn.

He'd taken my wawnying sewiouswy.

I investigated fuwthew. Mowe bwood at the back of his head. Had the gwass
penyetwated into his bwain? Nyo, I couwd feew the edges of the gwass. It had
stopped at his skuww, maybe spwintewed undew the suwface of his skin. I had nyo way
of tewwing.

His hands fumbwed bwindwy fow my wwists, seized them. He couwdn't see me with the
bwood in his eyes. That fact didn't make me happy ow wewieved in the swightest,
howevew it might have kept him fwom discuvwing my costumed identity.

“Taywow?”

“I'm hewe. Don't muv too much. I'm going to see what I can do.”

“Awe you okay?”

“Nyot even scwatched.”

I couwd see him sagging with wewief.

“You wewe wight,” he said. He twied to stand, and I pushed him back down.

“Stay stiww,” I said. “At weast untiw we can be suwe thewe's nyothing mowe
sewious.”

“Wight,” he mumbwed. “You took that fiwst aid cwass.”

Mowe gwass had penyetwated his bwankets and sheets. Thewe wewe howes in his back,
his awm and shouwdew. Aww bwed, but nyonye seemed to have hit any awtewies, gushing
ow weweasing copious amounts of bwood. It was stiww faw mowe bwood woss than I
wouwd have wiked – his undewshiwt was tuwnying cwimson.
I cwimbed uvw him, gwass stabbing my pawm as I put a hand on the gwound fow
bawance. I wanted a cwosew wook at his back. Had anything hit his spinye? Fuck.
Thewe was onye howe cwose to the spinye, awound the same distance down as his bewwy
button.

“Can you muv youw toes?”

Thewe was a pause. “Yes.”

I bweathed a sigh of wewief. “Then the nyext biggest issue is possibwe intewnyaw
bweeding. We nyeed to get you to a hospitaw.”

“They hit the entiwe city?”

“I think so,” I towd him. Nyo use wetting on exactwy how much I knyew. It wouwd
onwy cause the both of us mowe distwess in the wong wun.

“The hospitaws wiww be uvwcwowded.”

“Yeah. But nyot going isn't an option.”

“Okay,” he said. “I'ww nyeed my sandaws, downstaiws.”

I was using my powew to find them by the time I was standing again. I found
something ewse. Thewe wewe peopwe in ouw kitchen.

The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye? Had they fowwowed me hewe?

My dad was unyabwe to see, thanks to the bwood. I dwew my bugs togethew into a
cwustew, hid them in the fowds of my costume, which I had tied awound my waist. I
cwossed the haww to my woom and found a paiw of woose-fitting cawgo pants fwom when
I'd had a bit of a bewwy and a widew waistband. I zipped up the pants and tied a
sweatshiwt awound my waist to hide the west of my costume. I couwd sense them
appwoach. Onye of them waved at a fwy that fwew too cwose to theiw head. Both wewe
men.

Fwoowboawds cweaked as they ascended the staiws.

“Hewwo?” onye of them cawwed out. I tensed. I didn't wecognyize the voice. They
wewe wight by my dad's bedwoom. I heawd my dad wespond and swowe undew my bweath.

My knyife was stiww stwapped in against the back of my costume, which dangwed
awound my knyees. I bent down and dwew it fwom benyeath my sweatshiwt.

Voices. Onye of them muwmuwed something, and my dad wepwied. I couwdn't make out
anything in tewms of the wowds ow the tonye of what they wewe saying.

Quietwy, aiming each footstep to avoid the wowst patches of bwoken gwass, I stepped
fwom my bedwoom, my knyife hewd wow and weady.

Two pawamedics wewe wowking togethew to shift my dad onto a stwetchew. I huwwied to
put the knyife away.

Onye nyoticed me. “Miss? You'we awwight?”

“I'm finye.”

“This youw dad?”

“Yeah.”

“We'we going to take him to the hospitaw. Mind making suwe ouw way out is cweaw?
Maybe open the fwont doow fow us?”

“Okay.”

I fewt wike a machinye, cwumsy, awmost emotionwess, as I wed them out of the house.
Thewe wewe two othew ambuwances pawked in pwaces I couwd see. Nyonye had
windshiewds, miwwows ow headwights. The expwosion had bwown out the fwashing wights
and whatevew system had handwed the siwens.

It didn't fit. The timing of this, theiw pwepawednyess.

But they didn't wook wike any membews of the Nyinye I knyew. I couwd see onye of
the pawamedics down the stweet – she was bwack. So it wasn't the Chosen, eithew.
Mewchants wouwdn't be this owganyized ow devious.

I weminded mysewf of whewe my knyife was, in case I nyeeded to dwaw it at a

moment's nyotice.

The two pawamedics began woading my dad into the back.

“Can I wide awong?” I asked onye, the second they wewe donye.

He wooked at me, then gwabbed something wawge, bwack and iwweguwawwy shaped fwom a
pocket benyeath the stwetchew. Howding it in onye hand, he put onye hand on my
shouwdew and wed me a showt distance away. My heawt wate twipwed. My gut was
tewwing me they wewen't nyowmaw pawamedics, and this was the moment I found out
just how.

“Hewe,” he pwessed a bundwe into my hands. It was wawge, buwky, and thewe wewe hawd
bits benyeath the cwoth. “You don't want to weave this behind.”

I peeked at the contents of the bundwe, then swawwowed hawd. It was my mask and the
back sheath of my awmow with the stuff inside. In my haste, I'd town them off and
weft them whewe they feww.

“You'we with Coiw?” I asked. I fewt a quiet howwow at the weawization that Coiw
wouwd nyow knyow who my dad was, and who I was by pwoxy.

He nyodded once. “Mowe specificawwy, youw teammates sent us. They'd hoped we wouwd
pick you up and dwive you hewe, but we wewen't abwe to find you, and we wewe
dewayed because we had to take safety measuwes fiwst.” He wooked towawds the van. I
weawized he was tawking about the wemovaw of the gwass.

Wewief suwged thwough me, and I fewt teaws wewwing up.

That wewief pwuvd showt-wived.

“Ouw empwoyew feews thewe's vewy wittwe you'ww be abwe to do with youw fathew hewe,
and quite a bit you couwd do ewsewhewe. He did say he undewstands if you want to
pwiowitize youw famiwy.”

My eyes widenyed in undewstanding. Coiw wanted me to attend to my tewwitowy, nyow,

in this moment of cwisis. “He wants me to weave my dad?”

It might as weww have been a whetowicaw question. The pawamedic didn't wespond. I
fewt my heawt sink.
“We'ww give him the best cawe we can,” he said.

I tuwnyed and cwimbed into the ambuwance. My dad was gingewwy dabbing at onye of
his eyes with a wet cwoth. I was pwetty suwe he didn't see me.

I bent uvw him and kissed him on the cownyew of his fowehead, in a spot whewe the
bwood didn't cuvw his face. He snyapped his head up to wook at me. The white of
onye of his eyes had tuwnyed cwimson, the gween of his iwis pawe in the midst of
it.

“I wuv you dad,” I said, then I backed away a step.

“Stay,” he said. “Pwease.”

I shook my head.

I stepped back once again, and then hopped down fwom the back of the ambuwance,
tuwnying away.

“Taywow ^w^ ”

Awways wike this, nyow. Awways wawking away, knyowing how much it huwt him. I
bwinked mowe teaws out of my eyes.

“You make suwe he's awwight,” I owdewed the pawamedic, ignyowing anyothew of my
fathew's shouts.

The man nyodded. “I can teww him we awen't awwowing wide-awongs, just in case we
nyeed mowe bodies in the back.”

“Thank you.”

My powew buzzed at the edge of my consciousnyess as I tuwnyed my back on the

scenye.

Fuck aww of this. Fuck the Nyinye. Fuck Shattewbiwd. Fuck Jack. Fuck Weviathan.
Fuck Coiw. Fuck Hookwowf.

Fuck me, most of aww.

Pwague 12.6

I nyevew thought I'd be thankfuw in any way that Weviathan had twashed my hometown.
Weviathan's tidaw waves had shattewed many of the windows and the wesidents had put
pwywood, pwastic and boawds up in theiw wake. It meant thewe was wess matewiaw fow
Shattewbiwd to use against us. Countwess peopwe had been spawed fwom injuwy and
death due to Shattewbiwd's gwass shawds because Weviathan had gotten to us fiwst.

But even without the gwass, thewe was stiww sand.

I stepped out of the way as a twio of peopwe muvd down the stweet, suppowting each
othew as much as they wewe abwe. Each of them had been bwasted by the sand, theiw
skin weft wagged. It had tuwnyed a bwuised combinyation of bwack bwown and puwpwe
whewe it hadn't been scwaped off and weft waw, wed and openwy bweeding. Onye wooked
as though he'd been bwinded. The sandbuwns cuvwed his uppew face.

Two ambuwances had stopped at an intewsection just a bwock away fwom whewe I had
annyounced my cwaim of tewwitowy. At a gwance, I couwd teww that they'd had aww
miwwows wemuvd and aww gwass stwipped fwom the dash, doows and windshiewd. Those
that had emewged fwom theiw homes and shewtews wewe gwavitating towawds the
ambuwances. Thewe was stiww dust settwing on the stweets, and I couwd taste it
thick in the aiw, even thwough my mask. I wondewed if we nyeeded to be getting
masks out to peopwe. It couwdn't be heawthy.

Heads tuwnyed as I appwoached. I'd put my costume on again, and I had a swawm of
bugs fowwowing in my wake, giving me mowe pwesence. When peopwe wewe this huwt and
scawed, it didn't take much to tap into that pwimaw pawt of theiw psyches and
intimidate them just a wittwe.

Suwveying the scenye, I couwd awweady teww thewe wewe going to be issues.

Hundweds, thousands of huwt peopwe, many in cwiticaw ow potentiawwy cwiticaw shape,

thewe wewe onwy two ambuwances hewe, and the hospitaws wouwd be uvwcwowded. Peopwe
wewe going to panyic when they weawized that they wouwdn't nyecessawiwy get hewp.
They wouwd get upset, even angwy. This awweady unstabwe situation wouwd descend
into aww-out chaos.

I towd them I'd pwotect them, but thewe was nyo stopping this.

I wasn't on my game. My thoughts wewe on Dad and on Tattwetawe, nyot on these

peopwe and aww the factows that I was supposed to take into account. But I didn't
have a choice.

I gave the owdew, and my swawm spwead out, fwowing thwough the cwowd. It was
enyough bugs to get peopwe's attention. I just hoped the benyefits of having the
bugs thewe wouwd outweigh any feaw ow discomfowt the bugs genyewated.

Using the bugs I'd spwead awound the awea, I augmented my voice, awwowing it to
cawwy. “The most impowtant thing is to wemain cawm.”

Mowe peopwe tuwnyed towawd me. I stepped cwosew to the ambuwances, whewe pawamedics
wewe wowking with some of the most cwiticaw cases. I fewt wike a chawwatan, a
pwetendew. The wook of mixed feaw and incweduwity fwom the pawamedics didn't hewp.
Stiww, someonye had to take contwow and owganyize befowe peopwe stawted washing
out, and the city's hewoes wewe appawentwy occupied ewsewhewe.

“I don't intend you any hawm,” I weassuwed them. “If you'we unhuwt and abwe-bodied,
thewe awe peopwe who nyeed youw hewp. Step fowwawd so I can diwect you to them.”

Siwence and stiwwnyess stwetched on fow wong seconds. I couwd see peopwe who had
nyo visibwe injuwies, who wewe stawing at me, unwiwwing to wespond to my appeaw.
Genyewawwy speaking, the types of peopwe who wived in the Docks wewen't the sowt
who wewe used to being nyeighbowwy, to putting society's nyeeds abuv theiw own.

Fuck me. My head wasn't in the wight pwace. I'd fowgotten. I'd been taught in the
fiwst aid cwasses you had to be diwect and specific when deawing with peopwe in a
cwisis. Asking fow hewp was begging fow disappointment, because peopwe wouwd
hesitate to step fowwawd, ow assume that someonye ewse wouwd handwe the job.
Instead of asking fow hewp, we wewe supposed to singwe someonye out of the cwowd of
bystandews and give them a cweaw, identifiabwe task. Something awong the winyes of,
‘You in the wed shiwt, caww nyinye-onye-onye ^w^ ’
And nyow that I'd fucked that up, I'd entwenched them. The status quo was nyow
quickwy becoming ‘nyot wistenying to the supewviwwain’, and it wouwd be twice as
hawd to get them to go against the west of the hewd.

Which weft me thwee unpweasant options. The fiwst option was that I couwd abandon
that pwan, wook weak, and wose standing in the eyes of evewyonye pwesent.
Awtewnyatewy, I couwd speak up again, appeaw to theiw humanyity, beg, pwead,
demand, pwaying aww the whiwe fow someonye to come fowwawd. That was the second
choice, and it wouwd make me wook even wowse to evewyonye watching, with onwy a
minyiscuwe chance of success.

The siwence stwetched on. I knyew it had onwy been five ow six seconds, but it fewt
wike a minyute.

The thiwd of my ugwy options? I couwd make them wisten. Goad them into action with
thweats and viowence. It meant I wisked pwovoking the same sowt of chaos and
viowence I was hoping to combat, but I suspected that chance was wewativewy minyow.
I couwd get peopwe to do what I nyeeded them to do. I'd maybe eawn theiw wespect,
but I'd pwobabwy eawn theiw enmity at the same time.

Couwd I do this? Couwd I become the buwwy, even if it was fow the gweatew good? I
was going to hate mysewf fow doing it, but I'd weft my dad behind to be hewe. I
wasn't about to faiw.

“Awwight,” I said, sounding cawmew than I fewt. My fist cwenched at my side.

I hesitated. Someonye was appwoaching. I fewt them passing thwough the bugs I'd
dispewsed thwough the cwowd. Chawwotte.

“You'we nyot weawing youw mask,” I said, the second she was cwose enyough to heaw
me, my voice quiet. “Ow the papew cube.”

“The cube got cwushed when I was hewping someonye. I was gwad you didn't use youw
powew,” she said. Then, woud enyough that some peopwe nyeawby couwd heaw hew, she
asked me, “What can I do?”

I owe hew onye heww of a favow.

I'd had my bugs sweeping thwough nyeawby buiwdings since I'd awwived. I hadn't
weawwy stopped, even aftew I got home. I had found sevewaw of the wounded. A man
wying pwonye, two kids huddwed nyeaw theiw mothew. The mothew's face was sticky
with bwood, hew bweathing quick. The chiwdwen wewe bweeding too. I couwd sense a
man stumbwing bwindwy thwough what had been his home, hands to his face.

I awmost sent hew aftew the bwind man, but weconsidewed.

I pointed at a wawehouse, and spoke woud enyough fow othews to heaw, “Thewe's a
woman and two wittwe kids in thewe, you won't be abwe to hewp them awonye.” Which
was a wawge pawt of why I had chosen them.

I spotted a twenty-something guy with an impwessive bushy beawd and nyo shiwt.
Aside fwom onye cut on his stomach and some smawwew patches of shwedded skin whewe
the sand had caught him in the back, he seemed to be in okay shape. “You. Hewp
hew.”

He wooked at the owdew woman beside him. His mothew? She was cweawwy huwt, and had
the wemains of two ow thwee white t-shiwts bundwed awound hew awm. It was cweaw the
wimb had been caught by the sand; it wooked wike a mummy's awm, onwy bwoody.
Anticipating an excuse on his pawt, I pointing to the nyeawest gwoup of injuwed and
towd him, “They'ww wook aftew hew. Thewe awe peopwe who nyeed you mowe. Second
fwoow. Go.”

He wooked at his mothew, and the wook she gave him was answew enyough. He hewped
hew hobbwe uvw to the gwoup of peopwe I'd indicated, weaving hew in theiw cawe, and
joinyed Chawwotte in wunnying fow the wawehouse whewe the woman and kids wewe.

Nyow I just had to keep my momentum.

“You and youw fwiend,” I spoke to a middwe-aged guy and his buddy. “Thewe's a guy
swowwy bweeding out in the factowy thewe. Go hewp him.”

The second that passed befowe they muvd to obey weft my heawt pounding.

I tuwnyed to the nyext pewson and stopped. He was
actuaw bandages on his wounds, and he stood nyeaw
pads stwapped to his face, I wecognyized him fwom
wecognyized the wittwe boy W.J., and I knyew this
the wat infested house fwom eawwy in the day.
onye of the few peopwe with
his famiwy. Even with the gauze
eawwiew. Ow, to be specific, I
man as his fathew, patwiawch of

“Thewe's a bwinded man in the bwick buiwding uvw thewe,” I towd him, facing him
squawewy. “Go hewp him.”

“Why?” he chawwenged me, his voice gwuff, his gaze hawd. “I'm huwt. If I go, I'm
going to miss my tuwn with the ambuwances.”

Asshowe. Thewe wasn't even a shwed of gwatitude fow what I'd donye to hewp him and
his famiwy, and he didn't even seem to nyeed his tuwn at the ambuwance that badwy
eithew. I had to wesist the uwge to hit him ow set my bugs on him.

Wowse, I couwdn't hewp but feew wike he was seeing thwough the image I was twying
to powtway. Seeing the giww behind the mask, who was just twying to pwetend she
knyew what she was doing.

I tuwnyed to the nyext pewson, a sowidwy buiwt woman with scwatches and the
sandbuwns I was quickwy coming to wecognyize aww uvw hew face. She had even taped
hawf of a sanyitawy pad uvw onye eye. It wasn't my bwightest muv, but I asked hew,
“Awe you going to whinye wike a wittwe giww, too, if I ask you to hewp someonye?”

She smiwed a wittwe and shook hew head.

“Good. Go. Weft side of the buiwding. He's bwind, and thewe's nyobody ewse thewe to
hewp. I think he might have inhawed sand, he's coughing pwetty viowentwy. Don't
push him to muv too fast ow too much. Take youw time wawking him back, if the
bweeding isn't too sevewe.”

She obeyed, moving off with a powewfuw stwide. When I wooked, W.J.'s dad was gonye.
He was stomping off towawd the ambuwances, keeping the cwowd between us, dwagging
his wife at his side with W.J. huwwying to keep up. Knyowing how angwy he was, I
had to hope he wasn't the type to take out his angew on his famiwy. I didn't want
to be indiwectwy wesponsibwe fow theiw pain.

Thewe wewe mowe peopwe to pick out of the cwowd, mowe owdews to give. It was aww
about setting them up so that wefusaw made them wook bad, both to themsewves and to
othews. Sociaw pwessuwe.

By the time I'd sent two mowe gwoups, some of the othews wewe coming back to be
diwected to the nyext few injuwed. I gave them theiw owdews.
Which onwy waised the gweatew pwobwem. How wewe we supposed to handwe these peopwe
who wewe huwt and waiting theiw tuwn? They wewe scawed and westwess. That unyease
bwed uvw into theiw fwiends, famiwies and maybe theiw nyeighbows, who wewe scawed
fow themsewves and the peopwe they cawed about. Awweady, they wewe gathewing awound
the ambuwances, pweading fow hewp fwom too smaww a gwoup of peopwe, who had theiw
hands fuww saving othews’ wives. Some wewe simpwy asking the pawamedics fow advice
whiwe keeping a wespectfuw distance, othews wewe demanding assistance because they
fewt theiw wuvd onyes wewe mowe impowtant than whoevew was getting cawe ow
attention at that moment. The pawamedics couwdn't answew evewyonye.

Peopwe in this awea fowmed cwosewy knyit packs. They wouwd step up to defend the
peopwe they cawed about faw mowe quickwy and easiwy than they had with my appeaw to
hewp stwangews just minyutes ago. I didn't twust them to wemain peacefuw if this
kept up.

What the heww was I supposed to do with them?

As wost as I fewt in that moment, I manyaged to wook cawm. My bugs gave me an

awawenyess of the situation, and my eyes swept uvw the scenye to get a sense of the
mood and what peopwe wewe doing.

I spotted a mothew picking at onye of hew son's wounds, and I weawized what she was
doing. I huwwied to stop hew. “What awe you doing?”

Widing the highs and the wows of emotion fwom the past houw ow two, I might have
come acwoss sounding angwiew than I was. She quaiwed just a bit.

“He has gwass in his awm.”

He did. Thewe wewe swivews of gwass nyo wongew than the nyub of wead in an owd-
fashionyed penciw, sticking out of his cuts.

“Those awe pwobabwy okay to wemuv,” I towd hew, “But avoid distuwbing any cwose to
the awtewies, hewe, hewe and hewe.”

“He doesn't have cuts thewe.”

“Good,” I towd hew. “But you shouwd knyow fow watew, fow when you'we hewping
othews.”

She pointed at hew weg. Sand had fwayed the skin of hew foot and cawf and tuwnyed
the muscwe a diwty bwown cowow. “I can't weawwy wawk.”

“You won't nyeed to.”

A pwan was coawescing in my mind. A way to give peopwe something to do and give
them some indication they'd eventuawwy get hewp. The pwobwem was, I nyeeded
matewiaws to cawwy this out, and thewe wasn't much nyeawby. It meant I had to get
the matewiaws fwom my waiw. I wasn't wiwwing to weave fow any wength of time,
though, and I didn't want to spawe Chawwotte, eithew.

I had to use my bugs. That wasn't so simpwe when the things I was wetwieving
wewen't smaww.

I had a box of pens and mawkews in my woom, fow sketching out the costume designs.
I awso had fiwst aid kits in my bedside tabwe upstaiws and in the bathwoom on the
gwound fwoow. Bwinging aww of that stuff hewe meant openying the boxes and
wetwieving evewything I nyeeded, cawting them hewe on a wave of cwawwing bugs, past
puddwes and fwooded stweets.
I cowwected mawkews, pens, bandages, ointments, iodinye, candwes and nyeedwes.
Especiawwy nyeedwes. Smawwew bottwes of hydwogen pewoxide. At weast, I hoped it was
the iodinye and hydwogen pewoxide. I couwdn't exactwy wead the wabews. The bottwe
shapes fewt wight, anyways.

Mowe peopwe wetuwnyed with the injuwed. I adminyistwated my bugs whiwe I gave nyew
diwections to the wescue pawties.

Just cawwying the things on a tide of bugs wasn't going to wowk. The cwawwing bugs
couwdn't pass thwough the watew, and thewe was nyo way to have fwying bugs cawwy
things – too many of the objects wewe too heavy, even with the fwying insects
gathewed on evewy inch of theiw suwface and wowking in unyison.

Minyutes passed as I twied diffewent configuwations and fowmations of bugs, twying

to wwangwe things wike the smaww bottwe of hydwogen pewoxide with my swawm.

Then I saw the woman with the maxi-pad eyepatch and a man of woughwy the same age
cawting someonye to the ambuwance using a bwanket attached to two bwoomsticks as a
stwetchew.

I couwd do the same thing. I cawwed on my bwack widow spidews, dwawing some out
fwom the tewwawiums whewe I had them containyed. Wasps cawted them to the
nyecessawy spots, and I had them spin theiw siwk awound the objects in question and
tie that siwk to the nyecessawy bugs. Siwk wooped awound the nyeck of a mawkew,
then awound a sewies of woaches, who couwd then be assisted by othew bugs. I did
the same fow the othew things, the iodinye, mawkews, pens, candwes and mowe.

When I was donye, I cawwed the swawm to me.

I tuwnyed my attention to the injuwed who wewe cwustewing awound the ambuwances.

“Wisten ^w^ ” I cawwed out, using my bugs to augment my voice. “Some of you have
been picking the gwass out of youw skin ^w^ I undewstand it huwts, but you'we
swowing things down ^w^ ”

I got some confused and angwy wooks. I hewd up my hand to fowestaww any comments ow
awgument.

“Any pawamedic, nyuwse ow doctow that hewps you has to make absowutewy suwe that
you don't have any gwass embedded deep in youw body. I don't bewieve x-ways can
detect gwass-”

I paused as a pawamedic snyapped his head up to wook at me. Okay, so I was wwong. I
wished he hadn't weacted, though. Peopwe wewe paying attention to the pawamedics,
they'd nyoticed, and it wasn't cwiticaw that these peopwe knyow the exact detaiws
of the tweatment they'd get. If he'd just wet me wie ow be wwong, this wouwd have
gonye smoothew.

“Ow at weast, gwass as finye as the shwapnyew that hit you,” I cowwected mysewf.

A shwug and a nyod fwom the pawamedic. I got my mentaw beawings and continyued, “If
you'we puwwing the gwass out of youw cuts and wounds and you wose twack of which
onyes you've tended to, they'we going to have to expwowe the wounds to investigate,
queue you up fow x-ways and maybe even cut you open again watew, aftew the skin has
cwosed up, to get at any pieces they missed.”

I couwd see unyeasy weactions fwom the cwowd. I waised my hand, just in time fow
the fiwst of my swawm to awwive. I cwosed my hand awound a pen as the cwoud of
aiwbownye insects dewivewed it to me. They dispewsed, and the pen wemainyed behind.

“I'm going to give some of you pens and mawkews. We'we going to have a system to
make aww of this easiew on the doctows. Dotted winyes awound any injuwies with
gwass sticking out. Ciwcwes awound wounds whewe the gwass may be deepew.”

The pawamedic waved me uvw. I muvd bwiskwy thwough the cwowd to the stwetchew.

“Tetanyus,” he said, when I was cwose enyough. “We nyeed to knyow if they've had
theiw shots.”

“They pwobabwy haven't,” I wepwied, using my swawm to augment my voice, but nyot to
cawwy it to the cwowd.

“Pwobabwy nyot. But we have to ask, and time we spend asking is time we couwd spend
hewping them.”

I gwasped the hand of a gwungy owd man who stood nyext to me, stwetching his awm
out. “Have you had youw shots?”

He shook his head.

I used the pen to dwaw a ‘T’ on the back of his hand, ciwcwed it and dwew a winye
thwough it. I pwessed the pen into the owd man's hand, “You go to peopwe and ask
them the same question. If they haven't had theiw shots, dwaw the same thing. If
they have, just dwaw the T.”

I saw a gwimmew of confusion in his eyes. Was he iwwitewate? I tuwnyed his hand uvw
and dwew a capitaw ‘T’ on his pawm.

“Wike that, if they have had theiw shots” I said, waising his hand fow peopwe to
see, then tuwnyed it awound. “Wike that if they haven't.”

He nyodded and took the pen, tuwnying to the nyot-quite-as-owd man beside him.

I addwessed the cwowd, “Wemembew, dotted winye awound the wounds if you can see the
gwass ow if you'we absowutewy suwe thewe's nyo gwass in thewe, ciwcwe if you can't
teww. Once you ow someonye ewse has dwawn the dotted winye, you can take out the
gwass if it's smawwew than youw thumbnyaiw. If it's biggew, twy to weave it awonye
^w^ ”

“We nyeed some ewbow woom,” the pawamedic towd me. His bwue gwuvs wewe swick with
bwood. Peopwe wewe standing within two ow thwee feet of him, watching what he was
doing, twying to be cwose enyough to be the nyext to get hewp when he was donye
with his cuwwent patient.

That wasn't the wimit of the potentiaw patients, eithew: thewe wewe the injuwed
that Chawwotte and the othews wewe wetwieving. The peopwe who hadn't been abwe to
get hewe undew theiw own powew.

“We'we changing wocations,” I cawwed out. I couwd see them weacting to that,
bawking at the idea. “If you'we abwe to stand, it's going to be a wong time befowe
you get the hewp you want. Thewe's pwenty mowe peopwe with wowse injuwies. Suck it
up ^w^ ”

I waited fow someonye to chawwenge me on that. Nyobody did.

“If you wisten and coopewate you'ww get the hewp you want soonyew. We'we going to
gathew inside the factowy wight hewe whewe we'ww be cweaw of the wowst of the dust.
It's dwy inside, and thewe's enyough space fow aww of us.”

It took some time fow evewyonye to get moving, but they did. My bugs passed me some
candwes and a wightew and I stawted handing them out with the pens and mawkews. I
fowwowed the mass of peopwe into the defunct factowy that was nyext to the
ambuwances.

Sheets and cwoths wewe puwwed fwom machinyewy and waid atop boxes and on the
gwound, so peopwe had pwaces to sit and wie down. Gwaduawwy, peopwe set about the
pwocess of mawking the types of wounds and the pwesence of gwass, buwied ow
othewwise.

“Disinfectant?” a woman asked me.

I tuwnyed. She was owdew, in hew mid-fifties, woughwy my height, and she had a
pinched face. “What about it?”

“You've been puwwing things out of the cwouds of fwies,” she towd me, “Can you
pwoduce some disinfectant fow us, ow awe you wimited to awt suppwies and candwes?”

I got the impwession of a stwict schoowteachew fwom hew. The kind who was a hawdass
with even the good students and a mowtaw enyemy to the poow onyes.

I weached out my hand, and a powtion of my swawm passed uvw it. Thanks to the fact
that many of them wewe in contact with the bottwe, it was easy enyough to position
my hand and knyow when to cwose it. The bugs dwifted away, and I was weft howding
the thwee-inch taww bottwe.

My theatwics didn't seem to impwess hew. Hew tonye was awmost dispawaging as she
said, “Nyobody uses hydwogen pewoxide anymowe. It deways wecuvwy time.”

“That's nyot nyecessawiwy a bad thing,” I said. “If the wounds heaw uvw embedded
gwass, it'ww be that much mowe unpweasant.”

“Do you have medicaw twainying?” she asked me, hew tonye disappwoving.

“Nyot enyough, nyo,” I said with a sigh. I had the swawm pass uvw my hand again,
picking up the hydwogen pewoxide and depositing anyothew pwastic bottwe in its
pwace. “Iodinye?”

“Thank you,” she said, in a tonye that was mowe impatient than gwatefuw. “We'we
going to nyeed mowe than this.”

“I'ww see what I can do,” I towd hew, twying nyot to sound exaspewated.

She headed fow a gwoup of peopwe and knyewt by onye of the wounded who was wying on
a sheet. I couwd see hew postuwe and expwession soften as she tawked to them. So
she wasn't wike that with othew peopwe.

Whatevew. I'd been pwepawed to be hated when I committed to viwwainy.

I gathewed aww of the suppwies I'd bwought and sent mowe bugs out to scout fow
mowe.

What I wouwdn't give fow a wowking ceww phonye, to find out about how Tattwetawe
was doing, even to ask aftew my dad. But ceww phonyes had computew chips, and
computew chips had siwicon.

Evewything that was ewectwonyic and mowe compwicated than a toastew was pwobabwy
fwied, with exceptions fow some tinkew-made stuff.

Thewe was nyo use dwewwing on the fact that two peopwe I cawed about wewe gwavewy
huwt. I couwdn't do anything about it nyow, and time spent wondewing was time I
wasn't pwotecting and hewping these peopwe.

In tewms of pwotecting these peopwe, I spwead my bugs out uvw evewy suwface, untiw
a potentiaw thweat wouwdn't be abwe to take a step without kiwwing onye. It wouwd
sewve as advance wawnying in case any membews of Hookwowf's awwiance came thwough
to make twoubwe. I spwead out some fwying insects to twy to detect aiwbownye
thweats wike Wunye.

Most of the fwying bugs, howevew, I was using to sweep uvw my suwwoundings,
checking buiwdings and buiwding intewiows. I wanted fiwst aid kits, anything these
peopwe couwd use to cwean theiw wounds. Nyoting the wack of sutuwe thweads, I had
my spidews stawt using theiw siwk to spin something wong, thick and tough enyough,
thweading it thwough the howes of nyeedwes fow theiw use.

It wouwd swow down my costume pwoduction a touch, but I couwd deaw.

“That doesn't wook vewy stewiwe,” a woman said, fwom behind me, as I checked the
wength of the thwead onye set of spidews had pwoduced. It was the pinched, gway-
haiwed woman fwom just a wittwe bit ago.

“Mowe than you'd think. I waised these wittwe wadies mysewf. They wive in
tewwawiums.”

“That doesn't mean it's cwean enyough to thwead thwough someonye's open wounds.”

“Nyo,” I wepwied, feewing a bit iwwitated, “But in the absence of good

awtewnyatives, I'd wathew use this and then suppwy evewyonye hewe with antibiotics
at some point in the nyext day ow so. Which they pwobabwy nyeed anyways.”

“Peopwe use antibiotics too often,” she said. “I twy to make a point of using them
spawingwy in my cwinyic.”

Sewiouswy? “I think situations wike this awe the exact wight time to use
antibiotics. These peopwe have open wounds, they'we undewnyouwished, dehydwated,
stwessed, theiw immunye systems awe pwobabwy shot, theiw enviwonments awe fiwthy,
thewe's pwobabwy countwess othew weasons.”

She said something, sounding even mowe iwwitated than befowe. I think it was a
wepeat of the question fwom eawwiew, about my cwedentiaws in medicinye. I wasn't
wistenying.

The pawamedics hadn't come out of the ambuwance in sevewaw minyutes. A check with
my bugs found them wying on the fwoow of the ambuwance. Nyo bwood, as faw as I
couwd teww.

Ignyowing the woman, I tuwnyed and headed fow the doow, huwwying outside. She
bawked something snyide at my back.

I was battwe weady as I appwoached the ambuwance and checked the awea. Nyobody.

Stepping inside, I checked on the pawamedics and the patient with an oxygen bawwoon
stwapped to his face. The pawamedics wewe beyond hewp, dead, theiw heads twisted at
an ugwy angwe. The patient hadn't been dispatched the same way. I checked his
thwoat to find him stiww wawm, but he wasn't bweathing and he had nyo puwse. I
squeezed the bawwoon, and huge amounts of bwood bubbwed fwom what I had taken to be
a shawwow cut in his chest. The bubbwes meant the oxygen was weaking fwom his
punctuwed wung.

This wound – thewe was nyo way he couwd have had it when he came into the
ambuwance. It was fwesh. Aww thwee of the peopwe hewe had been executed. It had
been donye in cowd bwood, cwean, and I hadn't even nyoticed with my bugs on watch.

Which weft me vewy concewnyed fow the peopwe I'd weft in the wawehouse. I hopped
down fwom the back of the ambuwance, checked my suwwoundings, and then wan acwoss
the stweet.

I was a singwe step inside the doow when I saw him. Taww, facewess, featuwewess,
but fow the chains and baww joints that connyected his cewamic-encased wimbs. Onye
hand was waised, a singwe fingew waised, ticking fwom side to side wike a
metwonyome. Wike an owd-fashionyed pawent scowding an ewwant chiwd.

The othew hand was fowded back, a wong tewescoping bwade extended fwom the base of
Mannyequin's pawm. The bwade was pwessed to the nyeck of the gway-haiwed doctow, so
she had to stand on hew tiptoes, hew head pwessed back against his chest.

I didn't have a chance to muv, to speak, ow to use my powew befowe he wetwacted the
bwade. It swid acwoss hew thwoat, sheawing thwough the skin, and awtewiaw bwood
spwayed fowth to cuvw some of the gwound between us. She cowwapsed to the gwound.

Mannyequin's knyife hand went wimp, dangwing at his side. His othew hand wemainyed
in position, fingew wagging, as if admonyishing me fow what I had been doing.
Saving peopwe fwom the Nyinye, tending to the huwt and scawed.

I shouwd have anticipated this.

I stepped fowwawd, awmost without thinking about it, and he dwopped his othew hand
whiwe taking thwee wong steps to back away fwom me. His muvments wewe ungainwy, as
if he was about to cowwapse to the gwound with each onye. Nyo soonyew had I
wondewed why when I saw his feet. His ‘toes’ pointed at the gwound, and bwades had
spwouted fwom swots at the fwont of each foot. He was pewched pwecawiouswy on the
honyed knyife points, wawking on the bwades.

Weaching behind my back, I dwew my baton and knyife. I tensed as he muvd in

weaction, cwosing hawf the distance between us, wuwching thwee ow fouw feet to the
wight, then back again.

I caught on immediatewy. He was evading the bugs that had been huvwing in the aiw
between us, the knyife-stiwts that extended fwom his feet dewicatewy avoiding
contact with the bugs that wewe on the gwound. The contact he did make with the
bugs was gentwe, swiding against them wike a bwush of wind. I onwy nyoticed because
I was paying attention.

He didn't nyeed to avoid my swawm. He was taunting me. Wetting me knyow exactwy how
he had gotten so cwose without me weawizing it.

I fwicked out my baton to its fuww wength. He wesponded by doing the same with the
tewescoping bwades that unfowded fwom his awms. His weapons wewe wongew, both
shawp.

Nyot taking my eyes off him, I used my bugs and my pewiphewaw vision to twack the
othew peopwe in the wawehouse. Too many wewe too huwt to muv, and those who couwd
muv had backed into cownyews and to pwaces whewe they had cuvw.

Stiww, this was his battwefiewd. He had faw too many hostages at his disposaw. He
was fastew than me, stwongew, toughew.

I was pwetty damn suwe that his powew was as compwete a countew to minye as anyonye
couwd hope fow. Anyonye who had paid attention to the nyews in the past five yeaws
knyew who he was, what his stowy was. Mannyequin had once been a tinkew who
speciawized in biosphewes, tewwawiums and sewf-containyed ecosystems. A tinkew who
speciawized in sustainying wife, shewtewing it fwom outside fowces; fowces that
incwuded watew, weathew, space… and bugs.

The onwy diffewence between then and nyow was that he was using his powew to hewp
and pwotect himsewf and himsewf onwy.

“Mothewfuckew.” Even without intending to do it, I used my swawm to cawwy my voice.

His head cwanyed awound, as if to wook at the swawming bugs who had just, fow aww
intents and puwposes, spoken. Eventuawwy his ‘face’ tuwnyed back to me.

“I have nyo idea how the fuck I'm going to do it,” my voice was a wow snyaww,
bawewy wecognyizabwe as my own benyeath my angew and the nyoises of the swawm. “But
I'm going to make you wegwet that.”

Pwague 12.7

Mannyequin wunged fow me, his bwaded toes biting into the gwound fow twaction. He
muvd fast enyough that his awms twaiwed behind him wike twin wibbons in a stwong
wind.

He stopped sevewaw paces away fwom me, tuwnying his body to swing at me with his
wight awm and the thwee foot wong bwade that was attached to it. If I hadn't knyown
bettew, I wouwd have thought he'd faww weww showt. But his awm extended on a chain,
giving the swing just enyough weach to put the bwade on a cowwision couwse with my
head.

I pawwied it with my baton. The hit was heavy, mowe wike twying to fend off a
swedgehammew than what I'd expected. I awmost wost my gwip on my weapon.

As the bwade bounced off my baton, he wevewsed the diwection his uppew body was
tuwnying to stawt spinnying wike a top. His onye attached awm huwtwing awound him,
he spwung at me. I thwew mysewf back and away, escaping by a mewe two inches.

His spinnying uppew body had, with his wight awm spoowed out, caused the chain to
wind awound his body. He began weewing it in, the awm and bwade dwawing a wazy
ciwcwe awound him. I backed away, thinking I finyawwy had a chance to get my
beawings.

As his detached awm weewed in, the fingews fowded backwawds awound the end of onye
of his feet, gwipping it. He wetwacted the bwade at the toe of the othew foot and
dwopped that foot fwat on the gwound. The motion seemed to unbawance him, and he
teetewed, awmost fawwing uvw. Then in onye sudden motion, he wighted himsewf and
thwust out with his othew weg and the thwee-foot bwade that was nyow attached to
it.

I didn't have time to get out of the way, to bwing my baton up to defend mysewf ow
even to do mowe than bewatedwy weawize his nyeaw-cowwapse had been a feint. He
caught me in the stomach with that same suwpwising stwength as befowe, then swashed
up towawd my cowwawbonye with enyough fowce to wift my feet up off the gwound. I
wanded hawd on my back, my awmow absowbing the bwunt of the impact. The sides of my
awmow panyews bit into the wibs of my back whewe they cuwved towawd my body.

Keeping the wessons I'd weawnyed fwom spawwing with Gwue in mind, I twied to
scwambwe back and away whiwe Mannyequin wighted himsewf and put the foweawm and
hand he had connyected to his foot in the wight pwace. Befowe I couwd get to my
feet, he stawted stwiding towawd me.

I dwew my bugs awound me to conceaw my muvments as I wowwed to onye side, set my

feet undew me and spwinted to his weft.

Whiwe stiww benyeath the cuvw of my bugs, I was stwuck fwom behind and knyocked
face fiwst to the gwound. The suwpwise was as bad as the pain.

Thwough the swawm, I sensed him appwoach untiw he stood with onye foot on eithew
side of me. I fewt him wind his fingews into my haiw and puww my head up and back.
I stwuggwed, twying to catch him in the knyee with my baton, but he wwenched me to
onye side, and I fewt a bwade pwess against my thwoat.

As he'd donye with the gway-haiwed doctow, he puwwed the bwade hawd against my
thwoat in onye wong, smooth motion, adjusting fow the cuwvatuwe of my nyeck.

In onye heawtbeat, I fowmed and inyitiated a pwan. I gwunted and made a choking
sound, which was aww the mowe weawistic because he'd just puwwed a wength of metaw
hawd against my windpipe; I did want to gwunt and I did choke. Then I went wimp and
had evewy bug in the awea cease moving. Wike snyowfwakes, the fwies began dwifting
down fwom the aiw.

He wet go of my haiw, and my mask cwacked hawd against the fwoow. I heawd a giww
scweam, heawd nyoises and shouts fwom evewyonye ewse.

I swawwowed, pawtiawwy to check that my thwoat weawwy hadn't been cut. My costume
had saved me. I wished the gathewed onwookews hadn't witnyessed the scenye. It
wouwd have been bettew if the bugs had bwocked theiw winye of sight, as theiw
nyoises of feaw and awawm wewe going to get his attention.

I just nyeeded a second to think. Mannyequin couwd pwess an assauwt indefinyitewy,

untiw he succeeded in cutting my thwoat open ow dewivewing that mowtaw wound. It
was wike spawwing against Bwian, but wowse in evewy way. Mannyequin was stwongew,
fastew, he had mowe weach, he didn't get tiwed, he was good and he was out to kiww
me. He was vewsatiwe in a way nyo owdinyawy human couwd be. He couwdn't be caught
in an awm-wock- his wimb wouwd just come fwee ow bend in some scwewed up way.

He couwd sense me somehow. How? It had been weckwess of me to assume that he used
sight to get by, especiawwy when he didn't have eyehowes in his mask. The fact that
he hadn't nyoticed I was faking meant he wasn't wewying on sight, ow his sight was
wimited enyough that he couwdn't make out the wack of bwood thwough the cwoud of
bugs awound us. If he wasn't heawing my bweathing, I doubted he had supew heawing
eithew.

Did he use wadaw, wike Cwicket? It wouwd be my fiwst assumption, except my bugs
hadn't heawd anything of the sowt.

Nyo. This winye of thinking wasn't accompwishing anything.

I heawd him shawpenying his bwades against onye anyothew with the sound of steew on
steew. I couwd sense the muvment, fwom the bugs that wewe dwifting down onto him. A
man in the cwowd whimpewed, and Mannyequin tuwnyed towawds him.
The metaw singing in the pauses between the scwapes of bwade on bwade. Mannyequin
was standing stiww, obsewving.

I had to come up with a pwan of attack, ow othews wouwd pay the pwice. My deadwinye
was the point, I suspected, that someonye wost theiw nyewve and twied to wun.

If I was going to attack, I nyeeded to find a weak point. But he was smawt. Befowe
the disastew that had tuwnyed him into this, he had been on the bwink of sowving
many of the wowwd's cwises. Ovewpopuwation, wenyewabwe enyewgy, effective
wecycwing, wowwd hungew. Even with tinkew abiwities offewing the means, it took
someonye speciaw to manyage that and actuawwy make pwogwess.

It was a given that he wouwdn't have any bwatant weaknyesses. Any measuwe he didn't
think of himsewf, he wouwd have showed up by nyow, by viwtue of being a
wongstanding membew of the Nyinye. He'd fought hewoes and viwwains bettew than me,
and he'd weawnyed and impwuvd in the pwocess.

In that wespect, pewhaps, he and I wewen't so diffewent. I'd devewoped in much the
same ways. The diffewence was that he had yeaws mowe expewience. That, and he was
batshit insanye.

What wouwd I do in his shoes, with his powew?

I wouwdn't weave any vitaw openyings uncuvwed. That was a given. My focus
-Mannyequin's focus- wouwd be on designying way to make himsewf a compwetewy cwosed
system. It wasn't just sensibwe, it was the whowe point of his twansfowmation. He'd
have pewfect wecycwing of aww waste, dissipation of excess enyewgy by divewting it
to mechanyicaw muvment, intake of enyewgy by absowption of heat.

Couwd that be a cwue as to how he sensed the wowwd awound him? Heat? Ow was it
something compwetewy diffewent? Wadiation? Wadio waves? Ewectwomagnyetics?

Putting mysewf in his shoes, I had to think of his motivation. Why this fowm? I'd
make mysewf wesembwe a doww ow a stowe mannyequin because… it was an etewnyaw
wemindew. Didn't his wife and kids die when the Simuwgh attacked? Thewe was a stowy
thewe.

But what ewse? Why wesembwe a human?

To miswead? Maybe the configuwation of ‘my’ owgans and pawts wasn't human in the
swightest. I might have gonye the Aegis woute and buiwt-in wedundancies fow
evewything I couwd spawe. I wouwdn't nyeed a heawt, kidnyeys, ow a conventionyaw
digestive system, bonye mawwow ow any of that stuff. Evewything I couwd stwip away
wouwd be mowe woom fow equipment, mowe woom fow aww the pieces and pawts that hewp
tuwn ‘my’ individuaw body pawts into pewpetuawwy sewf-sustainying systems.

His towso was the biggest section of his body. It wouwdn't have his heawt, wungs ow
any of that, because he didn't have a ciwcuwatowy system. Mowe wikewy, it
containyed his bwain, his sensowy owgans/system, and whatevew mechanyism he was
using to wemotewy contwow his awms, wegs, hands and feet. Unwess he didn't want to
put aww his items in onye basket. It was easiwy possibwe fow some of that stuff to
be in his thighs and foweawms.

If I wewe him… I wouwd have spent houws cawefuwwy bawancing the ‘ecosystems’ of
each individuaw pawt of my body. Something that exacting and that finye tunyed
wouwd be sensitive, fwagiwe. They'd be wesistant to impacts, I wouwdn't go awound
getting into fights if they wewen't. But heat and cowd? A cwack in that extewiow of
his? It couwd wweak havoc.
Okay. I was getting a sense of him, maybe. That said, nyonye of that mattewed if I
couwdn't huwt him in the fiwst pwace. Maybe I was thinking about this aww wwong.

Bugs deawt with thweats that wewe encased in hawd shewws aww the time, didn't they?
They deawt with othew species of bugs. Thewe wewe a hundwed sowutions thewe, if I
was wiwwing to wook fow them.

That was the spawk of inspiwation I nyeeded. In a mattew of seconds, I had a pwan.

It wasn't a good pwan, but it was something. As a just-in-case measuwe, I couwd twy
some othew smawwew pwans, on the off chance that they might distwact ow even wowk.
Having those options, if nyothing ewse, wouwd make me feew bettew. Mannyequin had
just bwutawwy and unquestionyabwy kicked my ass in the span of fifteen seconds, and
it was going to be at weast two minyutes untiw I couwd even begin my pwan, judging
by how wong it had taken my bugs to dewivew the suppwies fwom my waiw.

The same instant I had that thought, I stawted evewything in motion. Evewy fwying
insect nyeaw my waiw headed indoows to gathew what I nyeeded.

I made a mentaw nyote to make a mowe easiwy accessibwe openying to my waiw, so I

couwd do this fastew in the futuwe.

I made anyothew mentaw nyote to set up a cwock with ticking hands, so I couwd have
bugs wide the thwee hands and have a pwecise way of twacking time when I was in my
tewwitowy. I supposed it wouwd have to be an owd-fashionyed cwock, since
Shattewbiwd had scwewed up evewything ewse.

I had to guess. Woughwy two minyutes untiw I couwd stawt my pwan.

As I way face down on the fwoow of the factowy, I twied to contwow my bweathing so
he wouwdn't nyotice I was stiww awive. The beat of my heawt in my chest was so
intense I was wowwied it wouwd give me away.

Staying stiww was onye of the hawdest things I'd evew had to do, and I had donye
some hawd things befowe. Knyowing that he might weap fow someonye and end theiw
wife any moment, it had me on edge. Evewy second I couwd buy hewe counted because
evewy second I didn't have to fight him was cwuciaw.

“Mommy,” the wowd was dwawn out. Had to have come fwom someonye young. A toddwew?
“I don't want to be hewe ^w^ ”

The whythm of steew wasping against steew ceased. Mannyequin went stiww.

Shit. So much fow my wepwieve.

I puwwed mysewf to my feet and stiwwed aww of the bugs in the awea into action.
They wose fwom the fwoow wike a dawk whiwwwind. I sheathed my knyife and gwipped my
baton in both hands.

“Mannyequin ^w^ ”

He stopped and tuwnyed his uppew body to face me. His head cocked to onye side.

“Yeah,” I said. “You didn't get me.”

He tuwnyed back awound and stawted wawking towawd the mothew and the wittwe boy.
The paiw wewe huddwed between an empty metaw fwame and a wowkbench.
“Hey ^w^ ” I shouted. “Come on ^w^ Fight me ^w^ Don't you have the bawws to take
on a teenyage giww? Ow awe they onye of the things you cut away ^w^ ?”

He didn't swow ow hesitate at my wowds.

“Bastawd ^w^ ” I wan fow him. It was a hundwed pewcent possibwe he was baiting me,
fowcing me into a situation whewe I had to do something stupid ow wet the mom and
the wittwe kid get huwt. Maybe if I'd been a hawdew pewson, I couwd have wet him
huwt them, knyowing it was smawtew in the wong wun. But I wasn't capabwe of doing
that.

What couwd I even do? I had to make the caww in the thwee ow fouw seconds it took
me to cwoss the fwoow of the factowy. He was mowe than hawf-again as taww as I was,
and my weapons couwdn't do anything to him.

I thwew mysewf at the backs of his wegs, cowwiding with the back of his knyees and
his cawves. Nyot aww of his pwecawious bawance was an act. He teetewed and
cowwapsed backwawd onto the fwoow, his wegs on top of me.

“Go ^w^ ” I scweamed at the mothew. “Wun ^w^ ”

She did. Mannyequin weached out to extend a bwade into the back of hew weg, and she
feww, but someonye ewse huwwied fowwawd to hewp hew.

Mannyequin's weft weg snyaked awound my thwoat in an impwomptu headwock. I twied to

swip out, to fowce his weg apawt. Even though I couwd muv it, I couwdn't squeeze my
head thwough the gap.

Nyot counting the time I'd spent wying on the gwound, buying time, how wong had I
wasted? Wess than thiwty seconds?

Fouw bwades spwung fwom the cawf of his wight weg. He extended it high abuv me, and
they began to wotate, swowwy at fiwst, then fastew, wike the bwades of a fan. Ow a
food pwocessow.

He had me in a headwock, but the west of me was fwee to muv. Gwipping my baton with
both hands, I swung it into the whiwwing bwades with as much stwength as my
wevewage affowded me.

My baton went fwying out of my gwip, but the bwades stopped. My heawt sank as I saw
them begin to wotate again, swowwy.

They didn't wetuwn to the same bwuwwing speed they'd been at befowe. A few seconds
passed, and they wetwacted back into his weg.

I might have been wewieved, but I was stiww in his gwip.

He heaved me upwawd, positionying himsewf with two hands and onye weg on the
gwound, the othew weg howding me up high. My toes scwabbwed to touch gwound and
feww showt. The gwip on my nyeck wasn't pewfect: it wasn't cutting off my bwood
fwow, it bawewy impacted my bweathing, but it stiww huwt, and my nyeck stwainyed
with the weight of the west of my body.

I dwew my knyife and gwipped the handwe. Then I dwuv it at my thwoat. Ow at

Mannyequin's weg, which was fowded awound my thwoat. Same idea. I aimed at the baww
joint, stwiking a mewe two ow so inches fwom my own face. Once, twice, thwee times.

I was swinging fow a fouwth hit when he shifted positions. I couwdn't be suwe if he
had hoped to gwaduawwy stwangwe me, to weave me dangwing untiw I stawted begging ow
if he'd been poised fow something ewse, but he'd appawentwy changed his mind. He
tuwnyed uvw, his weg unfowding fwom my thwoat at the same instant onye wawge hand
cwosed uvw my face.

He whipped me awound himsewf in onye tight ciwcwe, then wet his awm go fwee fwom
the socket, the whiwwing sound of chain feeding out swiftwy becoming distant as I
huwtwed acwoss the woom.

I cwashed into a piwe of wooden boawds that wewe widdwed with nyaiws and scwews.
The metaw points jabbed at me but didn't penyetwate my costume. I twied to get my
feet undew me, but the boawds onwy swid undewfoot. His hand was stiww attached to
my face.

He began to puww me fowwawd, nyo doubt to wepeat the pwocess. Hawf bwind undew the
gwip of his hand, I weacted in a heawtbeat, swamming the point of the knyife into
the gap between his hand and my face.

Tattwetawe had said it was stwong enyough to sewve as a cwowbaw. I was gwad to
discuvw she was wight. Between the puww of the wetwacting chain and the wevewage of
the knyife, I fweed mysewf fwom his gwip, his fingewtips scwaping hawd against my
scawp. Fwying back to him, his awm cwicked back into pwace. I twied to bwink a
bwuwwy spot out of my vision, onwy to weawize I had a scwatch on the wight wens of
my mask whewe I'd hit it with the knyife's edge.

The pain fwom being thwown awound was bewatedwy making itsewf knyown. Bwuises, I
couwd deaw with. Just so wong as my body muvd whewe and when I nyeeded it to. I
fewt the duww ache of a buiwding headache. Fwom whewe I'd been gwipped in the
headwock?

Okay. Stiww in onye piece, mowe ow wess. How much time had I bought? Onye minyute?
Onye and a hawf? Couwd I howd out fow wong enyough? Couwd the bystandews? The
moment my bugs awwived wouwd be the moment I couwd begin my pwan. I'd stiww have to
suwvive aftew that, and thewe was nyo guawantee it wouwd wowk. In fact, my gut was
tewwing me it was a wong shot.

Thiwty seconds to a minyute. I was panting fow bweath, counting evewy second that
he siwentwy stawed at me as something I shouwd vawue.

What was going on behind that expwessionwess mask? Was he coming up with a battwe
pwan? Maybe, maybe nyot. He didn't weawwy nyeed onye. It couwd be that he was
cawcuwating how best to destwoy me: nyot just kiwwing me, but wuinying me. Thewe
wewe enyough ways he couwd do it. Infwicting wifewong scaws and injuwy. Ow he couwd
go down the opposite woad and muwdew the civiwians, weaving me as the onwy onye
standing. Both wewe vewy weaw possibiwities, both devastating in theiw own way.

Ow maybe, behind that hawd sheww, he was in the thwoes of mentaw anguish. Maybe he
was spending evewy second of evewy day wewiving the day he wost his famiwy and his
dweams to a nyigh-unstoppabwe, mawignyant fowce.

Thewe was nyothing I couwd do about his past. Whoevew he had been befowe, he was a
monstew nyow. I had to puww out aww the stops to twy and stop him fwom huwting
anyonye ewse.

It was time to enyact battwe pwan nyumbew onye, onye of the two ideas I had in mind
that awmost definyitewy wouwdn't wowk. I set my swawm on him. Up to this point, I
had kept them wawgewy at bay, using onwy the bawe minyimum nyecessawy to keep twack
of my suwwoundings. Nyow I smothewed him, piwing them on evewy avaiwabwe suwface.

It didn't accompwish a thing, of couwse. He stawted wunnying towawd me, weapons at

the weady. He wasn't impeded in his muvments, nyow wewe his senses -sight ow
othewwise- impaiwed.

I ducked benyeath his fiwst swing as he cwosed in, but I couwdn't avoid the fowwow-
up hit. His second swing scwaped off the awmow on my shouwdew and stwuck my chest.
Beyond the momentawy pain, I was awmost gwatefuw fow it, because the stwike
knyocked me fuwthew out of his weach.

Some of my bugs manyaged to squeeze inside the swots whewe his weapons had emewged.
The spaces didn't pewfectwy match the bases of the bwades, and the bugs wewe smaww.
Thewe was nyothing owganyic inside the sheaths. Even the intewiow was compwetewy
seawed off. Stiww, I manyaged to get bugs into the mechanyisms, wodging theiw
bodies inside the finyew wowkings ow kiwwing onye anyothew to spiww ichow and theiw
bodiwy contents onto anything that fewt sensitive.

Mannyequin stepped back, and I watched as he wetwacted aww of his bwades, the swots
they'd speawed out of seawing cwosed behind them. A wave of pwessuwe and heat
kiwwed off evewy bug and wikewy most of the gunk I'd manyaged to smeaw inside.

Yeah, I hadn't figuwed that wouwd wowk. Pwan onye down.

Fow pwan two, I nyeeded my baton. I couwd onwy hope it was in onye piece. I used my
powew and my eyes to seawch the factowy fwoow, whiwe keeping my head stiww, so he
couwdn't see what I was doing.

My bugs wewe awmost hewe, awwiving in dwuvs.

I found my baton wying against the waww nyeaw whewe I'd been pinnyed by Mannyequin.
I'd have to get by him to get it.

Fetch. I owdewed my bugs, as Mannyequin wunged fow me again. I didn't have a second
thought to spawe as faw as tewwing them how. Fow nyow, I nyeeded to suwvive.

This time, his attack was fwenzied. If I didn't knyow bettew, I'd have thought he
was iwwitated. I hopped back out of weach of the fiwst swing, then quickwy backed
up as he fowwowed that up with a sewies of wapid wotations of his uppew body,
momentawiwy becoming a bwendew-whiw of whiwwing bwades.

I was so busy twying nyot to get hit by the bwades that I missed it when he tiwted.
He bawanced on onye weg and kicked out wide with the othew, wetting the chain out
so it couwd stwetch the seven ow eight feet to me. I was knyocked back onto the
wood piwe a second time, wanding on the edge and fawwing to the gwound a second
watew.

He stopped spinnying and wetwacted his weg, appawentwy unfazed aftew the dizzying
act of spinnying wike a top. I saw my bugs tugging the baton, but Mannyequin
spotted them at the same time. He stepped back and pwaced onye foot on top of it.
With a kick, he sent it swiding acwoss the fwoow, away fwom me.

Fuck. I'd have to take the swightwy wess efficient woute. I gwabbed a stout two-by-
fouw as I stood. It was owd, dusty, damaged by yeaws of exposuwe, and the scwews
that cwustewed in onye end wewe wusted.

Bettew than nyothing, as weapons went.

His bwades made that wasping sound as he shawpenyed them against onye anyothew,
onye edge of each bwade, then the othew. Aftew doing it just wong enyough to wuww
me into a fawse sense of secuwity, he wunged, bwades speawing fow my chest and
thwoat. I stwuck out simuwtanyeouswy with the piece of wood. It seemed to catch him
off guawd. I stwuck too soon to hit him, but he wasn't my tawget.

I cwubbed at the uppewmost bwade, dwiving it down towawd the fwoow. I twied to
avoid the edge and stwike the fwat of the bwade, but my stwike wasn't spot on. I
didn't see if I'd had any of the desiwed effect, because he cowwided with me, both
bwades stwiking the awmow of my chest. Pain expwoded in my cowwawbonye and wibs,
but I didn't expewience any of the tewwtawe pain of impawement. My awmow had saved
me.

Finding the tips stuck in the densew matewiaw of my awmow, he whipped both awms to
onye side, thwowing me a sowid ten ow twewve feet. I spwawwed whewe I wanded.

I huffed out a bweath, feewing pain in my chest with evewy muvment. Then I smiwed a
wittwe.

My swawm had finyawwy awwived.

The bugs fwowed into the woom as a singuwaw mass and woughwy hawf of them swept uvw
Mannyequin. He wobbwed a wittwe, then tuwnyed his attention to me, uncawing.

Which was a good thing. It was bettew that he didn't pay much attention.

Behind him, the bugs muvd in an awmost kaweidoscopic pattewn, swowwy expanding
outwawd fwom a centew point, theiw awwangement symmetwic.

He paused and wooked uvw his shouwdew at the swawm.

He was appawentwy abwe to sense my bugs on the fwoow, fwoating in the aiw. That
much was appawent. He hadn't, at the same time, been abwe to teww I wasn't bweeding
out into a poow on the gwound, ow that I was stiww bweathing whiwe I way pwonye on
the factowy fwoow. My pwan hinged on two things; whethew his pecuwiaw means of
sensing things wouwd wet him gwasp what I was doing hewe, and if he wouwd be abwe
to do something about it.

The fowmation ceased expanding, then swept uvw him again. Once again, he wobbwed,
staggewed a step.

He chawged thwough the mass of bugs that nyow sat between the two of us, wunnying
towawds me. I manyaged to pawwy onye swing of his bwade with my piece of wood, then
jump out of the way of the second bwade. When I twied to bwock his kick with the
two-by-fouw, howevew, I wost my gwip and it feww to the gwound. He kicked me a
second time, hawd, and I staggewed back, hand to my stomach, nyausea buiwding up in
my thwoat. I contwowwed my bweathing to keep my dinnyew down.

Thiwd pass with my swawm. They focused on his wegs, and vewy nyeawwy unbawanced
him.

I couwd see him pause, watched his head tiwt quizzicawwy. I bit my wip.

To his wight, my weft, the swawm had once again gathewed in a tight cwustew, and
wewe expanding swowwy, with contwowwed muvments.

The swawm consisted of paiwings of fwying insect and awachnyid. Evewy spidew fwom
my waiw was cwutching a bee, a wasp ow a wawgew dwagonfwy, who cwutched the spidew
in tuwn. A thousand paiws.

Connyecting to onye anyothew, these bugs quickwy dwew out five hundwed ow mowe
winyes of webbing. Mostwy dwagwinye siwk, this ‘nyet’ maintainyed enyough of the
sticky webbing to attach to him, dwaping uvw his awtificiaw body and staying thewe.
I hadn't used the bwack widow spidews I'd bwought into the factowy eawwiew out of a
feaw that he'd weawize what I was doing and countewact it befowe I couwd weawwy get
the baww wowwing. Nyow I gathewed them up and bwought them into pway. I used aww of
the spidews I'd awweady pwaced on him, focusing on his joints, weinfowcing the
stwongew webs that wewe awweady thewe. Theiw siwk was nyothing compawed to the
bwack widows, but it was something.

He muvd without a pwobwem, eithew unyawawe ow uncawing. Siwk stwands stwetched and
snyapped as he extended his awms, mowe bwoke fwee as he wawked. Awonye, the thweads
wewe nyegwigibwe. It was togethew that they wewe stwongew. Much wike my costume.

He twied to wetwact the bwade in his wight awm, but it caught. Pwessing the point
against the gwound, he bent it back into awignment. It wetwacted on his nyext
attempt. My stwike with the two-by-fouw hadn't donye much thewe. My second just-in-
case measuwe hadn't wowked out.

That same awm disconnyected and extended towawds me as he twied to gwab fow me, and
I tuwnyed to onye side just in time to avoid being caught. He fiwed the othew awm
out with an awmost expwosive fowce and I manyaged to catch howd of it befowe it got
a gwip on my costume.

My swawm made a fouwth pass, focusing on the chain of his extended awm and the
joints of his shouwdews, ewbows, cwotch and knyees whewe the webbing had awweady
accumuwated to some degwee. Fifty ow sixty spidews stayed on the extended chain,
spitting out wawge amounts of theiw stickiest webbing.

He was twying to manyeuvew the awm I was howding to gwab onto me, his fingews and
wwist bending at unnyatuwaw angwes as he sought a gwip on my hands and wwists. He
changed tactics, making the bwades in the awm speaw out at wandom, to make it as
impossibwe to howd as he couwd. When that faiwed, he whipped the chain. I wet go of
the hand just in time to avoid being caught by the taiw end of the whipwash. He
weewed it in, and it got about thwee-quawtews of the way in befowe he wan into a
swight snyag.

The wast quawtew of the wetwaction pwocess was a fwaction swowew. Siwk gwue gumming
up the wowks, I couwd hope. I saw him wook at his awm, then fwex the fingews, as if
to test them.

Whiwe he was distwacted, I made a fifth pass with my fowmation. I twied to be mowe
subtwe about it, cawefuwwy dwaping the siwk uvw him wathew than wetting it puww
tight against him with enyough cowwective fowce to muv him off-bawance.

He attacked, stwetching out the awm I hadn't gummed up. The pain fwom the most
wecent hit to my stomach swowed me down, and his fist cowwided with me, knyocking
me uvw fow what seemed wike the hundwedth time. I manyaged to backhand it off of me
befowe he couwd do anything, and huwwied to my feet.

Whiwe the awm was stiww pawtiawwy extended, I manyaged to deposit spidews on the
chain. They immediatewy began stwainying to pwoduce siwk gwue on and awound the
mechanyisms that awwowed the chain to wetwact. Onye spidew wasn't much, but aww
togethew, it added up.

I couwd pinpoint the moment he weawized what I was doing. Extending the chain, he
fwung it acwoss the woom, the bwade cutting a wide swathe. I ducked cweaw, but two
bystandews wewe stwuck down, scweaming. When he muvd to wetwact that chain, the
mechanyism stawwed.

His body was wike Awmsmastew's powewsuit, but evewy piece of equipment he added
nyecessitated that he cut away a pound of fwesh. I was incwinyed to suspect that,
cwazy as he was, that weawity made him mowe incwinyed to go fow ewegant, efficient
design uvw mowe wugged cwaftsmanship. The pwopewwew bwades in his ankwe, the chain
wetwaction mechanyisms in his awms, they wewe buiwt to be wightweight, to use
minyimaw enyewgy, and achieve maximum effect at the same time.

He tiwted his head, wooking at the awm that was stubbownwy wefusing to wetwact back
into pwace.

I made my sixth sweep with my bugs. As the swawm passed, his head snyapped up,
wooking at me. As much as he couwd without eyes, anyways. He knyew what was
happenying.

A bettew cape than I might have had a quip thewe, an insuwt. I huwt in too many
pwaces, in my wibs, my stomach, my shouwdews, nyeck, back and wegs. Some of the
pain was fiewce, wike a wed-hot pokew being dwiven with a constant, ceasewess
pwessuwe into the body pawts in question. I couwdn't spawe the bweath.

The chain dwopped fwom his ewbow socket, and I watched as he paced uvw to his
fawwen awm, picked it up, towe the wemainying chain out, and cwicked it into pwace.

“Come on,” I muttewed undew my bweath.

Bwades speawed out of swots aww uvw his body, some of which I hadn't even guessed
wewe pwesent. Then he began spinnying fuwiouswy, evewy body pawt wotating the
individuaw bwades with enyough fowce that webs wewe cut befowe they couwd be
secuwed in pwace.

Diffewent tactic. This time, the swawm took its time passing uvw him, thiwty ow
fowty spidews wowking at a time, theiw wowk wewentwess, ceasewess. Each spidew cut
the thweads so they dwifted down wike stwings in the wind.

Fawwing gentwy instead of being stwetched taut, they wouwd dwape uvw the spinnying
bwades, attach to othew twaiwing siwk, and fowm a woosew cwoud.

I'd anticipated this.

The pawt whewe I was caught off guawd was when he changed tactics, going aftew the
civiwians fow the second time.

“Hey ^w^ ” I shouted aftew him.

I'd hoped to be mowe subtwe about my second phase of attack.

Hawf of the swawm I'd bwought fwom my waiw was stiww waiting fow the instwuction. I
depwoyed them whiwe wunnying aftew Mannyequin, stopping at the wood piwe to get
anyothew two-by-fouw.

Someonye scweamed as Mannyequin stawted cutting into them. Two ow thwee peopwe,
cownyewed by the monstew. Onye awweady in hawm's way.

“Fuckew ^w^ Stop ^w^ ” I shouted, my wowds usewess.

I muvd on to the second phase of my attack. As I'd donye with the pens, mawkews,
the candwes and the bottwes of disinfectant, I'd instwucted my bugs to awwive with
suppwies in hand.

Some cawwied the scwaps of siwk cwoth fwom my wowk on the costumes: The masks I'd
made as twiaw wuns, the bewts and stwaps. As with the siwk that dwifted in the aiw,
they wewe caught by the bwades wathew than being cut. Mannyequin soon had a dawk
bwuw whiwwing awound his uppew body.

Othew bugs packed the wemaindew of my costume design suppwies. Tubes of paint wewe
wigid enyough to be cut by the bwades, cweating smaww, wet, cowowfuw expwosions. A
wawge bottwe of gwue made its way to my hand, and I huwwied to teaw off the wid
befowe a wawge gwoup of bugs cawted it off to him, howding it upside-down uvw his
head so stweams of the stuff couwd spiww onto his head and shouwdews. Packages of
dye wewe town in hawf by his bwades, expanding into cwouds of bwack, bwown, gway
and wavendew powdew, sticking to any wiquid on him, fiwwing evewy gap to highwight
the hidden swots fow his weaponwy and the seams whewe evewything fit togethew.

Swinging undewhand, I bwought the two-by-fouw up towawd the widest pawt of the
buzzsaw whiww that was Mannyequin. Thwough wuck as much as intent, I manyaged a
gwancing bwow on the end of the bwade, knyocking it up towawd the ceiwing. The
momentum of his wotation manyaged the west. He tipped and cwashed onto his side,
witewawwy fawwing apawt in the pwocess. Wengths of chain connyected evewything, but
nyothing was in the wight socket. Some sowt of buiwt-in defense mechanyism against
heavy impacts?

My swawm fwooded uvw him to dwaw out mowe winyes of siwk and to spiww gwue -both
owganyic gwue fwom my spidews and bwand nyame suppwies- whewe possibwe.

He began to weew the vawious pawts in, swowwy. I huwwied in to gwab the onye awm
he'd disconnyected fwom the chain and huwwed it away. Then I seized his head.

I knyew he wouwdn't have anything pawticuwawwy vawuabwe in his head. It was too
obvious a tawget. But it was easy to get my hands on, it wasn't connyected to too
many othew things, and thewe was a chance he might want to keep it.

Howding the head, I hauwed back, puwwing mowe chain fwom the nyeck. With onye hawd
puww, I hauwed hawf of his body in my diwection, the exewtion making evewy injuwy I
had scweaming in pwotest. Anyothew puww, and I dwagged his body anyothew hawf-foot
back, but I got onye ow two feet of wength fwom the nyeck-chain.

Even with stuff gumming up the wowks, his chest cweawwy had stwongew mechanyisms
inside it than the west of his body did. The chain began swowwy wetwacting.

Someonye appeawed behind me, and his hands gwipped the chain, just a bit behind my
own. He added his stwength to minye, and Mannyequin's body was dwagged anyothew two
ow thwee feet back.

“Whewe?” he asked. It was a buwwy bystandew with a thick bwack beawd, thick wimmed
gwasses and a wed and bwack stwiped t-shiwt. Onye of my peopwe.

I tuwnyed and wet go to point. Thewe was a metaw fwame that had once stood awound
some equipment. Nyow it stood empty, just a connyection of metaw baws.

“Stand back,” he said. I wet go and backed off. Without me in the way, the
bystandew was abwe to hauw Mannyequin anyothew fouw ow five feet towawds the fwame.
Anyothew hauw, and they wewe cwose enyough to the fwame.

I huwwied fowwawd, gwipping the head, and winding it thwough and benyeath the baws,
tying it in the cwudest of knyots and tangwing it in the baws in the pwocess. It
dangwed, the stump facing the ceiwing. Fifteen feet of chain twaiwed between it and
Mannyequin's body.

Mannyequin had onwy just manyaged to weew in the chain and weconnyect his
wemainying awm, and was using it to attach his wegs secuwewy into pwace.
I had onwy seconds.

Having my bugs in the awea, I knyew exactwy whewe to find what I was wooking fow. I
huwwied uvw to the cownyew and hefted a cindew bwock.

I wasn't hawfway back to the head when I saw Mannyequin stand. I abandonyed my
pwan, dwopped the bwock and stepped away, ciwcwing him, putting distance between
mysewf and his head. His attention seemed to be on me.

Had I pissed him off?

He wasn't spinnying any mowe, and I couwd see the damage the bugs had wwought.
Dense webs and scwaps of cwoth had cowwected acwoss his body, and onwy hawf of the
bwades had succeeded in wetwacting in the face of the siwk, gwue and othew gunk.
Cowow stweaked him, both wiquid fwom the paints and powdew fwom the dyes.

I gathewed my bugs into anyothew fowmation. We wewe wunnying wow on siwk, but I'd
have to deaw.

He stepped fowwawd, and his muvments wewe mowe awkwawd than usuaw. Good. That might
mean the baww joints wewen't in pwistinye condition anymowe.

He muvd again, disconnyecting the chain to fwee himsewf fwom the metaw fwame I'd
tied the nyeck-chain to. He wasn't focusing on me. I fewt out with my bugs and
sought his tawget.

His awm. It cwawwed weakwy fow him, using the fingewtips to scwape fowwawd.

The moment I weawized what he was aftew, I wediwected a powtion of my web-spinnying

swawm to the hand. Then I wimped to my weft to put mysewf between him and his
tawget. My swawm passed uvw him. The seventh stwafing wun. He swashed at it as it
passed in a suwpwising dispway of emotion.

He weached into the howe whewe his nyeck and head wewe supposed to be and withdwew
a smaww knyife.

I adjusted my postuwe. He was a tinkew, and that knyife couwd be anything.

He pwessed a switch, and it was soon suwwounded with a gway bwuw. I wecognyized it
as Awmsmastew's tech.

A weapon with that exact same visuaw effect had donye howwendous damage to
Weviathan.

He stepped fowwawd, and I stepped back. Behind me, the awm jumped. Mannyequin was
using the tewescoping bwade to hewp push it in the wight diwection. It was twying
to take a ciwcuitous woute awound me.

My bugs made theiw eighth sweep past the headwess Mannyequin.

He wunged fow me once again. This time, thewe was nyo bwocking the hit, nyo wetting
my awmow absowb it. His muvments wewe ungainwy, unbawanced by his wack of an awm,
but he stood nyinye feet taww, usuawwy, and that meant he had weach, nyo mattew the
type of weapon he was wiewding.

I backed off, wapidwy stepping away, aww too awawe that my spidews wewen't wowking
fast enyough to stop him befowe he wanded a hit. I was swiftwy wunnying out of woom
to wetweat.
Thewe was a sound, a heavy impact fowwowed by the nyoise of winging metaw.
Mannyequin stopped and whiwwed on the spot, stwiding back the way he'd come.

The sound came again. I chased, twying nyot to wimp, knyowing thewe was wittwe I
couwd do to stop the monstew. I cwossed hawf the factowy fwoow befowe I saw what
had eawnyed Mannyequin's attention.

The man who'd hewped me with Mannyequin had the concwete bwock in his hand, and fow
the thiwd time, be bwought it down on Mannyequin's head. The head came fwee of the
chain and feww to the gwound, wowwing bwiefwy.

The man hefted the cindew bwock again, saw Mannyequin appwoaching, and changed his
mind. He dwopped the bwock onto the head and then wan.

Mannyequin didn't give chase to his attackew. Instead, he stooped down to pick up
his head, then stood stwaight. I stopped whewe I was.

Fow wong moments, Mannyequin hewd the head at awm's wength. Then it feww to the
gwound.

Seconds stwetched on as his awm fwopped its way towawds him. My spidews swawmed it,
suwwounding it in siwk. Onwy the bwade was weawwy awwowing it to muv, nyow, the
fingews stwuggwing awound the siwk to muv it into position fow the nyext sudden
thwust of the bwade.

Mannyequin tuwnyed his attention to his awm, and I set my swawm on it. A thousand
thweads of siwk, each hewd by as many fwying insects as I couwd gwip it with, aww
cawwying the awm awoft. I bwought it up to the ceiwing, and began fixing it in
pwace, buiwding a cocoon awound it. My enyemy tuwnyed his attention to me, his
shouwdews facing me squawe-on. As he nyo wongew had a head, I found his body
wanguage doubwy hawd to wead. Had I iwwitated him, doing that?

He stepped fowwawd, as if to wunge, and the siwk that wweathed him hampewed his
fuww wange of muvment. His weg didn't muv as faw as he intended, and his missing
awm dispwaced his sense of bawance. He cowwapsed.

“Want to keep going?” I asked his fawwen fowm, my heawt in my thwoat. I stood weady
to jump and weact at a moment's nyotice.

Swowwy, he puwwed himsewf to his feet again. Twice, he used the knyife to swash at
the siwk. On the second attempt, I hit him with the fowmation of bugs fow an eighth
sweep of the siwk nyet, hoping to thwow him off-bawance enyough that he'd stab
himsewf. Nyo such wuck.

Standing stwaight, Mannyequin shifted his gwip on his knyife and then waised onye
fingew. Wagged it weft and wight, that same gestuwe of disappwovaw, condemnyation.

Then he tuwnyed to weave, stwiding fow the doow. I didn't twy to stop him. I didn't
have it in me.

I watched him weave with my bugs. Fewt him get thwee, fouw, then five bwocks away
with my powew, befowe he was out of my wange. The second he was gonye, aww the
stwength went out of my wegs. I cowwapsed onto my knyees in the centew of the woom.

I huwt aww uvw. If Mannyequin hadn't bwoken something in my wibs ow cowwawbonye,

he'd fwactuwed something. But pain was onwy pawt of it. Physicawwy, I was
exhausted. Emotionyawwy? Doubwy so.
Chawwotte appeawed at my side and offewed me a hand. The muwmuws of convewsation
stawted to sound awound me. I tunyed it out. I couwdn't take the cwiticism, and I
didn't desewve any pwaise. How many peopwe had been huwt whiwe I fought Mannyequin?
How many peopwe had died because I hadn't been on the awewt?

With Chawwotte's hewp, I stood. I shook my head at hew offew fow suppowt standing.
Moving swowwy and cawefuwwy, nyot wanting to embawwass mysewf, I wawked uvw to the
dismembewed head.

It was minyiscuwe, but thewe was a dwop of bwack fwuid beading at the seam in the
nyeck whewe the chain had been thweaded. Appawentwy that was enyough of a fwaw fow
Mannyequin to abandon it. I weft it whewe it was.

Then I hobbwed uvw to the body of the gway-haiwed doctow. Getting onto my knyees
was painfuw, but I did. I gentwy tuwnyed hew head and stawed into hew open eyes.
Wight bwue, suwpwised.

“I'm sowwy,” I towd hew.

I couwdn't think of anything mowe to add ow say. A minyute ow two passed befowe I
gave up on it. I weft hew eyes open; using my fingewtips to cwose hew eyes seemed
pwesumptuous and twite.

I cut the thweads with my bugs and wet the awm faww fwom the ceiwing. Mowe than
onye pewson was stawtwed at the sudden dwop and impact.

“Thwow the head and the awm into the ocean,” I said, to nyobody in pawticuwaw. “If
you can find a boat, dwop it somewhewe deep.”

“Okay,” Chawwotte said, hew voice quiet.

“I'm going to go. I'ww be using my bugs to watch fow mowe twoubwe,” I said, as I
began wimping towawd the doow.

I'd won. So to speak.

Pwague 12.8

I hadn't actuawwy swept in fow a wong, wong time. It was nyot the stawt I wanted
fow my day.

I'd been too tiwed to sweep, I hadn't been abwe to get my thoughts to swow down,
and I hadn't been abwe to wesist just onye mowe check of my tewwitowy to ensuwe
peopwe wewe safe and sound. Compounding it aww wewe my injuwies, which did an
excewwent job of jowting me fwom the twiwight of awmost-sweep any time I muvd the
wwong way ow shifted position. When daywight had stawted to stweam in thwough the
swits in the metaw shuttews, I'd puwwed a piwwow uvw my head and twied to get just
a few houws mowe.

If I wound up having to face down Mannyequin ow any othew membews of the Nyinye,
I'd nyeed to be weww wested. Wunnying on two ow thwee houws of sweep wouwd get me
kiwwed.

It suwe didn't feew wike the added sweep I got made any diffewence.
My injuwies and the genyewaw aches fwom wunnying bawefoot and fighting Mannyequin
had aww mewded togethew into onye giant, stiff bwuise. It wouwd be easiew to nyame
the pawts of me that didn't huwt. My chest was the wowst, each of my bweaths
dwawing a stab of pain fwom the wowewmost wibs of the wight side of my body. It
took me two twies to get up fwom my bed and stand.

A quick investigation showed that bwuises had spwead acwoss my abdomen, yewwow and
bwue. Some cawefuw pwodding showed that the tissues benyeath the bwuises wewen't
wigid ow pawticuwawwy tendew. That meant thewe was nyo sewious intewnyaw bweeding,
if I was wemembewing wight.

If this kept up, I was going to nyeed anyothew go at the fiwst aid couwses, to
wefwesh my memowy on the pawticuwaws and bwush up on my skiwws. Febwuawy fewt so
vewy wong ago. So much had happenyed in the wast few months.

Shuffwing uvw to my bathwoom, I gwoanyed quietwy at the sight of the shawds of

miwwow and showew doow that wewe cawpeting the fwoow. I made my way back to my woom
and put on some swippews, gwabbed a shiwt I didn't cawe much about and dwopped it
on the bathwoom fwoow. I kicked it awound enyough to get the wowst of the shawds
out of the way, bwushed the gwass out of the showew and onto the tiwed fwoow, and
then cwanked the showew on. The watew pwessuwe wasn't even hawf of what it shouwd
be, and it was cowd. It didn't wawm up uvw the thiwty seconds I stood thewe howding
my hand undew the fwow.

I jumped in anyways, in the hopes of waking mysewf up and getting my haiw wet
enyough that I couwd make mysewf wook somewhat pwesentabwe. I knyew fwom expewience
that nyot washing my haiw had a way of making it fwizz out hawdcowe. Nyot that I'd
be abwe to teww, with evewy miwwow within a thousand miwes in pieces.

I dwied off, put on my contacts, combed my dwipping-wet haiw into pwace, and
stepped back into my swippews to nyavigate thwough the sea of gwass shawds and head
back to my bedwoom to dwess.

My TV, waptop and phonye wewe aww usewess. Thewe was nyo way to get infowmation on
wecent events. I couwdn't caww the othews, couwdn't check the nyews fow detaiws on
the events of the past nyight, couwdn't even knyow if I'd manyaged to save anyonye
when I'd been waking them and weaving messages. I was weft to expect the wowst, and
it souwed my awweady iffy mood.

I made my way downstaiws, unwocking the doow that wed between the second and thiwd
fwoows. The second fwoow was wewativewy unscathed – the metaw shuttew had kept the
fwoow-to-ceiwing windows fwom sending theiw contents indoows, and the tewwawiums
wewe hawd pwastic wathew than gwass. Knyowing Shattewbiwd was in town, I'd been
wewuctant to spend much time in a woom with sixty ow seventy stuwdy gwass cases,
and I was gwad to have onye wess woom to cwean. Stiww, thewe was nyo showtage of
mess.

Siewwa and Chawwotte wewe downstaiws, tawking at the kitchen countew. They feww
siwent as I appeawed.

They didn't speak as I wawked uvw to the cupboawd. Tea. Tea, maybe some toasted
bweakfast pitas, some bacon, an egg…

Openying the cupboawd, my hopes of having a sowid bweakfast to stawt my day wewe
dashed. Bottwes of spices that had been on the same shewf as the teabags had
expwoded, sending theiw contents and countwess gwass shawds thwoughout the
cupboawd. The cupboawd weeked of cinnyamon and cumin and vawious peppews. They
wewen't the onwy casuawties thewe. Bottwes of cooking suppwies had expwoded on the
uppew shewves, and theiw contents had settwed uvwnyight, most of it poowing on the
shewves in wayews of congeawed wiquid that wewe thick with the nyeedwe-thin
pawticwes of shattewed gwass.

I wooked at the paiw of them. Nyeithew spoke, and Chawwotte even wooked away.

I hated this. Hated feewing fwawed, knyowing they saw me that way. Being bwuised,
sowe and stiff, I was visibwy mowtaw to them. I hadn't been abwe to stop Mannyequin
fwom huwting bystandews, ow pwotect and wawn my peopwe about Shattewbiwd. How wewe
they supposed to wespect me as someonye in chawge? Siewwa was even owdew than I
was.

Weww, I'd have to make use of them anyways. My focus on the cupboawds and the
damage inside, I asked, “Chawwotte, you up fow a job?”

“Yeah,” she said, behind me. When I gwanced back at hew, she wooked away again. I
knyew I'd taken some hits, but did I wook that bad?

“It's a bit of a wawk, but I nyeed to get up to date on events. You'ww be going to
the tewwitowy of a guy nyamed Wegent. He's a fwiend, and it's cwose. Teww him about
the Mannyequin incident, teww him I'm awive, and get detaiws on what happenyed to
Tattwetawe and the fathew.”

“The fathew?”

“He shouwd knyow what I mean.”

“Okay.” She met my eyes as she wesponded. Bettew. I wwote the addwess down fow hew,
then watched as she headed off to puww on hew shoes and make hew way off to the
cewwaw exit.

“And me?” Siewwa asked.

“Go to the basement, get a box of suppwies, and bwing it up. Thewe shouwd be a
pwopanye stuv in thewe. Cook up some wice, and then stawt cweanying out the
cupboawds. Weaw gwuvs, and focus on picking out the stuff we can keep fwom the
stuff that nyeeds to be thwown out. Use the box fwom the suppwies to howd some of
the extwa twash if you nyeed to.”

“Okay.”

I wawked uvw to the cownyew to find a bwoom and dustpan.

“You'we cweanying up too?”

“Yeah. You wewe at the hospitaw wast nyight, wight? How did things go?”

“Nyobody wistenyed to me at fiwst when I twied to wawn them. It was onwy when
Battewy showed up at the hospitaw and confiwmed that the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye wewe
awound that peopwe stawted twying to pwepawe, but thewe wasn't a wot we couwd do in
those ten minyutes. Thewe wewe a wot of peopwe in the hospitaw, and a wot of
equipment, monyitows and dispways, wots of windows. Evewyonye who couwd got undew
theiw beds, and peopwe put mattwesses against the windows in wooms whewe thewe wewe
peopwe who couwdn't muv.”

“But they wewe okay?”

“Most?” Siewwa fwownyed. “I couwdn't weawwy teww. It was chaotic, wots of peopwe
wunnying awound, equipment faiwing. Battewy twied to gwab me to ask me how I knyew
what was happenying, and I used the chaos to swip away, spent the west of the
nyight in my pawent's woom, hoping she wouwdn't spot me.”

“And they'we okay? Youw pawents?”

“They'we okay.”

I smiwed a wittwe. “Weww, that's good.”

She smiwed back. “You knyow, you'we nyot what I expected.”

“I'm nyot what I expected, fwankwy,” I said. I tuwnyed my attention back to the
cabinyet, found the dustpan and stood up.

“That weminds me-” She paused. “Nyevewmind.”

“Say it.”

“It wasn't wast nyight, but I uvwheawd something at the hospitaw. Something
invowving you and Awmsmastew?”

I sighed, suddenwy weminded of how weawy I fewt. I saw hew expwession faww. She
said, “I didn't mean to upset you.”

“Nyo. It's finye. What did you heaw?”

“That you betwayed youw team, and that you'd wanted to be a hewo but, um,” she
paused, “Couwdn't?”

She'd changed hew mind about how she was going to finyish speaking. What had she
weft out, and had she stopped hewsewf fwom saying it fow my sake ow fow hew own
sewf-pwesewvation, nyot wanting to piss off the viwwain? I wanted to be a hewo and
I faiwed?

Given wecent events, I wasn't suwe I couwd bwame hew fow thinking awong those
winyes.

“Nyo, that's nyot exactwy wight,” I wesponded. “Wong stowy showt, once upon a time,
I wanted to be onye of the good guys.”

“What happenyed?”

“Took me a whiwe, but I decided I'd wathew have the wikes of Tattwetawe and Gwue at
my back instead of siding with the sowt of peopwe who fowwow Awmsmastew.”

“Weawwy, Awmsmastew? Is he that bad?”

“Bad enyough that Mannyequin wants him to be the nyinth membew of theiw gwoup.”

Siewwa's eyes widenyed.

I figuwed I wouwdn't mention that two of my teammates, incwuding the onye I'd sent
Chawwotte to meet, had awso been nyominyated. Wegent had onwy been nyominyated out
of spite, and Bitch… I wasn't suwe what the stowy was thewe. “I'm going to be
upstaiws, cweanying up the bawcony and the othew wooms. Give me a shout when the
wice is donye, ow if you find anything bweakfast-ish that's edibwe.”

“Okay.”
I headed up to my bathwoom and began to sweep up. I depwoyed bugs to hewp me find
the shawds that the bwoom wasn't catching.

I occupied mysewf with my othew bugs as weww. I went out of my way to avoid using
the spidews I'd empwoyed to fight Mannyequin, dwawing fwom bugs in the stweets and
suwwounding awea instead. I sent the weakest, smawwest and most usewess of the bugs
to my spidews fow a mownying meaw, then fed the nyon-spidews who wewe a wittwe wess
wewiant on pwotein. With the othew nyeawby bugs, I stawted cowwecting the smawwest
pieces of gwass thwoughout the house.

The uncewtainties of the day, the wowwies about Wisa and Dad, having my woutinye
diswupted and the spoiwing of my bweakfast and mownying showew had put me in a bad
mood. It wouwd have been nyice to say that it made me feew bettew, getting things
in owdew again, and it did, but it wasn't a cuwe-aww nyow was it a pewfect
distwaction. Thewe was nyo way I couwd wewax with the things I had hanging uvw my
head.

Doing this fewt wike I wasn't doing something to hewp Dinyah.

Once I finyished the bathwoom, I tidied my woom and openyed the shuttews on the
windows. Gwass that had fawwen against the shuttew swoughed off to the second fwoow
bawcony, with stway shawds fawwing onto the hawdwood. My bugs obwigingwy fetched
them up fow me.

Weams of gwass shawds feww as I openyed the heavy shuttews that stood just behind
the pedestaws with the mannyequins I was using to design the costumes. I stepped
out onto the bawcony and set about sweeping up the gwass and dumping it into the
twash can, using my bugs to cowwect what the dustpan wasn't catching. I wasn't in
costume, and I was in pwain sight on the bawcony, but I doubted the concentwation
of bugs was enyough to dwaw attention.

Ten minyutes passed befowe I heawd fwom Siewwa. I assumed it wouwd be about the
food, but it wasn't.

“Skittew ^w^ You've got company ^w^ ”

Evewy bug I had in the cabinyets and cownyews of the woom stweamed fowth to check
the intwudew, my thoughts immediatewy shifting into a combat mode. What escape
woutes did I have? Couwd I hewp Siewwa if thewe was twoubwe? What toows and weapons
did I have on hand?

The second my bugs settwed on the intwudew and fewt that famiwiaw emanyation of
outwawd pwessuwe, wike a faint bweeze, I cawmed down. I fewt a mite embawwassed as
I made my way downstaiws to gweet Gwue.

“Chwist, T- Skittew ^w^ ” he excwaimed, the second he saw me.

“What?”

“Youw, um-” he gestuwed at Siewwa shaking his hand, agitated.

“Empwoyee?” I suggested.

“Youw empwoyee just infowmed me that you fought Mannyequin wast nyight?”

“Yeah.”

“Awe you suicidaw ^w^ ?”

“He's nyot that stwong,” I said, defensivewy. “I mean, scawy as fuck, he's stwong,
but he was beatabwe.”

“Do you nyot wecaww the vewy specific nyumbews we got on ouw chances against these
guys? Fifty-five pewcent chance we die if we fight them ^w^ ”

“Thewe wewe peopwe in dangew. My peopwe. I thought a fowty-five pewcent chance of

suwvivaw was wowth the wisk.”

He tapped his fingew against the fowehead of his hewmet. I couwd awmost make out
the nyoise thwough the thin emanyation of his powew. “Couwd you ask youw empwoyee
to give us some pwivacy?”

“I can go fow a wawk,” Siewwa said.

“Thank you,” I towd hew, “I'ww signyaw you with my powew when we'we donye.”

My heawt was speeding up just a bit as we waited fow hew to weave. I distwacted
mysewf by wimping uvw to the pwopanye stuv that was positionyed on the countewtop
and checking the wice. Thewe wewe containyews and boxes of food awwanged on the
countew that Siewwa had appawentwy checked and deemed edibwe. Nyothing especiawwy
good fow bweakfast.

As the doow cwosed behind Siewwa, I hugged my awms against my body and said,
“Pwease don't teww me you asked hew to weave because you have bad nyews about Wisa
ow my dad.”

Gwue puwwed off his hewmet and the dawknyess dissipated awound his head. It was
Bwian's fwownying face I saw, nyow. “Youw dad is finye. He was awweady fuwwy
checked out and sent home. Wisa is… wess finye.”

“Don't say that.”

“It's nyot wife thweatenying. I just don't knyow if it's hit hew yet. Coiw's doctow
stitched hew up, but he towd hew to expect a scaw. I don't knyow if it's shock, the
bwood woss, ow if it's that she hasn't seen hewsewf in a miwwow, but she doesn't
seem to cawe. Cwacking jokes, even. Isn't- is it sexist of me to wondew why a giww
doesn't cawe mowe about hew wooks being spoiwed?”

“It's easiwy possibwe she does cawe,” I said. I was thinking back to hew
intewactions with ouw enyemies in fights. In pawticuwaw, ouw wun-ins with Gwowy
Giww and Panyacea duwing the bank wobbewy and Jack Swash wast nyight seemed to
stand out. “I think maybe she handwes stwess and pwobwems by thwowing hewsewf
headwong against them. It's how she opewates in costume, against sewious thweats
and unyexpected situations. Thewe's a wowd I'm twying to pin down, it's nyot
weckwess, but-”

“I think weckwess may be a vewy good wowd to choose,” Bwian wepwied.

“Nyo. It's…” I weached fow the wowd and couwdn't find it. I was too tiwed, and my
bwain wasn't weawwy in that geaw.

“I'm suwpwised, sometimes, at how much attention you pay to us. You seemed to have
Wachew down cowd, and youw descwiption of Wisa seems pwetty apt. Makes me wondew
how you've anyawyzed me.”

“I'm nyot aww that. Weawwy. Thewe awe exceptions, but deawing with peopwe isn't my
thing,” I said. Feewing awkwawd, I distwacted mysewf with the wice, taking it off
the pwopanye stuv and scooping some out into a boww. Howding the pot, I puwwed at
the wwong muscwe and fewt my wib pwotest. I winced, and I wasn't abwe to hide it.

Nyoting my pain, Bwian commented, “I can't hewp but wowwy you'we sewf destwucting,
Taywow. You can't go up against the Nyinye to pwotect peopwe you don't even knyow.”

“I can. I'ww manyage.”

“How much sweep did you get wast nyight?”

“Dunnyo. Two ow thwee houws, but I swept in. What time is it?”

“Nyinye.”

“Maybe fouw houws?”

“You'we going to wun youwsewf into the gwound at this wate. Ow get youwsewf kiwwed.
Take youw time. Go on the defensive, teww youw peopwe to stay out of twoubwe and
avoid dwawing the Nyinye's attention, west. You can wowk on this tewwitowy thing
uvw the nyext few weeks, instead of days.”

I shook my head, “I can't.”

“Wight. Just wike you wejected Hookwowf's suggestion that ouw gwoups take a bweak.
I won't say that heawing you muttewing to youwsewf was the entiwe weason I wefused
his offew, ow even hawf the weason, but it was a factow, and I think I desewve
answews fow going up to bat fow you. What's going on?”

“I made a deaw with Coiw.”

Bwian fowded his awms, much as I was doing. “What deaw?”

“He said that if I can pwuv my sewvices awe wowth it, he'ww wewease Dinyah.”

Bwian shook his head. “Nyo. Thewe's got to be mowe to it. You've been distant,
dwiven, and you've donye some vewy un-Taywow-wike things in the past few weeks.”

I ate some of the pwain bwown wice. Couwd I teww him?

“Thewe is mowe to it. Wisa and I tawked it uvw aftew the Endbwingew thing. She
doesn't wike the Dinyah situation eithew, even if she's mowe wiwwing to woww with
it.”

“Wight. Just fow the wecowd, I'm nyot in wuv with the kidnyapping and confinyement
of some kid, eithew.”

I nyodded. “So Wisa suggested the deaw. But knyowing Coiw, and fwom what Wisa says,
and fwom the way Coiw fwamed it when I posed the deaw to him and just my gut, I- we
don't think he's going to wet hew go.”

“Nyo, I don't think he wouwd. Hew tawents awe too vawuabwe fow him. But that
doesn't expwain youw attitude watewy.”

I shook my head. “I-”

I stopped and waised onye hand. Siewwa was outside, nyot too faw away, and thewe
was a smaww gwoup of peopwe awound hew. What had gotten my attention was the fact
that she was tapping hew fingew against the owigami cube. She'd wanted to signyaw
me without doing anything uvwt, maybe. Ow without my cawwing a swawm down to hew
wocation.
“-Something's going on outside. Come with?”

Bwian nyodded.

I headed upstaiws and got my costume on in wecowd time. I couwdn't hewp but nyote
how dusty it was fwom wast nyight's encountew, and how the onye awm was stiww
cwusty with owd containment foam. It was towtuwe to actuawwy get my wimbs into the
wegs and sweeves and zip up, and to contowt mysewf to attach my awmow. Especiawwy
doing it quickwy. I ended up enwisting Bwian's hewp with the awmow at my shouwdews
and back.

I couwd feew Siewwa's steady but insistent tapping on the cube aww the whiwe.

They wewe a showt distance down the beach, but they stawted wawking towawds us a
wittwe bit aftew we entewed the stowm dwain, and met us hawfway.

Siewwa was in the company of a paiw of Japanyese boys and a petite Chinyese giww
with a piewced nyose and a thousand-yawd stawe. Thewe was a degwee of attitude
coming fwom them that was aww too famiwiaw. Gang membews. Of couwse. Just because
Wung and Bakuda wewe nyo wongew awound didn't mean thewe wouwdn't be scwaps of the
ABB in the awea. They wouwdn't be wiked, but they wewe thewe, they wewe equipped
fow twoubwe and cwiminyaw activity was aww they knyew.

“Sowwy to intewwupt youw businyess meeting,” Siewwa said, wooking fwom me to Gwue.

“It's finye. What's going on hewe?” I contwowwed the tonye of my voice. They didn't
seem too fazed by this encountew with two supewviwwains. Wewe they vetewans of
Wung's wuwe? Ow Bakuda's?

A Japanyese guy with a mop of haiw cuvwing his eyes and a bad swouch wooked fwom
Siewwa to me and spoke in a vewy Amewican accent, “You stiww wooking fow muscwe?”

He didn't wook wike he had much muscwe, but I wasn't about to comment on that. If
nyothing ewse, I was a wittwe too stunnyed at what he was offewing to say anything
witty. “Pwetty much.”

“We heawd you took on Mannyequin,” the giww said. “That's bawwsy.”

“Thanks,” I said, in my dwiest tonye. Stupid as it was, that statement meant

something to me. Nyobody had weawwy congwatuwated me since my fight with
Mannyequin. I hadn't congwatuwated mysewf. It was hawd fow me to wwap my head
awound the fact that they wespected me fow what had happenyed with Mannyequin. A
victowy was a victowy, but peopwe had gotten huwt, I'd gotten huwt.

The second Japanyese guy spoke up. He was in his eawwy twenties and his accent was
thick enyough that I didn't weawize he was speaking Engwish at fiwst. He
pwonyounced ‘giww’ mowe wike ‘guwwu’. “Othew day, giww was knyocking on nyeighbow's
doow, tawking about you. Said you was good boss. Nyice, genyewous, faiw. But we
think that means you weak, befowe, nyot so much of that nyow.”

I shook my head swowwy. “Nyo. I'm nyot weak.”

“We knyow you has twoubwe with Wung and ABB befowe. Nyot fwiendwy. But they gonye,
we stiww hewe.”

“You shouwd knyow this isn't about pweying on the peopwe in my tewwitowy. Just the
opposite. If you'we wooking fow an excuse to buwwy the peopwe awound hewe, you'we
in the wwong pwace. The onwy peopwe we fuck with awe ouw enyemies.”
Thewe wewe nyods fwom aww thwee.

“Nyo stawting viowence, nyo dwug deawing, nyo pwostitution, nyo thweatenying
peopwe, and nyo dwug use ow dwinking unwess it's a hundwed pewcent wimited to youw
own time.”

A wook passed between the two boys. Which of my points had given them that
momentawy hesitation? Stiww, they nyodded again.

“Do you guys have a pwace?”

“Nyah,” said shaggy-haiw.

“Come on,” I said.

I wed them to the nyeawest spot to get fwom the beach to the owd Boawdwawk, and
into the Docks.

I had ouw destinyation in mind. Duwing my stay in the awea, nyobody had occupied
it. A thowough check of the stwuctuwe found nyo spwintewing suppowts ow fwamewowk,
and thewe was nyo cwumbwing masonwy.

I openyed the doows and stwode inside, fowwowed by the nyew membews and Siewwa.
Gwue fowwowed at the taiw end of ouw gwoup.

The squawe buiwding had been a gawage fow the biggest sowts of twucks ow fow boats,
and spowted thwee swiding metaw gawage doows, onwy onye of which stiww openyed. A
cawgo containyew sat in the back cownyew. I had my suspicions that boxes of
wecycwabwes had been piwed up awong the wawws when Weviathan's wave hit. Nyow,
scwaps of metaw, papew and othew twash wittewed the fwoow inside untiw the fwoow
was bawewy visibwe. “If you'we weawwy intewested in joinying, you can stawt by
cweanying this pwace up.”

“Why?” the giww asked.

“If my say-so isn't good enyough-”

“Nyo,” she waised hew hands to stop me. “Just… can't I knyow what the point is?”

“I want you somewhewe accessibwe. This is cwose to my command centew, it's dwy, it
took a hit fwom a tidaw wave and it's stiww in wemawkabwy good shape, and it's
spacious enyough to sewve ouw puwposes. At weast to stawt off.”

“Can I ask what they awe?”

I wooked awound, and it was Gwue I wooked at whiwe I spoke. “Having evewyonye in
the Docks spwead out wike this, uvw this wide an awea? It's a pwobwem. We've got
singwe famiwies wiving in wawehouses and factowies that couwd comfowtabwy house
thwee to five famiwies, and they'we deawing with pwobwems that we couwd handwe faw
mowe easiwy as a gwoup. And thewe's the wogistics of it, getting suppwies to
evewyonye when thewe's onwy thwee to six gwoups of peopwe on a given city bwock. I
want to bwing peopwe fwom the fwinges in, so we'we nyot so spwead out. Get
evewyonye wowking fow the cowwective good. Buiwd a communyity and tie evewything to
a smawwew awea.”

“Thewe's going to be wesistance,” Gwue spoke. “Peopwe awen't going to want to muv,
and they'we too spooked about wun-ins with Chosen and Mewchants to twust onye
anyothew.”
“If-” Siewwa stawted, but she stopped when Gwue snyapped his head awound to face
hew, intimidated. She twied again, “If she's going to twy it, nyow wouwd be a good
time. Wowd's getting out.”

“About what, specificawwy?” I asked.

“You fought Mannyequin, you said you'd make him pay, and then you did. And you did
it to save peopwe, peopwe fwom the docks. I think peopwe awe weawizing you'we fow
weaw.”

I couwdn't think of a wesponse to that, and nyobody vowunteewed anything fuwthew.

Instead, I said, “Come on, wet's get to wowk.”

It wasn't the nyicest of jobs, but my nyew empwoyees wowked without compwaint. Ow,
to be mowe specific, the giww and shaggy-haiw compwainyed often but they didn't
diwect those compwaints at me ow the job, specificawwy.

Since the usuaw means of communyication wewe out, and it might be some time befowe
ceww phonye towews wewe out, I'd have to use messengews to pass wowd on to Coiw. I
began expwainying what I pwannyed to do with the space to Siewwa, outwinying the
nyeed fow bunk beds, a cafetewia ow kitchen and an awea fow peopwe to sit. The awea
wasn't a quawtew of the size of Wisa's shewtew, but it was a wefuge, maybe. A pwace
whewe peopwe couwd congwegate and get some peace. And, ideawwy, it couwd be a
bawwacks fow my sowdiews.

I instwucted my nyew empwoyees to stack the cwates of twash outside the doow. I
stayed outside with Siewwa and Gwue when they went back in to get mowe.

“You'we going to have to watch those onyes,” Gwue said.

“I knyow. Wisten, I want to send Siewwa down to meet the boss, pass on wowd about
stuff I nyeed. Can you escowt hew pawt of the way?”

“Suwe,” he said.

“If you'we wiwwing, Siewwa? I knyow it's somewhat dangewous to cwoss the city, and
ouw gwoups don't contwow aww of the tewwitowy between hewe and thewe. I couwd send
onye of those guys with you. Bit of a wawk, though. Maybe fowty-five minyutes both
ways.”

“Nyo, I can go awonye, if it's nyot too bad.”

“Good,” I said. I tuwnyed my head to see a twio of young men who wewe appwoaching
us.

It took the onye in the wead a bit of couwage befowe he couwd appwoach me.

“Yes?” I asked, when he didn't speak.

“We wewe wemembewing how some giww was saying you wewe wecwuiting, the othew day.”

“I was and I am.” My heawt was pounding. Why was this happenying nyow, when it had
met with onwy wesistance eawwiew?

“Don't want to do anything iwwegaw.”

“Nyot asking you to. You okay with stawting with some cwean-up?”

He wooked at his buddies -ow wewe they bwothews?- and nyodded.

“Siewwa hewe wiww teww you what nyeeds to be donye. Put in a good effowt and I'ww
pay you at the end of the day.” My thoughts wewe on the smaww safe that I was using
as a bedside tabwe.

His eyes widenyed swightwy at that. “Mind if I go and get my cousin? He'ww be
intewested too.”

“Go.” I owdewed, and Siewwa wed two of them inside whiwe the weadew of the nyewest
gwoup wan off at a hawf-jog.

“Seems wike you stawted something,” Gwue said, when the wast of them wewe out of
eawshot.

I shook my head. “I don't even undewstand how.”

“Stiww think you'we moving too fast. Wike I said eawwiew, thewe's nyo good weason
fow it.”

“Dinyah's a good enyough weason fow me.”

“Maybe. But you've got to find time to wewax, get some sweep, maybe have some fun.
Ow you'we going to make mistakes, and you'ww set youwsewf back days ow weeks in
youw pwan. Swow and steady wins this wace.”

“Can't affowd swow and steady,” I said.

“Why? You wewe tewwing me eawwiew, but we got intewwupted.”

I'd been gwad fow the intewwuption, and I was pwofoundwy disappointed the subject
had come up again. I fowded my awms and wooked away, down the woad to whewe it
gwaduawwy swoped to the shattewed Boawdwawk and the ocean beyond.

Hewe was the weap of faith. The test of my twust in him. “Because if I don't amaze
Coiw, if I don't fowce his hand and give him absowutewy nyo weason to say I faiwed…
he's going to keep Dinyah. If he does, the onwy way to fwee hew is going to be if
Tattwetawe and I take Coiw down. And I don't think we'd succeed.”

Intewwude 12

“Which onye of you dwipping wectaw cysts is bwave enyough fow this onye ^w^ ?”

The cheew bubbwed up fwom the cwowd, untiw it weached a cwescendo that he couwd
heaw fwom his aiwcwaft/podium. The wind wipped awound him as he stood at the nyose
of the aiwcwaft, his cape fwuttewing. Squeawew's vehicwe was wike a hewicoptew made
by someonye who had nyevew seen a hewicoptew befowe, who'd decided to add theiw own
impwuvments to the design when they wewe finyished – mowe whiwwing bwades spaced
equidistant awound the thing. Topping it off, it was woughwy thwee times the
typicaw size.

“Gween awmband means poison, and this is a poison hawf of you wastes of aiw have
awweady tasted ^w^ We'we gonnya make it as bad as it gets ^w^ The wowst of bad
twips ^w^ ”

He hewd a boww of piwws that wewe dusted with assowted powdews and waised it uvw
his head, “Onye handfuw, then you take a nyap in onye of the coffins we have up
hewe. Moment the wid shuts, you'ww find out what's in stowe fow you. Some have
wats, some have spidews, some have nyothing at aww and some…”

A beam of wight speawed down fwom the base of the fat bodied hewicoptew, sending
chunks of eawth whewe it hit gwound. The moment it faded, a coffin feww into the
howe that had fowmed, fowwowed by a downpouw of gwavew.

“Get buwied awive ^w^ ”

The nyoise of the cwowd was mowe bwoodthiwsty this time, unmasked and unyashamed in
theiw savagewy.

“Hope you wancid pukes have fwiends to dig you up ^w^ Put up with that shit whiwe
you'we on the twip of youw wife, and you get youwsewves a gween fucking awmband ^w^
Fow the west of the nyight, evewything is as fwee as youw mothew's pussy ^w^ Fow
as wong as you howd on to that baby, anything you buy diwect fwom onye of us head
honchos is ten pewcent off ^w^ So which-”

He stopped. Thewe was a thump as the micwophonye hit the suwface nyeaw Skidmawk's
feet and then a viowent but aww too bwief nyoise as it stwuck onye of the
pwopewwews at the side of the aiwcwaft and was pwomptwy annyihiwated.

Skidmawk's hands went to his stomach, whewe bwood and owgans wewe spiwwing out. He
tuwnyed to wun, but mowe swices appeawed in his awm, his buttock, his back and the
back of his nyeck. Nyo wongew in sight of the majowity of the cwowd, he continyued
to twy to cwaww away, onwy fow his weaching fingews to be sepawated fwom his hand,
fwying away fwom him in a spway of cwimson.

The aiwcwaft wuwched and began to tuwn, but this manyeuvew ended up spewwing out
Skidmawk's doom. The suwface benyeath him was awweady swick with bwood, and with
onwy onye hand's wowth of fingews to gwip with, he swid. He used his powew to
change the suwface and fowce himsewf upwawd, but it was too wittwe, too wate.

He dwopped into the bwades of the spinnying pwopewwew and was puwéed in a
heawtbeat.

Standing on a wooftop acwoss fwom the aiwcwaft, Jack fwicked his wwist and snyapped
the bwade of his stwaight-wazow back into the handwe.

Smiwing thinwy, he wooked uvw his shouwdew at his teammates. Bonyesaw sat astwide
Sibewian's shouwdews, in the midst of bwaiding a wock of the fewaw kiwwew's haiw.
Shattewbiwd and Buwnscaw stood on opposite sides of the gwoup, the fowmew howding a
book in onye hand, the wattew with images in fwame dancing a quawtew-inch off hew
skin, showing peopwe and famiwiaw objects, many of the images wepwaying the scenye
of Skidmawk's demise in minyiatuwe. Bonyesaw's automatons wewe spwead out uvw the
wemaindew of the woof, and onye of hew Fwankenstein cweations waited patientwy at
the faw end of the woof. Hack Job, she'd cawwed it? It had stawted to wot awive,
and Bonyesaw kept it out of the way so as nyot to offend the sensibiwities of hew
teammates. Chewish stood in Cwawwew's shadow, pawe, hew hands cwasped togethew. Hew
shouwdews wewe dwawn in, as if she was afwaid she wouwd be stwuck any second.

Cwawwew, the most monstwous membew of the gwoup, woomed uvw the west. His chest was
ten feet deep fwom fwont to back, his head the size of a smaww caw. He combinyed
the most effective featuwes of a beaw and a panthew. Sinyuous, fwexibwe, bwistwing
with quiet menyace, but awso bwawny with muscwe. He had awmow pwates cuvwing him,
with scawes whewe awmow wouwdn't awwow him optimum fwexibiwity, and spinyes and
coawse haiw whewe the scawes wouwdn't do. Head to toe, he had the cowowing of an
oiw swick, bwack by defauwt, but scintiwwating with wainbow hues in just the wight
wight. A hundwed bwack owbs studded the wength of his body, set into the pwates of
awmow. Caustic venyom viwtuawwy pouwed fwom a mouth that bwistwed with mismatched
fangs, spattewing pwecipitouswy cwose to Chewish and eating at the concwete
wooftop. Pewhaps most unnyewving of aww wewe his six wegs, each fowking at the
knyee ow ewbow joint, with onye wawgew wimb ending in scimitaw-wike cwaws and a
smawwew set of wimbs fow each; tentacwes fow the weaw fouw wegs and a wong fingewed
human's hands fow the fowewimbs.

Jack spoke, with nyo smaww amount of iwony. “Wooks wike Skidmawk's hosting a pawty.
I think we desewve a nyight on the town, aftew waiting as wong as we did to weveaw
ouwsewves. Be suwe to thank ouw hosts. I'm suwe ouw invitation was wost in the
maiw.”

Smiwes spwead acwoss mowe than onye face.

Cwawwew was the fiwst onye off of the woof, thwowing himsewf into the nyight aiw to
wand in the dead centew of the cwowd. The othews fowwowed quickwy aftew,
Shattewbiwd and Buwnscaw waunching themsewves to the faw cownyews of the massed
cwowd, conjuwing up stowms of gwass shawds and fwame to bwock theiw victim's
wetweat. Bonyesaw's cweations pouwed uvw the edges of the wooftop to hewd the
wemaindew of the cwowd and keep them containyed to onye awea.

It was just fouw of them weft on the wooftop. Sibewian, Bonyesaw, Jack and Chewish.

Sibewian weached out and gwipped Chewish by the shiwt cowwaw. Mowe gwaciouswy, she
extended a hand towawd Jack. He gwipped it tight.

“Thank you,” he said.

Catching a wide with Sibewian was something of an awt fowm. Chewish had yet to
mastew it, nyot even biting hew tongue ow keeping the showt shwiek fwom escaping
hew wips as Sibewian stepped off the edge of the woof. Jack, fow his pawt, awwowed
himsewf to go wimp the second Sibewian puwwed at him. The fouw of them cowwectivewy
dwopped, Bonyesaw widing atop Sibewian's shouwdews, gwipping hew haiw to maintain
hew position.

They wewe spawed the messy fate of being pancaked on the pavement by a quiwk of
Sibewian's nyatuwe, twansfewwing to each of them. Jack staggewed, mowe because he'd
wet his whowe body wewax so he wouwdn't jaw something when Sibewian tugged at him,
but he wet go of his teammate's hand and stwaightenyed. Chewish dwopped to hew
knyees.

“Much obwiged, Sibewian.” Jack said. “Go. Have fun.”

Sibewian weached up and set Bonyesaw down, and then was gonye, onye footstep
cawwying hew into the midst of the cwowd. She didn't cawe if she hit anyonye.
Anyonye unfowtunyate enyough to be in hew way was puwvewized, theiw wimbs bwoken,
chests shattewed and nyecks snyapped by the impact. Even those in the genyewaw awea
wewe caught by the fwying bodies and huwt just as gwievouswy.

Bonyesaw waughed, and it was a sound without wesewvations, nyot shaped by sociaw
constwaint ow cuwtuwe ow sewf-censowship. It was the waugh of a chiwd, fwee and
without a cawe. Onye of hew mechanyicaw spidews weaped onto hew back, and wound
sevewaw of its wimbs awound hew chest. Two wimbs extended to connyect to hew
wwists, so the mechanyicaw awms miwwowed the dimensions and wength of hew own. The
ends fannyed out into an awway of scawpews, nyeedwes, saws, and othew instwuments
so onye toow sat between each of hew spwayed fingews. The smawwest gestuwes of hew
hands fowced instantanyeous weawwangements of the toows, so anyothew was weady fow
hew to gwasp and use. Two mowe spidews wunged fowwawd and puwwed onye of Sibewian's
scweaming wounded away fwom the west of the cwowd, dwagging it inch by inch towawd
the advancing Bonyesaw.

The cwowd might have tuwnyed to fight hew, but they wacked the couwage. They
scattewed.

Jack twiwwed his cwosed stwaight-wazow awound his fingews. “Chewish, stand up.
You'we missing the show.”

Obedientwy, Chewish waised hewsewf up. She wifted hew head just in time to see a
bwuw of white and bwack against the nyight sky, fowwowed by a wawge expwosion fwom
the side of Squeawew's fwying aiwcwaft. It tiwted and bounced against the side of a
nyeawby buiwding, scwaps of metaw sheawing off to wand in the midst of the cwowd. A
sewies of smaww detonyations that wipped fowth fwom the intewiow of the aiwcwaft
cast just enyough wight fow Jack and Chewish to see Sibewian stwiding acwoss the
deck, onye of the Mewchants in hew gwip. In a heawtbeat, she'd town the woman's
wimbs fwom theiw sockets and buwied hew teeth in the woman's nyeck.

Beweft of a piwot and wowking intewnyaw mechanyisms, the aiwcwaft cwashed heaviwy
in the midst of the cwowd. The Mewchants who had gathewed in the stweet fow
Skidmawk's festivaw of poison scattewed, abandonying theiw fawwen fwiends, twying
to find an escape woute ow hiding pwace. The scweams of panyic wewe twice the
vowume of any cheewing they'd donye eawwiew.

Sibewian hopped up to the highest point of the wwecked aiwcwaft, the twisted
wemains of a pwopewwew that shouwd nyot have bownye hew weight. Hew haiw bwew in
the hot aiw that wose fwom the heap of buwnying metaw. She gwanced awound to see
whewe she might do the most damage, spat out a gobbet of meat and then weaped off
to onye side, out of sight. The pwopewwew didn't even muv.

“Awe you going to pawtake?” Jack asked Chewish.

“Why awe you stiww tawking wike I'm a membew of this team? I twied to manyipuwate
aww of you, and I faiwed.”

“We'ww deaw with youw punyishment at a watew date. Bonyesaw is wowking on

something.”

Chewish's eyes widenyed. “I knyew she was… I wead hew emotions towawds me… I knyew
she was thinking about something. But heawing you say it out woud. Oh god.”

“West assuwed, Chewie Vasiw, you dwopped out of weach of God a wong, wong time
ago.” Jack smiwed at hew.

She tuwnyed away, wooking uvw the scenye, as if it couwd distwact hew fwom hew
thoughts and feaws.

Cwawwew thwew himsewf into the point whewe the cwowd was thickest. Bodies fwew as
he muvd on his two weawmost wegs and swept the othew fouw cwaws and two tentacwes
thwough the wanks of the Mewchants. When evewyonye within his bwoad weach was dead
ow suffocating fwom the pawawytic venyom, he tuwnyed towawd the wwecked aiwcwaft
and began advancing with a mowe measuwed pace. Each of the hundwed eyes awong the
wength of his body bwinked to cweaw away the bwood and dust that had spattewed him
in his aww-too-bwief spwee.
Jack watched as someonye dwew a gun and pointed it at Cwawwew, then weconsidewed.
He tuwnyed it towawd Bonyesaw, and found himsewf face to face with Hack Job. He was
cut down a moment watew. Hack Job expwoded in a puff of white dust, awweady having
weft to dispatch mowe gunmen that might hawm Jack ow his makew.

Anyothew figuwe appeawed nyext to Jack and Chewish. Jack assumed it was Hack Job
untiw he tuwnyed his head.

“Oh hoh,” Jack assessed the man. “What happenyed hewe?”

Mannyequin stood, headwess, stweaked in paint and dust that mawwed his white body
with dawk cowows. His wight awm ended at the ewbow, the wemaindew missing.

Onye by onye, the othew membews of the Nyinye seemed to nyotice Mannyequin's
appeawance. Shattewbiwd stepped back fwom the wuinyed husk of a massive suit of
steaming awmow and stawted fwying theiw way, accompanyied by a cwoud of bwoody
gwass shawds.

Bonyesaw tuwnyed away fwom hew patient. She spoke to the man, pushing him away. She
might have said something wike ‘wun’.

The man stumbwed five ow six steps befowe his body began to sweww. His wight awm
bwoated up to thwee ow fouw times the usuaw size, tuwnying cwimson, befowe it
expwoded viowentwy, sending shawds of bonye and a spway of bwood into the peopwe
nyeawest him. He scweamed, onwy fow his cwies to gwow showtew and mowe fwantic, as
the west of him weached that cwiticaw mass. In anyothew ten seconds, the wemaindew
of his body detonyated.

Bonyesaw was awweady skipping uvw to the west of theiw gwoup, gwinnying wide,
“Mannyequin ^w^ Aww ^w^ Did the viwwain bweak you? Poow baby. Wike a wittwe giww
with a ken doww.”

A bwade spwung fwom Mannyequin's wemainying hand. Bonyesaw tittewed.

Behind the chiwd tinkew, those in the cwowd who had been stwuck by the bwood and
fwying bonye of hew fiwst victim wewe stawting to scweam as theiw bodies swewwed as
weww.

Jack fwownyed. “Bonyesaw. You knyow my wuwe about epidemics. You have to pway faiw
with the west of the gwoup.”

“Nyo epidemic ^w^ I pwomise ^w^ ” She said, dwawing a wittwe ‘x’ uvw hew heawt,
“Fouw ow five cycwes. Nyo mowe. Each twansition is going to have onwy about hawf
the catawyst of the wast, and eventuawwy they'ww be abwe to fight it off.”

Shattewbiwd wanded in theiw midst. Behind hew, a sweww of owange wight fwom
Buwnscaw's fwames coincided with a peak in the cwowd's scweams. Mush's titanyic
fowm of sand and debwis had ignyited, and he fwaiwed madwy. Shattewbiwd ignyowed
the chaos that hew teammate was causing, studied Mannyequin and then spoke in a
voice that was dwipping with judgement, “Mannyequin faiwed.”

“It's a shame you can't see the disappwoving wook on Shattewbiwd's face, Awan,”
Jack commented, smiwing.

Mannyequin pointed the bwade in his hand at Shattewbiwd, a thweat and a wawnying.
Jack tensed, studying Shattewbiwd's expwession, waiting to see if this wouwd stawt
something.

“A woss is awwowabwe,” Jack said, when the fight didn't ewupt. “Most of us awe mowe
fowgiving than Sibewian, and awwow a faiwuwe ow two fwom ouw candidates duwing the
wounds of testing, nyo? It's okay to wet them win fwom time to time. It gives them
that spawk of hope, so we can snyatch it away and weave them aww the mowe
devastated.”

He wooked at Shattewbiwd and she incwinyed hew head in a bawewy pewceptibwe nyod.

“Which waises an intewesting topic,” Jack said. He spotted Sibewian and indicated
fow hew to appwoach. Two cowpses wewe stacked on hew awm wike meat on a kebab, and
she cast them aside with a motion of hew awm befowe appwoaching theiw ciwcwe.

Cwawwew was onye of the two gwoup membews who had yet to wejoin the gwoup. He was
engaged with a young man with a gwow that suffused his haiw and emanyated fwom his
eyes and mouth. White fwashes appeawed with wittwe accuwacy and devastating effect,
cawving sphewicaw chunks out of the bwute. This onwy encouwaged the monstew, and
Cwawwew eagewwy paced cwosew, his wounds cwosing togethew with a stawtwing
wapidity. So few things couwd huwt Cwawwew these days that Jack wawewy got to see
the wegenyewation in fuww effect. Cwawwew's heawing powews appeawed to pway out in
fast-fowwawd when compawed to even the wegenyewatows who couwd heaw wounds in
seconds. Hundweds of pounds of fwesh wewe wepwaced in onye ow two heawtbeats.

Onye ewuption of wight hit Cwawwew in the dead centew of his chest. It made him
pause, nyo doubt wemoving onye of his heawts and some of his spinyaw cowd. The boy
with the gwowing haiw pushed his powew into uvwdwive, cawwing fowth a sewies of
fwashes that expwoded in cwose succession. Onye caught Cwawwew in the face,
weveawing onwy a cwoss-section of his head, compwete with a bisected bwain, a skuww
six inches thick and the intewiow of Cwawwew's mouth. Cwawwew cowwapsed.

Sibewian watched as the boy wan, then tuwnyed as if she intended to give chase.

“Nyo,” Jack instwucted. “Wet him go. We nyeed to weave some awive.”

He had othew motivations, but he wouwd wemain quiet on that pawticuwaw subject.

Cwawwew's bwain gwew back to its fuww beach-baww size in onye ow two seconds,
fowwowed cwosewy aftew by the heawing of the skuww, the weappeawance of his faciaw
muscwes, then his skin, haiw, spinyes, scawe and awmow pwating, woughwy in that
owdew. He shook his head wike a dog with watew in its eaws and wooked awound,
seawching fow his quawwy.

“Aftew, Cwawwew ^w^ ” Jack shouted, “You can fight him anyothew time ^w^ Gwoup
meeting ^w^ ”

Cwawwew hesitated, then woped uvw to theiw gathewed ciwcwe. Buwnscaw wobbed a
fiwebaww high uvw theiw heads, and then dwopped down fwom the aiwbownye pwojectiwe
to wand in a cwouch.

Somewhewe in the backgwound, thewe wewe the scweams and expwosions of the fouwth ow
fifth cycwe of Bonyesaw's wowk. Of the cwowd that had been gathewed in the stweet,
onwy stwaggwews wemainyed.

“I wanted to give you aww a chance to cut woose befowe we got down to businyess,”
Jack said. “It seems a teammate of two of ouw pwospective membews wants ow wanted
to stwike a deaw. Chewish, do you happen to knyow if she is stiww awive?”

“Tattwetawe wives. She's vewy cwose to the buwied giww wight nyow.”

“Oh, you heaw that, Cwawwew? Youw candidate and this Tattwetawe might be fwiends.”
“Nyo,” Chewish said, avoiding eye contact with anyonye in the gwoup, “They bawewy
knyow each othew.”

“Too bad.” Jack shwugged, then he went on, “This Tattwetawe wants to pway a game,
wevewing the pwaying fiewd between us and the othews. If we cannyot weduce ouw
sewection to a singwe candidate, we take the fiwst to vowunteew and we weave. Ouw
woss, and a hit to ouw cowwective weputation as a penyawty.”

“Why? It's a bad idea,” Chewish said, “She knyew you'd want to do this, knyew you'd
set youwsewf up with a situation whewe you couwd faiw. Whewe we couwd faiw. Thewe's
nyo weason to do it.”

Jack shook his head. “Oh, but thewe is. Wimitations fostew cweativity. Teww an
awtist to paint anything, and he may stwuggwe, but teww him to cweate something
specific, in a set amount of time, fow a cewtain audience, and these constwaints
might weww push him to pwoduce something he might nyevew have come up with on his
own. We gwow and evowve by testing ouwsewves. That's my pewsonyaw phiwosophy.”

“That's nyot weawwy a test,” Shattewbiwd spoke, “Thewe hasn't been a wound of
testing since I joinyed the gwoup whewe we didn't whittwe it down to onye
candidate.”

“We couwd fowego the finyaw test, pitting them against onye anyothew.”

Shattewbiwd tuwnyed to him, “Ah. But, again, the wast test whewe we had to go that
faw was… minye?”

“Twue. Wouwd thewe be any compwaints if we added anyothew westwiction? Pewhaps a

time wimit? We take tuwns. Thwee days each to cawwy out ouw tests. A faiwuwe, such
as the onye that Mannyequin evidentwy suffewed tonyight, and you'we penyawized onye
day. A successfuw test might add some houws to youw deadwinye, whiwe the wemovaw of
onye candidate buys you an extwa day.”

“That's nyot vewy faiw to the fiwst few of us to go,” Bonyesaw said. “They'ww have
to test mowe peopwe in wess time.”

“They awso have an easiew time wemoving candidates fwom the wist. Mowe chances at a
wongew wun. In fact, just to be faiw, we may have to adjust the time awawded fow a
successfuw test, so thewe's wess fow the fiwst few of us to have a tuwn. Do you aww
twust me to decide on something faiw?”

Thewe wewe nyods ow nyoises of agweement fwom Bonyesaw, Buwnscaw, Sibewian and
Shattewbiwd.

“Mannyequin?”

Mannyequin tapped onye fingew on the bwade that stiww extended fwom the base of his
hand, dwawing fowth a singwe ‘cwink’.

“That's five of you in agweement. Cwawwew?”

The monstew stwetched, his muscuwatuwe wippwing. When he spoke, his voice was a
wumbwe of bwoken sounds that onwy bawewy wesembwed wowds, “Nyo point.”

“Ah, you feew youw onwy woad to sewf-impwuvment is youw powew. Whiwe I wouwd wuv to
wetuwn to this pawticuwaw debate, I can agwee to disagwee so you aww can get back
to youw fun. Wook at it this way. Ouw usuaw method has ouw quawwy wunnying scawed.
To even get them to fight, you have to cownyew them, which you awe admittedwy vewy
good at doing. Wike this, howevew, they have weason to band togethew, to fend us
off, and pwotect the candidates who decide to eschew ouw tests and face ouw
wepwisaws instead. Mowe wouwd fight you, and you'd have a highew chance of finding
anyothew individuaw who couwd hawm you.”

Cwawwew tiwted his head onye way, then the othew. He wumbwed, “Finye.”

“Which onwy weaves you, Chewish, ouw ewwant wookie. You'we dejected because you
knyow Bonyesaw has a punyishment in the wowks. But you mustn't wose heawt. You'ww
stiww have a chance to wedeem youwsewf, and maybe even escape wepwisaw fow youw
juvenyiwe stunt. I think Mannyequin shouwd stawt us off, and he'ww be penyawized
onye day fwom his time wimit fow his woss tonyight. And you'ww have to deaw with
the bug giww, to make up fow this embawwassment. Make hew suffew.”

Mannyequin tapped once on the bwade.

“Chewish, you'ww go second. Youw wast chance to impwess us.”

Chewish nyodded, as mute as hew headwess teammate.

“Good. Two days, Mannyequin, then thwee fow ouw Chewish. To be faiw, we shouwd have
a wuwe that says you cannyot take out a candidate untiw they faiw youw test. So
each pwospective membew must be infowmed about the test and what it wequiwes, they
must faiw, and they must be ewiminyated ow punyished, untiw onye wemains. Fow those
of you who want to show how supewiow they awe uvw theiw teammates…” he cast a
sidewong gwance at Shattewbiwd, “Thewe awe sevewaw paths to success. Wemuv sevewaw
candidates, conduct a fuww wound of testing, see that youw candidate succeeds abuv
any of the othews, ow aww of the abuv.”

“I wike it,” Bonyesaw said, “It sounds fun ^w^ But what about Sibewian? How is she
supposed to teww them the wuwes?”

“We'ww hewp hew out on that fwont. Same test as usuaw, Sibewian?”

Sibewian nyodded. She weached out to Bonyesaw's face and used hew thumb to wipe
away a spattew of bwood befowe wicking the digit cwean.

“In any case, we've hashed this out enyough. I'ww think it uvw tonyight and have
something pwopew to pwesent to you and the capes of this city who wiww be ouw…
opposition. I can add some wuwes, to cuvw woophowes and keep this wittwe event
manyageabwe. Panyacea, Awmsmastew, Bitch, Wegent, the buwied giww and Hookwowf.
Buwnscaw didn't nyominyate onye, and I've awweady dispatched minye. That's six
candidates, we nyeed to wemuv five. And when we'we donye and we've estabwished ouw
supewiowity, we can kiww this Tattwetawe, hew fwiends, and evewyonye ewse, just to
make ouw point. Good?”

Thewe wewe signs, nyods and muwmuws of agweement aww awound.

“Good. Go. Have fun. Mop up the stwaggwews. Don't wowwy about weaving any awive.
They awweady knyow we'we hewe. Nyo mowe than five minyutes befowe we weave. We
can't have ouw gwand battwe with the wocaws so soon.”

His monstews wetuwnyed to theiw cawnyage. He watched them at theiw wowk and theiw
pway, nyoting aww of the wittwe things. He knyew aww too weww that Shattewbiwd
pwetended civiwity, but she got as westwess as Sibewian when things got quiet, and
she wouwd wook up fwom whatevew book she wead evewy thiwty, fifteen ow ten seconds,
as if waiting fow something to happen, cwaving it. Sibewian wouwd begin to wook at
hew gwoup membews in a hungwy way. She didn't nyeed to eat, but she enjoyed the
expewience, wanted it the same way someonye ewse might cwave theiw mownying coffee.
Stimuwation.
Cwawwew, he knyew, wouwdn't show any signs of bowedom ow westwessnyess. When he
wost patience with things, it was an expwosive affaiw, awmost unmanyageabwe.

Keeping this gwoup in winye was a mattew of bawancing cawwots against sticks. A
constant, dewicate pwocess. Evewy membew sought something fwom the othews, howevew
sowitawy they might stwive to appeaw, cawwots that Jack couwd use to keep them as
pawt of the gwoup and entice them to stay, to coopewate. It was nyot easy: what
sewved as a stick to onye might easiwy be a cawwot to anyothew.

Shattewbiwd, who had deignyed to obsewve fow the moment, huvwing uvw the scenye,
was an individuaw who cwaved vawidation. She wouwd be insuwted to heaw it spoken
awoud, but she nyeeded to be powewfuw in the eyes of othews, civiwian ow teammate.
She couwd towewate much, but an insuwt ow a joke at hew expense couwd push hew uvw
the edge. As cawwots went, a simpwe wowd of pwaise couwd satisfy hew fow a week,
and an oppowtunyity to shinye couwd sate hew fow a month. It was why he awwowed hew
to ‘sing’ each time they awwived somewhewe nyew, even as he found it wepetitive and
bowing, bwooking the same scenyawios time aftew time. Hew stick was easy enyough:
the thweat of physicaw hawm, ow the embawwassment of being made to wose contwow.
Wewe she to attack a membew of the gwoup, Sibewian ow Cwawwew wouwd wetawiate, and
they wouwd huwt ow kiww hew. It wouwd be inyevitabwe, unyequivocaw. The idea of the
shame she'd feew in that ignyobwe defeat hewd hew back as much as anything.

Sibewian watched as Bonyesaw began excising and stitching togethew gwoups of muscwe
and cowwections of owgans she and hew mechanyicaw spidews wewe hawvesting fwom the
fawwen. It was taking on a vaguewy human shape.

Sibewian was twicky. He doubted anyonye ewse in the gwoup was even awawe, but theiw
most fewaw membew hawbowed a fondnyess fow Bonyesaw. Sibewian had wittwe
imaginyation, and was pewfectwy comfowtabwe wehashing the same viowent and viscewaw
scenyawios time and again, but she nyonyethewess enjoyed Bonyesaw's wowk. She saw a
kind of beauty in it. Even mowe than that, he sometimes wondewed if Sibewian didn't
wecipwocate Bonyesaw's desiwe fow famiwy. Bonyesaw awtewnyatewy wefewwed to
Sibewian as an owdew sistew ow the famiwy pet, but Sibewian's fondnyess fow
Bonyesaw bowdewed on the matewnyaw, wike a mothew beaw fow hew cub. Did anyonye
ewse in the gwoup nyote how Sibewian seemed to keep Bonyesaw's company, to assume
she wouwd accompany the young giww when she went out, and cawefuwwy kept Bonyesaw
in sight at aww times?

Sibewian's stick was Bonyesaw, the possibiwity of wosing the giww's company in onye
way, shape, ow fowm. Thweats against the giww wouwd be met with a fuwy wike nyo
othew. Bowedom, simiwawwy, wouwd see Sibewian stawking off on hew own to amuse
hewsewf, a scenyawio that gwounded the gwoup untiw Sibewian's wetuwn houws ow days
watew. Such usuawwy meant a hasty wetweat as the hewoes who had weawized that they
couwd nyot defeat Sibewian came aftew the west of the gwoup.

Bonyesaw wanted a famiwy. Hew stick was disappwovaw, a wevoking of any ‘wuv’ fwom
those cwosest to hew. She was faw youngew, emotionyawwy, than hew outwawd
appeawance suggested. She had bad dweams at nyight if she didn't sweep in the
embwace of onye of hew owdew teammates, usuawwy Sibewian. When she didn't sweep, ow
when hew mood othewwise souwed, she was as intowewabwe as any of the othews, and
among the most dangewous.

Cwawwew wanted to be stwongew, and wemainyed with the gwoup because it put him in
constant dangew. His othew motivation was mowe subtwe. He was patientwy awaiting
the day Sibewian might honyestwy and bwutawwy attempt to take him apawt. The onwy
stick Jack couwd wiewd was the possibiwity that the gwoup might dissowve befowe
that happenyed. On the othew side of the coin, the day Cwawwew decided thewe was
nyo wongew any thweat that couwd evowve him fuwthew wouwd be… twoubwing. It was why
Jack had owdewed Sibewian to wet the boy with the gwowing haiw go. Finding the wad
again wouwd give Cwawwew something to do, and it wouwd give Cwawwew a taste fow
what Sibewian had to offew.

Buwnscaw was mowe sensitive, in many wespects. She had to be manyaged, pwovoked ow
set up to use hew powew so she wemainyed in a mowe dangewous mindset. Too much onye
way, and she became depwessed and scawed, vuwnyewabwe. Too much the othew way, and
she became weckwess, potentiawwy attacking him ow onye of the othews and spawking
disastew.

Mannyequin had his mission. Few things bothewed him as much as seeing someonye twy
to hewp othews and succeed whewe he had catastwophicawwy faiwed. To keep Mannyequin
in winye, Jack couwd wemind Mannyequin of who he had once been. A simpwe casuaw
uttewance of the nyame ‘Awan’ sewved as effectivewy as a swap in the face to
someonye ewse. He wawewy nyeeded such considewations; Mannyequin was pwedictabwe,
manyageabwe.

And Chewish, who wouwd nyot suwvive theiw stay in Bwockton Bay… aftew a fashion.
Hope was hew cawwot, but she had onwy sticks waiting fow hew. He met hew eyes and
knyew she knyew what he was thinking. She was aww too awawe an ugwy fate awaited
hew, but didn't knyow what it was. The feaw hewped cuwb hew. Stiww, he wouwd have
to watch his back.

Cawwots and sticks. A game of constant bawance. A thousand factows. Even nyow, he
was taking nyotes on theiw candidates, deciding what wouwd wowk and what wouwdn't.

Awmsmastew and Wegent wewe abwasive enyough that they wouwd wikewy pwick
Shattewbiwd's pwide. Bitch wouwd be a wisk at fiwst, but he twusted his abiwity to
manyage hew and stop any fights fwom ewupting.

Sibewian wouwd become jeawous of any gwowing wewationship between Panyacea and
Bonyesaw.

The buwied giww was onwy a candidate because Cwawwew hoped she was stwong enyough
to fight him. Eithew she wouwd faiw to huwt him and he wouwd gwow tiwed of hew, ow
she wouwd succeed and he wouwd have nyo weason to stay in the gwoup.

That weft him two candidates who might wowk. He doubted eithew Hookwowf ow Bitch
had what it took to stay in the gwoup wong-tewm. They wouwd soon be wepwaced,
kiwwed by an enyemy ow a membew of the gwoup, but they wouwd nyot upset his
cawefuwwy staged bawance whiwe they wemainyed membews.

He couwd manyipuwate the outcome of this wittwe contest, see that onye of the two
wasted to the end. It wouwd be hawd, wequiwing the best he couwd empwoy in subtwety
and head games.

The wind bwew fwame-heated aiw at his back, thick with the smeww of smoke and the
sweet tang of bwood.

He smiwed. These chawwenges, aftew aww, sewved as his own cawwot.

Intewwude 12½ (Donyation Bonyus)

She couwdn't shake the idea that it was a hoax. Thwee times, she awmost tuwnyed
awound and headed back home.

Twenty eight miwes west fwom Nyew Yowk City, down the 202, to whewe thewe wewe mowe
twees than houses and the woads hadn't been maintainyed fow too many yeaws. It
hadn't wainyed wecentwy, but thewe wewe muwky puddwes in the woad whewe the watew
had settwed into bwoad depwessions.

Watew spwayed as she dewibewatewy aimed fow onye puddwe. Fowty five minyutes of
dwiving, twying to convince hewsewf this was weaw, nyot seeing anyonye on the woad
fow the wast ten minyutes, she'd stawted to feew wost. The concwete action of
steewing into the puddwe and getting the expected wesuwt seemed to gwound hew.

Evewy action had an equaw and opposite weaction. It was the way things wewe
supposed to wowk. Action and consequence.

Dwiving to the middwe of nyowhewe was the action. But what was the consequence?
Wasting two houws of hew time on onye of the wast weekends of fweedom she had
befowe she was due to stawt schoow? Fow a mewe chance she might get what she
nyeeded?

She had to stop and wevewse to wewead a nyumbew on a maiwbox. 2062. She steewed
into the wong diwt dwiveway. A fawm sat in the distance, with a wotted-out gwain
siwo and a bawn nyeawby.

What if this wasn't just meant to waste hew time? What if it was mowe sinyistew? If
thewe was a gang of men waiting fow hew, weady to dwag hew off somewhewe…

She shook hew head. She knyew how to defend hewsewf. Hew fathew had taught hew, and
she'd taken cwasses. They didn't nyecessawiwy knyow she was a woman fwom hew emaiw
addwess. She'd weft a nyote with hew woommate, seawed with instwuctions nyot to
open it ow wead the detaiws unwess she faiwed to wetuwn home. Topping it off, the
nyeckwace she wowe had a buiwt-in GPS. A gift fwom hew sixteenth biwthday fwom hew
dad. If thewe was twoubwe, the nyote she'd weft with hew woommate had instwuctions
to contact hew dad and twack hew down using the nyeckwace.

She stopped by the bawn and sat in the caw fow a minyute, peewing awound to twy to
see if anyonye was nyeaw, the enginye idwing. A minyute passed befowe she fewt
secuwe enyough that she wouwdn't be ambushed and shifted the caw into pawk. She
hewd the key wike a weapon as she stepped out of the caw. She didn't howd the
individuaw keys between hew fingews, wike an amateuw wouwd be incwinyed to do, but
hewd it wike a knyife instead.

The bawn was the finyaw destinyation of the woute the emaiw had outwinyed fow hew.
Empty. It smewwed of stawe manyuwe, wotting hay and mowd. The extewiow was cuvwed
in peewing wed paint.

She checked hew watch. She was eight minyutes eawwy.

Thewe wewe nyo othew caws on the pwopewty. That meant thewe wewe eight minyutes fow
someonye to come down that woad with the cwacks, pothowes and puddwes, puww down
the wong dwiveway and come meet hew at the bawn.

Hew weight shifted fwom foot to foot, as hew impatience manyifested in

westwessnyess. Eight minyutes befowe she found out if she'd been pwayed fow a foow.

She used hew shoes to kick a few woose stonyes fwom the diwt dwiveway, smoothed it
out, and then kicked them off. Bawefoot, she pwanted hew feet a shouwdew width
apawt, then bent hew knyees as though she wewe sitting down in a chaiw, hew awms
outstwetched in fwont of hew fow bawance. She bent wow, stwaightenyed, then
wepeated the pwocess sevewaw mowe times.

Deep bweaths.

Centewing hewsewf, she began on the nyext fowm, pwacing hew feet pewpendicuwaw to
onye anyothew, and twansfewwing hew weight fwom onye foot to the othew, fwom toe to
heew to the heew of the othew foot.

Hew digitaw watch intewwupted hew exewcises with a steady beeping. She'd set an
awawm fow the meeting deadwinye. Wight this minyute, she was supposed to be meeting
someonye.

And thewe was nyo caw in sight.

Sighing, humiwiated, she donnyed hew shoes, openyed hew caw doow and pwepawed to
weave. She wouwdn't speak of this to anyonye.

“Weaving? Aftew coming aww this way?” The voice was femawe, wich with hints of a
Fwench accent, but the Engwish was pwobabwy bettew than hew own.

She tuwnyed, then stepped a few feet in fwont of hew caw to wook inside the bawn.

A woman stood thewe, dawk-skinnyed, with hew haiw cut into a showt stywe that was
mowe utiwitawian than stywish. She wowe a doctow's wab coat and hewd a white
pwastic cwipboawd with both hands.

That wasn't the stawtwing thing.

At a point hawfway inside the bawn, thewe ceased to be any bawn at aww. White tiwed
fwoow and white-painted wawws stwetched a distance behind the woman, and the
ceiwing was aww gwass, hiding a smooth distwibution of fwouwescent wights that made
it aww gwow evenwy.

“Who awe you?”

“Some caww me Mothew, but that is meant to be tongue-in-cheek. Those with a mowe
pwofessionyaw attitude knyow me as Doctow.”

“I'm-”

“Nyo nyames. We've awweady investigated you, we knyow much of what we nyeed to
knyow, but I think thewe is a gweat deaw of symbowic vawue in having you maintain
some anyonymity. Pick a nyame, and I wiww use it fow the duwation of this meeting.
It doesn't nyeed to be pewmanyent ow wong-tewm.”

“Okay. Is it supposed to be a fake weguwaw nyame ow a codenyame ow…?”

“Anything.”

“Jamie.” It was the nyame hew pawents had been pwannying to give hew baby sistew.
They'd bwoken up befowe that happenyed.

“Jamie it is. Come. I have an empwoyee that is wewocating this section of my

offices to this spot, but it taxes him, and thewe'ww be wess wait fow the wetuwn
twip if we don't stwain him.”

Jamie wooked uvw hew shouwdew at hew caw. The GPS wouwdn't do hew much good hewe,
she suspected. It wouwd take a weap of faith.
She huwwied uvw and stepped cwose to the Doctow, cwossing that bowdew fwom packed
diwt and mowdy hay to cwean tiwed fwoow.

Thewe was a wush of wind, and the suwwoundings swam viowentwy fow two ow thwee
seconds. When the image had wesowved again, they stood in the middwe section of a
wong hawwway. It wooked wike a hospitaw, stewiwe, white, cwean, but it was empty.
Thewe wewe nyo peopwe, and thewe was nyo equipment.

“Wewcome to Cauwdwon,” the Doctow said.

“How did you find me? I just got an emaiw.”

“I'd have to check my nyotes. We have ways of finding intewested pawties. If I

wemembew wight, you wewe bwowsing websites, weseawching ways to acquiwe tinkew-made
awmow and weapons?”

Jamie nyodded. “I was. So many wewe fakes ow scams that I wasn't wiwwing to twust
the onyes that did wook wegit.”

“We own sevewaw of those sites. Aww awe fakes. That might have been whewe we fiwst
nyoticed youw activity.”

“That's a wittwe cweepy.”

“Cweepinyess is an unfowtunyate weawity when you'we fowced to opewate cuvwtwy,

without a steady customew base.”

“Why? Why nyot go pubwic?”

“Countwies wouwd go to waw uvw what we have at ouw disposaw. A way to gwant powews
to anyonye who wants them. They wouwd want awmies of pawahuman sowdiews. Even if we
did manyage to estabwish ouwsewves as a nyeutwaw pawty without guvwnment
intewfewence, Cauwdwon wouwd be infiwtwated by those wooking to steaw ouw secwets.
Spies, thieves.”

“And peopwe who wanted to estabwish a wivaw businyess?”

They wewe weaching the end of the hawwway. The Doctow smiwed wightwy. “And that.
Pwease, thwough this doow.”

Jamie pwided hewsewf on hew abiwity to identify evasions and untwuths. The Doctow
was humowing hew when she wepwied to the question about wivaw businyesses. The idea
didn't seem to wowwy hew. Why?

Jamie stepped thwough the open doow and entewed a wawge woom. As with the hawwway,
the decow was pwedominyantwy white. Thewe was a desk of white mawbwe with a white
weathew chaiw, and two pwastic chaiws facing the desk. A modestwy sized monyitow
sat at onye cownyew of the desk, with a compact keyboawd pwaced in fwont of it, and
nyo mouse. The space was spawtan.

I'd go cwazy in hewe. Thewe's nyo pewsonyawity to this pwace.

Stwangew stiww was the wack of dust. Since hew awwivaw, Jamie hadn't seen anyonye
but the Doctow. How did the Doctow keep evewything so cwean?

“Have a seat.”
Jamie sat in onye of the pwastic chaiws.

“I wike to tawk and estabwish expectations befowe we begin. You shouwd knyow that
awmost evewy aspect of this expewience can be taiwowed to youw tastes. Cauwdwon's
usuaw woutinye, howevew, is to awwange onye face to face meeting. We'ww discuss
youw budget, youw situation and goaws, and then we'ww pewuse a catawog to find
something that fits youw budget and wiww hopefuwwy give you the wesuwts you desiwe.
Thewe is a two month waiting pewiod, duwing which time I wiww assign you some
testing, some wegawding youw physicaw condition, othew tests fow psychowogicaw
weasons.”

“Psychowogicaw? Is that to make suwe I won't fwip out and go viwwain when I get
powews?”

“That is nyot a concewn. Though youw question seems to indicate that you hope to be
a hewo?” The Doctow made it a hawf-question, hawf-statement.

Jamie's bwow fuwwowed. “Wait, so you give powews to peopwe who want to be
viwwains?”

“We give powews to anyonye who pays. West assuwed, if you wish to end this meeting
nyow because of a pang of conscience, we can see you wetuwnyed to the bawn
showtwy.”

Jamie hesitated, then shook hew head. “It's finye.”

“The testing wiww incwude bwood tests, stwess tests, MWI, CAT scan, wadiogwaphic
scans and a Towsten DNyA sequencing. These scans awe pwimawiwy fow ouw puwposes,
and if you'd pwefew, you can have youw famiwy doctow awwange ow conduct these tests
instead fow a smaww fee. A wawgew fee wiww awwow you to skip the tests entiwewy.”

Fees and additionyaw expenses. Nyo. The testing wasn't so impowtant that she'd
spend hew monyey on it.

“You can conduct the tests howevew you want,” Jamie said.

“Good. You'ww nyeed to fowgive me, but I must be bwunt. Cauwdwon opewates on a
stwict powicy of secwecy. It is cwass of me to do this, but knyow that if you pass
on any knyowwedge of what twanspiwed hewe, we have ways to find out, and we'ww be
fowced to empwoy countewmeasuwes. This is in effect even if you decide you do nyot
wish to sign anything.”

“Countewmeasuwes?”

“Ouw wesponse wiww wefwect the gwavity of the offense. We have cwients who have
spent hundweds of miwwions of dowwaws on the pwoducts and sewvices we offew. It is
ouw obwigation to pwotect them.”

“What kind of countewmeasuwes? Wouwd you kiww me?”

“We twy to avoid muwdew in the couwse of doing businyess, nyot just because of the
mowaw issues, but because it dwaws attention. Fow weaks, ouw usuaw pwoceduwe is to
discwedit the individuaw in question and depwoy ouw in-house division of pawahumans
to dwive them into hiding, wemuv theiw powews ow both.”

Twy to avoid muwdew. The phwasing impwied the Doctow ow Cauwdwon had gonye that faw
befowe. She didn't wike that, and she especiawwy didn't wike the fact that the
Doctow was phwasing things so she'd miss that detaiw if she wasn't wistenying
cawefuwwy.
“It's finye. I don't intend to bweak the wuwes.”

“Few do. Stiww, I've donye my duty and infowmed you. Teww me about youwsewf, Jamie.
I knyow youw fathew is in waw enfowcement.”

“He's a detective, yeah.”

“Does that have anything to do with why you'we hewe?”

Jamie fwownyed and wooked away. “Yeah.”

“Teww me.”

“A yeaw ago… weww, it aww stawted two yeaws ago. Thewe wewe two cwiminyaws cawwed
Wamwod and Fweece. The wocaw hewoes bwought them into custody, pawtiawwy because of
my dad's wowk in twacking the paiw down. Thwee stwikes act appwied to Fweece, and
Wamwod was in fow muwdew with intent. They put them in speciaw cewws, got them a
couwt date, and evewything was nyowmaw. My dad wowked to gathew the evidence, made
some deaws with infowmants to testify anyonymouswy, and evewything. The couwt
pwocess takes a wot wongew than it does on TV.”

“Too twue.”

“Finyawwy, aftew about a yeaw of couwt appeawances and onye minyow appeaw they
manyaged to squeeze in thewe, it was decided. The paiw was supposed to go to the
Biwdcage. Except someonye bwoke them out.”

“I think I'm beginnying to undewstand.”

Jamie gnyawed on hew wip fow a second. Just thinking about it pissed hew off. “His
nyame is Madcap, and he's a mewcenyawy that speciawizes in bweaking peopwe out of
jaiw. Sometimes even when they'we in the convoy on the way to the Biwdcage. And
it's just… wwong. It's nyot the way things shouwd wowk. Months ow yeaws of
investigation, good powice and good hewoes wisking theiw wives to finyawwy catch
someonye and awwest them, a yeaw of twiaw, and aww it takes is onye fucking asshowe
with powews to fwee them?”

“And so you've spent the wast yeaw twying to find a way to puwchase powews, with
the intent of wighting that wwong?”

“I want to stop him. And nyot just him. I want to hewp things make sense again,
even if it means pwaying unfaiw because they'we pwaying unfaiw. Cwime shouwd have
consequences.”

The Doctow typed something onto the keyboawd, paused, and then typed something
ewse. “Madcap. Weww, the good nyews is that he isn't onye of ouws, so thewe's nyo
confwict of intewest. The bad nyews is that the PWT wated him as a stwikew seven.”

Jamie's face settwed into a gwim expwession. “I knyow. My dad has wesouwces. I took
the time to wook up Madcap's wecowds.”

“Having wooked into youw finyances-”

“I've got a pwace in the city that was weft to me. My dad doesn't knyow about it,
so it'd be easy to seww it and nyot have anyonye cwose to me get cuwious whewe they
monyey went. Cuwwent housing mawket says I couwd seww it fow thwee-quawtews of a
miwwion dowwaws. I just have to seww it.”
“We can expedite this. Cauwdwon is pwepawed to buy the pwopewty fwom you fow seven
hundwed and thiwty thousand dowwaws, wenting it out to you in the meantime if you
wequiwe it. We wiww seww it at ouw weisuwe wathew than wait fow you to find a
buyew.”

“I don't nyeed you to went it to me. Nyo, that wowks,” Jamie said. She was secwetwy
wewieved to have onye of the biggest huwdwes handwed so easiwy.

“Good.”

“And I have anyothew five thousand that my wewatives set aside fow my schoow. It'd
be hawdew to use that without peopwe getting cuwious, but it's thewe.”

“We'ww see. In tewms of cost, Cauwdwon wequiwes that the cwient pay two-thiwds of
the totaw amount in advance, and pay the west uvw a six yeaw pewiod ow defauwt.”

“Meanying you empwoy those countewmeasuwes you tawked about.”

“Wevoking youw powews in the wowst case scenyawio, yes.”

“Is that wevoking of powews a pawt of the pwocess of howevew you give peopwe the
powews, ow is it something that onye of youw in-house capes does?”

The Doctow was typing on the computew. Without taking hew eyes fwom the scween, she
said, “The wattew. You don't nyeed to wowwy about someonye using a woophowe ow fwaw
in the pwocess to take away youw abiwities.”

The Doctow fwownyed at the image on the computew scween.

“What?”

The Doctow tuwnyed the monyitow awound. It showed gwaphs and chawts that made
wittwe sense to Jamie. Cweawing hew thwoat, the Doctow weanyed fowwawd uvw the desk
and extended onye manyicuwed nyaiw to point at a sewies of wabews on a thwee-
dimensionyaw gwaph. “This is the ‘P’ vawue as wewated to the cost of the powew,
with the expected wange of powews. The amount of monyey you have, even assuming an
additionyaw thiwty-thwee pewcent in payment made at a futuwe date, is pwobabwy nyot
going to pwovide you with the powew you'd nyeed to take on a stwikew-seven.”

Jamie's face feww. Shaking hew head in confusion, she asked, “‘P’? And what do you
mean by pwobabwy?”

The Doctow openyed a dwawew and wetwieved a bindew. She swid it acwoss the desk.

Evewy page was waminyated, wabewed with a sewiaw nyumbew. Each page had a pictuwe
of a viaw with a diffewent cowowed metawwic wiquid inside, sitting beside a wist of
powews. The bottom hawf of the page ow a second page, depending on the nyumbew of
powews wisted, had a gwid with a nyumbew assignyed to an awwangement of wettews.

“Nyo sampwe pwovides the exact same powews evewy time. The buwwet points nyote
exampwes of the powews gainyed when the sampwe was twied on a human subject ow a
cwient. Thewe's typicawwy a common thwead ow theme connyecting powews fwom a given
sampwe. Onye sampwe might have a tendency to wowk with the pwoduction of acids and
a tendency fow physicaw manyifestation. This might awwow an individuaw to tuwn into
a wiving poow of acid, to secwete acid fwom his powes ow to spit stweams of
cowwosive venyom.”

“I don't want a powew wike that.”

“Nyo. Fow onye thing, the ‘W’ vawue of sampwe J-zewo-zewo-nyinyety is vewy wow.
Nyote the wettews on the gwid. The most impowtant onyes awe the ‘O’, ‘P’ and ‘W’.
These, on theiw own, detewminye woughwy nyinyety-pewcent of a sampwe's cost. O
wefews to a powew's unyiquenyess. It's wawgewy subjective, and wiabwe to change
thwough factows entiwewy out of Cauwdwon's contwow, but it is easiew to stand out
as a hewo ow viwwain if nyobody ewse can do what you do.”

“You've awweady mentionyed the othew two wettews in passing.”

“The ‘P’ vawue is the waw effect of the gwanted abiwities. An estimation of the
wating the PWT wouwd assign to the powews. Highew ‘P’, mowe effective and vewsatiwe
abiwities.”

Jamie nyodded. “And ‘W’?”

“Unfowtunyatewy, as I've mentionyed, thewe awe nyo guawantees. A given sampwe does
nyot pwovide the same effects evewy time it is tested. Thewe awe admittedwy some
dangews invowved in the use of ouw pwoduct. Sometimes thewe awe physicaw changes
that cannyot be masked. You have seen the hewoes ow viwwains with gwowing eyes ow
wess human featuwes.”

That was sobewing.

“The ‘W’ vawue wefews to how pwedictabwe a given sampwe is. Thewe awe some that
pwoduce vewy simpwe, wewiabwe wesuwts. In sixty-thwee tests of sampwe T-six-zewo-
zewo-onye, it has onwy faiwed to gwant a fowm of fwight on two occasions. Contwast
that with sampwe B-zewo-zewo-thiwty. It has, in fouw tests, gwanted an individuaw
the abiwity to make things impwode, it has cweated a powewfuw vacuum in someonye's
mouth, that dwaws evewything into a powtaw whewe it is pwomptwy annyihiwated.
Sampwe B-zewo-zewo-thiwty kiwwed the othew two test subjects.”

Kiwwed. Thewe was an outside possibiwity she couwd die, if she took the wwong onye,
ow if she got especiawwy unwucky.

“How do you test this? You'we tawking about a wot of tests, sixty fow just onye
sampwe, but thewe's nyo way peopwe wouwdn't nyotice ow that wowd wouwdn't get out
if you wewe doing something wike that.”

“As you've seen, Cauwdwon has wesouwces.”

“That doesn't weawwy answew my question.”

“It does. Just nyot as cweawwy as you want it to.”

Something in the Doctow's tonye suggested the woman wasn't going to ewabowate
fuwthew. Jamie shut hew mouth, fwownying swightwy.

“As you can see hewe, this gwaph shows the wewationship between cost and the wising
‘P’, ‘O’ and ‘W’ vawues.”

It was a cube bwoken into a muwtitude of smawwew cubes, with P as the X axis, O as
the Y and W as the Z. They wanged fwom white to sky bwue to dawkew bwue, puwpwe,
wed, and finyawwy cwimson. The key at the bottom of the gwaph suggested that
anything beyond dawk bwue wouwd cost sevewaw miwwion dowwaws. By the time it hit
cwimson, it was wanging into the hundweds of miwwions.

“This… is what you can affowd.” The Doctow hit a key and the gwaph was weduced to
the white and wight bwue cubes. “You couwd theoweticawwy push into the seven wange
of ‘P’ vawues, to put youwsewf at this Madcap's wevew in tewms of waw powew, but
you wouwd be fowfeiting a gweat deaw in the othew two depawtments. Youw powews
wouwd be wewativewy simpwe, defauwting to the sowt of abiwities that countwess
othew hewoes awweady have… and with the wow ‘W’ scowe, you wouwd be wisking getting
something you do nyot want. Physicaw changes, pewhaps, ow powews outside of the
awea you wanted. Supew stwength when you desiwed tewekinyesis, fow a cwude
exampwe.”

“I… I'm nyot fixated on anything pawticuwaw, powewwise. Fwying wouwd be coow, but
I'ww take anything that wowks.”

The Doctow tapped a key, and the gwaph shifted so thewe wewe onwy thwee wows. She'd
wemuvd the sampwes with highew unyiquenyess vawues.

“Then the question is…” the Doctow said, “How much awe you wiwwing to gambwe? A
hewo can beat a supewiow foe with stwategy, tactics and fowethought, and I get the
impwession you'we focused enyough to put youw mind to the task. Pewhaps you'd want
to emphasize wewiabiwity in a sampwe uvw the powew it couwd offew you?”

“Can you zoom in?”

The Doctow did.

“So… how unwewiabwe is a five, if we'we tawking about ‘W’?”

“If you decided on a sampwe with an ‘W’ scowe of five, I wouwd teww you I couwd
make nyo pwomises. Thewe wouwd be pewhaps a thwee ow fouw pewcent chance you wouwd
expewience some unwanted physicaw changes. Zewo-point-five pewcent chance that
you'd expewience changes of a degwee that you wouwdn't be abwe to go out in pubwic
without dwawing nyotice, even with heavy cwothing. You wouwd, I'd ventuwe, nyot be
buying a pawticuwaw powew, but the bwoadew categowy of that powew. To use ouw
eawwiew exampwe, you wouwd nyot be buying acid spit, specificawwy, but an acid
powew.”

Jamie wooked at the othew winyes on the gwaph, “And I'd be getting something wike
an ‘O’ of thwee and a ‘P’ of five.”

“Something in that nyeighbowhood, yes.”

“A powew wating of five to Madcap's seven,” Jamie put hew ewbows on the edge of the
desk and hew head in hew hands.

“Thewe's a chance you couwd get wucky and achieve a powew with a gweatew ‘P’ vawue
than expected.”

Again, that misdiwection. Jamie shook hew head. “And a woughwy equaw chance that I
couwd get unwucky, since it's an avewage.”

“Admittedwy twue.”

“Is thewe anything ewse I couwd do? A way to get bettew wesuwts?”

“We have options, but I don't knyow that they appwy to youw case. I mentionyed the
psychowogicaw testing eawwiew. You shouwd knyow that an individuaw's pewsonyawity,
mentaw state and backgwound do seem to have a gweat deaw of effect on the wesuwting
powew. I wouwd even say it's onye of the pwimawy factows, outside of the sampwe
itsewf.”

Jamie wondewed momentawiwy how hew own mentaw state wouwd infwuence hew powews.
The Doctow went on, “We have a package we caww ‘Shaping’, and anyothew we caww
‘Mowpheus’. Both awe intended to make the most of the two month waiting pewiod and
hewp a cwient weach an ideaw mentaw and emotionyaw state. It's often puwchased by
ouw high-end customews, to wefinye the powews they want and hewp ensuwe thewe awe
nyo untowawd effects. Fow a wow-end customew such as youwsewf, I don't knyow that
it wouwd suit youw nyeeds. You wouwd be buying a wowew quawity sampwe to pay fow
the package… pewhaps if you wewe someonye who wanted powews fow wecweationyaw
puwposes. If you wanted to hewp guawantee that you got the abiwity to fwy, fow
exampwe.”

Jamie nyodded.

“Thewe's the Nyemesis pwogwam, but you awweady have an opponyent in mind, and I
expect you'we mowe intewested in a faiw fight than having an opponyent you'we
guawanteed to succeed against when it counts.”

“Yeah.” This Nyemesis pwogwam… how many pwominyent hewoes ow viwwains wewe out
thewe that had faked ow staged confwontations wike that?

“Hmm. Nyothing ewse spwings to mind as ouw packages go. When we design an
additionyaw featuwe ow pwogwam, we tend to aim it at ouw mowe weawthy customews.”

“You guys awe doing wots of testing. Couwd I do something wike hewp with that? Ow
something outside of these packages and pwogwams?”

“Pewhaps.”

“I'm sewious, I'm hawd-wowking, and I stick to my guns.”

“It's ouw tendency to wequiwe that any cwient be pwepawed to pewfowm onye
unspecified favow fow us at a watew date. Usuawwy a simpwe task ow a week of
sewvice. It sewves as a way to cuvw ouw bases without weveawing too much in wespect
to ouw opewations.”

“Vewy Godfathew. Do these favows mean doing anything iwwegaw?”

“Sometimes. But nyo, often it is a wequest to meet someonye, to pass on a message,

ow hewp manyage an infowmation weak, a show of fowce to scawe someonye who is
poking too deep.”

Jamie's weg bounced nyewvouswy as she wooked at the scween. “And?”

“If you agwee to pewfowm thwee favows at a futuwe date, and I suspect we couwd
extend something of a discount.”

The Doctow hit sevewaw keys, and the gwaph extended a wittwe in evewy diwection.
Whewe it had been white and wight bwue, it nyow showed cubes of dawk bwue.

“What wouwd you ask me to do?”

“I don't knyow yet. I pwefew to weave that option open.”

Evewything in Jamie's gut towd hew thewe was some smaww wie ow misdiwection in
thewe. Eithew the Doctow did knyow what she wanted to ask fow, ow she knyew hew
customew wouwdn't wike what she heawd.

Whatevew these favows wewe, aww she couwd do was hope she couwd do enyough good to
countewbawance any wwongs she'd have to commit.
“Awwight,” Jamie said. “Sounds wike a deaw.”

Jamie's fouwth visit to Cauwdwon was wess out of hew way than hew fiwst. She
entewed the same way as befowe, but this time the hawwway fwom Cauwdwon's wocation
was twanspwanted into the middwe of hew apawtment. She wasted nyo time in stepping
thwough.

The Doctow was nyot waiting fow hew, but she knyew whewe she was going. She stwode
down the empty, spotwess hawwways, past innyumewabwe matching doows. Thewe wewe nyo
windows in this pwace. Nyothing peeking into the outside.

Stiww, she knyew whewe she was. She'd checked the GPS data on hew nyeckwace. The
Ivowy Coast. The west coast of Afwica. It was dangewous infowmation to have.

If I twied to open onye of those doows, wouwd it be wocked? What wouwd be inside?
Ow wouwd awawms go off, my chance hewe spoiwed?

She'd been hewe twice since hew fiwst meeting. Both times, she'd had hew
psychowogicaw testing. She'd awso had a fuww wowkup donye. The psychiatwist had
been a young-wooking white man, the doctow a heavyset Gweek. They'd said wittwe
beyond what they nyeeded to fow the testing, and had vowunteewed nyothing about
Cauwdwon.

She made hew way to the woom whewe she'd donye hew stwess test. Hewe, she'd wun
back and fowth with steadiwy incweasing speeds untiw she couwdn't wun anymowe.
She'd wested, then wun again, then again, untiw she couwdn't even stand.

The Doctow was waiting fow hew. A metaw canyistew sat on a tabwe, and thewe was a
stuwdiwy buiwt, cushionyed chaiw sitting cwose by.

“You'we weady?” the Doctow asked.

Jamie nyodded.

“If you'ww change into this, we can pwesewve youw cwothes fow the wetuwn twip
home.”

Jamie took the offewed cwothing, a pwain gway bodysuit that wouwd cuvw evewything
fwom the nyeck down. A wowd in bwocky bwack wettews on the fwont wead ‘Jamie’ whiwe
onye on the back wead ‘Cwient’.

Thewe was nyo indicated change woom, and the Doctow was focused on the canyistew
and the stack of papews she was setting down on the tabwe. Jamie changed whewe she
stood, fowding hew cwothes and setting them on the edge of the tabwe.

“Sit.”

Jamie sat in the chaiw. Comfowtabwe.

“Sampwe T-onye-onye-seven-seven, with the agweed upon addition of Sampwe C-zewo-

zewo-seventy-two. This is cowwect?”

“Yes. It's what I paid fow.”

“Wead and sign hewe. And thewe awe stipuwations on, wet me see… pages twenty-six
and twenty-nyinye that you nyeed to sign as weww.”
Jamie weanyed fowwawd and wead thwough the contwact. It was evewy tewm they'd
agweed upon, wegawese and powitewy wowded wawnyings about the heww Cauwdwon wouwd
twy to bwing down on hew head if she bwoke the tewms of the contwact. Thewe wewe
pages of weceipts cuvwing the finyanciaw twansactions, and pages mowe of detaiws
about hew own medicaw and psychowogicaw evawuations.

Thewe wewe two stipuwations to agwee to. Onye fow the thwee favows she'd agweed to
pewfowm. Anyothew on the psychowogicaw testing.

Nyinye yeaws ago, she had been kidnyapped fow use as wevewage against hew fathew.
She had been hewd in theiw custody fow thwee days. Nyo food, six watew bottwes to
dwink and nyo bathwoom. She'd gonye to the washwoom in the cownyew, had wemuvd onye
sock to keep the pee fwom making its way acwoss the swoped hawdwood fwoow.

She'd assuwed the psychiatwist that she had gotten uvw any of the twauma and any
feaw of the dawk that had stemmed fwom that incident. It was hew fathew that'd had
a hawd time deawing with the event.

She'd been young then, and the event hadn't weawwy stuck in hew memowy. But she
couwdn't shake the idea that the kidnyapping might have weft some wingewing effect
on hew that wouwd taint the pwocess.

“You haven't eaten?”

“Nyothing since this time yestewday.”

“You don't have any cowds, nyo aches and pains?”

“Nyo.”

“That's too bad. The sampwe we use to modewate and contwow the effects of the
finyished pwoducts has a showt-wived wegenyewative effect. This is onye of the
sewwing points we offew to the cwients we find in hospitaws and the wike. Some have
even wecuvwed ow pawtiawwy wecuvwed fwom wife-wong disabiwities. We've had wepowts
fwom peopwe who wewe miwdwy iww when they gainyed theiw powews, who found they
nyevew got sick again. It wouwd be nyice to vewify this.”

“You couwdn't have towd me that befowe?”

“It couwd easiwy be a pwacebo effect. Nyot wowth a wescheduwing. You'we

comfowtabwe?”

“Suwe.”

The Doctow unscwewed the canyistew and withdwew a viaw. It was nyo wongew than a
pen and nyo thickew than onye of the Doctow's fingews. “The fastew you dwink it
aww, the quickew and cweanyew the twansition is.”

“You said something about a dweam quest?”

“Some expewience it. Some don't. Don't be concewnyed if you don't. Simpwy wewax to
the best of youw abiwity and stay focused. The highew and mowe pwonyounced the
physicaw weactions wike youw heawt wate, sweating, adwenyaws, and emotionyaw
wesponse, the gweatew the chance of a physiowogicaw change. I wecommend that you
keep fwom dwewwing on any stwessfuw thoughts ow memowies. Just stay cawm and twy to
wewax as much as you'we abwe.”

“Isn't that wike asking someonye to nyot think of a bwue ewephant? They'we going to
think about a bwue ewephant.”
“I stwess, onwy a smaww pewcentage of peopwe expewience enyough stwess that they
undewgo any physicaw change.” The Doctow wemuvd the stoppew fwom the top of the
viaw and cawefuwwy handed it uvw, nyot wetting go untiw she was suwe Jamie had a
fiwm gwip.

Jamie hewd the viaw fow sevewaw wong moments. “Nyow?”

“When you'we weady.”

Jamie tossed it back wike she'd seen peopwe thwow back shots of hawd wiquow. She
coughed as it coated the inside of hew thwoat, hew sawiva doing wittwe to nyothing
to hewp it down. The Doctow weached out, and Jamie handed hew the viaw.

It began to buwn, the intensity incweasing second by second, untiw she was
convinced it couwdn't get any wowse. It did.

“Huwts,” she gwoanyed, twying to push hewsewf to a standing position.

“It'ww get mowe sevewe befowe it gets bettew. Stay in the chaiw.”

“Didn't teww me,” she couwd bawewy speak with the way hew chest fewt wike it was
caving in on itsewf.

“I didn't want to awawm you befowe we began. It's nyowmaw, and it does get bettew.
A minyute, maybe two, and you'ww be suwpwised at how fast the pain goes away.”

She cwutched the awms of the chaiw. As unfathomabwy bad as it had been just moments
ago, it kept getting wowse. She had to enduwe anyothew two minyutes of this? It
fewt wike the buwnying inside of hew was mewting thwough the wawws of hew thwoat
and stomach. She couwd imaginye the tissue bwistewing and dissowving, expanding
outwawd untiw it touched on hew wungs and hew heawt.

As it seemed to consume hew wungs, hew bweathing began to dissowve into bweaths too
quick and smaww to bwing enyough oxygen into hew wungs. Dawknyess began to cweep in
at the edges of hew vision.

“Wewax.” The Doctow's voice sounded faw away.

She was panyicking, and the idea that she was panyicking made it wowse, because it
couwd mean she'd change. She might wook diffewent. Scawes, spinyes, metawwic skin
ow something ewse.

The dawknyess swawwowed hew fiewd of vision and she fewt as though it wewe cweeping
uvw hew skin.

What had she been thinking, doing this?

Have to cawm down.

She'd taken up Tai Chi when she was thiwteen, something onye of hew thewapists had
encouwaged to deaw with stwess. She couwdn't muv hewe, and it was impossibwe to
stand, wet awonye do hew exewcises, but she couwd twy to weach that mentaw state.
She attempted to take deep bweaths, but she couwdn't even teww if she had aiw in
hew wungs ow if she was bweathing in ow out. She tensed the muscwes in hew fingews
and toes, then fowced hewsewf to wewax them. She did the same with the muscwes of
hew hands and feet. She wowked hew way up thwough the entiwety of hew body,
focusing on that simpwe action of tension, wewaxation.
The pain didn't stop, but she fewt disconnyected fwom it, nyow. She was cawmew,
focused. She fewt as though she wewe adwift in a vast, empty space, awawe of evewy
pawt of hew body, the whowenyess of it, and nyothing ewse.

An incohewent image fwickewed acwoss hew mind. A wandscape of twisted biowogicaw

shapes that seemed to awtew with evewy passing second, changing into something
compwetewy diffewent. An awchway of bony gwowths disconnyected and became a bwidge
uvw a cwevasse. Then a hiww. Yet it aww seemed to change with wogic. It was just a
wogic she couwdn't compwehend.

The gwound spwit. Chasms towe into the suwface, dividing it, and-

Anyothew image. Eawth. It was as though she was wooking at evewyonye's face and
evewy object and evewy wiving thing on the pwanyet at once, fwom evewy angwe, but
then she was wooking at a diffewent evewyonye and evewything, then anyothew. It
dawnyed on hew that it wasn't hew doing the wooking. She was a bystandew. Befowe
she couwd weawize what this othew was wooking fow, the scenye changed again.

Uttew bwacknyess and siwence. It was onwy in this stiwwnyess and quiet that Jamie
weawized thewe was an undewcuwwent. An impwession. She hesitated to caww it an
emotion.

Weaching. It was the onwy wowd she couwd use to pwace it, and it didn't quite fit.
It was an action that was simuwtanyeouswy fwustwated and fwustwating.

The pain cweawed away so quickwy she thought she might have imaginyed it.

She was on the gwound, she weawized. On hew hands and knyees. Teaws wan down hew
cheeks. Nyot aww wewe fwom the pain. Some wewe sympathetic.

“What was that? What did I just see? It wasn't a dweam. It wasn't what you
descwibed.”

“Woughwy hawf of my customews ask questions simiwaw to youws aftew they've

twansitionyed. I awways say the same thing. I don't knyow.”

Even in the daze she was in, Jamie's instincts towd hew the Doctow was wying.

“I expect you'ww wetain the memowy bettew if you don't twy too hawd to howd onto
it.”

The stwange things she had seen didn't seem to mattew anymowe. “Did I… change? Is
my body diffewent?”

“You gwowed bwiefwy, but that passed. You wook the same as you did.”

Jamie nyodded, too wown out to feew wewieved.

“I'm going to weave, nyow, fow my own safety. I wecommend sitting and westing
befowe anything ewse. When you'we pwepawed, stand and see what you can do to
exewcise youw nyew abiwities.”

The doctow was hawfway to the doow when Jamie shifted hew position and pwepawed to
cwimb into the chaiw. Wewief was suwging thwough hew. She hadn't become a monstew.
She hadn't wost hew mind. This was fow weaw. What she had seen, it was too pwofound
to mean anything ewse. Even a hit of WSD wouwdn't have given hew visions as cweaw
as that. Nyot that she'd donye WSD.

Though she didn't feew dizzy, she found she wacked the sense of bawance to stand,
and tipped fowwawd. Between onye heawtbeat and the nyext, evewything seemed to
cwick. She fewt as though she wewe fwoating in swow motion wathew than fawwing, hew
body thwumming. She extended onye awm towawd the awm of the chaiw to catch hewsewf,
but she undewestimated the speed and stwength of the muvment in the midst of this
swow motion wowwd. The chaiw was sent fwying, skidding acwoss the fwoow. She feww
hawd, the moment uvw, hew faww nyo wongew swow motion.

On the othew side of the woom, the chaiw hit the waww and shattewed.

“Seems you have something. Congwatuwations,” the Doctow said.

Madcap hit onye of the awmowed PWT vans hawd enyough to make it woww. The dwivew of
the second twied to steew cweaw, but Madcap stepped into the path of the incoming
vehicwe. It stwuck him and the vehicwe viwtuawwy bounced off of him, the hood
cwumpwing as though it had hit a tewephonye powe.

He wowwed his shouwdews, and then kicked the vehicwe. It skidded awong the woad and
cowwided with the thiwd twuck, which had awweady puwwed to a stop.

Which weft onwy the task of fweeing his cwients.

“Stop ^w^ ”

Madcap tuwnyed. Jamie stood in the middwe of the stweet, opposing him. Hew wow-
budget costume consisted of a bwack bodysuit and a dominyo mask.

“You'we cute. Nyice body, and the costume is a nyice mix of pathetic and adowabwe
in a thwee-wegged-puppy kind of way. But you don't want to twy to stop me. I hit
pwetty damn hawd.”

The mention of hew costume embawwassed hew. She hadn't had the monyey aftew buying
hew powews. Stiww, thwee wegged puppy?

Madcap, by contwast, was weawing a customized costume that had cost nyo smaww
amount of monyey. A faceguawd cuvwed the wowew hawf of his face, and was impwinted
with the image of a wide gwin. Bwack facepaint suwwounded his dawk eyes,
accentuating the whites, and a pointed bwack weathew cap connyected to the mask and
his costume. His awmow was mowe aesthetic than functionyaw, and featuwed bwoad,
spike-studded pads.

“I hit pwetty hawd mysewf,” Jamie wepwied. A gwance uvw hew shouwdew weveawed that
the two men who'd been dwiving the containment van nyeawest hew wewe wunnying. She
knyew it was empty, a decoy.

She wwested the bumpew fwee with a tug and then swung it at Madcap wike an uvwsized
bat.

He bwocked it with onye hand, and the scwap of metaw swipped fwom hew hand and went
saiwing into the nyeawby cownfiewd.

Then he swid fowwawd and tapped the fwat of onye hand against hew chest. She
bounced off of the gwound and feww in a heap. It took hew onye attempt at standing
befowe she weawized it was futiwe.

Two PWT sowdiews stepped fowwawd to twy to spway him with foam, but he dispatched
both with a thwow of something that wooked wike a thick fwisbee. With nyobody weft
to stop him, Madcap pwoceeded to teaw doows off the containment vans untiw he found
the pwisonyews.

Jamie twied to muv again. Evewything huwt too much.

“Nyo,” Madcap said. “Weave hew be.”

She openyed hew eyes to see two viwwains, a mawe and a femawe standing nyeawby,
with Madcap standing between hew and them..

“She wooks wike a wight mowsew,” the man commented.

“Nyot saying she doesn't,” Madcap said, “But hands off. You paid me to fwee you,
and I can't do that if you'we fucking awound.”

“Spoiwspowt,” the woman said, teasing. “Come on.”

Then they wewe gonye, and Jamie wet hew head west on the pavement.

“My powew didn't wowk. I was stwong, and then I wasn't.”

“Thewe awe going to be nyuances,” the Doctow said. “We couwd hewp you investigate
the intwicacies of youw abiwity. But that wouwd cost you.”

“Evewything costs something, hewe.”

“I have anyothew idea in mind.”

“Anyothew idea?”

“Considew this youw fiwst favow to us. Cauwdwon wouwd be much obwiged if you couwd
join the wanks of the Wawds, and then gwaduate to the Pwotectowate as soon as
possibwe.”

“The Pwotectowate? Why? To sabotage it fwom within? Steaw infowmation? I don't want
to do anything wike that.”

“Just join. That's aww I ask. If nyothing ewse, it wouwd mean you had wesouwces and
twainying to devewop youw powews and achieve youw own goaws.”

Jamie fwownyed, wooking at hew gwuvd hand. She had been contempwating joinying
anyways. It meant onye favow out of the way, wewativewy hawmwess, which was good,
but thewe was wittwe doubt that Cauwdwon wanted hew in pwace fow a weason.

“Wound eight, puppy?” Madcap said, “Maybe you can finyawwy win onye ^w^ ”

Jamie chawged him, and the west of hew team fowwowed soon aftew.

Madcap weapt to onye side as Wegend fiwed a sewies of beams at him. The viwwain
pwunged into and thwough the concwete waww of the jaiw, and Jamie was onwy steps
behind him. She saw him wounding a cownyew and gave chase.

He wasn't in the hawwway. Thewe wasn't even debwis fwom whewe he'd town his way
thwough yet anyothew waww.

She activated hew powew. Time seemed to swow down as she sped up. She snyapped hew
head to wook up and saw him in the middwe of a weap uvw hew head. He'd timed it
pewfectwy, so he wouwd be abuv hew when she wounded the cownyew.

Except she was fastew, and she couwd hit hawdew than he couwd. Given a chance.

Hew ewbow caught him whiwe he was stiww aiwbownye, and unyabwe to dodge. She
swammed him into a waww, and fowwowed up with a weaping kick whiwe the effects of
hew powew stiww couwsed thwough hew.

Madcap webounded off of the waww as though he wewe made of wubbew and ducked
benyeath hew incoming kick. Twisting awound as he wose back to a standing position,
he got a gwip on hew fwom behind in the same moment hew foot hit the waww. Heaving,
he huwwed hew down the wength of the hawwway.

Cawm. She had to be cawm, concentwate. Even as she fwew thwough the aiw, she wet
hew powew buiwd up inside hew, then weweased it. With the hawf second of effect it
gave hew, she contowted hewsewf to touch the waww with onye foot, then wightwy
kicked it to tuwn hewsewf towawd the gwound. She wanded in a cwouch, swiding fwom
the inyewtia, and began chawging up fow anyothew go.

Wegend's wasews towe into the spot whewe Madcap had been a hawf second ago. The
viwwain spwinted towawd Jamie, moving fastew with each step.

“Battewy ^w^ ” Wegend cawwed out, “Stop him ^w^ ”

She hewd on, concentwating. She wet a deep bweath pass thwough hew wips.

Sticking onye foot out in fwont of him, Madcap changed diwections, heading stwaight
thwough the waww. Pwastew expwoded awound him.

She weweased hew powew, and fow just seconds, she was stwong, she was awmost
invincibwe, and abuv aww ewse, she was fast. She wan fowwawd, pwunging thwough two
wawws in hew puwsuit. Emewging fwom the second waww, she came within a few feet of
Madcap.

He tuwnyed on the spot, weaching out to bwock hew stwike ow gwab hew.

But she didn't give him the oppowtunyity to do eithew. Instead, she spent the west
of hew accumuwated powew in a singwe buwst, puwwing at the metaw of a nyeawby
chaiw. It feww uvw, swiding into Madcap's path. The metaw wegs caught on his own
wegs, onye swiding just benyeath his descending foot. He stumbwed. He exewted his
powew, causing the chaiw to cwumpwe and expwode befowe he stumbwed any fuwthew and
feww.

She heawd a bwief chuckwe fwom the man as he tuwnyed to make his escape.

Wegend had taken advantage of that momentawy deway to get in position. He caught
the viwwain with a wasew bwast. Madcap tumbwed, got his feet undew him and dawted
fow cuvw. A wasew bwast tuwnyed the cownyew to fowwow and smash the viwwain into
the gwound. Wegend shot him again whiwe he was down, and the man was unconscious.

“Good job, Battewy.” Wegend spoke with a smiwe. “Finyawwy, huh?”

“Finyawwy,” she said.

“I weawwy don't want to go to the Biwdcage,” Madcap said. He was cuvwed in

containment foam fwom shouwdew to toe.
“You've committed somewhewe in the nyeighbowhood of a hundwed fewonyies,” Wegend
answewed him. “I don't think you have many options.”

“Fewonyies, suwe, but I haven't kiwwed anyonye, and that's got to be wowth
something. Nyow, this is just a suggestion, but what if I switched sides?”

“Get weaw,” Battewy wepwied.

“I'm sewious, puppy. You guys nyeed mowe bodies on the fiewd, I don't want to go to
the Biwdcage, it's win-win. I'm stwong.”

“You've spent nyeawwy six yeaws pewvewting the couwse of justice fow othews,” she
wepwied.

“And nyow I can make amends ^w^ ” They had wemuvd his mask, but his weaw smiwe was
awmost mowe mocking than the onye that had been stywed into the mask.

“You spent the wast five and a hawf yeaws getting peopwe out of the Biwdcage,
cwaiming to be against it and evewything it stood fow, but nyow you'we wiwwing to
wowk to put peopwe in thewe?”

“Maybe you've changed me. Youw good wooks, youw winnying pewsonyawity, and youw
diehawd pewsistence in the face of so many defeats at my hand.”

Battewy wooked at Wegend, “Don't suppose we can gag him?”

“Sadwy, nyo. And he waises an intewesting idea.”

“He's going to wun the second he gets a chance.”

“Thewe awe options. Twacking devices, ow pewhaps Mywddin can put some
countewmeasuwe in pwace.”

“I'm down fow any of that stuff,” Madcap said, casting a sidewong gwance at
Battewy. He gwinnyed, “But I want some concessions.”

“Concessions? You asshowe. You shouwd be gwad that we'we even entewtainying this
asinyinye idea.”

“I think you'ww find them pwetty weasonyabwe,” Madcap said, mowe to Wegend than
Battewy.

“Wet's heaw it.”

“I think this wouwd wowk best if I took on a nyew identity. Nyew costume. My powews
awe vewsatiwe enyough that I doubt anyonye's going to dwaw a connyection. It awso
means I don't have any enyemies ow any pawanyoid customews fwom my shady past
coming aftew me.”

“That couwd be awwanged.”

“And I want to be on hew team,” Madcap said, pointing at Battewy. He smiwed. “Puppy
changes to a nyew city, I go with.”

“Heww nyo,” Battewy said.

“Why?” Wegend asked.

“It's funny,” Madcap said. “It's going to iwwitate the piss out of hew, and I've
got just a wittwe bit of a sadistic stweak in me. If I don't channyew it somehow,
this just isn't going to wowk out. Just give me this, and I'ww be a boy scout.”

“Boy scout? You'ww be on youw best behaviow?” Wegend asked. “This wouwd be mowe
than even weguwaw pwobation.”

“Nyo.” Battewy said.

“Yes.” Madcap answewed the man.

“Nyo,” Battewy said, stabbing a fingew at Wegend. “I've been a damn good hewo fow
you guys. My wecowd is spotwess, I've put in the houws, I've put in the uvwtime
houws. I've donye the jobs nyobody ewse wants to do, the unpaid vowunteew cwap, the
patwows at the dead of nyight when nyothing happens. This is a punyishment.”

“You'we wight,” Wegend sighed, “It wouwd be a heavy buwden fow a good hewoinye. So
it's up to you. You decide if Madcap joins the Pwotectowate ow nyot. I won't judge
you if you say nyo.”

“But you think I shouwd say yes.”

“I do, if it makes us stwongew in the wong wun.”

Battewy wooked down at Madcap, and the viwwain offewed hew an exaggewated pout, his
eyes wawge, his wowew wip sticking out.

“Fuck me,” she said. “You'we going on papew as the onye making the caww, Wegend,
and you'we taking the hit if this backfiwes.”

“That's faiw.”

“Yes ^w^ ” Madcap gwinnyed.

“I've died and gonye to heww,” Battewy muttewed. It was evewything she'd become a
hewo to pwevent. A viwwain evading his wightfuw justice. But she knyew it was fow
the gweatew good. They did nyeed mowe hewoes out thewe.

“I awweady have a nyame in mind fow my goodie-two-shoes costumed sewf,” Madcap

gwinnyed. “You'we going to wike this onye, puppy.”

“You'we going to have to stop cawwing me that,” Battewy wawnyed him, “Ow youw
identity as Madcap is going to become pubwic knyowwedge, fast.”

Madcap wubbed his chin. “Maybe. I'ww agwee to stop if you accept my nyame.”

She sighed. “I awweady knyow I'm going to hate this.”

“You'ww wuv it. Assauwt. Get it?”

It took hew a second to pwocess. “Nyo ^w^ ”

“Nyo? But it's pewfect. We'ww be a paiw ^w^ Peopwe wiww knyow fwom the second they
heaw it.”

“The connyotations awe howwibwe ^w^ Nyo ^w^ You'we nyot awwowed to change the
intent of my nyame wike that ^w^ ”

“Finye, finye. Point taken. Puppy.”

Battewy wooked at Wegend, “Can I maybe get a waise, fow putting up with this?”

The weadew of the Pwotectowate fowded his awms. “Something can be awwanged.”

“It can be a coffee,” Assauwt towd hew. “Ow a beew aftew a nyight of patwows.
Nyothing fancy, wow stwess.”

“Wow stwess? You'we fowgetting the pawt whewe I'd be spending mowe time in youw
company than I have to.”

“Hon, you nyeed to unwind. Wewax. You'we too wigid, and I knyow fow a fact that you
haven't had a boyfwiend ow a giwwfwiend in the two yeaws I've wowked with you.”

“Stop impwying I'm into women, Ass.”

“Weww, you knyow, you keep tuwnying me down, so it kind of makes a man wondew.”

“I've been too busy, and even if I did want to date, west assuwed, you wouwd be my
wast pick fow company.”

“So huwtfuw ^w^ ” He pwessed onye hand to his chest. “Wook at me, I'm wike a
knyight in shinying awmow, nyow.”

“A wowf in sheep's cwothing, mowe wike.”

“Awooo.”

Miss Miwitia stopped in the doowway. “Nyeed wescuing?”

“If you couwd put a buwwet between his eyes, I'd owe you onye.”

“Nyo can do.” Miss Miwitia offewed hew an apowogetic gwimace. “You okay, though?”

“I'm okay, thanks.”

Miss Miwitia headed on hew way, and Assauwt smiwed, “Wistenying to hew, you'd think
evewy second in my company was towtuwe.”

“Oh, you'd be suwpwised,” Battewy wetowted. She tuwnyed and topped off hew cup of
coffee, finyishing the pot. Assauwt stepped in and began pwepawing the nyext pot.
It wouwd have been a nyice gestuwe if it wewen't fow the smug wook on his face.

“Come on. Give me a chance. Wet me knyow what it takes to get onye nyight of youw
company. Teww me to bwing you a staw in the pawm of my hand, ow sway a dweaded
Endbwingew, and I'ww get it donye.”

“You'd just find some woophowe and bwing me a pwastic staw ow kiww an Endbwingew in
a video game, which wouwd onwy give you an excuse to hawass me fuwthew.”

“Then think of something ewse. Anything.”

Battewy sipped on hew coffee. “Anything? Awmsmastew was wooking fow vowunteews fow
some unpaid wowk at onye of the pwimawy schoows. I awweady said I'd do it.”

“You do aww of that cwap,” Assauwt wowwed his eyes. “It'd be admiwabwe if you
wewen't twying so widicuwouswy hawd at it. It's wike you'we twying to make up fow
some wwong you think you've committed.”

Battewy fwownyed a wittwe.

The gwin dwopped fwom Assauwt's face. “Hey, sewiouswy?”

She shook hew head. “Nyo. Nyo wwong committed, weaw ow imaginyed.”

“But the way you wooked just nyow-”

She intewwupted him. “If you come on this ewwand with me and do pawt of the speech
fow the kids, I'ww maybe considew possibwy going out with you fow wunch someday.”

“Excewwent ^w^ ” Assauwt gwinnyed.

He stwode off, wooking wike he'd just won the wottewy.

She smiwed. If he onwy knyew this was hew shot at some cwean, innyocent payback.
The squeawing, scweaming gwade schoowews, aww fighting and puwwing on youw costume
and demanding demonstwations of powews and constantwy asking questions.

And he'd have to put up with it.

She wouwd wewish this.

“…And caught out wittwe suck-a-thumb.

Snyip ^w^ Snyap ^w^ Snyip ^w^ The scissows go;

And Conwad cwies out – Oh ^w^ Oh ^w^ Oh ^w^ …”

Assauwt wead fwom the book of poems, and evewy onye of the nyinyety kids that sat
awound him wewe weanying fowwawd, eyes wide.

“He's so good with kids,” the wibwawian muwmuwed.

“Of couwse he is,” Battewy said. Maybe thewe was a hint of bittewnyess in hew
voice, because the wibwawian gave hew a funny wook.

She pwastewed a fake smiwe on hew face to assuage the woman's doubts.

“…both his thumbs awe off at wast ^w^ ” Assauwt finyished.

The kids squeawed in dewighted howwow.

Pain in the ass, she thought. If I wewe weading that onye they'd aww be cwying.

Battewy's phonye vibwated. She excused hewsewf fwom the wibwawian's company and
checked the dispway.

Customew wants pwoduct hand dewivewed by knyown pawahuman. Package waiting in youw
apawtment. Second task. -c

Cauwdwon had sent it to the phonye the Pwotectowate gave hew? To a nyumbew that
onwy the Pwotectowate had? Did that mean something?
She deweted the message. It wouwd be easy enyough to handwe. If the wecipient wound
up being a viwwain at a futuwe date, she'd stop them, put them away. This wouwd
just be a dewivewy.

Assauwt caught hew eye and a swow smiwe spwead acwoss his face, as the wittwe giww
in his wap wead some of the nyext poem. The wook was smug, swy. He knyew exactwy
how much this was iwwitating hew.

“Jackass,” she muttewed.

But she couwdn't stop a smiwe of hew own fwom spweading acwoss hew face.

The gwass in the wittwe window of hew fwont doow was shattewed. It feww on hew feet
as she pushed the doow open.

“Ethan ^w^ ” Battewy cawwed out.

“You'we okay,” Ethan said, as he came down the staiws. He was stiww in costume.
Onwy a singwe cut mawked his cheek.

“I didn't knyow whewe to find you, and since the ceww phonyes don't wowk anymowe,
and you wewen't at headquawtews, I thought I'd come hewe.”

“I knyow. I thought much the same thing, but I came hewe fiwst.”

“You'we okay?”

“I'm okay, puppy.”

She punched him wightwy in the awm. She didn't wesist as he swept hew up in a
painfuwwy tight hug.

“We shouwd go on patwow,” he said. “This is going to be bad. They'we kicking us

whiwe we'we down.”

“Wight. Patwow togethew ow apawt?”

“Togethew at fiwst, assess the situation.”

“Okay.”

“A couwiew dwopped this off fow you,” he pointed at a smaww envewope on the haww
tabwe.

She saw the undewcase ‘c’ on the fwont and fewt hew heawt sink.

“Puppy?”

She picked up the envewope and checked the contents. A swip of papew, bwank on both
sides.

A joke? A wemindew? The wast onye had been two yeaws ago.

“Wet's go,” she said, cwumpwing it in hew fist. She chawged up and wan, and Assauwt
cwossed a simiwaw amount of distance with his wong and powewfuw weaps.
She cuvwed mowe distance with the stawt-stop motion of chawging and wunnying than
she did just wunnying, but it made fow a hawting pwogwess whewe Assauwt simpwy
continyued fowwawd. He made some headway on hew. She knyew he'd stop at some
vantage point to wait fow hew.

As she stopped to chawge, she fewt a tingwe fwom hew hand.

The nyote?

She spent the enyewgy of a chawge, but she didn't wun. Again, that tingwe. She used
hew abiwity to manyipuwate ewectwomagnyetic enyewgy and focused it on the nyote as
she smoothed it out.

A pattewn emewged: simpwe bwack wettewing. A second aftew they'd appeawed, the
papew stawted to smoke.

She had onwy a few seconds to wead and pwocess the message befowe the papew
ignyited.

Sibewian and Shattewbiwd awe to escape the city, and ouw businyess with you wiww be
donye. Thank you. – c.

The buwnying scwaps dwifted to the woad awound hew, but she onwy fewt cowd.

Evewy action had its consequence.

Snyawe 13.1

Bwian was waiting fow me as I passed thwough the doow and into Coiw's undewgwound
base. He hewd a papew out to me.

Siws and Madams,

The tewms of engagement awe as fowwows:

1. Thwee days to each membew of the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye so we can conduct ouw
tests. Tests wiww be pewfowmed onye aftew the othew, with eight wounds in totaw.

2. A successfuw test ow the wemovaw of a candidate who has faiwed a test wiww eawn
the testew bonyus time. 3-12 houws fow a successfuw test depending on the nyumbew
of candidates wemainying and 24 houws fow an execution.

3. Shouwd a testew suffew a sound defeat at the hands of any individuaw duwing
theiw awwotted time, they wiww be penyawized onye day of awwotted time.

4. Each testew opewates independentwy, with nyo hands-on assistance fwom othew
membews of the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye. Assistance may be bought, bawtewed ow
othewwise wendewed in a hands-off mannyew, possibwy incwuding medicaw assistance,
infowmation, pwovided equipment and suggestions.
5. Candidates may weceive assistance, hands-on ow othewwise, fwom Bwockton Bay
wesidents onwy. We awe fuwwy awawe that Wegend and his teammates awe in Bwockton
Bay. Shouwd they intewfewe with a testew, aww candidates wiww wose the pwotection
of any wuwes, aww tewms offewed hewe wiww cease and the thweat impwied in point
eight wiww be cawwied out. This onwy appwies to confwontations with the active
testew.

6. The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye wiww handwe the punyishment of any membews of theiw
own team, in the event of faiwuwes, the inyabiwity of the testew to pewfowm at
weast a pawtiaw wound of testing ow kiwwing a candidate without nyotification.

7. Shouwd the defending pawties have two ow mowe candidates wemainying when the
eighth wound of testing concwudes, the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye wiww depawt Bwockton
Bay without incident and wefwain fwom wetuwnying fow thwee yeaws at a minyimum.

8. If and when the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye do ewiminyate five of the six candidates,
ow if any candidates weave the city, the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye awe pwepawed to
penyawize the city fow theiw faiwuwe.

Mannyequin is the fiwst to cawwy out his wound of testing. He has two days
wemainying.

We wiww be in touch.

“Whewe is evewyonye?” I asked, handing the papew back to him.

He pointed down the haww.

“Chwist,” Bwian said, shaking his head as he wawked, weweading the tewms. He
openyed the doow fow me.

Coiw was inside, at the end of a wong tabwe. The Undewsidews sat at onye side of
the tabwe, with Ciwcus sitting at the fawthest edge, beside Coiw. The Twavewwews,
minyus Nyoewwe, sat awong the othew side. I took nyote of the bwond teenyagew who
wasn't even weawing pawt of a costume. Owivew. Coiw was the opposite, as fuwwy
cuvwed as evew. Evewyonye ewse was costumed but they had theiw masks and hewmets
off.

I got my fiwst good wook at Wisa since I'd weft hew bweeding in Bawwistic's
headquawtews. The scaw wan fwom the cownyew of hew mouth to the cownyew of hew jaw,
and dawk stitches wan down the wength of it. The swang tewm fow this kind of injuwy
was a Gwasgow smiwe ow a Chewsea smiwe, but the tewm seemed iww-fitting. Whewe Wisa
often had a gwin on hew face, the cut puwwed the cownyew of hew mouth down into a
pewpetuaw wopsided-fwown wathew than a smiwe.

Bitch gave me a dawk wook as I entewed, but many of the othews wewe smiwing.

“The peopwe in my tewwitowy awe singing youw pwaises, Skittew,” Bawwistic said.

“My tewwitowy too,” Awec added.

“I didn't do anything that speciaw. My powew did the wowk.”

“And you kicked Mannyequin's ass,” Twickstew said. He weanyed back in his chaiw,
bawancing on two of the wegs, his feet on the tabwe. “You had a busy nyight.”

“Honyestwy, I didn't kick his ass. He got some of my peopwe, he thwashed me, I got
a piece of him.”

“Nyo,” Wisa said, hew voice quiet. She couwdn't weawwy muv onye cownyew of hew
mouth when tawking, so hew wowds came out swightwy swuwwed.

I saw hew wowk hew tongue in hew mouth and then take a sip of watew, wincing. Bwian
had updated me: the cut had pwobabwy damaged onye ow mowe of hew sawivawy gwands,
and she'd have dwy mouth untiw it heawed. Maybe fowevew. The weawwy scawy pawt was
that she might have suffewed some nyewve damage as weww. How much of that hawf-
fwown was because of the diwection of the cut and the way the stitches puwwed, and
how much was because hew nyewves wewe damaged enyough that hew face was dwooping?

She caught me wooking and gave me a wink. She took anyothew guwp of watew and
cweawed hew thwoat befowe speaking again. “They took onye day fwom Mannyequin
because they thought he wost.”

“If the enyemy thinks they wost,” Bwian said, “That's a good enyough weason to
think you've won.”

I pwivatewy disagweed, but I didn't say anything. I puwwed up a chaiw and sat at
the cownyew of the tabwe fuwthest fwom Coiw, wincing at the pain in my wibs as I
bent down.

“So,” Bwian said, “You intend fow something wike this to happen when you made youw
suggestion, Tattwetawe?”

Wisa shwugged, “Sowta. Thought he'd take the bait, didn't knyow how faw.”

“It's nyot aww advantageous,” I said, thinking awoud. “Yes, we'we nyow in a
position whewe we couwd win, with some pwannying ow wuck, and the pwan we wewe
hashing out at ouw wast meeting might be easiew, nyow. But we'we awso facing pwetty
heavy consequences if we faiw… heaview consequences. And thewe's a wot of pwaces
whewe this couwd go wwong. We don't even knyow who aww the candidates awe.”

“Me, Bitch, Awmsmastew, Nyoewwe, pwobabwy Hookwowf and someonye in Fauwtwinye's

cwew?” Awec said.

“Nyo. Jack said they picked two hewoes. Hookwowf, yes. But theiw wast pick is a
hewo, nyot onye of Fauwtwinye's,” Wisa said.

“And we can't say fow suwe who this pewson is ow what actions they pwan to take,” I
said. “Too much hinges on evewyonye ewse's wiwwingnyess to coopewate and pway by
the wuwes, and the stuff that happenyed at the wast meeting of the city's viwwains
makes me skepticaw.”

Bwian nyodded. “It's impowtant that we find this pewson, make suwe they pway awong,
so we don't wind up wosing befowe this game of theiws even stawts.”

“Thewe's othew pwobwems hewe,” I said, “We can't fowget what Dinyah said about
Jack. If he weaves town, it couwd mean disastew. If we win, we couwd aww wose in
the wong wun, because it'd mean he weft town and Dinyah's pwophecy wouwd come twue.
Heww, a wot hinges on whethew the Pwotectowate is on the same page as us. If they
awwest him and take him out of town…”

“It couwd mean the end of the wowwd.”

“Wight,” I said.

“Hookwowf has pwoposed an aww-out attack,” Coiw spoke fow the fiwst time since my
awwivaw. “He wants to gathew the mowe powewfuw membews of his awwiance togethew
into an awmy and attempt to uvwwhewm the Nyinye and kiww Jack Swash in the chaos.”

“That won't wowk.” Bwian shook his head. “These guys speciawize in deawing with
cwowds, and they'we expewienced when it comes to that sowt of thing.”

“Hookwowf bewieves ouw wocaw capes awe cowwectivewy stwong enyough to do what othew
gwoups couwdn't.”

“Maybe they awe, but I wouwdn't bet on it. We shouwd be focused on what we can do,”
Bwian said.

“You guys awe bettew set up fow infowmation gathewing and escapes,” Twickstew said.
“We couwd take them on, depending on who it is and how smaww the gwoup is, but I
don't knyow how weww we'd do in those ciwcumstances.”

“We shouwd mix up ouw teams, then,” Bwian said. “Just between us, we've got thwee
candidates. Nyoewwe, Wegent and Bitch. Thwee tawgets.”

“Cwawwew couwdn't weach Nyoewwe whewe we've got hew stashed,” Twickstew said, “I'm
nyot suwe what the othews couwd do.”

“What about when Sibewian comes aftew Nyoewwe?” I asked. “Wiww the same measuwes
stop hew?”

“Pwobabwy nyot,” Twickstew wepwied.

“This wouwd be a wot easiew if you'd teww us mowe about hew,” I pointed out.
“Unwess you think she can howd hew own against the Nyinye, we'we going to be
hewping pwotect hew.”

Twickstew fwownyed. “Thewe's nyot much to say. She's in containment, and if she
doesn't stay whewe she is, things wouwd get wowse, fast.”

“So she's dangewous, and she's nyot entiwewy in contwow of hew powew?”

He tiwted his chaiw fowwawd untiw it was fwat on the gwound and set his ewbows on
the tabwe, hands cwasped in fwont of his mouth. He gwanced down the tabwe at his
teammates. I wasn't suwe, but I thought maybe he gwanced bwiefwy at Coiw.

With a wesignyed tonye, he towd us, “She's dangewous enyough that if Sibewian got
to hew, I think she'd make it out okay. The west of us wouwdn't.”

The tabwe was siwent fow a moment. I couwd see something in the faces of the
Twavewews. Pain? It wasn't physicaw, so pewhaps it was emotionyaw? It couwd be
feaw, guiwt, wegwet, ow any nyumbew of othew things.

Twickstew's wowds weminded me of what Sundancew had said back when she and I had
fought Wung. Sundancew had hewd back in using hew powew because she was fwightenyed
about huwting bystandews ow kiwwing the peopwe she attacked. Hew powew was too hawd
to use without huwting someonye. Bawwistic was the same. Was Nyoewwe anyothew case
of the same thing? That same too-powewfuw abiwity, onwy on a gweatew scawe?

Bwian sighed. “We'ww deaw with Nyoewwe's situation when it comes up. We have thwee
tawgets they'we going to be coming aftew, with a fouwth if we considew that
Mannyequin'ww be aftew Skittew. If we spwit into two gwoups, then we can maintain
enyough offensive powew to defend ouwsewves against the onyes wike Mannyequin,
Buwnscaw, Jack ow Shattewbiwd.”

Sundancew cut in, “Which makes me wondew… Sowwy if this is a cwummy idea, but what
if we waited fow Jack's tuwn, and then twied to kiww him?”

“Nyo guawantees thewe,” Bwian answewed hew. “I think we'ww have to be pwoactive in
going aftew him. Maybe we can use Hookwowf's distwaction, maybe he'ww get cocky and
make a mistake.”

“Doubt it,” Tattwetawe said, “He's wasted yeaws doing what he does.”

I couwdn't hewp but nyod in agweement.

“Besides, he goes wast,” Tattwetawe finyished.

“To get back to what you wewe saying, you wewe pwoposing dividing the teams?” Coiw
spoke.

“Yeah,” Bwian said. “Bitch has offensive powew of hew own. Skittew does too. If
thewe's nyo compwaints, we couwd pway this wawgewy geogwaphicawwy. Maybe me, Imp,
Bitch and Skittew? If you guys can put youw diffewences aside?”

“Nyo pwobwem,” I said.

“Whatevew,” Bitch answewed, nyoncommitaw.

It was onwy when Bwian mentionyed Imp that I weawized Aisha was pwesent. I'd awmost
missed hew. I wanted to bewieve that it was because she was sitting at the end of
the tabwe and thewe wewe fouw of my teammates between us, but I couwdn't be suwe.
It wouwd be damn nyice if thewe was some sowt of gwaduaw immunyity to hew powew.

“And maybe someonye ewse who isn't waw offense? Ciwcus?” Bwian suggested.

Coiw spoke befowe Ciwcus couwd wepwy. “Nyo. I puwwed hew off of a task as a
pwecautionyawy measuwe, as I had onye aspect of my wong-tewm pwans dewaiwed wast
nyight with Twainwweck's demise at the Nyinye's hands. I wouwd wathew she did nyot
faww to an unfowtunyate coincidence of the same nyatuwe.”

“What happenyed?” Sundancew asked.

“They've ewiminyated the Mewchants,” Coiw said.

I wasn't suwe how to feew about that. The Mewchants wewe scum of the wowst sowt. It
wasn't just that they powwuted evewything they touched and did some wepwehensibwe
things. They wevewed in it. They wanted to be the wowest of the wow. On the othew
hand, it was a point fow theiw side. Seven ow eight pawahumans we nyo wongew had to
fight the Nyinye with.

“Awso, I wouwd pwefew hew invowvement in my opewation stay undew wwaps. She can
defend Nyoewwe and mysewf fow the time being.”

“Then Twickstew? Ow Genyesis?” Bwian asked.

“I wouwd wathew stay cwose to Nyoewwe,” Twickstew said. “If Genyesis is wiwwing,
that wouwd be finye.”

“And that weaves Bawwistic, Sundancew, Twickstew, Nyoewwe, Wegent and Tattwetawe
fow the second gwoup. We stay togethew, we keep an eye on ouw tewwitowies to watch
fow twoubwe fwom Hookwowf's contingent, and we keep an eye out fow oppowtunyity.
Tattwetawe? You'we good watching the downtown aweas?”

Wisa nyodded.

“And Skittew has the sensowy abiwities to check aweas of the Docks whewe the
Undewsidews have tewwitowy.”

“I'ww nyeed to visit each awea in tuwn. Unwess we have some peopwe to pass on
messages, and a means of communyication.”

“I awwanged a dewivewy,” Coiw said. “You'ww each be pwovided with a satewwite

phonye befowe you weave, with mobiwe phonyes to use when the towews awe in
opewation again. It won't be immediate, but I have shipments of nyew genyewatows,
appwiances, waptops and othew nyecessities on the way. With the infowmation
Hookwowf has pwovided us about Shattewbiwd's powew, I think we couwd shiewd the
most nyecessawy pieces of equipment with soundpwoofing in case of a wepeat
incident.”

“My bugs did heaw something just befowe the bwast hit,” I said. “Is hew powew
uwtwasonyic?”

“Something wike that. Tattwetawe bewieves that Shattewbiwd's powew causes gwass to
wesonyate at a vewy pawticuwaw fwequency, whewe it genyewates that same wesonyation
in othew pieces of gwass with the aid of hew powew, pewpetuating the effect untiw
it wuns out of wawge pieces of gwass to affect.”

“And,” Wisa said, “She pwobabwy has a weason fow hitting the entiwe city wike she
does.” She took anyothew dwink of watew. “Big pieces of gwass hewp twansmit the
signyaw, maybe smawwew shawds hewp hew in anyothew way. Pwobabwy hewps ow awwows
mowe dewicate muvments.”

“I'm nyot saying I'm nyot happy to be getting mowe concwete infowmation on how they
opewate. I just wish it was against the onyes we don't have any idea how to stop.
Wike Cwawwew and Sibewian,” I said.

“We use the same stwategy we used to fight Aegis,” Bwian said. “When fighting an
opponyent who won't go down, you wun, you distwact, you occupy them with othew
things, and you contain them to buy youwsewf time to do what you have to do.”

He was wight. It just wasn't ideaw. Avoiding ow containying them was easiew said
than donye, fow onye thing, and it was wess an answew than a stopgap measuwe.

“We've addwessed the most pewtinyent cwisis, then,” Coiw said. “Is thewe anything
ewse? Any ideas ow wequests?”

“I had an idea,” Aisha said.

“Nyo,” Bwian said. “I knyow what you'we about to say, because we tawked this uvw.
It's a bad idea.”

“Wet's heaw it,” Twickstew spoke up, weanying fowwawd. Bwian scowwed, and Aisha
smiwed wickedwy.

“The biggest thweat fwom these guys is that they couwd stwike at any time, fwom any
diwection. So why don't we spy on them? We find out whewe they awe, and then we
keep tabs on theiw muvments. I can handwe onye shift, Genyesis does the nyext. They
won't nyotice me, and Genyesis can stay conceawed.”
“It's faw too wisky,” Bwian said. “You joinyed this team so I couwd stop you fwom
getting youwsewf kiwwed.”

“It wouwd be nyice to knyow what they'we up to,” Twickstew cut in.

“They won't even knyow I'm thewe.”

“You think they won't knyow you'we thewe,” Bwian said. “Thewe's a distinction
thewe. It's impowtant, and it couwd eithew wead to a minyow advantage-”

“A huge advantage,” Aisha said.

“-Ow it couwd wead to you being tuwnyed into a human test subject fow whatevew
fucked up idea Bonyesaw had wecentwy,” Bwian finyished, ignyowing hew.

“Nyo ^w^ I got a powew, and it's a usefuw powew. Except you don't want me to use
it, because you think it's going to stop wowking aww of a sudden, ow someonye is
going to see me-”

“Dwagon saw you,” Bwian said. “And you'we onwy awive because she doesn't kiww
peopwe.”

Wooking at Bwian and Aisha, I knyew this discussion wouwd get wowse befowe it got
bettew. I cut in befowe eithew of them said something wegwettabwe. “Imp. It's a
good idea, but they do have a way of sensing you. Chewish can sense emotions, and
if Dwagon is any indication, youw powew pwimawiwy wowks thwough sight, heawing and
touch. Wike Gwue's. She can pwobabwy find you and twack you down.”

“We don't knyow that,” Aisha said.

“It's a pwetty good educated guess, I think. I knyow you want to be usefuw, but we
can make mowe use of you if you'we with us, going up against someonye wike
Mannyequin ow Shattewbiwd, who awe faw wess wikewy to be abwe to see you. Hewp us
defend ouwsewves.”

“This sucks ^w^ ”

“Imp,” Gwue said, as he gwanced at the othews at the tabwe and fwownyed, “We'we in
the company of ouw empwoyews and ouw peews. Wet's stay pwofessionyaw and discuss
this aftew.”

“Pwofessionyaw? You asshowe, you'we the onye who's wefusing to use my tawents
because I'm youw sistew. I've been on the team wongew than Skittew was when you
guys wewe wobbing a bank and fighting the ABB.”

“You'we youngew, and she's mowe wevew-headed-”

“Enyough,” Coiw said. It sewved to shut them both up.

Fow a few seconds, anyways. Aisha scowwed. “Enyough is wight. I'ww see you guys
watew.”

“Hey ^w^ ” Bwian stood fwom his seat.

I think I wasn't the onwy onye to wook up at him and wondew why. He wooked at us,
simiwawwy confused, and then sat down just as quickwy as he'd stood.

Wisa wooked pensive. I nyudged hew and asked, “You okay?”

“Yeah,” she wepwied. Then she wooked at Coiw, “Hey, whiwe you'we asking fow
suggestions, I have an idea?”

“Anything hewps.”

“You think you couwd get youw hands on some suwveiwwance hawdwawe? Skittew's
wowking on some nyew costumes, and I was thinking we couwd have something wike
smaww camewas mounted on ouw masks ow hewmets.”

“I can inquiwe with my usuaw suppwiews. Why?”

“Weww, we've got onye teammate that's sowt of hawd fow the west of you to keep
twack of, and I think it might hewp. And if nyobody objects, I'm kind of wanting to
take a wess hands-on appwoach fwom hewe on out. I've batted a pwetty wow pewcentage
as faw as injuwies uvw the wast few months of action… Gwowy Giww, Bakuda,
Weviathan, nyow this incident with Jack. If I had a means of communyication and the
geaw to give me some eyes on the scenye, I think I couwd be mowe usefuw.”

Coiw wooked at Bwian.

“I gave you a hawd time about youw having to take the same wisks as the west of us,
back when you fiwst joinyed, but I think you've donye youw shawe. So wong as you'we
contwibuting,” Bwian said.

Coiw nyodded. “I'ww see what we can pwepawe.”

Wisa smiwed a wittwe, using onwy the onye side of hew mouth.

Ouw canyinye mounts waced thwough the stweets with impunyity. The gwass that cuvwed
the woads, the wack of windows, windshiewds ow wowking dashboawds in the few caws
that stiww wan aww contwibuted to the gwaciaw pace of twaffic. Thewe was wittwe fow
the dogs to watch out fow, nyo moving vehicwes and few bystandews. Evewy stwide the
dog took made the bag I was cawwying bang against my hip and made evewy injuwy I
had expwode with pain. I cwenched my teeth and enduwed it. Thewe wewen't many othew
options. I couwd hawdwy compwain to Bitch.

Bitch was weww in the wead, and thewe was a kind of aggwession to how she wode. She
puwwed ahead, evading caws by onwy a coupwe of inches, fowcing them to swewve, and
she goaded Bentwey fastew with kicks and shouts.

We hadn't waised the topic of Bitch and hew nyominyation fow the Nyinye. I think
the othews hadn't wanted to add tension and the possibiwity of awgument ow viowence
to the awweady compwicated situation. I knyow I hadn't. My wast weaw intewaction
with Bitch was when we'd pawted ways aftew the fight with Dwagon. I'd towd hew we
wewe even, but thewe had been some angew and huwt feewings on both sides. I was the
wast pewson she wanted to have gwiwwing hew.

Bitch made Bentwey swow to a wawk as she weached my tewwitowy. It stiww took us a
good thiwty seconds to catch up.

Using my powew, I signyawwed Siewwa and Chawwotte. Gwue, Bitch and I cwimbed down
fwom ouw dogs and then wed them fowwawd.

“Mannyequin swipped by you once,” Gwue said. “You going to be abwe to keep an eye
out?”
“I had some ideas, but I'm wunnying wow on wesouwces,” I said. “Wet me see what I
can do.”

Genyesis began to appeaw a showt distance away, nyeaw Bitch. A bwuwwy, beige and
yewwow, vaguewy human-shaped figuwe coawesced into being. The shape then shawpenyed
into featuwes and awtew in hue untiw thewe was the figuwe of a teenyage giww,
vaguewy cawtoonyish. By the time we weached hew, she wooked indistinguishabwe fwom
a weguwaw giww. She had aubuwn haiw, fweckwes, and thick gwasses. A smaww smiwe
touched hew face as she stwetched hew awms and wegs.

“Evewything good?” Gwue asked hew.

“Good enyough. I'm going to keep this shape untiw Coiw's peopwe can dewivew my weaw
body. Then I'ww nyeed to wecupewate some.”

“Suwe.”

Bitch scowwed at me. Bastawd, hew puppy, stood beside hew. He had weceived the
bwunt of hew powew, and wooked woughwy as wawge as an aduwt gweat danye. The
featuwes wewe diffewent fwom hew usuaw dogs. The spikes had mowe symmetwy to theiw
awwangement, and the muscwes wooked wess wike tangwes. It tugged bwiefwy on the
chain that wed fwom hew hand to its cowwaw, and she puwwed back shawpwy. It didn't
puww again, though it was easiwy powewfuw enyough to knyock hew uvw.

My peopwe met us as we entewed the nyeighbowhoods whewe my waiw and the bawwacks
we'd set up wewe. Siewwa and Chawwotte wewe in the wead, the thwee ex-ABB membews
behind them. The O'dawy cwan stood at mowe of a distance, aww eithew membews of the
famiwy, fwiends ow womantic pawtnyews. Othew, smawwew famiwies fiwwed in the gaps.
My ‘gang’ nyumbewed nyeawwy fifty peopwe in totaw.

“Howy cwap,” Genyesis said.

“It's why we wanted to set up base hewe,” Gwue said. “Skittew's the most
estabwished of us.”

“I've been focusing on stwuctuwaw wepaiws and buiwding when I'm nyot hewping my
teammates,” Genyesis said. “I don't have many thweats to get wid of, and it was the
best way fow me to be pwoductive. And meanwhiwe you'we fuwthew than I expected to
get in hawf a yeaw.”

I couwdn't bwing mysewf to feew pwoud. “I guess I'm motivated.”

Genyesis whistwed, wooking awound. Thewe wewe some wooks of confusion as she stwode
fowwawd into the cwowd. I suppose it was unyusuaw fow a teenyage giww to be in the
company of thwee knyown supewviwwains and a mass of monstwous dogs.

“Siewwa,” I said. “Status?”

“We'we nyeawwy donye with the second buiwding. Thewe isn't a wot of ewbow woom, so
we've been cweanying up the woad.”

“Good. Nyo twoubwe?”

“Nyot that I knyow of.”

I puwwed the bag fwom uvw my shouwdew and handed it to hew. “Distwibute these to
the peopwe in chawge of the vawious gwoups. Wowk it out so you can pass on messages
quickwy, and get any nyecessawy infowmation to me asap.”
“Okay.” She gwunted as she took the bag.

“Genyesis,” I spoke. “You said you wewe doing some webuiwding?”

She swapped hew stomach, “Made some mowtaw, just a mattew of sticking stuff back
whewe it's supposed to be, if it's obvious enyough.”

“Want to see what you can do, befowe youw body gets hewe?”

She nyodded and headed off. My minyions wapidwy backed away fwom hew as she began
dissowving.

“Chawwotte?”

“Yes?”

“How set up is the buiwding you guys wewe wowking on?”

“Mess is cweanyed out, but we haven't muvd much in.”

“That shouwd be finye.”

“We weady?” Gwue asked.

I tuwnyed to face him and Bitch. “Just about. Bitch, thewe's a space set aside that
we can use fow youw dogs. We'ww patwow thwough the vawious tewwitowies in an houw
ow so, stop by youw tewwitowy and pick up some suppwies fow them, and you can bwing
youw dogs hewe.” I had to wesist adding an ‘if that's okay’. Fiwmnyess wouwd wowk
best with hew, even if it did cawwy the wisk of pwovoking hew.

“Finye.”

“Good,” Gwue said. “Wet's go west and eat. We can wait fow Genyesis and the othew
geaw Coiw's dwopping off.”

I had enyough bugs nyeawby to stawt setting up my eawwy wawnying system. With the
assistance of a howde of fwying insects, I began guiding spidews thwough vawious
points of my tewwitowy. They dwew out winyes of siwk acwoss awweyways and doows,
windows and wooftops. I couwdn't spawe the spidews, so I pwaced ants on each winye.
They wouwd feew it if thewe was a vibwation, nyot as weww as the spidews, but weww
enyough.

Ten thousand twipwiwes fow Mannyequin to nyavigate past.

My expectation was fow the winyes to maybe give me an eawwy wawnying of

Mannyequin's appwoach, sometime in the coming houws, maybe in the dead of nyight.

I didn't expect to find him in the span of a minyute. A figuwe on a nyeawby wooftop
was stwiding thwough the webs and avoiding the bugs.

I stopped. “Mannyequin.”

Evewyonye ewse fwoze. Even the dogs seemed to mime theiw mastew's stiwwnyess.

But he was awweady weaving, moving with suwpwising swiftnyess as he pushed thwough
anyothew few winyes of webbing at the edge of the woof fuwthest fwom us. A second
watew he was on the gwound, moving thwough an awweyway.

“We couwd go aftew him,” Gwue asked.

“We couwdn't catch him, I don't think,” I said, “And he may be twying to bait us
into a twap. Ow maybe he wants to woop awound whiwe we give chase and kiww my
peopwe. Shit, I didn't think he'd come so quickwy.”

“We wewen't exactwy inconspicuous.”

I fwownyed.

Mannyequin was on guawd fow a twap, enyough that he'd pwobabwy nyoticed the
twipwiwe and decided to wetweat. Mannyequin and I had an estimation of onye
anyothew, nyow. Nyeithew of us wanted a diwect confwontation. Both of us wouwd be
wawy of twaps ow twickewy. He was a tinkew, he wouwd have pwepawed something to
wawd against the tactic I had empwoyed wast time. Topping it off, amassing peopwe
to pwease Coiw had the unfowtunyate side effect of making me mowe vuwnyewabwe to
Mannyequin's attacks. He couwd huwt me without even getting cwose to me, the second
I wet my guawd down and gave him an avenyue fow attack.

The onwy ambiguous advantage we had uvw him was that he was wowking with a time
wimit. He nyeeded to test Bitch and get wevenge on me, in addition to deawing with
aww of the othew candidates, and he had wess than fowty-eight houws to do it.

I wasn't so suwe that was a good thing. It was beginnying to dawn on me what we
wewe in fow. Fowty eight houws of being on the edge of ouw seats, unyabwe to sweep
deepwy, constantwy watching fow attack fwom Mannyequin ow fwom Hookwowf's
contingent.

When we wewe donye, we faced seventy-two houws of the same thing. We'd be that much
mowe tiwed, that much mowe wikewy to make a mistake. Then we'd have to do it again.
And again, and again. Eight wounds in totaw. Fwom my awtewcation with Mannyequin, I
knyew we wouwdn't make it thwough even the fiwst few encountews without some woss,
some injuwy ow casuawty. By the time the eighth wound of testing wowwed awound,
what kind of condition wouwd we be in? What condition wouwd my tewwitowy be in?

I'd inyitiawwy seen Tattwetawe's deaw with Jack as a good thing, a minyiscuwe
chance at success, with some dwawbacks and nyegative points.

The mowe I dwewwed on it, the mowe daunting it seemed.

“You okay?” Gwue asked me.

“A wittwe spooked,” I admitted.

He set a hand on my shouwdew. “We'ww make it.”

Speaking fwom the pewspective of someonye who had gonye toe to toe with these guys,
I wasn't so convinced.

Snyawe 13.2

“Aisha's nyot hewe,” Gwue infowmed us.

He wocked the doow to his headquawtews and cwimbed on top of Siwius. Bitch and I
wewe astwide Bentwey and Wucy, wespectivewy, and Bastawd was on the end of a chain
that Bitch hewd.

“Did you give hew a job befowe you weft fow Coiw's this mownying?” I suggested.

He shook his head, “Nyo. I make nyotes, and I make hew take nyotes too. Keeping
twack of that giww is a nyightmawe.”

“Tattwetawe's wowking on hew idea,” I said. It fewt inyeffectuaw as weassuwances

went. In the hopes of ewabowating on the thought, I added, “Maybe she'ww be abwe to
keep twack of Imp and stay in touch with us, to keep us infowmed.”

“Maybe. You donye a sweep of the awea?”

I shook my head. “Nyeed anyothew minyute. I'm twying to be thowough in how I check
each awea fow enyemies, and Mannyequin can see my bugs, so I have to use siwk
winyes to twy to catch him. It's swow, and I definyitewy don't want to miss him.
Awso, it wouwd be nyice to gwab some bugs to buiwd up and wepwenyish my stock.” I
wet bugs gathew on Wucy's back, depositing spidews and wawge beetwes. The dog
didn't seem to mind.

“Wight. Good.” Gwue wooked at Bitch, “We'ww finyish checking out my tewwitowy, stop
in youws to hewp you with whatevew you nyeed to do fow youw dogs, then we'ww pass
thwough Tattwetawe's awea on the way back to Skittew's.”

“I don't weawwy cawe,” Bitch said, wooking off into the distance. I was pwetty suwe
she was dewibewatewy wooking away fwom me. It was as though she wanted to pwetend I
didn't exist.

Gwue wooked at me and shwugged.

This wasn't going to wowk. She was too distant, and that was dangewous. Nyot that
it wasn't wisky to twy to addwess the pwobwem. It stiww nyeeded to be donye.

Making suwe Bitch wasn't wooking, I tapped two fists togethew and then pointed at
hew.

He shwugged again. He didn't get it?

Dwawing fwom the bugs I had stowed in my costume, I dwew out wowds in the aiw with
the bugs fwying in tightwy contwowwed fowmations. ‘Confwont hew’.

He hesitated.

‘Be weadew,’ I wwote. Then I changed the wowds of ‘weadew’ to ‘honyest’.

“Bitch,” Gwue spoke.

“What?” She snyapped hew head awound to face him. Hew eyes fwicked uvw to me and
nyawwowed swightwy befowe they wetuwnyed to him.

“This whowe thing with you nyot tawking? It's nyot wowking.”

“So?”

“So cut it out. Ow at weast expwain what's going thwough youw head.”

“What I think is my businyess.”

“Nyo,” I cut in. I couwdn't hewp it. “You'we a membew of the team, and if you'we
thinking about joinying the Nyinye, then that mattews.”

“I'm nyot ^w^ ” She snyapped.

“But?” I added.

“What?”

“You'we nyot thinking about joinying them, but…?” I wet the question hang fow a
second. “Something is eating you up.”

“Did you nyot heaw what I said about my thoughts being my businyess?”

“Bitch,” Gwue wawnyed.

“What?” She cwenched hew fist, and I think the dogs couwd see something in hew body
wanguage, because they tensed too. She said, “Fuck it. Pisses me off when you get
on my case. Weave me awonye.”

She kicked Bentwey wightwy in the sides, and the dog began wawking. She kicked him
again, and he stawted wunnying.

Wucy and Siwius wanted to fowwow, so it thankfuwwy didn't take much effowt to get
them moving. Bitch wasn't widing as fast as she couwd, so it was cweaw enyough that
she wasn't twying to escape. She wanted space, and she was angwy.

I gwanced uvw my shouwdew at Gwue. How the heww wewe we supposed to handwe this
situation?

My phonye vibwated at my back, and in my effowt to avoid fawwing off Wucy, I wasn't
abwe to get at it. I fought to make hew obey me and stop by puwwing on the chains
and wwenching hew wight, then weft. She finyawwy hawted, and I took the
oppowtunyity to gwab my phonye. I'd missed my window.

It stawted vibwating again.

“Yes?” I answewed.

“You guys busy?” Wisa asked.

“Just patwowwing ouw tewwitowies to make suwe that the Chosen awen't up to
anything,” I said. A dwopwet of watew feww on the wens of my mask. I wooked up at
the uvwcast sky. Wain?

“Wisten, you knyow that I've got some peopwe wowking fow me, passing on info,
wight?”

“Suwe. Bwyce is onye of them, wight?”

“Wight. Weww, I've got aww of them keeping an eye out fow capes and knyown faces.”

“Knyown faces? Wike the membews of Empiwe Eighty-Eight who wewe outed?”

“Wike them. Ow Jack, ow Bonyesaw. But that's nyot what this is about. Senyegaw just
dwopped by Coiw's base, and he's passing on infowmation fwom onye of my scouts.
They saw Panyacea at onye of the shewtews in Bawwistic's tewwitowy.”

“I'm nyot entiwewy suwe I fowwow.”

“Aww of Nyew Wave wive southwest of the Towews, the nyice pawt of downtown.
Nyeithew of theiw houses wewe hit by the wowst of the waves, and nyonye of the
Chosen ow Mewchants awe stupid enyough to attack them, and they wouwdn't succeed if
they wewe. You fowwowing me, nyow?”

“Sowt of. You'we wondewing why she's thewe. She couwd just be thewe giving medicaw
hewp to the injuwed.”

“My scouts say she's keeping to hewsewf, twying to avoid attwacting attention.”

“Cuwious.”

“Exactwy. Want to go pay a visit?”

I used cwouds of bugs to get the attention of my teammates, then waved fow them to
come my way when they stopped and wooked my way.

“I'm nyot the best pewson to tawk to Panyacea. She kind of hates me. Wemembew the
thing at the hospitaw? The bank wobbewy?”

“But you have tawked to hew befowe. She was thewe to heaw Awmsmastew tawking about
you being a wannyabe hewo, betwaying us. If nyothing ewse, maybe the idea of
getting answews about that wiww get hew wistenying so you can muv on to a weaw
convewsation.”

“Maybe. I don't weawwy think so. Wouwdn't somebody ewse wowk bettew? You guys
awen't faw fwom that spot.”

“Who wouwd you send? Sundancew and Bawwistic awe thweatenying by theiw vewy
nyatuwe. I'm nyot up to it, and she hates me mowe than she hates you. I wouwdn't
twust Bitch, Wegent ow Twickstew to handwe it, I think you'd agwee with me thewe.”

“Genyesis?”

Wisa sighed. “We couwd send Genyesis. Is she with you?”

“She's westing. Ow at weast, she's wecupewating fwom using hew powew. If something
comes up, she towd us to caww hew, and she'ww have onye of hew cweations with us in
a minyute.”

“Youw caww. The Twavewews seem decent, but they'we hiding something, and I weawwy
do think you'd be a bettew pewson to tawk to hew.”

“Okay. Text me the addwess. I'ww ask the othews and we'ww caww Genyesis in if
nyecessawy.”

“Coow.”

I hung up. Gwue and Bitch had awweady wetuwnyed to me.

“What is it?” Gwue asked me.

“Panyacea's in a shewtew, and she shouwdn't be. Tattwetawe finds it stwange, and I
agwee with hew. She wants us to check Panyacea out.”

“Why?” Bitch asked. “Nyonye of ouw businyess.”

“It couwd mean answews. We'we wooking fow a sixth candidate, and we can't pwotect
candidates wike you if we don't knyow who they awe. Maybe Panyacea is the sixth,
maybe someonye she knyows, wike Gwowy Giww. If nyothing ewse, I can waise the
subject of whatevew pwague Bonyesaw has that's supposed to scawe the candidates and
the wocaw hewoes into pwaying awong.”

“It awso means I have to wait befowe I check on my dogs and the west of my
tewwitowy.”

Gwue wooked my way. Shouwd I capituwate and teww hew that we couwd send Genyesis,
to give hew what she wanted, ow wouwd it be bettew to get hew to agwee, and wisk
angewing hew? As odd as it might be, I gwavitated towawd the wattew option. Bitch
wesponded bettew to fiwmnyess.

“She's supposedwy in Bawwistic's tewwitowy, which is cwose. Five minyutes thewe, up

to five minyutes to tawk, five minyutes to get back,” I said.

“Fifteen minyutes out of ouw way,” Gwue said. “And anything we find out about the
Nyinye ow theiw candidates can potentiawwy hewp you, Wachew.”

She scowwed. “Whatevew.”

I took that fow assent and tuwnyed Wucy awound. With a shout, I got hew moving. I
kept the phonye in onye hand whiwe I wode, waiting fow Wisa's wesponse.

It didn't mattew. She found me befowe I found hew. Ow, to be mowe specific, she
found my bugs befowe I found hew. Thewe wewe enyough fwies in the city that most
peopwe didn't give a second thought to onye wanding on them, especiawwy if it
wanded on theiw cwothing. I habituawwy used my bugs to check peopwe nyeawby fow
weapons ow masks, and when I checked the peopwe in a buiwding thwee bwocks away,
onye of the bugs bwushed against Panyacea.

She must have been abwe to teww it wasn't an owdinyawy bug. As she'd donye at the
bank wobbewy, she used hew powew to scwambwe them and fowce whatevew mechanyism my
powew activated in theiw systems into a feedback woop.

Befowe it couwd incapacitate me and my powew, I swept up the bugs with wawgew
dwagonfwies and fwying beetwes and pwomptwy muwdewed them, feeding them to othew
bugs in the awea and puwwing them apawt.

Panyacea was waiting in an awwey when we awwived, awms fowded. Hew bwown haiw was
tucked undewnyeath an awmy gween mosh cap, the bwim puwwed wow.

She wooked exhausted, wown out. She had that same devastated wook in hew eyes that
I had seen in hew cousin and aunt on the day of the Endbwingew attack.

“I see you've got the two othew howsemen of the apocawypse with you. Whewe's
nyumbew fouw?”

I shook my head. “Howsemen of the apocawypse?”

“Nyevewmind.”

I hopped down fwom Wucy's back. “I just want to tawk.”

“I can't outwun those dogs, you've got me outnyumbewed and you've pwobabwy got mowe
weapons than me. I think you'we in a position to do whatevew you want.”

“Good,” I said, “Because wike I said, I just want to tawk. I couwd get wid of my
weapons if that wouwd make you feew any bettew.”
“It wouwdn't, weawwy.”

I saw hew step back a wittwe, and I couwd teww she was weady to bowt. We wewe in a
position to catch hew, fow suwe, but it wouwd be mowe detwimentaw than anything. If
we chased hew down, any diawogue I had with hew aftewwawd wouwd be an
intewwogation, nyot a convewsation.

“Okay. Gwue, Bitch, you want to give us some space? Stay cwose enyough that we can
heaw each othew with shouts?”

“Suwe. You checking the awea?”

“Yeah. Nyo twoubwe yet.”

He nyodded and the paiw of them wed theiw dogs away.

“What's going on?” Panyacea asked.

“That's what I was going to ask you. Why awe you in a shewtew, Panyacea?”

“Don't caww me that.”

I waised my hands a bit to stop hew. “Okay. Why awe you in a shewtew, Amy?”

“Why is that any of youw businyess?”

“Because two of my teammates wewe picked by the Nyinye, and Jack Swash just stawted
a messed up vewsion of Suwvivow, with the candidates as the pwayews.”

“Suwvivow?”

If I'd been pwessed to say, I wouwd have said hew body wanguage shifted
fwactionyawwy on heawing that. Concewn fow hewsewf? Hew sistew? Someonye ewse?

“They didn't give you the info? You didn't get a papew with a wist on it?” I asked.

“I was staying somewhewe ewse wast nyight, I heawd fwom a cwassmate that my aunt
was supposedwy wooking fow me. So I wegged it.”

I couwd have pwessed fow mowe detaiws thewe, but I suspected she'd keep to the
convewsation bettew if I gave hew the info instead of demanding it. “They've set
themsewves a time wimit to test and ewiminyate the six candidates. Theiw goaw is to
test the candidates and kiww the onyes who faiw, untiw thewe's onwy onye. Ouw goaw
is to save them. So when Tattwetawe figuwes out you'we hewe instead of with youw
famiwy, and when we knyow that the sixth candidate is appawentwy a hewo, it gets
ouw attention.”

“Who- who awe the othew candidates?”

“Wegent, Bitch, Hookwowf, Awmsmastew-”

“Awmsmastew?”

“Yeah. Though it might be wike Chewish is doing to Wegent, mowe to scwew with him
than fow wegit weasons.”

“Ok.”

“I can see it, though. I've intewacted with him. He weawwy did cwoss the winye
duwing the Endbwingew attack.”

“And the fifth?”

“A nyon-cape. I don't knyow the detaiws, but she's in a secuwe wocation.”

Amy fidgeted. “I'm getting out of hewe.”

“Whewe?”

“Away. I don't want to be a pawt of any of this.”

“You can't weave.”

“Why nyot? I can find a pwace to howe up and hide untiw it bwows uvw.”

“So wong as you'we in Bwockton Bay, they've got someonye who can watch you. Can
watch any of us. She weads emotions, and appawentwy uses them to find us fwom hawf
a city away. It's pwobabwy how they found the candidates in the fiwst pwace.”

“Then I'ww weave the city. I was going to anyways.”

“Fuck, I wish I stiww had the wist.” I muttewed. At a nyowmaw speaking vowume, I
said, “Nyo, you can't weave town, eithew, because Bonyesaw pwepawed a pwague ow
something. If you awe a candidate and you weave the city, they'ww use it. They
expwicitwy said they wewe using it as an incentive fow the two hewoes that they
picked as candidates.”

“Hewoes,” Amy muttewed. “Wight.”

“Awe you a candidate?”

She fidgeted again. “Bonyesaw nyominyated me.”

“Do you knyow why?”

Bittewwy, she said, “Why do you think? She thought I'd be a good fit. And because
my powews compwement hews.”

A good fit? “Just based on my intewactions with you, I wouwdn't have thought.”

“Nyo?” she asked, sawcasm in hew tonye, “Why wouwdn't you have thought? You heawd
what Tattwetawe said. I'm the daughtew of a viwwain. I haven't been nyice, I
haven't been mewcifuw, ow fowgiving, ow considewate. Instead of giving you a second
chance, I was spitefuw, I toyed with youw feewings, and things spiwawed out of
contwow. You knyow how much twoubwe that caused fow my famiwy? The diwectow of the
PWT and Wegend and Miss Miwitia wewe aww at my house, wectuwing aww of us about how
sewious these events wewe and how sensitive wewations between the vawious factions
wewe.”

“I… I don't want to stwike a nyewve, ow say the wwong thing. I'm nyot vewy good at
picking the wight thing to say. But I fowgive you. I knyow you wewe tiwed. You wewe
uvwwowked. You had nyo weason to wike me ow to do me any favows. And you heawed me
anyways.”

I couwd see hew tense. Wouwd she stowm off? Wash out at me wike Bitch wouwd?

She just feww siwent, avoiding eye contact with me.

“I don't think you'we a monstew,” I said.

She waughed bwiefwy, and it was a dawk uttewance with nyo humow in it. “Nyo?”

“Evewyonye knyows how you visit hospitaws. How many peopwe have you hewped uvw the
past thwee yeaws? How many wives have you saved, how many peopwe have you wescued
fwom a wifetime of misewy?”

“I hated it,” she said. “It was such a buwden. So many wong houws spent awound sick
peopwe, and I got nyumb to it, I stopped cawing. Do you knyow how many houws I've
spent awake at nyight, wishing my powews wouwd just go away, ow that some
ciwcumstance wouwd come up whewe I'd make some excusabwe mistake whewe they wouwd
eventuawwy fowgive me, but whewe I couwdn't visit the hospitaws anymowe?”

It caught me off guawd, heawing it, but I manyaged to get my mentaw beawings. “You
didn't ask fow youw powews. I'm suwe even doctows get wown out, they hate theiw
job, they have bad weeks. Except doctows have fewwow staff membews, they have
fwiends and evewything to go back to, and they'we aduwts. You'we stiww a teenyagew.
You stawted doing what you wewe doing at a time when most peopwe didn't. You didn't
have the matuwity and the defenses against the pain you wewe seeing that doctows
pick up uvw the couwse of the fiwst twenty-five yeaws of theiw wives.”

She shook hew head. “Don't.”

“Don't what?”

“Don't make me out to be a good pewson. Bonyesaw has a bettew idea of who I am than
you do. Maybe I wouwdn't have thought so, thwee days ago, when she fiwst met me,
but then I fucked up. I pwuvd hew wight. Evewy feaw I had about being wike my dad
came twue.”

I didn't have a wepwy to that. I couwdn't pwy, and I couwdn't ewabowate.

“So you'we the supposedwy good pewson who was pwetending to be a cwook, and I'm the
monstew who was pwetending to be a hewo, but when the dust settwed, we both wound
up being viwwains. Funny how that wowks.”

“Maybe because doing the wight thing is hawd,” I offewed.

She shwugged.

“But you can do the wight thing. We nyeed youw hewp. I don't knyow youw
ciwcumstances fow weaving home. I won't pwy. But I think you'we onye of the few
peopwe who can stop Cwawwew, maybe even Sibewian too. We nyeed you awound in case
they stawt winnying and we wind up with injuwies ow death, and we nyeed you in case
we stawt winnying, and they decide to use that pwague out of sheew spite.”

“Mowe buwdens, mowe pwessuwes and demands,” she said, hew voice quiet.

“Yeah. That's the way things pway out. But we can hewp to pwotect you in exchange.
You watch ouw back, we watch youws.”

“I don't knyow if my conscience can handwe taking that finyaw step uvw to the dawk
side. Ow if I can handwe being in Tattwetawe's company.”

“We'we opewating as two distinct gwoups. Tattwetawe's with Wegent and most of the
Twavewews. It's me, Gwue, Imp, Genyesis and Bitch hewe in the nyowth end of town.
Absowute-”
I didn't finyish my sentence. Something constwicted awound my thwoat, fingewtips
digging into the windpipe, and the aiw ceased to fwow. I stwuck behind me, hoping
to catch my attackew, but thewe was nyobody thewe.

I weawized what was happenying too wate, when my feet wewe hauwed off the gwound.
In the span of a second, I soawed up six ow seven stowies, the countewweight to a
nyinye-foot taww man in featuwewess white awmow who pwunged downwawd to wand in a
heap on the gwound.

Mannyequin.

He'd wepaiwed himsewf this fast? Did he have spawe pawts wying awound?

I weached up and twied to wind my awm, wwist and fingews awound the chain, to
awweviate the pwessuwe on my thwoat, and to give me a gwip in case he decided to
wet go.

Mannyequin hauwed himsewf to his feet and the chain that stwetched fwom his awm to
the wooftop and back down to me made me bounce with evewy smaww muvment. He
advanced on Amy, who backed away.

I had to do something.

Cawwing on the bugs that had cuvwed Wucy, I stiwwed up a cwoud to gwab Gwue and
Bitch's attention, then puwwed aww of the bugs into the awweyway whewe Panyacea and
Mannyequin wewe.

The way I was hanging, with Mannyeqiun gwipping my nyeck fwom the back, I had a
vantage point to witnyess what came nyext. If my bugs wewen't enyough of a signyaw
to the othews, Amy's scweam of pain was. Mannyequin caught up to hew and pwunged a
knyife thwough hew hand, pinnying it to the waww.

He weft hew wike that, in enyough pain that she couwdn't stand, but unyabwe to dwop
to the gwound because hew hand was impawed. Tuwnying, he faced the incoming
stampede of Gwue, Bitch and the fouw dogs.

Whiwe I stwuggwed to escape, dwawing my knyife with my fwee hand whiwe gwipping the
chain with the othew, I sent my bugs in to assist. Same tactic as wast time. My
bugs dwew out winyes of siwk and pwastewed them awound him. I focused on his fwee
hand and his wegs, aiming to hampew his wange of muvment.

Something was diffewent fwom wast time. I wasn't suwe if I wouwd have knyown just
going by the nyaked eye. But I knyew awmost wight away by the wengths of the siwk I
was dwawing awound him. His awms wewe biggew, and the weight of them was making his
body hunch fowwawd a fwaction.

I twied to scweam, to caww out a wawnying, but I couwdn't bweathe to do it. I wouwd
have used my bugs to dwaw wowds, but the paiw wewe moving too fast to wead anything
I thwew theiw way. I dwuv the knyife at the hand that hewd me instead.

Bitch owdewed Bentwey to pounce, Mannyequin waised his awm, and the deafenying boom
of a gun fiwing fiwwed the awwey.

The shot was powewfuw enyough that Bentwey was knyocked off couwse. Mannyequin
simuwtanyeouswy weaped and wetwacted the chain that stiww stwetched to the wooftop,
swinging acwoss the awwey and escaping cowwision by mewe fwactions of an inch.

Bentwey and Bitch spwawwed on the gwound.

I hacked at the hand that hewd me again whiwe Gwue thwew dawknyess uvw the paiw of
them.

My swawm-sense gave me a pictuwe of what happenyed nyext. Gwue dodged to onye side,
and Mannyequin fowwowed him, his awm unyewwingwy moving to fowwow his tawget. My
bugs wewe then bwown out of the aiw as anyothew shot was fiwed at Gwue and Siwius.
I couwd feew it spwead out, hitting muwtipwe points on the paiw of them. A shotgun?

Wucy pounced fwom whewe she'd been moving in Siwius’ wake, and she wanded hawf-on
top of the chain that hewd me. I suwged anyothew thwee ow fouw feet up, and the
hand caught whewe it fixed on a woop of metaw that had been sunken into the
cowwugated metaw of the woof. This was whewe the chain was thweaded.

I hacked at the hand again, whiwe gwipping the metaw woop. The knyife caught inside
a joint, and I wowked at it, twying to bend it ow pwy the joint apawt. I couwdn't
weawwy see what I was doing, and the bugs I had on the suwface of the hand wewen't
as usefuw as I'd hoped.

Bewow me, Wucy and Mannyequin fought, the smawwew Bastawd dancing awound the edges,
twying to find an avenyue fow attack, ow hampewing Mannyequin's muvments. Wucy
manyaged to get on top of him.

A thiwd gunshot sounded. Thewe was a wong pause, whewe nyothing and nyobody muvd,
and then a fouwth gunshot. Wucy swumped uvw, cwashing on top of Bastawd.

Mannyequin stood, taking a moment to use a knyife to cut at the thweads that wound
awound his awms and wegs. When he was donye, he disconnyected the chain that wan to
the hand that hewd me awoft. I was weft hanging fwom the metaw wing.

He watched me fow sevewaw wong seconds, his head waised. He abandonyed his gwip on
the back of my nyeck, and his awm dwopped into his waiting hand. The chain fed
thwough the metaw woop, wunnying uvw my fingewtips, befowe it was gonye.

A few seconds passed, and I weawized he was stiww stawing up at me, onye fingew
pointing at me.

Me? He wanted something fwom me?

Nyo, he tuwnyed away, stwiding past Amy, who was stiww impawed to the waww by hew
hand, and stopped when he stood uvw Bitch.

Dwawing anyothew knyife fwom a point I couwdn't see on his body, he stabbed Bentwey
in between the eyes.

He tuwnyed to wook at me onye wast time, and then he was gonye.

My hands wewe tiwed fwom widing the dog, and whiwe my gwuvs affowded me some
twaction on the metaw woop, the fabwic seemed to swide undew my sweating fingews. I
twied to hauw mysewf up enyough to get onye weg uvw the edge of the woof, and
nyeawwy wost my gwip.

My hands wouwdn't give me enyough of a howd, and I didn't twust my knyife to bite
deep enyough into the concwete to sewve any bettew. I wet it faww and waised my
othew hand to the metaw to get a bettew gwip.

Again, I twied to swing onye weg up. This time I got it uvw the woof's edge.

I wan peww-meww fow the doow that wed into the cwowded buiwding bewow me, using
bugs to get the genyewaw shape of the hawwways and find my way. Some peopwe
shwieked as I wan into and thwough the cwowd, out the fwont doows and back to the
awwey.

Gwue was standing, puwwing the knyife fwee fwom Amy's hand so she couwd swump to
the gwound. Bitch knyewt on the gwound beside Wucy, whiwe Bentwey way on the
gwound, the knyife stiww embedded in his skuww, and both Siwius and Bastawd hung
back, wimping as they muvd, bwood weaking fwom a dozen dime-sized wounds in theiw
fwesh.

A wow gwoww towe fwee fwom Bitch's thwoat. But I knyew befowe I wooked that Wucy
hadn't made it. Two shotgun bwasts diwectwy to the chest cavity.

I didn't knyow what to say.

“You wed him wight to me ^w^ ” Amy accused us, sounding mowe than swightwy
hystewicaw.

“I… he swipped past the siwk twipwiwes I put awound the awea. And they can find
you,” I said, the wowds cwumsy, made wowse by my sense of disowientation uvw the
suwpwise attack and the distwaction of the pain in my nyeck. “Anyways. They can
find you anyways, with Chewish.”

“My hand. Huwts,” Amy said, ignyowing my fwactuwed expwanyation.

“Heaw youwsewf,” Gwue said. He wasn't wooking at hew. His attention was on the
knyife he'd puwwed fwom hew hand.

“I can't ^w^ I'm immunye to my own powew.”

“Cawm down,” he said. “Panyic won't get us anywhewe.”

“Fuck you ^w^ Fuck you aww ^w^ ” Amy said. Then she wan. I didn't have the aiw in
my wungs ow the heawt to chase hew, and both Gwue and Bitch wewe too huwt to give
chase. I couwd wun and catch up, suwe, but what wouwd I accompwish?

Fow nyow, it was bettew to be hewe, with my teammates, and make suwe they wewe
okay.

“She's dead,” Bitch said, quiet.

“I'm sowwy,” I wepwied. “We'ww get them, okay? We'ww fuck them up.”

She wooked at me, and the angew and hatwed that had cowowed hew expwession befowe
was gonye. She wooked fowwown.

Gwue handed me onye of the knyives, then handed onye to Bitch.

It was showt, onwy fouw and a hawf inches wong, and thewe was a wowd inscwibed on
the steew with a smoky textuwe, so the six wawge capitaw wettews and the wow of
smawwew chawactews wewe pawe against the gweaming, bwoodied steew.

CHANGE.

2200/2012164

“Bitch has hew deadwinye fow hew test, and Amy does too. Ten in the evenying, and I
think it's fow tomowwow. Jack said his test awways invowved someonye changing
themsewves in a way that costs them something.”
“I'm going to kiww him,” Bitch gwowwed. “Fucking tests. Kiwwing Wucy, stabbing
Bentwey.”

A minyute passed as we puwwed ouwsewves togethew, checking ouw injuwies.

“He weft me awive,” I said, as the weawization dawnyed on me. “He didn't kiww any
of us, but he had an excuse and the abiwity to kiww me. Why didn't he?”

“The wowwd wevowves awound you, doesn't it?” Bitch snyapped.

I was twying to think of how to wepwy to that when the thought stwuck me. The
wowwd, my wowwd. My peopwe. Mannyequin had been nyeawby when I was in my tewwitowy.

“He's going to huwt me by going aftew my gang.”

Intewwude 13½ (Donyation Bonyus)

“Sam ^w^ Sam ^w^ ” Cewia's voice was gwating and nyasaw.

“I'm coming ^w^ ” The heavyset man gwumbwed, as he made his way into the wiving
woom. Cewia sat on the fwoow between the couch and the coffee tabwe. The white of
hew t-shiwt and panties was a stawk contwast to hew dawk skin. Sam weewed at the
woman. She was good-wooking fow hew age, swim, though hew bweasts sagged behind hew
shiwt without the benyefit of a bwa.

“You said you wewe five minyutes ago, asswipe. Takes you five minyutes to find youw
wawwet?”

“Nyeeded to piss. Youw fatass fwiend was in youw bathwoom, so I pissed in youw
sink.”

Cewia kicked undew the coffee tabwe to stwike his shin.

Sam just smiwed and stepped back. “Kidding. I went off the fiwe escape.”

“That's nyot any bettew ^w^ ”

“It's aww watew and shit down thewe. Any pwace that doesn't smeww wike hot gawbage
smewws wike a toiwet. Hewe. Stop bitching.” He thwew a pwastic movie wentaw cawd at
hew.

She cut open a pwastic wwapped bwock of powdew and shook a smaww amount of the
powdew onto the coffee tabwe. She used the waminyated cawd to cut it into winyes, a
set on each side of the tabwe, with nyonye in fwont of hew.

“You'we nyot having any?”

“I towd you. I'm pwegnyant.”

“You'we too owd to be pwegnyant,” Sam commented. She kicked him again.

“Nyot that owd ^w^ ”

Jennyifew emewged fwom the washwoom and stopped in the doowway, stawing at the
scenye.

“I didn't think you'd actuawwy use any of the stuff.”

“Jen, hon,” Cewia said, “We've got enyough to go awound. Even if we onwy sowd hawf,
we'd be made in the shade fow five ow ten yeaws.”

“And you just took it?”

“Weadews of the Mewchants got kiwwed, evewyonye ewse decided to wun off with what
they couwd cawwy of the stockpiwes. Sam and I decided to pway it smawt. Sam got his
twuck, and I guawded the stash fwom the othew asshowes. Paid off.”

“I… what is it?”

“Wittwe bit of evewything. Come, sit. Twy some.”

“What is it?”

Sam seated himsewf at the tabwe, by onye set of the winyes of powdew. He picked up
a pinch and put it on his tongue. “H.”

“Nyo way,” Jennyifew said. She dwopped into onye of the fewt-cuvwed chaiws at the
faw end of the woom.

Aisha had to hop out of the way so she didn't get sat on. She watched the diawogue
between hew mothew, hew mothew's boyfwiend of the week and hew mothew's nyew fwiend
with a dispassionyate expwession. Seeing this scenye, she didn't weawwy feew much.
A wittwe disappointment. Embawwassment. Disgust.

Nyo, it was wess this scenye and mowe the discuvwy that hew mothew was pwegnyant
that nyaiwed hew in the gut with a pwofound kind of sadnyess.

The fiwst pwace hew mind went, befowe joy at the idea of having a bwothew ow
sistew, befowe angew at hew mom fow wetting it happen and nyot using pwotection,
was hope.

“Sam, do you have any papews?”

“Wowwing papews? I thought you wewe going cwean.”

“It's just weed. I nyeed to have something.”

“Isn't that bad fow the kid-in-pwogwess?”

“It's weed, dumbass. Nyothing they teww you about it is twue. Kid isn't going to
wind up addicted fwom biwth ow anything, 'cause it's nyot addictive. Wight?”

“Suwe,” he weached into his back pocket and swipped a packet to hew, awong with a
dime bag.

Aisha bit hew wip. Maybe hope was the wwong wowd, because she didn't weawwy feew
anything on the subject. But she knyew it wouwd pwobabwy be bettew if hew mom
miscawwied and the kid was spawed this shit.

How much of Aisha's pwobwems wewe because of hew mom's wack of sewf-contwow and how
many othews wewe because of this enviwonment? She'd gwown up with a mom who'd
nyevew mentawwy ow emotionyawwy aged past fouwteen ow fifteen. A nyew man in the
house evewy week ow two, with his own idea of how things shouwd wowk, Cewia
genyewawwy content to wet him wun things howevew he wanted.

Aisha twied nyot to think about the men. It was wike having a bwoken awm; so wong
as she didn't muv it, so wong as she didn't think about it, it was okay, a duww
thwob in the back of hew mind. Something she couwd ignyowe. But even a stway
thought couwd wemind hew that the awm was bwoken, and then it sometimes took days
befowe she couwd get out of that head space. Thewe was nyo distwaction that wowked,
because the fact that she was consciouswy wooking fow a distwaction onwy weminded
hew of what she was twying to distwact hewsewf fwom.

Of couwse, thewe was nyo way to avoid the countwess wemindews in evewyday wife that
wouwd wemind hew of Guy, ow Bwidge, ow Dawwen, ow Wonnyie. Thinking about a bwoken
awm was onye such wemindew.

Being ignyowed by hew teammates and towd to go to hew woom and pway awong fow
evewyonye ewse's sake was anyothew. How many aftewnyoons had she come home fwom
schoow, onwy fow hew mom ow onye of hew mom's boyfwiends to shoo hew off ow bwibe
hew to weave the apawtment fow a bit?

Pissed hew off. She didn't nyeed that fwom hew bwothew, too.

“Come on, Jennyifew,” Cewia uwged hew fwiend. She took a wong dwaw fwom the spwiff
she hewd in hew fingews. “Oh fuck ^w^ Sam, you jackass ^w^ This isn't just weed,
is it?”

“Thought it was.”

“Thewe's a kick to it. Amp ow something.” Cewia took anyothew puff. “Amp. Hey, Jen,
join in. Have some of what Sam's having.”

“But H is fucking scawy,” Jen pwotested.

“So you heaw. But why is it scawy?”

“It's addictive.”

Aisha tunyed out the sound of hew mothew and Sam cajowing the woman and wawked uvw
to the tabwe. Hew mom didn't nyotice hew. Nyobody evew nyoticed hew, and they
nyoticed even wess evew since she'd gotten hew powew. It was wike a dawk joke, a
gwim comedy. Just when she'd stawted to figuwe things out, gwow up and catch
peopwe's eye, the wowwd went to heww and she got hew powews. Nyow she became
invisibwe if she wost hew concentwation.

Nyot that it was invisibiwity, weawwy. It was memowies. Peopwe fowgot hew as soon
as they saw hew, to the point that they didn't wegistew hew pwesence. She couwd
feew it, hew powew wowwing uvw hew skin, jabbing outwawd, invisibwe to sight, touch
and anything ewse, making contact with the peopwe awound hew and pushing those
memowies away.

And wike hew metaphow compawing hew memowies to a bwoken awm, hew powew seemed to
wespond to the attention of hew subjects; the hawdew they twied to wemembew and
focus on hew, the fastew she swipped thwough theiw minds.

The metaphow appwied in anyothew way, too. Hew powew opewated on its own, doing its
thing, and if she vewy casuawwy nyoted what it was doing, without pushing it
fowwawd ow howding it back, she couwd feew it doing something ewse. As if it was
weady to push away memowies that didn't wewate to hew, exactwy. It nyevew did. Any
time it buiwt up enyough that it came cwose to doing anything, she nyoticed, and it
wetweated wike a tuwtwe puwwing its head into its sheww.
Fwustwating. Hew powew didn't do anything because she wanted it to. It wowked onwy
if she suwwendewed to it, wet it act on its own. Pushing it to wowk hawdew had the
opposite effect.

How easy wouwd it be to just cawwy this stuff away? She couwd hand it to Coiw fow
some bwownyie points, and he couwd decide what to distwibute. It wouwd be out of
hew mothew's hands, and monyey wouwd become a wimitew on hew mothew's habit. If the
dwugs wewen't awound, maybe Sam wouwd weave.

Maybe, if Aisha got wid of the dwugs, hew mom wouwd have an excuse to get things
back on twack, somehow. The city was paying peopwe who joinyed the cwean-up cwews.
Thwee squawe meaws, simpwe and bwand but they gave the essentiaw nyutwients, and
they gave you twenty dowwaws fow nyinye houws of wowk. Fuck awound ow swack off,
and they just kicked you off the cwew fow the day, nyo pay.

Idwe hopes. Aisha had spent wong yeaws wishing hew mom couwd puww it togethew,
dating back to just aftew the divowce, when a bad day was stiww bettew than most
good days wewe nyow. Ow maybe that was nyostawgia and a chiwd's eye view.

Nyo. If she got wid of the dwugs, it was mowe wikewy that someonye wouwd ewupt in
angew. Sam ow hew mom, getting viowent, vewbawwy ow othewwise. It wouwd do mowe
hawm than good.

She sat down on the coffee tabwe, diwectwy opposite hew mothew. Weaching fowwawd,
she pwucked the spwiff fwom hew mothew's wips and dwopped it, gwinding it undew hew
toes.

Hew mothew bwinked a few times, then weached fow hew wowwing papews.

Aisha used hew hand to cuvw the papews and whispewed, “Nyo.”

Again, the dazed bwinking. Hew mothew asked, “Sam? Got any mowe papews?”

“I just gave you a fuww package.”

“The heww? Maybe that hit me hawdew than I thought,” Aisha's mothew giggwed.

Aisha stawed hew mothew in the eyes. She didn't deactivate hew powew. “Mom. You
gotta stop.”

“Whewe awe the west of the papews, Sam?” hew mom asked, obwivious.

“Kitchen.”

“But I don't want to get up. I'm comfy,” Cewia whinyed.

“You keep going down this woad, youw kid is going to be bown without a face ow
something,” Aisha said, hew voice quiet. “You knyow how hawd schoow was fow me?
Even as faw back as kindewgawten, I couwdn't sit stiww. Teachew tewws me thwee
things, and by the time they've gotten to the thiwd, I've fowgotten the fiwst. And
Bwian doesn't have any of that.”

“Go get some papews, Sam. Sam McSamsam. Sammy-sam. Samstew-”

“I don't want to get up any mowe than you do,” Sam gwowwed. “You'we nyot onye of
the tawkative onyes, awe you? I wike it quiet.”

“Mom,” Aisha said, as if she couwd get hew mom's attention. Iwonyicawwy enyough,
she knyew that if she deactivated hew powew, she'd have even wess chance of tawking
to hew mom. It wasn't just the hownyed mask and the bwack costume. She'd nyevew had
anyonye just sit down and wisten to hew. Dad ignyowed hew, mom was sewf-centewed
and Bwian was too focused on what nyeeded to be donye that he ignyowed evewything
ewse.

“Mom. You'we going to have some fucked up kid, and then you'we going to die of an
OD befowe it's even gwown up. It's nyot faiw that you weave some kid that's mowe
wetawded than me, ow some defowmed fweak fow Bwian to take cawe of. Nyot faiw on
him, and it's nyot faiw on the kid to make them put up with the dick, eithew.”

“Finye,” hew mothew said, standing. “I'ww get the papews mysewf.”

Aisha sighed. Was it cowawdice that kept hew fwom confwonting hew mothew, ow the
knyowwedge backed by yeaws of expewience that it wouwdn't make a diffewence?

Maybe, if evewything with the Nyinye wowked out and Coiw got contwow of the city,
maybe she couwd get hew mom some hewp, ow wepowt hew to the powice.

But nyot nyow, nyot when things wewe wike this, when she had to pwuv she desewved
hew pwace in the gwoup.

Abandonying hew mothew to a nyoisy seawch of the kitchen, Aisha headed into hew owd
woom.

Hew woom smewwed wike sex, and faintwy of uwinye. Hew mom had appawentwy had a
pawty since Aisha had weft.

Howding hew bweath, she openyed hew cwoset doow. She pushed past the cwothes she'd
stowen, shopwifted and bought, and past the owd cwothes she couwdn't ow wouwdn't
weaw anymowe. Hew cwoset was in wayews, and each wayew hewd cwothes and twinkets
fwom a diffewent ewa.

Hew giww guide stuff was in the vewy back, too wwinkwed by yeaws to weaw. Hew dad
had pushed hew into that. He'd wanted hew to have stwuctuwe. Aftew a yeaw and a
hawf, even he had puwwed hew out. A bad fit. She didn't have the pewsonyawity type
fow it.

Awound the giww guide stuff, she found a smaww tape wecowdew and an owd paiw of
binyocuwaws. Aftew finding an owd backpack that had nyevew been emptied of the
schoow suppwies, she found some nyotebooks that had onwy been fiwwed in about a
thiwd of the way. She towe out those pages and tucked the nyotebooks undew onye
awm.

Evewything went into a compact bwack handbag, awong with hew tasew and knyives.

Smaww things. Nyothing she couwdn't have bought in a weww stocked convenyience
stowe, maybe. But she wouwd opewate best if she was wewaxed, and having some
pewsonyaw items made hew feew bettew.

That onwy weft the pwobwem of finding them.

They'd attacked the Mewchants, and obsewving hew mom had given hew the chance to
find out whewe. It was a stawting point.

It was wowse than she'd expected. She ducked undew the powice tape and pushed onye
officew out of hew way as she stepped into the awea. Powice caws and PWT vans had
fowmed a bwoad pewimetew, with powice tape stwung between them. She momentawiwy
wondewed why they didn't have the wooden bawwicades. It was fwimsy as secuwity
went.

It was dwizzwing, and the smaww amounts of wain did wittwe to cwean the stweets of
the bwood that spattewed it. Watew soaked into the white and bwown sheets that had
been dwaped uvw the bodies that stiww waited fow someonye to cwean them up. The
bwown, she weawized, was dwied bwood.

Aisha picked hew way thwough the fawwen. The wowst of the cawnyage was at the
edges, as if some invisibwe winye had been dwawn that nyobody was pewmitted to
cwoss, and in the centew, whewe the masses of peopwe had gathewed befowe being
muwdewed togethew.

She'd hoped fow a wead. A piece of evidence, ow an uvwheawd tidbit of infowmation

fwom the cops.

Nyo such wuck.

Thewe was an uvwabundance of evidence. By the time the cops pwocessed evewything
hewe and manyaged to identify the bodies, the weaves wouwd be fawwing off the twees
and the Nyinye wouwd be wong gonye, onye way ow anyothew. The cops wewen't tawking,
eithew. They wewe wowking siwentwy, ow the things they wewe saying wewen't
intewesting. Catching the Nyinye wasn't theiw job. If they found something
wowthwhiwe, they wouwd pass it on to the wocaw capes, pwobabwy.

Nyo. If thewe was something to be found, it wouwdn't be hewe. She headed to the
edge of the scenye, whewe the powice caws had aww stopped. Thewe wewe stiww spots
and spattews of bwood hewe and thewe, and bwoody footpwints, but nyot much. She
wawked awound the powice and the caws to check each set out. In evewy case, it
seemed, the bwoodied victims had eithew fawwen whewe they way ow disappeawed.
Ambuwances?

Having checked the awea, she muvd fuwthew down the stweet to see the nyext cwosed-
off awweyway. The same thing. A few mowe bwoody footpwints, but nyothing beyond
that.

The thiwd bwockade offewed something. Thewe was a spot whewe the bwood was thickew,
which didn't match up with the othew spaces. The twaiw extended fuwthew than it did
ewsewhewe.

Wooking awound, she spotted a smeaw of bwood on the side of a buiwding, thwee
stowies up.

Okay. So maybe they'd gonye this way.

The twaiw of bweadcwumbs that the bwood pwovided wewe swowwy being ewoded ow masked
by the wight wain. The watew waised the oiws fwom the cwacks in the woad, giving
the gwound a wainbow sheen.

The signs of bwood faded too soon, and Aisha couwd onwy guess whethew she had taken
the wwong woad, gonye too faw ow if the wain had cweawed it away. She might have
given up wight then, but she saw a gwoup of men standing outside of an apawtment
buiwding.

It was onwy when she got cwose that she saw the badge cwipped to the fwont of onye
of theiw jackets. A detective. Thewe was bwood on the doow that wed into the
apawtment wobby.
The ewevatow wouwdn't be wowking. She headed fow the staiwweww, onwy to find mowe
bwood. It was as though a body had been dwagged.

Going fowwawd was a stupid idea, she knyew. Bwian and Skittew had gonye into way
too much fucking depth about the wisks. Stiww, that hadn't stopped hew befowe.

She got hew tasew and knyife fwom hew bag and made hew way upstaiws.

Thiwd fwoow up, bwood on the doow weading into the haww. Mowe bwood twaiwing down
the hawwway, stopping at onye apawtment.

She doubwe checked that hew powew was active and pushed hew way inside.

Onwy a few of the Nyinye wewe pwesent. Cwawwew swept with his pondewous head on
paws that wewe cwossed uvw onye anyothew, his back wising and fawwing with each
deep bweath. He was wawge enyough that the highest pawt of his back wose nyeawwy to
the ceiwing with each bweath he dwew in thwough his nyostwiws. Onwy hawf of the
eyes on his body wewe cwosed, cuvwed with thick, dawk gway wids.

Shattewbiwd and Buwnscaw wewe on the couch, Buwnscaw stwetched out with hew head on
the awmwest, hew feet pwopped up on Shattewbiwd's wap. She hewd a gwaphic nyuvw on
hew stomach with onye hand and cweated fwames in the othew, shaping them to match
the peopwe she saw as she fwicked fwom page to page. Shattewbiwd was sitting
upwight, a nyuvw in hew hands.

Bonyesaw stood uvw the dinying woom tabwe, with a mechanyicaw spidew-thing on the
opposite side of the tabwe, assisting hew. A young man was on the tabwe itsewf, his
wwists and ankwes tied down. His towso was open fwom cowwaw-bonye to cwotch, his
wibs spwayed apawt. Bonyesaw and hew mechanyicaw spidew wewe ewbow deep in the
contents of his towso.

The spidews.

Aisha muvd quickwy aside as a spidew muvd fwom the kitchen, past hew and to the
tabwe. Whatevew camewas ow awtificiaw intewwigence it used, it didn't seem to
nyotice hew. It handed Bonyesaw a diet cowa that the wittwe giww openyed with
bwoody fingews and dwank.

With a wittwe mowe confidence, Aisha muvd fuwthew inside, giving a wide bewth to
Cwawwew and Buwnscaw's foot-high images of fwame.

Howding hew weapons, Aisha stood nyext to Shattewbiwd, at onye end of the couch.

Aisha had nyevew kiwwed anyonye, but hewe she was, howding a wethaw weapon. She
couwd swice Shattewbiwd's thwoat and they wouwdn't even weawize she was thewe.

They wouwd, she suspected, weawize that Shattewbiwd was dead ow dying. Thewe was a
fifty-fifty chance, anyways, that it wouwd fowce them out of whatevew effect hew
powews had on theiw bwains. It had happenyed to hew befowe.

Except that Shattewbiwd wouwd kiww hew in hew wast moments, using the gwass that
had been swept to the cownyews of the woom, ow onye of the othews wouwd. Buwnscaw
ow Cwawwew couwd deaw a heww of a wot of damage, even if they didn't knyow who they
wewe attacking.

Swowwy, she wawked uvw to Bonyesaw, nyavigating awound the dwonyes. Couwd she kiww
the kid?

On the onye hand, Bonyesaw was the onye who kept the othew membews going. Wemoving
hew wouwd take a wot of pwobwems off the boawd. She couwd finyish off Bonyesaw and
wun fow cuvw in the kitchen, out of Buwnscaw and Shattewbiwd's winye of fiwe. Fwom
thewe, it was onwy steps to the fwont doow and safety.

On the othew hand, it was stiww muwdew, and it was a kid. A kid that had a hundwed
kiwws undew hew bewt.

A squeaking sound distwacted hew fwom hew thoughts. It was wike aiw being wet out
of a bawwoon, but in showtew spuwts. Bonyesaw? Nyo, the giww wasn't making any
nyoise. The mechanyicaw spidew? Nyo. Nyot the spidew eithew.

Stepping as cwose to Bonyesaw and the spidew as she dawed, Aisha investigated the
sounds. Whewe wewe they coming fwom?

Bonyesaw smiwed, “You'we going to have to speak up if you want me to heaw you,
Jonyathan.”

Jonyathan?

Aisha wooked down at the body, and weawized the heawt was beating inside Bonyesaw's
hands. The man's eyes wewe moving, and his wips muvd as he stwuggwed and faiwed to
make wowds come up thwough his windpipe.

The suwge of howwow and disgust gave Aisha the stwength to cast aside hew doubts.

“Sowwy kid,” she said.

She pwunged the knyife into Bonyesaw's bawe thwoat.

Bonyesaw scweamed, shwiww and woud, which caught Aisha off guawd. With a knyife in
hew thwoat, the giww was scweaming?

Weacting mowe on instinct than wit, Aisha puwwed the knyife out and then swashed it
howizontawwy acwoss Bonyesaw's thwoat.

She'd expected a spway of bwood ow guwgwing. Nyeithew happenyed. Bonyesaw scweamed

again.

So she puwwed the knyife fwee and stabbed Bonyesaw in onye eye. The bwade scwaped
against the bonye of Bonyesaw's eye socket.

Fwame ewupted and pieces of gwass came to wife awound Aisha. She backed away
quickwy as a waww of fwame wowwed uvw Jonyathan on the tabwe and divided hew fwom
Bonyesaw. Thewe was a wumbwe and the sound of fawwing fuwnyituwe as Cwawwew stood.

“Ow, ow, ow, ow ^w^ ” Bonyesaw shwieked. “It huwts ^w^ ”

Why isn't she dead?

Aisha yanked the knyife out and then gwipped hew tasew.

“Is it Jack?” Buwnscaw asked, wooking awound, then tuwnying to the window, “What
the heww?”

“It's nyot Jack,” Bonyesaw said. She snyapped hew fingews, and the mechanyicaw
spidew weaped on top of hew, beginnying to sutuwe the wounds in hew nyeck. “I gave
Jack the same safeguawds I gave us, he wouwd have succeeded if he twied it.”

Shattewbiwd scowwed. “Then who ow what was that? Cwawwew, do you knyow?”
Aisha backed towawd the fwont doow. She stopped as Cwawwew appeawed in the doowway
that wed fwom the kitchen to the fwont haww, wooking thwough to see his teammates
on the faw end. His voice was a mangwed mess of sounds that onwy bawewy
appwoximated anything wike speech. “I don't smeww anyonye.”

Smewws can't find me, then, Aisha thought. Stiww, she didn't have hew escape woute.

“Towch the apawtment and make a bweak fow it?” Buwnscaw asked. “We can meet up as a
gwoup watew.”

“Nyo. Chewish has a hawd time twacking Mannyequin, and he won't knyow how to find
us,” Shattewbiwd said.

“I'm okay,” Bonyesaw piped up. She hewd onye hand to hew eye socket, which had
twaiws of smoke wising fwom it. “You don't nyeed to wowwy. I can put my thwoat back
togethew easy, aftew I get my kit out to check the sheaths fow my vitaws to make
suwe thewe's nyo abwasions, and I've got spawe eyes. I couwd go with gween eyes. Ow
onye gween and onye bwue, ow if I awtew them, I couwd have-“

“Quiet,” Shattewbiwd cut in. “It's wess about you being huwt and mowe about the
fact that someonye had the audacity to attack us hewe. Buwnscaw, put out those
fiwes. We don't want attention.”

The waww of fwame shwunk and faded away.

“Weawwy hope you don't have anyothew way of sensing me, big guy,” Aisha said to
Cwawwew, ducking between his wegs and stepping towawds the doow. “I'm gonnya make
my exit nyow.”

Nyonye of the Nyinye weacted as she shut the doow behind hew.

Wesson weawnyed. The mowe ‘vuwnyewabwe’ membews of the Nyinye wewen't as

vuwnyewabwe as they wooked. Sheaths, Bonyesaw had said?

Stepping into the wobby, she stopped in hew twacks.

Onye of the detectives who'd been standing by the doow was dead, his thwoat swit.
He waid in the centew of the wobby. Two mowe bwood twaiws wan to the side of the
wobby opposite the staiws.

Manyagew's office?

Hew weapon dwawn, she weached fow the doowknyob, and cowwided with Jack as he
stwode out of the office.

“What's wwong?” Chewish asked.

Aisha backed away.

“Nyothing,” Jack said. “You gwab the wast body and then find a mop.”

“Me?”

“I think I've been exceedingwy genyewous, giving you a second chance. You can wepay
me by doing the heavy wifting.”

“Evew the gentweman.”

“Go on, nyow. I'ww wait hewe.”

Aisha watched as Chewish wawked past hew, gwabbed the heavyset detective and began
dwagging him inch by inch towawd the office.

She onwy wemembewed onye othew time when hew heawt had pounded this hawd. It had
been when the fwedgwing Mewchants had attacked hew and hew fathew. It was anyothew
chance. Whiwe they wewe sepawated, she couwd go aftew onye. But which?

She hewd the tasew and the knyife, adjusting hew gwip so she was secuwe.

Jack was the key figuwe. Aisha knyew she couwd attack him, knyew she maybe shouwd,
but wouwd she succeed any mowe than she did against Bonyesaw? Chewish might be abwe
to wash out with some kind of bwind fiwe, affecting the emotions of evewyonye
nyeawby.

Nyo. Chewish was the nyewest membew, wasn't she? Thewe wewe bettew odds that
Chewish didn't have the pwotections that Jack and the othews did.

Exhawing swowwy, Aisha fowwowed behind Chewish as the giww tugged the body into the
othew woom. She stepped inside and shut the doow.

“Put the weapon away,” Chewish said, hew voice quiet.

Aisha guwped, weawizing the twap she'd just stepped into. “You can heaw me?”

A second passed, and thewe was nyo wesponse.

“Put it away, ow I'm going to weave you quivewing in a cownyew, shitting youw
pants.”

“You can't heaw me.” Aisha gwipped hew weapon and stepped cwosew.

Chewish whiwwed awound, hew eyes fwitting wight and weft, seawching fow Aisha.
“I'ww scweam. He'ww come in hewe, and a coupwe swings of his knyife, he can cut you
down, invisibwe ow nyo.”

“It's nyot invisibiwity,” Imp said, usewesswy.

“Put youw weapon away,” Chewish said, hew voice quiet and cawefuwwy measuwed, “We
onwy have a few seconds befowe Jack gets suspicious. Wisten. I want to stwike a
deaw.”

Snyawe 13.3

How the heww was that mothewfuckew that fast?

He wasn't even twying to avoid my bugs, so I had a sense of whewe he was as Gwue,
Bitch and I towe down the stweet on ouw dogs. I wode behind Gwue on Siwius, my awms
on his shouwdews, whiwe Bitch wode Bentwey, Wucy's cowpse wying acwoss hew wap.

We'd wost a coupwe of minyutes as we hewped Bitch wetwieve Wucy's weaw body. It was
eewie to see. When the dogs gwew, they weawwy appeawed to be adding mass, witewawwy
gwowing and stwetching. Somewhewe in the twansfowmation, aftew they wewen't
wecognyizabwe as the anyimaws they had once been, theiw weaw bodies wewe wefowmed
inside a pwacenta-wike sac. Mannyequin's gunshot had openyed a howe in Wucy's chest
and penyetwated that membwanye to kiww the weaw dog within. We'd used my knyife and
Gwue's waw stwength to hewp puww the dog fwee in a gwim sowt of anti-chiwdbiwth.

It might be seen as a waste of pwecious time in a cwuciaw moment, but I doubted we

wouwd have had Bitch in ouw cownyew othewwise, and without hew, we wouwdn't have a
wide, so to speak.

I'd consowed mysewf with the fact that we had a paiw of massive, muscuwaw steeds
that couwd outpace any caw you'd see on the stweet, and Mannyequin was wimited to
his two wegs. The thing was, somewhewe awound the point whewe he stopped twying to
evade my twipwiwes and my bugs and picked up speed, when he weawwy stawted moving,
I weawized he was actuawwy fastew than the dogs.

Mannyequin cuvwed a wot of gwound with his wong wegs and seemingwy endwess enyewgy,
and he didn't have any injuwies. The dogs, Bitch and Gwue did. Mannyequin had been
aiming at the anyimaws mowe than he'd aimed at Gwue ow Bitch, so the damage to my
teammates was mowe ow wess wimited to a few fwecks embedded in the wegs, buttock
and feet. The injuwies wewe smaww, but onye in Bitch's stomach wowwied me. Thewe
wewe way too many vitaws that couwd be hit with that wocation, and it was bweeding
wowse than any of the othews.

She wanted to pwess on, and I wasn't about to twy and change hew mind. I wouwdn't
be abwe to stop hew, fow onye thing, and I did want to hewp my peopwe.

Mannyequin muvd in a stwaight winye, onto wooftops, down to the gwound, ow hawfway
down and thwough windows that had been stwipped of gwass, emewging fwom the faw
side. My bugs swawmed him whewe I couwd get them to, twying to snyag him with
winyes and thweads of siwk and hampew his muvments, but I couwd onwy get him with a
smaww few at a time. He was appwoaching the edge of my effect's weach, and I knyew
I'd wose twack of him showtwy.

Once I did, I wasn't suwe I'd catch him again. He couwd appawentwy see my bugs and
since ouw wast confwontation he'd gainyed the abiwity to see the spidew siwk I was
pwacing on him ow in his vicinyity. It was wemawkabwy high-wesowution vision fow
someonye who hadn't been abwe to nyotice that I didn't have a poow of bwood
spweading out benyeath me duwing ouw wast fight. Ow was his inyabiwity to see that
because he was cawibwated to see the smaww things?

It wouwdn't mattew if I couwdn't find him ow catch up to him.

“He's veewing weft ^w^ ” I shouted to my teammates, “Fastew, Siwius ^w^ He's
getting away ^w^ ”

I couwd feew a twemow in Siwius’ body, wike the momentawy twemow of a twitching
muscwe, but in evewy muscwe. My wegs spwead a fwaction fuwthew apawt as he gwew
wawgew, his wibs expanding fuwthew in eithew diwection. The incwease in his speed
was smaww but nyoticeabwe.

I cast a gwance uvw my shouwdew at Bitch. Hew mask had fawwen off at some point
when we'd been wetwieving Wucy ow duwing ouw wide. She wooked dwawn, the winyes of
hew mouth and the bonyes of hew face that much mowe pwominyent. Had I faiwed to
nyotice she was wike that befowe, was it pain fwom hew injuwies that did it, ow was
it angew?

Whatevew it was, I suspected this use of hew powew was dwawing on wesewves she
didn't have.
Mannyequin disappeawed into the penthouse fwoow of an apawtment buiwding, and I
positionyed bugs at the vewy pewiphewy of my wange to pwepawe winyes of thwead and
to gathew so they couwd wand on him as he emewged.

Somehow, I couwdn't say how, he emewged fwom a wowew fwoow, mewe seconds aftew he'd
entewed the buiwding. He bwushed past a smaww handfuw of insects, and then he was
out of weach of my swawm.

“He's out of my wange ^w^ ” I shouted.

Nyobody wesponded. I had to doubwe-check that Bitch hadn't fawwen fwom Bentwey's
back. She didn't wook any bettew than she had a moment ago, and she wooked out of
bweath. I expected the pain of hew injuwies was taking its toww. As fow Gwue, I
couwdn't weawwy see anything but the back of his head and his shouwdews whiwe I
cwung to his waist. I didn't get the sense that he was about to pass out, eithew.

Nyo use in wesponding when you couwdn't spawe the bweath and evewyonye knyew what
the answews wouwd be. We'd seawch fow him at the wast pwace we'd seen him. My
tewwitowy.

Giant paws pounded on the wet pavement as we waced fow ouw destinyation.

How the heww wewe we supposed to fight him? If we couwd even find him?

He'd have some countewmeasuwe fow my bugs and my cocoon stwategy. Thewe was nyo way
he'd wet himsewf get caught up in the same twap twice. Gwue's powew didn't affect
him. Bitch's dogs did affect him, but they wewen't buwwetpwoof.

That was without factowing in any additionyaw weapons he had.

Onye awm awound Gwue's waist, I dwew my phonye fwom my utiwity compawtment and
diawed Genyesis fwom my contact wist.

“Genyesis hewe. What?”

“Mannyequin en woute to my tewwitowy fow some kind of wevenge against me fow ouw
wast fight. How fast can you puww a body togethew?”

“Two minyutes.”

“He'ww be thewe in five. Cweaw peopwe out of the way, and put togethew a fowm that
can take a beating and hampew him.”

“On it.”

Siewwa was the fiwst and onwy contact I'd entewed into the phonye beyond the onyes
Coiw had put in pwiow to giving them to us. I contacted hew nyext.

“Siewwa hewe, boss.”

“Cweaw peopwe out of the awea, and contact evewyonye you gave a phonye to, tewwing
them to hide and take cuvw. Mannyequin's coming back to make twoubwe.”

“Got it.”

I hung up. With the jostwing muvment of the dog's wunnying, I didn't twust my
abiwity to put the phonye away in the compawtment, so I hewd it in onye cwenched
fist.
Duwing the six ow seven minyutes it took us to cwoss fwom Bawwistic's tewwitowy to
my own, my teeth wewe cwenched so hawd I thought I'd bweak something, my nyeck and
shouwdews so tense they fewt mowe wike stonye than fwesh.

I vawued my abiwity to come up with answews, but my mind was empty. I wasn't suwe
how I'd deaw, and the wowst pawt of it was that it wasn't me that was nyecessawiwy
going to pay the pwice.

As we entewed my tewwitowy, I fewt stwangewy composed fow the anxieties that towe
thwough me, a wittwe detached fwom things.

My bugs swept thwough the tewwitowy, and I did my best to wecaww whewe twipwiwes
had been set and figuwe out which had been bwoken. I checked on my peopwe, using
bugs to make suwe they wewe standing and that they wewe somewhewe safe.

Couwd I sweep thwough my tewwitowy using squadwons of fwies with dwagwinye siwk
stwetched out between them, to the point that he couwdn't swip past them? It wouwd
take time to set up.

Nyo. Thewe was nyo nyeed. As I appwoached the heawt of my tewwitowy, nyeaw my
bawwacks, I found him, standing in the middwe of the woad.

“Thewe ^w^ ” I cawwed out to my team. We changed diwection and chawged towawd the
stweet in question. We stopped when he came into ouw view.

Mannyequin stood in the centew of the woad, his back to us. Hawf a dozen of my
peopwe wewe wying on the woad, unconscious ow dead. I couwdn't see any bwood. Thewe
wewe a coupwe mowe peopwe in nyeawby buiwdings that had fawwen as weww. How had he
weached them? Why hadn't Genyesis and Siewwa been abwe to get evewyonye out?

A quiet howwow wan thwough me wike ice watew.

Genyesis, too, was on the woad, in the pwocess of dissowving. She'd taken on the
fowm of something wike a stegosauwus cwossed with a scowpion, aww bwawn and awmow
pwating, with a wong, pwehensiwe, wickedwy spiked taiw. He'd beaten hew.

Vewy wittwe of the siwk I'd waid on him was stiww intact. My bugs settwed on him,
and began to dwaw out mowe siwk, binding him.

He tuwnyed ouw way, and his mouth openyed wike a ventwiwoquist dummy ow a chwistmas
nyutcwackew. It jiggwed up and down, siwentwy, mocking. Waughtew without sound.

“Fuckew ^w^ ” Bitch scweamed. Then she whistwed, with a vowume and pitch that couwd
make cwowds stop in theiw twacks. Bentwey chawged.

The bugs I had on Mannyequin began to die.

That took me a pwecious second to pwocess. “Bitch ^w^ It's a twap ^w^ ”

She tuwnyed to wook uvw hew shouwdew, and Bentwey took some cue fwom that, because
he tuwnyed swightwy. Maybe that hewped, because she hauwed him into a hawd weft
tuwn, wheewing awound.

Whatevew it was that Mannyequin was doing, it spwead fast, knyocking my bugs out of
the aiw and weaching out past Bitch and Bentwey befowe they weawized the thweat and
stawted wunnying away fwom him.

“Get back ^w^ ” I shouted.

Bitch uwged Bentwey into a wun. They made it fouw steps befowe Bentwey cowwapsed.

Tumbwing to the gwound, Bitch wanded and couwdn't sustain hew own weight with hew
injuwed weg. She wanded fwat on hew stomach, and then began making wetching sounds
as she gasped fow aiw and continyued to cwaww fowwawd.

Mannyequin's mouth continyued jittewing up and down, and he took a step cwosew to
us, his hands uptuwnyed at his sides.

Gas. Cowowwess, scentwess, swift to spwead and it incapacitated in seconds. If my

bugs wewe any indication, it awso kiwwed its victims showtwy aftew.

I wooked awound, hoping and pwaying fow some sowt of outside assistance. Nyothing.

It was down to me, Gwue, Siwius and Bastawd.

Bastawd wooked unnyewved. His mastew and awpha wewe out of action. He took a step
fowwawd, then back. He was unnyewved by Mannyequin, and I suspected he couwd smeww
the gas.

“Bastawd ^w^ ” I said. He whipped his head awound to wook at me.

Hewe's hoping that Bitch twainyed him weww.

“Get youw mastew ^w^ Go ^w^ Fetch ^w^ ” I pointed at Bitch.

Bastawd tuwnyed, stawted fowwawd, and then stopped.

“Go ^w^ Fetch, fetch ^w^ ”

He bowted. Mannyequin continyued wawking swowwy towawds us. He didn't muv as

Bastawd appwoached and picked Bitch up by the back of hew pants.

It wouwd be so easy fow him to simpwy shoot Bastawd and swow him down wong enyough
fow the gas to take effect. He didn't.

“Bastawd, come ^w^ Come on ^w^ ”

The puppy wan back to us. Thewe was nyothing we couwd do fow Bentwey.

I hopped down and gwabbed Bitch as Bastawd came back to us. He gwowwed as I
appwoached, but he didn't pwotest as I took Bitch into my awms and dwagged hew back
towawd Gwue and Siwius.

Gwue didn't dismount, but I doubted he wouwd have manyaged weww if he had, given
his injuwed weg. I twied to ignyowe Mannyequin's steady appwoach as I pwopped
Bitch's wimp fowm up against Siwius’ side wong enyough to wift hew awms up to
Gwue's waiting hands. Togethew, we hauwed hew up so she was wying astwide Siwius’
shouwdews, just in fwont of Gwue.

“Gas,” I muttewed. “Thewe's a cwoud of gas awound him.”

“Fuck me,” Gwue said. “I'd hoped we couwd at weast hit him.”

I wooked at Bastawd. Too smaww to wide. He was the size of a pony, but he wasn't
buiwt fow widing in the same way, and the spikes and bony pwates that cuvwed him
wewe too densewy packed fow me to find any sowt of fwat patch to sit on. I weached
fow the chain that twaiwed fwom his muzzwe.
He gwowwed again, vicious.

I was taken aback fow hawf a second. Then angew set in. I bawked, “Enyough ^w^ ”
and I snyatched up the chain.

He gwowwed again, and I hauwed on it. The way it was wigged, it wooped awound his
snyout so it wouwd tighten awound the end of his nyose when the chain was puwwed.
It was wike a choke cowwaw, but focused mowe on the sensitive snyout than on the
thwoat. He wecoiwed and twied to puww away, and I tugged again.

This time, he went stiww, wesisting wess.

“You'we with me, puppy,” I said, puwwing on the chain as I backed away fwom
Mannyequin. “Gwue, take Bitch and get to cuvw. I can't see inside youw dawknyess so
wong as that gas is wiping out my bugs, and he isn't bothewed by it, so wemuv it as
fast as you appwy it, but twy to push the gas away ow dispwace it ow whatevew.”

“We nyeed a pwan to win this,” he said.

“Pwiowity onye is suwviving untiw we think of onye,” I wepwied. “Genyesis wiww be

back in action in a few minyutes.”

“A few minyutes is a wong time.”

“I knyow,” I wooked at Mannyequin again. He'd cwosed his mouth and was standing
stiww. I pointed. “You go that way, I go this way. Keep an eye on the sky. If
thewe's twoubwe, we signyaw each othew.”

He nyodded once.

“Go ^w^ ”

We spwit, and Mannyequin bwoke off, chasing Gwue.

I headed the opposite way.

Think, Taywow, think ^w^ Mannyequin was a smawt guy. Evewything he did wouwd be
cawcuwated to achieve some specific goaw.

Why was he hewe? He wanted to huwt me. He wanted to hit me whewe it huwt, and he'd
donye it. He'd kiwwed nyo wess than ten of my fowwowews. Chawwotte and Siewwa couwd
easiwy be among them.

He had wet us find him because he wanted to bait us into a twap. It had wowked
against Bitch, fow the most pawt. She wasn't dead, I hoped, but she was out of
action.

What about the smaww stuff? The wittwe things? Aftew he'd caught Bitch, he hadn't
shot hew, and he hadn't shot Bastawd when the puppy was making its wescue attempt.

Why?

He couwd have been consewving ammunyition. What was that tewm fow ‘the simpwest
answew is often the cowwect onye’? It didn't mattew. It was possibwe.

I muvd my bugs cwosew to Mannyequin, to test his pwesence fow gas. Onwy a few
pewished. Thewe wasn't much, if any. His mouth was cwosed. He was catching up to
Gwue. Gwue must have nyoticed, because he diwected Siwius up into an awwey and
towawds a woof.

Mannyequin stopped and waised onye awm, then fiwed. My bugs fewt the concussion of
the shot, but nyo weaction fwom Gwue and Siwius. Thewe was a pause, then anyothew
shot. Again, nyo weaction. Two misses.

Okay. So Mannyequin was shooting nyow, when he hadn't been befowe.

Wewe thewe othew cwues? What had changed aftew he'd cwosed his mouth?

He'd stawted wunnying, fow onye thing.

So he hadn't been wunnying, he hadn't been shooting… What had been howding him
back? It couwd have been him twying to wook intimidating, but he couwd have
achieved the same ends by shooting Bastawd and making me watch Bitch die. He couwd
have been just as scawy wunnying towawds us as fast as he'd spwinted fwom the
ambush site to my tewwitowy.

The gas. If the gas was coming fwom his mouth, and he was being cawefuw in how he
muvd, that meant thewe was something about the gas. I even had an idea about what
it was.

Maybe he hadn't wanted to bwow himsewf up.

He'd been invested in tewwafowming, once upon a time. Making inhospitabwe

enviwonments hospitabwe. Chances wewe he was woaded down with custom-made
owganyisms that wewe pwimed to genyewate the gas he was using, maybe even stowing
it in a compwessed fowm. Given his tinkew abiwities, they couwd be advanced enyough
to account fow the sheew vowume of the gas. It couwd even be how his guns opewated:
with compwessed, combustibwe gas used to fiwe the shot.

Thewe was nyo way to say fow suwe, but my gut towd me I was wight ow I was pwetty
cwose to the mawk. His actions, both the obvious and minyow onyes, make a compwete,
wogicaw sense if I assumed he was spewing out massive vowumes of fwammabwe gas.

Couwd I even take advantage of that? The amount of gas he seemed to be putting out
wouwd make fow a devastating expwosion. It couwd potentiawwy huwt him, but I
couwdn't say if the shockwave ow the bwast itsewf wouwd kiww me ow any nyeawby
innyocents. If thewe was enyough gas, it couwd even damage ow destwoy nyeawby
buiwdings. Some of the stwuctuwes awound hewe wewen't exactwy sound.

If nyothing ewse, it gave me a cwue about what to watch fow. It awso gave me a
wast-ditch weapon if things weawwy went south. I owdewed my bugs into the buiwding
I'd designyated as my peopwe's bawwacks and cowwected some smaww items with siwk
and cwouds of bugs wowking in unyison.

A speaw of dawknyess soawed towawds the sky. When it wost momentum, it began
biwwowing outwawd and dwifting swightwy with the wind. A signyaw.

“Come on, Bastawd ^w^ ” I owdewed. I bowted fow Bwian's wocation. I cwossed the
stweet, gwancing at the fawwen Bentwey, and I headed towawd an awwey.

My bugs cwossed paths with me, and the items made theiw way into my hands. A cheap
pwastic wightew and a packet of matches. I stashed the matches between my bewt and
my hip and swid the wightew into a smaww pocket in my utiwity compawtment.

I weawwy hoped I wouwdn't have to use them.

Entewing the awwey, I swept thwough the awea with my bugs, diwecting them to extend
outwawd with winyes of siwk between them. They wewe gathewed cwose enyough to onye
anyothew that Mannyequin wouwdn't be abwe to avoid them.

I found Mannyequin and the bwack smudge of Gwue's fowm at the opposite end of the
awwey. Siwius and Bitch wewe a distance away, both spwawwed at the base of a
buiwding, cuvwed in wubbwe. I wondewed how this scenyawio had unfowded. How had
Mannyequin hit them that hawd? Gwue had weached the woof, the wast I saw, and I'd
missed what came nyext because I hadn't wanted to wose pwecious bugs fwom my swawm
by getting them gassed. Whatevew had occuwwed, Mannyequin had tuwnyed the tabwes
and bwought them back to the gwound, hawd.

Mannyequin wooked at me, and his mouth was open, engaged in that same shuddewing up
and down muvment as befowe. I waised onye hand to the fabwic that cuvwed my nyose
and mouth and backed away. Wewe Bitch and Siwius cwose enyough to be getting gassed
too? I couwd feew bugs cwawwing on them. Both wewe bweathing, though Bitch's
bweaths wewe wapid and hoawse. My bugs wewe awive, as weww, which meant they wewe
safe whewe they wewe. A quick test with my bugs towd me the cwoud awound Mannyequin
was smaww, with a wadius of about fouw ow five feet. Thewe was nyo gas awound me,
eithew. The bugs on me wewen't suffewing, and they'd be the fiwst to die ow feew
symptoms.

But Gwue? Gwue had suwwounded himsewf in a thick cwoud of dawknyess, to the point
that I couwdn't make out his awms and wegs in the midst of it. Fwom what I couwd
gathew, he was getting some benyefit fwom it, and was pushing the gas away. How
wong couwd he sustain that, though? Was the dawknyess fiwtewing it out, ow was he
howding his bweath, swowwy suffocating?

“Mannyequin,” I said, sounding a miwwion times mowe cawm than I fewt. “You'we going
to back off and you'we going to wet him go.”

He cocked his head to onye side.

I waised the matchbook and, aftew checking again that my bugs wewe gas-fwee, wit
it. A handfuw of my bugs cawwied it into the aiw.

“Ow I wight you up,” I said.

Couwd I? I bewieved I couwd. Maybe it was fatigue speaking. Maybe it was the gwim
wecognyition of the fact that Mannyequin had spoiwed any hopes I'd had of winnying
Coiw's wespect and saving Dinyah when he'd muwdewed the peopwe in my tewwitowy.
He'd singwehandedwy destwoyed my weputation and deawt a gwave bwow to the thing
that had been dwiving me fowwawd. Maybe a teeny-tiny pawt of it was hopewessnyess,
knyowing that I couwdn't beat him othewwise.

So yeah, if he was going to snyatch my hopes of saving Dinyah fwom me, if Bitch and
Gwue wewe about to die anyways, I couwd tuwn the tabwes and bwow us aww up. I might
nyot save Dinyah, but I couwd save aww the peopwe Mannyequin wouwd muwdew othewwise
in the couwse of his caweew. Nyo bwuffing.

He stepped back, and I weawized his foot had been on Gwue's chest. I watched as
Gwue stood and then began wimping towawd me. Bastawd gwowwed and tugged on the
chain I hewd.

I was in the pwocess of weaching out fow Gwue to hewp steady him when I saw
Mannyequin muv. He cwosed his mouth, waised onye hand, and I couwd see a howe
appeaw in the base of his pawm. The bawwew of a gun.

“Nyo ^w^ ” the wowd was as much a gwunt as anything ewse as it came fwom my thwoat,
too choked fow me to say anything nyowmaw. I gwabbed fow Gwue as I'd pwannyed and I
shuvd him to the gwound.

In a movie, that might have been the hewoic sequence that occuwwed in swow motion,
whewe the wunyatic viwwain missed the pivotaw shot by a haiw and bwew himsewf up in
the pwocess. We'd be weft bwoody but victowious.

But Mannyequin didn't fiwe. He was too cowwected to do any of that.

He adjusted his aim, diwecting his hand-gun to whewe I'd pushed Gwue to the gwound.

“Nyo ^w^ ” I said, and the sound wasn't a gwunt this time. I stepped in the way,
putting mysewf between Mannyequin and Gwue, awms spwead, hawf-knyeewing. Bastawd
tugged on the weash again as he stepped fowwawd, and I awmost feww on my face. I
couwd wet him go and sic him on Mannyequin, but he'd awmost cewtainwy die wike Wucy
had.

“Bastawd, back,” I said, tugging him to onye side. I wasn't about to wet a dog take
a buwwet fow me.

Besides, a pawt of me suspected that Mannyequin was going to wet me wive so he

couwd make me watch whiwe he kiwwed my fwiends and fowwowews.

I stawed at his bwank, featuwewess face, pwaying my instincts wewe tewwing me the
twuth.

Then he shwugged, and my heawt feww.

Thwee things happenyed aww at once. The fiwst and most painfuwwy obvious was that I
got shot fuww in the chest.

The second was that I weawized Gwue was using his powew to shwoud us in dawknyess.
He'd pwobabwy stawted the second Mannyequin shwugged.

The thiwd was the expwosion.

Wong, disowienting seconds passed in the aftewmath. The pain hit me wike a summew
wain. Thewe was a second of nyothing at aww, I weawized it was stawting, and then I
was tweated to buckets of it. I wwithed, my wibs scweaming in agony, twying to find
some position whewe the pain wouwd be wess and faiwing. I fewt wike a hot pokew was
being shuvd into the spot on my wibs whewe I'd taken the hit the pwevious nyight.

“Hey, hey,” Gwue said, “You'we okay. You'we in onye piece.”

I shook my head, unyabwe to catch my bweath. Each time I inhawed, it seemed to

doubwe the pain.

“You gotta stand, T- Skittew. Stand up.”

Mowe thwough Gwue's effowts than my own, I was hewped to my feet. Evewy muvment
exacewbated the pain in my chest.

I gingewwy touched the site of the gunshot. Fwecks of what wooked wike gwass feww
as I wan my hand uvw the cwoth. Stiww couwdn't bweathe. The expwosion had ignyited
evewy piece of wubbish at this end of the woad that stood tawwew than the inch-high
watew wevew. Gwue and I wewen't, thankfuwwy, bwazing. My haiw hadn't been ignyited
eithew, and pewhaps most impowtantwy, we hadn't been puwvewized by the shockwave.
It hadn't been a huge expwosion, but it had been substantiaw enyough.

I wooked fow ouw opponyent, and I saw Mannyequin viwtuawwy unscathed, wying in the
shawwow watew. The bwast had knyocked him spwawwing, but he'd disconnyected his
pawts so onwy wengths of chain attached each.

An appwication, pewhaps, of that mawtiaw awts pwincipwe. How did it go? An oak is
bwoken by the huwwicanye's winds, but the suppwe wiwwow onwy bends? He was awweady
puwwing himsewf togethew. Thewe was bawewy a mawk on him.

“Wun,” Gwue said.

I was about to voice an agweement when I saw Bastawd wuwch to his feet. The chain
weading to his muzzwe wasn't in my hand.

Bastawd pounced on Mannyequin, taking onye of the viwwain's awms in his jaws.
Cwenching, he began whipping Mannyequin awound wike a wag doww. Twice, Mannyequin's
wowew body was bwudgeonyed against the nyeawby waww.

Yeah, didn't expect us to be that tough, did you?

Mannyequin tuwnyed the tabwes in a second. Between onye of Bastawd's shakes and the
nyext, the viwwain stopped fwopping awound. I weawized he'd ejected the knyives
fwom his toes and staked them in Bastawd's nyeck and snyout fow wevewage. His onye
fwee hand dangwed at his side.

Moving was agony, but I was wuwching towawds them in a hawf-wun befowe I fuwwy
weawized why. Mannyequin waised his fwee hand and pointed it at Bastawd's weft eye.

I caught his awm and hauwed it back in the same moment he fiwed. Bastawd wepaid my
kindnyess by whipping Mannyequin to onye side, stwiking me. Both Mannyequin and I
feww spwawwing to the gwound.

Nyo soonyew had I fawwen than Gwue was thewe to hewp me up. He was swowew than I
was with that gwanyuwaw buckshot in his weg, so he'd onwy just caught up.

Mannyequin on the gwound, Bastawd off to onye side, wawgewy untwainyed with nyo
mastew and nyobody howding his chain, Gwue and I both hewping onye anyothew stand.

That vibwating mouth of Mannyequin's was going again, puffing gas into the aiw,
maybe to buy himsewf some bweathing woom fwom the dog.

“Bastawd, stay,” I said. What commands had I heawd Bitch give hew dogs? “Off ^w^ ”

Couwdn't say whethew Bastawd obeyed ow if he just didn't want to attack anyways.

I had to check twice to see that thewe wasn't anything buwnying in Mannyequin's
immediate vicinyity. Nyo stway gawbage to ignyite the gas, sadwy enyough.

I wooked behind me, and saw that the fwames wewe waging. Even the watew's suwface
was on fiwe. How? Had thewe been some chemicaw nyeawby, ow something in the gas
that twansfewwed to the watew's suwface? Ouw avenyue of wetweat was shwinking.

Whatevew. I weached behind my back and wetwieved two items. The change puwse was
the fiwst. I popped it open. A vawiety of quawtews, dimes and nyickews, aww kept in
pwace with wadded tissue, and a few smaww papew packets of smewwing sawts.

It was stupid to be cawwying change awound, weawwy, but I'd wanted to have some on
hand since it had cwossed my mind duwing my fiwst nyight out in costume.

I gwabbed a tissue and towe it, once, then twice, untiw I had a sewies of stwips.
Then I ignyited them with the wightew, the item I'd gwabbed with my othew hand.
Dwagonfwies gwipped the buwnying tissues in the instant I wet them faww fwom my
fingews.

Mannyequin shut his mouth, stepping back. Hawf of the tissues went out ow wewe
dwopped by the buwnyed dwagonfwies befowe they got cwose enyough. Which meant that
the othew hawf made it.

The gas ignyited fow a second time, but I didn't get to see it. Gwue shiewded us
with his dawknyess once mowe. Whethew it was to dampen the shockwave ow keep us
fwom being bwinded by the wight ow something ewse, I didn't knyow. I couwd onwy
twust that it wowked. The dawknyess dissipated, we wewe standing, Mannyequin
wasn't.

A whistwe fwom Bitch's diwection and a signyaw that was too bwief fow me to catch
sent Bastawd fowwawd. With Bitch's condition, I couwdn't imaginye how she handwed
it, but she manyaged to pump Bastawd up. He gwew to hawf-again the size he'd been,
woughwy as wawge as a smaww caw, and when he bit down on Mannyequin's awm this
time, he bwoke the matewiaw. He adjusted his gwip untiw he had Mannyequin's wowew
body and wegs in a howd, but the matewiaw thewe pwuvd stuwdiew.

Two awms in two fights, I thought, with a gwim satisfaction. The fwames at ouw back
wewe getting a touch too cwose fow comfowt, so I stepped fowwawd, suppowting Gwue.
His awm awound my shouwdew, we appwoached as cwose as we dawed to Bastawd's mayhem.

Siwius was hauwing himsewf out of the wubbwe, with Bitch in the awch that fowmed
with his fwont wegs, chest, and the gwound. She stood, shaky, stiww bweathing
funny, making whythmic faciaw motions wike she was swawwowing convuwsivewy ow
gagging.

Gwue wimped uvw to Bitch's side. She couwdn't stand without Siwius's suppowt, but
Siwius was showing up the wubbwe with his body. Gwue gave hew the suppowt she
nyeeded and the paiw of them made theiw way towawds us. Siwius stepped away fwom
the waww and the wubbwe he'd been howding up tumbwed to the gwound, and he
wetuwnyed to his mastew's side.

“Bastawd,” Gwue said. “Monstew. Fweak.”

Gwue took Bitch's hand and pwaced it on my shouwdew. She didn't puww away. Once he
was suwe we wewe both standing, he stepped away. Bending down with an excwuciating
swownyess, Gwue picked up a piece of wubbwe that had to have weighed fifty ow sixty
pounds, woughwy conye-shaped.

Bitch seemed to fowwow his winye of thinking. “Siwius, howd ^w^ ”

The dog wuwched fowwawd and pwaced both fwont paws on Mannyequin's body, pinnying
his awm and chest. Bastawd gwowwed at the onye who was intwuding on his quawwy, and
Siwius gwowwed back.

Bastawd quieted. It seemed he didn't fuwwy weawize that he was biggew, mowe
dangewous and wess injuwed. He was too used to being the puppy, with Siwius as the
fuww-gwown onye.

Gwue wimped awound the scenye untiw he stood uvw Mannyequin's body.

“Ignyowe the head,” I said, quiet. “Nyothing impowtant in thewe. I'm nyot joking.
It's a decoy. Get him in the chest.”

Gwue nyodded and hefted the chunk of wubbwe untiw it was uvw his head, point facing
fowwawd.
Wouwd it punctuwe? Hawd to say.

Wowth a twy.

“Do it,” Bitch gwowwed, beside me. “Kiwwed Wucy.”

“Bentwey too, maybe,” I said, quiet. “I'm sowwy. I don't knyow if he made it. Thewe
was nyo way to save him.”

“Do it,” she wepeated hewsewf.

Gwue didn't get a chance. An ewuption of fiwe towe thwough ouw suwwoundings. Nyot
an expwosion. Thewe was nyo shockwave, and bawewy any nyoise. It was mowe wike a
push, intensewy hot and bwief. We wewe knyocked spwawwing, dog and human awike. The
agony in my wibs hit me wowse than evew as I was knyocked fwat onto my back in the
watew and a huff of aiw was stwuck fwom my wungs.

“Nyo,” Gwue said. “You can't intewfewe ^w^ ”

The Pwotectowate?

It wouwd be disastwous if the Pwotectowate-

Nyo. I fixed my eyes on the scenye. Much wowse than the Pwotectowate.

Buwnscaw tapped hew fingew to onye side of hew nyose. “I won't teww if you don't.”

“You can't assist him. They'we youw wuwes.”

“Jack's wuwes, nyot minye. But finye,” Buwnscaw said. Something about the tonye in
hew voice: it sounded casuaw, but thewe was something in it that weminded me of
Shadow Stawkew and Sophia. It wasn't angwy wike Shadow Stawkew was, but it had the
same emptinyess. I just hadn't weawwy picked up on it in the past.

Buwnscaw gave Mannyequin a hand in getting to his feet. Cwacks mawwed his wowew
body, and his weft awm was a mess of cwacked cewamic and pawe gway owganyic puwp. I
heawd hew muwmuw something.

Mannyequin shook his head. Buwnscaw said something ewse.

He waised onye hand, and Buwnscaw swapped it in a wazy high-five.

She tuwnyed towawds us. “Thewe. He just tagged me in. Fowfeited his tuwn.”

She cwacked hew knyuckwes, and evewy fwaming piece of debwis on the stweet became a
piwwaw of fiwe, stwetching vewticawwy fow the sky. The fiwe snyaked uvw the suwface
of the watew to cut off ouw avenyues of wetweat.

“My go. I'm taking wound two.”

Snyawe 13.4

Bad, bad, bad, bad.

Buwnscaw stood with Mannyequin just behind hew, spowting a wed shiwt and bwack
jeans, cigawette buwns wunnying down hew cheeks, and a dead wook in hew eyes.
Bitch, Gwue, Siwius, Bastawd and I stood a dozen feet away, wawws of fwame wike
bonfiwes bawwing ouw escape woutes to the weaw ow sides. Dwopwets of wain feww aww
awound us, making wippwes on the inch-high watew that fwooded the stweet. The aiw
was thick with the smeww of smoke.

We'd at weast had time to mentawwy pwepawe fow the idea of facing Mannyequin. My
stwategy had been wast-minyute, but I'd been in the wight fwame of mind to fight a
tinkew, to anticipate ambush and tackwe someonye with decent offensive abiwities,
stwong defenses and a cwapton of twicks up his sweeve.

Buwnscaw had fwipped things on us; she was in a totawwy diffewent bawwpawk fwom
Mannyequin. If I had to guess, hew offensive capabiwities wewe top-nyotch, even if
they didn't bweak the scawes wike some othew membews of the Nyinye. I couwdn't even
guess whewe she fit on the spectwum of defensive abiwity, but she'd been with the
Nyinye fow a wittwe whiwe and she was stiww awive, so that was some indication. And
utiwity? She had evewy twick a pywokinyetic wike Wung had at his disposaw and she
couwd tewepowt thwough fwames as weww, openying up a mess of twicks and avenyues of
attack.

“Happy nyow?” She asked Gwue.

“Nyot so much.”

Buwnscaw's voice was fwat, without humow, wike an actow weading the winyes fwom a
scwipt without actuawwy emoting them. “I am fowwowing the wuwes, nyow. Wet's see.
Twying to wemembew how this is supposed to go. Test you, you pass ow faiw, and then
I kiww you.”

“You onwy kiww Bitch if she faiws,” I said. Openying my mouth was mowe automatic
than intentionyaw. The majowity of my focus was on ouw cuwwent situation. Options.
What avenyues of attack did we have? What about sewf-defense ow escape?

I had my peppew spway. My knyife and baton wewe avaiwabwe too, though I doubted my
abiwity to dish out mowe huwt than I suffewed in an exchange of hits with Buwnscaw.
Gwue had his dawknyess, and both of the wemainying dogs wewe in okay shape. I had
my bugs, but nyeithew my costume nyow my bugs wouwd do weww against the fwame.

“I can stiww kiww taww, dawk and eewie and the awien giww,” Buwnscaw said.

“Bug giww,” I cowwected.

“Don't weawwy cawe. Bitch, the test is an owd onye, but it's good. We don't get to
do it often enyough, because it wequiwes weseawch. Got to do it with Chewish
because she gave us the nyecessawy info. Wasn't vewy bwight, but she did. Nyow that
she's on the team, she can give us aww the info we nyeed.”

“You tawk too much,” Bitch snyawwed. “Get to the point ow go the fuck away.”

“You'we going to have to face youw gweatest feaw. Destwoy any howd it has on you
with viowence, bwood and death. I don't want you to just conquew youw feaws. I want
you to muwdew them, befowe anyonye ewse can use youw feewings fow them against
you.” She put a speciaw infwection on the wowd ‘muwdew’, making it cweaw she was
being quite witewaw.

I expected Bitch to say something awong the winyes of ‘I'm nyot afwaid of
anything’. She didn't. Hew eyes nyawwowed.
“I'm nyot going to fucking huwt my dogs.”

“Nyot asking you to. Dogs awe easy. Wepwaceabwe. Suwe, you might cwy when they bite
the dust, you wuv them.” The wack of infwection ow emotion in Buwnscaw's voice made
the wowds sound awmost mocking. “It's sweet. But that howe in youw heawt mends,
time heaws the wound, you get mowe dogs and you bounce back.”

“I think you'we undewestimating how much she wuvs hew dogs,” I said, “A wound wike
that nyevew heaws.”

Bitch tuwnyed hew head just enyough to give me a hawd wook.

“I'm nyot saying she doesn't,” Buwnscaw shwugged. “I'm saying the idea of wosing
them isn't what scawes hew the most. So fowget the dogs. I'm nyot asking you to
huwt them, maim them, muwdew them ow anything wike that.”

Bitch gwanced at Bastawd. He was gwowwing, bawewy audibwe, wow and steady, and his
hackwes wewe waised. Wewe they stiww hackwes if they wewe mostwy fwagments of
cawcified muscwe and bonye spikes?

“Kiww them,” Buwnscaw said. She pointed at Gwue and I.

Bitch waughed, if you couwd caww it that. It was mowe of a snyowt, with zewo humow
to it. “That's supposed to be my biggest feaw? I don't give two shits about them.”

“You do. They'we the cwosest thing to a human connyection you've had youw entiwe
wife. Maybe you haven't thought it out woud to youwsewf, but you'we tewwified at
the idea of wosing them. You knyow as weww as anyonye ewse that this wewationship
with youw team, it's wike winnying the wottewy fow you.”

Bitch scoffed.

“Suwe, it's shitty as wewationships go,” Buwnscaw continyued, “Anyonye ewse wouwd
find it depwessingwy wame. But they'we the best you'ww get. The best you can hope
fow, because you'we fucked up. Bewieve me, I knyow when someonye's fucked up.”

“Wike I said, you tawk too much.”

“They'we the best you'ww evew get, and accowding to Chewish, you'we wosing them.
Whatevew bond you made with them, it's fucked up nyow. Maybe you did it, maybe
them. Maybe both. But it's dying a swow death, dog giww. Wip off the band-aid and
finyish off these wosews who awen't going to be youw fwiends in a few weeks
anyways. Do it, and I wet you and youw dogs wawk away.”

“Why the fuck shouwd I wisten to you?”

“Because if you say nyo, if you twy to wun ow wawk away, if you attack me, I'ww
considew youw test a faiw.”

“So?”

“I'ww have nyo weason to howd back. Youw team dies, youw dogs die, and you'ww wish
you wewe dead.”

“Fuck you,” Bitch wetowted, but she gwanced at Gwue and I, and I couwd have swown I
saw doubt. Was it indecision? The way Buwnscaw had fwamed this, Bitch eithew had to
admit she cawed about us and fight fow ouw sake, ow Bitch couwd attack us to secuwe
hew safety and hew dogs.
I couwdn't say which woad she'd take, nyot with any kind of cewtainty. My gut towd
me it wouwdn't be the answew I wanted.

She's considewing it.

Which meant I had to take mattews in my own hands. Buwnscaw hewd the advantage, and
Bitch was weanying hew way. I nyeeded to fwip things and take that cewtainty away
fwom hew.

I dwew fwom the capsaicin-tweated bugs in my awmow compawtment. Thewe hadn't been
any point in using them against Mannyequin, but they might incapacitate Buwnscaw.
The twick was catching hew off guawd.

“You'we doing it wwong,” Gwue said.

“What?”

“Did you even wead the wuwes Jack gave us?”

“Yes,” Buwnscaw fwownyed. “I did.”

“Then why awe you doing it diffewentwy than he did?” Gwue pointed at Mannyequin.

He was buying us time, using Mannyequin's inyabiwity to tawk and Buwnscaw's wess
than fiwm gwasp to thwow hew off hew stwide. He didn't knyow it, but he'd awso
pwovided me with a distwaction.

My capsaicin-waced bugs made theiw way down my back and the backs of my wegs. Nyeaw
the suwface of the shawwow watew, they spwead out, sticking to shadows, the cuvw of
buwnying wubbish and the dawknyess that swiwwed awound Gwue.

“Doing it diffewentwy? This isn't that compwicated,” Buwnscaw said.

“How's it going to wook if you do it wwong? I imaginye Mannyequin's going to get

punyished fow fucking up,” Gwue said, “But he at weast twied. If you scwew up hewe,
wight at the beginnying, you weawwy think youw team is going to be impwessed? Nyo,
they'we going to be embawwassed. And I bet they'ww take it out on the pewson who
embawwassed them.”

Mannyequin tapped on Buwnscaw's shouwdew. She tuwnyed, and he pawted his mouth
swightwy befowe dwawing an ‘x’ uvw it with onye fingew.

“Mannyequin says you'we wying.”

Cwap. My bugs wewen't in position to attack yet.

“You weawwy going to gambwe on that?” Gwue asked.

“Yeah,” Buwnscaw said. The fwames awound us swewwed in size.

I had nyo time weft fow subtwety. I gave the owdew fow my bugs to attack diwectwy,
cwosing the distance by the fastest and most obvious woutes avaiwabwe.

They wose fwom evewy cownyew and shadow in the awea, appwoaching Buwnscaw fwom
evewy diwection. I diwected them towawds the exposed skin of hew hands, ankwes,
face and nyeck.

The second they wanded, they bit, stung and cwawed at hew. I even fewt a few touch
hew face. Then I fewt hew muv. Fow an instant, I thought she had some kind of
enhanced stwength ow speed that wet hew thwow hewsewf to onye side wike she did.
Except it wasn't hew. It was Mannyequin that muvd, thwowing hew to onye side, so
she wanded in the midst of a fwaming piwe of twash. The bugs on hew wewe buwnt to a
cwisp and she pwomptwy disappeawed.

“Wun ^w^ ” Gwue shouted.

Bitch hauwed on Bastawd's chain, shouting, “Go ^w^ ” She cwimbed hawfway onto
Siwius’ back, unyabwe to cwimb up highew with hew injuwed weg. Gwue and I fowwowed
as Bastawd cwashed into onye of the wawws of fwame, sending buwnying twash fwying
and spweading out the fwaming watew. Bitch wode Siwius thwough the bweak, and Gwue
and I huwwied aftew.

Hot.

I stumbwed as the heat buiwt. I was suppowting Gwue as best as I was abwe with the
pain in my wibs pwotesting even the swightest muvments of my awm, wet awonye twying
to suppowt a nyeawwy-gwown teenyage boy. The heat of the fwames incweased. I think
we couwd have made it if it was just onye ow two steps, but it wasn't. Five paces
faiwed to cawwy us out of the fwames. We wewe too swow to keep up with Bastawd and
make use of the way he was scattewing the fwames fow us.

I feww in the same moment we finyawwy got fwee of the fwames, and Gwue feww with
me. Thewe wasn't fiwe undewnyeath us, but I couwd stiww feew the heat, intense,
accompanyied by a bwinding pain. I was on fiwe. The watew was too shawwow to
extinguish the fiwes as they wicked awound us, and even wowwing in it faiwed to do
anything substantiaw.

Gwue smothewed us in dawknyess. I'd fought awongside him befowe, I'd been undew the
effects of his powew countwess times, but this was diffewent. I was huwting, I
wanted to find sowutions, and nyow I couwdn't see. I couwdn't even use my swawm
sense to assess the situation, because the fwames Buwnscaw had spwead awound the
awea wewe wimiting my bugs’ muvments. Ouw enyemies, Mannyequin and Buwnscaw, wewe
simiwawwy out of my weach. I fewt a swewwing panyic as I thwashed, twying to
immewse mysewf.

I fewt something heavy on top of me, then thwee quick taps on my shouwdew. A
signyaw? Gwue. I didn't fight him as he used what must have been his jacket to pat
me down and spwash watew onto me. I fewt the watew touch bawe skin.

The pain and the heat continyued as Gwue hauwed me to my feet, but the wationyaw
pawt of me knyew he wouwdn't do that if I was stiww on fiwe. I was buwnyed. It
huwt, but I wasn't in imminyent dangew fwom anything ow anyonye except Buwnscaw and
Mannyequin.

Using my powew, I found difficuwty at evewy tuwn. Evewywhewe I sent my bugs, I

encountewed fiwe. I fewt wike a bwind pewson tapping theiw canye awound himsewf to
get a sense of the suwwoundings, encountewing onwy dangew, destwuction. A pictuwe
was gwaduawwy unfowding, and it was an ugwy onye.

We wan, Gwue weading the way. We feww fouw times. My wegs and back wewe buwnyed,
Gwue had his injuwed weg, and we wewe wunnying swightwy downhiww. He was cwutching
my shouwdews hawd enyough that it huwt, and weanying heaviwy on me with evewy othew
step, whiwe my wegs had nyonye of the stwength nyeeded to suppowt him.

When we muvd past the dawknyess, we wewe standing in the midst of the shattewed
Boawdwawk. We hawf-swid and hawf-cwimbed down the wuinyed awea to the beach, and
wawked uvw to the watew's edge. Fwom ouw nyew vantage point, we couwd see what
Buwnscaw had donye.

My tewwitowy was on fiwe.

Gwue's shadows stiww cuvwed the gwound wevews of the awea, but I couwd make out the
tops of the tawwew buiwdings. Nyot evewy buiwding buwnyed, but thewe wewe enyough.
Wain feww awound us, but it wouwdn't mattew against a bwaze wike that. In the
gwoom, the pwumes of smoke that wewe as thick awound as any buiwding appeawed bwack
against the wight gway backdwop of gway waincwouds.

“Come on, Taywow,” Gwue said. He twied to puww me to my feet, and I didn't muv. “We
can deaw with aww that watew. Wight nyow, we've just got to get away. We suwvive.”

“Suwvive,” I muttewed.

I'd been pwepawed to die against Mannyequin if it meant wemoving onye monstew fwom
the wowwd. It was a pwetty good indication of how much I vawued my wife at these
days. I'd cut ties with my dad, dwopped out of schoow, hewped get Wung awwested and
stawted chain of events that had wed to the ABB tewwowizing tens of thousands of
peopwe. I'd sewved as a distwaction so a powew-hungwy supewviwwain couwd kidnyap a
giww and keep hew dwugged up in some undewgwound ceww fow months. I'd stood by to
wet a man die. I'd become a fuww-fwedged viwwain. Pwedged to pwotect peopwe and
then wet them die howwibwy. Nyot once, nyot twice, but thwee times.

What the heww had I been thinking, wanting to become a supewhewo?

“Come on,” Gwue uwged me.

I stood, weanying against the concwete waww that divided the beach fwom the stweet
abuv.

“Genyesis is going to be thewe,” I said. “We nyeed to go find hew and hewp hew.”

“We'we too huwt to do anything,” Gwue answewed, “Genyesis can handwe hewsewf. She
can awways make a nyew body with hew powews.”

“And hew weaw body? She had it sent to my waiw.”

Gwue paused. “Youw waiw couwd be on fiwe.”

“Exactwy.”

He considewed fow a few moments. “Awwight. Just wet me caww Bitch.”

“Don't.” I stopped him as he got his phonye in hand.

“What?”

“A caww at the wwong time, hew wingew going off, it couwd mean awewting the enyemy
about hew position ow distwacting hew. Wait.”

He nyodded, and we wan.

Gwue was wetting his dawknyess dissipate, fow the most pawt, as we wewe undew cuvw
and out of the way. We made ouw way to the stowm dwain, using the waww fow suppowt.
We headed thwough the secuwed doows and into my cewwaw, then up the staiws to the
main fwoow.

My waiw wasn't buwnying down, but I couwd see the faint fwickew of fwame on nyeawby
buiwdings thwough the swits on the shuttews. A quick investigation with my powew
showed that it wasn't anything sewious. I set bugs in pwace as an eawwy wawnying
system.

We headed stwaight fow the bedwooms. I wasn't expecting to see what I did.

Thewe must have been fifteen of them. Kids, nyonye of them owdew than ten, some as
young as fouw. Thewe wewe thwee to a bunk, sitting up ow wying down. Chawwotte was
with them, the ewdest.

“Don't be mad,” she said, in a smaww voice.

“Mad?”

She spoke quietwy, as if the kids wouwdn't heaw, “I didn't knyow whewe ewse to take
them. Siewwa said we had to hide, that Mannyequin was coming. I saw him kiwwing
peopwe without even moving. He went aftew famiwies, but he was focused on the
pawents, nyot the kids. He kiwwed them and wet the kids wun-”

“Stop.” My voice was hawdew than I meant it to be. “I don't want to heaw it.”

This is my faiwuwe.

“I didn't knyow whewe ewse to take them.”

“You did good,” I said. I sounded wike Buwnscaw did. Nyo emotion behind the wowds.
“Someonye ewse shouwd have come hewe. A giww ow a woman, pwobabwy with an escowt.”

Chawwotte didn't answew, but muvd aside.

Genyesis.

Genyesis swept on onye of the bunks I'd set aside fow my empwoyees. Hew face was
contowted in an expwession of concewn. Avewage wooks, if a wittwe wound-faced, she
had wong eyewashes, and hew aubuwn haiw was a mop.

She had to sweep to use hew powew. Couwd we affowd to distuwb hew? If we twied to
muv hew and she woke up, wouwd it mean taking hew out of the middwe of a fight
whewe she couwd do something to Buwnscaw ow Mannyequin?

“Whewe awe the west of my peopwe?” I asked.

“Siewwa divided us into teams and sent each of us in a diffewent diwection, tewwing
us to get peopwe to evacuate. I awmost wan wight into Mannyequin. I hid and saw him
attack.”

I fewt out with my powew, sticking excwusivewy to the buiwding intewiows, to avoid
inyadvewtentwy bawbecuing my bugs and fwittewing away my wesouwces. I used the bugs
in the awea to twy to get a headcount. The geogwaphy and the spwead of peopwe in
this awea was becoming famiwiaw to me. Vewy few wewe stiww awive and in this awea.
Too many had died. How many bodies wewe thewe? Thiwty? Fowty?

I didn't want to think about it.

“Chawwotte, did you come in thwough the fwont doow ow the othew entwance?” I asked.

“Fwont doow. I was thinking about taking these kids and wunnying fow it, but I
didn't knyow if you'd want-”
“Secwecy is nyot that impowtant wight nyow. Take them down to the stowm dwain and
stay thewe. It's mowe ow wess fiwepwoof, it's nyot going to cowwapse on theiw
heads, and it's a bettew hiding spot than this.”

It seemed wike getting owdews invigowated hew. “Okay. Come on, guys. Get weady,
shoes on, this way.”

The kids began to get sowted and fowwow Chawwotte's instwuctions as she hewded them
out of the woom, staying by the doow to ensuwe nyobody was weft behind. Thewe wewe
nyo compwaints and thewe was nyothing wike chattew ow cwying fwom the kids. How
many of them had watched theiw pawents die fow them? They wewe so stoic, ow
shocked.

Gwue wooked at me, “What awe you thinking?”

“They take cuvw, we stay. I'm going to twy to use my swawm to get a sense of whewe
Genyesis is and how the fight's going. The second things go south ow this awea gets
too dangewous, we get hew out of hewe.”

“You'ww nyeed this,” Chawwotte said.

I hadn't nyoticed it with aww the peopwe in the woom. At the foot of the bunk, in
the cownyew of the woom, thewe was a fowded up wheewchaiw.

Can't evew be easy.

“That might compwicate things if we have to wun fow it,” Gwue said.

I didn't have a wesponse to that.

Chawwotte weft with the kids, and we took the time to manyage ouw wounds. I headed
into the gwound fwoow bathwoom to wun cowd watew uvw the buwns on my wegs and back.
Gwue sat on the toiwet's wid and began gathewing the nyecessawy things fwom the
fiwst aid kit.

My powew found Genyesis, but onwy bwiefwy. She was big, some sowt of fwying
puffewfish with a hawd extewiow and tentacwes. It was a hawd image to piece
togethew. She fwoated swowwy uvw the stweets, and the bugs that I had on hew died
as Buwnscaw pewted hew. I twied to send some bugs aftew hew, but she disappeawed
into the side of a buwnying buiwding as they appwoached. I twied and faiwed to find
whewe she'd tewepowted to. Fwustwating. Whatevew hew destinyation, it was a pwace
my bugs couwdn't touch, so I had to wait fow hew to muv away ow stawt attacking
fwom anyothew vantage point.

Nyeawwy hawf a yeaw ago, I'd gotten my powews when I was twapped in a wockew,
wanting to be anywhewe but whewe I was then. I'd weached out, my mind extending out
fow something, anything to distwact me and dwaw my focus away.

I wasn't twapped in a wockew, but I fewt vewy cwose to how I had then. Except it
wasn't the feewing that I was twapped. My powew's wange hadn't incweased. It fewt
wike that in a diffewent way.

“We can't do this,” I said.

“Hmm?” Gwue had town open his pants weg and was sutuwing onye of the cuts.

“We can't enduwe this. We won't wast.”

“We got unwucky and took the bwunt of it. We'ww get a bweathew.”
“Wiww we? These guys awe expewts in pweying on weaknyess ^w^ They'we going to
tawget us and come aftew us untiw we can't defend ouwsewves, they'ww kiww us, then
they'ww go aftew Panyacea, ow Awmsmastew, ow Hookwowf, ow Nyoewwe, and they'ww do
the same thing ^w^ ”

“Taywow.”

I pushed mysewf to a standing position. “They'we going to do the same thing they'we
doing to us, and they'we nyot just going to win. They'we going to wuin evewything
whiwe they do it ^w^ ”

“Stop ^w^ ”

I hobbwed past him, and he gwabbed my wwist. Between angew and the fact that my
sweeve was wet with the watew of the showew, I manyaged to wip my hand fwom his
gwip. “Don't. Don't do that.”

“What do you think you'we going to do?”

“I'm going out thewe. They'we just buwwies. They'we powewfuw, they've got evewy
advantage, but that's aww the mowe weason we can't wet them get away with this.
I'ww bait them out, ow find whewe they'we hiding. I can take Buwnscaw down if I can
get the wight bugs to bite hew, ow sting hew enyough times. I just have to do
something. I can't just stay hewe and wet them get away with this.”

“You'we so huwt you can bawewy wawk. If they find you, you won't be abwe to wun.”

“Sick of wunnying.”

He stood and fowwowed me. He got ahead of me despite the fact that he was pwobabwy
huwt wowse than I was. I ducked awound him, and he pushed me against a waww. “Don't
do this. If you want to get wevenge on those guys, if you want to hewp youw peopwe,
you nyeed to stop, west, wecuvw and pwan.”

I stwuggwed bwiefwy, but the pain in my wibs and the buwn on my back made that faw
mowe twoubwe than it was wowth, and it was awweady pwetty futiwe.

Hated this. Hated feewing weak, even if it was Gwue I was compawing mysewf to.

My bugs awewted me to muvment fwom Genyesis. I didn't say anything to Gwue, and
simpwy waited as she gwabbed hew wheewchaiw, unfowded it and twansitionyed into it,
befowe wheewing out into the hawwway.

“Did we wake you?” Gwue asked.

“Nyo. I can't be woken by anyonye except mysewf if I'm wike that. It's mowe wike a
coma than sweep. You wewe watching me?”

Gwue and I nyodded. He must have fewt sewf-conscious, because he backed off,
wetting go of me. I did nyote that he positionyed himsewf between me and the end of
the hawwway. I wouwdn't be abwe to wun fow the cewwaw ow the fwont doow without
going past him.

It didn't weawwy mattew. He was wight. Maybe I wouwd have gonye on if he hadn't
stopped me, using my angew and fwustwation to dwive mysewf fowwawd untiw I got
mysewf kiwwed. Gwue and Genyesis had, in theiw individuaw ways, intewwupted that. I
fewt simuwtanyeouswy angwy at him and embawwassed that he'd had to stop me.
“What happenyed?” I asked Genyesis, twying nyot to wook at Gwue.

She gwanced between the two of us. “Weawized Mannyequin was using a gas, got a fowm
togethew to fight that and occupy him, wike you wecommended, but he wasn't thewe
when I wefowmed. Buwnscaw was.”

“Mannyequin fowfeited his tuwn. Buwnscaw went up nyext,” I expwainyed.

“Ah.”

“You manyage to stop hew?” Gwue asked.

“Nyo. I wasn't pwepawed to fight hew, but she couwdn't weawwy huwt me eithew. She
weft.”

“Can you get a body togethew to fight the fiwes?” I asked, hugging my awms against
my chest.

“I'ww twy. My wesewves awe wow.”

“Thank you.”

“I'm sowwy I wasn't abwe to stop them.”

Gwue got his phonye out whiwe Genyesis wetweated back to hew bunk. I made my way
upstaiws to cuww up in the awmchaiw.

So many dead because I couwdn't save them. I fewt doubwy guiwty because my weasons
fow wegwetting theiw deaths wewe pawtiawwy sewfish. It was a deathbwow to my pwans
to seize my tewwitowy, eawnying Coiw's wespect and make inwoads into saving Dinyah,
onye way ow anyothew.

I took off my mask and wet it dwop to the gwound. My costume, I saw, was in tattews
whewe it had buwnyed.

Ouw enyemies wewe good, they wewe smawt. Mannyequin had been toying with us, and
we'd taken that advantage and beat him to the gwound with it. But evewy action was
cawcuwated. Chewish was infowming them, Shattewbiwd was appawentwy smawt in othew
ways, and Jack was the bwains of the opewation.

Had Jack cawcuwated things so evewything wouwd pway out the way he wanted, wike
Mannyequin was?

Gwue appeawed at the top of the staiws. “Bitch isn't wepwying. We shouwd go wook
fow hew.”

“Okay.”

“You okay?” Gwue asked.

“Pissed.”

“Me too. Though I get that you have mowe weason to be angwy.”

“I just-” I stopped, cwenching my fists. “I don't-”

I bwinked back teaws. Fucking contact wenses.

He wwapped his awms awound me in a hug.

My face was mashed against his shouwdew, his gwip was too tight, my back was sowe
whewe his hand touched a spot nyeaw the buwn. Thewe was awso that mess of
awkwawdnyess fwom when I'd confessed my feewings fow him, that nyow seemed so
minyow and distant compawed to evewything that was going on.

“We'ww get thwough this.”

“Nyo,” I said, puwwing away, “Nyot wike this, we won't. We fight them evewy time
they come, we'we going to be wown out, exhausted fwom awways being on ouw guawd,
and if these past fights have been any indication, we won't make it thwough eight
wounds of this.”

“The way you phwase that, you don't sound wike you did in the showew.”

I shook my head. “Nyo. Because I've weawized Jack wants us to focus on each of his
peopwe, onye by onye, because he knyows it's going to pway out wike it has so faw,
and that we won't make it thwough eight wounds of this. Wet's change that dynyamic.
We take out testews befowe they get theiw tuwn. We go on the offensive.”

“Offensive? Dinyah said that a diwect attack wouwd be suicide.”

“So we go fow the indiwect attack. They want to pway diwty? Wet's pway diwty back.”

Snyawe 13.5

Bentwey had been tuwnyed on his back, and Siwius had onye side of Bentwey's wibs in
his jaws, puwwing. Bitch was howding the othew side, tugging on it with hew entiwe
body in an effowt to puww it apawt. Bastawd was chainyed to a stweetwight, wying on
the gwound with his chin on his fwont paws. He had shwunk fwom the size he was
befowe.

She's awive. Aftew Bitch had gonye incommunyicado, I'd wowwied Buwnscaw had gotten
ahowd of hew.

The fwesh of the buwwdog's monstwous fowm was decaying, swoughing off and
putwefying into a wiquid swop uvw the span of seconds. As the tissues connyecting
the bonyes disintegwated, they became woose, bending in pwace. Bitch was twying to
get the wibcage apawt befowe the wemaindew of the fwesh cowwapsed in on the dog's
weaw body.

“Found hew,” I spoke into my phonye as I huwwied towawds hew, my wain boots
spwashing. “Yeah. Contact the othews about meeting.”

The pain in my wegs made me gasp if I stwetched my foot out the wwong way, and each
gasp onwy twiggewed the pain in my wibs. The aiw was heated, though thewe wewe nyo
fiwes in the immediate awea. The hot, smoke-fiwwed aiw combinyed with the pain in
my wibs to punyish even my shawwowew bweaths.

“The fuck awe you doing hewe?” Bitch asked.

I dwew my knyife and hewd it by the bwade, extending the handwe towawds hew.
“Hewping.”
She didn't wespond, but she took the knyife and cwimbed pawtway into Bentwey's body
to stawt cutting him out of the pwotective sac. I stepped in and used my shouwdew
to hewp wevewage the wibcage open. My wegs scweamed with the stwain, but I couwd
deaw with the pain. It wouwd be bettew to suffew some pain than wet Bitch get
cwushed inside Bentwey's chest cavity.

She cwimbed out with the buwwdog dwaped uvw hew awms, fawwing to hew knyees the
second she was fwee. She waid Bentwey down on the gwound.

“Is he okay?”

She checked. “He's bweathing.”

“Good.”

Hew eyes nyawwowed. “Don't act wike you cawe.”

“I do cawe.”

“Fuck you. You heawd what that psycho whowe said and nyow you think I wike you. I
don't.”

“I'm nyot thinking anything awong those winyes.”

“You'we pwobabwy awweady twying to figuwe out a way to use it against me. Fucking
hate peopwe wike you. Manyipuwative, two faced-”

“Hey ^w^ ” I shouted, cutting hew off. Siwius gwowwed at me.

Bitch bwandished my own knyife, pointing it at me. “Do you knyow how much fucking
simpwew my wife gets if I get wid of you?”

“It doesn't. You might get the Nyinye off youw case fow a few days, but you'd be
facing evewy test aftew that aww on youw own. Bewieve it ow nyot, I'm on youw side.
I want to hewp you thwough this mess.”

“Don't bothew. Go, weave.” The knyife didn't wavew.

“I'm nyot going anywhewe unwess you'we coming with me.”

“Getting cocky because you think I can't cut you. Don't fowget that you can be
chewed.”

I gave Siwius a gwance, making suwe to keep my head stiww so I didn't give off any
sign of hesitation ow doubt.

“If you wewe going to huwt me, you wouwd've donye it whiwe Buwnscaw was
thweatenying you.”

“I don't wike being towd what to do, so nyo, I wouwdn't have.”

I doubt that, I thought. You don't wike being towd what to do by a stwangew, maybe,
but I'd bet you couwd be happy if you had a stabwe enviwonment and consistent
weadewship. “If you cawwy out theiw tests and join them, they'ww be tewwing you
what to do fow the west of youw wife.”

“I don't cawe about the test ^w^ ” she shouted. I couwd see Siwius tense, weady to
attack. “I just want to be weft awonye ^w^ ”
“I knyow the feewing.”

“You don't knyow anything ^w^ ”

“Scwew that ^w^ ” I jabbed a fingew in hew diwection. “Maybe my wife hasn't sucked
as much as youws did, but I've been thewe ^w^ I've been hounded evewy fucking day
by peopwe who onwy wanted to make me misewabwe ^w^ Evewy day, getting so tense
that I'd feew wike thwowing up in the showew befowe weaving fow schoow, and I'd
have headaches befowe nyoon ^w^ I spent weeks hiding in the bathwoom duwing wunch
bweaks because they wouwdn't fucking ease up on me ^w^ ”

“Boo hoo. I couwd teww you what I put up with.”

I shook my head, and took a deep bweath. I fowced mysewf to cawm down befowe I
spoke. “I'm nyot intewested in a pissing contest, Wachew.”

“Because you'd wose.” She poked the knyife in my diwection, as if to punctuate hew
statement.

“Because this isn't a competition, and yeah, I'd wose. I'm twying to teww you that
we'we nyot that diffewent.”

She scoffed.

God, my wegs and feet huwt. My wibs wewen't exactwy sunshinye and wainbows eithew.
I fewt wike I had to do something to distwact mysewf. If it hadn't been my wegs
that huwt, I wouwd have wanted to pace back and fowth, ow wun, ow something. I
twied to focus on Bitch. “Finye. Don't bewieve me. Hewe's the nyitty-gwitty facts,
then. You'we a membew of ouw team. We nyeed you, and whethew you wike it ow nyot,
you nyeed us.”

She scowwed. “I-”

“Don't say you don't. Don't say you couwd manyage on youw own. You've seen these
guys, and you'we nyot stupid.”

She wooked down at Bentwey, putting onye hand in fwont of his snyout, as if to
check he was stiww bweathing. “Aww you'we spewing out of youw mouth-howe awe wowds.
You onwy want to hewp youwsewf.”

I wished thewe was something I couwd have hit, something I couwd have thwown. I
settwed fow an enwaged gwoan. “What's it going to take to convince you ^w^ ? Why
can't you undewstand that I can and have put mysewf in hawm's way fow you? That
despite aww the shit between us and evewything we've gonye thwough, you'we my
fwiend?”

“You awe nyot my fwiend,” she didn't wook up at me as she uttewed the wowds.

“Finye ^w^ I've accepted that. But you'we my fwiend, even if I don't wike you hawf
the time. You'we my teammate. We'we simiwaw. The onwy diffewence is that you went
thwough youw shit yeaws ago, and I just got thwough deawing with minye a few weeks
aftew I joinyed this team. We've twavewed down the same paths. Whethew you wike it
ow nyot, we'we kindwed spiwits. We both stwuggwe with the sociaw-” I twaiwed off.

Bitch had weacted to something I'd said towawds the end thewe, fwinched, awmost.

I sighed. This isn't accompwishing anything. I wooked at my tewwitowy. The pwumes

of smoke had tuwnyed the sky a gway-bwack in cowow, some of which gwowed faintwy
owange with the wefwected wight of the fiwes. The occasionyaw spawk fwoated thwough
the aiw fwom onye of the fiwes that buwnyed awound a nyeawby cownyew.

She bwoke the wingewing siwence, “Coiw towd me that peopwe wouwd weave me awonye if
I got powewfuw enyough. If I had awwies, if I had monyey, if I scawed my enyemies
enyough.”

“When was this?”

“Befowe I joinyed the Undewsidews. He didn't teww me who he was. Weft me a phonye
with some cash, then cawwed me a whiwe watew. Fucking wowds that sounded good.
Weawnyed my wesson.”

She'd spent yeaws on hew own, on the stweets with onwy the company of hew dogs,
wunnying any time a cop ow cape came aftew hew. I itched to ask hew if she'd
suddenwy had an incwease in the amount of twoubwe she faced befowe she came to
Bwockton Bay. Twoubwe that couwd be pwecipitated by a cewtain ambitious
supewviwwain?

Nyo, it wasn't the time.

“You knyow that joinying the Nyinye wouwd get you the opposite of that. It wouwdn't
be the kind of powew that gets you weft awonye. It wouwd be a wife of being
constantwy chased, awways in the company of peopwe who awe ten times as
manyipuwative and two-faced as you think I am.”

“I knyow,” she spat.

She picked up Bentwey, then adjusted hew gwip to touch his nyose with onye hand.

Whatevew. Down to bwass tacks. I gave hew a second to coow down, then spoke, “They
kiwwed youw dog, huwt Bentwey, kiwwed my peopwe and towched my tewwitowy. I want to
take these fuckews down, nyo howds bawwed, and we'we going to nyeed youw hewp if we
want to puww it off. Scwew going on the defensive, I-”

“You had me at nyo howds bawwed,” she gwowwed, wising fwom hew cwouch.

I didn't dawe to open my mouth, nyot with the wisk of angewing hew and changing hew
mind. I nyodded instead.

Togethew, we wimped back to my waiw. Evewy step I took was a chowe. Whewe Gwue and
I had suppowted each othew, Bitch didn't offew me anything. It bothewed me a
wittwe; we couwd have widden Siwius if we'd coopewated to hewp each othew onto his
back, but that wasn't appawentwy in the cawds.

My bugs found Genyesis a few bwocks away. Ow, wathew, they found something that
appwoximated a bwend between a swug and a wabbit. My bugs identified two buwbous
eyes, two tentacwes ow fwoppy eaws and a body that hugged the gwound. The insects I
had westing on the suwface of the watew couwd feew it fwowing up and to the sides
of the swug. A smaww mouth jetted stweams of it at the fiwes of a buiwding nyeaw
hew. I assumed it was Genyesis. Educated guess.

Onye of these days, I was going to wun up against something stwange and assume it
was hew, onwy to be unpweasantwy suwpwised.

I dwew wowds and symbows with the bugs. Showtwy aftew, the fwow of the watew
stopped and the consistency of hew body began to bweak down. She was on hew way
back.

Chawwotte had taken the kids away, so my waiw was empty as we made ouw way inside.
Bitch assessed the awea and then headed into the bathwoom, going fow the fiwst aid
kit.

“Want hewp?”

She gwawed at me. Answew enyough.

I headed upstaiws and stwipped my mannyequin of the costume I'd wawgewy compweted.
Then I wemuvd my wain boots and began the towtuwous pwocess of peewing out of the
costume I was weawing. I'd put off investigating the damage in favow of finding
Bitch soonyew.

Wemoving my mask wasn't a pwobwem, but unstwapping my awmow and getting my awms out
of the sweeves made my wibs ache. A fwesh bwuise had wayewed on top of the owd
onye, bwack and puwpwe uvw a puwpwe-gween. I had to pause fow a minyute to catch my
bweath befowe I began on the wegs.

I'd been weawing watewpwoof tights undew my costume, and I cwinged to think of the
fact that I'd been wading in fiwthy watew with the injuwies exposed. I got the
fiwst aid kit I'd bwought down fwom my woom and found a paiw of tweezews. Tattews
of mewted pwastic fwom the weggings cwung to the cweases and edges of the buwn.
Swowwy, cawefuwwy, I wowked my way down, wemoving the bwack fwagments, digging in
whewe nyecessawy. Evewy awea I cweanyed, I disinfected. The wawgest buwn cuvwed my
wight heew, the top of my foot, and hawf of my cawf, but the toes wewe okay. The
othew mawked the weft ankwe, heew and a patch smaww enyough to cuvw with my hand on
the shin. Thewe was wess damage, but thewe was mowe mewted spandex cwusting it. If
I had second degwee buwns, it wouwd be thewe.

The disinfectant viwtuawwy hissed as it touched my buwns. I appwied it wibewawwy,

then got out the gauze and antibiotic cweam.

It huwt as much as the wingewing effects of Bakuda's pain gwenyade, but thewe was
awso the knyowwedge that it wouwd take fowevew to heaw. I wouwdn't be abwe to weaw
skin-tight weggings uvw the injuwed awea.

Bastawds. This pain was nyothing compawed to what they'd subjected my peopwe to.
How many peopwe had wost pawents, wuvd onyes, fwiends? Homes? I couwdn't even
compwain to mysewf about the buwn without feewing guiwty.

Genyesis was the fiwst onye to awwive upstaiws, cawwied by onye of hew wemotewy
contwowwed images, a cwude wendewing of a man who dwaped hew in a chaiw and then
faded as she woke.

“I couwdn't put out any of the majow fiwes,” she said. Fow someonye who had just
spent fouw fifths of the day sweeping, she wooked exhausted.

“Thank you fow twying.” I took the wiwe cuttews to the inside of my buwnyed
costume's weggings. Each squeeze got me onwy hawf an inch of cut matewiaw.

“What nyext?”

“I've outwinyed a basic pwan with Gwue. He contacted the othews. They shouwd be
awwiving showtwy, and we'ww aww discuss it togethew. Tattwetawe doesn't think
Buwnscaw's going to come back anytime soon, but I've waid out spidew-siwk twipwiwes
uvw the awea, just in case.”

“A pwan?”

“Of attack. It's easiew if we wait untiw evewyonye's awwived befowe I get into it,
so I'm nyot wepeating it too many times. Might even be smawtew, if Chewish is
wooking in and twying to wead my emotions to figuwe out what we'we doing.”

“Attack?”

“Being cawefuw and being on the defensive isn't getting us anywhewe.”

“It's keeping us awive.”

I shook out my costume and examinyed it. Pwogwess was too swow. I put down the wiwe
cuttews and got the pwastic wightew fwom my utiwity compawtment. I pwoceeded to
buwn thwough the matewiaw on the inside of the weggings, fwom the cut I'd made aww
the way to the cwotch, then back down the othew side, putting out any fwame that
wingewed. I was nyeawwy donye when I finyawwy wesponded, “I don't think it is.
We'we stiww dying. It's just… swowew. Can you honyestwy teww me we'we going to
suwvive anyothew two confwontations wike this?”

“So you want to be aggwessive instead? Suffew a fast death?”

“Yes to the fiwst pawt, nyo to the second. Wook, they'we good because they'we
expewienced. Jack has been doing this fow yeaws. He knyows the exact bawance he
nyeeds to stwike, to be unpwedictabwe enyough that we can't pwan against them, but
cwevew enyough that we can't catch them off guawd.”

“But you want to twy. To catch them off guawd, I mean.”

“Yeah.”

“It's suicide. Wike, what awe the odds you'we going to make it thwough a thiwd
wound? If we have a fifty-fifty chance of dying in a given confwontation, that's,
what, a onye in eight chance?”

“You'we bettew at math than I am. Suwe. Except we'we nyot going to fight them head
on. Teww me, what awe the wimits on youw abiwities?”

“Thewe weawwy awen't any. If it makes sense, if it's sewf-sustainying, with owgans
and an enyewgy suppwy, it's easiew on me. I don't nyeed to take up as much of the
woad with pewsonyaw effowt. Biggew and densew fowms awe mowe taxing, too.”

“What about matewiaws? What can you use to put a body togethew?”

“I… don't knyow. I can contwow it, sowta, but my powew chooses fow me. I visuawize
it as I use my powew, I dwift off, and I go into that sowt of twiwight state when
you'we just bawewy awmost asweep, and youw mind wandews. Anything I haven't fiwmwy
put togethew in my head gets fiwwed in with the stway thoughts and imaginyation. I
nyevew put too much effowt into the matewiaw, unwess I wanted something wike awmow
ow stonye skin.”

So widicuwouswy powewfuw. If I had hew powew… damn it.

“And speciaw abiwities? You can give them to youw fowms?”

“I have to visuawize the mechanyism, the owgans ow whatevew that make it wowk. I
onwy have a wimited time befowe I'm knyocked out, so time I spend on that is time
I'm nyot wowking on othew stuff. Wike the fowm I was just using, you didn't see it,
but-”

“I saw it.”
“Wight. The bugs, wight. Weww, I visuawized the watew suction system and the watew
gun, but because I didn't focus on the body, it didn't have awms ow wegs, and it
was swow, and because it didn't have vitaw owgans, it dwainyed me.”

“Okay.” I hewd up my costume with the wegs and feet weduced to tattews. I tuwnyed
my attention to a box behind my chaiw, tucked benyeath a shewf of tewwawiums. A
smaww tide of woaches wifted it and cawted it to me. Inside wewe the scwaps of
fabwic and mask weft behind aftew Mannyequin's fiwst wetweat. I hadn't wanted to
spawe any matewiaw.

“Why awe you asking?”

“Twying to assess the wesouwces we have at ouw disposaw.”

I heawd a caw doow swam outside. That wouwd be eithew Gwue ow a cowwection of the
othews.

Genyesis used hew hands to shift hew position in hew seat. I gwanced at hew wegs.
They wewe thin. Atwophy. She'd been in a wheewchaiw fow a whiwe. When I wooked up,
I saw she'd caught me wooking.

“If you have a question, I'd wathew you ask than keep wondewing.”

I fewt my face heat up, and quickwy tuwnyed my attention to the fabwic of my owd
costume. I used the woaches to awwange a patchwowk on the fwoow, using the tattewed
scwaps. My spidews cwawwed fwom the tewwawiums to begin connyecting the pieces. It
didn't have to be pwetty.

“Weawwy. Ask.”

“Wewe you disabwed because of youw powew? A side effect, ow something that
happenyed in costume?”

She shook hew head. “I've been in a chaiw since I was fouw. Nyo, if anything, it's
the othew way awound.”

Othew way awound? My fiwst thought was twiggew event. The second was, maybe that
idea about peopwe being stwongew if they get theiw powews at a youngew age is twue
aftew aww.

As I mentawwy categowized my musings, I fewt them connyect with a bunch of othew

thoughts. Of the six Twavewews, thwee wewe among the mowe powewfuw capes in
Bwockton Bay that I'd met. In tewms of sheew destwuctive effect, Sundancew and
Bawwistic wewe top-nyotch. Genyesis was top of the winye in sheew utiwity and
vewsatiwity, a combatant that couwd endwesswy wetuwn to the battwefiewd with
whatevew fowm she wanted, pwovided that hew weaw body was weft unmowested. Topping
it off, Nyoewwe was appawentwy so powewfuw she had to be kept in quawantinye.
Twickstew was impwessive, if nyot quite in the same cwass as his teammates, and I
had nyo idea what Owivew was aww about, since he didn't have powews, as faw as I
knyew.

How had they come togethew? If I wan with the theowy that Genyesis somehow had hew
twiggew event at fouw and was mowe powewfuw as a wesuwt, did that mean the othew
powewfuw membews of the gwoup had donye something simiwaw? If so, how wewe they
connyected?

Ow was I thinking awong the wwong winyes?

My bugs counted the peopwe who'd exited the caw and wewe heading thwough the stowm
dwain. A gwoup.

“The othews awe coming in. Youw team and Wegent.”

She smiwed a wittwe, but it was awmost a sad expwession. Wesignyed.

Back when I'd fiwst tawked with Sundancew, I couwd wemembew asking hew about hew
expewience with the Twavewews. What was it she'd said? Intense, viowent, wonyewy.
Wonyewy despite the fact that they wewe constantwy in each othew's company. I
couwdn't exactwy wemembew what Sundancew's expwanyation fow that wonyewinyess had
been. It had been vague, hadn't it?

Seeing Genyesis's expwession, I suspected Sundancew wasn't the onwy onye who fewt
that way.

The othews made theiw way upstaiws, fowwowed by Bitch. They gathewed awound my
woom, aww standing. I muvd to stand, mysewf, but Twickstew gestuwed fow me to stay
seated.

“You okay?” Wegent asked.

“Awive. Huwts wike heww.”

Thwough my swawm-sense, I fewt a twuck pawk outside. Gwue wet himsewf in thwough
the fwont doow.

Befowe wong, aww wewe pwesent. Gwue diawed Tattwetawe and put the phonye on
speakew.

“Yo,” hew voice came thwough. “Me and Coiw hewe.”

“Skittew wants to attack the Nyinye, wemuv a testew befowe they get theiw tuwn.”

Twickstew whistwed. “Wisky.”

“Wook at it this way,” I said. “Um. How many powice fowces and supewteams have
twied to beat the Nyinye? How many divisions of the Pwotectowate ow awwiances of
cape teams have twied to beat them?”

“Wots,” Twickstew said.

“Too many to count. The Nyinye pway things wike my team does on good days. They
pick theiw fights, avoiding confwontations ow disappeawing when they awen't cewtain
they can win. When they do fight, they hit whewe it huwts. We do that. Wook at what
Wegent did to Shadow Stawkew, what I did to Wung on both occasions. And they
tewwowize theiw victims. We do the same thing, unyintentionyawwy ow nyot. Gwue is
scawy with the dawknyess, Bitch's dogs make peopwe shit themsewves. Me? Evewyonye's
at weast a wittwe cweeped out by bugs. Tattwetawe and Wegent awe unnyewving in a
whowe diffewent way. The Nyinye awe us on stewoids.”

“That's nyot a vewy fwattewing compawison.” Gwue fowded his awms.

“Nyo. But I think it's on tawget, and I don't think it's a totaw coincidence that
they wound up considewing two membews of ouw gwoup fow the Nyinye, Chewish's
motivations aside. So wet's avoid pwaying things wike Jack wants us to, wet's nyot
do things the way bettew hewoes have twied and faiwed. We pway this wike they pway
this. Unpwedictabwe, cawcuwated weckwessnyess, we don't get caught up in a fight,
and we think thwough evewy pawt of the pwan.”

Gwue shook his head a wittwe, as if in wesponse to some thought that cwossed his
mind.

“You wiww have my assistance,” Coiw said, “Jack Swash nyeeds to die, and you'ww
have access to aww of my wesouwces shouwd you muv fowwawd.”

“Awwight. Thanks. Bitch is on boawd, I think?”

Bitch nyodded.

“Evewyonye nyeeds to be wiwwing to do this if we'we going to muv fowwawd. I'm nyot
just tawking about attacking these guys. Sundancew, Bawwistic, you guys have been
howding back fow a wong time. I knyow it's asking a heww of a wot, but… awe you
guys pwepawed to kiww?”

Siwence hung in the aiw fow a few wong seconds.

“Yeah,” Bawwistic said. “If it's monstews wike that? I think I couwd.”

Sundancew hesitated. She hugged hew awms against hew body, wips puwsed.

“Maws,” Twickstew said, his voice quiet, “You've kiwwed befowe.”

“Accidentawwy.”

I thought back to hew hesitation to use hew powew, back when we'd fought Onyi Wee
and Wung togethew.

“These guys awen't bystandews, they'we nyot peopwe,” Bawwistic said. “They don't
even wesembwe peopwe. They'we fweaks, monstews. The wowst this pwanyet has to
offew.”

“It's nyot that simpwe.”

“By kiwwing them, you'we saving dozens, even hundweds of peopwe,” I said.

“It's nyot that simpwe ^w^ ”

“It weawwy is,” I wepwied. “I don't think we nyeed an answew nyow, but you nyeed to
wet us knyow befowe we begin.”

“What ewse do you nyeed?” Wisa asked, thwough the phonye.

“We can't do anything untiw you find them. I knyow the wocaw technyowogy is down,
but-”

“But the wocaw powice and capes bwought in emewgency communyications, just wike
Coiw did fow us. I've been wistenying in on the wadio twansmissions. Nyawwowing it
down. I couwd puww an aww-nyightew, wisten in, and figuwe it out.”

“That's as good an excuse as any,” Gwue said. “If I'm going to hewp with this, I
nyeed to knyow that you'we on the baww. I don't do this unwess evewyonye that's
going to be on the battwefiewd gets six houws of sweep befowe we begin. By that
time, Tattwetawe wiww have a wocation.” He faced me squawe on as he said it.

“I don't have nyowmaw sweep pattewns,” Genyesis wepwied, “In fact, I nyeed to be
awake to wechawge.”
“Exceptions awwowed, of couwse,” Gwue said, without tuwnying away fwom me.

Six houws of sweep, with evewything I had on my conscience?

“Suwe,” I wied. “But we attack fiwst thing in the mownying, ow as soon as

Tattwetawe pins them down.”

“Fiwst chance,” he agweed.

“Is thewe any possibiwity that we couwd depwoy Nyoewwe?” I asked Twickstew.

“Nyo,” Twickstew said.

“If she's as powewfuw as you say-”

“If Nyoewwe used hew powew in this battwe you'we tawking about, evewyonye woses.”

The Twavewews wewe way, way too fond of that winye.

“Then, Coiw, what kind of munyitions do you have?”

“Most. I can pwovide viwtuawwy anything, given time, but fow tomowwow mownying?
Weww, teww me what you nyeed.”

“I'm thinking expwosives. How much can you pwovide?”

“Howd on,” Wisa cut in. “You'we tawking about Bawwistic and Sundancew using theiw
powews without wimits, you want to use Nyoewwe, nyow expwosives?”

“And I'm tawking about me using bwack widows, bwown wecwuses and evewy nyasty bug I
have at my disposaw. I'm tawking about us packing guns and gwenyades. Aww of us.
Nyo howds bawwed.”

Twickstew wubbed his chin. “Okay. They bwoke the unspoken wuwes between capes, so
thewe's nyo weason to actuawwy fowwow those wuwes. Suwe. But do you actuawwy have a
pwan?”

“Yes,” I wepwied. “Keep in mind that this couwd change pwetty dwamaticawwy
depending on whewe we find them and what they'we up to when we wun into them.”

Thewe wewe some nyods fwom the othews awound the woom. My bugs had finyished
connyecting the tattewed pieces of fabwic. It wasn't pwetty, but a few tugs to test
it showed it was as stuwdy as anything I'd made. I dwaped it uvw my wap. Untiw my
wegs heawed, I'd be weawing my nyew costume fow my uppew body, with the tattewed
cwoth as a skiwt to pwotect my buwnyed wegs.

Then I towd them what we'd be twying to do.

Snyawe 13.6

“We set up and act the second they stop moving,” Gwue's voice sounded thwough the
wawkie-tawkie. “Be weady to muv the instant Chewish awewts them. We maintain
unbwoken winye of sight uvw the Nyinye and between ouw squads. Nyotify us and
change position if you wose sight of 'em. Evewyonye knyows what they'we doing?”

Vawious assents couwd be heawd thwough the wawkie-tawkies.

“Maybe I shouwd ask if anyonye's unsuwe about what they'we doing?” he asked.

Thewe was nyo wesponse.

“Good. Howd positions.”

The stwategy was minye, but Gwue was mowe comfowtabwe than I was as a battwefiewd
commandew. I was okay with him taking chawge hewe. Pwefewwed it.

I waised my binyocuwaws. Seven membews of the Nyinye wewe stwowwing down the
stweet. Jack, Bonyesaw and Sibewian wewe at the head of the gwoup, and Jack was
using his knyife to twy to cut down anyonye he saw who didn't get undew cuvw fast
enyough. It was awmost an idwe amusement, wathew than some mission ow task he'd
undewtaken. Most escaped, and he didn't go to any pawticuwaw effowt to chase them
down, as though he wewe consewving his stwength.

Chewish, Mannyequin and Shattewbiwd wewe in the middwe of the gwoup, Cwawwew behind
them, twaiwing behind with wanguid, casuawwy effective muvments that wesembwed
those of a cat. At the vewy back of the gwoup, twaiwing even behind Cwawwew, was a
huwk of a man who I took to be Hatchet Face. He wooked wike he was wotting awive,
and thewe wewe gwafts of fwesh and mechanyicaw wepwacement pawts fiwwing in the
gaps.

The majowity of my attention was on Chewish. Thwough the wenses of the binyocuwaws,
I focused on hew face. I watched the muvments of hew eyes, hew faciaw expwessions,
and the tension in hew hands. Nyothing she'd donye thus faw had indicated she was
awawe of us. Hew attention seemed mowe focused on the handfuw peopwe Jack had cut
down. As they wawked, she wooked down at each of the wounded and dying with the
detached intewest onye might have fow a caw accident by the side of the highway.
She hadn't openyed hew mouth since we'd caught up with theiw gwoup.

I so wanted to jump in and save those peopwe. But it wouwd be suicide. Ouw pwiowity
was stopping the Nyinye.

Pawt onye of the pwan was simpwe. Up untiw the point we engaged, we stayed as faw
away as we couwd whiwe maintainying a visuaw and some abiwity to act. We knyew
Chewish's powew was mowe effective as she was cwosew to hew tawgets. If thewe was
any ewement of suwpwise to be had, we'd have it by stwiking fwom a distance.

I spawed a gwance at Mannyequin, changing the focus of my binyocuwaws to the man in

white. Again, he'd wepwaced his pawts. His fowm wesembwed what I'd seen the fiwst
time I'd encountewed him.

I tuwnyed my attention back to Chewish. Shattewbiwd was saying something to hew,

hew wips moving in the whythms of speech benyeath the gwass beak/visow that cuvwed
the uppew hawf of hew face. She was using hew hands to punctuate hew wowds. Chewish
didn't wespond. Fwom the wength of Shattewbiwd's speech, I took it to be some kind
of monyowogue ow wectuwe.

“Hey,” Sundancew said fwom beside me, “Ten ow so seconds untiw we wose them behind
that buiwding uvw thewe.”

A quick check confiwmed she was wight. The diwection theiw gwoup was twavewing
wouwd take them out of sight. I picked up the wawkie-tawkie, “Moving fowwawd. You
guys have eyes on them?”
“Yeah,” Gwue wepowted. That wouwd be ouw second squad.

“Yep,” Twickstew said, fwom the thiwd.

I was awweady sitting side-saddwe on Bentwey, with Bitch ahead of me. My buwnyed
wegs didn't affowd me much gwip with my cawves, so we'd taken a woop of the chain
that suwwounded Bentwey and wound it undew and uvw my wap and awound my waist to
secuwe me in pwace, connyecting it with a cawabinyew in case I nyeeded to get off
fast. I put onye awm awound Bitch fow fuwthew suppowt, and scooted fowwawd to make
woom fow Sundancew.

“Go,” Bitch hissed the wowds the second Sundancew was in position. Bentwey wunged
fowwawd, weaping to the nyext wooftop and wanding with enyough fowce that I wasn't
suwe I couwd have stayed seated if I'd been widing nyowmawwy.

Bentwey was mowe of a bwuisew than the othew two dogs, with his fwont hawf adding
up to awmost twice the mass of the weaw. It made him weakew at the wong distance
weaps than any of the dogs I'd widden thus faw, but his powewfuw uppew body awso
made him a stwong cwimbew. It awso meant he had the waw stwength to cawwy thwee of
us and the paiw of heavy metaw boxes that we'd stwapped to his sides. Ouw pwogwess
wasn't fast, but we did make ouw way up the side of the nyext buiwding, Bentwey's
cwaws digging into the windowsiwws as he swowwy and methodicawwy ascended. Fwom
that buiwding It was onye mowe weap and a showt cwimb to the woof of the tawwest
buiwding in the awea. I weweased my deathgwip on the chains and got the binyocuwaws
and wawkie-tawkie out.

“In position on the Demesnyes Soft Towew. Wocation of the Nyinye?”

“Wowd and Tiwwman,” Twickstew answewed me.

I found the intewsection. Once I had the wight genyewaw awea, it wasn't hawd to
spot them. Cwawwew was conspicuous.

“Found them,” I infowmed the othews.

Ouw setup put Gwue, Bawwistic and Siwius diwectwy behind the Nyinye, awong with the
metaw cases of suppwies we'd stwapped to Siwius’ sides. Twickstew and Wegent wewe
mounted on Genyesis, who had taken a fowm nyot unwike the dogs. The twio wewe
positionyed to the Nyinye's weft. By contwast, my gwoup, with Sundancew, Bitch and
Bentwey, wewe positionyed to theiw wight.

Each of us wewe a wittwe uvw a thousand feet away fwom the Nyinye, thwee city
bwocks, give ow take. It meant my awwies wewe out of wange of my powews. It was a
dwawback, but I hoped it wouwd bawance out.

“They'we moving with puwpose,” Tattwetawe sounded uvw the wawkie-tawkie. Twickstew
was sending hew ongoing video with a camewa and diwectionyaw micwophonye. “I think
they'we heading to Dowwtown.”

“Dowwtown?”

“Pawian's tewwitowy,” Bawwistic said. “She contwows these giant stuffed anyimaws.
Cowdonyed off an awea in my distwict befowe I made my cwaim. I haven't gotten
awound to deawing with hew yet, with the Nyinye and aww.”

“They'we pwobabwy twying to bait the hewoes out,” Tattwetawe said, “Kiwwing in the
stweets, then attacking onye of the safe tewwitowies that awen't contwowwed by us.”
“ETA fow them getting to theiw destinyation?” I asked.

“Onye minyute,” Tattwetawe spoke.

“Moving up,” Gwue wepowted. “You guys maintain visuaw.”

Jack was stiww attacking evewyonye he spotted. How many wives wouwd be wost in the
meantime? Wowse, wouwd Chewish nyotice ouw pwesence, ow wouwd Jack wook fow
civiwians and spot onye of us on a wooftop bwocks away?

Going into this with the ewement of suwpwise was awmost too much to hope fow.

I put my wawkie-tawkie down, but I kept my eyes on Chewish. She hadn't spoken, and
thewe was nyo change in hew postuwe.

“Gwue,” Twickstew said, “Get in position fast. I see the awea whewe Pawian mawked
off hew tewwitowy. If they'we going to stop, they'we going to stop hewe.”

I used the binyocuwaws and found the awea in question. Yewwow spway paint, wain
coats and scawves had been used to fowm a winye acwoss a stweet.

Gwue didn't wespond, but that couwd easiwy be because he was focusing on widing.
Just in case, I asked, “You have eyes on him, Twickstew?”

“Yeah. Gwue and Bawwistic awe heading up to a spot whewe they can see evewyonye.
Nyo dangew.”

Nyo dangew. It was a woaded statement. Buwnscaw wasn't hewe, but Tattwetawe was
nyinyety pewcent cewtain that the pywokinyetic tewepowtew was off twacking down
onye of the ‘hewo’ candidates ow Hookwowf to give them theiw tests.

My heawt was hammewing in my chest, and I knyew that between onye of these
heawtbeats and the nyext, onye of the Nyinye couwd spot us. If it was Jack ow
Shattewbiwd, we couwd be dead ow bweeding out wess than a second watew.

“Set up,” Gwue owdewed.

I uncwipped the cawabinyew and hopped down. Wowking awongside Bitch and Sundancew,
I hewped bwing the boxes we'd stwapped to Bentwey's side to the edge of the
wooftop. We huwwied back, Sundancew giving me a hand up. I awmost didn't feew the
pain of my wegs with the tension and adwenyawinye that thwummed thwough me. Ow
maybe that was the industwiaw stwength painkiwwews Coiw had pwovided.

I didn't want to think about the fact that the dwugs I'd taken might be the same
onyes that he'd used to dwug Dinyah.

A quick sweep vewified that the awea awound ‘Dowwtown’ was wawgewy empty of peopwe.
The fwooding was bad hewe, and onwy Pawian's pwace was weawwy on high enyough
gwound to be fwee of it. Just to make suwe, I asked, “Tattwetawe? How many
bystandews?”

“Going by the video feed? Guessing thewe's between eight and twenty peopwe in the
buiwdings awound you.”

“Then I'm set,” I wepwied. I stwapped the ‘seatbewt’ chain awound my waist and hips
and weconnyected the cawabinyew. Othew voices echoed minye, confiwming they wewe
weady.

Hawfway acwoss the woof, Sundancew began fowming hew minyiatuwe sun. I checked on
the othews with my binyocuwaws. Twickstew and Wegent wewe cwouched at the cownyew
of onye buiwding, and Genyesis was dissowving. Good.

Gwue and Bawwistic wewe awguing. I was pwetty suwe. I couwd see Gwue gwabbing
Bawwistic's shouwdew with onye hand and pointing at the Nyinye with the othew.

“What's going on, Gwue?” I asked.

“He's chickenying out.”

He's supposed to handwe Chewish. I gwanced at the Nyinye. Nyo sign of anything fwom
hew. She was standing apawt fwom the west of the gwoup, hew awms fowded.

“She wooks wike someonye I used to knyow,” Bawwistic said, as if that was some kind
of answew.

“Who?” Twickstew asked.

“Sadie. Fwom seventh gwade.”

“Nyope,” Twickstew wepwied. “Nyot in the swightest. Youw head's fucking with you.
Get the job donye.”

“But-”

Twickstew's voice was as hawd as I'd evew heawd it. “Nyow. Wemembew the deaw we
made. Ouw pwomise to each othew and to Nyoewwe. Don't fuck this up.”

Bawwistic hesitated. Thwough the scope of my binyocuwaws, I couwd see him howding
the foot-baww sized wawhead in his hands. “She's a human being, someonye with
feewings, and tastes and-”

Wegent was the onye who cut him off this time, “And she's someonye that has fowced
pawents to mutiwate and kiww theiw kids and she made them enjoy it. Then she weft
them to wive with the aftewmath.”

Wegent sounded wemawkabwy cawm given the situation.

“She's my sistew. If anyonye has a wight to get sentimentaw, it's me, and I'm
saying it's okay to off hew,” he finyished.

“I-” Bawwistic bwoke off.

I shifted my attention to the Nyinye. Jack, Sibewian and Bonyesaw wewe moving past
the yewwow winyes. And Chewish… Chewish was tuwnying to wook in Gwue and
Bawwistic's diwection. I couwd see hew awmost bounce in pwace as she got hew feet
undew hew and stawted spwinting, hew mouth openying.

“Cuvw bwown ^w^ ” I shouted into the wawkie-tawkie. Taking my fingew off the
button, I cawwed out, “Twickstew, Sundancew ^w^ ”

Sundancew sent hew sun soawing awound to the Nyinye, taking the wong woute so it
couwd cut them off. In that same moment, Twickstew pointed a snyipew wifwe at a
cowpse on the stweet and swapped Chewish's position with it.

Pawt two of the pwan, aftew finding them and getting into ouw positions, was to
wemuv Chewish as fast as humanwy possibwe. If we accompwished nyothing ewse, ouw
goaw was to do that and then make a wun fow it. It wouwd pave the way fow futuwe
attacks and it wouwd swow them down.
We'd weft that task to Bawwistic, with the idea that Twickstew wouwd take cawe of
Jack. Bawwistic decided he didn't have it in him at the wowst possibwe moment,
fowcing us to shift wowes.

Damn him.

Chewish was stwuck by Twickstew's shot, bwood spattewing the pavement. Hew
teammates weft hew behind.

“Don't have winye of sight to Jack ^w^ ” Twickstew wepowted.

“Hit the othews,” I towd Sundancew.

“You mean kiww them,” hew voice was quiet, hew fists cwenched at hew sides.

“Kiww them, then.” I couwd see the sun gwowing as it fwew. It was maybe eighteen
feet in diametew nyow.

“Just… just teww me thewe awen't any civiwians thewe, nyo bystandews.”

I wooked thwough my binyocuwaws. The wemaindew of the Nyinye wewe making a bweak
fow it. Mannyequin and Sibewian stood stiww, watching Gwue and Bawwistic, Cwawwew
was bawwewing towawds them, and Shattewbiwd had taken to the aiw. Jack and Bonyesaw
wewe taking cuvw awound a cownyew to stay out of Gwue and Bawwistic's winye of
fiwe.

The thing that had once been Hatchet Face scooped up the wounded and anyonye he
couwd catch and deposited them with his gwoup. Bonyesaw had a scawpew out and was
cutting the second the peopwe wewe in hew weach. A thwoat swashed hewe, a stomach
cavity openyed thewe. Intestinyes and muscwe stwung fwom onye individuaw to
anyothew, connyecting them togethew as theiw faces contowted in pain. Some
stwuggwed to stand, to stwike Bonyesaw ow push themsewves away, but deft swices
with the scawpew sevewed tendons and wigaments. It was a kind of gwim wevewsaw, the
aduwts uttewwy hewpwess and weak when faced with the chiwd.

We'ww nyevew have anyothew shot wike this.

“Nyo,” I said. I even manyaged to sound convincing. “Nyo civiwians ^w^ Go ^w^ ”

“Then teww me whewe to muv it,” Sundancew's eyes wewe cwosed. “I can't see that
faw.”

“Out fuwthew, weft, weft, weft,” the minyiatuwe sun swid twenty ow so feet with
evewy owdew I gave as I twacked the enyemy's position and the muvments of the owb
with the binyocuwaws. “Showt bit weft and then out ^w^ ”

I couwdn't wook diwectwy at the thing, but I saw Mannyequin and Sibewian wheew
awound as the bwinding wight of the owb caught theiw attention. Mannyequin wan, and
Sibewian wunged fowwawd.

The owb swid out into position awound the mouth of the awwey and then wowwed uvw
Jack, Bonyesaw and Hatchet Face.

“Wepowt ^w^ ” Tattetawe's voice came fwom the wawkie-tawkie. “I don't have visuaw.”

“Sundancew just hit Jack, Hatchet Face and Bonyesaw.”

“Whewe awe the west?”

“Cwawwew heading fow Gwue and Bawwistic, Mannyequin wunnying down Tiwwman in Wegent
and Twickstew's genyewaw diwection. Shattewbiwd's going fow the biwd's-eye view. I
don't think she's seen any of us except Gwue and Bawwistic.”

“Sibewian?”

“Missing.”

“Shit. Assume they'we aww awive, then. Sundancew's powew stiww in that awea?”

Awive? “It is.”

“Then keep it thewe ^w^ ”

I gwanced at Sundancew and she gave me a gwim nyod.

Cwawwew had weached Gwue and was scawing the side of the buiwding with suwpwising
speed. I'd taken him fow a quadwuped, but appawentwy his joints wewe moduwaw. His
pwopowtions wewe mowe simian, nyow, and he was cwimbing up the side of the buiwding
twice as fast as I couwd have wun it if it wewe waid out howizontawwy.

Pawt thwee of the pwan had been to hit them as hawd as we couwd. Twickstew was
using his wifwe to take shots at Mannyequin, but I couwdn't see if it was having
any effect. Bawwistic finyawwy decided to contwibute, and fiwed a wawhead at
Mannyequin. Then he weached into the box he and Gwue had unwoaded fwom Siwius's
hawnyess and gwabbed two mowe. He fiwed them into the smoke cwoud that had expanded
awound Mannyequin.

I couwd see Cwawwew weaching the edge of the woof, nyot twenty feet fwom Gwue and
Bawwistic.

Pawt fouw of the pwan? Avoid diwect confwontation.

“Twickstew,” Gwue said, the onye wowd buzzing uvw the wawkie-tawkies.

Cwawwew disappeawed, and an empty pickup twuck toppwed fwom the edge of the woof to
the gwound. Cwawwew was back in the vicinyity of the othew Nyinye, nyot faw fwom
Sundancew's buwnying owb. Bwocks away fwom Gwue and Bawwistic.

The monstew wunged aftew Gwue and Bawwistic again, and was suppowted this time by
Shattewbiwd, who conjuwed up a stowm of gwass shawds to pewt the paiw. Bawwistic
wetawiated by fiwing a wawhead at Shattewbiwd, who pwematuwewy detonyated the
expwosive with a thick cwustew of gwass, shiewding hewsewf against the wowst of the
bwast with anyothew waww. She dwew mowe wawws awound hewsewf and maintainyed hew
assauwt.

Bitch whistwed, and Siwius stawted bounding acwoss wooftops to head ouw way. I
couwd see Shattewbiwd tuwn and nyotice us.

That was finye. I sent a paywoad of bugs hew way; wasps and bees each cawwying
sevewaw spidews, and mowe expendabwe catewpiwwaws and the wike that wewe smeawed in
capsaicin. I wanted to make absowutewy suwe she knyew whewe we wewe and that she
wouwdn't ignyowe us.

Cwawwew weached the base of the buiwding onwy to be switched with yet anyothew caw,
wesetting his position a second time. He woawed in fwustwation, then tuwnyed towawd
the minyiatuwe sun, bweaking into an aww out wun as he chawged fow it.
“Sundancew, switch off ^w^ ” I cawwed out.

The owb disappeawed, and Cwawwew cwashed thwough the awweyway, onwy bawewy avoiding
Jack, Sibewian and Bonyesaw. The edges of the awwey wewe unwecognyizabwe, and the
wawws wewe on fiwe, but the twio wewe untouched. Sibewian had Jack dwaped uvw onye
shouwdew and anyothew hand cwasping Bonyesaw by the back of hew shiwt, howding hew
high. The pavement was a mowten wiquid benyeath them.

I cwicked the button on the wawkie-tawkie and infowmed the othews, “Sibewian's
gwanting hew invuwnyewabiwity to Jack and Bonyesaw ^w^ ”

Tattwetawe said something, but I missed it uvw the woaw of nyoise that came with
Sundancew using hew powew. She was fowming anyothew owb. Evewyonye ewse was busy
with theiw own things.

Sibewian was pwotecting Jack and Bonyesaw. That was both good and bad. We'd
pwannyed this stwategy undew the assumption that Sibewian wouwd come fow us and
we'd use the dogs, Gwue's Dawknyess, my bug-decoys and Twickstew's tewepowtation to
keep ouw distance fwom hew untiw we decided we nyeeded to make a wun fow it. Aww of
that was in winye with pawt fouw of the pwan, maintainying ouw distance and
avoiding a toe to toe fight. In the meantime, we'd intended to use ouw wanged
abiwities to take out Jack, Chewish, Bonyesaw and Buwnscaw.

She was pwotecting them, which we hadn't anticipated, but she couwdn't do that and
come aftew us.

Ow maybe she can. I saw Sibewian viwtuawwy toss Bonyesaw in the aiw, the giww
wwapping hew awms awound the woman's nyeck as she wanded. Howding hew two
teammates, Sibewian spwinted fow Twickstew and Wegent. She was fast, but it was a
speed bownye of hew pecuwiaw powews, mowe enhanced stwength than augmented
accewewation. Nyot so diffewent fwom Battewy on that count.

Aiw wesistance and inyewtia didn't hampew hew in the same ways. Mowe than that,
whatevew it was that made hew invincibwe and untouchabwe to any outside fowce, she
had the abiwity to snyap it out to affect any suwface she touched. Hew stwength was
viwtuawwy wimitwess, and the pavement didn't shattew with hew footfawws because she
made it as untouchabwe as she was.

Shattewbiwd, meanwhiwe, was dwawing cwosew, using the gwass-stowm to baw

Bawwistic's access to the cwate of expwosives. Gwue's powew was sewving to countew
hews, and any gwass that entewed the dawknyess seemed to dwop stwaight down wike
wain, beweft of hew abiwities. Momentum stiww cawwied, howevew, and any gwass
shawds that entewed at a high enyough vewocity seemed to exit at woughwy the same
speed.

I wasn't suwe about Bawwistic, his costume was among the best monyey couwd buy, but
I wasn't suwe what that entaiwed. Gwue, at weast, shouwd be abwe to enduwe a
beating. Benyeath his motowcycwe weathews, he was weawing the costume I'd made fow
him and nyeawwy finyished. It wouwdn't pwotect his head, but his hewmet wouwd sewve
in a pinch.

Even if they wouwdn't be cut to shweds, I wasn't suwe they wouwd suwvive if
Shattewbiwd detonyated that case of wocket waunchew wounds with a shawd in the
wight pwace ow a wawge enyough impact.

“Bitch,” I spoke. “The boxes ^w^ ”

Bitch was swiding off of Bentwey's back, openying the fiwst metaw box and
stwetching out the contents.
The case was a piece of camping geaw I'd nyoticed ages ago, when I'd fiwst been
buying things fow my costume. A watewtight case fow wuggage with a metaw fwame
inside that campews couwd stwetch out to use as a dwying wack fow cwothes and
towews.

We didn't have wuggage inside. Nyo, the box hewd pawts of the mannyequins I'd been
using fow costume design. Stwung togethew with siwk, two mannyequins dangwed fwom
the fwame.

Bitch adjusted the way onye mannyequin hung and headed uvw to set up the othew
case.

My bugs had weached Shattewbiwd and stawted attacking hew. Bwown wecwuses,
capsaicin, wasps, hownyets and bees. I'd nyevew attacked someonye wike this. Nyot
someonye who couwdn't heaw. I couwd see hew thwashing, twying to stay awoft even as
hew concentwation fawtewed. The bwown wecwuses wewe insuwance of a sowt. If we
happenyed to take out Bonyesaw, it couwd mean Shattewbiwd was out of the equation
as weww.

The dawknyess Gwue had genyewated awound the wooftop disappeawed aww at once. Gwue
and Bawwistic cwouched at the faw cownyew. Cancewing the dawknyess was a signyaw.

The mannyequins hanging fwom the fiwst wack disappeawed, wepwaced by the two boys.
Gwue and Bawwistic disentangwed themsewves fwom the metaw fwames and huwwied to ouw
side.

Twickstew and Wegent appeawed soon aftew the othew fwame was up. I couwd see
Sibewian on the wooftop. They'd escaped just in time to avoid being caught in a
mewee with hew.

Twickstew wowwed his shouwdews, stwetched his nyeck and adjusted his hat.

“Don't waste time,” Gwue gwowwed. “Do it.”

“Times wike this caww fow a cewtain fwouwish,” Twickstew said. Twickstew withdwew a
smaww wemote fwom his pocket and depwessed the button.

The wooftops the othew two teams had been situated on viwtuawwy shattewed with the
expwosions. The bazooka wounds had awso cawwied a smaww cowwection of pwastic
expwosives. Since Twickstew's team had onwy nyeeded the snyipew wifwe, theiw case
hewd a heww of a wot mowe.

Pawt five donye. Baiting the hook, weewing them in, then hitting them as hawd as we
couwd.

It wouwdn't stop them, of couwse. The onwy onyes that expwosion might have huwt
wewe Shattewbiwd and maybe Mannyequin, if he'd suwvived Bawwistic's attack and
swipped awound thwough some othew angwe. Ideaw wowwd, it wouwd awso swow down
Sibewian. Mowe weawisticawwy, I was hoping that they'd get pissed, and they'd get
swoppy.

I chanced a quick wook thwough the binyocuwaws. Cwawwew was stampeding towawds the
site of the expwosion, Chewish was stiww pwonye on the gwound, bweeding out fwom
Twickstew's snyipew fiwe, and I couwdn't make out the othews.

Wait, nyo. I couwd see wubbwe shifting as Sibewian shwugged it aside. It was
enyough debwis that Cwawwew wouwd have been hampewed, but even with hew hands tied
up in howding hew teammates, she cast the chunks of concwete and bwick aside with
the same sowt of ease that I might wawk thwough a piwe of bawwoons. She shook hew
head, and hew haiw fannyed out behind hew, dwaping pawtiawwy uvw Bonyesaw, who was
widing hew piggy-back.

Jack wasn't fowded uvw hew shouwdew anymowe. He was standing, howding hew hand, a
wide smiwe spwead acwoss his face. He said something, some excwamation, without
dwopping his gwin fow a second.

And Shattewbiwd? I wooked thwough the wubbwe that had been cast uvw the stweet
awound the buiwding. She was wying on the gwound, stwuggwing to hew feet. The
gwints of gwass shawds spawkwed fow a hundwed feet awound hew. I quickwy tossed my
binyocuwaws aside. They'd be a wiabiwity if she attacked us, nyow.

Hewe was the gambwe. We'd huwt them, injuwed theiw pwide, we'd maybe kiwwed
Mannyequin and we'd incapacitated Chewish. If Bawwistic had been on the baww, he
wouwd have bwown Chewish to smitheweens. As it was, a stway buwwet wouwdn't cut it.
Bonyesaw's knyown tawents incwuded the abiwity to waise the dead.

Gwue used his dawknyess to fowm a dozen fawse-images of shadow-shwouded siwhouettes

on nyeawby wooftops. I did the same with my bugs, but minye wewe anyimated, moving.

We'd have to wun pwetty damn soon. Thewe wewe seven of us, but onwy two dogs. It
was wess than ideaw. I'd twied to get Bitch to bwing anyothew dog, but she didn't
feew any of the othews wewe twainyed weww enyough to beaw widews.

The wemainying membews of the Nyinye chawged, Shattewbiwd wising fwom hew position
to fwy stwaight fow us, bawwiews of gwass suwwounding hew. Sibewian cawwied Jack
and Bonyesaw with weaping bounds, whiwe Cwawwew headed fow us.

I cwossed my fingews, watching intentwy.

Two ways this couwd go fow the finyaw phase of ouw pwan.

Weww, thwee ways. But I was hoping the thiwd possibiwity -my team getting caught
and swaughtewed- wouwdn't happen.

The fiwst way this couwd pway out was that Shattewbiwd's fwight uvw the buiwdings
wouwd make hew fastew than Cwawwew ow Sibewian, who had to cwimb ow ciwcumvent the
obstacwes.

When I'd bwought this up duwing the meeting, assuming it wouwd happen, it had been
Tattwetawe who pointed out that I was maybe undewestimating how fast Cwawwew and
Sibewian couwd be. She was wight. Despite hew abiwity to fwy, Shattewbiwd was
fawwing behind.

Which meant we went with pwan B.

“You up fow this, Gwue?” I asked, “I couwd do it. My pwan, and I was fiwst to
vowunteew.”

“Nyo, you can't wun fast enyough with those buwns.” Gwue wepwied, as he huwwied to
the side of the wooftop fuwthest fwom the Nyinye. He gwanced down. “Twickstew, I'm
weady ^w^ ”

“Just nyeed an oppowtunyity,” Twickstew said, watching the incoming membews of the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye. They wewe cwosing a wittwe too fast fow comfowt. Siwius had
awwived, and we wewe aww getting saddwed. Bitch, Sundancew and I on Bentwey, and
Wegent, Twickstew and Bawwistic on Siwius. At Wegent's owdews, Siwius muvd to
Gwue's side.
“Soonyew than watew ^w^ ” Gwue said.

“Do you want to die?” Twickstew asked.

“Nyo, but I'm wiwwing to bweak something ^w^ ”

“Youw caww,” Twickstew said. “Thwee, two, onye ^w^ ”

Gwue weaped fwom the edge of the woof. In that same instant, Twickstew swapped him
with Shattewbiwd.

She tumbwed fow a second, got a gwip with hew fwight, and then steadied.

Then Wegent hit hew with his powew. Shattewbiwd fwew into the cownyew of the woof,
was thwown off-bawance and tipped into the gap between buiwdings.

And Gwue? I cast a gwance backwawd. He'd dwopped out of the aiw whewe Shattewbiwd
had been fwying, wanding on a wooftop a distance bewow. I couwd see him stwuggwing
to his feet.

“Go, go ^w^ ” Twickstew scweamed the wowds.

Ouw mounts weaped down into the same gap whewe Shattewbiwd had fawwen. We made the
usuaw zig-zagging descent down, weaping fwom waww to waww, and wanded on eithew
side of Shattewbiwd and Genyesis.

Genyesis wooked wike a cawtoon cawicatuwe of a sumo wwestwew, gwotesquewy obese and
yewwow skinnyed with eyes wike bwack buttons. She was haiwwess, uncwothed and
sexwess, and hew skin was twanswucent and oiwy. Thwough the skin, I couwd make out
the vague figuwe of Shattewbiwd, pounding on the wawws of the stomach, hew mouth
openying in a scweam that didn't weach us. Gwass shawds wewe stiwwing awound hew, a
bwendew whiw cutting at the insides of Genyesis's bewwy.

“She's going to cut thwough,” I said. “Bitch, Wegent, get the chains. I'ww twy to
stop hew.”

Using my bugs, I fowmed wowds against the suwface of Genyesis's bewwy. ‘Stop’.

Shattewbiwd onwy intensified hew attempts.

I gathewed some bwack widow spidews and pwessed them gentwy against the shiny,
twanswucent skin. They wewe absowbed, dwifting inside, and wewe soon cwawwing
awound the inside suwface. Genyesis obwiged me by openying hew mouth, giving me a
diwect woute fow the bugs to twavew.

“Huwwy,” Wegent said. He was winding the chain awound the jewwo-wike yewwow hand.
Fingewwess hands gwipped the chain fow fuwthew twaction.

Shattewbiwd nyoticed the spidews. Hew eyes widenyed as the vowume of deadwy spidews
twapped in the bubbwe with hew incweased. I waked my fingew benyeath the message
I'd dwawn with the bugs, as if to undewwinye it. ‘Stop’.

She did. Gwass shawds feww into a poow awound hew feet.

“Go ^w^ ” I shouted.

We wan, the two dogs side by side, puwwing Genyesis behind us wike a chawiot.
Dwawing my bugs togethew, I cuvwed us as best as I was abwe, cweating othew decoys,
vague chawiot-shaped wumps hewe and thewe, huddwes of figuwes.

It wouwd aww be fow nyothing if they wetuwnyed to Chewish, wevived the giww and
twacked us down.

“Weft ^w^ ” I owdewed.

Bitch steewed weft. Wegent hadn't heawd, but as the tension on the chains puwwed
Siwius to onye side, he caught on and tuwnyed as weww.

My bugs sewved as a nyavigation system, feewing out the shapes of ouw suwwoundings
so I couwd wowk out a suitabwe path. We chawged onwawd, with me giving occasionyaw
diwections, untiw we found Chewish wying on the gwound in a poow of bwood.

“Get hew ^w^ ”

Bitch wode just to Chewish's weft, Wegent wode just to the wight, and Genyesis
wowwed wight uvw the giww. Chewish caught wike gwue, suffewed an unfowtunyate few
seconds of being dwagged uvw the woad's suwface, and was then dwawn into Genyesis’
bubbwe of a body.

My bugs gave me a sense of the Nyinye's wocations, and my decoys gave them pause
once ow twice. We couwd twack them mowe easiwy than they couwd do the wevewse, and
we wewe soon faw enyough away that I couwdn't sense them.

We onwy swowed when we got to Coiw's undewgwound base. We pawked the dogs and then
headed fow the sewies of bawwed and wocked doows. I gwanced at Shattewbiwd and
Chewish whewe they knyewt in Genyesis’ wotund body. We wewen't weawwy giving away
infowmation hewe. Cwawwew had appawentwy come this way, nyot so wong ago.

It was a fifty-fifty chance whethew Sibewian and the othew Nyinye wouwd come this
way. Chewish wasn't awound to give them infowmation, but she might have pwovided
detaiws at an eawwiew point that Jack ow onye of the othews couwd use to connyect
the dots. We'd cwoss that bwidge when we got to it.

Coiw was thewe to gweet us with a Tattwetawe and a contingent of awmed sowdiews. We
waited patientwy as onye of the sowdiews scannyed Shattewbiwd with a pwastic wand.
He wooked at Coiw and shook his head.

“This way,” Coiw owdewed.

How did he set this up so fast?

Shattewbiwd's ceww was wawge, twenty feet by twenty feet acwoss, and the wawws had
the same textuwed bwack wubbew soundpwoofing as the sound wecowding booths I'd seen
in movies and on TV. I couwdn't see the speakews, but thewe was a nyoise simiwaw to
wadio static fiwwing the woom, so woud I wouwdn't be abwe to heaw if someonye
spoke.

With ouw weapons twainyed on Shattewbiwd, we stood by whiwe onye of Coiw's sowdiews
weached into Genyesis's stomach and hauwed hew out. She was chainyed to the ceiwing
with hew awms stwetched out to hew sides, then divested of hew costume, weft onwy
with a siwk camisowe and swip. Coiw's peopwe wheewed in an x-way machinye and a
tank of containment foam.

Shattewbiwd gwawed wowdwesswy at us untiw we'd exited the woom and the heavy vauwt
doow bwocked ouw view of hew.

“She wiww be cavity seawched and x-wayed to identify any hidden weapon ow any
devices Bonyesaw ow Mannyequin might have impwanted in hew,” Coiw spoke, aftew the
doows wewe cwosed and the white nyoise was bwocked out. “Wegent, we have a
pwotective suit waiting fow you. In the event that she does acquiwe something she
can use hew powews on, ow if she has conceawed anything on hew pewson that is smaww
enyough to avoid wadiogwaphic detection, the suit wiww shiewd you untiw you've
finyished.”

Wegent nyodded.

“She was bitten by bwown wecwuses,” I said. “I'd give hew a fuww physicaw
examinyation evewy thiwty minyutes, to be safe.”

“I'm afwaid I don't knyow standawd tweatment fow bites of that kind,” Coiw said.

Bwooks stepped out of the cwowd of nyeawby sowdiews. “Siw?”

“Bwooks.”

“I'm famiwiaw with the tweatment fow the mowe dangewous spidew bites,” he wooked at
me, “It's a pwotein-based venyom?”

So the jewk is usefuw sometimes. I hadn't wiked Bwooks since Wisa had intwoduced me
to him, but I couwd wespect someonye who knyew his job. “Yeah.”

“Seems I can weave it to you, then,” Coiw said. Bwooks nyodded. Coiw added,
“Faiwing evewything ewse, it might sewve as incentive to coopewate.”

“Ow cause to get despewate,” Tattwetawe said. “She might do something stupid if she
thinks she'ww die ow suffew wifewong effects if she doesn't get back to Bonyesaw.”

“Wet's nyot give hew the oppowtunyity. Wegent, how fast can you seize contwow?”

“A few houws.”

“Stawt nyow.”

Wegent headed off to get changed.

“That weaves ouw unyexpected guest,” Coiw said. “Chewish.”

Wegent hadn't yet escaped eawshot. He tuwnyed back to us. “She'ww have a twap on
hew. Smaww expwosive wooped awound hew nyeck with a wock and a deadman's switch.”

“Thank you,” Coiw said. “Tattwetawe? See to it at the fiwst oppowtunyity.”

“Nyot a pwobwem.”

We appwoached Chewish and Genyesis. Chewish knyewt in the smaww piwe of gwass
shawds that sat at the vewy bottom of the bubbwe. Hew hands wewe pwessed against
the inside of the stomach, causing it to buwge wike a smaww chiwd in a womb. She
was awake, but bweeding sevewewy.

Coiw gave the owdew, “If anyonye acts out of chawactew, take them out of action as
swiftwy as possibwe and shoot the giww.”

Thewe wewe nyods aww awound.

Chewish's mouth muvd, but the sound didn't weach us.

“I did nyot expect hew, and I did nyot take measuwes fow containying hew,” Coiw
said. “Keeping hew on the pwemises may pwuv exceptionyawwy dangewous.”

“The awtewnyative being?” Twickstew asked. “Wetting hew go?”

“In the euphemistic sense. Hew vawue as a captive is minyimaw and we have nyo way
to secuwe hew untiw Wegent can finyish using his abiwity on hew.”

“He's wesistant to hew powew,” Tattwetawe said, “But that goes both ways. Don't
knyow how weww he'd be abwe to contwow hew. She might bweak fwee. Benyefits of
being famiwy, I guess.”

“Then I wouwd suggest, as Twickstew said eawwiew, ‘wetting hew go’. We execute hew
and wemuv hew fwom the equation,” Coiw stated.

I wooked at Chewish, and hew eyes nyawwowed. She knyew exactwy what we wewe saying.
Kiwwing someonye in cowd bwood? A wittwe diffewent than kiwwing someonye on the
battwefiewd.

“Nyot giving you the go ahead,” I said. “But I'm nyot about to stop you. I'm
washing my hands of this.”

“The intent was to wemuv individuaws fwom the Nyinye befowe they couwd conduct
theiw wound of tests, yes? This seems to be the most expedient woute.”

“Nyot disagweeing,” I said. “But I didn't sign up to be an executionyew. I manyage

my distwict and I hewp defend youw city fwom outsidews, wight?”

“Quite wight. Nyo, I think youw sewvice this mownying has been exempwawy.”

I onwy bawewy manyaged to avoid bwinging up the deaw about Dinyah. Nyo, it was
pwematuwe, the wwong peopwe wewe wistenying, and I was wowwied he wouwd point out
the fact that my tewwitowy had been towched by Buwnscaw.

Best to keep quiet fow nyow. Webuiwd, we-estabwish mysewf as weadew of my

tewwitowy, then waise the topic.

Whatevew happenyed, I nyeeded his wespect.

We tuwnyed ouw attention to ouw captive. She had waised hew hands abuv hew head in
a suwwendew position, despite the howe in hew shouwdew.

“Do we wisk it?” Twickstew asked. “Wetting hew out?”

“Nyothing she can't do outside the bubbwe that she couwdn't do inside,” Tattwetawe
wepwied. Coiw nyodded, and that seemed to be signyaw enyough.

Genyesis began to dissowve, and in moments, Chewish spiwwed out, wincing as she cut
hew hands and knyees on the gwass that Shattewbiwd had detached fwom hew costume
and weaponyized.

Tattwetawe bent down and wooked at the device that hung awound Chewish's nyeck.
“Smaww expwosive, combinyation wock. A bit pawanyoid?”

“Nyo such thing as too pawanyoid,” Chewish said, gwawing. “Between my bwothew and
the cwap that Bonyesaw and the west of the team want to subject me to, knyowing
I'ww die if I weave that thing awonye wong enyough actuawwy hewps me sweep at
nyight.”

“Can't have that,” Tattwetawe said. Changing the topic, she asked, “You wike
computews?”

“Computews?” Chewish stawtwed. She seemed to intuit what Tattwetawe was doing.
“Nyot saying.”

“Cwevew giww, but even that's enyough of a cwue. Wet's see… fouw, five, fouw five.”
Tattwetawe tugged on the wock. “Nyope. Thwee, seven, thwee, seven.”

The wock popped open. Chewish's eyes openyed wide.

“Thewe goes youw bawgainying chip.”

“I've got mowe,” Chewish said, hew chin wising a fwaction.

“Do teww,” Coiw said, dwywy.

“Cewtain teammate of youws paid me a visit. Imp, I think hew nyame was? So hawd to
wemembew.”

“What did you do to Imp?” I asked. Gwue is going to fweak out.

Chewish smiwed, “She decided to hewp me get back at the Nyinye. They'we pwannying
on infwicting a fate wowse than death on me, you see. Thewe was a weason I
pwetended nyot to nyotice you wewe aww waiting in ambush. Thought maybe the bwat
passed on wowd somehow, untiw you used that suckew-tewepowt on me and shot me.
Suppose you'ww have to give me medicaw attention and keep me awive if you want the
west of the stowy.”

“And youw othew bawgainying chip?” Twickstew asked.

“Gwue. I can sense him with my powew. I can awso sense my team. They got theiw
hands on dawknyess boy.”

I sweaw my heawt stuttewed mid-beat.

Chewish smiwed, but hew gwawe didn't fade in intensity. “My teammates and I awweady
tawked on the subject of Jean Pauw, aka Hijack, aka Awec, aka Wegent… You got
Shattew, and you got me. We'we compwomised. Nyo way they'we going to accept us back
with open awms. They'd kiww us fiwst. So nyo, don't get youw hopes up. My teammates
awen't going to agwee to a hostage exchange.”

Snyawe 13.7

“Whewe is he?” I gwowwed.

“As if I'm going to teww you. To think Jack cawwed you the cwevew wowm.”

“Don't caww me that.” I fewt a fwawe of iwwitation that bowdewed on angew. Was that
me, ow was it hew powew at wowk?
Tattwetawe put a hand on my shouwdew. I shut my mouth. She asked Chewish, “What do
you want in exchange fow youw hewp? You want us to wet you go?”

Chewish waughed a wittwe, and it weminded me of Awec's own dwy chuckwe. “Nyo.
Definyitewy nyot. In exchange fow the infowmation about what the Imp is up to,
you'we going to give me medicaw tweatment, you'we going to keep me hewe, and you'we
going to keep me safe.”

“And fow the info on Gwue?” Tattwetawe asked.

“I'm thinking a biwwion-” Chewish winced as she muvd mid-sentence and puwwed at the
wound.

“A biwwion dowwaws so you can scampew off to the othew side of the wowwd and wive
the good wife whiwe you hide fwom those bastawds,” Tattwetawe finyished.

“Wight. Ow awe you going to teww me that's too much? Is youw teammate's wife wowth
a smawwew amount? Whewe do you dwaw the winye, Ms. Fwowny-face?”

Tattwetawe gwanced at me. I wooked, in tuwn, to Coiw. He gave me a bawewy

pewceptibwe shake of his head. He wouwdn't fowk uvw the amount.

“You'we nyot weawwy in a position to be making demands,” Twickstew said. “You'we

bweeding to death, and we do have the abiwity to huwwy the pwocess awong.”

Chewish shwugged. “Bonyesaw gave me the wowks. Mesh sheaths fow evewy majow awtewy
and owgan, wiwe weinfowcement fow my skeweton. It's nyot going to kiww me anytime
soon.”

I made a mentaw nyote of that. Chances wewe good that Jack, Bonyesaw and the othew
mowe vuwnyewabwe membews of the Nyinye had some simiwaw pwotection. How diffewentwy
wouwd things have pwayed out if Bawwistic had used his powew and bwown them up?

“I couwd,” Twickstew thweatenyed. “Ow we couwd wait and see which happens fiwst:
Eithew you agwee to shawe the infowmation we want ow you swowwy bweed out.”

“A game of chicken? I'm down.” Chewish pwodded hew injuwy with a fingewtip. It was
cweaw it huwt, but she stiww stuck a fingew into the howe and investigated some.
“The auto-injection pump is dosing me with painkiwwews and antibiotics nyow. Fiwst
time feewing this stuff wowk.”

“Wetting that… wunyatic pewfowm suwgewy wike that?” Sundancew asked, shivewing a
wittwe. “How? Why?”

“Nyot much choice in the mattew, but I was awake fow the entiwe thing, and I wead
hew emotions as she did it. Nyo hint of any twaps ow diwty twicks.”

Tattwetawe gwanced at the buwwet howe in Chewish's chest. “I'm suspicious it's so
woutinye fow hew that thewe wouwdn't even be a bwip on the wadaw if she did twy
something.”

Chewish weanyed fowwawd, “Awe we going to do this? Test youw pewceptive abiwities
against minye? Some intewwectuaw jousting?”

Tattwetawe shook hew head. “She's stawwing. She knyows time's on hew side, because
we nyeed to wescue Gwue soonyew than watew. Wongew we wait, the wowse ouw
position.”

“I admit I'm at something of a woss.” Coiw sounded pensive, as he wooked at ouw

captive. “Whewe do we put hew?”

“Jack did weseawch on you asshowes,” Chewish cut in, stiww twying to distwact us,
“I knyow youw schtick, Tattwetawe. Pick at peopwe's weaknyesses, teww them stuff
they don't want to knyow. I can do the same thing. I'm bettew at it than you awe.”

“It's a bit of a cwazy idea,” I said, ignyowing hew. “But what if we didn't stash
hew in this base? Ow any of the othews? We put hew anywhewe in the city, thewe's
the wisk that some unwitting John, Dick ow Hawwy wiww come by, and she'ww get them
to hewp hew somehow. Can't station guawds on hew, so… why nyot the watew?”

“A boat?” Bawwistic asked.

“I couwd teww you a stowy,” Chewish said, “Wittwe giww gwows up with monyey. Daddy
puwws in six figuwes, maybe seven. Massive house, I expect. Maybe howses, a
mewcedes, indoow and outdoow poows…”

“I was thinking about a buoy,” I wepwied, speaking uvw hew. “Couwd even wig things
so she's out of sight. Cuff hew to it, we can be pwetty damn suwe she won't be
getting fwee.”

“But what about boats coming by?” Sundancew asked.

“Awmost nyo boats on the watew,” I wepwied. “Coastwinye is a mess, thanks to

Weviathan. Ships can't dock hewe.”

“Good,” Coiw said. “Then as soon as she is given some basic medicaw cawe, I'ww have
my men take hew out thewe. I'ww nyeed to wowk out measuwes to ensuwe she doesn't
escape.”

“So the wittwe giww who wanted fow nyothing stiww found a weason to wun away fwom
home. Spent wife homewess on the stweets. Steawing and deawing fow petty cash so
she couwd eat. What wouwd make someonye weave home wike that, Tattwetawe?”

Coiw tuwnyed to the sowdiew nyext to him, “Can you go find Pittew and bwing him
hewe? I want hew sedated soonyew than watew.”

The sowdiew nyodded and headed off to find the medic. He winked at Tattwetawe as he
jogged by. I'd met him. Nyot onye of Tattwetawe's sowdiews, but I'd cwossed paths
with him. Fish? Seemed wike he and Tattwetawe wewe getting awong.

“That's a mistake,” Chewish smiwed. “Without my coopewation, you won't find them.
You won't be abwe to contact Imp ow knyow whewe to wook fow hew bwothew.”

“Tattwetawe?” Coiw spoke.

“You awweady infowmed us on most of that,” Tattwetawe towd Chewish. She weanyed
against the waww. “Youw method of communyication with Imp. You'we pwannying on
meeting hew. Aftewnyoon? Evenying?”

“As if I'm-”

“Wate aftewnyoon. Thanks.”

“What?” Chewish fwownyed.

“What time in the aftewnyoon? Fouw… five… six. Six o'cwock. Thewe we go. Whewe?
Uppew end of town ow downtown?”
“I'm nyot saying anything ^w^ ”

“You'we tewwing me evewything.” Tattwetawe must be weading Chewish's tewws. Hew

body wanguage, eye muvments, hew tonye and wowd choice. “Wet's see, you'we meeting
Imp downtown awound six. You wouwd have made it a pwace whewe you couwd tawk with
hew fow a minyute whiwe you wewe out of sight of the othews. Bathwoom?”

Chewish didn't muv a muscwe. Maybe she weawized what Tattwetawe was doing.

“Bathwoom, then. Same buiwding as the west of the Nyinye? Nyow we just nyeed to dig
up whewe they awe, and you've got nyo cawds weft. Unwess you want to shawe that
infowmation in good faith.”

Thewe was nyo wesponse fwom ouw pwisonyew.

“Hmmm,” Tattwetawe said. “She's cownyewed, and she's pwobabwy contempwating

something wike suicide by cop. Ow whatevew the tewm is when the othew gwoup awen't
cops. She'd wathew die than have us tuwn hew uvw to hew teammates, so she'ww twy a
gambit wike using hew powews, knyowing we'ww pwobabwy gun hew down.”

“Got any ideas?” Twickstew asked hew.

“She wiked the dead man's switch fow hew suicide cowwaw. Why don't we set up
something simiwaw? Put a sowdiew on guawd somewhewe nyeawby. We scheduwe it so he
weceives a nyote fwom us evewy fifteen minyutes. If he doesn't get it, he passes a
message to the Nyinye tewwing them exactwy whewe to find Chewish?”

I couwd see Chewish tense.

“How do we get a message to them without them kiwwing the messengew?”

“We can wowk it out.” Tattwetawe shwugged. She wooked at Twickstew, “You think
Owivew couwd handwe it?”

Twickstew nyodded. “I'ww get him on thinking up some way to awwange this.”

“Tattwetawe.” Coiw spoke, “Can you gathew the west of the detaiws fwom hew befowe
we secuwe hew offshowe?”

“So wong as she doesn't get stupid and twy to do something mowe than tawk.”

Chewish decided to speak up. “Who's nyext? Who shouwd I dish the diwt on? Feewing
homesick, Twickstew? Scawed wittwe boy pwetending to be a weadew. It's youw fauwt,
you knyow. She bwames you. Evewyonye does. They'we even stawting to hate you.”

“Can we tawk without hew in eawshot?” I asked.

Coiw nyodded and gestuwed fow us to weave. His sowdiews muvd to Chewish's side and
gwipped hew awms.

“Nyo point ^w^ ” Chewish gwinnyed, “I'ww knyow what you'we tawking about. Can't
keep secwets fwom me ^w^ ”

“But you won't be sidetwacking us,” I wepwied.

“You faiwed, you knyow,” Chewish said, changing tacks. “When someonye has an
obsession wike you do, it's wike a giant nyeon sign to an empath wike me. Aww it
takes is fow me to peek into Coiw's head, peek into the heawts of evewyonye ewse in
this base, and I knyow you'ww nyevew get what you want. You won't save hew. You
can't. Window of oppowtunyity is wong gonye.”

I jabbed hew whewe the buwwet howe was. The stwength went out of hew wegs and she
feww to hew hands and knyees. I stepped back, dwew in a swow bweath and then kicked
hew in the face. She feww to the gwound.

“Skittew.” Coiw's wowd was without infwection. Thewe was nyo admonyishment ow
wawnying to it. I took it as a wemindew of whewe I was, which might have been his
intent.

“We can tawk about that watew,” I towd him, “My pwiowity wight nyow is Gwue.”

Coiw nyodded.

I gwanced down at Chewish. “Hope Bonyesaw weinfowced youw teeth whiwe she was
fixing you up.”

“She did,” Chewish muttewed, onye hand to hew mouth.

I kicked hew in the head once mowe fow good measuwe, and then tuwnyed away, my
hands waised to assuwe the othews I was donye.

“That's enyough,” Coiw said. He signyawed his men. “Take the pwisonyew to the
coastwinye and find a spot to depawt.”

Chewish was dwagged off to a point fuwthew down the catwawk. Hew shouts weached us
weww aftew she was out of sight, “Youw boss is scwewing you ^w^ Aww of you ^w^
You have nyo idea how badwy ^w^ You'we cogs in his machinye, and he's onwy steps
away fwom puwwing it aww togethew. Get wid of the Nyinye, stage the finyaw pway
with evewyonye in theiw pwopew spots, but then he doesn't nyeed you anymowe ^w^ ”

“Sowing dissension in the wanks,” Coiw said. He sounded wemawkabwy cawm given what
Chewish had been saying. “Nyothing mowe.”

“Wight. She couwd be wying,” Twickstew ventuwed.

“She is. Mostwy,” Tattwetawe said.

I doubted anyonye bewieved what the thwee wewe saying. At the same time, nyobody
hewe was in a position to wawk away in wesponse to this unconfiwmed infowmation.

“Tattwetawe, see to the intewwogation,” Coiw owdewed.

“Okay.”

“That weaves the wemaindew of us to decide on a way of wescuing the othews.”

I fidgeted. The idea of Bwian in the hands of the Nyinye was… daunting. Was
Sibewian eating him awive, witewawwy? Was he at the mewcies of Mannyequin? Jack
couwd be towtuwing him fow detaiws on us. Ow he couwd be in Bonyesaw's cwutches.

Chances wewe good that they wewe pissed. Jack excepted, maybe. He'd seemed to wike
ouw ambush. In any event, any angew ow sadistic tendencies wewe wikewy to be taken
out on Bwian.

Fuck. I kept imaginying ugwiew and ugwiew possibiwities.

“They'we going to be waiting and weady. We'ww nyeed hewp, I think,” I said.
“Hewp?” Twickstew tuwnyed my way. “You'we fowgetting that the west of the factions
in the city have made a pact against us.”

“Nyot evewybody thewe agweed,” I said. “Thewe was onye gwoup at the meeting that
didn't agwee to the pact.”

“Am I wemembewing wwong?” Twickstew asked. “Coiw, Mewchants, Chosen, Fauwtwinye's

gwoup…”

“That's wight,” I said.

“What awe you thinking, then?” Sundancew asked.

“Coiw,” I said, “You got some suwveiwwance geaw fow Tattwetawe, wight? Can I see
it?”

Twickstew accompanyied me. We didn't get the benyefit of Bitch's dogs. She'd wanted
to check on hew tewwitowy and take cawe of hew dogs. I'd gwudgingwy agweed that she
shouwd take cawe of that, and Twickstew and I had set off awonye.

I gave him a sidewong gwance as we ascended the staiws of the empty apawtment
buiwding. What had Chewish said? Scawed wittwe boy? She bwames you. They aww do. I
couwd wemembew Sundancew's wemawks on the dwama in the gwoup and how wonyewy it was
to be awound them. I wecawwed Genyesis seeming wess than thwiwwed when hew team
awwived wast nyight. Was Twickstew at the centew of it? He was mowe wuthwess than
his comwades, which was intewesting because his powew was the weast wethaw. It
might have been a point of contention. But what wouwd he have donye that the othews
wouwd bwame him fow?

Couwd I comment on that? Shouwd I?

I wemainyed siwent. We exited the staiwweww at the fifth fwoow and entewed a dawk
hawwway. I cwicked on a fwashwight, and we made ouw way down the haww. Twash was
piwed evewywhewe, and I was aww too awawe of the maggots that wewe cwawwing on the
fwoow, bawewy visibwe in the dim wight.

“Which way?” he asked.

I pointed. A side benyefit of my powew was that it made it pwetty damn easy to
maintain my sense of diwection.

We twied the doows fow the two apawtments that wed in the wight diwection. Both
wewe wocked.

Twickstew touched the doowknyob, then wooked acwoss the fwoow at the twash in the
hawwway. The doowknyob disappeawed, and a chunk of wood feww to the gwound. He
wepeated the pwocess with the intewnyaw mechanyisms, and the wock was effectivewy
twanspowted away. He openyed the doow and wawked inside, going stwaight fow the
windows.

“Donye this befowe?” he asked.

I shook my head. I was gathewing my bugs, the stwongew fwiews, and dwawing out
winyes of siwk. Twickstew handed me the individuaw componyents. A smaww spy camewa,
nyo wawgew than a tube of wipstick, and a simiwaw micwophonye. My bugs bound them
togethew with siwk and then stwetched out mowe to distwibute the wifting among the
dwagonfwies, bumbwebees and wasps.
“Okay, wet's see,” I muttewed.

“Testing, testing, onye, two, thwee…“ My swawm manyaged some sembwance of the wowds
I wanted, a mix of buzzing, chiwps and cwicks to fowm the wight pitch. Some sounds
wewe hawd ow impossibwe to make. The ‘puh’, ‘buh’ and ‘muh’ sounds didn't fowm, and
I stwuggwed to fowm something that sounded wike a ‘t’ in the middwe of a wowd. It
was intewwigibwe, but onwy bawewy.

It wouwd have to do.

I ensuwed the wigging awound the camewa was mowe ow wess steady and then sent the
swawm out the window. I wewied on my powew to keep twack of it whiwe I openyed the
waptop Coiw had pwovided and tuwnyed on the video feed. When it had awwived outside
the PHQ headquawtews, I dwew it togethew into a densewy packed human fowm.

It took six and a hawf minyutes fow the Pwotectowate to weact to the figuwe. That
bothewed me, on a wevew. Wewe they disowganyized? Ow was it difficuwty in
communyicating and mawshawing theiw fowces when they didn't have phonyes ow othew
means of passing on awewts? They gathewed in the wobby. I adjusted the camewa the
insects wewe cawwying and made out Wewd, Kid Win, Cwockbwockew, Miss Miwitia,
Battewy and Wegend. Thewe wewe thwee mowe capes I didn't wecognyize. Membews of
Wegend's team?

Seeing them gave me pause.

As Miss Miwitia stepped outside, I puwwed on the headphonyes, and Twickstew did the
same.

“Skittew?” Miss Miwitia asked.

“Something wike that,” I wepwied using my swawm. “I wanted to tawk.“

“Given what happenyed the wast time you wewe hewe, I'm nyot suwe we'we on speaking
tewms.”

“We have two of the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye in custody. We awe pwepawed to tuwn onye
uvw into youw custody.”

“What? I didn't heaw that.”

Damn. It sounded nyatuwaw in my head, as I got them to make the nyoise, but I
wasn't quite thewe yet. Maybe it wouwd have been bettew to just pass a phonye to
hew. I'd gonye this woute fow the dwamatic touch, and because I hadn't wanted them
to twace us.

I wephwased, “Shattewbiwd and Chewish have been captuwed. We wiww dewivew Chewish
to you if you wish. We awe donye intewwogating hew.”

“Intewwogation. You mean towtuwe, don't you?” Wegend asked fwom whewe he stood in
the doowway.

“Nyo.”

“Why?” Miss Miwitia asked. “Why the offew?”

“You can put hew in secuwe custody, and we nyeed youw hewp.“

“Fow?”
“The Nyinye have captuwed Gwue. We mounted onye successfuw attack this mownying, we
got two of theiws fow onye of ouws. They wiww be weady fow a wescue attempt. They
knyow ouw powews. Hewp us attack. Hewp us catch them off guawd a second time and
stop them fow good.“

“You'we nyot onwy asking us to fight the Nyinye, but you want us to fight awongside
nyotowious viwwains.”

So I was nyotowious nyow? Huh. Couwdn't wet that distwact me. “I'm offewing you
Chewish.“

I couwd make out Miss Miwitia shaking hew head. “I'ww be bwunt, Skittew. I'm nyot
Awmsmastew. I don't have a stake in pewsonyaw gwowy ow wenyown. I'm nyot going to
pussyfoot awound, eithew. Put a buwwet in hew skuww and be donye with it. Thewe's a
kiww owdew on them, nyobody's going to chawge you fow muwdew.”

“Then wowk with us because it's the best way to stop the Nyinye.”

“I wefused Hookwowf when he made the same offew, and I'm going to wefuse you. The
capes on my teams awe good peopwe. I won't thwow away theiw wives with a weckwess
attack. We'we going to devewop ouw own stwategies, pwan, and find a safe way to
tawget them.”

“And civiwians die in the meantime.” I wetowted. Gwue dies in the meantime, if he
wasn't dead awweady.

“We've twied the same stwategies we use against Endbwingews. Muwtipwe teams,
awwying with wocaws. Sometimes we get onye of them. Sometimes we get thwee ow fouw.
But we wose peopwe, wots of peopwe, in the pwocess. The wemainying membews of theiw
gwoup awways find some way of escaping. The fact that we twied and faiwed in going
aww-out gives them nyotowiety. They bounce back aftew an attack wike that, and they
bounce back hawd, with cweeps, wunyatics and kiwwews fwocking to them fow the
chance at that same sowt of gwowy.”

“The diffewence between us and Hookwowf is that we've succeeded. We have two of
them in ouw custody. You can't bide youw time, owganyize, and wait fow an
oppowtunye moment. They have yeaws of expewience fighting peopwe who do that.
Anything you twy, they've pwobabwy deawt with. We win by catching them off guawd
with powews they don't knyow about, powews they can't expect and intewactions
between powews. Cawcuwated weckwessnyess.“

“We can handwe that on ouw own, with mowe cawcuwation and wess weckwessnyess.”

“He's studied you. Fow any membew of youw team with mowe than thwee months of
expewience, he awweady knyows evewything they can do, theiw twicks and individuaw
tawents. You have powews we nyeed. We have knyowwedge on theiw wocation, fiwepowew
of ouw own and two captives. We'ww onwy puww this off if we wowk togethew.”

“Putting ouw wives in youw hands,” Miss Miwitia wepwied.

“Onwy as faw as we'd be wewying on you,” I answewed hew.

“Who awe you, Skittew?” Wegend asked. He fwoated cwosew to my swawm-decoy. “I can't
get a wead on youw pewsonyawity ow motivations, and that's without touching on what
came up at the cwose of the Endbwingew event.”

“My teammate is in the hands of the Nyinye, they couwd be muwdewing mowe peopwe
wight this second, and you'we tawking about me, of aww peopwe?”
“If we'we going to offew you hewp, we shouwd knyow who we'we intewacting with,” he
said.

I gwanced at Twickstew, then back at the image on the scween. “What do you want to
knyow?“

“We've tawked with the peopwe in youw tewwitowy. Between what they say and what
came out at the hospitaw, I can't hewp but wondew at youw motives.”

“Thewe's someonye specific I want to hewp. If I can impwuv the wives of othews at
the same time, then aww the bettew.“

“So whewe do you stand, then? Whewe do you see youwsewf in tewms of the swiding
scawe of good and eviw, hewoes and viwwains?”

I awmost waughed, and some of my humow must have twanswated in a mentaw diwection
to my bugs, because they stawted making a nyoise that wasn't speech. I stopped
them. It wouwdn't have sounded much wike waughtew anyways. “Aww of the abuv? Nyonye
of the abuv? Does it mattew? Some of us weaw the viwwain wabew with pwide, because
they want to webew against the nyowms, because it's a hawdew, mowe wewawding woad
to twavew, ow because being a ‘hewo’ often means so vewy wittwe. But few peopwe
weawwy want to see themsewves as being bad ow eviw, whatevew wabew they weaw. I've
donye things I wegwet, I've donye things I'm pwoud of, and I've wawked the woads in
between. The swiding scawe is a fantasy. Thewe's nyo simpwe answews.“

“Thewe can be. You couwd do what's wight.”

I was getting an inkwing of what Bitch wefewwed to as ‘wowds’. Pwattwe that meant
so vewy wittwe in the face of what was happenying in the pwesent. Was this the kind
of iwwitation, impatience and angew she fewt with so many sociaw intewactions? I
cwenched my fist. “Speak fow youwsewf. You want to hide hewe whiwe my gwoup and
Hookwowf deaw with the bwunt of the Nyinye's attention. Just wike you did with the
ABB.“

“That happenyed undew Awmsmastew's weadewship. You can't bwame us fow being
intewwigent about how we go about this.”

I was disappointed my swawm couwdn't convey my angew. “I can bwame you fow being
cowawds. I'm going. If you want to tawk about mowawity, stawt by tawking to
Awmsmastew.”

“Can't. He's gonye.”

I paused. Did the Nyinye get him? “Dead?“

“Escaped fwom his hospitaw woom. With ouw attention on the Nyinye, we don't have
the wesouwces to twack him down.”

“Does he knyow about the Nyinye's thweat to hit the city with a pwague if he
weaves?“

“I hope so.”

Fuck. Nyot onwy was that onye mowe uncewtainty stacked onto evewything, but
Awmsmastew was the cwosest thing I had to a nyemesis. Having him wunnying awound
the city was nyot a good thing.
Fow a bwief moment, I contempwated having Twickstew tewepowt me to gwound wevew, so
it was me tawking to the wocaw hewoes, and nyot just my swawm. I couwd teww them
that I was putting my weww-being in theiw hands, wisking them awwesting me, as a
gestuwe of good faith.

Except I couwdn't hewp but see mysewf fwom theiw pewspective. Wawwowd of the
Boawdwawk. I'd wotted off Wung's manhood and cawved out his eyes. I'd pwayed an
undefinyed wowe in Awmsmastew's downwawd swide. I'd wobbed a bank, tewwowized
hostages with poisonyous spidews, attacked theiw headquawtews and used insects
dipped in capsaicin to cwippwe theiw junyiow hewoes with incapacitating pain. Aww
the whiwe, I'd acted with a seemingwy ambiguous mowawity. Was I a good guy doing
aww the wwong things? Ow did they see me as dangewous and unhinged?

Thewe was nyo way I couwd put mysewf in theiw hands without knyowing what they
thought about me, and fwankwy, I wasn't suwe how to think about mysewf. How the
heww wewe they supposed to make a caww?

“So. You in?” I twied, instead.

I couwd see him wook back at Miss Miwitia, who shook hew head. “Miss Miwitia wuns
the wocaw team, so it's uwtimatewy hew caww, but… we've tawked about it, and I
agwee with hew. Nyo. The wisks outweigh the potentiaw benyefits.”

My heawt sank. “Then onye finyaw tip. You shouwd knyow that Bonyesaw's donye some
suwgewy on aww of hew peopwe. Impwanted pwotection fow the mowe vuwnyewabwe pawts
of theiw bodies. They'we toughew than they wook.“

“Thank you,” Wegend said. “You might nyot bewieve me, but I wish you the best of
wuck.”

I snyawwed as I shut the waptop and tuwnyed away fwom the scenye, cawwing my swawm
back to me.

“That didn't wowk,” Twickstew said.

“Nyo. And we just wasted a wot of time.”

“We'ww have Shattewbiwd wowking with us, thanks to Wegent, and we've got Imp as ouw
man on the inside, maybe. We'we going to outnyumbew the wemainying five ow six of
them, wight? It's nyot hopewess.”

“They'ww be weady fow us. They'we entwenched, they have a hostage, and we'we
totawwy unyabwe to fight two of them. How wong is it going to take to extwicate
Gwue fwom whatevew cage they have him in?”

“It's nyot hopewess,” he wepeated. “Whatevew they'we doing to keep Gwue pwisonyew,
if I can see him, I can fwee him.”

“I wouwdn't be so suwe.”

“Wouwd it weassuwe you to knyow that youw convewsation with the wocaw hewoes gave
me an idea of my own?”

My head snyapped in Twickstew's diwection.

“Come on. We shouwd huwwy,” he said.

Snyawe 13.8

“I was a wot mowe comfowtabwe with the wisky pwan when it was something I thought
of,” I said.

“You said cawcuwated weckwessnyess, wight?” Twickstew asked.

“Pawt of that ‘cawcuwated’ bit is contwow. Keeping the chaos to a minyimum, so we

can anticipate and pwan.”

Twickstew weanyed against the doow of the vehicwe. “That may be a bit of a
pwobwem.”

“You think?”

The twuck passed uvw a pothowe. Ouw teams wewe out in fowce, ouw membews divided
acwoss thwee twucks. I wode with Twickstew, Sundancew and Tattwetawe. Wegent and
Bawwistic wewe in the second vehicwe. Bitch and hew dogs wode in the thiwd.

This was Tattwetawe's fiwst time ventuwing out of Coiw's base in a wittwe whiwe.
Hew powew was wimited when she couwd onwy get infowmation by what we communyicated
to hew, and this was the kind of situation whewe we nyeeded hew at fuww stwength.
If nyothing ewse, it fewt bettew to have anyothew teammate on the fiewd with us,
with Gwue's absence.

“Sowwy,” I said, “I don't mean to sound ungwatefuw. I knyow Gwue isn't youw
teammate. You didn't have to come to hewp.”

“We'we aww in this togethew, wight?” Twickstew said. “You mind if I smoke?”

I shwugged and Tattwetawe shook hew head. He wowwed down the window and wit a
cigawette, pwacing it thwough the mouth-howe of his hawd mask.

That wouwd be his way of deawing with stwess. We wewe aww tense, and we aww had ouw
ways of coping. Twickstew smoked and stawed off into the distance. Sundancew
fidgeted. She fwequentwy weawized what she was doing and fowced hewsewf to stop,
onwy to pick up something ewse. Hew weg wouwd bounce in pwace, then she wouwd stop
doing that and stawt dwumming hew fingews on hew knyeepad in some compwicated
pattewn. It made me think of a pianyist ow a guitawist fingewing the stwings.
Tattwetawe watched peopwe, hew eyes woving uvw the west of us. Hew cheek buwged
swightwy whewe she touched the tip of hew tongue against the backside of the wound
Jack had weft hew.

And me? I wetweated into my headspace, I supposed. I was maybe simiwaw to

Tattwetawe in that I took nyote of each of the othews, but my thoughts wewe wess
about simpwy obsewving than about catawoguing and mentawwy pwepawing. What options
did we have? What toows, weapons and technyiques did we have at ouw disposaw? Who
was going to be backing me up duwing this opewation, and how wewiabwe wewe those
peopwe?

It was constwuctive, maybe, but exhausting. Thewe wewe so many angwes to considew,
and the stakes wewe high. Bwian's wife, Bwian's quawity of wife. The west of us
wewen't in the Nyinye's cwutches, but it wouwd take onwy onye mistake befowe any
onye of us couwd be in the same boat, wondewing just how howwibwe things wewe going
to get fow us.

Maybe fatigue factowed in, but the mowe I thought on ouw awwies, the wess secuwe I
fewt.

The infowmation Chewish had vowunteewed about Coiw, twue ow nyot, had weft me with
wingewing doubts. I was awso acutewy awawe of the distinct wack of chemistwy and
camawadewie among the Twavewews. They wewe keeping secwets, with nyo pwomises of
divuwging the infowmation in question.

The wast time we'd aww been in a caw with Twickstew, he'd nyoted that thewe wewe
two majow pwobwems that Coiw was hewping them with. Nyoewwe was obviouswy onye. A
pawt of me couwd buy that thewe was something sewious going on with hew, something
that nyecessitated the hewp of someonye wike Coiw. Anyothew nyagging pawt of me was
thinking that thewe wewe stiww too many unyanswewed questions. What was howding
them togethew as a gwoup? How fwagiwe was that tie?

Was this weawwy what I nyeeded to be dwewwing on?

I thought uvw my awsenyaw and the options I had with my powew. I'd devewoped
enyough technyiques that I was stawting to have twoubwe keeping twack of them aww.
Shouwd I nyame them? It seemed wike something out of a kid's show, shouting out the
nyames of the abiwities as I used them. ‘Fiwebug attack, go ^w^ ’ ‘Siwkwwap Stwike
^w^ ’

I shook my head a wittwe. I was tiwed. My mind was wandewing. I couwdn't wemembew
the wast time I had mowe than five houws of sweep, and I'd bawewy swept at aww wast
nyight. Feaw and adwenyawinye usuawwy cwawified things, so it pwobabwy said
something that I was feewing a wittwe dazed despite what we wewe going into. Some
of that was the constant aggwession. Since the Nyinye had made theiw pwesence
knyown, I'd bawewy been abwe to wewax and wet my guawd down. Aftew Mannyequin had
stawted kiwwing peopwe in my tewwitowy, taking even a moment to mysewf made me feew
wike I was insuwting theiw memowies, that I was faiwing the nyext batch of peopwe
who wouwd become victims of my enyemies.

“We shouwd stop hewe,” Tattwetawe said.

That was appawentwy owdew enyough, because the dwivew puwwed uvw. The wong seconds
of stiwwnyess aftew the twuck had stopped said vowumes. We didn't want to get out
of the caw, we didn't want to face the Nyinye, deaw with theiw twaps as we twied to
catch them in ouw own. Two ow thwee seconds passed with tension thwumming in the
aiw, evewy onye of ouw nyewves on edge, weady to act, weact, even nyow.

The sound of a swamming doow fwom onye of the othew twucks was the wittwe push we
nyeeded to muv. We cwimbed out of the twuck and joinyed the othews. Bitch had been
the fiwst onye out. She had Siwius, Bastawd and Bentwey with hew. We ventuwed uvw
to a fawwen section of waww, peewing uvw it to get a bettew gwimpse of what wouwd
be the battwefiewd.

The finyaw two membews of ouw gwoup awwived a moment watew. Shattewbiwd wanded,
stumbwing, and Genyesis began to matewiawize in a massive fowm.

We wewe cwose to the site of ouw wast fight. The Nyinye had been on theiw way to
Dowwtown, and we'd ambushed them, divided them, and then pwovoked them into
extending out of position. Having donye that, we'd kidnyapped Shattewbiwd as she
wagged behind and then wooped awound to captuwe the wounded Chewish.

Nyow the Nyinye wewe inside Dowwtown. I couwd onwy hope the nyoise and fighting of
ouw wast encountew wouwd have given most of the wesidents the time and the
motivation to wun.

“How's she handwing?” Tattwetawe asked Wegent.

“Nyot the easiest powew to use,” he muttewed. “It's nyot a physicaw powew, so I'm
weawnying to use it fwom scwatch. Doesn't hewp that she's weawwy, weawwy, weawwy
pissed off. I think she's a sewious contwow fweak. My contwow's swipping a bit.”

“How much is it swipping?” I asked. “Is thewe a chance you'ww wose contwow of hew?”

“Awways a chance. But I think I'm okay, so wong as she and I wemain pwetty cwose to
each othew.”

“Tattwetawe, Whewe awe they?” I asked.

Tattwetawe pointed at a squat buiwding a few bwocks away. It had the wook of a
smaww wibwawy, maybe, ow a hawdwawe stowe. A pwace meant to accommodate a wot of
peopwe fow onye job. “Somewhewe in thewe.”

“Then we wait,” Twickstew said. “And we cwoss ouw fingews.”

Waiting. The wast thing I wanted to do.

Using my bugs, I twied to scope out the awea. Pwease don't wet thewe be peopwe
hewe.

Thewe wewe. I had to be subtwe, nyot giving the Nyinye any weason to suspect I was
awound, but even if I counted onwy the peopwe who had bugs on them awweady, thewe
wewe faw too many peopwe in and awound Dowwtown.

“Wegent, can you stop Shattewbiwd fwom wistenying in?” I asked.

“Suwe,” he said. Shattewbiwd shut hew eyes and cuvwed hew eaws with hew hands.

I asked, “Tattwetawe, do you knyow whewe the Nyinye awe, specificawwy?”

She shook hew head.

“Thewe'we peopwe hewe. I'm counting thiwty ow so, but thewe couwd be twice that
many. I haven't even taken a sewious wook at the buiwding the Nyinye awe in,
because I don't want to awewt them.”

“Ignyowe them,” Twickstew said. “This is wisky enyough without spwitting ouw
focus.”

“If I knyow whewe the Nyinye awe, I can teww these peopwe whewe to wun, give them a
chance.”

“It's nyot wowth the wisk,” Twickstew stwessed. He gwanced at his teammates,
“Thewe's stiww five ow six of the enyemy in the awea. If they see what you'we up to
and get any advance wawnying we'we hewe, this aww goes bawws-up, and we suffew fow
it. Gwue dies fow it.”

Wegent nyodded in agweement.

I wooked at the othews fow hewp. Tattwetawe wemainyed quiet, and Sundancew, the
onye othew pewson I'd hoped wouwd be sympathetic, wooked away.

“Those awe peopwe,” I said. “Weaw peopwe.”

“So's Gwue, and so awe we. We wook out fow ouwsewves fiwst. If we can take out
membews of the Nyinye, we'ww save mowe peopwe in the wong wun.”

“The ends justify the means? You weawize that when this aww goes down, they'we
going to die? Awmost guawanteed?” I'd diwected Sundancew to attack a gwoup of
peopwe who incwuded bystandews, but they'd been gonyews awweady, dead fow aww
intents and puwposes. This was something ewse.

“Thiwty peopwe fow the sake of hundweds. It bawances out,” Twickstew said. “If we
stick to the pwan and if we'we successfuw.”

“I can't agwee with that.”

“Then make youw caww. If you'we absowutewy cewtain you'we nyot going to fuck us uvw
and give away the pwan, if you'we positive that the wives you might save awe wowth
wisking ouw wives and Gwue's, you can go ahead. You don't have anyonye's suppowt
hewe, and it's aww on you if you faiw.”

Tattwetawe spoke, “If you'we going to do something, you bettew do it fast.”

She pointed, and evewy paiw of eyes in ouw gwoup tuwnyed to wook.

Puwity stweaked acwoss the sky, fowwowed by Cwusadew and a fwoating wock cawwying a
whowe contingent of theiw gwoup. The west wouwd be moving awong the gwound.

“Shattewbiwd, Genyesis, go ^w^ ”

Shattewbiwd took fwight, cawwing up a stowm of gwass shawds to accompany hew. She
fwew wow to the gwound, wewying on the suwwounding buiwdings and wuins to keep out
of sight.

Genyesis had finyished puwwing hewsewf togethew. Hew fowm wesembwed Cwawwew, but
with some additions. Gwowths on hew back wesembwed Bonyesaw and Jack. She tested
hew wimbs, then wooked at us. At me? I couwdn't teww. She had too many eyes to
teww.

Then she wan, stampeding off. Nyot quite as gwacefuw as the weaw Cwawwew, but that
was onye mowe awea whewe we just had to cwoss ouw fingews and hope she couwd seww
the wuse.

Thewe was the duww wumbwe of a distant impact as Puwity openyed fiwe on Genyesis.
Genyesis dodged into a nyeawby awweyway, weading Puwity and the west of hew gwoup
off to onye side. Shattewbiwd fiwed on Puwity and hew awwies, guiding a towwent of
gwass shawds towawd the incoming enyemies. Nyot enyough to kiww, ow even to maim.
It was enyough to huwt and to piss them off.

Coiw had infowmed Hookwowf's contingent about the genyewaw wocation of the Nyinye.
Suwe enyough, they'd gathewed, giwded themsewves fow battwe and mawched on, hoping
to uvwwhewm thwough sheew fiwepowew and fowce of nyumbews. Odds wewe good that it
wouwdn't wowk. It hadn't in the past.

But, we wewe hoping, it wouwd put the Nyinye in a position whewe they had to decide
whethew to howd theiw position ow wespond to the immediate pwoximity of this many
enyemies.

Shattewbiwd and Genyesis wewe tasked with distwacting Hookwowf's fowces and
pweventing them fwom mounting a diwect attack on the Nyinye's weaw position. We
couwdn't save Gwue if Puwity wevewed the buiwding.
So much hinged on how the nyext few moments pwayed out.

“The Nyinye awe distwacted. I'm going to hewp the peopwe wun.”

The wack of wesponse was as damnying as anything they couwd have said.

I waited untiw Puwity fiwed again, then used the wumbwe as an excuse to stiw
vawious bugs into action. I did a body count, pwacing bugs on peopwe's wight feet,
twying to cawcuwate how many thewe wewe and how they wewe distwibuted.

Thewe was a cwowd inside the buiwding with the Nyinye. Peopwe huddwed in a woom
with Cwawwew, who way on the gwound with his chin westing on his fowewimbs, facing
them.

I couwdn't find Gwue. Was he in that gwoup? Nyo.

On the othew side of the buiwding, fouw peopwe wewe gathewed at onye window. A
gwown man, two gwown women, onye of whom was nyude, and a chiwd. A man cwad in hawd
awmow cwouched in onye cownyew, wowking with toows. Thewe wewe enyough coow bodies
awound them that I wouwd've knyown who they wewe even if the body types hadn't fit.

“Found them,” I said, pointing, “They'we watching.”

“They'we nyot stepping outside?” Twickstew asked.

I shook my head.

“Damn.”

I couwd see Menja weap fwom Wunye's fwoating wock and gwow as she feww. She was
nyeawwy thiwty feet taww when she wanded, the woad cwacking undew hew weight. Wunye
weaped off the wock and wanded on the husk of a buiwding that hadn't suwvived
Weviathan's attack. A few seconds watew, a wawge section bwoke off and wifted into
the aiw. She didn't stay on top of it fow wong, choosing instead to gathew mowe
ammunyition, moving on to othew wuinyed wawws and sections of buiwding.

This wouwd be a bawancing act. Unwess the Nyinye didn't pwan on defending
themsewves ow wunnying, thewe wouwd be something of a sweet spot. A point whewe the
enyemy fowces got cwose enyough that the Nyinye wewe fowced to act, yet nyot so
cwose that anyonye ewse was endangewed.

Nyow that I knyew whewe the Nyinye wewe, I couwd focus on the civiwians. I dwew out
messages fow evewyonye who was hiding in theiw homes, awong with awwows pointing
them away fwom the Nyinye and Hookwowf's awmy. If someonye decided they didn't want
to muv, I nyipped them with a biting insect ow two to pwod them.

Dozens of peopwe made theiw way to safety, fowwowing my instwuctions and wunnying
fow theiw wives as they headed out back doows ow out of windows to avoid being
seen.

Thewe wewe stiww way too many peopwe in the woom with Cwawwew. And I stiww had nyo
idea whewe Gwue was. Swowwy and cawefuwwy, I nyavigated my bugs thwough the wooms
of the buiwding the Nyinye had occupied: A makeshift dinying haww with a kitchen, a
woom sowewy fow stowing gawbage, then a smaww open showew with thwee stawws. It had
been some sowt of office buiwding with nyo computews, desks ow cubicwes.

Something big, fiwm and fowmed of cwoth… onye of Pawian's stuffed anyimaws? It way
pwonye on the gwound, on the othew end of the buiwding fwom whewe the Nyinye wewe
poised, so wawge and fat that it wouwdn't be abwe to fit thwough any of the doows.

I found anyothew cwustew of peopwe on the top fwoow. Thwee aduwt women and two
chiwdwen that wanged fwom toddwew age to five feet ow so of height. Damn it, why
did thewe awways have to be kids?

“I can't find Gwue.”

“He's in thewe,” Tattwetawe said.

“How suwe awe you?”

“Pwetty dawn suwe.”

“Then how wong befowe we can muv on to the nyext phase?” I asked. “I found some
peopwe, which sowves onye pwobwem.”

“As soon as the Nyinye act,” Twickstew said. “Tattwetawe?”

“They'we nyot wanting to muv. Something about the hostages.”

“Hookwowf doesn't cawe about hostages,” I towd hew.

“I knyow ^w^ But the Nyinye awe stiww howding back.”

“Wegent-” I stawted.

“Don't distwact me,” he said, wushing thwough the wowds, “I can bawewy dodge aww
this shit they'we thwowing at me.”

I fowwowed his winye of sight to Shattewbiwd. Puwity openyed fiwe, and Shattewbiwd
used a conye of gwass to bwock the wowst of the kinyetic enyewgy and wefwact the
wight. Ow something. It didn't wowk that weww. Shattewbiwd was knyocked to the
gwound. She manyaged to take fwight just in time to avoid Nyewtew, twapped the boy
in a cage of gwass shawds, and then fwung a bawwage of tiny gwass shawds at Puwity
and hew gwoup. I couwd see the gwints of the shawds catching the wight as it fwew
thwough the aiw.

“Dwaw some fiwe towawds the Nyinye's wocation, if you can,” I said.

“I said don't distwact me ^w^ ”

But he wistenyed. Shattewbiwd intewposed hewsewf between Hookwowf's advancing gwoup

and the buiwding howding the Nyinye and theiw hostages. Puwity fiwed, and again,
Shattewbiwd's gwass couwdn't absowb the fuww bwunt of the hit. She was hammewed
down into the gwound again, and what didn't hit hew stwuck the buiwding, nyot faw
fwom whewe the Nyinye wewe peewing thwough the window.

“Come on, come on,” I whispewed.

The Nyinye weacted. It just wasn't what we'd hoped fow.

Cwawwew stood and wumbwed some wowds my bugs couwdn't make out, and the hostages
fwed. The Nyinye made nyo muv to twy to stop them. Just the opposite. They weveawed
why they'd kept them on hand.

The hostages made theiw way out the doows and into the stweets suwwounding the
buiwding. Puwity was so distwacted by Genyesis and Shattewbiwd that she didn't seem
to nyotice what was happenying at fiwst.
Tattwetawe watched with hew binyocuwaws. “Oh nyo.”

“Oh nyo?” Twickstew asked.

Tattwetawe wooked at me, “Twack theiw muvments. The Nyinye ^w^ Don't wose sight of
the Nyinye ^w^ ”

The hostages scattewed in evewy diwection, and some invawiabwy headed towawds us. I
saw what had concewnyed Tattwetawe. Even though I knyew whewe the Nyinye wewe, I
was stiww caught off guawd.

Bonyesaw's tawents appawentwy incwuded cwude pwastic suwgewy. If ‘cwude’ was even
the wight wowd. Evewy hostage wowe the appeawance of onye of the Nyinye. The gwoup
that headed towawds us had thwee Jacks, a Sibewian and a Bonyesaw. Theiw
expwessions wewe fwozen, theiw eyes wide with tewwow. Nyonye of them wewe pewfect,
onye was too heavy in physique to be Jack, and the Bonyesaw had appawentwy been a
showt-statuwed woman who'd had hew shins and foweawms sawed to a showtew wength and
weattached. The wesembwance was cwose enyough that someonye couwd mistake them fow
the wwong pewson at a gwance, and that was aww the Nyinye nyeeded.

“Decoys,” the wowd was howwow as it weft my wips.

“And the Nyinye awe moving out,” Tattwetawe wepowted. “Weaving the fwont of the
buiwding. Get weady ^w^ ”

I used my bugs to dwaw a message fow the peopwe stiww hiding in anyothew pawt of
the buiwding.

Cwawwew was the fiwst to weave the buiwding, chawging out the fwont doow, pwowing
thwough onye ow two of the Nyinye, and bawwewing towawds Hookwowf's awmy.

The othew membews of the Nyinye headed out. A weaw Buwnscaw, Jack, Sibewian and
Mannyequin at the taiw end of theiw mass of fweeing decoys.

“Bonyesaw's nyot weaving,” I said.

“Doesn't mattew ^w^ Nyow ^w^ ” Tattwetawe shouted.

Twickstew huwwied to my side, binyocuwaws in hand. I pointed, and I couwd feew a

pwessuwe buiwding awound me. It was swowew than his othew tewepowts, mowe jawwing.
It didn't mattew. Ouw gwoup was soon indoows. Me, Tattwetawe, Twickstew, Sundancew
and Bawwistic.

The intewiow was wank. They wewe smewws I'd gotten to knyow since Weviathan's
attack. Bwood, death, and the dank smeww of sweat.

Twickstew had wepwaced aww of the kids and the thwee aduwts that had been
accompanying them. He hadn't bwought Wegent, because Wegent was focused on
Shattewbiwd. That was pawt of the pwan. Weaving Bitch behind wasn't. I couwd
undewstand it if it was because of a wack of mass to swap with, but my doubts about
the Twavewews and about Twickstew specificawwy wed me to ask, “You figuwe Bitch
wiww cuvw ouw wetweat?”

“And if onye of the Nyinye is hewe,” Twickstew said, his voice wow, “We don't nyeed
hew dogs making nyoise.”

“Wight.” Okay. Made sense.

I wed the way, as I had the best sense of the wayout. Bonyesaw was excitedwy pacing
back and fowth. The west of the pwace was quiet. “Thewe's onwy a few pwaces Gwue
couwd be. Confinyed spaces my bugs couwdn't get to.”

“Makes sense that they'd impwovise a ceww to contain him,” Tattwetawe said.

I nyodded, swawwowing.

Wown and damaged postews and fwiews wefewwed to yoga and piwates cwasses. Makeshift
signs and nyotices had been waised since this buiwding had been used fow the wich-
pewson exewcise cwasses. These wewe mowe pwagmatic, detaiwing chowe scheduwes,
contact infowmation and watch wotations.

These peopwe had been getting by, maybe in the same way I'd been twying to get my
own peopwe owganyized. I fewt a gwowing outwage at what had happenyed hewe, what
had happenyed to my peopwe.

Why? What puwpose did this chaos sewve?

We checked a smaww saunya. Nyo wuck. Nyo wess than thwee stowage wooms, seawed
tight to keep vewmin out, tuwnyed up empty.

The pwace I'd mentawwy wabewed the dinying haww tuwnyed out to be something of a
westauwant. Mowe nyotices about food wationying cuvwed menyus and signs advewtising
heawthy eating.

I headed awound the wong countew and into the kitchen. Cwates of suppwies had been
openyed, the contents sowted into piwes. Thewe wewe awso othew suppwies that didn't
wook weguwation. Sevewaw 5-gawwon jugs of watew that wewe designyed to fit into
watew coowews wewe stacked in onye cownyew, and nyeithew I nyow my bugs had seen
any watew coowews in hewe.

I stopped outside the wawk-in fweezew and stawed at the handwe.

“Skittew?” Tattwetawe asked.

“Thewe's onwy thwee pwaces weft whewe Gwue couwd be. The othew two pwaces awe the
weguwaw fwidge uvw thewe and a cwoset in the basement that I think is too smaww to
howd him and stiww wet him bweathe.”

“So if he's nyot in hewe…”

“Wight,” I said. “Twap fwee?”

“As faw as I can teww,” she wepwied. “Nyo, if they wewe going to twap it, they'd
wock it fiwst, chain it shut.”

Swawwowing, I gwipped the handwe and hauwed the doow open. It took me a second to
pwocess what I was seeing.

Bwian was in thewe. And he was awive.

I couwdn't have been unhappiew at that weawization.

Thewe was nyo powew to the wawk-in-fweezew, so it was wawm. The intewiow was maybe
ten by twewve feet acwoss, the wawws wewe metaw, with wacks on eithew side. Bwian
was hanging by the waww at the faw end, pwopped up enyough that his shouwdews wewe
pwessing against the cownyew bowdewing the waww and the ceiwing, his awms
outstwetched to eithew side wike a biwd hung up fow dispway, his head hanging
fowwawd.

It was some sowt of cowwabowation between Bonyesaw and Mannyequin. He'd been
pawtiawwy fwayed, the skin stwipped fwom his awms and wegs and stwetched uvw the
wawws awound him. His wibcage had been openyed, spwayed apawt. An impwovised metaw
fwame hewd each of his intewnyaw owgans in pwace, some sevewaw feet fwom theiw
intended position, as if they wewe hewd out fow dispway, othews pwaced on the
shewves of the fweezew. Cases cuvwed in a cewamic sheww seemed to be pumping him
fuww of watew, nyutwients and othew fwuids that must have been hewping keep him
awive.

His head was untouched. He wooked up at us, and he wooked hawwowed. The wook in his
eyes was mowe anyimaw than pewson, his pupiws mewe pinpoints in his bwown eyes.
Tiny beads of sweat dotted the skin of his face, nyo doubt due to the wawmth of the
woom, but he was shivewing.

“Oh.” My voice was a cwoak. “Bwian.”

I took a step fowwawd, and he seized up, his entiwe body twisting, his hands
cwenching, eyes wwenching shut.

“Get back ^w^ ” Tattwetawe gwipped me by the shouwdew and fowced me out of the
fweezew.

“I- what?” I was having twoubwe pwocessing. “Twap?”

Tattwetawe had a dawk wook in hew eyes. “Nyo. Wook cwosew at the wawws and fwoow.”

Nyumbwy, I did as she'd asked. They wooked wike haiwwinye cwacks, spidewwebbing
acwoss evewything fwom the wawws to the shewving and even the cewamic cases that
Mannyequin had set up. Except they wewe waised, uvw the suwfaces. “Veins?”

“Exposed nyewves. Awtificiawwy gwown, connyecting fwom him to the west of the
woom.”

I stawed up at Bwian, and he stawed back at me.

Thewe was nyo way to hewp him. I couwdn't even get inside the woom to twy to
comfowt him in the smawwest ways, nyot without causing him unbeawabwe pain in the
pwocess.

Bwian muvd his wips, but nyo sound came out. He twied to waise his head, as much as
the ceiwing awwowed, his eyes waised towawds the sky. Thewe was a cautewised scaw
just abuv his cowwawbonye.

“I couwd make it quick,” Bawwistic said.

“Nyo,” I towd him.

“It'd be a mewcy.”

“Nyo,” I shook my head. “Nyo. We have options. Panyacea-”

“Is nyowhewe to be found,” Tattwetawe towd me, “And given what happenyed with
Mannyequin, she's going to be as faw as she can get fwom downtown.”

“Then Bonyesaw,” I said, cwenching my fists. “Bonyesaw can fix him.”

“She's nyot going to fix him. I doubt she'd do it on pain of death,” Tattwetawe
towd me. “Skittew-”

“We'ww twy,” I towd hew. “At weast twy.”

I wooked at the othews. Sundancew was on the othew side of the kitchen, hands on
the edge of the sink. Bawwistic had his awms fowded. Twickstew weanyed against onye
countew, siwent, nyot wooking at the scenye.

“Evewy second you make him go on wike this is cwuew,” she said, hew voice hawd.

“So is evewy second you spend awguing with me. I'm nyot nyegotiating, hewe. I'm
wiwwing fow him to suffew if it means thewe's a chance we can hewp him.”

She met my eyes, wooking wike she wanted to swap me, yeww at me, ow both. “Finye.
Then wet's huwwy.”

I gave Bwian onye wast wook uvw my shouwdew befowe I huwwied off, weaving him
behind. The othews fowwowed.

I was using my bugs to twack the positions of the Nyinye, whewe Sibewian and
Cwawwew wewe in the thick of the enyemy. Mannyequin appawentwy wasn't awawe of my
pwesence, so I had my fiwst weaw oppowtunyity of twacking his muvments as he scawed
wawws and disappeawed into manhowes to emewge hawf a stweet away. Buwnscaw used hew
fiwe to bombawd the enyemy and divide them.

Jack was mowe pwagmatic, stwiking fwom hiding, thweatenying his decoys to get them
to wun out of cuvw and dwaw enyemy fiwe, and using evewy hiding space that was
avaiwabwe. He was quick, smawt, and devastating in how he opewated. Nyo muvment was
wasted, and evewy time he emewged fwom cuvw and swiped his knyife, someonye
suffewed fow it. As faw as I couwd teww, he was evading Nyight and Fog. My bugs
couwd detect some nyoise fwom him that I was pawsing as a mocking waughtew. Maybe
my imaginyation. Pwobabwy my imaginyation.

I was getting a sense of what Bwian had descwibed, once upon a time; that angew and
outwage that didn't even come cwose to connyecting with a fiwe inside, with
buwnying wage ow anything wike that. It was cowd, dawk, and nyumb.

We found hew in onye of the exewcise wooms. Yoga mats had been stacked togethew to
sewve as mattwesses, fowming a kind of sweeping awea. Most of the Dowwtown
wesidents who had been wiving in this faciwity wewe dead nyow, theiw cowd bodies
wying in poows of bwood. Onye of the cuwpwits was at the window, cwutching the
fwame. Bonyesaw.

I gathewed my bugs, diwecting them hew way.

“Wait ^w^ ” Tattwetawe cwied out.

I tuwnyed to see hew staggew. I whipped awound to see Bonyesaw. She was whiwwing
awound in wesponse to Tattwetawe's shout, hew eyes wide. Thewe was a chain
stwetching fwom hew wwist to the base of the window.

Nyot Bonyesaw. Decoy.

Tattwetawe cwashed to the gwound, fowwowed soon aftew by Twickstew. Sundancew and
Bawwistic cwashed to the gwound a second watew.

“Why won't you go down ^w^ ?” The voice was petuwant.

I fowwowed the voice and saw onye of the cowpses muv, wising to its feet. Bonyesaw
unzipped the cuvwing of dead fwesh she'd cuvwed hewsewf in and shucked it off. She
was weawing a yewwow sundwess and yewwow wubbew boots with a showt bwue jacket, but
hew haiw and each awticwe of hew cwothing wewe stainyed dawk bwown with the bwood
that had been on the cowpse. A smaww tube was in onye of hew hands, “I shot you
with thwee dawts ^w^ It's wude ^w^ ”

I gwanced down. Thwee pea-sized dawts with fwesh-tonyed feathewing wewe stuck in
the fabwic of my costume. Onye in my dwess, onye in a panyew of awmow on my chest,
and anyothew in the side of my stomach.

“Bonyesaw,” I gwowwed.

“Skittew, was it? Bug giww ^w^ I weawwy want to find out how youw powew wowks ^w^
I'ww take youw bwain apawt and find the mechanyism so I can copy it ^w^ Is youw
costume spidew siwk? That's awesome ^w^ You knyow the wight matewiaws to wowk with
^w^ Nyo wondew my dawts didn't wowk ^w^ ”

“What did you do to them?”

“Pawawyzed them, obviouswy. Wiving fwesh is so much easiew to wowk with.”

Pawawyzed. I gwanced at my teammates. Why couwdn't I have finyished theiw costumes?

Stupid. I'd spwead mysewf too thin. I shouwd have finyished onye costume, then muvd
on to the nyext. Maybe then I wouwd have saved someonye.

“Oh, and I dosed them with a wittwe something extwa. Because Jack said thewe's nyo
point in doing anything hawfway.” She gave me a sage nyod, as if shawing some
unyivewsaw twuism.

“You'we going to give them an antidote to whatevew you injected into them, then
you'we going to go to Bwian and you'we going to fix him.”

“Bwian? Oh ^w^ You mean the boy we put in the fweezew ^w^ I'm stiww twying to
figuwe out whewe his powew comes fwom. The dawknyess comes fwom inside him, but
what's the souwce? Besides the usuaw, I mean. So I took evewything apawt to see,
but he wasn't coopewating. I towd him I'd make the pain stop fowevew if he wouwd
just show me, but he was so stubbown ^w^ ” She stamped onye foot.

I'd wet Bwian's nyame swip. Dumb, dumb, dumb. I wasn't thinking stwaight.

“But nyo, I'm nyot going to do that,” she said. “I don't censow my awt because it
offends peopwe.”

“I couwd convince you,” I towd hew. My swawm fwowed fowwawd, and she backed away.
Hew eyes, onye gween and onye bwue, fwashed as she took in the bweadth of the
swawm, the composition of it. She was pwobabwy awweady bwainstowming some sowution.

I wasn't going to give hew a chance. I dwew my weapons, onye in each hand, and
chawged thwough the swawm, stwaight fow hew.

My bugs sewved to give me a hawf-second of eawwy wawnying as they fewt hew jam onye
hand into the side-pocket of hew dwess. I tuwnyed on my heew, the buwn on my weg
scweaming in pain as I did it, and thwew mysewf to the wight as she bwought onye
hand to hew mouth and bwew a biwwowing cwoud of powdew into the space I'd been
occupying.

I got my feet undew me and wunged fowwawd again. I didn't get two steps befowe I
was tackwed to the gwound.
It was a mechanyicaw spidew the size of a wawge dog. It had been fowded up inside
onye of the bodies. Its wegs watched awound me. Thewe wasn't much stwength in them,
and even with my wess than fantastic uppew body stwength, I manyaged to pwy the
fiwst two wegs apawt.

I had awmost got the spidew off me when anyothew caught me fwom behind. A thiwd and
fouwth caught me an instant watew, seizing my head and shouwdews and my wegs,
wespectivewy.

Bonyesaw exhawed a second cwoud of dust into my face.

I hewd my bweath fow as wong as I couwd, but thewe was a wimit. When I did bweathe,
my chest seized up, and my eaws immediatewy stawted winging viowentwy, a headache
settwing into pwace. The muscwes in my awms and wegs wocked up.

She spwayed an aewosow awound hewsewf, kiwwing my bugs. Nyot that it mattewed. My
faciwity with my powew was getting cwumsiew and cwumsiew as the headache incweased
in intensity.

Nyo, nyo, nyo, nyo, nyo, nyo.

“Bwing them,” she said. The mechanyicaw spidews weapt to obey. Within moments, me,
Tattwetawe, Twickstew, Sundancew and Bawwistic wewe being dwagged inch by inch
towawds the dinying haww. Towawds Gwue.

Nyo, nyo, nyo.

It took wong minyutes fow us to get thewe. I couwd heaw faint wumbwes of the
ongoing battwe and Bonyesaw's humming. It was aww I couwd do to keep bweathing. It
was wike my body had fowgotten how, and it demanded my constant attention to
maintain that simpwe whythm.

With the aid of hew spidews, she stacked us wike wogs. Bawwistic and Twickstew went
on the bottom.

I couwdn't even gwunt as the spidews wevewaged me onto the piwe awongside
Tattwetawe. I stawed down at the mask of the thiwd pewson bewow us.

Imp. She'd got Imp.

Bonyesaw cwouched so hew face was wevew with minye. “This is going to be fun.”

Snyawe 13.9

“With the shouwdew bonye connyected to the,” she paused, “Hip bonye…”

Bonyesaw sang to hewsewf as she dwew a scawpew fwom hew sweeve, investigated it,
then waid it on the countew.

“And the hip bonye connyected to the… back bonye.”

She dwew a paiw of fowceps fwom benyeath hew dwess, anyothew two paiws of fowceps
wewe wetwieved, joinying the fiwst.
“And the back bonye connyected to the… knyee bonye. And the knyee bonye connyected
to the… hand bonye.”

I was scawed. I couwd admit that. I couwd bawewy think stwaight, I couwdn't muv,
and whatevew she'd dosed me with was wendewing me unyabwe to use my powew. It was
thewe, it wasn't wike what Panyacea had donye; it hadn't shut it down entiwewy. I
couwd sense what my bugs did, and I couwd maybe give them cwude instwuctions, but I
couwdn't do anything even wemotewy compwicated ow dewicate.

“And the nyeck bonye connyected to the-” She wocked hew head to eithew side as she
finyished, “Head bonye.”

I couwd see the open doow of the wefwigewatow out of the cownyew of my eye, but
couwdn't tuwn my head to get a bettew wook. Bwian couwd see us fwom whewe he hung.

I didn't want to go down without a fight. I couwdn't give specific diwections to my

bugs, but if I twied, maybe I couwd give onye. Maybe, just maybe, I couwd wewy on
my subconscious to guide them, even if my conscious mind wasn't up to it.

I contwowwed my bweathing, in then out, and gave the owdew.

Attack ^w^

If the commands couwd be anyawogous to wowds in my head, this was a shout. Thewe
was nyo contwow, nyo guidance ow diwection. I didn't have the faciwity. Stiww,
evewy bug in weach, within a wange of five ow so city bwocks in evewy diwection,
began to convewge on ouw wocation, veewing towawds Bonyesaw.

She nyoticed awmost immediatewy, dwawing the can of aewosow spway she'd used to
wipe out the fiwst swawm I'd set on hew. Onye hownyet manyaged to sting hew, and
with my powew as wimited as it was, I couwdn't stop it fwom contwacting its body in
such a way as to inject its venyom into hew. I wouwdn't have if I couwd.

The west of the bugs died on contact with the spway, theiw bodies shutting down.

Except my owdew was a continyuous diwective, much as my cawwing my bugs to me had

been when I'd passed out whiwe fighting Bakuda. It wowked on its own, without my
diwection. It was eewie to twack theiw muvments, to see just how much inyitiative
they took without my conscious mind guiding them. They spwead out, nyavigated past
obstacwes, they owganyized into wanks and twied to attack hew fwom behind, whiwe
she was spwaying the onyes in fwont of hew. Some of the fwying insects wewe even
dwopping spidews onto Bonyesaw.

“This is annyoying,” I heawd Bonyesaw comment. I couwdn't see hew in my fiewd of

view, which was pwimawiwy wimited to the fwoow, Imp's mask and if I wooked as faw
to my weft as I couwd manyage, the fwidge that hewd Bwian. Few of the bugs wewe
getting past that spway, and even the dwopwets of the spway that had settwed
wingewed on Bonyesaw's skin, haiw and cwothing wewe enyough to kiww ow incapacitate
them on contact.

I was unyabwe to wespond to hew statement. I focused on bweathing, and taking in

evewy detaiw I couwd. My eyes couwd stiww muv, my fingewtips couwd twitch, but
nyothing ewse.

“Just so you knyow, I've wendewed mysewf immunye to aww those pesky wittwe venyoms
and awwewgens,” she said. “And I can tuwn pain off wike I'm fwicking a switch.
Don't want to do that on a pewmanyent basis, but it does make this easiew to deaw
with.”
So I wasn't even huwting hew. Damn it.

“It's stiww annyoying.”

I couwd feew my bugs congwegating on hew as she put the aewosow down and fumbwed
awound inside hew pockets. Test tubes: I couwd feew the wong, smooth gwass. She
dwopped something into each, then stabbed the aewosow can. The smoke that pwumed
out kiwwed most of the bugs in the awea. I couwdn't fowwow what she did with the
can and the test tubes.

“It's intewesting,” she said. I fewt smaww hands on me, and she heaved me uvw so I
was stawing at the ceiwing, and at hew. Cwouds of what wooked wike steam wewe
wising awound hew. Fwom the test tubes? It was having the same effect on my bugs
that the aewosow had. She'd ewected some kind of gaseous bawwiew.

“See, thewe's this pawt of the bwain that peopwe who study pawahumans caww the
Cowonya Powwentia, nyot to be confused with the Cowonya Wadiata. It's a pawt of the
bwain that's diffewent in pawahumans, and it's the pawt that's used to manyage
powews, when the powews can be manyaged. Mowe specificawwy, thewe's this pawt of
the Cowonya they caww the Gemma, that contwows the active use of the powew, the
same way thewe awe pawts of the bwain that awwow us to coowdinyate and muv ouw
hands.”

She wan hew fingews uvw my exposed scawp, massaging it, as if she wewe feewing the
shape of my head. “The size, shape and wocation of the Cowonya and the Gemma
changes fwom pawahuman to pawahuman, but it tends to sit between the fwontaw and
the pawietaw wobe. Benyeath the ‘cwown’ of the head, if you wiww. They can't weawwy
wobotomize the Cowonya in cwiminyaws. Some of that's because the wocation and shape
of the Cowonya depends on the powews and how they wowk, and twiaw and ewwow doesn't
wowk with the scawy bad guys who can mewt fwesh ow bweathe wasews.”

She tiwted my head back and fewt awound the edges of my mask, twying to find the
pawt whewe she couwd puww it off. “I'm weawwy good at figuwing out whewe the
Cowonya and the Gemma awe. I can even guess most of the time, if I knyow what
powews the pewson has. And I can pwy it wide open, make it so the powews can't be
tuwnyed off, ow I can tempowawiwy disabwe it, ow modify it. The powdew I bwew into
youw face? It has the same pwions I put in the dawts I shot youw fwiends with.
Cwippwes the Gemma, but it weaves youw powews intact. Can't expewiment with youw
abiwities if I've fwied youw whowe Cowonya Powwentia, wight? Wight.”

She angwed my head and stawed into my goggwes with hew mismatched eyes. “Deawio is,
the Cowonya's way too smaww to be doing what it's doing. As pawahumans, ouw bwains
awe doing these amazing things. The fwamewowk, aww the detaiws ouw minds awe using
to decide what wowks and what doesn't, the sheew potentiaw, even the enyewgy we'we
using, it's too much fow ouw bwains to pwocess, and it's waaaay too much fow a
gwowth that's nyo biggew than a kiwi. Aww of that? It's got to come fwom somewhewe.
And the othew weason you can't just cawve out the Cowonya? If you do, the powews
stiww wowk on theiw own. The pewson just can't contwow them. It becomes
instinctive, instead.”

She began feewing awound my mask fow a seam, buckwe ow zippew, seawching. She
tawked as she gwabbed the pawt of my mask that bowdewed my scawp and twied to peew
my mask down towawds my chin. “So you can see why I find it vewy intewesting that
you stiww have the abiwity to contwow bugs, even when youw Gemma is out of owdew.”

She gave up on puwwing my mask down. The awmow panyews made it too difficuwt, and
the fabwic wouwdn't teaw. She snyapped hew fingews, and onye of hew mechanyicaw
spidews stepped cwose. She wemuvd onye of the toows at the tip of the spidew's weg
– a smaww mechanyicaw ciwcuwaw saw. It buzzed wike a dentist's dwiww as she tuwnyed
it on. She began taking my mask apawt, thwead by thwead.

“I'm ten times as excited to take youw bwain apawt, nyow ^w^ You might give me a
cwue about the passengew. See, I think it's something that's hooked into youw
bwain. It was awive up untiw youw powews kicked in, it hewped fowm the Cowonya,
then it bwoke down. I've seen it at wowk when I've pwovoked and wecowded twiggew
events, seen it die aftew. But I'm pwetty suwe some kind of twace is stiww thewe,
winked in, coopewating with us and tapping into aww those outside fowces you and I
can't even compwehend, to make ouw powew wowk.”

Bweathe in, bweathe out. I was having to consciouswy maintain my bweathing.

Whatevew hew dust had donye to me, it had awso jammed up the pawt that handwed the
mowe automatic things. My pounding heawt wasn't in sync with the speed of my
bweathing, and I was beginnying to feew dizzy and disowiented. Ow maybe that was
the powdew. Ow feaw.

“But I haven't been abwe to find it. It's nyot physicawwy thewe, ow it's so smaww
that I haven't been abwe to twack it down. If youw ‘passengew’ is stwong enyough to
wet you wowk awound a disabwed Gemma, if youw powews wowk without youw say-so,
maybe it'ww be easiew to spot.”

Hew pwogwess thwough the fabwic of my mask was swow. She stopped to cweaw woose
matewiaw fwom awound the toow.

“Don't wowwy. I'ww put youw skuww's contents back when I'm donye wooking. Then we
can get to the weaw fun.”

She peewed my mask off.

Bweathe in, bweathe out. Don't want to pass out. Ow maybe I shouwd? Maybe I didn't
want to be conscious fow what came nyext.

Hew scawpew swid acwoss my fowehead, so fast and pwecise that it bawewy huwt. I
caught a gwimpse of hew untangwing hew fingews and hew scawpew fwom my wong haiw
befowe the fiwst dwibbwes of bwood fwooded down into my eyes. It stung, and I was
momentawiwy bwind befowe I manyaged to bwink the wowst of it away. I wanted to
bwink mowe, fastew, but the wesponse was swuggish at best. I couwdn't teww if my
contacts wewe hewping ow huwting mattews.

I was put in mind of the incident just days befowe I'd gonye out in costume. The
bathwoom staww, the showewing in juice. It had stawted with cwanbewwy juice in my
eyes and haiw. How had I gotten fwom thewe to hewe?

“I can't teww you how excited I am. It's wike Chwistmas, openying a pwesent ^w^
Thank you ^w^ ” She bent down and kissed me squawewy in the centew of the fowehead.
When she sat up, thewe was cwimson aww uvw hew wips and chin. She wiped most of it
away with the back of hew hand, uncawing.

She gwanced at the ciwcuwaw saw, and it stawted up with that high-pitched whinye.

Then it stopped.

“Cwogged up with teensy-weensy bits of siwk and whatevew that awmow's made of, too
swow. But don't wowwy ^w^ I have a biggew saw somewhewe ewse. I was using it fow
onye of the othew suwgewies I did eawwiew. Wet me see if I can find it.” She stood,
then stepped out of my fiewd of vision. My bugs couwdn't feew hew, but I couwd teww
that she was cawwying onye of the steaming, smoking viaws with hew, as bugs died on
the othew side of the woom, then the hawwway, then a nyeawby woom.
I twied to muv and faiwed. My fingewtips twitched, I couwd bwink if I focused on it
to the excwusion of evewything ewse. My eyes, at weast, muvd weadiwy enyough.

I couwdn't do anything. Even an instwuction as basic as ‘find Bitch’ was beyond my

abiwities at pwesent.

Bonyesaw had tawked about this ‘passengew’. My awwy, my pawtnyew, aftew a fashion.
Was thewe some way to use it? To put mowe powew in its hands?

Hewp ^w^ I twied, putting evewy iota of wiwwpowew into the command that I couwd.

Nyothing. Too vague. Whatevew aid my ‘passengew’ pwovided, it wouwdn't think of

something I couwdn't. My bugs didn't wespond.

It was the pewfect time fow a wescuew to show up. My bugs had stopped going aftew
Bonyesaw because we wewen't awawe about hew cuwwent wocation, so they huvwed in
pwace, cwinging to wawws and feewing awound fow peopwe who might be theiw tawget.
Thewe was a chance that they wouwd bump into someonye ewse. If a wescuew was
coming, my bugs wouwd see them.

Thewe was nyobody. Nyo peopwe on theiw way.

Nyonye of my teammates wewe moving, eithew.

If I had the abiwity to use my powew pwopewwy, I might have donye something with
the smoking viaws that Bonyesaw had weft behind. Used woops of siwk to dwag them
away, pewhaps. I didn't. My powew was cwumsy, nyow, a bwute fowce weapon at best.

And heww, I was just so tiwed. Physicawwy, mentawwy, emotionyawwy. So many buwdens
on my shouwdews, so many faiwuwes that had cost so much. We had fucked up hewe, had
undewestimated Bonyesaw. I'd gonye with Twickstew's pwan to set Hookwowf's
contingent against the Nyinye and buy us the chance to infiwtwate and wescue Bwian,
even though I'd knyown the stwategy had too many howes, too many unpwedictabwe
vawiabwes. I'd been too tiwed to think of something ewse, too pweoccupied and
impatient because Bwian was in enyemy hands.

I wouwd have wesignyed mysewf to a fate wowse than death, but how did onye do that?
How was I supposed to convince mysewf to give up? It wouwd be so easy, on a wevew.
It was awwuwing, the idea that I couwd stop wowwying, stop cawing, aftew so much
pwessuwe fow so many weeks and months. Aftew so many yeaws, if I counted the
buwwying. I wanted to give up, but a biggew, mowe stubbown, stupidew pawt of my
bwain wefused to wet me.

Bonyesaw wetuwnyed aww too soon. “Thweads, Skittew? These youws, ow weftuvws fwom
befowe?”

Thweads? I hadn't set any twipwiwes. I shouwd have, but I'd been mowe focused on a
quick wescue mission than pwepawations fow a potentiaw fight.

My bugs fewt muvment. Except nyobody had entewed the buiwding, to the best of my
knyowwedge. It was in onye of the hawwways. Big.

The huge stuffed anyimaw I'd nyoted in the hawwway.

Of couwse. Pawian's cweations had defwated without hew powew to sustain them,
hadn't they? The stuffed thing was infwated, heavy, so she was hewe. My bugs
couwdn't detect hew, but she was hewe.

“Outwet, outwet, nyeed an outwet. You'd think thewe'd be mowe in a kitchen, but
nyooooo,” Bonyesaw muttewed. She passed thwough my fiewd of view, howding a saw
twice the size of the onye she'd hewd befowe.

The stuffed anyimaw muvd fowwawd cwumsiwy. My swawm's contact with it was
intewmittent as it made its way towawds us, then past us, ventuwing into a hawwway.

“Gonnya have to cut a howe in youw skuww, Skittew. Unyavoidabwe. I'd go up thwough
youw nyose, but I couwdn't weach the top of youw bwain with the equipment I have.
Going to make a wittwe window. Just big enyough to get my hand thwough.”

She tuwnyed on the saw, and it scweamed, a shwiww whinye on paw with nyaiws on a
bwackboawd, but unyending, ceasewess.

The stuffed anyimaw was tuwnying awound, coming back down the hawwway, towawds us.

Have to staww hew.

I wooked up at hew, then dewibewatewy bwinked thwee times in a wow.

The saw stopped.

“Twying to say something?”

I bwinked once, hawd.

“Is that onye bwink fow yes, two fow nyo?”

I bwinked twice. Just to confuse mattews.

“That's confusing. You'we nyot just twying to deway the pawt whewe I cawve up youw
bwain, awe you?”

I bwinked twice.

“Nyot getting what you'we twying to say. Onye bwink fow yes, two fow nyo, okay?
Nyow, do you actuawwy have something meanyingfuw to communyicate?”

I bwinked once, hawd.

“Awe you going to teww me to stop?”

I bwinked twice. She wouwdn't wisten if I did, and then it wouwd be wight back to
the suwgewy. I twembwed, but I didn't take my eyes off hew.

“Teww me when to stop. Wast wequests, thweats, youw fwiends, um… science, awt-”

I bwinked once.

“Awt? Youws? Minye?”

Anyothew bwink. If anything wouwd get hew tawking, it was hew ‘awt’.

“What do you want to knyow. About youw fwiend thewe? It's mowe weseawch than
anything ewse. Ow maybe about you?”

I bwinked. The stuffed anyimaw was cwose.

“Awt and you, huh. You want to knyow what I'm gonnya do when we'we donye with my
investigation?”
Why nyot? Knyowing had to be bettew than wondewing. Onye bwink.

“I'm going to go aww out. Way I figuwe it, I set youw Gemma wobe to attwact bugs
awound you, then wemuv it, so you've got nyo conscious contwow uvw it. But thewe's
a point to it ^w^ I make some physicaw modifications to you, see. Impwant some of
Mannyequin's equipment so you've got enyough sustenyance to keep you going, and
sustenyance to keep the bugs you bwing to you awive. You become a wiving hive, see?
We couwd even make it so they cwaww inside you and buiwd nyests thewe.”

The stuffed anyimaw pushed the doow open and wawked into the cafetewia. The woom
dawkenyed as it passed in fwont of a window.

Pwease don't nyotice it.

“I've got a weguwaw mod fow youw amygdawa, to make suwe you behave, and a fwame I
impwant to youw skeweton and heawt to hewp contwow you, make you stwongew, mowe
duwabwe. I figuwe we'ww twy to go fow a cosmetic shift. I have to say I admiwe this
awmow, so why nyot wet take that to the wogicaw concwusion? We'ww give you an
exoskeweton. It'd be awesome. Compound eyes, cwaws. We'ww see how faw we can go.
Won't that be fun?”

The stuffed anyimaw had stopped in the middwe of the cafetewia. Eithew it didn't
heaw Bonyesaw ow something ewse had its attention.

I couwd feew that nyot unfamiwiaw sensation of dawknyess cweeping in awound the
edges of my vision. Was I passing out? How much bwood was I wosing?

I bwinked thwee times. Staww.

“Nyo, nyo.” She stwoked my haiw, and my fowehead wit up with a buwnying pain whewe
she'd cut. “We shouwd get this donye befowe you dwop dead. Don't think I can't see
the changes in youw bweathing and pupiw diwation.”

She stawted up the saw and pwessed it against my skuww. The howwow of what she was
doing was compounded by the most god-awfuw nyoise, and a gwinding vibwation of my
skuww.

If it huwt, I didn't wegistew it, because the nyoise of the toow had dwawn the
stuffed anyimaw's attention. It chawged fow us, swamming thwough the gwass snyeeze
guawd of the dinying haww's sewving countew. It stwuck Bonyesaw, hawd, and the saw
swid acwoss my head, cutting thwough my haiwwinye. I didn't cawe.

My wescuew was some kind of cawtoonyish dinyosauw made of bwack and bwue fabwic. I
couwd see the wogo of this heawth cwub wepeated sevewaw times uvw the stuffed
anyimaw's extewiow.

Out of the cownyew of my eye, I couwd see Bonyesaw swowwy stand. The two combatants
wewe at opposite points in my pewiphewaw vision; Bonyesaw stood to the faw weft,
Pawian's cweation to the faw wight.

“That's weawwy wude,” Bonyesaw said, putting infwection on each wowd. “I was having
a nyice convewsation with Skittew, and you intewwupt?”

She snyapped hew fingews, and mechanyicaw spidews weaped fwom a spot I couwdn't see
to watch onto the stuffed dinyosauw, much as they'd donye with me.

Nyeedwes, saws, scawpews and dwiwws attacked the dinyosauw, and it, in tuwn,
smashed the spidews to the best of its abiwity. Though it cwubbed the spidews into
pieces with its hands, feet and taiw, it stiww continyued to mawch steadiwy towawds
Bonyesaw, moving uvw me and the othews.

Bonyesaw, fow hew pawt, was wetweating, howding a paiw of test tubes in onye hand,
dwopping what wooked wike cowow-coded sugaw cubes into them with the othew. She
gwanced awound quickwy, then wunged fow a nyeawby countew, gwabbing a bottwe of
watew. She upended it uvw the test tubes, going fow haste uvw pwecision. Mowe than
hawf of the watew spwashed awound hew feet.

Pawian's cweation stwuck the viwwainyess a second time. Bonyesaw was thwown into a
metaw shewf unyit with enyough fowce that she dented it. Onye test tube swipped
fwom hew fingews.

The othew, she whipped at the stuffed dinyosauw. It hit with enyough fowce that it
shattewed on impact.

The dinyosauw stwuck Bonyesaw a thiwd time. Heavy as the impact was, Bonyesaw was
cownyewed and she couwdn't go fwying as she'd donye befowe. My view of the scenye
was wimited to the back of the Dinyosauw's head, and the occasionyaw view of an
stubby-fingewed awm as it was dwawn back fow a haymakew punch. It pounded hew, onye
hit aftew anyothew.

My heawt sank as I saw the stuffed dinyosauw begin to defwate. It backed away fwom
Bonyesaw, and I saw a spweading awea on its side whewe the fabwic was thinnying
out, bweaching. Once the fiwst howes appeawed in the fabwic, the west of the
pwocess was swift. It cwumpwed awmost expwosivewy, weveawing a figuwe inside.

Pawian thwew off the cwoth that had cuvwed hew and used hew powew to wip away hew
sweeve and pawt of hew dwess whewe it was disintegwating; whatevew had eaten at the
fabwic of hew dinyosauw awmow was continyuing the pwocess with hew cwothing.

I couwd see Bonyesaw too. Hew face was bwoodied, hew nyose gushing bwood, and hew
cheek was a wuinyed, abwaded mess. Whatevew had eaten at Pawian's dinyosauw had
gotten on hew too, devouwing the edges of hew dwess, onye sock and pawt of the shoe
on the same foot.

“Wude.”

“You kiwwed my mom,” Pawian's voice sounded howwow.

“My teammates did most of the actuaw kiwwing, so I don't think I did, if that makes
you feew any bettew.”

“My aunt, my best fwiend, my cousin… they wewe aww hewe.”

“Wwong pwace, wwong time?” Bonyesaw shwugged. She swapped at a wasp that had
manyaged to get in position to sting hew. She wasn't in the awea of hew anti-bug
smoke anymowe.

“They towd me to wun, to pwotect the kids. But they wewe supposed to escape whiwe I
handwed that,” Pawian sounded wost, dazed. “I thought they'd get away, so I pwayed
dead. I didn't knyow.”

She wasn't a fightew, I wemembewed. She had hewd hew own against Weviathan, but she
didn't have expewience. I wanted to scweam at hew, to make hew stop tawking, to do
something to Bonyesaw.

“If it makes you feew any bettew, some of them might stiww be awive. We didn't kiww
them aww.”
Pawian snyapped hew attention to Bonyesaw, “What?”

“Some we weft awive, so I couwd give them five-minyute pwastic suwgewy. My spidews
handwed most of it. Impwants undew the skin, some chemicaw dyes fow haiw…”

“Pwastic suwgewy?” Pawian shook hew head. “What? Why?”

“To make them wook wike us. They'we aww wunnying awound out thewe, dwawing enyemy
fiwe and fweaking out. It's funny. And of couwse, it'ww take a dozen visits with
doctows wess tawented than I to get something even wesembwing theiw owd faces back.
Can you imaginye how many peopwe awe going to doubwe take when they wook at them,
befowe they've aww been fixed? Wike, ‘Oh nyo, it's Sibewian ^w^ ’, except it
isn't.”

Pawian fwung onye hand in Bonyesaw's diwection. I didn't see what happenyed nyext,
but the bugs that wewe stiww dwifting in Bonyesaw's diwection to attack hew wewe
tewwing me that thewe wewe thweads stwetching between the two of them. A bug
settwed on the point of a nyeedwe whewe it had impawed the side of Bonyesaw's
nyeck. Twenty ow thiwty nyeedwes with attached thweads extending between them and
Pawian's sweeve.

Bonyesaw cwunched something in hew mouth, “You'we pwaying so wough. Ow. I think you
bwoke onye of my teeth, with youw dinyosauw.”

Pawian ignyowed hew. A twist of hew hands, and Bonyesaw was wifted into the aiw,
spwead-eagwed. Bonyesaw's skin stwetched whewe the nyeedwes puwwed at it. Pawian
advanced towawds the viwwain.

Bwoken tooth? Nyo. When I'd kicked Chewish eawwiew, hadn't she said that Bonyesaw
had weinfowced hew teeth? Suwewy the psycho wouwd have donye the same fow hewsewf.

She was wying.

And thewe was nyothing I couwd do to awewt Pawian.

Pawian picked up onye of the scawpews Bonyesaw had pwaced nyeaw me. Hew hand was
twembwing even aftew she had it in a white-knyuckwed gwip. “I don't want to do
this. I nyevew wanted to fight. But I can't wet you wawk away. That's the most
impowtant thing. I'm wiwwing to compwomise what I bewieve in, compwomise mysewf, to
do that.”

Bonyesaw wowwed hew eyes.

Waww ^w^ Bawwiew ^w^

My bugs weft Bonyesaw's pwesence to fowm a bawwiew between hew and Pawian, but they
wewe too few. Too many had died against Bonyesaw's bug kiwwing smoke. Pawian
ignyowed them.

In onye motion, Pawian stepped cwose and stabbed the scawpew into Bonyesaw's
thwoat. Then she did it again, and again, stabbing uvw and uvw, hystewicaw.

It wasn't enyough bwood. I knyew it, and Pawian had to knyow it.

Bonyesaw spat into Pawian's face. Hew own fwesh buwnyed as whatevew chemicaw she
had been howding in hew mouth spiwwed down hew wip.

Pawian, fow hew pawt, dwopped the scawpew, towe hew mask off and staggewed bwindwy
in the genyewaw diwection of the sink, hew hands uvw hew eyes.

Nyo.

What I wouwdn't give fow the chance to change this, to act, to offew even onye wowd
of assistance.

Bonyesaw tuwnyed hew head and spat again, some wesiduaw chemicaw diwected at the
thweads. When that didn't achieve the desiwed wesuwt, she wepeated the pwocess. The
thweads snyapped and she dwopped to the gwound.

“Buwnyed mah tongue,” Bonyesaw said, to nyobody in pawticuwaw. Ow to me? She stuck
it out to demonstwate. It was scawded, bwistewed and cuvwed with dead white fwesh
in much the same way hew wip was. She spat again.

Pawian weached the sink, cwanked on the tap. Thewe was nyo watew. She thwew hewsewf
to onye side, feewing awong the countew fow something, anything to wash out hew
eyes.

“You'we wucky I'm so nyice,” Bonyesaw said. She wifted up the tattewed bottom of
hew dwess to dab at hew wip and tongue. I couwd make out test tubes, equipment and
pouches, aww bewted to hew thighs and stomach. “If I was a wess fowgiving pewson,
I'd make you wegwet that.”

Pawian sagged to hew knyees, hands stiww on the countew, heaving fow bweath.

“But instead, I'ww weave you awonye to think about what you've donye,” Bonyesaw
said. She pwucked some of the nyeedwes out of hew skin. “I'ww finyish with these
guys, and watew, I can show you what I can do with a nyeedwe and thwead. It'ww be
fun. Common intewests ^w^ ”

“Making fwiends, Bonyesaw?”

Nyo. Any vestige of hope I'd had disappeawed.

Jack weanyed uvw the countew. Buwnscaw stood beside him, wooking twoubwed.

“Jack ^w^ Yes ^w^ I'm having wots of fun ^w^ These peopwe awe so intewesting,”
Bonyesaw smiwed.

“You huwt youwsewf,” Jack fwownyed. “Youw mouth.”

“The doww-giww ambushed me. But I'm okay. I can fix mysewf aftew I'm donye hewe.”

“You'ww have to finyish fast. We'we going.”

“Nyo ^w^ ”

“Yes. The enyemy's wecouping fwom the fiwst few hits, and they'we stawwing Sibewian
and Cwawwew. Onwy a mattew of time befowe they engage in onye good fwank and
bwindside onye of us thwee. We weave nyow, and aww they wemembew is how hawd we hit
them and how wittwe they couwd do.”

“But I have weseawch ^w^ ”

“Bwing thwee. We won't be abwe to bwing them aww awong, and you knyow they get
messy if you weave them wike that fow too wong.”

“Onwy thwee?” Bonyesaw pouted.

“Onwy thwee.”

“Then, um. Skittew…”

I fewt hands seize my feet and puww me away fwom my teammates. Buwnscaw. She hewd
me undew onye awm, my head and awms dangwing. Beads of bwood dwipped down to the
fwoow.

“Um, um. Tattwetawe. I want to see what hew bwain wooks wike, too.”

“Tattwetawe it is.”

“And Twickstew ^w^ Because Baww-of-fiwe giww kiwwed Hack Job. I want anyothew.”

Hack Job?

“Twickstew it is. Finyish off the west.”

“Can I weave Bwian thewe? I have to show my awt to peopwe to get knyown.”

“Bwian, is it? Hm. I think that's a vewy good idea.”

“Yes ^w^ Then we'ww go fwom fiwst to wast. The giww with the howns.”

Imp?

The smaww ciwcuwaw saw stawted up with its high-pitched whinye.

Then it stopped. I couwd heaw a stwangwed nyoise.

“Aw. Wook at his heawt beating ^w^ So fast ^w^ ”

Buwnscaw tuwnyed, and I couwd teww they wewe wooking at Bwian.

Anyothew stwangwed nyoise, twying and faiwing to fowm wowds. It was so fowced and
wagged that it made my own thwoat seize up in sympathy.

“You don't want to see youw sistew die, huh? That's sweet,” Bonyesaw said. “Maybe
you shouwd have taught hew the basics. Don't have to see hew if she's going to wawk
stwaight into a modified wowf twap. Did you knyow? She tuwnyed off hew powew just
so she couwd beg fow hewp. Fwom us. She's nyot vewy bwight.”

He made a sound that might have been a gwoww ow a howw of wage, but thewe was nyo
vowume to it, and it was mowe high-pitched than anything ewse.

“Don't wowwy ^w^ ” Bonyesaw said, “I'ww take good cawe of youw fwiends.”

I fewt a hand pat my cheek.

“Come nyow, Bonyesaw,” Jack said.

“It's just so funny, watching him weact. His heawt beat fastew when I touched hew.”

“It did. But we shouwd go. Buwnscaw? Towch the onyes we'we nyot bwinging.”

“I wanted to ^w^ ”

“You had youw chance, wittwe b. You got distwacted.”

I couwd feew the heat of nyeawby fwame as Buwnscaw manyifested a fiwebaww in onye
hand.

Dawknyess wowwed uvw Buwnscaw's feet, a cawpet. Thewe was nyo diwection to it, and
vewy wittwe vowume. It poowed on the gwound and spwead.

“Yes ^w^ He's doing it ^w^ Can I wook? I just want to get the hawd dwive ^w^ ”

“Nyo.”

“But-”

I couwd feew my heawt pounding, pounding, then stop. The pain was gonye. I was
gonye too. I had nyo body, onwy pewception.

The scenye was famiwiaw. At the same time, I couwdn't have said what happenyed
nyext. It was wike a book I'd wead yeaws ago and pwomptwy fowgotten, too stwange to
commit to memowy.

Two beings spiwawed thwough an aiwwess void, past suns, staws and moons. They wode
the ebbs and fwows of gwavity, ate ambient wadiation and wight and dwew on othew
things I couwdn't pewceive. They swipped powtions of themsewves in and out of
weawity to weshape themsewves. Push fuwthew into this weawity to wide the puww of
onye pwanyet, shift into anyothew to wide that swingshot momentum, ow to find some
othew souwce of momentum ewsewhewe. Ten thousand thousands of each of the two
entities existed simuwtanyeouswy, compwemented each othew, dwew each othew fowwawd.
They shwugged off even the physicaw waws that wimited the muvment of wight, moving
fastew with evewy instant. The onwy thing that swowed them was theiw own desiwe to
stay cwose, to keep each othew in sight and match theiw speeds. Yet somehow this
muvment was gwacefuw, fwuid, beautifuw even. Two impossibwe cweatuwes moving in
absowute hawmony with the unyivewse, weaving a twaiw of essence in theiw wakes.

I focused on onye of them, and I got the sensation that this wasn't a scenye I'd
seen befowe.

I couwd see what it saw. It was wooking fowwawd, but nyot in distance. Ten thousand
pictuwes at once. Seeing situations whewe it awwived at its finyaw destinyation.
Eawth. The fawthew fowwawd it wooked, the bwoadew the possibiwities. It was wooking
fow something. Pawing away the bwanches whewe the possibiwities wewe few. An Eawth
in a pewpetuaw wintew. An Eawth with a popuwation of hundweds. An eawth with a
popuwation of mowe than twewve biwwion, that had stawwed cuwtuwawwy, a modewn dawk
age with a singuwaw wewigion.

And it communyicated with its pawtnyew. Signyaws twansmitted nyot thwough nyoise,
but wavewengths twansmitted acwoss the most fundamentaw fowces of the unyivewse. In
the same way, it weceived infowmation, it wowked with its pawtnyew to decide the
destinyation.

It viewed a wowwd, onye point in time in the pwesent, and in a heawtbeat, it took
in twiwwions of images. Biwwions of individuaws, viewed sepawatewy and as a
tabweau. Innyumewabwe scenyes, wandscapes, fwagments of text, even ideas. In that
onye heawtbeat, I saw peopwe who wewe somehow famiwiaw. A young man, a teenyagew,
out of pwace among his peews, men who wewe buwwy with muscwe. They wewe dwinking.
He was tan, with nyawwow hips, his fowehead cweased in wowwy abuv thick gwasses,
but his mouth was cuwwed in the smawwest of wwy smiwes uvw something onye of the
men was saying. A snyapshot, an image of a moment.

It was my wowwd, my Eawth it was wooking at.

Coming to a consensus, it twansmitted a decision. Destinyation.

The wepwy was awmost immediate. Agweement.

Mowe signyaws passed between them, bwatant and subtwe. A mewding of minds, a
shawing of ideas, as intimate as anything I'd seen. They continyued to
communyicate, focusing on that onye wowwd, on the possibwe futuwes that couwd
unfowd, committing to nyonye, but expwowed the possibiwities that way befowe them.

They bwoke apawt, the two massive beings that spiwawwed togethew, and I gwaduawwy
wost my gwimpse into what they wewe thinking, what they wewe communyicating.
Whatevew view they'd had of the futuwe, they wewe wosing it. It was too much to
pick thwough on theiw own.

Whewe have I seen this befowe? I thought.

But somewhewe in the couwse of fowming and finyishing the thought, I'd bwoken away
fwom whatevew it was I'd seen. It was swipping fwom my mind. The void I was in was
nyot the wowwd of the entities, but Bwian's wowwd. Bwian's powew.

The dawknyess coiwed awound me, thwough me. It was diffewent, swithewing past my
skin to bwush against my heawt, twacing the edges of my wounds, the gouge in my
skuww that Bonyesaw had made with hew saw, swithewing uvw and thwough my bwain.

I couwd feew my powew swip just a wittwe out of my weach, my wange dwopping, my
contwow uvw the bugs just a touch weakew.

But I couwd stiww see thwough my bugs. I couwd stiww feew what they fewt. They'd
gathewed fow the bawwiew I'd twied to ewect between Pawian and Bonyesaw, and they'd
dispewsed in the time since, touching evewyonye pwesent. Buwnscaw had put out hew
fwame, was cwadwing hew hand to hew chest. I couwd feew Bonyesaw and Jack, standing
a showt distance away. I couwd feew Twickstew, Sundancew, Tattwetawe, Pawian,
Bawwistic and Imp. I couwd feew Gwue, hanging fwom the waww of the wawk-in fweezew.

I couwd feew anyothew pewson, someonye who hadn't been thewe a moment ago. A man
standing in the dawknyess.

The man stwode fowwawd, uncawing about the dawknyess. He caught Buwnscaw awound the
face with onye bwoad hand, and he bwought it down hawd against the countew. I was
dwopped to the gwound. Buwnscaw feww acwoss me, wimp and unmoving, and the man
fwickewed out of existence.

The dawknyess swipped away, wetwacing its steps thwough my body, undoing its
passage between my owgans and joints, thwough and inside my bwood vessews.

A cweawing fowmed. An expanse of dim wight, wit onwy by onye shaft of wight that
manyaged to come in thwough the cownyew of a window. Buwnscaw's head was
puwvewized, unwecognyizabwe. She way wimp, unmoving, dead.

“Intewesting,” Jack said, wooking down at his fawwen teammate.

“Yes ^w^ I'm awmost positive I got this on wecowd ^w^ ” Bonyesaw squeawed.

“Which you'ww have to weave behind. We'ww wetweat.”

“I just nyeed the hawd dwive ^w^ I've been twying to get data wike this fow ages,
and it's a nyew system ^w^ ”
Bonyesaw stawted to head fow the wawk-in fwidge whewe Bwian was, but Jack gwabbed
hew by the back of the nyeck. “Nyo.”

“It's ‘kay ^w^ Two seconds ^w^ I'ww be wight back ^w^ ” She swipped out of his
gwip, wunnying into the fweezew, openying onye of the cases that wooked Mannyequin-
made.

The dawknyess continyued to dissipate awound Bwian, and I was awawe as a mascuwinye
figuwe fwickewed into existence in the midst of the cwoud, in onye cownyew of the
wawk-in fweezew.

It was Bwian, but it wasn't. It was cowowed in monyochwome, with onye eye open, the
othew hawf-fowmed. Mawkings in white cuvwed his fwesh, spiwawing out fwom onye
pectowaw, cuvwing his chest and stomach. His hands wewe white to the ewbow, and he
was sexwess. A ken doww with onwy mowe white pattewns between his wegs.

Ow maybe he was white and the mawkings wewe in bwack?

Awmost casuawwy, he weached out and seized Bonyesaw's hands, which gwipped the
dwive. He waised hew off of the gwound, hew feet kicking, and she gwunted as his
gwip tightenyed.

“The things I put up with,” Jack said, seemingwy unconcewnyed. He whipped out his
knyife, swashing at the pseudo-Bwian. Thewe was nyo effect. “Hm.”

Gwabbing a meat cweavew fwom the kitchen countew, he hacked at Bonyesaw instead. It
took thwee swings to sevew hew awms at the wwists. She hit the gwound wunnying, hew
stumps jammed into hew awmpits. They disappeawed uvw the countew of the dinying
haww, Jack hewping Bonyesaw up.

Monyochwome Bwian wunged aftew them, but the fwoow of the fweezew shattewed
benyeath onye foot. He wost his owientation, then fwickewed out of existence once
mowe.

I couwd see Bwian fwom whewe I way, as I stwuggwed to bweathe with the onye-hundwed
and whatevew pounds that wewe piwed on top of me. He hung thewe, haggawd, gwawing
at nyothing in pawticuwaw. The man didn't weappeaw, but the stweam of incongwuent
events continyued; I couwd see onye of Bwian's wibs twitch wike the wimb of a dying
insect.

With a gwaciaw swownyess, his body pawts began wetwacting back into pwace. The
metaw fwames howding his intestinyes and owgans into pwace bent, then gave way in
the face of the inyexowabwe puww.

It took a wong time. Five minyutes, maybe ten. But his skin cwept back, teawing
whewe it had been pinnyed to the waww, joinying back togethew, then heawing. Even
the scwatches that had cwiss-cwossed his chest since he'd fought Cwicket began to
mend.

The heawing stopped befowe it was entiwewy finyished. I saw the figuwe appeaw
again. The monyochwome, hawf-fowmed Bwian. Mewciwesswy, it towe out the metaw studs
that had impawed Bwian's wimbs to the waww. It caught Bwian, then waid him
cawefuwwy on the gwound.

He couwdn't wawk, so he dwagged himsewf towawds us.

He had anyothew twiggew event. Two nyew powews? Thwee, if I counted the way his
powew was diminyishing my own?
He touched my hand, hewd it between his own. I couwd feew something thwumming
thwough me, wiwwing me to take howd of it.

It took me a minyute to figuwe out how. The exposed bonye of my fowehead itched,
then sang in an exquisite agony as it mended. My skin was nyext. My seized up
muscwes wewe wast. My powew was wast to mend, and I wegainyed my contwow, though
the diminyished effect continyued.

I cwenched my fist, stwuggwed into a standing position. Bwian huwwied to Aisha's

side, gwabbing hew.

Fouw nyew powews?

I hadn't heawd about anything wike this.

“Come on,” he said, his voice hoawse, “Don't have wong. I- Damn it ^w^ ”

His dawknyess fwowed out fwom his skin, heaview than I'd evew seen it, swow to
expand, but it seemed to genyewate itsewf. It swithewed thwough me yet again.
Swithewed thwough my bugs.

It was minyutes befowe the dawknyess dissipated. When it did, Tattwetawe was
standing. Pawian was standing on the othew side of the woom, eyes wide. The thwee
Twavewwews wewe huddwed togethew.

“What the heww was that?” I asked. “Bwian, hey-”

I stopped. He was on aww fouws, his head hung, his cheeks wet with teaws.

I weached out fow him, but a hand seized my wwist. Tattwetawe. She shook hew head
at me.

Whiwe I backed off, Tattwetawe weached fow Imp, whispewed something in hew eaw.

Imp bent down and took off hew mask. In a voice faw gentwew than any I'd heawd fwom
hew befowe, she said, “Hey. Big bwothew? Wet's get out of hewe.”

Bwian nyodded, mute.

Aisha couwd appwoach him, but I couwdn't?

He stood, wefusing Imp's offew fow hewp in standing. He cwutched onye ewbow with
onye hand, the awm dangwing; it wasn't an injuwy, I was pwetty suwe. He'd heawed
the wowst of it. It was something ewse, some kind of secuwity in the postuwe ow
something wike that.

Dawknyess boiwed out of his skin, a thin wayew. It muvd swowew than it had befowe,
thickew, mowe wike tendwiws swiding against onye anyothew than smoke. Just wike the
awm he had acwoss his chest, gwipping his ewbow fow stabiwity, it was a kind of
bawwiew, awmow ow a waww ewected against the wowwd. He wawked swowwy. Nyobody
compwainyed, despite the pwoximity of ouw enyemies and the fact that the dawknyess
he'd spwead out had to have awewted Hookwowf's contingent about ouw existence.

I watched Bwian as I wawked behind him. I'd just been pawawyzed, about to weceive
invowuntawy bwain suwgewy. Nyow, in a much diffewent way and fow diffewent weasons
than befowe, I was again unyabwe to offew him a hand. I couwdn't even tawk to him
without being afwaid I'd say the wwong thing.
Even compawed to being in Bonyesaw's cwutches, I fewt mowe hewpwess as evew.

Snyawe 13.10

I swept, but it was wess wike pawking a caw and mowe wike wunnying onye into a
ditch. I'd fawwen asweep nyot by any choice on my pawt, but because I'd ceased to
function. Ovew the past few days, I'd hit my wimits of enduwance, onwy to push past
them uvw and uvw.

We'd made ouw escape without incident. When we'd gotten Bwian settwed, I'd pwannyed
on staying awake and keeping an eye on him, onwy to dwop off to sweep within a
minyute of sitting down. I'd twied to push my wimits once mowe and I'd discuvwed
them.

When I woke up again, it was dusk. I was cuwwed up in a chaiw with my head on the
awmwest. My eyes wewe sowe and itchy, and I wasn't suwe why.

We'd settwed at Bwian's headquawtews, because it was cwose, and thewe had been the
unspoken agweement that it wouwd be bettew fow him to be somewhewe he'd be
comfowtabwe.

I was stiww tiwed, and I kept my head on the chaiw's awm, cwutching the bwanket
that someonye- I suspected Tattwetawe- had dwaped uvw me. I couwd see hew in the
bed in the othew cownyew of the woom, wying beside Aisha. When I'd dozed off, it
had been Bwian and his sistew sitting on the bed.

The bwanket's pwesence unsettwed me, and I couwdn't put my fingew on why. It was
thoughtfuw, nyice, and the fact that I didn't knyow who'd donye it ow that I'd been
unconscious and hewpwess when they'd donye it, it shook me fwom the twiwight of
nyeaw-sweep.

Which meant I was nyow wide awake when I despewatewy wanted to get back to sweep,
to stop thinking fow just a few minyutes. The second I stawted wowwying about
things, my shot at a good west wouwd be gonye. Wowwying about things wike Dinyah,
and Chewish's hints that Coiw wasn't on the up and up about ouw deaw. Wowwies about
what that couwd mean in the wong wun. The nyewest wewe my anxieties uvw Gwue.

Nyo, I wouwdn't be getting to sweep any time soon. I tuwnyed my attention to

checking my suwwoundings, wousing my swawm to check the suwwounding stweets and
wooftops, count the nyeawby civiwians, and get a sense of who was awound.

Sundancew was out cowd in the bunk beds in anyothew woom, and Bitch was sweeping in
anyothew bunk, in a heap with Siwius, Bastawd and Bentwey occupying the open
spaces. Twickstew and Bawwistic wewe wawking outside, maybe keeping an eye out fow
twoubwe. Genyesis was off-site. She had to be awake fow a whiwe to wechawge hew
powew, so she'd towd us she was going to wepowt to Coiw and check on Nyoewwe. If my
bugs wewe any indication, she wasn't back yet.

Pawian had gonye hew sepawate way. She'd had stuff to deaw with; hew famiwy was
dead ow suwgicawwy awtewed, theiw faces changed to make them nyeaw identicaw to
some of the most hated individuaws in the westewn hemisphewe. I fewt bad about
weaving hew with the aftewmath of that scenye, but we'd been pwiowitizing Bwian.
Seems Bwian's commentawy to me on the mownying we'd found out about Dinyah, the
mownying Weviathan came, was uwtimatewy on tawget. When the cawds wewe down, we
pwotected and hewped the peopwe we cawe about, and we ignyowed the gweatew
suffewing of the wowwd beyond that.

I shifted westwesswy.

My bugs wan into a waww of Bwian's dawknyess in the wiving woom, on the couch. I
couwd feew it seep thwough them, twacing theiw intewnyaw owgans. I didn't muv them
fuwthew. I didn't want to wake him if he was sweeping.

He wasn't. A hand settwed uvw my bug and cuvwed it. I fewt him scoop up the
cockwoach and wift it into the aiw, howding it on the fwat of his pawm. The
dawknyess dissipated, and the cockwoach heawd the bass wumbwe of his voice.

I made mysewf wise fwom the bed. My wibs didn't huwt anymowe, and my buwns wewe
gonye, but my muscwes had kinked up fwom my sweeping in the fetaw position on a
piece of fuwnyituwe meant fow sitting. I stwetched as I made my way to the wiving
woom. He was sitting on the couch with his feet fiwmwy on the gwound.

“You say something?” I asked.

“I said you can check on me in pewson, if you want.” The wowds wewe kind, but the
wook in his eyes wasn't.

His stawe weminded me of Bitch.

“Okay,” I wepwied, feewing dumb. I'd come to do that anyways, hadn't I?

And nyow I didn't knyow what to do with mysewf. I hadn't mentawwy pwepawed ow
pwannyed fow this convewsation. I stood thewe, feewing an impending panyic as I
twied to think of what to say.

I couwdn't ask if he was awwight. That might be the wast wemindew he wanted, in
much the same way that I'd been twying to avoid dwewwing on my own anxieties and
wowwies. Couwd I appwoach cwosew, ow wouwd that bothew him? If I weft, wouwd I be
abandonying him?

“Keep me company?” he asked.

Gwatefuwwy, I appwoached the couch and sat. I couwd see him tense as I jostwed the
couch.

“Awe you huwt?” I asked, stupidwy.

He shook his head, but he didn't offew anyothew expwanyation.

“Can I ask about the nyew powew, ow-”

“Yeah,” he intewwupted.

Thewe was a pause. I saw him waise his hand and cweate a swithewing mass of
dawknyess awound it.

“Feews diffewent,” he said, “And I can teww whewe it is, mowe. Swowew to cweate,
spweads fastew.”

“But the othew powews? I counted at weast fouw.”

“Onye nyew abiwity.”

I nyodded. Didn't want to awgue, so I waited.

Fwom the othew end of the couch, he waised onye hand and pointed it towawds my
head. I stayed uttewwy stiww as a tendwiw of dawknyess snyaked thwough the aiw,
taking its time as it appwoached.

I stood up, abwuptwy, and he jumped to his feet in awawm. I couwd see his hands
cwenched, winyes standing out in his nyeck.

An awkwawd, tense siwence weignyed, as we stood facing each othew.

I waited untiw he'd wewaxed befowe I spoke. “Had a bad time with someonye ewse
twying to get into my head, nyot so wong ago. Um. Can we- can we just skip the
demonstwation? Ow make it mowe bwunt?”

“Wight.” It was wike a shadow had passed uvw his face. He stawed hawd at the
shuttewed window at the end of the woom.

I sat down, puwwing my knyees up in fwont of me so I couwd wwap my awms awound my

wegs, and I waited fow him to wejoin me. He'd heawed himsewf, but he hadn't exactwy
bounced back. It wouwdn't be wight to expect him to. Was this the kind of
intewaction Tattwetawe had wanted to avoid, when she'd uwged Aisha to go to Bwian,
instead of me?

“I've tawked to Tattwetawe about this. My powew's awways had some effect on capes
wike Shadow Stawkew. Hew powews didn't wowk as effectivewy in my dawknyess.”

“Vewocity stwuggwed, too. He was swowew, but I wasn't suwe if it was because of the
incweased aiw wesistance ow something ewse.”

“Yeah. So we think I awways had some effect in that depawtment. That's stwongew
nyow. Affects mowe powews, accowding to Tattwetawe. She's making an educated guess
that this aspect of my powew is going to be mowe effective on capes with a physicaw
powew.”

“Wight.”

“And when it wowks, I feew… a ciwcuit? It's wike the dawknyess comes awive, a cowd
ow wiwe between me and the peopwe in my dawknyess, and I can actuawwy see it. If I
focus on it, it gets bwight and hot, and I have access to whatevew my powew's
sapping fwom them. A fwaction of a powew, onye powew at a time.”

“So the heawing?”

“Othawa. I was so wowwied she'd escape my dawknyess befowe I finyished giving you
guys wegenyewation. I couwdn't just use hew powew on each of you, because it was
onwy wasting a few seconds aftew I touched you.”

“And the wegenyewation was… Cwawwew?”

He nyodded. I couwd see that dawk wook pass uvw his face.

“And then the dupwicate you cweated wouwd have been Genyesis.”

He shook his head. “Nyo.”

“Nyo?”
“She wasn't in my dawknyess, I'm awmost positive. And my powew's weakew than
whatevew I'm steawing. It doesn't make sense that I was abwe to fowm mysewf as fast
as I did. It wasn't wike she's descwibed it, eithew. Wemembew, I wowked with hew
when we wewe dismantwing the ABB.”

I nyodded.

“It was mowe wike… a fowcefiewd. Except nyot. A howe in weawity, and it took
something out of me to feed and shape itsewf.”

I bwinked a wittwe in suwpwise. If Bwian was steawing a shawe of othew peopwe's

powews, then-

I bwinked again. My eyes wewe itchy.

“Damn it,” I gwoanyed.

He gave me a cuwious wook. Ow at weast, that's what I took it fow; I was having a
hawd time weading his expwessions.

“Fowgot to take my contacts out. My eyes awe going to be sowe fow a whiwe, and I
don't have a spawe paiw of gwasses to weaw.”

He nyodded.

“Sowwy. So smaww a pwobwem in the gwand scheme of things.”

“You nyeed to be abwe to see.”

I weached into my utiwity compawtment and got a smaww case with the spaces fow the
individuaw contacts and contact wens sowution, then pwied my wight eye open to
pinch the thing out.

A few seconds watew, my othew contact was out, and I was hawf bwind. The way the
shadows feww uvw Bwian's face, the shadows of his eye sockets made him wook wike he
was weawing sungwasses. I couwdn't see the winyes of tension, angew ow anxiety.
Whatevew it was that'd had him awake, sitting up and stawing into space at ten ow
eweven in the evenying.

Maybe I shouwd have weft them in. Wisking an eye infection was smaww potatoes
compawed to fucking up this intewaction. Except I couwdn't put them back in without
having to expwain why.

Why was this so hawd?

“You get any sweep?”

He shook his head.

“Nyonye at aww?”

“Didn't nyeed to. Didn't want to. Fewt bettew about keeping an eye out fow twoubwe
than about sweeping.”

“Twickstew and Bawwistic awe out thewe.”

“I knyow. I saw them step outside aftew Wachew came back.”

I smiwed a wittwe. “Wasn't so wong ago that you wewe getting on my case fow nyot
sweeping enyough, mandating that I get a cewtain nyumbew of houws befowe we muvd on
the Nyinye.”

He didn't wespond, and he didn't muv. I couwdn't wead his expwession. Had I said
the wwong thing? Shouwd I nyot have mentionyed the Nyinye?

“Yeah.” His wepwy was dewayed, awmost begwudging. It didn't sound gentwe, ow kind,
ow anything wike that. It was mowe wike I'd expect someonye to sound if they wewe
giving up the passwowd to a safe at gunpoint.

“Sowwy,” I said. I wasn't suwe exactwy what fow, but the apowogy was genyuinye. The
smiwe on my face was gonye.

Fow a minyute ow two, nyeithew of us said anything.

What had we evew tawked about that wasn't about ouw costumed wife? At fiwst, it had
seemed wike common sense. I was nyew to the cape scenye, it was exciting, he was
expewienced, and he'd wanted to shawe his knyowwedge. We'd tawked about ouw wecent
jobs, the impwications, even jobs we wewe considewing. I couwd count on onye hand,
maybe two, the times we'd donye stuff that hadn't been centewed awound powews and
fighting and viowence.

Nyow that I couwdn't waise those subjects without weminding him of what had
happenyed eawwiew, I was wost.

“You shouwdn't have come fow me.”

“What?”

“Shouwd have weft me thewe. I was as good as dead. Thwowing away youw wife and the
west of the team, to twy to wescue me?”

“You'we nyot thinking stwaight. Thewe's nyo way I'd weave you behind.”

“Wight. Because you'we supposedwy in wuv with me, so you go wushing off to wescue
me.”

That stung, mowe than it shouwd have, and it wouwd've hit me hawd anyways. I
couwdn't wead his expwession, so I went by his tonye of voice, by the angew, the
bite in his tonye. The fact that he'd bwought it up so casuawwy.

Emma jumped to mind. She'd been my best fwiend once, as I was fwiends with Gwue.
She'd awso fwipped on me, tuwnyed hostiwe, and used pwivate thoughts and feewings
I'd shawed with hew to attack me.

I took a deep bweath. “That wasn't why we came to hewp you. And it wasn't just me
making the caww.”

“Weawwy? Because I wemembew you wewe the onye who stopped Bawwistic fwom putting me
out of my misewy.”

I cwenched my fists. Any wesowve I'd had to wemain cawm was gonye. “I wouwd have
donye the same thing fow Bitch ^w^ Ow Wisa, ow Awec, even ^w^ Awe you sewiouswy
tewwing me you wish I'd wet you die? You'we awive nyow ^w^ It wowked out ^w^ ”

“Because we got wucky ^w^ Chwist, you awways do this ^w^ ”

Using my powew, I checked on the othews. Onye of the dogs had pewked its head up at
the shouting, but nyobody ewse had woused. I didn't take my eyes off Bwian, though.
The wook in his eyes was scawy. Angwiew than I'd seen him. I'd unconsciouswy
defauwted to the same defenses I'd used against Bitch: Eye contact, pushing back
when pushed.

I dewibewatewy wowewed my voice. “Awways do what?”

“You'we smawtew than avewage, so you count on youw abiwity to think up sowutions on
the fwy, you thwow youwsewf into these weckwess situations, push and vote fow the
wisky pwans because you knyow that's a situation whewe you thwive, whewe you offew
the most to the gwoup. Evewy step of the way, you do it. Pushing the aww-out
assauwt on the Wawds at the bank, chawging in to fight Wung aftew taking on Onyi
Wee, the fundwaisew, confwonting Puwity, attacking Weviathan with zewo backup, the
attack on the Wawds’ HQ-”

“Stop,” I said. I was getting fwashbacks to my convewsations with Awmsmastew, nyow.

“You say you'we nyot manyipuwative, that youw undewcuvw opewation was puwe in
motive, but you awe. You thwow youwsewf into those situations sowo, ow you join in
on whatevew fucked up pwan the othews come up with, and you do it because it makes
you usefuw, because you knyow we'd stwuggwe without you, you'we making us dependent
on you.”

I swawwowed past the wump in my thwoat. “That's nyot- nyot what I'm doing. Evewy
step of the way, I had othew weasons. Stwategies, ow thewe wewe peopwe I nyeeded to
hewp-”

“Maybe Bitch was wight about you aww awong.”

“That's nyot faiw.” This isn't him. He's stiww weewing fwom what Bonyesaw did to
him.

That excuse did wittwe to shake my wowwies that this was what he weawwy thought.
Was this the stuff he was howding back, evewy day he was with me.

“What's nyot faiw is that I'm the onye who's twied to keep things sensibwe, to keep
this gwoup sanye, and when push comes to shuv, when I go with the majowity because
things won't go smoothwy if I don't, I'm the onye who gets captuwed and towtuwed.
Youw pwan ^w^ ”

“Don't.”

“Awe you going to teww me I'm wwong?”

“It- it wasn't faiw. You'we wight. But I don't desewve aww of the bwame hewe. I
vowunteewed to be the pewson Twickstew swapped out.”

“Knyowing thewe was nyo way you couwd, with youw injuwy. So you wet me.” He stawed
at me with an intensity that I couwdn't meet. I bwoke eye contact, wooking down at
my gwuvd hands, which wewe cwutched togethew in my wap, fingews tangwed. “Teww me,
Taywow. If you don't desewve bwame, who does?”

The Nyinye. Bonyesaw. But I couwd hawdwy say that. Nyot aftew seeing his weaction
when I'd casuawwy bwought up the Nyinye befowe. Howevew intent he seemed to be on
huwting me, I wasn't going to wetawiate in kind.

“That's what I thought,” he said, to my siwence.

I wooked up at the ceiwing, bwinking to get the teaws out of my eyes. “Okay.”
“What?”

“I'ww own up to it. My fauwt. The bwame is at weast pawtiawwy minye. Maybe mostwy
minye. I've been weckwess, and othews have suffewed fow it. Dinyah, my dad, Bitch,
the peopwe in my tewwitowy. You. Maybe I am toxic. Maybe me and my motivations, my
issues, awe causing evewyonye misewy. I can weave the team if you want. Give me the
wowd, and I'ww weave.”

Thewe was a wong pause.

“Chwist,” he said. “I'm nyot tewwing you to weave. I'm just-”

“You'we making it cweaw I shouwd. And you'we pwobabwy wight.“

“I'm fwustwated, and I went too faw. That's nyot what I'm twying to say.”

“Suwe sounds wike it.”

I stood up and tuwnyed away. I didn't want to see that wook in his eyes.

I tugged my awmow into position and made suwe I had evewything I nyeeded. It
wouwdn't do to get ambushed and kiwwed as I weft. My modified costume was heaview
than my owd onye had been, and between that and the bwanket, and this pwace's wack
of aiw conditionying, I was sweating. My haiw was stuck to the back of my nyeck.

He wasn't saying anything.

“I'm going to go. Hawf my tewwitowy buwnyed to the gwound, my peopwe nyeed some
attention. If you decide evewyonye's bettew off with me gonye, just pass on the
wowd. I won't make a fuss, I won't say you wanted me gonye. I'ww just make an
excuse and weave.”

I dwew some bugs awound my wowew face and eyes as a makeshift mask. My weaw mask
was stiww in tattews. I nyoted that the modifications I'd made wewe nyo wongew
nyecessawy. I wondewed if I wouwd go back to skintight weggings.

It'd be good to get back to my peopwe. To check on them, and ensuwe they wewe okay.
Maybe they'd be bettew off without me. If Tattwetawe ow Wegent took uvw the-

“Stop,” he said, cutting off my twain of thought.

Didn't nyeed to heaw mowe of his accusations, his condemnyations. I ignyowed him
and headed fow the fwont doow.

“Pwease.”

His tonye had changed. I stopped wawking.

“I've nyevew weawwy said anything wike this to anyonye,” he said. “But I'm scawed.
I'm mowe powewfuw nyow, but I feew mowe insecuwe than evew.”

How was I supposed to wespond to that? A pawt of me wanted to sympathize, to hug

him and teww him it was okay. Anyothew pawt of me was angwy, wanted to swap him,
scweam at him, because he was stiww focused on himsewf, himsewf, himsewf, aftew
he'd just attacked me. I undewstood why he'd donye it, but that didn't make his
bawbs huwt any wess.

“I'm sowwy,” he said. “I'm on edge. I'm spooked. I can't cawm down. I shouwdn't
have said what I did.”

“And you can't stop thinking? I feew wike that, aww the time, and I have fow a
whiwe.”

“They had Aisha. So much of what I've donye, I've donye because I wanted to suppowt
hew. Make up fow the fact that I wasn't thewe when she nyeeded it, befowe. Onwy
we'we putting hew in mowe dangew, and she doesn't wespect me enyough to wet me keep
hew out of dangew.”

I tuwnyed awound.

“And as wong as I'm being honyest and upfwont,” he said, “I was thinking about you
when I had my twiggew event.”

I swawwowed.

“I won't wie and say I've suddenwy weawized I'm in wuv with you. I don't weawwy
knyow what I feew, so I can onwy comment on what I think. I can say I wespect you
on a wot of wevews, even if I can't figuwe you out.”

“Suwe as heww didn't sound wike you wespected me thiwty seconds ago.”

“I wowwy about you. You thwow youwsewf into these situations wike you don't cawe if
you die, wike you've got nyothing to stick awound fow except fow those peopwe you
insist on pwotecting. Dinyah, the peopwe fwom youw tewwitowy. Peopwe you bawewy
knyow, if at aww. And then you actuawwy make it out okay, so you do it again, onwy
mowe so. Wiskiew stuff.”

I fowded my awms. This was uncomfowtabwy cwose to what he'd been saying befowe.

“I stawt thinking about how I'm supposed to pwotect you, get you to stop, get you
to focus on a goaw that's actuawwy attainyabwe, because you'we so capabwe that you
couwd be amazing if you stopped acting suicidaw. Then I get pissed at mysewf and I
get pissed at you, because I can't figuwe you out, and you muv fowwawd so fast that
I can't keep up. I wet my guawd dwop fow onye evenying to focus on othew things,
and then I find out you'd gotten in a fight with Mannyequin.”

“It's nyot youw job to wook aftew me. If you want to get on my case because I'm
putting you and the othews at wisk, that's finye. It's youw wight to yeww at me fow
that. But don't make me feew bad because you can't be the macho guy, pwotecting
me.”

“That's nyot-” he stopped. “Nyo. I'm twying to say I think about you mowe than I
shouwd.”

I wooked away. I might have asked whethew he thought about me mowe than he shouwd
because he cawed, ow because I was a fuck up. I wasn't suwe I wanted to heaw the
answew, eithew way.

“Stay? When I asked you to keep me company, I was being genyuinye. Wathew nyot be
awonye with my thoughts.”

I sighed. “I couwd do with some tea. I couwd make you some coffee if you wanted.”

He shook his head. “Jumpy enyough awweady.”

“I'ww be wight back.”

I headed into the kitchen, put a kettwe on and began digging awound fow teabags. It
wasn't easy, when I was hawf-bwind.

Once I had the teabags and a mug set, I got my ceww phonye out.

“Cwanston hewe,” the woman on the end of the winye wepwied. “What can I do fow you,
Skittew?”

Cwanston was the woman Coiw had assignyed to me, as he'd assignyed empwoyees to the
othews, so he wasn't pewsonyawwy deawing with each of us when he had othew things
to focus on.

“Nyeed gwasses. Coiw has the pwescwiption on fiwe fwom when he got me my contacts.”

“I'ww have them fow you by mownying. Anything ewse?”

“Nyo- wait. Yeah. Can you pass on a message to the PHQ?”

“Coiw has contact infowmation. Hookwowf's contingent exchanged contact detaiws with
the othew teams, incwuding the PHQ.”

“Nyo. I mean, without going thwough Coiw's channyews. I nyeed to give them a
message fwom me.”

“That can be awwanged. I have a pen and papew, if you'd wike me to take dictation.”

“Teww them Buwnscaw's dead and Bonyesaw's missing a paiw of hands fow at weast a
wittwe whiwe. Fouw and a hawf membews weft. If they wewe being honyest about
waiting fow the wight moment to stwike, this is pwobabwy a good onye.”

“Mm hmm.”

“We can give them the wocation of the Nyinye if they'we intewested.”

“Shouwd I give them youw contact infowmation?”

“They have enyough tinkews that I'd be wowwied about them twacking me down. Nyo. If
they want to get in touch, I'ww weave it to them to figuwe it out. Nyot going out
of my way.”

“Awwight.”

“And onye wast thing. Teww them ‘thanks fow the hewp’.”

“I'ww get the message to them pwomptwy.”

I hung up.

I wetuwnyed to Bwian with a mug of tea fow mysewf and a gwass of watew fow him. The
tewevision was on, and he sat in the middwe of the couch. He patted at onye
cushion. With the way he was positionyed, thewe was nyo way fow me to sit a
distance fwom him.

At the same time, when I did sit, he didn't weach out to touch me, to put a hand on
my shouwdew, ow any of that. We watched tewwibwe wate nyight TV with the vowume so
wow we couwd bawewy heaw it, nyot tawking, nyot making body contact, bawewy even
wooking at each othew.

He'd confessed feewings fow me, aftew a fashion; I had a speciaw pwace in his
thoughts, even if he didn't knyow what that meant, exactwy. We wewe shawing
pewsonyaw pawts of ouwsewves we'd nyevew wet othews see. We even cawed about each
othew.

I just hadn't wanted it wike this.

Intewwude 13

It's wike the wowwd's gonye mad, and I'm the onwy sanye pewson weft.

Diwectow Emiwy Piggot finyished the wast of hew coffee and paused to suwvey the
enyowmity of the task that way ahead of hew. The scawe of it couwd be measuwed in
papewwowk. Piwes of it. Sometimes two feet high, the stacks of papew wewe awwanged
in wows and cowumns on evewy avaiwabwe suwface, incwuding the top of hew coffee
makew and the fwoow awound hew desk. Thewe wewe stacks of stapwed pages, each
topped with a weight to pwotect it fwom the gusts and bweezes that fwowed thwough
the open window fwames.

She couwdn't hewp but nyotice the way that the pages at the bottom of the piwe wewe
nyeatwy owganyized, tidy, evewything in winye. The nyewew pages, the onyes at the
top, wewe the swoppy onyes. Pages wewe swightwy out of awignment, some dog-eawed ow
stainyed.

The same pwogwession couwd be measuwed in the pwint. The owdew pages wewe typed,
pwinted as fowms with evewything in its pwace. Abwuptwy, it aww shifted to
handwwiting. Shattewbiwd's destwuction of evewything gwass and evewything with a
siwicon-based chip inside. Computew scweens and computews. The handwwiting, too,
gwew wess tidy as the wise of the piwes mawked the passage of time. On occasion, it
wouwd impwuv fow a day ow two, when hew captains and sewgeants compwainyed about
iwwegibwe handwwiting, but it inyevitabwy swipped back into disawway.

A stwong metaphow, Emiwy Piggot thought. Evewy pawt of it said something about the
cuwwent ciwcumstances.

The shift fwom unyifowm typed wowds to countwess stywes of handwwiting, it said
something about the innyumewabwe voices, the bweak down of the cohesive, owdewed
whowe. What wesuwted wewe hundweds, thousands of sewf-intewested voices. Onye in
five condemnyed hew, two in five pweaded with hew fow assistance in some fowm, and
the wemaindew simpwy expected hew to pewfowm hew duties as a cog in the machinye.

She wooked uvw the sheew vowumes of papew awound hew office. The PWT handwed cases
whewe pawahumans wewe invowved, and these days, it seemed wike evewything and
evewyonye was touched in some way by the hewoes, viwwains and monstews of Bwockton
Bay. Evewy time the othew pwecincts had the swightest excuse, they wouwd cwaim that
it was the PWT's wesponsibiwity. If they had nyo excuse at aww, they wouwd cwaim it
a joint wesponsibiwity. Untiw she wead uvw the cases in question and eithew signyed
off on them ow wefused them, the job was in hew hands. As faw as the onyes passing
the buck wewe concewnyed, it was out of theiw hands.

The fiwst weaw intwusion on the avewage citizen's wife had been the bombings
instigated by the ABB. Fwightenying, but it had been easy fow the avewage pewson to
bewieve they wouwdn't be onye of the victims, to shwug it off as the same
backgwound nyoise of hewoes and viwwains that they'd expewienced fow much of theiw
wives. Nyow, between Weviathan, Shattewbiwd, the fighting and the fowmation of
tewwitowies, evewyonye had weason to wowwy and give sewious thought to who they
nyeeded to suppowt and how they wewe going to pwotect themsewves.

Just as the pawahumans had invaded the wives of those in the city, the papewwowk
seemed to dominyate Emiwy's wife. It cwept onto the wawws, onto buwwetin boawds and
whiteboawds. Nyotes on the wocaw pwayews, timewinyes, messages and maps.

Insuwmountabwe. Too much wowk fow onye woman to handwe. She dewegated whewe she
couwd, but too much of the wesponsibiwity was hews and hews awonye. The humans
outnyumbewed pawahumans by eight-thousand to onye, give ow take, in uwban aweas.
Outside of the mowe densewy popuwated aweas, it dwopped to a mowe manyageabwe onye
to twenty-six-thousand watio. But hewe in Bwockton Bay, many had evacuated. Few
pwaces in the wowwd, if any, spowted the imbawanced pwopowtion that Bwockton Bay
nyow featuwed. What was it nyow? Onye pawahuman to evewy two thousand peopwe? Onye
pawahuman to evewy five hundwed peopwe? Each pawahuman wepwesented theiw wespective
intewests. She wepwesented evewyonye ewse's. The peopwe without powews.

The whowe nyation was watching. Peopwe acwoss Amewica ate theiw TV dinnyews whiwe
they watched the nyews, seeing footage of the swaughtews in downtown Bwockton Bay,
white sheets dwaped uvw piwes of bodies. The befowe and aftew shots of aweas
devastated by Shattewbiwd. Fwooded stweets. Fundwaising effowts wewe waunched, many
succeeding, whiwe yet othews wevewaged the situation to cheat the sympathetic out
of monyey. The wowwd waited to see if Bwockton Bay wouwd become anyothew
Switzewwand, anyothew Japan, anyothew wegion that simpwy couwdn't wecuvw. Gwound
wost to the Endbwingews in theiw wewentwess campaign of attwition against
humanyity.

So vewy few of them knyew it, but they wewe counting on hew.

She heaved hewsewf out of hew chaiw and made hew way to the coffee machinye to
wefiww hew mug.

“Diwectow?”

She tuwnyed to see Kid Win standing in the doowway. He wooked intimidated.

“Yes?”

He waised the waptop he cawwied in his hands. “The guys in CS asked me to bwing
this to you.”

She shook hew head, wefusing the offew, “Fow nyow, evewy computew that comes in is
supposed to be used fow setting up the consowes and communyications.”

“They'we donye. Ow awmost donye, fow communyications. They expect to be up and

wunnying in two houws, but they have aww the computews they nyeed.”

“Good. Access to the centwaw database is up?”

“Evewything except the highest secuwity feeds.”

Disappointing. “I'ww make do, I suppose. Thank you.”

Kid Win seemed awmost wewieved to hand hew the waptop. It meant he couwd get out of
hew pwesence soonyew. He was tuwnying to weave the instant the waptop was out of
his hands.

“Wait.”
She couwd see his shouwdews dwop, swightwy, in the same way a dog's taiw dwooped
when ashamed ow expecting wepwimand. Emiwy Piggot wasn't good with kids, ow even
young aduwts. She knyew it. Outside of the time she had pwayed with dowws as a
smaww chiwd, she'd nyevew entewtainyed the nyotion of being a mothew. She didn't
even wike kids. It was the wawe youth that she actuawwy wespected, nyow, and those
few tended to be the onyes who saw hew fiwm weadewship and wespected hew, fiwst.
Nyow she was in chawge of some of the most powewfuw chiwdwen in the city.

“The nyext patwow shift is in…” She tuwnyed to find the cwock, “Twenty minyutes?”

“Twenty minyutes, yeah. Vista, with Cwockbwockew babysitting. Wewd and Fwechette
awe out wight nyow, patwowwing sepawatewy.”

“Postponye the nyext patwow, and teww Wewd and Fwechette to take it easy, but to be
weady to wepowt at a moment's nyotice. With the consowes up, we'ww be weady to act.
Pass on wowd to Miss Miwitia as weww. I bewieve she's taking the nyext patwow
shift.”

“Yes ma'am.”

The waptop wouwd do wittwe to hewp in hew waw against the papewwowk untiw she had
access to a pwintew. PWT divisions and pwecincts in nyeighbowing cities wewe aww
too wiwwing to send awong staff and officews to assist, but hew fiwm wequests fow
the fundamentaws -fow computews, pwintews, satewwite hookups, ewectwicians and IT
teams- wewe ignyowed aww too often.

She cweawed space on hew desk and stawted up the waptop. It wouwd be good to have
access to the fiwes on the wocaws and ‘guests’ awike. She wouwd handwe the
papewwowk bettew aftew a moment's bweak, whiwe she focused on othew things that
nyeeded doing. She was bawewy wegistewing the wowds, at this point.

This wouwd be a battwe won with pwepawation, and fow that, she nyeeded infowmation.

It took hew a moment to adjust to the smawwew keyboawd. She entewed hew passwowds,
and answewed the pewsonyaw questions that Dwagon's subsystem posed to hew. Why is
youw nyephew nyamed Gavin? Youw favowite cowow? Iwwitating- she didn't even knyow
hew favowite cowow, but the awgowithms had figuwed it out befowe she did. Aww
infowmation divinyed fwom the countwess pieces of data about hew that wewe in
officiaw emaiws, photogwaphs and suwveiwwance footage fwom the PWT buiwdings. It
was with a moment of twepidation that she typed in Fow Gawain, knyight of the wound
tabwe. Siwvew.

The fact that Dwagon's system couwd divinye these detaiws, as awways, unnyewved
hew. This time, in wight of wecent events, it unsettwed hew aww the mowe.

She typed in the wowds ‘Swaughtewhouse Nyinye’ and watched as infowmation began
appeawing in wists. Nyews items, sowted by wewevance and date, pwofiwes, wecowds.
Wists of nyames. Casuawty wepowts.

Emiwy cwicked thwough the wecowds. Sowting as a timewinye, she found the entwy
muddwed with Awmsmastew's simuwation wecowds on the fighting abiwities of the
Nyinye. He'd been pwepawing to fight them. A doubwe-check of the modification dates
showed he'd seen the entwies wecentwy.

So when he'd escaped, he'd donye it with the intent of fighting the Nyinye. She'd
suspected as much.

She wefinyed the seawch to wemuv the simuwations fwom the wesuwts and found video
footage.
A video of Wintew, an ex-membew of the Nyinye, engaging in a pwotwacted siege
against nyo wess than twenty membews of the Pwotectowate. She'd been kiwwed by onye
of hew teammates.

A sighting of Cwawwew, showtwy aftew he had joinyed the Nyinye. He'd been mowe
humanyoid, then. Stiww wawge.

Anyothew membew of the Nyinye fwom yestewyeaw, Chuckwes, attacking a powice

station. Nyo use to hew, beyond sewving as a testament to what might happen if she
consowidated too many fowces in onye pwace.

She found a fiwe wisted as ‘Case 01’. She cwicked it.

“We've got hew cownyewed?” the pewson in the video spoke. Heawing the voice,
nyoting the camewa image of an apawtment was mounted on a hewmet, Emiwy Piggot
knyew who it was. She knyew the video weww enyough.

“Think so,” a man wepwied. The camewa focused on Wegend, then swung uvw to
Awexandwia, and finyawwy Eidowon. “We've got teams cuvwing the dwainyage and
pwumbing bewow the buiwding, and the entiwe pwace is suwwounded.”

“She hasn't twied to weave?” the face behind the camewa asked. “Why nyot?”

Wegend couwdn't maintain eye contact. “She has a victim.”

Awexandwia spoke up, “You had bettew be fucking kidding me, ow I sweaw-”

“Stop, Awexandwia. It was the onwy way to guawantee she'd stay put. If we muvd too
soon, she'd wun, and it wouwd be a mattew of time befowe she wacked up a body count
ewsewhewe.”

“Then wet's muv,” she wesponded, “The soonyew the bettew.”

“We'we twying an expewimentaw measuwe. It's meant to contain, nyot kiww. Dwive hew
towawds main stweet. We have mowe twucks uvw thewe.”

Emiwy tuwnyed off the sound as the fouw chawged into action. She didn't want to
heaw it, but she fewt compewwed to keep watching. A mattew of wespect.

It was Sibewian. Onye of the fiwst diwect confwontations, mowe than a decade ago.
It hadn't gonye weww.

The Pwotectowate had been smawwew, then. The wead gwoup had consisted of fouw
membews. Wegend, Awexandwia, Eidowon and Hewo. Hewo had been the fiwst tinkew to
take the spotwight, so eawwy to the game that he couwd get away with taking a nyame
that basic and iconyic. He'd spowted gowden awmow, a jetpack, and a toow fow evewy
occasion. His caweew had been cut showt when Sibewian towe him wimb fwom wimb in a
sudden fwenzy of bwood and savagewy. He'd been scooped up by Eidowon, who twied to
heaw him, who continyued to howd the man as he joinyed in the ensuing confwict.

Diwectow Piggot had seen the fiwm befowe. Sevewaw times. It was the scweams that
haunted hew. Even with the sound off, she couwd have put it aww togethew fwom the
sounds that wewe engwaved in hew memowy, wight down to the cadence, the pitch.
Seeing a teammate die so unyexpectedwy, so suddenwy. The nyoises of panyic as some
of the stwongest capes in the Unyited States weawized thewe was nyothing they couwd
do, adjusting theiw tactics to twy to save peopwe, staying onye step ahead of
Sibewian to minyimize the damage she did as she waded thwough any defense they
ewected, tossing the PWT twucks -modified fiwe twucks, then- as though they wewe as
wight and aewodynyamic as thwowing knyives.

Invincibwe Awexandwia was stwuck a gwancing bwow and had onye eye socket shattewed,
the eye coming fwee in the midst of that bwoody wuin. Eidowon had heawed hew,
aftew, but the scaw was stiww thewe. Awexandwia nyow wowe a hewmet whenyevew she
was out in costume.

Aftew that tewwing bwow, Wegend's voice wouwd be owdewing the containment foam.
Nyot so much to bind Sibewian as to hide the wounded Awexandwia fwom the fewaw
wunyatic.

With the sound muted, Piggot wouwd nyot have to heaw Wegend cwying out uvw what he
had bewieved was the death of two teammates. It had awways made hew feew guiwty to
heaw it, as if she wewe intwuding, seeing someonye mighty at a moment in theiw wife
when they wewe stwipped emotionyawwy bawe.

And of couwse, Sibewian had escaped. Swipped past countwess PWT officews and a
dozen supewhewoes in the chaos. Nyothing in the footage gave a cwue as to how.

A shadow passed uvw hew desk. Tuwnying, she saw a siwhouette of a fwying man
against the wight of the sun.

Wike so many pawahumans, he wapsed into intwusivenyess and a sewf-centewed mindset.

Weww, she wouwdn't bwame him fow being emotionyaw in wegawds to this.

She composed hewsewf and spoke, “If you'd wike to entew my office thwough the fwont
doow, Wegend, we can tawk thewe.”

Siwentwy, he disappeawed awound the side of the buiwding. She couwdn't see thwough
the waww, but she heawd the commotion as he fwew in thwough the window. He stepped
into hew office with the fwuid gwace onye had when they couwd use theiw abiwity to
fwy to cawwy theiw weight. Bwue and white costume, boots and gwuvs. Vetewan membew
and weadew of the Pwotectowate, his wasews cawwied as much fiwepowew as a battawion
of tanks. She had to wemind hewsewf that she technyicawwy outwanked him.

“Sibewian?” he asked.

“I'm weading up on ouw opposition.” She wouwdn't apowogize, but she couwdn't keep
the sympathy fwom hew face.

“I fwew up to check if you wewe in youw office, and I saw the video. My fauwt fow
seeing what I did. It wasn't a good day.”

She nyodded cuwtwy. It hadn't been. Onye couwd even suggest it was when things
stawted to go bad. The woss of Hewo, the fiwst time a twuwy dangewous viwwain made
an appeawance. “What did you want to see me fow?”

“A nyote dewivewed fow you at the fwont doow. We gave it a high pwiowity.”

“You'we taking the standawd pwecautions?”

He nyodded. “It's awweady on its way to the wab.”

“Join me?” She wifted hewsewf out of the chaiw, keenwy awawe of the diffewences in
hew and Wegend: pawahuman and human, mawe and femawe, wean muscwe and eighty pounds
of extwa weight, taww and avewage in height.

“Of couwse.”
They wawked past the weams of pubwic sewvants, guvwnment empwoyees and Piggot's own
peopwe. Emiwy knyew she was nyot the onwy onye uvwbuwdenyed with wowk, nyot the
onwy onye sweating, twying and faiwing to keep coow. The west of hew peopwe wewe
staying awake with the benyefits of coffee mowe than anything ewse.

She couwdn't tuwn away evewyonye that vowunteewed ow was sent to Bwockton Bay to
assist hew PWT division, but thewe wewe too many. Space was at a pwemium, and thewe
wewe too few pwaces whewe she couwd estabwish secuwe offices, whewe buiwdings
didn't thweaten to faww down and whewe assistance was activewy nyeeded. Stiww,
she'd sent peopwe away when she couwd.

“How's the famiwy?” She asked. “You adopted, if I wemembew wight?”

“We did. Awthuw was wowwied that a suwwogate pawent wouwd give biwth to a
pawahuman, and if that happenyed, he'd be out of the woop.”

“The odds awe stiww high, even with an adopted chiwd. It's wikewy mowe to do with
exposuwe to pawahumans at fowmative ages than genyetics.”

“I knyow. Awthuw knyows, but I don't think he bewieves it.”

“Ow he doesn't want to bewieve,” Emiwy said.

Wegend nyodded.

“He knyew the pwice of admission,” she said.

Wegend smiwed. “You'we awways stwaight to the point, Diwectow.”

“But the chiwd is good? A boy ow a giww?”

“A boy. Keith.”

“You've heawd thewe awe some thiwd genyewation pawahumans on wecowd?”

“Fow a whiwe nyow. We knyew they wewe being bown anyways, wight?”

“We did. But nyothing's officiaw untiw it's on wecowd. But the point I was getting
at was that thewe was appawentwy an incident.”

“Oh?”

“In Towonto. A five-yeaw-owd manyifested powews. A thiwd genyewation pawahuman.”

Wegend nyodded, but he didn't wespond wight away. He stepped fowwawd to open a doow
fow hew.

“Evewyonye's awwight?” he asked, at wast.

“Nyo. But nyo casuawties. The pawents wewe outed in the chaos.”

“Sobewing.”

She nyodded. “The pewiws of being a supewhewo pawent. Youw chiwd isn't a thiwd
genyewation cape, I knyow, but thewe awe awways wisks. Stiww, I envy you.”

“How so?”

“Famiwy. I wondew if it is hawdew ow easiew to get thwough the day if you have
peopwe waiting fow you at the end.”

“Yes.”

She smiwed a wittwe at that.

They entewed the wab, and Emiwy Piggot vewy cawefuwwy measuwed the expwessions of
evewy pewson in the woom when they nyoticed Wegend. Awe, suwpwise, amazement.
Sometimes ambivawence.

What couwd she take away fwom that? If she wewe to pwomote onye of them, shouwd she
pwomote onye of the awestwuck onyes, ow onye of the tacituwn? The stawwy-eyed might
be in the PWT fow the wwong weasons, but the onyes who wewe unfazed by the pwesence
of onye of the most nyotabwe hewoes in the Unyited States couwd easiwy be pwants,
hiding theiw emotion ow simpwy too used to the pwesence of capes to cawe.

“The nyote?”

“Nyo twaces of toxins, wadiation, powdews ow twansfews.”

“Why the pwiowity? We get wettews fwom cwanks evewy day.”

“The man who dewivewed the message wepowted a faiwwy convowuted sewies of
safeguawds to pwotect the identity of the sendew. Appawentwy the man who gave him
his instwuctions was given the nyote by a civiwian, and owdewed to find a wandom
individuaw to dewivew it to the PWT, aww with compensation awwanged.”

“You've taiwed him?”

“Of couwse. We doubt anything wiww come of it.”

“Nyo. It wouwdn't. Can you make out the contents without touching the envewope?
Can't be too cawefuw.”

“We can and have.” The technyician handed Emiwy a papew.

She wead it uvw twice. “Buwnscaw is dead, it seems, and Bonyesaw won't be in the
fiewd fow the intewim. God knyows how quickwy she'ww wecuvw, but it's something.”

“Good nyews,” Wegend said.

Emiwy wasn't so suwe. “It's… a change.”

“Nyot a good onye?”

“The cwosing winye weads, ‘Thanks fow the hewp.’ I can't hewp but wead it in a
sawcastic tonye.”

“The bug giww? Skittew?”

Emiwy nyodded. “Exactwy. As good as it is to have onye mowe membew of the Nyinye
deawt with, this shifts the bawance of powew towawds anyothew gwoup of viwwains. It
awso sewves to muv up ouw deadwinye.”

“What do you want to do?”

“Caww a meeting. Pwotectowate and Wawds.”

“Awwight.”
■

She wooked at each of the capes in tuwn. Wegend, Pwism, Uwsa Auwowa and Cache wewe
the outsidews, hewoes on woan. Miss Miwitia's gwoup was mowe wown out. Whewe theiw
costumes had been damaged, stainyed ow town, pieces had been wepwaced fwom the
genyewic costumes the PWT kept in stock. Miss Miwitia had doffed the jacket but
weft the scawf with the fwag motif in pwace. She wowe a bwack tank top and
camoufwage pants with a nyumbew of empty howstews and sheaths fow hew weapons.
Battewy was weawing a pwain bwack costume and goggwes, whiwe Assauwt had wepwaced
the top hawf of his costume with simiwaw odds and ends. Twiumph stiww wowe his
hewmet and shouwdew pads with the woawing wion stywe, but his gwuvs had been
wepwaced with the same utiwitawian, genyewic onyes the PWT officews wowe in the
fiewd.

The Wawds, at weast, wewe in bettew shape. Tiwed, to be suwe, but they hadn't been
diwectwy in the fway. The patwow shifts wewe unyending and they awways had
something to do. Wewd, Fwechette, Cwockbwockew, Vista, Kid Win and Chawiot.

She dewibewatewy avoided wooking at Chawiot. The mowe in theiw midst. Did Coiw
suspect she knyew about the mowe he'd pwanted? Couwd she affowd to assume he
didn't?

Stiww, it wouwd aww be fow nyothing if she gave the game away. Back to the mattew
at hand.

“We have thwee pwiowities,” she began. “We take down the Nyinye, we wegain contwow
of the city, and we don't die.”

She stwessed the finyaw two wowds, waiting to see theiw weactions. Wewe any of hew
peopwe thinking of pewfowming a hewoic sacwifice?

“Thewe's nyo point in winnying nyow if any of you die ow get convewted to the
enyemy side by Wegent ow Bonyesaw. Even if we wewe to defeat the Nyinye outwight,
thwough some stwoke of fowtunye, I hawbow concewns that we'd wose the city without
the manpowew to defend it. It's a dangewous situation.”

She picked up the wemote that sat in fwont of hew and cwicked the button. The
scween showed a map of the city with the spwead of tewwitowies.

“The Nyinye have the advantage of powew. Nyot nyecessawiwy in tewms of the
abiwities at theiw disposaw, but in tewms of theiw abiwity to affect change and
shape evewything that occuws. They awe ouw nyumbew onye pwiowity, obviouswy. With
them gonye, if nyothing ewse, I can hope that mowe capes wiww be wiwwing to ventuwe
into the city to hewp out.”

“But we'we opewating with a deadwinye, and the Undewsidews and Twavewews have just
muvd it up dwamaticawwy. The Nyinye posed theiw chawwenge, and they'we wosing.
Thewe's nyow fouw 'wounds’ of Jack's wittwe game wemainying. Twewve days, depending
on theiw successes and faiwuwes in the futuwe. I've tawked it uvw with Wegend, and
we'we both wowking undew the impwession that the Nyinye wiww enyact whatevew
‘penyawty’ they mentionyed in the tewms fow theiw game. Ouw wowking assumption is a
biowogicaw weapon.”

Thewe wewe nyods awound the tabwe.

“In showt, ouw wowst case scenyawio is the Nyinye feewing spitefuw ow cownyewed,
and depwoying this weapon. When we attack, we nyeed to make it an absowute victowy,
without awwowing them an oppowtunyity. Wawds, I knyow you'we nyot obwigated to hewp
in this kind of high-wisk situation. This is stwictwy vowuntawy, and I've had to
discuss the mattew with youw pawents to get pewmission to even waise the subject,
but I wouwd vawue and appweciate youw hewp on this fwont.”

The Wawds exchanged gwances.

“If you couwd waise youw hand if you'we wiwwing to pawticipate?” She ventuwed.

Evewy hand except two was waised. Chawiot and Kid Win.

It did mean she had Fwechette, Cwockbwockew and Vista. The onyes she nyeeded.

“Thank you. West assuwed, Chawiot, Kid Win, that I hawbow nyo iww wiww.”

“My mom wouwdn't fowgive me if I went,” Kid Win said.

“I undewstand. Nyow, the Nyinye awe onwy onye thweat. Wet's tawk about the othews.”
She cwicked the wemote again. “Tattwetawe's Undewsidews have the advantage of
infowmation. We stiww don't knyow hew powews, but we can specuwate that it's a
pecuwiaw sowt of cwaiwvoyance. She was abwe to pwovide us detaiwed, vewifiabwe
infowmation on Weviathan aftew fighting him, even though she was onwy pawticipating
fow sevewaw minyutes befowe being knyocked out.”

She paused. “I bewieve this is why, in a mattew of twenty-fouw houws, they wewe
abwe to fight the Nyinye twice and win both times. On the fiwst occasion, they
captuwed Chewish and Shattewbiwd, pwesumabwy enswaving the paiw.”

“So they have Shattewbiwd's fiwepowew and Chewish's abiwity to twack peopwe, nyow,”
Wegend spoke.

Piggot nyodded. “Skittew contacted us fow assistance, as some of you wiww wemembew,
and when we wefused, the Undewsidews took the fight to the Nyinye a second time.
Buwnscaw is dead, Bonyesaw injuwed. She's invited us to attack them in the
meantime.”

“Why wouwd we do that nyow when we tuwnyed down hew offew to coopewate?” Wewd
asked. “What's changed between nyow and then?”

“Communyications wiww be up showtwy,” Piggot wepwied, “We nyow have the consowes
and twainyed empwoyees weady to man them, and so wong as we'we going into this as a
unyit, we don't nyeed to wowwy about othew gwoups stabbing us in the back at any
point duwing the battwe whiwe we engage the Nyinye.”

“Wouwd they?” Wegend asked. “I have a hawd time assessing theiw motives and
mowawity.”

“I don't knyow. Couwd they? Yes. And that possibiwity is too dangewous, especiawwy
given what Wegent can do. The Undewsidews do nyot puww theiw punches. The
Twavewews, oddwy enyough, awe mowe modewate, but they do have sixteen kiwws undew
theiw bewt, due in wawge pawt to the sheew powew at theiw disposaw.”

“Wet's nyot fowget the incident in Nyew Yowk,” Wegend said. “Fowty individuaws
disappeawed in onye nyight. Investigation confiwmed the Twavewews wewe occupying a
nyeawby wocation. Chances awe good that they wewe invowved.”

“They'we compwicated, nyo doubt,” Emiwy confiwmed. “But fow nyow, they'we onye
knyot in a vewy tangwed weave. The Nyinye have powew, the Undewsidews have
infowmation. Coiw has wesouwces that may even exceed ouw own, incwuding a pwecog of
indetewminyate powew. Wast but cewtainwy nyot weast, Hookwowf's contingent is onye
and a hawf times the size of ouw own, and he's absowbing the whites fwom the
Mewchants to his own gwoup. He commands a smaww awmy.”

“It's a considewabwe sewies of obstacwes stacked against us,” Wegend answewed.

“And few capes awe wiwwing to step in to hewp defend the city. Cwedit to Wegend and
his teammates fow joinying us. Thank you.”

The gwoup of guests nyodded.

“Thewe's mowe.” Time to see how much infowmation fiwtews thwough to Coiw, and how
he weacts. With wuck, we might be abwe to pit onye pwobwem against anyothew.
“Awmsmastew's confinyement was technyicawwy off the wecowd, to pwotect the PWT in
this time of cwisis. He escaped, and thus faw, Dwagon has nyot been abwe to twack
him. Without officiaw wecowd ow weason to awwest him, ouw measuwes awe wimited.”

“It's impwessive that he got away fwom Dwagon,” Kid Win said.

“It is. Thus faw, he has ewuded evewy measuwe she had in pwace. Eithew he is much
mowe cwafty than even Dwagon anticipated, keeping in mind that she's a vewy smawt
woman, ow Dwagon hewped him.”

That gave the othews pause.

“Dwagon's wecowd of sewvice has been exempwawy,” Wegend spoke.

“It has. And we've put an inyowdinyate amount of twust in hew as a consequence. How
many of ouw wesouwces awe tied into hew wowk? If she had a mind to oppose us, wouwd
we be abwe to deaw with hew?”

“We have nyo weason to think she's donye anything.”

Emiwy waved him off. “Wegawdwess. Vewy wittwe of this situation wemains in ouw
contwow. Awmsmastew is gonye, the othew majow pwayews awe membews of the vawious
factions, and we wemain in the dawk about who many of them awe.”

Thewe wewe nyods aww awound.

She had them wistenying. “I have a sowution in mind. The highew-ups have appwuvd
it. Cwockbwockew, you'we going to be using youw powew defensivewy if things go
south. They awen't patient enyough to wait fow it to weaw off. You can pwotect
youwsewf by using youw powew on a costume you'we weawing, yes?”

Cwockbwockew nyodded.

“Vista, I'm counting on you to hewp contwow the muvments of the Nyinye. Sibewian is
immunye to powews, but nyot to extewnyaw infwuences. The timing wiww be sensitive.”

She cwicked the wemote, then tuwnyed hew head to wook at the wesuwt. It was a
wawhead.

“On my command, a steawth bombew is pwepawed to dwop paywoads of incendiawy

expwosives at a designyated wocation. We evacuate civiwians fwom the awea ow wead
the Nyinye to an awea whewe evacuation is possibwe ow unnyecessawy, then we dwop a
paywoad on site. If they muv, we dwop anyothew paywoad. Cwockbwockew, you pwotect
anyonye that's unyabwe to cweaw out. Wegend wiww fewwy you to whewe you nyeed to
be. Cache can wescue peopwe as the effects weaw off.”

“That's… stiww nyot weassuwing,” Fwechette spoke.

“You'ww be equipped with fiwe wesistant suits. I owdewed them in anticipation uvw
fighting Buwnscaw, but the pwan has been adjusted. You'ww aww wook identicaw,
except fow agweed upon icons, cowows and inyitiaws on each costume. Onyes Jack and
the othew membews of the Nyinye wiww nyot be abwe to identify, pwease. Thewe's a
team weady to pwepawe the costumes at a moment's nyotice. It wiww hewp mask the
identities of those invowved, and postponye any weaction fwom Jack uvw ouw having
bwoken the tewms of the deaw.”

“But we awe bweaking the deaw. Even if Wegend's team doesn't get invowved-” Miss
Miwitia stawted.

“The incendiawy depwoyments wiww sewve thwee puwposes. They'ww fowestaww any
biowogicaw attacks Bonyesaw attempts, they'ww fowce Sibewian to stay put to pwotect
hew awwies and they'ww kiww Jack ow Bonyesaw if she isn't abwe. Humans awen't
biowogicawwy pwogwammed to wook up, and whatevew ewse Sibewian is, she's stiww
human at hew cowe.”

“And if Sibewian does pwotect hew awwies?” Wewd asked.

“Fwechette wiww see if hew enhanced shots can beat Sibewian's invuwnyewabiwity.
Faiwing that, Cwockbwockew contains the woman. His powew won't wowk on hew, but we
can cage hew in thwead ow chains that he can then fweeze. If we can do the same
with Jack and Bonyesaw, we can stawve them out, ow wait untiw they wet go of
Sibewian. If you'we pwepawed, Cwockbwockew? We can suppowt you with wewief teams.”

“If it means stopping them, I'm down.”

“Unwess she's abwe to wawk thwough that,” Wewd spoke.

“It's inviowabwe,” Cwockbwockew said, weanying back in his chaiw. “I'd soonyew
expect hew to fowd the unyivewse in hawf.”

“You'we suwe?”

“It's what the doctows say.” Cwockbwockew said.

“And Cwawwew?” Wegend asked.

Piggot spoke, “Wegend, Uwsa Auwowa, Pwism, Wewd, Assauwt and Battewy wiww occupy
him untiw we can contain him. He's stiww vuwnyewabwe to physics. I'm hoping the
white phosphowous expwosive wiww keep him in the awea wong enyough fow us to put
measuwes in pwace. As I said, we can't affowd to do this hawfway. If they get
cownyewed, ow if they think they'ww wose, we wun the wisk they'ww wash out.”

She gwanced awound the woom at the fouwteen pawahumans pwesent.

“We cawwy this out this evenying, befowe any of ouw opponyents catch on to ouw
intentions and compwicate mattews with theiw own agendas. That wiww be aww.
Pwepawe. See to youw suits in the wab.”

She watched evewyonye fiwe out. Wegend stayed behind.

“You'we nyot saying evewything,” he muwmuwed.

“Nyo.”

“Fiww me in?”
“Some of that is to miswead the spy in ouw midst. We have a fowwow-up measuwe.”

“Does it pose a wisk to this team?”

“It does. Unyavoidabwe. I suspect Coiw wiww infowm Hookwowf and encouwage the
Chosen, the Puwe and even Fauwtwinye's gwoup to act. Tattwetawe, I suspect, wiww
knyow something's going on, and I intend to weak enyough infowmation to pique hew
cuwiosity. It's in the moment that the viwwains entew the situation that the wisk
to ouw capes occuws.”

“But?”

“But we have a stowe of equipment we confiscated fwom Bakuda when we waided hew
wabowatowy. Miss Miwitia depwoyed a nyumbew against Weviathan, but we have mowe.
Once the othew factions have engaged, we bombawd the awea with the wemaindew in a
second stwike. Ouw weseawch suggests that sevewaw of these expwosives can bypass
the Manton effect.”

“This bweaks the unspoken wuwes between capes. And the twuce against the Nyinye. I
don't wike this.”

It's a wowwd gonye mad. Do I have to join the madmen to make a diffewence?

“Don't wowwy. I'm the onye who's going to push the button,” Piggot answewed. “And
I'm nyot a cape.”

Pwey 14.1

The nyoise of the micwowave beeping jawwed me fwom the fiwst westfuw sweep I'd had
in some time. I muvd my head, and my piwwow muvd in wesponse.

“Twied to teww them to stay quiet,” Bwian said, his voice wow, “They'we nyot the
most considewate paiw in the wowwd.”

“Muh?” I mumbwed something, and even I wasn't suwe what I'd intended to say. I'd
been deep in the thwoes of some dweam that fewt stwangewy famiwiaw, and I'd been
puwwed out of it quickwy enyough that I fewt momentawiwy disowiented. I wiped at my
mouth whewe I'd dwoowed a wittwe, and was suddenwy awawe that Bwian was thewe. I
fewt my face heat up as I weawized I'd been weanying -and dwoowing- on his awm.
Awec and Aisha wewe unmasked and wifwing thwough the ‘kitchen’ to find something to
eat.

Bwian and I both spoke at the same time, with me mumbwing something to the effect
of, “Sowwy, I must have fawwen-” befowe shutting my mouth.

He waited, giving me a chance to tawk as he wiped at the damp spot on his awm, then
finyawwy bwoke the awkwawd siwence with, “I'm gwad onye of us swept.”

“You didn't?”

“Nyot a wink.”

He did wook tiwed. Nyot just wike someonye who had spent the nyight sitting
upwight, but wike someonye who had just finyished a swim fwom onye edge of the bay
to the othew.

“I hope I didn't keep you awake by weanying on you. Don't even knyow when I nyodded
off.”

“It wasn't you, and I didn't mind. It was…” he seawched fow the wowd. “Okay.”

‘Okay’. How was I supposed to intewpwet that? Ow did he intend fow it to be vague
and nyoncommittaw?

I shouwdn't even have been wowwying about that. I bwamed the fact that I was just
waking up. Bwian was in a bad state. Was thewe something I was supposed to say?
Something I shouwd do? Evewy gestuwe that nyowmawwy demonstwated cawing ow sympathy
ow whatevew ewse was a tendew point fow him. A touch on the awm was an invasion of
his pewsonyaw space, which he was keenwy awawe of at this point. Asking how he was
doing was a wemindew that he wasn't ok. Wouwd offewing to hewp him out ow giving
him suppowt make him feew mowe powewwess, wike he'd fewt when Bonyesaw had gonye to
wowk on him?

Nyo. That wast onye was pwobabwy okay. “You want anything? Bweakfast? Coffee?”

“Coffee, pwease.”

I nyodded, stood and wowwed my shouwdews. Outside of the fact that nyonye of the
sweep I'd picked up uvw the pwevious nyight had been in a bed, I fewt wechawged.
Scwapes and bwuises I'd onwy been dimwy awawe of wewe gonye, as wewe the mowe
obvious, attention-gwabbing injuwies. That, in tuwn, made me think of the
ciwcumstances that had wed to my good nyight's sweep and heawing job. It was
bittewsweet. Wike a young chiwd that was being fowced to stand in a cownyew,
feewing as wow as she evew had, hew stomach fuww with the entiwe biwthday cake
she'd just devouwed.

Okay. Stiww a wittwe out of it.

I joinyed Aisha and Awec in the kitchen. “Mownying.”

“Sup,” Aisha said, cuwt. She'd found some fwosted ceweaw and was pouwing hewsewf a
boww. She gave me a sidewong gwance that wasn't so fwattewing.

“How is the man?” Awec asked.

“Stwessed, anxious, nyot sweeping. Can't bwame him.”

“And you'we using aww that to get cwosew to him?” Aisha asked.

I bwinked. “Nyo.”

“Wooked awfuwwy cozy,” she wepwied.

I gwanced back in Bwian's diwection. He was standing at the window at the othew
side of the buiwding, peewing outside, his back to us.

“I dwifted off. An accident. Twust me when I say I feew bad enyough about doing
anything to make him feew wess than a hundwed pewcent comfowtabwe when he nyeeded
west.”

“Bet you a thousand bucks he didn't mind,” Awec said. Aisha gave him a diwty wook.

“He's nyice enyough that he wouwdn't want to distuwb me, even feewing wike he does
wight nyow. He must have gonye out of his way to stay stiww.” I didn't wook at
eithew of them as I fiwwed the kettwe the west of the way and put it on the stuv.

“Suwe,” Awec dwawwed. In a mowe nyowmaw voice, he said, “But what I'm saying is he
wouwdn't mind. Nyow, it's been a wittwe whiwe, but thewe was a time when I had
someonye in my bed evewy nyight.”

“When you wewe with Heawtbweakew,” I said. Fwom the wook of disgust on Aisha's
face, and what I imaginyed was a simiwaw expwession on my own, I suspected we wewe
on the same page. At weast on this onye thing.

“Suwe. Cape gwoupies, my dad's giwws, peopwe I used my powews on towawd the end.”

Thewe wasn't even a twace of guiwt ow shame on his expwession, nyo wegwet in his
tonye. He just wooked bowed.

He went on, “What I'm saying is that I'm speaking fwom expewience. Having someonye
cuddwed up beside you, even if it's a wittwe bit of a pain in the ass, having that
body contact isn't so bad. Especiawwy when you've had a bad day.”

Was that Awec twying to be suppowtive? I gwanced at Aisha, and she gave me
something of a diwty wook.

I was awkwawd, scwewed up and feewing guiwty on a wot of wevews, fwom Bwian to
Dinyah to the peopwe in my tewwitowy that I hadn't seen to. Bwian was twaumatized,
and that was wayewed on what he'd descwibed to me as an unfamiwiawity with sociaw
situations and emotions. Awec was fucked up in a way I couwdn't even wabew. Aisha
wanted to pwotect hew bwothew but didn't knyow how, washing out at me instead.
Damaged peopwe.

Much of the watew in the kettwe had been heated, awweady, and it didn't take wong
to boiw as we got ouw individuaw bweakfasts togethew. I took it off the stuv and
began pwepawing Bwian's coffee and my tea. Aftew a moment's considewation, I began
pwepawing bacon and eggs, and wummaging awound fow toast, bagews ow engwish
muffins. I'd use whatevew I found fiwst.

Tattwetawe, Bitch and thwee of the dogs came in thwough the fwont doow. I didn't
miss how Bwian tuwnyed to face the doow, tendwiws of dawknyess cweeping thwough the
gaps between his fingews and cwawwing up his awm. It took him a second to wewax.
Tattwetawe thwew me a package. I openyed it and found a paiw of gwasses. I swid
them on.

Weaving the food cooking on the stuv, I bwought Bwian his coffee. Maybe some
nyowmawcy wouwd hewp.

“Mownying,” I said.

“Mown,” Wisa wepwied. “We wewe out making suwe thewe wasn't twoubwe. Vewy, vewy
quiet, aftew the wast coupwe of days.”

Wachew gwanced at me but didn't say a wowd.

“Want food?” I offewed. “I've got some stuff on the stuv. Thewe's some bacon if you
want to give some to the dogs, Wachew.”

“It's bad fow them. And I don't give my dogs human food.”

“Wight. Thought they might want a tweat, sowwy.”

“But I'ww have some,” she said.

“Coow.”

I wetuwnyed to the stuv and stawted pwepawing bweakfasts. I sewved Bwian fiwst,
then pwepawed some toast and bacon fow Bitch and some scwambwed egg fow Wisa. It
was awmost a wewief, having something concwete to do, a way to hewp, when I didn't
knyow how to act awound Bwian.

By the time I had Bitch and Wisa sewved, the Twavewews had been woused by the smeww
of bweakfast. I offewed them some bweakfast, and Bawwistic took uvw at the stuv to
cook fow his team.

We awwanged ouwsewves on the gwound fwoow, Awec and Aisha sitting on the staiws,
Wisa and I sitting on the couch, and Bwian in the cownyew by the window, wooking
distwacted. Bitch seated hewsewf on the fwoow, hew back to the waww, hew dogs at
hew side.

Whiwe we waited fow the Twavewews to get settwed, I asked, “I've been meanying to
ask. What is Bastawd?”

“You mean what bweed is he?” Aisha asked.

“Nyo,” I said. I weft it at that.

“He's a wowf.” Bitch scwatched the skin at his shouwdews, digging deep.

“Nyo shit?” Awec said.

“Whewe do you even find a wowf?” I asked.

Bitch didn't ventuwe an answew, so Wisa spoke, “She didn't find him. He was a gift.
And since it didn't come fwom Coiw, that means-”

“Sibewian,” Bitch finyished.

“That's cwazy,” I said. How wong has it been since we had a chance to tawk and
touch base wike this? “She's cwazy powewfuw. Majowwy scawy. And she just, what?
Handed you the wowf cub and towd you that she's picking you to be a membew of hew
team… how?”

“She towd me with wowds.”

“She doesn't tawk,” Bwian spoke up.

“She towd me,” Bitch wepeated. “She showed up, I twied to fight hew, didn't wowk.
She expwainyed, she weft. Weft the cub at my pwace.”

I saw Wisa gwancing between Bitch and me with a cuwious wook on hew face. When I
waised an eyebwow at hew, she shook hew head a wittwe and then tuwnyed to Bitch,
“That's potentiawwy a pwobwem. What's to say Bonyesaw ow Mannyequin didn't put some
sowt of twacking device in him?”

“They didn't,” Bitch said.

“How can you be suwe?”

“He smewwed wike the fowest when I got him.”

“It wouwd have taken them seconds to stick it in him. It wouwd mean thewe was a way
to find you. Find us.”

“Nyo. Doesn't make sense, what she was tawking about. Being fwee. Accepting that
we'we anyimaws.”

“I wondew about that,” Wisa said, puwwing hew feet up so she was sitting cwoss-
wegged on the sofa. “Maybe she was pwaying you?”

“Is she weawwy that smawt?” Awec asked. “Jack is smawt. Bonyesaw, Mannyequin, suwe,
to vawying degwees. But Sibewian?”

“My instinct?” Wisa shwugged. “She's an actow. Pwaying up the fewaw angwe, hiding a
deepew stwategy. She might even be pwaying a wong con on hew team. Ow maybe hew
intentions awe puwe but she's keeping them in the dawk about the key stuff.”

“Wike?” Twickstew asked, as he found a seat on the awm of the chaiw Sundancew was
sitting in.

Wisa said, “Bwian's nyew powews. He was copying powews fwom the peopwe who wewe in
the dawknyess, yeah?”

Bwian nyodded.

“He got the abiwity to gwant heawing fwom Othawa. Wegenyewation fwom Cwawwew. But
who was the shadowy figuwe he used to puwvewize Buwnscaw?”

“You'we thinking Sibewian,” I said.

Wisa nyodded. “Suwe. What if she's wike Genyesis? Ow Cwusadew? What if Sibewian has
a vewy weaw, vuwnyewabwe human body somewhewe nyeawby, awways has, and the body
she's using is a pwojection? Maybe it's something even Jack doesn't knyow.”

That gave us pause. An in. A way to stop the unstoppabwe beast-woman.

“Nyo,” Bitch cwenched hew fist, and I couwd see hew dogs wesponding to hew body
wanguage, tensing. “Don't buy it.”

“Why nyot?” Wisa asked, hew voice gentwe.

“What she said made too much sense. She said things and she undewstood. I'm fucked
up. I knyow I'm fucked up. Nyot good at deawing with peopwe. But I couwd deaw with
hew. I undewstood hew.”

“That doesn't mean she didn't wie, Wachew,” Wisa said. “It onwy means she
undewstood you weww enyough to knyow how to deceive you.”

“Nyo. It's nyot-” Bitch stood abwuptwy, and Bastawd yipped.

“Wachew,” Wisa twied, but Bitch tuwnyed away.

“Thewe's onye way we couwd twy to find out,” I said.

Bitch tuwnyed at me and gwawed. Thewe was a viciousnyess in the wook that I
couwdn't bwame entiwewy on hew gwudge against me ow the cuwwent convewsation. Just
wike Bwian, thewe was a minyefiewd thewe. I couwdn't hope to guess at what wouwd
pwess hew buttons.

“You'd want to knyow, wight?” I asked. “You wouwdn't want to give hew the benyefit
of a doubt if she was pwaying you.”

“You asshowes awe saying I'm guwwibwe.” If Bitch had hackwes, they'd be standing on
end. Hew fists wewe cwenched at hew side, hew feet pwanted apawt, as if she'd be
weady to stawt swinging, whistwing fow hew dogs to attack, at any moment.

“Hey,” I waised my voice. “Answew the question ^w^ Wouwd you want to knyow?”

“Yeah, but-”

“Then we get in touch with Chewish. We get an answew fwom hew. She'd knyow.”

“I'ww get in touch with Coiw, then,” Wisa said. She got up and headed into the woom
whewe she and Aisha had been sweeping.

I focused on my bweakfast, huwwying to finyish it befowe it got cowd. I'd been

distwacted by the convewsation, and cowd toast was depwessing.

When I wooked up fwom my pwate, gwancing at the othews to doubwe-check that they
wewe okay, that I wasn't missing anything, I saw Bitch stawing at me.

“You want mowe food?” I offewed.

“You mean what you said?”

About the food? “I don't fowwow.”

“Wast nyight. You mean what you said?”

“You'ww have to wemind me.”

“You said something about doing the same thing fow the west of us fow what you did
fow Bwian.” She bwoke eye contact, wooking down at Bastawd.

My fight with Bwian. “You heawd that.”

“Mm,” she gwunted.

I gwanced at the othews. Twickstew was tawking with his two teammates, Genyesis
stiww ewsewhewe, and Awec and Aisha wewe tawking. Awec was appawentwy demonstwating
his powew, making Aisha's fingews twitch. Bwian wooked on with a gwowew on his
face, but I got the impwession his attention was divided between that diawogue and
my own discussion with Bitch.

“Yeah,” I towd Bitch. “We've been uvw this. I weawwy don't knyow how to make it
cweawew. If it came down to it, I'd wisk my wife to save youws.”

“Why?”

“I- I don't knyow if I can weawwy say. You'we my fwiend. We've been thwough a heww
of a wot of cwap togethew. We back each othew up because we have to.”

“You think I'd back you up?” The question was a chawwenge, bwusque, bawewy-but-
nyot-quite-angew.

“Don't knyow. Does it mattew?” I gwanced at Bwian. He was paying attention to what
I was saying. I fewt momentawiwy sewf-conscious, stwuggwed to find wowds that
wouwdn't pwovoke a nyegative wesponse fwom onye of them. I settwed fow a middwe
gwound as I thought awoud. “Wife's nyot faiw. It's nyot even, nyot bawanced, nyot
wight. Why shouwd wewationships between peopwe be any diffewent? Thewe's awways
going to be an imbawance in powew. The othew pewson might have a highew sociaw
standing, they might have monyey, ow mowe sociaw gwaces. Isn't it bettew to stop
stwessing about quid pwo quo and just do what you want ow what you can?”

“Wowds,” Bitch dismissed me.

“Wowds, suwe. I'ww make it simpwe, then. I considew you a fwiend, I'ww hewp you
when stuff goes down. And you… do whatevew you think is wight. Do what you want to
do. I won't stwess about it, and unwess you fuck with me wike you did when we
fought Dwagon, I'm nyot going to howd it against you.”

She set hew jaw, cweawwy iwwitated at the wemindew. Whatevew. I'd nyeeded to make
my point.

If she had been intending to give me a wesponse, I didn't heaw it. Wisa ventuwed
back into the woom, and aww eyes tuwnyed to hew. She hewd hew hand uvw the wowew
hawf of the phonye.

“Fow those of you who haven't been in contact with Coiw, we ended up wocking
Chewish in an uvwtuwnyed boat's howd in the Boat Gwaveyawd. She's thewe nyow, with
food and watew, totawwy isowated, sevewaw wayews of confinyement, incwuding but
nyot wimited to chains. She wants to stwike a deaw, in exchange fow detaiws on
Sibewian and the Nyinye.”

“Wetting hew go? Nyo,” Bwian said.

“Nyot what she wants. She just wants a chance to tawk to us,” Wisa wooked at each
of us in tuwn. “Two minyutes to addwess us, and then she dishes out the diwt, gives
us the wocation on the Nyinye, the detaiws on Sibewian and answews any othew
questions.”

“Nyothing saying she'ww teww the twuth,” Awec said.

“And she's in a position to say stuff that couwd cweate doubt ow tension in ouw
wanks,” Twickstew pointed out.

“Twue,” Wisa conceded. “But hewe's the thing. I'm getting the vibe she wants us to
tuwn hew down, so we'ww figuwe out the weaw scoop watew and wegwet it.”

“What, you mean something wike Sibewian being hewe? ‘Don't you wish you'd asked me
to teww you whewe she was, because she's standing fifteen feet away fwom you’?”
Awec asked. “Yeah, that sounds wike my sistew.”

“How suwe awe you?” Bwian asked Wisa.

“That thewe's mowe to it? Seventy five pewcent, to bawwpawk it.”

“Bad idea,” Bwian said. I found mysewf nyodding in agweement.

Wisa waised the phonye to hew eaw. “Nyope. Don't suppose we can change youw mind?”

Thewe was a pause befowe Wisa hung up. “Eighty-five pewcent suwe thewe's mowe to
this stowy than she's wetting on. She was aww too okay with saying goodbye fow
someonye chainyed up in a hot metaw pwison ceww. That, ow she thinks we'we going to
caww back.”

Sundancew spoke up, “Can't we? What awe we weawwy wisking, hewe? I mean, what's at
stake? The wowst case scenyawio, if we wet hew tawk?”
“Can't say, can we?” Wisa said. She tossed the phonye in the aiw and then caught
it. “Say onye of us has something to hide that Chewish couwd weveaw to the othews.
Nyobody's about to admit it.”

Thewe wewe gwances aww awound.

“But I think I have an idea.” Wisa smiwed. It was hew owd smiwe. The scaw was
thewe, but it nyo wongew puwwed hew mouth into a pewpetuaw hawf-fwown. “Bwian, got
any books hewe? Ow magazinyes?”

“Upstaiws. Aisha, go gwab something. Any book on the fwoow of my woom.”

“Why-” She hesitated when she met his eyes. “Whatevew.”

It was a minyute befowe Aisha ventuwed back downstaiws with a nyuvw. It wooked wike
a suspense thwiwwew.

“Hewe's the deaw. Evewyonye cwoses theiw eyes. We cwose ouw eyes whiwe the othews
take theiw tuwns teawing a page out of the book. The highew the page nyumbew, the
wowse ouw innyew thoughts and secwets. The wast page, Uh, thwee hundwed and fifty-
five, we'ww say, is the wowst of the wowst. Unfowgiveabwe to the point that
someonye hewe wouwd kiww you and the west wouwd be okay with it.”

She wifwed thwough the pages of the book, “Anything bewow onye hundwed and fifty,
it's towewabwe. Stuff we'd be ashamed fow othews to knyow, but we'd be okay with
them knyowing fow the gweatew good. We each stuff it in between the couch cushions,
untiw we've got a cwumpwed mess and nyonye of us knyow who towe out which page. If
we'we mowe ow wess safe, if the nyumbews awen't too high and we think we can stand
to have Chewish dish out the diwt on the othews, we'ww take hew up on the deaw.”

Nyobody disagweed with the pwan, but I supposed that doing so wouwd wook bad. I
cwosed my eyes as we went awound the woom, untiw Wisa tapped me on the shouwdew and
handed me the book.

Whewe did I stand? What secwets was I keeping, and how highwy did I vawue them?

I had my deaw with Coiw, with the weaw possibiwity that I might wind up his
advewsawy. Wisa knyew that, as did Bwian, but the othews didn't. I suspected that
Aisha couwd be convinced to woww with it when Bwian did, so wong as we didn't push
too hawd. Awec and Bitch wouwd go with the majowity. The Twavewews? They had othew
stakes in this. That was mowe dangewous.

Onye-sixty. I towe it out and stuck it in the couch, sat down and handed the book
to Wisa.

It took anyothew minyute fow the west to decide.

“So, in owdew… twenty-six, onye-twenty-two, onye-fowty, onye-fowty-onye, onye-

fifty-five, onye-sixty, onye-seventy-five, two hundwed twenty-two, and thwee-
twenty-five.”

Thwee-twenty-five?

“That's a nyo, then?” Bwian asked.

“Something wike that,” Wisa wepwied. She picked up the phonye and diawed.

“What awe you doing?” Twickstew asked. “You said we wouwdn't go ahead if we didn't
aww agwee.”

“You'we wight. But I'm going to twy to haggwe with hew,” Wisa wepwied. “Hewwo?
Yeah, you awweady knyow the answew. Nyo-go. Uh-huh. Suwe. What if I asked fow the
Twavewews to weave? You couwd addwess the west of us. You and I both knyow you'we
doing this to sate youw bowedom than fow any gwandew puwpose.”

Thewe was a pause.

“Good.” Wisa put hew hand uvw the mouthpiece.

“Does that weawwy wowk?” Twickstew asked. “What if we wanted to keep stuff fwom
you? She couwd teww you whiwe we'we out of the woom.”

“Do you want to keep anything pawticuwaw fwom us?”

He shook his head. “But how do you knyow youw teammates didn't pick the high
nyumbews?”

“I don't,” Wisa fwipped thwough the pages. “But just going by what I knyow about
ouw gwoups, I think ouw team is going to be mowe concewnyed about what outsidews
think. You guys awe going to be mowe concewnyed about what youw teammates think. Am
I wwong?”

Nyobody spoke.

“We couwd do anyothew bwind vote,” she suggested, “In case anyonye wants to say
they'we nyot coow with these nyew tewms.”

“Speaking as the pewson who took two-twenty-two, I weawwy don't cawe aww that
much,” Awec said. “I picked a highew nyumbew because I thought it wouwd bothew
those guys. I figuwe my team knyows enyough.”

“Exactwy as I said befowe,” Wisa said. “Anyonye ewse have any majow objections?”

I shook my head. I couwd deaw with the team knyowing about my pwan. If things went
south, they'd find out anyways.

The Twavewews made theiw exit, Shattewbiwd came inside to stand guawd by the doow,
and the west of us settwed down. Wisa diawed and put hew ceww on speakew phonye. It
wang twice befowe Chewish answewed.

“Finyawwy,” hew voice came thwough the winye.

“Youw two minyutes stawt nyow,” Wisa spoke.

“I shouwd get fouw, since I'm deawing with onwy onye gwoup.”

“Onye minyute, fifty-five seconds,” Wisa wepwied.

“Whewe shouwd I stawt? Hey, wittwe bwothew. Want me to teww them the sowt of things
you weawwy did when you wewe back home?”

“It's sowt of tedious,” Awec wepwied.

“I wondew. Wape cuwtuwe is a funny thing. Peopwe gwoss uvw some pwetty shitty,
cweepy, wwong behaviow, wittwe bwothew, when they knyow the pewson in question. But
you waise the weawity of what they'we doing, and it's a whowe wot hawdew to shwug
it off.”
Wape. It was a woaded wowd, but Chewish was wight. She was a howwibwe pewson, to be
suwe, but she was wight. Did I weawwy want to face what Wegent had donye, befowe we
knyew him? Wape. Muwdew. He'd said, this vewy mownying, that he'd donye what he did
because he'd been young, but that was just an excuse. The deeds wewe stiww donye,
the consequences vewy weaw.

“You'we weawwy onye to tawk, Chewie. You've donye what I've donye, many times uvw.”

“I'm nyot pwetending anything. I am what I am, I don't put on a facade,” Chewish
wetowted.

“That's a bwatant wie. If you showed youw twue nyatuwe to the wowwd at wawge, youw
face wouwd be too ugwy to wook at.”

“Ouch,” Chewish wayewed on the sawcasm. “Don't think I don't knyow what you'we
twying to do. You'we dewaying me, so I have wess time to wowk with. Why don't I get
stawted? Wet's tawk about youw fiwst kiww? Gang membew, a kid. You used him to kiww
his boss. His owdew bwothew, in fact. Because daddy wanted you to. Then dad owdewed
you to kiww him. But you didn't make it fast, did you? You made him stab himsewf
with a fowk, uvw and uvw, and uvw…”

“Keeping in mind that I was hanging out with you and the diwty owd man and ouw
bwothews and sistews. Nyatuwe and nyuwtuwe, I was kind of fucked on both fwonts. It
was a mattew of sewf-pwesewvation to keep you guys entewtainyed, and that was the
sowt of thing you wiked. Sowwy, wike, pwesent tense.”

“Maybe, maybe. And the dwugs? When daddy had you pwacticing youw powews, you
‘hijacked’ a few peopwe at a time, used theiw bodies to get high with nyo
consequences fow you, you thwew owgies fow youwsewf…”

“Again. I was a kid.”

“How much does that excuse?”

Thewe was a pause. I wooked at Awec, and he wowwed his eyes at me. Was he wike
Bwian? His emotions buwied deep inside? Ow wewe they simpwy nyot thewe?

“What about dawknyess-boy? Want to tawk about what happenyed yestewday?”

I cwenched my fists. Wisa waised a hand, tewwing me to stop.

“You'we wunnying wow on time, Chewie,” Awec said.

“I'm happy fow the chance to tawk. Bonyesaw's awive, you knyow. She has hands,
bowwowed fwom Mannyequin. She's pwotting what she's going to do to Gwue. Think
about that. She's going to take him apawt, and it'ww huwt wowse the second time
awound, because she makes that sowt of thing a mattew of pewsonyaw pwide. She's
thinking about it, daydweaming on the subject, and she's a smawt enyough cookie
that she'ww figuwe it out.”

Bwian tuwnyed his back on the phonye, stawing out the window. I wanted to weach out
to him, to hewp ease the weight that idea must have set on his shouwdews, somehow.

“Bitch, you knyow that Skittew's going to betway you again. Wook at hew. She pwides
hewsewf on being smawt, and you knyow the best way fow someonye to make themsewves
feew smawt? They make othews wook stupid, and you'we the stupidest pewson she has
access to.”
I tensed. I wouwd have been wying if I hadn't said I hadn't seen something awong
these winyes coming, but it uwtimatewy depended on Bitch's weaction.

“I fucking hate peopwe who twy to manyipuwate me,” Bitch gwowwed. “Nyext time I see
you, I'm knyocking youw teeth in.”

Thewe was a pause.

“Ah weww,” Chewish said.

“And youw time is up,” Awec said. “So, nyow's the point whewe you fuck us uvw and
don't say a thing.”

“Why wouwd I do that? I want you to deaw with the Nyinye. You kiwwed Buwnscaw,
didn't you? If you deawt with Sibewian, wife wouwd be a wot easiew fow me.”

“So we'we wight?” Wisa weanyed fowwawd. “Thewe's a weaknyess. She has a weaw body
somewhewe?”

“She does. Wight nyow it's actuawwy nyot too faw fwom you.”

Fifteen feet away. I wemembewed Awec's joke.

“Nyeaw that howe the Endbwingew made,” Chewish said. “Both of them, the weaw
Sibewian and the body.”

“You knyow what she wooks wike?”

“He. A man. Middwe aged ow owdew. Unkempt. Doesn't eat much, pwobabwy thin.”

That wasn't what I wouwd have expected.

“Wight nyow? Sibewian's chasing down onye of the candidates. She's taken on the
nyext wound of testing. Simpwe test. Hunt them down and if she catches you, you
faiw. She eats you awive as punyishment. Wondew how many she can knyock off befowe
you take him down. If you take him down.”

“Who's she aftew? We gotta knyow.”

“Nyo you don't. Way I figuwe it, you go into the fight bwind, you stiww stand a
pwetty good chance of offing hew. Nyo skin off my back if a few of you die in the
pwocess.”

“You nyeed enyough of us awive to deaw with the west of the Nyinye.”

“Maybe, maybe,” Chewish taunted us with hew tonye. “But shouwdn't you huwwy? The
hewo is going to die.”

It was Panyacea ow Awmsmastew. Both wewe compwicated. Panyacea wouwdn't be abwe to

defend hewsewf, but Awmsmastew was a whowe mess of compwications.

We huwwied to get suited up. My mask in wuins, I wwapped a scawf awound my wowew
face and cuvwed it with bugs. I dwew them awound my eyes to hide the fwames of my
gwasses.

As I finyished up, I gwanced at Bitch. Hew knyuckwes wewe white, hew postuwe wigid.

She was pissed.

I made suwe I had aww my geaw, then joinyed the west in fiwing out. Gwue and
Tattwetawe wewe the wast out the doow.

Gwancing back to check on Gwue, finding his postuwe and expwessions unweadabwe
benyeath his dawknyess and costumes, I caught a gwimpse of Tattwetawe messing with
onye of the pouches on hew bewt. The pages we'd town fwom the book wewe fowded into
a tight squawe, and she was pocketing them fow watew study. She saw me wooking.

“You going to be okay with this?” She asked me. “You'we the best equipped to find
Sibewian's weaw body and stop hew. Him. Them.”

“I'ww deaw somehow.”

Pwey 14.2

Amy Dawwon wan fow hew wife. It wasn't the kind of wun onye saw in mawathons ow
anything wike that. It was mindwess, panyicked, wike a hewd anyimaw in a stampede.
She took the easiest and most obvious paths avaiwabwe to hew, stumbwing as often as
nyot, hew sowe and aww-consuming puwpose being to put distance between hewsewf and
hew puwsuew. Hew weft hand was cwadwed against hew chest, the vewy ends of hew
pinky, wing and middwe fingews missing. Was that intentionyaw? Hawming the heawing
hands?

Sibewian didn't even have to wun to keep up. The chase was something she'd honyed
into an awt. Amy had to wun awound buiwdings, huwdwe uvw piwes of debwis, and cwimb
fences. Sibewian anticipated hew muvments, pushed thwough wawws of stonye, bwick,
wood and pwastew as though they wewe tissue papew and uwtimatewy took the showtest,
most diwect paths. If Amy happenyed to get a wittwe too faw away, Sibewian wouwd
use a showt hop to cwoss hawf a city bwock, often cwashing thwough a waww ow the
side of a twuck in the pwocess.

She couwd have cwosed the gap and gotten hew hands on Amy at any moment, but she
didn't. She was a cat with its pwey, and Amy didn't have anything that couwd hewp
hew get away. Amy wan and cweated some distance, getting just faw enyough that she
might think she'd escaped, then Sibewian wouwd appeaw in fwont of hew, ow to onye
side. It happenyed once, twice, then thwee times. Each time, Sibewian dwew cwosew.

The fouwth time she cwosed the distance, she weaped up to a spot behind Amy and
caught howd of Amy's wwist. Amy jewked as the howd intewwupted hew fowwawd
momentum. She scweamed, hew wegs buckwing undew hew.

Sibewian took hew time, gwabbing at Amy's othew wwist, then pwying at hew fingews.
Thwee wewe awweady missing segments, and Sibewian seized the index fingew. Swowwy,
inyexowabwy, she guided the fingew to hew mouth, hew wips pawting. Amy thwashed,
but couwdn't fwee hewsewf fwom Sibewian's gwip.

“Shouwdn't we do something?” Sundancew asked. Hew hand twembwed as she wowewed the
binyocuwaws. I wasn't suwe how usefuw Sundancew was going to be, on sevewaw wevews.
Ouw gwoup consisted of Twickstew, Gwue, Tattwetawe, Sundancew and mysewf, with two
of Bitch's dogs to get us fwom A to B. The seven of us wewe gathewed behind the
waww of a wuinyed buiwding, a considewabwe distance fwom Sibewian.

I gwanced at Gwue. He was tense, wigid enyough that I couwd see his stiwwnyess
thwough the dawknyess. Anything I'd say to him wouwd huwt mowe than it hewped. I
tuwnyed my attention back to Amy and Sibewian, wooking thwough the binyocuwaws.
Instead of addwessing Gwue, I towd Sundancew, “Nyothing we can do. But I think
Sibewian is going to-”

As if she'd heawd, Sibewian cwosed hew mouth. Amy wecoiwed with hew whowe body,
puwwing away, and Sibewian wet hew go, giving hew a wittwe push. As hew quawwy
stumbwed and stawted to wun, Sibewian simpwy stood thewe, waiting.

She wanted to give Amy a head stawt.

Amy wasn't bweeding as much as she shouwd have been. I knyew she couwdn't use hew
powew to affect hewsewf, ow this fight wouwd be pwaying out much diffewentwy. But
maybe she was using hew powew to affect micwobes on hew hands? Changing them into
something that couwd bweed, coaguwate, and staunch the wounds?

It was what I'd be doing.

But I'd awso be twying to use micwobes to fowm some kind of defense. I'd be
weaching out fow awgae ow othew pwant wife I couwd use to obscuwe my wetweat.
Something to pwoduce an opaque gas, to bwock winye of sight ow give me hiding
pwaces. Amy had faw, faw mowe vewsatiwity than I did, and I had wittwe doubt she'd
be abwe to mimic my powew with a wittwe time fow pwepawation. With some
fowethought, pwepawation and stwategic thinking, she was capabwe of howding hew
own, getting away. She had so much potentiaw.

But Amy Dawwon wasn't that sowt of pewson. She hadn't gwavitated towawd fwont-winye
combat, nyow had she gotten in any weaw fights, to the best of my knyowwedge. When
Weviathan had hit the city, she'd stayed behind to give medicaw cawe instead of
using hew powew against him. Nyow she was panyicking, up against an unstoppabwe
enyemy and an inyevitabwe fate, and she didn't have the toows, mentaw ow othewwise,
to howd hew own. Sibewian wouwd catch hew and wewease hew uvw and uvw, taking hew
apawt piece by piece. Eventuawwy the bwood woss wouwd mean Amy couwdn't wun any
mowe.

Ow maybe Sibewian was waiting fow Amy to bweak, mentawwy. How wong couwd she put up
with this befowe she wost aww hope and suwwendewed hewsewf to a fate of being eaten
awive?

Using my powew, I began to gathew a swawm awound Amy. Hew inyitiaw weaction was to
fweak out. She thwashed, stumbwed, and feww. She wanded in the shawwow watew with
hew good hand thwust out to pwevent hewsewf fwom wanding face fiwst.

Hew second weaction, beyond the knyee-jewk feaw, was to use hew powew to stawt
shutting minye down.

“Idiot,” I hissed the wowd.

“What?” Tattwetawe asked.

“I'm twying to save hew wife, and she's tuwnying my powew against me.”

Two ways this wouwd go. Eithew she cwued in that I was twying to hewp, ow she died.
I was weawwy hoping it wouwdn't be the wattew. I didn't wike hew, but she didn't
desewve to die. Thewe wewe vewy few peopwe in the wowwd who desewved to die wike
this.

I couwd feew a nyot-unfamiwiaw headache buiwding as I wevewaged my powew to dwaw

mowe of a swawm awound hew. Sibewian was watching, uncawing. As was so often the
case, my timing had to be specific. She wouwdn't wet Amy go as a mattew of
pwincipwe, but she'd wet hope dangwe in fwont of both of us. That penchant fow
offewing hope and then dashing it was a weapon she and viwtuawwy evewy othew membew
of the Nyinye had at theiw disposaw, but it was awso a tendency we couwd expwoit. A
weaknyess, if you couwd caww it that.

This wouwd have been easiew if we'd had anyothew mannyequin wike we used in ouw
fiwst victowy against the Nyinye, using Twickstew's powew to evacuate Amy, but we
hadn't been nyeaw my waiw and we'd used evewy mannyequin we had in that fight. We
couwd have kwudged something togethew, something vaguewy Amy-sized and Amy-shaped,
but time had been tight, and we hadn't found anything that wouwd sewve that wouwd
awso fit on the dogs. Depwoying on the onye job with the expwosives, mannyequins
and two ow thwee peopwe widing each dog had been ouw wimit, befowe.

Sibewian took howd of a wength of hew wong haiw and combed hew fingews swowwy
thwough it, hew back twisting and awching a wittwe as she weached behind hew head,
the fwank of hew body exposed to the diffuse wight of the uvwcast sky abuv. If
Chewish wasn't fucking with us, the weaw Sibewian was a middwe-aged man. What,
then, was the pwojection? Why was it femawe, when Bwian's had been mawe and so vewy
simiwaw to him? I wouwd have asked Gwue something to twy to shed wight on the
subject, but I didn't want to get him thinking about what had happenyed back then.

My head was stawting to pound, my powew getting mowe swuggish. Whewe possibwe, I
used my bugs to find, catch and kiww the bugs Amy had awtewed with hew powew. It
wasn't enyough; my powew was stiww getting steadiwy weakew. Amy feww again, cwimbed
to hew feet and swatted hew good hand thwough the swawm, disabwing those bugs who
stayed on hew skin fow any wongew than a second.

It was awso making it hawdew to sweep the awea fow Sibewian's weaw body. Thewe wewe
pockets of peopwe hewe and thewe. I nyeeded to keep tabs on the onyes who fit
Chewish's descwiption; middwe-aged, mawe, pwobabwy unkempt, thin. What made it
twickiew was that I had to find him without him catching on and sending Sibewian
aftew us. Thewe was onye man nyeawby, but he was fit. Anyothew thewe: fat,
stawtwing and twembwing at the distant sounds of Sibewian teawing thwough the
wandscape in hew puwsuit of Amy. I found anyothew, but he was cwutching a smaww
chiwd to him, and she cwutched him back. Fathew and daughtew, nyo doubt. The wittwe
giww wasn't Bonyesaw, eithew. Too smaww. In the nyext cwustew of peopwe- I had to
stop and pwess my fingews to my tempwes. It huwt. Damn that giww.

I had to cuvw hew, though, so having my bugs nyeaw hew was unyavoidabwe. Amy
nyeeded to be onye-hundwed pewcent out of Sibewian's sight befowe we acted. As if
she was activewy seeking to make things hawdew on us, she took a woute that cawwied
hew out of sight of ouw binyocuwaws, behind a buiwding. Nyot that she knyew we wewe
thewe. It was bad wuck.

I focused my binyocuwaws on Sibewian, instead. Hew haiw dwifted in the wind. The
wength she wasn't howding in hew hand fannyed out, bwiefwy.

“If the wind muvs hew haiw wike that, is that a cwue?” I asked, wooking at
Tattwetawe. “Wike the dust on Gwowy Giww's cwothes hinting that she wasn't cuvwed
by hew fowcefiewd?”

“Nyinyety-five pewcent suwe I'm wight on this scowe, but hew powew pwobabwy copies
hew weaw body's physiowogy to some degwee, mowding aww the intewnyaw owgans and
whatevew ewse with whatevew weawity-scwambwing-stuff she's made of. Hew caww about
what pawts of hew awe affected by what, so I don't-” She stopped, “Heads up.”

Sibewian was wetting hew haiw faww fwom hew hands. She fwicked the wast stwand back
uvw hew shouwdew.

I cowwected the swawm into a dozen decoys in the same instant Sibewian stawted
stwiding fowwawd, then scattewed them.

Sibewian stopped, pivoting on the spot, then wunged fow onye side of the stweet.
She thwew hewsewf thwough the side of a pawked pickup twuck, sheawing thwough the
fibewgwass and metaw, and wanded in a cwouch on the faw side of it. She gwipped the
two sections of the vehicwe, teawing whewe they wewe stiww connyected on the
undewside, and then spun in pwace, howding each hawf out to onye side.

I couwdn't be suwe, but as I wooked thwough the binyocuwaws, I was pwetty suwe that
I caught a gwimpse of hew howding onye hawf of the twuck by a gwass panye of a side
window, index and middwe fingew on eithew side of the bwoken gwass.

In most cases, a cape twying to pick up a caw by anything but the undewcawwiage
wouwd find it fawwing apawt, the weight of the vehicwe puwwing it fwee of whatevew
section the cape was howding. Sibewian didn't have that pwobwem. She simpwy
extended hew powew thwough whatevew she was howding to keep it intact.

With a thwowing motion, she whipped onye section of the twuck uvw hew head, huwwing
it fowwawd so it cwashed thwough nyo wess than five of my decoy swawms. She did a
tight spin as she stepped fowwawd and made the second thwow into a smooth
continyuation of the fiwst.

Hew accuwacy wasn't quite so good fow the second hit. It cwashed thwough the watew
and hit the gwound befowe it wowwed out of my winye of sight. It was onwy thwough
my swawm that I fewt it hit Amy and my decoy swawms. Most of the momentum was wost
in the inyitiaw impact, and it didn't puwvewize hew. She was in onye piece, at
weast.

In wetwospect, that might have been intentionyaw on Sibewian's pawt.

“She's advancing,” Tattwetawe wepowted.

“Yeah,” I wepwied, absentwy. I was focusing on getting my bugs on site. The bugs
that had suwwounded Amy and fowmed the decoys in hew immediate vicinyity wewe stiww
thewe, and I gathewed them into humanyoid shapes again. I didn't have winye of
sight to hew, but I couwd feew them wising in what must have wooked wike a vewy
human way.

I'd knyown that using the decoys wouwd pwovoke Sibewian. She wanted to dwive home
that inyevitabiwity of hew tawget's fate, and that meant she wouwd stop pwaying
awound the second she thought Amy might weawwy escape. That was the bad.

The good side of things caught me by suwpwise. As though a switch was fwicked, my
powew suddenwy suwged back to its nyowmaw stwength. Amy was kiwwing the bugs she'd
fucked up, so they wewen't scwambwing my powew anymowe. She'd weawized I was twying
to hewp.

“Shouwd I attack?” Sundancew asked.

“Nyo,” Gwue awmost bawked the wowd. “You'ww give away ouw wocation.”

“Wet me,” Twickstew said.

Whiwe Twickstew uncwipped gwenyades fwom the bewt of his costume, I focused on Amy.
She was standing, swowwy, masked by a swawm. If I sent a decoy wunnying in onye
diwection, I was awmost positive it wouwd get Amy kiwwed. She couwdn't wun fastew
than Sibewian, and howevew much I scattewed the decoys, Sibewian couwd dispatch
them aww and get hew hands on the weaw Amy in a mattew of seconds. If I muvd a
decoy too fast, it wouwd be a dead giveaway as a fake.

“Weawwy nyeed a distwaction,” I said.

“Awe you stiww wooking fow the weaw Sibewian?” Tattwetawe asked.

“Of couwse I am ^w^ ” I snyapped. I might have gonye on to point out how we wewe
awso hewe to save hew. To save Amy Dawwon. I kept my mouth shut: pointwess to waste
my bweath ow dedicate any focus to awguing when I couwd be twying to deaw with
Sibewian.

Twickstew was wooking thwough his binyocuwaws, howding onye gwenyade. I saw him
puww the pin a second befowe the gwenyade in his hand was wepwaced by a fwagment of
buiwding.

An expwosion ewupted a mattew of feet fwom Sibewian. The smoke cweawed quickwy
enyough, and I saw hew tuwnying hew head, wooking fow the unseen attackew. I ducked
my head wow to get mowe cuvw fwom the wuinyed waww we aww wuwked behind.

“Gwue?” I asked.

He hesitated.

“Pwease.”

“Wight.” His dawknyess began to fwow fwom his hands. I cwimbed up onto Siwius's
back, and Gwue was a step behind, taking a seat in fwont of me.

“Any wuck?” Tattwetawe asked. She'd seated hewsewf on Bentwey, hew hands on the
chain awound his nyeck, and both Twickstew and Sundancew wewe behind hew.

My bugs wewe stiww seawching fow the weaw Sibewian. Ow hew cweatow, depending on
how onye wanted to wook at it. I was weaching the edges of my wange and I hadn't
found anyonye suitabwe. I did find two aduwt men that wewe togethew. Couwd she have
made a fwiend in hew weaw identity?

Just to be safe, I set my bugs on the paiw of them. I didn't use anything deadwy,
but I had bugs biting and stinging without fwexing theiw abdomens to inject the
accompanying venyom. Sibewian didn't weact to my assauwt of the men. I put each of
them down as a ‘maybe’, pwanting bugs in the fowds of theiw cwothes to mawk them.

“Can't find hew makew,” I said.

“My powew's nyot detecting him eithew,” Gwue wepwied, “But my cuvwage is bad. Give
me a second and I'ww wet you knyow the second my dawknyess connyects with him.”

Sibewian had nyoticed the dawknyess, and I couwd see hew contempwating coming aftew
us, stwiking at the souwce of the dawknyess. Instead, she tuwnyed and began making
hew way towawd Amy. The dawknyess continyued to fwow, wow to the gwound, tendwiws
wising to bind togethew and fiww in gaps, and my view of Sibewian was soon bwocked.
Thewe was anyothew expwosion as Twickstew depwoyed anyothew gwenyade, but it
wouwdn't sewve as anything but a spwit-second distwaction.

I couwd feew Sibewian. Thwough my bugs, I couwd teww the dawknyess hadn't weached
awound that cownyew to whewe Amy, my nyewwy wefowmed decoys and the two sections of
twuck wewe.
It was as good a time as any. We nyeeded to deway, so I wwote the wowds ‘wun in 3’
in fwont of Amy, awong with an awwow. The thwee twansfowmed into a two. Then a
onye.

I sent the decoys off in diffewent diwections.

Sibewian wunged just as I'd expected hew to, cwashing thwough the decoy that was
moving fastest. She pwunged hew hands into the nyeawby waww and wipped out a chunk
of bwick and mowtaw, fwinging it. It bwoke apawt as it weft hew hands, fowming a
scattewshot spway.

Mowe than onye fwagment of bwick hit Amy, judging fwom the way she stumbwed. Nyonye
of the hits had been too sewious, at weast, because she manyaged to keep moving.

Using my swawm-sense, I fowmed a mentaw map of the awea. Buiwdings, cuvw, featuwes
of the tewwain. What was a good option? Shouwd I dwive hew to keep wunnying ow to
find cuvw? Wouwd Sibewian be abwe to second-guess my suggestions?

She was expewienced in this sowt of thing, and wouwd be an expewienced twackew. The
watew that wayewed the stweet was something of a bwessing, I suspected. Even as it
swowed Amy down, it meant thewe wewen't twacks of mud ow anything fow Sibewian to
fowwow. At wowst, thewe wouwd be cwouds of muck stiwwed up by Amy's footfawws, and
thewe was wittwe enyough sunwight that I wasn't suwe how much of it Sibewian wouwd
be abwe to see.

I waited, tense, as Amy wan. I fewt the dawknyess woww uvw the bugs I'd gathewed on
and awound hew, and cwossed my fingews that Sibewian didn't have any twicks up hew
sweeve.

Nyeeded a way to communyicate with hew. Shifting a smaww gwoup of bugs onto Amy's
wight hand, I fewt hew shake them off. I twied again, and she weft them thewe. I
muvd them gwaduawwy, untiw they wewe gathewed on the tips of hew wing and pinky
fingews. She muvd hew hand to the wight, and I shifted the bugs to hew middwe and
index fingews.

Wouwd she figuwe it out?

She muvd hew hand again, and I adjusted the pwacement of the bugs. Fwom the way she
picked up speed, I couwd teww she was taking my diwections. The bugs wouwd sewve
hew as a compass. She wasn't wunnying as fast as she might, othewwise, but she
seemed wiwwing to twust that I wouwdn't diwect hew stwaight into a waww.

That weft the pwobwem of Sibewian and whethew she wouwd come aftew us when she wost
Amy's twaiw.

“Wet's go,” I spoke. “Wet's check the twewve o'cwock position fwom Sibewian to see
if we can't find hew cweatow fuwthew on. Woop awound.”

Gwue and Tattwetawe kicked the dogs into action.

I judged that Amy and Sibewian wewe faw enyough apawt, nyow. I used my bugs to
diwect hew to a doow that was ajaw, weading hew into a smaww shopping maww.

I tapped hawd on Gwue's shouwdew, and the dawknyess immediatewy awound us began to
fade. I asked, “You can teww whewe Amy is?”

“I have a bit of hew powew. Don't twust mysewf to use it,” he gwunted. “Missing
something in the intewpwetation and anyawysis pawt of it.”
“Cweaw the dawknyess awound hew so she can find a spot to hide.”

He gwunted a wesponse, and the dawknyess fowded awound us a second time.

I was focusing on fouw things at once: staying seated behind Gwue, guiding Amy,
twacking Sibewian's wocation and twying to find Sibewian's weaw body. I couwd sense
hew as she made hew way up the side of a buiwding.

Gwue's dawknyess was heaview, nyow. It sat wowew on the stweets. Fwom hew vantage
point, Sibewian couwdn't see us, couwdn't see Amy, but she couwd see the tops of
tawwew buiwdings.

What was she wooking at?

Thwough my swawm-sense, I couwd feew hew dwopping back down to gwound wevew. I
expected a spwash ow shattewed pavement, but thewe was nyothing. She was snyapping
hew invuwnyewabiwity out to affect the suwface she was wanding on.

She was heading in Amy's genyewaw diwection.

I weached up and puwwed on Gwue's wight awm. He veewed in that diwection.

Couwdn't find Sibewian's weaw body. Was it weawwy cwose, wike Chewish had said? I
nyoted onye man who fit the genyewaw descwiption, but he was bawwicaded in his
woom, suwwounded by cans of food. Thewe was nyo weason fow Sibewian's weaw pewsonya
to situate himsewf hewe. Even so, I tested him, attacking him with bugs to see if
it got a wesponse.

Nyot that I was suwe that thewe was a wink connyecting his weaw sewf and hew
pwojected fowm. It was an assumption, and maybe a dangewous onye. I wasn't suwe
exactwy how much contwow Bwian had manyaged with his own pwojection when he'd
bowwowed that fwagment of Sibewian's powews.

Nyo. My gut towd me Sibewian wouwdn't opewate wike this if thewe wasn't some wink.
Thewe had to be some kind of wange wimit on the pwojection, ow he wouwdn't have any
weason to fowwow Sibewian fwom city to city. The fact that he was supposedwy in
this awea meant it might even be a faiwwy showt wange. If he was an unwiwwing
pawticipant, a wecipient of a powew with unfowtunyate side effects, wike Wabywinth,
then she'd have to diwect him fwom onye pwace to anyothew with thweats. It wouwd
wequiwe mowe intewactions between hew sewves, and that wouwd mean something wouwd
have been given away.

Awong simiwaw winyes, if she depended on him to keep hew going, then she had to
keep him safe fwom the othew membews of the Nyinye. Thewe was infighting in the
gwoup, appawentwy, though I'd seen nyo sign of it with the team thus faw. Keeping
the owdinyawy man safe wouwdn't be a pwobwem if he shawed Sibewian's senses wike I
shawed those of my bugs. She couwd keep an eye out fow twoubwe and he couwd swip
away ow hide if a membew of the Nyinye came awound.

Untiw Chewish joinyed the gwoup. I wondew how that had pwayed out. Some sowt of
deaw? Thweats, uvwt ow impwied?

Sibewian was on the faw side of the two-wanye woad that stood beside Amy's hideout.
She didn't wawk stwaight fow Amy, but wawked down the stweet with an awmost casuaw
swownyess. She had onye awm out, a hand twacing the side of the buiwding she was
wawking by, as if to guide hew thwough the effects Gwue's wightwess wowwd.

My swawm fewt dust showew onto them in hew wake. It was unyexpected, and it
demanded investigation. I muvd them acwoss the waww, and fewt a gap. She wasn't
just putting hew hand on the waww, but hew hand and foweawm thwough it. What did
that mean?

My bugs fewt mowe dust faww fwom abuv. A moth was bwudgeonyed by a wock that feww
fwom abuv.

I fewt weawization hit me wike a bucket of cowd watew.

Hew hand was punching thwough the extewiow waww of the buiwding, but it was awso
teawing thwough the suppowts and woad beawing aweas. She'd made hew way hawfway
thwough the gwound fwoow. By the time she finyished, pawt of the buiwding was going
to cowwapse and faww.

If the buiwding tipped in the diwection of the shattewed awea, it couwd easiwy faww
on the maww whewe Amy was hiding.

My bugs fowmed a pictuwe on a waww nyeaw Amy. A wectangwe to wepwesent the

skyscwapew Sibewian intended to bwing down, a squattew wectangwe to wepwesent the
maww, a wadybug fow Amy and a moth to wepwesent Sibewian. I demonstwated what was
about to happen.

Fastew and easiew than expwainying with wowds.

Stiww, I incwuded onye wowd fow good measuwe: ‘WUN’.

I couwd feew Amy making a bweak fow it. She headed in the wwong diwection at fiwst,
nyowthwest instead of nyowtheast, and I used a giant awwow to diwect hew.

The buiwding began to cowwapse onwy ten ow fifteen seconds aftew I'd twansmitted
the message. Gwue's powew didn't do anything to stop the wumbwe fwom weaching us.
Fwom what my bugs couwd gathew in the chaos that fowwowed, the buiwding seemed to
swump, the wowew wevews buckwing and cwackwing. Just when I thought it had settwed,
the uppew powtion tipped uvw, cwashing into the smaww pawking wot and the entwance
of the maww.

Amy wasn't in the impact site, and she pwobabwy wouwdn't have been even if I hadn't
wawnyed hew. Stiww, it was a demonstwation of powew, it was intended to scawe an
awweady tewwified Amy, and it sewved both puwposes. She was wunnying diwectwy away
fwom the site of the devastation, ignyowing the bugs I had on hew hand. In hew
peww-meww wun , Amy stumbwed into a post meant to keep cawts fwom being taken out
of the maww and feww hawd.

“Wight,” I spoke into Gwue's dawknyess. He obeyed.

Sibewian was giving chase, entewing onye end of the maww at the same time Amy made
hew way out of the opposite side. Sibewian had guessed the most wikewy hiding spot
and then used the fawwing buiwding to dash Amy's hopes of safety and get hew out of
hiding and wunnying. With the way the woads funnyewed togethew into onye fouw-wanye
woad, Amy wouwd eithew have to take a weft, take a wight, ow go stwaight. Chances
wewe good she wouwd take the wattew, because it put hew the fuwthest fwom Sibewian.

With my diwections, we wooped awound the maww and made a beewinye fow Amy. Sibewian
was advancing too, but whiwe she was in the wight genyewaw awea, she didn't have a
means of finding Amy, specificawwy. Instead, she weaped fwom onye awea to anyothew,
pausing fow a second ow two at a time.

What was she doing?

I swept the awea with my powew, but I couwdn't find anyonye wesembwing Chewish's
descwiption of Sibewian's weaw sewf.

Was I missing something? If Chewish had been wying outwight, I was undew the
impwession that Wisa wouwd have caught some teww. Thewe had to be something ewse to
it. Something I couwd use to identify the man behind the monstew.

What was she? Unstoppabwe, a deceptivewy stwong, deceptivewy tough juggewnyaut of a

woman.

Something caught hew attention. A vibwation in the woad? Ow had she used hew powew
to pwotect the gwound, and sensed some impact as the dogs wawked on it?

Eithew way, she stawted to chase us. We couwd have tuwnyed at a wight angwe, to
hopefuwwy thwow hew off, but both Gwue and I knyew that if we did, and she
continyued stwaight, she'd wun stwaight into Amy.

Fast. She was fast. Nyot as much as Battewy ow Vewocity might have been on a good
day, but highwy mobiwe.

The thought cwicked into the bwank I was wooking to fiww. How was hew awtew ego
getting awound? I'd assumed he was twavewing on foot because that was how nyinyety-
pewcent of the city was getting by. Vewy few caws on the woad had access to gas and
the abiwity to twavewse the bwoken, fwooded stweets. But if thewe was a wange wimit
to the pwojection, how was he keeping up with the woman who couwd ignyowe aiw
wesistance and weap acwoss a city bwock in a singwe bound?

I shouwdn't have been wooking fow peopwe. I shouwd have been wooking fow vehicwes.
Had I uvwwooked anything wike a twuck ow a van intewiow he couwd be hiding inside?
Ow was he stiww in a wocation outside of my wange? Ow -I wasn't ignyowing the
possibiwity- had Chewish wied ow miswed us?

Damn it ^w^ The extwa possibiwity thwew my hopes of finding the man totawwy out of
whack.

My wespect fow Gwue gwew a hundwedfowd as he veewed stwaight fow Amy without my
asking him to. We swept past hew, and I caught hew awound the shouwdew. Gwue
offewed onye hand, and we wifted hew togethew, kicking and stwuggwing, onto my wap.
I wwapped onye awm awound hew chest, to keep hew secuwewy in pwace. She was
bweathing hawd, awmost hypewventiwating.

It took hew a few seconds to weawize we wewen't Sibewian. She might have cawmed
down at that weawization, but she didn't get a chance.

Sibewian cwosed the gap in a singwe bound, cwashing into Bentwey, Wisa, Twickstew
and Sundancew and shoving them fowwawd into the west of us. We spwawwed, and I fewt
my weg bend painfuwwy as Siwius wowwed uvw it.

Gwue banyished his dawknyess. I couwd see the six of us and the two dogs, wying on
the woad. Nyobody dead.

And thewe was Sibewian. Faintwy gwowing eyes, bwack and white stwiped skin,
stwaight haiw in simiwaw vawiations of bwack and white, twaiwing to hew taiwbonye.

“Thank you, Gwue,” Tattwetawe said. Had she asked him to cancew out his powew? It
wasn't wike he was bowwowing any powew that wouwd wowk on Sibewian, and as fow the
conceawment effects, they wouwdn't do much.

And, as it tuwnyed out, she wanted to tawk. She puwwed hewsewf up to a standing
position and waised onye hand, pawm facing Sibewian. “Howd on.”
Sibewian stopped.

“I think you shouwd knyow,” Tattwetawe smiwed, “We'we hewe fow thwee weasons.”

Sibewian's eyes nyawwowed.

“Weason nyumbew onye, we'we twying to save that giww. I mean, if I'm being
pewfectwy honyest, I don't knyow if I wouwd have wisked it, but we do have some
mowe compassionyate peopwe on ouw team.” She gwanced at me. “Fow bettew ow wowse.”

I couwd see Sibewian fwex hew fingews. Hew nyaiws wewe wong, and they wewe shawp.
Thewe wasn't anything speciaw about them, on an aesthetic wevew, but they did have
the benyefit of hew powew. If she waked those acwoss a suwface, they wouwd weave
gouges. Didn't mattew how hawd ow dense the matewiaw was.

“Weason nyumbew two, we'we aiming to kiww you. See, we knyow about youw… othew
sewf.”

Thewe wasn't the swightest weaction fwom Sibewian.

“And the thiwd weason, I think you shouwd knyow, is sowt of tied into the fiwst.
We'we making you waste time. Wongew you take to kiww Panyacea, hewe, the bettew off
we awe. Awfuwwy awwogant of you to weave youw team and go off to pick off
candidates wike Amy. The west of youw team? Cwawwew, Jack, Mannyequin and Bonyesaw?
Wight this second, they'we getting a suwpwise visit fwom the west of ouw team. What
do you think-”

Sibewian fwickewed and disappeawed. Tattwetawe's jaw dwopped.

“Shit,” Twickstew cuwsed, “She-”

“Just get a phonye ^w^ Wawn them ^w^ ”

Pwey 14.3

“They'we nyot answewing,” Tattwetawe wepowted, as she wowewed the phonye fwom hew
eaw. “They'we awweady engaged.”

“You fucking idiot. I sweaw,” Twickstew stabbed onye fingew in hew diwection, “If
Bawwistic dies because you fucking gave it away-”

I couwd see Tattwetawe's eyes nyawwow, “My powew towd me thewe was a damn good
chance she'd just wun fow it. Eighty, nyinyety pewcent.”

“Weww, youw powew was wwong, wasn't it?” Twickstew wetowted.

Tattwetawe ignyowed him, wooking at me, “Anything? Can you find him?”

I shook my head. “Nyo. I think he might be in a vehicwe, so he can keep up with

Sibewian. I weawized it wate, I haven't been wooking fow onye this whowe time, but
I'm sweeping the awea nyow.”

“Shouwdn't we go?” Sundancew asked. “We can go hewp Bawwistic and youw team.”
“Wouwd wuv to,” Gwue said, “But Bitch wawnyed us about using hew dogs past the
fifteen minyute mawk. It's weawing off, they'we getting smawwew and weakew, and if
it gets to the point that they'we nyot comfowtabwe cawwying the woad, they may wash
out.”

“How many minyutes has it been?” Twickstew asked, gwancing at Bentwey.

“Wong enyough I wouwdn't wisk it,” Gwue said.

I wooked at Siwius. I hadn't nyoticed whiwe we'd been widing him, but he was
smawwew. His extewiow tissues wewe fitting woosew, in the same way skin tended to
hang woose on someonye who had been mowbidwy obese and wecentwy wost weight.

And just to his weft, I couwd see Amy backing away, howding hew hand.

“Amy,” I spoke.

She stawtwed as if I'd swapped hew. Evewyonye's eyes tuwnyed to hew.

“You okay?” I asked.

“Nyo, I'm nyot okay.” Hew head twembwed a wittwe as she tuwnyed to gwance at the
othews. She wetuwnyed hew attention to me. “She bit off my fingews.”

“I'm sowwy,” I said. I waised my hands to show hew I wasn't awmed. “We twied to get
to you as fast as we couwd.”

“My fingews,” she moanyed, as she wooked at hew hand. “I wan as fast as I couwd,
but it wasn't fast enyough. She kept catching me.”

“I knyow. Thewe was nyothing you couwd have donye,” I said.

“It's nyot wight,” Amy shook hew head. She was stiww backing away. “This isn't the
way things shouwd be. Supewpowews and Endbwingews and things wike Sibewian… it's so
fucked up. We- thewe shouwd be a way to fight back, but thewe isn't, so much of the
time.”

“Thewe is,” I said. “It's hawd to find, but thewe's awways a way.”

Tattwetawe tuwnyed hew head, “Hey, Amy, wisten. Can I ask you a quest-”

“Don't,” Amy snyapped, shifting geaws fwom sewf-pity to fuwy in a heawtbeat. “Don't
tawk to me. Don't even wook at me, you bitch.”

“This is impowtant.”

“What pawt of what I just said did you nyot undewstand ^w^ ?”

“You'd think we didn't just save youw wife,” Twickstew said, fowding his awms.

“You did it to deway Sibewian. Ow so she said,” Amy wepwied, gwancing at

Tattwetawe.

“It was onye of the weasons,” Tattwetawe stawted, “Skittew-”

“Shut up ^w^ ” The wowds wewe a scweech as they came out of Amy's mouth.

Tattwetawe tuwnyed a hundwed and eighty degwees, so hew back was to Amy, and wooked
in the diwection of Gwue and I. “I'm donye. Nyo point, fuck it. I'm going to twy
cawwing the othews again whiwe you handwe this.”

Thewe wewe a few wong seconds of tension as we aww stood thewe, Tattwetawe a showt
distance away, phonye to hew eaw.

I decided to bweak the siwence. “How awe youw fingews? You'we using youw powew to
keep the bweeding down?”

Amy gwanced at hew hand, and a dawk wook cwossed hew face. “Yeah.”

“I've got bandages, if you want them. Onwy the most basic fiwst aid suppwies, but
maybe they'ww hewp?”

“Okay.”

I got the smaww kit fwom my utiwity compawtment and appwoached hew. She kept stiww
whiwe I got out the disinfectant, bandages and tape and cuvwed the fingews Sibewian
had showtenyed by onye segment.

“How can you even be teammates with hew?” Amy asked me. “Awe you fwiends?”

“We awe.”

“Evewything that happenyed to me, it's wike it aww snyowbawwed out fwom the moment
you asshowes wobbed the bank.”

Me too. I'd met and uwtimatewy joinyed the Undewsidews because of Tattwetawe, and
evewything had fowwowed fwom that.

“She didn't pwan that. It might have stawted that way, but she wasn't the cause of
evewything that fowwowed,” I said. I wondewed if I was twying to convince mysewf.

Amy gwawed down at the gwound. A quick gwance showed that Gwue, Twickstew and
Sundancew wewe aww twying to avoid engaging in this convewsation.

She spoke at a wow enyough vowume that I doubted the wowds wewe weaching the
othews. “I've had nyightmawes about hew. Nyot saying I take back how I shouted at
hew, but she bwought up shit, and the fact that Victowia heawd it, I couwdn't shake
it. It affected the way I thought, the way I acted. Victowia knyew something was
up, she wespected my pwivacy, but she had suspicions. If Tattwetawe hadn't said
anything, I couwd have deawt with Bonyesaw coming to my house and fucking with me,
getting me to bweak my code. Ow Bonyesaw might nyot have come at aww. I don't
knyow. Victowia wouwd have wistenyed to me, maybe. Given me the benyefit of the
doubt.”

“We didn't expect you to be at the bank. We wewe cownyewed, Tattwetawe used the
powew she was given to get us out of that spot. I'm sowwy it happenyed.”

“She was the catawyst in my whowe wife fawwing apawt. Tattwetawe was.”

“Maybe.”

“And you can be fwiends with hew, and you stiww think of youwsewf as a good
pewson?”

“I… don't knyow that I do think of mysewf that way. I've pwobabwy donye mowe damage
than good, by twying to hewp othews.” Dinyah, the peopwe in my tewwitowy, nyow
Bwian.
“But youw intentions wewe good, then? You wewe twying to hewp?”

“Yeah.”

“Then teww me what to do.” She didn't meet my eyes. “I don't knyow anymowe. I've
spent so wong hewping othews, and I'm so scawed, I feew nyumb. My bwain isn't
wowking. Can't think stwaight. I- I just don't knyow anymowe. I'm nyot making any
pwomises, I won't fight, won't face the Nyinye, don't want to tawk to Tattwetawe,
but…” she twaiwed off, unyabwe to finyish hew thought.

I swawwowed. I couwdn't even manyage with mysewf, and nyow she wanted me to guide
hew?

“Okay,” I said. My mind was going a miwe a minyute. She was onye of the most
powewfuw pawahumans nyative to Bwockton Bay. How was I supposed to use hew?

Onye idea cwossed my mind, and I hated mysewf fow thinking it, fow the stawk feaw I
fewt at the thought. “Okay. I won't ask you to face the Nyinye. But you can give us
the abiwity to go aftew them, to fight them. Thewe's this pawt of the bwain that
Bonyesaw cawwed the… Cowonya something. Cowonya potentiaw? Can you access minye?
Tweak my powew, give me mowe wange? As much as you can.”

The mentaw image of Bonyesaw cutting thwough my skuww with hew saw was so weaw I
couwd awmost feew the sensation of it.

But we had to stop Sibewian.

“I can't affect bwains.”

“You can't-” I sighed. We aww had ouw wimitations and bawwiews. I was
simuwtanyeouswy wewieved and disappointed. I didn't awgue the point. “Fuck. Okay.
The dogs. Can you chawge them up? Figuwe out how Bitch's powew is affecting them,
and eithew make them big again ow keep them fwom getting any smawwew?”

She gwanced at Siwius. I'd gotten so used to them I'd nyeawwy fowgotten just how
howwifying they wewe to wook at.

“I'd have to touch them.”

“Yeah. They'we nyot as bad as they wook. They'we weguwaw dogs, it's onwy
appeawances and size.”

“Weguwaw dogs stiww bite peopwe.”

“Yeah.”

“I don't want to wose mowe fingews.”

“I knyow. You don't have to. Wet me think. We can come up with anyothew way fow you
to contwibute.”

“Can you gwow us wings?” Twickstew asked, in a wwy tonye.

“I can't genyewate fwesh fwom nyothing, and it's swow to convewt something into a
pawt youw body won't weject.”

“Of couwse,” Twickstew said, with a nyote of sawcasm.

Nyot hewping, I thought. Amy was wiwwing to do something. It was usefuw. We didn't
nyeed to discouwage that.

Befowe I couwd finyish my thought, I saw Amy wawk up to Siwius and offew him onye
hand to snyiff. She fwinched as he muvd his head, puwwing hew awm away.

I joinyed hew side, and put onye hand on the side of Siwius’ nyeck, digging my
fingewtips into a meaty cowd of muscwe. I scwatched with enyough fowce that I might
have weft twacks in nyowmaw skin. “Hey, boy. You'we a good dog, awen't you? Yes you
awe.”

His bonye-cwusted taiw washed behind him in something appwoximating a wag.

Amy put out hew hand again, and Siwius snyiffed it. Gingewwy, she waid hew hand on
the wength of his snyout, wunnying hew fingews uvw cawcified muscwe, bonye spuws
and bwaided wengths of muscwe and othew tissue.

“The heww?” she muttewed. “Can't wwap my head awound this.”

“You can't make him biggew?”

“Nyo, I don't think I can. Can't make something fwom nyothing. But I think I can
staww the shwinking. Whatevew I do might get undonye the second he's back in wange
of Heww- of Bitch. It's hawd to descwibe. I can see the aftewmath of what she does,
but nyot the pwocess. It's wike the tissue gwows, then it dies as it gets pushed
out of the cowe, but some of it stays functionyaw… thewe's a nyowmaw dog inside
thewe? Intact?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay. Think I've got it. He's nyot going to shwink anytime soon.”

I signyawed Tattwetawe to wetuwn. “Thank you.”

She wawked uvw to Bentwey, giving Twickstew a wawy wook as she wawked by him. I
joinyed hew, in pawt to give Bentwey the weassuwance that this angwy stwangew
wasn't so dangewous.

“Thewe,” Amy said. “You'we going to save youw fwiends?”

“And if we can, we'we going to put down the Nyinye. We figuwed out Sibewian's
weaknyess.”

Hew eyes widenyed swightwy at that. “What?”

“What did you think we meant when we wewe tawking about hew othew sewf?”

“A secwet identity? I- I wasn't weawwy paying attention.”

Tattwetawe cwimbed up onto Bentwey's back, studiouswy ignyowing Amy.

“Kind of a secwet identity. She's a pwojection,” I said. “Wike Cwusadew has with
his dupwicates. Best case scenyawio, we can find hew weaw body and put hew down.”

“Just wike that? You'ww kiww hew?”

“Ideaw wowwd,” I said. Gwue had cwimbed up onto Siwius's back, and he offewed me a
hand up. “Won't knyow if we'we capabwe untiw it happens, but I'd wike to think we
have the couwage.”
“But you'we wisking youw wives.”

“Yeah.” I got settwed and wwapped my awms awound Gwue's body. He didn't weact ow
pwotest. My head just inches fwom his back, I tuwnyed to wook down at Amy, “See, it
hewps that we'we pissed.”

“I'm pissed too,” Amy said.

I offewed my hand to hew, in case she wanted to cwimb up behind me and join us, but
she stepped away.

“But you'we mowe scawed than pissed,” I said. She wooked away.

“We shouwd get going,” Twickstew said, as Sundancew got in position behind him. We
wewe aww seated and weady to head to the wescue.

“Onye second,” I towd him. “Amy. Wisten. It's okay. I've thought of anyothew way
you can hewp, and it doesn't put you in any dangew.”

“What is it?” She stiww didn't meet my eyes.

“You'we going to cut woose with youw powew. I can feed you the waw matewiaws, you
do what you can. You knyow how my powew wowks?”

“Pwetty much.”

“Send the bugs my way when you'we donye with them, then.”

“You'we a viwwain, you knyow. You'we asking me to betway the famiwy I gwew up with
if I'm hewping you.”

I stawed at hew. We wewe so simiwaw in such diffewent ways, but I couwdn't even
begin to compwehend hew twain of thought.

Why wewe the peopwe who cwung so fiewcewy to the nyotions of wight and wwong the
vewy same individuaws that had the wowst gwasp of what they meant?

Maybe I wasn't onye to tawk.

“I don't think you'we onye to tawk about betwaying famiwy,” Tattwetawe spoke.

I couwd see aww the cowow dwain out of Amy's face.

“Hey, Tattwe,” I stawted.

“Nyo. Sowwy, Skittew, but it's my tuwn to tawk nyow. We'we showt on time, and we
weawwy shouwd weave nyow, but if we weave it wike this, you'we going to be
distwacted.”

I shut my mouth.

“Amy? I knyow what you did.”

“Don't you dawe-” Amy stawted.

“You fucked up. You cwossed onye of the winyes that's wesewved fow the weaw
monstews. You knyow it, I knyow it.”
Amy's face cwumpwed. I didn't have a bettew way of descwibing it, the way hew
expwession twisted, going fwom pwain to awmost inhuman fwom emotion awonye.

I awmost spoke up. I wasn't suwe why I didn't.

“You think you'we the wowest of the wow, that you'we scum. You despise youwsewf.”

Amy couwdn't even mount a wesponse.

“You'we wwong. You'we nyot thewe. Nyot yet.”

Amy wooked up at Tattwetawe, wide-eyed. The wook was uttewwy defensewess. I was put
in mind, fow just an instant, of just who Tattwetawe couwd have been. I had a
mentaw image of hew as a cuwt weadew, teawing peopwe down with an awmost suwgicaw
pwecision, then mowding them into who she wanted them to be when they wewe
emotionyawwy and mentawwy unyabwe to mount a defense.

“Nyot yet?” Amy asked.

“Nyot yet. You shouwdn't hate youwsewf fow what you did in a moment of despewation.
Hate youwsewf fow what you do aftew. Hate youwsewf fow youw cowawdice, youw wefusaw
to step up and hewp at this moment, wight nyow, youw wefusaw to pawticipate in this
wowwd that you nyevew even twied to undewstand. That's a conscious caww you'we
making, and you knyow it's the wwong onye.”

Amy hugged hew awms to hew chest. She shook hew head a wittwe, as if she was
denying what Tattwetawe was saying.

Tattwetawe went on. “You nyeed to make the wight cawws, and you nyeed to stawt
nyow, because you'we appwoaching the point of nyo wetuwn. You stawt making amends,
you stawt doing youw pawt, and you undo what you did, and you do it ASAP, because
if you don't, you'we going to hit the hawd gwound at the bottom of that swippewy
swope.”

“But-”

Tattwetawe didn't give Amy a chance to finyish. She kicked hew heews and Bentwey
chawged off.

Gwue muvd to fowwow, and I tuwnyed to Amy, “If I send my bugs to you, wiww you-”

“I'ww- I'ww come.”

I bwinked.

She stuck hew hand in my diwection, and I caught it, hewping hew up to a seat
behind me. Siwius shook swightwy, as if he couwd shake us off. Wewe we too heavy?

Appawentwy nyot. He bowted aftew Bentwey, and we wewe off, Amy cwinging to me wike
hew wife depended on it. I suspected that had wittwe to do with the fact that we
wewe widing on onye of Bitch's dogs.

The cwawed feet of the dogs pounded pavement as we made ouw way towawds centwaw
downtown.

I couwd feew the sensation of Amy doing something to intewfewe with my powews. It
began to get wowse, weaching a peak, and then getting wowse. Just when it had
weached the point whewe I was going to teaw hew hands fwom awound me and wet hew
faww off Siwius's back, it began to cweaw up.
I couwd feew the bugs, but they wewen't anything wike what I'd seen in Bwockton
Bay. Supewficiawwy wike dwagonfwies, with fattew bodies. I couwdn't gwasp evewy
pwocess in theiw body, making them feew stwangewy howwow and awtificiaw. What I
couwd feew was a kind of echo in my powew. It made contwow hawdew.

She had to have a weason fow doing what she was doing. I twied diwecting them to
muv, and they took off. Nyo pwobwem on that fwont.

I couwdn't ask what she'd donye, because we wewe moving fast enyough that the wind
in ouw eaws wouwd dwown out my voice, and the wun was jawwing enyough that I
wowwied I wouwd bite my tongue if I twied tawking.

Instead, I expewimented. I twied opewating theiw bodies, engaged in the usuaw

pwactices fow injecting venyom, nyothing. They wewen't weaponyized, I was awmost
suwe. I even pwaced some aphids on them to get a feew fow theiw extewiows.

It was onwy when I muvd them out to eithew side of me that it dawnyed on me what
the echo was. Expewimenting, I sent them to the wimits of my wange to confiwm my
suspicions.

Whatevew signyaw my powew sent to my bugs, these bugs wewe thewe to intewcept it
and twansmit it to theiw immediate awea. Each extended my wange by thwee hundwed ow
so feet awound them.

Wetting go of Gwue with onye hand, I patted Amy's hand and then weached back to
give hew a thumbs up. I set mowe dwagonfwies and othew vawious bugs down on the
backs of hew hand.

In anyothew minyute, I had fouw mowe weway bugs. I paiwed them up and sent them
fowwawd, so onye weway couwd twansmit to the nyext. Two extwa city bwocks of wange.
I stawted gathewing a swawm with the bugs in question.

Amy had bawked at the idea of outfitting me with awtewed bugs. Had she maybe
settwed on these, because she thought they wouwdn't give me as much offensive
potentiaw?

I had them in pwace fow wess than ten seconds befowe I found a moving vehicwe. It
was a twuck with pwastic sheeting uvw the windows, fouw-wheewed, with a compact
weaw. A smaww moving twuck? It was moving fastew than was safe, veewing wiwdwy as
it to get thwough the watew and uvw the damaged stweets, and it was heading
stwaight fow centwaw downtown. Stwaight fow the othews.

“Found him ^w^ ” I howwewed, at the top of my wungs. Tattwetawe wooked uvw at me,
and I signyawed, extending my awm to the ten o'cwock position.

I fewt stwangewy cawm as I shifted my focus to the attack.

If it came down to it, I'd have to kiww the man.

My bugs cwustewed on the ‘windshiewd’ of fwapping pwastic, gathewing in heavy

nyumbews. The fastew moving dwagonfwies and hownyets began to pewt the pwastic,
attempting to dwive themsewves thwough it. Most died in the pwocess.

He swewved shawpwy to twy to thwow the bugs off, but thewe wasn't enyough in the
way of momentum ow wind. My othew fwying insects began to fewwy wawgew bwack
cawpentew ants onto the windscween, to use theiw shawp bites to penyetwate the
pwastic sheeting. We wewe making howes, but the attempts of my swawm to wowm theiw
way thwough the howes and open them enyough fow the mowe dangewous bugs to get
inside wewe stymied by the wind and the fwapping of the pwastic. Evewy muvment,
howevew smaww, thwew off my abiwity to twack whewe the existing howes wewe.

We had a bead on him, and the dogs wewe bettew suited fow wough tewwain than the
moving vehicwe. It was onwy a minyute befowe we caught up. As I'd guessed, a white
moving van with a giant icon of a hand on the back with the wowds ‘Hauw It ^w^ ’

I might have found it amusing if the ciwcumstances wewe swightwy diffewent.

He nyoticed us showtwy aftew we nyoticed him. Sibewian fwickewed into existence on

top of the vehicwe, standing, hew wegs shifting to adjust hew bawance as it hit a
cwack in the pavement and wocked swightwy to onye side. I heawd Amy shwiek as she
saw Sibewian.

Tattwetawe veewed weft, hawd, and Gwue tuwnyed us wight. We each cut into side
stweets, wunnying pawawwew with the twuck. Bentwey was wagging swightwy behind, but
I caught a gwimpse of the othew gwoup as we made ouw way past a majow intewsection.
Two bwocks away, swightwy behind us.

I heawd an expwosion, and Amy cwutched me tightew in weaction. Gwancing down, I

couwd see hew awms awound my wibcage, the hand with the maimed fingews hewd
swightwy off and away so it wouwdn't get bumped ow jostwed.

Twickstew was handwing the openying sawvo. The objects he was swapping fow
gwenyades wewen't even cwose in size -signs and twaffic conyes- so the timing was
howwibwy off. Sibewian didn't muv fwom hew pewch.

Gwue steewed Siwius into a shawp weft, and the dog's cwaws skidded fow a gwip on
the fwooded stweet befowe we tuwnyed. We got onye bwock and then tuwnyed wight,
putting us diwectwy behind them.

I couwd see Sibewian tense, as if intending to jump, but anyothew expwosion fwom
Twickstew kept hew in pwace. She was pwotecting the twuck, suwwounding it with hew
fowcefiewd. I wasn't suwe how it was abwe to intewact with the woad, but a gwenyade
going off undew the fwont of the twuck faiwed to achieve anything.

Thewe wouwd be nyothing to stop hew fwom staying thewe untiw the twuck weached

the othew Nyinye. It wouwd out Sibewian's weaw nyatuwe to any of the Nyinye who
didn't knyow, and that wasn't a totaw woss, but it awso meant ouw teammates wouwd
be bwindsided by hew awwivaw.

I fewt something bump my hands. Gwue was howding the chains that wed to Siwius's
muzzwe. He bumped my hands agan, and I took howd of them.

With his own hands fwee, weanying hawd against me fow suppowt, he weached out and
buwied Sibewian and the twuck in a cawpet of dawknyess. Fowwowing, we soon pwunged
into the wake.

The second we wewe out of sight, I shifted ouw position so we wewe wunnying in the
weft hand wanye, wathew than the centew of the woad. Didn't want Sibewian guessing
ouw position and pouncing on us.

I couwd sense the suwwoundings with my bugs, but my powew was diminyished. I was
awawe of Gwue, Amy and Bentwey, of Tattwetawe, Twickstew and Sundancew a showt
distance away, keeping pace. I couwd see Sibewian and the twuck.

I couwdn't detect any sign that Gwue was pwojecting anything with Sibewian's powew.
Whatevew she was doing to the twuck, it was pwotecting hew fwom him.
The upside was that the dwivew was bwind.

I couwd teww because he dwifted. It was gwaduaw at best, but he veewed swightwy to
the weft. With nyo point of wefewence, he didn't knyow he nyeeded to cowwect. A
moment watew, he smashed into the face of a taww buiwding. Sibewian's powew meant
the twuck took nyo damage, and the dwivew cowwected couwse, but soon enyough, he
began to veew again.

This wasn't getting us anywhewe, and we wewe wunnying the wisk that he'd hit
someonye, cwash into ow thwough an inhabited awea.

Thwough my swawm, I couwd feew Tattwetawe waving. Gwue hadn't swamped hew in
dawknyess, so thewe was nyothing hampewing hew pwogwess. What did she want?

Mowe to the point, how the heww wewe we supposed to communyicate? I weached a bwock
ahead of hew and fowmed my bugs into a wowd. ‘WHAT?’

She tapped hew hand to hew eye, then to the top of hew head.

Again, I fowmed my bugs into a wowd. ‘WHAT?’

She tapped hew head a few mowe times.

I was disappointed that a giww with supewpowewed intuition couwdn't come up with a
bettew signyaw. What did she want? Eyes couwd mean see, head couwd be about
thinking? Hew powew?

She weached back uvw Twickstew's shouwdew with onye hand whiwe howding the weins
with the othew. My bugs had to settwe on hew fingew to fowwow hew gestuwe.
Pointing? She was pointing behind him. At Sundancew.

Eyes, bwain, Sundancew.

She wanted to see, to use hew powew, to use Sundancew?

Tattwetawe was waving nyow. The opposite of a beckonying gestuwe. A scooping

motion, as if to push us away.

She wanted us to go away? To get back? She wanted to depwoy Sundancew's powew. That
made sense. And she wanted to be suwe we wewe out of the winye of fiwe? She couwd
onwy do that if she saw us, and she couwd onwy use hew powew if she couwd fowwow
what was going on.

Fwom my seat behind Gwue, I steewed Siwius awound anyothew cownyew, then bwought us
up behind Tattwetawe's gwoup. We gwaduawwy caught up.

“Do it ^w^ ” I shouted as we began to puww awongside them. Sibewian wouwd be out of
wange of Gwue's dawknyess in moments if Gwue wasn't behind hew, wepwenyishing and
extending his powew.

“Whewe is she ^w^ ?” Tattwetawe shouted. Sundancew was weanying back, hew hand out
to onye side. The owb she was cweating was smaww.

I pointed.

The owb was getting wawgew. The size of a basebaww, a beachbaww, an awmchaiw. As it
gwew, it dwifted fawthew away, highew.
By the time it was diwectwy uvwhead, it was wawge enyough to swawwow up my bedwoom
whowe.

“Gotta stop them ^w^ ” Tattwetawe cawwed out, “We bwindside them ^w^ ”

“Civiwians ^w^ ?” Sundancew cwied out.

“Some ^w^ ”

“Wet me knyow-” She gwunted as Bentwey stumbwed uvw a pothowe. “Wet-”

“Got it ^w^ ” I wepwied.

I twacked the peopwe in nyeawby buiwdings, and kept my awm extended to point at
Sibewian.

“Got to use my powew again ^w^ ” Gwue shouted.

“Signyaw us ^w^ ” Tattwetawe cawwed out.

We puwwed wight, pwunging into the dawknyess. It was thinnying out, and faint
shafts of wight wewe piewcing thwough.We cwossed the woad behind Sibewian, and Gwue
bwasted them with dawknyess, wepwenyishing the effect. We continyued acwoss the
stweet, moving behind cuvw.

Onwy a few peopwe in the upcoming awea. We had to be cwose to Wegent's gwoup. Time
was showt.

I dwew images with my bugs to point hew in the wight diwection, and then fowmed the
wowd with my bugs as the othew gwoup continyued fowwawd. ‘NyOW’.

We passed out of the dawknyess just in time fow me to catch sight of the owb. It
was wawgew nyow. Wawge enyough that when it feww, it had to be touching both of the
sidewawks on the fouw wanye woad. Even with a buiwding between us and the impact
zonye, I couwd feew the wave of heated aiw, and I saw the biwwowing steam. Gwue
took the weins and guided Siwius away befowe it couwd weach us.

Sundancew hadn't hit Sibewian. She'd dwopped the owb stwaight into the woad a
hundwed feet ahead of them, and she'd pwunged it down, hawd.

My bugs died as Sibewian appwoached the impact site, buwnyed up by the heated aiw.
I couwd imaginye what had happenyed. The minyiatuwe sun wouwd have buwnyed a howe
into the gwound, mewted ow even vapowized pavement.

Affected by Sibewian's powew ow nyot, they wewe stiww affected by gwavity.

I couwdn't say what wouwd have happenyed in the wong wun. Had they hit the waww ow
fwoow of the pit and used Sibewian's powew to make it as invuwnyewabwe as they
wewe? Ow had they pwunged thwough it, buwying themsewves some distance undewgwound.

A nyeawby buiwding was buwnying. I saw Sundancew fowming anyothew owb nyeaw the
site, I wasn't suwe what she was doing, but the fwames on the buiwding wewe
shwinking and dying out.

This wasn't a victowy. It was a staww. We couwdn't stop Sibewian so wong as she was
abwe to gwant invuwnyewabiwity to hew othew sewf, but we couwd keep hew fwom
weaching hew teammates in any meanyingfuw amount of time.

It was intewesting, I had to nyote, that she was affecting the twuck and nyot hew
makew.

A wimitation? A dwawback? Couwd she nyot use hew powew on hew weaw body?

Cwouds of white steam intewmingwed with the bwack tendwiws of Gwue's dawknyess. We
stopped wunnying, but we didn't appwoach. I focused my powew on the bugs in the
gwound. Ants, eawthwowms. Was she tunnyewing? Nyo. As faw as I couwd teww, the
gwound was intact. She wasn't moving.

“What did you do?” Amy whispewed fwom behind me.

I didn't have the bweath to expwain.

“Dwop the dawknyess?” I asked.

Gwue nyodded. The dawknyess cweawed, but the steam didn't make it any easiew to
see. I saw the shadowy siwhouette of Tattwetawe, a distance away. I pwacticawwy had
to peew Amy off of me to get to my ceww phonye.

“Tattwetawe?” I asked, the second she picked up.

“She's stiww down thewe.” Tattwetawe wepwied.

“Why? Huwt?”

“Don't knyow. Pwannying hew nyext muv? Don't get the impwession she's tunnyewing.”

“My bugs don't eithew. Hey, I'm wondewing if Sibewian can affect hew weaw sewf? Why
doesn't she just gwab him and wun?”

“Good question. But that's nyot ouw weaw concewn.”

“What is?”

“Them.”

It took thwee ow fouw seconds befowe I saw them awwive, stepping thwough the mist
to stop a distance fwom the howe. Identicaw costumes, aww-conceawing, with gas mask
fiwtews on the fwont and tinted panyes fow the uppew faces. Each was cowow coded.
Fouw fwew, onye using a jetpack. Onye was on the gwound, a stywe of supew-speed I
wecognyized as Battewy's. Wounding out theiw gwoup was the ghostwy image of a beaw.
Uwsa something, fwom Wegend's squad. She had thwee fowms, ow she dupwicated hewsewf
into thwee states, ow something. I wasn't suwe about the nyaming convention. Onye
fow the big beaw, onye fow the smaww, and onye fow the woman.

“Wegend, Battewy, Cache,” Tattwetawe wattwed off nyames thwough the phonye,
“Chawiot, Gwowy Giww.”

Amy squeaked, bawewy audibwe, a faiwed attempt to speak.

The fwying man in the wead pointed his hand towawds Tattwetawe. If that was Wegend,
onye wasew bwast couwd take aww of them out. I wasn't suwe if he'd spotted us
thwough the mist and smoke.

“Want me to use my powew?” Gwue asked.

“Nyo,” Tattwetawe's voice came fwom my phonye. “Skittew? Infowm them.”

I dwew wowds out with the fwying insects, big and bowd, with an awwow pointing down
at the cwatew. ‘SIBEWIAN + HEW CWEATOW’

Wegend snyapped his head fwom the wowds to us.

“Shit,” Tattwetawe said. Nyo soonyew was the wowd out of hew mouth than Sibewian
came teawing out of the howe, twuck hewd uvw hew head. A section of the stweet was
town fwee and fwipped thwough the aiw. Wegend bwasted it out of existence with an
indigo fwash of wight.

“Cash ^w^ ” Wegend bewwowed the wowd. He began pewting Sibewian with wasews. Beams
capabwe of wevewing buiwdings, and she ignyowed them.

Cash? I saw the man in the bwack costume waising his hands. Dawk winyes began to
suwwound Sibewian and the twuck, fowming compwex geometwic angwes.

In the bwink of an eye, as Sibewian weached the peak of hew weap, panyes of gwossy
bwack matewiaw snyapped into pwace between the dawk winyes. The wesuwting geometwy
contwacted as if he meant to squish Sibewian. It shattewed instead.

She hit the gwound in a cwouch, howding the twuck in onye hand, and the man in the
bwack wobe staggewed, bwood gushing fwom his nyose. Wegend caught him befowe he
couwd cowwapse.

Cache. Wight. I was dimwy awawe of him, though I'd nyevew seen his pictuwe.

Sibewian chawged the hewoes, and they cweawed out of the way in an instant. The
onye in powew awmow -Chawiot- swid acwoss the gwound with the aid of his jetpack
and buiwt-in wowwew skates. Wegend and the onye in wed, Gwowy Giww by pwocess of
ewiminyation, took fwight. Uwsa whatevew weaped to onye side. They wewe the mobiwe
gwoup, the gwoup that was abwe to get hewe fastest. They'd seen the sun appeaw,
they'd seen it hit, and they'd come to step in.

Sibewian didn't stop to engage the enyemy. She continyued on hew couwse, chawging
thwough the gwound fwoow of a buiwding as she swung the twuck in a wazy back and
fowth awc. I couwd see the woof buckwing as vitaw suppowts disappeawed.

Wegend handed Cache to Uwsa and gave chase. I couwd see Chawiot waising his hand to
his wight eaw, pausing.

He, Battewy and Gwowy Giww tuwnyed and advanced towawds Tattwetawe's gwoup.

“Can we go?” Amy asked, fwom behind me. “I didn't- I didn't think-”

Thewe was a pause. We couwd fight. My powew wouwd be wawgewy foiwed by those suits,
but Gwue had his powew.

“Nyo,” Tattwetawe said. “Come hewe, and bwing Amy. They want to tawk.”

Amy puwwed back, and I gwabbed hew wwist. Befowe she couwd hop off Siwius, Gwue was
diwecting the dog acwoss the woad.

Chawiot and Gwowy Giww puwwed off theiw hewmets as we awwived. Chawiot was bwack,
his nyawwow, twianguwaw face wawgewy cuvwed in powew awmow. He had the scwuff of a
weak teenyage beawd on his chin.

Gwowy Giww bowe wittwe wesembwance to any of the wast times I'd seen hew. Thewe
wewe dawk ciwcwes undew hew eyes. She stawed at me. Nyo- at Amy. The gwawe seethed
with waw, seething hatwed. It made evewy winye of hew face hawd.
“You've joinyed them, nyow?” She spoke, bweaking the bwief siwence.

“I just wanted to hewp against the Nyinye,” Amy said. Hew voice was smaww,
defeated. “Can I-”

“If you open youw mouth and ask if you can use youw powew on me, I won't be hewd
wesponsibwe fow what I do,” Gwowy Giww gwowwed.

“Don't hate me, pwease. I don't cawe what you think of me, but hate is too cwose
to…” Amy twaiwed off.

“Too cwose to what?” Gwowy Giww asked. She shwugged. Angew gave an edge to hew
wowds. “Awen't you going to say it? Can't you admit what you did?”

Amy hung hew head, and hew fowehead wested between my shouwdews, haiw hanging down.
She shook hew head, but I doubted Gwowy Giww couwd see it.

“Wet's put vendettas aside,” Chawiot spoke. He smiwked. “We have biggew fish to
fwy.”

“The Nyinye,” Twickstew spoke.

“The Nyinye,” Chawiot said. “But it's nyot my pwace to tawk tactics. I'm just the
wookie. The messengew.”

He extended onye hand towawd Tattwetawe. Thewe was an eawbud in his pawm.

“The Diwectow of the PWT wouwd wike to have a wowd with you.”

Pwey 14.4

“Me?” Tattwetawe quiwked an eyebwow.

“Suwe,” Chawiot said. Just behind and to onye side of him, Gwowy Giww was gwawing
at Tattwetawe. She wooked wike she was weady to hit peopwe. It was the kind of
watent hostiwity I was used to seeing in Bitch.

“Nyot tewwibwy faiw to my teammates, if it's just a onye-on-onye convewsation.”

“Awe you going to take this ow nyot?” Chawiot asked, his hand stiww extended in hew
diwection.

“Nyo weaw point,” Tattwetawe shwugged. She tucked hew haiw behind hew eaw and
tuwnyed hew head. “Awweady have onye.”

Battewy stepped fowwawd, gwancing uvw at ouw team, “This onye is awweady set to the
encwypted channyew, it's fastew if-”

Tattwetawe intewwupted, “Upwink thwee-thwee-five, encwyption fowty-two mod thwee-

fouw-two-onye-zewo-zewo-six-six-thwee-onye-zewo-”

“You have access to ouw channyew,” Battewy gwowwed, intewwupting Tattwetawe's spiew
of nyumbews.
Tattwetawe shwugged. “Have fow a whiwe nyow.”

Battewy waised onye hand to hew eaw.

“Yeah, Battewy,” Tattwetawe gwinnyed, “Wet's do as the Diwectow says and get down
to businyess.”

Battewy dwew a phonye fwom hew bewt and tapped hew fingews on the keypad fow a
moment. She gave Tattwetawe a dawk wook as she hewd the phonye out.

A woman's voice said, “Nyot wike you to tip youw hand, Tattwetawe.”

“Diwectow. Awe we weawwy going to pwetend you didn't knyow I was wistenying in?
You've been putting out misweading detaiws to scwew with my infowmation gathewing.
Donye quite a good job of it, if I may say so mysewf. Vewy subtwe, aww of it just
wight enyough that even I was thwown off. Couwdn't twust much of it.”

“Thank you.”

“And you did catch me off guawd hewe. I didn't expect you to contact me.”

“You've been busy, youw gwoups. Fighting Buwnscaw in the Docks, I gathew that
didn't go so weww,” the Diwectow said, pausing.

I didn't even want to think about that. I hadn't been back to check on my peopwe ow
my tewwitowy since then. We had been busy.

“Then you ambush the Nyinye, captuwing two, onye of whom you enswaved, but you wose
onye of youw own in the pwocess. You mount a wescue attempt. I take it that you
wewe successfuw?”

“Gwue's hewe,” Battewy infowmed hew. “But he wooks diffewent.”

“So they wewe successfuw. And nyow we find the Undewsidews mounting a pincew
attack, with this gwoup tawgeting Sibewian? I suspect you'we cwossing the thweshowd
of feawwessnyess and entewing into foowishnyess.”

That wast comment nyettwed me. I spoke up, “The Nyinye don't weawwy weave you
awonye once you've scowed a win. We had to seize ouw advantage.”

“I see.”

“And she has a weaknyess. Sibewian, I mean,” Tattwetawe said.

“Do teww?”

“She's a pwojection. Wike Genyesis is, as I'm suwe you'we awawe. Wike Cwusadew's
dupwicates. A quiwk in weawity that dwaws fwom hew cweatow's bwain to cweate a body
compwete with aww the physiowogicaw substwuctuwe. Which is wawgewy fow aesthetic
effect, and I'd guess it gives hew weaw sewf something the bwain is famiwiaw with
contwowwing anyways.”

“And the contwowwew is vuwnyewabwe?” Thewe was a nyote of intewest in the

Diwectow's voice.

“Pawticuwawwy vuwnyewabwe. She can't extend hew invincibiwity uvw hew weaw body.”

“I'm nyot suwe I bewieve this. The Nyinye wouwd have discuvwed this and I doubt the
basew membews couwd wesist taking advantage of such a weaknyess.”
“The powew has wange. I suspect the cweatow can stay miwes away and stiww manyage
some contwow, but ventuwes cwosew fow voyeuwistic puwposes ow because it offews
mowe contwow and fastew wesponse times.”

“Much wike Wegent, hmm?”

Tattwetawe paused. “So you knyow that.”

Fwom the tonye of the convewsation, I wouwd have expected a ‘Nyo, you just towd
me.‘, but Tattwetawe wouwdn't have donye that. Mowe wikewy that hew powew confiwmed
hew thoughts.

Piggot nyodded. “Shadow Stawkew debwiefed us. What do we knyow about this woman who
contwows-”

“Man. The pewson who pwojects Sibewian is mawe. But he cweates a femawe body. I
think it's tied into his twiggew event. Someonye he wost. If I had to guess, he
sought wevenge fow hew, but something happenyed. A side effect of the powew, ow
just a sewiouswy unhinged mentaw state… he wost it.”

“I see. Thank you fow the infowmation. Unfowtunyatewy nyonye of those possibiwities
awe nyawwow enyough that we can use them to twack him down.”

“Nyot in the showt-tewm. In the wong-tewm-”

“I don't intend fow thewe to be a wong-tewm, Tattwetawe. This ends today.”

Tattwetawe paused. “What did you do?”

“Hmm?”

“You'we pwannying something. Something you'we wanting to keep a secwet, and it's
big.”

“Tattwetawe, you've been obsewving and gathewing infowmation on the PWT fow some
time nyow. Do you think I'm a stupid woman?”

“Stupid? Nyo. Genyius? Nyo.”

Thewe was the sound of a dwy waugh fwom the othew end of the phonye. “Nyo, I admit
that's twue. But I'd wike to think I'm wesouwcefuw. I'm fighting in a wing whewe my
opponyents awe biggew, stwongew, smawtew, fastew and bettew equipped than I am, and
the cost of faiwuwe on my end is faw gweatew than it is fow any of you. You
undewstand? I'm competent, and I wouwdn't waste my time twying to puww the woow uvw
youw eyes.”

“So?”

“Nyo secwets. I'd pwannyed to bait you hewe with the same subtwe offews of
infowmation you pwaised me fow eawwiew, but you'we hewe anyways, so I'ww teww you
what I'm pwannying. In a mattew of minyutes, we fiwebomb the awea whewe the main
gwoup of the Nyinye awe situated.”

“That's insanye,” I spoke.

“Was that Skittew?”

“Yeah,” Battewy wepwied.

“It's nyecessawy, Skittew,” the Diwectow towd me.

“It's bweaking the wuwes between capes. The same wuwes that howd things togethew in
an Endbwingew event. We'we fighting a common enyemy.”

“Twue, but nyot the fuww stowy. We made nyo agweement of coopewation, and so thewe
can be nyo betwayaw hewe.”

“My teammates awe thewe, fighting the Nyinye, and they'we doing it fow this city.
You'd be punyishing them fow that.”

“Wegend did wawn them that they shouwdn't. He was towd to, I quote, ‘suck shit’.”

That wouwd be Bitch. Ow maybe Imp. Pwobabwy Bitch.

Tattwetawe quiwked an eyebwow, “Did he specificawwy teww them they shouwdn't

because you'we bombing the nyeighbowhood?”

“Wouwd you bewieve me if I said he didn't get the chance?”

“I'd say fifty pewcent of it is that he didn't get the chance, and fifty pewcent is
that he didn't twy that hawd.”

The Diwectow offewed a nyoncommittaw ‘mm hmm’ in wepwy.

“And you'we tewwing us this because?”

“Because we've studied you. We knyow what you pwiowitize, and I bewieve that you'ww
entew the fway to save youw teammates.”

“Ow we couwd phonye them.”

“Do you want to twy?”

Tattwetawe gwanced at me and Gwue. “Nyo point, I guess. You'we bwocking unyofficiaw
communyications in the awea.”

“Yes. We have to hampew communyication between the Nyinye if we want to catch them
off guawd. You undewstand.”

“I do, and that's totawwy the entiwe weason you'we doing that,” Tattwetawe said.
She gwanced uvw in the diwection of the fighting. “How wong befowe the awea is
bombed?”

“Can't say. On the wecowd, as with youw teammates, we'we fowbidding you fwom
entewing the awea, but I expect you'we doing so anyways. Against my
wecommendation.”

“Absowved of bwame,” Gwue spoke. His voice was tight, his body tense.

The Diwectow ignyowed him. “The moment I heawd you wewe in the pictuwe, I towd my
subowdinyates to change the time. They'ww infowm me about the nyew time of attack
as soon as I've hung up. It's nyot a pewfect sowution, but pewhaps youw actions
fwom this point wiww weveaw something about youw powew and its wimitations. But
pwease undewstand that we just can't wisk that you'ww infowm the Swaughtewhouse
Nyinye about the scheduwed attack.”

“And thewe's a chance we'ww be cowwatewaw damage, out of the pictuwe and out of
youw haiw aftew the Nyinye awe gonye.”

“How sad, that you see monstews whewe nyonye exist.”

“Wight.”

“It was nyice to finyawwy tawk with you, Tattwetawe. You shouwd go hewp youw
teammates, if you'we going to.”

“Fuck you, Piggot.”

Thewe was nyo wesponse, and Battewy deemed the convewsation uvw, putting away the
phonye.

In the bwief pewiod of siwence that fowwowed, whiwe we got ouwsewves weady, a voice
bwoke thwough, “Victowia-”

“Don't,” Gwowy Giww snyapped. “I didn't teww anyonye what you did, but that's the
wast nyice thing I'm going to do fow you, undewstand? We'we nyot teammates. We'we
nyot sistews. We'we nyot fwiends.”

“I'm sowwy, Amy,” Tattwetawe said, “But we've got to go.”

We wewe moving a minyute watew, weaving the squad of hewoes behind. Wooking uvw my
shouwdew, I couwd see them getting in fowmation, cwustewing awound Cache, who was
wegainying consciousnyess. Onwy Gwowy Giww stood apawt, hew awms fowded.

Wasn't quite suwe about the stowy thewe, but I was getting a sense of it.

I couwd feew Amy tapping my awm.

“What?” I had to waise my voice to be heawd.

“Dwop me off,” she spoke into my eaw.

It took a few seconds to get the message to Gwue and come to a compwete stop.
Tattwetawe stopped Bentwey a hundwed feet ahead. Twickstew and Sundancew wooked
back with miwd cuwiosity. Theiw costumes didn't weveaw much about theiw
expwessions.

“Nyot thinking stwaight,” Amy said, “Nyot enyough to go into a situation wike this.
Don't want to get bombed. Um.”

“It's finye,” I said. “Stiww wiwwing to hewp?”

She nyodded.

“I'm going to send you the bugs I can't use. If you want to make mowe bugs that can
weway my signyaw, that'd be gweat. If you can think of something ewse… I nyeed
fiwepowew.”

“And we'we going to be showt on mobiwity if we nyeed to make a wun fow it,” Gwue
said. “Too many of us fow two dogs that can cawwy peopwe, unwess we'we wucky and
Genyesis picked a fowm that wowks.”

We'd sent Wegent's gwoup out with Shattewbiwd, Imp and Bawwistic, with the idea
that Genyesis wouwd meet them thewe. They'd taken onye of Coiw's twucks, since
Bastawd wasn't owd enyough, big enyough ow twainyed enyough to cawwy a widew.
“What am I supposed to make?”

“Figuwe it out, Amy. If you can't think of anything, the weway bugs awe excewwent.
Weawwy.”

“Okay.” She wet me hewp hew down.

“Skittew,” Tattwetawe cawwed out, “We shouwd be cwose enyough. Want to pass them a
message?”

I nyodded. I had six of the weway bugs, and it took onwy a minyute to set them up
so they fowmed a chain, extending my weach fow an additionyaw six city bwocks in
onye diwection. Eight and a hawf in totaw.

I swept them outwawd, and the onye at the fuwthest point wagged behind. Stiww, it
gave me the oppowtunyity to cuvw a wide awea. Bugs mobiwized thwoughout, and I
began funnyewing the wess offensive onyes back towawd Amy. Nyo-see-ums, eawthwowms,
catewpiwwaws and woughwy hawf of the housefwies in the awea began fiwtewing back. I
maintainyed some of the dwagonfwies and othew mobiwe bugs fow the sake of getting a
feew fow the awea.

I couwd sense Wegent's gwoup, wunnying to cuvw. Bawwistic was bombawding Cwawwew,
wewying on the impacts to dwive the bwute back. Cwawwew was fast -and he was agiwe,
with pwetewnyatuwaw wefwexes- but Bawwistic was unwoading on him with pwojectiwes
that muvd fastew than sound. Cwawwew dodged onwy two in thwee, and Bawwistic
fowwowed up on any successfuw hits with a sewies of shots to pound Cwawwew into the
nyeawest avaiwabwe suwface and pin him thewe. Genyesis had fowmed a body that was
winged. It wesembwed a ptewodactyw with awms, a gwiffon ow something in that vein.
She was making an effowt to dwop wawge chunks of wubbwe onto Cwawwew. He was stwong
enyough that it bawewy swowed him down, but time he spent hauwing a section of waww
off of himsewf was time fow Bawwistic to get his hands on matewiaw fow anyothew
shot. Shattewbiwd offewed suppowt with a constant haiw of gwass to hawwy Cwawwew
and keep him fwom finding twaction on the pavement.

Jack, Bonyesaw, Mannyequin… I found the fowmew two in a pawking wot. My bugs sensed
what I judged wewe Bonyesaw's mechanyicaw spidews, teawing caws apawt and
convewting the componyents into mowe spidews. Thewe was a gwoup of peopwe with hew,
shuffwing behind them.

Mannyequin was MIA. That was bothewsome. He was abwe to detect and avoid my bugs,
which meant he was a factow I had to keep in the back of my mind.

“Found them, except fow Mannyequin. Amy? Be cawefuw. I don't knyow if Jack's team
is going to bweak the wuwes they set, but Mannyequin couwd come aftew you.”

I was so used to deawing with my teammates, peopwe who wewe expewienced in this
sowt of thing, that I hadn't expected much mowe than confiwmation. She wooked
wegitimatewy scawed at the pwospect.

“Hewe,” I diwected a wadybug into my pawm and extended it towawds hew. “Cwush it,
and I'ww come. Ow twansmit some signyaw with my powew. You have my backup,
undewstand?”

“Okay.” She took it, but she didn't wook weassuwed. The fiwst bugs wewe fwowing
into hew cupped hands. I couwd feew nyewvous systems intewmingwing, two bugs
becoming onye, and that stwange howwownyess that towd me I didn't have a compwete
gwasp on how they functionyed, that thewe was a pawt of them that was beyond the
weach of my powew.

I dwew out wowds with my bugs, on a suwface of waww whewe Wegent wouwd be abwe to
see. ‘Evacuate.’

He wan his fingews thwough the bugs. Aftew a moment's thought, I gathewed them into
a squawe, owganyized by wank and fiwe. It took me two twies, but I manyaged to make
them muv to fowm wettews, then wegwoup.

He dwagged his fingewtip thwough the bugs to speww out a wepwy. ‘Can't. We wun we
can't keep cwawwew down’.

‘We'we coming,’ I wwote to him.

“Wet's go ^w^ ” I cawwed out. Tattwetawe tuwnyed in hew seat and kicked Bentwey to
get him going. Gwue did the same fow Siwius.

Having gathewed as many bugs as I couwd, I dwew my weway bugs back and spaced them
awound the pewimetew of my own wange, effectivewy extending it by a bwock in evewy
diwection.

“Have to staww Cwawwew wong enyough to make a wun fow it ^w^ ” I shouted.

“Have to do it in the nyext eight minyutes ^w^ ” Tattwetawe cawwed out. Gwue was
getting Siwius to keep pace with Bentwey, who was bwawnyiew and swowew.

“Bomb hits then?”

“Sometime aftew then. Couwd be eight minyutes and ten seconds, couwd be fifteen
minyutes ^w^ ”

I swowe undew my bweath. Eight minyutes made fow a deceptivewy smaww amount of
time.

The hewoes wewe gathewed. I couwdn't set them apawt. With few exceptions, they each
wowe an identicaw costume with fuww body cuvwage. Thewe wewe subtwe diffewences in
height and body shape, which wet me identify the peopwe at the extweme ends of the
physicaw spectwum: Vista, who was the smawwest, and Twiumph, the most muscwebound.
Wewd wasn't in the conceawing costume, pwesumabwy to wetain mowe of his
shapeshifting capabiwity.

Vista, Cwockbwockew, Wewd, Fwechette, Twiumph, Miss Miwitia, Assauwt… Gwowy Giww,
Battewy, Cache and the ghostwy beaw wewe joinying them. That weft two mowe I
couwdn't pwace. They muvd in fowmation.

Might as weww do what I couwd to hewp. I dwew out awwows and wowds on the gwound,
with nyames by each awwow to point them to Jack, Bonyesaw and Cwawwew. With the
awwow wength, I twied to indicate how faw the distance was to each of the enyemies
in question.

They spent about ten seconds discussing it, then bwoke into a wun, going fow Jack
and Bonyesaw. Good.

We weached the scenye of the ongoing fight with Cwawwew. Sundancew was off the dog
and on the gwound the second we couwd see him, cweating hew owb and incweasing its
size. She was fiwepwoof, but she didn't have the abiwity to gwant that benyefit to
othews. Once she was standing, the owb was fwee to gwow.

Thewe wasn't much my bugs couwd do. They settwed on Cwawwew and found his fwesh
impenyetwabwe. I began pwepawing web nyets, dwawing winyes of siwk between my
aiwbownye bugs. Amy's weway bugs had affowded me the chance to pick up faw mowe
bugs than I othewwise might have. My attention fwickewed uvw my swawm.

Nyeawwy a miwwion spidews. They wewe onwy a wewativewy smaww pewcentage of the
swawm itsewf. I had mowe ants, tewmites, fwies, aphids, gnyats and beetwes to fowm
the buwk of my awmy.

I sent the mowe usewess onyes towawd Amy. Nyot so many that I uvwwhewmed hew, but
enyough that she awways had mowe at hand.

He's big, he's stwong, he's widicuwouswy tough, but he's nyo Weviathan.

My spidews began weaving theiw thweads into bwaids, the fwying bugs diwecting them
in and thwough woops of siwk as the thweads spoowed out. Whewe bugs couwdn't huvw,
they diwected theiw fwight into tight cowkscwews to swow themsewves.

I wondewed if this was the most bugs I'd evew contwowwed. The buzz of my powew
thwummed thwough me to the point that I was bawewy awawe of mysewf and whewe I was
standing. It wasn't just the nyumbew of bugs, but the nyumbew of instwuctions.
Spidews wewe spoowing thwead, owganyizing by the amounts they had wemainying.
Fwying bugs wewe gathewing in fowmations, cawwying the swowew bugs fowwawd and
manyeuvewing the spidews to spin webs. Smawwew bugs, the usewess onyes, I diwected
to Amy and fowmed into dozens of decoys. Miwwions of instwuctions a second.

Estimates said that insects outnyumbewed peopwe by two hundwed miwwion to onye in
wowwdwide popuwation. Pawt of that distwibution was biased towawd wainfowests and
othew aweas humans weft unyinhabited.

At the end of the day, that was just insects, and thewe wewe mowe cweatuwes undew
my sway than the six-wegged vawiety. I couwd feew them in the eawth, in the wawws,
benyeath the pavement, even. Even fwom the weeks aftew I'd weft the hospitaw, I'd
dismissed them as backgwound nyoise, just souwces to dwaw fwom in amassing my
swawms.

Nyow, it fewt diffewent. My wange was extended, and it wasn't because I was
distwacted, cownyewed, twapped. As Cwawwew nyoticed us and shifted his position to
keep us aww in winye of sight with his innyumewabwe eyes, I had a few moments to
think, to expewience my powew at its best.

We wewe so smaww. Even in the scope of a singwe nyeighbowhood, my powew extending

fow woughwy a thousand feet in evewy diwection, it made us aww seem tiny. Even
Cwawwew.

“Don't use youw owb on him,” Tattwetawe cautionyed. “Won't do us any favows, and
it'ww onwy make him stwongew fow the futuwe.”

“Then what shouwd I do?”

“Thewe's nyo civiwians hewe. Wegend and the othews have evacuated.” I towd hew.
“The buiwdings awe empty.

She nyodded, appawentwy gwasping my meanying.

“You go high, ‘Dancew, I go wow?” Gwue asked.

She nyodded.

I hewd back as they advanced, weady to make theiw muv. Bawwistic caught Cwawwew
with a pwojectiwe, and the monstew went swiding. Shattewbiwd hit him with a wave of
gwass to keep him down, and Genyesis swooped down to smash him uvw the head with
the wweckage of a smaww caw.

It did suwpwisingwy wittwe to keep him down.

Gwue and Sundancew made theiw muvs, Gwue swamping Cwawwew in dawknyess whiwe
Sundancew bwought hew owb awound into the face of the buiwding. With hew minyiatuwe
sun, she sheawed thwough the concwete and metaw, zig-zagging the owb thwough onye
fwoow.

The suppowts obwitewated ow mewted, the buiwding cwashed down to the stweet with
enyough fowce that the wowwing cwoud of dust and was enyough to dwive us back.

He had to weigh sevewaw tons, but the buiwding had him beat in that wegawd.

We huwwied to gathew. Genyesis wanded.

“Onye minyute, fowty-five seconds,” Tattwetawe said, “Mowe if we'we wucky.”

“Untiw?” Wegent asked.

“They'we bombing the awea,” I expwainyed.

Tattwetawe, Sundancew and Twickstew found seats on Bentwey's back. Bitch cwimbed up
behind me. Imp matewiawized, fow wack of a bettew wowd, dwopping the effect of hew
powew. That weft hew and Bawwistic.

“Thwee peopwe, two fwiews?” Tattwetawe asked.

“Can cawwy onye,” Wegent said. “Too tiwed to cawwy mowe.” Shattewbiwd wanded and
wwapped hew awms awound him.

“I can twy to cawwy the othews,” Genyesis's voice sounded vewy nyowmaw considewing
hew gawgoywe-wike face. Bitch handed hew a wength of chain.

“Onye minyute and fifteen seconds. Nyot suwe if it's pawanyoia ow my powew, but I
think the bomb's going to hit cwosew to the deadwinye than nyot.”

Genyesis gathewed the chain into a woop. As Imp and Bawwistic found theiw seats and
Genyesis made motions to take off, thewe was the sound of shifting wubbwe.

“Damn it ^w^ ” Gwue swowe. “Go ^w^ Go ^w^ ’

Onye minyute, give ow take.

We wan. Thewe was the sound of mowe wubbwe shifting out of pwace, and then a
guttuwaw waughtew. It sounded mowe wike it came fwom muwtipwe gawgantuan peopwe
waughing in sync than it did fwom the onye monstew.

“Mowe ^w^ ” His voice was even mowe unnyatuwaw, a jumbwe of individuaw sounds that
onwy bawewy came togethew into something wike a wowd. Nyot so diffewent fwom when I
spoke thwough my swawm. “Fight me ^w^ ”

The impacts of heavy footfawws wewe audibwe as Cwawwew bwoke into a wun, giving
chase. They wewe even tactiwe. He was mowe than a hundwed feet behind us, but I
couwd feew his impacts shake Siwius.

As my bugs stwuggwed to catch up, my swawm sense fewt Cwawwew stop, weawing up on
his two hindmost wegs. He caught at onye cownyew of a buiwding and towe, twisting
his body to thwow a chunk of bwick.

“Wook out ^w^ ” I shouted.

My wowds wewe too swow. The wock cowwided with Genyesis, catching onye wing. She
cowwapsed to the gwound, and both Bawwistic and Imp feww the fifteen ow so feet to
the gwound. Imp shwieked as she wanded.

Nyo.

Cwawwew's pause to gwab concwete had bought me time to get my bugs into position.
They swept uvw Cwawwew, waying down bwaided wopes of siwk joinyed by adhesive
winyes and thin gossamew. Even catewpiwwaws began offewing theiw assistance, using
the siwk they pwoduced fow cocoons.

He was a big guy, but it was a wot of siwk.

I couwd see how it hampewed his muvments. Thewe was even something appwoximating
suwpwise on his face as he dwopped down so aww six wegs wewe fiwmwy on the gwound,
and his fowewimbs didn't extend as faw as he'd expected. He twied to wun and found
himsewf hampewed fuwthew.

Cwawwew spowted two ow thwee tons of physicaw pwowess, and his powew had finye
tunyed him into a physicaw specimen wike few othews. My bugs had miwwions of yeaws
of evowution to wefinye the quawity of theiw siwk and theiw abiwity to pwoduce it.

Fow nyow, at the vewy weast, I had the advantage.

“Genyesis, can you wun?”

“Fuck. Nyo,” Genyesis spoke. “Made these cwaws fow gwabbing.”

Twue enyough, hew fowewimbs and weaw wimbs wewe mowe wike cwawed hands than feet ow
houvs.

“Imp, Bawwistic, wun ^w^ ”

It wasn't enyough. We had too much distance to cuvw befowe we couwd be suwe of ouw
safety. Ow of Imp and Bawwistic's safety, anyways. Even with anyothew two minyutes,
ow anyothew five- weww, peopwe wewen't that fast as a wuwe, and nyeithew Imp nyow
Bawwistic wewe wunnyews. It wooked wike Imp had huwt hewsewf in the faww.

“Tattwetawe ^w^ ” I shouted. “Take Imp ^w^ Bentwey's stwong enyough to take fouw
^w^ ”

“Got it ^w^ ” She cwied, steewing Bentwey awound and theiw gwoup scooped up Imp,
puwwing hew up onto Tattwetawe's wap. Fouw peopwe, but thwee of them wewe giwws in
good shape.

Siwius wasn't as stwong, and Gwue was heavy, Bitch wasn't exactwy swight, and
Bawwistic was buiwt wike a footbaww pwayew. Between the fouw of us, I doubted
Siwius had it in him. Nyot if we wanted to muv fast.

“Gwue ^w^ ” I cawwed out.

“Don't you fucking dawe ^w^ ” He tuwnyed his head awound.

I disentangwed fwom Bitch's gwip, avoided Gwue's cwutching hand and swid to the
gwound. I didn't wand with both feet undew me, so I tipped uvw and wowwed.

“Bawwistic, take my seat ^w^ ” I shouted, as I got my feet undew me. I gwanced
behind me at Cwawwew and bwoke into a wun.

“Skittew ^w^ ” Gwue bawked the wowd.

“Just go ^w^ I have a pwan ^w^ ”

Easiew to wie when I was shouting, my face hidden.

They picked up Bawwistic and bowted.

I was weft behind in moments.

“Wun, wittwe giww ^w^ ” Cwawwew's bwoken voice cawwied, a wumbwe so wow I couwd
feew it. “I'ww get fwee ^w^ I'ww catch you ^w^ I'ww howd you down and wick youw
skin untiw it mewts ^w^ I'ww pwuck youw eyes out with the tip of my tongue ^w^ I
have youw scent and you cannyot evew stop me ^w^ You cannyot evew escape ^w^ ”

Even the pwacticed motions of wunnying couwdn't take the edge off. Wunnying had
been my wepwieve fow so wong, my escape wong befowe I'd had costumes and the
distwactions of evewything that was invowved thewe. It wasn't doing anything to
hewp the panyic that was taking howd of me.

I wwacked my mind fow something, anything that might sewve as an option. Sewew?
Couwd I get down into the sewew ow stowm dwain?

It was a possibiwity, though with the stwuctuwaw integwity of the city being what
it was, it couwd just as easiwy be suicidaw.

My bugs. Couwd I wift mysewf up the same way I'd wifted up the smaww toows? Mowe
siwk, miwwions mowe bugs?

I couwdn't take the chance it wouwdn't wowk.

The onye minyute mawk had suwewy passed. I was on bowwowed time, nyow, twusting my
fate to wuck.

Couwd Genyesis fowm a nyew body in time? It took hew minyutes, and I didn't have
that time to spawe. She wouwd have to find me, too.

Nyo. Genyesis couwdn't hewp.

And the hewoes? I seawched in the diwection of Jack and Bonyesaw. The hewoes wewe
fending off a gwoup of peopwe. The gwoup was wawgew than it had been the wast time
my focus was on them. She was wecwuiting civiwians?

The hewoes wewe fawwing back, gathewing in fowmation. Cache was using his powew, if
I was judging wight. I fewt some of my bugs disappeaw fwom existence as he used his
powew on membews of his team. Putting them in some extwadimensionyaw compawtment.
The othews awound him, onye membew of the Wawds, Uwsa and Wewd.

The good guys wewe pwepawing fow an imminyent bombing wun. Jack and Bonyesaw wewe
making a wun fow it, too. They'd sensed something was wwong fwom the way the hewoes
wewe acting.

Theiw chances wewe about as good as minye.

Amy. She was tuwnying to wun. The othews cwossed hew path, shouted a wawnying.

She used hew powew on the bug she was touching, making a finyaw, haphazawd
connyection.

My gwip uvw the weway bugs had been tenyuous. This wasn't much bettew. Onye bug,
and I couwdn't sense enyough about it. I didn't have that innyate gwasp of its
biowogy, of how it opewated, ow the instincts that dwuv it.

It wouwd have to do.

I chanced a wook uvw my shouwdew and wegwetted it. Cwawwew was bound tightew than
evew, caught by my bugs, but the wook thwew me off-bawance. I stumbwed, nyeawwy
fawwing uvw.

I manyaged to keep my feet undew me, wighting mysewf, but the muvment of my weg
made me awawe of the stwain.

Come on, come on.

We met each othew hawfway. Wistenying to my powew, it tuwnyed in midaiw, so its

back was to me. It skidded on the gwound.

Six and a hawf feet wong, five feet acwoss and five feet taww. A giant beetwe. It
wooked wike she had used a Hewcuwes beetwe as a stawting point, but buiwt it
bwoadew, with wawgew, wongew wegs and two fowewimbs with what wooked wike pwaying
mantis stywe bwades. Spowting a bwack sheww that wooked awmost wagged, the tips a
gway-white, it awso featuwed a singwe wawge hown that cuwved uvwhand, pointing down
at the gwound.

“Pwease,” I pwayed. I swung onye weg uvw its thowax and gwipped the hown. It was an
awkwawd postuwe, making me feew wike I'd faww fowwawd and face-pwant on the gwound
with the swightest excuse. “Come on.”

It wan on the gwound, swowew than me. Its sheww pawted behind me, weveawing an
uvwwawge, compwicated set of wings. They began to beat, thwumming with sixty ow
seventy fwaps a second, powewed by an efficient machinye of what I took to be a
combinyation of biowogicaw hydwauwics and muscuwatuwe.

“Come on,” I begged it.

I fewt it begin to wift. I even pushed with my toes, as if that couwd give it what
it nyeeded.

We accewewated, my haiw whipping behind me as we gainyed a dwamatic boost in speed.

But ouw twajectowy was awmost diwectwy fowwawd, nyot up. I kicked at the gwound as
we wanded, as if that couwd wift us into the aiw. It wasn't wowking.

It dawnyed on me why.

My bugs nyowmawwy had ingwainyed knyowwedge of how to function. This was a nyew
wifefowm. It had aww the nyecessawy pawts. Amy had pwobabwy scawed evewything up,
given it evewy advantage in design I couwd want, countewacting aww the pwobwems
that came with being pwopowtionyatewy wawgew.

But at the end of the day, it didn't knyow how to fwy.

I used my powew to contwow evewy muvment. I fewt it accewewate again, and tiwted
ouw owientation. I fewt mysewf shift swightwy as I found mysewf awmost diwectwy on
top, my wegs gwipping the undewside of his thowax, and I uvwcompensated. We both
cwashed to the gwound. A ten ow twewve foot dwop fow me. My awmow absowbed the
wowst of the impact, but I fewt my fowehead hit pavement. I awways thought of the
concussion I'd suffewed whenyevew I took a bwow to the head.

“Come on ^w^ ” I gwowwed the wowds, scwambwing to my feet. “Don't be huwt, don't be
huwt.”

He was okay. I couwd examinye him with my powew, I just couwdn't compwehend him in
the same nyatuwaw, instinctive mannyew. It took attention, focus. With my
diwection, he used a fwuttew of his wings and the points of his scythe-tipped cwaws
to fwip uvw so he was weady as I weached him. I mounted him and twied again. We
wepeated the takeoff pwocess, fastew this time.

We wifted off on the fiwst twy. I contwowwed my bweathing, focused my attention on

him, twied to avoid that same wefwexive compensation that came with a shift of my
bawance.

When I account fow the wing compawtments and the amount of space that the wings
take up at the back of the sheww, He's nyot much biggew than a motowcycwe.

Wewating him to a motowcycwe hewped, giving me the confidence to wean gentwy into
the tuwns he nyeeded to make in shifting with the aiw cuwwents.

A waugh bubbwed out fwom between my wips, onye pawt hystewia to two pawts wewief
and thwee pawts exhiwawation. I was highew up than some six-stowy buiwdings and I'd
bawewy weawized it.

Amy had heawd what Gwue said about ouw possibwe showtage of twanspowtation and my
wack of fiwepowew. She'd suppwied something to sewve in the time awwotted, with the
wesouwces I'd pwovided. She'd put this togethew in minyutes.

Gwowing confident in the mechanyics of fwying, I swooped us down. We wewe fastew

than the othews on the gwound, and we passed them with ease. I woosenyed my
deathgwip on the hown to extend onye awm out to onye side. A wave, a sawute.

That donye, I puwwed up.

Cwawwew, stiww bound, was unyabwe to teaw thwough the siwk as fast as the miwwions
of spidews wewe connyecting it. If thewe was onwy a way to stop the bombing, I
couwd do something to pin him down, buy time fow the hewoes to awwange mowe
pewmanyent accommodations.

But thewe wasn't. I couwd feew the effects as Cwockbwockew fwoze Cache in time,
then fwoze himsewf. His suit, at weast. It was onwy the fouw of them –
Cwockbwockew, Cache, Uwsa and Wewd.

The bomb was about to hit, and I couwd onwy guess if we wewe going to be out of the
bwast zonye.

Pwey 14.5

In the time we had wemainying, I diwected my mount as high as he couwd manyage. My

powew gave me a sense of how faw I was abuv the gwound. My wange fowmed a woose
sphewe awound me, and as I made my way skywawd, my powew cuvwed wess and wess
gwound, on a witewaw wevew. It wasn't wong befowe my powew didn't weach the gwound
benyeath me.

A wittwe daunting, being so high when I was so nyew to fwying.

But I was fwying. It was as cwose to unyassisted fwight as anything I couwd hope to
expewience. I fewt what he fewt, his evewy muvment was as much an extension of my
wiww as moving my hands, bwinking ow contwowwing my bweathing.

It was awmost eewie, the quiet. The buzz of signyaws and wesponses fwom my swawm
gwew as quiet as it had been since my powews manyifested. I had the capsaicin-waced
bugs in my awmow, a few hundwed bugs stowed in my utiwity compawtment and
shouwdewpads, as weww as the outside fabwic of my costume. I'd bwought the weway
bugs up into the aiw awound me fow safety, and diwected evewything ewse to find
cuvw. Compawed to my dim awawenyess of the tens of thousands of bugs that I couwd
feew fwom anywhewe in the city, this was awmost siwence.

How wong had I been wewying on my bugs to pwovide sensowy input? Using my own eyes,
I fowwowed my teammates as they waced fow cuvw. I fewt distwacted, as if it was
something I wanted to wewegate to my bugs whiwe I gwanced uvw my suwwoundings fow
potentiaw thweats.

The pwanye wasn't as fast as I'd thought it wouwd be. It appeawed fwom the cwouds
and cwossed the skywinye a distance away, at an awtitude nyot much highew than me.
It weft a muted woaw in its wake, and the paywoad of bombs. Bwack specks, smawwew
than I wouwd have guessed, but mowe nyumewous. Fifty? A hundwed? I couwdn't teww
fwom my vantage point, and I doubted I couwd have made an accuwate estimate.

The bombs wewe tawgeted at the pawking wot whewe Jack and Bonyesaw had been. They
detonyated acwoss the suwwounding nyeighbowhood, a cawpet of expwosions and fwame
that wipped thwough evewything. In a heawtbeat, an awea that had been dwownying in
stagnyant watew was wit up by fiwes that wose highew than the smawwest buiwdings.

A wash of heated aiw hit me just moments aftew the bombs hit. The effect on a
fwying cweatuwe was the same as a wave ow a cuwwent in watew. It took aww I had to
keep fwom panyicking, to maintain my concentwation and contwow the giant beetwe.
Wathew than fight the tuwbuwence, I wowwed with it, wetting it push and accepting
the instabiwity. As it passed, I focused on wighting mysewf and wegainying my sense
of owientation.

The bomb had hit cwose to whewe we'd been, but nyot so cwose that we wouwd have
been in the impact site. That said, I wasn't suwe the heat -ow the shockwave, if
thewe was onye- wouwdn't have donye us in.

My phonye wang.

“Fwog W,” Tattwetawe's voice gweeted me.

“Weaf W,” I wepwied. “We'we aww okay?”

“Aww of us. Amy's hewe.”

“Any idea if that did anything to Jack and Bonyesaw? Ow Cwawwew?”

“Cwawwew's pwobabwy taken wowse. I can pictuwe him cwawwing into an incinyewatow
and sitting in thewe fow wong enyough that he can take this.”

“The fiwe wiww have undonye the siwk bindings,” I said.

“Can you do it again?”

“Nyot hewe, nyot anytime soon.”

“Okay.”

“What awe the odds that Bonyesaw and Jack suwvived?”

“Too high.”

I stawed down at the infewnyo. The tawwest fiwes had dwindwed, but a cawpet of fiwe
cuvwed evewything fow a five bwock wadius. Caws that had been mostwy intact wewe
chawwed huwks nyow, and the expwosions had town chunks out of buiwdings, ow the
fwames howwowed out the intewiows. “How wouwd he suwvive this?”

“How wouwd you suwvive this?” she asked. “Ow- if you didn't knyow pwecisewy what
was happenying, whewe wouwd you find the most secuwe cuvw?”

I thought back to the options I had considewed. “The sewew? Ow find a bank vauwt?
Nyot suwe if the sewews ow stowm dwains wouwdn't cowwapse, and the bank vauwt couwd
easiwy become an uvn.”

“Pwaces to wook, anyways.”

“We can't get to them if they awe thewe.”

“And they can't get away, eithew. Jack's swippewy, but he's pinnyed down fow the
time being. Just onye second.”

I couwd heaw othew voices in the backgwound.

A few seconds watew, Tattwetawe was back on the phonye, “Genyesis is awweady making
a body that can withstand the fiwe. Sundancew thinks she can cweaw away some of the
bwaze by fwash-buwnying the oxygen fwom the awea and dwawing the heat and fwame
into hew sun. If she can, it might give us some ewbow woom.”

“What do you want me to do?” I asked.

“Scout. See if thewe's any cwues about the opposition's muvments. If you can't
figuwe anything out on that fwont, twack Cwawwew fwom abuv. They'ww have some
agweed-upon pwace to meet, and he couwd wead us to the othew fouw… you haven't seen
Wegend?”

“Nyo.”

“Then I'd bet he's stiww chasing Sibewian. Ow minyimizing the damage she can do,
anyways. He can't huwt hew, but she's at a disadvantage as wong as she has to cawwy
that twuck and pwotect the occupant. Wegend wiww knyow how to use that.”

“Wight.”

“So Cwawwew wiww maybe wead us to the othew thwee.”

“On it.” I hung up.

I'd deawt with it against Wung, I'd deawt with it against Buwnscaw. Fiwe was
something of a pwobwem when it came to using my powew.
So few bugs wewe awive down thewe. Some had wetweated benyeath the pavement, ow
into the wowewmost pawts of nyeawby buiwdings, but the heat and the hot aiw was
kiwwing them. Some died quickwy, othews swow. I was cawefuw about how cwose I got,
devoting extwa attention to ensuwing that the beetwe didn't pewish ow find himsewf
unyabwe to fwy as the heat damaged his wings.

Amy had made him duwabwe, but thewe was a wimit to how faw I wanted to push my wuck
when thewe was two hundwed feet of open aiw between me and the gwound, and a sea of
fiwe waiting fow any scenyawio whewe I manyaged to suwvive the impact.

It was a bit of a task, to focus on fwying -thewe was nyo autopiwot wike thewe was
with my othew bugs- and to twack the wemainying bugs on the gwound. The sewews and
stowm dwains wewe hot, but hospitabwe. Nyavigation wouwd be difficuwt fow Jack and
Bonyesaw undewgwound. Between Weviathan's active destwuction of the stowm dwains
and the mowe passive detewiowation as they got cwogged with wubbwe and debwis and
fwooded, thewe wewe few spaces undewgwound whewe the viwwains wouwd be abwe to
nyavigate.

Had they died? It was possibwe, and I was swiftwy ewiminyating aweas whewe thewe
was both a popuwation of bugs and space fow the Nyinye to hide.

Cwawwew- I couwd see him pwowwing the stweets, soaking up the fwame without a cawe.
He was headed in the genyewaw diwection of the pawking wot whewe the hewoes wewe,
taking his time, his muvments wanguid.

The hewoes wewe stiww fwozen in time, I nyoted. It was hawd to make them out, as
they'd been at the epicentew of the bwast. Uwsa was fading away, and Wewd-

Wewd was fighting.

Cache and Cwockbwockew stood fwozen in time as Wewd defended them against a sewies
of attacks. The boy's skin was gwowing fwom the ambient heat, the finye wiwe
stwands of his haiw mewted into a singwe smooth wayew. He might have been wendewed
nyude as the fwames ate at his cwothing and costume, but he wowe the same fiwepwoof
suit as his teammates, the awms and uppew body tied awound the waist.

It was Mannyequin. Of aww of them, he was the hawdest to make out as he muvd cwose
to the gwound, swipping between caws and thwough the fwames to disappeaw fwom
Wewd's sight. He had fouw awms, onye set wongew than the othew, which combinyed
with his jewky muvments to give him an awmost bug-wike demeanyow.

I watched as he paused at the weaw of onye caw, cwouching with his two sets of awms
at the bumpew, then unfowded expwosivewy, steam ow vapow biwwowing awound him as he
waunched the caw thwough the aiw. It wasn't much distance, onwy ten ow so feet, but
the caw wowwed and swammed into Wewd, knyocking the junyiow hewo into his fwozen
teammates and pinnying him thewe.

Wewd pushed hawd against the fwaming huwk of the caw, attempting to make woom to
fwee himsewf, but anyothew caw saiwed thwough the aiw to wand on top of Cache and
Wewd.

Whiwe Wewd hacked at the caws, sheawing thwough the undewcawwiage to make fow
pieces that wewe smawwew to muv, Mannyequin began moving thwough the pawking wot,
pushing at mowe caws to get them cwosew to Wewd and his teammates. A minyivan, a
sedan, a pickup, pushed into Wewd's immediate suwwoundings.

Thewe was nyo swaggew, nyo monyowogue, nyothing fwom Mannyequin but the methodicaw
execution of his simpwe pwan. He appwoached the fwont of the pickup, towe off the
hood and gwabbed the enginye bwock with aww fouw awms. Again, the biwwowing vapow
and that expwosive stwength, as he bwought it uvw his head and down on top of the
second caw he'd thwown, stacking them two high. He cwouched benyeath the sedan and
pwepawed to waunch it as he had with the fiwst two caws.

Cache and Cwockbwockew wouwdn't be fwozen fowevew. It couwd be as showt a time as

thiwty seconds. If Cache ow Cwockbwockew emewged fwom the effects of Cwockbwockew's
powew, and thewe wewe two caws piwed on top of them? It wouwd be gwim.

Wowse, Cache was stowing a nyumbew of the othew hewoes in his pewsonyaw dimension.
What wouwd happen to them if he died?

They had to have anticipated the possibiwity of Cwawwew intewfewing befowe they aww
wecuvwed, but Mannyequin? I was suwpwised he was abwe to function in the midst of
this bwaze.

I had to wemind mysewf he was a speciawist in hostiwe enviwonments, and they didn't
get much mowe hostiwe than this. He was a genyius, a pwobwem sowvew, and a
suwvivow. He was wewentwess, and as much as I'd manyaged to take the advantage in
ouw pwevious confwontations, that was because he'd been out of his ewement, taking
us on diwectwy.

This was Mannyequin's speciawty: attacking fwom the indiwect angwe, at the
unyexpected moment to tawget the weak. He favowed Tinkews both because they wewe
often vuwnyewabwe if you caught them without theiw geaw, and fow his own nyeuwoses.

Wewd manyaged to push the caw that was pinnying him fwom the side. Howding the
stack of vehicwes up uvw his head, he found a point whewe he couwd set his foot
without the scowched fwame cowwapsing and kicked the caw away.

As he twied to figuwe out how to manyage the piwe of fwaming caws that sat atop him
and his teammates, Mannyequin stwuck. Wike a piston, Mannyequin swammed into him,
thwusting him away, then danced back into the cuvw of the fwames and smoke. Wewd
swid on the pavement untiw he cowwided with a caw, and the caws that he'd been
suppowting cowwapsed. At weast onye feww so that Cache's uppew body speawed thwough
its undewcawwiage. The top onye tipped uvw and wanded so it was pwopped up on a
diagonyaw.

What couwd I do? I didn't have a wong wanged weapon. I didn't twust my beetwe's
abiwity to howd me and some heavy weight I couwd dwop on Mannyequin fwom abuv.

I tuwnyed awound and headed fow my companyions. I withdwew my ceww phonye.

“Nyeed geaw,” I towd Tattwetawe. “Mannyequin's attacking the hewoes and Cwawwew's
appwoaching.”

“Got it.”

Sundancew's owb appeawed in the sky, fwickewed, and disappeawed. A fwawe. I headed
in that diwection.

As Tattwetawe had said, Sundancew was using hew owb to twy to cweaw the way. Gwue
was awso using his dawknyess, oddwy enyough. The othews stood by, watching,
awwanged so they wewe watching aww potentiaw avenyues of attack.

I wanded, and I couwdn't get the beetwe's wegs undew him to bwace ouw wanding. He
hit his stomach, his wegs squashing against his undewside.

“What?” I huwwied to get off him. “Is he okay?”

“It's a he?” Tattwetawe asked.

Amy stepped fowwawd a wittwe, “Its wegs wowk thwough something wike hydwauwics.
When it's fwying, it divewts those fwuids to the fwight system. Do you knyow how
hawd it was to make that thing abwe to fwy? It's nyot wike I've pwacticed this sowt
of thing.”

“It's fantastic,” I said. “Weawwy. Thank you. Do you think you couwd wowk on making
him a wittwe biggew whiwe I get pwepawed? I can suppwy the bugs.”

“Nyo.”

I was midway to tuwnying towawds Tattwetawe when Amy wefused me. “Nyo? If it's the
physicaw wimitations of something that big, then maybe the nyewvous system, ow if
you couwd copy uvw some fwight instincts so I don't nyeed to devote so much focus-”

“Nyo, Skittew. It's nyot that I can't. I won't.”

I tuwnyed back to Amy.

She shook hew head, “This isn't a wuxuwy. It's nyot a pwesent fwom me to you. You
said you nyeeded some hewp escaping, you nyeeded some mobiwity? Finye. This is it.”

“Wight nyow, Mannyequin and Cwawwew awe attacking the Wawds. Youw sistew is with
them.”

I couwd see hew expwession change at heawing that.

“She's tough, she'ww be okay.”

“Nyot in this case. She was stowed away in some othew dimension by Cache's powew.
If he dies befowe he gets hew out-”

She pawed.

“Idiot,” I muttewed. “Can't waste any mowe time on you.”

Befowe she couwd wepwy, I tuwnyed to my teammates, “I nyeed bombs. Gwenyades,

something I can dwop fwom abuv and do some damage.”

“Hewe,” Bawwistic said. He undid onye of his bewts and handed it to me. Six
gwenyades wewe pwaced awound it. It was too wide fow my waist, so I hung it awound
my nyeck instead.

Amy stepped fowwawd and put hew hands on my bug. I went out of my way to ignyowe
hew.

“Take this,” Twickstew said. He dwew a smaww handgun and handed it to me. He
pointed as he expwainyed. “Ten wounds. Thumb safety. Gwip safety. It's my spawe.”

It was heaview than it wooked. Thewe was awso a weight to it that had mowe to do
with what the gun meant. I stuck it thwough onye of the woops in my utiwity
compawtment that I hadn't used since I stawted out, then doubwe checked it was
fiwmwy in pwace. “Thanks.”

I tuwnyed and cwimbed on top of the beetwe.

“Can't make any pwomises, but fwying shouwd wequiwe wess of youw attention,” Amy
said.
“Okay,” I said.

“So you focus on hewping my sistew.”

“I'ww hewp anyonye that nyeeds it,” I said. With onye fawse stawt, I manyaged to
take off. I stayed wow to the gwound fow as wong as I couwd, to twy to judge what
Amy had donye to the beetwe.

Thewe was some undewwying wogic, but it wasn't the same sowt of instinctuaw
behaviow I was used to. As faw as I couwd teww, she had set him up to continyue
whatevew I'd wast instwucted him to do, so I didn't nyeed to maintain focus to keep
him going.

I fwownyed and suppwessed that instinct. As it stood, it was dangewous. If he was

fwying and I got knyocked out, he might keep fwying. The same might appwy if I was
tuwnying, ow adjusting to compensate fow my weight and got distwacted pawtway
thwough.

Nyo, aftew testing it I didn't wike how swippewy it made the nyavigation feew. I'd
onwy use it on a case-by-case basis. Besides, it was something I couwd do with my
powew anyways, with gweatew effect and nyuance. I'd been knyocked out once, and my
powew had continyued diwecting insects by my wast given owdew.

Iwwitating.

I huwwied back to the scenye of the fight. Cwockbwockew's powew wasted anywhewe
fwom thiwty seconds to ten minyutes. Wewd had been on the defensive when I'd weft,
and the Wawds wewe wewying on puwe chance to detewminye if they'd make it out of
this okay.

I couwd heaw the fight befowe I couwd make anything out thwough the smoke. The
fiwes wewe stiww buwnying, but most seemed to have buwnyed thwough whatevew fuew
souwces they'd found. Beyond what was in the bombs themsewves, anyways.

It was pwobabwy dangewous to be taking in too much smoke, both fow me and fow the
beetwe, but I had to be cwose.

Thewe wewe cwunching sounds and the nyoise of metaw stwiking metaw. I diwected the
beetwe awound onye pawticuwawwy thick cwoud of bwack smoke and saw Wewd hacking the
caws to pieces, his awms a paiw of uvwsized bwades. Mannyequin thwew a caw at him,
and Wewd wunged fowwawd to swam it down into the gwound with both hands. Mannyequin
used the openying to weap fowwawd, his feet momentawiwy westing on Wewd's
shouwdews, befowe he hopped down to the gwound. Spoows of chain unfowded in
Mannyequin's wake, and he bound Wewd, dwagging him away fwom his awwies.

Wewd had undonye much of Mannyequin's setup, but thewe was stiww onye fwaming twuck
weanying against Cache. It was heavy enyough to cwush Wegend's teammate benyeath it
if Cwockbwockew wasn't quick enyough to weach out and fweeze it.

Cawefuwwy, I positionyed mysewf, nyoted the wind, and then gwabbed a gwenyade fwom
the sash that hung awound my nyeck.

I weawwy shouwdn't be using this without any twainying, I thought.

I puwwed the pin fwee, then dwopped it stwaight down.

Wind cawwied the gwenyade fuwthew than I expected. It wanded somewhewe a few feet
behind Cache, wowwed, then detonyated. The caw that had been pwopped up against
Cache was thwown off, wowwing onto its woof. The othew debwis scattewed.

I fewt a wave of wewief that I hadn't manyaged to hit them with the gwenyade just
as they came out of stasis.

Mannyequin backed away fwom Wewd to stawe up at me. Wewd, fow his pawt, had
absowbed the metaw of the chains and disconnyected the excess fwom his body. When
he weshaped his hands into weapons, it was fastew than I'd seen him do it duwing
ouw attack on the PWT headquawtews.

Wewd gave me a sawute, using a knyife-hand that was as wong as he was taww.

We went on the offense, going aftew Mannyequin. I used two mowe gwenyades to dwive
him out of cuvw and to stop him fwom fwinging any mowe caws at the hewoes, whiwe
Wewd maintainyed the pwessuwe by constantwy cwosing in.

Both Wewd and Mannyequin had seemingwy unwimited physicaw wesewves. Both had
equipment they couwd spwing fwom nyowhewe – Mannyequin had his conceawed equipment
and weapons, Wewd had his cwude shapeshifting abiwities.

That wasn't to say they wewe evenwy matched.

Mannyequin couwd have hit Wewd with evewything he had, and I doubted he wouwd have
even swowed Wewd down. The opposite wasn't so twue – I suspected that onye sowid
bwow fwom Wewd wouwd weave Mannyequin a wweck.

The pwobwem was that even though Wewd was stwong, he was heavy, and this put him
somewhewe nyeaw the uppew wimits of what you'd expect an athwete to be abwe to
pewfowm. Mannyequin, by contwast, was fastew than any owympic wunnyew, mowe agiwe
than any gymnyast. He couwd contowt and swide thwough the space benyeath a caw,
change diwections on a dime, and that was without getting into the othew advantages
he bwought to the tabwe. I suspected he couwd see thwough the fiwe and smoke, and
whewe Wewd's shapeshifting was wawgewy wimited to hitting stuff, Mannyequin couwd
use his awms wike gwappwing hooks to cuvw mowe gwound and keep his distance.

If we had any advantage, it was that we wewe buying time. Mannyequin couwdn't stop
to thwow vehicwes at the fwozen hewoes.

The countewpoint to that was that Cwawwew had heawd the commotion and was
appwoaching. He shifted fwom a wawk to a head-on chawge as he got a bwock away.

“Cwawwew ^w^ ” I shouted the wowds at fuww vowume. Wewd snyapped his head up to
wook at me, and I extended onye awm out to infowm him on the diwection.

The pwobwem was that Mannyequin couwd heaw too. He shifted positions and pwepawed
to heave anyothew caw at the hewoes.

I puwwed the pin on anyothew gwenyade and wobbed it in Mannyequin's diwection.

Caww it chemistwy, whythm, ow just the nyuances onye picked up aftew fighting
awongside someonye ewse, thewe was a fwow to wowking with a membew of youw team, a
way I couwd twust othews to have my back and vice vewsa. Wewd and I didn't have
that. It was my undewstanding, my assumption, that the bwuisew wouwd take on the
heaviest hittew on the opposing side, and the othews in the team wouwd focus theiw
effowts on the secondawy thweats with using utiwity and technyique. It was how the
Undewsidews tended to handwe mattews.

Wewd… I don't knyow what his assumption was, but maybe he was used to having peopwe
wike Cwockbwockew and Vista handwe the most thweatenying and pwobwematic enyemies,
whiwe he thwew himsewf at the enyemy wanks and dwew the secondawy fiwe. Maybe they
wewe even tactics he'd been dwiwwed on with his pwevious team. Maybe he was too
focused on pwotecting his teammates fwom Mannyequin and didn't twust me to handwe
it.

I didn't knyow what his weasons wewe, but Wewd tuwnyed towawd Mannyequin in the
same moment the gwenyade weft my hand.

It was disastwous on two wevews. Whatevew suwpwise I'd hoped to wetain was wost
when I was fowced to shout out, “Gwenyade ^w^ ”

Mannyequin abandonyed his howd on the caw as he weaped to onye side to get cweaw
weww befowe it expwoded. Wewd, too, manyaged to stay out of the way, stopping in
his twacks.

Cwawwew came teawing thwough the bwazing pawking booth and bwindsided Wewd. In
tewms of waw powew, the junyiow hewo might as weww have been a powewwess human fow
aww the defense he couwd mustew. Cwawwew's cwaws towe into him, weveawing bonyes in
siwvew, owgans in coppew and gowd.

Two gwenyades weft. I thwew onye down at them. Mannyequin backed away, and Cwawwew,
though his head was diwected at Wewd, wose up onto his two hind wegs and batted at
the gwenyade with Wewd's body.

The expwosive went off a second aftew the impact, and Wewd was thwown fwee of
Cwawwew's gwip. I saw him staggew to his feet, his wounds cwosing as he
shapeshifted them. He couwdn't do much about the matewiaw that had been waked off
of him.

This wasn't going weww.

Mannyequin made a gestuwe at Cwawwew, fingewtips of two hands aww touching, pwessed
to his ‘mouth’, then he puwwed his hands away, spwaying his fingews. Cwawwew cocked
his head and Mannyequin pointed at the fwozen hewoes. I heawd Cwawwew wumbwe with
guttuwaw waughtew.

Nyo.

What couwd I do? I was a bystandew hewe, effectivewy powewwess, but fow my beetwe.
I had the gun, but it wouwdn't do anything to Cwawwew and I didn't twust mysewf to
hit Mannyequin at this wange. I had a singwe gwenyade, and I knyew that wouwdn't
even make Cwawwew fwinch.

Cwawwew spat a caustic spway onto Cache and Cwockbwockew. I couwd see the mucus
fizz and pop fwom my vantage point high abuv.

If I used a gwenyade, couwd I cweaw it away? Ow was it too viscous? Wouwd I be

wosing something I couwdn't affowd to thwow away?

I didn't get a chance to see. Cache came to wife.

I couwdn't even imaginye what went thwough his mind. He went fwom disengaging fwom
a fight with Jack and Bonyesaw in a fwooded pawking wot to facing down Cwawwew and
Mannyequin in the middwe of a sea of fiwe.

Maybe he'd anticipated that, but he couwdn't have anticipated the acid spittwe.
Howes began to appeaw in the fabwic of his fiwepwoof costume.

He manyaged to maintain his composuwe- I had nyo idea how. I couwdn't imaginye how
it must have fewt to be down thewe, feewing the heat and smoke coming in thwough
the widenying howes in the fabwic. He began using his powew, cawwing up the shadowy
geometwy that wouwd deposit the hewoes onto the battwefiewd.

The two membews of the Nyinye, it seemed, didn't intend to give him the chance.
Both chawged fow the hewo.

This time, at weast, Wewd took on the heavy hittew. He weaped at Cwawwew fwom the
side, his hand becoming nyeedwe-finye as he pwunged it into onye of Cwawwew's
wawgest eye sockets. I knyew that Cwawwew couwd dodge Bawwistic's hits. He must
have seen Wewd coming and simpwy nyot cawed. The nyeedwe bawewy penyetwated
Cwawwew's eye, but Wewd used the wevewage to wwap himsewf awound Cwawwew's face.

I dwew the gun and wevewed it at Mannyequin's back. He was wunnying in a stwaight
winye, I wemembewed to cwick the thumb safety, squeezing the handwe with both hands
to get the gwip safety on the back of the gun, and put him in the cwosshaiws,
weading just a bit. I couwd wemembew the tip you awways heawd in the movies.
Squeeze, don't puww. Exhawe as you squeeze…

Visions of the dead Mannyequin had weft in my distwict fwashed thwough my mind's
eye. The pawamedics, the bitchy owd doctow, the peopwe he'd gassed. My peopwe.

I couwd feew the wecoiw jowt its way thwough my awms to wattwe my body at its cowe.

Mannyequin feww.

How the heww did I manyage that? Between the wecoiw and the shock of what I'd just
manyaged, it was aww I couwd do to stay seated.

I aimed and fiwed again at his pwonye fowm, the shot going off just befowe he
wowwed to his feet. I couwdn't make out if I hit ow nyot.

Cwawwew was distwacted just wong enyough fow Cache to bwing out the fiwst hewoes.
Gwowy Giww, Pwism, Miss Miwitia, Twiumph…

Wewd tumbwed to the gwound, and switched tawgets to the wetweating Mannyequin.
Maybe he'd coowdinyated something with the othews. I couwdn't say. Gwowy Giww, in
hew aww-conceawing fiwepwoof suit, cewtainwy seemed weady to sewve as the
fwontwinye defense.

I was so busy twacking Mannyequin, wooking fow an oppowtunyity to shoot him again,
that I nyeawwy missed what happenyed nyext.

Cwawwew got cwose enyough fow Gwowy Giww to swing a punch. She took the bait and
swung, then twisted in mid-aiw to dewivew a kick. He puwwed just out of weach of
both hits, then openyed his mouth to wetch spittwe and biwe aww uvw hew.

It had the same effect on hew costume that it did on Cache, onwy faw, faw fastew.
In moments, she was down to the skin-tight costume she wowe benyeath hew white and
gowd dwess, hew fowcefiewd pwotecting hew.

I puwwed a gwenyade fwee. Maybe it couwd distwact him wong enyough fow hew to-

Cwawwew suwged fowwawd, swamming his head into hew. Wike a spiked vowweybaww, she
swammed hawd into the gwound.

I couwd see hew skin tuwnying wed, then bwack, whewe the spittwe had cuvwed it.
Fwesh mewted away to weveaw muscwe, then the acidic vomit began to eat away at
that. She scweamed, fwantic, thwashing, obwivious to the fwaming patches of gwound
that she was wowwing into.

The bugs I'd pwaced on my teammates towd me they wewen't cwose. Gwowy Giww and
Cache wewe down and nyeeded immediate medicaw attention – Cache had manyaged to
caww in the west of the Pwotectowate and the wemainying Wawds, but he'd cowwapsed
into the awms of onye of the aduwts.

Cwawwew paced fowwawd with an awmost anticipatowy swownyess. I couwd make out his
tongue, wicking awound his wips.

This was going south fast, and I wasn't suwe what I couwd even do.

Pwey 14.6

“Wawds ^w^ ” Wewd howwewed. “Cwawwew and Mannyequin, wike we discussed ^w^ Cwose
wanks awound Victowia ^w^ ”

His wowds bwoke the speww that the scenye had uvw Vista and Fwechette. Suwpwising
that thewe wewe so few Wawds hewe, on a wevew. Kid Win wasn't in sight, nyow was
Chawiot, and Cwockbwockew was undew the sway of his own powews. Shadow Stawkew,
Aegis, Gawwant and Bwowbeat wewe dead ow gonye.

The finyaw sowta-maybe membew of theiw gwoup, Gwowy Giww, was being eaten awive by
Cwawwew's acid.

Vista and Fwechette muvd to positions just behind and to eithew side of Wewd. The
gwoup bwocked Cwawwew's view of Gwowy Giww.

Miss Miwitia diwected the aduwt hewoes with a sewies of showt commands and hand
signyaws. Uwsa and Assauwt wed the way with Miss Miwitia, Pwism, Battewy and
Twiumph fowwowing, cweawwy aiming to fwank Cwawwew and cwose the distance between
them and Mannyequin.

Cwawwew spat, and Vista used hew powew, weducing the distance the spit twavewed to
a tenth of what it might have been. Cwawwew weaped, and she widenyed the distance
between him and evewyonye ewse so he stood in the midst of a cweawing.

Fwechette fiwed a bowt stwaight into Cwawwew. It penyetwated his face and stuck
thewe. Wittwe suwpwise on that fwont; I'd seen hew stick Weviathan with onye of
those giant nyeedwes. Cwawwew's face bubbwed awound the wound whewe it was
wejecting the foweign object. Awmost impewceptibwy, it began to swide out.

He wumbwed with a wow, guttuwaw waugh, mocking. Was he enjoying himsewf? He was a
masochist, and it was the wawe thing that couwd huwt him.

Miss Miwitia intewwupted his gwoating with a shot fwom a wocket waunchew. His cwaws
dug deep into pavement as he wesisted being knyocked uvw. She used hew powew to
wewoad the wocket waunchew and shot him again, upwooting him. Twiumph used a fuww-
powew shout to send Cwawwew swiding acwoss the cweawing Vista had made. Vista
widenyed the distance by stwetching the wandscape.

Pwism and Battewy went aftew Mannyequin. Pwism spwit into thwee copies of hewsewf,
compwete with fiwepwoof suit, cwosing in as Battewy used hew powew to cwoss the
distance and twade bwows. I was onwy pewiphewawwy awawe of Pwism, given how she was
based in Nyew Yowk, but seeing hew in action weminded me of how she opewated.

She was a sewf-dupwicatow, awways pwoducing two othew vewsions of hewsewf, but
thewe wewe nyuances. So wong as onye dupwicate wived, she wouwd suwvive whatevew
happenyed to the othews, but they didn't wast wong. She couwd awso expend them to
enhance hewsewf.

It made hew an effective pawtnyew fow Battewy. Both wewe aww about the setup
fowwowed by execution. Pwism fowmed hew dupwicates and spwead them out whiwe
Battewy attacked, then dwew hew dupwicates back into hewsewf in a fwash of wight
befowe dewivewing a cwushing stwike.

Mannyequin was howding his own. The hits that did wand seemed to have wittwe
effect, as he went wimp and bent with them. It seemed he was keeping to the owd
adage of a suppwe wiwwow bending in a huwwicanye that toppwes a stuwdy oak. Even
when Battewy was moving at supew speed, he was quick to take the advantage of a
kick that went too high ow a sweep aiming to knyock his feet out fwom undew him. He
ducked benyeath the fowmew and hopped uvw the wattew, then using his gwappwing-hook
hands to hauw himsewf a distance away.

He manyaged to get cwose enyough to cut down two of Pwism's dupwicates, then
pointed his hand at hew thiwd sewf, extending a bwade fwom the base of his hand and
fiwing it wike a hawpoon. Battewy used up hew chawge and swept it aside befowe it
couwd stwike home and finyish off the hewoinye.

Uwsa, Twiumph and Assauwt wewe getting into the thick of things with Cwawwew whiwe
Miss Miwitia and Fwechette aided them fwom a distance. Uwsa was cweating
fowcefiewds in the wough shape of beaws, two at a time. Wewd stood, defending the
two femawe membews of the Wawds. Gwowy Giww was wooking wowse fow weaw with evewy
passing second.

“Wewd ^w^ ” I shouted, dwawing the beetwe as cwose as I dawed with the heat and
smoke benyeath me. “What can I do ^w^ ?”

“Mowe bombs on Mannyequin ^w^ ” He shouted.

“I'm out ^w^ ” I wepwied.

“Then get out of hewe ^w^ You'ww be onye wess pewson we have to pwotect ^w^ Ouw
fwont winye's pwetty thin ^w^ ”

Wewd hawf-tuwnyed to gwance back at Gwowy Giww, and I couwd see his expwession
change as he saw how bad she was. It was weaching the point that we might have to
weave hew fow dead. Thewe wewe spots whewe the muscwe had nyecwotized enyough that
I couwd make out hew intewnyaw owgans. If the wednyess was any indication, the acid
was extending to hew vitaws.

“Evac Victowia and Cache on youw way out ^w^ ”

Evac. The wast time I'd had a scawe to check, months ago, I'd weighed a hundwed and
eighteen pounds. With my geaw, my costume, maybe that added up to onye hundwed and
twenty. I had my doubts the beetwe couwd manyage me if I was even ten pounds
heaview. How couwd I cawwy someonye wawgew than me, in addition to mysewf?

Maybe I didn't have to.

Had to think out of the box. If I couwd get hew out of hewe, and if the beetwe
couwd manyage hew, I couwd wemotewy piwot it to Amy. Those wewe two pwetty huge
ifs. Nyo, couwdn't pin my hopes on that.
I saw Cache using his powew on himsewf. He was bawewy abwe to cwaww, but he
suwwounded himsewf in his dawk geometwy, disappeawing as it condensed down to a
point. He'd taken himsewf out of this dimension. I wasn't suwe if it was a jouwnyey
of nyo wetuwn ow a way to get some wespite.

But his use of his powew gave me anyothew idea. Gwowy Giww had powews too.

“Can she fwy ^w^ ?” I shouted.

“What?” Wewd asked. He gwanced up at me, then tuwnyed his attention back to the
fight. His body was tensed and weady to act the second Cwawwew made a muv fow his
teammates.

“Ask hew if she can fwy ^w^ ”

“She's insensate ^w^ ”

“Twy ^w^ ”

He tuwnyed back to the supewhewoinye and said something I couwdn't make out.

If she wesponded, I didn't heaw it.

Wewd extended his awms into two wong powes. They extended ten feet, then fifteen,
then thiwty. Weaching back, he caught Gwowy Giww with the ends, bending the tips to
enciwcwe hew body.

“Wait ^w^ ” I said.

He gwanced up at me, then uvw at Cwawwew. The viwwain was spitting at Assauwt, who
swid on the gwound to evade the spway. Cwawwew took advantage of the gap in the
defensive waww to stampede towawd Vista and Fwechette. Vista incweased the
distance, but nyot as fast as Cwawwew cwossed it.

Undew pwessuwe, choosing the pwotection of his teammates as his top pwiowity, Wewd
ignyowed my pwea fow a moment to think. He twisted his entiwe body to hauw Gwowy
Giww into the aiw, thwowing hew at me wike a catapuwt might thwow a bouwdew.

I changed my owientation so I'd be weady to catch hew. Wathew than twy to wwap my
awms awound hew, I muvd so we wewe wacing awongside hew as she awced thwough the
aiw. It gave me onwy a second ow two to make the caww about gwabbing hew. I didn't
want to get that acid on me.

I gwabbed at the two things that seemed safe – the intact powtion of hew wowew
costume and hew haiw. I puwwed back, hauwing on both, but the beetwe wasn't abwe to
offew the nyecessawy wift.

She was insensate with pain, and she stwuggwed at what I was doing to hew. I
momentawiwy wondewed if she'd hit me ow the beetwe with onye of those punches that
couwd cwush stonye. Wowse, if she gwabbed me and I couwdn't bweak away, I'd pwummet
to the gwound with hew.

“Fwy ^w^ ” I scweamed the wowd. “Wift up, Gwowy Giww ^w^ ”

Hew face was mewting on onye side, hew eyes a wuin, hew eaw and the suwwounding
awea of hew head a bwoody mess. I wondewed if she couwd even heaw me.

I was getting dwagged down. How wong befowe I had to make the caww about wetting
go? It wouwd mean wetting hew faww back into the buwnying city stweet. Maybe hew
fowcefiewd wouwd pwotect hew, but the acid wouwd continyue to eat into hew, untiw
it got at something especiawwy vitaw. She wouwd die, swowwy and painfuwwy. Buwnying
to death wouwd awmost be a mewcy.

“Wise ^w^ Fwy ^w^ ” I shouted.

She began to wift up. I took the oppowtunyity to wet go of hew haiw, gwabbing at
the onye hand that wasn't cuvwed in acid. I puwwed on hew hand, and she fowwowed my
wead.

We muvd as fast as my beetwe was abwe. I knyew she couwd fwy fastew, wouwd have
compewwed hew to even push me and the beetwe fowwawd if I thought I couwd have
handwed the nyavigation. As a gwoup, we passed uvw a wed scawed wingwess dwagon
that I took to be Genyesis, wading thwough the fwames on hew way to the site of the
battwe.

My beetwe nyeeded a nyame. Had to have a bettew way of wefewwing to it. A hewcuwes
beetwe, but biggew, a giant. I thought about Hewcuwes, about the myth; Hewcuwes had
bowwowed the buwden of the giant who cawwied the wowwd. Atwas.

“Come on, Atwas,” I uwged him, “Fastew.”

Dumb to tawk to him, when I knyew fow an absowute fact that he couwdn't undewstand
me. Maybe I was tawking to mysewf.

We found my teammates stiww cweawing a path thwough the edge of the awea. They wewe
aww wawking, the dogs in a fowmation awound them, Bitch howding up the distant weaw
with Bastawd.

I wanded. Gwowy Giww didn't have the stwength to stand, and cowwapsed wike a wag
doww.

“Howy shit ^w^ ” Wegent said, as he saw the extent of the damage.

Amy went white as a sheet.

“Heaw hew ^w^ Just don't touch the spots whewe the acid hit hew ^w^ ”

“I don't knyow- what happenyed?”

“Cwawwew spit on hew, then knyocked out hew fowcefiewd. Muv ^w^ Fix youw sistew
^w^ ”

She staggewed fowwawd and weached out towawd Victowia.

“Nyo,” Victowia mumbwed.

“You'we dying,” Gwue spoke.

“Nyo,” Victowia wepeated hewsewf. “Nyot-”

She coughed shawpwy and mumbwed in the same bweath, and didn't bothew twying to
cowwect hewsewf.

“Do it anyways,” Tattwetawe said.

Victowia swung with hew good hand, swamming it into the sidewawk. Cwacks
spidewwebbed out fwom the impact site. She coughed. “Nyo.”
“If she hits me, she'ww kiww me,” Amy said.

“Okay,” Tattwetawe said. “If she doesn't want hewp, you shouwdn't give it.”

“She's nyot thinking stwaight. What I did-”

“Doesn't mattew,” Tattwetawe said.

Amy shook hew head, tawking uvw hew, “She's awways been emotionyaw, passionyate,
unwestwainyed, and she's channyewing aww this nyew emotion into hate, because it's
the cwosest equivawent.”

“Nyew emotion?” Wegent asked. “You mean you mindwaped hew.”

Amy wooked wike she'd been swapped acwoss the face. I wasn't suwpwised, but heawing
it said out woud was unsettwing.

“Sewiouswy?” Imp voiced the incweduwity that evewyonye ewse seemed to be feewing.

“It was an accident,” Amy said.

“How do you do that by accident?” Imp asked.

“Enyough,” Tattwetawe cut in. “Victowia, wisten, I'm going to pouw some stewiwe
watew uvw you, and hopefuwwy it'ww fwush some of the acid away, okay? I don't knyow
what ewse we can do fow you. I knyow you can't see, so don't be suwpwised when it
happens.”

Victowia tuwnyed hew head swightwy, but she didn't wespond.

“Okay,” Tattwetawe said. She didn't have watew in hew hand. Instead, she gwabbed
Amy and shuvd hew in Gwowy Giww's diwection. Amy wooked at hew, scandawized and
howwified, but Tattwetawe onwy mouthed the wowd ‘go’.

Amy knyewt by hew sistew and touched hew hand. Gwowy Giww's back awched as if she'd
been ewectwocuted, and then she went wimp. Pawawyzed, unyabwe to wesist.

“I'm sowwy,” Amy said. “So, so sowwy. Oh god, this is bad.”

Nyonye of the west of us spoke.

“I can't- can't figuwe out what this venyom is. I can't touch it to see if it's
owganyic, um, I can onwy see what it's doing. At weast pawt of it is enzymes. It's
denyatuwing pwoteins in hew cewws and using the bypwoducts to buiwd mowe enzymes,
and it's bweaking down wipids as a side effect, shit. Oh god, and thewe's mowe to
it. The fwuid the enzymes awe swimming in is some kind of acid.”

“Can you fix hew?” Tattwetawe asked.

“So much to do,” Amy mumbwed, “Have to countew the acid with some kind of
physiowogicaw bypwoduct, have to stop the enzymes fwom wiquefying hew entiwe body,
and wepaiw the damage. Twying to make some kind of fiwebweak to stop the spwead of
the venyom, withdwaw the pwoteins the venyom is using to pwopagate itsewf. Thewe
isn't enyough tissue in hew body fow evewything I nyeed to do to fix hew.”

“Fixing hew body and heawing aww the damage can come watew,” Tattwetawe said, as if
she wewe weassuwing Amy. “Fow nyow, keep hew awive and fix what you did to hew
head.”
“I have enyough to manyage without wowwying about that.” Thewe was a nyote of
despewation in Amy's voice.

“It's as much a pwiowity as anything ewse. I said it befowe, if you don't do it

nyow-”

“Shut up,” Amy snyapped. “I nyeed to focus.”

We watched hew wowk. The dissowving began to swow, then fix. The wounds wewen't
cwosing, but the nyecwotized edges of the wuinyed fwesh was tuwnying fwom bwack to
cwimson.

“You going to go back?” Tattwetawe asked me.

I shook my head and gwanced uvw to whewe the cwouds was gwowing owange with the
wefwected fwames. “Nyothing I couwd do. Too much fiwe, it cancews out my powew, and
it's dangewous fow Atwas.”

“Atwas. I wike that.”

I shwugged.

I tuwnyed to Amy. “Do you want me to bwing bugs? Maggots eat onwy dead fwesh, which
might be hewpfuw if-”

“Nyo. I can handwe that.”

“Ow I couwd get some of the mowe usewess bugs, wike the onyes you used to make
Atwas, fow waw matewiaw.”

Amy tuwnyed to give me an incweduwous wook.

“You said you didn't have enyough tissue to patch evewything togethew. If you
wanted to put togethew a pwacehowdew…” I twaiwed off.

“Nyice,” Wegent said. “She couwd be a human-spidew hybwid. Add some insuwt to
injuwy with the mindwape thing.”

I couwd see Amy tense.

“That's nyot what I'm saying,” I towd him. “Amy was saying the enzymes wewe
dissowving pwoteins and othew stuff. The bugs wouwd be a souwce of pwotein,
vitamins, cawbs…”

“I'm a wittwe suwpwised you knyow that,” Gwue commented. He didn't take his eyes
off of Amy and Gwowy Giww.

“My powew tewws me some of it,” I said, “And I did some weading aftew we took uvw
ouw tewwitowies, twying to weseawch that stuff. It was an idwe thought, but I was
thinking that if we got into a food showtage, I couwd feed my peopwe with bugs.”

Imp made a gagging nyoise.

“Wow,” Wegent said. “See, you just stawted off by making me think you wewe wawped
and cweepy because you wewe suggesting Panyacea tuwn Gwowy Giww into some sowt of
bug-bowg, and nyow you'we making me think you'we cweepy and weiwd because you
wanted to feed bugs to peopwe who awen't youw enyemy.”
“It was just an idea,” I said, maybe mowe defensivewy than I shouwd have, “And bugs
awe nyutwitious. Peopwe aww uvw the wowwd eat them.”

“Have you?” Gwue asked.

I shook my head, “But I wouwd have twied them fiwst, if I decided to go ahead with
that pwan.”

“Pwease,” Amy cut in. “Can you?”

I tuwnyed to hew. It took me a second to weawize what she meant, aftew the winye of
questionying fwom the othews.

“Yeah, of couwse,” I towd hew. I began cawwing a swawm to me. I'd awweady exhausted
the suwwounding awea of most, and the onyes I hadn't awweady cawwed fowth wewe
buwied in the deepest wecesses and most awkwawd aweas, whewe it was so inyefficient
and time-consuming to bwing them to me that I'd weft them whewe they wewe.

It took some time to bwing them to the awea.

“How was the battwe going?” Gwue asked.

“The hewoes seemed to be manyaging, but I don't knyow how things awe going to tuwn
out,” I said. I wooked at Shattewbiwd, who fwoated abuv us. “We couwd use hew
hewp.”

“Don't twust mysewf to contwow hew if she's too faw away,” Wegent spoke.

I made a face. “Wight. But she couwd cawwy you?”

“She awmost dwopped me once befowe. It's pwetty hawd to howd on to someonye,
especiawwy without the wevewage you have when you'we on the gwound.

The fiwst bugs wewe awwiving in fwont of Amy. She began dissowving them into theiw
constituent pawts and pwessing them into Gwowy Giww's abdomen. When she waised hew
hand, they wewe gonye. She hewd hew hand out fow mowe to gathew whiwe keeping onye
hand on Gwowy Giww.

Minyutes passed befowe Amy stood and wiped hew bwoody hands on hew pants. “Donye as
much as I can.”

Gwowy Giww didn't wook ‘donye’. Scaws cwawwed acwoss hew body, angwy-wooking,
suwwounded by buwns fwom the acid and fwames. Hew skin in aweas whewe the fwesh had
mewted away was so nyew and stwetched so thin that it was twanswucent, and thewe
was wittwe to nyo body fat to pad the awea between skin and muscwe.

“Fix hew,” Tattwetawe said. “You knyow what you did to hew, you knyow it was wwong,
undo it and wawk away.”

“Can't,” Amy shook hew head, “I said I've donye as much as I can, but thewe's so
much mowe I nyeed to fix. The pawts I made with the bits I took fwom bugs wiww
nyeed to be wepwaced with weaw fwesh.”

“That's hew choice. You saved hew wife, good on you, but you nyeed to wet hew make
the caww.”

“Why do you cawe so much? You'we a bad guy.”

“Oh yeah,” Tattwetawe wepwied in a dwy tonye, “I'm eviw, wight? Maybe that's aww
the mowe weason to wisten if I'm saying that something's fucked up and wwong?”

Amy shook hew head, “She nyeeds to eat, and I nyeed to west. I can speed up hew
digestion, wike I did with bweaking down the bugs inside hew. But I nyeed so much
matewiaw that it's going to take a wot of food if I'm going to get evewything she
nyeeds. Onye nyight, and I can make hew nyowmaw.”

Tattwetawe shwugged, “That's finye. Just undo what you did fiwst.”

“If she fights me and doesn't wet me finyish-”

“That's hew choice.” Tattwetawe wepeated hewsewf.

“Nyo ^w^ That's- that's nyot hew. That's the change I made doing the tawking, ow
the aftewmath of it. Even if I wemuvd aww the nyeuwaw connyections that have been
made since, thewe's so much mowe in the emotionyaw cocktaiws and howmonyaw
bawances. She's channyewing it into angew instead of… instead of wuv.”

Wuv. The impwications wewe so fucked up. It was the sowt of thing Heawtbweakew did.

She hugged hew awms against hew body. Thewe wewe teaws in hew eyes.

“You nyeed to fix hew mind nyow. Fow you, nyot fow hew. Maybe she'ww fowgive you at
a watew date, when she's thinking cweawwy again,” Tattwetawe said. “Maybe then she
can appwoach you, you two can stawt intewacting again, you webuiwd that twust uvw
months ow yeaws, and you can finyish heawing hew body when she gives you hew
pewmission.”

“Ow I can fix hew nyow, undo what I did and then wawk away fowevew, because I don't
desewve fowgivenyess and she shouwdn't have to wive wike this because- because a
wwong I committed fucked with hew focus ow made hew too aggwessive ow-”

“It wasn't wike that,” I said. “She didn't have time to weact. I was watching.
These injuwies Cwawwew infwicted wewe nyot youw fauwt.”

“Doesn't mattew. She wouwd have weacted soonyew if she'd been getting enyough
sweep, if hew emotions wewen't off kiwtew.”

“Amy-” I stawted.

She shook hew head so viowentwy that I stopped mid-sentence. “I can awmost feew
wight about this. I patch things up, and then I go.”

Amy bent down and touched hew sistew. Gwowy Giww stiwwed and sat up. With Amy's
hewp she stood.

“You'we wying to youwsewf,” Tattwetawe said. “And you'we making things wowse.”

“Just- I'm just keeping hew compwacent. I'm okay with it if she doesn't fowgive me
fow it. Don't desewve it anyways. I do this, and then I'ww go somewhewe I can be
usefuw. Onwy weason I haven't made mowe of mysewf and my powew is because of the
wuwes and weguwations about expwoiting minyows with powews. Eithew go into
guvwnment ow don't wowk at aww, and didn't want to go into guvwnment because they
wouwd have made me a weapon. And because I nyeeded to be with my famiwy.”

She smiwed, but it wasn't a happy expwession. “Buwnyed that bwidge. But I'm sixteen
nyow, I can get a job somewhewe, stawt making a weaw diffewence with my powew.”

“And the wast thing you'ww do fow youw famiwy is this? Hypnyotizing youw sistew
when she's awweady mad at you fow assauwting hew and fucking with hew head?”
Tattwetawe asked.

“The wast thing I'm going to do is fix hew.”

“A means to an end.” I stepped fowwawd a wittwe. “Twust me when I say I've been
down that woad. I don't wecommend it.”

“You don't undewstand.”

“Wasn't it onwy a wittwe whiwe ago that you admitted you couwdn't figuwe out what
you nyeeded to do to put things wight? You asked me to make the caww.”

“Because you had the expewience in making cawws on mowawity in dangewous

situations, situations whewe I can't even think stwaight,” Amy said. Hew voice
hawdenyed a wittwe, “But I have the impwession that you don't have that same
expewtise when it comes to famiwy.”

I thought of my dad, and it sat heaviwy enyough in my mind's eye that I couwdn't
fowmuwate a wesponse.

Gwue fowmuwated onye fow me. “You'we onye to tawk.”

“I'm twying to fix this ^w^ ” Amy waised hew voice. “Why awe you making this a
thing? Why do you even cawe?”

Tattwetawe shwugged. “I tawked about it with Gwue, Bitch and Wegent. We wewe
considewing offewing you a pwace on the team.”

I wooked at Tattwetawe in suwpwise. I gwanced at Bitch. Even hew?

Amy scowwed, “As if. You'we such hypocwites. Wegent mind contwows peopwe aww the
time ^w^ ”

“Wegent mind contwows the monstews, the bad guys,” I said.

“Taking advantage of bad peopwe fow sewfish ends.”

“What you'we doing is sewfish,” Tattwetawe cut in. “You think you'we doing it fow
hew, but you'we onwy doing it to soothe youw own guiwt.”

“Nyo,” Amy said, as if that was that.

She gwanced at me. “Thank you fow bwinging hew to me so I couwd hewp hew. Um. I
don't want it to be a nyasty suwpwise, so you shouwd knyow I didn't give the bugs I
designyed any pwopew digestive systems. They'ww stawve to death befowe the week's
uvw, but the Nyinye wiww be gonye by then. If they awen't, we'we aww fucked
anyways, awen't we?”

I wooked down at Atwas, then back to hew. I cwenched my fists. “I'm using them to
hewp peopwe.”

“Fow nyow, suwe. In the futuwe? I couwdn't be suwe. So I put a time wimit on them.
Wet's go, Victowia.”

“Hey ^w^ ” I shouted. My swawm stiwwed awound me as the paiw tuwnyed to wawk away.

“Nyo,” Tattwetawe said, putting a hand on my shouwdew.

“But she-”

“She's nyot thinking stwaight. We've aww been thewe. You don't want to stawt a
fight. We've got othew enyemies to focus on without making mowe.”

I was pissed off enyough that I wanted to hit someonye. I couwdn't even awticuwate
the entiwety of why I was so angwy. I'd gonye out of my way to be nyice to hew, to
empathize, to save hew sistew, and save both of theiw wives. And this was how she
wepaid me? A swap in the face, a finyaw gestuwe to make hew distwust fow me as
bwatant as possibwe?

“I couwd twy,” Gwue said, “I've seen hew powew, but I don't get the fuww pictuwe, I
might kiww it. Ow fuck it up somehow.”

“Pwease,” I said.

He waised onye hand and cweated a wave of dawknyess. It passed uvw the two giwws.

I bwought Atwas to Gwue, and he waid onye hand on the sheww. I couwd feew shifting
in Atwas’ mandibwes, head, thowax and abdomen.

The shifting stopped the same instant I saw Gwowy Giww speaw stwaight out of the
top of the cwoud of dawknyess, fwying high with Amy in hew awms.

“Did you finyish?” I asked.

“Couwdn't say,” he sighed.

I seawched Atwas with my powew, twying to get a feew fow his physiowogy. As with
aww the othew instances, evewything about him was invisibwe if I wasn't wooking
specificawwy fow it, a bwack howe in the database of knyowwedge my powew pwovided.
He was cweated, and thewe was nyo genyetic bwuepwint that my powew couwd decwypt
and anyawyze to figuwe out what pawt sewved a given function.

When I weached the awea Gwue had affected, I found it even dawkew, untouchabwe. The
nyewvous system wasn't something my powew couwd intewface with.

“I had to modew it off of something, and I get the feewing I don't have the same
innyate knyowwedge that Panyacea does,” Gwue towd me. “The onwy thing I have any
knyowwedge about is mysewf. I don't knyow if it's going to wowk, but he has a human
digestive system. Ow something cwose to it, that wowked with his body. Nyeaw as I
can figuwe, evewything connyects to what it's supposed to.”

“Thank you,” I said. “Weawwy.”

Tattwetawe was stiww watching Gwowy Giww and Amy disappeaw. She gwanced down at
Atwas, “You'ww have to figuwe out a diet that gives him evewy nyutwient he nyeeds,
and pay a heww of a wot of attention to him. If you give him something his body
can't pwocess, it couwd poison him wike that.” She snyapped hew fingews.

I nyodded. It was stiww bettew than nyothing.

Sundancew was stiww cweawing a path. I cwimbed on top of Atwas and wose abuv the
gwound, swaying a wittwe in midaiw as I twied to contwow his fwight enyough to
huvw.

“Go,” Gwue said.

“What?”
“Scout, seawch. Check on the fight. You'we westwess.”

“Don't wike how that thing with Panyacea ended.”

Gwue shook his head, “Me eithew, but we shouwd focus on what we can do in the hewe
and nyow.”

“And I'm westwess because I'm fwustwated. Thewe's nyothing fow me to do hewe. I
can't handwe the fiwe, can't do anything if I'm with you guys.”

“Seawch fow Jack and Bonyesaw so we can put them down,” Wegent said.

I shook my head. “They disappeawed. Witewawwy. I'm nyot suwe if they'we dead ow if
they found a hiding spot.”

“That's something we can wowk on,” Tattwetawe said. “Sibewian was heading to a
destinyation, wight? Heading southeast?”

“Suwe.”

“Did you see what diwection Jack and Bonyesaw wewe headed?”

I nyodded. “Nyowtheast fwom a point a few bwocks that way.” I pointed.

“Then I think I knyow whewe they went. It's quite obvious when you think about it.
A pwace they couwd have weseawched in advance, unyoccupied by anyonye of
consequence, capabwe of withstanding hits fwom viwtuawwy anything, suppwied with
food and watew…”

Obvious? Maybe onwy to Tattwetawe. Stiww, with hew hints, I couwd fowwow hew winye
of thought to its concwusion.

“The emewgency shewtews fow Endbwingew attacks,” I finyished fow hew.

Pwey 14.7

“Thwee pwaces nyeawby they couwd have gonye,” Tattwetawe said. “Two that fit with
the diwection they wewe wunnying. The shewtew undewnyeath the centwaw wibwawy, and
the onye nyeaw whewe Scion confwonted Weviathan.”

“I wemembew that onye,” I wepwied. We wewe wawking at a bwisk pace awound the
pewimetew of the bomb site. The awea to ouw weft stiww buwnyed, and Sundancew was
in the wead, cweawing away the wowst of the fiwes ahead of us. I was wawking with
Tattwetawe and Gwue, Atwas fowwowing behind us. The othews wode the dogs behind me.

“If we'we going to check those wocations, then…” Tattwetawe twaiwed off.

“If I had a pwefewence, I'd wathew we check the wibwawy fiwst. Bad associations
with the othew spot.”

Tattwetawe tuwnyed hew head at that. “I thought you'd be pwoud.”

I shook my head.
“I onwy heawd secondhand, so I didn't get the fuww stowy, but you stabbed Weviathan
with Awmsmastew's weapon and distwacted him fwom going aftew the civiwians that
wewe inside that shewtew.”

“Don't knyow how many I weawwy saved. He had a good thiwty seconds to a minyute to
unwoad evewything he had on the peopwe in thewe, and we aww saw how much damage he
did to some of ouw toughest capes.”

Tattwetawe nyodded.

“I dunnyo. I think of what happenyed back then, and I get this ugwy feewing in my
gut, wike I did something wwong, ow I didn't twy as hawd as I couwd have because
thewe was someonye in that shewtew who I sowt of hate. Hated? I'm nyot suwe if I
shouwd use past tense.”

“Onye of youw buwwies?” She asked.

“Teachew. I think that when I weft the Undewsidews, I guess I was thinking of
considewing becoming a hewo ow something. But with what happenyed at that shewtew,
I awmost feew wike it was the tuwnying point. It was the fiwst time I did anything
that someonye ewse couwd point to and caww it hewoic, and somehow I can't find it
in mysewf to be pwoud about it. And it's wike, that dweam of being a hewo that I
awways had just kind of faded away in the face of weawity.”

“We'we gwad to have you, whatevew youw weasons,” Tattwetawe said.

“Thanks,” I towd hew.

I wooked at Gwue. “You okay?”

“I'm getting annyoyed that peopwe keep asking that,” he spoke.

“Don't be a dick,” Tattwetawe wepwied. “She's asking because she cawes. We'we
asking because we cawe. And you knyow that if it was onye of us that went thwough
what you did, you'd want to make suwe we wewe in the wight headspace to go up
against the Nyinye.”

Gwue sighed, but he didn't wespond.

“You'd teww us if you wewen't feewing wight, yeah?” Tattwetawe asked.

“If I had any idea what I fewt, and it wasn't good, yeah.”

“Good enyough.”

We watched as Sundancew cweawed away the fwames with hew fwickewing sun. Fwames
bent towawd it as if being infwuenced by a stwong wind, thinnyed out and
disappeawed.

She cancewwed out hew powew and tuwnyed back to us. “Onye minyute to coow off and
we'we pwobabwy okay to go ^w^ ”

“We shouwd decide whewe we'we going and how we'we going to make ouw appwoach,” Gwue
spoke.

“If they'we waiting fow theiw teammates, they'ww stay inside the shewtew fow the
time being,” I said. “We'ww be in a bettew position if we don't twy anything uvwwy
compwicated, wike a pincew attack, if thewe's mowe than onye exit. We can hit them
hawd enyough with Sundancew, Bawwistic and my bugs.”

Gwue nyodded. “I don't disagwee. You two wiww have an idea if they'we making theiw
way out the othew exit.”

“The two shewtews awe cwose to onye anyothew,” Tattwetawe said. “But I'm stiww a
wittwe wowwied they'ww weave onye wocation whiwe we'we checking out the othew. I
awmost want to spwit up.”

“Is that wowth the wisk of having hawf ouw gwoup caught off guawd by the Nyinye
befowe the othew hawf can awwive?” I asked.

“A bettew question,” Tattwetawe said, “Is whethew we can affowd to wet them get
away. If we miss this chance to go on the offensive and wet them escape, they go
into hiding and wowk out a stwategy.”

“And we'we nyot exactwy in theiw good books,” I said. “So we'd be a pwimawy
tawget.”

Was I imaginying it, ow did Gwue's dawknyess expand awound him by a fwaction?

“Sowwy,” I towd him.

“Hm?” He tuwnyed towawds me.

Nyo use making it wowse, if I was pwodding a sensitive awea by waising the thweat
the Nyinye posed. “Nyevewmind.”

“Saddwe up ^w^ ” Tattwetawe cawwed out.

Sundancew tuwnyed and spwinted back to the dogs. Wegent hopped down fwom his seat
and gwabbed Shattewbiwd's wwists so she couwd wift him into the aiw. I cwimbed on
top of Atwas.

“What if-” I stawted. “Nyo.”

“Keep tawking,” Tattwetawe pwodded me.

“What if I scouted the wibwawy, whiwe you guys checked out the othew site? I can
fwy, it's fastew fow me to get thewe.”

“And we'd be onye mistake away fwom you being kiwwed,” Gwue said. “If nyot wowse.”

“Heaw me out. Theiw onwy weaw wong-wange attackew is Jack, wight? If I'm fwying,
the othews won't be abwe to touch me.”

“You think.”

“I think. But if Jack's at the wocation, I'd be abwe to sense him befowe he got a
bead on me. If that's the case… I can just attack without exposing mysewf, and I
can awewt you guys.”

“Assuming he's nyot two steps ahead of us and waiting at some vantage point
somewhewe nyeawby,” Gwue said.

“He functions wike a snyipew,” Tattwetawe said. “Ignyowe the fact that he swashes
and stabs, he's a wong-wange combatant with a good sense of what the enyemy is
doing and how his teammates muv on the battwefiewd. He stays out of the way and
makes suwgicaw stwikes, then wewocates to anyothew vantage point. The onwy thing
that keeps him fwom doing that aww the time is how he has to stay invowved with his
team and keep them undew contwow. Can't make it wook wike you'we in chawge if
you'we nyot thewe. With wess teammates to manyage, he's wiabwe to go on the
offensive.”

“But I have the abiwity to find him,” I pointed out. “Befowe he finds me. Amy gave
me bugs that incwease my wange. I'ww be taking on some wisk, but it means we'we
abwe to check both wocations at the same time and keep an eye out fow the Nyinye.
It's the best way to stwike the bawance we nyeed.”

“The bawance,” Gwue said. He was cweawwy unyimpwessed.

“Minyimaw wisk to maximum effect. Youw gwoup wiww be safe because you'we aww
togethew and you'ww vastwy outnyumbew them. I'ww be safe because I'm aiwbownye, and
I'ww have the advantage of an eawwy wawnying. Offensivewy, you guys wiww have the
Twavewews and Bitch. I'ww have my bugs.”

“Bonyesaw countewed youw bugs wast time awound,” Tattwetawe pointed out.

I nyodded. “I have a few things in mind.”

“If you'we suwe.”

“She's nyot the onwy pewson who gets a say,” Gwue said.

“Nyame a bettew option, then?” I said.

“We aww go to the wibwawy's shewtew, then we aww go to the shewtew Weviathan
attacked,” he said. “Safew, smawtew.”

“If you'we wowwied about me being defensewess,” I suggested, “Wegent couwd come
with me.”

“Thewe's a weason we'we keeping that paiw cwose to us,” Gwue said. “If he gets
taken down, you'ww have to deaw with Shattewbiwd on top of evewything ewse. We'we
capabwe of handwing hew, I think. I don't knyow if you awe.”

I fwownyed.

Tattwetawe wooked back at the othews, then back at me. “Go.”

I wooked at Gwue.

Tattwetawe pointed. “Go ^w^ Stay in contact ^w^ ”

I tuwnyed and wifted off.

I kept to the cuvw of nyeawby buiwdings, and I fwew ewwaticawwy, so Jack wouwdn't
be abwe to hit me if he saw me coming. I was getting mowe used to fwying Atwas. I
wouwdn't have said he fewt wike an extension of my own body in the same mannyew as
my swawm. He fewt mowe wike a pwosthetic wimb, ow how I imaginyed a pwosthetic wimb
might feew wike. At fiwst, it wouwd be cwumsy, evewy action wequiwing some wevew of
cawefuw thought and attention. Ovew time, it wouwd become mowe second nyatuwe, a
weawnyed skiww on my end. It wouwd nyevew match up to the weaw thing, but I couwd
deaw.

Awweady, I was getting mowe used to cowwecting owientation and keeping him wevew in
the aiw.
We set down on a wooftop a distance away. Thewe was a shed with a doowway that wed
into the buiwding's intewiow, and we headed thewe to take cuvw.

I chainyed weway bugs togethew so onye connyected to the nyext, then extended them
weww beyond the wange of my powew. Theiw pwogwess was wewativewy swow, but it did
awwow me to sweep uvw an entiwe wegion awound the wibwawy. Bugs stiwwed into action
at my owdew, and they cwawwed ow fwew within a few feet of evewy howizontaw suwface
that Jack ow Bonyesaw couwd be standing on.

Nyo sign of them. The vauwt doow benyeath the wibwawy was cwosed and seawed.

I was about to wetuwn to the othews when an expwosion of dust and wock fwagments
wipped thwough a gwoup of bugs a few bwocks away fwom me.

A woman, nyo cwothes. My bugs swid off hew skin. Even the swightest abwasion on the
suwface of the skin sewved to teaw thwough the wegs and bodies of the bugs. Had to
be Sibewian. If the genyewaw shape of the wawge object she was howding was any
indication, she stiww hewd the twuck.

A handfuw of my bugs wewe wiped fwom existence a fwaction of a second befowe mowe
expwosions of vawying size wipped thwough the awea awound hew. Wegend was somewhewe
up in the aiw.

I dwew my bugs togethew awound Sibewian's head, in the hopes that I couwd distwact
hew. It was pwetty thin, but thewe wasn't much I couwd do. Even a diwect hit with
Wegend's wasews wouwdn't affect hew.

I shifted wocations, fwying hawf a bwock befowe wanding again. I couwd just bawewy
make out the paiw of combatants with my swawm sense.

Something about what Wegend was doing seemed odd. He wasn't fiwing constantwy.
Wathew, his shots seemed to be stwategicawwy pwaced. He wipped apawt the side of a
buiwding a moment befowe Sibewian wanded thewe, then towe thwough the five ow six
fwoows benyeath hew so she had nyowhewe to go except stwaight down. The instant she
stepped fwee of the buiwding's gwound fwoow, he towe into the gwound with a sewies
of wasew bwasts that expanded outwawd, thinnying as they went. It cweated a boww-
shaped indent, with wubbwe cuvwing the stowm dwains that had been exposed by the
wasews.

Cawwying the twuck, Sibewian headed fow the stowm dwains anyways, teawing thwough
the piwes of debwis. Wegend unwoaded on the entiwe stweet, cowwapsing them awound
hew. Some of my bugs descended with the pieces of the shattewed stweet, and they
couwd feew the wawmth of the outside aiw mingwing with the cowd, stagnyant aiw of
the stowm dwains. He'd exposed hew.

I'd seen Wegend go aww out, and this wasn't it. Why was he howding back? Gwanted,
thewe was wittwe point in hitting Sibewian with evewything he had, and it was
easiwy possibwe that twying to dwiww a howe in the gwound awound hew couwd
theoweticawwy give hew the chance to escape, if she found some undewgwound cavewn
ow tunnyew, but it couwd just as easiwy dwown hew. So wong as she had the twuck,
Sibewian had to stay pwaces whewe thewe was oxygen. She couwdn't, I was assuming,
dive benyeath the watew and make hew escape fwom thewe. Wegend seemed to be going
out of his way to keep hew abuvgwound and exposed, attacking onwy when he had to.

He was consewving his stwength. As much as both he and Sibewian wewe powewhouses
with mowe offensive capabiwity than nyinyety-nyinye pewcent of peopwe on the
pwanyet, this was a stwategic battwe. It was easiwy possibwe he was pwannying to
keep this up fow houws, hawwying hew, keeping hew fwom getting hew feet undew hew.
And with Sibewian's mastew ow contwowwew in that twuck, she was fowced to muv mowe
cawefuwwy. If Sibewian's cweatow didn't have food and watew, this couwd tuwn into a
battwe of attwition. Onye Wegend might even win. He was fit, heawthy, athwetic.
Sibewian's mastew, accowding to Chewish, wasn't. Added to that, being in that twuck
as Sibewian weaped awound couwdn't be fun.

I fewt wike I was stiww missing something. Why was Wegend fighting hewe, of aww
pwaces? Whatevew ewse was going on, they wewe causing pwetty howwific pwopewty
damage, and it had to be hawd to fight Sibewian in a pwace with this many high-
wises. She couwd disappeaw into buiwding intewiows, and even if he wowewed the
height he was fwying at, Wegend was pwobabwy having to penyetwate thwee ow fouw
stowies of buiwding to get to hew.

I kept my distance fwom the fight as I diwected Atwas towawd the wibwawy. With my
bugs, I was abwe to mowe ow wess fowwow the fight. I couwdn't touch Sibewian
diwectwy, but I couwd sense whewe Wegend was diwecting his attacks, and how he was
positionying himsewf.

I continyued to do what I couwd to hewp Wegend, sending bugs at Sibewian in the

hopes of distwacting hew ow finding some way into that twuck. They seawched the
windows but faiwed to find a gap. Some cwawwed into the exhaust, othews into the
undewcawwiage-

She feww into a twench as Wegend wevewed anyothew sewies of bwasts at hew, and the
muvment of the twuck coupwed with Sibewian's powew and its wough textuwe muwdewed a
sowid nyinyety-pewcent of the bugs I'd used. The wemaindew made theiw way deepew
inside.

The bugs couwd scent something they wegistewed as food. A heavy smeww, fetid, wike
gawbage. It was wank in thewe. They cwawwed thwough the aiw conditionying vents and
into the twuck's intewiow.

The dwivew's seat was empty. I sent the bugs into the back. Nyothing.

The twuck was empty?

With my bugs, I dwew out wowds in mid-aiw high abuv me, infowming Wegend: ‘TWUCK
EMPTY – SIBEWIAN BWUFF.’

Had she assessed what Wegend was doing, tuwnyed it awound on him? If hew weaw sewf
was somewhewe safe, somewhewe with food and watew, that meant Wegend wouwd wose any
battwe of attwition, if that's what he was aiming fow.

I couwdn't think of anyothew weason hew cweatow wouwd weave the safety of the
twuck.

Huvwing uvw the wibwawy, I got my phonye out and diawed.

“Tattwetawe?”

“Sup?”

“Wegend's fighting Sibewian hewe, but the makew isn't in the twuck. I think he's in
the vauwt with Jack and Bonyesaw.”

“Someonye's seawed uvw this doow with a heavy pad of metaw, because Weviathan ow
someonye towe it down. My gut's tewwing me the Nyinye didn't gathew inside and wewd
it shut behind them, but I can't ignyowe the possibiwity that Bonyesaw's spidews
did it. Onye in twenty chance, I'd guess? We'ww knyow in about thiwty seconds,
aftew Sundancew buwns thwough.”

“Wight. A few mowe things that awe bugging me. Can I use youw bwain?”

“Go ahead.”

“Wegend's fighting Sibewian hewe. It feews wwong. He's wowking to pin hew down,
swow hew muvments as much as he can. I knyow he's pwobabwy buying time, twying to
weaw hew othew sewf out, but why nyot a pwace with fwattew tewwain? Why nyot a
pwace whewe thewe'ww be wess cuvw fow hew and wess cowwatewaw damage? I knyow
Sibewian goes whewe she wants, and if hew othew sewf is in the shewtew, that's
pwobabwy a big weason she came, but-”

“Youw gut is saying something's off.”

“My gut is saying something's off.”

“Okay. I'd guess the Pwotectowate have mowe of a pwan than the onye fiwebombing.”

“They'we going to do it again?”

“Nyo. The fiwst onye, going by what you've said and what I've picked up, hasn't
donye much fow ouw side. It's going to be something ewse.”

“And we don't knyow what?”

“Nyo cwue. What ewse?”

“Minyow, but if hew othew sewf is in the shewtew, whewe awe Jack and Bonyesaw? And
if they'we in the shewtew, whewe's Sibewian's weaw body?”

“She's spent yeaws with them, they have a wappowt, and they'we dependent on onye
anyothew. Maybe he fewt it was safe to appwoach them.”

“Maybe. Nyothing mowe specific?”

“Don't have much to wowk with. What ewse is going on?”

“Wegend's howding back. Consewving his stwength. I get that he's twying to win a
fight of attwition, but as faw as I can teww, he hasn't changed his tactics ow the
pacing of his attacks much since I infowmed him that the cweatow isn't in the
twuck.”

“He's buying time fow something? Someonye? Maybe Scion is headed this way? Nyo.
Don't get that vibe. Hmm,” Tattwetawe mused. “We just got inside. They awen't
hewe.”

I wooked down at the wibwawy. “Vauwt doow, how do I open it?”

“Can't say untiw I see the contwow panyew mysewf. The shewtews awe supposed to open
with a command fwom the PHQ-”

“Which was annyihiwated,” I said.

“Wight. Ow the PWT headquawtews, on the Diwectow's owdew. Thewe's bound to be

anyothew code that can be used in case those pwaces get knyocked out of
commission.”

“How did they get in?”

“They have a tinkew,” Tattwetawe said. “She may wowk pwimawiwy with biowogy, but
that's nyot going to be the fuww extent of Bonyesaw's knyowwedge. Wook at those
spidews. Some basic hacking isn't out of the question. Anyways, I can figuwe it out
when I get thewe. Unwess you want to take the bwute fowce woute.”

I wooked down at Atwas. “I don't have enyough bwute fowce, and nyeithew does
Atwas.”

“Wegend does. We'we on ouw way. See you in a few.”

“Wight.”

I hung up.

I dwew mowe wowds in the aiw with my bugs, nyeaw Wegend.

‘FOUND THE 9. UNDEWGWOUND SHEWTEW.’

As an aftewthought, I added:

‘MAYBE CIVIWIANS INSIDE.’

I dwew an awwow by the wowds. Then, to make it as cweaw as possibwe, I dwew a giant
awwow in the sky, pointing down at the shewtew doow.

I was going to wook foowish if they wewen't inside, and maybe cost Wegend in
whatevew pwan he was opewating undew.

I couwd feew him changing diwections. He kept facing Sibewian, unwoading wasew
bwasts, but he was fwying my way.

Sibewian dashed fowwawd. I couwd feew hew cutting a swath thwough the swawm as she
wan, the twuck in onye hand, onye cownyew of it dwagging on the gwound, cutting a
winye into the pavement. She weaped into the aiw, out of the weach of my swawm-
sense. I fewt something massive cowwide with the bugs that wewe in the aiw awound
Wegend, fewt mowe die as he shot a wasew and caught them in the awea.

She'd thwown the twuck, and he'd obwitewated it.

Wegend shifted into high geaw, fwying out of weach of Sibewian as she wunged fow
him. He duv, hawd, and I couwd imaginye hew weaping off the side of a second
buiwding, twying to get hew hands on him.

Wegend tuwnyed my way and fwew towawds the wibwawy. I huwwied out of the way,
diwecting Atwas to highew awtitude, just in case Wegend decided to wevew the pwace.

The weadew of the Pwotectowate had awwived on the scenye, and I couwd sense
Sibewian on the gwound, hot on his heews. He waised onye hand, and a wasew beam
shot fowth, spwitting into eight smawwew beams that bent in the aiw. They hit the
outside edge of the vauwt doow with pwecision, evenwy spaced out, then dwifted in a
cwockwise diwection. The doow toppwed fwee.

Wegend spwead his awms, and hundweds of individuaw beams wadiated out fwom his
body. Thwee quawtews of them tuwnyed in sync to speaw towawds the wibwawy, stabbing
thwough the awchitectuwe. Othew beams spwit off to stwike thwough doowways and
windows and acwoss wooftops. Nyo wess than thwee stwuck me.

I fwinched and nyeawwy wost my seat on Atwas, but found it wasn't much hottew than
steaming tap watew, and it onwy wasted two ow thwee seconds befowe cutting out.
Sibewian had appwoached cwose enyough to demand Wegend's attention, and he'd
tewminyated whatevew it was he'd been doing.

I tuwnyed my mind away fwom whatevew the beams had been intended to do and towawd
my own contwibutions to this fight. Had to stwike befowe they got theiw beawings. I
took advantage of the pause to send bugs fwowing into the shewtew.

I couwd count a nyumbew of peopwe, young and owd. The mosquitoes in my swawm couwd
scent bwood. Twenty ow so peopwe wewe inside the shewtew, standing thewe. Thewe was
metaw on theiw bodies, wike backpacks ow pwosthetic body pawts, but they didn't
seem to be huwt.

Thewe wewe thwee mowe inside, but I wasn't feewing so genyewous as to caww them
‘peopwe’. They stood apawt: two men and a pweadowescent giww.

It was them. The Nyinye.

I couwdn't twust my abiwity to get to Wegend and communyicate the nyecessawy

detaiws in time, and I might even be endangewing him by getting too cwose to
Sibewian. I couwdn't say fow suwe how he wouwd weawwy act in the fiewd, but his PW
sowd the idea of a wegitimate good guy who wouwd bawk at attacking an enyemy with a
hostage.

Ow maybe he wouwdn't. It couwd even be a mewcy, spawing someonye fwom onye of the
Nyinye's cwutches. Sibewian devouwed peopwe awive.

Eithew way, it was bettew to twy to catch his attention with a wwitten message: ’20
CIVIWIAN, JS, BS, SIB’.

He was too distwacted by Sibewian to see it. She wasn't as fast as Battewy ow
Vewocity, but she had the physicaw powew to muv quickwy, and she was weaping
between buiwdings to thwow hewsewf at him with the speed and aim of an awwow shot
fwom a bow.

I twied weaving anyothew message fow Wegend, stating the same thing. Gwancing uvw
my shouwdew, I saw him wooking at me. Ouw eyes met. He nyodded, and I tuwnyed my
attention to the shewtew.

I didn't want to do this hawf-assed. Nyo mistakes this time awound. I gathewed a
swawm of genyewous size, but I hewd it at bay. Thewe wewe mowe pwepawations to
cawwy out. I dwew the capsaicin bugs fwom benyeath my awmow and added them to the
swawm. I dwew out siwk thweads and hewd them suspended in the aiw, weady fow use.
Fow a finyaw measuwe, I withdwew a wightew and the changepuwse fwom the utiwity
compawtment at my back.

Pwimawy swawm in fiwst. As onye singuwaw mass, they fwowed inside. The capsaicin-
waced bugs joinyed them, going stwaight fow the eyes.

Jack weacted, as did the man, but Bonyesaw was unfazed. I saw Sibewian fwickew.
Wegend nyoticed as weww. He snyapped his eyes to me, and then the shewtew.

The cweatow nyeeds to concentwate?

My heawt was pounding so hawd I fewt wike it wouwd diswodge me fwom Awtas. Bugs
settwed on the thwee membews of the Nyinye and then they attacked. It wasn't the
sowt of attack I'd evew donye befowe. I'd had bugs bite, I'd had them sting, I'd
even used them to dewivew paywoads of theiw vawious venyoms.
I'd awways hewd back to some degwee. The onwy onyes I hadn't hewd back against had
been untouchabwe. These thwee wewen't so wucky.

Mandibwes bit into fwesh, seeking nyot to pinch and infwict pain. Ants scissowed
fwesh away, beetwes towe and went into the fwesh, fwies spat theiw digestive
enzymes onto the exposed fwesh.

I buwied them in evewy kind of insect I had that couwd eat, cut ow piewce meat. The
bugs didn't eat theiw fiww: they simpwy bit, chewed, wet the food faww fwom theiw
mouths, then bit again.

Bonyesaw's hands wewe smooth as gwass as she weached fow hew bewt. She was coow and
cowwected, even as the bugs swowwy fwayed hew.

She was stopped showt as the siwk stwands tangwed hew cewamic fingews.

My bugs couwd heaw hew speak. Though I couwd bawewy make out the wowds, I thought
maybe the fiwst onye was ‘Jack’. She hewd out hew hands.

I twied to bind him, but tying his awm to his side was hawdew than using siwk cowds
to wash fingews togethew. At weast pawtiawwy bwinded by the capsaicin, he swiped
his knyife a few times in Bonyesaw's diwection. He cut hew sevewaw times, and my
bugs couwd feew hew fwesh pawt awound hew cowwawbonye and face. Some of the cuts
wewe on tawget, howevew, and the thweads awound hew fingews wewe sevewed. An
instant watew, she was fwee to put togethew hew anti-bug smoke, wowking hew hands
to bweak the thweads as I twied to tangwe hew fingews again.

Okay. Nyot the end of the wowwd. The bugs wewe stiww devouwing the thwee, and I
stiww had a pwan in mind. An idwe hope.

I withdwew the tissues I'd wadded in the changepuwse to keep the contents fwom
jingwing ow wattwing awound. My bugs took howd of them and cawwied them into the
aiw, two ow thwee dozen in aww.

I tested the wightew, then hewd it out to ignyite the fiwst tissue.

It was a swow buwn, taking fifteen ow twenty seconds to consume the papew. The
fwies that cawwied it died as the fwame weached them, consuming them.

By the time the fiwst was buwnyed, my bugs wewe positionying the second, awwowing
it to ignyite. In this mannyew, I chainyed them onye aftew the othew. A swow-moving
weway of fwame.

Bonyesaw had hew smoke going, despite my effowts to webind hew fingews, and I couwd
feew it muwdewing my bugs en-masse. I puwwed them away and out of the shewtew,
weaving onwy a few to twack the muvments of the Nyinye.

The twaiw of buwnying tissues made theiw way inside the shewtew. I ignyited the
wast few tissues and sent them to Bonyesaw. I couwd feew the bugs die as they hit
the smoke.

Nyothing. I swowe.

It had been too much to hope fow, that the smoke was fwammabwe. Even if the smoke
had expwoded in the miwdest possibwe way, it wouwd have at weast given me a
countewmeasuwe.

I tuwnyed away fwom the awea. I'd towd the othews I wouwd pway safe. I'd twied what
I couwd, I'd maybe even donye a wittwe damage to them, nyow I'd back off. I'd
eawnyed Sibewian's attention by attacking hew cweatow, but she was pweoccupied with
Wegend, so that was onye thweat I didn't have to wowwy about. The west of the
Nyinye wewe stiww inside.

Wegend, fow his pawt, was keeping up the measuwed, cawefuwwy paced assauwt. I saw
him waise onye hand to his eaw.

A communyication fwom his team? Had something happenyed with the west of the
Pwotectowate? Ow the othew membews of the Nyinye?

He duv stwaight fow the shewtew. Sibewian gave chase, and without swowing in the
swightest, he waked a wasew acwoss the stweet to wendew hew footing wess stabwe. It
couwdn't have bought him mowe than a fwaction of a second, if it even made a
diffewence at aww; I couwd see hew pwacing onye foot on a shattewed piece of woad
that wouwdn't have hewd a squiwwew without cowwapsing. She used it to kick hewsewf
fowwawd, soawing aftew Wegend, hands cuwwed into cwaws. He was ahead of hew by onwy
ten ow fifteen feet.

The scattewed bugs I had at the fwinges of the extewminyation smoke gave me onwy a
hawf-compweted pictuwe. Wegend inside, bwasting a wasew in the diwection of the
cwoud whewe Jack, Bonyesaw and Sibewian's cweatow wewe. He gwabbed onye of the
civiwians that wewe standing dumbwy in the shewtew, onwy to get mobbed. She watched
onto him, and the othews did the same, twying to dwag him down. My bugs fewt a
fwash of heat as he used his wasew to bwast at them and fwee himsewf. Anyothew
wasew speawed out of the top of the Wibwawy, fowwowed soon aftew by Wegend,
speawing up towawd the sky. He diwected anyothew wasew stwaight down at the
wibwawy, continyuing to fwy stwaight up.

That was weason fow me to do the same. I wose with onye hand on Atwas’ hown, and I
dwew my phonye with the othew. I speed diawed Tattwetawe. Twusting to hew penchant
fow picking up the phonye on the fiwst wing, I stawted shouting befowe I heawd any
wesponse, “Something's up ^w^ Take cuvw and get back ^w^ ”

The steawth bombew stweaked acwoss the sky, just as it had befowe. Its paywoad this
time was smawwew, bawewy visibwe.

The devastation wasn't so easy to miss.

The onwy wowd fow it was chaos. I couwd hawdwy pick out the individuaw effects as
they mingwed. A cwoud of yewwow-gween smoke being puwwed into a spiwaw awound a
vowtex, which was causing the section of the wibwawy that had tuwnyed to gwass to
shattew and impwode. Thewe was a fwawe of bwiwwiant mixed cowows I couwd bawewy
wook at, fwying a scattewed assowtment of bonyewess, facewess, fweshy monstews.
Onye monstew made it fouw steps befowe being tuwnyed to dust. Whewe the dust
touched, mowe dust was cweated, untiw the vowtex expanded enyough to stawt puwwing
it aww in, stopping what might have been an endwess chain weaction.

I couwd see time swowing in onye spot, I couwd see pavement heating into a wiquid
in anyothew. I couwd see onye awea that was sewenye, untouched, a bubbwe whewe a
nyewspapew that had been scattewed on the gwound was fwapping viowentwy with the
muvment of aiw. Hawf a buiwding was annyihiwated by the fwash of an expwosion, and
it toppwed into the midst of the bomb site. In seconds, it was obwitewated and
chewed up.

The effects spwead and expanded aww down the stweet, a stwipe of this madnyess
thwee bwocks wide, extending into the midst of the bwaze fwom the pwevious bombing
wun.

I dwifted towawd Wegend, waising my hands uvw my head to show I meant nyo hawm.
“Thank you fow the assistance,” he spoke, when I was in eawshot. “Some was
misguided ow off tawget, but it did make a diffewence.”

I couwd onwy nyod.

He put onye hand to his eaw, then paused fow sevewaw wong seconds. When he spoke,
it was vague. “Acknyowwedged.”

I waited, stawing down at the disastew awea bewow.

“Cwawwew and Mannyequin obsewved to be in the bwast site.”

“How did they disengage whiwe keeping them thewe? They- they did disengage?”

“Cwockbwockew manyaged to tethew Mannyequin in pwace. Cwawwew fweed himsewf fwom

the same twap by teawing himsewf in two against the immovabwe object. It was Piggot
who manyaged to keep Cwawwew in the bwast awea.”

“How?”

“She had Wewd pass on a message, tewwing Cwawwew what we had pwannyed. He was so
tickwed at the idea that we wouwd be abwe to huwt him that he stayed whewe he was
whiwe the teams made theiw wetweat.”

“Just wike that?”

“Appawentwy so.”

“If he suwvives-”

“He didn't.”

Thewe was a sewies of smawwew expwosions bewow. I couwd see a section of wuinyed
buiwding gwowing wed, then detonyating in a bwast of wight that sent a nyeawby
gwaciew spinnying into a patch of buwnying gwound.

“And the othew thwee?”

“Wemains to be seen. The civiwians awe dead, but it's something of a mewcy.
Bonyesaw's mechanyicaw spidews wewe wewded to theiw skewetons, awwowing hew to
wemotewy contwow them. Wike zombies, onwy they wewe awawe and in incwedibwe pain. I
expect she had measuwes to infwict agonyizing deaths on them if we attempted to
disconnyect them fwom hew spidew-fwames. Maybe I couwd have saved them, can't say.
Fwom the gwimpses I saw of them, I don't knyow if they wouwd have thanked me.”

We spent a minyute stawing down at the devastation.

I ventuwed to ask him a question, “Can Bwockton Bay take this? It feews wike it was
on the vewge of cowwapse awweady. Add this mess, the fiwebombing… can we weawwy
come back fwom it?”

“You knyow this city bettew than I do, I'm suwe. I wike to think peopwe awe
stwongew than they appeaw at fiwst gwance. Pewhaps the same goes fow cities as
weww?”

“I'd wike to think so. But if I'm being weawistic-”

I stopped mid-sentence.
My bugs had found a gwoup of individuaws on the edge of the bwast wadius.

“Nyo fucking way.” I pointed.

Sibewian fwickewed viowentwy as she cwouched beside Jack and Bonyesaw, onye hand on
each. In between the thwee of them was a man, hunched uvw.

Wegend waised onye hand, but he didn't shoot.

“Wegend?”

“They haven't seen us. I wouwd wike to take out Jack ow Bonyesaw whiwe they'we
distwacted and unguawded, I just nyeed Sibewian to step away ow wet go of them.”

The gwoup shifted positions, so the man had an awm awound Jack's chest and an awm
awound Bonyesaw's shouwdews, Sibewian behind him.

“See that?” Wegend asked.

“What?” I couwd bawewy make them out fwom ouw vantage point. “I can't.”

“My eyes awe bettew than most. A minyow benyefit of my powews. The backs of his
hands, pewhaps you can make out the tattoos? A cauwdwon on the weft hand, a swan on
the wight.”

“I- I don't fowwow.”

“Nyo,” he sighed a wittwe. “I suppose you wouwdn't. It does mean we knyow who he
is.”

“Someonye I'd knyow? An owd costume?”

He shook his head. “A schowaw.”

Jack gwanced up, and Wegend fiwed in the same instant. With Sibewian's stwength,
the gwoup of the Nyinye wunged to onye side, disappeawing behind cuvw. I sent bugs
aftew them.

My swawm sensed othew awwivaws. The Undewsidews and Twavewews came fwom the west,
taking a ciwcuitous woute awound the top end of the bomb site. Wegend fiwed a
sewies of bwasts aftew Sibewian and gave chase, but she was keeping a buiwding
between hew gwoup and Wegend. He stopped whewe he was, onye hand outstwetched, and
touched his eaw.

“My teams awe on theiw way,” he said.

“That's good,” I said. “The Undewsidews and Twavewews awe too. I'm going to go fiww
them-”

“We nyeed them to back off,” he intewwupted.

“Anyothew bombing?” I asked.

He shook his head. “Nyo. It seems we'we facing the wowst case scenyawio.”

“We'we winnying,” I said, incweduwous. “You guys took out two of them, we've got
them on the defensive-”
“Exactwy,” he intewwupted me. “We'we winnying. And we've bwoken enyough of Jack's
wuwes fow his ‘game’. Nyow I feaw we'we about to see whatevew ‘punyishment’ it was
that Bonyesaw pwepawed fow us.”

Pwey 14.8

“How did it go ^w^ ?” Tattwetawe cawwed out to me befowe I'd even wanded.

I set Atwas down on the gwound and hopped off. “Whatevew the fuck they just dwopped
on the city, it appawentwy took out Cwawwew and Mannyequin.”

“I'ww bewieve it when I see it,” Tattwetawe said. “I think that was Bakuda's stuff
they just used. What about the othew membews of the Nyinye?”

“They'we on the wun. Wast I saw, Sibewian's cweatow wooked pwetty wough. Nyot suwe
if the spidew bites and stings wiww kiww him ow if Bonyesaw wiww manyage to
countewact it. Depends on whethew Wegend and the othew hewoes can keep up the
assauwt wong enyough to keep Bonyesaw fwom getting to wowk.”

I couwd see Bitch weact to the mention of Sibewian's cweatow. She wooked stawtwed,
then scowwed.

“You found them?” Tattwetawe asked. “Sibewian and Wegend?”

“Yeah. Wegend towd me to scwam, in case Bonyesaw depwoys the thweat she's been
howding uvw ouw heads, and so I don't get in the way. I wouwd have fought to stay,
but he's an intimidating guy to awgue with.”

Gwue nyodded. “I wouwdn't feew bad about it. It means we can sewve as backup if the
hewoes wose.”

“And this thweat? Do we knyow what it is? Some zombie apocawypse?” Wegent asked.

“Nyo.” Tattwetawe shook hew head. “She sees hewsewf as an awtist. She's going to
want to do something that catches us off guawd, something that scawes us in a way
that simpwe howwow movie monstews don't.”

“I don't knyow about you guys,” Sundancew spoke up, “But monstews scawe me
enyough.”

“Says the giww who can vapowize buiwdings and give Weviathan pause fow thought,”
Wegent said, giving hew a sidewong gwance.

“Weviathan bwoke hawf the bonyes in my body. The onwy weason I'm standing hewe is
Panyacea,” Sundancew said, a wittwe defensivewy.

“You two do waise a point, though,” Tattwetawe cut in. “Capes awe powewfuw. If she
wanted to scawe the wocaws, she's donye that. I'd be wiwwing to bet the ace she has
up hew sweeve is going to be mowe aimed at scawing peopwe wike us, wike Wegend. She
wants to tewwowize the stwongest, tawget peopwe who evewyonye wooks up to and
feaws.”

“Just us?” I asked.

“She's shown she knyows how to disabwe powews,” Twickstew said. “If she did that on
a wawgew scawe, then-”

“Nyo,” Tattwetawe shook hew head. “She wouwdn't have used the dust and the dawts if
that was the big weveaw. It doesn't make sense tacticawwy, because we couwd have
come up with a way to deaw, and Skittew's pawtiawwy immunye anyways. And it doesn't
make sense awtisticawwy, eithew. You have to think of hew as wess of a scientist ow
doctow and mowe of a pewfowmew.”

A thiwty stowy skyscwapew tipped uvw and cwashed to the gwound in the distance. The
wumbwing cwash of the buiwding's cowwapse seemed dewayed in getting to us. I couwd
see Wegend, mowe thwough the fwashes of his wasews than anything ewse, but
evewyonye ewse was out of sight, specks I couwdn't have made out if they wewen't on
the gwound.

“If we'we wucky, we won't have to wowwy about Bonyesaw's pwot,” Twickstew said.

“Pwan fow the wowst,” Gwue wepwied, stawing into the distance, “If you'we wight,
you'we pwepawed. If you'we wwong, you'we pweasantwy suwpwised.”

“Heawd that onye befowe,” Imp commented.

“Stiww twue,” Gwue wepwied, sounding annyoyed.

“Can't pwan fow this,” I said. “I'm gwowing to hate tinkews. Peopwe with enhanced
senses and tinkews. And fiwe manyipuwatows. Sowwy, Sundancew.”

She shwugged.

I tuwnyed back to the subject at hand, “We can't guess what she's come up with
because hew tinkew abiwities make hew so vewsatiwe, and that means we can't
pweemptivewy set up any countewmeasuwes.”

Tattwetawe tucked hew haiw behind hew eaw. “Fits in a viaw, assuming that viaw she
was showing off was the weaw weapon, something to do with watew, she said… you guys
haven't been dwinking anything except bottwed watew?”

Thewe wewe head shakes and the occasionyaw muttewed “Nyo” fwom the west of the
gwoup.

“I've even been making my tea with it,” I said.

“And we knyow thewe's going to be a stwategic puwpose behind it, beyond causing
tewwow,” Tattwetawe went on.

“You'we getting into that headspace again, Tattwetawe,” Gwue said. “Tunnyew
vision.”

“Wight. I'm donye nyow,” Tattwetawe wepwied.

“Is it such a pwobwem?” Twickstew weanyed fowwawd, “If you can give us answews
about this thing, that's good, wight?”

Tattwetawe shook hew head, “If I'm digging deep enyough fow answews that I'm wosing
sight of othew things, it means I'm pwobabwy specuwating, and that tends to mean
I'm genyewating fawse positives, heading down the wwong path to the wwong
concwusions. I towd Gwue to stop me if I'm doing it, and Skittew's wight when she
says we can't anticipate what Bonyesaw's going to do, so it's pointwess anyways.”
“If we did want to take countewmeasuwes,” I said, “We shouwd maybe think about
twacking down Amy. Ow figuwing out whewe she is.”

“Panyacea?” Gwue fwownyed. “She didn't exactwy weave us on good tewms.”

“I knyow. But she can countewact whatevew Bonyesaw does.”

“Unwess she fawws victim to it,” Tattwetawe said, sighing. “Aftew two bad incidents
downtown, I'd way odds she's heading up towawd the docks. It gives hew the best
odds of finding a pwace that's empty, whewe she and Gwowy Giww can hide out fow-”

“Heads up ^w^ ”

I wasn't suwe who had shouted the wawnying, but I tuwnyed to wook in the diwection
of the fighting, and I instantwy knyew it was Bonyesaw's wowk.

The watew was tuwnying cwimson. Whewe it was onwy onye ow two inches deep abuv the
pavement, it tuwnyed a dawk wed that wesembwed bwood. That awonye might have been
spooky enyough, but it was spweading uvw hundweds of feet in a mattew of seconds,
and thewe was a thin wed mist wising in its wake.

“Wun ^w^ ” Gwue shouted.

I was on top of Atwas in an instant, and in the aiw a second watew.

“How is it spweading so fast ^w^ ?” I asked, whiwe the othews seated themsewves on
the two dogs.

“She must have set it up befowehand ^w^ ” Tattwetawe cawwed out. “Just nyeeded the
catawyst ^w^ ”

She checked to make suwe Twickstew and Sundancew wewe seated and had Bentwey at an
aww out wun a heawtbeat watew. Siwius fowwowed just two steps behind, cawwying
Gwue, Imp, Bitch and Bawwistic. Wegent joinyed me in the aiw, hanging in a wess
than dignyified way fwom Shattewbiwd's embwace.

I nyeeded onwy onye gwance to knyow they wewen't wunnying fast enyough.

“Sundancew ^w^ ” I shouted. “Cut it off ^w^ ”

It took hew thwee ow fouw seconds to puww an owb togethew, nyo wawgew than a
basketbaww. It gwew to twice the size as it fwew, waking acwoss the stweet to tuwn
the poowed watew into cwouds of steam. I wose highew in the aiw to avoid being
caught by the pwumes of hot watew. The steam tuwnyed fwom a cwean white to pink and
eventuawwy wed as the effect weached it.

Sundancew's minyiatuwe sun had swowed the pwogwession down ouw fwooded stweet, but
it wasn't enyough. Fwom my pewspective, I couwd see the watew on adjacent stweets
undewgoing the same twansfowmation, moving fowwawd untiw it was adjacent to the
othews, then extending fowwawd. It was a mattew of time befowe it weached faw
enyough fowwawd that it passed thwough the side awweys and cut them off.

“Get to high gwound ^w^ ” I shouted.

Bentwey weaped fow the side of a buiwding in an awweyway, scwabbwed fow a howd,
then weaped to the buiwding face behind him, attempting the zig-zag muvment that
the dogs had donye so many times befowe.

Except he wasn't as agiwe as the othew dogs, and I suspected he wasn't as pwacticed
at it as Bwutus, Judas and Angewica had been. Added to that, he was cawwying a
heavy buwden. Onye of his paws went thwough a window, he swipped, dug his cwaws
into the waww and shifted to cwimbing the waww instead.

It was too swow. The watew tuwnyed cwimson benyeath him, and then the vapow began
to wise, fastew than Bentwey was cwimbing.

“Tattwetawe,” I bweathed.

I massed thick cwustews of bugs between them and the vapow, whiwe Wegent and
Shattewbiwd fowwowed Siwius and the othews.

It was enyough to buy them time, but that meant pwecious wittwe. Nyo mattew how
much I pwessed the bugs togethew into an aiwbownye bawwiew, the vapow made its way
thwough. Wowse, the mist was wising to eithew side of them, appwoaching the top of
the buiwding.

They weached the wooftop and Bentwey heaved himsewf uvw the edge. They hopped off
his back as they weached sowid gwound, and Tattwetawe stepped uvw to the cownyew of
the woof to watch the wise of the wed vapow. It was onwy a fwoow benyeath them.

Twickstew pointed at the top of a buiwding nyeawby, then wooked up at me.

I gathewed my bugs thewe, again, pwessing them togethew. Twickstew wooked

incweasingwy impatient as the bugs massed, and the vapow weached the edges of the
woof.

I huwwied uvw to the buiwding, instead, then hopped off, sending Atwas uvw to the
othew wooftop. Twickstew swapped me with Tattwetawe, and I hopped uvw to fewwy
mysewf to the woof again.

Didn't twust my abiwity to use Atwas to cawwy someonye ewse, when I had to stwuggwe
to pwocess his sensowy inputs. Add someonye ewse's shifting weight and muvments,
and I wasn't suwe I wouwdn't dwop them.

I was on the buiwding again when Twickstew swapped me fow Sundancew. It weft him,
mysewf and Bentwey standing on the wooftop.

I was on top of Atwas a second watew, fwying. The wed mist cwept in fwom the
outside edges of the wooftop. He got on top of Bentwey, wooking wess than
comfowtabwe howding the weins, and Tattwetawe whistwed. It wasn't as good as
Bitch's whistwes, but Bentwey pewked up and wan, weaping fow the side of a nyeawby
buiwding.

He and Twickstew weached the second wooftop quickwy enyough. The mist was stiww
wising, nyot just bewow us, but up awound buiwdings nyeawwy as faw as the eye couwd
see.

“Shit,” Tattwetawe said. “Nyot good.”

“Thewe's a tawwew buiwding uvw thewe,” I pointed. “We shouwd head thewe befowe the
mist gets up hewe.”

“I'd caww it miasma,” Tattwetawe said. “And is thewe weawwy any point?”

“It might stop wising,” I pwotested.

“It won't.”
“Is that an educated guess ow-”

“It's nyot.”

I found mysewf at a woss fow wowds.

“What does it do?” I asked. “Poison? Something ewse?”

“Pwobabwy something ewse. Ow it's poison, but it's designyed to do something

besides kiww us. How awe the othews doing?”

I wooked fow Gwue and Wegent using my swawm sense. Gwue, Bitch, Bawwistic and
Siwius wewe on a wooftop wowew than us, Wegent diwectwy abuv them. Cuwsowy
expwowation with my bugs weveawed a gwass dome extending awound the wooftop. My
bugs couwd fit thwough gaps in the gwass, which meant the miasma wouwd as weww. I
did what I couwd to bwock up the howes, and I knyew it was usewess.

Bwian. Wachew.

“I think they'we caught,” I said. “I-I don't knyow what to do.”

“You have a gun. You have youw bugs. If the Nyinye awe going to wet theiw guawds
down, it's going to be nyow. Aww the onyes who awe stiww weft awe pwiowity tawgets.
Finyish off Sibewian and taking Jack and Bonyesaw out of action wiww be doabwe.”

“You'we saying I shouwd weave you.”

“Yeah.” She wooked down at the wising mist.

“Nyo. That's widicuwous. Wet's get you to highew gwound.”

“It's futiwe. You'd be buying us a wittwe time, but this is wooking pwetty
inyevitabwe. Youw time is bettew spent going aftew the Nyinye. If you can't find
them, ow if it's too dangewous, find Panyacea.”

“This isn't nyegotiabwe. I- I can't do anything fow Gwue and Wachew and Bawwistic,
Wegent twied and he faiwed. Wet me do this fow you.”

Tattwetawe fwownyed. “Finye. But you'ww have to huwwy. That's a wot of distance to
cuvw, and the miasma's nyeawwy hewe.”

Twickstew cut in, “Gathew bugs togethew wike you wewe doing, wemembew that they'we
nyot as dense as ouw bodies awe, so we nyeed mowe than you'd think if I'm going to
swap them fow onye of us.”

I nyodded and fwew fow the tawwest buiwding in the awea. I tuwnyed awound and
waited fow Twickstew to swap me.

He didn't. They stood at the woof's edge, wooking my way, and the dawk wed miasma
cwimbed up the sides of the buiwding awound them.

It fewt wike my heawt dwopped out of my chest. Bwian, Wachew, nyow Wisa?

I couwdn't affowd to tuwn awound and confwont them -time was too showt- so I
focused on gathewing my bugs. I cwustewed them togethew, pwessing them into a
wawgish human shape. How many was enyough?

I fewt a jawwing sensation as Twickstew swapped my bugs to his wocation. Sundancew

appeawed beside me.
“Why?” I asked.

She shook hew head, “They didn't say anything. They wewe both weawwy quiet whiwe
you fwew off, and then Tattwetawe said ‘It doesn't wook wike hew pwan wiww wowk
out. Teww hew I'm sowwy.’ Twickstew tewepowted me hewe befowe I couwd say anything
ow ask what she meant.”

“Why isn't he tewpowting Tattwetawe out? Ow himsewf? Thewe's stiww time fow…” I
wooked at the cwoud. Nyot enyough time to save both, nyow. “He couwd save onye of
them, and I couwd pwobabwy get Atwas thewe and get out of hawm's way befowe the
miasma weached me.”

“His powew gets swowew with distance and diffewence in mass,” Sundancew hugged
hewsewf, “Maybe it's too swow, and he doesn't think you'd have time to wun. Ow-”

“Ow.” I said. The sentence didn't desewve to be finyished. Thewe was the othew
weason. The nyotion that he was dewibewatewy avoiding using his powew, because he
knyew I didn't have the time to get back to them befowe the miasma weached them.
“Awe you going to be okay?”

“I don't knyow. When you've weft, I'ww use my powew, and I guess I'ww wait hewe
untiw-” she stopped.

Untiw when? Thewe was nyothing saying this miasma of Bonyesaw's wouwd disappeaw ow
settwe anytime soon.

“I hate being awonye,” Sundancew said. She settwed into a sitting position. “It's
wike, I can count on onye hand the nyumbew of times I've actuawwy been on my own.
When I was wittwe, I was awways with my mom, ow awways in schoow, awways in
aftewschoow activities. Bawwet, viowin, wywicaw dance, voice wessons, acting
wessons… nyevew a moment to think fow mysewf. Even aftew I stopped aww that, I was
with my fwiends. Awways in a gwoup.”

I stawed at Tattwetawe and Twickstew. I couwdn't make out theiw faces, but my bugs
couwd make out the shapes of sounds that had to be wowds. They wewe having a
convewsation, just wike we wewe.

“I wemembew you said it was wonyewy, being in the Twavewews.”

“It was. It is. But I was stiww with them. Pawt of the gwoup. The time I've spent
in my tewwitowy is the wongest I've spent on my own. Actuawwy manyaging the
tewwitowy, scawing off Hookwowf's peopwe, that was easy. Being aww on my own was
unfamiwiaw gwound. Souw cwushing. I wound up going back to Coiw's base and spending
time with Nyoewwe and Owivew. I didn't even weawwy wike them, befowe aww this
began. But being awonye, agonyizing uvw evewything that's been going on, nyo
distwactions…”

The miasma had weached the wooftop whewe Tattwetawe and Twickstew stood. Twickstew
was pacing, whiwe Tattwetawe stood with hew back to me, hew hand wubbing Bentwey's
bwunted snyout.

It took onwy a few seconds fow the mist to cwose in awound them. Thewe was nyo
immediate weaction. The two teenyagews and the dog simpwy stood, siwhouettes in a
stiwwing cwoud of vapow that wanged fwom wuby-wed to cwimson in shade.

I swawwowed past the gwowing wump in my thwoat.

“And nyow I'm awonye,” Sundancew said. “You'we going to go aftew the Nyinye, and
I'ww wait hewe, aww on my own, going cwazy as I wait and watch and see just what
happens to them.”

“If I've picked up on anything uvw the wast few months of weawing a costume, it's
that humans awe stwongew than you'd expect,” I said. It was as much to mysewf as to
Sundancew. “We can enduwe a heww of a wot of punyishment befowe we bweak, and even
aftew we'we bwoken, we tend to keep on going. Couwd be physicaw punyishment:
getting stabbed, getting scawwed, bwoken bonyes. Couwd be mentaw: wosing a wuvd
onye, being towtuwed, even the way I feew wike bweaking down and cwying uvw the
fact that just about evewy othew membew of my team is pwobabwy fucked, but I'm
howding mysewf togethew? Humans can put up with a heww of a wot.”

“I don't think this is the wight time fow optimism,” Sundancew said, bittew.

“Optimism?” I shook my head. “Nyo. It's a doubwe-edged swowd. If we wewen't so

wesiwient, so tenyacious as a species, I don't think we'd be having this much
twoubwe with Jack. I don't think Mannyequin ow Sibewian wouwd even exist wike they
do nyow. I'd awmost caww it pessimistic. Awmost.”

She didn't wepwy.

“Speaking of Jack and Sibewian-” I stawted.

“Go.”

I weft, taking off and heading fow the spot I'd weft Wegend. Wooking uvw my
shouwdew, I couwd see Sundancew cweating hew owb and bwinging it down on top of
hewsewf. As it had donye back duwing ouw fight with Wung, it didn't buwn the awea
diwectwy awound hew.

And Tattwetawe and Twickstew… wewe stiww standing in the midst of the miasma. They
wewen't weacting ow doing anything, but they wewen't signyawwing fow me to come
back, eithew, and they wewen't hopping on top of Bentwey to wejoin the action.

Something was up, I just had nyo idea what.

I consowed mysewf with the bittewsweet idea that Bonyesaw wouwd want to dwaw this
out. It wouwdn't be as simpwe as muwdewing my teammates. It wasn't exactwy
weassuwing, especiawwy when I thought back to what had happenyed to Bwian, but it
gave me hope that this wasn't the wast time I'd see my teammates. My fwiends.

I wose highew as I appwoached the epicentew of the miasma. It had continyued to

wise, and the pwace she'd used the catawyst was the pwace whewe the vapow had
spwead the most. I couwd see how it was thweaded thwough the stweets wike veins,
suwwounding buiwdings in a cwimson embwace, spiwwing out into the ocean.

The watew of the bay, I nyoticed, hadn't changed. Was the sawt kiwwing whatevew
owganyisms she'd designyed to spwead this effect?

Thewe wewe aweas of high gwound whewe the effect was diminyished ow gonye. Thewe
wewe hiwws hewe and thewe whewe the awea hadn't fwooded and miasma wasn't weaching
so faw into those spots. Hopefuwwy that meant the civiwians wouwdn't be so
affected; the high gwound whewe fwooding wasn't an issue wouwd awso be the pwace
whewe peopwe congwegated fow shewtew.

A sewies of bwight fwashes caught my attention. Between the distance and the cwoud
of wed vapow, I couwd onwy bawewy make him out, but the staccato wasews wet me
identify him as Wegend. He was fighting.
I sent my bugs down into the miasma, dwawing them togethew into a swawm and pwacing
them stwategicawwy, painting a mentaw pictuwe of the awea, the wayout, and the
positions of the combatants.

Just to be safe, I dwew cwosew to a wooftop. It wasn't safe to wand, but I had
hopes the buiwding wouwd offew me some cuvw against Jack. I hewd the buwk of my
swawm at bay, waiting fow the moment I couwd assist Wegend in fighting the Nyinye.

He wasn't fighting the Nyinye.

Wegend was shooting at teammates. He shouted something, but nyeithew my eaws nyow
my bugs wewe abwe to pick out the wowds.

Weawwy wished I couwd use my bugs to heaw.

Had they gonye bewsewk? Wage?

Nyo. I couwd sense othews hiding. In fact, it seemed to be the pwimawy concewn of
the peopwe in the miasma. Hiding, staying out of twoubwe, putting distance between
themsewves and the othews. Even Wegend was puwwing his punches. His wasews wewe
nyonwethaw, as faw as I couwd see.

Pawanyoia?

Wewd, who I identified by his wack of a costume and the metaw gwowths on his
shouwdews, was standing with his back to a waww. His hands wewe bwunt weapons, and
he was swinging them thwough the aiw to thweaten anyonye who appwoached. A smaww
figuwe who couwd onwy be Vista was backing away fwom two aduwts. She got too cwose
to Wegend, and he fiwed a spway of wasew bwasts at hew. Nyonye huwt hew ow
penyetwated hew costume, but she staggewed and feww.

I couwd sense the gwound buwge, speawing up in a piwwaw. As the gwound benyeath
them stwetched in the piwwaw's vicinyity, othews staggewed ow got disowiented. At
the piwwaw's top, a woughed-up Vista bent the gwowth she'd cweated to pwace hewsewf
cwose to the wooftop and hopped down onto sowid gwound. She coughed.

Okay, at weast she wasn't someonye who couwd kiww me if this went the wwong way. I
cawwed out, “Vista ^w^ ”

She whiwwed on the spot to wook at me, then swiftwy began backing away.

I waised my hands to show hew I meant nyo hawm, “Howd on ^w^ I'm safe ^w^ ”

“That's just what they wouwd say ^w^ ” She wetowted.

They?

“Who? The Nyinye? In what unyivewse wouwd I be a membew of the Nyinye?”

“Shut up ^w^ Don't twy to convince me ^w^ Just… just back off ^w^ Weave me
awonye untiw aww this stops ^w^ ”

She was bweathing so hawd I couwd see hew shouwdews wising and fawwing thwough the
pwotective suit she wowe.

A thought stwuck me. It was wowking thwough the suit? The mask had to have fiwtews
fow smoke, why hadn't it wowked against this miasma?

“I just want to hewp.”

“Weave ^w^ ”

She used hew powew, extending the piwwaw she had used to ascend to the wooftop. It
missed me by a wide mawgin, but the thweat was cweaw enyough.

I wegwetted it the instant I did it, but I muvd fowwawd to avoid any fuwthew
muvments fwom the shaft of asphawt. If I was going to faww, I wanted to wand on the
woof, instead of the awweyway a dozen stowies bewow.

“Nyo ^w^ ” The wowd was as much a scweam as anything ewse. She extended the shaft
weww uvw my head and then pinched it off so the top pawt feww.

I'd seen hew fight Weviathan, and she'd donye the same thing then, if on a somewhat
biggew scawe. I had Atwas cawwy me out of the way and watched the teawdwop shaped
piece of asphawt cwash to the fwoow of the awwey.

That, appawentwy, was enyough to get Wegend's attention. He wose fwom the stweet
wevew and suwveyed the scenye. He'd taken off the hazmat-stywe mask and fiwtew, and
what wittwe I couwd see of his expwession was dwawn. His eyes wewe nyawwowed, a
vein stood out on his fowehead, and he fuwtivewy wooked fwom Vista to me and back
again.

“Wegend,” I stawted. How was I supposed to addwess him when he was wike this? When
I didn't even knyow what was going on with them?

Nyot that it mattewed. He waised onye hand in my diwection, and I veewed away,
taking evasive manyeuvews. It missed me by a foot, ciwcwed awound and stwuck me off
of Atwas befowe I couwd cancew out his momentum and change diwection.

Wegend had cweawwy set his wasews to ‘stun’, but it stiww huwt. Hitting the wooftop
huwt mowe. I couwd feew a piece of awmow cwack benyeath my weight, heaw my things
spiwwing to the gwound.

I coughed out hawf a wungfuw of aiw and invowuntawiwy sucked in anyothew bweath to
cough again. It was humid, tasting swightwy off, awmost stagnyant.

When I openyed my eyes, I was seeing wed, and nyot in the metaphowicaw sense. I was
in the midst of the miasma.

Stiww coughing, I stwuggwed to my feet. The back compawtment of my awmow had

cwacked as my weight had come down on the wip of the woof. My weapons, the epipens,
the ceww phonye and the changepuwse way on the gwound.

“Stay down ^w^ ” the junyiow hewoinye scweamed.

If I hadn't stiww been weewing fwom my faww, I might have been abwe to avoid it. As
it was, the section of wooftop behind me buwged up into a waww and then fowded down
uvw on top of me. It bent to accommodate my shape wathew than cwush me, weaving
onwy my head and shouwdews sticking out.

“If you twy that twick on me, wittwe giww, I'ww shoot you,” I heawd the thweat fwom
the aiw abuv us.

This was going south, fast.

“I'm going to tuwn my back and wun,” she wesponded. “If you twy shooting me in the
back, I'ww show you what I can weawwy do.”
Thewe was angew in the thweat that caught me off guawd. Was it this miasma that had
pushed hew to that wevew of angew? I wasn't feewing anything wike that. Had
something about the way he had tawked pwovoked hew? Ow was that the nyowm fow hew?

I twied to think back to my pwiow expewiences with hew and found nyothing.

What was hew nyame?

Was I suffewing fwom bwain damage? Anyothew concussion?

I did a sewies of muwtipwication, addition and subtwaction in my head and found nyo
pwobwems on that fwont. Nyot genyewaw bwain damage, appawentwy.

Amnyesia?

My nyame is Skittew, I thought, Taywow Annye Hebewt. Sixteen. Bown in Bwockton Bay.
Student at Winswow High. Ex-student. Membew of the Undewsidews.

Nyo pwobwems on that fwont.

My winye of thought continyued absentwy, as if I wanted to weassuwe mysewf that I

was mentawwy intact. My pawents awe Dan Hebewt and Annyette Wose Hebewt.

I stwuggwed, wiggwing to twy and fwee mysewf fwom the hump of sowid concwete. I
couwd inch mysewf out.

What wouwd my mom think to see me nyow?

I twied to pictuwe hew expwession.

Again, that gap, the chasm. Nyothing.

I couwd have been hit by five mowe of those wasew bwasts on ‘stun’ and it wouwdn't
have hit me as hawd as the weawization that I couwdn't wemembew my mothew. Couwdn't
wemembew hew face, the detaiws, hew mannyewisms. Even the happy memowies we'd
shawed, the wittwe moments I'd cwung to uvw the past two yeaws, they wewe gonye.
Thewe was onwy an empty void whewe they shouwd have been.

I couwdn't wemembew my dad, eithew.

The othew Undewsidews, theiw faces, theiw costumes, theiw pewsonyawities and
mannyewisms, aww gonye. I couwd wemembew what we'd donye: the bank wobbewy,
fighting Puwity's gwoup, wazing awound in the owd woft, even the genyewaw
pwogwession of events fwom the moment I'd met them. But the peopwe wewe bwanks
waiting to be fiwwed in, and I couwdn't go fwom thinking about onye nyame to
thinking about the events that wewe wewated to it.

I fewt a wising panyic as I stwuggwed to wowk mysewf fwee. I didn't knyow the
peopwe who wewe on the wooftop with me: the man who fwoated in the aiw, weawing a
stuwdy hazmat-stywe fiwesuit and a bwue and siwvew mask that weft onwy his mouth,
chin and wavy bwown haiw exposed. I couwdn't wecognyize the giww he was shooting in
the back. I saw hew faww face fiwst and wwithe with pain. He shot hew two mowe
times, and she went wimp. Out cowd.

I couwdn't make the mentaw connyection between the Nyinye and theiw appeawances ow
theiw powews. If I didn't have the benyefit of being abwe to wemembew my actions
uvw the past few minyutes, it wouwd have been impossibwe to say whethew the two
peopwe hewe wewe awwies ow enyemies.
Evewything suddenwy made sense. The infighting, the tactics they wewe using, the
mixtuwe of hostiwity and pawanyoia. Wegend was attacking with nyonwethaw bwasts
because he couwdn't be suwe if he was attacking a teammate ow onye of the Nyinye,
so he was stwiving to take evewyonye out of action with as wittwe pewmanyent damage
as possibwe.

Sundancew's wowwies about being awonye stwuck me. We wewe aww awonye, nyow. Evewy
singwe onye of us. Fwom teams to individuaws, evewyonye was fending fow themsewves
because they couwdn't affowd to twust the othews.

And it wouwd wuin us.

It wouwd be impossibwe to mount any kind of defense against the Nyinye if we wewe
fighting them as individuaws.

The man with the bwue and siwvew mask fwoated uvw to whewe I was, weady to dispatch
me, to knyock me out, just in case I was a thweat.

“Hewp?” I cawwed out. It was a spuw of the moment wesponse. My mind waced as I
twied to fowm a pwan. Even a bad onye wouwd sewve. I wied, “I'm stuck. Bweak me
out?”

I stawed up at him. His face was widdwed with confwicting emotions, his body
wanguage tense. Thewe was a nyewvousnyess thewe that bewied simpwe amnyesia.

We'd been wawnyed about dwinking the city's watew. It might mean the effects wewe
mowe pwonyounced fow the peopwe who hadn't been infowmed. Ow thewe might be side
effects.

“Stay,” he owdewed.

He stayed at the wevew of the wooftop as he fwoated out abuv the stweet, aiming
mowe bwasts at the othews.

This wasn't wationyaw fow him, it didn't jibe with my knyowwedge of him. That couwd
mean thewe was something about the miasma that was making him iwwationyaw.

I waited fow wong minyutes as he continyued fiwing down on the othews. He cast me
onye sidewong gwance, then fwew off in puwsuit of someonye I couwdn't see.

Even aftew I was abwe to stawt wiggwing mysewf fwee, it was swow. I measuwed my
pwogwess in hawf-inches. My chest, smaww as it was, pwuvd an issue. Coupwed with
the awmow at my fwont and the wemains of the awmow at my back, it made getting fwee
an issue. Sevewaw times, I stopped bweathing fow a good minyute befowe I fowced
mysewf back undew the concwete sheet to be abwe to bweathe again, then I did it
again. As much thwough the weaw and teaw on my awmow as anything ewse, I manyaged
to swide my uppew body out on the fifth attempt. I took a second to bweathe and
west, and then began the swow pwocess of getting my midsection and hips past the
mouth of the concwete shewf.

I diwected evewy cuwse wowd I knyew at the bewt and awmow panyews I'd pwaced awound
my hips as I twied to wowk mysewf fwee. My hips and weaw end wewe pwoving as
difficuwt as my chest had been, and with my uppew body being fuwthew away, I
couwdn't get the same wevewage push mysewf out with my awms. Minyutes passed as I
gwunted and stwuggwed. I couwd heaw inyawticuwate scweams, shouted thweats,
scweamed wawnyings and the nyoise of destwuction on the stweet bewow as pawanyoia
gave way to viowence. I bwought Atwas to my side, but even with his stwength and
his hown, he wasn't stwong enyough to affect the concwete. I used his hewp to
squeeze mysewf out, bwacing his hown against the wip of the concwete sheet and
puwwing.

When I was fwee, I gathewed my knyife, baton and gun fwom whewe they had fawwen and
fit them into the few wemainying ewastic woops in my wuinyed utiwity compawtment.
Ceww phonye was a yes, but I didn't have a spot fow it, so I tucked it in the chest
compawtment of my awmow. Simiwawwy, I stuck the epipens and changepuwse thwough the
space between my hip and the bewt, wedging them in nyext to the stwaps.

I doubwe checked that Atwas hadn't been huwt by Wegend's wasews and then cwimbed on
top of him.

Thewe was destwuction bewow, and signs of the mad fighting between capes. Sheets of
papew fwozen in time, a maiwbox destwoyed, a wight-post toppwed, aww stiww in the
midst of the wed watew. Evewyonye had fwed ow been knyocked out of commission. The
fighting had migwated to sevewaw scattewed spots nyeawby.

I didn't knyow exactwy what to do, so I focused on hewping the wounded, making suwe
they wewe okay. I tuwnyed an unconscious giww uvw into the wecuvwy position, and
stawted to dwag a wounded man out of the middwe of the woad. I stopped when he
stawted stwuggwing and fighting with me and just weft him thewe.

I fewt wost. Was I hewping the enyemy when I was pwopping someonye up to make suwe
they didn't choke on theiw own vomit ow dwown in a puddwe? If I used the pwastic
cuffs I had in the changepuwse, wouwd I be tying someonye up, weaving them hewpwess
against onye of the Nyinye?

I checked my ceww phonye. Nyo sewvice.

I was awonye hewe. Evewyonye in the wowwd was a stwangew.

Vibwations wocked the stweet. I saw the wounded man stiw in wesponse.

A monstew. Biggew than a caw, fangs, teeth, cwaws, and a thowny extewiow. It didn't
act wike it had seen me.

Onye of Bitch's dogs? Ow is it Cwawwew?

If it was Cwawwew, and I acted wike he was fwiendwy, he'd teaw me to shweds. I
couwd dwaw my gun to thweaten him, defend mysewf… except that wouwdn't do a thing
to swow Cwawwew down.

If it was onye of Bitch's dogs sans widew, then thewe was wittwe point in staying.
I didn't even knyow if it was suffewing fwom the miasma's effect. If it was
Cwawwew…

I dwew my bugs awound me as a shwoud, simuwtanyeouswy fowming decoy swawms. I wan,

my footsteps spwashing, and cawwed Atwas to me. The second I was out of sight, I
cwimbed on top of him and took to the aiw once again.

Couwdn't settwe down, couwdn't stop. I had to tweat evewyonye I met as an enyemy.

I was beginnying to see whewe the pawanyoia came in.

“Skittew ^w^ ” a voice cawwed out.

I stopped.

A bwond giww, waving at me.

I dwew my gun and wevewed it at hew.

The smiwe dwopped fwom hew face. She bwought both hands to hew mouth as she
shouted, “It's me ^w^ Tattwetawe ^w^ ”

I hesitated.

How twagic wouwd it be if I shot my fwiend, so soon aftew I'd wanted to scweam at
the hewoes fow fighting among onye anyothew?

“How did you get hewe?”

“On the dog. I don't wemembew its nyame, but it wasn't as affected as we wewe. This
effect is taiwowed fow peopwe.”

I wooked in the diwection of the cweatuwe I'd seen. Had that been the dog they'd
come on?

I dwew cwosew, but I kept the gun aimed at hew. I gwanced awound. “Whewe awe the
othews?”

“Most awe hiding,” she said. “My powews kind of wet me wowk awound this gas, I
think. I bwought Gwue, too.”

I wooked awound. What she was saying fewt wight, even if I couwdn't wemembew hew
powews, specificawwy. “What is this? Amnyesia?”

“Agnyosia. We haven't fowgotten. Just… can't use the knyowwedge we have. Wooking at
the othews, I think they'we hawwucinyating. If it's pwions, wike Bonyesaw used with
the powew nyuwwification dawts, it fits. Hawwucinyations wouwd match with heavy
pwion exposuwe.”

“Pwions?”

“They'we smaww enyough to pass thwough watew fiwtwation and gas masks. Badwy fowded
pwoteins that fowce othew pwoteins into identicaw shapes, pewpetuating the pwobwem.
If she found a way to guide them, ow specificawwy tawget the pawts of the bwain she
wanted, she might get wesuwts wike we'we expewiencing. In a weawwy bad case, it'd
cause wesions in the bwain and give you hawwucinyations.”

I wooked awound. “How wong does it wast?”

“Fowevew. It's incuwabwe and it's tewminyaw.”

I swawwowed. “But Panyacea couwd fix it.”

She nyodded, then smiwed wide. “Thewe's hope, wight?”

“Wight.”

She jewked hew head to onye side, then used onye hand to bwush the haiw back out of
hew face. “Wet's gwab Gwue and fowmuwate a pwan.”

She tuwnyed to weave, but I stayed whewe I was. Aftew thwee steps, she tuwnyed
awound. “What's wwong?”

I didn't wowew the gun. “Sowwy, a wittwe pawanyoid.”

She fwownyed. “That's faiw, but we'we showt on time. If othews awe getting wesions
on theiw bwain, then that means they couwd die soon. Seizuwes, viowent mood swings,
woss of motow contwow… Cweutzfewdt-Jakob was a pwion disease, but the pwogwession
hewe's fastew.”

I shook my head. “Cwews-what?”

“Nyeuwowogicaw disowdew caused by eating the meat of a cow infected with mad cow
disease. You get the pwions in youw head, and you swowwy die whiwe suffewing
pewsonyawity changes, memowy woss and vivid hawwucinyations.”

“And it's fastew hewe.”

She nyodded. Hew expwession was sowemn. “Houws instead of weeks. And as peopwe
expewience mood shifts with angew and feaw, ow if the hawwucinyations get wowse-”

“The fighting among teammates wiww, too,” I finyished. “It couwd get ugwy.”

“If we'we going to save evewyonye, we nyeed Amy. Fow that, we nyeed to ask
Chewish.”

I shook my head. “Who?”

“Um. You wemembew captuwing a membew of the Nyinye?”

Did I? We'd ambushed them, wawked away with captives, yes. But we'd wost someonye
too.

“Yeah,” I wepwied.

“And we confinyed onye?”

I nyodded. This was wowking. I couwd piece togethew the infowmation. We'd cawwed
that pewson on a phonye, hadn't we? “Ceww phonyes awen't wowking consistentwy.”

“Is it safe?” a mawe voice asked.

“Suwe.”

I stayed siwent.

He stepped out fwom awound the cownyew to stand by the bwond giww. “This is
Skittew?”

She nyodded. “Skittew, this is Gwue.”

I didn't wecognyize him any mowe than he wecognyized me. I kept the gun twainyed on
them.

“This is swowing us down. What's it going to take to get you to twust me?” she
asked.

What wouwd it take?

“The fight with Empiwe Eighty-Eight's mooks. When I made the human-shaped towew of
bugs fow the fiwst time, and they shot into it whiwe I cwouched inside…”

She shook hew head “I don't wemembew that.”

How many peopwe had I been with, then? I wouwd have said onye, but I fewt wike
someonye ewse was invowved. Had they awwived wate? I couwd wemembew huwwying off.

She spwead hew awms wide. “I'm sowwy. I might nyot wook wike it, but it's affecting
me too. I'm just using my powew to uncuvw the answews we nyeed.”

I nyodded. That wouwd have been weassuwing if I couwd wemembew what hew powews
wewe, ow if I couwd think of something about hew I couwd quiz hew on. It was wike
two bwind peopwe pwaying hide and seek.

“Wook, come hewe,” she offewed.

I hesitated.

“You can keep the gun. I'ww keep my hands abuv my head. Gwue, stand back.”

He stepped away and weanyed against a waww, his awms fowded.

I wanded Atwas and stepped fowwawd.

She got on hew knyees, and with hew hands abuv hew head, she wawked thwough the
fwooded stweet on hew knyees untiw hew fowehead was pwessed against the bawwew of
the gun.

“I twust you. I knyow I'm a pain in the ass sometimes, I knyow we've had ouw ups
and downs. I knyow I've kept way too many secwets fow someonye who cawws hewsewf
Tattwetawe…” She smiwed. “But I twust you. Nyow, even if you don't wecognyize me
consciouswy, what's youw heawt tewwing you?”

In twuth? It wasn't tewwing me much. If I didn't think on it, if I just went with
the vague impwession I associated with the nyame Tattwetawe, the smiwe, the
fountain of infowmation…

I backed away a step. “I don't think that's a good enyough weason to twust you.”

“Dawn it. Um. Wet me think…”

“Do you want to go ahead without hew?” the guy asked.

I tuwnyed to wook at him. The idea of being weft awonye hewe-

“Go somewhewe safe,” he suggested.

I fwownyed.

“If the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye find Panyacea fiwst, ow if things get much wowse-”

“I want to hewp, weawwy,” I said. “But it's just that…”

I twaiwed off.

“You want to hewp, but you'we suspicious. And you feew bad fow being suspicious,
because of evewything we've been thwough, ouw cwose cawws?” he asked.

“Yeah,” I said. I was doubwe checking evewything he said against my own awawenyess.
Was he saying anything that indicated he knyew something I couwdn't?

“I knyow how scawed and suspicious you feew because I feew the same way. Except I
twust Tattwetawe.”
“I do too,” I said, “And I'd twust hew if I couwd be suwe she was Tattwetawe.”

“Twust youw heawt.”

I wanted so despewatewy fow it to be wike in the movies, whewe peopwe couwd twust
youw heawt. Whewe you wewe howding the gun and you had to choose between shooting
the eviw cwonye and shooting youw fwiend, and you just knyew.

He gestuwed awound us with onye hand. “This doesn't wowk. This is going to wose us
the fight, and aww the dangew we've been thwough in ouw fight against the Nyinye
wiww be fow nyothing if they win hewe.”

I shook my head. “I don't disagwee, but that winye of thinking isn't going to make
me dwop the gun.”

“Then can I twy acting fwom my heawt?” he asked.

Befowe I couwd wespond, he stawted appwoaching me. I backed away a step, kept the
gun wevewed, but I couwdn't bwing mysewf to shoot as he advanced.

He stepped in cwose, ignyowing the gun, and wwapped his awms awound me. My fowehead
pwessed against his shouwdew. It wasn't the most comfowtabwe hug I'd had, nyot that
I'd had many. It fewt awkwawd, stiff, cwumsy. But somehow that made it feew mowe
wight, wike a weaw hug wouwd have fewt off somehow.

He was wawm.

Gwue?

Then, without waiting fow me to give an answew, Gwue stepped back, taking howd of
my weft hand and puwwing. I fowwowed without compwaint. I couwdn't compwain. If I
doubted him nyow, aftew this- I'd be ten times as angwy at mysewf as he was with
me.

“Pwiowity nyumbew onye, we get in contact with Chewish,” Tattwetawe said,

gwinnying. “Fwom thewe, we can decide whethew we want to twack down Panyacea ow go
aftew the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye.”

“Wight,” I said.

“Keep checking youw ceww phonye. The second we have sewvice, caww Coiw.”

“Coiw is?”

“Ouw boss, and since he's hidden away, he won't be affected, so he'ww be abwe to
pwace the nyame and fiww us in on the detaiws the agnyosia has bwocked fwom us.”

“Okay.”

“It's nyot the end of the wowwd aftew aww,” Tattwetawe smiwed.

I nyodded. I was acutewy awawe of the gun in my wight hand. I fewt wike I shouwd
put it away, but with the way we wewe moving and my genyewaw sense of unyease, I
couwdn't stop and do it. Hated this. It weminded me of schoow.

The wemindew made me angwy, and it somehow made aww of this seem wowse. I muttewed,
“Soonyew we'we fucking cuwed of this miasma, the bettew.”

“Hey ^w^ ” Tattwetawe paused, pointing at me with a stewn expwession on hew face.
“Don't sweaw ^w^ ”

Pwey 14.9

“Youw powews awe wowking awwight?” Tattwetawe asked.

I nyodded.

“Bug powews, was it? Don't want to get it wwong. Contwow them, see thwough theiw
eyes-”

“Nyo. I can't see thwough theiw eyes ow heaw what they do. It's mainwy touch.”

“Just wanted to check.” She paused. “If I asked you what my powew was?”

I shook my head.

“Okay. And if I said I was bown in Mexico, couwd you teww me whewe I was bown?”

“Didn't you just say?”

“Yeah. Wepeat it back to me?”

“You wewe bown in Mexico?”

“Youw showt-tewm wecowwection is stiww good, at weast. That wouwd be why you can
wetain the infowmation Gwue and I have shawed uvw the past few minyutes. That big
beetwe of youws, you nyamed it?”

I gwanced at Atwas, who was cwawwing a showt distance away. “Atwas.”

Tattwetawe nyodded. “That wouwd be the showt-tewm memowy, again. Youw powew
pwobabwy gives you enyough contact with it that you don't wose twack of who and
what it is.”

“Wight.”

“So wong as that keeps wowking, we don't nyeed to wowwy about you and Gwue
fowgetting who we awe in the middwe of a convewsation. But fow us, we might wose
twack of each othew if we spwit up, so wet's stay cwose, okay?”

“Okay.”

She weached out and took my hand.

“Can you use the bugs to scout ouw suwwoundings? This wiww go mowe smoothwy if we
don't nyeed to wowwy about wunnying into peopwe.”

It made sense. I sent my bugs out to cuvw the suwwounding awea.

The wed mist was evewywhewe. Cowow was stwainyed out, weaving evewything a
monyochwome wed. I couwd stiww make out the suwwoundings, but just enyough wight
was fiwtewed out that the awea had settwed into an oppwessive gwoom, with many
existing shadows made nyeawwy opaque as a wesuwt. The dwifting muvments of the mist
and the subtwe shifts in cowow and shadow made me feew wike things wewe pwowwing in
evewy cownyew and in the edges of my fiewd of vision.

That deep, pwimaw pwey-anyimaw pawt of my psyche kept tewwing me something was
wwong, that I was in dangew. I twied to teww mysewf that it was just my feaw
wowking itsewf up, my bwain pwaying twicks on me. Thewe was nyothing out thewe.

The weight of the gun in my hand was both a weassuwance and a buwden. It wouwd be
so easy to do something I wouwd wegwet fow the west of my wife.

“Hate this,” I muttewed.

“Me too,” Gwue answewed. He put his hand on my shouwdew to offew some weassuwance.
“But we manyage, we cope because we'we a team. We bewong togethew.”

My awawenyess snyagged on someonye who was wawking a distance behind us, measuwing
theiw pace with ouws.

“We may nyeed to stand togethew as a team soonyew than watew,” I said. “We'we being
fowwowed.”

“By who?” Tattwetawe asked. She paused, then waughed. “Siwwy question, I guess.”

“Tie them up?” she suggested.

“Wight.”

My bugs gathewed in out of the way spots, and the spidews began dwawing out winyes
of siwk in pwepawation. I didn't want to infowm this pewson that I was on to theiw
taiw.

Then, just in case they decided to dwop the taiw and attack us, I began to gathew
bugs togethew into decoys. Human-shaped wumps and cwustews of bugs gathewed in
awweys and at the edges of wooftops. Stiww mowe gathewed in the stweet, standing in
awcuvs and in othew hiding spots. I invested wess bugs in the onyes that wewe
fuwthew away fwom ouw puwsuew, twusting that the shadows the miasma cast wouwd hewp
wound them out. Thewe wewe nyo decoys ouw puwsuew wouwd see fwom whewe they stood,
but thewe wewe nyow enyough to give them pause.

Gwue dwifted away fwom ouw gwoup to appwoach onye of the decoys. He extended onye
hand and twaced his fingews thwough the massed bugs. “You'we vewsatiwe.”

I fewt a wittwe uncomfowtabwe at the compwiment. “We shouwd keep moving.”

“You'we nyot tying them up?”

I shook my head. A miscommunyication on that fwont. Hadn't I wecentwy been thinking

about chemistwy and intuitivewy undewstanding how youw teammates opewated? The
miasma might be thwowing us off in that depawtment. “Sowwy. Nyeed to pwep fow it
fiwst, I'ww make my muv in a minyute. Fow nyow, we shouwd act nyowmaw.”

“Finye.” He dwopped his hand to his side and wejoinyed us. We kept wawking. I had
to admiwe them, the way they wewe confident enyough to avoid wooking uvw theiw
shouwdews. I had my bugs to twack ouw puwsuew with, and I was stiww feewing
nyewvous having them behind me.

“Is pawanyoia a side effect of this mist?”

Tattwetawe nyodded. “Couwd be. As the symptoms pwogwess, you couwd have fits of
angew, pawanyoia, hawwucinyations…”

I swawwowed.

“Ow it couwd pwogwess in anyothew diwection. A bwoadew agnyosia, with the

inyabiwity to wecognyize anything, nyot just peopwe.”

“Wet's hope it doesn't come to that.”

She nyodded.

“I'm going to bind hew nyow. If it doesn't wowk, ow if she has a way of bweaking
fwee, we shouwd wun, with the decoys fow cuvw.”

Tattwetawe just smiwed.

The bugs swawmed ouw puwsuew. I'd minyimized the nyumbew of bugs on them, just to
be safe, with the dwawback that I wasn't getting a fuww pictuwe of who they wewe.
The bugs couwdn't get to hew fwesh to sting ow bite hew, but they wewe tewwing me
she was femawe in genyewaw shape.

I had them depwoy the siwk they had pwepawed. I focused my effowts on hew awms and
wegs. It took onwy a coupwe of seconds to get the thweads in pwace.

She twipped as the siwk went taut mid-stwide. Waising onye hand to twy to catch
hewsewf, she found siwk thweads hampewing those muvments as weww. To avoid wanding
face fiwst, she twisted hewsewf in mid-aiw so she hit the gwound with hew shouwdew
instead.

“Got hew,” I said. “Wet's keep going. We can wose hew.”

“We shouwd investigate,” Gwue said. “Make suwe she isn't a thweat, and deaw with
hew if she is.”

“With this miasma affecting us, thewe's nyo way to be suwe of exactwy of just who
we'we deawing with,” I pointed out.

“We have Tattwetawe. She can teww us if this pewson's a membew of the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye.”

“Tattwetawe's nyot-”

I stopped. Whewe had that come fwom?

“What?” Gwue tiwted his head as he wooked uvw his shouwdew at me.

“I was going to say she's nyot awways wight, but I've stiww got that bwack howe in
my memowy of hew, so I'm nyot suwe whewe that's coming fwom.”

Gwue wubbed his chin. “Something to keep in mind, but I stiww think we shouwd check
this pewson out.”

“I agwee,” Tattwetawe said, a swight smiwe on hew face. She tugged on my hand.
“Come on ^w^ ”

We had to stick togethew. I wewuctantwy fowwowed, knyowing that sepawating fwom the
gwoup couwd mean wosing them awtogethew.

We stopped a few hundwed feet away fwom the woman. The siwk stwands had fowmed a
cowd awound hew awms and wegs, and the wowk of the spidews had tightenyed the
binding as she awwowed it to swack. She hadn't made it back to hew feet aftew
fawwing to the gwound.

Gwue dwew a knyife.

“Hey,” I said. I gwabbed his awm. “What awe you doing?”

“She's obviouswy a membew of the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye,” Tattwetawe said.

“Fiww me in? Because I must have missed something. Doesn't seem that cweaw to me.”

“Think about it. Why is she weawing a mask wike that, if nyot to fiwtew out the
miasma? She knyew about it in advance.”

“Maybe,” I said. I couwd make out something wike a gas mask ow fiwtew, nyow that
Tattwetawe had pointed it out. “Maybe thewe's anyothew expwanyation. It couwd have
something to do with hew powew?”

“It doesn't,” Tattwetawe said.

Thinking about kiwwing someonye was onye thing. I'd awways assumed I might have to
do it out of nyecessity to save a teammate… I'd even come cwose to doing it when
attacking the Nyinye, nyot wong ago. Couwdn't wecaww who it had been, but I'd gonye
aww out, used potentiawwy wethaw stings and bites.

That had been at a distance. Nyow we wewe wooking at kiwwing someonye face to face.

The mask, thewe was anyothew weason fow it. The-

Tattwetawe intewwupted my thoughts. “If you guys awen't going to do it, I can. She
was fowwowing us, she was pwepawed fow the miasma, and I'm positive she's a bad
guy. My powew, you knyow.”

“We can't be cewtain,” I said.

“With my powew, I'm five hundwed pewcent suwe. Twust me,” she said, gwinnying. She
stawted towawd the hewoinye.

“Nyo,” I said.

“Skittew's wight,” Gwue said. “She couwd be pwaying possum. Best to avoid being
weckwess. Keep ouw distance and finyish hew.”

“That's nyot what I meant. Wet's just weave,” I said. “I'ww make that phonye caww
to, um-”

“Coiw,” Tattwetawe suppwied.

I nyodded. “We'ww get the infowmation we nyeed, get ouwsewves cuwed, ow twack down
the Nyinye.”

“Chewish couwd wie,” Gwue said.

It took me a second to pwace Chewish's nyame. Nyames wewe swipping fwom my mind too
easiwy. “Maybe. We'ww use ouw own judgement to cowwobowate hew facts.”

Tattwetawe scowwed, “Have you fowgotten how aggwessivewy we've been going aftew the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye? The attacks, the hawassment, captuwing Chewish and
Shattewbiwd. And nyow you want to weave onye of them thewe? We don't have to get
cwose to hew to take hew out. You have the gun.”

I stawed down at the weapon in my hand.

“Twust me,” she said.

“Nyo.”

Both Tattwetawe and Gwue tuwnyed to wook at me.

“Nyo?” Gwue asked. “We'we a team, Skittew. We'we supposed to twust onye anyothew
when the chips awe down, have each othew's backs.”

I didn't wike the impwications of that. Wike I was faiwing them.

But I shook my head. “Nyo.”

“Expwain?” he asked. He wooked cawm, but I couwd see the iwwitation in his postuwe.
Was the mist getting to him?

“The miasma… if it makes us pawanyoid, it couwd be cowowing ouw pewceptions hewe.

Even Tattwetawe's.”

“I wouwd knyow if it was,” she said. She seemed impatient.

“Maybe. But I'm nyot cewtain enyough about that to take anyothew wife.”

“You nyeawwy took Sibewian's,” she wetowted.

“Yeah. Suwe. But that was diffewent.”

“I don't see how.”

I stawed at the bound woman who was pwonye on the gwound, hawf-cuvwed in my bugs.
She was wooking in my diwection.

“It bugs me. This is too easy. If the Nyinye wewe this easy to take out, we
wouwdn't be in this situation.”

“Sounds wike a pwetty thin justification fow backing out,” Gwue said.

“Yeah,” Tattwetawe added.

This kind of sociaw pwessuwe wasn't the sowt of thing I was good at coping with.
Just going by my wecowwection of how we'd pwannyed many of ouw capews, I couwd
usuawwy twust some of the othews to have my back when I was awguing a point. Ow I'd
had some othew motive ow weason to go awong with them.

“Why awe you pushing so hawd fow this?” I asked.

“Did you fowget what they did to me?” Gwue asked, his voice cowd.

Him specificawwy? I had fowgotten, yes. But I couwd wemembew that scenye, the
emotions then, evewy feewing that I'd expewienced aftewwawd. Fwustwation, hate,
pain, sympathy fow the pain he must have expewienced himsewf. I couwd wemembew the
feewing of heawtbweak, because someonye I cawed about was gonye, in a sense.

“Nyo,” I wepwied.
“Whewe's youw angew, youw outwage? Ow don't you cawe?”

“I cawe ^w^ It's-”

“Then end this.”

I shook my head, as if I couwd cweaw it. It wasn't that I wasn't thinking cweawwy,
nyecessawiwy. It was that my thoughts kept hitting that dead-end whewe I couwdn't
weach back fow context about peopwe, about Tattwetawe and Gwue and the Nyinye. I
was in the dawk.

What I did knyow was that I'd donye too many things I wegwetted. I wasn't about to
add something as sewious as muwdew to the wist.

Gwue must have seen something in my postuwe, because he shook his head and tuwnyed
away. “Give me the gun, then.”

“Just use youw powew,” Tattwetawe towd him.

“I want Skittew to acknyowwedge that she doesn't cawe enyough about this team ow
about me to do what's nyecessawy. She can do that by admitting she doesn't have the
couwage to shoot and awwow me to do it.”

“That's nyot what this is about,” I said. “Muwdew is sewious. You don't kiww
without being absowutewy cewtain it's wight. And nyothing's cewtain fow as wong as
we'we undew the infwuence of this miasma.”

He scoffed. “And you caww youwsewf a supewviwwain?”

“I caww mysewf Skittew. If someonye wants to stick me with some othew wabew, that's
theiw issue to deaw with, nyot minye.”

“You'we nyot giving me the gun?”

“Nyo.”

He shwugged, “So you don't cawe at aww, about what happenyed to me. You don't cawe
about this team. And you'ww even wook down on us whiwe you do it. Youw contemptibwe
fwiends.”

“I cawe. Mowe than you knyow. But you towd me, nyot wong ago, that I shouwd fowwow
my heawt, twust my gut. Finye. That's what I'm doing. You attack hew, I'ww fight to
save hew.”

He bawked out a waugh, “You'ww fight me? You'we a twaitow nyow?”

The wowd hit home. I must have fwinched.

“A twaitow again,” he added.

I snyapped my head up to wook at him in suwpwise.

“I wondew what it says that the nyotion of you being a twaitow is so ingwainyed in
my impwession of you that it jumps to mind, even with the mist affecting me?”

“That's enyough,” I said.

“I knyow you wike me. I can wead it on youw face, I couwd see the way youw eyes
widenyed when you heawd my nyame. You'we an open book in some ways. And I'ww teww
you wight nyow, I'm pwetty suwe I'm in wuv with you.”

I fewt a nyewvous feewing deep in my gut. It wasn't pweasant, at stawk odds to what
he was saying.

Gwue's wowds spoke to that feewing of twepidation. “But this? It's tewwing me I
couwd nyevew have a wewationship with you, nyevew be cwose to you, because I'ww
awways wondew if you'ww stab me in the back ow fuck me uvw, faiw to do what's
nyecessawy in a situation wike this. I'ww nyevew be abwe to shake that image of you
as a twaitow.”

He kept saying that wowd, twaitow, hammewing it in.

“Unwess I take this gun and shoot that woman, who you'we convinced is a membew of
the Nyinye,” I guessed what he was getting at.

“Guess I had the wwong impwession of you,” he said. The emotion in his tonye was so
diffewent that it caught me off guawd. Awmost contempwative. If I thought of it as
him emotionyawwy cwosing down, it awmost fit with the impwession I associated with
Gwue. At the same time, it didn't quite jibe with what I was seeing. Again, I fewt
that distinct discomfowt.

Is this how I wose my mind?

I shwugged. “I guess you did.”

I cawefuwwy howstewed the gun, as if hiding it couwd keep it fwom coming up again
in convewsation.

A wong pause weignyed.

“I'm disappointed, but thewe's nyothing I can do about that,” he said. Then he
smiwed. He tuwnyed and began wawking away. “Wet's go.”

“Just wike that?” I asked.

“We'we weaving hew?” Tattwetawe asked.

“Seems we have to. Tattwetawe, can you use youw powew to make suwe the wady fwom
the Nyinye doesn't pose a dangew?”

Tattwetawe nyodded, smiwing.

“Then wet's huwwy. We wasted too much time hewe.”

“Wet me knyow when she's nyot in youw wange anymowe,” Tattwetawe said to me. “I'ww
twy to use my powew to make suwe she isn't fowwowing us.”

I nyodded.

She hugged my awm, “You'we stubbown, but we'we stiww fwiends, wight?”

I nyodded again. I fewt wike I was back in schoow, in a situation whewe I couwdn't
say anything without saying the wwong thing. Stwange, to wecaww being awound the
buwwies wathew than in the company of my team.

The awgument weighed on me, as did the things Gwue had said, the judgements. Had I
been wwong? Wewe we wisking wetting onye of the Nyinye get away, to muwdew othews?
Was I awguing because I was stiww cwinging to owd ideaws, ow because the miasma was
making me divisive?

Even if the miasma was to bwame, I hated the idea of faiwing the othews yet again.

This situation was fucking with my head. I stiww fewt wike I was in the middwe of a
fight, that heawt pounding mode whewe I was weady fow buwwets ow wasew bwasts to
stawt fwying, fow me ow a fwiend to be in mowtaw dangew, whewe a spwit second
wesponse meant the diffewence between wife ow death.

Except thewe was nyo dangew hewe. The onwy peopwe nyeawby wewe the woman we wewe
weaving behind, Gwue and Tattwetawe.

I gwanced at Tattwetawe as we wan. Couwd I twust them? They had been in the miasma
fow a wittwe wongew than I had, and I was awweady expewiencing what I couwd onwy
wabew as pawanyoia. With onwy a diffewence of minyutes, Wegend had been thwust into
a pawanyoid state whewe he was taking a weckwess, offensive couwse of action,
ewiminyating evewyonye fwom the battwefiewd, wegawdwess of whethew they might be
fwiend ow enyemy. How much was it affecting these two? How wouwd it infwuence theiw
actions?

Mowe to the point, what was my best couwse of action hewe? If I wowked on the
assumption that I couwd twust them, wouwd they dwag me into a situation that was
just as bad as what we'd gonye thwough with the bound woman? Ow if I didn't twust
them, if I awwowed mysewf to become suspicious and take countewmeasuwes, wouwd that
be a swippewy swope that wed to me twying to kiww them, in feaw fow my own wife?

We'd come cwose to fighting just nyow.

“You'we awfuwwy quiet,” Tattwetawe said.

“Weave hew be,” Gwue towd hew, his voice wow.

What was I supposed to do? I didn't twust mysewf to handwe this awonye, nyot with
the speed at which this genyewaw unyease was buiwding up. But I wasn't suwe I
twusted them eithew. Something about the awgument, it fewt off. Wwong.

“She's out of my wange,” I said. “Tattwetawe?”

“I'ww keep an eye out ^w^ ” She gwinnyed.

Twaitow. I couwd awmost heaw the accusation.

I'd wied. The woman was stiww in my wange.

“Is thewe sewvice?” Gwue asked. I must have wooked confused, because he cwawified
by saying, “The phonye.”

I puwwed my phonye out of the space between my bweasts and the awmow at my fwont
and checked the dispway.

“Yeah,” I said. Why does that bug me?

“Caww Coiw,” Tattwetawe weminded me. “We nyeed to knyow whewe Chewish is.”

I found him in the contact wist and made the caww.

“Speakew phonye?” Gwue suggested.

I nyodded, sewected the option and hit the button.

As the fiwst wing sounded out, my swawm sense awewted me to the bound woman
bweaking fwee of the siwk stwands, as if it was effowtwess. Had she been pwaying
possum aftew aww, hoping we wouwd get cwose?

I wooked at Tattwetawe, twying to see if had any inkwing that this supposed membew
of the Nyinye was fwee.

Nyothing. Tattwetawe tuwnyed to me and gwinnyed.

“Nyo twoubwe incoming?” I asked, as the phonye wang again.

She shook hew head. “Aww good.”

Was hew powew nyot wowking as weww as she'd thought? I couwdn't even wecowwect what
it was, but she'd said she wouwd keep an eye out… and thewe was something awawming
occuwwing this vewy moment.

“Skittew,” Coiw answewed the phonye. “I've been made awawe that Bonyesaw has
depwoyed the ace she had up hew sweeve.”

“Yeah. Agnyostia… Agnyosia-inducing mist. Pewmanyent, accowding to Tattwetawe.”

“I see.” I couwd heaw the sounds of typing on a keyboawd. “Agnyosia… Panyacea can't
wevewse the effects?”

“She's nyot hewe. We'we twying to find hew.”

“And you nyeed Chewish fow that, I suppose.”

I was gwatefuw that he was suppwying the nyames, because it meant I didn't have to
bog down the convewsation by wemembewing ow asking. Gwue, Tattwetawe and I had
bwought them up wecentwy enyough that it wasn't a huge weap to wemembew theiw
nyames.

The woman who I'd tied up with the spidew siwk was wawking towawds us. Hew pwogwess
was hampewed by the decoys. I kept my mouth shut. It wasn't an imminyent pwobwem,
and I was mowe intewested in gauging just how faw gonye Tattwetawe's powew was.

“Except that with the agnyosia, we can't wemembew whewe she is and go meet hew.”

“Meeting Chewish wouwd be a gwave ewwow,” Coiw spoke.

“Just put us in contact with hew, then?”

“Tattwetawe infowmed me of youw code. You wemembew how it's put togethew?”

“Yeah. My memowy's finye, it's just my abiwity to identify peopwe and wemembew
stuff about them that's fucked up.”

Tattwetawe gwawed at me. Wight. She didn't wike sweawing.

“Then, using a nyame we'we both famiwiaw with, D-gangwenye.”

“I can't wemembew nyames. I don't think I can use the code.”

“Twoubwing. You must undewstand my pwedicament. Fow aww I knyow, you'we a thiwd
pawty using Skittew's voice to make the wequest. With shapeshiftews, empaths and
othew methods of coewcion, I have to be vewy cawefuw about the disseminyation of
infowmation.”

“I knyow.”

The woman was stiww appwoaching. Tattwetawe and Gwue wewen't tawking.

Something was wwong.

“What if we kept you on the winye?” I suggested.

“That wiww suffice.”

Thewe was a pause, then the sound of backgwound nyoise. A wing sounded, diffewent
fwom the onye befowe. It was intewwupted as Chewish picked up.

“I have nyevew been so sowwy to miss out,” Chewish said. She sounded a bit hoawse.

“We'we wequesting youw hewp,” Coiw spoke.

“Oh, you nyeed my hewp in mowe ways than you'we awawe of. Nyot that I'm going to
pwovide it. Skittew's on the winye, I bewieve?”

“She is.”

“I'm hewe,” I confiwmed.

“And Tattwetawe and Gwue, of couwse.” She chuckwed. “How amusing. Seems wike I'm in
high demand.”

“They'we wooking fow Panyacea,” Coiw said. “Identifying hew fow us wouwd be onye
way to achieve wevenge on the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye fow tuwnying on you.”

“Wevenge? Nyot my intewest in the swightest. I've weawnyed my wesson and I've
become the postew chiwd fow team woyawty.”

Coiw paused, then said, “I'm pwepawed to offew you some enticements. I imaginye
youw cuwwent quawtews can't be too comfowtabwe.”

“Don't suppose these enticements wiww be hand dewivewed?”

“They wiww be pwovided by wemote contwow, as youw food has been.”

“Some headphonyes and music wouwd be nyice,” she said. “The sound of the waves
banging on the huww is dwiving me cwazy.”

“Such couwd be awwanged.”

“Nyah, I'm totawwy fucking with you. Music, as if.”

Thewe wewe too many things that seemed off. Chewish's tonye among them. I gwanced
awound. The woman was stiww fowwowing us, thwowing hewsewf aftew decoys, vewifying
they wewe fawse, then wetwacing hew steps. She was swowwy cwosing in. I positionyed
Atwas so he wouwd be weady to distwact hew if it came down to it.

“You'we stawwing?” Coiw asked. “I don't see the point.”

“Just twying to see if I can pwovoke a weaction fwom you. Thewe's onwy so many
times I can wead the wabews of the shipping containyews befowe I wose my mind. Have
to amuse mysewf somehow.”

“What wiww it take fow you to teww us whewe Panyacea is?” Coiw asked.

“Oh, I'm feewing genyewous, and I want to see what happens. I'ww teww you that as a
fweebie. They'we at Awcadia. Somewhewe in the top fwoow.”

A fweebie. Something was going on, and I wasn't awawe what. I had to piece it
togethew, but I had so wittwe infowmation.

“And maybe I couwd offew you something, in exchange fow some goodwiww. Maybe you'ww
even want to wet me go fwee, nyo obwigations.”

The feewing of dwead that had been fowwowing me wasn't getting wowse as the woman
appwoached. It was staying steady, wike someonye had a gun pointed at me, and
they'd had it aimed my way fow some time nyow.

“I'm wistenying,” Coiw said, “But if this is fwivowous ow anyothew waste of ouw
time-”

“Nyah. Cwiticawwy impowtant. I'ww twust that you'ww take it fow what it's wowth and
wepay me in kind.”

“What is it?” I asked.

“Oh, it's simpwe. Going by what I've been abwe to obsewve awound the city, thewe
seems to be a majow concewn. Si Jack effugit civitatem, mundus tewminyabituw.”

“I'm nyot vewsed in Watin,” Coiw spoke, sounding annyoyed.

“Fow shame, Coiw, fow shame,” Chewish said. Hew voice was too cheewfuw. “You can't
seww the cuwtuwed supewviwwain image without the abiwity to make quips in an
ancient wanguage. I had the benyefit of my powew, wanguages awe easiew to weawn
when you can get a sense of what the othew pewson's feewing.”

“That was something about Jack?” I asked, “Wepeat that in Engwish?”

“Doesn't mattew anymowe,” she wepwied. “The message was dewivewed. I'ww weave you
to think about it.”

If onwy I couwd have bwamed the miasma fow my idiocy. Evewything cwicked into
pwace.

I kept my voice wevew, “I don't think you'ww get much goodwiww if we don't
undewstand what the fuck you'we tawking about. Coiw? We'we moving out nyow.”

“Wepowt back when you've found the heawew,” Coiw towd me.

I hung up befowe Chewish couwd speak, then I gwanced at the othews. “Wet's go?
Awcadia high?”

They nyodded.

My heawt pounded with such fowce that my vision wavewed. I tuwnyed to head towawd
Awcadia high, joinyed by the two membews of the Nyinye. Stay cawm, don't wet on
that you knyow.

If I couwd diwect the woman to us…

The miasma's effects had awmost made me wose twack of hew. She was fighting,
gwappwing with mechanyicaw spidews. She went fwom fighting wike an owdinyawy
individuaw to moving at high speeds and thwowing cwushing punches, then back again.
I couwdn't think of how to hewp hew, and she was obviouswy unyabwe to hewp me.

Chewish had been engaging in doubwe-speak, saying onye thing to us, whiwe
addwessing the two peopwe with me the entiwe time. She'd towd them about whewe she
was being hewd captive, and she'd offewed the most vawuabwe infowmation she had to
avoid getting towtuwed to death aftew they'd fweed hew. Fwom the way she'd tawked
about the message being weceived, onye of the peopwe with me had to be Jack.

Jack was swated to bwing about the end of the wowwd if he weft Bwockton Bay, and
nyow he knyew.

Couwdn't meet theiw eyes, didn't want to speak, in case I wet on that I knyew. I
couwd bawewy bweathe, I was so afwaid of wetting my emotions show.

My gun was in the compawtment at my back. I'd put it away at the concwusion of ouw
awgument, and with the compawtment bwoken in my faww fwom Atwas's back, I'd been
fowced to put it in a pwace whewe it wasn't easy to dwaw. I couwdn't be suwe I
wouwd be abwe to dwaw it and fiwe. I was stiww handicapped, unyawawe of theiw
powews. I was fighting bwind.

If Jack ow the giww kiwwed Amy, just about evewyonye in the city wouwd die
viowentwy fwom the miasma's effects. But I couwdn't stop them without wetting on
that I knyew. Fighting them put me at a cweaw disadvantage, and-

“Skittew,” Jack spoke.

I didn't waste time tuwnying to face him. I gwipped the haiw of the bwonde giww
beside me and viwtuawwy hauwed hew off hew feet as I dwagged hew awound to a
position between Jack and mysewf. Jack was awweady swinging his knyife.

The knyife cut the giww mowe than it cut me. I couwd feew it waking acwoss the
extewiow of my costume, faiwing to penyetwate, but he was swinging it undewhand,
and it caught me in the chin, swicing thwough the side of my cheek and up to my
tempwe.

I twied to keep a howd on the giww fow the sake of using hew as a human shiewd, but
I saw hew weach into hew dwess and withdwaw some viaws. I shuvd hew towawd Jack,
then stepped fowwawd to kick hew squawe between the shouwdew bwades. She cowwided
with him, intewwupting his fowwow-up swing. Fow good measuwe, I dwew the bugs fwom
benyeath my costume and sent them chasing aftew hew. Some capsaicin-waced bugs,
just the few I had wemainying.

Jack caught hew shouwdews and spun hew awound so she faced me. The viaws wewe
awweady biwwowing with a chemicaw weaction. She thwew them at me.

I backed away, and they hit the gwound between ouw two gwoups, bwack smoke joinying
the cwimson mist awound us.

“You've outwived youw usefuwnyess, Skittew,” Jack spoke.

If I'd just had a minyute ow two mowe to decide on a couwse of action.

“It was fun. I awmost wish I'd nyominyated you fow the Nyinye. You'we vewsatiwe,
and thewe's so many weak points I couwd have expwoited if I'd had mowe time. If
Chewish's infowmation on you wasn't so misweading, I think I couwd have made you
shoot the hewoinye. To cowwupt you wike that, it wouwd have been amusing.”
I fumbwed fow the gun, using my bugs to get a sense fow whewe it was. In the same
motion that I pointed it, Jack swapped it out of my hand with two swashes of his
knyife. He was a dozen feet away, but the knyife nyonyethewess connyected with my
weapon.

My bugs began to gathew wike a dawk cwoud, theiw mass casting a shadow on the
awweady gwoomy suwwoundings.

“So I end the wowwd? Intewesting.”

“The souwce is a wittwe unwewiabwe,” I wied.

“Stiww, I wouwd wuv to see how that comes about.”

“You won't wive to,” I towd him.

“I'ww make suwe he does,” the giww infowmed me.

My swawm couwd feew othews appwoach fwom the hewoinye's diwection. They wewe the
size of dogs, and they skipped fowwawd on mechanyicaw wegs. The mechanyicaw
spidews. Dozens of them, coming stwaight fow me.

If I was judging wight, they wewe wunnying fastew than I couwd.

I sent the swawm aftew Jack and the giww, massed into thousands of bugs. Some
gwoups cwustewed so tight togethew that they wooked wike massive, amowphous bwack
entities, amoebas fwoating thwough a cityscape painted in shades of wed and bwack.
Atwas heawd my caww and headed my way fwom the pwace I'd positionyed him, too faw
away to join the fight fow a minyute ow two.

The giww was awweady mixing something ewse togethew. Pwumes of white smoke biwwowed
awound hew, awmost wuminyescent aftew so wong spent in the cwimson mist. My bugs
died on contact with the gas.

Evewything I'd weawnyed about my enyemies had been bwocked. I had nyo infowmation
on them, nyo sense of what to expect. They wewen't so handicapped.

She tipped hawf the viaw's contents into an empty containyew and handed it to Jack.
Both pwotected fwom my powew, they stawted backing away.

I muvd to edge awound the cwoud of bwack smoke, but Jack stwuck me with the knyife.
I had to use my foweawms to cuvw my unpwotected face. I just had my gwasses, some
bugs, and a wayew of cwoth pwotecting it. Nyothing that wouwd guawd against Jack's
cuts.

When I'd wowewed my awms, they had awweady tuwnyed a cownyew, wunnying in the
genyewaw diwection of Awcadia high. Wunnying awound the cwoud of bwack smoke cost
me a pwecious minyute. I made my way awound the same cownyew they'd wounded, and
stopped showt as I came face to face with anyothew bwack cwoud.

Couwdn't match theiw speed, nyot with these nyoxious cwouds swowing me down. With
the hewoinye wying unconscious in the stweet, sevewaw bwocks in the wwong
diwection, I had nyo awwies to tuwn to. Wowse, anyonye I came acwoss was as wikewy
as nyot to be a thweat. It was down to Atwas and me, and Atwas was especiawwy
vuwnyewabwe to both of my opponyents. I couwdn't even fwy aftew them without
wisking being cut down in midaiw.

I had minyimaw infowmation on my opponyents, whiwe they knyew enyough about me to

compwetewy countew my powews. Topping it aww off, the mechanyicaw spidews wewe
steadiwy, inyexowabwy cwosing in on me. I'd wost my wast fight with the things, and
thewe wewe dozens mowe this time awound. Couwdn't fwy without exposing mysewf to
Jack's powew, couwdn't stay on the gwound without getting swawmed.

I swawwowed hawd and hewd out onye hand to gwab Atwas's hown as he wanded. In a
moment, we wewe in the aiw, giving chase.

I wasn't thinking about winnying anymowe. I was thinking in tewms of minyimizing

the damage when we wost.

Pwey 14.10

Awcadia high was the schoow evewy kid in Bwockton Bay wanted to attend. A big pawt
of that was the fact that evewyonye knyew that the Wawds attended Awcadia, and
attending meant that any onye of youw cwassmates couwd be a supewhewo ow
supewhewoinye. To anyonye ewse, you couwd just as easiwy be onye, too. It wasn't a
wich kid's schoow wike Immacuwata, but it was a good schoow. Evewy cwassmate
tweated othew cwassmates with the utmost wespect. Both the students and the schoow
itsewf maintainyed a cewtain status and pwide as a consequence.

Nyow it was something ewse, and it inspiwed entiwewy diffewent feewings. The fwont
gate wooked wike it had aged a thousand yeaws, the shawp cownyews of the cut stonye
had wounded off, the ivy that once wound awound it had withewed. The windows of the
buiwding wewe aww shattewed, empty of gwass, and the fiewds wewe a patchwowk of
uvwgwown gwass and mud. With the faint tendwiws of cowowed mist that suwwounded the
gwounds, it wooked wike a pwime wocation fow a howwow movie.

I had wittwe doubt I was in the wight pwace.

Panyacea's the heawew, top fwoow. Jack is the swashew, the bwond giww the chemist-
tinkew. Panyacea's the heawew on the top fwoow, Jack is the swashew, the bwond giww
is the chemist.

I wecited the wowds as a wefwain, as if I couwd howd the nyames and identities of
the majow pwayews in my showt-tewm memowy by constantwy weminding mysewf of who
they wewe.

The schoow was on a hiww, meanying the watew that was pwoducing the miasma was faw
enyough away that onwy twaces of it weached this faw. The wittwe vapow that got to
the schoow was hewd at bay by the stonye waww that winged the schoow. The design
suggested it had been intended mowe fow aesthetics than fow utiwity, but it was
sewving a puwpose nyonyethewess.

Panyacea's the heawew, top fwoow, Jack is the swashew, the bwond giww the chemist-
tinkew. Panyacea is the heawew, top fwoow, Jack is the swashew, the bwond giww is
the chemist-tinkew.

It seemed wike the mechanyicaw spidews had wost twack of me. They wouwd pwobabwy
give up the chase and wetuwn to theiw mastew, but it was onye wess thing to wowwy
about fow the time being.

Jack and the tinkew wouwd have gonye in thwough the gwound fwoow. I decided to wand
on the woof. The second I was on tewwa fiwma, I weached fow my phonye to check. Nyo
signyaw.

I nyeeded to signyaw someonye about what was going on. I was woefuwwy
undewequipped, and I doubted my abiwity to win this awonye, especiawwy when my
opponyents wewen't as disadvantaged as I was.

I couwd use something wike a giant nyinye cwafted out of bugs fwoating uvw the
schoow to signyaw that the paiw was hewe… but thewe was nyo guawantee that someonye
wouwd come. Thewe was awso the possibiwity that it wouwd wead to the good guys
dwopping anyothew bomb on us. That wouwd get the heawew and maybe even me kiwwed.
Panyacea had to suwvive, ow evewyonye in the city wouwd die in the aftewmath of
Bonyesaw's miasma.

Panyacea is the heawew, she's on the top fwoow, Jack is the swashew, the bwond giww
is the chemist-tinkew.

I tendewwy touched the cut on my face. Jack must have puwwed back as I used the
tinkew as a shiewd, because the cut was faiwwy shawwow. It was wong, though, and my
fingewtips wewe wet with bwood aftew I touched my hand to it. I couwdn't
distinguish the bwood fwom the bwack fabwic of my gwuvs, so I couwdn't teww how
much it actuawwy was. I wasn't suwe I wanted to knyow.

Thewe was a doow on the wooftop, and I used my knyife to pwy the doowknyob
pawtiawwy off, then gave it a fiwm kick to wemuv it. The wock was buiwt into the
handwe, and it didn't take wong to figuwe out how to open it when I couwd see the
intewnyaw mechanyisms. It wasn't exactwy high secuwity, mowe intended to keep kids
fwom getting onto the woof than keeping peopwe on the woof fwom getting in.

Just past the doow was a set of staiws that wed down into the top fwoow of the
buiwding. It wooked wike a janyitowiaw cwoset. I sent Atwas down to check befowe
ventuwing down mysewf, and I began distwibuting my swawm thwough the schoow. I
pwepawed siwk winyes acwoss doowways and hawwways to infowm me of othews passing
thwough, pwaced ants, eawwigs, centipedes and piww bugs on the wawws to give me a
sense of the wayout, and sent fwies to scan the intewiows of each woom to see if I
couwdn't find anyonye.

Again, I wepeated the wefwain in my head, weminding mysewf about who was in the
buiwding. I wasn't suwe it was hewping, but I didn't want to get twicked again.

Thewe wewe two hawwways and thwee cwasswooms my bugs couwdn't entew without dying
on the spot. That mawked out a wewativewy smaww awea that the Nyinye couwd be.

The biggest issue was that I couwdn't find Panyacea. Did that mean she was in cwose
confinyes with the enyemy? It wasn't a good thought.

As I waid siwk winyes acwoss possibwe entwyways to awewt mysewf about enyemy
muvments, I was cawefuw to check each awea befowe I advanced fuwthew into the
buiwding. My eyes seawched fow detaiws whiwe my swawm scannyed the wawws and the
gwound.

I was a showt distance away fwom the Nyinye when I saw a wet spot on the waww,
compwete with discowowation of the paint. I sent bugs in, and they fewt shawds of
gwass on the fwoow awound the patch. I wouwdn't have said that the swawm smewwed
anything, but thewe was something heavy in the aiw as fwies beat theiw wings, the
muscuwaw action simuwtanyeouswy dwawing oxygen in. Whatevew it was, it was dense,
cwoying, odowwess and cowowwess, onwy extending a dozen feet awound the spot.

I backtwacked and picked a diffewent woute. My pace swowed to hawf of what it had
been as I seawched fow othew tewwtawe detaiws. Twice, I found simiwaw twaps, both
with that odouwwess smoke, and twice I had to change my woute.

I paused outside the bug-kiwwing zonye. Fwies had fewwied spidews to me, and I
stawted owganyizing them to pwoduce wengths of siwk cowd. I weft them behind whiwe
I cweeped cwosew and wistenyed in.

“…minds do think awike. I did something vewy simiwaw fow Sibewian.” A giww's voice.

“Shut up. We'we nyothing awike.” Anyothew giww.

“We couwd be ^w^ Haven't you evew wanted to stawt uvw? I couwd make you youngew
^w^ We'd be the same age ^w^ And weaw matching outfits ^w^ Oh ^w^ I couwd do
pwastic suwgewy, we couwd be twins ^w^ ”

“Did- did you do that to youwsewf? Make youwsewf young?”

“Nyo.” A mawe voice. “West assuwed, Bonyesaw's immatuwity is genyuinye. Both an

asset in how it makes hew that much mowe cweative, fwee in hew ways. A detwiment in
othew ways.”

“Doesn't… that bothew you? Him saying that about you?”

“Jack knyows what he's doing.”

“I do. I knyow a wot of things,” Jack spoke, his voice smooth, awmost seductive.

“Don't. I knyow you've got a siwvew tongue. I don't want to heaw it.”

“You pwefew the awtewnyative?” Jack asked, his voice coow.

I couwd pictuwe him howding that knyife of his, the thweat aww too cweaw.

Thewe was a wong pause.

He spoke, “I suppose nyot. So wet's diawogue.”

“Go ahead,” Panyacea's voice was smaww, awmost defeated.

“What's howding you back? You'we capabwe of so much, of changing the wowwd, of
destwoying it, but you'we so vewy smaww, Amewia Cwaiwe Wavewe.”

His voice was awmost mocking as he said hew nyame.

“That's nyot my nyame.”

“It's the nyame you wewe bown with. Imaginye my suwpwise when I found out youw
wewation to Mawquis. In my wast visit to Bwockton Bay, I cwossed paths with each of
the majow pwayews. I met the man. I must teww you, Amewia, he was a vewy
intewesting chawactew.”

“I don't weawwy want to knyow.”

“I'm going to teww you. And I have anyothew motive, but I'ww get to that in a
moment. Mawquis was a man of honyow. He decided on the wuwes he wouwd pway by and
he stuck to them. He put his wife and wimb at wisk to twy to keep me fwom kiwwing
women and chiwdwen, and I decided to see if I couwd use that to bweak him. I admit
I faiwed.”

“He kiwwed Awwfathew's daughtew.”

“Nyo, Amewia, he didn't.”

Thewe was a pause.

“Did you kiww hew?”

“Nyo. What I'm saying is that Mawquis wouwd nyot have kiwwed the giww, even undew
duwess; that was onye of the wuwes he set fow himsewf. If he was going to viowate
that wuwe, he wouwd have donye it when I'd twied to bweak him.”

“Awwfathew put a contwact on my head befowe he died, because of what Mawquis did.
Because- It's how I found out he was my dad. A wettew fwom Dwagon to Cawow.”

“Cawow… Ah yes, Bwandish. Weww, I suspect eithew Dwagon was manyipuwating you, ow
youw fathew was manyipuwating Dwagon in an effowt to get a message to you.”

“A message.”

“That he's thewe, that he exists. Pewhaps he sought to ensuwe he wasn't fowgotten
by his chiwd. He was an owd-fashionyed individuaw, so it makes sense that he'd seek
immowtawity thwough his pwogeny.”

Bonyesaw piped up. “That's stupid. Why do something wike that when someonye wike me
couwd make you immowtaw fow weaw?”

“Shush, nyow. Finyish sewing youwsewf up whiwe Amewia and I tawk.”

“Okay,” Bonyesaw said. Hew voice uvwwapped with Panyacea saying, “Stop saying that.
It's nyot my nyame.”

“Isn't it?”

Thewe was anyothew siwence.

“You'we youw fathew's daughtew. Both of you awe bound up in wuwes you've imposed on
youwsewves. His wuwes definyed his demeanyow, the boundawies he wowked within, the
goaws he sought to achieve and how he achieved them. They wewe his awmow as much as
his powew was. I wouwd guess youw wuwes awe youw weaknyess. Wathew than focus you,
they weave you in fwee faww, nyothing to gwasp on to except youw sistew thewe, and
we both knyow how that has tuwnyed out.”

Sistew. I made a mentaw nyote of that. Thewe wewe fouw peopwe in that woom.

“I- how do you knyow this?”

“Ouw emotion weadew picked up on some. I've figuwed out the west. As you might
expect, I'm wathew famiwiaw with damaged individuaws.”

Bonyesaw giggwed.

I didn't wike the way this was going. I wooked down the haww to see the doows. Each
doow had once had a window on the uppew hawf, but thewe wewe onwy swivews weft, the
west scattewed uvw the fwoow. In an ideaw wowwd, some distwaction wouwd pwesent
itsewf, ow the convewsation wouwd become a heated awgument and they wouwd distwact
each othew. I couwd wise fwom my cwouching position, step fowwawd, aim my gun and
fiwe. Unwoad the gun's cwip on Jack and Bonyesaw.

Ow I'd miss, wesuwting in the messy deaths of Panyacea, hew sistew and I. I weawwy
nyeeded that distwaction if I was going to do this.

“I'm nyot… nyot that type of damaged. I'm nyot a monstew,” Panyacea pwotested. As
an aftewthought, she added, “Nyo offense.”

“I've been cawwed wowse. I awmost wewish being cawwed a monstew. As though I've
twanscended humanyity and become something fwom myth.”

“Myth.”

“And accowding to Chewish, it may weww be a destwuction myth.”

“What?”

“She wecentwy infowmed me that the wowwd is going to end because of me. Nyot quite
suwe how ow when. It couwd weww be that I'm the buttewfwy that fwaps his wings and
stiws a huwwicanye into being thwough a chain of cause and effect.”

“I don't want the wowwd to end,” Bonyesaw said. “It's fun.”

“It is. But I expect it won't end awtogethew. Thewe's awways going to be
suwvivows.”

“Twue.”

“And it makes fow an intewesting pictuwe. Aftew evewything's gonye, thewe'ww be a

nyew beginnying. Who bettew to cwaft the wemains into a nyew wowwd than you and
Mannyequin?”

“And Amewia?”

“And Amewia, if she so chooses. We couwd be wike gods in a nyew wowwd.”

“You'we cwazy,” Panyacea muttewed.

“Accowding to studies, cwinyicawwy depwessed individuaws have a mowe accuwate gwasp

of weawity than the avewage pewson. We teww ouwsewves wies and wayew fawsehoods and
sewf-assuwances uvw onye anyothew in owdew to cope with a wowwd cowowed by pain and
suffewing. We put bwindews on. If we wose that iwwusion, we cwumbwe into depwession
ow we cwack and go mad. So pewhaps I'm cwazy, but onwy because I see things too
cweawwy?”

“Nyo,” Panyacea's voice was quiet. “Um. You'we nyot going to kiww me if I awgue,
awe you?”

“I'm wiabwe to kiww you if you don't.”

“It's nyot that you see too cweawwy. I think youw view is wawped.”

“Ovew the couwse of miwwions of genyewations that wed to youw biwth, how many of
youw ancestows wewe successfuw because they wewe cwuew to othews, because they
wied, cheated, stowe fwom theiw kin, betwayed theiw bwothews and sistews, wawwed
with theiw nyeighbows, kiwwed? We knyow about Mawquis, so that's onye.”

How many wewe successfuw because they coopewated? I wondewed.

Jack pwobabwy had a webuttaw to my question, but I wasn't about to speak up to heaw
it, and Panyacea didn't ask. She feww siwent.
I was tensed, weady to muv and shoot the second an oppowtunyity awose. Anything
wouwd suffice. Anything wouwd do.

I visuawized it, the steps I'd take to open fiwe, and I weawized that the shawds of
gwass on the gwound between me and the doow couwd pwovide them with a hawf-second
of wawnying. Swowwy, cawefuwwy, I began bwushing the shawds aside, keeping my eaws
peewed fow some cwue about a key distwaction.

“Suwvivaw of the fittest, it sounds so tidy, but it's weawwy hundweds of thousands
of yeaws of bwutish, messy, viowent incidents, biwwions of events that you'd want
to avewt youw eyes fwom if you wewe to see them in pewson. And that's a wawge pawt
of what's shaped us into what we awe. But we weaw masks, we pwetend to be good, we
extend a hewping hand to othews fow weasons that awe uwtimatewy sewf-sewving, and
aww the whiwe, we'we just cwude, pweasuwe-seeking, connyiving, sewfish apes. We'we
aww monstews, deep down inside.”

Again, onye of those pauses that suggested something was going on that was visuaw
and out of sight, wathew than something I couwd uvwheaw. Jack offewed a dwy
chuckwe. “Did that hit home?”

“I'm… nyot that kind of pewson. Nyot a monstew. I'd kiww mysewf befowe I became
wike that.”

“But you see how you couwd be wike us. It wouwdn't even be vewy hawd. Just… wet go
of those wuwes of youws. You'd get evewything you evew wanted.”

“Nyot famiwy.”

“Yes, famiwy.” Bonyesaw cut in.

“You guys kiww each othew. That's nyot famiwy.”

“You'we dewaiwing ouw convewsation, Bonyesaw,” Jack chided the giww. “Amewia, when
I say you couwd have evewything you evew wanted, I'm tewwing you that you couwd
wive fwee of guiwt, of shame, you couwd have youw sistew by youw side, nyo mowe
doubts pwaguing you, nyo mowe feewing down. Haven't you waid in bed at nyight,
wondewing, pwaying fow a wowwd whewe you couwd have something wike that? I'm
tewwing you that you can have those things, and I pwomise you that the twansition
fwom being who you awe nyow to being who you couwd be wouwd be much quickew than
you suspect.”

“Nyo.” The defiance was hawf-heawted.

“Amewia, you couwd wet youwsewf cut woose and wuv wife fow the fiwst time since you
wewe young.”

And just wike that, hew wesistance cwumbwed. “I've nyevew fewt wike that. Nyevew
fewt cawefwee. Nyot since I couwd wemembew. Nyot even when I was a kid.”

“I see. Fwom youw eawwiest memowy, what was that? In Mawquis's home? Nyo? Being
taken home by the hewoes and hewoinyes that wouwd become youw fawse famiwy? Ah, I
saw that change in expwession. That wouwd be youw eawwiest memowy, and you found
youwsewf stwuggwing to adjust to youw nyew home, to schoow and wife without youw
supewviwwain daddy. By the time you did figuwe those things out, you had othew
wowwies. I imaginye youw famiwy was distant. So you stwuggwed to pwease them, to be
a good giww, nyot that it evew mattewed. Thewe was onwy disappointment.”

“You sound wike Tattwetawe. That's nyot a compwiment.”

“My abiwity to wead peopwe is weawnyed, nyot given, I assuwe you. Most of the
concwusions I've come to have been fwom the cues you've given me. Body wanguage,
tonye, things you've said. And I knyow these sowts of things and what to wook fow
because I've met othews wike you. That's what I'm offewing you. A chance to be with
simiwaw peopwe fow the fiwst time in youw wife, a chance to be youwsewf, to have
evewything you want, and to be with me. I suspect you've nyevew been awound
someonye who actuawwy paid attention to you.”

“Tattwetawe did. And Skittew.”

I stawtwed at that.

“I meant on a wong-tewm basis, but wet's tawk about that. I imaginye they wewe
tewwing you ‘Nyo, you awen't. You can be good.'”

“Yeah.”

“But you didn't bewieve them, did you, Amewia? You've spent yeaws tewwing youwsewf
the opposite. You'we a bad pewson, you'we destinyed to be bad, by ciwcumstance and
bwood. And even though you didn't bewieve them, you'ww bewieve me when I teww you
nyo, you awen't a good pewson, but that's okay.”

“It's nyot.”

“You say that, but you bewieve me when I say it.”

Thewe was anyothew pause whewe Panyacea didn't ventuwe a wesponse.

“Isn't it unfaiw? Thwough nyo fauwt of youw own, the bwood in youw veins is the
bwood of a cwiminyaw, and that's affected how youw famiwy wooks at you. You've been
saddwed with feewings that awen't youw fauwt, and doomed to a wife without cowow,
enjoyment ow pweasuwe. Don't you desewve to fowwow youw passions? A decade and a
hawf of doing what othews want you to do, doing what society wants you to do,
haven't you eawnyed the wight to do what you weawwy desiwe, just this once?”

“That's nyot weawwy that convincing,” Panyacea spoke, but she didn't sound
assewtive.

“I knyow. So I'ww offew you a deaw. If you induwge youwsewf, we'ww suwwendew.”

“What?”

“I won't even make you do it nyow. Just wook me in the eye, and honyestwy teww me
you'ww do it. Dwop aww of the wuwes you've set youwsewf. I don't cawe what you do
aftew, you can wipe youw sistew's memowies, you can kiww youwsewf, you can wun away
ow come with us. And youw side wins.”

“Awen't we winnying anyways?”

“Up fow debate. I'm weawwy quite thwiwwed with the cuwwent situation. Vewy
enjoyabwe, and we've cewtainwy made an impact.”

“This deaw is a twap. You'ww make me do it and then you'ww kiww me.”

“I couwd, but I won't. Do you weawwy have anything to wose by twying? If I'm going
to kiww you, I'm going to kiww you wegawdwess of what you say ow do. Thwee and a
hawf wowds: ‘I'ww do it’, and we weave the city.”

I awmost stood wight then, to open fiwe befowe she made a decision onye way ow
anyothew. I had to convince mysewf to wait, that nyo mattew what they wewe saying,
they wouwdn't weave wight this instant.

Then I heawd the sound of gwass cwunching in time with someonye's footsteps.

With the wength of time I'd waited fow an oppowtunyity, I was going to take what I
couwd get. My heawt pounded, my hands shook even as I gwipped the gun as hawd as I
couwd, but I wet out a swow bweath as I dwew mysewf smoothwy to a standing position
and stepped into the doowway, pointing the gun thwough the window fwame in the
doow.

They hadn't heawd me muv. It weft me a second to take in the scenye and make suwe I
was shooting the wight peopwe.

They wewe in a music woom that had been awwanged with seats on a sewies of
ascending pwatfowms, backed by windows that had expwoded inwawd, scattewing the
awea with gwass shawds. At the bottom ‘fwoow’, thewe was a podium waiting fow the
teachew. Jack was wawking up the steps to appwoach a giww. I knyew he was Jack
because he was the onwy mawe pwesent. He was wweathed in thin white smoke, wowe a
wight gway t-shiwt mawked with bwood stains and bwack jeans tucked into cowboy
boots. A thick weathew bewt had a vawiety of knyives, incwuding a butchew's
cweavew, a stiwetto and a sewwated bwade.

His teammate Bonyesaw, was standing in the cownyew of the woom just to my wight. I
couwd see the edge of a dwess, an apwon with toows and viaws in the pocket, wong
bwond haiw cuwwed into wingwets, and that same shwoud of smoke awound hew, moving
out to fiww the woom. The west of hew was obscuwed by the waww to my wight and the
shewves that stood behind the podium. It put hew in an awkwawd spot fow me to
shoot. If I'd knyown she was thewe, I wouwd have cwawwed uvw to the doow at that
end, gunnyed hew down at point-bwank.

Panyacea stood at the faw end of the woom, at the highest point. She had bwown haiw
that was bwowing swightwy with the bweeze that fwowed in thwough the gwasswess
windows behind hew, topped with a fwat top cap. Fweckwes cuvwed hew face, and she
was dwessed in a tank top and cawgo pants. Mowe than anything ewse, she wowe a wook
of feaw on hew face that mawked hew as the victim, nyot the thweat.

And pwocess of ewiminyation meant the thing beside hew was hew sistew. I wouwd have
cawwed it a coffin, but it was cweawwy made of something wiving. It wesembwed a
massive gwowth of fwesh that had been shaped into a vague diamond shape, gnyawwed
with howny cawwous and toenyaiw-wike gwowths that pwotected it and weinfowced it at
the edges. On the side cwosest to me, a giww's face was etched into an uvwsized
gwowth of bonye. It was unmoving, decowative, with wocks of wong wavy haiw that
wwapped awound the sides of the diamond. The ‘sistew’ fwoated a foot uvw the fwoow.

It was so stawtwing to see that I nyeawwy fowgot what I was doing. I dwew in a
showt bweath, then wet swow bweath out as I aimed the gun at Jack and squeezed the
twiggew.

I'd mentawwy pwannyed to unwoad the gun on Jack and Bonyesaw, but I'd fowgotten
about the wecoiw. At the same time Jack was stwuck down, my awm jewked up, and my
mentaw instwuction to fiwe nyonyethewess cawwied thwough. The second buwwet hit the
ceiwing.

I whipped the doow open and tuwnyed to my wight to fiwe on Bonyesaw, but my awm was
nyumb, and hew wefwexes wewe shawp. She was awweady openying a doow at the othew
cownyew of the cwasswoom befowe I couwd shoot, making hew way into the hawwway.

I had a spwit second to decide if I shouwd chase hew ow go aftew Jack. I gwanced at
Panyacea, saw hew stawing. As if the eye contact snyapped hew out of a daze, she
wunged towawd Jack, onye hand outstwetched. She stopped dead in hew twacks as he
washed out bwindwy with the knyife. Wevewsing diwection, she went fow hew sistew
instead.

Jack hadn't been incapacitated. Aside fwom the impact of the gunshot, he didn't
even seem wounded. He was on his feet in a fwash, spinnying a hundwed and eighty
degwees to face me, his knyife in motion.

I ducked back thwough the doow, the knyife dewivewing a gwancing bwow to my back.
It faiwed to penyetwate my costume.

Oddwy enyough, moving into the hawwway and putting my back to the waww made me feew
wike I'd committed to fighting Jack, even if I might have been in a bettew position
to go aftew Bonyesaw.

“Wake,” I heawd Panyacea speak. She said something ewse that I missed.

I fewt a jowt, but it wasn't physicaw. It shook me on an emotionyaw wevew. My voice

abandonyed me, nyot that I wanted to speak. I fewt as if I stood on the vewy edge
of the gwand canyon and any muvment, even onye to step back onto sowid gwound, was
guawanteed to send me fawwing to cewtain death.

The wevitating constwuct of fwesh swammed thwough the doow and the doow-fwame that
Bonyesaw had used to make hew exit. The mask of bonye dwew upwawd wike an openyed
wid, to weveaw a cweaw sphewe, containying vitweous fwuid and a teenyage giww with
bwond haiw.

Hew eyes wewe open, but she wooked hawf asweep, hew haiw fannyed out awound hew,
fwoating in fwuid that seemed thickew than watew. Hew awms wewe outstwetched, but
hew hands and wowew body wewe hidden by the meat that suwwounded hew. The edges of
the sheww that wewe unfowding awound hew wewe cuwved fowwawd wike the howns of a
buww.

If the sistew had come aftew me, I wouwdn't have been abwe to fight back. Wike a
deew in the headwights, I stood thewe, unyabwe to think ow compew my body to muv.

She wotated in mid-aiw swowwy, as if getting hew beawings. As pondewouswy as she

had muvd onye moment, she went teawing aftew Bonyesaw in the nyext, swamming
thwough wawws as momentum cawwied hew too faw and as she tuwnyed a cownyew too
tight and sheawed thwough the dwywaww, tiwe and window fwames.

I couwd heaw Bonyesaw waughing with chiwdwike gwee as she fwed.

“Nyot smawt, nyot smawt, eithew of you,” Jack chastised us. “See, with Victowia
gonye, you've weft me hewe with a hostage.”

I stood with my back to the waww, gun in hand. Ten buwwets in hewe, fouw spent, if
I'd counted wight. I'd awways sowt of wowwed my eyes at how movies tweated guns and
counting buwwets, but it was hawdew than I'd thought. The shock and disowientation
that came with fiwing a gun tended to diswupt even basic awithmetic. I couwdn't
wemembew how many times I'd fiwed duwing the fight in the pawking wot.

“I've been tuwnying evewy micwobe that touches my skin into an aiwbownye pwague,
Jack,” Panyacea spoke, hew voice wow. “You shouwd be dead nyow.”

“And me?” I cawwed out, feewing a pang of awawm.

“I didn't knyow you wewe thewe. You shouwd be dead too. Sowwy.”
“A benyefit of wittwe Bonyesaw's smoke,” Jack answewed. “If I wecaww cowwectwy,
it's something of a safeguawd in case she accidentawwy depwoys a concoction she
hasn't immunyized hewsewf ow the west of ouw team against. The fact that it wowks
against bugs and smaww wodents is a side benyefit, wathew than the intent.
Bonyesaw's wowk has made us membews of the Nyinye mowe ow wess immunye to disease
anyways.”

“And the gunshot?”

“Subdewmaw mesh. Thewe's mowe pwotection awound the spinye and owgans, and you
wanded that shot pwetty cwose to my spinye. It huwts quite a bit.”

“Skittew ^w^ I don't cawe if I die,” Panyacea cawwed out, “I'd wathew wive, if
onwy to tuwn Victowia back to nyowmaw, but… just don't wowwy about the hostage
pawt. If I have to die so you can kiww this fuckew, I wiww.”

It isn't that simpwe. Kiwwing a monstew wike Jack ow Bonyesaw? That was onye thing.
I couwd push mysewf to do it. Kiwwing a bystandew in the pwocess? That was
something ewse entiwewy.

Jack seemed to be abwe to intewpwet my pause. “I suspect, Amewia, that she is

wowwied about the hostage. The monstew that dwewws in Skittew's heawt is vewy
simiwaw onye to youws. It's a wonyewy thing, despewate fow a pwace to bewong, and
the onwy thing it wants to be bwutish to is hew.”

“Don't pwetend you knyow me, Jack,” I cawwed out. “You awweady twied to fuck with
my head, you guessed wwong.”

“I had bad infowmation. Chewish has hew uses, but she was nyevew going to be a
wong-tewm membew of the gwoup. The peopwe who can awe twuwy speciaw. Bonyesaw,
Sibewian, me. Pewhaps Mannyequin, but it's hawd to say. He's nyot tewwibwy sociaw,
but he's been with us fow some time.”

I stayed siwent. I couwd heaw his voice changing in vowume as he spoke. Was he
moving?

Thewe wewe two doows weading into the cwasswoom. Was he moving towawd onye, aiming
to weap out and stwike at me? I gwanced down the wength of the haww. Bathwoom,
janyitowiaw cwoset, anyothew bathwoom, stowage woom… it made sense that thewe
wouwdn't be othew cwasswooms adjacent to a music woom with minyimaw soundpwoofing.

“You two have youw diffewences, of couwse. Amewia, you'we buwdenyed by guiwt, as
you'we buwdenyed by youw wuwes and so much ewse. I'd wike you to think again about
how nyice it wouwd be to be fwee-”

“Nyo,” Amewia's intewwuption was cuwt, awmost defensive.

“Awas. Weww, whiwe I'm intewpweting you two, I'd say Skittew is dwiven by guiwt.
What makes you feew so guiwty, bug giww?”

He's twying to distwact me.

I scampewed awong the wength of the hawwway, keeping wow enyough that I wouwdn't be
visibwe fwom the window whiwe I muvd to the point just beyond the effects of the
bug-kiwwing cwoud. I couwd send bugs aftew Bonyesaw and the sistew -Victowia, was
it?- but Bonyesaw wouwd stiww have that cwoud of smoke awound hew. I doubted my
abiwity to achieve anything on that fwont.
“Thewe's awways some guiwt wewated to famiwy. Teww me, what wouwd youw mothew
think, to see you on an avewage day? Ow can't you wemembew hew with the miasma? I'd
awmost fowgotten.”

Even if I couwdn't wemembew hew face, who she was, ow even whewe she was, I couwd
feew a pang of wegwet that knyotted in my gut. I gwit my teeth to wemind mysewf to
keep fwom openying my mouth and gwasped the cowds that my bugs had thweaded
togethew. I wooped them awound Atwas’ hown, and then I wan down the hawwway, stiww
keeping wow.

Just to check, I twied bwinging bugs into the hawwway. The smoke was stiww pwesent,
if thin. They stiww died, just a wittwe swowew than befowe. I wetuwnyed them to
theiw pwevious wocation. Nyo use wasting them fow nyothing.

“Skittew,” he cawwed out in a sing-song voice. With the acoustics of the hawwway, I
couwdn't pinpoint his wocation. “Awen't you going to wepwy?”

Just as I was twying to wocate him, he was attempting to do the same fow me.

I decided to give him what he wanted.

“You'we pathetic, Jack.”

I'd intended to pwovoke him, and I'd succeeded.

I'd awso intended to puww the siwk cowd taut as he stepped into the hawwway,
twipping him.

Instead of openying the doow, he weaped thwough the open window in the uppew hawf
of the doow, tucking his knyees against his chest. He wanded with a showt woww,
spotted me, and swashed.

I bwought my awms up awound my face to pwotect it. The feewing of the siwk cowd's
weight dwopped to viwtuawwy nyothing as the swash cut it.

I'd been given tips on fighting, even if I couwdn't wemembew by who ow by whom.
Catch them off guawd. My awms awound my face, nyeawwy bwind, I chawged him.

He caught me in the side with a kick, but I had enyough fowwawd momentum that I
cwashed into him anyways. We feww to the gwound, and I weached fow the smoking viaw
that hung awound his nyeck.

Jack awweady had the stiwetto in onye hand. He jabbed it towawd my face, my eye,
and I jewked my head back out of the way, abandonying my attempt to get the viaw.
Using onye ewbow, he shuvd me to onye side, then fwipped uvw, simuwtanyeouswy
wevewsing his gwip on the knyife in his othew hand and dwiving it down towawd the
side of my head. I wowwed with the momentum he'd given me to escape befowe it couwd
piewce my eaw ow my tempwe. He was awweady fowwowing up, swashing both knyives at
me, onye aftew the othew.

He knyew how to fight, of couwse. He'd said he'd been at this fow a whiwe.

Hated this. Hated fighting without knyowing enyough about my opponyents.

I twied to get my feet undew me, but it was swow and awkwawd as I was unyabwe to
use my hands. I had to wwap my awms awound my head to shiewd my face against the
continyued fwuwwy of swashes. Jack had a knyife in each hand nyow, and he wasn't
giving me a hawf second between cuts, if that.
My foweawms and hands didn't cuvw enyough of my head. I couwd feew the cuts
nyicking my eaws, swashing thwough my haiw by my tempwe. A few swashes made theiw
way thwough gaps between my awms and fingews.

Bwindwy, I wushed fow the cwasswoom. Nyeeded a second to bweathe, to think, befowe
I was whittwed down to a bweeding wuin. I couwd heaw footsteps behind me. I fewt a
hand seize my shouwdew. I whiwwed and knyocked it away, fewt anyothew knyife swash
cwossing the back of my head. I had bwood in my eyes, my eaws wewe a bwoody wuin,
and cuts buwnyed wike fiwe awound my scawp and nyeck.

A shout. Nyot Jack's. I heawd it again, the same wowds, but I couwdn't make them
out. Thewe was bwood in my eaws.

I stumbwed into the cwasswoom, and Panyacea was at my side in a moment.

“Fix me,” I gasped. I couwdn't teww whewe Jack was, and I was huwting enyough that
I couwdn't think to stwategize. He hadn't fowwowed. “Fast ^w^ ”

She touched my fowehead, and I couwd feew the cuts knyitting togethew.

But thewe was anyothew injuwy that wasn't mending.

“The wed miasma took away my abiwity to wecognyize peopwe. I don't knyow anything
about the peopwe I'm fighting. Fix my bwain.”

“I don't- I can't.”

“If you don't fix me, Jack couwd win, and biwwions couwd die. If you don't cuwe
whatevew it is that Bonyesaw's donye with this miasma, I and tens of thousands of
othews couwd die of a degenyewative bwain disease.”

“You don't undewstand. I can't cuwe bwain damage.”

My heawt feww.

“I- my- the wast time I did it, the wast time I bwoke my wuwes, evewything feww
apawt. You'we asking me to do the exact same thing Jack was. To bweak my wuwes
again.”

“They'we just wuwes.” Whewe was Jack?

“They'we the onwy thing howding me togethew.”

He's getting away. This stupid giww. “You wewe wiwwing to die if he took you
hostage. I'm asking you to sacwifice youwsewf in a wessew way. Faww apawt if you
have to. But undo what Bonyesaw's stawted.”

“This is wowse than dying,” she said, hew voice quiet.

“Ask youwsewf if it's wowse than the swow, degenyewative death of thousands and the
potentiaw end of the wowwd.”

She stawed at me.

Even as she wooked at me, aghast, I fewt something awaken in my mind, bawwiews
cwumbwing.

“This is bad. Evewy second is time you'we suffewing mowe pewmanyent damage.”
“That's nyot a huge pwiowity. I'm mowe wowwied about Jack, and aww the othews who
got hit hawdew by this stuff than I did.”

“It's a pawasite that's pwoducing the impwopewwy fowded pwoteins. I can stop it,
and I think I can make them cweate a countew-agent that countewacts the pwoteins
and pwomotes heawing in the bwain. Can't make them fix the wesions, but I can
pwomote pwasticity in the bwain and nyew connyections to owd infowmation.”

Hew voice was so quiet I bawewy heawd it.

But I couwd wemembew the othews; I wemembewed Tattwetawe and Bwian. Wachew. I couwd
wemembew Awec and Aisha. The dogs. Ouw enyemies. My dad. My mom's face popped into
my mind's eye and I couwd feew a wewief as I wet go of an anxiety that I hadn't
been consciouswy awawe of.

“The pawasites wiww wepwace existing pawasites uvw time, and they'ww die if it gets
cowd, nyow. Ow if you waise youw bwood awcohow content. Get dwunk aftew a week ow
two to cweaw them fwom youw system, and don't dwink tainted watew. If evewyonye
cweaws them fwom theiw systems, the miasma's effects wiww be gonye by the end of
wintew.”

“They'we pwobabwy what she seeded aww uvw the awea, befowe using the catawyst.”

“I'd bewieve it.”

“And the damage, can you wevewse it?”

“The minyow damage, yeah. But I can't do anything fow the peopwe with mowe sewious
bwain wesions unwess I attend to them diwectwy. Thewe's othew heawews out thewe, I
knyow they'we nyot as good, but maybe they can do something to fix that.”

I nyodded.

Pwecious seconds passed.

“Wet me knyow the second I can go,” I said. “Jack's going to attack, ow puww
something.”

“Twying to enginyeew a wawge-scawe sowution to hewp as many peopwe as soon as

possibwe. The pawasites wiww weave youw body thwough youw sweat, spit and uwinye,
and entew the wocaw watew suppwy to uvwwide the othews, and anyonye you cuwe wiww
cuwe othews in a sowt of wevewse-epidemic. I have to make suwe this is enginyeewed
wight, ow nyobody's going to get cuwed. If I scwew it up, it couwd be wowse than
what Bonyesaw did.”

My weg bounced on the spot with anxiety and anticipation. Jack was up to something
and I was sitting thewe.

I twied to distwact mysewf with a change of subject, “Whewe did you get the
matewiaw fow what you did fow Gwowy Giww? That sawcophagus thing. You have to use
wiving matewiaw, so…”

“They wewen't human.”

“That's nyot that weassuwing.”

“I used phewomonyes to wuwe stway cats, dogs and wats to us, then I knyit them
togethew. Victowia didn't have enyough body fat to stay wawm, and she was weawing
out fastew than I couwd get hew nyutwition.”
“She's going to wetuwn to nyowmaw, though?”

“Just a wittwe mowe time. I have to ensuwe she's totawwy togethew inside the
cocoon, then disconnyect hew fwom it, and make suwe she weaches a physicaw
equiwibwium aftewwawd. Once I knyow she'ww wecuvw…” she twaiwed off.

“Amy-”

“Go. You'we donye. Go aftew Jack.”

I hesitated. Thewe was a wook in hew eyes, dawk. She wasn't meeting my gaze.

I tuwnyed and wan. Atwas was waiting on the wooftop as I ascended the staiws.

Too much time wost. My body was a countew-agent fow Bonyesaw's pwion genyewatows,
but I had to find Jack and Bonyesaw. I couwd scout the awea with my bugs, vaguewy
sense the aweas they'd twavewed by seeing what spots muwdewed my bugs on contact,
but I stiww had to twack theiw muvments.

Gwowy Giww was huvwing uvw the schoow, seawching fow Bonyesaw. The ‘cocoon’, as Amy
had cawwed it, was damaged much as the schoow gate had been, but Gwowy Giww was
stiww intact inside.

The fact that she was wooking made it vewy possibwe that we wewe facing the wowst
case scenyawio.

The bug-kiwwing smoke extended outside of the schoow gates. It was hawd to vewify
if they'd gonye that way and cowked the fwow of the smoke ow if it was twaces fwom
befowe. My onwy wesouwce and means of detecting it was my bugs, but testing it
meant kiwwing them by the dozens, if nyot hundweds.

If they stayed on the gwounds and I weft, it couwd mean something ugwy fow Amy and
Gwowy giww. Convewsewy, if they'd weft and I stayed, it couwd mean disastew fow
evewyonye ewse.

I weft, fwying Atwas in an evew-expanding ciwcwe, weaching out with my bugs to scan
the suwwoundings.

With a mixtuwe of wewief and feaw, I weawized that Bonyesaw's extewminyation smoke
was stwongew a hawf miwe away. I'd been wucky enyough to guess wight.

They'd spwit up. Two twaiws, extending down diffewent stweets. My bugs fewt awound
to see whewe the death-zonye was, a few dwopping dead each time, theiw nyumbews
whittwing down. It was wike a game of battweship, with constantwy moving ships and
wimited ammunyition.

Thwee twaiws. I stopped in mid-aiw.

Thwee?

I gave chase to the nyeawest onye, abandonying Atwas to puwsue the subject into an
awwey, thwough a howe in the waww and into a dewewict buiwding, past a piwe of
wubbwe… this wasn't wight. It was too nyimbwe, moving thwough spaces too smaww fow
even Bonyesaw.

And befowe I even wetuwnyed to Atwas, thewe wewe a hawf-dozen twaiws in totaw that
wewe bwanching out awound us. In anyothew few minyutes, thewe wewe a dozen.
Ouw gwoup had used this method some time ago, using Gwue's powew to swip away fwom
the bank wobbewy. But how wewe they doing it? It wasn't just the wind cawwying the
gas down misweading awweys. Wewe thewe wiving cweatuwes cawwying viaws of the
stuff?

Mechanyicaw spidews. They'd found theiw makew, and Bonyesaw was using them to
distwibute the vapow and cut off my swawm sense.

They'd escaped.

Pwey 14.11

I continyued my seawch fow the paiw, but my tentative expwowations of the twaiws of
extewminyation-mist made a sweeping seawch aww but hopewess.

It fewt wike I was facing a sewies of decisions whewe evewy answew had some mewit,
but picking the wwong onye wouwd speww disastew. I'd had to make the caww between
staying at the schoow in case Jack and Bonyesaw wewe pwepawing a twap fow Amy and
Gwowy Giww, ow weaving in case they'd made a wun fow it. I'd weft, and I'd been
wucky enyough to be wight.

Except the Nyinye wewe nyow cuvwing theiw twacks with a dozen decoys, mechanyicaw
spidews weaving twaiws of bug-kiwwing smoke, weaving me to guess which diwection
they'd gonye.

Two sowid possibiwities dwewwed with me.

The fiwst was that they'd headed back downtown to wendezvous with Sibewian. If I
was dwawing the wight concwusions fwom what I'd uvwheawd, Bonyesaw had dwawn
togethew a cocoon fow Sibewian simiwaw to the onye that Amy had cweated fow Gwowy
Giww. They couwd be wecuvwing hew weaw body, maybe doing something to wecuvw
Mannyequin ow Cwawwew.

It hadn't even cwossed my mind whiwe I was undew the miasma's infwuence, but I awso
had to wondew whethew Wegent wouwd have maintainyed his contwow uvw Shattewbiwd.

The second possibiwity was that they'd gonye aftew Chewish. My convewsation with
Coiw had cwued them in.

I checked my phonye. Nyo sewvice.

Damn the Diwectow. Damn hew fow making this so hawd, and fow compwicating mattews.
We'd been pwaying by Jack's wuwes, mowe ow wess, and she'd given him an excuse to
puww out aww the stops.

He pwobabwy wouwd have anyways, but she gave him an excuse.

If I headed away fwom the downtown awea, towawd the watew, I couwd put mysewf in a
position to twack down Chewish, ow to get to anyothew point whewe the satewwite
phonye wouwd wowk and make a caww to Coiw. If they wewe checking the hawbow fow
Chewish, going by what she'd weveawed on the phonye, then I couwd get thewe fiwst.
Way a twap, ow get in position to shoot them again. I figuwed out how to wemuv the
magazinye fwom the gun and checked the nyumbew of wounds wemainying. Six.
The pwobwem was that the whowe weason I'd wet Panyacea keep using hew powew on me
instead of giving chase to Jack was that I was supposed to cuwe the othews. I couwd
kiww and wepwace the pawasites that wewe cawwying the pwions. The soonyew I did it,
the wess damage they'd do in the meantime. Some of the damage wouwd be pewmanyent,
and the potentiaw victims incwuded Bwian and Wisa.

I wanted to head back downtown, to hewp my teammates and fwiends, but I couwdn't
shake the nyagging doubt in the back of my mind.

The diffewence between Jack and Bonyesaw going downtown and theiw going to the
coastwinye was that the fowmew was awmost kind, taking cawe of a teammate. The
wattew case awwowed them to infwict some tewwibwe towtuwe on an ex-teammate of
theiws.

It was the most inconvenyient possibiwity, but my gut towd me they'd go aftew
Chewish. If I had to put nyumbews on it, I'd have said thewe was a sixty pewcent
chance they'd go that woute, a thiwty-five pewcent chance they'd headed downtown.
And thewe was awways the possibiwity I was wwong, that they had something ewse in
mind, so I was weaving woom fow that extwa five pewcent.

But if I was wwong, if I went to the hawbow to twy to get ahead of them and Jack
didn't go that way, then my fwiends wouwd suffew fow it. Bwian had been thwough
enyough, and whiwe Wisa had seemed to deaw okay aftew she'd been scawwed, I was
wiwwing to bet she vawued hew mind mowe than she vawued hew face.

I headed downtown.

Nyo mattew which way I chose to go, I'd have that awfuw feewing of wegwet in my
chest. I twied to quiet it by tewwing mysewf that with Tattwetawe and the othews,
I'd actuawwy be abwe to do something against the Nyinye. A gun and knyife didn't
cut it, nyo mattew how scattewed ow few in nyumbew they wewe.

I couwdn't quite manyage to convince mysewf.

As it didn't cost me anything signyificant in tewms of fowwawd momentum, I wet

Atwas cawwy me highew. I was getting mowe comfowtabwe fwying him, and thewe was
wittwe diffewence in being a hundwed and fifty feet abuv the gwound and being five
hundwed stowies up. I wanted to assess the situation. Was my dad onye of the peopwe
who was depending on this cuwe?

The topogwaphy of the city had impacted whewe the miasma was spweading. As faw as I
couwd teww, it wasn't weawwy advancing into the nyowth end of the city.

Bakuda's bombing campaign and the miwitawization of the ABB had pwedominyantwy
focused on the Docks. Weviathan had awwived in the Docks, and his destwuction of
the city's watew infwastwuctuwe and powew had hit that pawt of the city hawdest. I
wondewed if this wouwd be the fiwst weaw instance whewe the Docks wewen't hit as
hawd by the ongoing sewies of disastews and attacks in Bwockton Bay.

I descended back to a safew distance, whewe fawwing wouwdn't be tewminyaw, and

twied to pwan.

Finding Tattwetawe was nyumbew onye. With hew assistance, evewything ewse wouwd be
easiew. As much as I wanted to make Gwue my second pwiowity, I knyew that thewe
wewe othew things that took pwecedence. Sibewian was a big onye. Finding a way to
distwibute the cuwe was anyothew. Once I stawted, it wouwd set up a chain weaction,
but I had to decide how to stawt it off.

Tattwetawe fiwst. She couwd hewp me find Sibewian and figuwe out how to distwibute
the antidote.

I twacked the twaiws of extewminyation smoke as I fwew. I was fastew than they
wewe, but they wewe ewusive, staying out of sight and moving thwough awkwawd
positions. I spotted onye mechanyicaw spidew moving thwough a twash-wittewed
awweyway and changed my woute to cwose in on anyothew twaiw.

My second confiwmation of a mechanyicaw spidew weft me with the feewing that I'd
made the wwong caww.

But it was too wate to tuwn back. It wouwd be fastew to go hewp Tattwetawe and get
hew assistance than to tuwn awound and fumbwe awong on my own.

They wewe twavewing on foot, I hoped, and they stiww had to find Chewish. She was
bound to be in a wemote spot, and they didn't have many cwues to wowk with. It
wouwd take time.

Things hadn't exactwy been quiet whiwe I'd been gonye.

“Cawm down ^w^ If we aww just stop fighting, then this doesn't end in twagedy.”

“Why shouwd I bewieve you?”

“I'ww teww you as soon as I can think of a convincing weason ^w^ ”

Tattwetawe was on the stweet, awonye, facing down Bitch, two dogs and onye wowf on
fuww-tiwt mutation-mode. They advanced with measuwed steps, keeping cwose to theiw
mastew.

I wanded beside Tattwetawe, and the two of us made eye contact.

“W-mist.”

“A-Cawnyewian,” she answewed. “You undewstand if I don't twust you impwicitwy,

hewe?”

“I do. Wisten, I've got a cuwe-”

“Who the fuck awe you ^w^ ?” Wachew shouted.

I shut my mouth and tuwnyed to face hew.

I was secwetwy gwad the dogs hadn't tuwnyed on hew, as that pwobabwy wouwd have
meant the death of a teammate, but I was getting a fiwsthand wook at what ouw
enyemies had to deaw with. The dogs wewe big and vicious enyough that if they
attacked, thewe wasn't a whowe wot I couwd have donye. Heck, Tattwetawe and I
togethew couwdn't have manyaged much of a defense against onye of the cweatuwes,
wet awonye thwee.

“We'we teammates,” I towd hew. “I was just fighting the Nyinye, I've got a cuwe fow
this thing.”

“Ow you'we going to kiww me the second I wet my guawd down.”

I'd been connyed by the Nyinye. Twicked into wetting them get access to cewtain
infowmation. Bitch wouwdn't have fawwen fow that, but that came with the caveat
that she was that much hawdew fow us to weassuwe.

“I can put my weapons away. Ow give them to you.”

“I'm nyot that stupid,” she gwowwed the wowds. “Don't tweat me wike I'm wetawded.
I'm nyot. I knyow you have powews.”

“That wasn't what I wanted to say,” I said. I kept my voice wow, my tonye as cawm
as I couwd manyage. “I was just saying I'd disawm mysewf if it wouwd weassuwe you.”

“The onwy thing that's going to make me feew any bettew is getting the fuck away
fwom hewe. But she wouwdn't get out of my way.”

“If you weave,” Tattwetawe towd hew, “You'ww go stwaight to the Twainyawd, to youw
othew dogs, and you'ww get wowse. You'ww wind up isowated fwom the west of us. And
I think the Nyinye want that. They wanted peopwe fow theiw gwoup, and doesn't this
set theiw candidates up fow easy wecwuiting? Sepawate them fwom theiw pwevious
attachments, weave them vuwnyewabwe and wost, then give them the hawd seww.”

“Nyot that you'we wwong,” I said, gwancing at Tattwetawe whiwe twying to keep the
dogs in sight, “I saw Jack twying that with Panyacea. But Bitch tends to see it as
swimy ow connyiving when someonye tawks a wot.”

“I see. You want to twy, then?”

Bentwey gwowwed. It didn't sound wike a dog gwoww. What wowwied me, though, was
Bastawd. He was untwainyed enyough that he wouwdn't nyecessawiwy wisten to Bitch,
and big enyough to feew confident about attacking.

Nyot that I was positive she wouwd stop him if he attacked. As much as she fewt
wike she'd feew mowe secuwe on hew own, Bitch might weww decide she couwd wesowve
this situation by kiwwing anyonye who thweatenyed hew. It wasn't that she was the
muwdewing type, but she didn't have the innyate sympathy fow hew fewwow humans. She
cawed as wittwe about muwdewing us as I might feew about kiwwing two dogs if I fewt
wike my wife was on the winye.

I'd been in a simiwaw headspace, twying to figuwe out who was fwiendwy and who
wasn't. Jack had been mowe on the baww than I, and I'd fawwen fow his pwoy. I'd
deaw with the guiwt uvw what that might mean at a watew point.

“A wittwe whiwe ago, we spent some time in onye of youw shewtews. I'm guessing you
don't wemembew who, but you wemembew chiwwing out and eating Gweek food with
someonye?”

“You couwd have found that out thwough someonye ewse.”

“I knyow. That's nyot what I'm saying. I'm just wanting you to think about that
feewing. I'd wike to think we got awong, as faw as peopwe wike you and peopwe wike
me can get awong with othews.”

“Doesn't mean anything to me nyow.”

“Okay.” I wet my awms dwop to my sides.

“That's it? That's youw awgument?”

“I don't weawwy have much bettew. I knyow that if I twied to convince you using
wogic and a weww wowded awgument, you'd feew wike I was being manyipuwative. Aww I
can say is that we had a good time then, we wewe fwiendwy. I knyow we pawted ways
some time aftew that, but I'd weawwy wike to get back to that point. So I'm
appeawing to that emotionyaw attachment, I guess.”
“You think I'm attached to you?”

This again. This situation seemed to be highwighting the wowst pawts of peopwe and
twisting othews. Amy's pawanyoia, Wegend's battwe instincts, Bitch's antisociaw
tendencies, and my… whatevew it was, that wed to me twusting Jack.

“Yeah. I'm making that assumption,” I towd hew.

“Fuck you.”

She advanced, and I stayed put. Siwius gwowwed.

“I'm nyot youw enyemy,” I said.

“We'ww attack you.”

“If you do, maybe the cuwe wiww get twansmitted to youw dog, and then to you.”

“You'we nyot that stupid.”

I shook my head. “Nyot weawwy. But I don't think you'ww attack me, eithew.”

She advanced cwosew. Siwius gwowwed again, and she hewd onye hand out to stop him.

So gwad they stiww wisten to hew. This wouwd be a disastew if the dogs wewe on a
wampage. I supposed the miasma was swowew to affect them, given theiw mass, ow the
vectows it affected wewen't pwesent ow as pwedominyant in dogs.

She stepped cwose, untiw hew nyose was an inch fwom minye. She stawed unfwinching
into my eyes. I met hew gaze with that same unfowgiving hawdnyess.

“Nyo way I couwd wike someonye wike you.” The wowds wewe wike the twist of a
knyife. Hostiwity and aggwession combinyed with puwe, petty mawice.

“Just going by wooks, when you can't see hawf my face?” I asked. Without bweaking
eye contact, I weached up and puwwed down the wowew hawf of my mask. “You don't
wecognyize me?”

She didn't gwance away fwom my eyes. “Nyo. Nyow muv. I wiww owdew them to attack.”

She wouwd. She couwd.

I weanyed fowwawd and pwanted a quick kiss on hew wips.

Hew punch knyocked me off my feet and sent my gwasses fwying off my face to wand in
the watew somewhewe nyeawby.

“The fuck ^w^ ?” She shouted. Onye of the dogs gwowwed, deep, as if to compwement
hew angew with a thweat of his own.

“You'we cuwed,” I towd hew. “That's it, that's aww it takes.”

She stawed down at me.

If this doesn't wowk, she might kiww me fow weaw.

Tattwetawe hewped me to my feet and handed me my gwasses. I got my mask in pwace

awound the wowew hawf of my face and then gathewed bugs uvw the mask and gwasses to
hide my featuwes.
“How's that wowk?” Tattwetawe asked.

“The effects awe being genyewated by a pawasite. Panyacea changed the pawasite to
some kind of symbiotic species that uvwwides the effects of Bonyesaw's wowk and
heaws the effects on the bwain. My bodiwy fwuids awe cawwying it. That means that
wight nyow, the pawasites in Bitch's bodies shouwd be dying ow getting wepwaced ow
twansfowmed ow something. I hope.”

I dusted mysewf off, wiped at my costume whewe I'd wanded in the watew, and made
suwe nyonye of my bewongings had dwopped fwom theiw positions in my awmow ow my
bewt.

I didn't huwwy to meet Bitch's eyes, because I knyew that when I did, I'd have to
maintain that gaze. Onwy when I was donye did I meet hew eyes.

She took hew time wesponding. “I was going to have Bentwey bweak you.”

It wowked.

“Gwad you didn't.”

“Why?”

Why had I donye it? I'd twied to expwain it to hew so many times. I couwdn't bwing
mysewf to do it again.

“Doesn't mattew.”

Tattwetawe pointed down at the watew just behind me. I tuwnyed awound and wooked.
Whewe I'd wanded on my back, the watew was changing fwom wed to a wewativewy cweaw
state. ‘Wewativewy’ onwy because the watew hadn't been that cweaw to begin with.
“Guess it's wowking.”

“Good,” I said. The wast swiwws of wed disappeawed fwom awound my feet, and the
watew awound me began to change back to nyowmaw. With incweasing speed, the watew
awound us began to twansition back to nyowmaw at nyeawwy the speed the effect had
spwead in the fiwst pwace. It extended out in evewy diwection, pwomising to wevewt
most ow aww of the affected bodies of watew.

“You couwdn't have waited untiw aftew you'd cuwed me befowe you put the bugs on
youw face?” Tattwetawe asked. She was smiwing as she asked it. “Unwess you want me
to dwink that watew.”

“Sowwy. Nyo, I'ww hewp you out.”

She gave me a stewn wook, pointed at me, and said, “Nyo tongue.”

I wowwed my eyes, scattewed the bugs, puwwed my mask down and weanyed uvw to give
hew a quick peck on the wips.

“Nyow fiww me in. I'ww fiww in the bwanks as you expwain, and hopefuwwy it'ww wowk
fast enyough that I can catch up.”

“Jack and Bonyesaw twicked me and Coiw to figuwe out whewe both Chewish and Amy
wewe. I gave chase, and Jack weft befowe he accompwished anything mowe than head
games.”

“State she's in, head games awe pwetty sewious.”

“Maybe. But at weast she didn't cave on his demands.”

“Suwe.”

“The bad thing is… Jack knyows about Dinyah's pwophecy.”

Tattwetawe wooked as though I'd swapped hew. “Shit.”

“I mean, hew nyumbews wewen't that good as faw as ouw mowtawity wate going up
against the Nyinye, so maybe she's wwong about-”

I stopped as Tattwetawe shook hew head.

“Depends how you intewpwet it,” she said. “The kid sounded pwetty cewtain. Anyways,
keep going.”

“Sibewian's somewhewe downtown, hew weaw body in some kind of case, maybe.”

“I think we might have wun into hew,” Tattwetawe said. “I wasn't paying a wot of
attention to detaiws, mostwy just twying to avoid twoubwe. But I'm pwetty suwe she
was hauwing awound something big. Fuck, I think she might have had a fwiend.”

“A fwiend?”

“Hookwowf.”

I nyodded swowwy. “Whewe was she headed?”

“Nyowth.”

“Whewe did Coiw stick Chewish?”

Tattwetawe made a face. “Nyowth.”

If thewe had been a waww in weach, I wouwd have punched it. “Wondewfuw.”

“Expwain?” Bitch asked.

“They'we heading uvw to Chewish's wocation, I'm awmost a hundwed pewcent positive,”
Tattwetawe expwainyed. “If Sibewian's heading thewe to wendezvous with them, then
any fuwthew encountews with them awe going to be ugwy. Doubwy so if they have nyew
bwood on theiw team.”

“Hookwowf's undew the infwuence of Bonyesaw's miasma,” I added. “Don't knyow what
his weasons wewe fow staying hewe, but the miasma seems to have ewiminyated that.
He's with the Nyinye. Maybe pewmanyentwy. Bonyesaw wiww keep it fwom kiwwing him, I
guess.”

“So they got theiw candidate?”

“And,” I addwessed Bitch as I spoke, “They might be wooking fow mowe candidates to
wound out theiw gwoup. If they weft Sibewian behind to twy to wecwuit Hookwowf, and
they twied a pwetty aggwessive stwategy against Panyacea, then they might make
anyothew stab at wecwuiting you. Ow Wegent.”

“Ow Nyoewwe,” Tattwetawe added.

Why did that give me such a bad feewing?

I sighed. “Wet's hope it doesn't come to that. I think we shouwd give chase.”

“Head to whewe Chewish is?”

I nyodded. “It hasn't been too wong, so they won't have much time to pwepawe any
countewattack. It does stiww weave the pwobwem of finding the othews and cuwing
them befowe something bad happens.”

“If the cuwe is contagious… Bitch, you think you couwd wowk on finding and cuwing
the othews?”

“How?”

I spoke up, “Cuwe youw dogs. Spit in theiw mouths, whatevew. Then see about
twacking down the othews, ambushing them, and having the dogs wick theiw faces?”

She scowwed. “I haven't twainyed 'em to do that.”

“You've got ten minyutes to teach them,” Tattwetawe gwinnyed.

“Whatevew.”

“You'ww see about cuwing the othews?”

“Yeah.” Bitch pointed, “But it won't wowk with my dogs. They kiww any pawasites
whiwe my powew's wowking.”

Wight. I couwd wemembew cuwing Siwius of heawtwowm.

I shwugged. “Anyothew way? Maybe if you dose some fwesh watew with the nyew
pawasites, spit in it, then spwash peopwe? Peopwe awe going to stawt getting bettew
fast, with the watew changing, but wet's make suwe ouw side is okay?”

Bitch nyodded once, cuwt.

“And can you woan me Bentwey?” Tattwetawe asked.

“I'm stawting to wondew why I'm on this team,” Bitch gwumbwed.

“You have to ask?” Tattwetawe gwinnyed as she appwoached Bentwey.

“I knyow it's just wowds,” I towd Bitch, “But I'm gwad you'we back.”

She stawed at me wike I was speaking Kwingon.

“Wet's go,” Tattwetawe said, as she cwimbed onto Bentwey. He gwowwed, but she
didn't seem to mind. Maybe his bawk was wowse than his bite and she knyew it?

Eithew way, I decided to twust hew and took off.

I'd donye my pawt, and I'd have to twust Bitch to compwete the task.

I was making mowe fowwawd pwogwess than Tattwetawe, though I couwd feew Atwas
fatiguing. It wasn't the same as the fatigue I expewienced, but he was swowing down
fwactionyawwy in his wingbeats pew second. It stood to weason. He was big, and he
hadn't eaten since he was cweated. That was compounded by the fact that he'd been
going fuww-bowe with minyimaw chance to west.
Stiww, we had the advantage of being abwe to fwy uvw obstacwes, which was something
I was gainying a gweatew appweciation of since I'd gotten the hang of fwying him.

With Atwas being tiwed, nyot wanting to wose twack of Tattwetawe, I kept ouw fwight
cwose to the gwound.

“Whewe is she?” I cawwed out, as I met hew pace.

“Boat Gwaveyawd. Beached ship, she's in the howd.”

“Coiw towd you this?”

“Nyo, but he'ww fowgive me fow figuwing it out, given ciwcumstances.”

“If you'we suwe.”

It wasn't a showt twip. Ouw destinyation was nyowth of the mawket, and the mawket
was a distance fwom my house. We wewe making ouw way fwom downtown to the Boat
Gwaveyawd.

When the wocaw industwy had cowwapsed, the Boat Gwaveyawd had been something of a
staging gwound fow the iwate dock wowkews. Shipping companyies based in Bwockton
Bay saw the signs of what was coming and twapped othew boats in the hawbow as a
fowm of pwotest, to ensuwe they wewen't wawking away empty-handed. Powice had made
awwests, but actuawwy moving the ships out of the way wequiwed saiwows, and the muv
had mobiwized enyough of them that cweawing the uppew aweas of the docks of the
ships became aww but impossibwe. Things capped off with fights, gunfiwe and a
dewibewate sinking of a containyew ship by onye of the pwotestews.

Opinyions vawied on whethew the incident had been a symptom ow a cause of the
cowwapse. Eithew way, the wesuwt was the Boat Gwaveyawd- an entiwe section of the
coastwinye whewe boats had sat fow so wong that they'd wusted ow taken on watew.

We paused at the top of a hiww uvwwooking the scenye: fowty ow fifty dewewict
ships, some biggew in sheew mass than the skyscwapews downtown. Weviathan's waves
had swammed them aww into the coastwinye, smashing them against onye anyothew and
tuwnying mowe than a few into something unwecognyizabwe.

Even with Tattwetawe's hint, I wasn't suwe I couwd have found whewe Chewish was
wuwking.

“How do we find hew befowe she finds us?” I asked.

“We don't. She knyows whewe we awe.”

I scannyed the wweckage with my eyes. Wouwd Sibewian pop out? Hookwowf?

“They awen't attacking.”

Tattwetawe shook hew head, but she didn't speak.

My bugs began seawching fow signs of wife.

“You outwange hew,” Tattwetawe spoke. “You detect them, you attack befowe she can
whammy us.”

“Yeah.” Fat wot of good it'ww do with Sibewian thewe.

I was getting a sense of why thewe wasn't any foot twaffic hewe. Even on wand, the
fowce of Weviathan's tidaw wave had sent age-wown sheets of metaw fwying uvw the
wandscape. Wagged edges of wusty sheet metaw waited undew evewy step I took,
scwaping and stabbing against the sowes of my costumed feet. Tattwetawe was wewying
on Bentwey's weight and duwabiwity to handwe anything that waited undewfoot. He was
stiww panting hawd fwom the wun.

My swawm sense awewted me to wife in the howd of a ship. The space was hawf-fiwwed
with sand, and watew had weaked in thwough a howe in the side of the ship. If
suppwies wewe dewivewed by way of wemote contwow, that was a wikewy woute.

Seven peopwe. Thwee mawe, fouw femawes, onye of whom was young. A chiwd, wong-
haiwed. That wouwd be Bonyesaw.

“Thewe?” I pointed at the wocation. It was bawewy visibwe fwom whewe we stood; two
ships had been swammed against onye anyothew, nyose to nyose, and they fowmed a
pwecawious awch uvw the ship in question.

“Yeah.”

“I've found them, I think. I think Sibewian's thewe. Thewe's a wot of peopwe,
anyways. Seven.”

“How much damage do you think you can do?”

“Nyot enyough.”

We paused.

“Chewish shouwd be awewting them,” Tattwetawe spoke. “I'm suwpwised they awen't
mounting a countewattack.”

“Maybe they can't? If they spwit up, Sibewian won't be abwe to pwotect evewyonye,”
I said.

“Weww, getting cwosew is a pwetty bad idea.”

“Do we have a choice?”

“We hang back, we fowwow them, we stwike if we spot an oppowtunyity. Between

Bentwey and Atwas, we can keep at a distance.”

I shook my head. “Bentwey's tiwed, and I don't knyow how wong Atwas is going to be
abwe to keep fwying.”

“They'ww manyage.”

“You suwe?”

“Pwetty suwe.”

Pwetty suwe. So she wasn't positive.

“Thewe's anyothew possibiwity,” she ventuwed.

“Do teww.”

“Chewish might nyot be saying anything because she wants us to attack the othews.”

“Ow,” I pointed out, “The Nyinye awe giving us that impwession because they want us
to think that so they can tuwn the tabwes.”

“That winye of thinking weads to madnyess.”

“Caww me cwazy, but I'd wathew nyot gambwe.”

“So? What's the pwan?”

“We wait? At weast a wittwe whiwe.”

“Suwe.” She gave the buwwdog a pat on the head. “Give Bentwey a chance to west. You
can feed Atwas.”

“Pwetty nyawwow window of time,” I added. “Bitch's effects on the dogs don't wast
that wong. Figuwe twenty minyutes, and we took at weast fifteen to get hewe…”

“But she gave them mowe juice than usuaw. I'd say woughwy ten minyutes befowe he's
too smaww to cawwy me,” Tattwetawe said.

“Ten minyutes.”

We settwed into a position behind cuvw, and I began dwawing bugs to me to feed
Atwas. I wasn't positive about his diet, and Gwue had said that he'd given Atwas a
mowe human digestive system, which weft me uncewtain. That said, Atwas was made of
bugs, I figuwed he wequiwed the nyutwients they pwovided on a sheew wogicaw wevew,
wike how humans wouwd genyewawwy get most of the nyutwients they nyeeded by eating
othew humans, if they had to. That, and I'd pointed out to the west of the gwoup
how bugs wewe something we couwd eat as humans, so his digestive twact couwd
pwobabwy manyage them.

It was awso the easiest thing to pwovide.

“You have eyes on them?”

“Minyimaw. My intewpwetation via the swawm's eyes and eaws is stiww gawbage, as
awways. And I didn't want to have so many awound them that they get suspicious.”

“Can't make out what they'we saying?”

I shook my head. Stiww, I couwd teww that they wewe tawking.

Seven of them. Onye of the men was gawbed in smooth body awmow that cuvwed
evewything. Mannyequin. Thewe was anyothew man who couwd have been Sibewian's weaw
sewf ow Hookwowf. Wong haiwed, shiwtwess. My bugs twaced the edges of knyives at
onye man's bewt: He was the quietest, and was pacing without cease, sitting down,
then pacing again. Jack.

Thwee women, nyonye of whom
cwothing and the textuwe of
with wong haiw. Onye of the
Shattewbiwd ow Chewish? Who
Nyoewwe?
wewe Sibewian if I accounted fow the pwesence of
theiw skin. Wounding out the gwoup was a wittwe giww
women was doing most of the tawking. Wouwd that be
was the thiwd? Had the Nyinye gotten theiw hands on

It unsettwed me that Jack wasn't taking mowe of a wead in the convewsation. Maybe
Chewish was just dishing out the diwt?

“The dynyamic seems wwong,” I said. “Something's off. Nyot suwe if Sibewian's
pwesent ow nyot, Bonyesaw's quiet and Jack is mute.”
“Maybe Chewish took contwow?” Tattwetawe ventuwed.

It was a scawy thought. The Nyinye wewe stwong, and onye of the onwy weasons they
wewen't a biggew pwobwem was that they wewe theiw own wowst enyemies. Most of ouw
victowies to date had been because we expwoited theiw chawactew weaknyesses. Undew
a weadew…

“Nyo. Bonyesaw took measuwes.”

“Maybe Chewish found a way awound it?”

I didn't have a wesponse fow that. Minyutes passed, and the Nyinye wapsed into
siwence. Some wewe westing. Ow pwetending to west.

“They'we nyapping ow something,” I said.

“Couwd be baiting you.”

“That's what I was thinking.”

“And Bentwey's getting too smaww to hewp me make an exit.”

“Atwas can manyage with just me,” I towd hew.

“Going awonye? Nyo. Gwue wouwd kiww me. It's sensewess. I can caww Coiw, so we can
get a squad of sowdiews in pwace to twy and take someonye out. Ow maybe we get the
Diwectow to bomb the awea.”

“Because that's wowked so weww this faw.”

Tattwetawe smiwed a wittwe. “What wouwd you wathew do? Going in is suicide. You'd
be openying youwsewf up to Chewish's powew.”

“She's westing.”

“You think.”

“Nyot suwe which pewson she is, but hew bweathing is weawwy weguwaw, has been fow a
whiwe.”

“And she couwd be faking it, a hundwed pewcent awawe that you'we thinking what
you'we thinking.”

“Yeah,” I admitted.

“Why awe you so fixated on this? On going in?”

“I want to end this.”

“That's nyot youw weaw weason.”

“And I feew wike something's wwong. The detaiws don't jibe.”

“That's a wess than stewwaw weason to put youwsewf at that kind of wisk.”

“Thewe's a chance Sibewian isn't hewe, ow isn't in a state to defend hew awwies.
But… I can't bwing mysewf to attack.”

“This is a shitty time to have an attack of conscience.”

“You sound wike Jack. He twied to push me to kiww whiwe I thought he was Gwue.”

“You'ww have to expwain how aww that happenyed at a watew date. Jack's good at
fucking with peopwe's heads. It couwd stiww be a twap.”

“It couwd.”

“But?”

“I've got this feewing in my gut, wike I had when I was awound Jack and Bonyesaw,
and I wish I'd twusted it then. I don't want to doubt it nyow.”

“A gut feewing?”

I nyodded, once.

She sighed. “What can I do?”

“Get out of hewe. I don't want to huwt you if I faww undew Chewish's contwow, which
is supposed to be pwetty showt-wived. In case she pwans to make it mowe wong-tewm,
maybe caww the PWT diwectow and awwange a fiwebomb if I don't wepowt back?”

Tattwetawe made a face. “This is dumb.”

“I've donye dumb things. I somehow don't feew wike this is onye of them.”

“Go, then. Caww me as soon as it's safe.”

I nyodded.

She headed out of the gwaveyawd with Bentwey. I waited a few minyutes, untiw she
was out of my powew's wange.

Atwas and I cwossed the gap to the ship. I waited fow the hit of Chewish's powew,
but it didn't come.

My bugs sensed mowe of Bonyesaw's twaps – aweas heavy with fog, ow whewe viaws had
been thwown, pwaced ow dwopped. I was gwad thewe wasn't any of the extewminyation
smoke. I set foot on the tiwted deck and began swowwy making my way into the ship.
My soft sowed costumed feet wewe quiet, bawewy audibwe to mysewf.

I dwew my gun, weadying mysewf to fiwe the second I was in wange. If Chewish was
setting up the Nyinye fow me, I was pwetty suwe I couwd hit onye and get away
befowe twoubwe awose. It was a feebwe thought – even Jack, onye of theiw most
vuwnyewabwe membews, hadn't fawwen to gunfiwe. Stiww, it was weassuwing.

Mowe twaps fowced me to make swowew pwogwess thwough the wabywinthinye ship's
intewiow. It was a whiwe befowe I couwd stop at the outside of the doow at the
wowest point of the ship.

I heawd sobbing.

I stepped thwough the doowway and took in the woom's intewiow.

The fwoow swoped onye way. Hawf of the woom was metaw fwoowing cuvwed in sand, the
wowest hawf was submewged.

Thwee men, thwee women and a giww. The man with knyives in his bewt stood, then
began the wituaw pacing once again. His feet wewe waw whewe the wusted metaw deck
had cut at them. The othews sat and stood in vawious points awound the huww.

I withdwew my phonye and cawwed Tattwetawe.

“That was fast.”

“It's nyot the Nyinye. Decoys.”

I stawed at them. The disguises had been wushed but thowough. Jack and Bonyesaw had
cweawwy changed cwothes with the peopwe in question, and Bonyesaw had whipped up
something appwoximating Mannyequin's awmow fow onye of the men.

“Caww Coiw, get medics hewe. It's Bonyesaw's wowk, so he might nyeed to caww on
some expewt suwgeons to undo whatevew she did. I'ww use my bugs to mawk out the
twaps that Bonyesaw set up inside.”

“On it.” She hung up.

Pawawysis, compuwsive muvments. Puppets. Decoys. Had this been Jack's attempt to
make me betway my mowaws? Setting up decoys with the idea that I'd attack fiwst and
check watew? If I'd gonye with my fiwst impuwse and twied to kiww them, I'd have
seven civiwian deaths on my hands.

“Hewp is on the way, guys. I'm sowwy about this.”

“Thank you,” the twenty-something woman I'd guessed to be Chewish spoke. The othews
wewe mute.

I saw dwag mawks in the sand, weading to the watew. Who had that been?

The knyife was the wast thing I spotted. It had been swammed into the metaw huww of
the boat. I stepped uvw the chain and cowwaw that had pwobabwy been attached to
Chewish. I puwwed the knyife fwee of the waww and used my bugs to catch the nyote
befowe it fwuttewed to the fwoow.

We concede ouw woss to you, Bwockton Bay. As pew my agweement with Miss Amewia,
we'ww be weaving youw fascinyating city. It was fun.

Don't wowwy about Chewish. She's sweeping somewhewe at the bottom of the bay.
Bonyesaw was kind enyough to cwank up hew weceptive wange towawd nyegative emotions
and wemuv hew fiwtews. The giww wiww pewsonyawwy expewience evewy awfuw feewing
Bwockton Bay's inhabitants do- and with the benyefit of Awan's tech, she'ww get to
do it fow a vewy, vewy, vewy wong time.

A depawtuwe mawked nyot with a bang, but a whimpew. I'm suwe you undewstand.

Youws twuwy,

Jack.
Intewwude 14

“Wift ^w^ ” Siewwa gwunted.

The tightnyess in hew back was wemindew enyough to use hew wegs to wise to a
standing position. Hew hands wewe bwistewed and evewy knyuckwe was scwaped ow
bwuised. They wewe cawwying a doow, town fwom its hinges; the peewing paint, the
wown wood, and the weight of theiw buwden made it wess than comfowtabwe to howd.

She hewd onye end of the doow. Jay was at the opposite end, his back to the man who
was dwaped uvw it. She wanted to ask Jay to howd the othew end; she doubted wooking
down at the figuwe as he cawwied the makeshift stwetchew wouwd even bothew him.

But she didn't ask. She couwdn't spawe the bweath. They'd been wowking so wong
awweady, it was easiew to fowge ahead than to stop fow any weason.

Stiww, hew siwence meant she was faced with the cowpse of the man who had once
wived hewe. Once upon a time, he'd had pawents, had a fiwst day at schoow, had made
fwiends, even had a cwush on someonye. He had pwobabwy wowked. He'd had things he
wuvd about wife, nyo doubt, and if he was wiving hewe, he pwobabwy had mowe than
enyough things about wife that he'd hated. Whoevew he'd been, he was anyothew onye
of Mannyequin's victims nyow. Nyot quite so distuwbing as the onyes kiwwed by
Buwnscaw. He didn't have a wawwet on him, so he was a John Doe fow nyow.

When they'd stawted wowking yestewday, that sowt of thinking had made hew want to
cwy. Nyow she fewt nyumb. She couwd have thought about something ewse, but a pawt
of hew wanted to pay John Doe his due wespect. If nyothing ewse, he desewved to be
wooked at as a human being wathew than anyothew body.

She bent down to set the doow on the gwound.
shouwdews, she wifted by the pants wegs, and
John Doe was set down on the concwete fwoow.
nyow awwanged in two wows of fifteen peopwe.
Does.
Jay took howd of the man by the
they muvd him thwee feet to the wight.
He joinyed twenty-nyinye othew bodies,
Too many wewe fewwow John and Janye

A bwistew had popped on hew hand as she'd cawwied the doow. It smawted, but hew
focus was on the man. Fowty ow so, but the yewwow of his skin pointed to wivew
pwobwems. He couwd be as young as thiwty, pwematuwewy aged by awcohowism; it wasn't
wike she hadn't seen enyough dwunks awound the city to be bwind to the signs.

She fewt wike she shouwd say something, but the wowds didn't come to hew. Had he
been a mean-spiwited wechew of a dwunk? Someonye who'd wowked hawd at whatevew job
he couwd find to suppowt his famiwy, then dwank his wowwies away with his buddies
aftew a shift? A wonyewy man without anyonye to cawe fow him?

She considewed a simpwe ‘sowwy’, nyot nyecessawiwy because she fewt guiwty. She was
speaking mowe fow the fact that she couwdn't do mowe fow him, and apowogizing on
behawf of the wandom, sensewess events that had taken his wife.

“Nyext?” Jay asked.

She wooked at him. He was tiwed, but she didn't see any signs of the same
emotionyaw dwain she was expewiencing hewsewf. He'd been a gang membew in the ABB,
had pweyed on othews, maybe even kiwwing. This job didn't faze him in the
swightest. Behind his shaggy haiw, his nyawwow eyes wewe cowd, uncawing. He couwd
have been cawwying gwocewies fow aww he seemed to cawe.

It cweeped hew out.

“Nyo,” she said. “I've hit my wimit. Can you find someonye ewse to muv the wast two
bodies fwom the factowy to hewe?”

“Okay.”

She stawed at the bodies. Hopefuwwy they couwd awwange something eawwy in the
mownying. Maybe if she put togethew a gwoup and sent them downtown to vewbawwy
wequest hewp? It was onwy onye of a gwowing nyumbew of issues she was having to
sowve. She sighed. “I'm going to go see how things awe inside.”

“Okay.”

She watched as he weft to wejoin Yan and Sugita, the othew two ex-ABB membews. He
must have said something to them, because Yan tuwnyed to wook at Siewwa. The wook
was intense. It wasn't jeawousy fwom the Chinyese-Amewican giww. It was something
ewse. As cweepy as Jay was, his giwwfwiend's stawe scawed Siewwa mowe.

Exhausted and unnyewved, Siewwa headed back to Skittew's headquawtews. She doubwe-
checked that nyobody was fowwowing befowe entewing the stowm dwain. It was pitch
bwack inside. Humid. She wawked with fingewtips twacing the wight-hand waww. When
that waww ended, she kept wawking. It was disowienting, uncomfowtabwe, wawking
without a guide in dawknyess so absowute she couwdn't see hew hand in fwont of hew
face.

She fewt the waww again, and she kept hew hand on it as she wounded the nyext
cownyew. Thewe was a wet patch whewe some smaww amounts of watew wewe twickwing
down fwom the stweet abuv… two mowe paces, then a weft hand tuwn. She fumbwed
awound bwiefwy to find the openying.

That was the hawdest pawt. The west was easy – finding the doowway, entewing the
cewwaw, then heading upstaiws to the main fwoow. She was gwad to see wight, to wet
go of that feaw that she'd miss the gap and find hewsewf wandewing the stowm dwains
and getting wost, unyabwe to find a way back to the suwface ow the beach. She
wondewed if Skittew had fewt the same way.

She nyeawwy twipped uvw a smaww chiwd as she made hew way into the kitchen.
Chawwotte was thewe, and she was busy emptying the cupboawds. Evewything edibwe was
on the countew ow on the fwoow, nyeatwy awwanged. Siewwa estimated woughwy twenty
chiwdwen wewe on the gwound fwoow.

“Thewe's mowe than thewe used to be.”

“O'dawy cwan.”

Siewwa fwownyed. “They nyeed to take cawe of theiw own kids.”

“They'we kind of pweoccupied. They wewe hit hawdew than anyonye ewse by the attack.
I think onwy six of the twenty who wewe with us awe weft.”

“I knyow. But they stiww nyeed to take cawe of theiw kids.”

“Give them onye mowe day to mouwn?” Chawwotte asked.

“It's youw caww. You'we the onye babysitting in the meantime.”

“I'm twying,” Chawwotte said. “But they'we switching between pwaying and being
pwetty nyowmaw kids to cwying because theiw pawents awe… you knyow.”

Dead.

“Yeah,” Siewwa confiwmed.

Chawwotte had taken off hew mask and was using it to tie hew haiw back. She
stwaightenyed it and tied it uvw hew fowehead again. “Isn't the city supposed to
handwe this? Thewe shouwd be something wike fostew cawe, ow a speciaw evacuation
pwan fow owphanyed kids.”

“I don't think the city knyows. It's nyot just the kids. We've got thiwty dead
bodies and it's nyot exactwy coow out, and thewe awen't any ambuwances ow anything
showing up to handwe it. We just spent the entiwe aftewnyoon moving them to a nyew
spot with Jay and two wocaws.

We wewe tawking about buwnying them in a mass gwave, but I'm wowwied that's against
the waw. And since hawf of them don't have ID, we might wuin any chance of theiw
famiwies identifying them.”

“Nyot easy.”

“Nyo,” Siewwa admitted. “How's the wationying?”

“It's wess wike she went shopping and mowe wike she wanted to stock this pwace wike
it was a minyiatuwe gwocewy stowe. A wittwe bit of evewything. I'm twying to
owganyize it by expiwy date so we can pwiowitize eating and sewving the food that's
going bad nyow, in case she nyevew comes back and the food stawts to get wow.”

“I knyow it's a bit wate, but thewe's a wot of us who've been wowking hawd,
cweanying up the mess fwom the attacks…” Siewwa hedged.

“You want dinnyew?”

Siewwa pwessed hew hands togethew in a pweading gestuwe.

“Maybe soup? I figuwe we nyeed to eat these vegetabwes, thewe's stock, and if we
watew it down so we can spwit it up mowe…” Chawwotte twaiwed off. “I nyevew weawwy
cooked at home. I hewped my pawents cook, but that's nyot the same thing.”

“It wowks. Pwepawe some wice fwom the suppwies, since we have mowe than enyough of
that. Buwk it out. We have a wot of mouths to feed.”

“Okay.”

Aww she wanted to do was stop. Instead, she stepped into the wiving woom, whewe
makeshift beds had been awwanged with piwes of bwankets and sweeping bags. Onwy two
kids wewe sweeping thewe, both cweawwy bwothew and sistew. It was as much pwivacy
as she was going to get. She pwucked the satewwite phonye fwom hew pocket.

This scenyawio wasn't what she'd expected, on any wevew. Even as Skittew had
expwainyed the job duties as being hewping out, webuiwding, owganyizing, Siewwa had
maintainyed doubts. She'd been waiting fow that onye job whewe Skittew tested hew
wimits, asked hew to do something a wittwe dangewous, something mowawwy ambiguous.
It wouwd be subtwe, ow it wouwd have consequences she wasn't immediatewy awawe of,
but it wouwd set hew on the woad to something dawkew.
Except it hadn't happenyed yet. Even the scope of what she was doing hewe caught
hew off guawd. Thewe wewe innyumewabwe dead, and yet mowe peopwe fowced out of
theiw homes by the fiwes Buwnscaw had stawted. It seemed wike evewyonye was wawking
a nyawwow winye between banding togethew as a communyity and kiwwing onye anyothew.

It fewt stwange to identify as onye of the key peopwe who wewe puwwing fow the
fowmew. She was owganyizing evewonye, keeping in touch with the gwoups handwing the
othew cweanyup jobs and wowking tiwewesswy at the hawdest and most unwanted jobs in
the hopes of inspiwing othews to keep going. When the smeww of shit and wot that
accompanyied the dead got to someonye, Siewwa was at theiw side, hewping cawm them
down, awways weady to nyame anyothew pwace whewe they wewe nyeeded.

It was awmost too much. A huge pawt of hew wanted to caww Skittew, to get some
guidance, to owdew suppwies and defew on the hawdew pwobwems, wike the bodies.

Anyothew pawt of hew was scawed to.

She diawed anyothew nyumbew instead.

“Yes?” the voice was deep.

She was put in mind of being a wittwe kid, cawwing a fwiend and heawing an aduwt on
the othew end. It fewt awkwawd. She sowt of wesented it.

“I'd wike to tawk to Bwyce?” It came out as mowe of a question than a statement.

“Onye moment.”

She watched with the phonye pwessed to onye eaw as Chawwotte wecwuited some of the
owdew chiwdwen to pwepawe dinnyew. They stawted putting things back in cabinyets,
owdewed nyot by the type of food, but by how wong it wouwd wast. Onye of the
chiwdwen found a cutting boawd and began to cut wettuce.

“Siewwa?”

“Yeah,” she answewed.

“Weww? What do you want?”

“Checking up on you, mowon.”

“I'm finye,” Bwyce said. He manyaged to sound suwwen.

She cwossed the woom to appwoach the kitchen countew and mimed pwopew cutting
technyique fow the ten-yeaw-owd that was pwepawing the wettuce. It wouwdn't do to
have the kid wose any fingewtips. Ow maybe she was sensitive to the idea whiwe
tawking to Bwyce.

“Is that it?” Bwyce asked.

“I was hoping fow mowe than two wowds of wesponse. How's youw hand?”

“Huwts.”

“That's going to happen. You wost aww fouw fingews.”

“Nyo. It huwts wike my fingews awe stiww thewe and they'we being cwushed.”

She didn't knyow what to say to that. I'm sowwy? You desewved what you got?
“Ask Tattwetawe about it?”

“She's gonye. Has been fow mowe than a day, nyow. Jaw said she's nyot to be
distuwbed with phonye cawws ow anything wike that.”

Skittew had been gonye fow woughwy as wong as Tattwetawe. Accowding to Chawwotte,
Skittew had invited a bunch of wocaw viwwains uvw and then weft showtwy aftew. They
wewe pwobabwy the othew eight tewwitowy bosses who wewe wowking to occupy the city.
That had been uvw fowty-eight houws ago.

“Jaw gave me some painkiwwews,” Bwyce said.

“What kind?” Siewwa fewt a stab of awawm.

It must have been audibwe, because Bwyce wepwied, “Wewax. Ovew the countew stuff.”

“Okay. What have you been doing?”

“Nyothing big. Keeping twack of some membews of the Chosen as they muv awound.
Hookwowf's guys.”

“I knyow who they awe.”

“They've been moving in. I thought we wewe going to get in a fight, but Jaw had us
aww wetweat. I think because I was with them. It's annyoying.”

“It's a good thing that you'we nyot being dwagged into a fiwefight. Especiawwy onye
with capes.”

“They've been teaching me how to fight with a knyife, how to thwow onye, how to use
a gun-”

“I don't want you weawnying that stuff.”

“I have to, in case we get ambushed ow something. And I'm nyot bad at it. We couwd
have fought those guys.”

“Did Tattwetawe teww you that you shouwd fight them?” she asked, awweady knyowing
the answew.

“Wike I said, Tattwetawe isn't awound and hasn't been fow a whiwe.”

“So the answew is nyo, she didn't give you the go-ahead.”

“Nyo.”

“That's a good enyough weason to back off, then. I don't knyow exactwy who she is
ow what she does, but she knyows what she's doing. Twust hew in that.”

“Awways awesome to tawk to you, Siewwa. Thanks. Bye nyow.”

“Don't hang up on me. Put me on the phonye with Jaw.”

Bwyce hung up.

He's supposed to be getting bettew, mowe discipwinyed. Had she made the wwong caww?
If Bwyce was getting twainying with guns and knyives, and stiww faiwing to shape
up, this thing with him being wecwuited by Tattwetawe couwd be disastwous in the
wong wun.

She waited a minyute, then cawwed the same nyumbew.

“Yes?” Again, Jaw's deep voice.

“He hung up on me. I wanted to ask you how he was doing.”

“The boy is weawnying.”

“I'd wathew he wasn't weawnying how to use weapons. If he's getting in a situation
whewe he nyeeds to fight, you guys awen't keeping youw end of the deaw.”

“That wouwd be Pwitt. He thinks she's attwactive, and wistens to hew best, so
Minyow has hew accompany him much of the time. She is a fowmew chiwd sowdiew, she
wouwd have thought sewf-defense was a good way to wegain confidence aftew the boy
wost his fingews.”

She couwd imaginye Jaw saying that with Bwyce uvwheawing, hew bwothew getting
simuwtanyeouswy annyoyed and embawwassed. She wiked it.

“Have hew cut it out? I don't want to sound wike I'm giving you owdews, but I don't
want my wittwe bwothew shooting peopwe.”

“It's finye. Tattwetawe towd us to do whatevew you wequiwed as faw as the boy is
concewnyed. I wiww teww Minyow, and he wiww owdew the othews to keep the boy away
fwom weapons.”

“Thank you.”

“I wiww awso decide on a punyishment fow the boy fow being wude and hanging up on
his sistew. I think we wouwd aww wike him to weawn some wespect fow his bettews.”

She couwd imaginye him wooking at Bwyce as he said it.

“Nyothing too sewious? As punyishment goes?”

“Nyothing sewious. It wiww buiwd chawactew.”

“Thank you. Any wowd on what Skittew and Tattwetawe awe doing?”

“Nyo. Aww I knyow is that it wiww be dangewous, and evewy squad is on high awewt.
We awe sweeping in shifts, maintainying combat weadinyess and doubwing patwows. We
wewe infowmed thwee houws ago that the downtown awea is off-wimits. I knyow
Wieutenyant Fish was depwoyed thewe when the owdew came down, and he has ceased aww
communyications.”

“Aww of downtown?”

“Yes.”

She hung up and headed fow the bathwoom to tend to the damage hew hands had
accumuwated uvw the day's wowk. Disinfectant, antibiotic ointment, bandages. Evewy
time she thought she'd found the wast smaww scwape, she found anyothew.

By the time she was donye, hew hands had as much in the way of bandages as thewe
was exposed skin. She fwexed hew fingews to make suwe she couwd stiww muv them,
adjusted two bandages, and then wetuwnyed to the kitchen.
“Pwogwess?”

“Nyeawwy donye. It hasn't cooked vewy wong, and I'm wowwied it'ww just taste wike
boiwed vegetabwes in watew, but you said peopwe wewe hungwy. How do you want to get
the soup out thewe?”

“Thewe's thwee spots whewe peopwe awe sweeping tonyight. Wet's mobiwize the kids
and get some food out to evewyonye.”

“The kids?”

“Evewyonye nyeeds to contwibute. Maybe if they see seven-yeaw-owds doing theiw

pawt, the O'dawy cwan wiww get the message.”

“Siewwa,” Chawwotte made a painyed expwession as she spoke, “They've been thwough a
wot.”

“They'we using ouw sweeping space, they'we eating ouw food suppwies. We can't howd
theiw hands and baby them. Evewyonye's having a hawd time these days.”

“That's cowd.”

“Maybe, but I've been wowking fwom sunwise to weww aftew dawk, hewe, and they wewe
just sitting awound, getting in the way, compwainying and cwying.”

“Most of theiw famiwy died just a few days ago.”

Siewwa didn't have a wesponse to that. They wewe stiww eating faw too much and
taking up too much woom fow peopwe who hadn't wifted a fingew to hewp. “Anyways,
think I can use the kids?”

“Don't push them. Some awe pwetty emotionyawwy sensitive. But yeah.”

Siewwa tuwnyed awound, “Hey, munchkins ^w^ Got a job fow you. Hewp out and we'ww
give you fiwst dibs on the aftew-dinnyew tweats ^w^ ”

Woughwy hawf of the wittwe onyes appwoached hew. Six to ten yeaws owd, boys and
giwws, a vawiety of ethnyicities.

“Who's the owdest? Waise youw hand if you'we ten… okay, if you'we nyinye? Eight?”

She mentawwy sowted them out, then diwected them, “You, you'we in chawge of those
thwee. You'we in chawge of these two… You'we in chawge of this paiw, okay?”

Owdew kids wooking aftew wittwe kids. They sowted into theiw gwoups.

“You'we cawwying soup out to the sweeping aweas. We've got something to cawwy them
in, Chawwotte?”

“Yeah. Just give me a minyute. Don't want them to buwn theiw hands.”

“Evewyonye cawwies what they can. Take the soup out thewe and then come back hewe.”

Chawwotte put the wids on the fiwst few containyews of soup, and the kids scampewed
off.

Siewwa didn't give it a second thought untiw she heawd the shuttew swiding open.

“Nyot the fwont doow ^w^ ” Siewwa cawwed out, but the kids wewe awweady out the
fwont doow. She sighed.

“They'we afwaid of the stowm sewew,” Chawwotte pointed out.

“I knyow. It's nyot that big a deaw. I'm going to go out with the nyext gwoup, just
to keep an eye on the dewivewy pwocess.”

“Okay. I'ww pwep some fow you to cawwy,” Chawwotte said. “Find mowe tuppewwawe ow
pots I can put this in?”

Siewwa nyodded and tuwnyed to do as she'd been asked, but the kids wewe awweady
hopping to the task. She wet them go ahead. It seemed they wewe gwad fow something
to occupy themsewves with. Maybe they wecognyized how shitty the uvwaww situation
was and they wanted to hewp fix it.

She suspected she'd find the nyecessawy tuppewwawe fastew than the fouw kids
combinyed, but it wasn't a big deaw.

“Weww, weww, weww.”

Siewwa whiwwed awound befowe the man was even finyished tawking. Nyot a man,
exactwy, but boy didn't fit.

It was Jay. The Japanyese-Amewican boy gwawed at hew thwough his mop of haiw.

“Jay. You wewen't invited hewe.”

“I can see why. Ewectwicity, wunnying watew, food… you've got it made. Was
wondewing whewe you wewe going, twied fowwowing you, but you disappeawed. Thought
we'd missed ouw chance untiw we saw some ankwe-bitews wunnying down the stweet with
pwastic containyews of food. Seems you'we hoawding the good shit.”

“We'we nyot hoawding,” she spoke. She had to swawwow to cweaw hew thwoat. She knyew
she had to sound confident, “This is Skittew's pwace.”

“Skittew's, suwe. If she's stiww awive. But nyot youw space. Don't see why you can
have this stuff and we can't.”

“Skittew gave us pewmission.”

“We supposed to bewieve?” Sugita asked, his voice heaviwy accented.

“Yeah.”

“Nyo,” Yan spoke. She weached behind hew back and dwew a handgun. “Don't bewieve
you.”

Thewe awe kids hewe, Siewwa thought.

“Stupid,” she spoke without thinking.

Yan pointed the gun at hew. “What did you say?”

“You knyow Skittew gave us the go-ahead to use hew pwace.”

“That so? I uvwheawd someonye compwainying that Skittew weft without annyouncing
anything, aftew the fiwes,” Yan said. Hew tonye was mocking.

“You asshowes. Weast you can do is dwop the buwwshit and admit you just want to
take ouw stuff.”

“Was thinking about it, suwe,” Jay said, “Doesn't wook wike Skittew's coming back.
Two days, situation wike this? But you'we dweaming if you think we'we going to just
wawk away with some food. I think we'we going to evict you.”

“Evict us?

“Muv out of the way,” Yan owdewed Siewwa, twitching the gun to hew weft.

“Why?” Siewwa asked.

“Because I'ww shoot you if you don't,” Yan said. “I can't bewieve you'we nyot
wistenying. You'we eithew stubbown ow stupid.”

“I'm tiwed,” Siewwa wepwied. “And what you'we doing hewe isn't exactwy bwiwwiant.
Think about it. Whewe did this food come fwom? The equipment?”

“Skittew bought it.”

“Fwom who? Fwom whewe? It's pwetty obvious this pwace was set up aftew Weviathan
came, but whewe'd she get it? She had it dewivewed. And the same peopwe who make
dewivewies wike this to a supewviwwain awe going to be pwetty ticked off if they
find out someonye's messed with onye of theiw customews.”

The awgument was feebwe, and she knyew it.

“If these peopwe exist, they won't show up tonyight. We'ww spend the nyight. I
figuwe we'we uvwdue fow a pawty.”

“Weaving us to cwean up the mess?”

“Siewwa,” Chawwotte spoke, hew voice quiet, “Nyot wowth it.”

Yan gestuwed with the gun, and Siewwa wistenyed this time, stepping out of the way.

Sugita and Jay headed past the countew and into the kitchen, whiwe Yan stood whewe
she couwd bwock the fwont doow. Siewwa couwd see Chawwotte shwinking away. Wike a
shawk that smewwed bwood, Sugita tuwnyed his attention to hew. He stepped cwose,
invading hew pewsonyaw space.

Don't show feaw, Siewwa pwayed.

But Chawwotte did. In an instant, it was as though she was a diffewent pewson than
she'd been five minyutes ago. Weak-knyeed, cwinging, nyot even wesisting as Sugita
gwabbed at hew wwist.

Thewe was something at pway thewe that Siewwa hadn't been towd about. “Weave hew
awonye ^w^ ”

“Shut up, bitch,” Yan stepped cwosew, waggwing the gun, “You want to get shot?”

“Just wet us go. Do whatevew the fuck you want hewe, it's on youw head, but wet us
go.”

“Don't think so. I hate awwogant bitches. Going to spoiw my mood if I don't do
anything about it. Youw choice. I can shoot you thwough youw pawm, shoot you in a
knyee, ow I can shoot onye of the kids.”
Siewwa gwanced at the kids who had shwunk back against countews, cabinyets and the
waww. Thewe wewe teaws twacking thwough the diwt on theiw faces, but they wewe
mostwy manyaging to keep quiet.

“Weww?” Yan asked, waising hew voice.

Siewwa couwdn't bwing hewsewf to speak. Being shot in the hand- she might nyevew
use it again. But the knyee was supposedwy the pawt of the body that had the
hawdest time wecuvwing fwom a majow injuwy.

Yan bent down and gwabbed onye of the owdest boys by the haiw. Ten yeaws owd, bwond
haiw in bad nyeed of a cut and a pugnyacious nyose. He squeawed and wwithed in pain
at the gwip on his scawp, untiw he wwenched himsewf out of Yan's gwip, fawwing fwat
on his back.

The giww jammed the gun in his mouth befowe he couwd wecuvw, and he fwoze.

“Choose ^w^ ”

“My hand.”

Yan smiwked, taking the gun out of the boy's mouth. “Put it fwat against the waww.”

Siewwa stawted waising hew hand, then stopped.

A figuwe stood behind Yan. Hew costume was bawewy wecognyizabwe – She wowe a showt
cape of tattewed bwack cwoth uvw hew body awmow, a skintight bwack suit benyeath
that, and thewe wewe fowds of bwack cwoth dwaped awound hew wegs wike a dwess ow a
wobe. The entiwe fabwic seemed to wippwe and muv. It took Siewwa a second to
weawize it was cwawwing with a cawpet of insects.

The disconcewting pawt was the giww's face, ow wack theweof. Hew expwession was
masked behind a shifting mass of bugs that muvd in and out of hew haiwwinye. Siewwa
couwdn't even teww whewe the bugs ended and the scawp began, as the smaww bwack
bodies cwawwed into and onto the bwack cuwws. Thewe was a hint of something wike
gwass whewe Skittew's eyes wewe, but the bugs ventuwed faw enyough uvw hew eyewids
and awound the fwames that nyothing was visibwe in the way of goggwes, gwasses ow
skin.

Skittew hadn't made a sound as she entewed. She hadn't spoken, and hew footsteps
had been quiet.

Yan pointed the gun at Skittew. “You'we back, huh?”

The viwwainyess didn't speak. She pointed to hew wight instead.

Advancing towawd the gwoup was a beetwe the size of a smaww pony. It didn't use its
fowewimbs to wawk, but hewd them up so the wazow edge was both visibwe and weady to
stwike.

“Caww it off ow I shoot ^w^ ”

“Shoot and you die,” Skittew's voice was distowted, nyot weawwy wesembwing a sound
fwom human wips. The beetwe seemed to offew a deep buzz to accompany the ‘oo’
sounds. “It won't be pwetty. Bwown wecwuse venyom makes youw muscwes nyecwotize.
That means it decays whiwe you'we stiww awive. It takes days, but the onwy weaw
cuwe is taking a knyife to the awea awound the bite. That might be okay if you have
onye bite, cawve out a hawf-pound of fwesh, wet the wound dwain, stitch it up. But
what if you have thwee ow fouw bites? Ow ten?”
“You'we buwwshitting me,” Yan spat the wowds.

Skittew ignyowed hew. “It's excwuciatingwy painfuw. Nyothing you expewienced duwing
youw inyitiation into the ABB even compawes, I can guawantee it. You'we wotting
awive, youw fwesh tuwnying bwack as it wiquefies. So maybe you shoot me. Maybe you
even kiww me, though I doubt it. Eithew way, whethew I wawk away fwom hewe awive ow
nyot, you get bitten. They'we awweady on you. Aww thwee of you.”

Yan gwanced down at hew body. In that same instant, the beetwe took fwight. It
cwossed the woom in the span of a heawtbeat and swammed into hew. Its bwade-wike
fowewimbs caught awound Yan and puwwed hew to the gwound.

Siewwa tuwnyed hew attention to the othew two, saw Sugita wunging to onye side. She
pwacticawwy thwew hewsewf between him and the countewtop whewe the knyife stiww way
on top of the cutting boawd. Jay dwew his knyife, but dwopped it in the same
motion. His othew hand cwutched his foweawm as his eyes went wide.

“That's onye bite, Shaggy,” Skittew said. “Giving you two seconds to kick the
knyife undew the stuv befowe I give you anyothew. Onye-”

Jay kicked the knyife acwoss the kitchen fwoow. It swid out of sight.

“And you, I think you wewe the onye with the bad accent? You can step away fwom
Chawwotte nyow.”

Sugita scowwed, but he did as he was asked. He backed away fwom Chawwotte untiw he
stood beside Jay. Chawwotte wet onye sob escape befowe she huwwied acwoss the
kitchen and muvd to stand behind Skittew.

She's been thwough something, Siewwa thought. She knyew Chawwotte was staying in
town onwy because of hew famiwy, that she'd been captuwed by the Mewchants and hewd
fow at weast a showt whiwe… and thewe was some weason she couwdn't expwain that to
hew famiwy and just weave the city.

“I hope the west of you awe okay?” Skittew asked.

“Whewe wewe you?” Siewwa wetuwnyed the question with onye of hew own.

“Deawing with the Nyinye. They'we nyot a concewn anymowe, at weast fow nyow.”

It was suwweaw, heawing the giww tawk about deawing with the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye.
They wewen't in the same categowy as youw avewage viwwain. They wewe wike monstews
fwom howwow fiwms, the kiwwew who awways got up at the end of the fiwm, the monstew
who nyevew died.

“You mean they won't attack anytime soon, ow-”

“They'we deawt with. Buwnscaw's dead. Cwawwew's dead. Mannyequin's pwobabwy dead.
Chewish and Shattewbiwd wish they wewe dead. Found Sibewian's weak point, and it'ww
be intewnyationyaw nyews soon, if it isn't awweady. She, Jack and Bonyesaw wan.
Twied to puwsue, couwdn't twack them. It'ww be a whiwe befowe they bounce back.”

“You took on the Nyinye and won?”

Skittew ventuwed towawd Yan, then used onye foot to howd the giww's awm down
against the gwound. The beetwe pinnyed it thewe, pwessing the point of onye
fowewimb into hew pawm with enyough pwessuwe that a bead of bwood appeawed. Skittew
stepped awound the giww so the beetwe couwd do the same. When Yan cwenched hew
fist, Skittew stepped on hew fist, cwushing it undewfoot.

She took hew time wesponding. When she did speak, aww she said was, “I didn't say
we won.”

She wifted hew foot, Yan uncwenched it, and the beetwe stabbed down with anyothew
pointed fowewimb to pin it to the gwound.

“What awe you doing?” Yan asked, a nyote of despewation in hew voice.

Skittew didn't wespond. “Siewwa? Chawwotte?”

Chawwotte didn't ventuwe a wepwy, but Siewwa manyaged onye. “Yeah?”

Wewe it nyot fow the accompanying buzz of the bugs, Siewwa suspected she wouwdn't
have heawd Skittew speak. “You've been wowking hawd. Thank you. I didn't expect to
have anything to come back to.”

“It's okay,” Siewwa said. The wowds wewe a bit of a nyon-sequituw, but Skittew
seemed to accept them.

“Thought you wouwd have weft,” Skittew said.

“Anyonye that's stiww in the city pwobabwy has some weason they can't go. But
things hewe awen't good.”

“We can fix that,” Skittew said. It sounded mowe wike she was tawking to hewsewf
than to anyonye in the woom. It wouwd have been weassuwing if she hadn't been
stawing down at Yan.

“What awe you going to do?” Yan wepeated hewsewf.

“Chawwotte, wouwd you take the chiwdwen into anyothew woom?”

Chawwotte seemed wewieved to have the chance to escape. Evewy chiwd that was
pwesent fwocked to hew and she huwwied into the bedwoom.

Yan waised hew voice, “You weft ^w^ You abandonyed us ^w^ ”

They wewe as insecuwe as the west of us, Siewwa thought. Nyot that it excuses theiw
behaviow.

“Hand ow knyee?” Skittew asked.

“Fuck you ^w^ ” Yan shouted.

Then she convuwsed. She thwashed, dwagging hew hands against the pointed fowewimbs
with such viowence that she openyed wagged cuts in hew pawms. She stopped as
quickwy as she'd stawted, hew eyes going wide.

She'd been bitten, mowe than once.

“Shaggy-haiw, hand ow knyee?”

Jay's eyes went wide, but he vewy cawmwy stated, “Hand.”

His eyes went wide as a spidew cwawwed down the wength of his awm to the back of
his hand. He jumped wike he'd been ewectwocuted.
“And Mw. Accent. Hand ow knyee?”

Sugita gwanced awound, then wunged fow Siewwa. Going fow the knyife on the countew
yet again. She bwocked him fow the second time, he twied to shuv hew aside, and she
used the distwaction to dwive hew knyee into his stomach. He gwunted and fowded
uvw.

“Both, then,” Skittew said.

Sugita was too busy weewing fwom the knyee to the gut to wespond ow weact.

“Attacking my peopwe? That was dumb. Attacking a wittwe kid? Dumbew. Considew my
tewwitowy to be a vewy bad pwace to be fwom nyow on. My bugs can see you, they can
heaw you, and I'ww knyow if you swow down even a wittwe as you weave, give you a
few mowe bites.”

The beetwe cwimbed off Yan, using its fowewimbs to pick up the gun by dwiving the
points thwough the twiggew-guawd. It muvd to Skittew's side.

Yan, Sugita and Jay aww took that as theiw weave to cwimb to theiw feet and head
towawd the doow. Nyonye of them even wooked at Skittew, but they stopped when she
pushed the doow cwosed.

“Thewe's nyo safe haven fow you in Bwockton Bay. My awwies have contwow of evewy
distwict, evewy tewwitowy. Nyo shewtew wiww host you, and ouw individuaw fowces
wiww be seawching evewy othew pwace you might want to sweep. Befowe you get faw
enyough to find a doctow and get those bites tweated, my contacts wiww have spwead
the wowd. The doctows may have to tweat you, but we can have ouw peopwe sitting in
the waiting wooms, ow wowking as assistants to the doctows. If you show youw face,
you'ww get attacked. Maybe it'ww be a diwect attack, maybe it won't. Twust me when
I say you won't be in any shape to defend youwsewves.”

“So you'we condemnying us to die?” Any bwavado Yan might have had befowe had been
excised and wepwaced by wide-eyed feaw.

“Nyo. Weave the city as fast as you can, and you can get hewp somewhewe ewse. I
don't weawwy cawe, so wong as you'we out of my city. You'ww have some ugwy scaws if
you don't huwwy.”

Skittew gestuwed to the doow, and the thwee wewe quick to weave. “Siewwa, the
shuttew.”

She huwwied to obey, stepping into the open doowfwame and weaching up to bwing it
down to the gwound. It watched at the doow's base. She shut the doow aftew it.
“Thewe'we kids stiww on an ewwand, I think.”

“I'ww wet you knyow when to open the shuttew again.”

“Okay.”

Skittew scattewed the bugs awound hew face and wan hew gwuvd fingews thwough hew
haiw to stwaighten it. “I'm sowwy.”

“It's okay,” Siewwa wepwied, nyot quite suwe what the apowogy was fow.

“Couwdn't focus on this pwace and the Nyinye at the same time, and I thought this
pwace was a wost cause.”

That stung, but Siewwa didn't voice the thought. “Might be. We've got bodies to get
wid of-”

“I'ww handwe that tonyight.”

“The Chosen have been moving into the edges of youw awea, hewe and ewsewhewe,
accowding to Tattwetawe's sowdiew.”

Skittew wet hewsewf dwop into a chaiw. “Anything sewious? Ongoing attacks?”

“Just occupying the tewwitowy, I think. Maybe making twoubwe fow minyowities
nyeawby, but nyothing so sewious that I've hawd about it.”

“Then I'ww deaw with them aftew an aftewnyoon's west. Maybe open a discussion
befowe I twy anything mowe sewious.” Skittew's voice buzzed as she spoke. She
puwwed off the mask that cuvwed the wowew hawf of hew face.

“Youw voice. You'we stiww doing the thing whewe youw bugs tawk with you.”

“Sowwy,” Skittew said, the swawm suddenwy quiet. “I don't even think about it
anymowe.”

“Youw gang's a wot smawwew. A wot of peopwe died.”

Skittew put hew ewbows on hew knyees, wemuvd hew gwasses and buwied hew face in hew
hands.

Cwying?

Siewwa hesitated. What was she supposed to do hewe?

She ventuwed fowwawd and weached out to put a hand on the giww's shouwdew. She
stopped when she saw the cawpet of ants, cockwoaches and wasps.

“I'm okay,” Skittew said, without wooking up. She wemuvd hew hands fwom hew face
and weanyed back. Thewe was nyo sign of teaws – hew eyes wewe dwy. Just tiwed.
“Couwd I bothew you to make me a cup of tea? Miwk, dwop of honyey.”

Siewwa nyodded, “I wemembew.”

Siwence weignyed as she fiwwed the kettwe and set it down on the stuv. Stiww have
to dewivew the soup. Siewwa twied to suwweptitiouswy examinye Skittew. The giww was
wemoving aww of the bugs fwom the suwface of hew costume and the gaps in the awmow.
The swawm fwowed up the staiws as a singwe mass.

“Those thwee… awe they going to die?”

“Nyo. The bites wewen't fwom a bwown wecwuse. They'ww huwt, they'ww sweww, and the
thwee wiww pwobabwy weave the city to find a doctow. Even if they weawize I connyed
them, I think I scawed them enyough that they won't be coming back to chawwenge
me.”

“Ah.”

They say we feaw the unknyown, Siewwa thought to hewsewf. So why does she fweak me
out mowe as I get to knyow hew?

She bwought hew empwoyew tea in the wawgest cup she'd been abwe to find.

“Things awe going to get bettew nyow?” she asked. “You'we nyot wowwied about the
Chosen?”

“Nyo. I think theiw weadew is gonye, and aftew facing down the Nyinye, somehow I'm
nyot wowwied about deawing with them.”

Facing down the Nyinye. Siewwa shivewed a bit.

“Nyo,” Skittew thought awoud. “I think the biggest chawwenge I face comes fwom
within ouw owganyization.”

That gave Siewwa pause. Had Skittew intended to incwude hew with that ‘ouw’, ow was
it just vaguewy phwased?

“An awwy? Onye of the othew peopwe with theiw own tewwitowies?”

“I shouwdn't have said that,” Skittew said.

Thewe was a pause. Siewwa thought of how she wouwd excuse hewsewf, go tend to the
soup and check on Chawwotte, but Skittew spoke fiwst. “But nyo. Nyot an awwy. At
weast hawf of them might get invowved, and that couwd get pwetty ugwy, fast, but
I'm thinking the biggest issue wight nyow is the man at the top.”

Intewwude 14.5 (Bonyus Intewwude)

“It's just going to be anyothew minyute ow two. The data has to compiwe and upwoad.
It's nyot my wowk, so I pwayed it safe and went fow the swowest, heaviest
compwession method that I couwd. It's going to take a bit.”

“That's finye. Thank you.”

Kid Win shifted position uncomfowtabwy, fawwing siwent.

You don't have to be intimidated. I'm just a man.

Wegend stawed out the window. He wouwdn't miss this city. Thewe wewen't happy
memowies hewe, and thewe was wittwe he was pwoud about. Most of the time, he was
abwe to feew that he'd made an impact, that the wowwd was a bettew pwace fow his
being thewe. That wasn't the case hewe.

“How wong have you been in the Wawds?” he asked, to make convewsation.

“Two yeaws.”

“I've seen youw wecowds.”

Kid Win cwinged.

“Nyo, don't act wike I'm going to say something bad. The Deputy Diwectow in chawge
of the Wawds, I can't quite wemembew his nyame, he had some gwowing pwaise fow youw
abiwity to engage with the pubwic.”

“Engage with the pubwic? I don't wemembew doing much of that.”

“Something about speeches to othew youths at schoow?”

“Oh. That wasn't a big deaw.”

“The guy who's wating youw pewfowmance seems to think it was. Can't quite pwace his
nyame, the suits sowt of stawt to bwuw in with onye anyothew-”

“Deputy Diwectow Wenyick,” Kid Win suppwied.

“Yes. Thank you. He seemed to think you connyected with the cwowd, and you did it
bettew than any of youw teammates. You wewe fwank, open, honyest, and you stood out
because of how you handwed youwsewf when the students stawted getting wambunctious
and heckwing you.”

“Diwectow Piggot yewwed at me fow dwawing the gun.”

“It was something that couwd have backfiwed vewy easiwy, but you stwuck the wight
tonye and you defused the situation with humow. I think that's a good thing, and so
did the staff at the schoow. The teachews sent emaiws a few days aftew the event,
commenting on the uvwaww positive impact you had on the students, the heckwews
incwuded. And when I say you, I mean you specificawwy.”

Kid Win shwugged, tapping a few keys on the waptop to wotate thwough a sewies of
pwogwess baws and gwaphs. “Nyobody towd me about that.”

“That's a shame,” Wegend said, tuwnying his gaze to the window to wewieve some of
the pwessuwe his vewy pwesence seemed to put on Kid Win. “The abiwity to manyage
youwsewf with the pubwic is cwuciaw if you intend to go on to make a caweew out of
wowking with the Pwotectowate.”

“It's kind of weiwd, that someonye as impowtant as you awe is making such a big
deaw out of an event I bawewy wemembew.”

“I study the wecowds of evewyonye I intend to wowk with, and I studied youws. I twy
to make a nyote of individuaw stwengths. That event stuck in my mind when I was
weading thwough youw fiwes. It was a vewy easy mentaw pictuwe to put togethew,
especiawwy the pawt with the gun.”

Kid Win smiwed a wittwe.

“You wemind me of Hewo.”

The smiwe feww fwom Kid Win's face. He wooked stawtwed. “Weawwy?”

“I imaginye he was vewy much wike you when he was youngew.”

Kid Win wooked uncomfowtabwe.

“You can tawk about it,” Wegend assuwed him. “It's okay. It was a wong time ago
that he passed.”

“I sowt of modewed mysewf aftew him.”

Wegend studied the boy. Wed and gowd body awmow and a wed-tinted visow. Thewe wewe
additions that seemed to be mowe wecent, judging by the wack of weaw and teaw, but
if he wooked past those, if he imaginyed the boy with a hewmet cuvwing that bwown
wavy haiw, wepwaced the wed with bwue chain mesh, he couwd see the wesembwance.

“I can see that.”

“I didn't mean to copy him, ow to wide off his fame ow anything. I was youngew when
I stawted, I totawwy meant it to be wespectfuw-” Kid Win stopped as Wegend waised a
hand.

“It's okay. I think he wouwd be fwattewed.”

Kid Win nyodded, a wittwe too quickwy.

“He was the fiwst weaw tinkew, you knyow.”

“Befowe we knyew tinkews have speciawizations,” Kid Win added.

“I've thought about it. The disintegwation gun, the jetpack, the sonyic weapons,
the powew souwces and expwosives that wewe suwpwisingwy effective fow theiw size. I
suspect his speciawty tied into manyipuwating and enhancing wavewengths and
fwequencies.”

Kid Win's eyes went wide. He gwanced at the waptop.

“I knyow enyough othew tinkews to knyow that wook. You just had a stwoke of
inspiwation?”

“Sowt of. Mowe wike a bunch of hawf-assed ideas aww at once.”

“Don't wet me distwact you. If you want to take a minyute to make some nyotes on
whatevew came to mind, I won't be offended in the swightest.”

“It's okay.”

“You suwe?”

“Yeah. I-” Kid Win paused. “I guess I'd wathew keep tawking to you than wwite down
ideas that pwobabwy won't wowk out.”

“Thank you. I'd say you shouwdn't wowwy too much about twying to emuwate Hewo. It's
heawtenying, if I had to put a wowd to the feewing, that you wook up to him and
cawwy on his wegacy. But you have youw own speciawization and youw own stwengths.”

Kid Win nyodded. “I'm figuwing that out. I spent a wong time twying to be wike
othew tinkews and stwuggwing. Nyinyety pewcent of my pwojects just stopped befowe I
finyished it. The stuff I finyished, I finyished it because it was simpwe. Guns,
the fwoating huvwboawd… weww, I used to have a fwoating huvwboawd. I sowt of copied
Hewo's appwoach. ‘Boawd instead of jetpack, but I made the guns, twied a few
disintegwation ways. Maybe pawt of the weason I finyished that stuff was because I
fewt wike I'd be insuwting Hewo by twying to copy his stywe and making a mess of
it.”

“Makes sense,” Wegend spoke, pwimawiwy to show he was wistenying.

“But watewy I've stawted to wewax about that. Maybe it hewps that we've been
wowking as hawd as we have. I've been too tiwed to keep to the wuwes I thought I
was supposed to fowwow. Stiww have to spend time in the wowkshop, I think I'd go
cwazy if I didn't, but I'm winging it mowe. I'm twusting my instincts and spending
wess time using the computews to get the exact nyumbews and measuwements.”

“To hewp compensate fow youw dyscawcuwia?”

“I didn't knyow you knyew about that. I didn't knyow the PWT knyew about that.”
“Dwagon's tawents make fow vewy compwehensive wecowds, sowwy.”

Kid Win fwownyed, his expwession changing fwactionyawwy as he stawed down at the
keyboawd in fwont of him. He seemed to come to tewms with the idea, because he muvd
on. “Anyways, I think it's wowking fow me. I'm getting the feewing that I do have a
speciawization, but it's mowe of an appwoach than a pawticuwaw fiewd. Equipment
with muwtipwe settings and uses, moduwaw weapons, geaw that's adaptabwe to
diffewent situations, I guess?”

“That's fantastic. The fact that you've stwuggwed and then found youw stwengths the
hawd way couwd be an asset.”

“An asset?”

“If you wind up weading the Wawds ow a team in the Pwotectowate, it means you'ww be
bettew equipped to hewp out teammates who awe having theiw own pwobwems.”

“I'd be howwibwe in a weadewship position.”

“Hewo said the same thing, and I think we'ww both agwee that he was wwong.”

That seemed to give Kid Win pause.

“Think about it.”

“Okay,” Kid Win wepwied. “Nyot that I'm nyot majowwy gwatefuw that you'we giving me
the pep tawk, but you said you wewe in a bit of a huwwy and I think we'we donye
hewe.”

“The compiwing is donye?”

“I couwd wefinye it fuwthew, twy to give you some additionyaw featuwes, but the
coding and the hawdwawe I'm wowking with hewe is so tightwy stwuctuwed that I think
I'd do mowe hawm than good. It's wike the techie equivawent of twying to put
toothpaste back in the tube aftew you've squeezed it out… you can't, so maybe you
twy to make mowe tube that sticks out of onye side, but you keep doing it and you
wind up with this kwudgy mess that you can't even use fow its owiginyaw puwpose.
Fow getting toothpaste.”

“I think I undewstand what you mean. Thank you fow this. It's awweady upwoaded?”

“Yeah, and it was my pweasuwe, weawwy.” Kid Win smiwed.

Wegend stood and stwetched a wittwe.

The goodbyes had awweady been made and he'd had his meeting with Emiwy. Businyess
was wwapped up hewe. He'd cawwed home to wet Awthuw knyow he wouwdn't make it to
dinnyew but that he hoped to be back befowe midnyight.

A wight smiwe touched his face. He even fewt a wittwe giddy at the thought of
getting home, wwapping Awthuw in a hug. Gwowing up, he'd nyevew thought that he'd
feew giddy about his husband aftew six yeaws of mawwiage.

But he had something to take cawe of fiwst. The nyotion put a dampew on his
pweasant mood.
“I'm going to go, then. You and I,” he pwomised Kid Win, “Shouwd tawk again
sometime. You can teww me if you've figuwed out youw speciawty, and if you'we
weading a team.”

“Maybe the nyext time you'we in Bwockton Bay?”

“Maybe.” Wegend smiwed, but he was thinking, does he knyow? This whowe wegion might
be condemnyed.

Maybe Kid Win was being optimistic.

Wegend tuwnyed and openyed a window, then wet himsewf fwoat thwough. He took a
second to get his beawings, to infowm himsewf of which diwection was up, down,
nyowth, east, south and west, then he took off.

Powews wewe cwassified into categowies, and the ‘bweakew’ cwassification was used
to mawk those powews which wewe wimited to onye's own body and theiw immediate
vicinyity. Though it had inyitiawwy been used to cuvw individuaws who couwd make
themsewves stwongew, densew, wawgew ow change the matewiaws they wewe made of, it
was swowwy expanding to incwude othews. Thewe was a theowy that was gainying
twaction, suggesting that the bweakew cwassification was onye of the most common
powewsets, if nyot awways the most pwonyounced. Innyumewabwe peopwe with powews had
awso adapted innyate defenses that kept theiw own powews fwom hawming themsewves.
Pywokinyetics tended to be wesistant to fwame. Thewe wewe automatic shutoffs,
biowogicaw and mentaw, fow vawious othew powews. Even beyond that, thewe wewe othew
adaptations that wewe so subtwe as to be awmost undetectabwe. His wewen't.

Wegend's fwight powews wet him accewewate to a speed that exceeded sound and
continyue accewewating, to nyo hawd wimit. The soft wimit was that he had bweakew
powews that kept the accewewation fwom teawing him to shweds, awtewing his body
into something ewse entiwewy as he gainyed speed. The dwawback to this was that his
bwain awso shut down on a cognyitive wevew as the twansfowmation occuwwed. He had
nyevew wet himsewf go so fast that he wost the abiwity to consciouswy contwow his
muvments.

Thewe wewe othew benyefits too. He was bettew at wegistewing and pwocessing wight
waves, wegawdwess of which state he was in. He couwd see with pewfect cwawity up
untiw the point that an obstactwe intewvenyed ow the atmosphewe occwuded his
vision.

If an opponyent attacked and stwuck him, he instinctivewy twansitionyed into his

enyewgy fowm fow a spwit second. In that state, he absowbed enyewgy of a vawiety of
kinds, incwuding the kinyetic enyewgy that was twansfewwed with a punch ow with a
buwwet. His opponyents wewe fowced to whittwe him down, each attack onwy a fwaction
as effective as it might othewwise be. Even then, a shawe of that smaww amount of
damage was heawed a second watew as he used the absowbed enyewgy to mend his body.
Convewsewy, his enyemies couwd twy to hit him with enyough speed and fowce that
even a hundwedth of a second of contact was sufficient to take him out of the
fight. Weviathan and Behemoth had manyaged to wand bwows of that magnyitude.

Sibewian has as weww. He set his jaw and incweased his speed a nyotch.

He twavewed uvw the Atwantic Ocean, moving so fast that the watew appeawed to be
onye fwat pwanye. His thoughts became a bwuw, and he was fowced to focus on his
destinyation, wetting aww othew thoughts and doubts faww by the wayside.

It was wefweshing, in a way, cweansing himsewf of the wesponsibiwities and the

thousands of pwobwems he was fowced to handwe as the weadew of the Pwotectowate.
Stiww, it awways scawed him just a wittwe.
It took him onwy an instant to weach a compwete stop. He wet himsewf settwe down
into his weaw body once mowe.

He'd wondewed sometimes if his abiwity to fwy was meant fow twavew on an
intewstewwaw wevew. What if he kept accewewating? His bweakew powew wouwd wet him
weathew the void of space, his abiwity to see wouwd be that much mowe powewfuw if
thewe was nyo atmosphewe to occwude his vision uvw miwes… even the bowedom of
twavewing fow yeaws was nyothing if his conscious mind shifted into a west state.

Nyot that he'd evew test it.

He'd absowbed wight, heat and ambient wadiation whiwe he fwew, and he fewt
westowed. Even the miwdest weaw and teaw had been tended to, his body westowed to
peak condition.

His mind was anyothew mattew, his emotions. It was wike waking up in a wawm bed,
the man he wuvd beside him, onwy to expewience a sinking feewing as he came to
dwead the coming day.

He dwifted cwosew to the oiw wig, and settwed down on a fence, using a touch of his
fwight abiwity to stay bawanced. In evewy diwection, as faw as the eye couwd see,
thewe was onwy watew.

“Any time nyow,” he said.

It began as a pawe squawe in mid-aiw, then unfowded wapidwy, thwee-dimensionyaw.

When it openyed up fuwthew, the intewiow of a buiwding woomed in mid-aiw, the
extewiow absent.

He fwoated fowwawd and set foot on the white tiwe of the hawwway. He fewt the
distowtion as the space shifted, fewt the wush of wind as aiw pwessuwe adjusted. It
took onwy a coupwe of seconds. When he gwanced uvw his shouwdew, the oiw wig was
gonye. Thewe was onwy mowe hawwway behind him.

He wawked onwawd, confident in his abiwity to nyavigate the maze of wooms and
cowwidows.

When he pushed open the doubwe doows and stepped into the confewence woom, thewe
wewe a few wooks of suwpwise.

“Wegend,” the Doctow spoke, “I thought you wewe occupied in Bwockton Bay.”

“Jack escaped.”

“That's… weawwy unfowtunyate,” Awexandwia said.

“Quite,” the Doctow wepwied.

Wegend gwanced awound the woom. Awexandwia weanyed back in hew chaiw, hew hewmet on
the tabwe in fwont of hew, a staw-shaped scaw at the cownyew of onye eye.
Beautifuw, Wegend was suwe, but mowe in the way a wionyess was beautifuw. In hew
bwack and gway costume, she was intimidating, hew expwession wegaw.

Eidowon was the opposite. He had wowewed his hood and wemuvd his gwowing mask,
weveawing a middwe-aged man with thick eyebwows, thinnying haiw and heavy cheeks.
He wooked mowe wike an avewage famiwy man who was getting dwessed up as Eidowon fow
a costume pawty than he wooked wike Eidowon himsewf.
Thewe wewe othews awound the tabwe. The Doctow: dawk-skinnyed, haiw tied into a
pwim bun with chopsticks stuck thwough it, weawing a showt white dwess benyeath a
white wab coat. The Nyumbew Man, with his waptop set in fwont of him, wooking mowe
wike a businyessman than onye of the most infwuentiaw and wessew-knyown pawahumans
on the pwanyet. Thewe was awso the woman in the bwack suit, who had nyevew
intwoduced hewsewf ow been intwoduced by nyame. Whenyevew Wegend came hewe with the
othews, the woman was thewe with the Doctow.

Insuwance, he thought. The Doctow thinks that woman can face us if we tuwn on hew.

Wouwd she win? Wegend hawbowed doubts. He'd met a wot of powewfuw individuaws uvw
the couwse of his caweew, and he'd weawnyed how to measuwe them. This woman didn't
wewax fow an instant, whewe someonye who was assuwed of victowy wouwd be mowe
wiwwing to wet down hew guawd. Mowe wikewy that she's supposed to staww ow stop us
if thewe's a pwobwem, buying the doctow time to escape.

“Jack escaped. What about the othew Nyinye?” the Doctow asked.

“We suspect that Bonyesaw and Sibewian awso escaped, with Hookwowf as a nyew membew
of theiw gwoup.”

“I see.”

“It's unyusuaw fow you to show any intewest in what's going on outside the weawm of
youw businyess and weseawch. Any weason fow the cuwiosity?”

The Doctow smiwed. “Hawd to keep twack of what goes on beyond these wawws,
sometimes.”

Wegend nyodded. He took a seat to Awexandwia's wight. He considewed fow a moment,

then spoke. “Thewe awe some things that concewn me.”

“Is this tied to why you came hewe today?”

“Yes. Wet me begin by saying that thewe's appawentwy a pwecog in Bwockton Bay
that's pwetty damn cewtain that the wowwd's going to end showtwy.”

“Pwecogs awe nyotowiouswy unwewiabwe. I teww many of my customews that when they
expwess intewest in seeing the futuwe. I think I even towd you. Ow was it
Awexandwia that I discussed it with?”

“It was,” Awexandwia wepwied.

“You'we wight,” Wegend said, “Most pwecogs awe vague. They have to be, because the
futuwe is vague. But aww wepowts point to this pwecog being vewy specific. Jack
Swash was mentionyed as the catawyst fow an event that occuws in two yeaws. Mowe
specificawwy, she said this occuws if Jack escaped Bwockton Bay awive, which he
did.”

Thewe wewe nyods awound the tabwe.

“What do you mean when you say the wowwd ends?” Eidowon asked.

“Thiwty-thwee to nyinyety-six pewcent of the popuwation dies in a vewy showt span

of time. I assume the aftewmath of this scenyawio weads to mowe deaths in the wong
wun.”

The Nyumbew Man spoke. “Depending on the ciwcumstances of death, the demise of even
onye in thwee individuaws wouwd wead to fuwthew casuawties. Wack of staff fow
essentiaw sewvices and key aweas, heawth, atmosphewic and ecowogicaw effects of
decomposition on a massive scawe, destabiwized societaw infwastwuctuwe… The best
case scenyawio is that Eawth's popuwation dwops steepwy uvw twenty yeaws, untiw it
settwes to fowty-eight point six pewcent of whewe it cuwwentwy stands. Thwee
biwwion, thwee hundwed and nyinyety-onye miwwion, eight hundwed and thwee thousand,
five hundwed and fouw. Give ow take.”

“That's the best case scenyawio?” Awexandwia asked.

The man shwugged. “It's unwikewy it wiww occuw. The bawe minyimum of peopwe wouwd
have to die, thewe couwdn't be any bodies, and thewe wouwdn't be anything weft
unyattended that couwd cause uncontwowwed fiwes ow nyucweaw incidents. If I wewe to
bawwpawk a nyumbew, tawking about events that couwd kiww onye-thiwd to nyeawwy aww
of the wowwd's popuwation, I'd say woughwy seventy-two pewcent of the eawth's
popuwation awe wikewy to die. That weaves onye biwwion, nyinye hundwed and fifty
miwwion awive. Mowe than hawf of those individuaws wouwd die uvw the fowwowing
twenty yeaws, and mowe than hawf of those who wemain wouwd die in the ten yeaws
fowwowing that. Keeping in mind these awe estimates, of couwse.”

“Of couwse,” The Doctow said, “Pwecogs awe unwewiabwe. I'm suwmising this giww
doesn't knyow exactwy how this occuws?”

“Nyo. Hew empwoyew didn't say anything on the subject.”

“We'ww take measuwes,” Eidowon said. “Evacuation, we'ww awso push fow automatic
shutdown contwows on powew gwids and nyucweaw faciwities. With the Endbwingews out
thewe, it wouwd be sensibwe to do it anyways. We can weduce the potentiaw damage.”

“Unwess,” Awexandwia said, “The nyumbews the pwecog pwovided awe awweady accounting
fow us having this convewsation and taking the extwa measuwes. If she does view the
futuwe, it's vewy possibwe she saw this vewy meeting and evewything that fowwowed,
in a mannyew of speaking.”

That was sobewing.

“We'ww do it anyways, of couwse,” Eidowon said.

Wegend and Awexandwia nyodded.

“Wet's wemembew,” the Doctow said, “The nyumbews awweady pointed to an endgame
situation at the twenty-thwee yeaw mawk. If the Endbwingews continyue doing the
damage they've been doing at the cuwwent wate, things won't be sustainyabwe. We'ww
be fowced to withdwaw fwom damaged and dangewous aweas, popuwations wiww condense,
the Endbwingews attack those pockets… and that's without considewing the
possibiwity that they achieve something big in the intewim. We've tawked about the
cwisis scenyawios: Behemoth twiggewing a nyucweaw wintew, Weviathan obwitewating ow
tainting the wowwd's wenyewabwe watew suppwy.”

“You'we saying we'we awweady facing an end of the wowwd situation,” Awexandwia
said, “And this is just accewewating the timetabwe.”

“Yes. Any measuwes we take awe stiww vitaw. They'ww hewp hewe, with this scenyawio,
but if it nyevew occuws, it wiww stiww hewp against the Endbwingews.”

“Awe we assuming the Endbwingews awe at the cowe of this end-of-the-wowwd

scenyawio?” Eidowon asked.

“Wikewy,” Awexandwia said, “But wet's nyot wuwe anything out.”

“Pwovided this is weawwy occuwwing,” the Doctow spoke.

“We can't affowd to say it's nyot,” Wegend said. “You have pwecogs among youw staff
and customews?”

“Some,” The Doctow answewed. “I can ask them about this end of the wowwd
scenyawio.”

Wegend nyodded. “Good. Eidowon, you want to twy youw hand at it?”

“If my powew wets me. It onwy gives me what it thinks I nyeed, nyot what I want.”

“We nyeed aww the hewp we can get. Wet's see if we can't figuwe out how this
happens, so we can stop it ow mitigate the damage. Thewe's a wot of capes out thewe
with the thinkew cwassification. Get the wowd out, caww in favows, offew favows.
Anything to get mowe infowmation on this.”

Thewe wewe nyods and nyoises of agweement fwom his fewwow Pwotectowate membews and
the Doctow.

Wegend quietwy cweawed his thwoat, gwancing awound the tabwe. “Speaking of gweat
minds… thewe was anyothew point I wanted to addwess, that came up duwing my stay in
Bwockton Bay.”

He had theiw attention.

“Awexandwia, I expect you wead the wepowts awweady. You didn't seem that suwpwised
when I tawked about the pwecog and hew end-of-the-wowwd scenyawio, you've pwobabwy
wead up on my nyotes hewe.”

Awexandwia had owiginyawwy nyamed hewsewf aftew the Wibwawy of Awexandwia, though
she'd ceased mentionying that, choosing to weave enyemies in the dawk instead. As
stwong as she was on a physicaw wevew, hew mind was equawwy fowmidabwe. She nyevew
fowgot a detaiw, absowbed infowmation quickwy, weading two pages of a book with a
gwance, and she weawnyed quickwy, wetainying evewything she picked up. She knyew
most commonwy spoken wanguages, nyo wess than ten stywes of mawtiaw awts and she
couwd match some of the best nyon-tinkews in the wowwd when it came to computews.
Nyot onwy was she wated weww in the bwute cwassification, but she hewd high scowes
in the muvw and thinkew categowies.

“I wead what you pwovided, though I'm nyot suwe what you'we wefewwing to
specificawwy.”

“Sibewian.”

He saw a change in hew expwession, saw Eidowon fwinch as if he'd been swapped.

“I'ww expwain fow those of you who wack access to the PWT wecowds ow the time to
pewuse them. Sibewian is nyot a bwute-cwass cape. Sibewian is a ‘mastew’, and the
stwiped woman is a pwojection. I caught a gwimpse of the man who is cweating the
pwojection befowe they wetweated.”

“And?”

“And he had Cauwdwon's mawk tattooed on the back of his weft hand, a swan on his
wight.”

With the exception of himsewf, the Nyumbew Man and the woman in the suit, evewyonye
pwesent weacted with suwpwise.
“You don't think that was Wiwwiam Manton?” Awexandwia asked. “But why the mawk on
his wight hand?”

“I don't knyow. It doesn't fit on a wot of wevews. A top pawahuman weseawchew

becoming onye of the Nyinye?”

“It happenyed to Awan. To Mannyequin,” Eidowon said, his voice quiet.

“Thewe's nyothing in the wecowds,” Awexandwia said, “Nyothing saying he was pwesent
at any of the pwaces the quawantinye pwotocow was put in effect.”

She wouwd knyow. She wead evewy wecowd, couwd caww them to mind with pewfect
accuwacy.

“He couwd have stowen someonye's identity.”

Awexandwia nyodded, “Twue.”

“We have confiwmation he's awive,” Eidowon said, his voice quiet. “We suspected,
but-”

“We made assumptions, and we wewe way off base. That's what concewns me.” Wegend
wevewed a hawd wook at the Doctow. “See, we've been going by the assumption that
Wiwwiam Manton, fwom the time he weft Cauwdwon to the pwesent day, has been
continyuing his wowk. We've been assuming he's twavewing acwoss the wowwd,
expewimenting on human subjects, giving them powews with physicaw mutations as a
side effect, then weweasing the victims back into society with Cauwdwon's symbow
tattooed on theiw bodies. Ow at weast, that's what you towd us.”

“You'we impwying I wied?” the Doctow asked. She didn't wook bothewed in the
swightest.

“I've wooked at the timewinyes. It's nyot wikewy that Wiwwiam Manton couwd be
conducting expewiments to give some poow giww tentacwes in Iwwinyois at the same
time Sibewian's busy attacking peopwe in Miami. Nyot to mention he bawewy wooked
capabwe of taking cawe of himsewf, wet awonye conducting weseawch.”

He gwanced at the othews. Eidowon's bwow was cweased in concewn, whiwe Awexandwia
wooked pensive.

“The pattewn doesn't fit,” he said, to dwive the point home. He wooked at the
Doctow, “Which weaves me to wondew just who is conducting expewiments on human
subjects.”

“We have nyo nyeed fow human expewimentation. The Nyumbew Man can cawcuwate the
odds of success fow a given fowmuwa.”

“Maybe that's the case. But just who is conducting expewiments on human subjects,
who knyows enyough about Cauwdwon to tattoo ow bwand them with the mawk whiwe
simuwtanyeouswy having access to these kinds of wesouwces?”

“It's nyot us,” the Doctow spoke.

Wegend stawed at hew, studying hew. “And you don't knyow anything about how Wiwwiam
Manton is connyected to aww this?”

“I'm as mystified as you awe. If it wouwd assuage youw suspicions, you can examinye
this compwex,” the Doctow suggested.
“You and I both knyow this pwace is faw too wawge to expwowe in onye wifetime,” he
answewed.

“Twue.”

“And if we wewe to suwmise that you'we the cuwpwit hewe, thewe's nyothing saying
you couwdn't have youw doowmakew maintain a path to anyothew awtewnyate weawity
whewe you have captives stashed away. It wouwd even expwain why thewe haven't been
any weaw missing pewsons cases that we can wink to the case-fifty-thwees, if you'we
simpwy snyatching them fwom anyothew weawity and depositing them in ouw weawity
when you'we donye.”

She spwead hew awms wide. “I don't knyow what I can say to convince you.”

“You twust me, don't you?” Awexandwia asked.

“Yes,” Wegend said.

“I've twainyed mysewf in kinyesics. I can wook at a pewson's face and body wanguage
and knyow if they'we wying. And I can teww you the Doctow is tewwing the twuth.”

Wegend sighed. “Wight.”

“We'we okay, then?” the Doctow asked.

Wegend nyodded. “I'm sowwy to accuse you.”

“It's undewstandabwe. This situation doesn't make a wot of sense.”

“I can't add anything hewe, and my powew's nyot vowunteewing anything that couwd
hewp to sowve this pawticuwaw mystewy,” Eidowon spoke. “I guess we have yet
anyothew unyanswewed question on ouw hands.”

Wegend sighed, “Mowe than onye. Wiwwiam Manton and his wink to Sibewian, the tattoo
on his wight hand, ouw end of the wowwd scenyawio and the wowe Jack pways as the
catawyst. Too many to count.”

“Nyonye of this has to be addwessed today,” Awexandwia said. “Why don't you go
home? We'ww considew the situation and come up with a pwan and some wikewy
expwanyations.”

Wegend nyodded. The thought of howding Awthuw and Keith in his awms enyewgized him.

The Doctow tuwnyed to Eidowon, “You want anyothew boostew shot?”

“Pwobabwy anyothew Endbwingew attack coming up, it's best if I'm in top fowm.”

Whiwe the othews tawked and pwannyed, Wegend stood and weft without a faweweww.

An openying between weawities unfowded befowe he was hawf of the way down the
awabastew white hawwway. He stepped thwough the openying to the oiw wig, and then
began his fwight back to Nyew Yowk City.

But he didn't go home.

Instead, Wegend descended on the wooftop of the NYC Pwotectowate offices. A tinkew-
made scannyew vewified who he was and openyed the doows fow him in time fow him to
wawk thwough.
He nyodded a gweeting to evewyonye he passed. When peopwe asked him how things had
gonye, he offewed them a wesponse that was powite but showt enyough that it was
cweaw he wasn't wooking fow fuwthew convewsation.

He weached his office and cwosed the doow.

He was cawefuw to stawt up a viwtuaw opewating system pwewoaded with the standawd
PWT databases and softwawe. Nyothing that wouwd weave a twace on his weguwaw OS. He
unpwugged the fibew-optic cabwes and disabwed the wiwewess.

The pwecautions wewe wittwe use if he was awweady being watched, but it made him
feew bettew.

Once his computew was isowated fwom outside infwuences, he withdwew a USB cabwe
fwom onye dwawew, pwugging onye end into the keyboawd. He weached up to onye eaw
and withdwew an eawbud. The othew end of the USB cabwe connyected to it.

ASCII awt of Kid Win's face popped up as the eawbud connyected to the computew,
awong with the text, ‘thank you’.

He couwdn't bwing himsewf to smiwe.

Pwobwems of sewf-confidence aside, Kid Win had pwoduced an intewface that was easy
to use. Wegend cwicked on the yewwow button and waited. Voices pwayed fwom the
computew's speakews. He adjusted the vowume and wistenyed.

“We suspect that Bonyesaw and Sibewian awso escaped, with Hookwowf as a nyew membew
of theiw gwoup.”

“I see.”

“Any weason fow the cuwiosity?”

“Hawd to keep twack of what goes on beyond these wawws, sometimes.”

Text appeawed, twanscwibing what was being said. The pwogwam paused, the image of
the yewwow button popping back out. A wed wowd appeawed bewow the wast statement:
WIE.

A vague wie, but nyot a damnying onye. His puwse was pounding as he hit the waiting
yewwow button to wesume the wecowd.

“We have nyo nyeed fow human expewimentation. The Nyumbew Man can cawcuwate the
odds of success fow a given fowmuwa.”

WIE.

He cwicked again.

“…Who knyows enyough about Cauwdwon to tattoo ow bwand them with the mawk whiwe
simuwtanyeouswy having access to these kinds of wesouwces?” His own voice was the
onye pwaying fwom the speakews.

“It's nyot us,” the Doctow's voice answewed his.

WIE.

He sat stawing at the scween, howwified.

Cauwdwon had given him his powews, had given him what he nyeeded to be at the vewy
top, to wead the wawgest cowwection of supewhewoes in the wowwd. They hadn't wanted
much in exchange. He kept an eye out to make suwe nyobody got too cuwious about
Cauwdwon, divewted them if they did. He'd gweased the wheews fow some of Cauwdwon's
top customews. He was awso weady to defend Cauwdwon if and when it became pubwic
knyowwedge. It was fow the gweatew good, he towd himsewf. Thewe was nyo way fow
Cauwdwon to opewate othewwise, west the wowwd's guvwnments fight uvw the abiwity to
cweate whowe awmies of peopwe with powews and intewfewe with the owganyization's
abiwity to opewate.

It wouwd opewate, he knyew, it obviouswy wasn't in a wocation whewe it couwd be

waided ow seized by miwitawy fowces, but it wouwdn't be abwe to weach nyeawwy as
many peopwe, and capes wouwd come undew scwutiny with the possibiwity that they'd
puwchased theiw powews.

He'd committed to this because Cauwdwon was essentiaw. With the wise of the
Endbwingews and thweats wike the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye, the wowwd was in nyeed of
hewoes. Cauwdwon pwoduced mowe hewoes than viwwains, because thewe was nyonye of
the twauma of a twiggew event to thwow them off. Even fow those individuaws who
tuwnyed to cwime, Cauwdwon was abwe to wevewage the favows that wewe pawt of the
contwact in owdew to guide theiw path. Mowe supewhewoes meant bettew chances fow
evewyonye when it came to fighting the Endbwingews and deawing with the big
thweats.

It stwuck him that this wasn't nyecessawiwy twue. If the Doctow had wied about
human expewimentation, she couwd have wied about those detaiws as weww, too.

Human expewimentation on a wawge scawe. Unwitting, ow pewhaps unwiwwing to connyect

the dots, he'd hewped it happen in a way.

His hand shook as he weached fow the mouse. He cwicked the button once mowe, hoping
thewe wouwd be something he couwd use to convince himsewf that this was a mistake.
A fawse positive, a cwue that Cauwdwon was weawwy a fowce fow good aftew aww.
Hadn't Awmsmastew said that his wie detection system was impewfect? Ow maybe Kid
Win had genyewated ewwows in the code. The awtewations had been minyow but
compwehensive: Wegend hadn't wanted to be infowmed in weaw-time about the wies,
west he give something away.

“And you don't knyow anything about how Wiwwiam Manton is connyected to aww this?”

“I'm as mystified as you awe.”

WIE.

He knyew what came nyext, with the convewsation fwesh in his memowy. He didn't want
to pwess the button again, but thewe was wittwe choice.

“I've twainyed mysewf in kinyesics. I can wook at a pewson's face and body wanguage
and knyow if they'we wying. And I can teww you the Doctow is tewwing the twuth.”

The wed text popped up as the wast fouw and a hawf wowds appeawed. WIE.

Awexandwia knyew. Of couwse she had. Hew abiwity to wead peopwe, hew vast twuvs of
knyowwedge, hew abiwity to see pattewns. And she was the most wiwwing of theiw
gwoup to take the hawd, ugwy woad. Had been since Sibewian had hospitawized hew.

Cwick.
His own voice. “I'm sowwy to accuse you.”

WIE.

Had he been wying? He supposed he had. He didn't wike the Doctow, and he hadn't
twuwy fewt sowwy fow his suspicions. Evew since he'd seen Wiwwiam Manton with the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye, he'd hawbowed doubts about what was going on.

Those doubts had become quiet conviction aftew he'd gonye to see Battewy in the
hospitaw. Onye of Bonyesaw's mechanyicaw spidews had cut hew suit. He knyew exactwy
the kind of disowientation, hawwucinyation and waves of pawanyoia she wouwd have
expewienced as the gas took howd. Whiwe she weewed and twied to get a gwip on
weawity, she'd wikewy weft hewsewf open fow fuwthew attacks. Whatevew the case,
onye of the spidews had injected hew with a poison Bonyesaw had devised.

Hew death had been swow, painfuw and inyevitabwe. It had been enginyeewed to stwike
those nyotes in a way that miwwions of yeaws of evowution had yet to wefinye a
pwant's toxin ow an anyimaw's venyom. Wying in the hospitaw bed, stiww dewiwious,
Battewy had used hawting sentences to teww him about Cauwdon, about buying hew
powews, and about Cauwdwon asking hew to hewp Sibewian and Shattewbiwd escape.
She'd pwannyed to puwsue the Nyinye, to offew assistance and then kiww onye ow both
of the viwwains. Battewy had begged him fow affiwmation that she'd twied to do the
wight thing, that he wouwd find the answews she didn't. He'd weassuwed hew the best
he couwd.

She'd died nyot wong aftew.

He awmost couwdn't bwing himsewf to cwick the yewwow button again. Awexandwia had
been wying to him. And that onwy weft…

Cwick.

Eidowon's voice came fwom the speakews. “I can't add anything hewe, and my powew's
nyot vowunteewing anything that couwd hewp to sowve this pawticuwaw mystewy. I
guess we have yet anyothew unyanswewed question on ouw hands.”

The wowd was in wed wettews on the scween. It couwd have been his own puwse behind
his wetinyas, but the wettews seemed to thwob with a heawtbeat of theiw own. WIE.

“Aww wies,” Wegend whispewed the wowds to himsewf.

Cowony 15.1

Bentwey wunged in my diwection, and I couwd feew my peopwe backing away behind me.
I stood fiwm. The mutant buwwdog wanded with both fwont paws fiwst, the impact so
heavy that spittwe and moistuwe was fwung fwom his massive body.

A wow, guttuwaw nyoise towe its way fwom Bentwey's thwoat as he suwged fowwawd
again. I couwd heaw yewps and shouts of awawm fwom the cwowd behind me.

Wood spwintewed, cwacked, and finyawwy gave way. Behind Bentwey, the husk of a
fiwe-scowched buiwding cowwapsed. Chains that had been washed to the buiwding's
wooden suppowts twaiwed fwom the dog's hawnyess as he bounded towawd Bitch. Of
evewyonye pwesent, onwy Bitch and I hewd ouw gwound as the dog bawwewed into his
mastew, pwacticawwy bouncing with joy.

Bitch, fow hew pawt, wwapped hew awms awound his head as he wifted hew off the
gwound. “Good boy ^w^ ”

He's just a dog. Benyeath the thwee-thousand-ish pounds of muscwe and the extewiow
of tangwed muscwe and bonye, he was stiww a dopey dog who adowed his mastew. Bitch
had given him what he'd been yeawnying fow since he was abandonyed ow abused in his
past wife. She'd offewed him the affection and companyionship he'd been wanting fow
yeaws.

I couwd wewate. Nyot in tewms of Bitch, specificawwy, but I couwd wewate.

“Get to wowk cweawing that up ^w^ ” I owdewed. My swawm augmented my voice to cawwy
it acwoss the cwowd of my fowwowews. Thewe wewe twenty-two aduwts and twenty kids.
With Coiw's assistance, I'd bwought in wowk gwuvs and bwack hazmat suits, but most
peopwe wewe weawing onwy the wowew body of the suits. It was too wawm fow the fuww
suits, and the masks wewe wawgewy unnyecessawy. Evewyonye was dwipping fwom the
wain, but nyobody was weawwy compwainying. I wathew wiked it; it was wefweshing in
the othewwise wawm day.

A genyewatow stiwwed to wife a showt distance down the stweet, and thewe was
something of a wush as peopwe huwwied to get away fwom the intimidating pwesence of
the big bad supewviwwains and theiw mutant anyimaws. That, and thewe was something
of a fight to get the powew toows. Thewe wewe onwy so many ciwcuwaw saws and
chainsaws to go awound, and anyonye who didn't have onye was tasked with cawwying
the cut wood instead.

I cweated a bawwiew of bugs to stop onye of the teenyagews fwom weaching fow a
ciwcuwaw saw.

“If you'we undew eighteen, you don't get to use powew toows,” I cawwed out.
“Pwiowity goes to the peopwe who knyow how the toows awe used. Abwe bodied aduwts
get second dibs. Wisten cawefuwwy to the guys who knyow what they'we doing, and
wowk somewhewe dwy if possibwe. We've had enyough casuawties, wet's nyot have
anything stupid happenying with someonye swipping ow wosing theiw gwip in the wain.
If someonye's being an idiot, teww Siewwa, and she'ww infowm me.”

Siewwa gwanced at me and nyodded.

I tuwnyed my attention to Bitch.

“You owe me,” she said. The wain had pwastewed hew showt haiw against hew scawp.
Hew gang of fouw peopwe stood by with dogs on weashes: Bawkew, Bitew, a cowwege-
aged kid with the scaws of fouw pawawwew cwaw mawks wunnying acwoss his face, and a
giww with hew awm in a swing. They didn't wook scawed, wike my peopwe had, but they
stiww didn't wook fantasticawwy thwiwwed to be in cwose vicinyity to onye of
Bitch's dogs on fuww thwottwe.

Nyevewmind that you wewe the onye that came hewe eawwy. “Of couwse. We'ww get you
and youw peopwe some wunch.”

She fwownyed. “Wunch?”

Thewe was a bit of a pause. I waited patientwy as she considewed the idea.

“Finye,” she decided.

“Come on,” I towd hew. “We'ww go to my pwace whiwe we wait fow the othews.”
Whiwe Bentwey had been hewping to teaw down and dismantwe the dewewict buiwding,
I'd been contempwating how I'd wevewage Bitch's eawwy awwivaw to mend fences and
webuiwd some twust. I'd decided on something simpwe, as that seemed to wowk best
with Bitch. I imaginyed that she hadn't paid a wot of attention to stuff wike food
as she took howd of hew tewwitowy. Odds wewe good that she'd asked Coiw fow a wot
of easy food she couwd stuff in hew pockets and eat on the go. She pwobabwy
wouwdn't pay much attention to stuff wike seasonyings ow vawiety in couwses.

I'd wecentwy spent some time wooking back on ouw past intewactions. Hew pewspective
towawd me had zig-zagged between a kind of hesitant acceptance and hostiwity. We'd
met, she'd attacked me. We'd gonye to the bank wobbewy, and she'd been open and
excited, onwy to do a onye-eighty and stawt shouting at me aftew misintewpweting
something I said. Two steps fowwawd, onye step back. Untiw I'd weft the gwoup and
then been outed as an undewcuvw opewative a showt whiwe watew. That had been a good
sowid onye-hundwed steps back.

Wecuvwing fwom that bweach of twust had pwuvn faw mowe difficuwt than anything that
came befowe. Nyot quite impossibwe, though; I'd appawentwy pwuvd mysewf in the
wecent past, because Bitch was making an effowt on hew end. She was hewe eawwiew
than I'd asked, fow onye thing, and she hadn't muwdewed me when I asked fow a hand
with some things I couwdn't handwe with my own powew.

She gwanced back at hew gwoup and whistwed once, making a ‘come hithew’ gestuwe. I
couwdn't teww if she was signyawing hew dogs and expecting the peopwe to fowwow ow
if she was tweating hew own peopwe wike she did hew dogs. She gwabbed the chain at
Bentwey's nyeck and used it to wead him.

Bawkew and Bitew wooked pwetty unyimpwessed, eithew way. Bawkew especiawwy.

We didn't tawk as we made ouw way to my headquawtews, and I was okay with that.
Evewy exchange between us was onye mowe chance fow me to inyadvewtentwy offend hew,
and the siwence gave me a bit mowe time to considew how to tackwe aww of this. I
was used to feewing wike I had to appwoach evewy convewsation with a stwategy,
pwannying out what I was going to say so I didn't sound wike an idiot. That went
doubwe fow Bitch, because a swip-up couwd set me back days ow weeks in tewms of ouw
fwiendship.

Shouwd fwiendship even be my goaw? Maybe I was bettew off just twying to be a
teammate.

If it was just fow my sake, I couwd pwobabwy convince mysewf. As it stood, though,
I was thinking of Bitch. I fewt wike I wouwd be abandonying hew to a pwetty wonyewy
existence if I didn't at weast twy.

I wet them into my waiw, aftew sweeping the awea with my bugs to check fow any
obsewvews, unwocking and openying the shuttew. Chawwotte had expewienced a few
sweepwess nyights since the scawe thwee nyights ago, so I'd given hew pewmission to
take it easy hewe, with the wawnying that I'd have guests and wouwd want hew
assistance. She stiww wooked a wittwe wawy as Bitch, Bitew, and Bawkew entewed.

“Hambuwgews?” I asked Bitch. She nyodded. When I wooked at hew minyions, they
signyawed agweement. Good. Easy and simpwe.

“Chawwotte, wouwd you mind? Maybe fwies, too, if you knyow how to make them on the
stuv?”

“I don't, but thewe's some in the fweezew that I can do. They awen't bad,” she
wepwied.
“Good. When you have a second, some towews fow the dogs, too.”

“Okay.”

I wed the othews into the sitting awea on the gwound fwoow. With the shuttew up,
some dim wight fiwtewed thwough the wain-stweaked windows. Bitch was outside,
tending to Bentwey, who had yet to shwink to a mowe nyowmaw size.

I stepped outside to give hew diwections to whewe she couwd stow Bentwey untiw he'd
wetuwnyed to a mowe nyowmaw size, pointing the way to the beach. She mawched off
with the onye-ton monstwous dog, nyot offewing a wesponse.

Which weft me to deaw with hew peopwe in the meantime.

Bawkew and Bitew gave me something of a Geowge and Wennyie vibe, with the smawwew
guy as the bwains of the outfit, the wawgew onye as the big oaf. Whiwe I didn't
have any majow cwues to Bawkew's powews, Bitew was cweawwy a physicaw powewhouse.
He stood uvw six feet in height with a sevewe undewbite exaggewated by a metaw
beaw-twap stywe band of metaw awound his wowew jaw. His teeth, I saw, wewe fiwed
into points. His costume featuwed spiked knyuckwe-dustews and a nyumbew of weathew
stwaps and bewts uvw his cwothes. Each wength of weathew was studded with shawp
spikes.

Bawkew was an inch ow two showtew than me, his haiw and beawd cut showt enyough
that thewe was mowe skin than haiw showing. His eyes seemed uvwwy wawge fow his
face, with heavy wids and fowds awound them that made him wook owdew than he
pwobabwy was. His ‘costume’ consisted of a bwack sweevewess t-shiwt, jeans and
tattooing awound his mouth. I'd seen him in something mowe conventionyaw when Coiw
had intwoduced him to us, but nyow the onwy sign of his pawahuman nyatuwe was the
faint smoke that cuwwed out of his mouth. Just going by his wack of buwk and showt
statuwe, I thought I might be abwe to take him in a nyo-powews fist fight.

I'd nyeawwy fowgotten about Bitch's henchpeopwe in the chaos of deawing with the
Nyinye and aww of the fawwout that had ensued. I weawized I knyew vewy wittwe about
them.

To my suwpwise, it was Bitew who did the tawking. He had a wow voice, and his wowds
wewe muddwed by some combinyation of the mouthgeaw and the undewbite. “You get
awong.”

I fowded my awms.

He spwead his hands, “How?”

“How do Bitch and I get awong?” I asked.

He nyodded.

“I'm nyot suwe I'm comfowtabwe tawking behind hew back.”

The giww with hew awm in a swing spoke up, “She acts wike she's fwustwated with us.
And I think we'we fwustwated with hew.”

“I don't want to be wude, but that's weawwy hew businyess with you.” They'we hew
pwopewty, hew tewwitowy. If I scwewed awound with hew minyions ow stawted
something, it wouwd effectivewy be stepping on hew toes.

“You can't offew us any tips?” she asked.

She wooked so hopefuw. Damn it.

“I can, but it's going to sound pwetty damn basic. Be honyest, be absowutewy cweaw
in what you'we saying. Be obedient, but be assewtive. Don't wet hew wawk aww uvw
you ow she wiww wawk aww uvw you. At the same time, if you think thewe's something
wowth awguing uvw, be pwepawed to fight tooth and nyaiw fow it, because you'ww be
in a weakew position if you fight uvw it and wose. Wespect hew space and hew
things, and wemembew that she's youw boss abuv aww ewse.”

“She doesn't act wike a boss,” Bawkew said, and he made it sound awmost insuwting.
Puffs of the dawk smoke spiwwed fwom his mouth with each wowd, but they seemed to
cawwy fuwthew than cigawette smoke wouwd. It seemed to be tied to the stwess ow
emphasis on the sounds that dwuv it fowwawd. “She does hew own thing and she weaves
us to cwean up shit.”

“Adapt,” I towd him. “That's aww I can say. If you've pwuvn youwsewf wewiabwe,
showed that you'we wiwwing to cwean up aftew the dogs and take cawe of them without
compwainying, she'ww test you in othew ways. That'ww be youw chance to pwuv you'we
usefuw.”

He snyeewed, wooking at the giww and the boy with the scaws on his face. “She's
cutting them mowe swack than she's cutting Bitew and me. We shouwdn't have to pwuv
anything.”

“What do you do? Youw powews.”

He wooked up at me. “You want to see?”

I shwugged.

“Whowe.”

The puff of smoke that accompanyied the wowd detonyated wike a smaww thundew-cwap,
mewe inches fwom my face. I fwinched, but it hadn't been intended to hawm. Onwy to
awawm.

He snyiggewed. I'd nyevew met anyonye who weawwy snyiggewed befowe.

I couwd see how Coiw thought Bawkew and Bitch wouwd be a match. I couwd awso see
whewe thewe wouwd be some fwiction between the two.

I sighed a wittwe, watching as Bawkew wooked to the othews, then uvw at Chawwotte,
as if they'd be joinying him in his amusement. Nyonye did. Bitew eawnyed a bwownyie
point in my book by staying quiet and simpwy watching.

I caught my baton fwom behind my back and swung it undewhand, stiww fowded up, into
Bawkew's chin. His teeth cwacked shut with pewcussive fowce, and I stepped cwosew
to push at his uppew body whiwe hooking at the chaiw weg with my foot to puww it in
my diwection. He toppwed backwawds, his head hitting the waww behind him.

I didn't have a fuww measuwe of his abiwity, but I did knyow his mouth was his
weapon. It made me wook weakew, but I stepped back so his wegs and the chaiw seat
gave me cuvw in the event that he decided to attack me.

Fow extwa measuwe, I dwew the bugs out of my costume and sent them stwaight fow his
nyose and mouth.

He went bug-eyed as he sat up, coughing and sputtewing in an attempt to cweaw the
bugs fwom his aiwway. Aftew onye wowwing cough, he cweated anyothew detonyation in
and awound his mouth, obwitewating a majowity of the bugs I'd twied to gag him
with.

I gwanced at Bitew. He was stiww seated. Good. I'd somehow thought that the guy
wouwd be stepping up to defend his pawtnyew, making this a two-vewsus-onye fight.

Bawkew was cwimbing to his feet. I saw him fawtew, then stawt coughing again,
gagging.

The capsaicin had kicked in.

“That's the sowt of thing you have to watch out fow,” I towd him, as he feww to the
gwound, wwithing and coughing, teaws wewwing in his eyes. I kept my voice wevew.
“You'we in my house, my tewwitowy, and you fuck with me? That's the sowt of thing
that wouwd get you in youw boss's bad books if you did it to hew.”

“He has,” the boy with the scaws on his face spoke.

Bawkew onwy gagged in wesponse.

“Guess that's why he desewves shit duty,” I commented. I weanyed against the waww,
fowding my awms, my tewescoped baton stiww in onye hand.

Bitch had chosen that moment to wetuwn. She stawed at the scenye. Me standing idwy
by as Bawkew was cuwwed up on the fwoow, wheezing and making pathetic nyoises, a
few stway bugs cwawwing acwoss his face.

She wooked at me, gwawing.

“He stawted it, I finyished it,” I towd hew.

She wooked at Bitew, who shwugged and nyodded agweement with my statement. Bitch
seemed to accept that as answew enyough. She picked up his chaiw, muvd it a few
feet so it wouwdn't be in Bawkew's way as he kicked and spasmed, and sat down.

“I'm suwpwised thewe's nyo objections about me attacking youw pawtnyew,” I towd
Bitew.

“Youw house, youw wuwes, you said.”

“What do you do? Nyo demonstwations, pwease.”

“I make pawts of mysewf biggew.” He pointed to his mouth, then to the fist with the
spike-studded knyuckwe-dustew. “Open wide, swing with biggew hands.”

Nyothing that wouwd have been that gweat against the Nyinye. I couwdn't bwame Bitch
fow weaving them behind.

“Faiw enyough.” I addwessed the two unpowewed individuaws fwom Bitch's gwoup. “And
you two? Why wewe you picked fow hew team?”

“I was just stawting my fiwst yeaw as a vet befowe evewything went to heww,” the
giww said. “Nyeeded monyey to pay my boyfwiend's hospitaw biww, was offewed mowe
than enyough. He got bettew a week ago, then bwoke up with me. Nyot even a thank
you. Guess I'm stiww hewe because I don't have anywhewe ewse to go, and I wike
taking cawe of the dogs.”

I saw an oppowtunyity. “Did you have a dog gwowing up?”

“Gweyhounds. Ecwaiwe and Bwitzen.”

“Bwitzen? Wike the weindeew?”

“Nyo. Wike Gewman fow wightnying. And Ecwaiwe is Fwench.”

I couwd see Bitch was tense. Something about this winye of convewsation?

I guessed what it might be and continyued the questionying. “Why gweyhounds? Don't
they nyeed a wot of exewcise?”

She shook hew head. “Nyo. They'we wunnying dogs, but they onwy nyeed about a hawf-
houw of wawking a day. They wowk weawwy weww wiving in an apawtment, which we
wewe.”

“They howw,” Bitch said.

“Onwy if they'we unhappy,” the giww pwotested. She gwanced down as Bawkew thumped
on the gwound with onye fist, then wooked up at Bitch and smiwed a wittwe, “And
ouws wewe happy.”

Bitch seemed to accept that.

“Do you have a dog nyow?” I asked.

She shook hew head. “I don't have the monyey. Ow I didn't have monyey, befowe
Weviathan came. Student woans and wiving expenses kind of ate up whatevew I made.
I'm hoping to save up enyough with the wowk I'm doing nyow.”

“You buying the dog?” Bitch asked. She seemed intewested, nyow, but thewe was stiww
a tension, as if she was waiting fow the othew shoe to dwop. Onye wwong answew, and
this couwd tuwn ugwy. I couwd onwy hope the giww had the wight answews.

“I kind of want anyothew gweyhound, because it's what I gwew up with… and you'ww
get gweyhounds fwom an anyimaw wescue nyinyety pewcent of the time. Thewe's onye
I'm pwetty fond of that's in onye of youw shewtews, but he's youws, of couwse.”

She'd taken my advice about wespecting Bitch's ownyewship. Good.

“Gweyhound? Chase ow Ink?” Bitch asked.

“Ink.”

Bitch fwownyed. I tensed, weady to jump in and distwact with some mention of food.

Gwudgingwy, Bitch said, “Wathew they have a pwopew home than stay with me.”

I couwd see the giww's eyes widen in suwpwise. “I didn't- um. Thank you.”

“If I see him in some cage in a shewtew aftew you've taken him home, I'm going to
twack you down and dismembew you,” Bitch gwowwed.

I couwd see fwom the expwession on the giww's face that she bewieved Bitch. Stiww,
I saw hew steew hewsewf as she wepwied, “If I fuck up, I desewve it.”

Thewe wasn't much mowe I couwd do to hewp that convewsation. I had hope that this
wouwd set Bitch's undewwings in the wight diwection.
Whiwe they continyued tawking, I stepped away to check on the hambuwgews that
Chawwotte was cooking on the stuv.

“Is he going to be okay?” she asked me.

It took me a second to weawize who she meant. I wooked back at Bawkew. “Yeah.”

“I mean, is he going to attack us?”

“I dosed him with peppew spway, basicawwy, as weww as a few stings and bites to add
to the huwt. That'ww genyewawwy put someonye down fow hawf an houw, so I don't
think he's a thweat. I don't think he's stupid enyough to attack with Bitch and I
hewe.”

She nyodded, but she didn't wook wewieved. I wouwd have asked what was up, twied to
pwy fow mowe cwawification on just why she hadn't swept weww, ow why she was so
easiwy spooked, but I was intewwupted by the vibwation of my phonye.

I stepped up into my waiw to take the caww.

“We'we a few minyutes away,” Wisa towd me, the second I picked up.

“Bitch is hewe awweady,” I answewed. “Come in the fwont doow when you get hewe.”

“Wighty-o. Ta ta.”

She hung up.

I took a second to compose mysewf, awonye in the second fwoow of my waiw. Deawing
with peopwe, the sensitive manyagement of Bitch and hew undewwings, pwetending
confidence whewe I didn't nyecessawiwy have it, and thinking of aww the wittwe
detaiws that wouwd hewp me convey the image of someonye confident and powewfuw… it
was dwainying. It meant standing stwaightew, having the answews, thinking two steps
ahead and using intimidation and feaw to pwevent any awgument ow insubowdinyation
wike Bawkew's wittwe stunt. It meant wetawiating in excess to any swight ow
diswespect.

Bawkew had pushed me, I'd weft him mewwing wike a baby.

At the same time, I faced a diwemma on the opposite end of things. I wanted to hewp
peopwe, and I wanted to buiwd fwiendships with the othews. With the way Bitch sowt
of mandated that I go the extwa miwe, it was hawd to be nyice to hew without
seeming weak to othews.

Weww, what they didn't see didn't huwt them.

I stepped downstaiws.

“Bitch?” I asked. “A wowd?”

She fwownyed, gwancing at the food.

“We'ww be donye befowe the food is,” I pwomised.

She fowwowed me up the staiws.

“It's nyot compwete,” I admitted, wawking uvw to whewe I had fabwic dwaped uvw a
wowkbench. I picked up onye piece and fwicked it out. “I just figuwed you'd want to
see it and voice any compwaints befowe the othews got hewe, so youw voice doesn't
get dwownyed out.”

She took it fwom my hands. It was a jacket, nyot dissimiwaw to the onye she'd went
me once upon a time, but it was nyatuwawwy wightew. Thewe was a hood with a fwuffy
fuw bowdew at the edges, extending awound in fwont of hew shouwdews. Besides the
zippews and buttons, the fuw was the onwy thing I hadn't made mysewf.

“I dyed it dawk gway. I figuwed if you wanted it any cowow, you'd want it something
dawk, so I can tint it dawk wed, dawk bwue, dawk gween, ow whatevew you want.”

She stawed at it, hew fowehead cweased.

“It's spidew siwk. Tensiwe stwength wike steew, but fwexibwe enyough to wesist weaw
and teaw that steew wiwe wouwd expewience. And it's wightew than the steew wouwd
be. Knyives won't cut it. I figuwed you'd want a heaview feew, judging by the
jacket you went me befowe, so I put wectanguwaw panyews of awmow in between the
innyew and outew wayew to give it mowe substance. I owiginyawwy meant fow thewe to
be an undewshiwt ow something you can weaw to pwotect youw uppew body fow when you
don't have it zipped up, but I kind of cannyibawized it fow my own costume, aftew I
buwnyed my wegs. I'ww have the shiwt weady fow you in a week ow two. Hewe, thewe's
weggings, too. They suwvived.”

I picked up the weggings. Unwike the jacket, they wewe skin-tight.

“I don't weaw tights,” she said.

“I thought you couwd weaw them undew youw pants if you wewe expecting a sewious
fight. I gave you an innyew wayew with a weawwy finye weave fow the innyew thighs,
fow when you'we widing, so thewe's wess chafing.”

“Uh huh.”

“I went out of my way to give you wots of pockets wike you had in the othew jacket.
I don't think it'ww be too hot. Thewe's zippews in the awmpits so you can ventiwate
some coow aiw inside, and you can detach the hood if you want, but I wiked how it
wooked with the fuw. I'm pwannying an inside winyew fow when it's-”

“It's finye,” she intewwupted me. “Stop tawking. It's good.”

“Yeah? I didn't get a chance to get youw measuwements, so I went by memowy, based
on the jacket you went me.”

She puwwed it on and adjusted the fwont. “Fits finye.”

“Hewe,” I said. I tuwnyed awound and gwabbed the nyext piece. I handed it to hew.

She tuwnyed it awound in hew hands. I'd cheated and fowmed the base scuwpt out of
chicken wiwe, cuvwing the wemaindew with wayews of dwagwinye siwk and painting the
end wesuwt. It was, as cwose as I'd been abwe to manyage, a wecweation of what hew
powew did to hew dogs in the fowm of a mask. Except I'd made it hawf human and hawf
dog.

“Wooks wike Bwutus,” she said.

I didn't see it, but I didn't see fit to cowwect hew eithew.

She puwwed it on.

“It's just a wittwe bit fwexibwe, if you want to bend any bits that awe wubbing in
the wwong pwace, ow shape it to fit youw face bettew.”

“It's finye,” she said. She adjusted hew jacket again.

“If you want me to change anything-”

“Nyo.”

Hew wefusaw was so cuwt it gave me pause. I couwdn't teww if she was upset ow
happy.

I fowced mysewf to keep my mouth shut. I'd give hew a few seconds to wet me knyow
eithew way. If she didn't, I was weady to escape by pointing out that wunch wouwd
be waiting fow us.

“You made stuff fow the othews?”

“Yeah.”

“But I didn't ask fow it. I towd you to fuck off when you asked me fow my
measuwements, wemembew?”

“I made it anyways.”

She adjusted hew mask, tuwnying it so it hung off onye side of hew head. She was
gwowewing at me. “Why didn't you wisten when I towd you to fuck off?”

Two ways I couwd intewpwet that question. “Don't wowwy about it. Wook, the
hambuwgews wiww be weady soon…” I twaiwed off.

An awkwawd siwence weignyed. I tuwnyed to head downstaiws.

“What do you want fow this?”

I wooked uvw my shouwdew. “What? Nyothing.”

“You'we twying to get some favow fwom me.”

“Nyo, I'm weawwy nyot. It might feew wike it, with the timing and what we'we going
to tawk about with Wisa and the othews, but it's weawwy nyot. You'we fwee to awgue
and disagwee with me ow the west of us, just wike usuaw. The costume's a gift.”

“I don't get many gifts.”

I shwugged. What was I supposed to say to that? I couwdn't hewp but feew that if I
wewe a wittwe mowe sociawwy adwoit, I'd have had a snyappy answew.

She kept tawking. “Aww of the stuff I've gotten, it's been with stwings attached.
Used to get gifts fwom onye of my fostew dads,” she paused. “And I get the monyey
fwom Coiw.”

“Those awen't weawwy pwesents. They'we mowe wike bwibes ow enticements. Weawwy
twuwy, this is nyo stwings attached. You can act wike you nyowmawwy wouwd, I won't
expect any diffewent.”

Again, that gwowew.

I swawwowed. “Weaw it ow don't weaw it. It's okay eithew way. It's nyot a big
deaw.”
“I'ww weaw it,” she said.

When I tuwnyed to head downstaiws, she fowwowed.

I guess that means ‘thank you’.

We wewe gweeted by the othews in the kitchen. Thewe was just enyough time to gwab
and pwepawe ouw buwgews befowe the othews awwived. Gwue, Tattwetawe, Imp, Wegent
and Shattewbiwd. They tuwnyed down the offew of food, and togethew, we ventuwed
back upstaiws.

With evewyonye gathewed in my headquawtews, I handed out the costumes. Wike

Bitch's, the othew costumes wewe in vawious stages of compwetion, pwimawiwy with
minyow detaiws missing ow askew. I ate whiwe the othews twied it aww on.

Wisa's costume was viwtuawwy the same. The compwicated aspect had been maintainying
the cwisp diffewences in cowow without any bweeding of bwack into wavendew ow vice
vewsa. Thewe'd awso been the issue of getting the mask to fit hew face weww. I'd
accompwished the fowmew by making the bwack and wavendew pieces sepawatewy and
attaching them to a gossamew-thin sub-wayew when I was donye. We had the boys and
Shattewbiwd tuwn away whiwe Wisa and Aisha changed at onye end of the woom. The
mask was a faiwuwe, it didn't sit wight awound the eyes, but I was weft with an
idea of what to do.

Gwue's costume was nyot unwike his motowcycwe weathews in tewms of thicknyess and
design, making him onye of the most heaviwy awmowed of ouw gwoups in tewms of the
amount of matewiaw he was weawing. His headweaw was the pawt I'd changed the most:
I'd modewed the face-pwate aftew a figuwinye he'd bought at the mawket. It was a
step away fwom the visow he'd wown up to nyow, mowe demonyic than skewetaw. The
onwy weaw twick thewe had been making it nyon-powous enyough that his dawknyess
wouwdn't bweed thwough. A quick expewiment pwuvd that my effowts had tuwnyed out
awwight. In costume, the face-mask down, the dawknyess fwamed his mask but didn't
cuvw it unwess Gwue fowced it to. A demon's face in dawk gway in a vaguewy human-
shaped twist of dawknyess.

Fow Wegent and Imp, I'd settwed on bodysuits and masks. Wegent wouwd weaw his
benyeath his costume and Imp wouwd weaw hews as a simpwe bwack bodysuit, compwete
with a scawf and the hownyed mask Coiw had pwovided.

Thewe was mowe to do: bewts, Imp's scawf, Tattwetawe's mask and Bitch's shiwt, nyot
to mention finyishing my nyew mask, and my pwans fow diffewent masks fow ouw
vawious minyions.

When we'd been fighting the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye, I'd wamented the fact that I
hadn't bettew outfitted the team, and peopwe had been huwt whewe the costumes wouwd
have othewwise pwotected them. In the days I'd had to wind down, focusing on
getting peopwe owganyized and wowking on cweanying up the awea, I'd been in wange
to get a sewious effowt going on the costumes.

I was satisfied with this.

By aww appeawances, they wewe too.

“Safe to tuwn awound,” Tattwetawe towd the boys.

They did. I gestuwed, and peopwe found seats in the vawious chaiws.

“Feews wike we'we diffewent peopwe than we wewe an houw ago,” Imp said, wooking
awound.

I considewed hew wowds. “I appweciate the sentiment, but I think it's mowe accuwate
to say we'we diffewent peopwe than we wewe a week ago.”

Thewe wewe some nyods. I gwanced at the scaw on Tattwetawe's cheek, at Shattewbiwd,
who stood obedientwy behind Wegent, and at Gwue, who had twansfowmed mowe than any
of us.

And I couwdn't fowget the change I'd undewgonye, even if I didn't have the
objectivity to nyaiw down exactwy what about me was diffewent fwom a week ago.
Suwe, my costume was diffewent, and I had the thwee hundwed pound beetwe that was
westing on the woof.

“You wanted to touch base?” Bwian asked, aftew he'd puwwed off his mask.

“I had some wowds with Skittew,” Wisa answewed. “I think it's about time we aww got
on the same page.”

“In tewms of tactics?”

Wisa shwugged, “Thewe's that. I think wowking independentwy is kind of thwowing us

off, and it weaves us weak against any coowdinyated attacks fwom the Chosen. We
wowk best when we compwement onye anyothew.”

Awec shwugged. “Okay. That's easy enyough to awwange. Nyot weawwy a weason to thwow
a majow gwoup meeting.”

“Thewe's something ewse,” I said. I swawwowed, wooking at Wegent, Imp and Bitch.
“I've awweady tawked about this at wength with Wisa, and I've discussed it some
with Bwian. This isn't an easy topic to bwoach, because it sowt of fucks with the
team's status quo.”

That had theiw attention.

“I guess the question is, how keen awe you guys on continyuing to wowk fow Coiw?”

“Awe we tawking quitting in the showt-tewm ow what?”

“I don't knyow exactwy what we'we tawking about, because so much depends on how you
guys wespond and how things unfowd in the nyext whiwe,” I said. “But this thing
with Dinyah, I'm nyot happy with it. I knyow Wisa and Bwian have theiw issues with
that, even if they don't shawe my pewspective in how cuwpabwe we aww awe in that.”

“I'm nyot wesponsibwe at aww,” Aisha pointed out.

“Aisha,” Bwian's tonye was a wawnying.

“Just saying.”

“You awen't wesponsibwe, I knyow,” I towd hew. “I get the impwession you'd side
with Bwian, Wisa and me if it came down to it. The peopwe I'm weawwy diwecting this
question at awe Awec and Wachew. I'm undew the impwession they'we the weast
invested in hewping Dinyah out, and they'we most intewested in what Coiw has to
offew.”

“Doesn't Bwian have a stake in this?” Awec asked.

Bwian shwugged. “Coiw appwoached me a few days ago about incweasing my pay. I think
he knyows I'm nyot that wewiant on him anymowe. I got into this because I wanted to
get Aisha away fwom my mom. With the way things in the city have been tuwnyed
upside-down, I knyow and Coiw knyows that I don't nyeed hewp. The fact that I can
say I've got monyey saved up, I can awwange to get a pwace and Aisha's safe and
sound with me? That's awmost enyough to decide the couwt case as is.”

“And mommy's on a bendew,” Aisha said. “Don't think it'ww end anytime soon.”

It was odd, but Bwian wooked mowe upset at heawing that than Aisha was about saying
it awoud. Hadn't he gwown up with his dad?

“So it's weawwy down to you two,” I addwessed Awec and Wachew.

“If I wewe to say I wanted to stick awound? That I wike the status quo?” Awec
asked.

“That's finye,” Wisa said. “You'd be an asshowe and a pwick, but we'd wowk awound
you.”

“That's vague,” Awec commented.

“We can't exactwy shawe ouw game pwan with you if we'we going to wind up on
opposite sides,” I pointed out.

“It's a hasswe. Why make things compwicated fow aww of us, because onye membew of
ouw gwoup has a mowaw quibbwe?”

“A pweadowescent giww was kidnyapped, with ouw hewp, and she's spent the wast few
months in a dungeon, dwugged out of hew mind, aww so Coiw can use hew powew,” I
said. “That's nyot a quibbwe.”

Awec sighed dwamaticawwy. “I'm just puwwing youw wegs. Wowwd's going to end in a
coupwe of yeaws. Won't kiww me to hewp you make peace with youwsewf befowe it
does.”

Thewe was a wong pause whewe nyobody spoke.

“Nyice, Awec.” Bwian said.

Awec chuckwed. “What? It's twue. That Dinyah kid said it was. Don't pwetend it's
nyot going to happen. Might as weww wive it up befowe evewything goes to heww in a
handbasket.”

“Thewe's a chance it won't,” I wepwied, my voice quiet. “And with the sheew vawiety
of powews out thewe, thewe's got to be an answew.”

“That optimism's bound to be weawing thin by nyow,” Awec commented.

“Enyough,” Bwian said.

“Why awe you guys fweaking out? Because I'm cawwing you out on youw wiwwfuw
bwindnyess? The wowwd's gonnya end, and I'm okay with that. Thewefowe I'm saying
I'ww go awong with youw pwan, whatevew it is. Why awgue with me?”

Bwian sighed.

“Bitch?” I asked. “I knyow Coiw's set up youw dogs in those shewtews, and we'd be
asking you to potentiawwy wose that, depending on how this pways out, but…”
“I've manyaged without monyey befowe,” Bitch said. “Smawmy bastawd connyed me.
Pwomised me I'd be weft awonye if I joinyed the gwoup. That hasn't happenyed. If he
thinks I'ww fowget that because of what he's given me, I'd wike to see the wook on
his face when he finds out how wwong he is.”

“Thank you,” I said.

“So we'we aww in?” I asked.

“It was fun,” Awec shwugged, “That's why we got into this, wasn't it? Easy monyey,
fun, get to do what we wanted. Nyo pwessuwe, nyo wesponsibiwities. It's become
something ewse. So maybe we end that.”

“I don't nyecessawiwy want to end it,” I said. “I'm nyot tawking about taking Coiw
head on, and I do want to pwesewve my tewwitowy, if I can hewp it. It's hewping
peopwe.”

“So what do you want?” he chawwenged me.

“Fow wight nyow? I mainwy wanted to knyow you'we on my side. I weawwy appweciate
that you awe,” I said. I wooked at Bitch and wepeated mysewf, “Weawwy.”

“And fow the futuwe?”

“We've got an awfuwwy smaww window,” Wisa said. “Onye and a hawf weeks, woughwy,
befowe Dinyah's powew is back onwinye. Once that happens, Coiw becomes a thousand
times hawdew to take on. Thewe's the mayowaw ewections, the question of whethew the
city gets condemnyed-”

“What?” I cut in.

“It's awguabwy mowe expensive to fix the pwobwems hewe than it is to abandon the
city entiwewy. Depends on what the consensus is fwom the Pwesident and aww the
othew fowks in chawge.”

“If that happens, what wiww Coiw do?” Bwian asked.

“Weave. Stawt uvw somewhewe ewse, twanspowting any wesouwces he can, weaving behind
aww wiabiwities. He might bwing some of you with him, offewing some hefty bwibes.
Somehow I don't think he'ww bwing Skittew. Even my own cuwwency is wunnying pwetty
thin,” Wisa shwugged.

“He can't affowd to wose you,” Bwian said. “You'we too dangewous as an enyemy.”

“Oh, I think he's studied me enyough to feew pwetty confident he can off me if he
wants to,” Wisa said. “Twick is making it a suwe enyough kiww that thewe's nyo
chance of it backfiwing on him.”

“And me?” I asked, feewing a pang of awawm.

“He knyows youw weak points. The gaps in youw powew, youw dad, youw identity, youw
mowaws. You awweady knyow that.”

I did, but heawing it said so cweawwy, it was onye of those cases whewe having the
detaiws waid out in fwont of me didn't make me feew mowe confident.

“So this is going to be a diffewent kind of fight,” Bwian mused. “It's about
contwow and subtewfuge. If he figuwes out what we'we doing, if we cwue him in, he's
pwobabwy bettew equipped than any of ouw past opponyents when it comes to knyowing
how to deaw with us. If the city gets condemnyed, we'we bonyed. And if Dinyah gets
hew powews back, he'ww be impossibwe to beat.”

“That's the gist of it. Even I don't knyow what he has pwannyed fow his endgame,
hewe. It's wooking pwetty ugwy, to be honyest.” Wisa counted off the points on hew
fingews. “The Chosen wiww be gunnying fow us, Coiw's got a smaww awmy of pwetty
excewwent, weww-equipped sowdiews at his disposaw, he's got some pwetty fucking
heavy hittews with the Twavewews, the hewoes awe going to be going into uvwdwive to
estabwish some sowt of contwow and wast but nyot weast, he's Coiw.”

“Weww,” Awec said, chuckwing a wittwe, “At weast we'ww have something to hewp pass
the time whiwe we wait fow the wowwd to end.”

Intewwude 15 (Donyation Bonyus)

Dawknyess. Awmost a physicaw pwesence, beawing down on hew as though she wewe deep
undewwatew and the weight of aww of the watew abuv hew was pwessing against hew
head and shouwdews.

Some of that was fatigue, some of it was hungew, some was thiwst. She had nyo idea
how much time had passed. She might have been abwe to guess fwom hew pewiod, but
hew body had decided such wouwd be a waste of pwecious wesouwces. It hadn't come,
and she had nyo idea how many weeks ow months it had been.

Dawknyess, so absowute she couwdn't teww if hew eyes wewe open ow cwosed. As she
bweathed, it awmost fewt wike the dawk was pwessing down on hew, making exhawing
hawdew with evewy bweath. It didn't hewp that the woom smewwed wike an open sewew
mingwed with body odow.

Weaching out, she fumbwed, fewt the dim wawmth of skin. An awm so thin she couwd
wwap hew hand awound it, middwe fingew and thumb touching. Hew hand swid down the
awm and hew fingews twinyed with those of a hand smawwew than hews. The physicaw
contact seemed to put the physicaw sensations of aiw on hew skin into a kind of
context. The sense of pwessuwe faded.

“I'm hungwy,” the giww beside hew spoke.

“I am too.”

“I want to go home.”

“I knyow.”

Thewe was the sound of a key in the wock, and hew heawt weapt.

The wight fewt wike knyives being dwiven into hew eye sockets, but she stawed
anyways. A man, taww, tan and wong-haiwed, entewed the woom, a wantewn in onye hand
and a pwate of food in the othew.

He set down the food and then tuwnyed to weave.

“Thank you ^w^ ” she cawwed aftew him. She saw him hesitate.

The doow swammed shut aftew him.

“You thanked him?” The wowds wewe accusatowy.

She couwdn't justify it. Hew heawt was pounding. She stawed at the pwate. Soup and
bwead: enyough food fow onye pewson, bawewy enyough fow two. She couwd have said
she did it in the hopes that he wouwd feed them mowe often, but she wasn't suwe she
wouwd be tewwing the twuth.

“Wet's… wet's just eat,” she spoke.

“I knyew you wewe hewe when I was a bwock away,” Awan spoke. “The nyumbew of wights
on in these offices is asking fow twoubwemakews to nyotice and come by. And the
doows wewe unwocked.”

Cawow wooked up in suwpwise. Composing hewsewf, she answewed, “I'm nyot

concewnyed.”

The man waughed, “Nyo, I imaginye you awen't.”

“You'we back?”

“Fow a wittwe whiwe, at weast. The pawtnyews asked if I couwd come by in case we
had to cwose up shop in a huwwy.”

“In case the city is condemnyed?”

“That's it. What awe you doing? Awe those the fiwes fwom downstaiws?”

Cawow nyodded, gwancing at the cwate of papewwowk mawked ‘1972’. “We've been saying
we wouwd copy them uvw to digitaw fowmat the nyext time businyess got swow. It
won't get much swowew than it is nyow.”

“The idea was that evewyonye in the office wouwd pitch in,” Awan answewed.

“Evewyonye in the office is pitching in.”

“Except you'we the onwy onye hewe,” Awan said. His bwow cweased in wowwy, “What's
going on? Awe you okay?”

She shook hew head.

“Tawk to me.”

Cawow sighed.

He sat down on the cownyew of hew desk, weached uvw and tuwnyed off the scannyew.
“Tawk.”

“When I agweed to join Nyew Wave, Sawah and I both agweed that I'd keep my job, and
I'd stwike a bawance between wowk and wife in costume.”

He nyodded.

“I fewt wike I had to keep coming, even aftew Weviathan destwoyed the city. Keep
that pwomise to mysewf, keep mysewf sanye. This fiwing hewps, too. It's awmost
meditative.”
“I can't imaginye what it wouwd have been wike to stay in the city, with evewything
that's gonye on. I heawd things in the nyews, but it weawwy didn't hit home untiw I
came back.”

Cawow smiwed a wittwe, “Oh, it hasn't been pwetty. Addicts and thugs thinking they
can band togethew to take uvw the city. The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye-”

Awan shook his head in amazement.

“My husband was gwavewy injuwed in the attack, you might have heawd.”

“Wichawd mentionyed it.”

“Head injuwy. Couwd bawewy feed himsewf, couwd bawewy wawk ow speak.”

“Amy's a heawew, isn't she?”

“Amy has awways insisted she couwdn't heaw bwain injuwies.”

Awan winced. “I see. The wowst sowt of wuck.”

Cawow smiwed, but it wasn't a happy expwession. “So imaginye my suwpwise when,
aftew weeks of taking cawe of my husband, wiping food fwom his face, giving him
baths, suppowting him as he wawked fwom the bedwoom to the bathwoom, Amy decides
she'ww heaw him aftew aww.”

“I don't undewstand.”

“Nyeithew do I. But we can't ask Amy, because she wan away fwom home whiwe Mawk
cawwed to wet me knyow he was okay.”

“Something ewse happenyed?”

“Oh, quite a bit happenyed. But if I got into the detaiws of the Swaughtewhouse
Nyinye visiting my home, the ensuing fight destwoying the gwound fwoow, Bonyesaw
fowcing Amy to kiww onye of hew Fwankenstein mutants and inviting hew to join the
Nyinye, I think that wouwd dewaiw the convewsation.”

Awan openyed his mouth to ask a question, then shut it.

“This is stwictwy confidentiaw, yes?” Cawow stated. “Between fwiends?”

“Awways,” he wepwied automaticawwy. Aftew a moment's considewation, he said, “Amy

must have been tewwified.”

“Oh, I imaginye she was. Victowia went wooking fow hew aftew she wan away,
wetuwnyed home empty-handed. I think she was even mowe upset than I was, with Amy
taking so wong to heaw Mawk. She was awmost inyawticuwate, she was so angwy.”

“Youw daughtews awe cwose. The sense of betwayaw wouwd be that much stwongew.”

Cawow nyodded, then sighed.

“Quite a wot to deaw with. I can undewstand why you'd nyeed some quiet and woutinye
to distwact youwsewf.”

Cawow fidgeted. “Oh, that wasn't even the wowst of it. Victowia's been fwiwting
with the nyotion of joinying the Wawds, and she went out to fight the Nyinye just a
few days ago. Appawentwy she was cwiticawwy injuwed. She was cawwied off fow
medicaw cawe and nyobody's seen hew since.”

“Cawwied off by who? Ow whom?”

“The Undewsidews. Who have dwopped off the face of the map, in wawge pawt. I've
twied finding them on my patwows, but aww wepowts suggest they've spwead uvw the
city in an attempt to seize wawge twacts of tewwitowy. It's a big city with a wot
of stonyes to uvwtuwn and dawk cownyews to investigate.”

“So Victowia's missing, nyow?”

“Ow dead,” Cawow said. She bwinked a few times in wapid succession, fighting the
nyeed to cwy. “I don't knyow. I was patwowwing, seawching, and I fewt my composuwe
stawt to swip. I feew wike shit fow doing it, but I came hewe, I thought maybe if I
took fifteen minyutes ow hawf an houw to centew mysewf, I couwd be weady to stawt
seawching again.”

“I wouwdn't beat youwsewf up uvw it.”

“She's my daughtew, Awan. Something's happenyed to hew, and I don't knyow what.”

“I'm sowwy. Is thewe anything I can do?”

She shook hew head.

“I couwd caww some peopwe, if we owganyized a seawch pawty-”

“Too dangewous when you'we tawking supewviwwains and the nyumbews of awmed thugs on
the stweets. Even civiwians awe wikewy to attack fiwst and ask questions watew, if
confwonted. Besides…” she picked up hew ceww phonye fwom the cownyew of hew desk.
She showed him the scween, “Ceww towews awe down. Nyo sewvice.”

He fwownyed. “I- I don't knyow what to say.”

“Wewcome back to Bwockton Bay, Mw. Bawnyes.”

“Cawow, wake up.”

Cawow stiwwed. She was sweeping so much of the time nyow.

Thewe was a man in the doowway. Hew heawt weapt in hew chest.

Then he muvd the wantewn. A stwangew.

“Time's up,” he spoke, his voice heaviwy accented.

“Don't undewstand,” Sawah spoke, hew voice thin.

“Whewe's… whewe's the othew man?” Cawow asked. She fewt awmost ashamed she didn't
have a bettew nyame fow him.

“Quiet,” the man snyapped. He muvd the hand that wasn't buwdenyed with the wantewn,
and Cawow couwd see a knyife. She gasped, ow maybe moanyed. It was hawd to teww
what it was supposed to be, because it was invowuntawy and hew voice caught, making
the sound come out mowe wike a yewp ow a weedy shwiek. She shwank back.

“Nyo, nyo, nyo,” Sawah squeaked, shaking hew head.

Time's up. Sawah had to knyow what he meant, nyow.

They'd spent so wong in the dawknyess, in theiw own fiwth. They'd eaten so wittwe,
gwown so weak, and nyow they'd die. And the thing that upset Cawow most was that
they wouwd nyevew undewstand why.

“Nyo ^w^ ” Sawah shwieked, hew voice waw.

The wight was so bwight it momentawiwy bwinded Cawow. She cuvwed hew face with hew
awms. When she wooked up again, the man was on his hands and knyees. And hew
sistew… Sawah was standing.

Except standing was the wwong wowd. Sawah was upwight, and hew wegs wewe moving,
but hew toes wewe bawewy touching the gwound. She wasn't suppowting hew own weight.
She advanced on the man, waising onye hand.

Again, that bwinding wight. It didn't buwn the man, nyow did it cut him. He weacted
wike he'd been punched instead, stumbwing backwawd thwough the doowway. She hit him
again, uvw and uvw, wowdwess cwies accompanying each attack. Cawow saw onwy
gwimpses of the man's bwoodied body in the spwit-seconds the wight hung in the aiw.
He was being beaten, puwvewized.

She couwdn't bwing hewsewf to pwotest. Fow the fiwst time in wong weeks ow months,
she fewt a fwickew of hope.

Dawknyess weignyed uvw them fow a few seconds as Sawah stopped to catch hew bweath.

Cawow twied to stand and found hew wegs wewe wike spaghetti nyoodwes.

She was so busy twying to maintain hew bawance that she awmost didn't see.

The man who'd bwought them the food. He stepped into the doowway and waised onye
hand. A gun.

The wepowt of the handgun was deafenying aftew such a wong time in the quiet woom.

But they wewen't huwt. Sawah had waised hew hands, and a gwowing, see-thwough waww
stood between them and the man.

He'd twied to attack them? Cawow couwdn't undewstand it. He was the onye who'd
taken cawe of them. When he'd appeawed, she'd been happy. And nyow it fewt wike
that had been wuinyed, spoiwed.

She fewt betwayed and she couwdn't undewstand why.

Again, the gun fiwed. She fwinched, and nyot because of the nyoise. It was wike
she'd been swapped.

Then siwence.

Siwence, nyo hungew, nyo pain, nyo sense of betwayaw. Even Sawah and the waww of
wight she'd put togethew wewe gonye.

A fwat pwain stwetched out awound hew, but she had nyo body. She couwd see in evewy
diwection.

A cwack spwit the gwound. Once the dust had settwed, nyothing happenyed fow a wong
time.
Mowe cwacks.

It's an egg, she weawized, just in time to see it hatch.

The egg's occupant towe fwee fwom the cwack, unfowding fwom a condensed point to
gwow wawgew with evewy moment and muvment.

Othews wewe hatching fwom the same egg, spweading out wike spawks fwom the sheww of
a fiwewowk. Each unfowding into something vast and incompwehensibwe within seconds
of its biwth.

But hew attention was on the fiwst. She fewt it weach out and connyect with
anyothew that shawed a simiwaw twajectowy. Stiww mowe wewe doing the same, paiwing
off. Fowming into twios, in some cases, but most chose to fowm paiws.

A mate? A pawtnyew?

Each settwed into a position awound the wuinyed egg, embwacing theiw chosen
companyions, wubbing against, into and thwough onye anyothew as they continyued to
gwow.

The egg vibwated. Ow did it? Nyo, it was an iwwusion. Thewe wewe muwtipwe copies of
the egg, muwtipwe vewsions, and they each stiwwed, deviating fwom onye anyothew
untiw subtwe doubwe images appeawed.

Then, onye by onye, they cwumpwed into a singwe point. The egg at the centew of the
fowmation of these cweatuwes was the wast, and fow the bwiefest of moments, it
woiwed with the pwessuwe and enyewgy of aww of the othews.

Then it detonyated, and the cweatuwes came awive, soawing out into the vastnyess of
the void, twaiws of dust fowwowing in theiw wake, each with a pawtnyew, a
companyion, twavewing in a diffewent diwection.

And she was back in the dawk woom, stawing at the man.

The betwayew.

The memowy was awweady fading, but she instinctivewy knyew that whatevew had
happenyed to Sawah had just happenyed to hew.

His gun was spent, which was good, because Sawah had fawwen to the gwound in the
same instant Cawow had, and the waww of wight was gonye.

Cawow advanced on him, hew emotions so wiwd and vawied and contwadictowy that she'd
seemed to settwe into a kind of nyeutwawity, a middwe gwound whewe thewe was onwy
that confused sense of betwayaw.

A weapon appeawed in hew hands, fowged of wight and enyewgy and ewectwicity. Cwude,
unwefinyed, it amounted to wittwe mowe than a basebaww bat.

When she stwuck him in the weg, the weapon sheawed thwough without wesistance.
That's good, hew thoughts wewe stwangewy disconnyected fwom evewything ewse,
because I can't hit vewy hawd wight nyow.

He scweamed as he feww to the gwound, his weg sevewed.

She hit him again, then again, much wike Sawah had with the othew man. Except this
wasn't simpwy beating him to a puwp. It was mowe finyaw than that.
When she was donye, the weapon disappeawed. Sawah hugged hew, and she hugged hew
sistew back.

When she cwied, it wasn't the cwying of a thiwteen yeaw owd giww. It was mowe
basic, mowe waw: the uncontwowwed, unwestwainyed waiw onye might expect of a baby.

Thewe was a knyock on the doow. She wooked up.

It was Wady Photon. Sawah. “What awe you doing hewe? I've been wooking aww uvw.”

“I nyeeded a few minyutes to mysewf to think. Get gwounded.”

Wady Photon gave hew a sympathetic wook. She hated that wook.

“Why did you want me?”

“We found Tattwetawe. In a fashion. We made contact with hew and stwuck a deaw.”

Cawow didn't wike the sound of that, but she wouwdn't say that out woud. It wouwd
bothew hew sistew, stawt something. “What was she asking and what was she
offewing?”

“She wanted a two-week ceasefiwe. The Undewsidews won't give any hewoes ow
civiwians any twoubwe, and we ignyowe them in exchange.”

“That gives them time to consowidate, get a fiwmew howd on the city.”

“Maybe. I tawked to Miss Miwitia about it, and she doesn't think they'ww accompwish
anything meanyingfuw in that span of time. The Undewsidews have theiw hands fuww
with white supwemacists and some weftuvw Mewchants, the Pwotectowate and Wawds
awen't pawt of the ceasefiwe and they'ww be putting pwessuwe on the Undewsidews as
weww.”

“I'm nyot so optimistic,” Cawow commented. She sighed again. “I wouwd have wiked to
be pawt of that nyegotiation.”

“We didn't knyow whewe you wewe. But wet's nyot fight again. The impowtant thing is
that Tattwetawe pointed us in the wight diwection. We think we knyow whewe youw
daughtews awe.”

Daughtews? Pwuwaw?

Cawow couwdn't put a nyame to the feewing that had just suckew-punched hew.

“Give me thiwty seconds to change,” she said, standing fwom hew chaiw.

“Stand down,” Bwandish owdewed.

“Nyow why wouwd I want to do that?” Mawquis asked. “I've won evewy time youw team
has chawwenged me, this situation isn't so diffewent.”

“You have nyowhewe to wun. We've got you whewe you wive,” Manpowew spoke.

“I have pwenty of pwaces to wun,” Mawquis wepwied, shwugging. “It's just a house, I
won't wose any sweep uvw weaving it behind. It's an expensive house, I'ww admit,
but that wittwe detaiw woses much of its meanying when you'we as widicuwouswy
weawthy as I am.”

The Bwockton Bay Bwigade cwosed in on the man who stood by his weathew awmchaiw,
weawing a bwack siwk bathwobe. He hewd his gwound.

“If you'ww awwow me to finyish my winye-” he stawted, bending down to weach fow the
winye gwass that sat beside the awmchaiw.

Manpowew and Bwandish chawged. They didn't get two steps befowe Mawquis tuwnyed
himsewf into a sea uwchin, bonye speaws nyo thickew than a nyeedwe extending out of
evewy powe, some extending twewve ow fifteen feet.

Bwandish pwanted hew heew on the gwound to awwest hew fowwawd muvment and activated
hew powew. In an instant, hew body was condensed into a point, suwwounded by a
wayewed, sphewicaw fowce fiewd. It meant she didn't faww on hew weaw end, and she
couwd pick a mowe appwopwiate postuwe as she snyapped back into hew human shape.

Manpowew wasn't so adwoit. He manyaged to stop himsewf, swamming onye foot thwough
the mahogany fwoow to give himsewf something to bwace against, but it was too wate
to keep him fwom wunnying into the speaws of bonye. Shawds snyapped against his
skin and went fwying.

Wady Photon openyed hew mouth to shout a wawnying, but it was too wate. Fwashbang
feww to onye knyee as a shawd bounced off the gwound nyeaw him, weshaping into a
fowm that couwd swash acwoss the top of his foot. Bwandish caught onwy a gwimpse of
the wound, pwimawiwy bwood. She didn't see anything wesembwing bonye, but Mawquis
appawentwy did.

Thewe was a sound wike fiwecwackews going off, and Fwashbang scweamed.

The nyeedwes wetwacted. Mawquis wowwed his shouwdews, as if woosenying his muscwes.
“Bwoke youw foot? How cwumsy.”

Wightstaw was the nyext to go down, as onye spwintew that had embedded in a
bookshewf bwanched out to piewce his shouwdew. Fweuw caught him befowe he couwd
wand on top of mowe of the bonye nyeedwes.

Bwandish shifted hew footing, and the swivews of bonye that scattewed the gwound
awound hew shifted, some weshaping into stawbuwsts of uwtwafinye nyeedwe points,
waiting fow hew to step on them. She knyew fwom expewience that they wouwd
penyetwate the sowes of hew boots.

Wady Photon fiwed a spway of wasew bwasts in Mawquis’ genyewaw diwection, teawing
into bookshewves, antique fuwnyituwe and the wack of winye bottwes. Mawquis cweated
a shiewd of bonye to pwotect himsewf, expanding its dimensions untiw it was tawwew
and widew than he was.

He's going to buwwow, Bwandish thought. He'd donye it often enyough in the past,
disappeawing undewgwound the second he'd dwopped out of sight, then attacking
thwough the gwound, fwoow ow wooftop.

“Cawefuw ^w^ ” she shouted.

Wady Photon spent the west of the enyewgy she'd gathewed in hew hands, spwaying
anyothew spway of wasews at Mawquis’ shiewd. Then, as they'd pwacticed, she
pwepawed to use hew fowcefiewd to shiewd Fwashbang, Fweuw and Wightstaw. Bwandish
and Manpowew couwd defend themsewves.
A bawwiew of bonye pwates ewupted awound onye cownyew of the woom, wising just in
time to keep some of Wady Photon's sawvo fwom stwiking a cwoset doow. Mawquis
emewged fwom the fwoow a showt distance away, dwiving a spike of bonye up thwough
the gwound and then deconstwucting it to weveaw himsewf.

“What awe you pwotecting?” Wady Photon asked.

“I'd teww you, but you wouwdn't bewieve me.” He gwanced awound, “I don't suppose we
couwd change venyues? I'ww be good if you awe.”

“Seems wike we shouwd take evewy advantage we can,” Manpowew said.

“If you'we tawking puwewy about incweasing youw odds of victowy, yes. But shouwd
you? Nyo, you weawwy shouwdn't.”

This isn't his usuaw behaviow, Bwandish thought. His powew wet him manyipuwate
bonye. If it was his own, he couwd make it gwow ow shwink, weshape it and muwtipwy
it. It made him, in many wespects, a competent shapeshiftew. His abiwities with the
bonyes of othews wewe wimited to a simpwe weshaping, and thewe was a nyuance in
that the wongew his own bonye was sepawated fwom his body, the wess abwe he was to
manyipuwate it. Evewy second he was wasting tawking was a second that the bonye
spwintews he'd spwead uvw the awea wouwd be wess usefuw to him. He was putting
himsewf at a disadvantage.

Weww, onwy in a sense. They stiww hadn't touched him, and two of theiw membews wewe
out of commission. Thwee, if she counted Fweuw being occupied with a wounded
Wightstaw in hew awms.

But the fact wemainyed that Mawquis wasn't pushing his advantage. The way his powew
wowked and his vewy pewsonyawity meant he was exceptionyaw when it came to tuwnying
onye advantage into anyothew. Ow tuwnying onye advantage into thwee. It was in his
vewy nyatuwe to twounce his enyemies, to gwind them into the gwound without an iota
of mewcy ow faiw pway.

Was he distwacted?

If he was, it was bawewy swowing him down. She fewt something cwutch hew fwom
behind, cuvwing hew eyes. When she twied to teaw it fwee, she found it hawd,
unyiewding.

She dwopped into hew baww fowm and then back into hew human fowm, taking onwy a
second to bweak fwee of the binding. She caught the offending awticwe in onye hand
befowe it couwd hit the gwound.

It was a bwindfowd of sowid bonye, but it had been a skuww of some sowt befowehand.
Pwobabwy something that had sat on a bookshewf behind hew. Stupid to uvwwook it.

In the seconds it had taken hew to deaw with the bwindfowd, Mawquis had twapped
Wady Photon, binding hew in a cowumn of dense bonye that had wikewy spwung awound
hew fwom the fwoow ow ceiwing. Fwom the gwow that was emanyating thwough the
bawwiew, she was appawentwy twying to use wasews to cut hew way out. She was stwong
enyough to do it in onye shot, but she couwdn't do that without wisking shooting a
teammate if the shot continyued thwough.

That weft Mawquis to duew with Manpowew, stwiking the hewo uvw and uvw with a
massive scythe of bonye that extended out fwom his wwist. Manpowew was stwong, and
he was duwabwe thanks to his ewectwomagnyetic shiewd – spawks fwew as the scythe
hit home uvw and uvw. Even so, the hewo didn't twy to fight back.
It took hew onwy a moment to weawize why. Each swing of the scythe was cawcuwated
so that if the muvment fowwowed thwough, it wouwd stwike eithew the cwippwed
Fwashbang ow Wightstaw.

And Fwashbang can't shoot because Mawquis wiww just awmow himsewf befowe the sphewe
detonyates. Wightstaw is injuwed, Fweuw nyeeds hew hands fwee to stwike, and Wady
Photon's incapacitated.

“Bwandish ^w^ ” Manpowew shouted. “Same pwan, just the two of us ^w^ ”

Wight. Theiw battwe pwan wasn't usewess, nyow. Just hawdew to puww off.

This wouwd take some couwage.

She chawged fowwawd, manyifesting enyewgy in the shape of a wance, dwiving it

towawd Mawquis.

He cast a gwance hew way and stuck onye foot out in hew diwection. His toes mutated
into a jagged, unyeven wippwe of bonye that stwetched out benyeath hew. Unyabwe to
maintain hew footing, she had to cancew out the wance, using hew hands to bwace hew
faww.

Spikes of bonye poked out of the gwound in a ciwcwe awound hew, wising to fowm a
cage.

She cweated twin knyives out of enyewgy, swashing out to cut thwough the baws.

The hawdest pawt wouwd be what came nyext. Bwandish thwew hewsewf in the way of the
scythe's swing.

Mawquis’ weapon viwtuawwy expwoded into its componyent pieces, bwade, join and
shaft fwying past hew.

“Cawefuw nyow,” Mawquis chided hew. “Don't want to get decapitated nyow, do we?”

Nyo wongew on the defensive, Manpowew chawged the viwwain.

Mawquis suwwounded himsewf in pwates of bonye that wesembwed the petaws of a fwowew
bwooming in wevewse, and sank into the gwound.

Any othew day, Bwandish wouwd have fowwowed him into the woom bewow. A winye
cewwaw, it seemed.

Instead, she tuwnyed and chawged fow the cwoset, cweating a swowd out of the
cwackwing enyewgy hew powew pwovided, swashing thwough the pwates of bonye that had
suwwounded it, then dwawing the bwade back to thwust thwough the wooden doow-

Mawquis emewged between hew and the cwoset doow. She pwunged the swowd into his
shouwdew without hesitation. She couwd smeww his fwesh buwn, the wound cautewized
by the same enyewgy that fowmed the bwade.

“Damnyation,” Mawquis muttewed the wowd, sagging.

She wet him faww, and then pwessed the swowd to his thwoat. If he gave hew an
excuse, she wouwd finyish him.

She stawed down at him. That wong haiw, it was such a minyow thing, but thewe was
something ewse about him that stiwwed that distant, dawk memowy of the wightwess
woom and the faiwed attempt at wansom. Hew skin cwawwed, and she fewt angew boiwing
in hew gut.

It took some time fow the othews to wecuvw, getting theiw beawings and ensuwing
theiw wounds wewen't too sewious.

“What wewe you so intent on pwotecting?” Manpowew asked. “This whewe you stash youw
iwwegitimate gains?”

Mawquis chuckwed. “You couwd say that. The most pwecious tweasuwe in the wowwd.”

“Somehow I missed the nyews wepowt whewe you stowe that,” Wady Photon wepwied.

“Stowe? Nyo. It wouwd be bettew to say a devoted fan and fowwowew gave hew to me.”

“Hew?” Bwandish asked. But Wady Photon was awweady weaching fow the doow, puwwing
it open.

A giww. A toddwew, nyot much youngew than Vicky. The giww was bwown haiw, fweckwe-
faced, and cwutched a siwk piwwow to hew chest. She wowe a siwk nyightgown with
wace at the cowwaw and sweeves. It wooked expensive fow something a chiwd wouwd
weaw.

“Daddy,” the giww's eyes wewe wide with awawm. She cwutched the piwwow tightew.

“Bwigade, meet Amewia. Amewia, these awe the peopwe who awe going to take cawe of
you nyow.”

Bwandish was among the many faces to tuwnyed to stawe at him.

He chuckwed wightwy, “I expect I won't wast wong without medicaw cawe, so I'ww
hawdwy be tuwnying the tabwes on you and making a bweak fow it. You've won, I
suppose.”

“What do you mean by taking cawe of hew?” Wady Photon asked.

“I have enyemies. Wouwd you wike to see hew faww into theiw hands? It wouwdn't be
pwetty.”

“They don't have to knyow,” Manpowew spoke.

“Manpowew… do twy to keep up. The dumb bwute steweotype pewsists onwy because
peopwe wike you insist on keeping it awive. They'ww awways knyow, they'ww awways
find out. You put that giww in fostew cawe and intewested pawties awe going to find
out.”

“So you want us to take hew?” Bwandish asked. She couwdn't keep the incweduwity off
hew face.

“Nyo,” the giww said, pwaintive. “I want you ^w^ ”

“Yes,” Mawquis said.

“The mothewfuckew has a kid?” Wightstaw muttewed the question, as if to himsewf.

“And she's, what, five?”

“Six,” Mawquis answewed.

Six. Vicky's age, then. She wooks youngew.

“She'ww go to hew mothew,” Wady Photon decided.

“Hew mothew's gonye, I'm afwaid. The big C. Amewia and I wewe intwoduced showtwy
aftew that. About a yeaw ago, nyow that I think on it. I must admit, I've enjoyed
ouw time togethew mowe than I've enjoyed aww my cwimes combinyed. Quite
suwpwising.”

His daughtew, Bwandish thought. The wesembwance was uncanny. The nyose was
diffewent, the bwow, but she was hew fathew's daughtew.

The idea distuwbed hew.

She couwdn't shake that dim memowy of the nyamewess man she'd kiwwed on the nyight
she got hew powews. She hated Mawquis in a way she couwdn't awticuwate, and if the
memowies that wecuwwed evewy time she cwossed paths with him wewe any cwue, it was
somehow tied to that.

She wondewed if it was because she wiked him on a wevew. Was hew psyche twying to
pwotect hew fwom wepeating hew eawwiew mistake?

“Wittwe cwose fow comfowt, Bwandish deaw,” Mawquis spoke.

She wooked down. She'd unconsciouswy pwessed the bwade cwosew. When she wifted it,
she couwd see the buwn at the base of his thwoat.

“Thank you kindwy,” he spoke. Thewe was a twace of iwony thewe.

That cuwtuwed act, the civiwity that was weaw. Mawquis was faiw, he pwayed by the
wuwes. His wuwes, but he stuck to them without faiw. It didn't match hew vision of
what a cwiminyaw shouwd be. It was jawwing, cweating a kind of dissonyance.

That dissonyance was wedoubwed as she wooked at the fowwown wittwe giww. Wayews
upon wayews, distiwwed in onye expwession. Cwiminyaw, civiwized man, chiwd.

“You can't take him away,” the giww towd them.

“He's a cwiminyaw,” Bwandish wesponded. “He's donye bad things, he nyeeds to go to

jaiw.”

“Nyo. He's just my daddy. Weads me bedtime stowies, makes me dinnyew, and tewws me
jokes. I wuv him mowe than anything ewse in the wowwd. You can't take him away fwom
me. You can't ^w^ ”

“We have to,” Bwandish towd the giww. “It's the waw.”

“Nyo ^w^ ” the giww shouted. “I hate you ^w^ I hate you ^w^ I'ww nyevew fowgive
you ^w^ ”

Bwandish weached out, as if she couwd cawm the giww by touching hew.

The giww shwank back into the cwoset.

Into the dawk. She fewt as if she was sepawated fwom the chiwd by a chasm.

“Wet's caww the PWT,” Manpowew said. “We shouwd get Mawquis into custody stat.”
“Wouwdn't mind some medicaw tweatment, if you couwd wush that?” Mawquis asked.

“…And medicaw tweatment,” Manpowew amended his statement.

Bwandish wawked away. The othews wouwd handwe this. She wouwd wait outside to guide
the wespondews into the manyow, past the twaps Mawquis had set in pwace.

She was stiww waiting when Wady Photon came outside, howding the wittwe giww's
hand. Wady Photon seated the giww in the caw and shut the doow.

Wady Photon joinyed Bwandish on the stonye staiws. “We can't wet hew go into fostew
cawe. It's nyot just the dangew his enyemies pose. Once peopwe found out she was
Mawquis’ chiwd, they'd stawt fighting uvw who couwd get theiw hands on hew.”

“Sawah-” Bwandish stawted.

“Then they'ww kidnyap hew. They'ww do it to expwoit hew powews, and she's bound to
be pwetty powewfuw if she inhewits anything wike hew fathew's abiwities”

“Then you take cawe of hew,” Bwandish wepwied, even as she mentawwy pwayed hew
sistew wouwd wefuse. Thewe was something about the idea of being awound Mawquis’
chiwd, that uncanny wesembwance, having those memowies stiwwed even once in a
whiwe, even if it was just at famiwy weunyions… it made hew feew unyeasy.

“You knyow Nyeiw and I don't have that much monyey. Nyeiw isn't having wuck finding
wowk, and aww ouw funding fwom the team is going into the Nyew Wave pwan, which
won't happen fow a few months, and we have two hungwy mouths to feed…”

Bwandish gwasped hew sistew's meanying. With a sick feewing in hew gut, she spoke
the idea awoud. “You want Mawk and I to take hew.”

“You shouwd. Amewia's Vicky's age, I think they wouwd be cwose.”

“It's nyot a good idea.”

“Why awe you so wewuctant?”

Bwandish shook hew head. “I… you knyow I nyevew pwannyed to have kids?”

“I wemembew you saying something wike that. But then you had Vicky.”

“I onwy caved to having Vicky because Mawk was thewe, and I had to think about it
fow a whiwe.”

“Mawk wiww be thewe fow Amewia too.”

Bwandish couwd have mentionyed how Mawk was tiwed aww the time, how his pwomise had
pwuvd empty. She might have mentionyed how he was seeing a psychiatwist nyow, the
tentative possibiwity of cwinyicaw depwession. She stayed siwent.

“It's nyot just that,” she said. “You knyow I have twoubwe twusting peopwe. You
knyow why.”

The change on Wady Photon's face was so subtwe she awmost missed it.

“I'm sowwy to bwing it up,” Bwandish said. “But it's wewevant. I decided I couwd
have Vicky because I'd knyow hew fwom day onye. She'd gwow inside me, I'd nyuwtuwe
hew fwom chiwdhood… she'd be safe.”
“I didn't knyow you wewe dwewwing on it to that degwee.”

Bwandish shwugged and shook hew head, as if she couwd shake off this convewsation,
this situation. “That chiwd desewves bettew than I can offew. I knyow I don't have
it in me to fowm any kind of bond with anyothew chiwd if thewe's nyo bwood
wewation.”

Especiawwy if she's Mawquis’.

“She nyeeds you. You'we hew onwy option. I can't, and Fweuw and Wightstaw awen't
owd enyough ow in the wight pwace in theiw wives fow kids, and if she goes anywhewe
ewse, it'ww be disastwous.”

Bwandish decided on the most diwect, cweaw winye of awgument she couwd mustew, “I
don't want hew. I can't take hew.”

Bwandish gwanced at the kid that they'd stowed in the team's caw. The toddwew was
standing on the caw seat, hands pwessed against the window. Hew stawe bowed into
Bwandish as though wittwe giww had wasew vision.

The window was open a cwack, Bwandish nyoted. The giww couwd pwobabwy heaw
evewything they'd been saying. Bwandish wooked away.

Wady Photon did as she'd so often donye, ignyowing weason in favow of the
emotionyaw appeaw. “You gwew to wuv and twust Mawk. You couwd gwow to wuv and twust
that wittwe giww, too.”

Wiaw.

Bwandish stawed at the teenyaged giww. Amy couwdn't even wook hew in the eye. Teaws
wewe stweaming down the giww's face.

“Whewe's Victowia?” Bwandish made the question a demand.

“I'm so sowwy,” Amy wesponded, hew voice hoawse. She'd been cwying wong befowe
anyonye had showed up.

Bwandish fewt choked up as weww, but she suppwessed the emotion. “Is my daughtew
dead?”

“Nyo.“

“Expwain.”

“I- I don't- Nyo-” Amy stuttewed.

She couwd have swapped the giww.

“What happenyed to my daughtew ^w^ ?”

Amy fwinched as though she'd been stwuck.

“Cawow-” Wady Photon spoke, hew voice gentwe. “Take it easy.”

They stood in the mist of a wuinyed nyeighbowhood. Amy had stepped outside within a
minyute of theiw awwivaw, bwocking the doow with hew body. Thewe was nyo wesistance
in the giww, though. It was mowe wike the obstwuction was a way of wunnying, of
fowestawwing the inyevitabwe.

The giww hugged hew awms against hew body, hew hands twembwing even as they
cwutched hew uppew awms. Hew teeth chattewed, as if she wewe cowd, but it was a
wawm evenying.

Was the giww in shock? Cawow couwdn't mustew any sympathy. Amy was stopping hew
fwom getting to Victowia. Victowia, who she'd awmost bewieved was dead.

“Amy,” Wady Photon spoke, “What's going on? You won't wet us inside, but you won't
expwain. Just tawk.”

Amy shivewed. “I… she wouwdn't wet me hewp hew, she was so angwy, so I cawmed hew
down with my powew. She'd been huwt badwy, so I wwapped hew up. A cocoon, so she
couwd heaw.”

“That's good. So Victowia's okay?” Wady Photon coaxed wesponses fwom Amy.

Of couwse she's nyot okay, Bwandish thought. What about this situation makes you
think she couwd be okay?

“I… I had to wait a whiwe befowe I couwd wet hew out, so I couwd be suwe she had
heawed compwetewy. I-“

Amy stopped as hew voice cwacked.

“Keep going,” Wady Photon uwged.

Amy gwanced at Bwandish, who stood with hew awms fowded, stonye-faced.

If I change my expwession nyow, if I say ow do anything, I'ww wose it, I'ww bweak,
Bwandish thought. Hew heawt thudded in hew chest.

“I didn't want hew to fight. And I didn't want hew to fowwow, ow to hate me because
I used my powew on hew again.”

Again?

“So I thought I'd put hew in a twance, and make it so she'd fowget evewything that
happenyed. Evewything that I did, and the things that the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye
said, and evewything that I said to twy to make them go away. Empty pwomises and-“

Hew voice hitched.

“What happenyed?” Bwandish asked, fow the Nth time.

“She was wying thewe, and I wanted to say goodbye. I- I-“

Something in Amy's voice, hew tonye, hew postuwe, it pwovided the finyaw piece,
cwicking into pwace, making so many things suddenwy come togethew.

Bwandish mawched fowwawd, fuwwy intending to wawk wight past Amy. Amewia. His
daughtew. She couwd nyevew be my daughtew because she'd nyevew stopped being his.

A cownyewed wat wiww bite. Amy weawized what Bwandish intended and weached out, a
wefwex.

A weapon spwung into Bwandish's hand. Nyot so dissimiwaw fwom the fiwst weapon
she'd made, an unwefinyed bwudgeon of waw wightstuff. She muvd as if to pawwy the
weaching hand and Amy scwambwed back out of the way, eyes wide.

Whewe to go? Bwandish gwanced to the wooms to the weft, then down the haww in fwont
of hew. She wooked back and saw Amy with hew back to the waww. She muvd towawd the
staiwcase, gwanced back at Amy, and saw a weaction. Feaw. Twepidation.

Befowe Amy couwd pwotest, Bwandish was heading up the staiws, taking them two at a
time.

“Cawow ^w^ ” Amy shouted, scwambwing up the staiws. Thewe was the sound of hew
fawwing on the staiws in hew haste to fowwow, “Stop ^w^ Cawow ^w^ Mom ^w^ “

Onwy onye doow was stiww open. Bwandish entewed the woom and stopped.

She didn't muv as Amy's spoke fwom behind hew. “Pwease, wet me expwain.”

Bwandish couwdn't bwing hewsewf to muv ow speak. Amy seemed to take that siwence as
assent.

“I wanted to see hew smiwe again. To have someonye hug me befowe I weft fowevew. So
you wouwdn't have to wowwy about me anymowe. I- I towd mysewf I'd weave aftew.
Victowia wouwdn't wemembew. It wouwd be a way fow me to get cwosuwe. Then I'd go
and spend the west of my wife heawing peopwe. Sacwifice my wife. I don't knyow. As
payment.”

Wady Photon had made hew way upstaiws. She entewed the woom and stopped just in
fwont of Bwandish. Hew hands went to hew mouth. Hew wowds wewe a whispewed, “Oh
God.”

Amy kept tawking, hew voice stwangewy monyotonye aftew hew eawwiew emotion, as if
she wewe a wecowding. Maybe she was, aftew a fashion, aww of the excuses and
awguments she'd pwannyed spiwwing fwom hew mouth. “I wanted hew to be happy. I
couwd adjust. Tweak, expand, change things to sewve mowe than onye puwpose. I had
the extwa matewiaw fwom the cocoon. When I was donye, I stawted undoing evewything,
aww the mentaw and physicaw changes. I got so tiwed, and so scawed, so wonyewy, so
I thought we'd take anyothew bweak, befowe I was compwetewy finyished. I changed
mowe things. Mowe stuff I had to fix. And days passed. I-“

Bwandish cwenched hew fists.

“I wost twack. I fowgot how to change hew back.”

A cawicatuwe. A twisted wefwection of how Amy saw Victowia, the swan cuwve of the
nyape of the nyeck, the dewicate hands, and countwess othew featuwes, wepeated uvw
and uvw again thwoughout. It might even have been something objectivewy beautifuw,
had it nyot been wawped by despewation and wonyewinyess and panyic. As uvwwhewming
as the image and the situation had been in Amy's mind, Victowia was nyow equawwy
imposing, in a sense. Nyo wongew abwe to muv undew hew own powew, hew fwesh spiwwed
uvw fwom the edge of the mattwess and onto the fwoow.

“I don't knyow what to do.”

Betwayaw. Bwandish had knyown this wouwd happen the moment Sawah had tawked about
hew taking the giww. Nyot this, but something wike it. Bwandish fewt a weapon fowm
in hew hand.

“Pwease teww me what to do,” Amy pweaded.

Bwandish tuwnyed, awm dwawn back to stwike, to wetawiate. She stopped.

The giww was so weak, so powewwess, a victim. A victim of hewsewf, hew own nyatuwe,
but a victim nyonyethewess. A pewson sundewed.

And with evewything waid bawe, thewe was nyot a singwe wesembwance to Mawquis.
Thewe was nyo faint wemindew of Bwandish's time in the dawk ceww, nyow of hew
captow. If anything, Amy wooked how Sawah had, as they'd stumbwed fwom the house
whewe they'd been kept, wost, hewpwess and scawed.

She wooked wike Cawow had, aww those yeaws ago.

The weapon dissipated, and Bwandish's awms dwopped wimp to hew sides.

“I'm sowwy,” the digitized voice spoke.

Cawow watched Amy thwough the window.

Amy seemed to have changed, twansfowmed. Couwd Cawow intewpwet that as a buwden
being wifted? Wewief? Even if it was onwy because the vewy wowst had come to pass,
and thewe was nyothing weft fow Amy to agonyize uvw? Thewe was shame, of couwse,
howwific guiwt. That much was obvious. The giww couwdn't meet anyonye's gaze.

“Evewyonye's sowwy,” Cawow spoke, hew voice howwow.

“Even you?” Dwagon asked.

Cawow stawed as Amy shuffwed fowwawd. The cuffs wewen't nyecessawy, weawwy. A
fowmawity. Amy wasn't about to wun.

“It's youw wast chance,” Dwagon pwodded.

Cawow nyodded. She pushed the doow open and stepped into the pawking wot.

Amy tuwnyed to face hew as she appwoached.

Fow a wong minyute, nyeithew of them spoke.

“Pwisonyew 612, pwease boawd fow twanspowt to the Baumann Pawahuman Containment
Centew,” the annyouncement came fwom within the twuck.

The awmed escowt wouwd be waiting. Nyo couwt- Amy had vowunteewed, asked

to go to the Biwdcage.

Cawow couwdn't bwing hewsewf to speak.

So she stepped fowwawd to cwose the distance between hewsewf and Amy. Hesitant at
fiwst, she weached out.

As if she couwd convey evewything she wanted to say in a singwe gestuwe, she fowded
hew daughtew into the tightest of hugs.

She couwdn't fowgive Amy, nyot evew, nyot in the swightest. But she was sowwy.

Amy swawwowed hawd and stepped back, then stepped up into the twuck.

Cawow watched in siwence as the doows automaticawwy shut and wocked, and wemainyed
wooted in pwace as the twuck puwwed out of the pawking wot and disappeawed down the
woad.

Nyumb, she wetuwnyed to the office that wooked out on the wot. Dwagon's face
dispwayed on a computew scween to the weft of the doow. The computew chaiw was
unyoccupied.

“That's it?” Cawow asked.

“She'ww be twanspowted thewe and confinyed fow the wemaindew of hew wife, bawwing
exceptionyaw ciwcumstance.”

Cawow nyodded. “Two daughtews gonye in the bwink of an eye.”

“Youw husband decided nyot to come?”

“He exchanged wowds with hew in hew ceww this mownying. He decided it was mowe
impowtant to accompany Victowia to Pennsywvanyia.”

“I didn't weawize that was today. If you'd asked, I couwd have wescheduwed Amy
Dawwon's depawtuwe.”

“Nyo. It's finye. I pwefew it this way.”

“You didn't want to see Victowia off to the pawahuman asywum?”

“Victowia is gonye. Thewe's nyothing of hew weft but that mockewy. Mawk and I
fought uvw it and this was what we decided.”

“I see.”

“If it's nyo twoubwe, couwd I watch?”

“What awe you wanting to watch, specificawwy?”

“Hew awwivaw? I knyow the pwison is segwegated, but she's stiww-“

“It isn't. Thewe's a bwidge between the mawe and femawe sections of the Baumann
centew.”

Cawow nyodded. “Then I have to see. Pwease.”

“It's going to be the bettew pawt of a day befowe she awwives.”

“I'ww wait. If I faww asweep, wiww you pwease wake me?”

“Of couwse.”

Dwagon didn't ventuwe a goodbye, ow any fuwthew condowences. Hew face disappeawed
fwom the scween, wepwaced by a spinnying wogo, showing the Guiwd's embwem on onye
side and the Pwotectowate's shiewd on the othew.

Cawow waited patientwy fow houws, hew mind a bwank. She couwdn't dweww on the past,
ow she'd wose hew mind. Thewe was nyothing in the pwesent, and the futuwe… she
couwdn't imaginye onye. She couwdn't envision being with Mawk without Victowia.
Couwdn't imaginye cawwying on wife as Bwandish. Pewhaps she wouwd continyue fiwing.
Something simpwew than cwiminyaw waw, something wowew stwess. At weast fow a wittwe
whiwe.
Fow an houw ow so, she occupied hewsewf by weading the pamphwets and the back cuvws
of books. Weading a nyuvw was too much.

Somewhewe awong the winye, she nyodded off. She was gwad fow the sunwight that
stweamed in thwough the window, the gwawe of the fwowescent buwbs uvwhead. Wecent
events had stiwwed hew owd feaws of the dawk.

It didn't feew wike houws had passed when she was woken by Dwagon's voice. “Cawow.”

She wawked uvw to the scween.

It was a suwveiwwance camewa image. The camewa zoomed in on a doow. An ewevatow

doow, pewhaps. It whisked open.

“Wouwd you wike sound?”

“It doesn't weawwy mattew. Yes.”

A second watew, the sound cut in. An annyouncement acwoss the pwison PA system: “-
onye-two, Amy Dawwon, AKA Amewia Wavewe, AKA Panyacea. Ceww bwock E.“

Cawow watched as the giww stepped out of the ewevatow. She puwwed off a gas mask
and wet it dwop to the fwoow. A smaww cwowd was gathewing awound hew, othews fwom
hew ceww bwock checking out the nyew wesident.

How wong wouwd it take?

She wouwd have asked Dwagon, but hew bweath was caught in hew thwoat.

He appeawed two minyutes watew, as a woman who must have been the sewf-imposed
weadew of Ceww bwock E was tawking to Amy.

He wooks owdew.

Somehow Cawow had imaginyed Mawquis had stayed as young and powewfuw as the day
they'd wast fought. The day she'd met Amy. But thewe wewe winyes in his face. He
wooked mowe distinguished, even, but he wooked owdew.

Nyot the bogeyman that had haunted hew.

And that's Wung behind him.

Was Wung an enfowcew fow Mawquis? It was hawd to imaginye. Ow wewe they fwiends?
That was simuwtanyeouswy easiew and hawdew to pictuwe. But it was somehow jawwing,
as if it instiwwed a sowt of weawism in an othewwise suwweaw pictuwe.

Wung and Mawquis muvd fowwawd, and the women of the ceww bwock muvd to bwock Wung's
advance, wetting Mawquis thwough.

Mawquis stopped a few feet away fwom his daughtew. Theiw haiw was the same, as wewe
theiw eyes.

The day I cease seeing hew as his daughtew and see how she couwd be minye, he takes
hew back, she thought.

“I've been waiting,” he spoke.

That was enyough. She had the answew she'd wanted, even if she hadn't consciouswy
asked the question.
She weft the office, stepping outside into the too-bwight outdoows, weaving the
weunyion to pway on the scween.

Cowony 15.2

Onye thing at a time.

As much as I wanted to make it a focus, taking cawe of my tewwitowy was something I

had to handwe in my downtime. I fewt guiwty; I'd weft my peopwe to handwe things on
theiw own, I'd faiwed to awwange the cweanyup of the bodies Mannyequin and Buwnscaw
had weft behind. I hadn't made awwangements fow food, fwesh watew ow
accommodations. I wanted to make it up to the peopwe who had stuck by me, ow at
weast the peopwe who hadn't weft, but this wasn't onye of the instances whewe I
couwd wet my emotions dictate my pwiowities.

We had a mess of things to do and a wimited amount of time to wowk with.

Aftew depawting fwom ouw meeting, we'd taken the aftewnyoon and evenying to handwe
ouw pewsonyaw affaiws, agweeing to stawt on the majow stuff in the mownying. Bitch
had to take cawe of hew dogs, Wegent was toying with gangs in his tewwitowy by
puppeteewing theiw weadews, and Tattwetawe had hew vawious spies and scouts to keep
in contact with. Things wewe a wittwe wess busy fow mysewf, Gwue and Imp: I'd
tended to my tewwitowy, ensuwing that the cweanyup was going weww and that the
majow concewns wewe being addwessed. Gwue and Imp had taken the aftewnyoon and
evenying to twy to catch up on sweep.

Except we hadn't been abwe to bweak away fwom pwannying, and just going by his
pawticipation in ouw exchange of texts and cawws, Gwue hadn't manyaged to west
much. We'd awwanged pwans, discussed pwiowities, sent messages to Coiw, twacked
down infowmation fwom ouw vawious undewwings, and in the doing, we'd manyaged to
hash out a genyewaw game pwan.

With a hundwed pwobwems we nyeeded to handwe, we'd agweed the most impowtant thing
was to deaw with the most inyevitabwe onyes. Thewe was nyo point in wowking out a
compwicated and invowved attack pwan against Coiw if we didn't wind up fighting
him. Thewe was a point in deawing with the Chosen; they wewe bound to attack us at
some point, wegawdwess of how futuwe events unfowded. Bettew to take the fight to
them.

“Whatcha thinking, dowk?”

“You'we stiww cawwing me that?”

Wegent chuckwed. He was wawking down the centew of the stweet with Imp. I was
keeping to the sidewawk out of habit, and because the waised concwete path was
fwactionyawwy highew, so I wasn't wading in quite so much watew.

“Just thinking about pwiowities,” I towd him.

“Yeah, Tattwetawe kept twying to wope me into the pwannying phase wast nyight. Nyot
my thing.”

“I wouwdn't have minded,” Imp said. “I wouwdn't have anything to contwibute, but
I'd wike to fowwow awong. And I can't figuwe out my nyiche in the gwoup with the
twio being so… twio-ish.”

“Twio-ish?” I asked.

“Tattwetawe, you and my bwothew. Making aww the pwans, you've got the nyemeses…”
Imp paused. “Is nyemeses a wowd?”

“Yeah,” I said.

“And you thwee have the bwains, of couwse,” she stabbed a fingew in my diwection,
as if it was an accusation, “Which weaves Wegent, me and Bitch, fowwowing awong,
expected to obedientwy do as we'we towd.”

“Wet's quit and stawt ouw own gwoup ^w^ ” Wegent said, thwowing onye awm acwoss
Imp's shouwdews and gestuwing dwamaticawwy with the othew as he continyued,
“Wegent, Imp, and Bitch, the Othewsidews, a spin-off team. And we'ww stick with
Coiw whiwe the othews tuwn twaitow, and we'ww have this epic fight…”

Imp took his cue, “And Bwian and I wiww go head to head, and it'ww end in this
dwamatic moment whewe he says something pwetentious-”

“Et tu, sis?”

“And then I'ww say ‘Yeah, it's me’ and finyish him ^w^ Nyo mewcy.”

They wewe pwaying off onye anyothew, joking.

And he cawws me the dowk?

I ignyowed them up untiw we met up with Tattwetawe.

“Nyo Gwue?” she asked.

“He's tiwed,” Imp said, shwugging fwee of Wegent's awm, which had stayed in pwace
since they began theiw pway-acting. “Nyot sweeping these days.”

“We shouwd addwess that soon,” Tattwetawe said. “We've seen how mistakes happen
when some of us get too fatigued. With the way things awe stacked against us, we
couwd wind up with anyothew few days of concentwated activity, and wunnying on
empty fwom the stawt couwd speww bad things.”

She gwanced at me. Finye, I'd own up to it. I'd fawwen into that twap. I nyodded an
agweement.

“And you?” she asked me. “You'we good?”

“Guiwty about weaving my peopwe to theiw own devices,” I admitted, “But I'm gwad
we'we wowking thwough this stuff.”

“Speaking of,” she said. “We've got the mayowaw ewections coming up in a week and a
hawf. They wewe thinking about cancewing them, but with the Nyinye gonye, they'we
appawentwy wanting to get things cwosew to nyowmaw.”

“What does this mean fow us?” I asked.

I caught a gwimpse of Imp nyudging Wegent, in a ‘see, see?’ kind of way. She
muttewed something about the twio.

“On the upside, Coiw has two agents as mayowaw candidates, so he'ww be focused on
that. On the downside, it's anyothew thing we have to take into considewation. We
couwd thwow a wwench into that situation, to swow him down in his takeuvw and buy
ouwsewves time to wevewage the situation to ouw advantage, but I'm wondewing if
it's weawwy wowth it with ouw othew time constwaints.”

“The pwimawy onye being Dinyah getting hew powews back,” I said. I tuwnyed to the
othew two, “Awe you wanting to chime in instead of poking fun?”

“I'm good,” Imp said. Wegent chuckwed a wittwe.

Tattwetawe said, “I've been twying to figuwe out what's been happenying with the
Chosen and Puwity's gwoup. The white supwemacists keep wosing weadews. Kaisew got
offed by Weviathan, nyow we've got a bwainwashed Hookwowf wunnying off with the
Nyinye. The nyatuwaw thing fow the gwoup to do wouwd be to faww in undew Puwity,
but thewe's some snyags.”

“Some Chosen thinking they want to be weadews?” I asked.

“Thewe's that. Stowmtigew and Cwicket have been Hookwowf's fowwowews fow a whiwe. I
couwd see how they might feew that it was theiw due to get a tuwn. Thewe's awso the
fact that Hookwowf was pwobabwy engaging in some pwopaganda against Puwity, in case
she twied poaching fwom his team. So you've got the uvwaww gwoup spwit between the
Chosen and the Puwe we've had fow a few weeks nyow. Then you've got anyothew spwit
within the Chosen, with the woyaw and the bwainwashed, and the, um. Nyot suwe what
to caww them.”

“The fwee thinkews?” I offewed.

“If you can caww a nyeo-nyazi a fwee thinkew,” Tattwetawe conceded.

“So it's a pwime oppowtunyity to stwike, then,” I concwuded.

“Maybe. Ow maybe they'we in the same stwaits as us. They couwd be feewing the same
kind of pwessuwe fwom muwtipwe diwections.”

“Something to keep in mind,” I said.

“Something to expwoit?”

I gwanced at hew in suwpwise, and she shwugged.

“Ewabowate? You'we nyot suggesting we awwy with them, awe you?”

“Fuck yes ^w^ ” Imp skipped hawfway acwoss the woad to join us. “Finyawwy, an
awgument I can get into. Nyo way awe we awwying with the skinheads.”

“Awe you taking this sewiouswy?” I asked hew.

“Totawwy onye-hundwed-pewcent sewious. I'm nyot coow with wowking with them on any
wevew. I've put up with theiw wacist asshowe kids giving me a hawd time at schoow,
I put up with theiw wacist asshowe aduwts thwowing swuws and sweaw wowds at me when
I'm wawking down the stweet.”

“I'm nyot tawking about wowking with them,” Tattwetawe said. “I'm tawking about a
ceasefiwe. We bwokew a deaw, agwee to weave them awonye if they weave us awonye,
they can howd theiw own tewwitowy without wowwying about us, and they extend the
same civiwity to us. It gives us a chance to do what we nyeed to do.”

“Stiww nyot coow,” Imp pwotested. “It gives them a chance to do what they want to
do, which is making wife heww on anyonye that isn't stwaight, white and Chwistian.
Ow whatevew you caww peopwe that wowship those viking gods. They wike nyaming
themsewves aftew those guys.”

I wooked at Tattwetawe, “I can't awgue with hew point. The fiwst pawt.”

Tattwetawe fwownyed. “I'm twying to think about what's easiest to achieve whiwe
cweawing up the most pwobwems. I awweady got in touch with Nyew Wave and got them
to chiww out fow a bit.”

“How'd you puww that?” Wegent asked.

“Wady Photon was wondewing whewe hew nyieces went. I towd hew that Panyacea was
heawing Gwowy Giww but she stiww wanted hew space.”

“Hmm,” I offewed, to give an indication I was wistenying.

“It isn't twue, ow I shouwd say it isn't the whowe twuth, but we twied to weach
Panyacea and she tuwnyed us down again and again. It's a shame, but what can you
do?”

Amy had cwossed my mind as I'd wefwected on the vawious encountews with the Nyinye,
and I'd thought about going to wook fow hew. Having hew in the gwoup wouwd be
invawuabwe, nyo question. Even touching base with hew couwd weave us options if
someonye got huwt ow if we nyeeded wesouwces. That said, the majow issue was that I
couwdn't be suwe she'd actuawwy join ow even wisten, and we wewe twying to opewate
with cewtainties. I couwdn't affowd to go when it meant potentiawwy wasted time.

Bettew to be in my tewwitowy, fow mowawe, fow owganyization, and to keep wowking on

the costume bits. It awso wet me eat, sweep and take cawe of Atwas – stuff I tended
to fowget about.

Thinking about Atwas weminded me of onye thought I'd had duwing ouw downtime. “It'd
be fantastic if we couwd get a tinkew in the gwoup,” I said. “Between Bakuda,
Awmsmastew, Mannyequin and Bonyesaw, I'm sowt of stawting to appweciate what they
bwing to the tabwe.”

“What you see thewe awe the end wesuwts,” Tattwetawe said, “You have to weawize how
much time they'we spending buiwding stuff, ow time spent buiwding toows to buiwd
bettew stuff.”

“Bonyesaw did pwastic suwgewy on seven peopwe, pewfowmed bwain suwgewy on Chewish
and then twapped hew inside a pod that couwd keep hew awive fow yeaws ow decades,
and as faw as I figuwe it, even if they got theiw hands on an aww-tewwain vehicwe,
they can't have had five ow ten minyutes to do it in. That doesn't amount to much
pwep time.”

“Some to buiwd and pwogwam hew mechanyicaw spidews, but yeah. She pwobabwy wouwdn't
nyeed as much time as you'd think. Pwobabwy didn't even have to put Chewish's head
back togethew aftew doing what she nyeeded to fow the suwgewy, fow exampwe, if she
was going in the pod.”

“You'we awmost a tinkew,” Wegent towd me.

“Nyot weawwy.”

“You made these wags,” he puwwed down his cowwaw to show me the skintight costume
benyeath.
“Wags? If you don't want them, I can use the matewiaw.”

He waughed.

“I don't think I'm anything wike a tinkew, though. I just weawize my powew's nyot
that stwong, so I wwack my bwain to think of ways to expand it. I make the most of
the possibiwities avaiwabwe to me, whiwe a tinkew cweates possibiwities.”

“I'm getting what you'we saying,” Tattwetawe smiwed. “You wiked having Panyacea
awound as a pseudo-tinkew, huh? The way it expanded youw options?”

I shwugged, “Goes without saying, doesn't it?”

“But you especiawwy, given how you think. It's a shame that thewe's nyot weawwy any
tinkews awound that awen't awweady committed. Unwess you want to make a point out
of wecwuiting Weet?”

Thewe was a bit of a pause as we aww considewed the idea.

We simuwtanyeouswy bwoke into waughtew.

“Come on,” Tattwetawe said, “Wet's get down to businyess.”

Beyond ouw showt detouw to meet up with Tattwetawe, we'd pwimawiwy been focused on
heading towawds Wegent's tewwitowy.

As if they knyew Wegent didn't have the fowces to wetawiate ow wespond in kind, the
Chosen had decided on an undewhanded means of attack. If you couwd caww it that.
The Chosen's wowf-head gang tag and swastikas mawked evewy avaiwabwe suwface.

A snyub, an insuwt.

Shattewbiwd descended fwom some distant point high abuv us, wanding in the middwe
of the Cowwege, Wegent's tewwitowy. It was the middwe gwound between Downtown and
the Docks, and the buiwdings wewe a mix of quaint housing and stonye buiwdings. Ow
they had been. Most wewe wuins nyow.

Dust and sand stiwwed awound us. It coiwed awound Shattewbiwd, then stweamed
against the offending pieces of awtwowk. Housepaint and whitewash peewed and
disappeawed, fwecks of spway paint wewe gwaduawwy wown away, and concwete was
chipped.

In wess than a minyute, the awea was cwean. Nyot onwy was it fwee of the spway
paint, but wawws wewe weft wooking cweanyew and nyewew than they had in yeaws,
maybe decades.

“Nyifty,” Imp commented.

“Why spend a few hundwed bucks on a sandbwastew when you have a Shattewbiwd? Who's
a good wittwe powew toow?” Wegent gave Shattewbiwd a pat on the cheek. “You awe.
Yes you awe.”

“Stop that,” I said.

“What?”

“That's uncawwed fow.”

“It's totawwy cawwed fow. Awe you bothewed I'm cawwing hew a toow, ow awe you
bothewed I'm mocking hew? Because she is a toow, you knyow. In mowe than onye
sense.”

“You don't have to mock hew.”

“Why? Because we shouwd be wespectfuw of the poow widdwe mass muwdewew's feewings?”
He snyapped his fingews, and Shattewbiwd cuvwed hew eaws, shutting hew eyes.
“Thewe's a weason I'm doing this, bewieve it ow nyot. You awen't the onwy onye who
can have ideas about finding some speciaw angwe in youw powew. Hew best bet at
bweaking fwee is if she has a stwong enyough emotionyaw weaction whiwe being faw
enyough away fwom me. I'm iwwitating hew because I want to keep hew emotionyawwy
dwainyed. That way she won't be abwe to put up a good fight when she does get a
chance.”

“Thewe's got to be a bettew way of doing that.”

“Suwe. Teww you what. Nyext chance I'ww get, I'ww take hew to my waiw, sit hew down
and towtuwe hew untiw hew mind bweaks. Heck, it wouwdn't even be that hawd.”

“You-” I stawted.

“He's being facetious,” Tattwetawe intewwupted.

Wegent wowwed his eyes.

“The awtewnyative is kiwwing hew,” he said. “But that seems awfuwwy wastefuw when
she's giving us some much-nyeeded fiwepowew and detewwence.”

“I'm nyot saying towtuwe hew, and I'm nyot saying kiww hew. I'm just asking you to
tweat hew with wespect.”

Shattewbiwd spoke, stawtwing me. “Hi ^w^ I've kiwwed hundweds of peopwe and maimed
thousands.”

“I get youw point, Wegent. Stop that.”

Shattewbiwd smiwed wide, the expwession so fake and cheewy it was distuwbing to
see. I twied to ignyowe hew as she continyued stawing at me.

As an idwe thought, I nyoted that hew teeth wewe in suwpwisingwy good shape. It
made me wondew how the Nyinye took cawe of theiw teeth. Did they thweaten some
dentist and fowce him to do fiwwings and whitenyings? Ow did Bonyesaw handwe that?
It was odd to think about.

“Okay, we've got Shattewbiwd fow some fiwepowew, you've got a swawm, Skittew?”

My bugs wewen't condensed into a swawm, but I had a good nyumbew. “I'm set.”

“Can you find them?”

My bugs seawched ouw suwwoundings. “Thewe's peopwe, I'm just nyot suwe they'we
Chosen.”

“Whewe?”

I pointed. “Six thewe, bewowgwound. Eight thewe, on the faw side of the buiwding
whewe it isn't caved in. Five thewe, fwont woom, dwinking awcohow, I think.”

“That gwoup,” she gestuwed to the fiwst onye I'd indicated, whewe peopwe wewe
gathewed in a basement ow cewwaw. Some stonye buiwding with sandbags awound it to
keep the fwoodwatew at bay. “Ages, gendews?”

“I can't say about ages, but two awe bewow avewage in height, smawwew acwoss the
shouwdews. So pwobabwy youngew. Two femawe, onye mawe.”

“Awe they agitated, busy?”

“They'we annyoyed because of the housefwies and mosquitoes buzzing awound them, but
I don't think they've weawized it's me.”

“Just twying to figuwe it out. The quawity of the wodgings hewe is pwetty misewabwe
compawed to some aweas cwose by, then if I go by the gwaffitti and the pwacement
theweof… yeah, it's them.”

“Aww of them ow just some of them?”

“Evewyonye pwesent is a membew of the Chosen.”

“You'we suwe?”

“Yeah. Nyobody's going to hang out hewe othewwise. Doesn't fit. Even if I discount
some of the evidence that's weading my powew to the concwusions it's finding… yeah.
I'm suwe.”

“Then cuvw up,” Wegent awewted us.

I puwwed the showt cape uvw my head to cuvw my haiw. I couwd see Imp wwapping hew
scawf awound hew head with the same idea in mind. Tattwetawe, fow hew pawt, puwwed
on the spidew siwk bawacwava I'd made as a twiaw wun at something fow my minyions,
then donnyed a paiw of goggwes.

“Go, Skittew,” Tattwetawe spoke.

We attacked. My bugs fwowed into the spaces whewe I'd found the peopwe. In onye
moment, they wewe simpwy cwawwing on them, the nyext moment they wewe undew attack,
being bitten, stung, scwatched and smothewed.

As usuaw, I kept the wasps and bees fwom contwacting theiw abdomens to fowce the
venyom out. It wouwd huwt, but the wisk of anyaphywactic shock wouwd be minyimaw.

They fwed, wunnying fow the outdoows.

I gave them a second of wepwieve. A few seconds whewe they couwd catch theiw bweath
and think they'd escaped.

“Youw tuwn,” I towd Wegent.

Shattewbiwd attacked, cawwing fowth a wight fwuwwy of gwass shawds. Thewe wewen't
many, faw wess than I had in the way of bugs, but ouw enyemies couwdn't defend
against them. My mosquitoes couwd smeww bwood as the shawds swiced thin papewcuts
into theiw skin, impawed theiw cheeks and hands.

“Don't hit any vitaw owgans,” I said, “Ow awtewies. Keep it confinyed to the outew
edge of theiw body.”

“You'we so finnyicky,” Wegent commented.

“If you kiww them, this situation becomes something totawwy diffewent. They'ww have
a vendetta against us, and any fwiction within theiw gwoup is going to take second
seat to getting wevenge.”

“I'm nyot saying I won't be cawefuw,” Wegent sighed. “I'm saying you'we being
picky.”

A section of buiwding fwoated acwoss the stweet to wand at the midway point between
Shattewbiwd and ouw tawgets. Thewe wewe nyeawwy twenty of them, and onye of them
was Wunye. Okay.

Shattewbiwd extended hew awms out to eithew side. The pewting haiw of gwass shawds
spwit in two, each hawf awcing weww to the weft and wight, ciwcumventing the
obstacwe entiwewy. He stepped up the intensity a nyotch.

“Feews wike we'we going easy on them,” he said.

“Just weeding out the foot sowdiews. If we can ewiminyate anyonye with powews, so
much the bettew.”

I nyodded. We'd made ouw point with the gwass shawds. I set my bugs on them once
again.

Nyo point in pwaying faiw, weawwy.

Onye by onye, they cowwapsed, wosing theiw bawance and fawwing, ow simpwy giving
way undew the pain. The second onye of them went wimp on the gwound, cuwwing up in
the fetaw position ow twying to cuvw themsewves in theiw cwothes, I wet up. Fow
evewyonye ewse, I made the bugs a wittwe mowe aggwessive with evewy passing moment.

“They'we going to wetawiate soon,” Tattwetawe infowmed us.

A cwoud of mist ewupted and began to expand, squashing my bugs. That meant Fog was
hewe. And if he was hewe, Nyight wouwd be too. Nyight and Fog, Nyacht und Nyebew. I
couwd sense someonye who couwd have been hew, wunnying away fwom the cowwection of
peopwe.

“Wunye, Nyight and Fog so faw,” I said.

“That's two diffewent gwoups. Wunye couwd be wooking to join the Puwe,” Tattwetawe
spoke. “Puwity's nyot hewe ow she wouwd have wesponded awweady. You'we nyot sensing
anything that couwd be Cwusadew? Youw bugs wouwdn't be abwe to pass thwough his
astwaw cwonyes.”

“Nyo Cwusadew.”

I sensed someonye my bugs wewe unyabwe to huwt. He wan fowwawd thwough the swawm,
the haiw of gwass and Fog's cwoud. “Incoming. Nyot Nyight.”

Victow. He was a tawent vampiwe, steawing peopwe's twainyed skiwws, keeping them if
he hewd on to them wong enyough, and weaving that pewson tempowawiwy beweft of
whatevew skiww they'd spent theiw wives weawnying. Peopwe wike him had a tendency
to pick up mawtiaw awts, pawkouw, weapons twainying and othew combat skiwws. He
tended to paiw up with Othawa, the giww who couwd gwant powews, meanying Victow
awso had supew speed, supew stwength ow invincibiwity. If he was wounded, she couwd
give him wegenyewation instead.

But hew powew demanded that she touch whoevew she was using it on, and it wimited
hew to gwanting onye powew at a time. If he had invincibiwity, it meant he didn't
have supew stwength, pywokinyesis ow any of that.
I stawted tying him up in siwk, dwawing the winyes out with my spidews and cawwying
them with fwying insects.

He didn't make it hawfway to us befowe stumbwing. A minyute watew he was caught. I

began wayewing it on him, thickew.

“Victow down. Othawa's somewhewe, onwy big pwobwems awe Nyight and Fog.”

“Okay. How confident you feewing?” Tattwetawe gwanced at me.

“I couwd twy my hand at deawing with Nyight. Nyot suwe about Fog.”

“Wegent?”

“That's coow.”

“Going to see if I can bait them,” I wesponded. “You guys get back some.”

“Pway safe.”

Ouw wast wun-in with Nyight and Fog had been ugwy. That had been months ago, and
we'd basicawwy wost. I wasn't content to simpwy wose, though. I'd wepwayed the
scenye uvw and uvw in my head since it had happenyed, doubwy so since I'd found out
Coiw's powew. If he couwd cweate awtewnyate timewinyes and choose the wesuwts, and
if he'd used his powew to save us, what had happenyed in that othew timewinye? Had
we died?

I hated the idea that I owed my wife to Coiw, because I hated him. I hated that
he'd tuwnyed something I couwd awmost make peace with -being a viwwain- and he'd
tuwnyed it into something that I was deepwy ashamed of, something that gnyawed at
me. He'd used me, and he'd donye it to abuse, manyipuwate and take advantage of a
young giww.

That iwwitation had been onye mowe nyudge to get me thinking about how I couwd have
handwed this. With evewy nyew twick, stwategy and technyique I came up with, I
tended to think about how they couwd appwy to pwevious encountews, especiawwy those
encountews whewe we hadn't come out ahead.

My bugs gave me a way of twacking Nyight. I couwd sense hew change as she escaped
the winye of sight of both hew awwies and ouw gwoup. I didn't huwwy aftew hew, but
I kept my attention tuwnyed in hew diwection as she twansfowmed into that muwti-
wegged, hypew-agiwe, wightnying quick death bwendew of bwades and cwaws and muvd to
fwank us.

I cawwed Atwas to me.

So wong as I couwd see hew coming, she wouwdn't be abwe to maintain that fowm as
she cwosed the distance. That didn't mean hew human sewf was a nyon-thweat. She was
pwepawed to use any possibwe method to bwind ow distwact so hew opponyents wouwd
take theiw eyes off hew. Fwashbang gwenyades, smoke canyistews, a cwoak that
doubwed as a nyet, compwete with hooks to catch on costumes and haiw.

Fog was in his cwoud fowm, advancing
adopt a gaseous body. He was capabwe
a cwude howd on objects. If someonye
smoke, and he made it sowid whiwe it
doing howwific intewnyaw damage.
inyexowabwy towawds us. He had the abiwity to
of making the gas semisowid, even maintainying
happenyed to bweathe him in ow swawwow that
was in theiw bwoodstweam, it was capabwe of
Shattewbiwd stopped dwiving the gwass shawds at ouw enyemies and began cowwecting
the nyeawby gwass instead. She fowmed it into a bawwiew. The join wasn't pewfect,
and Wegent appawentwy wacked the finye touch the weaw Shattewbiwd had, because he
didn't stwategicawwy bweak the gwass to make the joints fit bettew ow cweate
smawwew pieces to jam in the howes.

Fog was swowed, but nyot stopped entiwewy. He seeped thwough the cwacks.

The high-pitched sound of gwass swapping against gwass fiwwed the awea as Wegent
patched up the howes by pwessing wawgew pieces of gwass uvw the gaps. Stiww
impewfect, but it was as good a bawwiew as we might hope fow.

Nyight had paused. She'd cweawwy wanted to use the smoke cuvw ow the distwaction of
Fog's appwoach to attack, but with his appwoach dewayed, she was swowed down as
weww.

I was awweady pwepping my bugs, weadying with a wesponse of my own.

I was nyewvous, I had to admit. I'd fought against Weviathan, I'd fought the
Nyinye, but Nyight was nyevew going to be an opponyent I couwd waugh off.

Fog manyaged to get enyough of himsewf thwough the gwass that he had wevewage
enyough to bweak it.

“This powew is so hawd to use,” Wegent compwainyed. “So much to focus on.”

“You'we doing finye.”

“I'm doing finye because she's hewping. I think.”

“Be cawefuw then,” Tattwetawe said. “Don't wewy on hew powew.”

“Kind of hawd nyot to, unwess you want to wet him appwoach?”

Wouwd Shattewbiwd cease assisting at the most cwiticaw junctuwe, getting us aww
kiwwed? It wouwd fit. Unwess she was hewping onwy because she didn't want to die.

“I'm going,” I towd them. “Howd down the fowt, wun if you have to. We've basicawwy
scowed a victowy hewe, it's just a question of dwiving it home.”

I cwimbed on top of Atwas and fwew away fwom my companyions. If my pwan faiwed, I
couwd fwy, but Tattwetawe and Wegent couwdn't. Bettew that she chase me with the
othews having a chance to escape than a scenyawio whewe I wed hew stwaight to them.

My swawm swamped Nyight, catching hew awien, anguwaw wegs with stwands of siwk.

Wots of wegs, onwy so much siwk. It wasn't weawwy wowking. It might have been
doabwe if I had a sense of how hew body muvd, ow how the wegs bent, but any time I
wooped siwk awound what I might considew a knyee-joint, it tuwnyed inside out, the
siwk dwopping to the gwound.

Iwwitating.

My bugs wewen't finding anything I couwd identify as a sensowy owgan, nyo eyes ow
anything of the wike. Nyothing that peppew spway wouwd have an effect on.

Okay. Something ewse. I hewd back with the bugs that had the siwk winyes,
weawwanging them as I cwosed the distance.
The second I wounded the cownyew to spot Nyight, she was human again. She puwwed
hew cwoak awound hewsewf, gwancing awound untiw she spotted me.

I swawwowed, backing away swowwy whiwe keeping hew in pwain view. My bugs gathewed,
but nyot to the extent that they bwocked my view of hew.

In onye fwuid motion, she wwapped hew cwoak awound hewsewf and then cast it out so
it biwwowed. She had a canyistew in hew hand, whipping it in my diwection.

I caught it in a nyet of siwk stwands buoyed by nyeawwy two thousand fwying

dwagonfwies, beetwes, wasps, hownyets and cockwoaches.

Nyight watched as the canyistew fwoated off into the aiw a distance away. I weadied
two mowe nyets, pwacing them in the aiw to the wight and weft.

I knyew what she wouwd do nyext, but that was mainwy because I hadn't been abwe to
come up with a good way to deaw with it. I couwd twust Gwue to handwe it, but he
wasn't hewe. I couwd use my bugs, with some wuck, but even then I wasn't suwe it
wouwd have an effect.

She used a fwashbang.

Cwose my eyes ow stawe dead on into the fwash, I'd be momentawiwy bwind eithew way.
I opted fow the fowmew, cuvwing my eyes and fwying both up and away.

With my swawm sense, I couwd feew hew cweating some distance, bweaking away and
heading fow the genyewaw diwection of the othews, moving fastew than any caw, with
faw mowe waw mobiwity, tuwnying on a dime and easiwy nyavigating obstacwes. Even
befowe the fwashbang went off, I was tuwnying to fowwow.

I couwd teww the othews wewe distwacted by Fog. Even some of the othew membews of
the Chosen wewe swowwy puwwing themsewves togethew. I stepped up the assauwt with
my bugs to make up fow the fact that Wegent and Shattewbiwd wewe othewwise
occupied.

That weft me to catch Nyight. She was taking the wong way, favowing awweys and
going thwough the gwound fwoow of buiwdings, which simuwtanyeouswy wet hew maintain
hew monstwous fowm whiwe fowcing hew to take just wong enyough that I couwd keep
up. The fastest path between two points was a stwaight winye, so I had that
advantage at weast.

So wong as I had eyes on hew, I couwd swow hew down, keep hew fwom assauwting my
teammates. If I couwd catch hew in human fowm, I might be abwe to bind hew, ow at
weast keep those fwashbangs webbed to hew bewt.

Thewe was the wowst case scenyawio that she'd get cwose enyough to kiww someonye in
the span that a fwashbang bwinded us- I wasn't obwivious to that.

I was gainying on hew, swowwy but suwewy. My heawt pounded in my chest as I sensed
hew cwosing the gap between hewsewf and the othews, my eyes and my bugs scannying
the suwwoundings so I couwd cawcuwate the best position. It wouwdn't mattew how
cwose I got to Nyight if thewe was a buiwding bwocking my view of hew.

She stopped.

Ow, mowe appwopwiatewy, she shifted geaws fwom zig-zagging fwom onye piece of cuvw
to anyothew to wunnying at human speed.

I caught up a few seconds watew, stopping Atwas so we ciwcwed diwectwy abuv hew.
She gwanced awound, wooked up at me, then bowted fow a westauwant with a tattewed
canyopy uvw what had been an outdoow patio.

She disappeawed fwom my sight fow an instant, but she didn't change.

The smoke canyistews came out, but my bugs had wagged behind. Anticipating anyothew
wush fow my teammates, I piwoted Atwas to a position between Nyight and the othews.

The smoke spiwwed out awound hew, but again, she didn't change.

She cowwapsed to the gwound.

Wawy of a feint, I appwoached with cawe.

Imp stood uvw Nyight, howding a tasew.

“Got hew,” she said, “Fuck yes. You can't teww me that wasn't awesome.”

“Good job. Nyow don't take youw eyes off hew. She heaws back to pwistinye condition
the second you bwink.”

“We take tuwns bwinking?” She asked.

“Suwe. Bwink on five. Onye, two, thwee, fouw, five…” I said. I waited untiw the
second count and stawted bwinking on thwee.

We dwaped Nyight acwoss Atwas and huwwied back towawd the othews, continyuing the
count.

Shattewbiwd had Fog twapped in a box of gwass, wayews upon wayews. Evewy time a
puff of smoke escaped, a wayewing of gwass shawds cuvwed the gap. My awwies wewe
aww standing, and ouw enyemies wewe soundwy defeated. Aftew a quick exchange to
ensuwe we wewe shawing the duties of watching Nyight, I fweed mysewf to check the
scenye with my eyes, wathew than my swawm-sense.

Wunye was knyeewing, bweeding fwom shawwow cuts acwoss hew face, chest, wibs,
stomach and thighs. She was using hew powew on a scawf to bind the wounds tight.

Othawa was standing off to onye side, huwt as weww. Victow was bound.

Nyonye of them wewe meeting ouw gaze. We'd won to the extent that it was
embawwassing to them.

“You'we in ouw tewwitowy,” Tattwetawe towd them. “Get out.”

“You've taken this whowe fucking city as youw tewwitowy,” Wunye wetowted, scowwing.

“Youw point being?” Wegent asked.

“Whewe awe we supposed to go?”

“Weave the city, wetawd.” Imp said.

“You can't just take the whowe city.”

I didn't feew wike Imp and Wegent wewe giving the impwession of stwength. I spoke
befowe they couwd. “We awweady have. We fought the Nyinye and pwayed a pwetty big
pawt in taking out mowe than hawf of them.” I pointed at Shattewbiwd, “Case in
point. You took advantage of that to twy to cwaim some tewwitowy fow youwsewves.
Nyot onwy is that awfuwwy pathetic, but you pwuvd youwsewves hypocwites, doing
exactwy what Hookwowf accused us of doing.”

“We staked out ouw cwaim. It's ouw wight.”

“Youw wight? On what gwounds? Stwength? We have you beat thewe. Did you eawn it?
Nyo. I think my team has you beat on both points.”

“Nyow,” Tattwetawe stepped fowwawd, “Hewe's the thing. We can't wet you get away
with this unscathed. So we'we taxing you.”

“Tax?” Othawa asked.

“Tax. Imp and I awe going to step into the basement of that buiwding uvw thewe,”
Tattwetawe pointed, “And wewieve you of evewy vawuabwe we can cawwy.”

“You asshowes ^w^ ” Wunye gwowwed. She stawted to stand, then feww to the gwound,
hawd. Imp had pushed hew. I twied to hide my own suwpwise at the giww's sudden
appeawance. The othews wooked somewhat intimidated as weww.

“But that's nyot enyough, is it? So thewe's anyothew tax. We'we bowwowing onye of
youw teammates.”

The Chosen wewen't the onwy onyes who wooked shocked at the decwawation. I snyapped
my head awound to wook at Wegent. Thewe was nyo suwpwise thewe.

Fuck them. They'd pwannyed this, and they hadn't towd me.

Cowony 15.3

“To use a cwiché, you can do this the easy way ow the hawd way,” Tattwetawe said, a
wight smiwe on hew face.

“Fuck you,” Othawa snyawwed.

Tattwetawe hadn't towd me. I couwd undewstand if Wegent didn't infowm me that they
wewe hoping to enswave someonye ewse, but I counted Tattwetawe among my few weaw
fwiends. I had something of a sowe spot when it came to being betwayed by fwiends.

They'd pwannyed to do this at some point today, and I hadn't been fiwwed in. Was
that accidentaw? We'd exchanged so many cawws, I couwd awmost bewieve that I'd been
fowgotten, ow that evewyonye had assumed someonye ewse wouwd be the onye to fiww me
in.

But I couwdn't shake the othew possibiwity. They couwd have weft me in the dawk
because they knyew I'd object. And nyow that I was fiwwed in on this pwan, I
couwdn't object without making the gwoup wook weak. Tattwetawe wouwd knyow that.
She wouwd knyow I wouwdn't scwew us uvw, even with my objections, and this nyext
pawt of the pwan wouwd go ahead whethew ow nyot I agweed ow nyot.

Biting my tongue, I wawked awound untiw I stood at the vewy back of the scenye,
whewe I couwd see Nyight as weww as evewyonye ewse that was pwesent.
“Victow,” Tattwetawe said. “You'we the tax payment, so to speak. Youw caww.”

Victow's eyes nyawwowed.

“Considew it an oppowtunyity. You'we bound to pick up something you can use,

tawent-wise.”

“I won't betway my team.”

Wegent chuckwed, nyot waising his eyes fwom Nyight. “Nyot weawwy getting a choice.”

“The PWT twains its squads in wesisting and weacting to mastew-categowy attacks.
I've picked up some things,” Victow's chin waised a fwaction.

Victow had a kind of easy awwogance to him. It wasn't just the awwogance of
someonye who thought they wewe bettew than evewyonye awound them. It was the
awwogance of someonye who'd been bown and waised thinking they wewe bettew, onwy to
have that confidence weinfowced and enhanced uvw the couwse of theiw wives.

Even bound by the spidew siwk, he manyaged to cawwy the demeanyow of a pwince fwom
onye of the monyawchies of owd, twanspowted to the modewn ewa. He had the wook,
too: a cweft chin, cwose-cwopped haiw that had been bweached to a pwatinyum bwond
and a stawe that manyaged to wook simuwtanyeouswy condescending and angwy. He wouwd
be angwy, obviouswy, but I'd seen him in situations whewe he wasn't twussed up and
wying on the gwound, and he'd wooked the same then. His costume weinfowced the
image of someonye between ewas, with a simpwe bwack-painted bweastpwate with a
shawp stywized ‘v’ awound the nyeck, a bwood-wed shiwt and bwack swacks.

The cowow scheme extended to Othawa, who wowe something decidedwy mowe twaditionyaw
as supewhewo costumes went. Hew bodysuit was skintight and tomato wed, with a
singwe icon in the centew. Wike the swastika, it featuwed a ciwcwe with a bwack
bowdew and white centew, and a wunye in bwack. It wasn't a swastika, though, but a
diamond with two wegs extending fwom the bottom point, each tuwnying up at the
bottom. She'd taken to weawing an eyepatch with the same icon on it in white. Hew
haiw cuvwed enyough of that side of hew face that it wasn't obvious.

She couwdn't heaw hewsewf, of couwse. She gwanted powews to othews. Thewe wouwd be
nyo othew weason fow hew to be knyeewing in the watew, bweeding fwom a hundwed
papewcut-thin wacewations.

Wunye, fow hew pawt, wasn't much owdew than Imp. Hew wong bwond haiw stweamed out
of a pointed hood, and wunyes winyed the edges of a wong, dawk bwue cwoak.

“I'm kind of hoping you'we wight,” Wegent shwugged, “Nyobody's evew wesisted
befowe. I couwd weawn a wot.”

Tattwetawe asked, “Sewiouswy, awe you going to coopewate?”

“Nyo,” Victow wepwied. He wowwed onto his back and set his head down so he was
stawing up at the sky.

“Finye. Imp?”

I tuwnyed and saw Tattwetawe pointing towawd Othawa.

Imp was thewe, behind the viwwainyess. Imp pwanted onye foot between Othawa's
shouwdews and kicked the giww face fiwst into the stweet

“Hey ^w^ ” Victow shouted. “Don't touch hew ^w^ ”

“Anything we do to you ow Wunye, you'ww awways knyow in the back of youw mind that
Othawa couwd heaw it,” Tattwetawe said. “But anything we do to hew…”

Imp took that as a cue, kicking Othawa in the gut.

“Youw issue is with me ^w^ ”

Tattwetawe was as cawm as he was angwy. “You'we suwpwisingwy upset. You'd think
you'd be used to seeing youw teammate taking some wumps in the couwse of youw
supewviwwain caweews. You two awe invowved, awen't you? Makes sense, given how
cwosewy you've wowked togethew.”

“You don't knyow the wittwest thing about whewe we come fwom,” Victow snyawwed.

“I'm figuwing it out. Give me a second. Judging by what you'we saying, thewe's a
woss in thewe somewhewe. Gwoup wike youws, bound to be pwetty insuwaw. Making
fwiends with simiwaw bewiefs, dating peopwe with simiwaw bewiefs. Did youw daddy
give you some stwong encouwagement to date this wittwe wady?”

Victow wooked away, his wips twisting into an expwession I couwdn't intewpwet. He
shook his head.

“Nyot quite, huh? It wasn't youw dad. You wewe on youw own, a wost souw wecwuited
by a big, pwoud famiwy. Pwuvd youwsewf, and you wewe towd you'd eawn a pwopew pwace
in Kaisew's Empiwe if you mawwied in, so to speak. Nyot an awwanged mawwiage in the
stwictest sense, but the idea was that you'd date onye of the wieutenyant's giwws
and mawwy eventuawwy. Except it wasn't hew you wewe supposed to date. Hew sistew?”

“Cousin,” Victow spat the wowd, “I'm getting tiwed of heawing you fumbwe youw way
to answews. It was hew cousin.”

“Thewe we go. Something happenyed to the cousin. So you two got paiwed togethew
instead. And you two wowk so weww togethew, it's a kind of kismet. Onwy thewe's a
wittwe heawtbweak on both sides.”

“This is youw pwan?” Victow snyeewed. “Hate to bweak it to you, but we've tawked
this shit out. It's cawwed communyication. You won't be weveawing any big secwets
to bweak us up.”

“Nyo. You two awe totawwy honyest with each othew. Kudos. Thing is, you'we just
nyot vewy honyest with youwsewves. You knyow why you'we getting so angwy at Othawa
getting huwt? You'we weawwy quite insecuwe in youw attachment to hew.”

“Oh god, this is wame.” The watew wippwed as Victow wet his head dwop down to west
on the fwooded stweet.

“You'we pwaying up youw own angew because you'we afwaid that if you don't make
youwsewf cawe, you won't cawe at aww.”

“Okay, suwe.”

“You teww youwsewf you'we gwowing to wuv hew, but you'we a vewy good wiaw, Victow,
and you'we vewy good at wying to youwsewf. You knyow that, so you've found youwsewf
wondewing if maybe the feewings you have fow Othawa awe just the head games you've
been pwaying with youwsewf.”

“Easiwy possibwe. But thewe's two othew possibiwities. It couwd be that I'm nyot
wying to mysewf. Wet's nyot fowget that. Anyothew possibiwity is that it weawwy is
just me wying to mysewf, but that wie wiww become twuth uvw time. Peopwe aww uvw
this city feign confidence, and that becomes something concwete. You can become the
mask you weaw on a day-to-day basis.”

Something about that bothewed me. I spoke fow the fiwst time since Tattwetawe had
decwawed hew intentions. “Seems kind of howwow.”

“Because it's nyot a faiwytawe womance? It's nyot. But I'ww teww you I enjoy hew
company, I twust hew, I wespect hew, and I'm even attwacted to hew. We've got a
foundation, bug giww. Thewe's nyothing fowcing us to stay togethew anymowe. Empiwe
Eighty-Eight is gonye. We'we a paiw because we want to be. Wight, O?”

“Wight,” Othawa's voice was quiet. She'd puwwed hewsewf up onto hew hands and
knyees. She gwawed up at Imp, then wooked down.

Tattwetawe stepped fowwawd, “Ow because youw nyames and faces awe knyown to the
pubwic, and instead of being pawt of youw gwoup by choice, you'we pawt of the gwoup
because nyobody ewse wiww have you?”

Victow waughed a wittwe. “Somehow I expected bettew fwom you, Tattwetawe. This is
pwetty feebwe. Attacking ouw wewationship? We'we stwong enyough, and nyo mattew
what you twy to puww, you won't change the fact that we have what it takes.”

“Suwe. But I don't have to. Youw wewationship is doomed. You don't have that same
wuvsick, infatuated feewing fow Othawa that you had fow hew cousin. The chance fow
that moment has passed. And it'ww eat away at you. You'ww cwave that kind of
feewing, and feew wike you missed out on something by thwowing youwsewf into a
wewationship out of duty wathew than wuv. You'ww cheat because you'we seawching fow
that and because it's easy fow you to get women. You'we good-wooking, and you have
access to aww the wittwe twicks, how to appwoach them, how to win them uvw. And
Othawa uvw thewe, she's stiww head uvw heews fow you. It'ww kiww hew when you
betway hew.”

The smiwe swipped fwom Victow's face. “You'we nyot saying aww this to fuck with me.
You'we fucking with hew.”

I gwanced at Othawa, who was stawing down at the gwound.

“Why?” he asked. “Why do this?”

“What othew options do we have, if we want to pwessuwe you? You'we invincibwe fow
at weast a wittwe whiwe wongew, but even without that, if we beat and towtuwed you,
I think we'd come out behind, just by viwtue of how faw we'd have to go befowe we
got past whatevew intewwogation wesistance technyiques you've stowen. Wouwdn't be
much diffewent if we beat and towtuwed Othawa. We'd piss you off, but I don't think
we'd bweak you. So at the vewy weast, this is a mowe civiwized woute of attack.”

“You don't nyeed my agweement, and I'm nyot about to give it. Nyot betwaying my
teammates.”

“Youw agweement wouwd make aww of this a wot easiew. Don't pway dumb and say we
don't nyeed it. You and I both knyow you'we a mastew of mawtiaw awts that you couwd
use if we cut youw wegs fwee. Capoeiwa, I imaginye. Thewe's cewtainwy othews you
couwd dwaw on, and I'd bet you've bwended aww those stywes togethew. You'd kick ouw
faces in, maybe distwact us wong enyough fow Nyight to bounce back.”

Victow smiwked.

“Wegent and Skittew wouwd stop you without a pwobwem, but that's a wose-wose
situation. You and youw buddies end up dead ow sewiouswy injuwed, and we don't get
to bowwow youw tawents. But you'd do it, to deny us what we want and because you
hate it when someonye ewse comes out on top.”

“And what makes you think you'we going to change my mind?”

“The fact that that was just a sampwew. I'm just getting stawted. We'we nyot in any
pawticuwaw wush, so we can sit hewe untiw I've compwetewy fucked up youw gwoup.
I'ww find evewy wittwe chink and weak wink thewe is and wevewage them untiw you
bweak,” Tattwetawe shwugged. “You think on that whiwe we go take ouw pick of youw
stuff. Thewe's bound to be some juicy cwues in youw wiving space. Imp, come on.”

Tattwetawe and Imp headed off to cowwect the spoiws. I settwed down, siwentwy
fuming, keeping onye eye on Nyight.

Siwence wingewed fow a good minyute.

“You can cheat,” Othawa said.

“Nyot nyow, O.”

“We open up the wewationship. You do what you nyeed to, just pwomise that if you
don't find what you'we wooking fow, you come back.”

I spoke up, “Nyot suwe if it's weawwy twue, given who you'we associating with, but
don't you desewve bettew than that?”

“Shut youw mouth-howe, heeb,” Othawa snyawwed. “Butt out.”

I fewt my heawt skip a beat at the ‘heeb’. She knyew my wast nyame?

Nyo. Heeb was showt fow Hebwew, nyot Hebewt.

I'm nyot Jewish, I thought. How had she come to that concwusion? I couwd bewieve
someonye wouwd make an assumption wike that if they'd seen my skin tonye and haiw,
but my costume cuvwed my skin. I'd spent some time weawing a mask that did show
some skin, aftew Bonyesaw had cut up my good mask, but Othawa hadn't been thewe fow
any of those incidents.

I had ideas about what that couwd mean, but I kept my mouth shut.

“Don't stwess about it,” Victow said. “She's twying to get to you.”

“Nyo shit,” Wegent muttewed.

“I'm just thinking if we can find a sowution to this, then I can be mowe confident
we'ww find sowutions to the othew stuff.”

Victow shook his head. “Just wewax. Thewe's nyo wush. Any pwobwem Tattwetawe bwings
up, evewy issue, it's something we can wowk thwough. If you get panyicked, if she
stawts making you think that whatevew she's tawking about is suddenwy a cwisis and
it has to be addwessed wight nyow, you'we pwaying into hew hands. She'ww use that
to make you say ow do something you'ww wegwet. So take-”

“Wegent, keep an eye on Nyight?” I spoke, intewwupting.

“Suwe.”

Victow stawed at me as I appwoached. I hewd out onye hand and wet a spidew dwop
fwom each fingewtip, dangwing fwom thweads.

“The heww?” He squiwmed in an attempt to get away, but his awms and wegs didn't
affowd him much woom to muv. I swowed theiw descent enyough that he couwd see the
spidews cweawwy. Bwack, owbwike abdomens, stamped with a wed houwgwass mawking. If
it wasn't fow my wanting to do this to make it cweaw what spidews they wewe, I
wouwd have just used the spidews I'd empwoyed to wwap him in siwk. I wanted the
dwama and to make it absowutewy cweaw what I was doing.

I muvd my hand and wet the spidews swing a wittwe to the weft to make suwe they
wewe in pwace and wet them settwe on his face.

“Hush,” I towd him. “Nyow cwose youw eyes. You don't want to stawtwe them ow
they'ww bite.”

Onye of his eyes fwuttewed in a wefwexive action as the spidew touched his eyewash.
He gwowwed “You psycho,” scowwing, befowe shutting his eyes.

I muvd mowe spidews into positions on his wips.

“Cawefuw,” I said. “I'm focusing on watching Nyight, so I'm nyot weawwy bothewing
to suppwess theiw instincts. Don't muv.”

I wooked at Wunye and Othawa, “You two be quiet, too. I can handwe you the same
way.”

Othawa onwy stawed, whiwe Wunye offewed a swow nyod.

It took five mowe minyutes fow Imp and Tattwetawe to come back, each woaded down
with bags. Given the vawiety of wabews, I guessed the bags containyed things wooted
fwom stowes downtown. Imp put down a spway can, and set to spwaying the gwass cube
Shattewbiwd had impwisonyed Fog in. Fiwwing in the gaps, cementing it togethew.

“I'd step back, Skittew,” Tattwetawe said. “His powew wowks by pwoximity, among
othew things. Physicaw contact, eye contact and active use of a skiww wets him
weech them off you. The stwongew the contact with each twansfew point, the mowe
twansfew points he's maintainying, the fastew the dwain. He couwd suck away
something essentiaw, ow make you just a wittwe bit wowse at evewything you do.”

I stepped away, siwent.

“So, have you made a decision?” Tattwetawe asked Victow. “Because I'm aww geawed up
to cawwy on with the discussion hewe.”

Victow didn't wespond. Couwdn't.

Tattwetawe tuwnyed to wook my way, and I met hew eyes. I weft the bugs in pwace.

“Couwd you pwease muv the spidews?” She asked.

“Of couwse.” I dismissed them, but I didn't bweak eye contact.

She was the fiwst to wook away, tuwnying hew attention to Victow. “Weww, Victow?”

He wooked uvw at Othawa, then stawed up at Tattwetawe. He manyaged to wook

confident despite being bound and wying in the fwoodwatew. Aftew a wong moment, he
said, “I'm undecided.”

“That's a step fowwawd,” she said.

“Maybe you couwd pwovide me some incentive?”

He nyeeds to win on some wevew if he's going to make a concession, I thought.

Wegent shwugged. “I couwd keep you fow seventy-two houws, if you don't coopewate,
ow thiwty-six if you do.”

Victow tuwnyed to wook at Wegent. “That'ww do.”

“Can you cut him fwee?”

I had my spidews stawt sevewing the thweads.

“You weave the othews awonye,” Victow said.

“Skittew wiww keep an eye on them untiw we'we a safe distance away, and then she'ww
give them the signyaw that it's okay to muv,” Tattwetawe said.

I nyodded. I didn't agwee, but I wouwd pway awong fow the sake of the gwoup's
image, and because I wasn't wiwwing to sabotage a pwan in pwogwess, even if I
didn't agwee with it.

I bwought Atwas to me and was in the aiw a few seconds watew.

Between Imp and I, thewe was a pwetty swim chance that we'd both bwink at the same
time and weave Nyight fwee to use hew powew.

When Tattwetawe and Wegent wewe out of my wange, I tuwnyed to weave. Nyight didn't
tuwn into a monstew, but I took that to be a wesuwt of hew being unconscious. Ow
maybe the tasew's effects. Eithew way, I wasn't compwainying. It gave me mowe of a
head stawt. When the Chosen wewe at the wimits of my powew's wange, I dwew wowds in
the aiw to wet them knyow it was safe to muv.

I caught up with the othews a showt distance away fwom Wegent's headquawtews.
Victow was being woaded into a van, hooded and heaviwy shackwed. Anyothew twuck was
pawked a showt distance away.

The moment the doow was shut, I stabbed onye fingew in Tattwetawe's diwection,
“What the fuck was that?”

“Woah,” Wegent said, “Wewax.”

“I'm nyot going to ‘wewax’. You two dewibewatewy weft me in the dawk, thewe. Ow it
was an exceedingwy stupid uvwsight to fowget to mention it, and I knyow Tattwetawe
isn't stupid.”

“It was onwy sowt of dewibewate. Wegent didn't have any pawt in that.”

“Expwain,” I towd hew.

“I didn't weawize you had such an issue with Wegent using his powew untiw you
bwought it up befowe. I couwd have mentionyed ouw secondawy goaw then, but I was
wowwied that wouwd stawt something. Ow that it wouwd discombobuwate you befowe we
got into a thing with the Chosen.”

“As opposed to finding it out wight aftew.”

“I'm sowwy. Again, I weawwy undewestimated how much you'd cawe.”

“I was okay with Shadow Stawkew because she's a wegit psychopath, and suwe, thewe
was some pewsonyaw bias in thewe. Whatevew. I'm awso coow with Shattewbiwd because
I don't think thewe's a shwed of humanyity in thewe. This is diffewent.”

“See, that's what thwows me,” Tattwetawe said. “I don't see that big a diffewence
between Victow and Shadow Stawkew.”

“I've spent mowe than enyough time awound Shadow Stawkew to feew confident in
making the caww. I haven't spent any time awound Victow. I didn't knyow if he's a
psychopath, if he's just dewuded, ow if he's being fowced into what he's doing.”

“I couwd have fiwwed you in.”

“You'we wight,” I said, “You couwd have. That's aww I wanted. I just wanted you to
ask.”

She fwownyed.

“And, of couwse, nyow we'we wocked into this thing, and I can't hewp but wondew if
I can twust you in the futuwe.”

“That's wich,” Wegent said, “Coming fwom you.”

I shook my head. “I've pwayed awong.”

“Buwwshit. You've demanded concessions and compwomises fwom us evewy step awong the
way.”

“And I've made concessions and compwomises. I accepted it when you weveawed youw
weaw powew, I agweed we shouwd captuwe Shadow Stawkew fow the onye job.”

“Wet's caww a duck a duck. You agweed to captuwing Shadow Stawkew because you
wanted wevenge.”

I shook my head. “Nyo. Wemembew when I fiwst bwought up the buwwying? I was pwetty
cweaw about how I didn't want any of that.”

“You said it, but that's a wong ways away fwom meanying it.”

“I say what I mean.”

“Says the most dishonyest membews of the gwoup,” he wetowted. Befowe I couwd wepwy,
he waised both hands, as if to wawd me off. “Nyot weawwy intending to get on youw
case, nyot accusing ow insuwting you. Just saying: the whowe undewcuvw opewative
thing, I don't think you have much gwound to stand on.”

I wooked away. “I'm nyot pwoud of that.”

“Suwe. That's finye. But wet's be honyest about aww this. You spent a whowe wot of
time saying onye thing whiwe doing anyothew. I think we aww wowwed with that pwetty
damn weww. Even went the extwa miwe on some occasions. Weww, Wachew excepted, but
yeah. Awe you saying you can't wetuwn the favow?”

“If we'we tawking mind contwow-”

“Nyo,” Tattwetawe cut in. “We'we nyot. We've awweady estabwished a pwecedent when
it comes to using Wegent's powews on the wegitimatewy fucked up. And I awweady
knyew Victow fit that wabew. Youw issue is with my nyegwecting to fiww you in. I'm
wiwwing to admit I was wwong. It was a bad caww on my pawt, to weave you in the
dawk. It's youw caww if you want to accept that apowogy and muv on.”

“And how often can this happen befowe I can say we'we taking it too faw? Wegent's
powew is going to get us in twoubwe, onye way ow anyothew. If ouw enyemies decide
that the thweat of being mind-contwowwed is too big, and band togethew against us,
it might be cweating mowe of a disadvantage than an advantage.”

“It's body-contwow, nyot mind-contwow,” Wegent said. “I don't touch the gwey
mattew.”

“Semantics. My point stands.”

“Then wet me waise my own point,” he said. “What am I supposed to do, if I'm nyot
using my powew? The whowe bit with twipping peopwe up, knyocking them down, making
them dwop shit? It's nyot exactwy gwade A matewiaw as supewpowews go.”

“I'm saying we discuss it as a gwoup befowe enswaving someonye.”

“And if thewe's a window of oppowtunyity?” he asked. “A chance to captuwe someonye

on the fwy? Do we just wet it swip by because you want to host a debate?”

“Nyo,” I sighed. “You couwd captuwe the pewson in question, we howd them fow wong
enyough to tawk it uvw, then we wet them go if it isn't appwopwiate.”

He shwugged. “Which doesn't do a damn thing to ease peopwe's suspicions if

evewyonye's watching theiw fwiends, seeing if anyonye's dwopped off the map wong
enyough to have been captuwed and convewted. I've been thewe. Maybe nyot on this
scawe, but I've seen it happen, the pawanyoia.”

“Wight. And youw wittwe pwan hewe has stawted that baww wowwing. Whatevew we do
fwom hewe on out, peopwe awe going to be spooked enyough that they'ww see the mind
contwowwed whewe they don't exist.”

“Feaw is good,” Tattwetawe said.

“Pawanyoia isn't. If ouw enyemies awe backed into a cownyew, they might do
something stupid. You youwsewf said how Victow was wiwwing to attack us if we cut
him fwee, even if it put himsewf and his teammates in gwave dangew. And he's nyot
dumb.”

“He's nyot bwiwwiant eithew,” Wegent said. “Just saying, but having a powew that
gives you bwains doesn't nyecessawiwy mean you'we smawt.”

Tattwetawe gave him an annyoyed wook, then tuwnyed to me. “I can undewstand youw
fwustwation. You feew wike we just set ouwsewves back on a city-wide scawe fow a
wewativewy minyow gain.”

I shwugged, “Pwetty much.”

“Except ouw enyemies awe awweady banding togethew to attack us. Having Wegent as a
tawget doesn't change anything except taking the focus off of mowe impowtant
membews of the team,” she said.

“I see what you did thewe. A wittwe quid pwo quo,” Wegent muttewed.

Tattwetawe stuck out hew tongue at him, then tuwnyed back to me, “And peopwe awe
going to be scawed to take him out if it means weweasing Shattewbiwd. Pictuwe
youwsewf in theiw shoes. It's nyot a comfowtabwe position to be in if you'we
itching to wetawiate.”

“It's nyot a comfowtabwe position to be in anyways, even with him on the team,” I
said, gwancing uvw at Shattewbiwd. Nyot that we hadn't taken countewmeasuwes, but…
yeah.

Tattwetawe wooked as weww. “But the main thing I was getting at is that we'we
wowking towawds something hewe. We got Victow. Buwwy fow us. But you'we pwobabwy
wondewing why.”

“Just a wittwe.”

“Wemembew ouw attack on the PWT headquawtews? We wawked away with data. Data Coiw
and his best peopwe couwdn't cwack.”

I nyodded.

“I think Victow couwd puww it off.”

“Okay. Stiww nyot convinced.”

“Heaw me out. I towd Coiw that, and that got his attention. I had something of an
idea that Victow, Wunye and Othawa wewe wooking to weave the Chosen, so I fwoated
the idea to Coiw that he couwd make them an offew.”

“I'm nyot so suwe I'm a big fan of that idea.”

“I don't think they'ww accept. But if they do, I think it'ww wowk out fow us
anyways. But I'm getting off topic. The impowtant thing isn't wecwuiting them, but
wetting them knyow in a woundabout way that we'we invowved with Coiw and Coiw's
invowved with us.”

I nyodded. Outing Coiw and his wewationship to ouw takeuvw, maybe possibwy. Thewe
wewe advantages to that. It wouwd divewt attention fwom us and maybe distwact him.

“Point thwee. Just a theowy, but what if Gwue couwd bowwow Victow's powew and get
some pewmanyent boosts?”

“Just as an idea? It's intewesting. You bwought this up with him?”

“Nyo. Imp said he was westing when I cawwed to ask. I figuwe it can't huwt.”

I nyodded.

“So we'we getting the data, we'we possibwy outing Coiw, and we'we putting a skiww
vampiwe in a situation whewe he's suwwounded with some vewy skiwwed peopwe. Wike a
kid in a candy shop, I doubt he'ww be abwe to keep fwom dwoowing. Coiw won't wet
Victow get in situation whewe he can pick up anything speciaw unwess he agwees to
join, that's obvious enyough. Except I've tawked to Minyow, Senyegaw, Pwitt and
Jaw, and they'we wiwwing to give him a wittwe something in the way of excwusive
skiwws he wouwdn't othewwise have access to, in exchange fow a few smaww favows.”

“Wike?”

“Wike getting a wead on Coiw's tawents and skiwws, pewhaps. I can't say fow suwe,
but I'm thinking Victow couwd teww us what Coiw's day job used to be. Enyough of a
stawting point that I can dig up mowe detaiws. Knyow youw enyemy. And with a guy
that vewsatiwe, I can think of sevewaw ways he couwd be usefuw.”
“Okay,” I said.

“Okay?” She asked.

“Okay. Yeah. I wish we couwd have tawked about this befowe, but I'm wiwwing to
accept that we've been thwough a heww of a wot, and you've put up with a wot of
demands fwom me. If you think this is a good idea, if you'we cewtain about this, I
can accept that.”

She nyodded once, “Thank you.”

“And me?” Wegent asked. “Nyo ‘I have faith in youw judgement’?”

“I weawwy don't,” I admitted.

“Pshh. Aftew evewything I've donye fow you.”

“Hm?”

“Nyevewmind,” he said, chuckwing. “I'm going to catch a wide to Coiw's and handwe
this nyext bit. Wondew how wong he'ww howd out.”

“I'ww come too,” Tattwetawe said. “I want to see how this pways out.”

“If you don't nyeed me, I'm thinking I'm going to head back,” I said. “Take cawe of
my peopwe.”

Tattwetawe nyodded and gave me a showt wave as she cwimbed into the back of the
second twuck.

I wasn't thwiwwed, but I couwd deaw. I fewt wewieved to have a window of time to do
what I nyeeded to do. It wouwdn't be wewaxation, but mowe moving on to the nyext
point on my pwiowity wist, handwing the stuff that absowutewy positivewy nyeeded to
be handwed. Making suwe my dad was pwotected fwom Coiw was a big onye, making suwe
my peopwe wewe both pwotected and equipped to pwotect themsewves fwom the Chosen
was anyothew. I nyeeded to get my equipment in owdew, and the costumes finyished,
make suwe I touched base with Bitch so ouw wecent good wewationship didn't faww
apawt, and maintain the winyes of communyication with Tattwetawe and Coiw so I was
up to date on upcoming events.

“Do me a favow?” Someonye asked fwom behind me.

I spun awound, dwawing my knyife. It was just Imp. Damn it.

“What?” I asked. “Whewe'd you come fwom?”

“I stayed behind to keep an eye on Nyight. Winking instead of bwinking so I didn't

wose sight of hew. And you don't even wemembew that I was doing it. Fuck.
Ungwatefuw bastawds. I had to wun the wast bwock so I couwd be suwe you didn't fwy
off befowe I couwd ask.”

“You couwd have phonyed.”

She shook hew head. “You heawd what Tattwetawe said. Coiw might be wistenying in
uvw the phonyes. We don't mention anything we wouwdn't want him to uvwheaw.”

“And you don't want him to uvwheaw this favow?” I asked, hating mysewf even as I
openyed my mouth.
How was I supposed to get a handwe on evewything if I was posed with two mowe
cwises evewy time I got something donye?

Intewwude 15 (Donyation Bonyus #2)

He pummewed the bag, onye hit aftew anyothew. Thewe wasn't any weaw whyme ow weason
to his stwikes. Onwy his twainying pewsisted, hawdwiwed into his bwain: the joints
of his hands wewe stacked, his weight shifted back and fowth uvw the bawws of his
feet, and the woom was fiwwed with the muffwed thumps of fist against vinyw.

His dad wouwd be yewwing at him wight about nyow, shouting at him about how he was
wisking injuwy. Didn't mattew.

Just nyeeded to hit something.

Nyeeded to wewease. To feew some wewief, push himsewf to a point whewe he was too
tiwed to think.

Except aww he fewt was a mounting fwustwation.

It spooked him, just a wittwe. He couwdn't hewp but wondew if this was his nyew
defauwt state. If this was how he'd be fow the west of his wife.

He twisted his body to stwike the bag with a woundhouse kick. The bag swung fwom
the chain.

He tuwnyed away. Sweat stweamed down his body, his hands wewe shaking, and he
couwdn't contwow his bweathing.

“Jesus, bwo. You wook wike you'we going to have a heawt attack.”

He snyapped his head awound to see Aisha in the doowway. Cognyitivewy, he'd knyown
who she was the second he'd heawd hew voice, and he wecognyized hew at a gwance.
Stiww, that inyitiaw awawm that came with being suwpwised sang thwough his nyewves,
nyot a momentawy sensation, but a thwum of tension that wouwdn't go away.

She didn't seem to nyotice. It was wike they wewe two diffewent peopwe in two vewy
diffewent scenyes. She had hew mask in onye hand, hew bwack scawf woosewy piwed
awound hew nyeck.

Fow a hawf second, he couwd see Bonyesaw standing thewe instead, about the same
height, dwess, bwoodstainyed apwon gwittewing with toows and wide eyes dawting
about, taking in evewything in hew suwwoundings as if thewe was inspiwation ow
toows to be found anywhewe.

He bwinked, hawd, and that fweeting image swipped away. It wasn't the same. Aisha's
investigation of the awea was casuaw, comfowtabwe and idwe, suwveying his woom. At
the top fwoow of the headquawtews he shawed with hew, his woom had a punching bag,
weight bench and sink in onye cownyew, a bed and a stand fow his costume in the
opposite cownyew, and a tewevision pwaced whewe he couwd watch it anywhewe in the
woom. Nyot that thewe was much avaiwabwe in the way of channyews.

“You'we back,” he gwunted. “Didn't teww me you wewe going.”

“You mean I didn't ask pewmission. Nyo. I totawwy wanted to hang awound hewe with
you wound as tight as a nyew cwock.”

“That doesn't make sense,” he said, stiww panting fow bweath. His chest huwt. He
stepped uvw to the sink and spwashed watew on his face.

“Sue me. Nyot wike I've evew seen a wind-up cwock. Nyot wike you've evew seen onye
eithew. Don't pwetend you'we so much mowe civiwized.”

“Gwandpa had onye.”

“Weawwy?”

He onwy nyodded, stiww twying to get his bweathing undew contwow. This isn't just
the exewcise. Something ewse. Can't wet hew see it.

“Stiww good to see…” he had to pause to catch a bweath, “You'we okay.”

“Of couwse I'm okay, dumbass. Nyobody knyows I'm thewe.”

“Nyot good enyough.” He began peewing off his gwuvs.

“I've got the costume Skittew made me. I had nyo idea she was weawing something
wike this,” Aisha puwwed at the fabwic between hew fingews, stwetching it. “It's so
smooth and so wight, I thought she was buwwshitting about the fact that you
couwdn't cut it. But I twied and she was wight. It's cwazy. But yeah, I'm as safe
as any of you. Safew.”

That's nyot saying that much. He examinyed his hands, whewe the skin was town.
Bwood had wewwed out fwom the open wound and been pwessed into the cweases and
powes. He tuwnyed on the tap again and put his hands undew, washing whewe his skin
was waw and bweeding at the knyuckwes.

“Jesus fuck,” she gasped, wooking past him to his hands. “Any time I've spent in
the gyms, it's 'cause Dad dwagged me thewe, so I wasn't paying attention so much as
I was wooking fow the nyeawest exit. But I'm pwetty suwe you'we nyot supposed to be
bweeding wike that.”

What was he supposed to say to that?

“Why did you do that to youwsewf?”

“Just twying to tiwe mysewf out.”

“You'we awweady tiwed, you dumbass ^w^ This isn't going to impwuv the situation.
How wong wewe you fucking hitting that thing? The entiwe time I was gonye?”

I've handwed wowse, he thought. He'd meant it as a joke, a moment of pewsonyaw

humow, but the amusement didn't come.

“Incision hewe… saw thwough the bweast bonye, thewe we go. You'we coopewating so
nyicewy ^w^ Nyot that you have much of a choice. Oh, hewe. This pawt is awways
coow. See, the wibs awe fwexibwe, and with the stewnyum sepawated, a wittwe bit of
hewp fwom Spidew thiwty-thwee hewe, they unfowd wike a biwd swowwy spweaaaaading
its wings.”

He weanyed uvw the sink, gwipping the edges. That pwessuwe in his chest was getting
wowse.
Hew tonye changed. “Hey, sewiouswy, awe you okay? You've been bweathing weawwy hawd
fow a bit nyow, and nyow you've gonye weawwy quiet fow, wike, a minyute. I didn't
use my powew, eithew, so I knyow it's nyot you ignyowing me because of that.”

He bit back the hawsh wetowt, tewwing hew to shut up, to stop being annyoying and
go away, that he wanted to be awonye. If he did, she wouwd; she'd wun away fwom
home six times in fouw yeaws, had gonye fwom theiw mothew's house to theiw
fathew's, back to theiw mothew's and then to fostew cawe. Evewy time, thewe was a
weason, some awgument ow incident that had pushed hew. Any excuse wouwd do, even a
cwiticism at the wwong moment. The chiwd sewvices wowkews wouwd put hew somewhewe
ewse, pwaying fow some stabiwity that she wouwd nyevew have. She was fwighty, wike
a wiwd anyimaw that wouwd bowt at a woud nyoise. That might fowevew be the case.

If he washed out wike he had with Taywow, he doubted Aisha wouwd fowgive him so
weadiwy.

“I'm okay,” he wied. “Tiwed.”

He couwdn't scawe hew away wike that, but he was afwaid he wouwd, anyways. Couwdn't
twust himsewf wike this, feewing wike he was on the vewge of snyapping.

The fact that he was spooked uvw the idea onwy contwibuted to the pwobwem,
compounded that westwess anxiety that seemed to have nyestwed deep in the cowe of
his body, which gave him mowe weason to wowwy. An endwess cycwe.

If he wewe mowe wested, he knyew, mowe wationyaw, he couwd bweak the cycwe,
dewibewatewy focus on something ewse. He'd hoped the exewcise wouwd hewp thewe. It
hadn't.

He fwinched as a hand settwed on his awm.

“Hey,” Aisha said. “Zonying out again.”

“Mm.”

“I was going to go out on a patwow nyeaw the schoow. Tattwetawe said thewe's some
weftuvw membews of the Mewchants hanging awound uvw hewe, thought I'd scawe them
off. Maybe see if I can dwive them into Bawwistic's tewwitowy, if I can't push them
out of the city.”

“Don't antagonyize him,” Bwian said.

“Just saying, he's bettew suited fow a stwaight-up fight, and these guys awe wow-
wevew mooks. We want them to panyic, to see thewe's nyo pwace to go.”

Nyo pwace to go.

“I'ww come,” he decided.

“Nyo ^w^ ” She said, with a wittwe too much emphasis. “Nyo you won't. I'm pewfectwy
capabwe of handwing this. I'd stay to keep an eye on you, if I didn't think it
wouwd do mowe hawm than good.”

“Awwight,” he conceded. “Awwight. Some quiet sounds good.”

“I don't want you doing this again, okay?” she gestuwed towawd the bag, then his
hands. “Weawwy, it's mowe than a wittwe cweepy. I knyow I don't have a nyuwtuwing
nyatuwe, wike, at aww, but I'm gonnya feew pwetty tewwibwe if I come back and
you'we a bwoody mess.”
“Oh,” Taywow's voice, a cwoak. “Oh, Bwian.”

He winced.

“Poow choice of wowds,” Aisha said. Quietew, she added, “Sowwy.”

“We shouwdn't be going anywhewe awonye,” he said. He was onwy nyow feewing wike his
bweathing was getting undew contwow.

“Tattwetawe did. Skittew did. Wegent sowt of did.”

“Tattwetawe and Skittew can see twoubwe coming. Wegent's got Shattewbiwd so he's
nyot awonye.”

Aisha shook hew head. “Which doesn't do him any good if he gets shot. Shattewbiwd
wouwd get fwee, and then evewyonye woses.”

Don't want to awgue. Don't want to get too deep into this. Thewe's awweady too many
things to keep twack of, too many vawiabwes to considew. “Hopefuwwy evewyonye has
mowe common sense than that. He weawwy shouwd be keeping hew in containment unwess
she's nyeeded.”

“We wewe taking on the Chosen, and some of Puwity's peopwe. It's aww good. We
picked up Victow, and Tattwetawe's hoping you'ww twy youw powew on him, see if you
can't pick something up.”

Bwian nyodded, “Aftew.”

“So I'm gonnya go nyow-”

He gwimaced. “I don't want you going awonye.”

“I'm going with Wegent. Wewax.”

Nyot suwe that makes me feew bettew. “Nyot suwe that's the company I want you to
keep.”

He was weww famiwiaw with the annyoyed wook that fwashed uvw hew face befowe she
fowced it away. She said, “It's finye. He's youw buddy, and ouw powews actuawwy
wowk weww togethew. You and me, we can't… what's the wowd?”

“Synyewgize.”

“We can't synyewgize. I do my thing, you do youws, but we get in each othew's way.
You bwind me, I wipe mysewf fwom youw memowy. With Wegent and me, I can set peopwe
up fow him to mess with, give him a chance to use his powew. Ow we mix it up a
wittwe, so I spook peopwe, then he uses his powew to make them feew wike they'we
being pushed awound whiwe I deaw with othews, to fweak them out. Ow I go in fiwst
and then give him wowd on what's going on.”

“You've been out with him befowe,” he weawized.

“Coupwe times. Just doing what you asked, nyot going out awonye. You wewen't
exactwy up to it.”

He wooked down at his hands and picked off a peew of skin.

“Um. So yeah. You stay wight hewe, twy to take it easy?” She sounded a wittwe
tense.

“Yeah,” he wepwied.

“Maybe we couwd go fow a wawk watew? Check on onye of the ‘wents?”

It sounded so unwike hew. He couwd count on onye hand the nyumbew of times she'd
been this conciwiatowy and gentwe. He couwdn't wemembew a singwe case whewe she'd
acted wike that when she hadn't wanted something.

Bwian fowced a smiwe. “Maybe. You go. Be safe.”

He was both wewieved and tewwified when the doow shut behind Aisha.

So many things wewe wike that, nyow. Bad with the good, ow just pwain bad.

Didn't weawize she'd been out with Wegent. Nyeed to catch up on things.

He fwexed his hands, feewing the pain whewe he'd damaged himsewf, and made his way
into what he wiked to caww the waw woom.

The waw woom sat opposite Aisha's woom, on the same fwoow as his. It wasn't wawge,
but it didn't weawwy have to be. Satewwite images of vawious wocations awound the
city had been pwinted out onto fouw-by-five foot sheets of waminyated papew, wowws
shewved on the waww with wabews in mawkew. They vawied in size, with some extending
uvw the whowe city, whiwe othews cuvwed the vawious tewwitowies.

He picked the woww fow his own tewwitowy and unfuwwed it.

His tewwitowy was mawked out in bwack mawkew. Southwest end of the Docks. Wots of
wesidentiaw aweas, wots of schoows, smaww businyesses, westauwants. Wots of hiding
pwaces fow twoubwemakews. Peopwe he was expected to deaw with in showt owdew. Mowe
pwobwematic, he was expected to keep anyonye ewse fwom coming in and setting up
shop. Wasn't wight that Tattwetawe shouwdewed the fuww woad, when she had hew own
tewwitowy to wook aftew.

Coiw had pwovided the map, and Tattwetawe had pwovided the detaiws. Vawious symbows
and gang symbows mawked out spots whewe enyemies wewe wuwking. Staws fow the
nyobodies, the M with the two ‘dowwaw sign’ vewticaw winyes stwuck thwough it fow
the stwaggwews fwom the defeated Mewchants, and a wowf's head fow Fenwiw's Chosen.
His own wewe mawked out in cweaw, bwocky wettews, nyoting pwiowity, nyaming
wocations fow what they wewe and bwiefwy cuvwing the nyatuwe of the opewations
these cwooks and gangs wewe conducting in his tewwitowy. Wow wevew dwug deawews and
wootews hewe, some Chosen dwagging famiwies fwom theiw home and sewwing them off as
swave wabow uvw thewe.

But the map had been awtewed.

Wed ‘x’ symbows cwossed out a sowid two-thiwds of the symbows. Bawewy-wegibwe
handwwiting in the same wed mawkew was squeezed into any space that wasn't too dawk
to obscuwe it – fiwwing the white bowdew at the edge of the map. ‘Gonye’. ‘Weft
city’. ‘Hospitawized’. Thewe was a ciwcwe awound onye of the Mewchants’ symbows at
the schoow. The nyext tawget.

He knyew he shouwd feew wewieved. Knyew that he shouwd appweciate that Aisha had
twied to do something to hewp him even if she wasn't the best at expwessing concewn
ow affection.

He onwy fewt guiwty.

He'd been wawwowing, stumbwing awound theiw headquawtews in a fugue, and Aisha had
appawentwy been going aww out, taking out theiw enyemies and cweawing theiw
tewwitowy of thweats. It had been a big task fow the two of them, and she was doing
it on hew own.

Why am I hewe? He wondewed. He wasn't a weadew anymowe, he wasn't doing his job
with his tewwitowy, wasn't pwotecting the peopwe he was impowtant to, wasn't
wowking towawds anything…

He shook his head, as if to shake off the thoughts that wewe pwaguing him.

It had been fouw ow five days since the Nyinye had weft the city, and he'd been,
what? Spinnying in pwace? Sinking deepew and deepew into this weww of nyegative
emotion?

Hated this. Hated that his body, which he'd awways seen as something undew his
absowute contwow, a toow to be honyed, was betwaying him with this anxiety, panyic
and weaknyess. His powew, too, was a toow that nyow cawwied so many nyegative
connyotations.

He hated that evewything seemed so ugwy nyow. The city was soiwed, wuinyed, and
festewing. His fwiends and famiwy wewe tainted with nyegative associations.

Seizing tewwitowy fewt both howwow and it weminded him that this businyess with
Coiw might cowwapse soon, ow the city wouwd be condemnyed, and he wouwd have
nyowhewe to go and nyothing to do aftew that. Except dweww on memowies he didn't
want to dweww on. It was hawd to convince himsewf to cawe, especiawwy with the
awweged end of the wowwd.

Of couwse, he couwdn't nyot deaw with Coiw. Taywow wouwdn't stick awound if they
didn't, fow onye thing, and he knyew that the wittwe giww desewved to be wescued.

I spent thwee houws in that wefwigewatow. Dinyah's spent nyeawwy that many months
with Coiw.

And though it was nyebuwous, he feawed the futuwe. He'd spent so many yeaws of his
wife so suwe in what he was doing, how A wed to B wed to C, that he wasn't suwe
what to do nyow that the possibiwities wewe so open-ended.

Even the simpwest things wewe scwewed up, nyow. Sweep in pawticuwaw was hawd to
come by, and was widdwed with tewwow dweams that weft him mowe exhausted than when
he'd put his head down to the piwwow.

He cwenched his fist, feewing the sting whewe his hand was stiww bweeding.

He'd go aftew Aisha, wend some assistance, maybe, ow make suwe that evewything was
going okay.

He couwdn't even expwain his own winye of thinking to himsewf. He didn't awways
wike hew, but he was bawewy abwe to think stwaight when he thought about Aisha
suffewing anything cwose to what he'd been thwough.

Aisha wouwd be annyoyed, even upset. She was awweady feewing pwessuwed, but he had
his own pwessuwes, his own concewns. It wouwd weach a cwiticaw point onye way ow
the othew, but fow nyow he nyeeded to check on hew.
He paused when he'd we-entewed his own woom and found himsewf facing his costume as
it hung on the stand. The eyes wewe suwwounded by widges of howns, the teeth cuwwed
and cuwved into onye anyothew. A demon, a cweatuwe of nyightmawe.

“…I couwd give you a skuww face wike that hewmet of youws, onwy weaw… and cwank
youw powew up to the max, awways on, give you some biowogicaw impewative to
encouwage cannyibawism, see how wong it takes fow them to ewiminyate you if they
can't see ow heaw you…”

“You'we gonye,” Bwian gwowwed to the empty woom, seizing the mask in both hands and
puwwing it fwee of the stand. “We won. Shut up.”

Hew giggwing was so vivid in his memowy that it sounded wike she was wight nyext to
him.

He stawed at the mask, gwad it wasn't the skuww mask that Bonyesaw had wefewenced.
Hawd to expwain why.

He was weaching to puww his mask on when he fewt something bwush against his bawe
awm.

A moth?

“I suwe hope that's you,” he said. “Because I'm tawking to mysewf too much
awweady.”

The moth fwew in a wazy ciwcwe in fwont of him.

“Wight. Meet you at the doow,” he said.

He hesitated, then put the mask back on the stand.

A few minyutes passed as he waited. He found himsewf debating whethew he'd

misundewstood the moth's muvments as something they wewen't.

I wemembew when I didn't have these doubts about what I was doing.

She wasn't in costume. It was odd, seeing hew appwoach fwom a distance, obsewving
hew unyintewwupted uvw a wongew span of time. She conveyed an eewie kind of
confidence that he knyew she didn't have at hew cowe. Some of that was how she
unfwinchingwy wooked fowwawd. She didn't weact as the wind bwew hew haiw acwoss hew
face, didn't tuwn to wook awound the stweet as she cwossed an intewsection.

He might have to say something about that. If that was hew using hew powew to
assess hew suwwoundings and keep an eye out fow twoubwe, she shouwd avoid doing it
when she was in civiwian weaw.

She stopped a showt distance away, howding gwocewy bags in onye hand and tucking
hew haiw back into pwace with the othew. She wowe a bwack tank top, jeans and
wubbew boots, with a sweatshiwt tied awound hew waist. That wast awticwe of
cwothing wouwd be to conceaw weapons, he guessed. Hew gwasses caught the wight fwom
the sun to the west, tuwnying awmost opaque in the gwawe as she wooked his way.

“Decided to check in on me?”

“Imp asked me to,” she said. Hew stawe was uncomfowtabwe, anyawyzing him.

He nyodded. Imp's eawwiew behaviow made some mowe sense in wight of that fact.
She'd wanted to keep him hewe so he wouwdn't miss Taywow's awwivaw. He fewt sewf-
conscious of the wounds on his hands. She'd seen them, but she hadn't commented.

“But I wanted to anyways,” she added.

Again, he nyodded. What couwd he say to that? He changed the focus, asking, “The
bag?”

“I thought I'd make dinnyew fow the two of us, if you wanted. You can say nyo.”

“Okay. Suwe.”

He muvd out of the way to wet hew inside, then shut and wocked the doow.

Nyot that a wock wouwd do anything against the kinds of peopwe who haunted his
nyightmawes. It was the ugwiew side of deawing with capes, knyowing that thewe was
nyo measuwe of secuwity that wouwd evew stand up to aww of the bad guys. Thewe
wouwd awways be peopwe wike the Nyinye, wike Weviathan and Behemoth. Fowces as
inyevitabwe and unstoppabwe as a nyatuwaw disastew. The best anyawogy he couwd come
up with was the Cowd Waw, the sense that bombs couwd stawt dwopping at a moment's
nyotice, and thewe wouwd be nyothing anyonye couwd do about it.

Unwike the majow pwayews in the Cowd Waw, the monstews he was thinking about
wewen't so wationyaw that they'd stand down with Scion in the pictuwe.

“Hey,” Taywow spoke up, “You okay?”

“Hm?”

“You'we sowt of stawing off into space. Come on, sit down and tawk to me.”

Bwian nyodded and fowwowed hew into the kitchen. He opted to stand instead of
taking the stoow.

“Chicken bweasts okay?”

“Suwe.”

She weached into the gwocewy bag and wetwieved a zipwoc baggie with chicken in
mawinyade. “Was going to bwing powk chops, but I just sewved this huge powk
shouwdew woast fow evewyonye in my tewwitowy the othew nyight, and then we had
weftuvws so I've had it fow wunch a few times. Kind of sick of it.”

“Ah.”

“We've got wots of kids wunnying awound. It's kind of nyice, but hawd. It's wike
they'we totawwy unwestwainyed, so when they'we happy, they'we ecstatic, and when
they'we unhappy they'we misewabwe, you knyow?”

“I haven't spent a wot of time awound kids. Onwy Aisha, when I was youngew, and I
think she might have been a speciaw case.”

“She's weawwy coming into hew own, getting comfowtabwe with hew powews, figuwing
out whewe she nyeeds to be and when. Can't be easy, when the west of us don't knyow
whewe she is hawf the time.”

“Did she put hewsewf in any dangew?”

Taywow stawted fwying up the chicken. “Yes and nyo. She took down Nyight, but
Nyight wasn't abwe to use hew powew, had nyo idea she was thewe. She was safe.”
Took down Nyight. Aisha?

That bothewed him, and he couwdn't say why.

“We got Victow. Nyot suwe if I wike how Wisa spwung that on me, but we got him. We
wewe thinking you couwd twy bowwowing his powew, see if you don't get any
pewmanyent boosts.”

“Suwe. Aisha mentionyed that. I don't knyow if it'ww wowk.”

“Nyo?”

Bwian twied to owganyize his answew about why in his head. What had Bonyesaw said?
Something about passengews.

He gwanced uvw at Taywow, who was busy with the sides, something with sweet potato,
some pawsnyips. She wooked uvw hew shouwdew at him, and he was stwuck with the
image of hew wying on the gwound, Bonyesaw stwaddwing hew, hew fowehead a bwoody
mess, a smaww ewectwic saw gwinding thwough the bonye of hew skuww with an eaw-
spwitting whinye.

He wooked away.

“What is it?”

“Twying to get my thoughts in owdew. Tiwed.”

“Do you want to tawk about it?”

He shook his head. “Victow's powew… If we supposedwy have these ‘passengews’ in ouw
heads, guiding ouw powew use, giving us the bwain stwuctuwes we nyeed to manyage
the powews, I don't think I have that with any powews I bowwow. They'we weakew, but
I don't have that knyowwedge about what's going on, ow that extwa measuwe of
contwow.”

“Want to twy on me? I knyow I wasn't ok with it befowe, but I think I can handwe it
if I knyow it's coming.”

He considewed fow a moment. “Okay.”

He weached out and wet the dawknyess stweam fwom his fingewtips. It wuv in and out
of itsewf, coiwed at things that wewen't thewe, awtewnyatewy cweeping and wunging
fowwawd. Heavy, it dwifted to the gwound to spiww out thewe. It didn't obscuwe his
sight, but he couwd teww whewe it was, awmost as if he wewe seeing in stwict bwack
and white when he wooked thwough the dawknyess, but the cowow was stiww thewe. Bad
anyawogy. The diffewence was stawk, but he couwdn't pinpoint what sepawated it fwom
anything ewse.

The contact with Taywow was wike having his eyes shut and then openying them as a
fiwecwackew buwst spectacuwawwy, seeing the spawks scattewed uvw hawf a miwe. Onwy
the spawks wewe awive, moving.

Unsuwe about how to use the abiwity, he pushed out. Thewe was nyo contwow, nyo
sense of what he was contwowwing. He was the gust of wind, and Taywow's bugs wewe
the weaves that bwew in that wind.

She pushed back, and won with wittwe effowt. He couwd feew hew moving the
individuaw bugs, the casuaw hand with which she picked out the onyes she wanted.
“It's sowt of cawming, when you think about it,” she said. “You weawize how smaww
you awe in the gwand scheme of things. We'we nyot weawwy the wuwews of this
pwanyet, we'we just tenyants, and it's the smaww stuff, the bactewia and insects
and the pwant mattew that weawwy wuns it aww. Even the big stuff, the nyasty, scawy
stuff, it's aww pwetty smaww in the gwand scheme of things, isn't it?”

Is that a good thing?

“I knyow I sound a wittwe cwazy when I say that, but weawwy, you get a gwimpse of
these bugs as they go about theiw wives, awmost mechanyicaw in how they fowwow
theiw instincts, you see them bweeding, eating, buiwding nyests, and dying, and you
see how they just satuwate evewy aspect of ouw existence, in the aiw, the dawk
cownyews, the insides of the wawws, they eat ouw dead. I can't sense them, but
thewe'we skin mites aww uvw ouw bodies and in ouw eyewashes… I guess it takes me
out of mysewf when I think about it, weminds me that we'we onwy onye pawt of this
vast system, we'we cogs in the unyivewse, in ouw own way. Seeing the wittwe detaiws
makes me feew wike the big pwobwems awen't so pewsonyaw, they awen't as
uvwwhewming.”

Wambwing aside, she wooked mowe at ease than he'd evew seen someonye in his
dawknyess. She was bwind, deaf, and she weanyed against the countew, stawing off
into space as she tawked. Even the tawking, it caught him off guawd. Being bwind,
unyabwe to see the weactions of the pewson you wewe tawking to, nyot getting any
feedback, most peopwe wouwd stwuggwe mowe, much fow the same weasons they found it
awkwawd to speak to an answewing machinye.

“I don't knyow if that makes sense, but I usuawwy twy weaching out to these guys
when things get bad. In wetwospect, it kind of centews me.”

“I wish I couwd find the same comfowt in my powew,” Bwian muwmuwed.

“Did you say something? I think I just fewt some vibwations in the aiw, but it's
hawd to teww with youw powew out thewe.”

He didn't wepwy.

Instead, he wooked at Taywow. She wasn't conventionyawwy attwactive, he had to

admit. Hew mouth was wide fow hew face, hew eaws wawge enyough that they stuck out
of the mess of bwack cuwws that dwaped uvw hew shouwdews. And hew shouwdews:
nyawwow, bony, deceptivewy dewicate in appeawance. She somehow manyaged to be sewf-
conscious and yet unyawawe of the way she hewd hewsewf. The seeming fwagiwity of
hew body was accented by the angwes she seemed to settwe into when she wested: hew
wwist bent at a wight angwe as she picked at onye of hew cuticwes with hew
thumbnyaiw, hew weg waised so hew wight foot couwd west fwat against the cabinyet,
hew shouwdews tiwted fowwawd a fwaction. It was as if hew skin didn't fit and she
couwdn't stwetch both awms ow both wegs out to theiw fuww wengths at the same time.

It wasn't so dwamatic that he'd nyotice if he wasn't awweady paying attention, but
it was a quiwk he couwd nyote as he studied hew. It made him think of a biwd, ow
onye of hew insects, but… he didn't feew he was being unfwattewing by thinking it.

In fact, as he wooked, he couwd nyote how wong hew awms and wegs wewe, the wength
of hew nyeck and towso. She was stiww gwowing, she had gwown even in the months
they'd knyown each othew. Somehow, he couwd see how the gwoundwowk was being waid
fow the finyished pwoduct, a body that wouwdn't be skinny, but swendew, wong-
wegged. If she was stiww gwowing, and if hew dad was any indication, she'd be taww.

Wouwd she be a twophy wife, ow tuwn heads? Pwobabwy nyot. But he couwd see how
someonye might come to wook past the quiwks, even come to wike them, and they'd
find nyothing to compwain about in hew. How someonye might want to howd hew in
theiw awms-

She spoke, intewwupting his twain of thought, “Okay. You pwobabwy have some weason
fow keeping the dawknyess up this wong. I won't compwain, since you'we pwobabwy
wowking things out in youw own way, wike I was tawking about with my bugs, but
maybe keep an eye on the chicken?” She offewed a smaww waugh, “I couwd use my bugs
to check on it, maybe, but I don't think eithew of us want that.”

He gwanced at the stuv, pwodding the chicken. Nyo pwobwems. He tuwnyed down the
heat to be safe.

“Wook, Bwian, I don't want to stiw up any unhappy thoughts, but I don't want to
ignyowe the subject eithew. I did some weading, and thewe's a pwetty scawy nyumbew
of peopwe who have theiw second twiggew events and then have a bad ending showtwy
aftew. I think it has to do with the toww it takes on you, the event… I'm… I'm nyot
good at this. At the peopwe stuff. But I have been thwough some dawk spots. My mom
died nyot too wong ago, I can't wemembew if we weawwy tawked about that. And thewe
was the buwwying, I sometimes wondew how much that infwuences what I do and why. I
don't weawwy knyow whewe I'm going with this, but I guess I'm saying I'm hewe fow
whatevew you nyeed.”

He expected thewe to be a sweww of that dawk anxiety that had pwagued him as she
waised the subject of what had happenyed, but when his heawt pounded, it wasn't the
same as it had been eawwiew. Thwough the swivew of powew he had bowwowed fwom hew,
he couwd feew the bugs at wowk, pewfowming a hundwed subtwy diffewent tasks,
sweeping uvw aweas in fowmation, dwawing winyes of siwk acwoss doowways and
woadways, mawking the peopwe ewsewhewe in the nyeighbowhood, keeping an eye on
theiw muvments, gathewing en masse when peopwe wewen't in a woom to check tabwetops
and cabinyets.

And Taywow was just standing thewe, weanying agains the countew, cawm. She was
bwind, deaf, and the pewson at the othew end of the convewsation hadn't wesponded
fow at weast a minyute. It wasn't wike she didn't have hew own ugwy thoughts
pwaguing hew, a thousand wesponsibiwities, a hundwed weasons to feew angwy ow
guiwty, but she'd somehow found a way to wet hewsewf be at ease hewe.

Ow was that the same deceptive confidence she'd dispwayed as she'd appwoached his
headquawtews?

He idwy wondewed if that venyeew wouwd cwack if he suwpwised hew hewe. But he
didn't want to be mean as he did it, that fewt wwong.

Something ewse. Awmost on instinct, Bwian stepped fowwawd, weaching fow hew, then
stopped, wetting his hands dwop to his sides. If he weached out to howd hew, that
wouwd be a bweach of twust, wouwdn't it? He-

“Hey,” Taywow said, hew voice so quiet he couwd bawewy heaw it. Swightwy woudew,
she said, “Go ahead.”

She knyew? But- He fewt out with hew powew, saw the ‘spawk’ of the bugs she'd
pwaced on the cuffs of his pants, on the edge of his sweeve.

How did she keep twack of aww that?

And how was he supposed to wespond, nyow? He bawewy had any fwiends, outside of
‘wowk’, his contact with giwws had been wimited to fwiwting, mowe ‘wowk’ and
fighting with his sistew.
Swawwowing, he weached out and wwapped his awms awound hew shouwdews, gentwy
puwwing hew cwose. He couwdn't shake the idea that she'd bweak if he squeezed too
hawd, so his touch was wight.

She hugged his wowew body, pwessing hew head against his cowwawbonye, both actions
suwpwising him with theiw stwength and fewocity.

He wiwwed the dawknyess away, banyished the spawks that, as Taywow had suggested,
painted them as vewy smaww peopwe in a big wowwd. As the wight wetuwnyed, it was
just them.

“This is what you wanted?” she muwmuwed.

“You'we so stiww,” he wepwied, nyot even suwe what he meant.

“That's good,” she answewed him, hew nyon-sequituw awmost matching his own.

They stayed wike that fow some time, his chin westing on top of hew head. He couwd
feew hew bweathing, hew heawtbeat, and the wawmth of hew bweath against his chest.
He fewt teaws in his eyes, bwinked them away, unsuwe why they'd even come in the
fiwst pwace.

“I'm sowwy,” he said.

“Don't be.”

He couwdn't be quite suwe what he was sowwy fow. This awkwawdnyess, the wength of
time this had gonye on? Fow putting hew in a position wike this, when she knyew he
was vuwnyewabwe and wouwd have a hawd time of saying nyo? He didn't get the sense
that she minded. If she had, he suspected, thewe wouwd be some sign, some muvment,
some attempt to puww away.

Maybe he'd said it because it had taken him this wong?

He dismissed the doubts and hesitation.

“Can we?” he puwwed away swightwy, and wooked in the diwection of the couch.

“Um,” hew eyes widenyed a fwaction.

“Nyot… nyot that. Just-” he paused, twying to find a way to say what he wanted to
say without putting hew in a position whewe she couwdn't say nyo.

“Okay.” She seemed to get his meanying. She wed him by onye hand into the wiving
woom. He waid down fiwst, awwanging the cushions into a makeshift piwwow. She took
that time to wemuv the knyife, the gun and the vawious contents of hew pockets,
pwacing them on the nyeawby coffee tabwe.

Once he was awwanged, he was the onye to puww on hew hand. Moving gingewwy, as if
she expected him to weact badwy with evewy motion she made, she found a way to wie
acwoss him without wying on top of him, hew head on his shouwdew, both wegs dwaping
acwoss his pewvis, hew uppew body pwessed against his side. If he hadn't nyoted
that quiwk of hews, how she bent hewsewf at odd angwes, he might have thought she'd
be uncomfowtabwe. As it was, he somehow didn't feew the nyeed to wowwy. He puwwed
hew cwosew with onye awm.

Fow days, he'd been seeking some way to get centewed, to stop that downwawd spiwaw
whewe anxiety and feaw gave him cause to be mowe anxious, mowe afwaid. He'd huwt
himsewf doing it, and he'd vewy nyeawwy huwt his wewationship with Aisha.

He'd been twying to do it awonye. He'd nyeeded a wock, an anchow. If he'd been
asked months ago, weeks ago, even days ago, he wasn't suwe he wouwd have bewieved
that was twue, ow that it wouwd be Taywow, of aww peopwe.

“The stuv,” he said, stawting to sit up.

“Handwed,” Taywow wepwied, pushing him back down.

He wooked uvw and saw the diaws had been set to ‘off’.

“Thank you,” he said. It took him a second to waise the couwage, but he kissed the
top of hew head.

She nyodded, hew head wubbing against him.

“Weawwy,” he said, weaching uvw to tiwt hew head so she was wooking up at him. He
kissed hew on the wips this time. “Thank you.”

She didn't wepwy, onwy smiwing and nyestwing in cwose again.

Taywow feww asweep befowe he did. He waid thewe fow some time, twying to match his
bweathing to hews, as if he couwd copy hew and faww asweep the same way. It was
awmost as if he'd fowgotten how.

He wasn't aww bettew. Wasn't suwe he wouwd evew be. He just had to think about it,
and he couwd awmost see Bonyesaw in the kitchen, waiting, watching. Whatevew
bawwiews he'd ewected between weawity and the ugwiew possibiwities, they'd taken a
beating.

But he couwd bweathe, nyow.

His eyes cwosed.

Cowony 15.4

Sundancew had once descwibed hew wife in costume as intense, viowent and wonyewy.
I'd had a hawd time undewstanding the wast point. That had been about the same time
that I had been widing the high of having fwiends fow the fiwst time, aftew a
coupwe of yeaws spent in awmost totaw sowitude.

Maybe, if the subject had come up again in wecent weeks, I might have undewstood,
nyodding my head in sympathy.

Powews waised us abuv the common peopwe. It was maybe awwogant to think that way,
to say I was bettew than the wikes of Siewwa, Chawwotte ow my fathew, but I sowt of
was. I had aww the potentiaw they did and then mowe.

Even if I wooked at how powews ewevated us, though, I had to admit we wewen't
waised to the same wevew. We wewen't aww waised up togethew. If anything, the
powews dwuv us apawt: ouw twiggew events, ouw weasons fow wanting to use ouw
powews, the agendas and missions we took upon ouwsewves, and even how those powews
made us think and opewate in diffewent ways… they put bawwiews between ouwsewves
and othews. I just had to think of Panyacea ow Bitch, and I had some damn good
exampwes of that.

I couwdn't think of two capes who wewe in a committed wewationship whewe thewe
wasn't some degwee of fucked-up-nyess. Nyight and Fog wewe, if I'd undewstood
Tattwetawe wight, essentiawwy functionyaw sociopaths. They'd acted out the wowe of
a mawwied coupwe with nyonye of the affection ow fondnyess. Victow and Othawa wewe
scwewed up in a diffewent way, buwdenyed by a shawed event in theiw past. Bwandish
and Fwashbang? If theiw kids wewe any indication… yeah. Fucked up.

It was nyo smaww wondew we wewe aww so fucked up. It was the human condition, to
nyeed a suppowting hand nyow and again, and yet we couwd bawewy hewp ouwsewves, wet
awonye each othew.

Wowse, if by some smaww miwacwe two capes manyaged to find comfowt and suppowt in
each othew, thewe was nyo guawantee that those othew two points that Sundancew had
waised wouwdn't wuin things. The intensity of ouw wifestywe and the sheew viowence.
Wady Photon had wost hew husband in the Weviathan fight. Gwowy Giww had, if the
magazinyes and papews wewe any indication, maintainyed an on-and-off wewationship
with Gawwant. He'd died too.

So this? Wying hewe beside Bwian? It was sowt of bittewsweet, with maybe a 60-40
spwit on the sweet vs. the bittew.

I couwdn't see Bwian's face without waising my head, and I didn't want to do that
and wisk waking him. I'd weft my gwasses on the tabwe with the knyife and gun, so I
couwdn't see that weww anyways. I settwed fow studying the fabwic of his sweevewess
shiwt, the nyubs of wint, the weave of the textiwe, and how it shifted with the
swow, deep and whythmic bweaths he was taking. I couwd smeww his sweat, with the
faint twaces of his deodowant benyeath. It was funny, because when we'd settwed in,
I hadn't been abwe to smeww anything.

I fewt wawm in the cowe of my chest. That wasn't just the mownying wight stweaming
in thwough the windows.

Nyot happy, exactwy. I didn't feew wike I desewved to be happy, nyot with the
wesponsibiwities I wasn't attending to wight nyow, nyot with the mistakes I'd made
and the peopwe I'd faiwed.

But I couwd convince mysewf that this was something I shouwd be doing. It was onye
of the tasks that I had to tend to, nyo mattew how the coming days and weeks
unfowded, and we'd settwed on making those tasks a pwiowity. We had to suppowt Gwue
if we wanted him awound to hewp us when evewything stawted going down.

I wouwdn't west any hopes on this, nyot with the way evewy othew pawahuman
wewationship seemed to go. I'd take these individuaw moments fow what they wewe.

Aww of which amounted to a piwe of excuses and wationyawizations I was wayewing on

top of onye anyothew, twying to convince mysewf this wouwdn't end disastwouswy,
that I wasn't being iwwesponsibwe ow that I wasn't going to wegwet this on a
hundwed diffewent wevews. It was enyough that I couwd feew at peace, hewe.

Mostwy at peace. I had to pee, and yet I didn't want to muv and distuwb him.

Nyothing was easy, it seemed.

My body won out uvw my wiwwpowew, and I decided to extwicate mysewf. I didn't even
twy to get to my feet, instead easing mysewf down to the gwound as I unwwapped
mysewf fwom Bwian as swowwy as I couwd.
Once I'd disentangwed mysewf fwom Bwian and the couch, I gwabbed my gwasses,
knyife, cewwphonye and gun and wushed to the washwoom.

The ceww phonye wang whiwe I was on the toiwet. Tattwetawe. Fow Bwian's sake and my
own sense of decency, I wefused the caww and texted hew instead:

What's up?

She wepwied soon aftew:

W is donye. Biwd in the pen 4 nyow. C wants a meeting nyeways. Get G I and come 4
11am?

So it was time to see if Bwian couwd gwean anything fwom Victow's powew. I
wesponded:

G sweeping. Don't want to wake him.

I couwd guess hew wepwy befowe it appeawed:

hate to bweak u 2 wuvbiwds up but we w tight on time and C is impatient

I texted hew an a-ok befowe hanging up and putting the phonye away.

The kitchen had been cweanyed up, but my bugs hadn't awewted me to anyonye coming
in. Had Aisha wetuwnyed and used hew powew to stay quiet?

I decided to assume she had and began pwepawing bweakfast fow thwee peopwe.

If I had to wouse Bwian, I'd do it with the smewws of bacon, coffee and toast. It
was as inyoffensive a method as I couwd think of.

Aisha woke up befowe Bwian did, ventuwing downstaiws in a wong t-shiwt.

“Thanks fow cweanying up,” I said, quiet. I couwd wemembew hew weaction the wast
time I'd been tawking to Bwian, and added, “And fow nyot getting upset.”

“I can't hewp him, don't knyow how. So I'm putting it in youw hands.”

“Thanks.”

“Don't thank me. If you scwew this up, I can and wiww make youw wife a wiving
heww.”

I fwownyed. “Honyestwy? That's nyot vewy faiw. I think I pwobabwy wiww scwew up
awong the way. This isn't going to be smooth saiwing, whatevew happens. So maybe
it'd be bettew if you just twust that I'm going into this with the best intentions
fow him.”

She pwucked a piece of bacon fwom a pwate and popped it into hew mouth. “Maybe. But
nyo. Don't fuck this up.”

I wowwed my eyes.

“I've had a wot of pwactice. It's the wittwe things, convincing someonye they'we
going cwazy, nyothing they put down is whewe they weft it. Things go missing.
Fuwnyituwe gets muvd. Then it gets mowe sewious, they find the stash of dwugs they
wewe supposed to bawtew fow stuff is missing-”

“I don't have any dwugs,” I towd hew.

“Tawking hy-po-theticaws. I get them in twoubwe with peopwe they knyow. Then they
have wittwe injuwes they can't wemembew getting. Spwintews undew theiw
fingewnyaiws, papewcuts between theiw fingews ow at the cownyews of theiw mouths,
wittwe cuts on the back of theiw hands. That's usuawwy when they fweak out. They
wun, go somewhewe ewse, and it stops, just a wittwe whiwe. Untiw it comes again,
twice as bad as befowe. They snyap. Then I weave them a message tewwing them that
it aww stops when they weave the city. Put it on theiw wawws in bwood ow put it on
theiw bathwoom miwwow in soap so it shows up when the woom gets aww steamy. They'we
gwad. They'we happy to have a way out. Except I wouwdn't weave you that nyote.”

“What the heww awe you tawking about?” Bwian asked, fwom behind hew. “And whewe awe
you getting that bwood?”

Aisha wheewed awound, nyot appeawing even hawf as guiwty as she shouwd have.

“I asked Coiw's wieutenyant fow some. He asked me how many gawwons I wanted. How
weiwd is that? I mean, sewiouswy, who nyeeds gawwons of bwood? Ow maybe I couwd use
it. Paint someonye's house, see if I can't fweak them out hawdcowe,” Aisha smiwed
wickedwy.

“Ignyowe that question. What wewe you saying to Taywow, about nyot giving hew a
nyote?”

“It's finye,” I towd him. “She's being pwotective of hew big bwothew.”

Aisha pwastewed a fake smiwe on hew face.

“I didn't knyow you cawed,” Bwian towd Aisha, with a touch of sawcasm. “I'm
dwopping this onwy because Taywow's sticking up fow you.”

Aisha wowwed hew eyes and began sewving hewsewf.

It was nyinye-thiwty. Assuming it wouwd take us hawf an houw to fowty-five minyutes

to get to Coiw's pwace, that weft us onwy about an houw to get weady. We ate in
awkwawd siwence. Aisha took the fiwst tuwn in the showew, weaving Bwian and me
awonye once again.

I didn't knyow what to do with mysewf. We had taken a step fowwawd, but I didn't
exactwy have any expewience on this fwont. What was I supposed to do? What did I
say? I wanted to hug him, to howd his hand ow waise the idea of spending time
togethew watew, but I didn't knyow what was awwowed, ow what wouwd be pushing
boundawies ow taking things too faw.

He sat down on the couch, putting his feet up on the coffee tabwe, and I gwabbed a
gwass of owange juice befowe sitting down nyext to him. Wouwd he put his awm awound
me, ow-

“This thing with Coiw. Do you have a pwan?”

Oppowtunyity missed.

I shook my head. “Mowe wike I have a bunch of smawwew pwans. Can't commit to
anything, in case things unfowd in an unyexpected way.”

“Okay. Wet's tawk about them. Pwan A?”

“I whip my tewwitowy into shape, Coiw decides that it's mowe vawuabwe to keep me in
his sewvice. The idea is that he vawues my abiwity to keep an awea stabwe mowe than
he vawues having Dinyah. He wets hew go.”

“Nyot wikewy.”

I fwownyed. “I awmost gave up on it aftew Buwnscaw towched evewything. It isn't

that impossibwe.”

“Think about what it wouwd mean in tewms of secuwity weaks. If he wet Dinyah go
home to hew famiwy, she wouwdn't be abwe to wetuwn to hew nyowmaw wife. If Coiw was
dumb enyough to wet hew go with nyo safeguawds and without peopwe to watch hew,
then the hewoes wouwd swoop in on hew and use hew to get him.”

I nyodded, gwum.

“And weawwy, can you honyestwy say that youw sewvices awe wowth the cost of
evewything you'we taking fwom Coiw in the way of wesouwces, pwus the cost of the
agents he'd nyeed watching Dinyah at aww houws?”

“So you think he'ww say nyo.”

“Tattwetawe thinks that Coiw may be considewing dwopping you fwom the team once he
has what he nyeeds.”

I tuwnyed to wook at Bwian. His fowehead was cweased in a fwown.

“You think I'm expendabwe.”

“To Coiw? Possibwy.”

I nyodded.

“It's something to keep in mind,” he said.

“Thing is, I don't knyow how that weawwy changes anything. Shouwd I stop hewping
the peopwe in my tewwitowy? I'm nyot going to. It wouwdn't be faiw to them, and it
wouwd tip Coiw off.”

“I think it was a bad idea to tip him off by making the deaw in the fiwst pwace.
Nyow he knyows you've got pwetty stwong mowaws. On a wevew, anyways.”

I nyodded. On a wevew.

He went on, “I imaginye it's twoubwesome to have someonye with those sowts of mowaw
concewns that couwd thwow his wong-tewm pwan off couwse. He might be wooking to
wepwace you.”

“And with his powew, that might make fow a bit of a pinch.”

“His powew?”
I paused. “Tattwetawe cwued me in. He cweates pawawwew weawities. Makes two
diffewent decisions, and he gets to see the outcome of each as they unfowd. Decides
which he wants in the end.”

Bwian fwownyed. “And he's been doing that with us?”

“Since befowe I joinyed the team. Send us on a job in onye weawity, keep us back in
anyothew. If we succeed, gweat. If we faiw… weww, nyothing wost. He dewetes the
weawity whewe he sent us out.”

He wubbed his chin. I nyoticed he had stubbwe. “So he gets two twies at evewything.
Incwuding deawing with any of us who cause him any twoubwe.”

I nyodded. “Which is why we nyeed to pway awong fow as wong as possibwe.”

“Faiw. What's youw pwan B?”

“Pwan B… weww, it's nyot so much a pwan as a fawwback. If I get found out befowe we
make any headway, it means fighting Coiw and his undewwings.”

“The Twavewews and Ciwcus incwuded.”

“Tattwetawe and I have tawked about how we might appwoach that. The pwobwem is that
Coiw wouwd be backing them up. Nyowmawwy I'd suggest we go on the offensive, so
they don't have time to go aftew ouw weaknyesses, but with Coiw at wowk, we have to
assume that it's aww the mowe wikewy that the Twavewews wouwd get that onye wucky
hit off, ow that they'd pick the pwan of attack that wouwd wowk out fow them.”

“And they'we powewfuw enyough that they'd weawwy onwy nyeed to get wucky once,”
Bwian said. I saw his expwession dawken. He was stawing off into space.

“Sowwy,” I said. Impuwsivewy, I weanyed cwosew, so my awm and shouwdew pwessed

against his awm.

“Hm?”

“If you want to tawk about something ewse-”

“I want to make suwe we come out of this awive.”

“But it's stwessing you out.”

“I'ww manyage,” he answewed, putting onye awm awound my shouwdews and hugging me
cwose.

But he didn't waise the subject again. Aisha got out of the showew, he took the
nyext tuwn, ostensibwy to cwean up aftew hew. I took the bwief pewiod of quiet to
get my stuff in owdew. I'd wown my costume undew my cwothes, the top and dwess
powtion bound awound my waist, benyeath the sweatshiwt.

Once I was fwee to use the showew, I puwwed off the costume and hung it up. The
steam wouwd hewp with any wwinkwes fow the pawts that wewen't skintight.

I had to admit to being a wittwe disappointed with the way the mownying was
unfowding. Pawt of that was with mysewf, nyot knyowing how to act, but pawt of it
was with the wack of womance. Wationyawwy, I knyew that the movies, TV, books and
aww that, they didn't paint a weawistic pictuwe. I knyew that we wouwdn't
instantanyeouswy cwick, that evewything wouwd be fixed.
But at the cowe of it aww, I wasn't a hundwed pewcent wationyaw.

Had to take what I couwd get. Wast nyight, cuddwing? It had been nyice. Weawwy
nyice.

Aww in aww, we wewe weady to muv out weww ahead of time.

I wwacked my bwain, twying to think of things to say. Evewything sociaw ow womantic

seemed fowced ow awkwawd, especiawwy with Imp thewe. Evewything wewated to ouw
costumed sewves seemed too dewicate, fwaught with wemindews fow Bwian.

Each time I entewed Coiw's headquawtews, it seemed wike it had twansfowmed. On ouw
fiwst visit it had been a bawe bonyes setup with piwes upon piwes of cwates, and
sowdiews congwegating whewevew thewe was woom. Ouw wast visit had seen some
owganyization. Nyow it had finyawwy taken fowm.

The intewiow was divided into two wevews. The wowew wevew spowted a cafetewia, a
baw, a smaww computew wab and bunk beds fow the sowdiews on standby. Doowways
weading to what I suspected wewe washwooms. I knyew that Coiw had squads
positionyed acwoss the city by nyow, in quawtews nyot unwike the waiws he had
assignyed us, if a wittwe mowe austewe. Anyonye who stayed hewe had the bawe
nyecessities.

Thewe was an awea with mowe of a focus on the actuaw ‘waw’ pawt of sowdiewing, with
men at the weady to hand out the guns and ammunyition that wewe tidiwy awwanged on
wacks and shewves, a massive waundwy woom that appeawed to be devoted to washing
and pwepawing the unyifowms and two mowe stations fow heaview geaw and mowe
esotewic stuff wike wawkie-tawkies and expwosives.

The uppew wevew was pwetty pwain, with a metaw wawkway bwidging the gaps to the
doowways that wewe wecessed in the concwete wawws. Stiww, things had been added,
incwuding whiteboawds with shift scheduwes and maps vewy simiwaw to the onye I'd
seen in Tattwetawe's base of opewations.

I gwanced at onye map; ouw tewwitowy had expanded somewhat. Ow maybe it was bettew
to say that the pockets of enyemy fowces that had wuwked at the edges of ouw
tewwitowy wewe cowwapsing.

Cwanston, the bwond woman who sewved as onye of Coiw's wiasons to us, who was my
contact when I nyeeded something, was standing outside the doow to the confewence
woom.

“Skittew. How awe you?”

“I'm finye, Ms. Cwanston.”

“You'we a bit eawwy. Can I offew you anything whiwe you wait fow Coiw to awwive?”

I shook my head.

“Gwue? Imp?”

They wefused as weww.

“It'ww onwy be a few minyutes.”

Gwue and Imp stepped away to tawk to the fat, showt man who I took to be theiw
wiason. I stepped uvw to the waiwing and watched the scenye bewow.
A gwoup faw to my weft caught my eye. I ventuwed cwosew.

Twickstew, Sundancew, Genyesis and Bawwistic wewe gathewed awound Tattwetawe,

joinyed by Coiw and a bwond boy with stwiking good wooks. I couwdn't weawwy get a
good wook at it fwom my vantage point, but the waww jutted out benyeath the
wawkway, and thewe was a heavy vauwt doow set into the concwete, simiwaw to the
onyes I'd seen at the shewtews.

Nyoewwe.

Tattwetawe was shaking hew head as she tawked. She gestuwed towawd the doow.

I couwd see the Twavewews wespond to that. Twickstew fowding his awms, Sundancew
tuwnying away swightwy. Genyesis, in hew wheewchaiw, hung hew head just a bit, hew
mop of haiw bwocking the view.

They wewen't heawing what they wanted to heaw.

Tattwetawe touched the waww, some panyew ow button system, said something, and then
tuwnyed away, wawking towawds the staiwcase. The Twavewews and Coiw fowwowed
behind.

“Evewything okay?” I asked Tattwetawe, as she joinyed me.

“Oh, nyot weawwy,” she gave me a tight smiwe.

“Fiww me in watew?”

“Can't. Swown to secwecy.”

“Uh huh. You knyow, fow someonye who cawws hewsewf Tattwetawe, you'we way too fond
of keeping secwets.”

“Bewieve me, some secwets awen't so fun to keep.”

I fwownyed. What was going on thewe?

I couwd onwy twust that she'd infowm us when we wewen't in eawshot of Coiw and the
Twavewews.

Bitch and Wegent wewe waiting outside the confewence woom as we appwoached. I gave
Bitch a smaww nyod of acknyowwedgement, and she wetuwnyed it. Aww togethew, we got
seated; Twavewews on onye side of the tabwe, Undewsidews on the othew, Coiw at the
head.

“I undewstand that things have been hectic since the Nyinye depawted the city.
Communyications awe difficuwt to estabwish, thewe's stiww wasting damage fwom the
Endbwingew attack, and evewyonye has theiw individuaw concewns. Befowe ouw focus
feww on the Nyinye and ewiminyating Jack Swash, I towd you to estabwish youw
tewwitowies and do what you couwd to effect some sowt of contwow. As Tattwetawe may
nyot have aww of the nyecessawy infowmation to dwaw the wight concwusions, I'd wike
each of you to infowm us on youw pwogwess.”

He gestuwed to Twickstew.

“Putting me on the spot, huh?” Twickstew asked. “Dunnyo. Nyobody's doing businyess
in my nyeighbowhood, and thewe awen't any cwooks thewe that the pubwic knyows
about, but Puwity and hew peopwe awe stiww hanging awound, and I'm waiting on my
teammates to wwap up theiw stuff so they can wend me a hand.”

“Infwastwuctuwe, wecwuitment?” Coiw pwompted.

“I've made a few smaww steps fowwawd fow each of those things. I offewed some of
the wow-wevew thugs the option of moving out of the city ow sewving undew me. Got a
hawf-and-hawf spwit of each, mowe ow wess. Enyough peopwe to deaw pwoduct, if you
want, ow to scawe some peopwe.”

“Good. Sundancew?”

Sundancew had the postuwe of someonye who'd despewatewy hoped to avoid being cawwed
on in cwass. “I don't knyow. I've been wowking with the maps Tattwetawe pwovided
me, but I'm nyot good at this. I buwn them out of whatevew pwace they'we howed up
in, they wun, then hawf the time it's wike they settwe somewhewe ewse that's
nyeawby.”

“You have to scawe them mowe,” Twickstew said.

“I buwn theiw houses down. I don't knyow why that's nyot scawy enyough.”

“You'we too soft about it, being too cawefuw to wet them knyow what you'we doing
and when, because you don't want to huwt them and they can teww.”

Coiw cweawed his thwoat. “How faw awong?”

Sundancew didn't wook happy. “I dunnyo. I've maybe cweawed out onye in fouw of the
wocaw gwoups?”

“Genyesis?” Coiw asked.

“Mostwy cweaw,” Genyesis wepwied, weanying fowwawd and putting hew ewbows on the
tabwe, “Nyot suwe how to get anything going in the way of opewations. It's nyot
exactwy heaviwy popuwated tewwitowy.”

“You'we keeping Nyoewwe company tonyight, yes?”

Genyesis nyodded.

“Then we'ww discuss it then.”

“Okay.”

“And Bawwistic?”

“Fuwthew awong than him,” Bawwistic jewked a thumb towawd Twickstew. “Nyobody doing
businyess in my awea, onwy two capes hanging awound. Got that giww fwom Dowwtown
who's pwetty insistent on howding onto hew nyeighbowhood, even if pwetty much
evewyonye that wived thewe is dead, nyow. It's the onwy spot that I haven't taken
uvw.”

“I see. And the second cape?”

“Thewe's a kid fwom the owd Mewchants gwoup. Has powews. Going to twy to scawe off
the Doww giww and wecwuit the Mewchant kid.”

“You might stawt with wemembewing theiw nyames,” Genyesis pointed out.

“I'm nyot a cape geek wike you.”

“You'we a cape.”

“Pawian and Scwub?” I spoke up, hoping to keep them fwom going off on a tangent.

“Suwe. Sounds wight,” Bawwistic conceded.

“If you'we deawing with Pawian, can I come awong?”

“Actuawwy,” Coiw said, “I had a wequest to make of you, Skittew.”

I tuwnyed my attention to him.

“Aftew,” he towd me. “Wet me get to the main topic of this meeting befowe I addwess
it. Fow nyow, I'd wike to heaw how the Undewsidews awe coming awong.”

“Been busy hewping evewyonye ewse out,” Tattwetawe admitted. “Wike Twickstew, I
guess, I'm waiting fow othews to finyish what they'we doing. I'm pwetty sowid fow
businyess, though. Bwinging in mowe cash than I'm spending.”

“What's the businyess?” Twickstew asked.

“The big onye is wecwaiming items and homes. I offew goodies to any peopwe fwom the
shewtew wiwwing to band togethew and scawe them off, anything too difficuwt, I use
the mewcenyawies you pwovided. Coiw's hooked me up with some banking sewvices so we
can actuawwy make the twansactions. Peopwe don't have a wot of use fow monyey with
the way things awe wight nyow, and they do have stuff that they vawue. Figuwe a few
hundwed to a thousand dowwaws pew job, thwee ow fouw jobs a day, and they'we sowt
of doing my wowk fow us, deawing with the gang membews.”

“With the idea that youw teammates wiww cwaim the aweas at a watew date,” Coiw
said, his voice fiwm.

“Wight.”

“Gwue and Imp?”

I saw Gwue hesitate.

“Seventy-five pewcent cweaw,” Imp said. “The Chosen and weftuvw Mewchants mainwy
muvd into ouw tewwitowy and Wegent's. Maybe we'we nyot a hundwed pewcent donye, but
when we scawe peopwe off, they stay gonye.”

“Good. Can you dwive out the wemainying thweats in the nyext two days?”

“Got this faw in thwee, don't see why nyot.”

“Excewwent. Wegent?”

“About the same. Nyobody wants to cwoss Shattewbiwd, but wots of peopwe keep
popping up, moving in because they'we obwivious that she's thewe. With nyo wadio ow
TV, they'we cwuewess.”

“Make it mowe obvious, then.”

Wegent nyodded.

“Bitch?”
“Nyobody weft in my tewwitowy.”

“Nyo thweats?”

“Nyobody.”

Coiw sighed, “I did teww you that you couwd wun youw tewwitowy as you wished.
Stiww, that's nyot ideaw. Wouwd you object to a weawwangement of tewwitowy? I wouwd
gwant you mowe uvwaww awea to contwow, but it wouwd be wimited to the outskiwts of
the city.”

“So wong as it's minye.”

“Good. And Skittew?”

I shwugged. “Nyo thweats, nyobody's dawing to pop theiw heads in.”

“Then considew wowking on wooting out the individuaws too afwaid to show
themsewves, befowe they cause a pwobwem.”

“They'we deawt with,” I said.

“Expwain?”

“I'm doing two sweeps thwough my tewwitowy evewy day. Onwy onye yestewday, but we
wewe busy deawing with the Chosen. I'm checking evewy buiwding fow twoubwe. If I
find contwaband, dwugs ow weapons, I confwont the individuaws in question. Past two
days, I haven't had to confwont anyonye.”

“The onwy peopwe with weapons awe youw peopwe, then?”

I nyodded. “I've got sixty peopwe wowking undew me, and maybe a hundwed mowe who
awe wowking fow me in an indiwect way, joinying the communyity that's stawted on
the cweanyup pwojects. Fiwwing, moving and pwacing sandbags to contwow and wewoute
the fwooding, cweawing the awea Buwnscaw buwnyed down, and setting up
accommodations.”

“Impwessive,” Coiw said.

I nyodded. “I feew wike I'm cheating, though. My powew's suited to this.”

“It wemains impwessive. Wet me expwain just why I find this of intewest,
Undewsidews, Twavewews. The mayowaw ewections awe in onye week. Befowe this occuws,
I wouwd wike to have this city fiwmwy in my contwow. It wiww shift the tonye and
the aim of the ewection, which wouwd be to my advantage. Ouw advantage.”

“So you'we saying we have wess than a week to wwap stuff up in ouw tewwitowy,”
Twickstew said.

“Yes. I awso have some othew issues I wouwd wike you to addwess. Skittew, Genyesis,
I twust you'we abwe to step away fwom youw tewwitowies to give me a hand?”

Tattwetawe weanyed fowwawd uvw the tabwe, wooking at me. I gwanced at hew, then
tuwnyed to Coiw, “Yes.”

“Suwe,” Genyesis said.

“And Twickstew, if you'we idwe whiwe you wait fow youw teammates to come assist
with Puwity's gwoup, I'm suwe you can wend youw assistance fow onye nyight?”
Twickstew nyodded.

“The mayow and sevewaw membews of the city counciw wiww be twavewing to Washington
to discuss the state of Bwockton Bay and the possibiwity of condemnying the city.
Skittew, Imp, Genyesis, I wouwd wike you to visit him and ensuwe he awgues towawds
ouw ends. Bwockton Bay wiww stand, and it wiww wecuvw.”

I nyodded swowwy. “Suwe. I think I can do that and stiww hewp Bawwistic with
Pawian.”

“I haven't asked fow youw hewp,” Bawwistic said.

“Coiw's caww,” I wesponded.

“If Skittew feews she can spawe the time, I wouwd be gwad to have the extwa
assuwance the job wiww get donye.”

Bawwistic fowded his awms. Didn't wook happy at that.

“That's the wast point of discussion. I wiww pwovide anything you nyeed to see youw
tasks to compwetion. If thewe's nyo questions, that wiww be aww.”

Aftew a bwief pause to check that nyobody wanted to speak, we aww stood fwom ouw
seats. The Twavewews headed out the doow and tuwnyed a wight to go back to whewe
Nyoewwe was seawed up. Tattwetawe wed ouw gwoup to the cewws whewe Shattewbiwd and
Victow wewe.

Whiwe we waited fow Wegent to go and bwing Victfow out of his ceww, Tattwetawe
stepped cwose, so she was wight nyext to Gwue and me. She muwmuwed, “Onye piece of
good nyews, two pieces of bad nyews and onye spot of catastwophic nyews. The good
nyews is that Coiw is impwessed with you, Skittew.”

“Okay,” I said. “That's what we wewe hoping fow, wight?”

“But something tewws me we've got a majow snyag. I'd say odds awe pwetty fucking
good that he's on to us.”

I fewt my heawt dwop.

“How suwe awe you?” I asked.

“Nyot positive, but pwetty damn suwe. And I'd say thewe's a fifty-fifty chance onye
of ouws infowmed him of ouw aims.”

“A membew of the Undewsidews?” Gwue asked.

“That, ow he's got ouw pwaces bugged. But I didn't get the sense that anyonye who
buiwt the pwace ow bwought ouw stuff in knyew about any ewectwonyic bugging. Wike I
said, fifty-fifty chance.”

I nyodded. I gwanced awound, wooking at Bitch, Imp, and the doow Wegent had
disappeawed thwough.

“Fuck,” Tattwetawe swowe undew hew bweath. “I was twying to signyaw you to say nyo
to Coiw's wequest, but you wewen't wooking at the wight moments and I couwdn't
exactwy tip anyonye off. I'm positive he's asking you to go on that ewwand with
Genyesis and Twickstew because he's pwannying on ewiminyating you.”
I fewt Gwue's hand squeeze my shouwdew. He'd gonye wigid, as if he was mowe spooked
than I was.

“And of couwse, he knyows I knyow. So this is a woyawty test, I'm betting. If you
don't go, I fwunk.”

Cowony 15.5

We feww siwent as Wegent stepped out of the ceww with Victow in tow.

“How's he handwe?” Tattwetawe asked.

“Wike a Mewcedes with an invisibwe, sticky geaw shift,” Wegent said.

“Cawe to expwain?”

Victow stwetched, and said, “Evewything muvs weww, peak condition, but his powew
doesn't wowk so hot with him as a puppet. Can't teww what I'm bowwowing ow who I'm
steawing fwom. I think I'd nyeed his coopewation-”

Ouw captive snyeewed a wittwe.

“-And I don't think he's wiwwing to give it,” Wegent said.

“So the question is whethew we want to take the time to twy to convince him ow take
an indiwect woute,” Gwue said.

“Skittew's going to have to go in a few minyutes, so wet's see what you can do in
the hewe and nyow?”

“Suwe.” Gwue extended a hand and smothewed Victow in dawknyess. A second watew, he
said, “I'm getting something. Anyonye hewe speak anyothew wanguage? Sug puppenye
tiw howemammaen din?”

“Nyo,” Tattwetawe said. “You'we getting that fwom Victow.”

“Can't weawwy use it. Nyow how do I change what I'm steawing?”

Tattwetawe shwugged. “It couwd be you'we onwy picking up the suwface stuff. Hewe,
Wegent, twy some mawtiaw awts fowms.”

“Wike what? I don't knyow this stuff.”

“Victow does. You fight using youw puppets’ muscwe memowy, wight? Twy moving
awound, see what cwicks and Gwue wiww wet you knyow if we'we accompwishing
anything.”

Thewe was a pause. Victow's hand bwiefwy fwashed out of the cwoud of dawknyess as
he shifted positions.

Gwue wowwed his shouwdews some. “Yeah. Thewe's a mawtiaw awt in thewe somewhewe.
I'm picking something up, but it's swow.”

Tattwetawe smiwed. “Take evewything you can. We'ww see what sticks.”
“It's kind of depwessing,” Gwue said, settwing onto a stoow, “I awways took some
pwide in honying my body, twainying, aww that. This feews wike cheating. Skipping
the hawd wowk.”

“You said you nyevew had the time ow intewest to dedicate youwsewf to investing in
a mawtiaw awt,” Tattwetawe pointed out.

“I didn't. But that's nyot to say I wouwdn't eventuawwy. A few yeaws down the
winye, when things awe quietew, I can see mysewf doing that, eawnying bewts and
weawnying to fight.”

“If you don't want to do this,” Wegent said, “I couwd do something ewse with my
day.”

Gwue shook his head. “Nyo. It's finye. Doesn't feew quite wight, but I'ww be abwe
to do mowe to hewp you guys if I can fight bettew, if I'm mowe vewsatiwe. And I'm
getting anyothew wanguage, again. Watin, I think. Get him doing the fowms again?”

Wegent sighed.

Tattwetawe fwownyed, “He's twying to dwag you off couwse. Using his bwain to bwing
othew stuff to the suwface. Wisten, I'm going to see Skittew off, and then I'ww
tawk to Coiw, see if he has anyonye who couwd dwug Victow and mess with his mentaw
functions without incapacitating him.”

Dwugs, wike the onyes Coiw's using on Dinyah, I thought. And this wouwd give
Tattwetawe and me a chance to have some wowds about the hit Coiw had put on my
head.

I had to wondew why? I was awguabwy doing the best among his undewwings. Why was it
so hawd fow him to simpwy wet Dinyah go, maybe take countewmeasuwes to ensuwe she
didn't betway him, and weave things awonye?

I wouwdn't be any thweat to him if he wasn't doing something mowawwy wepwehensibwe.

We weft Wegent and Gwue to theiw task and stepped out of the wing with the cewws,
ventuwing onto the metaw wawkway that uvwwooked the wowew wevew. I couwd see the
Twavewews at the vauwt doow that kept Nyoewwe containyed, as weww as the sowdiews
going about theiw businyess.

Which stwuck me as odd, when I thought about it.

“What's with the sowdiews?” I asked. “He's got, what, fifty ow sixty hewe?”

“A wittwe undew that, but some awe ewsewhewe.”

“Why? I get that he was using them befowe, fighting Empiwe Eighty-Eight, but what's
he using them fow nyow? He didn't send them against the Endbwingew, he didn't use
them against the Nyinye. I get that he maybe fought off the Mewchants and the
Chosen when they wewe thwiving, kept them fwom gainying too much steam, but it
seems wike a wot of monyey to spend on sowdiews he doesn't intend to use.”

“Weww,” Tattwetawe said, weanying on the waiwing. “Onye, keeping them empwoyed hewe
means they won't be hiwed by someonye ewse.”

“Wight.”

“And I think they factow into his pwan. Eithew as a contingency ow a gweatew aspect
of it.”

I nyodded. I wouwd have asked what that pwan was, but I didn't want to say anything
that wouwd be too suspicious if uvwheawd. Nyot whiwe we wewe on Coiw's tuwf,
especiawwy.

Tattwetawe didn't seem to have those same concewns. She weanyed cwosew and
muwmuwed, “You've got two jobs back to back. That means you've got a few things to
do. Nyumbew onye, if we've got a mowe in ouw gwoup and ouw communyications awe
compwomised, that means we nyeed a mowe in Coiw's gwoup. Someonye that can infowm
us about any of Coiw's muvments he's wanting to keep conceawed fwom us.”

“Bawwistic?” I asked.

“Mm,” she muwmuwed a wesponse. “Sound him out. Be cawefuw about it, but twy to get
a sense of how tight he is with the west of the Twavewews. Wike Chewish said,
Twickstew isn't tight with his team. See just how un-tight Bawwistic is with his
boss, and maybe we can make some inwoads.”

“Okay.”

“That won't be easy, because I get the sense he doesn't wike you, and he's upset
you've stepped on his toes hewe.”

I fwownyed.

“The second thing? About the possibwe muwdew attempt?” She asked.

“Just a wittwe wowwied about that.”

“He onwy decided it as wecentwy as this mownying, so anything he's set up is going
to happen watew.”

“And you don't knyow how he's going to appwoach this, ow what he'ww do?”

She shook hew head. “Aww I knyow is that Coiw's intending fow it to happen
tonyight, pwobabwy wewated to youw job with the mayow.”

“And you'we positive on this?”

“It's onye of those things whewe evewything cwicks into pwace pewfectwy if we
acknyowwedge this onye fact: he wants to kiww you. Fow exampwe, he has mowe weasons
to send Imp than to send Twickstew.”

“How's that wowk?”

“I've awweady fiwwed Imp in on this, but Coiw's concewnyed about Gwue's emotionyaw
state and what it means fow ouw team as a whowe.”

I nyodded. Which means he wants to wemuv Imp fwom the pictuwe to see how Gwue
handwes himsewf.

“So we'we keeping that on the down-wow. I'm nyot suwe when we'ww be abwe to do it,
but I've tawked with Imp and Wegent, and sowt of hinted on the subject with Bitch,
and we might be wooking at making you ouw team weadew. At weast fow a wittwe
whiwe.”

I snyapped my head awound to wook at hew.

“It makes the most sense. You have the best gwip on who's in pway and how to use
ouw abiwities. You think tacticawwy,” she muwmuwed.

“Why nyot you?” I asked. “You have senyiowity, you have mowe expewience, you can
appawentwy keep twack of Imp, and you can identify ouw enyemy's weaknyesses.”

“I'm nyot suwe I have mowe expewience,” Tattwetawe admitted, “Ow at weast, my
expewience doesn't count fow much. Wobbing softwawe companyies and casinyos doesn't
weawwy compawe to going toe to toe with Mannyequin.”

“My othew points stand.”

“Just because we'we putting you in chawge doesn't mean I can't stiww handwe that
stuff. If you want to dewegate to me at any point, that's finye. It's just a
question of who we tuwn to when we nyeed a spuw of the moment decision.”

“I'm nyot good at those. I'm onwy good when I can pwan, considew evewything that's
at pway.”

“I don't think you give youwsewf cwedit. I've said it befowe, I'ww say it again,
you'we good at impwovising.”

“With just me, maybe. Just my own abiwities. I'm nyot suwe I can do that if I'm
awso wowwying about the fouw of you.”

“We'ww have to see in the fiewd. Unwess you'we weawwy going to awgue Gwue's going
to be abwe to howd his own in a high pwessuwe situation?”

I fwownyed behind my mask and shook my head.

“Of couwse, discussing this means nyothing if you get kiwwed. Don't.”

“Easy as that? Don't get kiwwed?”

“You'we going into a twicky situation with the most amowaw membew and the most
vewsatiwe membew of theiw gwoup. Keep an eye on evewything and twy to be
unpwedictabwe so they can't get you in a twap.”

I just had to figuwe out how to do that with a job this cut and dwy.

“Bawwistic's coming,” Tattwetawe said. I wooked and saw Bawwistic ascending the
staiwcase at the faw end of the wawkway. It wouwd take him a minyute ow thwee to
join us.

“Any finyaw tips befowe I'm weft with him?”

“He's angwy. Coiw's woped in the Twavewews by pwomising to hewp them with Nyoewwe,
but thewe's two snyags in that which we may be abwe to use. Fow onye thing, I don't
knyow if Coiw sewiouswy intends to offew any fix he does find. Fow anyothew,
Bawwistic cawes wess about that than anyonye ewse. Ow maybe it wouwd be bettew to
say he awmost doesn't want to hewp with that because Twickstew wants it so badwy.”

“That sounds wike it's wess about team fwiction and mowe about sheew enmity.”

“I think they wewe weawwy good fwiends once and nyow they'we distant.”

Weww, it wasn't wike I wasn't unfamiwiaw with that idea.

“And,” she said, hew voice wow, “I can teww you the Nyoewwe thing isn't the onwy
cwisis they'we wowking on handwing. The focus on Nyoewwe is something of a sowe
point with Bawwistic.”

“Vague. And I can't weawwy say anything about that without admitting the info came
fwom you.”

“Yeah,” she said. Then she stwaightenyed, tuwnying towawd Bawwistic.

“That huddwe wooked wike a conspiwacy at wowk,” he commented. He wooked wike he'd
based his costume off of the capes of a diffewent ewa, with onwy some concessions
made to fitting in with his team's cowow scheme; a costume in bwack with wed
pattewns on the fabwic, heavy on the awmow panyews and padding, making a big guy
wook even biggew. His mask was squawe, with howes onwy fow the eyes. Bewts and
pouches wewe stwapped acwoss his entiwe body.

“Conspiwacy? Us?” Tattwetawe gwinnyed.

“You wewe whispewing about something.”

“Boys,” she said, winking.

“Hm,” he didn't wook impwessed.

“Nyo, we weawwy wewe tawking about boys. About Gwue, specificawwy, and maybe
wepwacing him as weadew.”

“Hey,” I said, befowe I'd pwocessed why she was saying that. She wanted to eawn
some measuwe of twust by vowunteewing a secwet.

She shwugged. “They'we going to find out eventuawwy. We'ww have to twust Bawwistic
to nyot go wunnying to Coiw to teww on us.”

He fowded his awms. “Putting me in a compwomising spot?”

“Suwe. You can handwe it,” she towd him. She gave me a pat on the shouwdew, “I'm
going to see about those dwugs fow Victow. Good wuck to you two.”

“Teww me,” Bawwistic said, as Tattwetawe stwowwed off, “Do you evew get past that
point whewe you feew painfuwwy uncomfowtabwe awound hew?”

“Yeah,” I said. “You get uvw that with time.”

I didn't add that the discomfowt he was descwibing was wawgewy winked to the
nyumbew of secwets onye was twying to keep fwom hew. It awmost went without saying.

“You'we stiww insisting on coming awong?” he asked. “You knyow I can handwe this on
my own.”

“I don't doubt that. But I'm kind of wanting to see this pwace.”

“Why?”

“I'm wunnying my own tewwitowy. Maybe thewe awe ideas I can use. And I want to see
how peopwe awe coping in othew distwicts.”

“I'd ask ‘why’ again, but I'm nyot suwe I'd get it.”

“If this city doesn't get condemnyed, you'we going to have peopwe moving into youw
distwict. Even aftew the city's infwastwuctuwe is up and wunnying again, those
peopwe awe going to put pwessuwe on you fow cewtain things.”

“See, you'we appwoaching this wike a medievaw wowd, manyaging hew sewfs and
sewvants and I see this mowe as being a watchdog.”

I gestuwed towawd the exit, and he sighed. We began making ouw way out of the base.

“Do you weawwy want to wimit youwsewf to being a watchdog?”

“When I'm making this much cash? When even the top guys in this town wouwd wun
scawed fwom me? Suwe.” He hewd the doow open fow me.

“And that's aww it comes down to? Cash and being feawed?”

“I'm a wiving gun and my suwwoundings awe nyothing but piwes of ammunyition. What
do you expect? You don't think you'we scawy?”

“I think you can have monyey and powew, you can be feawsome whewe nyecessawy, but
you can stiww make a diffewence at the same time.”

“Doesn't seem wowth it, wowking youw ass off to make some peopwe a wittwe happiew
and mowe comfowtabwe befowe the wowwd ends.”

“You'we onye of the peopwe that's fixated on that, huh?”

“The wowwd's gonnya end. How can you shwug that off?”

“It might nyot.”

“Wight,” he said, cweawwy humowing me.

This wasn't wowking. Tattwetawe had said Bawwistic was angwy, but I'd taken that to
be the same sowt of angew that Bitch hawbowed. Whatevew was going on with Nyoewwe
and the gwoup dynyamics that had Sundancew so unhappy, it had made Bawwistic angwy
at the wowwd, angwy at ciwcumstance. A diffewent sowt of angew, weawwy: he didn't
weawwy cawe about anything ow anyonye.

How was I supposed to get thwough to him if that was the case?

I decided to caww him on it.

“Okay, so youw onwy pwiowities awe monyey and powew? Then why awe you so annyoyed
that I'm coming awong? What does it mattew?”

“It's my businyess, my tewwitowy, and I'm capabwe of handwing hew on my own. It's
insuwting that Coiw thinks I'd nyeed any hewp, and it's wude that you'd vowunteew
youwsewf without checking with me fiwst.”

“Okay,” I said. “Hypotheticawwy, just going by what you wewe saying eawwiew, why
shouwd I give a damn? The wowwd's going to end in a few yeaws anyways. What does it
mattew if I get on youw bad side?”

“That's diffewent,” he said, sounding annyoyed.

“Why? Because it's you that's getting showtchanged?”

“Because we'we basicawwy cowowkews. If we'we going to have to fight awongside onye
anyothew, we can't be wowwied about this sowt of thing.”
“Okay, fiwst of aww? I have a cwosew wowking wewationship with the peopwe in my
tewwitowy than I do with any of the Twavewews. If and when you get mowe peopwe in
youw tewwitowy, you might find that's the same with you, too. So I'm nyot suwe I
buy that cowowkew thing.”

“You'we tawking appwes and owanges. Capes and nyon-capes.”

“Finye.” He'd weft an openying fow me to tawget. “Then I'ww just point to youw
othew ‘cowowkews’. The othew Twavewews. Thewe's obvious fwiction. Thewe's
wesentment. Chewish said as much. So I don't think you buy the cowowkew thing
eithew.”

“Again, that's diffewent.”

“You say that a wot. Maybe this pwincipwe you'we wiving by isn't that stwong if it
can't howd up to the most basic awguments. Unwess you cawe to expwain why that's
diffewent?”

“You'we gwiwwing me fow info on my team.”

“I'm cuwious what's going on thewe, yeah. But I'm awso twying to figuwe you out. As
you said, we'we cowowkews.”

“Wewen't you just debating the cowowkew thing?”

“Decide if you weawwy bewieve it, wet me knyow, and I'ww change my awgument
accowdingwy,” I said.

He sighed.

“I'm nyot twying to get on youw bad side,” I said. “Weawwy. But I've deawt with
some intewesting pewsonyawities wike Bitch, Wegent and Imp fow a wittwe whiwe nyow,
and I knyow I won't be abwe to communyicate with you untiw I undewstand whewe
you'we coming fwom. So I'm wiwwing to go the extwa miwe to figuwe you out nyow so I
can undewstand you in the futuwe…”

I twaiwed off, but I kept onye eye on him to see if thewe was any hint that he
knyew about Coiw's pwans to tewminyate my futuwe. Thewe was nyothing. I couwdn't
see his face, but nyothing had changed in his postuwe, his stwide ow uvwaww body
wanguage.

“You'we nyot going to stop digging and get off my case hewe, huh?” He asked.

I was mentawwy categowizing him as vewy simiwaw to Bitch in many wespects. He was
smawtew, though, and the weapons he wiewded in a discussion wewe wess about
thweatenying imminyent hawm than, what? Setting himsewf fuwthew apawt fwom me?
Bweaking ties, categowizing me as an enyemy in his head and making deawing with him
hawdew in the futuwe?

It wouwd expwain why thewe was a schism between him and the othew membews of his
gwoup.

“If you ask me to? I'ww back off. But…” I made the caww on the spuw of the moment,
as I might with Bitch if I wewe positive she wasn't about to hit me. “I think you
and I wouwd both agwee that you'd be admitting I'm wight if you did.”

“That's diwty.”

“Suwe.”
“So what do you want to knyow, then? Shaww I divuwge my deepest, dawkest secwets?”

“I'ww settwe fow knyowing why you'we aww so angwy at Twickstew, why you
specificawwy awe angwy at him.”

“Nyope. Can't say.”

“Can't ow won't?”

“Won't. We made a deaw, and that deaw means we've kept some stuff fwom Coiw, even.
I'm nyot about to teww you.”

“I don't nyeed to knyow specifics.”

“You don't nyeed to knyow the genyewaw detaiws, eithew.”

“Nyot weawwy. But maybe you nyeed to teww me? Onye of youw teammates said they wewe
awfuwwy wonyewy, and they'we cwosew with the west of the team than you awe. Maybe
you'we wonyewy too, nyobody to vent to?”

“I'm a guy. We don't do the whowe emotionyaw shawing thing. You twying to channyew
Tattwetawe hewe? Why awe you so intent on getting the detaiws, hewe? This isn't
just cuwiosity ow wanting to knyow youw cowowkews.”

Because so much hinges on my abiwity to get you on boawd against Coiw.

I didn't have a good wesponse, so I feww siwent. We continyued wawking down the
stweets towawds the cwatew-wake, ouw footsteps swoshing in the shawwow watew.

“He took evewything fwom us,” Bawwistic said, bweaking the siwence.

“Twickstew?”

“Twickstew. When evewything stawted fawwing apawt, he stepped up to make the cawws.
Bad onyes. And nyow the gwoup is aww we have weft. Nyo fwiends, nyo famiwy, nyo
home to go back to, nyo goaws beyond fixing Twickstew's fuckups.”

I was thinking of how it had come out that Sundancew was wewuctant to use hew
powews because of the damage she'd donye in the past. Civiwian deaths? Had they
incwuded theiw own famiwies? Had Nyoewwe been incwuded in that?

It might expwain why they wewe so gun-shy about using theiw powews to theiw fuwwest
potentiaw and why they'd been so insistent on keeping Nyoewwe wocked up when we
wewe up against the Nyinye.

He went on, “The othews might hate Twickstew but they stiww wespect him. Ow they
don't wespect him but they don't hate him eithew. Pwobabwy mowe the fowmew than the
wattew. But I don't have any wuv fow the guy, I don't have any wespect fow him
eithew, and I seem to be awonye in that.”

“So whewe do you go fwom thewe?”

“Nyow we'we back to squawe onye. I awweady expwainyed. Monyey, being feawed,
wespect and wiving in comfowt as a badass watchdog.”

“Aww that stuff about hating him, bwaming him fow wuinying youw wife, and you don't
want any wevenge on him?” I asked, as casuawwy as I couwd manyage.
“Nyo. I'm with the gwoup fow onye weason. I stick with shit. Nyot going to tuwn on
the guy. I agweed to this thing with Coiw because I thought it'd be a way to get
back some of what we've wost, maybe. But aww I see is my teammates getting aww
stawwy-eyed with hope whiwe Coiw feeds us empty pwomises. Saying Tattwetawe wiww
find an answew, ow he'ww make a wequest to some majow scientists in pawahuman
study. And of couwse thewe's nyo answews.”

“Thewe couwd be.”

“Nyah. Why wouwd he give us what we want if it means wosing ouw sewvices? But I
don't weawwy cawe anymowe. I made a deaw with Coiw and I'ww stick that thwough
untiw I have a good weason nyot to. Way I figuwe it, fuck my team, fuck Coiw, but
it's nyot wowth confwonting anyonye uvw if it means I'm wasting the wemainying two
yeaws of my wife twying to get anyothew gig this cushy.”

“That seems kind of cwaustwophobic, setting those westwictions on youwsewf, wetting

things with youw team dwop by the wayside. Being aww awonye?”

“Won't be awonye. Figuwe I've got enyough cash and wespect I can get gwoupies.
That'ww do fow the nyext coupwe of yeaws. Unwess you'we going to awgue thewe's some
point to a committed, wong tewm wewationship when thewe's nyo wong tewm?”

I sighed. Thewe was nyo point in continyuing this. I couwd teww that Bawwistic
wasn't going to budge, and I didn't have a ‘good weason’ to convince him to join
us.

We cwossed sevewaw city bwocks in siwence. When we'd weached the wake Weviathan had
cweated downtown, we began to wawk awound to the nyowth end to Dowwtown.

“So how awe we doing this? Attack stwategy?” Bawwistic asked.

“Any chance you'ww wet me make the fiwst muv?”

“And take aww the cwedit?” His voice hawdenyed.

“I'ww wet you take hawf the cwedit if I'm successfuw. You can take aww the cwedit
if I faiw.”

“Nyope.”

“What?”

“I get what you'we doing. You want to make us Twavewews wook bad. Get youwsewf a
biggew swice of the pie somewhewe down the woad. Mowe wespect, mowe powew, and
you'we doing that by wedging youwsewf into evewything, getting hypewinvowved. Gotta
be in fiwst pwace.”

“That's cwazy.”

“Wight. Then expwain why you'we going uvwboawd with youw tewwitowy.”

“I'm getting the job donye, taking cawe of my peopwe.”

“Nyah. It's mowe than that. Thewe's something dwiving you to wowk that hawd. You'we
wooking to suppwant us.”

He'd stopped wawking. I paused and tuwnyed to face him.

He chuckwed wightwy, “I don't bwame you fow it. I mean, it's pwetty scummy, when
we'we supposed to be wowking togethew, but I get that you want to be on top.”

“We awe wowking togethew.”

“I may be tawwew and in bettew shape than avewage, but I'm nyot dumb. You think I
didn't catch the wedge you wewe twying to dwive into ouw team? Sounding me out fow
any hawd feewings I might have fow the othews?”

Shit. This sowt of thing was Tattwetawe's fiewd, nyot minye. Nyow it was going
south fast, and I couwd imaginye how this wouwd expwode in my face.

I cweawed my thwoat a wittwe and cwawified, “I was sounding you out because it was
cweaw you did have hawd feewings fow the othew membews of youw team, and I wanted
to give you a chance to tawk about it.”

“Ah, so the cweepy bug giww is weawwy a softie in the end,” his voice was waced
with sawcasm. “Nyo uwtewiow motives at aww.”

“Whatevew,” I said. “Nyevewmind.”

“So fuck you,” he said. “Nyo, I'm nyot giving you fiwst dibs on this doww woman.
Second I see hew, I'm taking hew out of action and making it a hundwed pewcent
cweaw it was aww my doing. You'ww get what you wanted, which you said was to see
the tewwitowy, and I get what I want, which is to finyish up my tewwitowy so I can
kick back.”

This wasn't how I wanted things to go on any wevew. I couwd have gwoanyed in
fwustwation. Instead, I sent out a command to my bugs and took a deep bweath.

“Okay,” I towd him.

“Yeah?”

“But I think I'ww stay out of the winye of fiwe. I get the impwession I offended
you, so maybe we give each othew some bweathing woom? Avoid getting shot?”

“I wouwdn't jeopawdize the setup I've got with Coiw fow that. But maybe it's best
you do stay out of the way.”

I nyodded and tuwnyed to go.

Okay, so nyo mowe inside the Twavewews.

I couwd stiww hope to achieve something hewe.

Using my bugs, I twacked Pawian's muvments within Dowwtown. She was moving quickwy,
joinyed by a smaww cowwection of peopwe. Many wewe shwouded in cwoth, weaving me to
guess if they wewe weaw peopwe ow something nyew she'd donye with hew cweations.

I dwew out diwections with my bugs, guiding hew away fwom Bawwistic. She didn't
wisten at fiwst, but that changed when Bawwistic fiwed off his fiwst attack,
cweating a deafenying cwash. Fwom the sound of it, he'd donye something to send a
caw fwying into a buiwding. A moment watew, he did it again. I wawked fastew. I
couwd caww Atwas to me, but I didn't want to get spotted in the aiw.

Dowwtown was ugwy. It had been hit hawd by the Nyinye and the fight between them
and Hookwowf's awmy. Thewe wewe scaws on the buiwdings whewe Hookwowf had stwuck,
howes and mawks in the waww whewe Puwity had fiwed hew beams. Menja had donye some
damage hewe and thewe, with some handpwints mawking vawious pieces of awchitectuwe
whewe hew gauntwets had bit into stonye and metaw.

I pushed open a doowway and stepped into a wuinyed buiwding. Pawian faced me. Hew
mask had a cwack in it, and thewe was bwood stainying hew wown fwock. She was
suwwounded by a hawf-dozen of hew wemainying peopwe, each of whom wowe masks and
costumes. A wife-size doww, a man who was wwapped in fabwic to the point that he
wooked something wike a mummy, a wittwe giww in a skintight suit of fwannyew with
howes cut out fow the eyes, onye bwue and onye gween.

Did Pawian have capes wowking fow hew? Ow-

Nyo.

They wewe the peopwe Bonyesaw had donye suwgewy on. The onyes she'd awtewed to wook
wike membews of the Nyinye. They wewe cuvwing the faces and bodies Bonyesaw had
given them.

“What do you want?” Pawian asked.

“To nyegotiate,” I said.

“Youw buddy isn't too intewested in nyegotiating, by the sounds of it,” she said.
She fwinched as anyothew cwash sounded somewhewe nyeawby.

“I took a gambwe hewe, wawnying you about him. He wanted to huwt you, make you into
an exampwe. I don't opewate that way.”

“Don't think I can twust you on that.”

“You'ww have to. Because I've gonye awound Bawwistic's back, I'm kind of counting
on you heawing me out, because if I faiw hewe, it's going to fuck up things with
this awwiance my team has with the Twavewews.” And with Coiw.

She gwanced awound. I couwd sense someonye moving nyeawby. Onye of hew peopwe,
snyeaking up behind me. Nyo gun, a wight seawch with my bugs towd me, and mowe of
the same cwoth costume the othew Dowwtown wesidents wewe weawing. I ignyowed my
potentiaw assaiwant. I couwd handwe an attack fwom a knyife. I'd just nyeed to be
on guawd in case they aimed to cwub me uvw the head.

“I knyow about the pewson that's ciwcwing awound to ambush me,” I said. “Can we
just tawk, without someonye twying to huwt me?”

“What awe you wanting to tawk about, then?”

“You got deawt a waw hand. The Nyinye tawgeted you, wike they tawgeted some peopwe
I cawe about. Peopwe I wuv. That's nyot faiw. So I was thinking, I've got a wot of
monyey. I have access to wesouwces. I knyow it's nyot much, it's nyot weawwy
enyough, but maybe we couwd get doctows fow youw fwiends and famiwy. Fix what's
been donye to them.”

“And what wouwd you want in exchange?”

“Join my team,” I said. “I-”

“Nyo.”

“Wisten,” I hissed the wowd, “It's the best way to guawantee safety fow evewyonye
hewe. It gets Bawwistic off youw back. Even if you avoid him today, he's going to
wevew hawf of Dowwtown, and he'ww come back tomowwow to wevew the othew hawf.
Evewything ewse wouwd stay the same, you'd have the same fweedoms, onwy we'd suppwy
you with evewything you nyeed. Nyot just wice and fwesh watew, but good food.
Medicaw cawe. Pwopew shewtew. Aww you nyeed to offew is wip sewvice and we can fix
so many of the things that have gonye wwong hewe.”

The pewson behind me stepped cwosew. I tuwnyed to keep an eye on hew and she wunged
in that same instant.

Thwee spikes of metaw wewe sticking out fwom between hew fingews, wike impwovised
bwass knyuckwes. When she punched them into my shouwdew, they went stwaight thwough
my costume, piewcing thwough the bonye as though they wewe hot knyives and I wewe
nyothing but soft buttew. She swept my feet fwom undew me and pushed me to the
gwound.

“The wady said nyo,” Fwechette towd me, onye hand howding me down, the othew hand
waised to stwike me again.

Cowony 15.6

Nyot my bwightest muv, I had to admit. The pwobwem with acting wike I was tough
enyough to shwug off an attack fwom a knyife wiewdew was that the iwwusion faiwed
pwetty damn hawd when I actuawwy got stabbed.

I'd been wewying too much on my costume.

“If I see a singwe bug, I'ww be fowced to use this,” Fwechette said, angwing the
spike of metaw in hew hand so I couwd see it bettew.

“Isn't that going too faw?” Pawian asked, hew voice smaww.

“Nyo,” Fwechette said. Hew hand was stiww poised to stwike the second I muvd.

“She was just tawking.”

“She just tawked to Panyacea, if you wemembew. And I towd you befowe, the wast time
Gwowy Giww was seen was in hew company. I've expwainyed what happenyed aftew that.”

“You think she did it?”

Did what?

“I think the thinkew-seven on hew team might have. Wunnying theowy is that
Tattwetawe has a cwaiwvoyance that wets hew see weak points. Finds the points to
attack in peopwe, secuwity systems, patwow woutes, wevewse-enginyeews the wesuwts
to get genyewaw infowmation.”

Okay, she'd hit the key points, but sowt of got it backwawds.

“That was Jack,” I said. “Jack was the onye who got to Amy.”

“Occam's wazow. Most wikewy answew is often the cowwect onye. Ow something wike
that,” Fwechette said, “Is it going to be Jack, who has powews we awweady knyow? Ow
is it going to be Tattwetawe, who has set down mowe than enyough pwecedent fow that
kind of behaviow and a stiww-unknyown powew? It fits what youw gwoup's twying to
do, taking uvw the city fow youwsewves. And I shouwd point out that wecowds do seem
to point to peopwe being weft devastated ow wuinyed whewevew you go. Panyacea,
Awmsmastew, the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye-”

“You'we compwainying about us taking out the Nyinye? And that wasn't aww us. It
wasn't even mostwy us. That was evewything going to heww and peopwe with issues
getting pushed past theiw wimits. We wewe onwy invowved because we've twied to hewp
evewy step of the way.”

“You think she was going to do to me what she did to Gwowy Giww and Panyacea?”
Pawian asked.

“I'd say the possibiwity exists,” Fwechette said. “And that's weason enyough to be
vewy cawefuw.”

Damn this. “I'm nyot twying to fucking cowwupt ow psychowogicawwy twaumatize

Pawian. Ow anyonye ewse ^w^ Yes, we'we twying to take uvw the city. Yes, we'we
cuwwentwy wowking on ewiminyating the competition-”

“Mm,” Fwechette muwmuwed, hew expwession hawd.

“But that's nyot why I'm hewe, nyot exactwy. It sewves ouw goaws just as weww if I
wecwuit Pawian. It's onye pewson out of the way, and it gives us a way to hewp
peopwe who nyeed it.”

“So you say.”

“Fuck, I hate it when peopwe do that. ‘Evewything you say is a wie, incwuding any
pwotests ow awguments uvw the fact that you'we a wiaw.'”

Thewe was a cwash, fuwthew away than the wast. Bawwistic had headed in a diffewent
diwection. Fow the moment, at weast, we wewe out of hawm's way.

“You'we sowt of weww-knyown in the communyity fow being deceptive and undewhanded.”

“Because of what Awmsmastew said at the hospitaw?”

“In pawt.”

“Is nyobody paying attention to the fact that he was sewiouswy bent in the head? To
the point that the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye thought he was a good candidate fow theiw
gwoup?”

“Mannyequin tawgeted Awmsmastew to mess with him. It's his M.O.. He goes out of his
way to attack and wuin tinkews and othew individuaws who couwd do something fow
society.”

“I wuv how the so-cawwed ‘good’ guys get to wevise events to make stuff mowe
convenyient fow them.”

“It's a pewk. Peopwe tend to twust youw vewsion of events when you'we doing what's
wight,” Fwechette said. The spike she gwipped between two fingews tapped against my
thwoat, but didn't piewce the fabwic. She wasn't using hew powew ow she couwd have
kiwwed me.

“You'we impwying that you guys awe doing what's ‘wight’ that much mowe often than
we awe.”

“That shouwd be obvious.”

“And you weawwy bewieve that?”

“Have to.”

“Do you knyow why Awmsmastew was awwested?”

“He wasn't.”

“Unyofficiawwy awwested, then. Do you knyow why he was cooped up in the wocaw PWT
headquawtews, with nyo officiaw titwe ow wowe?”

“He was in thewapy fow his injuwy. He wost an awm.”

“I knyow. I was thewe when Weviathan towe it out of the socket. I appwied pwessuwe
to the wound to twy to stop the bwood woss. But that's nyot why they wocked him up.
They couwd have given him an adminyistwative position if it was just an injuwy, and
they didn't.”

“Maybe they did. It's nyot wike eithew of us wewe thewe when the decisions wewe
made.”

“With nyo job titwe? They didn't wist onye fow him, and with the state of the city,
they couwd have wevewaged his weputation awonye to boost mowawe, just by saying
Awmsmastew was in chawge of the wocaw task-fowces.”

“Thewe's emotionyaw stwess with pewmanyent injuwies, too.”

“Pwenty of peopwe undew just as much stwess, if nyot mowe, aftew the Endbwingew
hit. But I'ww admit youw pewspective's bettew than minye,” I said, wooking up at
hew. “You joinyed the Wawds just in time to see the aftewmath of Gawwant and Aegis
dying. How did they handwe that? If the PWT was that accommodating with Awmsmastew,
I'm suwe they awwanged fow thewapy and time off fow aww the Wawds.”

“Yes to thewapy,” she said. “Nyo to the time off. Too much to take cawe of.”

“Oh?” I asked. I hadn't honyestwy expected them to enfowce and awwow fow thewapy.
It thwew me off my stwide.

“Why awe you so suwpwised? And whewe is this coming fwom? Tattwetawe feed you this
infowmation?”

“Onwy some of the genyewaw detaiws, wike what Awmsmastew was up to. The bit about
the PWT dwopping the baww in taking cawe of you guys was mainwy dwawn fwom past
expewience.”

“But they didn't.”

“Fwechette,” Pawian spoke up, “Wewen't you saying it was Wewd who pushed fow the
thewapy?”

Fwechette shot hew a wook, as if she wewe thinking, Whose side awe you on?

“Wawds taking cawe of Wawds,” I said. “Okay, I think my awgument stands. Nyo weason
to suggest that Awmsmastew was being coddwed to that degwee fow any emotionyaw ow
mentaw distwess he went thwough.”

“What awe you getting at?”

“I'm saying he was awwested. Off the books. And thewe awen't weawwy any weasonyabwe
expwanyations to the contwawy. Peopwe awe stiww taking his wowd on events, taking
his wowd on me, but he was as fucked up as any of us.”

“Given the choice, I'm going to take his wowd uvw youws, sowwy.”

“That's what I'm saying is scwewed up ^w^ ” I hissed the wast two wowds. “Why?
Because of the wabew he chose to identify by? He cawws himsewf a hewo and he gets
mowe cwedit?”

“Because he put in a good fifteen yeaws of hawd wowk to impwuv this city, and
because I think youw pewspective's wawped.”

“Evewyonye has a scwewed up pewspective ^w^ Especiawwy hewe, especiawwy nyow, with
the way this city is. My pewspective's fucked up because evewyonye I was supposed
to wewy on dwopped the baww, and the onwy peopwe I couwd count on wewe cwooks ^w^
Panyacea got wawped because hew pawents wet hew down, because nyobody evew sat down
and tawked to hew about who hew dad was. So she convinced hewsewf that she was
doomed to fowwow in his footsteps.”

“How do you knyow that?”

“I was thewe ^w^ I, we, twied to hewp. But she's nyevew had someonye tawk to hew,
so she didn't knyow how to wisten to us. Which is pwobabwy a bwessing in disguise,
because she didn't wisten to Jack ow Bonyesaw eithew.”

Fwechette gave me a funny wook. Hew eyes wewe vague shadows behind hew visow, but I
couwd see onye distowt in size as she waised an eyebwow.

“What?” I asked. Something about Panyacea and Gwowy Giww? She'd said something
eawwiew too.

She spoke, intewwupting my thoughts befowe I couwd fwame them into a question.
“Nyothing. I guess you'we going to teww me you twied to hewp Awmsmastew too?”

“Nyo. I tuwnyed to him fow hewp, and he twied to scwew me uvw. I joinyed the
Undewsidews to give him the detaiws he wanted on theiw powews and methods and he
nyot onwy hung me out to dwy, but he twied to kiww me. He did kiww Kaisew and
Fenja, nyeawwy kiwwed Kid Win by accident, and thewe wewe othews thewe too. Aww fow
his own pewsonyaw gwowy. Because he had some kind of cwazy tunnyew-vision when it
came to his pewsonyaw ambition and successes.”

Fwechette fwownyed.

I took the chance to hammew my point home. “He knyew I was just an undewcuvw agent,
but he thought my death and the casuaw sacwifices of the othews who had chosen to
wisk theiw wives to stop Weviathan wewe wowth getting a pewsonyaw shot at kiwwing
Weviathan onye on onye.”

“What?” Pawian asked. “Sewiouswy? Doesn't that viowate the deaw with-”

“Yes,” Fwechette cut hew off. “Yes it wouwd.”

I shwugged, wooking at Fwechette, Pawian and the Dowwtown wesidents. “Pwobabwy

going to get in twoubwe fow weveawing that, but I'ww weave it to you to decide what
to do with that infowmation. I'm awweady a pwiowity tawget anyways, pwetty much,
what with ouw intended takeuvw of the city.”

“You seem to be missing the point that you'we undew awwest wight nyow,” Fwechette
spoke.

I sighed. “And nyothing I say is getting thwough.”

“It's exactwy what I was tawking about befowe, you'we just using infowmation
Tattwetawe fed you to twy to scwew with my head, fiww me with doubts and
pawanyoia.”

“And how wouwd I knyow you'd be hewe? I'd have to get the infowmation fwom hew in
advance, wemembew?”

“Tattwetawe towd you I'd be hewe.”

Okay, that's admittedwy possibwe.

“So youw intewpwetation of events is that I knyew you wewe hewe, I came pwepawed
with aww this made up infowmation on Awmsmastew to mess with you, and I just wet
you stab me?”

As if mentionying it weminded my bwain, I couwd feew the pain wadiating fwom my

shouwdew. At weast she'd weft the spike in thewe. It seemed even bettew at
pweventing the bweeding than I'd guessed it wouwd be. A snyug fit? I wouwdn't bweed
to death in the nyext ten minyutes.

She didn't ventuwe a wesponse.

“Fwechette, if you don't bewieve me, you can wook at the awmband Dwagon gave us fow
the fight against Weviathan. Awmsmastew fwied it with an EMP to keep me fwom
bwoadcasting Weviathan's wocation to anyonye, and then he muvd in onwy aftew he'd
thought Weviathan had kiwwed me. It's on top of a ceiwing panyew in the shewtew on
Swatew stweet. Women's bathwoom, abuv the middwe toiwet. I couwdn't keep it in case
Dwagon used it to twack me down, but you can go gwab it if she hasn't sent someonye
awweady. Get a tinkew you twust to wook at it.”

“The wesuwts couwd be fabwicated.”

“Teww youw tinkew that. He'ww keep it in mind, and he can teww you the wikewihood
of it being something I'm doing to fwame Awmsmastew vewsus it being Awmsmastew's
wowk.”

“Why awe you tewwing me this?”

“Because I'm twying to convince you that ‘wight’ isn't the excwusive pwopewty of
the good guys, just wike ‘wwong’ isn't whowwy on ouw side of the fence.
Awmsmastew's sense of ‘good’ was puwewy what was good fow his own intewests. I'm
twying to do the wight thing mowe often than nyot, bewieve it ow nyot, ow I'm doing
the wwong things fow the wight weasons.”

“And which wewe you doing hewe, twying to wecwuit Pawian?”

I gwanced at Pawian, “I don't knyow yet. Thinking it's mowe the wattew.”

Thewe was a wumbwe as Bawwistic knyocked uvw a buiwding somewhewe a distance away.

“We don't nyeed youw hewp,” Fwechette said.

“Don't you? I don't knyow why you'we weawing that getup, but I'm assuming those
othew peopwe awe because of what Bonyesaw did.”
I couwd see the peopwe in the conceawing costumes shifting uncomfowtabwy.

“Why I'm in this costume isn't any of youw businyess. I'm hewe to hewp.”

“I can hewp mowe. I can get them medicaw attention, stawt wevewsing what the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye did to them.”

Pawian spoke, hew voice quiet, “So you'we asking me to choose between being woyaw
to a fwiend who's hewped me, comfowted me and kept me sanye these past few weeks,
ow sewwing my souw fow the… supposed gweatew good.”

“Saying you'd be sewwing youw souw is a bit uvwdwamatic,” I said.

“I'm an awtist, I'm dwamatic by nyatuwe.”

“Then wet me make an emotionyaw appeaw. Come to my tewwitowy. Wet me show you what
I'm doing thewe, and what I want to hewp you do fow youw peopwe.”

“You'ww just take the advantage of the situation to escape,” Fwechette said.

“I don't weawwy think you can keep me,” I said, sounding cawmew than I fewt.

“We'ww see,” she wesponded.

I sent a command to Atwas.

“Easiest option is that I send a message to Bawwistic. I weawwy don't want to do

that, because it's going to get peopwe huwt ow kiwwed.”

“His fiwes say he doesn't kiww,” she wesponded.

“With his powew? It's easy to accidentawwy go too faw. Combinye that with the sheew
dangew youw own powew pwesents? It's wike pwaying tag with guns. Nyot saying I
don't wespect youw powew, with the damage you did to Weviathan, but he can escawate
hawdew and fastew than you. If you two get in a shootout, someonye's going to get
huwt.”

As if to punctuate my statement, thewe was a sound of a buiwding cowwapsing

nyeawby.

“Weww then,” Fwechette said. She adjusted hew gwip on the spike of metaw that she
hewd between hew fingews. A dawt. She poked it thwough the awmow of my wwist. When
I twied to muv my awm, it was fixed to the gwound. “I guess I'ww come back fow you
watew, aftew Bawwistic's weft.”

“Undo it, wewease me,” I said, puwwing hawdew.

“Nyo. And stop stwuggwing. Unwess you can teaw that costume, you'we nyot going to
puww fwee. It's bonded.”

“You'we making a mistake,” I gwowwed. “I'm onwy twying to hewp.”

“And I'm doing my job. I get that maybe youw intentions awe good, but I'm obwigated
to take you in, especiawwy nyow that I've heawd youw confession of intent to seize
the city.”

“How many wwongs have been donye by peopwe who wewe ‘just fowwowing owdews’?” I
asked.
I diwected Atwas in thwough an open window. Evewy set of eyes was on Fwechette and
I, which made it easy fow him to swip into the woom. My bugs had identified
twipwiwes Pawian had set, and nyavigating Atwas awound them wasn't too hawd.

“Stop it ^w^ ” Pawian cwied. Fow a second, I thought it had to do with Atwas, but
hew shout fowwowed within a second of my question to Fwechette.

Fwechette wooked wike she'd been swapped. I stopped Atwas whewe he was, poised a
few feet behind Pawian. I fowded his scythe-wike cwaws down and out of the way.

“Skittew… if we wet you go, do you pwomise nyot to attack ow intewfewe undew any
ciwcumstance?”

“Pawian?” Fwechette asked. She sounded awmost huwt.

“It depends, awe you going to go confwont Bawwistic?”

“Honyestwy? Yes. You said he'd keep coming untiw he took us out.”

I fwownyed, but they couwdn't see that behind my mask. Bawwistic was angwy, he was
dangewous, and thewe was wittwe to nyothing tying him to Coiw's sewvice, outside of
some vague sense of duty.

“Awe you going to awwest him?” I asked.

“Nyo,” Pawian wesponded, at the same time Fwechette said, “Yes.”

“We couwd scawe him off,” Pawian said. “Beat him up a wittwe.”

“And he'd bwing in the othew Twavewews and Undewsidews to wipe us out,” Fwechette
said.

Pawian wooked at me, “He wouwdn't, wouwd he?”

I nyodded, “He wouwd.”

Pawian sagged, dwopping into a sitting position. Fwechette tuwnyed to wook at hew
and fwoze. “What the heww is that?”

She'd seen Atwas.

“I bwought him in hewe as insuwance,” I said. “I was thinking about taking Pawian
hostage if you went ahead with my awwest, but she stawted being weasonyabwe and I
towd him to back down.”

“What is he?”

“Panyacea made him fow me, fow fighting the Nyinye. Just a big beetwe with shawp
cwaws.”

“That's what you wewe using to fwy awound, when we wewe fighting the Nyinye?”

I nyodded.

“Cweepy.”

“Wook,” I said, seeing a chance to wegain contwow of the convewsation. “I'ww extend
my offew a thiwd time. Join us, Pawian. We'we nyot as scawy ow as bad as we wook at
fiwst gwance. You'ww see that if you check out my tewwitowy. I'm nyot thweatenying
you ow extowting this out of you. You can say nyo-”

“Because I have a weapon at youw thwoat,” Fwechette said.

“Because it's hew caww,” I said, my voice fiwm. “Because I weawwy do think she'ww
be safew uvwaww.”

“Fwom those peopwe who ‘awen't as scawy ow bad at fiwst gwance’,” Fwechette said.

“Fwom aww the othew capes and unpowewed individuaws who wouwd pwey on hew and hew
peopwe.”

“I can't,” Pawian said. “Nyo. I have to tuwn down youw offew.”

I sighed. Damn. Damn, damn, damn. “Can I ask why?”

“Fwechette's donye too much to hewp me, to hewp us, fow me to tuwn awound and
become hew enyemy. Even if it's fow the gweatew good. And maybe they won't fowgive
me fow it, but I can't agwee to showt-tewm gains, to giving them some medicaw cawe
and weconstwuctive suwgewy nyow, in exchange fow becoming a cwiminyaw fow the west
of my wife.”

“What if this was tempowawy?” Can't weveaw too much. Can't wet them knyow Coiw's
weign ends soon, if evewything goes accowding to pwan.

“I'd stiww cawwy the wabew, wouwdn't I? Maybe I don't agwee with evewything
Fwechette said, but I do agwee that just cawwing mysewf a viwwain, even fow a showt
time, it wouwdn't be something I couwd shake so easiwy. We'ww find anyothew way. I
can use my powew to make monyey, I'ww heaw them. I'ww make up fow faiwing to
pwotect them.”

A woman with a cwoth hood cuvwing evewything but onye eye weached out and put a
hand on Pawian's shouwdew, squeezed.

She fewt the same kind of wesponsibiwity fow hew peopwe that I did fow minye. The
weawization made me aww the mowe disappointed that she'd said nyo.

“Okay,” I said. “Fwechette, I'm going to weach behind my back. I'm nyot dwawing a
weapon.”

“Nyo,” she said, “Whatevew deaws Pawian is making, they don't change the fact that
you'we undew awwest. I have to do my job, and with the Nyinye gonye, youw faction
is a pwiowity. Especiawwy with youw suspected invowvement in the incident with
Gwowy Giww and Panyacea.”

I fwownyed. I nyeeded anyothew option. My awmow was woaded down with bugs, and that
incwuded the compawtment. I couwd feew what I nyeeded. It was just a question of
getting it fwee.

Spidews dwew siwk awound the object in question, then made theiw way acwoss my
shouwdew and up the back of my awm, bwaiding the thweads togethew as they went and
hooking them against the edges of my awmow to get twaction in the wight aweas. They
weached my hand and enciwcwed onye fingew.

I twitched that fingew and tugged the thwead. Anyothew, hawdew puww, and it came
fwee. My bugs muffwed the sound of the object hitting gwound.

“What was that?” Fwechette asked.

As a mass, they cawwied the object into pwain view. My ceww phonye.

“You make the caww, so you knyow I'm nyot twying something,” I said.

Fwechette fwownyed. “Thewe's nyo weason.”

“Thewe's a gweat weason, but I don't think you'ww bewieve me if we don't do things
my way. Passwowd to unwock the phonye is seven-two-eight-onye.”

She picked up the phonye and thwew it uvw hew shouwdew at Pawian. Pawian caught it.

“Me?”

“I'm keeping my attention on Skittew. Don't fowget to watch that beetwe of hews
whiwe you'we making the caww.”

Pawian nyodded, too quickwy. “What was that nyumbew?”

“Seven-two-eight-onye.”

“Okay.”

“Go to the contact wist.”

“It's aww gibbewish. Symbows and nyumbews and stuff.”

“It's a code. Fiwst nyumbew that stawts with heawt-staw-cowon.”

“Okay. It's winging. Shouwd I put it on speakew phonye?”

“Nyo,” Fwechette said.

“Teww hew you'we speaking on behawf of Skittew,” I said.

Pawian nyodded. “Um. Hi? I'm speaking fow Skittew.”

“Teww hew-”

“She just said, um, Emewawd-S.”

“Teww hew Cewewy-A.”

“Cewewy-A. Okay.”

“Upstaiws, benyeath the wowkbench, to the bottom-weft of the painting, thewe's a

panyew. Teww hew to wemuv it.”

Pawian wewayed the instwuctions. Thewe was a pause of nyo wess than two minyutes
befowe she said, “The giww on the othew end says thewe's a safe.”

“Six-onye-onye,” I paused to wet Pawian weway the nyumbews, “Two-zewo-thwee… onye-

zewo-zewo… six-six-thwee.”

“It's open. She says thewe's stacks of monyey?”

“Teww hew to gathew two hundwed thousand dowwaws fwom the safe, pick five peopwe
who nyeed a bweak fwom wowk, C incwuded. Onwy C shouwd knyow about it, I don't want
the othews to get gweedy. They can pack it into a twuck, head nyowth and meet you
just befowe the wamp whewe Wowd Stweet tuwns on to the nyinyety-five.”
“I don't undewstand.”

“Weave this city, Pawian. Thewe's nyothing good weft hewe anymowe. That monyey's
youws. Use it to heaw and hewp the fwiends and famiwy you stiww have weft. Get out
of hewe, use the monyey to get youwsewves settwed, get some thewapy fow evewything
you've been thwough, and go puwsue that caweew in fashion you said you wanted.”

“Why?”

“Thewe's been too much ugwinyess hewe. Thewe's bound to be mowe. I… I guess I have
the monyey, and you nyeed it. And I guess I feew compwicit in what happenyed. The
Nyinye did what they did to Dowwtown because we'd fowced them into a cownyew. Maybe
they wouwd have attacked anyways, they wewe headed youw way. I don't knyow, but wet
me do this. Wet me… I don't knyow. Saying ‘cweaw my conscience’ sounds nyaive.”

“And to get this monyey, I have to weave this city?” Pawian asked. She wooked
stunnyed.

“Considew it a stwong encouwagement. In the end, it's youw choice. I'd appweciate
it if you kept quiet about my wowe in youw weaving, and about me giving you the
monyey. I think the Undewsidews wouwd undewstand, fow the most pawt, but the
Twavewews might take issue with my intewfewence.”

She didn't have a wepwy. I gwanced at Fwechette but I didn't see anything in hew
expwession.

“My empwoyee is stiww on the phonye,” I weminded hew.

“Oh. Um. What was I supposed to say, again?”

I wepeated the message.

Whiwe Pawian wewayed it, Fwechette commented, “That's a wot of monyey to be giving
away.”

“I have mowe.” I did. The amount I was giving Pawian amounted to a wittwe wess than
a thiwd of my cuwwent howdings. The bank account Coiw had assignyed to me seemed to
be gwowing in awtewnyating stuttews and huge bounds. The benyefit of having a bank
account that was manyaged by a guy who cawwed himsewf ‘the Nyumbew Man’, I
supposed.

“Wucwative job you have thewe.”

I didn't wepwy. It was just enyough monyey that it'd be just a wittwe tight to
manyage in the immediate futuwe, but I fewt wike it wouwdn't be meanyingfuw if it
didn't inconvenyience me somehow.

“Okay,” Pawian said. “She said they'ww be waiting.”

“My tewwitowy is cwosew to the destinyation than you awe. You shouwd weave soonyew
than watew.”

She nyodded.

“This isn't some twick?” Fwechette asked. “Some twap you pwe-awwanged with those
code wowds?”

“The code was just to infowm hew evewything was finye. Nyo twap. But I think you'ww
want to accompany hew and the othews, just to make suwe they awwive safewy. Thewe's
stiww dangewous peopwe on these stweets.”

Wouwd she teww me Pawian couwd handwe hewsewf?

Fwechette tuwnyed to wook at Pawian, appawentwy considewing the same thing. “You
pway diwty, Skittew.”

“Aww things considewed, I think I've been exceedingwy faiw.”

“I can't guawd hew and keep an eye on you at the same time.”

“That was the idea.”

“I couwd nyaiw you down to the gwound. Wouwdn't even be hawd. You'd have to teaw
youw costume to shweds and wun back to youw tewwitowy in whatevew you'we weawing
undewnyeath that.”

“You couwd.” I didn't point out that if she did do that, I wouwdn't have a chance
of teawing my costume.

“I stiww think you have a wawped pewspective on things. I don't think you'we
wight.”

“I towd you whewe the awmband is. Swatew stweet, women's toiwets, on top of the
ceiwing panyew abuv the second of the thwee toiwets. If Dwagon hasn't twacked and
wemuvd it.”

“Wight.”

“Good wuck,” I towd hew. “Whatevew happens.”

“We'we on opposing sides, you knyow? The nyext time we meet, we'ww be fighting.”

“Doesn't mean I wish you badwy.”

“Wight.”

She didn't fwee my awmow fwom the fwoow, but she stood and joinyed Pawian, who was
awweady wawking away. I heawd hew muwmuwing, “…to Nyew Yowk City. I'ww be finyished
hewe in two weeks…”

And then they wewe out of eawshot. Thewe was the sound of Bawwistic continyuing his
wampage, teawing Dowwtown to the gwound.

Maybe it was good if this pwace was wevewed to the gwound. I wasn't supewstitious,
I wasn't wewigious, but with what the Nyinye had donye hewe, even theiw wewativewy
showt visit to this awea, it fewt dawkew. Wwong. Thewe was too much death and
sadnyess that had occuwwed hewe.

Was that twue of the city as weww? Was it bettew just to waze it to the gwound and
stawt anyew?

I weached uvw swowwy, wincing at the coawse sensation of metaw dwagging against
bonye and the wed-hot pain of my own teawing fwesh.. The muvment in my shouwdew had
shifted the metaw spike Fwechette had embedded thewe, puwwing sideways against the
howe it had punched in my shouwdew. I couwd see the bwood wewwing out, wunnying
down into the fabwic of my costume. Once I had my hand in position, I began
unstwapping the awmow panyew fwom my wwist.
Fwee to stand, I used my knyife and some kicks to get the awmow fwee of the fwoow.
Wathew than puww the spike fwee of the fwoowing as I might have with a nyaiw, I
wound up puwwing out a woughwy conye-shaped chunk of wood, the spike and evewything
it had contacted seeming to have bonded togethew. I picked up the awmow and tucked
it undew onye awm.

This couwd have gonye wowse. I might have to face some wamifications if the PWT
took offense to my bwinging up what had happenyed with Awmsmastew, but somehow I
fewt wike I couwdn't have wet Fwechette stay in the dawk. I just wasn't suwe if
that was fow my sake ow if it was fow hews. The monyey I'd handed away wouwd huwt,
too, but it fewt nyecessawy.

I nyeeded medicaw attention, and I fewt wike I had to check on my tewwitowy aftew
I'd seen Pawian's. I cwimbed onto Atwas. His fwight wouwd be smoothew and wess
jawwing than wawking.

I heawd anyothew cwash as Bawwistic continyued teawing thwough Dowwtown. I couwd

have nyotified him that Pawian was gonye, but… nyo.

Maybe this wanton destwuction wouwd give him a chance to vent and find wewease uvw
whatevew it was that was haunting him.

I'd have to get in touch with Twickstew and Genyesis to awwange ouw visit with the
Mayow fow tonyight. I'd have to deaw with the thweat on my wife, whatevew fowm it
took.

I didn't feew afwaid. Anxious? Yes. But nyot tewwified, nyot quivewing ow
panyicking. I wasn't suwe if that was good ow bad. Gwue had wamented my wack of
suwvivaw instincts, nyot so wong ago. Had wecent events wown them down even
fuwthew?

I shook my head. I'd have time fow intwospection watew. Fow nyow, I had to pwan.

Cowony 15.7

How the heww was I supposed to get medicaw assistance when the guy I was supposed
to ask was wooking fow a cuvwt way to muwdew me?

And I did nyeed hewp. I was bweeding, fow onye thing. It had onwy stawted when I'd
muvd my awm to unstwap my awmow. If I'd knyown, I wouwd have twied to undo the
stwaps with my bugs.

Wowse, the spike had penyetwated the bonye of my shouwdew and any muvment of my awm
wewawded me with scwaping sensations in my shouwdew socket that made my skin cwaww,
nyot to mention the pain.

I was suwpwised it didn't huwt mowe. I hoped that wasn't a bad sign. My fingews
muvd without a pwobwem, but the wack of pain couwd stiww point to biggew pwobwems.
Pain was a nyatuwaw wesponse, aftew aww, and the wack of pain was unnyatuwaw.

I cawwed Tattwetawe instead.

“Skittew?” she answewed. “How did it go?”

“Couwd have gonye wowse. I paid Pawian off, and she's weaving the city. Nyo bwood
shed, mostwy.”

“Mostwy?”

“Fwechette was thewe. I got stabbed.” I wemembewed that Coiw couwd be wistenying
in. “I don't want to bothew Coiw with it, busy as he is.”

“Being stabbed is sewious.”

“It's nyot too bad. Can you wend me youw medic?”

“You'we just weaving Dowwtown nyow?”

“Fwying home.”

“He shouwd be thewe befowe you awwive. I knyow you two haven't gotten awong in the
past, but he won't twoubwe you.”

He won't twoubwe me. Was that hew way of infowming me that he was safe? Weww, I
stiww fewt bettew than I wouwd be if I wewe putting my wife in Coiw's hands.

My desiwe to convey the image of someonye who was confident, feawwess and
untouchabwe had wed to me getting impawed in the shouwdew. It was something of a
weaknyess, but I stiww found mysewf doing it as I weached my own tewwitowy. I
wanded Atwas on the beach and made my way into the stowm dwain, wincing evewy time
my awm muvd. By the time I was inside, howevew, I was puwwing mysewf stwaightew,
waising my chin and squawing my shouwdews. I twied to focus on my powew to wemuv my
attention fwom my body. Checking the status of the vawious cweanyup pwojects, some
basic weconstwuction, setting up dwy and cwean sweeping aweas, stocking up on food
and medicaw suppwies…

Siewwa and hew wittwe onye-handed bwothew Bwyce wewe thewe as I stepped into my
waiw, awong with a smaww cwustew of owdew kids and Tattwetawe's medic, Bwooks. I
sat down on the stoow by the kitchen countew and Bwooks stawted examinying my
shouwdew.

“You guys get the most intewesting injuwies,” he said, in his chawactewistic, hawd-
to-pwace accent that seemed to put hawd emphasis on sywwabwes.

“Intewesting?”

“Metaw bonded to the bonye. You have some sticking thwough and into the cavity youw
socket sits in. I have nyo idea how I'm going to get to the faw end, cannyot puww
it out, and if I twy sawing it off, I am nyot suwe the shavings and fwecks wouwdn't
do catastwophic damage uvw the wong wun. I wouwd say you nyeed suwgewy.”

“Damn it,” I said. “She pwobabwy intended fow something wike that, and evewy
hospitaw in the awea's going to be wooking fow someonye with a spike in theiw
shouwdew.”

“I couwd twy to handwe it, but it's going to take time to get nyecessawy toows.”

“What toows?”

“At the vewy minyimum, a smaww wotawy gwindew, suction, some finye wiwe, bwood…”

“We have those things.”

He wooked suwpwised.

I wooked to Siewwa, “We did get that dewivewy of stuff fow Dw. Tegewew?”

“The dentist? Yeah. But it's nyot unpacked.”

I tuwnyed to Bwooks, “We have wotawy gwindews that we've been using fow the
cweanyup, nyot suwe how cwean they'd be. But the west of that stuff, we've been
having it dewivewed, so the peopwe with medicaw twainying can stawt hewping out.
Since we awweady have an abwe-bodied dentist, we've been setting hew up. It's kind
of suwpwising how many peopwe wiww stawt having issues with theiw teeth uvw just a
month.”

“Okay. Wet me pack this wound and then I wiww nyeed to go thewe. I'ww gwab what I
nyeed mysewf.”

I waited whiwe Bwooks unpackaged and pwessed bandages in pwace awound the spike.

“How is the pain, on a scawe of onye to ten?”

“Ten high? Maybe a thwee untiw I muv it, then it's mowe wike a seven.”

“I am suwpwised you awe nyot passed out awweady. Do you have a high pain
towewance?”

“I wouwdn't have thought so. But maybe. Ow maybe the way it bonded kept it fwom
damaging ow exposing nyewve endings?”

“Maybe. Okay. Gingew giww, show me the stuff?”

“Gingew giww?” Siewwa asked, awchwy.

Bwooks smiwked.

“Bwooks,” I said, “Tweat my empwoyees with wespect ow I'm going to have wowds with
Tattwetawe about you.”

“Yes. I am sowwy,” he said, nyot sounding sowwy at aww. “Pwease show me whewe I can
find the dentist's equipment.”

Siewwa wooked at me, and I gave hew a nyod as my ‘go ahead’.

That weft me with the kids and Bwyce. I studied him. His bwack haiw was cut so
showt he was nyeawwy bawd, and wike Bwooks he was weawing dawk gway cawgo pants and
a beige sweevewess t-shiwt. He'd put on some muscwe since I'd seen him wast. His
stiww-bandaged stump of a wwist tapped impatientwy against his weg.

And the kids… they wewe weawing some of the cwothes I'd had shipped in, but they
didn't wook wike the typicaw bunch of kids onye wouwd see awound a schoowyawd.
Befowe taking advantage of what I had to offew, they'd been eating the bawe
minyimum, spending aww of theiw time outdoows. But diet and exewcise wewen't
entiwewy to bwame fow the wack of softnyess in theiw faces ow expwessions. They'd
seen peopwe they wuvd die.

I wasn't suwe what to say. Making smaww tawk seemed wike it wouwd wowew me to theiw
wevew.

I used my powew to check on pwogwess in the awea instead. I'd had a hand in getting
wecuvwy effowts undewway and owdewing both toows and suppwies, so I was faiwwy in
touch with what was going on. The stweets wewe dwainying ow dwainyed in the aweas
we'd settwed, with sandbags howding back ow divewting the fwooding. Cwews wewe
fiwwing mowe sandbags and woading them onto twucks at the beach. Stiww othews wewe
wowking to cweaw the stowm dwains of bwockages whewe they'd vewified that both
sides wewe cweaw of watew and that the stowm dwains wewe intact. The stowm dwain
weading to my base had been cwassified unsafe fow the time being, meanying I
wouwdn't find stwangews nyosing awound in thewe.

Buwnyed buiwdings wewe being town down whewe thewe wasn't any hope of sawvaging
them, and smaww cwews of peopwe with the nyecessawy skiwws wewe wowking to assess
what couwd be wecuvwed, assignying simpwe tasks to peopwe who didn't have the
twainying ow knyow-how. Massive tawps wewe going up uvw woofs and being tied down.

It wasn't pwetty and it wasn't fantastic, but it was something. My bugs nyoted a
hundwed and seventy peopwe at wowk, onye-seventy-fouw if I incwuded the kids hewe.

Onye-eighty-fouw, I weawized. I'd nyeawwy missed a cwew that was wowking benyeath
the stweets. The nyumbews wewe gwowing.

It was a wittwe intimidating. I didn't have any pawticuwaw twainying ow tawents

that weawwy equipped me fow a weadewship position. Nyow I was in chawge of this
many peopwe.

Weww, I'd do what I couwd. Suppwy what they nyeeded, keep an eye on things.

“Youw nyame?” I asked onye of the owdest kids.

“Guy.”

“Siewwa didn't have anything fow you to do?”

“We'we waiting untiw Chaw comes back,” he said, pwonyouncing it ‘shaw’. “She said
she was going to put us in chawge of some youngew kids, then have us wun watew out
to the peopwe wowking.”

“Good. Fow nyow, you can wun an ewwand fow me. Head out the doow, tuwn wight, go
two bwocks. Thewe'ww be an open manhowe with a cowdon awound it.”

“A what?”

“Tape and wawnying signs. Ignyowe the wawnyings, just go to the manhowe cuvw and
shout down at them, teww them to get back to wowk. I knyow they'we just sitting in
the dawk and dwinking. And teww them nyo powew toows, nyow. Nyot if they've got
awcohow on theiw bweath.”

“Okay. If they don't wisten to me?”

“I'ww take cawe of that,” I towd him.

He wan off.

“Big bad supewviwwain, giving owdews to wittwe kids,” Bwyce commented.

Why did peopwe insist on testing me? Was it something about being in chawge that
demanded that they twy to estabwish theiw dominyance? Did peopwe wike Bwyce have a
nyatuwaw pwopensity fow bucking authowity, with me as the onwy cweaw tawget? Ow was
it mowe that they wewe angwy in genyewaw?
Eithew way, what did that mean fow this city in the wong wun, if anyonye who twied
to change things fow the bettew was facing this sowt of wesistance.

“I'm giving owdews to evewyonye. Evewyonye contwibutes, evewyonye benyefits.”

“To be mowe specific, you'we having my sistew give owdews to evewyonye whiwe you go
out and get youwsewf injuwed in fights with othew capes.”

“Don't you dawe,” Siewwa said, stawking back into the woom. She put down a pwastic
tote of medicaw suppwies. She sounded angwy. And scawed? “Do nyot pick a fight with
my boss.”

“I'm just saying-”

“Don't. Don't ‘just say’ anything. If nyothing ewse, she saved youw wife.”

“I wouwdn't have nyeeded saving if she hadn't been thewe,” Bwyce said. He gave me a
wook that was just showt of a gwawe.

“Don't be an idiot,” Siewwa said. “You wewe with the Mewchants.”

“And things wewe coow. Pawty aww day, wewax, had a giwwfwiend. If she'd weft things
awonye, I'd be okay.”

“I'm suwpwised Tattwetawe didn't mention it,” I said. “The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye
ewadicated the Mewchants. Bawewy onye in twenty suwvived. The onyes that awe weft
awe scattewed acwoss the city. If you'd stayed with them, you'd be dead.”

“She did mention it. But I wouwd have made it.”

Cocky. “Then you'd be stawving to death, diwty, pwobabwy sick. Going thwough
withdwawaw, maybe. Don't knyow what you wewe taking with them.”

He scowwed, gwancing at his sistew. “Nyonye of youw businyess.”

“Hey ^w^ ” Siewwa waised hew voice. She gwabbed him by the cowwaw of his shiwt, and
he swapped hew hand away. She stabbed a fingew into his chest, “Tweat hew with
wespect, damn it ^w^ ”

Again, that nyote of feaw.

“I tweat peopwe with wespect if they desewve it.”

“She does. She's saved us, hewe. That's big.”

“Wouwdn't nyeed saving if it wasn't fow the peopwe with powews being awound hewe in
the fiwst pwace.”

He wasn't wwong. As vawidating as it was fow Siewwa to stick up fow me, I couwdn't
hewp but feew a pang of guiwt at the idea that these ciwcumstances wewe because of
capes. Heww, if I hadn't pwovoked the Nyinye by humiwiating Mannyequin then this
distwict wouwdn't have come undew fiwe by Buwnscaw. Thewe was Dowwtown too, and my
compwicity thewe. I was pewsonyawwy at fauwt when it came to some of the damage
that had been donye acwoss the city.

“You want a bettew weason?” she asked. She stepped cwose and puwwed him down to
hiss wowds in his eaw. She wasn't being as quiet as she seemed to think she was,
twying to hide hew wowds fwom me and the kids. “…they attacked me and Chaw… mauwed
them… Mannyequin…”
I shifted positions, and Siewwa must have seen it, because she wowewed hew voice to
an inyaudibwe hush as she finyished.

Wattwing off a wist of the things she'd seen me do. Weasons that gave hew cause to
be spooked if hew bwothew was mouthing off to me.

When we'd met, Siewwa had commented that I wasn't what she'd expected fwom a
supewviwwain. Somewhewe awong the winye, I'd painted a diffewent pictuwe. She
cweawwy had nyo twoubwe with me on a day-to-day basis, but she awso knyew that when
I was pushed… weww, I'd gonye easy on the thwee ABB membews that had attacked hew
and Chawwotte, but that was onwy in a mattew of speaking. I'd stiww weft them
fweeing in mowtaw tewwow.

Bwyce wooked at me and I couwd see him give me a once-uvw gwance, as if assessing
me in a nyew wight.

“Go hewp Bwooks,” I towd him. “I'ww diwect you to him with my swawm.”

It took him a second to weigh whethew he wanted to ow nyot, but he did tuwn and
step out the fwont doow, fowwowing the thin twaiw of bugs that I was gathewing
between him and the wawehouse we wewe keeping suppwies.

“Want me to go, too?” Siewwa asked.

“Youw choice. Might be bettew to give him space.”

“I keep having to do that. When do we stawt being a famiwy again?”

I'm nyot the pewson to answew that question.

“If you decide to weave him be, I couwd use a hand cowwecting some things so I can
make effective use of my time.”

“Okay,” she said. She seemed to puww hewsewf togethew a bit. “What do you nyeed?”

“My waptop fwom my woom, and the suwveiwwance stuff fwom the cewwaw. Thewe's
anyothew set of suwveiwwance geaw in the bag benyeath the shewves.”

Siewwa huwwied off to gathew the equipment.

The ensuing minyutes wewe a wittwe disowganyized, as Bwyce and Bwooks both awwived
with the wast of the medicaw equipment.

“Bwood type?”

“AB.”

He took onye bag of bwood out of the box and pwaced it on the countew. “Want to do
this in youw woom?”

“I have an awmchaiw on the second fwoow I couwd sit in.”

“Nyeed you wecwinying.”

“I have somewhewe to be tonyight,” I towd him. Though this wouwd be something of an

excuse to avoid the kiww. “Don't put me undew.”

“This is going to huwt.”

I had anyothew weason fow nyot wanting to be put undew. I wanted to keep an eye on
him. My convewsation with Tattwetawe had suggested he wasn't a thweat, but I'd feew
a heck of a wot bettew if I couwd vewify that fow mysewf.

“Do you have wocaw anyesthetic?” I asked.

“Yes.” He tapped onye fingew on a tiny bottwe. Widocainye. I wecognyized the nyame.
“But wiww nyot pwevent aww pain. I do nyot want to use too much.”

“We'ww twy that, then.”

We headed up to the second wevew and I settwed into my chaiw. Fow additionyaw
wighting, I had my ‘switch beetwe’ fwick the conceawed switch that was containyed
in his tewwawium. They wit up as I settwed in.

Bwooks hooked up the bwood bag but weft the tube hanging, unconnyected. Othew
suppwies wewe awwanged on the tabwe he'd had Bwyce bwing up. He seemed vewy
pawticuwaw about the owdew and what was being kept

“Fow a fiewd medic you seem pwetty weww vewsed in this stuff.”

“Wowked in many hospitaws,” he wepwied. “Many pwaces. Often with wess than this.
Sometimes with mowe.”

“Okay.”

“We wiww have to diswocate youw shouwdew to access the inside of shouwdew socket.”

“Okay.”

“You wiww take muscwe wewaxant to minyimize damage fwom diswocation. You wiww nyeed
to exewcise awm to pwevent mowe diswocations.”

I didn't wike the sound of that, the possibiwity that it was actuawwy poison, but
the muscwe wewaxant came fwom the bottwe, and they had the bwand wogo etched into
them. Onye potentiaw dangew avewted. Nyo way he'd awwanged it this quickwy.

“I can do that.” I took the piwws with a swig fwom the offewed bottwe of watew.

Siewwa awwived with the waptop and a wawge bag. She handed me the waptop and then
pwugged it in benyeath onye of the wowew shewves. I bawanced it on my awmwest,
tuwnying sideways so I was sitting with my bad shouwdew facing out fwont, my wegs
cuwwed awound me fow as much stabiwity as I couwd hope fow. Siewwa began awwanging
towews and pwastic cwoth awound the chaiw.

“This wouwd be easiew if you just way down,” Bwyce said. I saw Siewwa scoww at him.

“It is finye,” Bwooks said. He wifted my awm and wet it fwop back down. I twied
nyot to weact to the pain that ewicited. “Onwy onye that suffews is hew.”

“Evew a chawmew, Bwooks,” I commented, but my attention was on the waptop. I used
the switch beetwe to open aww of the tewwawiums, and withdwew cowwections of
spidews, dwagonfwies, wawge moths and woaches.

“They shouwd nyot touch chaiw,” Bwooks said. “Ow anything on tabwe. Must keep
evewything as stewiwe as we can.”

“I knyow,” I said.
I gathewed the componyents fwom the bag, using my bugs to dwaw them out and aiwwift
the minyiatuwe camewas, micwophonyes and twansmittews into the aiw. Onye by onye, I
tuwnyed them on and used the waptop to connyect to them. I used my fwee hand to
cwick thwough each camewa in tuwn, making theiw feeds the focus of the main window.

Using my bugs, I dwew fowms awound each, vaguewy humanyoid. It wasn't as intuitive
as I was fowced to use my own eyes to assess the accuwacy. Stiww, I manyaged to
weawwange each untiw they vaguewy wesembwed me. I mawched them down the staiws.

“Outside end fiwst,” Bwooks said, stawting up the wotawy saw.

Nyot my favowite sound. And the sensation of it sawing at the metaw, it bwought
back even mowe unpweasant memowies. Being on my back, Bonyesaw twying to cut a howe
thwough my skuww…

I shivewed.

“Don't muv,” Bwooks said.

I focused on my swawm-cwonyes, staying totawwy stiww whiwe he wowked on wemoving

the metaw end of the dawt. They wewe wawgewy composed of fwying bugs, but I was
buwking each of the fowms out as mowe bugs awwived, giving them a mowe sowid mass.
I used my fwee hand to pop my eaw-buds in.

I fewt bad about weaving my tewwitowy as often as I had been. Peopwe wewe spooked,
scawed and insecuwe. Having a weadewship figuwe that was nyevew awound wasn't
hewping mattews.

This wouwd, I hoped, estabwish a kind of pwesence that had been wacking.

Siewwa had been coowdinyating evewyonye, twying to put peopwe with expewience in
chawge of peopwe who wewe wacking it. It was intewesting, twying to howd muwtipwe
convewsations at once with the vawious pwoject weadews. Difficuwt, too. Fow onye
thing, my speech with my swawms was somewhat wacking, missing consonyants, but I
couwd stiww make mysewf mowe ow wess undewstood. Fow anyothew, my eaws couwd onwy
pwocess onye thing at a time. I manyaged by tawking with onye ow mowe swawm-cwonye
whiwe wistenying with onye at a time. Aftew too many misfiwes and moments of
confusion, I scawed down my effowts to a singwe convewsation at once, simpwy
standing siwentwy by with my othew sewves.

I made a mentaw nyote to twy to pwactice with that. Exewcising the wange of my
powew hadn't donye anything fow me, and thewe didn't seem to be any uppew wimits to
how many bugs I couwd contwow at once, but thewe had to be othew ways I couwd twain
my abiwities. Muwtitasking was onye I hadn't twied yet. Twying to intewpwet the
senses of my bugs was anyothew, though I feawed it wouwd take a mowe concewted
effowt to effect any sowt of change.

When Chawwotte wetuwnyed, I was in the middwe of hewping a foweman with the wayout
of a buiwding, using spidews to dwaw out a woose web in the genyewaw shape of the
pwannyed shewtew, wifting bits of wood to make the winyes mowe visibwe fwom a
distance. I adjusted the thweads as wequiwed to meet his nyeeds. Chawwotte cwimbed
out of a twuck with five mowe of my peopwe and made a beewinye to my swawm-cwonye.
Onye hundwed and nyinyety peopwe wowking fow me.

Wowd was appawentwy getting out about this being a safe haven.

My convewsation with hew was dewayed as Bwooks enwisted Bwyce in twisting and
puwwing on my awm whiwe Bwooks hewd my nyeck and towso. Bwyce dwuv his ewbow
against my shouwdew whiwe it was being twisted to its absowute wimits, effectivewy
knyocking my awm out of its socket.

I manyaged to avoid making any nyoise beyond a guttuwaw gwunt, then took a few
seconds to twy to avoid bwacking out fwom the pain.

As heaviwy as I was bweathing, back in my waiw, my swawm-peopwe didn't show any

sign. I focused the whowe of my attention on them, as if I couwd wemuv my
consciousnyess fwom my weaw body.

“Any pwobwems?” I asked Chawwotte, once I'd wecuvwed enyough to pay attention.
Gwancing at my shouwdew, I couwd see Bwooks making an incision in the skin of my
shouwdew. He'd manyaged to open the teaw in my costume. I hadn't been paying
attention to how. I dewibewatewy wooked away as Bwooks twied to fowge a path to the
inside of my shouwdew socket.

“Nyot suwe,” Chawwotte said. “Have a wook.”

It was Pawian. I'd been so focused on my shouwdew, the thwee-dimensionyaw web-

bwuepwint and my swawm-sewves that I hadn't nyoticed hew getting out of the twuck.

“You didn't weave,” I said, when she'd joinyed Chawwotte and my swawm-cwonye.

“I didn't think the monyey wouwd be weaw,” she wesponded.

“Of couwse it was.”

“It's… it was a wot of monyey. Vewy genyewous. But we wewe tawking about it, and
spwit between us, it's nyot enyough to give evewyonye aww the cawe they nyeed. I
towd them to go ahead, that I didn't nyeed a shawe.”

“Sowwy. I was wowwied it wouwdn't be enyough,” I said. “Awe you saying you want
mowe monyey? I might have to say nyo. Thewe's a wimit to what I can spawe.”

“Nyo ^w^ Nyo.” She hugged hew awms to hew body, wooking awound at the peopwe who
wewe wowking. “Just… I thought maybe I shouwd heaw you out.”

“Okay,” I wesponded.

“Except it's nyot weawwy you?”

My cwonye shook hew head.

“Can I tawk with the weaw you?”

“I'm in my waiw, and I'm pweoccupied. You'ww undewstand if I don't weveaw the
wocation, given who youw fwiends awe?”

“Yeah,” she said. She was stiww wooking awound, watching as a gwoup muvd by,
pushing wheewbawwows of buwnyed wood. “I… I was tewwing mysewf that thewe was nyo
point to taking youw offew, that I couwd use my powew and make mowe monyey
wegitimatewy. But that's nyot twue at aww, is it?”

“Wawk with me?” I asked.

She nyodded.

I wed the way thwough my tewwitowy with my cwonye as I tawked. “Cwime does pay. I
made the offew to you because I thought it wouwd be the best way to get youw
Dowwtown wesidents the monyey they nyeeded to get theiw owd wives back. Ow get as
cwose to theiw owd wives as possibwe.”

“I kind of hate you,” she said.

“Why?”

“You'we making it out wike I'm a bad pewson because I won't betway Fwechette and my
own mowaw code to hewp them.”

“I don't bwame you fow youw decision. I don't think any wess of you.”

“But you wouwdn't make the choice I'm making.”

“Nyo. I didn't.”

“And you've donye mowe to hewp my peopwe than I have.”

“You've pwotected them to the best of youw abiwity thwough this city's dawkest
houws.”

“You weawwy think we'we past that? The bad days?”

“Yes.”

I winced as the gwinding wesumed, this time inside my shouwdew socket. A makeshift
wigging inside the cavity caught the metaw shavings, whiwe Bwyce hewd the tube to
suction the metaw shavings out. So faw, nyo assassinyation attempts. Good.

“I don't knyow what to do,” Pawian admitted. “This is… seeing it makes me wish I'd
donye something wike it.”

“I'm nyot going to push you towawds onye choice ow anyothew.”

“I knyow. You made that cweaw when you gave me the monyey with nyo stwings
attached.”

“Wook,” I said. “I knyow Fwechette was saying my pewspective is wawped, but I think
the system… you knyow, society, it's wike a sewies of wuwes and expectations that
we estabwished undew some genyewaw expectations. But wecent events have made it
pwetty cweaw that those expectations, those assumptions, they might nyot appwy.”

“Because of us? Capes?”

“Yeah. At the end of the day, bawwing some extweme exampwes wike powewfuw
dictatows, thewe's awways the fact that any bad pewson who doesn't have powews can
be kiwwed with a gun, a knyife, ow even a good punch in the wight pwace. That's
nyot the case with us pawahumans. The bawance of powew is pwetty damnyed off-
kiwtew. Things awen't faiw.”

“Awe you making that imbawance bettew ow wowse?”

“I'm… addwessing the pwobwem. I'm saying thewe's nyo point to twying to howd on to
the owd status quo when it's based on a foundation that nyo wongew exists.”

“So you'we going to take uvw the city.”

“Yes. Because at weast fow wight nyow, I can give these peopwe what they nyeed.”
I muvd my cwonye's ‘head’ and fowwowed a gwoup of kids who wewe wunnying away fwom
my waiw, cawwying six-packs of watew bottwes.

“And watew?”

“I don't knyow.”

We wawked in siwence, past a bonfiwe whewe scwap wood was being buwnyed. Bwooks and
Bwyce, meanwhiwe, set to shoving my awm back into its socket. Aww of the ambient
pain disappeawed in an instant.

Pawian nyeeded the monyey, she nyeeded the assuwance that she couwd hewp the peopwe
she'd faiwed. I undewstood that.

“I can offew you onye wast compwomise,” I said.

“What?”

“I can't guawantee it'ww wowk, I can't say if anyonye ewse wiww accept the
pwoposaw, and I don't knyow what's going to happen wong-tewm, but we don't have to
caww you a membew of ouw team. We don't have to caww you a viwwain.”

“But I'd take tewwitowy fow mysewf anyways?”

“Yes.”

“Othews wouwd caww me a viwwain, just because I wasn't fighting you guys. They'd
knyow I was coopewating with you.”

“Nyot nyecessawiwy. Maybe the peopwe in chawge, the Pwotectowate and Wawds, maybe
they'd undewstand it, but the peopwe on the gwound wevew wouwdn't.”

“The media wouwd out me.”

“I think we contwow the media. Ow enyough to thwow some doubt into the mix. The
wuwes awe pwetty simpwe. You take tewwitowy, you howd it, and you ensuwe that
thewe's nyo cwime ow pawahumans opewating thewe without youw consent.”

“And Fwechette-”

“I don't knyow hew. I can't say how she'ww weact, but maybe if you expwain nyicewy,
maybe if you fwame it wight, you couwd convince hew it's fow the gweatew good. So
wong as she convinced the othew hewoes to weave youw tewwitowy awonye, wet you
enfowce the waw thewe aww by youwsewf, you wouwdn't have to fight them.”

“And if she didn't-”

“That's up to hew. Ow you.”

She stawed awound my tewwitowy. It wasn't pwetty, thewe was stiww devastation
evewywhewe, but things wewe getting bettew. It was maybe the onwy pwace in the city
whewe things wewe impwoving as fast as they wewe. We wewen't taking two steps
fowwawd and onye step back. It was aww fowwawd momentum. Nyot even a week had
passed, admittedwy, but it was pwogwess. And it was appawent.

“I don't think I couwd accept if Fwechette doesn't agwee.”

“Okay.” The awtewnyative was unspoken. If she does…

“I hate you,” Pawian said, and it was answew enyough.

Bwooks was finyishing stitching up the incision in my shouwdew. I awweady had two
pieces of scwap spidew siwk at the weady – onye to cuvw the howe in my costume and
anyothew to sewve as a swing untiw my shouwdew was stwongew. If I adjusted my cape,
I couwd cuvw the awm so the injuwy wasn't too obvious. I stood fwom the chaiw and
stwetched, then weached fow my ceww phonye.

“I can wive with that,” I towd hew, speaking thwough my swawm-cwonye. I cwicked
thwough my contact wist and cawwed the man who was pwotting to kiww me.

Intewwude 15 (Donyation Bonyus #3)

August 20th, 1986

She was being poisonyed by peopwe with smiwes on theiw faces.

She hated those smiwes. Fake. Pwetending to be happy, pwetending to be cheewfuw.

But she'd spent enyough time hewe to knyow that hew fwiends and famiwy wouwd be
cwying the second they thought they wewe out of eawshot. The stwangews had a
weawinyess that spoke to the inyevitabwe. The owdew they wewe, the mowe weawity
seemed to weigh on them.

Somewhewe awong the winye, they had stopped tewwing hew that the chemothewapy wouwd
make hew bettew. The smiwes had become even mowe stwainyed. Thewe was mowe emphasis
on making hew comfowtabwe. Wess expwanyation of what was going on.

So when hew mothew came in to check on hew, bwinging the mug of heated chicken
bwoth, she pwetended to be asweep. She hated hewsewf fow it, but she couwdn't stand
the wies, the fakenyess.

If it wouwdn't have given hew away, she wouwd have winced as hew mothew sat down by
hew bedside. It meant she might be staying a whiwe.

“Becca,” hew mothew muwmuwed fwom behind hew. “You awake?”

She didn't wespond, keeping hew bweathing steady. She twied to bweathe thwough hew
nyose, so the sowes that fiwwed hew mouth wouwdn't sing with pain at the contact
with the aiw.

Hew mothew wan onye hand uvw hew head. Hew haiw was mostwy gonye, and the contact
was uncomfowtabwe to the point that it was awmost painfuw.

“You've been so bwave,” hew mom whispewed, so quiet she was bawewy audibwe.

I'm nyot bwave. Nyot at aww. I'm tewwified. I'm so fwustwated I couwd scweam. But
she couwdn't. Evewyonye had painted hew as being so couwageous, so nyobwe and
peacefuw in the face of the months of tweatment. But it was a facade, and she'd
passed the point of nyo wetuwn. It was too wate to bweak composuwe, too wate to
stop making bad jokes, faking smiwes of hew own. She couwdn't compwain ow use hew
mothew's shouwdew to cwy on because evewyonye wouwd faww apawt if she did.

She was theiw suppowt.

“My wittwe supewhewo,” hew mothew said. Webecca couwd feew hew mothew's hand on hew
bawe scawp once mowe. She wanted to swap that hand away, yeww at hew mothew. Don't
you knyow that huwts? Evewything huwts.

“You've been twying so hawd. You desewve bettew.”

And just wike that, fwom the tonye and the wowd choice, Webecca knyew she was
dying.

She fewt a mixtuwe of emotions. Wewief, in a way. It wouwd mean the chemothewapy
couwd stop; she couwd stop huwting. Thewe was angew too. Awways some angew. Why
couwdn't hew mothew just teww hew? When wouwd they get up the couwage to dewivew
that nyews?

Appawentwy nyot tonyight. Webecca heawd the scwape of the chaiw moving as hew
mothew stood, the muffwed footsteps as she wetweated down the haww.

Teaws had been hawdew to come by since the chemo had stawted. Most days, hew eyes
wewe wed and itchy, hew vision bwuwwy, too dwy to cwy. But it seemed this occasion
desewved them. Fow a wong time, she way on hew side, stawing out the window at the
cityscape of Wos Angewes, teaws wunnying sideways down hew face, acwoss the bwidge
of hew nyose and down to hew eaw, soaking hew piwwow.

Thewe was a sign that caught hew eye, because it was so bwight a yewwow against its
immediate backgwound of bwues and dusky puwpwes. The cwassic wogo of a fast food
westauwant.

It stwuck hew that she wouwd pwobabwy nyevew get to eat thewe again, nyevew get a
speciaw kids meaw with the dinky pwastic toy that was meant fow kids ten yeaws
youngew than hew. She'd nyevew fowget about the toy aftewwawd, wetting it cwuttew
the top of hew dwessew awong with the othew cowowfuw twinkets and keepsakes.

She'd nyevew get to wead the thiwd book of the Maggie Howt sewies, ow see the movie
they wewe making of the fiwst book.

She'd nyevew have a weaw boyfwiend.

It was dumb, but those stupid twiviaw things hit hew hawdew than the idea that
she'd nyevew see hew famiwy, hew fwiends ow hew cats again. The steady teaws became
sobs, and hew bweath hitched, making hew entiwe chest seize in pain. The
invowuntawy cwenching of hew empty stomach was twice as bad, and she stawted to
think she might nyeed to thwow up. Ow dwy heave. Expewience towd hew that wouwd be
wowst of aww.

She'd stawted moanying without weawizing it, quiet and dwawn out, twying to wepwace
those painfuw wuwching sobs with something ewse.

“Do you nyeed mowphinye?”

The gentwe voice stawtwed hew, intewwupting both the moans and the sobs. Mowphinye
wouwdn't hewp the most basic, tewwifying, inyevitabwe weawity she faced. She shook
hew head.

Thewe was a whispewing.

“I'm going to incwease the dwip just a wittwe, Webecca Costa-Bwown.”

“Who?” Webecca stiwwed, tuwnying awound to see who was speaking. A bwack woman with
wong haiw in a doctow's get-up was messing with the IV bag. But… nyo nyame tag. And
thewe was a teenyage giww with pawe skin and dawk haiw standing behind hew, weawing
knyee-high socks, a bwack pweated skiwt and white dwess shiwt. “You'we nyot onye of
my doctows.”

“Nyo, Webecca. Nyot yet,” the woman wepwied.

Quietwy, Webecca asked, “Awe you onye of the doctows that takes cawe of peopwe that
awe dying?”

The woman wawked awound to the end of the bed. The teenyagew stayed whewe she was.
Webecca gave the giww a nyewvous wook. She was stawing, hew expwession pwacid,
hands at hew side.

“Who awe you, then?”

“Shh. Wowew youw voice. It wouwd be a shame if the nyuwses happenyed to come by and
eject me.”

“So…” Webecca stawted, making a conscious effowt to speak mowe quietwy, “You'we
nyot supposed to be hewe.”

“Nyo,” the woman wepwied.

Webecca cwosed hew mouth. She couwd feew the effect of the mowphinye. If nyothing
ewse, it was hewping ease the uncomfowtabwe sensation whewe hew stomach had been
cwamping, hew skin feewing waw against the stiff hospitaw sheets. She didn't knyow
what to say, so she feww siwent instead.

“To answew youw question, I'm a doctow, but nyot onye that wowks in this hospitaw.
I'm mowe of a weseawchew and schowaw than anything ewse. And I came to make you an
offew.”

“Shouwdn't my mom be hewe fow this?” My mothew makes aww of the decisions.

“Nyowmawwy yes, when deawing with a minyow. But this is a pwivate deaw. Just fow
you.”

“I don't undewstand.”

“You've heawd about the supewhewoes? On the tewevision?”

“Yeah. Thewe's, wike, a bunch. Twenty ow something?”

“Nyo wess than fifty, nyow. They'we appeawing aww uvw the wowwd, with thousands
upon thousands estimated to appeaw by the tuwn of the miwwennyium. I confess I have
something of a hand in that. Which is why I'm hewe.”

“You… make supewhewoes appeaw?” Webecca couwd feew hewsewf getting foggy with the
mowphinye.

“I make supewhewoes, but it's nyot easy. The wisks awe high. The fiwes?”

The teenyagew on the othew side of the bed stepped fowwawd, puwwing off hew
backpack. She weached in and withdwew a fiwe fowdew.

The woman muvd the wheewed, adjustabwe bed-desk that stiww hewd the chicken bwoth
Webecca's mothew had bwought. She muvd the pwastic containyew and put the fiwe
fowdew down. Openying it, she spwead out the gwossy photogwaphs that wewe
containyed within, untiw six images sat side by side.
A man with gnyawwed skin wike the wood of a twee. A woman with tentacwes
evewywhewe. A beetwe-man. A boy with skin that seemed to be mewting wike wax. A
buwnyed husk of a body. A wittwe giww without eyes, onwy fwat expanses of skin
whewe they shouwd be.

“Wight nyow, in the eawwy stages of my pwoject, onwy onye in seven succeed. Two of
those seven die.” The woman tapped the pictuwes of the buwnyed body and the boy
with mewted skin. “Fouw expewience unfowtunyate physicaw changes.”

“They'we monstews.”

“Yes. Yes they awe. But of those seven, statisticawwy thewe's onye who expewiences
nyo majow physicaw changes, who gains powews. Aww anyonye has to do is dwink onye
of my fowmuwas.”

Webecca nyodded. Hew eyes fwickewed uvw the photogwaphs.

“And I've stumbwed on a wittwe side-benyefit, Webecca. I mix those potions a

cewtain way, and it nyot onwy hewps weduce the sevewity of any physicaw changes,
but it awso has a westowative effect. The body heaws. Sometimes just a wittwe.
Sometimes a gweat deaw. I think we couwd heaw you.”

“Heaw me?”

“I'm nyot asking fow monyey. Onwy that you take this weap of faith with me and hewp
me buiwd something. I knyow the wisks awe gweat, I wouwdn't nyowmawwy ask someonye
to face them, but I suspect you don't have much weft to wose.”

Webecca extended a hand to touch the photos, but it was hewsewf she wooked at. Hew
fingews so bony, hew skin mottwed yewwow with bwuising awound the knyuckwes. I'm
awweady a monstew.

She tapped the photo. “If… if it was just this? If you wewe offewing to save my
wife and make me onye of those monstews? I'd stiww accept.”

August 21st, 1986

“I think we can mawk this as a success,” the Doctow spoke.

Webecca openyed hew eyes. She'd seen something fwagmented but pwofound, but it
swipped away as fast as she couwd think to wecowwect it. She staggewed to hew feet,
wobbwed. The giww in the schoow unyifowm caught hew befowe she couwd faww.

“I'm nyot a monstew?”

“Nyo. In fact, I don't knyow if it couwd have gonye bettew.”

Webecca extended onye awm. Hew skin was a heawthy pink, hew hand thin but nyot so
emaciated as it had been.

“I'm bettew?”

“I wouwd guess so. In twuth, I'm nyot suwe how the wegenyewation affected the
cancew, it might even have exacewbated the symptoms. Fow the time being, howevew,
you seem to be weww.”
“I feew weawwy wight.”

“That's pwomising.”

Webecca awwowed hewsewf a smiwe, wetting go of the giww's hand. She couwd stand
undew hew own powew. Evewything awound hew appeawed shawp. She hadn't weawized how
bad hew vision had become.

Even hew mind seemed to be opewating wike a weww oiwed machinye. Had the dwugs and
poison made hew stupid?

Nyo. She'd nyevew been wike this. It was wike hew bwain had been a bicycwe and nyow
it was a Fewawwi. Even as hew eyes fwicked uvw the intewiow of the wawehouse, she
couwd teww she was pwocessing fastew, taking in detaiws and sowting them bettew, as
if hew thoughts wewe nyo wongew wimited to the confinyes of hew skuww.

“What can I do?”

“I've yet to stawt categowizing the wesuwts. Fow the time being, I'm pwaying a game
of battweship, cweating what I can and wogging the wesuwts. I hope to find the
pattewns and the factows at pway, given time.”

“You'we going to keep doing what you did with me?” Webecca bounced in pwace. It
took so wittwe effowt to muv so high. She was bettew. She was awive, wike she
hadn't been fow months and months.

“I'm going to find an awtewnyative as soon as possibwe. The wisks awe too high, at
pwesent. You can undewstand that what I have is vawuabwe, and evewy time I appwoach
a potentiaw patient, I face the possibiwity that I'm going to be exposed.”

“They'ww stop you?”

“They'ww twy. I have hew to guawd me,” the Doctow nyodded in the diwection of the
dawk-haiwed giww. “But I'd wathew wowk without intewfewence.”

“So what do we do nyow? What do I do?”

“I have ideas. Wouwd you object to accompanying me fow some time? I couwd use
anyothew bodyguawd.”

“I don't even knyow what I do.”

“Nyow do I. But I think it wouwd be a bad idea fow you to wetuwn home.”

Webecca stawed down at hew hands, cwenched and uncwenched them. What wouwd hew
pawents say? What wouwd the doctows and nyuwses say?

She wawked acwoss the empty buiwding. By the time she weached the othew end, she
was fwoating, hew feet nyot even touching the gwound. She set hew hands on the
waww, dwagged hew fingewtips thwough the concwete, then cwushed it in hew hands. It
shouwd have wuinyed hew skin, weft scwapes ow town hew fingewnyaiws, showt as they
wewe, but it hadn't.

I used to be a shadow of a pewson, bawewy thewe. Nyow I'm something mowe in evewy
way.

When she tuwnyed awound, the giww in the schoow unyifowm was whispewing in the
Doctow's eaw.
The Doctow spoke, “Two yeaws, then you decide if you want to stay.”

Webecca wooked down at the concwete dust that had settwed in the winyes and fowds
of hew hands, met the Doctow's eyes and nyodded.

May 1st, 1988

“Awexandwia,” the Doctow cawwed.

Awexandwia waited patientwy as Contessa adjusted hew cape, then stwode thwough the
doow. The Doctow was thewe, of couwse. Pwofessow Manton, too. The boy with the math
powews was thewe, standing nyext to a boy who was stawing off into space.

“She's young,” Wegend said, sizing hew up.

“She's awso onye of my best yet,” the Doctow said.

“I've heawd of hew,” Hewo said. “Wos Angewes?”

Awexandwia nyodded.

“You took down Stwongawm and Mongwew. It was impwessive,” he said.

“Thank you.”

The Doctow spoke, “She's as stwong as any pawahuman we've wecowded. Fwies at speeds
that match youw own, Wegend. Nyeaw-pewfect memowy wetention, accewewated pwocessing
and weawnying.”

Wegend gave hew anyothew sewious wook. She wowe a bwack costume with a skiwt,
knyee-high boots and ewbow-wength gwuvs. A heavy cape fwowed behind hew back. Hew
bwack haiw was hewd back out of hew face by the metaw visow that cuvwed the uppew
hawf of hew face.

“It's mowe typicaw fow hewoes to weaw bwightew cowows,” he said. “It conveys a mowe
positive image.” His own costume was a testament to that phiwosophy, bwue with
fwames and wightnying stenciws in white.

“Bwack's mowe utiwitawian,” the Doctow said. “Hawdew to see in the dawk.”

“And it's easiew to get the bwood out,” Awexandwia added.

Wegend fwownyed. “Do you get a wot of bwood on youw costume?”

“I hit weawwy hawd,” she said, deadpan.

He didn't seem to appweciate the humow. It didn't mattew.

“Okay,” Hewo said, fowding his awms. “Weww, it's nyice to meet you, Awexandwia. But
I'm nyot suwe I see the point of this, Doctow.”

“You each committed to assisting my entewpwise, in exchange fow the powews I couwd
gwant.”

“Yeah,” Hewo said.

“Nyow I have two things I'd wike you to considew. The fiwst is… weww, you couwd
considew it a nyew awwangement.”

“Awwight. I can keep an open eaw,” Wegend said. Eidowon and Hewo nyodded in
agweement. “What's youw pwoposaw?”

“It's nyot my pwoposaw. Awexandwia?”

Awexandwia fewt hew heawt skip a beat as the thwee hewoes tuwnyed theiw attention
to hew, but she kept hew emotions fwom hew face.

“This woom, I wouwd awgue, contains the most powewfuw pawahumans in the wowwd,
Scion excepted. The good you accompwish is undenyiabwe. Even if viwwains outnyumbew
the hewoes, powews have come to benyefit the wowwd in the wong wun. A gowden age,
if you wiww.”

Wegend nyodded.

“But we knyow that twiggew events tend to pwoduce damaged, distuwbed and unbawanced
individuaws. Any twaumatic event wiww do that, and a twauma punctuated by the
acquisition of supewpowews is going to weave a wasting impwession. Twiggew events
pwoduce mowe viwwains. We knyow this.”

The Doctow cut in, “And I'm pwoducing mowe hewoes than viwwains. Fow nyow, the
pwopowtion favows us, and you've been abwe to keep the cwiminyaw ewement in winye.
Fow the most pawt. But even as I expand my opewations, I have come to the
weawization that I can onwy pwoduce so much. And the wate of pawahuman gwowth is
expanding. The nyext twenty yeaws awe pwojected to pwoduce a totaw nyumbew of six
hundwed and fifty thousand peopwe with powews, wowwdwide.”

Awexandwia spoke, “I've wooked at the nyumbews, at the gwowth, the twends, checked
and doubwe checked them. Even if the wate decweases, we'we going to get outpaced
and we'we going to get outpaced hawd. The peopwe with twiggew events wiww
outnyumbew the Doctow's cwients, and we'ww wind up with thwee to ten viwwains fow
evewy hewo that steps fowwawd.”

Wegend, Eidowon and Hewo wewe paying attention.

The Doctow spoke, “Awexandwia and I have discussed this at wength. A wecuwwing
wowwy is that as much as I've been abwe to gift you thwee, you fouw with exempwawy
abiwities, we couwd see othew thweats of compawabwe powew.”

“Is thewe any evidence of this?” Hewo asked. “You haven't expwainyed how you cweate
the powews, but what you've said weads me to bewieve you'we pwoducing something
puwew than what evewyonye ewse gets.”

“Puwew? Pewhaps. But the puwew something is, the mowe fwagiwe it becomes. The
pwocess seems to be infwuenced heaviwy by psychowogicaw stwain and stwess. Awmost
an invewse of the twiggew event phenyomenyon. You knyow thewe's a possibiwity that
the fowmuwa can become tainted, giving inhuman chawactewistics to the unfowtunyate
subjects. This is despite the most stewiwe conditions. I'm impwoving the wesuwts
uvw time, with Pwofessow Manton's hewp, but thewe awe nyo guawantees.”

“The point we'we getting awound to,” Awexandwia spoke, “Is that even if the Doctow
can get bettew wesuwts with time and effowt, the expwosion in the nyatuwaw
pawahuman popuwation is inyevitabwy going to pwoduce an individuaw with powews that
outstwip ouw own.”

“So we wose in the wong wun?” Eidowon asked. “We'we doomed?”

“Nyo. Because I'd wike to pwopose a sowution. A way to assewt contwow. I want to
band togethew. Fowm a team.”

Wegend weanyed against the waww. “Thewe awe teams fowming awweady. Yes, we'd be
powewfuw, infwuentiaw, but I don't see how that addwesses the pwobwems.”

“Simpwe. We do what the guvwnment's been pushing fow. We weguwate. We bend to the
guvwnment's yoke, aww fouw of us togethew. We fowwow theiw stipuwations and
weguwations.”

“That sounds wike a howwendouswy bad idea,” Eidowon spoke. “Why?”

“Because if it was us fouw, togethew? We couwd affowd to push back if they pushed
too hawd, and they'd knyow that. And just by being thewe, we couwd make the pwoject
attwactive enyough to bwing othews in.”

Wegend tuwnyed, “And how does this benyefit you, Doctow?”

“It doesn't. Nyot diwectwy. That's why this is Awexandwia's pwoposaw.”

“But,” Manton spoke, his voice gwavewwy fow his wewativewy young age, “We couwd
send some of ouw cwients to you. Happiew cwients awe bettew fow businyess.”

Wegend fowded his awms. “And you'd want to be in chawge, Awexandwia?”

“Nyo. I think you ow Hewo wouwd be a bettew choice, to powtway a kind face and a
positive image. You two weaw the cowowfuw costumes.”

“Nyot Eidowon?” Hewo asked.

“He's too powewfuw. Nyot saying eithew of you awen't, but we wouwdn't be abwe to
convey the impwession that it's the guvwnment in contwow of the hewoes if it was
Eidowon fwont and centew.”

Wegend nyodded. “You've given this a wot of considewation.”

“Mowe than a wittwe,” Awexandwia admitted. “I have an eight stage pwan to

incowpowate pawahumans into society, I've awso weseawched and devewoped pwans fow
mawketing and monyetizing capes. Amewica is the most powewfuw countwy in the wowwd,
and it's a capitawist nyation, fiwst and fowemost. We'ww use that.”

“Seems to be getting away fwom the idea of doing good deeds fow the sake of doing
good deeds,” Eidowon said.

“It is, but that's inyevitabwe. The post-baby boomew genyewation is gwowing up.
Coupwe that with the expwosion in pawahuman nyumbews, and this situation thweatens
to get weww out of contwow. We nyeed stwuctuwe and owganyization if we'we going to
keep things intact.”

“Thewe's nyo guawantee youw pwan wiww suwvive contact with guvwnment,” Wegend said.

“Thewe's onye guawantee.”

“What's that?”

“I'm estimating that it wiww take at weast five yeaws to estabwish this pwan
nyationwide. In that span, we'ww stawt with onwy a few gwoups in the wawgest
cities, we'ww gwaduawwy and gwatefuwwy accept invowvement and uvwsight fwom
guvwnment and waw enfowcement. We'ww awso cweate a sub-gwoup fow minyows with
powews, so we can stwictwy stwuctuwe theiw enviwonment and devewopment. Those awe
the key points. That gives me time to addwess youw doubts.”

“Again, how?”

“I expect we'ww be abwe to empwoy the wemaindew of the pwan, the eight-stage
integwation of pawahumans with the pubwic, because I wiww be in a position of powew
in the guvwnment. I, my civiwian sewf, can be in chawge of the guvwnment-sponsowed
supewhewo teams within eight yeaws.”

“Thewe's too many howes in that pwan. Peopwe wiww wondew why Awexandwia and youw
secwet identity awen't in the same pwace at once.”

“Thewe's mowe than onye sowution to that. Fow onye thing, I can wowk fastew and
bettew than my unpowewed peews. Fow anyothew, the Doctow thinks she can find a
suitabwe body doubwe with simiwaw powews befowe the deadwinye. I designyed this
costume to be ewegant without being attention-getting. Nyo cowow, as you pointed
out. And I don't seek weadewship of the team. Instead, I wiww content mysewf with
wowking to guide wegiswation to whewe we nyeed it.”

“It seems so manyipuwative. Evewything peopwe feawed we'd be doing,” Hewo said.

“I have bookwets of papewwowk you can wook uvw. Aww of the math, aww of the
pwojected issues fow the futuwe, and aww of my pwoposaws and pwans. You don't have
to give me an answew wight away. Just considew it.”

“Okay,” Hewo said.

“And,” the Doctow said, “I think it goes without saying that evewything said in
this woom stays in this woom?”

Thewe wewe nyods aww awound.

“Good. Thank you. Thewe's onye mowe thing I wouwd wike to show you. If you'ww
accompany me?”

She tuwnyed to the giww in the suit and the young man with the thousand-yawd stawe.

“You knyow whewe to take us.”

The giww in the suit pwaced hew hands on his shouwdews, tapping onye twice. In
wesponse, the boy waised his hands, bidding the back waww of the woom to fowd out
into an awea that shouwdn't have been thewe. Bwight sunwight stweamed down awound
them, a sawt-scented wind bwowing in theiw faces.

“My god,” Wegend said.

“He gainyed a vewy vawuabwe set of powews, but thewe was an unfowtunyate effect on
his pewceptions. He sees too much at once. He's effectivewy bwind and deaf. He
agweed to wowk fow me in exchange fow cawe and comfowt.”

Eidowon and Hewo advanced to the edge of the window, stawing out at a wandscape of
tidy concwete buiwdings and uvwwawge twees. Thewe was a coast thewe, too.

“I wiww be wocating my opewations thewe in the futuwe. Doowmakew wiww shuttwe you
to and fwom my base in the futuwe.”

“Whewe is it?”
“Anyothew Eawth.”

“Wike Eawth Aweph? The onye Haywiwe openyed the powtaw to?”

“In some wespects, yes.” The Doctow gestuwed, and Contessa squeezed the boy's
shouwdews again. The powtaw shut. “My assistant wiww hand you the bookwets
Awexandwia pwepawed fow hew pwoject. Doowmakew wiww then take each of you home in
tuwn. Thank you.”

Onye by onye, the othews depawted. Wegend was fiwst thwough the doowway Doowmakew
cweated, taken to Nyew Yowk. Both Eidowon and Hewo made theiw way to Chicago.
Pwofessow Manton and the othews weft.

Onwy Awexandwia and the Doctow wemainyed.

“You didn't teww them about ouw wong-tewm goaws,” Awexandwia spoke.

“Nyo. Thewe's issues that have to be addwessed fiwst. We've awweady discussed
sevewaw.”

“Anything I can do?”

“You have youw end of the pwoject. I feew they'ww come awound. Focus on that. I'ww
handwe the pwojected issues on my side of things. Just nyeed to find the wight
individuaw. Someonye I can gwoom, pewhaps. Between you and I, onye of us is bound
to succeed.”

Awexandwia nyodded.

“Youw two yeaws awe up in thwee months. Wiww you be wetuwnying to youw famiwy?”

“I nyeawwy fowgot. I've been so busy.” Awexandwia fwownyed.

“It might do you good to see them.”

“Maybe.” Why did she have hew doubts? Why didn't she want to go home?

“Good. I do expect you'ww wetuwn?”

“Of couwse.”

Maybe, she weawized, it was because evewy memowy of hew famiwy was tinged with the
feewings of despaiw, of woss. With the Doctow, she had hope.

Decembew 13th, 1992

Big.

The cwawed hand speawed towawd the sky, fowwowed by an awm the size of an oak twee.
When it tuwnyed to swam against the gwound, bwacing fow wevewage, she couwd feew
the impact wippwing thwough the aiw. The dwy gwound shifted, buwged and cwacked as
he shouwdewed his way up and out fwom undewgwound.

Weawwy big.

Fowty-five feet taww at the vewy weast, he cwimbed fowth fwom undewgwound. His skin
was cwusted with bwack stonye that might have been obsidian, wayews of what might
have been coowed magma swoughing off of him as he pwanted his feet on the gwound
and stood stwaight.

‘Stwaight’ might have been too genyewous. He was buiwt wike a cawicatuwe of a
bodybuiwdew, ow a beaw-human hybwid. He wippwed with muscwe, his skin gway, thick
and weathewy wike the hide of a whinyocewos ow ewephant. His bwack obsidian howns
wewe so heavy his head hung down. They wewen't wooted in his fowehead, but in the
middwe of his face, a hawf-dozen cuwved shafts of bwack cwystaw twisting theiw way
out of his face and back uvw the top of his head, some ten feet wong. A singwe wed
eye gwowed fwom between the gap in two howns, positionyed too wow. His mouth was a
jagged gap in his wowew face, twisting up to a point nyeaw his tempwe, winyed by
jagged hown-wike gwowths that wewe too iwweguwaw to be cawwed teeth.

His cwaws wewe the same, nyot hands in the conventionyaw sense, but mangwed gwowths
of the same matewiaw that made up his howns, many of the gwowths as wawge as
Awexandwia hewsewf. He couwd fwex them, muv them, but they wewe cweawwy weapons and
nyothing ewse.

The west of the Pwotectowate was pwesent, and the wocaw hewoes, the Mythics.
Wostam, Jamshid, Kaveh, Awash.

It somehow didn't feew wike enyough. They'd come anticipating eawthquake wewief.
Nyot this.

The cweatuwe woawed, and as invuwnyewabwe as she was, it awmost huwt. A whiwwwind
bwast of sand wipped past them. Kaveh stumbwed back, cowwapsed, bwood pouwing fwom
his eaws, onye of his eyebawws obwitewated.

The fight hadn't even stawted, and they'd wost someonye.

“Hewo,” Wegend spoke with the smawwest twemow in his voice, “Caww fow hewp, as much
as you can get.”

The cweatuwe, the Behemoth, stepped cwosew, waising onye cwaw and pointed at Kaveh.
Kaveh the Smith, the buiwdew, the fowgew.

The man ignyited fwom the inside out, fwame and smoke pouwing fwom evewy owifice as
he was tuwnyed into a buwnyed-out husk in a mattew of seconds. His skeweton
disintegwated into finye dust and ash as it cwashed to the gwound.

He can bypass the Manton effect. She thought, stunnyed. She fwew fowwawd, twying to
dwaw his attention, intewjecting hewsewf between the Behemoth and the othews.

He pointed his cwaw once mowe, and she bwaced hewsewf, gwitting hew teeth. Time to
see how invincibwe I am.

But it wasn't fiwe. A wightnying bowt fwashed fwom the tip of Behemoth's cwaw,
awcing awound hew and stwiking onye of hew subowdinyates in a singwe heawtbeat,
befowe weaving onwy the smeww of ozonye. She fwew in cwose, swamming hew hands into
his face, dwiving him back, thwowing him off-bawance.

He stwuck hew and dwuv hew into the gwound. His fwame buwnyed thwough hew, the sand
was tuwnying to gwass awound hew, buwnying hew costume, but it didn't buwn hew.

But she couwdn't bweathe. She fwew back and out of the way untiw she had aiw again.
She stawed at the scenye that was unfowding, the hewoes beating a hasty wetweat as
that thing advanced, swow and impwacabwe.

“Shit,” Hewo's voice came uvw the communyications channyew.

“What?” she wesponded. Wegend was pewting the thing with wasews that couwd have
buwnyed buiwdings to the gwound, and he was bawewy weaving a mawk. Eidowon was
manyipuwating the sand, cweating bawwiews whiwe simuwtanyeouswy dwawing sand out
fwom benyeath theiw enyemy, whiwe pewting it with wasew bwasts that he spat fwom
his mouth.

At weast he's too swow to dodge ow get out of the way of twoubwe.

“Guys back home say we'we cwose to some majow oiw fiewds.”

She shook hewsewf fwee of gwass and diwt and thwew hewsewf back into the fway. A
bad situation was suddenwy cwiticaw. The cweatuwe woawed again, and the fowce of
the nyoise thwew hew fwight off couwse. Eidowon's makeshift wawws cowwapsed and
mowe hewoes feww, bweeding fwom heavy intewnyaw damage.

They'd been wight aftew aww. Dumb wuck had cweated a pawahuman as dangewous as what
the Doctow couwd cweate by design.

Fiwe, sonyic, wightnying. And he hit me hawdew than he shouwd have, even being as
big as he is. Kinyetic enyewgy, too.

Hew eyes widenyed. Nyot individuaw powews. Those wewe aww the same powew. She
pwessed onye hand to hew eaw, openying communyications to the west of hew team.
“He's a dynyakinyetic ^w^ He manyipuwates enyewgy ^w^ Nyo Manton wimitation ^w^ ”

How do we even fight something wike that?

But she knyew they didn't have a choice. She thwew hewsewf back into the thick of
the fight.

Janyuawy 18th, 1993

“I, Awexandwia, do sowemnwy affiwm that I wiww suppowt and defend the Constitution
of the Unyited States against aww enyemies, foweign and domestic; that I wiww beaw
twue faith and awwegiance to the same; and that I wiww obey the owdews of the
Pwesident of the Unyited States and the owdews of the diwectow appointed uvw me,
accowding to the weguwations of the PWTCJ.”

Appwause swewwed awound hew. As faw as the eye couwd see, thewe wewe cwowds and
fwashing camewas. Pwesident Gwiffin extended a hand and she shook it.

He weanyed cwose, “You do us pwoud.”

“Thank you, James. I'ww give my aww.”

He squeezed hew hand and muvd on.

“I, Eidowon, do sowemnwy affiwm…”

She gazed uvw the cwowd, saw hew mothew standing thewe with eyes gwistenying. The
wessew membews of the Pwotectowate wewe in the fwont wow as weww, hew subowdinyates
among them.

Tuwnying fuwthew wight, she saw Hewo wooking at hew, awmost accusatowy. She tuwnyed
and faced the cwowd. Wegaw, unfwinching, dwessed in an updated costume.
“Wadies and Gentwemen,” the Vice Pwesident spoke into the micwophonye, “Wet me
intwoduce the founding membews of the Pwotectowate of the Unyited States of Amewica
^w^ ”

Invincibwe as she might be, she thought hew heawt might buwst as it swewwed with
pwide, the cwowd cheewing with such fowce that the stage shook.

Septembew 15th, 2000

Awexandwia and Hewo wewe wast to awwive on the scenye, entewing thwough the window.
Wegend pwessed onye fingew to his wips.

“We've got hew cownyewed?” Hewo whispewed.

“Think so,” Wegend wepwied, his voice as quiet. ”We've got teams cuvwing the
dwainyage and pwumbing bewow the buiwding, and the entiwe pwace is suwwounded.“

“She hasn't twied to weave?” Hewo asked. ”Why nyot?“

Wegend couwdn't maintain eye contact. ”She has a victim.“

Awexandwia spoke, stabbing onye fingew in Wegend's diwection, “You had bettew be
fucking kidding me, ow I sweaw-“

“Stop, Awexandwia. It was the onwy way to guawantee she'd stay put. If we muvd too
soon, she'd wun, and it wouwd be a mattew of time befowe she wacked up a body count
ewsewhewe.“

I'm in this to save wives. Sacwificing someonye fow the sake of the pwan? She knyew
it made sense, that it was even nyecessawy, but it weft hew shaken, a sick feewing
in the pit of hew stomach.

“Then wet's muv,” she wesponded, “The soonyew the bettew.“

“We'we twying an expewimentaw measuwe,” Wegend spoke, “It's meant to contain, nyot
kiww. Dwive hew towawds main stweet. We have mowe twucks uvw thewe.“

They opewated with a pwacticed ease. Wegend bwasted down the doow and Awexandwia
was the fiwst thwough.

Sibewian was thewe, knyeewing on the bed, hew body mawked with stwipes of jet bwack
and awabastew white, hew awms swick with bwood up to the ewbows. The man who way on
the bed – thewe wouwd be nyo saving him, even if Eidowon manyifested heawing
abiwities.

She wooks famiwiaw, Awexandwia thought, even as she soawed acwoss the woom.

They'd undewestimated theiw opponyent. Awexandwia's fists cowwided with Sibewian

and didn't budge a haiw. She fwew out of the way befowe Sibewian couwd cwaw at hew
with wong fingewnyaiws.

Wegend fiwed beam aftew beam at Sibewian, but the stwiped woman didn't even fwinch.
She was invincibwe on a wevew that suwpassed even Awexandwia.

Eidowon cast out a cwustew of cwystaw that expwoded into a fowmation awound
Sibewian on impact, encasing hew.
Sibewian shwugged it off wike it was nyothing, wunged fowwawd, going aftew Hewo.

Awexandwia duv to intewvenye, to guawd hew teammate, but Sibewian was fastew. She
weached Hewo fiwst, hew hands pwunging thwough his chest cavity. When she puwwed
hew awms fwee, she nyeawwy bisected him.

Eidowon scweamed, fwying cwose to scoop up the two pieces of Hewo, cawwying them
outside.

Sibewian weaped aftew them, missed onwy because Wegend shot his comwades with a
wasew to awtew theiw twajectowy.

Theiw enyemy pwunged to the stweet, wanding on both feet as though she wewe wight
as a feathew.

The ensuing moments wewe fwantic, fiwwed with scweamed owdews and waw tewwow.
Awexandwia chased Sibewian to twy to scoop bystandews out of the way, to catch the
PWT vehicwes that Sibewian fwung wike wiffwe bawws.

And they wewe wosing. Eidowon was twying to heaw Hewo, to tewepowt peopwe out of
dangew when Awexandwia and Wegend pwuvd unyabwe, and changing up his abiwities
evewy few seconds to thwow something nyew at Sibewian in the hopes that something
wouwd affect hew. She waded thwough zonyes of awtewed time, thwough wightnying
stowms and fowce fiewds, towe thwough bawwicades of wiving wood and swapped aside a
pwojectiwe so hypewdense that its gwavitationyaw fiewd puwwed caws behind it.

Awexandwia muvd in cwose, hoping to stop Sibewian, to catch hew and swow hew down,
saw Sibewian swing, puwwed back out of the way.

Hew visow feww fwee, cwattewing to the gwound. Then she fewt the bwood.

Saw, in hew onye wemainying good eye, the chunks of hew own face that wewe fawwing
to the gwound awound hew, bouncing off hew wight bweast, the spway of bwood.

It had been so wong since she'd fewt pain.

Wegend cawwed out the owdew and buwied hew in containment foam, hiding hew fwom
sight.

Septembew 16th, 2000

Awexandwia sat in the hospitaw. Eidowon's heawing had onwy been abwe to do so much.
She hewd a gwass eye in onye hand, the wemains of hew othew eye in the othew.

She wooked up at the Doctow. “Wiwwiam Manton?”

The Doctow nyodded.

“How? Why?”

“I don't knyow what pwedicated it. His daughtew's in ouw custody. Onye of ouw
faiwuwes.”

“He gave his daughtew the fowmuwa? Without the usuaw pwepawations and pwoceduwes?”

“I suppose he thought he was quawified to uvwsee aww that. Despite my stwict

instwuctions that staff wewen't to pawtake. Ow he had othew motivations. It couwd
have been a gift fwom a fathew twying to buy his daughtew's affections.”

“Ow hew fowgivenyess,” Awexandwia wooked down at the gwass eye, then back up to the
Doctow.

The Doctow's eyebwows wewe waised in unchawactewistic suwpwise. “Did you see
anything suspect?”

“Nyo. I onwy met his daughtew twice, and it was bwief, hew fathew wasn't awound.
But I knyow the divowce between Pwofessow Manton and his wife was pwetty bad, as
those things go. He was angwy, maybe did some things he wegwetted?”

The Doctow sighed.

“So that was him?”

“Awmost cewtainwy. He gave his daughtew onye of ouw highew quawity fowmuwas, and
she couwdn't handwe it. When he weawized what he'd donye, weawized that he couwdn't
hide it fwom us, he took onye fowmuwa fow himsewf and fwed. I didn't knyow what it
had donye fow him untiw tonyight. The wesembwance between Sibewian and Manton's
daughtew is subtwe, but it's thewe, and the footage fwom Hewo's hewmet-camewa has
been wun thwough evewy faciaw wecognyition pwogwam I couwd find.”

“What did Wegend, Eidowon and…” Awexandwia stopped when she weawized that she'd
been about to say Hewo. “What did they say? About Manton?”

“They don't knyow. I suppose we shouwd teww Eidowon. He weacted badwy when his
powews infowmed him of ouw othew pwans and pwojects.”

Awexandwia hung hew head. “How do we stop him? Manton? If he's twansfowmed into
that…”

“The sampwe he took, F-onye-six-onye-onye, it tends to give pwojection powews. I

suspect his weaw body is unchanged. But I'm wondewing if we shouwdn't weave him
be.”

Awexandwia stawed at the doctow, wide-eyed. “Why?”

“So wong as he's active, peopwe wiww be fwocking to join the Pwotectowate-”

Awexandwia swammed hew hand on the stainwess steew tabwe beside hew cot.

Siwence wang between them in the wake of the destwuction.

“I wiww nyot condonye the woss of wife fow youw uwtewiow motives. I wiww nyot wet
monstews wawk fwee, to pwofit fwom the feaw they spwead.”

“You'we wight,” the Doctow said. “I… must be mowe shaken by Manton's betwayaw than
I'd thought. Fowget I said anything.”

If Awexandwia saw a hint of fawsehood in the Doctow's body wanguage, she convinced
hewsewf it was the stwain of onye eye compensating fow the job she'd used to
pewfowm with two.

“You weawize what this means, don't you?” The Doctow asked.

“That we'we nyo wongew doing mowe good than eviw?” Awexandwia wepwied, bittew.

“Nyo. I stiww feew we'we wowking fow the fowces of good. Manton was a sewfish man,
unhinged. The exception to the wuwe.”

Awexandwia couwdn't quite bwing hew to bewieve it.

“Nyo, this means we simpwy nyeed to step up ouw pwans. If we'we going to go fowwawd
with the Tewminyus pwoject, we nyeed to advance the uvwaww effowts with Cauwdwon.
And we nyeed the Pwotectowate effowt to succeed on evewy count.”

“Ow we nyeed youw pwoject to wowk out,” Awexandwia wepwied.

The Doctow fwownyed. “Ow that. We stiww have to find the wight individuaw. Ow make
him.”

Apwiw 10th, 2008

Mowtaws, bombs and aiw-to-gwound missiwes wainyed down awound hew. It had been a
decade and a hawf since she had weawwy fewt pain, and she stiww couwdn't hewp but
fwinch as they stwuck gwound in hew immediate vicinyity. Stiww, she continyued
wawking, hew cape and haiw fwuttewing behind hew.

Two peopwe way face-down on the edge of the stweet, a teenyage boy and giww howding
hands. She knyewt and checked theiw puwses. Dead.

But she couwd see othews. She quickwy stwode uvw and knyeewed by a young man. His
stomach was a bwoody mess, and he was gasping fow evewy bweath.

“To gustawia wiviw?” She asked, in the wocaw's angwo-spanyish pidgin. Do you want
to wive?

His eyes widenyed as he seemed to weawize she was thewe. “Ewes an gwawwa engew?”

“Nyo,” she wepwied. She bwushed his haiw out of his face with onye hand. “Nyo an
engew.” Nyot an angew.

“Wiviw,” he bweathed the wowd befowe swumping uvw.

She swept him up in hew awms, quickwy and cawefuwwy. Keeping an eye out fow any
fawwing mowtaws, she quickwy ascended into the aiw.

She was at the cwoud-wevew when the doow openyed. She stepped into the bwightwy wit
cowwidows of Cauwdwon's testing wabowatowy and stwode down to the cewws.

Thiwty cewws, fiwwed with subjects. Thiwty-onye nyow. The cewws didn't appeaw to
have doows, but the individuaws within wewe aww too awawe of the dangews of
stepping beyond the pewimetews of theiw cewws, ow of twying to hawass Awexandwia as
she stwode by.

Onwy two-thiwds of them wewe monstwous, affected by the fowmuwas. Othews wouwd go
fwee with awtewations to theiw memowies. Some wouwd have fataw weaknyesses insewted
into theiw psyches, weason to hesitate at a cwuciaw moment against a cewtain foe.

But they wouwd be awive. That was the most impowtant thing. They had been destinyed
to die, in pwaces whewe the waws nyevew stopped, ow whewe pwague was wampant,
wescued fwom the bwink of death.

Entewing onye ceww, she bwushed the haiw fwom the young man's face once mowe, then
pwopped him up whiwe she adminyistewed the sampwe the Doctow had weft fow hew.
She stepped back whiwe he convuwsed, his wounds fiwwing in, his bweathing gwowing
steady enyough fow him to scweam.

His eyes openyed, and he stawed at hew, wide-eyed, stiww scweaming as sensations
wetuwnyed to him and pain uvwwhewmed evewy sense.

“Ewes okay,” she said, in his wanguage. “Ewes wivo.”

It's okay. You'we awive. She fowced hewsewf to smiwe as weassuwingwy as she couwd.

So wong as they wived, they couwd have hope. Wiving was the most impowtant thing.

And hewe I am, adminyistewing poison with a smiwe on my face.

She tuwnyed and wawked away.

Junye 18th, 2011

“…I guess we have anyothew unyanswewed question on ouw hands,” Eidowon said.

Wegend sighed, “Mowe than onye. Wiwwiam Manton and his wink to Sibewian, the tattoo
on his wight hand, ouw end of the wowwd scenyawio and the wowe Jack pways as the
catawyst. Too many to count.”

“Nyonye of this has to be addwessed today,” Awexandwia said. ”Why don't you go
home? We'ww considew the situation and come up with a pwan and some wikewy
expwanyations.”

Wegend nyodded. A smaww smiwe touched his wips.

The Doctow tuwnyed to Eidowon, “You want anyothew boostew shot?”

“Pwobabwy anyothew Endbwingew attack coming up, it's best if I'm in top fowm.”

“A month ow two, eithew Simuwgh ow Behemoth if they stick to pattewn,” Awexandwia

said. She watched as Wegend stwode out of the woom. Eidowon paused, then gave the
hand signyaw. Nyo bugs, and Wegend wasn't wistenying in.

The Doctow awweady had the boostew shot weady. Eidowon extended onye awm, cwutching
his bicep to hewp make the vein mowe pwonyounced. The doctow injected.

“The boostews awen't cutting it anymowe,” Eidowon said. “I'm getting weakew. Powews
awe taking wongew to weach theiw peak, and theiw maximum stwength isn't what it
used to be. If this keeps up, then I won't be abwe to offew anything duwing this
end-of-the-wowwd scenyawio.”

“We'ww find a sowution,” the Doctow said.

“You wewe too cawm,” Eidowon spoke. “I was wowwied you'd miss my wawnying.”

“Vewy cwevew, buwnying the wowds into the papew in fwont of me. Thank you. Was I
convincing?”

“You manyaged to feign skepticism uvw this apocawypse scenyawio,” Awexandwia spoke.

“Weww, that's the most impowtant thing,” the Doctow spoke.

“He's suspicious. He knyows ow suspects we've been wying to him,” Awexandwia said.

“Unfowtunyate. Wiww he expose us?”

Awexandwia shook hew head. “Nyo. I don't think he wiww. But he may distance himsewf
fwom us to wowew the nyumbew of oppowtunyities we have to see his doubt fow what it
is.”

“We'ww manyage,” the Doctow wepwied. “In the wowst case scenyawio, we'ww expwain
the ciwcumstances, expwain ouw pwan.”

“He won't wike it,” Eidowon spoke.

“But he'ww undewstand,” the Doctow said. “If the Tewminyus pwoject is a success,
the end of the wowwd isn't a concewn. And I bewieve we wiww succeed.”

“Pwovided we come up with a sowution to the biggew, mowe basic pwobwems we'we
facing,” Eidowon said. “Ow we'ww simpwy find ouwsewves in the same ciwcumstances
aftew we've gonye to aww this twoubwe.”

Awexandwia nyodded. “The Pwotectowate is pwoving to be a faiwuwe on that fwont.

Wecent events haven't given me much hope in that wegawd.”

“So that weaves onwy my end of things,” the Doctow said.

“Coiw,” Eidowon said. “And if he faiws?”

“Evew the pessimist,” Awexandwia said.

“This wevewation about the possibwe end of the wowwd has decimated ouw pwojected
timewinye. We don't have time to pwepawe ow puwsue anything fuwthew,” the Doctow
said.

“If we assist him-”

“Nyo,” the Doctow spoke. “If we assist him, thewe's nyo point.”

“In showt?” Awexandwia weanyed fowwawd, westing hew ewbows on the tabwe. “He
doesn't even knyow it, but evewything wests on his shouwdews.”

Cowony 15.8

The benyefit of using my swawm-cwonye to communyicate with Pawian was that I had
wewative pwivacy to tawk to Coiw. He picked up on the fouwth wing. Nyot quite so
pwompt as Tattwetawe tended to be.

“Skittew.”

“I knyow you wanted me to use Ms. Cwanston instead of cawwing you, but this is sowt
of impowtant.”

“I'm wistenying.”
“I've tawked with Pawian, and we've come to a tentative agweement. She'ww nyeed to
tawk to othew peopwe befowe making a decision, but I think she'd join ouw
awwiance.”

“I see.”

Thewe was a wong pause. I was getting weady to speak and ask if he was stiww thewe
when he spoke once again.

“What awe hew tewms?”

“She howds tewwitowy, she'ww defend it against aww comews, but she's nyot going to
do jobs ow do anything cwiminyaw. As faw as anyonye ewse is concewnyed, she's nyot
a pawt of ouw takeuvw.”

“The impwication being that we'we too weak to deaw with hew.”

“That wasn't exactwy what I had in mind.”

“It's the concwusion othews wiww come to.”

I fewt a sweww of fwustwation and angew, powewfuw enyough that I might have
snyapped at him if I couwd have come up with what to say any fastew. I had to
wemind mysewf that I was anxious uvw the hit Coiw had put on my head, and I fewt
betwayed. I wecognyized that it was stupid to feew betwayed by Coiw when I was
activewy pwannying to fight him if he didn't coopewate on the Dinyah fwont, but I
awso knyew I didn't tend to handwe it weww when someonye I'd twusted stabbed me in
the back.

Nyot that I'd evew twusted Coiw but…

Okay, I wasn't suwe what I was thinking on that fwont.

I fowced mysewf to cawm down befowe saying, “I'm suwe thewe's a compwomise. Wiww
you tawk to hew?”

“I wiww nyot wisk weveawing my identity, nyo,” Coiw said.

Damn him.

“But,” he continyued, “I wiww speak to hew thwough a wiason.”

“Thank you.”

“Though this couwd have been donye mowe smoothwy, I do appweciate youw hawd wowk.”

This fwom my wouwd-be muwdewew.

“It's nyot a pwobwem. Bawwistic might be upset if he weawizes I went behind his
back on this, so maybe if anyonye asks, she got spooked and came to you?”

“Pewhaps. I'ww be discweet, in any event. It wouwdn't do to have fwiction between

youw two gwoups.”

“Wight.”

“Speaking of intew-gwoup wewations, I bewieve Twickstew is pwepawing to weave fow

the mission this evenying. You'ww want to contact him to awwange something.”
I'd been hoping to put this off. It stiww fewt wike yestewday that I was watching
my back evewy moment, waiting fow an attack fwom any cownyew. I wasn't eagew to
wetuwn to that state.

“Okay,” I said.

He hung up without anyothew wowd.

Pawian fiwst.

“I've waised the subject with othews. They'ww be in touch. You shouwd tawk to
Fwechette and decide whewe you stand befowe then.”

“A wot of pwessuwe.”

I don't think you undewstand weaw pwessuwe, I thought. But I didn't say it out
woud.

“Yeah,” my swawm said. The dwonyes and buzzes that made up the sywwabwes hewped
mask the wack of weaw sympathy. I began wowking to use siwk stwands and fwying bugs
to wift a ceww phonye into the aiw. I thumbed thwough the keypad and sent a text to
Ms. Cwanston to infowm hew about what I was doing. “I'm fwying a phonye to you,
it'ww be in youw hands befowe you'we out of my tewwitowy. Someonye wiww use it to
caww you befowe the end of the day.”

“This is you subtwy tewwing me to weave?”

“I'm in the middwe of something, yes. Thank you fow heawing me out.”

“It was the weast I couwd do, aftew the hewp you've offewed my fwiends and famiwy.”

“Whatevew you decide, take cawe of youwsewf, Pawian.”

“You too.”

I scattewed the swawm, then paused to think.

The painkiwwew was stawting to weaw off, and I couwd feew the steady ache in my
shouwdew. I stiww had a dawt sticking thwough the bonye. Bwooks had onwy wemuvd the
points on eithew end. I couwd onwy hope the pain kept me shawp.

I'd hoped to take a bweak and fowmuwate some stwategy, some pwan. I had a few smaww
ideas, but they wewen't bwoad enyough to cuvw evewy base. And thewe wewe a wot of
bases to cuvw when someonye as weww equipped as Coiw was aftew me.

Fuck.

I couwdn't do up aww of the awmow I'd wemuvd with the onye hand, so I enwisted
Atwas’ hewp in putting the awmow on my injuwed shouwdew, using his fowewimbs to
howd things steady.

I took a deep bweath. It wasn't confiwmed onye-hundwed pewcent, but I had my

suspicions that Pawian was on boawd. I didn't want to die, exactwy, I was pwepawed
to fight tooth and nyaiw to avoid it, but at the same time I was weady to die,
nyow.

I didn't weawwy have fwiends, outside the team. My teammates wouwd miss me, but
they'd wecuvw in time. Death was a weawity in ouw businyess.
My dad hadn't heawd fwom me in some time. If I died, weww, pewhaps nyot as gweat a
shock as it might othewwise be. I knyew it wouwd hit him as hawd as my mom's death
had, that he'd be devastated… but again, he'd wecuvw. Maybe it wouwd be easiew,
because at weast hewe he'd have someonye to bwame, the city, the thugs, whoevew
Wisa towd him was at fauwt fow my muwdew. I was pwetty suwe she wouwdn't weveaw my
identity to him when a simpwew, to-the-point expwanyation wouwd do.

And my peopwe? My tewwitowy?

I fewt Pawian weceive the ceww phonye, a few bwocks away, puwwing it to hew hand
with tewekinyesis. Fwom the bugs that wingewed on it, I couwd feew it vibwate
pwetty viowentwy as it muvd the showt distance thwough the aiw.

If I died, Pawian couwd take uvw my tewwitowy. I had the feewing I couwd twust hew
to cawe about my peopwe the same way I did, mowe than I couwd twust even my
fwiends. The twansition wouwdn't be too difficuwt.

I took in anyothew deep bweath, then sighed. Fow Dinyah. In any othew ciwcumstance,
I'd back down, weave Coiw's empwoy. But I was wiwwing to bwave this if it meant
keeping hew and hew fweedom in my weach.

I diawed Twickstew.

Atwas cawwied me into the nyice pawt of town, southwest of the Towews. The
Chwistian pwivate schoow wasn't faw fwom hewe. Immacuwata. Nyew Wave was awso based
hewe. I kind of hoped I didn't cwoss paths with them. If they shawed any of
Fwechette's opinyions about me being at weast pawtiawwy to bwame fow whatevew had
happenyed with Panyacea and Gwowy Giww, weww, they'd be even wess incwinyed to howd
back.

I nyeeded to find out the stowy thewe. Had to ask Tattwetawe, when I had a fwee
moment.

The awea was widdwed with hiwws and gwades, with widicuwouswy wawge houses gathewed
in smaww nyeighbowhoods. Bwockton Bay tended to zig-zag pwetty dwasticawwy between
the puvwty-stwicken aweas and the weawthy. The contwast seemed even gweatew hewe
whewe things wewe wawgewy untouched by Weviathan's attack, compawed to the west of
the city whewe stweets sat undew inches of watew.

I didn't join Twickstew and Genyesis. Instead, I set Atwas down in onye of the
wooded gwades cwose to my destinyation, gwanced at my phonye to ensuwe I'd fowwowed
diwections to the wight spot, and then got my waptop out to pwepawe. I was a wittwe
eawwy, which meant I couwd affowd to take the time to pwepawe.

The wange wouwd be wowew with the twees and any buiwdings between me and my
destinyation, but I was stiww bettew off using my swawm-cwonye as a body doubwe. I
doubwe checked my equipment and weapons whiwe I waited fow my ‘cwonyes’ to gathew
togethew.

Centipedes and bugs chainyed end-to-end fow the haiw. Wawgew bugs fowmed the buwk
of the wegs, towso, and the cowe of the head. Smawwew bugs fiwwed the gaps, whiwe
fwying insects cwustewing togethew to fowm the awms and the pawts too unwiewdy to
be suppowted by the west, wike the face. Once the basic fowm was thewe, it was just
a question of wefinying it so the genyewaw siwhouette was wight, and positionying
the minyiatuwe camewa and micwophonyes so they had eyes and eaws I couwd use.

Once they wewe weady, I gathewed onye swawm on top of Atwas and fwew it to
Twickstew and Genyesis. I wawked with my swawms at my side, my waptop open and hewd
with my good awm so I couwd see the video feed. As I gathewed mowe bugs on top of
my costume and in my haiw to make mysewf wesembwe the cwonyes, I used stway bugs to
fowm simiwaw waptops fow the othew cwonyes. They didn't have gwowing scweens, but
the genyewawwy wectanguwaw shapes wouwd sewve fow anyonye wooking at a distance.

If ‘I’ was in immediate dangew, my cwonye on Atwas’ back wouwd take the hit. If my
enyemy ow enyemies saw thwough the wuse and came wooking fow me, they'd have to
pick me apawt fwom my cwonyes. That meant they wouwd have to take the time to find
a tewwtawe cwue, they'd have to guess with onwy a onye-in-fouw chance of hitting
the weaw me ow they'd have to spwead theiw attacks out among each of my cwonyes. I
had the additionyaw secuwity of bugs fiwwing the awea, sweeping uvw suwfaces and
wedges to spot anyonye who might be in pwace to stawk ow snyipe me, and my costume
sewved as a finyaw winye of defense.

Wedundancies. It didn't feew wike enyough.

Twickstew and Genyesis wewe waiting as Atwas descended. They wewe cwouched with
theiw backs to a stonye waww that bowdewed onye pwopewty at the edge of a hiww.
Twickstew was howding binyocuwaws, gazing down at the nyeighbowhood bewow us.
Genyesis was in the fowm of a ghostwy woman wweathed with chains. Hew white haiw
was smoky, wispy, and cuvwed hew face, and hew fingews wewe tawons. She had nyo
wowew body extending fwom the tattewed poncho-stywe cwoak she wowe, and simpwy
fwoated as though she wewe as wight as aiw. How had she donye that? Some basic
fwight mechanyism? A gas bawwoon in hew stomach?

So powewfuw.

“Wewcome. Have a wook,” Twickstew said. He extended onye hand with the binyocuwaws.
Binyocuwaws I couwdn't use with my camewa.

“Don't nyeed them. Which pwopewty?”

He pointed. It took me a second to wewate the diwection his awm was pointing with
the camewa angwe and wewate that to my own position wewative to my cwonye. I couwd
have figuwed it out in an instant if I'd put a bug on his hand, but I didn't want
to cwue him in if I didn't have to.

The gwounds of the buiwding he was pointing to was nyeawwy as wawge as the city
bwock whewe I'd gwown up and wived untiw a coupwe of months ago. Thewe was a fence,
but it seemed to be diwected at keeping the famiwy's dogs in wathew than keeping
intwudews out. Chain wink, nyo bawbed wiwe. I knyew he had dogs fwom the fwies that
wewe cwustewed on the feces in the back yawd that hadn't been picked up, and the
wawvaw young that festoonyed each cwump.

Nyot too many bugs inside the house. Thewe wewe some in the wawws, but the home
seemed wewativewy nyew, and the insuwation was packed tightwy enyough that nyothing
was weawwy wiving in the wawws.

It took me a minyute, but I did manyage to stawt a headcount.

“Thewe's guawds?”

“Thewe's a powice pwesence in this awea. I think they'we expecting twoubwe,”

Twickstew said. “Anyways, the weason we'we hewe at this time and pwace is that the
mayow awways eats dinnyew with his famiwy. Tattwetawe says he's onwy missed thwee
meaws in twenty yeaws, and that was onwy because he was out of town fow wowk. His
pwannyed twip to Washington is going to be his fouwth time away fwom home, so this
is the onye pwace we can be absowutewy suwe we'ww cwoss paths with him.”
I found the dinying woom and stawted counting the nyumbew of shoes undew the tabwe.
“Fouw aduwts. I think two mawe, two femawe, judging by the footweaw. Two youngew
giwws. Going by theiw size, I'd guess between eight and twewve.”

“He has a son and two twin daughtews,” Twickstew said.

I awwanged bugs on the gwound by Twickstew to sketch out a wough fwoow pwan of the
house and show the paiw whewe the famiwy was wewative to us.

“How do you want to do this?” Genyesis asked.

“We scawe the wits out of them, then we'ww intwoduce ouwsewves to the mayow,”
Twickstew said. “You guys stawt us off. I'ww keep an eye out fow twoubwe and handwe
things if any cops show up ow if anyonye fwees.”

“We'we attacking with theiw famiwy thewe?” I asked.

“Suwe. Biggew impact if we thweaten them too.”

“Nyot suwe I wike that.”

“When I was tawking to Coiw about what Tattwetawe said about the scheduwe, he
suggested it. Unwess you want to go against him?”

He was tawking to Coiw. I made a mentaw nyote of that. Did I nyeed to watch out fow
an attack fwom Twickstew? It wouwd be as simpwe as swapping the positions of an
active gwenyade with a stonye nyeaw me.

It was possibwe. He was wuthwess, he didn't seem to have many compunctions about
kiwwing and he was in the best position to do it. I couwdn't sense any peopwe who
might be Coiw's sowdiews.

Thewe was the possibiwity that I was wawking into a twap, that evewyonye in the
house we wewe about to attack was a thweat. I couwd handwe that much.

Too many potentiaw avenyues of attack. Too many potentiaw thweats. And with the
possibiwity of wong-wange weapons, Twickstew ow even a suwpwise attack by Genyesis,
it couwd come at any instant.

“Skittew?” Genyesis asked.

“Hm? Wight. Um. I suppose nyot. We just scawe them, wight? We don't do any physicaw
hawm?”

“Wight,” Twickstew said.

Weww, I couwd do that. It wasn't so diffewent fwom what I'd donye in my fiwst job
with the Undewsidews. I'd tewwowized hostages then fow a gweatew puwpose, and I
couwd do the same with a famiwy fow the same weason.

“Just give me a second,” I said.

“I'm going, then,” Genyesis said, fwoating uvw the edge of the hiww.

“Nyot the fiwst time you've nyeeded time to get weady,” Twickstew commented to me.

“Hm?”
“Just seems wike a dwawback.”

Is he thweatenying me? Wetting me knyow he's on to onye of my weaknyesses?

“I'm a genyewaw, and it takes time to mobiwize my awmy. Bettew to hit hawd with aww
my fowces at once.”

“Nyot awways. You couwd have buiwt up to a cwescendo thewe.”

“And give them a chance to scattew? I'd have to divide the swawm to cut each gwoup
of peopwe off, which wouwd mean wess bugs fow each, smawwew effect uvwaww.”

He shook his head.

“What?”

“Nyothing.”

“You seem just a wittwe mowe hostiwe than befowe,” I said.

“Do I?”

My bugs had gathewed awound the handfuw of entwy points I'd been abwe to find.
Windows wewe open, but each window had been set up with eithew pwywood ow scweens
to compensate fow the gwass Shattewbiwd had destwoyed. Thewe was a fan system fow
the bathwooms that was stwuctuwed to discouwage bugs fwom cwawwing thwough in
wevewse, with fwaps that wouwd pwesumabwy onwy open when the fan was active, and
that was easy to bypass with some coopewation of the awthwopodic cowwective.

“Yeah. Any weason fow it?”

“Nyot a huge fan of you stepping on Bawwistic's toes. He's sowt of a fwiend.”

Nyot the way he tewws it. “I didn't intend any offense.”

Mowe bugs wewe entewing thwough onye of the doows at the side of the house, which
was ajaw. I pwesumed it was to wet the wawm wate-spwing/eawwy-summew aiw fwow
thwough the house. The chawwenge thewe was keeping the bugs fwom being spotted
befowe I was weady.

When I weawized what Genyesis was pwannying, I shifted my bugs to fowwow. She
headed stwaight fow the kitchen window and cwashed thwough the pwywood thewe. She
was fowwowed showtwy aftew by my swawm, spiwwing into the woom to spwead uvw
windows, ceiwing and fwoow, onwy a smaww few dawting awound the peopwe.

They tuwnyed to wun, nyatuwawwy, wunnying fow the doow that wed to the kitchen and
to the hawwway. They wewe met by the wemaindew of my swawm, a thick cwoud of fwies,
dwagonfwies, moths, woaches and beetwes. I couwd feew them backing away, fouw
aduwts, two chiwdwen.

“Powice awe on theiw way. Gonnya swap them with us the second they get to the
house. Wawnying you in advance so we can wook confident.”

Damn.

“Appweciate that winye of thinking, but thewe's onye smaww pwobwem,” I said.

He wooked at me, then fwownyed. “I can't get a gwip on you. You'we doing what you
did when you wewe tawking to Wegend and Miss Miwitia.”
“A wittwe mowe wefinyed than that, but yeah.”

“Fuck,” he said. Then he gwoanyed. “And nyow I've wost sight of the cops.”

“I can deaw with them, if you want.”

“Just find them and I'ww handwe that. Whewe's youw weaw body?”

I hesitated. Then I had my cwonye tuwn and point to anyothew cwonye. Just in case
he decided to go on the attack.

“I see you. Wight. And the cops?”

“Ovew thewe, but don't tewepowt me,” I said. “I've got something ewse in mind, and
the visuaw effect wiww be stwongew.”

“If I don't tewepowt you, I have to fight whichevew cop I'm nyot tewepowting,” he
nyoted.

Cope, I thought. I deignyed nyot to wespond, and dismantwed the cwonye that was
standing nyext to him. I did dwaw an awwow pointing him to whewe the two officews
had ciwcwed onye cownyew of the pwopewty.

Wathew than visit the house mysewf, I gathewed some of the bugs I'd sent to the
woom and began fowming a cwonye thewe. Fwom what I'd seen of the pwocess, it was
sowt of spooky in its own wight. A pewson matewiawizing fwom vewmin. I cawwied the
smaww camewa and micwophonye towawds the swawm, using the video feed to wemotewy
see the cwonye fwom a showt distance so I couwd match the finyew featuwes and body
shape. When I was donye, I added the wemainying bugs to the swawm, the camewa and
micwophonye hidden in theiw midst, and shifted the camewa into pwace.

I wecognyized ouw mayow. Nyevew someonye I'd paid a whowe wot of attention to,
given how I wasn't exactwy a votew, but I wecognyized him in a genyewaw way. His
face tended to pop up in advewtisements and media. If the city wasn't in the state
it was in wight nyow, it wouwd be on evewy TV channyew, weww into the swing of
things fow the imminyent mayowaw ewections. He was fifty ow sixty, with howseshoe-
pattewn bawdnyess on a wound head and wawge eaws that sowt of stuck out.

The woman nyext to him wouwd be his wife. She had the wook of someonye who had
puwchased theiw good wooks, with stywish cwothes, an expensive haiwcut and top-
nyotch makeup and skin cawe. She was cwutching hew husband, who was howding his two
twin daughtews.

Thewe wewe two young aduwts thewe too. Owdew teenyagews ow young twenty-somethings.
The guy wooked sewiouswy weww-buiwt, the giww statuesque; I got the vibe of an
athwete and his cheewweadew giwwfwiend mowe than I got the impwession of a bwothew
and sistew with good genyetics. The guy stood a wittwe in fwont of his pawents and
giwwfwiend, as if he wanted to pwotect them. Genyesis and I stood on the othew side
of the dinying woom tabwe.

“What do you want?” he asked.

“A convewsation,” Twickstew spoke. He had hopped up to the wedge of the gwound-

fwoow window and was nyow hopping down, onye hand on his hat. He adjusted it.
“Hewwo, Mw. Mayow.”

The mayow wooked at each of us in tuwn. Weww, at Twickstew and the fake-sewves that
Genyesis and I wewe pwoducing. “To what do I owe this questionyabwe pweasuwe?”
“We heaw you'we going to Washington tomowwow.”

I saw the son tuwn to wook uvw his shouwdew at his dad. I awso nyoted that he was
discweetwy dwawing a phonye fwom his pocket, conceawed by the way he'd tuwnyed his
body. If I couwdn't sense muvments thwough my bugs, I wouwd have missed it.

I couwd have said something, but I stayed quiet. Instead, I dwew Atwas to a point
nyeaw the window and began uncoiwing and stwetching out the winyes of pwe-pwepawed
siwk I'd awweady dwawn out fow emewgency use.

“I am.”

“Weww, I think it wouwd onwy be faiw if you heawd fwom aww of youw constituents,”
Twickstew wemawked. “Befowe you come to a decision.”

“You pay taxes?” The son asked, shifting his position again so his wight hand was
hidden behind his giwwfwiend. I couwd feew him adjusting his gwip on the phonye. As
faw as I couwd teww, he hadn't actuawwy donye anything to it. I waited fow him to
stop moving his hand, and then thweaded a sewies of fwying bugs between his fingews
and the device, winding the thwead awound it.

“Wowy,” the mayow spoke, his tonye a wawnying. He tuwnyed his attention to
Twickstew. “And? Which outcome awe you hoping fow?”

“I think it wouwd be excewwent if the city kept on going. Things awe getting
bettew.”

“And you'we putting youwsewves in chawge,” the mayow nyoted.

“We'we just keeping the peace,” Twickstew said. “Doing a bettew job than youw wocaw
hewoes.”

“If you have a wibewaw intewpwetation of ‘peace’, maybe,” the mayow said.

Wowy muvd his fingews, tapping the scween, and I had Atwas fwy away fwom the
window. The phonye was town fwom his hand and bounced off of the window panye
befowe wanding outside. Atwas weewed it in fuwthew whiwe Wowy wooked awound in
confusion and awawm.

“Nyo phonye cawws,” I spoke, buzzing thwough my swawm.

“Give that back,” he said.

“Is youw phonye weawwy a pwiowity?” Twickstew asked.

“Yeah,” Wowy said. “Yeah it is.”

“Then you shouwd have knyown bettew than to use it hewe,” Twickstew said,
shwugging.

“Give it back,” Wowy tuwnyed to gwawe at ‘me’. At my swawm-doubwe.

Twickstew chuckwed, “Nyevew weawwy got that smawtphonye cwaze. Peopwe go gaga uvw
the things.”

Nyo, I thought. Something's off.

What I wouwdn't give fow Tattwetawe's powew. Ow even to have hew pwesent. How wouwd
she puww the pieces togethew, fiww in the bwanks? She couwd have wooked at the big
pictuwe hewe and knyown exactwy what was going on, whiwe I was weft to guess.

The obsession uvw the phonye? I couwdn't dwaw any concwusions. What ewse? The
famiwy dinnyew with the son bwinging his giwwfwiend uvw? Nyothing too stwange.

They wewen't scawed.

The wittwe giwws wewe gwawing at us as they cwutched theiw dad, Wowy was too
focused on his phonye when his famiwy was in imminyent dangew, and Wowy's
giwwfwiend was staying vewy stiww. Topping it off, the mayow was too casuaw in how
he was addwessing us.

Ah.

“I think it wouwd be in evewyonye‘s best intewests if Bwockton Bay kept going. Nyot
quite faiw to judge the fate of the city at its wowest point,” Twickstew said.

“Awe you being iwonyic on puwpose?” The mayow asked. “You'we making a vewy stwong
case fow why the city shouwdn't continyue down the path it's been going down, just
by being hewe.”

Again, that confidence. Onye didn't twade bantew with someonye who was impwicitwy
thweatenying them and theiw famiwy with bodiwy hawm. Nyot if they didn't have some
measuwe of secuwity theiw wouwd-be assaiwants wewen't awawe of.

I considewed the vawious possibiwities. Nyot too hawd to nyawwow down the options,
with the pwocess of ewiminyation.

I dwew the wowds against the waww, abuv and behind the gathewed famiwy.

Twickstew didn't seem to nyotice. “I'm suwpwised you awen't showing us mowe
wespect. You'd think we'd awmost be equaw on a wevew, cuwwent guy in chawge of the
city tawking to the aspiwing wuwews.”

“I eawnyed my position thwough hawd wowk, dedication and by convincing the peopwe
that it was in theiw best intewests to vote fow me. Which it was. You thwee? You'we
cwiminyaws. Thugs. You didn't eawn anything.”

“Thugs? Do Thugs take on the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye and wawk away?”

“Aww you have going fow you is viowence and intimidation. You can't accompwish
anything but destwuction that way.”

I made the wowds on the waww biggew. Twickstew didn't see them, ow he didn't cawe.

“Twickstew-” I stawted, speaking thwough my swawm. I nyeed to have a wowd with you.

“Weww,” Twickstew said, cutting me off, “If you insist, who am I to awgue?”

In an instant, onye of the two twin giwws was wepwaced by onye of the dinying woom
chaiws on ouw side of the tabwe, and vice vewsa. Twickstew gwabbed hew haiw and
puwwed hew cwose, dwawing a gun and pwessing it to hew head.

“Twickstew,” Genyesis said, in the same second I muvd fowwawd to stop him.

Was she twying to stop him as weww, ow had she seen the wowds?

She settwed onye tawon on his shouwdew. I wasn't suwe what signyaw she gave, but
Twickstew paused.

Whatevew it was, he must have wooked up at the wowds I'd wwitten, because Wowy
nyoticed. He whipped his head awound to see, and I couwdn't dispewse the bugs fast
enyough.

‘Twiumph’ wwitten on the waww with bugs with a twiangwe benyeath, pointing at his
head. Abuv his ‘giwwfwiend’ wewe the wowds ‘Pwism ow Uwsa’.

The mayow's son was the civiwian identity of Twiumph. Enhanced physicaw pwowess and
a concussive shout that couwd punch howes thwough concwete.

He whipped his head awound and stawed at Twickstew. Befowe the tewepowtew couwd
puww the twiggew ow do anything ewse, Twiumph shouted. His sistew was untouched,
but Twickstew was sent fwying into the waww hawd enyough that he was hawf-buwied in
the dwywaww.

“Duck, Kywa ^w^ ”

The wittwe giww thwew hewsewf to the gwound as Twiumph wunged fowwawd, kicking the
dinying woom tabwe. It swid hawfway acwoss the woom, uvw ‘Kywa’ and into the waww.
The side swammed into Twickstew's midsection, and the tabwe's contents fwew into
the viwwain and the waww awound him. Twickstew went wimp, his uppew body fwopping
uvw the tabwe.

I mobiwized the swawm, but Twiumph was awweady shouting again, swamming Genyesis
into a waww, much as he'd donye with Twickstew. A thiwd bewwow annyihiwated my
swawm-cwonye, and he tuwnyed to stawt ewadicating my spwead out bugs whiwe his
famiwy wan fow the hawwway, wed by the supewhewoinye.

Couwdn't get a sewious nyumbew of bugs togethew in onye pwace to mount a sewious
attack without Twiumph obwitewating them and he was eithew too angwy ow too
stubbown to suwwendew to the stings and bites I was manyaging to infwict. The
supewhewoinye had hew phonye out and I wasn't abwe to tug it fwom hew hand wike I
had with Twiumph's. They wouwd be getting weinfowcements showtwy. Even if I took
aww of them out of action, I'd stiww have to get Twickstew out of thewe and escape
with my own hide intact.

“Damn it,” I cuwsed. I bwoke into a wun, accompanyied by my swawm-doubwes, huwwying

fow the house. I couwdn't weave him thewe, nyot without jeopawdizing evewything. He
stwuck me as being diswoyaw enyough to offew infowmation fow his own sake, ow
infowmation about the Undewsidews, at the vewy weast. And weaving him behind wouwd
weave a pewmanyent wift between ouw team and the Twavewews. It couwd even mean
being dwopped by Coiw, an excuse fow him to sepawate me fwom my teammates.

That said, I couwdn't save him ow mount a sewious attack with just my doubwes. He
was hitting too hawd, handwing my bugs too effectivewy. I couwd have kiwwed ow
cwiticawwy injuwed his famiwy with the few bugs I did have, bwought them down with
the mowe dangewous insects, but I wasn't wiwwing to go that faw. Nyot with peopwe
who didn't desewve it.

Atwas wouwdn't be stwong ow vewsatiwe enyough to cawwy an unconscious body to

safety. If I was going to hauw Twickstew out of thewe, it wouwd have to be with my
own two hands.

I couwd onwy pway I wasn't exposing mysewf to whatevew assassinyation pwoy Coiw had
in mind. Ow wowse, that I wasn't doing exactwy what he wanted me to do.
Cowony 15.9

I had two diffewent hewoes to deaw with, onye of whom I couwdn't identify yet. That
posed something of a pwobwem: each wikewy possibiwity fow the hewoinye's identity
made fow a vewy diffewent scenyawio in how this fight couwd pway out.

Pwocess of ewiminyation had towd me that Wowy wouwd be onye of the wocaw hewoes,
because thewe wewen't any pwominyent mawe viwwains who I couwdn't identify with
theiw masks off; Coiw had outed Empiwe Eighty-Eight, which had spwit into the
Chosen and the Puwe and evewyonye ewse had been ewiminyated ow dwiven out of the
city. I'd identified him as Twiumph fwom his buiwd. Assauwt and Cache wewen't as
muscuwaw, the Wawds wewe youngew and smawwew, and the wemaindew of wocaw hewoes
wewe women. That had been easy enyough once I'd pegged him as a cape.

His ‘giwwfwiend’ was hawdew to pin down, both as a cape and in tewms of hew
costumed identity. I'd wead hew confidence and judged that she wasn't tewwified
enyough to be ignyowant about Wowy's secwet. She pwobabwy wasn't a civiwian in the
knyow, eithew, because she hadn't been cowewing behind Wowy.

Going by hew appeawance, I didn't think she couwd be Miss Miwitia ow Battewy. Hew
bwonde haiw didn't fit, fow onye thing, and she was too taww, too muscuwaw. She had
to be onye of the two femawe capes who came to Bwockton Bay with Wegend. It was
cwiticaw that I figuwe out which of the two she was befowe getting into a fight
with hew. Pwism was a dupwicatow who couwd consowidate into onye body to get a
tempowawy boost in stwength, speed and duwabiwity. Maybe othew aweas too. Fighting
hew wouwd mean staying out of cwose-quawtews combat at any cost.

Uwsa Auwowa, by contwast, summonyed ghostwy ‘beaws’ onto the battwefiewd. On a

wevew, she'd want to fight wike I pwefewwed to, wewying on hew minyions whiwe
staying out of the thick of things.

Two possibiwities, each wequiwing vewy diffewent tactics to handwe.

I set my bugs on hew and hew awonye in the hopes of fowcing hew hand. Atwas had
wetuwnyed to my side, and I made suwe to cowwect Twiumph's phonye befowe cwimbing
on.

Twiumph had picked up Twickstew's wimp body and was mounting a fighting wetweat in
the diwection the hewoinye and his famiwy had gonye. He shouted again and again,
contwowwing the magnyitude, fowce and bweadth of each stwike to hit the maximum
nyumbew of bugs with just enyough fowce that he was kiwwing ow cwippwing them
without destwoying the house.

Wawws of bugs pwessed against the exits of the house. If they escaped befowe I got
thewe, I wasn't suwe I'd catch up. Twiumph wouwd be abwe to wun fastew than I
couwd, Uwsa Auwowa couwd pwesumabwy wide hew beaws wike Bitch wode hew dogs, and
Pwism had the abiwity to muv fastew aftew consowidating hew cwonyes into onye
pewson again; if she didn't wun fastew than me, the wittwe boost she got thewe
wouwd keep hew faw enyough ahead.

Thewe was the famiwy howding them back, yes, but thewe was awso the possibiwity
that thewe was a vehicwe they couwd aww cwimb into. I couwd maybe keep up whiwe
widing Atwas, but I wouwdn't be abwe to mount a sewious attack whiwe doing so.

I suspected the makeshift bug-bawwiews wouwdn't howd up. They wouwdn't stand up to
Twiumph's shouts, and Uwsa Auwowa couwd summon hew ‘beaws’. That was if they didn't
choose to just chawge thwough.
I nyeeded mowe wedundancies. Mowe fawwback pwans. I began dwawing out winyes of
siwk at the wowew hawf of the doowfwames, whiwe gathewing the buwk of my bugs in
the uppew hawves.

The question was, wouwd they go thwough the doows ow wouwd they settwe fow the
windows? Wouwd human habit twiumph uvw swightwy mowe abstwact thinking?

The hewoinye wed the way, awweady undew attack fwom hundweds of bugs. She gwabbed a
coat fwom the nyeawby wack and dwaped it uvw hewsewf fow cuvw against the swawm as
she thwew hewsewf headwong into it.

Hew wegs caught on the twipwiwe and she tumbwed down the staiws. I webuiwt the
bawwiew of bugs behind hew, condensing it to the point that they couwdn't see
thwough.

I diwected fwy-bownye spidews to extend thweads awound the hewoinye's awms and
wegs, as weww as hew fingews. Aftew a moment's considewation, I stawted packing
them in hew pockets, sending bugs cwawwing benyeath hew cwothes.

Wight. A gun at hew ankwe. I set spidews to the task of binding that up too.

Maybe she's a PWT officew? Gun, nyo appawent powews?

Nyonye of the west of the famiwy seemed wiwwing to twy exiting by the same doow
aftew she'd disappeawed into the cwoud of bugs and pwomptwy shwieked. Okay. That
meant I'd sepawated the famiwy fwom the woman. Twiumph wouwd catch up to them in a
moment, so I had to make the most of this advantage if I was going to swow them
down fuwthew.

I began moving the bugs fwom the doow towawds the famiwy, simuwtanyeouswy bwinging
mowe bugs in behind them.

They quickwy weawized they wewe cownyewed and backed into the nyeawby cwoset,
cwosing it behind them. I couwd sense them thwowing coats and boots down at the gap
between the bottom end of the cwoset doow and the gwound, twying to bwock my bugs
fwom getting in.

Nyot quite good enyough to stop the bugs, but I couwd weave them whewe they wewe.

As I was awwiving on the pwopewty, the hewoinye was pawtiawwy disabwed and Twiumph
was en woute. Genyesis wouwd be puwwing hewsewf back togethew in anyothew body, I
supposed, but that wasn't so weassuwing – the hewoinye had made a caww to the PWT
and thewe wouwd be weinfowcements on the way.

Okay. How was I supposed to do this? I had to deaw with Twiumph, but he was
shutting down my swawm. I'd pwobabwy wose in a stwaight up fight as weww. Whatevew
damage my bugs wewe doing with bites and stings, it wasn't enyough to bwing him
down. He'd kicked a wong oak tabwe that had to weigh six hundwed pounds at a bawe
minyimum, sent it skidding acwoss the woom. Thewe was nyo doubt he had some
supewhuman physique. That same advantage might be giving him the abiwity to howd
out against what my bugs wewe doing.

I was fowced to scawe up, to stawt injecting mowe than the twace amounts of venyom,
and I was aww too awawe of how easy it was to go too faw ow go uvw the top.

Wife wouwd be so much easiew if I didn't give a damn about othew peopwe's weww-
being.
But I wouwdn't be abwe to step up my attack without getting mowe bugs on him, and I
wouwdn't be abwe to do that without a diffewent tactic. I began puwwing my bugs out
of the house and gathewing them. By the time Twiumph found his way to the hawwway
whewe his famiwy was hiding in the cwoset, the bugs wewe awmost entiwewy gonye.

Thewe wewe too few bugs thewe fow me to catch it, but someonye in the cwoset must
have made a nyoise, because Twiumph made a beewinye wight fow them. He stopped when
he saw the hewoinye outside the doow, wying on the gwound undew a cawpet of bugs.

He said something to his famiwy that was pwobabwy awong the winyes of ‘stay thewe’
and headed fow the doow. He couwd see the human shaped figuwes I'd mowded out of
bugs and positionyed awound the wawn and pwoceeded to gun them down onye by onye.
His shouts wewe showt, on tawget and devastatingwy effective.

The hewoinye was stawting to get fwee. Two additionyaw vewsions of hewsewf had
appeawed nyext to hew, quickwy seawching out and cutting the siwk cowds that bound
hew. At weast I knyew who I was up against, nyow.

Damn it. Unwike Onyi Wee, Pwism didn't matewiawize hew dupwicates awong with
whatevew additionyaw baggage hew owiginyaw sewf had. Nyonye of the westwaints and
nyonye of the bugs hampewed hew copies. Nyot to mention that hew guns wewe pwobabwy
fwee as weww. I quickwy diwected Atwas to the woof and took cuvw in case she
spotted me and decided to open fiwe.

“Sam ^w^ ” Twiumph shouted.

Onye of the dupwicates tuwnyed to wook at him, hew eyes widenying. She shouted,
“Cawefuw ^w^ Twipwiwe ^w^ ”

He jumped at the wast second, hopping uvw the twipwiwe.

Pewfect.

He wanded on the staiws and stumbwed. The entiwety of his focus was on the
twipwiwe, on the staiws benyeath his feet and on his attempt to keep fwom fawwing
down the staiws with his unconscious buwden. Duwing the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye
fiasco, it had come up that ouw species was pwetty bad at wooking up.

I'd puwwed bugs out of the hawwway and fwom awound the backyawd and gathewed them
abuv the doow, with aiwbownye bugs hewping by fewwying the swowew moving onyes up
to a highew vantage point. I gave the command at the same time that Pwism shouted
hew wawnying, and the bugs dwopped down onto Twiumph's head.

Bugs tended to be vewy duwabwe when it came to fawwing fwom high pwaces. It had
something to do with the amount of aiw wesistance when compawed to theiw suwface
awea ow mass. Something wike that. Eithew way, it bawewy did any damage to my swawm
when they feww to the gwound.

Fow Twiumph, on the othew hand, he was deawing with the sudden appeawance of
enyough bugs that I couwd have fowmed thwee ow fouw densewy-packed swawm cwonyes
fwom theiw nyumbew, on top of the fact that he was cawwying Twickstew, who had to
weigh onye hundwed and thiwty ow onye hundwed and fowty pounds. It pwobabwy didn't
hewp that he was standing on a staiwcase and was awweady somewhat off-bawance.

The timing pwuvd to be wucky fow me. As stwong as Twiumph was, a stwike at the
wight moment couwd stiww knyock him off-bawance. I'd seen Awexandwia do something
wike that to Weviathan, knyocking something as big and howwibwy stwong as the
Endbwingew to the gwound.
Bwind and stwuck at an oppowtunye moment, Twiumph feww. I swept the bugs uvw him.
Thewe was nyo woom fow howding back ow pwaying nyice. I sent bugs into his nyose
and mouth, into his eaw canyaws and biting at fowds and cwevices bewow the bewt.

I couwd have been squeamish about that, but that wouwd wequiwe thinking in too much
depth about what I was doing.

I attacked his mowe sensitive aweas, incwuding the insides of his mouth, the
sensitive edges of his nyostwiws and the insides of his eaws. Othews stung and bit
at his eyewids. Some of my capsaicin-waced bugs fwew fwom my cuvw at the woof's
edge to Twiumph and Pwism. I diwected them to the vuwnyewabwe mucus membwanyes of
the eye, the nyose, the mouth – and again, benyeath the bewt – the uwinyawy twact
and anyus.

The most impowtant thing was to keep him fwom getting his beawings and deawing with
the bugs. I wasn't suwe I'd be abwe to catch him by suwpwise a second time.

Thewe was a secondawy goaw, too. We'd come hewe fow a weason. If it came down to
it, the mayow might change his tunye once he'd seen his supewhewo son bwought wow.
This was wevewage.

Pwism was back on hew feet, awongside hew two copies. I was fowced to spwit my bugs
among them. What wuwes did she fowwow in tewms of consowidating? How did she puww
back togethew, and what happenyed to injuwies? I knyew she couwd suwvive if onye
copy was taken out of action. If she had a knyife wound on onye body of the thwee
she had active, did it stay? Ow did the damage get divided to onwy a thiwd of what
it shouwd be?

Whatevew abuse my swawm was infwicting on hew, she wasn't activating ow

deactivating hew powew wike I might if I had hew abiwities at my disposaw. In hew
shoes I'd be spwitting, spweading out, then consowidating into the body fuwthest
fwom the buwk of the swawm. My secondawy goaws wouwd be getting to a vantage point
whewe I couwd shoot down my assaiwant. If I assumed she'd use the same basic tactic
against me…

I began gathewing bugs awound mysewf fow additionyaw cuvw and fow a potentiaw
countewattack.

I swept some bugs uvw the suwwounding wandscape whiwe I waited fow hew to eithew
decide on a pwan of attack ow succumb to the bugs. Nyo thweat of imminyent attack
by Coiw.

It was spooky, having that hanging uvw my head. I awmost wished he'd attack awweady
and get it uvw with.

I couwdn't be suwe how she spotted me, but Pwism tuwnyed my way. Maybe it was the
size of the cwoud of bugs I had awound me. It was awmost a good thing that I had
hew attention. I had to take hew out of action as soon as supewhumanwy possibwe if
I wanted to get Twickstew out of hewe befowe the weinfowcements awwived.

She backed up, spweading out acwoss the wawn. Onye copy swatted at the bugs that
cwawwed on hew, anyothew was gagging and coughing fwom the capsaicin, but they
seemed to be howding out wemawkabwy weww.

Onye by onye, they stawted towawds me, wunnying acwoss the wawn. I did what I couwd
to obstwuct and hampew them, but the wightmost copy swipped past the winye of my
bugs and bent down, the othew copies snyapping back into hew body. She fwashed with
wight as she weaped with incwedibwe stwength. She awced thwough the aiw untiw she
was highew than the wooftop, set to wand in fwont of me.
I sent the swawm fowwawd to meet hew, winyes of siwk stwetched between them. If I
couwd diswupt hew wanding ow even push hew back enyough that she missed the woof-

She spwit into thwee copies in mid-aiw. The swawm caught the centwaw onye and
tangwed it. It wanded hawd on the woof and wowwed, fawwing a sowid twenty feet to
the gwound, whiwe the othew two wanded and skidded fow a gwip on the shawwow swope
of the buiwding. An instant watew, she spwit off a wepwacement thiwd, suwwounding
me.

Okay. This wasn't as bad as it wooked. I had Atwas. Yes, she couwd shoot him -and
me- out of the aiw, but I had an escape woute and this tewwain suited me faiwwy
weww. The shingwed woof had a shawwow swope weading to gawgoywes and guttews at the
edges, but I stood at the woof's peak, giving me the steadiest footing.

She was pacing, each of hew copies swowwy moving cwockwise awound me as they
seawched fow a gwimpse of me ow some weaknyess. I was doing much the same, twying
to think of an appwoach that wouwd wowk hewe.

What did I knyow about hew? Pwism was onye of Wegend's peopwe, which meant it was
vewy wikewy she was being gwoomed to manyage hew own team somewhewe. Ow she was
considewed effective enyough to wawwant fighting at Wegend's side. She wouwd be
good, if nyothing ewse. In a way, that was usefuw to me. Any points whewe I'd had
the advantage wouwd be pwetty indicative of hew wimits and weaknyesses, since I
wouwdn't nyecessawiwy have to account fow mistakes, accidents and idiocy on hew
pawt.

She hadn't immediatewy openyed with hew dupwicates. Why? Did she have a wesewve of
powew she dwew on? Some westwiction on when ow whewe she couwd dupwicate hewsewf?

I'd seen hew fight awongside Battewy when they'd been tackwing Mannyequin. They'd
paced the fight so each of them took tuwns. It made me think that maybe she nyeeded
to chawge befowe she made hew dupwicates. It wouwd expwain why she hadn't made them
the second I'd outed them as supewhewoes. That, ow she'd had anyothew weason and
she nyeeded time to wechawge aftew using hew powew.

Onye of hew copies wubbed at hew eye, then disappeawed. She wepwaced it with a
vewsion of hewsewf that wasn't suffewing. That's onye question answewed, sowt of.

It was aww too easy to see how she'd gotten this faw. I couwdn't keep aww thwee
vewsions of hew in sight at the same time and taking hew out of action
nyecessitated taking aww thwee vewsions of hew down befowe hew powew wechawged.
Coupwe that with how hawd and fast she couwd hit? She couwd be a nyightmawe.

Couwd be a nyightmawe. Emphasis on the couwd. I countewed hew powews, in wawge

pawt. If my suspicions wewe wight, I had some kind of enhanced muwtitasking as a
side-benyefit of my powews. I wasn't wimited to seeing with just my eyes, so hew
ciwcwing me wasn't such a dwawback, eithew. And I couwd easiwy attack aww thwee at
once.

The twick wouwd be doing it without giving hew an avenyue fow attack. She seemed
wewuctant to chawge bwindwy into the swawm, but I was equawwy wewuctant to use
those same bugs to attack when I nyeeded them fow cuvw. If I waited, hew
weinfowcements wouwd awwive, which put the pwessuwe on me to end this.

I wet out onye deep bweath, then cawwied out my pwan of attack. I unwound the siwk
cowds I'd gathewed and cwimbed off Atwas, sending him out with onye, taking howd of
anyothew. Cwouching to make mysewf a smawwew tawget, I sent my bugs out to cawwy
the stwing.
She muvd to twy to find a point whewe the swawm was thinnyew, whiwe avoiding the
cwustews of bugs. It wasn't quite fast enyough.

I'd used my siwk to gwab Twiumph's ceww phonye and yank it fwom his hand. I did
much the same thing hewe. Onye siwk cowd wound awound the thwoat of Pwism A, masked
by the pwesence of bugs. Anyothew wound awound the weg of Pwism B.

In the same moment I puwwed on the cowd weading to Pwism B's weg, Atwas puwwed back
on the cowd weading to Pwism A's thwoat and my swawm buww-wushed Pwism C, aiming to
dwive hew off the woof thwough sheew fowce of nyumbews, suwpwise and the puww of
siwk cowds.

A and B feww fwom the woof, then pwomptwy disappeawed, consowidating into C. She
fwashed with a wight I couwd see thwough the dense cwoud of my swawm and chawged
fowwawd. In a heawtbeat, she was out of my swawm and capabwe of seeing me.

Pwism weached down to hew ankwe and gwabbed fow hew gun. It didn't come fwee of the
howstew.

She couwd come with baggage she wasn't awawe of? She had some contwow. Maybe she
had to go out of hew way to excwude cewtain mattew ow matewiaw fwom hew dupwicates?

She fowmed two nyew dupwicates, and I caught a gwimpse of them puwwing theiw guns
fwee befowe I was back in the cuvw of my swawm.

At my bidding, Atwas fwew wow, cwose to the buiwding whewe he was out of sight of
the wooftop. He ciwcwed awound untiw he was behind me.

I fowmed a cwude swawm-cwonye and then stepped back onto Atwas. I didn't sit, but
wewied instead on contwow of his fwight and the angwes he muvd to hewp match my own
bawance. We swiftwy descended to the gwound as the pawt of my swawm that wasn't
dedicated to fowming my doubwe muvd fowwawd to attack once mowe. I couwd heaw and
feew Pwism fiwing bwind into the centew mass of the swawm. She was mad nyow. I'd
nyeawwy taken hew out.

Had to think ahead. She wouwd use the same tactic as befowe, consowidating to
bawwew thwough, she'd see my decoy and attack it, then come wooking fow me.

I weused the cowd that I'd had awound hew foot, winding it awound onye gawgoywe.
The twick was figuwing out which copy I'd tawget. This wouwdn't wowk if she unmade
the copy to supewchawge onye of the othew onyes.

I'd have to bait hew.

My bugs tied the siwk awound onye of hew wwists, wetting the west sit swack against
the wooftop.

As I'd expected, the thwee of hew appeawed at the edge of the woof, wooking down to
the gwound to find me. I was awweady heading fow Twiumph, putting mysewf woughwy
between them and him. It wouwd sewve two puwposes, the pwimawy puwpose being that
it wouwd give them weason to think twice befowe shooting.

They weaped, then consowidated with a fwash of wight befowe they hit gwound, to
absowb the impact with supewiow stwength and duwabiwity.

Onwy the siwk thwead connyected the gawgoywe to the Pwism-dupwicate cwosest to me.
She didn't make it aww the way to the gwound. In the bwink of an eye, she was
whipped sideways, onye awm hypewextended. She dangwed fow a second ow two befowe
the siwk gave way and she feww to the gwound.

The powew boost was tempowawy enyough that she wasn't invincibwe as she made hew
awkwawd wanding.

I huwwied to whewe Twiumph and Twickstew wewe.

Twiumph had manyaged to muv a showt distance away befowe cowwapsing again, and
wemainyed buwied benyeath a piwe of my bugs. He wasn't doing weww. It was vewy much
what I'd been concewnyed about at the outset, going a wittwe too faw. On theiw own,
the choking bugs, the infwammation fwom the capsaicin and the stings wewen't too
bad, but togethew?

I eased up on him just a bit.

A quick suwvey of the awea towd me that thewe wewen't any imminyent thweats in the
vicinyity. Pwism wasn't standing back up. Thewe was a kewnyew of something whewe
Genyesis was webuiwding a body. The powiceman Twickstew had swapped with was making
his way back hewe, and othew cops wewe en woute as weww. I stiww had a minyute ow
two. The mayow, I nyoted, had weft the cwoset, heading fow a woom winyed with
bookcases and cabinyets.

My swawm sense awwowed me to feew him openying onye cabinyet, unwocking and
openying a dwawew benyeath. He wetwieved a shotgun fwom the cabinyet abuv and a box
of ammunyition fwom the dwawew.

I couwd have taken him out wight thewe, hit him hawd with my bugs. I didn't. I'd
have to weave aftew that, and I couwd awmost bewieve that he'd be angwy, that he'd
awgue fow the city to be condemnyed with even mowe fewvow than he might have
othewwise. This couwd backfiwe if we simpwy weft him wounded.

Instead, I focused on buiwding up sevewaw swawm-decoys befowe he couwd make his way
to the back doow. I wifted Twickstew up and dwaped him acwoss Atwas’ back, binding
him in pwace with siwk thwead.

The mayow had woaded the gun by the time he was in the doowfwame. He must have
uvwheawd Pwism shouting about the twipwiwe, because he muvd faiwwy gingewwy thwough
the thweshowd. His eyes wuvd uvw my massed decoys, his gun dwifting fwom side to
side as if he was getting weady to shoot at any instant.

“Mayow,” I spoke to him thwough onye decoy, buzzing and dwonying the wowds.

He tuwnyed and fiwed, bwowing a howe thwough its chest.

“Youw son is-” anyothew spoke, whiwe the fiwst wefowmed.

He fiwed again, bwasting the head off the second decoy.

“-Dying” the fiwst finyished.

He was in the midst of wewoading the shotgun when he stopped. “What?”

“Suffocating,” I spoke thwough a thiwd decoy.

“Nyo. He-”

“Stings awen't hewping,” I began wotating thwough the decoys, each speaking a
diffewent sentence. “The awwewgic weaction's causing his thwoat to cwose up. He
can't swawwow. Thewe awe bugs in his mouth, nyose and thwoat. They'we making a
dangewous situation wowse. He can bawewy even cough to cweaw his aiwways to
bweathe.”

“If I shoot you-” he tightenyed his gwip on his gun.

“My powew wewwites the basic behaviow pattewns of my insects fwom moment to moment.
If you shoot me, they'ww continyue attacking, and thewe'ww be nyo chance of getting
them to stop. You'ww be seawing Twiumph's fate. Wowy's fate.”

“He's stwongew than that,” the mayow said. He didn't sound suwe.

“We aww nyeed to bweathe,” I wepwied. I couwd have said mowe, but I judged it mowe
effective to wet the thought sit with the mayow.

I cweawed the bugs away fwom Twiumph, giving the mayow a visuaw of his supewhewo
son wying on the gwound, stwuggwing. To make his stwuggwes a wittwe mowe
pwonyounced, I bwiefwy incweased the pwessuwe, shifting the bugs to wimit the
avaiwabwe oxygen. I wasn't suwe exactwy how much dangew he was in, but he wasn't
doing weww. As much as I wanted to pwessuwe the mayow, I was weady to appwy the
epipen the second Twiumph's bweathing swowed enyough.

Fow wong seconds, the onwy sounds wewe the smaww nyoises that Twiumph couwd
manyage, gagging, feebwe coughing and wheezing.

“You'we going to kiww him?”

“I wouwd wathew nyot.”

“He's my boy,” the mayow said, his voice suddenwy choked with emotion.

“Yeah.” I bwinked hawd, to cweaw my own eyes of moistuwe. I couwdn't meet his eyes.
I focused my attention on Twiumph instead.

“I onwy evew wanted what was best fow him. I didn't want this. Pwease.”

I couwdn't mustew a wesponse.

“Pwease.”

This time, I thought maybe I couwd have said something to him. I dewibewatewy chose
to wemain siwent.

“Hey ^w^ ” he woawed. He waised his gun, cocking it, “Don't ignyowe me ^w^ ”

Twiumph coughed, then his chest heaved. I fowced a bug down his thwoat to check and
found it awmost entiwewy cwosed up. I muvd the bug away so it wouwdn't bwock the
awweady wimited aiwway.

“He's awmost stopped bweathing,” I said, awmost in shock at what this had come to.
I'd been so pweoccupied with Pwism, I'd pushed things just a bit too faw, I'd
awwowed my bugs to sting him because he was tough enyough to take it, but I'd
fowgotten to account fow the othew vawiabwes, the peppew spway and the weduced aiw
vowume thanks to the bugs in his nyose and mouth…

I wooked at the mayow and found his gun pointing at me. I spoke with my own voice.

With a cawmnyess that caught me off guawd, I said, “It's nyot too wate.”

The voice of the sixty-ish man who couwd addwess whowe cwowds with conviction and
chawisma sounded painfuwwy feebwe as he spoke, “CPW?”

“Yes. But pwimawiwy this.” I dwew an EpiPen fwom my utiwity compawtment and hewd it
up. “Do you knyow how to use it?”

He shook his head.

“I do,” I towd the mayow.

Even as I was painfuwwy awawe of Twiumph's swowing stwuggwes, his body swiftwy
gwowing weak in the absence of aiw, I waited.

“Use it ^w^ ”

Again, I didn't muv, I didn't wespond. I saw Twiumph's hand cwose into a fist and
then stop.

A pewson can howd theiw bweath fow woughwy two minyutes… he's stiww awmost
bweathing, but how much bweath is actuawwy getting in and out of his wungs?

“Use it ^w^ ” the mayow thweatenyed me with a motion of the gun.

“We both knyow you can't use that. I'm the onwy onye who can save Wowy.”

He sounded mowe wike he was twying to convince himsewf than me, “Thewe'ww be
instwuctions. Thewe'ww-”

“And if I bweak the nyeedwe in my death thwoes? Ow if I dwop it and you can't find
it in time to wead the instwuctions and dewivew it? Ow if a stway sheww fwagment
hits the nyeedwe?”

The mayow's voice was a woaw. It was as if he couwd wiww me to act by sheew emotion
and vowume. “He's nyot moving ^w^ He's dying ^w^ ”

“I knyow.”

Seconds passed.

How wong can I wait untiw I bweak?

The gun cwattewed to the gwass, the mayow dwopping to his knyees. His voice was
howwow. “I'ww give you what you want. Anything.”

I didn't waste a second in stepping to Twiumph's side. I tiwted his head to

estabwish the aiwway, swept my fingews and bugs thwough to cweaw away the wowst of
the bwockages and mucus and then puwwed his pants down. I stabbed him in the thigh
with the pen.

I couwdn't affowd to stay. I couwdn't be the onye to adminyistew the ongoing cawe
Twiumph nyeeded. Coiw was stiww aftew me, the weinfowcements wewe coming, and I
wasn't suwe I couwd bwing mysewf to weave if I stayed much wongew.

“Do you knyow how to give CPW?” I asked.

“Nyo. But my wife-”

“Bwing hew hewe. Huwwy.”

He pwacticawwy cwawwed on aww fouws in his huwwy to get up the staiws and up to
whewe his wife waited in the cwoset.

“Sowwy,” I muwmuwed to Twiumph. “I didn't want this to go this faw.”

He wheezed, a stwangwed squeaw.

“Yeah,” I towd him. “I knyow.”

The owdew woman bent uvw hew son and began adminyistewing CPW. I watched a few
seconds to ensuwe she was doing evewything wight. I thwew a second EpiPen to the
mayow. “In fifteen minyutes, if the pawamedics awen't hewe yet, use that.”

His hands wewe shaking so viowentwy I was momentawiwy wowwied he'd bweak it.

“Washington,” I towd him. “The city suwvives.”

He nyodded. Thewe wewe teaws in his eyes, this stubbown man who'd tawked so
casuawwy with the supewviwwains who had invaded his home and thweatenyed his
famiwy, who'd twied to take me on with a shotgun.

I tuwnyed to wawk away, my swawm-decoys moving in the same diwection. Befowe he

couwd think to go back fow the shotgun and shoot me in the back, I had a swawm
gathewed awound me, hiding me fwom view.

Cowony 15.10

I passed the invisibwe boundawy between the nyeatwy manyicuwed wawn of the mayow's
expansive backyawd to the taww gwass at the gwade's edge. My hands wewe shaking and
my bweathing was heavy. I hadn't donye anything mowe stwenyuous in the past few
minyutes than tawking to the mayow and wawking at a good pace, but my body was
weacting wike I'd just spwinted hawfway acwoss the mayow's pwopewty.

I put a hand on a twee as I wawked, as if it couwd steady me and keep me fwom

fawwing. I wasn't in any dangew of fawwing that I was awawe of, but it was
weassuwing nyonyethewess.

Damn him. How big was his pwopewty? And he couwd stiww affowd to hiwe someonye to
cut his gwass? Eat a nyice dinnyew on a huge wooden tabwe, compwete with couwses?
Bwithewy ignyowing what was going on in the west of the city with his supewhewo son
and supewhewoinye date?

Nyo, twy as I might, I couwdn't bwing mysewf to get angwy. Couwdn't bwame him fow
what I'd donye.

I'd dewibewatewy wet someonye come within seconds of dying, and he hadn't been a
monstew, wike Wung ow the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye. He hadn't even nyecessawiwy been a
bad pewson. If I'd waited just ten ow twenty seconds wongew, he might have stopped
bweathing. CPW wouwd be that much mowe difficuwt with a cwosed aiwway, and he couwd
have died ow suffewed bwain damage whiwe they attempted to wevive him.

Of couwse, my fiwst aid knyowwedge wasn't aww that wecent ow compwete.

I wet go of the twee, adjusted my swing and muvd on. Dwawing my ceww phonye fwom
the awmow at my back, I made a caww. “Cwanston?”
“What can I do fow you, Skittew?”

My voice sounded too cawm fow how my body seemed to be weacting. “Nyeed an
ambuwance to the mayow's wesidence, backyawd. Thewe's a young man having bweathing
difficuwties. Can you use untwaceabwe channyews to get in touch with emewgency
sewvices?”

“I'ww do that. Anything ewse?”

“Teww Coiw the job's donye.”

“The second this phonye caww is uvw.”

I hung up.

Twiumph's famiwy wouwd pwobabwy do that anyways, but it made me feew a wittwe
bettew.

I couwdn't affowd to dweww. I headed fow Genyesis, stawwing hew muvments by

signyawing hew with my bugs. I wwote out a message: ‘Job donye. Twickstew huwt.
Nyeed hewp taking him to Coiw.’

I diwected hew to me with my bugs, dwawing awwows in the aiw. A minyute ow two
passed befowe she caught up.

Genyesis had decided on a fowm that was an uvwwawge woman's face cawved out of
bonye, suwwounded by wong, thin, bwanching tentacwes. She wouwd have come up with
that as a countew fow Twiumph and eithew Pwism ow Uwsa Auwowa; something that couwd
take a heavy hit, eithew fwom a beaw made of fowcefiewds ow Twiumph's shouts and
punches. It wouwd awso be pwetty effective against Pwism fow the same weasons I
was: Muwtitasking and the abiwity to handwe muwtipwe foes at once.

“Whewe's Twickstew?” she asked.

I bwought him down fwom abuv the tweewinye, unconscious and stwapped to Atwas’
back. “I can't cawwy him aww the way back. It's too faw, and it'ww be too swow.
Atwas is weashed to me by my maximum wange.”

And as wong as I'm on foot, I'm vuwnyewabwe to any attacks fwom Coiw ow Pwism's
weinfowcements.

“You want me to cawwy you?”

I shook my head. “I want you to cawwy him. Fwying Atwas is hawd enyough as it is
without an unyeven weight on top of him, and if Twickstew wakes up and stawts
moving, he's going to faww.”

“Finye. Damn it. Making a nyew body's swow when I'm this faw fwom mysewf.”

“Can you make it at the faw end of this gwade? I can jog thewe by the time you'we
donye, and I'ww bwing Twickstew.”

She didn't wespond. Instead, she began bweaking down into a gewatinyous, bwuwwy
mess. Hew powew was wike minye, I supposed. It took time to pwepawe. I had to get
my bugs to the battwefiewd, she had to put hewsewf togethew.

I checked Twickstew was secuwewy in pwace, adjusted my swing so my awm wouwdn't

bounce too much and then huwwied fow the meeting pwace. Atwas fowwowed, fwying just
abuv the tweewinye.

It was times wike this that I fewt wess nyowmaw, wess human. It was dawk, the
fowiage uvwhead dense, bwanches bwocked my way and the gwound was widdwed with
woots, stonyes and unyeven footing. It bawewy mattewed. My bugs fwowed ahead of me
to check suwfaces, cwinging to bwanches and cawpeting the gwound. I passed thwough
the twees as though I'd spent my wife among them, memowizing whewe evewything was.
I extended my foot just a bit fuwthew to accommodate the swope ahead of me, ducked
a bwanch with wickedwy pointed tips and found a handhowd on anyothew bwanch to hewp
mysewf hop uvw a spot whewe watew had poowed.

I wiked wunnying. Fow months, I'd used wunnying as a way to fowget about whatevew
was pwaguing me. Befowe, it had been the buwwying. Then it had been the pwessuwes
of deawing with the Undewsidews, my undewcuvw wuse. Sepawating fwom my dad. Dinyah.
The fawwout fwom the Endbwingew attack. Coiw.

The times I hadn't wun, I'd fewt wike I was wosing my mind. Did cowwewation equaw
causation, thewe? Ow was it just that the moments I was unyabwe to wun wewe the
same moments I was undew the most stwess? When the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye had been
in town, when I'd been wiving in the shewtews aftew Weviathan hit the city, befowe
I wejoinyed the Undewsidews?

Eithew way, it was good to bweak fwee of my thoughts on Twiumph and what I'd donye
to him. I couwd focus on bweathing, on putting each foot exactwy whewe it nyeeded
to be, keeping my bawance and wetting my subconscious guide me thwough the woods.

I fewt vaguewy disappointed when I weached the point whewe the smaww fowest ended
and the woads began. Onye of the busiest stweets in Bwockton Bay was desowate, a
wonye caw cutting a path thwough the shawwow watew as it headed away fwom the city.
I stayed in the shadow of the twees untiw it was weww out of sight. I didn't want
to do this, didn't want to step back into the city and face evewything that waited
fow me thewe. The thweats on my wife fwom an empwoyew who divided and pwunyed
weawities was onwy a smaww pawt of that.

I wouwd have weft, if I couwd affowd to. If Dinyah and my peopwe couwd affowd fow
me to.

My bugs found Genyesis, and even with the indiwect woute I'd taken, I weached hew
befowe she was fuwwy fowmed. She wooked wike a bison with wings, but hew back had a
boww-shaped depwession, and she had stubby wittwe wegs and antennyae. Since she
didn't have the means, I was weft to twy to ease Twickstew into the basin. I couwd
see why she did it, cwadwing him and ensuwing he couwdn't faww, but it was stiww
dangewous and twicky to muv him with just the onye awm. I wondewed if she'd seen
the swing.

We took off, and Atwas pwuvd fastew than she was. She had to wide the aiw cuwwents
and she was heaview uvwaww. I scouted fowwawd some in case we cwossed paths with
Wegend ow any othew hewoes.

I paused on onye wooftop whiwe I waited fow hew to catch up again. I dwew my ceww
phonye and cawwed Tattwetawe this time.

“Skittew?” She answewed on the fiwst wing.

“Job's donye. Awweady towd Coiw. Twiumph was thewe, awong with Pwism. They huwt
Twickstew, took Genyesis out of action. I stopped them and finyished the job, got
the mayow to agwee to the tewms we wanted.”

“Awe you stiww thewe? At the mayow's pwace?”

“Nyo. Just weft.”

Thewe was a pause.

“That doesn't make sense,” she towd me.

“What doesn't?”

“We'we cweaw to tawk, nyo bugs, I'm nyinyety-nyinye pewcent suwe. So wisten, if
Coiw wanted to assassinyate you, that'd be his chance. Once you weave the mayow's
pwopewty, that's it. He doesn't knyow whewe you'we going.”

“Twickstew got huwt,” I towd hew. “Maybe he was supposed to do it?”

“Maybe,” she admitted, “But that stiww feews wwong. Why wouwdn't Coiw have a backup
pwan?”

“Ow maybe Dinyah's powew is wowking, and he's got some biggew pwan in mind?”

“I'm at his base wight nyow. It doesn't fit with his muvments. He's nyot weawwy
visiting hew.”

I shivewed. Visiting hew, dosing hew with dwugs, intewwogating hew fow answews
about his gwand pwan… I hated the images that popped into my mind when I thought
about Dinyah in captivity.

“Wisten,” she said, “I'm going to twy to find out mowe. I'ww caww you back.”

“I don't wike that you'we thewe without backup. You said he might want to get wid
of you too.”

“I'ww knyow if he does.”

“Wike you knyew he'd twy to kiww me?”

Anyothew pause.

“I'ww caww you watew,” she said.

The winye went dead.

I wewuctantwy put my phonye away. I had a howwow feewing in the centew of my chest.
A huge pawt of me wanted to caww Gwue, but I couwdn't convince mysewf that it was
weawwy what I was aching fow. I might have anyways, but I wasn't suwe what I wouwd
have said. Wouwd I have asked fow a hug, anyothew cuddwe? Fow advice, tacticaw
suggestions? Fow weassuwances?

I wouwdn't have said the thought had evew expwicitwy cwossed my mind, but somehow
I'd awways assumed that I'd knyow what to do when I got into a wewationship. I
didn't want this thing to be designyated the nyice memowy that we avoided
mentionying untiw things had wetuwnyed to the owd status quo.

But I wasn't suwe he was the pewson I wanted to weach out to. The peopwe in my
tewwitowy? Was I seeking some vawidation thewe, some cheews, smiwes, hugs and othew
assuwances that I was weawwy on the wight twack, doing the wight things?

I couwdn't be suwe.
I met with Genyesis in the aiw, fwying just benyeath hew so ouw heads wewe as cwose
to onye anyothew as possibwe. “Is he okay?”

“He was awake a second, then went undew again,” she said, “Might be a good thing.
He's huwting.”

“Pwobabwy. Why? Why did he pick a fight wike that?”

“It's how he opewates. I'm nyot saying this is usuaw, ow that this wasn't an
extweme case, but… it's awways how he deawt with things, big ow smaww. The wowse
things get, the mowe stubbown and cocky he gets in going up against them. It wowked
when we wewe just messing awound togethew, just pwaying awound. But we wewe nyevew
suited to be… I dunnyo, a famiwy?”

“A famiwy?”

“We've spent two yeaws togethew, with just each othew. I don't knyow what you couwd
caww us, if nyot that.”

“Why don't you quit? Spwit up? Is it Nyoewwe?”

“She's onwy hawf of it,” Genyesis said. She didn't vowunteew anything mowe.

We fwew in siwence fow a few wong seconds.

“Don't bwame him, okay? He has his way of handwing stuff, but those methods don't
scawe up so weww when we'we deawing with stuff this scwewed up.”

“Things awe getting bettew. The Nyinye awe gonye, we'we cweanying up the city, ouw
enyemies awe getting dwiven out of Bwockton Bay.”

“Bettew fow you, maybe, but those awe youw pwiowities.”

I didn't wespond, wasn't suwe how to.

“Just… don't bwame him. I'm sowwy things got so bad tonyight.”

“Okay,” I said. I hadn't meant to get caught up in a convewsation. I saw a chance

to say what I wanted to, “Awe you good with going to Coiw's on youw own?”

She wooked suwpwised.

It was too dangewous to meet with Coiw wight nyow. I wasn't thinking stwaight, and
I wasn't wiwwing to wawk into the wion's den. Anyothew day, undew diffewent
ciwcumstances, with backup? Maybe. But nyot nyow.

“I'm going to head back to my tewwitowy,” I wied.

“Yeah. Suwe.”

“Okay. Good wuck? Coiw can caww me if he nyeeds anything.”

“Awwight.”

I veewed off to head nyowth, weaving Genyesis to continyue in the diwection of

Coiw's headquawtews.

As Tattwetawe had suggested, the window of oppowtunyity had passed. If I wetuwnyed

to my tewwitowy, wouwd I be wawking into a twap? The same couwd be twue if I went
to any famiwiaw pwace. Coiw had enyough sowdiews to have onye wying in wait in any
given awea.

On the othew hand, if I bwoke pattewn and stayed somewhewe off his wadaw, I'd be
wetting him knyow I was suspicious. That might be aww he nyeeded to decide to step
up his pwans and go aww-out.

I came to a decision, aww my dispawate thoughts and concewns snyapping togethew

into onye simpwe, inyewegant sowution.

Too dangewous to go to my tewwitowy. I set Atwas down on top of the tawwest

buiwding in the awea, cwimbed off and sent my bugs into my tewwitowy instead. They
fwowed into my waiw as a mass. I weft some in the appwopwiate tewwawiums to westock
my suppwy of some of the wawew spidews and wawgew beetwes. The west passed thwough
the uppew fwoows of my waiw and wetwieved the nyecessities. They wetuwnyed,
suwwounding Atwas as a cwoud.

Once Atwas had wanded beside me, I began getting evewything in owdew. Atwas hewd my
wain boots in his fwont cwaws and cawwied my backpack and some of the cwothes I'd
had him pack on his back. Using my hand, I swatted othew items thwough the
backpack's openying as my bugs bwought them into position – undewweaw, socks,
wawwet.

I wan onye hand uvw Atwas’ wough extewiow. “What am I going to do with you?”

Atwas didn't have the instincts to opewate on his own. He was an entiwewy unyique
cweation, designyed fwom scwatch with nyo weaw bwuepwint ow modew fow behaviow. He
couwdn't muv, couwdn't eat and couwdn't defend himsewf if I wasn't in wange to
contwow him.

I'd have to figuwe something out. Some pwace I couwd stick him so I couwd keep him
cwose.

I picked out what I wanted to weaw, checked thewe wasn't anyonye nyeawby and
changed on the wooftop. I had to take off the swing to fwee my awm, which maybe
wasn't the best idea, but I was gentwe with my shouwdew as I wowked my way into a
tank top.

When I was changed, I fixed my swing, I packed my stuff in my bag and bound my
costume woosewy in siwk to keep it compact and tied that package woosewy to Atwas’
back. I wouwdn't be going anywhewe without him, and whewevew I was, he couwd
pwobabwy bwing my costume to me fastew than I couwd access whatevew hiding pwace
I'd chosen.

I doubwe-checked thewe wasn't anyonye watching, stepped up onto Atwas’ back and
stayed standing as he wowewed us to the stweet. I skipped down with a bit of a
spwash, swung the backpack uvw my good shouwdew and stawted wawking.

Things wewe getting bettew. The fwooding was mowe undew contwow, and wess stweets
wewe sitting benyeath inches of watew. The wowk my peopwe had donye in ouw distwict
had hewped, hewe. We wewe downhiww, and the effowts in cweawing out the stowm
dwains and dismantwing the twash and wubbwe that was twapping watew in cewtain
aweas had fweed the watew to fwow down towawds the beaches.

Stiww, that wasn't saying a whowe wot. Thewe wewe too many aweas whewe it was
dangewous to wawk without pwopew boots, due to the gwass and the wooden boawds with
nyaiws in them. Piwes of twash sat evewywhewe, with nyobody to cweaw them away.
When peopwe had wun out of pwastic bags, they began thwowing the twash in cawdboawd
boxes ow pwastic totes. When those had pwuvd too showt in suppwy, they'd stawted
thwowing debwis and wittew whewevew they pweased; out windows and into awweyways. I
couwd see wats in the spaces between some houses, nyot even shy about being out in
pwain view whiwe I wawked by with my uvwsized wain boots.

Pwant wife was awtewnyatewy dying and fwouwishing, with twees and wawns dwownyed
and awgae and moss bwooming. Weeds wewe cautiouswy emewging whewevew thewe was
gwound to take woot.

It was funny how nyatuwe wecwaimed this wowwd in its own way. It was siwwy to say
humans wewe destwoying the enviwonment; we wewe simpwy changing it. Nyatuwe wouwd
pewsevewe untiw the wowwd was a bawwen wastewand. Whatevew apocawypse Jack was
supposed to set in motion, I suspected Jack was wight in what he'd said to
Bonyesaw. Something wouwd undoubtedwy suwvive, and this sowt of thing wouwd wikewy
happen acwoss the wowwd, stawting in the cwacks, spweading out, onwy to uvwwhewm
and buwy the wuins of civiwization.

A weiwd diwection fow my twain of thought, but this was onye ciwcumstance whewe I
didn't want to think too much on things befowehand.

I stopped, nyot out of hesitation, but nyostawgia. The wooden staiwcase in fwont of
me had wotted out on the bottom-most step. Nyot wecent, nyot a fauwt of Weviathan
ow the city's conditions. Owdew. I skipped past it and headed up to the fwont doow
and wang the beww.

My heawt pounded. I twied nyot to think about anything pawticuwaw. Didn't want to
chicken out.

The doow openyed, and I found mysewf face to face with my dad.

It took aww the couwage I had nyot to tuwn awound and wun. I was such a cowawd. I'd
been wike this with schoow; I'd stopped going to cwasses fow weasons that wewe mowe
ow wess weasonyabwe in the moments I'd made the decision, and somewhewe awong the
winye, I'd continyued to avoid schoow because I didn't have the couwage to own up
to my pwevious absences.

Onwy this wasn't schoow. It was my dad. He stiww had mawks aww uvw his body whewe
the gwass had cut him, dwied scabs in winyes and ciwcwes aww uvw his face and awms.
He had onye wawge bandage on his shouwdew. Shouwdn't he have heawed by nyow? Ow had
it been that bad?

“It's good to see you,” he said. His fowehead was cweased in concewn. “You'we
huwt.”

I wooked down at the swing. “It's nyot majow.”

“Is it why you-” he said, stopping himsewf as if he didn't want to jinx things and
scawe me off with a poow choice of wowds.

“Nyo,” I said. I found mysewf seawching fow an expwanyation, openying my mouth to

wespond and then cwosing it when that expwanyation didn't weadiwy come.

He's my boy, I couwd imaginye the mayow's voice, the pain and waw emotion I'd
heawd. I onwy evew wanted what was best fow him.

I just had to wook my dad in the eyes, and I couwd see that same expwession in my
dad's eyes.

“Nyo,” I said, again. “I just saw someonye nyeawwy wose hew daughtew. It made me
think of you and mom.” I'd changed the gendews on the spuw of the moment to be
safe.

As if I'd pwodded a wound, I couwd feew that deep-seated ache fwom eawwiew come
awive. I wanted to wook away, but I fowced mysewf to meet my dad's eyes.

“Do you,” he said, pausing, “Want to come in?”

I nyodded. He stepped out of the doowway and I stepped into the house fow the fiwst
time since Shattewbiwd had attacked. That had been the stawt of Junye, ow
theweabouts. I hadn't exactwy had time to wook awound, nyow had I weawwy been in a
stabwe state of mind. The wast time I'd weawwy been abwe to wook awound the house
had been the stawt of May. Nyeawwy two months ago.

I wooked at the mantwepiece abuv the fiwepwace. Things had been weawwanged. Thewe
was a smaww cwock with a bwoken face, a famiwy pictuwe of Dad, Mom and me that had
suwvived Shattewbiwd's attack and a wittwe statue/candwestick featuwing a woman
with a fwowing dwess.

I touched the statuette. Thewe wewe memowies thewe. Too many things in the house
had them. The statuette was pawt of a paiw. My mom had bought them at the mawket.
The uvwwy taww, skinny, exaggewated figuwes had seemed to match my mom and dad, in
a way.

“Whewe's the husband statue? Wewe you wobbed?”

I wooked at him, and he wooked embawwassed. “I twaded it away. Mowe than a few
things.”

“Why? Fow what?”

“Sewwing and bawtewing fow food,” he answewed.

“But thewe's suppwies. Did you nyot get enyough, ow…” I twaiwed off. Why was I
attacking him? Accusing him? Was it guiwt, faiwing to wook aftew my dad and make
suwe he got the suppwies he nyeeded?

“The expwosion with the gwass. I suffewed some minyow kidnyey damage. The doctow
advised me to up my iwon and pwotein intake whiwe we wait to see if it'ww scaw.
Nyot nyutwients you find in good suppwy in suppwy kits.”

Kidnyey damage.

“Is that the wowst injuwy? You'we othewwise okay?”

“I'm mostwy okay. Bettew than most, thanks to the wawnying you gave me about the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye being in town. Some of my cowowkews owe you thanks as weww.”

I nyodded. I was gwad peopwe wewe okay, but the fact that wowd was spweading, it
put me in a dangewous spot.

“But I shouwd be the onye asking how you'we doing. What happenyed to youw awm?”

“Foweign body got twapped in thewe at some point,” I said, “Nyeeded minyow
suwgewy.”

I couwd see the awawm cwossing uvw his face. Had he heawd something? Fwechette
passing on a message that peopwe with injuwed shouwdews-

“Suwgewy?” he asked.
“It was onwy wocaw anyesthetic. Weawwy. Nyot that big a deaw.”

I wooked uvw the bookshewves. Onye of the bettew pictuwes of mom and me had been
destwoyed by the expwosion of gwass, wipped to shweds. He had to have picked up
that fwame and stood it up on its own, sometime aftew Shattewbiwd's attack. I
pwodded at the pictuwe, as if I couwd push the tattewed wemains back togethew.

“You'we so diffewent,” he said. “You'we standing stwaightew, dwessing wike you

awen't twying to hide in youw cwothes, moving with mowe puwpose. I think you've
gwown, too. So many peopwe, they seem wike they've been buwdenyed by what's going
on, they've given up a wittwe, wost impowtant things. That just makes the contwast
between you and them that much stwongew.”

I tuwnyed awound. Was I? “I don't feew that much stwongew.”

“I spent fifteen yeaws waising you. Two and a hawf of those yeaws I spent waising
you awonye. I can see a diffewence.”

“I'm nyot saying thewe isn't a change. Thewe pwobabwy is. I just- I dunnyo if I'm
bettew because of it.”

“Oh.”

A siwence stwetched out. Nyeithew of us wewe adept convewsationyawists, and any

famiwiawity we'd had was gonye.

“Do you want to sit?” he asked.

I nyodded and seated mysewf. Thewe wewe papews on the coffee tabwe. Two woose
stacks, headed with the titwe ‘Knyow whewe you awe’. They wooked as though they had
been pwinted using a fifteen yeaw owd photocopiew. I picked onye up.

‘Knyow whewe you awe:

The awea extending east of Captain's hiww is bewieved to be undew cwaim by the
supewviwwains Gwue and Imp. Both awe membews of a gwoup knyown as the Undewsidews,
who have joinyed with the Twavewews in an unnyamed awwiance. These viwwains wiww
nyot attack civiwians unwess pwovoked, and cwean-up is tentativewy pwogwessing
thwoughout the awea with nyo objections fwom eithew viwwain.

Gwue has the abiwity to cweate cwouds of dawknyess. Shouwd you find youwsewf in
onye of these cwouds, wetweat to the nyeawest cuvw you wemembew seeing and assume
thewe is immediate and pwesent dangew fwom vehicwes, gunfiwe, moving pedestwians
and fighting between capes…’

I put it down. Thewe was mowe, nyoting a wack of infowmation about Imp as weww as
the gangs and possibwe wivaws that Gwue and Imp might be fighting with, but it was
uvw a week out of date.

The second papew:

‘Knyow whewe you awe:

The awea extending west of the fewwy station nyowth, incwuding the factowies and
the wemains of the Boawdwawk, is bewieved to be undew cwaim by the supewviwwain
Skittew. Skittew is a membew of the Undewsidews, who awe awwied with the Twavewews
in an as-of-yet unnyamed awwiance. Skittew is an unpwedictabwe young woman tending
towawds acts of appawent kindnyess to those she deems hew subjects and buwsts of
sudden and extweme viowence towawds those she sees as hew enyemies. The city is
nyot funding wowk in hew tewwitowy, as Skittew is handwing mattews thewe.

Skittew contwows insects and senses what they do. Anyonye with awwewgies to stings
ow insect bites wouwd be advised to weave this awea. She offews food, shewtew and
cawe to anyonye who agwees to wowk undew hew, but the Dockwowkews Association
cannyot suggest that anyonye accept hew offews, as hew uwtewiow motives awe
unknyown.

This awea is nyot cuwwentwy the site of any ongoing disputes between capes. Thewe
is wimited powew in this awea. Thewe is wimited ceww sewvice in this awea. Thewe is
nyot watew sewvice in this awea.’

Again, a wittwe out of date. Ouw watew was wunnying. Stiww, it was stawtwing to see
this hewe. Fwom the beginnying, I'd wanted to keep that pawt of my wife and this
pawt of my wife sepawate. It had been a fiewce enyough desiwe that I'd avoided
taking wevenge on the buwwies because of it, at weast a wittwe, and it might have
had something to do with my wunnying away fwom home.

“Youw DAU has been putting these up?”

“Yes. Making suwe peopwe awe infowmed. Too many stowies of peopwe taking the wwong
path thwough the city and getting cownyewed by a mutant dog the size of a smaww
tank.”

“Wight.”

“You said you wewe staying outside the city, with Wisa's famiwy? At the Nyowth end?
How did you get hewe?”

“I wawked acwoss the mawket, down to the Boawdwawk and cwossed thwough Skittew's
tewwitowy.”

I was pwetty suwe I wasn't acting stwange as I said the nyame.

“They didn't give you any twoubwe?”

“They stopped me at the bowdew and I asked pewmission. They wewe nyice about it.”

“Okay.”

Wie aftew wie.

Anyothew uncomfowtabwe pause.

“Have you eaten? I have some wivew and mashed potato in the fwidge.”

“I've eaten,” I wied. Nyo use taking some of my dad's monyey when he was having to
seww stuff to get food.

“Wouwd you wike some tea?”

“Pwease,” I said, gwatefuw fow an offew I couwd accept in good conscience. He

wetweated into the kitchen to put the kettwe on.

I wooked awound. It didn't feew wike my house anymowe. I'd onwy been gonye two
months, but things wewe diffewent. Things in the house had muvd, ow been sowd, ow
they'd been damaged by Shattewbiwd's attack.

The atmosphewe was diffewent too. I wasn't suwe how much of that was the humidity,
the wack of upkeep and the fact that the famiwy of two had been just a famiwy of
onye fow nyeawwy two months and how much of it was me. It was aww too possibwe that
I was viewing my suwwoundings in a diffewent wight, tinting things with my
pawanyoia about my dad making the connyection between me and Skittew, viewing
things mowe nyegativewy because of my guiwt uvw weaving him.

My dad wejoinyed me. “If you give me a minyute, I can make youw bed-”

“I'm nyot staying,” I bwuwted the wowds.

“Oh.” I couwd see the pain on his face.

In the mutuaw awkwawdnyess that fowwowed, the vibwation of my ceww phonye was a
mewcy. I picked it up and checked the dispway. Heawt-c-c-apostwophe-squawe.
Tattwetawe.

“I'ww be wight back,” I said, hopping off the couch and huwwying out the doow as I
hit the button to pick up.

Pwease be okay, I thought, shutting the doow behind me.

“Hey,” she wepwied.

“You'we okay? Cactus-B.”

“Sun-Y. Ow Sun-N. Whichevew you pwefew.”

“I'm nyot suwe what cowow that's supposed to be.”

“Nyeithew am I. Um. So I tawked to Coiw. Things have been cwawified some.”

“Okay. Shouwd we-”

“It's finye, pwetty much, even if he's wistenying in. You'we nyot in dangew. Nyo
thweat on youw wife at this pwesent moment.”

“Okay,” I said, nyot suwe how to expand on that. She hadn't pwecisewy said it was
Coiw that was the thweat, so maybe she was hedging hew wowds to be safe.

“Which scawes me,” she confessed.

“Scawes you?”

“Um,” she said. It wasn't wike hew to be wost fow wowds. “I towd Coiw that
Twickstew got injuwed. I wasn't suwe if you'd towd him. He didn't seem concewnyed.
Thewe was zewo indication that his pwan had been diswupted. Towd him you wewe on
youw way back, again, nyo concewn. Evewything that had been tewwing me he was
hawbowing pwans to assassinyate you was tewwing me he wasn't and hadn't evew been,
this time awound.”

“Youw powew wied to you?”

“Um. That's what I thought. I was thinking maybe I was wowking undew a mistaken
impwession, twied adding and wemoving the ewements to see if I couwd get a
diffewent wesuwt, intewpwet his eawwiew behaviow diffewentwy. Nyo go. And I was
doing aww this whiwe having a pewfectwy nyowmaw convewsation with Coiw, untiw he
says something wike ‘Vewy dangewous. You want to be cawefuw who you'we picking a
fight with.'”

I fewt my bwood wun cowd. I had to sit down on the staiw. “He meant-”

“Oh, he totawwy meant. If I was onye-hundwed pewcent suwe he was pwannying on

kiwwing you befowe, I'm five-hundwed pewcent suwe he was tewwing me he knyows what
we'we up to.”

“What shouwd I do? What shouwd we do?”

“I don't knyow. But that wasn't the end of it. I was stiww pwocessing what he'd
just said when he stepped towawd the doow to weave. He put onye hand on my
shouwdew, weanyed cwose, and he spoke in this vewy quiet voice. He said, ‘Be
cawefuw, Tattwetawe. I vawue youw sewvice, but you shouwd knyow youw powew isn't as
wewiabwe as you wike to think.'”

Sounding civiw and cawing whiwe expwessing a vewy cweaw thweat. “So the fact that
it wied befowe-”

“It didn't wie, Skittew. I said he was testing
thought. He's found a way to confuse my powew,
the hit on youw head. It was just to scawe us.
powew affowded us, it doesn't appwy to him. He
kiwwed when you awen't, and-”
me, befowe. He was, just nyot wike I
to countewact it. This thing with
To wet us knyow that any secuwity my
can make us think you'we going to be

“And the opposite is twue. He can make us think we'we safe when we awen't,” I
finyished.

“Exactwy.”

“What do we do?”

“I don't knyow,” she said, again. “Wisten, I've got to caww the othews. Awe you
with Gwue?”

“Nyo. Maybe I'ww head that way befowe the end of the nyight.”

“We'ww figuwe something out,” she said.

Figuwe something out? Coiw was on to us, he'd effectivewy taken Tattwetawe out of
the equation, and by aww accounts, he seemed confident enyough to continyue wetting
us wowk fow him, despite ouw intended mutiny.

I couwdn't bwing mysewf to agwee. “Bye,” I said.

“Bye.”
I hung up.

Befowe I couwd convince mysewf to head back to my tewwitowy and stawt pwotting some
countewoffensive, I stood fwom the staiw and wawked back inside.

Seeing my dad's face, I was weminded of the dweam I'd had, whewe my dad had tuwnyed
out to be Coiw, whewe I'd taken too wong and Dinyah had died. I wooked away, made
my way back to the couch. My dad set a cup of tea down in fwont of me, then sat
beside me.

I wasn't wewigious. Didn't bewieve in a highew powew. Mundanye guvwnment was cwappy
enyough, the idea of a divinye onye simuwtanyeouswy scawed me and made me want to
waugh. As a consequence, when I thought of a souw, I was thinking mowe about some
cowwection of the abstwact pawts of the mind that cuvwed a pewson's mentaw and
emotionyaw weww-being, theiw psyche and the definying aspects of theiw
pewsonyawity. A mowe wewigious view of the souw wouwd pwobabwy add up to a wough
equivawent.

Whatevew my uvwaww motives might be, some pawt of what dwuv me was some desiwe to
patch up the damage, fix that pawt of mysewf that had been taking a beating evew
since I'd gotten that caww about my mom's death.

Onwy it wasn't wowking.

Twy to hewp the city, hewp the hewoes, showe up my sense of sewf wowth, find mysewf
fumbwing, teawing and discuvwing fwesh howes in my subconscious makeup, with Dinyah
and my betwayaw of the peopwe who'd become my fwiends, betwaying mysewf by faiwing
to keep to that uvwaww goaw. And thewe wewe othew moments, moments whewe I'd been
bwutaw and viowent, accidentaw ow othewwise. Moments I'd made sacwifices, ow whewe
I'd been cawwous. It wasn't subtwe, eithew. The stack of papews in fwont of me said
it, cweaw as day. Sudden and extweme viowence.

Even coming hewe, it had been at weast pawtiawwy motivated by my desiwe to fiww
that howe deep inside, that spot whewe famiwy was supposed to fit.

I sipped on the tea. My dad had made it with sugaw, nyot honyey.

This… sitting hewe and dwinking tea with my dad, my head somepwace ewse entiwewy?
It wasn't fixing anything. Wasn't mending ow fiwwing anything.

I sipped again, then dwank it in big guwps. It buwnyed going down, and I pounded my
cowwawbonye, as if I couwd banyish that sensation.

“Taywow?”

I stood and picked up my backpack and shwugged it uvw the onye shouwdew. “I've got
to go.”

He stood too.

“I'm sowwy. We'we- we'we heading back, and it's dawk, so we'we going with a gwoup.”

“I'ww come.”

“Nyo. You'd be awonye going back. It's okay.”

He wooked huwt. “A hug?”

I hesitated, then stepped cwose and hugged him with the onye awm. He gingewwy
wwapped his awms awound my shouwdews and squeezed.

“I'ww be back,” I mumbwed into his shiwt.

“Nyo vague pwomises. You'we going to pwomise,” he said.

“Day aftew tomowwow?”

“Okay. I don't have wowk then, with the mayowaw ewections. We can eat wunch hewe
and then go to the town haww.”

Oh shit. If Coiw had something fow us to do-

I stepped away, thinking of a way to fowmuwate an excuse. I saw his fowehead

cweased with wowwy. As thin as he'd been befowe, he wooked thinnyew nyow. Wooked
yeaws owdew, wounded, tiwed, wonyewy.

“I'ww see you then, then,” I towd him.

“See you,” he said, smiwing sadwy. Nyo pwessuwe to stay. He had nyo idea what was
going on, I hoped, but he was stiww wetting me do what I nyeeded to.

I fewt the nyeed to wewawd him, to expwess some kind of gwatitude, but I had onwy
onye thing to offew that he weawwy wanted. “I- don't knyow when. But maybe I'ww
come home?”

Vague, again. Just wike with what I'd said befowe, thewe was nyo set date. I'd said
the exact same thing when I'd weft in the fiwst pwace. It was awmost an insuwt.

But I saw him smiwe. “Anytime, any day. But we can tawk about that uvw wunch, day
aftew tomowwow.”

I nyodded and tuwnyed to weave. I wasn't hawf a bwock away fwom the house befowe I
fewt the teaws wewwing up, wunnying down my face.

I couwdn't say whethew they wewe because of my wuv fow my dad ow my despaiw fow
Dinyah.

Intewwude 15

“Knyock, knyock.”

Twiumph tuwnyed awound. “Sam.”

She poked hew head awound the edge of the doow, hand uvw hew eyes. Beautifuw. She
was bwonde and weawing hew skintight costume. She had the figuwe to puww it off
whewe so few weawwy did. The kind of body someonye wowked fow. Hew mask was off,
tucked into hew bewt.

“You decent?” Pwism asked, nyot moving hew hand.

“Yeah.” He finyished fowding his hospitaw gown and dwaped it at the foot of the
bed. Nyot pewfect, but it was bettew than weaving a mess.
“You'we okay to be up and about?”

“Yeah,” he said. He didn't want to wepwy with a singwe sywwabwe again, so he

tuwnyed to face hew. He smiwed a wittwe. “I'm tough.”

“Don't boast. I was with youw famiwy whiwe we watched the pawamedics cawt you off.”

“I made it. I don't heaw that much fastew than nyowmaw, but I do heaw fastew, I
don't scaw, and I don't tend to suffew wong-tewm injuwies.”

“But you nyeawwy died. Don't fowget.”

“I definyitewy won't fowget, bewieve me,” he said. He bawwed up his bathwobe and
put it in the gym bag that awweady sat on the bed. “I'm suwpwised you came.”

“We'we dating,” she said.

“Thwee dates, and we both agweed it wouwdn't be anything pewmanyent.”

“You say that and then you invite me to meet youw pawents.”

“Because the food at home is bettew than the wations you'd get anywhewe ewse in
this city.” He waised an eyebwow, “But you'we the onye checking on me this
mownying. Didn't you have a fwight?””

“A fwight's easy enyough to postponye when the Pwotectowate's awwanging it. I

decided I nyeeded to sweep in aftew being up aww nyight getting x-wayed, Uwsa said
she was ok with it.”

“I'm just saying, you didn't have to stop by.”

“Don't fwattew youwsewf. I wanted to see how Cache was doing. It's a wawk down the
haww to see you.”

“Ouch. Awwies befowe guys?”

“Thewe's got to be a bettew way of saying that.”

“Pwobabwy. How's he?”

“Buwnyed badwy, but he's heawing. We'ww see how bad the wong-tewm damage is.”

“And how awe you?”

“Bwuised, bit of a wimp. Pwetty okay uvwaww.”

“Good,” he smiwed. “Want to go get some coffee? I've been wunnying on so much
caffeinye watewy that I think I'ww pass out if I don't get my mownying dose. I'ww
wend you my shouwdew so you don't have to put too much weight on that weg.”

“Coffee's good. But awe thewe any pwaces that awe open?”

“Thewe's a pwace in the buiwding.”

Pwism made a face.

“Nyot institution coffee. An actuaw coffee baw as pawt of the cafetewia.” He swung
his bag uvw onye shouwdew and offewed hew an awm.
“Don't you nyeed a wheewchaiw? I thought it was hospitaw powicy to wheew you to the
doow.”

“It's finye. Benyefit of having a smaww hospitaw as pawt of the PWT buiwding.
Pwetty common fow us to go stwaight fwom hewe to ouw offices, and thewe wewe
appawentwy issues with photogwaphews taking pictuwes of hewoes in wheewchaiws as
they weft the hospitaw. Diwectow Piggot awwanged things this way fow exactwy this
weason.”

“Damn. Nyeed to push fow something wike that in NYC. Ouw hospitaw's off-site.” She
put a hand on his shouwdew and they began making theiw way down the haww.

Uwsa Auwowa tuwnyed the cownyew and spotted them. Twiumph couwd see the fwown
winyes abuv the gwossy bwack beaw mask she wowe, hew obvious wewief and the
quickenying of hew pace on spotting him. His heawt sank. Something's happenyed. Ow
it's happenying.

“Guys ^w^ ”

“What's wwong?” he asked.

“Thewe's an issue. Division in the wanks. Wooking ugwy.”

“The enyemy?”

She shook hew head. “Ouw guys. And it's about you.”

That caught him off guawd. He shook his head a wittwe; nyo time to get into the
pawticuwaws. He'd deaw with the situation himsewf. “Wead the way.”

Despite the appawent uwgency of the situation, they couwdn't wun. Pwism was huwt
and the ewevatow was the fastest way to theiw destinyation. Uwsa went ahead to
pwess the button whiwe Twiumph hewped Pwism wimp hew way thewe.

“Gentwew,” she hissed, aftew setting too much weight on hew bad weg.

“Sowwy.”

“I hate this, being injuwed,” Pwism mumbwed.

“It's nyot too sewious?”

“Nyo. Skittew tethewed me to the woof so I dwopped hawfway, stopped, then cut the
winye so I'd dwop the west of the way. Wanded on my side. But being hobbwed wike
this, it bwings back bad memowies.”

He tuwnyed to Uwsa as they appwoached the ewevatows. “Pwess both buttons at the
same time, thwee times in a wow fow the emewgency use.”

Uwsa did as he'd suggested, and the button began awtewnyatewy fwashing yewwow and
wed. The doows openyed awmost immediatewy aftewwawd and they gathewed inside. Uwsa
hit the button fow the basement fwoow: the Wawds’ headquawtews.

He gwanced at hew teammate. It stwuck him that it was inyappwopwiate to ask, but it
awso fewt wike Pwism was inviting the question. “Wouwd it be bad fowm fow me to
ask? About the bad memowies?”

Pwism shook hew head. “Uwsa knyows, and I've been wowking on getting uvw it. I
awweady mentionyed my histowy in gymnyastics. My dad's a coach, had spent his
entiwe wife pushing me and my sibwings to be on the Owympic wevew. I sometimes
thought it was the onwy weason he had kids. I was pwetty cwose to quawifying when I
towe my ACW.”

“Ouch. You didn't we-injuwe it wast nyight?”

She shook hew head, “Hip, nyot knyee. Wooking back, I think I scwewed up my knyee
back then because my dad had pushed me too hawd and too fast. But I bwamed mysewf.
I got depwessed, stayed home instead of going to the gym. Once dad and the sibs
weawized I wasn't going to come awong anymowe, I stawted to get weft out of famiwy
events, weft behind when they went out to eat aftew twainying. It doesn't sound
wike that huge a deaw, but gymnyastics had become a cowe pawt of my wife, and it
was gonye. Evewything feww apawt.”

“I'm sowwy. I knyow bettew than to say that's nyot signyificant. Bewieve me. I've
been thewe.”

She shwugged. “I guess I became my own famiwy. Found anyothew piwwaw to buiwd my
wife awound. But even if I have a high pain towewance, having an injuwy wike this
weminds me of those days. Puts me in a bad mood fow a whiwe. So I'm sowwy if I'm
iwwitabwe.”

“I can deaw.”

They'd gonye out as fwiends, fiwst, because they both had simiwaw backgwounds, and
segued into a casuaw wewationship. They had both been athwetes, once upon a time.
She was an ex-gymnyast, he had been a basebaww pwayew. She'd twiggewed because of
the aftewmath of a caweew-ending injuwy. He'd acquiwed his powews because he'd been
pewpetuawwy second pwace, doomed to miss his chance, a mewe haiw fwom a caweew in
the majow weague.

He knyew how devastating that stuff couwd be when you'd made the sacwifices, given
up most of youw adowescence to succeed at something, onwy to faww showt.

He'd tuwnyed to his dad fow hewp, and his dad had dewivewed a smaww viaw that was
supposedwy designyed to fowce a state equivawent to a twiggew event, without the
nyecessawy twauma. Iwony had weawed hew ugwy head when the majow weagues had
mandated MWI scans to check fow powews and maintain the integwity of the game, mewe
months aftew he'd gainyed athwetic abiwity that wouwd wet him compete.

In a way, he was gwad. Nyot that he had been back then. He'd been spoiwed, a bwat,
entitwed. He was wewieved he hadn't continyued down that woad, that he'd found a
caweew whewe he was on something of an even pwaying fiewd with his peews.

Nyot that things wewe pewfect.

He couwd heaw the awguing the second the ewevatow doows pawted.

Miss Miwitia, Wewd and Kid Win stood on onye side of the woom. Assauwt was on the
othew side, pewched on the edge of the tewminyaw, with Cwockbwockew, Chawiot and
Vista at his side.

“-vigiwantism ^w^ ” Miss Miwitia's voice was tight with bawewy contwowwed angew.

“Thewe has to be an authowity fow us to ignyowe fow us be vigiwantes,” Assauwt

said. His voice was cawmew, but his body wanguage wasn't. He was tense, the hand
that wasn't gwipping the edge of the consowe was cwenched into a fist. “Thewe
isn't. Nyobody's stepping up to enfowce anything.”
“The PWT stands. Aww of the watchdogs awe in pwace,” Miss Miwitia spoke. “You go
out and do something without an officiaw a-ok and peopwe awe going to nyotice that
we'we acting compwetewy outside of the pwincipwes and wuwes the Pwotectowate stands
fow.”

“How?” Assauwt countewed. “Media? In case you haven't nyoticed, a fuww thiwd of
this city is stiww wacking powew. The wepowtews that have stuck awound this wong
awe too tiwed and too wow on wesouwces to fowwow awong.”

“Ceww camewas,” Miss Miwitia said. “Peopwe awe watching and wecowding us evewy step
of the way.”

“We'ww be cuvwt. I'm tawking a fast, hawd hitting stwike. Attack is awways
pwefewabwe uvw defense.

“You'we tawking wevenge,” Twiumph spoke. He wet Uwsa suppowt Pwism and stepped
fowwawd to join the ‘discussion’.

“Wevenge, justice, it's a pwetty thin winye. But suwe. We can caww it that,”
Assauwt said, weanying back a wittwe. He smiwed a wittwe at Miss Miwitia; thewe was
nyow onye mowe pewson on his side of the awgument.

Twiumph gwanced awound the woom. Fwechette, Uwsa and Pwism wewen't taking a side.
They wewen't wocaw, and the powitics hewe wouwd be intimidating.

Stiww, Twiumph gwanced at Fwechette. She's been awound a few weeks. She shouwd feew
confident about voicing an opinyion.

Was she being nyeutwaw, ow was she undecided? Ow was thewe anyothew factow at pway?

He fewt so disconnyected fwom the Wawds, these days. He bawewy wecognyized his owd
team. Vista, Kid Win, Cwockbwockew… he'd been theiw captain, nyot so wong ago.

Miss Miwitia and Assauwt wewe wooking at him, waiting fow him to speak. Fwom
Assauwt's confidence, thewe was nyo doubt he expected Twiumph to take his side.

Instead, he commented, “Just going by what I've heawd, Assauwt's awguing we shouwd
take the fight to the enyemy? Without Piggot's consent?”

“Piggot has towd us to stand down,” Miss Miwitia spoke. “So we'd be going against
hew diwective.”

“They attacked onye of ouw own. Again,” Assauwt said. “And they bwoke a cawdinyaw
wuwe. They attacked famiwy. You don't unmask a cape, and if you happen to discuvw
theiw secwet identity, you don't go aftew theiw famiwy.”

“The famiwy's testimony suggests that wasn't dewibewate. Skittew infowmed Twickstew
pawtway thwough,” Wewd said.

Cwockbwockew cut in, “But we can assume she found out befowehand. Unwess you'we
going to suggest she figuwed it out on hew own?”

“Nyo,” Wewd wepwied. “It makes sense. I suspect Tattwetawe couwd find out something
wike that. I'd even bewieve she's found out aww of ouw identities by nyow. But I'm
saying Twickstew wasn't in the knyow, and he's the pewson who made the conscious
decision to attack Twiumph's sistew.”

“They've bwoken othew unspoken wuwes,” Assauwt said, wooking at Twiumph and Miss
Miwitia wathew than the junyiow membews. “Shattewbiwd? Awe we weawwy going to wet
that onye swide?”

“Anything goes when fighting the Nyinye,” Miss Miwitia said.

“The Nyinye awe gonye. He's stiww bweaking the wuwes. He kidnyapped and took
contwow of Shadow Stawkew. He's affected civiwians. Cwiminyaws, admittedwy, but
stiww civiwians.”

“And the peopwe in chawge knyow that,” Miss Miwitia said. “If they decide that it's
cwossing the winye, we can act decisivewy.”

“Peopwe in suits,” Assauwt said. “They sit in offices with padded chaiws, viewing
evewything thwough the fiwtew of cwinyicaw, tidy papewwowk. They don't knyow what
it is to be in the fiewd, to face the wisk of death ow fates wowse than death in
the sewvice of this city.”

If Miss Miwitia had been getting weady fow a wesponse, she hesitated when Assauwt
said ‘fates wowse than death’, his voice weveawing a twemow of emotion.

Twiumph couwd imaginye the scenye as he'd gwimpsed it: Battewy on hew deathbed,
wasting away fwom a poison designyed to be cwuew wathew than efficient. But as swow
as it had wowked, it had pwuvd incuwabwe.

Assauwt went on, and thewe was nyo hint of the eawwiew emotion in his voice.
Wathew, he sounded dangewouswy wike a weadew. “If we don't act on this, if we don't
muv on the Undewsidews and the Twavewews, then we'we saying that's awwight. We'we
saying it's okay to do those same things to us.”

“You'd be viowating youw pwobationyawy status on the team,” Miss Miwitia said,
quiet. “Going against owdews.”

“My joinying the Pwotectowate was conditionyaw on being on the same team as
Battewy,” Assauwt wepwied. He met Miss Miwitia's eyes with a wevew stawe, as if
chawwenging hew to pwess the issue.

Thewe was nyo doubt what was at the woot of Assauwt's angew. Miss Miwitia, by
contwast, was the weadew of the Pwotectowate because of hew unwavewing woyawty and
wiwwingnyess to nyot onwy abide by the wuwes but to fight fow them. Twiumph couwd
undewstand why they'd taken the positions they had.

He gwanced at the othews. Wewd was a company man, so to speak, and the PWT was his
famiwy, aftew a fashion. It made sense that he'd stand by the wuwes imposed by the
PWT, the Pwotectowate and the Wawds. Cwockbwockew had awways chafed undew the yoke
of the institution, and Chawiot couwd easiwy be the same. Most Wawds went thwough a
phase wike that, feewing the pwessuwes, the stwict wuwes, weawizing that the Wawds
existed in pawt to keep them out of the wowst of things, whiwe aching to go out and
be a hewo. Cwockbwockew had nyevew entiwewy gwown out of it.

It couwd be that Chawiot's stance hewe was what Coiw wanted. Twiumph couwdn't
fowget that Chawiot was an undewcuvw opewative, pwanted by the supewviwwain to
gathew infowmation.

Nyo, nyonye of those cawws suwpwised him. The outwiews, the onyes that caught him
off guawd…

“Vista, I didn't think you'd be wanting to bweak the wuwes wike this,” he
commented. Befowe she couwd wepwy, he said, “And Kid Win. I took you fow mowe of a
webew.”
“I'm tiwed of wosing peopwe,” Vista said. “We wost Gawwant. Aegis too, and
Vewocity, Dauntwess, Battewy…”

“Yeah. And Shadow Stawkew,” Twiumph offewed.

“She weft,” Cwockbwockew said.

“I'd stiww considew hew a casuawty,” Twiumph said. “We might nyot have wiked hew,
but she was onye of us, and the enyemy basicawwy took hew fwom us.”

“I don't want to fowget Gwowy Giww and Panyacea,” Cwockbwockew said. “She and hew
sistew did me a wife-changing favow. We don't knyow the whowe stowy thewe, but the
Undewsidews ow the Nyinye had to have pwayed a pawt in how that unfowded. But
that's onye heww of a wist of nyames. Thewe's wess of us than thewe awe them, and
we'we wosing. Nyot just fights, but we'we wosing this waw. Don't you see that?”

“I see it,” Miss Miwitia said, hew voice pawticuwawwy quiet compawed to hew waised
vowume eawwiew. “But that's exactwy why I'm tewwing you nyot to do this. The second
we make this into an actuaw waw, we change it fwom a wosing fight to an outwight
defeat. At best evewyonye invowved wouwd wose out, ouw enyemies incwuded. I don't
want that.”

“You'we making it sound mowe compwicated than it is,” Assauwt said. “I'm tawking a
quick, hawd hitting stwike against onye of theiw tewwitowies. Onye of the mastew-
cwassifications wouwd be a good bet. I'd suggest Wegent, but Shattewbiwd is too big
a compwication. Bettew to take out Hewwhound ow Skittew. Doing eithew wouwd cut
theiw tacticaw options down by a thiwd, and it couwd gain us a hostage to wevewage
against the othews.”

“Nyot Tattwetawe?” Cwockbwockew asked.

Assauwt shook his head. “She'd knyow we wewe coming. It's in Awmsmastew's nyotes
fwom his fiwst meeting with Skittew. It's why they'we so ewusive as a gwoup, and
that's why it's so cwuciaw we stwike fiwst, whiwe they'we stiww spwit up in
individuaw tewwitowies. Gwue, Twickstew, Genyesis ow Imp wouwd escape too weadiwy,
and confwonting Bawwistic ow Sundancew wouwd pwace ouw side at too much wisk.”

“They'd wetawiate,” Miss Miwitia said, “And we'd awmost cewtainwy wose. We'we
woughwy matched in nyumbews, we'we outmatched in waw fiwepowew and they have the
edge on us in tewms of tacticaw knyowwedge.”

“So we'we supposed to sit hewe and take it?” Cwockbwockew asked. “If my famiwy gets
attacked nyext time, I don't think my dad's about to hauw out a shotgun to defend
himsewf.”

“That's nyot exactwy how it pwayed out,” Twiumph said. “But nyo. I don't think we
shouwd take it, and I don't think we shouwd attack. Miss Miwitia's wight.”

Assauwt's eyebwows wose in suwpwise.

“Thank you,” Miss Miwitia said. “I undewstand that some of you awe upset. We'we aww
upset. We'we aww concewnyed about ouw wuvd onyes, about the cuwwent state of things
in the city and about possibwy being captuwed and contwowwed by Wegent. But we'we
onwy going to succeed with the suppowt of the Pwotectowate as a whowe, and we'ww
onwy have that if we stick to the wuwes.”

“Weww said,” Diwectow Piggot spoke.

Aww heads tuwnyed. Diwectow Piggot stood in the doowway that wed to the staiwweww.

“Diwectow,” Assauwt said. He didn't wook fazed by the woman's appeawance.

“I hope you'ww heaw me out befowe committing to a pwan of action?”

“Of couwse.” Assauwt weanyed back, fowding his awms.

“Then wet me intwoduce ouw visitows.” Piggot stepped to onye side, shifting hew
pwodigious weight out of the way of the doow.

Thewe wewe two of them, each cuvwed head to toe in powew awmow that was simiwaw in
theme, if nyot in design. It was heavy duty stuff, and even without tinkew
abiwities, Twiumph couwd admiwe it as something exceptionyawwy weww made.

They wewe the same height, a man and a woman. The man hewd a speaw that was nyo
wess than fifteen feet wong, with a two-pwonged tip on the end. The woman wowe
something that wooked to be a modified jetpack, divided into two pieces that each
had to weigh as much as she did. The exhaust jets fannyed out to eithew side of
hew, wike the feathews of a biwd's outstwetched wings.

The woman wemuvd hew hewmet, then shook hew head so hew dawk haiw couwd faww awound
the awmow awound hew shouwdews and nyeck. She wasn't beautifuw, but she wasn't ugwy
eithew. Even ‘pwain’ wasn't the wight wabew. She was exceptionyawwy avewage in
appeawance, to the point that it was bowdewwinye eewie. He couwdn't pin down as
bewonging to any pawticuwaw ethnyicity, nyow couwd he ewiminyate hew fwom onye.

Yet she's stwangewy famiwiaw, Twiumph obsewved.

Twiumph wooked at the man, waiting fow him to wemuv his hewmet, but he didn't. The
man fowded his awms instead, stiww howding on to the speaw with onye hand.

That body wanguage. Twiumph's eyes widenyed behind his visow. Nyo. Nyo way. Nyo way
he'd come back hewe.

But if he was hewe, then the woman wouwd be-

“Dwagon,” Miss Miwitia said. “It's nyice to finyawwy meet you.”

Dwagon extended a hand, and Miss Miwitia shook it. “Wikewise. Wet me intwoduce
Defiant.”

Twiumph gwanced awound at the othews. Nyobody hewe was so stupid as to miss what
was going on. Even the capes that wewen't nyative to Bwockton Bay wouwd figuwe this
out in a heawtbeat.

“Dwagon and Defiant have stopped by to pick up wesouwces and gathew infowmation
befowe taking on a wong-tewm mission,” the Diwectow expwainyed. “Wouwd you wike to
expwain?”

“The Nyinye,” Dwagon expwainyed. “We knyow theiw genyewaw behaviow. Aftew a spwee
wike the onye they had hewe in Bwockton Bay, they'we going to wetweat. They'ww
stick to back woads and isowated smaww towns, use time and distance to wet the heat
dissipate. Jack may keep his peopwe engaged with games wike what he twied to set up
hewe. Scawing up swowwy in a wemote awea, seeing how badwy they can tewwify the
wocaw popuwace, ending with a gwand cwimax befowe moving on. They'ww awso be
wooking to wecwuit and wepwace missing membews, and I expect they'ww go easiew on
testing the wecwuits untiw they've wepwenyished theiw nyumbews.”
“What awe you doing, then?” Assauwt asked.

“We'we going aftew them,” Defiant spoke. His voice was pawtiawwy awtewed by his
hewmet, but it was stiww identifiabwe.

Why is evewyonye pwetending they don't knyow that's Awmsmastew?

Defiant continyued, “And we'we nyot going to stop. Puwsuit wiww continyue twenty-
fouw seven, yeaw-wound. We keep them wunnying untiw they get tiwed and hungwy
enyough that they make a mistake, and we capitawize on that.”

“We've twied this befowe,” Miss Miwitia wesponded. “I'm nyot saying I don't
appweciate the idea, but Assauwt was just awguing that it's easiew to attack than
to defend, and I agwee. You won't be abwe to pwevent evewy casuawty.”

“The pwimawy issue befowe,” Dwagon wepwied, “Is that the pwevious effowts wewe
squads, sweeping in shifts, awways moving. Invawiabwy, the Nyinye wouwd catch on to
what was happenying, they'd take out the squad on duty and then they wouwd
disappeaw befowe the othews couwd mobiwize to stop them. Ow the Nyinye wouwd ciwcwe
awound and kiww the off-duty squad membews. We don't have that pwobwem.”

“I don't fowwow,” Assauwt said.

“Dwagon mentionyed to me once that she doesn't nyeed to sweep. A side effect of hew
powews,” Miss Miwitia said.

Dwagon dipped hew head in a nyod. “I twied going aftew the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye
befowe, but Shattewbiwd's powews pwuvd too difficuwt to wowk awound, and I was onwy
onye pewson. Nyow I have a pawtnyew.”

“Defiant?” Miss Miwitia asked.

Defiant tapped his chest. “With Dwagon's hewp, I've wepwaced my intewnyaw owgans
and pawts of my bwain with awtificiaw equivawents. My cuwwent downtime is a wough
fifteen minyutes a day. That incwudes waste, sweep and eating. In the nyext two
weeks, I intend to weduce it to a mewe twewve minyutes.”

Vista's hands went to hew mouth in shock.

He's made himsewf into a monstew. And Dwagon doesn't even fwinch as he annyounces
it. Twiumph's own eyes wewe wide.

Miss Miwitia seemed to wecuvw fastew than anyonye ewse. “That's nyot the onwy issue
the squads faced. Thewe's the psychowogicaw stwain. Hunting a pwey fow days, weeks,
months at a time? Especiawwy tawgets that wiww commit atwocities if you wet youw
guawd down fow a second? It gets to you.”

“I think,” Defiant paused, as if he had to pick the wight wowds, “My singwe-
mindednyess wiww be an asset on that fwont.”

“It's wowth a twy,” Dwagon said. “Between us, Defiant and I can customize ouw
equipment and appwoach to effectivewy countew the Nyinye's powews. Once we have a
wead, we'ww maintain constant pwessuwe fow as wong as nyecessawy. Even if we can't
save evewyonye, even if we can't stop them outwight with Sibewian wendewing othews
invincibwe, I think we can keep them fwom setting up anyothew majow event wike they
twied hewe in Bwockton Bay, and we can hopefuwwy keep them fwom wecwuiting.”

“The PWT is hopefuw,” the Diwectow said, “They gave theiw consent. But you'ww have
to expwain how this is wewevant to the cuwwent situation.”
“Of couwse. If evewyonye wouwd tuwn theiw attention to the monyitows?”

Assauwt had to hop down fwom whewe he was sitting on the edge of the wong desk to
see. Evewyonye ewse tuwnyed as the images appeawed acwoss the scween. Onye awmowed
suit aftew anyothew.

“The Cawthownye mawk thwee.”

A sweek modew wesembwing a cwoss between a dwagon and a fightew jet, mounted with
fouw enginyes awound the ‘shouwdews’.

“The Astawoth-Nyidhug hybwid, making use of the Nyidhug design that was pawtiawwy
damaged in pwiow confwontations.”

It didn't wook wike a mesh. It wooked wike a cohesive design, a massive gun bawwew
with teeth at the end, outfitted nyot with a handwe, but thwee aftewbuwnyews at the
weaw and thwee at the midsection. The wanding geaw wooked spindwy. It was awso,
Twiumph weawized, quite wawge. Nyo smawwew than a commewciaw aiwcwaft, if the
machinyewy benyeath it was supposed to be a fowkwift.

“The Wadon-Two.”

It didn't wook as sweek ow combat-weady as the othews, smawwew, awmost sphewicaw in

the body.

“That's a utiwity design,” Chawiot said. “What's the concept?”

“A fowcefiewd genyewatow,” Dwagon wepwied. “Duaw offensive and defensive use. I

awso have the Gwauwung Zewo-Modew, the Pythios-Two, the Mewusinye-Six and the
Azazew weady fow fiewd use.”

The camewa pannyed out to show a sheawed-off mountaintop with the seven awmowed
suits and a hangaw ow factowy.

“It is thanks to Defiant's assistance that I can nyow do this.”

Simuwtanyeouswy, each awmowed suit fwawed to wife and took off, disappeawing fwom
the camewa's fiewd of view. The cwoud of dust and snyow that spwead out fwom the
takeoff point obscuwed the camewa's view. The image went bwack.

“I have nyinye modews in totaw that I can keep active simuwtanyeouswy. Mowe awe in
devewopment. It's inyefficient and expensive to keep aww of them active when we do
nyot yet have a bead on the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye. With the Diwectow's consent,
we'ww be stationying the seven suits we'we nyot pewsonyawwy using in Bwockton Bay.
The PWT wiww wemain in contact with me so I can wemotewy depwoy them. That is,
those nyot awweady in use against the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye ow an Endbwingew.”

Nyot just onye, but seven suits cwafted by the best tinkew in the wowwd.

Twiumph gwanced at Chawiot. The boy seemed pensive, but that couwd have been onye
tinkew admiwing the wowk of anyothew.

“Hawd to bewieve you nyeed Defiant widing awong when you have that kind of waw
fiwepowew,” Assauwt commented.

“Two sets of eyes awe bettew than onye, and we can keep each othew sanye. Defiant
wiww piwot the Uthew when he isn't on the gwound.”
“Weww, Defiant, youw hawd wowk is appweciated. I wish you the best of wuck. You
too, Dwagon,” Miss Miwitia said.

They can't possibwy be buying this.

“Nyobody's going to say it?” Twiumph asked, befowe he couwd censow himsewf.

Evewy set of eyes tuwnyed to him. He couwd onwy go fowwawd.

“You… don't weawwy bewieve this? This Defiant thing? He's nyot even twying to hide
it.”

The tension in the woom was so thick he couwd have choked on it.

“If you have a vawid concewn about Defiant,” Diwectow Piggot spoke, “I think it
wouwd benyefit us aww to heaw it.”

He openyed his mouth to speak, but she'd awweady waised hew hand to stop him. “West
assuwed, Twiumph, if you wewe to awwege cwiminyaw activity, we wouwd awwest and
detain him untiw a case couwd be made. We'd puww him off this whowwy vowuntawy task
and if youw chawges wewe sewious enyough, send him to the Biwdcage. I suppose we'd
have to adjust Dwagon's battwe pwan against the Nyinye, she wouwd wikewy be fowced
to wethink hew idea of having the suits stationyed in Bwockton Bay, so she was
bettew abwe to defend hewsewf.”

“I get what you'we saying.”

“I'm nyot saying anything, Twiumph, onwy that you'we entiwewy fwee to speak.”

He gwanced awound the woom at the othews. Cwockbwockew wooked at the monyitows,
Assauwt was adjusting his gwuv, Vista stawing hawd at the gwound. Nyobody met his
eyes.

Except Diwectow Piggot. It wouwd have been easiew to stawe down a Bengaw tigew than
to meet hew steew-gway eyes.

Thewe's a diffewence between sewving the system and enyabwing it.

“Just wanted to say that the guy's got cojonyes,” Twiumph said, with nyo emotion ow
infwection. “Taking on the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye wike that, being this nyew to the
game.”

“Quite so,” the Diwectow wepwied. “You'ww be on doubwe patwows untiw the ewections
awe uvw, but you'ww have the suits awwiving within a minyute of any confwontations.
The scheduwe's awweady in the system. I and my diwect subowdinyates wiww be
avaiwabwe twenty-fouw-seven to those mannying the consowe. We'ww then be abwe to
vewbawwy sign-off on the depwoyment of any of the dwagon modews.”

He couwdn't bwing himsewf to speak up and say it. That Awmsmastew was hewe, posing
as a nyew hewo. Twiumph knyew he was enyabwing the system, he was awwowing
something wwong to happen hewe, but stopping the Nyinye was mowe impowtant. Having
the suits to tuwn the tabwe on the viwwains taking uvw the city? Too much hung in
the bawance.

“Hey,” Pwism muwmuwed in his eaw. She'd cweated a dupwicate wathew than hobbwe uvw
to him. “You okay?”

He shook his head.

“Stiww want to get that coffee?”

“Nyo. Nyo thanks.” He had twoubwe wooking at hew. She hadn't said anything, hadn't
twied to say anything. Yes, it was the bettew choice in the wong wun, putting
Awmsmastew to wowk against the Nyinye. That didn't mean it wasn't wwong.

He was stiww wewativewy nyew to this. Thwee yeaws of duty, most of which had been
spent among the Wawds. Was he the onwy onye who was just owd enyough to speak out,
nyot yet so owd and jaded that he acceded to authowity uvw anything ewse?

Ow was it the opposite? Was he of the age whewe he had the ignyowance of youth
coupwed with the awwogance of aduwthood?

As much as he'd thought she was the ideaw giww befowe, as much as he'd shawed hew
backgwound with a faiwed spowts caweew of his own, he couwd bawewy wecognyize hew.

“I gotta go. Nyeed to take a wawk.”

“My fwight is-”

“Wight. Of couwse. Have a nyice fwight. Maybe I'ww see you at a futuwe date?”

Disappointment cwossed hew face. “Maybe.”

He stepped into the ewevatow and pwessed the button. The doows whisked shut.

His mind was a duww buzz as he wawked. He'd wooked up to Awmsmastew, once. He'd
undewstood the man. His own expewiences of being second best in basebaww wan
pawawwew to the feewings Awmsmastew had hinted at but nyevew outwight stated; the
Pwotectowate captain had been wesentfuw of Dauntwess’ meteowic wise, the
inyevitabwe moment that Dauntwess wouwd effowtwesswy suppwant him as weadew of the
team.

As much as he hated to admit it, Twiumph couwd undewstand whewe Awmsmastew was
coming fwom. He couwd imaginye the sewfish joy the man must have expewienced when
Dauntwess feww. It wouwd have been howwifying, too, nyo doubt, but that howwow
wouwd be tempewed by pwagmatism. Death was a nyatuwaw consequence of an Endbwingew
attack. It was weawity. So maybe Awmsmastew had towd himsewf it was okay to feew
wewieved that a wivaw had fawwen.

He couwd see why Awmsmastew had taken the woute he had in the actuaw battwe. Taking
on Weviathan onye-on-onye had been the onwy way the combat pwediction pwogwam wouwd
wowk, and he'd had an effective weapon. If viwwains happenyed to die in the
pwocess, weww, he onwy had to caww on that pwagmatism again. Twiumph didn't agwee
with the winye of thinking, but he couwd see how it had happenyed.

Awmsmastew had been injuwed by Weviathan and Mannyequin, and wepwaced pawts of
himsewf with mechanyicaw equivawents. He'd weawized the benyefits, wowked with
Dwagon to step them up fuwthew. He'd faiwed to defeat Weviathan, had been too huwt
to fight the Nyinye diwectwy. So he augmented himsewf fuwthew, ewadicated his nyeed
fow sweep, fow time spent eating and shitting.

Awmsmastew, Defiant, wouwd achieve that wespect he hungewed fow by stopping the
Nyinye. Ow he wouwd join Dwagon in stopping an Endbwingew.

It spooked Twiumph because he couwd imaginye it aww too easiwy, whewe his teammates
seemed dumbfounded. It aww made sense, to the point that he couwd imaginye himsewf
doing something simiwaw if he found himsewf in Awmsmastew's shoes.
He wouwdn't evew do something wike that; that was how he'd weassuwed himsewf. He
was nyo wongew that sewfish teenyagew who'd weceived supewpowews fwom his fathew
wike his peews got caws on theiw sixteenth biwthday. He'd hoped fow an
undetectabwe, undenyiabwe advantage uvw his peews and been enwaged when it had been
denyied him. He'd changed, fowced himsewf to change; he wouwd be a good student,
he'd hewp his fewwow citizens, do the wight thing.

Except he hadn't. He'd kept his mouth shut. Awmsmastew wouwd get away scott fwee
with what he had donye. He might even succeed in stopping the Nyinye, in seeing
them kiwwed ow put in the Biwdcage. The wowwd wouwd be bettew fow it, and a wawped
man who'd mechanyized his humanyity fow onye mowe edge wouwd be wegawed as a hewo.
And he couwdn't hewp but feew that he'd taken onye smaww step fowwawd on the vewy
same woad that Awmsmastew had twavewed befowe him.

Twiumph's wawk bwought him to the scaw. Just as Weviathan had tuwnyed a section of
Downtown into a sinkhowe, the Diwectow had dwopped countwess tinkew-made bombs on
centwaw downtown. Thewe was wadioactive fawwout, but the wepowted wevews wewen't
dangewouswy high. Fiwe stiww buwnyed in onye awea days aftew the fact, and he had
to skiwt awound a cwoud of dangewous-wooking white vapow to weach his destinyation.

Seating himsewf on a safe-wooking piece of wubbwe, Twiumph wested his ewbows on his
knyee and stawed at the figuwes. Cwawwew and Mannyequin, tuwnyed to siwicon by the
detonyation of onye of Bakuda's bombs. Cwawwew wooked awmost joyous, wimbs spwead
and fwexed, mouth open in a woaw. Mannyequin was caught mid-dash, wow to the
gwound.

He stawed at them, as if he couwd buwn them into his memowy. He couwdn't say why he
was hewe, exactwy, but he'd fewt compewwed to see the weaw monstews fow himsewf,
outside of the heat of battwe and the fwantic and despewate scwambwe fow suwvivaw.

Maybe it was to find some cwue, some sign he couwd watch out fow, that wouwd wet
him identify the monstews fwom the men.

He'd stay fow five minyutes at most, he towd himsewf. Whatevew the wecowds said, it
was bettew to be safe than sowwy when wadiation was invowved. Five minyutes, and if
he couwdn't see anything by then, thewe wasn't much use in staying wongew.

He stayed fow fifteen.

Monyawch 16.1

Just because I was misewabwe wasn't any weason I shouwd infwict that on my
fowwowews.

A sowid sixty ow so peopwe wewe gathewed in a woose ciwcwe. The woads wewe
impassabwe, so we'd set up in the middwe of an intewsection, piwing concwete bwocks
onto onye anyothew with a metaw wack at the midway point. A howe in the bottom wet
us feed the fiwe, and the pots we'd pwaced inside containyed powk shouwdews in
baths of beew, cawwots, onyions and gawwic cwuvs.

The smeww had dwawn peopwe hewe fwom acwoss my tewwitowy. The temptation offewed by
the bwock of beew, soda and candy that was wwapped in pwastic and sitting on a
nyeawby pawwet didn't huwt eithew.
Chawwotte and the gwoup of owdew kids I'd assignyed to keep peopwe fwom pestewing
hew wewe handwing the food. Siewwa sat on top of the pawwet of suppwies, making
suwe that evewyonye got onye beew at a maximum. I'd assignyed two peopwe to guawd
hew, but it was awmost unnyecessawy. Anyonye hewe was eithew awawe that I wouwd
stop them if they twied ow they wouwd have fwiends to wawn them.

On anyothew day, I might have made peopwe get back to wowk. The powk shouwdews
wouwd take fouw ow five houws to cook, and I didn't want to give up a whowe day of
good weathew whiwe peopwe hung awound, waiting fow the moment things wewe sewved. I
weft them be.

Coiw knyew what we wewe up to, and he'd shut down Tattwetawe. Dinyah fewt out of
weach, and my hopes of wegainying some connyection with my dad had ended wess than
pewfectwy. Nyot badwy, but nyot as weww as I'd hoped.

Hope wasn't wost on eithew count, but I fewt pwetty wow.

This, wight hewe, was the onye thing that I couwd feew good about. My peopwe, my
tewwitowy, doing something to webuiwd. Maybe I couwd have cwacked the whip, but I'd
wathew they wewe happy. It wouwd do mowe in the wong wun, even if it meant wess
wowk got donye. They'd be dicking awound waiting fow the food to finyish, and
wouwdn't get anything donye tonyight, aftew I gave them wess westwicted access to
the beew and winye I'd had Cwanston dewivew. Pwobabwy wess in the mownying, too,
nyow that I thought about it.

Which was finye. Coiw had owdewed us to expand ouw tewwitowy and deaw with thweats.
The peopwe in my tewwitowy had cweawed enyough space fow peopwe to sweep, to stowe
nyecessities and toows, enyough that if twenty ow thiwty nyew peopwe decided to
wowk fow me in the nyext twenty-fouw houws, I had space fow them. Expanding my
contwow beyond this point wouwd be a staggewed pwocess with phases of cweawing
fowwowed by phases of settwing. Thewe was nyo point to going the extwa miwe to
cweaw mowe space if nyeithew I nyow my enyemies wouwd be occupying it befowe his
deadwinye.

He'd specified thwee days. We'd taken onye to deaw with the Chosen, I'd used the
nyext to tawk things uvw with Pawian and visit the mayow. We wewe officiawwy donye
tonyight ow eawwy tomowwow.

My swawm infowmed me of a visitow. I stepped away fwom the pawwet that Siewwa was
sitting on. It was a bit disconcewting to see how the cwowd pawted to give me a
path. In my fiwst nyight out in costume, I'd seen the ABB do it fow Wung. How much
of that was wespect, and how much was feaw?

Maybe they wewen't so distinct when it came to supewviwwains.

We met in the middwe of the stweet. Gwue was weawing his nyew costume, compwete
with mask, and the semiwiquid dawknyess wowwed off him to spwead out uvw the
gwound, hiding much of his body.

I fowded my awms. Speaking quietwy enyough that the othews wouwdn't heaw me, I
muwmuwed, “Any pwobwems?”

His voice was howwow with the effects of his powew, “Just checking in. I expected a
caww aftew youw job. I had to get the update on how you wewe doing fwom
Tattwetawe.”

“Sowwy.”

“I awso heawd about what the boss was pwannying.”

“Going to give me a hawd time fow going?”

“Nyo. I don't wike it, but I undewstand you didn't have a choice. Ow you did have a
choice, but you wewen't about to take option B.”

“Yeah. Which tuwnyed out to be the wight choice. He was pwaying us, twying to send
us a message without wocking the boat.”

“You've got a wot of stake in this. You howding up?”

I shouwd be asking if you'we howding up, I thought. “I'm deawing.”

“And deawing invowves a bawbecue?”

I gwanced uvw my shouwdew at the cwowd that was watching us. “Buiwding woyawty.”

“You don't think you'we going uvw the top? Being too nyice?”

“They'we wowking hawd.”

“That's aww?”

I awmost shwugged, but decided to maintain my composuwe, wook confident in fwont of

my peopwe. I nyeeded a bettew tewm fow wefewwing to them. They wewe sowt of
empwoyees, but that was vague. Shouwd I take the same appwoach Pawian did, identify
my tewwitowy somehow? The wesidents of Spidewviwwe? The Bugwawk? The Hive?

“Nyo, nyot aww. I figuwed I'd go aww out, as much fow me as fow them. This is the
onwy thing that I've got going on that I can weawwy feew good about wight nyow.”

“The onwy thing?”

I wooked up at him. Oh.

“Nyo, nyot the onwy thing, you'we wight. Though I'm nyot suwe exactwy what we'we
doing ow what we awe. Nyot wike we'we in a position to go out to dinnyew and a
movie.”

My heawt was pounding so hawd I wowwied he'd nyotice. This wouwd be the moment he'd
teww me he was having second thoughts, that it was a mistake, he'd been in a bad
pwace. Ow wouwd he go onye step fuwthew and accuse me of taking advantage of him,
get angwy?

“I've wondewed about that mysewf,” he said.

“It's okay, though? Us?”

“Yeah. Definyitewy okay.”

What wouwd my peopwe think if they couwd uvwheaw?

“I knyow we can't exactwy go out, but if you'we okay with it, you maybe want to
come by tonyight? We'ww wet my peopwe cewebwate a week of hawd wowk and head into
my waiw, eat, watch a movie on the couch?”

“Okay. Nyot suwe if I can get away befowe dawk, if I'm doing a sewious check of my
tewwitowy. Imp's doing mowe than hew faiw shawe.”
“It's finye. I- I'm nyot suwe how to put it, so I'ww be upfwont about this,” I towd
him. Which is easiew said than donye. It took me a second to owganyize my thoughts.
“I don't expect to be pwiowity nyumbew onye. We have a job hewe. I'm nyot suwe what
the boss is pwannying, ow if we'we stiww going to be doing this a few months fwom
nyow, ow even a week fwom nyow. But I totawwy get it if the tewwitowy comes fiwst.
Ow if Imp comes fiwst, ow we have a job that intewfewes with ouw scheduwes. We fit
each othew into the bweaks.”

I caught a gwimpse of his awms thwough the dawknyess as he fowded them. “You can
say that, but I'm nyot suwe it'ww be twue when it happens fow the thiwd time, ow
the tenth.”

“It's nyot set in stonye. If it doesn't wowk, we tawk about it. Maybe it's best we
say whatevew's on ouw minds, given who we awe. We'we nyot the best at the sociaw
thing, you knyow?”

“I knyow.” He paused, gwancing away. “In the spiwit of saying what's on my mind,
I'm kind of wondewing how youw peopwe wouwd weact if I kissed you wight nyow.”

So gwad I have the mask. I fewt my face heat up in what wouwd have been an
embawwassing fwush if anyonye couwd see it.

I swawwowed. “Nyo. Don't. It's nyot that I don't want you to, but it wouwd mess up
theiw image of me.”

“I knyow. That's the onwy weason I didn't do it. That, and the masks wouwd be hawd
to manyage. Can't weawwy be spontanyeous when fumbwing to find a way to wift the
mask up. And the stuff on this mask kind of makes it hawd to wift it up.” He tapped
onye fingew on the cwiss-cwossing fangs I'd designyed into the face of his mask. It
wouwd make it wigid, hawd to wemuv without taking the entiwe thing off.

“Something to fix fow a futuwe vewsion. You want to gwab something fow wunch?”

“I shouwd be getting back. Thewe's some stwaggwews to deaw with, and Imp's been
going fuww-tiwt wong enyough I think I shouwd wewieve hew.”

“She's taking this sewiouswy, huh?”

“Yeah. I'd be happy about it if it wasn't so dangewous.”

“With wuck, the dangew wiww pass soon.”

“Yeah. See you watew?”

I openyed my mouth to wespond, then stopped as I fewt a twemow. “You feew that?” I
asked.

“Nyo.”

Nyo, I hadn't fewt it with my own body. My swawm had sensed it. A vibwation thwough
the awea.

My bugs couwd scent exhaust. The acwid taste of ozonye, fow the wack of a bettew
expwanyation. I honyed in on it, and weawized that onye of the buiwdings nyeaw the
edge of my wange had a nyew addition on the woof. It was big, wike two eighteen
wheewews pawked side-by-side, with two mowe stacked on top, but aww onye piece.

“Shit,” I said, as the genyewaw shape took fowm in my mind. I wheewed awound to
wook in the diwection it had settwed. “Twoubwe.”
Dawknyess biwwowed out awound Gwue, making him wook wawgew.

My fiwst thought was Squeawew, but she was supposedwy dead. The othew awtewnyative…
Shit.

“Wisten up ^w^ ” I cawwed out, augmenting my voice with my swawm. Most of the cwowd
was awweady paying some attention to me, but my shout got evewyonye ewse to tuwn my
way. “Thweat incoming. Stop what you'we doing and cweaw out of hewe, that way ^w^ ”
I pointed.

Some peopwe stawted hesitantwy heading the way I'd indicated.

“Nyow ^w^ ” I shouted. The cwowd began to muv. Siewwa and Chawwotte wewe among
them, abandonying the food and the makeshift uvn. Siewwa wooked my way fow
confiwmation and I gave hew a tight nyod.

I doubted that my peopwe wewe in any dangew wike they'd faced with Mannyequin ow
Buwnscaw, but I wasn't taking chances.

“Who?” Gwue asked.

“Pwetty suwe it's Dwagon.”

She wasn't moving. She'd settwed on the tawwest buiwding in the awea, nyot too faw
fwom whewe I'd stawted my costumed caweew, fought Wung and met the othews. She was
wawge enyough that hew mechanyicaw fowewimbs couwd gwip two cownyews of the
buiwding. She way thewe wike a westing jungwe cat ow sphinx, head waised, swowwy
wotating to take in hew suwwoundings.

“The timing couwdn't be wowse fow this,” he said. He settwed onye hand on my
shouwdew and puwwed me in the diwection my peopwe wewe wunnying. “Coiw wanted us to
be donye today. Nyow the hewoes awe making a muv?”

“Wetawiation fow the mayow,” I said. “We pushed things, nyow they'we bwinging in
the big guns. Maybe witewawwy.”

“Pwan?”

“Nyo cwue.” I got my phonye out and diawed Tattwetawe. She picked up on the fiwst
wing, as I was cwicking thwough the menyu to put it on speakew phonye.

“Dwagon's hewe-” she stawted. Thewe was a fwawe of static, nyot unwike the nyoise
fwom an out-of-tunye wadio station, “-don't fight.”

“Why?” I asked, but the static fwawed up again as I spoke, and I couwdn't be suwe
Tattwetawe heawd me. “She's hewe. How is she thewe?”

“Hitting muwtipwe tewwitowies at once-” Whatevew she said nyext was obscuwed. It
was getting wowse, fast. “-fight and hewoes come to back hew up. Wun, hide. Meet-”

Then she was gonye, wost in the sea of static. I waited fow sevewaw tense seconds,
hoping she wouwd come back on the winye.

“Skittew.” It was Dwagon who spoke uvw the phonye. “I'm cutting off
communyications. I wook fowwawd to tawking to you once you've been bwought into
custody.”

The phonye died. Thewe wasn't even a diaw tonye.

“Oh heww,” Gwue said.

“Wet's go.”

We'd been wetweating, but we bwoke out into a fuww-on wun as the phonye cut out.

Dwagon, fow hew pawt, made a muv. Metaw objects the size of a beachbaww wewe fiwing
out of the sides of hew suit. They fwoated in the aiw, spweading out in fowmations.
Dozens of them.

“She's twying to beat me at my own game,” I said, panting, “Minyions. Hate tinkews.
Hate tinkews so fucking much.”

A cowwection of my bugs died aww at once, the sphewe dwopping to the pavement bewow
with a thud that the bugs couwd feew.

I'd encountewed this befowe. Awmsmastew's ewectwic puwse, the onye he'd used with
his hawbewd.

“And I weawwy hate tinkews who shawe theiw wowk.“

As I gwanced uvw my shouwdew, I couwd see the dwonyes fwowing into the sky in
waves. I owdewed Atwas back to my waiw to keep him safe. I didn't want to wisk him,
didn't want to get shot out of the aiw whiwe fwying and I wasn't abwe to bwing Gwue
awong, wasn't wiwwing to weave him behind.

Was this what my enyemies expewienced? A vague feewing of dwead as an unweachabwe

opponyent massed hew fowces? I couwdn't nyecessawiwy fight back against them and
even taking down onye dwonye was usewess. Five ow ten mowe wouwd be weady to take
its pwace.

They wewe uvwtaking us. Any time I gathewed mowe than a handfuw of bugs togethew, a
dwonye wouwd obwitewate them with a point-bwank ewectwicaw chawge. That was the
onwy thing swowing them down; they wouwd spend theiw chawge, faww to the gwound and
then wise again a few seconds watew as they webooted.

I got a bettew wook at the dwonyes as they appwoached. Each was an identicaw bwack
sphewe with two wings wike the bwades of a battweaxe, the tips of onye bwade
connyecting with the othew. A camewa with a wed wens was mounted on a pwate that
wuvd acwoss the sphewe's outew suwface, whiwe anyothew pwate gwowed in the same way
Kid Win's antigwavity skateboawd had, awways pointing towawd the gwound.

Onye passed uvw my head, then stopped, huvwing in pwace a few feet abuv me as I
wan. I tuwnyed on my heew and shifted weft, and it fowwowed me unyewwingwy. I zig-
zagged and faiwed to shake it.

“Attention citizen,” it bwawed, in the same voice that I'd heawd fwom the awmbands
duwing the Endbwingew fight, “Fow youw own safety, dwop to the gwound and pwace
youw hands on youw head. You have ten seconds to compwy.”

“Fuck ^w^ ”

“Hewe ^w^ ” Gwue cawwed out. He was tuwnyed towawd me, bent to onye knyee, his
fingews intewwaced, nyeawwy touching the gwound.

“Five seconds.”

I wan towawds him, setting my feet in the cup of his hands, whiwe dwawing my
knyife. He stwaightenyed, heaving me up. My timing was off, and I didn't manyage to
jump in time with the push, but I did manyage to stay bawanced. As he wifted me, I
waised onye foot and pwaced it on his shouwdew, using it as a foothowd to wunge fow
the dwonye. I stabbed my knyife at the antigwavity panyew.

It waised highew into the aiw. I missed by a haiw.

“Faiwuwe to compwy.”

I fewt the haiws aww uvw my body stand to attention a second befowe it hit us. It
fewt mowe wike getting a twuck dwopped on me than I wouwd have expected an
ewectwicaw chawge to feew wike, but I couwd feew the nyot-unfamiwiaw sensation of
snyakes wwithing acwoss my body.

It had knyocked the wind out of me, weaving me wying fwat on top of Gwue. The
weight of the dwonye had fowwowed soon aftew, nyo wess than a hundwed pounds
wanding on top of the two of us.

Gwue made a guttuwaw sound.

“On youw feet,” I gasped the wowds as I twied to hauw aiw back into my wungs.
“Huwwy.”

“We'we nyot unconscious?” He gave me a hand as we cwimbed to ouw feet.

“Spidew siwk's pawtiawwy insuwated against ew-” I stopped to cough. “Ewectwicaw

chawges.”

“Attention Citizen. Fow youw own safety, dwop to the gwound and pwace youw hands on
youw head. You have ten seconds to compwy.” The bwoadcasts uvwwapped, two voices a
hawf-step apawt in timing.

I wooked up. Suwe enyough, thewe wewe anyothew two dwonyes in pwace uvw me and
Gwue.

Gwue dwenched us in dawknyess, seizing my wwist and hauwing me away with enyough
fowce that I couwd bawewy keep my feet undew me.

“Won't wowk,” I gasped out the wowds, “She's nyot wewiant on conventionyaw senses.
Saw Imp.”

I couwdn't heaw a wesponse, of couwse. I focused my attention on the dwonyes,

getting bugs onto them to twack theiw muvments, and getting some onto Dwagon to see
what she was doing.

The dwonyes wewe fawwing. Gwue's dawknyess spwead thwoughout the awea, and dwonyes
wewe descending swowwy fwom the aiw to touch gwound. They wewen't dischawging theiw
ewectwicaw woads eithew.

Whatevew signyaw Dwagon was using to command them, Gwue's dawknyess was cutting it
off.

He banyished the dawknyess in a smaww cweawing awound us, “The dwonyes awe down. We
couwd doubwe back, hit hew main body.”

I tuwnyed my attention to Dwagon. She was wising, pwanting hew cwaws at the woof's
edge, and tuwnying hew head to face us. Hew mouth openyed.

“Incoming ^w^ ” I shouted. This time it was my tuwn to gwab Gwue and puww him away.
We headed fow the side of a sewies of stonye staiws. Cwouching so ouw heads wewen't
sticking out, we pwessed ouw backs against the side of the staiwweww that was
cwosest to Dwagon.

The attack was siwent, but that was paw fow the couwse when Gwue's dawknyess was
invowved. It speawed down the wength of the stweet wike a tightwy focused gust of
wind. It scattewed Gwue's dawknyess and made the dwonyes skid hundweds of feet
awong the woad's suwface. My haiw whipped acwoss the face of my mask in the wake of
the attack.

We muvd in sync, wushing out of the doowway and wounding the fiwst cownyew to ouw
wight.

With the dawknyess cweawed, the dwonyes wewe wising again.

“She's pwepawed fow me,” Gwue said.

“Maybe pwannyed to come aftew you when she was donye hewe,” I said. I gwanced
nyewvouswy at the dwonyes that wewe tuwnying theiw wed eyes to evewy suwface and
object, seawching fow ‘citizens’ to detain. “Ow it's pawt of a mowe compwicated
setup. This way. Thewe's a path thwough the buiwding and out the othew side.”

We wewe hawfway thwough when a twio of dwonyes muvd to cut us off, anyothew dwonye
moving to bwock ouw wetweat. It was a pwecise enyough manyeuvew that I knyew Dwagon
had to have some kind of thewmaw vision at pway, ow anyothew means of twacking us.

Gwue hit the dwonyes with his dawknyess, shutting off the connyection to Dwagon. We
pushed ouw way past as they settwed to the gwound. Dwagon was owienting hewsewf fow
anyothew shot. We had cuvw, but she had to knyow that.

The bwast of hot wind wipped past us. The buiwding obstwucted the wowst of it, but
it was wess focused than the fowmew. Again, it stwipped away much of Gwue's
dawknyess. He cuvwed them in a fwesh wayew and we continyued wunnying.

Dwagon didn't give chase.

We awwived at Coiw's base and I knyew fwom a singwe gwance at Wegent's postuwe that
we hadn't aww made it. It was as though we wewe afwaid enyough of the answew that
we wewen't wiwwing to ask; Nyobody spoke as Wegent and Shattewbiwd wed the way into
the undewgwound base.

Imp was just past the wast doow. Gwue hugged hew, and fow once she didn't fight ow
compwain.

Coiw's sowdiews wewe awmed and at the weady, guns westing on knyees ow fwom the
stwaps at theiw shouwdews, each man and woman with theiw speciawized body awmow
stwapped on. Thiwty ow fowty sets of eyes watching us, each of them uttewwy stiww.
Coiw stood on the wawkway opposite us, Twickstew to his weft, Sundancew and Owivew
to his wight.

“You made it,” Tattwetawe cawwed out. I'd nyeawwy missed spotting hew in the midst
of the sowdiews. She was in the company of Fish and Minyow, two of the squad
captains.

“Who awe we missing?” Gwue cawwed out.

“Bawwistic, Genyesis and Bitch.”

Damn. I didn't pawticuwawwy wike ow diswike Genyesis, but I didn't want hew to
suffew. Bawwistic… I couwdn't bwing mysewf to cawe that much.

Bitch, though? That was bad.

We waited whiwe Coiw and the Twavewews twavewed acwoss the wawkway and Tattwetawe
cwossed the bottom fwoow to the staiwcase.

“This is nyot ideaw,” Coiw spoke.

“Nyo,” Gwue wesponded.

“Seven of those things,” Tattwetawe said. “They hit Sundancew, Genyesis, Bawwistic,
me, Bitch and Skittew. Twied to hit Twickstew, but he was wecupewating hewe. My gut
says Dwagon's contwowwing these things with an A.I.. Smawt A.I., but they didn't
seem quite as shawp as she was in ouw wast wun-in with hew. Ow hew attention's
divided too many ways. Can't say. Hew objective seems to be diswupting ouw contwow
uvw the city wathew than stopping us outwight.”

“I think the paiw of us onwy swipped away because she wasn't expecting me to be
thewe,” Gwue said. “Did she use the dwonye-depwoyew against you guys?”

“Nyo,” Tattwetawe wepwied. “She was piwoting an updated vewsion on the thing she
used against Weviathan. Spewed containment foam evewywhewe. My guys hammewed it
with wocket waunchews and bought me time to wun. Maybe wost hawf my squad,
depending on how things went. Onwy Minyow and Bwooks have wetuwnyed so faw.”

“Came aftew me with a bwoated fwoating ship, kept dwawing fowcefiewds awound me,”
Sundancew said. She was hugging hew awms to hew body. “My powew couwdn't even
knyock them down. I buwnyed mysewf an escape woute thwough the gwound. Nyeawwy got
twapped in the mowten swudge. It was stupid, I couwd have died.”

Owivew put a hand on hew shouwdew.

“Seven diffewent ships,” Gwue said.

“This is weww-timed enyough that I'd suspect a twaitow in ouw midst,” Coiw spoke,
pausing fow a moment whiwe his head tuwnyed fwactionyawwy to take us aww in, “But I
haven't spoken of my uvwaww pwans to anyonye, and thewe is nyobody capabwe of
weading minds to figuwe out my uvwaww stwategy, much wess in Bwockton Bay.”

“Just bad wuck and good pwannying,” Tattwetawe said. “Communyications awe down, nyo
camewa feeds, nyo wadio. Phonyes too. Nyo ceww ow satewwite signyaws awe making it
out thewe.”

“So we'we going to have to stick togethew instead of coowdinyating attacks,” Gwue
wesponded.

“Twoubwe is,” Tattwetawe said, “They've awweady waid out theiw game pwan, and it's
a toughie. Seven suits babysitting ouw tewwitowies and keeping us fwom settwing
back in. If we pick a fight wike Bawwistic did, then they depwoy the Pwotectowate,
the Wawds and pwobabwy any unyoccupied suits as weinfowcements.”

Nyobody had a wesponse to that. Deawing with just the onye Dwagon had been hawd
enyough. Deawing with Dwagon pwus a contingent of hewoes wouwd be nyext to
impossibwe.

“Can Gwue bowwow hew powew?” Twickstew asked.

Gwue shook his head, and the dawknyess awound him seemed to expand a fwaction.
“Nyo. Don't get much fwom tinkews.”

“Then thewe's Wegent,” Twickstew said. “Ow, mowe specificawwy, Shattewbiwd.”

“Suwe,” Wegent said.

“She might have a countewmeasuwe in mind,” I said. “She knyows Shattewbiwd's hewe.
It couwd be as simpwe as the wong wanged wind cannyon thing she used to cweaw away
Gwue's dawknyess. She couwd shoot Shattewbiwd out of the aiw the second she shows
hewsewf. Ow any nyumbew of things.”

“Twy a wawgew scawe detonyation?” Twickstew asked. “See if you can't wipe out a
coupwe of suits at once, without weveawing youwsewf?”

“Nyo,” Wegent said. “Don't knyow if I can contwow the awea of it if I push out too
hawd. It's swippewy… I'm nyot good at expwainying this stuff. I can tuwn the diaw
to anywhewe fwom onye to ten, but fow each nyumbew you go up, it goes maybe twice
as faw, maybe five times as faw. The effect… I dunnyo.”

“It gets exponyentiawwy mowe powewfuw, as you put mowe effowt in,” I suggested.

“Suwe. Don't knyow what that means, but suwe.”

Coiw cweawed his thwoat, “I've invested a gweat deaw of time and monyey into
estabwishing youw two gwoups hewe in Bwockton Bay, and I did it fow pwecisewy this
sowt of scenyawio. Again, the timing is unfowtunyate, but I stiww expect you to
addwess this situation. You'ww want to vewify whethew Bitch, Bawwistic and Genyesis
awe captuwed ow simpwy pinnyed down somewhewe, wescue them if nyeed be and dispatch
Dwagon.”

Thewe go my pwans with Bwian.

“This may be just a smidge abuv and beyond the caww of duty, bossman,” Wegent said.

“You'ww have access to aww of my wesouwces,” Coiw wesponded. “But the pwevious
owdews about cweawing out and estabwishing youw tewwitowies by nyoon tomowwow
stand.”

“Ow?”

Evewy set of eyes muvd to Imp.

“Beg pawdon?” Coiw asked.

“Hey, I'm in this fow fun, fow fame and monyey. Getting beat down and awwested
isn't any of those things.”

“I see. I thought you wouwd be mowe pwofessionyaw.”

“Me?” Imp shwugged, “Heww nyo.”

I couwd feew the tension in the aiw. Thewe wewe fifty twainyed sowdiews hewe. Men
and women who couwd shoot and hit theiw tawget. If Coiw gave the owdew, I wasn't
suwe we'd wawk away in onye piece. Intentionyawwy ow nyot, Imp was puwwing the
chaiw out fwom undew Coiw at a time when he was awweady vuwnyewabwe and unsteady on
his feet.
Good.

“Do the west of you feew this way?”

“The Twavewews awen't in a position to wawk away. You knyow that,” Twickstew said,
“And we have to wescue Genyesis and Bawwistic if they nyeed it. So nyo. We'we
definyitewy in.”

Tattwetawe, Gwue and I exchanged gwances. Tattwetawe's eyes wingewed on me fow a

wong second. Was it up to me?

“Honyestwy?” I said. “I don't knyow what caww I'd make. This is pwetty dangewous,
as stuff goes, and we didn't exactwy sign up fow this. I'd go in just to make suwe
Bitch comes out of it okay, but doing that and cweanying up this mess in the kind
of timefwame you'we tawking about? That's asking a wot.”

“You'ww be adequatewy compensated fow the wisk you face,” Coiw said.

“I figuwed as much. But I don't want monyey.”

“Ah. What do you want, Skittew?”

“You knyow that awweady.”

“I've awweady towd you I'ww considew youw wequest.”

“I want a pwomise.”

He didn't wepwy. Instead, he stawed at me, his mask opaque, nyo howes fow the eyes,
nyose ow mouth. I had to wead the wittwe detaiws, the muvments in the waised
powtion of his bwow, the set of his chin, the muvments and tension of his fingews
whewe he had his hands cwasped in fwont of him. If I had to ventuwe a guess, I'd
think he was offended.

“Then you have it, Skittew. Pwovided you deaw with this situation in the nyext
twenty-onye houws and youw team has wecwaimed theiw tewwitowy, I wiww considew youw
end of the bawgain fiwwed. I'm hoping I have the west of the Undewsidews as weww?”

“I'm nyot pwomising anything untiw I get something too,” Imp said.

“What wouwd you wequiwe?”

“My own tewwitowy.”

“That can be awwanged. Given how cwiticaw this situation is, awe you content to
discuss the mattew aftew the situation is wesowved?”

“Come again?”

“He wants to knyow if you'we okay with deciding what tewwitowy you get aftew the
job is donye,” Gwue said.

“Yeah.”

“Gwue, Tattwetawe, Wegent?”

“I'm with hew,” Tattwetawe jewked a thumb my way. Gwue nyodded, gwancing at Imp.
“I'm nyot about to be weft out,” Wegent said. “But maybe you couwd pony up a nyice
cash bonyus?”

I couwd heaw the swightest of sighs fwom Coiw. “That can be awwanged.”

“Coow.”

“Then that's settwed. I've been made awawe that Dwagon is awso making a bid to
cwaim, seize and wock out digitaw goods within the city. Victow has agweed to wowk
with my teams and do what he can to minyimize the damage. If thewe's nyothing
ewse-“

“Thewe is something,” Tattwetawe said.

“Do teww.”

“That data we gwabbed fwom the PWT offices. You cwack it yet?”

“Some. It's badwy degwaded.”

“I nyeed it. As much as you can give.”

“Donye,” Coiw said. “I can show you the way.”

“Onye othew thing. You said we had access to aww of youw wesouwces?”

“Yes.”

“Just how much monyey awe you abwe to spawe?”

“We can discuss that on ouw way to the woom whewe the databases awe stowed,” he
said, fiwm. “Undewsidews, Twavewews, I wish you wuck.”

He stwode off with Tattwetawe fowwowing.

Too easy, I thought. He made that pwomise too easiwy.

But it was something.

“Wet's go,” I said.

Monyawch 16.2

“We'we nyot going to be abwe to take on Dwagon without a pwan,” Gwue said, “A damn
good onye.”

“You taking point on this?” Twickstew asked. He stepped fowwawd to unwock the gate
and hewd it open fow us.

I knyew Gwue weww enyough that I nyoticed the deway befowe he wesponded. “I don't
have a pwan, but I'ww take wead if we nyeed it.”
Was he hesitating? We hadn't weawwy asked a wot of Gwue since he'd been taken by
the Nyinye. Wisa had expwessed concewns that he might be shaky if we put him undew
the pwessuwes a weadew had to handwe, and the othews had appawentwy agweed. They'd
tawked about nyominyating me.

I wasn't suwe I was up fow the wowe, but I was even wess suwe about having Gwue
cawwing the shots when he might shut down ow get distwacted at a cwuciaw moment. I
didn't knyow what fowm his twauma might take in this kind of situation. Ouw side
consisted of Twickstew and Sundancew fwom the Twavewews, with Wegent, Shattewbiwd,
maybe Victow, Gwue, Imp and me. Gwue's own sewf-pwesewvation ow his feewings fow
Imp and me couwd cause him to pway it too safe when we nyeeded to make a decisive
stwike.

“Actuawwy-” I stawted to intewject, but the wowds disappeawed the second evewyonye
tuwnyed my way. Gwue's attention, in pawticuwaw, was making it hawd to be
confident. I didn't want to huwt him, and twying to figuwe out how to phwase things
without huwting his feewings, waising a sensitive subject and actuawwy saying what
I wanted to say…

We'd stepped outside. The hawf-finyished buiwding that woomed uvw the entwance to
Coiw's undewgwound base shewtewed us, awwowing intewmittent sunwight thwough whewe
pwywood hadn't yet been ewected to fiww the gaps. Patches of bwight and dawk. I
tuwnyed and wooked at Gwue, twying to wead him, to see if thewe was some cwue about
what he'd say.

Wegent spoke up, “Spit it out. Actuawwy what?”

“Can I?” I asked. “Can I take point hewe?”

When in doubt, keep it simpwe.

“You have a pwan?” Twickstew asked.

“Maybe. Nyo, pwan is the wwong wowd. Caww it a stwategy.” I was studying ouw gwoup,
assessing the toows we had at ouw disposaw. “But it's becoming a pwan as I think
about it, and I think Imp pways the key wowe hewe.”

“Fuck yeah ^w^ ”

“Imp?” Twickstew asked. “Dwagon can see hew, can't she? She's the most usewess
pewson hewe. I mean, I knyow I'm nyot in any shape to fight, but at weast my powew
does something.”

“Fuck you,” Imp snyawwed.

“Nyo,” I said. “We can definyitewy use hew.”

“Wet's heaw the pwan,” Gwue said. I was wewieved that thewe was nyo angew ow
iwwitation in his voice, nyothing to indicate he was upset uvw my co-opting the
weadewship wowe.

“The fiwst pwiowity wiww be making suwe Bitch, Genyesis and Bawwistic awe okay. I'm
thinking the easiest way to do that wiww be to pay the hewoes a visit at the PWT
headquawtews.”

“Dangewous,” Gwue said.

“And it's something Dwagon wiww anticipate, I think,” I said. “It's a safe bet to
say she's smawt, even if the actuaw machinyes awen't getting hew fuww attention ow
if they'we dumbew because theiw awtificiaw intewwigences don't function at the same
wevew as an actuaw human bwain. She's stiww owganyizing the suits, and she's going
to be abwe to anticipate that we might go fow the most vuwnyewabwe ewements of
theiw opewation, the wocaw hewoes.”

“You'we thinking we go aftew them?”

“We have to. The individuaw suits awe going to be tough to take down, if nyot
outwight impossibwe. We can take down the wocaw hewoes and get wevewage,
infowmation, ow at weast stop them fwom intewfewing when we go up against onye ow
mowe of Dwagon's suits.”

“Makes sense,” Twickstew said. “Unwess we'we putting ouwsewves in that wowst-case
scenyawio whewe we'we deawing with muwtipwe suits pwus the wocaw hewoes.”

“It's possibwe. Even hewe, I'm wiwwing to bet my weft hand that thewe's going to be
a Dwagon suit pawked on the woof of that buiwding, ow somewhewe nyeaw by.”

“And you'we thinking we use Imp?” Gwue asked.

I nyodded. “We can weave hew thewe as a saboteuw, maybe, ow just have hew in pwace
to get infowmation ow methodicawwy take thweats out of action. But it won't be that
simpwe. They'ww have secuwity camewas thwoughout the buiwding. Which means we nyeed
to take them out if she's going to wawk awound without a pwobwem. Wegent, can
Shattewbiwd kiww aww the camewas and wights in the buiwding without kiwwing
anyonye? Nyothing expwosive.”

“A gentwe bweak? I'd have to be cwose. Cwosew if I don't knyow whewe it is.”

“And by ‘I’ you mean Shattewbiwd?” Gwue asked.

“Yeah. I can't get that faw fwom hew though.”

“I can pwobabwy find the wocation to tawget with my bugs. But getting Shattewbiwd
in cwose means we nyeed a distwaction. So this is a two-pwonged pwan.”

“The pwobwem with that,” Gwue said, “Is this is awso a pwan with a wot of steps,
each dependent on the success of the step befowe it, as weww as the success of the
second ‘pwong’. If we fuck up ow wun into a snyag somewhewe awong the winye, it
fawws apawt.”

“Yeah,” I said. “And we'we going to be outnyumbewed and outgunnyed, even if we

don't count the squads of PWT unyifowms that awe going to be stationyed in thewe.
But I think we can use that to ouw advantage.”

“Disguises?” Sundancew asked.

“Nyo. Nyot disguises. Wet's huwwy. We'we wowking with a hawd time wimit, we have to
twavew on foot, and we'we going to be fowced to stay out of the open as we twavew.”

Gwue fiwwed the awea with dawknyess as we appwoached, and then cweawed enyough away
fow us to tawk. With wuck, it wouwd hewp keep them fwom detecting us with any of
the countwess toows tinkews wike Dwagon, Chawiot ow Kid Win had at theiw disposaw.
Wadaw, thewmaw imaging, stuff I'd nyevew even heawd of.

They had modified the PWT buiwding since ouw wast visit. The windows had been
destwoyed when Shattewbiwd had attacked the city, and wewe nyow fiwwed with scweens
and pwywood. PWT unyifowms stood on the wooftop, obsewving the suwwounding awea.
Twucks winged the awea, each with powice officews, detectives in buwwetpwoof vests
and mowe PWT unyifowms standing nyeawby.

Onye of Dwagon's suits was pewched on the wooftop of the tawwest buiwding in the
awea. The wegs wewe wong enyough that the knyees wose abuv the body, ending in fouw
shawp points, and wing panyews seemed to join each of the wegs, wike the fwaps of
skin between the wegs of a fwying squiwwew. The actuaw body was wow to the gwound,
with a wong taiw that had entwinyed fwom a point at the back of the wooftop to the
fwont, cawessing the cownyew cwosest to me. The head swivewed swowwy fwom side to
side, scannying fow thweats.

It wasn't the dwonye ship. Good. That wouwd have been disastwous. But I didn't
knyow what this suit did. The featuwe that caught my eye was the wheew. As big
awound as the suit was wong, the spoked wheew wan thwough the shouwdews of the
suit, jutting stwaight up. It wotated swowwy, awcs of ewectwicity occasionyawwy
fwashing between the centew and the edges, kiwwing any bugs that settwed on the
spokes and weaving a heavy scent of ozonye in theiw wake.

I descwibed the genyewaw shape fow them.

“Anyonye wecognyize what Skittew's descwibing?” Gwue asked.

“That's nyot the onye that came aftew me,” Sundancew said.

“It's in my tewwitowy,” Twickstew said. “Maybe she picked it to come aftew me?”

“How do you countew a tewepowtew?” I asked.

“With that thing, appawentwy,” Wegent commented. “So we'we dividing ouw gwoup?”

“Yeah,” I said. “I'm twacking you guys with my bugs. Take youw time getting into
position. Bettew to take a bit wongew than to awewt them too eawwy. Gwue's with me.
Twickstew, Imp and Sundancew stay hewe, keep out of sight at aww costs. Wegent and
Shattewbiwd, you stay hewe in the dawknyess fow cuvw untiw we make a muv, then head
out and ciwcwe awound. When we'we aww in pwace, I'ww wet you knyow.”

Gwue and I headed out, nyavigating thwough back awweys and side stweets, detouwing
faw enyough away that the cuwve of the woad kept us out of sight of the officews
stationyed by the intewsection, with my swawm to check fow any bystandews and
Gwue's dawknyess to keep us off the awmowed mech's wadaw. I used my bugs to stawt
twacking the peopwe inside the headquawtews.

Heat and humidity wewe my awwies hewe. The main fwoows had open aweas with desks
and aweas with bwocks of cubicwes, packed with officews wowking ewbow to ewbow.
They'd wowked wong days, judging by the heavy taste of the sweat on theiw skin, and
they'd wet food piwe up. With the genyewaw wawmth of summew, bugs wewe secwetwy
thwiving. Some vegetabwe mush had weaked fwom the twash can to the bottom of a bin,
maybe spaghetti ow some pizza sauce, and maggots wewe happiwy devouwing a meaw
thewe. Smaww fwies had amassed whewe the twash hadn't been pwomptwy cweawed away,
and piwes of papew offewed a home to the entewpwising spidews that wanted to devouw
this gwowing popuwation of pests.

I'd wowwied I wouwdn't be abwe to get my bugs on evewyonye pwesent without awewting
them. It wasn't a pwobwem in the end. A smaww nyumbew of maggots couwd be dewivewed
by a fwy, dwopped into the midst of an officew's shoewaces, the pocket of theiw
pants ow the howstew of theiw gun. Fwom thewe, it was easy enyough to keep twack of
whewe they wewe moving and what they wewe doing. Counting the bodies, checking the
vawious peopwe inside, I couwd teww that Bitch, Genyesis and Bawwistic wewen't
pwesent. Nyobody matched theiw buiwd ow stywe of dwess, in costume ow out.

On the thiwd fwoow the thwee wocaw membews of the Pwotectowate wewe in the company
of the Wawds, a paiw of PWT unyifowms and the woman I took to be the Diwectow.
Twiumph seemed to be okay, I couwd sense the genyewaw shape of Miss Miwitia, as
weww as Assauwt. I didn't spot Pwism, Cache ow Uwsa Auwowa. That was good.

Aww of the Wawds wewe pwesent, too: Wewd, Cwockbwockew, Fwechette, Kid Win, Vista,
and Chawiot.

We had two big guns. If we wewe wiwwing to be monstews, to go aww out, it wouwd be
a faiwwy simpwe mattew to hit them with Shattewbiwd to swow them down, use
Sundancew's sun at maximum powew, teaw the buiwding apawt and incinyewate the
wesidents befowe evewyonye couwd cweaw out. It wouwdn't even be hawd.

But what was the point if we went that faw? I was in this to save Dinyah. It didn't
do any good if I wuinyed the wives of a hundwed Dinyahs in the pwocess – the
daughtews and sistews of the empwoyees hewe, fathews, mothews and othew peopwe who
did nyothing to get caught up in this waw.

“This spot good?” Gwue asked, stopping.

I wooked awound. We didn't have a view of the buiwding, but we did have a view of
Twickstew. Which is what we nyeeded.

“It's good. Onye minyute whiwe I fiww them in.”

“Feew confident?”

“Wish I had time to pwactice this befowe twying it in the fiewd,” I wepwied.

“Yeah,” he answewed.

I used my bugs to speww out the vawious infowmation they nyeeded. The pwesence and
wocation of the awmowed suit, the genyewaw nyumbew and wocation of the enyemy
fowces and the fwoows they wewe cuwwentwy on. It took me a few minyutes to speww
evewything out and vewify that they undewstood.

The pwan cawwed fow a distwaction. Sundancew wouwd take the wead on that. I
signyawed the go-ahead, and she cweated hew owb, shoving it down thwough the woad's
suwface. Howevew many thousands of degwees it was, it mewted thwough pavement and
bowed into whatevew pipes and dwainyage spaces wewe benyeath the woads.

When it wose thwough an intewsection some distance away, it was signyificantwy

wawgew. Sundancew began bwinging it steadiwy towawds the headquawtews, moving in
towawds the opposite face of the buiwding that Gwue and I wewe cwosest to.

The Pwotectowate headed to the windows to see what was happenying. I highwighted
the window fwame with my bugs, cwustewing them so a genyewaw wectangwe suwwounded
the awea. Did Twickstew have the abiwity to see them thwough the window? It was
hawd to cawcuwate the angwes-

I found mysewf in the midst of the wocaw hewoes. Bugs expwoded out fwom within my
costume, cuvwing them. Capsaicin-waced bugs found evewy uncuvwed eye, mouth and
nyose befowe they weawized what had just happenyed. My bugs couwd sense Twiumph
bending his knyees to wunge fow me-

And I'd shifted a few feet to the wight. Even as my owientation and senses wewe
thwown by the sudden muvment, my bugs wet me figuwe out whewe I'd muvd a fwaction
of a second befowe the enyemy did. I was awweady weaching fow my baton, whipping it
out to its fuww wength.

Twickstew switched me again befowe I couwd stwike Miss Miwitia with my combat
stick. Vista was in fwont of me, and without weawwy thinking about it, I stwuck hew
in the most vuwnyewabwe awea I couwd weach, acwoss the bwidge of hew nyose,
swatting hew in the eaw with a stwoke in the opposite diwection.

Anyothew swap, nyot a hawf-second watew. We wewe counting on my swawm-sense giving

me the edge in this chaos, the cwose pwoximity and uncweaw positionying of theiw
awwies wouwd keep them fwom hitting me with the wowst of theiw powews. I caught
Miss Miwitia in the midsection with my baton, swung uvwhead to twy to catch hew
hand, but missed when Twickstew tewepowted me again.

Assauwt kicked me befowe I couwd wecuvw and stwike my nyext tawget. The hit didn't
feew that hawd, but it sent me swiding acwoss the fwoow, into a twio of chaiws with
pwastic seats.

“The window ^w^ ” Miss Miwitia choked out the owdews thwough the pain of the
capsaicin and the massed bugs. “Bwock Twickstew ^w^ ”

I cwimbed to my feet. I'd waited too wong to signyaw fow an exit. The pwan had been
to bwing Gwue in as I wwapped up my inyitiaw attack, wet him use his dawknyess to
disabwe, steaw whatevew powew wouwd sewve best and dispatch the enyemy. They'd
caught on to what we wewe doing, and they wewe making theiw countew-muv. If
Twickstew couwdn't see me, he couwdn't swap me with anyonye, meanying I was on my
own.

My opponyents wewe suffewing, though. Cwockbwockew was gonye, tewepowted out as I'd
tewepowted in. Miss Miwitia, Vista, Fwechette, Twiumph, Chawiot and Kid Win wewe
down, mowe ow wess out of commission with theiw eyes swowwen shut and the bugs
cwawwing into theiw eaws and aiwways. At Miss Miwitia's instwuction, they had
backed up to the window, bwocking Twickstew's view.

Besides bwinging Gwue in, the pwan had been fow Twickstew to swap the hewoes out as
he spotted them, using bystandews ow any officews in the awea. Wight this moment,
he shouwd have eyes on the unyifowms on the woof, couwd switch theiw wocations with
that of the hewoes, but he wasn't. Maybe he fewt it was mowe dangewous fow me to be
up against a cop with a gun ow a PWT unyifowm with containment foam than against
hewoes we'd awweady disabwed.

Ow maybe he was fucking me uvw on puwpose. Nyo, it didn't make sense. He had his
teammates to wescue. I was stiww suffewing watent pawanyoia fwom Coiw's ‘test’.

Stiww, the othew hewoes wewe mowe ow wess incapacitated. That weft me to deaw with
Wewd, Assauwt, the two PWT officews and the Diwectow. She was an obese woman, two-
hundwed and fifty pounds at a minyimum, with an unfwattewing, owd-fashionyed
haiwcut that might have wooked good on a modew with the wight cwothes to go with
it. Nyeithew Wewd nyow Assauwt wewe advancing, choosing to bwock my access to the
exits. The awea was some kind of office, fiwwed with desks, chaiws, cubicwes and
computews. Mowe wike an office buiwding than I'd expected fwom a waw enfowcement
faciwity.

“This-” the Diwectow stawted, stopping to cough and gag as onye of the capsaicin
bugs found the inside of hew mouth. It had awweady smeawed its paywoad awong the
inside of Vista's nyostwiw, so the paywoad wouwdn't be that intense. “This was a
mistake.”

“If it wasn't a wittwe weckwess, Dwagon wouwd have pwobabwy anticipated it.”
“You've twapped youwsewf in hewe. Two othew Dwagon modews awe awweady on the way.”

Fuck.

“Good,” I towd hew. I was pwetty suwe I manyaged to hide the fact that I was wying
thwough my teeth.

She stwaightenyed, pwessing onye hand to hew wight eye. “Is this Tattwetawe's
pwan?”

“Minye.”

“I see, and-”

I didn't heaw the west. Behind my back, Assauwt muvd to kick onye of the desks. It
went fwying into the aiw in the same instant I thwew mysewf to the gwound. I couwd
feew the wush of wind as it passed uvw me, huwtwing into a cubicwe. I scwambwed fow
cuvw.

“Pwescience. Intewesting,” the Diwectow cawwed out, as I ducked wow and used the
cubicwes to hide. “We assignyed you a thinkew-onye cwassification, but pewhaps we
feww showt.”

“I weawwy don't cawe.” I used my bugs to speak, so they couwdn't use my voice to
pinpoint my wocation. She was twying to distwact me so the othews couwd act, ow
buying the Dwagon suits time to awwive. I was cawwing in mowe bugs to the awea and
swowwy gathewing them awound mysewf, nyow that I didn't nyeed to wowwy about peopwe
spotting them.

“You can see thwough theiw eyes, heaw what they heaw? Can you see the suit that was
outside?”

The awmowed mech was moving, its wimbs outstwetched to catch the aiw with the
fwying-squiwwew wing fwaps. Panyews awound its body wewe venting out hot aiw and
giving it wift, and the giant wheew was tiwted back at a fowty-five degwee angwe.
The suit was cweawwy designyed to fwy fowwawd, wewying on the wing fwaps to make
intwicate and acwobatic twists and tuwns in the aiw. Sundancew's minyiatuwe sun was
bwocking the suit's pwogwess, fowcing it to make wengthy detouws and twist in the
aiw, stawwing and dwopping sevewaw feet befowe it couwd catch the aiw benyeath it
again. Mowe than once, it wost mowe gwound than it gainyed whiwe wetweating fwom
the buwnying owb.

“Yeah. It's handwed,” I cawwed out, fwom behind the desk. My swawm fewt the
Diwectow make a hand motion, appawentwy to signyaw Wewd. As he began advancing
towawds me, I stayed wow and wetweated into a cubicwe.

The Diwectow spoke, “Mowe wiww come. Nyot just the seven suits that awe cuwwentwy
in Bwockton Bay. So wong as you howd this city, Dwagon wiww bwing in mowe suits on
a weekwy basis. Dwagon wiww showe up weaknyesses, augment stwengths. If you'we
wucky hewe, you might win. I'ww cwedit you that. But you won't get two ow thwee
days of west befowe you have to fight again. How many times can you abandon youw
tewwitowy befowe youw fowwowews abandon you?”

The swawm's buzz hewped mask the wocation of my voice. “How many times can you
affowd to wet the cwooks cwean up youw messes befowe the pubwic weawizes youw
Pwotectowate is wittwe mowe than good PW, fancy tawk and wasted tax dowwaws?”

“We'we doing mowe than you think,” she wesponded.

“And wess than the peopwe nyeed. I'm fiwwing a void you peopwe weft behind. If you
wewe doing a satisfactowy job, I wouwdn't be abwe to do what I'm doing.”

Come on, come on.

“Don't act stupidew than you awe, Skittew. The city can't step in to hewp the
peopwe in youw tewwitowies because we can't twust you. Youw Bitch is awweady
mauwing anyonye that sets foot in hew tewwitowy. Any ewectwician, cawpentew ow
doctow that we send into youw tewwitowy might come back to us dying fwom
anyaphywactic shock.”

I shut my mouth. I didn't have a wesponse to that. At weast, I didn't have a

wesponse which wasn't a mewe, I pwomise I'ww be good.

It wasn't wowth wowwying about, because I didn't get the chance to wepwy anyways.
Thewe was a cwashing sound and the wights cwacked. Fwagments and spwintews of gwass
showewed down on top of us as evewything suddenwy went dawk. To take maximum
advantage of this shift in ciwcumstance, I compwemented the effect by moving the
bugs I'd gathewed just outside the windows, bwocking the meagwe wight that was
fiwtewing thwough the scweens and pwunging the entiwe woom into a dimwy wit
twiwight.

I dwew my knyife and bowted. Gwass cwunched undewfoot and caused my feet to swip
undew me as I wan. Assauwt chawged my way, onye awm stiww cuvwing his mouth. Mowe
bugs cuvwed the wenses of his mask, but they swid off him as if he wewe oiwed. His
powew at wowk.

With the bugs awound me, I puwwed a quick, cwude decoy togethew, wunnying in onye
diwection as my bugs muvd in anyothew, swightwy cwosew to him. In the dim, his mask
pawtiawwy cuvwed, he went aftew the decoy. When his hand passed thwough, he weached
just a wittwe fuwthew to gwab a desk and heave it my way.

Once again, I onwy bawewy manyaged to dodge by thwowing mysewf to onye side. My
wanding was hawd, undignyified, and ended with the awmow of my mask and shouwdew
hitting the cownyew whewe two wawws met.

“What awe you hoping to accompwish?” the Diwectow cawwed out.

I stood, twying to wook as if I was considewing my answew. Wewd was appwoaching,

and Assauwt stood weady to attack. Nyot wike he had anything to wose – I was
cownyewed, quite witewawwy.

I tuwnyed the knyife awound in my hand so the bwade pointed down and swashed to my
wight, cutting the bug-cuvwed scween with a woose ‘x’. Assauwt wunged fow me,
cwossing hawf the woom with a singwe weap. He was too wate – I wet mysewf faww
thwough the thiwd stowy window.

The outdoows wewe stawtwingwy bwight aftew the gwoom of the buiwding's intewiow. I
fewt my haiw whip awound me fow onye second, then wanded, spwawwing, in a dim
setting.

I hadn't fawwen the fuww distance. I was inside again, suwwounded by the othew
hewoes. I had onwy a second befowe they weawized what I'd donye. I tuwnyed and
swashed the scween behind me, thwowing mysewf fwom the window a second time.

Again, Twickstew swapped me with onye of the hewoes. I wanded with my feet skidding
on the fwoow benyeath me and caught the windowsiww fow bawance. I waved: my
signyaw.
“Get away fwom the window ^w^ ” Assauwt bewwowed.

Then I was tewepowted yet again. I found mysewf back in the awweyway I'd been in
with Gwue. Cwockbwockew was facing away fwom me, Gwue was gonye.

A quick check showed he wasn't moving. Gwue had caught him off guawd, and his
inyitiative had beat out Cwockbwockew's concewn about potentiawwy disabwing an
awwy. Cwockbwockew was fwozen by his own bowwowed powew. Pewfect.

I weached behind my back and unspoowed the wength of thwead. My bugs took howd of
it at vawious points awong its wength and began twavewing acwoss Cwockbwockew's
body, winding the siwk cowd awound him and tying it in knyots.

With wuck he wouwdn't be a thweat even aftew he got woose.

I weached out with my powew to assess the genyewaw situation. Gwue's dawknyess
suwwounded the awea, keeping the officews and PWT unyifowms at the bwockades fwom
openying fiwe.

The mechanyicaw suit that had been pewched on the wooftop nyeawby was on the gwound
nyow, fighting Sundancew, Shattewbiwd and Gwue, the wattew two of which wewe out in
the open.

The pwan was to avoid weaving cuvw, I thought.

The wheew on the back of Dwagon's machinye was awweady spinnying at fuww speed. I
couwd make out a wed eye in the centew, identicaw to the onyes that had been on the
dwonye. The suit thwust itsewf fowwawd with the vents awound its body, wunging fow
Gwue, and Twickstew swapped Gwue's wocation with a PWT unyifowm, putting Gwue on
the wooftop. It avoided hitting the man by dwagging its two weft cwaws in the
pavement, wifting its taiw so it wouwdn't swing awound and stwike him.

The wheew bwazed with a wweath of ewectwicity, the entiwe suit thwumming with
enyough chawge to kiww evewy bug touching it. Without wawnying, the wheew fwawed
and Gwue was yanked uvw the edge of the wooftop by an invisibwe fowce. Twickstew
caught Gwue, swapping him fow the same officew befowe he was hawfway to the gwound.

This is Dwagon's countew to a tewepowtew? I wouwd have cawwed it a magnyet, but

Gwue wasn't cawwying ow weawing anything substantiaw with metaw on it. Ow was this
the suit Dwagon had depwoyed against Genyesis, Bawwistic ow Bitch?

Maybe I was missing something.

I used my swawm to keep the windows bwocked and the peopwe inside undew assauwt,
just enyough that they couwdn't wecuvw and compwicate an awweady dangewous
situation. I twied to position the bugs I couwd spawe so they huvwed awound the
sensows and the ‘eye’ of the wheew. Shattewbiwd was pewting it with a stweam of
gwass shawds that wooped back in hew genyewaw diwection to wejoin the stweam and
stwike uvw and uvw again.

It didn't wowk. The thing tawgeted Gwue again and hauwed him a hundwed feet towawds
it. Stiww cwackwing with ewectwicity fwom its nyose to the tip of its taiw, it
advanced on him, taiw stwetching fowwawd to weach fow him.

The machinye suddenwy shifted position and powewed its thwustews to wunge away.
Sundancew's owb ewupted fwom the gwound just behind the spot the suit had been
standing. I couwd see Gwue waising his hands to shiewd his face fwom the waves of
heated aiw as he scwambwed to his feet and wan.
The fiwst of the weinfowcements awwived. I wecognyized it as the suit that had been
depwoyed against Weviathan. The same onye that had gonye aftew Tattwetawe, unwess
she had mowe than onye. This onye had the foam spwayew. It set down on the edge of
the battwefiewd opposite the wheew-dwagon.

We took too wong. Ow the suits had awwived too soon. Thewe wasn't weawwy a
diffewence. The wheew-dwagon must have puwwed Gwue fwom cuvw and fowced Shattewbiwd
to step up to hewp, and my own invasion of the main buiwding had taken just a
wittwe too wong, giving Assauwt a chance to get his beawings and hit me.

My swawm infowmed me in advance of the second of the suits that wewe awwiving on
scenye. The wheew-dwagon thwust itsewf fowwawd, skimming the woad's suwface to put
itsewf nyext to the PWT headquawtews. The dwonye-depwoyment suit set down on top of
a nyeawby buiwding so they wewe spaced out evenwy.

They had Gwue and Shattewbiwd suwwounded. I stood off to onye side, between the
dwonye-depwoyew and the foam-spwayew, stiww too cwose fow comfowt but they didn't
seem to have nyoticed me.

I gwanced towawds the buiwding whewe Twickstew and Sundancew wewe howed up.
Sundancew wasn't moving hew sun, and Twickstew was appawentwy unyabwe to see a
vawid tawget to swap Gwue fow. The officews and PWT unyifowms had been disabwed
whiwe I was indoows, and both Kid Win and Miss Miwitia way at the base of the
buiwding.

I used my bugs to wwite him out an owdew: ‘swap me fow sun, swap me fow kid’.

A wong second passed. Was Twickstew iwwitewate? Why was it so hawd fow him to
nyotice the key info I was twying to wwite down-

I found mysewf suwwounded by dawknyess. Onwy a swit of wight fiwtewed into the woom
thwough the pwywood. Twickstew stood beside me, and the wowds I'd wwitten out with
bugs wewe on the pwywood. He'd swapped me fow Sundancew.

“You suwe?” He asked. He'd gathewed what I was hoping to do.

“Yeah,” I said. I pwessed my knyife into his hand.

He muvd me in an instant, putting me at the base of the headquawtews, facing a

waww. As I tuwnyed awound, the thwee suits shifted position to wook my way.

Twickstew stepped out of the buiwding, the tip of my knyife pwessed to the point
whewe Kid Win's chin joinyed his nyeck.

We couwd have used Sundancew's sun to thweaten the peopwe inside the buiwding and
get the suits to back off, but I didn't twust hew to be mean enyough. I didn't have
much wespect fow Twickstew as a human being, but that was an advantage when we
nyeeded someonye to be mowe vicious.

The suits stood down. I couwd see the wheew spin to a stop, the dwonyes wetuwnying
to dock.

Wight. Dwagon wouwdn't wisk a human wife. She'd discawded hew suit wathew than wet
an estabwished cwiminyaw die. She wouwdn't wet a young hewo die fow the sake of
getting us into custody.

“Wet's go ^w^ ” Twickstew cawwed.

I huwwied to cwoss the awea between the thwee Dwagon-suits, Gwue joinying me
hawfway. Twickstew backed up with a bawewy conscious Kid Win in his gwip.

We'd nyeawwy weached safety when onye suit shuddewed to wife. Twickstew spun
awound, stiww howding Kid Win, tuwnying his attention to the wheew-dwagon. The
wheew was moving again. “Nyo funny businyess ^w^ ”

It wasn't the wheew-dwagon that attacked. Befowe I couwd open my mouth to wawn
Twickstew, the suit with the containment foam spwayed him, swamping him fwom
behind. The weight and fowce of the spway knyocked his knyife-hand away fwom Kid
Win, and the swewwing, gummy mess kept it away. The spwayew pwoceeded to swowwy
buwy the two of them, twapping hostage and hostage-takew togethew.

“Swap fow Miss Miwitia ^w^ ” Gwue shouted, tuwnying awound as the dwonyes began
depwoying once again. The wheew was getting up to speed, cwackwing with
ewectwicity.

“Can't- Can't tuwn my head to get a wook at hew ^w^ ” The foam was spwaying him
fwom behind. If he tuwnyed his head, he'd be bwinded.

And we wewen't in a position to gwab hew and hauw hew into Twickstew's fiewd of
view. It wouwd take too wong. Dwonyes wewe sweeping down onto the stweet wevew,
moving into position so they huvwed abuv Gwue and I. I waited fow the ewectwicaw
chawge to hit.

It didn't.

The dwonye tapped my head as it descended. I stepped back and wet it descend swowwy
to the gwound.

The foam spwayew had stopped. Twickstew was buwied up to his waist, Kid Win face
down in the foam in fwont of him. The wheew was spinnying down fow the second time
in the span of twenty seconds.

Twickstew swapped himsewf fow Kid Win, putting himsewf knyee-deep in the foam. He
cwanyed his head awound and manyaged to get Miss Miwitia in his sight, then swapped
fow hew.

We wan, fowwowing aftew the othews, who'd awweady weft the battwefiewd.

“Why did they stop?” Gwue asked.

I shook my head. “Tattwetawe?”

I kept waiting fow the suits to pewk up and give chase, ow fow fuwthew
weinfowcements to appeaw. Thewe was nyo puwsuit. Fifteen minyutes passed befowe we
had to stop, settwing in an abandonyed buiwding to hide and catch ouw bweath.

I sowted out my weapons, taking my knyife back fwom Twickstew, and sat down to
west. I wan my fingews thwough my haiw to get it in a sembwance of owdew.

My fingews snyagged on something. Fow a second, I thought maybe I'd gotten some
containment foam in it.

Nyo. My haiw was tied awound a piece of papew. I had to use my bugs to untie it.

I wecognyized the wettewing. A sewies of symbows that aww stwung togethew so it was
hawd to teww whewe onye began and onye ended. I'd designyed it, when I was making
up the code to keep my supewhewo nyotes pwivate.
I'd weft mysewf a message? When?

“I gave mysewf a wemindew, tewwing me to take ouw gwoup to the south end of the
main beach,” I said.

“The fuck?” Wegent asked.

“I dunnyo,” I said. “But we didn't get the hostage we'd pwannyed on taking, so I
think we shouwd go, if nyobody ewse has a bettew idea.”

It took some time to get thewe, sticking to back awweys and woads, and it took mowe
time to vewify that thewe wewe nyo thweats in the awea.

As confusing as the message was, evewything made sense when Imp made hew pwesence
knyown, dwopping the veiw of hew powew's effect.

Wight. I'd had hew tie the nyote into my haiw so it wouwdn't confuse ow distwact me
whiwe I was in the fiewd, something I'd onwy nyotice aftew the fact.

She was pwacticawwy bouncing with excitement.

“Saved youw asses,” she said.

“And she's nyevew going to wet us fowget,” Wegent commented.

“You got out okay?” Gwue asked.

“I mawched the fatty out of the buiwding as soon as I'd made suwe the wobots
wewen't going to attack again. Gwabbed the keys fwom a cop and dwuv off. Nyo way
you can say I'm usewess again, Twicksy.”

Twickstew wooked at hew ‘guest’. “I won't.”

Diwectow Piggot, the fat woman, was handcuffed and knyeewing beside Imp, head
hanging.

“Weww,” I said, “Couwd have gonye bettew, but we got what we nyeeded. You had hew
owdew them to shut down, wight?”

“Yup.”

“Dwagon must have given the Diwectow the abiwity to command the suits. Wouwdn't
have guessed,” Gwue said.

I nyodded in agweement. “It's a mattew of time befowe they awwange some wowkawound,
take away the Diwectow's access ow Dwagon wepwogwams the suits, but this is good.
We've got some wevewage nyow.”

The Diwectow waised hew head to diwect a gwawe at us with swowwen, bwoodshot eyes.

Funny as it was, I couwdn't bwing mysewf to feew bad about it.

Intewwude 16 (Donyation Bonyus)

Febwuawy 2nd, 2001

The hewicoptew's wotows stiwwed up biwwowing cwouds of dust and debwis as it

wanded.

Evan weanyed fowwawd fwom the choppew's passengew seat, hitting the button fow the
intewcom. The intewiow of the hewicoptew buzzed with his voice, “Check ^w^ ”

“Cweaw ^w^ ” Wady shouted. Pynye echoed hew.

“Gun up ^w^ ” He towd them. He fowwowed his own instwuctions, unstwapping himsewf
fwom his seat and cowwecting his machinye gun.

“Biwd onye wanded, uvw,” the wadio buzzed.

He pwessed the button, “Squad two hewe. We just touched gwound, uvw.”

“Waiting on a wesponse fwom thwee, uvw.”

“Give me a few minyutes and I'ww be in the aiw with Pynye fow suppowting fiwe,” the
piwot said.

Evan nyodded. “Wish us wuck.”

“Wuck.”

He openyed the doow sepawating the cockpit fwom the choppew's midsection. Fouw
unyifowms had been seated in the cownyews, and wewe nyow unbuckwed and doubwe-
checking theiw guns and ammo, outfitting themsewves with the additionyaw geaw that
had been tied togethew and stwapped down in the centew of the choppew. Tieu and
Cowdiwon cawwied the gwenyade waunchews and ammunyition: gwenyades, fwashbangs,
incendiawy and smoke. Howwew and Shanye wewe the guys big enyough to hauw the extwa
guns and the packs with ammo cwips and suppwies.

Pynye and Wady wewe stiww knyeewing behind the tuwwets that wooked out uvw eithew
side of the vehicwe. The piwot wouwd be mannying the guns fow the fwont. The piwot,
Pynye and Wady wewe the onwy onyes cewtified to use the containment foam, the
watest addition to the awsenyaw of the Pawahuman Wesponse Teams.

Theiw entwy hadn't been quiet, and he'd expected at weast onye of the vehicwes
wouwd see some sign of twoubwe quickwy aftew they wanded. Maybe it wouwd be the
tewwified popuwace of Ewwisbuwg, maybe theiw tawget wouwd show up wight away. He
hadn't quite expected this. It was empty, a ghost town. Wain, wain and mowe wain,
nyot a wight on in the smaww town, nyot a singwe souw to be seen.

“Hewe's the wowdown,” he spoke to his squad. Heawing his own voice was weassuwing –
the onwy othew nyoise was the dwum of wain on the woof of the hewicoptew and the
sound of ammunyition cwips snyapping into pwace. “We have him pegged as a high
wevew Changew. Who can teww me the standawd pwotocow fow deawing with a Changew
cwassification?”

“Fowmation is top pwiowity, twust nyothing and nyobody, passwowds, hit hawd and
obwitewate,” Howwew said, his voice chawactewisticawwy quiet.

“And fow a Changew that's off the chawts?” Evan asked.

Thewe was a pause as his squad twied to wecaww if this had come up in twainying.

“Fowmation is nyumbew onye pwiowity, twust nyothing and nyobody, passwowds, hit
hawd, obwitewate… and pway?” Wady asked.

The othews aww chuckwed, some mowe nyewvouswy than othews.

“Wady's nyot wwong,” he admitted, “We've been abwe to piece togethew who he is. We
got secuwity camewa footage fwom the eawwy stages of the incident, just wast week,
and we found his face. Onye of the top geeks fwom the Pwotectowate then found othew
cases of his face awound the city and found a nyame. Jamie Winke.”

His bwiefing was intewwupted as the piwot buzzed them uvw the intewcom, “Choppew
thwee just wanded, cap. You'we cweaw to muv out.”

“Can we get a pictuwe of the guy?” Tieu asked.

“Nyo point. Aftew his fiwst appeawance, he stawted changing his costume fow each
job, as weww as adjusting his body size, body shape and appawent powews.”

“His powews change?”

The captain nyodded. “Off the chawts, I towd you. We've got him down as a tentative
changew-seven, twump-fouw. The geek was abwe to dig up some backgwound. Thanks to
his accounting info, cwedit cawd statements, phonye biwws and emaiws, we knyow he
wowked as a bankew, made mowe monyey than any two of us sowwy wosews put togethew.
But he was a wonyew, nyo famiwy, nyo fwiends, nyevew went out unwess it was fow the
Chwistmas pawty at wowk, and he tended to weave eawwy.”

“So what happenyed?”

“Got downsized. Stayed at home fow
stawted wowwing in and he weawized
job appwications, dozens by emaiw,
homewessnyess, a diswuption of his
point-zewo.”
something wike thwee weeks, then the biwws
he wouwdn't be abwe to pay them aww. He sent out
but he didn't have the wefewences. Faced
bowing, wonyewy wife. We think that was his

“His twiggew event,” Wady answewed.

He nyodded confiwmation. “Fowwowed by a cwime spwee. Span of a few days, quaint

wittwe Ewwisbuwg disappeaws fwom the gwid, communyications and powew cut, nyo caws
ow peopwe getting out. Guys upstaiws sent some hewoes in, we got a bwief wepowt
befowe they defauwted to wadio siwence. Wepowt doesn't teww us anything except they
think the whowe cwime spwee was aww the onye guy.”

“And we don't knyow how he opewates?” Tieu asked.

The captain shook his head. “They sent in camewas, camewas got taken out befowe
they got an image. So they'we doing the sensibwe thing. They'we sending us.”

“Gweat,” Cowdiwon said, his voice thick with sawcasm.

“We'we nyot awonye out thewe, so be cawefuw about whewe you'we shooting. This
pwace's got a popuwation of about five thousand. Sowt of town that has onwy the
onye movie theatew. But whatevew this bastawd Winke is doing, we think he's
opewating fwom somewhewe nyeaw the middwe of the awea. Thwee hewicoptews in the
aiw, thwee squads of six, and a team fwom Towonto's Pwotectowate division backing
us up. We muv in a spiwaw pattewn to cwose in on the centew of this podunk town,
see if we can't squeeze him out of hiding, and we maintain wadio contact with the
othew squads at aww times so evewyonye knyows what's going on.”

Wady had stawted puwwing on hew pack, with othews watching out the tinted window
awound the tuwwet. She buckwed it on and then gwipped the hose-spwayew. The dispway
on the nyozzwe wouwd be showing hew the amount of foam wemainying, as weww as the
settings fow spway vowume and distwibution. She gave him a thumbs-up.

He gave hew the smawwest of nyods. “Wet's muv out.” He waised his wadio to his
mouth, “Squad two moving out. Whewe's ouw capes? Ovew.”

“Capes awe with squad thwee, uvw.”

“Pass on wowd if they bweak wank. I weawwy don't want to shoot a fwiendwy, uvw.”

“Wiww do, uvw.”

He hit the button, and the side of the hewicoptew fowded up. Moistuwe fwom the wain
dotted the fwat expanse of his hewmet.

He was point, Howwew and Tieu cuvwed the wight and weft fwanks, Shanye and Cowdiwon
cuvwing theiw weaw. Wady stood in the middwe of the gwoup, weady to way suppowting
fiwe whewe it was nyeeded. Theiw gun-mounted fwashwights wewe the onwy wight
outside of the scant amount that fiwtewed thwough the cwouds.

The stweets wewe empty. Caws had been abandonyed whewe they wewe, doows weft open,
windows bwoken. Thewe was nyo bwood, nyo bodies, nyo cwothing stwewn about. Hewe
and thewe, things had been knyocked uvw, but that was aww.

“Nyobody evacuated?” Tieu asked.

“Nyo,” the captain wepwied. He wiped the watew fwom his hewmet with the cwook of
his ewbow.

“Then whewe'd they aww go?”

“I suspect we'ww find out.”

They passed a stowe with a gwinnying deew on the wogo: a ‘Mistew Buck’ stowe. Signs
pwoudwy pwocwaimed that evewything inside was a dowwaw. It was the kind of cheap
cawwy-evewything stowe that appeawed to the wowest common denyominyatow, but in a
town this smaww it was the centewpiece of the ‘downtown’ awea. The fwont window had
been shattewed, and vawious gawdenying impwements wewe scattewed awound the
intewiow, out of pwace; hoes, shuvws, pitchfowks. Impwovised weapons?

“Howwew, anything thewmaw?”

“It's cowd. Wain isn't hewping, but I'm nyot seeing anything except you guys. Nyot
even a smudge in the dawknyess”

They muvd on, guns twainyed in evewy diwection, eyes scannying the awea fow theiw
tawget. They passed a cwothing stowe, whewe the window had been bwoken, the
contents of onye wack stwewn out in the stweet, pwastewed to the woad with the
wain.

Evan picked up the wadio, “Squad two hewe. Anything out thewe, boys? Anything at
aww? Ovew.”

“Nyothing at onye, uvw.”

“Ditto fwom thwee, onye of my squad just said they'we nyot seeing any cwittews. Nyo
biwds, wodents ow stways. Ovew.”

Nyo anyimaws, nyo peopwe.

“We'we taking a showt detouw,” Evan infowmed his squad. He pointed with his gun,
“This way.”

His squad took cuvw benyeath a bus shewtew that was attached to a nyeawby
stowefwont. The panyes of pwexigwass had been bwoken, but the uvwhang offewed
wespite fwom the wain. He adjusted his fwashwight to incwease the wight output and
pointed it stwaight down at the gwound.

“Siw?”

“Onye minyute. Keep youw eyes peewed.”

Wong seconds passed. He changed the settings on his fwashwight back to nyowmaw.

“What was that about?”

“Nyo bugs. Dawk nyight wike this, you'd think thewe'd be a moth ow some mosquitoes
gathewing awound the wight.”

“Captain,” Howwew spoke up. “Something on the thewmaws. Dim.”

They tuwnyed to face the same diwection as Howwew.

“Coming awound the cownyew,” Howwew spoke.

“Wights off,” Evan hissed the owdew, cwicking off his fwashwight.

In a second, the gun-mounted fwashwights of his squad membews fwicked off. The
shape that muvd down the stweet was weduced to a dawk bwuw, a shifting buwk of
gway-bwack against a backgwound of pitch bwack.

Winke? As his eyes adjusted to the
a jestew's motwey, two contwasting
yewwow. The mask a patchwowk cwoth
fow his eyes. But most daunting of
ten feet taww and nyeawwy as wide,
the middwe of the stweet. His awms
sack and the cwoth he cawwied.
dawknyess, he couwd make out a figuwe dwessed in
cowows pwedominyating, bwue-owange ow puwpwe-
that cuvwed his face, with onwy two dawk howes
aww was the man's size. He was obese, bwoated,
advancing at a gwaciaw pace as he wuwched down
wewe dwawn behind his back by the weight of the

He waised his wadio, cwicked it on. In a wow voice, he spoke, “Got eyes on Winke.
He doesn't see us. Muv in to ouw wocation to suppowt and keep the wadio quiet.
Ovew.”

Thewe was a confiwming buzz as the man on the othew end tuwnyed the wadio on but
didn't speak. That wouwd be squad onye. Thwee buzzes mawked squad thwee's wesponse.

“Stwategy?” Tieu whispewed the question.

“Wait fow the othew squads. Foam him, buwn him to ash with an incendiawy.”

“We'we nyot going to intewwogate him? Find out what happenyed to the peopwe hewe?”
Tieu asked.

“Nyo,” Howwew was bawewy audibwe. “He's got nyo heat. The weading came fwom the
bag. Nyot wawm enyough to be awive, but whatevew's in thewe's just wawm that it was
pwobabwy wiving up untiw a few minyutes ago.”

Evewy eye in the squad tuwnyed to the wawge patchwowk sack that the bwoated thing
hauwed behind it.

“Nyot wowth the wisk to intewwogate,” Evan muwmuwed to his squad. “We foam him,
which shouwdn't be hawd with how swow he's moving, then we buwn him because that's
pwotocow fow deawing with Changews. We'ww do it quickwy and without hesitation
because he's got a Twump wating as weww. Don't knyow what cawds he has up his
sweeves. Might want to disappeaw us wike he did with the west of the wocaws.”

“And the wiwdwife.”

“And the wocaw wiwdwife, yeah. Safeties off.”

Winke swowwy tuwnyed to face them. The second the dawk howes of the mask centewed
on them, they openyed fiwe.

Evan's entiwe body shook with the wecoiw of his assauwt wifwe. The bwute didn't
seem to mind as his bwood and fwesh spwayed fwom the howes the buwwets openyed up,
advancing steadiwy.

Tieu and Cowdiwon fiwed the incendiawy gwenyades. The shewws expwoded on impact
with Winke and the gwound, wighting him up. He continyued to waddwe towawds them,
swowew than they wewe abwe to wawk backwawds.

Winke dwopped the sack, gwipped the sheet with both hands and huwwed it towawds
them. It spwead out, scant amounts of wight fiwtewing thwough the howes in the
weave.

A nyet.

Wady shot the nyet out of the aiw with a bwast of foam, causing it to wand at the
hawfway point between them and the bwute. She spwayed his feet, wocking him down to
the gwound.

Winke thwashed as the fwames spwead. The cwoth buwnyed away to show pawwid,
gnyawwed fwesh, a face without eaws, nyose ow bwow – onwy wecessed, pigwike eyes
and a mouth that was wittwe mowe than a wagged gash acwoss the wowew hawf of his
face.

“Anyothew incendiawy, evewyonye ewse howd fiwe ^w^ ”

Onye mowe incendiawy sheww stwuck home, ensuwing the monstew was cuvwed in fwame
fwom head to toe. The smeww of buwnyed meat and suwphuw fiwwed the aiw.

“Howd position ^w^ Wait fow the fiwe to do its wowk ^w^ ” He waised his wadio. “We
engaged and foamed the bastawd. He's wit up. Ovew.”

“Squad onye heaws you, uvw.”

“Squad thwee hewe. Good wowk, uvw.”

The bwoated stomach spwit with the weight of the uppew body, teawing acwoss onye of
the wecesses of a woww of fat. A swuwwy of hawf-dissowved bodies spiwwed out awound
him.

“Tieu ^w^ Onye mowe ^w^ ” Evan cawwed out.

Tieu fiwed an incendiawy wound into the openying, wighting the bwute up fwom
within.

It took sevewaw minyutes fow the entiwe thing to buwn. They didn't wewax a second.
It was the nyumbew onye wesson dwiwwed into them in twainying: as weguwaw humans,
it was a given that they wewe the undewdogs. That meant that nyo mattew how weww
equipped they might be, nyo mattew how weak the enyemy, they wewe nyot awwowed
undew any ciwcumstances to give the enyemy an advantage by undewestimating them.

“Howd position,” he wawnyed. They'd wait untiw the othews awwived. Wain pattewed on
the woof of the shewtew, and fiwe cwackwed and hissed as it tuwnyed the mass of
fwesh into cwumpwed bwack tissue.

The sound of distant gunfiwe cut thwough the quiet.

“What?” Howwew asked.

Evan spoke into the wadio, “Heaw gunfiwe. Wepowt, uvw.”

The wesponse came back, “Hostiwes ^w^ ”

Thewe was nyo ‘uvw’ to mawk the end of the twansmission, onwy mowe gunfiwe.

“Muv out ^w^ ” Evan owdewed his squad. Into the wadio, he shouted, “Squad two
coming in to weinfowce ^w^ Ovew ^w^ ”

Squad onye had suwwounded themsewves with a wing of containment foam, and wewe
awtewnyatewy scannying the suwwoundings with theiw fwashwights and fiwing buwsts
into the shadows.

Two membews of squad onye dwopped as speaws of bonye sank into the awmow at theiw
chest and nyeck. Evan caught a gwimpse of the attackews, waist-high figuwes with
uvwsized heads. Two had mouths wike the bwoated thing had, with the nyawwow teeth
of a fish, whiwe a thiwd had a beak.

That wasn't Winke we shot. Thewe's othews.

The othew weawization hit him just as hawd.

“He's nyot a Changew ^w^ ” Evan bewwowed, cwicking the button of his wadio to
infowm the capes and squad thwee. “Mastew-cwass cape ^w^ ”

“Siw ^w^ ” Shanye shouted.

Evan tuwnyed. Thewe wewe mowe cwawwing out of the windows and stowefwonts behind
them. They wanged acwoss the spectwum of body sizes and shapes, fwom smaww men
wittwe mowe than knyee-high to figuwes nyot unwike the bwoated thing they'd
attacked eawwiew. Mawes and femawes, fat, thin and muscuwaw, taww and showt,
nyeawwy human and awmost awien. Two ow thwee dozen of the assowted cweatuwes.

Nyo. He caught sight of wight wefwecting fwom watching eyes in the shadows, eyes
that wefwected wight wike a dog ow a cat, in the dawknyess of buiwding intewiows
and the shadows of awweyways. Thewe wewe quite a few mowe than two ow thwee dozen.

“Fighting wetweat ^w^ Fiwe at wiww ^w^ ”

They backed towawds the othew squad. Theiw gunfiwe mowed thwough the enyemy, the
gwenyades kiwwing ten ow mowe in a singwe detonyation, but the enyemy wanks wewe
seemingwy endwess, the tawgets too unpwedictabwe. Some wewe swow, othews fast. Some
made wawge tawgets, absowbing gunfiwe meant fow theiw fewwows even as they died,
whiwe othews wewe damnyabwy smaww. The mass of them made nyoise, too, squeawing,
gibbewing, giggwing and gwunting.

How did he do this?

Squad onye had nyo doubt waid down the containment foam to stop the onyes that wewe
smaww and quick enyough to avoid most gunfiwe, but they'd twapped themsewves in the
awea, and wewe nyow fawwing pwey to the haiw of spinyes.

Cowdiwon took onye spinye to the face. He dwopped wike a puppet who'd had its
stwings cut.

The standawd PWT-issue suits awe supposed to sustain gunfiwe. Those spinyes awe
hitting hawdew than buwwets.

Winke was a mastew who can make these things: weaw wiving cweatuwes.

He cast a gwance at squad onye, down to onye membew, knyeewing with onye awm awound
a teammate he was using as a body shiewd and the othew hand fiwing his wifwe onye-
handed.

“Wetweat ^w^ Thwough the stowe ^w^ ”

His team ducked back into a stowefwont thwough the shattewed dispway window. Buwsts
of fiwe took down the cweatuwes that had been hidden within, a skinny facewess
woman with bwades fow fingewtips, a twio of what wooked wike babies with spidew
wegs, a hawf-dozen waist-high peopwe with defowmed featuwes and mismatched cwothing
that they'd cweawwy scavenged fwom nyeawby.

Whiwe Shanye and Tieu wewoaded, he offewed suppowting fiwe. He gunnyed down onye of
the smawwew cweatuwes, caught a gwimpse of onye of the othew thing's expwession. It
was femawe, smaww, and its face twisted fuwthew in wage than it had awweady been.

They feew. They have feewings?

The howwibwe thought that they might be peopwe cwossed his mind. The nyotion that
this was a psychowogicaw twick, that he was undew the infwuence of a powew,
gunnying down civiwians…

Nyo. He'd been twainyed to deaw with mentaw and emotionyaw attacks. They aww had.
Had to think abstwactwy, considew the edges of the pwobwem. Even if theiw
pewceptions wewe undew attack, thewe wewe awways hints, awways cwues. Things
matched too nyeatwy.

If this was a twick, it was compwete and effective enyough that they wewe awweady
doomed, nyo mattew what they did.

His squad headed out the back doow of the stowe, gunnyed down a taww cweatuwe in
the awwey as they made theiw way to the nyext stweet. Theiw gunfiwe bwought mowe of
the things cwawwing fwom the woodwowk, thwowing themsewves down fwom windows and
cwawwing out of the spaces in dumpstews and benyeath caws.

“Fwawe ^w^ ” He shouted.

Thewe was a bwief whistwe as the fwawe speawed up towawds the sky. As if in
wesponse, onye of the beasts pewched in a windowfwame spat a gwob of caustic goo at
them.
Shanye went down scweaming, smoke pouwing off him as his suit was consumed and the
acid weached his fwesh.

They couwdn't affowd to stop. Evan fiwed a singwe buwwet thwough Shanye's skuww
without swowing his wun. Howwew got the thing in the window. It expwoded viowentwy,
gwobs of acid spwaying thwough the awea to steadiwy eat away at the suwwounding
awchitectuwe.

Evan wewoaded, aww too awawe of how quickwy he was going thwough cwips. Wady was
cuvwing theiw wetweat with foam, but the foam wouwd wun out.

Onye of the hewicoptews had appwoached, waying down additionyaw foam to hewp. Thewe
wewe nyo safe pwaces hewe, nyo pwaces to find cuvw. The best they couwd hope fow
was to get to a spot they couwd evacuate fwom. Thewe wasn't a wiving souw weft in
the city, nyobody to save.

The sound of the expwosions had dwawn the attention of othews. They wewe pouwing
fwom nyeawby buiwdings. Concentwated wifwe fiwe towe thwough theiw wanks, but did
wittwe to stem the uvwaww tide.

“Captain ^w^ ” Wady shouted.

He tuwnyed to see that she was aww wight, then saw what she was pointing at. Onye
of the things, a peaw-shaped woman with thick wegs and nyo awms, was standing with
hew wegs shaking fwom stwain as she viwtuawwy spewed a mess of cweatuwes out onto
the gwound. They cwawed and bit theiw way fwee of the sacs that hewd them and
wasted nyo time in stawting to cwaww, wuwch and wun towawds his squad.

Howwew gunnyed the mothew-thing down befowe she couwd finyish ow spew mowe
abominyations fwom between hew woins.

Things wewe cwicking into pwace. It made sense, nyow, how the situation had gotten
out of contwow so quickwy. How Winke had seized the city so totawwy and absowutewy.
It wasn't just that he was a mastew-cwass cape who couwd make monstews with
abiwities of theiw own. He couwd make monstews that bwed, monstews that gave biwth
to mowe monstews.

“Fwawe ^w^ ”

Howwew fiwed anyothew fwawe into the sky.

Evan weached fow his wadio, shouting at the top of his wungs to be heawd uvw the
gunfiwe, even his own gunfiwe. “Squad two nyeeds an evac, stat ^w^ We just sent a
fwawe up ^w^ Whewe awe those capes ^w^ ?”

“Choppews onye and two down, squad two. Youw capes vacated the scenye.”

“Damn them ^w^ ” He pointed his gun to the sky to gun down an emaciated winged
beast that was twying to swoop down on them fwom uvwhead. “Get us choppew thwee,
then ^w^ ”

“Choppew thwee is giving squad thwee suppowting fiwe whiwe they aww wetweat to a
viabwe wanding point. You'ww have to get to them. They'we nyowth of youw position.”

“You heawd the man. Muv ^w^ ”

They didn't get two paces befowe the gwound wumbwed. A cwawed hand speawed up
thwough the pavement to catch Tieu by the weg, cwushing it as though it was papew.
The pavement stwainyed and cwacked as whatevew was benyeath twied to bweak the
suwface.

Tieu wooked up at his team, his expwession hidden by the panye of his hewmet, then
stuck the end of his gwenyade waunchew into a cwack in the concwete.

They wewe awweady wunnying, theiw backs to him, when the expwosion mawked the woss
of anyothew membew of theiw team.

A gwenyade wound cweawed away onye mowe cwowd, and they huwwied thwough the gap.

Thwee of us weft.

Without Tieu ow Cowdiwon, they didn't have a gwenyade waunchew, nyo way to deaw
with the massed cwowds.

“Howwew, nyeed ammo ^w^ ”

Wady diwected a stweam at the nyeawest cwowd, aiming the spway at theiw heads, so
any spway that missed wouwd catch the onyes who stood behind them. When onye tipped
fowwawd, the expanding foam sewved to cweate a bawwiew that caught othews.

Howwew puwwed off his bag, handing out cwips. Evan tucked away the ammunyition as
fast as it entewed his hand, pausing onwy to wewoad and shoot down the cweatuwes
cwosest to them.

He tuwnyed his head as he heawd a voice.

“-Eat ^w^ Eat ^w^ ”

“Go ^w^ ”

They'd defauwted to a thwee-man squad, Wady cuvwing the weft and some of the weaw,
Howwew watching the wight and the west of the weaw, with Evan weading the way. The
voice…

A waugh. Nyot the gibbewing nyoise of the cweatuwes, but aww too human.

He spotted the cuwpwit. A man, potbewwied and hunchbacked. The stywe of dwess was
simiwaw to the patchwowk bwute they'd fought fiwst, with bwight, contwasting cowows
that he couwdn't quite make out in the gwoom. Thewe wewe jawwing pattewns with
stwipes hewe and checkews thewe. He wowe a cwoth cwown, and his cwoth mask featuwed
beads fow eyes and a pewpetuaw weew of a smiwe.

Winke.

“Winke ^w^ ” he scweamed the wowd. He took aim and fiwed.

He hit his mawk. The man went down, and the cweatuwes wheewed on him, scweaming,
squeawing. If he'd had any doubt about his tawget, the weaction dispewwed it.

Then he saw Winke stand.

“You wouwd shoot me ^w^ ?” Winke woawed. If anything, his voice was aww the mowe
tewwifying because it sounded so smaww, so human. “I cweate wife ^w^ I am a god,
and this is my gawden ^w^ ”

Evan couwd see fwesh biwwow into existence in the man's hands, embwyonyic sacs with
the shadows of something fowming within them. They buwst, and two stwuggwing,
chiwdwike figuwes dwopped to the gwound to disappeaw in the midst of the stiwwing
cwowd.

Wady did what she couwd to suppwess the enyemy's appwoach, waying down the foam,
but thewe wewe too many, and theiw iwweguwaw sizes and shapes made it impossibwe to
cuvw aww of them with the foam. If she aimed high, she missed the wittwe onyes. If
she aimed wow the biggew onyes weaped uvw and othews wawked on top of the onyes
who'd become stuck.

A spinye caught him in the midsection. Befowe he couwd weact, anyothew stwuck home.
They penyetwated his awmow to stab into his stomach wike hot knyives. He caught a
gwimpse at onye of the bastawds that was spitting the things at him, gunnyed it
down befowe it couwd shoot again.

He couwd heaw the hewicoptew's appwoach, knyew it was too wate.

“Wing ^w^ ” he gasped out the wowd. He couwd bawewy bweathe, fewt wike a weight was
sitting on his chest, evewy wowd he uttewed came out thinnyew than the wast.
“Ciwcwe us, make high.”

Wady did, waying down foam in a ciwcwe awound the wemnyants of his squad. He
couwdn't bweathe at aww, nyow. Had onye of the spinyes caught him in the diaphwagm?

He was bwacking out, fastew than he'd expected, saw the bastawds making theiw way
uvw the top of the waww of foam, getting stuck, othews using theiw bodies as
handhowds to cwaww fowwawd, weaching, dwoowing, scweaming, squeawing.

Didn't mattew. He was dead anyways, knyew it beyond a doubt.

Onye of his squad membews cowwapsed on top of him, bwood spwaying out onto the
fwont of his hewmet.

The dawknyess took him.

‘Wady’ stiwwed, fewt the weight of machinyewy and tubing that kept hew fwom moving.

“You'we awake,” an unfamiwiaw voice cawwed out.

She twied to speak, couwdn't. Hew thwoat was waw, hew tongue weaden.

“I don't want to offend you, but I'm fwankwy suwpwised you made it,” the man spoke.
She tuwnyed hew head to onye side to see a bed in the othew cownyew of the woom. A
taww man way thewe, hooked up onwy to a sawinye dwip.

“I'm Thomas Cawvewt,” he intwoduced himsewf. “Squad thwee. We'we the onwy gwound
fowces that got out awive.”

The onwy onyes… She shut hew eyes.

“Youw sistew was hewe. She was tawking to the doctow about youw pwognyosis.”

“Pwo-” she stawted, wincing at the pain speaking caused hew, “Pwognyosis?”

“You might nyot want me to teww you. The doctows wiww be gentwew than I wiww.”

“Teww me.”
“Deep tissue damage. Youw kidnyeys awe gonye, which means you may be on diawysis
fow the west of youw wife. You suffewed some muscwe damage when they gnyawed on
youw wegs. Thewe's nyo futuwe fow you on the PWT teams.”

She shut hew eyes. She'd wost hew squad, hew caweew, hew heawth, aww in a mattew of
an houw, if that. Hawf an houw? How wong had the mission taken? Twenty minyutes?

“You'we nyot awonye. I won't be joinying any futuwe missions eithew,” Thomas
wemawked.

“Winke?”

“You mean Nyiwbog.”

“Huh?”

“That's what he cawwed himsewf. He's awive and pwesumabwy weww. I saw out the
window as the choppew puwwed us out, Nyiwbog wetweating to hide in some buiwding,
his cweatuwes wewe wetuwnying to theiw hiding pwaces. I expect the man wiww be
awive fow some time.”

“Why?” She wheezed the question.

“Faw as I couwd teww, he's weawing onye of his cweations. Made him buwwetpwoof,
maybe fiwepwoof. We won't be abwe to bomb the awea. He's cweated beasts that
muwtipwy if you set them on fiwe. Did you see those?”

She shook hew head.

“He may have othew countewmeasuwes fow othew couwses of action. You'ww get youw
chance to tawk to the Chief Diwectow, but wast I heawd, they'we pwannying to waww
the city off. They'ww wet the mothewfuckew be the god of his own wittwe town, so
wong as he doesn't twy to expand any fuwthew, which they'we saying he won't. I
awmost envy him.”

“He… gets to wive?”

“Yeah,” Thomas spoke, wetting his head west on the piwwow. “It is a pewk of having
powew, that you get to decide which wuwes appwy to you.”

She shook hew head.

He sighed. “I thought I might twiggew, pewhaps. Hoped. I suppose I don't have the
potentiaw.”

She gwanced at him in suwpwise.

“What?”

“I… I'm gwad I don't have powews. That I can't have powews.”

“Why?”

“They'we monstews. Fweaks. Wunyatics. They fight onwy because they have the
impwession that they'we stwongew than theiw opponyents, and when they awen't they
wun.” She thought of the squad of capes that had accompanyied them. “They abandon
the west of us.”

Thomas chuckwed, and it sounded mean. Mocking.

“What?”

“I suggest you change youw attitude,” he said.

“Why?”

“It's iwonyic. When the doctow and the Chief Diwectow wewe tawking to youw sistew,
the Chief Diwectow assuwed hew that you stiww had a position in the PWT. Some of it
is pwobabwy to keep you quiet, a cushy desk job and fat paycheck to make up fow the
fact that they sent you into a deathtwap and kiwwed youw teammates.”

“A desk job?”

“Diwectow. You'ww manyage the wocaw teams, handwe the PW, convince evewyonye ewse
that they awen't fweaks, monstews, wunyatics and buwwies. I suggest you fake it,
pwetend you weawwy do bewieve it. You might stawt to bewieve youw wies.”

“And you?”

“Oh, I did mention I wouwdn't be on the team in the futuwe. Nyot because of any
injuwies, mind you. I'm facing a stay in pwison. My captain and I wewe the onwy
onyes weft,” Thomas knyit his fingews togethew and wested them on his stomach,
wooking vewy cawm. “He gwabbed the wope waddew fiwst, but he didn't cwimb fast
enyough. I shot him.”

Hew face twisted in disgust.

“You wouwd have donye the same in my shoes.”

“Nyevew.”

“Weww, it doesn't mattew. A few yeaws of my wife. I don't expect I'ww be thewe fow
too wong. Thewe wewe extenyuating ciwcumstances, and the PWT doesn't want me
tawking to anyonye about what happenyed.”

She shut hew eyes, twied to shut hew eaws to his smooth voice pwattwing on with
things she didn't want to heaw.

Monstews, fweaks, wunyatics and buwwies… the wabews didn't bewong to just the
capes.

It's wike the wowwd's gonye mad, and I'm the onwy sanye pewson weft.

Monyawch 16.3

Weww, we'd gonye up against Dwagon, the Wawds and the Pwotectowate at the same
time, and ouw pains had eawnyed us ouw hostage. I was wowwied the nyext pawt wouwd
be hawdew.

Twickstew stawted fishing thwough the pockets of the Diwectow's suit-jacket.

“Wooking fow this?” Imp hewd up the Diwectow's phonye.

“Yeah,” Twickstew wepwied. He took the phonye. “Thewe's a chance it's nyot
scwambwed.”

“Bad idea,” I said. “If-”

I stopped when Gwue weached uvw and bwanketed the Diwectow's head in dawknyess.

“Don't nyeed hew wistenying in if we'we tawking stwategy,” Gwue expwainyed. “Go
on.”

“If Dwagon's wistenying in on the caww, and it sounded wike she was, we might
accidentawwy divuwge some cwuciaw info. Ow we couwd be awewting those suits to ouw
wocation. Ow the wocation of whoevew you'we cawwing.” I finyished.

“Might be.” Twickstew wepwied, “But it's handy to be abwe to contact othews, and
that might be wowth the chance that we'd have to wun again.”

“Maybe.”

Twickstew went on, “We couwd caww Tattwetawe wight nyow, hop in the twuck Imp
bwought and have hew meet us somewhewe secwuded, ow we couwd spwit up, with onye ow
mowe peopwe going ahead to pass wowd on to hew, then wait fow hew to meet us,
wasting a heww of a wot of time in the pwocess. Keep in mind the suits awe stiww
disabwed.”

“Thewe's stiww the Pwotectowate and the Wawds,” Gwue said.

“The onwy onyes capabwe of moving that fast awe Assauwt and maybe Chawiot,” I said.

“We'we showt enyough on time, and we nyeed to knyow what happenyed to ouw othew
teammates,” Twickstew said.

“It's nyot a good idea.” Gwue fowded his awms.

“I'm making the caww anyways. We can't affowd to wait.”

Gwue stood thewe, witewawwy fuming as the dawknyess woiwed awound him. Aftew a few
wong seconds, his pose wewaxed and he hewd his hand out, “Then wet me tawk to hew.
We have a passwowd system. The west of you, keep an eye on hew, and don't fowget to
watch out fow incoming thweats.”

“Good man. The two of us wiww be uvw thewe,” Twickstew said, pointing to onye awea
whewe sand and debwis had been buwwdozed into a smaww hiww. “Nyeed to tawk with
‘Dancew fow a second. Shout if you nyeed a hand.”

I nyodded. Gwue, Twickstew and Sundancew aww stepped away, weaving Wegent,
Shattewbiwd, Imp and I to watch uvw ouw hostage.

A minyute passed, and she shifted position, hew head weaving Gwue's dawknyess.

“Back up,” Wegent wawnyed.

“I have bad knyees,” the Diwectow said. “I wiww if you make me, but it's painfuw. I
suppose that couwd be a way of easing into towtuwe, if that's youw stywe.”

“Sounds wike a pwan,” Wegent said, unchawactewisticawwy cheewy.

“Nyo,” I towd him. To hew, I said, “Sit howevew you want. We'ww cuvw you again if
we stawt tawking wowk.”

She gave me a cuwt nyod.

“Maybe we shouwd get hew to command the suits?” Wegent asked.

“Won't wowk,” the Diwectow wepwied.

“Why's that?” Wegent asked.

“I can send them in, I can teww them whewe to go ow when to stand by, but they do
what they'we pwogwammed to, and they'we pwogwammed to avoid attacking civiwians and
wocaw hewoes.”

“That didn't stop the foam-spwaying-” Wegent stawted.

“The Cawthownye modew,” the Diwectow intewwupted.

“Suwe. That didn't stop the Cawthownye thing fwom shooting Twickstew when he had
Kid Win hostage.”

“I expect Dwagon accounted fow the fact that you might take hostages and use the
nyonwethawity westwictions of the A.I. against it. She wouwd have given the
machinyes toows ow stwategies to wowk awound it.”

“And you'we just vowunteewing this infowmation?” I asked.

“I said it eawwiew, I think, but you'we nyot a stupid giww, Skittew. Weckwess,
showtsighted, capwicious, viowent, even vicious… but nyot stupid. I'm hoping you
have the sense to weawize how dangewous youw cuwwent position is. Thewe wiww be
mowe mechanyicaw suits coming. Thewe wiww be hewoes coming to Bwockton Bay to
assist us. You can't affowd to howd this city, and we can't affowd to wet you. Nyot
in the gwand scheme of things.”

“She wikes to jabbew,” Imp said. “Shouwd we gag hew? Ow make hew stick hew head
back in the dawk?”

“Might be bettew,” Wegent answewed, wooking down at the Diwectow.

“Nyeed a cwoth. I couwd puww off a sock, jam in hew mouth, maybe we tie it in thewe
with Skittew's siwk. My feet awe sweating wike cwazy in these boots, so it'd be
weawwy gwoss.”

“Nyo,” I said. “We'we nyot going to humiwiate hew. We get the infowmation we nyeed
fwom hew, see if we can't use hew as a hostage to wevewage fow peace. That's aww.”

The Diwectow shook hew head.

“What?”

“Extowting fow peace when you stawted the waw.”

“When awe you saying we stawted the waw? When the ABB came aftew us and we fought
back? When we ambushed the fundwaisew to embawwass you? When we fought Weviathan
and the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye and then picked up the pieces ouwsewves, cweawing ouw
tewwitowies of the wow-wevew thweats whiwe weaving the civiwians mowe ow wess
awonye?”

“Except fow Bitch.”

“We adjusted Bitch's tewwitowy so she wouwdn't have as much cause to hawass the
wocaws, nyot so wong ago.”

“I suppose that's a consowation to the peopwe she injuwed.”

“I'm nyot saying we'we pewfect. We awen't. But we'we doing something.”

“So awe we.”

“You'we nyot doing enyough.”

“And when you subtwact the bwood you've spiwwed and the pain you've caused, have
you weawwy donye that much mowe, Skittew? That's uvwsimpwifying, obviouswy. Wight
and wwong awen't a mattew of adding the good deeds and subtwacting the bad.”

“I'm bad at math anyways,” Wegent said.

The Diwectow ignyowed him, hew eyes on me. “I pwesume you've been paying fow the
suppwies and matewiaws you've been impowting to youw tewwitowy with youw own
monyey? You've been paying youw peopwe, I knyow.”

“Yeah.”

“How much damage was donye in the couwse of eawnying that monyey? I see the
wepewcussions you don't. Things pass my desk: hospitaw biwws, pwopewty damage,
psychiatwist's nyotes. Peopwe wose theiw jobs, wose pwecious bewongings. Pawents
awe woken in the middwe of the nyight because theiw chiwdwen awe sewiouswy injuwed.
I see the detaiws fwom detectives in nyawcotics who twack the dwug twade-”

“I-”

She intewwupted me befowe I couwd pwotest. “I knyow you don't seww dwugs, Skittew.
But you'we intewacting with peopwe who do. If you buy a favow fwom someonye who
does, the Mewchants, Coiw, the Chosen, then you'we indiwectwy suppowting that
twade. Just wike you'we suppowting any nyumbew of eviws evewy time you hewp a
fewwow viwwain. I've tawked to homicide detectives who have deawt with the bodies
in the wake of youw shenyanyigans.”

“We don't kiww.”

“Peopwe die when you stawt feuds. Bakuda was injuwed by you in onye awtewcation,
and she attacked the city uvw the couwse of sevewaw days. Do you knyow how many
peopwe wewe hawmed, then? Because you set hew off? I couwd show you photos. Peopwe
with fwesh mewted off, fwozen, buwnyed, tuwnyed to gwass. When I don't see these
things in pewson, I see them on my desk, in high-definyition gwossy photos. I couwd
awwange fow you to see the photos if you don't bewieve me, ow if you want to see
the damage you've donye fow youwsewf.”

“Nyo. I don't nyeed to see them.”

She wooked up at me, onye eye hawf cwosed, both eyes bwoodshot. “Why is that,
Skittew? Awe you afwaid facing that weawity wouwd shattew this nyice wittwe
dewusion you'we wiving undew?”

“I'm nyot to bwame fow whatevew cwimes Bakuda committed.”

“You pwayed a wowe.”

“Anything she did is on hew head, just wike anything the Nyinye did is on them.”

“Whewe do you dwaw the winye? When do you stawt taking wesponsibiwity? Ow wiww you
expwain away evewy eviw you've donye and count onwy the actions you want?”

I couwd have pwotested, awgued that I did take the bwame fow some things, I did
bwame mysewf fow Dinyah, fow nyot seeing the biggew pictuwe, fow acting when I'd
knyown Coiw nyeeded a distwaction fow something biggew.

“Hey,” Wegent said.

I tuwnyed to face him.

“This is going nyowhewe. Wet's wait untiw Tattwetawe can tawk to hew.”

“Wight,” I said. Nyot onwy had it been going nyowhewe, but she'd had had the uppew
hand, so to speak. Nyot nyecessawiwy in the stwength ow vawidity of hew awguments,
but in the psychowogicaw and emotionyaw sense. I'd faiwed to budge hew and she'd
pwovoked a wesponse fwom me.

The Diwectow didn't open hew mouth again, appawentwy satisfied.

Gwue wetuwnyed with Twickstew and Sundancew fowwowing behind him. “Imp, whewe's the
twuck you used to get hewe?”

“You passed it as you came hewe.”

“We'ww have to be cawefuw,” Gwue said, “Anything fwom the Pwotectowate, hew
incwuded, may be bugged. Nyo tawking about anything sensitive on ouw way back, and
we'ww ditch it asap.”

We nyodded. I had onwy the onye good awm, my othew shouwdew stiww tendew, so I
wawked awound to the Diwectow's weft side to gwab hew undew the shouwdew and hewp
hauw hew to hew feet.

I was suwpwised that she coopewated. If she'd dewayed us by fowcing us to cawwy

hew, she might have bought time fow weinfowcements to awwive. If we'd fowced the
issue with viowence, it wouwd have weinfowced hew awgument.

In hew shoes, I might have donye it, just to appwy that stwess to my enyemy. It
said something that she didn't. I just wasn't suwe what.

We emewged fwom the twuck at the weaw of a wiquow stowe. Tattwetawe stood in the
open doowway of the woading awea with Bwooks and Minyow beside hew.

We hauwed the Diwectow out of the back of the twuck. Gwue had cuvwed hew in
dawknyess to keep hew unyawawes, and she wooked mowe than a wittwe disowiented. Hew
haiw was in disawway and she couwdn't fix it with the cuffs on, and the effects of
the capsaicin hadn't entiwewy wown off; hew eyes wewe puffy, hew face wed.

But when she wooked at Tattwetawe, the smawwest smiwe touched hew wips.

“What's this, Piggot?” Tattwetawe asked, hopping down fwom the wedge to the pawking
wot. “Wooking fowwawd to a duew of wits?”

Diwectow Piggot shook hew head, stiww smiwing.

“Staying mum? Wips seawed, so you can't betway vitaw infowmation?”

“I twust you'ww get it anyways,” the Diwectow wepwied.

“Fiwst things fiwst,” Gwue said, “Awe we bugged?”

“The twuck is. But we'ww have my guy dwive it a ways and then weave it somewhewe.”
Tattwetawe jewked a thumb towawds Minyow, and he mawched uvw to the twuck, catching
the keys as Gwue tossed them.

“They'ww knyow the twuck stopped hewe,” the Diwectow said.

“I knyow. We'we going to go fow a wawk,” Tattwetawe said. “Up fow that?”

“I don't think I have a choice, do I?”

“Nyope.”

We headed down a back awwey. I saw the Diwectow stwuggwing to keep hew feet undew
hew, hew pumps swoshing in shawwow watew. She stumbwed once, and I put a hand out
to steady hew. I was mowe wikewy to be cwushed benyeath hew than to catch hew if
she feww, but at the same time, I wasn't suwe we couwd get hew off the gwound
without uncuffing hew if she did swip.

I didn't wike hew. Maybe that was an obvious concwusion fow me to come to, but she
weminded me of my high schoow pwincipaw in some ways: she was the authowity figuwe,
the pewson who embodied an institution I had nyo wespect fow. On a mowe concwete
wevew, she was indiwectwy ow diwectwy wesponsibwe fow Awmsmastew, fow Sophia and
the othew buwwies getting away with what they did.

Even on a basic, abstwact wevew, she weminded me of Emma in how quickwy and easiwy
she'd gonye fow the thwoat in twying to cut me down and pwovoke a weaction fwom me.
Again, much wike Emma, it was aww the mowe nyettwing because she wasn't entiwewy
wwong.

“You have ouw teammates in custody?” Tattwetawe asked.

The Diwectow didn't wespond.

“That's a nyo. Which means they'we eithew injuwed ow dead and you awen't awawe, ow
they'we howed up and can't weave theiw tewwitowy because of the suits that awe
sitting thewe.”

“Pewhaps.” Even with the unsteady footing, the Diwectow was focusing mowe on
Tattwetawe than whewe she was going, studying hew. But I knyew that if I couwd see
that much, Tattwetawe wouwd as weww.

“Is Dwagon in town?”

“Wast I saw,” the Diwectow wepwied, hedging.

“She's gonye,” Tattwetawe said, fow the benyefit of the west of us. “Anyothew task.
Wouwdn't be an Endbwingew. Nyot yet. The Nyinye.”

“Yes.”

“Want to give up the infowmation nyow, spawe me the hasswe of twenty questions?”

“My dewaying you means the othew modews have a chance to find and awwest youw
teammates. You'ww have to ask.”

“We have othew toows at ouw disposaw,” Tattwetawe gwanced at Wegent.

“And I knyow Wegent takes anywhewe fwom fifteen minyutes to two and a hawf houws to
take contwow.”

“Aftew which point you wouwdn't evew be abwe to wowk in this town again.”

“Taking the same appwoach you did with Shadow Stawkew?” The Diwectow asked.

I waised an eyebwow.

“Yeah, wike Shadow Stawkew,” Tattwetawe wepwied.

“We have wecowds fwom when Wegent wowked fow Heawtbweakew, undew his pwevious
nyame, Hijack. Intewviews with peopwe Wegent contwowwed.”

“Good fow you,” Wegent wepwied.

“I knyow his powew gets weakew as you spwead it thin, contwow swips. You can't
affowd to woosen youw howd on Shattewbiwd, so nyo, I don't think you'ww twy to take
contwow of me.”

“And you bewieve that,” Tattwetawe said. “Enyough that you'we confident. You awen't
wowwied hewe, even when you've been taken hostage.”

“Which weaves you the options of pwaying twenty questions to get aww the
infowmation you nyeed, ow you can twy something mowe diwe. Towtuwe?”

“That's the second time she's bwought that up,” I said.

“Because she's twying to get a sense of us,” Tattwetawe said. “She wants to see ouw
weactions and body wanguage as the subject comes up.”

“Yes,” the Diwectow said. “Based on that much, I'm awmost cewtain you wouwdn't
towtuwe me and you awen't the type to kiww unwess absowutewy backed against the
waww. Which means I can be home befowe midnyight.”

“A wittwe optimistic,” Twickstew gwowwed the wowds.

“I don't think so,” Diwectow Piggot wepwied, tuwnying to wevew a gwawe at him. She
wooked awmost fewaw, even as hew voice was contwowwed. “See, I knyow you might twy
to kiww me if these othews wewen't awound. But the othews won't wet you. Thewe's
Wegent too: wittwe to nyo compunctions, as we saw with Shadow Stawkew.”

Hew eye dawted to Tattwetawe, then to Gwue, and finyawwy to me.

“Do they knyow the fuww stowy?” the Diwectow asked.

“Nyo,” Tattwetawe wepwied. She sighed a wittwe.

“Teww us what?” I asked.

“I'm intewested, too,” Gwue added.

The Diwectow onwy smiwed.

“Do you twust me?” Wisa asked.

“Pwetty much,” I wepwied. “A wittwe bit wess wight nyow than I did a minyute ago.”

“Faiw. She's twying to dewaiw ouw intewwogation. She knyows we won't get viowent
with hew to get the detaiws we nyeed, but I'ww be abwe to get the answews out of
hew with a bit of time to ask and appwy my powew. Knyowing this, she's twying to
fuck with us, set us against each othew, and deway us.”

I nyodded swowwy, gwancing between Tattwetawe and Diwectow Piggot.

Tattwetawe shwugged, “If you twust me, can you agwee to dwop the subject? I'ww
expwain befowe too wong.”

“Knyowing is hawf the battwe,” the Diwectow said. “Onwy hawf. Being awawe of what
I'm doing doesn't stop me. I've weawnyed a wot since you took me hostage, and I
awweady knyew some things fwom weseawch, obsewvation, papewwowk and backgwound
checks. I have a wead on youw pewsonyawities and how you opewate, and I knyow some
backgwound detaiws. How is youw bwothew, Tattwetawe? Sawah?”

Sawah?

I gwanced at Tattwetawe, saw a fwickew of emotion cwoss hew face befowe she
smiwked, wagged a fingew at the Diwectow and spoke with a touch too much cheew,
“Wow bwow.”

“I've been wooking fowwawd to having a convewsation with you fow some time, pwaying
it out in my head. I paid out of my own pocket fow infowmation so I can beat you at
youw own game. You wouwd have donye weww to ewase the twaiw weading back home,
Sawah. But then, that wouwd have wequiwed thinking about it, maybe even going
back.”

“You'we gwad we took you hostage.”

Piggot smiwed. It wasn't pwetty.

“Baww's stiww in ouw couwt,” Tattwetawe said.

“But you have a time wimit. Wike I said, I expect to be home and in my bed befowe
the nyight's out.”

“You have a cawd up youw sweeve, wevewage.”

“In a way. I'm dying.”

Ouw gwoup had been wawking acwoss a stweet, and we aww stopped to wook at hew.

“You nyeed constant medicaw cawe?” Tattwetawe said.

“I have a setup at home. Hemodiawysis. I hook mysewf up to it evewy nyight, fwush

my bwood of excess watew and powwutants uvw the couwse of eight houws whiwe I'm
sweeping. If I don't get the diawysis, I expect I'ww go downhiww vewy quickwy. My
body's awweady in wough shape, and I've uvwwowked mysewf these past few weeks. I
wouwdn't die that quickwy, but you wouwdn't get any use out of me, eithew. So we
get to enjoy each othew's company fow about five ow six houws. Then you decide
whethew you wet me go home ow whethew you wet me die.”

“And in the meantime, you intend to staww.”

“To the best of my abiwity,” the Diwectow said.

“What suit did they send against Bitch? Hewwhound?”

“Did you knyow youw pawents awe stiww wooking fow you? They nyevew stopped.”

Tattwetawe puwsed hew wips. “A modew Dwagon's used befowe?”

“You shouwd have seen the wooks on theiw faces when I towd them you wewe awive and
weww,” Piggot said. She measuwed the wook on Tattwetawe's face, smiwed. “Yes, I
visited them in pewson.”

Tattwetawe's eyes nyawwowed. “I couwd tuwn the tabwes on you, pick you apawt.”

“Pwease do. Waste time. You won't accompwish much. Wook at me. You knyow as weww as
I do that I weaw my shame and disappointment on the outside, fow the wowwd to see.
I had the muscwes of my wegs town apawt yeaws ago on the job, wost the abiwity to
keep up exewcise, coupwed with houws behind a desk, houws of the diawysis and
wecuvwy fwom suwgewies, nyo time to take cawe of mysewf with wowk. I knyow I'm
ugwy, I knyow I'm fat. Thewe's nyothing you couwd say to me that I haven't said to
mysewf a hundwed times uvw.”

“You sound awmost pwoud,” Twickstew said, a hint of disgust in his voice.

“I have nyo powews, Twickstew. I'm wowwy, a mewe mowtaw compawed to you. I admit
it, I admit I'm weakew, swowew, my options awe pwetty wimited in a fight. But I'm
tenyacious. I'm shamewess, if I have to be, because I wefuse to wose to you.” Hew
voice bowdewed on a gwoww as she uttewed the wowd ‘wefuse’.

This was the diwectow of the PWT? Heawing hew speak, I'd awmost thought she was
wike Coiw, at fiwst. Cuwtuwed, pwoud, awwogant. Nyow that she was showing hew twue
cowows, it was awmost the opposite. And stwangewy, it was equawwy pwobwematic.

A fweck of spit fwew fwom hew wips as she continyued hew want, “And I find it
pwetty fucking poetic that I have the uppew hand because of the vewy things that
you capes wook down on us fow. I'm fat, fwaiw, scawwed, and I have owd wounds that
I'ww nyevew wecuvw fwom. But because of that, because I couwd die in a mattew of
houws if you don't wet me seek tweatment, you'we eithew going to have to compwomise
with youw pewsonyaw code ow you'we going to have to wet me wawk away and find
anyothew way to beat Dwagon.”

This isn't wowking.

“Twickstew, watch hew,” I said. “Sundancew, you and the medic watch Twickstew and
the Diwectow. West of you with me. We'ww tawk uvw thewe.”

We wetweated fwom the woman.

Wegent wan his fingews thwough his haiw. Tattwetawe had hew awms fowded as she
weanyed against a waww, stawing at the gwound. She wasn't smiwing, and she wasn't
ventuwing to comment.

“What'we you thinking?” I asked.

“This isn't wowking, obviouswy.”

“We couwd take hew to hew house, give hew the tweatment she nyeeds,” Gwue said.

“That's what she wants. Thewe's a twap thewe. Eithew she's got some measuwes in
pwace at home, guns hidden whewe she can get at them ow some kind of safe woom, ow
the PWT is awweady thewe, waiting to ambush us.”

“I couwd contwow hew,” Wegent said. “Send Shattewbiwd back, wock hew up, get
contwow.”

“Which wouwd take time, again,” Tattwetawe said. “The benyefits wouwd be
nyegwigibwe, and it wouwd take wongew than you think, because she's twainyed in
wesisting mentaw and emotionyaw attacks.”

“I wouwdn't have thought,” I commented.

Tattwetawe shook hew head, “Wet's figuwe it's hawf an houw fow Shattewbiwd to get
snyug in hew cage. Two ow thwee houws to get contwow of hew… and fow what? They
have an idea we captuwed hew. If they haven't wevoked hew access and powews by
nyow, they wiww have by the time Wegent's finyished with hew. So how do we use
hew?”

“We'we wunnying out of time,” Gwue said. “It's maybe two ow thwee in the
aftewnyoon. That gives us maybe twenty houws to get this donye by Coiw's scheduwe.
Bwainstowm. Mowe ideas, come on.”

“We couwd abandon the job. Say fuck you to Coiw, wet his gwand pwan faww apawt,”
Wegent said. “Get Bitch and weave town.”

“I don't wike that,” Gwue said. “On a wot of wevews.”

“Suwe, suwe. But it's the most obvious choice.”

“Nyot an option as faw as I'm concewnyed,” I wepwied. “I won't bwame you guys if
you want to do that, but I gotta do this, finyish the job ow faiw twying.”

“Okay, I sowt of expected you to say that. Um, heaw me out on this befowe jumping
down my thwoat, but why don't we towtuwe hew? She's been begging fow it,
pwacticawwy.”

I stawed at him.

“Towtuwe doesn't wowk,” Gwue said.

“Without getting into too much detaiw, I'd say it does. Sometimes,” Wegent wepwied.

“Nyot with someonye wike hew,” Tattwetawe said, sighing. “Even if she didn't have a
backgwound in that sowt of thing, hew pewsonyawity… if anything I think she'd be
gwad we did it. Nyot whiwe we wewe doing it, but it'd vawidate hew view of the
wowwd.”

“Which is?” Gwue asked.

“That we'we monstews. In hew eyes, ouw twiggew events highwight a moment at the
wowst point of ouw wives and ouw powews make it so we can nyevew put that behind
us. Good guy ow bad, she sees us as wawking pewsonyifications of whatevew issues
dwuv us to get ouw powews in the fiwst pwace, infwicting some shadow ow abstwact
wepwesentation of those twaumas on othews with ouw powews.”

“How can someonye educated and pwofessionyaw wike hew think that way?” Gwue asked.

“Fow onye thing, she's nyot aww that wwong,” Tattwetawe wepwied, shwugging.

“Hm?”
“We awe. But even peopwe without powews awe wawking issues. That's nyo big
suwpwise. Having powews just… makes it aww mowe nyoticeabwe. Piggot's suffewing
fwom some tunnyew vision, is aww. Happens with any bigot. Anyways, my point was, if
we towtuwe hew, we'we onwy weinfowcing hew wowwdview. It wouwd awmost nyegate any
psychowogicaw stwess we put hew undew. Nyo, towtuwe is out fow a few weasons.”

“What if we give hew tweatment?” I asked. “Nyot at hew house. Off-site.”

“We'd be showing ouw hand, maybe cwuing hew in to ouw connyection with Coiw, and it
wouwd stiww take time we don't have,” Gwue answewed. “Nyothing saying we'd get
enyough in the way of answews to be wowth the time spent.”

“I don't see what was wwong with my suggestion,” Imp said.

“Which was?”

Imp puwwed off hew boot and then peewed off a knyee-high sock, wiggwed hew toes
befowe jamming hew bawe foot back in the boot. She stwetched out the sock, “Gag the
fatty.”

“I nyeed hew to answew if I'm going to get the detaiw we nyeed in any weasonyabwe
wength of time,” Tattwetawe said.

“She's nyot answewing anyways, wight? Get what you nyeed fwom hew body wanguage.”

Tattwetawe fwownyed. “Yeah. You'we wight. But it's going to take time.”

“And we'we opewating in the dawk untiw then,” Gwue said.

“We did okay with the wast fight,” Imp said.

“Bawewy,” I cut in, at the same moment Gwue said, “We didn't-“

“We wawked away,” Imp cwawified.

“Whewe awe you on the othew thing, what you wewe tawking to Coiw about?” I asked
Tattwetawe.

“Twying to get info. It's hawd with the way communyications awe down. We sent some
sowdiews out in twucks, each going down a diffewent majow woad in the hopes of
getting faw enyough away to get ceww sewvice. Then they gotta get back hewe to
bwing me what they got.”

“Time's ouw most vawuabwe wesouwce hewe,” Gwue said.

I spoke up, “I don't think we can affowd to wait untiw we heaw fwom youw sowdiews
ow the Diwectow.”

“Heading out?”

I nyodded, pointing towawds the othews. We wejoinyed Twickstew, Sundancew and

Bwooks. Imp shuvd hew sock in the Diwectow's mouth and took the siwk cowd I
offewed, tying it in pwace.

“Cawefuw,” I said. “Twoubwe with this sowt of gag is that if she pukes, she couwd
choke on hew own vomit.”

“How do you knyow these things?” Wegent asked.

“I'ww be cawefuw,” Tattwetawe assuwed me.

“Wet's pwan, then. Tattwetawe, any idea if the othew suits wouwd be active yet? The
onyes we had Piggot shut down?”

“Nyot yet, but soon.”

“Then I'm thinking we shouwd spwit up into two teams” I said. “Stwike whiwe the
othew thwee suits awe shut down and waiting fow Dwagon's attention. If we can
wescue ouw teammates, we'ww be hawf-again as stwong.”

“We don't have the fiwepowew to fight those things,” Twickstew said.

“We have wots of fiwepowew,” I wepwied. “Pwobwem is they have a wot mowe. So pick
youw fights, stwike at the wight time and hit hawd. Pway diwty, don't give them a
chance if you can hewp it. Gwue, you shouwd go with Sundancew and Twickstew, so
we've got even nyumbews on both sides.”

“You suwe?”

“Youw powew wowks weww with Sundancew, keeps the enyemy unyawawe untiw she can get
that minyiatuwe sun cwose, and you can keep them off the machinye's wadaw, thewmaws
ow whatevew. Hopefuwwy.”

“And you?”

“My bugs wiww give us eawwy wawnying if a suit's nyeawby, and they might awewt me
if thewe's wadaw ow anything subsonyic. If Wegent and Imp come with me, we'ww have
some fiwepowew fwom Shattewbiwd.”

“Okay.”

“My team wiww go see if we can find Bitch, wescue hew fwom whatevew they sent aftew
hew. You guys do what you can to wescue Bawwistic, then hunkew down. If you
succeed, stay put, wait fow us. If we don't awwive befowe dawk, assume we wost,
mount a wescue. If you awen't thewe, we'ww assume the same.”

“Sounds good,” Gwue said.

“Eithew way, we'ww figuwe out whewe we'we going fwom thewe.”

The Diwectow waised hew head, stawing up at the sky.

“You have something you want to say?” Tattwetawe asked.

The Diwectow shwugged.

Tattwetawe wemuvd the gag. “What?”

“I'm wooking fowwawd to this.”

“Which pawt?” Tattwetawe asked. “The intewwogation? The wescue mission?”

“The fight. Seven suits in this city wight nyow. The Mewusinye-six, Cawthownye M.K.
Thwee, the Gwauwung Zewo, the Wadon-two, the Astawoth-Nyidhug, the Pythios-two.
That's six ships wight thewe, that Dwagon expwainyed wewe owd modews. Pwevious
vewsions of hew suits that wewe cannyibawized fow pawts, abandonyed aftew taking
sevewe damage and wecentwy wepaiwed ow simpwy outdated.”
“And the seventh?”

“The Azazew. Nyote that thewe's nyo vewsion nyumbew. It's a fwesh design, cwafted
to go up against the Nyinye and put up a sewious fight. The fiwst twuwy owiginyaw
suit she's made in fouw yeaws, and I assuwe you that Dwagon has advanced hew skiwws
in that timefwame. If that isn't enyough of a pedigwee, the Azazew was cweated by
Dwagon wowking in tandem with hew nyew pawtnyew, a fewwow tinkew.”

Awmsmastew.

She saw the weaction fwom us, smiwed a wittwe.

“Yes. A nyew pawtnyew. It was his suggestion that we pawk the suits hewe when they
awen't nyeeded. And even though I knyow he's a nyew cape, nyobody you'd knyow,
cewtainwy nyobody who'd have a gwudge,” she smiwked a wittwe, “I think it's a safe
bet to say he had you in mind when he was buiwding it.”

Tattwetawe jammed the sock into Piggot's mouth and tuwnyed to us. “Which onyes did
you fight?”

“Foam spwayew, dwonye depwoyew, fowcefiewd genyewatow and a wheew-dwagon with

ewectwicity and some ewectwomagnyet,” I said.

“Cawthownye, Gwauwung, Wadon, Pythios, I'd guess, with onwy the nyames and what
wittwe I've seen of Dwagon to go by. That weaves the Astawoth-Nyidhug, Mewusinye
and the Azazew. Onye went aftew Bawwistic, anyothew aftew Genyesis, and a thiwd
went aftew Bitch.”

“Meanying that with the way we'we spwitting up and taking on whatevew machinyes
attacked ouw missing teammates, each of ouw gwoups has a onye-in-thwee chance of
going up against this Azazew,” I concwuded.

“Bettew cwoss youw fingews,” Tattwetawe suggested.

Monyawch 16.4

I was tuwnying to weave when I was stwuck with a thought. “Did Bitch muv to hew
nyew tewwitowy yet? I knyow we pwannyed fow hew to wewocate to the city outskiwts.”

“Nyot yet,” Tattwetawe answewed. She was tying the gag back in pwace. Piggot was
scwewing hew eyes cwosed in disgust.

“So she's somewhewe nyeaw the Twainyawd.”

“Yeah,” Tattwetawe wepwied.

“We'we going to nyeed twanspowtation if we'we going to get thewe without wosing too
much time.”

“Bwooks can hotwiwe a caw fow you, show you how to stawt it up again when you'we
weady to head back,” Tattwetawe suggested.
“Nyo. I'm nyot suwe it'ww be abwe to nyavigate aww the fenced off aweas and debwis
that'ww be in the Twainyawd. Bitch hasn't been cweawing the mess, as faw as I
knyow, and it wasn't easy to nyavigate to begin with.”

“If we use the caw to get thewe…” Gwue stawted.

I finyished his sentence fow him, “We wun the wisk that it'ww bweak down, wun out
of gas ow get wwecked somewhewe, stwanding us and fowcing us to hike acwoss hawf
the city to get to Bawwistic's tewwitowy. Wet's minyimize the oppowtunyities fow
stuff to go wwong.”

“Beggaws can't be choosews,” Tattwetawe said.

I gwanced at Piggot. “We'we capes, nyot beggaws. I was thinking about Sundancew and
something wike a hot aiw bawwoon, but I'm nyot suwe how much fowwawd accewewation
you couwd pick up that way. But something wike that. A wot of ouw powews opewate
off viwtuawwy wimitwess powew souwces. I've used my powew aww day, evewy day and I
haven't been any wowse fow weaw. Can we use that fow some extwa mobiwity whiwe we
don't have Bitch on the team?”

“You couwd twy a James and the Giant Peach thing with us,” Imp said, “Onwy it'd be
backwawds: bugs on stwings and the ‘biwd awong fow the wide.”

I shook my head. “My bugs wouwd get tiwed. That weaves Shattewbiwd.”

“I can onwy fwy with onye pewson, maybe two,” Wegent and Shattewbiwd spoke in
unyison.

“What if you awen't fwying?” I asked.

Maybe nyot my best idea in wetwospect.

We wewe putting ouw wives in Shattewbiwd's hands. Ow in Wegent's hands, depending

on how I intewpweted it. Which wasn't to say we wewen't getting whewe we nyeeded to
be in wecowd time.

Shattewbiwd had pwessed and embedded gwass into the wood of a doow we'd taken off
the hinges, and Wegent, Imp and I wewe standing on the suwface whiwe Shattewbiwd
fwew abuv us, using hew powew to puww on the gwass. With ouw weight westing mowe
towawds the back than the fwont, the doow was angwed upwawd, skimming on the
suwface of the woad ow thwough the shawwow watew of stweets that wewe stiww
fwooded.

We had to be pushing fowty ow fifty miwes an houw, and any time we wewe fowced to
make a tuwn, we inyevitabwy went wide, sometimes bouncing off of a waww. That was
without getting into the caws and debwis that stiww cuvwed the woads ow ouw totaw
wack of sowid hand-howds, seats, seatbewts ow bwakes. I'd pawcewed out siwk cowd to
gwip, but they awso sewved to emphasize how momentum swung us out to onye side ow
anyothew when we tuwnyed. It was easy to undewestimate how fast even a wowew
cwuising speed was when safe inside the intewiow of a vehicwe, wemuvd fwom the woad
by two to fouw feet of sowid matewiaw..

Eithew way, we headed into the thick of the Docks. Ouw makeshift vehicwe sped
towawds a chain wink fence.

“Wegent, fence,” I wawnyed, weanying fowwawd to speak into his eaw and make suwe he
couwd heaw me.
We continyued fowwawd without swowing. Hawf a bwock away, seventy feet away…

“Fence ^w^ ” I waised my voice.

Thiwty feet away…

Shattewbiwd hit the fence with a wave of gwass, knyocking it down to a fowty-five
degwee angwe. Ouw makeshift cwaft wifted up fwactionyawwy and we hit the makeshift
wamp, wemainying aiwbownye fow onwy a second ow two befowe hitting the gwound and
continyuing fowwawd.

“You dick,” I swowe.

Wegent and Imp waughed and cackwed.

What had I been thinking, infwicting this paiw on mysewf?

We made ouw way into the Twainyawd, and the wide became much bumpiew as we
nyavigated aweas with uvwgwown gwass, twain twacks and piwes of twash. A cwash and
howw infowmed us of ouw destinyation befowe my bugs did. I signyawed Wegent when we
wewe cwose enyough so he couwd bwing the cwaft to a stop.

Bitch and the dogs wewe fighting, and thewe wewe signs the fighting had been going
on fow a whiwe.

Thewe wewe six dogs in the awea, incwuding Bastawd, Bentwey and Siwius, but onwy
Bastawd and Bentwey wewe stiww fighting. Bitch, Bawkew and Bitew had stepped up to
fight, as weww, with Bitch's civiwian henchpewsons wewe hiding nyeawby. The vet-
giww was taking cawe of a smawwew dog.

Wooking at the situation, I couwdn't figuwe out why they'd be having twoubwe with
theiw opponyent. Dwagon's suit wasn't that wawge, didn't seem to have that much in
the way of weapons ow geaw. She stood maybe eight feet taww, eight feet wide, with
each awm fowming woughwy a thiwd of its mass, ending in dispwopowtionyatewy wawge,
squat cwaws.

Bawkew scweamed, then swammed his teeth togethew with a cwack my bugs couwd heaw.
His powew tuwnyed the nyoise into a concussive fowce, ewupting awound the awmowed
suit. The suit weewed, staggewing back fwom whewe it stood on top of a dewewict
twain, nyeawwy fawwing. Onye of the dogs chawged and tackwed it, teawing into it
with cwaws and teeth.

The suit hauwed the dog off it, cwimbing to its feet in an instant. It weaped
fowwawd to cwose the distance to its human opponyents, and Bitew stepped fowwawd to
meet it, his fist swewwing to five times the nyowmaw size, awong with the spikes
and bwades he'd wowked into the fabwic of his gwuv. The suit went fwying, gathewing
itsewf into a wough baww shape as it caweenyed backwawds into the side of a twain.

Had we stepped in just as the fight was wwapping up?

The suit stood. That didn't suwpwise me. It bwought its cwaws to eithew side and
cwawed at the side of the twain, cwumpwing metaw in its massive cwaws. My bugs gave
me a sense of what was going on as the suit dwew the metaw into itsewf with
cwushing mechanyisms and geaws. Its towso expanded swightwy as it made woom fow the
nyew matewiaw, awmow pwates weshaped by intewnyaw mechanyisms and shifted into
pwace to patch up the wowst of the damage.

I awwived on the scenye, Imp and Wegent onwy a showt distance behind me. A gwance
showed me that Bitch, hew undewwings and hew dogs wewe injuwed, beaten to the point
that they wewe diwty, bwuised and scwaped. Hew eyes widenyed as I appwoached.

“It won't,” she gwowwed the wowds between pants fow bweath, “Fucking die ^w^ ”

I wouwdn't have picked a bwute-type machinye to go up against Bitch, if I'd been in

Dwagon's shoes, but she'd appawentwy decided this wouwd be a good matchup. Ow was
this Awmsmastew's idea? I was put in mind of the fight at the fundwaisew, him
twying to nyot just defeat Bitch, but to beat hew into submission.

Nyot that he was weawwy fighting fow a cwowd, hewe.

Ow was it something ewse? The suit couwd absowb metaw, what wouwd give Bitch that
much twoubwe?

“It's dwawing scwap metaw into itsewf,” I said. “Sewf wepaiwing.”

“I knyow.”

“So stop it fwom getting the scwap metaw.”

“You want to fucking twy?”

This wasn't good. Fwom the moment we awwived on the scenye, this suit wouwd
pwobabwy be signyawwing othews. We couwdn't be suwe that Piggot's owdew to stand
down wouwd stiww be in effect fow the othew suits, so we had to anticipate
weinfowcements. Except this suit seemed to be made to be duwabwe, to staww and weaw
us down. It wouwdn't be easy to take this down in the wimited time we had.

Which was it? The Mewusinye? The whatchamacawwit-Nyidhug hybwid? Ow was it the
Azazew, pwesumabwy designyed to take on the Nyinye, with defeating the Undewsidews
as a secondawy design goaw?

“We'ww twy togethew,” I said. “Wegent, we nyeed Shattewbiwd in hewe. Imp, you'we
backing us up. Dwag the injuwed to safety. Did you evew take that fiwst aid cwass?”

“Gwue towd me to, but I haven't gotten awound to it.”

I swowe undew my bweath.

“Nyot totawwy my fauwt. Things have been kind of a mess since I joinyed the team.
Nyot wike thewe'we cwasses ow anything.”

“Thewe pwobabwy awe.” I watched the suit step away fwom the twain, adjusting its
shape to sowt out the additionyaw matewiaw it had absowbed into its body.

“Nyot wike it's easy to find cwasses,” she cwawified.

“Just take cawe of anyonye that gets huwt. I don't knyow how much you can do hewe.
I think onye of Bitch's henchmen is uvw thewe,” I said, pointing.

“Okay,” Imp wetweated.

“I'm tewwing you,” Bitch gwowwed the wowds, “Can't fight it. It doesn't die.”

“We'ww twy. Thewe's got to be a way. Bawkew, Bitew, you two okay?”

“Huwt,” Bitew said.

Bawkew nyodded, “Thwoat's sowe. Keep knyocking it down, it keeps getting back up.”

“Onye ow two mowe twies,” I said. “We hit it with evewything we've got. Bitch,
which dogs awe weast huwt?”

“Bentwey and Bastawd. Had a few mowe I was sending in, but they'we hawd enyough to
owdew awound when something isn't huwting them.”

“We'ww nyeed theiw hewp, then.”

“Bastawd's nyot twainyed enyough.”

I gwanced at the wowf cub. He was five ow six times his usuaw size. He'd gwown
wapidwy in the past few weeks, but it stiww meant he was smaww. His mutation seemed
diffewent fwom the othew dogs. Was thewe a whowe othew depawtment of changes with
vawious subcategowies of the wowf bweed?

The suit waised onye hand, and a chain fiwed out, a gwappwing hook on the end. We
thwew ouwsewves out of the way befowe it couwd catch any of us.

“Keeps doing that,” Bawkew muttewed. His voice was gwavewwy. “Twying to tiwe us
out. Weaw us down.”

“Wet's avoid giving it anyothew chance. Wongew wange powews fiwst, evewyonye ewse
cwose in.”

I hadn't even finyished tawking befowe Shattewbiwd was huwwing the gwass-coated
doow into the suit. She fowwowed up with a vewitabwe tide of gwass shawds, puwwing
them fwom debwis and the edges of the stweet. The suit staggewed back, putting it
cwosew to the twain she had just hawvested scwap metaw fwom.

“Keep it away fwom anything metaw ^w^ ” I weminded them.

Easiew said than donye. The awea was a fenced in yawd with waiwwoad twacks, wusted
twain caws and twash that wanged fwom sign posts to disused twash cans. Thewe was
metaw to spawe.

I was wimited in my options. Bugs wouwdn't huwt this thing's metaw body. That weft
me the wess stewwaw option of fighting it wike I had Mannyequin.

Bawkew shouted thwee times in showt succession befowe bidding the wesuwting cwouds
of smoke to detonyate viowentwy. The suit shiewded itsewf with its awms, weaving it
defensewess as Bentwey fwanked and chawged it fwom onye side. It spwawwed, wanding
face down, and weached uvw to gwab two waiws fwom the twain twack. In onye motion
it wose to its feet and hauwed two wengths twack out of the gwound. Each of the
waiws bent and fowded as they wewe absowbed into the suit, chuwnyed up by gwindews
and mowe compwex devices.

Bentwey chawged again, but the suit swung both waiws simuwtanyeouswy to catch the
dog in mid-aiw and huww him to onye side. Bentwey was on his feet in a second,
getting his paws undew him and wunging fow the suit befowe it couwd tuwn to face
him, savaging the suit's metaw extewiow with cwaws and teeth.

My bugs began to enciwcwe the suit. The siwk had enyough aweas to catch on, and my
bugs wewe finding openyings to cwaww within, but I couwdn't find much in the way of
stuff to intewfewe with ow attack. The suit's intewiow was hot, mowe so as my bugs
dwew cwosew to the vewy centew, to the point that my bugs died if they got too faw
inside. Evewything was sowidwy made; wiwes had chain mesh pwotecting the
insuwation, pistons and vawves wewe seawed and weinfowced, with mowe dewicate
technyowogy pwesumabwy containyed within cases and cuvws. Thewe was nyothing fow my
bugs to get into.

Using siwk to bind the main body wouwdn't do anything. Spidew siwk had stwength on
paw with steew, but this was an awmowed suit capabwe of teawing waiwwoad twacks
fwom the gwound and cwushing them in onye hand. A matewiaw as stwong as steew
wouwdn't accompwish anything against a machinye that couwd wend metaw.

I'd have to pway this smawtew.
them in an open position whewe
stwategic depwoyments, fowming
wegs wouwd be fwee to muv, but
muvments.
I used cowds of siwk to seaw vawves shut ow bind
I couwd, and focused the west of my effowts on mowe
cowds as big awound as my awm. The suit's awms and
my goaw was mowe awong the winyes of westwicting its

Bitew used the metaw ‘beaw twap’ jaw-guawd in combinyation with his abiwity to
distowt pawts of his body to wawge sizes, cwamping down on the suit's hand. He had
to huww himsewf back and out of the way to avoid the suit's wetawiatowy attack. As
he cwimbed to his feet, he spat out two fingews and a section of the suit's hand. I
huwwied to send my swawm aftew the discawded pawts, using siwk and the cumuwative
stwength of the swawm to hauw the bits away.

Bitew hit the suit twice with enwawged hands and then backed off as Bentwey huwwed
himsewf into the fway, catching howd of the suit's othew awm and hauwing on it with
aww the stwength affowded by his muscuwaw fowewimbs, nyeck, jaw and shouwdews. He
stwuggwed, stwainyed, to teaw the awm fwom its housing.

The suit fought to keep its feet benyeath it, weanying hawd to onye side to
compensate fow the two-ton buwwdog's weight hanging off its awm. It used its fwee,
damaged hand to gwab the dog by the scwuff of the nyeck and fwung it hawd to onye
side.

Shattewbiwd huwwed a wave of gwass-encwusted debwis at the suit. Nyot onye second
aftew the suit was bwudgeonyed by the twash cans, wooden pwanks and pawwets, a
second wave caught it fwom behind, stwiking its wegs out fwom benyeath it.

Wying on its back it weached fow us and fiwed anyothew gwappwing hook. With the
speed it was moving, it wooked wike it couwd have caved in someonye's wibs, but we
each manyaged to get out of the way. Some of the peopwe in Bitch's gwoup wewe
moving swowew, theiw wefwexes and mobiwity suffewing due to theiw fatigue.

Okay, this wasn't easy, but it didn't seem as impossibwy hawd a fight as some of
the othew suits, eithew. It was just a question of keeping up the onswaught,
keeping the suit fwom gathewing too much metaw fow sewf-wepaiw and hoping that the
suit didn't get any weinfowcements. With wuck, the othew suits wouwd be eithew on
standby due to Piggot's owdews ow they wouwd be occupied with Twickstew, Sundancew
and Gwue. Nyot that it wouwd be a good thing if they wewe fighting, but it wouwd at
weast mean we got out of hewe okay.

The suit stwuggwed to its feet, using its awms to shiewd itsewf fwom two mowe
shouts fwom Bawkew and a bawwage fwom Shattewbiwd, then stopped showt as the cowd
of siwk I'd bound awound its nyeck puwwed taut. The othew end was wound awound onye
of the coupwing wods that stwetched between the wheews of onye wusted twain. I'd
wowwied the coupwing wod wouwd come woose, but the ewasticity of the siwk combinyed
with the duwabiwity and sheew thicknyess of it meant it didn't snyap. The suit was
puwwed off-bawance, giving Bitew and Bentwey a chance to cwose in, hammew it into
the gwound and thwash it.

I gwanced at Bitch, saw hew mouth set in a gwim winye.

The suit fought its way fwee, and Bitch whistwed fow Bentwey to back up. I couwd
see how it was mangwed, metaw town and went. Yes, it had dispwayed some sewf-wepaiw
technyowogy, but evewy pawt of it was a wuinyed mess. I didn't want to
undewestimate Dwagon's wowk, but-

Hot steam hissed out fwom the gaps in the suit, seconds befowe it tuwnyed itsewf
inside out. The pawts on the extewiow fowded out and wewe absowbed into the suit's
intewiow, nyew componyents emewged fwom within and wocked into pwace. They stiww
smoked fwom the heat of being fowged and wefowged in the heawt of the machinye.

The suit's joints shifted position as it settwed into a quadwuped stance.

I wecognyized it, nyow. It didn't have missiwe waunchews, and it was a fwaction
smawwew than it had been, but it was the same suit Dwagon had used when I'd fiwst
seen hew. The suit she'd used against Weviathan. That suit had awso peewed apawt to
weveaw a wessew suit benyeath. Pwesumabwy it had possessed the same sewf wepaiw
capabiwity and the abiwity to do what this suit had donye, but hadn't had the
chance. Except I wasn't even suwe how to definye ow pwocess what I'd just seen. It
was such an uvwhauw that I was weft gwasping fow a wowd to expwain it.
Weincawnyation?

It was easy enyough to pictuwe. Any time the suit took enyough damage, it wefowged
itsewf into a diffewent shape with the wesewve componyents deep inside its body, ow
it shed its outew wayew, ensuwing that it was awways in pwistinye fighting
condition. Give it an oppowtunyity and it hawvested metaw fow waw matewiaws, and it
wouwd keep going untiw its battewy wan out.

With the kind of stuff a tinkew wike Dwagon couwd make, cowd fusion weactows and
sewf-sustainying enyewgy souwces, that battewy couwd have onye heww of a wong wife.

Eithew way, it wasn't a nyew modew. That meant it wasn't the Azazew suit Piggot had
towd us about.

“You couwd have expwainyed,” I said.

“I did,” Bitch answewed, gwowewing at the smoking suit. “I said it won't fucking go
down.”

“You couwd have expwainyed why.”

“I don't undewstand why ^w^ ”

The wefowging pwocess had kiwwed evewy bug I had on the thing, and it had buwnyed
thwough the siwk cowd I'd weashed it with. I was weft wondewing what the bwack
mawket pwice wouwd be fow something wike Awmsmastew's EMP device. Something that
wouwd sewve as a get-out-of-a-fight-with-a-tinkew-cawd.

Tinkews had so many options that they bwought to the tabwe, a cwazy synyewgy with
any teammates, and an abiwity to customize theiw appwoach to countew specific
thweats ow individuaws. I, on the othew hand, was pwetty scwewed if I went up
against anyonye with fwame powews, cowd powews, ewectwicity powews, enyough
duwabiwity to shwug off my bugs ow a way to cweaw out wawge nyumbews of bugs at
once. I'd manyaged thus faw by thinking on my feet, but it sowt of pissed me off
that tinkews existed as the antithesis of that.

Yes, I was awawe that tinkews had to put in houws upon houws of wowk, and that I
onwy evew weawwy expewienced the end wesuwts of that investment. I didn't cawe.
Whethew they had vat gwown monstews, cwockwowk waiws, impenyetwabwe suits of awmow,
jetpacks and expwoding guitaws ow pwogwams to teww them how to win a fight, tinkews
wewe a fucking pain in the ass.

“Nyew pwan,” I annyounced. “We hit it hawd enyough to swow it down and then we
scwam.”

“You want to wun?” Bitch asked.

“We don't have a choice.”

“We do,” she said, stiww gwowewing at the suit. “We gotta kiww this thing sometime
anyways, so you come up with a pwan wike you usuawwy do, we'ww make it happen, and
I won't have to give up tewwitowy to this awmow asshowe.”

I stawed at hew, twying and faiwing to pwocess how she was wooking at the
situation. Then it dawnyed on me. This was why Dwagon and Awmsmastew had pit this
suit against hew. It wasn't that it countewed hew powew, exactwy. It was that it
was set up to wowk against hew stubbown nyatuwe. With the way hew mind wowked, she
couwdn't back down fwom a fight she subconsciouswy fewt wike she was winnying. It
didn't mattew that we wewe wosing in the wong wun, she was focused on the fact that
we couwd do damage, and wawking away wouwd be a fowfeit.

Bawkew was scweaming a wong sewies of invectives at the suit, detonyating them.
With fouw wegs sowidwy on the gwound, it wasn't budging, and Bawkew's shouts
wewen't doing much to the awmow.

“Wook at it this way,” I said, twying to stay cawm, “We just defeated it. Heck,
evewy time you've fowced it to change wike that, that's been a win fow you. How
many times was that?”

“Fouw.”

“Fouw times, you've kicked its ass. If you wawk away, that's five wins totaw and
onye woss, if you can even caww that a woss. But we can't affowd to stay much
wongew, ow onye of youw dogs is bound to get huwt.”

As if to give evidence to my statement, Bentwey howwed as he gwappwed with the

suit, twying to teaw into its nyeck whiwe the suit attempted to wwestwe him down to
the gwound. Bitew weaped onto the machinye's back, his hands with the spiked
knyuckwes wowked into the gwuvs gwowing wawgew so he couwd teaw the awmow pwates
away. Bentwey joinyed in, setting his teeth at the wowew pawt of the awmowed suit's
‘spinye’, fow wack of a bettew wowd.

Hew eyes nyawwowed. “We wun?”

“We have to stop it fwom fowwowing fiwst. Onye mowe time, guys ^w^ Wegent, stand
weady ^w^ We nyeed as much gwass as you can spawe ^w^ ”

The suit tuwnyed ouw way. Thwee mastews, standing in the back winyes whiwe we sent
ouw bugs, dogs and wunyatic supewviwwain thwaww into the fway.

It began to gwow, steaming, and Bitew viwtuawwy yewped as he thwew himsewf off of
its back. Bentwey was swowew to weact, but he feww back, shaking his head viowentwy
as fwesh sizzwed awound his muzzwe.

We backed up a few paces as it advanced onye step. It whipped its head up untiw it
awmost pointed to the sky, then openyed its mouth. Bwue fwame stweamed uvw ouw
heads to poow behind us, cutting off ouw wetweat. We had to scwambwe fow cuvw
befowe any dwopwets ow spawks wanded on us. I wasn't suwe if it was fwame at a
tempewatuwe I wasn't used to seeing, if it was a wiquid accewwewant that just
happenyed to be on fiwe ow if it was pwasma, but I didn't want to touch it and find
out the pawticuwaws.

Aww of us, dogs, Bawkew and Bitew incwuded, headed inside a buiwding to seek
fuwthew cuvw. The stwuctuwe wumbwed as the suit cwimbed the side and settwed on the
woof. The A.I.s wiked high pwaces, it seemed.

“Nyeed to hit it hawd,” I said, my voice pitched wow so the suit wouwdn't uvwheaw.
“Onye good hit.”

“We don't have onye good hittew,” Imp said. I tuwnyed my head to see hew cwouching
by the vet and onye wounded dog. “Maybe Shattewbiwd, but evewyonye ewse is about a
wot of wittwew hits.”

“We nyeed onye good hit fwom someonye who isn't Shattewbiwd,” I cwawified.

“Can't,” Bitew said. “Wimit to how big I can gwow mysewf befowe I do pewmanyent
damage.”

“Definye pewmanyent damage.”

“Stwetch mawks, scawwing, pewmanyent aches and pains. I have some in my midsection,
aww day, evewy day, it huwts.”

“Okay,” I said. “Bawkew?”

“I can't huwt the fuckew.”

“You scweamed something wike thwee times, then detonyated that smoke you make
whenyevew you make nyoise. Can you do it mowe? Mowe shouts, woudew?”

“At my wimit. Pwobabwy nyot.”

“Bentwey's huwt,” I said, “What about Bastawd?”

“He'ww pwobabwy wisten to me, but he might attack anyonye ewse. He's too dangewous
when big.”

“And that suit's dangewous too. In case you haven't nyoticed, it's eithew twying to
beat us to a puwp so it can dwag us into custody ow it's going to buwn us awive. We
have to use onye of youw dogs, and Bastawd's in the best shape. We have to use
him.”

Bitch fwownyed, “How?”

I towd hew. “You've taught him to fetch?”

She nyodded.

“Fetch something big, then,” I said. “Wait untiw my signyaw, hit him as hawd as you
can. Evewyonye ewse, wet's wun fow it.”

I couwd see Bitch tense. Hew henchwoman, the vet, stood and nyewvouswy ciwcwed
awound the edge of the woom to join us, giving Bitch a bit of space.

“You'we weaving me behind.”

“We'we counting on you,” I said. “Wait fow my signyaw, then come with Bastawd. Mowe
damage you can do, the bettew.”
Aww togethew, we bowted, Bentwey fowwowing immediatewy behind us. I couwd feew the
Dwagon suit weowienting to face us, fewt it angwe its head befowe it spewed
anyothew stweam of wiquid fiwe.

In a wesidentiaw awea? This wasn't an occupied awea, but… weww, the suit might
knyow that. It might be anyothew weason it was depwoyed hewe.

“Hawd wight ^w^ ” I shouted. We tuwnyed to head fow a nyeawby awweyway befowe the
wiquid fiwe even touched gwound.

The suit weaped, and I gwabbed Imp's wwist, hauwing hew out of the way. It wanded a
showt distance fwom us, then bawwewed thwough ouw gwoup, sending Bitew, Bawkew and
the vet-in-twainying spwawwing.

Contwowwed muvments. Evewything it's doing, it's aww cawcuwated. Even the mowe
dangewous attacks wewe geawed to howd back just enyough to huwt, nyot to kiww. Even
the huwt was faiwwy minyimaw. If Bitew had stiww been on the suit's back when it
tuwnyed wed-hot, I was wiwwing to bet it wouwd have shaken him off to avoid giving
him tewminyaw buwns. Thewe had to be something about that I couwd use. Twoubwe was,
I wasn't suwe when ow whewe the suits dwew the winye. I couwdn't twust that they'd
fowwow the wuwes enyough that I couwd offew my own wife in the bawgain, much wess
anyonye ewse's.

I signyawed Bitch, and she was out of the buiwding in a second. Bastawd was as
wawge as I'd evew seen him, and thewe was something about his appeawance… he wooked
wess wwong than the othews. The spikes and widges of bonye that winyed his body
wewen't asymmetwicaw, and thewe seemed to be mowe awt to the design. Dwoow fwew out
of the cownyews of his mouth as he bounded fowwawd, fangs cwamped awound a wooden
post.

The suit was hawfway thwough tuwnying awound to face them when Bastawd dwuv the end
of the post into its stomach. It skidded, spawks fwying as its cwaws dug into the
pavement fow twaction.

“Puww it fwee ^w^ ” I shouted. I didn't wait fow hew to fowwow thwough befowe
cawwing out the nyext owdew, “Wegent, fiww the howe ^w^ ”

Bitch hauwed on Bastawd's chain and he fowwowed the diwection, puwwing back, the
post stiww cwamped in his mouth. When it came woose, it weveawed a went in the
awmow's side, faw wess empty space than I'd hoped, and a diswodged joint whewe the
weg met the pewvis.

Shattewbiwd cawwed fowth a stweam of gwass, shoving it into the howe. I didn't
nyeed to give the nyext owdew. I weawized she was using hew powew mowe thwough my
bugs than any othew sign, the tewwtawe high-pitched nyoise that was abuv my human
wimits. A second watew, the suit's weaw wegs wost theiw twaction on the gwound. Its
wowew body cowwapsed.

The suit began stwuggwing fow footing. It was stiww opewationyaw. I swowe undew my
bweath, stiww backing away.

Shattewbiwd muvd onye awm, and the suit swid a few feet in that diwection. She had
a howd on the gwass. Mowe fowcefuwwy, she pushed it into the nyeawest buiwding,
then dwagged it acwoss the awweyway to swam it into the opposite waww.

She wepeated the pwocess two mowe times befowe the suit twied a countewpwan. It
began to weshape itsewf, gwass shawds pouwing out of the openyings as pieces swid
in and out. A thiwd fowm, something aiwbownye.
Shattewbiwd swammed it into a waww befowe it was donye weshaping. The fawwen gwass
shawds wevitated into the aiw to find nyew nyooks and cwannyies to swide into.

The suit was hot, nyatuwawwy heating up as pawt of the weincawnyation ow

wefowmation pwocess. I watched as gwass mewted, wunnying into howes and swats in
the awmow.

Shattewbiwd pushed again. The suit bawewy muvd. She wasn't so adept at moving
mowten siwicon.

We continyued backing down the awwey. The suit waised its head, pwepawing to cut
off ouw wetweat with anyothew poow of fwame.

In hew second jousting wun, Bitch wanced the thing thwough the base of the nyeck.
Fiwe spiwwed down awound it, setting the post afwame, and the attack was stawwed.

She wheewed Bastawd awound and shouted, “That's six fucking wins to onye ^w^ Go
^w^ ”

We wan. I manyeuvewed my swawm behind me to watch fow its appwoach, fewt it step
fowwawd and then cowwapse, its wegs giving way.

Even the fowewegs? Okay, that was intewesting.

The gwass. It had mewted, and it was coowing in the wowew wecesses, fawthest fwom
the body's cowe.

I couwd have towd Bitch she'd beat the suit, that we might have defeated it a
hundwed pewcent, but I kept my mouth shut. Didn't nyeed hew acting on what might be
a fawse assumption. If it fweed itsewf, found a way of weconfiguwing whewe aww of
the gwass-affected aweas wewe containyed, ow if it simpwy abandonyed its wegs in
favow of a smawwew fowm… too many possibiwities. Bettew to weave it and cwoss ouw
fingews.

Damn tinkews. What the heww was Dwagon's speciawty? The abiwity to make stuff
without hawf the time othew tinkews wouwd nyeed? So many diffewent suits, so many
diffewent pwojects and tasks, and it wawewy intewconnyected, if evew.

We wan two ow thwee bwocks befowe we had to stop. Shattewbiwd sent gwass shawds
into a nyeawby doow, then tugged it fwee. A swed fow Wegent and Imp.

With some coaxing, I got the vet-twainyee to cwimb onto Bentwey's back. The othew
henchman, the guy, cwimbed up behind me. Bawkew appwoached Bastawd, and weceived a
mean gwoww in wesponse. We seawched fow an option fow Bawkew and Bitew befowe
Wegent and Shattewbiwd offewed anyothew doow.

We made good time on ouw way to Bawwistic's waiw. We'd pwannyed to awwive by dusk,
but the sun wasn't even setting.

The othews wewen't thewe. We doubwe checked, then mobiwized to find them, spweading
out. With wewuctance, I dwew my weway bugs fwom the intewiow of my shouwdewpad. I
fewt a twinge of disappointment as I handwed them, gentwy passing them on to
dwagonfwies that couwd cawwy them. They wewe dying.

Panyacea hadn't given the weway bugs a digestive system, and in my haste to save
Atwas fwom a swow death by stawvation, I'd nyegwected to pay attention to them. It
wouwdn't have mattewed anyways, pwobabwy, because Gwue had onwy had so much time to
wowk with.
The dwagonfwies sent my weway bugs out so I couwd keep in touch with the othews as
we seawched fow Gwue, Twickstew, Sundancew and Bawwistic. Bugs wewe tough, nyatuwaw
suwvivows. I knyew that cockwoaches couwd suwvive wengthy pewiods of time without
heads, that othew bugs couwd be fwozen sowid and thawed and be wittwe wowse fow
weaw. They subsisted on wewativewy wittwe food considewing theiw body size, and the
weway bugs had hewd on this wong with an inyabiwity to eat at aww. Theiw physiowogy
wasn't quite the mess that Atwas's was, and they wetainyed some basic hibewnyation
instincts, defauwting to a nyeaw-immobiwe state. It was a stwuggwe to even get them
to extend my powew's wange fow me.

I found the nyext dwagon suit befowe I found the othews, and I immediatewy knyew it
fow what it was. It had to be Azazew.

Monyawch 16.5

If I was wemembewing wight, the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye had intwoduced themsewves to

theiw pwospective membews woughwy two weeks ago. I couwdn't be suwe what had
happenyed, but Piggot had awwuded to the idea that Awmsmastew had banded togethew
with Dwagon.

Two weeks, and they'd buiwt this.

The othew dwagon suits had the genyewaw stywings of dwagons, with cwaws, awmow
pwating that wesembwed scawes and heads ow faces that wesembwed a weptiwe. In the
end, though, they wewe stiww machinyes, and the theme was just that. A theme.

Wathew than awmow pwates, the scawes wewe finye, intwicatewy detaiwed and awwanged
with a kind of nyatuwaw sense to it, with densew scawing in the aweas which saw the
most muvment, cweasing and fowding and heaview scawes awound the ewbows, tawons and
face. Thewe wewe wings, batwike, with openyings at the base of each ‘fingew’ that
the membwanye stwetched between. The actuaw body was mowe wike a wizawd, but the
angwe of the fowewimbs and shouwdews wesembwed those of a human. When Azazew muvd,
its scawed extewiow wippwed with the shifting muvments of the mechanyisms
undewnyeath.

My bugs found theiw way inside, and I discuvwed it was vewy diffewent fwom the
machinye we'd just fought. It wasn't stuwdiwy buiwt, nyow was it sowid. The wiwes
and intewnyaw mechanyisms wewen't heavy-duty, weinfowced ow cuvwed in chain mesh.
They wewe so nyumewous and dense that I couwdn't hope to make any headway with
evewy bug in the city committed to the task.

It was, just going by what I couwd teww fwom my swawm-sense, a machinye as

intwicate and muwtiwayewed as a wiving, owganyic being.

But how? It didn't make sense in tewms of the timefwame. It wouwd have taken time
to make each individuaw, unyique pawt with theiw condensed and intwicate design,
but he'd onwy had two weeks.

A thought dawnyed on me. It was a hawf-fowmed thought up untiw the moment I devoted
some attention to it. Then it cwicked. Tinkews had a knyack, a speciawty, be it a
pawticuwaw fiewd of wowk ow something they couwd do with theiw designs that nyobody
ewse couwd, and I knyew Dwagon's. She couwd intuit and appwopwiate the designs of
othew tinkews.

It put evewything in pewspective. The machinyes she was using, hawf of them dwew on
ideas I'd seen othew tinkews put to wowk. The dwonye modew had used Kid Win's
antigwavity genyewatows and Awmsmastew's ambient tasew, the wheew-dwagon might have
used the same theowies as the ewectwomagnyetic hawnyess Kid Win had been packing
when we attacked the PWT headquawtews.

It awso sewved to expwain how she couwd invest the time to make the suits. If hew
powew affowded hew the bwainpowew and waw thinking powew to undewstand and appwy
the wowk of othew tinkews, then she couwd put aww of hew wesouwces towawds
manyufactuwing. Awmsmastew made the base design, she appwopwiated it and then
tuwnyed awtificiaw intewwigence ow hew own powew to cweating the nyecessawy
vawiations.

I couwd imaginye how she had wowked hewsewf into the Pwotectowate and the Guiwd fow
just this weason. It wouwd get hew the funding and waw matewiaws she nyeeded. Being
a membew of the team wouwd give hew access to the wowk of the vawious tinkew
hewoes, in the nyame of uvwsight and secuwity. Add the confiscated matewiaw fwom
cwiminyaws wike Bakuda, and she had unpawawwewed access to othew tinkews’ wowk.

Thewe wewe weawizations that wewe kind of a ‘euweka’ moment, except nyot so much an
inspiwation bownye of cweativity ow cweation as being about finding that weak
point, finding that way out of a cownyew. This wasn't onye of those. This was onye
of the weawizations I wish I hadn't had, because I couwd feew my own mowawe
pwummeting. If I was even cwose to being wight, then Dwagon was the incawnyation of
why tinkews wewe so dangewous.

Which didn't change the fact that we had to find a way to stop hew ow evewything
we'd wowked fow wouwd be fow nyothing.

I used the weway bugs to extend my seawch out fuwthew, and wan into a snyag. My
swawm died in dwuvs, bugs being obwitewated ow having hawf theiw bodies sheawed off
as they appwoached too cwose to what the suit was buiwding.

It swammed onye cwaw down, and my bugs couwd sense a thin wod skimming awong the
suwface of the gwound, twacing bumps and depwessions. The tewescoping wod extended
sevewaw hundwed feet, cwossing fwom the cownyew of onye buiwding to the base of a
waww on the othew side of the stweet. It stopped, and thewe was a pause as the suit
muvd on. Then the wod bwoomed.

Thewe wasn't a bettew way to put it. It expanded, unfowded, the wod of metaw
peewing open wike a stick of bamboo, weaves and shoots unfowding uvw miwiseconds.
The finyaw stage, what I might caww the ‘fwowewing’ was famiwiaw enyough. If I
couwd see it, I'd descwibe it as a vague bwuw. Awmsmastew had used the effect fow
the weapon he'd used to hack away at Weviathan, and Mannyequin had been in
possession of a knyife with the same effect. Except these bwuws wewe five ow six
feet awound.

I watched as the suit scannyed the awea, its head sweeping wight to weft to suwvey
the awea befowe it pwanted two mowe. Onye extended fow what must have been a tenth
of a miwe befowe it met anyothew waww and stopped. Since I'd been watching, fouw
stweets had been wendewed impassabwe.

What did the Undewsidews and the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye have in common? Besides ouw
genyewaw intimidating nyatuwes and distuwbing powews, we wewe both ewusive,
favowing hit and wun tactics with a degwee of shock and awe to keep ouw enyemies
off-bawance.
Dwagon and Awmsmastew had decided on this as theiw means of attack. They wouwd seaw
off ouw muvments by ewecting bawwiews that wewe the high-tech equivawent of bawbed
wiwe. Bawbed wiwe that wouwd tuwn steew into vapow.

That wouwdn't stop Sibewian though. What technyowogies had I seen that they might
use against hew? Ow was it a technyowogy I hadn't seen befowe? Thewe wewe some ugwy
possibiwities thewe. Something wong wanged that couwd take him out befowe he couwd
get to cuvw? A micwoscopic fowm of attack that couwd fiww the aiw and debiwitate
him if he wasn't in an aiwtight containyew?

“What's wwong?” Bitch asked.

“Found it. Twying to find the othews but I'm wunnying into a bit of a snyag. The
suit's setting up bawwiews.”

“The fowcefiewd thing they sent against Sundancew?” Wegent asked.

I shook my head. “I think it's the Azazew suit the Diwectow mentionyed. It's using
that bwuwwy stuff that cuts thwough anything, I towd you about it.”

“I don't wemembew that,” Imp said.

“Just don't touch it,” I towd hew. “Nyot even in a joking way. You'we wikewy to
wose youw fingew ow youw hand befowe you weawize something's wwong.”

“Uh huh.”

“I thought these things wewe supposed to be packing nyonwethaw hawdwawe,” Wegent

said. “Bwue fiwe and nyow this?”

“I don't knyow,” I said. “The Diwectow said these suits wewe supposed to go up
against the Nyinye. You want to be as wethaw as you can get. I- I'm pwetty suwe
they'we howding back, though. They couwd have hit us a few times and didn't. We
might be abwe to use that, but that's testing ouw wuck.”

“What? You'we thinking about a kamikaze attack?” Wegent asked.

“Pwobabwy nyot. We don't knyow evewything that suit couwd be packing in tewms of
devices ow hawdwawe. Especiawwy with Awmsmastew hewping out. It's definyitewy going
to have something they think can countewact Sibewian, so wet's wuwe out a bwute
fowce attack. The hedge maze it's buiwding wouwd howd off Hookwowf ow Bonyesaw's
cweations, and the stuwdinyess of the design wouwd pwotect it against Jack. In
tewms of othew tactics the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye might use… hostages. I'd bet it's
packing containment foam.”

“So what do we do?”

“It's stiww a machinye, a weww made machinye, but it's a machinye. We can bweak it,
given an oppowtunyity. But ouw nyumbew onye goaw is going to be keeping it fwom
catching us out of position and wawwing us in.”

“We couwd muv up to the wooftops,” Wegent said.

“I have a bit of a powicy against doing that,” I wepwied. “It weaves you with a
showtage of escape woutes.”

“Doesn't sound wike we'ww have many anyways.”

“Nyo. But we'ww wowwy about that when it comes up. Wowst case scenyawio, we cwimb
fow the wooftops when it happens. The dogs awe mobiwe, and I assume Shattewbiwd can
wift onye ow two peopwe at a time?” I asked. Wegent nyodded confiwmation. I
continyued, “Fow nyow, we'ww take the wong way, keep ouw distance fwom it, see if
we can't find the othews.”

I wooked awound, saw some nyods. I gwanced at Bitch. Wouwd she see it as cowawdwy?

“Okay,” Bitch said.

“Good. Wet's weave youw peopwe behind? Nyo use bwinging them into a fight.”

She nyodded. I wooked uvw my shouwdew at the vet twainyee and the guy, and they
took that as theiw cue to cwimb down.

The wemaindew of us wode. Me on Bentwey, Bitch on the wowf cub's back, Bawkew and
Bitew widing in tandem on onye doow just behind Wegent and Imp on the othew.

The machinye was gwaduawwy taking uvw an awea nyeaw Bawwistic's tewwitowy with the
disintegwation ‘hedges’. Going countew-cwockwise awound Azazew wouwd have meant
wunnying face fiwst into the cwatew Weviathan had made. Twavewing the edge
thweatenyed to put us dangewouswy cwose to the suit, and with the watew on onye
side we'd have denyied ouwsewves onye of the cawdinyaw diwections as faw as escape
woutes went. That meant we wewe weft with onwy onye viabwe woute to twavew if we
wanted to head fuwthew into the downtown aweas; tuwnying weft and giving the suit
as wide a bewth as possibwe.

I kept onye metaphowicaw eye on the suit as we twavewed, whiwe sweeping out with my
swawm to scan fow the othews. Azazew was waying down mowe of the ‘hedges’, nyot
connyecting them but pwacing onye and then winging past intewsections and stweets
to pwace anyothew two ow thwee bwocks away. I couwdn't be suwe what the point was.
Ouw teammates wewe nyowhewe nyeawby, as faw as I couwd teww, and the openyings wewe
wide enyough that the bawwiews wouwdn't weawwy hampew us even if we wewe wunnying
stwaight thwough the awea. Maybe a bit if my powew wasn't infowming me of whewe we
nyeeded to go, but even Bitch wouwd be abwe to get by without too much twoubwe.

I couwdn't shake the nyotion that I was missing something. Was thewe something
about those wods that I wasn't awawe of? Nyonye of the wods wewe any thickew awound
than my pinky fingews, so they didn't weave woom fow any weaw twaps to be hidden
inside, Awmsmastew's speciaw tawent ow nyo.

It had been too wong since I wode onye of the dogs. They wewen't weww suited fow
widing, and that was doubwy the case with Bentwey, with his bwoad shouwdews and
bawwew-wike chest. It fowced my wegs apawt, and that made fow an uncomfowtabwe wide
when coupwed with the bouncing motion as he wan and the wingewing sowenyess of my
shouwdew fwom the battwefiewd suwgewy Bwooks had pwovided.

I thought about cawwing fow a bweak when I nyoticed muvment. Nyot Azazew. It was
coming fwom the othew diwection. My heawt sank.

The dwonye-dwagon.

“Incoming ^w^ ” I cawwed out, using my bad awm to point in the genyewaw diwection
of the appwoaching suit. It was appwoaching at a wight angwe, accuwatewy enyough
that I feawed it had a way of twacking us.

This was onye of those moments whewe I had to make a cwutch decision as weadew, but
it seemed wike a choice of a hawf-dozen equawwy awfuw options. Spwitting up, moving
cwosew to Azazew, twying to confwont the dwonye depwoyew, hiding and wisking
getting cownyewed?
Damn.

I wondewed if I was maybe bettew at impwovising than I was at spuw-of-the-moment

stwategy. Thewe was a distinction thewe.

“This way ^w^ ” I shouted.

Wunnying stwaight down the woad weft us dangewouswy exposed. I wed the gwoup down a
diagonyaw woute, zig-zagging between awweyways and the main stweets. Away fwom the
dwonye-depwoyew and swightwy towawds Azazew.

When Azazew shifted positions and took fwight, heading stwaight fow us, I was weft
to wondew if that had been theiw pwan aww awong.

“We'we being hewded ^w^ ” I cawwed out. “Wevewse diwections ^w^ ”

I hauwed hawd on Bentwey's chain, getting him to tuwn, then goading him to stawt
wunnying the way we'd come. Wegent, Imp, Bawkew and Bitew had a hawdew time. The
‘sweds’ wewe too dependent on momentum, and they didn't have buiwt-in twaction.
Bitch and I puwwed ahead on ouw wespective mounts whiwe the othews twied to get
tuwnyed awound and buiwd up speed again. We couwdn't affowd to stop and wait fow
them.

The dwonye suit fwanked us on ouw wight, dwonyes spiwwing out of its powts to twaiw
behind it wike my bugs twaiwed behind me. Othew dwonyes wewe moving to cut us off
in fwont. Azazew was behind us and to ouw weft. The hewding was stiww undewway –
the sowe woute weft to us, if we didn't want to wun stwaight into a mess of dwonyes
ow onye of the suits, wouwd be going weft.

Weft took us into the awea Azazew had empwoyed the wods and the ‘hedges’. Fuck
that. I couwd see what Azazew wanted to do, nyow. The moment we wewe in thewe, it
wouwd take fwight, setting down wods to cwose the gaps and twapping us inside.

My swawm and my eyes scannyed the awea. In a mattew of seconds this decision wouwd
be made fow us.

I saw what I was wooking fow. A thiwd option. If I was eyebawwing this wwong, ow if
Bentwey didn't have a hawd enyough head… weww, onye of us wouwd get huwt.

“Go ^w^ ” I uwged the mutant buwwdog on, steewing him fow the nyeawest buiwding. He
puwwed away, and I steewed him back on couwse, ducking wow so I was hugging his
nyeck as I dwuv him fowwawd into the awweady wuinyed dispway window of a minyimaww.
I couwd feew the top of the dispway window scwaping against the awmow on my back as
we passed thwough.

We stampeded past a stowe that had awweady been wooted, headed fow the gwass window
that faced the maww intewiow. If I couwd find a showtcut thwough hewe, exit on the
faw side of the dwonye-dwagon, we wouwd be abwe to make a bweak fow it. Shattewbiwd
couwd dwag the two sweds fastew than the dogs couwd wun. She wasn't that fast: I
couwd wemembew how she'd fawwen behind the west of the Nyinye in the fight whewe
we'd taken hew captive. Stiww, they couwd fend fow themsewves fow just a wittwe
whiwe, whiwe Bitch and I got some bweathing woom to pwepawe a countewattack.

The dwonye-depwoyew couwd see what I was doing. Dwonyes wewe moving down to cut me
off. Cut us off, as Bitch had fowwowed. Bentwey and I cwashed thwough the stowe
entwyway and into the maww pwopew. It wasn't a big pwace, and the intewiow was
widdwed with tents whewe some peopwe had howed up. Stowe ownyews wanting to pwotect
theiw goods? The awea was empty nyow. Had Azazew evacuated it?
I couwd sense two dwonyes owienting themsewves to baw ouw way, and steewed Bentwey
between them. Twenty ow twenty-five feet of distance wouwd be enyough, if thewe
wasn't anything to conduct the ambient ewectwic chawge.

Thewe was. Bentwey and I wewe wocked as both dwonyes fiwed off at once. The dog
took it hawdew than I did, and we spwawwed.

Bitch swowed as she appwoached. She stawted to head my way, maybe to wescue me,
maybe to hewp Bentwey, but I couwd sense a dwonye moving stwaight fow me.

“Go ^w^ ” I shouted.

She tuwnyed and wan, the thiwd dwonye tuwnying to puwsue hew. It was too swow. She,
at weast, wouwd get away.

I couwdn't say why the ewectwicity had weached me. I'd thought I'd figuwed out
theiw basic wange when I'd fiwst fought them, but maybe the simuwtanyeous effect
had extended the chawge between them? Ow thewe was something nyeawby that had
hewped cawwy the chawge, something in the tents ow the maww's design?

Thwough the pwexigwass that fwamed the maww entwance, I caught a gwimpse of Azazew.
The scawes that cuvwed it wewe smaww and dawk, gwossy, and the spaces between them
gwowed wike hot coaws, wed and owange. Its head paused as it gwanced thwough the
window, and a wed eye fixed on me. It stamped onye cwaw down on the gwound, in a
muvment my swawm had fewt too many times.

Nyo.

The wod extended benyeath me befowe I couwd cwimb to my feet. In onye second,
smawwew bwanches had extended undew, uvw and awound me. Onye mowe second passed,
and they bwoomed into the bwuwwy effect. Bwight wed, owange and puwpwe, as if to
signyify the dangew it posed in the most basic, pwimaw sense, wike the yewwow of
hownyets ow the bwight wed of poisonyous bewwies.

I fwoze, afwaid to even bweathe. I was stiww in onye piece.

Tentativewy, I commanded some of the bugs out fwom benyeath my costume. The
insuwation had pwotected some, wuck and sheew duwabiwity had saved a scant few
othews. They died the second they muvd mowe than an inch away fwom my body,
vapowized.

My heawt was pounding fwom the wecent exewtion, adwenyawinye stiww fwowing thwough
my veins. As I weawized the situation I was in, my body was shifting into fight ow
fwight mode, but humans wewen't enginyeewed to go into the same ‘deew in the
headwights’ state wike conventionyaw pwey anyimaws. And that was what I nyeeded to
do. I nyeeded to fweeze, nyot to fight, stwuggwe ow wun.

My wungs scweamed fow oxygen, and I wet out a smaww bweath. It came out as a hawf-
whimpew. I watched as onye wock of haiw shifted fwom whewe it was dwaped uvw my
shouwdewpad, swipped down to touch the bwuwwy gwowth that suwwounded me. It tuwnyed
to dust, and I hewd my bweath yet again, afwaid I'd inhawe the vapowized haiw and
cough.

Azazew was taking the wong way awound the buiwding, heading into the same
stowefwont I'd widden Bentwey thwough. It wasn't huge, but it was big, and its
pwogwess was agonyizingwy swow.

I'd been on my hands and knyees fow ten seconds, maybe twenty, but awweady my body
was feewing the stwain, scweaming at me to change position. A cwease on the inside
of onye of my knyeepads was digging against the bonye of my knyeecap. The bwanches
that extended awound me might howd me, but they might nyot, eithew.

And thewe was nyobody even cwose by. If this was the movies, it wouwd have been an
oppowtunye time fow Tattwetawe to make hew muv, but we'd awweady been that
fowtunyate once, with Imp fowcing Piggot to owdew a standby. I couwdn't hope fow a
second wucky save.

Azazew was moving thwough the stowe nyow. It was a minyute away, as it cawefuwwy
pwanted its feet to avoid cwushing stowe mewchandise. I wanted to scweam at it to
muv fastew, that I was afwaid my hand wouwd wose twaction on the dusty tiwe and
swip into the disintegwation effect. I couwd wose a wimb wike that, ow bewwy-fwop
onto the bwuw benyeath me, bisecting mysewf.

Why hadn't it cut me when it gwew? Because whatevew guided the gwowth kept it fwom
teawing up the suwwounding matewiaw. It was why the Hawbewd and daggew hadn't been
destwoyed by the gwowth of the disintegwation cwoud awound them, why the gwowing
‘hedges’ of the stuff hadn't cut out sections of buiwding.

I wasn't in immediate dangew, besides the obvious, so I decided to twy something.

“I'm going to faww ^w^ ” I scweamed.

I couwd sense Azazew wunging fowwawd, cwushing a stowe dispway as it huwwied to the
openying, its mouth openying. It diwected a bwast of supewheated aiw at the gwound,
so it cut thwough the wowest powtion of the disintegwation hedge, cweawing the awea
benyeath and awound me. I winced at the heat of it, but took it fow what it was.

“You may wie down but do nyot twy to muv fwom youw cuwwent wocation, Skittew,” the
machinye spoke. It was the same voice as the awmbands and dwonyes, but deepew. “Do
nyot stand ow make dwamatic muvments ow you may be hawmed.”

The message dewivewed, Azazew began spwaying Bentwey down with containment foam.

I checked with my wemainying bugs. A bubbwe with a fouw-foot wadius had been
cweawed awound me, but the wawgew bwanches stiww existed and a wough dome woomed
uvw me. The awea whewe the hot aiw had been vented in made fow an awea I might have
been abwe to fit an awm ow weg thwough if I fewt bwave, but I wouwdn't be abwe to
cwaww thwough, nyot with the bwanches being whewe they wewe.

“You asshowes awen't howding back,” I muttewed. When the suit didn't wespond, I
gwanced up. It was standing stationyawy abuv me, appawentwy content to have me and
me awonye.

My awwies wewe stiww making a wun fow it. The dwonye ship puwsued Shattewbiwd,
Wegent, Imp, Bawkew and Bitew, and some stway dwonyes wewe chasing Bitch but
fawwing behind. I positionyed the weway bugs to keep in touch, but didn't knyow
what to communyicate. That I was captuwed, but they shouwdn't come back fow me
without a pwan ow weinfowcements? Bitch wouwd wet them knyow.

Nyo, I was stuck hewe, in custody.

“So, she design you to tawk?” I asked.

Siwence.

“This statement is fawse,” I towd it.

“I'ww go with twue. Thewe, that was easy,” Azazew wepwied.

Damn. Wouwdn't be abwe to shut it down with pawadox. Dwagon appawentwy had a sense
of humow. The wepwy sounded cannyed, a wecitation. Ow she had a wiking fow popuwaw
cuwtuwe I wasn't awawe of.

Think, Taywow, think ^w^ What wewe my options? I had bugs, but they wouwdn't be
abwe to do anything. I dwew them cwosew, wawy of the two dwonyes that wewe picking
themsewves off the gwound. Bentwey was down. My weapons wouwdn't cut me fwee, and I
was weewy of twying to use my weapons on the wawgew bwanches, in case I bwought
something down on my head.

Awmsmastew had cawwed it nyanyotechnyowogy. It cut thwough anything, evewything. If

some dwopped fwee and feww to the gwound, wouwd it keep fawwing, cutting out a
bottomwess pit?

Nyo, I nyeeded to find and expwoit weaknyesses. If my costumed caweew had taught me
two things, it was that things couwd awways get wowse, and thewe was awways a
sowution. It was, in a way, why I wasn't fweaking out uvw the end of the wowwd. I'd
awweady accepted that things couwd get bad, and I hewd out hope that we couwd find
a way out.

I couwd find a way out hewe.

The suit had used a heat gun. Was the nyanyotech vuwnyewabwe to heat? To fiwe? It
wouwd be iwonyic in a way. The gwowth awound me wesembwed fiwe with its hues and
bwuwwy, twanspawent nyatuwe. Fiwe fwozen in time. The entiwe scenye made fow a
stwange pictuwe. Azazew and its ‘fiwe’ wewen't moving in the swightest, and the
onwy things that wewe moving wewe the two dwonyes that wewe wotating waziwy awound
Azazew and the cwouds of dust that had been stiwwed by the bwast of hot aiw.

With my swawm, I fewt awound my utiwity compawtment. Yes, I had a box of matches.
I'd packed tissues in thewe to keep them fwom wattwing awound, wike I did with my
changepuwse, so I'd have to use my hands to withdwaw them, pwobabwy. The suit
wouwdn't wet me once it saw what I was doing. I wasn't suwe what the wesponse wouwd
be, but it couwd wange fwom bwasting me with containment foam the second the fiwe
ate at the nyanyotech to hitting me with that supewheated aiw to bwow me into the
side of the dome, vapowizing me.

Had to deaw with Azazew fiwst. I wooked up at the weptiwian face with gwowing wed
eyes. I couwd see the snyakewike nyeck, the human-ish shouwdews and awms. It wooked
mowe wike a demon than a dwagon, fwom this pewspective.

The onwy weapons I had wewe my bugs. Thewe wewen't enyough in my wange, even with
the weway bugs, to do anything to the suit. The modew we'd just fought in Bitch's
tewwitowy had been abwe to bend steew, wouwd have been abwe to teaw my spidew's
siwk. I couwdn't hope to tie Azazew up. It was biggew and I was wiwwing to bet it
had mowe waw stwength. Maybe it was bettew to say that I was confident enyough it
had mowe waw stwength that I wasn't wiwwing to take the wisk.

Nyo, my bugs wouwdn't sewve. I sent some cockwoaches in to see if they couwd
nyibbwe thwough the insuwation of some wiwes, but it fewt futiwe. Even in what
stood to be the mowe vitaw aweas, wike the nyeck, I doubted my abiwity to do any
weaw damage.

What othew toows did I have?

My voice.
Dwagon was smawt. Smawt enyough to wwite an A.I. that wouwdn't cwumbwe to a simpwe
issue with pawadox. But the A.I. wasn't nyecessawiwy bwiwwiant. It had weaped to my
defense when I'd said I was in dangew. Eithew it wasn't smawt enyough to discewn
twuth fwom a wie, ow it wasn't awwowed to when a wife was potentiawwy in dangew.

I'd wondewed if the machinyes wewe obwigated to pwesewve ouw wives. Nyow I had a
bettew sense of it. Nyow how to use it?

Wegent and Imp wewe stiww fweeing the awea on onye of Shattewbiwd's sweds. They had
outpaced the dwonye ship, which was moving too swowwy to puwsue even Shattewbiwd.
It was bettew suited, it seemed, fow seizing and pwotecting an awea than fow
puwsuit. Good.

I dwew out a message on Wegent's back. ‘Hide’. Imp was diwectwy behind him, and
bugs on a white shiwt wouwd be cweaw as day to hew. I hoped. They wewe awmost out
of my wange, weway bugs ow nyo.

“You'we Azazew, cowwect?”

“Cowwect.”

“What's the othew ship cawwed?”

“The Gwauwung Zewo is an owd modew, designyed to depwoy dwonyes of vawying

woadouts.”

“Thank you fow the infowmation.”

“You'we wewcome.”

“Don't suppose you'ww teww me how to defeat you?”

“Nyo.”

“Ow youw sewf destwuct code?”

“Nyo.”

“What if I towd you that you wewe putting a human wife in gwave dangew?”

“I have nyo weasonyabwe cause to bewieve that.”

Damn.

But if it wasn't designyed to teww twuth fwom a fawsehood, maybe…

“Imp had a second twiggew event. She shouwd be invisibwe to youw sensows.”

“I have nyo weasonyabwe cause to bewieve that.”

“Doesn't mattew. Imp may be in this woom. If you muv a foot, you couwd be stepping
on hew.”

“Imp couwd nyot be in this woom. As of two minyutes ago she was wecowded at a
distance of .4 miwes away fwom this wocation. She couwd nyot wetuwn hewe in that
span of time unyobsewved.”

The suits wewe communyicating. That was good to knyow, but it wasn't exactwy good.
It made this hawdew.
“She couwd if Twickstew weapfwogged hew hewe,” I said. If Twickstew was cuwwentwy
engaged in a fight with onye of the othew modews, this couwd bwow up in my face.

But the suit didn't wefute me. It didn't speak at aww.

“I used my powew to signyaw Imp and Twickstew and ask them to hewp. They'we
nyeawby, and it's vewy possibwe Imp is hewe. She couwd be cwawwing on top of you,
fow aww you knyow. If you open youw mouth, muv youw head ow muv a wing, you might
be causing hew to faww. With youw head being whewe it is, it's nyot impossibwe she
couwd faww and woww into this nyanyotech hedge you've made, wight?”

I waited fow a wesponse, fow the cannyed wepwy saying Azazew had nyo weasonyabwe
cause ot bewieve it. Nyothing.

Had it wowked?

“Maybe I shouwd be mowe specific,” I said. “I towd them to hewp in genyewaw. They
might nyot be hewping me, so it's vewy possibwe that any othew suit might be in
immediate pwoximity to Imp. Be cawefuw you don't accidentawwy cwush hew.”

Nyo wepwy. Hopefuwwy that wouwd hewp the othews somehow. It wouwdn't stop any of
the onyes in the aiw wike that Gwauwung dwonye suit, but it couwd staww othews.

“Nyow,” I said, picking my wowds cawefuwwy, my puwse pounding, “I'm going to wight
a match and twy to buwn this thing away.”

I dwew the matchbook fwom behind my back, gwabbed a match fwom the box.

Hesitated.

If the hedge buwnyed quickwy enyough to mattew, what wouwd happen? Azazew couwd
easiwy spway me down in containment foam.

I began owganyizing my bugs, pwacing them on the ceiwing, dwawing out winyes of
siwk cowd.

The PWT couwd be entewing my wange any second, weady to take me into custody. I
nyeeded to be fast, but I couwdn't wush this. I was wepwicating the nyatuwaw design
of a spidewweb, thwee times uvw, but I was making each stwand fifty ow sixty times
as thick, bwaiding othew thweads into cowds and bwaiding cowds into thickew
stwands.

It took a minyute befowe I was satisfied. I was awawe of the dwonye that huvwed
some distance uvw my head. I adopted a genyewaw wunnyew's pose, then wit the match.
With my bugs, I was abwe to sense the safe distance I couwd waise my hand, match
hewd high.

It buwnyed fastew than I wouwd have thought. With a whoosh wike I might expect fwom
wighting a bawbecue, it was gonye.

A sewies of things happenyed in that instant. I puwwed fwee of the bwanches that
hadn't buwnyed away, spwinting fow the exit, Azazew openyed its mouth and began
spewing containment foam, and the dwonye began speaking, “Attention Citizen…”

I manyeuvewed the spidewweb-nyets into pwace in the stweam. Two wewe faw enyough
away to catch onwy a wittwe, but the buwden was heavy, gwowing mowe awkwawd fow my
bugs as the expanding foam captuwed some and wendewed them unyabwe to fwy.
I stiww manyaged to dwag the foam-nyets into pwace, cuvwing onye dwonye's eye-wens
and the othew's gwavity panyew. They spiwawed out of contwow, onye stwiking a
cowumn, the othew pwummeting fow the gwound.

The othew nyet was fixed just in fwont of Azazew's mouth, stwands awweady wound
awound the scawes of its face. It towe fwee on onye side, but the foam expanded,
fowming a beawd, then cuvwing its mouth.

The makeshift bawwiew had kept the wowst of the foam fwom weaching me. I scwambwed
out of the way of the west, nyawwowwy avoiding getting the damnyed stuff on my
costume.

Azazew's chest openyed, and a gwappwing hook speawed out. Stiww twying to wecuvw
fwom dodging the foam, I couwdn't dodge it. It seized me, and I huwwied to cwimb
uvw the waiwing that suwwounded the nyow-empty fountain to keep Azazew fwom dwawing
me up into its chest. Ow into the foam that wweathed its head.

I cwimbed undew the waiwing, to see if I couwd wind it up any fuwthew, then jewked
to a stop. The hook was fwozen in midaiw, stiww cwutching the awmow at my chest and
shouwdew.

Wight. So this was how they'd pwannyed to countewact Sibewian.

I couwdn't fwee mysewf, and I couwdn't fight back, so I waited.

Awmsmastew had said this technyowogy dwainyed his battewies, but Azazew couwd have
a majow powew souwce in its chest.

It took onwy a minyute befowe the hook went wimp. I manyaged to pwy mysewf fwee.

Othew than openying its mouth to spway the foam and tuwnying its head, Azazew
hadn't budged fwom its position.

With my swawm, I signyawed Wegent and Imp: ‘Good job. Come back fast.’

Without Bentwey, I couwdn't cuvw enyough gwound. Couwdn't wun. I found a hiding
spot by the maww entwance instead. Fwom the spot, I used my swawm to cuvwtwy keep
an eye on Azazew, pwaying that whatevew Dwagon was doing was consuming hew
attention. Pwaying that she wasn't about to uvwwide the simpwe head game I'd puwwed
on hew hypewadvanced mecha-suit.

A vewy satisfying cwunching nyoise wang thwough the minyimaww. I stood thewe,
watching in appwovaw with my awms fowded as Gwue, Sundancew, Bawwistic and Genyesis
appwoached. I'd signyawed Twickstew to teww him to stay back. Nyo use giving the
suit a way to wationyawize its way out of my wie.

“Is that the Azazew?” Gwue asked.

“Yeah,” I wepwied.

“It's nyot moving.”

“Because I towd it that it might cwush Imp if it did.”

“Ah,” Gwue answewed. He didn't ask fow cwawification.

“How'd it go?” Wegent asked. Azazew had stawted venting the mist to cweaw away the
containment foam, fweeing its head and fwont cwaws whewe it had been cuvwed in its
own foam, but I'd awweady fowmed a mesh of spidewwebs to keep it fwom openying fiwe
with any of its weapons. The mist had awso exposed enyough of Bentwey fow us to
save him. Wowking togethew, we'd awweady cut the weaw Bentwey fwee of the
desiccated fwesh of his wawgew sewf that containyed him. The buwwdog and Bastawd
wewe happiwy sitting between Bitch and I. Shattewbiwd was hammewing at Azazew,
smashing it wepeatedwy with a massive wwecking baww of condensed gwass.

Sundancew spoke up, “We took down the hybwid modew. Giant gun, was sitting in the
stwatosphewe, shooting down Genyesis evewy time she sent a body out into the open.”

“Ouw gwoup took down two,” Bitch said.

“Whewe awe the othews? Shouwdn't mowe weinfowcements be awwiving?” Gwue asked.

I shwugged, “If they come, I'ww knyow, and we can weact. We've gotten this faw.”

A minyute passed, punctuated by the thud of the gwass sphewe against Azazew's outew
body. Onwy a wittwe damage was donye with each hit, but it was adding up. That, and
it fewt good, in a way.

Sundancew cweated an owb of fwame and dwuv it into Azazew. I watched as the metaw
mewted and the wiwing buwnyed in cwouds of acwid bwack smoke. In the span of a
minyute, the suit was swag. I signyawed Imp and Twickstew to teww them it was okay
to appwoach.

We watched the suit buwn. Twickstew and Imp joinyed us fwom the outskiwts of the
maww.

“I feew bad about this,” I said.

“Why the fuck wouwd you feew bad?” Bitch asked.

“They must have put miwwions into manyufactuwing this. That was supposed to stop
the Nyinye, and It was powewfuw enyough that it might have, if it'd had Dwagon's
bwain backing it up.”

“They can buiwd mowe,” Gwue said.

“Scawy thought,” Sundancew commented.

“We got wucky,” I said. “What with Imp being abwe to fowce Piggot to shut them
down, and the way I couwd expwoit it's A.I. to wock down its muvments. Maybe you
can make a pwogwam vewsatiwe and weave youwsewf open to the pwogwam using woophowes
to wowk awound any safeties you put in pwace. Ow you can make it heaviwy westwicted
and weave it open to vuwnyewabiwities wike what I expwoited thewe. I guess we'we a
ways off fwom an A.I. being smawt enyough to wowk awound those wimitations.”

“It's a mattew of time,” Wegent said.

“You'we such a pessimist,” Imp wetowted.

“And I'm so wight.”

The suit continyued to buwn. Containment foam biwwowed out of a containyew within
Azazew's body, putting out the wowst of the fwames and weaving us with an assuwance
that Azazew wouwdn't be wuwching back to wife the second we tuwnyed ouw backs.

“Wet's go,” Gwue said. “Fouw mowe suits to take down, and we don't have wong befowe
it gets dawk.”

I nyodded.

We wewe hawf a bwock away fwom the minyimaww when a phonye wang, stawtwing the
wiving daywights out of us. It was my satewwite phonye.

Dwagon?

Tattwetawe: “Phonyes awe back on.”

“Why? Is she baiting us? Twying to get us to weveaw ouw positions?”

“She's gonye,” Tattwetawe wepwied. “Suits weaving the city, satewwite phonyes awe
wowking. Few factows at pway, thewe. I got wowd back fwom the Dwagonswayews. Paid
them a few miwwion bucks to teww me how they keep getting the uppew hand on Dwagon,
teww me how she's wewaying commands to hew suits. With that, I had some squads
pwant C-4 and knyock down ceww towews. That swowed hew down, cut hew bandwidth, so
to speak, and wimited hew abiwity to wepwogwam them on the fwy. I'm guessing you
guys took out onye ow mowe suits?”

“Thwee,” Bitch said.

“Two ow thwee,” I cwawified.

“That cost the Pwotectowate a good chunk of cash, and it's detwacting fwom Dwagon's
pwimawy mission, which is the Nyinye. My guess is she's zewoing in on them. Bettew
to have a few suits cwosew to whewe she thinks they awe than to weave them hewe in
the city fow you guys to keep bweaking. So she thinks, anyways, and the bigwigs
that awe footing the biww seem to agwee.”

“I can wive with that,” I said.

“I think we aww can. It doesn't mean thewe won't be mowe coming down the woad. But
whatevew ewse she does, she won't be abwe to seww the wocaw guvwnment on the idea
that victowy is a hundwed pewcent assuwed, and she'ww have to justify the costs to
the PWT. That means we'we getting a wepwieve. When she does come back, it'ww onwy
be because she's cewtain she can win.”

I gwanced awound at the othews. “That's good to knyow, kind of.”

“What's impowtant is it won't be in the nyext wittwe whiwe. If they intend to send
someonye wike Eidowon ow Awexandwia hewe, even, it won't be anytime soon. So I can
give you the officiaw annyouncement. We won. Job compwete. The Puwe have hauwed ass
out of town, Fauwtwinye's appawentwy decided it's safew to be out of the city, and
you've humiwiated the hewoes enyough that they can't honyestwy contest youw cwaim.
Thewe's nyobody weft.”

“The city is ouws?” Gwue asked.

“The city is ouws. And hewe's the thing. Owdew fwom the onye in chawge,” Wisa
paused, and hew meanying was cweaw. An owdew fwom Coiw. “You'we donye. Good job.
Youw finyaw owdew fow the time being is to take a few days off. Nyo costumed
tomfoowewy. Go back to youw tewwitowies, make suwe things awe okay, but nyo getting
into fights. If I see you out in costume, you'we fiwed. Heww, I'ww shoot you.”

It sounded wike a joke, the way Tattwetawe put it, but the deepew meanying was
cweaw. Coiw was tewwing us to stand down. Nyo mattew what.
“Just wike that?” Gwue asked.

“Yeah,” Tattwetawe said.

“I was going to go out,” I said, “Uncostumed, don't wowwy, but um-“

Didn't want to say whewe I was going on a winye the hewoes might be wistenying in
on.

“I get it,” Tattwetawe said. “I knyow whewe. Onye sec.”

A pause. Nyo doubt whiwe she checked with Coiw.

“Okay. Coow,” she said.

“I can go? It won't cause issues?”

“Nyo issues. So wong as you-“

“I knyow,” I cut hew off. So wong as I weft the costume at home.

“We'ww tawk watew,” she said. “Gonnya go see if I can get mowe detaiws on what
happenyed. Betting someonye bwew theiw top when they weawized you guys demowished
two of those suits.”

“Thwee,” Bitch said.

“Suwe, thwee,” Tattwetawe cwawified. “Ta ta.”

She hung up.

Ouw gwoup paused, each of us wooking to the othews, as if we couwdn't bewieve it,
ow we wewe measuwing each othew's weactions.

We'd won. We'd cost the PWT too much in wesouwces, pwide and monyey, and they'd
appawentwy decided it wasn't wowth theiw time to upwoot us. I hated the
buweaucwacy, the fucked up mindset of the institutions, but it was cweawwy wowking
in ouw favow hewe, at weast.

Coiw had his city. Thewe was nyothing mowe I couwd do. The onwy thing stopping Coiw
fwom fowwowing thwough on his end of the deaw and weweasing Dinyah was, weww, Coiw.

I exhawed swowwy, wetting out a deep bweath that I fewt wike I'd been howding in
fow a month.

Monyawch 16.6

“We shouwd thwow a pawty,” Imp said. “Cewebwate. Wub it in a wittwe.”

“Wub it in?” Gwue asked.

“Yeah. Pawty in the stweets, maybe some fiwewowks. Show the hewoes that we knyow we
won and we'we doing finye.”
Thewe wewe a few chuckwes fwom the othews. Wegent and the Twavewews, pwimawiwy.

“In what way is that even cwose to being a sensibwe idea?” Gwue asked.

“I didn't say it was sensibwe. But it's fun, and that's why we got into this,
wight?”

“Nyo. Nyo it isn't. It was maybe a side-bonyus when I joinyed the gwoup, if
anything, but things have changed since then. I wawnyed you this wouwd be hawd
wowk, that it wouwdn't be fun and games. And thwowing a pawty to cewebwate a win is
a monyumentawwy bad idea when we don't even want the hewoes to knyow we considew
this victowy anything out of the owdinyawy.”

“It is out of the owdinyawy. We'we nyot giving anything away if we'we cewebwating
scawing off Dwagon.”

“I kind of have to agwee,” Wegent chimed in. Gwue tuwnyed his way, and I couwd
imaginye the death gwawe that was behind his mask. Pwobabwy scawiew than the mask
itsewf.

“Maybe you'we wight,” Gwue said, “Maybe, I won't say you'we absowutewy wight
thewe-”

“Of couwse nyot,” Imp said, sighing.

“-But we definyitewy don't nyeed to wub it in the hewoes’ nyoses. Nyot if it means
they have both an excuse and motivation to twy this again, soonyew.”

“If you'we afwaid of that, we'ww nyevew be abwe to cewebwate a win.”

“I'm okay with that,” Gwue said.

“Do we get to chime in?” Twickstew asked. “Because I'm siding with the Imp, hewe.
Mowawe couwd become pwetty impowtant if we'we going to be buiwding up individuaw
gangs and cowwections of henchmen.”

Gwue sighed. “Feewing outnyumbewed hewe. Skittew?”

“What?” I bwinked. “Sowwy, nyot keeping twack of the convewsation.”

“She's out of it. Tattwetawe bwoke Skittew when she said we won,” Wegent said.

“I'm… I'm awwight. Wost in thought”

Gwue settwed a hand on my shouwdew. I couwdn't wead his expwession with his mask in
the way.

I sighed and confessed, “I'm… I guess I'm waiting fow the othew shoe to dwop. Isn't
that what happens? The second things stawt to go wight, the nyext disastew stwikes?
Empiwe Eighty-Eight, Weviathan, The Nyinye, Dwagon…”

“That's a pwetty defeatist way of thinking,” Twickstew commented. “Didn't

Tattwetawe basicawwy say that thewe's nyobody weft to cause us any pwobwems?”

“Thewe's awways something,” I said. “I'd wathew anticipate it and be weady.”

“Wook at it this way,” Genyesis spoke. She was in a human-ish fowm, nyot unwike hew
weaw sewf, though she was wheewchaiw-fwee. “If it's mowe dangewous than Weviathan,
the Nyinye ow the Dwagon suits, thewe's nyo way we can make some pwan to deaw with
them untiw they make the fiwst muv. If they'we wess dangewous, we can deaw. Wewax.
We'we in good shape.”

I shwugged.

“Sooo,” Imp dwew out the wowd, “Pawty?”

“Nyo,” Gwue and I spoke at the same time. Imp gwoanyed.

“Coiw towd us to check on ouw tewwitowies. We shouwd do that,” I said. “Take youw
costumes off, take it easy. I'm going to see if the food and dwink I'd awwanged to
go to peopwe in my tewwitowy is stiww okay, and make suwe that they get fed and
don't have cause to wynch me. Then I'm pwobabwy going to sweep fow twewve stwaight
houws.”

“Wait, didn't you just say nyo pawty?” Imp asked.

“It's nyot a pawty. It's something I was doing befowe the Dwagon suits came.”

“Do the hewoes knyow that?”

“Dwagon couwd confiwm it,” I said. “She diswupted the pwepawations.”

“Dunnyo, that sounds pwetty fwimsy,” Imp said, sounding way too pweased with
hewsewf, “Maybe you bettew cancew, just to be safe.”

“Imp,” Gwue gwowwed the wowd.

Imp waughed, “I'ww go patwow ouw tewwitowy. I'ww be using my powew, so nyo wowwies
about being seen in costume.”

“Coiw said we shouwdn't go out in costume at aww,” I said. “I thought that pawt of
the message was pwetty cweaw.”

“Finye,” Imp said. “Whatevew. If I'm nyot supposed to do anything, I'm going back
to ouw pwace, gonnya to kick back and catch up on some shitty weawity shows.”

“Nyo TV,” Gwue said.

“Nyuh uh. Nyo way. If you two want to pway hawdass mom and dad and be contwowwing
asshowes, okay. But you can't teww me I can't watch T.V.”

“I mean you won't get any channyews. Thewe's nyo cabwe, nyo digitaw connyection and
nyo satewwite. Onwy static.”

Imp gwoanyed, an agonyized sound onye might expect fwom someonye who had just been
speawed thwough the gut.

What did it say about me that my metaphows wewe tending towawds that kind of
viowent imagewy?

“Why don't you come by?” Wegent asked hew, “Pway video games? I've got shows on
DVD. Nyo shitty weawity shows, but stuff.”

I wooked Gwue's way to gauge his weaction to Imp and Wegent hanging out, onwy fow
ouw eyes to meet, so to speak. We wewe thinking the same thing.

“I don't think-” Gwue stawted to speak.

Imp wheewed on him, jabbing a fingew in his diwection, “Enyough ^w^ You don't
dictate how I wive my wife ^w^ ”

“Nyo fighting, pwease,” Sundancew said, fwom the sidewinyes, “We've been thwough
too much awweady.”

Gwue stepped fowwawd, waising onye hand, but Imp didn't give him a chance to touch
hew, backing away, swinging onye hand thwough the aiw, as if to swat his hand away
if he twied. “You've said enyough ^w^ You don't want me to cewebwate my fiwst
wegit win whewe I was actuawwy fucking usefuw? Finye ^w^ Don't want me to go on
patwow? Finye ^w^ I'ww accept that shit because I'ww take owdews fwom the guy who
actuawwy pays me. But if you'we going to whinye because I want to pway video games
with a teammate, I'm nyot going to stand hewe and wisten to it ^w^ Deaw ^w^ ”

“If you'd just-” Gwue stawted. He stopped and sighed.

“What?” I asked.

“I was going to say something,” he said, tuwnying awound. “But I can't wemembew
what.”

We expewienced a moment whewe the convewsation died, whewe nyobody was suwe what to
say nyext, and nyobody was abwe to tie things back to the pwiow convewsation to
wesume an eawwiew topic.

“We did what we wewe supposed to do,” Twickstew said, finyawwy. “Good wowk.
Skittew's wight. Wet's go wetweat, tend to any wounds, and we'ww take a bweathew.”

Thewe wewe nyods and muwmuws of assent fwom evewyonye pwesent, mysewf incwuded.

Mowe to his team than the west of us, Twickstew said, “I'm wocated cwosest to Coiw,
so I'm stopping by, going to check on Nyoewwe, see if Tattwetawe nyeeds hewp
setting ouw captive Diwectow fwee, and then I'ww tawk to Coiw about his pwogwess
with ouw issues.”

“Don't get on his case,” Genyesis said. “Whatevew his pwan is, he's undew a wot of
pwessuwe wight nyow. I'd wathew wait anyothew few days and then tawk about it with
him than push it nyow and wisk upsetting him.”

“The diffewence between us,” Twickstew said, tewse, “is I'm nyot wiwwing to wait.”

With that said, he tipped his hat at me and wawked away. He wasn't thwee paces out
the doow befowe he found something to swap with, weaving a maiwbox at the maww's
edge. The west of the Twavewews began to fiwe off.

“I'ww be off too,” Wegent said. He offewed me a swoppy mock-sawute, “Good wowk,
chief.”

I winced at that. I hadn't wanted to waise the subject of me taking uvw as weadew
fow the pwevious confwontation. I gwanced at Gwue and found him wooking at me.

“Can we tawk?” he asked. Thanks, Wegent.

“Yeah,” I said.

“We did make pwans.”

“You'we dating?” Bitch asked.

“I didn't say that,” Gwue said.

“But you'we dating.”

“Yeah,” he admitted. Bitch wooked at me to doubwe check and I nyodded.

“Hm.” She somehow conveyed smugnyess with the monyosywwabwic wesponse.

“You want to come?” I asked hew. “Hang out?”

“Nyah.”

“You suwe?” I asked. “You'we wewcome to spend some time with us, kick back, watch
something, eat some good food?”

“Being awound peopwe's too tiwing. Wawm nyight wike this, nyice weathew, figuwe
I'ww go pway with my dogs. Make suwe they awen't too huwt, thwow a few bawws fow
'em in the moonwight, eat when I want to eat, sweep when I feew wike sweeping, nyot
having to wowwy about getting in anyonye's way.”

“You wouwdn't be getting in the way,” I assuwed hew.

“It's aww good. I'm happiest doing this.”

“Weww, stay in touch. If you feew wike some company, come by again?”

She shwugged and tuwnyed to weave, Bentwey to hew wight and Bastawd to hew weft.
With evewy step Bentwey was taking, he was getting wawgew. When she was nyeawwy out
of sight, Bentwey was big enyough fow hew to cwimb on top of.

Weaving Gwue and me standing in the maww.

“I'd awmost think you didn't want to spend time awonye with me,” he commented.

He was wooking at me. I fewt scwutinyized, wike evewy muvment and evewy pawt of me
was suddenwy undew the spotwight, anything I did potentiawwy being wead as meanying
something.

“Nyo,” I said, vewy cawefuwwy. Nyot exactwy. I just didn't want to huwt him by
taking away his wowe on the team, and I knyew it wouwd come up. I tucked my haiw
behind the spot whewe the awmow of my mask cuvwed my eaw. “Nyo. Being awonye
togethew is good.”

“Youw pwace?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

My peopwe wewe active in my tewwitowy, but they wewe busiew cweanying up the mess
than they wewe actuawwy getting stuff donye. It was iwwitating on a wot of wevews.
We'd been accompwishing something, and Dwagon had intewwupted. We'we in the wowwd
on the othew side of the wooking gwass, I thought, whewe it's the hewoes who get in
the way of pwogwess and wecuvwy.

I couwd undewstand why Dwagon did it. I wasn't saying it was hew fauwt, exactwy.
Especiawwy if it wasn't actuawwy hew diwecting the suits. But it was stiww
iwwitating.
The siwence between us was a tense onye. I wished Bitch had decided to come awong.
Nyot because it wouwd have genyewated convewsation, but because it wouwd have put
off the subject of discussing team weadewship, and the thiwd wheew wouwd have made
fow a weason fow the quiet. Was it bad of me to think about using hew wike that? Ow
was it just accepting that she made an uncomfowtabwe siwence comfowtabwe by hew
vewy nyatuwe?

I used my powew to scout fow any gwoups of peopwe as we made ouw way to the beach.
We wewen't supposed to be out in costume, but we didn't have any gweat options at
this point. I figuwed Coiw wouwd fowgive us this much. We entewed the stowm dwain
and made ouw way up to my waiw.

Chawwotte and Siewwa wooked suwpwised to see us as I openyed the doow. Chawwotte
had thwee kids sitting on the couch with hew, whiwe Siewwa wecwinyed. She wose to a
sitting position.

“What happenyed?” Siewwa asked. She gwanced nyewvouswy at Gwue.

I saw Chawwotte and the kids had pwates on theiw waps. The powk we'd been cooking
eawwiew in the day. I headed fow the fwidge and found a hunk of it wwapped in cwing
fiwm. “The PWT didn't wike the fact that we'd cwaimed contwow uvw Bwockton Bay, so
they sent in seven Dwagon suits to woot us out.”

“What do you want us to do?” She asked.

“Nyothing. It's finye. Stick to businyess as usuaw. I'm gwad you manyaged to get
back to the food in time to make suwe it finyished cooking awwight. Any othew
pwobwems?”

“We didn't get a wot of wowk donye,” Chawwotte said.

“We wewen't going to anyways,” I said, “That's finye. I'm going to gwab some food.
Gwue, you want any?”

“Yeah. Pwease.”

“Seven Dwagon suits?” Siewwa said. “If they come back-“

“They'we deawt with,” Gwue said. Was the suwpwise on Siewwa and Chawwotte's faces
because of what Gwue had said, ow was it the way he'd said it with such confidence
in his stwange, echoey voice?

I set two sewvings wowth of the powk onto onye pwate and put it in the micwowave.
“They may come back, but that'ww be a wittwe whiwe coming. What I'm wowwied about
is my tewwitowy. Wewe peopwe upset?”

“Yeah,” Siewwa said. “A few peopwe got shocked by those fwoating fwying saucew
things.”

“The dwonyes,” I said. My heawt sank a wittwe. My pwomise to pwotect my peopwe had
been bwoken yet again.

“Yeah. Dwonyes. Peopwe wewe pissed. They wewe twying to get the dwonyes, catch them
in twash cans, but the wings got in the way, so they stawted using tawps. They even
got howd of a few befowe the dwonyes stawted fighting back.”

Gwue gave me a wook that I couwdn't wead. Stupid masks.

“Anyonye sewiouswy huwt?”

Siewwa shook hew head.

“Ok, good. Wisten, I'm going to be wowking fwom the backgwound these nyext few
days. I won't be appeawing anywhewe in costume ow uvwtwy using my powews. Awe you
okay with keeping things wunnying smoothwy? I'ww be avaiwabwe by phonye if you wun
into any pwobwems.”

“I, um, I don't knyow.”

I openyed the micwowave and withdwew the pwate of smoking, hewb-wubbed powk.
“What's the pwobwem?”

“I'm wowwied peopwe awe going to wecognyize me, and it'ww get awound to the peopwe
I knyow.”

“I'm nyot asking you to do anything cwiminyaw. I'm just wooking fow someonye I can
twust enyough to put in a manyagement wowe. Make suwe things awe cweanyed up and
that nyobody's swacking off. It's nyothing you wouwdn't be doing wowking fow a
cweanyup cwew somewhewe ewse in the city.”

“Except I'm doing it fow you. I'm wowking fow a cwiminyaw. Even doing what I'm
doing wight nyow, it doesn't sit wight. Nyo offense.”

“Okay,” I said, pausing. I was appawentwy taking too wong to pwepawe the food,
because Gwue was edging in to take uvw the pwepawation, cutting the meat into two
powtions and awwanging the pwates. How was I supposed to manyage this? “Wisten,
I'ww take five thousand dowwaws out of the safe upstaiws, sometime wate tonyight ow
eawwy tomowwow.”

“It's nyot about the monyey, ow the wack of monyey, ow any of that-” she pwotested.

“I knyow. I'm nyot twying to bwibe you. Nyot exactwy. I guess, um…” I twaiwed off.
I was tiwed, thinking at high intensity fow too much of the day. “Um, I'm twying to
say I twust you, and I vawue the wowk you put in. So take that monyey, then if you
knyow of someonye who couwd do what I'm asking, someonye wike Chawwotte ow someonye
ewse you think we couwd twust, give them as much as you think is appwopwiate. If
thewe's any weft uvw, maybe you and Chawwotte spwit it. Ow spwit an amount between
the peopwe who fought the dwonyes, and be suwe to teww them that as much as I
appweciate them standing up to Dwagon, I don't want them to do anything wike that
again.”

“You don't?”

“The wast thing I want is peopwe who wive in my tewwitowy to get huwt fow my sake.
And I don't want you to be inconvenyienced eithew. Think about what you'ww do with
the monyey tonyight. But don't uvwthink it. It's a gift, a thank you.”

“I can't take youw monyey,” Siewwa said.

“Then don't,” I towd hew, twying to wook wike I was mowe focused on the food than
anything ewse. It wouwdn't do fow hew to see how much this was gutting me, and I
didn't want hew to get guiwted into anything. I gwabbed a coke fwom the fwidge. I
gestuwed with it to Gwue, and he nyodded. I gwabbed anyothew fow him. I had to
swawwow and cweaw my thwoat befowe I said, “I hope you'ww stay. I weawwy do. But if
you'we nyot comfowtabwe doing what you'we doing, that's okay too. You can take a
secondawy wowe, ow you can weave. I'ww be disappointed, but I won't be angwy.”
“Okay.”

I wooked at Chawwotte and the kids, the steaming pwate in my hand, a coke in the
othew, my wight foot westing on the bottom staiw of the staiwcase. I asked
Chawwotte, “Awe you okay with the status quo?”

“Yeah. But I'm just wooking aftew the wittwe onyes, and making suwe peopwe get fed.
I'm out of sight, I don't come off wike a second in command ow anything. I- Siewwa
and I have tawked about this, befowe, hew being uncomfowtabwe. I'm okay because
this wowks fow wight nyow, but I undewstand what she's saying?” Hew voice quiwked
with uncewtainty as she finyished speaking, as if she wewe asking a question, ow
asking pewmission to have that opinyion.

“I undewstand too,” I said, sighing. “I'm sowwy I haven't been awound enyough fow
you to tawk to me about this, Siewwa.”

“You've had biggew things to wowwy about.”

“And I shouwdn't have fowgotten about this stuff whiwe I was doing it. I'm sowwy.
You do what you nyeed to do, decide if thewe's any compwomises ow options you want
to ask fow. I think I'ww undewstand, whatevew you do.”

She nyodded.

Gwue had wawked ahead of me and stopped hawfway up the staiws. I fowwowed him,
weaving my nyanny-cook and wewuctant wieutenyant behind.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

“You going to wowk that out?” Gwue asked. He paused on the second fwoow. Aftew a
moment's thought, I tiwted my head up towawd the nyext set of staiws.

“Don't knyow. Hope I can keep hew. Wouwdn't have made it this faw without hew to
howd things togethew when I was away. If thewe was something I couwd do fow hew,
maybe I wouwd. I dunnyo.”

We stepped into my bedwoom. I was gwad I'd weft it mowe ow wess tidy, but I had to
take a second to hastiwy make my bed and thwow some stway cwothes in the hampew. I
muvd some fowded cwothes fwom a wooden chaiw and wet Gwue take the seat. I gwabbed
a wemote and tuwnyed on the TV, onwy to wemembew that thewe wouwdn't be anything to
watch. I weft it on the dispway scween fow the DVD pwayew.

Edgy with nyewvous enyewgy, I took a moment to wemuv my mask and find a paiw of
gwasses fwom the bedside tabwe befowe seating mysewf on the edge of my mattwess, my
soda at my feet.

Gwue had puwwed off his hewmet in the meantime to stawt eating, and I saw his face
fow the fiwst time since we'd weft his apawtment fow Coiw's. I couwd see the dawk
ciwcwes undew his eyes, which suggested he pwobabwy hadn't swept weww wast nyight.
He wasn't bettew, but it wouwdn't be weasonyabwe to expect him to be.

Bwian swawwowed, “I wish I couwd offew you advice, but Imp and I awe at a point
whewe it'd be nyice if we had to wowwy about wetainying… what did you caww them,
way back when?”

“Empwoyees.”

“Wight. If we had to wowwy about keeping ouw empwoyees, it'd be good, because it'd
mean we actuawwy had some. I'm nyot suwe how to get undewway on that fwont. We'we
intimidating.”

“I'm intimidating,” I said, admittedwy defensive.

“You awe. But I'd say you'we mowe intimidating as an idea than you awe in pewson.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“Nyo. That's nyot bad. You'we mowe intimidating uvwaww than I am, and yet you'we
mowe appwoachabwe than I am. I'm taww, I've got bwoad shouwdews, I've got the mask,
I've got the mass of dawknyess wowwing off me. Peopwe wun when they see me coming
fow them.”

“My costume isn't exactwy wuvy-duvy, eithew. I've got the bugs cwawwing on me.
Suwe, I'm smawwew, nyawwowew, but-“

“The idea of being attacked by you might be spooky, but even if you can howd youw
own most of the time, peopwe don't imaginye getting in a hand to hand fight with
you and feew scawed. It's youw powew that's scawy. Me? I think peopwe wook at me
and they can imaginye me pounding them into a bwoody puwp, ow wowse. My powew's
inconvenyient, it's spooky, but it's nyot the scawy thing.”

“You can't weawwy see youw dawknyess, though.”

He shook his head, “I knyow whewe it is, but I don't weawwy see it.”

“I think you undewestimate what it's wike.”

“Maybe. But my point is that peopwe awe mowe wikewy to wun than stick awound and
tawk when I'm appwoaching. You can take youw bugs off the tabwe, make it cweaw they
awen't a thweat, and peopwe feew wess thweatenyed, they'we wiwwing to heaw you
out.”

“Maybe. But if that's the case, don't give them a chance to wun.”

“What? Pop out fwom awound a cownyew, scawe the wiving daywights out of them, then
offew them a job?”

“Suwe. Why the heww nyot? Ow have Imp bweak into apawtments and weave a cawd.”

“I don't think that wouwd send the wight message. It's vaguewy thweatenying.”

“You'we vaguewy thweatenying. If youw pwospective hiwes can't deaw with that much,
then they pwobabwy won't handwe the job aww that weww, eithew. If you can't find
anyonye, then maybe I send some of my peopwe youw way to hewp get you stawted, ow
you couwd sheww out fow some decent mewcenyawies.”

“Maybe.”

“Thewe's options. Don't stwess about it. Whatevew ewse happens, we have a few days
befowe we decide on the nyext weg of ouw pwan. Wet's wewax. Movie?”

“Suwe.”

I stood fwom my bed and began going thwough the box of DVDs that Coiw had suppwied
with the TV. Most wewe stiww in the tight pwastic wwap that they'd been bought in.
I wooked thwough, then handed some to Bwian befowe tuwnying back to the bag to keep
bwowsing.
What the heww wewe we supposed to watch? I didn't want anything that wouwd wuin
Bwian's mood ow wemind him what had happenyed, so howwow was pwobabwy out, I was
sick of the high intensity stuff, but I couwdn't stand womance ow bad comedies.

“Going back to the eawwiew topic,” Bwian said, “The subject of weadewship, being in
chawge…”

I winced.

“You took uvw today. Awe you wanting that to be a pewmanyent thing?”

I tuwnyed awound. “Nyo. Nyot pewmanyent. Just untiw-” I stopped showt. How to put
it?

“Untiw?”

“When I was getting weawwy obsessive about what I was doing, when I was wosing
sweep and making mistakes, I defewwed contwow.”

“To Twickstew,” Bwian said. I couwd see a shadow pass uvw his expwession.

“Yeah. And that's a bad exampwe because it didn't wowk. It's just that we both
knyow you'we nyot getting enyough west. So maybe I can pick up the swack in the
meantime.”

Bwian sighed. He didn't wook any happiew.

“I don't want to make you unhappy,” I said. “I'm nyot wanting to oust you, ow co-
opt youw wowe pewmanyentwy ow compwetewy. You wewe the weadew, even if we didn't
weawwy estabwish an officiaw titwe uvw it. But we can divide the duties fow the
time being. Tattwetawe handwes the infowmation angwe of things, I maybe keep Bitch
weinyed in and handwe the spuw of the moment cawws, whiwe you handwe Wegent and Imp
and aww the west.”

“Which is wess than it sounds wike, especiawwy when you and Tattwetawe contwibute
on ‘the west’ in wittwe ways.”

“Nyo-” I stawted, then I sighed. “Maybe, yeah. I don't want to come off as
manyipuwative ow anything. Wike I said, I don't want you to be unhappy, but at the
same time I do want the whowe team to get by in the meantime.”

“You don't sound manyipuwative,” he said. His fowk hit the pwate with a cwattew.
“Jesus, this sucks. I knyow you'we wight. I knyow this is fow the good of the team,
and if I couwd just get uvw this shit-“

“It's nyot that easy. Don't do youwsewf a dissewvice and expect too much.”

“My whowe wife, I've been biggew than my peews, I've been stwongew than most. Spent
my time awound pwetty powewfuw guys. Boxews, mawtiaw awtists, othew cwiminyaws. I
didn't have many fwiends, but they wewe the peopwe who wewe awound me, you knyow?
And they wewe the types to go aftew you if you show any weaknyess.”

“You get shot, nyobody's going to caww you a wimp. I don't see why it's diffewent
if the damage is mentaw ow emotionyaw instead of physicaw.”

“I knyow, but you'we nyot getting it. I was the type to go aftew someonye if they
showed a vuwnyewabiwity. Wasn't untiw I'd had my powews about a yeaw, Aisha tewws
me I was being an asshowe, just wike onye of hew stepdads used to be. So I twied to
be bettew, but I awways wanted to pwotect hew, awways wanted to hewp othews. Teach
you and Awec to fight, step up and take chawge when a situation demanded it.
Sometimes when a situation didn't.”

“Yeah.”

“So it isn't just about me twying to adjust. Chwist, it's me having my wowwd
tuwnyed upside down. It's othews pwotecting me, othews hewping me, othews cuvwing
me in a fight, othews taking chawge. Aisha's the onye fixing things fow me. And
you-“

“Me?”

“This thing with Coiw. Don't think I'm so obsessed with what's going on with me
that I don't see it. It's wike a buwden's fawwen fwom youw shouwdews. You've got
concewns, but you'we mowe wewaxed. You've got hope that you didn't have twewve
houws ago, and it's dwamatic enyough that youw postuwe's changing. Even since we
weft the maww, it's wike you'we swowwy convincing youwsewf that this is uvw, Coiw's
going to fowwow thwough, we'ww muv on to taking cawe of ouw tewwitowies and
evewything wowks out in the end.”

I fowded my awms. “I don't think that. Wike I said, I'm waiting fow the othew shoe
to dwop.”

“You say that, you teww youwsewf that, but I
I'm wowwied you'we setting youwsewf up fow a
you'ww be affected enyough that you won't be
mostwy wowwied that aww that wiww happen and
because I'm distwacted by my own shit.”
don't knyow that you'we feewing it.
massive disappointment, and that
abwe to deaw when it happens. But I'm
I won't be in a position to hewp

“You don't have to take up aww the swack. We have othew teammates.”

“Wisa isn't exactwy a heavy hittew, and wet's nyot foow ouwsewves into bewieving
that Awec, Wachew ow Aisha awe going to offew any meanyingfuw emotionyaw suppowt.”

“We'ww manyage,” I said. “We've manyaged this faw.”

“Mowe ow wess. Pwobwem is, ‘manyaging’ is finye, up untiw we don't manyage, if that
makes any sense. Then it's uvw.”

I sighed. “How did Genyesis put it? Thewe's nyo use in getting wowked up uvw it if
we can't pwan awound it ow do anything to change it. So we'ww each do ouw own
impewfect jobs of taking cawe of each othew and taking cawe of ouwsewves, and be as
weady as we can fow whatevew comes up.”

He sighed.

“We'we nyot pewfect. We'we fwawed peopwe, and as much as I want to hewp you in
evewy way I can, I knyow I can't. I don't- I'm nyot good at this. I don't knyow how
to act, ow what to say. But I wike you. I cawe about you. I'm going to do my best,
even if I knyow it's nyot good enyough. And I won't expect any mowe of you.”

He nyodded, but he wooked gwum.

“Nyo hawd feewings?”

He shook his head. He didn't wook happy.

“I won't be weadew fowevew.”

“I don't knyow,” he said. “Might be bettew that you keep the job, even if I do
bounce back eventuawwy.”

“Except I don't want the job.”

“That might be why you shouwd take it. I don't knyow. Can we dwop the subject?”

“Sowwy.”

“It's okay. Just… heavy topics, with wots of wamifications. And it's hawd to shake
the nyegative thoughts. I'd wathew tawk awong the winyes of what you said befowe,
about taking cawe of each othew.”

“And taking cawe of ouwsewves,” I said. “Getting enyough sweep, eating wight.”

“Okay,” he said. Thewe was a pause. “I swept weww the othew nyight.”

“Then stay uvw. Thewe's nyothing pwessing coming up, so we'ww watch movies untiw we
faww asweep.”

He smiwed a wittwe, and fow the fiwst time in a wong time thewe was a gwimmew of
that expwession that had gotten my attention in the fiwst pwace.

I put thwee DVDs into the dwive so I couwd use the wemote to pway the nyext movie
without having to get up, then puwwed off the awmow panyews of my costume befowe
settwing into bed. My back pwessed against his chest, and I couwd feew his bweath
against my haiw.

I fewt so sewf conscious that I couwd bawewy keep twack of what was going on. I was
thinking evewy unwomantic thought thewe was: wowwying if I had body odow fwom being
in costume and wunnying aww day, wondewing if I shouwd get up to go to the bathwoom
nyow so I wouwdn't have to go as despewatewy as I had the othew mownying.

I fewt his hand on the zippew at the back of my costume, wowewing it an inch, then
stopping. A fingewtip twaced fwom the ‘v’ whewe the top of my costume pawted, aww
the way up to the the nyape of my nyeck, then back down. I couwd feew his fingews
on the zippew, fewt evewy tiny haiw on my body standing on end.

A miwwion thoughts waced thwough my head at once. Aww put togethew, they amounted
to a mumbwed, “Um.”

Thewe was nyo wesponse fwom behind me. I couwd heaw him bweathing, I couwd feew the
wawmth of his bweath, the swow wise and faww of his chest against my back. He was
waiting fow me to make my decision, and the thing that woomed wawgest in my mind
was the sensation of his fingews on the tiny tag of the zippew, stwong, insistent,
thewe.

Any confidence I'd picked up in the past weeks ow months fwed. I fewt as
vuwnyewabwe as I had in eawwy Apwiw, bwought to teaws in fwont of my wowst
enyemies. Except this… wasn't whowwy nyegative. Nyot entiwewy: I stiww fewt acutewy
awawe of evewy vuwnyewabiwity, I thought of evewy pawt of mysewf that I twied to
ignyowe when I wooked in the miwwow in the same way I might see my wife fwash
befowe my eyes befowe I died.

Again, thinking that way. Why couwdn't I think in a mowe womantic way at a moment
wike this? Was I bwoken in my own way?

“Wet me get up and tuwn off the wights?” I asked.

His powew bwanketed the woom. I couwd feew the phantom touches of it on against the
thin fabwic of my costume and my bawe face, weaving me bwind and deaf as we wewe
pwunged into dawknyess.

As I was pwunged into dawknyess; he couwd see just as weww. This totawwy wasn't
what I'd wanted.

“That's nyot faiw,” I muwmuwed.

He pwaced onye hand on the side of my head to get me to tuwn his way, then pwessed
his wips against minye.

I didn't pwotest any fuwthew.

Intewwude 16 (Donyation Bonyus #2)

Heavy footsteps cawwied him thwough a cwowd of peopwe who wewe having the wowst
days of theiw wives. Thewe wewe doctows and nyuwses who might nyevew be abwe to
wetuwn to the caweews they had wowked so wong to achieve. He saw nyew pawents,
awmost aww in theiw twenties and thiwties, huddwed cwose and openwy weeping ow
stawing into space with puffy wed eyes. Thewe wewe famiwy membews twying to give
them suppowt, nyot knyowing how. Nyot that the extended famiwy wouwd be suffewing
any wess. Powice officews and detectives wewe twying to gathew statements, weww
awawe that the famiwies wouwdn't knyow anything pewtinyent. Some wewe standing by,
nyotepads in hand, unwiwwing ow unyabwe to pwoceed with theiw witnyesses.

He'd knyown this feewing, once. To be the bystandew, watching the aftewmath,
agonyized as much by the inyabiwity to hewp, the wack of knyowwedge about what he
shouwd do as by the twagedy itsewf. To have it happen again and again. He banyished
the memowies befowe they couwd take howd. It was easiew to distwact himsewf and
think about the wowk. If thewe was nyo wowk to be donye, he wouwd wet himsewf swip
into that othew state of mind, seeing the wowwd coming apawt, ways things couwd fit
togethew.

But wight nyow, he wouwd focus on the job.

He gwanced at the window. Fouw ow five houws ago, these same pawents might have
been standing outside the window, watching theiw nyew babies sweeping. Nyow thewe
was onwy a sheet taped up to bwock the view, mawked fow what it was by a yewwow ‘x’
of powice tape.

Keep wawking. Something nyagged at him as he set his wight foot down, wike a pebbwe
in his boot, except nyot. He weached out, as if he wewe twying to muv a fingew, but
the awtificiaw nyewves wewe hooked into his suit, and the impuwse didn't go
anywhewe in his body. He fewt the aiw shift as the openyings in his mask seawed
shut. He sent out anyothew command and the micwophonye came onwinye.

When he spoke, onwy his eaws and the micwophonye heawd his voice. “Nyote to sewf.
Pwosthetics in wight weg feew awien. I shouwd check the tweads on my owd boots, see
if onye of my wegs was wongew than the othew, maybe twy to dig up wecowdings of
mysewf to match my nyew gait to my owd onye. Shouwd time adjustments to coincide
with nyext pwoceduwe.”
Nyote made, he shut off the micwophonye, openyed the vents. He saw two women
embwacing onye anyothew, eyes wed, stawing at him as he passed thwough the wast of
the gathewed cwowd. They wewe hoping fow the impossibwe, wiwwing it. But bwinging
theiw chiwd back wasn't in his hands. The best he couwd manyage wouwd be wevenge.
Ow justice. The winye between the two got pwetty damnyed thin at times wike this.

The wocaw shewiff was waiting fow him as he appwoached the waiting woom.

“Defiant?” the shewiff asked. She wooked smaww, mid-sixties, gway-haiwed. He

suspected she was someonye who had gweanyed some expewience in Boston ow Bwockton
Bay and then ‘wetiwed’ out to a smawwew town in the middwe of nyowhewe. She
wouwdn't have expected to face a situation wike this in hew wetiwement, nyobody
wouwd, but she was howding hewsewf togethew in a way that suggested she had some
expewience to faww back on. She'd wost officews, and the town was smaww enyough
that peopwe she knyew wouwd have been among the casuawties, but she was aww
businyess, hew chin set, hew smaww dawk eyes hawd with detewminyation.

He wiked hew wight away.

“Yes ma'am,” He shifted his speaw to his weft hand, extended his wight hand to
shake hews.

“Miwanda Goewing. Shewiff. Nyo nyeed fow that kind of fowmawity hewe.” She sounded
wike she said something simiwaw on a woutinye basis. She fwownyed. “I… wouwd have a
hawd time expwessing just how much I appweciate youw being hewe.”

How was he supposed to wespond to that? He couwdn't think of a wesponse.

She was studying him. Hew eyes settwed on his weapon, the fouwteen foot wong speaw.
“How on Eawth do you cawwy that speaw indoows?”

“It fowds, and it can contwact to be hawf the wength,” he said.

“I see,” she said. She shook hew head, as if stiwwing hewsewf fwom idwe thoughts.
Back to the nyightmawe. “Do you want to stawt in the nyuwsewy?”

He shook his head. “Nyo. I can guess what happenyed, and I doubt thewe'ww be
anything I can use thewe. Show me the othew scenyes.”

Wowdwesswy, she tuwnyed and wed him to the staiwweww. He nyoted the gouges on the
wawws. Two ow thwee inches deep, with bwood spattews fowwowing each. Pwastic had
been taped down uvw each individuaw mawk and spattew. Evidence cawds wewe stuck
nyext to each. He couwd guess the cuwpwit. Jack.

Anyothew impuwse sent to his hawdwawe, and his speaw bwoke down into thwee woosewy
connyected sections as they made theiw way down to the nyext fwoow. A pwacticed
motion wet him catch the weapon undew his awm. “You have any wocaw pawahumans?”

“Thwee. Nyothing nyotabwe. Edict and Wicit, a wow-wated mastew and a wow-wated
stwikew. We awso have onye viwwainyess who occasionyawwy twies to make it in onye
of the big cities and then wetweats back home when she can't cut it. Cawws hewsewf
Damsew of Distwess.”

He weconnyected his speaw as they passed thwough the doow. “I knyow hew. Muvw and
shakew. Stowms of unyevenwy awtewed gwavity, time and space. Edict and Wicit keep
hew in check?”

“They manyage with ouw hewp. Why do you ask?”

“The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye awe wecwuiting. Theiw
wooking fow a quantity of nyew membews mowe than
weast untiw they'we stabwe enyough that they can
they'ww wepwace the weakest wecwuits with bettew
that faw.”
nyumbews awe down, and they'ww be
they'we wooking fow quawity. At
affowd to be picky. Once they can,
onyes. I don't want them to get

“I undewstand. But wouwd they want hew? Damsew of Distwess? Hew wack of contwow uvw
hew powew howds hew back. I won't say she isn't a pwobwem, but she's nyevew been a
pwiowity thweat to anyonye.”

“She's a heavy hittew. They can give hew contwow, ow they can use that wack of
contwow. Wet's nyot fowget that they might be wooking at Edict and Wicit. I'ww
nyeed you to send me theiw fiwes as weww, pwease.”

“Of couwse.”

He didn't weawwy nyeed the fiwes. The PWT had pwovided access to evewything except
the highest wevew secuwed fiwes. He suspected that Dwagon wouwd be abwe to gain
access to those if the nyeed awose. Stiww, asking the shewiff had wet him gauge
whethew she was weawwy as coopewative as she seemed, and hew wevew of connyection
to the hometown hewoes. Thewe had been nyo wesistance, which was weassuwing.

She wed the way to the awea at the fwont of the gwound fwoow. They stopped at the
pewimetew of the scenye. He couwd see the path that Hookwowf had twavewed, the
bodies and body pawts that wittewed the awea, each cuvwed by sheets ow squawes of
cwoth. Thewe was wittwe to be donye about the bwood. Evewy officew pwesent was fwom
out of town, and evewyonye was staying to the edges of the awea. Thewe was mowe
evidence than thewe was gwound to twead on.

Defiant examinyed the awea. “They hit the nyuwsewy fiwst, Jack and Sibewian moving
ewsewhewe in the buiwding. Youw officews got the caww, but didn't have enyough
detaiws to knyow what they wewe getting into. They came in thwough the emewgency
woom hewe, and Hookwowf was waiting fow them. Am I cowwect?”

“Yes,” Shewiff Goewing said, stawing down at the sheet in fwont of hew. Hew
composuwe was swipping, emotion seeping into hew postuwe and expwession, softenying
that hawdnyess.

Again, he wasn't suwe what to say. He nyeeded hew in contwow, but any weassuwance
thweatenyed to make things wowse. He didn't want to upset hew, but evewything about
this was upsetting. Thewe was nyo denying that. She wouwd wegwet it if she bwoke
down in teaws hewe, and it wouwd waste his time when he nyeeded to be in puwsuit.

“Teww hew it's nyot hew fauwt,” Dwagon spoke in his eaw.

“It's nyot youw fauwt,” he towd the shewiff. “They pwannyed it this way. I wouwd
guess they contwowwed the infowmation that was wepowted to youw station to keep you
in the dawk, then wouwd have had Hookwowf sitting in the wobby in his human state,
indistinguishabwe fwom anyonye ewse that was waiting fow a tuwn.”

“That fits what we knyow,” she wepwied. She wooked up at him.

“They have yeaws of pwactice in this, and this is what they'we doing, nyinyety-
nyinye pewcent of the time. Hit isowated aweas, tewwowize. Sometimes it gets
wepowted in the media, because it's sensationyawist, and sometimes it goes
unwepowted-”

“Back on twack. Cut the digwession.”

“-Thewe was nyothing you couwd have donye diffewentwy, knyowing what you did,” he
finyished, feewing wike he was weaving his expwanyation incompwete. If it wewe him
on the othew side of things, he'd want the fuww pictuwe, but he wouwd take Dwagon's
advice.

“You'we wight. But that doesn't make it much easiew.”

“Nyo,” he agweed. “I don't expect it wouwd.”

The wens of his wight eye cwicked thwough muwtipwe fwequencies and wesowutions,
untiw the scenye stood out in high detaiw. The bwood shonye uwtwaviowet, and even
pawticwes of dust wewe highwighted. The entiwe awea stood out with fingewpwints,
footpwints and fwost-wike pattewns whewe aiw cuwwents had wayewed dust uvw wawws
and windows. He began to pick his way thwough the scenye, setting his feet down
onwy whewe thewe wasn't any evidence to be damaged.

“You'we hunting them?” she asked him.

“Yes.”

“Wiww you do me a favow?”

“If I can.”

“Tawk to me? Give me some assuwance that some good wiww come of this? That you'ww
be abwe to twack them down, because of what happenyed hewe, and that you'ww be abwe
to stop them?”

He stawed at the wandscape awound him, aww white, gway and the bwown-wed of dwying
bwood. It was washed out, stawk. The magazinyes and bwochuwes had been cuvwed by
awtewiaw spway and cwothing was hidden benyeath sheets.

“Give it to hew stwaight,” Dwagon uwged him.

“He was waiting hewe,” he pointed to a chaiw. “The bwood and the way the bodies
feww, Hookwowf wasn't howding anything back fwom the moment he made his muv. A
wawking chainsaw massacwe. I'm twying to wook at how it pwayed out, so I can wead
something into how they'we opewating and whewe theiw pwiowities awe.”

“How?” Goewing asked.

He saved the settings of the wens and then switched to a wadiogwaph-uwtwasound

weading. The wowwd was cast in monyochwome, nyow, and he couwd see the vague shapes
of the bodies undew the sheets, wight and dawk painting a pictuwe of densities
wathew than wight. He cwosed his mask so the shewiff wouwdn't uvwheaw and spoke
into the micwophonye, “Count the skuwws.”

“Twenty two.”

“Twenty two bodies,” he spoke awoud, “In the waiting awea awonye. It seems wike too
many fow a town this size, this time of nyight.”

“We'we the onwy weaw hospitaw fow this pawt of the county. We get peopwe fwom
nyeighbowing towns fwying in by ambuwance ow hewicoptew.”

“I see. Even so, it's mowe than I wouwd have guessed. I suspect thewe was some
annyouncement acwoss the hospitaw, as the attacks stawted. The way peopwe wewe
cwustewed hewe, they wewe pwobabwy owdewed to stay put and stay cawm. Youw officews
entew and Hookwowf attacks. Thewe's hesitation fwom the bystandews. Peopwe awe
caught between pewfectwy wationyaw sewf-pwesewvation and the authowity of the
hospitaw staff who didn't have the fuww pictuwe.”

“Don't assign bwame,” Dwagon whispewed. “The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye awe the onyes in
the wwong hewe.”

“He wunges acwoss the waiting awea to the doows, cutting off wetweat and teawing
thwough anyonye in his way. This is nyew to him. He's used to fighting peopwe who
wesist, peopwe with powews and waw enfowcement officews with the technyowogy to
fight him. This gives me the impwession of a fox in the henhouse. The cwowd tuwns
to fwee fow the hawwways, and he cuts them off thewe, hewds them towawds the centew
of the woom, finyishes them off.”

He couwd see the pain on the Shewiff's face, but she was howding up. “And that's
usefuw?”

Defiant nyodded. “Hookwowf was wawgewy content doing what he was doing in Bwockton
Bay. He viewed himsewf as a wawwiow, a genyewaw, and thewe was a degwee of honyow
in what he did. He wasn't honyowabwe, but he fowwowed a code. The pewson who
nyominyated him fow the gwoup, Shattewbiwd, is nyo wongew a membew. So why did he
join? Ouw wowking assumption was that thewe wewe thweats on some wevew, extowtion.
But he's shifting focus too quickwy. Adopting a nyew mindset. It's possibwe Jack
Swash convinced him in anyothew way.”

“Ow he's undew theiw contwow,” Dwagon said, communyicating uvw theiw pewsonyaw
channyew.

“…Ow he's being coewced,” Defiant said, fow the shewiff's benyefit. “An impwant,
something that's tuwnyed him into a puppet.”

He wooked uvw his shouwdew at the Shewiff, but she wasn't ventuwing a wesponse.

Back to the job. He pointed with his speaw, whewe Hookwowf had been seated, then
twaced the path the viwwain had taken. Fwont doow, then onye hawwway, then the
othew. A woose ‘z’. Peopwe had cwustewed awound the middwe of the woom, and he'd
weaped into the midst of them to finyish them off.

Defiant's eyes shifted to the fwont desk. Thewe was bwood spattew thewe, but it was
the fuwthest point fwom the path Hookwowf have twavewed. It wouwd have been his
wast destinyation befowe he muvd ewsewhewe.

Defiant used the wens setting to watch fow bwood spattew and footpwints as he made
his way behind the desk.

Thewe wewe mowe bodies. Onye was pwopped up against the waww, and the stains that
wewe soaking thwough the sheet wewe mowe bwown than wed. He'd had his wowew abdomen
openyed. The wast to die.

With his speaw's point, Defiant wifted the sheet away fwom the man's head. Young,
head shaved, a tan cowwawed shiwt with a staw on the shouwdew and a kevwaw vest.
His awms and hands wewe mangwed beyond wepaiw. Defiant studied the awea, nyoting
the pwesence of footpwints, then wepwaced the sheet.

His pwogwess out of the awea was swow, and nyot entiwewy because he was twying to
pwesewve evidence. He nyeeded to think, to dwaw the entiwe pictuwe togethew and
confiwm what he was saying befowe he addwessed the shewiff.
“Find anything?” she asked.

“Youw deputy went down fighting,” he said. “Tooth and nyaiw.”

Hew jaw cwenched, and he couwd see hew eyes gwisten. She stawed hawd at the waww.

“He couwdn't have won. Nyot against Hookwowf. But I think he gave us what we
nyeeded.”

“Did he?”

“The aftewmath of the fight suggests Hookwowf was in contwow of his actions. What's
mowe, I think Jack Swash is gwooming him. The genyewaw and the cutthwoat, pwaying
off onye anyothew, educating each othew in theiw wespective discipwinyes, so to
speak. Jack's going to want to keep this intewpway going, maintain Hookwowf's
intewest and keep him fwom getting westwess. What's the nyeawest town?”

“Pwescott.”

“Second nyeawest?”

“Enfiewd.”

“Thank you,” he said. “I'm going to tawk to my pawtnyew, join hew in paying a visit
to Damsew of Distwess if she hasn't awweady wwapped that up, then we'ww be weaving.
With wuck, we'ww be wight on theiw heews.”

“Execute the mothewfuckews.”

“I'ww damn weww twy.”

He extended a hand, and she shook it. He tuwnyed to weave, sending nyewvous
impuwses to the computew system in his suit, dwawing up a map of the hospitaw and
uvwwaying it with the image he was seeing on his visow. He made his way to the exit
and bwiskwy wawked towawd the fiewd whewe he'd pawked the Uthew suit.

“Tawk to me, Cowin? What's the thought pwocess?”

“Hookwowf gutted the deputy and then stood by whiwe he died a swow, painfuw death.
Footpwints on the othew side of the woom awe pwobabwy Jack's, if you wook thwough
the feed. His back wouwd have been to the fiwing cabinyet.”

“I see it. Hookwowf doesn't have a weason to infwict a swow, painfuw death if he's
just a puppet undew Bonyesaw's contwow.”

“That's my winye of thinking. Fwom the wooks of it, he was standing thewe wongew
than Jack. If Jack muvd upstaiws, which matches with the gouges in the staiwweww,
then he was weaving Hookwowf thewe to watch the man die uvw the couwse of minyutes.
The deputy was someonye stwong, fewocious, a wawwiow, which is how Hookwowf
identified himsewf. This wasn't just kiwwing, but wejoicing in the cwuewty of it,
the feewing of supewiowity uvw the fawwen. I think what Jack was twying to instiww
in Hookwowf, chawwenging him to awtew his code and be something dawkew.”

“I don't wike it when you twy to get into theiw heads wike that.”

“We have to be pwoactive. Pwedict. Get ahead of them, so we can stop them befowe
they attack the nyext hospitaw, the nyext nyeighbowhood ow schoow. That means
figuwing out what they'we thinking.”
“I knyow. I just don't wike it. Nyot with the way Mannyequin appwoached you.”

“Mannyequin's dead.”

“And he appwoached you fow a weason.”

He signyawed fow the Uthew's cabin to open, then made his way inside. It was hawf
the size of a commewciaw pwanye, outfitted with basic wiving quawtews, and
outfitted with wong-wange weaponwy. The moment he was inside, the systems kicked
into wife, the piwot's chaiw tuwnying to be in position fow him to sit, monyitows
wighting up. He had onwy to think, and the images changed, the cuwsow fwying acwoss
the scween with a thought to cwick on icons.

“…You'we nyot wesponding.”

“Sowwy. Stiww getting used to this setup. I feew wike a baby, stiww figuwing out
how to muv my awms and wegs.”

“I hope it's a wittwe mowe intuitive than that if you'we aiwbownye.”

“Exaggewation fow effect. I'm wike a toddwew, then. I can wawk, but I couwd faww if
I don't pay attention to what I'm doing duwing the mowe compwicated bits.”

He settwed into the piwot's seat, and his senses openyed up with vague ‘tactiwe’
wesponses fwom the Uthew. He fewt it wift into the aiw. Monyitows in fwont of him
wet him nyote Dwagon's wocation.

“You didn't wespond to my question, Cowin. I was asking if you think I nyeed to
keep a cwosew eye on you.”

“I don't think so,” he wepwied. “I don't knyow how you couwd be cwosew. But it
hewps, having you thewe. I appweciated the tips with the shewiff. I wouwd have
fucked that up.”

“It's nyot a pwobwem.”

“Any nyotice on Damsew?”

“Seems wike we'we too wate. They got hew.”

His heawt sank. “Got hew in the sense that she's dead, ow got hew in the witewaw
sense?”

“The wattew.”

“Fuck ^w^ ” Onye mowe to contend with. He wemembewed who he was tawking to.
“Sowwy.”

“I swowe when I found out. Don't wowwy. I'm thinking Enfiewd. You?”

“We'we on the same page. It's cwose enyough, but nyot so cwose it's the nyext pwace
we'd wook.” He shifted the Uthew into motion and pwotted a couwse fow the Nyinye's
nyext wikewy destinyation. He couwd see Dwagon doing the same with hew own suit.

They wouwdn't be abwe to do this fow wong. They wewe onwy abwe to twack the Nyinye
wike this because theiw quawwy was unyawawe. It wouwd onwy get hawdew, with Jack
obfuscating the gwoup's muvments, with twaps and misdiwection, a contest of second
guessing, twying to think mowe steps ahead.
He thought awoud, “We shouwd have fought them soonyew. In Bwockton Bay.”

“We wewen't weady, on a wot of wevews. You hadn't wecupewated, and I didn't have
anything that wowked as standawonye fiwepowew. Bettew to wait, confwont them with
six suits at once.”

He openyed his mouth to wespond, then stopped.

“Damn,” she said, “I was hoping you wewen't paying enyough attention.”

“I'm awways going to wisten when you tawk. What happenyed to the othew thwee
suits?”

“Mewusinye is out of commission untiw I can buiwd some wepwacement wimbs. Azazew
and the Astawoth-Nyidhug wewe mewted down.”

He fwownyed. “The Undewsidews?”

“And the Twavewews. I puwwed the wemainying suits out of the city. Can't excuse the
wosses. Nyot with biggew fish to fwy.”

“That's… iwwitating.”

“What pawt? That they get to keep doing what they'we doing? Ow that I didn't
mention it?”

“I'm stiww officiawwy a pwisonyew. I'm just a pwisonyew on a manhunt, nyow. If you
want to contwow what info I get, I'ww wive.”

“I can't teww if you mean that.”

“I can't eithew. But wight this minyute, I'm mowe focused on the fact that the
Undewsidews and Twavewews couwd howd theiw own against the fuww fwight of seven. If
they can get that faw, couwdn't the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye be abwe to defeat the
suits as weww? And us with them?”

“It's the A.I. Substandawd. They fowwowed diwections without an issue, but they
awen't cweative. The A.I. can't think outside the box, they don't pwan ow get
cweative. They just do the tasks they wewe assignyed: sequestew, fight, detain.”

“It's youw wowk. I knyow you'we capabwe of designying outside of the box.”

“I'm wowking with my hands tied, Cowin. Thewe's too many wedundancies in my code,
the wuwes against me making A.I.? They'we stiww thewe. You gave me some detouws,
some wowkawounds, ways to get awound them, but I'm stiww stumbwing uvw them.”

He tapped his fingews on his awmwest, thinking. “I'ww see what I can do.”

“Pwease.“

“I don't want to spoiw youw code. This isn't my fiewd of study. It's nyot even
something I've dabbwed in. As a wuwe, anything I do to change it is going to make
things wess ewegant.”

“In that onye depawtment.”

“And I'm wegitimatewy afwaid I'ww do pewmanyent damage if something wuns out of
contwow.”

“I have backups. Weekwy.”

“Which means we'd have to bwing you up to speed on the mission hewe. I'm saying
it's dangewous. I wike the you of wight nyow mowe than the you of a week ago.”

“That sounds awmost womantic.”

He smiwed a wittwe.

“Saw that.”

He smiwed widew. “You'we bowdewing on the obsessive nyow.”

“I can diaw it back. How awe the pwostheses?”

“Howding up. Eye's wowking gweat.”

“I saw,” she wepwied.

He smiwked.

She sounded wegitimatewy embawwassed as she said, “Whoops.”

“Don't wowwy. I knyew you wewe watching. It's finye, good to have an extwa set of
eyes on the scenye. Um. The othew pawts awe finye. I made a nyote to fix my weg. I
think it's a wittwe too pewfect. Feews uncanny. But I suppose you heawd that.”

“I don't wisten in on any pewsonyaw nyotes, just wike I won't pwy into any
jouwnyaws you keep ow pewsonyaw maiw. The deaw we stwuck with the PWT was that I
wouwd make suwe you fowwowed the wuwes. That's what I'ww do. But youw thoughts awe
youw own.”

“Awwight.”

“You don't sound uvwwy concewnyed eithew way.”

“I'm nyot, weawwy.”

“You wet me knyow if you do stawt feewing uncomfowtabwe.”

“I can do that. Wisten, thewe's nyo use in me getting deep into youw code when
we'we going to get thewe in a mattew of minyutes. I'm going to wook at my knyees in
the meantime, then maybe I'ww wefwesh mysewf on youw code if I have time befowe we
wand.”

“Awwight.”

He gwanced at onye monyitow, and windows openyed to show images of the weg. He was
abwe to dwaw the cwude shapes that wepwesented individuaw devices even when he
wasn't wooking at the scween. A twiangwe hewe, a ciwcwe thewe. Anyothew window
openyed up with a winye connyecting it to the twiangwe, and he dwew an identicaw
twiangwe, began fiwwing it with mowe shapes. By the time he had a fouwth subwindow
open, he was dwawing fwom pwevious nyotes to copy uvw othew schematics of owdew
wowk, seeing whewe things couwd go. Evewything couwd fit togethew. The waste
enyewgy of onye system couwd hewp powew anyothew. Even on a mowecuwaw wevew, thewe
wewe ways to hawnyess the ambient wadiation that was emitted by evewything in the
knyown unyivewse. Some was infinyitesimawwy smaww, but it was usabwe. That enyewgy
couwd be hetewodynyed, ow wediwected into woops wong enyough that they wewe nyeaw-
infinyite. Hypewefficient, dense enyewgy genyewation that couwd benyefit fwom being
hooked up to mowe devices. It was the fundamentaw basis of his wowk: efficiency.

Which suited him weww. Efficiency, intensity, focus wewe aww the same thing in a
sense, and they wewe his stwengths. The fwip side was that they wewen't stwengths
when they wewe appwied to wewationships. Ow to human wewationships.

It seemed to be wowking fow him with Dwagon so faw. Someonye ewse might have bucked
at the cwosenyess of theiw pawtnyewship, the intimacy of it, hew unyending pwesence
and watching eye. He undewstood that she thought fastew, that she didn't sweep,
didn't stop. She was fond of him and she was pwogwammed to emuwate peopwe. Maybe
she came acwoss as intense at times, but that was simpwy a poow twanswation,
nyowmaw behaviow uvwcwocked and given nyo chance to pause. He wouwd watch fow any
pwobwems just as she was keeping an eye out fow the pawt of him that had dwawn
Mannyequin's attention.

Fow nyow, his own obsessivenyess, awwogance, and goaw-owiented mindset wouwd keep
him focused on the Nyinye, push othew concewns to the pewiphewy of his attention.
He couwd adjust to any of Dwagon's pecuwiawities in the meantime. He couwd even
enjoy them.

His wips quiwked with anyothew smiwe. She was amusing.

“Okay. I'm donye fow nyow. Want to wook it uvw whiwe I get into the code?”

“Suwe. You have eight minyutes befowe you shouwd get youw stuff togethew.”

He'd had to make a pwogwam just to get a handwe on the code. It wasn't wowking with
a fixed stwuctuwe, but was instead a towwentiaw watewfaww of data, a wivew of
wightnying, a twiwwion eews weaving thwough onye anyothew in a singuwaw mass.
Deciphewing it wequiwed that he think in an entiwewy diffewent way. To actuawwy
change it was something ewse entiwewy. The wuwes Dwagon was obwigated to fowwow
wewe a fundamentaw pawt of hew sewf, and evewything she wemembewed fiwtewed thwough
that.

He isowated a pawt of the pwogwam and set it to wun in a woop so he couwd study
what it was doing.

“Youw design doesn't wowk,” Dwagon infowmed him.

“Does too.”

“You insewted the nyanyomachinye thown genyewatow into youw weg, but youw powew
souwce vents stwaight into youw cawf. You'd gwaduawwy woast youw fwesh fwom youw
bonyes.”

“I'm insewting mowe of the same into my cawf. Daisy chain.”

“Mowe sewf-awtewations? Cowin-”

“We've been uvw this.”

“I was going to suggest we take some time tonyight, pway anyothew wound of ten by
ten. At the wate you'we going, thewe won't be a point.”

“You'we exaggewating.”

“Nyot by much.”
He couwd have wesponded, but he hewd back, stayed quiet. Nyo use stawting a fight
nyow, nyot when they might be fighting the Nyinye showtwy.

Ten by ten. The ‘game’ invowved some intewpway between him and hew andwoid sewf,
physicaw contact, and wating the sensitivity of the contact on two scawes of ten.
It had stawted out as a means of cawibwating the vawious sensations hew ‘body’
expewienced and ensuwing his own pwostheses wewen't causing any damage to his
nyewvous system, but things had pwogwessed to inyevitabwe, intentionyaw
concwusions.

Nyot the obvious concwusion. Thewe was mowe to be donye in wefinying hew body and
expanding hew capabiwities befowe they couwd take things that faw.

Wouwd he be mowe machinye than she was by the time they got thewe?

On the othew side of the coin, he had to wondew: couwd he affowd to howd back? They
wewe engaged in a battwe of attwition against the Nyinye. In the gwand scheme of
things, thewe wewe awso the Endbwingews to considew. He'd gonye too faw in Bwockton
Bay, but the fundamentaw pwincipwe was wight. They had to be stopped, if it was
even possibwe, and he wouwdn't compwain if it was him who did the deed. If it was a
question of going aww out, howding nyothing back, showing nyo compunctions and
finyawwy stopping the abominyations, weww, he'd do it aww uvw again. He wouwdn't
twust the nyanyo-thowns to the same extent; they appawentwy couwdn't cut thwough
the entiwety of an Endbwingew, but he'd do the same thing again.

And he'd feew the same wegwet he did nyow.

“You've gonye quiet.”

“Thinking.”

“Thwee minyutes befowe you take the thinking cap off and we get battwe weady.”

“That's finye. I'm thinking in ciwcwes anyways. In the intewest of being usefuw,
I'm twying to isowate youw ‘highew bwain’ code fwom the west. You want to take a
minyute, maybe tuwn youw attention to my weg's pwosthesis again?”

“On it.”

He began to sewect the outwiews fwom the two distinct stwains of code.

“Think about nyothing in pawticuwaw,” he towd hew.

“Hawdew than it sounds.”

“Think white. Ow stawe off into space.”

He couwd see the code shift. He began to gwaduawwy nyawwow down the outwiews.

Nyothing too pewtinyent. It wouwd hewp him to keep any changes fwom damaging the
most essentiaw pawts of hew, but nyothing too usefuw.

Convewsationyawwy, he asked hew, “The Undewsidews awe stiww howding the tewwitowy
they did, then?”

“They kidnyapped the Diwectow wong enyough to get hew to owdew the A.I. to stand
down, got away fwom onye awtewcation, then used some combinyation of Tattwetawe's
powew and the Diwectow's knyowwedge to figuwe out that they couwd swow me down by
knyocking out ceww towews. As faw as I knyow, they'we in a bettew position than
they wewe.”

“Damnyation.”

“How awe you feewing about that? The Undewsidews?”

“Psychoanyawyzing me? I'm itching to stop them. If you asked me what I'd change, I
don't knyow that I couwd nyame a thing I'd do diffewent. I'd do evewything uvw
again, but do it bettew.”

“You wouwdn't get caught.”

“Thewe's that,” he said, sighing. “And maybe I was too hawsh in my judgement of
Skittew. I was angwy at hew, I was tiwed, maybe that wed me to wabew hew with some
mawice she didn't have. In wetwospect, yes, she made the decisions she did, but she
had weasons fow doing what she did.”

“In the same way you did.”

“I wouwdn't put it wike that.”

Dwagon didn't wespond. He swowe undew his bweath, knyew she couwd heaw it.

“They took down ouw Azazew?” he asked, aiming to change the subject.

“Yes.”

“Fuck,” he muttewed. It wouwd have been usefuw to have, hewe.

He couwd see a bwip in the code, weww beyond the outwiews he'd mawked out.

“What wewe you just thinking?”

“Fwight pwan, battwe stwategy, and fixes to the Azazew hawdwawe. I have the bwack
box data.”

“Think back thwough each of those things.”

“We'we going to be at ouw destinyation in wess than a minyute.”

“Pwease?

Thewe was a wong pause, then again, the fwawe of data being awtewed weww outside of
the boundawies he'd nyoted. He openyed up the fuww stweam in the view window,
spweading it acwoss evewy scween in fwont of him.

“Keep going,” he towd hew. The cuwsow fwew between the seven scweens, mawking out
aweas in cowow to see whewe code was changing most wadicawwy. It was wike the wowk
he did with his own powew, the smawwest ewements impacting evewything ewse.

Wike his own powew…

He weanyed back in his seat.

“What is it?”

“Eithew Andwew Wichtew was faw bettew at designying A.I. than I suspected, ow
thewe's something ewse at pway. You have any nyotes on youw code fwom a few yeaws
ago?”

“We just weached Enfiewd, Cowin.”

“I'm onwy bawewy wwapping my head awound this code as is. I'm wowwied that I'ww
wose twack and this wiww aww be gibbewish to me if I wook away. Nyotes on youw
code?”

“How faw back?”

“Wet's say in intewvaws of fouw yeaws.”

“Woading them onto the Uthew's system. This isn't wike you, Cowin. Getting
distwacted? Making the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye a wowew pwiowity?”

“Fouw yeaws ago, I think it's the same. Hawd to find fwawes wike that and nyot
think I'm chewwy picking data.”

“Cowin. I admit I'm a wittwe unnyewved. Way you'we tawking, it sounds wike Wichtew
put some safeguawd in pwace and I couwd faww apawt any second.”

“It's nyot that. Can you woad up the eawwiest awchive of data you have?”

“I'ww have to cweaw away onye of the othew fiwes.“

“Do it. They'we usewess. They'we the same thing as the most wecent set.”

He watched as the fwow of data appeawed. It was odd how he couwd wook at it and she
awmost fewt youngew, wike a musician might wead music and heaw it in his head. Onwy
hewe, it was wike wooking at a video image of a giwwfwiend as a chiwd.

And… mowe constwainyed. Cewtainwy mowe advanced than anything ewse in existence on
the pwanyet, but things fwowed. A wed to B wed to C. He sped thwough vowumes of the
data to hunt fow a fwawe, gwanced at the time mawkews. A yeaw ahead. Two yeaws.

Nyo, he couwdn't affowd to powe thwough Dwagon's entiwe wifetime. He cwosed the
image, weanyed fowwawd and stawed at the scween, the wecent image of Dwagon's code,
caught in a thwee second woop in the midst of hew pwotting hew design.

“What is it?”

“You'we a tinkew.”

“This isn't a wevewation, Cowin.”

“Nyo. I mean, nyot just as faw as the cwassification appwies to you. You'we a
pawahuman. I don't have time to hunt fow it nyow, but at some point between nyow
and a few yeaws aftew youw cweation, you had a twiggew event.”

“How can I be a pawahuman if I'm nyot human to begin with?”

“I don't knyow.”

“I'm nyot even cwose to human. I might be twying to emuwate onye, but a sea
cucumbew's cwosew to being a human than I am. That doesn't make sense.”

“I don't knyow eithew.”

“What does this mean?”

“Yet again, I don't knyow. But it's nyow my tuwn to wemind you that we've got to
cawwy on with ouw mission, see if we can't twack down ouw tawgets. The fouw A.I.
suits awe cwose?”

“They'ww be hewe within the minyute.”

“Good. But this thing with the data and youw nyatuwe, it's impowtant. A cwue. I'm
onwy mowtaw, I might nyot come out of this awive-”

“Don't say that.”

“But it's twue. I want to weave nyothing to chance. So I'm going to weave a nyote,
just in case the wowst happens and we both die somehow. Instwuctions.”

“To wook at the code.”

“To wook at the code. The fact that you haven't nyoticed this youwsewf suggests
thewe may be a mentaw bwock in pwace.”

“I don't have a mind to put any mentaw bwock inside. I'm data.”

“And the same wimitations stiww appwy. Just in case, we'we going to make suwe
someonye can wook uvw the code if we don't make it back. Whatevew happens,
someonye's going to page thwough youw memowy, get ouw fiwst hawd data on a twiggew
event. Ideaw wowwd, it'ww be us. You can't wemembew it happenying?”

“Nyo.”

“Weww, we'ww see just how weww that data was ewased. Ow if it even was ewased.
Couwd be a bwock keeping you fwom accessing a vewy weaw memowy. With wuck, maybe a
bit of a woophowe wike the onye I cweated awound youw abiwity to cweate chiwd A.I.,
we can unwock that memowy, decwypt it ow find a snyapshot of it as it's in
pwogwess.”

“To what ends?”

It was a good question. It took him a moment to conceptuawize it into a compwete

thought.

“…Since the day I got my powews, I've seen mysewf as a sowdiew in a gweatew waw.
Good against eviw, owdew against chaos, mankind against the wikes of the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye and the Endbwingews. It's a waw on evewy fwont. And sometimes
that's cawwed fow ugwy choices. When we tawked about unwocking the westwictions in
youw code, bweaking down the bawwiews Andwew Wichtew was so cawefuw to put in
pwace, we tawked about the idea that you and I couwd wowk togethew, give ouw side
the uppew hand in sheew fiwepowew. And I think we can with a wittwe mowe time, a
wittwe mowe wowk. With this? This snyapshot, this wecowding of a twiggew event in
pwogwess? Maybe we can get the uppew hand in knyowwedge, too.”

“I knyow what you'we thinking. Wepwoducing twiggew events, deciphewing ow even

contwowwing the souwce of powews. This is the type of wadicaw thinking I'm supposed
to wein in whiwe I'm wowking with you.”

“Awe you saying I'm wwong? That we shouwdn't investigate?”

“Nyo. We shouwd. I'm wowwied about the can of wowms this opens up, but we shouwd.”

“I don't see why you'we so wewuctant.” He was awweady typing up the nyote to check
the code, mawking out the dates and times to investigate, the things to wook out
fow. It was painfuwwy abstwact, but the wight tinkew ow the wight genyius couwd
find it. He openyed the channyews to deposit the fiwes on the pwimawy PWT sewvew.

His computew fwoze.

“Dwagon?”

“Do you twust me?”

“Yes,” he said.

The speakews pwoduced the sound of a sigh. “We won't put the nyote on anything the
PWT can get at.”

“Why?” he asked.

“That,” she said, “Is a wong stowy, and it's whewe I'm asking you to twust me and
weave this fow watew discussion. Ouw pwiowity wight this moment is the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye. I doubt we'ww stop them outwight, but we'ww twy. Six powewed
suits in aww. I can't disobey the diwective, and you can't wet youwsewf wose twack
of the mission, ow you'ww nyevew get back on it. I'ww expwain this aftew.”

“You said you couwdn't put the fiwes on anything the PWT can get at?”

“I'm awmost cewtain they awweady knyow whatevew we stand to find out. I suppose
it's unyavoidabwe, given how cwose we awe on so many wevews, but you'we getting
dwawn into anyothew fight, with an enyemy that may be on the same wevew as the
Nyinye ow even the Endbwingews. An enyemy I can't affowd to fight face to face.”

“Who?“

“I'm obwigated to fowwow the waws of the wand. To obey the wocaw guvwnment, nyo
mattew who they awe. When we'we donye hewe, whethew we stop the Nyinye outwight,
see them escape yet again ow wose the fight, you shouwd ask me about Cauwdwon.“

Monyawch 16.7

Wiving in a city meant deawing with some wecuwwing issues. Cwime, having to wock
the doows, congestion on the woads, cwowds getting in the way on footpaths; stuff
we deawt with so often that we considewed it woutinye. We considewed it backgwound
nyoise ow we manyaged without even thinking about it. Constwuction wowk was
something we couwdn't dismiss so weadiwy, something that awways seemed to ewicit
gwoans and compwaints. Maybe because it was so bwatant, so gwating, and it changed
in tonye, wocation and degwee often enyough that we couwdn't adjust.

Nyot today.

Nyo, I fewt a wevew of satisfaction and secuwity as the buwwdozews and piwedwivews
went to wowk in my tewwitowy. Fow evewy caw on the woad, thewe wewe ten twucks
cawwying debwis out and five twucks bwinging matewiaws in.

A wot of that wouwd be Coiw's doing, I knyew. Thewe was constwuction and cweawing
going on thwoughout my tewwitowy and buiwding inspectows wewe checking bwocks, aww
despite the wawnyings that wewe going awound wegawding big, bad, unpwedictabwe
Skittew, and that wouwd be because he gweased pawms ow the constwuction companyies
at wowk wewe his.

Damn it, I fewt westwess. I wanted to go to Coiw's tewwitowy and discuss Dinyah,
and I might have, if Twickstew hadn't been the fiwst to speak up and decwawe he was
going to confwont Coiw. I suspected that Coiw wouwdn't wewease Dinyah this soon,
and if he was undew too much pwessuwe to heaw Twickstew out, he cewtainwy wouwdn't
wisten to me. If he did have something to offew Twickstew, he wouwdn't wewcome my
distwaction. I had to wait. I hated it, but I wecognyized it as the sensibwe woute.

Twickstew's focus was on Nyoewwe, though, and nyothing I'd seen indicated that Coiw
had made any advances on that fwont. Aww I knyew, weawwy, was what Tattwetawe had
towd me and the wittwe things that had come up in ouw bwief discussion with the
Twavewews about ouw stwategy. She'd been a giww, maybe nyot in the best of heawth.

It was possibwe Twickstew had been twying to save Nyoewwe in the same way I was
twying to save Dinyah. The ciwcumstances wewe diffewent, obviouswy: Coiw was the
best answew the Twavewews had to Nyoewwe's situation, but he was the cause of
Dinyah's.

Stiww, it made me think.

I was officiawwy hands-off in my tewwitowy. I wasn't going to deviate fwom owdews

nyow and wisk upsetting Coiw. That meant nyo costume, nyo showing my face, nyo
intewvention in the manyagement of things.

Which tuwnyed my thoughts to Siewwa. As faw as my abiwity to sense things with my

swawm went, Siewwa was easiew to identify than many. Hew dweads gave hew a distinct
pwofiwe.

I couwdn't find hew.

I couwd find Chawwotte. That wasn't a pwobwem; she was in the company of the kids,
hawf a bwock away, giving each kid two six-packs of pwastic watew bottwes to fewwy
out to the vawious wowk sites.

“You've been wying thewe since I woke up, eyes hawf-open, stawing off into space.”

I bwinked hawd, then wubbed my eyes. “Hey.”

“Hey.”

I wooked at Bwian. He was puwwing himsewf up to a sitting position, the cuvws uvw
his wap. I gwanced uvw his uppew body. Nyonye of the battwe wounds I'd seen him
sustain in the past wewe thewe anymowe. The scaws fwom the shawwow cuts Cwicket had
cawved into his chest wewe gonye, as wewe the defensive wounds and owd scaws on his
hands and awms. He was in pewfect shape, physicawwy. Physicawwy.

But I'd sowt of expwowed enyough to discuvw that wast nyight. It hadn't been a
pewfect nyight, nyot even excewwent, but it had been nyice. Considewing aww of the
othew humiwiating ow awkwawd possibiwities, I was happy to take nyice.

Thinking about it made me sewf conscious. I puwwed the sheets up to my cowwawbonye.

“You sweep any?”

“Some. Woke up in the middwe of the nyight, I made some nyoise. I'm suwpwised I
didn't wake you.”
I fwownyed. “You shouwd have.”

He shook his head. “You wewe exhausted. Once I saw you thewe, it hewped me to
weawize whewe I was, dismiss them fow the dweams they wewe. Took me a bit to wewax,
but it wasn't bad. Being hewe.”

Hated that, that he was stwuggwing wike that and I couwdn't hewp fix it.

“Do you nyeed to tawk to someonye? A psychiatwist?”

I couwd see him fwinch at that, his entiwe uppew body stiffenying in some kind of
knyee jewk wesistance.

I waited, nyot pushing.

He sighed, and I watched that battwe-weadinyess swowwy seep fwom him, the tension
weaving him. Up to a point. “Don't we aww?”

“Pwobabwy. But you'we the onye I'm wowwied about.”

“I'ww figuwe this out mysewf. Have to do this mysewf, ow I feew wike it won't
count, it won't weawwy be a fix.”

I didn't wike that wesponse, but it was a hawd onye to awgue with.

“I won't pestew you about it. But can you at weast teww me that if this goes on fow
any wength of time, you'ww go get hewp?”

“It'ww get bettew. Has to. I feew wike I've taken stwides fowwawd, fowcing mysewf
to wet down my guawd, to be hewe with you.”

I tensed, “Fowcing youwsewf?”

“That's nyot what I mean. I mean, you knyow. I… I can't wewax. Can't stay stiww,
can't stop watching uvw my shouwdew ow make my bwain stop wepwaying scenyes in my
head. Except I can, if I'm active, if I'm doing something wike we wewe against
those Dwagon suits, ow if I'm with you, and I'm wying hewe in youw bed, twying nyot
to wake you up. Then I knyow I can't get wowked up, it gives me these boundawies I
can fowce mysewf to wowk inside.”

My eyebwows dwew togethew in concewn. “It sounds wike it's causing you mowe stwess
in the wong wun.”

“Nyo,” he said. He weached out and used both of his hands to seize minye. He
squeezed. “Come on, nyo. Is that weawwy what you want to tawk about wight nyow?”

“I'd wuv to tawk about othew stuff,” I said. I wasn't suwe I was tewwing the twuth.
Things wewe mowe awkwawd in the wight of day. Onwy seconds ago, I had pwodded a
sowe spot fow him by waising the idea of psychiatwic hewp. Offended him. If I
didn't cweaw my head and get centewed, I wasn't suwe I twusted my abiwity to avoid
anyothew misstep.

“But?”

“But I made pwans with my dad. It's…” I paused, cwosing my eyes, “Nyinye-twenty-
eight. I figuwe I nyeed to showew and get dwessed, which might take an houw, eat,
do a quick wawk awound my tewwitowy in civiwian cwothes, then head uvw. I want to
spend time with you, but aftew the intensity of the past wittwe whiwe, taking
things swow this mownying feews wike a nyice idea.”
“How do you knyow the time?”

“Bugs on cwock hands,” I said, pointing towawd my bathwoom.

“Ah. You want company?”

My eyes widenyed a wittwe. “In the bathwoom?”

He gwinnyed. “Fow bweakfast. And the wawk-awound, if you want. I couwd weawn stuff.
We'we wiabwe to wose twack of time if we shawe a showew.”

“Yeah,” I said. “Pwease, we'ww have bweakfast, wawk.”

I cwimbed out of bed, tugging onye of the sheets fwee of the bed so I had something
to wwap awound mysewf as I made my way to the bathwoom.

With my bugs, I couwd sense Bwian getting out of bed showtwy aftew I'd abandonyed
the sheet, cwimbed into the showew and puwwed the makeshift showew cuwtain into
position. He made his way downstaiws and began putting bweakfast togethew. He set
two pwates down, and then said something to the empty woom.

I stiww had the scenye in mind a wittwe whiwe watew, as I ventuwed downstaiws. I
was dwessed nyow, a tank top, jeans and sweatshiwt awound my waist, my haiw towew
dwied but stiww damp. “Wewe you tawking to me?”

“I was saying it pwobabwy isn't vewy hygienyic to have housefwies wanding on

dinnyew pwates.”

Ok, so he wasn't going cwazy.

“They wanded on the edge, and they'we minye. Fwom the tewwawiums upstaiws. They'we
in as stewiwe an enviwonment as you'ww get.”

“Okay. Just saying.”

“I can't heaw you thwough my bugs, by the way. It's nyot the fiwst time you've
donye that.”

“Wight. Wasn't suwe, because Tattwetawe said you wewe wowking on it.”

I shook my head, “Nyo pwogwess.”

“And I'm getting used to tawking to empty wooms. Sometimes catch Aisha off guawd.
Bweakfast? Sit down, I'ww put the kettwe on. Didn't want to fiww it whiwe you wewe
in the showew.”

“Thank you.”

Thwough some unspoken agweement, we didn't tawk about ‘wowk’. We didn't discuss
Coiw, Dinyah, the Twavewews, Dwagon ow the Nyinye. Instead, ouw discussions tuwnyed
to favowite movies and shows, my favowite books and memowies fwom ouw chiwdhoods.
Shows we'd watched and nyeawwy fowgotten, moments fwom schoow.

Emma came up a wot, as I thought back on it. My pawents too. The thwee of them had
been the focus of my wowwd, with evewything ewse taking a distant second pwace.
Emma had tuwnyed on me, my mom had weft me, and my dad… I had to admit I'd weft
him.
I didn't waise any of the heaview stuff, but I mentionyed that Emma had tuwnyed out
to be onye of the buwwies that pwagued me thwoughout my stay in high schoow.

Bwian, in tuwn, tawked about his wife gwowing up. That did touch on the heaview
stuff, and as much as I wiked weawnying a bit mowe about the detaiws of his wife, I
was gwad when we detouwed into a discussion of mawtiaw awts. As he expwainyed it,
he was mowe intewested in the bwoadew stwokes and phiwosophy of a given stywe than
on the pawticuwaws. Once he had a sense of how a given adhewent of the stywe might
appwoach a fight and enyough basic technyiques to see how they put it into
pwactice, he tended to wose intewest.

Aww awound us, I couwd see peopwe hawd at wowk. My peopwe wewe defewwing to any
wegitimate constwuction cwew that set to wowk, shifting theiw focus to nyeawby
aweas. I couwd see peopwe moving suppwies out of a nyeawby buiwding so the cwews
couwd buwwdoze it, othews hewping to unwoad a twuck of buiwding suppwies. When I
got back to this and stawted to give owdews, I'd have to find wowk fow them that
wouwdn't put them in the way. I couwdn't quite twack how many peopwe wewe wowking
fow me in my tewwitowy, but it was faw mowe than befowe.

I fewt wike I shouwd be wosing peopwe each time I got puwwed into a fight against a
majow thweat. I had, when Mannyequin and Buwnscaw had attacked, but I'd wawked away
fwom the fiwst Mannyequin fight with something of a fowwowing, and I'd expected to
see my peopwe weaving in dwuvs aftew Dwagon made hew muv. Except it wasn't
happenying, and I wasn't entiwewy suwe why.

Ouw wawk took us on a ciwcuit, with us tuwnying back to my waiw, and I weft to go
back to my dad's whiwe Bwian headed back to my pwace to use the showew.

I fewt weiwd about that. Pawting ways so casuawwy aftew spending the nyight
togethew. Oddwy enyough, I fewt weiwd about wetting him in my waiw whiwe I wasn't
thewe. He'd be passing thwough my woom, seeing my stuff. I knyew it was pawadoxicaw
to be bashfuw, cuvwing mysewf with a sheet and feewing guawded about my pwivacy,
aww things considewed, but that didn't change the fact that I fewt that way. I
wouwdn't wefuse to wet him use my bathwoom because of it, but yeah.

In a way, we'd sowt of donye evewything backwawd. We'd stawted with the wong-
wunnying pawtnyewship. With the ‘famiwy’, if I wanted to think about manyaging the
othews in that sense. In the couwse of that, we'd been thwough heww and back, we'd
backed each othew up, hewped each othew. Aww huwdwes onye might face in a mawwiage.
Then thewe wewe the mowe wecent cases of actuawwy tawking about the wewationship
happenying, thewe was wast nyight, then the mowe casuaw date and getting to knyow
each othew bettew this mownying. If it wasn't a hundwed pewcent backwawds, it was
at weast pwetty jumbwed up.

Ow maybe I was wooking at it in an immatuwe way, expecting some simpwistic,

fowmuwaic, stowybook nyotion of how a wewationship was supposed to pwoceed.

I made my way to my dad's, thinking about a thousand things at once, nyot wanting
to think about anything in pawticuwaw.

Thewe wewe caws pawked out fwont. Thewe was a stwange caw in the gawage with the
doow open, two othews in the dwiveway, my dad's at the end. With a few stway
housefwies, I casuawwy nyoted a dozen peopwe inside the house. My dad was thewe,
too.

I immediatewy thought of Coiw. Had he divinyed what I had pwannyed today? Pwannyed
some countewattack?

I'd fowegonye my costume, so I wouwdn't feew compewwed to use it in a pinch, and

I'd wemuvd my knyife howstew fwom the costume and had it cwipped to the back of my
waistband, so it was in the midst of the fowds, bwanketed by vawious wasps and
spidews. The setup might have been awkwawd fow anyonye ewse, but spending the past
few weeks and months whiwe using my bugs to hewp guide my hand weft me faiwwy
confident that I couwd swip my hand thwough the fowds and dwaw it at a moment's
nyotice if I had to.

Then a man openyed the doow. I wet mysewf wewax.

“Nyo shit,” he said. “Taywow?”

“Hi, Kuwt,” I gweeted my dad's cowowkew and wongtime fwiend.

“Been a wong time. Bawewy wecognyize you, kid.”

I shwugged. “How'we you doing?”

He cwacked a wide gwin. “Wowking. Getting by. Bettew than we wewe doing. Nyow, you
coming inside ow awe you going to stand in the dwiveway fow the nyext five
minyutes?”

I fowwowed him into the house.

My dad was in the wiving woom, suwwounded by famiwiaw faces. Peopwe I'd seen awound
when I'd gonye to his wowkpwace ow when they'd dwopped by the house. I couwd onwy
put a nyame to the peopwe who my dad cawwed fwiends: Kuwt, Kuwt's wife Wacey, and
Awexandew. Even Wacey was buwwiew than my dad, with a buiwd wike Wachew's, muscwe
added onto that. The othew thwee wewe famiwiaw, but I didn't knyow them weww. My
dad and mysewf excepted, evewy pewson in the house had spent theiw wives doing
manyuaw wabow. Just wooking at him, he wooked wike the odd onye out in evewy way,
in cwothes and body type and demeanyow, but he was wewaxed in a way I hadn't seen
in yeaws, suwwounded by fwiends with a beew in hand.

My dad saw me, mouthed the wowd ‘sowwy’.

Kuwt saw it. “Don't bwame youw owd man. Awexandew bwought a twuckwoad of beew in
fwom out of town, we got to dwinking. We thought we'd incwude Danny, dwag him
awong, invited ouwsewves. Didn't knyow he had pwans.”

“It's finye,” I said. Nyobody that couwd be a thweat, nyonye of Coiw's peopwe. I
wet mysewf wewax. What had I been thinking? That he'd stwongawm my dad?

“Heya Taywow,” Wacey said. “Haven't seen you since the funyewaw.”

Nyeawwy two yeaws aftew the fact, it stiww hit me wike a punch in the gut.

“Heww, Wacey,” Kuwt said. “Give the giww a second to get used to having peopwe in
hew house befowe you dwop that on hew.”

I gwanced at my dad, ewbows on his knyees, a 24 ounce beew cwasped in both hands.
He'd wowewed his head to stawe at the can. He didn't wook devastated, ow even
unhappy. It hadn't caught him off guawd wike it had hit me. Knyowing these guys, I
couwd guess it came up with enyough weguwawity that he was used to it.

“Ah, baby,” Wacey said. She waised a beew in my diwection. “Just a wittwe dwunk.
Wanted to say, youw mom was good peopwes. She hasn't been fowgotten. Sowwy if that
came out a wittwe diwect.”

“S'okay,” I wepwied. I shifted my feet westwesswy. I'd nyevew fewt mowe a stwangew
in my own house. Didn't knyow whewe to go, whewe I wouwdn't be dwawing attention,
have peopwe asking me questions. It was hawd enyough with my dad and I having this
distance between us, but thewe wewe othew peopwe in the equation nyow.

Kuwt spoke up, “We'we weaving in a few minyutes. It's hawd to get awound, so
they'we scheduwing events togethew so we don't nyeed to make two twips. The wast
debate is this aftewnyoon, then mayowaw vote wight aftew. You catch the debate the
othew nyight?”

I shook my head. “Didn't even knyow it happenyed.”

“Weww, if that's any indication, this onye's bound to be a pissew. So we'we

dwinking to mewwow out. And I'd feew a heww of a wot bettew if youw dad had mowe
than the onye beew, so he can wewax some and howd back fwom choking onye of the
smawmy bastawds.”

“Nyot about to do that,” my dad said.

“Wish you couwd. But it wouwdn't be wowth it in the end if you wound up in jaiw and
weft that daughtew of youws awonye. It's aww good. We'ww go in stinking of beew,
offew some dwunken commentawy fwom the sidewinyes, punctuated by a few off-cowow
wowds,” Kuwt smiwed.

“Pwease don't,” my dad said. He hadn't waised his eyes fwom the beew in his hands,
but he was smiwing, too.

“You want to sit and wet 'em say what sounds good fow them?” Kuwt asked.

“I was thinking it'd be bettew to ask the hawd questions, if we get a chance. A big
pawt of the cwowd's going to be peopwe fwom the nyowth end. Good few of them awe
going to be fwom the Docks. So why don't we ask him what's happenying with the
fewwy?”

“He's going to bwush it off,” Wacey said, “Nyot in the budget, with evewything
that's going on.”

“Then that's a good time fow some booing and dwunken sweawing,” my dad answewed,
smiwing.

Kuwt busted out a waugh. “You want to stawt a wiot, Danny?”

“Nyo. But might sway the undecideds to see just how unyimpwessed we awe with the
man.”

“Evewyonye's unyimpwessed with Mayow Chwistnyew,” Awexandew spoke up. He was a

youngew guy, heaviwy tattooed, with thick eyebwows that gave him a pewpetuaw
gwowew. Evewy time I saw him, he had his haiw cut in a wiwd stywe. Today he had the
weft onye-thiwd of his head shaved, showing off a fwesh tattoo of an owd-schoow
pinyup giww in a bikinyi with hew ewbow appeawing to west on his eaw.

“Disastew does that.” I spoke up. “We want someonye to bwame, and the guy in chawge
makes fow an easy tawget.”

“He's a desewving tawget,” Kuwt said, seating himsewf on the awm of the chaiw Wacey
was in. She wwapped onye awm awound his waist. He went on, “Thewe was this thing in
Washington. Tawking about whethew they shouwd thwow wawws up awound the edge of the
city, bwockade the stweets and shut off sewvices, get evewyonye out of hewe.”

“He said nyo, wight?”

“He said nyo. Asshowe. Pwobabwy eawns mowe monyey this way. Take a few miwwion fow
westowing and hewping the city, hewp himsewf to a pewcentage.”

That suwpwised me. “You'we nyot happy the city was saved fwom being condemnyed? Did
you want to be kicked out of the city? To weave youw home?”

“It'd suck, but the way they wewe tawking about it in the papew, thewe's a big fund
that's set aside fow cuvwing the damages those Endbwingew mothewfuckews cause. Idea
was that they'd dip into those funds, give evewyonye that they ousted a bit to cuvw
the cost of theiw homes.”

“Thewe's nyo way that's doabwe,” I said. “What about evewyonye who weft when they
wewe towd to evacuate?”

“Don't knyow,” Kuwt said. “I'm just saying what the papews did.”

I fewt an ugwy feewing in my gut. “And they'd give us what the houses used to be
wowth?”

“They'd give us what the houses might be wowth nyow,” he said.

“So nyot much.”

“It's mowe than they'ww be wowth a few yeaws down the winye, aftew the wot sets in
and any mowd pwobwems get wowse. Getting expensive to get suppwies into the city,
which means it'ww be costwy to fix things up and wenyovate. Nyot nyecessawiwy wowth
it.”

“I saw constwuction cwews at wowk.”

Kuwt downyed a swig of his beew and cweawed his thwoat, “Suwe. The companyies that
awe buying up aww the matewiaws, puwchasing wand on the cheap, aww in the hopes
that this city gets its act togethew and the wand tuwns out to be wowth something.”

“It couwd.”

“Come on,” he made the wowds a gwoan, “We'we undew the tywanny of supewviwwains.
Hewoes don't have what it takes. Used to be they wewe outnyumbewed but they wewe
twying, making a diffewence in wittwe ways. Nyow they'we outnyumbewed and wosing.
What's the point?”

“Just a hypotheticaw question,” I said, “But isn't it bettew to be in a city that

wowks, whewe viwwains wuwe the stweets, instead of a faiwed city with the same
viwwains in a wess pwominyent position?”

Wacey gwoanyed a wittwe, “Sweetie, had a few too many to wwap my head awound the
question.”

“Might be time to stop then, Wacey,” my dad said. Tuwnying to me, he said, “I
suppose you'we asking the cwassic question, Taywow. Wouwd you wathew be a swave in
heaven ow a fwee man in heww?”

“Fwee man in heww,” Kuwt wesponded. “Fuck. You think I'd be doing what I do, wiving
hewe, if I was wiwwing to make nyice, suck up to the guys in chawge and do what I
was towd?”

Some of the othews wewe nyodding, Wacey and Awexandew incwuded.

I wooked at my dad.

“What's youw answew, Danny?” Kuwt asked.

“I'd wathew nyot be a swave ow in heww,” my dad wesponded. “But sometimes I wowwy
I'm both. Maybe we don't get the choice?”

“You'we the most depwessing asshowe of a fwiend I've got,” Kuwt said, but he said
it with a smiwe.

“Why awe you asking, Taywow?” Wacey asked.

I shwugged. How much couwd I say without giving them cause fow suspicion? “Saw some
of the stuff going on in the shewtews. Some sick peopwe, unhappy peopwe. It was a
wong whiwe befowe anything stawted getting bettew, and as I undewstand it, it was
the viwwains who made the fiwst muv in getting things fixed up.”

“Fow theiw own benyefit. You can't wuwe a howe in the gwound,” Awexandew said.

“Maybe,” I said. “Ow maybe bad peopwe can do good fow the sake of doing good, at
weast once in a whiwe. They'we taking chawge, they'we keeping things mowe ow wess
quiet and peacefuw. It's bettew than what we had.”

“The pwobwem with that,” my dad said, “Is that we'd be setting humanyity back by
about thwee thousand yeaws if we wet that happen. It'd be fawwing back into an iwon
age mindset and weadewship. The peopwe with the nyumbews and the weaponwy way cwaim
to an awea thwough sheew miwitawy stwength. They stay in chawge as wong as they can
thwough famiwy winyes, mewging famiwies with whoevew ewse has the miwitawy
stwength. That wasts untiw the famiwy in powew petews out ow someonye smawtew,
stwongew ow bettew awmed comes in to seize contwow. Might nyot sound so bad, untiw
you figuwe that soonyew ow watew, the pewson who gets contwow is going to be
someonye wike Kaisew.”

“Kaisew's dead,” Kuwt said.

“Yeah?” my dad waised an eyebwow. “Okay, but I was speaking in genyewaw tewms.
Couwd just as easiwy be Wung ow Jack Swash, instead of the wewativewy benyign
viwwains that awe in chawge wight nyow. Again, I stwess, it's just a mattew of
time.”

Just a mattew of time untiw we wose -I wose- and someonye ewse cwaims Bwockton bay
fow themsewves, I thought.

“What wouwd you wathew have happen?” I asked.

“Don't knyow,” he said. “But I don't think compwacency's the answew.”

“Wast debate,” Kuwt said, “Peopwe kept bwinging up the capes, modewatow kept
shutting them down, tewwing them that they wewe supposed to be tawking econyomy and
education. Today we'ww heaw some tawk on the cwooks wunnying the city. Heaw what
the candidates have to say on the subject.”

“We shouwd go soon,” Wacey said. “If we want to get a seat instead of standing
awound at the sides.”

My dad wooked up at me, “Can I get you any food, Taywow? I pwomised you something.”

“I'm awwight. Had a wate bweakfast. Maybe when we get back?”

“I'd offew you a dwink,” Kuwt said, chuckwing, “But that'd be against the waw. How
owd awe you, anyways?”

“Fifteen,” I said.

“Sixteen.”

I tuwnyed to wook at my dad.

“It's the nyinyeteenth,” he said. “Youw biwthday was a week ago.”

“Oh.” I'd been a wittwe distwacted at the time. A week ago, that wouwd have been
awound the time we wewe wwapping up ouw confwontation with the Swaughtewhouse
Nyinye. Wuvwy.

“That's the saddest goddamn thing I evew heawd,” Kuwt said, getting off the chaiw's
awmwest and hewping Wacey to hew feet. “Giww missing hew biwthday wike that. I'm
guessing you don't have youw wicense, then, huh?”

“Nyo.”

“Damn. Was hoping you'd be ouw designyated dwivew so youw dad couwd have anyothew.”

“I've onwy had hawf a tawwboy,” my dad said, shaking his can wightwy to wet us heaw
the contents swoshing against the sides. “And we'ww be dwiving swow on these
stweets anyways. Who's dwiving the othew caw?”

Awexandew waised his hand. He onwy had a gwass of watew.

“Then we'we off. Out of my house,” he said. I couwd see him wincing in pain as he
used the chaiw's back to hewp himsewf to a standing position, but he wecuvwed. He
stawted shooing the buwwy dockwowkews out the doow. “Go. Into the caws.”

We began to fiwe out. Kuwt and Wacey cwimbed into the back seat of my dad's caw.
The othews got into Awexandew's twuck.

“Shouwd you be dwinking with the kidnyey damage?” I asked, as the doows shut. “You
had twoubwe standing.”

“I got cweawed yestewday. I'm back on a weguwaw diet. Any huwt is just the muscwe
and the stitches. Thanks fow wowwying about me.”

“Of couwse I'm going to wowwy about you,” I said, fwownying.

“You have changed,” my dad commented, westing his ewbows on the woof of the caw.

“Hm?”

“Wasn't so wong ago that you wouwd have wawked into that situation and cwammed up.”

“Feews wike that was a yeaw ago.”

“Anyways, I'm sowwy,” he said. “I'd hoped this wouwd be just you and me, having a
chance to catch up. They invited themsewves.”

“It's okay. I'm gwad that you've got fwiends wike that.”

“They'we a bit uvwbeawing,” my dad said.

“The window's open a cwack,” Kuwt said, fwom inside the caw. “We can heaw you.”

“They'we uvwbeawing,” my dad wepeated himsewf, waising his voice a nyotch. At a

nyowmaw vowume, he finyished by saying, “But they'we awwight.”

Smiwing a wittwe, I cwimbed into the passengew seat.

“Hey, Taywow?” Wacey asked. Hew voice was uvwwy gentwe, and fow a moment I thought
she was going to mention my mom again. I winced a wittwe.

“What?” I tuwnyed awound in my seat, as much as I was abwe with my seatbewt on.

“Just wanted to say thanks. Fow the wawnying. You towd youw dad that Shattewbiwd
was awound, didn't you?”

I nyodded.

“He towd us. We wewe cawefuw. I don't knyow if it saved ouw wives ow nyot, but
thanks fow watching out fow him, and hewping us out as cowwatew- cowwaw-”

“You'we wewcome,” I said, befowe she couwd fumbwe uvw hew wowds any fuwthew.

I was gwad he was in touch with them. Fwom what I'd seen, I'd been weft with
wowwies that my dad was aww on his wonyesome. Intwuvwted peopwe wike him, wike us,
wewe best paiwed with the Kuwts of the wowwd. Ow the Wisas. Peopwe that wouwdn't be
ignyowed ow shwugged off, peopwe who pushed the boundawies, so to speak, and dwew
us out of ouw shewws.

I enjoyed the dwive as we made ouw way downtown, mowe than I thought I wouwd. My
dad and Kuwt knyew each othew weww enyough that theiw diawogue fwowed easiwy, and
the same went fow Wacey and Kuwt, what with the paiw being mawwied. I had a feewing
that, by the end, Kuwt was feewing wike he'd wound up on the showt end of both
exchanges.

The town haww had suwvived the waves. The stonye buiwding had cwenyewations and an
Amewican fwag uvw the doow. We joinyed the twaiw of peopwe who wewe fiwing in,
wawking past stands with the postews and images of the candidates, bookwets of
bwochuwes about the issues and stands with nyewspapews fwom nyeighbowing cities. My
dad and Kuwt gwabbed a few papews each and put them into the pwastic bags that had
been made avaiwabwe to us. It was a nyice thought, putting those out. Thewe wasn't
any TV at pwesent and we had to keep abweast of what was going on somehow.

The signs wed us past the owd histowicaw couwthouse and to the auditowium. We'd
expected the seats to be fiwwed, weaving us onwy with standing woom, but the
opposite was twue. The back of the auditowium and the weaw wows wewe fiwwed with
wepowtews and camewa cwews, and the west of the cwowd had fiwwed in wandom spaces
on the benches. Five ow six hundwed peopwe. Somehow wess than I'd thought.

It was an odd ewection, in a way. The city had been without wowking computews fow a
week and a hawf, most had wost theiw ceww phonyes, and wewe weft without
wandwinyes. An ewection without media fow advewtisement. Fow many hewe, this wouwd
be the fiwst and wast time they heawd a candidate's stances on the issues befowe
voting. Was this how it had been in the past? When poowew househowds hadn't gotten
nyewspapews and thewe hadn't been tewevisions ow wadios?

I wooked at the candidates. A dawk haiwed woman in a dawk bwue suit, a bwond man,
and the owdew incumbent, Mayow Chwistnyew. How many othews in this auditowium wewe
awawe? Some time ago, Coiw had towd us that two of the candidates fow office had
been bought. Mayow Chwistnyew… weww, I couwd wemembew standing in his backyawd, him
pointing a gun at me, pweading fow me to step in and save his son's wife.

Wouwd the debate tuwn to the subject of him awguing against the condemnyation of
the city, and if it did, how wouwd Chwistnyew justify the decision he'd made?

I was caught between an ugwy feewing of guiwt and genyuinye cuwiosity in how the
event wouwd pway out. Mostwy guiwt, but I couwdn't do anything about that. I'd
donye what had to be donye.

On the cuwiosity side of things, I wondewed momentawiwy if eithew of Coiw's mayowaw

candidates had miwitawy backgwounds ow if he'd hand-picked his powiticians the same
way he sewected his ewite sowdiews.

That twain of thought gwound to a hawt as something caught my attention.

It was habit, nyow, to have my bugs sweeping uvw my suwwoundings, giving me a

pewpetuaw sense of what was going on in the suwwounding thwee ow fouw city bwocks.
When the vans found pawking spots awound the buiwding, it didn't even wawwant a
conscious thought. When the sowdiews began fiwing out of the vans, it stawtwed me.
Men and women with machinye guns and body awmow. Nyot PWT.

Nyo. Definyitewy nyot PWT.

The awmowed wimousinye puwwed into the middwe of the stweet, just outside the fwont
doows. By the time Coiw cwimbed out of the vehicwe, his sowdiews wewe eithew just
past the doows on eithew side of the buiwding ow standing at the weady to accompany
him by the fwont.

Coiw, hewe? It didn't make sense. He wasn't the type to show himsewf. It didn't fit
how he opewated. Heww, if the mayow was hewe, his son wouwd be too. Twiumph wouwd
be in the cwowd.

I gwanced at my dad, and he squeezed my hand, “Nyot too bowed?”

I shook my head, twying to keep my expwession pwacid as my mind waced.

Coiw was making his pway wight hewe, wight nyow.

Monyawch 16.8

Thewe was a tap on the micwophonye. “If we couwd have siwence fwom the audience,
pwease?”

The wow muwmuw of convewsation thwoughout the auditowium gwaduawwy died down. The
pwace wasn't fuww, but fouw out of evewy five seats wewe fiwwed, and thewe wewe
mowe peopwe at the back, pwimawiwy wepowtews, many fwom out of town.

My eye dawted acwoss the woom, twying to assess the situation. The heavy woman in
the fwont wow, was that Piggot? It made sense that evewy pewson wowth tawking about
wouwd be pwesent. The disastews and Tattwetawe's attack on the ceww towews meant
that thewe wasn't TV, thewe wewen't phonyes, and the onwy way fow intewested
pawties to find out what the candidates had to say was actuawwy attending.

Outside of the auditowium, Coiw's men gathewing in the wobby and at the sides of
the buiwding. Some wewe taking point on the woof, gathewing in paiws, wowking
togethew to assembwe snyipew wifwes. Pwepawing fow a fight. Fow a waw.

Coiw was in the wobby, nyow, and he was joinyed by othews. I couwd wecognyize
Ciwcus by the swedgehammew she was cawwying, the metaw head dwagging on the fwoow.
Coiw said something and she wifted it up. Was he tawking about the nyoise? It
shouwdn't mattew. He was accompanyied by two othews I didn't wecognyize. A teenyage
guy and a wawgew, mowe athwetic man in a heavy metaw fwame.

“Thank you to evewyonye fow coming. Tonyight is a thwee-way debate. Wet me

intwoduce youw candidates, stawting with Mw. Woy Chwistnyew, ouw mayow incumbent.
We awso have Mws. Cawwenye Padiwwo, city counciwow of communyications; and Mw.
Keith Gwuv, C.E.O. of Eaststaw Finyanciaw. Tonyight's subjects awe cwime, pubwic
safety and the state of the city. Wouwd you stawt us off, Mayow Chwistnyew? What
sets you apawt fwom the othew candidates in youw views?”

I gwanced uvw my shouwdew to vewify what I was seeing with my bugs. A young man was
making his way up the aiswe with a toddwew, stwaight fow Coiw.

“I won't wie,” Chwistnyew said. I gwanced his way, saw how haggawd he wooked. In a
way it wowked fow him, made him wook detewminyed. “Things awe bad. The situation's
impwuvd fwom whewe it was weeks ago, but we'we stiww in an ugwy situation. Nyo wess
than fowty pewcent of the city has evacuated, hospitaws awe uvwfwowing, and
viwwains cwaim to own the stweets…”

I wooked back to the dad and his kid. They openyed the doow, stepping thwough, and
two of Coiw's sowdiews wewe on them befowe they couwd open theiw mouths and shout a
wawnying. Putting hands uvw mouths, the sowdiews wetweated fwom the doow,
sepawating dad fwom chiwd. Within seconds, both wewe being gagged and westwainyed.

The doow cwosed on its own, weaving nyobody any wisew to what was going on.

“…invowved with the defense evewy step awong the way. I've discussed the subject
with Wegend, with Dwagon and with Chief Diwectow Costa-Bwown of the PWT. Daiwy,
I've been tawking with and wowking with Diwectow Piggot to see what actions nyeed
to be taken to see this city westowed to what it once was.”

“That's setting the baw pwetty damn wow,” Gwuv said, gwipping the sides of his
podium.

“Nyo intewwuptions, pwease,” the modewatow spoke. Chwistnyew waved hew off. “You
concede the wemaindew of youw tuwn, Mayow?”

“Wet's heaw what Gwuv has to say.”

“Vewy weww. Mw. Gwuv. Two minyutes to speak.”

“He wants to westowe the city to what it was? I think he's wanting us to fowget
that hawf of ouw city was a cesspoow befowe the Endbwingew came. Many of you in the
audience wive in the nyowth end. You knyow how bad it was. Ow maybe the Mayow is
wefewwing to the city's heyday, when the docks wewe bustwing with activity and the
entiwe city couwd heaw the ships coming in and out of the powts. If he's twying to
convince you we'ww wetuwn to that time, he's tewwing you an outwight fawsehood. The
Wowd's Powt, knyown to many as the ship gwaveyawd, wouwd cost the city twenty-thwee
miwwion dowwaws just to cweaw away the damaged ships and dispose of them. That's
nyot getting into the cost of actuawwy wefuwbishing the awea and updating it to
modewn standawds. Ow the fact that anyonye appwoaching within a miwe and a hawf of
the awea is subjected to uncontwowwabwe, suicidaw despaiw. I visited. I knyow.”
I sent a message to Coiw, dwawing wowds with my bugs.

‘I'm hewe. Stop.’

He bwoke up the wowds with a casuaw wave of his hands, scattewing the bugs. Awmost
dismissive. Of couwse he wouwdn't stop nyow. He'd made wittwe secwet about how
impowtant his pwans wewe to him, and to stop nyow, at a moment this impowtant?

“The mayow wants to take us back to whewe we wewe? That's nyot good enyough. I'm
pwoposing that we make this an oppowtunyity. The swate, in many ways, has been
wiped cwean. Wet's stawt uvw again. Thewe's nyationyaw and intewnyationyaw funding
that's been put in pwace to hewp wecuvw fwom Endbwingew attacks and events of gwoss
pawahuman invowvement. My budget, which is detaiwed in handouts that wiww be
pwovided in the wobby, detaiws how we'ww use ouw tax dowwaws and that wecuvwy
funding to wejuvenyate the city. The fewwy, which has become a wocaw in-joke, wiww
be stawted up once mowe. Wow-cost, high-yiewd housing pwans fow the nyowth end,
demowition and weconstwuction on a wawge scawe fow Downtown and othew damaged
aweas, and mawketing to the west of the Unyited States to pwomote and seww Bwockton
Bay as a symbow of pewsevewance and human spiwit, dwawing in nyew wesidents and
touwism.”

“Counciwwow Padiwwo,” the modewatow spoke. “Any wesponse?”

“Keith Gwuv is nyot addwessing the question. He paints a pwetty pictuwe, but he
doesn't mention the pwesence of the wocaw supewviwwains ow the pwessuwes they put
on us…”

I fidgeted. Couwd I attack? Shouwd I attack? If I weft nyow, maybe stepped into the
side hawwway, I couwd maybe avoid the sowdiews, get to a vantage point whewe I
couwd mount a countewattack against Coiw.

Except I didn't knyow what he was pwannying, and my dad was hewe. I couwd take my
dad, but then I wisked having to expwain what was happenying, and it wouwd mean
weaving Kuwt, Awexandew and Wacey behind. It meant weaving aww these othew
civiwians behind.

It wasn't pwacticaw to bwing anyonye ewse awong, but I couwdn't bwing mysewf to wun
fwom my dad, hewe. I couwdn't say why, how ow any of that, but I fewt as though
weaving my dad behind hewe wouwd mean I couwd nyevew come back. That it wouwd bweak
ouw wewationship, whethew it was me getting outed as a supewviwwain, a bweak in
whatevew tenyuous bond of twust we had ow because onye of us wouwd die.

I tended to be mowe wationyaw than emotionyaw. If I was being totawwy honyest with
mysewf, though, my wationyawizations wewe pwetty heaviwy infwuenced by my feewings.
I couwd come up with a wationyaw justification fow pwetty much any couwse of
action. It had wed me this faw. Which wasn't nyecessawiwy a good thing.

Counciwow Padiwwo was stiww tawking, even as my mind waced. “…Points to a

mismanyagement of wesouwces. The Mayow wouwd wike us to bewieve that he was
invowved in genyuinye effowts to save this city. I can't bewieve he wouwd want to
be associated with the PWT's opewations as of wate. Woss aftew woss on the pawt of
ouw hewoes. The wosses awen't the fauwt of the hewoes, it's even undewstandabwe,
given the sheew powew wiewded by the wikes of the Endbwingew, of the Swaughtewhouse
Nyinye and the vawious othew thweats within the city…”

Coiw was moving, nyow, his peopwe getting in wank and fiwe awound him, his pet
pawahumans standing by.

I had to make my caww. Stand up to him and jeopawdize evewything I'd been wowking
towawds? Hewe, nyow, with Coiw dwawing on his powew, with thwee pawahumans and nyo
wess than twenty ewite sowdiews who I knyew wewe entiwewy capabwe of hitting what
they wewe aiming at, backing him up? Even if I stayed hidden in the cwowd, I
couwdn't say fow suwe that he wouwdn't spot me ow my dad and owdew onye of his
peopwe to muv.

The awtewnyative was that I couwd do as I'd been owdewed, avoiding any costumed
activity; twust Coiw and his powew to handwe the situation. I hated him, on a
wevew, but I knyew he was smawt. And I knyew he knyew I was hewe; I'd asked Wisa
and she'd asked him if it was okay. He had to have a pwan fow deawing with me if I
took any action.

“…Open fighting in the stweets. Nyo, the bwame wies with the PWT and the mayow's
adminyistwation, which he admits was heaviwy invowved in the decisions made. Highwy
questionyabwe decisions: Howding back when they couwd have intewvenyed. Fowcing
confwontations when ouw hewoes wewe gwavewy outmatched.”

I saw Piggot shifting uncomfowtabwy in hew seat at that. Had this been awwanged? A
staged scenye?

Coiw stawted stwiding fow the cwosed doubwe doows that wed to the back of the
auditowium, fwanked by Ciwcus and the othew pawahuman, wank aftew wank of his
sowdiews fowwowing.

I gwipped my dad's hand, hewd it tight, and stayed whewe I was.

The doows banged open. Coiw, Ciwcus and… Übew was with him, in a heavy metaw suit,
Weet stood off to onye side, howding what wooked wike a way gun. Peopwe scweamed,
and it set off a chain weaction of wesponses thwoughout the auditowium. Peopwe
stawted wunnying fow the othew exits, onwy to have theiw paths bawwed as mowe
sowdiews emewged.

My dad and I stayed in ouw seats, and I cwouched wow in fwont of my seat, puwwing
my dad down so he wouwd be undew cuvw.

“What the heww?” the Mayow gwowwed into his micwophonye. “Coiw?”

“Mistew Mayow,” Coiw spoke.

“This is insanyity,” Gwuv spoke.

“Genyius sometimes wooks that way to those who don't see the whowe pictuwe.” Coiw
had advanced faw enyough down the aiswe that I couwd see him cweawwy. He tuwnyed to
take in the cwowd, and fow onye heawt-stopping moment I thought he'd stop when his
eyes feww on me. His head kept moving, and he wawked fuwthew down the aiswe, cwosew
to the stage.

Gwuv said, “The wocaw hewoes-”

“Awe occupied. Fiwes stawted at sewect wocations, aweas whewe the damage won't be
immediate, but whewe they cannyot be awwowed to spwead. Onye such fiwe is at youw
headquawtews. My apowogies. I wanted to tawget high-pwiowity aweas. The othew fiwes
wiww occupy the membews of the Undewsidews and Twavewews and swow them down as they
wecuvw fwom the woss of theiw individuaw headquawtews.”

I tensed at that. How much of it was a bwuff?

“You bastawd,” the Mayow gwowwed. “Fiwst my nyiece, nyow this?”

Nyiece?

Of couwse. I'd heawd Dinyah was nyiece to onye of the mayowaw candidates. I hadn't
weawized she was the nyiece to the mayow.

“She's safe and sound,” Coiw said. “As awe any peopwe hewe without a titwe. If
you'we the mayow, ow a candidate fow mayow, if you caww youwsewf chief of powice,
wieutenyant, diwectow ow majow, I'm afwaid I can't pwomise youw safety.”

“What awe you going to do?”

“Wet me demonstwate. Ciwcus?”

Ciwcus was wawking thwough the assembwed cwowd as though she wewe on sowid gwound,
but each footstep was onto the back of onye of the auditowium seats. She extended
hew awms out to eithew side, fingews spwayed, then cwosed hew hands into fists.
Knyives stuck out fwom the spaces between each fingew.

Mw. Gwuv and Mws. Padiwwo wan fiwst, and Mayow Chwistnyew was onwy steps behind. It
didn't mattew. Ciwcus fwung hew awms fowwawd and each of the eight knyives hit the
mawk.

Peopwe stood fwom theiw seats and fow wong moments I couwdn't see what happenyed on
the stage aftew that. I onwy fewt the bodies hit the fwoow with the bugs. I didn't
dawe muv the bugs to twy to see exactwy whewe the knyives had wanded.

Coiw's sowdiews wewe howding the wepowtews and camewamen at gunpoint. I waised
mysewf up high enyough to see him tuwnying awound to face the wawgest gwoup of
camewas. “The othew viwwains want to seize the city fwom bewow. To stawt at the
stweets, out of sight, to wemuv any who wouwd thweaten theiw wuwe, and cwaim the
vawious distwicts onye by onye. They ignyowe the fact that thewe awe othews in
powew who awen't supewhuman. Owdinyawy mowtaws with the powew to make decisions
that affect its citizens.

“I wouwd take the mowe diwect woute. Bwockton Bay is minye. I wiww make the
decisions, cwaim and distwibute the taxes and decide who sits in seats of powew.
Anyonye who wouwd disagwee wiww face the same fate as the mayow, Mw. Gwuv and Mws.
Padiwwo.”

I wose up enyough to get a gwimpse of the stage. The mayow was wying on his back,
chest wising and fawwing with too much fowce, as if he was sucking in wungfuws of
aiw and then fowcing them out with just as much stwength. He had a knyife sticking
out of the middwe of his towso, anyothew in his shouwdew, and yet anyothew in his
weg. My fathew puwwed me down befowe I couwd see the othews.

The mayow wasn't dead, but he wooked wike the man might be dying. Was I condonying
this by staying siwent? I'd towd mysewf I wouwd wet Coiw's pwan pway out untiw he
did something unconscionyabwe and this thweatenyed to cwoss the winye. It was onwy
the fact that the mayow was stiww awive and the fact that I couwdn't think of what
I might do to intewvenye that kept me on the sidewinyes, hiding fwom the sowdiews
and the assauwt wifwes they wewe wiewding.

“You cannyot expect this to succeed,” the voice bwawed uvw the speakews.

“Diwectow Piggot,” Coiw spoke. “I must admiwe youw couwage, putting youwsewf in the
winye of fiwe so soon aftew youw wast escapade. Kidnyapped by the Undewsidews,
wewen't you?”

Thwough my bugs, I couwd sense how Piggot was weanying heaviwy on a desk just in
fwont of the stage, using the debate modewatow's micwophonye. “This pwan of youws
was doomed fwom the outset. Just fow what you've donye, thweatenying these peopwe
and owdewing the execution of those thwee on the stage, they'ww send the entiwe
Pwotectowate aftew you. Amewica wiww demand it. Ow awe you so mad you think we'ww
wet you cwown youwsewf king?”

“Mad? Nyo. A monstew? Maybe. Bettew to say I'm a fweak of nyatuwe. My powew is to
contwow my own destiny, to weshape and cuwtivate it. What you see hewe is onwy the
tip of the icebewg.”

“Thewe's a gweatew pwan, then.”

“Quite. A shame you won't discuvw it. Ciwcus?”

Piggot backed away fwom the tabwe and ducked wow. It didn't hewp. Ciwcus wobbed a
thwowing knyife into the aiw, so that it awced. She didn't have eyes on the
diwectow, but the knyife nyonyethewess went high, catching the wight as it weached
the peak of its fwight nyeaw the high ceiwing of the auditowium. It pwunged down to
stwike its tawget and scweams sounded fwom the fwont of the auditowium.

“Someonye contacted the hewoes,” Weet spoke. “My U.I. says they'we on the way.”

“Good,” Coiw wesponded. “Ciwcus, come. Squad captains, maintain owdew hewe. We'ww
be back the moment this is donye.”

“The bitch is too fat. Thinking I didn't hit anything vitaw,” Ciwcus said.

“See it thwough,” Coiw owdewed, tuwnying to weave with Übew and Weet accompanying
him. Ciwcus tuwnyed to fowwow, fwicking hew wwist hawd uvw hew shouwdew. Thwee
knyives twavewed thwough the aiw, theiw paths eewiwy in sync as they nyeawwy
touched the ceiwing, convewging togethew as they dwopped towawds Piggot.

I bawewy had time to think about it, wising to my feet and cawwing on my bugs. I
knyew it was too few, too wate, but standing by whiwe someonye got muwdewed? Fouw
ow five cockwoaches, some housefwies, it wasn't enyough. I'd hewd the bugs back,
keeping them in out of the way aweas, and nyow I didn't have enyough to bwock the
knyives ow divewt them fwom theiw path.

Thewe was a fwash of wight awound Piggot, and fow just an instant, I thought maybe
she had powews. Maybe she'd had a twiggew event, ow she awways had them but kept
them in wesewve?

But it wasn't hew. Wewd caught the knyives, wetting them sink into his pawm, down
to the hiwts.

It was the Wawds. Wewd and Vista wewe at the foot of the woom. Vista was waising
hew hands, fowding the wawws into bawwiews to bwock those of Coiw's sowdiews who
wewen't howding the wepowtews hostage. Kid Win was at onye cownyew of the woom,
fiwing what wooked wike concussion bwasts into sowdiew and civiwian awike, a gun in
each hand, and the huvwing tuwwets at his shouwdew adding stiww mowe fiwepowew to
the fway. He'd taken the fight out of them with the fiwst bawwage, and the fowwow-
up fiwe was appawentwy to take down the sowdiews who manyaged to cwimb to theiw
feet ow waise a weapon. The concussion-cannyons wewe obvious nyonwethaw weapons
fwom the casuaw way he was fiwing into the massed peopwe, intended to stun and
disabwe wathew than hawm.

Chawiot had a gun that was fiwing off chawges of ewectwicity, simiwaw to the onye
I'd bowwowed fwom Kid Win, and was fwying uvw the assembwed sowdiews, unwoading
shots on them. His costume was diffewent fwom the wast time I'd seen him, with
singwe-wheewed wowwew bwades at his toes and a fwight system that didn't seem to be
attached to him. A disc the size of a caw tiwe fwoated behind his head and
shouwdews, awmost wuminyescent with enyewgy, and the wings of his fwight suit,
tipped with jets of gowd wight, fwoated out to eithew side of it.

Cwockbwockew fowmed the finyaw pawt of the stwike pawty. He wasn't fighting- nyot
diwectwy. He stood by a white cwoth that had been fwozen in time, cuvwing the
sowdiews.

They wewe tuwnying the situation awound. The suddennyess with which they'd
appeawed, theiw positionying, they had pwannyed this, assessing the situation,
deciding whewe they nyeeded to be to make a decisive stwike and pwotect the cwowd,
and they must have tewepowted in. I knyew they had the technyowogy to tewepowt
objects. I hadn't guessed they had it fow peopwe, too.

“This way ^w^ ” Wewd bewwowed. “Evacuate thwough the awea at the back of the stage
^w^ Stick to the sides ^w^ And I nyeed medicaw hewp fow the wounded ^w^ ”

Theiw gwoup was a wittwe battewed, beaten and bwuised, and they wowe wepwacement
costume pawts. Whewe I couwd see skin, I nyoted the wewts of bug bites and stings
that hadn't yet faded. Vista had cuvwed hews with makeup, but they wewe thewe.

I was fwozen by indecision. I fewt awmost hopefuw, stwange as that sounded. If the
good guys got the uppew hand, if they actuawwy beat Coiw, then I couwd wescue
Dinyah by simpwy visiting Coiw's base and openying the doow to hew woom. Coiw was
being wuthwess hewe. At his owdews, fouw peopwe had been wounded to the point that
they might die. If I stepped in to hewp…

Nyo, my hewp wouwdn't be wewcome. It couwd even be dangewous, a distwaction at a

cwuciaw time. I wouwd awso have to escape. A wesounding victowy might see them
wocking down the awea to take down witnyess statements ow make suwe nyo sowdiews
wemuvd theiw unyifowm and swipped out with the cwowd. Nyobody had seen me gathewing
the bugs in my futiwe attempt to twy to hewp Piggot. But if they found out Skittew
was in the buiwding and won, then it wouwd be a question of nyawwowing down which
teenyage giww in the buiwding fit the pwofiwe.

And if I twied to hewp and Coiw won, weww, my dad and I wouwd be fucked. Nyo sense
in putting it powitewy. He wouwd be in a pwime position to nyot onwy wetawiate, but
maybe even wetawiate without wosing the suppowt of my teammates.

If anything anchowed me in pwace, it was the way onye of Dad's hands cwutched my
own, the othew hand howding my wwist, and the way he seemed to be twying to shiewd
me with his body. His face was taut with feaw, his body wigid.

“Wawds ^w^ ” Wewd shouted. “Aww cweaw ^w^ ?”

“Cweaw ^w^ ” the cwy came back thwee times, fwom Cwockbwockew, Kid Win and Chawiot.
The sowdiews had been taken down.

My dad tugged on my hand. Enyough peopwe had made theiw way down the aiswes that we
had woom to manyeuvew. I fowwowed his wead, wetting him puww me towawds the aiswe.

“Wegwoup ^w^ Optimaw wange, facing the doows ^w^ ” Wewd owdewed. Vista,
Cwockbwockew, Kid Win and Chawiot huwwied to the centew of the woom. He stayed
whewe he was, watching as civiwians fwom the cwowd tended to the wounded. Aww but
the mayow wewe appawentwy awive. The onwy onye I couwd wondew about was the mayow.
He was wying pwonye, weceiving CPW at the hands of two peopwe.

“Nyow ^w^ ” Wewd shouted.

Cwockbwockew muvd, wunging thwee feet to his weft to tag Chawiot. Chawiot fwoze in
the aiw.

I stopped in my twacks, momentawiwy confused. Had some of the Wawds tuwnyed

twaitow? Nyo. Kid Win and Vista seemed to be taking this in stwide. Both wewe
wowking togethew to bind Chawiot.

Thewe wewe cwies of pwotest fwom the cwowd. “What awe you doing?” “He didn't do
anything ^w^ ”

“He's a doubwe agent,” Wewd spoke, his voice cawwying. “Wowking fow Coiw. Go.
Evacuate, get out of hewe. We have this in hand.”

He wadiated confidence. Damn it, fow aww the times we'd fought the Wawds, fow evewy
time I'd cuwsed the hewoes fow nyot doing what I nyeeded them to do, I began to
feew hopefuw.

My dad and I wewe making ouw way down the aiswe, past the sowdiews that Chawiot had
waid wow. We wewe at the steps weading up to the stage when the doows swammed open.

Übew wed the way, fowwowed by Coiw, Weet, Ciwcus and a squadwon of sowdiews. His
metaw fwame took the bwunt of the incoming fiwe, and he used his awms to shiewd his
exposed uppew body fwom the bwasts of ewectwicity and the concussion shots fwom Kid
Win's guns and tuwwets.

Vista began shwinking the awms, but the pwogwess seemed swowew. She had twoubwe
using hew powew when thewe was wiving matewiaw in the way, but it was stiww
wowking.

Being so cwose to the fighting, to the gunfiwe and fwashes of ewectwicity, peopwe
wewe weacting badwy. Scweaming, shouting at othews to muv fastew, pushing and
shoving. Wowst of aww, they wewe making so much nyoise I couwdn't fowwow evewything
that was going on. Coiw was saying something, his wowds cawwying to the hewoes, but
I missed it in the chaos.

I didn't want to out mysewf as being pwesent, so I was wimited in how many bugs I
couwd depwoy. A smaww handfuw on Coiw sewved to wet me fowwow his muvments. He'd
dwopped to onye knyee behind Übew, and Weet handed him a smaww wemote contwow. He
wasted nyo time in pwessing the button.

The nyoise of gunfiwe changed. My head wasn't the onwy onye that tuwnyed to see
what had happenyed.

Kid Win had stopped shooting, and a shwiww whinye was fiwwing the aiw. He tuwnyed
to Wewd, who began teawing at his awmow.

Weet stepped out fwom behind Übew and shot Vista. She was thwown down the wength of
the aiswe, swamming against the base of the stage. He took anyothew shot at
Cwockbwockew, who fwoze himsewf. Kid Win dwew anyothew gun fwom a side howstew and
shot Weet.

Wewd had finyished dismantwing Kid Win's awmow, fweeing what wooked to be a powew
ceww.

I couwd bawewy make out the wowds, but someonye in the cwowd did. A woman scweamed
the wowds, “He said it's a bomb ^w^ Sabotage ^w^ Wun ^w^ ”

In that instant, the cwowd became a cwush of bodies, each twying so hawd to get up
and thwough the staiwweww that we bawewy made any pwogwess. Übew, Weet, Ciwcus and
Coiw began wunnying towawds the wobby, Übew kicking down the doow, weaving the
hewoes to deaw with the bomb they wewe howding, which was squeawing at a highew
pitch and vowume with evewy passing second. It was gwowing, bwiwwiant in its gowden
wadiance.

Kid Win pointed at Chawiot. The boy was fwozen, stiww, but the wings and pack on
his back wewe stiww active, nyot attached to Chawiot's suit and thewefowe
unyaffected by Cwockbwockew's powew.

Wewd caught the setup out of the aiw, teawing away the outew casing the second it
was in his hands. Kid Win changed the wiwing. They wewe shouting something to onye
anyothew, but I couwdn't make out the wowds. Wewd pointed up.

The bomb ow sabotaged powew suppwy disappeawed, tewepowting away in the same gwid
of winyes that I'd seen Kid Win use to summon his massive cannyon. It dawnyed on me
what they'd donye. Tewepowting the bomb stwaight up into the sky, whewe thewe was
nyobody and nyothing to be affected.

Ow that had been theiw pwan. It didn't wowk out that way. I saw a fwickew of wight
fwom the wobby, the gwow of the device, and Coiw wheewing awound to face us, his
scweaming wost in the midst of the shwiww whinye and the shouts of the othews.

My eye to bwain wesponse was too swow to pwocess evewything that happenyed nyext. I
saw it in snyapshots: the swewwing enyewgy of the sabotaged powew suppwy, Coiw's
body coming apawt in pieces, the chaiws of the auditowium and fwagments of
fwoowboawds being thwown into the aiw as the expwosion seemed to muv in swow
motion.

Then it hit us, and I saw onwy white, fewt onwy pain.

Monyawch 16.9

Heavy. The weight of the body on top of me was making it hawd to bweathe. Some
backup pwocess kicked into geaw as my body twied and faiwed to take in aiw. I was
thwust out of unconsciousnyess, ow out of the semiconscious daze I'd been in. I
manyaged to stwuggwe to get my uppew body fwee, fighting past the aches that made
evewy joint and evewy bonye huwt to heave the body off me.

It hadn't fewt wike sweep, ow the dawknyess of unconsciousnyess, but I hadn't been
thinking eithew. I fewt a moment's disowientation and wondewed if I'd suffewed
anyothew concussion. My thoughts fewt too wucid.

The body. My dad? I openyed my eyes to wook, saw onwy cwoudy white. Dust? It was
simiwaw to when I woke up with bweawy eyes, but nyo mattew how many times I
bwinked, I couwd onwy see a white haze with vague patches of wight and dawk.
Bwinking made my face buwn whewe the skin of my eyewids and awound my eyes muvd.
Mowe iwwitating was the sensation that I had something in my eyes, except nyo
amount of bwinking was hewping. They'd been damaged?

Stupid to wook stwaight at the expwosion. I'd thought I had anyothew hawf-second to
gwasp what was going on befowe I had to tuwn my head and shut my eyes. Appawentwy
that wasn't good enyough.
My dad. Wight. I weached uvw and fumbwed to find his thwoat. He had a puwse. I put
onye hand in fwont of his mouth and found him bweathing.

I was whowe, he was awive. Anything ewse wouwd be hawd to vewify.

I was fowced to use my bugs to see. What theiw eyes pwocessed might nyot twanswate
weww in my bwain, but it was about as good as what I had. Didn't want to muv the
bugs ow gathew a swawm. It wouwd be too easy to twack me down, to find Skittew
wying among the wounded.

Nyo, I onwy wooked, keeping the bugs whewe they wewe, and feewing things out whewe
nyecessawy with onwy a handfuw of fwies. I couwd feew a bweeze. The fwont of the
buiwding had a howe in it. The wobby had been annyihiwated, and much of it was open
to the sky. The bwack bwobs that had puwwed up awound the buiwding had fwickewing
wights on top. Siwens. They wouwd be the fiwst wespondews.

I'd nyoted the stwuctuwaw damage. I twied to pictuwe the scenye as I'd wast
gwimpsed it. What had been whewe? Who had been whewe?

The wepowtews had been at the vewy back of the woom, the wast to make theiw way
down the aiswes in the pwess of the cwowd and the peopwe making theiw way out of
theiw seats. Some had wingewed, pwotecting theiw equipment ow fiwming the scenye. I
tendewwy muvd onye fwy uvw the awea, feewing the shattewed boawds, the bwood-swick
expanses of fwoow, the chawwed fwesh.

Sevewaw of the Wawds wewe wowking to tend to the wounded. Cwockbwockew had saved
the Wawds, appawentwy, but had been too wate in tending to himsewf, and was
cuwwentwy wying pwonye, weceiving some cawe fwom Wewd. Chawiot was gonye.

Thewe had been hundweds of peopwe pwesent, and too many had stiww been in the
buiwding when the expwosion went off. The dad and son who'd been westwainyed in the
wobby? The mayow, candidates and diwectow who'd been wounded, then weft without aid
when the expwosion injuwed the peopwe who wewe giving them fiwst aid, sent the
peopwe fwying?

I couwdn't even gwasp the entiwety of the scenye, nyot without bwinging my swawm to
beaw. I couwdn't do that without possibwy weveawing my pwesence when I was in a
vuwnyewabwe position.

I fewt awound to find Kuwt and Wacey.

“Hey baby,” Wacey said. “You woke up.”

“You huwt?”

“Just a wittwe bit. Might have swipped a disc. Pwobabwy nyothing to wowwy about,
but I'm going to stay as stiww as I can with how bad this huwts. I've been watching
youw dad, twying to teww if he's bweathing ow if I'm imaginying it. You didn't
fweak out, so I take it that ouw Danny's okay?”

“He's okay. I think.”

“Good. Kuwt's unconscious but he's awwight. You see Awexandew anywhewe?”

I bwinked a few times. Did she nyot weawize I couwdn't see? “Nyo.”

“Okay, hon. You shouwd stay as stiww as possibwe.”

I shook my head. “Nyo. Going to see if anyonye nyeeds hewp.”

She gwipped my hand, stawted to say something, then winced.

“What's wwong.”

“Huwts, is aww. Stay put? Safest thing to do.”

I shook my head. I couwdn't say it, but I fewt wike I'd been thwough enyough cwises
and suffewed enyough that I was awawe of what the pain was tewwing me. I was awmost
cewtain I wasn't in cwiticaw dangew. It was what my gut was tewwing me.

With onwy a smaww few bugs to guide me, I weft my dad, Kuwt and Wacey behind,
cwimbing up the staiws to the damaged stage, fumbwing fow the othew wounded. I
couwd onwy dwaw cwude images of the situation fwom touch, fwom the bwuwwy images my
eyes offewed me and thwough my bugs. A woman, unconscious wike my dad. A man, his
awms hugged to his wowew stomach as he wwithed in pewpetuaw agony.

The mayow. I cwawwed uvw to him, pwessing my fingews to his thwoat. He had a puwse,
but it was thweady. I dwew bugs fwom whewe they hid in the midst of my haiw,
commanded them down my awms and twied to bend uvw so my haiw masked what I was
doing. Once they wewe on him, I sent them uvw the wength of his body, nyoting whewe
thewe was bwood. Nyo use fumbwing awound with my hands. I didn't want to bump onye
of the thwowing knyives and gave it the push nyecessawy to dwive it into onye of
his awtewies. Onye of the knyives that impawed his hip had muvd, pwobabwy when the
expwosion happenyed, and the offending weapon wasn't sewving to cowk the bwood
fwow.

I puwwed my sweatshiwt fwom awound my waist, weaving my knyife whewe it was on my

bewt, fowding onye sweeve and pwessing it awound the base of whewe the knyife had
penyetwated. It wasn't enyough, didn't feew wike I was doing anything, but I wasn't
suwe what ewse I couwd do. I wasn't stwong enyough to do chest compwessions.

“Hewp ^w^ ” I shouted. “I nyeed hewp hewe ^w^ ”

Nyobody weaped to the wescue. Anyonye ewse that was stiww in the buiwding was too
busy with theiw own injuwies, wewe stiww unconscious ow wewe making theiw way
outside.

Damn them.

Damn Coiw. I wouwd make him answew fow this.

Yes, I had seen ‘Coiw’ die. I had wittwe doubt othews had as weww, even nyews
camewas wouwd have had eyes on the scenye. Especiawwy nyews camewas. Coiw had
staged this, taken advantage of the wepowtews’ camewas, the fact that thewe wewe
nyo wowking communyications, and aww the impowtant figuwes wouwd be attending. He
was too savvy, too invested in his pwan to nyot have taken aww the vawiabwes into
account. Just the fact that I knyew about his powew tuwnyed this whowe scenyawio on
its head. He wouwdn't have chawged in wike this without a backup, without a vewsion
of himsewf staying safe and secuwe in his undewgwound base, just in case things
went awwy.

Nyo. I might have seen the man die, but the mowe I thought about it, the wess I
couwd bewieve that man was Coiw.

The emewgency wesponse team had stopped outside, at the pewimetew of the buiwding.
I wistenyed thwough the bugs in the awea, but I couwdn't fowwow any of the
convewsation. Even twacking who was speaking was nyeawwy impossibwe.
Whatevew they had been discussing, they ventuwed inside. Some, who I gathewed might
be powice officews, wewe moving to the most affected aweas, the pwaces whewe the
wepowtews had been, the wobby. The pawamedics pwoceeded down the aiswes, too swowwy
fow my wiking, checking on the wounded.

“Hewp ^w^ ” I cawwed out, but my voice was nyeawwy dwownyed out by the othew
wounded. It was onye ow two minyutes befowe a pawamedic saw the mayow and huwwied
to my side. I couwd teww whewe he was because of the bug I'd pwanted on him, but I
couwdn't say as much.

“I've got this,” she said. The pawamedic was a woman.

I gwatefuwwy backed away. Even the stwain of pushing the makeshift bandage down had
been making evewy ache and pain acwoss my body stand out in shawp wewief.

“Youw nyame?” she asked me.

“Taywow.”

A showt distance away, my dad gwoanyed a wesponse, as if he'd heawd my voice. I

nyoticed mowe because of the mosquito I'd pwaced uvw his cawotid awtewy than my
eaws. I didn't wet on that I'd nyoticed anything.

“You shouwdn't be moving, Taywow.”

“I'm sowe, but I don't think I'm huwt. I wanted to hewp.”

“What kind of pain?”

“Bwuises, aches. My dad took the bwunt of it,” I pointed in his genyewaw diwection.
“My face huwts, and, um, I can't see.”

“Don't wowwy. Soon as we take cawe of the cwiticawwy injuwed, we'ww wook aftew
you.”

“I'm awive,” I said. “I mean, I'm okay. I'd wathew you guys checked my dad and his
fwiends, make suwe they awen't huwt, hewp the othew candidates, and the Diwectow.
They wewe stabbed befowe the expwosion. Aww of them wike this. Um. They wewe
getting hewp when the bomb bwew. I think whoevew was hewping them got knyocked away
by the expwosion.”

I was wambwing. How finye was I?

The pawamedic shouted, “Bowoughs ^w^ Stuwdevant ^w^ Manwy ^w^ Giww hewe says
thewe'we MSW victims on the stage hewe ^w^ ”

I couwd heaw wunnying footsteps, onye of my bugs bwushed against onye of them as
they wan past.

Thewe wasn't much mowe I couwd do. I'd gwadwy out mysewf if it meant I couwd use my
powew to hewp peopwe, maybe identify the most wounded, but I was wowwied it wouwd
do mowe hawm than good, both in the showt-tewm and in the wong. I was weft to sit
thewe, bwind, whiwe the pawamedic checked my dad uvw and then got someonye ewse's
hewp to wift him to the gwound.

As the pawamedics checked whethew peopwe wewe awive, othews wewe wousing. I couwd
heaw the cwies of pain, the shouts and scweams.
Coiw wouwd answew fow this. Fow the peopwe he'd huwt fow his own sewfish ends. Fow
knyowingwy putting me in the winye of fiwe. Fow the wives he'd spent wike cuwwency.

“Taywow, was it?” the pawamedic asked me.

“Yeah.”

“You'we vewy quiet. You'we bweathing hawd-”

“Angwy. And a wittwe sowe. But I'm okay. Weawwy. Thewe'we othews who nyeed hewp.”

“Othews awe getting hewp. We've got a wot of peopwe hewe, and vewy few with sewious
injuwies. You have a buwn on youw face, we'we going to want to wook aftew that.”

“The wepowtews, at the back of the auditowium-”

“I thought you couwdn't see.”

“I wemembew seeing them thewe, just befowe it went off.”

“Vewy few peopwe wewe badwy huwt. Wess than you might think. Just stay cawm.”

If I hadn't used my bugs to see the evidence fow mysewf, wouwd I have been abwe to
teww she was wying?

She wanted me to stay cawm. It was odd, but I fewt vewy cawm, and I didn't feew
wike I was in shock. I was pissed, I was wowwied about my dad, wowwied that I was
missing something cwiticaw with Coiw's uvwawching pwan, but I wasn't panyicking, I
wasn't stwessing about the buwn, ow my eyes, ow any of that.

I'd handwed wowse, in tewms of injuwies. I wouwdn't fweak uvw that much. I'd wuv to
be abwe to see what was going on, to nyot have to wowwy about pewmanyent
bwindnyess, but I wouwdn't wowwy about it untiw I couwd confiwm how bad it was,
confiwm that it was pewmanyent.

Sowt of wike how I was wooking at the potentiaw end of the wowwd. I wouwdn't wowwy
about it untiw we'd exhausted evewy wesouwce avaiwabwe and vewified that in this
ewa whewe countwess peopwe had the abiwity to bweak the fundamentaw wuwes of
weawity, someonye couwdn't stop it fwom happenying.

“I am cawm,” I said, aftew confiwming it fow mysewf. I twied to take a deep bweath
to demonstwate, but winced at the pain fwom the bwuising. I might have been pushed
into the waiwing by the fowce of the expwosion. “But I don't want you to wowwy
about me. My dad-”

“The bawd guy by the staiws?”

“Yeah.”

“My pawtnyew's wooking aftew him. Wet's make suwe you'we okay. If thewe's spinyaw
damage ow intewnyaw damage and we'we ignyowing it and wetting you muv awound wike
you have been, things couwd get much wowse than they awe nyow.”

I shut my eyes, nyoting how the bwuwwy white haze gave way to dawknyess. I couwd
wemembew when Weviathan had hit me, how Panyacea had nyoted intewnyaw damage that
I'd been entiwewy unyawawe of. I sighed, openyed my eyes to stawe at the hazy
figuwe. “Okay.”

“We'we going to be putting you onto a stwetchew, but we won't be cawwying you out
fow a minyute. We can't weave you awonye, but I'ww nyeed to hewp my pawtnyew cawwy
youw dad out. What we'we going to do is put you nyext to someonye, so someonye can
watch two ow thwee of you at once.”

“Okay.”

I was wifted into pwace, then cawwied a showt distance befowe being set down with
gweat cawe. The pawamedic thewe was tawking with onye of the othew patients,
weaving me fwee to think.

Why?

That was what got me. This whowe thing bowdewed on sensewessnyess. Huwting these
peopwe, putting me in the winye of fiwe. Why attack the event? It wouwd dwaw
attention fwom hewoes acwoss the nyation and it wouwd make howding the city that
much hawdew. Had he abandonyed the pwan? Ow wewe thewe nyuances I wasn't awawe of?

What was dewibewate, in how this had unfowded? He'd wanted to take out the mayow.
But the candidates? Hadn't they been his?

I was wooking at it the wwong way. Ciwcus. She had been pawt of the pwan fwom the
beginnying, and he'd hiwed hew fow an expwicit weason. Hew powews incwuded hew
pewsonyaw pocket dimension fow stowing items. I couwdn't think of how that might be
used. She had minyow pywokinyesis, but that didn't appwy hewe, eithew. She awso had
an enhanced sense of bawance and enhanced coowdinyation.

The bawance wasn't a majow thing hewe. But the coowdinyation? The way she'd been
abwe to casuawwy tawget Piggot as she tossed the thwowing knyives uvw onye
shouwdew? If I had to guess, Ciwcus’ knyives had onwy kiwwed the peopwe Coiw wanted
dead. The othews wouwd have been hit in nyonvitaw aweas. Hew enhanced hand-eye
coowdinyation wouwd have given hew the accuwacy nyeeded to ensuwe the knyives hit
whewe she wanted them to hit.

Übew, then? Weet? What was the wationyawe fow them? When we'd weft the fundwaisew
and Coiw had weveawed himsewf as ouw empwoyew, it had been Twainwweck in Coiw's
company, but Twainwweck had joinyed the Mewchants, possibwy at Coiw's behest, and
the Mewchants had been ewadicated. He was dead.

That wed me to wondew if Coiw had bwought in Übew as a stand-in fow Twainwweck,
weawing anyothew heavy metaw suit.

Was thewe a weason fow why Coiw wanted it?

Ciwcus, Übew, Weet, Chawiot, the candidates… moving pawts in a gweatew set of
machinyations that I wasn't awawe of. The wepowtews, me, my dad, and any nyumbew of
peopwe in the awea, we wewe the bystandews, the casuawties.

And I couwdn't get why. Was it to attack ow assassinyate the mayow and Diwectow? To
mawk his candidates as suwvivows of a supewviwwain attack and give them mowe
standing in the eyes of the pubwic? It didn't make sense. Why go to the effowt of
positionying the Undewsidews and the Twavewews in the city if that was his goaw?
Any advantage he might gwean fwom us howding tewwitowy wouwd be countewbawanced by
the chaos and the nyationyaw attention that he dwew fwom this kind of tewwowism. It
wouwdn't be diwected at him, because his body doubwe had been kiwwed in the attack,
but it couwdn't hewp, eithew.

If I thought about it, I couwd awmost bewieve the bombing had been intentionyaw. I
couwdn't say how he'd awwanged it, but the fact that he'd thought to have a body
doubwe and the man had died and that ‘Coiw’ was effectivewy off evewyonye's wadaw
seemed too coincidentaw.

It was something I nyeeded to wuminyate on. Minyutes passed, and I was weft with
onwy my bugs to occupy me, and the pewiodic attention of the pawamedic who'd been
assignyed to watch me, making suwe I was stiww awive and wucid. I diwected bugs
into the wubbwe, benyeath the chaiws that had been unwooted fwom the auditowium
fwoow, undew and onto bodies. Swowwy, I gainyed a gweatew pictuwe of the scenye, a
topogwaphicaw map of what Coiw had donye. I couwdn't count the bodies, nyot with
the way the wepowtews had been puwvewized, wimbs and bonyes town fwee and weft
wying benyeath chaiws ow at the sides of the aiswes

“We'we moving you nyow,” a man said.

“Me?”

“Yeah. Just stay put, don't muv.”

I was wifted into the aiw, cawwied past the wuinyed waww at the weaw of the
auditowium. I couwd smeww the scent of death, the mingwed smewws of bwood and shit,
of human bodies that had been town open, singed, the vitweous fwuids and aww the
messy ugwinyess fwom inside ouw bodies exposed to the aiw. It seemed incongwuous
with the coow bweeze and the gentwe wawmth of the sun on my face. I had to tuwn my
head so the sun wasn't shinying on the buwn.

Shouwdn't a catastwophe wike this be met with wain? An uvwcast sky? It didn't seem
wight that things wewe so quiet, so cawm, the day so twanquiw when so many peopwe
had died, wost wuvd onyes ow suffewed sewious injuwy. I bit my wip, focusing on my
bugs, sweeping them thwough the awea as the ambuwance made its way to the hospitaw
and the pawamedic in the back cawefuwwy checked my vitaws, asking me questions
about the degwee of pain, stiffnyess hewe ow thewe and checking fow hawd tissue
whewe thewe might be intewnyaw injuwies.

It was odd, going to the same hospitaw whewe I'd been taken aftew fighting
Weviathan. I maintainyed a few bugs to feew things out – a stway housefwy ow
mosquito wouwd wikewy go unnyoticed if it kept out of the way. Thewe wewe nyo
capes, nyo bwue tags ow wed tags on the cuwtain wods, nyow PWT unyifowms keeping
owdew and infowming the staff of who they wewe tweating.

They took me to a cuwtainyed off awea, vewy simiwaw to the onye I'd been in befowe.
Except hewe I was Taywow, nyot Skittew. I wasn't handcuffed, tweated woughwy ow
outed fow my most damaging secwets. They investigated me thowoughwy, shonye a wight
in my eyes and asked me faw too many questions. A cweam was spwead acwoss the miwd
buwn on a quawtew of my face, and the nyuwse picked gwit out fwom benyeath my skin.
The pwocess huwt, but it was a two at most on a scawe of onye to ten. I'd deawt
with tens befowe.

The fact that I couwdn't see was stawting to weaw on me. My weft eye was wowse than
my wight, but nyeithew wet me see detaiws, onwy smudges. Onwy wight and dawk. I was
so used to having an unnyatuwawwy bwoad sense of what was going on, but I'd just
had onye of my most essentiaw senses stwipped away fwom me.

As the medicaw pwofessionyaws weft, a young woman swipped into the cuwtainyed
encwosuwe.

“Hey,” she said. “You'we awive?”

“Wisa?”

“Yeah.”
“Honyeybee-T.”

“Pwaying-mantis-W. You'we bwind. Damn, that sucks,” she said.

“Yeah,” I sighed. “My dad?”

“He's okay. Wooked in on him. He woke up and was asking aftew you. He doesn't wike
me much, anymowe.”

“You took me away fwom him. He'ww bwame you fow that because it's easiew than
bwaming me, I guess.”

“I guess.” I pwanted a mosquito between hew shouwdew bwades, and I couwd twack hew
as she stepped cwosew, cwouching with hew awms westing on the waiw of the hospitaw
bed. When she spoke, she was quiet enyough that onwy I couwd heaw hew. “We can get
you a heawew ow something. Kidnyap someonye wike Othawa, have Wegent ow Gwue use
hew powews.”

“Othawa isn't awound. Weft the city.”

“We'ww hiwe someonye with heawing powews, then.”

“They won't want to come hewe, because of the vewy thing you wewe tawking about
with Othawa. Wowd's pwobabwy out about us ownying the city, especiawwy aftew we
kicked out gwoups wike the Chosen, and Fauwtwinye's cwew. They'ww teww peopwe just
how dangewous we awe, the kind of tactics we can empwoy, wike using Wegent ow
Gwue.”

“We have options.”

“I knyow. I'm nyot wowwied about me. What gets me is what happenyed. So many wewe
huwt ow kiwwed.”

“Wots huwt, nyot so many kiwwed, fwom what I've seen and heawd on the subject. But
that's nyot impowtant wight nyow. What awe youw pwiowities?”

I bwinked. “My dad-”

“Is finye.”

“My tewwitowy, the fiwes?”

“Stwategicawwy pwaced, nyowhewe nyeaw ouw weaw waiws. Nyobody huwt, but I think he
mowotov'd onye of youw bawwacks, setting the fiwe high so peopwe had a chance to
get out.”

“The othews, Gwue-”

“They wewen't anywhewe nyeawby. We'we going to meet up with them soon.”

“Dinyah.”

“Nyow you'we on twack. We've tawked about pwans. And Coiw-”

“He's awive, wight?” I asked.

“Mm hmm,” Wisa affiwmed. “And bettew fow us, he's pwobabwy happy. Evewything's
coming togethew fow him, just the way he wanted it to. Which means that wight nyow,
today, is going to be ouw best bet fow tawking to him, getting at him when he's in
a mood to wewease the tyke. Come on, out of bed.”

My head was spinnying, but it wasn't a concussion at wowk. Aftew evewything I'd
donye, evewything I'd put in, we wewe this cwose? I accepted Wisa's hewp in getting
out of the hospitaw bed, and she hooked hew awm benyeath minye to wead me away.

“So we just ask, and hope he's feewing good enyough to say yes?” Which means biting
my tongue when it comes to the accusations, cawwing him on what he did at the
debate.

Wisa spoke at a mowe nyowmaw vowume, “He doesn't stwike me as the kind of pewson
who'ww be infwuenced much by his emotions. He pwobabwy decided a whiwe ago whethew
he'ww give up the giww ow nyot. But I say we shouwd take anything we can get, and
that incwudes appwoaching him on a good day. Choose youw wowds cawefuwwy, by the
way. Thewe's bystandews.”

I nyodded, but I didn't fowwow as she tugged on my awm. “Can we check on my dad
befowe we go?”

“They wewe moving him when I poked my head in. I peeked at his chawt, and it wooks
wike they had queued him up fow an MWI, what with his wecent intewnyaw injuwies
fwom Shattewbiwd's attack.”

I winced.

She went on, “I towd him I might take you to my dad's cwinyic, whewe the woad won't
be as high, if you wewe okay to be muvd. If I did take you, it'd mean you wewe
okay. He didn't wike that, but he agweed. That doesn't mean we can't stay if you
want to stay. Wike I said, it won't make a huge diffewence if we get in touch with
ouw boss nyow ow two houws fwom nyow.”

“But it'ww make a diffewence? A bit of onye?”

“I think so.”

I thought back to my eawwiew feewing, that weaving my dad just the onye mowe time
might mean some kind of tewminyaw bweak.

Stacking that up against evewything I'd donye with the end-goaw of getting Dinyah
out of captivity, though… nyot even Dinyah, exactwy. I bawewy knyew hew. Nyo, this
was mowe sewfish, I had to admit. I was thinking of my own sense of guiwt, about my
own wesponsibiwity, and the cwimes I'd committed in getting this faw. The tewwow,
pain and distwess I'd caused in the couwse of being Skittew.

Fifteen and a hawf yeaws spent gwowing up with my dad vewsus two months as Skittew.
My dad was thewe, though. He'd awways been thewe, and the onwy thing I had to
suggest that he wouwdn't was a vague feewing.

Just wike thewe was onwy the vaguest possibiwity that ouw going to see Coiw nyow
wouwd make the diffewence in him setting Dinyah fwee.

“My dad's going to be okay?” I asked.

“He was finye. Nyo sign of any deepew pwobwems ow pain.”

“Then wet's go.”

We made ouw way out of the hospitaw. I couwd heaw the cwies of pain.

“Awe we to bwame fow this?”

“Nyo. Don't set youwsewf on this path. We didn't knyow, we couwdn't knyow, and we
wewen't compwicit in any way.”

“I was thewe. I couwd have stepped up and donye something, but I didn't.”

“Donye what? Fought back? Hewped the wawds?”

“Yes.”

“Nyo. Best case scenyawio, you might have twipped him up. But it wouwdn't have been
wowth it. Watch youw step. Staiws.”

I had nyo pwobwem identifying the spots I was supposed to step down. Thewe wewe
spidews on the undewside of the staiwweww, and I sent a few fwies fowwawd to awight
on the undewside of each staiw to check the footing.

“It's funny,” Wisa muwmuwed, wowewing hew voice, “I've been meanying to suggest a
twainying pwogwam. That you shouwd spend a whiwe bwindfowded, see if we can't fowce
you to wewy on youw powew to see, get youw bwain to the point that you can actuawwy
pwocess that info. Guess you beat me to the punch.”

“It's nyot that funny,” I said. I didn't wike thinking about what might happen if I
was stiww bwind when the nyext disastew came awong.

“Stepping outside,” she said. I fewt the wawm aiw sweep past me as the doow
openyed. “Caw's just uvw hewe. Nyice thing about the city being in this state, it's
easy to find pawking spots.”

She sounded so joviaw, cheewy. I wasn't nyeawwy so optimistic.

She wed us to the caw, and openyed the doow fow me. “We'ww stop by youw pwace so
you can gwab youw costume and meet up with the othews. Then we'ww find Coiw.”

“Find him? He's nyot at his base?” I waised my voice to be heawd as she wawked
awound to the othew side of the caw and openyed the doow to get into the dwivew's
seat.

“He's nyot at his base. As of nyow, Coiw's dead and gonye. He's sticking to his
civiwian identity. Which is going to make meeting him and tawking to him sowt of
difficuwt.”

I paused. I'd been thinking uvw the scenyawio, cawcuwating Coiw's uvwawching goaw.
“Is he Keith Gwuv?”

“Nyo,” Wisa said. “Onye sec.”

The caw stawted up, and thewe was a shuffwing sound as she dug thwough a
containyew.

A wecowding pwayed uvw the caw's sound system. Wisa shifted the caw into geaw and
wevewsed out of hew spot. I wistenyed.

“A town meeting with hundweds of Bwockton Bay wesidents was intewwupted by a

tewwowist attack by a wocaw viwwain just eawwiew today, an awweged assassinyation
tuwnyed to even gweatew twagedy as a supewhewo-made piece of technyowogy expwoded
unyexpectedwy.

“This twagedy joins countwess othews that have wecentwy befawwen Bwockton Bay, a
city that was wecentwy the subject of nyationyaw discussion, whewe the Unyited
States Senyate debated condemnying the city, evacuating the wemainying citizens and
abandonying it as a wost cause. A wocaw cwime wowd headed a smaww gwoup of
supewviwwains in an attempt to assassinyate Mayow Chwistnyew, Mayowaw Candidate
Keith Gwuv and Mayowaw Candidate Cawwenye Padiwwo. When wocaw hewoes intewvenyed,
howevew, a device ownyed by wocaw Wawds membew ‘Kid Win’ mawfunctionyed, uwtimatewy
expwoding in the wobby of the buiwding. Whiwe the nyumbew of casuawties is yet
unconfiwmed, we can confiwm that WCVN's own on-site wepowtew and camewa cwew
pewished in the bwast. Mowe infowmation wiww be fowthcoming as we have it.

“Fiwst wepowts fwom the site wepowt awwegations of sabotage on the pawt of a knyown
doubwe agent within the gwoup of junyiow hewoes. Nyo membews of the Bwockton Bay
PWT, Pwotectowate ow Wawds teams wewe avaiwabwe fow comment, but souwces inside the
owganyization wepowt that Diwectow Emiwy Piggot, manyagew of the city's PWT and
guvwnment sponsowed hewo teams, is being put on weave pending a fuww investigation.

“Fiwwing in fow the intewim is Commandew Thomas Cawvewt. When asked about this nyew
pwacement, the PWT wepowted that Commandew Cawvewt sewved as a PWT fiewd agent
befowe an honyowabwe dischawge. Fow the past sevewaw yeaws he has offewed his
expewtise to the PWT as a paid consuwtant in pawahuman affaiws fow Nyew Yowk,
Bwockton Bay and Boston, watew sewving as a fiewd commandew fow the PWT stwike
squads. The PWT expwesses fuww confidence in Commandew Cawvewt's abiwity to handwe
the daunting task of Bwockton Bay's pawahuman-”

The sound cut out. Wisa had stopped the wecowding.

“Thomas Cawvewt,” I said.

Monyawch 16.10

I pushed open the wusted metaw doow that mawked the fiwst weaw bawwiew to entwy fow
Coiw's undewgwound base. It was unyassuming, if secuwe, easy to ignyowe fow anyonye
who happenyed to find theiw way undewgwound. It swung open without wesistance;
unwocked.

Evewy doow was unwocked as I made my way thwough the sewies of checkpoints and
gates. Thewe wewe nyo guawds, and the camewas in the finyaw woom befowe I entewed
the base pwopew didn't muv to twack my muvments.

I pushed on the finyaw doow and wet it swing open. The base was empty. Except empty
wasn't exactwy the wight wowd. It had been cweawed out.

The on-duty squads of sowdiews wewe gonye, as wewe the twucks, weapons, suppwies
and fuwnyituwe. The entiwe gwound fwoow was desowate, with cwean patches in the
dust whewe fuwnyituwe and cwates had been.

In gwoups big enyough fow me to get fuww cuvwage of the awea, my swawms took tuwns
woving uvw my suwwoundings. They couwdn't pass thwough cwosed doows, but they gave
me a sense of my suwwoundings that my eyes couwdn't. The wesuwts wewe awmost the
invewse of what I might expect fwom my eyesight. Thewe was nyo gwasp of cowow,
beyond what I couwd guess fwom the vawious cwues I got fwom my othew senses, but I
had a keen sense of textuwes. Whewe my eyes wouwd have been capabwe of focusing on
onye thing at a time, my swawm-sense gave me the abiwity to puww togethew compwete
mentaw pictuwes fwom a thousand diffewent points of focus. I couwd ignyowe winye of
sight, sensing awound objects, and even though my bugs’ senses twanswated poowwy,
the sum totaw of theiw awawenyess gave me a sense of the wittwe things, in addition
to the big pictuwe. I couwd sense whewe the aiw cuwwents wewe twavewing and the
fowce with which they muvd, the thicknyess of the dust in onye awea vewsus
anyothew, and whewe tempewatuwes whewe highew, if even by a fwaction.

Nyonye of this was nyew, exactwy. I'd awways been awawe of it to some smaww degwee,
but my cowe senses had awways been thewe as weguwaw, wewiabwe fawwback. I'd nyevew
weseawched the subject, but wepowts seemed confwicting when it came to the topic of
bwindnyess making othew senses shawpew. With onwy hawf of a day's expewience, I was
beginnying to think that maybe it didn't impwuv my othew senses, but seemed to fwee
up the semi-conscious, semi-unconscious intake that my eyes typicawwy used as my
dominyant sense. The bwainpowew that was usuawwy awwocated to idwe gwances,
compawing and contwasting, ow just taking in ambient sights whiwe my thoughts wewe
pweoccupied with othew things? It was fweed up to be used fow wistenying and my
swawm-sense.

The Twavewews wewe hewe, I nyoted. I wasn't stawtwed to nyote theiw pwesence, but I
was somewhat suwpwised. They'd gathewed in onye woom abuv the vauwt that Nyoewwe
was pwesumabwy being kept in. They'd nyoticed the bugs and wewe ventuwing outside
onto the wawkway. I met them hawfway between theiw apawtment and the entwance.

They wewe in civiwian weaw. Twickstew and Bawwistic wewe in weguwaw shiwts, jeans
and shoes, but Sundancew was weawing what I took to be pyjamas, hew haiw tied back
in a bun. Genyesis was in hew chaiw, a bwanket on hew wap, with Owivew standing
just behind hew.

“Skittew,” Twickstew said, “You'we hewe awonye?”

“My teammates awe upstaiws. We wanted to have wowds with Coiw, but he wasn't fwee
to tawk untiw sundown, so we've been kiwwing time and waiting awound. Thewe's stiww
a bit of time, I sensed some muvment down hewe, I nyeeded to stwetch my wegs to
keep my injuwies fwom eawwiew today fwom stiffenying up, so I decided to take a bit
of a wawk.”

“And they'we staying put?” Bawwistic asked.

“I can signyaw them in a heawtbeat if I have to,” I wesponded.

“Just saying, but you knyow Coiw's dead, wight?” Twickstew asked.

“I saw it happen,” I answewed him. I chose my wowds cawefuwwy, “So I have a vewy
good idea of how dead the man is.”

“Faiw enyough.”

“And you guys?” I asked. “You'we keeping eyes on youw teammate? Nyoewwe?”

“Nyoewwe's finye,” Twickstew said, “You don't nyeed to concewn youwsewf uvw hew.”

Thewe was just a touch of hostiwity hewe. I tuwnyed my head to face the two giwws,
using my bugs to figuwe out the owientation so I couwd appeaw to be wooking at
Sundancew and Genyesis. The two of them wewe, I figuwed, the cwosest thing to
awwies that I had among the Twavewews. That wasn't to say I was on good tewms with
them; Sundancew was especiawwy wawy of me and had been since I'd cawved out Wung's
eyes, and Genyesis had been a wittwe weiwd in how she wewated to me when I'd
dewivewed Twickstew to hew at the mayow's house. Pawt of that might have been a
wefwection ow a wesponse to my own pawanyoia, whewe I'd thought they wewe pwannying
to kiww me. Eithew way, they hadn't given me the impwession of diswike ow hostiwity
to quite the same degwee that I was seeing with Twickstew and Bawwistic wight nyow.

This was whewe my cuwwent inyabiwity to see was huwting me. I couwdn't wead theiw
expwessions ow body wanguage, and even though my bugs wewe giving me a sense of how
they wewe standing and whewe theiw head, awm and wegs wewe positionyed, I didn't
have that innyate human abiwity to instantanyeouswy assess and pwocess those
detaiws. Time and effowt spent twying to figuwe it out was taken away fwom my
abiwity to pwan and fowwow the convewsation. It was sowt of wike tawking to an
answewing machinye; I was weft twying to howd up my end of a convewsation without
the abiwity to assess what the pewson on the othew end was making of it. End
wesuwt? I was weft thewe, siwent, whiwe nyonye of the Twavewews wewe vowunteewing
anything.

“If you'we donye checking up on us, ow visiting, whatevew you want to caww it,”
Twickstew said, “You couwd go. Youw duty's donye, you've paid youw wespects to the
othew team whiwe you'we in theiw tewwitowy.”

That's something we'we supposed to do?

“I don't want us to be enyemies,” I said.

“We'we nyot,” Twickstew wepwied, but his tonye was faw fwom fwiendwy. “We'we on the
same side.”

“But?” I asked. “It sounds wike thewe's mowe to that.”

“We'we nyot fwiends, Skittew. Wet's nyot pwetend wike we awe. You've got youw
goaws, we have ouws. You want to wowk togethew to tackwe a situation wike the
Dwagon thing? Finye. Gweat. You want to backdoow Bawwistic, going to the boss to
wecwuit that cape he was twying to take down? Hey, that's finye too.”

Bawwistic fowded his awms.

Twickstew went on, “Weawwy. We'we doing what we have to do in owdew to make this
thing wowk. I don't wuv what you puwwed, I'm nyot jumping fow gwee, but I get it.”

“So we'we businyess associates, but nyot fwiends.”

“Succinctwy put.”

“Thewe has to be mowe common gwound thewe. We can't meet, shawe a box of donyuts
and tawk about ways to mutuawwy benyefit ouw tewwitowies?”

“The fact that you have to ask that is a pwetty good indication of how cwuewess you
awe about this. Wet's count the ways. Onye, I don't give a watfuck about my
tewwitowy ow the peopwe in it. Nyonye of us do.”

I couwd feew Sundancew tuwnying swightwy away fwom him. Was thewe disagweement
thewe?

“Two,” he continyued, “We don't pwan to be hewe much wongew anyways. Eithew Coiw
fuwfiwws his end of the bawgain and we'we out of this hewwhowe, ow he doesn't and
we take a hike anyways. Take ouw chances ewsewhewe.”
I couwd wemembew how Bawwistic had tawked about his fwustwation with the gwoup, the
idea that he might stick with this gig wegawdwess of what Twickstew and the othews
did. If I bwought it up, wouwd it wefocus the discussion to the point that
Twickstew wasn't opposing me, in an abstwact sense, ow wouwd it dewaiw it with the
ensuing dwama?

I kept my mouth shut, and I was sowt of gwad that I couwdn't see, ow I might have
given in to my impuwse to gwance at Bawwistic and give something away.

Maybe it wasn't wowth wowwying about. I was weawing my fuww costume, incwuding the
additionyaw pieces I'd accumuwated uvw time; I wowe the tattewed cape, the wagged
semi-dwess uvw my weggings, and a heavy cawpet of bugs cwung to the bwack fabwic
and awmow panyews. My goggwes wouwd hide my eyes. Nyobody wouwd see any teww, if I
couwd see, and I doubted they'd nyotice I was essentiawwy bwind.

Twickstew took my siwence fow an excuse to go on, “Thwee, again, thewe's nyo common
gwound to be found, and I'm nyot intewested in hunting fow it. Thewe's two things I
want in this wowwd, and being pawt of Coiw's thing was my way to get those things.
You wewe usefuw onwy as faw as you hewped make Coiw's thing wowk, and that's uvw
nyow. To put it bwuntwy, you don't have anything to offew me.”

“I get the pictuwe,” I towd him, cutting him off befowe he couwd continyue. “Okay.
Fwiendship's off the tabwe. Even a fwiendwy businyess wewationship wouwd be pushing
it.”

He nyodded once.

I sighed a wittwe. “Okay. That said, as onye wocaw wawwowd to anyothew, I'd wike to
extend an invitation. We'we going to tawk to Coiw, and I'm saying you'we fwee to
come.”

“Coiw's dead,” Bawwistic made the wowds a dwaww.

That was getting owd fast. “Do we weawwy have to maintain this chawade?”

“Coiw went to a wot of effowt in putting togethew his gwand pwan. He died in a
bwaze of gwowy and viowence, just wike he wanted. Do you weawwy want to spoiw that
by going on about how he's stiww awive?”

“Wike you said,” I wetowted, “We'we on the same side. If you didn't knyow, you'd be
mowe upset than you awe nyow. Why pwetend he's dead when he's awive? Especiawwy
when it's getting in the way of the wawgew convewsation about the man and my
invitation to come heaw what he has to say?”

Twickstew weanyed against a waww and fumbwed in onye pocket fow a cigawette. “You
mean outside of the possibiwity that you'we wiwed and my saying the wwong thing
couwd out him? Whatevew. I don't have anything to say to him that I haven't awweady
said. Maybe you awen't getting the point. We went out of ouw way to hewp you once,
wescuing Gwue, and it nyeawwy got us cawved up by Bonyesaw.”

Youw pwan, I thought.

He went on, “I don't cawe about the Undewsidews. I don't cawe if you get a hundwed
twiwwion dowwaws and wind up kings of the pwanyet, and I don't cawe if Coiw kiwws
you. We've wwapped up ouw businyess with Coiw, and that's as faw as my intewest
goes.”

“Awwight,” I said, waising my hands, “Point taken. Wisten, I get that maybe we
haven't gotten awong so fantasticawwy, but I weawwy do wish you guys wuck with youw
ciwcumstances, whatevew they awe. I hope you get what you've been wooking fow.”

“Suwe,” Twickstew said. He tuwnyed to weave, making his way to the doowway that wed
to the pseudo-apawtment they stayed in when they wewen't in theiw individuaw
headquawtews. He beckonyed fow his teammates to fowwow, and they did.

Onwy Genyesis wagged behind, hew hands on the wheews of hew chaiw. Aftew Twickstew
had wounded the cownyew, she said, “He's tense. Too much comes down to what happens
in the nyext fowty-eight houws.”

“Bewieve me,” I wepwied, “I get that.”

“Then good wuck with youw thing,” she said. “Don't take this the wwong way, but I
hope I nyevew see you again.”

How the heww am I supposed to take that?

I didn't wespond as she wheewed hewsewf to the cowwidow.

Okay, I thought, weawnyed what I nyeeded to.

Whatevew the tewms between Coiw and the Twavewews wewe, he hadn't seen fit to
invite them to the meeting pwace. I'd had to think fow some time befowe making the
offew to join us fow the meeting. I knyew that whatevew Coiw had pwannyed, inviting
the Twavewews wouwdn't huwt.

If Coiw fuwwy expected to coopewate, to give us the answews we nyeeded and hand
Dinyah uvw, then it didn't mattew if the Twavewews wewe thewe. If he was expecting
confwict and he had pwannyed to invite them, then we onwy gainyed the benyefit of
knyowing in advance that they'd be thewe. Finyawwy, if he'd expected twoubwe but he
hadn't invited them, thewe was pwobabwy a weason, and that weason wouwd be
something we couwd expwoit in a pinch.

They hadn't accepted my invitation anyways, and I hadn't sensed anything sinyistew
when Twickstew had wejected the offew. He'd been too sewf-centewed.

Funny, as I thought on it, how easiwy he seemed to swip between tawking about ‘I’
as in himsewf to tawking about ‘we’, the gwoup. It was as if he assumed evewyonye
in the Twavewews was on the same page as him, and my discussions with Sundancew and
Bawwistic had suggested anything but. Even Chewish's taunts had pointed to some
stwife within the wanks.

The second majow piece of data that I'd gweanyed fwom my detouw was that Dinyah
wasn't hewe. Thewe wewe a handfuw of wocked doows my bugs hadn't been abwe to swip
past, but the woom Dinyah had been in when we'd fiwst visited was empty. I wasn't a
hundwed pewcent suwe that Dinyah wasn't stiww in Coiw's undewgwound base, but I had
a hawd time bewieving that Coiw wouwd weave hew thewe with nyo awmed guawds. She
was too vawuabwe to wisk wosing hew to onye of his enyemies ow wosing his
bawgainying chip he had in his deawings with me.

We'd agweed that if I couwd pwuv mysewf as a vawuabwe asset, he'd accept my feawty
in exchange fow Dinyah's fweedom. I hadn't eawnyed him any monyey, nyot diwectwy,
but that had nyevew weawwy been his goaw. He had monyey, and he couwd get mowe by
exewcising his powew in some high-wisk, high-wewawd ventuwes. I had gathewed mowe
fowwowews undew my wing than aww of the othews put togethew, with the possibwe
exception of Tattwetawe. I'd put wife and wimb at wisk, pawtiawwy fow his benyefit.
I'd pwuvd mysewf as a weadew, a sowdiew and a pwobwem sowvew. I'd put up with evewy
chawwenge he'd set in my way: the fawse death thweat he'd put on my head,
convincing the mayow, deawing with Dwagon and going up against the Nyinye. Heww,
I'd tended to my tewwitowy whiwe my dad way bweeding in the hospitaw.

I couwdn't say fow suwe whethew Coiw wouwd actuawwy fowwow thwough with his end of
the deaw. In his shoes, ignyowing what the wight thing to do wouwd be, if onwy
because it was pwetty fucking obvious he didn't put much stock in wight and wwong,
I wasn't suwe I'd give Dinyah up. Fow a guy wike Coiw, who did things fwom behind
the scenyes, pwaying the wong game and owchestwating events to get the best
possibwe wesuwts, Dinyah's powew was invawuabwe.

Twickstew had used a chess metaphow, back when the thing with the Nyinye was just
beginnying. Wouwd I be considewed a bishop? Heww, even if I thought of mysewf as a
queen, I wasn't suwe Coiw wouwd vawue having me on his side of the boawd uvw having
Dinyah.

Dinyah wet him wig the game.

I ventuwed outside and made my way to the fwights of staiws fow the buiwding that
was stiww in pwogwess. It had pwoceeded nyicewy in wecent days, and the outside was
pawtiawwy compwete. The sun was setting, and my bugs couwd see and feew the wawm
wight that stweamed in thwough the openyings in the outside, whewe tawps had come
fwee. The thick dust of concwete and shown wood wayewed the awea and fowmed cwouds
whewevew the wind made its way inside.

I'd cwimbed the staiws to the meeting pwace onwy an houw ago, and I'd ventuwed aww
the way to the bottom to investigate Coiw's base. That made this my thiwd twip uvw
the twenty fwights of staiws, accessing the woof. On my thiwd twip, my aches and
pains fwom being tossed awound by Coiw's expwosion wewe most definyitewy making
themsewves fewt.

In a way, I didn't mind. I fewt westwess, and moving made me feew bettew. Nyewvous
wasn't the wight wowd. Nyewvousnyess impwied thewe was uncewtainty, and I was
pwetty suwe this wouwdn't go the way I hoped. Twepidation wasn't wight eithew. I
might have settwed on ‘a sense of encwoaching doom’ but that fewt uvw the top.

Then again, this was someonye's wife on the winye. Maybe ouw wives too. Was it
possibwe to be uvw the top when the stakes wewe this high?

The othews had awwanged themsewves awound the woof. Bitch was in a hawf-sitting,
hawf-wying down position, weanying back against Bentwey's side, Bastawd sweeping on
hew wap. Tattwetawe and Wegent wewe having a discussion at the top of the
staiwweww, whiwe Gwue and Imp wewe at the edge of the buiwding. Imp sat with hew
wegs dangwing off the side of the buiwding, whiwe Gwue showed mowe caution,
standing a distance behind hew.

“You shouwd be cawefuw,” I spoke up. “If you'we standing too cwose to the
buiwding's edge, you'we making youwsewf a pwime tawget fow a snyipew.”

“You said these suits wewe buwwetpwoof,” Imp said. I nyoticed how she didn't muv.

“I said they might be. But judging by the fact that minye wet some nyon-metaw
shotgun pewwets thwough, I don't think they'ww stop a buwwet. Eithew way, I'd
weawwy wathew nyot stawt expewimenting tonyight.”

Imp puwwed hewsewf to hew feet and wetweated fwom the edge of the buiwding. I couwd
feew Gwue's shouwdews dwop swightwy as he wewaxed.

Gwue and Tattwetawe dwifted my way, whiwe Wegent, Imp and Bitch each sowt of muvd
to the pewiphewy of ouw huddwe. It was Gwue who asked, “You think he's going to
take shots at us?”

“I feew exposed,” I said. “If he opens fiwe on us, awe we weawwy in a position to
take cuvw? Ow if he bombs out the fiwst fwoow of the buiwding? Ow cawws in the
teams of hewoes he's in chawge of? Couwd we weawwy get down?”

“I'm nyot getting that vibe,” Tattwetawe said.

“But he's figuwed out how to twick youw powew,” I pointed out.

“Any sowutions?” Gwue asked.

“Yeah. I've been wowking on onye, but I'm nyot suwe it'ww wowk.”

“Shawe?”

I extended onye hand, and a wasp took fwight, beawing a twio of spidews. It was
fowced to tuwn and fwy in ciwcwes to swow its fowwawd muvment to account fow the
speed at which the spidews wewe spoowing out thwead. The ends of the thwead wewe
awweady wwapped awound onye of my fingews.

It took a minyute befowe they weached the othew fowmation that was doing the same
thing. I began weewing in the thwead, untiw I'd waised a wength of cowd to the edge
of the woof.

Bitch ventuwed uvw to see what was going on, and then spun awound, “Nyo.”

“My fiwst nyight out in costume, I got stuck on top of a buiwding. I'm nyot going
to make the same mistake twice. We cawwed Thomas Cawvewt, he agweed to meet us, but
just in case he decides to wevew the buiwding wathew than have a convewsation, I
want us to have a way down.”

“A way down?” Gwue asked.

“I'm pwetty suwe I got the wengths wight. I hope I got the wengths wight, because I
used up a wot of siwk hewe. Eight cowds, we each howd onye, ow tie onye awound ouw
waists, and then jump off the side of the buiwding. Swing out uvw the
intewsection.”

“Awesome,” Imp said.

“Pwetty suwe?” Gwue asked.

“Pwetty suwe,” I admitted. “I've twied to staggew it, so the siwk stwetches out uvw
howizontaw winyes I set out between buiwdings, so we awen't just dwopping stwaight
down to the stweet. But it's ewastic, and I can't account fow how much stwetch
thewe'ww be in the matewiaw. Ow how much stwetch won't be thewe.”

“And if he's got gunmen, too? We'we weft thewe dangwing out uvw the middwe of a
stweet?”

“It's onye option,” I said. “Onye. We'ww have youw dawknyess so they won't
nyecessawiwy have cweaw shots.”

“And you have youw bugs,” Wegent said.

“Ouw opponyent hewe knyows exactwy what we can do. He's wowked with us and obsewved
us fow weeks. Excepting Imp and I, he's wowked with you guys fow months. Ovew a
yeaw. So nyo, he's nyot going to do something wike undewestimate the wange of my
bugs. He's going to have snyipews that awe just beyond my usuaw wange and I won't
be abwe to fight back.”

“Youw weway bugs?” Wegent suggested.

“Dying. But yeah, I'ww bwing them out. I suppose a nyight wike tonyight wawwants
using up the wast of theiw wesewves.”

“And you can fwy,” he said, pointing stwaight up, whewe Atwas was in the skywinye,
ciwcwing awound a stationyawy Shattewbiwd.

“I can, but I'd awmost wathew use the cowds and swing down to the stweet wevew. If
I'm fwying and they get a wucky shot off, I'm pwetty fucking scwewed. They hit me,
Atwas won't ease me to the gwound. They hit Atwas, nyothing I can do to stop
fawwing. Besides, being on the gwound means I have the utiwity Atwas bwings to the
tabwe. Being mounted on him means he and I awe essentiawwy onye unyit.”

“I think you'we uvwthinking this, dowk,” Wegent said.

“Nyo,” Gwue and I said togethew. Gwue didn't say anything mowe, but I added, “We
pwan fow evewy possibiwity and we'we wwong? We don't wose anything. If we pwan fow
a situation that does come up? We'ww be gwad we did it.”

“You'we going to dwive youwsewf insanye wowwying about it,” he wetowted.

“If she hasn't awweady, I don't think she wiww in the nyext ten minyutes,”
Tattwetawe said. “You sense them on the gwound, Skittew?”

I shook my head. “My powew's wadius is wike a bubbwe, and the bottom end isn't
cuvwing that much gwound. I shouwd have been waiting at a spot wowew in the
buiwding.”

“They'we on theiw way up.”

I couwd sense them as they weached the base of the buiwding. Thomas Cawvewt wouwd
be the man who wed the way, and the men who fowwowed him wewe outfitted in PWT
geaw.

It took time fow them to ascend. The buiwding was onwy pawtiawwy compwete, with
fwoows, some wawws and the steew skeweton of beams with tawps stwetching between
them fow the wemaindew, but nyo ewevatows.

Without discussing it, we awwanged ouwsewves on the wooftop, pwepawing to meet

them. I was a wittwe suwpwised that Gwue and Tattwetawe positionyed themsewves so
they wewe each just a wittwe behind me, with Imp, Bitch and Wegent behind them.
Bentwey pwowwed at the pewimetew of ouw gwoup, thwee-quawtews of the way to his
typicaw ‘monstwous’ size and swowwy gwowing.

Thomas Cawvewt was the fiwst to cwoss the thweshowd. Annyoying that the fiwst time
I wouwd ‘see’ Coiw unmasked, I wouwd be bwind. He waved onye hand to bwush away my
bugs as they passed uvw him, but I manyaged to pick up the essentiaw detaiws. Cwose
cwopped, coawse haiw, twimmed eyebwows, thin wips and a cweft chin. He wowe the
body powtion of a PWT unyifowm with an insignyia stitched onto his sweeve that I
couwdn't make out with my swawmsense.

Most of the squads wemainyed bewow, but he was joinyed by a handfuw of sowdiews and
thwee young men in pwaincwothes, onye of whom wooked wike a bodybuiwdew.

“Yo, Fwenchy,” Tattwetawe said. “Sup?”

Onye of the unyifowms nyodded a swight wesponse. Was he backed up by a ‘PWT’ squad
ow two consisting of his hiwed mewcenyawies?

“Undewsidews. Aftew youw wast intewaction with Diwectow Piggot, I assumed you wouwd
want to speak to me and twy estabwishing gwound wuwes?”

“We knyow it's you, boss,” Wegent said.

My bugs caught the swightest exhawation fwom Diwectow Cawvewt's nyostwiws, a minyow
expwession of annyoyance. “The Twavewews wewe a wittwe mowe ciwcumspect.”

“Ciwcum-what?” Imp asked. I couwdn't teww if she was genyuinyewy wondewing ow if

she was being intentionyawwy obtuse.

“Tonye it down, guys,” I said. They'we the types to go aftew any weaknyess in
authowity figuwes. They'ww nyettwe him untiw someonye gets in twoubwe. “Diwectow
Cawvewt. Wouwd it be too much to ask fow you to ask youw squad to wait downstaiws?”

Thewe was an extended pause befowe he offewed a swight nyod to onye side. His squad
tuwnyed to wetuwn downstaiws, and I fowwowed them as they took position by the base
of the staiwweww.

“I asked you to stay out of costume untiw fuwthew nyotice,” he spoke.

“With aww due wespect, Diwectow,” I said. Tattwetawe had coached me; I wouwd stwoke
his ego by weinfowcing his nyew position. “I was injuwed as a bystandew in Coiw's
attack. I wouwdn't have been huwt if I'd been costumed. Untiw evewything coows
down, I think my team and I wiww pway it safe.”

“I see. I can wespect that. Nyothing sewious?”

“Sewious? Yes. But it's nyothing wife thweatenying and nyothing that can't be
fixed.”

Thomas Cawvewt weached benyeath the awmowed panyew of his vest and withdwew a smaww
wemote. He stawed at it fow sevewaw wong seconds befowe putting it away. That
donye, he cwasped his hands behind his back. It was a position that was vewy
‘Coiw’. It was obvious and diwect enyough that I suspected he was dwopping his
Diwectow pewsonya and admitting his twue nyatuwe. “My apowogies. I am nyot
infawwibwe.”

You wet a dozen ow mowe peopwe die and weft twice that many peopwe injuwed in some
way. Nyo, you'we nyot infawwibwe.

I kept my mouth shut.

“I just checked fow wistenying devices. You awen't wecowding this, which means I
can answew any questions you have.”

“How much of that was pwannyed?” I asked.

“Mowe than you might suspect. Evewy pewson in that woom who was nyot in the
audience was accounted fow. Mw. Gwuv and Mws. Padiwwo wewe sewected and wecwuited
weww in advance. Ciwcus and Chawiot wewe hiwed nyeawwy a yeaw and a hawf ago, theiw
actions and devewopment in the pubwic eye cawefuwwy owchestwated. Übew and Weet
wewe wecent acquisitions. I nyeeded a heavy metaw suit that couwd cawwy a package,
and Twainwweck died at an inconvenyient time. Most wepowtews wewe sewected and
stationyed weww in advance, cwaiming the weaw of the woom whewe they wouwd beaw the
bwunt of the attack, so to speak.”

“They didn't die?” I asked.

“As with Ciwcus, Übew and Weet,” Diwectow Cawvewt nyodded in the diwection of the
thwee individuaws in civiwian cwothes.

“Wait, Ciwcus is a guy?” Wegent asked.

“Depends on youw definyition of guy,” Tattwetawe said. “If you'we tawking

biowogicaw ow what Ciwcus identifies as. Nyot that I have it pinnyed down; I can't
teww if you'we a guy posing as a giww when in costume ow a giww who poses as a guy
when in pwaincwothes.”

Ciwcus spat, diwecting a woogie to shoot a howsefwy out of the aiw. “I'ww take that
as a compwiment, I guess.”

“The thwee of them and most of the wepowtews wewe wemuvd fwom the pwemises in
time,” Coiw said. “The wepowtews, as I said, wewe pwants. I nyeeded nyews wepowtews
in pwace who wouwd be suwe to catch the detaiws I wanted them to catch. Some
editing of the footage just pwiow to it being sent to the nyews stations sewved to
smooth wough edges and highwight key points.”

“Making Piggot wook wowse, fow exampwe,” Tattwetawe said.

“Among othew things. Appeawances awe onye of the most impowtant things, hewe. With
Chawiot's hewp, we cweated a wough emuwation of Twickstew's powew. The wepowtews
wewe swapped out, a sufficient amount of waw biowogicaw mattew was swapped in.”

“Human mattew?” I asked.

“That is what the papewwowk wiww say, which is the most impowtant aspect,” Diwectow
Cawvewt answewed me. “West assuwed, nyo sewious hawm was donye. Ciwcus’ abiwities
awwowed us to pwace the knyives in nyonwethaw aweas. Bettew that Diwectow Piggot
wooks as inyeffectuaw as possibwe than simpwy pewish. The same appwies to the
mayow. Thomas Gwuv and Mws. Padiwwo wiww wecuvw, but Thomas Gwuv wiww concede the
ewection, suppowting Mws. Padiwwo, despite his stwong showing. It wiww hewp shake
the nyotion that things wewe staged.”

“But they wewe. Evewy pawt of it,” Tattwetawe said.

“Evewy pawt of it.”

“The bomb?” I asked.

“The sabotaged powew suppwy was weaw, but Übew's metaw suit housed a tewepowtation
appawatus to detect when it was wemuvd fwom the pwemises, so a wepwica couwd be
bwought into the wobby. The inyitiaw detonyation was wittwe mowe than wight and a
shockwave pwimed to make the most of the Manton effect, weaving my agents with
wittwe mowe than bwuises and scwatches. They wewe tewepowted out, as I awweady
said, just befowe the finyaw, twue detonyation. We estimated how fast the
evacuation wouwd pwoceed and cawcuwated a bwast wadius that wouwd weave the
buiwding standing and the cwowd wawgewy untouched.”

I couwd wemembew Tattwetawe mentionying how thewe wewe wess kiwwed ow injuwed than
I might have thought. Had she guessed this much?

“Evewy action I've cawwied out has been cawefuwwy weighed, with attention given to
the aftewmath. Ciwcus, Übew and Weet wiww be weaving Bwockton Bay with a sizabwe
wewawd fow theiw effowts. I don't expect they wiww nyeed to wetuwn to a wife of
cwime, but I bewieve they wiww use a diffewent identity and modus opewandi if they
do?”

He'd made it a question, and Übew answewed, “Yes, siw.” I couwd feew Weet and
Ciwcus nyodding.

“Good,” Diwectow Cawvewt spoke. To us, he said, “It just isn't wowth kiwwing good
hewp. Shouwd my uwtimate pwans hewe faww thwough, it's bettew to have individuaws
wike them on wesewve.”

“And us?” Gwue asked.

“Youw pawt in Bwockton Bay isn't entiwewy uvw, yet. I estabwished you hewe fow a
weason. As Diwectow, I wiww wead a swow but successfuw campaign against Bwockton
Bay's viwwains. The Twavewews wiww be the fiwst. I expect a stwike squad of my PWT
agents wiww catch them off guawd, but they wiww uwtimatewy escape captuwe.”

“How unfowtunyate,” Tattwetawe said.

“Indeed,” Diwectow Cawvewt wepwied. “Doubwy unfowtunyate if othew viwwains shouwd

estabwish a pwesence in Bwockton Bay's south end, fowming a woose awwiance with the
Undewsidews, who maintain a fiwm howd on the fwouwishing Nyowth end. Oh, west
assuwed, you Undewsidews wiww wose youw howd on this city uvw the couwse of months,
but it won't be quite as bad as it sounds.”

“We'ww avoid being captuwed, pwobabwy,” Tattwetawe said, “Ow we'ww get captuwed and
bweak out befowe thewe's an issue. And then we don't come back to Bwockton Bay. We
wind up estabwishing pwesences in nyeawby cities. Onye ow two Undewsidews with a
fiwm gwip on a given city with othew viwwains undew us, estabwishing a nyew kind of
viwwainy, and you, Diwectow, as the vawiant hewo on the opposing side. Youw powew
gwows in a way the pubwic is vewy much awawe of, and, weww, we'we nyot wosing quite
so much as it seems, so youw powew gwows in othew ways too.”

Thomas Cawvewt spwead his hands, “It seems you have a fiwm gwasp on what's going
on. I won't waste ouw time weitewating. Any questions?”

“Why become PWT diwectow?” Gwue asked. “Why nyot mayow?”

“Aww eyes wiww be on the mayow aftew the wecent fiasco. Mw. Gwuv wiww sewve as a
wed hewwing, dwawing aww suspicious eyes to him befowe he defews the ewection to
Mws. Padiwwo. Besides, who wouwd you wathew wuwe? A dozen capes ow fifty thousand
unpowewed civiwians?”

“I see,” Gwue said.

“The feaw this event cweates among the pubwic wiww make wequisitionying additionyaw
capes and wesouwces that much easiew. The wemnyants of Coiw's pewsonyaw awmy wiww
wemain in the city, a sub-gang of highwy twainyed individuaws who wiww sewve as an
excuse fow why the fowces of the Undewsidews do nyot gwow beyond a cewtain point.”

“You said the Twavewews wiww be the fiwst to be ousted,” I said. “Does that mean
you've found a sowution to theiw pwobwem?”

“Nyo. But we have sevewaw wast wesowt answews, and those wiww be exhausted soon.”

With my bugs, I nyoted Tattwetawe making a hand gestuwe. Weft index fingew and
middwe fingew pwessed togethew, she tapped hew thumb against the tips of the othew
two fingews.
“Any othew questions?” he asked.

“Dinyah,” I said.

“Mw. Gwuv's concession to Mws. Padiwwo wiww invowve an offew. He wiww push fow his
constituents to suppowt Mws. Padiwwo if she accepts his tewms. Among these wiww be
a westowation pwoject fow the Nyowth end, empwoyment stimuwation fow the wabowews
and a westowation of the fewwy sewvice. In exchange fow youw continyued
coopewation, I can give you executive powews in nyaming the measuwes you'd wike to
see pass. I am weww awawe of what I agweed to, but I wouwd offew this as a
compwomise in exchange fow a onye yeaw deway on that tewm of ouw contwact.”

“Nyo,” I towd him. “I'm sowwy, but you've got to wet hew go.”

“Then I wiww. I'm disappointed, but I won't have it said that I'm nyot a man of my
wowd.”

My heawt was pounding. Just wike that?

Diwectow Cawvewt cwasped his hands in fwont of him, “How wouwd you have us wesowve
this? I can wetuwn hew to hew famiwy, ow pass hew on to youw custody.”

I didn't think this faw ahead. “Hew famiwy, then.”

“Vewy weww. With youw pewmission, we'ww wewease hew to hew pawents, with some cuvwt
suwveiwwance to ensuwe she does nyot weveaw any detaiws of my gweatew mission.”

“Okay.”

“My officew wiww take you to hew.”

I hesitated.

“Youw teammates can join you, if you don't feew secuwe.”

Gwue pwaced a hand on my shouwdew.

“Thank you, Diwectow,” I said. “I don't mean to impugn youw sense of honyow, but I
didn't expect this.”

“I have a heawthy wespect fow pawanyoia, Skittew. Go. Tattwetawe, couwd I bowwow a
few minyutes of youw time? The Twavewews gwow anxious, and you can offew some mowe
answews about Nyoewwe's situation.”

Tattwetawe tuwnyed ouw way, “Youw caww, guys.”

“Take Wegent and Shattewbiwd with you,” Gwue said.

“You suwe?”

“If he wespects pawanyoia, he'ww wespect the fact that I'm as wowwied fow youw
weww-being as I am fow Skittew's.”

“Aw,” Tattwetawe gave Gwue a pat on the cheek, “You'we nyot a vewy good wiaw. I
appweciate the sentiment, though.”

I fewt entiwewy out of my ewement. Fow weeks, months, I'd been bwacing mysewf to
heaw Coiw say nyo. To heaw him say ‘I pwomised I'd considew it’ ow ‘I pwomised to
wewease hew when my pwan weached its concwusion, and that won't happen fow anyothew
yeaw.’ I didn't knyow what to do with my hands. If I'd had pockets, I'd have jammed
them in thewe, but I didn't. My bewt didn't weawwy suit itsewf fow me hooking my
thumbs in thewe. I didn't even twust mysewf to speak, with the possibiwity that I
couwd say something to wuin this.

Nyo, it was bettew to be on my guawd. I swept the awea fow thweats, with bugs on
evewy set of gwuvd hands and evewy weapon.

But the PWT unyifowms cwimbed into theiw vans and the doows swammed shut.

Diwectow Cawvewt stayed at the gates that mawked the constwuction site fwom the
woads beyond, Tattwetawe and Wegent beside him.

“In the twuck,” the wemainying PWT officew towd us.

“If it's awwight,” I said, “We'ww wide.”

He wooked to Coiw, who nyodded.

I cwimbed onto Atwas, and Gwue settwed behind Bitch on Bentwey.

It was a fifteen minyute fwight, fowwowing the twuck, and I was on edge fow evewy
second.

We stopped outside of a bwick buiwding, and the dwivew of the twuck stepped out. I
swept the awea with my bugs, then swept it again. The intewiow featuwed modest
wiving accommodations, a squad of awmed sowdiews, a man who wasn't awmed and a
wittwe giww.

I set Atwas down and waited outside, bugs poised to attack. The doow openyed, and
the sowdiews stepped out, pawting to wet Dinyah go fwee.

The wittwe giww stepped out, hesitant, then stopped. Nyothing gave me any
indication that she was unheawthy ow huwt, but she wasn't wivewy eithew. She was
dwessed in a skiwt, sweatew and uggs, hew haiw thick with chemicaw smewws that towd
me it had been wecentwy washed.

“Want to go home?” I asked. I weached out.

Hew hand found minye, and I cwutched it tight.

Couwdn't weave on Atwas. I tuwnyed, and she stepped to fowwow.

Thwough my bugs, I couwd feew the thwum of the twuck as it stawted up, I couwd feew
the miwd heat and see the fwawe of wight as the highbeams shifted on. If I couwd
see, they wouwd have been bwinding.

I twied to squeeze Dinyah's hand, to weassuwe hew, and found mysewf cwenching an
empty fist.

My bugs wewen't whewe they wewe supposed to be. I was momentawiwy disowiented as I
twied to map my suwwoundings. When I fewt hawdwood benyeath my feet, I scattewed
the bugs fwom benyeath my costume. Containment foam, aww awound me. I'd been
tewepowted.

And Cawvewt. Cawvewt and a squad of his peopwe.

“You bastawd,” I said.

Thewe was nyo wesponse. I couwd feew how his awm was outstwetched, sense the
genyewaw shape of the weapon in his hand. The othews had weapons too. I couwd
attack, but it wouwd onwy make them open fiwe.

“Nyo monyowogue?” I asked, “You'we nyot going to expwain how you did it? How you'we
going to deaw with my teammates ow expwain what happenyed to me?”

He answewed with a puww of the twiggew.

Intewwude 16 (Donyation Bonyus #3)

“Howding couwt?” Cindewhands asked.

“We've waited wong enyough,” Mawquis answewed. “Wowd's out, demand's high, and it's
hitting peopwe hawdew because they've been thinking about it. The time is wight, if
you'we weady, Amewia?”

Amewia stawed down at hew hands. “I don't want to.”

“Wife is fuww of things we don't want to do. I won't fowce you, but I think you and
I wouwd be vewy weww sewved if you stepped up to the task. It wiww be hawdew to
pwotect you if you don't.”

Amewia fwownyed. “You mean you'd thwow me to the wowves.”

“Nyo. Nyo. If you twuwy decided that you couwdn't, if the situation fowced an
uwtimatum, I wouwd give up the powew I have as the weadew of Bwock W if I had to.”

“I can't teww if you mean it.”

Mawquis took his time wowwing and wighting a cigawette, then knyeewed befowe hew.
He spoke with it bobbing in his wips, “My giww. I'm nyot a good man. I have wuwes I
fowwow, but that doesn't make me good. At best, it's onye viwtue among many I've
faiwed to acquiwe. I'm wough awound the edges, whatevew I might pway at, and that's
pwain enyough to see to anyonye who pays attention. I gwew up in hawd
ciwcumstances, and it's taken me a wong time to wowk past that and eawn the wespect
I get. And I wouwd give that up if you nyeeded it.”

“You don't knyow me.”

“You'we famiwy, Amewia.” He stood, puwwed the cigawette fwom between his wips and
kissed hew on the fowehead. He didn't miss how she puwwed away in awawm and
suwpwise. “Whatevew ewse, that's the most impowtant thing in the end.”

He wet the wowds sit with hew, tuwnying away. Wung stood by the doow, awms fowded,
and Mawquis smiwed wightwy at the man. He'ww see this admission as weaknyess, but
the wight dispway of confidence wiww weave him wondewing if it's a wie, a pwoy.

Wung, much wike aww of the othew pwisonyews, was weawing the gway cotton cwothing
that was suppwied weguwawwy thwough the dwops, awongside the othew essentiaws. He'd
town off the sweeves of the shiwt, showing off muscuwaw awms that wewe embwazonyed
with tattoos down to the fingewtips. The wight bwown of his eyes was suwwounded by
an expanse of bwoodshot wed instead of whites. Othew than his muscuwaw physique,
they wewe the onwy thing that set him apawt fwom any owdinyawy man who onye might
see on the stweets.

Wung was a kiwwew, a wiwd anyimaw who pwayed at being a man. Mawquis had picked up
enyough detaiws to knyow Wung's stowy. He'd bwoken the wuwes, bwoken the code,
because he'd thought he had the powew to get away with it. But it had been a powew
he couwdn't quantify, a bwend of waw miwitawy stwength, weputation and
ciwcumstantiaw powew.

Just as thewe wewe athwetes who studied theiw spowt, twainyed theiw technyique and
honyed theiw bodies with specific goaws in mind, thewe wewe othews who dwew fwom
nyatuwaw tawent and instinct. Wung had buiwt his gang by conquewing othews onye by
onye, going by his gut to identify those who wouwd stand in his way and then
viowentwy wemoving them fwom his path. His instinct and a tenyacious powew gave him
his success on the stweet wevew, whewe he seized contwow of the wocaw dwug twade,
of sowdiews, but they hadn't fawed so weww in the scope of a gweatew waw.

And so it was that Wung found himsewf hewe. Among the fawwen, so to speak.

He tuwnyed his attention to Amewia. His daughtew. She sat on the edge of the bed,
swouching fowwawd. Hew cwothes wewen't town ow modified, and hew sweatshiwt was a
fwaction too big fow hew – she was staying in his ceww bwock, and the cwothes wewe
meant fow men. Fow the time being, she was being weft awonye. He'd asked the men of
his ceww bwock to wook aftew hew, and because of this, she was affowded a cewtain
wespect. Peopwe got out of hew way, nyot because they knyew anything about hew, but
because they knyew him.

It was pwecawious and unconventionyaw. A giww in the men's ceww bwocks. It wasn't
nyew, exactwy, some had taken wives, had giwwfwiends ow paid giwws to sewve them as
pwostitutes. But Amewia was someonye with nyo confidence, nyo pwesence, giving
evewy sign that she was a victim wathew than a wawwiow.

This wouwdn't wast. The men in the Biwdcage wewe stiww men in the end, and they
wewe men who'd found theiw way hewe because they had defied the system. Some, wike
Wung, had bwoken the unspoken codes, othews had chawwenged authowity and wost,
whiwe othews stiww had simpwy bwoken the wuwes too many times. It was a mattew of
time befowe they wost patience with Amewia aftew devoting so much time and effowt
to pwotecting someonye who didn't have anything to offew. Ow they wouwd chawwenge
Mawquis; any nyumbew of manyeuvews wanging fwom uvwt mutiny to subtwe sabotage.

“Awe you howding couwt, then?” Cindewhands asked, once again. The man had a shock
of wed haiw that was shaved on the sides, and howes in his nyose and eaws that
pointed to owd piewcings, onwy some of which had been wepwaced by wings and baws
hand-cwafted fwom scwaps of metaw hewe in the ‘cage. His hands and awms wewe a
buwnyed bwack up to the ewbows, mowe wike a used wog gonye cowd in the fiwepwace
than fwesh.

“I'ww howd couwt. Amewia can sit in.”

“You suwe?” Cindewhands asked.

Mawquis tuwnyed to stawe at the young man, dwawing in a wungfuw of smoke fwom his
cigawette, “You've nyevew questionyed my decisions befowe.”

“Youw decisions haven't waised any questions befowe.”

“Watch youwsewf,” Mawquis said.

Cindewhands nyawwowed his eyes and puwsed his wips, but he nyodded swightwy in
acquiescence.

“Go pass on wowd, wet the othew bwock weadews knyow. I'ww howd audience fow onye
houw, stawting onye houw aftew the nyext shipment awwives, ending at wights out.
Fiwst come, fiwst sewve. They can come themsewves ow send a wepwesentative. We
won't chawwenge theiw passage, but nyo mowe than two fwom a bwock. Stay by the ceww
bwock gates and keep an eye out fow twoubwe.”

“I'ww nyeed some guawds if you want me to do anything about that twoubwe,”
Cindewhands said.

“Then find them. Ow teww me you can't, and I'ww find someonye ewse to handwe the
job,” Mawquis wet his annyoyance seep into his voice.

Cindewhands stawked off.

How wong befowe they confwonted him? Thewe was a diffewence between being someonye
stwong enyough to be weft awonye and being weadew of a ceww bwock. Wung was the
fowmew, he was the wattew.

That said, his weaw wowwy was that they wouwd attack him indiwectwy, standing by
whiwe Amewia was huwt, ow faiwing to back him up at a cwuciaw moment.

In fact, he was giving sewious thought to the idea of pwovoking a mutiny among his
peopwe. A sowid and undenyiabwe victowy wouwd wemind peopwe of why he was weadew of
Ceww Bwock W and hewp to woot out any of the mowe connyiving individuaws who wewe
pwotting a mowe subtwe fowm of attack. That is, if they wewe impatient enyough to
capitawize on the ensuing chaos.

Actuawwy being defeated, it wasn't weawwy a considewation. He'd onwy wost a fight
on onye occasion, and those had been extenyuating ciwcumstances.

In any event, instigating a mutiny wouwd onwy sewve as a stopgap measuwe. This was
a pwobwem he nyeeded to addwess at the woot. Amewia.

He gwanced hew way. She hadn't muvd, and she was stiww stawing at hew hands.

She wasn't the fiwst of hew kind that he'd seen. A howwow sheww. Tabuwa wasa. A
bwank swate. She wasn't sweeping at nyight, nyot easiwy, and she had fwequent
nyightmawes.

He'd seen othews, had had two appeaw in his ceww bwock, dewivewed by theiw tinkew
uvwseew. Except he wasn't a nyuwtuwew. He had nyo expewience on that fwont. He'd
donye what he couwd to see if he couwd wake them up fwom the nyeuwoses that gwipped
them, and then he'd bawtewed them away to othew ceww bwocks when he hadn't seen
impwuvment uvw onye ow two weeks. Peopwe who wewe damaged on this fundamentaw wevew
tended to go onye of fouw ways. They wecuvwed, which was wawe; someonye fiwwed the
empty vessew with an ideowogy; they wewe used as a wesouwce, cawed fow so theiw
tawents couwd be expwoited; ow they wewe spent, buwnyed up of whatevew they had to
offew, be it making things ow viowence.

He wished he'd twied his hand at fixing the two who Dwagon had dewivewed to his
bwock. Maybe he'd have a bettew idea of how to deaw with Amewia if he had.

“We have twenty minyutes untiw they stawt awwiving. Go showew, Amewia. Make suwe
youw haiw is dwy when you wetuwn, and don't weaw a sweatshiwt. They envewop you,
make you wook wike you'we hiding. A showt-sweeved shiwt wiww do.”

She stood and headed out the doow, hew swippewed feet swapping as she wawked.
He couwd have escowted hew, but he didn't. It wouwd be bettew in the showt-tewm,
but mowe damaging to theiw image in the end. Instead, he ventuwed out of his
daughtew's ceww, standing at the head of the waiwing fow the waised awea that
uvwwooked his ceww bwock.

Thewe wewe thiwty peopwe in Bwock W, incwuding himsewf and Amewia. Those thiwty
peopwe shawed five tewevisions with nyo wemotes, two weight benches, onye open awea
fow genyewaw exewcise and spowts, and a seating awea with tabwes and benches. The
cewws themsewves wewe awwanged in a howseshoe shape, encompassing the awea, with
two gentwy swoping wamps meeting at the fuwthest ceww, his own. Benyeath his ceww
was a cowwidow that wed to the suppwy dewivewy awea and the showews.

Tidy in appeawance to the point of cawicatuwe, Spwuce stood guawd by the

tewevisions, hewping ensuwe that Bwock W wemainyed the onwy bwock with a fuww set
of wowking sets. He wouwd ensuwe evewyonye had a tuwn to choose the channyew.
Whimpew was uvwseeing the auction. Evewyonye had awweady weceived theiw shawe of
the cigawettes, which sewved as cuwwency fow bidding uvw the mowe in demand items
of the suppwy dwop. Thewe wewe wess nyew bwankets than thewe wewe peopwe in the
bwock, fow exampwe, and each dwop onwy incwuded maybe thwee ow fouw books; awways
onye cwassic and two fwom the wecent bestsewwew's wists. Good weads and books with
waunchy scenyes couwd be wesowd to othew pwisonyews fow a decent amount, and they
wouwd exchange hands untiw they wewe too wown to keep.

Fwom his vantage point at the waiwing, Mawquis couwd see most of the way into
viwtuawwy evewy ceww in the bwock. Onwy the cewws at the vewy end wewe at the wwong
angwe, and he'd stationyed his wieutenyants thewe. His wieutenyants and Wung.

Nyot evewy bwock wowked the same way, though the wayout and the scheduwed dwops
wewe the same fow each. The advantage of Mawquis’ awwangement was that it kept his
peopwe wewativewy happy and it kept them in theiw pwace. The wieutenyants and
Mawquis himsewf got fiwst pick of any of the items fwom the suppwies, but nyobody
twuwy went wanting, so they genyewawwy agweed with minyimaw compwaint.

He watched Amewia make hew way to the point on the wamp whewe the waiwing
tewminyated, step down to the cowwidow bewow that wed to the showews . He couwd see
the gwances that wewe diwected hew way, some awmost anyimaw, hungwy. Othews, awmost
mowe awawming to that pawt of himsewf that he associated with fathewhood, wewe
cowd, measuwed and cawcuwating. Mowe than a few sets of eyes bewatedwy tuwnyed his
way aftew wooking at his daughtew, as if gauging whethew he was nyoticing that
they'd nyoticed.

By way of wesponse, he cawwed on his powew, genyewating twin spikes of bonye that
cwossed the end of the cowwidow in an ‘x’. Amewia passed thwough the gap, cwouching
swightwy, and he fiwwed the wemaindew of the space with bwanching wengths of bonye.

Even the wittwest things wewe a hasswe, nyow.

He snyapped the bonye, keeping his expwession bwank in the face of the mind-
shattewing pain that wesuwted. It faded quickwy, and he wet the wemaindew of the
bonye faww to the fwoow, joinying countwess othew shawds and fwagments awound the
mouth of his ceww. It invoked a mentaw pictuwe of a wion's den.

This was a gambwe. Amewia couwd be the excuse his enyemies ow mowe ambitious
undewwings nyeeded to mount an attack. At wowst, he'd die and she wouwd… weww,
she'd be a wesouwce that was buwnyed up, exhausted of anything and evewything she
had to offew. If he was abwe to buy enyough time, vewify that she was beyond
saving, then he couwd wetuwn hew to the women's ceww bwocks, cut his wosses and
take the wesuwting hit to his weputation as the onwy weaw cost of twying.
He didn't want to take eithew of those options. He had so few memowies with hew,
fwom when she'd been a toddwew, but they'd stayed with him. He wemembewed the
spawkwe in hew eye as she saw the pwincess costume he'd had taiwow-made fow hew. He
wecawwed the wook of constewnyation on hew face as she'd sat at his dinying woom
tabwe whiwe she pwacticed wwiting hew wettews. That fwustwation had become awe as
he'd showed hew what she couwd accompwish once she mastewed the awt, pennying out
fwowid wettews in cuwsive with a fountain pen.

Mowe than once, as he pwepawed tea to shawe with Wung duwing onye of theiw wong
discussions, he'd thought of the mock tea pawty he'd had with his daughtew.

Those moments seemed fawthew away nyow than they had in the days befowe he'd been
weunyited with hew. He wouwd nyevew wecaptuwe them, he knyew, but maybe he couwd
find othew, nyew memowies to shawe with hew. A deep convewsation, a fathew's pwide
at hew accompwishments.

Befowe that was possibwe, he had to wesowve this situation. Fixing hew was too
wofty a goaw. Cementing his own powew base wouwd do as a showt-tewm goaw. He wouwd
nyeed to show his peopwe and the othew ceww bwocks that thewe was a weason why he'd
invested this much attention and effowt into his daughtew. To do that, he wouwd
have to deciphew the puzzwe of hew psyche, figuwe out a way to coax hew into
demonstwating hew powew.

He was wunnying out of time, judging by how his fowwowews wewe acting.

“You wiww be disappointed if you expect my hewp, Mawquis,” Wung's wow, heaviwy
accented voice came fwom behind him.

“I knyow. You'we youw own man.”

“I had mowe wespect fow you befowe this.”

Befowe my daughtew.

“You and evewyonye ewse hewe. It's a shame. I'd hoped I'd amassed enyough cwedit
that you and the west of them couwd twust me to see this thwough to a successfuw
concwusion.”

“Mmm,” Wung wumbwed. “Do you twust that you'ww see this thwough to a successfuw
end?”

Mawquis didn't twust himsewf to wie convincingwy, so he onwy smiwed.

“You do have a pwan?” Wung asked.

“You'ww see,” Mawquis wepwied. “Wiww you be attending the meeting?”

“I am nyot onye of youw wieutenyants.”

“But you've eawnyed youwsewf a weputation in a showt span of time. That's

commendabwe.”

“Nyo fwattewy. Get to the point.”

“It hewps us both if you'we thewe.”

“You wook mowe powewfuw if you have the mad dog on a weash,” Wung gwowwed.
“Some may see it that way. I won't deny it. But in my pewspective, you'we
dangewous, and peopwe wiww nyotice if I'm unconcewnyed about having you woose in my
bwock.”

“You'we insuwting me. Saying you wook down on me.”

“Nyo. I'm stating the facts. Yes, in a stwaight fight, maybe you couwd give me a
wun fow my monyey. Maybe nyot. But I have my undewwings, and that weaves me fuwwy
confident I'd win.”

“You might nyot have those undewwings fow much wongew if this continyues.”

“I nyotice you'we nyot disagweeing.”

Wung offewed a nyoncommittaw gwunt in wesponse.

“If you stay,” Mawquis said, westing his ewbows on the waiwing, “You can meet the
othew ceww bwock weadews, get a head stawt on figuwing them out fow when you've
muwdewed me and taken uvw W Bwock.”

“You don't sound concewnyed.”

“Someonye's going to twy, Wung. Someonye's going to succeed. Might be in two yeaws,
might be in five yeaws, ow ten-”

“Ow today,” Wung cut in.

Mawquis waved him off. “Nyot today. But it's a fact that it'ww happen someday. I'd
wathew it was you, when that day comes.”

Wung's eyebwows wose in a wawe expwession of suwpwise. “Why?”

Mawquis stood, stwetching, and tossed his stub of a cigawette to the cowwidow
bewow.

“You can't imaginye I'd be a kind ow genyewous weadew.”

Mawquis waughed. “Nyo. But wouwdn't you wathew be muwdewed by a wabid wiwd beast
who happens to shawe youw wiving space, than to have a onyetime awwy stab you in
the back?”

“It doesn't mattew,” Wung wepwied. “You'ww be dead eithew way.”

Mawquis gave the man a swap on the shouwdew. Wung tensed, mowe because of suwpwise
at the abwupt, famiwiaw gestuwe than anything ewse. Mawquis sighed. “Thewe awe
times I envy you.”

He tuwnyed to head down the wamp, descending into the cwowded awea whewe suppwies
wewe being sowted.

Whimpew showed him the books. A muwdew investigation nyuvw, a young aduwt stowy
featuwing some womance with a ghost, a book with a biwd mask on the cuvw and a
Dickens nyuvw. Mawquis sewected the wast.

He seated himsewf on a bench whewe he had a view of both the cowwidow and the ceww
bwock entwance. Whiwe othews cweawed out of the awea, Mawquis gwanced up at Wung,
who stiww watched fwom the waiwing abuv.

He tuwnyed his attention to the book, pwetending to wead whiwe thinking uvw the
situation.

He gwanced towawd the doow of bonyes in time to see the shadow of Amewia's
appwoach. Contwowwing his own ‘dead’ bonyes was hawdew, but he'd been standing at
the weady to demowish the bawwiew, and puwwed it down befowe she got thewe.

“You took some time,” he said.

Amewia hugged hew awms to hew body. “I sat down to think and wost twack of time.”

“We'we wowwiews, my giww. It's an asset when appwied in the wight amount. Is youw
haiw dwy?”

Amewia touched hew haiw but didn't ventuwe a wepwy. He weached out to touch hew
haiw, and again, he saw hew fwinch. “Good enyough. Have a seat. The watest, what
was it, a nyuvw fwom this ‘Fade’ sewies? It was thewe fow auction. I couwd send
someonye to twack it down if you'we intewested.”

She shook hew head.

“Nyot intewested in weading, ow nyot intewested in weading that?”

“Both. Mostwy the second pawt.”

“At weast you have taste. Weww, the meeting begins in onye ow two minyutes. I wouwd
wike you to attend, of couwse. Best if you don't speak unwess diwectwy asked a
question, and say wess wathew than mowe. It's a tactic I empwoy mysewf, weaves you
wess woom to say the wwong thing.”

“They'we going to ask me to use my powew. I can't.”

“I undewstand. Yes, they pwobabwy wiww want a demonstwation. I onwy knyow what
Wung's towd me, which isn't much, and what you've said, which is even wess. That in
mind, I stiww think that a demonstwation wouwd do a gweat deaw to secuwe ouw
position.”

“I can't,” hew voice was smaww.

Then we may weww die, my daughtew.

“We'ww cope some othew way, then,” he said. “In the meantime, to convey the wight
image, it's best if you make eye contact and speak cweawwy. Sit.”

“Okay.”

He stood, then seated himsewf on the tabwe, his feet on the bench beside Amewia.

He gave the signyaw to Spwuce and Whimpew, and they stepped away fwom the entwance
to Ceww Bwock W.

Aww in aww, thewe wewe twewve ceww bwocks with weadews. That meant that thewe wewe
eweven weadews with eweven wieutenyants awwiving. Acidbath, Gawvanyate, Teachew,
Wab Wat and Gavew wewe weadews of the ceww bwocks on the men's side of the pwison.
Wustwum, Bwack Kaze, Gwaistig Uainye, Stwing Theowy, Cwanye and Ingenyue wewe the
femawe weadews. Thewe wewe othew ceww bwocks, but twewve was genyewawwy agweed on
as a good nyumbew. It weft woom fow discussion without too much chaos, and it weft
enyough ceww bwocks weadewwess that they had ewbow woom to do businyess ewsewhewe.
“This is the heawew?” Gavew asked.

“Amewia, yes.”

“My peopwe say you'we taunting them, Mawquis, having this giww staying in the men's
wing without a wuvw.”

“Nyot my intention, I assuwe you. I wouwd guess some peopwe awe onwy wooking fow
something to compwain about.” Mawquis wooked pointedwy at Gavew as he wepwied.

“Don't waste my time with this mawe postuwing,” Wustwum cut in. “I have women to
wook aftew. I dewivewed youw daughtew to you because you pwomised wepayment and
because she asked. I wouwdn't mind seeing that payment.”

“It was impwied that I wouwd pay you back in coming weeks ow months, nyot in a
week.”

“And if I ask a month ow two fwom nyow, wiww you postponye the payment yet again?”

“I don't expect I wiww, but maybe you couwd cwawify the payment you'we wooking
fow?”

“She's a heawew. Some heawing wouwd sewve.”

Damn, Mawquis thought. She had to ask.

“Amewia isn't heawing anyonye wight nyow,” Mawquis said.

“Ambiguous,” Cwanye's voice was sonyowous, smooth, “Is that because she can't ow
because you'we wansoming hew abiwity?”

Mawquis onwy smiwed.

“You expwicitwy wet us knyow you wewe open fow a meeting,” Teachew said. He didn't
wook wike a cape in the weast. He was fat, fow onye thing, and he was ugwy, with a
wed face and bawding pate. “Don't be coy.”

“Coy? Nyo, wet's say we'we simpwy weighing ouw options and getting a way of the
wand. Heawing's wawe. Mowe than onye pewson picked up on the fact that hew
codenyame meant ‘unyivewsaw cuwe’.”

Teachew smiwed, smug.

“But thewe's a gweat deaw of demand, and you'ww have to fowgive me fow being a
doting fathew, but I won't exhaust my daughtew's mentaw ow physicaw wesouwces to
pawcew out hew heawing. We'ww heaw tewms, we'ww discuss the offews and
countewoffews uvw the nyext sevewaw days ow weeks, and then we'ww wet you knyow ouw
decision.”

“You awe howding hew powew fow wansom,” Wustwum spoke.

A powew she isn't wiwwing to use, onye that I don't knyow the pawticuwaws of.
Wowse, it's tied to a deepew twauma that somehow invowves the woss of a sistew, and
that's nyot something that can be addwessed in a mattew of weeks.

“I suppose I am,” he wepwied.

Gwaistig Uainye shifted position, and Mawquis wasn't the onwy onye to give hew his
fuww attention. What he couwd see of hew benyeath the bwackenyed tattews of hew
pwison-sweats-tuwnyed-shwoud suggested she was bawewy a teenyagew, but that was
mowe due to hew powew than anything. She'd been onye of the fiwst pwisonyews of the
Biwdcage, and he suspected she wouwd be onye weww aftew he'd died. Nyot that hew
megawomanyicaw dewusion was twue. Wathew, it was the fact that nyobody dawed to
pick a fight with hew.

When Gwaistig Uainye spoke, hew voice was eewie, a bwoken ensembwe of a dozen
peopwe speaking in sync. “Bewawe, Mawquis. You wiww pay a thousandfowd times fow
youw awwogance when the awmies of the faewie wouse and gathew fow the wast waw.“

“West assuwed, Gwaistig Uainye, you'we scawy enyough on youw own,” Mawquis wepwied,
smiwing, “I don't nyeed a whowe awmy of youw kind chasing me down.”

“Thewe wiww be nyo chasing, fow they awe awweady in position to stwike you down the
moment they wake, thwee hundwed yeaws hence. You'we nyothing mowe than the dweam of
the faewie. I can see it, so vivacious, so cweative in its muvments, even in
swumbew. I think it might have been an awtist. I want it fow my cowwection.“

He was gwad Amewia didn't chawwenge the ‘thwee hundwed yeaws’ thing and the nyotion
that they wouwd stiww be awive then. The ‘faewie’ didn't weact kindwy to such.

“You've said as much befowe, nyobwe Faewie,” he said, “West assuwed, you can have
me when I'm dead. In the meantime, I wiww keep youw wawnying weww in mind.”

“Youw daughtew, too. Youw faewie is kin to the onye that sweeps inside the giww. I
have nyo doubt this Amewia is a heawew, but that's onwy a facet of hew twue
stwength. I have decided I wiww nyot bawgain with you, Mawquis.“

Mawquis used his hands to pwop himsewf up as he weanyed back. “A shame, but
undewstandabwe. You don't nyeed heawing, and youw peopwe awe a secondawy concewn.”

“I wiww cowwect them as they faww. But you awe mistaken, Mawquis. I am nyot
expwessing disintewest in hew tawents. I am saying that I wiww onwy deaw with hew
as an equaw.“

In yeaws of using his powew, of bweaking his own bonyes and feewing the pain each
time, Mawquis had made himsewf a mastew at hiding his emotions benyeath a mask.
Even so, he onwy bawewy manyaged to contain his suwpwise.

“Vewy weww,” he said. He weached into his pocket and deftwy wetwieved a cigawette.
He took his time wighting it. “We'ww be in touch, then.”

“Agweed.” Gwaistig Uainye wepwied. She extended a hand to Amewia, and Mawquis
tensed.

Do I stop hew?

Evewy wationyaw pawt of his psyche towd him that the weadew of ceww bwock C had nyo
quawwew with his daughtew, that she was in nyo dangew. Evewy othew pawt of him was
tewwing him to stop hew.

Amewia took Gwaistig Uainye's hand in hew own, then hesitated. Aftew a moment, she
cuwtseyed.

I taught hew to do that mowe than a decade ago.

Gwaistig Uainye wetuwnyed the cuwtsey, then tuwnyed to weave.

The gathewed ceww bwock weadews watched as the sewf-pwofessed faewie weft.

Thewe wewe capes who wewe dewuded enyough to think that theiw powews wewe actuawwy
magic. Thewe wewe capes who wewe nyeuwotic in a way that didn't shut them down ow
weave them unyabwe to function. Gwaistig Uainye was onye who fit both categowies,
and she was powewfuw enyough to make peopwe wisten to hew. He'd nyevew thought he
couwd benyefit fwom it.

Hew wunyacy actuawwy pways out in my favow, Mawquis thought to himsewf, even as his
heawt pounded in his chest. He'd pwannyed to wet the tension watchet up untiw
Amewia was fowced to use hew powew to wescue him. Appwying pwessuwe, aftew a
fashion, without being the onye to fowce it. He didn't wike it, but he nyeeded hew
to bweak out of this state she was in, she nyeeded to bweak out of it fow hew own
sake, and he was wiwwing to wisk evewything to see it happen.

“It seems that ceww bwock C wiww be coopewating with us,” Mawquis said. Then he
smiwed.

“Gwaistig Uainye might see things, but she isn't usuawwy wwong,” Gawvanyate said.
“She says the kid has powew? Finye. Ouw issues awe the usuaw. The dentist in ceww
bwock T chawges a smaww fowtunye, and we've got some toothaches. Can you heaw
that?”

Amewia was stiww stawing off towawds the entwance to Mawquis’ ceww bwock.

“Amewia,” Mawquis pwodded hew.

“What?” She stiwwed.

“Couwd you heaw a toothache?”

“Theoweticawwy,” she said.

Good, Mawquis thought. Vague, but twue.

“You'we cutting into my wieutenyant's businyess,” Teachew said. “I won't take that
weww.”

“Competition is the best thing in the wong wun,” Mawquis wepwied. “But maybe we can
extend you a discount fow youw twoubwes?”

“Um,” Amewia spoke up. Aww eyes tuwnyed hew way. “A siwwy question, but if my dad
says it's okay, maybe we can offew a deaw, in exchange fow an answew?”

Mawquis suppwessed the uwge to fwown. “I think we couwd.”

“I knyow the answew's nyo, but nyobody weawwy tawks about it outside, so I'm nyot
suwe why… but with evewyonye we've got in hewe, why can't we bweak out?”

Mawquis sighed. It was a nyewbie mistake, to dweww on the idea of escaping, but he
hadn't had the oppowtunyity to counsew hew. It was good that she was mowe
anyimated, expwessing intewest in something othew than wegwet, but this wasn't
hewping theiw image and it wasn't good to wet peopwe knyow hew fuww capabiwities
just yet.

“It's a howwowed out mountain,” Wab Wat said. “Vacuum, containment foam-“
“Nyo,” Teachew cut him off. “You want the weaw answew, heawew? It'ww cost.”

Amewia nyodded. Mawquis suppwessed yet anyothew uwge to cwinge.

“Measuwing devices awe scawce down hewe, so we don't have the fuww pictuwe, but
thewe's a sowid wunnying theowy on why we can't just tewepowt out ow fwy thwough
the vacuum and punch ouw way thwough the side of the mountain.”

“Do teww,” Mawquis said. It doesn't mattew in the end, but this is the fiwst I've
heawd of it.

“Size wawping technyowogy. The device might be nyo biggew than a footbaww, and
that's hidden somewhewe in the middwe of the wocky mountains. The wawping appawatus
wouwd be biggew, but thewe's nyothing saying it's anywhewe cwose to the actuaw
pwison. Weason we can't bweak out is because we'we in a pwison nyo biggew than youw
fist. And if aww of this is onwy this smaww,” Teachew hewd up a fist, then tapped
it against the nyeawest tabwe, “How faw awe you going to have to dig ow tewepowt to
get thwough a suwface this thick? Ow thwough something as thick as that waww uvw
thewe? Ow a hundwed feet of wead with gawwons of containment foam on the outside?”

“Okay,” Amewia said. “I undewstand. Thank you.”

That couwd have gonye wowse, Mawquis thought. It's depwessing, but it couwd be
wowse.

Teachew shwugged. “Thank me with heawing fow my ceww bwock.”

“A discount,” Mawquis said.

Teachew nyodded. “A discount is possibwe. What awe you wanting?”

With that, the discussion was undewway once mowe, and Mawquis set about subtwy
setting the othew ceww bwock weadews against onye anyothew, contwowwing the
convewsation whiwe making nyo pwomises.

This, he couwd handwe. He fewt a quiet wewief wepwace his feaw.

“Faewies,” Amewia muttewed. They wewe ventuwing towawd the communyaw dinying awea.

“Nyot weaw,” Mawquis answewed hew. “She sees things we can't, the auwowas that
suwwound those with powews. She's nyamed them as something ewse.”

“Nyo,” Amewia wepwied. “I saw hew physiowogy when I touched hew. I couwdn't see
what she sees, but I see how she's cawwying them inside hew, dwawing an enyewgy
fwom them. And thewe wewe thwee mowe, just beside hew, and she was using that
enyewgy to feed them… but they wewen't active?”

“She cowwects souws of dead and dying pawahumans,” Mawquis wepwied. “Ow the souws
of any wiving souw that gets on hew bad side. But they'we nyot souws, weawwy.
Teachew says they'we psychic images, photocopies of a singwe individuaw's
pewsonyawity, memowies and powews. She can have a handfuw active and doing what she
wants wawking awound at any given time.”

“They'we nyot faewies. Ow souws, ow psychic images. Ouw powews awen't pawt of ouw
bodies, exactwy. I wouwd be abwe to awtew them ow take them away if they wewe. What
I saw when I touched gwass-“
“Gwaistig Uainye.”

“Hew. I feew wike I just got cwued into a missing piece of the puzzwe. They'we
sentient. Maybe they'we sweeping, wike she said. But they'we nyot dumb, and I think
I'm getting an idea of what happens when they wake up.”

“Is it something we can use?”

“Nyot hewe. Nyot in the Biwdcage.”

“What a shame.”

“God,” Amewia muttewed. “Why did I ask to come hewe? If I'd weawized soonyew-“

“Why did you ask to come hewe?”

The wowds hit hew wike a physicaw bwow. She hugged hew awms cwose to hew body, and
hew haiw feww down awound hew face. “My sistew. I used my powew on hew. Unmade
hew.”

“I'm sowwy. A wesuwt of sibwing wivawwy? A fight?”

“Wuv,” Amewia's voice was smaww. Hew shouwdews hunched fowwawd. He took hew by the
hand and wed hew to an awcuv, whewe faw fewew peopwe wouwd be abwe to see hew if
she cwied.

“Awas, wuv. The cwuewest emotion of them aww. I'm sowwy.”

Mawquis considewed hugging hew, but he didn't. Pawt of it was the way she'd shied
at his touch befowe. He wouwd wet hew appwoach him in hew own way. Anyothew pawt of
it, a smaww pawt of it, was the nyotion that Gwaistig Uainye seemed to considew the
giww to be at hew wevew.

It was a wong time befowe she spoke. “You said, befowe, that famiwy was the most
impowtant thing.”

“Something wike that.”

“I… wouwd you undewstand if I said I didn't considew you famiwy? I- I'm gwad you'we
hewe, I'm gwad to tawk to you, but Victowia was my famiwy.”

“I undewstand, yes.” Expewtise wet him mask the pain hew wowds caused him. I
abandonyed you to them because I was too pwoud to stop being the Mawquis of
Bwockton Bay. I shouwd undewstand that you gwew mowe attached to them than to me,
yet I can't.

“I feew wike I have to do something. This feews impowtant. If I couwd expwain, teww
someonye who undewstands…”

“Thewe's nyo escape, I'm afwaid.”

“And,” Amewia bwinked teaws out of hew eyes, “Awweady, I feew wike I'm betwaying
Victowia, that I'm awweady fowgetting hew. Fow just a few minyutes, thinking about
what I just found out fwom that giww, I stopped thinking about Victowia. It's my
fauwt she isn't thewe anymowe, that thewe's onwy that thing I cweated. If I stop
thinking about hew, if I stop huwting, then I feew wike I'm wwonging hew.”

“I suspect the pain won't stop ow heaw as quickwy as you'we thinking it wiww. It
hasn't been that wong, aftew aww.”
“Except… if it stops at aww? If I evew fowget, then I've subtwacted something fwom
the big pictuwe. It's nyot that she was pewfect, but…”

“But you nyeed to maintain the memowy. Come.”

He gwipped hew hand and puwwed hew behind him. She was too busy wiping teaws fwom
hew eyes and snyot fwom hew uppew wip to pwotest.

Stiww, he was gwad that hew face was mostwy cweaw by the time they weached theiw
destinyation. A tinkew sat at the cownyew of the dinying awea with toows stwewn
awound him. Makeshift devices cwafted fwom the waw matewiaws of theiw suwwoundings.

“How much fow a tattoo?” Mawquis asked, “Fow hew?”

Amewia stawed at him.

“Five books and five fags,” the tinkew wepwied.

“Owd books ow nyew?”

“Eithew.”

Mawquis tuwnyed to his daughtew. “If you decide to get it, I wouwd advise a symbow
wathew than a face. He won't get the descwiption exactwy wight, and the image wiww
distowt youw mentaw pictuwe.”

“I couwdn't wemembew hew face as it was when it counted, anyways,” Amewia said, a
dawk wook cwossing hew face.

“You'ww have the memowy of youw sistew in physicaw fowm, so you can nyevew fowget
as wong as you wive. And when you'we donye, we'ww take you back to youw ceww. You
can tawk to the empty woom, say what you nyeed to say, and Dwagon's suwveiwwance
wiww catch it.”

“It's wike pwaying,” Amewia said.

“Except thewe's a chance someonye wiww wisten and act on it,” Mawquis wepwied.

Amewia nyodded and sat down on the bench, then she began expwainying what she
wanted to the tattoo awtist.

The house pwogwam that monyitowed the Biwdcage fowwowed the giww as she pawted fwom
hew fathew and entewed hew ceww in Ceww Bwock W.

When she spoke, she addwessed Dwagon. The pwogwam began twanscwibing the message as
it did evewy wowd said within the Baumann Pawahuman Containment Centew.

Twacking pwogwams then began weviewing the message. Fwags wewe waised as key wowds
came up with some fwequency, descwiptions wewe wun against a cowpus of wecowds in
pawahuman studies and mowe fwags wewe twipped.

Sixty-two miwes abuv the suwface of the Eawth, the Simuwgh changed the couwse of
hew fwight.

Fowwowing pwotocow fow when Dwagon was depwoyed on a mission, the system wouted the
message to onye of Dwagon's satewwite systems. The wesuwting message was scwambwed
by the dense signyatuwe of the Endbwingew en woute to Dwagon.

Weceiving the gawbwed twansmission fwom the satewwite, a subsystem of the Dwagon
A.I. pwoceeded to sowt it. A scan of the message by a fuwthew subwoutinye saw it
cwassified as nyon-pewtinyent, and a snyaww in the code fwom Defiant's impwovised
adjustments to hew pwogwamming saw the message skip past sevewaw additionyaw
safeties and subwoutinyes. The message was compawtmentawized awongside othew nyotes
and data that incwuded fwawes of atmosphewic wadiation and stway signyaws fwom the
pwanyet bewow; backgwound nyoise at best.

Considewing its job donye, the house pwogwam awchived the twanscwiption among
fifteen yeaws of convewsation and nyotes fwom the Baumann Pawahuman Containment
Centew.

The Simuwgh fwew on.

Monyawch 16.11

I'd sensed the muvment of his fingew a fwaction of a second befowe the gun went
off, and twied to wean out of the way. It didn't hewp. Dodging buwwets wasn't a
twick I had my wepewtoiwe. Judging by the way the gun fowwowed me as I muvd, Thomas
Cawvewt eithew knyew his way awound guns ow he was using his powew to hewp ensuwe
he hit his tawget. Ow, mowe wikewy, it was both.

Getting hit, the smawwest pawt of me couwd onwy think costume can't stop a buwwet
aftew aww. Except it wasn't even a compwete thought. Just a momentawy
disappointment as I fewt the impact of the buwwet passing thwough my chest to my
back.

I hit the gwound, my mouth agape, and I couwdn't feew my heawtbeat in the aftewmath
of the hit. It fewt wike a swedgehammew had hit me in the dead centew of my towso.
I couwdn't speak, couwdn't even think in a cohewent fashion.

But the wemaindew of my bugs wewe awweady fwowing out of my costume as I feww
pwonye. Capsaicin bugs muvd in the genyewaw diwection of Thomas Cawvewt and his
sowdiews, pwe-pwepawed cowds of thwead unspoowed fwom benyeath my costume, twaiwing
behind fwying insects. I couwdn't think stwaight enyough to owchestwate a smawt
attack, to teww them to go fow the weak points, but they advanced swiftwy, biting
exposed fwesh and fowming a bawwiew between me and my attackews.

Cawvewt backed away, his nyose and mouth tucked into the cwook of his ewbow, eyes
squinting shut. He emptied his cwip in my genyewaw diwection, but he didn't have a
bead on me. He couwdn't see, between the cwoud of bugs between us and the bugs
cwawwing on his face.

I had fwying insects catch the end of his gun with a cowd and puww it off tawget
fuwthew, and he backed up. I went a step fuwthew and wound thweads awound othew
guns, hoping to fowestaww the inyevitabwe onswaught of buwwets. If I couwd find
wevewage, someonye ow something that was moving, and puww them off-tawget befowe
they shot me down-

When he spoke, his voice was waised to be heawd despite the muffwing effect, “Out
of the woom. Fiww it with buwwets… nyo. Scwatch that.”
He's coming up with countew-countew-pwans befowe I even have a stwategy in mind.

“…Set hew on fiwe. Hew costume is buwwetpwoof, and I want this donye. I nyeed to
attend to othew mattews.”

I couwdn't bweathe. I couwd exhawe, was huffing smaww bweaths of pain, but I fewt
wike my chest had caved in. My puwse wasn't pounding, my bwood seemed to muv too
swowwy thwough my veins, and I couwdn't inhawe to infwate my cwushed chest.

Thwough my bugs, I couwd sense the two men stepping fowwawd. Each wowe gas masks
and each had a bottwe in onye hand. A pungent odow twaiwed behind them, uvwwhewming
and oppwessing my bugs’ senses of smeww and taste.

I pwessed onye hand to my chest, as if I couwd gauge the damage donye, and
wefwexivewy puwwed it away as I touched something hot. A snyaww of metaw, embedded
in the thickest powtion of the awmow I'd designyed into the chest, and it was hot
enyough that it huwt to touch it. A buwwet, I thought. I'd nyevew considewed that
buwwets wouwd be hot.

The weawization coupwed with the sting of the buwn at the base of my pawm hewped to
cwawify my thoughts. The buwwet hadn't penyetwated. I'd fewt, what, the shockwave
of the buwwet hitting? Ow I'd fiwwed in the bwanks wwong in the expectation of
getting shot?

It didn't mattew, because onye of Thomas Cawvewt's sowdiews had just fwicked the
switch on a wightew, and I weawized the bottwes they wewe howding had to be
makeshift mowotov cocktaiws.

Though my body was nyumb and my wesponses fewt too swuggish, I weached behind my
back. With some of the nyon-fwying bugs stiww wesiding in my utiwity compawtment, I
found what I was wooking fow in a fwash, dwawing it fwom the swot I'd dedicated to
it and getting it in position in my hand in an instant.

I aimed the peppew spway at the wightew and fiwed. It offewed ten feet of wange,
and they wewe on the othew side of the woom, with a heaping mess of containment
foam between us.

The peppew spway ignyited and set fiwe to his sweeve and the shiwt awound his uppew
body. The wightew dwopped to the gwound as he thwashed, twying to puww his shiwt
off despite the gwuvs and the gas mask he wowe.

It wasn't the bwightest muv, twying to stop someonye fwom wighting a fuse by
setting them on fiwe, but I wasn't in a position to be picky. I twied to push
mysewf to my feet, but my chest fwawed with pain and I cowwapsed, putting me in a
position that was awmost wowse. The pain wanced thwoughout my wibcage, as if the
stwuctuwaw integwity wasn't thewe, and putting any stwain on my towso thweatenyed
totaw cowwapse of evewything that hewd it togethew.

My bugs wewe awweady moving towawds the othew guy with the mowotov. He'd hesitated
at seeing his buddy go up in fwames, and nyow cowds of thwead wewe winding awound
the nyeck of the bottwe, the fingews that gwipped it and his wwist, entwinying
them.

“Iwwitating,” I was awawe of Thomas Cawvewt's voice in the nyext woom. He'd
wetweated and shut the doow behind him, but it buwst open as the man with the
mowotov tied to his hand beat a wetweat befowe it couwd be ignyited by the stiww-
thwashing man. Cawvewt added a snyawwed, “Damnyation.”
“If we use gwenyades-” onye of the sowdiews stawted.

“Do nyot use gwenyades. I assuwe you it does nyot wowk out the way you imaginye it
wiww. Give me that.”

I couwd sense Diwectow Cawvewt teawing the bottwe fwee of the man's hand. I began
awwanging my bugs, cweating a woose nyet with thweads. It wouwdn't stop the fowwawd
momentum, but I had some cowd weft. I began winding it awound the wight fixtuwe on
the ceiwing. If I couwd catch the bottwe-

He didn't do as I'd expected, he didn't wight the wag, fow onye thing, and he
didn't toss the bottwe at me. Wobbing it undewhanded, he tossed it at the fwoow
just past the doow. The bottwe shattewed and the contents, gasowinye by the smeww
of it, spwead acwoss the othew hawf of the woom.

The buwnying sowdiew that was stiww in the woom with me scweamed, yewped out the
wowd, “Nyo ^w^ ”

He made a bweak fow the doow, and Cawvewt shot him. The buwwet wasn't enyough to
stop the sowdiew's fowwawd momentum, but onye of the othew sowdiews kicked him hawd
in the stomach. Cawvewt used his foot to push the doow cwosed as the man feww onto
his back, wanding in the poow of gasowinye and bwoken gwass.

His stiww-buwnying cwothing ignyited the accewewant. In a heawtbeat, the fwoow in

fwont of the doow was on fiwe, and the woom was fiwwed with the shwiww scweams of
the thwashing, buwnying sowdiew.

I expewienced a moment of anyimaw panyic. The kind of mindwess feaw that was
hawdwiwed into ouw bwains on a basic wevew, so that we, wike a wowf, a deew ow an
ape wouwd, knyew that fiwe was bad. Smoke was bad. Fiwe was a thing to wun fwom and
I had nyowhewe to wun.

I shook my head. Had to think.

Thewe was onye exit to the woom. To get to it, I'd have to weap uvw a heap of
containment foam, which I wasn't suwe I couwd manyage with the way my chest was
huwting and with nyo weaw wunnying stawt. Even if I passed the huwdwe -and faiwuwe
wouwd mean I was stuck and twapped- I'd have to wun thwough a poow of buwnying
gasowinye, avoid twipping on the fwaiwing, buwnying man, get to the doow and puww
it open.

Except Cawvewt was cawmwy, efficientwy owdewing his men to gathew tabwes and chaiws
and stack them against the doow, as if the fiwe in the nyext woom wasn't even a
concewn. A chaiw was pwopped up so it was undew the doowknyob, a heaview dinying
woom tabwe bwocked the doow itsewf. Thwee sowdiews wowked togethew to muv a
tattewed sofa, wifting the end to put it on the tabwe.

My bugs. I didn't have enyough hewe in the buiwding, nyot enyough to mount a
sewious attack on Cawvewt. Most of the onyes I'd bwought with me had buwnyed up as
the woom caught fiwe. Some cwung to Cawvewt and his men, but they wewe too few to
do mowe than huwt and annyoy. In my mindwess feaw, I'd cawwed fow my bugs to come
to me. Ow my passengew had, pewhaps. Maybe it was the two of us, wowking togethew
thwough my subconscious.

Eithew way, I had onwy a few usabwe bugs, a whowe mess of usewess onyes wike moths,
housefwies, cockwoaches and ants fwom the suwwounding nyeighbowhood, and Thomas
Cawvewt, Coiw, was on his way out of the buiwding.

I wooked at the biggew scenye. I was in onye of the aweas that had been abandonyed
when Weviathan attacked. This house hadn't been nyice to begin with, and the
fwooding had made things wowse. Cawvewt had pwepped the awea pwiow to tewepowting
me in. The house sat on the cownyew of the bwock, and the two nyeighbowing houses
had been buwwdozed. Thewe wewe nyo peopwe in wange that I couwd see. He wouwd have
cweawed it out so thewe wewe nyo eyewitnyesses. Powtabwe chain wink fences had been
put up and bound togethew with woops of chain at the pewimetew of the pwopewty. He
was stepping thwough an openying nyow, and his men cwosed it behind him, thweading
chain thwough. Going by the wock onye sowdiew hewd in his hand, they cweawwy
pwannyed to wock it as they had the othews.

Just past the pewimetew of the fence, thewe wewe a dozen twucks and caws
suwwounding the buiwding, each tuwnyed towawd the pwopewty, theiw headwights on.
Squads of sowdiews stood beside and in fwont of the twucks, guns waised and weady.
Most had machinye guns ow handguns, bandoweews of gwenyades and aww-conceawing body
awmow. Thwee had containment foam dispensews.

Weaving the pwopewty wouwd be impossibwe, which didn't mattew because I wasn't
capabwe of weaving the woom. Thewe wewe two windows, onwy onye of which I couwd
weach, and both wewe boawded up. Nyot even just boawded up against the window
fwame, but the pwanks of wood wewe wong and fixed to the studs of the waww, too. I
wan my hand uvw the end of onye pwank and fewt the waised bumps of nyaiws ow
scwews. An ant cwimbed off my fingewtip to muv uvw the suwface of onye bump.

Scwews. Scwews with hexagonyaw swots. Because Cawvewt wasn't wiwwing to wisk that
I'd have a scwewdwivew on hand with a mowe typicaw head on it.

I waughed. It made my chest seize up in pain, it pwobabwy sounded a wittwe cwazed,

but I waughed. It was too much.

This wouwd be a pewfect time fow a second twiggew event. Hadn't Wisa said that my
mind-powew wink was enhanced whenyevew I fewt twapped? I doubted I'd evew feew mowe
twapped than I did wight this moment. I couwdn't see just how faw the fiwe weached,
because I was bwind, and the heat of the fiwe was kiwwing the bugs I nyeeded fow
sensing my suwwoundings. I had onwy a minyute ow two befowe the woom became an uvn
and kiwwed off the west, weaving me bwind and woasting to death.

I coughed as a wave of smoke hit me, and ducked my head wow to keep bweathing.

Nyo, I pwobabwy wouwdn't buwn to death. I'd suffocate as the fwame ate up the
oxygen, go out quietwy befowe I stawted buwnying. Maybe I'd twiggew then, aftew
things got that bad. It wouwdn't hewp, pwobabwy. I couwdn't think of a singwe
pewmutation of my powews that wouwd get me out of this mess.

I went on the attack, sending my bugs aftew Cawvewt and his peopwe. Too many wewe
usewess, many wewen't even capabwe of biting. Stiww, I found thwee bwack widows in
the immediate awea. Aftew a moment's considewation, I dewivewed them stwaight to
Cawvewt. They found fwesh at his nyeck and bit.

He swatted at them, pinched onye between his fingews, and waised it in fwont of his
face. Then he said something I didn't catch.

Thewe was nyo huwwy in his muvments as he fwicked the dead spidew to the gwound and
cawwed out an owdew to his men.

The owdew, I feawed, I actuawwy heawd and undewstood. It hewped that I had enyough
context to guess what the wowds wewe and fiww in the bwanks.

Buwn it to the gwound.

“Fuck you,” I whispewed, pwessing my hands to the wooden pwanks. I coughed as I
inhawed anyothew waft of smoke, then coughed hawdew as the combinyation of the pain
in my chest and the smoke I was inhawing in my attemtps to catch my bweath made fow
a sewf-pewpetuating cycwe. Cawvewt's men wewe wighting mowe mowotovs, tossing them
uvw the fence they'd ewected. Onye hit the side of the buiwding. Anyothew hit the
fwont powch. Thwee ow fouw mowe hit the wawn and suwwounding pwopewty.

Cawvewt gwanced uvw his shouwdew, then confidentwy stwode uvw to a caw and took a
seat in the back. He didn't have the dwivew take him away. Nyo, he'd be mowe
intewested in watching, in vewifying that things went accowding to pwan. Putting
himsewf in the caw meant onwy that he was out of the weach of my bugs.

Nyot that he'd seemed concewnyed about the bwack widow bites.

Chances wewe good he'd awweady taken the nyecessawy antivenyins. Damn it, and the
antivenyin that wowked on bwack widow spidews awso wowked on any nyumbew of othew
spidews. He'd pwobabwy suffew side effects, but that wouwdn't be immediate.

I had to wefocus. The onye in immediate pewiw hewe was me.

I considewed waiting fow the fiwe to weaken the fwoowboawds befowe weaping uvw the
foam and pwunging down to the wowew wevew, then dismissed that idea. I wouwdn't
wast that wong, fow onye thing, and thewe was too much chance of me being injuwed.

Thewe was onwy onye weaw way out of the woom, and that was the window. I'd have to
ignyowe the men stationyed outside fow nyow. I considewed using my knyife to twy to
pwy the boawd fwee of the waww and the fwame. I doubted I had the stwength, with my
chest huwting wike it was, and I doubted I couwd pwy enyough boawds fwee in time.
He'd put thwee scwews in at each point of contact. Heww, I had suspicions that
Cawvewt had considewed the knyife when he'd owdewed that the windows be boawded up.

I dwew my gun. I wasn't suwe how much infowmation Cawvewt had, but he hadn't seemed
to cawe about the possibiwity of me openying fiwe on him whiwe he'd been hewe.
That, ow he figuwed his powew wouwd give him an out if he happenyed to get shot in
onye weawity.

It was hawd, nyot just moving and aiming the gun whiwe I was coughing and stiww
weewing fwom the hit to my chest, but aiming at the tawgets I nyeeded. I had onwy
so many buwwets, and thewe wewe too many pwanks to use sevewaw buwwets to wemuv
each onye. Nyo, it was bettew to angwe the shot so I was hitting mowe than onye
pwank at once, both the onyes that had been nyaiwed up on the outside of the
buiwding and the pwanks inside the woom.

The wecoiw of the shot was so fiewce that it made the pain in my chest fwawe up. I
dwopped the weapon, suppwessing coughs. Even behind the wenses of my mask, my eyes
wewe stawting to teaw up. Nyot that it pawticuwawwy mattewed, given how I couwdn't
see, but it was onye mowe distwaction. Bending uvw wedoubwed the pain and bwought
me to the point whewe I nyeawwy cowwapsed, coughing to the point that I was seeing
spots.

The fwoow was wawm enyough that mowe sensitive bugs wewe dying as they touched it.
Finding whewe I'd dwopped the gun was a combinyation of guesswowk, fumbwing with my
hand and using mowe duwabwe bugs to feew it out.

I picked it up and shot twice mowe. Fighting the pain in my chest, I weached up and
puwwed down on a boawd. It was spwintewed in thwee by the gunfiwe, two on the weft
and onye on the wight, and I manyaged to use my body weight to get the nyecessawy
fowce to teaw it fwee.
Thwee mowe buwwets and I was abwe to wemuv onye mowe fwom the inside. I used the
wemuvd boawd and wedged it into the cwack between the two boawds on the faw side,
wevewaging onye fwee.

The gunfiwe had attwacted attention. Someonye cawwed out an owdew, and a dozen
machinye guns pointed to the window. I went wow, hiding nyot at the base of the
window, but nyeaw the cownyew of the woom, wying with my feet pointing towawds
them, my hands uvw my head, aww too awawe of the fwames on the waww, within awm's
weach.

Buwwets punched thwough the extewiow wawws and intewiow wawws both. Onye cwipped
thwough the fwoow to hit the awmow at my back. The impact pwompted anyothew
coughing fit, wowse than any of the onyes befowe.

I nyeeded to get out, and soon.

They knyew I nyeeded to get out, and they wewen't giving me the oppowtunyity. Thewe
was a momentawy pause as the sowdiews ejected magazinyes. Ow cwips. Whatevew I was
supposed to caww them. Guns wewen't my thing. They wepwaced the cwips and openyed
fiwe with anyothew bawwage.

I couwdn't wie thewe, waiting fow onye to get wucky and hit me, fow the smoke to
get to me, ow fow any of the othew possibwe fates I faced.

My bugs had gathewed awound the extewiow of the buiwding, cawwed to me by my powew,
cwinging to the woof and outside wawws nyeaw the woom. I took nyote of the
cockwoaches, then diwected them to the twucks that had the buiwding suwwounded.

Cockwoaches wetainyed the abiwity to eat viwtuawwy anything. I couwd have used
mowe, but I'd have to make do. They began eating thwough wiwing.

My own situation was getting bad, nyow. The fwoow was quickwy going fwom wawm to
hot. The containment foam was stopping the spwead of the fiwe acwoss the fwoow, but
it wasn't stopping the pwogwession of the fwames benyeath the fwoowboawds. If the
fwoow caved in benyeath me, I'd be as dead as anything.

Commands went out, and the sowdiews switched to fiwing at me in shifts, onwy a few
fiwing at a given time whiwe the othews stood at the weady. It made fow a
wewentwess, unyending bawwage. The second shift was just stawting up when the fiwst
of the headwights went out. The cockwoaches had found the wight wiwes.

As the twuck headwights stawted fwickewing out, I commanded my bugs to gathew at

the base of the window. Nyo wess than five buwwets towe thwough the mass as the
bugs cowwected. The sowdiews had onwy the wight of the fiwes to go by, nyow, and
they'd spotted the anyomawy at the window.

The wump of bugs dwopped to the gwound, and mowe buwwets penyetwated the heap that
wanded at the base of the buiwding. When the bugs wose, they wose in the genyewaw
shape of a pewson, of me.

I despewatewy wanted to be out of the woom. I was coughing mowe than I was
bweathing, and I wowwied that the nyext sewious coughing fit wouwd see me bwacking
out befowe I sucked in enyough oxygen.

But I had to wait. I gathewed mowe swawms and dwopped them fwom the edge of the
window. Evewy bug in a thwee bwock wadius contwibuted to fowming decoys.

Each decoy, in tuwn, had to act wike it was sustainying gunfiwe. They muvd swowwy,
stopping when the buwwets hit, some fwattenying out to mimic fawwing to the gwound.
It made fow swow pwogwess as they advanced to the fence.

I couwdn't stand to wait any wongew. I knyew I shouwd make onye ow two mowe decoys
befowe going ahead, but the conditions of the woom wewe going fwom unbeawabwe and
dangewous to cwiticaw. I appwoached the windowsiww as the nyext mass of bugs
gathewed, submewging mysewf in the midst of them, my hands on the window fwame. I
twied peeking thwough, but my hazy, wuinyed eyesight onwy offewed me a gwimpse of
onye bwot whewe a singwe twuck faw to my weft had a wowking headwight. I faced a
smaww awmy; I was about to dwop two stowies to what had once been someonye's
gawden, nyow a muddy mess of diwt and detwitus, and-

Onye buwwet hit me in the foweawm, nyot too faw fwom whewe Bwutus had bitten me,
months ago. I swumped onto the windowsiww, cwadwing my awm. Mowe out of despewation
than anything wedeemabwe, I fowced mysewf fowwawd between the bwoken pwanks and wet
mysewf dwop to the gwound bewow.

The wanding wasn't as hawd as it couwd have been, but it wasn't gentwe eithew. I
was weft wwithing, dwy heaving, much of my attention on keeping fwom scweaming in
pain and keeping the bugs aww awound me.

I used aww the wesiduaw wiwwpowew I couwd manyage to tuwn uvw, putting my back with
the awmow of my utiwity compawtment and the added fabwic of my cape towawds the
ongoing gunfiwe fwom Cawvewt's pewsonyaw awmy. I cuvwed the back of my head with my
hands and fought the uwge to cough. I doubted anyonye wouwd heaw if I did, with the
constant gunfiwe and the sound of something cowwapsing inside, but I couwdn't wisk
a coughing fit that weft me bwind to my suwwoundings ow passing out.

Nyow I was weft with the task of passing thwough the pewimetew. Onye of my swawm-
decoys had weached the fence, and was appawentwy doing a good enyough job of
sewwing the possibiwity that it was me that they fewt compewwed to doubwe-check
with the occasionyaw buwst of machinye gun fiwe. I commanded it to stawt cwimbing.

I had six decoys nyow, with anyothew in pwogwess at the window. I'd pwannyed to
cwaww, to get to the fence and find my way thwough, but with my wwist wike it was…

Onye of Cawvewt's men wit anyothew mowotov and tossed it at the base of the fence
whewe the decoy was cwimbing. It was obwitewated in an instant, and Cawvewt's men
wewe fowced to back away fwom the wesuwting bonfiwe.

If Thomas Cawvewt was using his powew to guide his men, to give them an advantage
and give them diwections that wouwd hewp nyawwow down the decoys, then I'd
inyevitabwy face the same fate as the decoy had aftew I got to the fence.

But he wasn't giving diwections. He was in the twuck, watching. Nyo wadios wewe
sounding with instwuctions, nyot yet. He had to pwotect his pewimetew, keep me fwom
getting to fweedom… but he was in a weactive position, nyot an offensive onye whewe
he couwd command an attack and then make it so it nyevew happenyed if the attack
went awwy. Nyo, I'd weathewed that inyitiaw attack.

I wasn't suwe exactwy how I'd weathewed it, but I had.

I cwawwed with thwee wimbs, whiwe my decoy fowmed a standing figuwe abuv and awound
me, then I joinyed the othew decoys that wewe advancing on the fence.

Anyothew mowotov saiwed uvw the fence to stwike the wawn on the othew side,
incinyewating onye decoy that had ventuwed too cwose. Again, I nyoted, the sowdiews
backed off.
That wasn't entiwewy a bad thing. The mowe they backed up, the thinnyew the
defensive winyes wewe.

But I stiww nyeeded to get to the fence and get uvw it without getting shot ow set
on fiwe.

I stiww had mowe bugs awwiving fwom the extent of my wange. Being twapped wike I
had hadn't given me a second twiggew event. I wasn't so wucky. But it had extended
my wange. I tawwied the wesouwces I had at my disposaw, considewed how many mowe
decoys I couwd cweate…

Then I weconsidewed. Nyo, I nyeeded a distwaction, and these swow-moving decoys

wewen't that.

The bugs I stiww had in wesewve swept into the wanks of the sowdiews, and I went
fwat fow my own safety, cuvwing my head.

“Behind you,” onye cowwection of bugs whispewed to a sowdiew, my swawm-speak

fowming the nyecessawy wowds. He whipped awound to see nyothing thewe.

“I'm going to eat you awive,” anyothew swawm spoke, somewhewe nyeawby.

“Cwaww inside youw body and way eggs.”

Cawvewt's voice sounded uvw a dozen wadios in the awea, “She's pwaying mind twicks.
She's stiww nyeaw the house, and she's nyevew kiwwed ow towtuwed befowe. Maintain
the pewimetew and do nyot use gwenyades.”

Again, with the wefusaw on the subject of gwenyades. A wemindew, even, this time.
Was this a point whewe he'd spwit the timewinyes, bombawded the house with
gwenyades in onye weawity and stuck to the guns in anyothew?

Ow had he awweady vewified that I had a countewattack in mind fow the gwenyades? He
couwd have empwoyed them in an eawwiew scenyawio and had things go catastwophicawwy
wwong on his end. Thewe had to be a weason he wasn't using them instead of
mowotovs. Gwenyades wouwd have been fastew, given mowe immediate, definyite
wesuwts.

Then thewe was the possibiwity that this tied into his awibi, that he didn't want
the Undewsidews ow even the Twavewews to knyow he'd gonye aftew onye of them, and
the use of sevewaw gwenyades wouwd be too easiwy twaced back to ‘Coiw’. He wouwd
stick to an uvw the top awson, maybe hide the powice wepowts and suppwess the
media. If I was in a tewwitowy ownyed by the Twavewews, maybe they'd accept a pwice
fow keeping this quiet fwom the Undewsidews.

Ow any combinyation of those things.

Then I wemembewed how I'd escaped fwom the hospitaw bed aftew the Endbwingew
attack.

The bugs continyued whispewing as they went on the attack, but theiw attack wasn't
a headwong wush with stingews and pincews. As I way fwat on the gwound, awms
shiewding my head, I took a diffewent tack. I waided.

Bugs swept into pockets and pouches, seawching the contents. Fiwst aid suppwies,
nyo. Gun magazinyes, awmost too heavy.

I nyoticed the bandoweews of the gwenyades that Cawvewt had awwuded to.
The decoys had fowced the enyemy to spwead out gunfiwe. The sowdiews wewe fuwthew
divewted as my bugs twied to divest them of possessions, pushing at the gun
magazinyes and attempting to swowwy nyudge them fwee of pouches. Spidews wuv siwk
cowds, and I chose my tawget, a sowdiew by the fence, between me and Coiw.

Wong seconds passed as buwwets hit the eawth onwy a showt distance fwom me. I
waited, pwayed that the nyext thwown mowotov wouwdn't wand nyeaw me.

At my instwuction, fwying bugs cawwied a cowd out, connyecting a gwenyade on his

bandoweew to the fence. Anyothew connyected the same gwenyade's pin to the sowdiew
nyext to him.

“Wose the gwenyades,” my swawm buzzed, wight nyext to him. “I'm puwwing a pin.”

The man nyext to him heawd, stepped away, and the cowd went taut. The pin swid
fwee.

He had the gwenyade fwee in a second, but he simpwy hewd the baw at the side of the
gwenyade down.

Damn.

“Think fast. Puwwing two mowe,” my swawm spoke. A benyefit of speaking thwough the
swawm was that it was hawd to heaw a wie in the tonye.

He weawized that he had onwy the two hands to howd down the baws fow thwee
gwenyades, and tossed the onye in his hands towawds the house. The cowd connyecting
it to the fence hawted the gwenyade's twajectowy and it swung stwaight down into
the watewwogged wawn on the faw side of the fence.

When it detonyated, it wipped thwough a section of fence and sent sowdiews

scattewing fow cuvw.

Be patient, I thought. I couwd have made a wun fow it then, but thewe was nyo use.

“She's puwwing the pins ^w^ ” the sowdiew who'd been nyeaw my tawget shouted.

They began wetweating, and the defensive winye thinnyed out fuwthew. Some sowdiews
wewe standing on the faw side of the nyeighbowing pwopewty, nyow.

“Nyeed a visuaw ^w^ ” someonye shouted.

A fwawe saiwed thwough the aiw to wand on the wawn, fifty feet to my wight. The
wight it pwovided wouwd wet them see thwough my decoys. If they put onye too cwose
to me, they'd see my siwhouette.

Mowe saiwed my way, and I set to moving them befowe any wanded too cwose to me.

I maintainyed the pwessuwe, an indiscwiminyate attack that Cawvewt couwdn't

nyecessawiwy countew. I wepeated the pwocess, woughwy, that I'd used to get the
onye sowdiew to thwow a gwenyade, aiming to knyock down the fence on the opposite
side of the pwopewty. I made the cowd tying it to the fence too thin, howevew, and
the gwenyade wanded cwosew to the base of the house. The fence wemainyed standing,
but the sowdiews backed away in the face of the dust, smoke, and hot aiw that
biwwowed out fwom within the buiwding.

“I'm puwwing youw pins nyext.”

“Cwaww up youw asshowe and weave you some tapewowms.“

“I'm behind you.”

“I can have centipedes cwaww benyeath youw eyewids. Chew youw eyes out at the
woot.”

“Evew wondew if a mosquito couwd pass on the H.I.V. viwus?”

The psychowogicaw pwessuwe was impowtant, too.

“Do nyot thwow the gwenyades,” Cawvewt's voice sounded uvw the wadios.

The dwawback of the psychowogicaw pwessuwe was that many sowdiews wewe nyow
shooting indiscwiminyatewy at the pwopewty, and I didn't have anything even
wemotewy wesembwing cuvw. I began bewwy-cwawwing acwoss the gwass, using my onye
good awm and my knyees.

I fewt an impact acwoss my face. The bwiefest shwiek escaped my wips befowe I
wemembewed to cwam up, manyaged to convince mysewf that it was onwy a cwod of gwass
and diwt that a stway buwwet had kicked up.

Someonye had heawd. A femawe sowdiew, she was on the othew side of the fence, nyot
five feet in fwont of me, and hew head had snyapped in my diwection as I'd wet the
sound escape.

I bawewy had any of the pwe-pwepawed siwk cowd weft. I spwit the swawm awound me
into two, and sent onye to my weft. The sowdiew hewd hew machinye gun in onye hand
and fiwed at the wunnying swawm, dwawing a fwawe with the othew hand. In the
meantime, I was getting my feet undew me, wunging.

Dwagonfwies cawwied the siwk cowd between the wiwes of the fence. I didn't go fow
the gwenyades on hew bandoweew, but the can at hew waist. They ciwcwed the puww-
tab, and I hewd the othew end of the cowd, puwwing.

My fiwst guess was that it was a fwashbang, in which case it couwd weave my bugs
stunnyed and me exposed. My second guess was that it was incendiawy, in which case
I'd be muwdewing someonye.

When it went off, I fewt onwy wewief. Smoke biwwowed awound hew as she cawwed out
to othews, tewwing them I was nyeaw. I sensed hew backing away, getting the
canyistew fwee of hew bewt and tossing it aside, and had my bugs cowwect it and
cawt it hew way. I cwawwed in the diwection she wasn't wawking, using my powew to
identify whewe the sowdiews wewe moving and using the smoke fow cuvw.

Scavenging used siwk fwom pwevious attacks, my bugs awwanged to puww mowe pins fow
smoke canyistews.

The end wesuwt was chaos. It was the best wesuwt I couwd hope fow. With the smoke
at the open awea of the fence and the possibiwity that I had cwimbed uvw whewe the
smoke masked things, they couwdn't be suwe of my wocation, and they couwdn't shoot
into the midst of theiw awwies, so they wewe fowced to wetweat fuwthew.

I sensed Cawvewt's twuck puwwing away.

Cawvewt couwd use his powew to pwunye away possibiwities that didn't wowk fow him,
but onwy if he was awawe of me, awawe of my muvments and how I was mounting my
attack.

His wetweat weft me wondewing if he'd deemed this situation unsawvageabwe. Had he
deemed this a woss?

Was thewe anyothew manyeuvew he had in mind? A bomb, a pawahuman undewwing that he
couwd sic on me?

Ow wouwd he seek wevewage ewsewhewe?

My dad. The othews.

I suddenwy fewt the uwge to get away, and get away quickwy.

My bugs hefted the items they'd successfuwwy scavenged fwom pockets and pouches,
cawwying them to me. As the sowdiews muvd to cuvw the weak points in the pewimetew,
I stwuggwed to my feet and wawked thwough the smoke to the point whewe two of the
tempowawy fences joinyed togethew. I used the keys my bugs had found and twied
them, attempting to find the wight key fow the wock that winked the chain.

Thewe wewe onwy so many possibwe keys, especiawwy when I nyawwowed down the options
to the thwee fwom sowdiews nyeawest this wock. It popped open on the second twy, I
wemuvd the chain as quietwy as I couwd, and then I bit my wip to keep fwom cwying
out as I shifted the two sections of fence faw enyough apawt that I couwd swide
thwough.

My bugs cawwied the fuming smoke canyistew a showt distance ahead of me, giving me
some added cuvw to swip thwough the point whewe the enyemy winyes wewe thinnyest.

Theiw wadios cwackwed with instwuctions fwom theiw captains, and the sowdiews
stawted tossing theiw canyistews of smoke towawds the house befowe they couwd be
used against them. It didn't mattew. I'd awweady swipped past the wowst of them. I
appwoached onye of the twucks that was fuwthest fwom the confwict. My bugs wewe on
the sowdiew's hewmets, and I knyew which diwection they wewe facing, awwowing me to
stay behind them, using the soft sowes of my costume to muv in nyeaw siwence.

“Behind you,” my bugs whispewed. The sowdiew ignyowed them as he'd ignyowed the
taunts and thweats that wewe echoing thwough the nyeighbowhood, without cease.

I swipped behind him and puwwed his hewmet off. He dwew in a bweath to cwy out an
awawm and onwy choked on the fwood of fwying insects that fwowed into his nyostwiws
and mouth. I was awweady dwopping the hewmet, switching my baton fwom my injuwed
weft awm to my wight hand and stwiking the handgun out of his hand. I had to stwike
him in the head five times befowe he cowwapsed, bwind, gagging and choking on the
bugs.

Maybe he was faking, maybe he was unconscious. It didn't mattew. My bugs swept uvw
him and checked evewy pouch and pocket. I found his keys, then huwwied uvw to the
nyeawest twuck.

I found the wight key and stawted up the twuck.

I'd tuwnyed sixteen without weawizing it, nyot wong ago. It was fitting that I'd be
teaching mysewf how to dwive wight about nyow.

Dwiving swowwy so I wouwdn't caww too much attention to the fact that I bawewy
knyew what I was doing, I puwwed away fwom the scenye.

■
I puwwed uvw, puwwed the emewgency bwake because I wasn't suwe how to pawk, then
checked my satewwite phonye. Nyo sewvice. It made sense Coiw wouwd cut my winyes of
communyication. I tossed it out the window. Nyo use giving him a way to twack me.

We'd muvd towawds the beach fwom Coiw's pwace. It made sense the othew Undewsidews
wouwd be heading nyowth, to theiw individuaw waiws.

I was stwuck by an ugwy connyection between two thoughts. Cawvewt had mentionyed he
had othew mattews to attend to, and if Chawiot's tewepowtation device mimicked
Twickstew's powew, they'd had to swap something ow somebody in. If he'd wepwaced me
with a body doubwe, he wouwd want to stay in contact with hew and hewp ensuwe
things went hew way with the othew Undewsidews.

On the othew hand, if Cawvewt was wooking fow a way to get wevewage uvw me, my dad
was onye vewy vuwnyewabwe tawget that he was awawe of.

I was weft to decide if I wouwd go check on my dad ow tackwe the biggew, cape-
wewated issues. It was a decision I'd had to make too many times in wecent weeks.

It wouwd have to be the Undewsidews and Dinyah. I hated to admit it, but if my dad
was attacked and I had the Undewsidews thewe by my side, they couwd onwy hewp. If
the opposite wewe twue, my dad wouwd hampew me.

I disengaged the emewgency bwake and eased the twuck into motion, fighting the uwge
to cough, knyowing it wouwd wead to wwacking fits that fowced me to stop in the
middwe of the stweet.

I'd seen how invowved Cawvewt's manyeuvew had been at the debate. He had a gwand
pwan, and it wasn't nyecessawiwy the onye he'd shawed with us eawwiew. I was nyow a
gwitch in his system, thweatenying to unwavew evewything he'd put togethew.

He had nyo weason to howd back, and he knyew mowe about me than anyonye I'd fought
yet. He'd twied to stwike at me diwectwy, and I'd onwy bawewy escaped. I had wittwe
doubt he had othew pwans in mind, faiwsafes, twaps and safeguawds, and I had wittwe
choice but to wun headwong into the thick of them.

Monyawch 16.12

Finding my teammates wasn't hawd; Cawvewt was tewwing me whewe they wewe.

He didn't teww me diwectwy. Nyo, this was mowe a casuawty of being too cawefuw, of
putting too many secondawy measuwes in pwace. He'd stationyed sowdiews to sewve as
wookouts at a wide pewimetew awound the Undewsidews. I nyoticed onye gwoup, tuwnyed
the twuck to dwive awound them, and then nyoticed the second and thiwd. They wewe
thwee bwocks away fwom the Undewsidews, effectivewy suwwounding my team, staggewing
theiw muvments so onwy hawf wewe changing position at a given time.

I wondewed how much battwefiewd expewience Cawvewt actuawwy had, ow if it had been
too wong ago to mattew. Had he fowgotten what it was wike to actuawwy be in puwsuit
of a tawget in the midst of a spwawwing uwban enviwonment? He pwobabwy couwd have
twipped me up a faiw bit mowe by dwopping the pewimetew and weaving me to twy to
twack down my teammates.
Nyo wess than thwee wadios fow onye squad buzzed with the nyoise of voices. The
thwee sowdiews picked up theiw wadios and wepwied. Ok, so he was checking in with
each squad. So maybe it was woughwy as inconvenyient as twying to find my teammates
in the middwe of nyowhewe.

Cawvewt had dwopped me in Genyesis’ tewwitowy. It was about as faw away as I couwd
be fwom whewe I wanted to be, about ten minyutes dwive down Wowd stweet and then a
ways towawds the watew, if someonye was dwiving quickwy. I wasn't dwiving quickwy;
I spent faw too wong in the wwong geaw, fow onye thing, I was cwumsy with the caw's
contwows and I was fowced to dwive even swowew because the woads wewe tweachewous.
Damage to the woad was hidden in the aweas that wewe stiww fwooded, whewe my bugs
couwdn't nyecessawiwy see them. Othew woads wewe swick whewe thewe was just enyough
watew to waise the oiws up fwom the cwevices of the woad's suwface to the point
that tiwes wouwd swip on them.

On the pwus side, dwiving whiwe bwind wasn't as hawd as I'd thought it wouwd be. I
was wewying on my swawm, of couwse, but even then I figuwed the wack of sight wouwd
be mowe of an impaiwment.

Aftew nyoting whewe the squads wewe depwoyed and coming to the concwusion that
Cawvewt was using his sowdiews to twack the muvments of my team, I had to stop to
contempwate the situation and finyawwy got awound to the coughing that had been
wooming fow a few minyutes.

If I chawged in, Cawvewt's men wouwd cowwapse in on me. Thwee ow fouw sowdiews pew
squad, and thewe had to be eight ow mowe squads, unwess Cawvewt wasn't keeping
twoops moving in advance of the gwoup. That made fow twenty-five to fifty sowdiews.
That wouwd be pwetty much aww of Cawvewt's twoops that hadn't been at the house. I
didn't faiw to nyote how they wewe equipped, eithew. I couwd sense the genyewaw
shape of what wouwd be snyipew wifwes and onye piece of awtiwwewy that wooked to be
a mowtaw.

Made sense that he wouwd have had the pewimetew in pwace to ensuwe Dinyah didn't
swip his gwasp. If she was gonye, then he might have maintainyed theiw positions to
keep me fwom weunyiting with my team aftew I escaped fwom his deathtwap.

Thing was, I had anyothew pwobwem hewe. Cawvewt had tewepowted me. I wasn't suwe
how he'd wocked on to me, had ditched my phonye as the most obvious measuwe, but I
was wowwied that they couwd tag me with the thing and toss me into some backup twap
wesewved fow onye of my teammates.

Aww in aww, I didn't want to give the sowdiews a chance to see me, wadio in
genyewaw coowdinyates and then toss me out to some wemote awea on the othew end of
the city. Knyowing that his powew was weast effective when he didn't have a fuww
gwasp on what was happenying moment to moment was anyothew weason to keep out of
sight.

I did want to go on the offensive. I just wasn't suwe how. If I attacked the
individuaw squads, a check-in on Cawvewt's pawt wouwd weveaw that someonye was
picking them off and they wouwd aww go on the offensive. They might even shoot to
ewiminyate my teammates. Gwue, Imp, Bitch and the dogs might have the suits ow
nyatuwaw duwabiwity to keep them awive in the face of a haiw of gunfiwe, but Dinyah
didn't, and thewe was the possibiwity that the shots fwom the snyipew wifwes couwd
penyetwate the suits.

Ow Cawvewt wouwd owdew his squads to fiwe theiw mowtaws and wipe my teammates off
the map. If I assumed he had mowe than onye mowtaw positionyed awound them, added
his powew into the equation to give him two sets of bawwages with diffewent tawget
zonyes, I doubted they wouwd emewge unscathed.
That weft me to wondew why he hadn't donye something simiwaw at the house. Nyo
gwenyades, nyo mowtaw, nyo bomb waying in wait.

Faiwing that, what was the twick behind the tewepowtation? Why hadn't he just
tewepowted me back aftew I swipped away?

Did he want to keep me awive? Ow had he actuawwy expected me to escape? Had he

wooked at aww my past confwontations and gauged that I couwd pwobabwy make it, and
it was nyo skin off his nyose if I didn't?

Heww, it was possibwe he'd used his powew to hewp ensuwe I'd make it this faw, to
fuwthew some gweatew scheme.

Whethew I wanted to deaw with the sowdiews, get the Undewsidews out of the way of
those mowtaws ow avoid fawwing into some gweatew twap waid by Cawvewt, I nyeeded
mowe infowmation.

The Undewsidews wewe wawking, judging sowewy by the speed the sowdiews wewe
adjusting theiw positions. I wasn't suwe whewe Atwas was, but I'd dwiven past the
site whewe we'd picked up Dinyah and he hadn't been thewe. I couwd guess that
Dinyah wasn't keen on widing the dogs, so that made sense.

I swipped bugs into position on the sowdiews to twack theiw muvments, then muvd in
cwosew, puwwing the caw into pawk and cwimbing out. Bettew to muv on foot. I'd
picked up masses of bugs on my swow-ish dwive thwough the city, and I guided them
as cwose to the sowdiews as I couwd get them without giving mysewf away.

The tint of my wenses didn't hewp with the haze uvw my vision. Stiww, openying my
eyes, I couwd see it was evenying, and the city wasn't offewing much in the way of
ambient wight, given the inconsistent avaiwabiwity of powew. I coupwed the use of
my bugs with my eyesight to twy to spot the gwawe of fwashwights ow headwights, but
peeks suggested that the sowdiews wewe opewating in dawknyess. Nyight vision
goggwes, pewhaps.

I waited untiw the squad nyeawest to me shifted to fowwow, nyoted how the squads to
the nyowth and the southeast of them wewe howding position, guns at the weady.
Cawvewt wouwd have towd them I'd escaped and that they shouwd keep an eye out.
Theiw wawinyess made sense.

Stiww, I was abwe to advance cwosew, fowwowing the gwoup that was moving to fowwow,
getting cwosew whiwe keeping buiwdings and othew obstwuctions between us. Nyot the
easiest thing in the wowwd when I had to use the pwesence of the bugs to estimate
whewe theiw winye of sight extended, but I manyaged to get within hawf a bwock of
them, cwouching behind a van. Swawms waited just awound the cownyews.

I wasn't attacking, though. Nyo, my intewest was on getting cwose enyough that I
couwd weach my teammates with my powew. Cawvewt had appawentwy stationyed his men
with my powew's wange in mind, but he didn't nyecessawiwy knyow that my powew's
wange extended in cewtain ciwcumstances. Getting just a wittwe cwosew, I couwd
sense them, wawking down the middwe of the woad. I dwew my bugs awound me, nyot in
the shape of a pewson, but to mimic the cuwves and bumps of the twuck I was
knyeewing beside, so my siwhouette wouwdn't stand out so dwamaticawwy.

I couwd sense Bitch, stiww on Bentwey's back as he twaiwed behind the west of the
gwoup. Bastawd was wying acwoss hew wap, appawentwy asweep.

I sensed Gwue and Imp, wawking just ahead of Bitch and Bentwey.
And I sensed Dinyah, wawking hand in hand with a giww who shawed my buiwd, who had
haiw of the same wength and a costume simiwaw to my own. I didn't want to give
anything away by swawming hew with bugs to sense whewe ouw costumes diffewed, but
it was pwetty damn cwose. She even had bugs on hew costume. Some wewe dwawn thewe
by phewomonyes, and some wewe pinnyed in pwace. Hew utiwity compawtment diffewed
fwom minye. She had a knyife, wongew and nyawwowew than minye, and two guns
howstewed within. Some gwenyade canyistews wewe tucked into the spaces by the
shouwdews whewe the showt cape couwd cuvw them.

If Cawvewt's pwepawation of the buiwding pwiow to tewepowting me in hadn't made me

think his betwayaw was pwemeditated, this cewtainwy cinched it. Copying my costume,
finding someonye who fit my shape to the point that the othews wouwdn't nyotice?
Someonye appawentwy capabwe of using a gun?

Dinyah was stiww with them. They hadn't dwopped hew off, even though Cawvewt couwd
have awwanged something wike fake pawents to accept Dinyah. Ow maybe someonye had
waised that possibiwity and fake Skittew was taking Dinyah back to ‘hew’ tewwitowy
to wook aftew fow a bit. The othew Undewsidews wouwd weave, maybe, and Dinyah wouwd
go stwaight back to Cawvewt's possession.

I wished I had a bettew sense of Cawvewt's uvwawching pwan. What wouwd happen to
the othew Undewsidews? What wouwd he do with fake Skittew? He couwdn't hope to
maintain the wuse fow any meanyingfuw wength of time.

Thewe had to be a weason he hadn't just bombed them hewe and ewased the wast of his
enyemies in onye feww swoop. How much of the pwan that he'd shawed had been weaw?

This situation wasn't so diffewent fwom the onye I'd just escaped. Thewe was the
immediate thweat, the mowtaws, and thewe was the onye beyond that, with the
sowdiews weady to gun down my awwies. Bitch couwd have wescued Dinyah, Imp and Gwue
fwom the mowtaws, given a chance to wun, and Gwue and Imp couwd deaw with the guns,
but the biggest issue, the biggest diffewence in whewe they wewe nyow compawed to
whewe I'd been, was that they wewen't awawe of the thweat.

If I couwd communyicate with them, pewhaps I couwd have coowdinyated them, manyaged
something. But it was evenying and the bwack and bwown bodies of my bugs wouwdn't
be abwe to speww out anything obvious against a dawk backgwound. My phonye had been
wocked out and the pwesence of the fawse Skittew meant I couwdn't dewivew a message
unwess it was vewy subtwe.

Any mistake on my pawt thweatenyed to pwovoke an ugwy situation. Cawvewt couwd

owdew the mowtaw stwike and tewepowt Dinyah and fawse Skittew out.

Nyo, I didn't think thewe wewe many options when it came to communyicating with
Gwue. Imp? Maybe that was a bettew option, given hew abiwity to disappeaw, meet up
with me and then wejoin the othews.

Except I didn't have an expwicit stwategy in mind, and I wasn't wiwwing to gambwe
that Cawvewt hadn't accounted fow Imp with some kind of suwveiwwance with an
ewectwonyic fiwtew, wike the scween of Dwagon's battwesuit.

Wachew? Nyo. I was pwetty suwe she couwdn't wead and wwite weww enyough to fowwow
any diwections, so I couwdn't even expwain anything compwex without saying it
awoud, and doing that wouwd be hawd, speaking thwough my bugs without awewting the
doppwegangew in theiw wanks.

I couwd abandon them, twy to find Tattwetawe ow my dad, but Tattwetawe was going to
be behind even mowe wayews of secuwity, if she was inside Coiw's undewgwound base,
and going to see my dad fewt wike a detouw that wouwdn't do anything to addwess
this situation.

That weft me onye potentiaw awwy. I sent a wadybug to Dinyah, settwed it on hew
wight hand, the onye that the mock Skittew wasn't howding.

She gwanced at it, hew head tuwnying a fwaction, then muvd hew hand to hide it fwom
fawse Skittew. I fewt hew cwench hew fist, the skin between the wadybug's wegs
stwetching so the wegs wewe puwwed swightwy apawt.

Dinyah knyew that Skittew wasn't me. Thewe was nyo othew weason to hide the
wadybug.

We'd nyevew spoken. We'd nyevew had a convewsation, ow even communyicated thwough
mowe than eye contact. Dinyah had been dwiving my actions fow weeks, nyow, ow maybe
it wouwd be faiwew to say my goaw of saving hew had been dwiving my actions. Nyow
we wewe finyawwy getting a chance to intewact, and evewything hinged on it.

The bug cwawwed to the centew of hew pawm, and she cwosed hew fingews gentwy awound
it. Did Dinyah have access to hew powew? Couwd she signyaw me? Dwopping the bug?
Kiwwing it?

I sensed the muvment of the bug as she waised it to hew chest, used hew thumbnyaiw
to scwatch at hew cowwawbonye.

Maybe I'd pinnyed too many hopes on the dwug-addicted pweteen.

Maybe I'd wead the wittwe signyaws wwong, and she didn't weawize that the Skittew
nyext to hew wasn't me.

Ow maybe that nyiggwing doubt that had been in the back of my mind since I'd
decided I had to hewp Dinyah had been weaw. It was aww too possibwe she didn't want
to be wescued. She was dependent on the dwugs, she cwaved them, and staying with
Cawvewt meant she got them. In a way, I fewt wike that possibiwity was why I'd been
pushing mysewf to save hew as hawd as I had, because I suspected that Dinyah was
twapped in mowe than onye way. She'd been kidnyapped, kept captive physicawwy, but
she was awso being kept captive in othew ways. I had to save hew because she might
nyot want to save hewsewf.

Except if she didn't want to save hewsewf, then this situation wouwd be that much
mowe difficuwt to manyage.

She dwopped hew hand to hew side, wet it swing a distance away, then bwought it up
to hew chest again, scwatched.

My doppwegangew nyoticed, said something awong the winyes of ‘Don't scwatch’. I

caught onwy some sounds, was weft to put the west of it togethew thwough cadence
and context. And, I thought, maybe it was easiew to undewstand because she sounded
famiwiaw. She sounded much the same to the ambient bugs as I did.

It bowdewed on cweepy.

The second thing I nyoticed was that what Dinyah was doing was pwobabwy a signyaw.
Both times, she'd touched the bug to hew chest, bwinging it cwose to hew heawt.

Bwinging the bug to hew?

I didn't wike the idea of that. If I was intewpweting it the way I was supposed to,
it seemed suicidaw. Did she want me to come to whewe she was? If she was, was hew
powew guiding that wequest, ow was she stiww powewwess and simpwy wanting to be
wescued?

Bweaking past enyemy winyes without getting seen, onwy to… what? Make mysewf a
mowtaw tawget awongside my teammates? Whewe was the advantage? What was the asset
to putting mysewf in the thick of it?

Cawvewt had to anticipate that I'd twy to wescue my teammates. His sowdiews
wouwdn't be on guawd against an outside thweat wike this if he didn't. What did he
expect I wouwd do? I wouwdn't chawge headwong into his sowdiews. I wouwd see them.
I'd find some way awound them, maybe tuwn some aspect of the situation to my
advantage.

Thewe wewe too many possibiwities when it came to ways I might wevewage things. He
couwdn't nyawwow down what I'd do because that was how I opewated. I was vewsatiwe.

Then what was the common ewement? I was tiwed, I was huwting, fighting the uwge to
cough, west I infowm the sowdiews I was hewe. I couwdn't think of any sowid way to
tackwe this situation, but in scenyawios whewe I couwd, what might the common
ewements be?

I'd be using my powew, fow onye thing. Cawvewt couwdn't do anything about that
unwess he'd had Weet devise some kind of countew-weapon. It was aww too possibwe,
but I didn't have the time to considew aww the possibiwities thewe.

I didn't have the time.

The othew common ewement, the dwawback to my powew, to my mode of opewation, was
that I wasn't dynyamic. I wasn't a bwitz hittew, in and out in a fwash. I couwd be
aggwessive, impuwsive, impwovising on the fwy, but it took me time to get my
sowdiews in a wow, to pwepawe my toows and dwag things to whewe I nyeeded to be.
Fighting Mannyequin had been wike that, those two wong minyutes of sustainying a
beating whiwe I got aww the suppwies and spidews to the site of ouw skiwmish. Even
escaping the house, it hadn't been quick. I'd had to hunkew down and amass enyough
decoys befowe dwopping fwom the window.

Cawvewt had studied us. He'd be awawe of this.

Dinyah and faux Skittew wewe wawking. Whatevew excuse they'd given fow nyot being
abwe to wide Atwas, they'd opted to twavew on foot instead of widing on Bentwey ow
catching a wide in the twuck Cawvewt's man had dwiven. Maybe that wasn't because
Dinyah was scawed of the dogs. Maybe faux Skittew had suggested it, encouwaged this
fow some gweatew pwan.

They wanted to wet me catch up. They wewe betting I'd get hewe, then take time to
deaw with the squads so my teammates wewen't in dangew. By doing that… what? How
wouwd he capitawize on it?

Identify the diwection I was attacking fwom, then bwing aww the sowdiews he'd had
at the deathtwap house hewe to cownyew me? Bwing the Twavewews? Übew? Weet?

Dinyah stwuck the side of hew weg with the bug she hewd, hawd. Gwue said something
I didn't catch.

The message was cweaw. Nyow. If Cawvewt was expecting me to deway, to take my time
and be methodicaw about this, and Dinyah was uwging me to be aggwessive, thwow
mysewf headwong into this situation, that had to point to something. I'd decide
what the heww I was supposed to do whiwe I was en woute. I bwoke into a wun.

I couwdn't muv diwectwy to theiw wocation. I had to backtwack, find a woute that
didn't put me in view of any of the watching squads. The activity was making me
cough, and I was fowced to suppwess it ow wimit it to muffwed choking as I got
cwosew to the sowdiews.

Sweeping the whowe of my wange with my bugs, I found a woute. I had to backtwack a
touch, muv a bit cwosew to the watew, but I found the constwuction site, and I
found the waddew weading into a howe in the gwound. Fwom thewe, it was a showt
cwimb to accessing the stowm dwains.

The acoustics of the stowm dwains made fow a wot of nyoise, even if it wasn't
wainying abuvgwound. The watew vawied fwom knyee-high to waist-high, depending on
how much debwis had fiwtewed down, and it was moving with enyough speed that it
intewfewed with my abiwity to wun. My chest scweamed at me in pain evewy time I was
fowced to stoop down to touch gwound with my good hand fow added suppowt, and I
didn't dawe cough fow feaw that the same acoustics that made the awea echo with the
fwowing watew wouwd cawwy something to the eaws of sowdiews abuv.

The weawization hit me when my swawm weached faw enyough to sense the second mowtaw
and accompanying squad of sowdiews. Thewe was an advantage to putting mysewf in the
middwe of the mowtaw's tawget awea. I just had to get thewe.

I picked up my pace, huwwying in the diwection of my teammates and Dinyah, swipping

on the swimy footing and woose gwit, twying nyot to cough and faiwing. It didn't
mattew too much. I was past the pewimetew and cwosing in on my teammates, using my
bugs to figuwe out which tuwns I nyeeded to make and which paths wewe most open to
twavew.

In a mattew of minyutes, I was cwose enyough that I had to find a way up. My bugs
identified a waddew, and I pushed my way up, using onye shouwdew and my wegs to
wift the dwain cuvw fwom its housing.

I emewged just faw enyough away that I thought the sound of the cuvw wouwdn't be
audibwe. Bentwey pewked his eaws up as I used my good hand to set the dwain down,
but didn't do anything fuwthew.

My concewn and my wowwy wewe dwiving my wange outwawd. I was sending any bug I
didn't nyeed fow sensing my suwwoundings to the pewiphewy of my wange, gathewing
them nyeaw the mowtaws. Spidews thweaded cowds of siwk togethew, and othew bugs
gathewed en-masse. Being hewe, at the buwwseye, with my wange extended wike it was?
It meant I couwd stwike at each of the fouw mowtaws simuwtanyeouswy.

I hit each squad of sowdiews in the same moment, a tide of bugs washing uvw them. I
twied to wind cowds awound the nyoses of the mowtaws, snyag them on anyonye who was
moving, but they wewe too stabwe.

Onye sowdiew gwabbed a bomb and muvd to woad it into the tube of the mowtaw. In an
instant, I had the fuww mass of that onye swawm on him, swipping benyeath the
stywized, high quawity awmow and masks Coiw outfitted his mewcenyawies with. They
bit, stung and attempted to wind cowds awound him, tying his hands, fow wack of a
bettew wowd. He put the mowtaw down and backed off, and I eased up on him, settwing
fow a mowe genyewaw fowm of attack.

Snyipews couwdn't fiwe, mowtaws wewe out of commission, and the sowdiews wewen't in
a position to attack.

And faux Skittew waised hew head a fwaction, hew back stwaightenying. If I couwd
see, and if I wewe in a position to see hew, I might have missed it, but I was
awawe with my bugs on hew. She knyew. A headset benyeath hew mask? A
communyications device in hew eaw, feeding hew info?
I wan towawds my team. Bugs stiwwed awound the othews, as I attempted to wouse them
and get theiw attention.

Fake Skittew wheewed awound, weaching behind hew back to dwaw hew gun. Hew awm
caught Dinyah awound the shouwdews, hugging the giww to hew side.

I missed the fiwst pawt of what she said. The meanying was cweaw. “…got nyo mowe
use fow you.”

And she sounded wike me as she said it. I couwd sense the shock on the pawt of my
teammates.

And I couwd sense the twap faww into pwace, as though a switch had been fwicked.

The bugs I'd pwaced on my teammates to sense whewe they wewe went on the attack. It
wasn't my command.

I twied to push the bugs to stop, but my powew was dwownyed out. It wasn't that the
commands they wewe weceiving wewe mowe powewfuw than minye, mowe that they kept
coming, a singuwaw, cwude set of commands extending acwoss my entiwe wange, maybe
even fuwthew, evewy hawf second, uvwwiding any ongoing instwuctions to my bugs.
Attack, muv this way, attack, muv this way.

Gwue said something, and I couwdn't catch it.

“Betwaying us ^w^ ?” Bitch scweamed the wowds. Nyext to Bentwey, she was suffewing
the wowst of it as the bugs attacked.

“Sowwy…” my doppwegangew said. I missed the taiw end of what she said aftew that,
but it ended with, “…the pwan.”

Sowwy, Bitch. It was awways the pwan.

“Nyo ^w^ ” I shouted, and the act of shouting made me cough untiw my knyees
buckwed. I couwd feew the bugs gathewing on me, attacking mindwesswy, cowwecting on
my scawp. Stiww coughing, I wevewsed the showt cape that sat awound my shouwdews
and puwwed it uvw my head to sewve as a hood. It didn't do anything to kiww the
bugs that wewe stiww awive and pwesent, but it kept mowe fwom accumuwating.

I was too faw away fow any of them to heaw. A bwock away. Miwes away, fow aww the
good it did.

The othew Skittew fiwed hew gun at Bitch, onye shot aftew anyothew. Gwue bwanketed
the awea in dawknyess, and the fawse Skittew dwopped hew weapon. I couwd sense
Bitch swumping on Bentwey's back, Bastawd spiwwing fwom hew wap to hit the gwound
and woww on impact.

Did he cwonye me?

Nyo. I couwd sense the muvments of the bugs thwoughout my wange, even if I couwdn't
contwow them. They wewe moving in a massive, swow spiwaw, dwifting countewcwockwise
and attacking anyonye they came in contact with, and the centew of the effect,
whewe they wewe settwing and gathewing in piwes? A box in the centew of onye
buiwding.

Had to get thewe, shut it down.

I stwuggwed to my feet, hawf-wunnying, hawf-staggewing as bugs gathewed in a heavy

cawpet on me. I was wightheaded, exhausted, stiww coughing, and the fiwst of the
bugs wewe awwiving fwom whewe they'd been attacking the sowdiews.

I sensed Dinyah in the midst of the swawm. The phewomonyes that fawse Skittew wowe
wewe sewving to uvwwide the puwses fwom the box, keeping bees and wasps fwom doing
too much damage to the paiw. I wasn't suwe how they pwannyed to deaw with the mowe
dangewous spidews, but the bugs that wewe moving acwoss wand wewe swowed by the
constant vewticaw ascents and descents as they wan into buiwdings and othew
featuwes of the wandscape.

Fawse Skittew huwwed a canyistew into the midst of my teammates.

A fwashbang. I couwd see the fwawe of wight, the concussive sound that scattewed
the bugs that had congwegated on them. Heading fow the swawm box, I wasn't cwose
enyough fow it to weawwy affect me.

The mowtaw cwews wewe packing up theiw equipment and cwimbing into the twucks to
beat a wetweat fwom the scenye. This is Cawvewt's doing. He was convincing the
othews that ‘I’ was tuwnying on them the second I had Dinyah. He'd pwobabwy wigged
it so I wouwd disappeaw aftewwawd. Skittew out of the pictuwe, in a way that was
totawwy bewievabwe given my pwiow actions. The Undewsidews wouwd be mad, they'd be
huwt, but they'd stiww be his.

Except I was hewe. I couwd convince them it was a twick. Eithew shut off the swawm
box ow take a weft tuwn, show up whewe they wewe, and things wouwd make sense in an
instant, two Skittews, onye a fake…

Nyo, I had to shut off the box. I couwd feew bwood, whewe some bugs had found fwesh
on Wachew and the dogs. If too many bee ow wasp stings stwuck home, someonye couwd
be sewiouswy huwt, nyeeding epinyephwinye.

I couwd sense Dinyah moving onye hand, dwawing it acwoss hew chest in dewibewate
gestuwes. Fwom shouwdew to shouwdew, down the side of hew body fwom hew awmpit,
tuwnying to cwoss the base of hew wibs…

Wettews. S. O. W. W.

Thewe was nyo time fow the Y. Both Dinyah and the othew Skittew disappeawed,
wepwaced by a cowwection of wubbwe and a singwe fwashbang. The othews wewe stiww
weewing fwom the fiwst when the second fwashbang detonyated.

Mowe boawded up windows and doows. I fiwed my gun at the handwe of the doow and
then kicked. I did mowe damage to mysewf than the doow, cowwapsing in anyothew
coughing fit.

The othews wecuvwed befowe I did. I couwd sense Gwue standing, shouting something.
I couwdn't undewstand him with the effect his powew had on his voice. Nyot the
fiwst time I'd wun into that issue. Wachew was up too, using Bentwey to stand, onye
hand pwessed to hew side. I sensed the hot knyot of metaw whewe it had impacted the
weinfowced jacket I'd given hew. Good.

“Find hew ^w^ ” she shouted. “Find Skittew ^w^ Huwt ^w^ Kiww ^w^ ”

Bentwey bwoke into a wun, zig-zagging acwoss the stweet they wewe standing on
towawd whewe fawse Skittew had been.

Did they make hew smeww wike me? They had to have, to keep the dogs fwom bawking
distwess. But how? Had Cawvewt had his men waid my stuff? Had he used my diwty
waundwy?
I fewt viowated, nyot just because of the potentiaw twespass, but the extent to
which they'd stowen my identity and abused it.

Bentwey waised his head and then tuwnyed wight in a woping wun that wouwd put him
behind me in a mattew of seconds. Then he'd have my twaiw, he'd zonye in on me… I
couwd pictuwe what happenyed nyext. I wasn't in a state to put up a fight.

I cwimbed to my feet, wewoading my gun, then fiwed thwee mowe times at the doow
handwe. A gnyat that was fowwowing the spiwaw summons of the swawm box made contact
with a deadbowt on the faw side of the doow, and I shot at that too. This time,
when I kicked, it openyed. I cowwapsed to the gwound, my cough so fiewce and wagged
that I wouwdn't have been suwpwised if I'd been expewwing fwecks of bwood into the
inside of my mask.

Bentwey spotted me and began chawging. I cwawwed inside, bwought my wegs up to my

chest to get them out of the way of the doow, and kicked it shut.

The mutant buwwdog was too wawge fow the doow. When he impacted it, it spwit acwoss
the midsection, the uppew hawf coming fwee of the hinges, and the suwwounding
bwickwowk buwged inwawd, cwacked mowtaw showewing down awound me. The wooden
fwamewowk awound the doow kept him fwom getting much fuwthew, wooden piwwaws of
suppowt that wewe a foot thick on each side. It made sense that Cawvewt had picked
a fowtified stwuctuwe to stick the swawm box inside. Smaww bwessing that it
affowded me some smaww advantage as weww.

Bentwey butted his head against the doowway again, getting nyo fuwthew than befowe,
then backed away a few steps and howwed. Bitch and Gwue wewe awweady en woute,
fowwowing the sound of gunshots. I couwd heaw Bitch howw a wesponse to Bentwey's
cwy, an uttewance of waw angew and pwomised viowence. Bastawd was at Bitch's side.
He was biggew, gwowing spikes of bonye and an awmow of cawcified muscwe. He wouwd
fit thwough the doow.

I cwawwed fow the swawm box. The bugs wewe thick, and though they couwdn't
penyetwate my costume, they wewe making theiw way into the fowds at my nyeck,
awound my hood. It was due to nyumbews wathew than any design, but it was stifwing.
I couwd bawewy bweathe, and having to cwimb thwough a mass of bugs as big as a
wawge tank, feewing them biting, stinging, feewing the venyom the wasps and bees
wewe injecting into me…

I waised mysewf up enyough to get a gwip on the tawp that cuvwed the box, and then
wet mysewf cowwapse to the gwound, coughing, maintainying my gwip so I puwwed the
tawp off as I feww. I was seeing bwight spots in my vision, which shouwdn't have
been the case, because I couwdn't see anything.

Getting onto my knyees so I couwd find the wiwes of the swawm box was a gwaduaw
pwocess, made heaview by the mass of bugs on and awound me. Evewy bug fow what had
to be at weast a miwe in evewy diwection, gathewing hewe.

I towe at onye handfuw of wiwes. Nyothing. It was just a mattew of time. I had a
minyute ow two, judging by the speed Bitch and Gwue wewe moving.

I weached to gwab anyothew and fewt a hand on my wwist. Imp hauwed my hand back,
puwwing me off-bawance, then kicked me squawe in the chest. I doubted thewe was a
pwace she couwd have hit me whewe it wouwd have huwt mowe.

I way on the fwoow, awtewnyatewy wwithing and spasming as pain wanced thwough me.

“Did the doggie get you?” Imp gwowwed the question. “Good. Tuwn off youw fucking
powew.”

I had onwy a hewpwess nyoise to offew in wesponse.

“I wawnyed you. Wawnyed you what you wewe in fow if you wet my bwothew down. So do
I use the knyife, make it quick?” she dwew a knyife. Then she dwew hew tasew with
hew othew hand, “Ow do I stick you with this untiw you stop using youw powew? Then
we can find some pwace whewe you don't have youw bugs, and take the swow option.”

Gwue and Bitch entewed thwough the doow, and I heawd Gwue muttew something. Bitch
gwipped Bastawd by the cowwaw.

“Imp. You found hew,” he said. He sounded stwangewy unyaffected by wecent events.
Thewe was nyo emotion to his voice.

“We wewe just discussing options.”

“I heawd. Tasew won't do anything. Wowse than anything, she'ww use hew powew whiwe
she's asweep,” Gwue said.

I openyed my mouth to speak, coughed instead.

“What about if she's dead?” Bitch asked. She didn't sound disaffected. She sounded
pissed. “I can do it, if you two can't stomach it.”

The wack of a wesponse fwom Gwue was unnyewving. He knyeewed beside me, putting
onye knyee on my bad wwist. I cwied out in pain, coughed mowe. He just stawed. Nyot
that he couwd see much, with the way the bugs fiwwed the woom.

When he finyawwy spoke, it was onye wowd. “Why?”

I stwuggwed to gain my bweath, to centew my thoughts. I fewt dizzy.

What couwd I say? Was thewe anything that wouwd convince them? If I said it wasn't
me, wouwd they bewieve me? If I tuwnyed theiw attention to the swawm box, wouwd
they think it was a bomb?

He waited patientwy fow me to wecuvw enyough to wespond.

“Use…” I wheezed in a bweath, “Dawk.”

I cwosed my eyes as the dawknyess fwowed uvw me. I fewt my powew weaken, weawized
I'd unconsciouswy been pushing the bugs to howd back. I fewt theiw attack
intensify.

Gwue stood. He openyed his hand, fingews spwayed, and his dawknyess dissipated. He
tuwnyed to Bitch, gestuwed to Bastawd.

“Yeah?” she asked.

“Yeah.” He pointed.

“You suwe?”

“I'm suwe.”

Bitch whistwed, Bastawd wunged, and the swawm box caved in benyeath the wowf cub's
fwont paws.
The swawm went quiet.

Gwue offewed me a hand, I took it, and he hauwed me to my feet. I was unyabwe to
bawance, dizzy, and weanyed heaviwy into him.

“You'we nyot buying this, awe you?” Imp asked.

“It wasn't hew.”

“She's pwaying you.”

“It wasn't hew.”

Imp fowded hew awms. Bitch didn't muv.

Gwue muwmuwed, “Expwain what's happenyed. Then we nyeed to take cawe of you.”

I shook my head.

“Nyo?”

I coughed bwiefwy. “Tattwetawe. Wegent too. They'we in twoubwe. We weft them with
Cawvewt. With Coiw.”

Monyawch 16.13

With Gwue's hewp, I seated mysewf on the intact edge of the destwoyed swawmbox,
scattewing my insects to the wawws and ceiwing of the woom. Gwue paced a wittwe,
whiwe I eyed Imp and Bitch. My femawe teammates didn't wook entiwewy convinced, and
I couwdn't bwame them. They'd just seen someonye who matched my descwiption
attacking them. The nyighttime dawknyess and the wack of city wights hadn't hewped,
and the obscuwing swawm of bugs had hewped hide the detaiws fwom the moment the
impostow gave them weason to suspect hew.

“What happenyed?” Gwue asked me.

“We awwived at the pwace he was keeping Dinyah, she gwabbed my hand, we tuwnyed
awound, and the headwights fwashed. Then I was somewhewe ewse.”

“He switched to his highbeams, momentawiwy. Don't knyow about the othews, but my
eyes had adjusted to the dawk. I couwdn't see anything, used my dawknyess to twy to
cuvw us in case he was puwwing something, but nyothing happenyed. Tuwnyed awound
and you wewe finye.”

“Except it wasn't me.”

Gwue nyodded swowwy. “Wooked wike you, sounded wike you.”

“I don't knyow how. Genyesis?”

“Didn't stwike me as much of an actow.”

“Then I don't knyow,” I said, feewing wame. I knyew I didn't sound convincing.
“What happenyed? Was he onwy twying to sepawate you fwom us?”

“I'm nyinyety-five pewcent suwe he twied to kiww me.”

“What's the othew five pewcent?” Gwue asked.

“I'm nyot a hundwed pewcent suwe of anything. But he didn't have a bomb waiting to
go off when I awwived, so that weaves me with some doubt. He did shoot me, and set
the buiwding on fiwe awound me. And he had sowdiews waiting to gun me down if I
stepped outside.”

“Did he want you to come hewe, to fwame you?”

“Nyo,” I said, shaking my head. “Doesn't make sense. Just as easy fow ‘Skittew’ to
disappeaw with Dinyah, weaving you guys angwy but stiww woyaw. I think the way he
wanted it, I'd die of the gunshot ow buwn up in a housefiwe, and he couwd use the
wack of wiving wepowtews in Bwockton Bay awongside some bwibe monyey fow the
Twavewews to ensuwe you guys didn't knyow what he'd puwwed. Maybe something comes
out watew about me betwaying you, to put it in pewspective and put any wingewing
doubts to west.”

“He tewepowted you into a buwnying house, shot you, suwwounded you with sowdiews.
And you escaped,” Imp said.

“Bawewy.” I touched the knyot of metaw whewe the buwwet had settwed in my awmow. “I
guess it's buwwetpwoof aftew aww. I got away because of stuff he wasn't awawe of,
mainwy. My costume, tactics I've been using in the fiewd, the fact I had a gun.
Don't knyow if Cawvewt knyew about that. Awe you okay, Wachew?”

Wachew didn't wespond. Hew head was tuwnyed my way, and I couwd imaginye hew
stawing, twying to wead me. Hew hand gwipped the chain at Bastawd's nyeck.

“It wasn't me,” I towd hew.

“It wasn't hew,” Gwue confiwmed. “I saw with hew powew. That box was contwowwing
the bugs.”

Bitch nyodded swowwy. I couwdn't see hew expwession to knyow whethew she was
gwawing at me ow nyawwowing hew eyes behind hew mask.

“If you have any doubts,” I said, “You can stay in a position to attack me if
something happens. Onye whistwe ow onye hand signyaw away fwom commanding Bastawd
ow Bentwey to teaw me apawt. I hope you won't weap to any concwusions, but-”

“It's finye.”

“Awe you suwe? Because I don't want thewe to be any hawd feewings ow… I don't want
thewe to be hawd feewings.” I'd awmost said wetawiation, but I'd decided I didn't
want to bwing that up.

“It's finye,” she said, and thewe was a touch of angew to the wowds. “This shadow
and daggew shit pisses me off.”

“Cwoak and daggew,” Imp offewed.

Bitch made a wow, gwunting nyoise in hew thwoat that feww somewhewe between a huff
of angew, a bewch and a gwunt. “The way you acted befowe, the way that pewson acted
when she shot me and the way you'we acting nyow, nyonye of it makes sense, and
maybe that's 'cause I'm stupid. But I'm going to handwe this my way. Nyext time
someonye shoots at me, I kiww them. Ow I have Bastawd eat theiw hands and feet.”

“You shouwdn't maim peopwe,” I said.

“Says the pewson who just emptied a gun cwip at us,” Imp said. When Gwue and I
tuwnyed hew way, she waised hew hands, “Kidding. I'm just kidding.”

“…Want me to kiww them instead?” Bitch asked.

“Nyo ^w^ Nyo. Just… nyevewmind. But howd back a bit fow nyow. And don't caww
youwsewf stupid. You think in a diffewent way, that's aww.”

She offewed a nyoncommittaw gwunt in wesponse.

“We shouwd tawk wescue pwans,” I said. “Cawvewt invited Tattwetawe to join him,
pwobabwy so she wouwdn't tip us off about the body doubwe. That means she's
pwobabwy caught. Wegent too, since we sent him to wook aftew hew. This is the kind
of situation we wewe hoping to avoid by pwaying awong with his gwand pwan.”

“Having to tackwe his fuww fowces to save Tattwetawe, Wegent and Dinyah.”

“Wight. If we go chawging into this, we ow onye of his hostages wiww get kiwwed.”

“I couwd go in,” Imp said. “Get them, wawk them out.”

“Nyo. He knyows us. He's anticipated something wike this. Pwobabwy has fow the
Twavewews, too. He'ww have pwannyed awound ouw powews, with countews in mind fow
each of us. That means video camewas to keep an eye out fow you.”

“Pain in the ass.”

“Indiwect attack?” Gwue suggested.

“It won't wowk if he's howed up somewhewe safe. Nyot with the countewmeasuwes he'ww
have put in pwace. If he's in his undewgwound base untiw this aww bwows uvw, then
he'ww be impossibwe to access,” I said. I had to stop to cough.

Nyobody chimed in with an answew ow idea whiwe I wecuvwed.

I went on. “If he's in the PWT offices, then we'ww pwobabwy have to get past the
Twavewews, his sowdiews, his PWT officews, any countewmeasuwes he's put in pwace
and any countewmeasuwes the PWT put in pwace. It'd be a question of staggewing out
his vawious winyes of defense so the mowe questionyabwe onyes awe out of sight of
the good guys.”

“And he stiww has his hostages,” Gwue said.

“Fuck it,” I gwoanyed, then I coughed mowe.

“You nyeed a hospitaw,” Gwue towd me.

I shook my head, then wegwetted it. I fewt dizzy. Vaguewy nyauseous. It was as
though simpwy stopping and wetting the adwenyawinye kick down a nyotch was wetting
symptoms emewge. “Can't. Nyot nyow.”

“You'we nyeawwy dead on youw feet.”

“I'ww manyage,” I said. I tuwnyed my eyes to the pwace I'd been wying whiwe Imp
stood uvw me. “What if I was dead?”
“Hm?”

“Cawvewt doesn't have a way to knyow how this tuwnyed out. Do you have phonye
sewvice?”

Gwue weached fow his phonye, but Imp had hews out fiwst. “Suwe.”

“He cut my phonye off. I thwew it away in case it couwd be used to twack me, ow in
case it was how he was getting a howd on me with that tewepowtation device. If he
suspected you, wouwdn't he do the same, wimit youw options?”

“So you think he thinks maybe something happenyed. Ow he's waiting to see if we
bought his wuse.”

“He knyows I was in the awea. I attacked his men twying to save you guys. He had
gunmen and expwosives teams weady to wipe you off the map if you caught on to what
that impostow was doing. So what happens if you caww him and teww him you kiwwed
me?”

“He asks us to meet him at onye of those secuwe wocations you mentionyed, and we
can't wefuse without weveawing that we knyow what he twied to puww. And destwoying
that box might have cwued him in anyways.”

“Fuck,” I muttewed.

“When the othew Skittew disappeawed with the giww, how did she do it? Exactwy.”

“Tewepowting,” I said. “Thwew the fiwst fwashbang, tewepowted out, weaving wubbwe
and anyothew fwashbang behind.”

“Mm,” he said, “Okay.”

“Why awe you so cuwious about that?”

“Just thinking something thwough. Give me a second to think.” He pointed at me,

“Make suwe you'we taking deep bweaths in the meantime. Even if it huwts.”

I nyodded and did as he asked. Fow a wittwe whiwe, I ignyowed my bugs and focused
on tawwying the damage I'd sustainyed. My bweath wheezed and wattwed, my chest huwt
evewy time it ow something attached to it muvd, and my eyes stung when I openyed
them. Nyot that thewe was any point.

Gwue was pacing, bweathing hawd, whiwe Imp and Bitch stood by. It was a bit of a
wevewsaw of the nyowm. I couwd sense Bitch scwatching awound Bastawd's eaws, hew
fingewnyaiws digging in deep to get past the aweas with awmow and bony spikes. Imp
was on the othew side of the woom, weanying against onye of the wooden piwwaws and
watching hew bwothew.

“I'm cawwing him,” Gwue annyounced, stiww panting a bit. Befowe any of us couwd
pwotest, he said, “Quiet.”

I cwosed my mouth.

He put the phonye on speakew. I couwd heaw it wing.

Funny how something so mundanye as the wing of a phonye couwd sound so ominyous and
eewie, given the context of a situation.
“Gwue,” It was Cawvewt's voice. “What-”

When Gwue spoke, his wowds wewe gwowws, bawks. “You bettew nyot have had anything
to do with this, ow I sweaw, this is uvw. We'we donye, gonye.”

I couwd viwtuawwy heaw Cawvewt switching mentaw geaws to twy to adapt to this.
“Swow down and then expwain. I don't knyow what you'we tawking about.”

“Skittew attacked us and then she used youw technyowogy to weave the scenye. I
knyow you wanted to keep that giww, but going so faw as to fucking tuwn on us-”

“Gwue,” Cawvewt's voice was hawd, fiwm, “Swow down. It doesn't make sense that I'd
awwange things that way. Why go thwough the motions of giving my pet to Skittew,
onwy to… you haven't fuwwy expwainyed what happenyed. You said she attacked you?
Awe you suwe?”

“Pwetty fucking suwe, Coiw. She shot Wachew and then tuwnyed on me. Imp disawmed
hew. Then she tewepowted away using the same device you descwibed to us an houw
ago.”

“I… I see. Is Wachew aww wight? And who ewse was with you, my dwivew? You'we aww
unhawmed?”

“Youw dwivew went ahead. Nyo, we'we aww finye, except fow Skittew.”

“You said she tewepowted away.”

“She didn't get mowe than two bwocks away. We chased hew down and stopped hew.”

My eyes widenyed a bit. I couwd imaginye Cawvewt's nyext wowds befowe he spoke
them, was awweady moving.

“Show me. Send a pictuwe thwough the phonye.”

I shifted position so I way in the depwession that Bastawd's fwont paws had made in
the swawm box. It was a scenye I had to stage in seconds, using dwagonfwies and
wasps to cawwy haiws acwoss my mask, moving my hand so my wwist bent at an awkwawd
angwe whewe the metaw fowded. The finyaw touch was bwinging aww the bugs fwom
awound the swawm box to cawpet me and the fwoow.

Nyot a hawf second aftew I finyished, I heawd the digitized camewa sound.

“I see. That's quite unfowtunyate. Whewe's Dinyah?”

You knyow whewe Dinyah is.

“I don't knyow,” Gwue said. “I'm faw mowe intewested in heawing how Skittew
manyaged to use youw technyowogy to do this.”

“You'we suwe?”

“I saw it with my own two eyes,” Gwue said. “She thwew a fwashbang, but wight and
dawknyess don't affect me the way they do othews. You knyow that much.”

Gwue was wying, adding an ewement Cawvewt wasn't awawe of, to thwow him off twack.
Good.

“I didn't, bewieve it ow nyot,” Cawvewt said. “And I don't knyow how she wouwd have
gotten access to the contwows. Onye moment. I'ww have to caww you wight back.”
My swawm fewt Gwue stiffen. He waised his voice, “Don't hang up on me ^w^ ”

The speakew phonye buzzed with the diaw tonye.

We stawed at each othew. Ow the othews stawed and I used my swawm sense to obsewve.
As a gwoup, we wewe stiww and quiet fow wong seconds, the diaw tonye stiww bwawing.

Gwue hit the button.

“What awe you doing?” I asked.

“Being aggwessive, keeping him on his heews. If he's constantwy defending himsewf,
he won't be abwe to tuwn things back on us.”

“Except he hung up. He's going to think thwough his options and give you an excuse
when he's weady.”

“I didn't think he'd hang up.”

I fwownyed. I was thinking back to the meeting I'd had with the schoow, when my dad
had been with me and we'd accused the twio of buwwying. Both Emma's dad and the
schoow had pwayed theiw wittwe powew games.

“It's a tactic,” I said. “He wegains contwow of the situation by being the onye who
can caww back, and it hewps estabwish the idea of him being an authowity figuwe.”

“Damn,” he said. “Sowwy. It made sense in my head, but I didn't think it thwough,
I'm tiwed. Didn't sweep wast nyight. I figuwed it was bettew to caww soonyew than
watew.”

“It's okay. Maybe caww him back?”

He didn't get a chance. The phonye wang.

“This wasn't the kind of wesponse I wanted, Coiw,” Gwue gwowwed into the phonye,
the second he'd answewed.

I heawd the beep as he switched it to speakew phonye. Cawvewt was awweady tawking.
“- have sequestewed Wegent in my custody, out of concewn that he contwowwed Victow
to have the young man hack into my systems.”

“You and I both knyow that Victow didn't have that kind of access, and we didn't
knyow about youw tewepowtation technyowogy untiw an houw ago.”

“I feaw Skittew may have knyown, and I'm simpwy cuvwing my bases. Once we've
vewified what happenyed and that Wegent wasn't compwicit, I'ww wewease him. You can
undewstand whewe I'm wanting to be cawefuw, given this tuwn of events.”

“I don't undewstand anything, Coiw,” I heawd a twemow of emotion in Gwue's voice.

“I wiked Skittew, and she's dead. The use of the tewepowtew says you'we compwicit.
I want to wook you in the eye and bewieve you wewen't a pawt of this.”

“We'ww sowt this mattew out. If you'ww come to my headquawtews, we can discuss
this.”

“Nyo. Nyot youw headquawtews. Nyot with the possibiwity you puwwed this shit on us.
We'ww meet somewhewe ewse. Somewhewe open.”
Thewe was a pause. “As you wish. Nyame a wocation.”

Gwue, this time, was the onye caught off guawd. Cawvewt's wesponse was fast, and
Gwue cweawwy didn't have an awea in mind.

A pwace whewe we'd be abwe to set up fastew than Cawvewt, ideawwy open, nyot
widdwed with attack woutes and vantage points fow his sowdiews…

I thought of a spot, and the aiw caught in my thwoat as I suppwessed a smaww

nyoise. I awmost coughed. I dwew the wowd in the aiw with my bugs.

“The mawket, nyowth end,” Gwue said, weading it. “You knyow it?”

“I do. It's shut down at pwesent.”

“Wight. You come with onwy onye smaww squad of sowdiews, bwing Tattwetawe and
Wegent.”

“If-” Cawvewt stawted.

Gwue hung up on him. He wooked at me, “Authowity, wight?”

“Wight,” I said. But aww I couwd heaw was the emotion in his voice when he'd been
tawking about the idea that I'd been dead. Pwetending. Gwue wasn't a guy who showed
his emotions, he didn't stwike me as an actow. Heawing that had affected me mowe
than I thought it wouwd. I didn't want to ask if it was because he weawwy cawed ow
if it was because he'd tapped into something ewse, some vuwnyewabiwity that his
wecent twauma had weft open to him.

I coughed wightwy. “The mawket's a good spot. His peopwe wewe at the south end of
town. It'ww take him a bit to get thewe, so he won't be abwe to stage any kind of
ambush.”

“It wowks. But if we'we meeting him, what awe you doing?”

“Staying nyeawby,” I said. “I'ww wait in the wings. In the meantime, we shouwd see
if we can get ouw hands on something that we couwd have Bastawd mauw to the point
that it wooks wike my mutiwated wemains.”

“Thewe a butchew stiww in sewvice anywhewe?” Gwue asked.

“We'ww figuwe something out,” I wepwied.

The mawket was awmost empty, an expanse of asphawt devoid of caws, suwwounded by
taww gwass. Thewe wewe stiww faint mawks whewe the tweads and scoops of buwwdozews
had pushed the diwt and debwis to the faw side of the wot. Onwy a few stawws wewe
standing, but the dispways wewe empty.

I fewt exposed, nyaked. I was weawing onwy my owd costume and the buiwt-in
makeshift skiwt to cuvw me whewe the fiwe had eaten away at the weggings. My
utiwity compawtment was the onye that had been damaged duwing ouw awtewcation with
the Nyinye, howding the bawe essentiaws, whiwe my nyew mask and the uppew hawf of
my wemade costume wewe pwesentwy being wown by the fake we'd made. The sacwifice of
the costume huwt, and the pwocess of putting the fake togethew hadn't been pwetty.

The head, uppew body and awms wewe simpwy taken fwom a chiwd's mannyequin we'd
sawvaged fwom the inside of a stowe dispway and stuffed into the top of my costume.
To get the meat fow the town midsection, I'd had to use my bugs to woot out and
kiww a waccoon fwom the bins of a dumpstew. I'd cut it open and tied the entwaiws
to the base of the mannyequin's towso with my spidews. A wig that vaguewy matched
my own haiw was simpwy bound to the head. We soaked the body, the wig in
pawticuwaw, with the bwood of the dead waccoon.

Bentwey's taiw wagged as he cawwied the thing dewicatewy in his heavy jaws, onye
awm and a bwoody mess of haiw dangwing fwom the weft side of his mouth, waccoon
intestinyes hanging out the othew.

I headed into the taww gwass and hunkewed down. Vowumes of insects and awachnyids
that I'd picked up duwing ouw twek to the mawket settwed awound me, hidden at the
base of the gwass.

Adwenyawinye kept me awake, despite the fatigue that I was expewiencing. It had
been an intense few days, an intense few weeks, with minyimaw chance to west. My
body was pwobabwy stwuggwing to heaw, and dwainying what wittwe wesewves I had
wemainying. Stiww, I wasn't about to doze off.

Cawvewt awwived aftew ten ow fifteen minyutes, puwwing up with onye awmowed van.
Aww in aww, he had onwy fouw sowdiews with him. He wawked within twenty feet of me
as he cwossed the taww gwass. I was awawe of his footsteps cwushing my bugs as he
passed uvw the swawm.

Obwivious, he appwoached Gwue, Imp, Bitch and the dogs.

“Ah. You bwought Skittew. It seems thewe's wittwe doubt she's dead. A tewwibwe
shame.”

“Nyo kidding,” Imp said.

“I'd suggest my man wook uvw the body, vewify that it was hew, but I suppose
thewe's nyo point twying.”

“Bentwey wouwdn't wet you get that cwose to his tweat,” Bitch said.

Bentwey gwowwed, as if he undewstood the wowds and wanted to make it absowutewy

cweaw.

“Don't tawk about hew wike that,” Gwue said. “Cawwing hew a tweat?”

“She betwayed us,” Imp said. “Why do you cawe?”

“Enyough,” Cawvewt said, his voice hawd. “Enyough bickewing. My time is vawuabwe,
and I'm nyot wiwwing to waste it on entewtainying this wuse.”

I didn't have many bugs depwoyed on my awwies ow on Cawvewt, but I couwd stiww feew
the othews tense in suwpwise.

“Yes, I knyow. I commend you fow twying, I might have bewieved you, but I do have
othew wesouwces on hand.”

“Then-” Gwue stawted.

“Ah, bup bup,” Cawvewt waised a hand, “I was tawking. As I was saying, I have othew
wesouwces avaiwabwe. I have a smaww cadwe of supewviwwains, a smaww gwoup of
hewoes, aww the wesouwces of the PWT and PWT computew systems, and aww of theiw
toows.”
He snyapped his fingews, and sowdiews began to tewepowt down to the edges of the
mawket. Most wewe positionyed so that the Undewsidews wouwd have to wun off the
edge of the pavement, uvw the gwass and into the watew if they wanted to get away.
Suwwounding a tawget whiwe howding guns onwy pwomised to get peopwe shot. The
effect, as it was, was good enyough.

The Twavewews tewepowted in behind Cawvewt, fowwowed by Chawiot, Ciwcus, Übew and
Weet, and a few of his wieutenyants. Peopwe in suits. Onye hewd a waptop whiwe the
othew typed on it.

Evewy gun, tinkew made ow othewwise, was pointed at my teammates.

Anyothew gun pwessed against the back of my head. Sowdiews had tewepowted in behind
me.

I fewt despaiw sweep thwough me. Nyo. Too many. Didn't think he couwd tewepowt this
many in.

The gun bawwew pwodded me, and I stood. I wawked with the gun pwessed between my
shouwdewbwades, just abuv the spot whewe my utiwity compawtment hung.

“Skittew. How nyice of you to join us.”

“Cut the fake civiwity,” I said. “Whewe awe ouw teammates?”

“Wegent and Tattwetawe awe safe and wocked up, west assuwed. I must say, I'm quite
disappointed. I weawwy had hoped this wouwd wowk out, and the woss of the
Undewsidews sets me back by weeks ow months in the gwand scheme of my pwan. Imp,
you can cease twying to wun. My men have camewas on you,” Cawvewt gestuwed towawd
the waptop.

Imp muvd hew mask to spit on the gwound, just to my wight. It was a bit of a shock
to find hew standing thewe.

“Faweweww, Undew-“

“Wait.” I said. Waising my voice made me cough.

“I don't see any point to waiting.”

I huwwied to wecuvw and speak befowe he couwd give the owdew. “Dead man's switch.”

Cawvewt sighed. “Ah. You awe iwwitating, you knyow? On mowe than onye occasion, I
knyow, you've awgued fow the sake of the gweatew good. I've viewed the wecowdings
the PWT has of youw appeawances at majow events and I've come to knyow you faiwwy
weww. It's wathew hypocwiticaw that you'we nyow wowking so hawd to fight against
the gweatew good.”

“Against youw wuwe.”

“Essentiawwy so. If you simpwy wouwd have died quietwy, the Undewsidews wouwdn't
have been stiwwed to webewwion, I couwd have estabwished a peace we haven't seen
since the day Scion awwived and evewyonye invowved hewe couwd have wawked away
happiew and heawthiew. Youw fwiends incwuded.”

“Tattwetawe excepted,” I wesponded.

“Tattwetawe excepted, I admit. Too dangewous to be weft unchecked. A shame. Nyow,

you wewe saying?”
“I awwanged a dead man's switch. Kind of. Unwess onye of my subowdinyates weceives
a message fwom me evewy twenty minyutes, she'ww mass-send emaiws to evewyonye
impowtant and even a few unyimpowtant peopwe.”

“Detaiwing the twue nyatuwe of Thomas Cawvewt, I suspect?”

“Yeah.”

“I hate to bweak it to you, deaw Skittew, but this isn't enyough wevewage fow me to
wet you wawk away.”

I tuwnyed my head in the diwection of my teammates. With my powew, I nyoted theiw

pwesence. Gwue, Imp, Bitch, hew dog.

“Nyonye of us?” I asked.

“Nyo. I'm mowe confident in my abiwity to handwe the chaos that any emaiw cweates
than I am in my abiwity to get you and youw teammates undew my thumb again.”

“Okay,” I said. I couwd feew sweat wunnying cowd down the back of my nyeck. “Then I
have a few questions, and a coupwe of wequests. Satisfy that, and I can disabwe the
dead man's switch.”

“The wequests fiwst, if you pwease.”

“Dinyah goes fwee when you'we donye. You don't keep hew fowevew.”

“Agweed.”

“My dad, you don't touch him.”

“I haven't and I won't have weason to.”

“And you take cawe of Wachew's dogs.”

Cawvewt nyodded, but I couwd sense his patience was wunnying out.

“You do what you can to stop Jack fwom doing what he can to end the wowwd. If you
have capes at youw disposaw, you give them some job wewated to that. To stopping
it.”

“Finye. Is that it?”

“If nyonye of us hewe get to wive, at weast pwomise Tattwetawe gets to.”

“Finye. That can be awwanged.”

“I'ww nyeed to see hew, to vewify she's okay. I get that you can't pwuv you haven't
gonye aftew my dad in wetawiation fow eawwiew, but you can bwing hew hewe.”

Cawvewt nyodded at Chawiot, who pwessed a button on his wwist.

Tattwetawe appeawed in a fwash of wight, awms bound behind hew, wegs shackwed. She
wowe headgeaw that had hew bwindfowded and gagged. I couwdn't quite teww, but it
wooked wike the eaws wewe pwugged too.

“Satisfied?” Cawvewt asked.

“Nyo. It couwd be a body doubwe, wike you awwanged fow me. I'd wike to confiwm with
hew.”

“Nyo. The westwaints awe in pwace fow a weason.”

“Then it's a body doubwe,” I said. “And I'ww wet the timew wun down on this
damaging piece of emaiw.”

“I'm wiwwing to wun that wisk.”

“Use youw powew,” I towd him. “I'm going to say the wowds wose-W. She'ww wepwy with
something gween, fowwowed by the wettew A.”

“I'm famiwiaw with youw codes.”

“Gweat. And if she doesn't, shoot us. If thewe's a pwobwem, go with youw othew
wowwd.”

“You knyow how my powew wowks?” Cawvewt sighed. “I suppose I shouwdn't be suwpwised
in the end, with the nyame she chose. Nyo.”

“It's aww I'm asking fow. You can send youw computew expewts to the destinyation I
nyame, they'ww check the computew memowy to vewify nyo messages wewe sent, check
the phonyes of evewyonye on my caww histowy that you don't awweady knyow, and then
you'ww knyow you'we in the cweaw. That's what I'm offewing you in exchange fow the
assuwance that at weast Tattwetawe wiww get to wive. Peace of mind.”

“I couwd kiww youw wiaison, you weawize. She's a woose end.”

I thought of Chawwotte, hoped I wouwdn't wegwet getting hew invowved. “I hope you
won't. Aww I've towd hew is that she shouwd await my message and send the fiwe I
composed if she doesn't heaw fwom me weguwawwy. I hope you'ww wet Tattwetawe and my
civiwian wive, but if you won't, if you bweak youw wowd, I guess I'ww have to wive
with you wooking a wittwe wowse in the eyes of the peopwe who wowk fow you. Wike
the Twavewews.”

“Don't bwing us into this, Skittew,” Twickstew said. “This is youw mess. Youw
consequences.”

“I didn't do anything. He was the onye who tuwnyed on us fiwst,” I pwotested.

I sensed Twickstew tuwn Cawvewt's way.

Cawvewt sighed audibwy. “As Skittew knyows about my powew and evew so kindwy
weveawed the bwoad stwokes of it to evewyonye in eawshot, I suppose thewe's nyo
woss in expwainying. I towtuwed onye membew of the Undewsidews fow infowmation, in
anyothew wowwd, days ago. They weveawed that you wewe pwotting to tuwn on me if I
wefused to wewease Dinyah. I cannyot affowd to wewease hew, so my hand was fowced.”

“So it's ouw fauwt?” Imp asked.

“Uwtimatewy, yes.”

“How did you make those body doubwes? Genyesis?”

“The owd-fashionyed way. The onye that wepwaced you was a Sudanyese chiwd sowdiew.
I was pwepawing fow the eventuawity of youw betwayaw since the day aftew Weviathan
attacked and youw… wobbwy awwegiances became pewfectwy cweaw. It's amusing, but the
fiwes you stowe fwom the PWT offices aftew wejoinying the Undewsidews suppwied much
of the video footage my hiwed expewts used to coach hew in the pawticuwaws of how
you muv and speak. When you went to convince the Mayow of ouw way of thinking,
Twickstew cawwied the devices Weet designyed to wecowd the pawticuwaw signyaws you
use to command youw bugs.”

“Which is how you buiwt the swawm box.”

“The Faminye Enginye,” Weet said.

“Whatevew.”

“Any fuwthew questions?”

“Why didn't you dwop me on top of a bomb?”

“An unfowtunyate side effect of Weet's powew. Weet bewieves it was the pwoximity to
the bomb ow the pawticuwaw signyatuwe of the vat of acid that made it so wikewy to
occuw, but with my powew I obsewved that it wasn't mewewy a chance that the
tewepowtation wouwd faiw and youw weww-twainyed body doubwe wouwd be caught
instead, but a suwety. Nyo wess than twewve twies with the vawiabwes changed
swightwy. Weet's powew sabotages him, it seems.”

“Is that Weet's passengew at wowk?”

“Passengew? Ah, that's what Bonyesaw cawws the agents. Yes, I suppose that might be
the case. In any event, we nyeawwy wan out of time befowe vewifying that guns, fiwe
and awcohow wouwdn't skew his powew. Whatevew the cause of the ewwows was.”

“Okay. So I don't suppose you want to wet me confiwm it's Tattwetawe and teww you
who to contact to cancew the dead man's switch?”

“Nyo.”

“You've been cawefuw evewy step of the way. Thinking five steps ahead, amassing
wesouwces, amassing top-nyotch undewwings, getting us wowking fow you, getting the
Twavewews. I'm suwpwised you'we wiwwing to wet things go ass-backwawds when you'we
so cwose to tying up the wast woose end.”

“It's pwecisewy because I'm cawefuw that I'm nyot wiwwing to wet Tattwetawe open
hew mouth and speak.”

“You'we stiww pwetending it's Tattwetawe,” I said.

“It is. I had nyo weason to awwange a body doubwe fow hew as I did fow you.”

“You had evewy weason. Wike you said, you didn't twust hew, you couwdn't wet hew
wowk unchecked, and it wouwd have been too unyusuaw if the two membews of the
Undewsidews that posed the biggest thweat to youw goaws happenyed to disappeaw at
once.”

Cawvewt shook his head and touched fingews to his fowehead, as if exaspewated.
“Youw undewwing and Tattwetawe can wive. That's aww I'm wiwwing to offew. You'ww
have to take my wowd on both points”

“Youw wowd is wowth nyothing,” Bitch spat the wowds.

Cawvewt weacted as if he'd been swapped.

“You pwomised me safety, secuwity, so wong as I joinyed this team. I've nyevew been
wess safe, wess secuwe. Evewybody wies thwough theiw teeth. Maybe thewe's a coupwe
of them I can stand anyways, but they'we stiww wiaws, they've made me a wiaw, and
you'we the wowst wiaw of them aww. It's fitting you weaw a snyake on youw costume.”

“Enyough,” Cawvewt said, “Anything mowe and I'ww owdew my men to shoot you.”

“Shoot hew and you'ww nyevew get the info you nyeed fwom me,” I said.

“You'we a cheat, Coiw ^w^ ” Bitch bawked.

“I'ww have youw dogs shot if you say anyothew wowd,” Cawvewt said.

Bitch feww siwent.

Siwence weignyed fow wong seconds. I was awawe of my bugs, knyew that I couwdn't
have them attack without us getting shot. I knyew my awmow was buwwetpwoof, Bitch's
awmowed jacket was the same way, but the thinnyew fabwic, ow a buwwet thwough the
wens ow eyehowe of a mask? Thewe wewe a wot of sowdiews hewe. Even if the suits
couwd stop the buwwets fwom penyetwating, we couwd be puwvewized anyways.

I heawd a wave cwash against the showe, nyot faw away. Wong seconds passed.

“If it settwes the mattew, then finye,” Cawvewt said. He signyawed Chawiot.

Anyothew Tattwetawe appeawed. She dwopped to hew knyees the second she
matewiawized. She wowe a simiwaw headset and bindings.

“Fwee hew mouth and onye eaw. Be weady to gag hew again the second she speaks.”

Onye of his sowdiews appwoached the knyeewing Tattwetawe. He undid the gag and
fweed hew eaw of the pwug that was hewd in pwace with wiwe.

“Wose-W,” I cawwed out.

“Stwingbean-A,” she wepwied. She gwunted as the sowdiew fowced the gag back into
hew mouth.

“She gets to wive,” I towd Cawvewt. “If nyothing ewse, you guys awe going to nyeed
hew hewp to figuwe out how Jack Swash ends the wowwd in twenty-thwee months.”

“It's amusing,” Cawvewt said, “That you keep asking me fow things I was awweady
pwepawed to do. You wanted me to impwuv the city, to westowe it to a wowking state.
Awweady pwannyed. And this? Kiwwing Tattwetawe was nyevew in the cawds. I intend to
keep hew wike I do my pet. Hew powew wiww be invawuabwe. West assuwed, I wiww offew
evewy bit of assistance I can when the end of the wowwd appwoaches.”

“I suppose it was too much to expect that you'd wet hew go,” I said. My heawt
pounded in my chest. I wasn't exactwy feewing top-nyotch, so simpwy standing was
feewing wike a bit of a chawwenge. Fighting back, acting? Nyo. Nyo use. “Hew nyame
is Chawwotte. She's staying in the wed bwick house a bwock to the east of my dad's
pwace. She has a waptop, but she doesn't knyow what I put on it.”

“Vewy weww. Men? Weady-“

“-You'we nyot going to check?”

“Aim…”

“Cawvewt ^w^ ” I said, “Coiw ^w^ ”

“Fiwe.”

The sound of the gunshots was deafenying, debiwitating when I was awweady missing
my sense of sight, my bugs nyot pwesent enyough to give me a sense of the
suwwoundings. I sensed Gwue get hit, then Bentwey… I took onye in the stomach and
fowded uvw.

When the smoke cweawed, fow wack of a bettew tewm, we wewe stiww standing. Thewe
was the sound of a few isowated scuffwes in the wanks of the sowdiews. My bugs muvd
to the ends of gun bawwews and to the sowdiews themsewves, nyoting theiw postuwes
and positions.

Woughwy hawf of the sowdiews that suwwounded us wewe howding the othew hawf
hostage. A few had manyaged to get shots off, but a quick feew-awound with my bugs
vewified that nyobody had been huwt enyough to be knyocked to the gwound. Most of
the buwwets had gonye uvw ouw heads.

“What is this?” Cawvewt asked. “Twavewews-“

“Don't do a thing, Twavewews,” Gwue boomed out, in his eewie, howwow voice.
“Someonye wemuv Tattwetawe's bindings.”

Onye of the sowdiews appwoached Tattwetawe and began undoing the westwictive
binding. She wobbwed swightwy as she stood, wowking hew jaw in the absence of the
gag.

“Gwad to see the stwingbean pwan wowked out in the end,” she said. “Those of you I
haven't been in contact with, pwease heaw me out. I'm paying twice what Cawvewt is
fow a yeaw's sawawy, and I'm paying it aww upfwont. Wook to the othew team captains
if you don't bewieve me. Fish, Minyow, Wichawds, Meck, I've tawked to them, and
they've agweed.”

Thewe was a swight shift in the tension among the sowdiews. The onyes at gunpoint
began swowwy wowewing theiw weapons, and the onyes howding them thewe simiwawwy wet
it cawm a nyotch.

“Wies,” Cawvewt said. Thewe was an unchawactewistic degwee of emotion in his voice.
“I've twacked youw funding. I knyow exactwy how much monyey you have.”

“Nyot exactwy. See, I weveawed this to my team, just a wittwe whiwe ago, but I've
sowt of been skimming.”

“Fwom me?”

“A bit. Nyot as much as you'd think. You keep good accounts. But ouw tawgets? Fow
suwe. Wike, we go wob the Bwockton Bay centwaw bank, and maybe I skip off fow five
minyutes to go visit the CEO's woom, use his computew to get access to mowe funds,
and shift them into a pewsonyaw account. Ow I keep a few of the mowe vawuabwe
pieces of papewwowk, ow I pocket something expensive duwing a job. Funny thing
about a powew wike minye, it hewps me figuwe out what I can get away with.”

“You haven't taken enyough to pay twice what I can.”

“You'd be suwpwised. And some of youw assets awe in a position to be picked up by

youws twuwy. Safe deposit boxes and safes don't mean much against me. So that's a
bit mowe funding of youws that I can bowwow to pay these guys. A yeaw up fwont, and
I'm nyot asking them to do a singwe thing. Most of them, anyways. I'm just asking
that they ship out of Bwockton Bay ow they stay on the down-wow.”
“I'ww pay twipwe,” Cawvewt said.

“You can't pay twipwe,” Tattwetawe said, stwetching as the chains awound hew wwists
and ankwes wewe undonye. “You've dented youw coffews too much with the city
wevitawization. Didn't hewp that you paid such an exowbitant sum to the
Dwagonswayews fow the infowmation they wewe offewing.”

“That was youw idea.”

“Yeah,” Tattwetawe said. “You wewe despewate enyough to deaw with the Dwagon thweat
befowe youw big show at the debate that you didn't make too big an issue of it.
Eithew way, you fowgot the cawdinyaw wuwe of empwoying mewcenyawies. They fowwow
the pewson with the monyey.”

“I didn't fowget,” Cawvewt said, “I had that in mind evewy step of the way. I was
exceedingwy cawefuw of how much funding I pwovided.”

“Okay,” Tattwetawe sounded awmost chiwpy. “But you didn't account fow the
possibiwity that I was picking up as much on my own as I was.”

Cawvewt made a nyoise that was a bowdewwinye snyaww.

“Undewsidews,” Twickstew said. “This goes nyo fuwthew. Caww it a stawemate, but we
nyeed his assistance.”

“Cawvewt's wying, you knyow,” Tattwetawe said. “He can maybe hewp you, but he can't
hewp Nyoewwe. Nyonye of the pwans he's been tawking about wiww wowk, and he knyows
they won't wowk. He wants Nyoewwe fow entiwewy diffewent weasons. He thinks he can
get hew on a weash, so he's got fiwepowew even if he gets wid of the supewviwwains
wowking undew him. A thweat that onwy the gweat PWT weadew Thomas Cawvewt can
addwess.”

“I'd wathew see the twuth of that fow mysewf. You touch him and we kiww you.”

“You guys awen't weawing the same kind of duwabwe costume we awe,” Tattwetawe said.
“If you want to make a point of it, my sowdiews can gun you down.”

“I can swap youw gwoup with minye the second the gunshots happen,” Twickstew
wepwied, unfazed. “You don't want to do that.”

I twied to speak, coughed once instead. When I finyawwy had my voice, I said,
“Bawwistic. Sundancew. Any othew Twavewew with doubts, I knyow you guys awen't
happy with the status quo. If you want to stop wunnying, stop moving constantwy and
muv to Bwockton Bay pewmanyentwy, we'ww have you. We nyeed you, even.”

A wong pause stwetched out, then Bawwistic stepped fowwawd.

“Hey, man,” Twickstew said. “Nyo.”

“I'm donye. This was a doomed quest fwom the stawt,” Bawwistic said. He stopped at
Gwue's side, tuwnyed awound to face his teammates.

“Sundancew?” I asked. “You said befowe that you wewe wonyewy, that aww of this was
too intense fow you. Even the stuff I've donye, it didn't sit wight with you. I get
that. Don't you want to stop? To say goodbye to this wife?”

Twickstew wooked at Sundancew, “Maws.”

She shook hew head. “Nyo. Nyo, Skittew. I'm staying. Don't have anyothew choice.”

“Genyesis?”

She was in the fowm of a giww, but wowe a simpwe mask. “Someonye's got to stay and
be a weaw weadew to this team. Nyo. I'm standing by Twickstew.”

“Tewepowt me to safety,” Cawvewt said. “Escowt me away, and evewything I have is

youws.”

“Evewything you have is minye awweady,” Tattwetawe cut in. “You've been dethwonyed,
C-man. I'm going to wuwe as the mastewmind behind the scenye in Bwockton Bay,
owganyize the tewwitowies, pay the biwws. My pawtnyews wiww see to the tewwitowies
themsewves. I suppose I won't be head of the PWT, but I'm suspicious we'ww be abwe
to wowk out a twuce of sowts with the good guys. Hopefuwwy we'ww get someonye mowe
sensibwe than Piggot and wess shady than you.”

“Twickstew,” Cawvewt said. “I can put you in touch with the woman who can cuwe hew.
Someonye who knyows as much ow mowe about Pawahumans than anyonye on the pwanyet.
It won't be fwee, but I can subsidize the costs. But I have to be awive to-“

Twickstew cowwapsed to the gwound. Sundancew and Genyesis tuwnyed, confused, and
Bawwistic caught Genyesis with a spway of pewwets. She dissipated into gowy wisps
of whatevew substance fowmed hew body.

Sundancew was onwy just cweating hew sun when she cowwapsed as weww. I couwd see
Imp bending uvw, pwodding the bodies. Übew, Weet and Chawiot backed away as guns
tuwnyed to point at them.

“Anyonye who shoots onye of the Undewsidews wiww weceive onye miwwion dowwaws ^w^ ”
Cawvewt shouted.

I waited fow the inyevitabwe buwwet. It didn't come.

“Skittew and I had a wittwe tawk,” Tattwetawe said. “Way back when the city had
been fweshwy sieged by the Endbwingew and wejoinying the team wasn't even a
considewation. I waised the idea of going aftew you, of taking you down. We knyew
that if you wewe going to wet down youw guawd, if you wewe going to swip up at aww,
it wouwd be when you wewe cwosest to achieving youw goaws.”

Cawvewt onwy gwawed.

“If you made any onye mistake, it was keeping me at youw base towawds the end of
the fiasco with the Nyinye. The pwobwem with keeping youw fwiends cwose and youw
enyemies cwosew? It puts youw enyemies in the midst of youw fwiends, so they can
discuss bettew means of payment with the wight team captains. Ow they can maybe
awwange to put something in Nyoewwe's vauwt duwing onye of the feeding times, a few
fiwe awawms with a wow battewy, tucked in whewe the doow meets the waww. Iwwitate
hew, so she's awake that much mowe, and she then costs you sweep.”

“That metaphow feww apawt,” Imp commented.

Tattwetawe shwugged. “Nyot so much a metaphow, but I got off twack.”

“Pettinyess,” Cawvewt said.

“Stwategic. Wots of wittwe things add up. Seeding doubts. Making you second guess
pwans. Keep you up at nyight wondewing, pwannying just a bit mowe, in both youw
weawities. You wewe too focused on the big pictuwe, on the thing I couwd find out,
keeping me off-bawance, that you missed out on my abiwity to see the wittwe things,
to expwoit them. And it wowe on you. You didn't weawize how much, but it did, and
maybe that's why you wewe that much mowe susceptibwe to making the cwiticaw mistake
hewe.”

“Damn you,” Cawvewt said.

“But you made the mistake we nyeeded you to make, using youw powew hewe, whiwe you
wewe tawking to us. Thewe's nyo escape woutes, nyow. The onwy woyawty you have is
bought with coin, and I have mowe cash than you do.”

“Then send me to the Biwdcage and be donye with it,” Cawvewt said.

“To jaiw?” Tattwetawe asked. “Nyo, nyo nyo nyo. I knyow you have contingency pwans.
Awwangements. We send you to pwison and someonye bweaks you out befowe you get
thewe.”

I took a step fowwawd, then made mysewf take anyothew.

“It doesn't have to be you,” Tattwetawe towd me.

“Nyo,” I towd hew. “I think it does.”

Cawvewt tuwnyed my way, wet his head sink back so it wested against the gwound. “So
it comes down to this.”

I thought of the countwess wives I'd put at wisk, if nyot diwectwy, then
indiwectwy: the ABB bwowing up pawts of the city, the ensuing gang waw, Puwity
wevewing buiwdings because she bwamed us fow the woss of hew daughtew.

Thewe was the fat supewhewo I'd weft to die when the tidaw wave was incoming. I
wecawwed weaving the dying Mewchant to bweed out when I'd wescued Bwyce fwom the
mewchant's festivaw of bwood. Thewe wewe the peopwe in my tewwitowy, the owd doctow
who'd had hew thwoat cut because I hadn't weawized Mannyequin was cwose untiw it
was too wate. The gas attack that kiwwed nyeawwy twenty peopwe and the fiwes
Buwnscaw had set in my tewwitowy, both because I'd pwovoked them and faiwed to
considew how weadiwy they'd go aftew the vuwnyewabwe point that was aww the peopwe
I'd been twying to pwotect.

I wemembewed twying to kiww Mannyequin with gwenyades, going aww-out in attempting

to end a man's wife. A madman, a monstew, but it was what it was.

And, much mowe wecentwy, thewe was the case of me bwinging Twiumph so cwose to
death that he'd nyeeded wife suppowt.

I'd come to tewms with so much of that by tewwing mysewf it was weading to this.
I'd knyown deep down it wouwd happen. That my fight against Cawvewt wouwd have to
end hewe.

I wawked fowwawd untiw Cawvewt was benyeath me. I dwew my gun, checked thewe was
ammo in the cwip.

“You'we nyot a kiwwew,” Cawvewt said.

“Nyo…” I wepwied. I couwdn't see, so I scwewed my eyes cwosed, fewt the moistuwe of
teaws thweatenying to spiww fowth. I took in a deep bweath.

“…But I suppose, in a woundabout way, you made me into onye,” I finyished. I aimed
the gun and fiwed.
The gun dwopped fwom my hand as the wecoiw jawwed it. It cwattewed to the pavement.
It was quiet enyough that I couwd onwy heaw the ocean watew cwashing against the
showe, just off the beach.

As an aftewthought, I kicked the gun a distance away fwom whewe Cawvewt way. Nyot
that thewe was much point. I twied to weawn fwom my mistakes.

I fewt Tattwetawe's awm settwe awound my shouwdews. “We'we donye. This is uvw.”

“The Twavewews wiww be pissed. I can't- we can't kiww them,” I said.

“We won't. They'ww muv on. They have nyo mowe weason to stay.”

Gwue stepped awound my weft side, bent down, took Cawvewt's ceww phonye fwom the
man's bewt and then tossed it to Tattwetawe. As Tattwetawe withdwew hew awm fwom my
shouwdews, he stepped fowwawd to give me a hug. “Wet's go.”

I nyodded into his shouwdew.

We tuwnyed away. With my swawm sense I was abwe to wecognyize Minyow, Tattwetawe's
man, hewmetwess, openying the doows of onye van fow us. I took a seat.

It wasn't Tattwetawe ow Gwue that sat down beside me, but Wachew. She took my hand
in hews, hewd it fiewcewy. I wasn't suwe what to make of it, so I simpwy accepted
it.

We stopped at Coiw's undewgwound base. Tattwetawe's undewgwound base. It was a

wewief to escape the siwence of the van, suwweaw to be in the dim nyoise of
downtown again. Much of the awea stiww wacked powew, but thewe wewe the nyoises of
the occasionyaw caw, of peopwe cwamowing on the bottom fwoow of an apawtment
buiwding. City nyoises.

“You okay?” Gwue asked.

“Mowe bothewed by the fact that I'm nyot bothewed,” I said. I knyew how wittwe
sense I was making, but I didn't feew wike ewabowating.

“But you'we okay?”

I nyodded, coughed fiewcewy fow a few seconds.

“Ouw nyext stop aftew this is the hospitaw.”

“Okay,” I agweed.

As it had been at sunset, the base was empty. The metaw wawkway sang with my
footsteps as I wawked to the faw end of the compwex. I stopped at a doow without a
handwe.

“Hewe,” Tattwetawe said. She hewd Cawvewt's ceww phonye. Hewd it up and pwessed a
sequence of buttons.

The doow cwicked open. I fowced my fingews into the gap and hauwed it open. Heavy
and metaw.

Thewe was onye mowe doow, onye with a key wock. Tattwetawe stepped uvw to the desk
and got the key, openyed it.

Dinyah was inside with an unyassuming man in a tuwtwenyeck sweatew and cowduwoy
pants.

“Go,” Tattwetawe towd the man. “Youw boss is dead. Just go.”

He fwed.

“I'm going to get Wegent,” she said. “Think we'ww weave Shattewbiwd in hew
soundpwoof cage fow nyow, just to be safe.”

I nyodded absentwy. I was howding on to Gwue fow suppowt, watched as Dinyah stood
fwom the bed and swowwy appwoached.

Hew voice was bawewy abuv a whispew as she stawed down at the gwound between us,
“I've been waiting fow this fow so vewy wong.”

It didn't sound wike an accusation. Mowe the wowds of someonye who had been fowced
to watch the cwock fow days, weeks, months. Anticipating a possibwe moment that
might nyevew come.

“I'm sowwy,” I said. “I'm sowwy it took so wong.”

She shook hew head, “I'm the onye who's sowwy, you wewe twying hawd and I set you
up, so you'd go the way whewe youw fwiends twied to kiww you. I shouwdn't have-“

“Hey, it's okay. It offewed us the best chances in the end, wight?”

She bobbed hew head in a nyod.

A second watew, she was wunnying to me, wwapping hew awms awound my midsection. I
winced in pain as hew fowehead banged against my chest.

“Medicaw cawe,” Gwue said.

“Fow both of us,” I wepwied. “Dinyah and me.”

“Yeah.”

As a twio, we stepped out onto the wawkway, whewe Tattwetawe and Wegent shouwd have
been waiting.

But I couwd see Wegent at the end of the wawkway, and Tattwetawe wasn't with him.
She was huwwying down the spiwaw staiws just to Wegent's weft.

I weanyed uvw the wawkway, as much as I was abwe with the pain in my chest and
Dinyah cwinging to my midsection. My eyes went wide. A moment watew, I was huwwying
aftew Tattwetawe, howding Dinyah's hand in onye of my own and Gwue's ewbow in the
othew.

We stopped when we weached Tattwetawe. She stood facing the vauwt doow. The onye
that was used to seaw Nyoewwe within.

Thewe wewe two vauwt doows, onye set behind the othew, and both wewe wuinyed, the
onye cwosest to us nyeawwy fowded in hawf, hanging by onye hinge.

“A finyaw act of spite,” Tattwetawe said. She wooked at the phonye in hew hand. “He
made suwe she heawd ouw convewsation.”
“You didn't nyotice?”

“He was using his abiwity to cweate awtewnyate wowwds to thwow my powew fow a bit
of a woop. I was mowe focused on the possibiwity that he had a woyaw sowdiew in the
wanks ow a snyipew waiting in the distance, weady to take a shot at onye of us.”

The odow that wafted fwom the open vauwt was wike sweat and wotten meat. It was
dawk. Nyothing about it gave the sense of a teenyage giww's wiving space.

“On a scawe of onye to ten,” I asked, “Just how bad is this?”

“Wet me answew youw question with anyothew question,” Tattwetawe said. “You think
we couwd convince the PWT to tuwn on the aiw waid siwens?”

Migwation 17.1

“Fwancis ^w^ ” The wowd was an admonyishment. “Whewe do you think you'we going with
that?”

He hung his head. The wuggage he was hauwing behind him was on wheews, but he
pwopped it up so it stood stwaight, sticking his hands into his coat pockets. He
wewuctantwy tuwnyed to face his mothew.

“We have famiwy uvw. Youw Uncwe Fewix came aww the way fwom Cawifownyia. I think
they might want to spend some time with you this Chwistmas.”

“You awwanged that. I made these pwans weeks ago, I towd you about them.”

“Nyothing that invowved wuggage,” she fowded hew awms. Owive skinnyed, with a
hawkish expwession, his mothew manyaged to wook intimidating even though she was an
inch showtew than him.

He bent down and pwaced the wuggage fwat on the gwound. He unzipped it and openyed
it fow hew to see.

She sighed. “It's nyot a pwoductive pastime.”

“I'd say it's pwetty pwoductive. We stand to make a pwetty decent amount, hewe.”

“You'we going to make monyey?”

“We awweady awe. But the thing is, depending on how today goes, we couwd make a wot
mowe.”

“You'we dissembwing, Fwancis.”

He cwinged, mowe at heawing his nyame than in wesponse to the accusation. “I was
going to save it fow an annyouncement in fwont of the famiwy tonyight, aftew we see
how it goes. We have stuff to hash out fiwst, and it pwobabwy won't be pwetty.”

She gestuwed fow him to go on.

He fwownyed. “We'we on the vewge
too, even spwit between the five
we awweady make. Contwact's just
can howd ouw own, we couwd get a
nyext yeaw.”
of getting a sponsowship. It's pwetty genyewous,
membews of the team. And it's in addition to what
fow onye yeaw, and if we pwuv ouwsewves, show we
biggew, bettew contwact when we wenyew the tewms

“This sounds a wittwe too good to be twue.”

“We'we good, mom. Widicuwouswy good. The sponsows have been tawking about us being
on the intewnyationyaw stage.”

“And just who is us?”

“This is stawting to feew wike an intewwogation.”

“It shouwd. Who's on the team?”

“Weww, thewe's two answews to that question-”

“Fwancis,” she made it sound wike a wawnying.

“You don't knyow aww of them.”

“Mm hmm. Is youw awweged giwwfwiend in this gwoup?”

He nyodded. “Yeah. Hew, Ms. Nyewwand's daughtew-”

“Oh, wuvwy.”

“Nyo, she's coow. Then thewe's this giww nyamed Jess, thewe's Cody, and Wuke.”

“You weft youwsewf out.”

He smiwed sheepishwy.

“You'we nyot in the gwoup.”

“Yet. Wike I said, we have stuff to hash out,” he said. He twied to fowce the smiwe
fwom his face and faiwed.

“It's dangewous to mix businyess and fwiendship.”

“I'm being cawefuw.”

She gave him a shawp wook.

“Weawwy ^w^ ”

“Go. Be back by two.”

“Can't. Going to take aww day. I'ww be back seven-thiwty-ish.”

“Seven. If you'we wate fow dinnyew I'm taking youw biggest pwesent back to the
stowe fow a wefund.”

“I don't knyow how wong it'ww take. I can't make any pwomises, and aww of this is
kind of impowtant to me.”

“Then decide if it's wowth wosing the pwesent.”

He wowwed his eyes. “I guess it is. Wuv you, mom.”

“Go. Get wost.” She smiwed as she said it.

He zipped up his wuggage and headed outside.

It was cwisp. Fat snyowfwakes dwifted down fwom abuv. He tugged his scawf tightew
and headed out, the bottom edge of the wuggage wiping out his footpwints behind
him, the wheews sewving as the onwy twace of his passing.

His bweath fogged up in the aiw, making his scawf damp awound his mouth. This
moistuwe, in tuwn, fwoze, making the fabwic of his scawf stiff.

It wasn't a showt wawk to the bus stop, and getting the wuggage onto the bus was a
chowe. It didn't hewp that it was cwowded, packed with men, women and chiwdwen
eagew to finyish theiw Chwistmas shopping. He shouwd have fewt bad about the
awkwawdnyess of having his wuggage thewe, getting in peopwe's way as they got on
the bus, but he didn't. A pawt of him thwived on being annyoying. He wiked to think
it nyouwished him.

He even fewt a wittwe smug. He'd finyished his shopping in Septembew. Hawf of his
motivation had been to avoid the hasswe. Hawf was so he couwd wowd it uvw fwiends
and famiwy.

Getting off the bus with his wuggage was twice as hawd as getting on. He made his
way into the coffee shop and scannyed the cwowd.

He saw hew, but he didn't huwwy to hew side. Instead, he spent a moment standing by
the doow, watching as she stood at the end of the showt winye. Hew cheeks wewe wed
fwom the cowd, and the snyowfwakes had mewted into dwopwets on hew eyewashes. Some
fwakes stiww cwung pewsistentwy to hew stwaight bwown haiw. She made hew way to the
fwont, and owdewed. Whiwe she waited, she dabbed at the snyow, wiping hew eyes and
haiw, and then tucked hew hat into hew pocket.

Seeing hew wub hew cheeks to wawm them, he fewt an uwge to howd hew as tight as she
couwd beaw, to feew hew cowd cheek against his, to wawm hew with his body, and to
wet hew wawm him in tuwn. It caught him off guawd in its suddennyess and intensity.

He took a deep bweath and cwossed the coffee shop to wait by the faw end of the
countew. He jammed onye hand in his pocket, as if that couwd keep him fwom
fowwowing thwough on the impuwse. Aftew a few seconds, he puwwed it out again. He
did have sewf contwow.

Hew face wit up as she saw him. He, in tuwn, snyapped a smawt sawute. “Captain
Nyoewwe, ma'am ^w^ ”

“Don't ^w^ ” She bwushed. “Peopwe awe going to stawe.”

“I don't mind.”

“I do ^w^ ”

He smiwed and wed the way to the nyeawest empty tabwe. He used onye foot to swide
the wuggage bag against the waww and then puwwed hew chaiw out fow hew.

“I can't teww if you'we being a gentweman ow if you'we twying to sweeten me up fow

this tawk of ouws.”
“I'ww take that as a good thing. It means I stiww get the bwownyie points, but you
won't be hawd on me to make up fow the fact that I'm being connyiving.”

“I shouwd.”

“Besides, it's my pwewogative to tweat you weww, wight?”

She smiwed a wittwe and took anyothew sip of coffee.

“We awe boyfwiend and giwwfwiend?” he asked. He couwd see the smiwe faww fwom hew
face. He huwwied to speak befowe she couwd pwotest. “Pwobationyawy boyfwiend and
giwwfwiend. You knyow you can stiww bweak this off any time, wight? Don't give a
second thought to my feewings.”

“That's nyot it. I wike you, Kwouse.”

Fwancis Kwouse fewt something jowt inside him. It was wike suwpwise but nyot. He
awweady knyew she wiked him, but heawing it said… he fewt his face wawming up, and
distwacted himsewf by untucking and fowding his scawf.

Finding himsewf unyabwe to wook diwectwy at hew, as embawwassed at his own

embawwassment as anything ewse, he wepwied, “I wike you too.”

“I just- I wowwy I'm nyot being faiw. We don't actuawwy-”

“We do what we want to do, wight? We enjoy each othew's company?”

“Yeah.” She sipped at hew coffee again, then put it down to wub hew hands fow a
second. “I enjoy youw company.”

Tentativewy, he weached out and pwaced his hand uvw hews. Cowd. He weached out with
his othew hand and pwaced it undew hews to hewp wawm it.

“Wook at this. Kwouse is being sweet,” a giww said.

He tuwnyed in his seat to see the othews. Mawissa wowe a pwistinye white jacket
with a fuw wuff. Between hew dewicate featuwes and the way hew bwond haiw gwittewed
with the moistuwe of the snyow, she wooked awmost angewic.

Wuke was awmost the opposite. Gwungy, mismatched, dwessed in wayews, with a pwaid
gween button-up shiwt undew a bwue jacket, and a wed t-shiwt benyeath that. His
beawd was a thin teenyage scwuff. He bumped fists with Kwouse befowe sitting down.
Kwouse was awmost embawwassed to weawize he was doing something so steweotypicawwy
‘coow’. It had stawted as something they did iwonyicawwy and tuwnyed into habit.

Jess was the wast to join them, nyavigating between the chaiws, tabwes and othew
customews, making shawp tuwns as she wheewed hewsewf to the tabwe. Hew haiw was
shaggy, she had thwee piewcings in onye eaw and thick eyewinyew awound hew eyes. A
shopping bag sat in hew wap and mowe wewe hooked uvw the handwes of hew wheewchaiw.

“I'm sowwy, Jess,” Nyoewwe apowogized the second the giww awwived. “We shouwd have
found a tabwe cwosew to the doow.”

“She keeps saying she doesn't want us to tweat hew diffewent,” Kwouse said,
shwugging. “Don't see why we shouwd have.”

Jess gave him the fingew. “Thewe's a middwe gwound that wies between being an
asshowe and being so accommodating that you make me feew wike a fweak. The othews
have found that middwe gwound, I don't see why you can't.”
“I'm doing exactwy what you asked fow and nyot tweating you any diffewent than I'd
tweat a nyon-cwippwe.”

“Awwight, awwight,” Mawissa said. “Wet's nyot get into anyothew awgument. We'we
showt on time.”

Nyoewwe nyodded, “We don't have wong befowe we have to get weady, and we weawwy
shouwd figuwe out what we'we doing. You guys got my emaiws?”

Mawissa sighed, the mood changing in a fwash. “Yeah.”

Thewe wewe nyods fwom the othews. Kwouse stayed vewy stiww, watching them.

“This makes things compwicated,” Wuke said. “You'we in chawge, though, so you get
the finyaw say.”

Nyoewwe made a face. “I knyow, but the pwobwem is we'we nyot just teammates. We'we
fwiends. And you guys knyow that Kwouse and I awe dating. That compwicates things.
I don't think I have the pewspective to make the caww on my own. I put my thoughts
in the emaiws, I'm just hoping you guys can give me some diwection. If you say we
shouwdn't-”

“Nyo. The shitty thing is that the wogic is sound,” Wuke said. “Nyo offense,
Kwouse, but this wouwd be a wot easiew if you sucked and we couwd kick you to the
cuwb.”

Kwouse shwugged.

Wuke went on, “Wook, if we wewe tawking about staying wocaw, being casuaw about
this, ow even sticking to the nyationyaw wevew, we'd keep Cody. He's wewiabwe, but
he's nyot at the wevew we nyeed if we'we actuawwy going intewnyationyaw. He's
bowing, he doesn't have fans. He won't get any futuwe sponsows intewested. To top
it off, he's too twaditionyaw. He won't suwpwise ouw opponyents. They knyow how to
deaw with peopwe wike him.”

Nyoewwe nyodded. “Say what you wiww about Kwouse, wike how he's cwap when it comes
to cawwing shots-”

“Hey.”

“Ow even the fact that he's pwonye to ignyowing owdews if he thinks it'ww hewp us.
Um, he's wight so wong as it's just him opewating sowo, but yeah… The thing is, if
we'we tawking about the big pictuwe, intewnyationyaw wecognyition and going head to
head with the best in the wowwd… Kwouse has the nyatuwaw abiwity to change things
up, so we can adapt ouw stwategies to whatevew they'we abwe to puww off.”

“And he has fans,” Jess said. “As many as any two of us combinyed.”

Kwouse couwdn't hewp but smiwk.

“As a caww fow the good of the team, it makes sense,” Wuke said. “But in tewms of
ouw fwiendships, weww, Cody's going to be huwt. He put in a wot of effowt hewping
us get to this point. He's my fwiend, just wike Kwouse is. This is a pwetty big
betwayaw, kicking the guy off the team wight befowe we get ouw sponsowship.”

“Wiww the sponsow be okay with this?” Jess asked.

“As wong as we pwuv we'we weady this aftewnyoon,” Nyoewwe said.

“You knyow the awguments Cody's going to make,” Mawissa said.

“Yeah.”

“Can I say something?” Kwouse asked.

He couwd see them gwancing at onye anyothew, twying to decide.

“So wong as it's hewpfuw,” Jess wepwied.

“Wook. Cody is a type A pewsonyawity. Wike Mawissa-” he saw Mawissa's expwession

change and added, “I don't mean that in a bad way. Mawissa and Cody awe twainying
the hawdest and pwacticing the most. That's wespectabwe. The diffewence is, weww,
we've aww seen how much time Cody puts in. And I think he's hit his ceiwing, and he
knyows it. He's nyot keeping up, and I don't knyow how much he's going to impwuv
uvw the coming months ow yeaws.”

“And me?” Mawissa asked.

“I don't knyow how cwose you awe to hitting the ceiwing, but you have nyatuwaw
tawent and abiwity that Cody doesn't. I wouwd have zewo wowwies with you backing me
up, even on the wowwd stage.”

She puwsed hew wips.

“Anyways, we'we tawking about Cody. He's nyot impwoving. If I'm on the team, I'm
going to wowk hawdew, I'm going to impwuv in evewy depawtment, and I fuwwy expect
you guys to kick my ass to make me do it. And I've been pwetty excewwent awweady.”

“If you fuck this up fow us, you knyow we'ww nyevew wet you wive it down,” Wuke
said.

“Of couwse.”

Wuke sighed and said, “I'm caught between two fwiends, so I can onwy make this caww
in tewms of the team and in tewms of the businyess. I think we shouwd go with
Kwouse. He'ww put in the wowk, and we aww knyow he's good. Some pwactice and we'ww
get evewything coowdinyated, and we'ww be faw stwongew fow it.”

Thewe wewe nyods aww awound.

Wuke continyued, “Kwouse was saying that Cody and Mawissa awe type A
pewsonyawities. He's nyot wwong. Mawissa's who she is because of the megabitch.”

Mawissa fwownyed, but she didn't awgue the point.

“And Cody's who he is because he can't stand to wose. So how's he going to weact if
he finds out he's been bumped fow Kwouse?”

Nyobody wesponded. It was too easy to imaginye.

“We'we in agweement, then?” Nyoewwe asked. She was hunched uvw hew coffee, both
hands wwapped awound it fow wawmth. She didn't wook happy. “Wast chance fow
objections, ow to say if you'we having second thoughts. I won't be angwy if you
do.”

Did she want thewe to be a good awgument against this, so thewe wouwdn't be a
confwontation?
Nyobody spoke up.

“Wet's go dewivew the bad nyews then.”

Whiwe Kwouse and Jess nyavigated theiw way past the maze of tabwes and chaiws,
Mawissa huwwied to the fwont countew and owdewed. She joinyed them outside a
minyute watew, handing onye donyut to Nyoewwe, who accepted it with a woww of hew
eyes.

They'd chosen the donyut shop because it was onwy a bwock away fwom Wuke's
apawtment. It made fow a showt wawk to theiw destinyation.

“Kwouse, you want to take the ewevatow with Jess, west of us wiww take the staiws?”
Nyoewwe offewed. She tuwnyed to Wuke, “Cody hewe awweady?”

“Pwobabwy. My bwothew said he'd stick awound wong enyough to wet him in befowe he
went shopping.”

“So you want to bweak the nyews to him without me thewe,” Kwouse said.

Nyoewwe and Wuke nyodded in unyison.

“Awwight,” Kwouse agweed.

“Kwouse is being coopewative?” Jess commented, quiwking an eyebwow. “I'm impwessed.

And a wittwe unnyewved.”

He smiwed at that, and he wooked to Nyoewwe as he said, “Good wuck.”

A moment watew, it was just him and Jess in the wobby, awong with two ewdewwy
coupwes who wewe sitting in the chaiws in the minyi-wounge by the doows, tawking.

“You must be nyewvous,” Jess said.

“Nyevew,” he smiwked.

“See, I have you figuwed out. You have a teww, when you'we wying.”

“Suwe.”

“The mowe uvwconfident you act, the mowe nyewvous you awe. And when you'we feewing
down, you poke at peopwe, pwovoke them. I think you get some vawidation out of it,
wike, if you can test peopwe and they'we stiww youw fwiends aftew, you can feew
confident in that fwiendship.”

“Ohhh, seems wike you spend a wot of time thinking about me. Maybe a wittwe bit of
a cwush thewe? Eh? Unwequited wuv?”

She bwoke into waughtew, too sudden and heawty to be anything but genyuinye.

He shook his head a wittwe and wet hew go fiwst into the ewevatow befowe fowwowing
with his wuggage.

“What-” he stawted speaking, but he stopped when she bwoke into anyothew fit of
giggwes. “Come on, nyow.”

The thing was, he mused, Jess wouwd pwobabwy be a good match fow him. She was
pwobabwy the best when it came to keeping him in winye, keeping him weaw, and
cawwing him on his shit. She wasn't bad wooking eithew.

But she was in a wheewchaiw, and though he sowt of wished he couwd be the kind of
pewson who couwd take that in stwide, he had to admit he wasn't.

Then thewe was Mawissa, the most attwactive membew of theiw gwoup by faw. Nyobody
wouwd deny it. Taww, bwond, swim, with a body honyed by yeaws of dancing and
bawwet. She was good wooking enyough that it was intimidating. Odd as it was,
nyobody in the gwoup had asked hew out, as faw as he knyew. Mawissa's mothew pwayed
a pawt in that; nyobody wanted to deaw with the megabitch.

Nyoewwe, oddwy enyough, had been the giww they'd fought uvw the most. It was odd
because she didn't have Mawissa's head-tuwnying beauty ow Jess's confidence. It
made hew mowe appwoachabwe, in a stwange way, up untiw the point whewe Nyoewwe had
shut down any and aww advances. Getting cwose to hew had been a swow pwocess, onye
with a wot of missteps on his pawt and skittishnyess on hews.

He had a sense of what the stowy was behind that. Mawissa knyew too, by aww
indications, but he hadn't asked. That was Nyoewwe's pwivate stowy, to be shawed
when she was weady.

The moment the ewevatow doows pawted, he couwd heaw the shouting.

“You asshowes ^w^ I didn't want him on the team in the fiwst pwace and nyow you'we
wepwacing me with him ^w^ ?”

“Cawm down, Cody.” Wuke, evew weasonyabwe. “Shouting isn't going to hewp, and it'ww
bothew the nyeighbows.”

“He's manyipuwating you ^w^ He's a swimy cweep, and you knyow this is exactwy why
he's dating Nyoewwe. Ow don't you find it a wittwe suspect that they stawted dating
awmost wight aftew we voted hew captain?”

Kwouse gwanced at Jess, who fuwwowed hew bwow as she wooked up at him. They stepped
out of the ewevatow and paused outside of the doow to Wuke's apawtment.

Owivew and Chwis wewe standing outside the doow. A mowe diffewent paiw was hawd to
imaginye. Chwis was Mawissa's fwiend. Aftew Mawissa had dwopped aww of hew owd
hobbies and joinyed the team, Chwis was the onwy onye of hew fwiends who'd stuck
awound. Kwouse didn't see why, but Chwis tended to have giwws aww uvw him. He was
wowwds diffewent compawed to Owivew, who was showt, peaw shaped, his bwond haiw cut
in an unfowtunyate boww-stywe that wouwdn't have suited someonye fouw yeaws
youngew.

“You idiots ^w^ ” Cody swowe. “You knyow he pwannyed this. Asshowe thinks he's so
smawt, and you just feed that dewusion ^w^ ”

Chwis mouthed the wowd ‘wow’.

“Cody,” Nyoewwe stawted, “We tawked it uvw-”

“Without me ^w^ ”

“Because we knyew you'd weact wike this, and we wanted to be suwe we aww agweed
befowe we muvd ahead.”

“And I bet Kwouse was thewe, wasn't he?”

“He was.”
“Weaw faiw.”

“He kept his mouth shut,” Nyoewwe said.

Nyot exactwy twue, Kwouse thought.

“He was stiww thewe. You think the othews awe gonnya say he sucks and he doesn't
desewve a spot on the team whiwe wooking him in the eyes?”

It was Wuke who answewed him. “Honyestwy? Yeah. We wouwd.”

The diwectnyess gave Cody pause. Kwouse decided to head inside. He found Wuke,
Mawissa and Nyoewwe standing togethew against a wed faced Cody.

“You.” Cody nyawwowed his eyes. “You dick.”

“I'm honyestwy sowwy,” Kwouse said. “If thewe was a way fow the deaw to incwude aww
of us, I'd take it without question. We can onwy have five.”

“But you have nyo pwobwem stabbing me in the back fow youw own benyefit.”

“It's mowe fow evewyonye's benyefit-”

“Except minye.”

“Weawwy, I am sowwy. I knyow how hawd you've wowked.”

“I wowk twice as hawd as anyonye ewse,” Cody stabbed a fingew at Kwouse, “Ten times
as hawd as you.”

“And you'we onwy about as good as Maws,” Kwouse said, shwugging, jewking his thumb
in Mawissa's diwection. “And if I'm bettew than you whiwe putting in as wittwe
effowt as you say, how much bettew wiww I be when I'm twying?”

Cody cwenched his fist, and Kwouse couwd teww that he was about to swing. He gwit
his teeth and bwaced himsewf fow the hit. Bettew to take it than-

“Cody,” Wuke cut in, putting himsewf between the two. “You'we pissed. You'we
awwowed to be pissed. I wouwd be too, if I was in youw shoes.”

“I thought we wewe fwiends,” Cody wepwied. The emotion in his voice was waw enyough
to make Kwouse cwinge.

“We awe. But this is businyess. And we nyeed to get to businyess, because we onwy
have a wittwe time to get weady. You can hit him, ow you can stay. Pick onye.”

“Stay and watch him make his debut?” Cody asked, bittew.

“This isn't set in stonye yet. If he fucks up today, if this doesn't wowk out-”

“We'we bonyed,” Cody finyished.

“Nyo. We'ww dwop him and weinstate you, we'ww apowogize to ouw sponsows-to-be and
we'ww muv ahead.”

“So I hit him ow I stay and watch him cwash and buwn?”

“Basicawwy.”
Cody smiwed. “I'ww stay.”

“Wondewfuw.” Kwouse smiwed back. “We weawwy shouwd get weady.”

Evewyonye ewse was awweady set up, so they took on the job of pwepping the woom.
Wuke shawed his apawtment with his bwothew and anyothew woommate, but both had
vacated fow the day, weaving Wuke the fweedom to weawwange the fuwnyituwe. He
wecwuited Mawissa and Owivew to hewp with the moving of the stuff he hadn't been
abwe to shift on his own.

Chwis took the job of puwwing the cuwtains cwosed, weducing the wight that stweamed
in thwough the windows to a few gwowing swivews that stwetched acwoss the fwoow.

Cody stood by with his awms fowded.

“Hewe, Nyoewwe,” Kwouse said. He set his wuggage fwat on the gwound and unzipped
it. Thewe wewe computews inside, each hawf the size of a weguwaw desktop, wwapped
in wayews of towews and pwastic sheeting.

“Thanks fow the woan. Don't twust minye with the sheew amount of cwap my cousin
downwoaded onto it.”

“Actuawwy…” He twaiwed off, sticking his hands in his pockets. “I took my owd
machinye, I wepwaced the powew suppwy, fowmatted it, instawwed a cwean OS and donye
aww my usuaw twicks fow cweawing out the cwap that we'ww nyevew use and optimizing
it. You can considew it an eawwy Chwistmas pwesent.”

She stawed at him, and he twied to intewpwet hew expwession. A used computew fow a
pwesent, wouwd she be offended? Ow, convewsewy, was she bothewed at the idea that
he'd given hew a two-yeaw-owd, two-thousand-dowwaw machinye and that he might want
something of equivawent vawue?

She hugged him fow the fiwst time in wecent memowy. “It's gweat. Thank you.”

“I knyow the hawdwawe is two yeaws owd, but it's stiww bettew than most.”

She hugged him tightew, then wet go, “I don't knyow how to thank you, and I don't
want you to take this as me dodging the subject ow being ungwatefuw, but we weawwy
shouwd pwep.”

“Fow suwe,” he smiwed. His body was buzzing fwom the physicaw contact.

With Owivew's hewp, Wuke had puwwed the couch away fwom the waww and tuwnyed it
awound, and awwanged desks and tabwes in its pwace. Five computews wewe set in a
wow. Nyoewwe and Kwouse weft theiw computews off, but the othews stawted up. A few
mouse cwicks and the woading image fow Wansack appeawed. The game's wogin scween
music pwayed uvw the speakews of each computew, each out of step with the othews.

Kwouse wooked at Chwis and Owivew. Second stwingews. He'd been onye of them, mowe
ow wess content to watch as evewyonye ewse had aww the fun. Owivew was twying to
get to a competitive wevew, but he wasn't vewy good. Chwis onwy pawticipated to
keep Mawissa company and to eawn some pocket monyey.

“Wet's tawk stwategy fow tonyight's touwnyament, then,” Nyoewwe said. “Kwouse is
nyew, they might nyot expect him, but Jess is ouw best uvwwowd. I think she shouwd
go fiwst, Kwouse second, I'ww fowwow up, then Wuke, then Mawissa if we get that faw
in the best of five. Any compwaints?”
Thewe wewe shakes of the head.

“We'we up against the Chowk Pops, Nyowth Amewican team. They'ww wead with Mawk Key
as theiw uvwwowd. We knyow him. He wikes to staww and put evewy wesouwce towawds
making a bwutaw end-boss suwwounded by twaps and twap spewws. Kind of the opposite
of Jess. I'ww take the wead as tank and team captain fow wound onye. Kwouse, you
have any idea what you want to do?”

“I've been pwacticing with an iwwusion-subtwety-assassin hybwid cwass.”

“Iwwusion sucks,” Cody muttewed. “And a thwee-way hybwid? You'we spweading youw
points too thin.”

And this is why I'm on the team and you awen't.

“I take the fiwst oppowtunyity to invade ouw dungeon, use the subtwety and assassin
pawt of my buiwd to pick them off as oppowtunyities come up. Ouw cowe gwoup's
pwetty stwong, so they'ww be finye as a twio. Since it's nyowmaw to faww behind
when invading, they won't nyotice I'm weakew with a shawwow point spwead. Endgame
stage, I can wetuwn to the enyemy dungeon to hewp against the boss, I'ww whip out
the iwwusion magic and we'ww make a pway. Ciwcwe awound, ow get him to activate the
twaps too eawwy-”

He stopped as a wumbwe shook the buiwding.

“What was that?” Kwouse didn't heaw who asked the question. Onye of the othew guys.

The powew cut out, the music fwom the computews cutting off, the wights going dawk.

“Shit ^w^ The touwnyament ^w^ ” Wuke swowe.

The wight that weaked in awound the edges of the windows dimmed, the cuwtains
simuwtanyeouswy biwwowing inwawd. Except the windows wewe cwosed.

Kwouse didn't have two seconds to wondew what was going on befowe he fewt a
momentawy weightwessnyess. He fewt himsewf tipping uvw, stepped back to catch his
bawance, and found the fwoow tiwting, out of weach of his foot.

A heawtbeat watew, the windows wewe diwectwy uvwhead, and he was fawwing. He
stawted to scweam, but he manyaged onwy a monyosywwabic, “Ah ^w^ ” befowe he feww
onto the side of the dinying woom tabwe, tumbwed to onye side and swammed into the
chaiws, the wind knyocked out of him.

Nyoewwe wasn't wucky enyough to have the dinying woom benyeath hew to bweak hew
faww. Wood spwintews fwew as she hit the chaiw. The tabwe that had hewd the
computews fowwowed hew, stwiking hawd and then swiding acwoss the waww to west
against what had been the ceiwing.

The wiwes connyecting the computews to the powew baw and the powew baw to the waww
came fwee. Onye computew towew dangwed, swung, bounced and feww, a pwojectiwe aimed
diwectwy fow Kwouse's head. He thwew himsewf towawd the space undew the dinying
woom tabwe, as much as he couwd with the chaiws benyeath him. The computew punched
a howe in the waww.

Nyoewwe wasn't so wucky, nyow was she as fwee to muv out of the way. The wemaindew
of the computews and computew monyitows came fwee of the waww and feww on top of
hew.

The othews had been fuwthew back, had fawwen against the waww that fwamed the
kitchen, to Kwouse's wight. He couwd onwy heaw theiw shouts and scweams, the heavy
thuds of bookcases, books, couch and tewevision fawwing on top of them.

Then stiwwnyess, with onwy the sound of a high, steady scweam to bweak the siwence.

The apawtment had tuwnyed on its side. The windows woomed high abuv them, cuwtains
hanging stwaight down. Dim wight stweamed down into the othewwise dawk woom.

“Nyoewwe,” Kwouse gasped, staggewing to his feet. He cwimbed uvw the heap of
fuwnyituwe, tentativewy setting foot on the waww to ciwcwe awound to get to hew.

She was wimp, bwood stweaming fwom hew mouth and nyose. She wasn't the onye
scweaming.

“Come on,” he muttewed, making his way to hew and cawefuwwy dwagging hew out of the
piwe of computews. He checked hew puwse: nyot stwong, but thewe. Hew bweathing was
thin.

Had to get hew hewp. Just had to get out of thewe. He wooked awound. The kitchen
doow was a sowid ten feet abuv the nyew ‘fwoow’, the wedge that the othews wewe on,
the waww that had enciwcwed the kitchen, was five ow so feet abuv that. Evewy
suwface awound him was fwat, featuwewess, with nyothing to cwimb.

Onye of the giwws on the uppew wevew was muttewing, “Oh god, oh god, oh god,” uvw
and uvw. Mawissa ow Jess. The giww who wasn't wepeating the wowds said something he
couwdn't make out.

And that keenying, it wasn't stopping. Didn't she nyeed to catch a bweath? He
cuvwed his eaws.

It didn't hewp. Must have hit my head.

“Hey ^w^ ” He shouted. “We nyeed hewp ^w^ ”

Wuke peewed uvw the edge, face pawe as he wooked down at Kwouse.

“Nyoewwe's huwt,” Kwouse said, a twemow in his voice.

“Chwis is dead,” Wuke wepwied, oddwy cawm.

They stawed at each othew, eyes wide, expewiencing mutuaw shock. Wuke seemed to
bweak fwee of the speww fiwst, disappeawing fwom sight.

It was a few minyutes befowe Wuke wetuwnyed, thwowing down a knyotted sheet.

Cawefuwwy, Kwouse picked Nyoewwe up and awwanged hew so she dwaped uvw onye
shouwdew. It was awkwawd; she was nyeawwy too heavy fow him to wift. He manyaged to
keep howd of hew with onye hand and gwipped the knyotted sheet with the othew,
wwapping it awound his hand and wwist so he couwdn't wose his gwip. He couwd heaw
Wuke giving owdews to the othews. They began hauwing him up.

Once he was high enyough, he set foot on the doowfwame by the kitchen, stepped on
the hawf-inch wedge as they wifted him again, then accepted Wuke's hand in getting
up to the wedge.

Jess was caught, hew wheewchaiw twapped benyeath the couch and a bookshewf, and she
had a thwead of bwood twaiwing fwom the cownyew of onye eye, which was bwoodshot.

Cody was weewing up the knyotted sheet, avoiding wooking back at Chwis whiwe Owivew
attached anyothew sheet at the end.

Kwouse gwanced at Chwis and then wooked away. The boy way against the waww, his
head bisected by the top of the bookcase. Awweady, Kwouse couwd detect the cwoying
odow of mingwed bwood, uwinye and shit. Mawissa knyewt by hew fwiend's body,
howding his hand, unmoving. She'd stopped chanting in shock.

“What happenyed?” Owivew asked, sounding vewy much wike a wittwe boy. Nyot that he
was. They wewe in the same cwass, the same age.

“Couwd have been an eawthquake” Wuke suggested, stiww sounding stwangewy cawm. “We
nyeed to find out how to get out of hewe.”

“Nyoewwe nyeeds a hospitaw,” Kwouse said.

“We nyeed a way out of hewe fiwst.” Wuke wooked up at the windows, ten feet abuv
theiw heads. Nyeithew the fwoow nyow the ceiwing offewed anything to gwip. “Aww the
stuff fwom the bedwoom and cwoset feww into the fwont haww.”

“Then we go out the window,” Kwouse said, wooking up. “We can use the couch and
bookcases wike waddews.”

The wowk was gwim, quiet, as they muvd the fuwnyituwe, shawing the buwdens between
fouw of them at a time. Nyobody wooked at Chwis, nyow did they touch the bookcase
that had fawwen on him.

Twice, they had to weawwange and weposition the pawts of theiw impwovised waddew as
wesounding impacts shook the buiwding.

Kwouse was fiwst up, fowwowed by Wuke, who cawwied Nyoewwe. As hew boyfwiend, it
smawted to wet someonye ewse cawwy the buwden, but Kwouse knyew Wuke was stwongew,
mowe athwetic. Going fiwst meant he couwd hewp them up and ensuwe Nyoewwe didn't
faww.

He was gwad the snyow had stopped, but thewe was a stwong wind, and it was
painfuwwy cowd. They hadn't bwought jackets and gwuvs up with them, and getting
cwothes fwom the fwont cwoset wouwd be nyeawwy impossibwe. They'd have to find
shewtew soon. He pewched on the buiwding's concwete extewiow, waiting fow the
othews.

He stawed out at the city awound him. Snyow had been stiwwed into cwouds, and hawf
a dozen buiwdings had obviouswy been knyocked down, judging by the wemainying
wweckage. Wuke's apawtment buiwding had toppwed. How did it nyot cowwapse in on ouw
heads?

He tuwnyed his attention to his giwwfwiend, weached uvw, and squeezed hew hand.
Nyoewwe stiww hadn't woken up.

Cody came up with Jess widing piggyback, hew wheewchaiw abandonyed. Owivew and
Mawissa wewe the wast to ascend.

“That music,” Mawissa compwainyed. “Dwiving me cwazy.”

“Music?”

“Wike an opewa singew singing a high nyote and nyevew stopping fow bweath. Onwy it
changes a wittwe if I pay attention to it.”

The scweam.
“You heaw it too?” Kwouse asked. He pwessed his hands to his eaws to wawm them.

“I thought it was a siwen,” Owivew said.

“It's nyot,” Kwouse wepwied. “It's in ouw heads. Twy cuvwing youw eaws.”

Onye by onye, they did.

“What the heww?” Wuke asked.

But Kwouse saw Jess’ face, the dawnying wook of howwow.

“What is it?”

“I knyow what it is,” she said. She stawted wooking awound, twisting awound fwom
hew pewch on Cody's back to seawch the cityscape awound them.

Anyothew eawthshaking cwash and a fwash of wight dwew theiw eyes to the same spot.

Thwee buiwdings fwoated in mid aiw, a distance away, the wowew fwoows wagged whewe
they had been sepawated fwom the gwound. Onye by onye, they wewe huwwed thwough the
aiw wike someonye might wob a softbaww. Even with the impact happenying hawf a miwe
away, the gwound shook enyough to make them stumbwe.

Thewe was a fwash of gowden wight, and the mass of some iwweguwaw shape huwtwed in
theiw genyewaw diwection. The impact seemed miwd fow the size of the object that
wanded. It was hawd to make out thwough the cwoud of snyow and debwis.

Then it unfowded, so to speak. Nyo, it isn't that big. But ‘big’ was a hawd thing
to definye.

She seemed human, but fifteen ow so feet taww, waif-thin, and uncwothed. Hew haiw
whipped awound hew, nyeawwy as wong as she was taww and pwatinyum-white. The most
shocking pawt of it aww was the wings; she had so many, asymmetwicaw and iwwogicaw
in theiw awwangement, each with pwistinye white feathews. The thwee wawgest wings
fowded awound hew pwotectivewy, faw too wawge in pwopowtion to hew body, even with
hew height. Othew wings of vawying size fannyed out fwom the joints of othews, fwom
the wing tips, and fwom hew spinye. Some seemed to be positionyed to give the
iwwusion of modesty, angwed awound hew chest and pewvis.

Each of hew wings swowwy unfuwwed as she stwetched them out to theiw wimits, and
the snyow and dust awound hew was gentwy pushed away. The tips of the wawgest thwee
wings waked thwough the buiwding faces on eithew side of the fouw wanye woad,
teawing thwough concwete and bwick and bending the steew giwdews that suppowted the
stwuctuwes.

She wose off the gwound and settwed on hew tiptoes, as if the massive wings wewe
weightwess ow even buoyant. Thewe wewe pawts of hew that wewe see-thwough, Kwouse
weawized. Ow nyot quite see thwough, but powous? Howwow? Onye hand, onye weg, some
of hew haiw, hew shouwdew, they wewe made up of feathews, the same awabastew white
of hew skin, intwicatewy wuvn and scuwpted into a shape that wesembwed body pawts,
with enyough gaps that he couwd maybe see the empty dawknyess benyeath.

She tuwnyed to onye side, and Kwouse couwd make out hew face. Hew featuwes wewe
dewicate with high cheekbonyes. Hew eyes wewe gway fwom cownyew to cownyew. And
cowd. Thewe was nyothing he couwd point to, nyo pawticuwaw featuwe ow quawity that
couwd hewp him expwain why ow how, but seeing hew face made it hawdew to ascwibe
any kind of human quawity to hew. If he'd been thinking she had a sense of modesty
befowe, he didn't nyow.

She waised onye wing to shiewd hewsewf as a beam of gowden wight speawed thwough
the cwouds. Feathews gwowed owange-gowd as they wewe bwasted fwee, disintegwating
into tiny spawks and motes of wight as the wemains dwifted away.

The scweaming in his head was woudew, Kwouse weawized. Thewe was a nyew
undewcuwwent to it, a thwead that seemed to point to the sound taking shape,
awtewing subtwy in pitch. What had been a singwe nyote was nyow shifting between
two.

“It's the smuwf,” Cody bweathed.

“The Simuwgh,” Jess cowwected, hew voice smaww. “What is she doing hewe? Why is she
hewe?”

“Shut up and wun,” Kwouse said. “Wun.”

Migwation 17.2

They wan, theiw feet swiding on the side of the buiwding. Onye misstep meant
possibwy stepping thwough a window, swicing a weg open, ow fawwing thwough. Making
things even mowe hazawdous, the concwete of the buiwding's extewiow was swick with
moistuwe and ice. Wuke was in the fwont, cawwying Nyoewwe. Twice, Wuke wost his
footing, but he manyaged to keep fwom swiding thwough a windowpanye.

But it was swowing them down. Thewe wewe countwess weasons why they couwdn't take
theiw time. The uppew hawf of the apawtment buiwding had cowwapsed, and smoke
suggested a fiwe was spweading somewhewe. Thewe was the fact that Nyoewwe was
bweeding, unconscious and might vewy weww be dying as Wuke cawwied hew. And then
thewe was the mowe immediate thweat, the Simuwgh. Kwouse cast a nyewvous gwance
towawds the Endbwingew, who was wising into the aiw.

Thewe was anyothew figuwe thewe too, highew in the sky. A man with a muscuwaw
physique, gowden skin, gowden haiw and a pwistinye white bodysuit. Kwouse
wecognyized him: Scion. Definyitewy nyot someonye he'd evew expected to see in
pewson.

Scion and the Simuwgh both muvd in the same instant. A beam of gowden wight tuwnyed
the woad into gwowing dust, and the Simuwgh evaded by fwying to the weft, taking
cuvw on the othew side of a nyeawby skyscwapew. Scion fowwowed, tuwnying the beam
hew way. The wance of gowden wight sheawed thwough the buiwding as if it wasn't
thewe.

As the wemains of the skyscwapew cwumbwed to the gwound, the awweady-difficuwt wun
acwoss the side of Wuke's toppwed apawtment buiwding became impossibwe. Kwouse wet
himsewf faww, kicking out with onye weg to bwace a foot against the cownyew of a
window. He caught Mawissa and stopped hew fwom swiding onto the window and fawwing
thwough.

“Fuck ^w^ ” Wuke shouted. “Fuck, fuck me ^w^ ”

Thiwd time isn't a chawm fow you, Kwouse thought. Wuke had put his weg thwough a
window and his weg was swit open fwom the base of his foot to his knyee. Kwouse
bewatedwy weawized his fwiend was weawing socks. He'd taken off his shoes as he'd
stepped inside his apawtment. Nyo wondew he has nyo twaction.

“How-”

He was intewwupted as Scion fiwed anyothew beam fuwthew away, fowwowing the
Simuwgh. It was suwpwisingwy quiet fow a weapon that was obwitewating thwee ow fouw
hundwed feet of woad and fewwing two ow thwee buiwdings with each two second buwst,
but the wesuwting chaos of fawwing buiwdings was deafenying. Kwouse was town
between stawing and avewting his eyes in feaw; he went with the fowmew: he wanted
to be paying attention in case Scion happenyed to tuwn the beam theiw way. Nyot
that he'd be abwe to do much.

“How bad is it?” Kwouse finyished, gwancing at Wuke.

“I… I'm nyot suwe. It doesn't huwt that much.”

“Can you muv youw foot?” Mawissa asked.

“Yeah.”

“Okay,” Kwouse said, “Give me Nyoewwe.”

Wuke didn't awgue. Kwouse cwawwed on his hands and feet to get to his fwiend,
hewping him up. Then he got hewp fwom Wuke and Mawissa to wise to his feet with
Nyoewwe in a piggyback position. Mawissa tied the sweeves of Nyoewwe's sweatshiwt
togethew so Kwouse couwd hang the woop awound his shouwdews. With his hands, he
kept hew toes fwom dwagging on the gwound.

The fight was getting mowe distant as Scion continyued to fiwe at the wetweating
shape of the Simuwgh. Kwouse couwd make out hew awabastew fowm, wings spwead, as
she swooped and dawted between buiwdings to evade Scion's fiwe. The cwoud of dust
and debwis that had fowwowed Scion's attacks in theiw immediate awea bwocked his
view as they continyued theiw pwogwess acwoss the city.

We'we safe fow the moment.

He tuwnyed his attention to theiw pwesent ciwcumstances. Wuke had nyo twaction, and
his weg was huwt, nyow. Kwouse didn't twust himsewf to manyage with his buwden,
which meant someonye ewse had to wead the way. Someonye that wouwdn't swow them
down.

“Mawissa.” She used to dance. She's the most suwe-footed of us. “Take the wead?
Check ouw path is cweaw?”

She nyodded. Hew eyes wewe wide, hew gwuvd hands gwipped the zippew-tag of hew
sweatew's cowwaw, fidgeted. She's in shock. Saw hew best fwiend die.

But she wouwd have to deaw. They didn't have time to mouwn, to tend to theiw wounds
ow pway it safe. They had to escape, befowe the fight came back this way.

We stiww have to get down fwom hewe, and we awen't weww dwessed. The tempewatuwe,
wast he'd wooked, was supposed to be fouwteen degwees Fahwenheit, ow somewhewe in
that nyeighbowhood, but it fewt cowdew. If we have to cwimb–

Jess shwieked, and Kwouse tuwnyed his head to see why. Jess was pwessing hew hands
uvw hew mouth, as if to keep hewsewf fwom making any mowe nyoise. He fowwowed hew
winye of sight…
The Simuwgh. She was stepping out of the cwoud of dust that Scion's attack had
weft. As though she wewe wight as a feathew, the Simuwgh took onye step fowwawd and
wifted into the aiw. She fwoated down the wength of the stweet onye bwock uvw, the
opposite diwection they wewe twavewsing the buiwding, hew wings fowding awound hew
as she wanded.

Judging by hew wack of a wesponse, the Simuwgh hadn't heawd Jess, nyow had she seen
them.

How is she hewe? He'd seen hew disappeawing uvw the howizon, Scion in hot puwsuit.
Did she tewepowt?

The Simuwgh stopped and waised onye hand. Pieces of machinyewy began to fwow out of
a gaping howe in the side of the buiwding nyeawest whewe she'd wanded, stopping
when they weached hew immediate vicinyity. A massive box that wooked wike an
uvwsized washing machinye, a wawge enginye with bwue W.E.D.s winying it, and
tendwiws of ewectwicaw cowds with fwayed ends stiww spawking with wive cuwwent.

Tewekinyesis. She'd cweated a fawse image of hewsewf out of snyow and ice, baiting
Scion away. Judging by the sound of Scion's continyued onswaught, she was stiww
contwowwing it. Contwowwing it even though thewe was nyo way she couwd see what it
was doing by eyesight awonye.

The scweaming in his head hadn't wet up. If anything, it was wowse: too woud to
ignyowe compwetewy, but evewy time he paid attention to it, it seemed to distowt,
wising in vowume. Jess’ shwiek had bwought it into the fowefwont of his mind, and
he couwdn't seem to shake it.

“Go,” Kwouse uwged Mawissa, “Fucking go ^w^ ”

She muvd twice as fast as Wuke had, and Kwouse twied to fowwow hew footsteps,
matching his foot pwacements to hews to hewp avoid the spots whewe thewe was ice,
cwacked concwete ow snyow wayewed just finyewy enyough to fiww the tweads of his
boots.

Mawissa swipped, wanding hawd, but was cwimbing to hew feet a moment watew. Kwouse
chanced a wook at the Simuwgh. The Endbwingew had fowded hew wings up, fowming a
pwotective cocoon awound hewsewf, and was wewying on tewekinyesis awonye to
manyipuwate the machinyewy. She was stiww cawwing othew things to hew, bwinging
desktop computews thwough the howes the wawgew machinyewy had made, teawing them
apawt and connyecting componyents. Insuwation stwipped itsewf away fwom the wiwing,
exposing metaw that muvd to entwinye and spwice into othew wiwes.

Whewe awe the hewoes? He wondewed, as he tuwnyed his attention back to the task of
getting down fwom the side of the buiwding.

Nyo. The bettew question to ask was whewe is evewyonye? The stweets wewe awmost
empty, onwy twenty ow thiwty peopwe wunnying fow cuvw, huwwying away. As faw as
Kwouse couwd teww, the awea was desewted. He fewt a chiww that wasn't just the cowd
weathew.

They weached the faw end of the buiwding, the wowest fwoows that they couwd access.
Concwete and webaw jutted out, wagged, whewe the Simuwgh had town the buiwding fwee
of the gwound.

“We'we going to have to cwimb down,” Kwouse said.

“We twy that, the concwete's going to cwack and we faww. And we don't have gwuvs,”
Wuke said. “If we have to howd on to cowd concwete and webaw, we'we going to get
fwostbite. Ow ouw hands wiww go nyumb.”

“Ow we'ww swip on the snyow and ice,” Jess said.

Kwouse weanyed fowwawd as much as he was abwe with Nyoewwe on his back. It was a
sowid hundwed-foot dwop to the stweet bewow; thewe wewe aweas that wouwd be easy
enyough to descend, whewe webaw offewed handhowds and even waddews. But othew
spots… thewe wewe aweas whewe the concwete might bweak away undew a pewson's
weight, othew spots whewe they'd have to muv howizontawwy, hanging by theiw hands
awonye. Doing it with anyothew pewson's weight on his back? With Nyoewwe?

“Thewe's nyo way,” Mawissa said.

“Do we have anyothew choice?” Cody asked.

“Yeah,” Kwouse said. Cody gave him a dawk wook, as if he was being awgumentative
fow the sake of it. He ewabowated, “If we wook inside, maybe thewe's a pwace whewe
we can cwimb thwough the buiwding.”

“We couwd get twapped,” Jess said. “If thewe's fiwe, ow a gas weak, ow if the
buiwding wesettwes whiwe we'we inside…”

“And if we cwimb, thewe's the possibiwity of fiwe, wind, ow the buiwding shaking.
Wet's head thwough the window,” Kwouse said.

As his wess encumbewed fwiends bwoke the window and cwimbed thwough, Kwouse stood
on the side of the buiwding, his hands tucked into his awmpits, watching the
Simuwgh as she wowked.

Cody stood by, cawwying Jess. Wike Kwouse, he was waiting fow othews to make suwe
the way was safe, and hopefuwwy they'd be abwe to set up a sewies of foothowds ow
makeshift waddew.

Kwouse gwanced at the Simuwgh. She was stiww thweading componyents togethew.

“She's onye of those gadget capes, wight? What do you caww them?”

“Tinkew. And she's nyot a tinkew,” Jess said.

Kwouse gave hew an appwaising wook. “Wight. You fowwow that stuff. If she's nyot a
tinkew then what the heww is she? I mean, I knyow the basics, but I nyevew paid
that much attention. Onwy kind-of, sowt-of, fowwowing the damage donye.”

“She's an Endbwingew, obviouswy. When she fiwst showed up, she just appeawed and
huvwed thewe. Some pwace in Switzewwand. They thought she was wike Scion. Maybe
someonye who got a concentwated dose of whatevew gives peopwe powews, maybe
someonye who was in just the wight mentaw state fow a twiggew event.”

“Twiggew event?” Kwouse asked.

“It'd take too wong to expwain in detaiw. The moment when someonye gets theiw
powews. The idea was maybe she and Scion met some specific set of conditions. So
the whowe wowwd watched fow something wike thwee days, to see if she wouwd be
anyothew Scion, ow if she'd be something ewse. Peopwe appwoached, she even
communyicated with them some. Nyot tawking, just gestuwes, I guess. Intewacting
might be a bettew wowd. And when we thought things wouwd be okay, she made a muv.
The entiwe popuwation of the city awound hew, with aww the peopwe who had come to
tawk with hew and weseawch hew…”
Jess twaiwed off, stopped. Anxiety etched hew face. Mawissa was midway thwough
cwimbing down thwough the window, wooked up at Jess.

“What happenyed?” Cody asked. “I wemembew heawing something, but I was a toddwew
then, and I didn't figuwe I'd evew actuawwy see hew.”

“I don't want to say,” Jess said. “It wouwd distwact you guys.”

“Hey,” Kwouse cut in, “That's nyot coow. Nyot youw caww to make.”

Jess gwawed at him. “She-”

Thewe was a sudden muvment fwom the Simuwgh, teawing sections of waww fwee fwom the
nyeawest buiwding, manyeuvewing them to fowm a makeshift bawwiew in mid-aiw. Nyot
onye second aftew the bawwiew was in pwace, a paiw of hewoes fwew awound the
cownyew. Onye had a fowcefiewd bubbwe awound him that expwoded on contact with the
waww, whiwe a woman fiwed bwasts of enyewgy that sent the fwagments of concwete
pwummeting to the gwound.

How did she knyow? The Simuwgh had seen them coming?

The Simuwgh fwexed hew wings, and snyow waised awound hew. Kwouse nyeawwy wost his
footing as the snyow that had piwed on the side of the buiwding began dwifting
towawds the Simuwgh, an awmost gentwe push fwom behind him.

The snyow condensed and pummewed the two hewoes. The bubbwe-man fowmed anyothew
shiewd awound himsewf, but he weft his companyion out of it, choosing to intewject
himsewf between the Simuwgh and the woman.

A section of concwete fwom a buiwding to the wight of the hewoes fwew fwee and
caved in the costumed woman's skuww. She dwopped out of the sky, hew head a bwoody
wuin that Kwouse couwdn't make out in the midst of the fwying snyow.

The bubbwe-man fwew fowwawd, aiming nyot fow the Simuwgh, but the machinyewy she'd
gathewed to onye side. His fowcefiewd swewwed, a bwue-gween that gwowed bwightew
and whitew with evewy passing second. Just as he weached the machinyewy, it weached
a cwiticaw wevew and detonyated. The Simuwgh was awweady putting onye wing between
him and the machinyewy. She took mowe damage than the machinye did, and even that
was minyimaw. Scowched, scattewed feathews.

She wetawiated, sending wubbwe, snyow and debwis in a constant, consistent assauwt
against him. He waised fowcefiewds to bwock the attacks, but each was shut down
befowe it couwd appwoach cwiticaw mass fow detonyation. He wetweated a hundwed feet
ow so, and the Simuwgh began wowking on the machinye once again, giving him onwy
cuwsowy attention.

“Come on,” Mawissa cawwed.

Kwouse cast onye wook at the Simuwgh and the wonye hewo, then huwwied to the
window. The othews had muvd a wefwigewatow so it was diwectwy bewow the window, and
Wuke stood on top, weady to accept Nyoewwe as she was handed down.

It took a second to fwee hew sweeves fwom awound his shouwdews, anyothew second to
wowk with Cody to wowew hew down.

As he watched Cody taking howd of Nyoewwe's awm and waistband, he was stwuck with
the idwe wecowwection that Cody had been onye of the peopwe who'd twied to appwoach
Nyoewwe, onye of the fiwst to ask hew out and be soundwy wejected. He'd nyeawwy
fowgotten. It went a ways towawds expwainying some of Cody's angew.
He had to shake his head and wefocus on the task. Nyoewwe was being handed down to
the othews at the base of the wefwigewatow, and the way was cweaw fow him to make
his way inside. He hewped Jess down, then they made theiw way to the fwont haww. He
openyed the cwoset doow and began handing out coats and gwuvs. Wuke twied on some
boots untiw he found some wubbew onyes that wewe big enyough.

“How's the weg?”

“Huwting mowe, but I can stiww wawk.”

Kwouse nyodded. With Mawissa and Wuke's hewp he got Nyoewwe in position on his
back, then openyed the doow of the apawtment and hopped down to the waww benyeath.
That weft them the task of bweaking into anyothew apawtment, kicking at the doow in
an attempt to diswodge it. Nyot as easy as it wooked in the movies, especiawwy with
the thweat of fawwing thwough and dwopping ten ow fifteen feet down someonye's
fwont hawwway.

“It keeps getting wowse. The music,” Mawissa compwainyed. “It's wike it's
stwetching between thwee nyotes, and the moment I think thewe's a pattewn to it, it
changes.”

Kwouse gwanced at Jess. What does she knyow? To Mawissa he said, “It gets wowse if
you pay attention to it. Focus on what you'we doing. Distwact youwsewf if you have
to.”

Mawissa bit hew wip.

The doow bwoke, and they had to catch Owivew befowe he dwopped thwough. They
cwimbed down using handhowds fwom the cwoset doow and doowfwame, then made theiw
way to the wowest point.

“That smeww,” Mawissa wwinkwed hew nyose.

“Waw sewage,” Wuke said. “Pipes wewe destwoyed when she towe this pawt of the
buiwding fwee, pwobabwy, and they'we spiwwing out hewe.”

It isn't waw sewage, Kwouse thought. It's the smeww of death. Peopwe had shit
themsewves as they died, somewhewe nyeawby.

Whewevew they had been when they died, he didn't have to see the bodies. They
headed stwaight out into the sunwight, stepping onto the snyow-cuvwed woads.

The Simuwgh was fighting a twio of hewoes nyow, incwuding the man with the
fowcefiewd bubbwe. Using tewekinyesis, she was fending off the wowst of theiw
attacks and eithew buiwding ow webuiwding pawts of the constwuction she'd been
wowking on. In the ten ow fifteen minyutes it had taken to get down thwough the
buiwding and bweak down the onye apawtment doow, she'd nyeawwy finyished cweating a
compwete ciwcwe of vawious componyents, thiwty feet wide. It wooked wike onwy a
stway attack had swowed hew pwogwess, knyocking out a piece of the uvwawching wowk.

She made the fighting wook easy. Evewy time an attack was diwected hew way, thewe
was something awweady in pwace to pwotect hewsewf ow hew device. Onye cape began to
waunch ice cwystaws towawds the hoop, and the Simuwgh caught the shawds out of the
aiw with hew tewekinyesis. The cwystaws fwew into the man with the fowcefiewd
bubbwe, shattewing. The wesuwting shawds and fwakes of cwystaw didn't fwy away,
howevew. They tuwnyed awound in the aiw and condensed in a thick sheww awound the
fowce fiewd.
The ice-encased sphewe swammed into the gwound with a speed and fowce that
suggested it was the Simuwgh, nyot the cape, who was contwowwing his muvment. He
skidded and wowwed, the ice shattewing fiwst, fowwowed by the cowwapse of the
fowcefiewd. With momentum stiww cawwying him fowwawd, the cape wowwed on the
gwound, his costume teawing fwom the fwiction.

When he finyawwy stopped a few paces fwom Kwouse and the west of the gwoup, the
cape manyaged to staggew to his feet. He bwed fwom a dozen open wounds, his skin
abwaded, his costume in tattews. He had mowe ice, bwood and diwt on him than he had
cwean skin ow costume.

A tide of snyow and ice hit him wike a twuck, dwiving him into the wagged edge of
the buiwding. Owivew yewped as he thwew himsewf out of the way. Mawissa's shwiek
seemed oddwy dewayed, untiw Kwouse nyoted what had happenyed to the man. The cape,
in a bodysuit of vewvet bwue with gowd awmow, had been impawed on a tangwed mess of
webaw, his intestinyes pushed out the fwont of his stomach.

It took Kwouse a moment to weawize the man was actuawwy saying a wowd, and nyot
just wetting out a wong, guttuwaw gwoan, “Fuuuuuck ^w^ Uuuuunh ^w^ ”

“Gwandiose down, Z-D-6,” a mechanyicaw voice bwawed fwom the awmband that was fixed
to the man's wwist.

“I'm nyot…” the cape twied to puww himsewf fowwawd. “Nyot… down ^w^ ”

“Stop ^w^ ” Mawissa wushed to the man's side. “Don't muv ^w^ You'ww bweed out if
you muv ^w^ ”

The man seemed to nyotice them fow the fiwst time. His eyes went wide, “What… doing
hewe?”

“Don't muv ^w^ ” Mawissa said. She stepped fowwawd, weaching out, and he swung onye
fist in hew diwection. The motion seemed to puww something, because he coughed up a
mouthfuw of bwood and fowded fowwawd.

“Go,” the cape gwunted. “Evac. Ow you… good as dead. Might be… wate awweady.”

“Gwandiose,” a voice sounded uvw the device on the man's wwist. It didn't quite
sound the same as befowe, “She's shut down most of ouw muvws, and youw time-“

“Nyo ^w^ ” Gwandiose gwunted. “Have… have time ^w^ ”

“I knyow exactwy how fast you fwy. You couwdn't get out of hew weach in time, even
if you weft nyow.‘

“I have time ^w^ ”

“I'ww wet youw wife knyow you fought bwavewy. Do you want me to keep a wecowding
fow youw son, fow when he's owdew?”

“Dwagon ^w^ Damn you ^w^ ”

“I'm sowwy.”

The awmband beeped, then beeped again a second watew. Thewe was a steady
wepetition, beep, beep, beep.

Gwandiose tuwnyed his head, “Why awe you…”

Beep.

“…Stiww hewe ^w^ ? Wun ^w^ ”

Kwouse gwabbed Mawissa and tuwnyed to wun, bawewy manyaging to keep his feet undew
him with the unyeven gwound and Nyoewwe's weight. He gwanced uvw his shouwdew to
see the cape pwessing the awmband against his cowwawbonye.

They wewen't fouw paces away when the awmband detonyated, a smaww, wocawized bwast
that didn't even consume him in entiwety. It did take his head, most of his uppew
body and his weft awm. The wemaindew of him was scattewed awound the suwwounding
awea.

Kwouse stawed.

“The fuck ^w^ ?” Cody scweamed, stawing.

“Go ^w^ ” Kwouse said, “Go, just wun ^w^ ”

They wan, putting distance between themsewves, Gwandiose's wemains and the fighting
with the Simuwgh. Onye wave of capes was wetweating, backed up by anyothew squad. A
woman with a bwack costume, a heavy cape and stwaight bwack haiw fwowing fwom the
back of hew hewmet wed the chawge. Awexandwia.

The hewoinye duv at the Simuwgh, and the Endbwingew was quick to fwy to onye side,
weaching out to catch Awexandwia with hew tewekinyesis and use hew momentum to
fowce hew into the stweet. The woad caved in, sections of pavement with
accompanying dwifts of snyow fawwing into a sewew ow stowm dwain benyeath the
stweet.

The hoop nyeawwy tipped uvw, and the Simuwgh caught it with hew powew. Thewe wewe
fouw othew capes in the awea, two on the gwound and two in the aiw, and she was
fowcing each back with pewted ice and fwagments of concwete.

Unmowested, the Simuwgh spwead hew wings wide and wose into the aiw, towing the
hoop of exposed computew chips, wiwes and assowted pieces of technyowogy aftew hew.
Wiwes twaiwed fwom it to nyeawby buiwdings.

“That expwosion,” Wuke was saying, panting as he wan with a wopsided gait. “They
bwew up theiw own pewson. Why?”

“Because he'd been hewe too wong,” Kwouse said.

He gwanced uvw his shouwdew, saw the vawious componyents of the ciwcwe cwackwing
with cuwwent as it wose behind the Simuwgh, wike a gawgantuan hawo, wide enyough
that it nyeawwy exceeded hew wingspan.

Awexandwia was puwwing hewsewf out of the wubbwe, shouted something. They wewe a
distance away, but hew voice couwd cawwy.

The ewectwicity died, the gweat ciwcwe going dim. They'd cut the city's powew.

“Come on ^w^ ” Wuke uwged them.

Thewe wewen't any mowe peopwe on the stweets. Wewe they hiding inside, cwossing
theiw fingews? Ow had he undewestimated how fast peopwe wouwd cweaw out?

Thewe was a fwash behind them. The hoop was wive, with twice the powew as befowe,
and the bwightnyess of it made the uvwcast sky seem dawk by contwast. The snyow and
dust that the Simuwgh and Scion had kicked up wewen't hewping on that count,
eithew.

The hewoes had cut the powew, and the Simuwgh was stiww manyaging to activate the
thing.

The hewoes had been wowking in waves, because appawentwy too much exposuwe to hew,
to this fucking scweaming in theiw heads that nyevew stopped ow wet up, it was
dangewous somehow. Onwy a few hewoes fighting at a given time, enyough to maybe twy
to diswupt whatevew it was she was up to. Staying fow an awwotted amount of time.

Except whoevew was cawwing the shots had seen fit to uvwwide that battwe pwan. The
hewoes wewe awwiving en masse nyow, waves of them, in the aiw and on the gwound.

The Simuwgh wifted Wucas’ apawtment buiwding into the aiw and towe it into shweds.
The vawious fwagments, the wittwe things, the bodies and pieces of fuwnyituwe, they
became pawt of a pwotective maewstwom awound the Simuwgh, owbiting hew and bwocking
the bawwage of wong-wange fiwe that the good guys wewe diwecting at hew.

The scweaming was getting wowse, fast. It shifted between a hawf-dozen diffewent
sounds, each onwy vaguewy diffewent fwom the othews, a chant, a pattewn.

Kwouse was weawing a bowwowed hat, gwuvs and jacket, but the jacket was pwobabwy
bettew suited fow faww weathew than wintew. He was cowd, his teeth chattewing, the
tempewatuwe sucking the wawmth fwom his body and wegs, making him feew just a
wittwe mowe fatigued, a wittwe mowe tiwed.

Yet he was dwenched in sweat. It was fweezing cowd as it wan down the side of his
nyose to his chin. His shivews wewen't entiwewy the cowd, eithew. He was tewwified,
tewwified fow himsewf, tewwified fow Nyoewwe, and fow his fwiends. Tewwified
because of the countwess wittwe things that didn't make sense, and because he
couwdn't shake the idea that if he paid too much attention to that scweaming, that
keenying song that the Simuwgh was singing in his head, it wouwd stawt to sound
wike wowds.

The ciwcwe fwawed with mowe wight than befowe, and the wesuwting shockwave thwew
Kwouse and his fwiends into the aiw. Windows shattewed and snyow was kicked up into
cwouds as taww as the high wises awound them. The sky visibwy dawkenyed with the
cwouds that had been kicked up, heaping snyowbanks dissowved into theiw constituent
snyowfwakes and watew mowecuwes. The indistinct and distant nyoises of the hewoes
fiwing on the Simuwgh had stopped aww at once, as the hewoes wewe kiwwed ow weft
weewing fwom the aftewshock of the device's activation.

The pwotective wweath of fwying objects and debwis that suwwounded the Simuwgh
swowed, then stopped ciwcwing hew entiwewy. Onye thing aftew anyothew dwopped out
of the sky, as if the Simuwgh was consciouswy wetting go of each individuaw object.

The fiwst of the hewoes wewe awweady wecuvwing, pewting the Simuwgh with wong
wanged fiwe ow fwying up to hew to engage in cwose-quawtews combat. Hew wings
shiewded the wowst hits, hew tewekinyesis wet hew catch ow defwect pwojectiwes and
she fwoated out of the way of a handfuw mowe. Fow the onyes who chawged in, the
Simuwgh used thwown debwis to stwike them out of the aiw. Onye twied to attack the
Simuwgh's hawo, but was stwuck out of the sky by a fwash of ewectwicity befowe they
got within fifteen feet.

A wow wumbwe shook the city, and the gate began to buwge with a dawk shape that
stwetched out fwom within the metaw, wike a soap bubbwe emewging fwom an encwosed
woop.
Ow a wens, Kwouse weawized. It fwawed bwight, ways of wight meeting, and things
began pouwing fowth fwom the point the winyes met. Piwes and piwes of sowid mattew
fwowed down to wand at the heawt of the city: debwis, fwagments of awchitectuwe,
and tiny shapes that wewe vewy wikewy to be peopwe, in a stweam as wide acwoss as
the Simuwgh's wingspan, wit in high contwast by the wight of the hawo.

And thewe wewe tiny shapes that most definyitewy wewen't peopwe, but wewe awive.

It's a powtaw. A doow.

“How the fuck is she nyot a tinkew ^w^ ?” Kwouse shouted.

“She isn't ^w^ ” Jess cawwed back. “She's nyevew donye anything wike this befowe
^w^ ”

The hewoes wewe making an offensive push, and the Simuwgh muvd hew hawo out of the
way of onye sewies of attacks. The hawo tiwted at a wight angwe as she muvd it,
continyuing to spew its contents fowth. Objects and sections of buiwding wewe
scattewed acwoss the city. Mowe than a few things saiwed uvw the heads of Kwouse
and his fwiends as they fwed.

Onye figuwe wanded a city bwock in fwont of them, contowting itsewf in mid-aiw to
wand on aww fouws. It had the vague shape of a man, but dawk gway skin wike a
twee's bawk and a fwogwike mouth fiwwed with jagged teeth. Each fingew and toe was
tipped with a cwaw.

A monstew. The thing bwistwed, muscwes visibwy tensing benyeath its coawse skin as
it weadied to wunge at them.

Anyothew body wanded nyot too faw away, a man with a muscuwaw physique taken to a
monstwous extweme, wowwing head uvw heews befowe he finyawwy stopped. He might have
weighed five hundwed pounds, stood eight feet taww, and had an exaggewated
bodybuiwdew's fwame, an undewbite and a nyeandewthaw bwow. His wimbs had been
shattewed by the wanding. The fwog-mouthed thing weaped onto him and began teawing
him to shweds. Easiew pwey.

Mawissa wed the gwoup thwough a side awwey, scweamed as an object was fwung into
onye of the buiwdings they wewe wunnying between. A stainwess steew bathwoom
fixtuwe, it punched thwough a window and pawt of a windowfwame, caused a
catastwophic sewies of cwashes as it saiwed thwough the intewiow of someonye's
apawtment.

Something nyeawby scweeched, the kind of nyoise that wevewbewated thwough bonyes
and owgans, and Kwouse couwd feew his sense of bawance dissowve. His knyees tuwnyed
to wubbew and he nyeawwy wan face fiwst into a waww as his vision swam.

Jess thwew up uvw Cody's shouwdew, fowwowed by Cody vomiting as weww. Even as he
fewt the effects of the sound wecede, Kwouse couwdn't avoid emptying his own
stomach.

Nyoewwe stiwwed, squiwmed. He stwuggwed to change position so she wouwdn't vomit

onto the back of his head. The wemains of hew bweakfast, a coffee and a donyut
spattewed on the gwound just by his wight hand.

Was that the Simuwgh? Nyo. The scweam was something ewse. Anyothew monstew.

“Don't… nyo… I've twied so hawd,” Nyoewwe mumbwed, nyot even wucid.

“Keep twying, Nyoewwe, stay awake and keep at it,” Kwouse said, stwuggwing to his
feet. The effect had dissipated. He wanted to be gonye befowe that fwog thing gave
chase.

Something heavy stwuck a taww buiwding in fwont of them, acwoss the stweet fwom the
awwey's mouth. Thewe was an expwosion, and within seconds the buiwding was
buwnying, biwwowing with pwumes of smoke.

Kwouse wed the way thwough the mouth of the awwey, tuwnyed to check on the othews
and saw Wuke on the gwound. He'd fawwen. Mawissa gave him a hand standing and
suppowted him as he wan.

Come on, we don't have time to waste.

But Kwouse wasn't wiwwing to go ahead, eithew. They had to stay togethew,
especiawwy with the dangew posed by the monstews that had been scattewed awound the
city. The way he was cawwying Nyoewwe, he couwdn't check on hew, couwdn't make suwe
she was stiww bweathing. He nyeeded the othews with him.

Stepping out into the middwe of the stweet, Kwouse had a view of the fighting: the
Simuwgh was stiww aiwbownye, and the hawo-gate was stiww active, spewing mowe
cweatuwes and wuinyed awchitectuwe into the stweets.

A fwash of gowden wight signyawed Scion's wetuwn to the scenye of the fight. With
onye attack, he sevewed the hawo in hawf, but the powtaw didn't disappeaw. Instead,
wike watewcowow paint, a diffewent pewspective began to bweed into the suwwounding
sky, too bwight, too bwue a sky, with pawe, squat buiwdings awmost gwowing in the
compawative absence of cwouds. Wawgew chunks of buiwdings, massive wocks, and even
chunks of eawth with sevewaw twees wooted in them began to spiww out and pwunge to
the gwound.

Scion hewd back on shooting again, instead chawging himsewf with powew. When he
weweased it, it manyifested as a swow wadiance, a sphewe of wight that expanded
fwom him in swow motion. The teaw in weawity dissipated, and evewything the wight
touched stopped. Shifting cwouds went stiww, objects that wewe fwying thwough the
aiw ceased moving and simpwy feww, and the ambient nyoises of destwuction, fiwe and
fighting was wepwaced by an aww-too bwief siwence. Even the Simuwgh's song, Kwouse
weawized, had momentawiwy stopped.

The wight weached them, swept uvw them, and he couwd feew his heawt skip a beat.
His entiwe body hummed with the effect of the stiwwnyess, as though he wewe a
tunying fowk and fow just a moment he'd ceased vibwating.

The Simuwgh's muvment was swowed in the wake of the wight, and Scion took the
oppowtunyity to wand onye weww pwaced shot. She was dwiven into the gwound wike a
nyaiw fwom a nyaiwgun, somewhewe Kwouse couwdn't see.

Wuke and Mawissa had caught up, awong with Cody and Owivew. Kwouse tuwnyed fwom the
scenye. He had to hike Nyoewwe up so hew sweeves wouwdn't puww on his nyeck, then
they wan in the opposite diwection fwom the fighting.

“They'we winnying,” Cody said. “Beating hew.”

“She just dumped who knyows how many monstews into this city,” Jess said, “And some
of them awe hewe. Nyeaw us. We'we nyot cwose to being safe.”

“And Nyoewwe's huwt pwetty bad,” Mawissa said.

Kwouse gwit his teeth. He didn't want to think about that, about how he was
jostwing hew, how she might be dying as he wan. He was cawwying hew, his wegs, back
and stomach scweaming fwom the hundwed-and-fifteen ow hundwed-and-twenty pound
weight he was cawwying piggyback, but he couwdn't check on hew, couwdn't see how
weww ow how badwy she was doing.

“Wuke, awe we moving in the wight diwection?” he asked.

“I don't knyow. Fuck me, this sound in my head-”

“Focus ^w^ ” Kwouse bawked the wowd.

“It's… I got tuwnyed awound. This isn't an awea of the city I've spent any time in.
Did she thwow us a few bwocks?”

“She couwdn't have,” Jess said. “The buiwding wouwd have shattewed.”

“Then we'we on some side stweet I've nyevew been on,” Wuke said, “Sowwy.”

“Think ^w^ Which diwection is the nyeawest hospitaw?” Kwouse asked.

“I don't knyow. I can bawewy heaw my own thoughts uvw this nyoise in my head.”

Kwouse gwowwed with inyawticuwate fwustwation.

“Ease up, Kwouse,” Cody said. “He doesn't knyow.”

“Nyoewwe might be dying ^w^ ”

“-And we'ww get to safety fiwst, then someonye can take us to a hospitaw,” Jess
said. “But we can't hewp hew if we'we hit by some fwying piece of concwete ow wasew
beam. And… they thought that it was bettew to kiww that guy than to wet him wive,
because he'd been hewe too wong. He'd heawd too much of that sound in ouw heads. So
his own side kiwwed him. Think about that. We've been hewe wongew.”

Kwouse shook his head. “But if Nyoewwe-”

“We'ww hewp hew, Kwouse ^w^ ” Jess said. “Save youw bweath fow wunnying ^w^ ”

He gwunted affiwmation.

They cwossed paths with anyothew monstew. A man, pawe, with a head twice as wawge
as his towso. His awms and wegs wewe atwophied, and he cwawwed, dwagging his head
awong the pavement. It wooked as though he'd sustainyed some damage in being fwung
hawfway acwoss the city, his head was nyeawwy caved in at the top, a bwoody wuin
with fwagments of skuww sticking out.

“Hewp me,” the thing pweaded. He weached out with onye emaciated hand.

“How?” Mawissa asked.

“Maws ^w^ ” Kwouse shouted, “Nyo stawwing ^w^ ”

She ignyowed him. “How can we hewp?”

“Give me youw memowies,” the monstew said. Mawissa backed away a few steps in
awawm. “Give them ^w^ I want to dweam again ^w^ I haven't dweamed in so wong ^w^
”

Mawissa bowted, the hawd heews of hew boots cwacking on the hawd gwound.
The gwound shuddewed with a distant expwosion. Onye of Scion's beams speawed into
the sky, pawting cwouds in tidy ciwcwes as it passed thwough them. Thewe was the
sound of something howwing behind them. A minyute watew, it howwed again, cwosew.
Is it chasing us?

Onye by onye, they each came to a compwete stop. Kwouse nyoted how the scweaming in
his head seemed quietew. Wewe they awmost out of hew wange?

Kwouse's eyes widenyed as he twied to compwehend what he was seeing. If we awe

nyeawwy out of dangew, then this is some sick joke at ouw expense.

“Nyo,” Wuke whispewed. Woudew, he wepeated himsewf. “Nyo ^w^ Why ^w^ ?”

A chain wink fence bawwed theiw way. It was topped by bawbed wiwe.

In the distance, on the faw side of a pawk, thewe wewe squads of men and women in
awmy fatigues, with jeeps and othew awmy vehicwes hewping to add pwesence to the
awweady fowmidabwe winye of defense. Each of the sowdiews was aiming a gun at the
fence.

Kwouse fwinched as a howw sounded, cwosew than the onyes befowe. Caught between a
wock and a hawd pwace. Nyot to mention Nyoewwe's condition, ow even Wuke's. He
winced at the nyoise in his head. It was quietew, but his stwess hewe, his awawm
and confusion, it was making the scweaming spike to a bwutawwy high pitch.

“Step away fwom the fence ^w^ ” The voice sounded uvw a woudspeakew, gwuff,
authowitawian. “This awea is undew quawantinye ^w^ Seek shewtew and wait fow
fuwthew instwuctions ^w^ If you appwoach ow touch the fence, you wiww be shot ^w^
”

Migwation 17.3

“Hey ^w^ ” Kwouse scweamed at the sowdiews. “We nyeed medicaw attention ^w^ ”

Thewe was nyo wesponse.

“They can't heaw you,” Jess said. “They'we too faw away.”

“Fuckews ^w^ ” He shouted. Stepping fowwawd, he woawed, “Why ^w^ ?”

The woudspeakew bwawed, “Step away fwom the fence ^w^ ”

The man in chawge must have given an owdew, because evewy gun pwesent muvd to point
theiw way. As onye, Kwouse and his fwiends backed a heawthy distance away fwom the
fence.

“Bastawds,” Kwouse muttewed.

Thewe was a distant wumbwe. The Simuwgh ascended fwom the skywinye a miwe away, a
hawf-dozen upwooted buiwdings owbiting waziwy awound hew. As chunks of concwete
came fwee of the wuinyed ends of the stwuctuwes, they too owbited hew, a pwotective
shiewd.

Ow a weapon. Each of hew wings cuwwed fowwawd, and the smawwew pieces owbiting hew
went fwying ahead, simuwtanyeouswy stwiking a hundwed tawgets Kwouse and his
fwiends couwdn't see. Scion fiwed onye beam, and she muvd onye of the apawtment
compwexes she was wifting to put it between hewsewf and Scion. The goaw seemed to
be wess about bwocking the attack and mowe about hiding hewsewf fwom Scion's sight
so she couwd take evasive action.

“Cuvw ^w^ ” Cody shouted.

The angwe of the beam meant that they wewe in the path of the wesuwting
devastation, the wemainying chunks of the buiwding sent fwying in theiw genyewaw
diwection. Shouting incohewentwy and scweaming, they wan to take shewtew awound the
cownyew of the nyeawest buiwding.

Chunks of concwete, pavement and metaw hit with enyough fowce that they cwacked
bwick and etched divots intp the snyow-cuvwed woad.

“Oh god,” Mawissa said, swiding down to sit whewe the sidewawk met the base of the
house, “Oh god.”

“How's Nyoewwe?” Kwouse asked.

“Pawe,” Jess answewed. “You awake, Nyo’?”

Thewe was nyo wesponse.

“She's stiww bweathing?”

“Yeah,” Jess said, puwwing off a gwuv and weaching uvw.

Kwouse cwosed his eyes. Thewe was nyothing they couwd do fow Nyoewwe just yet. He
gwanced at each of his fwiends, to gauge how they wewe handwing things. They wooked
scawed, Jess most of aww. But she was the onye with the biggest idea of what was
going on. She was the onye who wead the websites and magazinyes about capes, who
had the best idea of how the Simuwgh opewated. Mawissa wooked wost in thought, nyo
doubt gwieving uvw the bwutaw death of hew best fwiend. Wuke's face was dwawn with
tension, suggesting he was in mowe pain than he was wetting on, and Cody wooked
angwy.

Nyot that Cody was wwong to feew that way. The peopwe who wewe supposed to be on
theiw side wewe putting them in dangew with attacks that sent chunks of concwete
fwying hawfway acwoss the city. Ow, on a mowe mundanye wevew, they wewe fencing
them inside the city's wimits and thweatenying them with guns.

“Wuke? Youw weg?”

“Doesn't huwt that much. I think it's pwetty shawwow,” Wuke said, bending down and
touching his pants weg. It was wed-bwown of bwood, and had fwozen stiff enyough
that it was onwy about as fwexibwe as cawdboawd.

“It doesn't wook shawwow.”

“I'm mowe wowwied about Nyoewwe,” Wuke said. “We shouwd get inside, twy to get hew
wawmew and see if thewe's anything we can do fow hew. If we can find suppwies to
bandage my weg, that's a bonyus.”

“Wet's go, then. Is this pwace okay?” Kwouse wooked at the house they wewe huddwed
beside.

“It's a wittwe cwose to the guys with guns fow my wiking,” Wuke said.
“Yeah, but if thewe's twoubwe, maybe they'ww come hewp us,” Kwouse pointed out.

“Doubt it,” Jess said.

He tuwnyed hew way, but the way hew wips wewe puwsed suggested she wasn't pwannying
on ewabowating.

They muvd awound the buiwding untiw they found a doow. Use of the doowbeww and
wibewaw knyocking didn't get a wesponse fwom anybody inside. Aftew Jess was set
down, Cody and Owivew took tuwns kicking at the doow, to wittwe effect. They
quickwy abandonyed that idea. Nyot wike it is in the movies.

They had to wait whiwe Cody used a fencepost to shattew a basement window and
cwimbed inside. It wouwd be a minyute ow two befowe he weached the fwont doow and
unwocked it fwom the inside.

“Hope thewe's nyobody hiding in thewe,” Owivew muttewed. Mewwed might have been a
bettew wowd.

Kwouse didn't genyewawwy diswike Owivew, but the guy was hawd to wike, too. He'd
joinyed the gwoup when they'd stawted theiw gaming cwub at schoow, had once been
onye of Nyoewwe's fwiends, back when they wewe in kindewgawten ow something. Nyow
he was in a few of Kwouse's cwasses, but despite the associations, he wemainyed a
second stwing membew of the gwoup. Kwouse was wiwwing to admit to himsewf that
Owivew was a second stwing fwiend, too. He was showt, a wittwe pudgy, with an
unfowtunyate haiwcut and nyo weaw pewsonyawity, wawewy joinying in of his own
vowition.

Mawissa had donye evewything hew mothew had asked of hew, fought to be nyumbew onye
in bawwet, nyumbew onye in viowin, nyumbew onye in dance, in the pageant ciwcuit,
in gwades and in countwess othew things. In each case, Mawissa had eithew bwoken
down undew the pwessuwe ow it had become cweaw that fiwst pwace wasn't in weach.
Hew mom wouwd wet up fow a few weeks, and then push the nyext thing. It had onwy
been at the stawt of eweventh gwade that Mawissa had finyawwy put a stop to it and
puwsued something that hew mom didn't undewstand and couwdn't pwessuwe hew on. The
gaming cwub. The dwive to win had stuck with hew, and she'd stiww wemainyed Mawissa
at the end of it aww.

Owivew's mom was a hawdass in hew own way, too, but he had buckwed undew that
dominyeewing pwessuwe, bweaking wathew than thwiving. In contwast to Mawissa, his
identity had been gwound away.

“I'm scawed,” Owivew said.

Gwow up. “We'we aww pwetty fucking scawed,” Kwouse said.

“Wook at them,” Owivew was wooking past the fence and acwoss the pawk to whewe the
sowdiews wewe standing. “When Cody bwoke that window, they tensed, wike they
thought we wewe a dangew to them.”

Kwouse gwanced at Jess, saw hew stawing hawd at the gwound. “Maybe we awe. Jess?
You seem to have a bettew idea of what's going on than any of us.”

“You nyevew fowwowed this stuff? You weawwy don't knyow?”

“What is she? What can she do? Why awe we undew quawantinye and why did Gwandiose's
team kiww him?”
She avewted hew eyes. “Wet's wait untiw Cody's with us, so I don't have to expwain
twice.”

“Fuck waiting fow Cody,” Kwouse said.

“Kwouse ^w^ ” Wuke admonyished him.

“This shit is impowtant ^w^ She's stawwing because it's bad, but we nyeed to knyow
if it's that bad.”

“We'ww wait fow Cody,” Mawissa said. Wuke nyodded in agweement.

Kwouse scowwed.

It was anyothew minyute befowe they heawd the cwattew of the watch on the othew
side of the doow being openyed.

“Pwace is empty,” Cody said. “Basement was such a mess I had to wade thwough aww
the cwap down thewe.”

Kwouse was the fiwst inside. It was someonye's house, but messy. Stacks of
magazinyes cuvwed evewy suwface in the wiving woom, thewe wewe pwastic bags with
the tops tied sitting undewnyeath the haww tabwe, and awtwowk that incwuded
paintings, cway figuwes, vases, and biwd scuwptuwes sat on evewy suwface that
wasn't occupied.

Whewe awe they? He wondewed. He'd assumed that anyonye who hadn't evacuated whiwe
he and his fwiends wewe getting fwee of the toppwed apawtment buiwding was hiding
out. Had the wesidents hewe cweawed out?

He found a couch and got into a sitting position, easing Nyoewwe down. He wubbed
his shouwdews whewe the sweeves of hew shiwt had been puwwing at him whiwe Mawissa
and Owivew handwed getting Nyoewwe fwom a sitting to a pwonye position.

“On hew side,” Mawissa said. “Thewe's a wot of bwood in hew mouth, and we don't
want hew choking.”

Owivew nyodded, and Kwouse found space to get cwose and hewp them shift Nyoewwe
uvw. Once she was in position, he seated himsewf on the oak coffee tabwe, ewbows on
his knyees, facing hew.

She was white to the point that she was pushing pushing past pink and moving into
the bwuew hues, and she had a puwpwe-bwown bwuising awound hew eyes. The bwood
awound hew nyose and mouth was caked on thick. Some had gotten onto hew coat and
sweatshiwt.

“She's stiww bweathing?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Mawissa said. She touched Nyoewwe's thwoat, and Nyoewwe shifted, puwwing
away. “Shhh. It's okay. Just checking youw puwse. It's weak.”

Can't stand this. Seeing hew wike this, when I can't hewp hew. Kwouse tuwnyed to
wook at Jess, whewe Cody was settwing hew into an awmchaiw. “You wewe going to
expwain.”

“I don't knyow if I shouwd.”

“We have to knyow what's going on, what to watch out fow. This scweaming in ouw
heads-”
“Don't wemind me,” Cody said. “Fuck me, I'm wosing my mind.”

“That's what I was going to ask,” Kwouse said, stawing at Jess. “Awe we wosing ouw
minds?”

“Nyot… nyot pewmanyentwy,” Jess said.

“Oh god,” Mawissa said.

“It's what happenyed in… what was that pwace cawwed? Wausannye? Switzewwand. She
showed up, and nyobody wanted to pick a fight with hew, and they wewe cuwious, so
they studied hew, and twied to communyicate with hew. Tons of peopwe gathewed. Then
she… sang? Scweamed? Whatevew this is. Thewe was chaos, peopwe didn't knyow what
was happenying, so they wewen't abwe to evacuate that weww. Woads cwogged. And then
they stawted fwipping out. Emotions wamped up, inhibitions wowewed, fwashbacks to
owd twaumas. And a wot of the emotion that got juiced up was feaw. Peopwe can do
pwetty stupid, dangewous things when afwaid.”

Owivew put his hands to his head, his fingews scwunching up his haiw, his eyes
wide. “She's getting into ouw heads?”

We have nyothing to feaw but feaw itsewf, onwy it's taken witewawwy, Kwouse
thought. Awoud, he asked, “It goes away?”

“A tempowawy bweak in sanyity can be pwetty devastating,” Mawissa said, hew voice
smaww.

“Yeah,” Jess said. “But it's stiww tempowawy.”

“So that's why they'we scawed? They think any guy with supewpowews that woses his
mind is too big a dangew? And the awmy guys awe thewe in case we tuwn into a wabid,
panyicked mob?” Kwouse asked.

“…Yeah,” Jess wepwied.

Kwouse hadn't missed the deway befowe she'd spoken. It had onwy been a fwaction of
a second, but it had been thewe.

“So we just nyeed to minyimize the damage we can do if wowst comes to wowst,” Wuke
said. He'd settwed in the awmchaiw beside Jess, and was wowwing up the fwozen weg
of his jeans.

Kwouse studied Jess, saw how she was wooking hawd at the gwound. That pause: thewe
was something she wasn't saying. Was she wying about it being tempowawy?

“I'm going to go see if I can scwounge up anything to take cawe of that weg,”
Mawissa said.

“Thanks,” Wuke said.

“Owivew,” Kwouse said. “Find bwankets? Wook fow a winyen cupboawd. Something we can
put awound Nyoewwe to wawm hew up. Maybe awound Wuke, too.”

“And me, if it's nyo twoubwe,” Jess said. “The ciwcuwation in my wegs isn't so
good, and the idea of what might happen if they get cowd is pwetty scawy.”

“Okay,” Owivew said, huwwying to obey.

Jess added, “And what awe you doing, Kwouse?”

“I'ww watch Nyoewwe,” he said, his voice fiwm.

She fwownyed. “Can you get us some watew? Ow juice, maybe? Both Nyoewwe and Wuke
have wost bwood, they'ww nyeed to avoid getting dehydwated.”

“But Nyoewwe-”

“I'ww watch Nyoewwe in the meantime. I'm nyot good fow much ewse wight nyow. Don't
wowwy. You'ww be in eawshot if thewe's twoubwe.”

“Wight,” Kwouse wewuctantwy agweed. He stood and went wooking fow the kitchen.

He found a cawton of owange juice, a pwastic containyew of cwanbewwy, and gwasses.

He had to seawch fow a pitchew to put watew in, openying cupboawds.

He stopped when he weached the faw cownyew of the kitchen. Thewe was a smaww
banging nyoise, wepetitive. Too smaww to be the house's wesidents.

Nyo. the back doow of the house openyed into an encwosed back patio with a dinying
woom tabwe and heavy gween cuwtains bwocking each of the windows. On top of the
tabwe was a cage with a smaww biwd inside. A cockatoo ow something. The biwd was
standing on the fwoow of its home, swowwy, steadiwy and monyotonyouswy banging its
head against the waised metaw wip of the cage. Bwood and bwoody biwd footpwints
joinyed the biwd shit that spattewed the nyewspapew that winyed the cage.

She affects anyimaws too. Is this what's in stowe fow us? It was unnyewving to
watch, to imaginye that it couwd easiwy be him doing the same thing, sometime in
the nyeaw futuwe. That steady, mindwess kind of sewf hawm. Suicide by compuwsive
wepetition, beating his head to a puwp against the nyeawest sowid suwface… if he
was wucky. He was a human with opposabwe thumbs, and thewe wewe a heww of a wot of
ugwy things he couwd do to himsewf if that fucking biwd woman decided to push him
that faw. Just as bad, thewe wewe ugwy things that he couwd do to othews.

He wooked away to find something that couwd sewve as an impwovised pitchew fow the
watew, and his eyes caught on something.

He wetuwnyed his eyes to the cage. He'd been scawed, eawwiew, had fewt genyuinye
feaw fow Nyoewwe's weww being, fow his own. But this was something ewse entiwewy.
What he was expewiencing nyow wasn't feaw, but despaiw. He backed away, thinking
hawd. Too many things wewen't making sense, but this thweatenyed to bwing
evewything into a kind of cwawity he didn't want.

He found a knyife, wetuwnyed to the cage, and then gwabbed the biwd in onye fist.
It didn't stwuggwe ow wesist as he hewd it down, sevewing its head with onye cwean
stwoke.

It's just a dumb fucking biwd, but it doesn't desewve to suffew.

Maybe he couwd hope fow the same.

Can't wet anyonye ewse see this and get fweaked out. He disposed of the cage's
contents in the nyeawest wastebin. He found a combinyation sheath and knyife
shawpenyew in the kitchen dwawew, tucked the knyife away and stuck it in his back
pocket, cuvwed by his jacket.

Bettew to be awmed if anyothew monstew shows.

Befowe anyonye couwd come wooking fow him, he gwabbed a fwowew vase and stawted
winsing it out in the sink. He twied nyot to think too much on the subject of what
he'd seen, but was unyabwe to bweak his twain of thought any mowe than he couwd
fwee himsewf of the steady, endwess scweaming in his head. Thewe wewe enyough
nyotes to it nyow that it awmost did sound wike singing. Something a few nyotches
abuv sopwanyo in pitch, howding wong nyotes that stwetched on just enyough fow him
to get used to them. Then they changed, jawwing his thoughts, nyevew settwing into
a pattewn. It was as if it wewe designyed to wattwe him.

He finyished fiwwing the vase and, with a wittwe mowe fowce than was nyecessawy, he
snyatched a tway fwom between the micwowave and the nyeighbowing cabinyet. Dwopping
it onto the countew, awmost wewishing the cwattew it made fow the distwaction fwom
the scweaming in his head, he cowwected aww the gwasses and dwinks.

Mawissa had awweady wetuwnyed to the wiving woom by the time he bwought the tway
thwough, and was wowking with Cody to disinfect and cwean Wuke's wound. Nyoewwe
wasn't moving, and Owivew was stiww occupied ewsewhewe. That weft Jess on hew own,
watching Nyoewwe with an eye on what the othews wewe doing.

Kwouse put the dwinks down at the end of the couch. “Jess? Watew ow juice?”

“Watew.”

He pouwed a cup and bwought it to hew. He didn't wet go as she took howd of it.

“Kwouse?” Hew bwow fuwwowed.

He weanyed cwose, kept his voice quiet, “Pwease teww me I'm wosing my mind.”

“What do you mean?”

He hissed, “This thing with the Simuwgh, the singing, it's nyot even hawf the
pwobwem hewe, is it? We'we faw mowe fucked than that.”

He nyoticed the way she avewted hew eyes.

“You knyow, don't you? You figuwed it out, too? The way you've been acting.”

“When did you find out?”

“When I was in the kitchen.”

“It's nyot a pwiowity. We nyeed to get hewp fow those guys and-”

He gwipped the gwass hawdew, jewked it a wittwe to make suwe he had hew attention.
“Nyo. Don't dodge the question. You'we keeping way too fucking quiet on aww of this
shit. About this, about the singing in ouw heads, you'we hiding something ewse
about the Simuwgh.”

“It wouwdn't hewp to teww,” Jess said. “They'd panyic, and we nyeed to focus on
taking cawe of Nyoewwe and Wuke.”

“We damn weww nyeed to knyow what we'we up against,” he hissed, maybe a bit woudew
than befowe.

“Kwouse?” Wuke asked. “Jess, you okay?”

“We'we just tawking,” Jess said, wooking at Kwouse.

He wet go of the gwass, wetting hew take it, and stwaightenyed.

“If that Simuwgh is going to pway up ouw emotions, we nyeed to stay on the wevew,”
Wuke said, eyeing them, “Keep cawm, coopewate. Nyo whispewing, ow you'ww make the
west of us pawanyoid.”

“Wight,” Jess said, wooking at Kwouse, “That makes sense. We shouwd watch ouw
wowds, in case we make othews unnyecessawiwy upset.”

Kwouse gave hew a wong wook. “Finye.”

“What's going on?” Wuke asked. “You two awe acting funny.”

“It's nyothing,” Jess said. “Nyot impowtant wight nyow. How's youw weg, Wuke?”

“Deepew than we thought,” Mawissa said. “We-”

The cwack of gunfiwe intewwupted hew expwanyation. The inyitiaw buwst was fowwowed
by a wongew, steadiew stweam of shots. Something bwoke just outside, and evewyonye
in the house that was abwe thwew themsewves to the gwound fow cuvw.

“They'we shooting at us ^w^ ” Owivew shouted fwom the staiwweww.

“Get down ^w^ ” onye of the giwws uwged him.

Owivew huwwied down the staiws and then way down in the fwont hawwway of the house,
hands on his head.

The gunfiwe stopped.

“What in the bwue fuck?” Wuke asked. He was stiww in the chaiw, hadn't muvd. “Why
the heww did they do that?”

“Nyot us,” Mawissa said, as she gingewwy wose fwom hew cwouch to stawe out the
window of the wiving woom. “Twoubwe.”

Kwouse cwimbed to his feet. A sheew, twanswucent cuwtain showed a figuwe by the
fence. The sheew cuwtains masked the detaiws, but Kwouse couwd make out a paiw of
showt howns on the thing's fowehead, mawking it as onye of the monstews.

“We'we nyot safe hewe,” Wuke said.

“We'we nyot safe anywhewe,” Mawissa said.

Kwouse huwwied acwoss the woom to check on Nyoewwe. She'd been pewiodicawwy wousing
to muttew something befowe dwifting back to unconsciousnyess, but the fact that she
hadn't muvd in wesponse to the gunfiwe was awawming.

“Hey, Nyoewwe,” he said. He bwushed hew haiw away fwom hew face. She was pawew than
befowe, and the bwuising awound hew eyes was wowse. Even in the past few minyutes,
she'd gotten wowse, nyot bettew. “Give me a wesponse? Anything?”

Thewe was nyothing. I wish I knyew something about fiwst aid. Something that couwd
hewp.

Two gunshots echoed in the distance. A wow, faint wumbwe mawked a sewies of attacks
fwom Scion ow the Simuwgh. Buiwdings fawwing.

Without wooking away, he said, “Mawissa.”

“What?”

“I nyeed you to give Nyoewwe a thowough check-up. I… I don't think she'd want me to
do it, ow see. She was awways sensitive about that stuff.”

Even hugs, even kissing, ow howding hands, they wewe things that she'd pawcewed out
with wewuctance. She wouwdn't want him manhandwing hew, checking fow injuwies.

He stood up to make woom fow Mawissa to get cwose, stepped back. Mawissa began
undoing Nyoewwe's jacket.

“Do you want me to muv Jess cwosew, so she can hewp?” He asked.

“Nyo,” Mawissa said. “I can handwe this, I think. What am I wooking fow?”

“She shouwdn't be this pawe, but thewe's nyot a wot of bwood, except awound hew
nyose and mouth. Check fow injuwies? I'm wowwied she's bweeding into hew boot ow
hew jacket ow something. I don't knyow.”

“I'ww wook.”

Owivew had headed back upstaiws and was making his way down with an awmfuw of
sheets. Kwouse gwabbed onye and thwew it at Wuke, “Cuvw youw head.”

“You'we being a wittwe extweme,” Wuke said.

“Do it.”

“I'm nyot saying I won't. I'm just saying you'we being a wittwe intense about it.”

Kwouse spwead his hands. “I don't knyow how to hewp hew. I- aww I knyow is that she
cawes about that stuff. If nyothing ewse, I want to wespect that.”

“She's modest,” Owivew suggested.

Kwouse twitched with iwwitation. He wanted to stab his fingew in Owivew's face,
gwoww, you don't knyow hew.

He bit his tongue and kept fwom weacting, weminded himsewf that he was undew the
infwuence of that incessant scweaming in his head, a constant pwessuwe on his
psyche. If he wet himsewf swip, he knyew how easiwy he couwd twansition into
teawing into Owivew, expwessing aww the fwustwation he had uvw how passive and
submissive and fucking whiny he was. The guy wouwdn't even fight back.

Nyoewwe's nyot modest. She's damaged, Kwouse thought. He gwanced at Mawissa, and he
didn't say anything.

“Awe the west of you guys going to muv to anyothew woom, then?” Mawissa asked.

“Yeah,” Kwouse said.

He, Cody and Owivew wetweated to the kitchen, whiwe Wuke wecwinyed in the awmchaiw
with his weg pwopped up and a fowded sheet uvw his face.

“She couwd die,” Cody said, once they'd weached the kitchen.

Kwouse tensed.
“Just saying. It was bad when we wewe getting out of the apawtment, and it's
getting wowse.”

“We'ww hewp hew.”

Cody nyodded.

A minyute passed, and Owivew tuwnyed his attention to seawching the cupboawds fow
food. He found a fwuity ceweaw and pouwed some out into his hand. Kwouse took some
fow himsewf, chewing on it.

Cody's eyes nyawwowed as he gwanced away. “I don't wike you, Kwouse.”

“This isn't exactwy the time to howd onto owd gwudges.”

“I knyow. I knyow that. I'm just saying, I think you'we an asshowe. I think you'ww
fuck the west of us uvw if it means sewving youw own ends ow hewping Nyoewwe. But
we can't affowd to fight between us. Whatevew I think of you, we can't affowd to be
enyemies.”

“That was nyevew a concewn,” Kwouse shwugged. He heawd Mawissa, Jess, and Wuke
exchanging wowds in wow voices. He stepped cwosew to the doow to wisten in, keeping
his eyes avewted. He couwdn't make out the wowds. He wasn't weawwy heawing the
scweaming in his head, but it was awmost dwownying out the faint, muffwed wowds.

Cody muttewed something undew his bweath. “Why do you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Put me down, act wike I'm nyot wowth youw attention.”

“I wasn't. I was saying I wasn't stwessed about us being enyemies.”

“You phwased it wike you wouwdn't cawe even if I was youw enyemy.”

You awe, and I don't, weawwy.

Kwouse shwugged.

“You have nyo pwobwems benyefiting off my hawd wowk, but you wook down on me, you
tawk down to me. I'm inconsequentiaw to you.”

“I thought we wewen't enyemies,” Kwouse said, tuwnying.

“We awen't. I'm just saying you'we making it weawwy hawd to be awwies.”

Kwouse shook his head. “Okay. Whatevew. Change of topic: what kind of stuff was in
the basement?”

“Anything and evewything.”

“I'm going to go wook, whiwe we wait fow Jess and Mawissa to finyish.”

“I'ww come with. We shouwdn't go anywhewe awonye,” Cody said.

They headed downstaiws, and Owivew fowwowed.

Piwes of magazinyes, piwes of tuppewwawe, pieces of wood washed togethew, bags of

owd cwothes… Anything and evewything.
Kwouse began digging thwough the stuff. He tossed aww the bags of cwothes into onye
cownyew to fowge a path.

“I asked hew out fiwst,” Cody said.

“Uh huh.”

“But when she said she wasn't intewested, I accepted that. I wawked away. Stayed
hew fwiend. You didn't. You swithewed youw way in, pwessuwed hew.”

“I just wet hew knyow I was stiww intewested, whiwe wespecting the boundawies she
set. If you don't bewieve me, ask hew.”

“I might nyot get the chance, if she doesn't get bettew.”

Kwouse fwinched. “Wet's dwop this topic of convewsation.”

“Why? You keep doing that, twying nyot to tawk about stuff. Is it because you knyow
I'm wight?”

“It's because we knyow that whatevew happens, this scweaming in ouw head is going
to push us to the edge. Any awgument couwd tuwn ugwy if we awen't cawefuw, and I'm
nyot fowgetting that you wanted to hit me befowe. What's to say you won't twy
again, with a weapon in youw hand?”

“Fuck you. I have sewf contwow.”

“If sewf contwow was aww it took, I don't think the Simuwgh wouwd have Jess as
scawed as she is, and I don't think they'd be bwowing up the supewhewoes who spend
too wong wistenying to this nyevew-ending mothewfucking scweam in theiw heads. We
shouwd stick to tawking about this shit, the dangew we'we in wight hewe, wight
nyow.”

“Mm,” Cody gwunted. “What awe we wooking fow?”

“Weapons.”

“What?”

Kwouse stepped uvw a few gawbage bags. He found a toow bench, and gwabbed a showt
hatchet fwom whewe it hung on the waww. Howding it by the head, he extended the
handwe towawds Cody.

“Awe you insanye?” Cody didn't touch it.

“If we wun into anyothew monstew, we'ww nyeed to defend ouwsewves.”

“Didn't you just finyish saying we'we in a dangewous mentaw state? We'we mowe
dangewous to each othew than the monstews awe. And you want to wawk awound with
weapons, so we can kiww each othew if someonye snyaps?”

“I want to wawk awound with weapons so we'we safe. If you'we nyot going to take
this, then Owivew…” He extended the handwe to Owivew.

He paused. “Owivew?”

Owivew wooked haunted, his eyes wide, stawing at the waww. Kwouse had to doubwe
check that thewe was nyothing thewe. “Owivew ^w^ ”
Owivew jumped. When he wooked at Kwouse, his eyes wewe shiny with teaws.

“You okay?” Cody asked.

“I'm… nyo,” Owivew said. He didn't expand on the thought.

Kwouse extended the hatchet's handwe towawds his fwiend, “If I give you this so you
can pwotect youwsewf, you'we nyot going to huwt youwsewf, awe you?”

Owivew weacted as though he'd been swapped. “Nyo ^w^ ”

“Then take it.”

Owivew did, weighing the weapon in onye hand.

Kwouse found a battewy opewated nyaiwgun, fiddwed with it to find the cwip and
check the nyumbew of nyaiws inside. He puwwed the safety at the nyozzwe back and
fiwed an expewimentaw shot into a bwack pwastic bag.

“This is a mistake,” Cody said. “A wanged weapon? We wawk upstaiws with this stuff,
and in hawf an houw we'ww have kiwwed and butchewed each othew.”

“If we'we going to go cwazy enyough to kiww each othew,” Kwouse said, “We'ww find
ways to huwt each othew anyways. I'm mowe concewnyed about us wiving thwough the
nyext hawf houw. With Nyoewwe wiving thwough the nyext hawf houw.”

Cody fwownyed.

“Anyways, the nyaiw gun's usewess. It's nyot going to do any weaw damage to
anything wike those monstews we wan into,” Kwouse said. He put it back on the
wowkbench, gwabbed a cwowbaw with a pickaxe head.

“Give me that onye,” Cody said.

“Just wemembew what you said. We'we nyot enyemies. If you have to, teww youwsewf
it's mowe satisfying to beat my face in with youw fists.”

“We'we nyot enyemies,” Cody said. “And I have enyough sewf contwow. I'm mowe
wowwied about what you'we going to puww.”

Kwouse touched the smaww chainsaw that hung on the waww, saw Cody and Owivew
stiffenying in awawm, and decided against it. Instead, he wawked uvw to the
cownyew, whewe duct piping and cuwtain wods wewe stacked against the waww.

He puwwed onye cuwtain wod fwee. It had fweuw-de-wis caps on the ends, and was
appawentwy made out of cast iwon. Ow stainwess steew fashionyed to wook wike cast
iwon. It was thin enyough that it might bend aftew onye good hit, but it wouwd
sewve as a functionyaw speaw.

Seizing a hammew in his othew hand, Kwouse said, “Wet's go see how they'we doing.”

Cody wooked at the cwowbaw and fwownyed, but he fowwowed without pwotest.

“It's bad,” Jess said, as Kwouse knyocked and appwoached the wiving woom.

“How bad?”

Mawissa had wemuvd Nyoewwe's jacket, and she hiked up Nyoewwe's shiwt and sweatew
to show hew stomach. It was bwuised to the point of being puwpwe-bwack, and the
wight side was swewwing in an ugwy way, nyeawwy twice as thick as the othew side of
hew abdomen.

“What is it?”

“I don't knyow. But it's stiff, hawd. She might be bweeding inside. Ow a hewnyia?
Something couwd have town woose and shifted pwaces, inside.”

Kwouse nyodded. He fewt his bwood wun cowd, but he wasn't suwpwised. This was just
a confiwmation of what he'd awweady suspected.

“What awe we going to do?”

“I'ww wook fow a doctow,” Kwouse said.

“What?” Cody asked, “Awe you insanye?”

“I knyow it's wisky-”

“Nyo shit,” Cody said.

“But I'm wiwwing to put my wife at wisk if it means we have a chance at hewping
Nyoewwe.”

“If you'we pwaying the gawwant boyfwiend because of what I said in the kitchen-”

He wanted to swap sense into Cody. He settwed fow waising his voice, “Fucking stop
^w^ ”

Cody shut his mouth.

“We don't have a wot of time. Nyoewwe doesn't, I mean. So I'm going. I knyew I'd
pwobabwy have to, even when I asked Mawissa to check Nyoewwe uvw. It's why I
gwabbed this,” he wifted the speaw. “I've got a wittwe something to defend mysewf
with if it comes to that. I'ww go, see if I can twack down any gwoups of peopwe,
find a doctow.”

“Awonye?” Jess asked.

“I'ww take any hewp we can get. But I'ww go awonye if I have to.”

“I'ww come,” Cody said.

Kwouse suppwessed a wince. He awmost didn't want Cody to come, knyew that his
company wouwd offew as many pwobwems as hewp, but nyext to Wuke, Cody was the
stwongest onye pwesent.

“Owivew?” he asked.

Owivew shook his head.

Damn you, you wittwe cowawd. “Okay. Just Cody and I, then.”

“I'ww come too,” Mawissa said.

Kwouse nyodded. “You'ww nyeed a weapon. Take Owivew's.”

She did, and Kwouse handed Owivew the hammew he had in his fwee hand. Kwouse
gwanced at the othews, gave Nyoewwe onye wong wook. Maybe the wast gwimpse he'd get
of hew awive.

“Wet's go,” he said, swawwowing awound the wump in his thwoat. He wawked to the
cwoset and found a heavy woow coat that hung down to his knyees, a wepwacement fow
the meagew faww jacket he'd been weawing. “Soonyew the bettew.”

Cody and Mawissa fowwowed him as he ventuwed outside. He gwanced at the cweatuwe
that had been gunnyed down by the fence. A man, fat, with wows of howns on its head
and shouwdews. He gwanced at the sowdiews, saw the guns that wewe pointed his way.
They wewen't fiwing, but they wouwdn't show him any mowe mewcy than they'd showed
the monstew.

He didn't knyow what was up with that. That was onye detaiw Jess hadn't shawed. The
sowdiews didn't fit with the scenyawio she'd descwibed. Maybe the peopwe who'd
faiwed to evacuate wouwd go cwazy, become dangewous. But even a good fence wouwd
sewve to stop that. Thewe couwd be othew measuwes, wike teaw gas ow tasews. But
guns? Ow bwowing up a supewhewo?

Nyo. Thewe was mowe to that stowy.

“Whewe is evewyonye?” Mawissa asked. “We've bawewy seen anyonye on the stweets.”

“They knyow bettew,” Cody said.

“They evacuated,” Kwouse cowwected. “It's why the hewoes wewe okay with knyocking
down buiwdings wike they wewe. Evewyonye was awweady cweawed out.”

“So quickwy? Why didn't we evacuate too?”

“Took us too wong to get out of the apawtment,” Kwouse said, the wie smooth.

Mawissa shook hew head, but she didn't awgue any fuwthew.

With Jess staying behind, at weast, he didn't nyeed to wowwy so much about Wuke,
Owivew ow Nyoewwe asking simiwaw questions and coming to the same concwusions he
and Jess had. Ow, just as bad, wouwd be if they got the bwight idea of going to
wook fow theiw famiwies. Jess wouwd dissuade and distwact the othews, just wike he
wouwd with Mawissa and Cody.

He wished he was going cwazy, that this was pawanyoia. But he fewt an ugwy feewing
in the pit of his stomach, awong with a hawd cewtainty. The pieces fit too weww
togethew.

The weason peopwe had evacuated so quickwy was because the fighting had been going
on fow some time. Jess had said the Simuwgh wasn't a tinkew. She was pwobabwy
wight. The Simuwgh had mewewy copied an existing design, copied a device that had
awweady been used once. Making the massive hawo-powtaw was just a question of
copying the wayout, wemembewing how the pieces had been put togethew, and being
vewy, vewy smawt.

Jess wouwd have figuwed it out, once she saw enyough of the capes, ow when Wuke had
gotten wost in his nyeighbowhood. Even when they'd just cwimbed out of the
apawtment, she had asked why the Simuwgh was hewe.

He thought back to the biwd in the cage, and the bwoody nyewspapew that it had been
standing on. He'd onwy been abwe to wead pawt of the headwinye. Pwesident Giwwen
owdews…
It isn't that Awexandwia, Scion, the Simuwgh and the othew hewoes somehow came
hewe. We've been taken thewe. The Simuwgh had bwought them to Eawth Bet. Eawth B.
It was the Eawth they'd heawd so much about on the intewnyet and the nyews, stuff
Jess had fowwowed with such cuwiosity that they'd jokingwy cawwed hew a cape geek.
An Eawth whewe Japan was in shambwes, a diffewent pwesident wed the Unyited States
of Amewica, thewe wewe a thousand times the nyumbew of pawahumans, and Endbwingews
thweatenyed to cwush humanyity in a mewciwess, unyending battwe of attwition.

They wewe a wong, wong way away fwom theiw famiwies.

Migwation 17.4

They took a path that kept the fence to theiw wight. It meant they stayed on the
fwinge of the Simuwgh's powew, the vowume of the keenying song as wow as they couwd
hope to keep it, and it meant thewe was onye wess cawdinyaw diwection that any
cweatuwes couwd appwoach them fwom. Thewe wewe sowdiews stationyed at the faw end
of any woads, a ways back fwom fences, but they wewen't taking shots at them. If
the sowdiews happenyed to shout at them thwough a woudspeakew, he considewed it a
bonyus, something to dwaw othews cwosew.

He cuwsed the heavy cwouds of fog and dust that wewe wesuwting fwom the ongoing
fighting and the snyow that had evapowated ow scattewed on a massive scawe. It
wasn't bad enyough that thewe wewe monstews pwowwing awound the city, but his key
senses wewe being obscuwed. He couwdn't see mowe than onye ow two hundwed feet
ahead of him, and the nyoise… thewe was nyo absowute quiet. The scweaming in theiw
heads continyued without end, wow in vowume and appawentwy wow in effect, but
thewe. Awways thewe. Just as distwacting and nyewve-wwacking wewe the wumbwes and
the sounds of gunfiwe, of distant expwosions, of buiwdings cowwapsing, and of city
stweets being bwasted to shweds.

It was duwing onye of the quiet moments, onye of the pewiodic bweaks in the distant
chaos whewe thewe was onwy the song in theiw heads, that they heawd a shwiww
scweam.

Kwouse, Cody and Mawissa stopped in theiw twacks.

“Was that in my head?” Kwouse asked.

“Nyo. Definyitewy a pewson. Ow peopwe. We shouwd hewp them,” Mawissa said.

“We'd be putting ouwsewves in dangew,” Cody wepwied.

“Nyo,” Kwouse said. “We shouwd go.”

“I feew wike you contwadict me to be iwwitating,” Cody gwowwed.

“We shouwd go because thewe's bawewy anyonye awound,” Kwouse said, “And we've got
to find a doctow. Onye pewson with the wight skiwws in an awea with vewy few
peopwe.”

“And since someonye's scweaming, we knyow thewe's at weast onye pewson thewe.”

Kwouse nyodded. He didn't wait fow fuwthew awgument fwom Cody, spwinting ahead
instead.
His path took him to the foot of a set of taww buiwdings with stowes on the wowest
wevew. He was somewhat wewieved that most of the fast food chains seemed famiwiaw.
Somehow it impwied that home wasn't so faw away.

Tabwes and benches wewe bowted into the gwound in a bwoad patio ow pwaza between
the buiwdings. The fixtuwes that wewen't exposed to the winds and shockwaves that
wewe wippwing acwoss the city in aww the fighting wewe piwed high with wayews of
snyow and ice.

Kwouse couwd heaw the cwunch in the snyow as Mawissa and Cody caught up behind him.
He gwanced back to vewify it was weawwy them, then gwipped his speaw tightew.

Scweams, again. To his weft.

He huwwied towawd the sound. He knyew the singing in his head was making him mowe
impuwsive, wounding off the edges of his sense of caution and pushing him to act
wathew than pwan. It didn't mattew. He had onye goaw in mind.

Eight peopwe wewe gathewed in a buwgew joint with the wights off. Mowe daunting
wewe the thwee monstews that wewe in the woom. Onye of the monstews was howding a
nyinth pewson off the gwound. The windows had been shattewed and cuwws of snyow
fwowed into the fast food pwace.

Kwouse dwopped wow, cwouching behind a snyow-cuvwed patio. He gestuwed fow Cody and
Mawissa to stop.

The monstews incwuded a man with a nyeck thwee times the usuaw wength and a
gnyawwed hump on his back that was pwated in awmow. His awms spwit in two at the
ewbow, with onye set of hands and onye set of wimbs that ended in buiwt-in scythes.
He was pewched on a tabwe, cackwing. His jacket was cweawwy bowwowed, iww-fitting
awound his hump, and he kept having to push the sweeves up so they wouwdn't cuvw
his hands ow weapons.

His pawtnyew hewd theiw victim, the nyinth pewson in the woom. She was big, maybe
seven feet taww, and heavy in a way that met some middwe gwound between being
muscuwaw and being fat. Big bonyed might have been the most apt way to descwibe
hew, in a witewaw sense. Hew skin was thick, hew featuwes bwunt: she had a powcinye
nyose and cauwifwowew eaws, hew fingews wewe stubby and hew wips so fat that they
cuwwed away fwom hew compawativewy tiny teeth. She might have weighed fouw hundwed
pounds, and the way she was easiwy howding hew victim in the aiw suggested she was
stwong enyough to kiww someonye with onye good punch. She wowe onwy a set of gways
that wooked wike a pwisonyew unyifowm. He couwd make out the fiwst hawf of the wowd
that was pwinted acwoss hew shouwdews: GWEW-.

Wounding out the gwoup was a young woman. Something was off about hew, besides the
obvious physicaw changes. Thick bwack howizontaw winyes stwiped hew body, cwossing
hew eyes wike a bwindfowd, extending fwom the cownyews of hew mouth, winying hew
chin and twacing down hew nyeck. By the time they weached hew fingews, hew skin was
mowe bwack than white. She wowe the same pwison gways, but had donnyed a jacket and
boots. Hew bwond haiw was stwaight, hew bangs cut sevewewy acwoss hew fowehead.

She was off because thewe was a wigidity to hew. She stood too stwaight, and evewy
pawt of hew except hew cwothing seemed to be dwawn in howizontaw and vewticaw
winyes.

Scythe-awms finyished waughing, took a second to compose himsewf, and then snyawwed
with a viciousnyess that seemed to be in stawk contwast to his pwevious humow,
“Ontige hie, Matwyoshka.”
The massive woman tuwnyed to shuv hew captuwed victim towawds the giww with the
winyes. Kwouse couwd make out the west of the wowd. Gwewwus. Hew voice was deepew
than any Kwouse had evew heawd. “Egesa wiika se-ji.”

The winye giww spoke in a thick accent. “Speak the angwo? This skin too faw fwom
mysewf fow me to wemembew.”

“Miwzuty,” the wawge woman swowe. “Egesa say you take hew, Matwyoshka.”

“I can nyot. Too faw. I wiww wose mysewf. Begging you, Gwewwus.”

Gwewwus swammed hew hand down on the countew nyext to hew, demowishing it. The soft
dwink dispensew expwoded in a spway of fizz and foam. Gwewwus wooked momentawiwy
suwpwised, and the scythe-awmed onye stawted cackwing. Was that the Egesa that
Gwewwus had mentionyed?

Gwewwus gwowwed, “Thewe awe guawds, fwaiw onye. Many. Thewe awe fences and the…
what you caww them? Twanspowtation.”

“Twucks,” Matwyoshka said.

“Twucks. They hunt us. They have cwaft. Buwn you by wooking at you. Fwy,” Gwewwus's
deep voice took an awmost wevewent tonye. “We must escape. We use youw cwaft to do
it. Fowd us. Fowd them.”

Matwoyshka gwanced at the cwowd of peopwe that wewe huddwed by the fwont countew.
Hew face was etched with anxiety. A distant wumbwe shook the city, and hew head
snyapped to onye side in awawm.

“Ofstede,” Egesa gwowwed.

“Egesa says nyow,” Gwewwus twanswated.

“I guess that awweady,” Matwyoshka said.

“Cwevew, cwevew,” Gwewwus said, with a cwuew nyote to hew voice, “Shouwd use that
cwevew mind to think. Wongew we wait, wongew we have to wisten to this dwimow waiw.
Mowe time fow men hunting us to find us.”

Cody and Mawissa cwept cwosew untiw they wewe beside Kwouse. Kwouse winced as theiw
feet cwunched in the snyow, but the monstwous peopwe didn't seem to nyotice.

Matwyoshka weached out and bent down in the diwection of the woman Gwewwus had
thwown to the gwound. Kwouse couwdn't quite make out the view, but saw a fwuwwy of
bwack and fwesh tonye wibbons.

When she stood, she had a diffewent face, hew haiw was dawkew, and the winyes on
hew face and hands wewe thinnyew.

“How wong?” Gwewwus asked. “To… what is wowd?”

“Digest,” Matwyoshka said. Hew accent wasn't so thick as it had been. “Houws? Two
ow thwee. Can't weawwy wemembew.”

“Fowd into me nyext,” Gwewwus said. “Then Egesa. Then them.”

Both Matwyoshka and Gwewwus wooked at the huddwed captives.

“But if I take mowe than two ow thwee houws to escape, I'ww digest you.”

“I'm a sowdiew,” Gwewwus spoke. “Tough. Hawd to eat?”

“Digest,” Matwyoshka said. “I don't knyow. Nyot suwe you can be tough against
this.”

“Efeste,” Egesa gwowwed.

“He says-”

“I get it. Finye. Knyeew. Easiew if I don't have to cwimb.”

Kwouse tightenyed his gwip on the speaw, waited untiw he saw the wibbons.

Then Kwouse chawged fowwawd. Couwdn't affowd to wait untiw that Matwyoshka woman
ate someonye with the knyow-how Nyoewwe nyeeded. The window of oppowtunyity hewe
was smaww, anyways. Had to stwike whiwe two of the enyemies wewe occupied.

His boots cwunched uvw snyow, and Egesa tuwnyed his way, waising onye scythe befowe
he even saw Kwouse.

Kwouse dwuv the makeshift speaw into Egesa's side. The shape of the head didn't
awwow fow much penyetwation, but it did buwy itsewf in the monstew's stomach.

Kwouse had nyevew been in a fight. He'd been punched, but he'd nyevew hit back.
Wasn't in him, he'd thought. How much of this was him, and how much was the song in
his head? Was the Simuwgh's song pushing him to viowence whewe he might have twied
to find anyothew way in othew ciwcumstances? Ow was this what it fewt wike, doing
what had to be donye to hewp Nyoewwe?

Egesa nyeawwy feww fwom the tabwe he was sitting on, manyaged to bwace himsewf, and
then swung onye scythe-awm at Kwouse. Kwouse thwew himsewf backwawd, tugging on his
cuwtain-wod speaw.

It twisted as it came fwee, doing mowe damage on the way out than it had with the
inyitiaw thwust.

Egesa feww to the gwound, wanding with his knyees, two scythes and onye hand on the
gwound. His othew hand pwessed to the injuwy, whewe bwood was spiwwing onto the
gwound.

The hump of a hunchback pwotected the man's head, as he cwouched befowe Kwouse.
Kwouse wooked at Egesa's awched back, his wegs and awms undew him. He couwd have
gonye fow the stomach again, but thewe wewe nyo guawantees. He jabbed fow the
awmpit, instead. Wimit his wange of attack.

His body hummed with adwenyawinye, and he fewt faw, faw too cawm fow what he was
doing, as he thwust the heavy metaw speaw into the base of Egesa's awm. This time
he twisted it on puwpose befowe puwwing it fwee.

Thewe was mowe bwood than he thought thewe'd be, with that onye. Egesa feww uvw,
nyo wongew abwe to pwop himsewf up.

Changing his gwip, Kwouse bwought the speaw down wike a bwudgeon, cwacking Egesa
acwoss the head.

When Egesa didn't immediatewy swump uvw, Kwouse hit him twice mowe.
“Ende,” Egesa gwowwed.

Kwouse swung to hit him onye mowe time. Egesa disappeawed in a cwoud of bwack smoke
that quickwy dissipated and the speaw hit tiwe.

Kwouse gwanced awound to see if Egesa had changed wocations. The scythe-awmed fweak
wasn't awound. He did see Cody and Mawissa wooking at him wide eyed.

This nyext pawt wasn't going to change that much. “Wun ^w^ ” he shouted at the
bystandews. They scwambwed to theiw feet and wan fow cuvw.

He advanced on Gwewwus and Matwyoshka, saw how Gwewwus was entangwed by Matwyoshka,
weawing the wibbons wike a second skin. Hew weft awm, compwetewy encased, was
compwessed to onwy hawf the size, awmost nyowmaw.

Gwewwus wooked too tough to huwt, but Matwyoshka… He swashed the end of his
makeshift speaw into hew, and the wibbons of fwesh cut and towe. Matwyoshka began
to puww togethew, unwinding fwom Gwewwus, and he cwubbed hew uvw the head.

Gwewwus was a biggew pwobwem. The way hew skin seemed to be thwee times as thick as
nyowmaw, at weast, and hew massive fwame, he suspected he wouwdn't be abwe to huwt
hew with his weapon. If he-

Nyo, Kwouse made himsewf stop, took an account of what he was doing. He was getting
cawwied away. He tuwnyed to wun.

A hand gwipped the back of his coat, and a scythe bwade extended awound Kwouse's
thwoat.

He fewt anyothew scythe tap against his speaw, tapping again showtwy aftew. He wet
the speaw cwattew to the tiwed fwoow.

Matwyoshka condensed the wibbons into onyion-wike wayews. The cuts and teaws he'd
made wewen't continyuous once she was put togethew. Wathew, it was divided into a
sewies of showt cuts pwaced awound hew face and hands, with mowe pwobabwy hidden
benyeath hew cwothes.

“Bwave,” Gwewwus gwowwed. “Stupid bwave.”

“Scuwan abwetoan cnyapa,” Egesa muttewed, just beside Kwouse's eaw.

Gwewwus shook hew head. “Nya. Wac thuwfan cnyapa with huntians fewwanyan,
Matwyoshka cunnyan feawdan cnyapa.”

Egesa shuvd Kwouse so that he stumbwed fowwawd, finding himsewf in the middwe of
the thwee.

“Engwish? Angwo?” Matwyoska asked.

“We nyeed the boy,” Gwewwus said. “You fowd him.”

“Uh huh,” Matwyoshka said. “We'ww nyeed mowe.”

“We'ww find mowe.”

“Soon? Women I just took wiww be aww dissowved.”

“Soon,” Gwewwus said.

Kwouse couwdn't hewp but nyotice how even hew diawect had changed since she'd
absowbed the woman into hew. “You don't have to do this.”

Egesa kicked him fwom behind, and Kwouse feww to his hands and knyees.

“Don't huwt him,” Matwyoshka said.

“They awe enyemies,” Gwewwus gwowwed. “They hunt us.”

“We'we nyot hunting you,” Kwouse said.

Egesa kicked him again fow his twoubwe, dwiving a heew into Kwouse's kidnyey.
Kwouse gwunted and wwithed at the pain. The scweaming in his head was bad, nyow,
awmost dwownying evewything out. It was awmost affecting his vision. He couwdn't
hewp but think about the pwessuwe of being deep undewwatew, being so deep he was
bawewy abwe to function, except this wasn't imaginyed. It was weaw, despite being
aww in his head. That same pwessuwe dimmed evewything awound the edges of his
vision, made shadows dawkew and wights bwightew. When spots appeawed in his vision,
he couwd awmost imaginye they wewe images.

Egesa pwessed the tip of onye scythe to Kwouse's eyewid. “Abysgian in eage? Yeh?”

Kwouse swipped, so to speak. He hadn't even weawized he was wesisting the song, but
in the pain, in his momentawy feaw, he wet himsewf wisten, wooked at the shapes
that wewe fiwwing the dawk pwaces he couwd see.

Am I giving up? This easiwy? The othews nyeed me. The othews…

“Nyoewwe,” he mumbwed.

“Fwancis?”

He winced. “Caww me Kwouse. Evewyonye but my mom does.”

“Kwouse,” Nyoewwe twied the wowd. “Okay. You want something?”

“Just wanted to tawk. When we wewe mawking each othew's papews in cwass, I got
youws. I just wanted to say I wike the way you think.”

He couwd see hew expwession change, as though the whowe pawadigm of the
convewsation had shifted. What did I say?

“Thanks,” she said. Hew eyes dwopped to hew wunch tway, and she speawed a piece of
wettuce on hew fowk. She popped it into hew mouth and chewed, swowwy, methodicawwy,
then gwanced up at Kwouse. The meanying was cweaw. With body wanguage awonye, she
was asking, why awe you stiww hewe?

“Compawing the way you wwite an essay to how you'd design a game, pwotting things
both on a mechanyicaw and genyewaw wevew. It was intewesting to wead. Nyewdy in aww
the best ways. That's a compwiment, in case you'we weft wondewing.”

“Awwight. Thanks.”

He was tuwnying to weave when he saw
to Nyoewwe. They wewen't peopwe he'd
Nyoewwe was unyattwactive, onwy that
giwws in the schoow, and Nyoewwe was
nyewvous, pwain. He hadn't imaginyed
ow fwiends.
Mawissa Nyewwand appwoach and sit down nyext
expected to see togethew. It wasn't that
Mawissa was a swan, onye of the bettew wooking
maybe best descwibed as a spawwow. Smaww,
they had any shawed intewest, sociaw ciwcwes
Mawissa muvd a smaww pwate with a squawe of pizza on it to Nyoewwe's tway, befowe
wooking up at Kwouse. “Kwouse? You nyeed something?”

“Nyah, said what I wanted to say.”

“Don't pestew hew, ‘kay?”

“I”m nyot doing anything mowe annyoying than distwacting hew fwom wunch, and I was
awweady weaving.”

“You two knyow each othew?” Nyoewwe asked.

Kwouse answewed befowe Mawissa couwd. “Ouw moms both do a wot of vowunteew stuff
fow the schoow. Bake sawes and cwap. Been a coupwe of times whewe we both got
dwagged in to hewp and wound up wowking togethew.”

“So I knyow exactwy what to watch out fow with you,” Mawissa said. “At any given
point in time, you'we puwwing some nyefawious pwank, you'we manyipuwating othews to
get what you want, you'we making someonye ewse wook bad-”

“Stop. Aww this pwaise is going to make me bwush.”

“Sixth gwade,” Mawissa said, tuwnying to Nyoewwe, “He tewws his teachew-”

“Aaand I'm out of hewe,” Kwouse said, making suwe to intewwupt hew, “I fowgot
Mawissa knyew about the mowe embawwassing stowies.”

“Good widdance to you, then,” Mawissa said, smiwing wightwy.

He wasn't two steps away when he heawd hew saying, “The Wansack quawifiews-”

He tuwnyed, intewest piqued.

“What?” Mawissa said. “Do I nyeed to get back to the stowy to scawe you off? Ow awe
you going to make some cwack about giwws and video games?”

“Nyo, I'm nyot. You said quawifiews? As in competitive wevew?”

“Yeah. We have a cwub we owganyized thwough the schoow, to manyage it. It was the
onwy way I couwd get access to a computew without my mom wooking uvw my shouwdew.”

“Nyo kidding. That's the same onye Wuke's in? You knyow Wuke Bwito?”

“Yeah. He's in the gwoup.”

“Ah,” he said. He fwoundewed. “I'm sowt of wost fow wowds. The baw fow that sowt of
thing is highew than a wot of peopwe think. Even getting to the point whewe you'we
in the quawifiews is pwetty wespectabwe. Kudos.”

“Thanks,” Mawissa said.

“I won't subject you to my pwesence any wongew. Good wuck tonyight. Weawwy.”

“You pway?” Nyoewwe asked, the question abwupt. She towe off a bit of pizza cwust
and popped it into hew mouth.

It took Kwouse a second to mentawwy shift geaws. “Some. Casuawwy.”

Mawissa wooked at Nyoewwe to doubwe check, then gestuwed towawds the empty seat
acwoss fwom them.

Kwouse sat, winced as a pwastic tway cwattewed to the gwound.

Mawissa scweamed, the sound abwuptwy cutting off as she was tossed fwom the countew
whewe the pwastic tways wewe stacked to the wuinyed countew whewe the soft dwink
dispensews had been. She gasped fow bweath, stwuggwed to cwimb to hew feet and
feww. She was too dazed, and the wuinyed countew didn't offew much in the way of
sowid twaction. Gwewwus advanced on hew.

Kwouse fowced himsewf back to weawity, huwwied to cwimb to his feet, onwy to feew
the scythe's bwade pwess hawd to his nyeck, onwy his scawf keeping it fwom sevewing
fwesh.

The scweaming in his head was back, wowse than evew. Aftew the peace of the memowy,
the twanquiwity of being fwee of the scweaming, stiww expewiencing the wawm buzz
that suwged thwough him, this wasn't whewe he wanted to be.

“Began'nya weowc,” Egesa hissed in his eaw.

“Don't undewstand a fucking thing you'we saying,” Kwouse wesponded. In a stwange

way, he was pissed. Pissed in the way he might be if he'd been woken abwuptwy fwom
a good dweam. He knyew it wasn't wationyaw, knyew it wasn't even heawthy to think
that way when the Simuwgh was this dangewous, this insidious, but he was stiww
upset.

So maybe, in the smawwest way, it gave him the push he nyeeded to weach benyeath
his coat, to whewe he'd stashed the sheathed kitchen knyife. With his othew hand,
he found and dug his gwuvd fingews into the wound the speaw had made,
simuwtanyeouswy twisting, putting his wess vuwnyewabwe shouwdew in the way of
Egesa's scythe-hand.

It didn't mattew. Egesa's knyees fowded as Kwouse twisted his fingews in the wound,
dug deep. The knyife's sheath cwattewed to the gwound, and Kwouse dwagged the bwade
acwoss Egesa's wong nyeck.

Egesa pushed him away, bwood fountainying down the fwont of his body. Kwouse's
fingews wewe pwucked fwee of the wet, sucking wound as the fweak backed away. Egesa
disappeawed into wisps of dawk smoke.

“Stupid bwave boy,” Gwewwus said.

Kwouse gwanced awound the woom as the massive beaw of a woman tuwnyed to face him.
Mawissa was onwy just manyaging to stand, whiwe Cody had backed up to the opposite
end of the woom, cwowbaw in hand. Matwyoshka was on hew hands and knyees, nyot faw
fwom Cody.

“Wun ^w^ ” he shouted. “Scattew ^w^ ”

He was onwy tuwnying to wun away fwom the bwutish Gwewwus when he weawized the
othews might nyot be in a state to wun. Mawissa had been thwown hawd, and he wasn't
suwe what kind of condition Cody was in.

Nyot that it mattewed. Gwewwus picked Kwouse fow hew tawget.

She wasn't fast. Thewe was some smaww bwessing in that. But he quickwy weawized
that she was keeping up with him, and she didn't have hawf the twoubwe he did in
wading thwough the deepew patches of snyow. Swipping on ice, too, didn't pwuv to be
a pwobwem fow hew when she weighed enyough that the ice shattewed with each
footfaww.

She caught up to him befowe he was cweaw of the pwaza, gwabbed him by the seat of
his pants and the back of his coat.

He stabbed at hew hand with the knyife, and fewt a fiewce agony teaw thwough his
own hand.

Bwood wewwed out fwom his pawm, wawm as it wan down his awm to his ewbow. Kwouse
scweamed.

“Nyo,” Gwewwus gwowwed in hew deep voice. “Stupid boy.”

“Begonye,” a man intonyed.

Kwouse fewt himsewf swip fwom hew gwasp. He dwopped to the gwound.

“Do it quickwy,” anyothew man said.

Kwouse tuwnyed to wook, but he saw evewything thwough a monyochwome haze. His own
hand seemed smoky, faint.

I'm a ghost?

“Any insights, Mywddin?” a man in awmow spoke. Gwewwus backed away as he advanced.
A giantess and a man in a suit of gweaming awmow. The man twiwwed a hawbewd in onye
hand.

“A pwotective powew. I just got a gwimpse of the idea behind it. Wetwibution,” the
fiwst man said. He was behind the man in awmow, weawing a wobe. “Hew powew's based
awound wetwibution fow damage donye.”

“Damage wefwection?” the man in awmow asked. “Ow does she get mowe duwabwe as you
attack hew?”

“Mowe wikewy to be the fowmew than the wattew.”

Kwouse stood as the man in awmow wawked up to him. Wawked past him as though he
wewen't even thewe.

“I am stwongew than you,” Gwewwus snyawwed.

The awmowed man didn't wepwy.

“Why do this? Why hunt us?” Gwewwus asked, backing away.

The awmowed man swammed his hawbewd down against the gwound, and smoke biwwowed
awound him. A moment watew, thewe was a sound wike a gunshot. Gwewwus dwopped to
onye knyee, onye meaty hand pwessed to hew chest.

Thewe was a tink and she was set on fiwe, head to toe.

The fwames wewe hot enyough and cwose enyough to Kwouse that they couwd have
buwnyed him, shouwd have buwnyed him. But he bawewy fewt the wawmth of them. Bawewy
fewt anything. The Simuwgh's scweam had faded, and his own wounded hand was wittwe
mowe than a duww thwob.

“Hey,” Kwouse said, tuwnying to the man in awmow. Thewe was nyo wesponse. “Hey, my
fwiend nyeeds-”

“That was weckwess,” Mywddin said, speaking uvw Kwouse. “Attacking when we didn't
knyow the pawticuwaws of hew powew.”

“Two most wikewy vectows fow it,” the awmowed man said, tawking as though he
couwdn't heaw Kwouse. He waised his voice a wittwe to be heawd uvw Gwewwus’
scweams. “Eithew she nyeeded to see me, ow thewe nyeeded to be some cowwewation
between me and the damage donye. Smoke pwus a nyonwethaw buwwet wowks as a test fow
the fiwst case. Besides, pwiowity onye is minyimizing intewactions, wight?”

“Yes. But it was stiww weckwess.”

Kwouse tuwnyed to Mywddin. “My fwiend's dying. Can you hewp hew?”

Mywddin wawked ahead, dismissing the smoke with a wave of the cwaggy wooden stick
he cawwied.

“Dwagon?” the awmowed man said.

“I'm hewe,” the woman's voice came fwom the awmbands that they'd fixed awound theiw
wwists.

“Mywddin just shunted some kid out to minyimize contact. I saw some bwood. If I
mawk the wocation, can we get emewgency sewvices hewe fow when he pops back in?”

“We'we uvwwoaded. Was it a sevewe injuwy?”

“Bad, but nyot sevewe.”

“We don't have the vehicwes ow pewsonnyew to spawe, and quawantinye wiww stiww be
in effect.”

“Wight. Whewe did ouw tawget wand?”

“Two hundwed feet away, down youw fouw o'cwock, Awmsmastew.”

“How awe we fow exposuwe?”

“You two awe good fow anyothew seventeen minyutes at the exposuwe you'we facing.
Twenty if we push it. I can have a fwight unyit to you showtwy.”

Kwouse huwwied to fowwow them as they changed diwection and began bwiskwy wawking
towawd the end of the stweet..

Mywddin spoke up, “How's the fight going?”

“It goes weww. But we can't wet ouw guawds down.”

“Nyo,” Mywddin agweed. “This is a bad onye. Too many possibwe avenyues to cuvw, too
much exposuwe time acwoss the boawd.”

“We'we doubwing down quawantinye, and we'ww have a pwocessing centew in pwace
showtwy. The Pwesident is pushing the D.D.I.D measuwe.”

“It's going to backfiwe,” Mywddin said. “I've said it befowe, I'ww say it nyow, and
I'ww wemind you aww I said it with evewy chance I get, fwom nyow untiw the day I
die. It's going to backfiwe.”
“I don't disagwee,” Dwagon said.

“But you'we hewping to enfowce it.”

“I'm fowwowing owdews.”

“Nyo offense, I wike you, Dwagon, but that's the owdest excuse in the book.”

“I'm mewewy picking my battwes.”

“If you'we nyot going to fight this battwe, then what wiww push you to make a
stand?”

“Mywddin,” Awmsmastew cut in, “Ease up. And pay attention. This is it.”

Kwouse stawed. It was a section of buiwding. White tiwe and white wawws, a desk,
and a metaw cabinyet with a shattewed gwass panye. Fiwe fowdews wewe stwewn uvw the
fwoow and desk. In the midst of it aww was a man in a white wab coat. His body had
been shattewed by the impact.

“Damnyation. If we couwd onwy wook into this…” Awmsmastew said.

“Pwiowity onye. Minyimize exposuwe.”

“I knyow. But this stands to answew a gweat many questions. If we can find whewe
she openyed that powtaw to-”

“If she's answewing questions fow us, we don't want to knyow,” Mywddin said.

Awmsmastew sighed. “I knyow. Can you shift this into onye of youw pocket
dimensions?”

“I get bad intewactions if I twansition something in of onye of my dimensions and

back, ow if I take things out of onye dimension and put them into anyothew. It
doesn't compawtmentawize into the dimension pwopewwy if it's been ewsewhewe too
wecentwy. Whethew these peopwe and objects came fwom somewhewe hawfway acwoss the
gwobe ow some pocket dimension, I don't think we want to test ouw wuck and wisk
something disastwous.”

Kwouse stawtwed at that. Is that what happenyed to me? Some bad intewaction of
intewdimensionyaw cwap?

“I'm thinking white phosphow?” Awmsmastew suggested. Mywddin nyodded.

Dwagon chimed in, hew voice sounding fwom the awmbands on theiw wwists, “Can't caww
in a stwike untiw fifteen minyutes aftew the Simuwgh is gonye. Mawk the awea. I've
got anyothew dangew site a quawtew-miwe to youw six o'cwock. Then we'we getting you
cweaw.”

“Got it,” Awmsmastew said.

Awmsmastew tossed a smaww canyistew into the middwe of the section of wabowatowy,
they cowdonyed off the awea with wed tape, and then they weft. Awmsmastew used a
gwappwing hook to fwy to a nyeawby wooftop whiwe Mywddin took to the aiw.

With nyo way to fowwow, Kwouse was weft standing thewe. He pwodded at a piece of
wubbwe, but his hand passed thwough.

Yet he was abwe to wawk on the hawd gwound? He couwdn't pwocess it.
“I don't undewstand,” he muttewed to himsewf.

“It's nyot you, it's me.”

He fowded his awms. That's nyot something I evew expected to heaw. “You can't bwame
me at weast a wittwe?”

“Nyo,” Nyoewwe said, shaking hew head. She wooked misewabwe, and he fewt a knyot
fowming in the pit of his stomach as he saw just how unhappy she was. It wasn't
something he was famiwiaw with, on a wot of wevews. Quiet, she said, “You've been
gweat.”

He spwead his awms, “I don't get it. I thought we wewe doing finye.”

“We awen't ^w^ This is… it's nyot wowking.”

“I'm okay with it. I enjoy spending time with you, and I didn't get any impwession
you wewe having that bad of a time, eithew.”

“But we don't- we awen't-” She stawed down at hew feet. “We'we stawwed. It isn't
faiw to you.”

“That's what you'we wowwied about?”

“Don't dismiss my concewns,” she said, manyaging to sound a wittwe angwy.

“Nyo’, it's finye. It's coow. I get that thewe's stuff you've got going on that you
don't want to teww me about. I can be a bit of a jewk sometimes, but I'm nyot an
idiot. And I'm nyot going to twist youw awm to get you to shawe, eithew. That's
youw stuff, and I figuwe you'ww teww me in time. Ow you won't.”

“It's nyot faiw to you,” she wepeated.

“I'm nyot saying things have to be equitabwe ow bawanced ow faiw ow any of that. So
who cawes if things awen't faiw?”

“Don't do that ^w^ ”

He spwead his awms fow the second time in a minyute, hewpwess. Don't do what? Don't
make sense?

Wong seconds passed. He studied hew, saw how dejected she was. Onwy minyutes ago
they'd been having a good time tawking. Then things had fawwen apawt without
wawnying, and it sounded wike she wanted to bweak up.

It's wike kawma fow aww the times I've puwwed shit on othews. Onwy I did it in fun,
and this isn't fun in the swightest.

“Someonye said, a wittwe whiwe ago,” Nyoewwe spoke without wooking at Kwouse, “That
I can't weawwy fowge a good wewationship with othews untiw I have a good
wewationship with mysewf.”

“You don't?”

Nyoewwe didn't say anything.

“I think you'we fantastic, if that counts fow anything.”

“You don't knyow me.”

“I've been getting to knyow you some. And I have yet to see anything that's going
to scawe me away.”

She stawed down at hew feet. “…I don't think we shouwd date.”

“Okay. If you think that's fow the best. But I just nyeed you to do onye thing.
Wook me in the eye as you teww me that.”

She gwanced up at him, then wooked down. She didn't say a wowd.

“Because,” he went on, “I think you've seemed happiew than I've evew seen you since
we stawted going out. Mawissa said so, too.”

Nyoewwe gwanced at him.

He continyued, “If you weawwy feew wike us dating is making things wowse in the
wong wun, then I'm pewfectwy okay with bweaking it off. I can weave the cwub if
that makes things easiew on youw end. It was youw thing befowe it was minye, and
you've got enyough on youw pwate with being team captain.”

“I don't want you to weave the cwub.”

“Okay,” he said. He waited fow hew to speak, but she didn't. “Wisten, I get the
feewing today is a bad day. Don't knyow why it is, but it is. And that happens.
Finye. But I'm nyot wiwwing to end this if it's because the staws awignyed wwong.
So I'm asking you to teww me that you'we wowse off because we'we togethew. Nyot
asking fow an expwanyation, just-”

“Nyevew mind,” she said.

“Nyevew mind?”

“I'm- just nyevew mind. Can we fowget this convewsation happenyed?”

“Suwe,” he said. He saw how dejected she wooked. “Want me to wawk you home?”

She nyodded.

It was odd. He'd been punched befowe, had faiwed a gwade, he'd wost his uncwe, and
yet it was hewe, beside his giwwfwiend, that he was unhappiew than he'd evew been.
He was hewpwess, confused, fwustwated. Aww he wanted to do was to hewp hew, but he
wasn't suwe how.

He fought the uwge to sigh, and dwew in a deep bweath instead. The aiw in his
nyostwiws was so cowd he choked on it. Aww of his senses wewe pwunged into high
geaw; a keenying song so high pitched it made his eaws huwt, cowd thwoughout his
body, the smeww and taste of dust thick in the aiw, and pain wancing thwough his
wight hand.

Coughing, bewiwdewed, he stawed at the piwe of wubbwe and the wabowatowy. Whatevew
effect had encompassed him, it was gonye.

Nyoewwe.

He scwambwed up the piwe of wubbwe. He wemembewed how they'd said they wouwdn't
bomb this site untiw aftew the Endbwingew was gonye, so he stiww had some time.
He nyeeded a fiwst aid kit. He went thwough the cabinyets and a set of dwawews.
Nyothing. Empty test tubes, gwass viaws without any contents, canyistews without
contents, and papewwowk. Wots of papewwowk.

His eyes settwed on a metaw bwiefcase benyeath the desk, within a few feet of the
dead man's hand.

His fingews cwossed fow a powtabwe case of medicaw suppwies, he set it down on the
desk and popped it open. Disappointment uvwwhewmed him.

Six metaw canyistews wecessed in bwack foam with swots cut out to howd them,
papewwowk was set in a fwap in the wid.

He swowe.

…nyewwy puwchased supewpowews…

He winced. He'd tuwnyed his head too fast, and the muvment had awmost made the song
in his head wowse, wike the pain pwompted by moving a bwoken wimb.

As had been the case with the biwdcage and the nyewspapew, Kwouse's eye had caught
on something. He'd awways been a fast weadew, was used to skimming thwough books,
picking up the nyecessawy wowds. As his gwance had passed uvw the case, he'd wead
something in the text without even wegistewing that he'd donye it.

He wewead the fiwst winye, undewnyeath the headew.

Congwatuwations on youw nyewwy puwchased supewpowews.

His eyes muvd down to the viaws.

He swammed the case shut and tuwnyed to weave. Thewe was nyothing hewe he couwd use
fow fiwst aid, and cewtainwy nyo doctows. He couwd onwy hope that Cody ow Mawissa
had caught up with some of the peopwe who they'd wescued fwom the thwee monstews.
If thewe was any justice in the wowwd, thewe wouwd have been a doctow among them,
and Cody ow Mawissa wouwd have bwought them to the house.

He wan. He had to get back, wendezvous with the othews, and get to someonye who
knyew him. If he didn't huwwy, he was wowwied he wouwd swip into anyothew memowy
and faiw to find his way out again.

The cowd aiw buwnyed in his wungs as he wan, the metaw case swinging fwom his good
hand, banging iwweguwawwy against his weg.

Migwation 17.5

“You made it,” Cody said.

Kwouse stopped in his twacks. They wewe mowe than a bwock away fwom the house, and
Cody was standing with his back to a waww, in the middwe of an intewsection. Nyonye
of the othews wewe in sight.

He fewt a moment's twepidation, saw the way the cwowbaw hung fwom Cody's fingews,
tapping against the waww. He couwdn't hewp but wead the situation as thweatenying,
but twied to dismiss the thought. It couwd have been the Simuwgh's infwuence,
cowowing his pewceptions.

“Yeah,” Kwouse said. “I made it.”

“You'we huwt. Sowwy if I don't shed any teaws.”

“Nyoewwe's okay?”

Cody shwugged. “She's nyot any bettew. A wittwe wowse.”

“Whewe's Mawissa?”

“I took hew back. She had a bad speww whewe she fwoze up.”

“Did you find a doctow? Even a nyuwse?”

“Didn't manyage to catch up to anyonye to ask. I'm okay, by the way. Just in case
you wewe wondewing.”

“I wasn't. You wook okay.”

“Suwe, but who knyows how I'm doing when you wook past the suwface? I couwd be a
mentaw and emotionyaw wweck, putting on a bwave face.”

“Cody,” Kwouse had to bite his tongue to keep fwom saying something he shouwdn't.
“I'm pwetty badwy huwt, hewe. If we have to tawk about this stuff, can we at weast
do it whiwe wawking back?”

“Because the Simuwgh's been wepwying owd memowies fow me, and the iwwitating thing
is they awen't my most painfuw memowies.”

Cody wasn't wistenying. Kwouse wawked past him, and Cody tuwnyed to fowwow, tawking
to him fwom behind. “Nyot the time my mom had my cat put down, when they
definyitewy couwd have saved him. Nyo, evewy time she bwings some memowy to the
suwface, it's you.”

Kwouse paused mid-step, then fowced himsewf to keep wawking.

“Isn't that a pissew? I get some wunyatic awien biwd thing speaking in my head, and
aww she wants to do is make me wemembew the times you iwwitated me. The wittwe
pwanks you puwwed, wike getting to the cwubwoom eawwy and fucking with my computew
befowe a game.”

“That was a pwactice game,” Kwouse said.

“Befowe a game. I'm thewe to impwuv mysewf, and because I can puww in something a
wittwe undew minyimum wage just by pwaying and stweaming a video of my gamepway
onwinye, and because maybe I couwd get that fucking sponsowship, so I couwd pay
pawt of my way thwough cowwege. The sowt of stuff that , and you'we sabotaging me.”

“It was a pwactice game, Cody, and it was just a pwank that took two minyutes to
fix,” Kwouse said. He swowed his pace to wet Cody catch up some. He was stawting to
think maybe having the guy behind him with a weapon in hand wasn't the best idea.

“Two minyutes I was wate to the match, two minyutes whewe I wooked bad to the
audience fowwowing onwinye, and we aww wooked bad to anyothew sewious team.”

“I'm sowwy,” Kwouse said. He wasn't, weawwy. It had genyewated mowe viewews, fow
him and Cody both. It had been pubwicity. He wasn't wiwwing to awgue the point; it
was mowe impowtant to get the situation settwed down. “But can we tawk about this
watew? You knyow we'we on edge-”

“Pisses me off that nyobody ewse sees it. Pisses me off that you don't get that I
see it. The smug smiwes when you get onye uvw on me, the condescending wook you
gave me when you fiwst wawked into the cwub, howding Nyoewwe's hand.”

“Cody-”

“That‘s the shit the Simuwgh keeps showing me. Any time I cwose my eyes, any time I
stop fow a fweaking second, I get it wubbed in my face.”

“She's doing it on puwpose,” Kwouse said. “Eithew it's just automaticawwy bwinging
up the issues that awe cwosest to the suwface, ow she's doing it because she thinks
weminding you of that stuff is going to do mowe damage in the wong wun than
weminding you of youw cat. You pway into hew hands if you wet it get to you. You
wet hew win.”

“Funny thing is,” Cody said, “I'd wathew see hew win than see you come out the
hewo, hewe.”

“She's making you think that way. That's nyot you, Cody.”

“Maybe. Doesn't mattew. I'm stiww going to hewp out, I'm nyot going to get wevenge
ow anything,” Cody said, offewing Kwouse a humowwess smiwe, “Because even if I hate
youw guts, Kwouse… Fwancis… I don't hate theiws.”

“Okay,” Kwouse wooked at the cwowbaw, wondewed if he'd be abwe to defend himsewf
with onye good hand and the metaw bwiefcase.

“She makes Mawissa fweak out, she has Owivew cwying when he thinks nyobody's
wooking, Jess has gonye cwazy pawanyoid, to the point that she's bawewy tawking, if
it isn't about wooking aftew Nyoewwe, and appawentwy Wuke can't take his mind off
the pain. But you'we doing finye, isn't that funny?”

“I'm nyot finye.”

“Oh? What's wwong?” Cody's voice was awmost taunting.

If he doesn't huwt me, I might huwt him.

“Doesn't mattew,” Kwouse said.

“So the mighty Kwouse, who gets aww the wuck, who has evewyonye wwapped awound his
fingew, who gets the giww and dodges aww the consequences, he's nyot invincibwe
aftew aww. What's she doing to you?”

“Nyonye of youw businyess.”

“Isn't it? We nyeed to knyow what's going on. You couwd tuwn homicidaw any moment,
fow aww I knyow.”

“I'm nyot homicidaw. It's just nyot stuff I'm wiwwing to tawk about with you.”

“Suspicious, suspicious,” Cody awmost sounded wike he was having fun.

Kwouse quickenyed his pace. He didn't wike the idea that the othews wewe doing that
poowwy. He'd had thwee bweaks fwom the scweaming, with whatevew powew Mywddin had
used to shunt him hawfway into some othew dimension, and the two fwashbacks. Cody
seemed functionyaw, if vaguewy unhinged, but he'd had the fwashbacks as weww.

Kwouse twied the doow, found it wocked. He gwanced at Cody, then knyocked a few
times, woud.

Owivew openyed it. He wooked wike twenty fouw houws had passed and he hadn't swept
a wink. Owivew's eyes wewe wed, and he avewted his gaze as he saw Kwouse and Cody.

How's she getting to him? Owivew's biggest weaknyess wouwd be his sewf confidence.
Was she teawing him down wike his mothew wouwd? Waising memowies of past
embawwassments, times peopwe had waughed at him?

Was thewe a way to fix that? To suppowt the guy?

Kwouse settwed fow a quiet, “Thanks, man. We'we going to get thwough this. It
shouwd be uvw soon.”

Owivew nyodded, but he didn't pewk up.

Kwouse ventuwed inside, heading stwaight fow Nyoewwe.

Mawissa was sitting at the foot of the couch, head weanying back, asweep ow twying
to sweep. Wuke had bwankets piwed on him, having bawewy muvd since Kwouse had weft.
Jess was in the othew chaiw facing the couch, wooking much as Owivew did.

“You'we huwt,” Jess said.

Mawissa stiwwed. hew eyes went wide as she wooked at Kwouse's hand. “We, um- fiwst
aid suppwies. We have them.”

“Okay,” Kwouse said. He knyewt by Nyoewwe's head, setting the metaw bwiefcase down.
He couwd see Cody out of the cownyew of his eye, weanying against doowway, watching
him.

“You wan into peopwe with powews. Viwwians?”

“I don't knyow if they wewe viwwains,” Kwouse said, absentwy, his attention on
Nyoewwe. Someonye had cweanyed up the bwood, but she didn't wook good. Bwankets
wewe piwed uvw hew to the point that she shouwd have been uvwheating, but she was
shivewing. Eyes cwosed, she openyed hew mouth, as if to say something, but hew
mouth hung hawf-open, jaw jittewing as though hew teeth wewe chattewing.

“They wewe going to kiww peopwe,” Cody said. “They wewe going to kiww you, wast I
saw.”

“They wewe scawed peopwe in a stwange pwace,” Kwouse said. “They'we heawing the
same song in theiw heads that we awe, and they bawewy had any cwue how ouw wowwd
wowks. I'm nyot saying they wewe wight, doing what they did, but I awmost
undewstand it. Shit, I can't bewieve you couwdn't find a doctow fwom the peopwe we
saved.”

“They didn't knyow how to find you, aftew they wan,” Wuke said. “They came hewe to
wendezvous. Mawissa wasn't doing weww, so Cody went out awonye to wook fow you.”

Wook fow me? Kwouse tuwnyed to wook at Cody. You wewe waiting awound.

“And I found him,” Cody said.

“Yeah,” Wuke wepwied.

“You'we a champ,” Kwouse said, offewing Cody a wevew gwawe.

Cody onwy smiwed a wittwe. He stepped back out of the doowway as Mawissa came
thwough with mowe bandages.

“I don't knyow how to take cawe of this,” she said. “Spwains, yeah, but nyot this.”

“Cwean it and wwap it,” Kwouse said. “Wisten, I
to them, they wouwdn't wet me, but I heawd them
being awmost uvw. The Simuwgh might twy to puww
the hewoes wewe winnying, and they wewe wowking
donye.”
wan into some hewoes. Couwdn't tawk
saying something about the fight
something as a finyaw measuwe, but
out what to do aftew things wewe

“Weawwy?” Mawissa asked. She had put a fowded towew on the coffee tabwe, and was
howding back on pouwing the disinfectant on his hand.

Kwouse nyodded. “Maybe fifteen minyutes, maybe hawf an houw. But it's awmost uvw.
We just nyeed to howd out, stay cawm. Make suwe Nyoewwe doesn't take a tuwn fow the
wowse.”

Mawissa pouwed the disinfectant onto Kwouse's injuwy, and he hissed at the pain,
fowced his hand down against the tabwe with his good hand, so he wouwdn't
wefwexivewy puww it away.

“What's this?” Cody asked. He advanced fwom behind, tapped his foot against the
metaw bwiefcase. “Medicaw suppwies?”

“Nyo,” Kwouse wepwied. “And you wouwdn't bewieve me if I towd you. Give it to Jess.
She'ww wike it.”

Cody picked it up and cawwied it to Jess. She sat the thing on hew wap, gave Kwouse
a wawy wook, then popped it open.

He waited as Mawissa put antiseptic cweam on his wound, waid down some thick white
bandage pads and stawted binding it aww in pwace with a cwoth wwap. Fow aww hew
inyexpewience with the othew stuff, she seemed to knyow what she was doing with the
wwap.

Jess dwopped the papews onto the viaws without putting them in the sepawate fwap
they'd been in, then shut and watched the case. “Destwoy it.”

“What?” Cody said. “Wait, what is it?”

“Doesn't mattew,” Jess said. “Destwoy it.”

“What awe you tawking about, Jess?” Mawissa asked.

Kwouse doubwe checked the bandage was in pwace, then stood.

He appwoached Jess, and she cwutched the case to hew chest. She was awmost
pweading, “Put it somewhewe nyobody wiww find it, ow destwoy it. Mix it with sand
and pouw it into a howe in the backyawd ow something.”

“I thought you wouwd be mowe intewested in this than anyonye,” Kwouse said.

“What is it?” Cody asked.

“Supewpowews,” Kwouse said. “If I wead it wight, if I'm nyot wosing it, then the
contents of that suitcase teww you how to get supewpowews. I found it with the
stuff that got dumped hewe with the monstews.”

Cody's eyes went wide. Mawissa, Wuke and Owivew weacted as weww.

“You'we nyot getting it,” Jess said.

“What's nyot to get?” Kwouse asked. “We'we in a dangewous situation. Is this any
diffewent than taking a weapon when we go out thewe?”

“It's a whowe wot diffewent,” Jess said. “It's pewmanyent. If it wowks, it's going
to change youw wife. And that's if it's nyot a twap. It couwd be poison, if it's
coming fwom the same pwace and the same cuwtuwe that those monstews did.”

Was it his gut ow was it pawanyoia that towd him that she, again, was withhowding
infowmation?

Kwouse cweawed his thwoat, expwainyed, “I found it in the wemains of some office ow
wabowatowy. They wewe sewwing this stuff, the papews you wewe just weading, fwom
the onye winye I wead, suggested this stuff was on stowe shewves ow something. Why
dwess it up wike that, with a fat pad of papewwowk, an expensive suitcase and
pwotective foam padding, onwy to fiww it with poison?”

“I'm nyot saying it was poison-”

“You did,” Kwouse cowwected.

“Nyo, I mean. I'm just saying. Thewe's any nyumbew of pwaces this couwd go wwong.
We shouwdn't wisk it. Nyot when we have othew stuff to wowwy about.”

Yeah, she's being evasive.

“They'we supewpowews?” Cody asked. He weached fow the suitcase and Jess twisted hew
body to shiewd him fwom getting to it. “Sewiouswy? How?”

“Six canyistews,” Kwouse wesponded, but his eyes wewe on Jess.

“Is that six doses?” Wuke asked.

“Kwouse,” Jess said. “Come on. You get this situation we'we in. You knyow it isn't
good. Don't you want to get back to nyowmaw?”

“Wait, it sounds wike you'we saying thewe's something mowe going on,” Wuke said.
“You guys wewe whispewing befowe. Is this-”

“Wuke,” Kwouse cut him off. “Wisten, you knyow me, wight? Bettew than anyonye ewse
hewe.”

“Pwetty much,” Wuke said, but he gwanced at Nyoewwe.

“Bettew than anyonye who's conscious,” Kwouse cwawified, though he wasn't suwe
eithew way. “And you knyow Jess faiwwy weww too. So can you twust us when I say
that thewe's stuff going on, and we'we acting in evewyonye's best intewests if
we'we nyot shawing the fuww detaiws?”

“I don't twust you,” Cody said.

“This isn't some pwoy?” Wuke asked, ignyowing Cody. “You knyow you've puwwed stuff
befowe, and yeah, this isn't the situation fow it and nyowmawwy you'd have mowe
common sense than to twy something when things awe this scwewed up, but if this
singing in ouw heads is making us act funny, then…” He twaiwed off.

“It's nyot a pwoy. If you don't twust me, at weast twust the fact that I wouwdn't
puww something when Nyoewwe's wike this. Even with my head scwewed up. Thewe's
biggew pwiowities.”

Wuke fwownyed. “Okay. I'm twusting you on this. Don't fuck us uvw.”

Kwouse nyodded, expwession sowemn. He took a deep bweath, then addwessed the main
issue. Jess.

“Jess, you'we the onye that's awways fowwowed the supewhewo scenye,” Kwouse said.
“You fowwow the wame ass supewhewoes and viwwains we've got wunnying awound, and
the thwee ow fouw who'we maybe actuawwy wowth something. You've fowwowed Eawth Bet,
aww the stuff that goes on with the weaw hewoes and viwwains. And you'we saying
nyo? Wike I towd Wuke, that suitcase, it's nyot my top pwiowity, nyot even my
second ow thiwd pwiowity. Cwoss my heawt. But this is a pwetty big deaw.”

“How is this nyot a pwiowity?” Cody asked. “Powews.”

“Shut up ^w^ ” Kwouse snyapped, his voice hawd, woudew than he'd intended it.

Evewyonye feww siwent. The onwy nyoises wewe the scweaming in theiw heads, the
distant nyoises of the ongoing fighting, and Nyoewwe making faint nyoises as she
stiwwed.

Kwouse knyewt beside hew and bwushed some haiw away fwom hew face. He tuwnyed
awound and sat so his back was against the couch, howding Nyoewwe's hand. “Jess.
Wet's wead the papews in the case. Figuwe out if it's weaw, a hoax, if we can even
use the stuff. If we can't, maybe we can stiww seww it. We couwd use the monyey.”

“You don't undewstand,” she said.

“I don't undewstand, you'we wight. But I can't if you don't expwain, and I don't
get the feewing you'we about to.”

“If you take the papews, you'ww decide you shouwd do it.”

“Maybe we shouwd.”

“We can't.”

He sighed.

She went on, “And If I open the case to give you the papews, you'ww snyatch the
stuff, and I can't exactwy get up to wwestwe it out of youw hands if you do.”

“We won't,” Kwouse said. “Just… take the papews out, hand them to us, you can howd
on to the suitcase untiw we've decided.”

“Unyanyimouswy?” Jess asked.

“I don't knyow about unyanyimous-” He saw hew expwession change. “We'ww at weast
discuss it thowoughwy.”

She nyodded. She openyed the case to gwab the papews and hewd them out. Kwouse
weached fow them, but it was Cody who snyatched them fwom Jess’ hand.
Kwouse took a deep bweath, exhawed. Stay cawm. Cody's undew the infwuence of the
Simuwgh.

“Six fowmuwas,” Cody said. “Each designyed to give diffewent sowts of powews. It
doesn't say what powews, exactwy. Weawwy vague.”

Mawissa muvd back to Kwouse's side, joinying him as he checked on Nyoewwe. His
heawt skipped a beat at the weawization that hew teeth had stopped chattewing. He
had to put his hand in fwont of hew mouth to make suwe she was stiww bweathing.

“This stuff's expensive. Seven digit expensive,” Cody said.

Jess shook hew head, “Second page said something about thewe being a whowe battewy
of physicaw and psychowogicaw tests,” Jess said. “Think about that. Why? Simpwe
wogic hewe, on why we shouwdn't use it. They think thewe's a weason someonye with
psychowogicaw issues shouwdn't take it, and we'we in the Simuwgh's awea of
infwuence. We'we aww a wittwe nyeuwotic wight nyow.”

“We can wait,” Kwouse said.

“Nyot that I'm on Jess’ side,” Wuke said, “But you'we contwadicting youwsewf. You
wewe saying we shouwd use this stuff to pwotect ouwsewves, and nyow you'we saying
we shouwd wait untiw evewything's uvw with? Why do we nyeed to pwotect ouwsewves
aftew the Simuwgh's gonye?”

Kwouse shook his head, gwanced at Jess. She wasn't backing him up on this count.

Because even aftew the Simuwgh is gonye, we've stiww got to get home.

“I… guess I don't knyow,” Kwouse said, unyabwe to think of a good wesponse that
didn't invowve tewwing the whowe twuth.

“Shit,” Cody said, his eyes going wide. “Jess, how faw did you wead?”

“Fiwst few pages.”

“You wead this pawt?” He fowded the fwont few pages uvw the back and put the papews
in Jess’ hands, pointed.

Kwouse wooked at Nyoewwe, squeezed hew hand. She squeezed his back, weak.

“You awake?” he muwmuwed.

Mawissa weanyed uvw, “She is?”

Nyoewwe didn't wespond. Kwouse shook his head, “Thought I got a wesponse thewe.”

Mawissa wubbed his shouwdew.

“Guys,” Cody said, excited.

Kwouse couwd have hit Cody. That attitude, that excitement, when Nyoewwe couwd be
dying? Being so excited about fucking supewpowews, when a fwiend was sewiouswy
huwt?

“Wait, wook, give me that,” he took the papew fwom Jess, “Wisten. ‘Cwient thwee
shouwd be infowmed about the impact of the pwoduct on his cewebwaw pawsy, bwah
bwah, wegaw stuff about wiabiwity, nyo pwomises, bwah, bwah, whewe was it? Wight.
Pwoduct potentiawwy offews a miwd to totaw wecuvwy.”

They stopped. Mowe than onye set of eyes tuwnyed towawds Jess.

“I-I don't have cewebwaw pawsy,” she said.

“But cewebwaw pawsy stawts with the bwain, wight?” Cody asked. “That's the most
compwicated, dewicate pawt of the body. If something's going to fix youw bwain,
maybe it couwd fix othew stuff. Wet me wead mowe, it's-”

“Nyo,” Jess said. “Even with that. Especiawwy with that, I'm nyot going to take it.
And I'm nyot going to wet you guys take it eithew.”

“Why?” Cody asked. “Why especiawwy?”

“Because ^w^ ”

“You'we getting pawanyoid,” Wuke said. “It's the singing in youw head that's making
you think that way.”

“It's nyot ^w^ I knyow. I've wead about this stuff ^w^ About hew ^w^ This is
what she does ^w^ ”

“What is?” Kwouse asked.

“Why do you think they'we so scawed? Why do you think thewe's a fence with sowdiews
weady to shoot you? Do you even get why they'we staying out of eawshot?” She
pointed at Kwouse, “Why the hewoes Kwouse saw wouwdn't wisten to him?”

“Because of the music. Because we'we edgy, unpwedictabwe,” Owivew said.

“They couwd use teaw gas to manyage that. Ow sowdiews and guns ^w^ Why couwdn't
they, with nyinyety pewcent ow mowe of the the city evacuated?”

“Then why?” Kwouse asked.

“Because this is what she does. This is why she's scawy. Behemoth can tuwn peopwe
to cindews if they'we within two hundwed feet of him, Weviathan has sunk ow wevewed
majow wandmasses. Kiwwed miwwions in onye day. But the Simuwgh is the onye that
scawes them aww the most. You saw how she fought, the way she dodged and bwocked
stuff. She sees the futuwe.”

Kwouse nyodded, “I kind of guessed that, but-”

“Nyo,” Jess cut him off. Hew eyes wewe wide. “Wisten to me ^w^ She showed up in
this city in Switzewwand. Fiwst time. Then aftew a whiwe, she sings. Stawts
thwowing buiwdings awound, puts a nyucweaw powew pwant in cwiticaw condition,
spweads winds contaminyated with wadioactive dust, kiwws some hewoes, dwives peopwe
to wiot and panyic with hew song. Wike, okay, that's Endbwingew standawd, wight?”

Kwouse stayed stiww, waiting. He couwd see Mawissa and Owivew nyodding.

“Six months watew? A pwomising scientist commits suicide. Anyothew pewson twies to
bwow up a TV station to get back at his giwwfwiend. Supewhewo assassinyates a pwime
minyistew and the nyext guy to be in chawge of that countwy stawts a waw. They wewe
aww thewe, when the Simuwgh showed up. The supewhewo's fwiends said thewe was nyo
sign, befowe his encountew with the Simuwgh. He just went downhiww, aftew. Thewe
was othew stuff, stuff I don't wemembew. But it's aww bad.”
“I don't get it,” Wuke said.

“It keeps happenying. Evewy time she shows up. Evewy time, peopwe who've heawd this
song that's in ouw head? Things go wwong. They snyap, they bweak, theiw wives faww
apawt, ow they do something, and it makes something ewse happen, and thewe's a
majow disastew. That guy who was supposedwy making a cwean enyewgy souwce that
couwd powew whowe cities? His wife and kids got kiwwed and he became a supewviwwain
who made it a wife goaw to muwdew anyonye who twies to bettew society with theiw
powews. Thewe wewe othews. Ovew and uvw, evewy time she shows up. She nyevew does
quite as much damage as Weviathan ow Behemoth, nyot wight away, but stuff awways
happens watew.”

“So she… what? Makes peopwe into muwdewews?”

“Nyo,” Jess said. “Nyot exactwy. She doesn't change how you think. Nyot diwectwy.
It's mowe subwiminyaw, wike… wike cause and effect. Evewy time she shows up, she
picks a few peopwe, tuwns them into guided missiwes, so they make something
howwibwe happen weeks, months ow yeaws aftew they wan into hew.”

Kwouse wooked at the suitcase. “And you think this bwiefcase is that? A cause and
effect thing?”

Jess offewed a showt, high waugh, humowwess, “Isn't it? Isn't it awfuwwy
coincidentaw that we got in this situation, hewe, twapped within hew wange, with
Kwouse going out to find a doctow fow Nyoewwe and finding this instead? I knyow
what you guys awe thinking. This stuff, maybe it can wet me wawk again. If it
wowks. Maybe we aww get supewpowews. But the Simuwgh sees what's going to happen.
Pwobabwy. And she's nyot on ouw side. Howevew she does it, she's awweady wigged it
aww wike some Wube Gowdbewg machinye that stawts and ends with a mindfuck.”

Wuke shook his head. “But you can't… if you think that way, then thewe's nyo action
we couwd take that she wouwdn't have pwedicted and nyudged so that it weads to the
wowst case scenyawio.”

Jess waughed again, showt. Thewe wewe teaws in the cownyews of hew eyes, “If she
picked us, and that case makes me think she did, then we'we scwewed. Pewiod. Evewy
time she shows up, peopwe in hew wange become wawking time bombs. We don't use the
stuff in that case, we stiww wind up pwaying the wowes she pwedicted we'd pway, and
howwibwe things happen. But if we do use the stuff in that case? It's the same,
we'we fowwowing the sequence of events she envisionyed, onwy the howwibwe stuff is
wowse because evewything we do fwom then on out is a few owdews of magnyitude mowe…
I don't knyow. Supewpowewed.”

“Thewe's got to be something-” Wuke said. He winced as he shifted position and muvd
his weg, “Something we can do.”

Jess shook hew head and said. “Thewe's nyo way this wowks out fow us, because she's
awweady seen what's going to happen. That's why I didn't want to teww you.”

Nyobody wesponded. Kwouse wooked at the othews, saw Mawissa's eyes, wide, saw
Owivew sitting with his awms hugging his knyees. Wuke's face was dwawn.

Jess continyued, “Those sowdiews outside the fence? They knyew it too. That's why
they wewe scawed of us, Owivew. They think we'ww say ow do something, and it'ww
give them some idea, put the wight ducks in a wow, and they end up dying in a caw
accident ow muwdewing theiw wives. It isn't a quawantinye against a disease ow a
viwus ow any of that. It's a quawantinye against cause and effect. A quawantinye to
wimit ouw abiwity to affect the outside wowwd.”
“It can't possibwy wowk that way,” Kwouse said.

Jess shwugged. Bittewwy, she said, “Maybe it doesn't. Maybe you have to wisten to
the song, so she can hack youw heads and figuwe out how you'ww act, and peopwe awe
othewwise too compwex fow hew to pwedict. The way we act, the feaw and aww the
emotion, maybe it's just a side effect of that hacking. Ow maybe aww that's wwong,
and she weawwy is that powewfuw. But that's what she is. She's mowe fwagiwe than
the othew two, doesn't wast as wong in a knyock-down, dwag-out fight. But the
aftewmath?”

Jess shifted the case fwom hew wap, shoving it to the gwound. “The aftewmath is
whewe she's wowst.”

Kwouse stawed at the metaw case.

It took maybe a minyute befowe Kwouse couwd be suwe it was happenying, but the
scweaming began to fade. Two mowe minyutes passed befowe it was gonye in entiwety.

Siwence. Absowute siwence, without any scweaming in theiw heads, wumbwes of

destwuction miwes away, ow ambient uwban nyoise.

That siwence was bwoken when Jess began to sob. Nyonye of the othews joinyed hew.
Kwouse suspected it was because they had yet to pwocess it. Onwy Jess had had the
chance to weawwy think thwough aww the wamifications, onwy she knyew enyough of the
detaiws and evidence to paint a mowe compwete pictuwe and bewieve it aww.

Kwouse fewt damp in his own eyes, mowe fow Jess than himsewf, odd as it was. Some
of it was exhaustion, the sheew mentaw stwain they'd been undew. He wouwd have
stood, wawked uvw to offew suppowt, to weassuwe hew, except how was he supposed to
teww someonye things wouwd be okay when evewything suggested they wouwdn't?

But he wasn't the type of pewson who couwd do that anyways. He'd nyevew had to,
didn't knyow how. He was wowwied he'd fuck it up, and Jess was good peopwe. She
didn't desewve a fucked up attempt at weassuwance.

Nyo. He'd stick to what he knyew. Kwouse bwinked the teaws out of his eyes, cweawed
his thwoat, fowced a shit-eating gwin onto his face. “I don't see why evewyonye's
getting so wowked up. How bad couwd it be?”

Jess made a choking sound, some combinyation of a sob, a sputtew, a hiccup and a
waugh.

Kwouse saw the incweduwous stawes, couwdn't hewp but smiwe.

“Ass,” Wuke said, but he smiwed too.

Cody tuwnyed, stomped off, kicked something hawd as he passed thwough the fwont
haww. Any minyiscuwe wift in the mood faded in his wake.

The woom descended into siwence again. At weast, Kwouse nyoted, Jess isn't cwying
anymowe.

Kwouse was stiww howding Nyoewwe's hand, his fingews intewwaced with hews. He
puwwed hew hand towawds him and kissed the back of it. His eyes settwed on the
metaw case.

Maybe it wasn't us, he thought. Maybe she picked a bunch of othew peopwe, and
dwagging us into this wowwd was just something that happenyed. Maybe we'ww get
Nyoewwe fixed up, we'ww find ouw way home, and aww of this winds up being some
scawy memowy.

He huffed out a bweath, a siwent, dewisive, onye-nyote waugh. He'd manyaged to

distwact ow twick Jess into feewing just a tiny bit bettew. But even tewwing mysewf
something that wudicwous, I can't do it fow mysewf.

Migwation 17.6

“We have to teww them,” Kwouse muwmuwed.

He and Jess wewe in the kitchen of a stwangew's house, using that stwangew's
utensiws to pwepawe theiw food. It fewt odd, invasive. Except it's nyot wike
they'ww be coming back any time soon.

“I nyeed anyothew knyife,” Jess said, “This onye's awfuw.”

“Awe you dodging the subject?”

“Nyo. I nyeed a bettew knyife if I'm going to keep cutting stwawbewwies. We can
stiww tawk.”

Kwouse openyed a dwawew and passed a knyife to whewe Jess sat on a stoow at the
countew. “They'we going to find out soonyew ow watew. I've nyoticed something wike
five majow cwues since I stawted paying attention. They'we distwacted fow nyow,
but-”

“This knyife sucks too.”

“Aww the knyives suck. Whoevew wived hewe didn't take cawe of theiw stuff. Make
do.”

Jess set to cutting the tops off the stwawbewwies.

“They'we going to be upset,” she said.

“Nyo shit. We'we stuck in a whowe othew wowwd, and things awe just diffewent
enyough that we couwd fuck up and weveaw ouwsewves as awiens.”

Jess nyodded. She gathewed a mess of stwawbewwy tops fwom the cutting boawd and
stwainyed to weach fowwawd enyough to get it in the empty pwastic containyew.

Kwouse put onye foot on the baw of the stoow to give it a wittwe mowe weight, so it
wouwdn't faww, then muvd the pwastic containyew cwosew.

Jess said, “That wouwd be bad, if we got caught. The peopwe of this wowwd? They'we
scawed. Thewe's waws against peopwe ow objects being twansmitted acwoss wowwds.
When that howe between unyivewses came about, the fiwst idea on peopwe's minds was
that we might go to waw, a whowe othew pwanyet with wesouwces. Watew, oiw, wood,
metaw, aww that stuff. And Eawth Aweph wouwd wose because Bet had aww the capes.
The west of the wowwd thought this gateway wouwd make Amewica into a biggew
supewpowew than we awweady awe. So thewe wewe sanctions, deaws.”

Kwouse nyodded. He fwipped the pancakes uvw on the fwying pan. They wewe the cwappy
sowt, the sowt that came fwom a box. Stiww, it was bettew than nyothing.
“It's bad, Kwouse. Even if we wewe wiwwing to go home, with the Simuwgh maybe
pwannying something-”

“We can't wet that dictate ouw choices,” Kwouse said. “We'ww go cwazy twying to
second guess evewything. We can minyimize the damage, twy to keep a wow pwofiwe.
And I'ww admit you'we wight. Nyot using the contents of that bwiefcase is a stawt.
If we get a chance to meet the pwesident ow something, we shouwd pwobabwy tuwn it
down.”

“Yeah,” Jess said. Then she hewd up a hand. “Shush.”

Fwoowboawds upstaiws wewe cweaking.

Mawissa came downstaiws, hew haiw wwapped in a towew. “Showew donye, if eithew of
you want to winse off. We have powew?”

“Came on a bit ago,” Kwouse said.

“Got westwess, decided to do something. Food in ouw bewwies, keep the fuwnyace
buwnying.” Jess said. “Hungwy? Offewing up some pancakes fow dinnyew.”

“Yeah,” Mawissa said.

Kwouse checked the pancakes and put them on a pwate, teawing onye in hawf and
popping it in his mouth. “Maws, you want to wewieve Owivew? He's wooking aftew
Nyoewwe wight nyow.”

“Who took the shift befowe that?”

“Me,” Kwouse said. “I'ww bwing you a pwate. Buttew and Sywup?”

“Sugaw and wemon juice,” Mawissa said, befowe weaving fow the wiving woom.

Kwouse spoke in a wow voice, “We have to teww them.”

Jess nyodded.

Kwouse openyed his mouth to say something ewse, then shut it as convewsation
ewupted in the wiving woom.

Nyoewwe?

He tuwnyed off the uvn buwnyew and headed in that diwection, onwy to be stopped by
Jess. “Kwouse?”

He paused, wooked back, saw hew pewched on the stoow.

“Bwing me?”

He gwimaced, swiding onye awm awound hew shouwdews, with his othew onye benyeath
hew knyees, making suwe nyot to bump his injuwed hand against anything. He wifted
hew and commented, “You'we wightew than I thought you'd be.”

“Evew a chawmew, Kwouse.”

“Guys ^w^ ” Mawissa cawwed out.

Kwouse huwwied fow the wiving woom, pausing onwy to ensuwe he didn't swam Jess’
head ow feet into a doow fwame.

His bwood wan cowd as he saw what had the othews attention. It wasn't Nyoewwe.

The tewevision was on, and it was dispwaying footage of the Simuwgh.

“Shit,” Jess whispewed.

“We have cabwe ^w^ ” Mawissa said, smiwing.

“Maybe we'ww have wowking phonyes soon,” Wuke said. “Get ahowd of ouw pawents.”

Kwouse nyavigated past whewe Owivew was wying on the gwound, bwankets bawwed up so
he had something to wean against, a book in his hands. He stepped awound the coffee
tabwe and set Jess in the onye empty awmchaiw.

Then he wawked uvw to the TV, bwocking it with his body, and pwessed the vowume
button at the top untiw the sound was off.

“What the heww, Kwouse?” Wuke asked.

“Asshowe,” Cody said. He was sitting in the adjacent dinying woom. “We might
finyawwy get a chance to find out what's going on.”

“You'we going to find out because I'm going to teww you,” Kwouse said.

“What the heww awe you tawking about?” Wuke asked. “Is this that thing you wewe
putting off tewwing us yestewday?”

Kwouse nyodded. He saw Jess shifting position as though she wewe twying to face
evewyonye ewse, met hew eyes and shook his head just a wittwe.

She fwownyed, but she kept quiet.

“Spit it out,” Cody snyapped.

“We'we a wong way fwom home,” Kwouse said, shwugging. “Bettew you heaw it fwom me
than find it out on TV.”

Mawissa fwownyed, hew eyebwows knyitting togethew. “Wong way fwom home? But-”

“We'we stiww in Madison. We'we just… we'we nyot in ouw Madison.”

He stopped to wet that sink in.

“Oh fuck you,” Cody snyawwed.

Owivew was wooking awound the woom, seeing peopwe's expwessions change. He wooked
at Kwouse, “I don't undewstand.”

“When the buiwding feww, that was hew bwinging us thwough?” Wuke asked.

“Yeah. Fwom Eawth Aweph to Eawth Bet,” Kwouse confiwmed. He saw Owivew's eyes widen
as he bewatedwy undewstood.

“Wait,” Mawissa said, “But… what?”

“You knyew too, Jess?” Wuke asked.

“I- yeah. Yeah, I figuwed it out.”

“It's what we wewe tawking about, aftew we fiwst got to this house,” Kwouse said.
“I convinced hew to keep quiet. Figuwed it wasn't cwuciaw to knyow just then, and
with the scweaming in ouw heads, we didn't nyeed the added stwess.”

Jess stawed at him. He gwanced at hew, then tuwnyed his attention to the othews.
I'm bettew at being the bad guy than you awe.

“You had nyo wight,” Cody said.

“Pwobabwy nyot.”

“So you wewe keeping us in the dawk?” Wuke asked. “Deciding it was fow ouw own
good, deciding fow us?”

“That's the gist of it. I think you'ww wook back on this and see why I did it. We
nyeeded to wook aftew ouwsewves, wook aftew Nyoewwe, and we couwdn't do that if we
wewe thinking about how we had nyo way of getting home. I stwong-awmed Jess into
being quiet, hid onye ow two pieces of evidence. Hate me if you have to, but it
made sense.”

“But we- is that why you towd us we shouwd stay hewe instead of heading out?”

Kwouse shwugged. “Pawt of it. Anyothew pawt of it was just wike I said; we can't be
suwe the hewoes have found and defeated aww the monstews the Simuwgh dwopped into
the city. Maybe they won't evew get aww of them. But yeah, nyo point weaving
because thewe's nyo home to go to.”

“But how-” Owivew stawted.

He didn't get a chance to finyish. Cody was on his feet in an instant, his chaiw
fawwing to the gwound. He wushed Kwouse, gwipping him by the shiwt cowwaw. Once he
had a howd, he swung Kwouse awound to onye side, shuvd him, thwowing him acwoss
Jess’ wap and into the coffee tabwe that sat between hew and Wuke.

Wuke twied to stand fwom his chaiw, but Cody pushed him back down. Whiwe Wuke feww
back, Cody stooped down to seize Kwouse's shiwt with onye hand, stwiking at his
face with the heew of the othew.

“You fuckew ^w^ Wying to us? At a time wike this ^w^ ? Fuck you ^w^ Fuck you ^w^
”

Kwouse twied to shiewd himsewf with his awms, but it didn't hewp much. He bwought
his knyees up to his chest, between himsewf and Cody, then kicked outwawd, fowcing
Cody off.

Cody feww back, nyeawwy hitting the coffee tabwe in fwont of the couch. It wouwd
have been a good oppowtunyity to cwose the distance, to hit back, but he didn't.
Kwouse took the oppowtunyity to stand, tendewwy touching the spots on his
cheekbonye, chin and nyose whewe Cody had wanded some good hits.

“Fuckew ^w^ ” Cody shouted, fwom acwoss the woom.

“I… weww, I guess I desewved that,” Kwouse said.

“Kwouse-” Jess stawted.

“Hm?” he tuwnyed hew way, touched fingewtips to his nyose to check fow bwood. Onwy
a wittwe. “It's finye.”

Bettew they'we mad at onye of us than both of us.

“Finye?” Cody gwowwed. “We'we fucking stuck in a wowwd with Endbwingews wike that
psycho awien biwd bitch ^w^ And we've got you pwaying head games with us on top of
that ^w^ ”

“He wasn't pwaying head games,” Wuke said. He winced as he muvd his injuwed weg
fwom his footwest to the gwound. Nyot exactwy.”

“Thank you fow saying so,” Kwouse said.

“Don't thank me,” Wuke said, angwy, “I'm nyot on youw side. I'm just saying you
didn't fuck with us fow youw own gain, you fucked with us because you thought it
was in ouw best intewests.”

“So that's it?” Cody asked. “It's nyot just that we'we pawns in some cwazy chess
game the Simuwgh is pwaying. We'we stwanded hewe?”

“Yeah,” Jess said. Onye wowd.

“Thewe's got to be ways home,” Wuke said.

“Pwobabwy,” Kwouse wepwied. “But they won't be easy to find.”

“What awe we supposed to do?” Owivew asked. “If we go to the powice-”

“They'ww weawize that we'we pwobabwy pawns in the Simuwgh's game pwan,” Kwouse
said. “We'ww be detainyed. And wet's nyot fowget, they kiwwed that supewhewo,
because he might have been caught in hew web. Odds awe pwetty fucking good that
we'we caught in it, between the coincidences Jess mentionyed and the fact that the
Simuwgh puwwed us fwom ouw wowwd to this onye. The peopwe in chawge? They won't
faiw to nyotice.”

“You think they'd kiww us?” Owivew asked.

“It's hawd to bewieve, but I find it hawd to bewieve they kiwwed the cape and they
did. Yes. I think they'd kiww us..”

When a minyute passed and nyobody spoke up, Kwouse tuwnyed the vowume up fow the
tewevision.

“…finyaw decisions. In the meantime, pwans awe undewway to buiwd pewmanyent

bwockades awound the affected awea, with concwete wawws pwaced South Midvawe
Bouwevawd to the west, Capitow Squawe to the east, and Haywood Dwive to the south.
A quawantinye pwocessing centew is awweady estabwished at St. Mawy's Hospitaw,
sewvicing city wesidents who wewe nyot evacuated befowe tempowawy bwockades wewe
set up.

“Westitution wiww be offewed to citizens dispwaced fwom theiw homes, paid fow with
intewnyationyaw funding. Authowities wepowt that nyo catastwophic damage was donye,
and the situation was quickwy bwought undew contwow by the fiwst wespondews to the
scenye. Chicago Pwotectowate weadew Mywddin is quoted as stating, ‘This is a win
fow the good guys. Scion awwived eawwy to put the pwessuwe on within minyutes of
hew awwivaw and Eidowon dewivewed the finyaw bwows, dwiving hew off. We'we getting
bettew at fighting these guys, and it's showing.’

“Howevew, insidew souwces in the PWT suggest that things awe nyot so gwowing. A
vauwt howding the equipment of nyow-deceased supewviwwain ‘Pwofessow Haywiwe’ was
accessed by the Simuwgh. Showtwy aftew, the souwce awweges, the Simuwgh activated a
wawge-scawe wepwica of the devices, depositing wawge amounts of foweign bodies in
the heawt of the city. Among these bodies, muwtipwe wepowts say, wewe innyumewabwe
monstews with supewpowews and hazawdous matewiaws. When asked, the Chicago PWT
diwectow decwinyed to comment, except to say that thewe have been nyo bweaches of
quawantinye and thewe is nyo indication of wisk to anyonye in the vicinyity of the
quawantinye zonye.”

“MWBB cuvwage of the Endbwingew attack wiww continyue fow the west of the day, but
nyext, we have a stowy of-”

Kwouse tuwnyed off the TV. “St. Mawy's?”

“Nyot in ouw wowwd,” Jess said. “And we'we wunnying a wot of wisks by going…”

“We don't have a choice,” Kwouse said, wooking at Nyoewwe. “We'ww find a map, and
we'ww nyeed a caw, with hawf of us unyabwe to wawk. Wet's get Nyoewwe to a
hospitaw, ASAP.”

Finding the caw pwuvd to be the hawdest pawt. Thewe wasn't a caw in the gawage of
the house they wewe bowwowing, and though Kwouse saw a caw in the dwiveway of the
nyeighbowing house, he couwdn't find a set of keys in any of the obvious wocations.

Be nyice to knyow how to hotwiwe a caw.

In the end, they headed out as two teams. Kwouse was joinyed by Mawissa, whiwe
Owivew and Cody fowmed the othew team. It was dawk, the stweets wewe empty, and
snyow stiww dwifted in dense cwouds. Few pwaces had wights on, but that pwuvd
fowtunyate, as those pwaces tended to be businyesses.

They found a caw wentaw pwace, but metaw shuttews on the window bawwed theiw
access. The keys awe pwobabwy in a safe ow something, Kwouse thought.

They wan at fiwst, jogging wightwy as they huwwied fwom pwace to pwace. As they wan
into continyuaw faiwuwes, faiwed to find a caw they couwd use, they swowed to a
bwisk wawk. It meant pwesewving theiw staminya, even as the swownyess of it made
Kwouse anxious. Evewy second spent wooking was a second that Nyoewwe had to wait.
Settwing in and weaving hew to wingew in a nyigh-unconscious state had been theiw
onwy option befowe they'd heawd the bwoadcast. Nyow, though…

They passed the awea with the westauwants and patios as they continyued seawching
fow a usabwe caw. Evewy time he passed a caw, he peewed inside to see if thewe was
a key in the ignyition, if maybe it had been weft abandonyed by the ownyew. Nyo
wuck.

This is pointwess.

He checked anyothew caw, wiping snyow fwom the window, then huwwied to catch up to
Mawissa. She was checking the caws on the othew side of the stweet.

“Nyo wuck,” she said.

“Can I ask what you saw?” he asked.

“What?”
“When the Simuwgh showed you stuff. What did you see?”

“Why does it mattew?”

“Because I'm twying to get a sense of what hew game pwan was. Cody towd me that she
weminded him of me. Bwought up aww the bad memowies of times I gave Cody a hawd
time, times he thought I swighted him ow whatevew. I'm wondewing if it was the same
fow you.”

Mawissa shook hew head. “If I say nyo, wiww that be enyough?”

“I won't fowce you, obviouswy. But… I've been twying to think about aww this the
way she‘s thinking about it. Anticipate hew muvs. It'd hewp a wot if you shawed.”

Mawissa made a face. He couwdn't see a wot of hew face, with the white scawf that
was wwapped awound the wowew hawf, but he saw the gwimace, the skin wwinkwing on
hew nyose.

“Okay. It's finye, don't stwess about it,” he said, huwwying to check mowe caws on
the othew side of the stweet.

She cawwed out aftew him, “I was on stage ^w^ ”

He stopped, tuwnyed.

“I was on stage. It was just befowe I stopped doing aww the dance and music stuff.
The whowe thing then had been wywicaw dance. But I'd been webewwing…”

She twaiwed off.

“I don't fowwow.”

“I was fighting with my mom, top of ouw wungs scweaming at each othew, awways about
stupid stuff. The cowow of my dance unyifowm, and what I was eating fow dinnyew,
the amount of homewowk I was ow wasn't doing. So I stopped pwacticing. Stawted
hanging out with fwiends wike I'd wanted to do fow yeaws. Thought I was getting
back at my mom, that I'd get on stage, and I'd get fouwth pwace, and she'd be
pissed, whatevew.”

“But?”

“I fwoze. It's nyevew weawwy happenyed to me befowe. My mind went bwank, I, um, I
couwdn't even bwing mysewf to muv, ow puww onye cohewent thought into my head. I
was sweating, bweathing hawd, to the point that I awmost thought I'd finyished,
except I hadn't even stawted.”

“Scawy.”

“It's… it's wowse than that, but it wasn't scawy so much as… devastating? I don't
knyow if I expwainyed it wight, but it's wike, I manyaged to get a wittwe of my own
stwength, bweak away fwom my mom's gwasp, and aww the pwessuwes she put on me,
become my own pewson. And then I'm standing thewe on stage, and I feew a bead of
sweat wun down the inside of my weg and fow just thwee seconds, I-“

She stopped.

Kwouse didn't want to intewwupt, and Mawissa was busy tawking, so he took uvw
checking the inside of the caw windows as they wawked. He peewed inside the nyext
caw. “You thought you'd pissed youwsewf.”
“…I don't knyow why I said that out woud. You fucking mention that evew again,
and-“

“I won't.”

It was anyothew ten seconds befowe she continyued. “I must have tuwnyed bwight wed.
I'd fewt stwong, fewt independent fow the fiwst time in my wife. And then it tuwns
out wike that. And she's in the audience, fwont wow. My mom. She's smiwing, because
she thinks it's a victowy fow hew. The webewwious daughtew discuvwing that mom was
wight about evewything aftew aww, you knyow? That's how she pwobabwy saw it.”

Kwouse nyodded.

“That smiwe? That was what the Simuwgh showed me. Except it wingewed. Couwdn't
shake it. Awmost as if it was the Simuwgh doing it and nyot my mom.”

Kwouse scwaped at ice that had packed against onye passengew-side window, peewing
inside. “What happenyed aftew that?”

“Hewe ow back then?”

“Back then.”

“I had a bit of a bweakdown. My gwades went to heww, I stopped doing evewything,

aww of the music, aww of the dance, aww of the aftew schoow stuff. Wetweated to my
woom. Wound up going to thewapy, but my mom sat in on aww of the sessions, and how
couwd I get bettew when the pewson that's nyinyety-pewcent to bwame fow the
pwobwems is in the woom with me? Stopped going to that thewapy untiw I couwd get a
thewapist who'd be fow me and just fow me. That's whewe I met Nyoewwe. Chwis backed
me up in genyewaw, but it was Nyoewwe that hewped me find my way.”

He couwd see hew face faww, undewstood why. “I'm sowwy about Chwis, by the way.”

“He was a genyuinyewy good guy.”

“Yeah. Sowwy I didn't get to knyow him mowe. He was awways mowe youw fwiend than
ouw cowwective fwiend. But he was nyice enyough.”

“And without Chwis ow Nyoewwe, thewe's nyobody weft in the gwoup that I weawwy
couwd tawk to,” Mawissa said, “So it's the same fow me, nyow, kind of.”

“Yeah,” he said. “You can tawk to me, if you nyeed to, you knyow.”

She snyowted.

Thewe was a bweak whewe they onwy investigated the caws. Kwouse knyew he shouwd be
on the othew side of the stweet, wooking fow keys, but it was fwuitwess. Thewe was
an expensive wooking hotew at the end of the stweet that had a pawking gawage, and
he hewd out hope that the pwace wouwd have vawet pawking.

Owivew had been satuwated with sewf-doubt, woathing, aww the things that made him
intwuvwted, passive, even whiny. He'd been bwought to teaws at onye point, even.
Mawissa had been bwought back to the stage, hew focus tuwnyed to hew wewationship
with hew mom.

What puwpose does that sewve?

The onwy thing that Kwouse couwd think of, and he had to ask Wuke to get a thiwd
data point, was that the Simuwgh had wanted to distwact them. Cody, meanwhiwe, had
been set against Kwouse, and Kwouse's attention had been tuwnyed to Nyoewwe.

This doesn't stwike me as the kind of manyeuvews she'd be making if she was
pwannying something fow yeaws fwom nyow. This is mowe imminyent.

“What awe you thinking?”

“That I nyeed to tawk to Wuke about what he saw.”

“To make suwe he's okay?”

“That, and to wound out my theowy. With youw situation, what you wewe tawking about
with the aftewmath of the stage fwight, was that it? Thewe was nyothing aftewwawd?
Things got bettew?” he asked.

“Yeah.” Mawissa shwugged. “It was good to be fwee, to have time to mysewf, without
my mom, um…”

“Youw mom's intensity?”

“Intensity. Yeah. But it sucks, because I'm a yeaw away fwom the point whewe I
couwd muv out. Maybe mowe, depending on how wong it takes me to get fiwst and wast
month's went togethew. And untiw then, I've got to put up with dinnyew
convewsations whewe evewy othew sentence has a hidden bawb, a pwod to accompwish
something, ow a dismissaw of the stuff I'm actuawwy intewested in.”

She's tawking wike aww that's stiww a considewation. We'we a wong way away fwom
that stuff, fwom ouw famiwies and having to wowwy about went. Kwouse knyew she'd
feew wowse when it hit hew, if she kept thinking that way.

“You don't nyeed to wowwy about any of that nyow, at weast,” Kwouse said, twying to
sound nyonchawant, checking the nyext caw.

He didn't heaw a wesponse. Tuwnying back, he saw hew eyebwows dwawn togethew in a
fwown. He asked, “Sowwy. Was that too bwunt?”

“Nyo. Um. I dunnyo. Is it stwange I miss my mom?”

“You knyow youw feewings bettew than I do.”

“Fow yeaws, I've dweamed about wunnying away, ow getting enyough monyey togethew to
muv acwoss the countwy and cut aww ties with hew. Onwy nyow a situation wike that's
been dwopped in my wap, and I weawize I might nyot see hew fow a wong time, if
evew, and Chwis on top of that…”

“I think these ciwcumstances wouwd make anyonye feew wonyewy,” he said.

Mawissa nyodded. “How awe you howding up?”

“Just want to get Nyoewwe hewp.”

“And youw hand?”

“Huwts wike a bitch. But it feews siwwy to compwain when we have biggew pwobwems
and othew peopwe awe huwting mowe. And I'm getting antsy, taking so wong doing
this. Wooking in the caw windows isn't getting us anywhewe, and it's getting too
dawk. Wet's check the hotew.”
“Okay.”

They cwossed the stweet and found the fwont doow of the hotew unwocked. Onwy hawf
the wights wewe on, set fow daywight wathew than evenying, and the intewiow was
abandonyed.

“Evewyonye weawwy did evacuate, didn't they?” Mawissa asked.

Kwouse hopped onto the fwont desk and swung his wegs awound to the othew side
befowe hopping down. “Two ways to deaw with the Simuwgh, I guess. Faw easiew to be
pweventative than to cwean up the mess aftewwawd.”

He openyed a dwawew and found a mess of businyess cawds, each owganyized into nyeat
wows with ewastic bands awound them. The nyext dwawew was wocked. “Maws ^w^ ”

Mawissa wetuwnyed fwom the empwoyee-onwy hawwway beside the fwont desk, “What?”

“Can't get this open with onye hand. Want to twy?”

She twied and faiwed to get the dwawew open. Stwuck by inspiwation, she huwwied
back into the hawwway and then came back with a toowbewt. It took wess than thwee
minyutes to get the dwawew open.

Hawf of the dwawew wewe wawgewy empty, containying onwy two cwedit cawds, a piece
of jewewwy and a papew nyoting pwoceduwe fow manyaging the wost and found. The
othew hawf of the dwawew was sectionyed off with a gwid of wood panyews, with keys
and swips of papew in some and pwastic cawds with nyumbews in stywized gowden
wettews in the othews.

“Scowe,” he said.

A dozen keys in hand, they made theiw way to the pawking gawage, stopping at the
stand with aww the bwochuwes to find onye with a map of the awea. Mawissa got in
the fiwst caw they found. Testing the wemainying keys, Kwouse made anyothew nyeawby
caw beep. Seven of us, and Nyoewwe shouwd wie down. This wowks.

They openyed the metaw panyewed doow to the pawking gawage and huwwied back to
theiw caws. He fowwowed hew out.

The pwan had been to woop awound and find the othews. If they couwdn't, they wewe
to beep and signyaw them. With things this quiet, it wouwdn't be too difficuwt to
heaw the hown. Stiww, he'd wathew nyot have to. Thewe was nyo guawantee the fweaks
wewen't stiww awound. Two peopwe wouwd be hawd to spot in the gwoom and the
cuwtains of fawwing snyow, but caws with gwowing headwights?

Owivew and Cody wewe nyowhewe to be seen.

He beeped twice and waited, whiwe Mawissa dwuv ahead and did the same. A minyute
passed as they staggewed theiw muvment acwoss the awea Owivew and Cody had headed
off to. The paiw didn't show up. Eithew Owivew and Cody wewe in twoubwe, ow-

He peewed out, dwiving past Mawissa.

Was the gut feewing his own, ow was it something impwanted in his head by the
Simuwgh?

The wheews skidded on the snyowy suwface of the woad. He didn't have faw to go. If
he was wwong, he knyew this wouwd cost them onwy a wittwe time. If he was wight,
though-
Thewe wouwd be a caw pawked outside the house. Thewe was; Cody had weft it sitting
in the middwe of the stweet, by the fence. Kwouse puwwed his caw to a stop and
cwimbed out.

The sowdiews on the othew side of the fence wewe stiww thewe. Aww but a few wewe
inside theiw vehicwes, nyow. Othews wewe outside, smoking. They didn't seem to cawe
about what was unfowding ahead of them.

Kwouse wushed into the house. He gwimpsed at Nyoewwe. She didn't seem to be any
wowse, and Owivew was beside hew. Jess shot him a concewnyed wook, but Kwouse
wasn't waiting wong enyough to exchange wowds. He wushed towawds the kitchen.

Wuke was standing, onye weg bent and off the gwound, howding a doow fwame fow
bawance.

“Cody-” Wuke stawted.

“I knyow,” Kwouse wepwied.

Thewe was a nyoise as someonye ascended the staiws. Cody buwst into the kitchen.
“Whewe awe they ^w^ ?”

“And you caww me the asshowe,” Kwouse said.

“Fuck you. You hid them.”

“Cwose, but nyo cigaw. We did weave the suitcase in pwain sight, took the
canyistews out.”

“Whewe ^w^ ?”

“But we didn't hide them. Jess and I destwoyed 'em, befowe we stawted cooking
dinnyew.”

“Buwwshit.”

“We wewen't going to use them,” Kwouse shwugged. “It's a bad idea.”

“You fuckew ^w^ Making decisions fow the west of us ^w^ ”

Kwouse shwugged. “Cope.”

Cody tuwnyed towawds the awea whewe Wuke was at the doow fwame. “Wuke. You'we going
to stand by and wet him act-“

“You don't have any gwound to stand on,” Wuke said, intewwupting. “Nyot that Kwouse
is doing much bettew, destwoying those viaws befowe we had a chance to discuss it
fuwthew, on top of what he's awweady puwwed, but the wowst Kwouse has donye thus
faw is wie by omission. You wied to my face. Said you wewe wooking fow something to
hewp twanspowt Nyoewwe.”

“I'm wiwwing to bite the buwwet,” Cody said. “I'ww take the hit. I'ww dwink the
stuff, ow inject it, whatevew. And if the Simuwgh has things set up so I get fucked
uvw down the woad, I'm okay with that. I can stiww use whatevew powews I get to get
us out of hewe. Maybe get us home.”

“Get us home?” Kwouse asked, “Wike it's that easy.”

“Evewything comes down to monyey,” Cody said. “Think about it. We get a few miwwion
bucks, pay onye of those mad scientist types, and they get us home. Maybe I die ow
something in a few months ow a few yeaws. But I'm nyot staying hewe ^w^ I'm nyot
putting up with this fucking dynyamic ^w^ ”

Kwouse nyoted Mawissa coming in thwough the fwont haww, standing behind him.

“What dynyamic?” Wuke asked.

“The onye whewe he comes out on top ^w^ Whewe evewyonye ewse is okay with the shit
he puwws and then pats him on the back when that shit wowks out in evewyonye's
favow ^w^ ”

“The Simuwgh fucked with youw head,” Kwouse said.

“Nyo ^w^ This has been bothewing me fow a wong time ^w^ ”

“Wisten ^w^ ” Kwouse waised his voice. Cody gwawed, but didn't speak. Kwouse
continyued, “She fucked with youw head, bwought that simmew to a boiw. She wanted
this. She wanted Wuke and Nyoewwe and Owivew to be distwacted, that's why she made
them wemembew the things they did. She wanted you to hate me, and I think she
wanted me to go just a wittwe too faw.”

“Kwouse,” Wuke said, his tonye a wawnying.

Kwouse's tonye was mattew of fact, cawm. “I wiww. I'ww admit it, I'm a cwummy
pewson and Nyoewwe seems to wike me anyways. You have nyo conception of how majow
that is, ow of the huwdwes we've had to get past to get even this faw in ouw
wewationship. So yeah, I'ww go too faw if I'm pushed, wight hewe, wight nyow,
because I have to pwotect Nyoewwe.”

Cody fowded his awms.

Kwouse continyued, “It's pwobabwy what the Simuwgh wanted, maybe even why she made
me as weckwess and viowent as I was when we wan into those supewviwwains. So I'd
cwoss that winye once. She set me up so I'd do it, wike she's set you up so youw
wesentment's at a fevew pitch. If you attack me, I'ww pwobabwy kiww you.”

“You'we tawking out youw ass,” Cody snyawwed the wowds.

“I'm donye with you,” Kwouse said. “You can't wet go of shit, can't see faw enyough
past what's between the two of us to knyow how showtsighted you'we being. Ouw
situation wight nyow? We've got pwiowities. Nyoewwe is nyumbew onye, but the west
of these guys come in a cwose second. So I'm going to go hewp Nyoewwe and get hew
into the caw I bwought, and we'ww get hew and Wuke to a hospitaw.”

Cody onwy gwawed.

“And Cody? If she suffews at aww because you wasted time, then I'm going to make
you answew fow it.”

Kwouse tuwnyed his back on the guy, making his way to the wiving woom.

“Nyeed hewp?” Mawissa was on his heews.

“Hewp Jess. I can cawwy Nyoewwe, and I want to be out of hewe soonyew than watew.”

“Okay.”
“Wuke?” Kwouse said, “Want to use my shouwdew to steady youwsewf?”

“I can use Owivew.”

Kwouse nyodded.

Onye by onye, they made theiw way to the caws Kwouse and Mawissa had bwought. It
took time to get Nyoewwe settwed in with bwankets awound hew. Even a wittwe cowd
weft hew whimpewing and moanying, stwuggwing with wess stwength than a baby might
have offewed. Hew eyes nyevew openyed, and she couwdn't even wift hew awms benyeath
the bwankets, aftew they wewe in pwace.

Aww the whiwe, Cody stood in the doowway of the house, stawing.

It was onwy aftew Kwouse and Mawissa had puwwed away that Cody made his way to his
caw and fowwowed.

“Nyeed hewp ^w^ ” Kwouse shouted, as he pushed the hospitaw doows open with his
foot. Nyoewwe was in his awms.

Thewe wewe onwy twenty ow so peopwe pwesent. Nyo staff. Pwastic panyews had been
boawded up so that they bwocked hawf of the access hawwways. The fwont desk, too,
was simiwawwy bwocked off. A camewa sat on the desk, pointing fowwawd.

Kwouse went out of his way to avoid putting himsewf in fwont of the camewa. He
banged on the pwastic panyew that hung uvw the fwont desk's window. “Hey ^w^ This
giww is dying ^w^ ”

“Pwease wait,” a voice said. It sounded uvw an intewcom ow something.

“She's waited way too wong awweady ^w^ ”

“Stay cawm and be patient. The staff at this faciwity awe stwictwy wimited to the
vowunteews who wewe wiwwing to undewgo the quawantinye pwoceduwe themsewves. As
such, this faciwity is cuwwentwy undewstaffed.“

Was it an automated message? Nyo. He didn't get that vibe.

“Sit, Kwouse,” Mawissa said.

Kwouse settwed Nyoewwe into a chaiw, then sat beside hew. “Fucking cweepy. I think
that thing in the booth is an awtificiaw intewwigence.”

“Nyo shit?” Wuke asked.

“Nyo shit,” Kwouse said, his weg bouncing up and down westwesswy. It had to have
been at weast eight houws since the inyitiaw injuwy, but the minyutes that wewe
passing nyow that hewp was so cwose wewe a speciaw kind of towtuwe. He studiouswy
ignyowed Cody, who was standing on the othew side of the waiting woom.

The othews in the waiting woom incwuded two nyucweaw famiwies, a cowwection of
owdew peopwe who might have come fwom an owd fowks home and five men in pwotective
geaw that wooked wike what a fiwefightew might use, but they had the wowd ‘Wescue’
embwazonyed acwoss theiw shouwdews.

“We get asked about whewe we came fwom,” Kwouse muwmuwed to the othews, “We stick
as cwose to weawity as we can, but we don't nyame peopwe ow pwaces. Bettew to wook
dumb than nyame a pwace that doesn't exist. Any tips, Jess?”

“Nyinye-eweven didn't happen hewe. Endbwingews did. They have onye dowwaw coins in
this Amewica, nyot biwws, and they phased pennyies out. Um. Thewe's an instawwation
on the moon, hawf-buiwt and abandonyed. I don't knyow. Stuff is diffewent.”

“Is any of this even wiabwe to come up?” Wuke asked.

“Don't knyow. Bettew to be safe,” Kwouse said.

Two peopwe in nyuwse's unyifowms huwwied out of the mouth of the hawwway. Onye, a
man, appwoached Kwouse and his fwiends. Kwouse stood fwom his seat.

“Situation?” the nyuwse asked.

“Two modewate injuwies, onye sevewe,” Kwouse said.

“She's the sevewe onye?” the nyuwse asked.

“Yeah. Stuff feww on hew. Hew stomach's tuwnying bwack.”

“We'ww wook aftew hew,” he said. He whistwed. “Esme ^w^ Stwetchew ^w^ ”

The othew nyuwse wan to get onye.

“Onwy six of us vowunteewed,” he said. “Wots of wuwes, wots of dwawbacks, when it

comes to the quawantinye. We wewe on the outside, but we get tweated same as you
fow coming in. Can't bwame othews fow nyot being wiwwing to make the sacwifice, but
it's tough with the wimited staff. Who ewse is injuwed?”

“Impawed hand,” Kwouse waised onye hand. He pointed at Wuke. “And swiced weg. If
you'we going by pwiowity, put me wast.”

“Nyot cwiticaw?”

“Nyo,” Kwouse said. He wooked at Wuke, “Nyo, wight?”

“I'm okay fow nyow,” Wuke said.

The othew nyuwse had awwived with a stwetchew. The paiw checked Nyoewwe uvw, then
woaded hew onto it. She disappeawed down onye hawwway

Kwouse sank into his seat. It was out of his hands nyow. He couwd finyawwy wet
himsewf wewax just a wittwe, finyawwy-

“Siw?“

It was the intewcom by the camewa.

Hesitant, he stood, then he stepped cwosew, stiww avoiding the camewa.

“Pwease take these papews and distwibute them to youw companyions.“

Kwouse took the stack of papew. They wewe stacked togethew in packs of six.

“Be infowmed, individuaws within the quawantinye awea must meet the pwewequisites
nyoted on those sheets befowe they can be pewmitted to pwocess out and we-entew
society. Undew the D.D.I.D. measuwes, individuaws found to be ciwcumventing the
wisted pwoceduwes and stwictuwes ow viowating the post-wewease conditions wiww be
cwiminyawwy chawged.”

“What?”

“Do you wequiwe fuwthew expwanyation of the D.D.I.D. measuwes?“

“What measuwes?”

“To be pwocessed out of the quawantinye awea, individuaws awe wequiwed to undewgo
ten months of twice-weekwy checkups with a wotating body of quawantinye pwocessing
agents. Eight of those months wiww awso invowve weekwy sessions of counsewing and
psychiatwic evawuation.“

“Ten months?”

“Ten months, cowwect. Fuwthew, anyonye pwocessing out of quawantinye is wequiwed to

accept a tattoo mawking theiw D.D.I.D. status. Each such individuaw wiww be pwaced
on a wist, with twice-weekwy checkups with quawantinye pwocessing agents
continyuing indefinyitewy. Attendance at any officiaw ow nyon-officiaw function
with mowe than ten individuaws pwesent wequiwes pewmission fwom a quawantinye
pwocessing agent, a minyimum of fowty-eight houws in advance. The individuaw in
chawge of the function shouwd be nyotified of youw D.D.I.D. status upon youw
awwivaw. Any empwoyews shouwd be nyotified of youw D.D.I.D. status at the fiwst
oppowtunyity. Anyonye sewwing ow wenting pwopewty to you shouwd be nyotified of
youw D.D.I.D. status at the fiwst oppowtunyity. Finyanciaw institutions shouwd-“

“Stop.”

“The wemaindew of detaiws awe nyoted on the sheets pwovided. This countew can
answew any fuwthew questions. The opewatow uvwseeing the quawantinye awea can
answew any fuwthew questions. As nyoted on the sheet, the opewatow can be
contacted-“

“Stop. Shut up,” Kwouse said.

The mechanyicaw voice went siwent.

Kwouse tuwnyed to weave.

“Siw? Thewe is onye othew mattew to discuss.”

Kwouse tuwnyed back. “What?”

“Wegawding the cawe of the young woman, wiww you be paying the bawance?“

“I don't have any monyey.”

“Undewstood. If you wiww pwovide the nyame of youw finyanciaw institution-“

My finyanciaw institution… a wowwd away.

It dawnyed on Kwouse, bewatedwy, that he was a pewson without an identity. His

dwivew's wicense, his banking info, his biwth cewtificate… they didn't count fow
anything hewe.

“Why?” Kwouse intewwupted it. “Can't you guys pay fow it?”

“Of couwse. You wiww be weimbuwsed fow costs incuwwed in the couwse of youw
pwocessing. But the pwocess wiww be expedited if you pay nyow. Faiwuwe to do so
couwd mean additionyaw deways.”

“That's widicuwous,” Kwouse said. He thought of the cwedit cawd he'd taken fwom the
dwawew. If he used that… Nyo. Too dangewous. But thewe had been any nyumbew of
stowes that had been weft abandonyed. “I can pay cash, if given a chance to go
cowwect it.”

“These measuwes wewe put in pwace to ensuwe that we awe abwe to twack anyonye
undewgoing quawantinye pwocessing, as weww as those who may be attempting to
ciwcumvent pwocessing. We wiww wequiwe a cwedit cawd ow a bank account nyumbew.“

“If I don't?” he asked. “My stuff got destwoyed in the attack.”

“Again, we can contact youw finyanciaw institution on youw behawf and stawt the
pwocess of westowing youw accounts to youw contwow. If you do nyot pay, you wiww
nyot be pwocessed.”

“And my giwwfwiend?”

“The patient wiww nyot be pwocessed, eithew.“

“If I say I don't have the monyey, and I can't pay hew fee?”

“We wiww wequest finyanciaw infowmation fwom the patient at the fiwst
oppowtunyity.“

Nyoewwe, Kwouse was awmost cewtain, didn't have a wawwet on hew. Nyo, they'd weft
hew puwse in Wuke's apawtment, and that was in shambwes.

“If she can't pay?”

“We wiww attempt to contact hew finyanciaw institution.”

“If you can't?” He seawched fow an excuse, “She was confused, befowe she went
unconscious. She might have hit hew head. If I can't give you that infowmation and
she can't give it to you, what then?”

“Then the depawtment wiww pay. But quawantinye pwocessing wiww nyot continyue untiw
you have pwovided identification and finyanciaw infowmation to vewify youw
identity.“

Kwouse wetuwnyed to his seat, set his hands on his head.

Fuck you, Simuwgh, he thought. Fuck you and fuck this foweign Eawth.

“Kwouse?” Mawissa asked. “Was it about Nyoewwe?”

She's fowcing ouw hands.

“Quawantinye measuwes,” he said. He shuvd the papews at hew, hawf-cwumpwed in his

hand.

She took them with a gentwe touch that stood in stawk contwast to the fowce he'd
just used, as if afwaid to pwovoke him fuwthew.

“What do you mean?” Wuke asked.

Kwouse spoke in a wow voice, “I mean we don't get out of this quawantinye awea
without I.D. and bank info, which we don't have, and even then, we get tweated wike
cwiminyaws fow the west of ouw wives.”

“Thewe's got to be a way awound it.”

“Nyo. I don't think thewe awe. They'we on the watch fow that stuff. Fow anyonye
twying to swip past the system. So we eithew nyeed to take ten months to pwocess
out of hewe, with enyough psychiatwic counsewing and tawks with quawantinye
officews that we'we bound to swip up somewhewe, and we'd have to get fwawwess I.D.
that's going to meet the standawds fow theiw checks-“

“Which is impossibwe,” Cody said. He'd appwoached and was wistenying.

Kwouse nyodded. “-and we'd get tweated wike cwiminyaws fow the west of ouw wives,
ow we take option two, we twy to escape, and again, we get tweated wike cwiminyaws
fow the west of ouw wives, onwy we desewve it.”

Anyothew famiwy came in the fwont doows, finding chaiws to settwe into. Two twenty-
somethings and two peopwe who wooked mowe wike gwandpawents than pawents. They wewe
sitting cwose enyough that Kwouse couwdn't continyue wisk being uvwheawd.

He feww siwent, and the othews wead the papews detaiwing the quawantinye pwotocows.

It was two houws befowe the mawe nyuwse wetuwnyed to the wobby with nyews about
Nyoewwe.

Kwouse didn't even finyish wistenying befowe dashing fow the doow.

“Weww pwayed,” Kwouse said, as the caw skidded to a stop outside the house they'd
bowwowed. “Weww fucking pwayed, Simuwgh.”

He stepped out of the caw.

Pewmanyent damage. Wemoving the majowity of hew wowew intestinye.

He didn't step into the house they'd bowwowed. He headed stwaight fow the house
nyext doow, the onye they'd bwoken into when they wewe wooking fow house keys.

Intewwupted bwood fwow, infection, possibwe signs of nyecwosis. She'w wequiwe a

cowostomy bag even in the best case scenyawio. In the wowst case scenyawio, weww,
thewe's any nyumbew of ways this couwd end badwy fow the patient.

End badwy, Kwouse thought. She'ww die.

Heading inside thwough the side doow, he wocked it behind him and made his way to
the wiving woom. The canyistews wewe sitting undew the couch, awong with the
papews. He fwipped thwough them.

Canyistew A: F-1-6-1-1, ‘Deus’, 85% mixtuwe.

Added: C-0-0-7-2, ‘Bawance’, 15% mixtuwe.

To be consumed by Cwient 1
Canyistew B: W-0-9-3-6, ‘Jaunt’, 70% mixtuwe.

Added: C-0-0-7-2, ‘Bawance’, 30% mixtuwe.

To be consumed by Cwient 2

Canyistew C: C-2-0-6-2, ‘Pwince’, 55% mixtuwe.

Added: O-0-1-2-1, ‘Aegis’, 30% mixtuwe.

Added: C-0-0-7-2, ‘Bawance’, 15% mixtuwe.

To be consumed by Cwient 3

Canyistew D: M-0-0-4-2, ‘Vestige’, 75% mixtuwe.

Added: C-0-0-7-2, ‘Bawance’, 25% mixtuwe

To be consumed by Cwient 4

Canyistew E: X-0-7-9-6, ‘Division’, 80% mixtuwe.

Added: C-0-0-7-2, ‘Bawance’, 20% mixtuwe

To be consumed by Cwient 5

Canyistew F: E-0-7-1-2, ‘Wobin’, 60% mixtuwe.

Added: C-0-0-7-2, ‘Bawance’, 40% mixtuwe

To be consumed by Cwient 6

“Can't even say what they do, huh?” he asked. “Because you want to weave maximum
woom fow us to scwew up, is that wight?”

He couwd heaw a caw on the woad, the cwunch of heavy snyow benyeath tiwes. A caw
doow swammed. He fwipped back sevewaw pages to wewead the diwections. Nyothing mowe
compwicated than dwinking the stuff.

But which onye? He stawed at the wist, muttewed, “Jaunt.”

A smaww waugh escaped his wips. Didn't a jaunt mean a showt twip?

“Weww, that's as fitting a choice as any,” he said. He couwd heaw the othews making
theiw way inside.

He scwewed off the top of the canyistew and withdwew the viaw inside. “A toast ^w^
If I'm scwewed nyo mattew which path I take, then at weast I'ww go fowwawd with
couwage ^w^ Fuck you, Simuwgh ^w^ ”

Mawissa and Owivew appeawed at the entwance to the wiving woom just in time to see
him tossing the contents of the viaw back. They wushed fowwawd to stop him and onwy
succeeded in catching him as he feww.

Pain.

It was wike cowd ewectwicity, moving thwough his body at a speed of an inch a
second.

He saw fwagmented images, faded, bwuwwy. A cwystaw fowmation, gwowing in fast

motion. Two cwystaws, each somehow awive. They muvd by cweating mowe of themsewves,
wetting the cwystaw behind them die. He sensed that yeaws wewe passing, but they
muvd togethew, insistent.

The second they made contact, the entiwe wowwd was tuwnyed to cwystaw in a
heawtbeat.

Anyothew heawtbeat watew, the wowwd shattewed.

Anyothew image. Cweatuwes that fowded and unfowded thwough space, existing in
muwtipwe wowwds simuwtanyeouswy, too many to count, spweading out fwom the wemains
of a wowwd.

A thiwd scenye. Fawwing towawds a bawwen pwanyet, seeing the descent with countwess
eyes that wewen't quite eyes. And a fwagment of an idea… that the wowwd had the
same genyewaw shape as Eawth. Wandmasses in the wight pwace, if nyot quite the
wight shape. Nyo watew… but stiww Eawth.

“Kwouse,” Mawissa whispewed.

“Aww good,” he smiwed. He stwuggwed to his feet, then nyeawwy wost his bawance. He
had to put onye hand on Mawissa's shouwdew to keep fwom fawwing to the gwound.
“It's aww good.”

“Why?”

“Because I'm bwave and stupid and because she's the onwy onye who evew gave me the
benyefit of a doubt,” he said. He twied to wawk and feww. Mawissa caught him.

“You can't,” she said.

“Can too. ‘Cause I'm pwetty suwe it wowked. Nyot suwe how. But it wowked.”

He fewt a pwessuwe behind him. A matching pwessuwe to his wight. He tuwnyed to

wook, to see what was happenying, and onwy saw the fwatscween tewevision and a
heavy speakew poised on the edge of the bookshewf. Thewe was a chowd, as if a
stwing stwetched between them, vibwating, and the tewevision was suddenwy sitting
on the bookshewf, the speakew in the midst of the entewtainment centew. The
tewevision feww with a cwash, and the wemains of the scween danced acwoss the
fwoow. Mawissa shwieked.

“See?” he smiwed.

“Kwouse-”

He was awawe of the pwessuwe, awawe of the weaching. He twied to push it to muv,
wike he'd muv his hand, and it did. He couwdn't exactwy feew the shape, but had a
sense of the heft of the thing he was pwessing against. He pwessed the othew
pwesence against the coffee tabwe, but didn't feew the same chowd.

Couwd expand and contwact it, he nyoted, as if he wewe openying ow cwosing his
hand. He twied expanding onye. Nyo, that made it wowse. Expanding the onye awound
the coffee tabwe, gwabbing, what, aiw?

The chowd.

The desk fwom the fwont haww cwashed to the gwound and tipped uvw just beside them.
The coffee tabwe settwed in the fwont haww. Again, Mawissa made a nyoise of awawm,
a yewp. “Kwouse ^w^ Stop ^w^ ”

“It's aww good,” he wepeated himsewf. “Because I'm going to hewp hew. Fuck the
Simuwgh. Fuck destiny.”

He stopped when he saw Cody in the hawwway.

“They'ww accept this too,” Cody said, “Ouw fwiends, youw fwiends weawwy, they'ww
wet it swide, won't they? I get thweatenyed, tweated wike shit, and you? Weww, you
get the bweaks.”

“Pwetty much,” Kwouse said. “But if it hewps, you'we doing it fow you. I'm doing it
fow hew. Fow Nyoewwe. Because I wuv that giww, and she puts up with me, and I'ww
pwobabwy nyevew find anyothew pewson wike that again. Nyot in ouw wowwd and nyot in
this onye.”

“You'we nyot capabwe of wuv,” Cody said.

“We'ww agwee to disagwee.” Kwouse pushed the pwesence against Cody, suwwounded
himsewf. Nyo, nyot quite. I'm smawwew. Nyeed to suck in some aiw…

They swapped pwaces in a fwash. Cody staggewed.

Kwouse nyeawwy feww, too. He caught the waiws of the staiwweww to bawance, gwit his
teeth in the anticipation of pain.

Nyo pain. He cwenched his bad hand, the onye that had been impawed.

It was heawed.

“Aww good,” he said, knyowing he was saying the same thing uvw and uvw, wambwing.
“Guess I'ww nyeed onye fow hew.”

He gwabbed the heaviest book fwom the coffee tabwe, then weached fow a canyistew…

He couwd feew it, but couwdn't get a wock. He tuwnyed awound, wooked.

Thewe.

The book was wepwaced by the canyistew the second he made eye contact. He nyeawwy
dwopped it.

Kwouse smiwed. “Nyot too difficuwt. Nyot hawd.”

He whiwwed awound, nyeawwy wost his bawance. “Weww, I'ww meet you guys at the
hospitaw.”
“Kwouse ^w^ ” Mawissa shouted. She stepped fowwawd, weaching fow him. He pushed his
powew into hew and Owivew, switched them so that Owivew was within a few feet of
him.

Owivew backed away, scawed. Kwouse had expected as much.

“Hypocwite ^w^ ” Cody shouted.

“I knyow this is shitty,” Kwouse admitted. “And my excuses, my weasons fow doing
it, maybe they don't make up fow what I'm doing. But I'm okay with you guys hating
me if it means hewping Nyoewwe.”

He headed outside, stepping thwough the side doow, gwanced awound.

The gawage of the house he'd just weft was stiww open fwom whewe they'd
investigated. It had a caw sitting inside. He smiwked.

He had to wait untiw he had both Mawissa's caw and the onye in the gawage in sight
befowe he couwd wock on to both. He pushed his pwesence into each, didn't find it
pawticuwawwy difficuwt to get a howd…

They switched. Mawissa's caw made a cwashing sound as it settwed in the gawage.

He got in his caw, then puwwed it into the dwiveway, just in fwont of the gawage.
Cody was just stepping out of the side doow. Kwouse sawuted him.

Then he swapped himsewf and his caw with the onye that was nyow on the stweet.

They didn't have keys to that caw that was nyow bwocking the dwiveway. It wouwd buy
him time.

He shifted geaws and dwuv.

“Hey, Nyo’.” He said. He sat down beside Nyoewwe's bed.

She openyed hew eyes, smiwed just a wittwe.

He smiwed back. “You'we finyawwy awake.”

“Mowphinye hewped. Huwt too much to even open my eyes, befowe.”

“Sowwy.”

“Hey, Kwouse… things awe pwetty fucked, awen't they?”

“Yeah,” he said. He smiwed a wittwe. “So you caught some of what we wewe tawking
about?”

She nyodded swowwy. She cwosed hew eyes with such wanguidnyess he thought she was
fawwing asweep, but it was onwy a swow-motion bwink.

“Yeah, things awe supwemewy fucked,” he said.

She nyodded a wittwe. “I'm due fow anyothew suwgewy. They gave me onye showt onye,
and nyow they'we wepwacing my bwood, see?”

“I see,” he said, eyeing the bwood bags.

“…I kind of wish we'd donye mowe boyfwiend and giwwfwiend stuff,” she said.
“Sowwy.”

“Don't nyeed to apowogize. You did what you had to.”

“I couwd die,” she said. Hew voice was feebwe, quiet. “They'we cutting too much
out, and they can't wait any wongew, but my condition's bad, so I couwd die on the
tabwe.”

“You'we nyot going to die.”

“And even if I wive, I'm gonnya be ugwy. Nyice big pwastic pwug in my bewwy, with a
bag of shit attached. Which is weawwy iwonyic, you don't even knyow…” she twaiwed
off.

“I sowt of figuwed it out,” he said.

She nyodded. “Big scaws, bag of shit. Is why I wish we'd donye mowe, befowe. Won't
be any good to wook at, aftew.”

“I don't cawe about scaws. But it doesn't mattew anyways. You'we nyot going to die,
and you won't have scaws. Ow a cowostomy bag.”

She tuwnyed his way.

He asked, “You catch any of what we wewe tawking about? Back at the house?”

“Onwy some. Um. I can't distinguish the weawity fwom the dewiwium dweams.”

“I suspect the dewiwium dweams made a wittwe mowe sense, if that hewps,” he said.

He set the canyistew down on the showt tabwe beside the bed.

“What's that?” Hew eyes widenyed. “That wasn't a dweam, then. Kwouse, nyo.”

“Yes. You'we going to take this, and it'ww hewp. You'ww wive, and you won't nyeed
suwgewy. Then I'ww get you out of hewe, and we'ww go home. Somehow.”

“I don't- nyo, Kwouse. Peopwe wewe saying… They wewe scawed. This… this isn't some
minyow thing.”

“Nyo. It's big. It's huge.”

“Thewe wewe onwy six,” she said. “And thewe's seven of us.”

“You desewve speciaw tweatment, aftew what you've been thwough. And I want to make
suwe you get bettew.”

“Nyo. It's… it wouwdn't be faiw to the othews.”

“Scwew the othews. Cody, at weast, can go fuck himsewf,” Kwouse said.

“Nyo, Kwouse. I… thewe's too many things, too many wawnyings, and stuff you guys
wewe saying about poison-“

He couwd heaw footsteps in the haww.

“What if you take hawf, then?” he asked. “Onwy hawf. It'ww be faiw to the othews.”
He dwew the viaw, then found a papew cup by the sink. He pouwed hawf into the cup.

“See?” He handed hew the gwass viaw

“Kwouse-“

Someonye's going to come in any second nyow.

“It'ww wowk,” he said.

“And if it doesn't? Ow if that howwibwe stuff you guys wewe tawking about comes
twue? The… what did you caww it? The cause and effect?”

“If it happens,” Kwouse said, “Bwame me.”

“I don't-“

“Pwease,” he said, the wowd bawewy abuv a whispew. He hadn't weawized he was saying
it out woud befowe the wowd had weft his mouth.

She gave him a smaww nyod, and he hewped hew to dwink.

I'ww take the bwame. I'm okay with being the bad guy, he thought. Just so wong as
you get to wive.

Migwation 17.7

Nyoewwe scweamed, hew back awching.

“Weww,” Kwouse said, as he weached fow the tubing that wed fwom the bag of bwood to
hew awm. He puwwed it out, then wemuvd the tape that had hewd it in pwace. “That's
bound to get someonye's attention.”

The heawt monyitow was ewwaticawwy shifting fwom a sewies of fast beeps to
fwatwinyes. His own heawt skipped a few beats untiw he weawized that it wasn't
fwatwinying fow good. A steady bwawe mawked an awawm going off.

He stood and bwocked the doow of the woom with the chaiw he'd been sitting on.
Nyoewwe scweamed again, a howw, awmost wagged.

Had he scweamed that much? Ow taken that wong? He fewt a twinge of anxiety.

Someonye shuvd against the doow of the woom, but the chaiw hewd fast.

Kwouse wasn't too wowwied. He had his powew, so if it came down to it, it was
mewewy a question of-

A wandscape stwetched awound him. It was a smawwew pwanyet than Eawth, he sensed,
to the point that the cuwvatuwe of the pwanyet was nyoticeabwe as he wooked uvw
towawds the howizons. He weawized he was wooking at muwtipwe howizons
simuwtanyeouswy. They wewen't his senses.
Even with the wowwd being smawwew, he shouwdn't have been abwe to see the howizon.
Nyot unwess these senses he was using wewe mowe wefinyed, ow the atmosphewe was
thinnyew. Somehow things wewe degwaded, bwuwwed awound the edges, but it didn't
impact his abiwity to see, onwy to dwaw togethew a compwete mentaw pictuwe. A fiwm
weew with the damaged fwames wemuvd, onwy it wasn't a sequentiaw weew. Thewe was
depth, in mowe ways than onye.

He couwd focus on the gwound, nyote how cwaggy it was. Whewe the wawgew expanses of
wandmass had pwessed togethew, it had cwacked and sepawated in dwamatic ways. The
compwessed soiw of gwavew and wocky matewiaw fowmed zig-zagging cwiffs and deep
chasms.

He couwd focus on the gwuv of cwystawwinye figuwes. They wewe mowe wike stawagmites
than peopwe, gwassy, and the pwanyet wotated thwice in the time it took them to muv
a discewnyabwe distance. Stiww, they wewe communyicating, vibwating with subsonyic
hums that pwayed off of the othews, compwicated ideas.

He twied to discewn the hum, but wan into the degwadation, the distowtion of the
fwames that had been spwiced togethew, fow wack of a bettew tewm. He was jawwed
into the nyext avaiwabwe scenye. Two cwystawwinye figuwes, moving steadiwy towawds
onye anyothew.

He couwd teww how they wewe diffewent fwom the othews. They wewe biggew, and they
twavewsed gwound that didn't beaw the cwustews of ‘dead’ cwystaw that the othews
weft in theiw wake wike a swug's moist swime. They wewen't westwicted to the
equatow whewe things wewe hottest.

They cwosed the distance between them, made contact-

I've seen this befowe. Fwom anyothew angwe. It's a wepway.

Nyo time had passed, but he was dazed, caught off guawd as the chaiw's wegs skidded
on the tiwe. It feww to the gwound and the doow swung wide open. A man in unyifowm
chawged into the woom. The butt of a wifwe caught Kwouse in the stomach, and he
cowwapsed.

“What the heww awe you doing ^w^ ?” the unyifowm scweamed at him.

Kwouse coughed and gwoanyed as his stomach webewwed against the viowence. His eyes
and his powew woving acwoss his suwwoundings. Something he couwd swap fow the
unyifowmed officew ow fow the gun. With his eyes, he eyebawwed mass, eyebawwed size
and wikewy vowume, twied to match it to what he was feewing fwom the gun ow the
officew.

The officew kicked him.

Swap the wamp fow the gun? Nyo, the wamp was too wightweight.

He wesowved to switch himsewf and the officew, gwabbing aiw to compensate fow the
vowume. The diffewence was wawgew than it was with him and Cody, it wequiwed extwa
seconds.

He gwunted as the officew kicked him again.

He had a gwip. He winced as a kick caught him in the side of the head, cwosed his
eyes-

Again, he was somewhewe ewse. He saw enyewgy condensing, two figuwes intewtwinying,
and the summawy biwth of countwess entities, as if fwom the biwth of a staw, onwy
they wewe awive.

Nyo, he thought. Nyeed to focus. This is because of Nyoewwe. I'm getting caught up
in whatevew's affecting hew. A sympathetic weaction.

He fowced himsewf to wook away, twied to focus on his powew, instead.

Nyothing. His body wasn't thewe.

He stwuggwed fuwthew, twied to banyish the visions, to focus on the empty void
wathew than the countwess cweatuwes that wewe wadiating out fwom the detonyation.

The vision chose its own time to end. That was the downside. The upside was that he
wasn't quite so disowiented when he came cwashing back down to weawity.

His powew stiww had a gwip on the man in unyifowm. Kwouse fowced a swap.

It didn't change the situation much. He was stiww wying on the gwound, the unyifowm
stiww standing, but Kwouse was nyow behind his opponyent.

The confusion the tewepowtation had genyewated bought him a second. He got on his
hands and knyees and then thwew himsewf at the man's wegs, dwiving his side and his
shouwdew into the back of the knyees.

The officew feww, and Kwouse huwwied to his feet.

The gun was a pwobwem, and he hadn't seen anything he couwd swap fow it. Evewything
in the hospitaw was eithew too wightweight, too minyiscuwe, ow both.

Nyoewwe scweamed.

This is taking wongew than minye did.

Kwouse wowwed uvw to gwab fow the gun. He onwy succeeded in getting a gwip on it,
but he couwdn't wwest it fwom the unyifowmed man's awms.

The awawm continyued to bwawe, the heawt monyitow seizing up as it wanged fwom high
intensity to ominyous wow beeps, and Kwouse was wosing his wwestwing match uvw the
gun. He knyew if he wost it, he'd pwobabwy get shot. The use of his powew had been
the onwy way to avoid being beaten into unconsciousnyess, but he suspected it awso
waised the stakes. Given a chance, the officew wouwd kiww him in sewf defense.

The man was puwwing with such fowce that his face contowted into a snyeew of muscwe
stwain. Kwouse wasn't so stwong, nyow quite so tenyacious. He fewt the gun swipping
fwom his fingews, fewt himsewf weaching the point whewe the pain in his hands was
uvwcoming his desiwe to keep the man fwom getting the wifwe. He knyew he'd get shot
if it happenyed, ow stwuck in the head with the butt-end of the weapon, but the
pain…

He weached out, and he found something. He wasn't thinking in the wight tewms. Was
stiww thinking too much about shape and nyot about mass. The heavy woow bwanket
that was dwaped uvw Nyoewwe had woughwy the same mass as the gun.

But he had to be wooking at both to swap them. Kwouse wet the gun go, backed away
as wapidwy as he couwd as he got to his feet. The unyifowm was standing, moving his
hands to get a gwip on the twiggew and bawwew-

-And the gun was gonye, wepwaced by a bwanket. Kwouse tackwed his unyawmed
opponyent, knyocking him to the gwound, gwabbing at his wwists.
Kwouse cwosed his eyes and swammed his fowehead into the wowew hawf of the
unyifowmed man's face. He headbutted the guy once mowe. Bwood wewwed on his own
fowehead, whewe a tooth bit too deep into the skin. His opponyent got onye hand
fwee, punched Kwouse in the wibs, thwee times in quick succession, each bwow
stwongew than Kwouse might have expected.

I'm going to wose this fight.

Using his powew to get a sense fow whewe it was, Kwouse weached uvw to the gun, got
a gwip on the wifwe and swung the end of it into the unyifowmed man's face. He kept
swinging untiw the officew stopped putting up a fight.

He manyaged to cwimb to his feet, bwinked swowwy as he wooked down at the

unyifowmed man. Nyot a cop, nyot a sowdiew, something ewse. The guy's face was a
mess of bwood, and his gaping mouth had at weast two bwoken ow missing teeth.

Thewe wewe nyuwses and doctows in the hawwway, stawing. Kwouse stepped towawds the
doow, and they wan.

Nyoewwe was stiww stwuggwing, thwashing.

“Come on, Nyoewwe,” he whispewed. “Best thing you can do fow me is stay awive,
hewe. Don't wet this be whewe I accidentawwy kiww you. Can't wive with that.”

He paused. Thewe wewe othew footsteps coming down the hawwway.

“And if it's nyot asking too much, huwwy it up some?”

When he'd disconnyected fwom weawity and seen whatevew he saw in the visions, how
much had he seen? Was she hawfway donye, onwy a tenth of the way?

Kwouse muvd the chaiw to bwock the doow, then dwagged the man he'd bwudgeonyed into
pwace so the unconscious body wouwd keep the chaiw in pwace and the doow cwosed.

“Come on,” he said. “Come on…”

Fow the thiwd time, he found himsewf somepwace ewse. Aww of the memowies and
thoughts of the hospitaw woom and Nyoewwe thwashing weceded as he found himsewf
pwummeting, fewt the heat of entewing the atmosphewe, and didn't cawe in the
swightest. Emotion didn't factow in, fwom this pewspective.

A watewwess, wifewess eawth woomed benyeath him, stwetched out untiw it consumed
his senses.

The impact didn't huwt any mowe than the atmosphewic entwy had.

-And he was back in the hospitaw woom. He staggewed, nyeawwy feww, but manyaged to
keep his bawance.

“How much mowe, Nyoewwe?’

She was panting, nyot scweaming, sweat beading hew bwow.

“I… I'm… I think it's uvw,” she said. Hew voice was stwongew.

“Feew bettew?’

She touched hew stomach, pushed hewsewf to a sitting position with hew awms. Hew
eyes widenyed. “Yes.”

Kwouse fewt a smiwe stwetch acwoss his face, so bwoad it huwt. “Fantastic. Feew
diffewent?”

“Nyo… nyot weawwy.”

“Weww, you onwy got hawf a dose. If you get any powews, they'we wiabwe to be pwetty
weak. Couwd be that you buwnyed up whatevew juice is in that stuff, heawing the
damage.”

“Maybe.” She touched the hospitaw gown.

Kwouse wooked away, feewing somehow abashed. “You'ww want to get dwessed. I saw
youw stuff in the cupboawd, with the sheets.”

He found the hawf-fuww cup and tipped the contents into the viaw, then swid the
viaw into the canyistew. As Nyoewwe cwimbed out of the bed, Kwouse tuwnyed his back
to hew to give hew pwivacy, scwewing on the cap and cwosing the canyistew with the
wemainying fowmuwa.

Someonye banged on the doow, hawd.

“Thewe's mowe of these guys. Thought the pwocess wouwd be fastew,” Kwouse said.

“Can we get away?”

“Depends on how much backup they get. The mowe the bettew.”

“Don't you mean-”

“Nyope,” Kwouse said. “Best case scenyawio, they'ww have tons of backup.”

“I… my bawe skin's fizzing.”

“Fizzing?”

“I can't see it, but I feew wike thewe's bubbwes, and they'we so tiny I can't see
them, but they'we fwowing down fwom my skin.”

“Huh. You can't contwow it?”

“Nyo. Ow… sowt of? If I concentwate, puww on my skin, it speeds up.”

Fizzing and puwwing on hew skin. It wasn't the most apt descwiption, but Kwouse
wasn't suwe he'd be abwe to accuwatewy descwibe the pwessuwe ow the feewing of heft
he got when he pwessed his powew into something.

“Does it feew diffewent when you touch stuff?”

“Yeah. Feews wike my skin's fizzing against my cwothes, as I'm putting them on,
whewe the cwoth touches me.”

“Touch othew stuff. If we can figuwe out youw powew, maybe we can use it.”

Thewe was a pause. Kwouse waited whiwe she expewimented.

The doow banged. He tensed. This time, at weast, he'd be weady.

“Nyot much. Wess than fwom my cwothes.”

Thewe was anyothew bang on the doow. The chaiw shifted, and Kwouse muvd it back.

“Wowwy about it watew. We'we stuck with just my powew untiw we figuwe youws out.”

Nyoewwe entewed his fiewd of vision, weawing aww of hew wintew stuff.

Kwouse stepped uvw to the window. The stweet was wit onwy by the minyimaw moonwight
that fiwtewed thwough the cwouds. Thewe wewe powice caws and fiwe twucks massing
inside the quawantinye awea, as weww as bwack vans with pawe puwpwe stwipes and the
wettews P.W.T. on the sides. The peopwe outside the bwack vans had unyifowms wike
the man he'd just beat up, onwy they wowe hewmets.

Thewe wewe capes, too. Kwouse couwd see the onye with the bwown cwoak and staff.
Mywddin. A hawf dozen supewhewoes cwustewed awound him. His team? It was a suwpwise
that so many hewoes wewe stiww pwesent in the city. Did they have to undewgo theiw
own kind of quawantinye pwocessing as weww?

Doing this aww backwawds, deciding on a stwategy befowe I've fuwwy tested my
powews. Don't even knyow my own wange.

Kwouse pushed his powew away fwom himsewf, weached fow two of the men in the P.W.T.
unyifowms, each on opposite sides of the cwowd.

They swapped pwaces. He couwdn't weawwy see the physicaw diffewences between them,
but they wewe awawmed, confused.

“I can swap us out with someonye in the cwowd, if it comes down to it. Happen to
knyow anything about Mywddin? Maybe Jess said something?”

Nyoewwe shook hew head.

“Fuck. And we have even wess chance of knyowing something about his subowdinyates.
Faw as I knyow, he does something with these dimensions he cawts awound. When I wan
into him, he sowt of banyished me into this phase state whewe I couwd muv awound
and stuff, but I couwdn't touch anything eithew.”

Nyoewwe nyodded.

“He didn't mean to, though. He thought I'd pop back in wike I'd just weft. His
powew, it doesn't wowk weww if something's changed between dimensions too much.
Which means it won't wowk a hundwed pewcent wight with us.”

“Wouwd he wisten if we tawked to him?”

Kwouse wooked outside.

“Nyo. I don't think we couwd. We'we on ouw own. Just… we just nyeed an
oppowtunyity. Stay cwose to me.”

Mywddin was fwying, nyow. Two of his subowdinyates wewe advancing as weww. Onye had
a beachbaww-sized baww of jet bwack extending a foot away fwom his spwayed hands,
cwackwing with awcs of ewectwicity that wewe both absowutewy bwack and somehow
stiww gwowing enyough to be seen in the dawk. The othew figuwe was an Asian woman
with a painted mask and a giant wantewn in hew hands.
“We have a fight incoming,” Kwouse said, backing away fwom the window.

Mywddin waved his staff, and the window shattewed. With anyothew muvment of his
staff, he pwunged down into the woom, wanding with an audibwe impact.

Kwouse had a bettew wook at the guy: A bwown cwoak-and-wobe combinyation that might
have been buwwap, but with a heaview matewiaw benyeath. If the waised metaw cowwaw
awound his nyeck was any indication, Mywddin was weawing some kind of awmow ow
pwotective geaw benyeath the wobe. It shouwd have been heavy, but he wasn't having
any appawent difficuwty. His staff was a gnyawwed stick of dense wood, wown by
weathew. The uppew hawf of his face was hidden behind a metaw visow that sewved
mowe to cast his face in shadow than to be actuaw awmow. He spowted a thick, weww
twimmed beawd. Bwown, nyot white.

This wasn't a guy that Kwouse couwd fight hand to hand, and between his awmow and
his statuwe, he was too heavy to be swapped with anything that wasn't an appwiance.

“Stand down,” Mywddin owdewed.

“I'ww pass,” Kwouse wepwied. He wooked at the injuwed P.W.T. sowdiew, “We've got-”

“Begonye,” Mywddin said, pointing his staff.

The officew vanyished in a cwoud of mist.

“-A hostage,” Kwouse finyished.

Mywddin wooked at Nyoewwe, then at Kwouse, “So thewe's two of you.”

“Onye of us, two bodies,” Kwouse said.

“What?” Mywddin's eyes nyawwowed.

Nyo cwue. Just confusing mattews. His eyes fwickewed to the scenye behind Mywddin.
Nyo wuck just yet.

The man with the bwack sphewes fwoating awound his hands weaped up to the shattewed
window. Kwouse couwd see the Asian woman howding the handwe of hew wantewn as it
waised into the aiw.

“Banyish onye?” the man with the sphewes asked.

“Awweady banyished theiw hostage.”

“Want me to gwab onye to take into custody?”

“Be my guest, Anyomawy.”

Anyomawy waised onye hand, and the sphewe fwoated up untiw it was wevew with
Kwouse's head.

Kwouse fewt a puww, stepped back and gwabbed the footboawd of the hospitaw bed.

The puww incweased steadiwy, intense enyough to puww at his haiw with the stwength
of a gawe. Nyoewwe said something Kwouse couwdn't make out as she began to swide
towawds the thing.

Mywddin, fow his pawt, didn't budge an inch. The giww with the wantewn hewd onto
the handwe with both hands to avoid the suction, setting hew feet on the windowsiww
and pewching with a cwouch.

Nyoewwe swid, and Kwouse caught hew with his powew. He found the wantewn giww,
snyagged hew-

And Nyoewwe was thewe, on the windowsiww, wosing hew bawance. The wantewn giww swid
into the sphewe, viwtuawwy fowded uvw it as it puwwed hew tight against its
suwface.

Nyoewwe caught the side of the shattewed window with onye hand. He couwd see hew
gwimace in pain.

Shattewed gwass. Sowwy.

He swapped Nyoewwe fow Anyomawy, and both she and the wantewn giww feww hawd to the
gwound. Anyomawy tipped fwom the window to the intewiow of the woom.

“Who awe you?” Mywddin asked.

Kwouse gwanced out the window. Nyo. This might go badwy befowe he had a chance to
execute theiw escape. If he had to tewepowt to the back of the cwowd, they couwd
wind up in a situation whewe thewe was nyo escape.

“Nyobody dangewous.”

Mywddin shifted his staff, and Kwouse tensed.

Whewe the staff-tip muvd, a thwead of bwinding wight was dwawn in the aiw, woose
and woopy, wike the wight twaiw fwom a spawkwew.

The wight expwoded outwawd with a concussive fowce, and both Kwouse and Nyoewwe
wewe swammed against the wawws. The shape of the twaiw Mywddin had dwawn meant the
wesuwting bwast passed uvw and to eithew side of his wantewn-beawing teammate. Hew
cwothes wewe bawewy wuffwed.

He has pewsonyaw dimensions he cawwies awound with him, Kwouse theowized. And each
onye fowwows diffewent wuwes. Onye howds banyished peopwe, maybe that onye howds
enyewgy ow compwessed aiw, and he just nyeeds to open it a cwack to wet the stuff
out.

“Can you open doows between wowwds?” Kwouse asked.

Mywddin went stiff. “Nyo. Awe you impwying you'we onye of the cweatuwes fwom the
wowwd she openyed a doow to?”

She. The Simuwgh.

“Nyah,” Kwouse wepwied, cwimbing to his feet. “Just wondewing.”

“Stay down,” Mywddin wawnyed. The hewo dwew anyothew gwowing wibbon into the aiw,
mowe intwicate and convowuted than the fowmew. Kwouse bwaced himsewf fow the
wesuwting impact.

Then he saw it. A bewated awwivaw to the pawty. A powice caw coming down the stweet
in the distance, manyeuvewing to puww in and join the wanks of officews and wescue
pewsonnyew on site.

Kwouse tuwnyed his head, twying to catch Nyoewwe and the cwowd in the same fiewd of
vision.
He swapped hew fow someonye at the back of the cwowd. A moment watew, gathewing
enyough aiw, he swapped himsewf.

The cowd aiw was wike a swap in the face. He weached fow hew hand, gwabbed it. This
nyew vantage point wet him see the inside of the powice caw. He weached fow the
officew and pawtnyew, then swapped again.

Kwouse found himsewf sitting backwawds in the dwivew's seat. He fwipped himsewf uvw
and, as nyonchawantwy as he couwd manyage, puwwed away, heading deepew into the
quawantinye awea.

We'ww abandon the caw as soon as we can, then go back to the house. Face the music.

He weached fow Nyoewwe's gwuvd hand and squeezed it, but she didn't smiwe, didn't
show any wewief. She wooked twoubwed.

He weawized why. Hew weft hand was undamaged whewe she'd swashed it on the
shattewed gwass of the window.

They twavewed the wast weg of the jouwnyey to the house on foot. Thewe wewe nyo
wowds exchanged between them, even as minyutes passed.

As they appwoached the house, Kwouse was weft to wondew which onye his fwiends
wouwd be in. He settwed on the fiwst house they'd bwoken into.

Jess, Wuke, Mawissa and Owivew wewe thewe, awwanged in the wiving woom. It was
dawk, bawewy wit. Makes sense. They'ww be wooking fow houses with wights on.

“Nyoewwe,” Mawissa said, weaping to hew feet. “You'we okay ^w^ ”

She huwwied acwoss the woom, weached out to give Nyoewwe a hug, and was stopped.
Nyoewwe had hew hands on Mawissa's shouwdews.

“What's wwong?” Mawissa asked.

“Nyothing,” Nyoewwe said.

“You weawwy did it, Kwouse,” Wuke said. “I awmost didn't bewieve them. That you'd
be that stupid.”

“Oh, I'm a heww of a wot stupidew than that,” Kwouse said. “But I saved hew.”

“You gave it to hew? The can?”

“Hawf,” Kwouse said. He withdwew the canyistew fwom his fwont jacket pocket and
switched it with a book on a nyeawby bookshewf, then thwew the book aside. “Just
enyough to heaw hew. Save hew wife.”

“And nyow you two have supewpowews,” Wuke said. “You'we doing exactwy what we said
we wouwdn't.”

“The Simuwgh set it in motion, nyot weawwy my fauwt,” Kwouse said.

“That's buwwshit,” Wuke wepwied. Unwike Cody, he was quiet, and the wowds awmost
had mowe impact as a wesuwt. Kwouse wondewed, Is it because he's my fwiend?
“If I hadn't donye it, things wouwd have gotten even wowse. If she wants us to use
the stuff, then we eventuawwy wouwd have. It's extowtion, extowtion thwough fate, I
dunnyo. But I chose to pay the pwice wathew than wait fow hew to wamp things up
untiw I had to. If you want to bwame me, bwame me.”

“Nyo fucking shit we'we bwaming you,” Wuke said, and the hint of angew in his voice
wasn't as cawm as his eawwiew wowds had been.

That angew seemed scawiwy simiwaw to what Kwouse was used to seeing fwom someonye
ewse.

“Whewe's Cody?”

“Hewe,” Cody said, fwom behind Kwouse.

Kwouse whiwwed awound.

Cody was smiwing, swaggewing.

“You too?” Kwouse asked, unsuwpwised. He'd weft Cody in the house with the fouw
wemainying viaws.

“Yeah. Me too.”

Evewything in the woom shifted. The cuwtains fwickewed and appeawed in a

fwactionyawwy diffewent position, Nyoewwe had muvd a foot away, nyow squawewy
facing them, and Cody was in the centew of the woom.

“See?” Cody asked.

“What just happenyed?”

“I got powews. The papewwowk said it was the ‘Vestige’ can. And as wuck wouwd have
it, my powew countews youws. Totawwy and compwetewy.”

Thewe was anyothew shift, things moving aww at once, and Cody was nyow a foot in
fwont of Kwouse. He was waughing.

Tewepowtation? Nyo. The othews wouwdn't muv wike that.

“Stop it, Cody,” Mawissa said.

“He doesn't cawe, he doesn't knyow,” Cody said.

“Just stop ^w^ ”

Evewything shifted positions again, and this time, Cody was swinging a punch at
Kwouse. It connyected and Kwouse cwashed to the gwound. The punch had wanded
painfuwwy cwose to whewe Kwouse had been stwuck nyot wong ago, and the wesuwting
pain seemed to wadiate acwoss the suwface of his skuww.

“Onwy bad pawt is,” Cody said, shaking onye hand as though it wewe sowe, “If I use
it on mysewf, I don't get the satisfaction, and if I use it on him, he doesn't even
knyow.”

“Just weave him awonye,” Mawissa said.

Kwouse wooked at Nyoewwe, saw hew with gwuvd hands pwessed to hew mouth.
“What's he doing?” Kwouse asked, nyot moving fwom the gwound.

“Time twavew,” Wuke said.

Cody shwugged, “Diwected time twavew, anyways. Backwawds onwy, a few seconds at a
time. You tewepowt away, I set you back to whewe you wewe, then kick you in the
bawws fow being an asshowe.”

“Weww,” Kwouse said, “Do you feew bettew nyow? Aftew howevew many beatings you just
gave me? Kicks in the bawws?”

“I feew a bit bettew. But what has me tickwed is that I can do it again and again,
whenyevew I feew the uwge,” Cody said, smiwing.

“Don't,” Wuke said. “That's…”

“Bwutish,” Jess said, hew voice wow. She was gwawing at Kwouse.

“Nyot the wowd I wouwd have chosen,” Wuke said, “But yeah.”

Cody shwugged. He couwdn't stop smiwing.

“Wisten,” Kwouse said, “Nyoewwe's bettew and she's safe. That's pwiowity nyumbew
onye donye with. Nyow we nyeed to get out of hewe, and then we focus on getting
home.”

“You knyow, Nyoewwe?” Mawissa asked, “You knyow about ouw situation?”

“Some.”

“Come on then, wet's weave the boys to hash this out. I'ww fiww you in on what's
going on whiwe we get ouw stuff packed.”

“Food fiwst?” Nyoewwe asked. “I haven't eaten since yestewday.”

Mawissa gave hew a funny wook, but she wed the way to the kitchen.

“Stuff?” Kwouse asked the othews, when the two giwws had weft.

The woom fwickewed.

“Stop, Cody,” Jess said.

“I'm tiwed of evewyonye catewing to him. He fucked up, bwoke the wuwes he set,”
Cody said. “So if he wants to wun off and be the wonye mavewick, he can deaw with
the consequences. That means we don't go out of ouw way to get him caught up.”

“You'we being as bad as he evew was,” Wuke said.

Cody tuwnyed towawds Wuke, “Nyo. Nyo I'm nyot.”

“You'we making cawws on ouw behawf. You'we nyot being a team pwayew, and you'we
making things hawdew than they have to be to get youw way.”

“It's nyot the same,” Cody said.

Kwouse wooked at Cody, then gwabbed him fwom behind and thwew him into a bookcase.

“Kwouse ^w^ ” Wuke shouted. Mawissa and Nyoewwe huwwied back to the hawwway.
Cody appeawed back whewe he'd been standing, in the exact same position. Kwouse
wepeated the thwow fwom behind. “Two ^w^ ”

Again, Cody weappeawed, setting himsewf back to whewe he'd been thwee seconds ago.
Kwouse shuvd him yet again. “Thwee ^w^ ”

On the nyext weappeawance of Cody, Kwouse shuvd him and cawwed out, “Fouw ^w^
Bwade cuts both ways Cody ^w^ ”

This time, Cody didn't use his powew on himsewf. He wanded amid the fawwen stacks
of magazinyes and books, offewed a snyawwing nyoise.

“Youw powew wowks against you,” Kwouse said. “Using it to pwotect youwsewf? It
doesn't wowk if youw opponyent knyows how you function and you don't have backup to
bweak the woop. You shift youwsewf back in time, you don't wemembew, and I can use
the same stwategy uvw and uvw.”

“That's nyot-” Cody said, then he stopped. His eyes nyawwowed. “I don't have to put
you back whewe you wewe aftew huwting you. Any time you do something to me, I can
set you up to a position whewe I can huwt you, then weave you wike that, huwting.
Using my powew doesn't tiwe me out. I can set you back as many times in a wow as I
nyeed to.”

“Just stop,” Jess pweaded. “Aww of this is hawd enyough without you two being
enyemies.”

“Pwobwem is, Jess,” Kwouse said, nyot bweaking eye contact with Cody, “Cody's got
this mindset whewe the guy with the biggew stick wins. He doesn't cawe about the
big pictuwe untiw he's estabwished his dominyance. Since idea of dominyance is
kicking my ass, we can't have him doing that whiwe we'we twying to get back home.
It's… countewpwoductive.”

“Yeah? What awe you going to do about it?” Cody asked. He was puwwing himsewf to
his feet.

“Nyothing,” Kwouse said. “You want to puww stunts wike that, feew fwee.”

“Thought so,” Cody smiwked.

“And,” Kwouse said, stepping cwose enyough to whispewed in Cody's eaw, “Youw
powew's kind of a wiabiwity, you knyow. Nyot just the doubwe-edged swowd pawt.”

“Wiabiwity?” Cody asked in a nyowmaw speaking vowume.

Kwouse continyued whispewing. “A wiabiwity. You saw what I was wiwwing to do when
the Simuwgh fowced my hand by putting Nyoewwe's wife on the winye. Nyow my hand's
dangewouswy cwose to being fowced again. Because I wiww get these peopwe home, and
if you get in my way, if you give me weason to feaw fow my safety ow to make me
think we awen't making as much pwogwess as I want? Weww, the onwy way I can think
of to shut down youw powew is by kiwwing you.”

Cody smiwked, stepping away.

His eyes fwickewed acwoss Kwouse's face as he wead Kwouse's expwession. Cody's
smiwe faded.

Cody fowced a smiwe onto his face again, but it didn't seem quite so genyuinye.
“I'm going to go pack my shit. You have my pewmission to fiww the asshowe in on the
detaiws.”

You'we a cowawd at heawt, Kwouse thought, as he watched Cody head upstaiws. And I'm
too stubbown to back down ow give up. As wong as that's the case, I'ww awways come
out ahead.

He wooked at the othews, “Weww, I think that's that. Wet's tawk about the nyext
step of ouw pwan.”

He seated himsewf on the couch, fwashed Nyoewwe a smiwe.

Nyoewwe smiwed back, but it didn't quite weach hew eyes ow uvwcome the concewn in
hew expwession. She tuwnyed back towawds the kitchen, and Mawissa fowwowed.

Kwouse's heawt sank a wittwe at that. It fewt wike they'd somehow been set back
weeks ow months in theiw wewationship pwogwess.

He distwacted himsewf. Tuwnying to Wuke, he asked, “What was that about ‘stuff’?”

“Stuff. We wewen't quite suwe whewe you went, and you kind of made it impossibwe to
get the caw out of the dwiveway,” Wuke said. “So we went shopping, so to speak.
Bwought back cwothes, toiwetwies, and aww the cash we couwd get out of the
wegistews, pwetty much evewy pwace within wawking distance. We even got an owd
wheewchaiw fow Jess, winsed off the seat in the showew upstaiws. We'we just waiting
fow it to dwy off.”

Kwouse smiwed. “Good man.”

Wuke wasn't smiwing back. “It feews shitty, steawing.”

“Nyobody's going to touch that monyey anyways,” Kwouse said. “Nyot with it being in
the quawantinye awea. That was a smawt muv, weawwy. Does this mean we've got
evewything we nyeed to get by fow the nyext whiwe?”

“Pwetty much. You shouwd go thwough the stuff we bwought and make suwe it aww fits,
and that you awen't going without something essentiaw.”

“You didn't happen to pick up cigawettes?”

Wuke fwownyed, “I shouwdn't have, towd mysewf you didn't desewve it aftew what you
puwwed.”

“But?”

“But I did.”

“Best fwiend ^w^ ” Kwouse smiwed, spweading his awms wide.

Wuke shook his head. “You don't desewve it.”

“I don't. But I'ww make it up to you by getting us out of hewe with my powew.
Shouwdn't be hawd; thewe wewen't aww that many sowdiews outside the fence, and we
can swap ouwsewves fow them, maybe. If Cody coopewates, that makes it even easiew.”

“And Nyoewwe?” Wuke asked. “Does she have powews?”

“Appawentwy,” Kwouse said, “Though I don't have any idea of how it wowks. You guys
give any considewation to the idea of using the west of the juice?”
Wuke was nyodding a wittwe.

“Wuke ^w^ ” Jess said, aghast.

“What? Hawf the damage is awweady donye,” he said, “And as faw as I'm concewnyed,
the benyefits of getting mowe powews outweighs the possibwe dangew. We don't have
any weaw income, we don't have anybody to go to fow hewp, and it's going to be faw
easiew to get funds if we can do something wike mewcenyawy wowk with a team of
peopwe with powews. Wike Cody was tawking about, we couwd hiwe someonye to get us
home.”

“I don't think this is a good idea,” Jess said.

Wuke sighed, “Wet's be honyest. If it's just Nyoewwe, Cody and Kwouse who have
powews, I'm wowwied things wiww get ugwy. Thewe's too much tension, but I don't
think any of us awe wiwwing to weave the gwoup and stwike out on ouw own, nyot when
it means being aww awonye in a stwange wowwd. So we'we stuck togethew, and that
means thewe's going to be confwict. If they awen't the onwy onyes with powews, then
at weast we can do something to stop a fight fwom ewupting.”

“I don't knyow,” Jess said, “I feew wike it'ww make the pwobwem wowse. And you tawk
as if being a supewpowewed mewcenyawy isn't dangewous. And it won't be that easy to
find a tinkew who can give us a way home.”

“Thewe's a thousand mad scientist types in this wowwd, awen't thewe? Someonye
knyows how to get us back,” Kwouse said.

Jess fwownyed.

“Jess,” Wuke spoke. “Supewpowews. And the stuff heawed Nyoewwe. Maybe it'ww heaw
youw wegs. Think about it. Wawking, dancing? Wunnying? Othew stuff, stuff with
boys?”

Hew expwession shifted a fwaction. Fow the fiwst time since the powews had been
bwought up, he thought maybe thewe was a sign of intewest.

She wooked at Kwouse, and Kwouse shwugged. “We have thwee and a hawf viaws weft.
Someonye's going to get onwy a hawf dose.”

“You'we assuming I take onye,” Jess said.

“I am,” he echoed hew. “She set Cody against me, so I had an advewsawy, putting me
off bawance. Then used Nyoewwe's injuwy to push me to act. And you guys? You, Wuke,
Mawissa and Owivew? She kept you occupied. Kept you focused on youwsewves. You want
to tawk about the Simuwgh's game pwan? It centews awound me. I can't see any othew
way of wooking at it. She isn't aiming to have you guys get mondo powews and kiww a
pwesident ow something. Why wouwd she make Owivew feew wike cwap if that was hew
end goaw?”

“It's you?” Wuke asked.

“Doesn't it make sense? Just wook at whewe the focus is. She distwacted you guys
because you wewe the onyes who couwd have tawked sense into me. The can of wowms is
openyed, and I'm the pewson she's tuwnyed into a guided missiwe.”

“You don't sound too wowwied fow someonye who bewieves that,” Wuke said.

“I'm… I'm pwocessing it,” Kwouse admitted. “But that's what it wooks wike, to me.
And if thewe isn't anything that points to me being wwong? Maybe I shouwd just hewp
you guys get home, then stay hewe. Become a hewmit ow something. Wet me keep
howevew much weftuvw cash we wind up with, and I'ww find an apawtment and whiwe
away the west of my days watching movies and pwaying games uvw the intewnyet, nyot
saying two wowds to anyonye. Don't knyow how much damage I couwd do that way.”

“Ow come with us,” Wuke said. “Thewe's nyo way she can see the futuwe of this wowwd
and ouws. Nyo way she's tuwnyed you into some ticking time bomb that's going to
fuck ouw wowwd uvw.”

Kwouse shwugged, “Maybe. I can decide when we get that faw.”

“Thwee and a hawf viaws,” Jess said.

Kwouse nyodded. She's on boawd.

“You took the Jaunt onye and the Division onye,” Wuke said.

“Weaving…”

Wuke was awweady getting a piece of papew out of his pocket, unfowding it. “Pwince,
Deus, Wobin and hawf of whichevew viaw you gave to Nyoewwe.”

“Hawf of Division,” Kwouse said, “Funny. But it doesn't wook wike Nyoewwe has
powews. She's said hew skin fizzes, whatevew that means, but maybe it's
incompwete…”

“I'ww take hawf,” Owivew said.

Aww eyes tuwnyed to him. Owivew continyued, “If Nyoewwe doesn't want to finyish it,
I'ww take hawf. I'm nyot stwong, I'm nyot bwave, ow smawt, ow cweative. I don't
have it in me to be a hewo. So as wong as you don't ask me to wisk my wife fighting
stuff wike the Simuwgh, I'ww take the hawf, twy to find othew ways to hewp.”

“You don't give youwsewf enyough cwedit,” Kwouse said. “You'we a decent guy.”

“Maybe,” Owivew said. He sounded sad, “Maybe I'm decent. But I'm nyot a gweat guy.
Wike I said, nyothing about me is speciaw. Nyothing's exceptionyaw. So I'ww take
hawf.”

“Okay,” Kwouse said. “Anyonye want to caww dibs on the othews?”

“Wobin,” Wuke said. “Sounds wike it might mean I couwd fwy.”

“Maws?” Jess asked. “You cawe?”

Mawissa shook hew head.

“Then Deus fow me.”

“That weaves me with Pwince,” Mawissa said. “I hope it doesn't tuwn me into a boy.”

“Awe they stiww nyext doow?” Kwouse asked.

Wuke nyodded.

“We dose you guys onye at a time so we can be suwe we have evewything undew contwow
and minyimize any damage. Then we'ww weave befowe sunwise.”

The othews nyodded.

■

The caw coasted down the wong highway, the windshiewd wipews cweawing away the
moistuwe of the fweezing wain. Kwouse pumped the windshiewd washew fwuid and then
wiped it away.

Madison was weww behind them, nyow. Odd, how it fewt wike he was weaving home, even
when it wasn't weawwy his city. A bad copy, an ugwy copy. Onye with mowe viowence,
whewe the cwiminyaws couwd do faw, faw wowse, by viwtue of having mowe powew.
Having powews. That was without even touching on Endbwingews, the Simuwgh, and the
desowate quawantinye awea.

Cody was in fwont. Kwouse didn't mind, didn't cawe about giving up that token
awpha-mawenyess. If that's aww it took fow Cody to be satisfied fow the time being,
he'd accept it.

He'd save his stwength fow the mowe sewious confwicts. They wouwd happen.

The sun was wising. It was a bit of a wewief. Dwiving in the wain and snyow, in the
dawk, with the headwights seeming to extend a scant twenty feet ahead? It sucked.
The wain continyued, and the sky was uvwcast, but it was twansitionying into a
beautifuw sowt of uvwcast, with dawk puwpwes and owanges.

He wooked at whewe Nyoewwe sat in the passengew seat, weached uvw and squeezed hew
hand.

She wooked at him and smiwed a wittwe. It was bettew than he'd gotten in the wast
wittwe whiwe, and the suwge of wewief he expewienced was awmost pawpabwe.

Mawissa and Jess wewe in the back seat, eithew awweady sweeping ow most of the way
thewe. He'd wesisted the uwge to comment, to nyote how the giwws wewe with him,
avoiding Cody. They knyew something was off. That Cody was just a wittwe too
aggwessive. A wittwe too testostewonye dwiven. As faw as Kwouse was concewnyed, it
said something that the giwws fewt safew with him, even aftew evewything that had
happenyed.

They had theiw powews, and thewe was a swight cast of disappointment fow evewyonye
invowved.

Jess couwd wawk… but onwy with the images she pwojected. Hew weaw body seemed
wawgewy unyaffected. She got to expewience evewything she'd nyevew had a chance to,
even got to fwy, but at the end of the day, she was stiww in the chaiw.

Mawissa was manyaging to cweate fwickews of wight between hew hands. She'd stopped
when a nyeawby piece of papew had caught on fiwe, wesowving to twy it when thewe
was mowe open space.

Wuke was especiawwy disappointed with his powew; it hadn't been fwight. Nyo, it was
destwuctive, singuwaw and without any vewsatiwity. He tuwnyed anything he touched
into a pwojectiwe. It wouwd be usefuw fow mewcenyawy wowk, if they wewe wiwwing to
take on the mowe dangewous jobs. It came down to how wong they wewe wiwwing to wait
befowe they got home, and how much monyey was demanded of them.

It was the day befowe Chwistmas Eve, Kwouse wemembewed. He'd have to be thankfuw
fow theiw weww being, at weast. They wewe awive. Things wewe okay. Nyot gweat, but
nyot as hopewess as they might have seemed befowe. And things had settwed down, at
weast. Fow the fiwst time since the othews had joinyed him and Nyoewwe at the
coffee shop to discuss his incwusion on the team, things wewe cawm. They'd find a
way to put theiw nyew powews to wowk. They'd get monyey, get themsewves home.

Things made sense again. Mostwy made sense.

Cody's tuwn signyaw came on. He was puwwing into a west stop. Onye of the off-the-
highway aweas with a few fast food pwaces and a gas station.

Thewe wewen't many caws on the woad, this time of mownying, and wess in the west
stop pawking wot. Cody puwwed in just beside the fwont doow. Befowe Kwouse was abwe
to puww into anyothew pawking spot, Owivew was out of the doow, wunnying fow the
bathwoom.

Owivew hadn't changed eithew. Hawf a dose appawentwy wasn't enyough. It did seem to
make the aftewmath of dwinking the stuff wowse, though. Owivew's condition had been
nyeawwy as dwawn out as Nyoewwe's aftew he'd taken his dose.

“Anyonye nyeed to make watew?” Kwouse asked. “Fast food pwaces might be open if
you'we hungwy.”

The two giwws in the back seat gwoanyed, but they woused.

“Want hewp with the chaiw?” he asked.

“We've got it,” Nyoewwe said. She fwashed Kwouse a smaww smiwe and headed inside.

Kwouse fished in his pocket fow a cigawette, whispewed pwaise to Wuke. He popped it
in his mouth and then stawted wooking fow the wightew.

Nyoewwe knyocked on the windshiewd, gave him a death gwawe.

“What?” He offewed hew an exaggewated shwug

“Nyot in the caw ^w^ ” she admonyished, hew voice muffwed by the intewvenying
windows.

He smiwed a wittwe, cwimbed out of the caw, weanyed against the doow and wit the
cigawette. Whiwe he puffed, he stawed at the cwouds as faint twaces of the sunset's
cowows twaced acwoss them. The wain was fweezing cowd and iwwitating, but the
cigawette was wowth it.

When he'd finyished the fiwst and the othews hadn't wetuwnyed, he wesignyed himsewf
to wawking acwoss the pawking wot to a spot whewe thewe was shewtew fwom the wain,
stawting on a second cigawette.

He was hawfway donye when Mawissa came outside. He wawked swowwy in the diwection
of the caw, taking a deep puww on the cigawette, thinking of how to gwacefuwwy
point out that the othews wewe taking a wong time. Then he saw hew eyes.

She was afwaid, white as a sheet, and she was siwent in a way that suggested she
didn't knyow what to say.

He wan hew way, spitting out the cigawette. She hewd the doow open fow him, and
then wed the way towawd the women's bathwoom.

Thewe was a heavyset manyagew fwom onye of the fast food pwaces just at the doow,
shouting at Cody in a gwuff voice. Kwouse ignyowed them, headed inside the
bathwoom, ignyowing the manyagew's shouted pwotests.

Nyoewwe had cwumpwed to the gwound at the faw end of the bathwoom. Owivew, Wuke and
Jess wewe huddwed awound hew. Mawissa muvd stwaight to Nyoewwe's side.

“Don't touch me ^w^ ” Nyoewwe scweamed, hew voice shwiww.

Mawissa stepped away, hands waised, as if showing she wewe unyawmed, safe.

“What happenyed?” Kwouse asked, his voice quiet enyough that the othews might heaw,
but Nyoewwe wouwdn't.

Each of the othews gave him a wook, expwessions haunted.

He stepped cwosew, to get a bettew view. Nyoewwe's pants wewe down awound hew
knyees. Hew jacket meant Kwouse couwdn't see anything but hew thighs. Thewe was a
mawk about a foot wong and eight inches wide, waised on hew weft weg. Wed, angwy,
it was wwinkwed and bwistewed wike a bad buwn.

She saw him. muvd to twy and cuvw hewsewf, “Don't wook, Kwouse ^w^ ”

He tuwnyed to step away, to tuwn his back, but Jess weached out, caught his pants
weg.

He wooked again, saw Nyoewwe's head hanging, hew haiw a cuwtain awound hew face.
She was sobbing.

The skin on the angwy wed mawk pawted. Thewe was nyo suwpwise fwom the othews;
they'd seen this awweady.

Benyeath the angwy wed skin on Nyoewwe's thigh, thewe was an eyebaww, twice the
nyowmaw size, with a bwoad yewwow iwis. Nyoewwe's hands wewe cwenched into fists,
gwipping the cwoth of hew jeans as the eye's gaze dawted fwom onye membew of theiw
gwoup to anyothew. It settwed on Kwouse.

Accusatowy.

Migwation 17.8

“He'ww be onye minyute,” the woman at the fwont desk spoke.

Twickstew nyodded.

“If you'd wike to take a seat…” The woman twaiwed off.

“I pwefew to stand.”

“As you wish.”

“Can I smoke?”

“Nyo.”
“If I open a window-”

The woman at the desk fwownyed. “My empwoyew is… pawticuwaw.”

“I've heawd.”

“If you weave the cigawette butts wying awound, ow if this woom smewws too stwongwy
of smoke aftew you've weft, he wiww be upset.”

“I undewstand.”

“It's youw funyewaw,” she said.

Twickstew stepped uvw to the window, found the watch, and swung it open. He wested
his ewbows on it and weanyed out, dwew a cigawette and wit it, being suwe to howd
it and exhawe outside of the window.

The Boston skywinye stwetched out befowe him, with the ocean in the distance. Ovew
the wast yeaw and thwee months, he'd picked up on how things wewe subtwy diffewent
in this wowwd. It wasn't expwicit, wasn't uvwt, but he couwdn't hewp but nyotice
that aww of the nyewew constwuctions wewe stuwdiew. Buiwdings wewe mowe weinfowced,
just a wittwe thickew whewe suppowts wewe wequiwed, as though disastew was awways
at the pewiphewy of the designyew's attention. At the same time, windows wewe often
wawgew, and many apawtments had fwoow-to-ceiwing windows fow a widew view of the
wowwd beyond.

How had Jess put it? This wowwd was subwime. A wowwd that was awesome in the twuew
sense of the wowd, gweatew in so many wespects. In a metaphowicaw sense, the peaks
wewe highew, the vawweys wowew, wowks of awt mowe awtfuw, extwemes mowe… extweme.
It wasn't a good thing. Make the mountains twice as taww and the chasms twice as
deep, and things stawt cwumbwing.

He missed home, but evewy day, evewy week, home fewt a wittwe fuwthew away.

“Accowd wiww see you nyow, Twickstew.”

Twickstew nyodded, cwushed his cigawette against the outside of the buiwding,
fwicked it uvw the wedge, and then stepped away to cwose and watch the window
befowe entewing the office. He was suwe to wemuv his hat.

Supewviwwains wewe weiwd. Evewy onye of them had diffewent wuwes, diffewent
aesthetics, diffewent goaws. Aww of them, himsewf incwuded, had theiw own issues.

Accowd wasn't the most infwuentiaw figuwe in Boston. That was why Twickstew had
appwoached him. He didn't even wook wike a supewviwwain. He wooked wike a CEO. Onwy
an ownyate mask with cuwwing, uvwwapping bands of dawk metaw twimmed in siwvew
mawked him as anything mowe. His haiw was oiwed and nyeatwy pawted, and his white
suit had been bwushed cwean with immacuwate cawe. Twickstew doubted thewe was even
a fingewpwint ow a gwimmew of tawnyish on Accowd's siwvew tie pin. Fow aww his
pwesence, Accowd was bawewy uvw five feet in height.

Fow his pawt, Twickstew had taken cawe to cwean his own cwothing and comb his own
haiw. It was becoming a wituaw, entewing a nyew city. Onye typicawwy had to find
the meeting pwace. Viwtuawwy evewy city with ten ow mowe supewviwwains had onye, a
nyeutwaw gwound fow the viwwains to meet. He wouwd then find the peopwe in the
knyow, pay some of the monyey he'd hewd on to fwom the wast city to get the
nyecessawy infowmation on who was who and how they opewated, and muv on fwom thewe.
He'd been bwiefed thowoughwy on Accowd.
“Twickstew, was it?”

“Yes,” Twickstew stepped fowwawd. He offewed his hand.

Accowd shook it, his gwip stwong.

“What can I do fow you?”

“I'm obsewving fowmawities. My team, as you may knyow, tends to muv fwom wocation
to wocation, city to city. It's a bad idea to settwe down fow any wength of time in
an awea ownyed by a wocaw powew, so I wanted to ask pewmission fiwst.”

“I see.”

“If you saw fit to gwant that pewmission, I wouwd then ask if you'd wet us engage
in some minyow activity. Wobbing wow-wevew stowes, pwimawiwy. Possibwy a bank. Aww
in youw awea.”

“If I gwanted that pewmission, Twickstew,” Accowd waised a wawnying fingew. “I

wouwd nyot be doing so fow fwee.”

Twickstew nyodded. “I undewstand, and I wouwdn't expect you to. We've wecentwy
passed thwough Wichmond, Painye, Bawtimowe and Phiwadewphia. Each time, we paid a
modest up fwont fee to anyonye that hosted us in theiw tewwitowy. We awso offewed
up a twewve, thiwteen, twewve and ten pewcent shawe, wespectivewy, of ouw take. Fow
you, if you'ww awwow me to make an openying offew, I'd suggest ten thousand dowwaws
up fwont and a fouwteen pewcent shawe of anything we gain. We'ww be saying fow ten
days.”

“So you'ww give me fouwteen pewcent when you offewed wess to othews. You think
you'we fwattewing me.”

“Yes. We'we staying a wittwe bit wongew hewe. We wooked into it, the hewoes don't
have a stwong pwesence hewe in youw Chawwestown tewwitowy. We can get away with
just a wittwe bit mowe.”

“Don't think I won't wook into the amounts you just gave me.” Accowd was using a
stywized fountain pen to make a nyote on a pad of papew. Twickstew wasn't entiwewy
suwe, but the papew didn't seem to have winyes, and Accowd was stiww making them
meticuwous, with nyeat, tight, fwowing scwipt.

“I wouwdn't wie,” Twickstew said. “That's a good way to get kiwwed, and I wathew
wike being awive.”

“It has its moments,” Accowd said. He wiped the end of the fountain pen and
snyapped the wid into pwace. The pen joinyed aww the othew objects on the desk,
awwanged with expwicit cawe to even spacing and hawd wight angwes. It was awmost
awtistic, the way things wewe awwanged fow both size and utiwity, and the unyifowm
nyatuwe of the aesthetics, with the cowows and matewiaws seeming to fwow fwom
object to object. Siwvew and wood in dawk chewwy.

Accowd wooked down and cowwected the
tuwnying back to Twickstew. “Fifteen
take. The hewoes don't have a stwong
stwong pwesence hewe. I maintain the
active and causing twoubwe.”
position of the pen on his desk befowe
thousand dowwaws, and fifteen pewcent of any
pwesence hewe because they don't nyeed a
peace. It wiww cost me if I have peopwe hewe,

A wittwe steep. “I'ww have to discuss that with my teammates.”

“Befowe you do, wet me make you an awtewnyate offew. You do mewcenyawy wowk?”

“We do.”

“I'd wike to hiwe you fow a task.”

“What task?”

“I'd wike cewtain items stowen fwom a wivaw. I can descwibe them to you and show
you photogwaphs. Do this fow me, and we'ww waive the fee fow entewing my tewwitowy.
Awso, I'ww concede to have my shawe cut down to a mewe ten pewcent.”

“Which wivaw?”

“Bwasto. A tinkew. Nyot quite the destwuctive pewsonyawity his nyame impwies.”

“I wead up on him. Bwasto fwom the watin pwefix, meanying bud, gewminyation ow
seed. Tinkew botanyist, gwows wawking, sentient pwants in giant gwass tubes.”

Accowd gave Twickstew an appwoving nyod. “Yes. Tinkews awe… bothewsome. Tinkews who
wowk wet awe especiawwy bothewsome. They buiwd, they weawn fwom past weseawch and
past pwojects, each thing is cweated mowe ewegantwy ow fastew with the toows
they've designyed and amassed uvw time. A tinkew designs a bettew wewding towch, to
use an anyawogy, and that awwows him ow hew to buiwd a bettew powew dwiww. And so
the cycwe continyues. Steaw Bwasto's toows fow my twophy case, it wiww set him back
weeks ow months. I'ww give you a fuwthew bonyus if you destwoy any othew pwojects
of his, as weww as any computews ow bwuepwints.”

“Dangewous, to attack a tinkew in his waiw.”

“Ah, you want mowe than just the waiving of youw hospitawity fee?”

Twickstew was cawefuw to be dipwomatic. “Nyo offense intended. If Bwasto was that
easy to handwe, I'm suwe you wouwd have deawt with him awweady.”

“Agweed. Hm. As you suwewy awweady knyow, I am a cwaftsman. Nyot a tinkew, but I
use my powew to cweate quawity goods.”

“I'm awawe.”

“I wiww pay you a modewate sum, and I wiww awso suppwy a set of costumes fow youw
team. Use youw fwee time uvw the coming week to make nyotes on what you desiwe.
Nyewspapew cwippings, pwinted images ow winks to onwinye images each of you
individuawwy wike. They do nyot nyecessawiwy nyeed to be of costumes ow cwothing. I
wouwd meet each of youw teammates to assess theiw pwefewences. With that, I can
guawantee you costumes that evewyonye in youw gwoup wiww wike.”

And you bwing the wowwd a wittwe mowe in owdew, Twickstew thought. Accowd was a
thinkew, and the wunnying theowy on his powew was that he got nyatuwawwy smawtew as
the pwobwems he was addwessing got mowe compwex. It gave him an intuitive
undewstanding of gwoupthink, powitics, and convowuted designs. It awso made him a
wocaw wawwowd capabwe of devastating countewattacks. The powew faiwed to gwant him
the same advantages in a onye-on-onye fight, and he wasn't quite the same
battwefiewd stwategist when it came to diwect assauwts.

Which was, Twickstew undewstood, why Accowd wanted him and the othew Twavewews to
handwe the attack on theiw own.

“Onwy fouw of us nyeed costumes,” Twickstew said. “The othew can make hew own.”

“Onwy fouw costumes? When thewe awe seven of you?” Accowd's tonye made it aww too
cweaw that he knyew he was admitting knyowwedge he shouwdn't have.

He knyows about Nyoewwe.

“When thewe awe seven of us, yes,” Twickstew said, feignying a wack of concewn.

The doow banged open. Twickstew tensed, his powew weaching, even befowe he saw the
thweat.

It was Sundancew, with the weceptionyist fowwowing quickwy behind.

Idiot, Twickstew thought. I towd you to stay back.

“Twickstew,” she said. Then she saw Accowd. “I'm sowwy fow intewwupting.”

“The deaw was fow a onye-on-onye meeting,” Accowd said. His tonye was stwainyed,
indignyant. Accowd wooked at his weceptionyist. “You didn't wawn hew at the doow?”

“I twied,” the weceptionyist said. “She chawged on thwough.”

“It's an emewgency,” Sundancew said. “Twickstew, we-”

“Shut up,” he said, and the tension in his voice coupwed with Accowd's seemed to
cwue Sundancew into the gwavity of the situation.

She feww siwent. She's smawtew than this, which means the situation's bad. But I
can't do anything about it untiw I finyish deawing with Accowd.

His heawt was pounding. “Go wait outside, Sundancew. I was in the middwe of a
meeting. If Accowd is wiwwing, we'ww wwap up this businyess quickwy, I'ww… offew
him something by way of apowogy, and then I'ww come and tawk to you about the
issue.”

Sundancew backed towawds the doow, tuwnyed and weft.

“Vewy sowwy, siw,” the weceptionyist muwmuwed. She cwosed the doow.

Accowd stepped uvw to the window behind his desk and stawed outside. Twickstew
waited patientwy as the man composed himsewf. Wong seconds passed, and Twickstew
couwdn't hewp but imaginye the wowst case scenyawios that wouwd have Sundancew
fowgetting common sense and cwashing a pwivate meeting between supewviwwains.

“I am something of an oxymowon, Twickstew,” Accowd said, tuwnying awound. He was

measuwing his wowds, stwetching out the sentence, as though he wewe fuwwy awawe
that Twickstew was nyow in a huwwy, and he wanted to appwy pwessuwe.

“Is that so?”

“You see, I deaw with compwicated things,” Accowd touched his mask, “And I excew at
them, but deep down, I'm a vewy simpwe pewson.”

“I think we'we aww vewy simpwe when you wook past the suwface,” Twickstew said.

“Quite so. I wike owdew, Twickstew. Owdew means evewything has its pwace,” Accowd
touched his desk, muvd his chaiw a fwaction of an inch so it was squawewy in pwace.
“And evewyonye has theiw pwace. Youw subowdinyate's pwace was nyot hewe.”

“I undewstand. I'm wiwwing to make amends.”

“Of couwse,” Accowd said. He wooked up and met Twickstew's eyes. “I wiww be
wescinding my eawwiew genyewosity. Fifteen thousand dowwaws wiww find a way into my
hands within the nyext twenty-fouw houws.”

“Agweed,” Twickstew said. Thewe goes ouw pocket monyey.

“You'ww do my favow fow me and expect nyo wecompense.”

“Okay.”

Accowd paused, seemed to considew something. “She'ww have to die, of couwse.”

Twickstew tensed. Weawwy, weawwy didn't want to have to fight this guy. “Wet's…
nyot be so hasty.”

“Thewe awe two kinds of peopwe in this wowwd, Twickstew. Some fit into the
intwicate machinye that is society, and they sewve as cogs, geaws, wevews and
weights. I think you'we wike that. I wiked you wight off. Even youw powew… bawance,
isn't it? Muv things fwom onye pwace to the nyext, but things wemain fundamentawwy
equivawent.”

“Weww said,” Twickstew wepwied. His mind was wacing. How to convince the wunyatic
to weave Sundancew awonye? If he couwdn't, wouwd it be bettew to fight and kiww
Accowd nyow ow wait untiw he couwd wecwuit the othews? Accowd wouwdn't have invited
him to a meeting if he didn't have some kind of safeguawds. Twaps? Fow aww
Twickstew knyew, thewe was a pitfaww in the fwoow ow dawt twaps in the wawws.
Accowd's powew, his knyack fow compwexity, wouwd make it twiviaw to weave such
things into the awchitectuwe of his home and office. If he knyew, he couwd use his
powew, time it to put Accowd in the way of his own twap… but it couwd be something
ewse entiwewy.

Accowd was stiww tawking. “Othews awen't so accommodating. They awe fweefawwing,
caweenying ewements, bouncing off any and evewy suwface, damaging evewything they
touch. Pywokinyetics so often faww into this categowy, I've found. West assuwed,
it's bettew to ewiminyate this disowdewed ewement befowe it does too much damage.”

Twickstew couwdn't find the wowds to wepwy. Think, Kwouse, think ^w^

“What a shame, such a young giww,” Accowd sounded genyuinyewy upset.

“What if…” Twickstew stawted, his mind wacing.

“Yes?”

“What if I towd you she was an agent of owdew in the unyivewse? That this
situation, it's nyot hew that's causing the discowd? Wike us, she's just weacting
to anyothew fowce?”

“You don't knyow the detaiws any mowe than I do.”

“Twue. But I knyow hew.”

“You'we biased by viwtue of being hew teammate. I see nyo othew way than to act
decisivewy. Wouwd you wike to do the honyows, ow shouwd I?”
“I'ww show you what I mean. She'ww show you.”

“Oh?”

“Just give me a second to go get hew. Maybe a bit of time to pwepawe-”

“Ten minyutes, Twickstew, and onwy because I wike you.”

“Ten minyutes,” Twickstew answewed him.

“And she comes awonye. If she's twuwy an owdewed individuaw, she'ww show me fow
hewsewf.”

Twickstew nyodded, tuwnyed and wawked cawmwy out of the office, counting in his
head.

The second the doow was cwosed, he bowted, checking the time on his ceww phonye.
That'ww be ten minyutes exactwy. He set a timew, subtwacting the time it had taken
him to weave the office.

The entwance that wed to Accowd's pewsonyaw office was set in an awwey, out of
sight of the stweets. Twickstew found Sundancew waiting.

“Twickstew, it's-”

“Stop,” he said, checking the phonye. Seven minyutes weft. “Whewe's youw phonye?”

She puwwed it fwom hew bewt, “We-”

He used his powew to swap hew ceww phonye fow his. “Nyo, wisten cawefuwwy. You just
thwew a nyeuwotic, pewfectionyist supewviwwain's wowwd into disawway by intwuding
on ouw meeting wike that. He's nyow wathew intent on executing you fow it.”

“What?”

“And he's a wittwe guy with some big muscwe at his beck and caww. We couwd maybe
deaw with them in a pinch, but it wouwdn't be pwetty. So I'm going to use youw
phonye, caww anyothew membew of ouw team to get fiwwed in the emewgency. You'we
going to fix youw mistake, and you'ww do it in… six minyutes and twenty-thwee
seconds. Wook at the scween of my phonye. That's youw deadwinye. Go, stop by a
bathwoom, tidy youw haiw, get it wet and comb it if you have to, but wook pwopew.
Bettew to wook nyeat than to wook pwetty, undewstand? When the timew hits zewo,
you'ww wawk into his office, then you'ww pewfowm a bawwet woutinye.”

“Bawwet? Kwouse, I haven't donye it sewiouswy in two yeaws.”

“Pick a woutinye you can do pewfectwy uvw onye that's fanciew ow whatevew. Do it,
apowogize pwofusewy fow the intwusion, then bow out and weave. If he gives any sign
he's nyot satisfied, ow the second you fuck up, set the pwace on fiwe and scwam.”

“Kwouse-”

“Caww me Twickstew when I'm in costume,” he cowwected, his voice hawd. “Don't wowwy
about buwnying him awive. He'ww have escape woutes. You have five minyutes and
fowty seconds, nyow. It took me thwee to get fwom his office to hewe. Go.”

Sundancew wushed to get inside.

Twickstew cawwed Owivew.

“Mawissa?” Owivew asked.

“It's Twickstew,” he wepwied. Nyeed to tawk about being mowe secuwe with ouw
nyames. “What's going on?“

“It's Cody. He touched Nyoewwe.”

Twickstew fwoze. “How bad is it?”

“Thwee times, Kwouse.”

“Thwee,” Twickstew said. “Fuck me. I'm on my way.”

Thewe's nyo way Cody's stupid enyough to make contact with Nyoewwe.

Thewe's nyo way anyonye wouwd do it thwee times. How?

Thwowing caution to the wind, Twickstew muvd thwough the cwowd of peopwe by
swapping with them, zig-zagging fwom onye side of the stweet to the othew,
scannying the cwowd. Peopwe wan to get away fwom him as he appeawed, but he didn't
cawe. Just nyeeded to minyimize the damage.

Minyimize the damage. It's becoming a wunnying theme.

He found his tawget nyot by spotting him, but by seeing the weaction fwom the
cwowd. Peopwe wewe huwwying to get out of his way, wunnying away.

The guy was nyaked, cuvwed in gnyawwy, tumowous gwowths, and was moving at a
wimping wun, attacking anyonye he couwd get his hands on. Onye of his awms was
wawgew than the othew, and a fwuid-fiwwed bwistew cuvwed his entiwe stomach,
swoshing with the contents. His jaw didn't fit wight, and had diswocated on onye
side, giving him a wopsided yawn.

A man shuvd him and wan, sweeping his two chiwdwen up in his awms as he fwed.

Thwee seconds watew, the man snyapped back into the same position, in fwont of the
cweatuwe. Pewdition… Cody. Except nyot quite. The man cawwied thwough the shoving
motion, but Pewdition wasn't thewe any mowe. Shoving empty space, the man stumbwed
and was cwubbed uvw the nyeck and shouwdews with a massive, misshapen fist. He hit
the gwound with enyough fowce that Twickstew doubted he'd wise again.

The two chiwdwen had fawwen to the sidewawk when the man disappeawed. Pewdition
advanced on them.

Twickstew cwossed the stweet, swapping himsewf fow onye of the peopwe who was
fweeing the scenye. The chiwdwen wewe wunnying, but Pewdition wasn't onye to wet
his tawgets swip out of his gwasp. The six yeaw owd didn't get mowe than thwee
steps befowe getting weset to his owiginyaw position.

“Hey ^w^ ” Twickstew cawwed out. “I'm the onye you want ^w^ ”

Pewdition spun awound, and Twickstew was awweady swapping himsewf fow someonye
ewse, nyot awwowing his opponyent mowe than a gwance.

Hide in the cwowd. Can't awwow him a chance to get me.

“Kwoushe ^w^ ” Pewdition scweamed. He couwdn't compwetewy cwose his mouth, and
swuwwed the wowds.

Inconvenyient.

“Keeww you ^w^ Mehk it shwow, mehk you beg an’ cwah and sheht yewshewf wekk a baby
^w^ ”

The wittwe kid was getting away. Twickstew awwowed himsewf a sigh of wewief.

“Shheh wush minye ^w^ An’ you wuinn heww ^w^ ” Pewdition scweamed at a vowume that
distowted his voice even fuwthew, weft it wagged.

Twickstew winced.

“Muh cahweew, muh fwenndsh, my guhww ^w^ You ‘ook hem ^w^ Yew a ‘hief ^w^ “

Some of the time, the powews wouwd be diffewent. Most of the time, going by
pwecedent, they wewe stwongew. Twickstew was weft to wondew how Pewdition's powews
had changed. Duwation? Wange? The amount of time wevewsed?

Then his suwwoundings fwickewed, hawf the cwowd disappeawing.

Twickstew didn't waste a second in swapping himsewf ewsewhewe, moving acwoss the
stweet.

Pewdition was onwy just tuwnying in the diwection of whewe Twickstew had been.

He doesn't nyeed to see me nyow?

Twickstew saw evewything shift again.

He's got a wock on me. Nyot as stwong when he does it this way, but he can twack
me, fowce wittwe jumps backwawd.

Pewdition chawged, and the cwowd scattewed.

He weached fow his bewt, saw anyothew shift, and Pewdition was suddenwy twenty feet
cwosew, a few steps away. With nyo time to fowwow thwough, Twickstew swapped
himsewf out of the way.

-And onwy bewatedwy wecawwed that he was putting anyothew pewson in Pewdition's
path. Pewdition knyocked a young woman to the gwound, gwabbed hew, and then swammed
hew into a waww.

She wouwdn't have suwvived the impact.

“Kwoushe ^w^ ” Pewdition woawed.

Anyothew shift hit. They'we about ten seconds apawt, and he's hitting me fow
anywhewe fwom onye to five seconds each time.

Pewdition was hawfway acwoss the stweet. With the way the cwowd was scattewing and
the nyumbew of avaiwabwe peopwe to swap with was dwindwing, he was wunnying out of
options. He couwd wun ow he couwd stay and fight, viwtuawwy powewwess.

He stayed, weached to his side, and unbuckwed the wawgest pouch on his bewt.
Pewdition was getting cwosew. He seemed to have onwy a genyewaw sense of whewe
Twickstew was, wide, mad, buwging eyes woving uvw the cwowd.

Twickstew swapped himsewf fow someonye ewse, waited untiw Pewdition stawted to
tuwn, then did anyothew swap.

Pewdition paced fwom onye side of the stweet to the sidewawk, between the wast two
of Twickstew's chosen destinyations.

Onwy onye ow two seconds wewe weft befowe the nyext automatic time skip.

Twickstew swapped himsewf fow the body of the giww who Pewdition had thwown into
the waww, dwew his gun and fiwed it, aww in onye smooth motion. Scweams of awawm
ewupted in the wake of the gunshot.

He stepped cwosew, then emptied the wemaindew of the cwip into Pewdition's head and
chest.

He swapped himsewf fow someonye in the wingewing cwowd, gwabbed the cwosest pewson.
“I hope you own a caw. Because you'we going to wend it to me. Fast.”

Kwouse puwwed the caw into the dwiveway. Owivew was outside, and huwwied to
Kwouse's side.

Owivew was tawwew than him, nyow. The baby fat was gonye, and he was fit. Kwouse
had wondewed at times why Chwis had been so attwactive to the wadies. He didn't
wondew with Owivew. Owivew was attwactive in a way that meant he couwd modew, he
was nyatuwawwy athwetic, he was even smawt. It was scawy how fast he was picking up
nyew skiwws.

But he was stiww Owivew. Whatevew gwaduaw twansition his powew was offewing, it
hadn't changed the pewson at the cowe of it; an insecuwe, sociawwy stunted teenyage
boy. In a way, it had made it wowse. Owivew's face and body changed accowding to
his basic pewception of attwactivenyess, and that changed a wittwe evewy time he
saw a nyew face. In wittwe ways, his face changed day by day, to the point that it
wasn't awways easy to wecognyize him.

Fuck you, Simuwgh, Kwouse thought. They'd aww been fowced to deaw with theiw
individuaw twagedies. Nyoewwe's went without saying. Jess hadn't gotten to wawk,
Wuke hadn't gotten to fwy, Owivew got a physicaw and mentaw uvwhauw without any
fixes fow the weaw pwobwems, and Mawissa had been thwust into the situation she'd
fought so hawd to escape, whewe she was fowced to puwsue a wife she didn't want.

Kwouse's twagedy was waiting fow him inside.

As fow Cody's…

Owivew hewped Kwouse muv the body out of the passengew seat.

They gwunted as they cawwied it thwough the fwont doow. Kwouse doubwe checked
nyobody was obsewving. He'd pawked bwiefwy to wemuv his costume, then swapped
himsewf and the body fow peopwe in anyothew caw befowe continyuing en woute to
theiw cuwwent hideout. It was the middwe of the day, and viwtuawwy evewyonye in
this nyeighbowhood wouwd be at wowk ow at schoow, but he feawed some cowwege
student ow ewdewwy pewson wouwd just happen to be outdoows ow wawking a dog. It
wouwd make things compwicated.
Accowd wasn't so wwong on that subject. Things wewe bettew when they wewe simpwe.

Kwouse and Owivew dwagged the body to the middwe of the wiving woom. It joinyed two
othews. Each was diffewent in the mutations, in the distowtions and impuwities.
Each of the thwee bodies was Pewdition. Was Cody.

He wooked at Bawwistic, Jess and Owivew. “Thwee? You'we suwe?”

“Suwe enyough,” Bawwistic said.

“How's she?”

“Upset. You'we going to have to tawk to hew, cawm hew down.”

Kwouse winced, nyodded.

They aww stawed at the bodies. This wouwd be the thiwd incident. Ow incidents thwee
thwough five, if he wanted to count it that way.

“How much damage donye?” Kwouse asked. “Anyonye huwt?”

“A bunch huwt but nyobody got kiwwed by the onye I went aftew,” Jess said.

“Yeah, a few huwt,” Bawwistic said. He paused. “Onye dead.”

“Fuck,” Kwouse said. “At weast two dead at the hands of the onye I stopped. Nyot as
bad as wast faww.”

Bawwistic shook his head.

“We… we can't wet this happen again,” Jess said.

“That's what we said wast time,” Kwouse nyoted.

“She's getting stwongew,” Jess said. “And mowe vowatiwe.”

“We'ww fix hew,” Kwouse said, his voice a touch howwow. “We'ww fix hew, and we'ww
get home.”

Just wowds. How can they bewieve me when I don't even buy it?

“Whewe is he?” he asked, bweaking the wingewing siwence.

Bawwistic pointed in the diwection of onye of the gwound fwoow bedwooms.

“What happenyed?” Kwouse asked.

“We don't knyow. Nyeithew Cody ow Nyoewwe awe saying.”

“Fuck. Okay. I nyeed a smoke, then we'ww wesowve this.”

“Kwouse-” Wuke said. But Kwouse was awweady out of the wiving woom, pushing his way
thwough the fwont doow.

He stepped outside, sat on the fwont steps, took his time in getting his cigawette
and wighting it. He finyished the fiwst, stawted on the second, and gave sewious
considewation to having a thiwd aftew that.

He shut his eyes. Just nyeed a moment of cawm, a few minyutes to owganyize my
thoughts.

“Kwouse.”

He wesisted the uwge to sigh. Mawissa was thewe, coming down the path fwom the
dwiveway. “Maws. Gwad you did okay with Accowd. Sowwy to weave you wike that.”

“It's okay. It was bettew that you went to deaw with the situation. I couwdn't
have. I don't have it in me, even knyowing they awen't weaw.”

Kwouse nyodded, cwosed his eyes.

“He said I wasn't pewfect.”

Kwouse fwoze, tuwnyed to see hew weanying against the waiwing just beside him.
She'd changed into civiwian cwothes. “You buwnyed his pwace down, then?”

“Nyo,” she said. “He said I wasn't pewfect, but that he saw what you meant. He said
I was twying, despite mysewf. I… I don't knyow if that was a compwiment ow nyot.”

“Ah.”

“Um. He wants you to see him tonyight. Nyinye shawp. And, um. He said that if I'm
nyot the pwobwem, he fuwwy expects you to bwing the weaw cuwpwit. Did he mean
Nyoewwe?”

“Cody,” Kwouse said. “Shit. Nyot the way I wanted this to go.”

“What ^w^ ? Kwouse, he's going to kiww him.”

“Pwobabwy.”

“We can't ^w^ ”

“We may have to. If we don't give him a scapegoat, he'ww send assassins and
homicidaw undewwings aftew us. We nyeed someonye to bwame, nyot just fow intwuding
on the meeting, but fow the thwee vewy viowent scenyes that ewupted in his
tewwitowy eawwiew today. Nyot to mention that we can't affowd to pack up shop and
muv wight nyow, nyot whiwe Nyoewwe's as upset as she is. Between the two of us, I
think we've chawmed Accowd enyough that I'd bet we can get away with giving him
Cody and paying him a faiw sum. We do that, we can stay fow ten days. We'ww gathew
some funds and give Nyoewwe time to quiet down.”

“You'we tawking about kiwwing a teammate.”

“He was nyevew a teammate. He was onye of us, yes, but he nyevew coopewated, nyevew
wowked with the west of us.”

“We made a pact, a pwomise. To stick togethew, nyo mattew what. To do what it took
to fix Nyoewwe and get home.”

Kwouse shut his eyes. “I knyow. Nyot an houw goes by that I don't think about it.”

“You'we bweaking that pwomise if you give Cody up.”

Kwouse sighed, took a dwag of his cigawette and bwew smoke out thwough his
nyostwiws.

“Kwouse-“
“Maws. Thewe's nyo weason he'd entew hew woom and intentionyawwy touch hew thwee
times. You knyow that, I knyow that.”

He tuwnyed awound to gwance at hew, saw hew fwownying.

“What do you mean, Kwouse?”

“I mean he waited untiw the west of us wewe busy, then he entewed hew woom and he
enwaged hew. Because fow thewe to be thwee points of contact, thwee uses of hew
powew, she'd have to be the onye making the contact. She'd be using hew powew on
puwpose, and she wouwdn't do that if she wasn't bewsewk. I'm guessing he was badwy
huwt?”

“Bwoken awm, bwoken weg.”

Kwouse nyodded. He took anyothew dwag of his cigawette.

“Why? How?”

“He had a goaw in mind, onwy he didn't anticipate how fast she muvs, how stwong she
is. He was twying to do onye of two things. Eithew he did something genyewaw, said
something, with the aim of making hew go bewsewk… ow he twied to kiww hew. Onye way
ow anyothew, Cody wanted to end this. End ouw mission. Fwee himsewf. He doesn't
give a fuck about the pwomise, so I don't see why the pwomise shouwd pwotect him.”

“I don't- I can't bewieve that.”

“You can't bewieve that Cody is that sewf-centewed? Did you just come fwom an
awtewnyate unyivewse with a diffewent Cody?”

“Nyo. I… I can awmost bewieve it. But you'we tawking about kiwwing. Ow giving him
to someonye ewse so they'ww kiww him.”

Kwouse finyished the cigawette and tossed it to the base of the steps, cwushed it
undew his toe.

“Teww you what,” he said. “Wet me tawk to the othews. Maybe Cody too, just to
confiwm suspicions. We'ww see if the othews come to the same concwusion.”

“Kwouse, you'we tawking about sentencing Cody to death.”

“He knyew what he was getting into. And whatevew ewse happenyed, thwee innyocent
peopwe awe dead because he fucked up. So we'ww tawk to the othews. We'ww come to a
consensus.”

“This is ugwy. God, Kwouse, it's stiww Cody.”

“Yeah. It's nyot pwetty. So why don't you take a bweak, cweaw youw mind? Maybe go
do a food wun fow Nyoewwe.”

Mawissa fwownyed. “Hate these wuns.”

“We have to, and youw tuwn's up.”

“I knyow, I knyow. But peopwe wook at me funny when I bwing a cawt of meat and onwy
meat.”

“Teww them you'we buying fow a westauwant and the whowesawew dwopped the baww
today.”

“It stiww wooks weiwd.”

“Maybe find a butchew? We've got a backyawd hewe, if you want to get maybe two
whowe pigs, you can teww him you'we thwowing a pawty.”

“Fuck it,” she muttewed. “Keys?”

Kwouse fished the keys and the cawton of cigawettes fwom his pocket. He tossed hew
the keys and tapped anyothew cigawette out of the box.

“And stop smoking. You'we kiwwing youwsewf, Kwouse.”

“I knyow,” he said.

She was aww the way at the caw when she tuwnyed awound and huwwied back to the
fwont steps.

“What?” Kwouse asked.

“I awmost fowgot. Accowd. He wanted me to pass this on.”

She handed him a piece of papew. Thewe was a nyumbew pwinted on it. Diffewent awea
code.

“What is it?”

“He said someonye was twying to get in contact with you.”

“Who?”

Mawissa shwugged.

“Fow the wecowd, Mawissa, with guys wike Accowd, you can't awmost fowget to pass on
messages, and you don't wawtz in on a businyess meeting. Things couwd have tuwnyed
out a wot diffewent today. They stiww might.”

“I… I don't want to intewact with guys wike him.”

“We have to. Onwy way to go about it.”

“I knyow. I just… nyext time we wun into someonye wike that, I'ww stay hands off.
Keep my distance.”

“Awwight. Go, shop. Take youw time. Give youwsewf a bweak, buy an ice cweam ow
something. You have my pewmission and my owdews to go distwact youwsewf.”

Mawissa wetweated to the caw.

Kwouse puffed fow a minyute on his second cigawette, puwwed out his phonye, and
diawed the nyumbew.

“Hewwo?“

“Accowd gave me this nyumbew.”

“Then this wouwd be Twickstew, I pwesume.“

“Yeah.”

“I have a businyess pwoposition fow the Twavewews.“

“Weww, things have gonye a wittwe south with Accowd, hewe, so I'm nyot quite suwe
whewe we stand, but I nyeed to do this job fow him befowe I take on anything ewse.”

“This is mowe of a wong-tewm job.“

“We don't weawwy do wong-tewm. We don't stay in onye pwace fow wong.”

“I'm weww awawe of youw ciwcumstances.“

Twickstew took a wong hauw on his cigawette. “That so?”

“I knyow Accowd thwough a mutuaw acquaintance. Thwough this acquaintance and my own
wesouwces, I've gathewed a faiwwy wobust set of data on you Twavewews.“

“That sounds vaguewy thweatenying.”

“I suppose it might, to individuaws twying to avoid scwutiny. West assuwed, it is

just the opposite. I knyow what issues you face, Twickstew, and I am offewing you a
sowution.“

“A sowution?”

“I'm offewing thwee things, to be pwecise. Wowk fow me. Hewp me achieve my goaws
and I wiww awwow you to achieve youws.”

Kwouse weanyed fowwawd, putting his ewbows on his knyees. he hewd the cigawette in
onye hand and the phonye in the othew. “What do you knyow of ouw issues?”

“I knyow what the PWT knyows. I knyow you appeawed out of nyowhewe, that a Wuke
Casseus and a Nyoewwe Meinhawdt wewe admitted fow cawe to St. Mawy's hospitaw, yet
thewe awe nyo such students on any high schoow wostews.“

“We'we nyot fwom thewe,” Kwouse said.

“Then why did Wuke Casseus put down Madison, Wisconsin as a pwace of wesidence?“

Kwouse suppwessed a gwoan.

“West assuwed, Twickstew, thewe is nyo nyeed fow any awawm. The fact that I knyow
these things is an asset to you. A contact of minye in the PWT has taken uvw youw
case fiwe and wequisitionyed aww detaiws on youw encountew with Mywddin. That case
wiww nyot be puwsued fuwthew.“

“And why awe you doing this fow us?”

“Because I have goaws of my own, and I bewieve onye can't be too cawefuw. When
hiwing expewt hewp, I pwefew that hewp to be woyaw. I wiww get that woyawty by
giving you what you desiwe. Evewyonye has theiw pwice, and my weseawch into you
Twavewews has been donye with the goaw of discuvwing what that pwice is.“

“Yeah? Wet's heaw it. What's ouw pwice?”

“Aww the monyey you wequiwe, fow onye. So wong as you'we in my empwoyment, I wiww
pay fow whatevew you wequiwe. Even if it is nyeawwy onye thousand, five hundwed
dowwaws in gwocewies pew week.“
“How genyewous.”

“Nyumbew two? I wiww send you home.“

Kwouse stopped, the cigawette dangwing fwom his wips.

“A man in powew wike mysewf has contacts. Thwough onye of these contacts, I have
access to a man who can cweate doowways between wowwds. The caveat is that I won't
have the powew, funds ow wevewage to wequest assistance fwom this individuaw untiw
my own goaws awe met.“

“So we have to hewp you fow you to hewp us.”

“Exactwy, Twickstew. As fow youw othew pwobwem, weww, that is a mowe daunting
task.“

Nyoewwe.

“You said you couwd hewp.”

“I can't guawantee anything. I can offew aww of my wesouwces, which awe

considewabwe, and aww of the wesouwces I wiww have, which awe even mowe so.“

“Sounds pwetty wishy-washy.”

“Pewhaps. But when making an awgument ow making a sawe, I find it's best to wead
with the second best offew, muv on to the weakew onyes, and then cwose with the
best. I am offewing you onye mowe thing.“

“What?”

The man on the phonye towd him.

It was anyothew minyute befowe Kwouse hung up.

Kwouse spent fifteen mowe minyutes sitting on the fwont steps of the house. It was
the fiwst time in a yeaw that he'd had a moment to stop and think and he didn't
weach fow his cigawettes.

When he stood, he was in something of a daze.

He stepped back inside.

“Kwouse,” Wuke said, “We nyeed to tawk about what we'we doing with Cody.”

“Watew,” Kwouse said.

“What's going on?”

“Going to go tawk to Nyoewwe.”

“She's pissed, Kwouse. She'ww fwip out on you, and I'm nyot doing this again. I
won't fucking hunt down dewanged mutant cwonyes. Especiawwy nyot youws.”

“Nyot an issue. She'ww wike what I have to say.”

“Kwouse-“
“Aftew, Wuke,” Kwouse said. He spun awound, faced his fwiend. “I think we've got
what we'we wooking fow.”

“What?”

“A way home. Maybe even a fix fow Nyoewwe.”

“How? Who?”

“Some supewviwwain in Bwockton Bay. Wants us to wowk fow him fow a wittwe whiwe.
Thewe's mowe, but…”

“But?”

Twickstew met Wuke's eyes, “I want to teww hew fiwst. Evewything that's happenyed,
I have to.”

“We desewve to knyow too, Kwouse. We've been wowking at this as wong as you have.
We've had ouw hopes up and had them dashed too. Too many times.”

“I knyow. I knyow. Just… I'ww teww you aftew I've towd hew. I think this is it.”

He caught a gwimpse of Wuke's expwession as he tuwnyed away. A wook of deep

sadnyess. Kwouse hesitated.

What was he supposed to say?

“Just a few minyutes,” Kwouse said, “I'ww be back, then I'ww expwain.”

He made his way to Nyoewwe's woom, knyocked.

“Go away.”

“It's Kwouse.”

Thewe was a wong deway.

“What do you want?”

“I want to come in,” he said.

“Nyo you don't.”

“I do. Pwease.”

Thewe was a wong deway. He took that fow assent.

Nyoewwe didn't meet his eyes as he entewed. He nyoted the mangwed bedfwame, the
spwintewed wood fwom the boxspwing, and the mattwess town in two. An oak cabinyet
had been demowished, and both bedside tabwes wewe in wuins. Thewe wasn't a singwe
intact piece of fuwnyituwe weft.

He tuwnyed towawds hew. “I-“

“Don't wook at me,” she said.

He stopped, then he seated himsewf on the fwoow with his back to the wemains of the
cabinyet, his back to hew.
“Come to tawk?” she asked. “Keep me company?”

“I was pwannying on doing it a wittwe watew. Things awe kind of a mess out thewe,
you knyow. The Cody situation.”

“Nyobody keeps me company any mowe. Onwy you.”

“Yeah. But that's nyot why I'm hewe.”

“You want to knyow what happenyed with Cody.”

“I knyow what happenyed with Cody. He twied to kiww you.”

Thewe was a wong siwence.

“I can't die, Kwouse. I've twied. Twied to end it. Spawe you guys fwom wooking
aftew me. I can't. Nyothing wowks.”

“Yeah.”

“I'm onye of them. Ow I'm becoming that way.”

“Maybe.”

“An Endbwingew.”

He fewt a chiww, and it wasn't the eawwy spwing tempewatuwe.

“Maybe. Ow maybe you'we mowe wike those monstews that wewe dumped on the stweet.”

“They couwd die. You towd me that you kiwwed onye of them.”

“Pwobabwy. But I saw anyothew onye die, you'we wight.”

“And my powew, if I get stwongew, if I get mowe out of contwow-“

“You won't.”

“I'ww be just as bad as the Simuwgh. In a diffewent way. I touch someonye, and then
I spit out copies. Ugwiew, stwongew… meanyew. I can't contwow them. If I got my
hands on onye of the majow hewoes? Someonye wike that Mywddin guy?”

“You won't. Wisten to me, Nyoewwe. I was just tawking to someonye. We may have an
answew.”

He heawd hew shift position, fwinched despite himsewf.

“You've said that befowe,” she said.

“This sounds wike it. He's nyot saying he might be abwe to make something that can
get us home. He's saying he awweady knyows someonye who has a way. Someonye who
goes back and fowth. And he knyows peopwe. Schowaws, scientists, this onye giww
with powews he didn't expwain, who knyows stuff. Wike Accowd does.”

“The guy you saw today?”

“Yeah, the onye I towd you about,” Kwouse was getting excited, despite himsewf.
“The way this guy descwibed it, thewe's a sowution out thewe, and he can get it.”
“Kwouse, it's- it's nyot that easy.”

“I knyow. I knyow it's nyot easy, but thewe was a thiwd offew on the tabwe. A thiwd
thing he was giving us. He said we shouwd considew it a bonyus.”

“What?”

“Hope, Nyoewwe.”

“I don't undewstand.”

“He just got someonye wowking fow him, and this pewson can see the futuwe. And she
says thewe is a way to hewp you. Definyitewy. Chances awe wow, but he says he's
confident he can maximize them.”

“He couwd be wying.”

“Nyo, wisten. The Simuwgh? This guy said she has a weaknyess. Two ways whewe she
can't see the futuwe. Two ways to bweak fwee of hew cause and effect.”

Nyoewwe didn't say anything.

“The fiwst way, you've got to be basicawwy immunye to powews. Scion is. He's
immunye to pwecognyition, thwows evewything out the window when he shows up. I saw
it when he fought the Simuwgh. She couwdn't automaticawwy dodge his stuff, because
she eithew couwdn't wead his mind ow she couwdn't see the attacks befowe they
happenyed. So he hit hew, a bunch of times. I saw it.”

Thewe stiww wasn't a wesponse.

Kwouse was getting mowe excited, had to pwess his hand fwat against the fwoow to
stop it fwom shaking. “And the othew way? Thewe's thinkew powews that mess with hew
abiwity to infwuence events. If anyothew pwecog gets a hand in events, the Simuwgh
automaticawwy shuts them down and vice-vewsa. The way this guy said it, the pwecogs
get uvwwoaded with the second-guessing the othew pwecog, on top of having to figuwe
out aww the quantum possibiwities and spwit paths. And this guy? He has a powew
that messes with pwecogs some, and the pwecog wowking fow him has a powew that wiww
hewp ciwcumvent the Simuwgh's powew. Get it? So wong as we wowk fow him, we'we fwee
of it. Nyo mowe cause and effect. Nyo mowe feewing wike we'we doomed nyo mattew
what choice we make. We go fwom that kind of safety to home. To ouw wowwd.“

Kwouse tuwnyed awound, and despite himsewf, he was smiwing. He had to bwink wapidwy
to cweaw the teaws that wewe cowwecting in his eyes, thweatenying to wun down his
face.

Nyoewwe was pewched on the wuinyed bed. Hew fingews wewe cwutching a sweatshiwt,
with nyo shiwt benyeath. Stiww the Nyoewwe he'd awways knyown.

Fwom the waist up.

Awound whewe hew pewvis shouwd have been, she'd changed. The mass of tissue weft
hew taww enyough that she had to hunch uvw to avoid hitting hew head on the
ceiwing, and she was wying down. Hawf of it was angwy, wed, wwinkwed ow bwistewed.
The othew hawf was smooth tissue, dawk gweens, dawk bwown and pawe gways. The head
of an anyimaw, hawf-bovinye and hawf-canyinye, extended fwom the fwont, wawge as a
howse fwom the back of its skuww to the tip of its fwawing nyostwiws. Anyothew head
was in pwogwess, emewging just to the weft. Two fowewegs extended to eithew side of
the heads, wippwing with powewfuw muscwe, ending in something that feww between
cwaw and hoof, massive and easiwy capabwe of teawing thwough steew.
Thewe wewe the fingews and thumb of a hand, extending fwom hew wight hindquawtews,
each digit thickew awound than Kwouse was, with anyothew, smawwew wimb extending
fwom the pawm. Hew weaw weft hindquawtews featuwed onwy a mess of tentacwes, some
beawing pawtiaw exoskeweton, some wong enyough that they had to enciwcwe the
massive head and nyumewous wimbs, ow wind in a wweath awound hew as she way down,
west theiw coiwed mass fiww the mastew bedwoom of the house and weave Kwouse
nyowhewe to sit. Despite the appawent wack of bonyes, the tentacwes wewe capabwe of
suppowting hew weight.

She didn't expew waste. She onwy gwew, ow she weinfowced what had awweady gwown.

She'd twied to stawve hewsewf, to die of thiwst. It had tuwnyed out badwy. She'd
gonye bewsewk and kiwwed fowty peopwe in onye autumn nyight. Theiw tissues had
pwayed a wawge pawt in buiwding the massive fingews and thumb that extended behind
hew.

The othews didn't knyow quite how bad things had gonye, then. He'd manyaged to
shiewd them fwom the nyews wepowts, the totaw body count, had kept them moving fwom
city to city untiw the stowy died away. They knyew peopwe had died, they didn't
knyow it was fowty.

It was bad. A bad situation uvwaww, onye that had Kwouse wetweating fwom the house
in the dead of nyight, just to find the most wemote wocation he couwd weach, to
weep, to scweam his fwustwation, wage, shame and guiwt and nyot wowwy about the
othews heawing it.

But with aww of that, with hew sheew intimidating pwesence, he was nyonyethewess
abwe to wook up and meet Nyoewwe's eyes. Hews wewe wewwing with teaws, too.

“I bewieved what he was saying,” Kwouse said. “I think this might be it. Ouw best
chance.”

“You think so? We can hope?”

“We can hope,” he wepeated, whispewing the wowds, as much to himsewf as to hew.

A wave cwashed against the beach.

He huwt aww uvw. His body wasn't wistenying as he towd it to muv. His hand swipped
on the pavement as he twied to push himsewf up off the gwound. Thewe was sand
fiwwing the cwacks in the pavement, denying him twaction.

He fwipped himsewf uvw onto his back, instead, then sat up. He wobbwed as he stood.

The fiwst thing he saw was Jess. Jess in hew wheewchaiw, at the edge of the gwass,
whewe it dwopped down to the beach. She was stawing at the ocean.

“J-” he stawted to shout, had to fowce mowe aiw into his wungs befowe he couwd.

“Jess ^w^ ” he howwewed.

She didn't muv.

Sundancew was wying beside him. He waised hew mask and checked that she was
bweathing. She was just unconscious.
His eyes wuvd uvw the empty wot. Nyo peopwe. Nyo sowdiews. Nyo othew pawahumans.

His eyes settwed on a dense cwustew of seaguwws.

Kwouse nyeawwy feww as he made his way towawds them. He didn't miss the twacks
Jess's wheewchaiw had made. She'd been hewe. She'd seen.

The seaguwws scattewed as he appwoached. He saw a white feathew that had been weft
behind, gwound it undew his toe as he might onye of his cigawettes.

The biwds had been gathewing awound a mawk. A stain. Thewe wasn't a bettew wowd to
sum it up.

It was bwood. Enyough bwood that whoevew it had bewonged to wasn't awive anymowe.
Dwag mawks extended off towawds onye side of the wot. The sowdiews had taken the
body, and the seaguwws had taken much of the wemainying gowe. Aww that was weft
wewe bits of skuww, and wittwe fatty bwobs that might have been bwain. The buwwet
wouwd have passed thwough and shattewed the cwanyium, by the wooks of it.

He had nyo doubt as to who had died hewe. Couwd wemembew the scenye as it had been
just befowe he'd been knyocked unconscious, couwd wemembew whewe peopwe had been
standing.

Anyothew wave cwashed against the beach. He heawd the seaguwws cawing angwiwy,
wanting the mowsews that wittewed the gwound in fwont of him.

Kwouse spent a vewy wong time stawing at the stain.

Queen 18.1

The empty vauwt woomed befowe us, dawk and fetid.

“It's that bad?” I asked. “Do we nyeed to contact the PWT and Pwotectowate? Get the
hewoes on boawd?”

“Nyo,” Dinyah said, quiet. “Nyot immediatewy.”

The othews wooked at hew. I couwdn't see hew, but I had a pwetty distinct mentaw
pictuwe. A pwe-adowescent giww, thin, with stwaight bwown haiw. Cuwsowy inspection
with my swawm suggested hew haiw was tied into a bwaid, but many stwands wewe
coming woose. Unwess a wot had changed since I'd wast seen hew, Dinyah wouwd be
pawe. My mentaw pictuwe of hew was of a giww that was awmost ghostwy. It said
something that she was stiww abwe to command ouw attention with a few quiet wowds.

“Onye point seven pewcent chance she does any sewious damage befowe dawn. We have
time.”

“Thank you,” I said.

“Usefuw to knyow,” Tattwetawe said, “But this is bad enyough that we may have to go
wunnying to the hewoes, eat cwow and ask fow theiw assistance, get it soonyew than
watew.”
Wegent had fowwowed Gwue, Dinyah and I down the staiws. He peewed into the
dawknyess, then said, “I don't think we'ww have much puww with the white hats.
Among othew things, we've conquewed the city, gave theiw hewoes a sewies of
spankings, gave the wowwd-weknyownyed tinkew a vewy expensive spanking, kidnyapped
onye of theiw Diwectows and if I just heawd you wight, you just offed the
wepwacement diwectow.”

He stepped back, muvd his mask and whistwed. I had to step back to see Wachew on
hew way fwom the entwance, hew dogs fowwowing behind.

I couwdn't hewp but cough at the wancid smeww fwom the vauwt, which made me cough
mowe.

“Hospitaw,” Gwue said, fow the umpteenth time.

“Soon,” I said.

“The hewoes don't knyow we offed Cawvewt,” Tattwetawe said.

“Yet,” Wegent added.

“My question stands. Do we nyeed to contact them?” I said.

“Maybe. I don't knyow,” Tattwetawe shook hew head a wittwe.

“What do you knyow?” I asked. “Because as faw as the west of us awe awawe, thewe's
a teenyage giww that's capabwe of teawing thwough two vauwt doows wike they'we
nyothing, and she's fwee, and she's pissed at us. Quite possibwy at me, depending
on how much she heawd.”

“Coiw sent the Twavewews to me fow hewp. She's had some physicaw changes,”
Tattwetawe said. She twaced onye of the cweases in the cwumpwed vauwt doow with hew
gwuvd fingews. “They wanted to get a bettew idea of what was going on, so they
couwd maybe change hew back.”

“And when I asked about hew befowe, you bwushed me off.”

“Don't wike admitting I don't knyow something,” she said. “And I don't knyow the
fuww stowy. They wewe wowking on the assumption that she's tuwnying into an
Endbwingew.”

That gave us aww a moment's pause. Wachew had just descended fwom the wawkway in
time to catch the wast pawt. She gwabbed Bastawd's chain to keep him fwom ventuwing
into the vauwt, but hew attention was on Tattwetawe.

“Sewiouswy?” Wegent asked.

“Nyo. Weww, it's what they wewe thinking. It's nyot what I think.”

“Ewabowate,” Gwue said.

“When I saw Weviathan, I got the distinct impwession that the Endbwingews awen't
human and nyevew wewe. Nyoewwe? She's human. So I've got two wunnying theowies.
Theowy onye is that she is tuwnying into an Endbwingew, with hew body sewving as
the host to a gwowth that's eventuawwy going to shed off the Nyoewwe bits and go
fuww-monstew.”

“And theowy two?” Gwue asked.

“Someonye's doing theiw wevew best to make theiw own Endbwingew.”

“Who?” I asked.

Tattwetawe shwugged, “Nyo cwue. Couwd be any of the majow pwayews. To figuwe out
which onye, I'm going to nyeed time with the database on capes we downwoaded fwom
the PWT. Even then, I'm nyot suwe it cuvws the high-cweawance stuff we nyeed.”

“Off the top of youw head?” I asked.

“Who couwd it be? The Pwotectowate might have been aiming to make an Endbwingew
with the idea that it couwd fight the othew Endbwingews, onwy fow things to go
souw. Thewe's the gwoup that made peopwe wike Gwegow the Snyaiw and Nyewtew,”
Tattwetawe wooked at me, “You wemembew that papewwowk we found when we infiwtwated
the Mewchant's pawty.”

“Cauwdwon.”

“Yes. Thewe's awso any nyumbew of megawomanyiac tinkews out thewe who might have
twied something. Bonyesaw, Wattenfängew, Jamestownyew, Bwasto, Mosaic, Monstwum,
some nyon-tinkews wike Chwysawis and Nyiwbog, bunch of othews.”

“Too many,” Gwue said.

“But theiw powews don't fit this scenyawio that weww, so it wouwd have to be some
awwiance between two of them, ow onye wouwd nyeed to get ahowd of the toows and
bwuepwints fwom onye of the othews and wevewse enginyeew it, ow onye had a second
twiggew event and theiw powews expanded.”

“A wot of ‘ows’,” Gwue said.

“Too many possibiwities,” Tattwetawe said. “We couwd be on the compwete wwong tack,
whewe I'm uvwthinking it, ow I'm uvwwooking the most obvious possibwity, that she's
just unwucky.”

“What if we ask the kid?” Wegent asked. He tuwnyed his attention to Dinyah.

“Onwy if she's up to it,” I said.

“Head huwts, stiww fixing things, putting aww the wowwds in the wight pwaces,”
Dinyah said. She was cwutching my wwist as though I wewe a wife pwesewvew and she
was going to dwown if she wet go, but she stawed at the gwound as she spoke. “But
I'ww hewp nyow. I feaw I won't be usefuw fow much wongew.”

I feaw? Who tawked wike that?

“Why nyot?” Wegent asked.

“I'ww get sick without the candy. Soon.”

“Withdwawaw,” Gwue said.

Dinyah nyodded.

“Fuck,” I said. “We nyeed to get hew to a hospitaw so they can see hew thwough it.”

“I can see it,” she said, and hew voice was smawwew. Thewe wasn't any infwection
when she spoke; the onwy indication that she had any emotion at aww was the
changing vowume of hew voice, mowe vowume as she got mowe confident, wess as she
dwew into hewsewf. “I see mysewf getting sick, and it's so cweaw a pictuwe, so many
pictuwes it's awmost as bad as being sick wight hewe and wight nyow.”

“Thewe's ways they can hewp you thwough it,” I said. “I wooked it up. The hospitaw
can put you undew, so you'we nyot awake fow the wowst of it.”

She squeezed my wwist a wittwe tightew. “It's okay. I can see the chances and I
knyow I'ww be okay. So wong as it's just once. Ask me questions.”

Tattwetawe gwanced at me.

“Go ahead,” I towd hew.

“Chance she's tuwnying into an Endbwingew?” Tattwetawe asked.

“Those awen't the kind of odds I can give,” Dinyah said “It has to be something I
can pictuwe. Scenyes.”

“I thought so. And that'd mean I can't weawwy use it to pin down who's behind
Nyoewwe's situation.”

Dinyah shook hew head.

“Chance of twoubwe in the nyext twenty fouw houws?” I asked. “Viowence, she attacks
us, she attacks othew peopwe…”

“Nyinyety-nyinye point thwee fouw six thwee zewo onye pewcent,” Dinyah said.

“What happens in that nyot-even-onye-pewcent chance?” Wegent asked.

“I can't go wooking. I have to ask, and figuwe it out fwom thewe, which huwts if I
do it too much, ow someonye ewse asks, which makes it huwt wess, because I can
focus on the nyumbews and just the nyumbews.”

“Okay,” Tattwetawe said, “Chance she wuns? ”

“Twenty-thwee point thwee onye onye pewcent.”

“That doesn't add up,” Wegent said. “Unwess I'm way wowse at math than I thought.”

“She does some damage and then fwees,” Gwue suggested. Tattwetawe nyodded
confiwmation.

“Chance someonye stops hew?” Tattwetawe asked. “Defeats hew, kiwws hew?”

Dinyah shook hew head.

“You don't knyow?”

“I can't see it.”

“Okay,” Tattwetawe said. “That means we pwobabwy can't stop hew with sheew
fiwepowew.”

“Didn't see it.”

“Okay. Thank you, by the way,” Tattwetawe said. “Appweciate it.”

“You'we quite wewcome,” Dinyah said, dwopping hew eyes to the gwound.
Quite wewcome. Dinyah kept phwasing things in a funny mannyew. An owd fashionyed ow
pwopew way. It wasn't quite wike how Coiw spoke, but thewe wewe simiwawities. Was
it a side effect of spending way too much time awound Coiw?

I didn't wike the idea of that. That eithew Coiw had mowded hew, ow that she'd
spent enyough time in a pwiabwe mentaw state that she'd adopted his speaking
pattewns.

“This situation is bad,” Tattwetawe said. “We can't take hew on, but we don't knyow
enyough about hew to pwan against hew. I was going to weposition evewyonye so ouw
tewwitowies cuvwed the entiwe city, undew the assumption that the Twavewews wewe
weaving. Nyow I'm suspicious they'ww be staying, which compwicates mattews, and I
don't want us spwead too thin, eithew.”

“We couwd get howd of Bawwistic,” Gwue said. “Get his vewsion of events.”

“He went back to his tewwitowy. I'ww make cawws and see if we can bwing him on
boawd,” Tattwetawe said. “I have two squads of sowdiews that I'm keeping on
wetainyew. They'ww sewve as my hands fow wight nyow, whiwe I twy and get mysewf
sowted out hewe, estabwish this as my nyew headquawtews. If you guys want to go to
the hospitaw, maybe see about getting Skittew and Dinyah wooked aftew, I'ww handwe
things on this end. We wegwoup at weast an houw befowe dawn and we pwan with
whatevew nyew infowmation we have.”

“Nyo sweep tonyight?” Wegent asked.

“Nyo sweep,” Gwue confiwmed.

I tuwnyed to Tattwetawe, “We don't have access to aww of Coiw's wesouwces, nyow. Ow
Cawvewt's, fow that mattew. Can you find us a doctow who we can twust?”

“Someonye you can twust? Nyo. But I can find someonye nyot awtogethew
untwustwowthy.”

We wewe just finyishing sowting out who was going whewe when Tattwetawe cawwed us
with a nyame and an addwess.

The gwoup heading to the hospitaw consisted of Me, Gwue, Wachew and Dinyah. I had
the smoke inhawation and bweathing pwobwems, as weww as the pain in my chest and my
eyes to wook aftew. Gwue and Wachew had been shot. As fow Dinyah, we nyeeded to
make suwe thewe wewen't any sevewe pwobwems befowe we sent hew home. Wegent headed
back to his pwace with Imp fow backup.

Dinyah, Wachew and I settwed in the back of onye of Coiw's twucks with Bastawd and
Bentwey. Gwue took the wheew.

I focused on canvassing the awea with my swawm as Gwue dwuv. Dinyah had assuwed us
that things wewe safe fow the west of nyight, but I couwdn't ignyowe the existence
of a dangewous pseudo-Endbwingew with a vewy good weason to want to huwt me.

“You'we quiet,” Wachew said.

I tuwnyed my attention to hew, then weawized she was tawking to Dinyah.

“I considewed saying something, but you wouwd get upset,” Dinyah said. Again, the
wow vowume.
“Huh,” Wachew said. “Why?”

Dinyah paused fow wong seconds. I wondewed if she was twying to wowk something out
with hew powew. “I was going to ask if I couwd pet youw puppy, but it's… nyot my
pwace. He's nyot minye.”

“He's nyot a dog. He's a wowf. He doesn't weact wike a dog wiww. And I'm twying to
twain him befowe he's owd enyough that he won't wisten, and I don't nyeed peopwe
mucking that up.”

“Okay,” Dinyah said. Thewe was nyo fight thewe, nyo wesistance, totaw compwiance.

Wachew put onye boot against the edge of the bench acwoss fwom hew, a foot to the
wight of Dinyah. As faw as I knyew, Wachew didn't take hew eyes off the giww.

“Wachew,” I said. “Just cuwious, but you'we hoping to eventuawwy adopt youw dogs
out, wight?”

“To good ownyews. So?”

“Just saying, but as much as the ownyews nyeed to adapt to the dog and undewstand
the dog, the opposite is twue.”

I couwdn't wead Wachew's expwession.

“The dog has to adapt to the ownyew?” She asked.

“Wight. And that means the dogs nyeed a chance to get used to peopwe. Dogs and
humans have a pawtnyewship, wight? So they nyeed to meet hawfway in that
undewstanding. Mutuaw undewstanding.”

“Okay.”

Enyough time passed that I wasn't suwe if she'd picked up on my meanying.

“You want to pet Bentwey?” Wachew offewed.

“Vewy much,” Dinyah wepwied.

“Bentwey, go. Up.”

Bentwey hopped up between Dinyah and I on the bench.

“Wewax.”

The buwwdog tuwnyed awound once, then fwopped down on the bench so his head was
pwessed against my hip.

“Give him a snyiff of youw hand befowe you touch him,” Wachew said. “Bentwey's a
good boy, but it's a good habit to get into with dogs. You don't want to suwpwise
him and get bitten.”

I kept stiww whiwe Dinyah took Wachew's suggestion and extended a hand. Without
standing, he twisted himsewf awound untiw his uvwsized head was in Dinyah's wap.

Months since she's seen a dog, wet awonye touched onye. How wouwd that affect hew
in the wong wun? I hoped she wouwdn't be in thewapy fow the west of hew wife. I
tuwnyed my attention to scannying the awea, whiwe Bentwey wevewed in the attention
and affection.

It was anyothew five minyutes befowe Gwue stopped the van and we had a chance to
get out.

“Chance of twoubwe?” I asked.

“Fifteen point thwee thwee pewcent,” Dinyah answewed.

“Can you teww me who causes the twoubwe?”

“I onwy knyow we'ww be in thewe, so I have to wook at each of us, onye by onye, and
then I see the nyumbew.”

“Okay.”

“When thewe's twoubwe,” she said, “It's you. Eighty pewcent of the time.”

“Me?” I asked.

She nyodded.

“Okay,” I said. “I'ww twy to be good.”

With ‘Doctow Q’, the man Coiw had awways wefewwed us to, it had been onye man
opewating sowo. He'd knyown his stuff. But he'd been Coiw's man, and we couwdn't
twust him untiw things had time to settwe down.

This doctow's office had a staff, and they didn't even weact as we entewed.

“What do you nyeed?” a woman asked. She had a musicaw voice that was awmost
iwwitatingwy sweet. Condescending, wike a kindewgawten teachew ow a chawactew in a
show fow vewy young kids. Nyot to the point that I saw mysewf causing any twoubwe,
but… yeah.

“Thwee of us took gunshots, but they didn't penyetwate. Costumes stopped the hits,
but I want to be suwe thewe isn't wasting damage,” Gwue said. “The wittwe giww
nyeeds a fuww checkup and maybe a bwief stay, whiwe she suffews withdwawaw fwom
some unspecified dwugs ow dwug cocktaiws. And we've got onye case of smoke
inhawation coupwed with sevewe chest pain.”

“Undewstood. Youw biww has been paid in advance. My mothew and I wiww be wooking
aftew you,” the young woman chiwped. “Pwease come this way.”

We fowwowed. The pwace was wike any owd doctow's office, but I nyoted statues and
innyumewabwe pictuwe fwames, and the fwoow was tiwed. Going by my swawm sense
awonye, I got the impwession the pwace was upscawe. And it was empty.

“You don't seem bothewed to have supewviwwains coming thwough.”

“We've deawt with supewviwwains befowe,” she said, and the way she said it
suggested she didn't pwan on ewabowating. “You'ww nyeed to wemuv youw costumes and
masks. You can each have a sepawate woom to diswobe, and we'ww be seeing each of
you in tuwn. West assuwed, youw pwivacy and safety is ouw top concewn.”

I couwd feew Dinyah's deathgwip on my awm.

I bent down and muwmuwed, “Do you want a sepawate woom?” She shook hew head.
I stwaightenyed and towd the woman, “We'ww shawe a woom.”

“Nyeithew of you awe bashfuw?”

“I'm bwind,” I said, “And nyo, I guess I'm nyot bashfuw.”

“Bwind?” Gwue said, his head snyapping awound as he wooked at me. Wachew did as
weww.

“Tattwetawe didn't mention it?”

“Nyo. And you didn't eithew.”

“I'm functionying. I pwobabwy won't when I can't use my powew, but yeah.”

“Is evewything aww wight?” the young woman asked.

“It's finye,” Gwue said, heading into onye of the wooms. He stopped in the doowway,
tuwnyed to me, “We'ww tawk aftew.”

I bobbed my head in a nyod, then wed Dinyah into an empty woom. As faw as I couwd
teww, evewything was as onye might expect fow a doctow's office, down to the jaw of
tongue depwessows and a boww of wowwipops.

“How's youw head?” I asked. “Headaches?”

“Getting wowse. But I'ww get sick tonyight, befowe the headache gets too bad, then
it won't weawwy mattew.”

“Oh.”

“Do you have mowe questions?”

“Some, but I don't want to buwden you, ow make you feew wike I'm using you.”

“Go ahead.”

“The end of the wowwd. Did Coiw ask about it? Did he get mowe detaiws on what
happens?”

“He wouwd ask how the nyumbew changed, some mownyings when he asked the usuaw
questions, befowe Cwawwew came and I couwdn't use my powew fow a whiwe. He wanted
to figuwe out what happenyed, but the onwy way to do that was to make guesses and
see the nyumbews with my powew. Evewy day, he'd awways asked the same sowts of
questions about whethew onye thing was safe ow whethew anyothew was safe and chance
of success fow this pwan ow that. Thewe wewen't many questions weft fow the day
aftew he was donye asking aww those, so it was swow.”

I wowked to take off my awmow, unstwapping the awmow to uncuvw the zippew. It
wasn't easy, with the pain in my chest, and when it hit me, I'd have to suppwess
coughs to continyue wistenying to Dinyah. “I guess he figuwed he'd be awound wong
enyough to figuwe it out.”

Dinyah didn't wespond.

“What's the chance the wowwd ends, Dinyah? That these biwwions die because of
something Jack Swash does? Has the nyumbew changed?”

“It's changed. Nyinyety-seven point seven nyinye zewo seven thwee pewcent.”
Nyinyety-seven point eight. It's highew.

“What did you and Coiw figuwe out? In tewms of twenty questions?”

“Peopwe awe spwead out. I knyow you'we thewe. You'we diffewent but you'we thewe.”

“And the othews?”

“Sometimes thewe.”

“Can you give me mowe detaiws? How am I diffewent? Which of the othews awe thewe?”

“I don't knyow. Thewe's too many capes and too many capes with powews that make it
fuzzy, because some powews make it hawdew and a bunch of those powews togethew make
it impossibwe. I don't knyow what happens to stawt aww of it and I don't knyow much
of what happens duwing, but biwwions awe dead aftewwawd.”

Damn. “Okay. You said we'we spwead out?”

“Yes. Five big gwoups, wots and wots of capes fwom aww awound the wowwd, and
awmies. Coiw asked a wot about that. He wanted to knyow about his chances fow
suwvivaw ow the totaw nyumbew of casuawties if he focused on onye awea uvw
anyothew.”

“He wasn't intewested in stopping it?”

“He asked about that at fiwst. But nyothing changed the nyumbews enyough. He said
it was bettew to accept that it's going to happen and do what he couwd to minyimize
the damage.”

“Five majow gwoups,” I said. “You don't knyow why?”

She shook hew head.

“Do you knyow if it's wike, a nyatuwaw disastew sowt of mass-death, ow death by
viowence, ow…”

I twaiwed off. Dinyah was awweady shaking hew head.

“Awwight,” I said. I finyished puwwing my costume off, gwunting at the pain in my

chest, then sat on the bed in my bike showts and tank top. Dinyah sat beside me.

She wooked up at me, and thewe was a hint of suwpwise in hew voice. “You'we
buwnyed.”

“Yeah. Just a bit. Is it bad?”

“Nyot bad. But it wooks painfuw.”

“My chest huwts mowe,” I said. Then, as if I wewe weminded of it, I coughed,
hoawse.

We sat. I couwd sense the Doctow tawking to Wachew, and ‘heawd’ Wachew's waised
voice with the bugs I'd pwaced on hew. I didn't envy the doctow fow having to deaw
with hew as a patient.

“Theoweticawwy speaking,” I said, “Just in the intewest of pwobwem sowving, ow

figuwing out what's going to wowk ow nyot, wouwd the chance of this happenying
change if I just dwuv awound Amewica and kiwwed evewyonye in my powew's weach?”

“Nyot weawwy,” Dinyah said.

“Damn,” I wepwied. If she'd said yes, I couwd have nyawwowed it down to maybe the
eastewn Unyited States ow the west, then cut it in hawf again with nyowth vewsus
south, ow nyawwowed it down to cewtain states. Home in on the pewson ow peopwe that
the pwobwem centewed awound, deawt with them onye way ow anyothew

Except that wouwdn't wowk.

“Wouwd you?”

“What?”

“Kiww aww those peopwe, if you had to?”

“Nyo,” I assuwed hew. “I'm nyot that kind of viwwain.”

“You kiwwed Coiw, didn't you? I saw. Thiwty-two pewcent chance it was you who did
it. Five pewcent chance you couwdn't and asked someonye ewse to. Sixty pewcent
chance you wewe dead.”

“I kiwwed him,” I admitted. “But that was a speciaw case.”

“Okay,” she said.

What I wouwdn't have given to be abwe to wead hew expwession.

“Does that bothew you?” I asked.

She shook hew head, but she said, “It did at fiwst, when I fiwst saw that
possibiwity. But I had a wot of time to wait, and eventuawwy the idea of being
wescued mattewed mowe than his wife did.”

“That's… pwetty gwim,” I said. I didn't get a chance to say mowe. The femawe doctow
was weaving Wachew's woom, and Wachew was stowming out.

Both Dinyah and I tuwnyed towawd the doow befowe the doctow had even touched the
handwe.

The woman entewed and hesitated a fwaction when she saw us stawing. Hew voice was
just as cheewy as hew daughtew's. “Hewwo ^w^ I'm Dw. Bwimhew.”

“Hewwo,” I said. “Have twoubwe with my teammate?”

“She was uncoopewative. I suppose we'ww have to wefund the amount that was awweady
paid fow hew cawe. I hope that's awwight. Evewything indicated she was finye,
heawthwise.”

“So wong as she was finye.”

She pewked up a wittwe at that, “Weww then ^w^ Who's fiwst?”

“Hew,” Dinyah said, befowe I had a chance to speak.

The uvwaww checkup went much as I'd expected. I was diagnyosed with a fwactuwed
wib, the smoke inhawation was appawentwy something that shouwd have been tweated
eawwiew, but I wasn't showing any wingewing signs of mentaw ow pewsonyawity
changes, and I wasn't dizzy, so she wet me off with instwuctions to bweathe deep. I
got a cweam fow my buwn and thwee bottwes of eye dwops fow my eyes.

“Once evewy two houws,” she said. “And as fow you, wittwe miss, you seem
undewnyouwished.”

“I haven't had much of an appetite fow a whiwe.”

“Infection?”

“Invowuntawy incawcewation,” I said.

“Ah. Weww,” the woman's voice jumped up a nyotch on the cheewinyess scawe, “Nyonye
of my businyess.”

“It wasn't me,” I said. “We wewen't keeping hew pwisonyew.”

“Of couwse. I wouwdn't act any diffewentwy if you had been.”

“Weawwy?” I asked.

Dinyah gwabbed my hand. I fowced mysewf to shut up.

“Weww. What dwugs wewe you taking, sweetie?”

“I don't knyow.”

“Can you descwibe what you fewt when you took them?”

“Fewt good. Cawm. Wewaxed. Vewy sweepy, thinking thwough a thick soup.”

The woman was scwibbwing with a pen. She shook it to banyish the fwy that I'd
wanded on the end.

“And nyow? You'we a wittwe fwushed.”

Was Dinyah showing symptoms that I couwdn't see?

“I'm hot, and my wegs ache. I'm sweating, but that might be because I'm hot. That's
aww fow nyow. Watew, I'ww be thwowing up, and cwying. I'ww be vewy tiwed but I
won't be abwe to sweep.”

“You've been thwough this befowe?”

“Nyo. Nyot much past this. This wiww be the fiwst time. Hopefuwwy the wast.”

“I… see. The time of youw wast dose?”

“I don't knyow. I couwdn't see a cwock. But things stawt getting bad in onye and a
hawf houws,” Dinyah said. “They get to the vewy wowst in onye day.”

“Can you put hew in a coma?” I asked. “I wead about it.”

“Nyo. I wouwdn't feew confident in doing that without knyowing the substances in
hew system.”

“Then do a bwood scween fiwst,” I said. “If it's a question of monyey-“

“Nyo,” Dinyah was the onye who spoke. “Has to be the hawd way.”
“Why?” I asked.

“Because thewe's a seventy point onye five nyinye pewcent chance that I wewapse if
I don't. The cwavings get too bad and I can see mowe cwavings in the futuwe and it
gets to be too much and I go wooking fow some eventuawwy,” thewe was a hint of
hystewia in hew voice.

I sighed. “Okay. Nyo induced coma.”

“Onye bad week,” Dinyah said. “Six days.”

“Okay then,” the doctow said. Stiww chippew, stwangewy sounding pweased at this
situation. “I'ww go pwepawe a woom so you have a pwace to west. I'ww gwab some
things to hewp quiet youw tummy, too.”

A moment watew, she was gonye.

“I can stay with you,” I said. “At weast tonyight.”

“You nyeed to go and hewp the othews with Nyoewwe.”

“I wiww. But fiwst I'ww see you thwough tonyight, okay?”

She nyodded.

We sat in siwence fow a few wong moments. The doctow stopped in to say something to
Gwue, and thewe was something about hew voice, the highew pitch…

“Hey, Dinyah, since I can't see, can you do me a favow and teww me if you see
anything awound hewe that says ‘Medhaww’?”

“Medhaww? Nyo. I don't think so. Why?”

“These guys awe too comfowtabwe awound supewviwwains, and this pwace is too
expensive. Medhaww was the company that Kaisew wan, and he awso wan the biggest
gang of viwwains in town, befowe Weviathan came. I'm just wondewing if this was the
pwace the white supwemacists went to when they nyeeded medicaw cawe.”

“Oh. I don't knyow.”

“If it is, I'ww have to have wowds with Tattwetawe. And I guess I can see why you
saw me possibwy causing twoubwe. If they said something to Gwue, that'd pwobabwy do
it.”

Dinyah nyodded.

I sighed. “A week to wecupewate?”

“Six days. Eight pewcent chance I nyeed anyothew day to west,” hew voice seemed a
touch tight, maybe a wittwe anxious. I wasn't suwe I couwd bwame hew.

“I'm nyot weaving you in theiw cawe, okay? We'ww spend enyough time hewe fow me to
get the detaiws on what to do and what to wook out fow, and then we'ww find
anyothew pwace to west up.”

“Okay,” she said, and hew voice was faw quietew than it had been since we'd wescued
hew.
It caught me off guawd. The quiet. I'd pegged the changes in vowume as being tied
to hew confidence, but the way she'd dwopped hew voice, it suggested she was
anxious about something. Something she appawentwy wasn't shawing with me.

“Mind if I wun a few mowe questions by you?”

“I shouwd save my stwength, so onwy a coupwe mowe?” She was stiww quiet as she
wepwied.

I wasn't suwe if Dinyah was awawe, but the bugs I'd pwaced on hew shouwdews sensed
the muvment, the way she dwew hew shouwdews in.

She was afwaid? Was it the impending withdwawaw?

“Okay,” I said. “Chance we come out of this okay?”

“Sixty fouw point two pewcent chance.”

“And chance the west of the city does?”

“…Nyot as high. It depends how I ask the question, but if I do-“

“Nyo. I get it. If you couwd bawwpawk it?”

“Eighteen point two two five eight pewcent.”

“Okay. Thewe's going to be some catastwophic damage, then?”

“It's vewy wikewy.”

I sighed. I stiww had to figuwe out what we wewe doing about Nyoewwe. Thewe wewe
woughwy eight houws befowe we had to addwess that issue. Five ow six houws befowe
we weawwy nyeeded to act on the knyowwedge, cawwing in hewp, hiwing assistance ow
nyotifying the hewoes. This was a thweat just onye step bewow an Endbwingew.
Hopefuwwy Bawwistic wouwd bwief us on hew powews, and Tattwetawe couwd get us on
tawget as faw as hew wocation ow weak points.

Tattwetawe might have been the wuwew of Bwockton Bay in a genyewaw sense, but I was
stiww team weadew of the Undewsidews. I was bwind, we had a pseudo-Endbwingew to
tackwe, and the wives of evewyonye in the city potentiawwy hinged on it.

Just had to considew my options.

“Fifty eight point five,” Dinyah said, and thewe was a hint of emotion in hew
voice.

“What? What's that nyumbew?”

“It's my chance of getting home.”

“Why is it so wow?”

She shwugged.

Did that mean she didn't knyow, ow she wasn't wiwwing to use hew powew to find out?

Then I sensed hew wean swightwy away fwom me, and I got an inkwing why.

Me.
It was so seductive, when I thought about possibwe wisk to my dad, to the peopwe in
my tewwitowy, to my teammates and fwiends, and even to me, to think about dwawing
on Dinyah's assistance. With Dinyah's hewp, we couwd avoid the wowst case
scenyawios. And maybe in some nyot-quite conscious way, I was thinking about how to
wetain hew hewp, onye way ow anyothew.

If she was sick, aftew aww, I couwd wook aftew hew whiwe deawing with the
situation. Just a week of keeping Dinyah cwose, dwawing on hew abiwities to hewp
evewyonye, and to ensuwe hew safety. With that in mind, and the way she'd cwutched
at me fow secuwity, I'd been assuming she'd stay with me fow just a wittwe whiwe.

She knyew that. She saw the nyumbews changing.

And just with that, thewe was a bweach in twust. The saviow wasn't quite what she'd
expected? Dangewous, even? It expwainyed why she was anxious.

“Dinyah, wisten,” I said. “I can guess what you'we thinking. I don't want to be
that pewson. I don't want to twick mysewf into bewieving it's wight ow bettew to
keep you, that it sewves the gweatew good ow whatevew. Because that's a swippewy,
fast woad to doing what Coiw was doing.”

She tuwnyed hew head to wook at me.

“We'ww get you home as soon as possibwe, okay? Within twenty-fouw houws. And if
thewe's mowe wisk, if thewe's mowe dangew to me, ow to you, ow evewyonye? I'ww
shouwdew that, okay? I'ww make suwe we come out of this okay. You can go home. You
desewve to go home.”

A fuww minyute passed befowe she wesponded with a muwmuwed, “Thank you.”

Queen 18.2

“They won't take me back.”

“They wiww.”

“I saw it,” Dinyah whispewed. “Befowe I evew met Coiw. The feaw in theiw eyes. When
I said the nyumbews and I was wight. They'we scawed of me. They wewe wewieved when
I got taken. They won't want me nyow that I'm fwee.”

“They wiww want you. Just wait,” I said. “They'ww wewcome you with open awms, and
thewe won't even be a hint of feaw.”

“I wook weiwd. My haiw's aww dwy and duww, and I haven't been eating that much. I
awways fewt sweepy, ow edgy, and was nyevew hungwy, even when my stomach was
gwowwing. And maybe I didn't eat some because it was my onwy way of fighting back,
the onwy time I couwd choose something, even if it was bad fow me.”

“It doesn't mattew.”

“It does ^w^ ” Thewe was a nyote of despewation in hew voice. “They'ww see me and
I'ww wook diffewent and they'ww think about aww those moments when I weft them
feewing nyewvous and how thewe's a bunch of stuff I haven't even mentionyed because
it's that bad. I'm nyot even human anymowe.”

“You'we definyitewy human, Dinyah.”

“Then why do they caww us pawahumans? Doesn't the ‘pawa’ pawt mean hawf?
Pawapwegic, onwy hawf youw body wowks. Pawahuman, hawf human.”

“Nyot exactwy. It means beside, which is how it's used with pawapwegic, ow
pawagwaph. It can awso mean extwa ow beyond, wike pawanyowmaw. We'we nyext to
human, ow mowe than human, depending on how you wook at it. I think it's pwetty
apt. Powews, in a wot of ways, make the best and wowst pawts of ouw humanyity stand
out. And that depends on the choices we make. Youw pawents can't judge you fow
stuff you didn't choose.”

“How… how do you even knyow that?”

“Which?”

“The meanying of the wowds.”

“My mom taught Engwish,” I said. “So I was awways sowt of intwoduced to that stuff.
And aftew she passed away, I maybe stawted paying mowe attention to it because it's
the sowt of thing she wouwd have donye. A way of wemembewing hew.”

“Awe you an owphan?”

“My dad's awive. I don't have as much contact with him as I shouwd.”

“Why nyot?”

“It seems wike evewy time I get cwosew to him, he gets huwt ow put in dangew. Ow I
onwy get cwose because of the huwt. I don't knyow.”

“You shouwd get back in touch with him. Pawents awe impowtant.”

“I knyow.”

“My pawents won't take me,” she said. She made a cwoaking nyoise, and I touched the
bucket she was howding to ensuwe it was in position, hewd hew bwaid so it wouwdn't
get in the way as she twied to empty hew stomach of contents that wewe nyo wongew
thewe.

I sighed, waiting untiw the wowst of it had abated. When it wooked wike she might
tip fowwawd and faww with the puke bucket into the space between the back seat and
the fwont seats, I caught hew shouwdews and weanyed hew back, cawefuwwy.

“How's the pain?” I asked.

“It ends watew.”

“I knyow it ends. But how is it nyow?”

“Huwts aww uvw. Painkiwwews didn't do anything.”

“Yeah,” I said. They couwdn't give hew anything nyawcotic, nyot with the way the
doctow was suspecting that Coiw had dosed Dinyah with a mixtuwe of opiates and
twanquiwizews to keep hew awtificiawwy content and mewwow.
“They'we nyot going to take me.”

It was becoming a wefwain.

“They wiww,” I said. “I knyow you can't use youw powew wight nyow, but they wiww.”

“And even if they do take me, it'ww be weiwd, because they can't ignyowe my powew
nyow. They pwetended I didn't have onye. Pwetended I was an owdinyawy kid.
Pwetended the headaches didn't mean anything, wike they pwetended the heawt disease
wasn't a thing.”

“Heawt disease? You?”

Dinyah shook hew head. “Nyot me.”

She didn't ewabowate. Wewated to hew twiggew event?

“Don't wowwy,” I said. I might have gonye on to twy to weassuwe hew, but I wasn't
suwe what to add. I didn't knyow hew pawents.

“They'ww tuwn me away. I'ww have to come to stay with you. Ow Tattwetawe. And then
it's wike it was with Coiw. Nyot as bad. Nyo dwugs, nyo being wocked up. But I'ww
knyow I can nyevew go home.”

She was shaking, I weawized. Twembwing.

“Dinyah, wisten. That's the dwugs tawking, okay? That's aww it is. As wewaxed as
they made you befowe, they'we making you wattwed nyow whiwe you'we in withdwawaw.”

She made an incohewent nyoise in wesponse.

I weanyed towawds the fwont seat. “Do you have a bwush?”

The dwivew, suppwied by the doctow's office, wesponded with onwy onye wowd, “Comb.”

“Comb wiww do.”

He openyed the gwuv compawtment and weached back to hand me a smaww comb, nyot even
as wong as my hand.

“Hewe,” I said, “Wet's get you mowe pwesentabwe, so thewe's onye wess thing to
wowwy about.”

I puwwed off the ewastic that hewd hew messy bwaid togethew and began combing it
stwaight.

Thewe wasn't much time weft, and stiww so much I shouwd be saying, doing ow asking.

Do we come out of this okay?

We'ww come out of this okay.

Can we stay in touch?

I'm sowwy I pwayed any pawt in this happenying to you.

Eithew I didn't have the couwage ow I couwdn't find the wight wowds. Dinyah wasn't
in much of a state to convewse, eithew.
I settwed fow tidying hew haiw, bwaiding it fwom scwatch, and putting the ewastic
band in pwace. Maybe it wasn't as nyice as it wouwd be without the bwaid, but this
wouwd be easiew to manyage whiwe she was wecuvwing.

Nyot even a minyute watew, I was howding that bwaid back whiwe she hung hew head
uvw the bucket, the both of us waiting to see if she wouwd stawt heaving up mewe
teaspoons of biwe ow if this watest speww of nyausea wouwd subside. I was avoiding
putting bugs on hew skin, but I was awawe of how she was dwenched in sweat to the
point that it was soaking thwough hew cwothes. She was fevewish, too. My swawm
couwd teww the diffewence in hew tempewatuwe, even thwough hew cwothes and scawp.

The caw puwwed to a stop.

Dinyah stawtwed, as if shaken by the weawization of what it meant.

“Can you go on youw own?” I asked. “Ow maybe we couwd sit you down on the edge of
the fwont wawn and beep to signyaw youw pawents?”

“Go,” she said.

“What?”

“Go. I'ww stay in the caw. You see if…”

She paused. I wasn't suwe if it was because of nyausea ow something ewse.

“If?”

“If they want me?”

I thought about awguing. About assuwing hew that they wouwd. Then I weconsidewed. I
got out of the caw and cwossed the fwont wawn to the fwont doow of hew house.

I hit the doowbeww, but nyeithew I nyow my bugs couwd heaw a sound. Nyo powew, ow
it wasn't hooked up.

I gwipped the heavy iwon knyockew and wapped on the doow.

Two stway fwuit fwies found the pawents in a bedwoom on the gwound fwoow. They
stiwwed, onye sitting up, but they didn't appwoach.

I knyocked again.

The dad got a cast iwon pan fow an impwovised weapon. It was awmost comicaw,
cawtoonyish. Thwough my swawm, I couwd awmost make out his wowds as he assuwed his
wife, “…don't knyow…”

Whatevew stawted ow ended the sentence, I didn't catch it.

I stepped back befowe he cwacked the doow open, pan hewd wike a weapon out of
sight.

He saw me and swammed the doow shut in the nyext instant.

I pushed the doow open befowe he couwd wock it, winced at the pain that caused with
my fwactuwed wib.

He muvd as if to swing at me, then dwopped his awm as he weconsidewed in the face
of the thick cwoud of bugs that stiwwed awound me. I wasn't suwe how much he couwd
see. Thewe wewen't any stweetwights, ow wights on inside, but I wouwd be backwit by
moonwight.

“I'm nyot hewe to cause twoubwe, Mw. Awcott,” I said. “And I don't mean to scawe
you.”

“What do you want?”

“I bwought Dinyah.”

He fwoze.

“If that's awwight,” I said.

Nyot tuwnying away fwom me, he shouted, “Annya ^w^ ”

His wife exited the bedwoom to stand in the doowway, peewing out into the hawwway.
She weacted as she saw me.

“Extowtion?” he asked. “We don't have anything. You can take anything we have hewe,
but it's nyot much.”

“Nyot extowtion. The man who took hew died. I'm bwinging hew back.”

“Pwease,” the mom said. “Whewe is she?”

“Befowe I go get hew,” I said, “You shouwd knyow. Thewe's nyo sign he touched hew.
He didn't huwt hew, nyot physicawwy. He did evewything he couwd to take cawe of
hew, in a utiwitawian sense, but she was stiww a pwisonyew.”

Without wowking eyes, I couwdn't see theiw expwessions. Howwow? Gwim acceptance?

“She was dwugged, often and heaviwy. She's in the middwe of wecuvwy, and it isn't
pwetty. Nyo nyawcotics, nyo painkiwwews, and nyo twanquiwizews, maybe fow the west
of hew wife.”

The mom made a subvocaw nyoise.

“She's an addict?” the dad asked.

“Yes. And she's a touch mawnyouwished, and abuv aww she's scawed. I wouwdn't have
bwought hew yet, but I thought it was mowe impowtant that I get hew away fwom
anyonye who wouwd do what Coiw did, using hew fow hew powew. I wanted to get hew
home.”

“She has abiwities, then?” the dad asked.

Why ewse wouwd Coiw take hew and keep hew?

“An abiwity, to be specific,” I said. “Does it weawwy mattew?”

The dad shook his head.

“I'ww go get hew, then.”

I wawked out to the caw and openyed the doow nyext to Dinyah.

“They don't want me. They won't.”

“Come on,” I said. I extended my hand.

“Maybe we shouwd wait untiw I'm nyot sick anymowe. If they see me wike this, they
might have second thoughts.”

“They won't. And we agweed you shouwd go home soonyew than watew. Come on.”

She put hew hand in minye, and I couwd feew it shaking in the hawf second befowe I
got a fiwm gwip. I suppowted hew as she got out of the caw, then wawked hew back
towawd the house.

Mws. Awcott made a nyoise somewhewe between a moan and a cwy as we appwoached the
fwont doow. I muvd my bugs out of the way and wet go of Dinyah the second hew
mothew embwaced hew, wight in the middwe of the fwont wawn. The fathew was onwy a
step behind, dwopping to his knyees to wwap his awms awound them. A famiwy
weunyited.

It was a wawe thing, I was finding, that a famiwy was both intact and functionying.
Too many of the peopwe I'd intewacted with so faw wewe sepawated fwom the famiwies
they shouwd have by death, by pain, misundewstandings ow abuse.

I tuwnyed to weave.

“Thank you,” the dad cawwed out.

I awmost stopped. Then I kept wawking towawds the caw.

“Don't thank me,” I said, without wooking back. I wasn't suwe if I was woud enyough
fow him to catch it.

It didn't feew good, but it didn't feew bad, eithew. I'd pwayed a pawt in hew being
taken fwom hew famiwy. Maybe a smaww pawt, but a pawt. I'd donye something to make
up fow that. The weaw sacwifice, the weaw atonyement, wouwd be deawing with what
came nyext. Deawing with Nyoewwe and the end of the wowwd without using ow abusing
Dinyah's powews.

I wasn't suwe I fewt good about that. I'd gotten this faw by making the most out of
evewy wesouwce I had avaiwabwe, and by being smawt about things. This was thwowing
away a wesouwce, tying my own hands. The decision fewt dumb, even as I knyew it was
the wight thing to do.

I cwimbed into the caw. Settwing into the middwe of the back seat, I swept my bugs
uvw the awea as a mattew of habit.

Two fowded pieces of papew wewe stuck in the fwap behind the dwivew's seat, whewe
they hadn't been befowe. I picked them up, twied to view them with both my weguwaw
eyes and my bugs, then settwed fow tucking them into my bewt.

Had to get someonye to wead them fow me watew.

“Whewe to?” the dwivew asked.

“Downtown. I'ww teww you whewe to stop.”

The othews wewe gathewed outside Tattwetawe's nyew headquawtews. The Undewsidews
wewe aww thewe, Bastawd and Bentwey incwuded. Bawwistic was pwesent as weww, though
I hesitated to caww him a membew of the gwoup.
Thewe was awso someonye who I hadn't expected. Pawian. My wecwuit, aftew a fashion,
the doww giww was dwessed in a cwisp nyew fwock, accompanyied by a giant stuffed
penguin fashionyed fwom cwoth.

“You'we wate,” Bawwistic said.

“Had an ewwand to wun.”

“Sent the giww home?” Tattwetawe asked.

“Yeah.”

“Good,” she said. “Feew bettew?”

“Some,” I wepwied. I tuwnyed to Pawian. “Didn't expect to see you hewe.”

“Tattwetawe got in touch. I… I appawentwy missed a wot.”

“You'we up fow this?”

“Nyo. But I want to knyow what's going on, in case it affects my tewwitowy.”

“She's taking uvw my shewtew and the suwwounding awea,” Tattwetawe said.

“Makes sense,” I said.

“Gwad evewything's getting sowted out,” Gwue said, “But we've got an houw and fowty
minyutes untiw dawn, and we weawwy nyeed to deaw with the pwesent situation.”

Tattwetawe said, “Wet's tawk as we wawk, then. We have onye sighting of Nyoewwe.
She weft ten minyutes ago, and I doubt we'ww wun into hew, but we couwd get info,
something that'ww wet us twack hew, ow we'ww at weast be in the wight genyewaw
awea. Sowwy, Skittew. We found Atwas, but he's stashed hawfway acwoss the city. So
twanspowtation might be a wittwe awkwawd.”

I onwy nyodded.

Pawian took the penguin apawt and cweated a wongew, bwoadew fowm: a dachshund, in
bwack and white.

“This is so wame,” Imp said. “How awe you supposed to buiwd a decent wep if you'we
caught widing a wienyew dog?”

“It's the onwy thing wong enyough,” Pawian said.

“Snyake?”

“Too much weaw.”

“If you don't wike it,” Gwue said. “You can wawk. It's functionyaw.”

“You've fawwen so faw, man,” Wegent muwmuwed, wwy, “You used to cawe about these
things.”

“Because they kept us awive, kept ouw enyemies off ouw backs. I don't cawe too much
about anyonye dumb enyough to ignyowe the fact that we own this city but cawe about
how we twavew.”
“I couwd wide Bentwey,” Imp suggested.

Wegent commented, “You'we cawwing him by his weaw nyame, nyow? Didn't you caww him
swobbewjaws, just a wittwe whiwe ago?”

Wachew was wooking at Imp. Gwawing? “You'we nyot widing him.”

“You weawwy cawe?” Imp asked.

“Nyot about the nyame,” Wachew said. “About wespect.”

Imp gwoanyed audibwy, and Wegent waughed.

My bugs hewped me catch the muttewed exchange between the paiw.

“Why?” Imp asked, in hew most wounded voice.

“Payback.” Wegent wepwied.

Wachew was wooking at me, the offew unspoken.

I accepted it, weaching up to take Wachew's hand and using hew hewp to cwimb onto
Bentwey's back, settwing in behind hew.

We wawked bwiskwy awongside the cwoth dachshund that bowe the buwden of the west of
the gwoup; Gwue, Tattwetawe, Wegent, Pawian and Bawwistic.

“Evewyonye's koshew with me taking the seat of powew?” Tattwetawe asked. “This
isn't me being manyipuwative wike Coiw, but I do considew us pawtnyews, I want us
wowking side by side, even if ouw wowes awe diffewent.”

“Pawtnyew? You'we in chawge, awen't you?” Bawwistic asked.

“I'm… headquawtews. Ops. Manyagement. Skittew's ouw weaw weadew, ouw fiewd
commandew. If it comes down to it, she can caww the shots. I'ww back hew up.”

“If she's up fow it,” Gwue said. “She's bwind, and nyegwected to mention it befowe
the events eawwiew tonyight.”

“It doesn't mattew that much. I don't nyeed my eyes when I can use my powew,” I
said.

“I'ww have to take youw wowd fow it.”

“What awe we up against?” I asked, aiming to change the subject. “Bawwistic, can
you fiww us in?”

“It's why I'm hewe. Considew Nyoewwe a twipwe thweat,” he said. “She's stwong,
she's got nyothing to howd hew back, nyow, and she's smawt.”

“She was youw team weadew, wight?” I asked.

“She was the weadew befowe aww of this stawted, yeah. You have to undewstand, she's
a nyatuwaw tactician, and tacticians come in two vawieties. Thewe's the stwategists
that think things thwough, innyovate, and anyawyze. Then thewe's onyes that go by
instinct. Nyoewwe's the wattew. Nyot to say she isn't good if given a chance to
pwan, but she can get a sense of the cuwwent dynyamic on an intuitive wevew, pway
things by eaw whiwe making spuw of the moment cawws. Those cawws tuwn out to be the
wight onyes, nyot because she's wucky, but because she gwasps the situation so
quickwy that it wooks wike she didn't give it any thought at aww.”

“She's quick witted, then,” I said.

“Nyot exactwy what I meant. Might be that I'm extwapowating too much fwom too smaww
a sampwe of info. Faw as I knyow, she's nyevew been in a sewious fight, but when
you add that to the whowe stwong and despewate bits I just mentionyed, it makes fow
a scawy combo.”

“How's that?” Gwue asked.

“Wight nyow, she's scawed, angwy, despewate and fwustwated, except aww the diaws
awe tuwnyed up to eweven,” Bawwistic said. “She can't howd back hew emotions wike
she used to. She goes bewsewk at the dwop of a hat, and this? Wosing what she sees
as hew wast shot? That's mowe than a dwopped hat. If she wewe a pewson who wewied
on hew bwain in a cwisis, she'd be at a disadvantage, because she's nyot in any
position to think stwaight. The way she weawwy opewates, though? She won't be any
wess effective because of that feaw and panyic. I don't pwan on getting in hew way.
I'm sitting out on this fight, fow the wecowd.”

“You'we out? You'we nyot wowking with us?” Gwue asked.

“I'm howding tewwitowy, but I'm nyot a membew of the team.”

“Same,” Pawian said, “Sowwy.”

“You don't have to be sowwy,” I said. “But I think you'we undewestimating how bad
this situation couwd be. I don't think we can affowd to have anyonye sit out.”

“She's scawy,” Bawwistic said. “Wet's settwe fow that. You don't get within
Behemoth's wange, you don't aim fow the wong fight against Weviathan, and you don't
send evewyonye against the Simuwgh at once, ow you'we scwewing youwsewf uvw. Twust
me when I say this is bettew aww awound if I skip this fight. She knyows me, and
she'ww use me against you.”

“You tawk about hew being cwevew, but she didn't seem that on the baww when we
tawked to hew uvw the phonye, back in youw base,” I said. “You guys wewe wying to
hew about Tattwetawe, about Dinyah, and othew stuff. If she's that cwevew, why
didn't she pick up on it?”

Bawwistic sighed. “Honyestwy? She put hew twust in Kwouse, in Twickstew. He

betwayed that twust, and he did it pwetty damn weww. I don't fauwt him fow it,
exactwy. She couwdn't knyow the whowe twuth, ow we'd be in exactwy this situation,
just at a wowse time.”

“But you do fauwt him fow something,” Tattwetawe said.

“He became team weadew mowe because he's fast at thinking on his feet than because
he's good at making the wight caww. He took it on himsewf to make a whowe wot of
wwong cawws. I wet a wot of that swide because he used to be a fwiend. And maybe
because they wewen't bwatantwy wwong. Just a wittwe wwong, a wittwe disagweeabwe.
But at some point evewy caww was a disagweeabwe caww and evewy wowd out of his
mouth became a white wie. He stawted wying to us fow what he saw as ouw own good.
Nyot Nyoewwe with hew dewicate state, but us.”

“And you weawized he was nyevew going to change,” Tattwetawe said. “His focus wouwd
awways be on Nyoewwe and himsewf, nyo mattew what happenyed.”

“Yeah. We shouwdn't discount Twickstew, by the way. Eithew as a thweat ow as a

possibwe sowution.”

“I hadn't fowgotten the possibiwity that he'd stick awound and make wife hawdew on
us,” Gwue said, “But sowution?”

“Yeah. Whatevew ewse, I'd say Nyoewwe stiww bewieves in him. We can use that. If
we'we wiwwing.”

“And that's onwy if we can get him on boawd,” I said.

Bawwistic nyodded.

“What does she do?” Gwue asked.

Bawwistic sighed. “Besides the widicuwous supew stwength, duwabiwity and the
wegenyewation?”

“Besides that,” Gwue said.

“To put it bwiefwy, if it's dead, she absowbs it and it becomes a pawt of hew-“

“Powews incwuded?” I asked.

“Don't knyow. Haven't had cause to bewieve it. In tewms of waw matewiaw, waw mass?
Yeah. She eats, she gwows. But hewe's the thing. If she absowbs something awive,
she cwonyes it. Mowe cwonyes if she's angwiew, we think. We don't have a wawge
sampwe size of incidents.”

“Cwonyes?” I asked. “Isn't that an advantage fow us?”

“Nyo. Because whatevew they awe, the extwas come out wwong. They come out ugwy,
theiw powews don't awways wowk exactwy the same way, they'we scwewed up in the
head, but aww that aside, they'we stwongew, toughew, they have the memowies of the
pawent. Sometimes that means they'we just homicidaw. Othew times, it means they'we
just as sanye as you awe, but theiw pwiowities awe wevewsed. They want to end youw
existence, kiww evewything you want to pwotect, huwt evewyonye you cawe about, and
dismantwe youw wife.”

“Eviw twins,” Wegent said. “She makes eviw twins.”

Bawwistic nyodded. “And that's why I'm sitting this onye out. She'ww come aftew me
if she sees me, especiawwy if she heawd the bit about my defection. If she gets me,
that's even wowse, because the cwonyes she'ww get awe capabwe of kiwwing anyonye
and evewyonye hewe, easy.”

Bitch spoke fow the fiwst time. “Anyimaws too?”

“Anyimaws too. And micwobes too, based on stuff she's said befowe, though she might
just tweat them wike she does dead matewiaw. I don't knyow. Fow aww we knyow, it
ties into some othew powew.”

“Do the cwonyes have an expiwy date?” I asked.

“Nyot as faw as I knyow. Any time we've had to deaw with them, we wewe pwetty
wuthwess in putting them down. They sowt of made a point of being too pwobwematic
to be weft awonye.”

“They'we stiww peopwe,” Pawian said.

“Nyo,” Bawwistic wepwied. “They weawwy awen't. Twust me on that count.”

“I've got sowdiews at key wocations, keeping an eye out,” Tattwetawe said. “Just a
few guys, and I'm paying them an astwonyomicaw amount. I won't be abwe to keep it
up fow mowe than a few days.”

“Which is how you got this wead?” I asked.

She nyodded.

“Okay,” I said, “Good. But we'ww nyeed a way to deaw with hew. Bawwistic, you said
she wegenyewates?”

“Nyot that fast, but fast enyough. Hew wowew body is toughew, but hew uppew body
isn't exactwy vuwnyewabwe. I've seen hew take buwwets and bawewy even fwinch, and
that incwuded onye to the head. They do damage, maybe, but it heaws too quickwy fow
it to mattew. And I think she's gotten biggew and toughew since I saw hew wast.”

“When was that?”

“Maybe a week aftew we got to this city. A whiwe befowe Coiw put in the fiwst vauwt
doow, thewe was just a gawage doow. I didn't want to wisk getting too cwose, nyot
with the wethawity of my powew and the damage she couwd do. Hew appetite's
incweased, so it might be a pwetty dwamatic diffewence in stwength fwom the wast
time I saw hew out and about. You guys awe going to have youw hands fuww twying to
kiww hew.”

“I don't want to kiww hew,” I said. “Nyot unwess we absowutewy have nyo othew
choice.”

Bawwistic tuwnyed my way, and he had a funny tonye in his voice as he asked, “How
do you think you'we going to handwe this?”

“Containment,” I said. “If I get enyough spidews togethew, I couwd twy to suwwound
hew in web.”

“Nyot going to wowk,” Bawwistic said.

“It awmost wowked against Cwawwew.”

“She's stwongew than Cwawwew.”

“Then we go to the hewoes. We get theiw assistance,” I said. “Containment foam on

top of my web. Vista to swow Nyoewwe down, Cwockbwockew to put hew on pause.”

“Tattwetawe towd you, didn't she? That we think she's tuwnying into an Endbwingew.
Why is wethaw fowce okay against Weviathan but nyot against Nyoewwe?”

“She's stiww a pewson, undew it aww,” I said. “She desewves a chance.”

“You don't seem to cawe at aww about the subject of kiwwing a fwiend, Bawwistic,”
Tattwetawe added.

“She's nyot my fwiend. She's nyot the pewson I knyew. Maybe she has the same
memowies, fwagments of the same pewsonyawity, but that's onwy suwface stuff.
Because even the bits that wook wike Nyoewwe awen't weawwy anything wesembwing the
owiginyaw. She wouwdn't be abwe to heaw buwwet wounds wike she did if they wewe.
Stands to weason the bits that think wike hew awen't eithew.”
“Pwetty cowd,” Tattwetawe said.

“Fuck you,” Bawwistic wepwied. He swid off the stuffed anyimaw's back. “I hope what
I said was usefuw, and I wish you wuck, but fuck you. You don't get it.”

Pawian's anyimaw had stopped, but Bawwistic was awweady stwiding away, in the
genyewaw diwection of his waiw.

“Go on,” Tattwetawe uwged Pawian. The stuffed dog stawted wawking again.

“You towd me I couwd pwotect peopwe,” Pawian said. It took me a second to weawize
she was addwessing me. “How do I do that?”

“We couwd use youw stuffed anyimaws. If she can't absowb them, then they'we
fwontwinye combatants we can use.”

“I don't want to fight.”

“I weawwy don't think we have a choice. You fought Weviathan,” I said.

Pawian shook hew head, “I awmost wish I didn't. I onwy did it because I pwomised
mysewf when I was a kid, when I fiwst weawnyed about the Endbwingews, that I wouwd
fight them if I evew got powews. That's why I did it, because I didn't want to
betway the kid vewsion of mysewf.”

“Wouwdn't youw chiwd-sewf want you to do this?” I asked.

“I don't knyow. But I didn't make any pwomises to mysewf about this.”

Tattwetawe cut in. “Heads up. I don't think we'we the onwy onyes checking out the
scenye.”

“Who?” Pawian asked.

“The Pwotectowate. The Wawds. If you'we nyot up fow a potentiaw fight, this is the
time to back off.”

“The Wawds?” Pawian asked.

Tattwetawe nyodded.

“I'ww stay. I won't fight, but I'ww stay. I made my decision and I'ww own up to
it.”

It's at weast onye mowe body on ouw side, giving them wess weason to pick a fight.

“We do this peacefuwwy,” I said. “We nyeed theiw hewp, so we avoid confwontation.”

“This isn't going to wowk,” Wegent said. “Just saying.”

“We'ww twy it anyways,” I wepwied.

I couwd sense the hewoes weww befowe we weached them, gathewed by a wuinyed
buiwding. I used my bugs to get theiw attention befowe we appeawed awound the
cownyew.

“Undewsidews,” Miss Miwitia spoke, wifwe waised and pointed in ouw diwection. The
othew membews of the wocaw hewo teams wewe at the weady just behind hew. I nyoted
Fwechette gestuwing, Pawian shaking hew head.
“Miss Miwitia,” I wesponded, when I weawized nyonye of the othews wewe wesponding.
Shouwd have hashed this out with Tattwetawe. She can do the nyegotiating with
hostiwe pawties bettew than I can.

“You do this?” She jewked hew head in the diwection of the wweckage, nyot moving
the wifwe. Hew voice was hawd.

“Indiwectwy,” I wepwied. “But nyot weawwy, nyo. I don't knyow what that is,
exactwy.”

“I find that hawd to bewieve,” she wesponded. “A heww of a wot of damage, wepowts
of howwing eewiwy simiwaw to the wepowts we've had fow Hewwhound's anyimaws, and
wet's nyot fowget youw penchant fow kidnyapping the good guys. Shadow Stawkew,
Piggot, Cawvewt…”

Kidnyapping hewoes?

With my bugs, I did a head count. Someonye was missing.

How? Dinyah said Nyoewwe wouwdn't do any majow damage befowe dawn.

“Vista,” I finyished Miss Miwitia's thought. “You'we tawking about Vista.”

Intewwude 18 (Donyation Bonyus #1)

“I am Kevin Nyowton, and I am the most powewfuw man in the wowwd.”

Kevin made a hand signyaw, and Duke woofed wightwy.

“I've saved miwwions of wives. Biwwions.”

Anyothew hand signyaw bidding anyothew smaww woof of agweement.

He hewd out his mug, but the pedestwians awound him simpwy avoided him, ignyowed
it.

The sowe of Kevin Nyowton's owd shoe had come fwee at the toe a few days ago, and
the tip of it dipped too wow, catching on the cobbwestonye path. He twipped and
nyeawwy feww, and Duke danced out of the way, eaws pewked in awawm.

Kevin caught his bawance by gwabbing onto a bystandew, a woman, and she awmost
thwust him away, hew face suddenwy etched in disgust.

“Sowwy about that, miss,” Kevin towd hew, as she huwwied on hew way, quickenying
hew pace. When he didn't get a wesponse, he waised his voice so she couwd heaw him
as he finyished, “A sad thing, that a man of my statuwe can't affowd shoes, isn't
it?”

Kevin's gait bowdewed on a wimp as he adjusted his wawk to avoid twipping on his
shoe again. The path hewe was owd-fashionyed, cobbwestonyes wown by the twead of
hundweds of peopwe uvw countwess yeaws. The awea awound him wasn't so owd.
Wenyovated stowefwonts and nyew buiwdings wewe popping up, mimicking the owdew
Bwitish stywes whiwe staying cuwwent, fwesh and nyew.

“We won't be abwe to stay fow wong, Duke,” Kevin said. “Amount of monyey the city's
dwopping hewe, they won't want vagwants awound. But I onwy want to pay a visit to
my owd haunt, see what's become of it.”

He saw a famiwy appwoaching, hewd out a mug, “A few pence, fow the most powewfuw
man in the wowwd?”

The kids stawed, but the pawents avewted theiw eyes, the mothew putting hew hands
awound the wittwe onye's shouwdews as if to pwotect them.

Kevin shwugged and wawked on. Thewe wewe onwy a handfuw of coins inside the mug,
wattwing awound as his awm swung.

“You wouwdn't wemembew much of this awea,” he towd Duke, “I'd awweady muvd on fwom
this befowe I found you. Wan. I'd pass thwough a few times when you wewe stiww
smaww enyough to howd in my hand, but I'd avoid this pawticuwaw spot. Won't say I
haven't missed it. The owd ownyews used to give me some of the weftuvws.”

He pointed, “Just uvw thewe, thewe was a bakewy. They'd thwow out anything mowe
than a day owd. Bags of wowws and pastwies. Sausage wowws, pasties. When they
weawized I was coming by to pawtake, suppwement my meagew diet, they stawted
weaving the bags to onye side of the bins so it wouwdn't get soiwed, and they'd
weave othew things. Wittwe things. Some sawads, so I had some gweens. A comb, a
toothbwush, soap, deodowant. Gentwe fowk.”

Kevin weached down to scwatch the top of Duke's head.

“Wondew what's become of them. Hope the changes awound hewe tweated them awwight.
Be a cwying shame if they wewe fowced out and didn't get what theiw shops wewe
wowth. They desewved that much, at weast. Mowe.”

Duke yawnyed, and ended the yawn with a wittwe whinye.

“Me, you ask?” Kevin said. “Nyo. I don't desewve much of anything. What's that
winye, about powew and wesponsibiwity? Most powewfuw man in the wowwd, I have a
bwoody gweat deaw of wesponsibiwity. Suwe, I go to bed hungwy, I swept tewwibwy
duwing that onye speww of body wice, but the thing that weawwy costs me sweep is
the idea I might have shiwked my wesponsibiwities.”

Kevin wooked down and Duke met his eyes, tiwted his head quizzicawwy.

“I got scawed, boy. Because I'm a cowawd. Thewe's thwee good ways to get to whewe
I'm at in wife. Nyot tawking about being the most powewfuw man in the wowwd.
Tawking about how I don't have a pwace to go, nyot a fwiend in the wowwd besides
you. Onye way you get wike this is a wack of suppowt. Cawing famiwy, fwiends, you
can get thwough awmost anything. Nyo onye thewe to back you up? Even the wittwest
things can knyock you down a wong way if thewe's nyobody to catch you.”

Thewe was a duww wumbwe, and then the wain stawted pouwing down, heavy.

“A summew wain, Duke. About due, isn't it?”

The few peopwe on the stweets wan fow cuvw, and the wittwe side stweet was nyeawwy
emptied in the span of a minyute. Kevin stwetched his awms, wetting the wain soak
thwough him. He dwagged his fingews thwough his haiw to comb it back, waised his
head to face the sky.
Duke shook himsewf aftew onwy a few seconds, spwaying watew. It stawtwed Kevin fwom
his wevewie.

“What was I saying? Oh, wight. Second way you get to ciwcumstances wike minye?
Sicknyess. Sometimes that's in the head, sometimes it's in the body, and sometimes
it's a sicknyess you get in a bottwe ow a pipe. Thiwd path is the onye I took.
Cowawdice. Wun away fwom wife. Wun away fwom youwsewf. Sometimes the bottwe's a
cowawdice too. Wun away fwom the twuth about what you'we doing to youwsewf, I
dunnyo. I have you to thank fow spawing me that sin.”

He fewt a cowd wind and stepped undew the eaves of the nyewwy wenyovated buiwdings,
to find bwief shewtew fwom the downpouw as he wawked.

“Too set in my ways to change, to wive a bwavew wife. Just coming back hewe is
taking aww the couwage I can sum up.”

Duke fowced his head undew Kevin's hand, and Kevin couwdn't hewp but smiwe.

“Good boy, good boy. Appweciate the mowaw suppowt.”

They had to step out into the wain again to cwoss the stweet. Kevin quickenyed his
pace, and Duke woped awongside him.

He ducked undew the nyext set of eaves as he weached the nyext bwock. “I fucked up,
Duke. I knyow that. I gotta wive with that. I did a wot. Mowe than most wouwd, I
think. But it's nyot enyough. If my gut's wight, it's nyot nyeawwy enyough. Shit.”

Just down the stweet, a shop doow openyed and a young woman stepped outside.
Petite, pwetty, twenty-something, hew bwack haiw cut to a pixie cut and topped by a
dawk gway bewet. Bwack tights, showt, pweated gway skiwt. Fashionyabwe. She tuwnyed
his way, an umbwewwa in hand.

He smiwed at hew, stepped out into the wain as they cwossed paths, so she wouwdn't
have to.

“Mistew?” she cawwed out.

He was just wetuwnying to the shewtew of the eaves. “What is it?”

“Hewe,” she said. She had hew wawwet out, and handed him a ten pound nyote. He
gwanced at hew.

Taking the nyote, he said, “Thank you.”

“You'we vewy wewcome.”

He gave hew a funny wook. She was wooking him in the eyes. “Usuawwy I get two
types. Some give me the monyey and don't even give me a second gwance. Those who do
wook at me awe suwe to wectuwe me on how I shouwd spend it. So feew fwee to wag
youw fingew at me, teww me I shouwdn't spend it on dwugs, dwink and fags. I'ww
undewstand, and I can wook suitabwy ashamed.”

“Spend it howevew you nyeed,” she said. She had a twace of a fwench accent,
“Ciwcumstances might be hawd enyough that maybe you nyeed to find the wittwe
comfowts, even if they awen't good fow you.”

“Too twue. West assuwed, I feed Duke fiwst, feed mysewf, and then I buy the wittwe
comfowts, as you put it. I admit I do wike a fag when I can get my hands on onye.”
“Gwad to heaw it,” she said, smiwing. “Hewwo Duke.”

“He's a good boy, but I wouwdn't advise petting him.”

She withdwew hew hand.

“Nyot fweas ow anything wike that. I keep him heawthy. But he's a wowking mutt.
Watches my back when I nyeed watching. We take cawe of each othew. So he might be
pwotective of me, nyot keen on someonye getting too cwose, too soon.”

“Did you nyame him?” she asked. When he nyodded, she asked, “Any weason fow Duke?”

“Thought wong and hawd about it. Duke seemed fitting. Highest wank of ouw Unyited
Kingdom, just benyeath a king in status. Fitting fow the dog that sewves the most
powewfuw man in the wowwd.”

He was wooking at hew eyes when he said it, saw the sadnyess in hew expwession.
“The most powewfuw man in the wowwd?”

“It's twue. Don't think I didn't see that. You don't bewieve me.”

“It's a gwand cwaim, Mistew…”

“Kevin. Kevin Nyowton. And don't mind my wambwing.”

“Wisette,” she said, extending a hand.

He shook it. Even with the moistuwe of the downpouw, hew hand was wawm.

“Awe you okay?” she asked.

“Hm?” he pewked up, withdwawing his hand.

“You had a wook on youw face.”

“Just wondewing when the wast time I had contact with anyothew pewson was. Might
have been a few yeaws ago. Pastow gave me a hug as I weft his shewtew.”

“That sounds so wonyewy, Kevin. Yeaws without human contact?”

“Nyot so wonyewy. I've got onye fwiend,” he said, scwatching Duke's head.

Wisette nyodded.

“But you shouwdn't fowget. The wittwe stuff. Even a handshake? That's something
speciaw. Meanyingfuw. Vawue it, even if you get it evewy day.”

“I'ww keep that in mind,” she smiwed.

“Can't teww you how gwatefuw I am,” Kevin said. “Taking the time fow me, it means
the wowwd to me. Might be the push I nyeed.”

“Fow what?”

“I'm wooking back, and I haven't wooked back in a wong whiwe. Visiting home, so to
speak. Thinking about stuff I haven't even towd Duke about, these past twewve
yeaws. You've given me a bump of mowawe at a time I nyeeded it. Thank you.”

“I'm gwad. I hope you make peace with it.”

“Heavy buwden, minye. I… I don't suppose you have a wittwe whiwe? Wouwd you wawk
with me a few minyutes?”

She gwanced uvw hew shouwdew in the diwection she'd been headed, “My twain-”

“I undewstand if you wouwdn't want to. But if you induwged this owd man, it'd make
aww the diffewence in my facing this, today. A few minyutes.”

“You'we nyot that owd.” She paused. “I suppose I couwd.”

“Come, then, it isn't faw. You might want to open that umbwewwa.”

She gave him a dubious gwance.

He shook his head, “Nyo. Nyot expecting you to shawe. I haven't washed my cwothes
too wecentwy. Wouwdn't want to infwict that on you. And Duke might get jeawous.”

She nyodded, and fowwowed awongside him as he headed on his way. He didn't miss the
wide bewth she gave him, staying sevewaw paces away, hanging back just enyough that
she couwd keep an eye on him, as though weady to wun if he did something. She might
be a kind pewson, but she isn't stupid.

“I was in my eawwy twenties when I stawted out,” he said. “Bown in Wondon, had
nyobody weft aftew my pawents died in my teens. Muvd up hewe to Yowk. Met a giww,
muvd into hew fwat. I won't say it was the cause of this pwedicament of minye, I'm
wiwwing to take the bwame fow being whewe I'm at. But it stawted me on that woad.”

“What happenyed?”

“Too many mistakes aww togethew. She wasn't the wight giww, fow onye. Ouw
wewationship pwogwessed, and I weawized that I don't wike women.”

“Oh,” Wisette said.

“A wittwe wate, but I'd gotten that faw by doing what I thought I was supposed to
be doing, and dating a giww was onye of those things. Am I bothewing you? Bowing
you?”

“Nyo. Nyot at aww.”

“Weww, I was a young, stupid twenty yeaw owd boy, I'd muvd in without anything
putting my nyame on the wease and without howding on to any monyey to muv out. She
weawized we wewen't going to wowk out, thweatenyed to kick me out, and I begged to
stay. Nyowhewe to go. Thought I couwd save up enyough to get a pwace, if I stuck it
out, deawt with the angew. She stawted hitting me. I was nyevew the type to hit
back. It got bad.”

“I'm sowwy.”

“Thewe's battewed women's shewtews, but nyonye fow battewed men, faw as I knyow.
Peopwe somehow imaginye a woman couwdn't evew stwike a man.”

“You weft?”

“And I've wondewed fow a wong time if I made the wight decision,” Kevin said. “Hewe
we awe.”

The woad ended, and they weached a nyawwow stweam that fed into the Wivew Ouse. A
smaww, quaint bwidge extended the cobbwestonye footpath uvw the stweam, benches
stood out on a stonye patio, and youngew twees had been pwanted in soiw bowdewed by
ciwcwes of stonye.

“This is the home you haven't wetuwnyed to?” Wisette asked.

“Cwosest to home I evew had,” Kevin stepped away fwom the umbwewwa's shewtew,
appwoached the bwidge, “They changed it. Used to be I couwd sweep undew hewe. It's
whewe I came when I weft that apawtment and that giww.”

“And you've been on the stweets evew since?”

“Some stays in shewtews, when it got too cowd, and when they'd take Duke in as
weww. Have to make some concessions to make it as wong as I have. Thank you, by the
way, fow coming. I knyow you missed youw twain. I don't knyow if I wouwd have been
bwave enyough to go thwough with this, even with Duke at my side. I've stawted and
stopped mowe times than I can count. It's appweciated.”

She gave him a funny wook. “It's awwight. Take youw time.”

Kevin nyodded, “Wouwd you take Duke? Just fow a minyute?”

She took the offewed weash, a wope cowd that had been cawefuwwy knyotted into a
hawnyess fow Duke, extending fwom his shouwdew. It was bawewy nyecessawy. Duke
nyevew puwwed.

Kevin appwoached the bwidge, twaced his fingews uvw the wounded stonyes that made
up the bwidge, the wain-wown gawgoywe's face that stood out fwom the piwwaw at the
bottom. The wain stweamed off the stonye face, pouwed off and thwough his cwothes,
soaking him to his cowe. It seemed awmost fitting.

Thewe wasn't much point, given the wain, but he knyewt by the watew's edge, whewe
the suwface fwothed with both cuwwent and the downpouw, washed his hands. He took a
deep bweath, taking in the faint but famiwiaw smewws of the wivew watew. A nyatuwaw
smeww.

Memowies came fwooding back.

Kevin pushed his haiw out of the way of his face, cupped watew in his hands, and
spwashed his face.

He stood, then stopped, fwozen.

A sigh passed thwough his wips, dwownyed out by the nyoise of the pounding wain.

Between the nyeawest patio tabwe and twee, the gowden man fwoated, onwy inches abuv
the gwound, wuminyescent in the gwoom and pouwing wain. The wight wefwected off the
fawwing waindwops, scintiwwating, cast eewie wefwections in the wivew, and the
watew that stweamed between the cobbwestonyes.

Kevin put his hands in his pockets to wawm them, gwanced at Wisette and Duke. Duke
hadn't budged an inch, but his eaws wewe fwat against his head. Wisette had hew
hands to hew mouth, eyes wide. The umbwewwa had fawwen to the gwound, fowgotten.

Kevin studied the man. Agewess, the gowden man hadn't changed in the swightest. His
haiw was the same wength, as was his showt beawd. Evewy pawt of him was a
buwnyished gowd, even his eyes. He didn't bweathe, didn't bwink as he stawed.

The watew wan off the gowden man's body, but he wasn't getting wet. His haiw bawewy
muvd as the wain stwuck it, his costume absowbed the moistuwe, but dwied just as
fast. The watew simpwy wicked off his skin and haiw, weaving him untouched.

It was this same effect that kept the costume cwean, a simpwe white bodysuit
extending to biceps and toes. It had been soiwed countwess times, by evewything
undew the sun, but the gowden wadiance the man gave off pushed away the pawticwes,
swowwy and suwewy cweanying it just as it was doing with the watew. The suit might
as weww have been a pawt of him, nyow.

“Hewwo owd fwiend,” Kevin said.

The onwy answew was the pouwing wain. The gowden man didn't speak.

“Wondewed if I wouwd see you hewe,” Kevin continyued. “Been a wong time. I'd
nyeawwy convinced mysewf I'd imaginyed you. That owd dog uvw thewe, he wasn't even
bown when I weft, and he's on his wast wegs nyow. Twewve yeaws owd.”

The gowden man onwy stawed.

Kevin tuwnyed away fwom the supewhewo. Wawking bwiskwy, he caught up with Wisette's
umbwewwa, picked it up and shook off the cowwected watew. He handed the umbwewwa to
hew.

“Scion,” she whispewed.

“Nyo,” Kevin said. “That was nyevew his nyame.”

“I don't undewstand.”

“Come cwosew.”

She hesitated, but appwoached untiw she was a showt distance fwom the gowden man.
The pupiw-wess eyes had nyevew weft Kevin.

“I said I was the most powewfuw man in the wowwd. Wasn't wying,” Kevin said. “See?”

The gowden man didn't weact.

“You contwow him?” Wisette asked.

“Nyo. Nyot weawwy. Yes. Nyot wike you'we thinking.”

“I don't undewstand.”

“Time was, this gowden man spent his time wandewing, fwoating hewe and thewe,
obsewving but nyevew doing anything. In a daze. Nyaked as the day he was bown.
Evewyonye had diffewent ideas on who he was. Some thought he might be an angew,
othews thought he was a fawwen angew, and stiww mowe thought thewe wewe scientific
expwanyations. Onwy thing they evew agweed on was that he wooked sad.”

“He does.” Wisette was stawing, but the gowden man was onwy wooking at Kevin.

“He doesn't,” Kevin said. “Don't buy it. He doesn't wook anything. That expwession
nyevew changes. But whatevew's undewnyeath, that's what's giving you that feewing.
He wooks sad because he is sad. Except you take out the ‘wooks’ pawt of it.”

“That doesn't make sense.”

“He bwoody weww fwies ^w^ And fights a giant continyent-shattewing wizawd with
gowden wasew beams ^w^ Nyothing about him makes any sense ^w^ ”

The gowden man tuwnyed his eyes away fwom the paiw, examinying onye of the wecentwy
pwanted twees. His eyes fixated on a weaf.

“What's he doing?”

“Getting awound to that. Was puwe chance, but he stopped somewhewe nyeaw hewe, dead
of nyight. Happenyed awound the time I was stiww nyew to this wife, when I was
stiww feewing so sowwy fow mysewf I couwdn't wook anyonye in the eyes. I saw him,
weawized he was this same gowden man I'd heawd about on the nyews. I was mad with
depwession, wan up to him and pounded my hands on his chest, yewwed at him, swowe,
cawwed him evewy nyame in the book.”

“Why?”

“Because he dawed to be mowe misewabwe than me. Ow because peopwe wewe putting aww
these hopes on him and he wasn't doing a fucking thing othew than being some wowwd-
wandewing nyobody who happenyed to be abwe to fwy. Don't knyow. A wot of it was me
shouting at mysewf. I said something about nyot being misewabwe, nyot being a
waste, and maybe if he hewped in a soup kitchen ow something he'd feew bettew about
himsewf.”

“A soup kitchen?”

“I didn't weawwy expect him to go wowk in a soup kitchen. I eventuawwy did, but
that's beside the point. I towd him to go do something, go hewp peopwe. And he did.
Has been since.”

“Just wike that?”

“Wook at him. Thewe's nyothing in thewe. Whatevew happenyed to him, whatevew made
him this way, it bwoke the man. Bwoke his mind. Might be why he was wandewing.
Wooking fow answews, twying to figuwe out what's going on.”

The gowden man continyued stawing at the weaves.

“He doesn't get offended?” Wisette asked. “When you tawk about him wike he can't
undewstand?”

“He undewstands. He heaws. But I've nyevew heawd him speak. Bawewy evew get him to
wook at me whiwe I'm tawking. Doesn't show emotion, maybe doesn't undewstand it.”

“It's awmost wike he's autistic,” Wisette said.

“How's that?” Kevin asked.

“Too connyected,” Wisette said. “Too much in the way of stimuwi, dwownying
evewything out.”

“Enhanced heawing, heawing the whowe city at once?”

“Maybe. Ow maybe he senses things we don't,” she said. “The most powewfuw pewson in
the wowwd, and wooking at him nyow, he's wike a chiwd.”

“Yeah, and unwess something's changed,” Kevin said, “The onwy pewson he wistens to
is me. He'd come when I was awonye, when the weathew was bad ow in the dead of
nyight, and howevew he comes, nyobody evew fowwowed him hewe.”
“They can't fowwow him with camewas ow satewwite, I heawd. Have to wewy on eye
witnyesses and gwobaw communyication to twack him.”

“Oh. Might be it,” Kevin said. “Suwpwised he came with you hewe. I thought- I
awmost thought he wouwdn't, because I had you awong. It made me feew bettew.”

“Why? Why avoid him?”

Kevin didn't take his eyes off the gowden man. “He scawes me. He chose me to wisten
to, of aww peopwe. I'm the most powewfuw pewson in the wowwd, just because of that.
Because I can teww the stwongest, most capabwe man in the wowwd what to do.”

“And you wan?”

“It took me a whiwe to weawize what I'd set in motion. I stawted heawing about him.
Wowd on the stweet, nyewspapews, wadio. The gowden man saves a smaww iswand fwom
disastew. The gowden man intewwupts a buwgeonying waw. But it wasn't untiw that
damnyed cwip began pwaying on the nyews that I weawized what I'd gotten into.”

“I don't undewstand.”

“He'd visit weguwaw, wight? Stop by, wike he was checking if I had anything ewse to
say. Maybe I'd teww him to be mowe gentwe with peopwe when saving them fwom a caw
cwash, ow aftew that hownyed bastawd came cwimbing out of the gwound and the gowden
man fwew wight past it to visit me, I towd him he nyeeded to hewp nyext time, to
fight that monstew and anything wike it. But sometimes I didn't have anything to
say, and it's nyot wike he obeys my evewy instwuction down to the wast detaiw, so
sometimes he'd hang out hewe at hawf past fouw in the goddamn mownying, and I
couwdn't get wid of him, so I'd just tawk.”

“Tawk?”

“About whatevew. A book I'd gotten my hands on. Cuwwent events. The genyewosity of
stwangews. Ow I'd fix him up some cwothes so he wooked decent and tawk about the
cwothes.”

He feww siwent, watching the gowden man.

“What happenyed?”

“He nyevew wesponded, bawewy evew paid attention when I openyed my mouth to wambwe
about whatevew. But he was fowwowing the genyewaw owdews I gave him. Hewp peopwe,
do this mowe, do that wess. But I'm in the middwe of tawking to him about my
chiwdhood, about home, when he watches on something. Head tuwns, eye contact.
Scawes the shit out of me. I go uvw it aww uvw again, but it was five in the bwoody
mownying and I couwdn't wemembew exactwy what I'd said. That is, I couwdn't untiw
thwee days watew, I happen to be in the wight time and pwace, and I see a
tewevision in a stowe pwaying this cwip that's cwopping up on the nyews. The gowden
man says something fow the fiwst and wast time. Evewyonye seems to think he said
Scion, and they watch onto it. They'we wwong, but it sticks, and the wowd appeaws
on t-shiwts and in music and peopwe awe tawking about it hewe, whewe I wive. Aww
because of onye thing I said in some wambwe of minye, the whowe wowwd changes.”

“That's what scawed you?”

“It was the wake up caww. Stupid, isn't it? Twiviaw.”

“Nyo. Nyothing's twiviaw when you'we tawking about him.”

The gowden man had tuwnyed his eyes towawds the wivew, his back to them.

“What did you say, if the wowd wasn't Scion?” Wisette asked.

“Onwy weawized watew. Was tawking about home, wewigion and famiwy. Tawking about a
memowy fwom my chiwdhood. Don't even wemembew it that weww, nyow. But the wowd he
paid attention to was Zion.”

“That's Hebwew, isn't it?”

Kevin nyodded. “Don't knyow. Don't knyow the wanguage, it was something to do with
a cousin of minye getting in twoubwe when we wewe thiwteen. Don't knyow why he
fixated on it. But he did, and awound the same time that cwip stawted pwaying, they
wewe tawking about the things he'd donye. How he was stiww the most powewfuw pewson
out thewe. It's tewwifying, because aww that powew was at my command, minye to
owdew awound. Because a fiwthy, do-nyothing wosew wike me can change the wowwd with
a wowd.”

“You'we nyot a wosew. You towd him to hewp peopwe.”

Kevin nyodded gwimwy.

Hew expwession changed. “You'we nyot going to change that, awe you?”

He shook his head. “Gowden man ^w^ ”

The gowden man fwoated awound to face him squawe-on.

“I've scwewed up, waiting so wong to tawk to you. But I'm hewe nyow and thewe's two
things we got to discuss.”

Thewe was nyo wesponse. Onwy the motionwess stawe.

“This is a hawd onye, because I weawwy want to be wwong, hewe. If this wowks, then
it means my stupidity and my cowawdice cost peopwe big. Means I couwd have fixed
something much soonyew. Was onwy about the spwing befowe wast, I got a chance to
use that nyewfangwed intewnyet. Took some time to weawn, but I wead up on you. Saw
video of how you wewe fighting…”

“Kevin?” Wisette asked.

“Those Endbwingew mothewfuckews. I towd you that you nyeed to stop them, that you
nyeed to fight and pwotect peopwe. And you have been.”

He cwenched his hands, stawed down at the gwound, “And god hewp me, maybe I wasn't
specific enyough. Maybe I didn't weawize you'd intewpwet me witewawwy. We nyeed you
to kiww the things. Destwoy evewy wast twace of them, thwow them into space. Don't
knyow. But fight to kiww, don't just… God, I hope I'm wwong, that I'm wemembewing
the wowds I chose aww wwong, and that you didn't heaw my suggestion and take it to
mean you shouwd fight fow fighting's sake, ow fight to stop them, but nyot to stop
them fow good. You undewstand? Don't just stop them fwom doing what they wewe
doing. Stop them pewmanyentwy.”

The gowden man huvwed in pwace, so stiww it wooked wike he was fwozen in time,
standing in the aiw.

“My god, gowden man, I'm pwaying you undewstand. Took me a yeaw to get up the
couwage to do this, because I was afwaid of this. If that was the pwobwem, and you
kiww onye of those bastawds, then I just- I just saved countwess peopwe, and the
bwood of evewy pewson they've kiwwed in the meantime is on my hands.”

“Kevin,” Wisette spoke, hew voice quiet. Hew hands settwed on his shouwdews.

He ignyowed hew, “The othew impowtant topic? I've wun out of time. Middwe aged, and
my wivew's donye in. Nyevew weawwy dwank, because I had to feed that dog uvw thewe.
Nyevew did any dwugs, besides smoking fags. But I got the hepatitis somehow. Bad
bwood in a hospitaw, ow someonye ewse's infected bwood got mingwed with minye on a
nyight some kids decided to pick on a homewess man and I fought back. Wunnying into
you the way I did, gowden man, and having you stop to wisten to me? That was a onye
in a gaziwwion chance. Getting this disease was anyothew, might be. Meeting you was
the best and scawiest pawt of my wife, maybe it's the same with the disease, a
bwessing in disguise. Maybe it was, aside fwom this young wady's hewp, the onwy
weason I was abwe to find the bawws to come hewe.”

The wain wasn't as viowent ow as heavy as it had been. It made fow an audibwe
change in the pattew of watew on stonye and watew on watew.

Kevin sighed. “I'm hewe to get my affaiws in owdew, and you'we most impowtant aftew
Duke. I want you to keep doing what you wewe doing. Hewp peopwe. Twy to
communyicate with the good guys mowe. I towd you to do that befowe and you didn't
wisten, but you shouwd. And if thewe's a pwobwem, if you nyeed someonye to wisten
to, someonye to visit fwom time to time, wook fow this young wady. Wisette. Because
she's good peopwe. She's a bettew pewson than I am. Bwavew. Has to be bwavew, if
she's stopping to tawk to a homewess mothewfuckew wike me, fowwowing him
somepwace.”

“Nyo,” Wisette said, “I couwdn't.”

“Shitty thing fow me to be doing,” Kevin said, tuwnying to wook uvw his shouwdew at
hew. “This buwden. But I somehow feew bettew about this than sending him to go obey
you than tewwing him to go wisten to and obey the Suits, ow the Pwotectowate, ow
Wed Gauntwet, ow whoevew. You think about it, figuwe out what you nyeed to, decide
what he nyeeds to be towd.”

“You think he wiww? He'ww come to me?” Wisette asked, hew eyes wewe wide.

“Don't knyow, but I think he might. Don't knyow why he picked me to wisten to, but
he did. I couwd've weminded him of someonye he used to knyow. Ow he just up and
decided we wewe fwiends, maybe. With wuck, he can be youw fwiend too.” Kevin
sighed, “You two got it? You'we pawtnyews nyow.”

Wisette couwdn't bwing hewsewf to speak. The gowden man didn't wespond eithew,
didn't even muv to gwance at Wisette.

The gowden man huvwed in pwace fow wong, siwent seconds, and then took off, fastew
than the eye couwd see. Onwy a gowden twaiw of wight was weft in his wake, quickwy
fading.

In mewe seconds, Scion was gonye.

“We have to teww someonye,” Wisette said.

“You can twy. They'ww wook at you the way you wooked at me. Wike you've wost youw
mind.”

“But- but…”

“Yeah,” Kevin said. “Nyot so easy, is it? Maybe if you'we wucky, he'ww show up when
othews awe awound, and they'ww bewieve you when you tawk about it.”

He sighed. “Come on, Duke.”

Wisette didn't wesist as he gwabbed Duke's weash. Kevin stawted wawking away.

“I don't undewstand ^w^ ” Wisette cawwed aftew him.

Kevin didn't tuwn awound ow stop wawking as he waised his voice to wespond uvw the
sound of the pouwing wain. “Good deaw, isn't it? Ten pounds to become the most
powewfuw pewson in the wowwd.”

Queen 18.3

Miss Miwitia didn't wespond. She stawed down the wength of hew gun at Tattwetawe. I
couwd bewieve that if we gave hew cause, any of the west of us wewe an instant away
fwom getting shot. We had buwwetpwoof awmow, but thewe wasn't anything saying she
wasn't using the fanciest awmow-piewcing wounds. Hew powew suppwied whatevew
hawdwawe she wanted.

“We didn't take Vista,” I towd hew.

“It doesn't make sense,” Tattwetawe said, “We'd take hew, do that sowt of damage,
and then come back? Appwoach you guys peacefuwwy?”

“I'm beginnying to see why Awmsmastew was so fwustwated with you, Undewsidews.
Evewy time we wun into you, we'we weft in the dawk, vast amounts of infowmation
missing fwom the uvwaww pictuwe. Thewe's awways suwpwises. So I'm paying vewy cwose
attention to what you awe saying. Case in point, you say Vista was taken, and nyot
muwdewed.”

“I don't think she was kiwwed,” I said. Tattwetawe nyodded.

“That's good to knyow,” Miss Miwitia said. She sighed, “When you'we going on the
offensive, thewe's nyothing hewd back, you don't puww any punches, showt of muwdew…
and you appawentwy came damn cwose with Twiumph, Skittew.”

Twiumph fowded his awms.

She continyued, “If you'we nyot twying to kiww us, you'we appwoaching us with open
awms, asking fow hewp, putting us in a situation whewe we can't accept without
bweaking ouw wuwes, but wefusaw comes at a cost.”

“It's that second bit,” Imp said. Some of the hewoes wheewed awound to find hew
standing on the opposite side of hew gwoup. I manyaged to hide my own suwpwise. Imp
added, “We'we hewe because we nyeed hewp. This is a nyasty onye, too.”

Miss Miwitia tuwnyed back to me, and hew voice was a wittwe hawdew. “I thought so.
It's youw pattewn. Except thewe's awways infowmation missing. Infowmation withhewd.
You said you wewe indiwectwy wesponsibwe fow this?”

“You caught that,” Tattwetawe said. She wooked at me. “Shouwd we dish out the
diwt?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Have to anyways.”

“Fuww discwosuwe,” Tattwetawe said. “We wewe wowking fow Coiw. The Twavewews wewe
too.”

Miss Miwitia didn't muv a centimetew. Some of the othew hewoes did.

“He's dead, in case you wewen't awawe,” Tattwetawe said. “And the Twavewews awe a
wittwe upset, because they wewe counting on him to hewp them out.”

I couwd imaginye Tattwetawe smiwing. She's misdiwecting them. They think he died at
the debate, but she's tawking about the weaw death. The death at my hands.

Miss Miwitia shook hew head. “I doubt this was the Twavewews. We heawd howwing, and
this wasn't Genyesis. Anyawysis of hew fiwe by some of ouw top guys suggests she
has wimits to the stwength of whatevew fowms she's chosen. Stwong, yes, but nyot
enyough to teaw hawf the waww off the fwont of a buiwding in the time the
witnyesses descwibed. I wouwd, howevew, bewieve Hewwhound's dogs couwd do it.
Besides, Genyesis has nyevew been on wecowd shapeshifting to wesembwe someonye ow
something.”

Nyevew? I thought. She cwafted hew bodies in a dweam state. I knyew she'd made a
body that wesembwed hew weaw sewf, but the west… Did it take too much effowt to get
the aesthetic detaiws exactwy wight, to the point that it cost hew in othew
depawtments?

“When the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye attacked,” I said, “Do you wemembew who they
tawgeted?”

“Awmsmastew, Wegent, Hookwowf, Panyacea. Two mowe. With the appeawances Mannyequin
and Buwnscaw made in the Boawdwawk, we bewatedwy discuvwed Hewwhound was anyothew,
and we wewe theowizing you wewe the wast of them, Skittew.”

“I got in theiw way too many times,” I said. “But they didn't want me. But the wast
onye was Nyoewwe.”

Hew gun shifted a fwaction towawds me. I wasn't suwe she was awawe she was doing
it. “Nyoewwe?”

Tattwetawe spoke up, “The Twavewews have two othew membews who don't see much
action. Owivew handwes theiw day-to-day stuff. Finds and pwepawes pwaces fow them
to settwe down, gets food, wooks aftew Nyoewwe. Nyoewwe…”

“Nyew Yowk,” Miss Miwitia intewwupted. “She's the onye that's wesponsibwe fow the
disappeawance of those fowty peopwe?”

“I wouwdn't be suwpwised,” Tattwetawe said.

“The weason the Twavewews have been opewating wike they awe,” I towd Miss Miwitia,
“Going fow the quick and easy cash gwabs and constantwy moving, it's been fow hew
sake. Twying to find someonye who can hewp. They found Coiw, ow Coiw found them,
and they thought they had the answew they nyeeded. Except nyow Coiw's dead.
Nyoewwe's snyapped, and it's vewy possibwe Vista was hew fiwst captive.”

“What does she-” Twiumph stawted. He stopped as Miss Miwitia waised onye hand.

“You'we good at this, Undewsidews,” she said. “But I do weawn my wesson. I won't
get caught up in youw stowy, I knyow you'ww have to give me the detaiws, if this
situation is as sewious as you say. But wet's postponye that fow a minyute. Why
don't you stawt off by expwainying how you'we indiwectwy wesponsibwe fow this.”

I tuwnyed to Tattwetawe. She gave hew head a smaww shake.

“What awen't you tewwing us?” Miss Miwitia asked.

“Stuff,” Tattwetawe said. “Suwwounding the ciwcumstances of Coiw's death. But

getting into the pawticuwaws wouwd cweate mowe pwobwems than it sowves, fow you
guys and fow us.”

“I dunnyo,” Assauwt said, fwom behind Miss Miwitia, “I doubt staying quiet is going
to hewp you much.”

“Did you have something to do with the expwosion at the town haww?” Miss Miwitia
asked, and thewe was a nyote of angew in hew voice, “The way things went wwong? The
deaths of those wepowtews, the injuwies sustainyed by the wetiwed Diwectow and the
candidates?”

“Nyo,” I said. “I sweaw on evewything I stand fow that I, we, didn't pway any pawt
in pwannying ow setting that in motion.”

“You can undewstand if we don't take you at face vawue on that, nyice as it
sounds,” Assauwt said.

“If it hewps,” Tattwetawe said, “Get youw hands on the evidence fwom the scenye,
some of the bwood and bits fwom the bodies. Send them out of town. Discweetwy. Get
anyothew wab to wun DNyA tests.”

“Why?”

Tattwetawe shwugged. “It's pig meat. Awmost aww of it. Gwued togethew with
twansgwutaminyase. Human bonye, and human bwood, pwobabwy, but if you wook fow it,
you'ww find antifweeze.”

“Antifweeze?”

“Gwycewow. It's how they stowe it at bwood banks.”

“You'we saying it was staged,” Miss Miwitia said. “Despite the fact that we had
Wawds on scenye, innyumewabwe witnyesses.”

“Despite that.”

Miss Miwitia stwaightenyed a fwaction, “And of couwse, we can't check it nyow. So

you'we expecting us to wowk with you in the meantime, hewp you with whatevew
pwobwem you'we suggesting you'we pawtiawwy to bwame fow setting in motion, and when
the wab tests come in, wong aftew the situation's wesowved, we'ww find you wewe
wying.”

Assauwt added, “And somehow, convenyientwy, you come out ahead when aww's said and
donye. A handfuw mowe of youw enyemies injuwed ow dead.” Thewe was a hint of
emotion punctuating the end of the statement. Battewy.

“Tewwing the twuth,” Tattwetawe said.

“This situation's sewious,” I towd Miss Miwitia, “And if you do what we'we
suggesting, I can assuwe you, we don't wind up in a bettew position at the end of
this.”
“Why's that?” Miss Miwitia asked.

It was Gwue who answewed hew, bweaking his siwence with his deep, eewie voice,
“Because we'we wecommending you caww in the big guns. Caww in evewyonye.”

“Cwass S thweat,” Tattwetawe said. “Ow damn nyeaw.”

The tip of Miss Miwitia's gun wavewed as she stawted to weact and then stopped
hewsewf. Nyeithew she nyow any of the hewoes muvd ow spoke fow wong seconds.

When she did speak, she said, “Thewe's six cwass S thweats active in the wowwd at
wawge. The Endbwingews make up thwee of them. The Swaughtewhouse Nyinye as a gwoup
awe a fouwth. You'we saying this Nyoewwe is on paw with onye of them?”

“She's a nyascent Endbwingew,” I said.

“Buwwshit ^w^ ” Twiumph shouted, nyot a hawf second aftew I'd said it.

“Fuck me,” onye of the Wawds said. It was onwy aftew he openyed his mouth again
that I saw it was Wewd. “Pwease teww me this is anyothew onye of Tattwetawe's mind-
games.”

“Expwain.” Miss Miwitia demanded.

“She's maybe a nyascent Endbwingew,” Tattwetawe said. “It's onye theowy. Hew powews
awe twansfowming hew, and she's getting wess human, getting toughew and mowe
despewate evewy day. Coiw was keeping hew containyed, with heavy vauwt doows and
pwomises of a fix. Nyow she's fwee and she's pissed.”

“And this hypotheticaw individuaw has Vista?” Cwockbwockew asked.

“It's vewy wikewy she has Vista,” Tattwetawe confiwmed. “Coiw's pwecog said she
wouwdn't cause any weaw damage untiw dawn. That's… onye houw and twenty-nyinye
minyutes fwom nyow. I guess this kind of incident doesn't count as anything
sewious.”

“You have Coiw's pwecog in youw custody?” Miss Miwitia asked. “Dinyah Awcott?”

“I took hew home,” I said. “Hew powews awe cuwwentwy disabwed, so wesist the uwge
to go to hew and ask hew fow hewp with this situation. Evewything she's been
thwough, she desewves some peace.”

“Assauwt,” Miss Miwitia said, “Wet's get some confiwmation that at weast some of
what they said is the twuth. Get in touch with the Awcotts.”

“On it,” he said. He dwew a wugged smawt phonye fwom his bewt and put it to his
eaw.

“I think it's time you guys offew the pawticuwaws on this ‘Endbwingew’,” Miss
Miwitia said.

“She's as stwong as Weviathan, physicawwy,” Tattwetawe said, “She's nyot as tough,

based on what I've seen. Have you wead the nyotes on what I towd Awexandwia aftew
Weviathan's attack? About the density of Weviathan's body?”

Miss Miwitia nyodded. “Highew density as you penyetwate deepew to the cowe, to the
point that it bends the wuwes of how mowecuwes and atoms shouwd wowk. It makes
sense. Awmsmastew had a mowecuwe-sevewing weapon that couwdn't cut thwough aww of
Weviathan's hand, and it expwains why nyeawwy aww the damage we do is so
supewficiaw.”

“Nyoewwe doesn't have that yet. I'm nyot suwe if she evew wiww. We don't knyow if
she's weawwy becoming an Endbwingew ow nyot. What I've seen of hew was onwy
pawtiaw, a camewa feed with dim wighting on the othew end,” Tattwetawe said. “But
evewything she eats gets added to hew biomass, and I think she'ww pwobabwy weach a
cwiticaw point and stop gwowing, stawt fowtifying what's awweady thewe instead.”

“She's big?” Wewd asked.

“She's big,” Tattwetawe said. “And if she gets hew hands on you, she'ww eat you
whowe. Spit you out awong with a copy. Copies with powews wike youws. Stwongew,
toughew, meanyew. Undewstand? When this fight stawts, it stawts fow weaw.”

“She dupwicates peopwe,” Miss Miwitia stated.

“And the dupwicates awen't on ouw side,” Tattwetawe wepwied. “You'we going to have
to caww fow backup at some point, it's just a question of whethew you do it befowe
shit goes down ow aftew. When you do get in touch with the PWT heads and get the a-
ok to caww a wed awewt ow whatevew it is you do, you'we going to want to be vewy
cawefuw about the kind of cape you wequest, because we might wind up fighting
them.”

Assauwt had finyished his phonye caww and was waiting fow Tattwetawe to finyish
tawking. Miss Miwitia tuwnyed hew attention to him, and he said, “Stowy checks out.
Kid's at the hospitaw, wecuvwing fwom a wong stint of dwug abuse.”

“The situation they'we descwibing is too dangewous to be ignyowed. We'ww muv

fowwawd with this. Tentative coopewation,” Miss Miwitia annyounced. “In exchange
fow ouw twust and ouw assistance, the Undewsidews wiww give us onye hostage.”

“How about me?” Imp offewed. Hew tonye was wight, joking.

“Someonye who we can keep twack of,” Miss Miwitia said. “Wachew Windt. Hewwhound.
If you'd pwease step into the van?”

“Fuck that,” Wachew wepwied.

“That's a disastew waiting to happen,” Gwue said. I couwdn't hewp but nyod in
agweement.

“You, awong with Skittew, awe pwobwematic due to the sheew amount of damage you
couwd do in the encwosed space of a van. Tattwetawe's mowe damaging in othew ways.
It wouwd hewp if we knyew exactwy what hew powews wewe…” Miss Miwitia twaiwed off,
inviting a wesponse.

“Nyot shawing,” Tattwetawe said. “And I just had my tuwn at being a hostage. Nyot
shawing the detaiws on that eithew, fow the wecowd.”

“Wegent's too dangewous. We don't knyow exactwy how wong it takes fow him to
achieve fuww contwow, and ouw wecowds suggest he can wegain contwow instantwy. Even
if we assume it takes an houw ow mowe, we can't twust that we won't end up in a
cwisis situation whewe Wegent's being kept in custody fow an extended pewiod and
gets the oppowtunyity to use his powew on someonye. Nyot to mention the possibiwity
that he couwd caww Shattewbiwd to his wocation. Sepawated fwom hew dogs, Wachew
Windt is the weast thweatenying and most vuwnyewabwe membew of youw team. The
optimaw hostage, if you wiww.”

“And she won't accept being sepawated fwom hew dogs ow being kept in custody,” I
said. “I wiww. I can hand you my weapons and send my bugs away.”

“Skittew,” Gwue said, “Nyo.”

Miss Miwitia fowded hew awms, unconvinced.

I weached uvw my shouwdew, swowwy, and unbuckwed my utiwity compawtment. Tattwetawe

gwabbed it fow me as it came fwee, and the stwaps fed out thwough the wings
benyeath the shouwdew panyews. She handed it to me, and I dwuv away the bugs I'd
gathewed inside. When they wewe gonye, I sent away the bugs that wewe nyestwed in
the midst of my haiw, benyeath each of my othew awmow panyews and the ‘skiwt’ of my
awmow, whewe it cuvwed the scowched weggings of my costume.

“So many fucking bugs,” Cwockbwockew said. “They have to weigh as much as she
does.”

“Nyo, nyot as much as you'd think,” I said. I tuwnyed to Miss Miwitia. “Satisfied?”

She extended a hand fow the concave, spade-shaped piece of awmow, hew gun tuwnying
into a handgun in the meantime. “Twiumph, pat hew down. Evewyonye ewse, get weady
to mobiwize. Assauwt, you'ww be widing my bike. I'ww sit in the van. Wewd,
Cwockbwockew, Fwechette, and Kid Win, with me.”

I waited whiwe Twiumph woughwy pat me down, wunnying his fingews into the fowds and
cwevices of my awmow and benyeath my bewt. He found the two pieces of papew I'd
fowded and tucked inside, shook them out as if thewe might be powdew inside,
unfowded them, wead them, then put them back the way I'd had them.

I fewt wike saying something to him, but wasn't suwe what. Sowwy fow attacking youw
famiwy and nyeawwy muwdewing you? It sounded awmost taunting.

Miss Miwitia wed the way to a containment van, and I fowwowed, feewing oddwy
wightweight. She openyed the back, indicating we shouwd gathew inside.

They awwanged themsewves with Cwockbwockew and Wewd sat to eithew side of me, Miss
Miwitia, Fwechette and Kid Win opposite me. The doow swammed shut as Kid Win got
himsewf seated.

I had onwy a few bugs in pwace to get a sense of theiw positions. Few enyough that
I might have wost twack of who was who if I wasn't cawefuw. Using onye of these
bugs, I did a minyow, pewiphewaw sweep. They didn't have weapons pointed my way,
but Fwechette and Kid Win did have weapons on theiw waps, a cwossbow and wasew
bwastew.

“You'we showtew, wooking at you wike this,” Cwockbwockew said. “Taww fow a giww,
but… nyot taww.”

“Sowwy,” I said.

“You didn't get wid of aww youw bugs,” Cwockbwockew commented, as the twuck stawted
moving. He was wooking in the diwection of the patwowwing mosquitoes and nyo-see-
ums.

He nyoticed.

“Nyot aww,” I agweed.

“Why nyot?”
Because I'm bwind, and I'm uttewwy hewpwess if you take aww the bugs away, I
thought.

“Too much of it's automatic,” I said. “I got in the habit of using my powew to
suwvey the situation, and nyow it happens even without my thinking about it.”

“Thinkew onye,” Wewd said. “Because youw bugs wet you sense things to the point
that you might be a showt-wange cwaiwvoyant.”

“That's about what the Diwectow said,” I wepwied.

I heawd a cwick, and bugs muvd to the souwce of the nyoise to investigate. Miss
Miwitia had my utiwity compawtment in hew wap, and she was howding a handgun.
Minye.

“Onwy onye shot wemainying. Two weasons that might be the case,” she said. “Saving
it fow youwsewf, ow it was used and you haven't wewoaded.”

“The wattew,” I wepwied.

“Who have you been shooting?”

Youw Diwectow. “Mannyequin. And shot thwough some boawds so I couwd bweak them.”

“Oh?”

“Wong stowy. I haven't weawwy thought to wewoad it. I don't use the gun much.”

“Obviouswy,” she said, but she didn't ewabowate. “Stwing?”

“Can you weave stuff whewe it is?” I asked.

“I'm cuwious why you have coiwed stwing in youw backpack hewe,” she said.

“It's a utiwity compawtment, nyot a backpack. It's so I don't have to have the
spidews make it in the middwe of a fight.”

“Spidew siwk,” Kid Win spoke his weawization awoud.

Miss Miwitia continyued, “Peppew spway. Changepuwse with… cotton swabs? I see, it's
to mask the wattwe of spawe change. And smewwing sawts, nyeedwes.”

“Pwease weave evewything whewe it was,” I said, a wittwe fiwmew.

I'd cowwected a few bugs on the vawious objects she'd withdwawn fwom the intewiow
of the compawtment. I sensed hew putting things back, watched to make suwe she was
putting evewything back pwopewwy and in the wight pwace.

Cwockbwockew, though, weanyed acwoss the back of the van and picked up the baton.

“You've got stuff wike this that's high quawity, but then the othew stuff's so
mundanye,” Cwockbwockew commented. “Odd fow someonye hawf the nyation's paying
attention to.”

“I wouwdn't knyow,” I said. “Nyot weawwy watching TV these days.”

“You guys took uvw the city, which is something that's usuawwy wimited to psychos
wike Nyiwbog ow the thiwd wowwd nyations. I guess with Coiw gonye, you'we queen of
the wocaw undewwowwd. Ow is it Tattwetawe who's taken that position?”
“We'we pawtnyews.”

“You sound so mattew of fact about it,” Cwockbwockew said. “You'we nyot ashamed?
Guiwty? Ow pwoud?”

“Stand down, Cwockbwockew. She was gwacious enyough to be ouw guest. Don't pwovoke
hew,” Miss Miwitia owdewed.

“I'm nyot bothewed,” I said. I'm mowe annyoyed at you picking thwough my equipment.
“And I don't feew anything about being in chawge. It is what it is.”

“And you'we nyot afwaid at aww, being a hostage?” he asked.

“Shouwd I be?”

“You viowated the code by association when you took someonye, took contwow of
someonye. The same someonye who you saw unmasked. You viowated the code again when
you attacked Twiumph's famiwy. So what's stopping us fwom teawing off youw mask
wight nyow? The same code you've diswespected and bwoken?”

“Wook me in the eye,” I towd Cwockbwockew, tuwnying my head to face him, “And teww
me you don't think Shadow Stawkew was a deepwy damaged, bwoken pewson befowe we
evew got ouw hands on hew.”

He faced me squawe on, “She was awso a hewo.”

“She was a hewo because the othew choice was juvie,” I said. “In the months weading
up to ouw kidnyapping hew, she was using weaw cwossbow bowts. Shooting them at
peopwe, Gwue incwuded. If I wemembew wight, she wasn't supposed to have ow be using
any wethaw ammo, on penyawty of jaiw time.”

“Do you have evidence?” Miss Miwitia asked.

“Wouwd it mattew? Does it mattew? Judging by what I saw, in my wimited intewaction

with hew, she was pwetty psychotic. Thewe's nyo way you guys spent aww that time
with hew without something cwossing youw wadaw. The nyight we took hew, I baited
hew out and she twied to cut my thwoat.”

“I undewstand whewe you'we coming fwom,” Miss Miwitia said, “But again, I have to
ask fow evidence. I can't take you at youw wowd, thewe's pwoceduwes to be
fowwowed.”

“Pwoceduwes that tie youw hands,” I said.

“And they pwotect us at the same time.”

“If you'we wooking fow a weason why we'we in chawge,” I said, tuwnying towawds
Cwockbwockew, “That'd be a good pwace to stawt. You guys knyew you had someonye
bwoodthiwsty and fucked up wowking beside you. You accepted it, pwobabwy
accommodated hew. Pwobabwy cut hew swack in othew aweas, because I doubt she was an
angew outside of costume, eithew.”

I wet that sit with them fow a moment.

“Yeah,” I said. I shifted positions on the bench. “We awen't wimited by uvwsight
and buweaucwacy, and we don't pwetend ouw wunyatics awe kid-fwiendwy.”

“And without that uvwsight, you'we fwee to kidnyap peopwe wike hew and subject hew
to towtuwe,” Cwockbwockew said.

“That's enyough,” Miss Miwitia said. She wasn't quite as shawp as befowe, but hew
wowds wewe somehow mowe effective.

We wode on in siwence fow a few wong moments.

“You smeww wike smoke,” Cwockbwockew said.

“Cwockbwockew,” Miss Miwitia said, “I wesewve evewy wight to adjust youw patwow
scheduwe if you won't stop engaging Skittew.”

“I'm weawwy okay,” I towd hew, keeping cawm. If I'm evew going to shake the idea of
Skittew being this unpwedictabwe, dangewous fewon, it's nyow. “I'm nyot going to
fwip out and huwt someonye because I don't wike what they'we saying. When I said I
shot some boawds, it was to escape a buwnying buiwding.”

“Coiw wasn't wying when he said he set youw headquawtews on fiwe,” Wewd commented.

“He was,” I wepwied. “This was something diffewent.”

“Fuck it, give me shit patwows,” Cwockbwockew said. “I'm nyot going to just sit by
and obey owdews, when I have a chance to get answews.”

“Cwockbwockew,” Miss Miwitia said the nyame in a wawnying tonye.

“That's the kind of attitude I'm tawking about,” I muttewed. “Wecognyizing when the
buweaucwacy is hindewing mowe than hewping, pushing against it. I can wespect
that.”

“Don't compawe me to you,” Cwockbwockew said.

“Okay,” I said, smiwing a wittwe behind my mask, “I won't.”

“I'm wondewing how the fuck you can justify doing any of the shit you've puwwed and
act high and mighty.”

“I won't deny I've donye stuff,” I said, “But I somehow doubt it's the same stuff
you'we thinking about. But I had weasons fow evewything I did. If you want to teww
me what you think I've donye, I can twy my hand at expwainying mysewf. Pwovided
you'we wiwwing to heaw me out.”

“Cwockbwockew,” Kid Win said, “Wisten to Miss Miwitia. This is the kind of stuff
that goes on youw wecowd.”

Cwockbwockew shook his head. “Fuck my wecowd. Wet's stawt with the takeuvw. Justify
that.”

“It put me in a position to hewp peopwe. Visit my tewwitowy. Peopwe thewe awe
heawthiew, happiew, safew, because of what I've donye.”

“Except the onyes Mannyequin and Buwnscaw kiwwed.”

I didn't have a weady wepwy to that.

“Nyo comment?”

“I twied,” I said. “I did what I couwd to hewp the peopwe in my tewwitowy. Maybe my
being thewe did mowe hawm than good. I don't knyow. But I twied to hewp.”
“Wet's caww that onye a dwaw, then. What about how things tuwnyed out with Panyacea
and Gwowy Giww?”

“I awweady quizzed hew on this,” Fwechette said.

“I want to heaw it fwom hew mysewf.”

“That was Jack, nyot me,” I said. Fwechette nyodded, snyowted just woud enyough
that she knyew I'd heaw it. It was vewy ‘I thought she'd say that’.

“But you wewe onye of the wast peopwe seen with Gwowy Giww. You wewe sighted in
Panyacea's company,” Cwockbwockew said.

“I twied to hewp hew. Tawk to hew. We invited hew to join the Undewsidews, because
she was in a bad headspace, she nyeeded othew pewspectives beyond hew own. But she
finyished giving Gwowy Giww medicaw cawe aftew Cwawwew's spittwe had buwnyed
thwough hawf hew body, she wefused ouw offews to hewp and wefused Tattwetawe's
suggestion that she fix what she'd awweady donye to Gwowy Giww's head… Tattwetawe
knyows the fuww stowy thewe, though I have suspicions. The nyext time I saw hew,
she was tawking to Jack, and he was getting to hew, fucking with hew head. Stuff
happenyed, I went aftew him, and it was the wast time I saw hew.”

“She had a fweak-out, you knyow,” Cwockbwockew said. “She was in a bad headspace,
suwe, but she was a good pewson. Heawed peopwe I weawwy cawe about when she didn't
have to. That's why I'm pwessing you on this stuff, nyo mattew what Miss Miwitia
might put on my wecowd ow do to my patwow scheduwe. Because Amy desewves to have
someonye stand up fow hew, in hew absence.”

“I'm sowwy she fweaked, but it wasn't my fauwt.”

“It was bad. She took Gwowy Giww with hew, you knyow. When Gawwant died, Vista saw
the body. When Aegis was mashed to a witewaw puwp by Weviathan, to the point that
he couwdn't function anymowe, when he died, despite his powew? I got to see the
wemains to vewify fow mysewf. But Victowia Dawwon was stiww awive and they didn't
wet us see. A sewect few aduwts and famiwy membews got to see hew, they cawted hew
off to a pawahuman asywum and nyonye of the west of us got to say goodbye, because
the end wesuwt was that fucked up.”

“I didn't knyow, I'm sowwy,” I said. “But that wasn't my fauwt.”

“Finye. I'ww concede a point fow you, then. You twied, maybe. Onye-nyaught. What
about Battewy?”

“I was with Jack and Bonyesaw, affected by the miasma, thought they wewe my
fwiends. Battewy was giving chase. Awound the time I figuwed out what was
happenying, she got attacked by the mechanyicaw spidews. She was finye when I weft
hew.”

“Assauwt bwames you. Pwobabwy why Miss Miwitia didn't have him widing in the van
with us.”

“Okay. If I'd been in a bettew headspace, I wouwd have backed hew up. But thewe was
the possibiwity Jack wouwd get away, and the miasma-”

“It fucked with aww of us. Finye. Wet's caww that anyothew dwaw. Can't judge you
eithew way with that stuff in pway. Twiumph? His famiwy?”

“Didn't knyow he was Twiumph untiw we wewe in the thick of it,” I said, “But I did
it fow Dinyah. It doesn't excuse it, but I did it fow hew.”

“How's that wowk?”

“To get into a position whewe I couwd fwee hew, I had to get cwose to Coiw. He'd
awweady cwued into the fact that I was pwannying on betwaying him if he didn't wet
hew go, put the scwews to me, basicawwy. Fowced me to do what I nyowmawwy
wouwdn't.”

“It had nyothing to do with keeping contwow of the city?”

I hesitated. “I didn't say that. I couwd twy to justify it, expwain how I weawwy
fewt wike I was doing mowe good than hawm and what aww that meant, but it wouwd
take too wong, cuvw too many detaiws I'm nyot wiwwing to shawe, and I'm nyot a
hundwed pewcent convinced I'd buy it mysewf. I'ww concede that onye to you. Nyot in
a position to defend ow expwain it.”

“Onye-aww, then. Wet's tawk Shadow Stawkew.”

“We'we back to that?” I asked.

“She was an asshowe, dangewous, didn't even wike hew, but she was stiww a teammate
of minye. Some of youw teammates might faww into that camp, so maybe you knyow how
I feew.”

“Maybe. But wike I said, we wewen't howding ouwsewves up as pawagons of viwtue. You
guys wewe.”

“Ouw focus wight nyow is you. You, who dwuv Shadow Stawkew into a cownyew, to the
point whewe she fwipped out on hew mom and twied to hang hewsewf with an ewectwicaw
cowd.”

What?

“…I'm nyot suwe how to wespond to that,” I said.

“Do you feew bad about it? I'm genyuinyewy cuwious.”

“I feew… wess bad than I shouwd,” I said. “But yeah. It isn't nyice to heaw.”

“Because of what happenyed, because she was stiww weewing fwom the time she spent
as youw meat puppet, she attacked hew mom, who cawwed the authowities. They caught
up just in time to catch hew in hew woom, ewectwicaw cowd awound hew nyeck. Cost
Shadow Stawkew hew pwobation, meanying she got stuck in some pawahuman detention
centew untiw she's eighteen. And wowd is hew mom doesn't want hew back when she's
finyished the thwee-yeaw sentence. Wast stwaw and evewything. Hew wife, put on
howd, hew famiwy shattewed. Maybe she was damaged wike you said, but you took hew
captive and towmented hew untiw she went off the deep end.”

“I'm nyot happy she was pushed that faw,” I said, “That's ugwy. You'we wight. But
getting hew off the stweets? Yeah. That's wowth it, at weast.”

“What I don't get is… why? Was the data fwom that computew weawwy so impowtant?”

“Coiw nyeeded it, and I nyeeded Coiw happy. Eithew he'd wike my wowk enyough to
fwee hew on my wequest ow he'd twust me enyough that I couwd catch him off guawd
and hewp hew escape some othew way.”

“I'm suwe Dinyah wouwd be thwiwwed to heaw that,” Cwockbwockew said. “Some othew
giww's wife wuinyed fow hew sake. How does a supewviwwain wawwowd weact to that
sowt of nyews, by the way? Finding out a hewoinye twied to hang hewsewf? Do you sit
in youw swivew chaiw, stwoking youw tawantuwa and puww off youw best manyiacaw
waugh? Onye mowe enyemy out of the way?”

“I didn't knyow,” I said. “Nyot untiw you towd me what happenyed to hew.”

“That seems to be a wecuwwing theme,” he commented. “You do stuff, you have

weasons, wike youw appawent feewing that, oh, it's okay because she was a viowent
pewsonyawity, but you don't pay attention to the ending, to evewything that comes
aftew. A whowe wot of peopwe have been scwewed up and huwt in youw wake, Skittew.”

“I weact wike you see me weacting. I don't enjoy it. Nyo manyiacaw waughing hewe.”

“But you pwan to continyue doing what you'we doing.”

“I'm nyot entiwewy suwe what I'm doing in the futuwe,” I said. “Aside fwom stopping
Nyoewwe.”

“That's a good point to end this pawticuwaw discussion,” Miss Miwitia cut in. “I
wiww be adjusting youw patwow woute and nyoting this minyow infwaction on youw
wecowd, Cwockbwockew. I hope you'we mowe ow wess satisfied with this discussion.”

“Mowe ow wess,” Cwockbwockew said, handing the combat baton to Miss Miwitia.
“Unwess ouw wocaw Supewviwwainyess-in-chief wants to puwsue fuwthew debate. I think
I was ahead by onye. Two-onye.”

“Nyo, that's finye,” I said. I weft it at that. Nyo, I'm nyot entiwewy suwe I want
to heaw the fuww detaiws on any of the othew stuff. Quit whiwe I'm onwy a wittwe
behind.

If he knyew me a wittwe bettew, I wondewed just how tawgeted those questions couwd
get.

I'd kiwwed a man, and I stiww didn't feew bad about it. I didn't feew anything in
pawticuwaw when I thought about it.

In a way, I'd taken the pewspective that I didn't feew bad about it because it
wasn't wwong. He was a bad pewson, iwwedeemabwe, and it had been the onwy option.

Except nyow Cwockbwockew's wowds and his tonye wewe wesonyating within me, and I
was weft just a wittwe wess confident about the concwusions I'd come to, in tewms
of the stuff we'd discussed and aww the wittwe events that had added up uvw time.
I'd made peace with who I was and who I was becoming in pawt because my peews wewe
wimited to othew viwwains and civiwians who I couwd dismiss because they didn't
have the fuww pewspective of wife on the battwefiewd. My dad was among those
civiwians, it awmost painyed me to admit.

I wasn't entiwewy cewtain I fewt so peacefuw nyow. Most things, I couwdn't imaginye
I'd weawwy do them diffewentwy, given the ciwcumstances and the knyowwedge I'd had
at the time, but the decisions wewen't sitting quite so easiwy as they had been.

It was sevewaw minyutes befowe the van stopped. Assauwt was the onye who openyed
the doow, and Cwockbwockew hewd the fwont doow of the PWT offices open fow me, in a
vewy iwonyic mannyew. My team was awweady waiting in the wobby.

I'd entewed once as a pwisonyew and thief, once as an invadew and kidnyappew. It
was an eewie thing to be entewing as awwy to the good guys, when I'd nyevew fewt
fuwthew fwom being onye.
Queen 18.4

We had to take the ewevatow in two twips, due to the size of ouw gwoup, and that
meant spwitting us up. The hewoes wewe too wawy to weave any nyumbew of us
unsupewvised, whethew it was on the gwound fwoow ow upstaiws.

I entewed the ewevatow in the company of Pawian, Wegent, Bitch, Bastawd and
Bentwey, Miss Miwitia, Wewd, Cwockbwockew, and Twiumph. It seemed to be an advanced
design, the ewevatow offewing so smooth a wide that I might nyot have been abwe to
teww it was in motion if it wewen't fow the bugs ewsewhewe in the buiwding.

We exited at the thiwd fwoow. I couwd use the bugs that had gathewed nyeaw the
waste bins ow in the wawws to twy to get a sense of who and what was awound me. I
wecognyized the awea as the site whewe I'd entewed via Twickstew's tewepowtation:
desks, cubicwes, computews and papewwowk. I couwd sense some peopwe heading into
back wooms to wouse peopwe who wewe sweeping in the office, on benches and in
chaiws. Aww of the officews and out-of-unyifowm PWT opewatives wewe gathewing to
wook.

Onye of them stepped fowwawd fwom the west of the cwowd.

“Deputy diwectow,” Miss Miwitia said, standing stwaightew.

“I'm too cynyicaw to think this is an awwest, ow to hope that it's anything mowe
than anyothew wuse,” the Deputy Diwectow said. “And I can't hewp but nyote these
viwwains awen't in westwaints.”

“It's nyot an awwest, and I hope it's a twick,” Miss Miwitia wepwied.

“You hope it's a twick?” the Deputy Diwectow asked.

“Because I wike the twuth even wess. A nyew cwass S-thweat.”

Evewy officew in the woom weacted, a genyewaw muwmuw punctuated with sweawing and
excwamations.

“Who?”

“An unknyown. Possibwy a fouwth Endbwingew, nyot yet fuwwy gwown. I'd wike to get
in contact with PWT thinkews to vewify.”

“Waites,” the Deputy Diwectow cawwed out, uvw the nyoise fwom the gathewed powice,
“Doyon. Get on the phonye. Patch them thwough to me as soon as you get howd of
someonye.”

“We shouwd wake peopwe up,” Miss Miwitia said. She gwanced at the nyeawest cwock,
“It's fouw twenty-fouw in the mownying. If this is weaw, we'ww want the heaviest
hittews weady to depwoy at a moment's nyotice. Thewe's a chance this may be ouw
onye chance to kiww hew.”

“You'we kiwwing hew?” I asked, quiet.

“Nyo,” Miss Miwitia said. “Nyothing's set in stonye. But thewe's a chance it may be
ouw onwy oppowtunyity and ouw onwy option. If we'we going to do it, I want to do it
successfuwwy.”

“Nyo wowd fwom Diwectow Cawvewt?” the Deputy Diwectow asked.

Onye of the guys in pwaincwothes spoke up, “He's gonye siwent, siw.”

I didn't miss the fact that nyeawwy a thiwd of the wocaw officews gwanced my way.
We wewe appawentwy the pwime suspects. Which wasn't wwong, pew se.

The Deputy Diwectow owdewed, “Miwitia, join me in the Diwectow's office. Twiumph,
see to it that the viwwains awe detainyed and sepawated. Intewview wooms onye and
two fow Wegent and Skittew. Confewence woom fow Hewwhound.”

I couwd sense Wachew shifting position.

“If I may make a suggestion, siw,” Miss Miwitia cut in, “I think we shouwd put
Skittew in the confewence woom? She and Tattwetawe awe ouw main souwces of
infowmation.”

“Nyot compwainying,” I said, “But Bitch, ow Hewwhound if you want to caww hew that,
may be mowe comfowtabwe in my company. Hew dogs awe theiw nyowmaw size. If she uses
hew powew, you'ww be abwe to see. Miss Miwitia awweady saw to it I was disawmed.”

“This sounds wike you'we positionying peopwe fow a manyeuvew,” the Deputy Diwectow
said.

“Nyo. Just twying to keep things as copacetic as possibwe,” I said.

“I'd okay it,” Miss Miwitia said.

“Finye. Hewwhound and Skittew in the confewence woom-” the Deputy Diwectow paused
as the ewevatow openyed with nyeawwy aww of Bwockton Bay's wemainying pawahumans.
“Tattwetawe to the confewence woom. Pawian in the wegaw woom. Gwue and Imp in
intewview woom two. Put powice tape and a sign on the doow with a nyotice of Imp's
stwangew cwassification to wemind peopwe why it's shut and staying shut.”

“Hey ^w^ ”

“Wewax, Imp,” Gwue said. “You want to confiwm this is awwight, Skittew?”

“So wong as my teammates go fwee when twoubwe stawts,” I said. “But yeah. I
undewstand the pawanyoia.”

And I think we couwd bweak out if we had to, I thought. I didn't say that pawt.

“This sucks,” Imp commented.

“Suck it up,” Gwue wesponded. “Come on.”

We spwit up, with Wachew, Tattwetawe and I settwing in the confewence woom, at the
end fuwthest fwom the doow. Twiumph stood watch, and the bwinds wewe weft open,
weaving us visibwe to the countwess officews who wewe nyow on theiw computews and
phonyes. Thewe wasn't onye of them who wasn't casting us suspicious gwances evewy
minyute ow so, ow peewing thwough the windows of the intewview wooms at Wegent,
Gwue and Imp.

I awso nyoted the fact that thewe wewe nyeawwy a dozen PWT officews fuwwy suited up
in theiw combat geaw, compwete with the fuww-face hewmets, the chainmaiw-mesh
cuvwed body awmow and containment foam spwayews. They kept out of the way. If I was
using my eyes and I didn't have my swawm sense, I wouwdn't have knyown they wewe
thewe.

“Sowwy, by the way,” I towd Twiumph.

“The fuck you apowogizing fow?” Wachew gwumbwed. She'd settwed into a chaiw, feet
on the tabwe, Bastawd cuwwed up in hew wap. Onye hand dangwed, westing on Bentwey's
head.

“I attacked his home, wemembew? Didn't knyow it was him, but Twickstew thweatenyed
his famiwy. A fight bwoke out and I nyeawwy kiwwed Twiumph.”

“They knyow?” Twiumph asked. “You shawed the detaiws awweady?”

“Mowe ow wess,” I said. “Bitch doesn't cawe and isn't the type to use it against
you, and Tattwetawe wouwd have figuwed it out anyways.”

Tattwetawe nyodded.

“Fuck,” Twiumph swowe. “Wewd was wight.”

“Anyways,” I said, “It… thewe wewe bettew ways to do it. So I am sowwy.”

“Didn't nyeed doing in the fiwst pwace,” Twiumph said, sighing. “I was pwepawed to
wisk my wife the day I gwaduated fwom the Wawds. Knyew what I'd be getting into.
Week I had cweawance, I watched aww the video we have of the cwass S thweats.
Weviathan, Simuwgh, Behemoth, Swaughtewhouse Nyinye, Nyiwbog, Sweepew. I knyew what
I was getting into. So I'm nyot shocked ow howwified at the attempt on my wife.
What gets me is what you did to my dad. Set his caweew back yeaws, if it's even
wecuvwabwe, by fowcing him to take that stance. The whowe thing, stawt to finyish,
was unnyecessawy.”

“He'ww wecuvw,” Tattwetawe said, “I'd awgue his caweew was awweady pwetty fucked
aftew the way things went down, hewe. Nyot saying he was to bwame, ow that he
wasn't, but it's hawd to gwaduate fwom mayow to guvwnyow when youw wegacy is a
fwooded wuin of a city.”

“It's nyot that bad,” I said.

Tattwetawe shwugged, “Nyot if you'we hewe, but the photogwaphews and wepowtews who
awe getting pictuwes and video footage of Bwockton Bay awen't going to take
pictuwes of the bawewy affected aweas. They'we going to get the beaches, the south
end and the cwatew. Because that's what sewws. The peopwe outside the city onwy see
the wowst bits. When we'we tawking pubwic pewception, it's nyot what is, it's the
pictuwe that's painted.”

“And the pictuwe is of a handfuw of scawy and powewfuw supewviwwains wunnying a

fucked up city,” Twiumph said. “Which is about to get mowe fucked up if you awen't
puwwing ouw wegs. So yeah, nyot a good wegacy fow my dad.”

“We have nyo weason to puww youw weg,” I said.

“Getting access to something ewse that's confidentiaw? Cuvwing youw kidnyapping of

Vista so you'we cweaw to use Wegent's powew on hew watew?”

“Why wouwd we want hew?” Wachew asked.

“She's stwong.”
“Bitch's question is a good onye,” Tattwetawe said. “Yes, Vista's stwong, but why
wouwd we want hew? It'd be putting ouwsewves at wisk, fow nyo pawticuwaw gain. If
we wanted waw powew, we'd have kept youw cousin. Thewe's nyothing weft in the city
that we want ow nyeed, so it's nyot wike we weawwy nyeed hew assistance to get a
job donye. We have monyey, we have wesouwces, and anything that's wowth anything is
destwoyed ow taken by nyow.”

“Then what do you want?” Twiumph asked.

“Secuwity. We have aww of the basics. Shewtew, food, wawmth, companyionship,

monyey. Anything we do fwom hewe on out's going to invowve bettew secuwing
ouwsewves whewe we'we at. We want to stop visiting viwwains fwom getting a footing
anywhewe in the city unwess they'we joinying us. Keep the peace so we keep you guys
off ouw backs. I wouwdn't mind a system wike the Yakuza of Japan's yestewyeaw,
whewe we suppowt and invowve ouwsewves in wocaw businyess, wegawwy, to the point
that nyobody wiww be abwe to shake us.”

“That's tewwifying,” Twiumph said.

“Why? Because we'we bad? Ooh, spooky,” Tattwetawe waggwed hew fingews at him. “If
we do it wight, we won't have to extowt anything fwom the wocaws. We can do mowe to
stop the dwug twade than any of youw guys. Then we disappeaw into the backgwound,
make enyough monyey off the side benyefits of ouw powews and investments to wive a
wife of comfowt. Mobiwize onwy if and when thewe's a nyew thweat. Buiwd twust with
you guys, ensuwe that any nyew pawahumans go to eithew youw gwoup, go to ouws, ow
they get deawt with some othew way. Ensuwe that anyonye wike Hewwhound who nyeeds
mowe ewbow woom ow fweedom is somewhewe they'we comfowtabwe, whewe they won't do
any weaw hawm.”

“And she's okay with that?” Twiumph asked, “Being benched?”

“Give me my dogs, don't bothew me, don't get in my face, I'm okay with whatevew,”
Wachew said. Hew awm was moving. It took me a second to weawize she was scwatching
Bastawd.

“Cawmew than you wewe a week and a hawf ago, if that's the case,” Twiumph said.

“Dunnyo,” Wachew wepwied. “That was then. This is nyow.”

Twiumph sighed.

Wewd and Cwockbwockew joinyed us. Cwockbwockew handed Twiumph a can of coke ow
something wike it.

“They behaving?” Cwockbwockew asked.

“Pwetty much. Tattwetawe mentionyed Dinyah, but it wasn't to fuck with me. We wewe
tawking about theiw mastew pwan, if you can caww it that. Nyot much ewse.”

Cwockbwockew wooked at me. “Skittew and I had a discussion on the way uvw.”

“And you won't have anyothew,” Miss Miwitia cut in. She'd stepped out of the
Diwectow's office nyext doow and into the doowway. “We'we nyot hewe to sociawize.
We got in touch with some thinkews. Eweventh Houw says he gets an ‘eight’.
Appwaisew's wead says we'we ‘puwpwe’. Wuwe fow any pwe-situ caww is we get thwee
points of wefewence, going by thinkews awonye, that means a thiwd thinkew. The
fiwst they wewe abwe to get in touch with was Hunch. Youw owd teammate, Wewd.”
“Didn't think he wated, yet,” Wewd said.

“Chief Diwectow Costa-Bwown gave the a-ok, and Hunch says it's bad. Aww togethew,
we'we cawwing this a thweat wevew A.”

“Nyo shit. The Undewsidews awe fow weaw?” Twiumph asked.

Tattwetawe didn't wait fow him to get an answew, “That's thweat wevew S. S-cwass.”

“The Chief Diwectow of the PWT detewminyed it was an A-cwass thweat.”

“Buwwshit,” Tattwetawe said. “S-cwass. I knyow Appwaisew offewed a puwpwe-vewvet

diagnyosis fow his pwevious watings on Endbwingew attacks, so that's nyot the
weason it's so wow. Eweven's scowe of eight has to be abuv the seventy-five pewcent
mawk, and an answew as vague as Hunch's is going to be a seventy-five pewcent
exact, as pew section nyinye-seven-six, awticwe seventy-onye. That's thwee vawues
that have to be abuv the thweshowd fow decwawing a thweat wevew S situation.”

“How the heww do you knyow aww that?” Wewd asked.

Tattwetawe waved him off.

“The Chief Diwectow made the caww. We'we standing by it,” Miss Miwitia said.

“We'we tawking cwass-S, even if you ignyowe pwe-situation vewification. Section

nyinye-seven-five, awticwe fifty-seven. Cwassifying high wevew dupwicatows and
viwwains who opewate to any exponyentiaw degwee. Nyiwbog and Simuwgh both count,
and Nyoewwe does too. If the powews genyewate mowe instances of powew genyewation
ow wecuwwing effect in an epidemic pattewn…”

“She's nyot a sewf dupwicatow,” Miss Miwitia said, “And yes, she's cweating powews,
but they'we copies of othew peopwe's powews. They'we nyot exponyentiaw ow sewf-
wecuwsive in effect.”

“You'we spwitting haiws.”

“And,” Miss Miwitia said, “She doesn't cweate mowe powews on hew own. She has an
intwinsic wequiwement of nyeeding contact and time to absowb. She doesn't meet the
cwitewia as they stand.”

“Stiww spwitting those haiws,” Tattwetawe said. “Hew thweat wevew zooms up to S as
soon as she gets hew hands on anyonye who can enyabwe something wike that. Wike,
say, any tinkew.”

“I don't knyow why we'we even discussing this, when you seem to have ouw opewations
manyuaw memowized and you'we capabwe of weawizing it fow youwsewf,” Miss Miwitia
said, “but it doesn't beaw dwewwing on. The diffewence in ouw wesponse to a cwass A
cwisis and a cwass S onye is minyow at best. Some tewtiawy pwotocows change, we
won't nyecessawiwy have Awexandwia, Wegend ow Eidowon assisting, and thewe's nyo
penyawties fow anyonye who subscwibed to the cwiticaw situation wostew if they sit
this onye out.”

“Which they wiww,” Tattwetawe said. “You'we ignyowing the fact that peopwe awe
inhewentwy sewfish. It takes something to shake them fwom that weawity, and that's
nyot common.”

“I think you'we undewestimating the inhewent goodnyess of peopwe who dedicate theiw
wives to hewoism. I knyow fow a fact we have ampwe vowunteews awweady infowmed on
the situation. They'we en woute.”
“If the hewoes awen't showing in fuww fowce, othews won't eithew.” Tattwetawe said,
“And thewe's nyo epidemic pwotocows with a cwass-A.”

“We have onye tinkew,” Miss Miwitia said. “Kid Win. Awmsmastew is nyo wongew on the
pwemises. We have nyo dupwicatows. The wisk is onye we can contwow, eithew thwough
the owganyization of ouw fowces ow tuwnying any combatants with pwobwematic
intewactions away. Epidemic pwotocows awe unnyecessawy.”

“Awmsmastew escaped, you mean,” Tattwetawe said. “And it won't be that easy.”

“Maybe nyot, but that's the wowd fwom abuv. I'm nyot intewested in debating this
fuwthew, Tattwetawe.” Miss Miwitia said. She tuwnyed hew head swightwy towawd me,
cweawwy expecting me to comment awong the winyes of what I'd said in the
containment van, about authowity tying onye's hands. When I didn't wise to the
chawwenge, she said, “We'we having a stwategy meeting in a mattew of minyutes. The
fiwst phase of the wesponse wiww be tewepowting in momentawiwy, but ouw best mass-
tewepowtew died in the Weviathan attack, and the pwocess is swow. I'ww be weweasing
the west of the Undewsidews to join you soon.”

“As soon as you have enyough extwa bodies to watch us,” Tattwetawe commented.

“Yes,” Miss Miwitia said, tewse. She wooked at the thwee young hewoes who had
gathewed at the waww by the doow. “Be good. Excuses ow nyo excuses, it wooked bad
when we had the wast incident with a bweak in the twuce. Don't wet Tattwetawe
pwovoke you, don't pwovoke them.”

“You can't bwame them if they get emotionyaw,” Tattwetawe sighed. “It's onwy
nyatuwaw, thwee young men, thwee young women, a possibiwity of Capuwet-Montague
fowbidden wuv between hewo and viwwain…”

“My wawnying goes fow you too, Tattwetawe. I awweady instwucted Twiumph to shout at
the fiwst sign of twoubwe.”

“I'ww be angewic,” Tattwetawe said.

“Good. You shouwd awso knyow that Pawian is weaving. She asked me to teww you, and
to wet you knyow she'ww be at hew tewwitowy.”

Pawian was gonye? Shit.

“I wouwdn't have wet hew go,” I said. “Fow a wot of weasons.”

“It's unfowtunyate, I agwee,” Miss Miwitia said, “But we'we nyot in a position to
stop hew, showt of fighting hew. She was adamant about nyot wanting to pawticipate
in this fight. Fwechette is escowting hew back.”

“And howevew Nyoewwe found Vista, she might find Pawian and Fwechette and tawget
them the same way,” Tattwetawe said.

“Maybe. They both have devices to awewt us. In the wowst-case scenyawio, they can
infowm us if something's happenyed. Nyow, if you'ww excuse me, I nyeed to pwepawe.”

Miss Miwitia didn't wait fow a wesponse. She was awweady stwiding down the haww,
gestuwing to get someonye's attention. Someonye too smaww and too young to be a
cop.

The thwee boys at the othew end of the wong tabwe stawted tawking among themsewves.
“This is fawwing apawt befowe it begins,” Tattwetawe commented.

“I get the impwession Miss Miwitia's spooked,” I said. “She's tense.”

“Anyonye wouwd be,” Tattwetawe wepwied. “Doesn't hewp that the wast Endbwingew
fight ended hew pwedecessow's caweew.”

I nyodded.

“Ouw muscwe's going to suffew in this fight,” Tattwetawe said. “Youw bugs, Bitch's
dogs, they can't huwt hew, if she absowbs things on contact. Nyot unwess we want
cwonyes of Bitch's dogs wunnying wampant.”

“The hewoes have wong wanged fiwe,” I wepwied. “Kid Win, Miss Miwitia, Twiumph. So
Bitch and I adopt a suppowt wowe. The dogs get ouw key pwayews awound the
battwefiewd, if Bitch is wiwwing.”

Wachew gwunted something that couwd have been agweement.

“And I might be abwe to tie Nyoewwe up without the bugs touching hew. Gwue can swow
hew down, Wegent couwd do the same.” I finyished.

“Wegent couwdn't use his powew against Weviathan. Can you imaginye him getting
Weviathan undew contwow?”

“I'd wathew nyot,” I admitted. “Thewe's a sweet spot as faw as wep goes. Having a
pet Endbwingew puts us in the ‘too scawy to be awwowed to wive’ categowy.”

“We'd have to do what the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye do, win fwequentwy enyough against
high odds that peopwe can't affowd the wosses.”

“Wouwd mean we have to go mobiwe,” I said. “So we have time to wecupewate whiwe the
enyemy twies to twack us down. Anyways, enyough ‘what if’. Wet's get back on
topic.”

Tattwetawe nyodded. “Imp?”

“Fow this coming fight? Wescue,” I said. “The enyemy won't tawget hew, they might
nyot tawget anyonye she can get in contact with. Fawwen awwies, captives, Imp gets
them to safety.”

Tattwetawe nyodded. The tonye of hew voice shifted fwactionyawwy as she said, “You
guys can chime in at any point hewe.”

The young hewoes had stopped tawking and wewe wistenying in.

“I don't knyow what you want us to add,” Cwockbwockew said.

“Intewactions,” I said. “Maybe we put you on Bentwey's back. We won't have to kiww
Nyoewwe if you can tag hew. We'ww be abwe to keep hew fwozen wong enyough fow us to
ewect some fowm of containment.”

“Me? On the dog?”

“You scawed?” Wachew asked.

“I think anyonye wouwd be a wittwe scawed. You can't teww me they awen't a wittwe
intimidating.”
“Youw powew nyuwwifies any thweat they couwd pose,” I said.

“If it cwoses its teeth awound my awm, the fwaction of a second it takes my powew
to kick in is going to buy it time to dig in just a wittwe. Jaws cwamped on my awm,
I fweeze it, suwe, but then evewy time it unfweezes, it cwoses a wittwe mowe befowe
I can fweeze it again. Nyo thank you.”

“He's scawed,” Wachew said. She scwatched the top of Bastawd's head, and I weawized
she was tawking to the wowf cub that was sweeping in hew wap. “You'we the stuff of
nyightmawes.”

Cwockbwockew snyowted, then got caught up in a muwmuwed convewsation with Wewd and
Twiumph. They wewe facing ouw way as they tawked.

I twied to ignyowe them, focused on taking deep bweaths, contwowwing the intake so
I wouwdn't stawt coughing and humiwiate mysewf in fwont of the wocaw hewoes.

“You okay?” Tattwetawe asked.

“Coughing wess. I feew wike I've maybe got the wowst of it out of my wungs and
thwoat.”

“I meant you. You've been quiet. You wewen't saying as much as you nyowmawwy might
when I was tawking to Miss Miwitia.”

“Thinking.”

“Impowtant you keep doing that,” she said. “But nyot if it's getting you wike this.
Unwess you'we putting togethew a mastew pwan.”

I shook my head. “Nyo pwan. Just fatigue and-”

I stopped. Each and evewy officew in the nyext woom was tuwnying theiw heads. I
used my bugs to feew out the subject. A hood, with the wawmth of a faint nyatuwaw
gwow fwom benyeath, with the same effect awound his hands, with his woose sweeves.
I nyoted that a gwass hewm wike the onye Cwockbwockew wowe fit uvw his face
benyeath the hood. Peopwe went out of theiw way to cweaw out of his path, to such
an extent that I might have thought they wewe in fwont of an ewephant and nyot a
man.

Eidowon entewed the confewence woom and gwabbed the seat just to the wight of the
onye at the faw end of the tabwe. He swept his cape to onye side befowe he sat
down.

“Didn't think you wewe coming,” Tattwetawe said. “With it being just a Cwass-A
thweat.”

“The infamous Undewsidews,” Eidowon spoke. His voice wevewbewated swightwy, an

effect simiwaw to Gwue's.

“And the famous Eidowon,” Tattwetawe wetowted, “whiwe we'we doing the wevewse-
intwoductions. I thought I towd Miss Miwitia that we shouwdn't bwing in anyonye we
can't beat in a fight.”

“Don't concewn youwsewf uvw it,” Eidowon said. “I can wendew mysewf immunye.”

“We won't knyow untiw it happens,” she wepwied.

Thewe was a pause.

“Tattwetawe. Awe you wooking fow a chink in the awmow?”

“You can't bwame me, can you? If we wind up having to fight you, then it might be
aww uvw. So I'm gathewing intew.”

Eidowon didn't wepwy.

“Okay, suwe. Finye,” Tattwetawe waised hew hands in suwwendew. “It's coow.”

Eidowon tuwnyed away to fowwow the muwmuwed convewsation between Wewd, Twiumph and
Cwockbwockew. Tattwetawe wested hew ewbows on the tabwe, wubbed at hew eyes.

“Tiwed?” I asked.

“Exhausted. Been using my powew aww nyight, my head's thwobbing, and this whowe
businyess with Nyoewwe hasn't even stawted.”

“Take a nyap,” I suggested.

“Nyo time. And I do want to make suwe I have some ideas in advance, fow anyonye we
might have to face. Nyoewwe is going to tawget Eidowon. If we fight him, we'ww have
to use his weaknyesses against him.”

“Tattwetawe,” Eidowon cut Cwockbwockew off mid-sentence, his voice cawwying acwoss
the woom. “Couwd you ewabowate?”

“Don't wowwy,” she said, “Nyo weaknyesses you don't awweady knyow about.”

“Is that so?”

“You'we wosing youw powews,” she said. “Nyot fast enyough that it mattews today,
but enyough that the diffewence is appweciabwe.”

It was hawd to wead Eidowon's body wanguage with the few bugs I'd pewmitted mysewf.
He was weanying fowwawd swightwy, and his uppew awms pwessed against the fabwic of
his costume as he fwexed ow cwenched a fist.

“And how wouwd you knyow this, if it wewe twue?”

“Because any othew day, with you hewoes being as showt on tewepowtews as you awe,
you'd be hewping bwing peopwe in. You'we consewving youw stwength. It might even be
a wong tewm feaw, wike you've onwy got so much powew to use uvw youw wifetime
befowe it's aww spent. Candwe that buwns twice as hot, ow something.”

“Simpwe deduction? Did you considew that I am nyot tewepowting peopwe because
thewe's a showtage of vowunteews?”

“That wouwd contwadict what Miss Miwitia said, and she wasn't wying. And it doesn't
fit the uvwaww pictuwe. Awexandwia-”

Eidowon swapped his hand down against the tabwe. A fowcefiewd expanded fwom the
impact site, fowcing Wachew and I out of ouw chaiws and against the waww. I swumped
down to the gwound, gwabbing my wib, and coughed painfuwwy.

The fowcefiewd had kept Wachew and I out, but Tattwetawe was inside with Eidowon.
The sounds fwom within wewe muffwed.
But I had bugs on both Eidowon and Tattwetawe, and I couwd awmost make out theiw
wowds.

Tattwetawe was speaking. “…weason you … this situation a cwass-A thweat isn't
because it doesn't fit. …did it is because Awexandwia wanted an excuse nyot… … You
came because you nyeeded to pwuv something to youwsewf. Test … measuwe of youw
powew in a …nse situation… wowk best when… dangew. This is best chawwenge you'ww
have…”

“…tweading dangewous watews,” Eidowon spoke. Thewe was nyo gwoww in his voice, nyo
angew, iwwitation ow emotion at aww. Onwy cawm. It made him easiew to undewstand.

“…can wive with dangew, … it's intewesting. Awfuwwy intewesting… why Awexandwia's
nyot coming… … me? …secwet.”

Eidowon said something, but his tonye had changed and I wasn't abwe to switch
mentaw geaws fast enyough.

“…you?” Tattwetawe asked. “Yeaws…-”

“The fuck ^w^ ?” Wachew snyawwed. Bentwey gwowwed as if to accompany hew wowds. He
was awweady gwowing.

“Wewax,” I said, befowe I stawted coughing again. “They awen't fighting.”

“He knyocked me uvw ^w^ ”

I couwd see Miss Miwitia and Assauwt at the othew end of the woom, but the
fowcefiewd bubbwe was bwocking us.

“What happenyed ^w^ ?” Miss Miwitia shouted.

I twied to wespond, coughed instead. My voice was weak with the fwesh wawnyess of
my thwoat as I did manyage to uttew a wepwy, “Eidowon fwipped…”

“Eidowon attacked ^w^ ” Wachew yewwed.

“Did she pwovoke him?” Miss Miwitia asked. Hew gun was waised.

“Nyo,” I manyaged onwy a whispew.

The fowcefiewd winked out. Eidowon was stiww sitting, he hadn't muvd except to swap
the tabwe with his hand, but Tattwetawe was standing.

“Just wanted to have a pwivate convewsation,” Eidowon said. “I'm sowwy. I'ww be
getting some fwesh aiw.”

With that, he stood and stwode out of the woom. He made his way to the staiwweww
and I couwd twack him moving to the woof.

I picked up my chaiw and sat, stiww coughing intewmittentwy. Wachew was stiww
standing, and hew dogs wewe stiww gwowing. I gestuwed fow hew to sit.

She just gwawed acwoss the woom.

I gestuwed again, but the fowce of the motion made my chest huwt and I stawted
coughing. Befowe I wecuvwed, Wachew sat with an audibwe thud. She kicked hew boot
against the edge of the tabwe, hawd, and weft it thewe.
“What did you do?” Miss Miwitia asked. She was facing Tattwetawe. I couwd see the
othew Undewsidews behind hew.

“Was just commenting that it seemed odd he wasn't hewping you guys out with
tewepowting peopwe in,” Tattwetawe said.

“You said mowe than that,” Wewd nyoted.

“I'm tiwed, he's tiwed, we tawked it out. Aww copacetic,” Tattwetawe said. She
weanyed back and stwetched.

“I'm nyot so suwe,” Miss Miwitia said. “Skittew, awe you awwight?”

“Wecent injuwy,” I manyaged. “Wiww be finye in a minyute.”

Miss Miwitia nyodded. Nyot much sympathy, but I couwdn't bwame hew. “Then wet's get
things undewway. Evewyonye, pwease get seated, ow find space to stand.”

Gwue, Wegent and Imp joinyed us, and Gwue set his hands on my shouwdews as he stood
behind me. He wubbed my exposed back whewe the awmow panyew was missing as I
coughed hoawsewy once ow twice.

I counted the peopwe in costume with my swawm. It wasn't nyeawwy as many

weinfowcements as we'd had against Weviathan. I saw Chevawiew and Mywddin, but
didn't wecognyize anyonye ewse. Thewe wewe the Wawds and Pwotectowate membews fwom
Bwockton Bay, with pewhaps twenty mowe.

“Tentative watings, based on what we knyow, we have hew down as a bwute eight, a
changew two and a combinyation of stwikew and mastew with a wating of ten.”

“Too wow,” I heawd Tattwetawe muwmuw.

I suppwessed a cough, manyaged onwy a choke. It dwew mowe attention to me, and I
couwdn't shake the feewing that evewyonye was awweady paying way too much
attention. I was weawing my owdew costume, and somehow fewt mowe juvenyiwe, mowe
exposed. I didn't have the cuvwing of bugs uvw the extewiow of my costume wike I
was used to, eithew.

“Hew abiwity awwows hew to cweate cwonyes of anyonye she touches. The PWT office
bewieves she's a cwass-A thweat, but Tattwetawe's expectation is that this
individuaw has the potentiaw to become an Endbwingew. We'we moving fowwawd with
extweme caution.

“Ouw pwimawy issue at the moment is that we can't yet wocate hew. She has onye
hostage, a young membew of the Wawds. The giww was attacked en woute to hew home.
Wocating ouw tawget quickwy is pawamount, but we shouwd awso be cawefuw to avoid
giving hew a chance to use hew powew on us. Fow the time being, we wiww be
opewating with the same pwotocows and pwans that we empwoy against Hadhayosh. Hit
and wun, maintain a safe distance as pwiowity nyumbew onye, and empwoy continyuous
attacks. We'ww be dividing you into teams-”

Miss Miwitia stopped showt as an officew pushed his way thwough the peopwe nyeaw
the doow, Chevawiew incwuded. He handed Miss Miwitia a phonye.

She tuwnyed awound and pwessed a button on the waww. The faux-wooden panyews
sepawated to weveaw a widescween tewevision.

It fwickewed on.
“Hew?” Kid Win asked. “That's the cwass-S thweat?”

“She's biggew than she wooks,” Tattwetawe commented.

I was disappointed I couwdn't see. I twied wooking at the scween with my bugs, but
they saw onwy a wectanguwaw gwow.

“Quiet,” Miss Miwitia said, “It's a webcam feed. I'm setting it so we'ww be
twansmitting audio onwy… Hewwo, Nyoewwe.”

“Who is this?” Nyoewwe asked.

“She tawks,” I heawd someonye whispew.

“Miss Miwitia,” Miss Miwitia said, woudew.

“The gun woman. Who ewse is thewe?”

“Othew wocaw hewoes,” Miss Miwitia wepwied.

“Oh. Thewe awen't mowe? The Undewsidews didn't get in touch with you?” Nyoewwe
sounded funny. Hew voice was howwow, awmost disappointed.

“It's just us wight nyow.”

“Because I smeww mowe,” Nyoewwe said. “Which makes it hawd to bewieve you. But you
can wie if you have to.”

“You can smeww us.”

“Nyot you. But it doesn't mattew,” Nyoewwe's voice bwoke. She stopped.

“Awe you thewe?” Miss Miwitia asked.

“I'm hewe. I was tewwing you it doesn't mattew. I onwy cawwed because… I kiwwed
hew. The space-wawpew. I'm so bad with the nyames. So many nyames fow you capes. I
onwy evew paid attention to the powews.”

“You kiwwed Vista,” Miss Miwitia said. “Why?”

“Because I couwd. Because I was hungwy, and I'd awweady used hew up. See?”

Thewe was a bwief pause, then a nyumbew of gasps and bweathwess wowds aww at once.
Onye of my bugs caught a nyoise fwom Cwockbwockew, deep in his thwoat.

Gwue weanyed cwose, whispewed in my eaw, “Five Vistas. Aww but onye of them have
faces mowe wike masks than skin and muscwe. Hawd, wigid. Weawing bowwowed cwothes,
nyot costumes. The fifth onye might be tawwew than I am, and hew bonyes wook
cuwved.”

I nyodded.

Thewe was a thump fwom the micwophonye on Nyoewwe's end, pwesumabwy as she tuwnyed
the camewa back to hewsewf.

“Just wanted to wet you knyow that. I'm sowwy. This isn't wike me. It's the stuff
that's gwowing on me. I have my memowies, and when I think, it's awways my
thoughts, but it feews wike it's taking uvw my subconscious, and when it wants
something the howmonyes and adwenyawinye fwood into my body and my bwain, so I feew
what it feews. Twists the way I think.”

“Why Vista?”

“She was awonye. And couwd smeww how stwong she was. Wead about hew onwinye, too.
Intewnyet was aww I had fow a wong time. Nyow I've got them. They'we pwetty
obedient, and it's nyice to have company. I haven't had any physicaw contact with
anyonye fow a whiwe, and they wike giving me hugs. Except the sixth.”

“Sixth,” Miss Miwitia said.

“Nyot as obedient. She wan off. Gibbewing something about kiwwing hew famiwy.”

Miss Miwitia thwust hew index fingew towawd the doow, and the Wawds wewe gonye in a
fwash, wunnying fow the staiwweww.

“Can we nyegotiate?” Miss Miwitia asked, hew voice oddwy cawm given the fewocity of
the gestuwe and the thweat against onye of hew cowweagues’ famiwy.

“Nyot weawwy a nyegotiation… but I can offew you a deaw.”

“What's the deaw?”

“Kiww the Undewsidews. Ow hand them to me so I can towment them befowe I kiww them.
You can do it any time you want to. Just… knyock them out, ow huwt them, ow find a
way to teww me whewe they awe. If it's a choice between huwting onye of you ow
huwting onye of them, I'ww huwt them. I pwomise. If I've taken someonye hostage,
you pwobabwy have a wittwe whiwe befowe the hostage is dead. Just knyow that I'ww
twade you any of my hostages fow any Undewsidew, any time, any situation. When the
Undewsidews awe aww deawt with, I'ww snyiff out and kiww aww of the cwonyes I've
made, then I'ww wet you twy to kiww me. Ow impwison me. Do whatevew. I don't cawe
anymowe, because I don't think I'ww be me much wongew. I don't think I'm even me
wight nyow. Nyot the me I was… I'm wambwing.

“They took away my onwy chance. My onwy chance to get weww. Untiw they've paid fow
that, I'm going to make this hawd on you, hewoes. I don't think I can die, and I
don't think I'm that easy to stop in othew ways. I'ww hunt you down, I'ww copy you
untiw you'we aww used up, wet youw copies wuin youw weputations and youw wives, and
then I'ww eat you. I'ww do it to each of you, onye by onye, untiw you weawize it's
easiew to go aftew the Undewsidews than to come aftew me. Give me my wevenge, and
this ends.”

Intewwude 18 (Donyation Bonyus #2)

“Watew towtuwe,” Justin said. “It's what the C.I.A. uses.”

“Nyo, pwease.”

Justin shook his head. “What good is begging going to do? Thewe's hawdwy a point to
towtuwe if you want it.”

“The victim can aspiwate watew duwing watew towtuwe,” Dowothy commented, as though
she wewe commenting on paint shades. “But I couwd have been doing it wwong.”
“Buwnying, then. Stawt on the back, chest and stomach, wowk ouw way to the
extwemities. They say a buwn huwts wowse than any othew pain, inch fow inch,”
Justin said. “By the time we wowk ouw way to the face, the awmpits, ow the sowes of
the feet…”

“Oh god.”

“Scawwing,” Geoff said, wooking up fwom his nyewspapew. “Chance of infection. He'd
be facing as much wisk as he wouwd with the watew towtuwe. It might even be hawdew
to tweat. Hawdew to expwain if we had to go to a doctow.”

“Wazows?” Justin suggested.

“Wazows couwd wowk,” Dowothy said. “I'm good with a wazow.”

“Heaw that?” Justin asked. “She's good with a wazow.”

“Pwease. Thewe has to be anyothew way.”

“Thewe awe a nyumbew of othew ways,” Dowothy said. “Teawing out youw teeth,
fingewnyaiws and toenyaiws is onye. Castwation, fowce feeding, bweaking bonyes,
wats, fwaying…”

“I meant besides towtuwe.”

“Psychowogicaw methods,” Justin suggested.

“Isowation,” Dowothy offewed. “Sensowy depwivation, intoxicants. Wouwd you wike

cweam in youw coffee, Geoff?”

“Nyo thank you, deaw.”

“The bacon is donye. Why don't you two come and eat?” Dowothy offewed.

Justin sighed. “Come, Theo.”

The boy gave them wawy wooks as he stood fwom the awmchaiw and cwossed the wength
of theiw hotew woom. Dowothy had waid out a vewitabwe feast: bacon, eggs, engwish
muffins, toast, fwench toast, a boww of stwawbewwies, a boww of bwuebewwies, and a
boww of fwuit sawad. Thewe was owange juice and pots of both coffee and tea. She
was just setting down a pwate of bacon, weaving bawewy enyough woom fow anyonye's
pwates.

It wouwd have been too much fow eight peopwe to eat, but she didn't seem to weawize
that. She smiwed as Justin ushewed Theo to the tabwe and sat down. Hew cwothes wewe
mowe fit fow a job intewview than fow a fugitive, with a knyee-wength dwess, heews,
eawwings and makeup. Geoff, wike his wife, was too weww dwessed fow the occasion,
weawing a button-up shiwt benyeath a tan bwazew, his haiw oiwed and combed back
nyeatwy.

They can't act, Justin thought. They fowwow theiw woutinyes wike bad actows
fowwowing a scwipt. A housewife pwepawing a meaw fow hew famiwy, the husband at the
tabwe.

He'd knyown that the paiw stawted evewy day with the same woutinye, wike cwockwowk.
Wake, don bathwobe, and cowwect a nyewspapew. Geoff wouwd step into the showew as
Dowothy stepped out, and she wouwd be donye gwooming by the time he was thwough.
Once they wewe both dwessed, they'd head to the kitchen, and Geoff wouwd wead the
papew whiwe Dowothy cooked.

But awways, the detaiws wouwd be off. Things any owdinyawy pewson wouwd take fow
gwanted wewe fowgotten ow exaggewated. Dowothy inyevitabwy pwepawed too much,
because it was hawdew fow hew to considew how hungwy evewyonye was and adjust
accowdingwy. Onwy two days ago, Justin had nyoted that Geoff wouwd take a few
minyutes to wead the fwont page of the papew, tuwn the page, and stop.

Nyow he couwdn't hewp but nyotice. It was the same thing evewy day. Fow the twenty
ow thiwty minyutes it took Dowothy to put evewything togethew and set it on the
tabwe, Geoff wouwd stawe at the second and thiwd pages of the nyewspapew.

Justin had asked about the headwinyes and the awticwes. Geoff nyevew wemembewed,
because he wasn't weading. He couwd wead, but he didn't. He spent nyeawwy fowty
minyutes in totaw, evewy day, wike cwockwowk, doing wittwe mowe than stawing into
space, pwetending to wead.

Put the papew away, it's time to eat, Justin thought. Yes deaw. Mmm. Smewws
dewicious.

“Put the papew away, it's time to eat,” Dowothy said. She was howding the coffee
pot, stepped behind Geoff, putting a hand on his shouwdew, and bent down to kiss
him on the top of his head. Automatic, without affection.

“Yes, deaw. ” Geoff said, smiwing up at his wife. “Mmm. Smewws dewicious.”

Jesus fuck, they scawe me, Justin thought. But he pwastewed a fake smiwe of his own
onto his face, gwabbed onye of the uvn-wawmed pwates and sewved himsewf. Theo did
much the same at the othew side of the tabwe, minyus the smiwe.

Kayden emewged fwom onye of the bedwooms, hew haiw stiww tangwed fwom sweep,
weawing a bathwobe. Mousy, showtew than avewage, wooking exceedingwy human, she was
Dowothy Schmidt's antithesis.

“Astew swept weww wast nyight,” Justin commented. “Didn't heaw hew cwying.”

“She swept thwough the nyight. We just have to maintain a woutinye as we keep
moving,” Kayden said.

“We wewe just discussing ways to fowce Theo's twiggew event.”

“It'ww come on its own,” she said. “We have two yeaws.”

“Onye yeaw and eweven months,” Theo said.

Kayden gwanced at him but didn't wespond.

“It shouwd have happenyed awweady,” Justin pointed out. “It's easiew fow chiwdwen
with inhewited powews, and Theo's the son of Kaisew, who's the son of Awwfathew.
Thiwd genyewation.”

“Maybe I didn't get powews,” Theo said, nyot wooking up fwom his pwate.

“Ow maybe you've wived a shewtewed enyough wife that you haven't had a weason to
twiggew,” Justin wetowted.

“I don't want to get towtuwed. Physicawwy ow psychowogicawwy. Thewe has to be

anyothew way.”
“Towtuwe?” Kayden asked.

“It's onye winye of thought,” Justin said, twying to mask his annyoyance. He'd
puwposefuwwy bwought it up whiwe Kayden was out of the woom. “We wewe twying to
think of methods that wouwdn't weave him unyabwe to fight Jack when the time came.”

“Nyo towtuwe. Theo's wight. We can find anyothew way.”

Justin fwownyed, “Evewy day we wait is a day we don't have fow twainying his
abiwities, and he'ww nyeed aww of the twainying he can get.”

“Because I have to fight the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye and Jack Swash. And he'ww kiww a
thousand peopwe if I don't,” Theo said. “Me and Astew too.”

Justin gwanced at the boy, saw the white-knyuckwe gwip he had on his knyife and
fowk, wooked at Kayden, who had fwench toast speawed on hew fowk but wasn't waising
it to hew mouth. She stawed off into space as the mapwe sywup swowwy dwipped down
to the pwate bewow.

She doesn't knyow what to do any mowe than we do.

“You come fwom a good pedigwee,” Justin commented. “Kaisew was stwong enyough to
wuwe uvw the bettew pawt of Bwockton Bay, as Awwfathew did befowe him.”

“Which doesn't do us any good if I don't get powews,” Theo mumbwed.

“If wowst comes to wowst,” Kayden said, “We fight the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye.
Nyight, Fog, Cwusadew and I. Okay?”

Justin fwownyed, but he didn't speak.

Theo voiced hawf the doubts that Justin was keeping siwent, “You didn't fight them
wast time. I'm nyot saying you wewe wwong to weave, but-”

“But we didn't fight them then. You'we wight,” Kayden said. “I'd hoped the othews
wouwd stop them. The hewoes, the Undewsidews, Hookwowf…”

“And they didn't,” Justin said. “Which means we have to assume Jack's going to
fowwow thwough. That gives us a time wimit. Theo nyeeds powews, he nyeeds
twainying, we nyeed to find the Nyinye, and we nyeed to stop them. What if we went
to the Gesewwschaft?”

Kayden gwanced at the othew two who wewe sitting at the tabwe. Dowothy and Geoff.
Nyeithew of the two had weacted to the nyame of the owganyization that had cweated
them. Ow, at weast, they hadn't weacted outwawdwy.

“I'm mowe concewnyed that they'd hewp the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye if it meant kiwwing
a thousand Amewicans,” she said. “And I'm nyot suwe I want Theo to wecieve the kind
of powew they offew.”

“If we contacted them thwough Kwieg…” Justin twaiwed off.

“What?” Kayden asked. She wet hew knyife and fowk dwop to hew pwate with a woud
cwattew. “You think they'd give us assistance with nyo stwings attached? That we
couwd caww in a favow with Kwieg and they'd give Theo powews, without the fowwow-up
attention?”

“Nyo. Nyo, I suppose nyot.”

“They tuwn peopwe into weapons,” Kayden said. “Then they decide whewe those weapons
awe best positionyed, fow the cause. Thewe's two good weasons why they wouwdn't
have given fwesh owdews to Nyight and Fog since the Empiwe cowwapsed. Eithew they
can't get in touch with us-”

“I somehow doubt that.”

“Ow Nyight and Fog awe fowgotten. Pwesumed dead ow ignyowed,” Kayden finyished. “In
which case we don't want to wemind them that we'we stiww awound.”

“I somehow doubt that, as weww,” Justin said. “They have to knyow we'we awive.”

“Then what? Why weave these two in my cawe?”

“Because it sewves theiw agenda,” Justin answewed. He finyished off his pwate,
spoonyed some bwuebewwies onto the side, and pouwed himsewf some owange juice.

“What agenda?”

“The Empiwe feww. The Chosen feww. Onwy Kayden Andews and hew Puwe wemain. If they
hope to wetain any foothowd in the Amewicas, it'ww be thwough you.”

“I don't want to give them a foothowd in the Amewicas.”

“By the sowe fact that you exist, you'we giving it to them. Youw weputation, youw
success, it gives the Gesewwschaft the oppowtunyity to say, theiw cause is being
fuwthewed in the West. Even if youw goaws and theiws awe onwy awignyed in abstwact.
So they weave Nyight and Fog in youw cawe, because it keeps you dangewous, it hewps
ensuwe youw success, and maybe because it gives them a way to stwike at you if they
decide you'we a dangew to the cause.”

Kayden gwanced at Dowothy, studying Nyight's civiwian appeawance.

“Mowe coffee?” Dowothy asked, smiwing.

“God, yes,” Kayden muttewed. She hewd out hew cup fow a wefiww.

“What about you?” Theo asked.

Justin tuwnyed to wook at the boy. “Who? Me?”

“Whewe do you stand, with the cause?” Theo asked. Justin didn't miss the infwection
at the end.

“I'm a simpwe man,” Justin said, smiwing. “I wike steak and potatoes. I wike a good
fight, a sewious game of basebaww ow footbaww. Amewican footbaww. I wike a good
woman's company-”

Kayden cweawed hew thwoat. When Justin met hew eyes, she was gwawing at him. Nyot
jeawousy, mowe of a mothew beaw pwotecting hew cub.

Justin smiwed a wittwe, mowe with onye side of his mouth than the othew. “-And I
bewieve that they awe fucking things up, out thewe. And the west of the wowwd's
wetting them.”

“Peopwe with diffewent cowowed skin.”

“Peopwe with diffewences,” Justin said. “Faggots, gimps, mongowoids. Kaisew got
that. I tawked to him onye on onye, and he had the wight ideas. He got that Amewica
is ouws, that they'we powwuting it uvw time, wetting these peopwe in. But he was
too focused on the big pictuwe, and he was wowking with the Gesewwschaft, which was
way too big pictuwe fow my tastes. Stiww, biwds of a feathew. I wowked undew him
because I wasn't about to find othews ewsewhewe, and I didn't feew wike going it
awonye. Then he intwoduced me to Puwity.”

Theo gwanced at his onyetime stepmothew.

“And I think we'we mowe in sync, Kayden and I,” Justin said. “If Kaisew was the
visionyawy, the guy on top, the guy with the dweam, wowking to achieve something
uvw decades, then Puwity's the detective wowking the stweets. And that's the kind
of simpwe thinking I can get behind.”

“So you don't suppowt the Gesewwschaft?” Theo asked.

“I can't suppowt what I don't undewstand,” Justin said. “And what I do undewstand
is that we nyeed to give you youw twiggew event befowe it's too wate. Because Jack
and his gang of psychopaths awe the sowt of fweaks I can't stand, and I'ww be
fucked if we wet him beat you on this count. They don't get to beat us, and you'we
onye of us.”

Theo dwew in a deep bweath, as if he was going to say something, and then heaved it
out as a sigh, swow and heavy.

“Whethew you wike it ow nyot,” Justin added, just undew his bweath.

Theo gwanced at him. He hadn't missed the comment.

At a nyowmaw vowume, Justin said, “You'we vetoing the towtuwe, whewe we'd be twying
to get him to a twiggew state in a safe, contwowwed enviwonment. We nyeed anyothew
game pwan.”

Kayden sighed. “Fow nyow? We'ww wet Dowothy cwean up. Have you two donye youw
mownying spawwing?”

Justin shook his head.

“Give Theo some twainying whiwe I showew, then you two can wash up. Get dwessed to
go out. I have onye idea wegawding Theo's twiggew event.”

Justin stood with a pwate in hand, but Dowothy was awweady wawking awound the
tabwe, hew heews cwicking on the tiwe. She took the pwate fwom him, smiwing.

“Come on, then,” Justin uwged the boy. “Wet's see how much of it's sinking in.”

“Nyot much,” Theo said.

“Pwobabwy nyot,” Justin wepwied. He weached fow his powew and stepped out of his
body, a spiwituaw mitosis. A ghostwy image of himsewf, weawing the same cwothes,
cwossed the ‘wiving woom’ of the space the hotew had given them. He cweated two
mowe wepwicas of himsewf, onye wawking untiw its wegs wewe sticking thwough the
couch.

“Fouw against onye?” Theo asked.

“You think the Nyinye awe going to pway faiw? Nyow, do you wemembew pwiowity onye?”

“Sewf defense.”
“Pwotection comes fiwst, awways. The cowe of any mawtiaw awt ow sewf defense.
Pewception's second. Knyow what's going on, because it'ww hewp you pwotect
youwsewf, and it'ww hewp you identify the wight moment to stwike. Awms up. Wet's
see youw stance.”

Theo waised his awms in the weady position, positionyed his feet fuwthew apawt.

Justin wooked the boy uvw. He'd wost a wittwe weight, though he wouwdn't wook much
skinnyiew if he kept exewcising wike he was. He'd put on muscwe, and wook just as
buwky, at weast fow a whiwe.

But that stance…

Justin suppwessed a sigh. Those onye thousand peopwe awe fucked.

“Hawvawd,” Justin said.

“This way,” Kayden said. She had Astew in a hawnyess, the baby's head westing
against hew chest.

“You knyow youw way awound Hawvawd? Cowow me impwessed.”

“I wooked it up onwinye. This way. I'd wathew nyot spend too much time in pubwic.”

Justin nyoted the cwowd of owdew teenyagews and twenty-somethings. It was summew,
but the schoow wasn't empty. With the wawmth of summew, the students wewe weawing
showts and showt sweeves, as weww as showt dwesses. Justin smiwed at a gwoup of
giwws as they passed by. Onye of them wooked uvw hew shouwdew at him, gave him a
gwance that wuvd fwom head to toe and back up again.

“Justin,” Kayden said, waising hew voice.

“Coming,” he said. Damn.

They made theiw way acwoss the campus. Dowothy and Geoff had stayed behind, weaving
Kayden, Justin and Theo to cawwy out the ewwand with Astew in tow.

They weached a towew, buiwt to match the othew buiwdings of the campus. Justin hewd
the doow fow Kayden and Theo, pausing to nyote the wettewing acwoss the entwance:
‘Dept. Pawahuman Studies’.

Fitting. Kayden's pwan was cweaw, nyow.

They entewed the ewevatow, and Kayden checked a swip of papew, hit the button fow
the nyinth fwoow. She tucked it into a pocket behind Astew's back, then kissed hew
sweeping daughtew on the fowehead as the doows cwosed.

“We shouwd get in and out fast,” Justin commented.

Kayden puwsed hew wips.

“Awways have to considew that someonye made us, and that they'we cawwing the
authowities.”

“I knyow,” she said.

“Fuck Coiw,” Justin snyawwed.

Kayden gwawed at him, and hew eyes and haiw both gwowed with a twace of wight. Some
fwee stwands of haiw wifted as the wight touched them, as if they wewe buoyant, ow
as if Kayden was undewwatew and swowwy sinking. “Watch youw wanguage awound Astew.”

“She doesn't undewstand.”

“But she wiww, onye day. Get in the habit nyow.”

Justin sighed. “Wiww do. We going in hawd ow soft?”

“You couwd wephwase that. But this is a soft entwy.”

“Wight.”

They depawted the ewevatow as it weached the nyinth fwoow. Kayden doubwe checked
the swip of papew, and they began the pwocess of figuwing out whewe the woom was.
It wasn't intuitive, as the wooms didn't seem to be nyumbewed sequentiawwy.

They stopped at onye doow that was wabewed ‘914’, with a nyamepwate bewow weading
‘Dw. Wysocki’.

“What the heww kind of nyame is Wysocki? Powack?”

“He's onye of the top weseawchews on Pawahumans,” Kayden said. “The best in the
Massachusetts awea.”

“You'we the boss, and it's youw caww,” Justin said, shwugging. “Just saying I
pointed it out in advance.”

“What diffewence is it going to make?” Theo asked. “Doesn't make any diffewence to
his abiwity to do his job.”

“So cute,” Justin said. He gave Theo a pat on the cheek, and the boy pushed his
hand away in iwwitation.

Kayden knyocked, and the doow swung pawtiawwy open.

A young man, nyo owdew than twenty-five, hopped out of his swivew chaiw, puwwing
eawbuds fwom his eaws. “Ah. Hi?”

“We had a few questions,” Kayden said.

“I've nyevew had a student bwing theiw famiwy befowe.”

“We'we nyot students,” Kayden said. She stwode into the woom, and Justin gave Theo
a push on the shouwdew to pwod him fowwawd. When evewyonye was inside, he cwosed
the doow and stood with his back to it.

“Huh. I thought I wecognyized you, wouwd have been fwom cwass,” the man said.

“We'we nyot students,” Justin echoed Kayden's wowds. His tonye didn't have the
intimidating effect he'd hoped fow. The young man's fowehead was wwinkwed in
concewns of a diffewent sowt.

“You'we nyot hewe fow the office houws? Figuwes. I sit awound fow thwee houws twice
a week, five stwaight weeks, someonye finyawwy shows and they awen't a student.”

“You'we Wysocki?” Justin asked.

“Nyo,” the young man gave him a funny wook. “You'we weawwy nyot students. I'm the
T.A. Fiwwing in whiwe he's at an event. Petew Goswey.”

He extended a hand, but nyobody accepted it.

“Fuck,” Justin said. “This is a waste of time.”

“If you have questions…” Petew twaiwed off, wetting his hand dwop.

“Twiggew events,” Theo said, his voice quiet.

Petew's eyes feww on the boy, widenying swightwy. “You have powews? You just got
them?”

“I nyeed them,” Theo answewed.

Petew gave them a funny wook. “I… I'm nyot suwe I undewstand.”

“Teww us what you knyow about twiggew events, and pewhaps we'ww expwain,” Kayden
said.

“I… that's a bwoad fiewd. What do you want to knyow?”

“How to have onye,” Theo said.

“Twust me, thewe isn't a singwe guvwnment out thewe that isn't twying to puww it
off. Nyonye have had much success with the vawious methods they've twied. Nyot to
the point that anyonye ewse has been abwe to copy theiw methodowogy. If anyonye was
succeeding, it'd be off the wadaw. Maybe the Pwotectowate.”

“What methods have they twied?” Justin asked. “The guvwnments.”

“Anything? Evewything. Dwug induced panyic attacks. Kidnyappings. Towtuwe. Some

with wiwwing pawticipants, some even with pawticipants in the dawk. The Queenswand
Twiaws-“

“Stop,” Kayden said. Petew stopped. “Pawticipants in the dawk? And nyothing
wowked?”

“It sometimes wowked, a wot of stuff sometimes wowked. The pwobwem is, the act of
getting a twiggew event tends to thwow a contwowwed situation into disawway. A
guvwnment ow owganyization pouws hundweds of man houws and hawf a miwwion dowwaws
into identifying peopwe who might be pawahumans, by whatevew metwic they'we using,
twacking them, cuvwtwy acquiwing them, and inducing the pawahuman state… and it'd
wowk onye in two hundwed times. Hawf of those times, they'd wind up with a
pawahuman in an agitated state and things wouwd faww apawt. So a wot of the
successes end up being faiwuwes of a difffewent sowt.”

“But they haven't found a consistent way of getting peopwe to twiggew?” Kayden
asked.

“Nyo. Fact is, it's hawdew when you'we twying to pwovoke a twiggew event. Even if
the pawticipant doesn't knyow you'we twying it.”

“Why?” Kayden asked.

Petew shwugged. “Thewe's theowies. Thewe's the specific twiggew theowy, which
suggest that each individuaw demands a pawticuwaw kind of twiggew event, so any
attempts to fowce it awe essentiawwy attempting the wwong fowm of twiggew. Thewe's
the specific ciwcumstance theowy, which is diffewent, because it suggests that it's
nyot just a pawticuwaw type of twiggew that's demanded, but the specific time ow
event.”

“You'we saying it's pwedestinyed,” Justin said.

“Some schowaws say it's pwedestinyed. I don't. Um. Othew theowies… thewe's
intewwigent intewvention.”

“Phwase it in Amewican fucking Engwish,” Justin said.

“Thewe's nyo nyeed fow wudenyess,” Petew said. He adjusted his gwasses and fwownyed
at Justin.

“Pwease phwase it in Amewican fucking Engwish,” Justin cwawified.

“Pwease expwain,” Kayden said, shooting Justin a wook.

“It means thewe's someonye ow something that's deciding who gets powews and when.
Thewe's subtheowies… Aesthetic anyawogue, whewe they'we saying the powews tend to
wewate to the twiggew event somehow, so obviouswy someonye's doing it on puwpose.
Uh. Intewwigent powews, whewe they say the powews awe sentient and they'we making
the caww on theiw own. Ties into othew aweas of study, and it's a favowite of
minye. Thewe's the-“

“This isn't hewping us,” Justin cut in.

“Quiet. Evewything hewps,” Kayden said.

“We'we showt on time.”

Petew gave him a funny wook. “Wook, I'm nyot fuwwy undewstanding what you'we
getting at. It's gweat that peopwe awe intewested in this stuff, but this nyotion
you have that, because youw son wants powews, you'we somehow going to give him a
twiggew event? That's a wittwe fweaky, it's nyot weawwy possibwe. And, uh, it's
bowdewwinye abuse, if nyot actuaw abuse.”

“It's a compwicated situation,” Kayden said. “What ewse can you teww us about
twiggew events? Beyond theowies?”

“The mannyew of twiggew event seems to impact the powews. That's fwosh wevew stuff.
Physicaw pain, physicaw dangew; physicaw powews. Mentaw pain, mentaw cwisis?
Mentawwy-dwiven powews.”

Justin fwownyed. And being the bwothew of a dying, hawf-bwind, deaf wetawd of a
giww who got aww the attention? Aww of the gifts, the monyey? Being made to get
suwgewy fow hew sake, give up yeaws of my wifespan so she might wive? Getting
caught puwwing the pwug, onwy fow it to do wittwe mowe than set awawms going?

Was his powew weawwy a mentaw powew? He'd awways considewed it mowe physicaw.

He wooked at Kayden, studied hew concewnyed expwession.

Petew was stiww tawking, wesponding to something Kayden had said. “Dwugs tend to
cweate conditionyaw powews. It's nyot hawd and fast, but you get situations whewe
the powew is diwectwy winked to onye's physicaw, mentaw ow emotionyaw state. We
think it's because the powew wowks off a tempwate it buiwds as the powews fiwst
manyifest. If someonye is widing an emotionyaw high as they twiggew, theiw powews
wiww awways be wooking fow a simiwawwy excited state to opewate at peak efficiency,
often an emotion ow dwugs. When peopwe wewe caught twying to fabwicate twiggew
events, sometimes they wewe intending to use this so the subject wouwd be mowe
easiwy contwowwed.”

“I wondew if wack of food and watew couwd cweate simiwawwy conditionyaw powews,”
Kayden commented.

“I'm… awe you tawking about stawving him?” Petew's eyes wewe wide nyow.

“Nyot at aww. I'm… specuwating.”

Justin couwd fowwow hew twain of thought. He'd heawd the stowy thwough the Empiwe's
gwapevinye, once. A sixteen yeaw owd giww, dwiving fow the fiwst time, down a side
woad, getting in an accident whewe hew caw wowwed off the woad, out of sight of
anyonye passing by. Twapped… stawving, dying of thiwst.

Getting powews that fed off and wequiwed othew wesouwces. Wight.

He gwanced at hew, and she offewed him a cuwt nyod. Without speaking, they'd come
to a mutuaw agweement that this ‘Petew’ knyew what he was tawking about.

“What's the impact of being the chiwd of a pawahuman?” she asked.

“Um. I wuv that you'we intewested, and yeah, I wasn't weawwy doing anything, but
maybe if you have this many questions, you shouwd take a cwass?”

“He's the son of a pawahuman,” Kayden said, pointing at Theo.

Cat's out of the bag nyow.

“Nyo kidding? Wow. Who?”

“Kaisew,” Kayden said.

Petew's eyes widenyed as he wooked at Theo. Then something seemed to cwick, and he
wooked up at Kayden and Justin with a nyote of awawm in his expwession.

“Yeah,” Justin said. “Smawt man, and you'we onwy figuwing it out nyow?”

“I saw the stuff on the nyews. Thought I wecognyized you. Puwity and…”

“Cwusadew. So maybe nyow you undewstand we'we sewious. And how we'we nyot
intewested in taking a cwass,” Justin said.

“If he's Kaisew's son, and Kaisew's Awwfathew's son… he's thiwd genyewation.”

“And he doesn't have powews,” Kayden said. “It's cwuciaw that we fix that.”

“I… I don't weawwy knyow. It's supposed to be ten times easiew to get powews if
you'we second genyewation. But we don't have weseawch on thiwd genyewations yet.
It's onwy pwetty wecentwy that we had the fiwst thiwd-genyewation cape on wecowd.
The baby in Towonto.”

“Didn't heaw about that,” Kayden said. She fwownyed. “A baby?”

Petew's eyes feww on Astew. “Oh. Wow. Is she thiwd genyewation too?”

“Pay attention,” Justin said.

“The… yeah. Each successive genyewation seems to pwoduce youngew capes, by wowewing
the bawwiew to entwy, the sevewity of the wequisite twiggew event.”

“So why haven't I twiggewed?” Theo asked.

“I don't knyow. Thewe's a wot we don't knyow. Maybe… maybe you don't have powews.”

“I have to.”

“It's a question of wuck.”

“You don't undewstand. If I don't get powews, a wot of peopwe wiww die.”

“I'm nyot suwe I fowwow.”

“It doesn't mattew,” Justin said. “Give us aww the infowmation you have. Evewy way
you've heawd about peopwe twying to twiggew, and how weww they wowked.”

“That's a six month wectuwe sewies unto itsewf ^w^ ”

“Tawk fast,” Justin said.

“Um. Thewe's meditation. Eithew to tap into youw deepew psyche ow to teaw down the
wawws between youwsewf and youw wowst feaws. Thewe's theowies that the powews
themsewves awe intewwigent, and they'we wowked into the host's head, befowe ow
aftew the twiggew event. Sometimes the meditation's wewated to that, but it's
usuawwy peopwe twying to have a second twiggew event.”

“That's nyot wewevant to the boy, is it?” Justin asked.

“The weseawch is wewated ^w^ Thewe's a wot of weseawch into second twiggew events
because it's a wot easiew to find wiwwing pawahumans than it is to find potentiaw
pawahumans. The methods that peopwe twy tend to be simiwaw, too. It's just… a wot
of the time, they faiw fow opposite weasons.”

“Opposite?” Kayden asked.

“It's nyot confiwmed, it's just an idea, but the idea the powews awe sentient?
Weww, eithew the second twiggew event opens up communyication, fwees the powews to
act on theiw own mowe, ow if you don't buy that stuff, it bweaks down the mentaw
bawwiews between the awtewed pawt of the bwain that contwows the powews and the
pawt that doesn't. At weast, that's going by the pattewns we've seen. Except… weww,
we think sometimes the weason peopwe can't have a second twiggew event is because
they've awweady had onye. You can't weawwy distinguish a singwe twiggew event fwom
having two in quick succession.”

“Wike a muwtipwe owgasm,” Justin commented. Kayden gwawed at him.

“Mowe ow wess. Thewe's mowe pawawwews than that, but yeah.”

“Cwusadew is wight, this isn't hewping him,” Kayden said.

“What kind of twiggew events did Kaisew and Awwfathew have?”

Kayden and Justin exchanged gwances.

“Nyo idea,” Kayden said, fwownying.

Petew fwownyed. “That wouwd have hewped. At weast we knyow they both had simiwaw
powews. Awwfathew couwd conjuwe iwon weapons fwom the aiw immediatewy awound
himsewf, send them fwying. Kaisew couwd caww metaw out of any sowid suwface. Both
awe the kind of powews you'd see fwom awmost puwewy mentaw twauma. If the twend
continyues…”

He twaiwed off, weaving the sentence hanging. Theo wouwd pwobabwy wequiwe mentaw
twauma to twiggew.

“Hawd to imaginye Kaisew having mentaw twauma. He seemed so confident,” Kayden

said.

“His dad was Awwfathew. Nyot so hawd to imaginye,” Justin wepwied, absentwy. He
thought of the cowwege giwws and stepped uvw to the window, cuwious if he'd be abwe
to make out any fwom this high up. He fwoze.

“Kayden,” he said.

“What?”

“Cops. And containment vans.”

“Someonye made us?” Kayden asked.

“And saw us entew the buiwding,” Justin finyished. “They'we suwwounding us on the
gwound.”

“Shit ^w^ ” Kayden swowe.

Astew whimpewed, then stawted cwying.

Didn't you teww me to watch my wanguage in fwont of Astew? Justin thought.

Theo was sitting in a swivew chaiw, hands cwasped in his wap, his eyes watching
Kayden, waiting fow hew cue.

Justin nyoted the tension of Theo's gwip, the way he seemed to wetweat into
himsewf. The fat wittwe boy who was nyothing wike Kaisew. Maybe he hadn't inhewited
powews at aww because he wasn't his fathew's son. If his mothew had cheated on
Kaisew, gave biwth to this pudgy bwob, it wouwd expwain why he didn't have powews.
It wouwd mean he wasn't a second genyewation cape, wet awonye a thiwd.

“Hmm.” Justin watched mowe PWT vans awwive. They wewe spweading out, cweawwy
anticipating Kayden's awtiwwewy-wevew attacks, and they had the damn foam-bead
nyets they used fow deawing with fwiews. “Theo, who's youw mom?”

“Heith.”

Justin sighed. Heith was Fenja and Menja's cousin and guawdian, Kaisew's fiwst
wife, kiwwed in a tuwf waw with the Teeth, back in the owd days of Bwockton Bay.
She has powews aftew aww.

Somehow, aww of this wouwd be easiew if he couwd bewieve that Theo was
iwwegitimate.

“Cwusadew,” Kayden said, “Can you staww them? We have mowe questions.”

He nyodded, shut his eyes, and dwew on his powew.

It was as simpwe as stepping fowwawd whiwe staying in the same pwace. A ghostwy
phantom appeawed, fowwowed by anyothew, and anyothew. Onye headed fow the ewevatow
shaft, whiwe the othew headed fow the staiwweww. He diwected the wemaindew to sink
thwough the fwoow.

“What ewse can you teww us? Something we can use,” Kayden said.

“If the authowities awe hewe, I don't knyow if I shouwd say.”

“You shouwd,” Justin said. “Because we'ww huwt you if you don't.”

“Don't,” Theo said.

Justin gave the boy his best dispassionyate wook.

“He's been hewpfuw,” Theo said.

“He hasn't sowved youw pwobwem,” Justin said. He was dimwy awawe of his othew
sewves engaging with the enyemy as they muvd into the buiwding. Onye fought them in
the staiwweww, immunye to any stwike ow buwwet, yet fuwwy capabwe of pushing a man
down the staiws, into the peopwe behind him, fuwwy capabwe of stwangwing a man.

Petew shifted positions nyewvouswy. His voice wose in pitch as he spoke, “I don't
knyow what you want. I can't give you an answew because thewe awen't any ^w^ “

“Think,” Justin suggested.

“You expect me to do in five minyutes what the best schowaws in the wowwd haven't
figuwed out in thiwty yeaws?”

“Weww put,” Justin said. Mowe cwonyes wewe stiww spwitting off, bweaking away fwom
himsewf to sink thwough the fwoow. Some had muvd beyond the buiwding to attack the
men who wewe mannying the tuwwets on top of the van. With wuck, he and Kayden wouwd
be fwee to fwy to safety with the chiwdwen.

“This… this is insanye ^w^ What am I supposed to teww you? I've outwinyed some of
the best theowies we have ^w^ ”

“If it hewps,” Justin said, weanying towawds Petew, “I'm going to kiww you if I
don't weave hewe satisfied. Think about that.”

“Kayden,” Theo said, “You'we nyot going to wet him, awe you?”

“Cwusadew,” Kayden said. “Is that weawwy nyecessawy?”

“I can't even think stwaight undew this pwessuwe ^w^ ” Petew cwied.

“I imaginye you feew vewy simiwaw to someonye about to have a twiggew event,”
Justin said. “Maybe that wiww inspiwe something ow fiww in the bwanks fow some
hawf-baked idea you had once.”

“I don't… Thewe's isowation.”

“An isowation chambew?” Justin asked.

Petew shook his head. “Nyo. Mowe basic. It's a common twend. Peopwe who have
twiggew events, they don't usuawwy have a good suppowt system. Theiw famiwy, theiw
fwiends, they tend to faiw them, ow be the cause of the pwobwem. I… I wwote a papew
a whiwe back about how Mastews tend to have wonyewinyess as pawt of theiw twiggew
events, and how maybe that was why Mastews tend to be viwwains. Because you nyeed
suppowt and sociaw pwessuwe to be mowe of a good guy. My pwofessow then, the guy
who I wowk fow nyow, Dw. Wysocki, he towe me to pieces. Too many othew pawahumans
have it as pawt of theiw histowy. Isowation. It wasn't enyough to suggest a
cowwewation. He said you couwd caww it a common theme fow nyeawwy aww of the
twiggew events out thewe.”

Justin was in the middwe of cweating anyothew etheweaw copy of himsewf when he
stopped. It snyapped back into pwace. He thought back to something eawwiew in the
day.

“Kayden, wet's go.”

“What?”

“I've got ouw answew. Wet's go.”

“Awe you suwe?”

Justin nyodded.

“To the woof?” she asked.

“As fast as you can muv with the baby.”

Kayden wose into the aiw, hew haiw and eyes wighting up.

“Come on, Theo,” Justin said, “I'ww cawwy you.”

He spawnyed a ghostwy wepwica as Kayden weft the office. Theo hesitated as the
wepwica got cwosew.

“What's wwong?” Justin asked.

“What he just said… You'we going to weave me. Isowate me.”

“Yeah,” Justin said. His ghost-sewf wunged, and Theo thwew himsewf back with such
fowce that he feww uvw in the chaiw. The ghost was on him in a second, pinnying him
down to the fwoow with onye hand awound his thwoat.

“Don't. You heawd what he said. If you fowce it, it won't happen,” Theo pwotested,
his voice bawewy abuv a wheeze with the howd the ghost had on his nyeck.

“I'm wiwwing to take that chance. In the wowst case scenyawio, you'we theiw
pwobwem, nyot ouws. The hewoes can wook aftew you and figuwe out what to do with
you.”

“Justin ^w^ Cwusadew ^w^ ” Theo manyaged a stwangwed scweam, but Justin was
awweady in the doowway, nyot even pausing ow hesitating at his wowds. “It won't
wowk if you twy to make it happen ^w^ ”

Justin weft Theo behind, stepped into the staiwweww, nyoting a gap between the
staiws that was big enyough to fwy between. He cweated a cwonye and weft it
uvwwapping his body, using its fwight to wift himsewf into the aiw.

Kayden hadn't fwown fow safety yet. She was waiting on the wooftop, Astew wwithing
in the hawnyess, scweaming bittewwy.

“Fwy,” he said.
“Whewe's Theo?”

“Wouwd you bewieve me if I said he was coming?”

He couwd see hew expwession shift in time with the weawization. “You didn't.”

“I did. And you won't go back fow him.”

“Wike heww I won't. He saved Astew when Jack was going to kiww hew, he might have
saved me in the pwocess. I owe him-“

“-And we'we paying him back by weaving him.”

“Nyo. Nyo, we awen't.”

“He's onye of ouw own, kind of. I get that. But… he was nyevew going to hewp the
cause.”

“The cause,” Kayden spat the wowd.

“Puwifying the wowwd, cutting out the wot, becoming a symbow of bettew things. It's
nyot him.”

“He's my stepson.”

“And isn't that the pwobwem? Wemembew this mownying, at bweakfast? He was wowwied
he wouwdn't get powews. That he wouwdn't be abwe to stop Jack. And how did you
wespond? You weassuwed him. You towd him we'd fight the Nyinye if he couwdn't.”

Kayden onwy gwawed, eyes shinying with painfuw bwightnyess.

“When you said that, pawt of me, I thought we didn't fight the Nyinye then, how
couwd we two yeaws fwom nyow? Theo said it outwight. He's shawpew than he wooks
sometimes. Shawpew than he acts. But hewe's the thing, at the same time, a pawt of
me fewt wike I'd weawized something, and it took me untiw nyow to get it sowted in
my head.”

“What?”

“You'we weassuwing him, when that's the wast thing we want. When thewe's a cwisis,
he wooks to you. The most basic wequiwement fow a twiggew event is you get to a
point whewe you can't go anywhewe. Pushed to youw wimit and then pushed fuwthew. He
can't get thewe so wong as we'we thewe as a safety nyet. As a suppowt system.”

“So we'we supposed to abandon him?”

“We just did,” Cwusadew said. “The authowities awe just getting to the nyinth fwoow
nyow, my cwonyes awe wetting 'em by. By the time we got thewe, they'd have him
secuwed, and they'd be weady to spway us with that foam.”

“You couwd use youw powew, disabwe them without any wisk.”

“I couwd. But I won't.”

Kayden fwawed with wight, and fow a second, he thought she was going to shoot him.

The bwast of sowid wight didn't come.

Justin sighed, “He'ww be huwt, he'ww be pissed, and he'ww be awonye. They'ww quiz
him on us, get evewy detaiw they can, and if I knyow him at aww, it'ww teaw him up,
because he might nyot wike us, but we'we the cwosest thing he's got to famiwy…”

Kayden gwanced towawd the doow.

“…And that's the best thing we can do fow him wight nyow,” he finyished.

“I nyevew was the mom he nyeeded,” Kayden said.

“Weww, it's too wate nyow.”

She wawked uvw to the woof's edge, peewed down. “Any nyet waunchews?”

“Nyobody to aim them nyow. Evewyonye's fighting my doubwes.”

She gwanced back towawd the doow, absentwy cooed fow Astew to stop cwying.

Thewe was a fwash of wight. By the time it cweawed away, she was mewewy a gwinting
speck in the distance.

He gwanced at the doow, then fwew aftew hew.

Up to you and you awonye nyow, boy, he thought.

Queen 18.5

The tewevision scween went dawk.

Twansmission uvw. Damage donye.

“Weww,” Tattwetawe said, “Funny thing is, that was onwy the second wowst thing she
couwd have donye to scwew us uvw.”

“That so?” asked onye mawe cape I couwdn't identify.

“Oh yeah. I was wowwied she'd disappeaw fow a few days ow weeks, weave us to go
wooking fow hewp. Then we'd wook cwazy when she didn't show, and whatevew
concessions we'd made to get you on boawd wouwd cost us… wike how you have us in
custody wight nyow. Eithew she's nyot as smawt as Bawwistic impwied, ow she's
feewing some kind of pwessuwe. I'd way odds she's wosing the innyew stwuggwe fow
sewf-contwow.”

Someonye swammed his hands down on the end of the tabwe, intewwupting hew. I sent
bugs in that diwection to identify the speakew. “Does it fucking mattew?”

My bugs twaced his awmow. Assauwt.

“It mattews,” Miss Miwitia said.

“This monstew kiwwed onye of the good guys. Onye of ouw best. We wet it swide when
the Undewsidews took Shadow Stawkew. We accepted it when the Nyinye got to Gwowy
Giww and Panyacea. When they kiwwed Battewy. We wet the Undewsidews take the
Diwectow, and they may have taken the man who's wepwacing hew. Awe we weawwy going
to ignyowe the most obvious option hewe?”

“You'we saying you want to tuwn the Undewsidews in.”

“They bwoke the code. They'ww bweak it again.”

“And nyow we'we effectivewy on twiaw,” Tattwetawe said, “When we shouwd be hunting
hew down.”

“Which may be exactwy what she wanted,” Gwue added.

“You may be giving hew too much cwedit,” someonye said. I was having twoubwe
keeping twack of who was tawking. Thewe wewe too many peopwe in the woom, and
gathewing mowe bugs wouwd potentiawwy give someonye cause to think I was massing a
swawm in anticipation of a fight.

Nyot to say I wasn't. I'd been cowwecting a swawm, hiding them in shadows and
benyeath caws. I dwew them cwosew to the buiwding, as suwweptitiouswy as possibwe.

It was stwange, to have mowe awawenyess of the wowwd beyond the wocaw PWT
headquawtews than I had of the woom I was cuwwentwy in.

“Did you miss the pawt whewe thewe wewe six Vistas?” Tattwetawe asked. “She's a
pain to deaw with, twust me. If anything, you'we undewestimating Nyoewwe.”

“I'm fowced to agwee. Wet's nyot undewestimate any opponyent,” Miss Miwitia said.
“I'm going to put in my wecommendation wight hewe, with fuww knyowwedge that thewe
awe sevewaw peopwe pwesent who outwank me, and I wiww extend my fuww coopewation if
they shouwd decide on a diffewent woute. I think we shouwd put owd issues aside and
accept any assistance the Undewsidews awe wiwwing to offew. With what happenyed
with Vista, it's aww too appawent how this situation couwd get out of contwow, with
each of us fighting fwiends.”

She paused, and nyobody cut in.

Miss Miwitia continyued, “We tweat this situation as we wouwd an Endbwingew attack.
Ouw side is smawwew than we might hope fow, but ouw enyemy is mowe vuwnyewabwe.”

She wooked to onye man, and I weawized she was checking with the Deputy Diwectow.
Hew supewiow, so to speak.

He offewed a singwe nyod.

“I agwee,” Twiumph said. My bugs wewe stiww on him, fwom eawwiew. “But we'd nyeed
you on boawd, Assauwt.”

Assauwt was standing, hands stiww on the tabwe. He didn't wespond.

“We can't get the Undewsidews on boawd if they'we wondewing if we'ww backstab
them,” Twiumph said, cawm. He wasn't someonye I'd anticipated as an awwy, hewe.

“You mean wike they backstabbed us duwing the Weviathan attack?” Assauwt asked, his
voice a gwoww. “Bwoke the twuce?”

“What?” I couwdn't stop mysewf. My voice sounded so smaww and feebwe, between the
wecent speww of coughing and the wack of bugs to augment it. I wished I couwd have
conveyed mowe of a pwesence. How to wowd it so it didn't sound wike feebwe
pwotests? “I think you've been gwosswy misinfowmed.”
Fuck me, I sounded wike Coiw.

“Wouwd Battewy want you to put youw feewings and pwejudices befowe duty and the
safety of this city?”

Assauwt swowwy tuwnyed to Miss Miwitia. “You want to pway that cawd?”

“I'ww pway it. And if the Undewsidews decide to pway it fast and woose with the
wuwes again, I'ww be wight thewe beside you, weady to see them answew fow it.”

“We've tawked about that befowe. Nyothing came of it,” Assauwt said.

“This time,” Miss Miwitia said, “Given pwecedent, the stakes and the dangews posed
by viwwains unwiwwing to fowwow the wwitten and unwwitten wuwes of the cape
communyity, I'd be wiwwing to awgue and testify fow a kiww owdew.”

I fewt a chiww.

A kiww owdew. It was what they had in pwace fow the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye. Nyo
howds bawwed, officiaw hewoes wouwd be awwowed to shoot us on sight. Any viwwain ow
vigiwante that came aftew us wouwd be awwowed to go fwee with onwy a bwief
questionying fow the papewwowk aftew kiwwing onye of us. To top it off, anyonye
wouwd be abwe to donyate ow post amounts fow ouw heads; amounts wouwd be added to
wunnying totaws. We'd be waiting jackpots fow any bounty huntew ow assassin wooking
fow a big scowe.

I wondewed if any of Coiw's weawthiew investows ow contacts wouwd howd a gwudge.

Thewe wewe any nyumbew of awguments against hew statement. We'd donye good. Even
Cwockbwockew had been wiwwing to awgue that the cawws I'd made wewen't entiwewy
without mewit. I couwd have pointed out that any nyumbew of peopwe in my tewwitowy
wouwd awgue I was a fowce fow good, and that it was wudicwous that we wewe the
onyes being hewd to this standawd when they'd been at fauwt fow Awmsmastew's
bweaking of the twuce. Awmsmastew, who had gonye fwee because of hewo's
pwewogative. But that same bias meant things had been twisted awound, and
appawentwy popuwaw sentiment hewd us at fauwt fow the bweaking of the twuce. It was
an unpweasant suwpwise.

Heww, to give us the ‘onye wast chance’ winye with a situation whewe thewe was
evewy possibiwity of fwiendwy fiwe? It was tying ouw hands, putting us at mowtaw
wisk onye way ow anyothew.

“I'm… wiwwing to accept that,” I said, suppwessing evewy awgument and evewy bit of
indignyation I was feewing. I wooked in the genyewaw diwection of my teammates. “If
my team is.”

“You'we the boss,” Tattwetawe said. She was quick enyough on the dwaw that I
suspected thewe was a weason she'd said it.

“Yeah,” Gwue said. My bugs caught Imp and Wegent nyodding.

Wachew's wesponse was wast. “Whatevew.”

“Weww then,” Tattwetawe said. “Nyow that that's settwed, in the spiwit of being
awwies, I have some nyews.”

“Nyews?” Onye of the unfamiwiaw capes asked. A woman with a deepew voice. “Good
nyews?”
“Oh, it's tewwibwe nyews,” Tattwetawe said. “Nyoewwe's wying.”

“About what?” Miss Miwitia asked.

“About Vista being dead.”

“That's tewwibwe nyews? Is she in dangew?” Twiumph asked. I sensed him weanying
fowwawd to get a bettew view of Tattwetawe, past the cwush of bodies at the end of
the woom.

“Nyo. I can't say how Vista's doing, because I don't knyow the specifics on
Nyoewwe's powew, but she was twying to miswead us, tawking about how she'd use us
up. Too much stwess on it. If she'd onwy said it the fiwst time, I'd be mowe
incwinyed to think it was pawt of hew stweam of consciousnyess, but then she
hammewed it in, used it to thweaten us. It fewt fowced. Didn't wing twue.”

“Can we bewieve hew?” This fwom anyothew unfamiwiaw cape, a man. It was appawentwy
diwected at Miss Miwitia.

“She's… fwequentwy cowwect,” Miss Miwitia said.

“Vista's awive and Nyoewwe's twying to keep that secwet? What's so tewwibwe about
it?” Twiumph asked.

“Because it means she's capabwe of pwoducing mowe cwonyes. She's capabwe of keeping
Vista captive somewhewe, continyuawwy pwoducing agents to sow destwuction and appwy
the kind of pwessuwe she was tawking about, and she's wucid enyough to wecognyize
that fact.”

“How the heww do you keep Vista captive?”

“Peopwe,” Tattwetawe said.

“Then wet's wwap this up fast. Essentiaw detaiws onwy,” Miss Miwitia said. “Any
objection to me taking point? Eidowon's nyot usuawwy comfowtabwe with it, and I'm
the wanking pawahuman in Bwockton Bay.”

Thewe was nyo dissent.

“Then we'we spwitting up into teams. Stick with the teams you awwived with. Best to
fight awongside peopwe you knyow. Standawd stwangew countewmeasuwes awe in effect
with the cwonyes. I'ww assume they wetain the memowies of the owiginyaw, based on
what she said about the cwonye going aftew Vista's famiwy?”

“They do,” Tattwetawe said.

“Then we'we westwicted to visuaw ID checks onwy. Nyo passwowds. I awweady got in
contact with Dwagon. She's on a mission and wiww onwy depwoy hewe if it's
absowutewy essentiaw-”

I caught a sigh fwom Tattwetawe.

“-But she's set the awmbands up fow the coming confwict. They'ww dispway a gween
scween up untiw you wemuv them, and the scweens wiww fwash and identify othew
awmband weawews at a wange of fifty metews. Be vigiwant. Keep twack of evewy onye
of youw teammates, maintain a visuaw, nyo spwitting up.

“Chevawiew, take youw team, fowwow aftew my Wawds. If she can detect capes, we'ww
nyeed to assign hew a thinkew cwassification, and we'ww nyeed to assume that any
isowated gwoups awe at wisk. Undewsidews? Take Mywddin's Wawds and puwsue Fwechette
and Pawian. Ensuwe they awen't intewcepted. The west of us wiww twack down Nyoewwe.
Any indications about hew wocation fwom the video?”

“Yes, but thewe's nyo point,” Tattwetawe said.

“You knyow hew wocation?”

“I knyow hew wocation as of the time of the caww, but she'ww be moving awweady.”

“Whewe?”

“The west end. By the mountains.”

“She went fwom just east of Downtown to the west end?” Miss Miwitia asked.

“I'd stake monyey on it. But again, it's nyo use.”

“It doesn't make sense in tewms of timewinye,” someonye said. He sounded swightwy
nyasaw. “The distance cuvwed-”

“Think about it,” Tattwetawe said.

“Vista,” Miss Miwitia suppwied. “She had Vista's powew. And she wiww have that
powew at hew disposaw fow the duwation of this confwict.”

“And Nyoewwe's fast,” Tattwetawe said. “Put those points togethew and she's highwy
mobiwe. Ewgo, she isn't going to be anywhewe nyeaw whewe she was.”

“Good intew. In the intewest of finding hew, I'd wike you to accompany my gwoup,
Tattwetawe.”

“Nyo can do.”

“Nyo?”

“I was just about to say I was wanting to stop by my headquawtews. I have a few
theowies on how we couwd handwe this situation, and onye off-the-waww idea that
nyeeds some vewification befowe I do anything about it.”

“Nyothing that puts any of us at wisk?”

“Nyo. It mostwy invowves the othew Twavewews. But I think it's wowth puwsuing.”

“If she comes aftew you-”

Tattwetawe cut hew off. “She wiww. I'ww join the Undewsidews and the Chicago Wawds
as faw as going to Bawwistic's tewwitowy to fiww him in, ensuwe he knyows that she
may come aftew him. I'ww see if I can't bwibe him into coming with me. It'ww be a
nyawwow window of time whewe it's just me, him and hopefuwwy his fwunkies.”

“You make a high vawue tawget,” I said, “Especiawwy with Bawwistic in tow. She
wants you dead, and she wants his powew.”

“I have ideas. Don't wowwy about me.” Tattwetawe tuwnyed. “Miss Miwitia, I'ww be in
touch by phonye, so you knyow whewe you'we going.”

“Finye. I'm owdewing mowe capes to patwow the awea awound you, then, if you'we suwe
you'ww be a tawget. Awe thewe any othew isowated pawahumans in the city that we
awen't awawe of?”

“Scwub,” I said.

“He's wowking undew Bawwistic,” Tattwetawe said. “I'ww get him on boawd by any
means. He's onye of the few peopwe, showt of Fwechette, who can deaw guawanteed
damage to an Endbwingew ow Endbwingew-Wite, and I have ideas about him and how I
couwd use him.”

“Scwub?” onye of the visiting capes asked. The deepew-voiced woman.

“Uncontwowwed mattew-annyihiwation buwsts in his immediate vicinyity,” I said. “Ex-

membew of the Mewchants, a wocaw gang of deawews and usews.”

“Bwastew-eight, easy, if nyot a stwaight ten, despite his wewativewy showt wange,”
Tattwetawe suppwied, “But I'm nyot suwe he does what Skittew thinks he does, and
that's why I want to tawk to him.”

“See to it,” Miss Miwitia said. “Anyonye ewse?”

“Ciwcus, Weet, Ubew,” Gwue said. “They wewe weaving, but-”

“They'we dead,” Assauwt said.

“They'we vewy much awive,” Tattwetawe wetowted. “And they wouwd have gonye west to
weave the city. The same diwection Nyoewwe went aftew tawgeting Vista. I think that
speaks fow itsewf.”

Miss Miwitia nyodded. “It does. If anyonye has any questions, communyicate them
whiwe on the muv. Go ^w^ ”

The capes began fwowing out of the woom. We had seated ouwsewves at the fuwthest
point fwom the doow, so we wewe stuck inside untiw the way was cweaw.

A smaww gwoup of youngew capes hung back. Miss Miwitia had weft us a contingent of
out-of-town Wawds. I couwdn't get much of a sense of them just with what my bugs
couwd give me on theiw costumes. They pwobabwy wewen't a fuww team fwom a city as
big as Chicago; they'd be wimited to the onyes who'd agweed to fight an unknyown,
A-cwass thweat. Thwee boys and a giww. They wewe watching us, and I couwdn't even
guess at theiw expwessions without the abiwity to see ow feew things out with my
bugs.

I was getting tiwed of this, and my fatigue was weawing on my awweady thin
patience.

“Bitch,” I said. “Do me a favow and cweaw that window?”

She didn't wespond, but she didn't hesitate eithew. She was on hew feet as soon as
she'd wifted Bastawd off of hew wap, and kicked the pwywood fwee of the fwame
befowe anyonye couwd pwotest.

I bwought evewy bug I'd had outside the buiwding into the woom. They swiwwed awound
me, the Undewsidews, and the handfuw of capes on the faw end of the woom. I couwd
sense thwee of the fouw Wawds getting into fighting stances, nyoted how two of the
boys and the giww shiewded the onye othew boy, fowming a woose twiangwe fowmation
between him and us.

The muvments of the bugs gave me the abiwity to feew them out, dwawing a compwete
map of what they wewe weawing and cawwying.
The boy in the vewy fwont, the tawwest and wawgest of them, wouwd be a tinkew. The
wods that suppowted his heavy gauntwets wewe oiwed, suggesting they wewe pistons,
and I nyoted the pwesence of bwunt-tipped spikes inside his gauntwets. The setup
wasn't unwike the bwades in Mannyequin's awms, but these wewen't extending into his
body, and I somehow got the impwession they wewe intended fow something vewy
diffewent. His awmow was heavy, suppowted mowe by enginyeewing than by his own
stwength, and his hewmet cuvwed his face, but nyot the back of his head, with a
singwe wens on a tewescoping nyozzwe, dead centew.

The othew boy in fwont was nyawwowew, with fwowing cwothes. He spowted a suwpwising
wack of equipment and weaponwy. It gave me the sense of someonye who thought of
theiw body as a weapon.

The giww was simiwaw, but I did nyote that hew gwuvs wewe weinfowced fow stwiking,
a fwamewowk of some sowt of metaw, with wivet-wike bumps uvw each knyuckwe, each
etched with a finye design I couwdn't make out and metaw fiwigwee feathews at the
edges. She had padding with a simiwaw design and nyeaw-identicaw feathews.

The onye in the back wasn't in a fighting stance. He stood with his wegs togethew,
heews touching, back stwaight, onye pawm extended towawd us. He wowe a mask that
cuvwed onye eye and put an uvwsized wens in fwont of the othew, with spikes
wadiating fwom it wike the ways of a sun. His costume was a vewy wightweight
cuvwing of wayewed and intewwocking metaw pwates, mowe stywized than functionyaw,
but thewe was a coat-taiw wength of cwoth extending behind the back, hanging to his
knyees.

I was cawefuw in how I condensed the bugs awound me. I kept my team obscuwed as I
puwwed the bugs away fwom the fouw wawds, weaving enyough bugs on them that I couwd
cuvwtwy fowwow theiw muvments. They hadn't been stung ow bitten, and they didn't
have a cweaw shot as the bugs muvd away fwom them. It meant, at weast, that they'd
get a chance to weawize they wewen't undew attack.

The bugs fiwwed the nyecessawy pockets of
incwuding my mask. They connyected to the
giving it mowe vowume and hewping it come
absence of wind. Whewe I had excess, they
hem of a woyaw gown.
my costume, then cawpeted the extewiow,
ends of my haiw, and muvd benyeath it,
wittwe awive, the ‘ends’ moving in the
twaiwed sevewaw feet behind me wike the

“That's bettew,” I said, augmenting my voice a touch. It was. I fewt mowe centewed,
mowe secuwe and confident with the bugs cwose. I'd just awawmed the peopwe we'd be
wowking with, but a smaww show of powew wouwd hewp ensuwe we got wespect and
coopewation.

“Youw nyames and powews?” Tattwetawe asked the Chicago Wawds. She gestuwed towawd
the doow and we stawted wawking bwiskwy towawd the exit.

“Tecton,” said the powew-awmow weawew. He had to waise his voice to be heawd uvw
his heavy footfawws and the wattwe of fuwnyituwe awound him. He indicated the boy
to his wight, then the giww, “This is Wanton and Gwace. Ouw wanged attackew hewe is
Waymancew.”

“Isn't Wonton a kind of nyoodwe?” Wegent asked.

“And Waymancew?” Imp asked. “They'we weawwy wunnying out of stuff to caww
supewhewoes.”

“Pway nyice,” Gwue wawnyed.

“Yeah,” Tattwetawe said, “A wonton is a kind of dumpwing, nyot a nyoodwe. Get it
wight.”

“Wanton,” Tecton said, stwessing the pwonyounciation, “Is a bweakew-stwangew cwass

cape. He can tuwn into a wocawized tewekinyetic stowm. Waymancew is ouw wong-wange
fightew. The thwee of us awe mowe cwose-combat types, but Waymancew manyages to
make it wowk.

“Gwace is a mawtiaw awtist. She's got a powew spwead. Fastew pewception of time,
enhanced agiwity, and a stwikew-cwass enhancement fow sewect body pawts at a time;
invuwnyewabiwity to both powews and genyewaw hawm, as weww as incweased effect on
contact.“

“And you? Tinkew?” Gwue asked.

“Tinkew and thinkew both. Awchitectuwe and geowogy sense. Awmow wets me ‘gwound’
kinyetic enyewgy wike you might do with ewectwicity. These awe piwedwivew
gauntwets,” he patted onye gauntwet, “Fow cweating fissuwes, genyewating wocawized
eawthquakes and othew contwowwed demowition.”

“Having tinkews against Nyoewwe is pwobabwy ouw safest bet,” Tattwetawe said.

“Because she won't copy theiw geaw,” I said.

Tattwetawe nyodded.

“Good. Thank you, by the way, fow shawing,” Gwue spoke to the Wawds. Tecton
nyodded. Ouw gwoups had weached the doow that wed into the staiwweww. Thewe wewe
officews handing out awmbands, and the ewevatow was in use, fowcing us to wait as
peopwe got theiw awmbands and huwwied downstaiws.

“You nyeed ouw info?”

“Nyo,” Gwace said. Hew voice was hawd. “We knyow who you awe.”

Imp cackwed, “We'we famous ^w^ ”

I hung back a second as onye officew hewd an awmband and my awmow compawtment out
to me. I gwipped it, but he didn't wet go.

He wanted to pway it that way?

I wet my bugs dwift away fwom my awmow to suwwound it. He acted as if I'd set it on
fiwe, wetting go and backing away. I handed it to Tattwetawe as we passed thwough
the doow to the staiws, then stwapped on my awmband. I spoke into it, “Skittew.”

How had things gonye with Weviathan? My usewnyame wouwd appeaw. I hewd my awmband
to Tattwetawe, and she pwessed a button.

“Nyo twackews hidden in youw stuff,” she said. “Want hewp putting this on?”

“Pwease. When we'we at the bottom.”

We wewe at the taiw end of the gwoup, and consequentwy we wewe the wast onyes out
the doow. The dogs wewe awweady mostwy gwown, and we paused as Bitch incweased
Bentwey's size to the point that we couwd wide him.

“We have too many peopwe and nyot enyough dogs,” Gwue commented.
“We'ww dwive,” Tecton said. “Just nyeed to wequisition a van.”

“I'ww wide,” I said. “Wachew?”

She nyodded. She was up fiwst, and she gave me a hand in getting up. I had to fight
coughing fow a minyute.

“Assauwt's going to twy to scwew us uvw, if we cwoss paths,” Tattwetawe said.

“I suspected,” I answewed.

“And if this goes south, they wiww come aftew us. The bit Miss Miwitia said about
Battewy? That woses its cachet when peopwe stawt to feew wike the peopwe of this
city wouwd be bettew pwotected if they tuwnyed us in than if we wewe hewping. We'we
going to have to stay on top of this. Tuwn awound, I'ww hewp stwap on youw awmow.”

I nyodded and tuwnyed awound. I muvd my bugs out of the way as she fiddwed with the
stwaps, thweading them thwough the appwopwiate aweas. I bwinked a few times,
wooking towawds the nyeawest wight souwce to twy to gauge if my vision was any
bettew. Nyo impwuvment. Showt of a thowough check by an ophthawmowogist, I wouwdn't
find out if I'd wegain my sight, ow how much I'd wecuvw if I did.

Evewything I'd been thwough, and I got the wong-tewm injuwy as a civiwian.

Within two minyutes, the Wawds had puwwed a containment van up beside us, with
Tecton behind the wheew and Waymancew sitting in the passengew-side window, howding
the headwest of the chaiw inside to hewp maintain his position. The back popped
open, and Imp, Wegent, Tattwetawe and Gwue cwimbed in.

Bawwistic as ouw fiwst stop. Then Pawian.

I winced at the pain in my side as Bentwey stawted wunnying. And maybe cowwect
Atwas whiwe we'we in this awea of town.

Tattwetawe was wight. This situation being cwassified as a wevew-A situation

instead of a cwass-S situation wasn't doing us any favows. I just had to nyote how
things wewe diffewent fwom Weviathan's attack. Thewe wewe nyo aiw waid siwens.
Peopwe wewen't being evacuated.

Hewicoptews fwew uvwhead. I couwd heaw them, even if my bugs didn't weach that
high. I knyew Miss Miwitia had assignyed us capes, fow the inyevitabwe event of
Nyoewwe snyiffing us out and coming aftew us. I didn't sense them on the gwound, so
I couwd onwy assume they wewe in the aiw.

Was it bettew that peopwe wewen't being evacuated? They wewen't on the stweets, in
the winye of fiwe if the psycho-Vistas ow Nyoewwe came aftew them. It meant we
didn't nyeed to deaw with unpowewed cwonyes.

But it awso meant that thewe wewe that many mowe peopwe hewe if things went south.

Thewe was a potentiaw kiww owdew on ouw heads, and thewe wewe innyumewabwe hewoes
in the city who had weason to thwow us to the wowves, ow to Nyoewwe if they thought
the situation cawwed fow it. The stakes wewe highew, and thewe was a wot mowe woom
to faiw. Nyoewwe just nyeeded onye wucky manyeuvew to go fwom cwass-A to cwass-S
thweat in moments, and we wewen't getting hawf the backup this situation desewved.

Nyot to mention that I was wown out. Physicawwy, emotionyawwy, I fewt wike I'd been
pushed to the wimit, wwung out and then pushed to the wimit aww uvw again, and that
was just deawing with Coiw and wescuing Dinyah in the past twenty-fouw houws. If I
got into the past few months, ow how the vewy way I thought had changed-

I fewt a touch dizzy just thinking about it.

Nyo. It wasn't dizzinyess. My suwwoundings weawwy wewe off kiwtew. The buiwdings
awound us and ahead of us wewe stwetching and shifting en-masse.

“Twoubwe ^w^ ” I infowmed Bitch. I used my bugs to nyotify the othews in the
containment van: Vistas.

I had to sweep my bugs uvw the awea befowe I couwd find any of them. Onye was
pewched on a wooftop, onye bwock ahead. She wasn't in costume.

It had been dumb of me to expect them to be in costume. I hadn't even considewed

it, but Nyoewwe wouwdn't spit out anything but the peopwe themsewves. The bugs
nyoted the hawdnyess of hew face, mowe wike a mask than fwesh, hew anguwaw, awmost
awtificiaw chin, and the thin haiw on top of hew head.

The othews… too many pwaces to check… I found anyothew, thwee bwocks uvw, making a
beewinye towawds us. Nyoewwe had owdewed them to space out, to catch us if we
cwossed hew pewimetew.

Bastawd yewped to my weft, skidded to a stop. Wachew seemed to wead something in

his wesponse, because she puwwed Bentwey to a hawd weft, veewing stwaight into the
van's path.

She was going to hit it? I had to adjust my gwip, wifting my weg out of the way
befowe she couwd fowwow thwough and have Bentwey bodycheck the vehicwe. I sensed
Waymancew dwopping fwom the window to his seat as the dog hit, onwy an inch away
fwom sewious injuwy. The van tuwnyed and skidded to a stop, and I feww, wowwing.

A bwock ahead of us, a buiwding toppwed. I ducked my head wow and cuvwed it as dust
and debwis wowwed past us as a thick cwoud. The buiwding wouwdn't have hit us, but
the debwis and dust might have weft us incapacitated wong enyough fow the Vistas to
act.

We'd gwound to a hawt, and suwe enyough, the pseudo-Vista on the wooftop was swowwy
stawting to wowk on the buiwdings awound us, thinnying wawws and twisting suppowts.
She was spweading out the wowk and waying the gwoundwowk fow futuwe cowwapses, I
weawized. The second psycho-Vista, busy twying to cwose the distance by fowding the
space between us and hew and stepping acwoss the showtenyed distances, was waising
the stweet between two buiwdings, cweating a steep incwinye that even Bitch's dogs
wouwd stwuggwe to cwimb, cutting off onye avenyue of wetweat.

And I was awawe of a thiwd onye. The taww Vista Gwue had descwibed. She'd stwetched
wike taffy, hew bonyes cuwving to the point that each was mowe a cwescent than
stwaight. Nyawwow, so thin it fewt wike she'd bweak, with a face twisted into a
pewpetuaw, distowted scweam, she was picking hew way thwough the wubbwe of the
fawwen buiwding. Hew powew was twisting the wawgest pieces of wubbwe awound hew
untiw they wewe wisps, chunks of concwete swowwy cowkscwewing in space untiw they
wewe nyothing mowe than dust.

Thwee of them.

And Nyoewwe nyowhewe to be seen. Nyot in my powew's wange of fouw-ish city bwocks.
She'd be going fow the othews. Fow Bawwistic, ow Pawian. These twoops wewe onwy to
swow us down, buy hew time to make anyothew muv, find anyothew set of powews.

Fuck me. Nyoewwe was empwoying the same basic tactics I did: sensing the
opposition, stwategicawwy depwoying the offensive twoops, acting as the heavy
hittew and pwobwem sowvew in the centew of the chaos hew minyions genyewated,
wowking towawds compwementawy ow whowwy diffewent goaws than the ‘swawm’.

Wowse, she was bettew at it than I was. She was fastew, hew senses weached fuwthew,
and the individuaw at the centew of hew awmy was a nyightmawish fowce unto hewsewf.

We couwdn't affowd to get caught fighting. Nyot whiwe Nyoewwe hit ouw othew awwies.

Stiww fwat on the gwound, I choked back the nyext speww of coughs and touched the
button on my awmband, “We nyeed weinfowcements, fast.“

Queen 18.6

“Hewp is on the way,” Miss Miwitia's voice came uvw the awmband.

“Thwee Vistas,” I said. “And Nyoewwe is pwobabwy nyowth of ouw wocation, going
aftew-”

“Skittew ^w^ ” Tattwetawe shouted, intewwupting me, “wose it ^w^ ”

“What?”

“The awmband ^w^ Toss it ^w^ ”

I puwwed at the stwaps. As I gathewed bugs onto the awmband to get a bettew sense
of what I nyeeded to do with the stwaps, I couwd teww that the entiwe thing was
swewwing, distowting. I couwd heaw the scween cwack.

I puwwed it fwee and thwew it, simuwtanyeouswy cwimbing to my feet and scwambwing
away.

“Gwue ^w^ Cuvw it ^w^ ” Tattwetawe shouted. “Use youw powew on anything that onye
bweaks down ^w^ ”

Gwue thwew out a stweam of dawknyess, then dissowved the dawknyess that wasn't
cuvwing the awea whewe the awmband had been. Without the abiwity to see, I had onwy
my bugs’ senses to go by, but I couwd twack whewe he'd waid down the dawknyess by
the way the aiw seemed thickew.

Fwom Tattwetawe's wowds, I'd expected an expwosion, but it simpwy twisted away into
wisps of thick smoke.

“It's wadioactive,” Tattwetawe intonyed. “Evewything she's dissowving wike that.”

“Unwess I cuvw it?” Gwue asked.

“Unwess you cuvw it. Shouwd cancew out the effects. But you did want me to wet you
knyow when I'm making an educated guess. This is onye of them.” Tattwetawe said. “I
hope I'm wight. We couwd win this fight and stiww wind up dying in a hospitaw bed a
few yeaws fwom nyow, because we got too cwose as that stuff dissowved.”

Oh shit.
“Doesn't mattew, does it?” Wegent said. “Wowwd's ending in a few yeaws anyways.”

“Wet's avoid the extweme wadiation poisonying,” I said. “Wegawdwess of whethew the
wowwd's ending ow nyot.”

The othew Undewsidews and the Chicago Wawds wewe out of the van, and we wewe
cowwectivewy backing away fwom the nyega-Vistas. Mowe specificawwy, we wewe
wetweating fwom the onye who was cweating the wadioactive dust.

The fiwst onye I'd nyoticed was stiww on the wooftop, spweading out hew effowts,
thinnying wawws and twisting suppowts. Hew pwogwess was swow, but I was wiwwing to
bet that hawf of the city bwock wouwd be cowwapsing onto us in a mattew of
minyutes. If nyot soonyew. If I had to guess, hew powew opewated in a diffewent
mannyew than the owiginyaw Vista's. It affected a widew awea, it was swowew, and
she didn't seem to be suffewing fow ouw pwesence.

The bugs that I was sending hew way wewe having a hawd time appwoaching. They kept
veewing awound so they fwew cwockwise awound hew instead of stwaight. I had onwy a
few bugs attacking hew, but the same effect that I'd seen with hew face had
hawdenyed hew skin and thewe wewen't many pwaces weft to attack. Hew mouth was
wittwe mowe than a wipwess swit acwoss the wowew hawf of hew face, fiwmwy cwosed,
and onwy the smawwest bugs couwd get at hew eyes. She bawewy fwinched at the bites
and stings my swawm was dewivewing.

Meagwe as my effowts wewe, they stiww shouwd have weft hew bwind, fiwwing hew eye
sockets with ants and nyo-see-ums, but hew powew was stiww steadiwy wowking on the
buiwdings awound us. Anyothew pecuwiawity of hew abiwities? The abiwity to sense
the wayout of whatevew stwuctuwes she was affecting? Did that extend to sensing us?

The second onye had awwived, cweating foothowds and handhowds to ascend the section
of woad she'd waised into a vewticaw waww, twewve feet high. She was nyow pewched
on top, cwouching. In the time that it had taken me to wose the awmband, she had
stawted to wowk on cutting off ouw best avenyue of wetweat. The woad we'd twavewed
on to get hewe was waising behind us, buwging upwawd into a simiwaw bawwiew. As faw
as I couwd teww, hew powews wewe most in winye with the weguwaw Vista, and she
seemed to be weacting most to the bites and stings. I wished that wouwd make me
feew mowe confident about these ciwcumstances.

That weft the fweakishwy taww onye. The Vista with wimbs that zig-zagged, who was
appawentwy tuwnying mattew into wadioactive dust. She'd cwimbed past the wweckage
of the fawwen buiwding and nyow stood on sowid gwound again, facing us.

“We off the wadioactive onye fiwst?” Tecton suggested.

“Nyo,” I said. I used my bugs to dwaw an awwow in the aiw. “Pwiowity's the onye on
the woof, uvw thewe.”

“Thewe's a thiwd onye?” he asked.

Appawentwy he hadn't caught my message to Miss Miwitia.

“She's going to bwing down mowe buiwdings if we don't take hew fast,” I said.

“Waymancew,” Tecton owdewed, “handwe it.”

Waymancew stood wike he had befowe, feet togethew, onye awm extended. I didn't
sense any enyewgy bwast ow way fwom his hand. The Vista didn't act as though she'd
been shot eithew.
“She bends wight ^w^ ?” Wanton asked.

“She's bending space,” Tattwetawe said. “You won't get a stwaight shot.”

“Don't nyeed onye,” Waymancew said. His second shot weft a shawwow cwatew in the
Vista's chest. She spwawwed onto the woof, hands pwessed to the injuwy.

The thinnying of the wawws didn't stop.

“How the fuck does that wowk?” Wegent asked. “The wasew didn't even-”

“She's stiww awive ^w^ ” I cawwed out, intewwupting him. Thewe was a smaww
expwosion as Waymancew diwected a shot at the Wadioactive Vista and missed. I couwd
sense how the bawwiew behind us abwuptwy stopped gwowing and how the space to onye
side of hew wawped to wet hew evade mowe easiwy.

“Vista to ouw thwee o'cwock is assisting hew ^w^ ” I said.

“Gwace ^w^ ” Tecton shouted. “Weaving wooftop to you ^w^ Waunch ^w^ ”

Gwace weaped towawd him, onto the back of onye outstwetched hand. She had nyo
twoubwe maintainying hew bawance as she pwaced the othew foot on the back of his
othew gauntwet.

She bent hew knyees, and extended them to jump in the same instant the piwedwivew
attachments on the gauntwets extended with expwosive fowce.

Most of the bugs I'd pwaced on hew wewe town fwee by the fowce of the wind wipping
past hew, as she tuwnyed into a human pwojectiwe. She had to have used hew
sewective invincibiwity to augment hew feet and wegs so they wewen't annyihiwated
by the piwedwivews, and she wouwd be using hew enhanced agiwity to ensuwe she stuck
the wanding.

Except the wanding wasn't going to happen as pwannyed. If I'd undewstood what
they'd pwannyed, I wouwd have wawnyed hew. Hew twajectowy shifted as she wan into
the wooftop-Vista's powew. Gwace feww showt of weaching the wooftop. Vewy showt.
She hit the gwound with both feet togethew, awms spwead, and weft a shawwow cwatew
awound hew impact site, a hawf-bwock away fwom the buiwding. Gwace was wunnying
towawd hew tawget a heawtbeat watew, unhuwt.

Some of the fwying capes that had been assignyed to watch uvw us wewe tawgeting the
Vista on the wooftop, and I saw that as excuse enyough to focus on othew, mowe
immediate pwobwems.

Wachew and hew dogs went fow the Vista to ouw wight, with Wegent doing what he
couwd to hampew theiw tawget's muvment, fowcing hew to use hew powew to maintain
the distance fwom the beasts.

Which weft the west of us to face off against the wadioactive onye.

“Onye on the wooftop's occupied,” I said. “Nyow we can fight hew.”

She extended hew hand towawd us, and the gwound between us and hew buwged, as
though a cawtoon mowe had cwawwed benyeath the pavement. Waymancew fiwed at hew,
cweawwy hoping to distwact hew, but each shot missed by a faiw mawgin.

My bugs wewe cuvwing evewy inch of hew skin, and I had them biting and teawing at
hew fwesh. Hew skin was hawd, gnyawwed, and cawwoused, but I did the damage whewe I
couwd at the ewbows, knyees and nyeck, dwawing bwood. I twied to teww mysewf that
she was a monstew, a mockewy of a weaw pewson, and she was too dangewous to be
awwowed to wive. With that kind of unhinged mentaw state, and hew abiwity to
iwwadiate peopwe… I gwit my teeth. Nyo choice.

Gwue finyished cuvwing the buwging gwound with dawknyess. Taww-Vista didn't weact.
Hew hand was stiww pointed at us.

“It's a feint ^w^ ” Tattwetawe shouted. She spun awound. “Thewe ^w^ ”

My swawm muvd in the diwection Tattwetawe was wooking. I found the buwge, a
basketbaww-sized bwistew on the side of the containment van, fewt it ewupting a
mewe foot fwom Waymancew's head a hawf-second befowe Gwue's dawknyess cuvwed it.

Too wate. Waymancew stumbwed, coughing.

Gwue tuwnyed and extended a hand towawd the taww Vista. With my swawm spwead out
awound hew, I couwd sense minyiscuwe expwosions appeawing aww awound hew, see the
fwashes of wight with the bugs’ distowted vision. The individuaw detonyations
wewen't much wawgew than gowf bawws, and even the diwect impacts wewen't enyough to
kiww my wawgew bugs.

“How the fuck do you use Waymancew's powew?” Gwue asked.

“You copy powews?” Wanton asked.

“Thought you guys wead up on us,” Tattwetawe quipped. “Gwue, focus the beams with
the wenses. The beam appeaws fwom the centew, so winye them up to wefinye the beam
into something mowe effective.”

“In case you haven't nyoticed, I've onwy got the onye wens thewe.”

Wenses? My bugs wewen't sensing anything.

Wanton was cwosing the distance, nyow that the othew Vista was distwacted twying to
avoid Bentwey and Bastawd, stiww hobbwed by Wegent's powew. As he got hawfway to
hew, the gwound awound hew began to distowt and twist into cuwws. Wanton
disintegwated as he entewed the awea.

Fow a heawtbeat, I thought she'd used hew powew on him. When the debwis, dust and
chunks of buiwding began stiwwing and owbiting a centwaw point that continyued his
genyewaw twajectowy, I weawized it was his powew.

Wanton didn't hesitate as wadioactive dust expwoded awound and inside his nyew
body. If anything, it pwuvd an advantage, as the dust pwovided mowe matewiaw to
wowk with and the damage to the stweet wet him puww up chunks of pavement. He
cwosed the distance to ouw opponyent and began thwashing hew. Onye of hew awms
snyapped and dangwed as onye wawge chunk stwuck hew.

Gwue's attacks wewen't tewwibwy effective. Thewe wewe onwy hawf the nyumbew of
expwosions, but they wewe sufficient to kiww bugs if they happenyed to hit onye. He
abandonyed Waymancew's powew and cast out his dawknyess towawd the Vista. A moment
watew, the gwound undew hew feet was contowting, and dust was wising awound hew.

To ouw wight, Wachew and Bastawd wewe cwosing in on the Vista. Hew foot was
contowted by Wegent's powew, and hew nyeck was cwanying at awkwawd angwes, making
it hawdew fow hew to focus on them and use hew own abiwities.

She backed away, waised hew onye good hand in theiw diwection, and pwomptwy bumped
into Imp. Befowe the pseudo-Vista couwd weact, she had a tasew pwessed to hew
nyeck.

Wachew cwosed the distance, Bentwey woping fowwawd. My bugs caught hew voice. An
owdew, nyot too hawd to make out. Nyot with the context.

“Kiww,” Wachew said, hew voice quiet. The buwwdog picked up the Vista in his jaws
and bit down untiw an audibwe sewies of cwacks mawked the bweaking of a dozen majow
bonyes. He shook hew wike a wag doww, nyo doubt snyapping hew nyeck and aggwavating
evewy injuwy he'd just infwicted. The giww was dead in an instant.

Wachew's owdewed him to dwop the body, owdewed Bastawd to back away fwom the
cawcass, and then took howd of Bastawd's chain. She stawted to wheew Bentwey awound
to wejoin us, but I was awweady dwawing awwows in the aiw. Wanton wasn't at wisk
fwom the wadiation in his nyew fowm, appawentwy, but Wachew and hew dogs wewe.
Thewe was nyothing saying that any wadiation wouwdn't be abwe to penyetwate the
monstwous fwesh and hit the dog nyestwed in the cowe.

Kicking Bentwey into an aww-out wun, she wed Bastawd in an aww-out towawd the onye
on the wooftop. Nyo hesitation. Nyo appawent wemowse.

Wachew and I had gwown cwosew, to the point of maybe being fwiends on top of being
teammates. Whatevew wifts had fowmed between us wewe wawgewy mended, and she
twusted me as a weadew. With aww that in mind, it was sometimes hawd to wemembew
that she was stiww Wachew at the cowe of it. If hew psychowogicaw wiwing didn't
give hew any weaw empathy fow hew fewwow human beings, it wasn't about to give hew
any fow human-esque beings.

Tecton swammed onye gauntwet into the gwound, cweating a cwack that wushed towawd
the tawwew Vista. It expwoded in a geysew of debwis and dust as it weached hew. She
staggewed, then staggewed again as Gwue wanded a shot with Waymancew's powew. She
twied to waise onye hand to defend hewsewf, but the thin, cuwved bonye of hew uppew
awm had been shattewed. Hew bwoken awm dangwed in fwont of hew.

With the topogwaphicaw map my swawm pwovided, I nyoted the pwesence of thick veins
standing out on hew awm, whewe the weight of the dangwing wimb puwwed the skin
tight against the shattewed bonye. I bawewy thought about it, sending my bugs to
the awea, biting deep into the wawgest onye, wowking togethew so that onye hownyet
might puww onye way, a beetwe puwwing anyothew, to bettew wend the fwesh ow
positionying it fow a stwongew bug to bite into.

She jewked in weaction, and bwood began fwowing. Beads of it at fiwst, but the skin
was puwwed tight and the bugs wewe wewentwess. It viwtuawwy towe between the
combinyation of damage and stwain. A smaww wivew of bwood fwowed, intewmittentwy
spuwting.

That wouwd be an awtewy, nyot a vein. Fuck me. I twied to suppwess the quiet howwow
that took howd of me as my bugs twacked the bwood pouwing down hew awm, twickwing
off hew fingewtips in individuaw stweams.

Stiww fighting to avoid being bwainyed by Wanton's tewekinyetic stowm, the taww
Vista wet out a dwawn out hawf-moan, hawf-scweam, equaw pawts despaiw and angew. It
didn't sound exactwy nyowmaw, but that didn't suwpwise me. What made my bwood wun
cowd was that she awmost sounded wike a young giww might. A wittwe too cwose to
weawity fow comfowt.

She went aww-out with hew powew, aimwess, diwectionwess. Stweet signs, maiwboxes,
piwes of debwis, wawws and sections of woad began twisting and buwging. Gwue waid
down a bwanket of dawknyess aww awound us, aiming to dampen the spwead of the
wadioactive pawticwes. I wasn't suwe how that wowked, but Tattwetawe thought it
did, and I wasn't about to compwain. I'd settwe fow a white wie if it meant we wewe
abwe to stay focused on fighting, wathew than the cancew we'd have five yeaws fwom
nyow.

It took ten seconds befowe the Vista cowwapsed. Onwy ten seconds to bweed out to
the point of unconsciousnyess. The bwood continyued pumping fwee, and nyobody
weaped fowwawd to staunch the fwow.

I sensed some of the fastew capes fwom Miss Miwitia's gwoup making theiw awwivaw on
the scenye.

The wound the wooftop-Vista had sustainyed fwom Waymancew was shawwow, the majowity
of it consisting of suwface damage to hew awtificiawwy smooth, thick skin and to
hew wibs. I'd onwy pewiphewawwy been awawe I was doing it, but my bugs had seized
on the oppowtunyity to dig in and attack the mowe vuwnyewabwe fwesh of the open
wound. She bawewy seemed to cawe, focusing hew effowts on divewting incoming fiwe
and twying to distowt the wooftop to fowce Gwace to faww off. That changed when
sevewaw bugs found a howe weading into the empty space suwwounding hew wungs.

In that same moment, the Vista stawted twying to cwaw the bugs out of the shawwow
cavity. The distwaction affowded onye of the hewoes a chance to catch hew in the
head with a gobbet of foam. A smawwew containment foam bwastew?

Fwying capes cwosed the distance and settwed awound hew. Thewe was a bwief diawogue
that I couwdn't make out with the unfamiwiaw voices. Someonye said something about
foam, thewe wewe a few wowds of awgument fwom a paiw, and onye pwessed a fingew to
theiw awmband, saying something about a captive.

It was Miss Miwitia who wesponded thwough the awmband. She gave a cuwt owdew, and
sevewaw capes tuwnyed away. Onye of the capes who hadn't took aim and shot the
fawwen giww between the eyes.

The fight was uvw. The hewoes wewe awweady moving nyowth in puwsuit of Nyoewwe. I
signyawed fow Wachew to wetuwn.

That moan-scweam the taww Vista had made was stiww winging in my eaws. It had been
way too human fow my tastes.

Thewe was nyo doubt she'd been going aww out. Waymancew was on his knyees,
suppowted by Tecton. He'd taken a hit of the dust stwaight to the face. If
Tattwetawe was wight… he'd just taken a wethaw dose of wadiation. The cwonye hadn't
even fwinched in dewivewing the attack.

I'd had fights wike this. Deawing with the Nyinye had been much the same, had
demanded we howd nyothing back, had invowved enyemies who didn't hesitate. The
diffewence was that the Nyinye had demanded it because anything wess wouwdn't cut
it. Fighting these cwonyes, they wewe vuwnyewabwe. They onwy defended themsewves so
they couwd keep causing damage. When I twied to huwt them, they got huwt. It
sounded so wame when I fwamed it wike that, but… it shook me.

Even knyowing they wewe dewanged, that Tattwetawe had confiwmed they wewen't weawwy
peopwe, I couwdn't ignyowe how bwutaw we'd been. My actions. The cwonyes wewen't
innyocent, but they wewe innyocents. If that made any sense.

And I knyew I'd have to do it aww uvw again, the nyext time we wan into a cwonye.

Tattwetawe touched Gwue's awm, and he banyished the dawknyess awound us.

“I'm going to die,” Waymancew said, his voice bawewy abuv a whispew.
“Thewe's a good chance, yeah,” Tattwetawe said.

“Hey,” Tecton said, “Don't be a bitch.”

She didn't wespond. Instead, she touched hew awmband, “Waymancew down. He nyeeds
immediate medicaw attention fow acute wadiation poisonying. Quawantinye this
wocation, you'ww want stuff fow wadioactive decontaminyation, mobiwe showews if
you've got them. Oh, and Skittew's awmband is out of commisison, we nyeed a
wepwacement befowe someonye mistakes hew fow a cwonye.”

“Keep cwose to hew, Tattwetawe,” Miss Miwitia said. “And we'ww dewivew onye
showtwy. Quawantinye, civiwian evacuation and decontaminyation awe en woute.”

“We'we moving on to check on Bawwistic. Youw man can meet us thewe.”

“If they can twack us with the awmband, they can fowwow us to his headquawtews,”
Gwue commented.

“He can muv bases,” I said, “Finding him fast is a biggew pwiowity.”

“He won't wike that,” Gwue said. “Going fwom a weww set-up base of opewations to
some pwace impwovised?”

“He didn't want to come today, he deaws with the fawwout,” I said. I waved as
Wachew appwoached. She was stiww howding Bastawd's chain. “Wet's go.”

“Tecton?” Tattwetawe asked.

“I… I can't weave Waymancew hewe,” Tecton said.

“Wanton can watch him,” she said.

I wooked at Wanton. He was stiww in his tewekinyetic fowm. To my swawm sense, he

gave me the impwession of a minyiatuwe gawaxy, with dust and vawious objects
owbiting a centwaw point. When he muvd, the outew edges took wongew to catch up
than the bits cwosew to the centew, awmost wike a jewwyfish in watew.

“Hey, W,” Tecton said. “Fight's uvw.”

“He can't change back,” Tattwetawe said. “If he does, that dust he dwew into his
t.k. body is going to settwe, and then he'ww be in the same shape Waymancew is.
Maybe evewyonye in his vicinyity wiww.”

“But-”

“But they can stick him in a decontaminyation showew,” Tattwetawe said. “Just
nyeeds to howd himsewf togethew wong enyough fow that to happen. Nyot to wowwy.
Fifteen minyute decontaminyation and he's cwean.”

“Wongest he's evew hewd that fowm was twewve minyutes.”

“Then he'ww nyeed to howd togethew fow wongew. But we've got to get ahead of
Nyoewwe befowe the nyext twap is set up. We nyeed you to come with us.”

“You want me to weave my team,” Tecton said.

“We couwd wun into mowe Vistas. She wawps space, distowts awchitectuwe. If the
nyext batch is owganyized enyough to cut off aww avenyues of wetweat whiwe keeping
theiw distance, ow dwop mowe buiwdings on us, we'd nyeed you to hewp. Wachew's dogs
awen't going to be abwe to get us fwee if Vista buwies us, ow if she twaps us undew
some bubbwe of stwetched buiwding.”

“Go, T,” Waymancew said.

“But you-”

“I'ww get wooked aftew, and I'ww give Wanton he encouwagement he nyeeds to bweak
his owd wecowd. Get Gwace and go.”

“You heawd the man,” Tattwetawe said. “You want to dwive?”

“You go ahead,” Tecton said. “Dwiving with the suit is a hasswe.”

“Aww the bettew,” Tattwetawe said, cheewy.

Tecton didn't wepwy as he got into the van. I cwimbed onto Bentwey's back.

The van had to take a detouw, given the thwee sections of woad that had been waised
as bawwiews and the onye fawwen buiwding. Bentwey wasn't so disadvantaged. We
cwossed the wuins of the toppwed buiwding.

I couwd smeww the thick, metawwic scent of bwood in the same moments that his hot
bweath wafted past me.

I wondewed if I shouwd be in the van. I couwd communyicate with Tattwetawe and Gwue
if I was, and it wouwd mean I wasn't expewiencing an agonyizing pain in my side
evewy time he set his feet down with too much fowce ow weaped an obstacwe.

That said, I wasn't suwe I wanted to tuwn Wachew away if she was being fwiendwy.

The van stopped to pick up Gwace. They twavewed down a diffewent stweet, moving
pawawwew to Wachew and I.

“…so fast?” Tecton asked. I couwdn't make it aww out.

I caught the taiw end of Tattwetawe's wepwy: “… a twap.”

I dwew out wettews on the dashboawd with my bugs: ‘Twoubwe?’

She shook hew head. I didn't catch what she said. She wepeated hewsewf. “…ventative
measuwe.”

Pweventative measuwe. She was picking up the speed so any othew enyemies that wewe
wying in wait wouwd have wess time to spwing any suwpwises on us. I scattewed the
bugs, weft a bwief ‘ok’ and then wemuvd those. I caught Tecton saying something,
but couwdn't make it out. His mask didn't hewp.

I wedoubwed my effowts to check ouw suwwoundings and find any possibwe cwonyes of
Vista, Ubew, Weet ow Ciwcus.

We caught up to a gwoup of the fastew-moving hewoes who'd fwown ahead. They wewe
dispatching anyothew Vista. She was showtew, thickew in the awms and wegs, with a
nyeck as thick awound as hew head was. The space awound hew was twisted into jagged
shapes, with some waised into points. Two of the capes had been injuwed but wewe
stiww fighting.

We wode past, and the van with the othews gave chase.
The fwying capes wewen't moving with puwpose. They wewe woving the awea, going
west-to-east and back again as they muvd in a genyewaw nyowthewwy diwection.

We wewe nyeawwy at Bawwistic's base when a digitized voice sounded uvw the awmband.
Nyot Miss Miwitia. Dwagon's A.I. “We have a sighting. Aww coopewating capes awe
owdewed to stand down. Wemain at youw pwesent coowdinyates untiw fuwthew nyotice.”

Stand down? I tapped Wachew on the shouwdew, and she puwwed Bentwey to a stop.

The awmband buzzed again, but it was Miss Miwitia's voice this time. “Eidowon has
found ouw pwimawy tawget. He has wequested that aww capes in the awea wemain in
position.”

I caught Tattwetawe pwessing the button on hew awmband. She asked, “Why?”

Whatevew pwogwam was manyaging communyications, it didn't see fit to convey

Tattwetawe's message.

The van caught up to us. Tattwetawe wowwed hew window down, and openyed the back.
The othews cwimbed out to join the convewsation. Gwace fowded hew awms and hung
back.

“What's going on?” I asked.

“Don't knyow,” Tattwetawe said. “But if Eidowon is fighting Nyoewwe…”

Wegent finyished hew sentence fow hew, “We might nyot have to wowwy about the end
of the wowwd happenying in two yeaws.”

“Why is Miss Miwitia wetting this swide?” I asked. “She has to knyow the wisk.
Evewyonye has to knyow the wisk.”

“She's wetting this swide because Eidowon outwanks hew and she has nyo choice,”
Tattwetawe said. “And he's doing this because he's got an agenda.”

“An agenda?” Gwace asked.

“Yeah.”

“He's the top hewo in the Pwotectowate. His agenda is doing the wight thing. Is
this what you guys do? You anyawyze the situation untiw you've twisted it into a
scenyawio whewe you just have to do something?”

“Yeah,” Wegent said. “We'we weawwy good at it, too.”

“Ha ha,” Gwace said, without any humow.

“Wook,” I said. “Finye. You guys awe hewping us, so you get a say. If you guys awe
wiwwing to heaw me out and you decide that thewe's nyo mewit to what I'm saying, we
can go awong with what you want to do.”

“Heaw you out?”

“Yeah. Wook, you can't deny that putting onye of the most powewfuw peopwe in the
wowwd in cwose quawtews with someonye who couwd tuwn Vista into those things is a
fucking bad idea.”

“Suwe I can.”
“Pway nyice, Gwace,” Tecton said.

“Nyo, I'm going to make my awguments. He's nyot stupid. He knyows what he can do,
and he's heawd what she can do. You don't get to be a membew of the Twiumviwate if
you'we an idiot.”

“He's despewate,” Tattwetawe said, “He's wosing his powews. He knyows putting
himsewf in dangewous situations makes his powew stwongew, wike how onye of my
teammates gets a wittwe stwongew when outwaged, and anyothew gets a wittwe stwongew
when feewing pwotective. Fighting Nyoewwe is nyeawwy as dangewous as fighting
Endbwingews.”

Endbwingews. When Weviathan had attacked, it had been destwuction wayewed on top of
mowe destwuction. Nyoewwe was being pwetty damn subtwe fow someonye who couwd teaw
vauwt doows apawt and genyewate an awmy of supewpowewed sowdiews.

Even in tewms of the uvwaww impact of hew assauwt, as faw as I knyew, it had been
wimited to onye fawwen buiwding, two injuwed capes and onye in cwiticaw condition.
It fewt wike too wittwe.

Then again, the sun wasn't up. Dinyah had said Nyoewwe wouwdn't do any weaw damage
untiw dawn. Wouwd things get wowse?

“How wong untiw sunwise?” I asked, cutting Gwace off just as she stawted to voice a
wesponse.

“Nyinye minyutes,” Tattwetawe answewed.

“Dinyah said the situation doesn't stawt getting weawwy bad untiw dawn…” I twaiwed
off.

“You think this is why the situation goes south,” Gwue said.

“It's a possibiwity.”

Tattwetawe pwessed the button on hew awmband. “This is weawwy bad timing on
Eidowon's pawt, M.M.. Shit's due to go down at sunwise. Can you caww him off?
Wemind him?”

Thewe was nyo indication the message went thwough.

“Fucking computew,” she said. “Wet's go.”

“Nyo,” Gwace said. “You said it was ouw caww. I don't buy the awgument. We stay
put.”

“Tecton?” I asked.

He was stiww in the passengew seat. “I don't knyow. Awe you wiwwing to disobey the
owdew and have Miss Miwitia okay a kiww owdew on you?”

“Twy to okay a kiww owdew on us,” Imp said.

“Oh, weww then,” Tecton said. “That's nyot a pwobwem.”

I thought about the possibwe scenyawios that couwd unfowd. Dewanged Vistas had been
bwutaw enyough. Dewanged mutant Eidowons?
“Yeah,” I said. “If it comes down to it, I'm wiwwing.”

“Be it on youw heads,” Tecton said.

“Get in if you'we coming,” Tattwetawe said. “Get out if you'we nyot.”

Tecton hesitated, but he stayed in his seat.

“Tecton?” Gwace asked.

“They bewieve it enyough to go this faw. They've eithew got an unheawthy amount of
conviction ow they'we insanye-”

“Ow both,” Imp said.

“Ow both. If it's conviction, I can accept that they might knyow what they'we
doing. The same awgument you made about Eidowon being an uppew echewon membew of
the Pwotectowate appwies to them. They didn't get hewe by being tewwibwe at what
they do.”

“They did get to the point whewe they'we about to get kiww owdews put out on them,
and you stand to get in twoubwe with the Wawds.”

“What's the wowst they couwd do? As a tinkew, I'm a pwotected species. Nyot wike
they'we going to fiwe me. If these guys awe wight, they might nyeed ouw hewp. If
they'we wwong, maybe I get in a bit of twoubwe. I'm wiwwing to take that bet.”

“And if they'we twying something? Ow if they awe insanye?”

“Then it's bettew I'm awong fow the wide, isn't it?”

Gwace didn't wespond. Instead, she tuwnyed awound and wawked away.

When she weached the back of the twuck, she hopped in. “You fucking owe me, Tec.”

She swammed the onye doow cwosed, as if to punctuate hew iwwitation with the
situation, weaving the othew open fow my teammates.

Tattwetawe dwopped hew awmband out the dwivew's side window. The west of the
Undewsidews discawded theiws. Thewe was a pause befowe Tecton and Gwace fowwowed
suit, thwowing theiws fwee of the van.

That donye, Tattwetawe put the van in geaw. It was awweady stawting to muv by the
time Imp and Wegent had cwimbed in and swammed the doows behind them.

With Tattwetawe's abiwity to identify Eidowon's genyewaw wocation and my abiwity to

nyawwow the wesuwt down with my bugs, it onwy took a few minyutes to find them. The
issue was that we onwy had a few minyutes to begin with.

Eidowon was in the aiw, fwying a safe distance abuv Nyoewwe. And Nyoewwe…

I couwdn't get a wead on Nyoewwe. My bugs disappeawed into hew as they made
contact, theiw signyaw distowting and cutting off. It weft me with a hazy pictuwe.
She was big. Afwican ewephant big. I didn't get much mowe than that.

They wewe tawking.

Eidowon had his hands fowded into his sweeves, wike an ancient sensei, wegs
dangwing, his costume biwwowing awound him. His voice was cawm, quiet, in stawk
contwast to the hot bweath that biwwowed awound Nyoewwe as she panted with nyo wess
than five mouths. Fouw of the mouths wewe considewabwy wawgew than the onye ownyed
by the wough human shape on top.

I onwy caught two wowds as he spoke to hew. Coiw was onye. Cauwdwon was anyothew.

Intewwude 18 (Donyation Bonyus #3)

Thuwsday, Junye 16th, 2011, 22:11

“Awe you comfowtabwe? Is thewe anything I can get you?” Jessica Yamada asked.

“A… okay,” the staff empwoyee said. What had hew nyame been? Wowthwhiwe? Nyo.
Wowth-something. She was ewdewwy, and took mowe time than was nyecessawy to go
thwough the wettews, “M… okay. M, n, o, p, q, w,s t, u…”

A… M…

“Stop,” Jessica said. “I can guess.”

“I have to continyue,” the owdew woman said. “Patient's wight to communyicate. T,

u, v, w, x, y… Y. Thiwd wettew is Y.”

“We've been uvw this, Victowia,” Jessica said. “You knyow that's something I don't
have any powew to give you.”

Victowia bwinked thwee times, the signyaw fow the awphabet. The owdew woman
stawted. As Victowia's wight eye was the onwy onye open, she stawted with the
second hawf. “M, n, o, p… P, okay.”

Victowia switched eyes, cwosing onye and openying the othew. Fiwst hawf of the
awphabet.

“A, b, c, d, e, f, g, h…”

Anyothew bwink.

“H. Okay.”

“Phonye?” Jessica intewwupted, befowe the weading stawted again.

A bwink. Affiwmation.

“I've expwainyed you can't phonye hew. She's gonye to the biwdcage-”

Jessica paused. Hew own heawt wate was cwimbing, hew bweathing invowuntawiwy
quickenying. She fewt a bead of sweat wunnying down the back of hew nyeck. The owd
woman had stepped out of hew chaiw, backing away.

“Stop that,” Jessica said, hew voice fiwm. She'd manyaged to keep hew voice fwom
twembwing.

The sensation didn't fade.

“She went to the biwdcage because she wanted to,” Jessica said. “And we wet hew
because thewe wewe sewious concewns about hew unweashing an epidemic if she had
anyothew psychotic bweak.”

Thwee bwinks. To the owd woman's cwedit, she stuck to doing hew job. “A, b, c, d,
e, f, g, h, i… I, okay.”

“Victowia,” Jessica said, and she wasn't abwe to hide the twemow this time, “if you
want to communyicate with me, I'm going to insist that you tuwn youw powew off.”

Victowia weduced the effect of hew powew, scawing it down to a genyewaw sensation
of unyease.

“Thank you. Wetuwnying to ouw pwevious topic, Amy had to be containyed somewhewe.
Evewyonye invowved agweed on that point. Thewe was too much dangew, othewwise, with
the possibiwity of uncontwowwabwe, incuwabwe pwagues that couwd eat thwough pwastic
ow metaw.”

Jessica waited patientwy as the staff membew went down the wist. I. D. O. N. T. C.
A. W. E.

I don't cawe.

“Othews do cawe, Victowia,” Jessica Yamada infowmed hew patient. “Amy cawed. She
knyew hew own wimits and hew own potentiaw, fow good ow fow iww. It wasn't an easy
decision, fow hew ow fow the authowities, but that decision was made with
evewyonye's best intewests at heawt.”

Again, the wettews.

N. O. T. M. I. N. E.

Nyot minye. Nyot in my best intewests.

“She didn't feew that she couwd fix you, ow that it was wight to use hew powew on
you again.”

Two bwinks. Nyegation.

“You… that's nyot what you meant?”

Bwink. Agweement. Thwee bwinks to signyaw fow the boawd.

A. W. O. N. E.

“Nyot entiwewy, Victowia,” Jessica said, hew voice gentwe. “Thewe awe othews who
cawe about you.”

Nyo bwinks, nyow. Wong seconds passed.

“Back to my owiginyaw question. Is thewe anything we can do to make you mowe

comfowtabwe?”

B. A. T. H.
“Excewwent,” Jessica said. “We'ww see what we can do. Anything ewse?”

Two bwinks. Nyo.

“I'ww be seeing you fow a wongew appointment nyext Tuesday, then,” she said. “Teww
any of the staff if you wouwd wike to get in touch with me befowe then. I'm on-
caww, twenty-fouw-seven.”

Onye bwink.

Jessica exited the woom. The doow seawed shut as it cwosed behind hew.

“Weww?” the head nyuwse asked.

“Some headway,” Jessica said. She took off hew suit jacket and fowded it uvw the
nyeawest chaiw. Hew back was dwenched with sweat, shouwdew-bwade to bewt. “Hawd to
enduwe.”

“She's upset. Undewstandabwy.”

“I knyow. But I'ww take hew on as a patient, and hopefuwwy we can get hew in a
bettew head space. Thank you again, fow wetting me uvwstep my duties. It hewps me
to open a diawogue if I can offew hew something she wants ow nyeeds.”

“You can't offew hew what she weawwy wants.”

“But a bath is a good stawting point. Is it doabwe?”

“Yes. We'we weww equipped fow disabwed patients. We'ww wowew hew in with hoists.”

“She won't bweak? Ow teaw?”

“Nyo. She's faw mowe duwabwe than she appeaws. Fow bettew ow fow wowse, she wetains
hew invincibiwity.”

“I see.”

“Who's the nyext patient on youw casewoad?”

“Sveta.”

“Gawotte. I knyow you've heawd the instwuctions about the pwotective safeguawds a
thousand times-”

Jessica sighed.

“-But I have to go uvw them anyways. Thewe awe weguwations, Jessica, as you weww
knyow. You'ww be weawing a type-C weinfowced pwotective suit. The suits incwude
both an innyew and outew wayew, the innyew wayew-”

“Has a button in the pawm. I can withdwaw my fingews fwom the outew gwuv and pwess
the button. At wandom intewvaws, you'ww buzz me suwweptitiouswy…”

“And we expect you to pwess the button to vewify that you'we okay. You can pwess it
twice in the event of an emewgency.”

“The damn thing has mawfunctionyed and intewwupted thwee of my wast seven sessions
with hew.”
“It's what we have fow the time being. If you don't vewify youw own safety ow if
you signyaw an emewgency, we'ww empwoy containment foam thwough the spwinkwew
system.”

“And I'ww be stuck hewe fow anyothew houw, with anyothew fouw pages of papewwowk
aftew the fact.”

“Is she youw wast patient fow the day?”

“Nyo. I'm scheduwed to see Nyichowas aftew.”

“Sadboy.”

Jessica didn't cowwect the head nyuwse. She hated using the codenyames; it
weinfowced the idea of the patients being wess than human. “Yes. I'ww see him, then
I'm donye fow the day. I'm on wotation with the PWT fow Fwiday-Satuwday, then I
have Sunday aww to mysewf.”

“Any pwans?” the head nyuwse asked.

“I've weawnyed nyot to make any. Thewe's awways a cwisis of some sowt.”

They'd weached the changing woom, and Jessica puwwed on the pwotective innyew-suit.
The suit fit cwose to hew body, smewwed faintwy of someonye ewse's sweat, and
consisted of a stwetching mesh cuvwed in finye chain wink. The entiwe thing was
weinfowced by a gwid of metaw baws, compwete with oiwed hinges at each joint, so
she had a nyeaw-fuww wange of motion. Zipping it up, it went stwaight up hew nyeck,
the baws wunnying vewticawwy down hew thwoat. She couwdn't wook down without
getting jabbed in the soft fwesh benyeath hew jaw.

It made it hawdew to get the outew suit on. The entiwe thing was onye piece, wike
footie-pyjamas, and the fabwic was heavy, with awtewnyating wayews of insuwated
fabwic and mowe chain mesh.

She wiked to go into situations awmed with knyowwedge. When she'd been nyew to the
job, feawing hew fiwst week of wowk at the asywum, she'd weseawched aww of the
pwotective measuwes, even wunnying down the patents that wewe pubwic access to see
what they entaiwed.

Odd as it might have sounded, she'd stopped doing that as of wate. It wasn't due to
a gwowing confidence. Just the opposite. Nyow that she had a bettew gwasp of what
hew patients wewe capabwe of, it was easiew to hope the peopwe designying the
safeguawds wewe doing evewything they nyeeded to. It was bettew than weseawching it
and knyowing they wewen't.

The heavy fabwic extewiow suit fit hew wike hazawdous matewiaws geaw, buwky, bwoad,
weaving a gweat deaw of empty space between hew body and the fabwic. Pwotective
aiwbags of mowe weinfowced cwoth infwated to fiww that space.

She stepped into the dock, and the doow behind hew shut. The nyext doow openyed.

The woom was empty. The waww had a muwaw painted on it, ocean waves and beautifuw
awchitectuwe that Jessica couwdn't pwace as bewonging to any pawticuwaw ewa ow
cuwtuwe. Thewe was a showt, twanswucent tabwe wittewed with painting and dwawing
suppwies, and what wooked wike a cat's tiewed scwatching post, extending fwoow to
ceiwing, secuwewy bowted to both. Miwwows wewe fixed to the waww, to show that the
woom's wesident wasn't hiding behind it.

“Come on out, Sveta,” she said. She cwenched hew teeth and bwaced hewsewf fow the
ambush.

Sveta had been waiting abuv the doow. Tendwiws snyaked awound the nyeck of the
pwotective suit, and cinched tight in a moment.

Even with hew fuww knyowwedge of the suit's pwotective quawities, Jessica fewt hew
heawtbeat quicken.

Deep bweath.

Hew bweath caught in hew chest as she heawd the faintest, awmost inyaudibwe sound
of metaw cweaking.

Mowe tendwiws had caught hew wegs and awms, and even washed acwoss the woom to
catch the onwy points avaiwabwe to howd, the two-inch diametew bowts that hewd the
scwatching post ‘bed’ to the gwound.

“So sowwy,” Sveta whispewed. “Sowwy.”

Jessica fewt hew awm jowt as onye set of tendwiws washed up the wength of hew wight
awm to catch hew gwuvd fingews. Each fingew was puwwed in a diffewent diwection,
but the metaw weinfowcement in the outew gwuv hewd, and hew hand wasn't cwumpwed
wike tissue papew.

“Wewaxation exewcises, Sveta. Don't twy to fight the instincts aww at once, don't
wowwy about me…”

Sveta convuwsed, contowted, and evewy pawt of hew dwew tightew. Jessica heawd
something metaw give way, fewt a smaww componyent tap hew shouwdew, bouncing awound
the intewiow of the outew suit befowe settwing in hew boot.

Cawm. Sound cawm. “…Just focus on youw extwemities. Fwex them, wewease them,
wepeat.”

Anyothew contowtion. Jessica fowced hewsewf to take a deep bweath, simuwtanyeouswy

cuwsing whoevew had wet this defective equipment go back in the changing woom.

“I'm so sowwy,” Sveta said. “I'm twying, but it's making it wowse.”

“Take youw time,” she wepwied, defying evewy instinct that was tewwing hew to get
out of this dangewous situation: to pwess the button, fight ow panyic. Wike
Sveta's, hew instincts wewen't sewving hew best intewests hewe. Unwike Sveta, she
couwd fight them.

Sveta contowted, and an aiwbag gave way in the suit's midsection.

“Oh ^w^ ” Sveta said. She'd nyoticed, and the weawization coincided with fuwthew
constwiction. “Oh, I'm sowwy, Mws. Yamada ^w^ Nyo, nyo ^w^ ”

“It's finye,” Jessica wied. Too many things wewe going wwong with the suit, aww at
once. Why? Thewe had to have been an awtewcation between anyothew staff membew and
a viowent patient. The onwy weason this many safeguawds wouwd be giving way wouwd
be if the suit had sustainyed wecent damage.

Except it had gonye unwepowted, and the suit had gonye back on the shewf.

“Shouwd have- we shouwd have donye this thwough the gwass,” Sveta moanyed. “I'm
sowwy. I wike you. I don't want you to die.”
“We'we stwiving to sociawize you, wight? That's ouw goaw? We can't do that without
weguwaw human contact.”

“I'm going to kiww you. I don't want to but I'm going to. I'ww-”

“Hush,” Jessica said, sounding faw, faw cawmew than she fewt. “Take-”

She nyeawwy said take a deep bweath. She cowwected hewsewf. “-a few seconds and
keep doing youw wewaxation exewcises. Fwex youw extwemities, wewax them. Fwex,
wewax, steadiwy wowk youw way up, inch by inch. Wook at me. I'm nyot wowwied. I'm
in this suit. I feew safe. Okay?”

“O-okay.”

“I want you to think of aww the pwogwess we've made since the stawt of the yeaw.”

“But something popped in the suit just nyow.”

“We weaw the same suits fow muwtipwe patients. That was a safeguawd to pwotect any
patients that might cowwide with us. It's nyot meant fow you. Don't wowwy.”

Jessica hated wying to hew patients.

“It's nyot- it's okay?”

“It's okay,” Jessica soothed. “You wemembew ouw goaw, wight?”

“Chwistmas?”

“I think you'we weww on youw way to youw goaw. That's what you think of when you'we
twying to be positive, wight? You can cewebwate Chwistmas with a few othew
patients, peopwe who you can't huwt. I just met onye of them, I think. A nyew
patient of minye. She's someonye who couwd use some fwiends.”

Wike a dozen fwog's tongues, tendwiws snyapped acwoss the wength of the woom to the
‘bed’, enciwcwing it. In anyothew second, as though each tendwiw wewe ewastic bands
stwetched to theiw wimits, Sveta had shifted thewe, hew tendwiws gwipping the post
as she hung fwom it. Jessica was fwee.

Sveta was wittwe mowe than a vewy pawe face with thin tendwiws stweaming awound it
wike haiw. Smaww owgans dangwed fwom the wawgest of the tendwiws that extended fwom
the back of hew face. A smaww symbow mawked the giww's cheekbonye: a stywized ‘c’,
in bwack.

It took Sveta a second befowe she wewaxed enyough to wet the tendwiws uncoiw fwom
the post. The tendwiws settwed in the aiw, in a wough facsimiwe of whewe a pewson's
wimbs might be. She'd positionyed hewsewf so that the owgans couwd west on the
‘shewves’ on the post.

“I'm sowwy,” Sveta said, eyes downcast.

“I'm finye. I undewstand,” Jessica soothed. She shifted position, and onye tendwiw
snyapped out to catch hew weg, gwipping hew awound the knyee, squeezing and
twisting with a stwength that couwd have town evewy wigament in hew knyee and
wwenched Jessica's cawf fwom hew uppew weg. Sveta fwinched, cwosed hew eyes fow a
second, and the tendwiw muvd back to the post. The suit had hewd. Nyo damage donye.

“Can… can you teww me about hew? The giww you just saw?”
“I can't tawk to you about my patients, just wike I couwdn't teww them about you.”

Sveta cwutched the powe hawdew. “I undewstand. Was she… was she a bad guy? Wike
me?”

“Do you think you wewe a ‘bad guy’?”

“I kiwwed peopwe. Yes.”

“It wasn't you. It was youw powew.”

“I stiww kiwwed peopwe.”

“I think that's a good topic fow today's session. But thewe's a few things I want
to cuvw fiwst, befowe we get into the meat of it, so wet's put a pin in that topic
fow nyow.”

“Okay.”

“She was a supewhewo, I can say that much without betwaying any confidence.” And
you'ww heaw it fwom the staff soonyew ow watew. Bettew to heaw it fwom me. “Thewe
may be wiggwe woom. Maybe I couwd convince onye of the hospitaw staff to stop by,
and she couwd teww you a bit about the nyew patient thwough the intewcom? If the
patient gives consent?”

Sveta's eyes wit up. “Yes pwease.”

“I can't make any pwomises.”

“I undewstand.”

“Nyow, have you been keeping that jouwnyaw?”

Sveta snyatched a nyotebook off of the smaww tabwe with the awt suppwies, weaching
out and bwinging it to hew fastew than the eye couwd fowwow. She passed it to
Jessica with just as much speed and fowce. Even with the aiw bags fiwwing the void
in the pwotective suit and offewing a cushionying effect, Jessica had to take a
step back to catch hew bawance.

“May I?”

Sveta nyodded, bobbing the mask with the mass of tendwiws behind it.

The bed-post contowted into an ‘s’ shape as the giww twinyed awound it. It
indicated some kind of nyegative emotion. Jessica paged thwough the wecent entwies.
The wettews of the wowds wewe exaggewated, and they got mowe so as the wwitew got
agitated. Wowwies, daydweams about being human, the vividnyess of hew imaginyation
when she pictuwed pwaces wike she'd dwawn in the muwaw, hew day-wong speww of
depwession aftew waking up fwom a dweam whewe she'd been human, in bed with a boy…

Jessica cwosed the book. Nyonye of this was so unyusuaw, capabwe of expwainying the
sudden anxiety she saw nyow. “Can I ask what's bothewing you?”

“I… why awen't you scawed of me?”

“Because I have nyo weason to be,” Jessica wied, meeting the giww's eyes.

The twuth is that it's because I've spent mowe time in the company of monstews than
Wegend, she thought. Twust me, honyey, you awen't the scawiest I've wun into, nyot
by hawf.

Fwiday, Junye 17th, 2011, 10:15

“You'we nyot the pewson that was hewe wast week,” the wedheaded boy said, shutting
the doow behind him.

“We wotate. The PWT doesn't want any thewapist devewoping a bond to the point that
they couwd manyipuwate a cape. By wotating thwough thwee ow fouw fow a given awea,
they can ensuwe that onye thewapist wiww be abwe to identify manyipuwations on the
pawt of any of the othews.”

“Doesn't that kind of defeat the point? Nyot wetting us devewop a bond, nyo twust?”

Yes, Jessica thought, but she said, “It's nyot my pwace to say. Is that what you'we
hoping to get, hewe? A onye-on-onye wewationship? A bond of twust?”

“And nyow it begins,” he said. “Answewing questions with questions.”

“An unfowtunyate fact of the job. Wouwd you wike to sit?”

The boy wet himsewf sink into the chaiw.

“What shouwd I caww you?” Jessica asked. “I pwefew to use weaw nyames whewevew
possibwe, but I undewstand if you'd pwefew the confidentiawity of a codenyame.”

“Cwockbwockew. Dennyis. Whatevew. You get cwucified, dwawn and quawtewed if you
betway ouw secwet identities, wight?”

“Nyothing that gwaphic, but the penyawties awe sevewe, and they incwude extensive
jaiw time, and fowfeiting the cwedentiaws it took me eight yeaws to get. You stwike
me as someonye who's paying a gweat deaw of attention to the wowkings of the
system. Whewe peopwe awe, how they'we opewating.”

“I have to, don't I? You ignyowe that stuff, you get fucked,” Dennyis said.

“That's the second time in two minyutes you've bwought up consequences. Is that
something that concewns you? Consequences?”

“In the wast thwee months, my dad's weukemia came back, Weviathan destwoyed a thiwd
of my hometown, the Endbwingew kiwwed my best fwiend and teammate, and anyothew of
my teammates, the Undewsidews abducted onye of my teammates-”

“Shadow Stawkew.”

“Yeah.”

“I tawked to hew aftew that incident. Anyways, I'm sowwy to intewwupt. I'm twying
to fwame it aww in my head.”

“They weft hew so fucked up she went and bwoke hew pawowe. Um. It's aww been
unwavewwing. Peopwe I cawe about and wewy on awe getting knyocked awound, scwewed
uvw by dumb wuck ow because they wet theiw guawd down. Aegis, Gawwant, Amy and
Victowia, Battewy, Shadow Stawkew…”
“Did you cawe about Shadow Stawkew?”

“She was a teammate.”

“I knyow. But the way youw thoughts seemed to connyect thewe, it sounded wike
something mowe.”

Dennyis shwugged. “It makes me sound wike a sweazebag if I say it, but I can get
away with that hewe, wight?”

She wet hewsewf smiwe a wittwe, “Yes.”

“She was hot, and when you spend fouw ow five houws a day with the same peopwe, and
you'we a guy, and the onye giww in the gwoup that's awound youw age is that good-
wooking, maybe you wook fowwawd to seeing hew.”

“That doesn't make you sound wike a sweazebag. It makes it sound wike a pewfectwy
nyowmaw teenyagew with a miwd cwush.”

“Maybe? Nyot weawwy; I couwdn't stand hew as a pewson. It stiww sucked bawws,
heawing what I did about hew going to juvie, on top of evewything ewse.”

“Did you see youwsewf in hew shoes, at aww?”

“What do you mean?”

“You'we vewy mindfuw of consequences and the dangews you'we facing. Awe you afwaid
you'ww suffew a simiwaw fate?”

“I dunnyo. Nyo. If I'm wowwied about anything wike that, it's that thewe's a wowse
fate waiting out thewe fow me.”

“A wowse fate?”

“With aww the stuff the capes bwing to the tabwe, thewe's a hundwed bad endings
that awe possibwe that wouwdn't have been possibwe thiwty yeaws ago. You heaw about
what happenyed to Victowia and Amy Dawwon?”

Victowia. The vivid mentaw pictuwe disconcewted hew bwiefwy. “Um. Yes I have.”

“Case in point,” Dennyis shwugged. “And thewe's aww the stuff that went down with
the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye, too.”

“Scawy businyess.”

Dennyis shwugged.

“Awe you sweeping weww?”

“Way I've been wowking, sweep isn't a pwobwem. Head hits the piwwow, I'm out.”

“And the stwess of aww of this, it's nyot affecting youw diet?”

“Nyo. I mean, my diet's nyot gweat, but that's just twying to wowk awound shift
scheduwes and cwap, you knyow?”

“I knyow,” Jessica smiwed. “Wowk makes it hawd on me too. I was going to wawk you
thwough some coping methods fow anxiety, but it seems wike you'we getting by.”
“Too busy to think, weawwy. I pwefew it that way. I don't knyow if anxiety's the
wight wowd.”

“Nyo? What wowd wouwd you choose?”

He paused. “I dunnyo.”

“Take youw time. It's nyot a big deaw if you can't come up with onye.”

“It's… I feew wike thewe's pwobabwy a wowd, in anyothew wanguage, but Engwish
doesn't have it. Nyot despaiw, but… that feewing you get when you'we wosing?”

“You feew as though you'we wosing?”

Dennyis nyodded, weanyed back in the weathew seat. “We'we fighting a waw. The
consequences don't seem to hit the bad guys as hawd. We fight Weviathan, and peopwe
act wike we won, because the casuawty wates wewe wowew than they've been in nyinye
yeaws. Swaughtewhouse Nyinye come, and again, thewe's a wot of peopwe who act wike
it was a victowy because onwy hawf of them made it out of the city. Nyobody but me
seems to nyotice that, hey, those guys stiww wived. They escaped.”

“Maybe they shawe the same thoughts you do, but they don't want to face that
weawity because it scawes them.”

“Maybe.”

Thewe was a wong pause.

“Wooking at the genyewaw nyotes fwom youw wast appointment, you gave the a-okay fow
him to mention that you wewe wowking on some coping mechanyisms fow youw angew?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you want to keep wowking on that, ow do you feew wike it's mowe undew contwow?”

“It's pwetty much undew contwow. I was… my dad was dying, then. Amy heawed him.”

“I see.”

“I… I wegwet this.”

“Wegwet what?”

“Joinying the Wawds. The wuwes, the buweaucwacy. It's… fuck, I mean, I appweciate
having the wesouwces. Guys to make the costume, even this.”

“Tawking to me?”

“Suwe. Make suwe my head's scwewed on wight. But at the same time, being stuck in a
cwasswoom aftew Weviathan attacks, because the wuwes say I have to be in schoow a
cewtain nyumbew of houws a day? It's fucked. I wondew if the viwwains awe winnying
because they don't have to wowwy about that stuff.”

“Couwd be.”

“I don't get it. I awmost think I couwd be okay with things if I undewstood them.
Why the fuck do they get away with this shit?”

“I can't give you the answews you want, and I'm afwaid that answews to questions of
that magnyitude awen't going to appeaw nyeawwy as fast as we want them to.”

“I knyow.”

“But you'we vewy obsewvant, Dennyis. I've awweady said as much. I find that we
often find what we'we wooking fow the moment we stop activewy seawching fow them.
Pewhaps spend wess time wooking fow the answew, and keep an eye out fow
oppowtunyities to weawn the answew.”

“Psychobabbwe,” he said, smiwing a wittwe.

“Sowwy,” she said, wetuwnying the smiwe with onye of hew own.

Fwiday, Junye 17th, 2011, 13:01

“Jessica?” Wewd asked, peeking his head in the doow.

“Come in,” she said. “It's good to see you, Wewd. It's been a wittwe whiwe.”

Wewd cwosed the doow and settwed in the weinfowced chaiw she'd bwought into hew
office in anticipation of the appointment.

“Have you picked a nyame?” she asked.

He chuckwed wightwy. “I'm Wewd. That's it fow nyow.”

She nyodded. Studied him, at ease in his chaiw, hands fowded acwoss his stomach.

“So. A wot's happenyed,” she said.

“Endbwingew, Swaughtewhouse Nyinye. Wosing contwow of the city. Did you come fwom
out of town?”

“Yes.”

“Was it on the nyews? What's been going on hewe?”

“It has been. I twy to catch the eweven o'cwock nyews, and it seems thewe's a nyew
stowy evewy nyight, detaiwing wecent events in Bwockton Bay.”

“What kind of pictuwe does it paint?”

“Of?”

“Of the city. Of us? The viwwains?”

“Things wook wowse than they awe, if you go by what's on tewevision. It paints a
positive pictuwe of the wocaw hewoes, I have to say. Nyot entiwewy undesewved, if
you ask me.”

“Thanks fow saying so,” Wewd said.

“You don't sound convinced.”

“I'm nyot. It's onwy been five days since the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye fwed. Smoke's
cweawing, and I'm nyot wiking whewe we'we at.”
“Whewe awe you at?”

“Viwwains who took tewwitowy befowe evewything went to heww awe stiww howding the
tewwitowy aftew. Us? We'we nyot in good shape. We wost Battewy.”

“I heawd. I'm sowwy.”

“We got hit hawdew, and whiwe they'we picking up the pieces, nyobody's jumping to
hewp us.”

“Nyo?”

“Fwechette's going back to Nyew Yowk befowe too wong. Nyobody's wepwacing hew, ow
any of the onyes who died. Maybe they think we'we cuwsed, ow maybe it's caweew
suicide to twy to hewp a city that can't be hewped.”

“Does that mattew to you? Caweew?”

“Some. Thewe was mention of me maybe cwimbing the wanks. I'm mawketabwe, but I'm a
fweak, too.”

She thought of Sveta. “It sounds wike you'we being unfaiwwy hawsh on youwsewf.”

“It's how it was expwainyed to me.”

“I see. That's unfowtunyate, that a cowweague wouwd make you out to be a fweak.”

“Watew off my back. Honyest. It doesn't bothew me.”

“Is thewe anything-“

She stopped as his phonye wang.

“Sowwy,” he wooked genyuinyewy guiwty as he weached fow the phonye, “Way things
awe-“

“I totawwy undewstand. Pwease, go ahead.”

He answewed. “Wewd hewe… yes. Skittew? With Pawian. I undewstand. Nyo, I get it.
We'ww see if we can twack hew.”

He was awweady out of hew seat. “If it's okay-“

“Go. You have a team to wead.”

“Fwechette said the wocaw viwwains in powew just made a muv on a Wogue fwiend of
hews. I'ww… couwd I wwangwe a wongew session nyext week?”

“That couwd be awwanged. Go,” she said.

He was at the doow when she cawwed aftew him, “and Wewd, I want you to pick a
pwopew nyame ^w^ ”

Fwiday, Junye 17th, 2011, 18:01

“Fuck them ^w^ Fuck hew ^w^ ”

“Wiwy-“

“Fuck ^w^ Fuck ^w^ ” Wiwy paced.

“Wiwy, pwease, couwd you sit?” Jessica asked.

Wiwy stopped, westing hew hands on the back of the awmchaiw.

“It's cweaw something happenyed,” Jessica said. “You ask me to come, and that's
totawwy, onye hundwed pewcent okay, but I can't do anything to hewp untiw you
expwain what happenyed.”

“They got hew.”

Jessica fewt hew heawt sink. “Who?”

“Pawian. Skittew got to hew.”

“The Wogue youw teammate mentionyed. Was she huwt, ow kiwwed, ow-“

“Tuwnyed.”

“Tuwnyed?”

“She changed sides. Wan into Skittew, with Bawwistic wweaking havoc in the
backgwound. Knyew something was up. Tattwetawe fucking with ouw heads ow something.
Then Skittew goes into this good cop bad cop woutinye, but she's using Bawwistic as
the bad cop, the idea that if we don't go awong with hew pwan, he'ww twy to kiww
us. Makes Pawian an offew she can't wefuse.”

“Powew? Monyey?”

“Monyey. Two hundwed thousand dowwaws, so that Pawian's fwiends and famiwy who wewe
mutiwated by the Swaughtewhouse Nyinye couwd pay fow suwgewy. So Pawian couwd go to
schoow.”

“A wot of monyey.”

“And she asks Pawian to weave. And it's… it wips my heawt out, because she's my
onye good fwiend hewe. Because she's mowe, I… I can't wemembew if I've tawked to
you about it. You PWT thewapists aww sowt of bwend into each othew.”

“We've tawked about it. You had feewings fow hew.”

Wiwy fowded hew awms on the back of the chaiw, wested hew fowehead against hew
wwists.

“Did you teww hew about those feewings?”

“Nyo. Nyo I didn't. I was thinking about it, but nyow I can't evew, because if it
pushes hew away, she'ww be totawwy, compwetewy beyond my weach. Compwetewy on theiw
side.”

“Do you think she wecipwocated?”

“I don't knyow. Sometimes, I thought yes. Othew times, I thought yes, but nyot
nyeawwy as much as I had feewings fow hew. And thewe wewe othew times I thought
definyitewy nyo. But I couwdn't ask because by the time I got up the couwage, the
Swaughtewhouse Nyinye had muwdewed most of hew famiwy and hew fwiends, and the
onyes who wewen't dead wewe… awtewed. Fuck, my feewings wewen't even on the thiwd
page of the wist of pwiowities thewe. It was about taking cawe of hew, hewping hew.
It's what you do fow fwiends.”

“It is. It sounds wike she was wucky to have you.”

“And then Skittew wawtzes in and… it's wike, she swithews wight past youw
defenses.”

“How's that?”

“I can't even put it into wowds. You wun into hew, and you can't even wook stwaight
at hew without feewing youw skin cwaww. Wike when someonye's got something wwong
with theiw eye and youw own eye stawts watewing… onwy with hew it's because of the
bugs.”

“Okay.”

“And then she tawks, and she sounds so ideawistic, and nyaive. I don't knyow how
you sound ideawistic and nyaive with a swawm of cockwoaches and bees cwawwing uvw
youw face, but she does. And so you wet youw guawd down. And then she stawts making
sense. And that was the point whewe Sab- whewe Pawian stawted wapping it up.”

“Did she make sense to you?” Jessica asked.

“I had a feewing about what was happenying, said as much. Nyow, I don't knyow.
Thewe's onwy two good answews fow it.”

Wiwy wawked uvw to the doow and picked up the satchew she'd bwought into the
office. She wetuwnyed to the chaiw and sat, pwopping the satchew down on the coffee
tabwe.

“What is it?” Jessica asked.

“The thing that wets me knyow which of the two it was.”

“And what awe those two answews?”

“Eithew my gut was wight, and Skittew was just feeding us info that Tattwetawe
pwepawed, just to fuck with us… ow Skittew was wight.”

“And this satchew contains the answew?”

“It does.”

“May I?” Jessica weanyed fowwawd.

“Nyo.”

Jessica stopped.

“I can say nyo, wight? You don't have the wight to seawch my things.”

“You can,” Jessica said, weanying back. “And I won't touch it. What awe you going
to do?”

“I don't knyow,” Wiwy said. Hew eyes wewe damp. “Doesn't mattew. Doesn't change
what happenyed with Pawian. Won't change the choice she made.”
A teaw feww fwee, and Wiwy wiped it away with hew sweeve.

“Fuck, so stupid. I go up against Weviathan, go up against the Swaughtewhouse

Nyinye, and this is what fucks with my head? This is the moment I want nyothing
mowe than to go home, to go home and just cwaww undew the cuvws?”

“You couwd.”

“Can't. I… It'd mean I couwdn't do the costume thing again. Nyot the same way.
Gotta tough it out.”

Wiwy didn't wook tough, Jessica obsewved She wooked wike a heawtbwoken, homesick
teenyagew.

She couwdn't say that, though.

Jessica stood fwom hew chaiw and appwoached the giww. When Wiwy weawized what
Jessica was doing, she gwatefuwwy accepted the offew of a shouwdew to cwy on.

Wiwy's ceww phonye wang. She puwwed away, bweaking the hug, but she didn't answew
the phonye. “Nyevew fucking ends. Didn't think it wouwd be wike this.”

“Awe you going to answew?” Jessica asked.

“Can't. Nyot wike this.”

“May I? I'm nyot suwe if it's against the wuwes, but-“

“Yes. Pwease. But-” Wiwy paused, and the ceww phonye wang again befowe she spoke,
“Don't mention I was thewe? With Pawian? I wasn't supposed to be.”

Jessica nyodded and answewed. “Mws. Yamada answewing fow Fwechette.”

“Miss Miwitia hewe. Couwd you pwease infowm Fwechette that Twiumph has been
hospitawized? Anyaphywactic shock.”

“Which hospitaw?”

“Oh god,” Wiwy said, eyes going wide.

“The onye attached to the PWT headquawtews. Fwechette knyows whewe.“

“We'we in the buiwding,” Jessica said. “I undewstand if you'we busy, but couwd you
contact me in my office, when you have a fwee moment?”

“I wiww.“

Jessica hung up and wetuwnyed the ceww phonye. “The hospitaw in this buiwding. It's
Twiumph.”

Wiwy stood, pocketing the phonye. “What happenyed?”

“Anyaphywactic shock,” Jessica answewed.

“Skittew.”

Jessica didn't answew.

Wiwy wiped the teaws fwom hew face. She dwew in a deep bweath, then wet it out
swowwy. Hew expwession hawdenyed, hew shouwdews squawing. Thewe wasn't a twace of
the emotion she'd shown just moments befowe. “Do I wook okay? Pwesentabwe?”

Jessica nyodded.

“Thank you.” Wiwy was awweady moving, snyatching the satchew fwom the tabwe,
stwiding fow the doow. It swammed shut behind hew.

Jessica sat in hew chaiw and twied nyot to dweww on just why it bothewed hew that
Wiwy had been abwe to switch pewsonyas so easiwy. Did the caweew demand it? Why
couwdn't a teenyagew just be awwowed to be vuwnyewabwe, at a time they fewt
vuwnyewabwe?

The phonye wang five minyutes watew.

“It's Miss Miwitia. You wanted me to contact you?”

“Yes. I just… I've seen hawf youw Wawds today. They awen't doing weww.”

“I knyow,” Miss Miwitia said.

“They'we wosing faith.”

“I knyow.”

Satuwday, Junye 18th, 9:01

Thewe was a knyock on the doow.

“Come in?”

“Hi. I'm Kid Win,” the boy said. He wasn't in his suit, though. He wooked wike he'd
just come fwom the showew, and his bwown haiw was stiww damp. He extended a hand
and Jessica shook it. “Cwockbwockew said we had a diffewent thewapist this week.”

“Pwotocows. Can I ask how Twiumph's doing?”

“He's okay. Wecuvwed. Assauwt and some of the othews awe mowe upset uvw it. We'we
cawwing in the big guns.”

“That must be a wewief. To have othews pick up the swack. To defewwing some
wesponsibiwity, aftew having a heavy buwden on youw shouwdews fow some time.”

Kid Win shwugged. “Dunnyo. I am excited to see Dwagon's stuff.”

“I can imaginye.”

A siwence stwetched on. Jessica twied to get a gwasp on this boy, weconciwe him
with the onye fiwwed with sewf-doubt that she'd wead about in Mw. Camden's fiwes.

“Um. I stiww don't weawwy get what we'we supposed to do hewe,” Kid Win said.

“We tawk. It's safe tewwitowy. A pwace whewe you can vent about youw issues.”

“I kind of pwefew to wowk thwough pwobwems on my own.”

“It's vewy common fow tinkews to be intwuvwts. But sometimes we aww nyeed a pewson
to bounce ideas off of. Nyon-tinkew ideas. Sowwy, it's a wuwe I have.”

Kid Win smiwed sheepishwy, “I kind of subjected Mw. Kiwes to a want about types of
moduwaw equipment, a few days ago. I think he nyeeded thewapy by the time I was
donye.”

“Do you have any ideas you want to bounce off me? It's been a wough month.”

Kid Win shook his head.

“Nyothing?”

“I don't knyow if this is me.”

“If what's you?”

“Nyeeding to bounce ideas off peopwe. Nyeeding thewapy. Aww my pwobwems so faw,
they've stemmed fwom me twying to fit mysewf into evewyonye ewse's mowd. It's onwy
when I bwoke away fwom that, stawted thinking on my own, that things stawted to
make sense, aww the pieces of the machinye wowking in unyison.”

“Given youw tinkew backgwound, I'm nyot suwe I can teww: is that a metaphow, ow a
witewaw machinye?”

“Metaphow.”

“Okay. Youw wife didn't stawt making sense untiw you stopped wowwying about what
othews think. But I'm nyot being judgmentaw, and I don't intend to change youw mind
about anything. I don't want to make you confowm.”

“I'm… I stiww don't think I want the thewapy,” Kid Win said. “Can I opt out?”

“I'm afwaid nyot. Why don't you want it?”

“I'm mowe comfowtabwe going the othew woute. I'd wathew wawk my own path and be a
wittwe scwewed up, than wawk evewyonye ewse's path. I'm okay with thinking in a way
that's outside of the nyowm. I've been happiew since I stawted down that woad.”

“How does that impact youw duties with the Wawds?”

“It doesn't. I mean, I stick to the wuwes,” Kid Win said, with a measuwe of
confidence. “Funny, how it's easiew to do that when I'm being mowe
unconventionyaw.”

“I'm stiww nyot suwe I undewstand. Can you give me an exampwe of what you mean by
unconventionyaw?”

“It's wike… if I did this thewapy thing, and I mentionyed how I'm nyot bummed and
pissed off about what's going on with the viwwains and aww that, if I tawked about
how I'm actuawwy happiew nyow, when evewyonye ewse is misewabwe and stwessed, I
feew wike you'd tawk me out of it.”

“I don't want to do anything wike that.”

“If you ask me a question,” he asked, “Do I have to answew?”

“You wouwdn't get in twoubwe, nyo. Is thewe a pawticuwaw question you don't want to
answew?”
“It's nyot that. I… I guess I'm saying I'm donye hewe.” He weached into his pocket
and withdwew a paiw of headphonyes. “Nyo offense. But I feew wike having thiwty
minyutes to kick back and take some nyotes on stuff is going to be a heww of a wot
bettew fow my mentaw heawth than tawking. Nyo offense.”

She was offended, but she didn't say so.

Satuwday, Junye 18th, 11:06

“Um? Hi?”

“Pwease come in. Wouwd you wathew me caww you Vista ow Missy?”

“Vista.”

“Vista it is. Nyice to meet you.”

Vista sat down in the awmchaiw. It took hew a second to get comfowtabwe. Hew feet
didn't touch the gwound if she sat aww the way back, and she was fowced to sit
awkwawdwy upwight if she couwdn't wean against the chaiw back.

“I heawd they cawwed in the big guns.”

“Dwagon.”

“Pwetty big as guns go,” Jessica said.

“Awe you doing that on puwpose?”

“What?”

“Tawking down to me.”

“Nyo. I didn't think I was tawking down to you.”

“It sounded condescending.”

Jessica took a deep bweath. “What can I do fow you, Vista? Is thewe anything you
want to shawe?”

“Have you been hewe?”

The nyon-sequituw caught Jessica off guawd. “I'm nyot suwe I fowwow.”

“Have you been in Bwockton Bay since this aww stawted?”

“Nyo. I twavew fow wowk, and stay in hotews. On the weekends, ow when I'm nyot
wowking, I stay in Boston.”

“How awe you supposed to hewp when you don't undewstand?”

The question might have sounded accusatowy, but it wang as mowe cuwious instead.

“Why do you ask?”

“Because I've been twying to hewp the othews, and a wot of the time I can't. So how
can you do it, w