Sonya ched and unched her hand, gng again at Amos. He either paid her no mind or didn’t notice, his focus was more on Marta alking alongside them. She looked away, her mind whirling. He has multiple abilities but he only ublic about one of them. Is it active? How do I ask? She bit her lip, More importantly, he possibly be the only one? If he has multiple, why ’t others? Who else? She thought about how untouchable Otis had been in his hayday. I thought it was just some absurd power, but what if there was more to it? Each power has rules, limits, restris. If he had more than one, could he have had more than ori?

  She gnced again at Amos, I’ve been too cocky. I think. Broker made me feel all powerful, but… I have a bad feeling.

  “You alright Sonya?” Marta asked, gng past Amos and towards her. There was clear on her fabsp;

  Damn, I was emoting too much. Sonya chastised herself, “It’s nothing, just colleg my thoughts, it’s been a busy day.” Man half-truths are harder than I thought.

  “We did just move in!” Marta ughed, she seemed so calm after fighting those things.

  “What about you?” Sonya asked, giving her a meaningful look. Amos shrank a little between their exged gnces.

  Marta hesitated, “I may have been… over excited about it,” Marta admitted, looking down at her hands as she knit her fiogether at her waist, she sighed, “I’m angry.”

  “Your husband?” Sonya asked.

  “Mhm,” Marta murmured, “I wao feel like it was worth it.”

  “Was it?”

  Marta let out a sigh, “I feel better, I guess.”

  “Um!” Amos cleared his throat, “Should I be listening to this?”

  Sonya snorted and shook her head, “Probably not but you’re here anyway,” She chuckled, gd that she was able to divert the attention from herself. She g Marta who seemed to realize what had happened and frow her. Sonya winked and gnced back at Amos, “So where is your shop?”

  “Right up ahead, around the er,” Amos said, gesturing just ahead to a lonely looking street er.

  Sonya gnced around, this part of town was remarkably quiet for how she remembered New York. She guessed people in less secure areas weren’t as fident about being protected from the monsters. It’ll be more and more often, until the dungeons start appearing at least. Sonya thought grimly as they rouhe er and spotted a group of men standing outside a particur storefront. They were hitting the windows with bats and ughing.

  Amht his hands up to his head and practically tugged at his hair, “My store! What the hell?”

  Sonya grimaced, she hadn’t stopped him in time. The gathering of men all turned as one, eyeing the trio. They all looked at one another before starting to approach. Sonya clicked her tongue, she’d hoped to e to an arra with the thugs after getting a better y of the nd but it seemed like she’d been right. She’d overestimated how easy this was going to be. They didn’t look at all ined for a civil versation.

  “Whoo ee! Look at that! Amos! You scored!” One of the men shouted and was joined by the others in a few cat calls and jeers.

  “What are you doing? I told you I’d pay!” Amos barked, ign their mog.

  “Not quiough,” Another one said, slinging his bat over his shoulder, “Obviously you had better things to do than figure your situation out anyway. Hey dies! Why don’t you e hang out with us, yeah?”

  Marta growled and Sonya reached out a hand to forestall her, “But!”

  “You’re not invincible, just strong, those beasts were ohing but these guys know how to fight as a group,” Sonya said quietly, watg how they crowded round one another. She’d seen this kind of mentality a lot as a scout, it was unrefined, but there were definite signs that they’d had each others backs for some time. It made her miss w in the Guild. “Unless you take them down in a few seds, you’ll die.”

  Marta winced and rexed her shoulders, Amos looked Sonya’s way but Sonya ig. She o think! She needed- her lips twisted and she reached into her warehouse, pulling out Genius Level Intellect. She wasn’t sure how it would affect her mind, but- a shock ripped through her skull and she almost lost her posure. Instead she just grunted in a way that sounded like a chuckle. The men frow her as she stared at them, her eyes flitti and right. Information processed so fast she could barely ha all, was this how Amos lived? Or was it because she had a mind trained for bat situations? Regardless, she came up with a few ideas.

  Sonya stepped forward with a smile, “Boys! I’m so sorry to interrupt your fun, I was actually hoping to get in touch with your boss. Shark, right?” Sonya said as casually as possible, sending the group a disarming smile, “You wouldn’t be opposed to me talking to him, right?”

  “He ain’t here,” One man grunted.

  “Really? That’s a shame,” Sonya said, raising her hand to her heart, befesturing to Marta, “We heard his power was really impressive, it would be iing to meet someone like ourselves, you know?”

  The men froze, a few of them growing a little tehey looked at one another uneasily. Yes, that’s right, you’ve seen what your boss do and you don’t know what Marta and I are capable of. We’re an unknown variable and possibly a threat, and there’s two of us.

  Marta tensed, she knew enough about Sonya’s power to know that it really didn’t have any bat application. Sure, Sonya could draw on Heroic Strength herself if she wao but she didn’t know how long it would st or how effective it would be in her hands. She wasn’t Marta who was made for it. She only hoped Marta wouldn’t give anything away with her posture, these guys were sharper than they looked.

  “Why don’t we talk business inside Amos’ shop?” One of the guys suggested, gesturing to the cracked window, “One of us go get the boss while you wait.”

  Get us in an enclosed space with superior numbers, fat ce idiot, Sonya groused inwardly, sing the men, “It’s no big deal,” She threw out with a shrug, “I’ve been meaning to get some fresh air. We wait outside.”

  One of the men frowned, Got you, the man who had made the initial offer shrugged his shoulders, “No problem, hey, go get Shark and bring him here. Let him know he’s got pany.”

  “Right,” One of the bigger men grunted, eyeing Sonya with open hostility before stepping away from the group and hustling dowreet.

  Amos whirled on Sonya, pani his eyes, “Are you nuts?” He hissed, “Shark will kill you!”

  Sonya lowered her void gnced his way, “I bought us some time,” She said, “Now what do you o do your work? Anything from your shop?” She pressed.

  “Uh… just my notebook, I’ve got years of work on it, everything else in there is basically just junk hardware and tools that I repce,” Amos admitted, looking away.

  “Then do yourself a favor and fet about the store,” Sonya said quietly, “I’ll get you inside, you grab your notebook a out, got it?”

  “Fet- what?” He blurted, drawing the attention of the men in the distance. “No way!”

  “Amos!” One of them shouted just as Sonya shot him a scathing look, “What’s going ohere? Trouble in paradise?”

  Sonya looked between the men, she shouldn’t have trusted Amos’ description of them. Her first thought had been to try to buy them off and sow some discord, but it was obvious that they had a sense of unity. In times like these, that unity was only going to be stronger. I could just ie them, I have Firestorm. But that would be showing her cards and even though nobody else was oreet that didn’t mean she was free of watchful eyes. I’m sure those cops put a tail on us. I o get to the root, cut the head off, and do it without making a spectay powers. My produeed to stay behind closed doors, the world has to think I only have my eyes otherwise I won’t be able to py both sides. I wo personas, essentially. But maybe… An idea occurred to her. That could work.

  “Just talking business!” Sonya called back, “I’m something of arepreneur, that's why I took an i in Amos!”

  “An ior are ya?” The guy taking point amongst the thugs said, “Got some moo throw around?”

  “I’m always looking for new opportuo expand my portfolio,” Sonya said back with an easy smile, “Why, do you have any suggestions?”

  “I could use an iment,” One of them ughed, drawing a round of ughter from his friends.

  “Maybe I’ll sider it,” Sonya said with a shrug, “But the atmosphere isn’t very good for business, boys, my friend here ’t even go into his shop and che it. That’s a shame,” She said with a frown and tilted her sungsses down, her glowing eyes bright enough to be seen across the distahe meated for a moment and looked at one another. “e on, guys, it’s not like he do business, he just o grab a notebook. A notebook isn’t worth your time, is it?”

  She lowered her voice, “Amos? When I say go inside, you go and you stay there until I tell you otherwise, no questions,” She hissed, “Uood?”

  He stared at her in fusion before she started walking towards them, she had to be careful now, they shifted a bit and she held her hands up casually as Marta hissed her name urgently from behind. She waved her hand to calm the girl down, Now or never Sonya, time to ohis thing. The men looked amongst themselves uneasily for a moment as she approached.

  “How about we make a deal? I try to work out a business arra with your boss and you don’t cause any problems for us until he es out, I think that’s fair, right? I’m sure you guys could use some better gear, maybe a few cars, who knows?” She offered, drawing in even closer.

  The men exged looks again and gri one ahey had no iion of upholding the deal, but that wasn’t their call now was it. There were seven of them present. Seven quick handshakes. He just needed one of them to take point on the deal. The ohat had been leading the versation took a step forward as she reached them aended a meaty hand. “Sure, dy, deal,” He said and she took his hand.

  No time for Appraisal, Process Exge!

  Be blinked, surprised, just as she darted away from him with a brilliant smile, “Oh thank you boys so much!” She said, shaking each of their hands in turn, they grinned awkwardly wheouched them, one even blushing, “I really do appreciate you agreeing to this for me!”

  “Hey!” The first one called even as she turned around and waved to Amos.

  “Amos! You go inside now!” She called, he didn’t hesitate, he darted for the door faster than she’d expected he could run. He fumbled with his keys.

  “Hey!” The thug barked and she turo face him.

  “We made a deal! Is there a problem?” She asked.

  “You’re damn right there is! What did you just do, my hand tingles,” He growled and the other men gained dark looks on their faces. One of them lowered his bat to his side and stepped forward. “What kinda bullshit are you pulling, dy?”

  “Amos! Get ihe building, now!” Sonya barked as the men started to crowd her.

  Hurry you idiot! She snarled inwardly just as the door chimed. Amos stepped over the threshold just as one of them pulled his fist back to strike her. He froze, a fused look on his face. I ’t believe that worked! I guess teically I didn’t lie, I told them it was a deal after all and he shook my hand willingly, but that was really testing the boundaries there. Shiiiiit! She breathed out a sigh of relief and shot a thumbs up at Marta who gave her an incredulous look.

  The man at the lead of the group grunted and tried to step forward but froze as well, he looked down at his feet. “The hell is this?”

  “I told you,” Sonya said, turning her eyes on him, “We made a deal.”

  He bli her, fused for a moment, and then horror exploded onto his face. Her smile widened as she loomed over him, “As agreed, I’ll try to work things out with your boss. Let’s hope it goes well, mm?” She tittered as Marta approached. Marta looked at the men who were standing in aoses of near violend then looked back at Sonya. “They agreed not to be a problem until Amos es out of his shop. Make sure Amos stays in there until I call you,” Sonya said cooly, looking the mehey stared back at her with hate in their eyes as their postures rexed. She supposed it would be troublesome for her if they were all frozeheir boss got back.

  Marta let out a breath, “That was reckless.”

  Sonya turned away from the men and pat her friend’s shoulder, “I know,” Sonya said, trembling a little. Marta looked back at her, surprised. “I didn’t know if it would work,” She said in a low voice, “But I had to try.”

  As Marta went into the shop, Sonya chewed her lip. She wasn’t sure exactly what the limits of ‘being a problem’ were. She couldn’t trol their minds or make them behave a certain way, she was sure of it. Not without a mind trol product, anyway. She shuddered at the thought. He’ll know something’s up if they don’t say anything or move, but there’s nothing I do about that. At least they won’t be able to join in with their boss if this turns into a fight.

  She took a deep breath just as she heard versation ing from nearby, Alright Sonya, time to make good on your side of the deal.