I studied the map of the city in the Wards’ quarters carefully, eyes roaming the east side of it. I’d just got back from school, a mostly nothing day with a sprinkle of excitement; at least future excitement. I’d caught wind of an apparent fight in the area, courtesy of Nick the Nazi being a loudmouth. That sounded like a great time to me.

  There were issues of course. He hadn’t said what kind of fight, and I was worried it was a parahuman one. Hookwolf and his cronies had all been pit fighters, from what I remembered. Whether that was before or after they got their powers I didn’t know, the dossiers didn’t say. If it was one of those though well… Then I’d cut and run. I wanted to do good, I couldn’t if I was dead.

  That wasn’t the only kind of fight it could be anyway. I remembered vague reports of underground boxing and animal fighting too. That honestly seemed more likely, with how few capes Wotan’s Wolves had now that Hannibal was going to prison. Still, wouldn’t do to be blindsided so I’d be damn careful.

  I grimaced when I finally found the place I heard mentioned, corner of Whitley and Amherst. That was deep in the East End, a long way from backup, a long way from home. It shouldn’t be a problem, I could still get most of the way there on a bus, and thanks to Hooks I could run for a good while before I was exhausted. It was just another factor that made me uneasy.

  Last time I’d gotten into trouble, the Undersiders had shown up and made things easier. I couldn’t count on that happening every time though, and really didn’t want to rely on villains if I could help it at all. I was trying to be a hero. Sure I’d left out their intervention last time but...well it just wasn’t that important. Going forward though, I knew I’d have to tell Amy; and I was pretty sure if she thought I was working with them the PRT would be the least of my problems.

  God that was just...weird. It was hard to believe she’d been okay with me going out, even though she seemed to be kind of upset about some stuff. Understandably so, I had committed an actual crime burning down the tattoo place. Still, it was for a good cause and Amy got that, I’d just...have to avoid doing it again.

  The alert for an incoming tour sounded and I scrambled back to my room. I heard the elevator door open just as my room’s was shutting. I swore under my breath, leaning against the door. When I’d given the tribunal the okay on tours, I hadn’t realized just how often I’d be interrupted. It hadn’t been bad when I was at school, or training and working on the weekends, but with some time off it was starting to grate.

  Outside, I could hear Battery’s muffled voice explaining what we did here on a daily basis. It was hardly exciting really, planning operations wasn’t exactly something kids wanted to hear about in detail. And going by the tone in her explanation she knew it.

  “But maybe,” I caught her saying. “We’ll have a chance to meet one of the Wards today.” God dammit, she wanted me to make an appearance.

  No one else was in today, either out on patrol or home with family. I sighed and turned to the closet, quickly dressing in my costume as I heard Battery continue showing people around the room outside. She was talking about the big mural on the ceiling now, telling everyone the litany of heroic deeds showcased there. Still none for me, though I didn’t really mind; it wasn’t like they could really paint me crushing Shatterbird’s throat up there. Finally I was ready and headed out into the common area.

  “Oh, hello Amaranth,” Battery greeted me with the fakest surprise I’d ever heard. Behind her was a crowd of mixed kids and adults, one or two teenagers among them. Their attention was focused on me, and I could already feel myself starting to sweat.

  “Hi,” I replied shortly. “Uhh, how’s the tour going?”

  “Just fine,” she said, offering a smile. “We’ll be heading down to the motor pool next to check out a containment van. I was just telling them about the Wards and what you do though, could you add a bit?” I blinked.

  “Sure,” I said with a shrug.

  I turned to face the small crowd, then completely blanked. I hadn’t actually done anything I could talk about for god damn near a month. What was I supposed to say to them? ‘Sorry kids I got suspended because I tried to save people from a fire, now I go beat up villains on my own’, obviously not. Had to come up with something convincing or…

  “Um, Miss Amaranth?” a girl who couldn’t have been more than six piped up, raising her hand.

  “Yeah?” I asked, nodding at her.

  “Did you fight against Behemoth?” I saw Battery give a minute nod in the corner of my eye.

  “I was there, yeah,” I answered. “I didn’t do a lot of fighting, I would have had to get way too close to be safe. I mostly worked with the medical staff, making sure people who were hurt lived long enough to have a healer look at them. I uh, if you saw the footage they released, I also worked with the cape who fired that big blast that nearly killed him.”

  “You did that?!” the kid shrieked excitedly, making me wince; both at her volume and the side-eye Battery was giving me.

  “No, I just helped the person who did,” I corrected her, holding out my hands. “No secret energy blast powers, promise.” That got a disappointed groan from her, and a chuckle from her dad who was holding her hand.

  “Weren’t you scared?” one of the teenagers asked, a guy in an oversized hoodie with hair that hid his eyes.

  “Bet your ass,” I snapped, then suppressed a groan at the giggles from the kids and frowns from their parents. “Sorry, yes, I was absolutely scared. I don’t think I’d believe anyone, hero or villain, who said they weren’t. But being a hero means you have to overcome that fear and keep going. That’s how we protect people.”

  At least I got an approving nod from Battery on that note. After a couple more, less heavy questions, the group moved on with an accompanying PRT officer. Battery stayed behind with me, motioning for us to sit at the nearby table. I sighed and sat across from her, resting my chin on my palm.

  “Sorry about the ‘ass’ thing,” I said once she’d been seated. “Just slipped out.”

  “It happens,” Battery replied with a wry grin. “Have to schedule you for coaching though.”

  “Seriously?” I groaned.

  “It won’t be that bad,” she reassured me. “You’re not the first Ward to have issues with profanity. I’m more interested in hearing what exactly you did in New Delhi.”

  “Uhh, um,” I stammered. “Is, isn’t that classified?”

  “You’re worrying about that after telling a group of civilians?”

  “I didn’t tell them details,” I hedged. That was, I knew, what would get me into shit. “Nothing that isn’t mostly public record.”

  “We’re both heroes,” Battery replied. “This isn’t a trap to get you into trouble Amaranth. I wasn’t there, I don’t know the particulars of the fighting at all beyond the after action reports. I just...if I’m honest, I want to feel like I’m part of the fight still.” I blinked.

  “But aren’t you?” I knit my brows. “You still go out on patrols, even with a prosthetic I thought.”

  The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  “In the safe zones, like you,” she scoffed, then sighed. “Sorry, I shouldn’t press you it’s just…”

  “You feel like you’re not getting to be a hero anymore.”

  “I suppose you do understand,” Battery said with a nod.

  “Yeah.” I took a deep breath. “During the battle, while I was working in the field hospital, Tattletale came to get me for a mission. There was some teleporter that hurt Imp, so she got me thinking I was immune. She was right, thank god. Anyway we found an Indian cape who was charging up basically a bomb, convinced him to work with us. After that I just told Chevalier and went back to the hospital.” Then I got chased around by Scion for a minute, but that didn’t really make for a good story.

  “Fascinating,” she said, leaning forward. “I read one of the reports saying that blast was stronger than anything they had on record. Do you know what the cape’s power was?”

  “No clue,” I said, shaking my head. “I know it was an energy build up, but that’s it. You could ask Tattletale, she probably figured it out the first second she saw it.”

  “That might be difficult,” she said dryly.

  “Yup,” I said, smirking. “But yeah, sorry, I’m not really a power nerd.”

  “Fair enough,” Battery said, leaning back in her seat. “I appreciate that Amaranth. Did you hear what I said about what they were planning to add to the mural?”

  “They’re adding something?” I asked. “What is it, Wards against the Nine?”

  “It’s you.”

  “Huh?”

  “Do you remember the mayoral debate a few months ago?” she asked and I shrugged. “Maybe the fact that you jumped on a bomb will jog your memory.”

  “Oh right.” I blushed. “Would uh, you believe me if I said I forgot?”

  “I think I would,” Battery said, chuckling. “I think, reflecting on it, what you told that young man was perfect.”

  “It was just how I felt.”

  “And that makes it all the better,” she said lightly, rising from her chair. “Have a good afternoon Amaranth, I hope you’ll have a chance to be out there soon.”

  “Thanks,” I said with a sigh, staring at the map. “Me too.”

  I hopped off the bus and started up the road, heading towards Whitley Street. Once there, I’d turn left and walk on for a few blocks until I found what I was looking for. I filled my lungs with a shaky breath, eyes flicking from street to shadow. I shivered as a gust blew up the road, cutting through the layers I had on.

  It would be October tomorrow, insane to think about. I felt like yesterday I’d been running for my life from the Siberian, but here I was in a world with one less Endbringer. A world where I somehow managed to turn seventeen. It definitely wasn’t perfect but...shit, I was sort of glad I was in it.

  I shook my head and focused on the task at hand. I was wearing my costume already, hidden under my jacket. I’d worn my red scarf to hide the turtleneck and break up the colour a little to make it less of a tie to me when I shed it all. I’d even scored a pair of dollar store reading glasses, the weakest ones they had, just for a little bit more of a disguise. Finally, I had my my balaclava rolled up like a beanie on top of my head. Not that my new haircut wouldn’t let me blend in, this was just more convenient.

  My hands were in my pockets, clutching my weapons hidden inside. I focused on my breathing as I turned towards my destination, keeping my body in check. I was a nobody to anybody, even Gabe wouldn’t recognize me with the cut and glasses. As long as I played it cool, things were going to be fine.

  I heard where I was going before I saw it, a dull roar from a warehouse ahead. I could see lights shining through the cracks in the boards, and people were milling around outside; a mix of punk skinheads and more blatant Nazis. Plenty of leather, so at least I’d be mixing in with the crowd pretty well.

  No way I was getting through the front. There were two bouncers there, warily eyeing everyone they let in, patting most down. Instead I swung around the side, crossing the street and circling the warehouse from a bit of a distance. There were a couple doors I could see, one shut, the other with guys going in and out of it with stuff. A service entrance?

  A possibility, though I couldn’t exactly blend in with a bunch of burly bruisers. If I couldn’t break into another door, then it was a better bet than the front. After one more circle of the block, I made a careful approach in the shadow of a number of dead street lights. A few people were smoking around the corner, but they didn’t pay any attention when I slipped past a dozen feet away and out of sight.

  In the distance I could see the guys unloading something from a truck and walking into the side door. I loitered by the other, unlit door I’d seen earlier. Testing the handle proved the Nazis weren’t totally stupid, having locked it. At a wild cheer from inside, loud enough to filter easily through the shut door, I crushed the lock and pulled it open.

  The utility hallway I found myself in was barely lit. Again I could see people moving at the far end, the guys from outside. I turned and headed the opposite way, a short stretch of hall that led to another door. That was where the noise was coming from, cheering and now I could hear the dull thumping of music. Fight night it was.

  Heading through the door, I found the warehouse had been arranged more like an arena. To either side, and surrounding the center of the main room, were tall bleachers filled with people. More packed chairs surrounded a large cage in the center, blocking my view of what was inside. I could hear snarling and growling just barely over the cheers and jeers of the crowd; animal fighting then, the fuckers.

  I ducked under the back of the bleachers and started forming a plan. There were a few ways I could go with this. First was also the easiest, simply collapsing the stands like I’d done with the stage a few weeks ago. It was a little more dangerous here since I was sitting under them and would probably be trapped; better relegate that to plan B or later.

  Starting a fight was another possibility. I was certain I could cause enough trouble to turn the seats outside the cage into a brawl. That had its own issues of getting stuck in, not to mention the possibility I might encounter the one Nazi with enough brains to realize I was just trying to cause problems and get an entire battalion of them coming down on my head. Another plan B then.

  A loud snarl from the cage, followed by a cheer from the crowd, gave me a better idea anyway. I crept from under the bleachers and back into the hallway I come down. Striding towards the service door, I saw there wasn’t anyone going in and out regularly anymore; the guys had finished unloading whatever it was and had cleared out.

  I paused and quickly stuffed my scarf, glasses, and jacket into my bag, then pulled my balaclava down over my face before I continued. The Nazis wanted a dog fight? Well I was at least going to let them fight dogs. They’d have to keep a stock of them around for an event like this and I was going to see about turning them loose on the crowd.

  It wasn’t the nicest way to deal with this, but I could exactly pull a badge and yell ‘you have the right to remain silent’. It should be fine, there were more Nazis than dogs for sure and I was willing to bet a lot of them were armed with more than their teeth. Still, maybe spare the gorier of details from Amy. The dogs just...got loose in the chaos that was all. Not exactly a lie, just telling things out of order.

  I ignored the churning in my stomach. Whether it was guilt or nerves I couldn’t afford to worry about that right now. I crept quietly down the dimly lit hallway, suppressing a flinch every time the crowd roared a little too loudly. Ahead were a couple doors, one with light streaming out from under it and shadows dancing intermittently.

  There wasn’t much noise I could hear, beyond that of the fight outside, but the smell as I approached told me it was definitely the right place. I checked the other door first and held back a sigh; just a utility closet, nothing useful. My one alternate eliminated, I padded up the to door and too a deep breath. Gripping the handle tightly, I slowly turned it and pulled the door open.

  A quick glimpse inside told me I was mostly alone, besides maybe twenty snarling dogs in chain-link pens. A couple meters further, I saw more cages, more dogs probably. I poked my head through the door, then pulled back right away as a skinhead handler came out of a door to the left without warning.

  “—state of these things I tell ya,” I heard a gruff voice complaining. There was a rattle of metal and a low, guttural growl. “Hey buddy, looks like you’re up next. Fuckin’ you ain’t eaten well in what, two days? Don’t worry, you’ll get somethin’ and— Hey, hey easy, I ain’t had a bitch in a while either. Save it for the aftershow.” I heard a dry chuckle and the shuffle of footsteps as the dog barked and snarled at its handler. Fucking freakshow around here and—

  A bone-shaking roar shook me and I flinched so hard I nearly fell over. The building shook and I heard screaming from the crowd, along with more tremendous bellows that drowned it out. The dogs in their cages were in a frenzy, and their handler sprinted out of the door, cursing violently. I charged after him, unsure of what exactly was going on in the warehouse but with a pretty good inkling.

  He rounded on me without warning, a knife flashing in his hand. I stuck my hand in my pocket, grabbing my knuckle and getting ready to—

  A distantly familiar field of fleshy tendrils reached out to me then curled back as if burned before dividing along microscopic lines and stretching up towards the sky. Overhead two impossibly large beasts entwined together before being obscured by a rapidly growing forest of fleshy growths and bony mounds.

  The growths divided further, the flesh-forest thickening impossibly fast before ossifying into tremendous archways that grew into great mountains. There was something else too, hidden in the bony trees. Hungry, patient, quiet. I tried to run as the scene changed before me, darkening, being swallowed. Then nothing.