The district was alive with noise, lights, and motion, yet Finn avoided the crowds, hugging the shadowed sides of buildings. He didn’t look like much—gray hoodie, dark cargo pants, gloves. But that was the point. With every quiet step, he reminded himself he wasn’t trying to be seen, wasn’t trying to make a name. This was practice. A lesson in staying unnoticed.

  He carried only what he could slip out of his own house without notice: basic torch, a fraying thread spool, a plastic bottle of water, duct tape, and a weighty wrench he’d scrounged from an old toolbox. Hardly equipment, but he wasn’t planning for a fight. This mission was all about stealth, about keeping his head down and getting in and out without a trace.

  As he walked, the lights thinned, flickering out one by one, and the noise faded into a low hum at his back. Block by block, the buildings around him took on a crumbling, half-forgotten look. Here, few bothered with upkeep, and the further he went, the fewer people filled the streets. Eventually, the voices and car horns dwindled into quiet, leaving only the faint hum of industrial power lines and the scrape of wind along metal beams.

  At last, he reached the outer edges of the district, his destination standing like a dark hulk against the night. An abandoned building, marked off by torn, whipping caution tape. Such sights were common here, where powers left their mark as plainly as weathering or age. Given that this was Apexia, the endless cycle of assimilation always took priority over maintenance.

  Approaching the cordoned-off building, he opened his Aegis Corp app to get a read on the situation. The app confirmed that the building had taken damage in a recent clash between two villains. Recent by megacity standards, at least. That battle had been months ago, yet no one had come through for repairs.

  Colors shifted on his clothing, blending in with the environment to make him less noticeable while he went to take a closer look. In the doorway, his eyes roved over the decrepit interior. Nothing stood out to him as suspicious at first glance. No active threats. He wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting. He specifically came here to get credits in something that didn’t involve fighting on his first night, but he found himself primed for a fight all the same.

  Maybe the camouflage he’d donned was pointless in this situation. However, he was going to keep it up. Better to be prepared for a bad situation if one did arise, even if it was unlikely. Because you could never be certain.

  Strange though it may have been, the objective of this mission was to enter the building and take pictures of damages and search for hidden compartments. He couldn’t understand the goal behind it. It was irrelevant if he got the credits, in any case. And that thought made him wonder why no one else, unpowered humans included, had done this task already, at which point he remembered the reward added up to a meager five credits total.

  When he first accepted the job, he’d worried the photos he took on his phone could be traced back to him. But a bit of research revealed that Aegis Corp’s automated filters would strip any identifiable data from media files, making the recording device untraceable. With that reassurance, he felt more at ease using Aegis’s software; anonymity was, after all, its business model.

  Finn crept further inside, his footsteps nearly silent. Dust hung thick in the air, and the neglect weighed on the structure, dark and oppressive. After a quick check to make sure he was alone, he flicked on his flashlight, sweeping the beam over walls scarred with pockmarks and floors scattered with debris. He couldn’t tell if anyone had bothered salvaging anything before abandoning it, aside from two missing doors.

  One of those rooms, he discovered, was on the verge of collapsing. The floor groaned beneath him the moment he stepped inside. He quickly captured a few images of the space, backing out before it could give way. A five-credit reward wasn’t worth breaking his neck over. He was aiming much higher than that; these first stages were just the beginning.

  He continued his search, his shoulders tense as he scanned the room for anything out of the ordinary. Behind a fallen wall near the end, he spotted a hidden compartment partially obscured by debris. With careful precision, he brushed aside the loose bricks and shattered wood, revealing a small metal box nestled within the shadows.

  He hesitated for a moment, outstretched hand pausing. Should he open it? What if it was a trap? But curiosity got the better of him, and he pried the lid open, heart pounding with anticipation.

  Inside, he found a stack of papers and a small, broken device that looked like it had seen better days. He quickly snapped a few pictures of the papers, the flash illuminating the room for just a heartbeat. As he examined the device, confusion washed over him. He had no idea what it was or how it worked. Its purpose would remain a mystery for now. He could potentially look it up in the Aegis store later.

  The papers were no less perplexing. They were filled with technical jargon that felt foreign to him. Though he was fairly certain it had something to do with construction, the specifics were beyond his understanding. It made it hard to determine if he’d found the right thing. Were these documents innocuous, or did they hold some deeper meaning? Some hidden code he was supposed to decipher? He didn’t know how to do that, if so.

  Unsure about his findings, Finn completed a final sweep of the building before making his way back onto the bustling city streets. He had finished his first mission for Aegis Corp, and while it felt like a tentative success, an unsettling thought lingered in his mind. There had to be something more at play here than a simple reconnaissance mission.

  The next location was thirty minutes away. As he hurried along, a figure caught his eye, soaring through the sky atop a crackling storm cloud, heading towards a distant plume of smoke.

  An actual hero, flying right above him. This one led the official district team, and Finn hadn’t expected to see someone of their caliber so early in the night. He had encountered heroes before, but this was different. It was the first time he witnessed them in action while considering himself one of them.

  Finn knew he couldn’t have reached the scene in time, even if he had run at full speed. Still, he was glad that someone capable was responding so quickly. Though possessing the ability to glide effortlessly through the sky like that would have been… convenient.

  But that was neither here nor there. His objective was the other way. He headed out, navigating the shadowed streets toward a second set of abandoned buildings, this time closer to a residential area. This one looked different—a cluster of battered structures near some condemned houses, their smudgy windows and peeling walls blending together in the dim streetlights. Finn approached the largest building, feeling an odd mix of caution and anticipation. This mission shared some similarities with the last. He was supposed to take pictures, but instead of hidden compartments, this one required him to collect evidence of any potential crimes. He guessed his power could be useful in ways he hadn’t yet tried.

  Stepping inside, he took a moment to acclimate to the silence, broken only by the occasional sound of dripping water echoing through the hollow space. With his power activated, his world took on an almost surreal clarity. He could manipulate his surroundings to uncover details that would normally go overlooked. He started by adjusting the colors of surfaces, changing hues on walls and floors in small patches, watching closely for fingerprints that might pop out with altered lighting. Subtle smudges and impressions became visible, giving him hints of where someone had touched the walls or leaned against a broken doorframe.

  As he moved deeper, his power revealed more. With colors adjusted, he could pick up faint traces of wear and damage in places they wouldn’t usually catch his attention. Scratches on the floor led to a corner where he noticed a small patch of what looked like gunpowder residue, undetectable without his unique view. Near it, he shifted the light tone on the walls and saw footprints leading toward a side exit, partially obscured by layers of grime. A dark stain along one wall caught his eye, almost invisible in the dim light but unmistakable once he shifted its shade to contrast against the dingy backdrop: blood. Dried, old, but unmistakably there.

  The utility of his power surprised him, giving him a sense of competence he hadn’t expected on just his second mission. It felt good, almost satisfying, to uncover clues like a true investigator. Despite the eerie quality of the scene—the potential for the space to have been used in a violent crime—he pushed forward, carefully noting what he could find. He doubted anyone else would be coming here today.

  As if the universe was trying to prove him wrong, he heard screeching tires outside at that very moment. Alarmed, he ran up to the dirty window to see what was going on.

  It was a van. Four people exited the vehicle, and the first thing Finn noticed was their weapons. Three of them carried knives, and the last one was holding an actual gun. Not a small one either. Some sort of automatic rifle or something. Finn wasn’t an expert on firearms.

  But he had prepared for this eventuality, no one would know he was—

  A woman happened to be walking by. What were the odds? Finn had no idea why anyone would be wandering through such an area at night.

  Oblivious to his misfortune, one of the guys accosted her and dragged her into the alley next to the abandoned building while their gunman made a phone call.

  What was he supposed to do now? Leave her to her fate? He had come here prepared to hide his presence if need be. So why did it have to be here, of all places, that a random person showed up and fell victim to a bunch of criminals right where he stood?

  Finn could almost laugh at the bitter irony of his predicament. In all his preparations for tonight, he may have been right in judging his own capabilities and choosing the correct path, except he had failed to account for what would happen if someone else was getting hurt and no other heroes were around to save them.

  There was only him, and his handful of tools boasting dubious offensive capability. Without proper training for combat with his powers, he didn’t feel as ready as he would have liked. He knew some basic fighting stances and moves, but nothing that would even the odds between himself and four adult men. Let alone armed ones.

  However, his legs were already taking him out of the building from the side door which led into the alley. It was out of sight from the other three guys. He walked up behind the assaulter.

  He made sure to be as quiet as possible, but that might not have been necessary with how distracted the guy seemed to be with the struggling woman. He could hear him growling threats at her in a low voice.

  Finn used his wrench to hit the man in the back of the knee. He buckled and lost his grip on the victim. The man began to swipe his knife behind him, but Finn was ahead of him with a punch to the jaw. His knees bent a few degrees, arm rearing back, hip twisting into a full power straight.

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  It connected with a satisfying thunk, knocking the armed assaulter out cold.

  For a second, Finn stopped to process how easy that had been. The size difference hadn’t been too great, but still. One punch. Shouldn't it have lasted longer? Shaking his head, he regained his focus and began tying the man up, starting with duct tape over his mouth to prevent him from making any noise.

  He looked at the woman, who he now saw was a lot younger than she’d looked from a distance, and signaled for her to be silent and run all the way upstairs into the opposite building.

  Finn used the interim to call in the authorities, then waited. His power lasted a few seconds after he touched something, so he changed the color of the door the girl had gone through to match the walls. That way nobody would notice the entrance and chase her. He kept the door to the building he’d done his mission in, ajar, and waited.

  After another minute or so, the gunman, the apparent leader of this group, seemed to be done with his phone call and addressed his men. “Where the fuck is Leo? I swear, if he’s taking so long because he couldn’t keep it in his pants, I’m kicking his teeth in so hard he’ll be eating his food through a straw for a year. Go check on him.”

  The shout came first. A warning, an alarm—one of the men pointing directly at Finn.

  He didn’t wait. He spun, ducked through the nearest door, and slammed it shut behind him. Footsteps pounded the pavement as they gave chase.

  Inside, he flattened himself against the wall, letting his power blend his clothing into the building’s dull, lifeless interior. The footsteps crashed through the doorway, both men charging in without hesitation.

  “He went upstairs!” one of them barked.

  “You check, I’ll take the rooms!”

  They split.

  Finn exhaled slowly, quiet enough to be swallowed by the creaking of old floorboards. The tension in his chest eased just enough to let him think. He reached into his bag and pulled out a water bottle, creeping toward the next room where one of them had gone.

  The door was half-open. Inside, the man was rifling through a closet, his back fully turned. Finn inched closer.

  The liquid inside the bottle darkened, shifting into an inky black. One step closer. Another. Then—

  The splash hit the man full in the face.

  A strangled shout tore from his throat as he stumbled back, hands flying up to claw at his eyes. Finn moved in immediately, wrench raised.

  The first strike landed on the man’s wrist, sending his knife clattering to the floor. The second sent him crashing into the closet, head bouncing off a wooden plank.

  He should have stayed down. Instead, he shoved Finn with surprising strength, knocking him to the ground. Pain flared in Finn’s shoulder, but he rolled with it, scrambling to his feet just as his opponent did the same.

  The man lashed out blindly. One hit connected, knocking the breath from Finn’s lungs.

  Then, a shout from outside the room. “Shit—!” A crash. The other one had tripped over the thread Finn had tied to the stairs.

  Finn didn’t hesitate. He shut the door, blanketing the room in darkness. His opponent had just regained his sight—only to be plunged into blindness again.

  He hesitated. Finn didn’t.

  A hard shove sent the man stumbling forward. A knee to the face made sure he stayed down.

  Breathing heavily, Finn undid his power, taking a quick glance around the room. His opponent groaned, rolling onto his side with a hand over his nose. Not unconscious. Not down for the count.

  Fine. Finn kicked him back to the floor and ran to the closet, undoing his power once more. He scaled it, boots finding purchase on handles and hinges. At the top, he braced himself against the wall, hands gripping the edges.

  Then he pushed.

  Light flooded the room just as the heavy wooden structure tipped forward, toppling down. The last thing the gang member saw was the massive weight crashing onto him.

  Finn landed on his feet, taking in the result with a quick glance. The guy was groaning, but he wasn’t getting back up.

  But he wasn’t alone.

  The second gang member stormed in, barely making it two steps before his foot caught on something—Finn’s outstretched leg, camouflaged against the floor.

  The door slammed shut. Darkness fell.

  A sharp stomp on the thug’s wrist disarmed him instantly. He let out a pained yell, but Finn wasn’t about to let him recover.

  No hesitation. No wasted motion. A barrage of strikes, fists flying from unexpected angles, giving the thug no room to respond. He tried to resist at first. After the seventh hit, he stopped trying.

  His breath came out in ragged gasps. “I give up, I give up!”

  Finn took a second to gauge him. He wasn’t faking. He barely flinched as Finn tied his hands, too out of it to put up a fight. The other guy, still pinned under the closet, was less cooperative—but not in any position to argue.

  A minute later, they were both tied up. Finn let out a slow breath, having confiscated the most dangerous thing they possessed.

  Then he heard the voice outside.

  “Just come on out, you little bitch!”

  His head snapped toward the window. The leader. The gunman.

  “I promise I don’t hit girls.”

  Girls? Finn blinked, then understood. The leader had never seen him. He thought the girl from earlier had done all of this.

  He wasn’t coming into the alley. Smart. He didn’t want to leave the van unguarded.

  “You have until three! One, two—”

  Finn wasn’t listening. He was already moving.

  The window at the back of the house was his way out. He slipped through, landing softly on the other side. The moment his feet touched the ground, he started blending in again, his silhouette shifting to match the environment.

  Gunfire erupted behind him. The thug was firing into the open house, completely blind. Did he not care if he hit his own men?

  Finn pressed forward, slipping around the corner. The gang leader was still shooting, his stance loose, posture cocky.

  That arrogance cost him.

  Before he could react, Finn pressed the cold edge of a knife against his throat.

  “Drop the weapon.”

  A clatter. The rifle hit the sidewalk. Finn’s grip on the knife tightened.

  “Whoa, hey—” The thug raised his hands slowly. “Look, man. I don’t want trouble, alright? If you’re with Homeland, I was just making a drop. I wasn’t staying. No need to make this ugly.”

  He turned slightly, exposing the tattoo on his neck.

  Finn recognized it immediately.

  Venin. A gang under Viperia’s rule. One of many. If this guy failed to report back, it wouldn’t be long before reinforcements arrived. Armed men. Maybe even powered ones.

  But before Finn could decide what to do, sirens blared in the distance.

  The thug stiffened.

  Finn shoved him forward onto the pavement. The knife clattered to the ground. The gang member, now unarmed, lifted his hands high in the air.

  The police cars rolled up. As Finn stood there watching the police apprehend this gangster, he took a few seconds to convince himself this was real. He had actually stopped four of these guys by himself, and he had prevented a potential murder from happening. It felt like moving through a dream. The tension in his body gave way to a rush of pride, followed by exhaustion.

  One officer approached him, and Finn pointed in the direction of the remaining criminals. In the beginning, the man thought Finn was a criminal, then he realized Finn was on an Aegis mission. That alone likely wouldn’t always be enough not to get arrested, but it could be, provided he had an actual reputation. He did not, so it was convenient that there were multiple thugs from a known gang and a witness present. The cop’s tone still had a cold edge to it, though.

  “You saved a girl, then? Just happened to be in the area?” the officer asked after hearing his statement, his tone making a strong indicator of how much he believed.

  Finn wasn't going to budge. “That's right.”

  The cop stared for a moment, then scoffed. “Hmph, if you insist. But a word of advice and warning: take it as a good thing that I don’t know who you are, because obscurity can be a good thing. I've seen too many young bucks like you get out of their first arrest on a big gang smelling like roses. Three weeks later? I find the body rotting in a dumpster somewhere, and if it's not that, they joined the criminals. So keep your eyes open, yeah? ‘Cause not all my colleagues will feel like giving you the benefit of the doubt.”

  Basic advice, Finn thought. He nodded anyway to signal he understood.

  The conversation concluded after a few more instructions to go get the victim, and Finn glanced to the side to see the cargo from the white van being unloaded. It was a metal cube lined with neon lights and a glowing center with strange markings on it. It seemed important, so he took a picture from a distance. Scrolling through the Aegis app, he found a mission for gathering intel on Venin, and submitted his photo.

  Having confirmed that the gangsters were all in cuffs, Finn made his way over to the other building and walked up the stairs. Behind a dusty old chair was a crouching girl, turning frantically at the sound of footsteps behind her. She relaxed when she saw who it was. Beckoning her to come with him, he made his way out.

  This whole experience was surreal. He replayed the fight in his head, and went over each mistake he could identify and how to fix them. Frustrating as it was, practice alone wasn’t going to help him solve every issue. He frowned. If this was how he did against normal humans, what would he do if he encountered an actual villain? Those credits couldn’t come fast enough.

  At the bottom of the stairs, he realized he hadn’t been speaking very much, too focused on his performance evaluation. “Are you alright?” he asked the girl.

  She just nodded.

  Finn kept talking as he opened the front door. “I almost didn’t realize you were here. If that guy had just shot you instead of sending his lackey…” he trailed off.

  She looked unnerved at that, and Finn cringed internally at how badly he was messing this up. He was supposed to reassure the victim, not remind them how close they came to certain death.

  “Thank you,” he heard the girl say in a soft voice behind him as they stepped out into the alley.

  “It was nothing,” he replied. “Just don’t wander around alone in these kinds of places at night. Don’t you have a safety routing app?”

  “No, I do. I’m sorry. I was just dealing with a lot. I- I did something I can never undo, and I just wanted to get away from it all, and then I ended up…” She sighed. “I was lucky you happened to be here.”

  Finn took a closer look at her. An immaculate glittering red dress embraced her tall figure, boosted even further by a set of high heels. Her hair and makeup were ruined, however. He figured she’d been crying from the mascara trailing down from her slanted eyes. But he couldn’t tell if her tears came before or after she ran into the thugs.

  A moment later, he nodded as he checked for credits on his phone. Still nothing.

  “What’s your name?” the girl asked.

  Finn paused. He hadn’t thought about it a great deal, but he supposed he now had a better understanding of what did and didn’t work for him in battle. That warranted a suitable name.

  “Shade,” he decided. “Call me Shade.”