Yolanda held up a hand, signaling for Sean to stop speaking. "Hold on, I have to know what your power is. I'm not going to travel with someone who could, I don't know, make my brain melt or something." She leaned to the side as she finished speaking and opened her bag, removing the same jumper she had had on before when she ran to the bus stop. Putting it on, Yolanda pulled the sleeves over her hands before crossing her arms, trying to retain warmth. It was much colder in the train station.

She looked at Sean, trying to guess what his power could possibly be. She hoped that it wasn't something as drastic as she had exaggerated but from what she had seen during the civil war, she knew that there were powerful Empowered out there, some that she would be no match for.

Brooklyn - Downtown

The air burned in his lungs as he ran down street after street, alley after alley, but still the sound if sirens drew ever closer. This was the division of the military created for one sole purpose; to capture or kill all those deemed 'unnatural'; and they were relentless. Slowing just a bit to catch his breath, Atticus glanced over his shoulder when a strong hand wrapped around his arm and pulled him into a darkened alleyway. It was too sudden for him to react as he was thrown against the brick wall, one large hand clamping over his mouth. On instinct alone Atticus grabbed the man's wrist, the tiny red tendrils wrapping around his skin and constricting but he quickly stopped himself when the man spoke.

Gonzo said “Don’t say a damn word,” he growled. “I’m here to help.”

Atticus' dark eyes stared warily into the stranger's but he made no move to escape as the sirens blared past them.

Gonzo said Diego stared into the other Empowered’s eyes and took his hand from his mouth. “Stay still. Don’t move. You won’t be able to outrun me if you do.” He flashed the guy a sinister smile, then backed up, letting a couple of sparks of electricity fly from his hands.

He squinted through the flash of light as the first one went down in a shower of sparks, flesh smoking. Now Atticus did speak, a stream of curses spilling from his mouth as he hit he pavement just when the bullets started flying. The young man watched, amazed, as the stranger literally flew into action and began tearing the retrieval squad apart. One of the luckier ones was simply knocked away by the body of his squad mate, his limp form landing in a heap right in front of Atticus. Without wasting a beat, the young man crawled over and began riffling through his gear, retrieving what appeared to be a flash-bang grenade and a long double-edged combat knife and holster.

The gunfire having stopped, Atticus pushed himself to his feet, slipping the grenade and knife into his jacket pocket, just as the last solder tried to fire an empty weapon. Hearing a groan from the one at his feet, his features turned into a scowl as he viciously curb-stomped the man back into unconsciousness. He looked up just in time to see the stranger take off the head of the last soldier with his bare hands, the blood making an audible splash as it poured onto the street. Atticus lowered his chin as he stared at the empowered and wondered just what sort of creature he was.

Gonzo said “Hey there. The name is Diego, and you are?”

There was a short pause as Atticus considered his options. "Blake." He lied casually. His dark eyes finally looked away to examine the carnage. "Do you plan to take their ears as trophies or should we depart before more show up?" The sarcasm in his voice was palpable but already the sounds of more soldiers could be heard and in the distance one could even pick up the faint thrum of a helicopter's blades.

Sean snapped his fingers quietly when Yolanda asked him about his power "Shit, sorry I kinda forgot." He then looked at her sternly for a moment "Y'see I can make people's organs explode." Sean said in a hushed yet dramatic tone. "Haha, nah I'm juat kidding check this out." Sean said as he laughed of hia little joke and then took his backpack from his lap and slid it across the floor. It glided on the ground for a few seconds before slowing down and then coming to a complete stop. He watched to make sure Yolanda was watching the backpack and as soon as it stopped he spoke "Hey."

By the time she turned her head to face Sean, she would be met with his backpack. "Whatcha' lookin' over there?" Sean called from the exact spot his backpack had been on the ground. It was a dumb, flashy trick but none the less got his point across. "I can trade places with things." He said, having returned to sitting in the bench. "As long as I can see it and it's not too far I can switch. I can also switch stuff I'm holding or have on me, it's kind handy y'know?"

Maribeth - Brooklyn - Woods near Safe house

Maribeth had came to a halt after walking for a good half hour, maybe a mile or so away from the house and into the woods. Safely hidden away from any civilians or patrols, she began to take her anger out on the smaller trees as she began to tear them out of the ground and throw them against the bigger trees. It felt good to let out the stress that had been building up for months. Although Mari spoke about the great times she had had in Italy, she had refrained herself from sharing the moments when in the cities she'd deal with the same amount of ignorance that she did here. It was only in the small, secluded towns that she had found peace. Her arrival to the US hadn't helped at all either.

After she grew tired of ripping the scenery around her apart, she walked over a tree with a low lying branch and floated up to sit on it. What was going on? What had she came back to? Gangs, the government committing a genocide. Because that's what it truly was. Not only that but the people she considered closest to her were either at each other's throats or tensions always rising. She couldn't do it anymore, but she didn't know what else to do.

The rain had stopped by now and all that was left was the sudden cold wind that had came in after the storm. Although she wore a leather jacket, Mari still shivered, so she wrapped her arms around her and leaned on the tree trunk, not wanting to go back to the house. Although she didn't feel the need to break anything anymore, she knew if she went back and saw either Julius or Diego, she'd probably bring the house down; literally. She sighed and looked around her. The area she had been in wasn't exactly bare, but now that she had taken out most of her physical aggression, she had created a small clearing that exposed a running trail near by. In her mind she hoped that nobody would come by, then recalled that there was a curfew and felt a sense of relief wash over her.

In that moment, a voice rang out clear as day as if they had been right next to Mari. She quickly jumped and turned around, catching herself in midair and turning every which way to see who had snuck up on her. To her surprise, there was no one around. Not even sending a pulse of telekinesis out was she able to sense someone. 'Maybe I just imagined it' she thought as she tried to calm herself. But the voice was so clear. It sounded as if they were right next to her. No. Not next to her. Inside her brain as if she was wearing headphones. Before she could keep thinking about it, her ears suddenly filled with hundreds of voices, each saying something different and in several different tones and volumes. Maribeth nearly screamed as she reached up to cover her ears to try and stop the overload of voices, but it was to no avail. The voices weren't coming from someone around her, so to speak, they were coming from inside of her head. As she began to panic, the voices began to get louder and her head began to throb. She cried out and fell to the ground, her telekinesis practically gone as she tried to push the voices away or out. Was she going crazy? Is this what happened when she lost control of her temper with her ability?

Maribeth was was kneeling within seconds from when the voices had begun and tears streamed down her face from her panic attack.'Get out! Get out! GET OUT!' she screamed internally. "Ma'am...... Ma'am?" At first, Maribeth thought it was just another voice in her head, but the sudden touch on her shoulder snapper her out of her panic attack and snapped her back to reality. She gasped and stood up quickly, reaching up and grabbing the hand before twisting it in an awkward position, making it painful and difficult for the person to move. "Ma'am, please, I didn't mean to scare you. I was just wanting to make sure you're okay. Please don't hurt me." As the man spoke, a sense of calm and security filled her and she apologized to him, letting him go and taking a few steps back. "I'm so sorry, you just scared me."

"Please, don't apologize. I understand, I would have reacted the same way.... Um.... Are you okay though? You've been crying." It then dawned on her that she was the only one that knew about the voices. The panic attack was all in her head. To others passing by, she would have been simply kneeling on the ground and crying. "Oh..Yeah... Um.. I kinda got in a fight with my room mates." She laced her voice with a semi-thick Italian accent as she spoke to the man, her survival mode kicking in.

Mari wiped her tears away and offered the stranger a small, sheepish smile. "Oh! Great accent. Are you from Italy?" The man spoke with much enthusiasm, but his voice remained quiet. Obviously because of the curfew, or so she thought. "Yes. I am, actually. I've been here for a few years now." Maribeth explained without a flaw in her lie. "So, what are you doing out here so late? Isn't there a curfew?"

"I could as you the same thing." The man grinned and, for some reason, Maribeth felt safe. It was a strange feeling of calm that had washed over her and she didn't know how to shake it off. "I actually come out at night to go on a run. It's not as dangerous at night as many people think. It's worse during the day."

She studied the man from his feet up. He definitely looked like he was out for a run. Running shoes, sweat pants and a fitted hoodie. He was tall and had a slim but sturdy build, his hair as dark as charcoal and his eyes almost a silver color. "I came out here to take some anger out. I can't exactly go around hurting my best friends." She grinned at him and he laughed, nodding in agreement.

"I understand. I get in arguments with my roommate too..... But he's my childhood best friend so he puts up with my crap." Maribeth laughed with the man now but as he reached out, she took a step back, just in case. "Don't worry, I'm just trying to shake your hand. I'm Liam."

Maribeth looked at the hand and hesitated. What if he was an Empowered with the ability that Diego had? Well, if he was, she had already make skin contact when she put him in a defensive hold. Smiling, Mari reached out and shook his hand, introducing herself. "I'm Mari." The man's face beamed as she spoke and he shook her hand tightly then let go. "Nice to meet you, Mari.... So.... May I ask you... What was the fight about that made you so upset?"

Mari bit her lip and looked down for a moment before looking back up. "We got into an argument about those with abilities and those who don't have any." The man nodded as he listening intently, or so it seemed. "You see, one of my roommates believes that we can't make things work between the two. The other thinks we can but it's complicated. I just think who the fuck cares if you're Empowered or not. We're all humans in the end and we have to work for a living and we all want the same thing. At least most of us do. To lead a happy and fulfilling and loving life." Through out the entire time she spoke, the fake Italian accent followed without a flaw. She had become quite good at telling lies and making them seem very real. So real that she sometimes believed them herself.

"Oh, okay, I see. I get in those arguments all the time too." He nodded and looked around. "Since you have that view, I'll share a secret with you." He then looked back at her and leaned in closer. "I have abilities. That's why I get into arguments with my roommate so much." Maribeth's eyes widened as Liam spoke. "That's kind of how I found you."

"Did you now? Prove it." She lifted an eyebrow in disbelief and crossed her arms, waiting for him to show her.

"Since I got here, have you been angry? Upset in any way?" Liam smirked as Maribeth began to think, trying to muster up any type of anger that she had before he had gotten here. "No...." Her voice was a soft breath as she remained in thought. "You've been calm. Relaxed. That's the only reason you didn't break my wrist. Because I willed you to be calm around me. Even though I run this route every night, I could feel your anger from many meters away. From a good distance away, actually. I followed it and the closer I got, the stronger the anger was. You should be careful with that type of anger. It can consume you and make you do something you'll regret."

Maribeth nodded in acknowledgement but still remained in awe of the ability Liam had. "I have to tell you the truth though. I'm not exactly jogging for the exercise. I do these routing jogs to find others like me so I can help them. I offer them a sort of refuge at my house for a few days or weeks. Seeing your views on things, I'd love for you to come and try to help those that are staying there. Try and make them see that not all normals are the same."

Something deep inside Maribeth told her that there was something off with his story, but the overwhelming feeling of security and the need for helping others practically blinded her. She didn't reveal that she was like him, instead, she chose to go along with it. "You know what. My roommates will get worried if I stay out too late. Especially because I stormed out. Maybe another day." She gave Liam and apologetic smile and began to walk back to the safe house. "Alright! Just know I run at the same time at the same place every night!" As Mari made her way back to the house and away from Liam, she could feel the calm leave and the panic begin to set in once more. The uneasy feeling that was buried under the calm was more pronounced but she pushed it away, focusing on a bigger dilemma. She had heard voices in her head. Would that be something she'd be able to keep from the others? For now, she decided to keep everything that had happened in the woods a secret. From the voices in her head to Liam and his offer.

Yolanda almost believed Sean for a moment and tensed, her mind already racing with how she could get away. She let out a audible sigh of relief when it turned out to be a joke; perhaps an ill advised joke but a joke nonetheless. Turning her attention to the bag at his command, she was surprised to see it gone and Sean in its place. She nodded appreciatively, impressed by the power - sometimes, she wished that she could have a more useful power. What use was it, really? She'd need an excess of corpses for it to even be applicable to a situation.

"Impressive, Sean. Very impressive," Yolanda nodded again with a smile. She looked thoughtful for a moment before continuing. "So you could switch places with another person?"