Tense. Calm. Did it really matter? The heightened senses of spider related powers made things like calming down or keeping yourself in check somewhat needless. Her laser focus was something natural, something he could fall into with ease. Fringe sighed, perched on a building and watching the streets below. Without any filtering, she could watch the streets as if she was right down there. Her eyes are focused on trying to see anyone out of the ordinary, anyone acting up.

In the three years that have followed the Boom, people didn't have any time to react to getting powers. Some of them weren't even really powers. Some people had things as simple as getting a long tongue, or suddenly became a cyclops, or are now the color blue. Others got the real superpowers. Time bending, iron skin, x-ray vision. Fringe wasn't like them, not exactly. Of course her being bitten and given powers was something unlike everyone else, but she was also blessed with powers from the Boom that worked with her previously established power set.

So now, she looked over the people of Bell Reach. Of course she was in her own little corner of the city away from the Bastion Headquarters. It wasn't that she didn't like them or they didn't like her, but it was that the Bastion attracted villains and attacks on them. Everyone wanted a shot at the big heroes of the city. Fringe knew they could handle it, and didn't want to be apart of it. So for now, she simple watched. Waiting for anything to happen.

But...

She was getting rather hungry. She had been on patrol for a few hours now, and Fringe decided that it was time to give herself a break. She knew a great little restaurant by the beach that reminded her of home. There was no way she wasn't going to do that for lunch.

An arm shot out, a web flew, and Fringe jumped from the buildings above into an alley below, where one Fringe changed back into one Jin.

The walk to the beach was a simple one. Not very far from her post, not all that far away from her home and work either. Aprico's labs were on the east side of town, away from the industrial district to make it stand in better with the other towers and buildings of Bell Reach. It was only by a stroke of luck that she was able to upgrade and develop equipment at work without anyone's knowledge, but flaunting it around her place of work was just the kind of danger that Jin enjoyed.

At the beach, at Little China, was Trent. After a nice shift at the beach, it was time to treat himself to some lunch. Little China had the best orange chicken in the city, even though not everyone seemed to know it.

He was fine with his life. He saved people in his own way. He helped people on the beach. He knew his place. Some people had ideas of grandeur, but Trent was always set on being a lifeguard from a young age. This is what he wanted to do, and now he was living it. He couldn't be happier.

Though, sometimes he could be a little happier.

Professor Devil, one of the founding members of the Bastion and a notable donator into metahuman research, stepped through the door into Little China and waved at the young woman at the cash register. Professor Devil, known to his friends and family as Calvin Harris, stood roughly around six and a half feet tall, and wore a simple white suit to help bring out his fiery red skin and jet black hair.

Professor Devil was known as the one who made most of the gear that the Bastion used, though his talents didn't stop at invention. Also very handy with his pyromancy, Harris was a threat both physically and mentally. Despite this, he was always so chipper, so kind, despite being called a devil. He never let it get him down. It was just a side effect of his powers, powers he didn't let go to his head.

Heads turned and people started to whisper about Professor Devil. Excited whispers, curious ones. Not all of the members of the Bastion slummed it so easily, but this was a very grounded and simple man. He didn't bat an eye, didn't look around. He simply waited for his food to arrive and stood by the counter to pick up his order as soon as it was done.

David let out an annoyed grunt as the bus he was on ran over yet another pothole, which caused a man wearing a pair of headphones, a gray hoodie, blue jeans, and a pair of Nike sneakers to stumble forward a bit and bump into the back of the seat David was sitting in. The man briefly glanced in his direction and murmured an apology before returning his attention back to his phone screen. David gave a slight nod, even though the man was no longer paying attention to him and went back to staring at the cityscape rushing past his window.

It had taken him a little over three hours to arrive at the airport here in Bell Reach and another two hours to find a hotel to stay in for a few night's while he went about building and updating his clients website as well as searching for more a more permanent residence somewhere nearby. After a grueling five week period of near constant working and searching, David had finally managed to find a suitable apartment in a building on the corner of 47th Street which sat across from a deli and was a five minute drive away from the local beach, where a small yet popular restaurant called Little China sat overlooking the ocean. He also managed to finish developing and fine tuning his clients website, which helped greatly with his current financial situation as he didn't have much money left after the trip and stay at the hotel.

All of this is what led him here to this moment and this bus, which was currently headed for the very beach with the restaurant he'd heard about after finding his apartment. As the vehicle drew closer to its destination, David shifted his gaze from the window to his lap, reached into his pocket, and pulled out his phone. Pressing the round, somewhat indented button on the back, he watched the screen flash to life. After swiping right and entering his PIN, David went into his contact's list and found his brother's number. Or at least the one he had last used anyway.

He briefly contemplated trying to call him again, then changed his mind. It was pointless after all, as the number had been disconnected long ago. In all honesty, he wasn't sure why he hadn't deleted it already. He had promised himself he'd focus on his life from now on and give up on trying to find his brother, yet here he was.

Moving on was proving to be more difficult than he'd expected.

Turning off the phone screen, David slid the device back into his pocket and pulled the wire above his seat as the bus neared the stop, in order to let the driver know he wanted to get off here. Getting to his feet as the bus slowly came to a stop by the sidewalk, David headed towards the front of the vehicle and got off once the doors were open. Taking a moment to stretch and admire his surroundings, he began walking towards the quaint wood building, which had an open air dining section built onto its west side, as the salty sea air blew in from off of the ocean, rustling the leaves of the nearby palm tree's that had been planted here in years past.

After a couple of minutes, David finally arrived at the restaurant's entrance. Opening the door, which rung a little bell hanging above it that notified staff a customer had just entered, he stepped inside and walked up to the cash register, waiting of course, for the tall man with red hair in front of him to finish his transaction. Once the man was done, David strode up to the register and ordered the orange chicken plate, which came with a side of rice or noodles, and two egg rolls. After paying for his meal, David sat down at a nearby table and waited for his food to arrive. Leaning back in his seat, he let his gaze idly roam around the room as he slowly soaked up the restaurants relaxing and laid back atmosphere.

She got off the airplane, her three friends quickly followed and they went to go get their luggage. The apartment wasn’t far from the airport, just on the corner of 47th street so they walked. After they dragged the luggage up the stairs and into the apartment they sat down.

“So what should we do?” Asked Lena, the first one to talk for almost an hour.

“I guess we oughta unpack, Emma why don’t you go get a lay of the land?” Came Kiki’s response, she had obviously sensed Emma’s need for a little time alone, not stuck in an airplane.

“Yeah that works” she grabbed her black satchel bag. She was dressed grunge style and would probably stand out in bell reach. She paused and took off the leather jacket, it wasn’t that hot outside so the white Pearl Jam t shirt, distressed jeans, short black combat boots, and a dark red plaid shirt tied around her waist would do fine. She walked out the door and went to go find somewhere to eat. She found a small restaurant called little china. She shrugged, went inside, and got in line. She ordered the first thing that looked good then sat down at a random table (not sure how to incorporate this but I’m right behind David. For no reason) she got out her phone to see what the weather this week would be like realizing that this place would have very different weather, it was scheduled to rain the next day she said quietly to herself “wow I don’t even own an umbrella” she put ‘get an umbrella’ on her list of things to do.

Erika looked around at her new apartment, a sense of satisfaction filling her at the last of her moving boxes laying empty at her feet.

She had arrived in Bell Reach less than four weeks ago and had found her new humble abode a week after that, since then, she's been hard at work turning her apartment into a suitable base of operations(aka, unpacking her stuff), exploring the town, scouting suitable patrol routes for her alter-ego and, well, actually going to work at her new job teaching kick-boxing a few blocks away. Now, her apartment was finally in a livable condition and she couldn't be more thrilled to have one less responsibility to deal with.

Glancing at the time, she was even more pleased to discover that the day was still young and hers or the taking after a quick lunch. Not even bothering to walk over to the fridge, seeing as she was well aware of its barren state, she simply shrugged on her leather jacket over her black 'zombie identification chart' t-shirt, pulled on her boots(she prefers the comforts of bare feet in her own home, thank you), grabbed her wallet and backpack and headed for the door. She briefly stopped to run her hand through her short black hair, causing it to stick up in a few directions and to shoot herself a finger-gun/smirk combo in front of the mirror, for luck and then she was out.

Boarding her precious bike, she briefly weighed her options. She could go to a restaurant, but she wasn't really in the mood for a sit-down meal, and though she knows that she probably should go grocery shopping that day, she wanted to spend a few hours enjoying the town first. After about a minute of contemplation later, she pulled on her helmet(mostly just to keep the wind out of her eyes and because it looks cool rather than safety reasons) and started her bike, the sound of its engine in her ears as it carried her towards the beach. She remembers that there was a great hot-dog stand around there.

Coming to a stop in front of the beautiful sand of the beach, she made a mental note to remember to try to make time to learn how to surf one of these days and got off of her bike and took off her helmet, making sure to set the alarm and take the key out of the ignition. The last thing she wanted was for someone to come around and steal her baby, after all, it wasn't easy to get Jordan to help her to fix it up without giving anything away. Giving her vehicle a fond pat. she turned and started walking in the direction that she believes the hot-dog stand was, passing a restaurant called Little China in the process. It looks nice enough, maybe she'll try it out someday in the future?

Ducking through the throngs of people crowding the beachside, Jessie Beadle set her sights on her newest target: Little China. Only the best quick-serve chinese place this side of the bridge, plus it was located right on the beach! What else could you want out of a place? Finally breaking through a crowd of huddled tourist, Jessie twirled in place and let a few small crackles of electricity dance outwards from her hands to give them a show. She liked showing off her powers, and there was really no harm in it. Just last week she had seen a brawny guy lift up his own car and carry it into a spot after he couldn't parallel-park it himself. Bell Reach was a very 'Power friendly' place, after all! Waving at the delighted tourists, Jessie continued her beeline for Little China.

Ducking in front of a girl with short black hair, Jessie waved an apology with electricity sparking between her fingers. Pushing the door to the restaurant open, the girl was surprised to see the amount of people inside. There was a line halfway to the door, and most of the seats in the place were taken! Glancing around she could see only a couple people she recognized. The lifeguard on the beach for one, and the red-haired man looked somehow familiar... No matter though, she'd have her own company soon. Stepping into line, Jessie pulled her phone out of her pocket and stared at it. The screen lit up in response, and the keypad flashed as Jessie silently told the device her password. Navigating to her messages, Jessie began dictating a text in her mind and transmitting it to her phone.

Hey, I'm at Little China. You're meeting me here right? We both know I work better on a full stomach, don't leave me hanging Zo'!

Annie Jarvis stood on the balcony of her new apartment, looking out over her new home. Well, it was certainly a place. Annie didn't have much of a plan once she got here. Where was she going to go from here? Who was she going to talk to?

Questions for later, right now she needed a smoke. With a swift potion, she put a cigarette in her mouth and lit it. She blew the smoke over the town as the wind picked up slightly, casting it away. It was almost like a god was telling her not to smoke. Fuck him, fuck her, whatever they are, fuck them.

She pulled out her phone and sent a text to her mom, letting her know she was moving in safely, and hadn't gotten killed in a drug rave as was her mom's consistent worry when it came to her. She also immediately entered the wifi password for her new router, which she had set up before she had even put the sheets on her bed. The news was much the same; world in chaos as superpowers continued to emerge. Annie covered her eyes and wondered when this was gonna stop.

She needed a drink, unpacking could wait. She grabbed all of her stuff, phone, keys, wallet, and left the way she came, heading out to find a goddamn bar.

Dr. Eileen Fang

---

"...well, I wouldn't call it 'profiling', Director Hargreaves," Eileen tried to explain.

"Well what would you call it?" came Director Hargreaves' reply.

"It's just a safety precaution. We're not intending to criminalize superpowers, I mean, I'd be a hypocrite if that's what we were trying to do. No, what I'm proposing is, just like we have the right to bear arms in this country, just like driving is perfectly legal, we have safety regulations. Kids under 18 can't drive, guns can't be sold to minors, you need to pass a safety test to use a gun or drive a car, etc. Even in some Asian countries, if you reach a certain level in your martial arts school, you need to get a permit and a license from the police, because your body is recognized as a deadly weapon. It would be the same thing."

"What you're proposing is going to be a headache to implement."

"I know, but I'm willing to wait. But until then, I'll prove to you that it works."

"With the 'Friends of Bastion' program?"

"Yes, but I think 'Project Dragon's Teeth' is a better name."

"What?"

"It's a mythological allusion, in Greek mythology, Cadmus slew a dragon, and was told to keep its teeth. In a dire situation, he planted them in the ground, and armed warriors rose up to support him. It's also a pun."

"How so?"

"Teeth, Fang? Me, Dr. Fang, get it?"

"You're so juvenile."

"I'm a genius, I'll have you know."

"So what does 'Project Dragon's Teeth' entail?"

"Not much. Bell Reach is the 'City of Supers', there are any number of vigilante do-gooders out to make a name for themselves and keep the streets clean. If I run into one, I give them my card and a communicator. Tell them that we sanction their actions, that we're ready to help if they need backup, and expect the same from them. It's just networking, really. You know as well as I do that Bastion can't be everywhere at once. Bastion's too...'Castle in the Sky', too...'Ivory Tower', if you catch my drift. We need..."

"...boots on the ground."

"Precisely."

"Fine, we'll keep track of your progress and take your data into consideration if and when we make a decision on your other proposal."

"That's all I ask, Director."

"Very well, I wish you luck, Doctor."

With that, the teleconference ended. Eileen sat hunched in front of her office computer in her labcoat. A white, robotic beetle the size of a cell phone pushed a warm mug of coffee towards her hand. "Thanks, Omniac," Eileen says as she takes the offered cup and downs it. Well, time to get back to her lab. Omniac would keep tabs on urgent news reports and major incidences and alert Eileen. Nothing like a major event to get vigilantes to crawl out of the woodwork.

Her phone rang. It was rorrim, or rather Janet greenglass. Rorrim was one of the few Seattle heroes. She texted her one second then her food came.

“Sorry, Stuff just came up. Can I take this to go?” The waiter nodded and quickly put it in a to go box. She got a lychee soda and left. She walked a block or two then went into an alleyway. She took out her suit, the fact that she was wearing clothes didn’t matter, the morph took care of that. She climbed the tallest building she could find then flipped back the mask part of it. She got out the phone and called Janet back.

Jg: hi! Sorry we couldn’t say goodbye, me and ebony got a little caught up but at least we got the guy. Diploid filled us in on what we missed

Diploid was the only one out of the 4 other Seattle heroes she could contact. He was actually Henry Goodman a high school sophomore and over the past year she had been something of a mentor to him.

Ea: it’s ok! Glad to hear back from you! Any idea where ghost silver is?

Jg: girl that guy is so mysterious he could be right behind you. Her that have me an idea.

Janet hung up and 2 minutes later the window underneath Emma looked more like a puddle and out Came Janet, or in this situation rorrim. She was wearing a black jumpsuit with rorrim written on the front. She was one of the heroes that got away with wearing glasses as a secret identity and nobody would know who she really was.

“So how’s it going?”

Emma laughed “I haven’t even been here an hour yet!”

Janet checked her phone

“Aw frick, Ebony’s in some trouble. I gotta go. Bye!” Emma said bye as janet jumped back through the window. She flipped her mask back on and continued eating via taking of the mouth cover of the mask. The city didn’t look too bad from up here.

Jin had entered Little China with the aim to get her food, have a little lunch, and maybe swing by the lab to see how things were progressing. There had been rumors of Aprico working on developing another factory in Bell Reach with the goal to make accessible tools to help people harness their new powers, but it was still too early to tell how things were going to go.

Her whole world stopped when she saw the one and only Professor Devil sitting in a booth by himself. The Bastion Headquarters was halfway across town, what was he doing here? Maybe he too knew of the great food here? Well, duh. That seemed to be the only logical answer. She wasn't going to approach him, she wasn't going to talk to him, and she absolutely wasn't going to see how he was doing. She was a stranger to him, and she was already sure that h-

"Ah, Jin." He spoke directly to her. He didn't have any sort of perception powers, but in that moment when he uttered her name, the world around them seemed to darken. Her eyes zoomed in on every little detail of his face. His slicked back hair, his white suit, bright blue eyes. Every little hair on his face, marks and scratches from old scars that have long since faded. "Please, take a seat."

She didn't even have her food yet. She was still in line, waiting patiently for her turn. Like a dolly zoom, her life warped back into perspective, hitting her with a sensory overload as she went back to taking in every sound, every sight, and ever little feeling. Her eyes glanced between the menu and Devil. She wanted food, but she also wanted to talk to him.

He laughed, waving his hand at her and getting back to his meal. Of course, she wasn't there for him, but just an interesting coincidence that she happened to walk in. Not as much of a coincidence as one would want to think, but one nonetheless.

She took a step forward, her eyes still on the menu board despite knowing what she already wanted. Her instincts flared to life. Her eyes widened drastically, and it took a grand move and a spin to narrowly avoid running into the girl with the dirty blonde hair that had passed her just moments before.

Jin's eyes searched the girl in a fraction of a second. Phone, out, she had been using electricity powers on her way in as she apologized to Jin. She didn't have the time to look at the phone, read the message, and process what it said, but before anything could be done, she quickly stepped back in line, much to the amusement of the Professor sitting in his lonesome booth.

Another pair of eyes watched it all go down. Trent smiled to himself. Some people just didn't know how to handle famous people. Maybe it was those impossibly thick glasses of hers that kept her from barely seeing right in front of her. Not that he cared, but at least he was getting a fun little show along with his meal.

David got up from his seat as he heard his name being called. Walking over to the counter, he grabbed his plate of food and headed back to his seat where he unwrapped his cutlery and started eating. As he ate David let his gaze wander around the room and noticed a dark haired woman with glasses standing in the line, who looked quite nervous for some reason, and a woman with dirty blonde hair and what seemed to be electricity arching between her fingers heading towards the entrance, her phone in hand.

He guessed she had electrokinesis abilities of some kind. Normal people didn't just generate their own electricity after all. And from the way she left it seemed like she was late for something. Of course most people, powered or not, were these days. It was like an epidemic honestly. Everyone always rushing from place to place, never really taking the time to enjoy life. It was sad, really. Finishing his food, David got up and walked over to the trash bin where he threw his plate away before heading towards the entrance. After a meal like that, he felt that a relaxing stroll across the beach was just what he needed right now. Just as he was about to leave however, a news report flashed across one of the flat screen TVs mounted on the wall.

It showed a department store nearby engulfed in flames, which the local fire department were attempting to put out. From where the camera man was standing, he could see several firefighters rushing into the burning building to rescue those who were still inside. From the on scene newscasters commentary it seemed that they had managed to grab everyone but a woman and her child who were trapped in the very back of the store. Turning away from the screen as more firefighters went back into the building to try save them, David looked around at those in the restaurant.

"If anyone's got powers, now's the time to use them." He remarked, nodding towards the TV before nonchalantly exiting the building. Once outside David stopped time and jogged back to his apartment, which unsurprisingly took no time at all given the fact it didn't technically exist when stopped, where he quickly changed into his costume. After stuffing a black and white bandanna in his pocket to help protect against the smoke and other noxious fumes given off by the fire, David exited his apartment building and headed towards the scene of the emergency, only unfreezing time once he arrived at the outskirts of the cordon the police had set up to keep curious and horrified onlookers from getting any closer to the devastation.

Erika couldn’t help but grin as a girl with dirty blond hair ducked in front of her before sending her a quick wave, sparks flying from her hand. Returning the wave, Erika continued on her quest for an amazing hotdog with a new skip in her step. She loved seeing other people using their powers, one of the reasons she loves Bell Reach so much. People don’t have to hide their abilities that much here.

Of course, she prefers to keep her powers a secret but that’s just because she’s planning on using them for justice. She’s bound to make at least an enemy or two, and making her powers known makes it easier to determine her identity, which could give them the upper hand in battle. That’s like super-hero 101, emphasized in like every single comic book in existence with only one or two acceptances.

Welp, at the moment that doesn’t matter, there are for more important things that require her attention at the moment, the glorious sight of her destination for one! Practically skipping into line, she had her wallet out and her order decided by the time it was her turn.

It was glorious. Absolutely glorious. The most beautiful thing she ever had the pleasure of witnessing! Was she just exaggerating because she was hungry? Probably, but it was still an impressive dog! Which is why she made sure to send a picture of it to her bro, to show him just how much he’s missing out on.

Hotdog secure, jealousy inducing photo sent and she was set to go, she started walking back the way she came with a skip in her step while enjoying her pleasant meal. At least that was the plan until she heard the sound of alarms in the distance.

Casting a mournful glance at her only partially eaten hotdog, she abandoned it into a nearby trashcan and ducked into an alley, pulling her leather hoodie, mask and goggles out of her backpack (thankfully, she never leaves home without them) as well as her hunting knife and brass knuckles and pulling them on and stuffing her other jacket into her bag, before running towards her bike.

Disabling the alarm, she jumped on her bike and started the engine, fully intent on speeding towards the emergency and helping out however she could.

Vivian was on the scene, watching from a safe distance as firemen did their best against the growing fire. She had a red lollipop and suspiciously fresh clothes, lifted from the department store that was being consumed before her. In her defense, she hadn't meant to start the fire, but another super got a bit to close to removing her mask on the inside. She had responded by destroying the set of lights between them. Clothes were so flammable. It bought the Reaper time to escape while the super--a true hero--switched his attention to getting innocent bystanders out of the burning building. It seems he missed a couple, though, she thought as she watched the newscast.

Vivian had grabbed clothes and makeup, returned to her room, changed, and was back at the scene of the crime to watch the rest unfold. Teleportation had its perks. A crowd was gathering as well, she noted with a slight grin. She swirled her tongue around the lollipop before freeing her hand to reach into a pocket in front of her, looting the wallet. The target was so engrossed with the fire and news van and big red truck that he didn't notice her light touch.

Satisfied, she wandered away and then past him to get a better look at the scene as it continued to unfold. She wondered if that particular super would make it out alive, and when other vigilantes would arrive.

A city as bustling and urban as Bell Reach was never quiet. There was always something going on, from the hustle of everyday life present in every town across the globe, to the catastrophes that seemed uniquely Bell Reach. Of course the latter was inevitable when your city was advertised as the superpower hotspot,bodies changing with no idea what's going on or the destruction it could wreak - like humanity's worst case of pubery yet, really. If there wasn't criminals using their extraordinary abilities for their own benefit, there was always at least someone showing off to their peers what they could do. So, yes, it was almost impossible to get real quiet in Bell Reach.

Unless your family happened to own a literal mansion with sprawling lawns and gated fences, that is. With the Kasimir property having the same style buildings for neighbors - that is to say, too much land for one family and no commercial buildings in sight - it created its own little bubble of calm. So it was no surprise that the only Kasimir child was used to flaunting her powers inside the walls of her home, confident in its security to the point where using them was as easy as breathing. Which wasn't a surprise, since Zoey has been using her abilities as an extension of herself all her life.

"Wait, what?" Inside the spacious gym on the ground floor Zoey paused her exercise, chin resting on the bar she had been pulling herself up with repeatedly. Her sweat-speckled brows furrowed, steel-blue gaze darting along the book in front of her. She remained like that for a moment, before finally huffing. "Yeah, I have no idea."

With her words one of the two 'limbs' rising up from beneath her, made of pure darkness, twisted to highlight that particular passage that its twin held, like her own hands would had she been holding her textbook. It wasn't like Zoey was worried about selling it back at the end of the year after all. With a frustrated huff the redhead resumed her chin ups, the book bobbing up and down with her motions as the limb followed along for her to read. She'd have to ask Jessie about that one later.

Speaking of which...

"Miss Kasimir, it's nearly time for your appointment." Perfect timing. Zoey dropped easily from the bar, rolling her shoulders before turning to the new voice. Despite the irritation that was bubbling inside her at her own confusion, she still gave a lopsided grin to the shorter woman standing at the door to her personal gym.

"Thanks, Jasper. I'll start getting ready." The blonde woman hummed in response, holding out a towel. Instantly another shadow claw appeared to grab it, disappearing into the floor and reappearing from Zoey's shadow to wipe at her brow before draping the fluffy white material around her shoulders. The other two folded her textbook and capped her highlighter, reaching out with unnatural length to store in the bag on a nearby bench.

"Of course, Miss Kasimir. Shall I prepare a car?"

"Nah, I'll drive myself today." The lines around Jasper's eyes tightening were the only indication of her disapproval of that, but Zoey didn't mind - she knew it wasn't her that Jasper was displeased by. For some reason her personal assistant slash bodyguard had never taken a liking to her tutor, and eventual friend from Uni. "It's fine! It's by the beach, I don't want to show up in something too flashy."

That seemed to dispell Jasper's displeasure, judging by the slight twitch at the corner of her lips. "Of course, Miss Kasimir."

It didn't take long for Zoey to shower and change into something more appropriate for an outing than gym clothes, and soon enough she was rolling through the city streets in her snakeskin green dodge viper, humming along to a song on the radio. It was one of her favorite cars after all, even if it wasn't as flashy as some of her others. Perfectly appropriate for a lunch date with her friend, and Jessie highly recommended this restaurant.

When her phone buzzed Zoey's gaze flicked to it, another shadowy claw holding it aloft in the privacy of her car. Above the map showing the directions to 'Little China' a text had come in, from the very person she was going to meet.

'Hey, I'm at Little China. You're meeting me here right? We both know I work better on a full stomach, don't leave me hanging Zo'!'

'Zo' waited until she was at a red light before pulling the cellphone close, firing off a text back.

"Nearly there."

True to her word, it didn't take much longer to reach the restaurnt. Though, 'restaurant' may have been pushing it. Now she double checked that the address was correct, since this ... well, it wasn't exactly what she was expecting. Small, tacky, touristy almost? Maybe that was just its proximity to the beach.

Still, Jessie was waiting for her inside.

Making sure her car was parked within view of the large windows of Little China, Zoey was soon entering the restaurant. Behind her sunglasses she slid her gaze along the interior - tacky, like her first impression - and it didn't take long to find her companion.

More importantly, it didn't take long to find the very interesting presence here, either.

"Jessie!" Zoey slid into the seat opposite her friend, any discomfort from the place no longer present as she tilted her head to look across the open space. "Did you see him? Professor Devil is here!" The excitement in her tone was palpable, and before Jessie could respond Zoey was already launching into an eager ramble.

"He supplies most of the cutting edge gear for the Bastion! There's rumors on the latest Metawatch website that his power isn't only pyromancy actually, that he must have an intelligence enhancing ability with some of the things he comes up with - but others say his civilian persona was always intelligent before he manifested, you know, the skin and the hair-" Zoey finally paused, a bit of a red flush appearing across the bridge of her nose before she cleared her throat and reigned in her excitement.

Just like a Kasimir should.

"... And good afternoon, Jessie. Thanks for inviting me to lunch, did you already place an order with the waiter for me as well?"

Barely a minute after she started violating several speeding laws, Erika was pulling up to the scene of the emergency. Her eyes widened slightly at the sight of the flames consuming the building and the fire-fighters running around, out of the corner of her eye she saw what looked like a person with grey clothes appear out of no where(teleportation? Awesome!) but she didn't dwell on him, choosing to focus on the emergency in front of her.

Wasting no time, apart from taking a second to set the alarm on her bike, she ran over to the nearest firefighter. “What’s the situation?” The man paused in what he was doing with an impatient scowl, probably thinking that she’s just a nosy civilian, but after giving her a once over and taking in her apparel, her vigilante status became clear. A conflicted expression crossed his face for a moment, but they needed the help. “Two civilians trapped inside, my men went after them, but no luck so far.”

“Got it.” Erika said, giving a nod before rushing head-first into the flames. Her mask and goggles helped to keep the smoke out and her skin is pretty much burn-proof, that didn’t help with the intense heat though. It was freaking hot in there! Well…considering that the building is basically a giant bon-fire at this point, that wasn’t surprising.

Ignoring the heat and the sweat gathering at her brow, Erika rushed forward to the back of the store, paying no regard for the flames as they brushed her skin, her full attention on getting to the civilians and getting them to safety.

Of course.

The moment that Fringe decided to take a moment to relax and get some food a fire started. At the call for powers, Jin groaned. She shot Professor Devil an apologetic look. She couldn't even order her food before she was out the door and behind an alley changing back into her costume.

And from the rooftops jumped and swung Fringe, the Shanghai Spider in her purple and silver glory to help however she could. Fires weren't something we powers and gadgets were good at combating, but she could still assist in other ways if the firemen needed her.

---

Gone too was young Trent, who knew he could help from the sidelines by directing the water onto the building with ease and even using it to create and easy path down to the ground if any of them chose a window exit. If worse came to worse and he couldn't help with the fire, at least he had medical training to help the people on the ground.

That left Professor Devil to his lonesome with a few others in the restaurant. He smiled. Fringe had been on his watchlist from some time, ever since she left Shanghai as Spider and came to the states with a new look, name, and tools. There were others he was aware of, but she was the first on his list. Of course, Miss Fang was there too. She was the answer to the Government needing to know what went on in the Bastion Halls.

A napkin peppered his face, his spare hand reached up to press the lapel pin on his blazer. The Bastion logo, of course, just in case anyone had any doubts that it wasn't him.

"Novak, was that you? John already went over everything again, do you need to hear it a third time? We're not holding initiations."

"Not me, doc." The Lapel pin was as quiet as a whisper, but just loud enough for Devil to hear clearly. "Just coincidence. You know putting civilian lives in danger is an instant boot. I can check it out if you want, though."

"No." Devil shook his head, despite the fact that the one on the other end could not see him. "Let the public handle it. I could remove a fire with a wave of my hand, but I want to see how these young folk handle a little stress."

She had just finished her food when she heard the sirens and saw the smoke. Frick she fixed her mask and went camouflaged. She took a running jump off the building and leaped to the next one below it shooting out her black ropes (I don’t want to call them webs but I don’t know what else to call them) as a staff to stop her fall. She kept from roof to roof till she made it too the fire. She crouched on the roof of the building next to it, most seemed to be in the middle of being dealt with and she wasn’t sure if she was needed. Then she saw somebody on the second floor looking out the window, a teenager. She jumped to the wall of the building and stopped being in camouflage. She shot a thread down to the ground and helped the teen out the went into the building to scout it out and find more civilians, she found herself with other heroes but didn’t really acknowledge them, she was busy.

David calmly watched as several other hero's, or rather vigilantes if one wanted to get technical, rushed towards the flaming inferno, intent on rescuing those who were still trapped within. Reaching into his pocket and pulling out the bandana he'd taken from his apartment, David pulled it against his mouth and nose before tying the two excess strips of cloth into a tight knot that wrapped snuggly around the back of his skull. Pulling his grey hood over his head to help further conceal his identity, David closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Letting it out slowly, he opened his eye's and watched as the movement of the world around him slowed to a crawl.

Stepping past the police cordon, David ran towards the burning building at full speed with his hand raised in front of his face in a vain attempt to block some of the intense heat radiating from the firestorm. To the outside observer, it appeared as though a grey blur had just shot through the area and into the collapsing store, but to David the world around him moved at a snail's pace, events seeming to drag on for ages as he ran through the flames, smoke, and ash billowing from the buildings entrance. Once in inside, he began to make his way towards the very back of the store, all while doing his best to avoid falling debris raining down from the crumbling ceiling above his head.

Maybe to the naked eye it would have been seen as nothing more than a sudden blur, a trick of the light, but Fringe knew what she had seen when she was swinging in. That was a person, moving at impossibly fast speeds. She almost missed it herself. A blink and it was gone, but she knew what she saw. They were moving far too fast to not generate friction and appear like a ball of blinding light, but then again, powers seemed to be the easiest bowl to throw everything into nowadays. She couldn't concern herself with who or whatever that was.

She swung high, let go, and fell to the ground with a low crouch to absorb as much of the impact as she could. "Officer, what's going on?" She questioned a nearby police officer with a tilt of her head.

"Well, it looks like a fire." He chided. He couldn't see Fringe's face, but he could feel the overwhelming deadpan radiating off of her. "Could be arson, we can't tell at this point."

"I'll look around the area, see if I can't spot any runners."

[color=92278f][/color]Jessie had to crane her neck to look at the fashionably dressed woman who sat at her table, being unwilling to remove her booted feet from the chair she'd commandeered from another table. Jessie had been staring at one of the TV's dotting the place, forcing it to flip through local channels looking for something good. However, it was all breaking news about this fire, something she wasn't interested in dealing with. Now however, she had a distraction in the form of her friend Zoey. At the mention of Professor Devil, Jessie quirked an eyebrow. She leaned back in her chair and tossed her head backwards, looking back into the restaurant with an upside-down gaze.

"Well I'll be damned..." She muttered, irritated with herself that she hadn't recognized the red-skinned man earlier. Of course she was familiar with the Bastion, everyone who lived in Bell Reach was. However, she had known of him longer than that even, he and her father had moved in the same circles before... Well, before the Boom, at least. It was odd to see him slumming it at Little China though, one would think he could at least afford Uber Eats or something.

The hanging silence of Zoey's question brought Jessie out of her mind with a start. "Huh? Waiter?" Jessie looked around the place, then down at the egg roll she had speared on one of the cheap, wooden chopsticks. "Uh... You skipped the line, didn't you?" Jessie asked with a smirk as she realized the source of the rich girls inevitable confusion. "Zoey, you have to go up to that counter and order what you want, then wait off to the side for them to make it. It's called Fast Casual, I think. A step up from McDonalds, but not the places you're used to." The brown-haired girl said with a chuckle.

You go order, I'll get started outlining the paper for you." Jessie said, taking her boots off the stolen chair and leaning over the table. She paused as she reached for the book however, her eyes glancing over to Professor Devil, then to the TV showing live footage of the fire, then to the suddenly-half-empty restaurant, and finally landing on her friend. Jessie leaned in closely and put on a conspiratorial smile before motioning to the fire coverage.

"Unless... You'd be more interested in some... Extracurricular activities?"

As she neared the back of the store, Erika was reminded exactly why she hated the heat so much. Give her the cold anytime, you can always just wear more layers or do exercise to warm up if it gets bad and you never sweat, but with heat…there is only so much clothes that you can take off before it gets indecent and it’s impossible to escape if you don’t live somewhere like the north-pole! Not to mention the sweat! She may not mind sweat if it’s the product of a great workout/fight/fun activity but if it’s just because of the temperature, then it’s just annoying.

Wiping some sweat off her brow, she noted with no small amount of relief that the back of the store was within her sight. Scanning the area, she saw the mother and child in the corner, the mother seemed to be unconscious and was partially trapped underneath a part of the ceiling that seemed to have given in and the child was trying in vain to dig her out while fighting coughs from all the smoke. Not wasting any time, Erika rushed forward, dismissing the approaching grey blur she saw out of the corner of her eye as a trick of the smoke.