"We escaped from Lorne." Taylor answered, keeping most of its eyes focused on the being itself, though it was still paying attention to the movements of the rats around it. "He helped me escape. He fed me to bursting to give me the strength to escape, but it weakened him. Knocked him unconscious. I owe him my freedom, so now I protect him. And it's why I'll kill you if you hurt him."

Briefly, Taylor's thoughts went back to the escape, especially being that had spoken to it after it broke free from its cell. Whatever it was, it knew about Taylor and its captivity, and had the power to give it an escape route. Yet, it had taken William to get it out of its cell. Were William and the ghost related in some way, or had it been coincidence? Taylor could not ask William at the moment, but it did realize that others outside Lorne might know about it.

"Then there was the other being. The strange face that appeared on the screens, jumping between them like it was struggling to stay put. It could have been a...hacker, but it felt more like a ghost in the machines. It spoke to me...gave me a path out of the prison. Do you know about the ghost? Have you seen it before?" Taylor asked.

DERELICT BUILDING // CITY SLUMS

William sat up gasping as if it was he was tasting air for the first time. His entire body burned, every movement ached as he sat up. The smell hit him and his face curled up in disgust, even that hurt. He raised his hands to his face, covering them in the dim light. His hands reaching his forehead he pushed them up higher, wincing as the pain of the bumps over his hands and scalp virtually caught fire due to the contact. All his hair was gone, turns out his body couldn't handle putting out that kind of power. He fell back against the ground, wincing in the pain. He was still tired, so very tired. He felt like had run two consecutive marathons while carrying five of himself on his back. He took in a breath, allowing his chest to rise and fall naturally. Ignoring the pain that encompassed his entire body. Then he sat back up, seeing the shadowy creature and the man that looked like some kind of noir-homeless man he turned his body to a more defensible position.

Lighting a fire in the palm of his hand, casting light throughout the room. Which was where he noticed that the clothes he was wearing was not in fact the prison jumpsuit he had been wearing prior to the escape attempt. "Who the hell are you guys? What am I doing here?"

While Taylor's wariness towards this new parahuman had not diminished, its attention was immediately captured by William stirring just behind it. Taylor turned to the side, focusing most of its glowing eyes onto William, though it kept tabs on the other being with two of its smaller eyes. It was overjoyed to see him moving and conscious, even if he was still obviously weakened. Being conscious made his chances seem so much better. "William, you're awake!" Taylor exclaimed. They had not seen one another at any point before the escape, but Taylor's eerie, echoing voice was unmistakable, and unforgettable.

Taylor stepped forward, looming over William's makeshift bedding. "I should not have doubted you, your plan worked! You filled me with strength until I was overflowing; even Lorne's cages could not hold me. I brought you with me, brought you here. I was not going to leave you behind after what you did. You were so weak...I thought you might have given your life for me. But you live, and we are free. You...liberated me from my torture, released me to the city. I am free to live as I please, go where I please, consume as I please, and you are responsible for it all."

There was little about Taylor's form that could show the emotions it felt, but it still felt them strongly. It would have been in tears, were that possible for it any longer. However, that did not stop Taylor from leaning down to express its gratitude with an enthusiastic hug. Its body was certainly solid, and did feel solid to the touch, but it also was constantly moving, pulsating, and flowing like some sort of living liquid. It was also, at the moment, fairly hot to the touch. "Thank you." It added.

"You're in the back streets of Marlon, William." The Ratman told the man. "As for me, just call me the Ratman..."
He trailed off as the creature embraced William. He stood quietly, thinking about the facts he'd established so far. It had appeared to this being as well. It was not a coincidence, then, that the creature before him had broken free from the tower. The screen ghost appeared to be a being of significant power, judging by its ability to simply manifest an escape route out of the tower, but why had it done so? For what purpose?

The Ratman sighed quietly, and raised its voice to get the pair's attention.
"That ghost, as you put it. There won't be many in Marlon who don't know of it. Just a little while ago, it took over every screen in the city." He said to the being. "It only had one message. 'You are not alone'. What did it say to you?"

The woman on the screen was a master of her craft, someone well trained in the art of public relations. Her voice was soothing and reassuring while her tone held just the right amount of professionalism and confidence to add weight to her message. Her appearance was the same, mixing the straight backed posture and uniform of someone with authority with the comforting smile of someone who was on your side and had your best interests at heart. It was a tough balancing act to show both warmth and strength at the same time, to show people you were strong enough to protect them without that same strength being intimidating, but Lorne’s marketing and PR departments were good enough to make it work.

Show the public chaos and destruction, and then show them the calm and resilient face of Lorne who would stand against the chaos. Make sure to acknowledge the unfortunate accident but neglect to mention just whose tower it was that blew up. Paint Parahumans as deadly and dangerous, people who use their powers for evil, so that of course the Lorne Corporation they so unfairly blame for everything must be the good guys. And if you’re not one of those evil, dangerous Parahumans then you must be on Lorne’s side, right? Which means you’ll visit one of their rehabilitation centres, right?

And if that didn’t work then tell them they were all going to fucking die if they didn’t.

“Well that’s the biggest load of bullshit I’ve heard in years.” Robert was well acquainted with Lorne’s particular brand of bullshit, having been force-fed it by the shovel load when his factory was taken over by Lorne suits. They’d refined it somewhat over the decades but it still smelt the same, which made it all the more frustrating when people bought into it. At least now he knew what he and his followers would be doing this Saturday; that drop-in clinic was the perfect opportunity to disrupt Lorne’s attempt to round up the cities Parahumans.

And every Parahuman they could keep out of Lorne’s grasp was a victory in Robert’s book; which, as it happened, was why he was here in the first place. The screen he was watching Lorne’s announcement on was not the small monitor in the lounge of his headquarters, but a large public display meant to show advertisements or breaking news depending on which was more important at the time. A couple blocks down the street was a diner, mangled and deformed by some unknown phenomenon and since these days ‘unknown phenomenon’ meant ‘Parahuman’, Robert was interested.

The police were interested too, which was why he was standing two blocks away instead of somewhere he could get a closer look. Whatever had happened in that diner was bad enough that it left a bodycount, so the police and Lorne had an excuse to go all out in trying to apprehend them; a half dozen patrol cars and a couple of SWAT vans could be seen blocking the street from where he was, armed and armoured officers along with a number of those faceless mechs keeping a watchful eye on the crowds. Whoever this Parahuman was he was powerful and possibly unstable, which meant it was imperative that the PPS find them before the police did, or Lorne would make sure they disappeared forever.

Robert began walking towards the diner, risking being seen by the police or their drones so he could attempt to find some sort of clue as to where the Parahuman had gone to.

@Heat

Darkspire sat on the edge of the building, looking out upon the city. It held an eerie beauty at night in this sector. The perfect scene for a story set in a post apocalypse era. She snorted as that's exactly what she had lived through. She had spent the better half of a decade studying the realm of theoretical science, and proving theories. The change didn't effect her as much anymore, leaving a quiet sadness about her. Darkspire, no, Morrigan herself, stood on a knife's edge. A delicate balance between her dual identities.

Morrigan O'Connor, up and coming Physicist working at one of the most prestigious Universities in the States. Married to a man who was well known in the Military circuits of the city. And at night, she became Darkspire, rogue parahuman who constantly tripped over Lorne's affairs. She had very few allies and hoped that at least tonight she'd come up with something.

A flicker brought her attention to the room and she entered, noting that there was another man inside. She eyed him cautiously and looked to see Taylor hugging William. "Good. You are awake." She nodded, settling herself on a levitated rock. "I have a few questions for the pair of you... As it seems that three of the four of us are among the highest ranked threats to Lorne." She spat out their name, scowling. "And I find myself in need of assistance and allies. If you haven't heard already, Lorne will be stepping up their attempts to... Correct their mistake."

DERELICT BUILDING // CITY SLUMS

William flinched slightly as 'Taylor' hugged him. Wincing as the contact aggravated his burns, pulling back. "Okaaaay, you're not what I was expecting-" He eyed the creature up and down "-though to be honest I wasn't sure what I was expecting, red cape?" He laughed slightly before coughing, he raised his hand to his mouth to block the cough. On removing his hand he noticed blood on his hand, without showing that side of his hand to anyone in the room he lowered it again, wiping it on his clothes as it went down.

He looked at the new woman as she entered talking about allies and alliances, the Ratman asking about what information they knew, what was going on. William raised his hands, trying to push himself to his feet before he fell back down. Swearing as he did so.

"Look. I don't know what's going on here, but I've got a pretty full schedule and I'm not really looking at joining no revolution. I already lost everything, I'd rather not lose my life."

---

PENTHOUSE SUITE // LORNE CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS // THE TOWER

"ARTEI. What happened?" The voice of Tiberius Lorne was low, but the anger in his voice was unmistakable. Had ARTEI been a human being it would have most likely flinched. The table below Tiberius lit up as the AI brought up various feeds from throughout the facility.

"All reports indicate that the subject three-one-four used his abilities to fuel subject zero-zero-four who then used the increase in power to break out of containment. From there zero-zero-four carried three-one-four through a direct path and out of the tower. Officers of the MPD responded to the call with Lorne Security Personnel however the subjects were already gone." A scowl crossed Tiberius' face as he watched the images of the subject carrying the naked man out of the facility, burning like a raging hot fire. At least he had an idea.

"Get these images down to broadcasting. Have them set up some fake burns on staff, splice someone else's face over subject three-one-four. Stage a hospital raid and have it air on the evening news. Almost everyone has this city has a cellphone, have them be our eyes and ears. An offer of fifty-thousand dollars for a tip that leads to the capture of this dangerous Parahuman who has taken a poor worker hostage after severely maiming him, when he was close to coming to a cure for its condition."

"Right away sir." There was a buzz at the door, Tiberius looked up. Then back down at the table. "Doctor H.Williamson for you sir."

Tiberius nodded. "Let him in, then sign off."

The table light faded, leaving it looking like a normal, albeit expensive and fancy, table. That said everyone in Lorne knew about ARTEI, it had been Tiberius' Lornes claim to fame within the company. A fully functional A.I, a stripped-down version of it was what the police mechs used. The Doctor walked in, a notepad in hand. He tucked it under his arm as he approached. Tiberius stood and offered his hand, after the formalities were done he signalled for him to take a seat. Hyde was one of Tiberius' most trusted scientists, at the forefront of the Parahuman Crisis and coupled with his wife truly some of his most trusted confidants. His trust for them only grew after what they had done together, and accomplished, after the tower exploded.

"Hyde, if you're here about number four then I'm afraid-" Hyde waved his hand, shrugging it off.

"I'm not, I trust the forces we have in play to track it down and return it to its holding cell. Though I'd stress its importance again, its ability to absorb energy could be vital in resolving this crisis and bringing it back under control."

Tiberius leaned back in his chair, hands clasped on his knees. "Then what are you here about?"

Hyde flipped his clipboard and slid it over to Tiberius. "I've done it, I've figured out a way to detect Parahumans. For now, it should require a very simple patch in the Police Mech targetting software, it won't be long-range but we'll be able to detect them within one hundred feet once the updates are installed. The catch is it'll only work when they're manifesting their abilities." He indicated for the clipboard, Tiberius gave it to him while Hyde flipped it to another page before handing it back. "For a while, we've been noticing weird energy readings around Parahumans when they use their abilities. This energy signature is almost identical, albeit smaller, than that of the Source. The good thing is, we've been able to isolate it from all the background radiation, radio-waves and everything else that goes on in a modern city."

Tiberius looked up. "Can we track then yet?"

Hyde rubbed his hand over his head. "Not quite. We know that Parahumans and the Source are somehow connected, though as of yet we've been unable to find out how. Everything we know about the laws of physics says that it isn't possible, and yet it somehow is. Even study of number one hasn't yielded a lot of results. Though Johnsons team is confident that they're close to a breakthrough in dampening powers with number three." Tiberius smiled as he handed back the clipboard.

"Have your wife prepare a news speech for the clinic on Saturday." He stood up and looked out of the window. "It's time to not just change this city, but to change the world."

Taylor stayed close beside William, though its eyes were now primarily focused on the woman and the Ratman. It certainly had no love for Lorne, and the idea of allies was appealing, but that still required trust. For Taylor, trust was something that was not easily given. It had trusted Lorne, and had suffered for it. William had taken risks and sacrificed for Taylor, so it trusted him. The Ratman it did not know, though the para woman...she had helped him. She had brought supplies and medicine for William, which was a show of good faith. Though, it was not nearly as much of a commitment as William had shown, still.

"William has to rest, and I have to protect him. I will not leave his side." Taylor answered definitively. Although, it was not quite ready to demand that the others leave. There was still the matter of the ghost, which William did not yet know about. But if the Ratman was being truthful, then nearly everyone in the city had seen it. "But that ghost I spoke of...the strange face in the screens. I heard its message too, the same message. You are not alone. But that was before the escape. After our escape, it spoke to me again while you were unconscious, William. Directly to me. It told me that it had known I was being held prisoner and tortured by Lorne, but could not release me. Once we escaped, it said it had locked down the area and gave me a path to escape the prison. Warned me never to return. It was being honest. I did not have to fight anyone to carry you out, William. I burned the lab that held us, then ran."

The Raman sighed, or at least he tried to. It was difficult, given his situation.
"With the commotion you caused, I'm surprised they haven't already sent someone after you." He said to the creature.

A good many things could be said about the Lorne corporation, but one thing was for sure - they never let their secrets out. The fact that the creature and William had not yet been pursued was quite odd, and the Raman couldn't help but feel like the 'ghost' had some part in that as well. That just made its agenda all the more mysterious. Nevertheless, they had more pressing matters at hand.

"If I know Lorne like I think I do, it won't be long until Lorne cones after you and William. They've probably sent someone out already." He said.
William was wounded, as evidenced by the burns and a light scent of blood on his person. If the creature insisted on sticking by him, then it would only reduce their odds of survival.
"In short, we are on a timer. What will you do now?"

The first actual police work Samantha had done in a year, and everyone was trying to sweep it under the rug as possible. Both the Captain and Hiegle had their arms crossed on the opposite side of the large desk where she sat. It was the vision of a scolding headmaster.

"Detective Hiegle did make it clear to return at once did he not?"

"And I did, we already had the girl captive when Briars checked in."

"I believe my exact words were 'drop everything and get your asses back to the precinct" Samantha glared at Dan.

"Well I wasn't the one you were speaking to was I?"

The captain cut them both off before anything could escalate. "I don't have the time or patience to deal with this. Cut the girl lose officer Wiles and report to town hall 800 hours tomorrow morning."

Samantha stood to try and stop him as he made his way to open the door of his office.

"With all due respect sir, I think that would be a mistake. She was with the para, she claims to have worked with him before."

"She's a teenage sewer rat who would sell her own mother to keep out of trouble." Dan cut in again. Samantha moved aside to let him pass her, but of course he stood still.

"Sir, may we speak in private" She moved in front of the Captain, forcing him to make eye contact with her. After a moment, and a labored sigh, he nodded Dan out of his office.

"Thank you."

"Make this worth my time Wiles"

Samantha swallowed, she'd hoped to not reveal what she knew so soon; at least not until she was sure. "I believe Holly Farstel to be a parahuman."

Whatever influence she'd had to dismiss Hiegle had evaporated. "Do you have any evidence? Did you see anything?"

"No. I just- I feel like if we let this one go we're going to regret it later."

The captain sighed again, "What I will regret, is giving Lorne more reason to pull their lobbying with government officials. In case you haven't noticed officer, the city has been on the brink ever since the tower fell, and it is all too quickly coming to a head, and it is us who will be taking the blame if things go anymore sideways. No, I don't think I will regret saving resources that could be spent searching for the literal abomination that was set loose this afternoon."

Samantha, bit back her objection and gave a stiff nod. She knew well enough that her fight was lost.

"Good. We want you at the City Hall clinic tomorrow, 8am, dress blues. Smile, look friendly, there will be pictures."

He stepped outside and closed the door behind him, leaving Samantha alone in his office; a child put in time-out the think about their actions. The desk was a mess, strewn with paper. The captain was old fashioned, one of the few that prefered to keep physical files on hand. None of the ones Samantha could see seemed of any interest, and she wasn't about to snoop around. She peered through the blinds just as the door leading to the interrogation rooms opened. Briars stepped out leading Holly.

Samantha quietly stepped outside the door surveying for either Hiegle or the Captain. With neither in sight she approached her partner.

"I'm going home for today"

"I heard, they're sending me out with Jefferson, everything okay?" The genuine worry in her voice almost made Samantha smile, if she wasnt so focused on slipping a folded piece of paper into the teenager's hand unnoticed.

"Yeah fine, they're just giving my some busy PR work at town hall, just wanted to say good bye."

"Okay, well goodbye." Briars replied, slightly confused. Samantha nodded and turned away, barely let her eyes fall on Holley, before leaving the precinct.

DERELICT BUILDING // CITY SLUMS

William shook his head as the information came at him fast and hard. Apparently, the ghostly figure had been seen by everyone, and not only that it had actually appeared on Lornes system. That spoke highly of the figures hacking capabilities. Lorne was notoriously hard to hack. From what he had been told trying to hack Lorne was nigh impossible as when trying to break through firewalls they were virtually re-written around your attack. Not that he had ever tried, he could barely file a report using a system designed for filing reports. He liked to think that it was as much the fault of the system as his.

Taylor confessed that 'it' was probably the best turn of phrase, wasn't going to be leaving his side out of some form of debt. Ratman was busy asking him what the next objective was. He stood up, his entire body objecting. "You all think you're so clever. If you want to go uncovering a mystery you find out who this watcher is. He obviously knows something and has abilities of some description. You want to know what's going on, ask him or ask Lorne." He waved his hand in their direction. "Don't ask me. I've already lost everything to Lorne. I'd rather live with what I have left until some MPD officer puts a bullet in my head."

Taylor's eyes rested firmly on William as he stood. Once again, its concern for his well-being did not show through in the slightest on its exterior. Though, his physical health was not the only thing that had Taylor's attention. His attitude concerned, and even somewhat offended it. Although Taylor was sworn to protect him, that did not imply complete agreement with him.

"You are...wrong, William." Taylor stated. At its current energy, it towered over William, and everyone else in the room. Looking down into his eyes, Taylor held its arms out wide to call yet more attention to its nightmarish form. "They did not take your Humanity. You still have something left to reclaim."

Taylor turned its head back around towards the para woman and the Ratman. "I want to burn to ash everything and everyone that belongs to Lorne...but I will first protect William. He must live. He must heal."

Taylor took a moment to observe William now that he was standing. He was weak, much moreso than it would have expected from burns alone. There had to be something more, some other way that pushing his abilities so far had harmed him. Not only that, but it realized that Lorne themselves may have done something even more troubling to him. Taylor recalled their conversation when they first met, as well as its own experiences at the hands of Lorne's doctors. While they certainly would not be safe for long in this abandoned apartment, it was possible they might not be safe anywhere. "You are my savior. But also my patient, my responsibility. You need more treatment, and I need more tools to treat you. But more than that...you said when we first met that Lorne forced you through surgery? Opened you up...perhaps left something behind? They tried to put things in me before, but my body was not kind to their implants. If they put something in you to track you, then I need to take it out. Does anyone have a place to go that Lorne can be allowed to find."

Darkspire observed the other paras, her scowl deepening in the unnatural shade of her masked face. "I was hoping you would find out more, but I can have my associate look at it. They're a hacker of sorts. It would take time for them. I do not fully know how their ability works, only that they're good at what they do." She sighed pinching the bridge of her nose. "As for medical services... I could offer a place. My brother's old clinic. It's out of the way, and relatively safe. I myself must leave before dawn comes."

She turned to look outside. "Even though they've taken nearly everything from me, I'm going to fight them. Because I have no other choice." She looked to the others. "They will never stop looking for you. I can offer temporary reprieve inside the Clinic for as long as you need. It's an extreme risk to myself and my identity, but if it gives you a bit more reason to let us align ourselves, then so be it."

The Ratman stopped leaning against the wall and stood up straight.
"If neither of you have other plans, I'd suggest you take Miss O'Connor's suggestion." He said to the pair. "It's probably for the best to leave treatment in the hands of a professional. But first..."
With that, he bowed towards the creature.
"Thank you for your cooperation." He said to the pair.
He turned to leave the building. He had gotten what he wanted, more or less, so his business was done.
"I'll be leaving you to your own devices, but I will keep watch for you. I am no friend of Lorne." He said as he walked away.

The rats followed him out of the building, save one who quietly slipped a shabby note into William's pocket. On the paper was a crudely written message.

If you wish to stay out of danger, be careful with who you side with.

The rats maintained their vigilance outside. As the old saying went, the enemy of his enemy was his friend, but he wasn't sure if the director of science was an ally just yet. Only time would tell what side she was truly on, and whether she could contribute to their mission. Until then, they would do what they always did.

William scoffed as he backed away from Taylor, and then the lady that apparently 'had to go before morning'. What, she a scheduling conflict or something? "Look. I'm fine, they aren't tracking me. They performed surgery on me because I was shot. I'm actually kind of glad they decided to take out the bullet and do repairs. Besides no offence, but you don't even have real arms, hands or fingers and yet you want to perform complex surgery on me?"

He limped towards the door after the path Ratman had made. "No. I'm going for a drink."

"No!" Taylor firmly interjected, not only verbally, but physically. It moved itself in front of William, blocking the way to the door. "Before, when I was...Human, I was a doctor. And you...are my patient. I gave up my chance of retribution to Lorne. I gave up on burning, destroying their labs once I was out of my cage for you. You were unconscious, you were helpless, so I chose you. To protect you. I dragged you out here myself, protected you, treated you, and I didn't do all that just to let you go out and kill yourself."

Taylor's stance was firm and authoritative in a way it never could have accomplished as a Human. In a way, it was cathartic to finally feel that weight of authority over a patient who was acting against their own self-interest. "You will come to the clinic, you will rest, and you will heal. Once you are well...then you stop being my responsibility."

As Owen slumped against brick wall, then slid down it into a seated position on the cold, hard floor. The parahuman let out a sigh as police sirens blared in the distance. He ran both of his hands through his hair, then held his head down towards his chest. Frustrated at what he had done, the chaos he had caused and the deaths he'd brought upon the unlucky innocents inside the now malformed diner. The wanted man angrily grasped at his hair, letting out a deep breath as he tried his damnedest to remove the image of the dying bystander from his mind. The silent shock evident within the dying eyes as the poor fellow ceased to breathe.

Suddenly Owen was pulled from his dark thoughts, absorbed out of reality as all outside noise had silenced and faded for an astonishing moment. A familar face appeared before him, giant in its size and scope as the voice hammered into his eardrums. The words were more soothing, addressing him directly. It sent a shiver down the parahuman's spine as the unknown face spoke. He had scrambled to his feet, eyes going wide as they had ever been as he simply stared astonished at the giant face. The symptoms which he had felt at its first appearance did not reoccur, it was as if this figure had displayed itself directly into his mind. It did not manifest itself on every single screen across the city, which led Owen to believe that is what had caused his breakdown.

"P-para Protection Society? Wait!" He exclaimed, stepping forward as the face had fallen apart like shattered glass, leaving no trail behind as reality came back to him.

Owen scratched his neck, looking around to find himself in the same place he had been before the bizarre moment. The sirens were once more ablaze in the distance, as the other sounds of the megacity echoed around him as well. He turned and strolled out of the alleyway, even more unsure of things than he had been minutes before. That being was tracking him, it must have had some unsettling powers to do what it had done on this eventful day. Its words were softly spoken in this most recent encounter, as if it was trying to help him. He briefly debated taking the nearest train and just running as far as he could away, but that would lead nowhere. And in all honesty the constant running was wearing thin. He had nowhere to go except where this mysterious face had advised him to. He just hoped he wasn't walking into some horrific trap.

---

Against his better judgement he returned to the deformed diner scene, albeit with a new change of clothes. He stared at the pure mass of police presence surrounding it, watching it from a safe distance. It was not the first time Owen needed to be just another face in the crowd, as long as he did not do anything to draw attention to himself then he'd seen as just one more random bystander going about their daily business. His eyes shifted to the police drones, pausing briefly as he stared at them. They always used so much technology and machinery, it at least gave Owen multiple routes of escape if he were ever cornered or worse, captured.

That was not on the agenda though, he needed to find the Parahuman Protection Society, though did not have the faintest idea of where to start. He'd heard faint rumbles of their existence, seen graffiti on the sides of buildings and heard the rejects of society preach their noble goals. While also hearing plenty of news headlines of their misdeeds and alleged crimes. In his tumultuous time as a para Owen had realized some of the things in which you had to do in order to get by, so as to not end up locked up in a Lorne facility somewhere, undergoing whatever terrifying things they do to captured parahumans.

As he walked along the sidewalk he rubbed his hands gently together, paying no mind to any ideal chit chat or the people staring at the result of his outburst. Most of them would see it as another example of parahuman terror even if it was truthfully a bizarre incident in which he'd lost control. Then he paused in his stride at an older man walking towards the crime scene. Something click in Owen's mind as he brought an identity to the face. A face which had been plastered on the news or on billboards as a wanted man, like Owen was. Another para, the one with the prosthetic arm.

"Hey, I wouldn't go there if I were you." Owen stated as he moved his fingers gently, enough to seize momentariyl control of the robotic prosthetic and point fingers towards himself. An ignorable gesture to others around them, but a bold one to the other para.

@King Cosmos

William scoffed. "Okay, fine but I'm going to grab a drink on the way there at the very least." He started walking towards the door before realising he wasn't entirely sure where they were going. "Is someone going to lead the way?" He stood to the side of the door in order to let someone else go before them. He turned to the floating lady whose brother owned the clinic they were supposedly going too.

"So what's your deal, I understand Taylors reasoning for helping us out, but what are you after?" There was something unsettling about her, something he didn't quite trust. Maybe it was her abilities were an unknown to him, he understood that Taylor somehow absorbed energy which it could then redistribute. Whereas this lady? She could fly and create balls of light, what exactly she could do was an unknown and he didn't like unknowns. Never had, and didn't now. Especially these days when there was a mysterious figure sticking its nose in their lives. He had to be careful so that they knew what was going on.

Darkspire let out a sigh. "My deal is that I need to find those who are against Lorne." Her masked face held a spark of anger. "As the saying goes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. They will be stepping up in their attacks and with my only ally being able to only keep oversight on things, I need more." She drifted over to the doorway and floated past William. "If you must know who I am, the name is Darkspire, sister of one of the best men to have ever graced this city, Thoth." Her face darkened. "Due to the circumstances we were never able to recover his body, as I took off after his killer and it was gone when I returned, Lorne's minions surrounding the area. Their official stance is whatever he had was contagious, even after death."

She led them out of the building, her orbs drawing close to her. She palmed one, observing it ripple in her hand. "See, whatever their actions lead to my brother's death, for trying to help save lives, his dream. And for the that, I'll do whatever it takes to get him back and allow me to keep this life I've built." She looked to the pyrokinetic. "The Tower broke apart my family. Killed my child and brother. There is very little I wouldn't do to make Lorne suffer for what they have done. Then after that, well, I'll finish another doctorate on Spatial Theory. I am one of the brightest in my field. Literally."

Taylor supposed this would be the best it would get in terms of cooperation from William. At the very least, he did not seem to be so stubborn as to try to fight Taylor over it...not that he would have been able to do much to resist it. He was physically weak at the moment, and his abilities, if he was even in a state to use them, would only serve to strengthen Taylor. It was concerned that he might hurt himself trying to move around on his own, but for now, it was not going to stop him. It would just have to keep a few close eyes on him.

While it was late at night at the moment, Taylor moved cautiously as they followed Darkspire. The two of them might have been able to move inconspicuously down the street, if Darkspire stopped creating orbs of light, but Taylor certainly could not. Taylor was not only an obvious para, but would likely terrify anyone who saw it. They needed a way for Taylor to hide while they moved, but for now, it just hoped they were not seen.