WAT

Katherin was surprise when the teen created three shadow beings. She wondered if she could do something like that. She was definitely going to practice tonight in her new house. It would be awesome to be able to do something like that. It sounded like the kid had been up to something, but Katherin was unclear on exactly what. She was going to wait and see what happened next.

As the scene before him played out, Jacque found himself sprawled on his belly with his legs intertwined and his head held up by both his real limb and the one made of water, looking for all the world like a child watching television on the floor. "I'd kill for some licorice. This looks like its gonna be good." he mused while studying each person carefully. So far the most interesting of the bunch was the umbramancer who had summoned multiple shadows with weapons, though he seemed a bit hesitant to actually get violent, the one with the tendrils also proved to be most interesting, and unlike the first guy he seemed more than willing to shed some blood if his words were any indicator, lastly, there was the young woman, who's abilities Jacque had yet to asses, making her a bit of a wild card. "T'hell with going home, this shit's better than pay-per-view." he sniggered as he began to kick his legs back and forth softly.

Lass

---

The man had something about him that made Lass felt uneasy, he felt suppressed. Like on instinct, he made the hands and swords disappear. Fear, he felt scared of him. He never felt like this before in his entire life. "Y-You can't make me your next meal." he said to him. He thinks that he could outrun him if need be. Then he felt helpless, but he still kept his guard. Lass took a blade from a shadow and will use it for protection.

"Trail?" Then it hit him that this guy had seen a few of Lass's victims. It was guaranteed, this guy is not normal. He's one of the supers that can trace something out of the power used. "Tch." he admitted defeat, but he doesn't want to be held captive. For some reason, Lass felt some kind of admiration on the guy's powers.

Abaddon withdrew the tendril back to himself and simply stood up and crossed his arms. The kid may have been a serial murderer, and he may have had a twisted mindset (because how else would you even think of doing such things), but in truth...

Lass reminded Abaddon of himself when he first bonded with the symbiote. At the same age of 14, it had taken quite a bit to build up self control and actually have specific "prey". Maybe the kid was the same way, wild with power, wanting to use it for good but also personal satisfaction...

"Relax," he finally spoke. "No one's going to hurt you, much less eat you."

Abaddon wondered where this kid's parents were... unless of course he didn't have any...

"Now, I'll ask. What are you doing?"

Lass

---

He was told to relax as no one's going to hurt him. Lass wondered about what he said about there being no one to eat him, but pushed away the thought shortly. Then he was asked a question. What was he doing? He was just curious and interested about the one who asked the question "Nothing. I just got interested about you and went to check it out. Though of having some fun too but you were entirely on a different level." he answered. What he said was the truth. There was no particular motive as to why he was there... maybe.

After seeing him though, he finally realized that he was still inexperienced. All this time he thought that he was skilled enough, but he was proven wrong. Stronger, he wants to be come stronger like the super before him. "Name. What's your name?" he asked.

Ah, grand piano’s never fail. MindWarp mused cheerfully as she looked around trying to see if Miss Spunky was still following her. It might have been rather clichéd having a piano fall from the top of a building, but it was a classic. What she would have given to see the look of shock, but she had a task to do and had already wasted enough time. She moved the briefcase to her other hand and inspected it. Not a scratch, that was good. It was a close call to being damaged back there. Hearing footsteps coming from the alley ahead MindWarp darted into a desolate building, slipping through a large enough gap in the boarded up doorway. She waited for the people to walk past and then moved behind a stack of crates and illusioned herself to be inside of one.

She pulled out her phone to try and get a read on her location and the distance to her required location when suddenly it vibrated a few times, startling her into nearly dropping the thing. She had a text from HQ.
‘Stay put.
Interested party en route.
Identifying keywords = A weapon works best against others when-
Replying keywords = It’s there but they cannot see it.’

So she didn’t get to use the device herself. She had been looking forward to seeing it in action, maybe if she was lucky the buyer would take her with them so she could tell them how it worked instead of getting her to tell them once they arrived. With only the hope of that being the case, MindWarp waited for the buyer’s appearance.

Eddy jumped and landed on the roof of the building that was designated for the purchase. He was in his suit and wearing his weapons now. Keeping low to the roof so as not to be seen he silently slid into the building through the sky light and landed quietly in the middle of a room full of crates. Strange, the vendor wasn't here. Bringing a hand up to his helmet he turned on infrared vision. The room turned to a varied colors of orange greens and blues, he spotted the vendor in front of him. He turned off the infrared and saw that there was a crate in front of him. Illusion, and a good one too.

Having almost dozed off while waiting, MindWarp snapped awake when she noticed that she was no longer alone. Right in front of her was a person in a robotic looking suit. Was this the buyer? One way to find out. She allowed the illusion of the crate to slowly fade away and looked up into the covered face of the person in front of her.

She spoke the words which identified her as a vendor and waited for the correct replying words which would identify this person as the buyer. If this person was indeed the buyer then they would swiftly pick up her sentence.

“A weapon works best against others when…“

"It's there but they cannot see it" he replied as he examined her. She had removed her illusion so he was able to see her face. She was young, seemed to be in her early-20's or late-teens, but that shouldn't deceive him, a face as pretty as hers doesn't get into this line of work without some kind of gift. He took a step towards her, "I assume the weapon is in the case?" He said pointing to the briefcase. "I have the money ready to be wired to the account as per the agreement" he said as he showed her the button on his wrist PDA

Niesha followed, but it was a challenge. When she stopped, Niesha stay out of sight, hovering in the air. She pondered what to do now. Looking about, she saw a man joined her. Niesha didn't like this one bit. She dropped to the ground.

"Hey! You lost me back there, but look, you found me!" She said, swinging her shield around, forming two balls of light in her free hand

MindWarp was pleased when the suited person successfully completed her sentence. A male by the sounds of the voice. With a smile she nodded an affirmative.

“Indeed. Its fresh, right of the first batch and for a special deal just for the day, you get three for the price of one. I am MindWarp, your friendly neighbourhood vendor in all things villainous.” She gave an exaggerated bow and looked at the button he showed her on his wrist device. “Ah good, my superiors will be quite pleased.” With a turn of her head she motioned for him to follow her over to a nearby crate where she placed the briefcase and prepared to show him the goods. However, before she got the chance a familiar feminine voice called out from behind them.

“Not now Miss Spunky. I am in the middle of something important!” She raised her voice in annoyance. Just her luck to be interrupted in the middle of a transaction by a newly required stalker no less. “And puts those away!” MindWarp added, pointing to the two balls of light that formed in one hand.

Eddy turned his attention to see the girl enter the room. A meta who manipulated what seemed to be light. She must be confident in her own abilities or an amateur to squander the element of surprise, meaning she must not be a professional, probably a kid with powers trying to stop crime. "You were followed, amateur mistake," Eddy said as he drew both his pistols. Raising his pistol to the ceiling he shot out the ceiling lights making the room dark. Quickly he dived into a hiding spot before she could relight the room, he would have to take advantage of her lack of combat experience.

As Neisha left to follow the woman, Zed's eyes began to water as he painstakingly raised his hands and wiped the tears off.

"Don't treat me that nicely... I might treasure you too much." Zed mumbled as he observed the chaotic surroundings, smoke and ash were flying everywhere. For a long time he was just there, lying down, waiting for the pain to vanish. It did vanish after the time as Zed stood up and dusted himself.

"Neisha... what a nice name." Zed muttered to himself as he took a deep breath while walking around the chaotic place. His eyes opened in surprise as he caught 3 scents in one location... Neisha's, the woman's, and the murderer he had met earlier.

"Not good... not good." Zed panicked as he faced the direction of the scents. "I have to get there quick... Feet won't be enough..." Zed mumbled as he took a deep breath and exhaled. "Wings will have to suffice." the lad growled as he arched his back.

"Insanity's Evolution: Cardinal Wings." Zed spoke as two large wings erupted from his back, shredding the bandages there. In a moment's notice, Zed flew high into the air as he tracked the location of the scent. "Let's soar."

Zed soared through the sky swiftly, vigilantly following the scent. He could already feel the rage building up in his system and if he let these feelings overpower him, he would lose his mind again. Exhaling deeply, Zed thought of the only thing that could calm him, Neisha's existence. As Zed continued to fly, he saw the destruction that befell the area. It was total chaos. Civilians running here and there, to and fro. Shaking these things from his mind, Zed focused his attention to reaching the place. It was actually quite far which made him wonder how long he was out.

At last, he saw the location. Based on the scent, gunfire had happened. His heart throbbed faster as he exerted more effort. The building came into his view as he crashed into the wall just a few meters away from the trio. The wall erupted into a flurry of debris as the light from outside invaded the room. His eyes trembled at the sight of the woman and the murderer, although he wore a different attire now.

"I'm not letting you get away this time." Zed roared. "Insanity's Evolution: Reaver Arms." Zed muttered as his arms erupted into the same sharp and long blades.

"Remember, Neisha is your ally... Neisha, ally... Neisha, ally." Zed repeated to himself as he looked at the duo. "They are your enemies, enemies, enemies, enemies, enemies."

Zed hovered above the floor as he spun mid-air and dove at the woman, creating a flurry of spinning blades. He had been tricked last time, but not again. Neisha was here to tell him the reality... he only needs to cut them down.

Amateur mistake. The words cut her like knives. No. No! No! No!! MindWarp was not an amateur.
Amateur mistake. This has never happened before. To be followed was impossible. It just didn’t happen.
Amateur mistake. Her illusions were perfect, every morph of reality was so precise so detailed that it went down to even the faintest smell. But that wasn’t the problem, was it? Her eyes snapped to Miss Spunky and narrowed. Even in a street full of people she knew which one I illusioned myself to be. Even in a network of alleyways she knew exactly which building I entered. It wasn’t about being followed at all, it was about being sensed. She ignored the lights being shot and the room being shrouded in darkness. Her focus was solely on one person.

“Oh you’ve done it now Miss Spunky. I gave you the chance to leave well enough alone but you threw that chance away and now I will not be so considerate. There are no second chances!” Her shout echoed in the room and she began gathering the energy she needed for her secret technique. Not even HQ knew that she could do this. Suddenly a wall concaved from the outside and the little street cleaner entered. Mutated limbs and all. Her anger went up another level and she continued to concentrate, feeling the pressure rising above any level she had experienced before. The very air around them froze and gravity seemed to weigh everything down more heavily. It was ready. Upon an exhaled breath MindWarps Psionic shockwave was released as only mere inches separated her chest and a bladed arm belonging to Zed. The power was so strong that her two targets were blown back, having beared the brunt of the force. She stood huffing debating whether or not she had the strength for a second go.

"Spunky?" Niesha said with a laugh, "oh, I like that" she threw up the two balls of light up into the air, where they hovered. She shifted, keeping them both in her sight.

Amateur mistake? She doubted there was much amateur about the woman. Illusions were on thing, auras were another. You couldn't hide your aura. It reflected yourself. Niesha herself was probably less experienced then the woman. That didn't mean that she couldn't kick her butt, and the man too, if she had to. But she hesitated, because she didn't know what the man could do.

When the wall broke away, Niesha started, looking over to see Zed. She was pleased that he was okay, she had been worried there that the first person she helped with her power might not come good again. And then the woman started shouting.

No second chances? Everyone had a second chance, but...no, not these people, she was sure of that.

She screamed as she was blown back, twisting, catching herself by letting light form around her. It was instinct. Her balls of light winked out as she lost control over them.

And now, she stood, worse for wear. She formed two long thick whips of light. She stood straight, her small frame, despite the light that she had woven around herself, battered and bruised. Yet still she stood. Before the woman could recover, she flicked one whip towards her, looking around for the man.

A second Psionic shockwave wasn’t possible, at least not at the moment. All that MindWarp needed to do was bide her time. It wouldn’t be long before a second could be released. Taking one last deep breath, she looked up and saw the tail of what was most probably a whip made from pure light. Jumping back, MindWarp wasn’t quite fast enough and the tip of the whip flicked her on the cheek, burning the skin. It was tiny but it still hurt and only caused her anger to return. Her illusions were now going to be anything but nice and as her namesake suggested, she was going to warp some minds.

MindWarps first illusion was based on the fact that her opponent was a light user. A thick black smoke like substance filled the room and condensed until only darkness remained. The darkness was so complete that if one tried then they wouldn’t be able to see their hand only inches from their face. The smoke, however, was just a front. What was really happening was that a secondary illusion blocked out sight from the very eyes of her foes. The illusion of blindness. It was one of the senses down and now MindWarp sought to bring a second down.

MindWarp cast yet another illusion; this one was a star in her collection. One by one the sounds of cicadas joined a choir, getting louder and louder as the seconds passed. MindWarp herself hated the sound and at this level of intensity it was sure to be an unbearable experience. Almost deafening. Perfect.

MindWarp ran forward content in the knowledge that Miss Spunky would be too distracted to sense her presence. Moving closer to her target, MindWarp raised her left hand intent on placing it on Miss Spunky’s forehead and using her Psionic inundation ability to render her unconscious. Now close enough, she reached for Miss Spunky’s forehead.

((MindWarp: Mwahahahaha!!! Mwahaha! Mwahahahaha!!
Absolute Grace: *facepalm* Sorry, she has issues... and I am going to sleep. Night, night.))

As the meta crashed through the wall, Deadend rolled out from his spot and aimed at the two targets simultaneously with both of his pistols in hand. He began firing off rounds each aimed at the body. He watched as the vendor cast an illusion on the light-manipulator and went for a close range attack. He brought his other pistol to the attention of the bandaged teen he had seen earlier, so as not to shoot his vendors. He began dual firing well aimed shots at the vital organs of the bandaged teen's body. The boy was definitely a meta, apparently an ally of the light user.

As the illusion of darkness fell, Niesha paniced just slightly. She got herself under control, taking a few deep breaths. She wouldn't freak out, it was just an illusion after all. When the sound started, Niesha strained not to cry out. She would not embarrass herself like that.

Before her nearing was completely enveloped by the sound, she heard gunfire. Zed. Was Zed okay? She looked to see if she could see him, but of course the darkness was, haha, deafening.

Niesha knew that the woman would try and attack as her sense were blocked. She formed the light around ner-even if she couldn't see it her power couldn't be stopped by mere illusion. It coated her body like a second skin, a thin layer. It would burn, protect her from attack. Or so she hoped.

As Zed's blade drew nearer to the woman's face, a psychic blast forced him backwards, toppling some boxes he landed on, a great rage rose within him but as quickly, Zed forced himself to calm down. His wings fluttered as he rose into the air again, his eyes searched for Niesha as he sensed that the woman had casted an illusion, only this time, it was meant for Niesha. Zed noticed that he was getting affected by the illusion of darkness and some piercing sounds... Being a bit far from the woman made it possible for him to be himself for a second, but not before noticing for a split second that the murderer had lined some perfect shots towards him... With only a millisecond to lose, Zed dodged sideways, dodging some shots but getting shot himself in his leg and arm. As a perfect shot went for his chest, he decided to take his evolution farther... The bandages on his torso ripped to shreds as somewhat diamond and metal layers replaced his pale skin... His whole body had become metal and diamond. The shots bounced away from his torso as visible scratches and cracks gave a message that the murderer had powerful shots.

"Muog Torso... I didn't think I'd go this far." Zed mumbled. The wounds caused by the bullets began to heal at a rapid rate, signalling that the Muog Torso had gone to the second stage. "Two more evolutions left before the Herald of Dawn's End." Zed gritted his teeth in hate as the murderer vanished from his sight, although the scent was still there.

Suddenly, an intense hatred rose within him... something so intense that he wasn't able to guard against it. The demon took control of his system as Zed released a piercing roar, half of his face had already evolved. In a flash, Zed flapped his wings intensely and in an extremely fast frequency, creating a pressurized gale inside the room. The debris inside began to circulate in the center, creating a vortex of debris and boxes which floated around them.

"DIE ALL OF YOU!" the demon screamed as it began to slice madly, not caring whether he hit friend or foe. He went inside the vortex of winds as he stretched his bladed arms, rapidly heading towards the woman. As it drew nearer, darkness and piercing sounds began to envelope its senses.

"I can smell the sins of your soul!" the demon laughed as its 4 eyes (1 normal, 3 demonic) closed. The demon went for the woman and Niesha, aiming its outstretched blades at their necks, driven by the speed of the gale.

Deep inside, Zed's mental state had been imprisoned... it's not Zed anymore... it's the Predator.