Sorry, The Only Power Left Is Alteration.

While passed out in Alfredo’s arms, Circe began to play a conversation from five years ago in her head. It was the middle of her final semester at Columbia and she’d spent a bit too much money. Just a bit too much.

“But Dad, I’m struggling here!”

“Life is a struggle Circe. You’ve been struggling from the first moment you lived. Struggling to grow, to form, to get stronger, to be the woman you are today. Money isn’t your problem. You’re old enough to handle these things on your own.”

“But Dad!”

“Is your heart beating?”

“What does that have to do with anything!? I’m alive, aren’t I? It’s not going to be beating if I don’t have money to live.”

“You have your loans, your scholarship, and the money we saved for your college fund. We budgeted more than enough. What happened?”

“Life happened. It’s not easy like when you went to school.”

There was a long pause as Circe waited for him to speak.

“Every day is a struggle, for everybody. Sometimes we power through and feel like we own it. Sometimes we can't even move forward. But we have to keep struggling or we’ll never get stronger."

"But Dad!"

In the end, none of us want to die before our time. So, learn from this. Move forward as best you can. Your mother and I have decided that we’re not going to rob you of your growth as an adult.”

“I hate you. You’re a terrible father who always talks down to women. You think you’re philosophical but you’re a witless man who makes bird houses for a living! I need money! Put mom on the line.”

She heard him take an anger releasing breath.

“She went out to lunch with her friends. I’ll tell her you called. Sorry, but I have some orders to finish in the garage, so I’ll talk to you later. Take care with your studies. I love you.”

 

Click

Stale huffs of breath hit the top of her head as she regained consciousness. Alfredo jogged along the edges of the cave they had previously been avoiding. Somehow, he managed not to jostle her leg too much. The walls of the cave glowed with the same fluorescent white that poured from the ceiling. Upon opening eyes, the harsh light made squint, and the pain from her throbbing right leg made her squint more.

John Dimms: Unfortunate Space-man: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY

A deep breath pulled into her chest as she looked down at herself. Fingers tensed into fists that rested on her waist. Relying on Alfredo to survive humiliated her, still better than being sliced in half by a mad man.

They were getting further away from the fights near the stage, but casted magic powers flew back and forth on the other side of them. A handsome young man with ice powers flung spikes of ice against another less handsome young man who threw fireballs. There was too much going on and too much pain for Circe to keep track of it all. It was like being in a crowded nightclub after a fire broke out, with a broken leg, and everybody had superpowers but they still couldn’t escape the nightclub. And everyone was still very squishy.

Guy Slarvadio: Ultra Cool Wizard: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY!

“I don’t need your help. Put me down.”

“Hey, hey, hey, what are yuh on? Tuh minute I put yuh down, yer done in here. Don’t be crazy!”

Megan Alice Gertrude: Magical Girl: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY!

“I’m not crazy. Drop me right now! This is my struggle; it belongs to me. You’re not taking it away from me!”

“Boss, what tuh fudge has gotten into you? No dice, not puttin' yuh down, not gonna do it. Owww!”

She bit him right on the chest, through a shirt, with enough force that he knew it would leave a mark. Then she slapped at his face, punched at his chest, and kicked. Kicking was the part where she hadn’t been thinking clearly. Sending her right leg upward shot a bolt of pain through her spine and out her vocal cords in the form a high-pitched yelp. Circe turned pale before passing out again.

Maria Constantine: Reluctant Worker: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY!

John Dimms: Unfortunate Space-man: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY

A limp woman rested in Alfredo's arms, her body a bit slippery with a clammy sweat that could have been pain or infection. Wasn't it too early for an infection? The leg didn't look infected, only a bit swollen around the shin. It was starting to discolor but he wasn't sure what that meant.

"Are yuh people all nuts!? I need a doctor! Is anybody here a doctor? Is there somebody who ain't nuts who can do some first aid kind of thing!? Could try but just know it's goin' tuh make it worse. Hey you, you over there, you look smart. Do yuh know first aid? Hey, c'mon, don't do me like that!"

Rosalino Ngono: Anti-Colonialist: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY!

Perhaps being ignored was the better option, but Circe didn't look so hot so to him. She'd lost her glasses too; he'd never seen her without them before. Her mouth hung open, which he guessed was okay. It was better than seeing her grit her teeth in tears, or was it? Carrying her around everwhere made his arms a bit tired even though she was thin as a rail.

Come to think about it, the only time they’d ever really talked was when she’d come in for the loan. She wanted to open a specialty book store in Kentwood of all places. Worked at the library in Battery Park but from the way she spoke it was pretty nasty gig. He’d felt bad and kind of charmed at the same time, so he talked the boss into approving a small loan to help get her through a rough patch. She never made a single payment.

John Dimms: Unfortunate Space-man: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY

Michael Johnson: Disappointed Singer: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY!

Gary Jay Snailies: Meow Appreciator: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY!

Heavy Deluxe: Mediocre Personality: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY!

What was he getting himself into? Why was helping her when he was obviously way stronger and she was dead weight? Why was he helping her when she obviously was just using him like the big fat chump that he was?

A soft sweet voice giggled in his head.

“She’s going to turn on you, just like everyone else in your life. And since you already know how unreliable she is, it’ll only be yourself to blame this time.”

He stopped in place before an arcing energy blast almost chopped off his head. Sneakers skidded on the floor as he surveyed the fights around him. Nobody was coming at him. The attack hadn't been meant for him. It had gone awry. Not that he could let his guard down. He decided to run back closer to the stage. With the exception of the crazy swordsman and the fat butcher, most contestants avoided the stage. So it became the safest of all the dangerous options.

"You're saving her life, and she bit you."

Alfredo stopped in a pocket far enough from any action. Then he looked down at the woman who had just bit him laying all absolutely pathetic like and he realized something. He didn’t care anymore.

Mario Sztajnszrajber: Confusing Speaker: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY!

His candy bar was still in her pocket and she had her phone back. If she wanted to figure it out on her own so bad, why not let her? Why was any of this his problem? None of this was his problem. He’d survived his parents, he survived his bosses, he survived the docks, he survived the streets, and he’d survive this. If there was anything he was good at, it was surviving. And now he had power to back it up, real power that he’d proven in his confrontation with that cop.

John Dimms: Unfortunate Space-man: HITBOX ZERO!

FATALITY

This woman in his arms, what did she have? Glass bones and a rotten bad attitude. Well, not like they were family or nothing. He took her toward the wall, a relatively calm spot, and laid her flat on the marble floor. Her eyes opened but she still looked sickly pale and sticky with sweat. After setting her down he stood over her with his hands in his pockets.

"How's them apples? Yuh happy now?"

Circe nodded, took a deep breath, and struggled to sit up straight only to slide back down on her back as she struggled not to pass out again.

“Fine, have it yer way. I’ll be goin' wit someone who actually pays their debts. See you around toots.”

Circe blinked, tried to roll, but she was blacking out. Her chest felt heavy, like someone was sitting on it. Fingers stretched slightly as she tried to move her arm upwards. A heart beat on overdrive pounded her chest and thudded in her ears despite the background noise. She gave him the finger.

“Yeah, yeah, right back at yuh.”

He turned his back and walked away. Circe could hear giggling in her head, and a soft soothing voice, “You can’t help it, you chase everyone away. You don’t know how to get along. Yet you can’t manage alone. You’re pitiful, passive, useless, and mean. It's a good a time as any if you want to quit the game; nobody is going to miss you.”

Circe let a long deep breath escape and closed her eyes. She could feel her heart struggling so hard to pump blood through her body. It felt like it pushed against the wheels of a bus as they went round and round. In the distance, she could hear Adonis singing exactly that song. Numbness spread from her chest down through her fingers. She fought it with everything she had, but she had nothing.

Tha-dump Tha-dump. Tha-dump.. Tha-dump... Tha... dump... tha... dum... tha... du...

Circe Oratia Sheffield: Divergent Bookworm: HEARTBEAT ZERO!

FATALITY!