Not every problem in life could be solved by violence. Apparently, this was twice as true when it came to aiming that violence towards those you considered friends. Deep down, part of my core was still hard-wired to kill superheroes. A dormant desire, for the most part. Occasionally, an errant thought bubbled up from the depths. Easy enough to ignore most of the time.

My cybernetic arm slumped to the ground, numb and crackling with spent arcane energy. Despite the ringing in my ears lulling me to sleep, I retained control of my consciousness.

All so that I could lower the split boot from my hand and drop it next to the other empty one. Dark smoke swirled out of the ruined footwear. The absence of the man known as Captain Snaps was apparent, although my attack had left a dark smear across the ground behind the place he used to be standing. Shreds of his outfit rolled away in the breeze.

I had about three seconds of quiet contemplation before Roxy landed next to me. A short burst of dust swept across my crouched body as she lifted me up to my feet. Her fiery eyes burned intensely. I expected to be torn in half for my transgressions.

"Looks like you won," she said. With some annoyance in her voice, but it was a rather cold statement to make.

She lifted me up from the ground slightly and turned me around. Oh, perhaps my long awaited execution had been postponed once more.

About sixty feet away, lying face down in the dirt, was a mostly disrobed Roy. A trail of dirt had been disturbed in a line from where I had held him to where he now rested. There was a good chance he was still alive.

[Damn. I missed.]

"Fuck's sake, Dubs." Roxy sighed and placed me down on my feet. "You can only flip a coin and land on heads so many times. We aren't all built like you."

True. I was fashioned uniquely. It was also agony to maintain my balance. A little well-earned punishment for taking a risk over Roy's life. In fairness, I hadn't aimed center mass. At worst, he would have just lost an arm. I wasn't reckless enough to kill him outright, but there was always a chance.

Belle and Ren ran past us over to the prone man. I struggled to lift my right arm and looked at the steaming barrel still poking from my palm.

[One down. Who's up next?]

"You're having a time out before you put yourself in an early grave." The super grabbed hold of me and started dragging me away. "Or I put you there myself."

[Did he do it, though?]

Roxy gave me an unsure grunt before the shadow of Clara loomed over me. The techie looked just as annoyed with me.

"I think you should know better than that, Gunquake." She continued scowling as I was dragged to the outdoor seating. "You could have overloaded your drives and done permanent damage."

She probably meant to the tech, rather than myself or Roy. Again, something I couldn't really argue against. It was only yesterday that the same attack put me out of action and destroyed the hotel room.

Roy had seen it last time, which is why I used it against him now. He knew the tell of the attack, and the potential damage it could do. Escape was the only option, and something he would feel innately, without the need for his brain to process what kind of threat I was posing.

Not that I was an expert on this sort of thing.

[How's the Meteor?]

Clara crossed her arms as she walked alongside me. "No reported emissions on the other side of the artifact. Despite your recklessness, you managed to contain the spent energy purely through your barrel. Although it still requires refinement."

[Not to mention I also burned through my stim pack.]

Roxy put me down on a chair and stepped in front of me, crossing her arms as well. The pair glared at me.

"If he moves from there, you have my permission to break his arm." Clara gestured to my human limb. "I have some options for a replacement, such as a large crab claw." Before either of us could respond, she turned and went over to her desk.

Roxy's glare softened and she relaxed. "I would not enjoy your having a crab arm. Seriously, behave yourself, Dubs. I can only take so much stress."

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[You are a living volcano.]

"I am your loving girlfriend." She pulled a chair over to sit beside me. "Most people don't have partners who almost die every other day. Some danger is expected given our vocations, but… this was self-inflicted. Maybe even unnecessary."

[Are you jealous that I wasn't almost dying while fighting you?]

"Yes," she said, pulling a slight smirk. "But that doesn't change my point, smartass."

[I'll do better.]

The look she gave me told me that she didn't quite believe me, but our brief skirmish in the miniature volcano had smoothed off some edges of her ire. I turned my attention to the two women bringing Roy back over.

He was now wearing Belle's poncho to hide his modesty, although the magical gunslinger didn't look too pleased about it. Watching them carrying him with one arm over each of their shoulders, it seemed rather strange when Roxy usually did all the heavy lifting for us.

Once in range, Belle gave us a rundown. "Light burns up one side of his body. Grazing and bruising from the aftermath, but nothing that won't clear up in a few days."

[Just unconscious?]

She nodded and helped the elf shuffle the limp man onto a chair. He slumped down as if he were drunk, but maintained enough posture to stay in place.

[I'd shoot more of you, but I've been put in the naughty chair.]

Belle shook her head and put her hands on her hips. "Serves you right. It's all well and good your using up all your energy helping us, but what if we need you for something else?"

[Like for cooking up some burgers?]

"For if we are attacked," Ren interjected. "This area is not exactly well defended."

Personally, I felt like a burger was more important. Which was rather strange, given my current lack of a mouth and no memory of eating anything—burgers included. Maybe I had let Roy hit me in the head one too many times.

As if on cue, the Captain groaned and raised his hands up to hold his head. "Did… someone mention food?"

[Enjoy your nap?]

He rubbed his eyes and raised his head to look at me. "Ugh. I thought I was going to die."

[You were. Care to explain why you are still here?]

Roy flexed his fingers, looking at the light damage he'd sustained, and then the poncho he was wearing. "I… moved out of the way. And out of my clothes, apparently."

"A result of Gunquake's attack, rather than your escape attempt," Clara explained. "Except for the boots. If you are going to make a habit of this, then I'll need to add more solutions to my drawing board."

The speedster blinked a few times and furrowed his brow. "Did I… breakthrough? I felt myself moving faster, but blacked out. I'm not sure if I feel much different."

Roxy nodded. "If you did unlock your hyperspeed, it won't be innate and at full potential right away. It's a new skill you have to train."

He returned the nod, albeit slowly. "Understood. What I'd like right now, though, is a nap."

After confirming he held no grudge for my over-the-top attack, he was shown to the couch inside so that he could rest. Ren returned to firing her arrows out into the wastes, and Belle went off with Roxy to practice something.

I sat in the chair and relaxed. Not that I had much choice. My energy levels were low, and I was forbidden from escaping this jail. Rather than cloud my mind with the distant future, I turned my head to the side to annoy the techie.

[What sort of things are you designing for Roy now?]

She paused, pen in mid-motion in her notepad. "Electric kinetic sword. The time for punching enemies is behind him now, as hyperspeed would just shatter his fist. A traditional blade would probably not hold up to passing through objects at great velocity either, so something intangible would be preferred."

[Silhouette's sword looked pretty sharp. I could ask him for advice.]

"I'm sure I can find something appropriate, Gunquake." She shot me a tired look before continuing her work. "Although he is rather attached to the modified assault rifle, I would also like to find something that could work under hyperspeed."

I nodded, but didn't have the energy to help speculate. Mechanically, I wasn't sure what could keep up with that level of speed - if he had in fact unlocked it. At least the rest of the Disasters weren't superheroes in the natural sense, so I wouldn't have to do this to myself two more times. I'd give what assistance I could, but their power increases were mostly in their own hands.

In saying that, I turned my head to the other side and watched as Ren adjusted the rangefinder over her left eye. It was a simple device, almost like just one side of a pair of goggles, the clear lens having some digital information written on it that only she could see.

She drew a magical arrow into her hand and raised the bow. After two seconds to control her breathing, she fired it out. I watched as it sailed through the clear sky, before going too far for me to pick it out against the atmospheric illumination.

The elf turned to face Clara.

"Bullseye," the techie noted.

"Can you move the Meteor further out?"

"Certainly."

I flexed my fingers, some feeling now back in my right arm. Even just sitting here, basking in the sunshine, I missed having the draw of a library of ammunition to hand. It was like something had been removed from me. An emptiness.

[The day our new base is built cannot come soon enough.]

"Good things come to those who wait," Clara murmured, as she controlled our vehicle via the laptop.

That just sounded like I had to sit and stew until my luck changed. As if any beneficial event could be chalked up to being because I waited, and not because of any other reason. Perhaps that was a rather jaded take, something an exhausted mind vomited forth.

No, more likely it was the odd feeling tickling the back of my skull. I furrowed my brow and looked over toward the city. My aching muscles tensed up before I relaxed.

[Good afternoon, brother.]

Silhouette's invisibility shimmered away, not twenty feet away from us.

"Forgive me for coming over unannounced," he gestured with the crate of beer under his arm. "I figured you could use some levity out here."

Now it really was a shame I'd used all my fighting energy up.

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