"The World." was said softly, as the surrounding area became monochrome, the air freezing, and all sound ceasing to flow. In a moment the world became dead still. She stared at her pencil as it edged to the end of the table slowly having been rolling.
A figure with what looked to be a gold armor, long curly hair, and seemed to be just a general caricature of herself, save for the fact it was completely golden slightly tilted the pencil so it would not fall.
As the ticking of the clock began again and the world gained back its speed momentum and sound. She glared at her pencil as if trying to destroy it with her eyes.
The scribbling of math problems being solved filled the room as she stayed calm giving thanks that her pencil had not fallen. Who knew what they would do to it. Last time it was thrown out the window.
She couldn't help but get caught up in her musings as the bell rang. Her shoulders tensed as she noticed one of her many aggressors slam her hands onto the desk. She gulped under her breath as she was not at all prepared to do anything to them.
"Welcome! Back!" Exclaimed Sophia.
"Hi?" Managed Taylor meekly under her breath.
"What's that Hebert? Cat got your tongue, you brains rot along with your dignity or something?" Quipped Sophia.
"Hi." Managed Taylor as her shoulders shook.
"What's the matter, can't you act normally you weirdo?" Continued Sophia.
"The World," said Taylor looking up at Sophia, as time began to slow again. She gazed upon the track star of the school, Sophia Hess, an example of a girl in her prime, a defined runner's body, a deep dark skin tone, and attitude, and most of all a commanding aura about her. She was the queen of the school as well as Taylor's very own personal bully.
Time began again, Taylor's mind was put to ease as she thought about the situation logically.
"I'd like to go." She managed to choke out.
Picking her stuff up and shoving them into her large backpack that carried all her books and supplies.
Sophia lowered her gaze to meet Taylor eye to eye."I'd like you to go as well." She continued to stare at her with hardened eyes as Taylor completely froze up.
Her body was tense and fell into a state of panic, her fear did not let her move as the thousand yard stare kept her in place, she could not do anything.
The pencil on her desk rolled off and fell making a sound breaking both Sophia's concentration and Taylor's fear.
Slowly Sophia's foot stepped onto the pencil and ground into the floor, making a painful sound.
Taylor zipped up her bag and began to walk outwards. "No one wants you here. Hebert." Said, Sophia, as she walked out.
On the bus home, Taylor still shook as she looked at her own reflection in the glass of the window. She saw her pitiful gaze, behind the glasses that covered her brown eyes, her pale skin clashed with the curly brown hair that did well in covering her face. She shivered remembering the events months prior.
It was a day like every other, for the gossip had been weak about her, and no one really went out of their way to bother her, she kept her head down and walked. For a moment she thought that they would move onto another target, but she was seriously wrong.
A week's vacation had let her off everyone's constant bullying, but not a break into her locker.
She cleaned the tears off her eyes and got off the bus near her home. She'd stop that thought before it got any worse.
Life had not been easy for years now and living in Brockton Bay had not helped.
She made her way through a humble neighborhood till she reached a two-story home, it had a simple yet slightly rusted chain link fence, with a browned front lawn, and a cracked driveway. The house itself was in need of new paint as chips could be seen all over it. The driveway was worn and cracked all over with many weeds running through them. The green trim may have worked with the dark brown paint of the house, but now it was just left sapped of its youth by years of sun exposure.
She walked over the broken steps, and onto her porch. Pulling out her keys she noticed she was still shaking from the confrontation earlier. She hated it.
When she got inside, she pulled shoes off and made her way to the kitchen, setting her bag down on the dining room table, she got to the fridge.
"Won't be able to make it home on time for dinner. -Dad" She read aloud from the note she found.
She pulled the plastic wrap off some leftovers from yesterday and put them in the microwave. Pulling the chair from the table she sat down and stared at her bag.
Tears ran down her face, as the microwave was the only thing that could be heard from within the house.
Today would be a step away from all that. She wiped her tears from her face and clenched her fist reassuring herself she would use her power for good.
The microwave stopped and she ate her food with great determination.
The night was cold and windy, as she made her way down the streets, Taylor, or Jane as she decided to call herself while she was out. She could not think of for the life of her think of a cape name so she decided to call herself Jane. She dresses in what could be explained as some black slacks and a larger jacket that fit her a bit larger than she expected. The sleeves were too long and the back flows freely similar to a cape. Her "mask" if it would be called that consisted of a scarf that had a was a nice hue of purple with blue stripes, which she had bought on a trip with her family one day.
she also wore an old cap that was somewhat damaged, but she tied her hair underneath it to not give as much of her identity away as possible.
Her steps echoed dully against the cities old concrete. The city was in such a state of disrepair since the fall of the shipping industry, and living close to the ocean meant colder winters and more humid summers, it was not a fun life for the city dwellers.
As if to add insult to injury, the city had to major, gangs of villains as well as some ruffians that all like to stir up trouble within the city. The capital of white supremacists Empire 88, E88 tagged across all of their territories. Their competitors AZN Bad Boys, which started as a group of kids getting together then sprouted into a powerhouse under new management recruiting all people of Asian descent. Both sides with different ideology and plans for the city butting heads at every chance they got.
Amongst the ruffians were the Bridge Merchants a mass group of drug addicts and dealers. they were the lot targeted by every other faction and group yet they managed to crawl out of the gutters every night. As much of a mystery of the continued survival of the Merchants was the rumor of an elite group of mercenaries working for the pay of a villain only known as Coil. Everything about him was unconfirmed, and speculation.
The steps continued as Taylor mused her research about all of the cities gangs. being behind a mask allowed Taylor to walk a bit more calmly.
It had not taken her long to figure out the strength of her power. Though she could not explain it, she felt at ease with her companion. The figure would only look forward and kept a serious look at whatever the subject may be.
She began to think that the night was a quiet one, no muggers were to be seen, no one seemed to be in the area at the time at all. She sighed looking over her costume which had been hastily purchased at a thrift shop, save for the scarf.
"Of all night's." she whispered to herself.
"Who Goes There!?!" yelled a voice from within an alley.
Taylor's curiosity was piqued as she stepped over to look and see what was going on. she stepped to look into the dim lighting of the alleyway finding a group of people dressed in outfits which were mixes of red and green colors.
After looking at them for a moment she realized that they were all looking at her. She stood up straight from her slouching position.
"What's going on so late at night?" she asked
"Who are you?" asked a deep voice from amongst the group. The group made way for the person as he moved forward. The man wore a dragon mask, was well sculpted as he did not have a shirt on but he did have pants on.
Taylor felt her face burn as she looked away shyly. "You should introduce yourself first," she muttered under her breath
"Lung..." He said waiting with a glare fixed on her.
"How?" asked Taylor before blanching in horror. "Lung?!" she repeated sucking in her breath.
"And You are?" asked Lung impatiently.
Taylor's mind began to race, she had just come across Lung. The ruthless leader of the ABB, the man responsible for changing a local gang into a power to be reconded with, not only that, he was rumored to be so strong that he could take on the highest level of authority within the government's heroes, on his own.
"Well..." said a voice right in front of her.
"Hello?" said Taylor with a shaky voice. from behind she saw her companion making a pose, she was amiss as to what it meant but she had nothing she could think of doing so she imitated the pose.
She wasn't so sure she saw it correctly but it had seemed like her companion flashed a devious smile as her fist connected with Lung's head.
Tayor stood there mouth agape, posing with her arms in a sideways flex as lung became incrusted to the building to her left.
The world was silent as the group that was with Lung witnessed someone beat their leader with one hit. It took a few seconds for reality to set in, as they all tripped over one another attempting to run away. The sound of running and yelling in various languages was heard as a storm of ABB member ran like madmen.
Taylor stood there holding her pose as she watched and waited, one minute passed, then five until she finally came to. She shakily looked at Lung to him still half within a building half outside of it. She quickly glanced at her companion.
"Get him down!" she screamed
Reluctantly the figure grabbed Lungs shoulders and pulled firmly, with a sickening crackle of what she hoped to be bricks, Taylor winced as the body was dropped haphazardly on the ground.
By some miracle, he was alive and breathing, but his mask had become a part of him to put it in only the most pleasant of images.
His shoulders bent oddly out of shape, his skin was a deep purple, even part of where his ribcage should be sunken inwards.
Taylor began to panic as she looked at his body her mind raced. she began searching her pockets for anything that could help her in this situation, she found a handkerchief and began to wipe away the blood around his face.
"This is not helping at all!" she yelled at herself.
She took a step back to see if there was a payphone on the block they were on only to not have such luck. She began to hyperventilate as the situation was much worse than she realized. She looked at lung and began checking his pockets she found nothing in his front pockets. Her mind lit up as she asked her companion to flip him over.
"Sorry!" she answered to his pained sounds, as they lay him on his stomach.
Her efforts paid off as she found a smartphone in one of his back pockets. She began to fiddle with it, she found it did not have a password so she was able to open it. She also found out all of the options were in a language she didn't understand. After finding the phone icon she quickly dialed 9-1-1.
"Hello 9-1-1, what's your emergency?" answered a female operator.
"Help me, please! I can't believe it happened so fast, I didn't know it was going to happen, All I Did Was Strike A Pose!" cried Taylor into the phone.
"Excuse me what happened and where?" asked the Operator with some degree of worry.
"I'm going to prison, aren't I!? No worse I'm going to Super Prison!, I'm going to the Birdcage! I'm going to end up with the worst kinds of criminals!" cried Taylor into the phone.
"Please stay on the line." Said the operator piecing some of what had been said together. "I have a Parahuman response team on route to your location, and please stay for questioning... Hello?...Hello!?" the phone remained by lungs body as Taylor ran off into the night.
Within minutes a Parahuman Response Team Had arrived on the location.
The heavy sound of an engine could be heard approaching behind the Van. A motorcycle arrived upon the scene as a man in blue power armor stepped off the vehicle.
"Report!" Said the man in Power armor
"Armsmaster," Saluted the PRT operative "Approximately 5 to 10 minutes ago the local Emergency response received a call, I'm sure you heard the recording on your way here." he waited for Armsmaster to nod."Due to the clues we were able to pick up within the recording, we can tell it was a possible power mistake."
"Yes, it seems a new-trigger unleashed her power on someone and ran off." continued Armsmaster.
"Armsmaster you're going to want to see this!" called PRT Cadet.
Armsmaster approached the alleyway and found a shirtless man with a mask in an alleyway, as to why he was alive could be explained by the mask. It belongs to Lung one of the strongest individuals within the city.
Armsmaster would give a lot to rub his temples or find some relief from the headache he was about to have.