Chapter 3:
I didn't like what I was seeing as I walked down the sidewalk toward Emma's house. She was in front her house with a girl I had never seen before, her body language was different...almost defeated. Telltale signs of anxiety. It must have been related to the abrupt end of our phone call about a week ago.
I had been chatting with her, while on a little trip with my parents, lamenting my lack of materials as I had been wont to do over the past few months since getting my power. Lots of people talked about how great Tinkers were and all the amazing things they could do. No one ever really talked about how frustrating it was to be one without any of the materials they needed to do their work.
However, in the middle of me describing an idea I had for a weave that could wrap around organs, a sort of sheath that would offer protection in case of otherwise fatal injuries, Emma had hung up. I had tried calling her back a number of times, but she hadn't responded. She hadn't taken any of my calls for the past week. A week away from home, and my work, as meager as it was, and I couldn't even contact my best friend. It was less excruciating, admittedly, than the summer camp they had wanted to send me to, but it was still tough.
And here Emma was, clearly distressed, with some girl I had never seen before. "Hey Emma..." I said. "You...decided to do something different with your hair. I like it. You manage to pull off any style, huh?"
Emma was silent. The new girl wasn't. "The fuck are you?" she asked. This girl was...irritating. My smile faltered.
"My name is Taylor." I said. "And I wasn't talking to you. I was talking to my good friend Emma." I turned back to her, dropping the formalities. "Something happened."
She looked shocked. I could see it. Not only was she now displaying anxiety, and attempting to hide it, I noted. She wasn't doing a great job at it, not to me at least, but she was trying. She was also displaying...irritation?
"Nothing happened..." she said.
I shook my head. "Come on, Emma. You can't hide things from me. Even if I didn't know you as well as I do, your body language is practically screaming that something bad happened. Something bad enough that you wouldn't talk to me." But she would talk to this new girl.
Emma seemed to shrink back a bit. I sighed and turned to the new girl. "You know what happened, I assume?"
The girl paused. She looked me up and down, making me feel a bit self conscious. I looked down at the white t shirt, shorts, and flip flops I was wearing, then back to her. She smirked for a moment, then let it drop. She still didn't speak.
I pursed my lips. This was...infuriating, to a degree. "Okay, not talking." I said. "Interesting. Let's see here." I walked over to Emma and started looking her over. I poked at her arm, and she flinched. "Hmmm, some signs of trauma on your arm here, though it's faded considerably." I said. "Probably from about a week ago." I looked at her hair. "You loved your hairs length before, and there's some damage to the roots." Sometimes being tall for my age was an advantage.
"So, you were in some sort of physical altercation." I said, frowning as I did. I looked back at the new girl. Her body language had shifted. The open hostility was replaced with surprise and curiosity. "And if you know about it, as I assume you do, then you were involved. Emma didn't seem hostile toward you, so you weren't the attacker. You helped?"
The girl seemed taken aback, but nodded slowly. She looked to Emma, and so did I. She looked ashamed and frightened.
"Gonna fill me in now?" I asked. "I've figured out a decent amount already, so..."
"Are you a cape?" the girl asked. I instantly straightened up and looked at her, even as I knew that action would likely give the answer away. I met her eyes.
"A thinker?" she asked. No hostility in the words.
I shook my head. "You've got one letter too many." I said. No point in lying. She already figured it out.
She seemed to mull what I said over for a moment. "So...you made something that let's you read minds?"
I smirked and shook my head. "Nope. Haven't been able to make much, actually. I lack materials. But, my power does give me a pretty great understanding of the human body. Including body language. It's pretty easy for me to read people."
The girl nodded slowly, then looked to Emma. "You never mentioned you already had a cape friend."
"I...I didn't want to betray that trust." Emma said. "Not my secret to tell."
"Coulda helped out. I wouldn't have been so..."
"Hostile?" I asked.
"Sure, yeah. Hostile." the girl said. "Name's Sophia. Sorry bout the greeting. Had you pegged as a wimp."
I raised an eyebrow. "Taylor. And...no problem? Maybe don't judge people so quickly." I turned to Emma. "Now, wanna fill me in?"
"Shit..." I said. "I should have been there. Or...or I should have made something. Some of the modifications I came up with could have helped. If I had the materials..."
"Taylor, please..." Emma said. "Just...don't worry about it. I survived. I'm fine. I just..."
"No, Emma. I won't not worry." I said. "This is the kind of stuff I want to use my power to prevent. Shit, maybe I should just join the Wards. If I did, at least I would have some real supplies instead of just scrounging junkyards and hitting the hardware store with my allowance."
"Some of the stuff you've made is pretty cool, though." Emma said. "That spider robot thing?"
"I thought you said your specialty was medical tinkering." Sophia said.
"It is, but...the robot is a kind of assistant. I guess it falls under the umbrella of my power." I said.
"You made anything else?"
"Not really. I came up with some chemicals that could stimulate muscle growth, make exercise more effective, stuff like that." I said. "But my hands are tied without access to raw materials."
Sophia scratched her chin for a moment. "Okay...well what kind of stuff could you make with some materials?"
"Depends on what I could get." I said. "I have notebooks full of ideas. I kinda recycled my school notebooks for that, but ideas just keep coming. I know I could make some stuff that could really make a difference, but..."
"Okay, what if I knew a place where you could get some supplies?" Sophia asked. My eyes widened, and I knew the two other girls could tell I was interested.
"Are you...talking about something illegal?" I asked.
"Not...really." Sophia said. "I know where these two losers, Uber and L33t set up shop. L33t, he's a tinker. Figure he'll have materials you may be able to use. If I bust him, and their base gets trashed and stuff goes missing..."
My eyes must have had quite a sparkle in them, because Emma and Sophia grinned. "When can we go?" I asked.
"You were pretty brutal, Shadow Stalker." I said, looking through L33t's supplies. "They were pretty beat up."
"They're criminals. They get what they deserve." Sophia...Shadow Stalker said.
"Well, maybe lay off. You wanna end up in the Birdcage? Doesn't matter if they're criminals or not. Killing is a no-no." I said.
I could hear her scoff, and rolled my eyes. She clearly had some issues, but I was willing to overlook them for this boon. L33t had...an impressive collection of materials. I wasn't surprised. We had researched the pair all afternoon. L33t was capable of a lot. But, he was only capable once. He could dip into whatever he wanted to.
The only issue was figuring out what I could take. "I don't know how to pick." I admitted. "I could use so much of this stuff."
Sophia shook her head. "Why pick? Take it all."
"First, how do I carry all of it? Second, where do I hide it?" I asked.
"You've never watched their dumb show, have you?" Sophia asked. "They're huge nerds. Base all their stuff off games. Here." she said, tossing me a messenger bag. "Tinker bag, he called it his 'Bag of Holding'. Some kinda pocked dimension crap. Can hold whatever you want."
I was grinning like an idiot again as I picked up the bag. I didn't care though. "I think you just became one of my favorite people." I said. "This is like, one of the best days ever. If you want anything, let me know. I can work on it. Already got some general ideas, like I said. Wanna give Emma some stuff too. Not sure exactly how much I can accomplish with this stuff, but..."
"Actually, I may have some ideas." Shadow Stalker said. "We can talk once we load that bag up. Don't want the Protectorate or cops showing up while we're pillaging. We'll loot, hen call the PRT on the way out."
"What if they mention the stuff?" I asked.
"You think those two are gonna complain about the stuff they stole being stolen to the cops?" Shadow Stalker asked.
I grinned behind the surgical mask I wore to hide my face. It was a pretty silly notion. "Fair point." I said. "Fine. Let's load this bag up and go. The tranquilizer I stuck them with will last about an hour and a half. Should be plenty of time."
Then I can finally get to work.
