I scrolled through various broadcasts on the library computer in front of me. I was strong enough to protect myself now, so I felt comfortable being seen in public. Besides, my face was still unknown. I found a video titled 'Strider goes on another Vacation' on PHO. It showed when he teleported away with me, but my face was hidden. All you could see was a blonde boy in a white t-shirt. I'd long since ditched those clothes and wore a ball cap and fake glasses to alter my appearance even more. Besides, no one was suspicious yet. Apparently Strider had a habit of vanishing to some random part of the world without warning. For now, I wouldn't feel any consequences for killing him.

I was online for two main reasons, I needed to see whether or not people were on to me yet and I needed to look up capes I wanted to take. So far, no one had managed to connect the sudden, unexplained 'vacation' that Strider took with anything nefarious, and no one even knew the Empire capes were dead yet. I imagined the remaining E88 capes were keeping that as quiet as possible so the ABB and Protectorate didn't move against them in their heavily weakened state.

As far as capes I was interested in went, I was mainly looking for powerful blasters. I had the valkyrie twins to act as my brutes and could make myself into one with Othala. As I'd learned earlier, having only a single shadow active increased its power to over twice what it was in life, a trade for the lack of versatility. When Othala was the only shadow present, her power was ramped up to the point where she could imbue me with flight, invulnerability and strength for thirty minutes each. If I only used invulnerability, I could make myself invulnerable for over an hour. I never let the invulnerability fade, ducking into alleys or next to trash cans so I could hide Othala's appearance. I liked living.

Between myself and the valkyries, I wasn't hard pressed for any front-liners. My biggest issue currently was ranged options. Kaiser was good, but his power only extended so far and needed to rise out of standing structures. It wasn't a viable option to combat fliers.

I was still in Brockton Bay, so the obvious choice would be Miss Militia, but she was very well-known even outside Brockton. People from all over the country loved her. If she suddenly vanished, it would bring a lot of heat down on me. I was strong enough to protect myself now, but that didn't mean I was eager to go looking for fights, so I was avoiding leaping at her for the same reason I wasn't jumping at Panacea. Once I had a Blaster or two, I would grab both of them and head to the other side of the country with Strider. I wanted just a touch more security before I outed myself by taking either of them.

With Miss Militia out of the picture, the only other Blaster I'd be interested in in Brockton was Purity. I knew she was Kaiser's wife, but I didn't know where she lived. Kaiser was the CEO of Medhall, so maybe she'd head there to try to inherit his company? I didn't know, but I did remember something about her trying to break away from the Empire and attacking ABB holdouts.

It was March 18, 2011. If I remembered correctly, Taylor got shoved into her locker sometime around January and the story started a few months later. Was Purity already trying to break free from the Empire? If so, I could stalk around town and look for a flying lightbulb, then follow her home.

Kayden…

I shook my head, ignoring the unprompted voice.

As I expected, the voices were worse with more capes. Each one only talked once every few hours, but there were now more of them to speak to me. It was still manageable if annoying, but I wanted to find a way to take care of this sooner rather than later. Maybe I should put finding a Blaster on hold until I could sort out my mental problems?

A new PHO thread caught my attention, pulling me from my thoughts. It seemed the thread was an answer to the question of who I should go after next. It was titled 'Bad Canary's Trial to Begin Monday'. I was looking for Blasters, but what power-hungry man would turn down a Master that could make people do what she wanted by talking to them? If I remembered correctly, her power could be used in beneficial ways as well. If I took her, would I be able to Master myself into positively dealing with the voices? If there was even a chance I could use her in such a way, I needed to take her. Each cape added to my spirits would exacerbate the problem, so it was better if I found a solution to it right now.

I'd made up my mind. Canary was next. Almost immediately after making this decision, I hit a roadblock. While the article detailed the location of the courtroom where Canary was being tried, it also made certain to note that Canary was not present in the courtroom herself as she was 'too dangerous'. I dug through several articles about the trial and every site I could find, but nothing could tell me where Canary was actually held. Everything just cited her as being in an undisclosed location.

This was a problem. I needed her. The more parahumans I gathered, the more voices would haunt me. I had to figure out a way to find where they were holding her. If I just had the location, Strider could get me in and out of whatever facility they were holding her in. But how was I supposed to find her?

I grinned as I got an idea. What was it called? Richford Metalworks? No. Something with a 'W'. Welding? Yes! But the first part still felt off. Richmond? Radmond? Redmond! Redmond Welding! A triumphant smile grew across my face as I typed 'Redmond Welding' into the search engine. There weren't many hits, just a couple articles about the facility's shutdown and an address, but that was all I needed. I closed down every window I'd opened on the computer and shut it down.

I couldn't find Canary on my own. I didn't have enough information to piece together where they were holding her, but I knew of a power that would be able to fill in the blanks for me, and unlike Purity, I actually knew where to find Tattletale.

Why? What did we…

I huffed at the voice, shaking my head sharply to rid myself of the creeping feeling worming its way up my spine. It was getting worse at an uncomfortably rapid pace. I needed Canary now, before my mind was compromised to the point I couldn't discern when I was being affected from what was normal.

I left the library and hurried to a bus stop, standing close to a man enveloped in the newspaper he was reading to avoid as much suspicion about a lone child boarding the bus as possible. If people looked at me, they would assume I was with the man and leave me alone. I could have used Strider to teleport to the location or flown under the effects of Othala's power – she did not need to be present for her power to stay active so long as she had completed empowering whoever she touched – but I hadn't been there before for a precise spot to teleport to with Strider, and flying through the air would have made me a very obvious target. I still wanted to avoid attention. Canary was high-profile before the incident and was more so now with the trial, and by taking her I would expose myself to a lot of attention, but I still wanted to maintain my subtlety for as long as possible. Maybe with Tattletale I'd be able to come up with a way to cleverly disguise how I took Canary?

When the bus pulled up, I boarded and dropped some of the money I'd looted from the Empire capes to pay for the fare. I wasn't completely sure of the routes, so I watched the street signs we passed closely. I rode the bus for just under half-an-hour then hopped off, feeling that I was close enough to walk the rest of the way on my own. It should be around here somewhere…

"Hey!"

I cursed under my breath as I turned and smiled at the approaching pair of men. They looked like they were looking for a fight. The one in the lead wasn't wearing a shirt, showing the long asian dragon tattoo that snaked up his stomach, past his chest to run down his right arm. The man behind him had a baseball bat resting against his shoulder. Both of them were asian. Between that, the hostile attitude and the proudly-displayed dragon ink, I was drawing a pretty obvious conclusion.

"Kids like you shouldn't come this way on your own, little boy." the man in the lead said.

The man with the bat barked out a crisp laugh, swinging his bat down to clap into his hand. "Yeah. You might get hurt."

"I don't want to hurt you. Leave me be and I'll let you walk away." I said, turning at a right angle and walking away.

"Little punk's got balls if nothing else. It's gonna feel real good to rough you up like the Empire hurts our boys!" the one with the bat yelled, lashing towards me with his improvised weapon.

I sighed as they both fell to the ground. I could really have gone without dealing with this right now. Kaiser's spirit faded after retracting the blades that had killed them back into the ground.

Good. Make the impure bleed.

Growling, I pushed Menja's words and her pleasure at me killing non-whites from my mind, focusing instead on the problem at hand. I needed to deal with the bodies. I needed to collect Tattletale. I needed to get Canary so I could use her song to help myself manage the voices. This was the first time I'd felt any emotion bleed through from my spirits, and I did not want that to happen again.

I looked around the alley to make sure I was alone. When I saw the coast was clear, Othala appeared to grant me flight then faded immediately after, the power she'd given me still active. Strider appeared next, pulling the bodies and myself out over the ocean. A second teleport sent the bodies to the depths; a third dropped me back in the alley I'd been walking down. There was still a puddle of blood on the ground from Kaiser's blades impaling my attackers, but there wasn't much I could do about that. I hurried along, ball cap pulled down to cover my face.

I had to be nearly there. I paid close attention to each of the buildings I passed, skirting around through alleys when I thought I saw one that might fit the bill. A building constructed from red-brick was a short distance away. The brick flagged something in my memory, and I scanned the building, looking for any sign that this might be the place. A rotted wooden sign sat atop the building, faded to a dull orange with bolded white letters that read, 'Redmond Welding'. I was here. I hadn't expected a literal sign to tell me I'd arrived, but I wasn't complaining.

I walked up to a door on the side of the building and looked around. I was alone. Taking a deep breath, I summoned Othala. With her alone active, she was able to grant me multiple powers at once, each of which would last for some time. I took super strength, flight and invulnerability before sending her away. Time to get what I came for.

Being as quiet as I could be while breaking a metal bolt, I pressed against the door, breaking my way in. The sound wasn't terribly loud, but it had likely carried. Being quick, I rushed across the empty first floor towards the spiral staircase a short distance away. I flew up the staircase, emerging onto a loft.

"The fuck?" a kid reclining on a couch said. There was an Xbox controller in his hand and a game playing on the small TV in front of him. He didn't seem at all worried at my sudden appearance, only confused that I existed. Before he could even stand up, I flew up to him and pressed my hand into his chest. He slumped into the couch, the controller falling to the floor with a clatter.

I felt a wave of euphoria wash over me as his spirit joined the others. Taking Strider hadn't given me any pleasure, but taking the nazis and this kid both left me feeling giddy, like I'd just downed enough alcohol to be tipsy without boiling over into full-on drunk. It felt good. Intoxicating.

"Ugh. Alec, I told you to…" a blonde teen said, having walked out of a room to my right. Her glare turned to a look of confusion then fear as she saw the dead body on the couch and the specter hovering behind me. Oh. I hadn't realized I'd summoned my newest spirit.

The girl turned and ran back into the room. I followed close behind her. I felt four forces punch into my chest. With Othala's invulnerability active, I wasn't affected by the bullets that had just hit me. I felt them, but it wasn't pain, just an acknowledgement that I had been touched.

The Beretta fell from the girl's shaking hand as she saw the bullets fall away from my impervious skin. "P-p-please… I'll work for you! I'll tell you anything you want! Just don't–" She collapsed as I laid a hand on her shoulder.

Again, a wave of euphoria washed over me. I felt drunk as I gained yet another power. It took a herculean force of will to clear my muddied thoughts and center myself. I was losing it. I needed Canary now, but I had to get out of here first. People would have heard the gunshots. This was Brockton Bay, so the police might not show up for a few stray shots, but it was better to err on the side of caution.

I searched the loft, expecting to find two other parahumans, but it was empty. The only things of note were a laptop in the room Tattletale was in when I arrived and an ammo can filled with wadded up cash – I took the laptop and money, leaving the ammo can where it lay.

Losing out on the chance to take Grue and Bitch was disappointing, but not worth a potential encounter with the police. It was better that I left…

Although… Strider could get me away from the police, right? Why shouldn't I wait for them to get here? Afterall, more power was more power. I needed it. It should be mine. It was mine. I would take it.

I settled in next to a window on the first floor with a view of the street and waited, keeping my eyes peeled for police and or parahumans. Close to an hour later, a butch girl walking a trio of dogs arrived. Her dogs would be an issue. I could kill her easily enough, but if they made too much noise, I would be made. Did I really want to kill dogs?

…Whatever is necessary. Why was killing a dog any different from killing a person?

Bitch opened the sidedoor I entered through and I grabbed her arm before she could even let go of the handle. Simultaneously, three small, finely sharpened needles flew forward to skewer into the three dogs' brains. I'd used Kaiser's power to craft the needles, and Rune controlled them to kill the dogs. Rune's power was good for controlling small, lethal items.

Rachel… a mournful voice called as another wave of euphoria swept over me. This one wasn't as great as the two before it. That was probably for the best. I didn't want to become addicted to murder.

A silent part of me protested, saying it would be good to feel that way again, but I forced it away.

I pulled the bodies into the warehouse and sat around to wait for Grue. After an hour passed, I pulled out Tattletale's computer to keep myself busy while I waited. It was password protected, but the woman herself helped me crack it in under a minute. I didn't think the spirit had Tattletale's memories, but she could convey to me what her power told her and proved to be worth her weight in gold. She was far more valuable than Victor. Maybe his was the only Thinker power that was useless to me?

Within an hour, I had the location where Canary was being held, her exact cell number, and a blueprint of the facility taken through very illegal means. With this, I could teleport directly to her with Strider and evacuate the same way.

I spent the rest of my time lying in wait constructing a plan to hopefully keep my power hidden when I moved on Canary. The plan was crude, but it would probably work. Time would tell.

The sun was descending when a beefy guy in a hoodie finally approached the building, looking over his shoulders suspiciously as if he was being followed. Unlike Bitch. he paused when he saw the broken door. It didn't matter.

I rushed him. The world was lost to me as I became enveloped in black clouds, but I already had a hold of his arm. Grue fell; his clouds faded as his spirit commanded them away from my side. I moved quickly, carrying his body to the others with the strength provided by Othala before teleporting all the bodies and myself over the ocean to dispose of them.

When I teleported back, there still weren't any police in the area. I decided it would be safe to stay in the Undersider's hideout for the night making plans and using Tattletale's power to find other parahumans. I didn't want to take any more until I had a proper hold on my sanity with Canary's power, but it would be good to know where everyone was.

Panacea stuck to a stringent schedule, making it easy to know where she was at any point during the day. Purity was currently out of town, Kayden Anders had put in for leave and there was evidence of her purchasing lodging in a hotel in Boston. I supposed I could go looking for her. Blasto was in Boston, wasn't he? He would be a great addition to my powers. With him and Panacea, even more doors would be open to me. If I took Taylor Hebert after them, I would…

Was it a good idea to take Queen Administrator? Without her, the plan for beating Zion was off. I would still be here when the world ended, so I needed to make sure Golden Morning ended in victory. Actually… Was it possible for me to leave beforehand? What was I saying, of course it was. The people of this world referred to their planet as Earth Bet because they had evidence that others existed and communication between them was possible. Doormaker even facilitated travel between worlds, so it was possible that there were other methods available on Earth Bet. I just needed the right combination of powers, or certain specific powers. If a Tinker could punch a hole between realities, who was to say that a cape whose power was stealing other powers wouldn't find a way to transport himself away from the insanity of this world? It was likely the Faerie Queen already had the power to move between dimensions. She was essentially a nascent Entity, wasn't she? She could likely leave the Birdcage and Earth Bet both at any time she wanted to. Why couldn't I do the same? I had no ties to the people of this world and could live anywhere else just as easily as I could here. But who would I need to take to leave? There's…

"No. Not yet." I said aloud, forcing myself to focus on Canary. I would have time to gather powers capable of either protecting me from Zion or allowing me to flee him soon, but I needed to get Canary first. I had a plan set and felt I could retrieve her with minimal risk of being discovered. After I had her, I could worry about everything else.