Mutant dogs snarled as they turned, facing the alley where an elongated Nailbiter was stepping out, a leering, stretched out smile of rusty nails plainly visible. Rachel shushed them, and for a moment, the only sound was of passing cars, and the crackle of the nimbus of energy around the breaker that flew above us, suspended in the air.

Those powers… what the hell had Love Lost done, to add another member to Rain’s cluster?

Blinding 11.11

…and all of the junior heroes I want to ensure have a place in this world, and every damn member of this team needs a full time friend to guide and help and I can’t be everywhere at once, least of all for my best friend. I’m worried about Sveta and Weld and yet they’re the easiest thing to mentally set aside in the moment and I’m worried it’ll be weeks of moments and then I won’t have a chance to help. I’m worried about Kenzie and I’m worried about Rain and about Tristan and about Byron and Ashley and Damsel and even Natalie—

I’m worried about me, too.

Reality came crashing home with a massive impact that crushed the Wretch. The object in question hit the ground and tipped over, moving in my direction.

I flew back, halfway to get out of the way of the thing—the section of building. Halfway to get away from the mental effect.

Can’t—can’t let this get to me like this. Can’t let it distract me. Fucking stupid of me. How many times did we mentally go over the list of techniques and approaches to fending off mental and emotional effects?

I shook my head. The overwhelmed feeling slipped off of me like a caking of soap under warm water. The condemnations stuck.

I pulled myself back to reality. I’d gone after the breaker again. Again, I’d been repelled by the effect. The overload. She flew over me, using blades she’d created at her hands to cut at the building and bring debris tumbling down. I’d been trying to stop her before she could rain something down on the van, she’d got me, and while I was out, she’d gone ahead with her plan.

The armored van rested on its side. Concrete and rubble littered the top, covered the side and the door that pointed the sky, and some pieces had even fallen within. A pillar-like mass of brickwork had been what had almost hit me.

Dangerous. If I got remotely close to her, I got hit by that effect and it took me out of the fight for however long it took me to pull myself together. Fucking stupid, that I’d thought I could chance it.

I shook my head.