Mockument was in his own sub-faction, with capes who tended to hang around together. Jokers and ‘randoms’. He had a look that made me think of a jester proportioned like a gorilla, predominantly done up in the new group’s aesthetic of white and black checkerboard. Torso was a mannequin or doll’s head and upper body in a hard and bulky stone-like material, the rest black and slim, with doodle-like drawings on it. Mismatched cartoon eyes, a heart roughly where the heart would be, and a few words so scribbled out I couldn’t understand them. The look seemed immensely top-heavy and uncomfortable.

Mockument, Torso, Sidepiece and Damsel were in the center of the mess, breaking into cars and collecting things, or cutting off the ropes that tied luggage to the tops of vehicles, so they could open the luggage and fish through the things.

I winced as I saw Damsel using a power to blast open a lock on a hard plastic case. She held up a bass guitar. Sidepiece said something and Damsel threw it to her, followed by the strap.

Damsel looked up at me, and I could see her distant expression. Whoever Damsel was, I knew the kinds of expressions she wore and why. My ex-roommate was almost exactly the same.

I took her bait, flying toward her.

“Damsel!” I called out.

She pretended to ignore me. I avoided flying in close enough that she could use her power to close the distance and try to tag me with a blast. I didn’t want her one blast, let alone two in short succession.

“You can’t use your powers! This area is high-risk!”

“Fuck you!” Sidepiece screamed the words.

“How convenient for the heroes. Scared!?” she called out.

“Heck yeah we’re scared!” I answered. “You’re like an arsonist at a gas station!”

“Can we do that later?” Sidepiece asked Damsel.

Backwoods was using his power too. He hurled his wooden spikes, they hit a car near the Huntsmen, and then exploded into a dozen more spikes, impaling the car from within.

I looked in that direction, anxious but unable to do anything. I had to trust the Huntsmen.

“Can we talk? Face to face?” I called down. “I know Lookout really wants to chat, and I know you like her!”

Mockument used his power. Hand held over ground, then slowly lifted, raising up a pillar of pavement from the road.

“Don’t—” I started.

The pillar broke like an egg. Flesh spilled out, reaching, groping. I had no idea what it was at first, until I saw the blonde hair and the extent of naked flesh. I flew back about ten feet just from the unconscious recoil.