Sveta was quick enough to recover that I didn’t even reach her side before she was up, reaching out. Her feet skidded on the road for the first moments as she hauled herself away from the defeated Prancer, Moose almost on her.

“Stop them!” Prancer called out to Moose.

The big guy had only slowed slightly, to check on his friend, and now he picked up speed. Behind him, Velvet was driving her truck through gaps that were narrower than the spacing between the truck’s tires. She veered to one side, then the other, and possibly augmented by her power, drove the truck tilted on one side, only the rightmost wheels making contact with the ground to pass through the gaps Moose had made. The guy on the roof of the truck was a good two hundred feet away, but I could still see the whites of his eyes as he held on for dear life.

The group carried on making a break for it. As Advance Guard left, we’d have to figure out what to do with our team. I wasn’t sure if their teleporter would be able to evacuate us in the same way.

Ahead of the group, Anxiety Chris was at the corner of the street, clutching at his face with all of his legs. He screamed as he saw us coming.

Spright picked up the pace, flying in his direction with a combination of my flight and Flapper’s, his arms with extended fingers buoying him forward, like bat wings without the webbing between. He touched ground, running, making a beeline straight for the guy.

I wanted to call out a warning, but I wasn’t sure if it was right to. I’d have been outing Chris’s role in our group.

His power affects the mind.

“Don’t!” Sveta called out.

“We don’t know what it is!” I added.

Spright ignored us both. Again.

Screaming without pausing for breath, Chris traveled the ‘S’-shaped route, trying to take evasive action, and Spright remained on his… not heels.

“Give!” Spright called out, as he drew closer, until he could almost touch Chris.

They remained like that for a brief while, Chris trying to escape, Spright chasing. The screaming continued.

Spright’s pace slowed, and he let Chris run away. Spright glanced back at everyone else, assessed the situation, and then took flight, putting himself closer to Flapper.

“We’re close!” Capricorn called out.

So he had a destination in mind. Good.

The van had stopped to collect Prancer, but it was catching up. Moose continued to bear on us.

I’d have to intercept him if he got too close, I knew.

I could still imagine the scene of his face erupting in blood as the wretch clawed it.