The first step in any encounter with a villain is to prioritize the safety of the civilians.

"Right this way, ma'am," I said as a floating projection of my head and arms guided the older woman to take cover inside a nearby building. My face was once again concealed by a pair of hands forming a mask. I wasn't overly concerned about my identity being revealed, but it was better to take precautions, just in case.

Flames scorched the concrete as the two supers engaged in a fierce exchange of attacks. It hurried the woman along, who had been hesitant to follow a floating head.

"You think you can mess with our people? Die!" The scraggly-haired man hurled a blazing fireball at his opponent. He wore a hoodie, jeans, and a ski mask, while the other man appeared visibly calmer, donning a leather coat, a skull bandana, and sunglasses.

"You received plenty of warnings. Your people aren't welcome here," the man in leather calmly stated, pulling out a cigarette that seemed to light itself. "The Saintess sent out an execution order for all your kind."

Once the woman was safely escorted out of the area, my projected limbs returned to the scene, now sporting a jacket and pants taken from a nearby store. Together, they formed a nearly full person to confront the two battling supers while my actual physical body was stripping down to the bodysuit I still had on.

With the torso missing on my double, it was challenging to entirely conceal this body's strange appearance. Though the jacket and pants helped obscure the missing parts, I couldn't shake the feeling that people could still notice something was off.

With a quick mental command, I generated a few more limbs to complete the missing torso, creating a seemingly normal projection of myself. Standing tall, I faced the two battling supers, ready to intervene at the perfect moment.

"Fire is such a shit power!" The man in the ski mask cursed from behind cover as it was pelted with balls of lava. He occasionally poked his hand over to retaliate, but the man in the leather jacket easily kept him pinned down. When he ran out of chunks of rock to throw, he simply reached down, melted the pavement, and tossed the molten chunk.

"What's the matter, snowflake? Too hot for you?" Skull face taunted the man in the leather jacket as he confidently approached. It seemed like this was going to be a quick fight.

I hesitated to jump into the fray, mostly because it was the first time since arriving here that I had come across supers wearing masks. In my time, it was common to see masked supers, but until now, I hadn't encountered any in this city. I hadn't been cautious enough with my own identity, and needed to be careful what information I put out there.

After seeing the sketch, I realized it was time to consider changing my appearance. This incident would only reinforce the urgency of my decision, but I could handle that later.

"Hey, buddy. I think you've done enough property damage," I called out, stepping out onto the street and catching the attention of the man in the leather coat. He paused for a moment, seemingly surprised by someone walking into the middle of this.

For the intimidation factor, I allowed myself to drift upwards into the air, hovering above the ground. Since all these limbs were projections, I could manipulate them however I pleased. The sight of my floating form seemed to catch the attention of not only the man in the leather coat but also the one in the ski mask, who had been taking cover nearby.

"You should just fly back to wherever you came from. This is Blessed business," Mr. Leather threatened me.

I chuckled, keeping my floating projection steady in the air. "Blessed business? You two seemed to be causing quite a scene on this street. I'd say that makes it everyone's business." I spoke with a calm but assertive tone, easily maintaining an air of confidence.

The man in the leather coat narrowed his eyes, clearly not expecting someone to challenge him. "You're not from around here, are you?" he asked, sizing me up.

"Does it matter? I'm just passing through," I replied, sounding nonchalant.

The tension in the air was palpable as we stared each other down. My calm attitude seemed to be throwing him off. Deep down, I knew I could take on both supers at once with this projected body, but engaging in conversation was merely a tactic to buy some time.

After obtaining the new limbs last night, I was itching to try out one in particular. While my projected body kept these men occupied, my real body was already en route, a materialized finger ready in my grip. The powers from that finger would enable my actual self to join the fight.

"Fuck this!" The ski mask man exclaimed as he leaped up, brandishing a syringe filled with purple liquid. Without hesitation, he jammed it into his arm, swiftly followed by another syringe containing a green liquid.

I was shocked, not only because of the massive muscles that suddenly bulged through his clothes but also because I recognized what he injected. The limbs I had copied from the doctor told me he just took a dose of two different powers. That would undoubtedly kill him.

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

Pain surged through my projected limbs as a hole was punched through my chest, or rather, through the limbs serving as my chest. The force of the attack pushed me backward, and I crashed into a nearby car, denting its hood. The primary thought going through my head was that I should have been flying higher.

"What the fuck?" The now extra-large ski mask man had vanished from his previous location and was standing where I had been moments ago. He had a mangled arm in his hand that he'd torn from my makeshift torso.

"Having to resort to those pathetic drugs. They just imitate the gifts of the blessed. You're a weakling playing at being strong." The leather man spoke up after seeing his opponent's transformation. He didn't seem to care too much about what happened to me. "You're nowhere near fit to join the Saintess' chosen."

He flicked his cigarette at the hulking monster, but once again, the transformed man vanished without a trace. He wasn't gone for longer than a fraction of a second and reappeared next to a nearby car. With a powerful kick, he launched the vehicle at his original enemy.

I wasn't pleased with the appearance of the purple drug. It augmented speed, which was a real pain in the ass to fight against. As I stood back up, I frowned at the hole in my borrowed coat. In preparation, I dismissed my current arms and projected a pair of new ones.

The leather-clad man jumped and rolled to avoid the car that whizzed by him, slamming into a building. As he straightened up, flames spread across his outfit, appearing to partially meld with it.

In the next instant, a knife slashed the ski mask-wearing man on the shoulder. A flaming trail led to the center of the street where the two men had clashed. Leather was moving a lot faster now as they exchanged attacks. The blade was covered in red pulsing cracks, emitting flames as it sliced through the air.

Upon closer inspection, I noticed that these cracks worked their way through every piece of clothing the man was wearing. The flames didn't appear to be affecting the larger man, most likely because he still had the red drug in his system, granting him those initial fire powers.

Feeling a bit left out of the action, I leaped into the middle of the fray, crackling with electricity in my arms. Without physically touching either man, I shot a bolt of lightning into their chests, keeping the wattage low to test the waters.

As expected, neither of them could evade the speed of my attack. Lightning could travel at an astonishing speed of roughly 225,000 miles per hour, making it nearly impossible for any ordinary speedster to dodge such swiftness.

The lightning bolt hit both men square in the chest, causing them to convulse with electric shock. The ski mask-wearing man's augmented muscles twitched uncontrollably, while the leather-clad man's flaming aura flared brightly.

The pavement cracked under the force of my high-speed movements. The projected arms I had summoned belonged to a super with the ability to control electricity, while the legs were borrowed from another super blessed with immense strength.

The ski mask man clutched his shoulder where the knife had struck him earlier. As he began to register the injuries he had sustained, it became evident that the effects of the drugs were likely starting to wear off. Stacking too many of those injections not only posed the risk of death but also led to interference between their effects, ultimately shortening their overall duration.

"Both of you, get on the ground now! My associate will be here shortly, and we're more than willing to use force!" I attempted to intimidate them, hoping they would surrender. Unfortunately, villains rarely chose that option.

The ski mask man leaped with enhanced strength, aiming to crush me with a powerful punch, while the leather man shot fireballs to keep me at bay. I evaded the punch, allowing the fiery projectiles to graze my projected limbs. His speed was already beginning to wane, but I could still feel the incredible power behind his attacks.

A resounding boom split the air as something collided with the man in fiery leather. I already knew what it was, and sure enough, it was me. Standing over the stunned villain, I looked down at him and then over to my projected body.

It was always strange to see a double of my own face, even if it was obscured. However, having two brains made multitasking so much easier. "How's it going over there?"

My projected self was leaping and hovering around each swing from the brute he was fighting while simultaneously blasting him with electricity. He seemed busy. My copy had to use three different powers to produce those effects, while I could now fight with a single finger.

Opening my hand, I looked down at the feminine finger I had projected. It was shocking to find that this girl's power pretty much trumped any others I had obtained. With just one of her abilities, I could simulate a flying brick power set on my actual body.

"Thank you, Crystal," I said with a smile, looking down at the man struggling to dislodge my foot from his chest. It felt good to get my hands dirty, metaphorically speaking.

I quickly reacted to the sudden change in my opponent's demeanor. His stillness and the strange movement of his fingers were clear signs of trouble. As fiery cracks began to appear in the air around his outstretched hand, a sense of unease washed over me.

Before I could react, the cracks expanded, and the air itself seemed to catch fire, triggering a powerful explosion that enveloped us in a blazing inferno. The force of the blast sent me flying backward, and I crashed into the side of a nearby building.

The energy field surrounding my body crackled and flickered under the force of the blast. For a moment, it seemed like it might give way, but after a few seconds, the cracks repaired themselves, and the field held firm. I floated out through the hole in the wall I had just created, finding the man struggling to get back up on his feet. It was evident that the powerful attack had taken a toll on him.

Flying forward, I struck him in the chest, sending the man back onto his ass. The fight had drained him, and he seemed to lose all hope as he realized his last-ditch action had failed. The cracks on his clothes began to slowly recede until none were left, and his powers diminished.

I released the shield around my left hand and extended it to touch the guy's face. He had gloves on, leaving only his forehead with visible skin. As my hand made contact, a brief connection occurred, and his limbs slotted into place in my mental armory.

The projected me was just finishing up with his opponent as sirens began to sound in the distance. "Well, it's about time."

I decided to try chatting with the local law enforcement. How they reacted would teach me a little about the way things are handled here. I wasn't too worried about anyone recognizing me since I had already decided to make a few adjustments to my civilian persona. A few degrees of separation were necessary.

A pile of clothes hit the ground as I dismissed my double and calmly waited for the authorities.