Jonathan leaned back in his chair and sighed. He was beginning to think running a gang might have been a bad idea. They still had a minor number of superhumans on the payroll, and their structure was shit, but their control over the drug trade was nearly absolute in the city. It helped that only small-time gangs bothered to compete against them.

"I need to recruit someone with a good head for business," Jonathan said. "and someone to handle recruitment problems. We're bleeding money with how much our guys steal from us."

The majority of recruits were addicts from Low District. The upside is that they're disposable, but trusting them is an issue.

The logistics of operating a gang weren't as simple as he thought. They had expanded too quickly. It brought them stacks of money, but something new always seemed to crop up. The Blessed, that bunch of fanatics, had started to rough up his people whenever they got noticed in their territory. A war was on the horizon, and he needed muscle.

"Maybe I can hire out." Putting all that money to good use might be the best option. The promise of drugs helped bring in quantity. Money should bring quality. "I need a cigarette."

"Talking to yourself again, Johnny?" Alex commented as he entered the room.

"It helps me think. What are you doing here?" Jonathan stiffened up as he spoke. He wasn't expecting to see his patron today.

The man wore a suit that would look out of place in the Low District. Between the two of them, Jonathan thought Alex belonged behind this desk more than he did. Of course, he wouldn't say that to the guy. He liked being the boss.

"Your newest recruit, Alchemist. We want him." Alex demanded. Jonathan scrunched up his nose in annoyance. His pride kept him from agreeing.

"What do you mean? He's one of ours." Jonathan argued. If it hadn't been for the recruitment of Alchemist, their gang would have never expanded this quickly. With war looming in the near future, he couldn't afford to lose one of his superhumans. Alchemist specifically, since he was a force multiplier.

"His ability is too important to leave him so exposed. The Snow gang doesn't have the manpower and isn't stable enough to ensure his safety," Alex noted coldly.

"You don't have any right to make demands like this. I'll handle my crew myself." Jonathan growled out.

"He was attacked. Some vigilante nearly captured him less than half an hour ago." Calmly, Alex responded.

"What! I haven't heard about this!" He worried about what it could mean for Alchemist to get caught. The nature of his powers would bring down the big dogs on him and his crew.

"He escaped, and we've relocated his workshop just in case." The sweat building up on Alex's forehead and nervous twitches told Jonathan the grip on his powers was slipping.

"Sorry, I lost control there for a moment." Jonathan apologized. If they were under attack, he couldn't afford to be at odds with Alex and his people. He wasn't going to forget their confrontation, but it could wait.

"What about his work? Losing his product will cripple our people." Alex already had Alchemist, he'd get him back, but for now, Jonathan needed to ensure the supply line stayed open.

"There will be a minor reduction in numbers. We'll be taking a share for ourselves, but it shouldn't cause any interference with your activities."

Jonathan wanted to yell and scream at the man. Why had he even bothered asking for Alchemist if they already had him? Alex had been an immense help when first starting, but now the only valuable thing they provided were the doors. He should have known that they would never really be partners.

"Since it's over already, why don't you tell me what happened with Alchemist?" Jonathan needed the details. Whomever this vigilante was, he would pay.

***

I walked back up the steps out of the basement. Several sets of hands and eyes materialized and then shot down the hallway. When they hit the corner, there were two men with pistols drawn. An eye stayed back to keep both in view while a fist buried itself in each man's face.

A new batch of limbs continued the advance while the previous set restrained the first men. The next guy got a shot off, but it missed. My arms quickly backtracked when a man with a machine gun showed up.

"Have you found an emergency number, Jeanie?" I asked. We will need someone to pick these thugs up when everything is over. She checked online for someone to contact.

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

"I'll contact them as soon as you're ready to leave. We don't want them showing up too early." A few shots rang out as one of my arms failed to dodge in time.

"Those gunshots are going to draw attention." Informing the authorities might not be necessary anymore.

The arm riddled with bullet holes vanished as the other snatched the weapon out of his hands. That room the man had been guarding was now empty, so I took a moment to ensure the powder was still there.

"These aren't normal drugs, Jeanie." New information was working its way into my head that I felt Jeanie needed to know.

When the doctor destroyed the arms I had holding him, we made skin contact. That's why I know he was a superhuman. I even know what power he had. It took a few minutes to process with my ability, and the answer wasn't good.

"What drugs?" Jeanie questioned. I had forgotten we were still standing in the hallway. She hadn't seen the stacks of drugs.

"Sorry, this building has several rooms that store this powdered drug. That doctor from earlier created them with his power. They can temporarily give people abilities." I explained.

The room I had secured was the one with blue powder. There were two gunmen in here when I passed earlier, but the missing one must have left to warn the others.

"We need to destroy it. I can't trust that whatever authority investigates will properly dispose of these hazards." Making this decision meant destroying evidence, but I felt these drugs were too dangerous to leave in play.

"I'm down for a little destruction. Don't think I'll be much help, but have fun." Jeanie cheered me on.

"I'll try." It wouldn't be a very entertaining process.

Two more eyes spawned close by, but this time they were special. When they both flew into the room, one eye glared down at the drugs and released a beam of energy. Nothing survived the disintegration, not even the table. It did cause the wooden floor to catch fire which was when the second eye got to work. A beam of frost lanced out and extinguished the flame.

"That's the first room. Now just five more." The blue was the most unpredictable. I knew what to expect from the other powders. And, of course, that's when the more dangerous people encountered my limbs.

I tried to punch and subdue the next attacker, but he effortlessly batted my arms away. Those limbs snapped in half from his casual blow.

"Super strength. That's the green one." These guys had gotten into the stash. My scouting eyes watched as more of the previously passed-out residents woke up.

"I need to change locations," I informed Jeanie as I sent a leg forward to smash out a window. Relocating would allow me to fully concentrate on controlling my limbs remotely.

My other limbs slowed their advance as I created more to carry me out the window. I flew myself to the roof of the neighboring building and sat down with my eyes closed.

While I repositioned myself, a few more men who had taken the strength enhancer joined the fight. Personally, I would have gone for the speed booster, but green seemed to be more popular.

A duo of super-strength arms slugged it out with the first man while another set went for his friends. These arms dodged a swing, dipped down, and gripped his ankles. A surge of electricity surged through the man's body as he stiffened up.

A pair of arms covered in red diamond armor struck the next guy breaking his nose. This diamond armor was new. These were projections belonging to the super I met at the tower exit. He had a fascinating power that would require more practice. For now, using them as blunt instruments would have to work.

I continued to swarm the place with limbs. Most ran on a sort of autopilot since I couldn't focus on them all at once. The majority of drugs got destroyed before these thugs could take them by my laser and frost eyes.

An eye I had watching the door caught several of them escaping. I didn't have any other appendages on that floor yet, so I let them go. The teen who guided me was one of them.

From the imprint of that doctor's power, I knew there were more troublesome drugs he could create. The basic ones augmented physical abilities, but he had some that could be a severe threat. Luckily for me, I didn't find any during my initial sweep. They must have put them in a different location.

I wasn't willing to bash someone's brain in, and I was unable to restrain the brutes inside. They kept getting back up after each beating, but what I was waiting for finally happened. The men began collapsing.

"It's ending. The drugs are starting to wear off." I informed Jeanie.

Touching another superhuman gave me an advantage over them. If not in power, then in knowledge. I knew what that doctor could do, and from that, I also learned the weakness of his drugs. Stall long enough, and they'll gas out.

"S.I.D. is on its way," Jeanie told me.

I had a guess but decided to ask her. "Who's S.I.D.?"

"Superhuman Investigation Division." An unknown voice came from behind me.

Leaping up and around, I summoned several arms to fight with. Floating in the air was a man, another superhuman. He wore a skin-tight blue suit that showed off every well-defined muscle on his body. He had brown hair and a jawline like a comic book character.

"I see you found a distribution center." The man spoke to me calmly. His smirk showed the amusement he felt from my actions.

"Are you just going to smile like a dumbass or help out?" I had him pegged for a hero. He felt like the type, and he didn't hit me with a surprise attack.

"Ha, ha. Now why don't you tell me how you found this place?" His laughter was flat and clearly fake. He landed on the rooftop but crossed his arms.

"What about the guys escaping?" I stuck my thumb out in the direction of the runners.

"My wife will handle them. You just ruined a three-month investigation." He commented almost casually. It didn't feel like this mattered much to him.

Even with his nonchalance, he had an aura of seriousness to him, so I decided to try cooperating with him. "I was looking for a place to stay. Found an ad for a church-run shelter."

He quirked an eyebrow at me. "You must be new to the district." He pointed towards the building. "You see that gas mask painted next to the door?"

I remembered it from when I first arrived. Every building around here had something similar.

"That tells you what gang controls this area. You'll need to learn each one if you want to operate as a vigilante here." He advised.

"Why don't you come with me? You can give me the details of what happened. I have a place you can stay. I'm Henry, by the way." Henry offered while introducing himself.