Today's outfit for me consists of grey boxer-briefs, black cargo shorts, my black socks, black combat boots, a black belt, and a dark grey sleeveless shirt that's got an almost metallic sheen to it. I was going to wear a t-shirt, but it's actually a little hot today despite it still being May.

In addition to that outfit is a bracelet on my left wrist, an unassuming braided black cord bracelet. It's actually more than what it appears, but only Ian and I know that. He put it in a priority delivery for me after I let him know something after his recent visit.

Things are definitely coming to a head. It's best if I'm as prepared as possible for the coming events.

A knock at my door alerts me to Tanner's arrival, and I pull on my backpack before opening my door and greeting him. Tanner's dressed in a pair of shorts made of the same material as my shirt, while his sleeveless is dark blue, and his sneakers are grey, silver, and blue.

"Ready?" I ask.

"Yup," he says. "Let's go."

Tanner and I leave, and we make our way into the ruins to meet up with Ali. With graduation several days ago, we have plenty of time to do our own thing. Or rather, Tanner has plenty of time to do stuff. We've really put him through the wringer these past few days in terms of self-defense, with Tanner devoting a few hours each day to working on his power.

I drop my backpack at Ali's place when we reach her, then the three of us grab a couple of duffel bags and travel to another part of the ruins. Also a disturbance zone, but one that's better-suited to today's exercise.

"How come you don't have any guns on you?" Ali asks me as we walk. "You normally have at least one or two, it's why you typically wear a shirt over your tee. Unbuttoned, for easier access. Didn't you even carry them at school?"

"I was wondering the same thing," Tanner says. "I mean, you've not been any different than normal, as if you weren't unarmed, but you don't have any guns."

"I have guns on me."

"Really?" They both look at my belt, which is suspiciously devoid of guns.

"My boyfriend is everyone's favorite technokinetic," I say. "He's created cloaking tech. They're on me, just not noticeable."

"When did he invent that?" Ali asks.

"About six years ago," I answer. "He created it specifically so that my measures of self-defense wouldn't be noticed if I actually chose to go to school."

"Ridiculous," Ali says. "Absolutely ridiculous."

"Yeah," Tanner snorts. "Your boyfriend is insane, man."

"The Klen isn't the only threat to people," I state. "The only organizations I've dealt with. The whole reason I started learning how to use guns was because I got shot by some assholes from another one. Ian popped in to wipe them out, then gave me guns and told me to learn how to use them."

"Got shot?" Ali asks. "Wait, six years ago? Was that the time you were extra moody for a few weeks, and had that injury to your leg you refused to explain to anyone?"

"Yeah."

"With how much he's moving around," Tanner says. "I can only imagine how much more active he was at twelve. Jeez, that must have been rough."

"He played video games most of the day," Ali tells him. "It was back when they were still serious in their attempts to get him to attend classes. They gave up because he kept throwing stuff at them, and it was clear he wasn't just being his usual moody self, but that the injury had put him into a foul mood."

"It wasn't that foul."

"You threw a table."

"Maybe they should have screwed off when I said?"

Tanner snorts in response. There was another reason I was extra-grumpy during that, and it was the fact that I had to be injured for so long. Ian could have healed me when he stopped by, but then explaining my miraculous recovery would have been frustrating.

Tanner asks Ali for any other stories of me that she knows of from before she ran away, and that fills our time until we arrive at the destination: another parking garage.

"This doesn't look too safe," Tanner says.

To be fair, he's basing that off the observation of how this one is even bigger than the one Ali lives in, and a significant amount of it has collapsed. Not all in one spot, but in various spots. There are holes in various floors, rubble on others, and the entire northwester eight has collapsed.

"It's more structurally-sound than it looks," I let him know. "Ali and I come out here all the time. Come on, this way."

I lead Tanner and Ali into one part of the ruins, then we set down the duffel bags we were carrying. Unzipping them, I reveal paintball stuff. Now that we're inside, it's pretty evident to any observe that this place has been used for paintball, with the places where rain won't wash stuff away having spots of dried paint impacts.

"No protection, because that's how we do things," I say as we start assembling guns that need it. "Tanner, you're blue, Ali, you're purple, and I'm green. We'll each have five hundred rounds and a walkie-talkie. You can each use your powers to assist you if you want."

"That seems kind of unfair," Tanner says. "To you, anyway. Ali and I might end up on even grounds for that."

"Your power can even the playing field between us?" Ali asks.

"Yeah," Tanner thinks about it. "I guess I trust you enough to tell you, Ali. You're now only the third person to find out: I'm an empath. I can sense the minds of those around me. Where they are, how strong they are, and how far away they are. And I can't turn it off. Ever."

"That's why you wanted to get rid of it," Ali says. "It's a headache to be able to sense that at all times."

"Yeah," Tanner nods. "I can't read minds, but I can branch out to that if I want. Nick made me tell him my power to even consider arranging a meeting with you. He asked Ian if any ways to train this was known, in the hopes of finding a way to turn it off. There's not a known empath who can turn it off, but he did tell me about training telepathy and emotional influence."

"Emotional influence?"

"He can influence emotions in the minds he's sensing," I explain. "Right now, it's just any minds around him, but he's managed to be able to influence an emotion he isn't feeling. Barely, and it takes a lot of focus. Keep track of your mind to know if he's using that on you. Any sudden bursts of calmness or aggression, and he's likely trying to get an edge in the fight."

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"I'm not going to use that," Tanner says. "It doesn't even work on you anyway."

"You're immune?" Ali asks.

"No," I answer. "I just know my mind well enough to detect when it's being influenced. You can do the same thing, you've meditated on your mind enough for that. Tanner doesn't like the ability, though, because it's a form of mind control. When he practices it, I leave his range so that he's only influencing animals."

"I know a fair bit about your abilities," Tanner tells Ali. "So it's only fair that you know some about mine for this. As I said, I trust you not to share with people my power. It'll only get more annoying for me if too many people know."

"Because they'll want to use it, for various reasons," Ali nods. "I can understand that. Such a power can be highly valued in many fields."

"Yeah," Tanner says. "So to add on to what was said – my range is a little less than forty feet. This is a fairly big place and there's only three of us, but that's enough for me to sense you from more than a floor away.

"And even with us knowing each other's abilities," Tanner looks at me. "That still doesn't explain how you've got an even playing field. It's bad enough that we're already faster and stronger than you and have better senses. We'd whup your ass, anyway. Us using our powers means you have no chance of winning. Unless I'm misunderstanding and this isn't a hunting match between us."

"Oh, it is," I tell him. "This is your starting point. Ali will call over the walkie once she's in position, and then I'll call for us to start once I'm ready."

"Nick, how are you going to have an even field with us?"

"You lose the moment you give up in the match. "Either because you've been disabled somehow or because you've just given up. Grit through the pain if you need to, though since you're both Sigil-Bearers, it will take you a bit more before you start bruising. Head shots are allowed, but try not to aim for the eyes. The battle ends once two have quit or all have run out of ammo."

"Winner is the person who has the least amount of paint that's not theirs on them after," Ali says. "Loser has to move some rubble that's in the way of an area I want to shift into being another training zone for me."

"You guys aren't going to answer, are you?" Tanner asks.

"Nope," we respond, and he sighs.

Ali and I leave, heading to our respective starting points. When I reach mine, I open up the large, metal supply chest that's sitting up here and switch out my weapons. Higher-power guns than what they have, giving them more oomph, as a trade-off for their weapons having a stronger hit for me than they do for them. The paintballs that Ian supplies us with can handle the initial force needed to shoot them, so they don't gunk up these guns.

This parking garage is almost half a mile in length, seven stories, and has plenty of areas where you can see for a fair distance. More powerful guns will let me shoot from a further distance, which is essential when fighting people who can detect you within a certain distance of themselves or who can make things float around them in another range.

Another addition to my setup are the infrared glasses. Not the large, bulky goggles typically seen on TV, but a pair of sunglasses that Ian designed. They're opaque with black frames, cushioned legs, and sit against my face in a style similar to sports sunglasses. The moment I slip them on, I'm seeing the infrared of the area within sight.

Among the other things I grab, I also add on extra cartridges of paintballs, including a full strap across my body that has those and some paintball grenades.

Once I finish equipping myself, I close the heavy lid to the supply chest and then twist the handle into the lock position, before tapping the handle in a few key places. The chest ripples for a moment, then disappears.

Not truly – it's still there, but only those who know of its presence will notice it. At least, when observing with their eyes. The spell Ian placed on it also prevents people from walking into it, using a mind magic component to direct them around it.

Ali knows about the chest, but she doesn't know the combination to turn it back on. The only reason I'm even turning it invisible right now is because Tanner's here and I want to see his confusion. I don't normally leave it invisible, since no one comes out this way, but maybe I should start, considering the Klen is going through the area.

No need for them to gain a magic item like this.

About a minute after I finish equipping myself, Ali radios that she's ready, and I call the start. She deliberately waited so that I could finish preparing myself.

The moment the match begins, I set off in the direction I know Tanner's in. Ali's probably assumed I'm going to ambush him first and will come for me, but I'll be prepared for that, too.

I set up in a spot that lets me see down a few levels with the way the collapsed holes are staggered. After about a minute, Tanner starts to pass through, unaware of my presence because the angle and three-floor-difference puts me out of his range.

Pwoop! My rifle puffs once.

I don't even wait for the shot to hit. Tanner reacts the moment he hears the puff, but the first shot hits him in the side of the head. He lets out a surprised yelp, only for another shot to hit his right arm. Three more shots hit him before I take off, Tanner let out some swears.

Ali nearly manages to ambush me, but my glasses showed me her presence early enough and I'm able to evade her shots, striking her twice with a pistol before finding cover and disappearing on her.

The three of us continue to battle, with Tanner steadily growing more and more coated in green and purple paint and Ali steadily growing more and more coated in blue and green paint. I nearly get hit a few times, but manage to avoid any hits throughout.

Amusingly, it isn't until an hour in, when I drop a paint grenade on him from six stories up, that Tanner realizes I have cheats. Not even me shooting him from nearly five hundred feet away made him realize that.

He's even seen the straps across my chest and the scope that I had hanging on my belt, too. Did he not notice that I didn't have them before?

After almost two hours, Tanner and Ali both announce they're out of ammo.

"I still have ammo," I radio back.

"You have extra!" Tanner responds.

"Actually, I haven't used the initial five hundred yet," I say. "I've only used about three hundred so far. Oh, and all four paint bombs."

"Considering we can't hit you anymore," Ali says. "It's only fair to consider the battle over. No matter how many more times you shoot us, you're going to win."

"Alright," I chuckle. "I'll go put my extras away. Meet me at the bags.

After returning my gear to the supply chest and turning it invisible again, I rejoin the team back at the place Tanner started off at. I return the stuff I'd originally grabbed, then grin at Tanner.

"See?" I ask. "It was a fairly even playing field."

"Not even close!" He exclaims.

He's covered in paint.

"I haven't seen those glasses before," Ali says. "And they disappeared. I take it they're the reason I was unable to sneak up on you this time?"

"So you can normally hit him?" Tanner asks.

"Yup," she answers. "Usually, we can't tell who's going to win until one of us runs out of paintballs."

"They're infrared," I tell her. "New invention of Ian's. He apparently put them in there when he came out last time."

"Ah," she says. "Pretty nifty… and I have more paint on me than Tanner does, so I guess I'm stuck doing the work."

"Ugh," Tanner pulls the front of his clothes. "I wish I'd known we were doing this, I think these clothes are ruined. And combined with all the sweat because of how hot it is and how much we were moving, I really need a shower."

"We can clean up back at Ali's," I tell him. "And the paintballs we used today were designed with the heat in mind. They won't set as easily, so you can still wash the clothes just fine."

The three of us walk back to Ali's place, and I show Tanner a place that the he can clean up at, while Ali washes up in another spot. To Tanner's surprise, I had a change of his clothes ready. They wash their painted clothes and set them out to dry, then I start to cook lunch for us.

Just as I get the fire going, there's a thunderous sound as the ground begins to shake.

"Nick?"

"There's no training exercise," I say. "Maybe a building fell over? Let's up to the roof and see if we can see anything."

Two more rumbles occur as we go up to the roof, and when we look, we can spot a couple of more buildings falling. Something appears to be creeping up buildings and breaking them over by…

"Are those vines?" Tanner asks.

"Fuck!" I exclaim. "Ali, you and Tanner get to the safety shelter now!"

"What's going on?" Ali asks.

"Hope that I am wrong," I say. "But I think Wyatt has found and taken over a secret Immortal Sigil-Bear in the area. If you two go there, you will die."

"And so will you," Ali grabs my arm. "You're good, Nick, but you're still just a human. You're not a Sigil-Bearer, and you know you can't take on an Immortal."

"Ali," I say. "I'm getting Ian. I forgot my phone and earpiece for him at home. If Wyatt's taken over Jay, then he's going to have set up countermeasures for me. For me. You two won't survive. Get to the safety shelter now."

Ali stares into my gaze.

"Ali," Tanner says. "He's serious. I think it's best if we listen."

Ali lets go.

"Stay alert," she says. "Make sure to avoid their traps."

"I will."