*Knock knock knock knock knock* Someone's pounding on my door. It's probably Thomas or Aria.

Ignoring the door, I continue packing. It was nice knowing you New York, not really, but I can't really stay here knowing that I practically induced a man into suicide.

It just weighs on my practically non-existent conscious. Though I have been developing that recently.

Does this make my a psychopath or sociopath? I don't know. I don't even know the difference, but if anybody finds out what I did, then I'm definitely fired.

*CRASH* The sound of splintering wood and falling metal come from my doorway. I honestly don't think this apartment is going to be able to stay in one piece at this rate.

Oh Dreamer, what will the landlord say?

A segmented, steel tentacle flies through the air, peering around. The red light beam inspecting each nook and cranny until it sees me.

Yeah, that's Thomas. Only he would try and succeed in making comic book villain tech a reality.

I eye the dagger on my nightstand. It won't do much, but anything is better than nothing. I leap for it, practically grasping the handle, but it leaps out of my own hands.

Spiders. Thousands of them. All no larger than a grain of rice. However, enough of them to form a humanoid shape of someone I know dear—Sophia, obviously. Who else do I know that uses spiders?

There's still the clawed gauntlets in my suitcase, and yet, the second I look at them, the suitcase goes up in flames. Wait… "SHIT!" I grab a towel and try suffocating the azure flames quickly spreading to my bed.

They just won't extinguish. Fuck! My bed! My clothes!

I turn to glare at the dragonewt girl standing under the robo-arm. Her face is quickly paling with guilt I can actively feel. The assumed-to-be-Thomas's arm somehow manages to convey disappointment even through a single lens.

Thomas walks in, eight of the arms visibly retreating into his torso. Wearing a welding mask and wielding a fire extinguisher, he coats the remainder of my not-charred belongings in foam.

"Okay." I take a deep breath. "I'm no longer contemplating leaving, but now I want to commit several murders."

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Nora edges out of frame, but Thomas teleports behind her and grabs her shoulder. He looks pissed, but not as much as I'm feeling right now.

"I already don't have much," I drawl, "but you just took away what I had."

Why didn't I think of this earlier?

I raise my hand to my right, keeping my eyes locked with Thomas, and will a knife towards me.

*Crash* The sound of something ceramic breaking meets us. A knife doesn't come into my hand, but instead lodges itself in Thomas's temple.

"Oh," he states. "That's not good."

With a slight tug, the knife is removed from his cranium, and his silver nanobots cover up the injury and camouflage themselves, leaving it spotless.

"Alice, I know you're reasonably angry right now. But, uh…damn. I prepared a different speech on the way here."

"What about?" I cross my arms over my chest.

"Something about how you really shouldn't feel bad about Wilcox's death, but should still wield your power correctly. Then, Nora decided to feed her inner arsonist and now I've done this, and… Sophia's raiding your fridge. Ehh- Gah!" He tries to strangle the air with his hands.

"Ugh. Fine. Just…Alice, I'll pay for all of this," he gestures around. The thousands of spiders have made several sandwiches and consumed them. Dang, now I have to get bread too. "So, free shopping spree, but I also want you to take some…advice from us.

Just…please. Think about your actions. To be honest, inducing a senator towards suicide isn't that bad. If it were anyone else, you'd be on a one-way trip to the sun. You have power. Be aware of that now."

"Hopefully, you don't get a bad class-up option from this," he mumbles. Classes? Are those… uh…

"Thomas? I, uh— What's a class?"

"You know, that thing that gives you specialized skills, stats, and titles and junk." He waves me off, then blinks. Blinks again. Turns towards me. Stares. "Alice." He swallows. "Do you not have a class?"

"No," I shrug. "Plus, after my first evolution, nothing's happened. I'd expect more from my level-ups."

Spiders-Sophia perks up. She-It-They? Whatever Sophia is right now glides over towards me, peeking around.

Nora, the scamp, decides that this is the opportune moment to flee. Noticing this, Thomas yanks her back by her wings. "Oh no you don't! You're not getting out of this one scot-free!"

Thomas turns back to me, a struggling Nora under his arm. "I wonder…normally, monsters would get an evolution into a class. You…went the other way around. Could it have possibly thrown an error into the system?"

I shrug. "Don't know, but I still want you guys out of my apartment. I'm probably going to have to explain to my neighbors what the noise was."

Thomas looks at the walls, back and forth, eyeing the growing mold in the corner. "Yeah… Once you get an official paycheck, I'd suggest moving out of here."

"That's…a plan. Yeah." I'm…such a bad hero. Ready to flee after about just a month. My mom was right… I—Why me? Why was I given this power? I'll just squander it again…

Thomas and I stand there…awkwardly. He begins rocking back and forth on his heels, ignoring the still-struggling Nora. "Welp! I guess we'll just, uh, leave. Sorry about the mess, but, uh, do think on our words. Try to avoid manipulating people."

With that, they're gone… I sigh, staring at the floor, then I stomp the floor in growing anger.

Dang it! I need them to train my own teleportation skill. Thomas didn't help last time, because of his brain-virus. Plus, I'd like to get more magic under my belt.

Just water and earth aren't exactly cutting it for me anymore.

Turning to my charred bed, I stare. It's all just…ash.

So many things have changed in my life recently, but it all feels like I've remained stagnant. Still the emotionless girl sitting in the corner of the office, making sure the company's filing its taxes correctly.

Still the girl in college with…two of her best friends. One the social butterfly, the other a shut-in, and me…in-between.

Still the girl in high school who never hung out with anyone outside of school. Only listened to other kids in school. A wallflower, essentially. I never even paid attention to any of the various fights around school.

The girl with an absent father who betrayed her mother. A mother who eventually became a police captain, abused her power, and became the definition of a helicopter parent. Almost to the point of being abusive.

And now, here I stand, static to the dynamic world.

Agh! I'm an emotional mess right now.

I need Maddy.