Phil sat in the waiting lounge of the Karalis General Hospital. It was fairly empty tonight, a good thing if fewer people were getting hurt. Besides Phil, there were a young mother and her child sitting at the other end, an old man who'd fallen asleep in his chair, and the receptionist talking to someone on the phone.

'This is it. Last chance.' Phil gulped as he waited. Farmer's deadline for finding like-minded police officers was only a few days away, and he'd had no success. Andrea had tried to help too, but even together they hadn't found anyone promising.

Like Farmer had warned, the Interference had really slowed down. The families' alliance had been hard to crack, and higher government officials were much more difficult to deal with now. However, there was supposed to be something big in a few days. Andrea had found a connection between Chief Atreus and one of the Eastern gangs that Farmer was going to check out. Hopefully, that would turn up something.

While Phil was lost in thought, the reason he'd come to the hospital in the first place walked out. A man headed towards the exit, and Phil got up to meet him.

"Excuse me," Phil stepped in front of the man just as he left through the door. The winter air was chilly, but he fought the urge to shiver when greeting him. "You're Lucas Balli, right?"

"I am." Mr. Balli looked to be in his forties and not in the best mood. Stubble had formed on his chin, looking like he hadn't shaved in days, and he must not have gotten much sleep either based on the bags under his eyes. His face twisted in annoyance, and Phil could feel his chance slipping, but he had to try anyway.

"Great!" Then, Phil winced and dropped his smile. A cheery mood wasn't what he needed right now. "I, um, heard about your daughter. Were you here to visit her?"

Balli's eyes narrowed. "Yeah. Who are you?"

"I'm Phil Helios. About your daughter, it's terrible what happened. I'm sorry to give you more bad news, but have you heard that the investigation into the shooters is being dropped?"

"What?! How?" His face seared with rage. "No, damn it, I don't need you to tell me. The bastards handed some money over to whoever's in charge of it and they rolled over like dogs." He spit on the sidewalk. "Am I right?"

Phil nodded. "You are. I'm an officer too, and I'm disgusted that it would happen for anyone."

"You are, eh? Well, thanks for telling me all that, I guess. Even if it pisses me off that my daughter gets shot in the street and the police don't do a damn thing about it."

"Then sir, would you want an opportunity to help change the police? To bring reform so that people don't suffer like you and your daughter?"

"That's a neat idea, reforming the police," Balli silently scrutinized him for a few seconds, then snorted. "You don't look young enough to be that naïve. Are you serious?"

Phil frowned. "What's naïve about it? Haven't you heard about the recent actions taken against criminal syndicates in the city? And you must know about how police are scared to take bribes."

"Yeah, I know about all that. So what? Some of our uniformed bastards on the street are scared, but the same shit is still happening. If you want proof, look at my daughter." He pointed back to the hospital.

"Yes, there are plenty of people in the government abusing their power, but now we have a chance to change it! Wait!" Phil matched Balli's pace, since he'd started to walk away. "Please, you should at least be interested to know who attacked your daughter!"

Balli came to a stop. He turned to face Phil. "You're saying you know who tried to kill her? How?"

"It's related to how you can help reform the police. I have a-let's say a relationship with people who can get information on the government." Phil shivered, the cold finally getting to him. "If you want to hear more, can we go somewhere warm first?"

"Fine, but you better not be wasting my time. I know a bar nearby, follow me." Balli led the way.

On the walk there, Phil could barely hide his excitement. He was actually making progress! Balli had been as dismissive of the idea of reform as the other few Phil had spoken to, but his daughter's tragedy had at least convinced him to listen.

That was a good thing, it was, but Phil couldn't help thinking that it was manipulative to keep bringing up Balli's daughter. Andrea had predicted that the information on her attack would be Phil's main bargaining chip, but he hadn't been prepared to use it so much. He'd hoped that preventing other people from being pushed aside by the system would be enough.

Maybe if he'd made a better argument for how Balli could help bring reform, Phil wouldn't have needed to resort to mentioning his daughter's attackers.

Phil shook his head. He could feel bad later. Farmer was counting on him, and this could make all the difference when the Interference left.

They arrived at the bar and sat down at a table in the corner. The closest customers were a few tables down, too far to hear them, and they seemed preoccupied with their own drinking game anyway.

"If you want me to hear you out, you're paying," Balli said.

"What? Come on, that's unreasonable."

"Shut up. When you talk about a pipe dream like reforming the police, you're lucky I'm even giving you the time of day."

Phil grumbled and agreed. He wasn't going to drink, and thankfully, Balli didn't order anything expensive.

Balli drank some liquor and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Talk."

"The people who attacked your daughter were from the Iona family."

"Iona huh? Sounds believable, it's in their area. Why'd they do it?"

"We're not sure on that. From what we could tell, she stumbled onto something the Ionas were up to and she ran. They shot her, but since she dropped off a ledge and landed in a public space on a lower level, they didn't pursue her. How is she, by the way?"

"She'd be dead if she hadn't landed in water. She needs surgery though, and there's a chance she might not walk again." After a silent moment, Balli drained his glass by half.

"I-I'm sorry."

"Be sorry if I find out what you're saying doesn't add up. Anything more you can tell me?"

"Yes. Chief Atreus personally shut down the investigation into the incident. It seems like he and the Ionas had worked out an agreement to have their activities in that area overlooked. Police patrols started being directed away from there a few months ago."

Balli growled. "Fucking bastard. Okay, I can believe it, but how am I supposed to know if it's true?"

"I-I can't tell you, but . . . don't you want to make sure crimes against your friends and family aren't brushed aside? To do that, we need to reform the police. We need your help."

"Who's 'we'? You have other cops with you?"

"Only one other officer, but we have other useful people. Like reliable sources of information which we can use to get high-ranking officials dismissed."

"Alright, but that still leaves me where I was before. No way of knowing whether or not you're telling the truth."

Phil's lips pressed together. There was one thing he could say that would probably convince Balli, but he didn't know whether or not he could say it. What he'd already said could lead another officer to suspect the Interference, this would only heighten the risk.

"In a few days, Chief Atreus is going to face major charges," Phil said. "Even I don't know what they'll be, but I can promise that he'll have a lot of trouble fighting them. If he's forced to resign and if enough officers make their voices heard when deciding his replacement, it'll be a big step towards real change."

"Going after the chief, huh? You and your friends must have some balls."

"Yeah, I guess. More importantly, do you believe me?"

"Not yet, but if Atreus really does get the axe in a few days, fine. I'll do whatever you need in order to get rid of him and make sure whoever's next isn't just like him."

"Yes! Thank you so much!" Phil grabbed the man's hand and shook vigorously. At a glare from the man, he let go and sat back down. "Sorry. Also, would you happen to know any other officers who'd be willing to help after hearing me out? Officers with families like you would probably be our best chance."

Balli nodded. "Yeah, I know a few who have the sense to get rid of Atreus if we can. Before that though, let's fill up on drinks. Hey, over here!" He called a server over.

Phil sighed and pulled out his wallet.

Balli gestured at him. "Put that away. I'll pay for this round. For the rest of the night, you just listen to what I have to say about these cops."

\\\\\

The sun was low in the sky, but it was a clear day and their familiar cleft was easily lit up. It was a cold weekend morning. Not that Clark could feel it, but he could see everyone else's breath fog. Out of curiosity, when they'd first gotten here he'd looked at the surrounding rocks in infrared and guessed at the temperature. It had only been two degrees off.

Clark stepped to the side from Nora's hammer, deflected Ren's bullets with his gauntlets, then defended against both Pyrrha and Jaune's swords. There were a few near misses, but he kept moving so that they'd have a hard time attacking him simultaneously.

"Ren!" Jaune called out.

The student in green burst forward and fought Clark at close-range. His gauntlets blocked the blades and a strong punch sent Ren tumbling back into Jaune.

Just as Jaune yelled. "Now!"

Clark caught the shotgun slug from Pyrrha while Jaune did his best to catch Ren. Clark jumped back. It was a good habit to keep all four of them in view, even if he could pinpoint them with super-hearing.

He'd graduated to fighting a full team a few weeks ago, and while it had been hard at first, he'd adapted well. So far, he'd only been hit twice in this session. Once by Pyrrha's sword and tagged by one of Ren's shots. The days when his clothes got ripped to shreds were in the not-so-distant past. Since they hadn't been able to figure out what was up with his aura, if he actually had any, they would continue until his enemies' aura levels were depleted.

With group spars, the point wasn't to be aware of everything that each person on the was doing, it was to focus on what was most important. Which, to be fair, could only be done after a lot of practice, but that's what he'd gotten since group spars had begun.

Nora was heading towards him with Pyrrha behind her for support. He didn't have to listen for fingers being pressed against triggers, because if he was this close to those two, it wasn't worth it for Ren to risk friendly fire.

The hammer traced a wide, horizontal arc. Compared to the speed of the others' blades, it was a slow strike that Clark could dodge without even relying on super-speed.

He reached into his gauntlet and threw out some half-inch pellets. Faster and heavier than many normal bullets, but not so much that their aura couldn't handle it.

Nora used the shaft of her hammer to block the attack. Although she grit her teeth in pain at a couple that made it past and hit her aura. Meanwhile, as Clark had planned, Pyrrha opted to use her shield rather than deflect with her sword.

He kicked Nora in the side, throwing her into Pyrrha. She dodged her teammate, but barely brought her shield up in time to block his fist. With a clang, she stumbled back.

"Formation C!" Jaune shouted. He and Ren jumped forward. Ren was faster, so Clark went after him first. Clark blocked his wrists, then avoided a kick that he tried to sneak in. A final punch to the chest thrust him at Jaune.

Pyrrha fired from the distance. Clark caught the bullet again and hurled it back at her in the split-second before dodging a ground-shattering hit from Nora. Jaune and Ren came in next.

It was interesting that Jaune was keeping Pyrrha, their strongest fighter, at a distance. Not a single hit managed to make it past Clark's defense as they maintained this formation, although the tough metal of his gauntlets started to get a bit worse for wear. That was common with these spars though, and like everyone else, he had to perform constant maintenance on them.

If he didn't, Ruby would yell at him. Especially since she'd worked so hard to get a replacement for the one that had been destroyed.

"Now Nora!" Jaune shouted.

Clark angled his body towards her, but she jumped back. Instead, from behind, Pyrrha raced towards him. He spun in the opposite direction, slowing himself down. He'd been vaguely aware of her moving around but hadn't realized the importance of it.

He wasn't going to be able to block it in time. If he didn't do something, she was going to get another hit in.

He clapped. The others were too far away for it to do much, since Clark had to avoid hurting Pyrrha too badly with it. Making it sort of a waste. He'd been allotted two and hadn't used the move at all this round.

Still, he wasn't going to let them hit him a third time. Even he'd caught a bit of the competitive spirit after sparring so often with them.

The burst of air propelled Pyrrha back, and her teammates managed to brace themselves. Her landing wasn't graceful, but her recovery was quick.

"Formation D!" Jaune gave out another order. Which apparently meant they were all supposed to come in for close-range. A combo from Nora and Ren kept Clark busy while Jaune and Pyrrha came in around.

They were spaced pretty evenly apart and attacked in turns, making sure not to get in each other's way. It was an impressive display of teamwork. They hardly even exchanged words, but Clark did notice Jaune signaling the others by tapping his sword against his shield or swinging it in a certain way.

Jaune coordinated them well. He shouted letters like "I-A!" or "H!" indicating who was going to attack. They weren't initials, and it seemed like each person was allotted multiple letters. Clark memorized them, although it seemed like Jaune had sprinkled in some which didn't correspond to anything in order to throw him off.

Jaune was a capable leader and strategist, Clark had learned that much. However, as a combatant, he was the weak point of the team.

Which was why Clark focused on him. He unbalanced Jaune and kicked him into the distance. The rest of the team wasn't crippled by a lapse in orders, but Clark did get a decent punch in on Nora.

With a patient and calm technique, Clark worked through JNPR until each member's aura was too low for them to continue.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Off to the side, Ruby and Oscar looked equally tired as the four who'd just fought Clark. They'd been also training, and according to everyone else, Oscar had improved at a great pace.

"Did your spar go well?" Clark asked. "From what I heard, it was a lot of grunting and groaning."

"You were listening to us during your own fight?" Ruby crossed her arms, upset. "If you're going to tell me I need to get better at hand-to-hand, I already get enough of that from Yang and Uncle Qrow."

"Hey, if you're still complaining, I think Clark telling you to shape up won't hurt." Yang grinned and slapped her sister on the back.

"I wasn't going to mention it," Clark said. "Even though it is worrying that Oscar isn't far from your level without a weapon."

"Because I always have Crescent Rose with me! I'll probably never need to fight without her!"

"Okay okay. Anyway Oscar, does Ozpin have any pointers for me?"

"Yeah, just a second." Oscar closed his eyes then transformed.

"I don't need you to babysit me like before," Jaune said.

Clark's eyes flit over to where Jaune and Pyrrha stood. They'd separated from everyone else, far enough that Clark normally would be able to tune them out, but Jaune's harsh tone had forced his attention on them.

Ozpin spoke. "It seems you're still reluctant to challenge Ms. Nikos head-on. While in terms of skill you're still below her, with your growth-

"I need to train more, and I know how to pace myself. I don't need you or the others watching me like before."

"You also tend to avoid probing. Your pellets are well suited for-

"I-I'm sorry. Jaune, we didn't mean to make you feel tha-

"Feinting as well. You've improved at spotting them, but not using them-

"Well how do you think I feel having everyone watch out for me?!"

"Mr. Kent, are you listening?"

Clark nodded and agreed with Ozpin's advice. "You're right, I need to probe and feint more."

"Very well, then-

It was a strange sensation, taking in multiple voices at once. Clark's concentration didn't flag. He had to focus more than usual with his hearing to keep track of them, but it wasn't like he was tuning in to one conversation then the other. Just taking them in as they spoke.

It wasn't until Jaune stormed off and ended his and Pyrrha's argument that Clark was able to properly consider their conversation. He hadn't known that Jaune still felt inadequate and seeing Pyrrha distraught only made it worse.

However, Clark found it hard to get too upset at Jaune. As even though Jaune's heart pounded with frustration, his posture revealed guilt over his severe treatment towards his partner.

\\\\\

Clark stepped from rooftop to rooftop as he followed Simon Atreus' car and rock loomed overhead. On this level of the city, many of the buildings were high enough to nearly scrape the bottom of the next level and they were significantly further apart.

'Stepped' was and wasn't the right word for what Clark was doing. Jumped would have been more accurate, but it still wouldn't have been the right way to describe how he bent his ankle to propel himself across the gaps.

He thought it was a pretty cool display of strength, but he didn't do it just to show off. A while ago, he'd realized that it was somehow a lot more silent than his normal jumps. With his ears, the difference was palpable, although he wasn't sure what caused it.

He suspected that he was subconsciously flying, at least a bit, so it was good practice since nothing else he'd tried had worked.

The car stopped a few blocks down, and Simon Atreus stepped out. He was dressed in a suit and his hair had been groomed. With a relaxed smile, he entered a brightly lit hotel with a fountain in front. It was one of the tallest buildings on this level and it had a dark circle encircled by a white ring as a logo.

Inside, Atreus was greeted by Chen Yu, head of the New Moon gang. Andrea had told Clark that he'd be there. He was the sole justification for using X-ray vision and super-hearing to spy on them.

Chen nodded respectfully. "Mr. Atreus, I'm surprised you came here personally. We would have been happy to deliver your entertainment."

"Yeah, that's what I normally would have done, but I can't risk it at the moment. I'm sure you understand. Besides, it's been way too long since I've spent a night here."

"I do understand, and I'm grateful that you like it. I already have your suite prepared. Once inside, you can make your selection."

A male employee behind Chen led Atreus to the elevator and brought him to his suite. It looked like one of the best ones in the hotel. It was close to the top floor and had various rooms inside. A living area with a large TV, a fully stocked kitchen with a bar, a bathroom with an enormous tub and spouts for water jets, and a bedroom with a bed big enough to fit several people.

There was wine and a cheese platter on the dining table, along with a tablet. Atreus brought them over to the couch, which he leaned back into with a relaxed sigh.

Atreus was a police chief. Where did he get the money for this? Bribes? Embezzling police funds? Clark hadn't found much more than rumors, and he was hoping that this would be the chance to gather evidence admissible in a court.

Atreus had already tried the cheese, but he gave the tablet a hungry look. He spent a while reading the screen then grinned wide as he pressed some option. With another few taps, loud music started playing over a speaker system, and he drank some wine with a contented sigh.

Disappointment filled Clark as he watched the man relax in a hotel room for several minutes. Affording all this was suspicious, but not good enough.

Then, a woman was brought up to Atreus' level. She looked like she was in her mid-twenties and was accompanied by a well-muscled man in sunglasses. Her head hung down and long brown hair framed the sides of her face. She wore a long blue dress, and her face was covered with make-up and held a blank expression.

A prostitute. Clark tried not to make assumptions about the woman but made no exception for Atreus.

It was disgusting, trying to buy sex from people, but prostitution wasn't illegal in Mistral. It might hurt Atreus' reputation, but that wasn't what Clark was here for. He almost left right then and there.

What stopped him was a whimper from the woman at a few words from her escort. A horrifying thought running through Clark's mind, and he continued watching, hoping that he was wrong.

The escort knocked on the door. Once Atreus opened it, he said "The girl you asked for is here."

Atreus' eyes locked onto her. "Perfect." He guided her in with an arm around the shoulder and was so absorbed that he didn't even close the door. The escort shut it for them and left.

As Atreus brought her to the living room, shudders ran through her body. They sat down.

"So, how long have you been doing this?" Atreus asked.

She didn't meet his eyes. "You're my first customer."

The words gave Clark some relief. Maybe she was just nervous. It could still just be a legitimate interaction, even if he didn't approve of it.

Atreus grinned, staring her up and down like she was a piece of meat. "Perfect," he said. "You're telling the truth. Trust me, you girls are great, but you can't act to save your lives."

Her heart pounded in fear. "I-I'll try if that's what you want."

"Well it isn't. What I do want is to get a better look at you." He grabbed her chin and made her face him. Even then she didn't meet his gaze. He angled her face up and down, and a second hand came forward to run over her body. "Fucking beautiful. Especially that scared look. God, you just can't fake it."

Clark scowled and reached over for a pellet from his gauntlet. He'd lose the chance to find out more on Atreus, but he wasn't just going to let this happen. Making it look like a gunshot should be enough to stop him. Although Clark had to wait till they got near a window and saw the hole it would make. Otherwise, it wouldn't be heard over the music. Throwing it hard enough to pierce the walls was too risky, the high-speed debris would be fatal.

Atreus let go and she immediately looked to the floor. "Hey, did you have a boyfriend before Chen found you?"

"No."

Atreus' smile vanished and he pulled her by the hair, making her cry out. "Don't lie to me. Understand?" He loosened his grip. "I know you had one. It's part of why I chose you. Now, what's your name?"

"Alexandra."

"Good. See, it's easy to say the truth. Now, what's your boyfriend's name?"

"Will."

"Good. Were you going to try and think of him? Make it easier for yourself? Tell the truth now, or I'll tell that big guy who brought you here."

She nodded, tears dripping down her face.

"Holy fuck, crying already. You have any idea how hard that gets me? Feel." He pulled her hand into his crotch. She gasped in surprise.

Clark's eyes blazed with fury. He looked away and kept his eyes closed for a few seconds to keep his heat vision under control. That didn't stop his hearing though.

When she sobbed, Atreus groaned. "Good. Do it just like that when we're in bed." He pulled her up.

Glass shattered. The building rumbled.

Alexandra screamed at Clark's sudden entrance. Atreus jumped back and shouted. "Wh-what the-who the hell are you?!"

Clark walked forward.

"Hey, stay back! I'm warning you. I'm chief of police!" He reached down, then swore, likely because he didn't have his gun with him. He tried to run.

Clark caught up and gave Atreus a mild tap. It sent him flying into the bar in the kitchen. Parts of it were bolted down, so Clark grabbed the legs of a metal chair and bent them around Atreus until he had no chance weaseling out.

Atreus was still conscious, bruised at worst, and he looked down at his restraints in shock.

"Simon Atreus. Listen to me," Clark said. He knelt down and shoved a hand against his mouth in case he dared to speak again. "In the morning, when you're found, you're going to be charged for rape. You won't be chief of police anymore. You'll be nobody. Just another pathetic excuse for a person who's lucky he gets to go to prison with the possibility to change."

Clark stood up and threw pellets at every speaker in the ceiling blaring that awful music. Once it was silent, he spoke to the hiding figure behind the couch.

"Miss Alexandra?" his voice was soft, an attempt to make it as comforting as possible. "It's alright. You're safe now, you can come out."

It didn't work. All she did was cry.

"Miss?" Clark took slow steps towards her. She didn't move, but at a frantic knock on the door she made herself smaller and her sobs got louder.

"Mr. Atreus! Mr. Atreus, are you alright?" A man called out from the hall.

In a moment, Clark was by Atreus and muffled his voice again with his hand.

The man continued. "We're sorry about the disturbance. We've had complaints from many customers, but we assure you the building is safe."

Clark cursed himself. What had he been thinking? He hadn't needed to force his way in here to stop Atreus, and even if he had, he could have done it without alerting the entire building.

Atreus bit down on his finger, but his teeth were barely even able to push into Clark's skin. The man seemed to realize his mistake, paling when he met Clark's eyes. At a flick to his teeth, he cried out into Clark's hand. It must have been a sharp pain, but at most a tooth or two would be loosened.

Clark ripped off part of another stainless-steel leg and shaped it into a gag for Atreus, stuffing it in his mouth and wrapping it around his head. Clark dealt with the man outside by opening the door and instantly pulling him in.

With one hand, Clark held the man against the wall and pressed a hand to the man's mouth to shut him up. He didn't have the patience for his confusion.

"Do you work for Chen Yu? Do you know what he's done to that woman over there?"

Clark removed his hand so the man could answer. "Wh-who-

A fist thrust into the marble wall next to the man's head. "Yes or no. Answer me."

"Yes! Yes to both, I knew!"

"Then you're going to spend the night with Atreus over there." Clark kept the man's feet above the ground as he walked over.

His eyes went wide at the sight of Alexandra with a kitchen knife in her hands, her entire body trembling. She held it up, staring at them with frightened eyes.

"Miss. I understand that you're angry, but there's no need to use that."

She screamed and hurled herself at them. However, Clark grabbed her wrist just as the knife was inches from his own skin.

"What are you doing?" Clark's question was almost a whisper as he stared down at her in confusion. There was no mistaking that she'd aimed for him.

He twisted the knife from her hands and kicked it away. She fell to her knees and hunched over. "No no. Please, I tried so hard. I tried to fight him . . ."

Clark looked over at the man in his hands. "What did you do to her?"

"We just make sure they know that it'll be bad for them if they leave! I don't know exactly."

"Them?" Clark brought the man closer until their faces were only inches apart. "There are more of them? Where?!"

"In the basement!"

Clark flexed his wrist and threw the man right next to Atreus. He received the same bindings of bent steel.

"Alexandra?" Clark walked over to her. "We need to go. I'm going to get you out of here."

"No . . . no . . . they'll kill me. I know they will."

"They won't. I'll protect you."

She shook her head. Not listening at all.

"Then I'll show you I can. Please stay here until I get back." Clark didn't want to leave her, but he couldn't spare a moment if there were other women here were suffering just like her.

He tore off some more steel bars and walked out the door. He placed them across the frame, melting the ends so they'd attach. When he made a satisfactory barrier, he flashed down the stairs to the basement.

He knocked the armed guards out and smashed the locked doors in an instant. Each woman was kept in a tiny room, hardly more than a closet.

He went to one end of the hall and waited for their shock to fade. However, only a few even approached the door. The rest kept to their beds and covered their ears, muttering like Alexandra.

"Everyone, please come out!" Clark said.

Nearly all of them scrambled at his words. A few even hurt themselves by scraping their arms or legs on door fragments in their rush to come out. Then, in a saddening display, all sixteen in cheap, plain white clothing stood outside their rooms with their heads down. They weren't all women. A few were girls even younger than Ruby.

"I'm going to get you all out of here. To do that, I'm going to need all of you to listen to me. Understood?"

"Wh-where are Zhu and the others?" One of them asked.

"If you're talking about the guards. The ones on this floor have been taken care of." Clark said. He could hear Chen's men mobilizing on the upper floors. Their main focus was protecting important clients, but a few were coming down. It wouldn't be long until they found the unconscious guards.

A redhead with short hair took slow steps towards him. Cautious, but not completely timid like the others. "Really? Are you telling the truth?"

Clark pointed at the door to the stairs where two of them lay. "Come see for yourself."

She approached, her wary eyes focused on him the entire way until she rounded the corner and saw. "Oh my-everyone! Everyone come here, he's telling the truth!"

They came forward, unsure, hesitant. However, once they shared in the sight of the powerless guards, a variety of reactions erupted. Disbelief, tears, some even fell to the ground or leaned on the walls to support themselves.

"Everyone!" A hush fell over them at his voice. "I'm going to bring you somewhere safe. It'll be shocking, but please don't be alarmed."

"Wait!" The redhead said. "There are some of us upstairs working. I-I mean, being forced to have sex so Chen can get money."

"Are you crazy, Oma?" Another woman said. "We can't! We have to get out of here as quickly as possible."

"Don't argue. I'll find them." Clark said. "How many are missing?"

Uncertain looks ran through them. Oma spoke up, "I see a few missing faces. Dawn, Alexandra, Gwen. Who else?" She raised her voice to ask the group.

More names came in. There were eight empty rooms, but only five of them were actually occupied. He got their names, but guards approached in the middle of getting descriptions.

"They're coming down the elevator, move out of the way," Clark said. In a frenzy, they ran and once the door opened, he worked through Chen's men before they even realized he was there. He threw their unconscious bodies out into the hall and received gasps from the women.

Lastly, he ripped open the locked hatch to the elevator and burned away the cable. It dropped for a bit before automatic brakes brought it to a halt. No more people would be using it to come down.

"I'm going to bring each of you to a safe place in pairs. Understand?" Once he got a response, he ran forward at super-speed. First were Oma and a woman next to her, and he transported them to the Interference warehouse.

They both shouted at the sudden change in surroundings. He turned a light on. "It's alright. It's alright," he said. "Calm down and stay here. I'll bring the rest over, explain to them what's happened."

He flit from the basement to the warehouse in seven more nonstop round trips. He ignored the guards unless they got too close to the basement. By the time Chen realized that men in the basement were being attacked, all the women were already safely away.

Now, since he already knew where Alexandra was, he only had four more people to find. It might have been fastest to look with X-ray vision, but not when it would mean violating the rights of innocent people in other rooms.

It was one of his strongest beliefs and restrictions on using his powers, but it was nearly broken for this.

Instead, he burst into Chen's room, eliminating the other men. Clark raised him by the cuff of his shirt. His feet didn't touch the ground, but his eyes were still below Clark's.

"Where are the other women you kept down in your basement?" Clark demanded.

"The-the tablet. I need the tablet to find out." Chen pointed to the one on a table.

Clark threw him the few feet to it and Chen stumbled on the landing. He was only able to stay on his feet by gripping the table.

He reached for the gun on his hip, but Clark sped over and smacked his hand.

"Arrgh!" Chen gripped it and would have fallen to his knees if Clark didn't grab him again.

Clark took out Chen's gun and crushed it between his fingers. "Find them. Now."

Chen made some selections and Clark glanced at the four rooms before leaving. First, while carrying Chen, he went Alexandra and swatted away the barrier he'd made. He heard her struggling to open it from the other side. When he did it for her, rather than her previous alarmed reaction, she gaped at them.

"You . . . you were telling the truth," she said.

Clark nodded. "I was. Now, excuse me, but I need to put him right beside Atreus. Wait until I'm done, and you'll be safe with the others."

She hurried out of the way and kept her head held down. "Yes sir."

Clark went over to the bar and dropped Chen with the same consideration as the bales of hay he used to toss around. After he was restrained, Clark used a fingernail to engrave the words 'Simon Atreus, Chief of Police and Rapist' and 'Chen Yu, Head of the New Moon gang and Sex Trafficker'.

"Are you ready?" Clark asked Alexandra.

She nodded.

"Now, don't be alarmed when it happens. The other women will be there to explain." He said, then brought her to the warehouse and returned in less than a second.

The remaining women behaved much the same way Alexandra had. Meek, uncertain whether or not to trust Clark, although none of them attempted the same level of violence that she had. There hadn't been enough time for kind words until the last woman, for the others he hardly even waited for a response before moving them. For the men who'd paid to abuse them, their treatment was the same as Atreus'.

Clark brought the last woman over to the warehouse. Once she calmed down, he addressed them all.

"Everyone, I need silence. I'm sorry, but I don't have anywhere else I can bring you. Is there anything you need for the night?"

"Nothing, sir. We're just grateful that you've saved us. We won't bother you." One of them said, her head bowed. The others nodded and didn't meet his eyes.

"I'm glad, but surely you need some things. Food and water, at least. I don't have any here, but I'll bring them for you."

"Thank you," Oma said. "Also, sir, it's cold in here. We need blankets. There doesn't seem to be a bathroom here either."

"You're right, I should have realized." Clark said, looking around. Even if he didn't feel it, he should have checked for the temperature. Besides the table, Dust generator, and lights, there wasn't any sign of a room or anything else. "Just wait, I'll bring some here."

It took him some time to buy and bring over enough cheap convenience store food and thick blankets for everyone. They all thanked him, but besides a few like Oma, their gratitude was laced with fear. They acted as if he'd punish them if they didn't behave.

"You seem to have gotten a leadership role among them," Clark told Oma. "Can I trust you to keep everyone in here? Or at least convince them to wait until the morning if they want to leave?"

She gave him a surprised look. "The other girls will probably listen to me, but I wouldn't say I'm a leader. I'll try my best though."

"Thank you."

"And sir, I don't think anybody here would risk leaving. They'd find us. Unless you meant the younger girls?"

"If any of you want to leave, I'll make sure you do so safely, but I need to ask a few questions before then. That can wait until morning though, I'll be back then."

"Okay sir. Thank you, we all appreciate what you've done." She bowed, then looked up with a questioning expression. "Um, can I ask, what's your name?"

At the question, several of the others looked to him with interest. "You can call me Farmer," he said. Then he left the building, but before returning to Haven, he closed all the doors and covered any holes in the walls.