“Don’t worry, mom...I’m fine. I’m fine! The club activity took longer than I expected. Anyways...what? You want me to send a picture of where I am? Ok...here you go. And no...I’m not in danger! Trust me! Ok...bye! See you later!”
By the time Cassie left Officer Payton’s home after blocking him from the memories of what happened, the young woman received a call from her mother. Not surprising, considering the day was already getting quite late after her trips. Cassie knew her excuse of being in a school activity would fall apart more and more the longer she was out here. The wisest thing to do now would be to race back to school right now and call in the ride.
But Cassie wasn’t done yet. Both the teacher and the officer were handled in ways that she considered appropriate, but Cassie wasn’t done yet. Not when she was aware of a highly malicious crime organization lurking in the city, making a profit on the addiction and suffering of teenagers who didn't know anything better.
Even as she commandeered an Uber ride, Cassie couldn’t help but feel the need to do something. Who knew how much more drugs would be sold if she waited? How many people might fall victim to the Cartel if she went home now and came back tomorrow? Officer Payton couldn’t do anything because he was afraid, but she wasn’t afraid.
Not when she could break people with her mind.
As the car moved, Cassie slowly tapped a key on the side of the door and opened the glass window of the vehicle. Cold air brushed past her head, and it made her cool down a little. As her emotions wore off, Cassie went over how she handled officer Payton.
In hindsight, her decision to remove the officer from his job felt a little rash. After all, he did have his reasons, but Cassie also had hers.
Yes. The Reese Cartel was vicious. If what Payton told her was true, then they have killed a lot of people, police officers included. Payton had reason to be scared. Yet...wasn’t that exactly what the cartel wanted? They sent a threat, and as an officer of the law, Payton cowered before the threat, turning a blind eye to clearly illegal deeds in the school. Sure, he wanted to live, but who didn't? If every member of the law enforcement acted like him and turned a blind eye on any vicious criminal organization in fear of danger, then the nation was as good as doomed and the law would be no more than empty rhetoric.
It was a matter of principle as far as Cassie could see. Perhaps she would change her mind later, but as of now, she had no such intention.
The Uber ride she hitched drove deeper and deeper into the Southern side of Chicago. The deeper it went, and the darker the day got, the more chaotic the streets became. Cassie could see homeless people on the side of the road, staring at her car with dead eyes. She could see groups of suspected gang members wandering around, examining pedestrians with malicious intent.
It was sickening.
The car finally came to a stop. Wiping the driver of his memories of her and hopping off, Cassie quickly found herself standing in front of what seemed to be a strip club. Truth to be told, she had never seen a strip club before in real life, and she had no intention to. Then again, she was here already, and she wasn’t turning back now.
From what the officer told her, this strip club was one of the many places where dealers of the Reese Cartel frequented. There were more locations, but this was the closest.
The day was quite dark already, and Cassie could clearly tell the club was already in business. There were men and women alike walking into the club. Most of them didn't look too wealthy. After all, even if the rich wanted to loosen up a little, they would think twice before coming to this part of the city. The only customers here were those too poor for fancier places.
A few of the men that walked by eyed Cassie curiously. It was no surprise that the young woman stood out from the crowd. For one thing, she didn't look like the type to visit an establishment like this. And perhaps wearing short-sleeved t-shirts and jeans in a place like this wasn’t the best idea.
Normally, Cassie would feel a little shy when being associated with a place as disgusting and filthy as a strip club, but as of the moment, she had more things to worry about. As she got out of the car and reality hit her, she found herself frozen. Paralyzed. Confused.
What was she even doing here? She was a student! She should be at home right now doing her homework! Instead, she was standing here in the worst part of the city, in front of a strip club that might contain all the sins this city had to offer. This would have been unimaginable to her a few months, or even weeks, ago. Her parents were probably terrified back home, wondering where the hell their daughter went!
A few hours ago, she was still dealing with a teacher who bullied her students. Now, she wanted to take on a vicious, murderous cartel on her own? Once again, she wasn’t a superhero! She wasn’t Batman or the Green Arrow! She was just an ordinary, paranoid teenager who was somehow blessed by a supernatural entity!
She really shouldn’t be doing this. This wasn’t even her responsibility! So what if the cartel was dealing drugs in her school? It wasn’t like they were forcing people to buy from them! All the buyers did so on their own accord! And like the many times she was told, this was none of her business! If those kids want to buy drugs with their own money, then so be it!
Stolen story; please report.
For a moment, Cassie stood there in silence. A part of her wondered if she should just hitch a ride home. Let the police or the FBI deal with the Reese Cartel. After all, they weren’t coming after her, were they? If anything, it was she who was going after them for little reason at all!
That was when someone hit Cassie in the shoulder, and a young woman walked by her. Cassie’s eyes subconsciously blinked as she glanced into the young woman’s current thoughts. The thoughts by themselves were of little importance, but they reminded Cassie of something.
For whatever reason, she had these powers. She could break a person’s will with her mind. She could subdue gunners without giving them the chance to fire a single shot. She could make the toughest criminals confess every single crime they have ever committed since they were just teenagers. Unlike many people in the world, she had the power to make changes. Positive changes.
Yes. She could sit back and do nothing. After all, she was fully capable of protecting herself, and her family, and even everyone she cared about from the injustices of the world. No matter how much the world burned, she would likely be fine. But...did she really want to do that?
There were a lot of bad people in this world. This was what Cassie had been taught since she could remember things. Drug-traffickers. Dirty cops. Serial killers. Corrupt businessmen. The law was designed to protect the common people, the weak and the innocent, but despite the best efforts of the brightest in law enforcement, some evil was bound to slip through the cracks. Some evil deeds were doomed to occur unnoticed.
If she stood back and did nothing, how many people would pay the price? Defenseless innocents. Women and children. How many people would suffer because she refused to act?
The Reese Cartel had already killed many people. Those thugs have mutilated and killed police officers who were just doing their job. Good men and women who have sworn an oath and stood by that until the very end. Cassie couldn’t save them, and if she did nothing today, how many more good men and women would have to die in the future?
Could she really live with that? Could she really allow herself to stand idly by and watch the world pay the price? When she could step in and, unlike many people, actually help and save people without risking her own life?
The answer was no. She couldn’t. She simply couldn’t forgive herself if she let people get hurt or killed while she herself could’ve stopped it. Not when everyone around her, especially her family, taught her otherwise.
Ultimately, Cassie was a compassionate person. She could stand by and watch people like Mr. Douglas burn for their transgressions. She didn't care about them. But when it came to innocent people, even people who have wronged her but were willing to make changes, she just couldn't be as cruel. She gave Ms. West a second chance, and she never did anything to officer Payton aside from potentially taking his job. While others in her position with her power could've used it for personal wealth and enjoyment, Cassie had no such intentions. She barely even thought of that possiblity.
It was at that moment that Cassie made her decision. People could call her whatever they wanted, but in the end, her decision was made. She would hold the criminals and the anarchists responsible for their wrongdoings, and in the end, the law would be enforced.
----------------------------------------
As soon as Cassie made up her mind, she could feel herself bathed in renewed confidence. Perhaps she was hallucinating, but she felt her powers growing a little as well.
Cassie was more determined than ever as she walked into the strip club. There were two bouncers at the door. Big men in black suits with no-nonsense looks. Strangely, they weren't collecting entrance fees from the customers. Their job was to keep out problems, but they just let the biggest problem in the city enter their club without batting an eye.
Cassie’s appearance was extremely deceptive.
Once she entered the club, a sea of sounds hit her right in the face. It took Cassie a good minute to adjust to what was going on indoor.
The club was surprisingly big on the inside. There were bars, sofas, and tables that covered a good portion of the floor. Loud music blasted out of speakers mounted all across the floor. A pole was on a stage in the middle of the floor, and Cassie watched speechlessly as several women with more skin bare than clothed shamelessly danced around the pole.
Even as a straight woman, Cassie couldn’t help but blush a little.
The music continued blasting and the dancers continued dancing, and Cassie slowly found her way to the bar. She was careful not to touch anyone else as she moved. No one tried to lay a finger on her either. Good for them, because otherwise, Cassie's tolerance to this place might have been pushed over the edge.
“Anything alcoholic?” She demanded loudly, practically yelling. The constant blasting of music was sufficient to drown out anything less than that.
A bartender with curly blonde hair made her way to Cassie. She was a hot woman in her twenties. What she wore closely matched with the overall atmosphere of the strip club. Once again, Cassie blushed slightly and diverted her eyes when the woman approached her. She really wasn't used to scenarios like this.
“How can I help you, young lady?” The scarcely dressed bartender asked with a polite smile.
“Oh, I want something alcoholic, please.” Cassie replied. As she was talking, she turned back and looked into the bartender’s eyes. She only used the first phase of her power, and surprisingly, she didn't feel anything malicious from the bartender. Only concern.
Cassie wasn’t powerful enough to read the bartender’s exact thoughts at this phase.
“Uh…” The woman paused at the request as she scanned Cassie’s expression. “You don’t look like you’re at the drinking age, miss. Can I see your ID?”
“Oh please!” Cassie exclaimed, feigning annoyance. “If I wanted my ID checked, I wouldn’t be here!” She turned and pointed at the bouncers at the door. “If you guys are checking IDs, shouldn’t you be doing that at the door? I mean...unless you guys are fine with me seeing naked strippers but have a problem with me drinking…”
The bartender sighed. She scanned the surroundings, made sure no one was watching, before leaning forward and speaking to Cassie as quietly as possible.
“Look, young lady...I don’t know who you are or what your story is. Maybe you had a fight with your parents and you are here to say 'fuck you' to them. Or maybe you think this is the cool or adult thing to do. But please...go home now. This is no place for you.” She looked around again. “You don’t want to be here.”
For a second, Cassie found herself speechless. She knew exactly what was happening here, and she never had any intention of drinking a drop of alcohol. Ever. All she wanted to do was to get some intel from whoever was giving her her drink, and that was failing in a way that made Cassie want to smile.