The remaining classes in the day are a slog, the quiet thrum of excitement undercutting any chance I had of paying attention. The clock in the corner of Mr. Lorenzo’s crypt ticks softly in the corner, the clunky thing making audible clicks as the seconds trudge by.

“A recent example of metahuman architecture would be the Den, a large underground portion of the city dug out by Mole-Man. The underground tunnels are supported by structures built by Professor Radius, blah blah blah blah…”

Before he’s even got two sentences out on the newest topic of the day, I’ve already tuned him out. My thoughts are obviously laser-focused on more memorable things, like the embarrassing defeat at, of all things, the hands of a civilian and some upstart hero!

I grind my teeth together in rage just thinking about it, but a couple of deep breaths cool it down into a simmering backdrop instead of an all-consuming inferno. So what if the Mechanism’s first outing was a resounding failure in all senses of the word? It’s fine. I can fix that.

The sound of the bell interrupts my thoughts, and like a switch was flipped the tension drains out of me. Finally, I can do something I know I’m good at- hanging out with my friends, and doing a little crime on the side. Well… I will, after I talk to Kayte.

I bounce out of the classroom in a hurry, rushing over to her locker and barely stopping myself from barreling into her. As if she can sense my presence, she spins around mid-sifting through her locker and smiles.

“Maggs! How’d the prof’s escapades go? Did he finally beat Comet this time?” she asks, her raven-like hair twisting and brushing against her tanned cheek from how fast she turns around to look at me. My brain short-circuits for a moment while I thoughtlessly try to remember, but when I catch up to her question I’m left even more speechless.

I… I didn’t read it. I forgot. “Oh, well, you know- I haven’t had the chance to leaf through it yet, Katie. I’ll tell you tomorrow, okay?”

Her bright smile quickly dims, expression turning into one of confusion. “Maggs- you’ve been fixated on that comic since, well, ever! You don’t- you’ve never missed one, not ever!”

Her lips curl into a frown, her fingers intertwining with mine as she holds my hand tightly. “What’s wrong, Megan? Please, you don’t have to hide it.”

“Nothing, Kayte. I’m fine, really.” I try to say, but the pressure doesn’t let up. She just keeps staring expectantly, awaiting my real answer.

Her hazel eyes bore into me, and I can’t help but blurt out the truth. “I fucked up something I’ve been working on, Kayte. Really, really badly. Everything went right, and then I flubbed the landing. Just messed it up as bad as I possibly could have. I’m such a screw-up.” I whisper, tears welling in the corners of my eyes.

I lean into her shoulder, smothering myself in her hair as she pulls me into a hug. The rest of the world fades away, the buzz of the people in the hallway, the footsteps, the social pressures, it all fades away.

“Maggs. You’re not a screw-up, alright? I learned something in psych today- the difference between guilt and shame. Hating yourself for messing up- that’s shame. It’s just not true. You messed up, maybe, but that’s just part of living. M’kay?” she murmurs, holding me tightly in her warm embrace.

“M’kay. So I want to feel guilty, not shameful?”

“Mhm… no. Ideally, you won’t feel either, I think. But I’d much rather you be frustrated than hating yourself over something dumb like a couple mistakes, okay?” she says, releasing her grip on me and stepping back. Her hand reaches to my chin, tilting it up slightly to make me meet her eyes. “Now you go out there with your little gang and knock 'em’ dead, okay?”

“But- don’t you hate them? And how the hell do you know about that, anyway?”

She giggles, the sound bright and airy. “I have my wayssss! And… yeah, I do hate their guts. But I know you like them, and that’s enough for me. Now go! And when you come back, I’ll make you read the newest comic with me!”

I wrap my arms around her tightly in turn, hugging her like she’s a plank of wood in the vast ocean. When I finally feel alright, I let go and turn around. My normal stride is wide and uneven, almost uncertain… but I force one foot in front of the other, cutting through the crowded hallways and pushing my way out of the open doors.

Ed’s house, fortunately enough, is only a brisk walk away from the front of our school. I don’t even have to look backwards to conjure up an image of what it looks like, the entrance burned into my mind like a brand.

Short and stout gray brick walls, topped by a miserable black overhang made of rusted metal. They’d painted over it instead of fixing the decay, only adding to the dreary aura cloaking the building.

If there was another option, children would be sent anywhere else. But if you lived outside the city, you only really had one option- Mantodea, the only school that’ll keep you locked up from preschool till you’ve graduated college.

Living in the city meant you could afford the risk of superpowered youth acting out, apparently. Not here, though. Every one of the little towns surrounding Mantis City gets only one school, each one equally terrible.

I sigh, splitting off from the normal path I’d take to school and making a turn towards Ed’s house. My boots crunch against the gravel pathway that leads to his front door, and when I get to it I loudly rap my knuckles against the gnarled wood to get their attention

They shuffle inside for just a moment, before I hear the heavy footsteps of what is without a doubt Ed lumbering towards the door. Once it slams itself open, I know that it’s him for sure.

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

The first thing I see is his uneven straw-like head of hair, almost as if he stepped out of a barnyard with a bit too much on top. The next thing I see is his smiling mug greeting me, round face stretching with how wide his toothy grin is. “Come on in, Meg! We’ve been waitin’ for you to drag yourself here so we can break the good news!” he says, beckoning me inside. I, of course, follow in after him.

Every step is squishy against his oddly-wet rug, but I bear through it and plop myself down on a plastic folding chair. Ming, of course, is already across from me, his legs propped up against the table as he leans back.

He moves his stare away from the peeling patterned wallpaper and glances at me, pushing up his oversized round glasses and squinting. “Woman of the hour finally arrived, damn. Good to see you, good to see you.”

“Ed! Get your ass over here!” he hollers, Ed shuffling from the kitchen with a six-pack of beers in response. He places them on the counter as he sits down, the chair creaking with his weight.

“How did you manage to steal all of that, you two? Seems a bit… big.” I ask them, earning confusion from Ed and a shit-eating grin from Ming once he’s processed what I’m saying.

“You think- nah, we didn’t steal it. We bought it, ya’know, with money. That we stole. Paid a bum to act as our middleman and everything.” he says, barely restraining his chuckling until he finishes his sentence.

“O-oh. Right, of course.” I mumble out, my face bright red with embarrassment. He takes it in stride, unable to resist making a snide comment. “Hey, don’t worry, Megs. There’s a reason I’m the planner and you’re the grease monkey, right?”

For the record, that’s not true at all. I’m a great planner. I just sort of… plan in the moment. Wing it, a little bit. But as much as I want to say that, he doesn’t know any better. It’s not like he saw me go out and kick ass last night, after all.

Ed shrugs, and I take his cue to do the same. With a snap, the attention of the room is back on Ming and his slimy grin. “Alright, the good news. We’re ‘cordially invited’ to the Golden Touch, for a meeting of villains discussing a newbie in town who’s been making waves.”

Ohmygodohmygod I’m being talked about! I can barely restrain myself from squeaking in joy as my leg bounces up and down, the stimming not all-to-helpful with my immense excitement.

“... and Midas himself will be there to keep the peace. Something about ‘That damn clown causing too many losses and needing a bullet in his head!’, from what I heard that Acids gangster ranting.”

I shudder, before I realize that he can’t be talking about me. After all, I’m a girl. And although I made sure that the voice modulator distorts everything I say, something still bleeds through. So… good news and bad news, I guess. I’ll take it!

“Wait, cordially invited? But… we’re nobodies. No offense, Ming.” Ed pipes up, to Ming’s clear annoyance.

“Alright, alright. I admit, it may not be a very cordial invite. Or an invite at all. Some ponce calling themselves ‘Dealer’ offered me two kay for a little stake-out. See, all the important clientele are gonna be entering from a hidden entrance in the back, straight from an alleyway on Billiard Street. All the crowds buzzing in-between the casinos and clubs should cover us up, given how we ain’t freaks or nothing…”

“But those villains will stick out like a sore thumb! So we just find somewhere to camp out near the alley, watch em’, and I can tell the Dealer who went in and who didn’t. And, ya’know, avoid us getting shot up for snooping.” He makes an emphatic gesture with his hands to punctuate the end of his statement, shooting finger guns at me and Ed.

He looks back and forth between the two of us, grinning widely like he knows we’re going to bite. And, to give credit where it’s due, Ed nods along with him. But… even Ed isn’t willing to go along with this without question.

“Who’s this Dealer guy, anyway? An’ what’s the plan if we get caught?”

Ming shakes his head, chuckling. “Ed, Ed, ye of little faith. We aren’t gonna get caught. And if we do, hey, why the hell not- let’s have our resident up-and-coming planner tinker up a solution.” He glances at me slyly, and I bristle involuntarily.

“I can’t do that on short notice, Ming- you should know that. If I wanted to make, what, a chameleon suit… maybe a one-way mirror… I know it has something to do with reflective coating… but the materials, that would be…”

He cuts me off, waving his hand. “Sounds great. Good to know you ain’t losing your touch, Megs.” he says, barreling through my mumbled protests. “Ed, your job will be helping our egghead cobble something together, and then helping her keep watch. I’ll be far away with a pair of binoculars watching you, and we can radio eachother with updates. Capiche?”

Ed squints at him, glancing over to me while scratching his stubbly chin. “He ain’t tell us when we’re doing this?”

The only thing I can do is nod along, my mood lifting a little bit at Ming’s mistake. So much for being an expert planner.

“Yeah, I was getting to that! Uh, give me a second to think.” Ming quickly spits out, scratching his ear irritably. “Tomorrow? Tomorrow, yeah. Six after they’ll be meeting, so we get together after school. Done and done.”

Mid-sentence, he’s already reaching down and swiping a beer can. He quickly pries off the tab with his teeth and chugs it down in greedy gulps, slamming it back down on the table carelessly.

“Wait, tomorrow?” I blurt out without thinking, to Ming’s reproachful glare. “Yeah, got a problem with that? If you do, hey, no problem. We can do it without you easy-peasy.” he responds, blowing the wind out of my sails instantly.

“Uh… no, I can make it. Just can’t actually make us something for the job-”

“Just bring your lockpicking shit and your eyeballs and you’ll be fine.” he grunts out dismissively, brows furrowing. Ed turns to me, an apologetic grin on his face as he tilts his head towards the door. He pushes himself up out of his chair with an audible groan (from the chair, not him) and passes me a beer while moving to the door. He beckons me over with his free hand, glancing to the side when I look at him.

“Uh, sorry bout’ Ming. He’s been real worked up recently, and… yeah. I know you don’t drink, but alcohol is combustible and all, so… figure you can use it in one of your inventions, right?”

I smile slightly, shuffling towards the door. “It’s… flammable, not combustible. And beer doesn’t have high enough alcohol content for that, anyway… but thanks, Ed.” I stick out my hand for a fist-bump, which Ed eagerly responds in kind to. "You better get outta here before he gets pissed, Megs." Ed mumbles, gesturing towards the door. I heed his warning- he, of all people, would know Ming's moods.

The door creaks nearly-closed behind me as I walk out, before Ed opens it back up and slams it to get it to make it stick shut.

Even with the Mechanism out of commission, Megan still has the chops. I smile while I walk back home, ideas bubbling in my brain by the dozen. Maybe I could take a hint from Ming with all this spy-stuff, and kill two birds with one stone. Just because the information was gathered for some Dealer character, doesn’t mean I can’t make use of it as the Mechanism…

After all, what good villain doesn’t have a few evil cohorts?