Agent Evie knew that it wasn’t right to be biased but she doubted that many of her colleagues or superiors would place a high priority on outlying districts in the city where votes counted for less than money.

‘I’m happy to tell you that I’m here as part of a government-mandated taskforce. My job is to check out the situation and get feedback from good people who live in this area such as you. We’re going to try and put a stop to rogue fights between those with superpowers. Yes, I am a registered superhuman but also a government agent.’

She pulled a business card out of her wallet and placed it on the table of the food stand.

‘If you two find any issues with the government repair crew, have any questions or want another customer for your lovely gyros then feels free to call me or send a message. Do you deliver?’

The woman with the closely cropped hair smiled at that.

‘Yes, we’ll certainly deliver if you have a good appetite as today. Government employees can have a ten per cent discount. Let your colleagues know.’

The man interrupted.

‘I think that you weren’t here the first two times. We’re lucky to have a man like Frank here who knows how to make sure the community is fully supported. It was a shame how he lost his memory though. A young man like that can’t remember his past isn’t right. Unless it was a supe taking revenge on him. He’s a smart and generous man despite it all. He donates a large part of the money that he makes to the community, and we have a reserve fund as a contingency plan. Even got in contact with the insurance companies to make sure that we got a decent deal.’

The woman with cropped hair put her hand lightly on her husband’s arm and smiled at Evie.

‘I’m sorry dear. He does like to keep talking sometimes. We’ve got your details so we can make sure that we’ll let you know when your gyros are ready. Thanks for doing business with us. Anything you can do to sort out this awful mess would be great.’

Evie crossed her arms lightly and gave a bright smile back to the woman.

‘No problem. I keep hearing about Frank it seems no matter where I go in this area. He seems nice, are you two going to pick up a coffee and pastry later?’

The couple shook their heads at her and the man followed his wife’s deep stare and withered a little.

‘I mean it’s a nice idea and all but it doesn’t exactly pay the bills or keep our business running. Are we free to go now? We have food preparation to get back to and calls to make. This time we’re going to try and figure it it’s worth moving out to one of the other districts. I mean, it’s just a little much by this point.’

Despite their friendliness towards her, Evie was still able to feel an aura of wariness about the both of them. The events over the last month must have been quite a shock.

She considered that it must feel like someone who had experienced a burglary. To feel violated and scared that someone had broken into your home and stolen your belongings without your express permission. Although in this case, it was just a case of two young idiots showing off who caused minor and a few isolated cases of major property damage by fighting in a civilian area.

Gods alone knew why they didn’t drive out to a desert and punch each other until unconsciousness if they wanted to measure the sizes of their egos. Evie thought that it must be a case if it was in a civilian area in a city then the fight counted for something. One positive effect of the fights was that any criminal activity in the area dropped almost immediately.

Not that the usual law enforcement was going to get involved in fights between superhumans, but training and equipment besides the technology your average police department used weren’t enough to deal with someone who had laser eyes and hydrokinetic powers. Her department was there to sort through the mess and provide a form of reassurance that would be accepted and appreciated by the general public.

Not that it ever was. Finding superhumans who were willing to work for a fixed salary in a government position was far harder than she had first originally thought if it seemed that suddenly gaining power that gave you the ability to change yourself or your immediate environment changed a person. It was entertaining how the ones who wanted to be heroes were in some ways worse.

She had dealt with the interviews as well as she could but following the rule of law while being known as Gifted didn’t work out well for everyone. Evie thanked the couple for their time and said how much she looked forward to eating the gyros. It seemed to her that civilians in an area where a minor fight between rival superhumans occurred became more afraid and withdrawn.

This place had been one of the places where they lacked fear and anger though. When she had identified herself as a registered superhuman the older couple hadn’t lost their temper or told her to leave. They seemed more amused by the fact. If the social support mechanisms that had been developed in their area could be applied to others, it could go a long way toward repairing the goodwill and trust that had been lost between normal humans and those with powers.

She’d need to track down Mr Harson and ask him exactly what his strategy was and how much money he gave back to the community. Unless he was secretly wealthy which none of the records showed or he was an extremely clever criminal laundering money then it didn’t make clear sense.

I might need to call in an old friend for this one.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

The man wasn’t under investigation at this point, and he had mainly given him a warning out of a moment of anger when he had been complaining. He had been out of order with his attitude, also it was fairly dangerous.

A normal baseline human wouldn’t be able to fight with a superhuman regardless of their training. Unless the specific Gifted had a weak power which was non-combative and had no initiative to use it in a fight then there could be a chance.

The exception was government employees who went underwent a series of training procedures and those who chose to become registered. They were strictly monitored for public interactions before payment terms were put in place.

Additional support mentoring and counselling helped ensure that if any did fall off the rails or encounter difficulties then the individual would feel that they were able to be a functional and necessary part of human society. There was always a demand for powered beings. This Frank character was a sort of mystery to Evie though. Mainly because there were no records or traces of him before his coma and time in the hospital.

All accounts afterwards showed a near-perfect model citizen and paragon in the community. If he had developed powers after his awakening, then she would be straight into recruiting him to work in her department. As it was, she was thankful that a civilian was so understanding and thoughtful.

There was only a minimal file on him so far. Evie was given a file that was so thin as to have three sheets of paper inside. She asked for further information, but little was found. It wasn’t a case of him appearing out of thin air though, more likely he was from overseas or an orphan.

Not all countries liked to share records of lost citizens when they had their in-house superheroes to accommodate their needs. The arrival of powers shifted global priorities decades ago.

All the records showed of him was that he developed and sold technology designed to monitor and occasionally limit minor superhumans. It would make sense for him to have additional funds if he was supplying for them but given the size of his business, it didn’t make sense that he’d be able to produce any technology to scale.

Unless the cost per unit was extremely high then he shouldn’t have funds in excess to help rebuild the community. It might be an issue that she’d have to ask the financial investigation team to look into. Evie felt sure that Frank didn’t possess powers beyond a standard human. When the Gifted met each other, they felt a faint resonance and sense of recognition.

She’d never met or heard of any way of blocking that sensation. If two people had static electricity, a charge built up and then a small spark would jump between them. It was either there or it wasn’t. The way that they recognised each other was an innate ability that everyone possessed regardless of the level of their power.

Evie had sensed it from one of the government cleaners in the area, although it was far easier given the fact that he was actually a member of her team and they worked closely together. Josh had always loved to eat his weight in food. Once the community got together for coffee and pastries Evie would make time to talk with this Frank. There seemed to be more to him than met the eye.

As long as he got her almond croissant and ice latte with soya milk, then they’d get on just fine. If he didn’t then it wasn’t really an issue, it was more a case of the look on his face when she’d mention that she was a superhuman. Not quite pure disgust but close enough to it that she took offence, either meant or not.

Evie would only use her talents in case of emergency according to strict protocol or self-defence. Ordering the wrong coffee for her didn’t come under those rules.

The worst that she had been able to do was give him a stern warning to try and have a more open mind.

The coma that he had been recorded in for several years could have twisted his perception and frustration and anger shifted into hatred. Several organisations disdained the powers that the few possessed and sought to create conflict either direct or indirect.

A few of those groups were interested in the concept of transhumanism through technology, physically or artificially changing their ordinary bodies into more than they were born with.

Evie hoped that Frank wasn’t going to turn out to be one of those types who hated superheroes. She could practically feel the frustration come off the young man in heat waves.

He’d be a perfect recruit for one of the groups that advocated stricter measures and even segregation between the superhumans and regular folk. Still, hate was a different stroke than frustration and further radicalism.

It was far more likely that he was just what he seemed, a hard-working young man, angry at the loss of his control over the situation. People dealt with it in different ways, if he was willing to contribute what he could towards his community and focus on building a business based on anti-superhuman technology then good for him.

Agent Evie gave herself three resolutions today. First, she’d find the young, punks who had made this mess in the first place through her department and see that they paid, even if it was only in community service.

If they proved to be partially connected with one of the big corporations or powers far beyond her pay grade, she could at least use what little civil servant influence she had to give them some form of punishment. A fine would even make them think twice. A restraining order would be even better.

Secondly, she’d need to recruit this, Frank. Either as a freelancer, fixed term contract or even ideally a permanent position, the city government needed skilled people like him who knew their way around anti-power equipment.

Talent was in demand and she needed to snatch him up before one of the big companies in the private sector sourced his talents for themselves. Thirdly, Evie found that she had an appetite and a thirst. She wanted to head back to the gyro stand to see if her order was prepared.

As long as she walked and ate and drank, she’d had enough time to head back to the work government clean-up crews and make sure that everything was running according to plan. It always helped to keep good relations with residents after a minor superhuman disaster hit.

Besides, the couple running the stand seemed to have a good impression of Frank. They might even have his phone number so she could arrange another meeting with him. Either that or she’d head to his shop today or tomorrow depending on her immediate work schedule.

She needed to call on an old friend in need though, there was always a price paid for superpowers and sometimes the steepest prices were always the saddest ones.

Not a bad day. Not a solution to the major issues but it’s a start.

She tried her best to be positive and make the most out her situation.

Rule one of being a superhero. Always show a positive front in public.

Agent Evie went to check in with her Department Head to give her an update and a quick briefing before she had to get back to work.