Carcass 1.6.1

“He’s not here anymore, but this is undoubtedly his doing. The tracks match our records and we have video evidence of Leviathan in his transformed state here. Apparently, it's difficult to sleep when a kaiju is next door.” A middle-aged man stated matter of factly. He wore a crisp suit and neatly knotted tie. Despite the whipping ocean wind, his attire and hair remained immaculate. The suit jacket hugged his broad shoulders and tapered down to a narrow waist. His eastern features narrowed slightly as he studied the tablet in front of him.

“We also have reports that there was a gathering of a street gang here. A newly formed one that went by the title of Urchins. Bunch of beggars and thieves. I’ve sent the rest of the team back to base on standby since this isn’t an active combat zone.”

The man looked off in the distance, gazing at the city skyline of New Seattle. Twinkling lights of skyscrapers reached up towards the starry expanse like glittering jewels. The buildings were tall and imposing, their shapes and forms illuminated by the glowing lights of offices, apartments, and shops.

The Docks were bare in comparison. No lights, working water, or even an outlet. Nothing good ever happened here.

“Any marks of any other powered?” A feminine voice questioned.

A woman with violet-hued hair and faintly shimmering skin asked. Her hair sparkled under the light of the stars, glowing motes of dust drifting through the air around her. Her locks were styled in loose waves that cascaded around her shoulders, framing her dark complexion in an ethereal glow.

Her cheekbones were high and prominent, her nose elegantly pointed. Thick and full lips were painted a deep red, like the color of wine, which matched the intensity of her hair.

A long flowing dress adorned her body, and despite trailing across the crater-filled concrete did not appear to pick up any evidence of dirt or disrepair.

Stardust.

“Also, isn’t this Drowned territory?” Her query was more of an afterthought.

“Yes, The Drowned control The Docks and they have a monopoly on any industry or business that goes on around here. They also ‘protect’ a decent portion of the lower industrial district, mainly a couple of steel factories. They usually keep to themselves, so as long as we keep this visit brief then I doubt they’ll harass us,” the man continued watching his device while rattling off a brief summary to the woman.

The woman looked around at the chaos that surrounded her.

“Why here then, this is the second time Leviathan shows up and it's in to fight some street kids?” Stardust smiled, watching as the forensics crew excavated a skeleton from the rubble. Bits of flesh and skin hung from the pale bleach bones.

The skeleton belonged to a child.

She continued to smile.

Stardust was brought back into the conversations by the man’s robotic voice.

“Current theory is that Leviathan is on the run. After the park incident, we believe he’s currently searching for someone that’ll take him in. Gangs all across the city are clamoring for a chance to induct him, each one eager to add a power of his caliber to their ranks.

“Most likely is that Leviathan tried his luck with the Urchins but it didn’t pan out. This points to the shifter being aggressive in nature, probably something that is tied to his power.” The man looked around at the destruction.

“Evidence backs up this deduction.”

The woman paced around, indifference was evident in her features. Her hair bristled with the cracks of purple electricity.

“So the kid is running away? Think he’ll skip town?” Stardust asked.

The man frowned and tapped his finger upon his chin. He shook his head after a moment of deliberation.

“Unlikely. If the reports we have of him are correct, then he’s lived in West Seattle his entire life. This puts him at a low probability of jumping to another Pantheon. The grades I pulled from his school don’t put him as the brightest student either. He’s stuck here.”

“So Leviathan won’t be leaving us any time soon. He’s confined to West Seattle and a day after his deadly debut he strikes out at some low-end rats,” Stardust continued to grin at the unpretentious man.

“What are you getting at?” He narrowed his eyes. He unconsciously shifted his shoulders.

“It seems our snake did this for a reason,” Stardust claimed. She walked around an acid pool and gazed into its murky toxic depths.

“Wanna share with the rest of the class?”

“You’re smart enough to figure it out, Quinn. Use that big brain of yours and think.”

Quinn, the eastern featured man frowned and returned to his tablet. Stardust continued to survey the scene. A sudden gasp erupted from him after a few silent moments.

“This was an induction. He killed the Urchins in order to get into a gang.”

Stardust smiled prettily.

“That would mean his threat ranking is going to increase.”

“Indeed.”

“You don’t sound surprised.”

“You would be correct.”

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

“The hell kind of game are you playing, Stardust?” Quinn growled.

The cape in question shrugged. A crackle of purple energy shot off from her hair and left a scorch mark upon the rubble.

“Nothing you should concern yourself with. Just stay in your lane and nothing untoward will happen to you.”

“Was that a threat?”

“Does it need to be?”

The two capes locked themselves in an uneasy silence.

“Need I remind you, but you’re still on probation after you tore through Stockhold High during your ‘fight’ with Pavlov?” His voice dripped with unconcealed sarcasm.

Her cold and indifferent demeanor was replaced by a fierce and intense expression, and her lavender eyes narrowed into sharp, dangerous slits.

“Fuck you, Quin, you try subduing that Influencer without casualties. Besides, I was absolved of any accusations. Pavlov is extremely destructive when he gets going.” She schooled her features back into her smiling mask.

“Peter complained to me all night at what a PR mess it was.” Quin swiped something on his tablet and turned the device towards one of the acid pools, taking multiple photos.

“Yeah yeah, Peter already yelled my ear off. At least a couple of the students Cracked, we’re up to eight potential capes now this year.”

“Have fun schooling them during probation.” He let out a nasty smile as Stardust frowned.

Although just as quickly, the downward curve of her lips inched upwards.

“I think I will have fun, what can I say, I see a lot of field work in the future.”

Stardust turned to the corpse she and Quinn had been standing over.

“Got an ID on this one yet? The body seems to have been strong enough to resist the toxins.” The numerous civilians and special operators that surrounded the duo wore hazard-resistant clothing. Dealing with a myriad of powers led Central Pantheon of New Seattle to always be ready. They had been prepared to deal with the aftermath of Leviathan.

“The prints on the body are putting up a Harley Greech, a high school dropout from the local Crones High. Alias of Argo,” Quinn reported.

“Argo…why does that name sound familiar?”

“It’s because I put her file on your desk a couple of weeks ago, she had potential for the cape academy. All recruiters that we sent returned empty-handed. Some even missing them after she got violent. You were supposed to have taken care of her, we can’t have powers running around unregistered and untrained. If we leave them alone for too long they get hooked to a proper gang and then it's next to impossible to get to them.” His tone was frustrated, he bit the side of his mouth as he looked at Stardust with a furrowed brow.

“Stupid of her to try to establish a gang. I hate when a potential star wastes their talent,” Stardust remarked and waved him off. “No point in bringing it up now. What’s her estimated class and rank?”

“Rank 5 Bruiser, rank 4 Speedster, and rank 6 Gimmick. Had the power to create up to a known 53 copies of herself, although said copies could only retain about a quarter of her current strength. The only evidence we have is a couple of fights we recorded of her fending off feelers sent by Drowned and Maletos.”

“She had quite the package.” Stardust whistled a low tune at Quinn’s report.

Quinn frowned, a tight line forming on his lips.

“Come on, speak up. I can tell you want to say something,” Stardust shook motes of radiant dust out of her hair, sprinkling the ground with glowing particles.

Quinn rubbed the back of his head, careful not to damage his combed and oiled hair.

“Changing hypothesis on the current object of Leviathan. The new guess is that Leviathan wiped out the Urchins for either the Maletos or the Drowned as an induction.”

“You don’t say,” Stardust drawled.

Quinn did not react to the woman’s demeanor.

“Present information indicates a high possibility. As Leviathan’s ethnicity is confirmed as white, The Drowned has a higher chance of housing him. This doesn’t disregard the other gangs, but I’ve put down Leviathan as a potential member of The Drowned gang in his information sheet. I’ve put Maletos as another possibility. I’ve also bumped his threat ranking to 7.” Quinn turned around and missed Stardust’s gleaming eyes.

“What a shame. Won’t be able to send any teams to take care of him without a gang taking offense,” Stardust said. Quinn swirled around and glared at her.

“You are planning something.”

“Don’t think too hard, Quinn, it might just melt your brain if you do.”

“Why don’t you want Leviathan being hunted? You’d think after what he did to your brother you’d be wanting to take him down yourself,” Quinn remarked. He instantly felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up. He could feel the crackle of electricity in the air. Sweat formed on his brow.

“Be very careful when you mention him. He is no relative of mine. Besides, who’s to say I don’t want Leviathan’s rating to go up so I can track him down myself?” Stardust smiled.

Quinn remained silent, aware that there were simply some toes that he couldn’t afford to step on, despite his importance.

“Is this going to hurt others?” He questioned. Stardust appeared to consider the question.

“Unlikely.”

Quinn gave a hesitant nod and turned away.

“Even with your personal plan with him, I won’t let your actions endanger the other capes that keep New Seattle safe.” Quinn’s electronic code voice gained a sharper edge and beneath his skin red lines appeared, glowing against his tanned complexion.

“You are welcome to bring my actions with the Directors,” Stardust stated. Quinn continued to collect data on the surroundings, leaving the cosmic-themed woman to wander the site by herself. The unpowered that surrounded her gave her a wide berth, knowing how dangerous a super could be to their baseline mortal frames.

“Good job, Jay. You’ll be useless if we catch you before you can even strike.” Stardust whispered to herself and continued to grin as she walked over the skeleton of a child, crushing bones into a fine dust.

In a safe house far away from the scene of Leviathan’s rampage, two figures emerged from the shadows. One, wearing nothing, and another clad in black that leaned against the wall, gasping for air.

The robed figure hunched over, his breaths coming in short, ragged gasps. His shadow-like clothes clung to his sweat-drenched body, emphasizing a lean frame. His bloodshot eyes were wide, with a look of desperation and pain etched into them.

With each labored breath, he struggled to stay upright, his body shook rapidly until finally, he dropped onto the floor. His back was pressed against the wall.

Even though the man appeared to be exhausted, the darkness under his hood never wavered. It concealed his identity even to the inquisitive eyes of Jay.

Jay stood upright, his shoulders hunched forward and his head bowed. His eyes stared into the dim hallway, devoid of any emotion or interest in his surroundings. His face was expressionless, save for a faint hardness in his features.

The Leviathan looked over at his companion with a side glance.

“I thought this was supposed to be your thing.” His voice was monotone and lacked inflection. Enthusiasm and energy were absent from his words, as if he’d lost all passion and drive.

“Fuck off, kid. You try moving across the city within seconds. Just need a moment to catch my breath,” his voice came in short bursts, each sentence spaced between deep inhalations of air.

“I bet I could,” Jay whispered to himself but the man seemed to hear it easily.

“Yeah, and you’d leave a trail of rubble in your wake, so unless you fancy letting people know you’re coming, you’re stuck with me as your ride,” he let out a sinister chuckle. Jay rolled his eyes.

The passage of time went slowly as Jay waited for the man to regain his bearings, he wandered around the concrete room.

The walls were damp and discolored, with cracks spiderwebbing across the surface. The ceiling was low and gave Jay a sense of claustrophobia. Exposed pipes and ductwork snaked across the floor.

The air was thick with the smell of mold and mildew, making it hard to take too deep of a breath. The poor lighting, caused by a single flickering bulb and the soft static of a tv casted eerie shadows across the space.

Dirt and grime covered the surfaces, and random trash was strewn about haphazardly. Leftover takeout, frozen dinners, and instant ramen were stacked together on a coffee table in a pyramid.

A musty old couch sat across from the tv, its fabric torn and stained. A rickety table was placed next to it, covered in old magazines and empty soda cans. A tattered rug lay on the floor nearby, a feeble attempt at decorating this dreary area.

Jay eyed the only piece of furniture, unsure whether the stains on its leather surface were bodily excrement or food. He played it safe and didn’t touch it. He grabbed the remote and flipped through a couple of channels, eventually landing on a news report.

The headline grabbed his attention.

Leviathan Wrecks Havoc In Lower Docks - Stardust on the scene

The purple-haired woman was busy talking to a pretty lady, the super was dressed in her usual skintight suit and flowing cape that showed off her powerful frame.

Jay barely listened to the words, only focusing on the background of the scene. Watching as men and women in hazmat suits picked the area clean of bodies and wreckage.

“What is this place?” Jay finally asked the standing teleporter. The man was busy scavenging through a small fridge that Jay hadn’t noticed. He eventually pulled out a red aluminum can and popped it open. A soft hissing sound traveled, and a burst of carbonation entered the air.

The robed man upended the beverage into his upturned mouth, within seconds the can was empty and he tossed it into a corner. The clink of metal on metal echoed out.

“Well?” Jay said again, a bit of frustration in his voice, his fingers tapped upon the couch with a rhythmic tune. The man waved him off and grabbed another full can.

“It’s a safe house, something I use when traveling across the city. Makes it so I don’t kill myself making long-distance jumps. Do it after every mission in case there's ever a power that can track me.” He upturned another soda, crushing the can once it was empty and tossing it in the same corner.

“Ever think of cleaning?” Jay’s eyes roamed across the filthy interior.

“Nope, too busy ferreting temperamental supers to ever get around to it.” The man looked at Jay in the corner of his eye. Jay scowled back.

“My point stands.”

Jay huffed, blowing a cloud of intensely heat air from his lung. His nostrils flared and he crossed his bare arms over his chest.

“Anyways, put this on. As much as I’d get a laugh seeing you buck ass naked in front of Madok, the boss man probably wouldn’t find it nearly as funny.” A set of ragged clothes were tossed toward Jay.

The teenager tried to catch them all, but a pair of socks landed on the dirty floor. Jay grimaced and pushed them under the couch.

He threw on the loose clothes, they were a couple of sizes too big and hung off his frame like baggy skin.

“Good, give me a bit longer and I’ll be ready to make the jump. Madok is expecting us.” Jay felt his heart skip a beat. A bit of worry wormed his way into his thoughts.

Did I do good enough? Jay thought to himself.