PART ONE: LEGEND HAS IT

"He won't bleed out." Conduit said, handcuffing the thief. "It's just a little gunshot wound. I've had plenty of them before."

Fifteen minutes later, you stand outside the building, watching as the police haul the thief into the back of a detainment van. Next to you stands Officer Sanders, a grisly veteran with dark, almost-black skin that contrasts with his grayish-white hair. He has a long scar where his left eyebrow should be, making his face appear lopsided (considering his right eyebrow is bushy and white).

His aged look doesn't seem to go with the technologically-upgraded MCPD uniform that's now standard-issue, but he still has quite the commanding presence.

Shiloh

You've just told Officer Sanders everything about finding the thief. (Well, not everything—you said you figured out the fingertip lead with an anonymous tip, since no one needs to know about your connections to Grandma and Jenny, nor that you're not necessarily a brilliant detective just yet.)

"Turns out the thief's a gun-for-hire named Trackr," Officer Sanders says in a low, gravelly voice. "He's got the Power to discover the location of any person or object on the planet, so finding and stealing things is his specialty. You just helped us solve about thirty open theft cases."

"Anything to help, sir," you say, laying it on a bit thick. "So are you sure he's the one who stole The Gravitas?"

"Listen," Officer Sanders says, leaning in to whisper, "I'm technically not supposed to say anything to you but you found this guy when no one else could, so we owe you one. If anyone asks, you figured this next part out on your own, got it?"

"Got it." You nod, already thinking that it was a good move to work with the police.

"Trackr says he was hired by Smyther to steal The Gravitas," Officer Sanders says, his remaining eyebrow crinkling with severity.

Jade

You freeze because you know exactly who Smyther is. And learning that he's involved is not good news.

"We've already got officers en route to Smyther's headquarters but my guess is if you leave now, you can get there first. I'll tell my guys you're a friendly face—just don't get in their way."

"I won't," you say, reaching to shake Officer Sanders's hand. "Thank you, sir."

"You sure you can handle this? I don't need two dead rookies on my conscience."

"Don't worry, you'll be seeing a whole lot more of us," you promise. "The name is Conduit, and this is my partner, Reaper."

"Well, good luck you two." Officer Sanders says. "Against Smyther, you're sure as hell gonna need it."

CHAPTER FOUR: SMYTHER, VICE & EVERYTHING SPLICE

Both

Pulling up into the sky, you shudder as you think about Smyther. He owns four "legitimate" businesses in the Static Lane section of the Eastern Fringes, but everyone knows these are fronts used to launder money from his prostitution, drug, and illegal firearms operations.

Even worse, Smyther fancies himself the Boss of an elite Powered mob. All of his "business" Generals form an exclusive club called The Splice Circle. Aside from possessing dangerous Powered abilities, The Splice Circle Generals all indulge in their splicing poison of choice, whether it be animal-human hybridization, hypersteroid usage, or gene-deep cosmetic alteration.

Not having time to fiddle with your MeChip for a search while flying, you decide to test the new thought-command function. The first wave of thought-command technology has just been released but it hasn't replaced voice-commands entirely yet, since the software is rumored to still be rather buggy.

Clearing your mind and focusing on your MeChip, you think: "Search Current Splice Circle Roster."

Within seconds, you get a response from MeChip Kodlak/Jeeves:

Jade

"Apologies sir, but an Internet package upgrade is required for your requested search."

Shiloh

"I'm sorry, young master, but an Internet package upgrade is needed to continue on your journey."

Both

There used to be a time when the Internet was available for one base price, but ever since the government allowed Internet providers to bundle packages for speed and website access during The Greater Depression, you've been operating out of the lowest-cost bundle.

Actually, your entire MeChip is operating at similarly low-level. The potential functions of the MeChip are endless—if you have the money to pay for the services. MeChips can do everything from multiple perspective surveillance to acquisition of downloadable skills, but that all requires high-level processing chips and additional fees.

Yours could also have dozens of different outfits and personality dimensions if you had more money for upgrades…. Welcome to the twenty-second century, where class status is determined primarily by tablet functionality.

And unfortunately for you, it looks like it's time for an Internet upgrade, which is going to cost you.

"Authorize Upgrade and Execute Search," you think, trying to focus the command through the cloud of frustration in your head—it won't be long before they start charging for air-per-breath, you think.

Immediately, several holographic web-images flash before your eyes. One is a chart listing The Splice Circle's current roster, another is a review of air humidifiers, and the last is a list of services for anger management. Understanding why many reviewers have bashed the MeChip thought-command function for acting glitchy, you try to focus on the roster listing:

THE SPLICE CIRCLE (RUMORED) ROSTER

BOSS
Smyther

SECURITY GENERAL
Boulder

SHED CLUB
Madame Vice (STATUS??)

THE RYEVAL BAR
Kirkpatrick (COUNSELOR)

FETISH SIN DEN
Juanda W

ACE'S HIGH CASINO
Third Degree

NOTES: Kirkpatrick is the latest addition to the Circle, brought in to run Smyther's newest establishment, The Ryeval Bar. Kirkpatrick also serves as Smyther's replacement Counselor, after the remains of Smyther's last Counselor were found split between West Port and Valor Park.

Madame Vice and Smyther have recently ended their multi-year affair on a sour note, causing many to wonder how long Vice will hold her position within the Circle….

PROSTITUTION
Lolli

FIREARMS
Casing (UNDERBOSS)

DRUGS
Fracture

NOTES: Lolli is the Circle's longest-standing General, infamous for the spree of disfiguring attacks that pushed her up through the ranks of her Eastern Fringe Ani-gang and into the Circle.

Casing remains Smyther's most prized General, currently serving as The Splice Circle's Underboss.

Satisfied with your knowledge of The Splice Circle, you prepare to take off towards Static Lane—until you notice a bright flash coming from one of the surrounding rooftops. Focusing on the source, you see it's a reporter, obviously working overtime to break the first scoop on this story.

You really need to find to Smyther quickly, besides, you promised yourself you'd focus on upholding justice first and foremost. So you don't have time for something as trite as an interview.

You fly into the sky, knowing you don't have a single second to waste. But as you pull up into a bank of clouds, your MeChip sends you a web alert.

Jade

"Sorry to interrupt, sir," MeChip Jeeves says. "One of the priority alerts has activated: the heroic personage press scan."

Shiloh

"Young master, I must inform you of something," MeChip Kodlak says. "One of the priority alerts have activated: the heroic personage press scan."

Both

You forgot you had even set the press alert, it was something that you two had worked together to cook up a few weeks back, after all, but it's a good thing you did—whether you want the attention or not, you should be aware of what's being said about you in the press. Though you didn't think it would start happening quite this quickly….

The alert takes you to "Hero Press Blog", where you find a photo of yourself and your partner—taken literally seconds ago—flying away from Trackr's penthouse. The caption reads:

"Unknown Newcomers Crack First Lead in Gravitas Case—More to Come. Photo Capture by Sonja Challa."

Even though getting press isn't your priority, it's not the worst thing in the world for people to start recognizing you. Despite yourself, you tell your MeChip to archive the article—it is the first official press-related Legend boost of your career, after all.

-- LEGEND PRIZE UNLOCKED --

As a bonus for achieving one of the highest possible Legend Levels at this point, (9), your Health Level has been restored and raised to 110.

Good work, heroes.

STATS

Code-name: Reaper

Fame: 21% Justice: 79%  
 Lawless: 21% Lawful: 79%  
 Offensive: 51% Defensive: 49%  
 Soloist: 39% Team Player: 61%

Power: 90
Health: 100
Money: 2095
Legend: 9

Codename: Conduit

Fame: 17% Justice: 83%  
Lawless: 45% Lawful: 55%  
Offensive: 32% Defensive: 68%  
Soloist: 38% Team Player: 62%

Power: 83
Health: 110
Money: 1400
Legend: 9

You take off high across the sky at top speed, knowing you need to get to Static Lane before the police do—or before another hero encroaching on your case does.

As you fly, you consider how any Powered Heroes stupid enough to take on The Splice Circle in the past have always ended up dead. The only notable exception has been Static, the self-proclaimed champion of the Eastern Fringes (named after the Fringes's most crime-clogged neighborhood, Static Lane). While most heroes concentrate on more glamorous and less dangerous heroing outside of the Fringes, Static has done good work cleaning up some of The Splice Circle's mess.

However, no one has seen Static in months, a troubling mystery that has gone unsolved….

Worst of all, Smyther and The Splice Circle are responsible for funding the rival Ani-gang activity in the Fringes, using the gangs as a recruitment base to pipeline "employees" into the various branches of the organization. The Ani-gangs are constantly vying for top billing with the Circle and a gang war has been brewing for months (as evidenced by the fight you broke up earlier today).

Without a doubt, Smyther is responsible for making life in the Eastern Fringes highly hazardous. Knowing that he is involved with The Gravitas theft hits close to home but you want to take on this case mostly because:

It will serve as a blow to The Splice Circle's criminal practices and further disorganize Ani-gang activity in the Fringes.

Being the hero that takes down Smyther will make me famous.

More than anything, it's just going to be fun!

It will serve as a blow to The Splice Circle's criminal practices and further disorganize Ani-gang activity in the Fringes.

I'm never going to abandon my home. Conduit thinks, flying through the air with a thoughtful look in his eyes. Never. Not unless I have to.

This is getting intense...are we really up for it? Reaper glances over at Conduit, then slowly nods to himself. Seeing his friends resolve and determination- no, feeling it radiate off of him was all the answer he needed.

Both

Smyther has remained untouchable thanks to a team of high-priced lawyers and some corrupt contacts within the MC government. So catching him with The Gravitas could be a rare, illegal thread capable of unraveling the entire Splice Circle organization. And doing so would definitely improve life in your hometown quite a bit—you can't think of a more worthwhile heroic pursuit.

However, as you begin to breathe a bit heavier from the exertion of flying so fast, you think about how advanced this case could prove to be. Smyther is no joke—he and his crew will kill you in a thousand different ways, without hesitation. Perhaps this might be a bit more than you can handle on your first night out….

Then you remind yourself that you were born for major-league cases like this. Moving forward, no matter how successful you become, this kind of fear and doubt are going to be a part of your career at every level.

In fact, the pressure to stay afloat is only going to get worse so you'd better learn to cope with it now.

After a super fast flight back to the Fringes, you land on a roof across the street from Smyther's club, Shed. Your favorite hero-tipoff blog, "Just The Tip", says it's rumored that Smyther has his secret base of operations hidden somewhere in Shed, since he was once romantically linked to Madame Vice, Shed's owner.

Madame Vice has the Power to seduce people into doing her bidding, and you've also read that, ever since being unceremoniously dumped by Smyther, she might have aspirations to take over his head-honcho role….

While this is a tidbit you may be able to use to your advantage if things get nasty inside, right now you need to discover the location of Smyther's hidden headquarters within Shed. What's the fastest way to do so?

Go inside posing as a customer and try to discretely get some intel. Not recommended.

Break into the back and search the premises without being seen. Both

Burst in, Powers blazing, and demand to see Smyther. Both

"Let's not make a scene here, Conduit." Reaper stands, hovering off the ground as he kicks in his flight powers. "Let's go 'round back, try and find something without being spotted."

Conduit nods, "I was thinking the same thing. If we get this wrong, we'll pay." He checks his weapon, before surging energy through his arms to make sure that he was ready. "Let's do this."

Static Lane...

The place where Jade's parents died, and yet he seemed to be focused solely on their mission. It takes a large amount of dedication to keep your mind off that particular event.

Both

You drop down into the alley behind Shed and walk up to the backdoor.

Shiloh

Using your telekinesis, you close your eyes and focus on opening the lock. It responds to your commands, allowing access to the bar.

Both

You both slip inside and find yourself in a darkened room.

As your eyes adjust, you spot a deep-red light coming from somewhere across the room. You look at the light and suddenly one step follows another.

Fuzz…feels nice…moving…back, back, back…there stands…

Shiloh

Madame Vice. So pretty, you think. So, so pretty with the blood-red eyes.

"Tell me, rude thing," she says, her voice oozing, "what on earth brings you to my dark corner of the world?"

You want to tell her everything. Her with her flowing, auburn hair. Wrapped in that tight, red leather. Her body impossibly curved with plastic enhancements. Her perfect chest spilling out of that corset. Her full lips wet. You want her to trust you more than anything. You want to touch, you want to tell. She's so pretty. Just tell.

"I'm here to-" But as the words leave your lips, one thought breaks through the rest—Madame Vice has hypnotic-seduction Powers! Which must be why you can't seem to think straight….

Jade

Your powers aren't responding to your commands, and you can't do anything to fight back! You can only listen.

"And you." Madame Vice says, her hands on her cheek. A cruel smile was on her face, "I enjoyed dealing with your parents. Seeing them respond to my commands like puppets was quite something. I think I will do the same to you. Now..." She points at his pistol, "I want you to put that horrendous fire-arm to your head...and pull the trigger."

You want to follow her wishes, you want to do whatever she says. The Fringes don't matter. She matters. You pick up your pistol, pulling it out of your holster and put it to the side of your head.

You need t- No! You regain some control, keeping yourself from pulling the trigger.

Shiloh

As you feel the slightest bit of control creep back, you decide that you'd better not waste the opportunity. How are you going to handle Madame Vice?

Tip her off about the police—perhaps she'll choose to save herself if I do.

Attack her while I have the chance. (Power Cost 5)

"H-hey...listen, the cops are already on their way here. Trackr's been arrested, and they're gunning for Smyther's crew. That includes you."

Shiloh

No more smile. Angry Vice. Eyes bore, not good. Not good! Bad…. You want Vice to like you. Love you. Will Vice hurt you?

Suddenly something snaps and you can feel your thoughts return to normal. You watch as Madame Vice crosses the dark room and opens a safe in the corner.

"Well then, I think it's a lovely time for a stroll around the block, isn't it?" Madame Vice says, approaching you. She grabs your hand and her touch feels better than anything you've ever felt.

"Be a dear and do forget you saw me, yes?"

Your heart flutters and you blink, overwhelmed with desire.

Jade

"Little bird, we aren't done just yet." She winks, and as your gun hits the ground, you pass out.

Shiloh

A moment later you open your eyes to find that Madame Vice--and Jade-- are nowhere to be found. You feel a cold rush of emptiness wash over you, but try to force away the feelings by telling yourself it's only the after-effects of Madame Vice's hypno-seduction.

Then you realize there's something in your hand—a long, red whip tipped with gold.

You examine the gold tip of the whip and can't believe your eyes. The gold mechanism is a Telelock—a wildly expensive (and wildly illegal) security measure that grants teleportation entrance into doorless rooms. The only way into Smyther's secret headquarters must be through one of these Telelocks, which you imagine only his Splice Generals carry.

Since Telelocks take the form of tokens unique to each owner and only respond to their brain waves, it's useless to you without Madame Vice. Though there is one trick you might try….

But before you can give it a shot, you feel a tap on your shoulder.

You raise your fists and spin around, freezing the moment you do. You instantly recognize the face smirking back at you; it belongs to Jury, another aspiring hero. He stands with his arms crossed, the wind from the open door flaring his black-and-white costume, which was made to look like a sleeker version of judge's robes.

Which makes total sense because Jury's real name is Aaron Victon. He's the son of Judge Victon, who is now better known as the long-standing mayor of Millennia City….

And the man who sentenced your parents to their lifelong prison exile.

Jury has the Power to see through the eyes of any twelve nearby people at once, hence the codename. He's become a C-list hero, thanks mostly to his father's position. Anything Jury has gotten, he has bullied or bribed out of people thanks to his last name, or charmed them with his good looks and social status. If you'd had the advantages Jury had, you'd already be MC's #1 hero and you know it.

You really are inclined to hate Jury for just about every reason under the sun, but you have to be careful not to give away your real identity. The last thing you want is for the Victon family to know the connection between your Reaper, Sterling, and Garnett identities.

"Well, you're new, aren't you?" Jury says, looking you over from head to toe like a piece of meat. "What's your name, stud?"

Your skin crawls under Jury's gaze and you force yourself not to consider what's running through his mind. Jury is a conventionally attractive blond guy, so you're sure he does quite well for himself. And obviously, Jury likes what he sees.

But you're definitely not into guys. And even if you were, you wouldn't touch Jury with a ten-foot pole.

Still, he doesn't necessarily have to know that yet. How do you want to play this?

Flirt with Jury to get my way. Shiloh

Treat Jury like the scum he really is. Shiloh

Jury doesn't deserve to occupy even one second of my time. Shiloh

"Oh piss off."

Shiloh

"I've got to go," you practically growl, walking toward the exit.

"Yeah, about that," Jury says, blocking your path. "You're cute and all but you don't know how things work yet. I just got a call from Rexford Schillers himself; the police told him they have a lead on his missing Gravitas. He's a dear friend of my father's—you do know who Mayor Victon is, don't you?"

Jury gets closer to you, way closer than you'd like. His breath smells like stale beer and you're pretty sure you can make out the beginnings of a cold sore on his lower lip.

"Tell me what you know now and I'll see it as a serious favor. And I'm the kind of guy you want to owe you, if you get my drift."

Jury puts his hand on your hip and you pull away, trying desperately to keep your cool.

"And if I don't?" you ask through clenched teeth.

Jury's slick smile fades.

"Then let's just say that having the mayor of Millennia City as an enemy isn't a really great thing for any aspiring hero, is it?"

There's no way in hell you're backing down from this case, no matter what Jury threatens you with. Still, you do need to find a way to get him off of your tail—he could cause some serious trouble for you if he gets to The Gravitas first.

How do you want to deal with him?

Knock Jury out with a punch to the face.
Incapacitate Jury with a telekinetic barrage. (Power Cost 10)

"You should know," Reaper snarls, his powers building up in his arms violently, "Mayor Victon's been my enemy for a looong time!"

Shiloh

Without wasting a second, you tear pieces of the wall around you apart, hitting Jury with them! The attack takes Jury by surprise, quickly taking him down.

Jury will definitely want to pay you back for this but as you look at him lying helplessly on the floor, with rubble covering him, you know it was totally worth it.

It won't be long before Jury wakes up, so you turn your attention back to the Telelock and your one shot at accessing it….

Sometimes, if you channel your telekinetic Power through electronics in just the right amount, it can jump-start their functions. However, too much Power fries electronics (a talent that comes in handy for some situations but not this one).

Figuring it's worth a shot, you grasp the golden tip at the end of the whip and close your eyes. You allow a small wisp of telekinetic energy to flow from your fingertips through the Telelock, hoping this will coax it into cooperating.

Then out of nowhere, you feel a massive surge build in your forearms.

"No!" you shout out loud, unable to stop a wave telekinetic from bursting through your hands.

When the light from your blast clears, you can see the ripped remains of the whip in your hand—and the golden Telelock is completely shorted out. Despite years of training, your Powers can sometimes act…unpredictably. Though this was a rather inopportune time for a surge to flare up.

What are you going to do now?

But before you can even finish forming that thought, you feel your insides turn fluid. The room swirls around you and you stagger backward.

Then you scream.

CHAPTER FIVE: PRODIGIES

Shiloh

When things snap back into focus, you find that you're in the foyer of a sleek loft. You clap your hand over your mouth and slide against the nearest wall, hoping no one has heard you. The Telelock must have activated somehow, despite the energy overload. Perhaps it was because Madame Vice was still nearby? Or perhaps-

"How stupid are you?" you hear a deep voice say, interrupting your thoughts. You peek your head around the wall of the foyer and see none other than Smyther sitting on a large, metal throne, staring at something across the room!

He wears tight, black clothes, his bulging muscles covered in veins and bluish scars, the by-product of gene-splicing ultrasteroids. His face is equally scarred, scattered with stab and gunshot wounds. The effect makes him look considerably less than human.

You can't help it—the sight of Smyther sends a chill up your spine.

You try to ignore this as you spot the large, silver staff in Smyther's hands, covered in gemstones the size of baseballs. That must be it….

That's The Gravitas.

Shiloh

You almost squeal because you've done it—you found the damn thing! You start to scroll through the ways you're going to spend that reward money, knowing that all you need to do now is get your hands on The Gravitas….

That is, until your eyes settle on the ten armed guards flanking Smyther. Next to them stand three menacing figures you recognize as Smyther's Splice Generals. One of them is ten feet tall and made of stone (that must be the Security General, Boulder). Another has elongated, plastic fingers ignited by flames (that's the owner of Ace's High Casino, Third Degree). The last has sharp knives growing out of every joint in her body (that must be Fracture, the drug queen).

You swallow hard, a knot of fear balling up in your stomach. You would probably have a hard time taking on just one of these criminals, let alone all of them combined. Suddenly, The Gravitas seems like an afterthought—how are you even going to get out of here alive?

With that in mind, you begin to consider your Power Levels. If you're going to survive this battle, you had better make sure you're properly equipped to do so. Luckily, your telekinetic Power allows you to recharge your Levels: you can recharge your Power but it drains a proportionate amount of Health. Likewise, you can heal yourself, but it drains your Power.

Your current Power Level is 56 and your Health Level is 95. You're feeling strong but that could just be all the adrenaline coursing through you. You know that if either of your Levels drops to 0, you'll die instantly. So do you think you need to recharge your Power before things start to get intense here?

Reaper takes a breath and lowers his head. Eyes on his levels, he observes as his health drops to 75 and his power rises to 76. That had to be enough. He hopes it is enough.

Shiloh

Gritting your teeth, you begin to siphon Health energy from your body, a process that feels a lot like pulling every hair from your skin at the same time.

Thankfully, it only takes a second and once it's done, your Power Level is 76 and your Health Level is 75. Ready to act, you tense all of your muscles, hoping you have enough Power and Health to survive the night.

That's when you realize Smyther and his mob all have their weapons locked on something across the room: a young woman. She wears a bodysuit made of black kevlar, with one thick, red stripe running up the center. Where the bodysuit ends, the red stripe continues to cover her face, showing only her deep, burgundy lips, crystal-blue eyes, and long, dark hair. She looks statuesque, like one of those genetically enhanced Victoria's Secret Angels.

Slugger, you think, another hero has beat you to the punch. And she must be even more insane than you are since she stands unarmed, staring down The Splice Circle.

"You went to great lengths to find my base of operations," Smyther says, gesturing toward a large hole in the floor next to the kevlar-girl—a sight that causes you to lose your breath. You realize that you have no idea how far the Telelock has taken you or how to get back outside….

You see your friend, Jade, lying in a corner. He looks like he has been through hell, his mask torn off and his hood down, along with the lower parts of his hoodie torn. His jeans are torn in certain places, as well, where he bleeds. It seems like he has been through torture...

You snap out of it as Smyther continues: "What are you here for?"

You look back to the kevlar-girl, remembering that Smyther has the Power to elicit a truthful response from anyone he asks a direct question (a very handy gift for a Powered mob boss). That must be why they haven't killed kevlar-girl yet—Smyther wants to know how and why she's here first.

"I'm here," she says softly, barely audible…

"To kill you."

Suddenly, kevlar-girl produces two massive cannon-guns and fires thick surges of laser-energy into the heart of the Circle. Within seconds, four guards and Third Degree are crisped to ash right before your eyes. Your stomach turns as you realize it smells like a summer barbecue.

A deafening roar erupts as the guards return fire. Fracture whips dozens of razor-sharp blades at kevlar-girl while Boulder moves to protect Smyther from the fray. Smyther shouts something at Boulder while waving The Gravitas, but you can't make out the words over the gunshots.

You quickly generate a protective energy shield, terrified of catching the brunt of a stray attack. Looking through the blueish energy barrier, your eyes snap back to kevlar-girl as she leaps into the air and does a series of flips, her movements creating a visible trail that blocks the barrage of bullets and knives—she must be able to generate some kind of flash-shield with her movements.

Kevlar-girl then lands and sends off another round of cannon pulses. You look back to Smyther's corner and see that the last blast took out another half of the guards and left a large, nasty burn on Boulder's back.

You can hardly believe your eyes—this woman just killed close to a dozen people in a matter of seconds. An intense rush of dread overtakes you. This is a bloodbath. You didn't sign up for this.

You don't want to die today.

But just as soon as these thoughts appear, you force them from your brain. You've been training for this your entire life. So what are you going to do?

Jump in right away and stop the killing. It doesn't matter who gets The Gravitas—saving lives is more important than anything. Shiloh

My only concern here is The Gravitas. I make a grab for it and go! Shiloh

Wait for them all to kill each other off, then take The Gravitas by surprise from whoever is left standing. Shiloh

Stay put and wait for the police to arrive—this is way too much for me and I know it. Shiloh

Jade

You begin to wake up, pain cascading across your entire body. You reach for your mask, putting it on your face and pulling the hood over your head.

Conduit runs behind Reaper, back-to-back. Yelling over the screams and gunfire, "I'll bring up shields, you do what you do best!"

He couldn't let anyone die. No matter who they were, death was one thing no one deserves. Channeling up his powers, Reaper leaps into the fray.

Conduit channels his energy powers and brings up shields to defend his friend!