[i]Arrochar, Brooklyn 10:10 pm[/i]

By now, Diego was soaking wet. The rain had drenched all of his clothes, which in turn was slowing him down. He needed to get to Brooklyn before the end of the night, or else risk being spotted. Diego shot down and landed in an abandoned alley way. He peeled back the hood of his sweater and ran a hand over his shaved head. His eyes darted to and fro, making sure that no one had spotted him. When the coast was clear, Diego stepped out into the main street and headed to the nearest clothing store.

Thankfully, the young man didn’t have to walk far; there was an open t-shirt shop just a couple feet away from where he landed. Diego pulled his hoodie back over his head and made his way inside.

He could tell, from the moment he walked in, that the person behind the register was extremely uneasy with him being there. However, this was normal. After the Civil War, the crime rate sky-rocketed so much, that any person walking into a store could have been a mugger. 

Diego sighed and made his way to the back of the store, he skimmed through the small aisles and picked out a solid black t-shirt, a solid black hoodie, a solid black pair of jeans, a pack of dark colored underwear, and a pack of new black socks. He turned and made his way to the dressing rooms, not even sparing a glance at the cashier, who no doubtedly was expecting to be killed. Once inside the dressing room, Diego changed as fast as he could, then walked out, leaving his wet clothes behind. He walked right past the cashier and out into the pouring rain, but not before stopping at a hat rack and picking up a black beanie. 

---

[i]Skies above New York , 10:30pm[/i]

The young man sighed as the rain drops repeatedly struck his face. Sure, it was nice to fly like this whenever he wanted, but what killed the mood was the fact that, at any time, he could be captured and sent back to a House just like the one he had been in before the War had broken out. Diego absentmindedly touched the spot on his left arm where one of his long scars were, then scowled. It wouldn’t have to be like this for much longer. All he needed to do was go to the safe house, get some people to agree to fight with him, and then take over everything. 

[i]The normals wouldn’t stand a chance,[/i] he thought to himself. [i]Just find a couple of people with useful powers, train for a little, then storm through their front doors.[/i] It seemed like a solid enough plan.

He hadn’t noticed that he was flying awfully low now, and by the time he realized it, it was practically too late; there was a tree directly in front of him. Diego had only a split second to veer off to the right, and when he did, it was too late. His foot clipped a nearby branch, and he was sent plummeting to the ground. Thankfully, he landed in a thick bush, which resulted in only minor cuts and scrapes, rather than broken bones. The young man cussed under his breath and floated out of the bush slowly, making sure not to make too much noise. He brushed himself off, and then took a look around to find his bearings.

He was in the backyard of what looked to be an abandoned house; no doubt one of the various houses that were used as cover and sniper positions during the war. Diego managed to make his way to the front of the house, then peered down the street. Empty. He turned his head the other way, and came face-to-face with the barrel of an M-16 rifle.

“On the ground, ass hole,” said the soldier in a gruff voice. Diego sighed and shook his head.

“Look, I know how you think you know how this is going to go down, but let me assure you, you’re dead wrong.”

The soldier kept the rifle pointed at Diego’s face, but shifted slightly in his place. “What do you mean, dead wrong? I have the rifle pointed at your face. It’s over for you. Either you do what I say, or I put a bullet through your sku- Argh!”

Diego stood still as the rifle was ripped out of the soldier’s hands, and thrown at least thirty feet. He shook his head slowly and smiled.

 “Can’t do much without your gun, can you? Look, obviously you are either a new recruit or you have never heard of me. I think all of the police precincts and wherever you army guys meet have at least a picture of me.” Diego smiled again and the soldier’s arms were forcefully spread apart. “Since neither one of those seem to be the case with you, I’m going to let you live, but, you were very rude, and because of that, I think I am going to have to take your arm. Okay?”

Before the soldier could protest, his arm was ripped from his body and dropped next to him. Diego released his hold on the soldier, who in turn fell on the grown, howling in agony. The Empowered male rolled his eyes, then turned and shot off into the night sky, toward Brooklyn.

He would have to thank Mari once again for letting him copy her telekinesis.