A moment of indecision strikes. Never done anything like this. Your hands are shaking. Sweat's already beading on your forehead. The city's falling apart. Living breathing monsters, things better suited to genre literature, are duking it out on a major highway. This is far and away the dumbest thing you've ever done. So much safer to stay in your room. The military's going to be rolling into the city any time now.
Doesn't matter. You have to try to find your dad.
So, you force yourself to turn to the left. Just standing here is asking for trouble. Have to keep moving. Keep your head down. Don't attract attention. Might take longer, but this path will let you cover some of the route between your parent's house and City Hall. Dad might be along that route. With any luck, he's safe and sound surrounded by a small army. Can't rely on wishful thinking. Have to be sure.
You begin striding along the sidewalk. The sound of sirens blares through the air. Half a block later, and you realize this isn't getting you anywhere fast. Time is of the essence. A solution occurs to you. There's a bike rack not too far away. Some of your co-workers were talking about a bike sharing app. No time for that. No time to backtrack and ask to borrow a bike from some of your neighbors. You've never stolen a thing in your life. Never even come close to breaking a law. For Christ's sake, you don't even speed.
There's a first for everything! Half a dozen high-end bikes are chained up near a small park. You rush over towards them. As you approach, they enter the radius of your Senses, and you note one thing immediately. They're all chained up. Of course they are. You're not a bike connoisseur, but you pick the best looking bike of the lot. Don't need it popping a chain or blowing a tire. Breaking the lock is effortless. It shatters with a loud metallic wrenching sound. The broken pieces clatter noisily to the ground. The amount of power at your disposal is terrifying.
Riding the bike is awkward. That's an understatement. Been years and years since you last rode one of these things. It's not like you've forgot how, not really, but it takes you a few false starts to really get going. Luckily, there's not really anyone around to chortle at the out of shape twenty-something nearly falling off the damned thing! Another thing you didn't take into account: Your legs are burning and you're out of breath after a single mile. The stitch in your side is painful as hell too!
The streets are jam packed with wrecked and deserted cars. You pass several groups of armed people. They're carrying bats and chains and all sorts of improvised weapons. Definitely up to no good. You manage to steer well clear of them. At one point, someone throws a brick at you. You guide it just a foot away from hitting you. Another idiot in gang colors starts chasing you. He's fast. But, when he nearly catches up to you despite your furious peddling, well, you swipe his feet out from under him without looking back. He's goes down with a cry. Might've used more force than you intended. His foot is barely hanging on by some sinew. You can feel the blood gushing out of the ruined limb. You don't look back. You're not a hero. Have to get out of here. have to reach your dad.
The man's cries remain with you for a long time after he's left your Sense-range. You want to vomit, to go back and check on the gangbanger. You don't. That would cause even more trouble. Not a hero.
The rioting and looting are about to start. Wonderful. Getting off the streets sounds like a wonderful idea. Taking another shower to wash off the deluge of sweat coating every inch of your body sounds even better. Can't do that. Certainly, there's some way you could use your unfathomable power to move through the city faster, to not feel like a pathetic fat ass all-but crawling through a chaotic city on a stolen bike! Definitely can't do that. Have to understand your powers, need to test them, before you try anything dangerous.
You wipe your forehead, and force the bike forward. Sometimes you have to get off the bike to navigate through a particularly congested intersection. Those moments are heavenly. Your ass hurts from the bike seat. Your legs feel like jelly. Seems like you have multiple stitches in your side now. Didn't even know that was possible! You end up sitting in a shady area for five nerve racking minutes. Have to stay hydrated. That's important.
Five minutes turns into ten minutes turns into fifteen.
Eventually, you get up the drive to continue. The sun's climbing higher and higher. The day just gets hotter and hotter. Why couldn't you live somewhere cooler, somewhere where there weren't endless streets to circumnavigate, somewhere like Siberia!
According to your phone, it's 10:15 AM. You've been out here for nearly forty minutes. Been maybe ninety minutes since the Light. You're drawing close to City Hall now. No sign of dad. Another five minutes, and you'll be at City Hall. Your phone also reports that Martial Law has been implemented across the country. Strange. This close to the Dallas' seat of power, you would think it's be crawling with military personnel. No tanks. No APCs. Nadda.
Then you turn approach a familiar corner. There's a loud chorus of "Syr-Rah-Dow" which manages to blot out the constant droning of sirens. You come to a stop, step away from the bike, and peek around the corner. Then you see something you'll never forget.
About three hundred yards away, a petite black woman is standing on a truck bed. She looks entirely unremarkable in a conservative business suit, yet the sea of people surrounding her bothers you. Nearly two thousand people, black and white and hispanic, fluorescent-clad construction workers and sharply dressed business-types, are packed tight around her. She's speaking. You can't hear her voice, but you can only wonder at the looks of adoration and unmitigated pleasure plastered on everyone of the other people's faces.
They haven't noticed you, but it's only a matter of time. People at the edge of the group are being funneled closer to the woman on the truck. And no matter how much they resist the pull of the crowd, once they get closer, their defiance melts away. They stare with unrepentant devotion at the speaker. This is definitely not normal.
While you try to figure out what to do, you scan the crowd. There's the mayor, the chief of police, and a bunch of other power players. Your stomach plummets when you spot your dad amidst the throng. He'd always been the one to caution you against religion, against worshiping anything, and there he is looking up at the woman like she's the Virgin Mary,
This is wrong. She has to have some power.
What do you do?
[] Back off to a safe distance. Maybe go in a nearby building with a good view. Observe what's going on. More information couldn't be a bad thing, right?
[] Find somewhere away from prying eyes. Put on your disguise. Go and get your dad. Maybe getting him away from that woman will fix him.
[] Try to knock out the woman using your power. There has to be a way! If she's not conscious, maybe her power will lose its sway.
[] Write-in.
