Unintended use

[Leonardo Watch]

The radiant light of the midday sun shimmered throughout the city, reflecting and shining over the several metallic and glass constructions. While it wasn't a particularly hot day, the light was bright enough to make anyone crave for cover under the shadows the buildings and trees casted. There were a lot of people passing by in the streets, and even more so cars and flying vehicles crossing through the sky. It was a bright, busy day in Tier One of Coruscant.

Maria and Jerry were sitting on one of the benchs at the park near the Nexus gate. They were supposed to be paying attention to the many people passing by, but only Maria had anything resembling enthusiasm for their current activity. She had her gaze focused at the gate, waiting until the perfect victim crossed it. Jerry, on the other hand, was being barely kept awake by his sister's insistence in acompanying her.

"We've been here all day. Are you sure this is going to work?", said Jerry in a monotone voice. He couldn't keep his eyes focused – the bright light of the midday, while a beautiful sight, was only burning his eyes.

"I can't be sure of everything, but we're not losing anything by trying". Maria, on the other hand, was thrilled by the experience, eagerly observing the environment with her binoculars. No person escaped her artificial hawk-like vision.

"We lost the whole morning"

"You can't expect to win without an investment"

"Can't you do that on your own? I'll rather be sleeping"

"That's your fault for playing games all night! I told you yesterday we were going to do this today"

"Can't we do this tomorrow?"

"No! This is my free day. It's now or never"

"I rather it be never..."

An exasperated sigh was Maria's response to her brother's lack of enthusiasm for the mission. She was working her ass off to fix Jerry's mistake, and he couldn't even keep himself awake! What an ungrateful family she had to deal with. But would she back down?

No. Never.

After several minutes of watching, a person finally came from the portal: a male human on his late teens. Looking at every direction posible, stopping people to consult who knows what, and overall marveled at the city...

Yes, the perfect victim.

"Psst, Jerry!", whispered Maria. The lack of response prompted her to hit him on the head, waking him up. "Look! I've found our prime!"

She gave Jerry her binoculars, and pointed him at the guy she just spotted.

"Are you sure he's a prime?" Jerry was still as unenthusiasted as when they started. Probably more so, given the lack of sleep and the several hours of waiting.

"Of course! Just look at him! I'm pretty sure he's asking for directions – no one but newbies do that!"

"He could be coming from one of the other 'verses, visiting the city for the first time"

"Does he look like he's from somewhere else?"

"I don't know! But I'm not sure about this. What if he's secretly a sociopathic murderer?"

"There's a shitton of 'troopers here. He can't kill anyone"

"And what if he doesn't like us? He's a human"

"And you're a pussy! Give me that!"

Why had her brother to be so stupid and uncooperative?! Maria took her binoculars and walked by herself towards the suposedly new prime.

---

Leo couldn't help it but be amazed by what he saw. The inmense skycrappers, the flying cars, the unbelievable clean streets... It looked like a city straight out of a sci-fi! Everything was so bright and glossy and metallic...

But as cool as the city was, his priority right now was to locate the library the guards at the portal told him about. He didn't know what was happening, where he was, and how to get back home, so for now he should be focusing on that. He could later admire the view by taking some photos... If he had his camera.

An old man who passed by was kind enough to enlight Leo on how to find the library. It wasn't that far from where he was, and it seemed everyone knew about it, so he shouldn't worry about getting lost.

However, on his walk towards the library, someone tipped him on the shoulder, calling his attention. It was a girl around Leo's age, dressed casually. But she wasn't human: her purple-ish skin and horns delating the fact. And was that a tail?

"Hey!", said the girl. "You seem a little lost. Do you need any help?"

"Well, I'm not lost, in the sense that I know where I'm going, but... Yes, I could use some help"

"Nice! What do you need help with?"

"I'm looking for the library of... How was it called? Coruscunt? Corasunt?"

"Coruscant"

"Yes, that one"

"I can take you there, if you want. I know this city inside and out – or at least this part from around the portal... But don't worry! The library is not that far, and I know where it is"

"That'll be very nice of you. Thanks"

"Heh"

They both walked together towards the library. At no point did she stop smiling, sometimes even grinning too. She seemed nice – the first one so far to actually offer help. And if she wasn't... Well, there were plenty of security here. The surprising amount of armed guards and security cameras didn't go unnoticed by Leo, regardless of how distracting the shining city was.

"So," said the girl, still smiling. "What are you doing here? Why do you want to visit the library?"

"Well... Someone told me I could find some information I'm interested in. And I don't have anything else to do, so..."

"What informaition, exactly? If you don't mind me asking, of course"

"It's ok! I'm... A little lost, and..."

"And?"

"… Just that. Last night I was at my apartment. When I woke up... I wasn't anymore. I think that's worth looking for, if I can find the answer for it"

"Did you woke up in a white place with a fountain after a one-sided chat with what seems to be a god?"

Leo stopped walking.

"So you know what happened to me!"

"Everyone knows about that! Except, of course, the new primes, which you seem to be"

"Ah?"

"Look," she stopped smiling. "What if, instead of going to the library, you come with me? The park is a better place to chat anyways – benchs are awesome. And I could present you to my brother too. And we can answer all those newbie questions you have. What do you think?"

"Where exactly?"

"The park at the portal"

"Ah... Seems fine by me. But I would still want to go to the library at some point"

"We can go all together!"

And so, they walked... To where they came from. Leo didn't like the idea of leaving aside his trip, but asking someone may be an easier way of getting some idea of what was going on. And she seemed very eager to help him, so...

"I'm Maria. What's your name?"

"Leonardo. Nice to meet you, Maria"

"Same here"

[Leonardo Watch]

With a kick to the face, Maria woke up the guy who was supposed to be her brother. He was sitting on a bench at the shadow of a tree, and, originally, sleeping. How could someone sleep with such a radiant sun was beyond Leo, but he had to admit that they did chose a nice, cozy place at the park.

"What the FUCK is wrong with you?!" From anger, the guy's face inmediately switched to one of surprise, the moment he saw Leo. "...You... did get the guy"

"Of course I did! And not thanks to you! Now move your ass out of the middle of the bench"

Without giving him any time to react, Maria did it herself by sitting there and kicking her brother to the side. And with a grin so big all her monster-like teeth could be seen, she signed Leo to sit at her other side. He did it without saying anything.

"So, this lazy guy right here is Jerry, my dumbass brother" She turned to face Jerry. "And this other guy here is Leonardo. You better treat him well"

An almost inaudible "hi" was Leo's response. Jerry didn't say anything, still surprised by the sudden interruption, given his face.

"Ehm...", said Leo, getting Maria's attention. "You got me... for what, exactly?"

"To help you of course! You seemed so lost and confused and–"

"For what, exactly?", Leo repeated himself.

Maria's smile slipped away. "Look, we got some problems, and we need a prime to help us, You are a prime, so I suppose that we could help each other, you know? I teach you and help you about your situation, and you do us a favor. What do you say?"

"I think you just ruined everything"

Maria hitted Jerry with her elbow.

"What's a prime? Why do you need me?" Did they know about his powers? There were plenty of people out there behind his eyes, or at least that was his situation back home. The last thing he needed was to get kidnapped (again) in a place he didn't know anything about, and without being able to count on his friends.

"Primes are super-people summoned by Omni. They have superpowers and are overall awesome, even if their superpower is "using a gun REALLY well". We are secondaries – people summoned by primes. We don't have awesome powers, and most primes can kick our asses by looking at us funny. We got a problem where a bunch of people is angry at us, and we don't have the weaponry to defend ourselves, so I might risk befriending a prime over getting fucked because Jerry is such a stupid moron to get on the bad side of scary guys. That's it"

That was... a very straightforward answer. He had to give her bonus points for honesty at least.

"Well... That sounds like a good reasson to seek help, I must admit. But... can't you just ask the police?"

"NO" Jerry's yelling atracted the eyes of some people walking by. Once they continued their own business, he clarified: "Ejem... No"

Ah, illegal stuff. Makes sense.

"So, will you help us? Please? I'll do anything you want!". Maria was doing the puppy eyes to Leo. Damn it.

"Maria, never offer that to a guy you just met"

"I know what you're thinking", say Leo. "But no, I won't do that. Don't worry" Jeez!

Maria kept looking at him.

"Look! I know this seems like pretty heavy stuff, and I understand why you may be doing this, but I'm not sure if I could really help you"

"Come on, you guys can make money out of thin air. That'll be enough"

"How much do you owe them?"

Maria sat up. "Why don't we takes this conversation somewhere else?"

Leo shifted his view to the people passing by. In the distance, he could see some of the guards talking to each other, while looking at Leo and the siblings.

"Like... the library?"

"No!"

Leo giggled at her responsed. Jerry just looked at them, once again, confused.


With that, the three of them left the cozy bench at the park. They didn't seem to be bad people, and Leo could relate to their problem (somewhat...), so he decided to go with them. If what they were saying was true, that they needed a "prime", and that he was one those, then it couldn't be that hard, could it? And, in any case, he was a Libra member: these are the exact kind of problems that they deal with. And Leo should be able to help! Even if his powers weren't suited for physical confrontations.

He'll think of something.

[Leonardo Watch]

During the trip to the siblings's home at Tier Five, Maria proceeded to tell Leo all the "basic stuff" (as she called it) about being a prime and a citizen in the Omniverse: what omnilium was, how much it was worth, what you could do with it, how to summon things, the different 'verses, Coruscant's layout... among other things. It was a lot of stuff to take in, but it was much more useful than the "memo" Omni gave to him. And everyone seemed to agree that he was a jerk, something Leo didn't have any problem with.

Jerry was, for the most part, silent, save for a few corrections he gave to Maria's speech. While the bags under his eyes were as prominent as ever, he didn't appear tired at all, unlike at the park. In fact, he tended to be a few steps ahead of Maria and Leo at almost all times; his strides long and decisive, never stopping.


Once they reached Tier Five, Leo didn't expect it to look... Like Hellsalem's lot. The gritty streets, the busy avenues, people of all kinds and species passing by, a gun fight happening a few blocks away, the poluted air... All the unfamiliarity seemed to slip away, as if he had been living here all his life. Except, of course, that it wasn't Hellsalem's Lot, and he had no idea how to navigate there. But he could, for a moment, feel at home.

...

They finally got to the sibling's house: a little appartment at the southeast zone of Tier Five. It was a mess, he had to admit, but nothing Leo couldn't deal with. Honestly, he didn't care how they lived.

Maria was the last to enter the house, giving space for Leo, with Jerry being the first the arrive. She closed the door behind her, took a deep breath, and said "Well, we're finally here. Now we can really talk"

"Don't you get tired of talking? I swear my eardrums will explode if I hear any more words coming from you"

"Tiredness is for the weak anyways, something you seem to be very well aware of. And having your ears stop functioning will be a blessing for all of us here, so be my guest and do what you have to"

Jerry snarled at her, and left the room – probably to get some rest. With him out of the equation, Maria left some of the tension away, sighing, and left her body to relax at one of the chairs. Leo sat on the one in front of her, with the table in between them.

"Are you fine with him leaving?", said Leo.

"Of course. To be honest, I'm tired of dealing with his shit. He's not really a bad person, but he has refined the skill to get on my nerves"

"No, I said because... Well, i'm also... Kind of tired of listening to so much; it reminds me of school. Not to be ungrateful or anything though! I'm very thankful of what you did!"

Maria giggled at that. "It's ok! I'm tired of talking too. And hungry too. Wanna eat something?"

"Sure"

"It's pizza ok?"

"Always"

They both smiled at the same time.

While Maria talked through the phone for their chosen meal, Leo tried doing the "summoning" she told him about earlier. Concentrating, another orb of light appeared in front of him, this one bigger than the one he had at the Nexus. And, after a few minutes, the light faded to give place... for a little monkey.

"Sonic?"

The monkey climbed to Leo's shoulder. He petted it.

"Nice pet you have there. But "Sonic"? Really?"

It seemed Maria was watching him the whole time.

"He IS a fast monkey! "Sonic" was only fit"

"I'm sorry, but you have to admit you're not the best at names"

"…!"

They spent the next minutes chatting about trivial things, like names and monkeys, until the pizza arrived. With food on the table, now was the time for serius business.

"Now, time for the serius business"

Leo stared at her, waiting for a follow up...

"… So?"

"Business I said! I did all that I told I would, now it's time for you to do your part of the deal"

"Hey, I didn't agree on anything, only on coming here!"

"And what are you going to do then?!"

"Well, knowing what the thing is about could be a start"

"WELL, the thing is that... it seemed that JERRY had the awesome IDEA," she was looking at the door Jerry went through when they arrived, "of owing money to a FUCKING ARMS DEALER!"

Maria's accusations summoned Jerry. Or perhaps it was the smell of pizza. "Hey! I DID have the money to pay them! But those bastards raised the price without telling me anything! And when they did it was already too late!"

"It's STILL an awful idea! I told you a billion times to not hang out with those thugs!"

"They had nothing to do with it!"

"Well, the guns were FOR them!"

"But we NEEDED those guns!"

"What the fuck do you need guns for?! Only thug stuff!"

"Well, it's not my fault you prefer to waste your life working stupid jobs! SOME people here would rather prefer to have a better life!"

"And how is shooting at each other a better life?!"

"It's an inversion!"

"For WHAT?!"

"You'll never get it!"

"Oh, but what *I* get, it's that we're about to get killed! And it's your fault!"

"…!"

They started yelling at each other, and they kept doing it for a while, with Leo in the middle. Jeez, these guys needed to work on their relationship!

...

Leo never had any problem with his sister. They got along so well, and, save for a few petty fights here and there, they both enjoyed spending time together. For the most part, their relationship had been as great as it can get in their 16~ years or so of living together.

But she wasn't here, was she? Could he live on his own without her? It's been a while since they last saw each other, and, for some reasson, he never had a "real" problem with that, but... Somehow, knowing that he'll probably won't see her anymore brought a nostalgic feeling. He missed her, even more so now... He should have sent her more letters. Talk with her more on the phone. Maybe visit her every now and then too.

But he couldn't do that now, could he?

What he could do though, was summon her, as he did earlier with Sonic. But in that case, she'll be a secondary and, with her disabilities, he doubted she would really enjoy living here. Maria explained him that in this world secondaries had a very short life, since everything here seems to be resolved at brawls between guns and superpowers. Leo couldn't posibly take her here in that situation – he was still regretting taking her to Hellsalem's Lot in the first place; a feeling that won't dissapear anytime soon. More baggage to carry would be... Not that good.

…

"Well, and when the fuck did I ever say that?!"

"The other day! It's just that you have such a shitty memory you can't even recall the awful things you say to me!"

"Oh, *I* say awful things now? Only me? You sure? Like, really sure about that?!"

"Oh, don't pretend to be a saint now! You've been insulting me all day, even in front of the new guy!"

"*Excuse* me, but all that is the truth! You ARE a lazy bastard who got us into this fucking mess!"

"… !"

If only these guys weren't so fucking loud! One can't even swallow in their own angst in peace... !

"THAT'S... !" Leo screamed. Both of them stopped the yelling and stared at him. "... Enough. I think"

Now they were staring at each other. Maria continued. "Look at what you did! You can't start yelling when we have visits!"

"*I'm* the one yelling?! You were who started! Literally – don't pretend you didn't!"

These guys... "I SAID that that's enough. You don't have to keep yelling at each other"

"But I'm not yelling!" said Maria. Yelling.

"That's not important! I think... you both have to sit down and... talk, not yell. And even then there's no more need for discussing about this, because..."

They were staring at Leo.

"...Because I'll help you with it. Just please stop fighting!"

Jerry grabbed a slice of pizza, and finally sat down on a chair. "Great! That's fine by me"

Maria sighed, and sat down as well. She didn't say anything. Instead, Jerry picked up the conversation, again "And how you plan to do it?"

"I'll pay for the debt. I don't think i can do anything else"

"Why not? Aren't primes really good at fighting?"

"Not... me. I don't have those kind of skills"

"And what you CAN do exactly?"

"Well..."

Leo explined how his powers worked.

Jerry was the first to comment on that. "What? REALLY?"

"Now that you say it, you don't look like the kind of guy who would be out there fighting..."

Jerry looked at Maria. "You were staring ALL MORNING at the portal, and the only guy you got was a FUCKING SUPPORT?!!"

"Oh, maybe it wouldn't be like that if SOMEONE helped me!"

"… !"

Ah...

…

And who does this guy call "fucking support"?!

Leo picked up Sonic, who was sitting at the floor near him, and putted him on his lap. And he petted him. Angrily.

[Leonardo Watch]

Leo took the orb of omnilium he had on his pocket from when he "spawned" at the Nexus, puttet it on the table, and left the house. He wasn't going to deal with anyone's bullshit, and he was clearly not wanted here, so why stay? The siblings had what they needed from him (the donated payment), and he got what he wanted from them (to know what was going on). No reasson to do anything else but to look for a better place to be. With Sonic on his shoulder, he proceeded to walk and contemplate the street.

An activity that didn't last too long though. He hadn't reached the crossroad yet that Maria was already running behind him.

"Wait! Don't leave!"

Leo turned to face her. "Why not? I left you some of that weird money you use – I think that'll be enough. And it's not like I'm of any use for you two, it seems"

"That's bullshit! I don't care about that!"

"About what?"

"… … Everything! Well, I do care about other things... But that's not the point! Listen... !"

"…"

"I'm... sorry about that. I didn't intend for our fucked up situation to offend you"

"Oh, I'm not offended! I'm perfectly fine! Like, yeah, I get it, you needed something, I gave it to you, so no need to keep dealing with this"

"Are you mad?"

"Kinda..."

"…"

They both just stood there, at the side of the empty street.

Maria broke the short silence. "What are you going to do now?"

"I'm not sure, but I think getting somewhere to sleep when the night comes would be a nice idea"

"Do you... want me to help you with that?"

"Is it so you'll have an excuse to ask more favors from me?"

"No! Look, you don't have to do anything else for us, and I'm really thankful for the money. But I don't want you to leave offended by us"

"i told you I wasn't offended"

"Anyways... The least I can do is help you not get lost. Again"

Leo almost laughted at that. Almost. "Ok, you can come with me. As long as you don't keep fighting"

"Jerry's sleeping. Without him, there's no one else to spar with"

Together, they walked towards... wherever Maria was taking Leo. Unlike the last trip, they barely talked to each other, save for a few remarks Maria did about the neighborhood and the people living here. He wasn't sure if she was doing it with ulterior motives or for genuine kindness' sake, but he did apreciate her help, regardless of intentions. And apologies were always welcome, in any form or shape.

During the walk, they passed by a graffiti Leo recognized. It was a painting of a deformed tiger with psychodelic colors, that, somehow, looked amazing.

"Wait... Where are you taking me?", he said.

"To the elevator. Didn't you want to rent a house? You have enough money to live wherever you wanted"

"But I like this place"

Maria stopped. "You're joking"

"No, really! It reminds me of where I used to live"

"Tier Five sucks. There's a shitton of gangs, terrorists on the loose, illegal trafficking, trash everywhere..."

"Yeah, like home"

"…"

Leo proceeded to tell Maria about Hellsalem's Lot, formely New York. How he got there looking for a cure for his sister, how he met a lot of cool people, the kind of life a town that served as the crossroad between Earth and the Alterworld had, the many adventures he experienced... He didn't mention his work at Libra though, but he did tell her how he used to help people with his powers. While his life was one of constant danger, he had to admit that he liked it. The "helping people" part – not the "living in constant fear of being killed" thing.

"So, you were, like, a superhero? You?!" Maria giggled.

"No! But it could've been cool if I was... Although I don't think I'd be fit for that kind of work"

"You just told me about how you 'saved the world' by being a 'lovable wimp' and inspiring others. That's as cheesy as heroes can get"

"He he, if you say so... Wait, I'm not a wimp!"

She laughted.

They kept walking and chatting, until they reached the elevator.

Wait...

"What are we doing here!?", said Leo.

"Oh, I'm such an idiot!"

"…"

At the end, they did find Leo a nice apartment not that far from the elevator (and Maria's house). It seemed it belonged to a guy who lived alone, but who got recently killed in a gun fight.

Leo didn't had any problem with that.

---

That night, when Maria went to sleep, and after a nap of a few hours, Jerry sneaked out with the orb of omnilium Leo left.

Three teenagers of varying ages and species were hanging out at a nearby park, at the "shadow" of a big tree, outside the scope of the only working lamp. Sitting on the remainings of what were once concrete benchs and tables, they were chatting about trivial things when Jerry arrived.

"Oh, look who finally decided to show up", said Claren. He was smoking one of those cheap cigarettes he steals from his father.

"Just shut up", Jerry snarled.

"Guess who's been scolded by his sister again". Silas was the only one sitting in the dirt, with his head pointed to the sky, rested on a block of concetre. How he didn't broke his neck already was beyond Jerry.

Jerry looked at him with a stern face "And guess who I'm about to kick their ass if they don't shut up"

"He's in 'the mood', it seems". Silas started to laught.

Jerry turned to face Kevin, the only one who still didn't attempt to snark him.

"… What? What did I do now?", said Kevin.

"No, nothing. S'up, I guess". Jerry sat on one of the failed attempts at a bench. "But I'm not here for dumb shit. Check this out". He took the orb of omnilium from one of the pockets of his jeans.

Silas wasn't looking at the sky anymore. "Where did you get it? That's a lot of OM"

"My sister convinced a newbie prime to give it to her"

"So, you stole it from your sister", said Claren.

"No! That guy left it to pay Grook"

"But isn't that a little too much for Grook?"

"Yeah. Look, i'm going to use the rest of it to enhance my sword, and with that I'll hopefully get rid of that jerk". For the first time in the whole day, Jerry smiled.

… And so did Claren. "Yeah, right, you're going to kill Grook with your anime sword"

"But... That IS enough to kill him, right?", said Kevin. "Your sword is already powerful enough"

"Exactly"

"That's suicide", said Silas. "You may kill Grook, but that'll only get the rest of the gang to hate you. And us, by proxy"

"And what about the newbie prime you mentioned?". Clearen was lighting a new cigarette. "Is him part of your plan too?"

"The guy's an idiot, but I doubt he'll help us. And even if he did, he's a support; he can't kill anyone"

Silas and Kevin laughted.

Not so much Claren. "What kind of support, exactly?"

"He can "see beyond things", on his own words. That's it"

"You're an idiot Jerry. You're planning to fight another gang, and you think someone who can counter-ambush them is useless? Can he also check how many weapons they have? Where they are?"

Jerry took a moment to think. "Now that you mention it, he didn't specify what he can do exactly. In fact, he waited until the very last moment to actually tell us about it"

"That's exactly the kind of person you shouldn't understimate". Claren straightened his back. "Look, if you convince the newbie to meet with us, I may help you with your stupid plan. I want to see by myself what he can do. Having an Ace with us, even if he's a support, could actually work"

"Hey!", said Silas. "And before you enchant your sword, why don't you share that OM with us? We could use an upgrade too"

"Mmhh..."

"No", Kevin interrumpted. "Let's get some OM on our own. If we're going to fight, we better upgrade all that we can"

"That's it", said Claren. "You have until saturday to pay it, right? Let's meet up here on friday night. If our weapons are on point, and if the prime can work with us, then we'll help you take back Grook's gang"

Both Silas and Kevin agreeded with him.

[Leonardo Watch]

It was his first day at the new apartment. Leo didn't know what time it was, but judging by the light coming from the window, it had to be near midday. While he had woke up hours earlier, not having anything to do was what kept him on his bed, still wrapped up on the cozy blankets.

The apartment didn't had anything when he rented it yesterday, but the dirtied walls told stories about people living here, who were either too poor to give them proper maintenance, or just didn't care about it. The walls had a blue-ish paint, but most of it was either cracked or not even there, showing the plaster under it, also mostly broken. The only good thing it had it's that it didn't have any humidity problems, something Leo personally checked out with his vision. The floor was in a similar state as the walls, with some mosaics loose, others changed for unmatching ones, or just weren't there at all. It was surprising how devastated the place was, giving it was only a mere room and a bathroom, with the kitchen being part of the main space. Both the bathroom and the kitchen-part were somewhat clean thought.

When Leo came to the apartment, he summoned a bed, some kitchen supplies (like dishes and cups), a toothbrush, toothpaste, and toilet paper; nothing else. Even with "all the money of the world", he, for some reasson, didn't want to spend more than for what he needed – Couldn't, actually; something kept him from summoning any other luxury. What it was, he didn't know. But he did think about getting a TV, an AC, his Double Station, all the games he played there, a computer...

He finally got out of bed once Sonic started bothering him for food. After feeding him and summoning some breakfast, he was back at doing nothing, although this time he was sitting on his bed.

Someone knocked the door. He opened it.

"S'up", said Jerry.

Leo closed the door.

"Wait wait wait!"

He opened it again.

"What do you want?", said Leo.

"Woah, you're still mad? I'm sorry for yesterday"

"I'm not mad, but it's a little too suspitious for you, of all people, to come to my house, which I didn't gave you the address to"

"Maria gave it to me"

"You didn't answer why you're here"

"Ok, I'll be direct: some of my friends want to meet you, so I came here to invite you. You should get a phone by the way"

Leo raised an eyebrow. "Why? Do they want free money too?"

"No. They want to meet the guy who helped me"

Leo stood there, thinking. Should he do what Jerry says? For all he knew about the guy, he was a problematic kid who couldn't take responsability for his own mistakes, even when those affect other people. Or at least that's what Leo got from the interactions he presenciated yesterday; he didn't follow the verbal fight between the siblings to the end, but Maria had way more examples of him messing up than the other way around. Or maybe she had a better memory; Leo couldn't know. He didn't want to judge them after meeting them only once thought, but seeing Jerry shove off the whole mess while Maria did everything she could to fix it did say something about them.

And now Jerry was on his door to invite him to meet his friends. Mmhh...

"… So? What do you say?", Jerry interrumpted.

"I'm not sure"

"We won't ask anything from you, and you can leave whenever you want"

"When and where we'll meet?"

"At the park three blocks away from my house, friday night"

Who plans a meeting like this during the night? "Ok, I'll go"

"… What, really?"

"Yes. I don't have anything better to do anyways. And what's the worst that can happen, at night, in the middle of nowhere, with people I know nothing about?"

"Ok, cool. See you then"

"Bye..."

Jerry was already gone.

This guy...

---

Friday, 10:07 PM, it's when Leo arrived at the park a few blocks from the sibling's house. He found what he presumed were Jerry's friends at the side of the only working lamp post, sitting in the ruins of what were once concrete benchs, under a tree. The rest of the park was devoid of anyone else, and so were the surrounding streets.

"Oh, he's here. The prime", said Jerry.

"Hi", said Leo.

The tallest of the group, a mixed race guy, presumably in his 20's, wearing a black leather jacket, and the only human of the group, was the one to stand up to shake Leo's hand. "Good to see you. I'm Claren"

"Leonardo here"

Claren turned to face the others; none of them had said anything. "What are you waiting for?"

"I'm Silas", said a blue-skinned teenager, dressed in clothes more than one size too big. Leo couldn't see his face, as Silas was resting it on one of the concrete blocks, looking at the tree above.

"Kevin", said the younger of the group – presumably 13 or so years old. He had green skin, long antennae squashed under a red baseball hat, and whiskers.

Claren sat down on one of the blocks, and signaled Leo to do the same. He chose one near Jerry.

"So...", Jerry said.

None of them said anything else.

Leo broke the short, awkard silence. "Why am I here, again?"

"You're a prime, right?", Claren answered.

"Yes"

"What can you do?"

"Why do you want to know that?"

Claren looked at Jerry. "You didn't tell him anything, did you?"

"I told him to come. And he did. So? You were the one who wanted him here; not me", said Jerry.

Leo frowned. "What are you guys planning to do with me?"

"A raid". Claren lighted a cigarette.

"Ah?!"

"Jerry's idea"

Leo looked at Jerry, who was now facing away from him.

Silas laughted, still with his head resting on the concrete block. "Seriously man? You invited him here without telling him anything?"

"You shut up!" yelled Jerry.

He knew that Jerry was planing something! "And how are you going to do the raid?"

"That'll depend on what you can do", answered Claren.

"Assume I won't do anything. What's the plan?"

They were all staring at Jerry – save for Silas of course.

"I'll go and pay Grook the money–", Jerry explained. "–and you guys ambush him. That's it"

"That's not a raid!", said Kevin.

"That doesn't matter! The plan doesn't change"

"But it's not the same..."

"I said... !"

"..."

They proceeded to fight over etymology and the difference between "ambush" and "raid".

So, they wanted to use Leo's "prime superpowers" (as Maria called them) to fight with the arms dealer. That's not for what they're for! Leo wouldn't participate in such a petty fight. At least, not on Jerry's side.

"Claren... was your name, right?", said Leo, facing Claren. "You wanted to see my powers, no?"

Claren took a deep breath with his cigarette, and smirked.

Leo opened his eyes, and targetted Claren. Without any kind of overclocking or hallucinations, he let him see the world as Leo does.

With a choke, Claren's cigarette fell from his mouth. He grabbed his head and bit his teeth, but after a few seconds, his body relaxed. He now was looking at everything with a big grin.

"Dude, I don't care what Jerry says, and I don't know what you're doing, but this is awesome"

Leo closed his eyes, and with that, the effect disapeared. He looked at the others: Jerry and Kevin were staring at him, while Silas, now sitting straight, was looking at Claren.

"What did he did?!" said Silas.

"I don't know, but it was awesome"

"You didn't tell me you could do... whatever you did to Claren!", Jerry yelled.

"I don't have to tell you anything if I don't want to"

"I still want to know what he did!", Silas looked at Leo "Whad did you do?"

"I can see... stuff: through walls, illusions, that sort of thing. I can also mess up with what others see"

"Dude, can you, like, see into the fourth dimension or something? It was really weird" Claren was lighting a new cigarette.

"No; that's how things look like when you can see through them"

"Can I see it too?" asked Kevin.

"No. And I believe it's getting late, so I'll be leaving", said Leo.

"Wait!". Jerry sat up. "Will you help with the raid?"

"Ambush", said Kevin.

Before Jerry exploded at Kevin, Leo sat up and started to walk to his apartment. "No; don't count on me. But good luck with the 'ambush'"

"… !"

Leo left.

[Leonardo Watch]

The next day, on the early morning of a saturday, Leo decided to show up in front of the sibling's house. A Maria with only one eye with eyeliner and plain, black clothes welcomed him. Leo could also notice the slight texture of some sort of cream on the rest of her face.

"What are you doing at this hour?! I have work in half an hour!", was Maria's greeting at the front door.

"I know something that I think you should know too". Upon seeing her face shift to one of confusion, Leo proceeded. "Are you aware that Jerry will try to kill the arms dealer he owns money to?"

And with that, Maria's inmediate response was grabbing Leo from the arm and taking him inside. They walked to the kitchen, were several unwashed dishes on the counter and a lot of garbage that should be in the trash can could be seen. After they both entered, Maria closed the door.

"What the FUCK is he planning, again?", Maria said.

"Last night he offered me to join his little gang and help him ambush the arms dealer at the exchange. He didn't told you, right?"

"Of course he didn't. I would chain him or use some other extreme yet necessary means to make sure he won't get there. And he knows that"

"Well, I'm planning on going and helping him anyways, but it's more for your sake than me wanting to help him on his criminal activities. If you don't mind, of course"

Maria shrugged. "That's... Very nice of you. Yeah. Thank you"

Leo smiled on response. "No worries!". After a short, silent pause, his smile faded. "What are you going to do, knowing this?"

"Right now I have to head to work. But look, the exchange will be today at 6pm. My shift finishes at 5, so meet me here sometime around that hour. It'll take some time for me to get here, but I'll try to be on time. We can discuss what we're going to do then"

"Will you come to the fight?"

"You BET I will!". She opened the kitchen door. "I don't have the time for you to be here right now, so, if you excuse me..."

"Of course!"

Maria accompanied Leo to the front door.

"Oh, and Leo?", she said, right after he crossed it.

Without giving him the time to respond, she bounced and grabbed him on a tight hug. She didn't seem to notice Leo could barely breath under it, but he didn't stop her. Not that he could though...

"Thank you!", she said, with the sweetiest voice Leo has ever heard from her.

"It's... Ok!"

And with a smile and a fast kiss on the cheek, Maria clossed the door, again without giving Leo the time to respond.

He left, also smiling. And hugging himself to relieve some of the pain left from the hug. That too.

[Leonardo Watch]

At the front of the siblings house, Leo stood, waiting. His legs were hurting already, but he'll rather deal with that than sit on the ground. It had so much dirt and oil and other stuff he didn't want to think about... Of course, he wouldn't tell Maria that, but he did regret arriving at 4:30.

It was 26 minutes past five when Maria arrived. Her skin was glossy from sweat, and her breathing was arrythmic and accelerated.

"Curse stupid... customers who arrive 15 minutes... before I have to leave!... I'm sorry", She said, inbetween heavy breaths.

"It's fine, don't worry"

They both entered the house, where Leo could finally rest his legs on the chair at the main room. Maria, instead, went straight to what Leo saw was her bedroom, leaving the door open. When she started to undress, Leo turned his head away – while one shouldn't be able to see her from his angle, that didn't aply to him.

"Leo!", she said from the other room. "You said earlier that you'll help on the fight. How, exactly?"

"That'll depend on who's Jerry fighting against. They seemed confident about it"

"So... you expect you won't do anything?"

"That'll be ideal"

"And if Jerry was a cocky bastard –which he is– and understimates Grook?"

"I can give him some time by distracting the enemy"

Maria came out of her bedroom. She now was wearing an oversized pair of pants, heavy boots, a tank top, and fingerless gloves with metallic spikes on the knuckles. The makeup on her face was cleaned away, but some of it was still there.

"We're about to fight. Don't be so secretive about what you can do!". She was borderline yelling.

"I'm not... !". Leo made a little pause, thinking about his past encounters with them. "… Yeah, you're right. Sorry"

"So, what'll you do, exactly?". She was back to her normal tone.

"First I'll scout the place to see how many people there are; I doubt the arms dealer will be alone. Then... Well, if things go bad, I can always mess up with the enemies by making them see things, and give you or Jerry an opening... Wait, what can you and Jerry do?"

"That's more like it!", she said, smiling. "As for us, we're both brawlers, although Jerry has been insisting in fighting with an enchanted sword for the past months. We used to be a lot stronger, but now we can only count on weapons to do our job"

"So, you'll punch them to dead with those spikes on your gloves?"

"Pretty much"

"Sounds fine by me. Are your gloves enchanted too?"

"Yeah, although not as much as Jerry's sword. They punch hard, but that's because *I* punch hard!". She made a punching motion.

Leo took his phone and looked at the time: 5:43pm.

"You didn't tell me you had a phone", she said.

"I got it just today. I thought that maybe I'll need it now". Leo sat up. "But it's getting late. Perhaps we should hurry?"

"Of course! Let's go"

They both left the house, and walked to the agreeded place... Which Leo didn't know about – the other reasson he came to Maria, besides wanting to help her. 

In their way, they exchanged numbers. Just in case.

[Leonardo Watch]

Leo and Maria were five blocks away from her house, at what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse, which had all its doors locked with heavy chains, and its windows closed with bricks. Covering the front of its main entrance and its outer sides, there was a large parking lot, with some old cars still parked there, but mostly empty. Inside the warehouse, Leo could distinguish some big piles of something, but he didn't see anyone there.

"Behind that wall, there should be a smaller parking lot. That's where Jerry should be right now", Maria said.

"Should I check out the place, then?", he said.

"If you think you'll get a good sight from here, then yes"

Leo opened his eyes, and watched the surroundings, paying more attention to where Jerry was supposed to be. From behind the wall, there was effectively another, smaller parking lot, this one with several old trucks instead. The whole place was surrounded by the apartments and the other buildings from this block. Its sole entrance was a door at the back of warehouse, which, unlike the front entrance, wasn't locked.

Behind one of the trucks, Leo saw Jerry, plus another person he assumed to be the arms dealer. Not that far from them, and hidden from their direct vision, he could also recognize Claren behind another truck, Silas at the top of that same truck, and Kevin on the "cargo" of the truck at the oposite side of where Claren and Silas stood. They were all armed: Silas had a handgun, Kevin carried a little sack of... something, and Jerry and Claren were using some kind of stick (a bat?). There were no one else, at least not in the inmediate vincinity.

"I think we're–". Leo noticed something on top of the warehouse's roof. "–Wait"

There was the silhouete of a person sitting, with their head looking at Jerry and Grook. Leo had to sharpen his vision to completely make sense of that shape, so he payed more attention it.

That person, a thin, almost skeletical adult of undefined gender, dressed in all black with their face obfuscated by something, looked at Leo. Inmediately, they raised their hand to their head, and made a weird sign.

"I think this is bad", said Leo.

Leo heard something from Maria, but most of it was lost by the sharp, inmediate pain he felt on the back of his neck. He then fell to the ground with a dry scream, and his vision blacked out.

---

His senses returned in time to hear someone scream. Leo raised his head to look at Maria; the pain was still as fresh as when he fell. She was fighting with an impressive big man, both exchanging blows and kicks, and both nimble enough to dodge each other's attacks.

The other man threw a punch aimed at Maria's head, which she reacted by lowering her body to dodge it. With that, she jumped towards his head, and hit him with an uppercut under his jaw. The man backed a few steps, and she took it as an oportunity to run towardds him and hit him squarely on his knee. The man lost balance and fell to the ground with a short scream. Maria backed up, and stood ready to keep fighting. The man, however, didn't bother to sit up.

"I don't recognize you from any of the nearby gangs. Why are you here?", the man said with a low voice. Leo now could see he was bleeding from the nose, and had several scratches on his face.

"And you ask that now? In any case, that's none of your business". Maria, too, had blood on her face, alongside some bruises.

The man sat up, frowing in pain with the move. "I can't let anyone who's not involved with us pass"

"And I can't let anyone stand on my way!"

Before Maria jumped back to keep fighting, she saw Leo attempting to sit, so she came to his aid instead. She grabbed his arm and pulled him until he sat up. The pain on his neck was fading, but it still ached with the sudden movement.

"Are you alright?", she said.

"I'm fine. Thanks"

The man was still on his spot. He was looking at the roof of the warehouse, where the almost invisible shape still stood. Leo sharpened his vision: the weird person was now signing something, with their head aimed at the scene.

The sound of an explosion made Leo shift his gaze towards the trucks on the other side of the parking lot's wall. Jerry and Claren were fighting Grook with their sticks, with Silas giving support with his gun. Kevin was lighting a bomb.

Maria interrumpted Leo's scouting. "I don't care who you are or what you're doing here, I'm going to help them!", she yelled, pointing to the fight behind the wall.

"You're welcome then", was the man's response.

It took a moment for Maria to react to that, but the sound of a second explosion turned her attention back to the fight. She ran towards the wall and, by using one of the parked cars as support, she jumped to the other side of the parking lot with a double jump. At no point she looked back.

"You're coming with me", said the man to Leo.

And, without giving him any time to react, the man picked him and carried him towards the entrance to the warehouse. Without any sign of the lock or the chains, the door opened. Once inside, the man left Leo to stand on his own, with a delicacy that rivaled Klaus' way of carrying him.

In the warehouse, there were two other people besides Leo and the gentle giant, one of which Leo recognized as the one he saw on the roof. Up close, that person still had an "air" around them that made it hard to discern their exact shape; the black clothes faded into the background, and their face were covered in an invisible smoke. Whoever this person was, they were clearly a master illusionist, being able to fool Leo's vision, something he thought imposible up until now.

The other person was a short old woman of a species that remainded Leo of frogs, with her skin a bright red and green, a big mouth, yellow eyes, and a compact physical structure. She was wearing a black longcoat (that wasn't that "long", taking in mind her stature) and a white little hat. She was sitting on an unpiled wood box, and soon the big man did the same.

"I was expecting Jerry's sister to show up, but someone who could see through us was beyond my deductions", said the illusionist. Their voice, like their shape, appeared to be lost in the air, but somehow Leo could still hear it.

"Are you part of Grook's gang?", said Leo, with a defiant tone. His body was tense.

"Of course not. If anything, he should be part of our group. But he's not"

"Then what are you doing here?! What do you want with us – or me, at least?"

"Besides an interest for your unexpected presence, we're only here to wait for the money"

"Are you going to rob Grook?"

"That's not something we condone. Grook owes us the money, and we're waiting for the exchange to proceed, so we can leave. That's it"

"… Really?"

"Did you not hear them?", said the frog woman.

"Yes, I did...". Leo's body relaxed. "And what about me?"

"You–", continued the undefined person, "–Will carry a message. You see, we don't usually intervene in external conflicts, but we do care about our clients. If Grook dies, we'll kill all the people fighting him. I want you to make sure that doesn't happen"

Leo looked at the fight outside the warehouse: most of them were still fighting, save for Silas and Kevin, whose bodies were lying on their respective spots. Leo didn't bother to observe more than what his normal vision allowed him.

"Can I go then?", he said.

"Of course. Do as you must"

Leo left the warehouse from its back door, running towards the fight.

[Leonardo Watch]

Now that there weren't any walls inbetween, Leo could better see the whole scene. Grook looked very similar to Kevin, except that his skin was red-ish instead of green, and he appeared much older than him... save the fact that his stature was almost identical to Kevin's. But his weapon took most of Leo's attention: it appeared to be two excessively long flails connected on the base by chains. By the way Grook was wielding it, those chains had to be controlled by telekinesis or some other trick – physics don't work that way. Which may explain how he could fight a 4 vs 1 for this long and still be standing.

In front of him, Jerry and Claren were fighting, but their tactic was more about blocking the flails with their sticks than attacking. Grook's weapon didn't appear to be very precise, but the range was enough to keep both Jerry and Claren at bay. Up close, Leo could also see that their "sticks" were actually wooden broomsticks cutted in half, but with a halo surrounding them in the shape of a blade.

Maria was nowhere to be seen... Actually she was hiding behind one of the trucks, now that Leo bothered to watch something else besides the guys fighting. She kept her gaze focused on Grook, and didn't appear to notice Leo.

But Leo wasn't there to just observe the stale fight – his mission was to make it stop. He walked towards them, but in reality he had no idea how to aproach the situation. Should he yell at them? Attack them? ... Just wait?

"Leo, watch out!", Claren said.

Leo's attention returned in time to see one of Grook's chains about to hit him, but dodged it by lowering his body. The flail came from a failed attack to Claren, flew in a circle, reached Leo on the other side, to then follow its trail and attack Jerry, completing the circular travel. Jerry parried it, but now all of them were looking at Leo.

With that, and on the second Grook took to turn his head to face Leo, Maria came from her hiding spot to deliver a straight kick to Grook's face, throwing him to the cement floor.

"What the fuck are two doing here?!" Jerry yelled.

"Saving your life, dumbass!", said Maria.

Yes, saving Jerry's life, that's what he had to do!

Leo sat up "Hey, listen, you all have to stop this like, right now!"

Jerry looked back to Grook, who was already on his feet and on the wind up for a new attack. Jerry, instead of preparing himself to dodge or parry the flail, he jumped towards Grook, preparing his own attack with his sword.

Leo could already imagine Jerry cutting Grook's neck with that, giving his speed vs the flail's. Oh no you won't!

Before any of them could land their attacks, they both fell to the floor with a scream.

"Now you two listen to me!", Leo said. He had his eyes open. "If any of you dies, we all die! So you better stop this shit, finish the exchange, and leave!". He almost felt like a mom grounding her kids, but he had to stop this nonesense before someone effectively died. He'll rather trust the weird illusionist than risk it.

"Hah? No, fuck you if you think I'm doing what this traitor wants!". Jerry was on the floor, covering his eyes with his left hand. The other was pressed on his no-longer-a-sword broomstick.

"And fuck you if you think I'm letting you finish this dumb fight!", was Leo's response. He was staring at Jerry, still with his eyes open, and ready to attack him again if Jerry decided to resume his own attack.

"I'm with the purple rat", said Grook. "You bet your ass I'm not retreating before I teach this stupid brat how to not break a promise!"

Leo closed his eyes. "Well, fine! Kill each other! But it'll be your fault if those weird guys come and kill us"

"Which weird guys? The ones who were supposed to be helping me?! Instead of leaving me alone to deal with all these fucking kids?!"

"Well, I came to help you. I don't know if that counts, but they did send me"

"Ok, I think that's enough", Claren interrumpted. "Jerry, I'm not messing up with them"

"Who are 'them'?", Maria asked.

"Claren you traitor!". Jerry sat up.

"Anyways", said Leo. "Jerry, just pay Grook and leave. I think we should be taking care of Silas and Kevin instead of debating this pointless fight"

"Shit, the kids!". Claren ran towards the truck were Kevin was supposed to be.

"But who are 'them'?!", Maria repeated herself.

Leo walked to Jerry. "Give me back my money"

"... ... No". Without looking at Grook, Jerry threw to him the orb of omnilium.

Grook catched the orb and sat up. "Ok then, I'm not dealing with this shit anymore. But Jerry, I wont forgive you because your friends have more than one brain cell. Be sure that I'll end this shit someday!"

"You bet"

And with that, Grook left towards the warehouse.

Maria grabbed Leo from his clothes and shaked him. "But who are 'them'?!"

"I don't know! But they're scary and threatening and I'm not risking getting you all killed!"

"… !"

---

After Grook left, they all proceeded to check for Silas and Kevin. Silas had his right arm broken, but besides that he was fine. Kevin, however... Well, at least he wasn't dead, but none of them hesitated in calling an ambulance and attending him first, much to Silas' disdain.

After he was sure the kids were "fine", Leo left the place. Maria insisted in accompanying him, but he declined, prefering to walk alone.

He didn't tell her about the shapeless illusionist following him.

---

Once on his apartment, Leo expected the illusionist to greet him there. They were sitting on the window he left open that afternoon, with Sonic on their shoulder.

"Wasn't it enough that I did what you said?", Leo said to the illusionist.

Sonic ran towards him, and climbed to Leo's shoulder, chirping happily.

"It was enough. I just wanted you to answer something"

"So?"

"How did you see through us?"

"I'm a prime; we're supposed to have weird superpowers. Mine's to fool illusionists like you"

"That's a harsh answer for a not-so-disrespectful question"

"Don't talk about respect when you just traspassed into my apartment!"

The illusionist made a short pause. "Very well, I can accept that"

"Anything else?"

"Yes. Do you know who we are?"

"No"

"Would you want to know?"

Leo hesitated to respond. "… I'll go with a 'no' here..."

"That's fine. But you still know about me, and that's something I can't leave as it is"

They left the window to stand inside the apartment. Leo took a step back.

"... So? What does that mean, then?", Leo said.

"Not much. I like the way you dealt with the fight and with me right here. That's all"

Ahh? Who the fuck is this guy? "... That's... all? A compliment?"

"Yes. Now, I'll ask you something else. Would you want to join me?"

Leo lost it. "Ok this is really confusing I don't know who you are or what you want or what you'll do with me!", he said without any pauses. "But..." At least he could be sure normal bad guys only wanted to harm people! But this guy...

"Ok, that's enough. I'll be leaving now, but you can contact me any time you want. If you ever become interested in us or in our work, just look up for me"

The illusionist jumped through the window. When Leo got there to see where they went, he couldn't find them anywhere.


Leo made the loudest sigh he could, and threw himself on his bed.