1: Randoms with Powers

"Things are moving so fast, like Rebecca getting married." A girl with crimson hair and green eyes, with a hand bag around her shoulder, with a phone in her hand.

Wearing a casual jacket over a t-shirt and jeans.

Inside, the store produced an aura of serenity, expressed by the gentle flicker of diming ceiling lights above. Rows of garments hung gracefully, swaying in the faint breeze that crept through the cracks. The scent of freshly laundered fabric lingered in the air, mingling with the faint aroma of incense.

Positioned in the night city of new York.

"You honestly thought she'd stay single forever, remember who she is." A voice came from the phone, implying she's on a call.

The girl with red hair pushed her right hand through a shelf of dresses hanging, all the while speaking . "I know, I know, but it's just so surreal. I always thought Rebecca was like, you know independent."

"Well, yeah, but come on, you've seen the way she lights up around him. It was gonna happen sooner or later." The girl over the phone replied.

"True, but marriage? That's a whole new level of commitment. I don't think I got the back bone to do it." The red hair girl responded with concern.

The girl on the phone giggled at her. "Hey, when you know, you know Bernadette. And those two? They've been inseparable since forever." confirming the red-haired girl's name.

Bernadette keep looking through the racks of dresses, her eyes caught a deep navy blue gown with delicate lace sleeves. The dress hugged her curves just right, and its elegant simplicity exuded sophistication. "I guess you're right. It's just strange to think of her settling down." Bernadette replied.

She imagined herself wearing the dress at the wedding, standing by the bride's side with confidence and grace. Only to hear the girls voice on the phone again.

"Oh, please. Rebecca? She's never been one to settle for anything less than extraordinary." The voice replied.

Bernadette removed the dress from the racks and placed an hanger over it. "You're right. I'm just happy for her. She deserves all the happiness."

"Exactly! Like come on, she really killed it this time. He's perfect." The voice over the phone shouted out.

"Thanks for talking this through with me. I needed some perspective." Bernadette said, walking away from the racks of female dresses. Now making her way over to the cashier at the checkout counter.

"Anytime, girl. That's what friends are for. Now, let's start planning the most epic bachelorette party ever!" The voice said over the phone with joy, hanging up the phone. Leaving a positive impression on Bernadette.

"Oh her, she's the party type alright." She made her away through a shelf of jeans hanging over.

But then, her ears caught the sounds of metal bashing and grazing on a wall that stopped her from walking where she needs to be. With a curious eye looking over to the source of the odd sounds.

"Anyone over there?" She quietly asked, and yet, a mind in the back of her head was telling her to look. Maybe someone needed help.

As she cautiously approached the sounds, her eyes widened in confusion when she saw a dark-skinned boy in the corner between the shelves of male pants, shirtless and putting on one of the pants, giving the impression that he was naked, with no signs of prior clothing to suggest he was just trying it on.

She was about to turn away, until this boy noticed her. Turning his brown eyes onto her greens, which stunned her.

"Hello-" She said cautiously, waving her hand towards him.

He titled his head at her, like an animal meeting another that it never met before. Therefore, he didn't say a word, putting the pants on.

"Um are you trying that on? Seem kinda big for you." She said to him, hoping to get a reply. Yet he didn't say anything.

This resulted in her thinking he's ignoring her, so she walked off back towards the cashier. Thinking he must be a hobo who got into store. "Weird, I gotta tell the cashier about that guy."

She was stopped by a line at the cashier's desk, looking at the people there. They were stressed like street thugs, with one of them gripping onto the collar of the cashier. The line now seems like a crowd of menaces.

"You gonna give us what we want or do I gotta use force?" The thug in a leather jacket spoke to the cashier, smiling as their apparent leader held them.

"Look, we don't want anything trouble." The cashier said, expressing annoyance rather than concern.

"Then pull out the cash drawer, or get what that security dude got." The leader spoke.

Bernadette recoiled as the scent of something burnt came to her nose, causing her discomfort. Peering through the crowd, she noticed smoke emanating from a large object on the ground near the exit door west a few meters from the cashier.

Her unease turned to horror as she recognized the grim reality: a burnt corpse lay before her, its identity confirmed by the security breastplate. Overcome with terror, she trembled and screamed, inadvertently alerting nearby thugs to her presence.

"Huh? Oh a chick." One of the thugs said.

"Oh god-" The cashier said, starting to show concern.

"She kinda bad tho." Another thug said, expressing an inappropriate response.

"Why don't we have fun with her, it's not like anything can stop us." The previous thug replied to the other.

Bernadette couldn't understand how the security officer was burned so badly, his body suffered third degree burns all over. Yet none of the thugs had anything capable of this. Only to witness two of the thugs coming over to her.

She backed away due to this and one of them gripped her arm, "Get off me!" she yelled.

The cashier tried to move, only for the leader of the thugs to place a palm over his face, saying, "You sure you're ready to die like him?"

"Leave the girl out of this, I'll give you guys the money." The cashier pleaded.

In the process, one of the thugs forced themselves onto the girl pushing her over a board. She attempted to fight him off, as another thug caressed her leg.

"Get off me!" She fought against them, but their superior strength overwhelmed her. Any hope she held onto dwindled as they restrained her, leaving her powerless in their grasp.

With this shackled though, she teared up. Following with the cashier getting more frustrated. "You're just gonna stand here and let them take advantage of her?!" He barked at the leader.

"If the boys wanna enjoy a treat, that's they're business." The leader said, as a flicker of fire sparked from the middle of his palm. "I was planning on roasting you both anyway."

This message alone brought only unacceptance to the cashier man, who felt hopeless in saving himself and the girl.

"Who's that dude?" One of the thugs next to the leader said, followed by the others looking over to a boy.

The boy from earlier with dark-skin, a baggy pants on from the shelf. Barefooted and shirtless, staring at them all confused. Observing the other thugs on the girl, and the others.

He titled his head as if he didn't know what this experience was.

"Yo, what's this kid doing here?" one of the thugs grunted, eyeing him with disdain. "Shouldn't be hanging around, kid. Get lost before you become a victim," he muttered, showing little regard for the boy's safety.

The leader eyes widen as he let go of the cashier, who crashed back a wall. "Ain't no way. I found one of you." The leader said excitingly.

Around the chest area, the number 8 was imprinted into the boy's chest. And the thugs were confused at the words the boy.

"Boss you know em?" One of the thugs asked.

Without heeding the thug's words, the leader extended his fist, unleashing a torrent of flames that engulfed the boy with enough force to send him sprawling backward.

The cashier and the Bernadette was shocked and confused by this. Did fire just came from the boy's hand?

"Weak ass Autogene. And I can't believe he's number eight on the list." Flickering his hand so the fire from it disappears.

"Boys, enough shitting around take what you want I'm burning the place down." The leader said looking over to the thugs.

The thugs who had the girl didn't like this escalated idea, "But boss we're just getting started." One of them replied.

"We have better things to worry about, if there's a more with this dude, will be the one getting killed." The leader assorted, confusing the thugs.

As the flames roared behind the leader, dark, twisting limbs emerged, slicing through the air. A shiver of fear raced down his spine as these ominous appendages impaled the two thugs, hurling them away from Bernadette with brutal force.

"The hell?" The leader looked immediately behind him, seeing the boy walking up out of the flames. A Shadow moving and twisting on its own behind of the boy.

Tendrils of shadow intertwined with the boy, briefly obscuring him before retreating. His face, confused as ever, yet it seemed as though the shattered remnants of the shadows offered him a brief shield, before walking out of the engulfing fire.

"Autogene?" The boy repeated from the leader, as if it was familiar.

Everyone was stunned by all of this, except the leader. His face expression made it look like he expected something like this to occur.

"What the heck is that shadow thing behind him?" The leader asked himself, as he engulfed his hands in fire once more.

Upon witnessing this, the boy swiftly leaped forward, adopting a defensive stance over Bernadette reminiscent of a crouching frog on all fours, evoking an animalistic posture.

The shadow behind him, initially appearing to trail along, unveiled itself as a black and torn cape fluttering in the air, adorned with neck collars that shrouded the sides of the boy's face. Yellow eyes with rectangular pupils formed on the collar of the cape oddly, glancing back at the thugs.

"Jesus what's going on-" Bernadette asked herself while looking up at the boy who just saved her from a terrible fate.

As the boy gazed at the leader's neck, he noticed the number 16 imprinted on it, unsettling him. Simultaneously, his cape began to contort, morphing into several spiky-like limbs, further heightening his unease.

"Oh shit so you're gonna fight? Show me what you can do little bro!" The leader roared at the boy, unleashing another barrage of flames. Giving the way of uncertainty of what would happen next.