Danny Fights The Oedipus Complex (Eli)

"Has no one taken inventory yet?" A pure white piece of paper rested upon a clipboard in front of Danny. The gentle breeze from fan in the back room coursed over Danny's hair, letting it float gently over the green sweater tied over a white button down shirt with a plaid skirt and a pair of pink and black sneakers.

Nancy flipped a pen in her hand, keeping it from the lapel of her jacket. "It wasn't my job."

Mitsuko avoided direct eye contact by hiding her gaze behind the ponytail creeping around the side of her head. "Maybe we've slipped a little."

"What's an inventory?" Summer looked up from behind the desk with the glow of a cell phone highlighting her hair.

"What did we sell last week?" Both of Danny's eyes remained glued to expense report. "I'm not seeing- anything."

A precise finger tapping continued with Summer's face directed at the phone, but her voice directed at Danny. "You should see a-"

"If the next word out of your mouth is stupid, you're getting hit." A giant turquoise fist appeared in front of Danny. The rebuttal from Summer remained rooted in looking at her phone. "Someone do something around here."

"We got a book from a demon in exchange for a blouse." Mitsuko pulled out a leather bound tome, pulsing with a red glow around an eye that peered around the room. "Should we put it in the inventory?"

"We should put it in a safe. In another dimension." Danny moved from one foot to the other, seeing if the book's gaze would stay on her. "It's creepy that it keeps looking at me."

"Nuh uh, it's looking at me." Nancy and her perfect bob looked over to Danny from the other side of the room.

"I don't want to be confrontational, but I think it keeps looking at me." Mitsuko stared down at the book.

"This is why I don't read." The only person with no real opinion chimed in. "It's creepy."

A turquoise fist flew and punched the phone out of Summer's hands.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Outside of the shop, Tsukimi Sanada continued her due diligence into the origins of the book by trying to exhume some type of sales receipt from the garbage. Not dressed for the occasion, she tried keeping her red blouse and black skirt out of harm's way with a garbage picking instrument she bought down the street. "Here it is." She lifted the piece of paper to her face. "And, it smells terrible. But, I think it is the stench of hellfire and not- oh, no, that's spoiled milk. Definitely spoiled milk."

The van was quiet, almost eerily so. It would occasionally go over a bump which caused the inhabitants to shake with the motion of the car. Daniel Prints, keeping both hands on the wheel, could not stop tapping his fingers against the steering wheel, his eyes darting from the road to the rearview mirror; his eyes would dart from each figure in the back to the next. Each one of them, with the exception of Brandon, was buried in their phone. Even Eli!

Daniel’s eyes quickly darted to the GPS. They would be arriving any minute and they’ve barely gone over the plan. The tapping on the wheel got a bit more antsy, Daniel’s patience growing thinner by the moment. Finally, he broke under it. “Alright. What hell is our plan here? What are we doing? A magic store? Really? Is that our grand scheme?”

Eli didn’t take his eyes off the phone as he slowly, lazily tapped the keys. A smirk however did begin to grow on his face. “A client we work with had a lot to say about this place. The staff are pretty interesting too. If not something fun to buy, then maybe a new ally. If they’re not too close minded that is.”

“Alright, but do we even have a plan?”

Cammy pipped up. “Keep your eyes on the road, Daniel.”

Daniel turned his head back to the road. They were just about there, another street to go. “I’m just saying, this seems a bit sloppier compared to what we usually do. If these folks are really…interestin’ then I’m just saying, we should think of something before charging in.”

Eli waved his hand, “I already have a plan. You can stop the car here though. Keep a clone at the wheel when we get out.” He leaned back in his chair, tucking his phone away.

Daniel pulled over, still a few doors down from the shop. The other members of the car tucked away their phones and turned their attention to Eli, waiting for the plan. However, in this waiting, Daniel was the only to speak. “Alright, care to share what we’re doing? Or looking for?”

“Well, the plan is what it always is. Allies if we can get them. If not, send the message. Maybe get away with something that can help us in the future. We still need a few key items for our plan. But, that’s down the line, not saying we’ll get anything like that today. So, Doppler, actually…you know what, you stay here, send in a clone with me. Also, Blight and Polaroid, you’re both with me as well. We’re going in the search, going to check it out, see what we can find out. We’re not getting rough right off the bat, but…we might get there depending on how it goes. Meanwhile, Mimi you’re going to try and make a new friend. Clockwork. You’re with her, she might need help and make sure her new friend is well taken care of. That work for everyone?”

Brandon raised his hand.

“No killing, Blight. Not unless I say otherwise. Polaroid, no deadly locations. Desert, mountain, far away, those are fine. No ocean, space, artic, or volcano.”

Brandon lowered his hand.

“Anything else?”

There was nothing, and so they started to head out. Eli and his group of three got to the door of the shop. It seemed simple enough, nothing that impressed Eli, but there was an odd feeling about it. With a large grin he opened the door and raised a hand in a simple wave. His eyes would’ve already turned blue, ready to scan any sort of abilities the workers had. He quickly stepped in, looking around.

“Hello hello! My name is Alex and I am looking to buy!” Eli gave a small bow of his head, lying about his name. His voice would be loud enough to draw attention but not quite loud enough to seem eccentric. He raised his head, trying to get a good look of everyone he could. “I’m a simple man with simple desires, could anyone please help me out?”

While this short rant went on, his team of three entered behind him, getting a look of the store. They didn’t seem as interested in the store or even carry any of the same mannerisms. They kept relatively close to Eli but spread out just enough to not seem threatening. While they stood in proximity to Eli, they each took a look at a different item, trying to act like they were potential customers. Of course, the only real shopper would be Eli.

Meanwhile, outside around the back Mimi was skipping down the alleyway. A few feet from her, walking a bit slower and with more caution, was Clockwork, still in full garb. She really didn’t know how to not stand out. Mimi was the first to see the girl in the dumpster and a large, bordering creepy smile came to her face. It was one that was a mix of excitement, desire, and slight malice. Clockwork, being Clockwork, had her expression hidden by her mask.

Mimi rose both of arms and waved them excitedly. “Hello! You! In the dumpster! Hi hi hi!” She quickly ran over to the dumpster, extending a hand outward. “My name is Mimi! I just love your face! You’re sooooo cute! Hi!”

Clockwork let out a small sigh and stepped forward, giving a wave. “Sorry, ma’am. Ignore her. She’s just a bit excitable. She’s harmless, I swear.” She lied but it would be well covered. She gave a small wave and walked over to Mimi, adjusting her mask slightly. “Sorry about my appearance. Cosplayer. Was on my way to a small meeting with friends when Mimi here just ran down here.” She raised a hand to the girl in the dumpster. “You can call me Hannah. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” If Tsukimi shook hands with Clockwork she would instantly feel different, slow, incredibly slow. Clockwork would use her momentum ability to reduce her speed to that of a snail.

"Hey!" Summer rubbed the top of her fist struck head. "Customer!"

"Customer?" Nancy peered over from behind the partition she created for herself. "They look like they need some fashion help."

"Yeah, they do." Danny held up the piece of paper with nothing on it and spoke through her teeth. "So, go help them. And sell something."

"I think your clothes look nice." Mitsuko spoke up as she watched the other three begin to look through the shop. "You shouldn't change a thing."

"You are all bad at this." Finally dropping the clipboard, Danny stepped up to the man who just entered. "Mitsy, the shoulder for his shirt is partially on his arm, and that doesn't bother you? At all? And, the rest of you are just expenditure report fodder at this point."

"Maybe his shirt could fit a little better." Mitsuko began to shift from the comfort of the back of the storefront. "Nancy, could you take his measurements."

A glance of annoyance rolled across Nancy's face. "He said he's simple. What if he doesn't know his own strength?"

"He said he has simple taste. And, he can hear us." Danny's shoulders dropped back to fix her posture. "Hello, sir. We can- and will- help you with your simple desires. Nancy here will take your measurements."

The spoiled milk dropped to the ground. A small invasion of her personal space came from a small girl in a mask. Tsukimi stepped back, trying to keep her balance on the back of her heel. "Thank you for your compliment." Tsukimi offered a bow followed by a minor shake of a hand.

Feeling at odds with shaking hands with masked oddballs, Tsukimi found herself putting more distance- and examining the hands more closely before taking the embrace. Everything on the one called Hannah's hand looked perfectly benign, so Tsukimi took the embrace. "Nice- tooooo- meeeeeet- youuuuuuu." The last backtrack of Tsukimi's step took several seconds to fall to the ground.

Mimi was quick dodge the spoil milk that fell, the splash of chunky liquid nearly staining her shoes. There seemed to be a flinch of annoyance across her fast at the action, but she was quick to hide it. There was a performance to be kept up and if there was one thing she was good at, it was keeping up an act, that was her power after all.

Clockwork sighed as she looked at the slowly falling girl and shook her head. “Pity. Let’s get this over with, Mimic.” She pulled a metal cane from her bag and tossed it over Mimi who grabbed it promptly. “I’m gonna shock her, you take the cane to the back of the head. Do it hard. She won’t get knocked out otherwise.” She adjusted her glove a bit before sighing once more. “And let me shock her first, then hit her, for the love of god you nearly broke my fingers last time.”

Mimi giggled as she caught the cane. She rolled her eyes, exaggerating a frown on her face. “Gosh, you’re such a bummer.” She went on, mumbling so Clockwork wouldn’t hear her, “…who needs all their fingers anyways…?”

Clockwork would reach over and would try to grab the wrist of the girl. If she was successful a shock, equal to the power of a stun gun, would surge through her. As soon as Clockwork let go Mimic Me would wind up the cane and swing it forward into the back of the girl’s head, hopefully knocking her out. Regardless if the girl was knocked out or not Mimic Me would smirk, then wind up another shot, trying to hit her in the back of the head again.

Clockwork shook her head and gave a roll of her eyes. “You know, you don’t always have to hit them twice.”
Mimi giggled, “But I like the clunking sound.”

Back in the shop Eli was quietly awaiting them to step forward, allowing them to speak freely. Of course, he was completely aware of everything they were saying. Offered a simple dismissive wave of his hand, chuckling. “Hello hello! Do you always talk about clients that?” He looked around the room, still reading the powers of all the individuals in the room.
His men would continue to look around, Blight beginning to move away from the group. It seemed as though he was interested in going to the back of the shop, and while it’d look like he was just browsing in actuality he wanted to make sure there weren’t any staff hiding away.

Eli would grin happily at the staff that approached him. “I like white, grey, and black. Just tell me what I need to do for the measurements.” He looked over his shoulder at his men, “These guys are just here watching my back. Always good to have some muscle. You know how it can be on street.” His hands would dive into his pockets but he would shrug his shoulders up, “Just don’t know who you can trust these days, I suppose.”

He would take a look around the room, quietly considering his next move. “Say…you guys wouldn’t happen to be any of the sort with powers, would ya? I’ve actually been looking for the type. If not, do you know where I could find some?”

"This...feels...weird...why...are...you...fast..?" The staggering Tsukimi heard herself in real time, but the quickly flickering speed demons just moved around her. Even with the slowing of time, Tsukimi knew a blow would go to the back of her head. Unfortunately, it just meant she would look at an elbow as it curved around.

Blackness came to her eyes in real time. Then a second blow to finish the job and incapacitate Tsukimi.

"You aren't a client yet." Nancy filed her nail. "There is an application process. And, we judge you before we give you the application."

"She's kidding!" A wide smile filled Danny's face. "We love new clients. And, everyone here is just pretending they don't care about getting fired for being terrible people!"

"Wait, are you being sarcastic or are we being sarcastic?" Summer looked to the clock on the wall, then peered back over to Danny. "I can't tell sarcasm before eleven because of my head thing."

"You can't tell sarcasm because of the thing you don't have in your head!" The smile morphed to fangs while Danny turned her head from the customer.

"I already took your measurements in my head. And, you said stay away from blacks and grays. They don't work for your complexion." Nancy put the file down and went to work grabbing some cloth. "You'd look better in a solid blue or a purple. It will make you less- oh, a dark green!"

"See?! Everyone here is helpful!" Proud of herself, Danny looked over to see the rest of Eli's squad canvas the place. Danny took a step back to try and cover the book with her posterior, hoping it worked. "Powers? Well-"

"Danny does stuff on Instagram about-"

"Not, a power Summer!" Danny laughed nervously. "She thinks dumb thoughts."

"I do not!" Summer protested. "I'm tired of people saying I'm dumb. Sure, I might not know a lot, but Danny can make stuff with her bracelet, and she puts it all up on Instagram! I think she can also talk to ghosts, and she might have the power to talk to ghosts or something."

"Wow Summer." The front row of Danny's teeth clinched the bottom. "Way to be concise for once in your life."

Outside, Mimi wasted no time copying the girl’s appearance and checking her pockets for a wallet, trying to find some form of identification. Regardless if she had found any form of identification or not, Mimi would motion to Clockwork to help her with the body. The two of them made quick work of tying up the girl, gagging her and then, when they were all done, tossing her into the trash. Once in the trash Mimi would find a few bricks, placing them on top of the dumpster. If she had powers, it wouldn’t hold for long, but…it’d slow her down. Hopefully.

Mimi took out a small mirror and looked at her new form, grinning widely. “Ooooh, this one is pretty good! I could get used to this suit.” She rubbed her cheeks, “You and I should hit up the clubs! I could do your makeup, find me a nice boy! I always need some backup.”

Clockwork sighed, “You know I don’t go out and you would just kill the poor guy. So, no. We have work to do. What do you think?” She looked at Mimi, a hand on her chin. “How do you want to play this out?”

Before either of them could reply they were joined by a third figure. The figure was in a dark grey suit, a blue stripe going down the middle of it. His face was concealed, but the two of them knew who it was. The suited figure waved to them.

“My clone is inside with Eli, civilian of course. Once inside I can make some more clones. As many as we need. Just let me know what the plan is.”

Mimi nodded, “Well, I have the perfect idea.”

Back inside, Eli was looking around at the group. He kept a sly smirk on his expression as he let the group banter around him. He gave a small shake of his head, “Oh no no, you misheard. I prefer blacks, whites, and greys. I’d like to keep it in that style if possible.” Eli’s eyes quickly darted back over to Danny, just in time to catch her cover something up. “Oh? Making things with your bracers? That is a power? And talking with ghosts! I say, you must be quite the hero.

“What about the rest of you?” His eyes traveled around the room, “Anyone else here have any powers to speak of?” He of course knew which of them did and did not, but he wouldn’t speak of it. He wanted to see how forthcoming they were. “The more I can find the merrier. Of course, I understand this is sensitive information and while wouldn’t dream of misusing it, I won’t press in further if it is not wanted.

Still moving around the store Blight would try to get a good count of their numbers, seeing where they were and what kind of conflict they were going to get into. In terms of numbers, if they don’t count Doppler’s clones, they still had them outnumbered. Six to four. That’s provided the outside team was doing their job. Eli’s plan might just work…

A message would be sent tonight.

"Oh yes, yes, I heard correctly-" Nancy continued grabbing colors. "I just did not like the details given to me. You are here because you need our help, so I will-"

"Okay, that's not true." Danny handed a black button down shirt to Nancy. "He wants black. He can have black. If he wants to look like Gerrard Way, you do what he wants. That's how running a business works."

"That's how slavery works." Summer put her eyes on one of the men slinking about.

"I do not support slavery, but you probably get paid too much to do what it is you do." Danny handed off the shirt and headed back to Eli.

"The power thing is good and all. I just use it here and there to lend a helping hand to the community, really give back to those who might need a helping hand." The passage of Blight still kept Danny somewhat at odds, but not enough to pull her focus. Until is did. "So, are you in town on some important business? You know, with the security detail and what not."


Tsukimi did not stay out for too long. Long enough to miss some important details about why she was in a dumpster. With her hands tied behind her back. And, her ankles bundled up in rope. Also, why someone gagged her. But, she did come back to get a barely visible look at the duo. Same guy from before, but the other one was far too tall to be the other one. And, her hair grew. And her cheeks were higher. Her eyes more- "Mu wo" The girl took Tsukimi's appearance.

Shaking her head in disbelief, Tsukimi could only try to muster out some response for a reprieve before the dumpster lid shut, closing her inside. It's okay. Lids are not too heavy afterall. She only needs- and then she heard the sound of something hitting the lid. Something heavy.

Bound and alone, Tsukimi started trying to feel the garbage behind her, looking for a tool of some kind. All the while, muttering every curse she could think of into the cloth fixed in her mouth.

Outside, Doppler would nod at the girls. His body would shimmer a bit, like it was made from liquid. Pulling itself from his body a clone of him would pop out and land on its feet, brushing itself off. It would look to the three of them, the two girls and his original copy and give a nod.

Clockwork would tap her foot down once, “Alright, new Doppler clone, you will guard here. Make sure the garbage child stays where she is. The rest of us will get going. There is a lot of work to get done. But I think we’re all good on the plan, so…let’s not waste anymore time.”

The group quietly nodded, and in a neat line they began to march off towards the store. A plan mind, all they had to do was see how it played out. Worst case, they still would come out on top.

Back inside the store Eli was enjoying the banter of the clerks. They were entertaining to say the least. That said, he didn’t like them. They were completely uninteresting, boring, and all around predictable. He was hoping for something more, but not every case would be winners. Not all empowered people would present unique ideas or motives or actions. They still had their uses nonetheless, but he still wished that they would be a bit more…compelling.

Eli was just prepping himself to say something else, anything else to stall a bit longer, but it seemed as though he had stalled long enough. The front door would slam open and in would walk Clockwork and Mimi who was still disguised as the girl from the alleyway. Clockwork would have a knife to the disguised Mimi’s neck, holding her arm behind her back. Walking in behind her would be a Doppler, mask on and face hidden.

The hostage situation would begin.

Clockwork, in a loud commanding voice, would declare, “Alright, everyone on the ground. Nobody try anything funny unless you want blood on the floor!”

Polaroid would quickly drop to the floor and the undisguised Doppler would drop down soon after. Blight would wait for a moment, seeming to want to play the tough guy but would drop down eventually as well. Eli would as well, doing his best to hide a grin he felt creeping onto his face. This was his favorite part of the job. The show, the act, the performance of it all. Of course, he did hide it, but there was still work to be done…

Now all that was left was to see what clerks would do.

Tsukimi tried twisting her ankles free from the bindings, but the knots remained taut. Nothing sharp in the dumpster from this angle would help her, but she could only navigate with small glimpses of light peaking through the lid. Maybe some light could help. Contorting her form, Tsukimi got into better position to kick the lid of the dumpster. It budged, just not much.

Did they lock it? No. Probably not. Park something over it? More likely, but still probably not the answer. If they stacked something on top, it might be possible to keep kicking and get it to fall. Sure, if nothing else, it would let her release some steam from getting captured on the job. So kick she did.


Danny slid a sweater over the tome. "It's like all of you perfectly know how to run a business, and then decide, let's do the opposite."

"Thanks." Summer continued to absently scroll through her phone.

"Not a compliment, but-" Danny looked up to see Tsukimi forced into the store with a knife to her throat. "Woah, is this about the tome? Let her go and maybe we'll-"

Get cut off by an ultimatum.

Summer and Nancy both made their way to the ground, Nancy tossing some sweaters to lay on first, while Summer took her phone with her. "How long is this going to take?"

"Not long." Danny would conjure up a turquoise safety edge on the knife to keep the blade covered with a smooth edge. "Already, Suzy, spin out and dislocate his shoulder. I bet you want to work off some steam from being a hostage. I'll tell you when to stop, then we can ask our friend here why he's so interested in our little shop of wonders."

Danny crossed her arms over her chest, clearly proud with her work, but not assuming anything about the other newcomers in the room.

Outside the remaining Doppler clone looked back to the dumpster. He could hear some activity coming from within the dumpster. It seemed as though she was waking up. He would hope that blow would've kept her out longer like it would for normal people, but sadly that just wasn't the case. He would face it, quietly tapping his foot and waiting to see what she was planning. Whatever it would be he expected entertainment. Anything would be better than just waiting out here. He, like the original, wanted to be in the middle of the action. He wanted something to happen.

Back inside, Clockwork smirked under her mask. The nerve of this hero, stopping such a brilliant plan. She should've guessed that something like this would've happened. Mimi, still disguised, would start to move as if she was going to attack, but this was an act. An act that Clockwork knew well. Clockwork would drop the coated knife and grab the disguised Mimi with her now free hand. With her other hand, she'd raise and give off a quick shock in the air, just to show that it could. Then, with the hand holding Mimi a small shock would shoot through it, causing Mimi to cry out. Clockwork rose her hand to Mimi's throat, shaking her head.

"Please, darling. Such acts won't work on a professional like me. Unless you want this girl's neck fried I would suggest listening. On the ground or I will show you how high I can make this shock. I warn you, it is not pretty."

Doppler, who had entered behind her, had two clones pop out of him. They two clones would go around the sides of the store and try to position themselves on either side of Danny. They had their positions lowered, ready to pounce on her. If she tried anything else the two clones would dash forward and try to bring her to the ground. The Doppler that stood behind Danny stepped forward, a hand up.

"Now then." He started, grinning under his mask. "I suggest you listen unless you want everyone in here hurt." He crossed his arms. "We'll start by taking anything valuable you might have. Then! We'll go from there. We might have another task for you." He nodded once, waiting to see what the young hero would do.

Eli continued to hide his smile behind a worried expression. This was all too good. He couldn't wait to see how the situation would escalate.

"You think the people around here are doing tasks for you?" Danny moved her head from side to side, checking on Summer and Nancy, but took into consideration the two new foes accosting her. "They don't do anything for me! If threatening violence gets them to do something though, I might have a new way of motivation."

The fake Tsukimi showed an incompetence not completely outside of Tsukimi's normal action agency, but if Tsukimi could not break free at the opportunity Danny gave her, something must be wrong. Maybe they managed to hurt her when they captured her. "I don't know what you did, or what you think you're going to get out of here-"

"If you buy a pair of jeans, you get a sweater for half off, but it has to be of a complementary color scheme, and we can deny the discount." Summer looked over to one of the clones, but did not want to say anything for fear of being racist.

"We need to talk about marketing. Like maybe just a basic definition." Danny slid the bottom of her teeth across the top, releasing into an opening with a glare at the hostage situation. "And you and I need to have a talk about how to enter a store."

Putting a shield up would not come up very quickly enough to help Tsukimi. She could beat the snot out of a few of these people, but it might cause more harm than good. They did need a hostage though- so they knew Danny could be at least a handful. "Stop shocking Suzy, and I'll be a little more easy to work with- unless, hey Suzy, do you think you could take another shock? I can- oh, okay no? Fine. Let's see what you want."

Tsukimi kicked the lid of the dumpster, trying to dislodge the brick on top. She moaned as she moved her hands to position themselves behind her. The sliding trashbags made keeping herself still troublesome, but with each slide, she fell deeper into the dumpster.

The door to the alley opened with the form of an average sized Asian woman walking out with a trashbag in her hand, wiping crust from her eye. Her hair was pulled back into a small ponytail and her slippers pulled together of the outfit with a bathrobe over black shorts and a T-shirt. "There better not be a fucking racoon in this stupid dumpster." Bliss kicked the dumpster. "There! I can kick stuff too, you stupid racoon." Bliss failed to lift the lid, struggling with the not too heavy brick with her stick arms.

A telekinetic pull flung the brick haphazardly towards Doppler. Not out of spite, merely out of inconvenience. His inconvenience of course. Bliss flung the lid open and took a heel to the face. "Goddammit racoon! Why'd you-" Bliss looked down at her half sister. "Tie Suzy up?"

It was a strange situation to have a woman just completely ignore you, then walk by and open the thing you were guarding, as if you didn’t exist. It was borderline offensive. Then they had the nerve to throw the brick, as soon as it was in the air and before the lid had been fully lifted Doppler would be moving in, clones of himself melding out of his body and moving to tackle the unknown woman. As the lid reached its peak, all but one of the four clones would be midair, attempting to tackle the woman to the ground. The one clone that was not in the air would be behind, a metal rod in his hand, waiting for the right moment to strike. If the Doppler clones succeeded in tackling the woman to the ground, the one with the metal rod would attempt to strike him in the head, hopefully knocking him out. The real Doppler would be getting out of the alleyway and back to the car, starting it, ready to go when the rest inside where out.

Inside, the Dopplers in there would know of the activity outside. One of them would move over to Clockwork and whisper something into her ear, careful not to be heard by the others in the room. Clockwork would consider for a moment, gritting her teeth under her mask. Though her eyes couldn’t be seen Eli knew that her gaze had fallen on him, as if she was considering what to do and what he wanted. The answer was clear enough in moments.

“It seems as though today is your lucky day. We’ll be taking our hostage, but fear not for you’ll get her back sooner than you think.” Clockwork would laugh a bit as she finished. “When we’re out of her, check the dumpster around the side of the building. She’ll be there. Until then, hero…” She cleared her throat a bit, seeming to hesitate for a moment, “I have a message for you and another hero that you can come into contact with. The Overseer is coming. The world is on the verge of changing. Know your true self.” She’d finish with a small nod and a sigh.

The Doppler clones would begin backing up, the two clones getting in front of Clockwork defensively, covering their exit. Clockwork held Mimi close to her, and Mimi would be careful not to miss a beat in their backstep. If uninterrupted the four of them, the two clones, Mimi, and Clockwork would exit the building.

Meanwhile, Polaroid and Blight would remain on the ground, waiting to see what happened. Eli, however, would collapse forward, gasping heavily. He would have a fearful look in his eyes, genuine and true fear. Slowly, he’d look up at Danny. “W-what was that? What happened…I don’t think…I think…please, help me up…”

This all, of course, would be an act. Just something to gain the others time to escape. Something had obviously gone wrong and they needed an out. Eli wouldn’t question it until later, but for now he just had to play along.