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Every gang was out of the question as well. I disagreed with the Empire on principle and they would probably have to go. Victor was a pain and so was his wife, Othalla. Though her powers were too good to pass up. Selection of powers that could be granted to anyone, like regeneration, invincibility that withstood Leviathan, pyrokinesis, and more. Although, pretty much everything other than invincibility was useless to me since the Forge could provide something similar.

The biggest problem was Purity, but her weakness was Aster and Theo. Either I could threaten them to force her out of the city or guarantee protection from Kaiser with the condition that she leaves. Both of which didn't sit quite well with me. Though I probably won't be able to take her on for a while. She was the second strongest Blaster on the East Coast after Legend himself after all.

The ABB… only had Lung and Oni Lee right now actually. Bakuda wasn't hired by the ABB just yet. That would be in March. If I could get her on my side… A bomb tinker with the Forge was a terrifying prospect. The problem would be dealing with her inferiority complex, coupled with an unstable trigger and y'know a bomb threat.

I could handle it. Probably.

Lung was not something I was dealing with for quite a while. Any dragged out battle would be suicide so I needed to take him out in one clean hit, leaving nothing left to regenerate. And Oni Lee… The suicide bomber would require something specialized. A method to track his teleports, as well as an AOE attack that could disrupt the ash clones before they even had a chance to hit me.

The Celestial Forge activated again. A tendril snaked out from the horizon and tried reaching for a Star in the Artisan Crafting Constellation and missed. Unfortunate. I would love for my items to not look like dogshit. But the tendril seemingly snaked around the platform, waiting for another attempt to connect.

Anyway, back to my contemplation.

Merchants… The druggies weren't a problem. Not yet at the very least. Skidmark, Squealer, and Mush. Outside of Squealer, I don't think it would be a problem to handle them after a bit of prep. Skidmark might be slightly competent, given that he had to still run a full drug empire while shot up to his gills, but he was still… y'know, shot up to his gills. Mush, the trash golem, still had a human body underneath all of it. But Squealer's vehicles would be a massive headache to deal with. It wasn't like it was a soft target after all.

And the New Wave was just out. No masks, while fine since I didn't exactly have a family, would be a hassle to deal with. Not to mention the whole fuckfest with Panacea, Carol, Victoria and her parents. It was a ticking time bomb that was going to go off and I didn't want to be anywhere near that blast zone.

Though… I wouldn't particularly mind having the world's best healer on my side as well. I briefly ran through the other notable characters in my head. Taylor actually would be an amazing recruitment. The Forge could help with better equipment and with 'Painted On', I could wear a full set of spider silk armour underneath my clothes at all times. Lisa… A pain but she was the most… heroically-inclined(?) Thinker in the city.

But that of course meant dealing with Coil and his dual timeline simulation powers. Depending on how the Celestial Forge interacted with his sims, I would have to change up my tactics… But I was reasonably certain that if I could meet him in person, I could kill him. With a little bit more prep of course.

And so this led me to my final problem. Equipment. Hammer Jammer was effectively a tinker power, except I knew how every part interacted with one another. And with all tinker powers, I needed resources to make them. Which meant either going through garage sales and grabbing a few knick-knacks, or trying my luck in the dreaded… Boat Graveyard.

A sigh left my lips. "Alright." I clapped my hands together. "Let's go exploring."

Before leaving, I did check what I was working with. Whichever ROB that dropped me in was luckily kind enough to provide me with everything the average person should have. That is, a phone, wallet, a driver's license which placed me at 19 years old this year, a debit card and bank account, and enough of a backstory to be real.

University dropout after first year, a very meh and boring life. No extracurriculars, scored mostly Bs with some As. An overwhelmingly plain individual through and through. My name was also the same as my old life so I didn't have to worry about that as well.

Unfortunately, the amount of cash was a bit low. Two thousand in my card and another thousand in various denominations in my room. I wasn't too sure if it would be enough for some starting equipment. Maybe just one or two simple items? Unlocking my bicycle, I started making my way through the streets of the city.

Zipping through, I didn't spot as much gang symbol as I thought I would have. From the way the city was described in fanfiction, I was half-expecting dragons and Nazi symbols everywhere I looked. But the place was relatively normal, though I did spot the occasional skinhead or Asian thug. However they didn't try anything with each other, even as they walked by, only keeping to glares and foul looks.

A thin veneer of civility at the very least.

Stopping at a mall, I locked my bike at a rack before heading on in. Making my way to a hardware store, I quickly started picking out the items that I would need for my tinkering. A hammer, obviously, and some other tools like screwdrivers. With my basic tools out of the way, I started browsing some appliance and toy stores.

Hammer Jammer was incredibly useful at looking at something and figuring out what components were inside. A bit of shaking and testing and I could reasonably deduce what useful parts I could get from it. And from that, figure out what I needed for my tools.

"Do you have one in, like, a smaller size?" I pointed at a fairly sizable sitting fan, or whatever was the opposite of a standing fan. "Something that could sit on a desk or something…?" I asked the clerk.

Nodding, he quickly pointed me to exactly what I wanted. Perfect for a winch mechanism after a bit of tinkering. Adding it to my cart, I browsed a little longer to see if I had anything else that I could use for a grappling hook that wouldn't draw too much suspicion. Something I could use for a high-tension rope? Though I could take a look at rock-climbing gear for that. A launching mechanism for sure though.

A spring would work… I didn't really need it to punch through concrete since I wouldn't be able to pull it back. But then came the problem of locking the hook in place without fear of it slipping out. A second spring perhaps to dig the hooks into nearby surfaces?

"Excuse me, I need to get through." A voice interrupted me. Blinking, I looked over to an unfamiliar face. Blonde hair, full lips, and really attractive. I furrowed my eyebrows and took a step back slightly. She felt main-character-y. Victoria? No… Lisa? No freckles…

Catching my look, she shook her head. "Sorry, I'm not signing any autographs." She stepped and half-floated, half-drifted to the desk fans I was looking at. A New Wave member then. Not Victoria, definitely not the mothers…

"Crystal?" I cocked my head. Hearing her name, she turned to look at me. Immediately, I pulled through all of my memories to see if this life had any relationship to her. And surprisingly came up short. I went to Brockton Bay University and only occasionally saw the girl between classes and little else outside of that.

Narrowing her eyes, she stared at me. "Do I know you?" She sounded a little suspicious.

"Umm– Sorry." I immediately apologized, hopefully using the excitement of meeting a superhero to mask my sudden spike in heart rate. "Probably not. Actually– I, uhh, go to Brockton U? And like occasionally saw you so… Name's Nathan by the way." I shrugged my shoulders, trying my best to not blow this. The cute face in front of me certainly didn't help and I felt blood rushing out from my head.

Better thicken the pants' fabric. Just in case.

"Oh." Crystal nodded. "I see. Well I guess I'll see you around then." She turned back to the fans and picked one seemingly at random.

"Actually, I wouldn't recommend that one." My mouth moved faster than I could stop it. Whatever my power provided, it also brought in a distaste for bad products. When Crystal reached for that fan, my instinct immediately revolted at the fact that anyone would even bother buying it. Whipping to look at me, she looked fairly amused at my sudden quietness.

"Why not?" She crossed her arms and looked at me.

Swallowing, I started listing off a few things of note that I managed to glean from the displayed device. Listing the problems I found with the motors and wiring, I tried to sound a little exasperated before stopping. "I could go on for longer but it isn't worth the time." I ended lamely after I realized I was ranting and reeled it in.

Crystal stared at me before coughing to stifle her laugh. "Wow, I didn't think anyone would be so passionate about desk fans." My cheeks felt a little hot as I glanced away. God I did not miss these feelings. "So what's your recommendation?"

"Uh…" I blinked owlishly before picking out the same fan that I had chosen. "For general use, it's quieter but the strength is still good and it would probably last until graduation barring any… exceptional circumstances." I glanced down and up to her face again.

"Right… exceptional circumstances." She parroted with a knowing look. "Think I'm going to bring this into combat or something?"

"I mean…" I rocked my head from side to side. "Maybe? Why else are you buying a new fan?" I joked.

Crystal shook her head with a slight smile on her face. "The old one's motor burnt out. So here I am. It was on its last legs anyway. I was surprised that it even lasted this long." She grabbed the box underneath her arm. "Thanks for the recommendation too. I'll be seeing you around?"

"Yea. Sure." I nodded dumbly as I watched her leave. Although this was Crystal Pelham, I was surprised that no one else recognized her. Then again, the appliance store was pretty much just dads buried in the boxes, comparing three different brands at the same time.

All in all, I felt like that was a pretty good first interaction. She didn't seem like she hated me and we got to know a little about each other. However… I doubted that I would be able to interact with her more as a civilian… Eh, it was a chance encounter anyway. What were the chances that I met another character?

Anyway, I bought a stun gun as well as a few small electronics and batteries from a store. I didn't need them right now for anything, but hopefully it wouldn't sound any tinker alarms in the PRT. And a pair of airsoft pistols since I needed a frame to hold all the electronics as well as the rope for my grappling hook. A thin, high-tensile, lightweight rope aimed at mountain climbers. Hammer Jammer was already helping to figure out exactly how to fit all the components I needed and Savant's was filing it all away at a rapid pace.

Hefting my haul to the exit, a sudden and rather loud bang echoed through the mall. Wincing, my hands tried to cup my ears but the sound quickly faded. The lights dimmed and two… things floated through the air. The one on the left was grossly top-heavy, with two arms as large as a person and its chest built like a brick shithouse. However, its legs were normal sized, and therefore paled in comparison to the rest of its body.

The one on the right looked like a mad scientist-esque persona, with thick goggles over his face and a white lab coat splattered with blood. In his hands was a piece of machinery, with a strap holding it in place against his body. And his hair was done up in that spiky style that looked like he got zapped with electricity.

"Welcome, one and all to the Uber!" The hulking mass shouted in a very announcer-like voice, in stark contrast to his appearance.

"And Leet!" The mad scientist cried out with an annoyingly nasally voice. Grimacing slightly, I cursed my luck. What were the chances that fucking Uber and Leet would hit this specific mall, on the New Year's?

"Show!" They both finished. "And today…" Uber started talking but I wasn't listening. Walking over to the sliding doors, I grabbed one edge and started pulling to try and escape. But it didn't budge an inch. Some sort of isolation tech then? I checked my phone as well. No reception. I glanced over to Leet. Definitely made something that blocked easy exit and prevented us from calling for help. A mall is a pretty major hit and it wouldn't do well for any of the Heroes to bust in too early. Though the question was if Glory Girl could bust through it.

The Celestial Forge awakened, throwing out a tendril that reached into the Mundane Toolkits Constellation. And someone failed to find purchase on any of the stars, shooting right past all the stars it could have reached and tried for a Star literally barely out of its reach. What the hell? Blinking, I shook my head. Well, it wasn't like I had a place to put it anyway. But failing to connect twice? Seriously?

A thought came to my mind. Wait… Was Crystal still here? I saw her leave but if she was still inside then–

A red beam cut through the air, interrupting my annoyance, aiming for Leet but he quickly dodged out of the way. "Tsk. Tsk. We haven't even started the event, Laserdream." The girl in question was floating in the air, still in her civilian clothes. "Since you're so impatient to start–!" He threw his hands into the air and a bright blue glow engulfed the floor. Leet's body disappeared as well before his voice came over the speaker.

"The NEW YEAR'S ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE!!!"

A veritable horde of zombies appeared in the middle of the mall's atrium. They quickly whirled to the nearest person and started shambling towards them. A scream cut through the air before several screams echoed through the mall and people immediately started charging to the doors. Seeing the imminent stampede heading my way, I ran off to the side, instead moving towards one of the escalators.

Crystal was busy, being engaged by the hulking brute called Uber. His massive size should have made him an easy target but his arms contained a surprising amount of explosive power, allowing him to bounce all over the place like a pinball. And judging by Crystal's expression, it wasn't a particularly fun experience to track him.

Fortunately, each push made a distinct noise so she could easily dodge out of the way whenever Uber tried to strike at her as well. So both of them were stuck in an annoying stalemate. A little less fortunately, the arms were also forming craters on the surfaces that it pushed off from, sending showers of dust falling from above.

Running through the second level, zombies were also approaching from another direction. A second horde? A brief glance placed my estimates at around forty to fifty zombies, and since it was pretty early in the day, there weren't many people that we could gather and somehow push back against them.

Looking around, there wasn't anything I could use as a weapon. Mostly being cosmetic products and toy stores on either side. One of the people standing at the front shouted a battle cry before charging straight into the horde. And promptly being overrun. His fist crashed into the first zombie's head but it did little else outside of making it stumble slightly. Immediately, his limbs were grabbed and he was dragged to the ground while the rest of the horde kept advancing.

"Horrifying." I muttered. Though peering through the gaps, he wasn't being injured too badly. The zombies definitely whaled on him but it was more limp slaps more than anything. I guess Leet knew he shouldn't take things too far. The group I was in comprised five other people, a couple, judging by how the girl hugged the boy, a father-daughter pair, and a single girl who trembled like a leaf as the horde moved.

"Alright!" I called out, forcing everyone's attention on me. "We got zombies on our twelve and zombies down below, so you know what that means!" A smattering of confused looks appeared in my sight. "We're heading up! Let's go people unless you wanna be beaten by a bunch of rotting corpses." I started running for the next escalator. Glancing behind me, they were already running to keep up, having someone to listen to instead of being frozen in fear.

Charging up the escalator, I looked over to Crystal's fight. She was still unable to keep up with Uber, but had tried to switch to culling the zombie numbers with her lasers. Mounds of crushed metal littered the ground, all in vaguely skeletal shapes. I wrinkled my nose slightly. So that's how he made his 'zombie hordes'. I didn't know what else I was expecting really.

However, she was still being hounded by Uber, making such efforts much harder to do. If she stopped paying attention for a second, Uber would come rocketing towards her forcing her to dodge or be smashed into the closest wall. Turning my attention back to our surroundings, I couldn't see any zombies nearby.

"Let's keep moving until we can find a safe place to hide in." I shot a look at the fight that was occuring. "Come on." Following my eyes, they saw Crystal doing her best at dealing with both Uber and the zombie hordes. With a brief nod, they followed my lead through the now desolate halls of the mall.