Who was he to turn down a great offer? Before coming to New York, dreams of wealth and opportunity had nestled deep into the mind of Charles Red Fish. Dreams that were only encouraged thanks to movies and television shows that promised that gumption and confident attitude were all you needed to become a success. By this point, Charles thought he was going to be famous, with a mansion, couple of side pieces, and his name in lights as the number one dancer in the Big Apple. He had the confidence and the skill so it should have been a sure thing.

The truth was far harsher.

Charles came out here on a dance scholarship. However the troop he had joined only gave him bit parts and nothing with any real stage time or importance. Refusing to be treated that way, Charles went out on his own but his “confidence” came off as arrogance and soon enough nobody wanted to work with him. Before he knew it he was blackballed in the stage community throughout New York and his options were limited to say the least.

So limited that when a gorgeous woman promised him power and fortune to cause a little mayhem, his only option was to say yes.

CRASH!!!!

Charles was jolted to the side as he felt the impact. The van that he was in was just a regular van for the most part. What made it different were the various roots and branches that were running up the walls and around the outside of the vehicle. A woman with dark hair and a pierced eyebrow, ground her teeth as she held her hands out. The roots and branches seemed to be responding to her, holding the shape around the van as a protective layer. A mystic, or so he heard, who demanded she go by the name Emerald Witch.

Next to her was a mutant. Premature baldling blond hair, muscular body, absolutely gigantic hands. Apparently had a long running criminal record here in New York. Funny that someone so strong and dangerous had the nickname ‘Mittens’.

Lastly, the driver. Driver didn't give them a name other than Driver. As for abilities, heck if Charles knew. Decked out in various sheathed blades and weaponry the man looked like a combination of a ninja and some anime character. He was the one who plowed the hardened, wood covered van into the entrance of the bank. Now he was pulling out just enough to clear the doors.

Charles knew that was his and Mitten's cue. Without another word, Charles stepped out of the van after Mittens. The two made a beeline for the back offices where the vault was. Mittens worked on punching a hole through the counter and glass to give them entry, while Emerald Witch started to grow plants and thick foliage to drown out the sounds of the alarms. Driver had run off, heading to a security off to disable the system while Charles…heh.

“Ya just gonna stand there, kid?!” Mittens shouted and tossed a rubble aside from the opening he made.

”Huh? Oh! Yeah of course!” Charles then grinned, winked at Mittens and walked by.

With every step that Charles took, his body began to eat away. First his feet, legs, hands and arms. Next his torso and neck, until there was only his face left. With a final grin Charles fully turned invisible and walked straight towards the vault as Mittens followed after and towards the vault door.

“That's a creepy trick,” Mittens said. “Creepy but effectively. You sure you can turn the van invisible once we leave?”

The now invisible Charles guffawed. ”Easy as pie. Just gotta let me concentrate and make sure not to crash into anything. No one will see a thing.”

Stepping forward, he walked through the electronic eyes guarding the vault. Fail safes that would time lock the vault with no chance of opening it. Soon as he was passed them, the invisible mutant shorted out the eyes and stepped back, becoming visible again. He waved to the vault and bowed to Mittens.

Mittens, accepting the invitation, grinned and cracked his massive knuckles. “Nice job, kid. We gotta do this now often.” Stepping forward he started to grab and pull at the vault door while Charles stepped back to keep watch. Nothing could stop them now.

What a day!

Someone must've put something in the water because the whole city seemed to be going crazy! Everywhere Zek went, stuff was happening! Shootouts in the street, elemental battles in the parks, firefights in the alleys, and a couple of intense chess games down by the docks, just to name a few of the more notorious event Zek had already witnessed.

There was so much to watch! So much to explore! Zek could barely figure out what he wanted to do.

He paused momentarily to side down on a bench on a relatively quiet street so he could catch his breath. It felt like he'd been running around for hours already, taking in all the sights and action! He needed a change of pace. Something less exertive, more hands-on. Something like...

He watched a plant van crash into a bank and promptly disgorge a bunch of interesting people, who then went into the bank and left his sight.

Zek's eyes began to glow blue and he got up off his bench and strolled across the street, picking his way through the rubble and entering the bank through the hole in the wall. He pulled a half-eaten chicken sandwich out of an inner pocket of his trench coat and took a bite out of it as he watched grass grow, among other plants.

Now this was a nice break. "Eh, what's up, Doc?" Zek called out to the guy with big hands. "Y'all having a party here or what?"

Okay the job was going great. The city was in a panic of mayhem and chaos and now was the absolute perfect time to pull off whatever heist you wanted to. Charles was not usually one to attempt something this big but when the visionary lady came with promises of riches and power beyond his dream, how could he refuse? Not to mention that he was led by the same vision that the rest of these guys had and it was fate. If there was one thing that Charles had learned from a variety of television shows, books, and movies, if you cannot escape your fate. If he was supposed to become a millionaire by knocking off a bank, then so be it.

Once the sensor had been turned off to save them the trouble of dealing with a failsafe shut down, Charles reverted back to his visible form. It was like droplet of liquid falling onto a piece of crumpled up paper. Slowly his body rematerialized from thin air, starting off in several spots and expanding outward until his entire body was reformed.

With a nod he steps back to allow Mittens to rip the safe open when the sound of another person pulled his attention to the door. There was someone else in the bank now. Charles looked flabbergasted. The sheer audacity and the confidence with which the other person stood there, miming some old cartoon character was…astounding. Was this one of those heroes in the city, like the X-Men? Or just some passing good citizen wanted to stem crime? Or was he wrong and they were someone who wanted in on the action.

Charles looked to Mitten and gestured to the newcomer. ”You know this guy?”

Mittens, who too had been stunned into silence, scoffed and shook his head. “Hell if I know ‘im!” Growling, Mittens stepped forward as Emerald Witch and the Driver all seemed to peek out from their hiding spots in confusion. Mittens, of course, was the loudest as he shouted. “Hey! Get outta here, runt! Or I’m chucking you through the wall!”

Charles, stepping behind a wall, reactivated his invisibility and began to circle around. He wasn’t one to really want to get into a fight and murder people, but he wanted to linger nearby just to see what this guy was about and if Mittens needed his help. It was also good to weigh his options. If this guy was some hero, it was best that Charles wasn’t around so he could make a quick get away.

There was the loud cracking of knuckles as Mittens again advanced on the new person. “You hear what I said?” He grumbled, getting angry that he had yet to scare this person off. “I said git! If you know what’s good for ya! This is our score!”

The city was shittier than usual that day. Car alarms going off, robberies, SUPER was getting swarmed with calls of rampant mutant and mystic activity. Firefights, water fights, freak thunderstorms that sprung up, then floated away. All the factions in town were likely at work. Police chatter also was at an all time high. Any tool with a police scanner would know.

Amelia’s day had been busy so far. Super had been called in on several of those events. There had been a violent attack at a subway, at the subway, one in a park— she had not gone to every call. She could not be everywhere, all at once. But she had tried to put out fires where ever she could. She had definitely seen a few of the city’s pervasive vigilante heroes leaping across rooftops, or flying to the scene of crimes. Sharing the load. Even worked alongside some. A guy in a helmet, at a water fight. That had been a memorable affair. It was good her overcoat was imbued with waterproofing, or else the leather would have been ruined. The same could not be said about all of her clothing.

Now she was a little damp, still, but drying. Underneath a big coat that was suspiciously dry.

The most dangerous crimes were being targeted first. Bank robberies, those were of lesser importance, unless people were in danger. Or else stuff happened directly in front of her eyes.

She had just finished responding to the water call, which was the third that day. So far. She was walking. Would have been riding in her company car, headed back towards base, except for that pesky thing called traffic. Go figure. Set off enough fires and put enough chaos on the streets, and best you could do was drive until you couldn’t drive any longer, park where applicable, then walk.

After the water fight, she had needed to leave the vehicle behind. She had gathered up whatever she might need, and could carry. A TASER, her sidearm, a shotgun strapped to the inside of her duster coat… don’t ask. It could be useful. And she had brought a portable radio, and police scanner. To keep up-to-date on happenings,

She turned a corner, and about a block ahead, a vehicle smashed into the side of a bank. People started exiting the building in a rapid fashion: something was going on. A moment later, the police scanner chattered… about something entirely unrelated. She pulled out the scanner, muted it, then spoke into her radio alerting SUPER to violent mutant activity at a bank. At such and such address. She was on-foot, en route. Then, she began to run in the direction everyone else was fleeing.

The city was having some real problems. All she could do was her best. In the back of her mind, tinny laughter echoed. She ignored it. Just a trick of sound.

Zek blinked owlishly at the man with the big...hands. "Score? Is there a game on?" he asked before rubbernecking around. He didn't see any TVs or athletic teams. Just a lady growing plants, a guy vanishing, and this guy who was probably demonstrating the worst technique ever to make a withdrawal.

Zek blinked again as Handyman approached. Things sunk in. "Oh I get it!" he said brightly. "You're robbing a bank!" He spun and pointed at Plantwoman. "You're all robbing a bank!" He spun back to Handyman with a chuckle. "Boy, was I confused for a moment!"

He took a bite from his sandwich and waved it around. "You guys picked a good day for this," he said matter-of-factly. "Been a busy day all over the city! You guys coordinate this or something?" He took another bite. Chomp. Chomp.

He cast a critical eye over Garden Gal's work though. Plants didn't seem like an effective way to run a robbery. Zek smelled amateurs.

"...y'all want some help?"