REBEL CLOTHES ✓

CHOKE ON SMOKE

By the time Josh made it up the wall of Tyler's house and pushed open the tape covered window, he knew something was terribly wrong. The sirens had gone off before they arrived, which already put the Banditos on edge. It didn't help that Jenna couldn't see or hear Tyler anywhere, much less in his own room.

Then he got into Tyler's room and found a girl on the floor, unconscious yet shaking. She was obviously the one who'd taken the pills because random items floated around her- an effect of the pills on her underlying powers.

Josh scooped her up with ease and set her on her feet. She slowly blinked back to life, the items around dropping to the carpet. When she made eye contact with Josh, her face broke out into a smile.

"You must be Josh," she said.

"Who the hell are you?" He snapped, shoving her towards Jenna, who climbed in after him. "Where's Tyler?"

Jenna caught the girl before she hit the ground. "Jesus, Josh, be more careful with our new members." She tugged her jacket off and put it over the girl's shoulders. "I'm Jenna. We're here to get you out."

A dark blush spread across Debby's face. "H-hi."

"Where is Tyler?" Josh repeated.

"He's at the Eastern Tower." Debby looked up. "He's breaking Clancy out."

He looked around, noticing the roll of yellow tape on the ground. "Get her back to the tunnels. I'll be right behind you."

"Oh my god, don't you dare-"

But Josh was gone before Jenna could move to stop him. He jumped out the window, sprinting down the connected yards just as his feet hit the ground. Every shutter was closed, the lights inside the houses out. Only the soft lights of the lampposts passing between the houses led Josh to the tower. They must've past each other just barely; their paths were always so close to crossing yet too far for them to cross.

There were two men guarding the door the tower, with one man lying against the wall beside them. He was able to use his powers, Josh thought with a rush of pride. He broke out of the darkness, tackling one man and freezing the other's shoes in place. A burst of fire ignited itself in front of Josh as retaliation, and he ducked, singing the tips of his hair.

Once he knocked the two guards out with the unlit torch he held, Josh froze the lock on the door and shouldered it once, the door slamming open. He could see all the way up the stairs, vaguely seeing where the stairs ended.

Five people stood on the steps, all of them turning to look at Josh.

"What's up, fuckers?"

He thrust his hand up, sending a wave of fire towards the men. They were clearly not used to fire-breathers because they didn't even duck, the flames knocking them aside.

Josh took two steps at a time, making it to the sixth floor before one of the men grabbed his ankle. He fell forward, catching himself with his hands. The torch fell from his hand, getting stuck a few steps above him.

As he tried to reach for the torch, the man who grabbed him pulled out a knife, catching the flesh of his exposed calf. Josh kicked him in the face, knocking him out cold, and pushed himself to his feet. None of the other men moved, so he kept making his way up the stairs.

The door leading to the seventh floor was locked from the other side. His first thought was why did they design these towers to have doors leading to each floor, but he was thankful because it gave Tyler and Clancy a chance to hide.

Josh pressed his ear against the door, knocking rhythmically. He could hear grunted and hushed whispers. "Tyler? Clancy?"

There was a yelp, then a thud and groan a couple seconds later. Josh stepped back when he heard the bolt and lock being removed.