Ah muttered as ah pushed the bloody fur out of mah eyes. Ah wasn’t even supposed to be here today.

It was supposed to be a normal Monday. Borin day at school, take care of any homework, maybe some training and an early evening patrol with one of the heroes of the Association. It was a school night after all. Technically trainees like mahself don’t get called up unless it’s another global invasion, or huge natural or unnatural disaster.

Heck the Arbiters didn’t even think ah’d ever be considered one of the big teams in the Association. Let's be obvious, bein bitten by a radioactive Mephitis mephitis ain’t exactly high on the power tree, even if ah could fly, and heal folks with radioactive pheromones.

Being tagged ‘Polecat’ was bad enough, but at least ah was able to get it changed when ah turned sixteen from the first name they assigned me with after mah powers showed up, ‘Polekitty’, being ah was just a kid. Honestly, ah’d have been happier even with the powers to stay at mah folks place near Apalachicola. At least ah wouldn’t be in this situation.

Ah hadn’t even been trained on any offensive uses of mah powers yet. Which was bad. The Earthen Watcher was buried up to his elbows, Captain Starling was fairly well plucked, Dr Chronos was out of time and the rest of the Association were even worse off.

And of course the assholes from the Villain League picked a day where half the city was downtown . Civilians were panicking, and to be honest ah was too-though tried hard not to show it. Ah was too far from the downed Association members to try to heal them and ta be honest, a bunch of them were probably beyond mah ability. The smart thing ah should do, the thing that the Gunner had drilled into us trainees, was to evac with the civics. We wern’t trained or ready to face the major leagues of evil yet.

Too bad for me ah’m stubborn. I could see them there advancing across the square towards the fallen Association. Professor Jealous, the Bonestealer, and their leader, the demonic Bytor, along with dozens of minions, henchmen, and zombies. Lots of zombies. Oh good, the necromantic manager Human Resources was there too. Greaaat.

He knew who ah was of course. The league had files on all of us, even trainees like me still in high school. “Miss Evans, isn’t tonight a school night?” he said, rather pleasantly.

I looked at the smoke rising across the city. “Ah think ya’ll took that out when you went after Captain Diamond an hour ago.”

“Probably, well on the bright side you can sleep in tomorrow. We have no quarrel with you child, run along now.”

It would be really nice right now if ah had a weapon of some kind. Or offensive powers. Still, like mah daddy said, take what you’re given and find a clever use for it. Instead of runnin, I simply flipped them off. Not very ladylike ah know…but ah was pissed.

“Rude” Bonestealer snarled, her tongue flicking out over her fangs “Can I remove her spine now? That mutated little bitch needs to learn some manners.”

“Really Sonia” Bytor replied “I have told you be cough fore, if they’re still young enough to be cough turned, then w…wee..” The Centurion of Evil began coughing more, Bonestealer and the others, the others who still breathed at least, were coughing as well.

True. Ah couldn’t do much. But what ah could do…is generate radioactive pheromones for healin..and thiols for other stuff. Specifically (E )-2-butene-1-thiol and 3-methyl-1-butanethiol. Which was forming a swirling yellowish green cloud around the Villain League. By now Bytor had forgotten about turnin me to evil and was firing large very unaimed bursts in mah general direction. Fortunately ah could duck behind the Earthen Watcher, the bullets wouldn’t harm him even while he was held in stasis, and he was pretty bullet proof.

The others wern’t doin any better, Bonestealer was clawin at her eyes and vomiting, ah grinned when ah saw it splatter all over Bytor’s expensive italian suit. The zombies wern’t movin, guess HR didn’t like the smell any better, and the minions were gagging and heading for fresh air. That’s when ah found out that grenade launchers really don’t have to be aimed as well..

It hurts, a lot, at least as ah’m flying through the air from the explosion ah can see most of the people managed to clear out..good enough ah suppose..ah see the ground coming up and everything goes dark.

Not dead tho…cause everything hurts. Especially Bonestealer’s clawed fist lifting me up by mah neck. Despite everything ah would laugh if ah could at the sight of Bytor as he staggers up next to her, suit coated in vomit and snot, eyes and nose still running, the stench even making mah eyes water.

“What the hell were you playing at child! You should know there was no way you could stop me, now you just made me angry.”

“A..ah wasn't trying to stop you” I managed to get out. Ah think ah might be missin a few pieces, and only one eye is workin…but ah still manage to grin weakly. “Ah just ne..needed ta slow you down..”

I saw Bonestealer drawing her other arm back, razor sharp claws ready to rip my spine out , when she suddenly looked up. Ah felt a weird tingle through me and reality shifted and ah was fifty yards away-and Bonestealer was holding a stuffed dummy with a bomb for a head. She screamed as it detonated, and ah felt the pain fade away. Ah looked up and saw the Shepherd, she was one of the instructors in combat metahuman medicine. “I’ve got you Rachelle,” she said. The bomb had to be, yep, Doc Schrodinger, the bright blue feline-American, who was never quite right after a teleporter accident involving a small cat. Ah let mah head fall back and relax. The Paragons were here.

Last thing ah saw was a white haired figure landing in front of the leader of the Villain League. I watched as Bytor and the Snowdog squared for battle, hearing him shout ‘let the fray begin!’ as ah passed out.