Tim throws his clean clothes around his bed in a quiet rage, looking for something, anything to use as a new costume. Not that it matters if he even finds a replacement, his hands are basically tied now. If he acts against the Cartels, it’ll come down on his family, and probably everyone they know and love. Even if his mom and sister are so eager to be evil, he can’t risk their lives, or anyone else's.

  Speaking of, Jane opens the door and walks into his room, He glances to her looking around, a frown forming when she sees his face.

  “What are you doing?” She asks as she kneels behind him and rubs his back.

  “I don’t know anymore.” He sighs and lets his head droop into the drawer.

  “Tim?”

  “It's nothing important.” He lies and starts throwing his things haphazardly back to where they belong.

  “It sounds important.” Jane tries.

  “It isn’t.” He waves her off.

  “Liar.” She calls him out, moving herself in front of him and shoving the drawer closed before he can put a wad of clothes away. “Does it have something to do with the living room being empty?”

  “Jane, drop it please.”

  She stares into his eyes, narrowing hers and opens her mouth to say something, but is cut off by her stomach growling.

  “Did you skip dinner?” He raises an eyebrow at her, and she turns away.

  “Shut up, there were only evil sandwiches.”

  “Want me to make you something then?”

  “Yes... but we're not done talking yet.” She huffs.

  “We will be if I keep your mouth stuffed.” Tim shrugs.

  Jane opens her mouth to say something, stops, blushes, then snorts.

  “What? Why are you... Ugh, don't make it weird.” Tim rolls his eyes. “Come on.”

  Tim can’t help but devour the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches he’s making before they’re even together. He’s been hungrier since he got his powers. and his sense of taste is just as heightened as his smell, and it makes food taste much, much better than he had ever imagined. It takes more willpower than he expected to set a few sandwiches aside for Jane on a plate, and he’s still eating from the peanut butter jar as he brings her the food.

  “Did you just eat that whole loaf?” She looks at the kitchen counter as she takes a bite from her sandwich.

  “No...” He gathers more peanut butter on his spoon and shoves it in Jane’s mouth as she's about to counter.

  “Fuck off.” She giggles, accepting the bite. “Do you know if Ro and Alex have called yet?”

  Right, they mentioned wanting to hang out today before they left the library, Tim had completely forgotten about it. In an all time first though, he doesn’t particularly want to escape his home to go hang out with them. Last time is still weighing heavy on him, and now that he thinks about it, if he had just left the library sooner, he would’ve beaten his mother to the docks by hours.

  Not that he blames his friends, but it seems close to an objective truth to him, and it makes him irritated enough that it’d probably affect any good times they had. Besides, with the house empty he can root around the garage freely for a new costume, as much good that’ll do him.

  “If they have, I slept through it, and no one’s here to tell me.” Tim shrugs.

  “I’ll call them after I’m done eating then.”

  Tim is torn, to say the least. After how sad Jane was last night, he’s having a hard time denying anything she wants, but that’s why he was late to the docks at all. Then again, it is daytime, he can’t do much super hero-ing in broad daylight without attracting national attention. He chews his cheek and thinks as he watches her get up and dial in the number, a small smile making its way onto her cheek.

  His leg begins to bounce as he hears Alex answer the phone and the two of them start to talk, he needs to make a decision and make it soon. While yes, it is early in the day and it’d give them plenty of time to hang out before he went out again, it's not really that simple right now. They always hang out as long as they possibly can, it’d probably be night by the time Tim and Jane even headed home, then Tim would need time to prep and plan.

  He wasn’t going to not go out, not with so many new weapons on the streets, and even if targeting the people at the dock directly could fall back on Jane and his family, after the weapons are sold? That shouldn't be an issue.

  Plus, there is the big drug industry in San Diego, Robert’s meth labs. They’re a separate entity from the Cartels as far as any documentary or news report has said, and while taking them out is pretty much guaranteed to affect his family in one way or another, Robert isn’t going to go killing them.

  Going with Jane to Rowan and Alex’s house will just overcomplicate things, and as much as he loves them, this is something only he can do.

  “Well, hit the bad part of the classic superhero story.” He complains under his breath, turning to Jane as she makes some awful noise at the ceiling. What’s with the cutest girls being able to make the most awful shrill noises anyways?

  Jane continues her cry as she sets down the phone and walks back to the table, puts her face in her arms, and still continues.

  “You should start singing with how long you can hold that note.”

  “Uuugh, we can come over but only if we dig out that stupid rotten stump.”

  “That thing is huge, what does Robyn expect us to do? Chop at it with an axe as we dig out the roots?”

  “Yes.”

  “Yeah, I’m good, pass.”

  “What?” Jane sits up and tilts her head, searching Tim’s face. “Ok, stop bullshitting me and tell me what’s wrong.”

  “You know how you owe me a thing?” Tim asks.

  “Yeah, within reason.”

  “Drop it.”

  “That isn’t within reason” Jane glares at him.

  “Dude.”

  “If you’re not going to go then I’m not going either.” She crosses her arms.

  “You go without me all the time just—“

  “I’m not leaving you alone when you’re being this weird.”

  Ugh, why does she have to be such a good friend? And a persistent one?

  “I’m allowed to be an angsty teen sometimes, let me brood.” Tim grumbles.

  “You’re not allowed to with me.” She frowns, “Tim, why aren’t you telling me?” She starts to fiddle with her plate, looking down. “Did… did I do something?”

  “What? No!” Tim’s heart breaks in two. God he’s an idiot, of course she’d come to that conclusion. “It has nothing to do with you, ok?”

  “Please just tell me what’s the matter then?”

  He runs his fingers through his hair, he can’t tell her everything, but he can say part of it. At least so she understands it isn’t her.

  “I… overheard Robert and my Mom talking.”

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  “Ok.” Jane sits straight and scooches her chair in, reaching for Tim’s hand and holding it.

  “Robert is in with someone new, the Cartel I think, and my mom and Delilah are supposed to be a big part of it.”

  “Fuck.” She frowns deeper, running her thumb over Tim’s to comfort him.

  “Yeah, so, more fucking blood money.” He sighs. “More food and clothes and Mom trying to buy my love at the small cost of suffering and ruined lives.”

  “How many times have we talked about this? That’s not… you’re not being fair to yourself. We’re kids, badass ones that can take on a group of five, but still. You think if you starved yourself you could do anything? Help anyone? Get those As to get us out of here? Fight shitheads and defend freaks who honestly kind of deserve—“

  “Tangent.”

  “All I’m saying is, you're just a few years away from drawing a new hand Tim, don’t beat yourself up for playing with this one.”

  Now he’s beating himself up for one more reason. His best friend, the most important person in his life, is sitting here putting her all into making him feel better, and he’s just giving her half truths. It’s for the best, it protects her, but it still feels like shit.

  “Well, Delilah at least thinks she’s doing it for me so, I can beat myself up a little.”

  “Tim—”

  “You know Alex is still on the phone right?”

  “He can wait.”

  Tim sighs, “Go have fun Jane, I’m just too angry to have a good time today.”

  “If I stay, I can help you. Distract you from everything.” She offers.

  “No, I honestly want to stew in it anyways.”

  “That’s not good for you.”

  “You’re one to talk.” Tim smirks at her.

  “Kay well, this isn’t about me.”

  “I’ll be ok, go get Ro to dig out that stump all by himself.” Tim nudges her leg with his foot.

  “Well, I’m sure as fuck not touching it.” She smiles, “Feel better ok?”

  “Will do boss.” Tim salutes her.

  Jane rolls her eyes and giggles, “You're annoying.”

  “Professionally so.”

  “Whateveeeer.” She says as she gets up and heads back to the phone.

  After Robyn picks Jane up, forcing Tim to greet her before she leaves, he heads to pilfer the garage once again.

  “This’ll work.” He says as he finds a biker outfit in a plastic bin. “Who’s even is this?”

  He shrugs as he gathers the black leathers and the, conveniently, green motorcycle helmet and heads to the backyard to once again paint. He adds some stripes and coats the knee and elbow pads to further break up the black, then tries to paint his logo over a pocket on the right side of his chest. It comes out sloppy, but better than Tim was expecting, even with three lines dribbling down from it, like yolk going down a messy eater's chin.

  With his new suit complete, all there’s left to do is wait for nightfall, and then he can get to work.

  Florida is generally considered the meth capital of the US but thanks to Robert and his effort, Lakeside had taken its crown for the better part of a year. PK doesn’t know exactly where the labs are, so heading there to find out is the most logical first step. It's not a long trip either, only thirty minutes by public transport, so PK simply rides on the top of a bus until he reaches Lindo Lake.

  El Cajon tried to hide its dower state with its downtown, but Lakeside has long since given up. Lindo Lake is more or less its equivalent to the Promenade, but there’s no effort to maintain anything here. The only small businesses that decorate this downtown are feed stores and an odd cafe that’ll only last a year before going under, like all the rest before them. The library is miniscule compared to El Cajon’s, ill maintained, with overflowing trash cans outside of it and used needles in the underbrush near its walls.

  Even still, it's not without anything to appreciate, with Lakeside more of a rural town then El Cajon, it meant a lot more animal life is around. The easiest thing to spot was a huge variety of waterfowl, and PK needs to try and resist admiring his distant cousins as he glides from tree to tree, searching for his prey.

  There’s always a silver lining in life, and Prehistoric Kid is finding plenty now. As Delilah fell to the darkside, she became more and more blatant, “respecting” Tim too much to lie to him. So, when they’d make their way to Lakeside to shop, it has the only nearby Walmart Supercenter, Delilah would often meet with other people on business.

  That means that Tim knows who to hunt down for the lab locations, and the general areas they stay in. It isn’t long before Tim catches the scent of a man high out of his mind, the chemical odor of meth strong in his sweat as his body tries its best to expel the self-inflicted poison.

  It's not someone his sister had talked to on their grocery trips, but Tim recognizes his scraggly beard. The guy Delilah went there for was deep in a conversation with a man before she had called him over, so trailing him might just lead PK to where he needs to be.

  PK perches in a tree and watches the man stumble and mutter to himself, stopping and leaning himself against a light pole before puking all over the street. The man takes out napkins from his pocket and wipes his mouth off, throwing the paper to the ground before taking out more and wiping his forehead of sweat.

  A memory surfaces of Tim when he was little and naive, sitting on the couch and dabbing the sweat from his suffering mother as she edged the line between being high and over-dosing. Jane’s dad had a place at the time and Tim’s entire family was held up in the living room, Ben and Delilah each minding their own business as the tiny Tim laid wet washcloths on his mom’s forehead, anything to help her, to ease her suffering, make her comfortable.

  Wood splinters under Tim’s claws as they dig deep into the branch, his pulse pounding from the memory. He shakes the entire tree as he launches himself off it and to the next, the branch he was on snapping and making the man below jump. He holds his chest before he approaches a shack of a house, banging on its door.

  “Gus! Gus! Open up!” The man yells as he bangs on the door.

  Prehistoric Kid launches himself upwards and glides in a circle around the house, properly scouting to make sure there’s no trucks or vehicles ready to drive away for some reason, like at the docks. Luckily there isn’t even a car, but in the backyard of the shack, there is an even smaller shack, one with the same smell as the high man’s sweat.

  A miniature lab right in ol’ Gus’s backyard, tonight seems like it's going to be much more productive than yesterday.

  “Gus!” The man yells again before the door finally swings open.

  “Jesus fuck Gale, shut the fuck up before the neighbors call the cops.” Gus, a bald, middle aged white man with thick rimmed glasses says with a red face.

  “I got money.” Gale nods, ripping it from his pocket. “Hurry up and give me the glass.”

  “Fresh out, just sold what I had to some kids over by—”

  Tim dives down, turning his body midair, and transforms into a Utahraptor. The twenty foot long dromeosaur’s tail makes contact with Gale’s back and shoves him into Gus, launching both men inside the house.

  PK jumps after them, becoming human and shutting the door behind him. Before he lands, he digs his fingers into the door and pulls himself up and upside down, transforming int the reptile-like protomammal, Dimetrodon, and digging his claws into the door and wall, locking him in place.

  Prehistoric Kid lets out a crocodile like hiss and lets a thick strand of drool leak from his mouth and onto the ground. At first, he was just going to scare the men into giving up the location of the labs, but now? Selling to kids? More future families torn apart, more lives ruined, more “Death Beths” in the making. They deserve more than just being scared.

  The men gawk in horror as PK stalks onto the ceiling, crumbs of drywall littering the ground as the twelve foot long synapsid makes his way above them.

  He drops down, mouth gaping, and the men clamber over each other; desperate to avoid ancient teeth. They barely make it and PK lands with a crash, then whips around, his tail tearing through Gale’s shirt and leaving behind red lash that instantly begins to wilt, small droplets of blood making it through the skin.

  Prehistoric Kid turns to Gus and growls, blood rushing to his five foot sail and turning it a dark crimson and black. He waits for Gus to begin to run and then launches himself at him, clipping Gus’s side and landing on the couch. He makes a show of tearing it apart, old stuffing and spring flying through the room as he bites an arm off and shakes it like a dog would a rabbit.

  Gus holds his bruising side and runs into his short hallway, PK transforming into the raptor, Deinonychus, and giving chase.

  It doesn’t even last a moment, even with PK holding back, the power of a normal Deinonychus would’ve met the distance in less than a blink of an eye. He leaps into Gus and sends them both crashing through a frail, makeshift door that leads to the sorry excuse of the backyard. Gus tries to get up, but PK puts a foot on him and forces him down to the ground, reverting to human.

  “Let’s make this quick Gus. My name is Prehistoric Kid, and I’m going to make drugs extinct.” He says, kicking Gus onto his back. “And you’re going to help me.”

  “Please, please don’t kill me.” Gus puts his hands up, tears and snot running down his face.

  “Huh? What about what I said would imply I’m going to kill you?” PK sighs, regretting how good of a job he did scaring the man. “Look, I’m not an anti-hero, I’m a superhero, no killing Is going to happen.”

  “What?”

  “Oh my god.” PK tries to pinch the ridge of his nose only for his helmet to block it. As awkward as it is, he carries on. “I’m. Not. Gonna. Kill. You. But you are going to tell me where all of the meth labs are.”

  “The labs? You want the labs? I, I only know where a few—“

  His heart rate changes, it’s already fast but it quickens just a little more. Tim isn’t sure if that necessarily means he’s lying, but it’s not a bad guess.

  “Liar.” He places a foot on Gus’s chest, increasing the pressure until Gus coughs and starts tapping at PK’s calf.

  “Ok ok!” Gus shouts, and PK eases off. “I-I can make you a map.” He says as he scrambles up.

  “Good, and make sure to not make this difficult, ok?” PK says and transforms into an Allosaurus. The blueish grey, thirty foot long theropod’s tail stretching into the next yard over, Prehistoric Kid lowers his head, putting his red crest against right in front of Gus, and flares his nostrils.

  “Ok ok! Fuck!” Gus stumbles back, falling on his ass.

  PK reverts to human and gives Gus a wave as he runs into his house. He uses his finger to carve a “PK” into the ground and hones his hearing onto Gus, who, to PK’s mild surprise, is behaving.

  “I... don’t know where all of them are but—”

  “This works, thanks Gus.” PK looks over the map before folding it up and putting it in his chest pocket. “I owe you one, oh, I know, I’ll help you get clean!”

  PK leaps into the air, tapping his chin as he looks over the Gus’s house and the surrounding yard. At the apex of his jump, he notes four spots, and transforms. Four tree trunk legs instantly occupy each space as fifty feet and twenty tons of Camarasaurus comes down to ground. The makeshift meth lab is instantly obliterated under PK’s right front foot, and he grinds the remains further into the ground.

  PK turns human, gives Gus a wave, then jumps off. He’s going to have another busy night tonight.