It was cloudy but no rainy as the midday sun peaked out on what was certain to be an interesting Friday night. Crowds of students wove into and out of one another as most of them ambled to their next class. None of them seemed to be in a hurry, except for Warren Dixon. Warren had lucked out this semester, as none of his classes met on Friday. All except for his chem lab. That was every other Friday and they'd met last week. He stepped with as long a stride as he could manage across campus, moving with a sense of urgency. He'd received a vital piece of information and had only a limited window to act on it. His roommate's uncle worked as part of the University coaching staff, which made him privy to certain details that other's didn't have. The football team lived in a large house just one block off campus and they'd be throwing a party tonight. None of that was a secret per se. What Warren knew that other's didn't was someone, who was definitely not a booster but claimed to be, had purchased a minor amount of video equipment so the team could view game films. And by minor amount they meant a one hundred and twenty inch flat screen, wireless home theater surround sound, five years worth of satellite programming, xbox, playstation and fiber optic internet with wireless access points. None of which was getting installed until Monday, which was a crying shame in Warren's book considering the shindig they were about to throw, but all hope was not lost. Warren had a plan. Such parties were pretty exclusive events. If one was a freshman or under the legal drinking age, then one could expect to spend their Friday night elsewhere. Exceptions got made now and again and Warren had it fifty-fifty. He was twenty-one but he was a freshman, taking a couple of years after high school to work and save so the student loan debt wouldn't be as soul crushing after graduation.<br/><br/>His family didn't have much, but there was plenty of money in South City. Rich people loved their gadgets and smart houses and just generally having everything they owned hard wired into the internet so they could access it from their smart phones. And in an overwhelming majority of cases they couldn't be bothered setting any of that up themselves. Warren had carved out a nice little income, freelancing for cash, making sure that those of the necessary means could ask for the lights to come on instead of getting off their collective asses to flip the switch themselves. It wasn't what he wanted to do forever but it was something he could fall back on if college life went south and it lent to a certain skill set he could leverage to his advantage.<br/><br/>Several of the player were in the front yard when he arrived. Some were getting in some quick drills while other were half heartedly tossing the old pig skin back and forth. The house was tall and wide and boasted untold square footage. Red brick and gray mortar piled high for a few stories. The players all lived in the upstairs bedrooms. It was a house but had more of an apartment complex fell to it. The first floor was rumored to be all common areas but Warren had never been inside before. He received a few sidelong glances as he stopped in front of the yard. Some of these athletes were from no bullshit rough inner city neighborhoods and could probably smell a con artist from miles away. Warren was five ten, lean and fair skinned. He was strong enough but he didn't have the muscle mass that college football players possessed. As a child his hair had been nearly platinum blond. Today it couldn't seem to make up its mind between dark blond and sandy brown. His eyes were blue and if he ever decided to introduce himself as 'Joe Average', few would've questioned him. By trade, Warren was not a con artist, but he was about try his hand at talking his way in someplace he wasn't invited.<br/><br/>"Gentlemen." Warren lead with a nod and smile.<br/><br/>"Nobody's showing up until later. You get an invite from somebody?" One large line backer asked.<br/><br/>"No."<br/><br/>"Then why the hell are you here?"<br/><br/>"You seem to have some idle equipment laying around that you guests might find appealing later on tonight."<br/><br/>None of them uttered a single word in reply, just intense stairs and tight lips. Warren just smiled and sighed, "Couple a consoles, a one twenty flat screen-".<br/><br/>A large hand grabbed the shoulder strap of his backpack and yanked him forward from the sidewalk, leading him closer to the front door. Warren followed having little choice in the matter, but he had their attention at least.<br/><br/>"How you know about that?" the linebacker demanded.<br/><br/>"Doesn't really matter does it? Your throwing a party with a room full of tech in boxes that won't be installed until Monday. Of course I could take care of that I suppose."<br/><br/>"What? You some kinda install guy?"<br/><br/>"Ya."<br/><br/>"All right. You can hook everything up, but when you're done, you gotta go, small time."<br/><br/>"Really? How much money you got? The NCAA says you guys can't be 'paid', so I'm guessing not a lot. What you want is something for nothing, which anit gonna happen fellas."<br/><br/>"Check it out. Here come the price tag." another player said.<br/><br/>Warren looked over at him. Four of five of them had crowded around by now. This one was taller and leaner than the linebacker, having more of a wide receiver's build.<br/><br/>"I'll do you're install, but afterward, I get to stay. Hang out, have some drinks, misbehave a little and meet some folk." Warren offered.<br/><br/>"Okay, but you have to install everything. And if you break anything I'll break you."<br/><br/>Warren's ID was checked before anybody was willing to open the front door. Given his age, nobody assumed he was a freshman and nobody asked. The inside of the house was large but not decorated in an uptown fashion like Warren would've imagined, which made sense when he considered it all. Rowdy young men lived here and the less wall decorations and table lamps there were to break, the less somebody would have to replace. The walls were white with a few scuff marks near the floor, but nothing that couldn't be painted over. Gray carpet covered most of the flooring except for the green tile in the kitchen. Warren could see seams in the carpet every so often, like the whole thing was put down one square at a time and could probably be replaced one square at a time as well. The whole place smelt like beer and most of the lighting was floor lamps.  Whoever engineered the decor, did so with the current residents in mind. It felt like a stroke of genius.<br/><br/>The work load that lay before him was piled in a living room that was wide enough and did have three couches sat side by side. He looked them over to see if any of them had been damaged in transit while he ran over the check list in his head.<i>Drill, tungsten bits, screwdriver bits, pocket knife, cable crimpers, wire tester and wrenches. </i>There were a few other odds and ends he'd need but he'd packed the trusty old backpack like it was any other day on the job. Warren retrieved a small three step paint ladder from the pantry in the kitchen and he was all set. Players came and went as some split their focus between watching him work and keeping a sharp eye on their social media accounts on their smart phones. A couple of them stuck close by and handed him the things he needed. It wasn't often, but occasionally a house resident stuck close him to watch, like installing residential electronics was the most bedazzling thing since the invention of brain surgery. The flat screen was on the wall and the entertainment system shelves sat just underneath it. There were not satellite or cable boxes near by but he could pickup the local news on the router from the internet. Noise was all he really needed to setup the wireless surround sound.<br/><br/>"...today as we remember the spill that affected so many lives some thirty years ago." the anchor said.<br/><br/>Warren kept his eyes off the screen and tried just to focus on his task. He'd never really cared much for the local propaganda and he'd seen enough these 'anniversary spill' broadcasts to know what was on the screen. Arial photos taken of a toxic waste catastrophe that happened nearly a decade before he was born. They always followed them up with a safety announcement.<br/><br/>"Just as a public safety reminder, if you see or talk to anyone who are among 'the touched' encourage them to seek treatment and help. It could save your life and theirs. And if you see any of these six individuals, get far away and phone the police."<br/><br/>Warren did look up at the screen at that point. He recognized three of the six of them, labeled as South City's most wanted. Silver Mane, Firefly and the South City Ghost. He turned back to the surround sound speakers and day dreamed of finding the reporter that had saddled him with that ridiculous name, so he could smack the taste right out of their mouth. Warren was among the touched but there was nothing ghostly about him. He was one of the lucky ones, looking just as human as anybody else while hiding in plain sight. Others were not so lucky, having to resign themselves to life on the run or government custody for looking less (or more in his opinion) than human. He wished it weren't so and if it weren't, he might well be a part of this football team. Warren had perfected the art of tripping and falling over his own feet near a crowd, where others could see him. The truth of it was, his own aptitude for physical athletics superseded the limits of human capability. He could manipulate nonliving matter with a thought. If he was ever caught, it'd surely be the end of him, but luckily enough, teleporters were damn hard to catch and even harder to lock down.<br/><br/>Someone else had carried out the empty boxes when he was finished. Warren stashed his backpack of tools in the living room coat closet when he got the thumbs up. It looked good and it sounded even better. He headed into the kitchen to pour himself a drink, the first of many he hoped. Other guests were starting to arrive at this point, mostly ladies. Tonight was just a social test to see how the other half lived and blew off steam. There was a certain atmosphere that filled the room as more players made their way down stairs. He wasn't a lady and he wasn't part of the team and if he wasn't in one of those two categories then he probably wasn't getting lucky. Warren took a long drink of rum and coke as more came streaming in. There was one that stood out from all the rest, at least to his eye. The shade of her skin was lighter than some of the players but darker than his. She had long black wavy hair, full lips and other much desirable assets.<i>Mercy. </i>Warren looked back into his glass and took another long drink. Like most guys, he didn't care to be caught staring.