The socially awkward villain's furry superpower

He had to constantly remind himself that his name now, at least for the time being, was Aleja Iqta. It was easy to mispronounce it, and frankly, he didn't understand how people who led double lives managed to do it.

Alaya Ikta sat in a private booth at his favorite coffee shop, fiddling with an empty paper cup, pondering the terrible changes his life had undergone on "Superpower Day."

Having superpowers is undeniably cool. And having lucky superpowers is even cooler.

He can turn the situation to his advantage whenever he wants; his ability is ridiculously strong.

But being hunted by righteous people, and possibly even targeted by some mysterious organizations with ulterior motives, who knows what those organizations want to do with him, that's not cool at all.

In fact, he was utterly fed up with all of this. And now, he had to rely on a girl who looked two years younger than him to save him... and once again.

Someone sat down in the seat closest to his VIP booth, pulling him out of his thoughts. For a moment, he was worried, but then he realized it was just a girl wearing a baseball cap.

He considered stealing some luck from her, but... well, she's still a child. He wasn't exactly a good person, but he wasn't a bastard either.

"Hi," the girl said.

“Hi,” he replied. That was all he could say. The last thing he wanted was to be seen as a pervert for harassing children.

“Sienna said I need to talk to you about something,” the girl said.

Alejandro Ikta held his breath. He swallowed hard and looked at the girl again. She… was definitely not one of the two people he had seen with Sienna before. “Are you serious?” he asked.

She nodded. "Of course. Don't mess it up, okay, lucky boy? I've staked donuts on this."

“Uh, okay,” he said. “Where is Sienna?”

“You have to walk two blocks down that road to meet me, a few others of me, my sisters, and Sienna.”

She pointed across the street, but that didn't make it clear which direction she was referring to. "See you there."

He watched her jump off the chair and run away, but she disappeared from sight after she went around a wall separating the private seating area from the coffee shop counter.

Aleya Ikta looked around but found nothing, then used her luck ability slightly.

Still nothing.

He sighed, stood up, and headed for the restroom. He didn't want to have to use the restroom halfway through his journey to see Sienna, and washing his face might help him clear his head.

He desperately needs to wake up right now.

He grabbed another cup of coffee before leaving. Coffee made up half of his daily diet, which... is actually quite common, considering how many students live in O'Clair.

Once outside, he pulled up his coat hood and kept an eye on every car on the street. His lucky sense led him to a "football mom" type van parked across the street.

He brought the cup close to his face and then started walking forward.

After finding a place to cross the street, he blended into a denser part of the crowd. As he walked, he brushed past others, stealing a little bit of luck with each physical contact.

All he needs to do is get close to the other person. Touching them through their clothes is enough, but if he misses even the slightest contact, he gets nothing.

He once tried touching someone with a ribbon to see if it would work, but it had to be direct physical contact. His superpower is a bit strange in this respect.

People he bumped into would often turn around or exclaim in surprise, but before they could point him out, he would have already gone far away.

Even if they identify him... what can you say? Say that he makes them feel strange?

Following the general direction the girl pointed in, and relying on his own lucky intuition, he started walking along a road opposite the coffee shop. Along the way, he only stopped once to pick up a large scarf that had fallen to the ground, then draped it over his shoulders.

Bright pink isn't his favorite color, but maybe it will make people pay less attention to the clothes he's wearing.

Aleya Iqta's life isn't ideal right now, but his superpowers do make things a little easier.

He came to a crossroads, recited the mantra of "calling out soldiers and generals," and then walked a short distance to the right.

Sienna, with a group of children and another woman, was waiting for him in the middle of the road.

"Hi," he said as he approached.

He recognized the girl he had met at the coffee shop... and then he saw two more of her who looked exactly alike.

Triplets? The other two are that scary-looking "bear girl" and a scary girl with unpredictable superpowers.

Does the tall Black woman who's with Sienna also have superpowers?

How many people did she hire to work for her? How much power can one person wield? Perhaps that's the difference between him and a true villain.

“Hello, Aleya Ikta,” Sienna said. “Let’s not linger here. Would you like to find a more private place to talk?”

“Okay, that’s a good idea,” he said.

Her tone of voice was as always, carrying a sense of tension mixed with anger. He really didn't want to push her any further into anger.

“Now all the men are here,” the bear girl said. “Hello, Comrade Ikta.”

"Uh, it's Aleia Ikta. It's not quite right to call her only a part of her."

The girl crossed her arms. "Fine, you decide."

“Yes,” he said somewhat uncertainly. “So, uh, do we have somewhere we can talk privately?”

Sienna nodded, then turned to the young woman beside her. "Have you found a way to open the door?"

"Like you said, you can't pick the lock in broad daylight. I looked around for something to pry open the door, but I didn't bring a crowbar this time."

"What door?" he asked.

Sienna glanced in his direction, then pointed to a small maintenance building behind their group. "We need to get inside."

“Oh,” Aleya Ikta responded. He walked toward the door, only to be immediately ignored. Somehow, this hurt him a little.

He has admitted that he might be too eager for attention, but to be so easily ignored...

He walked to the door. It was a sturdy metal door with a keyhole and a handle. He bent down, shook the handle, paused, and then turned it. The door opened.

"Um...everyone?"

Only the girl who had greeted him at the coffee shop turned around.

“Girls?” he tried calling again. Then, raising his voice, he called out, “Sienna!”

Sienna turned around, saw the open door, then stared at the door and him, looking back and forth. "What's going on?"

“The door wasn’t locked,” he said with a shrug. “I guess I was just lucky.”

Sienna gritted her teeth. "Alright. Trinity, Athena, go first."

The two girls rushed into the small building, and the others followed.

“Family Zoo: Athena,” Sienna murmured. He wasn’t sure if he was seeing things, but he felt her eyes seemed to widen a little.

He thought it might just be an optical illusion caused by the light, so he followed the others inside.

Inside the repair shop, tools sat on shelves, with several cans nearby. The air was thick with the smells of engine oil, grease, and rotting lawn debris.

He had no idea what he was going to see next. Did they want him to stay here? It wasn't the worst option, but he had hoped for something much better, far better.

“There,” Sienna said. She pointed to a doorway at the far end of the room.

They had to move some things to get to the door. On the other side of the door was a stairwell leading to what looked like a vertical shaft.

Aleya Iqta followed the others down the path, her heart pounding with anxiety. Where were they going?

As a result, they came to a door, behind which was a small tunnel, which in turn led to a huge concrete tunnel deep underground.

“Ah, Sam, which way?” Sienna asked. “I have a bad sense of direction.”

Sam—so that's her name—looked at something on her phone and pointed. "The base is over there, Sienna."

A base?

Sienna has an underground base? And the city has such a massive underground tunnel system?

"Hey, are you alright?" asked the girl who had spoken to him in the coffee shop. She took off her hat, revealing two round ears on her head.

“I’m fine,” he said, putting his hands in his pockets.

Sienna, who looks a few years younger than him, actually managed to build all of this in just a few weeks?

The villains are really scary.