The socially awkward villain's furry superpower

“Uh, what do we do now?” Sam asked. “Because of what happened just now… chains flying everywhere, screams, and that weird, crazy look in his eyes before she (Teddy) crashed into him.”

Sam pointed at Teddy, "Not to mention when she turned into a bear. That was spectacular. I think I could write a whole paper about my experience here."

“That’s good,” Sienna said absentmindedly. She was looking at the man lying face up in the dusty corner of the warehouse. His chains were loose and scattered on the ground, and the bump on his forehead clearly showed that he wouldn’t be able to get up anytime soon.

"Boss?"

Sienna looked up. Teddy was staring at her with her big, bear-like eyes. "Hmm?"

"Boss, what should we do?" Teddy muttered as he asked.

Sienna blinked. “Yes, what should we do? Uh… Trinity, clean up these chains, pick them all up, and throw them into… that box over there. Then close the lid. Athena, come here.”

Let me know if he's about to wake up. Teddy, you stay nearby too. If he wakes up, tell him not to move. Trinity, let us know if the chains make any noise.

Trinity picked up a chain, the metal clanging loudly. In the brief but deafening fight that had filled the room with the constant rattling of chains, the sound was almost unbearable. "It's moving," Trinity said, shaking the chain.

“No, I mean it moves on its own, as if it were controlling them,” Sienna said.

“Oh, right, that makes sense!” Trinity said. “Boss, you’re so thoughtful!”

Sienna refrained from sighing. At least her sisters were quick to follow her orders. "Sam, go check his pockets."

“Hey, the little follower gets the loot last,” Athena said.

“I need his phone,” Sienna said. “We’ll talk about the loot later, much later.”

Sam crouched down next to "Chain Man" and patted his side. She found a wallet held in place by a pocket chain—it had a late nineties vibe, though Sienna figured it might be for some theme—a small knife, and finally, a smartphone in a worn-out case.

"Here you go, boss," Sam said, tossing the phone over.

Sienna frantically tried to catch it in mid-air, then held the phone in her hand and twirled it around. "Thanks," she said.

"Who are you going to call?" Sam asked.

“I’m thinking about it,” Sienna said. “But…maybe call the Hero Emergency Response Team? That’s their job, and I want to make our side look more, uh, you know, more like the good guys.”

Athena's face showed disgust. "Boss, I understand why you want to do this, but it still feels really awkward."

“Yeah, it’s really annoying. I don’t want to beat this guy up just so people can call me a hero or something,” Teddy said.

"What?" Athena asked. She whirled around to face Teddy. "I'm the one who took him down!"

“No, that’s not true,” Teddy said. “It was all my doing.”

Athena opened her mouth, then closed it again, and then grinned—a smile that sent chills down your spine. "So you're saying that because you put in more effort than others, you deserve more reward?"

“Uh…” Teddy was speechless for a moment.

"Even though we're all on the same team, you want to keep all the rewards for yourself?" Athena asked.

Sienna sighed. "Athena, stop attacking your sisters psychologically."

"Teddy started it!"

“I didn’t!” Teddy immediately defended himself. “I don’t even know what ‘psychological’ means!”

Sienna turned to Sam. "You keep an eye on them, I'm going to make a call. I'll be right back." Sam didn't seem ready to look after a group of super-powered, quarrelsome little girls, but then again, Sienna wasn't ready either, and so far, things had been going relatively smoothly.

The hero emergency response team's number is listed as an emergency number, meaning she doesn't need to crack "Chain Man's" phone password to make the call.

This was probably for the best; his phone was filthy, and she didn't want to touch it. She dialed the three-digit number and then held the phone to her ear, trying not to touch it.

"Heroic Emergency Response Team, what emergency do you have?" A gentle female voice came from the other end of the phone.

Sienna cleared her throat. She would have preferred to use her own cell phone to make the call, but the last time she used her home computer to look something up, she was tracked down by a clever person.

She didn't believe those heroes wouldn't tamper with her phone in some way for their own benefit. She knew she was being a bit paranoid, but knowing it made her suspicious somewhat less uneasy. "I'm the boss, uh, I'm a hero from Auclair."

"Do you want me to transfer you to the recruitment department? You can find an advisor there who will help you join the ranks of the good guys!"

“What?” Sienna asked.

"I'll transfer you to the other end right away."

“No! Wait, that’s not why I called.” she said hastily. She paused to make sure the call wasn’t disconnected, then continued, “I caught a, uh, villain. I called to get someone to come and take him away, the police would be fine too? I’m not familiar with your procedures, um, what’s the process?”

"Oh, that's a truly remarkable achievement. Could you tell me your location? We'll send a team to assist you immediately. Are you injured? Are there any wounded civilians nearby?"

“I’m fine,” Sienna said. “And there are no injured civilians. We’re… uh…” She walked to the front door, which had been ajar ever since “Chain Man” broke in. She peeked out, squinted to make out the nearest street sign, and then read the street name to the person on the other end of the phone. “Is that detailed enough?”

"Of course that's enough. A team is on its way and should arrive in seven minutes. How was that villain subdued?"

Sienna glanced towards "Chain Man." He looked like he was about to wake up; the situation was both good and bad. "There's a bear watching him."

"Could you please say that again?"

“A grizzly bear,” Sienna explained in detail.

“I…I understand,” the dispatcher said. “Are you the leader of the independent heroes? The one who was working with the other independent hero, Teddy?”

“Yes, it’s me,” Sienna said. “You, you’ve heard of me?” The thought sent shivers down her spine.

“We have some files on local heroes with detailed information. This information is invaluable. Does the villain need medical attention? Is he breathing normally? Are there any wounds bleeding? Is he conscious?”

“I guess so? I mean, no, I mean… he’s still alive.” Teddy growled from behind. “He’s still alive for now.” Sienna lowered her phone, shielding it with one hand, and turned to see what was going on.

Sam appears to be talking to "Chain Man," whose baseball bat slams down on the ground next to his head, while Teddy is leaning over him. He looks terrified by the scene.

“Yes, he’s fine,” Sienna said.

"Is he restrained?" the dispatcher asked in his usual calm tone.

“Not entirely,” Sienna said. “Teddy is watching him, and… another solo hero and one of my little… one of my, uh, friends.”

"...Alright. Consider tying the villain up. If you don't have suitable restraints, ropes or chains will do. Remember, villains don't have the same moral compass as ordinary people. Even if you defeat them, they won't hesitate to stab you in the back."

Sienna moved the phone slightly away from her ear. That was incredibly rude! "Okay, I don't think using chains is a good idea. His name is Chain Man, after all."

"Understood. While we wait for the support team to arrive, could you tell us about the key aspects of his superpower? I can pass that information on to the team that is on its way."

“He can manipulate chains,” Sienna said. “The chains can float and move around. I think he can even use them as whips.”

Moreover, he can bind people with chains, and the chains look very tight. "When Teddy turned into a bear before, it took a lot of effort to subdue her, and it wasn't easy to shut her up."

"Understood. Thank you, boss."

"You're welcome," Sienna replied instinctively. "Um, just one more question, how much longer do you expect it to take?"

"There are four minutes left. Don't worry, we have an experienced hero and some well-equipped teammates. They'll handle everything once they arrive."

However, I'd like to confirm something else. The people present included you, a woman, approximately eighteen years old, dressed in a suit-like outfit; Teddy, who can transform into a bear or is about twelve years old, wearing what looks like a sundress and a bear mask; and a civilian assistant, right?

"Why do you need to know all this?" Sienna asked, full of suspicion.

"To avoid friendly fire, the team members who arrived at the scene didn't want any more unidentified people suddenly appearing."

“Oh,” Sienna said, “in that case, add four more. One looks like a girl who rides a motorcycle, about the same age as Teddy, and is wearing a leather jacket. The others look like little thieves, and they have tails.”

"Hmm..." the dispatcher said. This was the first time she'd seemed somewhat at a loss since the call was connected. "Are there still four heroes on site?"

“Yes,” Sienna said.

She pretended not to see Trinity stuffing the spoils into her bag, nor to see Athena grinning as she looked at the terrified "Chain Man" beneath her. "That's right, there are four more heroes."