People were fleeing the local storm. Night owls, cabbies screeching away from the scene before their car was hurled into something; everyone was fleeing except Simon and this man playing a video game.

He was one of the largest men Simon had ever seen: well over six feet tall with a torso like a barrel. He had long red hair and a matching beard, dressed as a biker in a jean vest and shirt depicting a skull with a knife in its teeth and the words “Semper Fi” in Germanic lettering.

The man abruptly howled. “Left, I pressed left!” He looked like he was about to crush the game in one mighty hand. None of the fleeing people even looked at him.

He noticed Simon next to him. “Yer goin’ the wrong way, kid” he said, then suddenly squinted and began sniffing at Simon.

“Oho! I’ve met that blood,” he said, and brought a hand down on Simon’s shoulder. It wasn’t unfriendly, aside from the fact that Simon knew the man would break his arm if he pulled away. “If she’s Simone, it stands to reason you’re Simon.”