Her skin hardened—she appeared just as stunned as me when it happened, for we both stared at her arm in silent disbelief.

“Crap,” the young woman muttered, her head hung low as her shoulders tensed. “I did it again.”

I blinked twice. “Again?”

“Well…” Her laughter was awkward. “The first time was when I was escaping from someone. He had handcuffs and a weird looking uniform. Not really sure what he wanted, but he grabbed me and wouldn’t let go, so…I punched him. And I just wanted to leave, not like, actually harm him—though I ended up injuring him regardless since…” She nodded, down at her arm, “that happened.”

The fact that I had a gun suddenly wasn’t doing much to reassure me anymore. I gulped. “Did he… Did he die?”

“The hell do I know,” she snapped. “I hope not, but yikes, I hit bone, Leith. Bone! It crunched!”

I cringed at the thought. And then, another idea struck me. If she had powers and no recollection of the past…then where did that leave me?

I had to try.

“Punch me,” I told her.

The young woman looked at me as if I had lost my mind. “Um…did you not hear what I said about the bone part?”

I shrugged. “It’s for science.”

She seemed uncertain; I suppose this was understandable.

“Look,” I said, “whatever happens, happens. I don’t really care. Plus, I don’t even know your name, so it’s not like I could find you if you hurt me, and then ran.”

“Oh.” The young woman laughed. “Good point.”

She punched me.

The blow—

A) The blow did absolutely nothing to me. Like hers, my skin hardened, and her hit landed against my jaw with a dull echo; metal hitting metal, a clang instead of the crack of bones.

B) The blow made me instantly regret my request. Pain shot up my jaw, my face, and by the time it had reached the rest of my body, I had already long passed out.

C) The blow didn’t hit me. It went right through my body, as if I were a ghost. The young woman screamed. “Holy—” She gasped and pointed right at me. “You’re transparent, Leith! What the hell?”