The Crystal certainly added a certain degree of delight to his work. No longer did he need to skirt in the shadows, watching and waiting while his instructions and ideas were carried out, either by willing or unsuspecting participants. Now… now he still moved the pawns on the chessboard as before but he wasn’t hiding behind the curtain anymore, he was walking among them and tugging their strings and energy as he passed.
It was fantastic exercise for him as well, he didn’t so much care for that part he had to admit but it was good for him. Even ‘masterminds’ needed to be at least somewhat fit.
Slipping into Gyms as an exercise instructor had been an almost elementary idea. It was a shame really he couldn’t organize a gym with a basement where a handful of captains could take turns drawing energy out through the floor, or even a few lieutenants for some ‘hands on personal instruction.’

Still… he liked the feeling of power it gave him, the knowing that they had no idea what walked among them. It was –thrilling- in a way he could never describe to them. He suspected on some level that they would never understand. He felt so…alive.
The energy drained off them one by one, a ‘mysterious case’ of extreme exhaustion that was of course, now sweeping the gyms he had visited, one each day. Of course a similar pandemic of exhaustion was sweeping a certain area school as well, he had to smile.
This was far more… ‘Classy’ than the OTHER pandemic that had swept the city, so many unnecessary deaths that served no greater good that he could tell. Far too many frustrations that had taken rise from it. Ties were severed and others had begun to unravel and that displeased him.
Another body dropped to the floor and he slipped out an exit carefully leaving his exhausted entourage to imagine that they had worked them selves far too hard. Perhaps that they had not drunk enough water, or eaten enough of those sawdust energy bars they sold for ridiculous prices in the entryway.

He glanced down at the handful of pearls that he now carried with him in an exercise duffle, carefully nested amid ‘extra work out clothes’ prepared ahead of time from a thrift shop, and a few towels stolen from the Hillworth showers to the general distress of the young men whom had left them unguarded.

“Not a bad night take really…” He mused and zipped the bag carefully shut. He made sure he was lost to view of any cameras that might have observed him and let the Crimson Crystal’s magic slide away pleased with him self. He rather loved doing this, he’d have to get better though… perhaps…

Perhaps a class on acting… would be a worthwhile undertaking…after all he DID need to take something for ‘arts’ next semester.