Reality Check

Owen's Confession

Nicknames (by Dayglow)

"Here it is, a new confession. You're a rather intelligent adolescent. And that's who you are, I learned my lesson . . .

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The sound of lasers sizzling through the air was what Owen opened his eyes to, mere seconds after they jumped into Kiel Gnomenfoot and the Source of Magic. He was laying face-down on the ground, his broken arm screaming in pain from the impact, when suddenly, an all-too-familiar sound went through the air. A sound he hadn't heard since he was last in a Kiel Gnomenfoot book, which always sent a shiver down his spine. His eyes widened.

Science Police.

He heard his friends shouting, and he quickly lifted himself off the ground, almost stumbling over his own feet. He barely had time to look at his surroundings or dodge the lasers before he was shoved out of the way, and he landed back on the ground, crashing into a hallway. He groaned, then looked behind him to see Orion, who'd been the one to push him out of the way.

"T-Thanks," Owen said lamely, getting into a sitting position. He was shaking all over, and his robotic heart was racing a mile a minute. All he could hear was the heavy footsteps of the Science Police, and their lasers, which flew through the air faster than Owen could see.

Orion didn't respond, and instead led them hastily over to a podium just as more lasers came flying in their direction. Owen pressed himself against the podium, hoping it'd provide at least a little bit of protection. His breathing got more shaky, and he looked around for the others. At the end of the long hallway, he thought he might've seen Kiel, but he couldn't tell from this far away. That worried him more, but with the lasers on all sides of him, there was no way he could go out and look for them.

They were in a building much like the one Dr. Verity owned, but as far as Owen could tell, it wasn't the same exact one. There were several rooms that branched off from the hallway they were in, which all were dedicated to science. Of all the places that they could've landed, this was the worst place to be.

"What has Bethany dragged me into?" Orion grumbled, more to himself than to Owen. He glanced at Owen, taking out his Twilight Staff. "Stay here, and don't move," he instructed. He started to move, but Owen grabbed his arm, pulling him back.

"Wait!" Owen cried. "These are Science Police robots. Their lasers can kill you, and they're —"

"I've had years of fighting experience," Orion said, yanking Owen's hand off of him. "I know I can handle a few robots." Then he lifted his Twilight staff and stood up, edging around the podium. He quickly whacked his staff a few times into something that Owen couldn't see, then sprinted off out of Owen's view. He heard crashing noises, which blended together with the sounds of the Science Police and lasers.

He sighed, slumping back against the podium. Too bad he didn't have Spider-Man's spider-sense, where he'd get warned before danger. That would be helpful, especially in a situation like this! He'd only been in the fictional world for a couple of hours and he was already being thrown into danger at every turn. He had expected that, but not for Science Police to show up as soon as they jumped into the Kiel Gnomenfoot book!

Last time Owen had checked, the Science Police supposedly turned good after the war between Magisteria and Quanterium. Why were the Science Police attacking them, and why were there so many? They were still defending Quanterium at this point, but it wasn't like Owen and his friends had been attacking them. Owen could only assume that it was because Kiel was with them, but the whole situation was still confusing.

As he sat there without anything to do, Owen was reminded how useless he was against anyone fictional. He wasn't a hero and never would be, not even with his time powers. He was just too normal and too average, and everyone knew it. What chance did he have here? He wasn't even the sidekick in this scenario. He was a bystander, being forced to hide instead of fight because he couldn't win against the Science Police if he tried.