It was five A.M, and the entire team was bunkered up in my living room. I was barely conscious, and Zack was practically using my shoulder as his pillow. I eyed Valentina and Annual who sat on the couch across from me. My heart started to race when Annual met my eyes. Then I glanced down at her lips and mine started to tingle. I remembered the warm sensation that blessed my lips just a few days ago. What would Valentina think? I wonder if she already knows. The warmth started to trickle away. Would I lose her if she knew?
"Well come on lizard breath, I'd like to go back to my beauty sleep."
Zack yawned and ripped me away from my thoughts. Just ignore it. Focus on the mission. I glanced over at Zack and saw him nodding off again.
"If you drool on me, I'm hitting you," I grumbled.
Leo walked over from the kitchen and stared at us in surprise. Leo and Lux were the only ones wide awake. While the rest of us looked like Zombies.
He huffed and a small flame came out of his mouth. "Alright, we're definitely being watched."
Zack perked up when he said that.
"Didn't like, an arc just end!?" Zack groaned and rolled off of me.
"This is real life idiot, breaks don't exist unless your lucky or stupid." Leo fired back.
"Your lucky I'm barely awake barney, or I'd kick your-"
"Can we focus, please? I still have class ya know." Lux snapped, which seemed to silence the idiot.
"Right, I spoke to Icarus about it. He says his informant has noticed odd habits with our camera systems, and so have I."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Well for starters, they move directly in our direction every single time one of us is in an area of sight. Even if some of the cameras aren't meant to move."
"Sounds like we finally get to fight Magneto swordsman." Zack yawned.
"More than likely, Icarus's partner has a hard time hacking into the cameras during those moments of movement. She says it's unlike anything she's dealt with, as if the system had a brain and body of its own." Leo added.
"Wait, I just imagined a swordsman Magneto. Were sooo gonna die." Zack said, but we all just ignored him.
"So what do you suggest we do about it then?" Valentina asked.
"That's the trickery part. I have no real idea. Destroy the cameras and she knows we're on to her, ignore them and risk being stalked."
"Oh, Leo!" Annual chirped and raised her hand.
"Yes?"
"Wouldn't she already be onto us because of Icarus's friend?"
"I don't think so. I asked and she's been jacking the cameras back way before the Jormungand event. So I don't think they'll assume us automatically. However, it's safer to assume the worst here and stay vigilant. They may see this as a push to strike."
"Jack, did your info guy get any information?" I asked.
"Totally, but the boss man called and said I would lose pay if I told you." Jack sighed.
We all turned toward him, and he just yawned.
"You're kidding, right?" I asked.
"Just know Arthur doesn't think it's anything you can't handle."
He does value saving people, so that at least is reassuring.
"Can you confirm or deny the camera activity is the tech user and not Arthur?" Valentina asked.
"Good question book nerd, it's definitely not Arthur. However, I can't confirm if it's just the technomancer."
"Wait, are you implying there's more than one person!?" Leo snapped.
"Who knows, guess you'll just have to find out huh?"
....
"Dude look! We ranked up to A class!" Zack cheered down the empty school halls.
I wiped the sweat from my face that was still raining from basketball practice.
"Can you explain to me why that's a good thing? It just means we gotta deal with more people wanting to fight us..." I huffed.
"Bro, have you seen our message board!? We're totally popular." He held out his phone and showed me his page.
It was an image of him holding out a green flame in the alley. Which brought into question how they got that photo in the first place. His mask was on in the photo thankfully, and it looked like it was taken without him knowing. The only information below that was his alias name WIZARD, and his win-loss record with other gifted. Which was surprisingly huge. I don't remember fighting that many people...
"Zack, why is your fight history so big?"
However, he just ignored the question and clicked the message tab that was attached to his image. Which I admit, had a huge number of messages.
He scrolled down and clicked on one particular one. It was a girl with chocolate skin and purple hair. Her face was hidden behind what looked like a bridal shroud. Her message was simply.
"Message me some time ;)"
Then he scrolled down to another and another. Showing he had fans in all shapes and sizes.
"You're not stupid enough to actually message them, right?" I asked with a raised brow.
"What!? Of course not. Think I'd risk Annual or Alexis like that?"
"If you're thirsty enough, maybe."
"Hey! What do you take me for!? A common perv?"
"Don't pretend like I didn't cut up secret photos you took of girls. You creep."
"Why are you so mean to me...?"
"I'm just being honest."
We stopped at the soda machine in the hall and I started putting quarters in it. I definitely needed water after all that practice. As I put the third quarter in the machine, it started to shake. I stopped and took a step back, then looked back toward Zack.
"Hey cut it out!" I snapped at him.
I looked back to the machine and I saw purple sparks coming from the little display glass.
"Don't you think I would've pranked somebody by now if I could do that!"
I turned back to the machine and a red blur shot out from the slot. Then slammed into my face! The soda exploded all over me and I stumbled back. Before I could even register what was going on, another soda crashed in my stomach, then another and another! I stumbled back and slipped on the soda, then dropped onto the floor.
Then the halls were filled with Zacks laughter.
"OH MY GOSH THAT WAS GREAT!" He cackled out while holding his sides.
"Shut up," I grumbled and forced myself back up.
"That's what you get for making fun of me! Karma! Ha!"
"Shut up!"
...
"I feel so gross.." I sighed and pressed the crosswalk button.
"Karma sucks doesn't it?"
"Hey, if karma is starting to manifest itself. I think you should be worried."
"Ppffft as if I believe in that crap!"
The sign changed and Zack started to walk ahead of me. I took a moment to take my sticky shirt off, and as I moved it from over my head. I saw a car speeding down the road. It looked like sparks were coming from the hood. Just like with the soda machine.
Zack didn't seem to react as the car got closer, and it only got faster. I used my strength and leaped at him, knocking him out of the way just in time. I sat up and saw Zack was face first in a puddle. He rolled over and shook his head like a wet dog, letting all the dirty ghetto water fly.
"The karma gods are real..." Zack mumbled.
"Why didn't you move!?"
"I-It was my turn!"
"Clearly the car didn't care about that! You should've avoided it!"
We both looked down the road and saw that the car was still just zooming down the road.
"Think you can chase it down?" Zack asked.
"I would, but I'll probably get caught by cameras. Which isn't wise since the Jormungand search is going on."
"So we just let that guy get away!?"
"Tell Bean to track it."
"Ooof, can't do that one chief, spa day."
He stood up and started to dust himself off. I followed his lead and tried to wrap my head around what he just said.
"Spa day?"
"Mmhhmm, him and Annual. They went to get manipetties."
"Bean? The troll?"
"Mmhmm."
"So on the day we were told that our stalkers are here, you decide to let our only good tracker leave. For a manipette?"
"Hey, he had some stank raptor claws. Besides, I didn't think they'd attack literally right after the meeting. They've been stalking us for a while, and they didn't do anything."
"Huh, that is kind of strange. Icarus said they've been watching us for a while. Yet they're attacking right after our conversation."
We both started to walk again, pretending like we didn't just almost die. I glanced around to see if the police were coming, that's when I noticed how empty the streets were. Nobody but me and Zack. Which was odd this time of day.
"You think they could hack our phones?" Zack suggested.
"At this point, nothing would surprise me. Maybe they even bugged the apartment."
As we continued down the road, I noticed some sparks coming off of the payphone. I stopped in my tracks and snagged Zack's arm.
"Ah! What the hell ma-"
RING! RING!
We both turned toward the payphone and watched it ring again.
"Did...did that fossil just ring?"
"Take another look, the street seems completely empty too. This has to be a setup."
"Think we should answer it?"
I stared at the old rusted payphone, it definitely didn't look like it was supposed to function. Nobody was around either, this had to be some kind of trap. However, this may just be a safe way for them to remotely communicate with us. But why now? How did we trigger the enemy?
I looked up to examine the booth again and I became speechless. Zack had already stomped over to the damn thing!
"Zack! Don't just walk up to it."
Zack snatched the ringing phone and glared at it.
"Come out here and fight me like a man!"
And here we go...I quickly ran over to his side and prepared myself for whatever may happen. I was expecting an attack, but I got a soft feminine laugh instead.
"The truth is, you heroes you haven't seen anything yet!"
Then just a child-like voice took over.
"You have yet to see our grand magica!"
"Hey, you get off!" The feminine voice roared over the phone.
"But you said you wanted to intimidate them! Nothing can be more intimidating than grand magica!"
"Save your stupid magic for the wizard!"
"Wait! I can send Henry through the phone! Watch!" The kid yelled.
Then the phone handle started to shake, and Zack and I watched in horror as a horse's hoof came through the phone! Zack then immediately slammed the phone down, and everything stopped.
"Did....did a horse's hoof just come through the phone?" I asked.
"Oh good, you saw that too." Zack fell back against the phone booth. "I was starting to think I ate one too many Reese's cups."
"So, a possessed soda machine, a possessed car, a magic possessed phone booth, and now a teleporting horse hoof?"
"Sounds like someone challenging the mighty Zack." He held his fist up to the sky. "Challenge accepted!"