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Downtown Sky City..7:10 a.m.
" You're starting to annoy me! " Ryan shouted, kicking down a Scorbis and breathing fire at the giant, "Okay! You're on timeout! I mean are we related now?-"
" GYAH!!!!! IT BURNS!!! IT BURNS!!! " She yelled, swinging her arms around and hitting buildings.
A gem in the middle of her forehead glowed red as her skin started to do the same. The giant girl grabbed a car and flung it after a Scorbis. The vehicle missed, crashing into the street. Ryan groaned and lept off a wall, landing on top of her head. He analyzed her gem and squatted down, trying to understand it. The giant gasped as she felt his elbow slide down her forehead as he reached for it. Quickly she tried to clap him. Ryan acted fast and grabbed a strand of her hair and used it as a rope, sliding to the bridge of her nose.
" DON'T TOUCH IT!! " The giant crossed her eyes to look at him.
" I have the urge to do that now. " Ryan chuckled as he pulled it off her forehead with a yank, " Whoa...this is cool. I could sell this at a pawn shop, so I'll be taking it. "
" GIVE IT BACK TO ME! " She shouted, jumping up and down like an angry toddler.
" Listen, I don't want to hurt you. You need to calm down before-"
The giant stopped him by grabbing the back of his shirt. Her skin slowly turned back to its light brown complexion, and her multiple arms disappeared. " Oh, I see. " Ryan thought as she flung him toward the street, face first. He prepared to block his face from the pavement, but he suddenly felt his collar slam into his windpipe. Ryan coughed as he felt his legs dangle in the air. Then, hearing a disappointed sigh, Ryan realized Phoenix was holding him by his shirt.
" You're in so much trouble. " Phoenix muttered, throwing him to the ground.
Ryan chuckled while he saw Sapphire's feet in front of him. Sapphire wore an all-black jumpsuit with a white and blue Japanese Kabuki mask. Phoenix zoomed after the giant and cracked a nasty punch across her jaw, knocking her to the floor. The hive of Scorbi on the ground charged after Sapphire and Ryan. The two heroes battled the aliens, hitting them back with blasts and powerful melee attacks. The news helicopter continued to record, zooming in on a bystander nearby. The girl hid behind a dark blue metal mailbox, documenting the fight on her phone. She had short dark hair, bright blue eyes, and a small tattoo on the side of her neck. The giant girl growled and flung more cars into the air, but Phoenix dodged effortlessly. A car zoomed towards the innocent girl, making her freeze and drop her phone. Ryan quickly jumped in front of her, catching the car.
" Your parents never teach you to run away when you see cars coming in your direction? " Ryan asked as the girl remained silent, " I'll take that as a no. "
" RIOT! Send her this way! " Phoenix opened his arms.
Ryan tossed the girl into the air as she landed in Phoenix's arms. Phoenix quickly zoomed towards the helicopter above and placed her inside, scolding her for being so careless. Down below, Sapphire continued to fight the Scorbi as police cars sped down the street. " Since when do the police think they're essential anymore? " Ryan thought as he stood on a car and played with the giant's gem. The giant growled and stared at him, seeing Ryan kick it above his head. Then, the policemen jumped out of their cars and aimed their weapons at the giant.
" GIVE IT BACK!!! " The giant cried as Ryan toyed with her gem.
" I think I'll keep it. " Ryan said, making her charge after him, " Oh crap!"
He managed to dodge one of her punches, but the shockwave knocked him onto the hood of a police car. The police all shot at her, but the giant continued running! Phoenix flew in from the side and saved the cops from a stomp. Ryan somersaulted over the giant's fist, landing on her knuckle. He turned around and waved his buttocks at her, taunting her even more.
"You gotta be quicker than that, sweetheart- " Ryan's eyes went wide as he was tackled from a Scorbis, " Ah, come on! "
" GIVE IT BACK!! " The girl shouted as she raised her foot into the air.
Her shoe cast a giant shadow over Ryan and the Scorbis, making both of their faces drop.
" Crap..."
Ryan threw the Scorbis off of him. He quickly rolled to the side as the giant's foot slammed into the ground. It crushed the Scorbis instantly as Ryan felt his heart in his throat. Then, thinking fast, he threw the gem after Phoenix. Phoenix quickly caught it as the giant turned her attention to him.
" I think the gem is the source of her power!- " Ryan shouted before getting kicked into a building!
" GIVE IT BAAAAAACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "
She blew smoke out of her nose, her veins slowly becoming dark and black. The Scorbi rushed after the giant, leaving Sapphire to stand in the middle of the street, confused. Ryan groaned and got to his feet, seeing Phoenix dash away. The giant swatted Phoenix out of the air, knocking the gem into the sky! With surprising speed, Sapphire used her rocket boots to dash into the sky and catch it. The giant continued, grabbing Sapphire by her legs. The hive of Scorbi ran through her legs and tried to attack, but Ryan blasted them back with a giant fireball.
" LADY SAPPHIRE! " Ryan slid between the giant's feet.
Sapphire threw the gem down at Ryan, but Ryan tripped over his feet, trying to catch it! He managed to recover in mid-air with a flip, but he had no time to rest. He sprinted forward, jumping on parked cars as he dodged multiple punches and stomps. The Scorbi hissed, charging behind him while they all darted through the streets. With another stomp, Ryan's body bounced into the air! Phoenix zoomed in and caught Ryan, the Scorbi, hot on their trail. He quickly flung the boy forward as the Scorbi lunged on top of Phoenix and slammed him into the road. Meanwhile, Ryan did a handspring and stopped himself from tumbling as the giant continued her charge.
Sapphire went to save Phoenix, leaving Ryan alone to run away. He tried to get onto a building, but it was a failed attempt. His body barely had any more strength even to jump high. The giant slapped her palm down, knocking Ryan into an alleyway. He tumbled inside until he hit a large metal trash can.
BAM!
He fell inside, getting covered in all the garbage and other dirty objects. Ryan coughed and climbed out, realizing he was at a dead end. " Oh..this is terrible. " He thought as he hopped out the trash as the giant blocked the exit menacingly. Again, Ryan coughed, looking at her height. She was approximately EIGHTEEN meters tall, and that thought alone made him shake.
" I.WANT.IT.BACK. " She marched towards him.
" Listen- can't we sort this out? I mean, it's just a gem. I could buy you a new one if you like-uh. I feel like this is a one-sided conversation. " Ryan rambled as she towered over him, " Family heirloom? Or--still not listening okay."
" Hold on; I have a plan. " Vaxis mumbled, " Keep her coming....I'll lunge out and knock her out with one swift hit. "
" Okay, so do it now!! "
" Not yet. "
" Excuse me? " Ryan asked as the girl raised her foot into the air, " Vaxis, if you're going to do something...now's the time, buddy. "
" I SAID TO GIVE IT BACK! " The giant brought down her foot.
Suddenly, Vaxis shot out of Ryan and crashed into her chin! With a burst of fog, she stumbled backward, her eyes going white. She groaned softly, falling to the ground and shrinking back to her regular size. Again, Ryan groaned, feeling his muscles twitch.
" Vaxis....don't you ever pull something like that again. " Ryan muttered to Vaxis.
" What? I thought the suspense was cool. " Vaxis whimpered, making Ryan suck his teeth.
" Goodness gracious man...can't I catch a break? " Ryan thought, but he already knew the answer. Suddenly out of the shadows, Emma appeared in a bright pink hoodie. She flung a white envelope addressed to him, and he caught it. Ryan watched Emma dead in the eyes, letting out a brief sigh.
" Her name is Khan. " Emma referred to the giant, " She didn't lose her power, so she passed Robin's test. Now give me back her gem. "
" Wow, no hostility. Robin been giving you anger management classes?" Ryan sighed, throwing it over to her.
" I'm not allowed to kill you without orders. "
" So you still want to kill me? "
" Yes. "
" Oh..." Ryan coughed, " So...what's the deal with her? "
" Robin sent me to inject her with her new formula. Then, I monitored her and had to test her abilities, so we put her in an alien nest site. " Emma caught it and placed it back on the girl's forehead.
" Are you serious?! "
" Why would I lie? "
" R-right...but I did all that running with her gem for nothing? What's the big deal with it? "
" Her grandfather gave it to her before she passed. It only glows because of her skin. "
" Whoa...so that means I was kinda-"
" An asshole. Yes. "
" Wow. "
" Robin wants you guys to take her back with Project Renegade. "
" Why? "
" I don't know. "
" Oh... "
" I was never here. "
" Fine..." Ryan sighed and turned his head.
WHOOSH!
When he turned around, she was already gone. Sapphire and Phoenix ran into the alleyway, covered in bruises. Phoenix placed Khan over his shoulder as Sapphire growled and tugged on Ryan's ear.
" Oh..ow. OW. OW! " Ryan groaned.
" What were you doing out last night fighting one of the aliens?! " Sapphire asked.
" What? That wasn't me. That was someone in cosplay. "
" Liar! " Sapphire yelled as her communicator rang, " What? "
" Uh...I have nine teenagers that belong to you, and each of them is injured. So which one do you want to scold first? " Atlas asked over the communicator as Sapphire facepalmed.
" Tell them to sit down and get comfortable. We are going to have a long talk. " Sapphire growled as she hung up, " And I'll have an exclusive conversation with you, Ryan. "
" I kinda need my ear to hear stuff, so don't pull it off. " Ryan got out of her grip, his ear throbbing, " And I can't go to the Vertex-- I have to be somewhere. This giant thing just came up, and I had to intervene. "
" You didn't HAVE to intervene. "
" So why are you training us? Aren't we supposed to be superheroes? "
" We've had this conversation. "
" Fine. " Ryan pulled his destroyed phone out of his pocket, " Just...great. "
Ryan growled and used the remains of his strength to wall-jump to the top of the building. Phoenix prepared to dash after him, but Sapphire put her hand in front of his chest, stopping him.
" Leave him for now. I'll deal with him later. Right now, I have to prepare my cuss words and FISTS for the other kids. " Sapphire growled before teleporting to the Vertex.
BZZT!
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Phoenix High...7:25 a.m.
Ryan ran inside the class, opening the door with a loud bam. The students inside looked at his messy hair, and they realized grease and dust-stained had his red and black outfit. Alex glared at Ryan before quickly covering his nose. Ryan took one sniff and realized that he smelt like a pile of hot garbage. Ryan facepalmed and looked at the rest of the students. He only saw Ashley, Dylan, Alex, and Emma sitting inside. Seeing Emma, he scoffed as she rolled her eyes, looking at him.
" Before anyone asks, a dumpster truck accidentally unloaded its garbage on top of me. Don't ask why or how-just know that's what happened. " Ryan lied with a shrug, " Anyways, let's get back to this studying. "
" Yeah, about that....we're being moved out of this part of town by the police. " Dylan pointed to police cars outside, " Didn't you see them on your way in? "
" Oh...well, I must've missed em'- uh, so where are we studying? "
" School's canceled, bud. So..you need to go home and take a shower. Call your parents or something. " Alex grumbled as Ryan smiled nervously, " What? "
" Yeah, about that..... "
Outside...
" You know what today is? " Alex asked.
" I mean it's- Oh..shoot! It's your birthday! " Ryan facepalmed.
" Yeah...it's my birthday. " Alex sighed.
" Alex, come on I would never forget- " Ryan yawned, " Wait, I'm not yawning because I'm bored-
" Listen, I know something's up. You're in love with Chemistry, and you've wanted to be in this competition since you heard about it. So why are you missing study groups, and why do you look like you desperately need sleep? " Alex asked, " If there's a problem... you know you can tell me. Right? "
" Alex...if something were up, you'd be the first to know. " Ryan grumbled, getting into the car, " I'll see you later-"
" No. Take time off and rest, after today I think it's best that we just..leave you off the team. "
"Alex! "
" It's fine. Rest up..buddy. " Alex mumbled before Ryan and Jade drove off.
VROOM!!
" You stink. " Jade covered her nose and picked a piece of glass out of his dreads, " Okay, I know we're not the best of friends or anything, but I'm going to ask what's going on with you? "
" I'm excellent, Jade. " Ryan lied, half awake.
" We've been at each other's throats every day. The one time I'm generous, you want to go to sleep? Nope. " Jade pulled over in front of their home, " Talk to me. "
" Okay...let's say I have this thing. And it's just like- fun and stuff, but now people are using me for their gain. So now I'm caught between lying to everyone, and if I mess up this facade, I'm screwed."
" I see...well, are they like bullies? "
" Uh..some of them. "
" Don't let them bully you to the point where you can't even get enough rest. I don't like you but, if I have to, I'll come down there and deal with those bullies myself. " She put a hand on his shoulder.
" Heh...for a minute there you sounded nice. "
" Because I was nice-"
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
Cut off by three knocks on the window; Jade turned to see her mother stare into the car. Instead of her usual cheerfully look, Ryan realized that she saw the fire in her eyes. The step-siblings looked at each other confused and shrugged. Abigail huffed and pointed to the door, letting them know to get inside. The two slowly walked inside of the house, entering the living room. Inside, Adam sat at a table with his arms folded.
" Jade Ketora Allison! " Abigail yelled, stepping in behind them.
" Ryan Alexia Allister Alissa Richards! " Adam shouted.
" Yes? " The two teens mumbled.
" Ryan, you know you're grounded. The school doesn't start until 8:30..yet you're outside. " Adam grumbled, " And you bring her along- Who permitted you to use my car? "
" Your keys were lying around, so I took em', nothing much. " Jade muttered.
Adam had finally had enough and slammed his fist on the table. The two teenagers jumped in shock, Ryan had never seen his father look like this before. Abigail sat next to Adam and glared at the two of them.
" You two have been nothing but a pain in our asses ever since you met each other! " Adam yelled as Chloe looked from upstairs.
" Ooh, they are in big trouble! " Chloe chuckled.
" So as a punishment. We're going to give you each two thousand dollars. " Abigail said.
" Doesn't sound like much of a punishment to me-- " Ryan laughed, but Abigal shushed him.
" You two are going to rent out a spot we chose and live with each other. Spend that time to bond and actually grow up. When you feel like you're ready to come back, maybe we'll let you come back. You're both adults, so know that we CAN kick you out. " " Abigail continued, " So pack your bags. "
" Don't even worry about that cause I already packed them for you. " Adam hissed as he pointed to two suitcases next to the stairs.
" Whoa. Dad, switch your mood back to normal! " Ryan exclaimed.
" The only thing that's about to switch is your place of residence. " Adam grumbled, making Vaxis laugh.
And with that, the parents just walked upstairs, leaving Ryan and Jade to stare at each other confused.
" This is all your fault. " The step-siblings muttered simultaneously.
" And Ryan, please take a bath, you stink! " Adam yelled.
" Yes! " Chloe and Abigail shouted from upstairs.
" I KNOW. " Ryan mumbled through his teeth.
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