Chapter 1: First Meetings! A Festival Turns Into A Disaster!
Within the loud obnoxious sound of the alarm clock, a lone hand recklessly slammed onto the top the irritating device. Afterwards, a pair of dark eyes began to slowly open before their owner managed to sit upright. As his eyes adjusted to the bright lighting from the outside, he soon peeled off the covers before standing up to stretch. It was another start to another day… As he took a glance at the alarm clock he soon realized that the day had already started.
"WHAT? TEN O'CLOCK?" He quickly rushed towards his closet, quickly looking for something to wear. "Not again…" He managed to grab a pair of black camo long shorts and a red sleeveless shirt. With his quick undressing of his Red gym shorts, he dressed in the selected clothing just as fast. Of all the times to be late again, this was definitely not going to be one of them…
As he struggled in putting on his black high tops, he thanked whatever gods that were looking down on him that he had packed the books he would need for today in his backpack the night before as he searched around for anything else he would need. Part of him wanted to just say "Screw it" and skip the class while the other told him to just show up anyway. Either way, his teacher wasn't going to be happy anyway. Within grabbing his black and crimson backpack, he quickly rushed out the door as unknowingly due to his obvious haste, he ran into a tall figure. Upon impact, both of them were knocked down to the blue carpeting in the hall.
"Hey, are ya tryin' to put me in a coma, Tyler?" The impacted figure responded in understandable anger, having a hint of a southern accent.
"Umm… You're the one who's standing in the middle of the hallway, Howie! He retorted, rubbing his head upon impact, "You're basically like a rock!"
"Ain't mah fault you ran into me! Ya betta' watch where ya goin' next time!"
"Look, just get out of the way so I can get to my class, okay Sarge!"
"Sarge" raised an eyebrow, "You mockin' me, Brah?"
"Dude, I don't got time for this crap! Just march somewhere else so I can get to class! I'm already late without having to kick your ass."
"Oh is that so?"
"I know so! You are a bit on the slow side, my friend. Physically and mentally!"
"Oh that's it!" He narrowed his eyes. "Ya better be ready for combat, 'cause Ah'm gonna kick yer ass now!"
"Aww…" He whined in a mocking tone, "But my ass doesn't like it when it gets kicked!" However, that didn't stop his adversary as, at the slamming of his knuckles together, his skin began to change into a more granite appearance. Within seconds, his entire body, save for his clothes, brown hair and eyes, were made of rock.
"Time for you to be terminated, punk!" He rushed over to the young boy, the one who dared to insult him. As he was within ranged, he clocked his arm back before releasing a powerful punch directly towards his face.
"SHIT!" He ducked from the punch as a hard boom could be heard. He would've been surprised if the whole dorm didn't hear it, being how hard the impact was. Speaking of impact, his opponent's left a fist-sized dent in the wall. "Yo, you're never gonna get your deposit back after this!"
"Mah deposit's the least of 'ya worries!" The rocky figure threw out another punch. This time, the arm was grabbed as, within moments, he soon found himself not only outside of the dormitory but a good five feet off the ground. "Sam hell?" He didn't had much time to react as he soon found himself flipped over and on a short, hard trip down onto the pavement, bringing a lot of attention from the other students.
"Those two are fighting again?"
"What'd you expect from those two morons?"
"Who started it this time?"
"Does it matter? With Zack and Brad, anything's possible!"
The red-clad student stood up from using the stone giant as his own cushion for the fall. "That long drop… It's a doozy!" Perhaps he picked the wrong time to gloat, declaring his victory in the impromptu fight, as he was soon met with a hard stone fist from below…
"You let down yer defenses!" Brad stood up on his feet, looking down at the barely-conscious rival. "Y'need some serious combat trainin'!"
"Look, I already got enough problems without having to turn you into someone's rock collection, okay?" Zack shook his head as he tried to get up from the ground.
"Please! The only reason why you even got a shot was because you unceremoniously changed the location of our battlefield!"
"I'm not the only one who used my powers, Rocko!" Zack poked the rock-like skin that wasn't covered by his green tank top.
"Whatever… So what's the score? 9-2?"
"More like 6-5, but I'll give this one to you!" Zack sighed, "I don't really want to deal with this. I'm already going have to deal with Mr. Parker for ditching his class…again!"
"Aw, you can still make it! It's just ten after!"
"Nah… If it's later than ten, it ain't worth showing up! Besides, I may be a bit unfamiliar with your schedule, but let's just say that I wasn't the only one who's not in class!"
Brad scoffed, "S'not like Ah'm not gonna be…"
"Like hell you aren't! We all know that you ditch just about every other day!"
"Ah'm on scholarship and don't need to be doing these things that'll cause me to lose it!"
"Oh please, you know that you're going to go to the festival downtown!"
"Am not! Ah ain't goin'!"
"Whatever!"
"Ah ain't goin' and dat's final!"
20 Minutes Later…
"Ah can't believe ya got me to ditch class – again!" Brad fumed as he and Zack walked along the sidewalk. This would be another class he would miss. True, that it didn't bother him before. But today's class was different! In French class they were going to make all of those fancy French pastries he's heard so much about.
Zack rolled his eyes, "Oh quit your whining. You can just catch up what you've missed online like we always do!" His friend's growls weren't exactly doing him any favors, causing the dreadlocked young adult to sigh. "Look, I'll make it up to ya with a hotdog!" Sure it would cost him money, the money he was saving up for a new bike, but it was better than Brad getting pissed and getting into another fight. And fighting Brad once was enough for a month, let alone day. With a glare from the crew-cut Texan, Zack knew that he was in it big time. 'Or maybe he should get him something else.' Still, they were out here now so they should at least make the best of it. "Besides, a lot of fun things could happen today…"
"Like what!"
He could sense the doubt in his friend's tone of voice. He didn't understood why he was so down about coming here. After all, it was the annual Coast City festival! There's a lot that was happening going on not only today, but for the entire week! Different show booths, games, door prizes. Just to name a few. They even had food such as ribs and the ever-popular cheddar chicken sandwich.
"Seriously, what the hell's the point of us even bein' out here?"
"Oh come on! There are lots of reasons: Prizes, games, and don't forget: The ladies!"
A small smile began to form on the frustrated college student's face. "Y'right about that!"
"Let's just hope they're just as hot as last year." Zack saw Brad finally loosen up to the idea.
"And single!" Brad reminded, "Last year…Well… It didn't go so well!"
"How were we supposed to know they had boyfriends not only back home, but from another planet? Do we have to be psychics or something?"
"There are people who are capable of that kind of stuff! Maybe we need to start being friends with one of 'em!"
Zack scoffed, "Good luck. We probably have a better chance of each of us both dating cheerleaders without getting death threats from Hometown Harry and Homeplanet Howie!"
"You maybe… Me… Let's just say that Ah've been havin' a lock on a girl for quite a while!"
"Is she really interested in you, or is she looking for a big muscle man to protect her from her, let be honest, abusive boyfriend she's broken up with over the last what? Hundred? Thousand times? I stopped caring…"
"There ya go again! Makin' accusations! Y'know that the school population is 68% female!"
"Apparently somebody forgot that a good chunk of that '68%' more likely have boyfriends back at home."
"Ya just sayin' that because ya can't get one!"
"I don't even want one! I've already have problems finishing my schoolwork without having relationship problems with the girls!"
"Maybe if you'd stop ditchin' classes twice a week and finish yer homework instead, you'd probably have all the time in the world! And yer mouth also may have something to do with the ladies' constant avoiding of becoming too close to ya!"
"Like I'm going to let what a spoiled, narcissistic, Daddy's girl says get to me." Zack scoffed, "Basically she could drop dead for all I care!"
"Now that's just harsh right there!"
"These are harsh times after all. And if that girl has a problem with me for some ridiculous reason or another, that's her deal but don't expect me to just be a punching bag for her verbal abuse either." In truth, Zack had felt more than ready to punch her. But there were two things that were holding him back. 1) She was a girl. And 2) He already found himself in enough trouble without getting into fights, then it'd just escalate into something worse.
Space Station: Omega, Outside Planet Syral.
"How much longer must we wait for the signal?" A rather-large man paced impatiently, the soles of his black boots slightly grating the cold, steel floor.
"We will do so in time, Captain. But we must make sure that everything goes smoothly. There is little room for error if we are to be successful." Another man explained. Unlike the captain, he was more relaxed, calm about the situation. "You worry too much!"
"And you worry too little. 50 years ago we had victory in our grasps, just for it to be snatched away by the Earthlings. All it took was one flaw, one ridiculously-obvious flaw, and there it went! Decades of research and development all went up in smoke!" His dark eyes narrowed as he slammed a fist onto a desktop, causing a slight dent in the wood. "We were all made to look like fools and up to this day we're still being mocked! 'How the mighty have fallen' indeed…"
"It's not like they're expecting anything. If anyone, the only people who are more ready for a fight are the Rhynians, and they're not exactly the most technologically advanced. And besides, you need to take it easy a bit. You look like you're about to bust a vein…"
He was ready to strike. He was ready to clutch that scrawny neck of that pompous arrogant brat if only to knock him out of his comfort zone for a bit. But before he could move a single centimeter, the sound of two metallic doors sliding open, revealing a large, well-built man dressed in a blue officer's uniform. Within sight, both men quickly stood at attention and gave the superior officer their full respect.
"At ease, men!" He simply said in a gruff manner before turning towards the captain. "Captain Sloan, are the preparations finished?"
"The troops are ready, Sir! All weapons systems have been optimized and ready for use!" He explained. "We are ready to head out on your orders."
"Excellent!" He turned to the calmer of the two. "Commander Barton, is your ambush unit ready?"
A smirk came to his face, "Oh they're ready, General! I had to basically give them drills to do to remedy their restlessness, as well as the ones who are already stationed on earth!"
"Be on high alert, gentlemen. As soon as we begin I demand flawless results. I want to send the entire galaxy a message! I want them all to know that Syrallian army is back in full force and that mean everything going exactly the way we've planned. I don't want any stone left unturned. I don't want an inch of land left untouched. I want nothing left overlooked! Nothing! Is that clear?"
"Sir, yes sir!" Both subordinates saluted their superior officer as he let out a small smile.
Downtown Coast City, Grand Festival.
"Why?"
That was the only question she's been asking herself the entire time. Why? Why did she volunteer to do this again? Oh that's right. She thought the costumes looked cute. After all, it wasn't everyday she could become a real-life fairytale princess that is adored by the people. Okay, not really but at least she looked the part. Her long, platinum-blonde locks tied up into a sophisticated bun with some strands of her hair braided and wrapped around as well as the addition of jewels and glitter for decoration. Let's not forget about, of course, the actual outfit. Her pink gown was basically from the Victorian era or something like that. What would she know? She didn't pay much attention to her history lessons. This was supposed to be a play for the little kids! This was supposed to be the performance that would jumpstart her future acting career… if she'd get one.
Today, there was supposed to be a re-enactment of a story: The Frog Prince. True, it wasn't anything major, but at least it was acting experience that she could put down on her resume. Everyone was supposed to be here at 9 O'clock sharp, ready to rehearse. Apparently the prince missed the memo. Well, it was either that or he decided to call in sick, whatever reason that may be. Now she was supposed to find a replacement prince for the final scene! It was a good thing that she was allowed to pick any person she wanted, after all! She didn't want to kiss some ugly, slimy, disgusting person! She did have three potential candidates, but however… One just wanted to cop a feel on the princess! The other had prior engagement and the third… well… She had asked him, "How about you become my sweet prince?" He replied, "How about you get some brains!" Talk about a total meanie! And now she was back where she started. No prince! Just where was she going to find a prince anyway?
"Ya could be a bit nicer."
"I'm already am being a bit nicer. I've been smiling so much my face hurt! I mean, exactly what did I do to her to get into her crosshairs!"
"Well, there is the whole placement exam thing we all took freshman year…"
"She really needs to let it go. I mean c'mon, GTFOI"
"GTFOI?"
"Get The F…Oh forget! Let's not have that snob ruin this great day!"
She quickly rushed over to the source of the voices as she hid behind a brick building that served as a coffee house. There were two of them. One of them being an African American young man in dreadlocks, the other a strong, buff Caucasian man with a crewcut, having a good few inches over the first! She didn't care which one of them she picked, but it was safe to say that she found her prince. Even if they didn't want to do it, they were going to become the Prince the frog turns into after the kiss! Whether they liked it or not!
As she picked up the front of her dress, she ran as fast as she could in her pink slingback heels. Already she was regretting her decision of wardrobe. She could've worn her black ballet flats instead, but no! "It wouldn't look so great with the dress," she said. Who was going to notice anyway? It wasn't that she couldn't run in them. She's done this so many times already. In fact she had gotten so used to them they didn't even hurt anymore… or at least didn't feel the pain. Enough about her fashion sense! The show was going to go on and it would have a prince! She would be getting a prince!
"Ya gotta know when to hold it back, man!" Brad advised his friend.
Zack threw his hands up, "I've been holding it! In fact if I were to act any more humble, everyone would send me to a therapist worried about my lack of self-esteem! Besides, it's like my dad always said. 'You can't make everyone happy! Damned if ya do, damed if ya don't!'"
"Anyway, just try to at least be civil to her. Sure he's laid back, but Dr. Parker's patience with you two bickerin' is mighty thin at this point." Brad was interrupted by a pair of hands grabbing the loins of his tank top and yanking him downward… "Sam Hell?"
"Hmm…" He saw a short, blonde girl examining him as if he was some new discovery or something. Who was this girl and why was she dressed like she was at some Renaissance Fair? Please don't say that they've walked into it by mistake… "You're a bit too big to be a prince, but you'll do!"
"Say wha?" Brad shook his head. "Sorry, but Ah'm not into that medieval stuff!"
"Aww… But you're my last hope to be my prince!" He heard her whine. Was she one of those girls who'd just whine and whine and whine until she got her way, or even using a freaking pity-face just to bring out the guilt?
"Last hope? Ah'm sure there are other guys around! How 'bout my pal Zack over here!" He gestured towards his friend.
She looked on, jerking her head a bit. "Well? Where is he?"
"Girl, he's right-" Brad finally looked at the spot where his friend was… or so-called friend rather as he wasn't there! "Why that sonnuva… He ran! Darn it!"
"Looks like you're the prince for me!" She grabbed his arm. "Now let's go! Your audience awaits…"
"Wait! Hold on! Ah-Ah'm not-" Brad's attempts to explain were futile as surprisingly, the girl's grip was surprisingly strong. He had to give the girl credit for that, though. But still, now he was going to be dragged into some crummy play, and it was all Zack's fault! Damn him. 'Zack, next time Ah see ya, prepare to be terminated!' As the two were on their way, on top of a building, Zack watched on.
"Sorry Brad…" He let out a semi-mock sigh, "But I'm not in the mood to be a part of some stupid play…" If he stayed, it would've probably been him who'd be stuck as being that girl's prince. Then he'd have to put a lot of time in remembering lines and cues and stage positions, not to mention wear a silly outfit. He knew how Viki Highwind was at school during drama club. He's heard the talks about her over-eccentric attitude and somewhat ditzy behavior. Too much for his tastes! Besides, the play would be just too much work for him, and if he wanted to do that much he'd be in class right now. He had to give himself a pat on the back for his evasive skills, though. The art of teleportation… A slacker's best friend…
Space Station: Omega, Outside Planet Syral
"General, we are ready to commence on your orders!" A lone officer informed him of the completion of the preparations as his superior office gave a smirk.
"From the reports of our spies, Earth's defenses are a mild concern at most, so we should have little to no problem breaking through. Begin the operation at once!"
"Sir!"
As he watched the lower-ranked officer leave, he glanced on the monitors. An image of earth was currently shown, as well as the red spots that represented all active defense stations around the planet's orbit. Because of things quieting down within the galaxies due to the end of the war, their defenses were – how should one put it – lacking at best. But it wasn't their fault, at least not much. It was common knowledge for one to grow weak through peaceful times. However, General Pride was not one who knew of peace, let alone growing weak. Especially when one had to work endlessly to rebuild the reputation of an army that was once known and feared. Unfortunately for Earth, the whole galaxy will soon learn that lesson at its expense…
Within a light beep sound, Pride once again glanced onto the screen, noticing several small light dots appearing, scattered throughout the map of Earth. A sinister smile formed across his lips. It appears while they attack Earth, they could fulfill another one of his long-term ambitions…
Downtown Coast City, Town Square
"How do Ah keep gettin' mahself into these messes." Brad asked himself as he looked into the mirror. He was wearing the traditional attire of all storybook princes: Tight Black pants tucked into a pair of black boots which just covers his knees. White frilly shirt, save for the royal cape and of course the crown. He had to admit that he didn't look half bad, but he still couldn't help but feel stupid in this outfit. Not to self, beat Zack into a bloodied pulp.
"And how's my lovely dashing prince looking?" The pseudo princess walked in, checking on, as she put it, the savior of the performance.
"Is it a good time to let y'all know Ah'm prone to stage fright?"
Viki giggled, "Good one! Now just practice your lines and it'll be a snap! Since you don't make your appearance until around the end, you have plenty of time!"
'Well at least Ah'll have time to get this character…As much of a wuss he is…' Brad watched as Viki walked away. Presumingly to rehearse her own parts, seeing that she was playing the lead role. 'Good thing the frog's gotta VA….' The girl wasn't that bad, but still a bit weird. Like those kinds of people who were a part of the glee club back in high school! While perky people seem to annoy Zack, Brad on the other hand was intrigued. Just why were they so…happy all the time?
Maybe it was out of guilt, but from the crowd Zack sat in the front row of the audience. He had to support his friend's performance in this play, no matter how corny the concept seemed on paper. It was his fault he pushed Brad into this so he had to sit through this. From within sight of the camera one member of the audience held up, Zack became a bit worried about his longtime friend. For his own sake, Brad better been prepared and knew all the lines down and try to hide that thick accent of his. 'Cause if he screwed up, it'll be all on tape! And that'll give Brad even more motivation to give him a rock-hard ass kicking. He wasn't in the mood for broken bones, not today.
He had to admit the scenery looked nice. An outdoor stage, steel folding chairs, plus the wonderful sunny day outside… It's always nice to leave the University just to enjoy a fine day like this! To enjoy all that nature offered. From the pearly-white clouds, the fresh blue sky, a squad of black combat aircrafts, and bird chirping…
Wait a minute, since when were a squad of black combat aircrafts enjoyable, unless you were insane enough to enjoy the irritating sound they made? The sound of lasers firing and causing an avalanche on top of a building should've been took as a warning sign of something bad was about to happen.
Brad noticed the unwanted flyers as well. On one hand, he was thankful that due to this attack he wouldn't have to go through the play. On other hand, people were bound to get hurt. From hearing the screams, these visitors were no joke! True he and Zack could defend themselves, with his rock form being able to hold off their attacks and Zack can instantly transmit himself out of harm's way! But for everyone else, he wasn't sure. It was true in this day of age that just about everyone on this planet had special abilities such as flight or x-ray vision. But for some, who wasn't blessed with such gifts, or those who were but have costly drawbacks were in big trouble! But he couldn't do something on his own. Even with Zack they were just two people. The best they could do was to lead others to safety. They weren't superheroes, or heroes for that matter.
"Oh no! This is just great! The play's ruined! My career! My dreams! Everything…" He heard Viki whine, almost in hysterics. From what he saw, she was looking forward to the play. A shame that it was all but cancelled now. But her acting crazy wasn't helping much. With that in mind, he walked over and grabbed the blonde by the shoulder before shaking her.
"Calm down! We need to skedaddle on outta here before we get ourselves killed!" He looked around, only, within a single blink, to find his friend managing to show up. "Was wonderin' where ya were…"
"Looking forward to your big-screen debut, but that's all up in smoke! Thanks to those guys…" Zack pointed upward. "Just who did our planetary leader piss off this time?"
"Who are those guys anyway?" Viki watched the aircrafts flying by. Whoever they were, they had a lot to answer for, for ruining her performance!
Brad narrows his eyes, "From the style and artillery, those look to be Syrallian fighters."
She blinked, "Syrallian?"
"Yep! Planet Syral has one of the most powerful armies throughout the system."
"That still doesn't explain why the hell they're attacking us for!" Zack shook his head. "How about we just leave before we all get ourselves killed from standing out here like a bunch of idiots!"
"You don't have to tell me twice!" Viki proceeded to make a haste escape, running as fast as her heels would let her. However, she was blocked off by a small group of figures, five of them to be exact. Each of them appeared to have a humanoid shape, but was covered in metallic black plating, save for the black visor that allowed them to see their targets, or in this case – them. "Maybe we should take another route…"
"Too late! We're surrounded!" Brad noted, as more of the Syrallian soldiers arrived.
"Wonderful…" Zack sighed. If he knew that this would've happen, he would've just gone to class. Talk about a drag… There's at least around ten of those guys and only three of them. He knew that he and Brad could defend themselves, but Viki, from what he's heard of her, wasn't exactly the fighting type. 'Oh what the hell…' He thought. He never tried this before, but it was their only chance to get out of there alive unscathed. He'd rather be in class than deal with this. He extended his arms as he grabbed his two companions, Brad with his right and Viki with his left, as he closed his eyes. If there was a god, let alone that liked him, they'd end up back at the school. In a classroom, in the cafeteria, anywhere would be ideal than here right now…
Next Chapter: Having been brought to a secret base, Zack, Brad, and Viki find themselves granted a new opportunity. However, they are met with their first task: Sergeant George Santos of the Syrallian Army. A.K.A. The Rock Titan of Terror!
Chapter 2: First Battle! Armor of Rock