I'm running away from home.

I can't take this anymore! Mom's always knocking me around when Dad isn't there to help me! And every time my twin brother comes home to visit, he brings along an animal-powered robot that I always have to save and set free! And once said animal is free, I get an especially bad beating from them both! But at least if I leave, I won't have to be afraid to do what I know is right.

My name is Akira Seshin, and my brother is Zach Seshin, though he uses Varmitech as an alias. At least I'm a lot more human than Zach and his whacked-out triangle head, too-oily hair, acid-green eyes, and totally sadistic nature. Yes, my long hair's also straight and black, but the shine doesn't look like it's been slathered in cooking grease; my twin and I are both skinny, but my skin isn't so placid. Plus, my eyes are sky blue like my Dad, not venom green like Mom.

And yet, no matter how strange it might sound, I'm far more like my Dad than I'll ever be like my Mom. My mother, Sora Tashi Seshin, detests nature and everything in it, practically forbids pets - including my albino Bengal kitten, Kana, if she leaves my room - and literally calls Animal Control if there's so much as a neighbor's cat or dog on or near the large, monotone estate. My father, Daniel Seshin, always has a lot to do at work as a factory manager, but he's still nice and tries to keep Mom from flying into a rage whenever a neighbor's pet pays a surprise visit. Mostly they stop by the window near my room if the cats want to see Kana, and if possible, I bring them back to their owners before Mom or Zach sees them.

Naturally, as part of this family, I was sent to most of the same schools and camps as my fraternal twin. That's how I learned to be a tech-master, which was useful whenever I had to dismantle some of Zach's inventions that used animals as energy sources.

Yup, it's always Daddy's Girl vs. Mama's Boy in this house with me and Zach. Talk about having an evil twin.

I wore my usual dark teal long-sleeve shirt, dark green collared vest, and black jeans. Preparing to pack all my necessary things before I could doubt myself on leaving, I took out a small piece of paper and scribbled a note onto it.

"I'm sorry, Dad. It's time I left behind the people who couldn't find it in themselves to treat me right.

"~Akira"

I left the note on my computer desk as I put in a first-aid kit and some sets of extra clothes into my Go Bag. I also put in my tablet computer, the keyboard for it, my solar charger, but not before sending a message to some friends of mine. I also threw in some things I created from whatever plans I could grab ever since I bugged Zach's mainframe - and he still doesn't know about it.(Makes me glad I always took extra computer-science classes) Just in case, I downloaded a database on survival skills and edible organisms on my tablet. I picked up my sleeping kitten from my full-size bed and put her into her carrier, packing her favorite toy: a small stick that had a string leading to a falcon feather tied to it.

I made it in a camp that Zach and I went to a few years back. That's where I met my best friend and my brother's nemesis. I smiled at the memory of Avi and her constant rivalry with my brother. That also led me to thinking of Martin and Chris Kratt, two more friends of mine who my brother hated looking at. Once, when we were kids, I had to get a bunch of stray cats out from my brother's robots. That was when they saw me and tried to help. I was glad that they saw me as someone besides Zach's twin sister.

Lost in thought, I jumped when I saw the pink jet plane landing near our backyard. No way! I am not going to be that pink demon's mannequin again! I rushed to open my bedroom window as quietly as possible. I heard the footsteps of my brother and Donita coming closer, discussing the fashion line I'd be modeling for. Going out the first-floor window with my bag and my cat, I rushed away. Time to find Avi and the boys.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" Zach cried. I picked up the pace, heart beginning to speed up. "Akira! Get back here!"

"You're not the boss of me, Zachary Seshin!" I yelled, using his full name.

"It's Zach Varmitech to you!" he screamed back. "Zach-bots, get her!"

"Get her, Dabio!" Donita ordered her blonde henchman.

As I saw the hovering shadows of the robots come closer, I swerved to dash into the backwoods behind a neighbor's house. They had a few guard dogs, and that would hopefully slow them down enough to let me get away. Rushing headfirst into the brush, I hid in the greenery, waiting for either my brother and Donita to leave, or for my friends to arrive.