Cover art: princesscallyie/art/Enid-and-Elodie-700934555
AN: Sorry this took so long; explanation at the end. Enjoy the story.
It was simple, an easy three laps around the track. But that didn't stop the two from getting competitive.
It was the final lap and they were neck and neck. Enid and Elodie were more determined than ever as they began to close in on the finish line.
"This is it, Elodie. This will decide everything," said Enid, confidently smirking. However, her expression faltered when she saw the current state of her best friend.
The blonde girl was breathing more heavily and she was sweating an awful lot. Elodie squeezed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth in utter frustration as she started pushing herself even further.
"Uh, Elodie? Are you okay?" Enid asked, concerned. Suddenly, Elodie's eyes turned green and her body is surrounded by a green aura, earning a gasp from Enid.
In an instant, Elodie was running at high speeds toward the finish line. Enid reached into her pocket for the turbonic disruptor, but before she could pull it out, a loud popping sound was heard throughout the entire track. When Enid turned to the source, her eyes widened at what she saw.
Time seemed to slow down as Elodie, eyes widened and mouth agape, fell face first into the ground on top of the finish line.
"Elodie!" The ninja shouted, rushing toward her friend. She lifts the blonde girl off the ground and places a hand on her chest, only for her to tear up when she felt no heartbeat.
"Oh cob, no!" Enid cried, squeezing her eyes shut and letting her tears fall down.
"Enid?"
The ninja opened her eyes to find her friend looking at her with a squinted gaze.
"D-Did I win?" Elodie asked.
"Y-Yeah. You won," Enid replied, tearfully smiling.
Elodie smiled back weakly. "Marvelous."
That was the last word Enid heard before Elodie closed her eyes for the last time.
"Elodie?" Enid called out, tears pouring out of her eyes as she shook her friend's lifeless body. "Elodie? Elodie? Wake up, Elodie. Elodie, please! You gotta wake up! Elodie?"
ELODIE!
. . .
Enid?
Enid?
ENID!
Enid woke up screaming. Breathing heavily, she took a moment to take in her surroundings and realized she was in Professor Sunshine's classroom.
"Enid, are you alright?" the teacher asked.
"Um, yeah. What happened?" she asked.
"You were asleep during the entire period; class had just ended," said Professor Sunshine.
"Oh, cob," Enid said, facepalming.
"Not to worry, dear. Elodie was kind enough to make a copy of her notes for you," Professor Sunshine explained, giving her a reassuring smile.
"Elodie?" the ninja asked.
"Yes, Enid. I don't know why you're surprised," said Elodie. "You know, you really should get some sleep at... OOOMPH!" Elodie's sentence was cut short by Enid pulling her into a hug, much to her surprise. "Um, Enid? Are you feeling alright?"
Enid came back to reality and released the blonde. "Oh, yeah. Sorry, I just had a bad dream."
"Okay? Well, here are the notes. Be sure to study them; we have our finals in a couple of days," said Elodie, handing them to her. "I guess I'll see you in our next class." She promptly exits the room.
"Professor Sunshine, I'm sorry I fell asleep during class. It's just that-"
"It's okay, Enid. I understand," said Professor Sunshine. "You're a long way from home and it's your first week in a new school; we've all had a hard time adjusting on the first week. But give it some time and I'm sure things will get better from here, and I'm always available after class if you ever want to talk about it."
Enid smiled. "Thanks, Professor Sunshine."
"My pleasure," she said, smiling. "Now run along, dear; Professor Greyman hates it when his students are late."
. . .
(4 hours later)
After her last class, Enid casually strolled down the hallway to her dorm. Brief images of her recent nightmare repeatedly played throughout her mind. Just the mere thought that she could lose her best friend at any given moment really put the ninja on edge. Enid's thoughts were interrupted by two Point troopers pushing past her.
"Pardon us, student," one of them said as they hastily made their way down the hallway.
"Yeesh, what's the big rush?" Enid asked herself. At this instant, her earpiece started beeping. She promptly answered it. "Hello?"
"Enid?" said a familiar voice.
*crowd cheers*
"What's up, Dendy?" the ninja asked.
"Enid, we have a problem. A large platoon of Point troopers has been deployed to the science lab," the kappa explained.
Enid's eyes widen as she briefly remembered her and the kappa's actions last night's. "What!?"
"Get there and see what's going on," said Dendy.
"Okay, I'm on it," said Enid as she rushed down the hall.
. . .
A handful of students watched as Point troopers swarmed the science lab. The whole area was surrounded by police tape and while some of the students were taking pictures, others were whispering to their friends.
When Enid arrived and saw what was happening, she nearly had a heart attack. She immediately turned her earpiece back on.
"Um, Dendy? You didn't leave anything in the lab, did you?" she asked.
"Of course not, did you?" the kappa replied.
"Dendy, I didn't have anything on me," said Enid.
"Well, go ask one of the students; they might know something," said Dendy. Enid looked over the crowd until her eyes landed on Miss Pastel and Koala Princess. Enid took a deep breath and casually walked over to them, trying to look completely normal.
"Hey, guys? Do you have any idea what's going on?" she asked.
"Haven't you heard? There's been a break-in at the science lab," Miss Pastel explained.
"A break-in?" Enid asked.
"Yes, one the troopers found one of the vents opened and the vent cover lying on the ground," said Koala Princess.
"Please tell me you didn't forget to close the vents," said Dendy, annoyed.
"SSSShhh," Enid said under her breath, cupping a hand over her earpiece, earning confused looks from the two girls.
"Sorry, guys, I kinda zoned out there," she said. "Anyways, don't you think these guys are overreacting; I mean there could be a dozen reasons why that vent was opened?"
"Under any other circumstances, that would be the case. But a few days ago, Chip Damage reported rat people in the vents and the troopers have been on edge ever since then," Ms. Pastel explained.
Enid cringed remembering what she and her friends did on that exact day.
"Um, Enid? Is everything alright?" Koala Princess asked.
"Oh? Uh... Yeah, sure. Listen, I just remembered I had something to take care of; I'll see you guys later," she said, walking off.
"Okay. Good talk," said Koala Princess.
Once Enid was sure the coast was clear, she sighed in relief.
"That was way too close Enid. You've got to be more careful next time," said Dendy through the earpiece.
"Right. Got it," she said. Suddenly, Enid's phone vibrated. She pulled it out and looked at the screen.
"A text message from Elodie? I wonder what she has to say?" the ninja thought before opening the text.
Meet me at our dorm room.
We need to talk.
Enid texted back, "Okay."
"Might as well see what this is about," she said, heading off to the dorm.
. . .
Enid entered her shared dorm room only to meet the gaze of Elodie, who wore a serious expression on her face.
"I got your text; what did you want to talk about?" she asked.
Elodie's expression didn't falter as she spoke. "We're friends, right Enid?"
"Yeah," said Enid, confused.
"Really? So, I can trust that you have no reason to keep secrets from me?" Elodie asked.
"Yeah, of course. Elodie, what's this all about?" the ninja asked.
Elodie's solemn expression remained as she stood up.
"When I came in, I just so happened to notice that your bag was left open," she explained.
"You went through my stuff?!" Enid exclaimed, angrily.
"I didn't have to, because I found this sticking out of it," said Elodie, holding up, to Enid's shock, the Turbonic Disruptor.
The ninja's eyes widened and she nearly had a heart attack when Elodie pulled out the device.
"Care to explain what this is?" Elodie asked.
"W-What? I've never seen that thing before in my life," Enid said, laughing nervously.
"Enid?" said Elodie, frowning.
"I'm mean, I don't even know how that got in my bag. Someone else must've put in there."
"Enid?" Elodie repeated, now annoyed.
"That's probably not even my bag. I might've picked someone else's up by-"
"ENID!?"
Enid silenced herself and looked at her friend, who was now very angry.
"The truth, now," Elodie hissed.
The ninja sighed, "It's a Turbonic Disruptor."
"Pray tell, what does it disrupt?" Elodie asked.
"An individual's turbonic form," Enid replied.
"And why would you need this?" the blonde asked.
The ninja sighed, "After what happened to you on the obstacle course and Sparko during the Megafootball game, I had to-"
"I knew it," the archer said, tossing the device onto her bed. "I knew something like this would happen the moment you and your friends snuck into the Gifted and Talented Class," said Elodie.
"Wait? You knew?" asked Enid.
"We've known each other for years; your little shadow trick didn't fool me," said Elodie. "What I don't understand is why'd you have to break into the science lab in the first place."
"How did you-"
"Enid, there were burn marks on that open vent; you're the only person on campus who has flame powers," said the blonde. "I want an explanation, and I want it now."
Enid sighed, "Okay."
. . .
After Enid was finished with her explanation, Elodie didn't how to feel about it. A part of her was mad while another part of her was curious.
"Okay, ignoring the fact that you took blood samples from me and Sparko without us knowing, you shouldn't have tried to get involved in the first place," said Elodie.
"What?" said Enid
"Enid, I can take care of myself; I don't need you watching over me," the blonde girl replied.
"Elodie, whatever this is, could be potentially dangerous," said Enid.
"Enid, you're being ridiculous. If they knew this was dangerous, then they wouldn't be having us do it," Elodie scoffed.
"Yeah. Because Foxtails reaction after I nearly fell to my death really shows how much they care for the safety of their students," Enid retorted, sarcastically. "Elodie, you don't understand-"
"No, Enid! It's you who doesn't understand!" Elodie replied, angrily. "These are the things that we have to do to stay on top! This is the only way I can become the best hero I can be and I don't need you ruining this with your absurd conspiracies!"
"But, Elodie-"
"No, Enid! You shouldn't have done what you did! You need to stay out of this and stop trying to get involved!" yelled the archer as she marched over to the door.
"Elodie, I'm trying to help you," said the ninja, reaching toward her friend.
Turning back around, Elodie shouts, "I DON'T NEED YOUR HELP!"
"OOOWW!"
Elodie's frown changed into a look of concern after hearing her friend yelp in pain. Further observation revealed Enid doubled over in pain as Elodie has unknowingly grabbed her wrist and was now squeezing it in a death grip.
"Oh, dear. Enid, I'm sorry; I didn't mean to do that," said Elodie.
"You're cutting off my circulation," said Enid, grunting in pain. The archer promptly released her, letting her nurse her aching wrist. "She warned me about this."
"What?" the blonde asked.
"Increased aggression levels; one of the side effects of constantly using the glorbs," said Enid.
"Is that what your friend told you?" The blonde asked.
"Yeah," the ninja replied.
"Is that why I was hostile during our sleepover?" Elodie asked
"Yeah," Enid replied. Elodie was silent as she took a moment to contemplated everything she's learned. After a while, she came to a decision.
"Call her," she said.
"Call who?" the ninja asked.
"Your little friend. I want here this for myself," said the blonde. Enid nods and pulls out her phone. "Put it on speaker."
Enid nodded and tapped on Dendy's contact. The phone buzzed for a few minutes before a familiar voice answered. "Enid?"
*crowd cheers*
"Dendy, there's something I should tell you," she said.
"Enid? I just tapped into your phone and used it to send out a radar signal. It says there's another individual in your area," said Dendy.
"That would be me," said Elodie.
Dendy sighed. "How much did you tell her, Enid?"
"Actually, she kinda found the turbonic disruptor hanging out of my bag and put two and two together," Enid said, sheepishly scratching the back of her head.
"Oh, cob," said the kappa, frustrated.
"Look. I'll keep your little research a secret, but I want to know what you found out that made Enid so worried," said Elodie.
"Or I could just take the easier way out and erase your memory," said Dendy, nonchalantly.
"Dendy!" Enid shouted, angrily.
"Calm down, I was just kidding. Of course, I'll tell you," said the kappa. "It's a long story, so you might wanna pay close attention."
. . .
(3 hours later)
Elodie's eyes were widened and she was at a complete loss for words at the end of Dendy's explanation. But after a moment of silence, she finally spoke.
"So what you're saying is that at any given moment that I use my power-up, my heart could explode?" asked Elodie.
"Well, not right away. It'll happen only when your heart's being pushed to its overall limit. At that point, it wouldn't be able the handle the sudden jolt from the power-up," the kappa explained.
The blonde looked toward her friend and asks, "Enid? When you said you had a bad dream, was this part of it?"
The ninja nodded.
Elodie closed her eyes and processed all this for a moment before she asks, "Dendy? Didn't you say you had a way to remove a glorb from someone's body?"
"Why, yes. But it hasn't been tested yet," said Dendy.
"Test it on me," said the blonde.
"What?!" Enid explained.
"Enid, trust me. I know what I'm doing," said Elodie.
The ninja hesitated at first, but then she nods.
"Very well then, Miss Elodie. But how are you gonna get to Lakewood; all the space shuttles are currently unavailable at this moment?" the kappa asked.
"Don't worry, I know someone who can get us there," said Enid.
"Understood. I'll be ready once you get here," said Dendy before she hung up.
Enid promptly scrolled through her contacts until she landed on one that said "Red Action" and tapped on it. Her phone buzzed a few times before someone finally answered. "Hey, Enid? What's up?"
"Hey, babe? Think you can give me a ride?" she asked.
. . .
(At Dendy's Lab)
"So let me get this straight. Basically, Chip Damage is leading some kind of secret society and is injecting Point students with some type of deadly power-up?" Red Action asked.
"Yep, pretty much," Enid replied as they followed Dendy to another part of the lab.
"Y'know? When we started dating, I was expecting some excitement but this is just… Wow," said Red. "And I'm guessing blondie here kept her mouth shut about it so she wouldn't lose her popularity."
"First of all, don't call me blondie; you may only address me by name. Secondly, Chip is on a higher level than I am; there's no telling what he would've done if I had said anything," said Elodie, angrily.
"Whatever, princess," said Red Action.
"EXCUSE ME!?" Elodie shouted.
"Guys! This situation is already intense; the last thing I need is my girlfriend and my best friend arguing!" Enid exclaimed.
"We're here," said Dendy as brought them into a room with strange-looking devices and a lab table with shackles. "Before I begin the procedure, I'll need you three to sign this." The kappa held up a professional-looking contract. The three just shrugged and signed it.
"What's this for?" Elodie asked.
"It's so you can't press any legal charges against me if something goes wrong," Dendy explained.
Elodie rolled her eyes before asking, "So how does this procedure work?"
"It's simple. Lay down on the lab table and I'll handle the rest," said Dendy. Elodie nods and the moment she's on the table, the shackles automatically clamped shut around her wrists and ankles. The lab table then positioned itself diagonally so that Elodie was facing a strange device that looked like a pair of bolt cutters, but with four pincers instead of two, surging with electricity.
"What is that?" she asks.
"This is the Glorb Extractor," Dendy explained. "This should be able to remove the glorb from your body. But, as I have said, it's still in the experimental stage and there's a high chance that if it fails, it could cause bodily disfigurement. So, I'll ask you again: are you one hundred percent positive you want to do this?"
Elodie looked toward Enid, who wore a worried expression before reply, "Yes."
"Very well," said the kappa. She activates the device and it blasts Elodie with an intense beam of electricity. Elodie hissed in pain and gritted her teeth as she felt the beam's energy course through her body, causing major discomfort. After a few minutes, her eyes glow green and she is surrounded by a green aura.
"Good. The glorb is exposed. Now, to extract it," said Dendy, turning a dial on the device.
Elodie's eyes turn back to normal as the green aura starts to fade and gets absorbed into the extractor. After a while, the green aura fades completely and is replaced with a pink aura.
"And… It's done," said Dendy, powering off the device and unlocking Elodie's shackles.
"Well then, what's this?" Elodie asked, gesturing to the pink aura surrounding her as she got back on her feet.
"Oh, that? That's just your regular aura. Every hero or villain who has powers has an aura; yours must've become visible during the extraction process. I should fade after a couple of seconds," said Dendy. As if on cue, Elodie's aura faded. "Now then, let's us see what type of glorb we're dealing wi- Oh my." Held in the devices metal pincers was a glorb the size of a tire.
"Woah! Um, Dendy? I don't remember the glorb being this big," said Enid.
"Well, if I'm correct, I'd guess that the extraction process caused the glorb to absorb all the turbonic residue that was left behind from recent power-ups," Dendy explained.
"But what about me; am I cured?" Elodie asked.
"Well, let's see," said the kappa, pulling out a device. The device shrouded Elodie in blue light for a few seconds before being turned off. "Affirmative. The scans show no trace of turbonic residue left. The process was a success."
"Oh, thank Cob. Now.. OOOMMPH!" Elodie was cut off by Enid hugging her. Elodie just smiled and hugged back. "See, Enid? Now you don't have to worry about me so much. I told you I could take care of myself."
"There's still one other thing," said Dendy.
"Pray tell?" said the blonde, separating from Enid.
"Simple. Just roll-up your shirt sleeve," the kappa explained.
"Okay. But why do I- OOOWW!" As soon as her sleeve was rolled-up, Dendy injected her with a syringe. "What was that for?!"
"Remain calm. That's just a vaccination to make you immune to the effects of the glorbs," Dendy explained.
"A little word of warning would've been lovely," said Elodie, frowning as she pulled her sleeve back down.
"Oh, and before I forget, you and Red are gonna need these," said Dendy, handing them two earpieces.
"Why do we need these?" Red asked.
"Well, since you two are fully aware of what's going on, Enid figured it would be apt if I let you in on our operations," Dendy explained. "If you want to, that is."
"I'd be happy to," said Elodie, accepting her earpiece.
"Same," said Red Action as she accepted her's.
"Good. Now, I designed those earpieces so that we can only use them to contact each other; no one else," the kappa explained.
"That's cool. I'll just be calling Enid to check up on her from time-to-time," Red then smirks seductively. "Or so we can have a few private conversations." The time traveler winked at Enid, causing the ninja to blush.
"I'll be monitoring these calls," said Dendy, unamused. "And I'll have your communication cut off at the first sign of horseplay."
"Pffft, buzzkill," said Red Action, jokingly.
Dendy simply rolled her eyes. "Enid, I think you should be heading back to the campus. We wouldn't want your administrators to become suspicious."
"Right. Red, do you think you can drive us back?" Enid asked.
"Sure thing, babe. But first-things-firsts," said Red.
"What?" the ninja asked. Suddenly, her eyes widened as Red cupped her cheeks and gave her a deep kiss on the lips. They held the kiss for fifteen seconds before Red pulled back and slightly giggled at Enid's surprised face.
"It was great seeing you again, babe," she said before turning to the exit. But before she could take a single step, Enid grabbed her by the arm and gave her a quick peck on the lips.
"I like the enthusiasm, but next time, I lead," said Enid, smirking as she released her grip on her girlfriend. The time traveler just smiled before heading off to the exit.
"You hang around a very strange crowd, Enid," said Elodie.
"Of course I do. And you're a perfect example of that," said the ninja, smiling playfully.
"How dare you. I'll have you know that I'm the only normal friend you have," said Elodie in a superior tone.
"Yeah, a popular honor student in a school ran by an elite team of superheroes. Yep, that's definitely normal," said Enid, smirking.
As the two head towards the exit, while playfully arguing on the subject, Dendy ran a scan on the glorb.
"Hmmm. The energy cells seemed to have been contaminated. This must be causing what's causing the problem," said Dendy. "I should contact Doctor Greyman and tell him about my findings."
As Dendy headed off to another room, one of her monitors displayed a news report. The report showed a picture of a familiar mutant rat girl with long hair and a sentence that read:
"BREAKING NEWS: Professor Venomous henchmen, Fink the Rat, has been reported missing. Witnesses say that she was last seen passing through the docks around the same time an unknown shipment was being brought in."
What happened to Fink? Find out in The Ninja and the Rat.
AN: YES! I finally managed to complete this. Sorry, this took so long. You see, as I was working on this, I got inspired and I was coming up with new ideas for upcoming stories. So, that kinda slowed things down a bit. But, hopefully, the next part of this series won't take so long. Until then, bye guys.