Chapter 1, The New C-Rank Hero!

…

Z city was still rebuilding itself after an enormous attack was laid upon it. This happened quite often though so everyone just had to move on. Unfortunately, this made businesses open to robbery and vandalism. The two crimes were starting to run rampant and a hero was needed to stop it...

"And I am going to be that hero!" shouted a young woman, driving a small red car. Its size was about fourth the size of her own body but she managed to squeeze her butt and heels inside to drive it. The driver of the car, Jiji, also known as Nicki, was excited. Today was a new day for her to finally prove her worth. No longer would people complain to her or make her pay for property damage. Nope! Now people will flock to praise her!

Today was her first day after entering the Hero Association. When she passed the entrance exam at the Hero Association, She was told she was put in the C-rank class. She didn't really know what that meant but she didn't really care either. To be completely honest, she only entered the Hero Association to continue her clown act. Yep, Nicki is better known as "Jiji the Clown!" (Not available on Thursdays). Her original name was Blarney the clown but Jiji didn't sound half bad when they named her that at the Association.

Screaming was heard and Jiji looked to the right at the businesses lining the street. An expensive jewelry store was being robbed!. She immediately turned her mini car straight through the doors of the business. Everyone screamed at the sight of her. The striped primary colors that lined her outfit along with classic clown makeup and curly pink hair, made everyone assume she was a crazy clown! Jiji never understood why anyone would be scared of a clown but no matter! She was going to put on the best show anyone has ever seen!

A man turned around to look at her. He seemed to be an everyday robber with the ski mask and black clothing. He was carrying a huge sack; presumably full of money. He smirked and pointed a gun at her.

"Alright, bozo the clown," He snickered, "I'm not here for a joke so hand over all the cash you've got."

Jiji's eyes widened, "Oh geez! You have a gun! I wasn't expecting that… Oh well, I guess I'll have to give you my money. Now let's see here…"

Jiji began to pull many items out of her pockets. She pulled out streamers, balloons, watermelons, and hammers. All of which, hit the robber on the head. The hammer just about knocked him out and when he finally regained his composure to get up again, a pie hit his face. He growled and wiped away the whipped cream.

"You're dead meat!" He yelled as he got up.

"Oh that reminds me of a joke!" Jiji laughed, "One time I bet a butcher to get some meat off the top shelf. He didn't take the bet because the steaks were too high!"

The robber simply stared at her. "...What the heck kind of nonsense are you spouting!? I'm losing my patience!"

"Oh no, that's not good," She put a finger to her chin, "I guess I'll have to bring out my final act early. Bear with me, I've never tried it before." She began to dig through the contents of her mini car.

Meanwhile, outside of the shop, a man parked his bike. He wore glasses and a protective helmet. Most people would recognize him as "Licenseless Rider". He was chugging down a soda as he sat on a bench and relaxed. He then heard the whirring of chainsaws from behind him and turned around to see a clown and robber inside of a messed up jewelry shop. The place was covered in streamers, whipped cream, and watermelon insides.

Jiji had grabbed three chainsaws and turned them on. She started to toss them into the air and juggle them. "So the trick is to keep momentum. Don't let the blades intimidate you." She said as her tongue stuck out in focus.

"Whoah be careful with those, you psycho!" The robber screamed.

"Oh! That reminds me of a joke! When did the- crap!"

Suddenly she lost control of her juggling and all of the chainsaws went flying through the air. The first one hit the robber's gun; cutting it in half. The second one managed to cut his belt, letting his pants fall to the ground.

The robber gasped and pulled up his pants. While he was distracted, Jiji came up behind him and quickly cuffed his hands. "Thank you for being a great participant today! Didn't he do a great job, everybody?"

Jiji looked at the crowd around her. They stared at her blankly as she smiled at them. After a few moments of silence everyone reluctantly clapped. Jiji laughed and bowed to them. "Thank you! Thank you!"

Licenseless Rider smiled at the scene. "She's not half bad as a hero." he thought. His thoughts were interrupted by a crash from the window and the whirring of a chainsaw. The third one she had landed outside, and cut Licenseless Rider's bike in half.

He stared at his bike's remains. Jiji helped clean up the shop as the cops came and took the robber away. Everyone seemed to love her show which made her excited to no end! As she picked up her chainsaws she noticed one was missing. She skipped outside to inspect and that's where she saw the damage it caused and a man staring down at his once whole bicycle. Jiji gasped and ran up to the man.

"Ah! So sorry about that! It was my first time performing that act and I dropped them and I didn't mean to-"

"It's alright," The man said, "My bike gets broken all the time. It's no big deal. Besides, that was a pretty impressive job you did back there."

The man smiled a little at her. It was rare for someone to smile at Jiji. Most people didn't like her clown act and would usually fire her instead of laugh.

"Wait. You really did?" She asked in confusion.

"Yeah. It was a pretty impressive job for a C rank. Well, I'm assuming you're a C rank?"

"Uh, yes I am. But I like to call it 'Clown-Rank!'" She said with a honk from her big red nose.

Licenseless Rider laughed a bit, "Hey that's pretty clever. I'm Licenseless Rider by the way." He extended his hand out towards her.

She took his hand with a huge grin. Finally! Someone laughed at her! This was like a dream come true! She's on her way to becoming a world famous clown!

"I'm Jiji the clown. I'm cycled to meet you!"

He chuckled again. He didn't really think it was funny. He was laughing more because her attempts at jokes were kind of cute. Her heart was racing with excitement that someone liked her jokes. She couldn't let this opportunity slip!

His laugh was interrupted however by a shock on his hand. He quickly pulled it back in confusion. Jiji laughed.

"It's a hand buzzer!" She said as she pointed to her palm. A small device was there that had produced the shock. When Licenseless Rider realized what she had done, he laughed again.

"That's pretty good." He admitted.

"Thank you! And I am still so sorry for ruining your bike. I'll be sure to replace it for you." She said.

"Oh you don't have to-"

"No. Allow me. I'm a cycling expert and I'll get you the best bike I can find!"

"Heh, well if you insist," He reached into his pocket and pulled out a card, "Here's my number."

She smiled as she took it. She pulled out a card herself, even though it looked more like a birthday card. "And here's my number."

He took the card and opened it. Inside was a shaking picture of a dog while the song "Who let the Dogs Out?" played. Licenseless Rider smiled awkwardly at it.

"Thank you," He said, "I have to head out now. It'll take quite a bit of time to walk home."

"I could drive you home!" Jiji offered.

Licenseless Rider looked to her tiny car and sweated. "Uh, no. I think I'll be alright. Thank you though."

"No problem. See ya later, Rider!"

"See ya, Jiji." and with that, he picked up his bike parts and began to walk home.

Jiji waved goodbye to him and sat back in her tiny car. She drove off giddy about someone actually liking her act. Perhaps becoming a hero was exactly what she needed all along.