AN: Hey, guys, I know updates for Amethyst Unleashed have been slow. The thing is my editor/co-author has been away for a while, so updates have been difficult. But don't worry, he will come back eventually. The story will continue.
It was midnight at Point Prep and while other students were asleep, one student just so happened to be waiting outside the building.
Enid was crouched behind a bush, completely out of the sight of the many Point Troopers and security drones wandering the campus. The ninja was currently awaiting the arrival of a certain kappa. After what happened at last nights sleepover with her friends and roommate and discovering that Chip Damage has been secretly injecting Point's honor students with glorbs, Enid took it upon herself to figure out just how big of a threat she was facing. So, later that evening after Rad and KO had left, she called up Dendy and told her about what happened and asked if she could come over to investigate. The kappa agreed and told Enid that she was gonna need blood samples from two students who had just recently used their power-up. And now, Enid was outside, urgently awaiting the kappa's arrival.
"C'mon, Dendy, where are you?" said Enid under her breath.
"I was wondering the same thing."
*crowd cheers*
"Dendy, where have you been; I've been waiting here for hours?" Enid asked, a little frustrated.
"When you contacted me, you only told me to come here. You didn't specify where," the kappa explained, causing Enid to cringe.
"Oh right, sorry about that," said Enid, sheepishly scratching the back of her head.
"Not to worry, I'm just glad you contacted me. I've been looking forward to an opportunity to add on to my turbonic studies for a while now," said Dendy. "Do you have the two blood samples?"
"Yep, right here," said Enid, pulling them out and handing them to her.
"I'm curious, Enid. Who exactly did you get these from?" Dendy inquired as she examined them.
"Elodie and Sparko. They're the only people I know that used their power-ups," Enid replied.
"Was there any complications?" asked Dendy.
"Not really," the ninja replied. "I managed to get Sparko's when he got tackled during Mega Football practice. I had to use shadow-jutsu to get it without being seen."
"What about Elodie? Was she any trouble?" the kappa inquired.
"Well, I got her's last night while she was asleep and it was actually pretty easy," said Enid.
"Really? How so?" asked Dendy.
"Okay, don't tell anyone I said this, but Elodie has a habit of being a very heavy sleeper," Enid explain. "That and her snoring made things pretty easy."
"Interesting," said the kappa.
"Yeah, so what's the plan?" asked Enid.
"It's very simple. I just need you to get me into the building's science lab on the west side of the campus. I'll be able to do further research there," said Dendy. "But, be cautious; I wouldn't want you to get caught by one of these Point troopers."
"Okay, I think I can do that. Now, get on my back," said Enid.
The kappa complied as Enid hopped onto the branch of a nearby tree before leaping upwards, landing on the ledge of the building's second floor. She unties her hair, letting it fall down, before revealing the hair band to be a rope dart.
"You might wanna hold on tight for this next part," said Enid as she sent the dart upward, lodging it into the edge of the roof. "Oh, and try not to look down."
"Affirmative," said Dendy as she tightened her grip. Enid grabs onto the rope and sprints upward, getting to the roof in mere seconds. After tying the rope back around her hair, she sprints toward the west side of the building. As she was nearing the edge of the roof, Dendy called out, "STOP!"
Enid skids to a stop just at the roof's edge. The science lab was in plain sight, completely dwarfed by the much larger main building.
"What is it?" Enid inquired.
"According to my calculations, a drop of this magnitude would be suicidal," the kappa explained.
"So, how are we gonna get down there?" the ninja asked.
"Observe," said Dendy. She pressed a button on her backpack's shoulder straps and on the back of it, appeared a holographic glider.
"Jump now."
Without wasting a second, Enid jumps off the edge and she and Dendy glide gracefully to the science lab, landing on a nearby tree.
"Okay, I gotta admit, that was pretty cool, Dendy," said Enid as she and Dendy climbed down the tree and hid behind a bush.
"It helps to be prepared," said Dendy, smiling as she blushed lightly.
"Okay, I'm gonna sneak inside and open a window, so you can get in," said Enid.
"But, Enid, there's..."
"Don't worry, I got this," said Enid as she pulled open a vent and crawled her way in. After going through a short series of air ducts, she came to a stop at a vent that led into the lab and she blasted it open with a flame kick before jumping out and landing on her feet.
"It took you long enough."
"Dendy? How did you get in here?" Enid asked.
"If you had let me finish, I would've told you that the lab was unguarded," said Dendy.
"Oh, right. Sorry, I was kinda in the heat of the moment," said Enid, blushing sheepishly.
"No harm done," said the kappa. "Now then, let's get to work."
. . .
The two vials of blood were currently being boiled over two bunsen burners as Dendy took the time to take notes.
"Okay, so, not trying to rush science or anything, but how long is this gonna take?" Enid asked.
"Not long, the turbonic cells in the blood need time to stimulate and become active," Dendy explained. She then ran a scan on the vials and after a good few seconds, the scanner beeped. "Ah, they're done."
Dendy took the vials and placed her backpack on the floor. She pushed a button and small compartment came out of the left side of it, containing two slots. She puts the vials in the slots and she closes the compartment, a second later, two holographic loading screens are projected from the top of the backpack.
"Now, to add one more detail," said Dendy as she pushed a few buttons, pulling up a holographic image of TKO. Enid raised an eyebrow.
"I need to make comparisons with other turbonic life forms to see if there are any differences," Dendy explained. "Also, while you were in the air ducts, I managed to get footage of Elodie and Sparko using their power-ups."
Dendy then pulls up the videos.
"How did you manage that?" the ninja asked.
"Let's just say, I have a friend on the inside," said Dendy, tilting her goggles.
"What's his name?" Enid asked.
"He prefers to keep his identity a secret," the kappa replied. "Just know that he experienced first-hand the damaging power that glorbs possess."
The results were still loading, so Dendy decided to ask another question.
"Enid, I'm curious. You're the last person I'd expect to get involved with this type of thing. What made you take an interest in turbonics?" Dendy inquired.
Enid sighed. "Because Elodie has been acting really strange over the past few days and at first, I just took it as her usual snooty and uptight behavior, but at last night's sleepover, KO was telling us about how he might enroll into the academy one day and Elodie just lashed out at him for no reason at all. I know she tends to be competitive at times, but it's not like her to just lash out like that."
"What made you come to the conclusion that it had something to do with the glorbs?" the kappa asked.
"Have you seen the footage of her using her power-up?" Enid asked.
"Negative," Dendy replied.
Enid played the footage and Dendy watched with curiosity. When the video ended, Dendy was astonished.
"Oh, my," said Dendy.
"I'm worried, Dendy. Elodie's my best friend and if this is anything let like TKO, I'm gonna lose her forever," said Enid, with worry in her voice.
Dendy contemplated this for a moment before she rewound the footage to the part where Enid's rope snap.
"What are you doing?" Enid asked.
"Just watch," said Dendy as she played the video up to the part where Elodie snaps out of her turbonic state and sacrifices her victory to save Enid.
"From my observation, Elodie snapped out of her turbonic state the moment she saw that you were in danger," said Dendy. "If I'm correct, her concern for your well-being was strong enough to allow her to free herself from the glorb's influence on her mind. I think it's safe to say that you don't have to worry about losing her."
Enid smiled. "Thanks, Dendy."
Dendy's backpack beeps, indicating the completion of the test results as another compartment came out of the right side of the backpack, containing to empty vials.
"Ah, the loading's done. Let's see the results," said Dendy. She pulled up two screens both displaying a red background with a series of red blood cells surrounding a DNA strand followed by a couple of odd, green cells.
"Now, to pull up TKO's blood sample and see if there are any differences," said Dendy as she pulled an identical image, except this time, the extra cells were purple.
"There. Now to run a simulation. We need to see what happens when the turbonic cells become active," Dendy explained. "First, we'll start with TKO."
She pressed a button and the image showed the purple cells attaching themselves to the DNA strand.
"And now, Elodie and Sparko," said Dendy as she began the simulation.
The images showed the green cells expanding in size before bursting open and causing everything to turn green.
Dendy gasped.
"What? What's wrong?" asked Enid.
"This isn't right," said Dendy.
"What do you mean?" asked Enid.
"Their turbonic cells were supposed to bond to their DNA, but instead they've spread throughout the entire body," the kappa explained.
"Is that a bad thing?" Enid asked.
"Indubitably," Dendy replied. "The turbonic cells need to bond with the DNA. That way, the flow of turbonic energy will be regulated throughout the body. But, since it's not being regulated, the body is taking in too much turbonic energy.
"What does this have to do with Elodie's strange behavior?" Enid asked.
"I'm getting to that," said Dendy. "Luckily, that friend I told you about also sent scans on both her and Sparko." The kappa pulled up two holographic silhouettes of Elodie and Sparko. "Tell me, how long has Elodie been in these Gifted and Talented courses?"
"I'd say probably long before I came here," the ninja answered.
"Sparko?" Dendy asked.
"He was enlisted just after my trial. That was four days ago," Enid answered.
"Well, then, that should explain it," said the kappa.
"What do you mean?" the ninja asked.
"Well, Elodie's been in those courses longer than Sparko, meaning she's been exposed to those glorbs for a much longer period of time," Dendy explain. "And from what you just told me about her behavior, it would've seemed that the side-effects are now starting to take effect.
"What side-effects?" Enid inquired. Dendy pressed a few buttons and Elodie's hologram became dotted with green spots of varying sizes.
"From what I can tell from these scans, it would appear that a prolonged usage of glorbs will cause turbonic residue to be left behind after a glorb has been used. The residue can and will build up if another glorb is used."
"Is this bad?" Enid asked.
"Extremely," the kappa answer. "The turbonic residue becomes active if it's stimulated by any physical or emotional triggers."
"What happens when they become active?" Enid asked.
"Well, once active, they'll cause a person's aggression levels to increase, thus causing the person to experience highly aggressive mood swings." the kappa explained.
"So, that's why she's been acting strange?" asked Enid.
"Yes. So, whatever she said at your sleepover, I'm sure she didn't mean it," Dendy replied.
Enid sighed in relief, but then it hit her. "Wait, what about Sparko? Is he gonna be alright?"
"Well, he only used a glorb once, so he should be fine," said Dendy. "But, honestly, these two are lucky to be alive."
Enid's eyes widened. "What do you mean lucky?"
"Well, as I've said before, the turbonic cells need to bind to DNA in order to regulate the flow of turbonic energy," said Dendy. "But, for whatever reason, the glorbs they're using cause the turbonic cells to spread throughout the entire body at an explosive rate. As of now, Elodie only seems to be experiencing side-effects of prolonged glorb usage. But, if her power-up were to be activated while her body is being pushed to its limit, the results will be... catastrophic."
"How so?" the ninja asked. Dendy pulled up a holographic simulation of a human heart beating rapidly at a fast rate.
"As you can see, when the human body is being pushed to its overall limit, the heart has to beat at an incredibly fast rate just to keep up," the kappa explained. "But while this is happening, if a person were to activate their power-up, the sudden jolt will..." Dendy pressed a button and the hologram heart exploded, startling the ninja.
Enid's eyes widened and she instinctively placed a hand over own beating heart as panic filled her mind. Enid turned her attention to Dendy and out of nowhere, she grabs the kappa's shoulders and lifts her up. They were now staring face-to-face.
"Dendy? I don't care what you have to do, just get that glorb out of my friend's system," the ninja said in a serious tone.
"I can't-"
"Dendy, please! Elodie's my best friend; I don't want her to die!" Enid exclaimed, worriedly.
"If you put me down and let me finish, I might be able to explain this more clearly," said Dendy.
Enid promptly placed Dendy back down and the kappa dusted herself before she spoke up.
"As I was saying, I can't remove the glorb through physical means, because once a glorb has been absorbed by the body, it gets reduced to energy particles," Dendy explained. "But, I might have an alternative method."
Dendy reached into her backpack and pulled out a device that looked similar to bolt cutters, except it had four pincers instead of two and they were surging with electricity.
"I call it the Glorb Extractor. This device sends out a beam of magnetically charged turbonic particles that should, in theory, remove a glorb without causing any bodily harm," Dendy explained. "But, it's still in the experimental stage, so until it's completely operational, I'll need you to alleviate any casualties."
"How am I gonna do that?" asked Enid. As if on cue, Dendy pulled out a purple blaster.
"I call this the Turbonic Disruptor," the kappa explained. "A single shot is all that is needed to completely disrupt an individual's turbonic form. Don't worry, it's completely harmless. TKO helped test it out, begrudgingly."
"What do you mean begrudgingly?" the ninja asked.
Dendy pulled up her sleeve, revealing a large bruise on her arm.
"Yikes," Enid said, wincing.
"Not to worry. It stopped hurting after eight hours," said Dendy as she hands Enid the disruptor. "Make sure no one sees you use it. We don't want Chip to know that we're onto him."
"Oh, and since we have yet to know what we're up against, I'm gonna need more eyes and ears on the inside," said Dendy as she placed a high-tech watch around Enid's wrist. "This watch has a built-in camera and microphone and as a bonus, a scanner to detect any trace of turbonic energy."
She then gives Enid an earpiece. "Be sure to contact me if any glorb-related incidents were to occur."
"Okay, I will," said Enid as she puts the earpiece in her ear.
"Oh, and one more thing?" Dendy inquired.
"What?" Enid asked before Dendy injected a syringe into her hip. "OW! What was that for?"
"That vaccination made you immune to the glorb's effects," Dendy explained. "And before you ask, the answer is no. Since Elodie and Sparko have already been exposed to the glorbs, the vaccination won't be as effective on them."
Just as Dendy's about to exit, Enid speaks up. "Hey, Dendy?"
"Yes?" the kappa inquired.
"It was great seeing you again," said Enid, smiling.
Dendy smiled. "Same here."
. . .
"The scans you provided were a big help," said Dendy. "It was a real pleasure working with you, Doctor Greyman."
"The same could be said here, Dendy," said Doctor Greyman.
The two were in Doctor Greyman's classroom. Dendy had just sent him the information she uncovered with Enid.
"I must say, when I read the information you sent, I was a little upset," the old man said. "Chip Damage was one of our best students; I never thought he would do something like this. He always seemed so honest."
"Let's not worry about that now," said Dendy. "Right now, our main concern should be the safety of the students."
"Oh, yes, of course," the alien stated. "Elodie and Sparko are good students and they have great potential. I lost my powers to these glorbs and I'd hate for them to suffer a much worse fate."
"They were the first two people that Enid brought up during our research," Dendy said. "I'm having her keep tabs on them and other honor students."
"That's good to hear," said the professor. "Well, I'll call one of the buses to drive you home, just wait outside and stay hidden."
Before Dendy walks out the door, she says one more thing. "Hey? Maybe if my research with TKO holds up, I might find a way to restore your powers."
The alien smiled. "That would be a nice thought."
As the kappa exits the room, Doctor Greyman turns on his earpiece.
. . .
(KO's House)
Carol was in the middle of making coffee when her earpiece started beeping. She picked up her mug and plopped down on the couch before answering the call.
"Hello?" she answered.
"Silver Spark?" said a familiar voice.
"Oh, hey, Greyman. So, how'd it go?" asked Carol.
"Well, Dendy was as smart as you said she was, so I'd say it worked out great," Doctor Greyman replied.
"I knew it would," Carol said, taking a sip of her coffee.
"Oh, and this might be a bad time to mention this, but I was checking the security footage from last night and I came across your son and his alien friend," said Greyman.
Carol's eyes widened. "What!? Are you serious!?"
"No need to worry, I took care of it," said the professor.
"Did anyone else see him?" Carol asked.
"Not at all. I managed to get the security footage before anyone saw it and edit him out," Greyman explained.
"Where's KO now?" Carol asked.
"Not to worry, Spark. He and his friend are at my office back at HQ; I'm keeping them under the radar," the old man explained.
Carol sighed in relief. "Oh, thank goodness."
The two were silent for a while until Doctor Greyman finally spoke. "You know, Point Prep has changed since you left."
"Really? How so?" asked Carol.
"Well, it's Foxtail. She's been teaching the students to value victory over actual heroics," the alien explained. "Recently during a rope climbing test, Enid's rope snapped and she nearly fell to her death."
"Oh, my god, is she alright?" Carol asked, worriedly.
"Oh, yes, she's fine. Elodie sacrificed her victory to save her. It was very heroic," said Greyman. "But, Foxtail failed them both because neither of them completed the obstacle course. She didn't even seem concerned that one of her students was nearly injured."
Carol frowned. "Greyman, I want you to keep Foxtail away from my son. I don't want her corrupting him."
"Consider it done," the alien replied.
"Good, Silver Spark, signing off," said Carol, turning off her earpiece.
. . .
(Point Prep, Enid and Elodie's dorm)
After changing into her pajamas, Enid walks out of the bathroom and was about to head to bed when she noticed a noted placed on the dresser with her name on it. She picks it up and plops down on her bed before reading it.
Dear Enid,
About last night, I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for being hostile towards your little friend. I understand if you're still mad and I don't know what came over me last night, but I want you to know that didn't mean any of the things that said and I shouldn't have said them. I hope you can forgive me.
Sincerely, Elodie.
Enid looked over to Elodie, who was already fast asleep, and she smiled.
"Apology accepted," Enid whispered.
AN: I do plan to write a sequel for this called "The Ninja and the Archer". Stay tuned.