Chapter 2: The Cast
Chapter 2: The Cast
(Girl's dorm) (Bellwood academy) (Monday) (06:15 AM) (Gwen's POV)
Today was the day class started. Summer vacation had finally come to an end and not a moment too soon either. I was getting bored staying in my room for three days straight with nothing to do but read and write and report back to my grandpa every now and then. When I interviewed the hotel manager the other day, I found that he was also semi-gayish just like the head clerk of the hotel. The information he gave out were pretty much useless and for the past five minutes he kept saying how cute I was.
I got up from my bed and immediately prepare myself for class. I assigned all my classes to be in the morning so I could spend the afternoon and evening doing whatever I wanted to do. Also, I had to report to work at the Damien office building on the other side of the downtown district. After work, I would immediately continue my investigation on the aliens that have been appearing in the city.
After tying up my hair and changing into my more proper clothing I looked at myself in the mirror and smiled. I could still remember how I looked like seven years ago. My hair was short and there was this annoying bang that kept annoying my face. I had it clipped onto the side of my head but after I went through high school it kinda disappeared one day.
I wore my favorite blue inner T-shirt and aqua berry vest which matched perfectly with my jeans. Some how I felt like I needed to make a first good impression on my classmate and teachers to get a good head start favor or something. After fastening the belt around my waist and applying lipstick on me and adding the final touches of perfume and cologne I quickly made my way out to get ahead of the human traffic that were to come. Mrs. Randolph warned me that right after eight o'clock in the morning, the students tend to bump onto each other like a herd of cows going through a canyon.
I grab myself a little slice of toast from the cafeteria on the ground floor and ate quietly on one of the tables. The place was very quiet but in the afternoon, this place would actually be the biggest and loudest place for all the hot gossips. I spent enough time to know how girls of today act and react. Once I finished my breakfast I decided to wait awhile before I head to the first class of the day. I had plenty of time and the main square island was just a few minutes walk away.
But just when my cup of coffee was getting cold to the wind, I suddenly noticed a girl a few years younger than me walking down the stairs with a pile of books on her hands that went as high as her head. She could barely see where she was walking and her steps were uncoordinated… it was only a matter of time before she lost balance and…
"Ahhh!" and right on cue, the girl quickly lost her balance on the last step on the stairs and dropped all of her books and herself along with them. "Ara nefaldores!" I quickly used my magical powers to levitate her while she had her eyes closed and gently put her down on the ground. "Oh crap!" I said to myself. How stupid was that!? To use my powers in a public ground was so stupid of me! What if someone saw? Oh man… grandpa will never forgive me if my hidden talents leaked out during the first day of school.
Luckily for me though… the cafeteria was empty and the worker in the cafeteria was too busy in the kitchen to even notice. I sighed out loud and slowly made my way towards the little girl I helped out earlier. I could already see that she was confused on how she was able to land on the ground so gently. "Are you alright?" I asked as I helped pick up the books that she dropped.
"Y… yeah… I think so" she said shyly. I knew right then that she definitely wasn't a college student. She was probably still in second year high school or something. "That was weird though. I barely felt a thing"
"Really?" my acting skills quickly went to work on that moment. I didn't want her to get suspicious about me. "That was really a long fall though. Maybe you're stronger than you look" after we finished grabbing the books and getting back up she quickly let out a thank you smile. "Thanks a lot. You saved me from a lot of trouble. I'm Daniel, Daniel Halfore" she extended her hands to me which I returned the gesture.
"Gwen, Gwendolyn Tennyson" I replied, "Nice to meet you Daniel. Are you taking high school here?" she nodded back at me, "Yup! I'm studying at Bellwood high on the other side of town. You must be the alien girl everyone's been talking about"
"Alien girl?" have people been spreading rumors about me?
"Yeah. I heard about it from some students back in the library" she replied, "They say that you've been asking a lot of things about those alien heroes that have been appearing around the city lately" I let out a depressing sigh to myself as she told me about what's been going on around school. So much for first impression! I bet a lot of people are thinking that I'm a lunatic or something, seeing that I research about aliens all the time. Man… to think that this just little topic just dropped the day on me.
"Oh boy…" I groaned out loud.
"Don't worry, I've seen the aliens myself too" Daniel added, "I've seen so many of them I even lost count on how many there are"
"Really?" I asked intrigued, "How did they look like?"
She thought for a moment before lifting up her fingers to count, "Well… there was one made entirely out of green stones, another one who looks like he's on fire, one that goes as fast as lightning and a lot more" she finished counting one of her fingers off with a smile. The description of those aliens resembled that of Diamondhead, Heatblas and XLR8. There was no way that these are coincidences. Ben was here… in this city and he was somewhere nearby.
"Well… thanks for the info Daniel. It was nice talking to you" I waved at her and quickly took my things on the table before leaving her behind. I didn't even get to finish my coffee when I dashed off like that. Man… I'm gonna have one heck of a day today.
"Hello there Ms. Tennyson" a voice came up to me as I approach the bridge. I jerked my head up from the ground and noticed that the two security guards of the dorm were waving at me. I finally knew why Mrs. Randolph liked these boys. They were gay brothers, but just because their girly doesn't mean they're not tough. I saw them catch a peeping tom trying to sneak into the girl's bathroom yesterday and boy was he humiliated to the max.
"Hi Alfonse, hi Edgar" I greeted back with a smile.
"Oh Gwen, a package came for you this last night" Alfonse added remembering it the moment he saw my face. "Edgar here was supposed to bring it to your room yesterday but he ended up sleeping on the job"
"Oh? Who is it from" I tilted my head to the said package which was wrapped in a cardboard box. I then noticed that there was a Plumber sticker on the side which shocked my eyes completely. The Plumber stickers were usually mistaken to be some sort of tag of some cartoon or something, but in truth it actually means that this package was for Plumber agents only. "Grandpa…" I muttered out. I could've easily teleported that package to my room right away with a little incantation but it would be strange if it suddenly disappeared in front of the guards eyes. "Would you mind taking this package to my room?" I asked them, "I have class in a few minutes so I can't really…"
Alfonse quickly raise his hand to stop me from speaking, "No need to say another word" he said with a grin, "Edgar, come on you dope! Take this package to room 12 and make it snappy!"
Edgar, the supposedly big brother barely paid me any mind. He was an honest guy but a little lazy when he had nothing to do but stand watch while people come in and out. "Yeah… sure whatever…" he said lazily and went right back to his slumber. I chuckled as Alfonse tried to wake him up again. Those two were always having a fit with one another which somehow always makes me smile. They were probably my first two friends in the entire school.
(Slums) (Ben's POV) (07:40 AM)
I woke up through the sound of banging on my door this morning. It was unusual for me to have guests seeing that I didn't have that many friends around here and I doubt it was the neighbors coming to borrow a cup of sugar for their daily bread. I couldn't exactly go hero right now because it would cause suspicion among the neighbors so I took the next heaviest thing I could find, which was apparently an old vase that I found when I was looting the northern apartments and slowly made my way to the door.
I hoped that it wasn't one of Verdon's gang because I really don't want to mess with them right now. Hopefully they didn't take notice of my secret granary which I built a few days ago to store some of my hard earned food. If they were gonna take it then I hell wasn't gonna give it without a fight.
"Hey boss, are you in there?" the moment Wallace's voice rang from the other side I immediately let out a sigh. Being seventeen years old and living in a dark and creepy place alone like this must've really been getting on my nerve. I put down the vase I was using as a club and quickly unlocked the front door. As expected, Wallace leaped out in his favorite jacket and saluted to me like some kind of drill sergeant. "What do you want this time Wallace?" I asked annoyed.
"Sir, Private Wallace, reporting for duty sir!" he said in a military grade way. He must've been reading one of those military comics that he found in the dumpster some time ago. "I came to tell some news, sir!"
I sighed again and scratch the back of my head with a groan. He was probably referring to some new information he was able to procure. The boy maybe annoying but he did have his uses. Because of his innocent and unnoticeable appearance he would be able to eavesdrop on any conversation happening around the slums. I trade some of my food supplies to him in exchange for these information but only if they were worth my time. I don't know how he manages to listen to everyone in the slums because he never told me. The only clue he'd ever give was that it was a 'system' of some sort.
"You won't believe what I have for you today boss!" the blonde boy quickly made himself at home and placed his dirty feet right on the table in my living room.
"Hey! Don't do that!" I scolded, "It took me three days to bring this table back in here"
"Oh come on boss. It'll probably get dirty in a day or two" he reasoned with that goofy smirk of his, "Besides, I'm the only visitor you're ever gonna get!"
"Just tell me what you know already!" I urged him. I didn't like guests in my house because I had to tend to them the whole time until they leave. "If you don't have any information then I an't giving you squat"
"Alright, easy boss…" he immediately took out a small paper from his jacket and handed it to me. "I overheard some Verdon guys talking about some big moving operation. They're planning to move against the new gang in the church. Said something about girls or something" I knew right away what it was.
The reason for this gang war was probably because of some guy messing in with one of Verdon's girls and now they're paying them back with large interest. Looks like tonight was gonna be pretty noisy. I have to remember to see if there's anything left to loot from the battlefield afterward.
"Is that all?" I questioned, taking my eye off the paper he gave me.
"Yeah… I guess so. News an't coming out much nowadays and the places outside aren't talking to me anymore. So what da ya say boss? Do I get something?"
The info he gave me wasn't really much but I guess he worked hard on getting it. "Alright… I bought a couple of sliced bread the other day. You can take that and take it to your sister. Now get out of here" the blonde boy quickly grabbed the said foodstuff that I placed on the table and tucked it right inside his jacket to keep it hidden from prying eyes. But just before he left, a static sound began to originate from my homemade radio.
"Calling all units, calling all units! We have a code 63 emergency at the downtown district. Three heavily armed suspects have been spotted in a pickup truck and currently heading towards New Bellwood. Be warned… the suspects are armed and extremely dangerous"
If you're wondering why my radio can pick up police radio traffic then I'll answer that question. During times when I'm not really busy I would listen to police chatting just to ease my mind. This is also how I do my vigilante work. When a serious crime happens I would immediately listen up and head right in to their aid. It's kinda like my… bat signal or something.
"Uh roger that central" the radio continued, "Does the suspect have any hostage… over?"
"Negative. The suspects abandoned their hostage at the mall when they made off with the money. SWAT teams are currently on standby and will be joining you if the situation rises"
"Roger that central, we're on it"
I quick switched off the radio and slowly made my way back to my seat. Wallace was giving me the 'are you gonna go hero now?' look. "Come on boss! Go hero already!"
"Nah…" I replied boringly, "The authorities can handle this on their own. Besides… I got enough heat on me as it is"
"Oh… you're no fun" and with that he left the house in disappointment. Back five years ago, if a robbery like that happened in my city, I would've turned XLR8 and beat up those crooks in a heartbeat. Oh man… I could remember how stubborn and hardheaded I was back then. I laughed at myself thinking of how much I had changed since that day.
I walked towards my window and say on my favorite rocking chair right next to the rifle I found several months ago. I managed to find a few bullets for it but most of the time, I just use copper pellets to hunt wild animals that foolishly crawl up into these areas. Rabbits and squirrels were rare in these parts but not impossible. Birds on the other hand were just the thing that kept me going. How do I make these iron pellets you ask? Well it was easy once you know how to make them. Just grab a few coins, maybe a nickel or a penny or maybe just a chunk of rock and boil it over a fire with a stove. Once the hard parts have been weakened, just cut them to about the size of a super small coin and mold it together. Once you're done with molding them, just let them cool off by the window and you got yourselves a bullet round powerful enough to kill a small animal.
I was able to make about a dozen clips of these things and had one ready just in case some punk tried to attack my house. It might not pack a good punch like a real bullet but it's powerful enough to drive off anyone with a good shot on the head or on the groan.
As I looked out my window I suddenly caught the sight of a bird picking a worm from the ground. I grabbed my rifle and loaded the pellets up. One shot was all I needed to take it down. But just as I was about to take the shot, the mother bird took off and went to a nearby tree where its younglings were squeaking. Once I saw that the mother bird was just feeding her cubs, I lowered my rifle and tucked it back on the wall.
"Looks like I'll be skipping breakfast today"
(Bellwood Academy) (11:00 AM) (Gwen's POV)
Class ended earlier than I had actually expected today. I guess I shouldn't be surprised since it was the first day of school. We didn't really do much, all we did was just greet with one another and introducing ourselves to the whole classroom and not to mention the teachers as well. Barely anyone showed up in class during first and third period which made the whole place look a lot like a ghost town or something. By the time class ended I immediately went to the central statue to get my mind off things.
The rumors about me being an alien girl flew faster than I actually knew it would. By the time I entered one classroom I could hear people gossiping and whispering about me behind my back. They called me alien geek or alien girl because I took particular interest about the alien heroes that have been appearing every once in awhile during a crisis. But they didn't know why I was doing it. In fact… I already know more about those aliens that everyone here in school.
In case you haven't noted this already, I didn't exactly come to Bellwood Academy because of choice. It was actually just a cover up for me so I can move around the city without being suspected of anything. In truth I'm actually an agent of a secret organization that deals with extra terrestrial phenomenon called the Plumbers. The organization closed down a few years back until my grandfather Maxwell reopened it up again.
I joined up with organization a year after it was reopened and quickly rose through the ranks faster than any new recruit that came through its doors. But I had a special reason though. I was different from all the other newbies and before I knew it, I was already promoted to senior field commander, the highest possible rank for a recruit.
There were also a lot of special privileges too. For one, I could get my hands on the latest gadgets and gizmos the company had. I could command any agent within the vicinity of my mission area and use them to my advantage. I was allowed to call in teams from the main base in Mt. Rushmore and had authorities over any military stations in the country. Heck, I could just call the national guards to come right in through my cell phone.
Just as I lost myself in thought of all these things, I took a look at my wrist watch and noticed that I've been standing around longer than I thought. "Hmmm… thirty minutes… plenty of time" so with that, I decided to head back to my room to check out if the package that grandpa delivered was there.
When I crossed the bridge leading to the girl's dorm, I saw Alfonse and Edgar playing a game of cards over by their station. They smiled and greeted me which I returned the favor back. The dorm was pretty much empty since all the girl's were out doing something along the campus.
As I entered my room I immediately locked my door and sighed out depressingly. It was only the first day and I already got myself a nickname. I wonder what the other students think about me right now. But I simply shook my face up to throw away the thought.
Right now the important thing was the package in my room. Edgar had left it on my bed and he was kind enough to leave everything else where they were. After making sure that no one had snuck in, I opened the package and found myself a super R-397 laptop. It was the standard communication device for the Plumbers. It had instant access to the internet, a portable wi-fi built in its system and plenty of storage room for any information.
As I placed it on my tea table and opened it up, I noticed immediately that someone was calling me through it. I placed the mini earphone on my eardrums and clicked the incoming phone call.
"Please verify identity and password" came a computerized voice.
"Agent number 501, Gwendolyn Tennyson. Password: Wildmutt" I answered back. The computer verified for a moment before popping up a screen. Soon later, I was greeted by an elderly woman who was probably just about grandpa Max's age except with a lot more wrinkles.
"Ah… agent Tennyson… so nice of you to finally pick up my call" she started boringly.
"Sorry for the late reply ma'am" I answered, "I was having class so I wasn't able to report in" if you're wondering who this old prune was, I'll tell. This little witch on the screen of my laptop was none other than Paullina Deadwood. She's my commanding officer and the one who hands me all of my assignments. I've been working with her for three years now and let me tell you that she isn't exactly the woman you want to meet on the field. She may be a good commander, but it was her reckless attitude and cold heart that made her a bi—h. Every agent assigned to her either quit after the first week and the only one who has managed to stay with her for so long was me. I guess I had a knack of dealing with snobs and high-heads nowadays.
"I guess I can forgive you this once Ms. Tennyson" Paullina straightened her face as she spoke, "Since this mission has been authorized by commander Maxwell, you are herby given some of our more 'special' tools" I quickly reach out for the package box and looked at the equipment grandpa sent me. "From the list I have here, you have been given one of our high multi-class stealth suit which allows you to change into any clothing that you see"
"I guess that saves me the time on changing into my pajamas" I joked to myself as I pulled the suit out of the box. It was similar to that of an exo-suit that I saw during combat training back when I new to the organization.
"I don't really have the patience or the time to explain how the suit works agent Tennyson so I decided to send you a manual instead. You will find that this suit might just save your life one day"
"That's ok, I don't really want to hear you yak my ear off anyway" I replied to her very rudely but she was probably used to it by now. If I really showed some manners to her, that'll be the day I tumble and die. "So what else do I have?"
"Under special permission from the chief of Research and Design, you have also been granted a plasma gun. It is currently in the prototype stage so please… do be careful with it" she said in the most sarcastic manner possible. "Other than these equipments you have also been given a cruise lane credit card which should allow you to withdraw at least ten thousand credits a day. You may not withdraw more than that each day Ms. Tennyson. Now if we're done here, I also received word that the commander had made some changes to the operation. Several agents are within the area and you may call upon them at any time. I'm sending you a list now. Don't fail us… Ms. Tennyson" and with that the screen returned to the standard desktop command with several pictures popping back and forth.
But with the mere mention of my second job, I quickly took a look at my watch and noticed that I only have five minutes to the work building. I was supposed to meet with my new boss today and I wouldn't want to be late for my cover up job either. "I crud, I'm gonna be late for work!" I yelled out as I scuffed around my room looking for my things.
There was no way I could make it there in just five minutes, but that didn't mean I had to walk through the front door. So with a quick cast of a spell I created a small magical portal that connects me to an alley near the work building. The place could only take me to areas that I've only been to or seen so I couldn't exactly go anywhere I wanted to. This spell also came in handy when I want to go to the rest room too.
"Alas cuer no protal!" and as I stepped through the portal, I was immediately transferred to the alley in just a blink of a second.
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As I dusted myself clean, I approach the building of my work place and entered its door in a proper manner. My office was on the sixth floor so I had to take the elevator there. This building I'm in right now used to be an apartment until the Damien Company bought it and turned into an office building.
There was a great tune playing inside the elevator and the sound had a good beat which made me thump my feet on the floor to the beat of the rhythm. I was quite enjoying it until I finally realized that I had already reached the floor I intended to go to. To say the least I was a bit disappointed.
The office area wasn't much. There were a lot of cube blocks where the staffed worked in day and night and the boss's room was only a few seconds away from me. I know that this was still just a cover up for me, but it had to be done. I knocked on the door a few times and waited for a reply. I wonder if the boss was even in.
"Come in"
I gently opened up the door to an office room with a single air conditioner. In front of me were a wide table and a chair with a person sitting on it. A wild guess would say that this guy was my new boss. He didn't look a lot older than me… heck he might even be the same age as me. "Umm… hi… I'm the new editor for the Damien corp. and I was wondering if… umm… if I should start my work right away"
"Ah yes!" the guy yelled out, "I've been expecting you Ms. Tennyson… or should I say… agent number 501 Gwendolyn Tennyson?" the moment I heard that name, I quickly got into a combat stance. No one but my enemies knew of my identity.
"Who are you!?" I yelled out preparing to attack. But the boss simply waved it off as he stood up from his seat. "Hey… what's with all the hostility? Just because we haven't seen each other in awhile doesn't mean you can go all karate on me" once he stood up I immediately managed to identify him. Blonde hair, freckled cheeks, blue eyes.
"Cooper!?"
"The one and only" he replied to me casually, "But the Plumbers call me agent 138" he added with a smile. I quickly let down my stance and approached him in a friendly manner. Cooper was a friend I met seven years ago during my first summer vacation with grandpa Max. Don't let his appearance fool you though. He may be the same age as me, but he has wicked skills over anything which is mechanical. He also had something that he called a wi-fi built in his head which allowed him to communicate with all kinds of high level technology. At first he didn't really know how to use it and would often resulted into a major headache but after a bit of practice and training he soon was able to control a outsmart a super computer with a blink of an eye.
"What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be still in training?" I asked him with a confused smile.
"Max got me a recommendation" he answered back, "He said that I needed more field experience so he assigned me here to be as your backup just in case. Once the higher ups got word that the Omnitrix was here, they sent out about a dozen of undercover agents for support"
"So does that mean you're my new boss?"
"A little something like that" he replied snobbishly, "I may be your superior during your undercover job, but it'll be you who call the shots on the mission. I already forwarded my number to your laptop so you can contact me if you have any trouble. But enough about that. Let's get down to business" he quickly returned to his desk as I took the chair opposite of his table. "To keep you on the down low, I decided to give you an assignment so that no one will suspect of anything about you. Your job is to investigate about the recent aliens activities that have been going on around Bellwood. The deadline for the job would be… umm… two months"
"Isn't that the same as my Plumber job?" I joked at him.
"Kinda" came his quick reply, "But just in case. Try to make some friends around here to ease up the tension. You don't really need to work here. Just show up once in awhile and I'll share with you what I got. Oh and…" he tilted his head around looking for his pen and a paper to write on. Seeing that the materials he needed were missing, ripped out a page from his notebook and scribbled down something hastily. "Here…" he handed the paper to me. "That's my cell phone number on top and below that are a couple of addresses of people who've seen the aliens coming in and out. You might as well start at the industrial district too. That's where they've been seen most of the time"
"Do you really think he's here?" I questioned, trying to find his mood to the mission. Not only was Cooper a close friend to me, but he was also a close friend to… him. Ben. Back during the height of our time, these two paired with each other a lot of times to fight off enemies that couldn't be taken down easily. Ben had the brawn and Cooper had the brain. Together they made a powerful team even without me.
"Hey… didn't you say that you were sure" he countered with his friendly smile. Other than me and my grandpa, no one else in the organization wanted Ben back more than Cooper. Back during the days, these two would actually treat each other like brothers. They were close and some would even mistake them for twins if only they had the same hair and eye color. They did a lot of activities together and hang around a lot during kindergarten. In fact I was certain that he would've traded my mission for his supporting job any day. He really wanted to find Ben… even if it should cost him a limb. "Don't worry Gwen" he held my hand to reassure me, "We'll find him… I know it…"
His reassurance was probably a lot higher than mine but it still managed to make me smile. "Thanks Cooper… you're the best"
"I know" he grinned at me from ear to ear. "Oh that reminds me. You should go to the burger palace in central mall. It's on the first floor so you should have no problem. From what I've gathered so far, Ben has been doing some good deeds there most of the time as well"
"So how do you know he'll show up there?" I asked looking at the mall outside the window.
"We don't" was his answer, "But you know how heroes work. Whenever there's trouble… that's the time he'll come out. Oh and take this with you" he showed me an ID tag with my picture on it, "This will be your cover up identification so no one will get suspicious if you ask any strange questions"
(Slums) (Ben's POV)
"Groooannn…" oh… that was the sound of my stomach grumbling after eating a mushroom with no name on it. A few minutes earlier today, I found out that there was some mushrooms growing at the back of my house. At first I thought they were edible and now I found out the hard way. Oh man… I feel like my stomach is gonna explode and my throat feels like they're going to throw up. "That's the last time I'm eating anything from the back of my house again" I said to myself.
Then I suddenly remembered that I still had a few slices of apples left from breakfast. I gave most of my rations to Wallace already but at least he didn't take those. That is until I saw a couple of dirty rats chewing on them. "Oh no… HEY!" the rats noticed me and quickly scampered away along with the apples. "Oh no you don't! Come back here with my… (WHAM!)… apples… ow…" unfortunately for me the rats were able to crawl through a hole on the wall and with my big size I wasn't able to follow them. Man… to think that I could go any lower than a zero-hero.
"Ok… now that was embarrassing" I said to myself. But it wasn't all a lost. As I moved my hands up, my fingers laid on a five dollar bill which I thought I lost days ago… or maybe this was some other person's money? Oh well… finders keepers.
"Oh goody, five bucks" I then tried thinking of a way to use it. "I wonder if burger palace is still open" I took a look at my watch and suddenly came to a conclusion. "Wait… what am I doing?" I would've laughed at myself if I could. Time was no problem for me. It was the only thing I had in abundance anyway. In a blink of an eye I transformed into XLR8 and rushed right to the central mall. One of my favorite hangouts… before everything turned haywire.
(Central Mall) (Burger Palace) (Gwen's POV)
I arrived at the designated place that Cooper told me to start my investigation. Apparently, Central Mall was actually the first and most frequent place the aliens were likely to appear. Due to the rumors about those heroes coming around, the place had become quite popular and tourists would come to this place everyday just hoping to get a glimpse of them. But sadly, Ben would only appear if there was a catalyst going on. Knowing that, bad guys don't really appear here anymore.
But let's get back to the mission shall we?
Other than that, Cooper's investigation revealed that Ben had appeared in his alien forms in the Burger Palace. That probably wasn't much of a surprise since it was his favorite fast food joint. I'll never understand that boy and his craze for burgers and fries. I guess boys will always remain boys hehehe. But enough about that. What Cooper really wanted me to do was to ask a guy name Lewis, a clerk who works part time at Burger Palace. He was the closest person who ever made contact with Ben and once even talked to him when he was in his alien forms.
"Excuse me" I called one of the attendants, "I'm looking for Lewis Eddie and I was wondering if he was here"
The guy I just talked to eyed me suspiciously before turning towards the kitchen, "Hey Lewis, you got a visitor!" immediately a guy wearing glasses and skinny figure walked out. "Y… yes… can I h… help y… you?" he stuttered very insecuringly as if he was talking to an alien or something.
"Um yes… I'm from Damien corp. newsletter and I was wondering if I could ask you some questions regarding the strange alien sightings happening around town"
"Aliens?" he eyed me suspiciously, "O… oh! Y… you mea… you mean the h… he… heroes that h… have been coming out a… a… a lot. W…well, my shift d… does… doesn't end in an an an… an hour so… would you mind w… wa… waiting… for m… me?"
"Ok… I guess" I didn't really have much to do anyway.
So while I waited for Lewis to come out I decided to get something to eat since I didn't exactly have any lunch this afternoon. I got in front of one of the empty counters and waited for one of the receptionist to greet me. "Hello and welcome to Burger Palace. May I take your order?"
"Yes, I'd like to have two salad burger and one potato fries please"
"Will that be a value meal ma'am or a regular?"
"Value meal please…" I replied. Once the guy took up the order I quickly scanned and took out my wallet in search for some cash. But just when I took out my leather wallet from my purse, a large figure came to the reception desk next to me.
"Hey Parker, give me the regular" I nearly jolted away when I heard that voice. As I looked back up, I simply couldn't help but notice that it was actually the same person who I met at Notrol hotel. It was that boy again. The boy who looked just like… Ben. "Hey…" I said softly just enough for him to hear.
"Hey yourself" he replied not remembering who I was.
"Didn't we meet at the Notrol hotel the other day?" I inquired, but he simply shot me a confused look.
After a moment of thought he quickly remembered, "Oh yeah, I remember. You're that girl that was supposed to write something about those alien heroes that have been coming around. So you finally gonna tell me the real reason why you're looking for them?"
"I'm writing an article about them for the Damien corp. letterman" I said proudly. At least now I wouldn't be embarrassed about telling him a good cover up reason. I raised my chest slightly to let him see how confident I am about my reply.
But my only reply from him was a chuckle, "Really? Damien newsletter? I thought those guys only deal about facts. I guess they must be running out of stories so they put up a fiction side to their papers hehehehehe" my chest deflated like a balloon with a tiny hole on it as I sank back to my position. It was true, Damien corp. only dealt with facts, not fictione and no one in the world was gonna believe in aliens appearing in just one particular city. Uh… I feel like an idiot. I could even hear some of the other patrons who were lining up behind me chucking.
"Can you get any ruder?"
"Can you tell me the reason why you're researching about the aliens?" he countered with a confident smirk. Oh man… he was good… real good. Everything I tried, he just… bounced it right back at me like a yoyo ball.
"No, because it's none of your business" I huffed my face around and grumbled.
"Hey don't get angry" he giggled, "You were the one who wanted to talk to me first. I'm just replying in my true self" again, I could hear chuckling coming from behind me. Oh man… people might actually think that we're some live entertainment or something. I feel so embarrassed.
A few seconds later, a receptionist arrived. "Oh hey there Ben" he greeted the boy like he was a regular customer. "You want your usual again?"
"Oh come on, you know me Parker" the boy known as Ben replied, waving head up. "Oh and upsize the fries will ya? I'm taking it home with me"
"Ok, that'll be 4.50"
"Here (payment) keep the change. I don't really need it" and with that, the clerk quickly got back to work as the boy turned his attention back to me. "So… you smoke?"
"Oh, does the great one want to talk with me now?" I countered still infuriated by his recent taunts. But the guy simply waved his hand in defense, "Hey now, what's with all this sense of hostility? I was only trying to be nice and you're firing back at me like a cootie queen with its hand tied around its neck" again I heard a large amount of chuckling from behind. Do these guys really find us funny or something?
"Oh that's very attracting" I said sarcastically.
"Hey, I do my best" he replied casually. This guy was really getting on my nerves. It was like he was a trampoline that shot back anything I said to him.
A few minutes, later the clerk known as Parker returned with the boy's 'usual' order. "Here you go Ben. Cheese burger plain with fries and drink and upsized. Anything else?"
"Well… I would really like to order a pineapple pie and some cheese fries to go with that, but I'm running kind of short at the moment. Maybe next time Parker" I chuckled at his order. "Hmm? What's so funny?"
"Nothing" I replied, "You kind of remind me of another guy who orders that kind of stuff" my cousin if you should know.
But the guy simply took out his soda bottles and sipped it right in front of my face, "Really? Well whoever he is must got some really good taste. Maybe I'll see you around some time… lat…" but before he could finish that sentence, a gun shot suddenly occurred, making a hole through his soda bottle. And not only that, but the liquid contents also poured into his burger bag.
"ALRIGHT! NOBODY MOVE! THIS IS A RAID!!" in an instant, six heavily armed robbers disguised as janitors poured into the Burger Palace making the people go into panic mode. "I said nobody move!" again the head thief fired his weapon onto the roof making everyone hit the deck. "Good…" he snickered as he turned to his crew. "Hey, you three go on the back and check the cash register! Come on, we only got a few minutes before the cops get here!" judging from the tone of their voices, this probably wasn't the first time they robbed a place clean.
Just as I lowered my head down to keep suspicions off me, I suddenly noticed that Ben was still standing there starring at his now empty soda bottle. "What are you doing?!" I whispered to him, "Get down or those guys see you!"
"Those 'guys'… just cost me… my lunch" he groaned angrily.
"Hey wise guy!" one of the robbers called to him, "On the floor now! Or I'll put you down there, permanently!" he threatened him with his firearm weapon. Oh man… if only I had brought my gear along, I would've whooped these guys to dust already. My magic could also take them down too but that would be too suspicious. Besides, there were security cameras all around too so doing that would only put the heat on me.
"Ben, get down! These guys are serious" I begged him to get down but the guy was just too hard headed just like……… just like… Ben.
"Oh I'll put something down" he replied tossing his food bag away. "But it's gonna be your face and my fist that makes contact first!" just before the guy pulled the trigger, Ben threw it upward and lay a punch right on the guy's stomach making him crouch for a moment. With the guy down, the boy grabbed a metallic chair nearest to him and slammed it right on his head. "Hey punk, have a seat!" the thief was down for the count that much I could tell.
But then suddenly I noticed that there was another guy aiming for Ben. I couldn't allow that to happen so I knocked the guy's leg off balance and use a round horse kick right on his neck sending him straight to the mirror glass.
"Nice save" Ben complimented, "Where'd you learn how to do that?"
"Martial arts training during high school" I replied with a smirk, "What about you? Street fights?"
"Hmm… close… but not quite" he grinned back at me.
"Who are these guys!?" the boss grumbled. "Hey you three, take them out now!" the one's that were stealing from the cash register hastily made their way back with their weapons in hand. But Ben and I were probably more than a match for them. I could tell from the boy's stance that this wasn't the first time he dealt with these kinds of low lives and probably won't be the last either.
"Hey, do you think they're hungry?" he said to me, which made me confused. But when I saw the food on the table I instantly knew what he was planning to do. Food for weapons. "Works for me…" I replied.
"Hey tough guy! How about a burger!" Ben quickly tossed a burger right onto one of the goon's face stunning him for a moment. "Hey no biggy. Why don't you just chill out!" he then grabbed two packs of chilly sauce and fired it right in front of his eyes, making them burn. "AHH! My eyes!"
"Would you like some fries with that!?" I stated as I picked out a packet of French fries from the table and lodged it towards the other goon. After that I picked out a soda and tossed to the ground making him slipped and fall. "Here, why don't you have a drink?"
Just as Ben and I took down the last of the goons down, we grinned at each other like partners in a battle. But then his smile quickly disappeared when he noticed the boss of the gang aiming his pistol at me. With speed that could actually match XLR8, Ben pushed me aside as the bullet fired away. I really thought that he would die, but luckily he was able to block it with his arm. There appeared to be something metallic strapped onto his left wrist but I couldn't tell what it was due to his jacket. "DIE YOU LITTLE FREAK!" the boss again shot at him laughing along the way.
But it seemed liked Ben was invulnerable. He was able to block each shot with the thing on his wrist. I should probably remember to put one on just in case something like this should arise. It was very handy and not to mention stylish too.
After ten seconds later, the boss of the gang soon realized that he had emptied his clip. "Is that all you got punk?" before the 'punk' knew what hit him, Ben gave him a punch so bad that it sent him crashing down the area. Once he was sure that he was down, he offered me his hand which I gladly accepted, "You ok?"
"Yeah…" I answered, "Thanks…"
"No problem" he replied with a grin, "Well it looks like I took out four and you took out two. That means I win"
"And since when were we starting to count?"
"Since the time you joined the fight" he countered. "That means you get to buy me lunch. Oh and let's not forget that I saved your life back there" but just when he was smirking at me like a goofball, I noticed that the ring leader wasn't exactly done with the fight just yet. I quickly grab a plate from the table and threw it right at Ben. But as expected he dodged it. "HEY! Watch where you're throwing that!" but when he looked back to the boss of the gang, he realized that he almost got shot.
"You were saying?" I stated sarcastically which he admitted.
"Alright, fine I guess we're even now"
"No way buster! I took out the ring leader. That should be worth two points" I shot back.
"Say what?! No way am I gonna let you take credit. I saved your life first, you should be grateful"
"Pa-lease! You wouldn't last two seconds without my help"
"Oh and who was the one telling me to get down? Oh that's right! It was you!" he smiled at me goofily like… like… like… like Ben! Oh man if there was a contest to compare him, he would've won first prize already.
But right before we could continue our argument, the local guard force arrived to take control of the situation. When Ben noticed them he quickly put his hood back on and took his leave. But before he went out the front door, he picked up a pineapple pie that was clumsily put on the floor. I wonder if he was gonna eat it.
"Ah hey wait a minute!" I called out to him, "Where are you going?"
"Sorry, the authorities makes my skin crawl. So if you don't mind, I think I'll head off now. See ya!" and before I could even say a word. He dashed off. He was such a strange boy… but yet somehow… he seemed sort of… familiar.
Just as I watch the police haul the bad guys away I noticed that Ben had dropped his wallet on the ground. "Tch… what a clumsy goat" I opened it, trying to see if there was anything in there I could find. But strangely enough… there was barely anything there that could prove worth. There were no IDs no address, only his first name written on the price tag that was still strapped onto it. There were only a couple of bucks and some loose change and a piece of paper that says… 'Don't Ever Go Back' it was kinda creepy. Either this kid was psychotic or he's been watching too many horror movies. Seeing that the guards had their hands full I decided to give the boy back his wallet. He only had a minute head start so he couldn't have gone far.
And right on cue, I found him right near an empty flower patch right next to the flower shop. "Hey Ben!" I called out but he didn't hear me through all the shouting from the customers. He couldn't see me either but I could see him perfectly. Just as I was about to approach him, he slid the sleeves of his jacket up revealing a cool looking wristband. But as I got closer, a bright green flash emanated from him. My eyes widened with horror at what I saw next.
It was… XLR8!
That boy…… was really Ben! My Ben…
"Ben…" I said softly still in shock. "Ben…" I muttered out a bit louder but still was loud enough. It has been so long… so long since I saw you and here you are, standing right in front of me without even knowing who I am. My legs shook wearily as if they were on the verge of breaking down. I really wanted to shout out his name to get his attention but my lunges froze as making the words dry up in my mouth. I felt tears running down my eyes like two streams of waterfalls in the amazons. "Ben… Ben…" I coughed out the name but they still weren't loud enough. Every second that past by seemed like hours and his movements slowed like they were put in slow motion. My mind was a blur and my blood felt like they had been turned to ice. I couldn't do anything!
Just as my cousin dashed right off, I finally regained conscious of myself and screamed to the top of my lunges as if I was calling to the heaven's to strike me down with a lightning bolt. "BEN!!" the shockwave of my voice did not alert anyone other than the boy who I was trying to get attention of. I knew he heard it because he paused for a second there looking at where the voice was coming from. He looked around for a few seconds through the large crowd, but he couldn't see me. 'I'm over here Ben' that's what I wanted to say to him, but I felt so weak that my bones are just dying to fall. After a few seconds later, he shook away the voice and dashed right off with the speed of light.
There was no doubt about it now. That was him… that was Ben…… my…… Ben……