Kihonne: Hey everyone! I took another look at my schedule and realized that I need to change some things around to make it work, so as a result, you're all getting The Superhero Code a few days early! But before I can move directly onto the chapter, it's shoutout time!
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AlienGhostWizard14: Thanks! Honestly, I think it was just bad writing, or simply so the writers could fit in the 'space witch' line. I don't think they ever really took his personality into consideration for that scene, so obviously, things had to be changed for me.
MayLeaf2001: Well, I'm glad that my stories are able to make your Tuesdays so amazing. I'm so glad you liked the chapter, especially the changes I made at the end, and yeah, those girls are going to be pissed. Anyway, thank you so much for your kind words, and enjoy the chapter!
SzymonS: I'm glad you liked it! Yes, Skylar will clarify what powers she has received. As for Roman and Riker's family, let's just say we might see a few more members than in the original, though not in the way you'd expect (I will explain this at a later date, I assure you). As for Roman and Riker themselves, I'm not sure which form they're more powerful in. It's hard to say. Anyway, I'm glad you liked the chapter, and I hope you like this one just as much!
LabGirl2001: Oh yeah, Chase is in trouble. I'm glad you liked it, especially the part where Chase tried to kill Skylar instead of Oliver. It just seemed so OOC for him, I really have no idea why the writers wrote that scene like that in the first place. And yes, Calla lost the privilege of experimenting on Skylars. That's probably one of my favorite jokes I've ever written. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!
Algernon23: Thanks so much! And I'm glad you liked that I changed that scene. You're right – the original didn't flow as well, and even though I know they wrote the scene like that for laughs, it also seemed so OOC for Oliver to try and kill Skylar himself. It was like the writers didn't really understand the characters they were writing for, and they were just assigning lines to characters without putting too much thought into it. Usually, I don't like to criticize the people who brought us such a wonderful couple of shows, but I honestly feel if they understood their characters a little more, there would have been a second season. Anyway, I don't know what's going on right now, but I'm so sorry that you're going through a rough time, I really hope things get better, and feel free to PM me if you need to talk about anything. I hope this chapter cheers you up a bit.
EliteForce12: I'm glad you liked it so much. And yeah, a lot of people really liked the way I changed the scene. I think everyone agrees that it didn't make very much sense in the show for Oliver to try and kill the love of his life. And oh, the wedding. The wedding will be fun. The whole engagement will be fun too, what with bridesmaids and dresses and ring bearers and everything else I have planned. Thank you so much for your kind words, especially the comment about wanting me to become a professional writer, as that is my goal for when I leave university, and I hope you enjoy the chapter.
Darth Becky 726: I'm glad you liked the chapter so much! And don't worry about reading it a day or two after it's out – everyone gets busy, and sometimes the WIFI crashes, like it did for you. And well, I'm glad you're excited about the chapter! I hope you like it!
GU3ST: Yay! Joe the Mohawk keyboard man! I have to say, that part of your review made my day :) Anyway, yes, The Power of Seven is here! I hope you liked it so far, and I hope you like the rest too. As for Alan, I suppose you'll just have to wait and find out.
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Kihonne: Anyway! On with the story!
Kyle: Kihonne doesn't own Elite Force, Lab Rats, or Mighty Med. She only owns Calla, Dani, and anything else you don't recognize.
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Calla's POV
"Hey, what are you working on?" Skylar questioned, sitting down next to me. I didn't look away from my laptop, instead continuing to type out the correct algorithms.
"Project. Davenport started selling my Paraguns and Plasma guns to the government, and apparently, they're a fan of it." I answered, pausing to look over my work. "I've been asked to design a new weapon for the police that can take a full-grown man down without physically injuring him. The Paragun can do it, but it doesn't always work, depending on the size of the person, and tranquilizers don't work fast enough, nor are they efficient, so I'm testing to see how well it would work if I combined my tech with basic tranquilizing serums."
"So, your job for Davenport is to be a weapon's designer?" The alien asked, a disapproving frown on her face. I shrugged.
"Sometimes. Most of the weapon designs are for my personal use, but I'll sometimes sell them. This'll be my first government contract." I smiled proudly – a government contract meant future funding for projects. "Plus, the new weapon will be non-lethal. If the police had access to more non-lethal weapons, they'd be able to safely take an armed criminal down without having to kill or physically injure him, which will lead to less police-related deaths. And less deaths is always a good thing."
"Government contract. You gonna be a millionaire?" She grinned. "What are you going to spend the money on?"
I glanced at her, smiling. "I have a couple of ideas." I admitted.
"Lunch is ready!" Oliver called. I glanced over my shoulder to see most of the team gathering in the dining room. It was Oliver's turn to prepare the food, which meant something healthy but delicious. We'd all been assigned days of the week to cook, though some people's cooking were more appreciated than others. Oliver turned out to be pretty good in a kitchen, so his meals were the most popular, though for some reason that I can't explain, everyone seemed to want to eat out when it was my turn to cook.
"I'll grab the plates." Chase offered as Skylar and I headed into the dining area.
"Oh, just like you grabbed the heart of the girl I love?" Oliver retorted. Chase sighed.
"Still not over me getting Skylar her powers back, huh?" My boyfriend guessed.
"Nope." Oliver denied. "And you'll notice your tomato slice is very thin."
"Wow, you showed him." Dani commented sarcastically.
"Yeah. And I also skimped on his lettuce!" Her brother added, not noticing the sarcasm.
"Oh no. Stop the madness." Dani laughed. Bree sighed and got up from the table.
"I'll get the plates." She insisted, walking past both the boys. She bent down to open the bottom cupboard in the island, but when she pulled the doors open, dozens of plate shards tumbled out, scattering across the floor. "What the heck? Why are they all broken?"
"Oh, right. Sorry." Oliver chuckled sheepishly. "I was doing the dishes and I accidentally broke them with my super strength."
"That still doesn't answer why you put them back in the cupboard." I frowned.
"Because now we have service for 36 tiny people." He reasoned. I frowned, then looked at Dani. She shrugged.
"You ever seen the movie The Borrowers?" Was her only explanation. Skylar shrugged, and stepped past Bree to open the cupboard above the sink, where we kept a supply of paper plates and utensils.
"Ooh, lunch." Kaz grinned, walking into the kitchen. I frowned, looking at him. He seemed…neater than usual.
"Hey Kaz, I didn't smell you come in. Did you shower?" Bree commented bluntly. He took it well, smiling.
"Yeah, I had to. My younger brother, Kyle, is coming to visit." He explained. "And also the pen I was chewing on exploded all over my face."
"I didn't know you had a brother." I hummed, taking a paper plate from Skylar. He nodded.
"Five of them, actually." He admitted. I stared, caught off guard by the number. "But Kyle is my only younger brother, and growing up, we never really bonded, but now that he's older and I moved away, I think he missed me. This is our chance to finally become best buds."
Just then, the doorbell rang. "That must be him." Kaz declared, walking over to the front door and opening it. A short, shaggy-haired boy, probably in his early teens, raced in, carrying a backpack and a blue crate. "Kyle." Kaz grinned. His brother handed Kaz the backpack, dumped the crate on the ground, and raced past him.
"The bionic people!" The younger boy exclaimed, rushing over to Chase and Bree. "Hi. I'm Kyle."
"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you're more excited to see them than me." Kaz accused, hurt.
"I am." Kyle assured him, throwing the words over his shoulder before turning back to Chase and Bree.
"Hey Kyle." Oliver greeted, amused. The younger boy smiled at him, then looked at Dani.
"Oh, right!" He raced back over to the blue crate, opened it up, then lifted a small, grey and white cat out. He carried the squirming animal back over to Dani. "Mom says we can't afford to keep feeding her. She eats a LOT."
"I know." Dani took the cat from him and cuddled it in her arms. "Hi Katy. You want to stay in the penthouse with us? Huh?"
"Dani!" Bree looked at her like she was crazy. The short-haired girl frowned.
"What? You said no more pigs, but you didn't say anything about cats." She defended herself.
"If it tries to rob us, I'm holding you responsible." I told her. She nodded.
"Seems reasonable." Dani agreed.
"So, anyway," Kyle continued, following Chase and I to the couch. "When my mom told me that Kaz had taken an internship with bionic heroes, I had to come here to meet you myself."
Bree smiled, touched, before grabbing Kyle's bag off the ground where Kaz dropped it. She headed upstairs while Kyle sat down next to Chase and I. "So, Kyle, now that you've met them, what do you say you and I get out of here?" Kaz suggested. "We can take our chances with some street meat."
"Kaz, not now. The grown-ups are talking." The younger boy brushed him off. I raised my hand to my mouth, pretending to couch in an attempt to disguise my laugh. "I can't believe I'm talking to Chase Davenport. You're my favorite bionic hero."
Chase leaned back on the couch, one arm around my shoulders and the other lying on the back of the couch. "I get that all the time." He smirked cockily. We all exchanged looks.
"Really? Because I've never heard that." Skylar told him. "Seriously. Never. Not one time."
"You're not even my favorite." I added, teasing him. He looked at me.
"Who's your favorite?" He asked, confused.
"Rio." I replied with a shrug. He was about to argue, but decided not to at the last minute.
"Okay, Kyle. Your room's all set." Bree announced, walking back downstairs. Kyle grinned at her gratefully.
"Thanks! Wait till my friends hear that Bionic Bree made my bed!" The kid exclaimed excitedly before rushing upstairs to check out his friends. Bree watched him go.
"Or, more accurately," she said, "Bionic Bree just tossed your bag into an empty room."
"Great." Kaz complained. "All this time, I thought my brother actually wanted to see me, but he was really just using me to get to you guys."
"Yeah, how about that?" Chase chuckled.
"Chase." I warned. He looked at me innocently.
"What? Can you blame him?" He defended himself. "Who'd want to hang out with the intern?"
"Yeah, why'd you tell your mom that anyway?" Oliver inquired, looking at Kaz.
"I was trying to come up with a cover story." Kaz explained. "It was either that, or the chauffer, and I didn't think I could pull off the hat. Wait…why am I even lying to him? I'm just going to go tell him that I'm a superhero."
"You can't." Skylar stopped him before he could. "The Superhero Code says that no hero can reveal his or her true identity to a Normo, thus exposing all heroes' existence to the general public."
"Can't I make an exception for my brother?" Kaz questioned, surprised.
"No." Skylar stood firm about her point. "People fear the unknown. If they found out that we have powers, they could turn against us."
"She's right." Oliver agreed.
"Okay, yeah, but what about those two?" Kaz pointed at Bree and Chase. "The whole world knows they're bionic, and they're pretty much celebrities."
"Yeah, now, but when they were first outed, everyone freaked." I told them.
"It was about a month before everyone calmed down enough for Mr. Davenport to even let us out of the house." Bree agreed. "And the only reason the only reason they came around was because of my likable charm and charisma."
"Yeah, keep telling yourself that." I commented, earning a glare from my friend.
"They came around because we were able to explain our abilities with science." Chase corrected. He looked at the others. "Unlike fire, ice, lightning, and ET over here."
Skylar stepped forward and he flinched back. "Please don't zap me."
"I'll take a zap." Oliver offered. Skylar looked at him. "Or anything at this point."
"Kyle's my brother." Kaz reminded everyone. "He won't tell anybody that I have superpowers."
"Yeah he will." "It's Kyle." Dani and Oliver both commented. Kaz gave them a sour look, but didn't argue with them.
"Sorry, Kaz, but no." Skylar refused. He sighed, defeating.
"Kaz, you don't need to be a superhero to bond with your little brother." Dani told him. "Just spend some time with him."
"I guess." He agreed reluctantly as Kyle sauntered back down the stairs.
"Well, Bree, I can see making beds isn't one of your bionic abilities." He commented, shaking his head. Bree forced a fake smile onto her face.
"He is so cute." She said sarcastically before looking at Kaz. "When is he leaving?"
"How about I give you the grand tour?" Kaz offered, smiling at Kyle. The younger boy thought about it for a moment.
"Can Chase come?" He asked. Kaz hesitated.
"Actually, I…okay." Chase agreed.
Kaz's POV
Well, this kinda sucked. I was hoping to do what Dani said and spend time with my brother, but Chase just had to tag along.
"Consider yourself lucky, Kyle." Chase commented as we reached Mission Command. "You're the first outsider ever to see the heart of our bionic operation."
"Cool!" Kyle grinned.
"Yeah, but unfortunately, you'll have no pictures of your historic visit because Chase made this a camera-free zone." I pointed out. "That's right. Chase. Not me. Just to be clear, it was the bionic guy."
"But instead of a picture of Mission Command, how would you like a signed 8 X 10 of me?" Chase offered. "They're super glossy so my bionic smile really pops."
"Sweet." Kyle replied, excited. Chase pointed at a stack of pictures sitting on a shelf in the far corner.
"Go ahead, pick one out. There's like ten different pictures." He encouraged. Kyle ran over to check the pictures out, while I pulled Chase to the side.
"What are you doing?" I demanded.
"It's no biggie. There's like 500. Help yourself." He told me.
"No, I mean, why do you keep one-upping me in front of my brother?" I hissed. Chase looked surprise.
"Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. I mean, I can't help it if he thinks I'm awesome." He replied. I glared at him, and he sighed. He looked past me, towards Kyle, then back at me. "Look, I'll make you a deal."
"I'm listening." This should be good.
"I need to run an errand, so if I you cover for me with Calla and the others, I'll leave you and Kyle alone for the rest of his time here. Deal?" He looked at me hopefully. I hesitated before replying.
"Why can't Calla know?" I asked.
"It's a long story, which I can't tell you yet." He told me apologetically. "But it's nothing bad, I swear."
"Alright, deal." I agreed. He grinned.
"Great. I should be back in a few hours. As for Kyle…just keep him in here and out of all the unauthorized areas."
"Okay." I agreed. Chase nodded, smiling, then left through one of the rock wall passage ways. I turned around to face my brother, who had picked a picture of Chase in his a white uniform out of the pile. "So, you ready to finish the rest of the tour?"
"Oh, you mean the guy who seems awesome at first, but then you get to know him, and you realize that he's actually a not-awesome fun killer?" I questioned. Kyle thought about it.
"Yeah, I get what you mean." He agreed. "His powers are cool, but he's kinda uptight. He's got all these rules…"
"Yes, yes he does." Finally, something I could use against Chase. "And you know what else? He thinks that you shouldn't go in the unauthorized areas because they're too dangerous."
"Too dangerous?" Kyle echoed, aghast. "Hello. I skateboard off people's roofs!"
"Exactly!" I agreed. "But you're in luck, because I have access to every room in this place."
"You do?" Kyle sounded surprised. "But you're just the intern."
"I'm not just the intern." I told him, smiling. "I'm running this operation."
"Yeah, right." Kyle scoffed. "You?"
"Yes me." I retorted, offended. "And I'm going to prove it to you right now by showing you the top secret weapons room, which is right through here."
I pressed a button on the cyber desk, and pointed to the rock wall to my left. Unfortunately, it was the one on my right that opened up. "Right through here." I corrected before leading him into the weapon's room.
Calla's POV
"I'm going to kill him." I decided, shaking in anger as I stormed down the stairs. Dani, Skylar, and Bree all looked up as I entered the room, the former two having been playing a game of chess while the former watched TV. "I'm going to kill him."
"I don't know what this is about, but I'm making popcorn." Dani grinned before sneaking off to the kitchen.
"Okay, what's wrong? You look like you're homicidal." Bree observed.
"You're going to be too." I assured her. "Guess what I found in the washing machine."
"Ooh! I love this game!" Skylar grinned. "Uh…two buttons and a nickel."
"No." I pulled the objects out from behind my back. "My Paragun and Bree's tablet."
"What?" Bree demanded, jumping to her feet. I showed her the cracked screen of her tablet, then held up the now useless weapon. The hammer inside the gun was shattered, making the trigger completely useless. Not only was one of my very inventions, and favorite weapons, gone forever, but this would put my government project way behind schedule. "What were they doing in the washing machine?"
"I could take a guess." I commented. "Oliver. I bet he destroyed it with one of his powers, then tried to hide the evidence."
"Did he at least finish the load? I had a pair of jeans in there." Skylar muttered, frowning.
"You know what? That's it." Bree declared.
"Guys, come on. That doesn't sound like Ollie at all." Dani defended her brother. "And you have no proof."
"Doesn't matter. We're still going to kill him." Bree declared. She followed me out onto the veranda, where Oliver was reading, a plate of chocolate dipped bananas.
"Oliver!" I snapped, tearing the book out of his hands. He looked up, surprised.
"Hey! I was reading that!" He protested.
"We need to talk." I told him, placing the book on the table and crossing my arms. He straightened up in his seat, then looked at us in confusion.
"What's wrong?" He asked, pretending he didn't know.
"We know about my tablet and her Paragun. You broke them, then tried to hide it." Bree accused.
"What? No I didn't." He retorted, shaking his head.
"Oh, don't play dumb." I snapped. "You and your messed-up powers have been breaking stuff all over the house."
"Besides the plates, I didn't break anything!" Oliver exclaimed, getting to his feet.
"So I suppose my telescope just broke itself?" I questioned, gesturing to the mass of bronze pieces sitting by the edge of the veranda.
"Okay, yeah, that was me." He admitted. "But it wasn't my powers. I just get really excited when I see Mercury, and I was going to replace it for you when I got the chance."
"Look, it's one thing to accidently break something, but it's another thing to hide it, and then lie to us about it to our faces." Bree accused. Oliver glared at us.
"I didn't lie, and I'm actually getting better with my powers." He retorted defensively. I laughed once, amused.
"Oh yeah? Well, here's a reality check for you, Oliver." I said coolly. "You may think you're getting better, but the rest of us know that you're not."
He flinched, obviously hurt by my words, but to his credit, the younger boy didn't back down. "Says the only one of us who has never had to worry about losing control of your powers, because you don't have any."
"Well, I don't need any to be of use to this team. Can you say the same?" I asked, smirking. He raised his chin.
"You sure about that?" He questioned. I looked at him for a moment, then looked at Bree.
"I'm going for fro-yo, because if I stay here for another minute, I'm actually going to kill him." I declared, pushing past her and storming towards the door.
"Wait up!" Bree called, racing after me.
Kaz's POV
"And here we are." I announced, leading Kyle into the weapon's room. Weapons were hanging on the wall, perfectly spaced apart, as if someone (Calla, definitely Calla) had spent hours placing them just right. At the far corner of the room was a large, heavy-duty computer, the same one I'd been specifically told not to touch. And just because she didn't believe me, Calla had put a metal fence around the thing. Seriously, that girl needed to chill.
"This place is awesome!" Kyle grinned. I smiled, proud.
"Yeah, well, just another day at the office for me, Kyle." I replied, leaning against the wall as he examined one of the weapons. "I guess I'm a lot cooler than you thought, huh?"
"Yeah, but to be fair, the bar was pretty low." He admitted. He looked at the computer. "What is this thing?"
"Oh, that's a mainframe." I replied. He frowned.
"What's a mainframe?" He asked.
"It's a complicated system of mains and frames." That was easier than saying that I had no idea.
"What does it do?" Kyle continued with his questions.
"Oh, sorry, that is top secret." I told him apologetically. He pouted.
"But I'm your brother, and I'm great with secrets." He insisted. "Kevin Stuart asked me not to tell anyone about his year-old back zit, and I only told, like, three people."
"Sorry buddy. No can do." Maybe Oliver and Dee were right about my brother not being able to keep a secret. "We should probably head back upstairs."
"Oh, maybe Chase is back!" Kyle grinned.
"What's a few more minutes?" I told him. He smiled, and went back to examining the weapons and the mainframe. I looked out the door, making sure that no one was coming. "Just try not to…" I trailed off when an alarm started to go off. I looked back to see Kyle standing past the metal gate, in front of the mainframe. "…touch anything."
"Intruder detected." MISS announced. "Lockdown commencing."
"Kyle, you should probably get out of there." I didn't know what MISS meant by 'lockdown', but it didn't sound good. Kyle went to step out of the mainframe's cage, but the door slammed shut before he could.
"Lockdown complete." MISS declared. "Activating electrified perimeter."
And just like that, the fence sprung to life, electricity running through it. Kyle grinned, amazed by the technology. "Cool!"
"Hey, uh, buddy? Quick question: when did you tell Mom that you'd be home?" I asked, chuckling nervously as I looked at the electrified fence. "Because right now, it's looking like never."
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"Kaz, I can't squeeze through there." Kyle argued with me. I rolled my eyes, and gestured to the tiny area between the bottom of the electrified gate and the floor.
"C'mon! You've got, like, two inches here!" I insisted, just as Chase ran in.
"Why is that alarm going off?" He demanded, looking at us sharply. "Why are you in here? What did you do?"
"Well, I was showing Kyle around, and then all of a sudden, the gates locked, got all electric-y, and that thing starts blaring." I explained. "Don't you people have alarms that are a little less jarring? Perhaps some wind chimes or the gentle chirp of a cricket?"
"MISS, shut the alarm off." Chase sighed. The alarm muted immediately. Chase looked at me. "Why would you even let him in there?"
"To prove that I'm cooler than you." I reported. He sighed. "I think it's working."
"MISS, let him out. Kyle's not an intruder." Chase told the computer.
"Lockdown mode activated. Password required." MISS replied. Chase opened his mouth to reply, but I stopped him before he could waste his time.
"Kyle accidently touched something and changed the passwords. I already tried." I told him. He looked at me, exasperated.
"Why would he touch anything in there?" He demanded.
"He's my brother; we're touchers." I reminded him. "You know what? That's it. I'm getting Dani."
She could open the cage no problem as the electricity wouldn't affect her at all. "No." Chase hissed quietly, stopping me. "Kyle can't know about her powers, remember?"
"Then what do you propose?" I demanded.
"I'm going to have to use my bionics to get him out." The older boy decided. Kyle's eyes lit up at those words.
"Yes! Awesome!" He shouted gleefully.
"Oh, it's not that awesome!" I snapped. I grabbed a large set of bolt cutters off a nearby shelf. "What if I just used these steel bolt cutters to cut through the cage?"
"No." Chase shook his head quickly. "If you touch metal to the cage, the jolt will electrocute you in an instant. Let me try using my telekinesis to control them."
He raised one hand to his temple, and held the other out. The bolt cutters floated out of my hands, and up towards the gate.
"Whoa!" Kyle laughed in amazement.
"Stand back, Kyle." Chase warned. My brother nodded and backed up against the mainframe. Chase focused for a moment, then touched the bolt cutters to the cage. And that was when everything went wrong. A jolt of electricity raced through the bolt cutters and they rebounded, straight towards an unprepared Chase. They hit him in the head, knocking him down and out.
"Chase!" I exclaimed, rushing over to him.
"Is he okay?" Kyle demanded as I examined him.
"Yeah, I think so." I assured him. He did look okay, I thought, though judging by how hard those bolt cutters hit him, I could tell he was going to have one hell of a concussion. "But I have to say, for a bionic hero that was very disappointing."
Calla's POV
"Apologize." Dani insisted, standing in front of me with her arms crossed.
"No thanks. Kinda busy trying to order parts for the Paragun I have to rebuild." I replied.
"You were kinda rude back there, and by kinda, I mean definitely." The younger girl insisted.
"I'm sorry you feel that way." I commented. Dani rolled her eyes.
"Bree?" She insisted, looking at my best friend. She didn't look up from her magazine, at least not at first. But when a loud explosion came from inside the penthouse, we all shot straight up.
"Damn it, Oliver." I muttered, following Bree and Dani inside.
"Oliver, I thought I told you no more-" Bree stopped herself, frowning in confusion when she saw Skylar kneeling by a suddenly broken and burnt coat rack, a jacket on the ground, burnt to a crisp. "Skylar?"
"Hi…" She smiled guiltily.
"Why is the coat rack smoking?" Dani questioned, confused. Skylar feigned confusion herself.
"Is it?" She looked down, and her eyes widened in an attempt to look surprised. "Oh, it is."
"And is that my leather jacket?" I demanded, recognizing the article of clothing. It had been a graduation gift from my brother.
"No." The alien girl lied.
"Give me." I demanded, holding out my hand. She sighed, stood up, and handed me my now ruined jacket. "This was my favorite." I whined, disappointed.
"Skylar, how could you do this?" Bree questioned, more shocked than angry.
"Okay, it was an accident." Skylar said quickly, her tone apologetic. "I just…I haven't quite mastered my powers since I got them back."
"So you burnt my jacket?" I questioned. She nodded, looking at her feet.
"And I broke your Paragun. And, Bree, your tablet. And I shredded your purse."
"My purse?" Bree demanded, eyes wide.
"Oh, you haven't found that yet?" Skylar asked, laughing sheepishly. She sighed. "Sorry."
"Great. And I took it all out on Oliver." Damn. I guess Dani was kinda right – I lashed out, and I could be cold sometimes.
"I'm really sorry." Skylar apologized again. She rubbed her arm, looking worried. "I'm just scared, guys. What if I never get my powers back to the way they used to be?"
"Skylar, you will." Dani promised her friend. Bree nodded.
"It's just gonna take a little bit of time to get used to them again." She agreed. "It's like riding a bike. Or whatever your alien equivalent is to riding a bike."
"That would be riding a bike." Skylar informed her, frowning.
"I'm trying to make a point. Don't start acting normal now." Bree snapped light-heartedly.
"Skylar, you only got some of your powers back, right?" I asked. She frowned, then nodded.
"Yeah. Super strength, super speed, invisibility, portal creation, and my energy blasts." She listed them. I nodded.
"Skylar, you mastered superpowers before the age of fifteen. How hard can it be to master five, right?" I asked. She nodded. "Right. Now, does anyone know where Oliver is?"
"You guys know where Oliver is?" I asked. Dani smirked.
"You gonna go apologize now?" She asked.
"Yes, Dani." That girl could ride my last nerves sometimes. Her smirk grew.
"Bedroom." She replied, spinning on her heel and walking away, as she now considered her duty as his sister done. I shook my head, and headed up the stairs to find the cryokinetic.
Kaz's POV
"Hey, you okay?" I asked gently, helping Chase sit up. He groaned, one hand rubbing the slowly growing bump on his forehead.
"I taste metal." He moaned. I nodded.
"Must be from the voltage your body absorbed." I decided. He leaned over and spit a piece of metal out of his mouth. "Or it was a piece of the bolt cutter."
"Help!" I spun around at the sound of my brother's distressed voice. To my shock (pun not intended), the amount of electricity running through the gate had apparently doubled.
"When the bolt cutters hit the cage, it must have cause the voltage to surge." I realized.
"If you knew this wasn't safe, why would you let me in here?" Kyle demanded.
"You wanted to go in there!" I exclaimed.
"What do I know? I'm just a kid!" Kyle retorted. "I still sleep in a race car bed!"
"Mom and Dad never bought me a race car bed." I complained. I'd begged them for years, but they always insisted it was too expensive.
"You gotta know how to work them." My brother reasoned. He flinched back when the voltage surged again, running down the cage.
"Chase, we have to do something." I looked at the older boy. He nodded slowly.
"Right." He started to get up, but only made it a couple of inches before he slid back down to the ground, his face green.
"On second thought, I got this." I didn't want him to puke – chances are, he'd make me clean it up for getting us all into this trouble in the first place. "Don't worry, Kyle. I'll get you out of this."
"Please." He rolled his eyes. "If the guy with bionic couldn't help me, what chance do you have?"
"What chance do I have?" I echoed before smirking. "I'll show you what chance I have."
I raised my fist, lit it on fire, then blasted a wave of flames at the hinges of the metal door. I melted the top hinges, then the bottom ones, and watched as the door fell to the ground with a clatter. Kyle stared, shocked.
"So, what do you think of your big brother now, huh?" I asked. Kyle stared at me for a second more, before he began to scream. He ran straight out the door, still screaming. "Not exactly the response I was hoping for."
Calla's POV
"Oliver?" I asked, knocking on the door to his and Kaz's room.
"Yeah." He called, letting Bree and I know that it was okay to come in. I walked into the room, smirking when I saw it. I hadn't checked out the guys room yet, though it seemed pretty cool. The dark green walls were covered in superhero posters, and to the left of the room, near the large window that overlooked the city, there was a TV and media center, with about every video game known to man, and a large couch that matched the décor. And right in the center of the room, a couple of feet away from their beds, there was a very cool foosball table.
Oliver was sitting on the couch, playing some war-like video game. "We should talk." Bree told him as we walked in, walking over. He paused the video game with a sigh.
"What? You going to accuse me of doing that?" He asked, gesturing to the ruined jacket in my hands. I shook my head.
"No, I know it wasn't you." I assured him. "Just like we know what happened to the rest of our stuff also wasn't your doing."
"Ha!" He snapped at us. "I told you I would never go around breaking people's stuff without telling them. What kind of jerk would do that?"
"Me." We looked over our shoulders to see Skylar and Dani standing in the doorway. The former looked at Oliver apologetically, guilt written all over her face.
"Oh." Oliver looked surprised for a moment, then shook his head to clear it. "Well, when you do it, it's adorable."
"It's taking me a while to get used to my powers again." Skylar explained. "Rather than admit it, I let them blame you for everything I destroyed. I'm so sorry. Can you forgive me?"
"Wow. It's just…the fact that you would throw me under the bus like that…" He grinned. "Yeah, we're all good here."
She smiled gratefully and hugged him.
"Okay. Now things can finally get back to normal around here." Bree sighed. Oliver turned around to face us.
"Not so fast." He told us. "I wish I could forgive you two so easily, but you attacked my character and accused me of lying. That's something I can never forgive."
As dramatic as his sister, I see. I opened my mouth to suggest a fix, but Bree beat me to it. "Not even if I set up daily one-on-one training sessions for you and Skylar to perfect your powers together?" She questioned, unknowingly stealing my idea.
"Bring it in, old friend." Oliver opened his arms and hugged her.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Skylar stopped them. "Why should I have to train with Oliver every day to pay for something you did?"
"Would you rather pay for all the expensive things of ours that you ruined?" Bree challenged.
"Right." Skylar agreed, rubbing the back of her head. "Seems fair."
"Now, what about you, Calla?" Oliver questioned, looking at me expectantly. I crossed my arms, frowning at him suspiciously.
"What do you want?" I questioned. Oliver looked past me.
"Dee? Any suggestions?" He inquired.
"Oh, I know." Dani smirked. "Calla has to give up her cooking day to you permanently."
"Agreed." Oliver nodded. I rolled my eyes.
"Oh, c'mon. My cooking's not that bad." I insisted.
"Yes, it is." Skylar, Bree, Oliver, and Dani all replied at once. Before I could object, we heard a very long, very panicked scream come from the main floor. We all exchanged looks, then raced downstairs to find what was going on. Bree caught Kyle by the shoulders as we hit the main floor, the poor kid completely freaking out for some reason.
"Whoa, Kyle!" Dani exclaimed as Bree released the boy. "What's wrong?"
"What's wrong?" He repeated, staring at us with wide eyes. "My brother just shot fire out of his hand."
We all looked at each other, silently cursing Kaz. "Kyle, don't freak out."
"It's a little late for that." The younger boy retorted as Kaz and Chase walked out of the hyperlift.
"Can someone explain to me why he thinks he saw something that he clearly didn't see?" Skylar questioned, looking at Chase. He shrugged, wincing.
"I would, but after a few thousand volts of electricity passes through you, your short-term memory kind of…" He paused, then looked at me. "What's the word for 'goes'?"
"Kaz, what did you do?" I questioned, stepping up to Chase to get a closer look at a nasty looking bump on his forehead.
"My brother locked himself in the mainframe cage. I had to use one of my powers to break him out." Kaz explained. Kyle paused.
"Wait, one of your powers? How many do you have?" He inquired curiously.
"Several." Kaz replied instantly. Dani snorted in amusement.
"Honey, you have, like, two." She pointed out. Oliver pulled everyone, aside from Kyle, off to the side.
"Great, Kaz. Now he thinks you're a superhero." He hissed.
"What was I supposed to do?" Kaz retorted. "He was in trouble, and Chase had already knocked himself out with a pair of bolt cutters. I suppose I have to tell him everything now."
"What about the superhero code?" Oliver questioned, frowning.
"I have no choice. I'm sorry." Kaz turned to his brother. "Kyle, I've been keeping a really big secret from you and the rest of the world. I'm not supposed to tell you, because it could expose a lot of people and put them in danger, but you're my brother and I think it's right for you to know the truth."
"Oh, I know the truth." Kyle assured him. He pointed at Chase, Bree, and I accusingly. "These bionic freaks abducted you and filled you with machine parts to turn you into one of them!"
We all exchanged looks. Well, when someone supplies you with the perfect lie, you shouldn't waste it. "Absolutely." "Totally." "That's exactly what happened." We all replied.
"Technically, technically, I asked them for the bionics," Kaz lied, making it clear that no felonies had been committed…well, except for human experimentation, but I doubted Kyle would care about that, "so that I could help them save lives around the world."
"Right." I agreed, nodding.
"But congratulations! You now have a bionic brother!" Kaz added, grinning at Kyle. "Isn't that cool?"
"Yeah, I guess." Kyle shrugged. Kaz's face fell at the disappointment in the kid's tone. "I mean, it's cool and all, but it'd be a lot cooler if you were a superhero."
"Superhero." Kaz repeated. He turned to us. "Do you hear this guy? Seriously, do you hear this guy?"
Dani laughed lightly at the frustration in Kaz's voice, taking his hand.
xxx
The rest of the weekend went by pretty smoothly. The boys watched some movies, Kyle got to see a bit of Kaz's training, and Chase recovered pretty quickly from his concussion. I, meanwhile, fixed the passwords in MISS' system, and added some child-proof locks to the system so it couldn't be screwed with by accident again.
"That was the best weekend ever." Kyle grinned as Kaz walked him to the front door. The rest of us were hanging in the kitchen, sitting around the island.
"Well, as long as you promise not to tell anyone about my bionic secret, you can come back and visit whenever you want." His brother told him. The kid's eyes lit up.
"Really?" He questioned, looking at everyone else for confirmation. When we all nodded, albeit some of the nods were reluctant, he beamed. "Thanks! So, when do I get my bionics?"
"Oh, you know, I asked Chase, and he said no." Kaz replied. Kyle looked disappointed, but it didn't last for long as Kaz walked the kid outside to help the kid catch a cab.
"I have to say, it was pretty smart of Kaz to pretend he was bionic." Chase mentioned. I nodded.
"Yeah. You should all say that you're bionic when using your powers in public. We won't have to hide as much, but it'll still keep the real source of your powers hidden from the public." I advised Skylar, Dani, and Oliver.
"Alrighty then." Oliver grinned. "I guess from now on, we're bionic."
Oliver punched the air downwards to emphasize how cool he thought it was, but accidently shot a blast of ice at Bree's feet, freezing them to the ground. "Seriously, Oliver? These are my new boots!" She protested, annoyed.
"Sorry." He apologized. Bree nodded, then shrugged.
"Eh, it's okay. Skylar was going to ruin them anyway." She admitted. Skylar threw her hands up into the air, frustrated, and walked away, much to all of our amusement.
Kihonne: Alright, what did you guys think? Good? Bad? In between? Seriously people, reviews are what make me tick! And write, while we're on the topic. Anyway, earlier I mentioned a scheduling conflict. See, I made the mistake of thinking I only had 1 mid-term next week. I actually have 3, and probably won't have time to do much writing next week. However, I managed to get a fair bit of writing done this week, so I'm almost done The Need for Speed. Anyway, this is the new update schedule:
Anyway, here's the schedule for the next few updates:
January 30th: The Need for Speed
February 13th: Follow the Leader
February 20th: The List
Yes, that leaves a 2-week gap between chapters, but as I've always said, my education comes first. And besides, I've got a bit of a surprise in the next chapter that should keep people satisfied for a little while. Anyway, I'll see you all in a few days! Until then, don't forget to review!