Kihonne: Hey guys. I'm so sorry that I'm late with the chapter. I'm not going to lie or make an excuse – the reason this chapter is late is because I am a perfectionist. I didn't like the original draft, so I scrapped it and rewrote it from scratch. But, personally, I think the wait was worth it. Anyway, I won't waste any more of your time, so here's the chapter!
Xxx
EliteForce12: Thank you so much. I do hope you like the original chapter. And no problem!
LabGirl2001: He's one of my favorites too. As for Douglas' date, I'm not sure if you'll meet her. I have an idea for a plot I could use, but I'm not entirely sure how to use it, so I included that to keep my options open. So, no guarantees. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
AlienGhostWizard14: Thanks, and I have to agree. Bree was a little overly-mean to Kaz in this episode, though I chalked that up to her over-competitiveness. Though you are right that it was OOC. There was a lot of that going around in the series. I'm glad you liked it, and yes, we will see more of AJ. A lot more than we did in the TV series, since he was only in the two episodes. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
SzymonS: Really? I liked it, personally, though the characters were a bit OOC. I'm glad you liked the chapter, especially the part with Oliver and Dani's cat. I'm glad you're excited. I do have to admit the chapter was hard to write – it just didn't seem right to me, you know? But I hope the end result is something that everyone else likes.
Algernon23: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it. I'm really glad I went with the cat thing – originally, I was going to have someone scare Dani and she accidently electrocute them in return, but this seemed so much better. It certainly got a lot of people laughing, that's for sure. As for Douglas' date, it was not an older version of Reese, but trust me, you aren't the only person to think that. Actually, someone has already approached me with the idea of having Douglas date an older version of Reese, and it would be an awesome idea, if I didn't already have different plans for Reese. And yes, this week's is the original chapter. I'm actually nervous, to be honest. I keep re-reading it, and I kinda don't like it, but it's still a hundred times better than the previous versions, so I'm just going to post it and hope that it's just my paranoia that the chapter is less than great. Please enjoy, and thanks for the birthday wishes, again. And yay! 100 reviews!
NightAngel365: I'm glad you liked it, and I hope you like this chapter just as much. As for the Rock, I can not yet reveal anything that is happening in the chapter. But I think, whichever direction I go, you're going to like it. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!
GU3ST: Sweet, thank you. I'll have to check those out.
artxmisbae: Thanks! I do hope you like the chapter. And sweet, you have an account now!
MayLeaf2001: An original, cool. What's it about? Anyway, thank you so much for your compliments and your belief that the chapter will be awesome. I really hope you enjoy it!
Guest: It's not a bad idea – I might do that one day, when I'm less busy.
Originalguest: Well, I'm always happy to hear from readers I've never heard from before. That was my favorite episode too, though things won't happen exactly the way they did in the original. But don't worry – Bree's still going to get an upgrade! You'll just have to wait and see. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!
A fan: Thanks so much! And here is the update.
Xxx
Kihonne: Oh, and before I forget, I'd like to thank my new friend on Tumblr, eevee371, for suggesting the idea for Calla and the boys' sub-plot. Now, Dani, take it away!
Dani: Kihonne doesn't own Lab Rats, Mighty Med, or Elite Force. She only own this chapter, any and all OCs in it, and anything else you don't recognize.
Xxx
Dani's POV
I startled awake, confused and disorientated. One minute, I was dreaming about flying above the Eiffel tower, the next I was waking up in my bedroom, the Madagascar Afro Circus song blaring. I looked over at my bedside table to see my phone's screen alit, and playing my ringtone.
"Dani!" Bree moaned, throwing open her capsule door just as Skylar threw her pillow at me. I ducked, though it still hit me in the head.
"Sorry. I thought it was off." I apologized, reaching for the phone.
"Your ring tone is stupid. And I'm not just saying that because of how early it is." Skylar complained.
"Good to know." I replied before answering it. I rubbed my eyes tiredly. "Whoever this is, it better be good."
"Dani, hi." A familiar voice replied. I frowned, then pulled the phone away from my face to check the time.
"Barry?" I demanded. "What the hell, man? It's 2:34 AM!"
"I know. And I'm sorry. But I need you to come back home." He told me, his voice serious. "I need your help."
I looked at Skylar and Bree, concerned. Barry sounded worried, really worried. And he wouldn't have called so early if it wasn't serious.
"What's going on?" I questioned.
Calla's POV
"So, what should we do today?" I asked, rolling over onto my stomach, my hand resting on Chase's bare chest. He smirked up at me.
"Catch a movie. Dinner. We could go to the planetarium, make a day of it." He replied, smiling up at me. Before I could reply, the sounds of muffled arguing came from downstairs. I sighed, and dropped my head onto his chest.
"That sounds like…Kaz and Oliver." I sighed.
"We're going to have to deal with that, aren't we?" Chase leaned his head back.
"MISS?" I raised my head. "Please tell Dani to deal with her brother and boyfriend."
"I'm afraid Miss Dani is not currently in the Penthouse. She, along with Miss Bree and Miss Skylar, left early this morning." My AI informed us. "They did not indicate when they would return."
"Damn it." I muttered.
Xxx
When we walked onto the main floor, Kaz and Oliver were still arguing, with AJ sitting on the couch, watching them with interest.
"Don't be ridiculous, Kaz." Oliver was saying, his tone condescending. "I think we both know who has the more powerful…" he paused, glancing at AJ before continuing, "bionic abilities."
"Oh, come on! I can kick your butt any day!" Kaz argued. "How could I possibly be your sidekick?"
"Hey!" Chase shouted, getting their attention.
"Dudes, it's seven A.M." I told them, pointing at the clock on the wall. "What could you possibly be arguing about?"
"This might be my fault." AJ cut in, a guilty smile on his face.
"How am I not surprised?" Chase commented, shaking his head.
"What happened?" I asked again.
"Well, AJ was asking us questions about our bionic abilities. You know, how many people we've saved, if we have capes. The normal stuff." Kaz explained. "And then he asked if we had sidekicks, like superheroes did."
"And Kaz said I was his sidekick!" Oliver interrupted him, sounding outraged.
"Because you are!" Kaz pointed out. He gave me and Chase a smirk. "This guy."
"I've saved twice as many lives as you, and I'm way more responsible than you. I'm clearly the hero, and you're the sidekick."
"But my abilities are WAY cooler." Kaz insisted.
"Well, technically," I began, but he gave me a heated glare.
"No one cares about the technicalities, Calla." He stopped me before continuing. "And anyway, everyone knows that the hero is the more powerful of the two."
"And what makes you think you're more powerful?" Oliver challenged, crossing his arms.
"Fire beats ice. Everyone knows that, pal." Kaz reminded him.
"I do not have enough caffeine in my system to deal with this." Chase sighed. He started walking over to the coffee maker. "Babe, you want one?"
"Triple espresso, please." I sighed before looking at the guys. "Are you guys seriously arguing about this?"
"Wait, I know." Kaz's face brightened. He walked around me and put his arm on my shoulder. "Calla, you decide who's the sidekick and who's the hero?"
"Yeah…no." I stepped away from him. "Can't you guys just let this go?"
"No." They both replied at once. Oh, that they agree on.
"Alright then." I clapped my hands together, coming up with an idea. Was it a good idea? Probably not, but it would keep them out of my hair for the day. "Here's the plan. You guys go out and do 'hero' stuff. The person who does the most is the hero, and the other is the sidekick. Agreed?"
Kaz didn't even wait. "Eat my dust, Oliver!" He shouted before running out onto the veranda and over the edge.
"Hey!" Oliver shouted, racing after him, and flying into the air.
"Since when is flying a bionic ability?" AJ gasped, grinning.
"Last month." I lied with a shrug. Chase handed me my coffee.
"You realize that this whole contest is going to come back to bite us in the butt, right?" He asked me.
"Yeah, probably." I agreed, shaking my head.
Dani's POV
"This is where you guys used to hang out every day?" Bree questioned as she, Skylar, and I walked into The Domain. I sighed happily, the familiar scent of old comic book pages hitting my noise.
"This was our home away from home." I replied. She didn't look impressed. "In our defense, Ollie and I had a psychopath for a mother, and Kaz's house was almost literally overflowing. Trust me; this was a paradise compared to home."
"Besides, we could talk about superhero stuff without being interrupted by anyone." I turned to see Barry walk out from behind the curtain that led towards the back. "I mean, Gus owns it and I run it, so I could close up whenever we needed."
"And we are very grateful for that." Skylar added, walking forward and giving the taller boy a hug.
"Bree, this is our friend Barry Clarke." I introduced them. "Barry, this is Bree Davenport."
"The bionic speedster. I've heard good things." He shook her hand.
"So, you said this was important." Skylar turned to him. He nodded.
"Yeah." He walked over to the door, locked it, then turned the OPEN sign to CLOSED. He turned back to you. "Obviously, you know that the League of Heroes was destroyed when Mighty Med was destroyed."
"All of the League members were inside the hospital when it was destroyed." I explained to Bree. She nodded.
"Well, apparently, the villains have figured that out too." Barry added.
"Crime rates have gone up since Mighty Med was destroyed," Skylar sighed. She looked at Barry. "I'm guessing there's a supervillain hanging around town?"
"Five, actually." He nodded.
"And you can't handle them on your own?" I inquired teasingly. He looked at me, confused, and I smiled. "I've seen the pictures online, B."
"What pictures?" Bree questioned, confused.
"There's a new hero in town, Arciere. He's an archer, about your build, and his uniform is the exact same color as our school's colors." I looked pointedly at my ex-boyfriend. "I was on the archery team with you, Barry. I know how good you are."
"You gonna tell me to stop?" He asked after a moment.
"No. This world could use the heroes, even non-powered ones." Skylar told him. "Just be careful."
"Well, I am being careful." He said. I frowned, noticing the emphasis on the I. "But that's not why I called you. I'm not the only hero in town."
"You aren't? There's another superhero?" I asked, surprised. Skylar frowned.
"We managed to locate almost all the superheroes left. The closest one to Philadelphia is Crossbow, and she's in New York. Hell, half of the survivors aren't even in the country anymore." She pointed out.
"Well, you must have missed one." Barry told us. He looked at me apologetically. "You're gonna be pissed."
Xxx
I slowly walked down the dirt path that led to the base of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge. Not long after we'd talked with Barry, several reports came over the area, warning people of structural damage caused to multiple bridges in the Philadelphia area caused by an unknown source. After Barry informed us of which villains were in the area, we'd realized that it was probably them, and split up to deal with it. Skylar had taken the JFK Boulevard Bridge, Bree and Barry had sped off to ensure that the Commodore Barry Bridge wouldn't collapse, and I had drawn the short straw, taking the least exciting of the three. Well, I guess any attack at a bridge would be equally boring, but they were getting the big bridges. I got the small one, though, I had the feeling that I might have some company soon enough.
Sure enough, I heard the sound of footsteps, and a very loud scream. Concerned, I started to move faster, but purposefully staying out of sight. I stepped around a tree and caught sight of the villain, a tall man with curly brown hair and dressed in faded armor with a black cape. I recognized him instantly as the Sonic Shriek, an inventor who turned into a villain after one of his inventions malfunctioned and gave him superpowers.
"Hey!" I called, getting his attention. He looked up, startled, a black orb in his hand. "Sup?"
"Who the hell are you?" He demanded, looking at me. I paused.
"Statica…" I trailed, realizing how bad that was. Ever since Kaz had picked his superhero name, Ollie and I had tried to do the same, but nothing I could think of seemed good enough.
"That's a terrible name." He told me. I nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, I know. I'm working on it." I assured him. I glanced back at the device in his hand. "Is that a bomb?"
"It's a sonic-destabilizer." He corrected.
"Ah, got it." I nodded. I looked up at the bridge. "And you're going to use it to destroy the bridge?"
"What's it to you?" He questioned.
"Well, I can't let you do that." I explained, raising my hands. A ball of electricity formed between them. "Stopping villains is in the job description, you know."
"You're a hero? Named Statica?" He laughed.
"I said I'm working on it!" I snapped before shooting the ball of electricity at him. He ducked, letting it fly over his head, then his head snapped towards me and he screamed.
It felt like both my eardrums burst when he did, and the sonic waves threw me into the air. I was slammed into a metal beam attached to the bridge, then hit the ground. "Ow…" I groaned, rubbing at my ears. "Dude, not cool."
"Hey!" Before I could even get up, another figure appeared, walking out from behind the tree line. I looked up at her and stared. Not because I was surprised – Barry had given me fair warning – but because I hadn't really thought she'd show. But a few feet away from us stood a tall, skinny, green-clad, red-haired hero.
"Geminus." Sonic Shriek sneered, looking at her. "I heard you were dead."
"Well, don't believe everything you read on the internet." She snapped, splitting into five. The first two of the duplicates charged directly at Sonic Shriek, only to be caught up in his sonic scream. But, evidently from the way the rest of them acted instantly, she'd been expecting it. Two of the other duplicates attacked Sonic Shriek from the side, one going for his legs, and the other aiming a punch to his head. Sonic Shriek spun around and blasted one of them away with a sonic shriek, before dealing a heavy blow to the stomach of the other one. That's when the last of the Geminuses attacked, leaping into the air, spinning around, and kicking him across the face. He hit the ground hard, just as the other duplicates recovered, surrounding him.
"You okay?" One of them asked me.
"I don't know." I climbed to my feet. "Kinda hurts that my best friend let me believe she was dead."
She briefly looked guilty. "We should talk." She decided.
"That's an understatement." I agreed, glaring at her.
Calla's POV
"This was such a bad idea." Chase commented, as we watched Oliver drag himself back into the apartment. I looked at him, wondering just how he managed to get himself entirely covered in mud.
"Dude?" I questioned, gesturing at him.
"I was at the zoo. A baby fell into the alligator pen." He explained before heading upstairs. I looked at Chase and he shrugged.
"Happens more often than you'd think." He reasoned, just as Kaz landed on the veranda, soaking wet.
"AJ! Towel!' He called. AJ grabbed a towel off the couch and tossed it to him.
"What happened to you?" Chase questioned.
"I was trying to help some old lady fix her water tank, and it exploded, okay?" He grumbled, annoyed. We both looked at him. "There's, like, no one who needs saving today!"
"He's got a point." AJ agreed.
"What's the score?" Kaz questioned, drying his hair with the towel.
"Well, Oliver saved the couple whose house caught fire, the man whose care got stuck in a ditch, and the baby at the zoo, and you saved that family of four whose apartment got broken into by that robber, and…I don't think the water tank lady counts seeing as it exploded, so right now, you're both tied at four."
"I need to beat him." Kaz muttered. "But there's no one left…ooh."
"No, you can't cause a life-threatening situation to save the person's life." I told him. His face fell.
"Party-pooper." He muttered. "You're worse than Skylar."
"You want me to tell her you said that?" I challenged. He shook her head quickly.
"She's scarier." He admitted, just as our phones went off.
"Mission alert?" Oliver shouted, jogging down the stairs, leaving muddy shoe-prints in his wake. "Sweet! I can save more people and kick Kaz's butt!"
"I am so glad that your focus is on saving people." I commented sarcastically. "MISS, what's up?"
"It appears that the mayor's office has caught fire." The AI explained. "Several people are trapped inside."
"Sweet! Saving the mayor will give me twice the points!" Kaz grinned.
"Then it is unfortunate that Mayor Hannon is safely outside of the building." MISS commented. I smirked at the slight hint of sarcasm.
"Suit up. Oliver, use your connection with Dani to tell her, Bree, and Skylar to get theirs butts back here." Chase instructed. Oliver nodded, then paused. He frowned.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"Um…they can't make it. They're in Philadelphia." He sounded confused. "I'm not sure what's going on, but it has something to do with our favorite red-head."
"Liv?" Kaz looked at him, surprised. Oliver nodded. "Damn, Red. What you been up to?"
"That's a story you're going to have to wait for. We need to go." I informed them.
Xxx
"Alright, what's the plan?" I questioned as we rushed onto the scene. I looked up at the four-story mayor's office, grimacing when I saw that the entire top floor was engulfed in flames. "Chase?"
"Alright. The fire department are already trying to save the building, so we'll focus on the people inside. Kaz, Oliver, since you two can fly out if something goes wrong, you take the top two floors. I'll take the second and work my way down to the first. Calla, you direct the firemen and women to where they need to go."
"Wait, why don't I take the first floor? The fire department doesn't need my help." I argued.
"I'm sorry, Calla, but you're more helpful out here." Chase insisted. He looked at the boys. "Let's go."
They all rushed inside, the latter two flying up to go through the windows. I tried to do what I could, but after the fire chief assuring me that they had it handled, and two minutes of waiting, I was done. "Screw this." I muttered to myself before rushing into the building.
Immediately, I was hit by a wave of heat, the crackling of the fire in my ears. I quickly pulled one of our portable breathing masks out of my pocket, glad that Davenport kept a large supply of these in Mission Command for such missions, and began looking around. I went from room to room, searching for survivors.
Dani's POV
"You're over-reacting." Alivia rolled her eyes as I led her through the streets, towards the Domain.
"It's been six months, Liv." I told her, forcing myself not to yell or anything. "Six months, and you didn't call, didn't email, nothing. Hell, you didn't even access the superhero network. And don't tell me you forgot the password."
"You're mad, I get it." She sighed. "But to be fair, you're the one who moved out of the state."
I glanced at her. "How'd you know that?"
"You kidding? That video of Oliver breaking that weight-lifter's foot went viral." She smirked softly. I almost smiled.
"But you knew where we were, and you never…you never tried to contact us. We thought you were dead, Liv." I looked at her, hurt, before continuing towards the Domain.
"I know. I'm sorry." She told me sincerely. "I should have called, I just…I've been busy."
"Yeah, taking on every supervillain in existence by yourself." I muttered as we reached the Domain. Alivia paused, frowning.
"How did you know what I've been doing?" She asked, confused, as I led her into the store. Barry, Skylar, and Bree were all waiting inside for us. "Hey guys…"
"Hey, Geminus." Skylar greeted from her spot on the couch.
"I'm going to go do another round around the city." Bree decided. "Just to make sure those villains who got away don't come back."
She sped out the comic book store then, leaving us alone. "Shouldn't we go help her?" Alivia questioned, looking over her shoulder. "I mean, Dani told me that Sonic Shriek was the only one we were able to capture. The rest got away, right?"
"They're handled, for now." Barry assured her. He glanced at the rest of us. "We wanted to talk to you."
Alivia looked at her, then sighed and rolled her eyes. "You have got to be kidding me." She muttered.
"We're just…we're worried about you, Liv." Skylar explained, gently. "You're taking on all these villains alone, all by yourself, refusing anyone's help. You're going to get hurt."
"This is an intervention. This is a freaking intervention." Alivia muttered to herself, pinching the bridge of her nose. She dropped her hand and her head snapped upwards to glare furiously at Barry. "Seriously, Barry?"
"Don't give me that look." He retorted. "I tried to help. You told me to screw off. And then I had to watch you get your butt kicked by the Disembowler, and then my Dreadlock, and then by Nightstrike, twice."
"Hey, I beat those first two eventually." The Irish girl defended herself. "And Dreadlock's sidekick."
"Eventually being the key words. How many times have you gotten hurt? How many bones have you broken, Liv?" Barry challenged. "I got sick of seeing you get hurt, so I called Dani and Skylar to step in."
"Ollie and Kaz would be here to, just as concerned as we are, but we couldn't afford to leave Calla and Chase all alone." I added. "Because you need people to have your back. That's the point of a team, Alivia. And I think you need one."
"Look," It was clear that this turn of events had caught Alivia off guard, and she wasn't happy, "I appreciate the concern, but I don't need help."
"You look exhausted." Skylar told her, and she was right. I'd noticed it earlier – her skin was pale, with darker bags under her eyes, and she'd obviously lost some weight. "You can't keep doing this on your own."
"Watch me." Alivia challenged.
"Why are you being so stubborn, Red?" Barry sighed, crossing his arms and shook his head. She glared at him.
"I explained this to you, Barry." She snapped.
"Well, you want to explain it to us?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Look. The League of Heroes is gone. Every one of the members were killed when Mighty Med was destroyed. Someone's got to pick up their slack. My father was a League member; it might as well be me."
"And you can't accept help…why?" Skylar asked.
"I don't need it." She snapped. "Besides, what do you expect me to do? Standby and let the bad guys take over?"
"You could have come to us." I pointed out. Alivia looked at me coldly.
"Really? Because I did come to you for help before. I distinctly remember you refusing, in some rather colorful words." She accused. I flinched, remembering that conversation.
Before I could figure out what to say next, Alivia's phone vibrated. Her face darkened upon reading what it said. "I have to go. Someone's screwing with the Benjamin Franklin Bridge; it's probably the other villains." She looked at us. "It was great to see you, and thanks for the concern, but I've got this. Stay out of my way."
She didn't wait for a reply, instead turning on her heels and walking out. "What was that last bit about?" Skylar questioned, confused.
"It's um…it's a long story." I explained. I looked at Barry. "We are going after her though, right?"
"Absolutely. Just let me grab my stuff." He replied.
Oliver's POV
"And that's four more to my total!" I declared, dropping another person onto the ground. I grinned at Kaz, who'd just finished bringing his second survivor down from the fourth floor.
"My floor's done. I'm taking over yours." He told me, flying up.
"No, you're not! Those are my saves!" I shouted, flying after him. We both landed on the third floor, where the flames threatened to swallow up the ceiling. The smoke stung my eyes, but I was grateful for the clean air filtering through the oxygen masks Calla had handed out. Kaz and I quickly began going through the remaining rooms, searching for survivors. By this point, we were tied, and with so little people left in the building, the next one of us to save anyone would likely win the contest.
Suddenly, I heard something. At first, I wasn't sure what it was – it could have been just the fire, or some piece of debris falling – but then I heard it again, this time far clearer. "Help!"
Kaz and I both looked up at the same time, looking in the direction of one of the rooms at the end of the hall. We glanced at each other, then raced towards the room. I rammed into the door, not wanting to touch the likely very hot doorknob if I could avoid it.
"Hello?" Kaz shouted, as the flames grew higher. A harsh couch came from near an over-turned desk. I rushed forward and lifted the desk up, allowing a young man who was trapped underneath to crawl away from the desk.
"Thanks." He coughed deeply. Kaz reached into his pocket and pulled out an oxygen mask, handing it to the guy. He was a few years older than us, early twenties, with short, dirty blonde hair covered soot and ash. "Seriously."
"No prob. I'm Oliver. This is Kaz." I told him.
"Miles." He replied before coughing and looking around. Before any of us could do anything, the ceiling suddenly creaked loudly, and a beam from above fell a bit, barely hanging on from the back of it. "Whoa!"
"I got it!" Kaz and I shouted at the same time, raising our hands in sync. We both blasted it at the same time, but somewhere in the blast, the two opposing elements hit each other and created an explosion. We all ducked to avoid it, but the explosion dislodged the wooden beam, which proceeded to fall through the already weakened floor, through the second, and down onto the first. There were a few shouts and screams from the floor below.
"I hope no one was hurt." I commented. Kaz raised his hand to the comm. in his ear.
"Uh, Chase, there may have been a little incident with a beam." He told them.
"We know." Calla's voice echoed in our ear. "What did you idiots do?"
"Wait, Calla, are you down here?" We heard Chase question.
"Yeah, I came in to help." She sighed. "Look, guys. I don't know what you did, but that beam crashed through the floor. Chase and I are in the basement now. Might need a little help getting out."
"Copy that. We'll just get this guy out, then come back for you." I promised.
"Why didn't you stay outside?" Chase questioned, speaking to his fiancé.
"You really want to have this conversation right now?" Calla questioned. Kaz and I exchanged looks, then turned off our comms.
"They're getting married." I said to Miles by way of explanation. "We'll check in with them in a few. For now, let's get you out of here."
Dani's POV
Alivia had reached the Benjamin Franklin Bridge before us, and by time we got there, she'd already engaged the other supervillains. She had split into eight, two for each villain, but it was clearly wearing her out, each of her blows or ducks coming slower and slower.
"Seriously? Experion?" Skylar muttered, recognizing her friend-turned-enemy. I looked over the rest, recognizing them from past incidents or comic books. There was Hunter Bounty, one of the greatest (and scariest) bounty hunters in the universe, along with Soul Slayer, the demonic teleporter, and Nightstrike, a Normo villain with serious knife throwing skills.
"Well, I'm not waiting around for her to get her butt kicked." I told the others, watching as one of Alivia's duplicates was thrown off the bridge and into the river below. Without waiting to see if the others were coming, I flew into the air, zooming towards the villains.
"Hey! Douchebag!" I shouted, getting Nightstrike's attention before he could stab Alivia. I barged right into him, almost knocking him off the bridge. He stumbled backwards, while I landed on my feet, a few feet away from my best friend. "Get rid of a couple of duplicates." I advised Alivia. "Seven's too much."
"I've got this. I don't need your help!" She snapped, even as Bree and Skylar sped onto the scene, Barry close behind them, clad in his new superhero suit. I had to admit, for someone with no ability to sew whatsoever, and no connections to buy anything elaborate, it was a pretty decent suit. His shirt, sneakers, and mask that covered everything from the nose up were deep red, the same red as Logan High's school colors, while his pants and gloves were black, making for a nice combination of colors. He was a good shot too, taking aim at Soul Slayer from over 100 feet away. Unfortunately, the demon teleported away, the arrow flying through the spot he'd been and into the river below.
"Well, we're not leaving. So deal with it!" Bree shouted, speeding past me and charging at where Soul Slayer reappeared. The demon was too fast for her, and teleported away again. "C'mon!" She exclaimed, skidding to a stop near the edge of the bridge.
"Look out!" Skylar suddenly cried, shooting her hands out. Alivia and I both ducked as the blast went over our heads and hit Hunter Bounty in the chest.
"You were saying?" I questioned to Skylar, even as I turned to face the bounty hunter. I glanced at the others. "Pick you target, stay on him."
"Hello, Skylar." I heard Experion greet smoothly, the cockiness in his tone driving me nuts. But I couldn't focus on him – I had a feeling that Skylar wanted him all for herself. I felt Alivia back up against me, and I watched as most of her duplicates disappeared.
"Fine. Together." She muttered reluctantly as Nightstrike and Hunter Bounty circled us. I nodded, then separated my hands to create a lightning ball.
We charged at the same time, me shoot the ball of electrical energy out at Nightstrike in front of me, while Alivia used her agility to push off the ground, leap into the air, and spin a kick towards Hunter Bounty's head. The villains were expecting it, of course, but we'd figured they would. I dropped to the ground and spun around, forming another ball of electricity, slightly smaller than the last. The moment my target came into the view, I shot it at Hunter Bounty. He'd only just blocked Alivia's kick, and didn't have any time to prepare for my attack.
The ball of electricity hit him straight in the gut, knocking him back a few steps. It wasn't enough to knock him down, but it caught him off guard, and that's all Alivia needed to spin around and kick him as hard as she could in the gut. He fell back, over the edge of the bridge, and into the waters below. I rushed to the edge, planning to jump in if I had to, but was relieved when I saw that Alivia's duplicate, the one that had been knocked over a few minutes before, was already dragging the criminal to shore.
To my left, I saw that Bree and Barry had teamed up as well, the latter shooting arrows at Soul Slayer, while the former was ready to attack the moment the demon teleported away. It was a solid plan, as Soul Slayer barely reappeared before the speedster rushed him. Skylar and Experion were fighting at the other end of the bridge, trading blows and harsh words. Apparently, Skylar still wasn't over that last couple of times he tried to kill her.
"Dani!" Alivia shouted suddenly, grabbing my wrist and pulling me to the ground, mere seconds before a knife flew through the spot I'd been standing. We both snapped our heads up at the same time to glower at Nightstrike, the villain holding another pair of knives loosely in his hand. He smirked at us, amused, then dropped the knives. He pulled a pair of black batons out of the back of his jacket, twirling them once before charging at us. Alivia stepped out of the way, but I stood my ground, raising my hands to deflect the blows. I charged my hands and wrists up with electricity and began matching him blow for blow, my powers helping to drain some of the strength out of the attack. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Alivia split into two.
"Duck!" She shouted and I dropped to the ground, not even pausing to question it. Nightstrike spun around to face the duplicates, but not before they started their attack. One of the duplicates leapt into the air and used her full body weight to knock the batons from his grasp, while the other tackled him. He tripped over me and both he and the duplicate went over the edge of the bridge, creating two loud splashes when they landed.
I let out a laugh, watching the duplicate and the one from earlier drag him over to Hunter Bounty, the bounty hunter already tied up. I looked at Alivia, grinning, and held out my fist. "Superheroes?"
She gave me a bemused smile, before hitting her fist against mine. "Superheroes."
"Ooh, dang. That looks like a cold swim." Bree commented, walking over to us. I looked past her to see that Barry was currently forcing power-suppressing hand cuffs onto Soul Slayer, an arrow sticking out of the demon's thigh. Skylar, on the other hand, was standing over a bruised and beaten Experion.
"I'll get my revenge." He muttered. Skylar rolled her eyes, having had enough of him.
"Hey, take a picture." I told her, grinning. "Ollie will love it."
"I guess, maybe, I did need your help." Alivia admitted. I looked at her, grinning.
"What was that? I'm sorry, what?" I asked, leaning in close. She rolled her eyes.
"You just love being right, don't you?" She questioned. I shrugged, and looked around the bridge, a thought just now occurring to me.
"Hey, it's like…four in the afternoon, right? What are the odds that no Normo has driven past this bridge since the fight began?" I questioned.
"Weird." Barry agreed with a frown.
"Not really. Superheroes just get this kind of luck." Alivia commented, looking around. She glanced at the villains. "But luck eventually runs out. We should deal with these guys before we get caught in a situation that we can't explain."
Calla's POV
"Calla?" I heard Chase call, his voice coming from somewhere to my left.
"Over here." I called back, staying where I was. The basement of the mayor's office was pitch black, with the exception of the flames coming from above, and the massive hole in the first floor, allowing what little sunlight made it past the smoke to stream down to the floor. Chase came walking towards me, covered in soot. "You okay?"
"It was a rough-landing, but yeah. You?" He checked, examining me.
"Fine, but I'm almost out of O2. The good news is that smoke rises, so even if we do run out, we'll have more time than we would if we were still on the first or second floor." I replied. I looked over at the beam that fell, the flames having died a few seconds ago, but the wood burnt to a crisp. "Those idiots. What were they thinking?"
"What were you thinking?" Chase questioned. "You wouldn't be down here if you'd stayed outside."
"You're not mission leader anymore, Chase." I reminded him, craning my neck to see if there was a way we could get out without having to wait for the boys to get us out. "And I wasn't going to wait around out there while you guys did all the work."
"Calla, you're more helpful with the fire chief than in here, looking for survivors." He told me. I rolled my eyes.
"Doing what?" I questioned, unzipping my mission suit jacket. Damn, it was getting hot in here. "Chase, admit it: you benched me."
"And why would I do that?" He questioned. "And please don't give me any of that 'because you're a girl' stuff that Bree would."
"Because I don't have powers." I pointed out. He looked surprised. "Oh please. I'm the only one here that can't fly, or use telekinesis to avoid being crushed by flaming wood, so you told me to wait outside."
"I told you to wait outside in case something went wrong. I may be the smartest man in the world, but you're a better strategist. Out of all of us, you're the best at analyzing maps and seeing the little things I tend to miss. I wanted you outside so that if something like this happened," he gestured at the mess we were currently in, "you could talk me, or Kaz, or Oliver, on how to escape using your computer. You're our best asset when it comes to stuff like that. It has nothing to do with the fact that you don't have powers."
I hesitated. I hadn't thought of that at all. "Oh."
"You really thought it was because you don't have powers? That's ridiculous." He commented, looking around. I shrugged.
"Hey!" Suddenly, finally, a voice came from above. "You guys mad we nearly killed you?"
"Yes." Chase and I both answered Kaz at once. "Dude, get us out of here."
"Once we figure out how to get down there without burning!" Oliver assured us.
"Well, we're screwed." I muttered.
"Heard that!" The boys shouted.
Oliver's POV
"Well, we're screwed." Calla muttered, not realized that we'd reactivated our comms.
"Heard that!" Kaz and I retorted. I stepped closer to the hole, but the edges of it had already caught fire.
"We are going to have to figure this out." Kaz muttered. "I mean, the fire won't hurt me, so I can fly down there without a problem, but it's getting them back up that's the problem."
"How about we put the contest on hold?" I suggested.
"That would be nice." Chase commented, reminding us that the two geniuses were listening in on everything we were saying.
"No one asked you." Kaz commented. He nodded at me. "But yeah, deal. I guess we can both be the hero."
"I can use my powers to keep the fire from spreading," There was too much for me to get rid of completely. The fire department had already condemned the building as it was. "You fly down and get them."
"Got it." Kaz didn't wait, instead taking a step back, then running forward and jumping through the hole. Shaking my head, I raised my hands and used my cryoblast to kill the fire around the hole, just as Kaz came flying through the hole, giving a peeved-looking Calla a piggy-back ride.
"New rule." She announced after he set her down and went back for Chase. "No more contests. Ever. It always ends badly."
"Agreed." I nodded.
"I'm with her." Chase agreed as Kaz flew the two of them up to the main floor.
"Yeah, good call. Besides, I totally won." Kaz grinned.
"No, you didn't." I retorted. Calla groaned loudly, put her hands on my shoulders, and started pushing me towards the exit.
"Can we please get out of here before the entire building burns down?"
Calla's POV
"Well, at least we got everyone out." I commented, watching at the entire fourth floor of the mayor's office collapsed onto the third. The fire department was finishing up, putting the last of the fire out with Oliver's help, but there was no way this building would be in use…probably ever again. "That's the important part."
"I have to agree." We turned around to see a blonde-haired woman walking towards us.
"Mayor Hannon." Chase greeted, nodding respectfully.
"Yes. Misters Davenport, Broadman, Short, and Miss Parker, am I correct?" She questioned as Oliver walked up to us.
"Yes, m'am." I glanced over at the boys, wondering how she knew who we were.
"Mr. Davenport informed me of your Elite Force a few months ago, so that if any of you were caught interfering with any sort of police investigation or such, we'd know why." She explained, noticing the confusion on our face. "I wanted to thank you for your help today. You saved 12 lives."
"It was no problem m'am." Kaz assured her, being unusually respectful, just as a guy with dirty blonde hair jogged.
"M'am," he spoke to the mayor, "I need to speak with you."
"Very well, Agent Hunt." She nodded. She looked at us. "Thank you once again for your help with the situation. Centium City is lucky to have you."
She and Agent Hunt walked away. "Dude, we just got personally thanked by the mayor!" Oliver grinned. I smiled, remembering how excited Chase and I had been when we were first thanked by the President.
"Never mind that. Miles is called an agent. He must be a spy. Dude, we just saved a spy." Kaz grinned.
"You didn't save a spy." Chase told him.
"You can't prove that." The pyrokinetic replied smugly before walking away. I looked at Chase.
"Hey, when we go on our honeymoon…do we have to come back?" I asked, half-joking.
Dani's POV
"Alright. Thanks." After about twenty minutes of arguing with Bob, the kid finally handed Mr. Davenport the phone. She quickly explained the situation, and after what I highly suspected was a sigh and him thinking 'do those kids go LOOKING for trouble?' he replied. She nodded along as he spoke, gave us a thumbs-up.
"So?" Alivia walked back over to us. Looking past her, I could see our four captured villains tied up and gagged in the back room of the Domain.
"You know, I really hope Gus doesn't walk in here and see that." Barry commented, frowning. Bree hung up her phone.
"Mr. Davenport's sending some people out here to collect them and bring them to a government holding facility that's capable of holding people with abilities." She announced. "They should be here in a couple of hours."
"Which is good, because we need to get home. Calla and the boys must be wondering where we are by now." Skylar reminded us.
"If they're not still on a mission." I added. Both she and Bree looked at me, confused.
"What mission?" They asked in sync.
"Oh, right. Didn't tell you about that." I laughed sheepishly. "Oops."
Skylar laughed, not at all surprised by this, while Bree just shook her head in exasperation. "Well, I guess we really need to go now." The speedster decided.
"Hey, if you guys ever get bored of Philadelphia, come join us in Centium City." Skylar told our friends. Alivia and Barry exchanged looks. "What?"
"Um, I'm not staying in Philadelphia." Alivia admitted. I looked at her, ecstatic.
"You're going to join the team?" I asked hopefully. To my disappointment, she shook her head.
"I thought about what you said, about me needing a team. And, I think you're right. I do need someone watching my back. The reason the League of Heroes worked out so well was because they worked together." She explained. "But I'm not the only hero that's still out there, wanting to help. There are others. I'm going to find them."
"And I'm going to help her." Barry added.
"Geminus and…" Skylar paused, looking at him uncertainly.
"Arciere. It's Italian." He offered.
"Geminus and Arciere. The founding members of the…New League of Heroes." Skylar smiled. Alivia nodded. "Where are you guys going to start?"
"Well, if you've got some intel, I'd love to have it. But I was thinking…New York first. Barry mentioned a hero being there. And I know of a couple in Canada. And then…I don't know. We'll figure it out."
"Well, be careful." Skylar gave the Irish girl a hug. "And call us if you need any help."
"Likewise. You and your…Elite Force get in over your heads, you give me a call. I'll come running." Alivia promised.
"We'll come running." Barry corrected, giving both Skylar and I a hug.
"It was really good to meet you." Bree told them. "I've so many good things, and it's good to know that we're not the only ones fighting."
"Well, I've never met a super speeder before. Really glad that I can now say that I have." Barry joked.
"To who?" Alivia questioned, looking at him. He paused, thinking about it.
"Oh, right." He realized. "Myself, I guess."
"Hey…can we talk?" I asked Alivia, nodding at the door. She nodded and followed me outside.
"Look, I'm sorry about earlier." She apologized before I could say anything. "That comment I made about you not refusing to help me before…that was uncalled for."
"Well, I pretty much told you to go to hell that first time, so…" I reminded her, rubbing the back of my head sheepishly. "And I shouldn't. I'm sorry."
"We cool?" Liv asked hopefully. I nodded.
"Always." I promised her. She smiled happily, and went to go inside. I stopped her before she could. "I'm not done."
"I thought we were cool." She commented, frowning. I nodded quickly.
"We are. But…look, you asked me a favor that day, and-" I began. She cut in.
"You had every right to say no. I shouldn't have asked you to do that." She told me. I looked her in the eye.
"I'm in." I told her. She looked at me, confused.
"What?" She asked incredulously.
"I'm in." I repeated myself.
"If this is about tonight…" I shook my head, causing her to trail off.
"It's not. You were right to ask, and as much as I hate saying this, you're right. So, count me in." I insisted. She looked me over, trying to tell if I was serious or not, then nodded.
"Alright. Let's do this." She agreed.
Calla's POV
"We're home!" Bree sang as she sauntered into the penthouse, Skylar and Dani following closely behind.
"Where have you guys been?" Chase questioned. The two of us were at the kitchen table, while Kaz and Oliver played video games in the living room.
"Oh, you know, home." Dani replied, sitting on the arm of the couch and looking at the boy's video game. She suddenly gasped and reached into her bag. "Oh! I forgot! Barry sent you guys these. They got early copies at the Domain."
She pulled out two video game cases and handed one to each of them. "Sweet! Styx: Shards of Darkness!" Kaz beamed, turning it over on his hands.
"So, wait, seriously. Liv's alright?" Oliver asked, looking at the girls. They exchanged looks.
"Yeah, yeah she is. And if she's not, she's got Barry." Skylar assured him.
"Who, by the way, is now a superhero." Dani added incredulously. "I mean, he doesn't have powers, which makes him not nearly as badass as we are, but he's still superhero."
"We miss all the fun." Kaz complained, even as he read the back of the video game.
"What'd you guys do?" Bree asked, walking over to the table and grabbing an apple.
"We saved a spy's life!" Kaz grinned.
"He wasn't a spy!" Chase exclaimed, a little annoyed by this point.
"Um, Calla?" Skylar looked over at me. I sighed.
"So these two idiots," I gestured to the offended Kaz and Oliver, "had a little competition, and there was a mission, and they nearly got us killed."
"Sounds eventful." Bree complimented me. Dani looked at Kaz and her brother.
"What kind of competition?" She inquired, sliding off the arm of the couch.
"Which one of us was each other's sidekick." Kaz explained. Dani gave them both a confused smile.
"Well, that's just stupid. Neither of you guys are each other's sidekicks." She told them.
"Thank you." I sighed in relief.
"You're my sidekicks." Dani beamed at their expressions, then skipped to the stairs and headed up to the second floor. Kaz and Oliver exchanged looks, then raced after her, arguing that she was the sidekick instead.
I sighed audibly. "Here we go again."
Xxx
Kihonne: Alright guys, what did you think? Good, bad? Somewhere in between? This is the first of my original chapters, so I really want your honest opinion here. Oh, and what do you think about Barry and Alivia creating the New League of Heroes? Is that something you want to see happen?
Anyway, here's the schedule for the next few chapters:
March 20th: The Rock
March 28th: Home Sweet Home
April 3rd: Sheep Shifting
April 17th: Game of Drones
Kihonne: Anyway, don't forget to let me know what you thought of the chapter, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!