South Down: Thanks.
Playerhood18: Uh-huh.
August Rollins: You bet it is.
GBond007: Indeed.
Guest tea: Alright then.
I am a burglar: Okay...
"Oh, Kenny, this is exactly what I wanted!" Karen said as Kenny presented the toys he'd gotten her from the shop. She rummaged through them, taking the time to hug each one.
"I'm glad," Kenny replied, smiling. His sister was happier than he'd ever remembered her being before.
Karen glanced upwards to look her older brother in the eyes. "Kenny, I want to thank you," She said to him. "You've given us everything we've ever wanted. I wish there was some way for me to repay you."
"No need, Karen," Kenny replied, hugging her close. "Just seeing you happy is more than enough."
Karen giggled softly, and rested her head against his chest. For an uncertain amount of time, she simply lay there, in her brother's embrace.
Slowly, however, Kenny's smile turned into a frown. His hold on Karen tightened, causing her to pull away from him. "Kenny, what's wrong?" She asked. "Is something bothering you?"
"No," He denied. "This is everything I ever wanted. It's just. . ."
"Just what?" Karen asked.
"I dunno," He replied, rubbing his head. "I just feel. . . this almost seems too good to be true. . ."
Immediately, Karen reached out and grabbed Kenny's hand into her own. "Don't say that, Kenny!" She snapped in an almost demanding tone. "This is real; it all is! You've made it real, Kenny!" Standing on top of the bed, she forced Kenny to look into her eyes.
"Don't you dare think this isn't real, Kenny," She told him, her stare almost hypnotic. "It is real. I'm real."
"I. . . I know," Kenny forced himself to say, unwilling to see his sister upset. "This is real. All of it."
But even as he spoke those words, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was wrong.
On the doorsteps of City Hall, Annie and Karen held each other close as they saw the angry mob of brainwashed townsfolk begin to materialize a long distance away. In the night sky, UFOs soared over the building, preventing anyone from slipping out, while the townsfolk marched forward.
"Oh, geez," Karen whispered in fear as she saw the mob approach.
"Don't worry, it's gonna be okay," Annie reassured her, rubbing Karen's back as she waited for the superhero group to show up.
Sure enough, Coon and Friends, and the few other non-brainwashed kids, burst out the door. "Good, you're here," The Human Kite said when he saw the two at the door.
"Yeah, and so are they," Annie said, pointing to the mob advancing upon the building.
"Oh, hamburgers," Professor Chaos gulped as he saw the countless people approaching. Cops, schoolmates, even the President were there, marching like an army towards their targets.
The Human Kite took a deep breath. "Remember, guys," He said to the rest of the team. "Hold them off as long as you can. We have to get Karen to her brother."
Despite the unfavorable odds, Call Girl gave a salute. "On it," She said, masking her fear. She and the others stepped forward, shielding City Hall from the oncoming mob. Meanwhile, the Human Kite took Karen into his arms and rushed into the building, Stan and Annie following closely behind.
"There's Kyle!" Officer Barbrady shouted, pointing as the redhead vanished inside. "Get 'em!"
Letting out a roar, the crowd charged forward. In their haste, however, they didn't notice the multiple Chomper traps laced across the ground by Toolshed preemptively. Shouts of pain filled the air as several people stepped into the traps, immobilizing them.
"Come on!" Super Craig shouted, and he and the other superheroes raced forward towards the crowd.
Fastpass zipped through the townsfolk, snatching several people out of the crowd at lightspeed, hanging them from lamp posts or leaving them tied to trees. A few police officers fired at him, but they couldn't hit him at the speed he was going at. He ran circles around the officers, gaining such speed that he engulfed them in a tornado. The cops were sent flying in all directions, smacking against houses or being smashed through windows.
In the middle of the crowd, Super Craig was fighting off several of his schoolmates with his bare hands. With an angry shout, he sent a Space Grunt flying with a uppercut, before dodging a swing from a squire and flooring him with an overhand. As he fought, he didn't notice a Crusader lumbering towards him, his sword raised in the air.
"Craig, look out!" Wonder Tweek shouted, jumping over Craig's hand and landing a midair kick into the Crusader's chest, knocking him backwards. Craig whirled around, eyes widened in shock.
"T-Thanks, Tweek," He stuttered in shock.
Wonder Tweek didn't have time to reply, because both boys had to duck as several Alien Drones zoomed over their heads, metal claws outstretched towards them. They hovered over the young superheroes, snapping at them with their claws.
"Help me!" Bebe shouted as she was snatched up into the air by one of the drones. Quickly, Professor Chaos fired a stun blast at the drone, causing it to drop Bebe. The girl shrieked as she plunged down towards the ground. Professor Chaos rushed to catch her, only to be flattened beneath her as she fell. The two crashed onto the ground, stunned.
A growling noise filled the air, and the crowd split apart as Geldon the dragon lumbered across the field. He loomed over the fallen Bebe and Butters, fire omitting from his jaws. With a hiss, he pounced upon the pair.
SHING!
Geldon howled as Dragonslayer Red plunged her battleaxe into his long neck. He reeled backwards, giving Red enough time to grab Bebe and Butters and drag them out of the way, seconds before the dragon collapsed, nearly crushing them.
Call Girl was busy trading fire with Visitors, blasting them with electric shocks while dodging their laser blasts. Suddenly, she was sent flying by an explosion, crashing hard against the wall. She landed on the ground, dazed.
Through unfocused eyes, she saw Nathan, preparing to throw another bomb. Just before he could, Fastpass zoomed in, plucking the bomb out of his hand and tossing it up into the air before running off. The bomb promptly landed in front of Nathan before detonating, sending him flying through the air.
As Fastpass raced around the mob, Dougie, in his General Disarray costume, rushed out of the crowd. Seconds before the speedster zipped by, Disarray dumped a bucket of lava onto the ground in front of him.
A stuttered cry escaped Fastpass' mouth as he felt his feet catch on fire. He tumbled violently across the ground, coming to a stop in front of the City Hall.
"Haha!" General Disarray laughed. "Nothing can save you now!"
Several sci-fi kids approached the fallen Fastpass, but Call Girl kept them at bay, blasting them with electricity. But even she could barely keep going.
We can't keep this up for long, she thought. Stan, Kyle, we need you.
Inside the City Hall, the four kids raced up the stairs as fast as they could. They knew it wouldn't be long before the crowd got in, which meant they had to find Kenny and Leslie as soon as possible.
CRASH!
The four stopped in their tracks as several police officers smashed through the window of the hallway, blocking their path. Thundering footsteps raced behind them, and the kids spun around to find President Garrison and Stan's family, preventing them from turning back.
"Fuck!" The Human Kite whispered.
With a gulp, Toolshed hesitantly stepped forward. "Mom, dad, Shelly," He said, raising his hands in the air. "I know you're under a Mind Control spell, but come on. Don't you recognize me? It's Stan."
Stan's parents and sister stared at Stan briefly, not making any movements. Then, Shelly leaned forward and swatted Stan across the face, sending him flying into Kyle.
"Well, that didn't work," He grumbled, rubbing his bruised cheek.
Racing forward, Annie punched one of the police officers in the groin. As he doubled over in pain, she snatched his baton and whacked the other officers in the legs, sending them tumbling down as well. "Come on!" She shouted, racing past the downed cops. Stan, Kyle and Karen followed, Stan's family and Garrison thundering after them.
To keep their pursuers at bay, Toolshed dumped Chompers onto the ground, forcing them to stop in their tracks. As they attempted to find a way to avoid the trap, the kids ducked down another hallway.
"Look!" Annie shouted, pointing up at the attic door, which was creaked slightly open. "That has to be where they are!"
The kids heard footsteps racing behind them, and Annie scooped Karen up and handed her to Kyle. "Go!" She ordered. The Human Kite nodded, taking flight and crashing through the attic door. She and Toolshed leaped up after them.
As soon as they entered the attic, the four pressed up against each other, scouring the room. It was pitch black inside, and they could barely see their own hands in front of their faces.
"We know you're in here," The Human Kite called out. "Come out of the shadows!"
"We could have worked together," Leslie's voice replied out of the darkness. The kids immediately went on alert, trying to find the source of her voice, but it almost seemed to come from everywhere, encircling them all at once.
"You're so smart, Kyle," Leslie bemoaned. "How could you not see what I was offering you? This whole town, this whole world could've been yours, if only you'd have pledge your allegiance to me."
"You know I can't do that, Leslie," Kyle replied, even as he tried to pick her out in the darkness.
He heard the raven-haired girl sigh. "Pity," She whispered. "Kenny, eliminate them."
There was a flash of purple, and Annie was sent flying through the room by a left hook. Toolshed whirled around, only to be snatched from the darkness and hurled into the wall. The Human Kite could barely make out small movements in the darkness and fired in its direction, but failed to hit his mark. As he fired, one stray blast smashed through the window to the attic, allowing the moon's rays to illuminate the room.
The Human Kite could finally see Leslie, pinning Toolshed down to the ground, a knife raised over his head. Before she could strike, he tackled her to the ground. They rolled across the floorboards, exchanging punches and kicks.
As Annie helped Toolshed to her feet, the attic door burst open. Quickly, the two rushed forward, beating down on the police officers' heads as they attempted to enter.
In the midst of the chaos, Karen could see Mysterion, rushing to aid Leslie as she fought the Human Kite. Be strong, Karen, she thought to herself. Then, she rushed forward, grabbing Mysterion's cape.
"Kenny!" She said. "It's me, Karen!"
Mysterion turned to face her for only a moment, then dismissively shoved her off. She landed roughly onto the floorboards, and took a few moments before getting back up.
Mysterion dove towards the Human Kite, grabbing him and wrenching him off of Leslie. Before he could engage him in combat, Karen threw herself between the two. "Come on, Kenny!" She exclaimed, grabbing him by the wrists. "You're stronger than that Mind Control spell. Snap out of it!"
But in spite of her pleas, Mysterion's eyes remained as cold and emotionless as ever.
Leslie stepped next to Mysterion. "You can beg all you want, little girl," She sneered, staring Karen down. "Your brother is perfectly happy in the dream world I've invented for him. There's nothing you can do that would make him want to leave it."
The Human Kite growled and lunged at Leslie, but Mysterion blocked his path, pinning him to the ground. Karen watched as the two scuffled violently with each other, tears brimming in her eyes. Slowly, she turned to face Leslie, and the older girl was surprised to see her defeated expression shift to one of determination.
"You're wrong," Karen whispered, her hands tightening into fists. "There is something I can do."
And with that, she lunged at Leslie.
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